http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/ ... 199765.ece
August 5, 2007
Alonso pays for dirty trick
Hamilton handed pole after rival penalised for pit lane ‘sabotage’
Alan Baldwinin Budapest
LEWIS HAMILTON’S McLaren team were embroiled in another “dirty tricks” row last night – but this time there was not a Ferrari in sight.
The cause of the controversy was the simmering rivalry between the emerging British superstar and his teammate, the Spanish double world champion Fernando Alonso. Hamilton was left fuming, and launched a foul-mouthed tirade at his team boss Ron Dennis, after Alonso baulked his last flying lap in qualifying for today’s Hungarian Grand Prix.
The top 10 drivers in the qualifying session are given a final 15 minutes in which to race off for the leading grid positions and Hamilton had posted the fastest time when, with about two minutes of the session remaining, both drivers entered the pit lane for a fresh set of tyres for their final flying laps. Alonso was first to reach the McLaren pit and Hamilton waited behind him for his turn. But when the Spaniard received the all-clear from the mechanics, in the form of a raised “lollipop”, he unaccountably remained stationary for about 10 seconds before setting off.
Alonso went on to set a time of 1min 19.674sec, which beat Hamilton’s previous time by 0.107sec, and take pole position. The Briton, meanwhile, was unable to cross the start line before the end of the 15-minute session, missing out by just a few seconds, and so was unable to challenge the effort of his teammate, whom he leads by two points in the championship. Hamilton will start second on the grid today on the Hungaroring track, where overtaking is notoriously difficult.
Background
* Alonso takes pole in Hungary
* FIA admits to ‘suspicions’ over McLaren case
* Hamilton ready for a return to the podium
Related Links
* Lewis blows a gasket
“It definitely needs a good explanation,” said a clearly annoyed Hamilton, who had expressed his frustration at the Monaco Grand Prix in May when he was ordered by the team not to challenge Alonso for the race lead. “I really don’t understand why I was held back. I guess you should ask the team, and I definitely will do when I go back and have the debrief.”
The 22-year-old from Stevenage exchanged angry words with Dennis as he returned to the pits, reportedly saying: “Don’t ever f****** do that to me again!” Dennis replied: “Don’t ever f****** speak to me like that again!” Hamilton delivered a final riposte: “Go f****** swivel!”
Dennis downplayed the incident afterwards. “I was quite firm on the radio and he was reasonably firm back,” he said.
Alonso said that he had been ordered to remain where he was by his engineer over the team radio in order to find a gap in traffic. “They do the calculations, they find the gaps and I just drive the car,” he said. “I’m always ready to go.” McLaren were last night summoned to the race stewards to explain why Alonso had been held up.
The return to the track should have been a welcome relief for the team after the furore of the past few weeks in relation to allegations that they had spied on Ferrari, their Italian rivals.
Dennis will, however, now have to field more questions about the racing priorities of his team.
FERNANDO ALONSO was sensationally stripped of his pole position for the Hungarian Grand Prix late last night and docked five places on the grid after he deliberately held up his McLaren teammate and world championship rival Lewis Hamilton in yesterday's final qualifying session.
McLaren will also not be awarded any points towards the constructors’ world championship as a result of today’s race.
Race stewards ruled that the Spanish double world champion had “unnecessarily impeded” the emerging British superstar, who leads him in the drivers’ championship by two points, from completing a final flying lap by blocking the team’s pit box towards the end of the qualifying session. The top 10 drivers in the qualifying session are given a final 15 minutes in which to race off for the leading grid positions and Hamilton had posted the fastest time when, with about two minutes of the session remaining, both drivers entered the pit lane for a fresh set of tyres for their final laps.
Alonso was first to reach the McLaren pit and Hamilton waited behind him for his turn. But when the Spaniard received the all-clear from the mechanics, in the form of a raised “lollipop”, he unaccountably stayed stationary for about 10 seconds before setting off.
