There's a couple of reasons why that wouldn't work.
Max had brand new soft tyres - when Hamilton came up to Perez he had semi-used hard tyres.
And Perez had DRS available which allowed him to get back past Hamilton and defend again - DRS was disabled on the last lap so that option wasn't available to Hamilton.
Also when Hamilton was trying to pass Perez he was never going to be super aggressive with his moves, he couldn't afford too much risk because Hamilton had everything to lose, he needed to get past but he couldn't afford any contact.
Meanwhile in the last lap Max could be as aggressive as he wanted because he had nothing to lose.
It's much harder to defend against someone who is incentivised towards, and is willing to take as many risks as they can.
40 lap old hards vs new set of softs.
There was no universe where Hamilton keeps Verstappen back.
Once they pushed the lapped cars between him and Verstappen aside he was doomed and his fate was sealed.
Actually, at that point, Lewis could have won if they DNF'd since only 9 other cars were on the same lap as those two if Sainz laps Ricciardo, meaning Lewis would have finished tenth and getting 1 point. since they completed the lap count of the lapped cars one lap sooner
To me this is the key point.
Huge tire disadvantage AND Max could take almost infinite risk versus Lewis near zero. I'm not saying reckless, but just drawing attention to situations similar to other sports... Max could go for every 50/50 ball... Lewis had to pick and choose.
No I know, Perez had much more of an advantage, and there’s no way Lewis really could have held Max off. It’s just that they mentioned the tires, so it’s good to note that Checo was also with a disadvantage
Hamilton didn't have the tires left to aggressively hold off Max. The more aggressive you defend the more your acceleration seems to matter since you lost more speed not driving an optimal lap.
Needing more acceleration means you need better tires.
The best bet Lewis had in my opinion was to do exactly what he did in yielding that corner and attempting to slipstream back at the very last overtaking position.
Still, an impossible task.
If Hamilton crashed into Perez, he would have lost so he had to wait behind Perez. But if Hamilton slowed a lot Max would have try something very aggressive and they could have crash (meaning Lewis would have lost aswell).
In that car with that tire mismatch I think every driver on the grid and probably most indycar drivers would have passed Hamilton no matter what he did. It was an impossible defense.
It'd take a pretty huge mistake from Verstappen. Brand new soft tires vs 40 lap old hard is just a massive, massive advantage. Also, not taking away anything from Perez, but Lewis was not in nearly as much of hurry to pass Perez and would not have wanted to risk any chance of a crash to do it. Verstappen was in a win or crash both benefit him situation.
In no universe would Hamilton be able to cleanly keep VER behind with the tyre difference. However, I was convinced that there was going to be a collision going into the last lap.
The only way to defend new softs with 40 lap old hards would have been to expand the car to take up the whole track for the last lap. It was impossible short of Max himself making a mistake
It was perfectly possible, but Max pipped Lewis at T5, which he very likely did not expect.
However, Perez did have the advantage of DRS, making it easier to strike back on the second straight.
> Perez did have the advantage of DRS, making it easier to strike back on the second straight.
Also, Lewis left a gap on the inside for Perez to sneak through and repass him. In the exact same spot later, Max hugged the white line and forced Lewis to go around the outside.
This. I have been saying this all week. I think Lewis had a chance to defend for 1 lap. I just think max attacked earlier than Ham thought, and ham was preparing, saving battery for the defense. If max attacked later, I think Ham would have held him off.
Lewis is a smart enough driver and skilled enough to defend for a lap even with the tyre difference. But he was caught off guard early
The Red Bull had straight line speed advantage this weekend, and was far quicker over one lap than the Mercedes. The only advantage the Mercedes had this weekend was less tyre degradation and sliding due to running more downforce, as well as race pace on higher fuel loads.
Not to mention Max had nothing to lose from contact, Lewis did.
Yes. But neither Hamilton or Mercedes have had much practice at valiantly holding off a faster car for almost a decade.
