MOTORSPORT: Ricciardo podium – after the event

Viva Mexico… Mercedes has scored a record 17th victory in a Formula 1 season, its sixth One:two finish this year. And thus the drivers’ world championship is still alive after Lewis Hamilton’s 51st Grand Prix win – a tally which equals that of the sublime Alain Prost.

Yet all these achievements have been overshadowed by controversy, primarily around disgruntled four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel, that ultimately elevated Australian Daniel Ricciardo (pictured) to third place in today’s Mexican GP.

Ricciardo’s third came after the podium ceremony, so there was no chance of a Ricciardo ‘shoey’ this time.

Ricciardo had crossed the finish line fifth but felt aggrieved at Vettel squeezing him as he tried to pass him in the closing stages. He accused Vettel of what many drivers, particularly the German, have been complaining about recently – Ricciardo’s Red Bull teammate Max Verstappen changing his line under braking when an overtake is being attempted.

Vettel, who ruled F1 imperiously in his title years with Red Bull (2010-2013) but is struggling to cope with the pressures at the Ferrari team (that has not won a GP this season), was out of control in Mexico, although he perhaps is unlucky to have been penalised for his defence against Ricciardo.

However, his expletives about Verstappen and race director Charlie Whiting may yet land him in strife with the governing FIA (Federation Internationale de l’Automobile).

Verstappen, only 19 and a victor in F1 at just 18, has told Vettel – 10 years his senior and winner of 42 GPs – to go back to school because of his “very bad language”.

While Hamilton’s victory today ahead of Mercedes teammate Nico Rosberg (also pictured) narrowed the latter’s championship lead to 19 points, Verstappen was next to cross the line but subsequently penalised 5 seconds for cutting a corner across grass and not giving up his position to Vettel.

Vettel was called up for the podium presentation but later given a 10sec penalty for his tactics against Ricciardo (deemed “dangerous or erratic” by stewards) which left him fifth.

The pair who were Red Bull teammates in 2014 had touched wheels but Vettel said, with some justification, “I think I just gave him enough room”.

Vettel certainly deserves sanction for his behaviour in today’s race, but arguably he’s been given it for the wrong offence.

Ferrari team principal Maurizio Arrivabene, with whom his relationship already was strained, had ordered him to “calm down, calm down” during his cockpit outburst against Verstappen and Whiting.

Vettel tried to dismiss his antics as simply the result of his adrenalin pumping in the heat of battle.

But even Helmut Marko, Vettel’s great patron at Red Bull, said his behaviour was “unworthy of a four-time world champion”.

Verstappen said he would talk to Vettel about his “ridiculous” antics. “He is just a very frustrated guy at the moment,” the youngster said.

Ricciardo claimed he had outfoxed Vettel in trying to overtake him, “won the chess match you could say, and then he went, ‘Oh no’, and moved late and left me nowhere to go”.

While Vettel complained about Verstappen skipping across the grass after overshooting a corner, Ricciardo – and others – questioned why nothing was done about Hamilton doing the same thing at the start. In Hamilton’s defence, he did not gain any places through that as he was already leading.

Triple world champion Hamilton has now won two races in a row, and eight for the season (to Rosberg’s nine), but needs to keep it up.

Rosberg will be champion if he wins at Interlagos in Brazil in a fortnight, irrespective of where Hamilton finishes as the man yet to ever win the crown would be at least 26 points ahead again with only Abu Dhabi (and a maximum 25 points) to go.

Hamilton has never won in Brazil.

Among other highlights overshadowed in Mexico was the 372.5km/h that Valtteri Bottas reached in his Williams-Mercedes. That was just 0.1km/h short of Juan Pablo Montoya’s record speed during the 2005 Italian GP at Monza.

Formula 1 World Championship driver standings after 19 of 21 rounds – 1 Nico Rosberg (Germany, Mercedes) 349 points; 2 Lewis Hamilton (Great Britain, Mercedes) 330; 3 Daniel Ricciardo (Australia, Red Bull-Renault) 242; 4 Sebastian Vettel (Germany, Ferrari) 187; 5 Kimi Raikkonen (Finland, Ferrari) 178; 6 Max Verstappen (Netherlands, Red Bull-Renault) 177; 7 Sergio Perez (Mexico, Force India-Mercedes) 85; 8 Valtteri Bottas (Finland, Williams-Mercedes) 85; 9 Nico Hulkenberg (Germany, Force India-Mercedes) 60; 10 Fernando Alonso (Spain, McLaren-Honda) 52; 11 Felipe Massa (Brazil, Williams-Mercedes) 51; 12 Carlos Sainz Junior (Spain, Toro Rosso-Ferrari) 38.

