Do we need Team Orders in F1?

Team orders have been legal since the start of the 2011 season in F1 after being outlawed from 2003 onwards. They can be used by teams to determine where their cars finished if they are running in adjacent positions, but are often mis-used and as you will read, used to alter the race in an unsporting manner.

Malaysia came and went several weeks ago, but Vettel’s decision to overlook the team’s judgement was a strange twist in the debacle that is Team Orders. In the past, Webber has agreed to Team Orders and put Red Bull well and truly before himself. Sebastian claimed not to understand that ‘Multi-21’ meant Webber ahead of Vettel, but in Spa last year he said “Multi-12, please.’ To make sure he wouldn’t be overtaken.

In the past, we’ve had people using them when legal but unfairly, and we’ve had people using them illegally when they were banned. Now, we have a case of people not obeying them. But, when you consider the controversy they have caused in the past, was what Sebastian did so wrong?

Belgium, 1998 (Team orders LEGAL)

Michael Schumacher has crashed out of the race. You’re Damon Hill and haven’t won a race since leaving Williams in 1996. Your team has never won a Grand Prix. Your team mate Ralf Schumacher is much faster than you behind. What do you do? Guilt-trip the team.

“I’m going to put something to you, and you better listen. If we two [Ralf and Damon] race, we could get nothing. If we don’t race each other we’ve got an opportunity to get a first and second. It’s up to Eddie.”

Damon could see the young German homing in on him, so deployed the old all-or-nothing tactic. Of course, they finished like that, 1-2, Jordan’s best ever race result, but the younger Schumacher should have had his first victory three years early.

“Ralf, you cannot overtake Damon. That is a team order.”

I can see the sense here, not wanting to risk all or nothing, but I do think it was a ploy by Damon to ensure victory for himself.

Austria, 2001 (Team orders LEGAL)

The A1 Ring was subject to some horrendous treatment of Ferrari 'Number 2' Rubens Barrichello. He was running second ahead of Michael Schumacher. Then, imagine the horror of hearing Jean Todt in his ear:

"It’s last lap, let Michael pass for the championship, Rubens please. Let Michael pass for the championship."

Rubens surrendered the lead at the latest possible moment

The quarrel I have with this incident in particular is that it was only round 6 of 17, and the team had already decided they favoured Michael. What a shambles. Rubens was understandably disgusted with his team, and after the race walked away from his team principal. The points differential between first and third was six points at the time (When cars up to 6th place only got points) as opposed to a 2-point gap between 2003 and 2009 and the current 7-point gap but Schumacher breezed the championship thereafter. However, this was nothing compared to what would happen in Spielberg in 12 months...

Austria, 2002 (Team orders LEGAL)

Same Sh*t, different day. This time, Barrichello was leading when Ferrari chiefs Brawn and Todt asked him to move aside two laps from the end. Though it may not have changed the championship standings at all (Schumacher and Barrichello finished first and second very comfortably) it was the same issue of it being only 6 races into the season. Rubinho was never given a chance at Ferrari, always completely overlooked by the team in favour of its favourite son, Michael. This manouvre ultimately led to team orders being made illegal in 2003.

Singapore, 2008 (Team orders BANNED)

Yes, yes. I know, you’ve heard this all before. But this is probably the worst use of team orders I’ve come across, even gaining its own ‘gate’ name – Crashgate. Nelsinho Piquet was informed that if he didn’t crash and bring out the Safety Car (thus endangering his life and others) so that Fernando Alonso could win, he would be fired. Flavio Briatore and Pat Symonds told him to crash on purpose for his own sake, and the greater good. That’s an ultimatum no one should have to face. Essentially, it’s the same as taking out a huge insurance policy on a shop you own, then getting someone to burn it down and claim the money.

Okay - not the same mis-use as the other examples, but the point stands.

"Yeah, you can totally drift an F1 car, watch..."

 

 This surreal foreign video is actually extremely clear at explaining the whole incident
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IwsRlUKvPcY

Australia, 2009 (Team orders BANNED)

‘Liegate’ went largely undetected in the F1 world until the weekend after in Malaysia. Hamilton had been fourth behind the Safety Car, when Jarno Trulli went off track ahead. You’re not allowed to overtake under Safety Car conditions, but Trulli leaving the track made it a legal pass. Hamilton let him back past, and the race finished like that – Jarno 3^rd, Lewis 4^th. But after the race, Hamilton’s race engineer told Stewards that Trulli had passed him unfairly, even though Dave Ryan, Hamilton’s then-Engineer had told him to do so. This isn’t exactly a misuse of team orders in the way that all these other scandals are, but after being told to do it by top team personnel, Lewis was not going to defy them. The débâcle landed both in hot water, Ryan got suspended, and Hamilton got excluded from the race altogether.

