It's early, but the speculation about Lewis seems worth bringing up. Is he gonna drive, or has he had enough? Hard to see him going out like that...gotta think he wouldn't mind retiring without another title, but only after—in his mind—a fair fight. Then again, maybe he's just that pissed off.

Either way, F1 testing is 2/23-25, back at Barcelona. Daytona stuff starts 2/20, and they have that weird LA Coliseum thing on 2/6. IndyCar 2/26.

Brand new cars in both F1 and NASCAR. Hilarity should ensue.

I don't know how to feel about the whole Hamilton thing anymore. I hope he comes back, I want him to win it again. If he doesn't, will it be like a power play, will he ask fans not to watch? I don't know, I might not, I have enough Moto GP Sunday I could use some more to myself. See how things shake out in testing, hope these cars achieve what they're supposed to. The Saudi Arabia race is like the third one in the calendar this year.

>I don't know how to feel about the whole Hamilton thing
>anymore. I hope he comes back, I want him to win it again. If
>he doesn't, will it be like a power play, will he ask fans not
>to watch?

That would seem pretty out of character for him...maybe when he was younger and less...temperate, I guess, but not now, I don't think. If he does quit, I imagine it'll he'll do it with class. Hope he gives it another year or two though.

Fair. I guess it's really about how this whole FIA thing plays out, hopefully they don't find a way to make it worse at least.

I will say this is the longest I've seen him keep a low profile in public and social media. But I highly doubt this is the way he wants to end his career. He can still get 8 chips and get that last unobtainable record. He can prove it was not just the car as everyone is driving into the unknown with the new regs. And I'm sure he's not going to have any scuttlebutt that Max and Christian sent him out of F1 because he can't hack it.

It may be a media training play to just say nothing, as anything uttered is going to be twisted and misinterpreted. Wait for the official investigation to wind down, refer back to the ruling, and get back on the track. Anything else is just going to stir the pot, which is already toxic AF

I'm kinda amped to see the Coliseum Clash though. Looks like some crazy short track racing

Quite a few takes on front wings and side pods. Will be interesting to see whether the racing will actually be close. I'm sure the amount of 'porpoising' will be cleared up by testing in 2 weeks, as I'm sure most teams were trying to see what the limit of their suspension tuning windows are.

Max is funning #1 on the car this year. Haven't seen that in 7 years. Good for them

>whether the racing will actually be close.

Marquez is back! For real this time. Also the new Honda looks good... maybe Pol can actually stay on the bike for more than two races this year.

Of course the ducs look incredible, but I've got a feeling they aren't light years ahead of the rest as they seem. I think they have a tenth or two over the comp... which is the case every year... there's always a bike with a hair better engineering the start of each year. That said, pecco looks like this is his year.

Oh and Quartarro is champ and all, so the Yamaha can't be THAT bad. I think their top speed woes are overblown.

My only preseason testing comment is that vinales is fools gold. He'll be fast. He'll win a couple races. But he'll find a way to get grumpy and throw a tantrum. He's got all the talent in the world, but he'll never be a champion.

Got the schedule bookmarked and pirate sites all lined up.

and yeah, those euros are expensive :( I used to get a discount in Canada when there was actually no valid way to watch here, but that's changed recently but I'm still not clear who has the rights lol.

The opener this weekend is nice and early, it's usually a good race. I'm annoyed that the next race is on F1's opening weekend. They used to schedule themselves on different weekends more consistently in the past, now it seems like they race on the same weekends more often.

I pay for the F1 package, but someone's always got a good NBCSN stream...I'll be availing myself of it this weekend. Been desperate for more racing this winter, even more than usual.

Got Australian relatives, so gonna pull for Miller and Gardner.

The older I get, I only have bandwidth to follow one racing series at a time, and that's been F1 the last 7 years or so. I've watched quite a bit: Indy, NHRA, GT, Touring Car, but it's depended on how easy it is to watch coverage (not the easiest pre-Speed TV days) and scheduled, racing and mine.

Once upon a time I watched quite a bit more racing, WSBK, motocross, some F1 and BSB...I pretty much just watch GP and a F1 or WSB race every blue moon.

Pretty dramatic, and a feel good win, though maybe not the race I or new people would expect.

If you have Amazon Prime, apparently Moto GP has their own little series coming out there soon along the lines of Drive to Survive.

It's kinda funny that last year's Ducati won the race, apparently there were rumours Bagnaia was asking the factory team for last year's engine. Feels like an anything could happen season, depending on who figures their bikes out, and whether Honda really is in form again. Maybe this is why they left F1 lol

Gonna take me a while to catch up with all the storylines.

Also need to get a better technical grasp. Obviously the broad areas are the same as any 4-wheel series, like tire pressures and brake balances and such, but while I know a whole lot about how F1 cars are set up, know virtually nothing about bikes.

And the Australians did not fare well...

Watched the first three last night. I get the feeling Horner wakes up every morning, looks in the mirror, and thinks, "yes, this is the role I was born to play."

And the Mazepins...just glad to be rid of that gangster and his awful, spoiled kid. (And happy that Magnusson is back, now.)

I just watched an Alfa, a Haas, and an Alpine out-qualify a Merc.

So if you take the fastest time recorded by the teams, you get:

Ferrari (LEC)
RBR (VER)
Merc (HAM)
Alfa (BOT)
Haas (MAG)
Alpine (ALO)
Alpha (GAS)
McLaren (NOR)
Williams (ALB)
Aston (HUL)

If you average the times for each driver, you get:

Ferrari (1'30.623)
RBR (1'30.801)
Merc (1'31.727)
Haas (1'31.903)
Alpine (1.31.989)
McLaren (1'32.477)
Alpha (1'32.544)
Alfa (1'32.552)
Aston (1'32.905)
Williams (1'33.149)

So past the top 3...that's a either hero drive for Bottas, or that's actually the pace of the Alfa, and Zhou just doesn't know what he's doing yet, which is probably true. The Haas must legitimately be that quick, as Schumacher was only 0.2 off Mag's best lap. (And damn...how quick did he get up to speed? Dude was unemployed two weeks ago.)

Makes me think it's no coincidence that Alfa and Haas are both Ferrari-powered...

Aston Martin are nowhere. Some allowance for Vettel being out, but still. Williams must be disappointed, and McLaren...that's just unacceptable.

Bottas being in front of Russell is definitely amusing. Ferrari def seem to have a universally strong engine again, sounds like this Ethanol stuff might have a part in Merc engine dev in comparison. Hamilton sounds worried the top 4 are just going to drive away from them, hopefully the Ferraris give Verstappen a race then. I might join my old university friend in cheering for them!

Moto GP having its second race this weekend too at a brand new circuit. I don't really watch the quali for them, but Quartararo found pole setting pace again after Yamaha looked well off in Qatar. Honda did not seem to like the track and Marquez crashed twice. Pramac Ducati's are still quicker than the factory rider's, but that can change in the race, and the KTM's aren't taking half a season to figure out their bike this time it seems. Hopefully I have a lot of exciting races to watch tomorrow.

>Moto GP having its second race this weekend too at a brand new
>circuit.

Watched highlights though. That Marquez warm-up crash was nasty.

but the Moto GP videopass no spoiler thing is convenient. Start of the Moto GP race got delayed awhile due to the weather. Marquez crashing all weekend is disappointing, he hasn't figured out hot to stop it seems, not that I"m even necessarily rooting for him but he's a big missing piece of the grid.

Happy to see Oliveira win again, been rooting for him since the lower classes. The points situation is interesting, only two races in but it feels like it could stay this crazy. Quartaroro finding that rain pace was impressive for someone whose never had it.

A Thai rider won the Moto 2 GP, first thai rider ever, was nice to see, usually they show up in the wet but he seems like he might have good form from testing after missing the first race.

That's all I will say for now.

Ferrari strikes first blood. 1-2 finish and first race win since, what, 2019? Congrats. Leclerc has always been fast, but Ferrari has been crap. Apparently, they figured something out with the new regs and that engine is not slow (see K. Mag finishing in the points for Haas). After years of Ferrari not being in the mix, it's nice to see them strike first.

The W13 of Hamilton and Russell still needs work, quite apparently. But quality drives from the two Mercedes drivers saw them benefit from Red Bull's demise. Lewis knows how to capitalize on other driver's mistakes and was in the right place when the RB spun. Would he have caught Perez by the end of the lap if he didn't have the lockup? We'll never know. George had a crap qualifying, but good work making it back to 4th in his first drive with the team. This is the best the team could have hoped for. Once they get the setup and porpoising, they will be a threat again. Keep your heads down boys and get to work. It's a long season.

While I'm trying hard not to root against Red Bull, I cheered so loud when Max's car let him down and Checo's car locked up into Turn 1. Those messages between Max and Christian were great. Horner knew the car was toast and there wasn't anything they could do about it, but he could only tell Max to keep his head down and push through. 3 out of 4 RB drivetrains went out, with Gasley's catching fire. Definitely not the way RB wanted their season to start, but the way I am not mad at all about. Max's post race debrief should be hilarious

Other bits:
- Welcome back K-Mag!Being out for a year to finishing in 5th.
- Bottas in 6th with his first proper stint at Alfa. I hope he has success through the year
- No clue what happened to McLaren. Are those brake issues that serious?
- There were a LOT of Mercedes engined cars at the back of the pack. That can't be good

Looked like it was a lot easier to follow, especially in those early VER/LEC battles. We get that kind of racing all year, I'd call it a success.

Fun race, though I had to watch it on my phone, as F1TV was effing up on the PC browser. Hate that.

Getting ahead of this only because there's some fighting going on nearby, and some fire. I don't know how bad it really is but FIA has had to address it and say they've been assured its safe by the country, which isn't actually a nice sign lol. There were talks early on, even in pre-show stuff last weekend, about why we were still going here and this reinforces that even more.

I'd hoped when the Liberty came in, that they'd take a stronger stance on what sort of venues/countries were acceptable, as opposed to Bernie's "we'll race anywhere, as long as the check clears" attitude. That hasn't been the case.

The current situation aside, not sure where you draw the line though. Is China too distasteful? Azerbaijan is pretty repressive too...

