All the preseason talk has stopped so there's little really for anyone to whine on about prior to the Season beginning on FRIDAY next...about time too!
What we do have, and I'm sure it's doing the rounds, is the Daily Mail interview with Lewis where he attempts to motivate his team by saying that if they don't pull themselves together he'll be outta there faster than a Red Bull showing off on the streets of Melbourne (around 100kph).
Is this Motivation 101 from the Book of Simon?
Once again we have to question whether this is McLaren stonewalling the opposition in respect of the quality of their F1 machine or whether there is genuine concern within the team over the quality of the car. If it is the latter I have to say that, in my opinion, Lewis is sending out the wrong message. You want to pull the team together not have them wondering about your loyalty. Is it about the Constructor's or the driver's championship? First comes the Constructor's, Driver's second.
I hate to parrot all that cheap management S**t but in this instance I think Lewis would be doing well to remember there is no "I" in Team but there is room for the "me" to shine. (how sad is that?)
Lewis is a brilliant driver, there's no doubt about that, but there's a little "Nige" whinge creeping in - best driver crap car complex. The difference is that Nige was always like that even when he had the best car so you knew where you were with him, with Lewis it seems to be a case of "foot in mouth" at times. I think he's an amazing talent and seems to be a nice enough guy but I think that he has to watch what he says over the radio and in interviews - you can only explain yourself so many times before people start to question your loyalty to them and to the team.
Button once made a similar cock-up, if we remember the BAR/Williams contract debacle of 2005 and 2006, but once he had made the decision to stay at BAR in 2005 he made it clear in 2006 that BAR was where his future lay - cementing his relationship with the team and ultimately bringing him his first win in Hungary and then the Driver's Championship with Brawn Racing after Honda and F1 parted ways.
I guess the lesson of today's sermon is that loyalty pays dividends - the team know you're with them so they give you their best. If Lewis continues down this road it may well be that Jense finds himself getting a lot more attention from the team. Remember Alonso Lewis? Ego fuelled by a perceived bias on the part of the team?
If this isn't all just a McLaren game the fur might be flying in the McLaren Garage come Europe and Lewis might be looking at Schumi's seat come the end of the season!