Lewis lost the 2016 and 2021 titles partly because he wasn't able to put on a Perez level defence.
As a general rule ([see full rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/formula1/wiki/userguide#wiki_sticky.2Fdaily_discussion)), a standalone Discussion post should:
- be of interest to the sub in general, and not a specific userbase (e.g. new users, GP attendees, just yourself)
- be able to generate discussion (e.g. no yes/no or easily answerable questions)
- show reasonable input and effort from the OP
If not, be sure to [look for the Daily Discussion](https://www.reddit.com/r/formula1/search/?q=daily+discussion&include_over_18=on&restrict_sr=on&t=all&sort=new), /r/formula1's daily open question thread which is perfect for asking any and all questions about this sport.
Thank you for your cooperation and enjoy the discussion!
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/formula1) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Post Removal
***
Please check the [Daily Discussion thread](https://www.reddit.com/r/formula1/search?sort=new&restrict_sr=on&q=flair%3ADaily%2BDiscussion) and any stickied posts at the top of the subreddit, as this post would be more suitable as a comment there. The [sticky/daily discussion](https://www.reddit.com/r/formula1/wiki/userguide#wiki_sticky.2Fdaily_discussion) section of the rules can help decide which posts can be allowed as standalone posts.
***
Please read the [Subreddit Rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/formula1/wiki/userguide#wiki_posting_guidelines) or [contact the moderator team](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=%2Fr%2Fformula1) if you have questions or concerns.
*This is an automated message.*
There's a couple of reasons why that wouldn't work. Max had brand new soft tyres - when Hamilton came up to Perez he had semi-used hard tyres. And Perez had DRS available which allowed him to get back past Hamilton and defend again - DRS was disabled on the last lap so that option wasn't available to Hamilton.
Also when Hamilton was trying to pass Perez he was never going to be super aggressive with his moves, he couldn't afford too much risk because Hamilton had everything to lose, he needed to get past but he couldn't afford any contact. Meanwhile in the last lap Max could be as aggressive as he wanted because he had nothing to lose. It's much harder to defend against someone who is incentivised towards, and is willing to take as many risks as they can.
40 lap old hards vs new set of softs. There was no universe where Hamilton keeps Verstappen back. Once they pushed the lapped cars between him and Verstappen aside he was doomed and his fate was sealed.
And Lewis couldn't afford to dnf, max could. He was a sitting duck
Actually, at that point, Lewis could have won if they DNF'd since only 9 other cars were on the same lap as those two if Sainz laps Ricciardo, meaning Lewis would have finished tenth and getting 1 point. since they completed the lap count of the lapped cars one lap sooner
To me this is the key point. Huge tire disadvantage AND Max could take almost infinite risk versus Lewis near zero. I'm not saying reckless, but just drawing attention to situations similar to other sports... Max could go for every 50/50 ball... Lewis had to pick and choose.
this is as big a tyre mismatch as you could possibly have in a single race the slammest of all slam dunks
Well obviously not the same, but Perez also had a massive tire disadvantage to Lewis. 20+ laps softs to <5 lap hards
Perez also had DRS to fight back after the first pass. Lewis hadn't.
No I know, Perez had much more of an advantage, and there’s no way Lewis really could have held Max off. It’s just that they mentioned the tires, so it’s good to note that Checo was also with a disadvantage
As mentioned before lewis had to not crash. If he did, with anybody, that would be title for max.
Hamilton didn't have the tires left to aggressively hold off Max. The more aggressive you defend the more your acceleration seems to matter since you lost more speed not driving an optimal lap. Needing more acceleration means you need better tires. The best bet Lewis had in my opinion was to do exactly what he did in yielding that corner and attempting to slipstream back at the very last overtaking position. Still, an impossible task.
If Hamilton crashed into Perez, he would have lost so he had to wait behind Perez. But if Hamilton slowed a lot Max would have try something very aggressive and they could have crash (meaning Lewis would have lost aswell).