Interested to see what the drivers/GPDA says tomorrow. I do trust Alex Wurz to find the smartest way through, if he's involved.

Horrible crash.

ugh the Schumacher one? yeah that wasn't pretty to watch. Something about this whole Jeddah track being such a fast street track just sits weird, they've tried to reference other street tracks in comparison but it doesn't feel the same.

I 'get' why they can't be too picky about countries in one sense. Honestly, going to Texas last year around that whole abortion mess time felt weird, and its not like USA doesn't have its hands in all kinds of conflict. The fact that the oil fire was caused by an missile strike nearby was just too on the nose sign of war regardless of ideology. I can't remember, is China back on the calendar yet? I assume that track would be at some point.

Sunday race was a race. I get that there are signs its good and the battles and following are a good start, but something about the commentary is starting to feel like it's trying to push a narrative lol. Sucks Hamilton got a bit screwed by the pit lane closure, would've salvaged sixth instead, though they obviously still need work. Actually Perez got the most screwed, I would rather see him win :)

Verstappen sounds like he's still too used to the FIA helping him win on the radio...

My main problem with the track as a TV spectator is that it has no sense of place: it's just a long tunnel of high safety fencing, no matter where you are on the track. A lot of that problem is because it's at night, but even still, it's just flat and seemingly featureless. At Monaco and Baku you know exactly where you are on the circuit because you can see the buildings and get a feel for the place. Even Singapore has the bridge and the underpasses...SA is just nothing. It's fast, but so what?

They're definitely pushing a narrative, but on the other hand, there's no doubt in my mind that the racing is better. We'd never see the close following through fast corners like we've seen in the first two, and as Jenson was talking about a lot yesterday, drivers can actually fight back after being passed. Multiple lead swaps in the space of a couple of laps were unheard of in the previous spec. On tracks that actually have multiple lines, like COTA and Silverstone, it should be amazing.

That Latifi crash hurt my soul. Really wanted to see Checo take it.

You explained the track problems well, I forgot about Singapore, that was a nice night city track. I think Jeddah thought it would be cool to fit in fast flowing stuff in a 'street' circuit, but honestly real city tracks feel cool and unique when they have that 'square' feel to them I think.

Yeah, I hope it keeps improving. I guess part of my frustration is in terms of the front two, and comparing it to Verstappen/Hamilton battles last season its arguable which one was better and I feel like they let Verstappen get away with his crap even more last season now. Oh, and that DRS line thing at the end of Jeddah just seems stupid now, I don't know how to fix it, move the line or something, but I lol'd when they both locked up.

Man Latifi crashing twice this weekend and not "getting" why either time is hilarious. I mean, they seemed like weird crashes, but they both just happened to him. The fact that he messed up Abu Dhabi too is just worse, he might need security again soon before the title is even close to decided lol

Even in 2 weeks, I think Mercedes still has pain, either the works team or anyone with their engines at this point. I do believe Petronas can figure this out. Can they do it in time to mount a comeback? Harder to say, even with their 2nd half track record. They feel like RB was in 2016-2019 - clearly ahead of the midpack, but not challenging for a win unless a ton of things go wrong with the frontrunners. I believe they can get on top of this (this is the team that designed DAS, which was a one off that was barely used after all, and a possible show of arrogance that could be biting them in the ass now, but that's another story), but do it in time? Who knows.

Meanwhile, the Leclerc and Verstappen battle looks to meet the potential that was hinted at years ago. Afla looks semi competent. KMag is back like he never left. Racing is a bit closer, but realistically it's still haves and have nots, so I don't see huge shakeups in podium places after all this.

We'll see what the new track changes lead to. Not sure longer straights will be nice for the bouncy card :(

Haas already out of parts and apparently breaking curfew after a crash. Not sure how that is going to play out.

Moto GP is in Texas this week. Was in Argentina last weekend. Really competitive season, 9 different podium finished in the first three races. 5 different manufacturers in the top 5, Honda/Yamaha bottom of constructors, Europe in top is pretty crazy. The fact that it actually feels like it could stay this way is wild.

>Moto GP is in Texas this week. Was in Argentina last weekend.
> Really competitive season, 9 different podium finished in the
>first three races. 5 different manufacturers in the top 5,
>Honda/Yamaha bottom of constructors, Europe in top is pretty
>crazy. The fact that it actually feels like it could stay
>this way is wild.

RBR racking up the DNFs ain't gonna win any silverware.

Other than that and a couple of wrecks, not much happened. Had a hard time paying attention. Some decent midfield battles.

LeClerc's title to lose, at this early stage.

it was more incredulous laughter from me instead of evil laughter like Bahrain. Ferrari/Leclerc definitely look solid enough right now, unless RB find reliability and clearly superior pace. I'm hoping Mercs find something while having these unexpected opportunities and podiums. Its pretty amusing since Lewis above Verstappen in the standings.

It's getting a big embarassing watching my Canadians in F1! I hear them mention how little passing there was in Australia in the past, obviously haven't been there in a while, hard to say what to do about the track. If anything Turn 3 needs a bit more 'safe space' maybe to inspire passing, it is a passing spot if you're faster but it seems a risky corridor still.

Just finished watching the Motorcycle races, good timing at COTA. Ducati's quite liked the circuit, though Bastianinni on last year's bike, and consistently good late race pace, took his second win of the season. Marquez's race was pretty stunning despite that start problem, he still seems capable of greatness but not consistently enough anymore.

It was a 500th GP anniversary of the modern era organization wise, since 500 ccs, pretty cool highlight video of the past going right now, if it wasn't such a time sink I wish I could watch old seasons again.

Marquez was a man possessed. Didn't hear what his start problem was.

This has been a strange set of opening races. Ferrari absolutely has the opening track on the regs, and LeClerc is reminding all he's a damn good driver. Honestly, if Petronas doesn't get right, I'll pull for the red team. They have suffered long enough.

3 races and 3 DNFs isn't a good look for RB. Mind you, I'm laughing all the way to the bank because of their misfortune, but still...reliability concerns are not fun at all. Supposedly none are serious powertrain issues, but none of the issues can be good for the life of the PU no matter how you slice it. Max gets to feel what it's like when the target is on his back. Let's see how it shakes out.

Still don't know what to make of Mercedes. They seem to be making some improvements week over week, and the car looked decent this weekend. But they still need their upgrade package, and still aren't quite ready to challenge the front runners (but can still keep mid pack at bay). They definitely got better from qualis, but realistically would have still been in 4/5 finish had the RB not crap the bed. I hope the car has a massive upside once they get a grip on everything. It's possible, but getting a full second out of that package is asking a lot.

Albon should have been driver of the day, full stop. 57 laps on hard tires? That's a drive

Midfield battles are great this year. But, so far it hasn't amounted to much up front

I was going to come back to mention Albon, that was impressive and cool, was glad he still came out in 10th. was surprised the vote didn't go his way, usually they notice that stuff, especially when Leclerc is barely on screen. I don't vote though lol apparently the Williams love that hard tire so maybe we'll see more of it.

Qualifying was earlier today. Had it on, but wasn't paying close attention while in a work meeting. Reg flag nightmare, both Mercs only in Q2. Magnussen P4. Weather definitely played a part, not sure how a Sprint will go at this track tomorrow, could get messy.

Moto GP at the 'Rollercoaster' Portugal Portimao track. Was second last race of the season last year and had some excitement but won't have titles on the line this time.

Some good battles up and down the field. That DRS effect is massive here.

I'm still tryna adjust to Merc being absolutely nowhere...maybe they can strategize their way into something respectable tomorrow, but damn, they are sloooooow.

Russell got a stunning start and lucked up a bit higher at the end there so there's that. Norris on the podium, Merc's not even looking like quite the best Merc engine car this weekend. Not having DRS for a lot of the race and the weather seemed to tease the potential of the race a bit, but it had some exciting moments.

I may not like to see it but Red Bull deserved a no-bad luck weekend at least. Ferrari probably wished it didn't happen in Italy though.

Moto GP Championship is tied at the top with two riders on 69 points :)

Sprint weekends are going to suck for Petronas this year. There's no time to try to get any race pace setup, and they cannot pull a hot lap right now. Add the variable weather and there was no chance the W13 would do anything in Imola.

Interesting battles from 2-10, seemed like. Slowly getting a grip on the names and manufacturers...

Looks like RBR vs. Ferrari dor the duration, but cool to see all the shuffling below that. No clear favorite in the midfield...got Alfa and McLaren up there this week, AM looking better, Haas back up in the points. New regs have really mixed things up. Good fun.

That little rivalry goes back a while, they had a weird interaction during an opening race a season or two ago and honestly Miller's actions were really questionable, he didn't like Mir's passes but he just drove into him on the straight. He had to own that one though but they should probably avoid each other on track somehow.

The form of the bikes on different tracks this year is really volatile, like I really don't know who's going to have pace, Quartararo either seems unbeatable or struggling on a Yamaha no one else has pace with. Honda's seem like they have something sometimes. The odd Ducati's are a bit crash prone again but there are so many.

Apparently Miami is next for F1 in two weeks. I think I confused it with the Vegas announcement, thought they were both a year or two off. We'll see how that goes.

Miami Friday is fun already! Mercedes back??? lol Russell tops a practice session, somethings working, possible they won't quite be there come Q3/race but its a positive sign they are in the right direction.

Sainz's crap weekends haven't ended but hopefully he's getting the crashes out earlier. Verstappen having some mechanical issues again. Hamilton got up to 4th in Practice 2 but Russell still seems to have some tenths on him.

Qualifying at 4 pm tomorrow, feels weird.

Jerez Moto GP race last week had some stellar rides, Bagnaia winning like his old self finally but still injured is cool to see. Canet in Moto 2 finishing second after surgery on a broken bone in like his wrist/hand earlier in the week was amazing, kept expecting him to fall off the pace.

Miami, Canada, Texas, Mexico? Makes up for the 1am Australia start

Let's hope the Petronas bros give their fans some hope. A DNF for Max wouldn't be a bad thing either

Generally the schedule aims for a maximum western European audience, but 4 pm EDT is 9 pm in London, 10 in Maranello. I guess the Italians are up that late anyway, but it does seem weird.

