Monaco: Is Nico Rosberg at fault?
A German magazine managed to retrieve the telemetry data of Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton during the qualifying session in Monaco. So, is Rosberg at fault for causing the yellow flag?
Lewis Hamilton believes that his German teammate intentionally triggered a yellow flag during the qualifying session. The English driver was on track to snatch the pole position from Michael Schumacher’s former teammate. After the qualification, the Brit expressed himself in the columns of the BBC: « I wish you could see the telemetry data I saw last night, something more than I could say… »
Members of the FIA Charlie Whiting, José Abed, Christian Calmes, and Dereck Warwick arrived at different conclusions. According to document no. 33, they stated that neither the video nor the data collection suggests any infringement.
According to *Auto Motor und Sport*, Rosberg braked 10 meters later than in his fastest lap according to telemetry data. However, the evidence is not sufficient, which is why there has been no investigation or even suspicions.
The Mercedes driver could not match his best time due to an error in the casino curve in the first sector, which cost him 124 thousandths, after which he took all the risks. Rosberg drove at 215.6 km/h instead of 208.7 km/h on his previous lap between the casino and the Mirabeau curve.
Charlie Whiting stated: « This matches telemetry data at other points, both Mercedes drivers braked on their last lap at Ste Dévote 8 meters further, the proof is that they took all the risks, » which would support Rosberg’s version.
However, the FIA director proposed an idea: « Why don’t we extend the qualifying laps by one minute when a yellow flag is shown in the last 3 minutes, which would give the other concerned competitors the chance to try again. »
