Helmut Marko takes big swipe at Lewis Hamilton over Mercedes star’s back pain

Mercedes: What’s gone wrong at the F1 and can they recover?

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Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko has taken a cheeky dig at Mercedes star Lewis Hamilton over the back pain the Briton has experienced as a result of the W13’s porpoising. Hamilton endured a torrid Azerbaijan Grand Prix two weeks ago as a result of a severe back issue caused by the amount his car was bouncing.

The 37-year-old was in visible distress as he tried to lift himself from the cockpit, with the footage sparking FIA action against the phenomenon. 

The 103-time race winner enjoyed a more comfortable Canadian Grand Prix with Mercedes appearing to get more on top of their bouncing problem. The Englishman brought his W13 home in a joint season-high position of third with the car looking like it was starting to get closer to the pace of this season’s front runners, Red Bull and Ferrari. 

This has led the highly experienced Marko to take a swipe at the seven-time World Champion suggesting his back problems were not as bad as he made them out to be. 

Speaking to German outlet F1 Insider, the Austrian quipped: “Hamilton got out of the car quickly today. When he’s on the podium, it’s a lot easier.”

Red Bull and Mercedes were at loggerheads throughout the Canadian Grand Prix weekend as a result of a new FIA technical directive designed to limit the amount each car could bounce. The Governing body decided to make the call on the basis of safety grounds – but it was not positively received throughout the paddock. 

Marko was keen to stress that the technical directive was most likely to aid Mercedes as they are the team who have struggled the most from porpoising this season.

“I don’t think the FIA’s decisions are right,” the 79-year-old told Sky Sports Germany. “One team, Mercedes, has the biggest problems and then you react in the middle of the season. There is a simple solution: you just have to raise the car. Then you no longer have this bouncing, but you lose speed.

“The fact that they are now reacting in this way and trying to impose such powers on the FIA, which practically determine the set-ups of the cars, is a quick fix that has certainly not been thought through.”

However, Hamilton believes that driver safety is paramount and should come above all else. 

“Ultimately, I think safety is the most important thing,” the Mercedes man said. “I think there is a lot of work to be done and it’s positive that the FIA are working towards improving it, because we have this car for the next few years.

“So it’s not about coping with the bouncing for the next four years, it’s about completely getting rid of it and fixing it so that the future drivers, all of us, don’t have back problems moving forwards.”

It is clear that tensions remain high in the paddock, something which is not likely to be improved by Marko’s comments. The issue of porpoising is unlikely to be resolved before the British Grand Prix in less than two weeks time given the wide range of views on the grid. 

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