Some longish straights, some squiggly bits...good midfield action. Don't really have much more of an opinion beyond that. About as good a track as you can draw out in the middle of a parking lot, I guess. Would have been more interesting if a two-stop strategy were the better choice.

5/10.

Yeah, when a really weird safety car that everyone was waiting for saves your race (other than Hamilton's again lol) it's kind of a problem. Felt particularly modern social media American (not that it's just America, but that bit in the first lap with a camera in the bandstand when everyone was taking selfies and not watching the track was amusing) with the track having 'set pieces' around it that weren't really relevant to driving. I guess if we're not going to Sochi we needed a flat track around some other sporting stadium lol.

Track usually seems to make for good racing.

Pretty surprising news that Suzuki plans to pull out of Moto GP at the end of this year, won the title in 2020 and still seemed solid, almost like Honda pulling their engines from F1 or whatever, but it's an entire team. They've come and gone before, same with Kawasaki ages ago, I guess they just can't always commit to this class, they usually still have superbikes since its just street bikes in racing kit and not prototypes.

>Pretty surprising news that Suzuki plans to pull out of Moto
>GP at the end of this year

Compared to any top-flight 4-wheel series, expenses have to be comparatively minimal—not cheap, obviously, but nothing like F1 or even Indy. And relative to the marketing value of being in the series (and winning a championship), it does seem an odd move.

Bagnaia...lol. Dude.

Yeah it's definitely relatively cheaper, the FIM has been concerned with costs earlier than F1 too. It's possibly Suzuki still just isn't as big a company as the others, who knows. Their riders definitely didn't have a good weekend after.

Sucks for Bagnaia, seems like seeing Bastiannini do what he does well on last years bike now seems to annoy the Factory guys. When Enea had the 2020 bike last year it was not that good, though he still showed the late race pace often, but would come from outside the top 10 to almost a podium instead.

About all you can say about that.

so good of you to stop by

KMag took an entirely bizarre angle around that turn? Lewis could've stayed another inch or two right maybe, but he had hella space

Lewis wanting to retire the car and finishing 5th is absolutely classic stuff, same for Verstappen shitting on the entire garage and then getting handed the W


and nice fuckin drive for Russell

Sainz my man, where are you at? You're better than just fucking bottas'ing around the track all day

www.engadgethd.com - the other stuff i'm looking at

>Sainz my man, where are you at? You're better than just fucking bottas'ing around the track all day

He was saying something in the press conference post-quali that he just wasn't feeling the car as well as LeClerc yet. Wonder if that squirrelly back end is a big part of that.

and as we've seen with lewis/max

that frequently equals a teammate who just can't get as much out of the car

www.engadgethd.com - the other stuff i'm looking at

Like, he was setting fastest laps for a while on worn mediums with a setup that still isn't optimized and a car with diffuser damage. Were it not for the water leak, he had 4th in the bag as Sainz would not have got back past him. No VSC, no safety cars, just head down and drive. To be fair, because where he was and hoe the pit stops worked out he was in clear air most of the time, but still, that's one hell of a recovery and a ton of data. We've all seen 2nd 1/2 Lewis, so if Mercedes can fine tune this setup it will make a very interesting championship on either side. For the constructors, Ferrari and RB have their issues, with one Ferrari driver not quite having a great set of results and with RB having wonky reliability. Meanwhile, Mercedes keeps finishing with both cars. The Driver's 'chip may be a bridge too far, but again, 2nd 1/2 Lewis, and other teams having issues. Will have to see

Max is such an ass. Kinda love it, kinda annoyed by it at the same time, kinda mad Lewis wouldn't quite get the same reaction if he was cursing out his pit crew (but we know what that is). Not that I blame Max; he should have breezed past Russell if his DRS was working. But it didn't and he didn't.

Speaking of Georgie, that was some brilliant defending against Max for those few laps. Although right at the edge of the rules once or twice, his timing and positioning his car at the end of the straight to keep Max at bay was magnificent. When Max DID get beside him in the corner he didn't flinch either and kept his lead for a few laps more. He's been pretty consistent and plenty fast so far. Faster than Lewis? Eh....no. Better qualifier, yes. Benefitted for some fortuitous safety cars? Absolutely. But he wasn't lapping faster than Lewis yesterday by any stretch.

Sainz is faster than he's showing, or at least Ferrari better hope he is. He's had a number of unfortunate breaks so far, but you have to think the Tifosi want him a little closer to Leclerc for the Constructors points. Maybe he'll find a groove.

Team Orders rear their ugly head again. I get it, as Max needs all the points he can get given the reliability issues RB has shown thus far, so any opportunity to get more points than Charles they will take. Still, it sucks, as Checo was moving, didn't spin like Max and would have been overtaken Georgie as his car was working. I'm sure discussions will be had. Good times

Lando gutting it out with tonsillitis? That kid has some stones, doesn't he?

Monaco up next. Don't care for the processional race much and wouldn't be mad if it were removed from the schedule, but that will never happen, I understand why and am fine in the end. Let's see what Mercedes can do about their slow speed corner setup and just finish with both cars in the points.

Went to a cookout instead. Even I have a limit on how much racing I can ingest in one day.

I was getting really aggravated by the delayed (and then rolling) start in Monaco. But saw Ted's Notebook where he said the starting lights were broken, which is why there was the initial delay, then pushed again once the monsoon came. Guess that's okay. Made for an exciting race, by Monaco standards. Happy to see Checo nail it. Unhappy to see the Haas double DNF.

That may have been the last Monte Carlo race, evidently, if the head dudes can't sort out the problems. Mixed feelings...the calendar will seem lesser without it, but some changes would be good.

Think that was Marquez's last race for the year? Having surgery this week?

Carlos and Checo ending up 1-2 after that ending to qualifying is amusing. Feels bad for Leclerc. Alonso's pace in that last stint has to be the most annoying thing for me on race day.

Yeah, Marquez traveling to the States for surgery that will hopefully have him back to full-fitness in the future, but on hiatus after Mugello. Pretty exciting start of the race, Bagnaia ended up controlling it pretty well towards the end.

Monaco
Indy
Nürburgring 24 Hours
MotoGp
Coke 600

It was hot and I was cooking. After the rain delay in Monaco I knew I wasn't gonna make it through the day


IF Monaco isn't on the schedule, I won't miss it. I simply can't see it ever not being on the schedule, because traditions and there's a ton of money being thrown around. Besides, a number of drivers could leave parc ferme and walk to their home. But it does not make for an exciting race, especially with the bigger wider cars.

It's a crap race most of the time, but it's also the connection to F1's history...track virtually unchanged since Fangio and Moss and Clark drove it. And it's also the best representation of the old-school glamour of F1, which I get that the younger generations don't care about, but to me, I like the cars whizzing past the casino and past Tiffany and Cartier stores, and the whole vibe of it. And nothing else on the calendar has that—real old-world glamour and wealth, as opposed to dressing up a parking lot in Miami....

I was kinda bored watching Quartarnaro ride around unmolested, and was doing a crossword puzzle, until suddenly the announcers started yelling...not sure if that was him or the team, but damn....

Definitely unfortunate. That crash at the start and Quartararo's pace definitely spread the race out, lots of other crashed as well. I know Nakagami's to blame but his face to the back of that tire was scary.

Apparently Catalunya is the only circuit where the lap counter on the tower works differently, last lap is L0 instead of L1, it's thrown people off in the past on occasion but usually at a lower level.

Both their works drivers and two of their customers retire in the same race? I sure hope the famed 'Italian reliability' isn't a real thing. LeClerc would have been in a fight, but had a good chance for a win, rather than his 2nd DNF in 3 races. The Tifosi have to be sick today. That said, it's not like RB have been bulletproof either, so it could slide back the other way soon.

Meanwhile, Petronas, the little team that can't, continues to finish races and are firmly in 3rd place. Hell, if Ferrari has another DNF weekend they could jump them for 2nd, all while driving a car that bounces like a jackhammer. I felt terrible for Lewis, as he looked like he could barely walk at the end of the race. Montreal may not be much better. Shoutout to Russell for staying with a top 5 finish so far. Definitely been more fortunate than Hamilton on a number of races, but the way the car has been set up it doesn't even matter. I'm hoping the W13 concept has a huge upside that, even if this year is a wash, turns out a great W14 (or 13B, if they can sort it by the mid year break, which I'm not exactly hopeful on). The slimmed sidepods and floor setup had to have worked in their projections, just not in real world practice. Assuming they can get a handle on the porpoursing, they can sort the suspension tuning, then the drag, and then act like a competetive race team.

The bouncing thing, I feel for the guys who are suffering, but Horner's also correct: some teams figured it out, and Merc's (and others') failure to find a solution isn't something for the FIA/F1, but for their own engineering team.

Dozed off around lap 30 of Canada, but woke back up in time to see the safety car and Max holding off Carlos. Been cool to see Carlos at least get a chance at a lunge, but Max was faultless.

Bikes: is the title now Quartarnaro's?

Really hard to see Fabio throwing this lead away, he was consistent under more pressure last year when the Ducati's kinda gave it to him later in the season. Even when he has a track where he doesn't seem unbeatable, he usually brings home some solid points. I don't think Aleix/Aprilia can take a step to challenge what he can do. He's carrying Yamaha the way Marquez years ago.

The Cathedral of Speed at Assen next weekend is a must watch, longest running Grand Prix in history. There's always the hope that it lives up to that greatest race of all time from a few seasons ago.

Can Silverstone and an non-street track be good for the Mercs again? Hopefully...

>Really hard to see Fabio throwing this lead away

Hell of a ride for Aleix just staying upright in the first place and then plowing all the way to 4th. That last pass was awesome.

lol had to make me come back here and rethink everything!

It was good to see Bagnaia have such a strong race to the finish again, he's great at leading but it seems like when he needs to catch up to someone he might overdo it. Aleix having that comeback was good and deserving for the Championship fight, and that they seemed alright about everything when Fabio went to apologize. Was cool to see Maverick on the podium, and Bezzechi for Rossi's team!