Volkswagen to the fore with four straight
If Mercedes’ latest F1 triumphs were lost among the fuss in Mexico, even more so was fellow German manufacturer Volkswagen winning the World Rally Championship manufacturers’ title for the fourth straight year at Rally Great Britain.

Only Citroen had done that (four straight) before.

VW’s Polo R is the most successful car in WRC history.

Frenchmen Sebastien Ogier and Julia Ingrassia, already champion driver and co-driver for four seasons, won again at Rally GB in Wales, also for the fourth time in a row.

But it was their first win on gravel – or, in this case, largely mud – this year, and Ogier came under pressure from Estonian Ott Tanak, who won all six of the final day’s stages in a Ford Fiesta RS to make the 10.2-second final margin the closest of the season.

While Michelin is the dominant tyre in the WRC, Tanak’s DMACK rubber was well suited to the low-grip conditions in Wales.

Hyundai’s Belgian Thierry Neuville finished third to go 14 points ahead of VW’s Norweigan Andreas Mikkelsen in the battle for runner-up honours in the championship with only Rally Australia at Coffs Harbour now remaining on November 17-20.

Hyundai’s New Zealander Hayden Paddon and Spaniard Dani Sordo are still outside chances to be runner-up.

World Rally Championship driver standings after 12 of 13 rounds – 1 Sebastien Ogier (France, Volkswagen) 247 points; 2 Thierry Neuville (Belgium, Hyundai) 143; 3 Andreas Mikkelsen (Norway, Volkswagen) 129; 4 Hayden Paddon (New Zealand, Hyundai) 126; 5 Daniel Sordo (Spain, Hyundai) 119; 6 Jari-Matti Latvala (Finland,  Volkswagen) 110; 7 Mads Ostberg (Norway, M-Sport Ford) 94; 8 Ott Tanak (Estonia, Ford) 82; 9 Kris Meeke (Great Britain, Citroen) 64; 10 Craig Breen (Ireland, Citroen) 36.

GT ups and downs in NZ enduro
Lots of dramas in the Australian GT Endurance Championship round at New Zealand’s Hampton Downs.

Peter Hackett and New Zealander Dominic Storey might have won it if not for a penalty for their Mercedes AMG leaving the pits 8sec early on its last scheduled stop (there are stipulated minimum times for stops in Australian GT racing, based on driver status).

The Ferrari 458 of Peter Edwards and Kiwi Graham Smythe also looked good for victory until its 15sec lead evaporated with a safety car intervention late in the 101-lap race. Then on the last lap the Ferrari was biffed by Nathan Morcom in the McLaren 650S he shared with Grant Denyer. The McLaren was given a 30sec penalty post-race that dropped it to fifth place.

Early the race was led by the Nissan GT-R in which Michael Caruso drove the first stint before handing over to Nissan Academy winner Matt Simmons, who collided with a lapped Camaro – and the damage to the left front of the GT-R put it out.

Ultimately it was David Russell and Roger Lago who won in the Lamborghini RE-X that had started from pole position.

Local hero Greg Murphy and series and circuit owner Tony Quinn were 10th in their Aston.

Among the non-finishers were Andrew and George Miedecke in an Aston Martin and Tony Longhurst in another Aston.

A NZ report of a crowd of “around 20,000” at the circuit newly-extended to 4km did not tally with what the television coverage showed, but Quinn said: “I don’t really know what the numbers are and I don’t really care – that’s not the exercise.

“This was a great start [for the Australian GT Endurance Championship in NZ… but] this is good as it is going to be unless we get the full support of the V8s [Supercars] for their drivers [to be allowed to participate].”

Last week Supercars boss James Warburton attracted Quinn's ire when he dubbed the Australian GT Championship (which is owned by Quinn) a "niche" series.

Six cars apiece for manufacturers in DTM
Reports from Germany are confirming that the DTM (the German Touring Car Championship) will have only 18 cars next year after 24 the past couple of seasons.

The three participating manufacturers, Audi, BMW and Mercedes, will each field six cars next season.

All six Mercs will be run under the umbrella of HWA, which built the engines in the cars with the three-pointed star badges that Betty Klimenko originally ran in V8 Supercars.