On the eve of the start of the new F1 season which has already been won by Max Verstappen, an almighty row has broken out at Merecedes, after Lewis Hamilton discovered that his new car for 2024 has been fitted with a 50 miles per-hour speed restrictor.
The seven-time world champion, who is leaving his current employer at the end of the season to join Ferrari, is understood to have entered a bitter war or words with team principal Toto Wolff.
Speaking ahead of the season curtain raiser in Bahrain, Hamilton could not hide his fury as he told reporters;
“It’s impossible to be competitive in this car. It’s soooo slow going into corners whilst on the straight, I was overtaken by a track Marshall on an e-scooter in free practice yesterday.”
Asked whether Brackley-based outfit Mercedes now had a personal grudge against him because of his announcement to join Ferrari in 2025, Hamilton remained tight-lipped. He did however, state that:
“I have always had a great relationship with Toto and my mechanics, and we did discuss the possibility of making a few changes to the car for the new season to try to make marginal gains.
“I was unaware however, that one of them was to reduce top speed capacity to less than a pensioner’s mobility cart.”
Wolff refused to comment on the situation, claiming he was too busy waiting on the arrival of 200 cases of Dom Perignon for the hospitality tent.
One of the Mercedes mechanics however, was prepared to break silence and revealed to Paddy Power News that:
“It is really no secret that we’ve been considering a move like this for some time.
“And the reliability of some of the cars is so terrible that Lewis could still grab a few podiums this season cruising around like your granny on a Sunday afternoon.
“The amount of money we save on fuel and tyres will also mean a decent staff Christmas party this year.”
A spokesperson for Liberty Media, the company that owns a majority stake in the Formula 1 organisation, also told us that other new initiatives were also being discussed.
“We are thinking of giving Hamilton a 40 lap start in the British Grand Prix to try to boost ticket sales and there are also plans to have a two-lap sprint race at one of our other venues, with all the drivers using dodgem cars.”
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