Alonso went on to set a time of 1min 19.674sec, which beat Hamilton’s previous time by 0.107sec, and take pole position. The Briton, meanwhile, was unable to cross the start line before the end of the 15-minute session, missing out by just a few seconds, and so could not challenge the effort of his teammate.
Both Alonso and McLaren were found culpable by race stewards at the Hungaroring. “The actions of the team in the final minutes of qualifying are considered prejudicial to the interests of the competition and to the interests of motor sport generally,” they said in a statement.
“Because of the delay caused by Alonso, Hamilton was unable to complete his pit stop in time sufficient to enable him also to complete a flying lap,” it continued. “The stewards find that he [Alonso] unnecessarily impeded another driver, Hamilton, and as a result he will be penalised by a loss of five grid positions.”
The 22-year-old from Stevenage, who will now start the race from pole, had exchanged angry words with his team boss Ron Dennis as he returned to the pits, reportedly saying: “Don’t ever f****** do that to me again!” Dennis replied: “Don’t ever f****** speak to me like that again!” Hamilton delivered a final riposte: “Go f****** swivel!”
Alonso said that he had been ordered to remain where he was by his engineer over the team radio to find a gap in traffic. “They do the calculations, they find the gaps and I just drive the car,” he said. “I’m always ready to go.”
The incident will heap yet more pressure on McLaren, which in recent weeks has been involved in claims and counterclaims over alleged spying on their rivals Ferrari by their former chief designer.
FERNANDO ALONSO was sensationally stripped of his pole position for the Hungarian Grand Prix late last night and docked five places on the grid after he deliberately held up his McLaren teammate and world championship rival Lewis Hamilton in yesterday's final qualifying session.
McLaren will also not be awarded any points towards the constructors’ world championship as a result of today’s race.
Race stewards ruled that the Spanish double world champion had “unnecessarily impeded” the emerging British superstar, who leads him in the drivers’ championship by two points, from completing a final flying lap by blocking the team’s pit box towards the end of the qualifying session. The top 10 drivers in the qualifying session are given a final 15 minutes in which to race off for the leading grid positions and Hamilton had posted the fastest time when, with about two minutes of the session remaining, both drivers entered the pit lane for a fresh set of tyres for their final laps.
Alonso was first to reach the McLaren pit and Hamilton waited behind him for his turn. But when the Spaniard received the all-clear from the mechanics, in the form of a raised “lollipop”, he unaccountably stayed stationary for about 10 seconds before setting off.
Alonso went on to set a time of 1min 19.674sec, which beat Hamilton’s previous time by 0.107sec, and take pole position. The Briton, meanwhile, was unable to cross the start line before the end of the 15-minute session, missing out by just a few seconds, and so could not challenge the effort of his teammate.
Both Alonso and McLaren were found culpable by race stewards at the Hungaroring. “The actions of the team in the final minutes of qualifying are considered prejudicial to the interests of the competition and to the interests of motor sport generally,” they said in a statement.
“Because of the delay caused by Alonso, Hamilton was unable to complete his pit stop in time sufficient to enable him also to complete a flying lap,” it continued. “The stewards find that he [Alonso] unnecessarily impeded another driver, Hamilton, and as a result he will be penalised by a loss of five grid positions.”
The 22-year-old from Stevenage, who will now start the race from pole, had exchanged angry words with his team boss Ron Dennis as he returned to the pits, reportedly saying:
“Don’t ever f****** do that to me again!” Dennis replied: “Don’t ever f****** speak to me like that again!” Hamilton delivered a final riposte: “Go f****** swivel!”
Alonso said that he had been ordered to remain where he was by his engineer over the team radio to find a gap in traffic. “They do the calculations, they find the gaps and I just drive the car,” he said. “I’m always ready to go.”
The incident will heap yet more pressure on McLaren, which in recent weeks has been involved in claims and counterclaims over alleged spying on their rivals Ferrari by their former chief designer.
Alguém se lembra de Mônaco no ano passado?
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