The Moto 2 championship is crazy tight, top two tied on points and third 1 point behind. The Summer breaks feels long compared to F1's schedule these days, but it's probably better for them.

Watched enough now that I'm getting a better sense of the personalities and backstories...takes a while. All the intangibles I unconsciously understand about F1 are slightly different in bikes. Trying to get that deeper appreciation.

Hamilton's had a busy week, hasn't he? I don't care much for old tweets being dug up months or years later, but Piquet kinda stepped in it. Can't really be surprised though. All the more reason I want Lewis to get 8 chips and leave, as at that point you have no reason not to call him the GOAT except racial bias. I also have a weird feeling about the social media posts that every driver and team seem to make. On the one hand, it does make Lewis seem to be this golden child, which probably wasn't meant. On the other hand, he's STILL the only black driver out there, so all the hits are coming his way. Gotta tip my hat to him for dealing with it professionally for so long

As for on track, it will be interesting to see if the upgrades bring Mercedes closer to RB and Ferrari. Practice looks promising so far, but practice also means nothing come Sunday. Would love to see Lewis on the podium, but who knows.

Great for Sainz. Ferrari still dumb though.

Glad Zhou isn't dead. Halo keeps on saving lives. Good on Russell for being one of the first on scene. Very old school.

Great for Mick too, and Haas generally.

Lando solid, but really worried about Ric. starting to wonder if he's just past it. Or so stuck in his own head that he can't find his way out.

MB got that bouncing mostly sorted. Could be a race winner by season's end.

Protesters...holy fuck. There's stupidity, and then there's that.

I thought Hamilton and Mercedes had a great chance to win with that late safety car. Hamilton can outclass either Ferrari driver and the Mercedes team strategy and execution is generally better as a team.

Then I saw Perez was in 4th and I said "Fuck!". He's been a consistent thorn in Hamilton's side for the last season and a half.

I thought Racing Point/Aston Martin were so dumb to get rid of him...I get that Big Stroll just couldn't axe his own kid, but Checo's miles better than Lance. Thrilled when RBR picked him up. Perfect situation.

I still think he should have had to give Leclerc that position back after cutting the corner! lol mainly cuz that would have given Hamilton some breathing room. I know it was good racing, but I still feel uncertain about what track boundaries are in F1.

The race was so crazy I practically forgot what was up with Perez before he showed up in 4th at the SC, I thought he was in the same boat as Verstappen.

Neutralized all 17+s gap to 4th. On fresh softs, no way that Mercedes keeps that RB at bay on the straights. Hamilton did seem to have pace on the Ferraris, as he was slow walking them down, so who knows? Definitely promising, definitely helped that Max was out of contention.

Those last 10 laps were some of the best I've seen in years though.

So, 2 dedicated tracks, 2 really good races with on track racing. At some point we had 5 cars racing within inches of each other through the midfield. You don't see that often...

Between mechanical problems and on track shunts, Ferrari and RB just seem to keep letting Petronas hang around while they sort their super finicky car out. They should be finishing no higher than P5/P6 and yet, between on track issues (Max hitting debris at Silverstone, Checo getting punted at the Ring) or mechanical issues (Ferrari's glass cannon F1-75 catching fire), Lewis and George manage to actually finish all but one race and end up higher than the car should at this stage. They are 66 points off of Ferrari for 2nd. Another DNF here or there and they get jumped by the 3rd fastest team.

It's not all faint praise for Mercedes though. The car does look a bit more balanced now, and Hamilton had actual pace the last 2 races. They still have work to do, and it took almost a 3rd of the season to get here, but as I have said before, if this ends up being a year like 2013 where they learn what they can and smash everybody going forward, I'm good.

Shoutout to Mick for consecutive points finish weekends.

Gasley is in a funk, as is Danny Ric. Not sure if the rumors of him getting sacked are true, but F1 is more fun with Ricciardo in it, so lets hope he keeps on somewhere or finds form

Alonso with the finger was on Yuki? Perfect.

Fracne in 2 weeks. Let's go

>Checo getting punted at the Ring

You mean, "Russell punting Checo at the Ring?"

Yeah, if that keeps happening, Merc will be right there.

And wasn't Hamilton taking out Albon again, or Bottas at Hungary last season lol. But that had to be the least egregious of any Turn 4 Austria incident I can remember, like Perez really did have more space on the outside when he got hit, practically every other incident the outside guy was on the kerb when he gets clipped, Perez has tarmac space and pretending the guy on the inside isn't there or is supposed to hug the inside line on Lap 1 is unrealistic.

Just that if you're gonna post "oh look how much Merc is coming up in the points!" after one of their drivers wipes out a leader...FOH.

Honestly I wasn't sure if I would have preferred a Ferrari 1-2 or Hamilton on the podium. I still want the Ferrari's to beat him if Mercs aren't there.

The track limits were wild this weekend too, like I get it if its right or whatever, but it still feels unclear whether F1 cares about these from race to race. It was weird that they only ever really showed Lewis on the one in a replay during the race. Still just something Moto GP handles better and shows it on camera so I think I find it more annoying.

idk how red bull has convinced people that the inside car must hug the inside line, but that's not true.

hamilton on albon was a punt.

hamilton on verstappen was verstappen wanting to drive on all the lines and getting what the fuck was coming to him

russell on perez was just a racing incident. perez can't just turn in wherever, he had hella room to his left and decided nah I don't need it

www.engadgethd.com - the other stuff i'm looking at

He did the EXACT same thing last year in the same corner and got the same result:

https://youtu.be/LxLVqf5OtIE?t=83

I wasn't trying to minimize the incident in the OP, but this wasn't like Bottas playing snooker on a wet track and collecting cars (not entirely his fault, but still). It wasn't Netflix narrative/shit stirring either to try and make any team or driver look better (I've been watching F1 way too long for that, as many of you have).

Checo knows the risks, paid for said risk once before, and paid for it again. This was just meant to highlight Mercedes capitalizing on errors, forced, unforced, or those they may have been involved in. Better?

it's just bizarre how that has become the way it's described

oh well so n so hit the apex

but somehow when max drives people all the way off track suddenly there's no responsibility to hit the apex

www.engadgethd.com - the other stuff i'm looking at

Wasn't under pressure and somehow lost the rear end and hit the wall, leaving Max unopposed. I'm sure Ferrari is looking forward to the mid season break for a reset. .

With the Tifosi having a crap weekend it was the perfect time for Mercedes to pick up what they left behind. A great start by Hamilton had 2nd pretty much locked in after the accident, and Russell caught Perez sleeping on the VSC restart and held him off for a Mercedes 2 podium finish. 2nd in the constructors may become a reality at this point. Nice way for Lewis to cap his 300th Grand Prix.

Sainz did deserve driver of the day for sure.

>Sainz did deserve driver of the day for sure.

referring to Ferrari having the gall to radio him while he was battling with Perez? Would have been funnier and and I guess on some level sad if that whole radio scene took place when both drivers were battling on a turn. I don't remember if that was the case.

When they played the radio message live (which is delayed) it was definitely while he was lining up the pass into the last corner and start/finish straight lol I have a feeling it was somewhere in the back straights though but he knew he was close.

rubbing off on the driver this time. and that Carlos bit was funny, I do believe there might have been legit tire concerns with the temps and that line forming on it, we've seen these blow up in similar circumstances in the past, but you could tell they radio'ed him while racing Perez.

Merc double podium, but Verstappen still running away with things. Might just have to accept it and hope Mercedes is ready for next year to show Ferrari how to actually compete.

Hopefully the Hungaroring won't exacerbate Merc's speed deficit, the main straight is important but the rest of the track could be good for them if they have pace.

http://art-------school.com/

https://ibb.co/k4m6n8C

https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/article.my-best-race-is-still-to-come-read-vettels-retirement-statement-in-full-as.PVolZQIJEwV40R3A5gxPF.html

I wish him well. 4 chips with RB, but couldn't get it done at Ferrari during the Petronas era. Germany 2018 is still gonna haunt him. Still, a great driver and consummate professional. The grid won't be the same without him. Grazie Mille Sebastian.

Now the question is, will they allow Max to do donuts with Lewis, Fernando and Seb at the end of Abu Dhabi?

Whole thing has moved from funny to sad. Even from a slight RBR fan perspective, their incompetence has denied us a real title fight this season. Should have been Ferrari/RBR all the way to the final race, instead of wrapped up by August. Ugh.

Vettel gone. Alonso broke camp and snapped up the drive at Aston. Alpine may end up losing two of their drivers, and the Honey Badger may or may not have a seat next year (lest he goes back to Alpine).

Ferrari is, well, being Ferrari, and possibly pissing away chances in both championship standings. Max and RB is looking like 2015 Lewis and Petronas, with the chance to wrap up the drivers 'chip a few races before the end. Mercedes is playing the little train that could, slowly but surely making gains. At this point I'd rather the gains push out to next season, but we will see. They seem to be getting around the bouncing of the car. Now they need to get the tires fired up quicker (once a strong point of their cars, but with the new regs and new cars they haven't quite got that sorted yet). Coming in 2nd or 3rd wouldn't be the worst thing this year, really, as they would have more wind tunnel and testing time to sort out their concept and be on it from go for '23. Just as long as Lewis gets 8 I don't care what happens after that.

Half distance, half points, every race.

Those races are already pretty short. So half distance is about a 20-minute event. Hm.

There are obvious comparisons to Formula 1, but "2 races" has been common in other Superbike championships so it could logistically make more sense to implement naturally than how F1 is experimenting with it. Could be fun with everyone pushing, since there can always be passing in Moto GP, might help guys who don't like heavy fuel tanks, but someone who comes on strong late on might never find their pace.

The Sunday plan to always have Moto GP end the day makes sense, even though I've never known why some random weekends ever put it in the middle.

If nobody likes it (or it doesn't help attendance), ditch it after a season or two.

Watched Austria. Got interesting late.

Quartararo was almost one lap away from winning, which is impressive on that circuit. He really is doing things no one else is with that Yamaha, hard to tell if others will catch up or the bike will just not even be good enough for him eventually. Kinda like Marquez on Honda for a while, but not as 'dangerous' a ride style.

