28/01/2014
NEWS STORY
It was a case of deja vu for Lewis Hamilton at Jerez this morning, the Englishman crashing out after just a few laps, much as he did last year.
The crash last year made the headlines because it came as the Englishman made his debut with the German team following his controversial move from McLaren. The sceptics were proved wrong however with Mercedes finishing runner-up in the championship whilst its Woking rivals slipped to fifth.
This morning, as most were still wearing broad grins as even more silly noses were unveiled, it was back to reality when Hamilton went off into the barriers at the end of the pit straight.
The German team soon confirmed a front wing failure as the cause and whilst it was hoped to get the Englishman out after the lunch break the team subsequently experienced "hydraulic and electrical installation issues" the side effect of the massive packaging problems brought on by the new regulations.
Such is the trepidation with which the teams are approaching the new formula, at the lunch break only Hamilton and Jean-Eric Vergne had posted times.
Of the nine teams present, only five had ventured out, mostly for a series of installation laps, indeed, in total only 40 laps had been completed by the end of the morning.
On a day that saw several cars revealed for the first time ever, Hamilton was first out.
Kimi Raikkonen, now back at Ferrari, was another early riser, but early on his first run was instructed to cut his engine as a precautionary move, the Finn subsequently going out for another couple of laps.
Chris Balfe