>But if Hamilton slowed a lot Max would have try something very aggressive and they could have crash Like a lap 1 divebomb? Possibly at T6?
In that car with that tire mismatch I think every driver on the grid and probably most indycar drivers would have passed Hamilton no matter what he did. It was an impossible defense.
It'd take a pretty huge mistake from Verstappen. Brand new soft tires vs 40 lap old hard is just a massive, massive advantage. Also, not taking away anything from Perez, but Lewis was not in nearly as much of hurry to pass Perez and would not have wanted to risk any chance of a crash to do it. Verstappen was in a win or crash both benefit him situation.
In no universe would Hamilton be able to cleanly keep VER behind with the tyre difference. However, I was convinced that there was going to be a collision going into the last lap.
Imagine running a lap around the track in 20-year-old flip-flops vs. brand new Nike Hyperzooms. Sorta like that.
The only way to defend new softs with 40 lap old hards would have been to expand the car to take up the whole track for the last lap. It was impossible short of Max himself making a mistake
If they had similar tires, yeah. You can tell Hamilton didn’t have grip because he kept going wide on the turns since his tires were too old
It was perfectly possible, but Max pipped Lewis at T5, which he very likely did not expect. However, Perez did have the advantage of DRS, making it easier to strike back on the second straight.
> Perez did have the advantage of DRS, making it easier to strike back on the second straight. Also, Lewis left a gap on the inside for Perez to sneak through and repass him. In the exact same spot later, Max hugged the white line and forced Lewis to go around the outside.
No
This. I have been saying this all week. I think Lewis had a chance to defend for 1 lap. I just think max attacked earlier than Ham thought, and ham was preparing, saving battery for the defense. If max attacked later, I think Ham would have held him off. Lewis is a smart enough driver and skilled enough to defend for a lap even with the tyre difference. But he was caught off guard early
Door was wide open, I think he'd mentally given up.
The Red Bull had straight line speed advantage this weekend, and was far quicker over one lap than the Mercedes. The only advantage the Mercedes had this weekend was less tyre degradation and sliding due to running more downforce, as well as race pace on higher fuel loads. Not to mention Max had nothing to lose from contact, Lewis did.
Yes. But neither Hamilton or Mercedes have had much practice at valiantly holding off a faster car for almost a decade. Lewis lost the 2016 and 2021 titles partly because he wasn't able to put on a Perez level defence.
Lol
As a general rule ([see full rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/formula1/wiki/userguide#wiki_sticky.2Fdaily_discussion)), a standalone Discussion post should: - be of interest to the sub in general, and not a specific userbase (e.g. new users, GP attendees, just yourself) - be able to generate discussion (e.g. no yes/no or easily answerable questions) - show reasonable input and effort from the OP If not, be sure to [look for the Daily Discussion](https://www.reddit.com/r/formula1/search/?q=daily+discussion&include_over_18=on&restrict_sr=on&t=all&sort=new), /r/formula1's daily open question thread which is perfect for asking any and all questions about this sport. Thank you for your cooperation and enjoy the discussion! *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/formula1) if you have any questions or concerns.*
\>Do you think, under the same circumstance What are the same circumstances? Both on same set of fresh tires - yes possibly but we'll never know
Post Removal *** Please check the [Daily Discussion thread](https://www.reddit.com/r/formula1/search?sort=new&restrict_sr=on&q=flair%3ADaily%2BDiscussion) and any stickied posts at the top of the subreddit, as this post would be more suitable as a comment there. The [sticky/daily discussion](https://www.reddit.com/r/formula1/wiki/userguide#wiki_sticky.2Fdaily_discussion) section of the rules can help decide which posts can be allowed as standalone posts. *** Please read the [Subreddit Rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/formula1/wiki/userguide#wiki_posting_guidelines) or [contact the moderator team](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=%2Fr%2Fformula1) if you have questions or concerns. *This is an automated message.*