Kind of odd watching both Bastiannini and Martin run into their own trouble when they were clearly fighting over Miller's seat next year.

Crazy end to Moto 2, teammate who should have stayed in second ended up trying a pass in Turn 9/10, frontrunner got him back but no one was expecting it.

Unbelievable.

Curious to hear his explanation.

because him and Martin could have truly put some good pressure on Ferrari and possibly could have both beat Ferrari to possibly get a P3 finish.

All things considering, Russell Martin raced his ass of seeing as he was all on his own.

I'm surprised Hamilton wasn't penalized for that major error. He easily should have been.

They could have given -5 on the grid next week, but that'd be pretty harsh for stupidity, as opposed to malice. And Alonso was more or less fine, so...

He had space and probably could have made the move stick on the outside. Instead, he turns in too far and got rolled up on. Wasn't malicious, and he definitely got the worst of it. Alonso, in true hater fashion, had the radio message of the year so far. Still no love lost after all those years at McLaren. Here's hoping Lewis got that stupidity out of his system for the year.

Cotdam that RB is fast. Mind you, the early safety car just about neutralized the grid penalty for Max, but finishing 17+ seconds ahead of your teammate in 2nd is ridiculous (or rather something Lewis could do when Mercedes was dominating). That car is absolutely built and tuned to Max's strengths, and he's wringing everything out of it. I'm not happy with his likely back 2 back 'chip, but I am impressed.

On to the next one

>He had space and probably could have made the move stick on
>the outside. Instead, he turns in too far and got rolled up
>on. Wasn't malicious, and he definitely got the worst of it.
>Alonso, in true hater fashion, had the radio message of the
>year so far. Still no love lost after all those years at
>McLaren. Here's hoping Lewis got that stupidity out of his
>system for the year.
>
>Cotdam that RB is fast. Mind you, the early safety car just
>about neutralized the grid penalty for Max, but finishing 17+
>seconds ahead of your teammate in 2nd is ridiculous (or rather
>something Lewis could do when Mercedes was dominating). That
>car is absolutely built and tuned to Max's strengths, and he's
>wringing everything out of it. I'm not happy with his likely
>back 2 back 'chip, but I am impressed.
>
>On to the next one

I liked how Hamilton shut down the interviewer when she wanted to talk about what Alonso said. He didn't want to get into the back and forth and just wanted to focus on his error with the turn. Still unfortunate that Hamilton didn't recognize that Alonso was ahead of him in the turn and thus made his judgement there way off. And even worse, he probably didn't need to squeeze out that advantage taking the inside of hte turn would have gave him since he is such a masterful driver. Oh well, I guess the man is human afterall. Like you alluded to with the caution car, it hurts even more that Hamilton's error gave Max the added advantage of lowering his distance from first place.

I just started to watch F1 last year, so pardon my ignorance, but it seems are if Max isn't as much of a hot head compared to when I heard him rage out over the radio last season. However you feel about the man, you have to give him his props on how wall he is racing, the Red Bull car and mechanics being an advantage or not.

>I liked how Hamilton shut down the interviewer when she wanted
>to talk about what Alonso said. He didn't want to get into the
>back and forth and just wanted to focus on his error with the
>turn. Still unfortunate that Hamilton didn't recognize that
>Alonso was ahead of him in the turn and thus made his
>judgement there way off. And even worse, he probably didn't
>need to squeeze out that advantage taking the inside of hte
>turn would have gave him since he is such a masterful driver.
>Oh well, I guess the man is human afterall. Like you alluded
>to with the caution car, it hurts even more that Hamilton's
>error gave Max the added advantage of lowering his distance
>from first place.
>
>I just started to watch F1 last year, so pardon my ignorance,
>but it seems are if Max isn't as much of a hot head compared
>to when I heard him rage out over the radio last season.
>However you feel about the man, you have to give him his props
>on how wall he is racing, the Red Bull car and mechanics being
>an advantage or not.

Max got the call up from Toro Rosso (RB's sister team) back in 2016. He has always been super quick, but he has also always been SUPER aggressive on the track. His early stints were littered with accidents as he tried to storm through and bully other drivers around the corners and expect them to give him the place. With time and maturity the accidents went down, but Max's aggressive style is a known quantity across all the teams. It was just heightened in the championship race against Hamilton last year, which was the first time RB had a legitimate shot at actually winning.

I think his persona probably stems from three things. First, Max naturally gives off an IDGAF attitude, which to some degree you have to have when you're racing. Every driver has some sense of entitlement, but with Max it can seem oversized at times. Second, Christian Horner and Helmut Marko champion his attitude and defend Max against anybody, even if it means slandering other drivers and/or teams (the vitriol between RB/Horner and Petronas/Wolfe was at an all time high last year, but really was par for the course for RB, as they did the same when they were fighting to get out of 3rd place from Ferrari. But again, everything is heightened with the championship). Third, Max is demonstrably faster than any teammate that they have put beside him, either because he's got more talent (Albon, Gasley) the car is better suited to his style (Perez) or the team is all in on him moreso than their other driver (Danny Ric).

For the record, I do like Max. Always have, partially because he's stupendously fast and was out the gate. But I'm also a Hamilton fan, and the way the championship was decided left a terrible taste in everyone's mouth (except maybe Horner). Had he beat Hamilton straight up in Abu Dhabi, fine. But But that wasn't the case, and I'm not going back down that road. Max was always going to win a 'chip, and deservedly so. Assuming this year plays out like it seems, he deserves it. Good for him. His first one though? I can't say he didn't deserve it, as there were 20 races before the last one, and he won enough of those, but I don't like it and never will.

Besides, every league needs a Chip Hicks, and Horner and co. seem to revel in playing the heel, so there's that.

Never any doubt Max was gonna win, in my mind. But it got interesting. Dunno if Merc could have done anything to hold off Max on newish softs, despite Lewis's complaining. Doubt it.

Ferrari never ceases to amaze.

If there were no safety car issues I think there was potential depending on how that Merc pace kept up, not sure how fast Verstappen could've gone on his last stint and they wouldn't be as fresh tires trying to pass then. But yeah, the VSC/SC situation just got messy, and there was no defending from Max anymore. In retrospect getting them both on softs for a 2/3 would have been ideal, but who knows how messy double stacking while all the cars went through the pit lane could have been, might have led to a penalty like Sainz.

The Tsunoda stuff is the real mystery lol

Lewis was running great on those hards, and without a safety car could have done a one stop while Max, Charles, Sergio, and Checko all would have needed 2. I think he could have pulled enough of a gap on the mediums and held off the other drivers once they made the second stop. But once the safety car hit, the field gets stacked up, Max gets fresh tires for free and it's a wrap.

I suppose I understand what Toto is thinking. They were all in for a win, and making the pit was conceding the loss full stop. I suppose taking that chance was better than losing a few points at this stage. Don't necessarily agree with the strategy, but understand it. They are only 30 points away from Ferrari for second, and assuming Ferrari does what Ferrari always does, Mercedes will likely end up second, which has to be the goal for this year.

I have no idea what was going on at AT. No RB conspiracy thoughts, but that whole pit, check the belts, send out a car that was likely broken only to draw the safety flag was weird.

Not the most interesting Monza you'll ever see, unless you really got into that battle for 14th.

I guess the argument is that they could have red-flagged, but there was no compelling reason to do so other than make it more exciting.

Good to see Devries do a thing. I do like Latifi, but if Nyck's out there picking up 2 points in his debut, may as well go ahead and let him finish the year, if that can legally happen.

Watched the IndyCar finale. Power did just enough.

Speaking of, it's absurd to me that a multiple race winner in Indy doesn't have the super license points to race F1. I don't think the FIA should necessarily give Herta a special exemption, but the current setup ranks Indy slightly below F2 in "quality" or whatever, which is absurd, because any of the top guys in Indy would thrash most of the F2 field.

It was a weird finish, odd in a way to be anticlimactic only because without any SC incident it wasn't going to have much of a climax either I think. But yeah, I don't know if they'll ever make a Reg Flag rule adjustment like that, but they better not start doing that without a rule! I just still don't get what the hell the actual safety car was doing.

I assume the Licence rules are a bit biased, and in some ways I get why they'd want to give these guys a chance and I'm not against them getting one. There's usually a draw to having one America in F1 for the market, even if they're doing well there anyway. But I feel like there is always this aspect of the FIA stuff that values racing internationally I guess, so I sometimes see it as a funny callout of how the USA loves to call things that only happen within its borders World Championships lol

I'm being a bit facetious, but only just. Abu Dhabi is gonna stick around for a while.

As for the race:

Baring an explosion, Max will be the champ. Congrats to him and RB

GOATifi's days are numbered

LeClerc is a broken driver. Ferrari likes doing that, it seems

Not sure what Danny Ric will do. His pockets will be straight, but there's no clear path to a drive next year. Maybe take the year off?

Russell still being consistent. Hamilton made a good recovery. Anybody suggesting Russell is the better driver or is becoming the team leader is smoking bad hash.

Singapore is up next after, what, a 3 year hiatus? Should be an interesting challenge.

At the very least, owes him dinner.

Bristol was quite a thing, if anyone's watching stock cars. Not sure there's even a champ favorite at this point.

He really came back just to mess with the Championship harder than when he robbed Rossi of a title lol

Feels bad for Nakagami, I can't believe they're racing in Japan this weekend already, he might miss his home race and they haven't been for a while. I'm surprised they lined up these 4 races in 5 weeks, they're usually more spread out than F1, but the 5 week summer break is a long way away now.

Bagnaia has been on fire but I hope Quartararo at least gets to make it interestingly competitive going into the last races and Aragon doesn't leave too bad a taste in the final result. That Yamaha hasn't really seemed to give him any edge lately though.

War of attrition. Happy for Checo, as always. Love how when he learned about the safety car investigation, needed to get five seconds clear, he's like, yep, and just does it. Nobody else manages pace and tires quite like that.

Not happy, though, about these super-delayed starts in the rain. I understand you don't want foot-deep standing water, but why wait that whole hour? Send them out. Rain is fun. If you're not gonna allow racing in full-wet conditions, why bother having full-wet tires?

