Mercedes has explained how the team orders call during the Formula 1 Dutch Grand Prix helped George Russell to secure a double podium for the team.
According to Motorsportweek, in the closing stages of Zandvoort’s farewell, a VSC saw several drivers dash into the pits for a new set of tyres.
However, the front runners, Lando Norris and Russell, stayed out, aiming to finish the race on their existing tyres. But as expected, Russell was immediately under pressure from his World Champion rival, and team-mate Kimi Antonelli.
Instead of the pair fighting, the Brackley team invoked team orders and asked Russell to let Antonelli through to second while he defended against the fast-charging Ferrari duo behind. Whilst complying with the team’s wishes, the Briton quizzed the pit wall.
However, Mercedes trackside engineering director Andrew Shovlin has officially shut down these claims, stating the team orders were to save Russell from the threat of the Ferrari’s behind.
Shovlin said on Mercedes’ social media platforms, “The VSC came out on lap 55, [and] both Ferraris took it, so they were going to be on fresh rubber by the restart. On Lap 56, we still had a window where we could get Kimi in and put him ahead of both of those Ferraris, which put him in a great position to finish ahead of them. And George was running P4 prior to that.”
Mercedes on controversial team orders
Shovlin explained that the team opted to keep Russell on track to gain position under the VSC. However, the three cars behind the Briton were all on new tyres, leaving Russell at risk of dropping down to fifth place from the podium.
Instead of allowing Russell to lose crucial time and tyre life whilst battling Antonelli, the Brackley team opted for the more controversial approach, in team orders.
“Kimi dropped behind George after the stop,” Shovlin continued.
“Now, why did we invert the cars? Well, that was really about saving George race time. Kimi had the grip to get through, but if we’d allowed them to race each other, George would have lost time to the Ferraris, and the Ferraris would have had more time to attack and try to get through.”
“Now, as it happened, George defended brilliantly and it was great to see him on the podium. He really deserved that result.”
Mercedes may not be at ‘Papaya Rules’ levels yet, but many have started wondering if the team are already favouring Antonelli over Russell.
Whilst Toto Wolff claimed it to be “too early” in the season to pick a favourite for the title, decisions like Zandvoort raise speculation across the fandom.
