Hamilton frustrated to retire for the second time in 2014 - MotorSportsTalk

Lewis Hamilton has made no secret of his frustration after retiring from today’s Canadian Grand Prix due to an ERS failure on his Mercedes.

The Briton was embroiled in a battle at the front to win the race alongside teammate Nico Rosberg. However, during their second stint, both drivers began to slow and lose time. It was ultimately diagnosed as being an ERS failure, which was affecting the brakes and top speed of the Mercedes cars.

Whereas Rosberg was able to continue and finish the race in second place, Hamilton was forced to park up his car and retire with 22 laps remaining in Canada.

Speaking to NBCSN after the race, the three-time Canadian Grand Prix winner was honest about his frustration.

“We got a good start, he left me no room at the start so we had to go off line onto the grass,” Hamilton said. “Then after that it was just about trying to hunt him down and apply pressure.

“Well when you have DNFs… you’re fighting for a world championship. I’ve lost 18 points now to Nico. That’s two races I’ve not finished now.”

Hamilton now trails Rosberg by 22 points in the drivers’ championship, which is the biggest gap between them since the opening race in Australia.

Follow @LukeSmithF1

An IndyCar executive said there is “absolutely” disappointment that its long-awaited video game recently was delayed beyond its target date, but the series remains optimistic about the new title.

“Well, I don’t know how quick it will be, but the whole situation is important to us,” Penske Entertainment president and CEO Mark Miles said during a news conference Monday morning to announce IndyCar’s NTT title sponsorship. “Motorsport Games has spent a lot of money, a lot of effort to create an IndyCar title. What we’ve seen of that effort, which is not completely obvious, is very reassuring.

“I think it’s going to be outstanding. That’s our shared objective, that when it is released, it’s just widely accepted. A great credit both to IndyCar racing, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, something that our fans love.”

In June 2021, IndyCar announced a new partnership with Motorsport Games to create and distribute an IndyCar video game for the PC and Xbox and PlayStation consoles in 2023.

But during an earnings call last week, Motorsport Games said the IndyCar game had been delayed to 2024 to ensure high quality.

Somewhat compounding the delay is that IndyCar’s license for iRacing expired after the end of the 2022 season because of its exclusive agreement with Motorsport Games.

That’s resulted in significant changes for IndyCar on iRacing, which had provided a high-profile way for the series to stay visible during its 2020 shutdown from the pandemic. (Players still can race an unbranded car but don’t race on current IndyCar tracks, nor can they stream).

That’s helped ratchet up the attention on having a video game outlet for IndyCar.

“I wish we had an IndyCar title 10 years ago,” said Miles, who has been working with the organization since 2013. “We’ve been close, but we’ve had these I think speed bumps.”

IndyCar is hopeful the Motorsports Game edition will be ready at the start of 2024. Miles hinted that beta versions could be unveiled to reporters ahead of the time “to begin to show the progress in a narrow way to make sure we’ve got it right, to test the progress so that we’re ready when they’re ready.”

It’s been nearly 18 years since the release of the most recent IndyCar video game for console or PC.

“(We) better get it right,” Miles said. “It’s something we’re very close to and continue to think about what it is to make sure we get it over the line in due course.”