Falling behind on my MotoGP watching because of the godawful Asian start times. I can't do 4 AM. Australia is gonna be 11 PM, which maybe I can stay up for. Then Malaysia at 3? Nah, man. Turn the lights on and cater to the western hemisphere, please....

That Singapore track is cool, seems more special after all this time with the introduction of stuff like Miami. That SC penalty stuff was weird, glad he still has the win.

If you want to see some rain racing you should try and catch a repeat of the Moto 2/Moto GP races though. Even saw some memes comparing them to F1 lol. Title race is crazy, down to 2 points, 1.5 in Moto 2.

Philip Island usually makes for a good race. and I miss Sepang.

>If you want to see some rain racing you should try and catch a
>repeat of the Moto 2/Moto GP races though.

Full wets with limited runoff on a narrow track just makes for dangerous conditions. You could do it in Turkey where there's a lot more run off given its a purpose built track. Singapore? You'll get somebody killed. They could barely contain it on inters yesterday.

At least it wasn't a 2 lap farce like Spa was last year. It isn't the first or last time the race was decided by the clock in Singapore either.

>Full wets with limited runoff on a narrow track just makes
>for dangerous conditions.

Singapore was wet in 2017, Monaco the year before that, Canada in 2011...and given that Singapore speeds are among the slowest on the calendar (2nd to MC, I think), being even slower in the wet is arguably safer. Hell of a lot safer than 190+ at a wet Silverstone.

>You'll get somebody killed.

See above. Bianchi died in wet weather at a purpose-built track. Certainly the weather played a role there, but moreso did the crane. More recently, Hubert at a dry Spa, and then its all the way back to Senna & Ratzenberger (dry), Paletti (dry), Villeneuve (dry), Peterson (dry)...we're 40 years back now. The closest we've come in the last few years has to be Grosjean, and that was in the desert. Speed and freak accidents kill. There's no evidence that rain gets anyone killed, especially at slow street circuits.

>They could barely
>contain it on inters yesterday.

Who? Lewis, cause he was bitching on the radio? Six retirements yesterday: two engine failures, Latifi wiping out Zhou because he didn't see him, and because he's Latifi, Albon spinning three weeks after being in a coma, and Yuki not adapting to slicks, and because he's Yuki.

Driving in the rain SHOULD be difficult. Checo, the Ferraris, the McLarens, and even Stroll managed just fine.

Even without LeCerc getting the time penalty at the end this was a foregone conclusion. RB checked all the right boxes this year and Max was Max. Good for him. I don't care or listen to the cost cap scuttlebutt, so let's see what happens next year. Hopefully Ferrari and Mercedes sort things out and make it a proper fight

The Vettel farewell tour continues. I'm sure he will get a proper salute in Abu Dhabi. He will be missed. Apparently, Danny Ricc is out as well. I wonder if he's second guessing his initial decision to leave RB. He definitely made more money in the move, but he's got no ride now, unless he wants to go to Haas or Williams (and there's no sign they want him either). Maybe he relaxes and spends his money in '23 and pulls a K Mag in '24.

Another race, another rain delay. What are the odds?

>I wonder if he's second guessing
>his initial decision to leave RB.

Writing was already on the wall that it was gonna be Max's team, even back then, but ditching Renault, where he was clearly doing well and leading the team...that's the one that might hurt. I understand why a rejuvenated McLaren looked good at the time, but that was the wrong, wrong call.

Think he'd be great in Indy. Not sure there's an automatic ride for him there though. He might be suited for NASCAR...who knows? Kvyat's tryna make that work.

That last race...NO heavy equipment on the track when the cars are out, period. FFS.

That Crane incident was messed, every other angle seems worse.

A young dutch rider died in a SSP 300 superbike race on the weekend too :(

Chewed my fingernails to the bone.

Quartararo...doubt he'll sleep well tonight.

I don't think it's possible to jinx Phillip Island being a good race!

Top 7 finishing within a second was great, nice so see Rins/Suzuki get a win in before they leave Moto GP.

The title comeback is crazy, I'd be happy for Bagnaia but I hope Quartaro at least gets a good race in before the end.

https://twitter.com/NASCARonNBC/status/1586834658028703744

10th place into the last lap, needs to beat Hamlin (in p5) to advance to the final round, lines himself up against the wall on the backstretch, and just floors it. And it worked.

Best view of it:

https://youtu.be/v3hBPzmre2s

Literally balls to the wall.

that he tried it and that it worked that well. I'm already seeing talked about it being banned, soon...so folks don't start using it in end of race situations.

It was wild.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

$7 mil and 10% testing reduction seems.... I don't know. It's not exactly light. Money isn't a problem per se for RB, but the reduced testing may sting, especially with the sliding scale meaning they were already reduced relative to the other teams for winning the chip. I suppose nothing will ever be enough of a penalty though. It was never going to be retroactively taking away points (and it never should have either), so Max had no chance of losing his title from last year. It dirties RB's rep a little, maybe? Lessens the FIA's credibility, possibly? Is it enough of a deterant for teams to try it themselves? Who knows

Whatever. They were the king of the roost this year, so give 'em their flowers. Newey built Max the best car he's ever had and he drove the wheels off it over the season. Whether the team can be called cheaters is anyone's call, but it has nothing to do with Max.

Truly hope Petronas has a plan for next season. Let's get Lewis #8 and let him retire and be brand ambassador or whatever.

>$7 mil and 10% testing reduction seems.... I don't know. It's
>not exactly light. Money isn't a problem per se for RB, but
>the reduced testing may sting, especially with the sliding
>scale meaning they were already reduced relative to the other
>teams for winning the chip. I suppose nothing will ever be
>enough of a penalty though. It was never going to be
>retroactively taking away points (and it never should have
>either), so Max had no chance of losing his title from last
>year. It dirties RB's rep a little, maybe? Lessens the FIA's
>credibility, possibly? Is it enough of a deterant for teams to
>try it themselves? Who knows
>
>Whatever. They were the king of the roost this year, so give
>'em their flowers. Newey built Max the best car he's ever had
>and he drove the wheels off it over the season. Whether the
>team can be called cheaters is anyone's call, but it has
>nothing to do with Max.

I saw this as result of a post race Youtube show from Dan Le Batard's network. Was the over spending as result of shoddy accounting or purposeful cheating?

>Truly hope Petronas has a plan for next season. Let's get
>Lewis #8 and let him retire and be brand ambassador or
>whatever.

That team will have a delicate balance to maneuver since Russell is no slouch as a driver. From my very new jack eyes, Lewis appears to be more skillful, but I naively hope Mercedes doesn't sacrifice too much on Russell's behalf just to benefit Lewis. But at the same time, both Red Bull and Verstappen appear as if they'll continue to improve, so whatever Mercedes plans for next season will have to me major for either both or one of their drivers.

>I saw this as result of a post race Youtube show from Dan Le
>Batard's network. Was the over spending as result of shoddy
>accounting or purposeful cheating?

Some tax payment was supposed to be included in the cost cap, but basically they hadn't received the tax bill yet, so didn't factor the right amount, and then there were marketing costs they didn't include...shoddy accounting, more or less. Wasn't like they were covert testing at Jerez under dark of night. But a cost cap breach is still a breach...Ted Kravitz was talking about this last week, said the feeling in the paddock seems to be that the penalty is about right for the infraction. Not too light, not too heavy...I don't have any particular feeling about whether it taints last year's chip...Merc won 7 straight spending something like 100 million more than RBR, so, you know...

>That team will have a delicate balance to maneuver since
>Russell is no slouch as a driver. From my very new jack eyes,
>Lewis appears to be more skillful, but I naively hope Mercedes
>doesn't sacrifice too much on Russell's behalf just to benefit
>Lewis. But at the same time, both Red Bull and Verstappen
>appear as if they'll continue to improve, so whatever Mercedes
>plans for next season will have to me major for either both or
>one of their drivers.

I think you can guarantee Merc will bring a serious contender next year. They're not in it to finish third.

Lewis is arguably the most complete driver to have ever lived. They don't need to cater to him. He's elite all by himself.

Was hoping it would be more interesting, but seemed like Quartararo couldn't really find the speed, and Pecco just cchilled and stayed out of trouble.

Glad I started watching more bikes this year.

and together. The start of the race was pretty crazy, when the two of them clashed and Bagnaia lost a wing piece. That comeback for him going back to Assen is still crazy, a record I think. 23 points going into the last race was probably too much, and Quartaro and the Yamaha just didn't seem to have winning pace anymore in the last part of the season. Hopefully they can bring a better bike for him next year. Marquez is already sounding alarms about the Honda.

The Moto2 Championship finish was crazy but also anti-climactic with Ogura crashing out of good positions in the last two races, especially Sepang, trying to win when 2nd would have given him a solid lead for the finale. Fernandez is deserving but I was rooting for a Japanese champ again.

Had to play catch up on these races this week after a hectic family vacation.

Brazil is really loving Hamilton, hopefully that rubs off on track.

Sprint race Q, where the frontrunners don't need to worry too much because they can just move up tomorrow.

Hoping Lewis nabs one before the end, just cause I want him to keep the at least obe win in every season streak alive.

KMag on pole. Russell beaches it but stays third. Ferrari still funny style. They need to hire someone from Ducati lol

Not sure if this race will go Hamilton's way at all, and I don't think Mercs will like Abu Dhabi.

Glad KM got to lead at least the one lap, and held on to the last point.

Merc looking quick.

If Max is on the soft, K Mag may not have lead that one lap, and he likely wouldn't have been in range of Russell. But it's good data for Checo for tomorrow. It's not like Max or RB needed the win for anything other than to leer over the Tifosi and Silver Arrows. Good sprint for Mercedes overall, props to George for his first F1 'win', but I'm sure tomorrow will be quite different, even if the weather isn't a factor.

Stroll really is here only because of his daddy's money

Masterful performance and pit management for Russell today. So close yet so far for Hamilton to get that W today, despite the unfortunate crash with Verstappen. Good to see that the weather wasn't a factor.

Horner: Um...Max, let Checo thru at the end mate. He needs the points. M'kay?