Australia, 2010 (Team orders BANNED)

The Australian Grand Prix 2010. After the first race in 'Bore-ain' the race is full of incidents and strategies. Hamilton is catching his team mate Button who is in first place. Andy Latham then harks in his ear:

"Lewis please box this lap for a fresh set of Options."

The stop dropped him 5th, just ahead of Webber and would eventually put him in a position where The Aussie would crash into him, but ensured that his team mate would go unchallenged for the victory. Though the team claimed it was a tactical move, it was almost definitely a plan orchestrated to give new signing Jenson Button a win after a disappointing McLaren debut in Bahrain.

Germany, 2010 (Team orders BANNED)

Probably the worst charade ever performed. It’s Round 11 of the season. You're Felipé Massa. It's exactly a year since your horrific crash in Hungary. Starting third, you get an incredible start and pass both Vettel and Alonso! Surely this pleases Ferrari chiefs. No? Massa's engineer Rob Smedley begrudgingly says half-way through the race:

"Okay, so Fernando. Is faster. Than. You. Confirm you have understood the message..."

Coming out of the Hairpin Massa slows and is overtaken by Alonso.

“Okay mate, just stick with it now. Sorry.”

Trend-setters again... Ferrari got Team Orders UN-banned with this scandal.

Smedley's incredibly close relationship with Massa led him to apologise, and made it clear that this was something he didn't want to have to say. The deliberate tone in his voice made it so obvious, that although Alonso went on to win the race, everyone in the paddock noticed the shoddy acting.

"What I can say? Congratulations to the team."

Was the Brazilian's unhappy reply. Ferrari were fined $100,000 after this incident, and it led to the team order rule being lifted for next season, as it was too difficult to enforce.

Great Britain, 2011 (Team orders LEGAL)

Silverstone, a year later. Your team mate Sebastian is already running away with the title and you are desperate for a win at Silverstone, one of your most successful tracks on the calendar. You are definitely faster in the closing laps, closing in on second-placed Seb. Coming out of Woodcote corner you get a run on him. Overtaking into Copse is possible, go for the pass!

“Maintain the gap, Mark, maintain the gap.”

Number two driver status well and truly confirmed. But at least Mark showed what a team player he is by surrendering his own performance in order to assure the greater good.

Brazil, 2011 (Team orders LEGAL)

Vettel's dominant season saw him win the championship with four rounds to go, in Japan. Having won 11 Grands Prix to his team mate's 0, when leading the Brazilian GP the team manufactured a lie that Vettel had a problem with third and fourth gears and he slowed to let Webber past. Webber got the win he clearly deserved but was not fast enough to achieve without meddling from the team, so morally, it's questionable whether this victory was earned. I can sort of see the logic here but it gives false hope really, to someone who wasn’t going to win. On paper it gives Mark an extra win to his name, but I’m afraid no one will remember that from the 2011 season, they will just remember Vettel absolutely destroying the rest of the field.

And now, Malaysia 2012 (Team orders LEGAL)

As we saw, Vettel was told to stay behind Webber, but overtook him. He was definitely faster, but this scenario has never happened before. The examples above all demonstrate the LEGAL use of Team Orders which are unfair, and the ILLEGAL use of coded messages, which are essentially and pragmatically team orders. But this was a LEGAL team order that was ignored… so what is really the issue? I’m finding it hard to understand my own argument here, but essentially, Vettel who was on faster tyres with better pace overtook Webber.

At a press conference in China, Vettel summed it up:

“Bottom line is, I was racing, I was faster, I overtook him, I won.”

And although I adore Mark Webber and hate the treatment he gets from the Helmut Marko faction of the team, Vettel has a point. He is just so good and on the option tyres his pace would have been about half a second faster per lap anyway. I’m sorry Mark Webber, I feel for you, and I would have loved to see you win, but in the light of all the nuisances Team Orders have caused, I have to let this one go.