its so sad knowing that it really does seem like lando knew about the issue and did everything in his power to save it, his facial expressions really do show that he knew it wasnt enough :(((
so lando was likely told about the issue after the laps to the grid. at some point in the race he realized it was critical & did literally everything he could to save it. he wasn’t told to slow down like that at the very end, that was him desperately trying to save his race
this is just an analysis piece, so some of it is interpretive. but in this RaceFans article, they reviewed the radio messages and suggest that:
-mclaren likely spotted the first signs of the plank issue during the pre race reconnaissance laps, not mid race.
-lando’s late drop in pace wasn’t because the team told him to slow down, he initiated it himself after asking how to “do whatever we’ve got to do”
-the earlier radio message about fuel was a red herring and unrelated to the disqualification
-lando slowed significantly in the final laps to protect the plank, which is why his wear was less severe than oscar’s, but still not enough to avoid the DSQ
So you are telling me McLaren did not tell lando anything on radio in last few laps, IT WAS LANDO who on his own slowed down to minimise the damage because was doubtful about plank wear 💀 (reason why his was lesser than Oscar) and also why i feel he wasn’t happy post race.