Max: F*ck him. He screwed up Monaco. All y'all can eat a d*ck *goes faster*

There was nothing to play for personally or for the team, but he'd be damned to give a teammate any consideration. Max is the definition of keep that same energy. Gotta love it, or at least gotta respect it

he didn't have that energy when he wanted checo to let him past earlier in the race, or any other time he's wanted a teammate out of his way


he always says lewis didn't leave him space when he tries to shoot up the inside with a no-hope passing attempt and crashes

but when he was ahead, and lewis was alongside at silverstone, he claims it was lewis's fault.

keep the same energy my friend

his energy is: people only exist to serve me or get out of my way.


www.engadgethd.com - the other stuff i'm looking at

>his energy is: people only exist to serve me or get out of my
>way.
>

Doesn't matter if it's Lewis.
Doesn't matter if it's any other racer.
Doesn't matter if it's any of his numerous teammates.
Doesn't matter about Horner.
Doesn't matter about Marko.
Doesn't matter about RB.

All that matters is Max. As long as he gets his way on track or on team, he's fine. Any other time? Zero fukks given by Max.

And I love every cotdam second of it.

maybe I'll get there, I've come to not only tolerate but actually love Alonso getting up to snake shit, because that man is true to his nature to the very end


www.engadgethd.com - the other stuff i'm looking at

I want to see all the hand wringing and explanations the orange brigade will come up with the next few days to justify what Max did. I'm sure he's going to get fried by racing pundits this week. This is the monster Horner and Marko made, and finding a second driver is going to be that much more difficult once Perez leaves.

He's really been on his Chip Hicks steez the last few years. I'm going to enjoy the fallout here. Meanwhile, Petronas is getting their affairs in order for next season. What a time to be alive...

red bull are the ultimate losers from Michael masi's fuckup

because now they have to live with this little shit who thinks everything is always going to go his way and on his terms


www.engadgethd.com - the other stuff i'm looking at

Eventually they mellow with age, but the young Schumi? Dick. Senna? Lovely off the track, ruthless on it. Prost? Miserable French bastard. Vettel? Ask Mark Webber. And even Lewis, charitable and statesmanlike as he is now, is the most devious, mind games playing SOB in the laat 20 years.

I kid, but only a bit. All the greats likely have some level of dickeshness that makes them great at whatever they have to excel at. And yes, many mellow with age.

But right here, right now? We talking about Max.

And there's really nothing to defend here. There was absolutely nothing to play for here other than helping his teammate and he straight up didn't do it. Max very well could have cleared Perez on track the way his tires were falling off, but the order was given and Max only followed the part that benefitted him, Perez or the team be damned. His 'is that clear' message was on some super entitled bullshit that has been allowed for years. There's no way any sane person can defend this. So yeah, he's getting this smoke this week, and I'm gonna roll around in it like a pig in slop.

And before anybody brings up what Mercedes would have done, remember Totto threatened to sack Lewis and Nico after their crash in Spain 2016. Nobody is bigger than the team.

Unless the team is Red Bull and the driver is Max, that is

I swear I'm going to be rooting for Leclerc next race just for more fallout.

>I swear I'm going to be rooting for Leclerc next race just for
>more fallout.

Was Leclerc begging to be let through at the end of the race? I wasn't completely clear because I was foolishly hoping that Hamilton would catch Martin in the last few laps and I wasn't focused on what was being transmitted at the time. If memory serves me right, Sky Sports played three or four transmissions from Leclerc begging Ferarri to let him finish ahead of Sainz. Pretty wild how Sky Sports pretty much embarrassed the dude. I can somewhat understand from the season wide perspective on wanting points for standings, but to ask someone to give up a podium finish is pretty damn bold.

Says more about him than the team, as they did NOT issue an order to swap places. Ferrari were in a no win situation here, as they really couldn't ask Carlos to let Charles past, considering the year he's had AND getting to that place on merit. Not issuing a team order was probably the best sporting thing to do.

For Leclerc I get where he's coming from, but had Ferrari made that switch they may have been in a similar situation that RB is in now. He's in that position through his driving, bad team strategy and mechanical failures in varying amounts. At this stage, the TEAM goal is hang on to 2nd in the constructors. Driver goals went out the window once he spun and binned his car with no drivers around him. I think Charles is a good driver, and I absolutely understand him wanting to have any chance of salvaging his personal season. And as much as we (rightly) laugh at Ferrari's race day decisions, I think they made the right one here. While the driver standings are close, team standings mean more. Mercedes just got closer to them for 2nd. That's the focus. Their driver coming in 2nd or 3rd means a lot, but less in the grand scheme of things ESPECIALLY if it comes at the expense of their 2nd driver that has suffered enough this season, many timed through no fault of his own.

Either that or nobody on the pitwall had the balls to make the call in real time. Either scenario could be true. This is Ferrari after all. I'm sure Enzo would be proud

we understand that there's some shittery that goes with getting to that next level.


but being a shit and pretending that actually you're the victim ALL OF THE TIME is where max is different.

even alonso isn't entirely deluded about what an asshole he is, he just doesn't gaf

www.engadgethd.com - the other stuff i'm looking at

>I want to see all the hand wringing and explanations the
>orange brigade will come up with the next few days to justify
>what Max did. I'm sure he's going to get fried by racing
>pundits this week. This is the monster Horner and Marko made,
>and finding a second driver is going to be that much more
>difficult once Perez leaves.

if Max and/or Red Bull got angry with media questioning his motives here similar to how both Max and Red Bull got hissy with Sky Sports in how they briefly talked about the championship between Max and Hamilton last year.

I saw on social media that Perez wasn't too pleased and verbally called out Max as well. I wonder what Red Bull will do to keep both Max and Perez content enough to not beef with each other for Abu Dhabi.

and he doesn't see it.

some may disagree

but I think that Christian Horner looks at Max and thinks "ok motherfucker, you want to play that shit? I can make/find another you, I did it before I'll do it again."

bro has multiple championships while max was still in middle school.

he doesn't need that dude.

but if you're Max...

where are you going to find another Christian Horner and (much more importantly) another Adrian Newey?

Max may be the man on that team but how much leverage does he really have?

There's nowhere for him to go.

Mercedes? I don't think Toto is against grabbing him if it came to that, but Lewis is going to drive forever and they think George is next up. They don't need any driver, and they don't need his shit.

Would you go to Ferrari? How'd that work out for Vettel and Alonso???

Who else on the grid are you willing to bet your future on?

McLaren? Alpine? Aston Martin?

mannnnnnnn good luck


meanwhile, I think if Red Bull told Lando that Max is out, he'd hop over there in a second. They openly desire him, and he's just strung them along every time -- because he knows he doesn't want to play second fiddle to Max. and I think if you swap Lando in for Max, idk if he's a championship winner, but he's definitely up there.

www.engadgethd.com - the other stuff i'm looking at

Max is a shit, but he's looking like a generational talent. He's always been the best chance of RB getting a championship, and still is. I don't see anybody in their farm system that's even close to Max's level (and he's already burned through 2 of them). Matching him up with a comparable driver doesn't seem to have worked that well either (Danny knew the time, and Sergio just found out). Finding/making another Max is a tall order. Max is one of the top 3 drivers in the field, and the third one ain't Lando. Hell, I'm not even sure Lando is better than Charles, honestly. So replacing Max isn't going to get them another chip for a few seasons at best. So the team, at least, need Max.

As far as Horner goes? He seems much more in tune with Max's attitude and openly encouraging it. They're two peas in a pod. As team principal, that is his job, but Max has never garnered any of the criticism Horner has for his competitors OR his teammates. I think he's all in with Max and will go down with the ship with him, unless Max tries to toss him under a bus OR Max starts to slow down on track, and neither seem likely at the moment.

So Horner and RB will enjoy the war spoils and ignore, deflect or support anything else Max does. Not reigning him in is definitely going to bite the team in the ass, and probably sooner rather than later. But it won't be because they sacked Max

I don't think anybody in the paddock thinks max is that much better than Lando in the same car. and there's no indication that he could pull a worse car up

worst case scenario -- you think Red Bull couldn't get Charles over there? He'd pay whatever he has to pay to get out of that Ferrari deal and into the seat. and horner is enough of a snake to do some shit like that. you said it: just win baby.

He doesn't need somebody in that seat who isn't going to do what they're told for the team. He'll eat shit from Max for as long as he has to and he'll have the knife behind his back the whole time. He encouraged max because that's what it took to make Max into this, just like he encouraged Seb, and then when Seb's head got too big? They split up.

Horner replaced Vettel, who is as much of a talent as Max, and at times, was as much of a shit. and he replaced him no fuckin problem. there's allllways another driver.


>Max is a shit, but he's looking like a generational talent.
>He's always been the best chance of RB getting a championship,
>and still is. I don't see anybody in their farm system that's
>even close to Max's level (and he's already burned through 2
>of them). Matching him up with a comparable driver doesn't
>seem to have worked that well either (Danny knew the time, and
>Sergio just found out). Finding/making another Max is a tall
>order. Max is one of the top 3 drivers in the field, and the
>third one ain't Lando. Hell, I'm not even sure Lando is better
>than Charles, honestly. So replacing Max isn't going to get
>them another chip for a few seasons at best. So the team, at
>least, need Max.
>
>As far as Horner goes? He seems much more in tune with Max's
>attitude and openly encouraging it. They're two peas in a pod.
>As team principal, that is his job, but Max has never garnered
>any of the criticism Horner has for his competitors OR his
>teammates. I think he's all in with Max and will go down with
>the ship with him, unless Max tries to toss him under a bus OR
>Max starts to slow down on track, and neither seem likely at
>the moment.
>
>So Horner and RB will enjoy the war spoils and ignore, deflect
>or support anything else Max does. Not reigning him in is
>definitely going to bite the team in the ass, and probably
>sooner rather than later. But it won't be because they sacked
>Max


www.engadgethd.com - the other stuff i'm looking at

>He doesn't need somebody in that seat who isn't going to do
>what they're told for the team. He'll eat shit from Max for as
>long as he has to and he'll have the knife behind his back the
>whole time. He encouraged max because that's what it took to
>make Max into this, just like he encouraged Seb, and then when
>Seb's head got too big? They split up.
>
>Horner replaced Vettel, who is as much of a talent as Max, and
>at times, was as much of a shit. and he replaced him no fuckin
>problem. there's allllways another driver.
>

Horner may be biding his time. Can't remember the specifics of Vettel leaving RB for Ferrari or the feeling amongst the team and paddock, but they did field Danny Ricc and Kvyat for a bit, so who knows. I do agree things won't end well for Max, RBV, or both over this, but which way only time will tell.

