It was to be a pit-stop to make a precautionary change of tyres as the signs were good that George Russell could win the Sakhir GP. But it turned out to be a bungled move that not only ultimately took away the chances of the driver who was driving in place of Lewis Hamilton, but it would cost the Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS Team 20,000 euros (about RM98,700) as well.

The pit crews practice and practice to get the stop down to seconds and these days, without refuelling, the car can be in and out in less than 4 seconds. Red Bull Racing holds the record – 1.88 seconds to changed 4 tyres. But the Sakhir GP presented new conditions that required quick decisions as each lap was less than a minute and it is believed that the sudden decision to make the precautionary change had created a bit of confusion, compounded by Valtteri Bottas also coming in.

Mix-up rectified a lap later
Russell’s car received a mixed set of tyres – two of which were the front ones for Bottas’ car – and when the mistake was realized, he was already zooming off so it was another minute before he could be brought back in to rectify the error. Fortunately, it was less than a minute to do a circuit of the track. But he was no longer within sight of the front of the pack where Sergio Perez was on his way to his first F1 win – which could also have been Russell’s.

But the 22-year old who had been released from Williams Racing at the request of the Mercedes-AMG team showed that he had the determination to win and though he was just out of points range, he managed to fight his way back up to ninth when the race ended, getting the first 2 points of his F1 career plus 1 point for the fastest lap of the 87-lap race (55.4 seconds).

Russell did everything he was instructed to do and drove a fine race, demonstrating how good he can be if he has the right car with the right resources. He must have been focused on not making a bad impression in any way so he could not, as Hamilton did in the Turkish BP, ignore the unplanned precautionary pit stop and keep his leading position. Hamilton had been asked to come in 2 laps before the end of the Turkish and chose not to.

‘Incorrect use of tyres’ offence
The offence committed was described as ‘incorrect use of tyres’ and the Stewards learnt that it was caused by a radio communications technical issue wherein the pit wall’s communication to the pit crew that Car 63 (Russell) was entering the pits prior to (and not after) Car 77 (Bottas), failed to be received by the crew of Car 63 because at the same time, the driver of Car 63 transmitted over the top of that message.  This resulted in the front tyres of Car 77 accidentally going onto Car 63, as the cars were ‘double stacked’ at the time.

The offence would normally involve a sporting penalty up to Disqualification but the Stewards also considered mitigating circumstances, besides the radio issue. It was noted that the team rectified the problem within 1 lap. Perhaps it was considered to be enough ‘penalty’ that both cars dropped down in classification.

The Stewards also pointed out that one of the regulations which was thought to be applicable was not actually catered for but considered to be similar in nature. However, the responsibility to fit tyres in compliance with the regulations, still rests with the team and therefore a penalty had to be imposed.

The Stewards have recommended that the FIA consider amending the regulation to accommodate this type of situation when it is rectified without delay. It is noted that this type of mix-up has not previously been experienced in Formula 1.

♦ Prior to the start of the race, Lando Norris (McLaren) had his starting position moved to the back from 15th position as his car had an engine change.

♦ The two Mercedes-AMG cars got a great start, with George Russell just sneaking ahead of Valtteri Bottas. But for Charles Leclerc and Sergio Perez clashed in the first corner and Max Verstappen couldn’t avoid them. The Dutchman and Leclerc ended up heading straight for the barriers and ending their race, while Perez got away.

♦ The Safety Car was immediately sent out and it was Russell who was right behind it as it circulated for 6 laps. In second place was Bottas and then Carlos Sainz. While Bottas would have been determined to get into the lead, he was too busy keeping back Sainz to close the gap on Russell.

♦ Although way back in the field, the two newcomers racing in F1 for the first time – Pietro Fittipaldi and Jack Aitken – were aggressively trying to improve their positions, taking on even Kimi Raikkonen.

♦ By the 22nd lap, Bottas was able to extend the gap with Sainz to 11 seconds and focussed on his team mate who was 2 seconds ahead. However, his team said that he was having brake problems too.

♦ The first 6 laps with the Safety Car out had an effect on tyre degradation which was less than what was forecast, pls track temperatures were also cool. As a result, team strategists began to consider the possibility of a one-stop race. Even up to 40 laps, the first 4 cars had not come in for new tyres.

♦ With lap times under a minute, the halfway mark in the 87-lap race was reached about 43 minutes after start. It would have been earlier if not the for slow-down by the Safety Car at the start.

♦ Russell finally came in on lap 46 for new tyres, letting Bottas take over the lead. But as the British driver returned to the track after less than 3 seconds out, he found that the car was down on power. The cause was later said to be a sensor issue but seemed to go away and he rocketed ahead to close the gap – and set fastest lap.

♦ Bottas had earlier been asked to extend the time out another 9 laps and came in on lap 50, giving back the lead to Russell.

♦ Nicholas Latifi’s race ended on lap 54 as he pulled over, bringing out the Virtual Safety Car for about 2 laps to allow retrieval of the Williams car.

♦ Perez put in an impressive drive; after escaping the Verstappen-Leclerc crash and then coming into the pits, he worked his way up the field to reach third by lap 59. He still have Esteban Ocon and Lance Stroll close behind but the gap was too big to go for Bottas.

♦ The Virtual Safety Car would come out again another 4 minutes later when Aitken’s car lost its wing after a spin and bumping in the barrier. Aitken’s incident would later be seen as the event that changed the outcome of the race.

♦ Both Russell and Bottas slipped into the pits and then disaster struck for Bottas as his stop was 10 times longer than the usual sub-3 seconds! And in the confusion, Russell got wrong tyres, which could mean a penalty for having a mixed set. It was a heartbreaking time for the team while Perez appeared to be secure in the lead as 18 laps remained.

♦ On lap 71,  with new tyres, Russell pushed hard to get past Bottas and then set his sights on Stroll, who was less than  2 second ahead. Commentators had checked the rules and it seemed that the mixed tyres might not bring a penalty.

♦  With 10 laps remaining, Russell got past Ocon and was in second place, gunning for Perez who was about 2 seconds ahead. And then a puncture on the rear left wheel forced the Mercedes-AMG driver back to the pits… and when he rejoined the race, he was in 15th position.

♦ With a sufficiently wide gap, Perez sped through the remaining laps to win the second last round of 2020. And it was a 1-3 for the BWT Racing Point team too as Stroll finished third, behind Ocon. For Russell, who managed to get at least a point (as well as another for fastest lap) as he managed to get up to ninth before the chequered flag came out, it’s just a tiny consolation.