World Championship leader Nico Rosberg has been punished by Mercedes for his collision with team mate Lewis Hamilton at the Belgian Grand Prix last weekend. Rosberg attempted an overtake on Hamilton coming into the Les Combes chicane. The German didn't pull out of the move in time and clipped his team mate's tyre, causing it to puncture and causing Hamilton to languish towards the back until retiring in the final few laps.
Hamilton came out post race claiming Rosberg had made the move on purpose. In the fallout from the accident Rosberg has accepted the blame for the collision, claiming he did it to 'make a point'. Team bosses Toto Wolff, Niki Lauda and Paddy Lowe were all displeased with Rosberg's actions, Wolff was quoted as saying it was 'unbelievable'.
Today it's been announced Mercedes have punished Rosberg for the move, and are going to let the drivers race on for the Championship. It appears Rosberg has gotten simply a 'slap on the wrist' for his actions. The long term repercussions for the team could be disastrous for Mercedes. With Hamilton ruling out revenge, it remains to be seen what'll happen at the next race in Monza.
It's been mooted that Hamilton may decide to leave the team, it seems an extreme measure but could certainly happen, and it's not as if Hamilton is short of options. McLaren have been rumoured to be monitoring his situation and would welcome him back to the team should he decide to leave. But with the Brit contracted to the team until the end of 2015, it's likely he'll stay at the Brackley based team.
Red Bull's Daniel Ricciardo ended up winning the race, with Rosberg recovering to finish second, extending his Championship lead to 29 points in the process. It appears Rosberg won't be too affected by his actions, with only his reputation perhaps being tarnished. He was booed on the podium in Belgium, but appears to be not too bothered by this, claiming the boo boys were 'British fans'.
Mercedes refuse to impose team orders, stating their drivers are 'costless to race' refusing to have a number 1 driver. Mercedes issued a statement, saying 'It has been made clear that another such incident will not be tolerated. But Nico and Lewis are our drivers and we believe in them. 'They remain costless to race for the 2014 FIA Formula One World Championship.'
Should there be a repeat of this accident, it's unknown what disciplinary power Mercedes have, but to break the golden rule of racing twice, it'd be a very serious problem for the Constructors Championship leaders.