POLE POSITION: Stubborn Mercedes should’ve listened to Lewis Hamilton when he realised they were on the wrong track with Mike Elliott’s flawed concept

Lesson No. 8,347 on how Formula 1 works. Mike Elliott was ‘promoted’, as the propaganda went, from Mercedes technical director to technical chief in April, swapping roles with the widely admired engineer James Allison (aka The Man Ferrari Let Slip).

A promotion? None more so than Elliott’s departure from Mercedes this week after eleven years to pursue new opportunities.

Elliott became technical director in July 2021, taking over from Allison, in preparation for the biggest technical restart the sport had seen in decades. But the radical design path they took – the ‘zero-sidepod’ concept – turned out to be a dead end. Red Bull has found the highway and the rest is history. Although Mercedes has fixed the worst of the porpoises since last year, unraveling intrinsic flaws remains an ongoing process.

The worst feature of the much-vaunted cost cap is that it makes it more difficult to turn around an engineering tanker. But poor Elliott didn’t even try. He stubbornly stuck to his essentially misguided concept this season.

Hamilton realized as he drove the car in the first session of the first race of the season in Bahrain that a major mistake had been perpetuated.

Lewis Hamilton realized that Mercedes was on the wrong track with Elliott’s flawed concept

“We are on the wrong path,” he said, a devastating comment on the team’s predicament. “They should have listened to me.”

A month later, Elliott was shuffled to his ‘promotion’. It was said that he himself had suggested the job swap. Perhaps he did so, knowing that others might be better positioned to right the wrongs, although I suspect Hamilton’s hand was not far away. Mercedes’ mistake was not reacting sooner.

Brazil is dripping with nostalgia

It’s all memories here in Sao Paulo.

There was Michael Schumacher, who had a dazzling farewell in his last race for Ferrari in 2006, but still missed out on the eighth wonder of the world he wanted.

On to Lewis Hamilton’s suite at the Hilton, Morumbi, the following year after downing shots with his McLaren team boss Ron Dennis, the title narrowly eluding him in his unforgettable debut season.

“Excuse me,” a fragile Hamilton panted as he hurried to his bathroom.

It was where, twelve months later, Hamilton passed Timo Glock in the rain to win his first title at the age of 23, to the heartbreaking chagrin of Felipe Massa and his barking fellow Paulistas.

Jenson Button (above) celebrates becoming world champion in Sao Paulo in 2009

A year later there was Jenson Button’s championship glory, achieved in style after a few jitters in the previous weeks. I was back at the Hilton hotel the night Button came in after an attempted robbery at gunpoint during the hairy ride back from the circuit close to the slums. Then a few frantic words on the phone to get the story in the newspaper the next day.

And whatever number. A wavy test. Maybe I’m nostalgic, but Brazil is where the season should end.

Wolff finds his reverse gear

Toto Wolff is a big supporter of the F1 Academy, the women-only single-seater championship, of which his wife Susie is director.

So which team boss denounced the impending arrival of the F1 Academy’s predecessor, the W Series, in November 2017?

“An all-female championship gives up the mission of ultimately allowing girls to compete at a high level against the boys in Formula 1,” the prominent paddock figure said.

‘It undermines what girls can achieve.’ None other than Toto Wolff said that.

Damon ready to bid

A rare stock of motorsport memorabilia will go under the hammer at Sotheby’s on Saturday: the personal collection of Graham Hill. And one of the bidders could be his son and heir Damon.

An important part of the pieces, which have been put up for auction by Graham’s daughter Brigitte, is her father’s crash helmet in the colors of the London Rowing Club. Graham has also been awarded four gold stars by the British Racing Drivers’ Club, of which the two-time world champion was a leading jewel before his death in a plane crash in 1975.

Damon, executor of his mother Bette’s will, does not rule out getting back part of his older sister’s inheritance. “There are pieces that are emotionally meaningful and maybe I want to buy them,” the 1996 world champion told me.

The collection is sold without reserves. The helmet has an estimated value of between £20,000 and £30,000. Among the 59 lots in total is a certificate granting the freedom of London and its red book This is Your Life – and, in addition to the prestigious sporting prizes, the 1969 Monaco Grand Prix winners’ trophy, which is expected to sell for up to £50,000 yield.

Perez under command

Red Bull chief Christian Horner wants Sergio Perez to move closer to the team’s factory

I have it from good sources that Christian Horner wants Sergio Perez to move from Mexico to Spain.

The 33-year-old’s situation at Red Bull was not helped by his kamikaze crash at the first corner last Sunday in Mexico City. His motivation was pure: he wanted to win his home race, and spurred on by a good start, he pushed his claims too strongly.

Daniel Ricciardo remains a contender to take the lead after qualifying in a brilliant fourth place for AlphaTauri. Alex Albon is the man they want most for the future, but Williams doesn’t want to let him go.

For the time being, Red Bull wants to give Perez the three remaining races to achieve his victory. The 33-year-old, who has one year left on his contract, owns a house in Madrid. Now he is ordered by Horner to move there to be closer to the team’s factory.