While there are still interesting battles further back in the field, the front of Formula One’s pack hasn’t always been all that exciting. Case in point: even Ferrari driver Sebastian Vettel just kind of spaced out and slowed down during the last lap of last weekend’s Hockenheim race.
Vettel mistook the last lap as his cool-down, going off track to pick up bits of rubber with his tires as if he were coming back in. Drivers often pick up the off-line rubber debris on their cool-down laps to add weight back to the car for post-race weigh-ins. Fortunately, he soon realized the mistake and sped back up to race pace to take the checkered flag.
Had this been another year, or perhaps another series, Vettel could been passed by traffic behind him with this little brain fart. But it’s F1 in 2016, so Vettel’s teammate Kimi Räikkönen was far enough behind him that Vettel kept his fifth-place position.
We’re kind of with Seb on this. Redditor Supercar_Toons did the math, and there would be a four-way, two-team battle for the championship if Mercedes’ two cars didn’t count.
[H/T WTF1]