12 responses to “Malaysia: Team Orders Polls”

1. Red Bull and Merc team orders – yes: they are the Pipers and they call the tune.
   Vettel should have followed orders – yes: first, second or equal driver, if he is not paid as a team member, then what is he, a prima donna to do what he likes with his employer’s equipment? As a team member he should (allowing for force majeure) follow team orders.
   Should Webber have fought him off – no: as above, and in his wisdom he did not, probably getting a lot of team amd general PR kudos.
   Should Vettel be sanctioned by the team – yes: Horner may not have the b…s, but this could be make or break for the status of the team in Vettel’s eyes.

   Should Rosberg have ignored Merc’s team order – no: see above.
   Should Lewis have fought him off if he had ignored – no: see above.

   Remember before the modern era when team drivers would be pulled in to give up their car to a more “senior” team driver whose car had failed? I believe because of the current economic pressures, teams are behaving now like racing teams used to and are favouring the Manufacturers’ points over the Drivers’ points as that is where the core income is. I think they get more general world publicity and therefore return for sponsors’ money when the headline reads “Red Bull wins again”, than headlines citing the driver’s name.

   • Team orders are as old as the hills, Collins to Fangio, Italy 1956; Brroks to Moss, Britain 1957.
     Look at how fondly Moss is remembered now 50 years after his F1 career ended. Moss supported Hawthorn when in danger of being excluded from the GP in Portugal. He believed in winning fairly, not at all costs.

     • Great example Cassius42

   • I understand your reasoning but I disagree.

     It’s almost an infamous line that Schumacher won Ferrari their first World Championship in more than 21 years.
     But it just goes to show how important the Constructors really is.

     1979 Schekter wins WDC. 2000 Schumi wins WDC. 21 years right?
     But Ferrari won the 1999 WCC, so surely that should be 20 years? Except thats wrong too.
     Ferrari won the 1982 WCC with Villeneuve, Pironi, Tambay and Andretti.
     In 1983, they also won the WCC with Tambay and Arnoux.
     So the truth is 16 years.

     A couple of weeks ago, on some forum, someone stated that Ferrari hadn’t won a championship since 2007. They had forgotten that Ferrari had won the 2008 Constructor crown.

     The WCC pays the money, but the icons get the glory.

2. Hey Judge, I think that people might be gettign confused with a couple of questions.
   The second RBR Q states “Should Vettel have followed the team’s order?”
   The second Merc Q states “Should Rosberg have ignored the team order?”
   Most popular answer in both Qs is ‘Yes’, which in a way shows that people contradict themselves of apply double standards.
   Porabably what happens, is that the questions are very similar with the only difference the one word ‘followed/ignored’. And hence they answer ‘yes’ to the Merc question as if it worded the same way.

   • OK, I’m losing it, ignore me, my bad, most popular in Merc Q is ‘No’.

     • You’re ‘bad’ indeed – you will be ‘stood down’ for the next poll 😉

   • I’ll amend text – thank you

3. My take as I understand from the comms published on twitter F1PitRadio and F1PitRadio2:
   Rosberg asks to be allowed to go past Lewis because he believes he is much faster and he can chase the Red Bulls down.
   Mercedes (Ross) decides that due to fuel and tyre issues, he does not want to take that risk, and Ross says that Rosberg is not under threat from Massa; so he instructs Hamilton and Rosbergto finish in their then present order.

4. I believe Hamilton would have allowed Rosberg to pass if he was asked by Ross to so. I believe so because Lewis knows from his first F1 Monaco race that he felt cheated that he was told to keep position behind Alonso, even though Lewis was much faster, He felt that Alonso should have been told something along the lines of “Fernando, Lewis is faster than you. Confirm you have understood”.

   • +1

   • The way he let Alonso through in qualifying in Hungary in 2007 when asked by the team?

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