01/09/2022
NEWS STORY
Mercedes has revealed that the first lap clash with Fernando Alonso last Sunday saw Lewis Hamilton's W13 hit the ground at 45G.
As the pair battled up the Kemmel Straight and into Les Combes, the seven-time world champion's right-rear wheel interlocked and went over the front-left on the Alpine, sending the Mercedes up into the air and crashing to the ground.
Though Hamilton was initially able to continue, he subsequently slowed, losing countless positions in the process, before being told to park the car.
"It was a large, large impact," admits the team's strategy director, James Vowles in the latest video debrief from the German team. "It was measured at 45G on the car which is very big on a vertical load.
"He will be okay, he will be back in Zandvoort fighting," he continues. "I think primarily for him he is frustrated, frustrated that he had a very fast race car and a podium was possible. But he, like all of us, are here to fight and continue moving forward."
While Hamilton is ok, though he was subsequently given a warning by the stewards, for refusing to visit the Medical Centre following the accident, which had triggered the Medical Warning Light signal, the team isn't entirely sure about his car, and there is concern over possible damage to the power unit.
"There are enough photos floating around the internet to show just how high the car was and how it landed and the impact was large," says Vowles.
"What we noticed almost immediately after the impact on the ground was a loss of coolant," he adds. "You can actually see on the on-board of Alonso that coolant really just flying out towards him and then you started to see temperatures rise fairly quickly and that was the primary reason for stopping him on track.
"It will take a few days to review all the components. Clearly there is going to be overloads to the suspension components and gearboxes and we need to make sure to understand the full extent of what's required before Zandvoort."