Palmer sees Mercedes' weak spot: 'Red Bull shows how it's done'
F1 News
- GPblog.com
Looking back on the spectacular Monaco Grand Prix, in which Red Bull Racing were mostly faultless from start to finish, former driver Jolyon Palmer sees Mercedes' weakness bubbling to the surface. The Brit points to Mercedes' weakness in the pit lane, especially compared to Red Bull.
Lewis Hamilton's attempted undercut in Monaco, with the team targeting Pierre Gasly 's P6, ended in drama. Instead of overtaking the Frenchman, Hamilton saw Sergio Perez and Sebastian Vettel pass him, something the driver was clearly irritated about over the team radio.
"Red Bull and Sergio Perez showed Mercedes how it should have been done in Monaco", Palmer begins his usual analysis on the Official website of Formula 1. "Which is something I’m sure they will take extra satisfaction in after the strategy duels so far this season between the two teams."
A matter of timing
Palmer continued: "Perez saved his tyres early on and when everybody pitted in a chain reaction to Hamilton’s stop, Perez could continue going around three seconds per lap faster than the Gasly/Hamilton battle."
So this difference in timing turned into an advantage for Perez, and Palmer sees no reason why the Mercedes pit wall couldn't have waited for this moment too. "This was the clear bit of track Hamilton should have waited for, rather than pitting early and being snookered on strategy immediately. Not only that but had there been a safety car after Hamilton’s stop, Perez would have benefitted immeasurably more still", Palmer concluded.