Trust between driver and team is often quoted as one of the key elements for success in motor racing. This, to me, seems to be entirely logical. Strange, therefore, that in two recent F1 races in particular, Lando Norris and Lewis Hamilton both ignored their engineers’ calls to pit for tyres – and almost certainly lost out big time as a result.
Norris’ performance in Sochi, pulling away from regenmeister Hamilton in the wet on similarly worn slick tyres, was phenomenal, but his refusal to follow initial instructions from the pit wall cost him and the team dear, even a probable first race win for the young Englishman.
Hamilton, meanwhile, has a deserved reputation for his ‘gut instinct’ proving correct, much of this due to his mastery of tyre preservation…
