Inside Line: What did Lewis mean? Trick or Cheat?

Early in the press conference, Hamilton said, "They’ve got a few trick things going on in the car. I did what I could, we did what we could and we’ve just got to keep working."

Later, when questioned from the floor, the four-times Formula 1 clarified, "I’m just saying we all have something trick. There’s probably something trick on… The trick is just something that helps you bring that extra bit of performance. That’s all I mean."

"I don’t mean anything to it so please don’t read into it and please don’t twist my words and say that I say they’re doing anything illegal because they’re not."

"They just outperformed us today and we’ve got to work harder, but there are things that they have on the car that we might not have on the car and vice versa and we’ve got to try and find out what and improve on that. That’s it."

Exactly: "Thats it!"

But no! Many elements of the media and 'fans' have chosen to ignore Hamilton's almost immediate clarification of the words "trick things" which has been around motorsport forever.

For the record I am of the school of thought that buys into an unwritten rule in racing that "everyone cheats, it's just that some get caught" which is rather cynical, but in my years being close to motorsport and racing people, this is an assumption racers tend to have without exception, be they on two-wheels, four-wheels, dirt or whatever.

Most everyone who finishes second or below believes the winner has something "extra" up their sleeves, a "trick" or an edge that the others have yet to discover.

The word "trick" is thus used in the sense they have something special. How special? Well, that's the grey area where Lewis ventured shrewdly.

Motor racing folk do not beat around the bush and if they believe a team or driver is cheating, they come out and say it: "they are cheating" or "that engine is cheated" etcetera.

Thus there is a difference in the motorsport's version of "trick" and "cheat" which Lewis made very clear in his explanation.

I am prepared to bet that on any given grand prix weekend, most drivers if not all talk in private or with their engineers about a "trick" or "tricks" with regards to rival teams and/or drivers.

Carlos Sainz earlier this year pointed out that Nico Hulkenberg had little tricks he used in their Renault teammate battle. Nothing to do with cheating or bending the rules.

The term is part of motor racing parlance or slang for as long as I can remember which should not be misinterpreted to unnecessarily Hollywood-up an already intriguing championship fight.

Totally unnecessary to feed on a morsel of 'conflict' and blowing it out of proportion: namely to twist words or neglect the full context and report that Lewis is accusing Ferrari of cheating, which is simply untrue.

I do believe is that this championship has the potential to get ugly as Mercedes and Ferrari square up and bring on their respective A-Games with all their might for the final eight races. It's going to be a slugfest of note on all fronts. And there will be tears...

Hamilton's comments immediately after the race in Belgium, spontaneous or deliberate, could be part of the endless mind games that should now play a more prominent role as the battle for the title gets super serious.

For now, the current championship leader Lewis is adamant that Ferrari are not bending the rules with their package, but by design or not the suspicion is now in the public domain for future reference should the need arise.

Hypothetical future fictional scenario: Come November and FIA find a cheat on the Ferrari, Lewis can respond, "I said so after Spa..."

For now, I am convinced Lewis genuinely does not believe there are any shenanigans with the Ferrari SF71H. Shrewdly or by chance he has both bases covered.

But for now, I have to believe "trick" does not mean "cheat" in motorsport-speak.