29/06/2023
NEWS STORY
Seven-time world champion, Lewis Hamilton has called on the sport to restrict car development in a bid to prevent domination by one team.
The Briton's comments come as Mercedes, which won eight consecutive constructors' titles between 2014 and 2021, seeks to close the gap to reigning champions Red Bull who have won all eight of this year's races thus far.
"If everyone had a time (to start on the development of their car for the next season), and no-one has a head start, then it's a real race," the Briton told reporters as the Austrian Grand Prix weekend got underway. "Maybe that would help everyone be closer the following year.
"In my seventeen years of being here, even before I got here, you would see periods of dominance and it continues to happen," he continued. "I was very fortunate to have one of those periods and Max is having one now.
"With the way it's going, it will continue to happen over and over again, and I don't think we need that in the sport. When you are so far ahead, a hundred points ahead, you don't really need to do a lot of development on your car so you can start earlier on your next car. And with the budget cap that means spending that year's money on next year's car.
"Something has got to change because when we were winning championships, we could start earlier than everyone else.
"It would be cool to see in the next period if we don't have huge bands of time when one team is ahead because we want to see better racing."
Hamilton's comments come as no surprise. Last year was the first year in which he failed to win a single race since entering the sport, and only now is his team showing genuine signs of a revival.
To date, team boss Toto Wolff has played down talk of the sport curbing Red Bull's domination, but that hasn't stopped his drivers who haven't missed an opportunity to raise the issue.
While F1 CEO, Stefano Domenicali has dismissed the notion of "manipulating" the rules, the sport's owners will be eyeing the situation with growing concern.
If Red Bull continues to dominate those fans won over during lockdown by Drive to Survive will come to realise what the rest of us have known for some time, that F1 isn't the thrill-a-minute, rollercoaster ride suggested by the adverts but often very processional, with just one team calling the shots.
As Hamilton admits, when Mercedes was dominating, it had the luxury of being able to get to work on its next car earlier than its rivals, thereby ensuring that the domination continued unchecked.
It is not up to the sport to handicap Red Bull's success but for Mercedes and the rest to stop whinging and get on with trying to beat them, like Aston Martin is currently trying to do.
Sadly, with an eye the cash register, the FIA, acting on the orders of F1, will capitulate and the sport will take another significant step in the wrong direction.
F1 is a meritocracy, since it began there have been periods of domination, it is nothing new. It is up to the likes of Mercedes to topple Red Bull by raising its game as opposed to having the rules changed to suit.
Told of Hamilton's comments, speaking at the official FIA press conference, Max Verstappen said: "Life is unfair as well. It's not only in Formula 1. Like I said, a lot of things are unfair, so we just have to deal with it."
Check out our Thursday gallery from the Red Bull Ring here.