In the meantime Max will continue to play Chip Hicks, because MDGAF

bro is not sentimental at all

Max definitely does have the juice, but a driver's career is always shorter than it seems like (unless you're alonso or hamilton I guess) and you only really have to look at what's happened to alonso and vettel, two drivers who are just as good as max, to see what playing politricks can get you

alonso is as talented as anyone has ever been, and he was completely out of the sport because niggas did not like working with him

Seb got his dream of driving at Ferrari and I'm sure he cherishes it, but it was all fucked up, and once he was done there he had nowhere better to go.



www.engadgethd.com - the other stuff i'm looking at

Having wrapped up both titles a good while back, my suspicion is that RBR have long since abandoned any work at all on their car, while Merc have been clawing their way to try and steal 2nd from Ferrari, meaning they've likely been actively developing the current car all the way through. So I wouldn't be surprised if they're the quickest outright in Abu Dhabi again.

Question is, though, how much all the focus on this year steals from next year's car.

https://www.redbullracing.com/int-en/team-statement-brazil-grand-prix

Like, the radio was recorded. We all saw it live and it's on tape for posterity. But we didn't see what we saw, and they are the victim:

As a team we made some mistakes in Brazil. We had not envisaged the situation that unfolded on the last lap and we had not agreed a strategy for such a scenario before the race. Regretfully, Max was only informed at the final corner of the request to give up position without all the necessary information being relayed. This put Max, who has always been an open and fair team player, in a compromising situation with little time to react which was not our intention. Following the race Max spoke openly and honestly, allowing for both drivers to resolve any outstanding issues or concerns. The Team accept Max's reasoning, the conversation was a personal matter which will remain private between the team and no further comment will be made.
The events that followed from a social media point of view are completely unacceptable. The abusive online behaviour towards Max, Checo, the Team and their respective families is shocking and saddening and unfortunately is something that we as a sport are having to address with depressing regularity. There is no place for it in racing or society as a whole and we need to do and be better. At the end of the day this is a sport, we are here to race. Death threats, hate mail, vitriol towards extended family members is deplorable. We value inclusion and want a safe space for everyone to work in and enjoy our sport. The abuse needs to stop.


Not one word on Perez getting screwed, not one mention of Perez being apologized to. But Max is fine, we understand Max, Max is a team player, Max is a clean driver, everybody loves Max, Max is king, please stop picking on Max and his family after his mom started stirring up shit for no cotdamn reason, the toxic fandom must stop. Oh, and Max is better than God.

Fuck this team
Fuck Chrisian
Fuck Helmut
And fuck Max. Actually no.... Max is who we all thought he was since 2016. If everyone at Red Bull wants to coddle his nuts and defend him from mean old people that want to hold him accountable when they don't, I can't be mad at him, I suppose.

I really want Lewis to win Sunday, but I'm rooting for Leclerc like never before. Imagine if Max has to let Lewis or George by to back up Charles so Sergio can pass him? Netflix execs must have boners harder than frozen diamonds right now

and in the general racing world for Red Bull to even give a response like that.

Out of curiosity, how bad would it have been if Red Bull stayed as silent as possible about last week's incident or at least tried to keep it in house? I suppose a large part of keeping it in house and resolving things amicably and professionally would be trying to at least appease Perez's concerns somewhat, which I'm assuming wasn't done at all.

Given Max's age, talent, and his overall temperament, this doesn't surprise me. I suppose it sucks Verstappen isn't acting like a teammate in a sport where cooperation is needed, but it appears the man thinks he is Red Bull racing at this point.

Out of curiosity, how hard would it be for Perez to find another team next year? Like I've said before, I am a new jack, but from what I've seen, Perez is too good of a driver to get treated like a side chick the way he was last week.

>and in the general racing world for Red Bull to even give a
>response like that.
>
>Out of curiosity, how bad would it have been if Red Bull
>stayed as silent as possible about last week's incident or at
>least tried to keep it in house? I suppose a large part of
>keeping it in house and resolving things amicably and
>professionally would be trying to at least appease Perez's
>concerns somewhat, which I'm assuming wasn't done at all.
>
Had they said something short and to the point, like 'The incident was discussed with our team drivers and the matter has been handled internally. We look forward to continued success as a team'. No names, no details, KIM. But considering the outright lying and contorting to make Max sound like a good guy and he and Red Bull as the victims in all this is insultingly bad.

Hell, they would be better off taking Marshawn's playbook and kept saying 'I'm just here not to get fined' when Kravitz does the interviews


>Out of curiosity, how hard would it be for Perez to find
>another team next year? Like I've said before, I am a new
>jack, but from what I've seen, Perez is too good of a driver
>to get treated like a side chick the way he was last week.

I think he's in for at least another year (can't remember if he signed for 2 or 3 years at RB). Driver shakeups usually don't start rolling around until the summer break, and it's too early to read any tea leaves and tell which driver may decide to hang it up or who's under threat of getting sacked by the team.

Apparently Marko said they signed Ricciardo as reserve driver and Red Bull had to come out and say nothing is signed. I know there's always rumours but starting it yourself? lol

The mom going back to a Monaco post to stir shit up while they talk about the problems of social media behaviour of others is too much.

Like Hamilton said, Mercedes is still the best team on the grid.

That picture of the drivers at Seb's dinner is so fun to read into, Hamilton has his arm around Perez, Max is the least visible, Ferrari drivers the least smiley.

Schumachers out next season, Hulkenberg in, guy was always an exciting super sub, hope he has some good races.

https://www.instagram.com/p/ClE6_7VvjdJ/?utm_source=ig_embed&ig_rid=74d0c1b2-aaa9-46cc-9597-aab5cf8138f8

To be specific, I'm referring to the group photo. A picture that is really worth a thousand words based on how folks are arranged.

Pretty cool for the lot of them to be happy, at least on the surface.

Like any group of coworkers, really. Some guys are pricks, some guys you really get along with, and the rest are just sorta fine, no problem.

I have no doubt that Max is more of a prick than most, but y'all going pretty hard with it.

and goes on the radio and is like fuck off I do what I want

even vettel at his absolute shittest didn't do that

Lewis gave back a place to bottas while he was behind in the championship

I'm not saying they're all saints, but there's no reason to try to level them all out

www.engadgethd.com - the other stuff i'm looking at

Y'all can party however you like. I have no rooting interest.

>even vettel at his absolute shittest didn't do that

Multi 21, but maybe it's a matter of degree.
>
>Lewis gave back a place to bottas while he was behind in the
>championship

Lewis also participated in Hungary 2014.

Nothing's going to change how I feel about Verstappen.

But competing with your teammate and practically your teammate only for the Championship is not the same as having a team that's been making the most deliberate second driver signings for you for years and not returning a favour when you've won everything.

Turning a pit lane start into a podium, finishing in front of the polesitter and closing the gap is what makes a champion. Verstappen in Brazil was just weird sore loser behaviour that accomplished nothing.

>>>and goes on the radio and is like fuck off I do what I want


that's where it got really out of control.

people ignore team orders.

but he pulled a lot of stuff out of his ass in public there



www.engadgethd.com - the other stuff i'm looking at

My intent in posting up that link wasn't to solely dump on Verstappen. Don't get me wrong, his placement in the photo was interesting, but there's other folks and other aspects to that photo that were of interest to me, hence why I posted it.

I figured folks here might have more insights to the photo than me since folks here have been watching F1 much longer than me, which is another reason I posted the link.

I told you, a pig in slop. That said, the season is over and what's done is done. There will be more storylines to revel in next year

Long ass season.

hopefully it doesn't 'feel' that way as much by the end.

I know LeClerc was mathematically still in it for months and months, but realistically, it was over by France or thereabouts. It's really a shame Ferrari were so strategically incompetent.

On the plus side, new regs seemed to mostly work. Cars could follow. Gotta figure on some convergence next year, so maybe someone in the midfield steps up big. Really like to see McLaren get some wins, maybe Alpine, maybe Aston Martin. My dream is always a season with five or six different winning teams. Dominance is boring.

Yeah, Ferrari's capitulation this season felt like it came a lot sooner than when they would fight with the Mercs, that at least lasted until Summer and required Hamilton to have those strong ends to the season. It felt like Ferrari had started being Ferrari way back in Imola.

I'd be happy to see them fix that, and for the Mercs to be in the fight from the start. Would be cool to see another team get up there, Mclaren seem close but it never seems like the off season benefits them.

There's the Big 3 and everybody else. The midfield fights should be spicier next year, but there's little to indicate ano midfield team is ready to challenge RB, MB and Ferrari. One can dream though

Run your race and win by a mile and you avoid all the questions. Perez needed to win, and that wasn't in the cards for him Sunday. Whether he could have pulled off a one stop and beat Leclerc is hard to say. Still, P3 in teh driver standings is all on his shoulders, Brasil shenanigans be damned.

Goodbye to the W13. You will not be missed

Been a week. Had time for things to coalesce. Let's see...

Congrats to Red BUll and Max Verstappen. Clearly head and shoulders above the field, for a number of reasons. At times it felt like Petronas domination circa 2014 - 2016. They got the regs and reliability right, and after playing 3rd string for so long get to rule the roost. It's not all candy and rainbows, as they have a decent penalty for the cost cap, and the interpersonal driver lineup with Max/Sergio/Danny is going to be something to watch and Horner to manage. Can they 3-peat? We will know soon enough.

Gotta feel bad for the Tifosi. Or, maybe not. Another season of high hopes, another season falls apart. This very well may just be Ferrari's MO. Sainz and Leclerc are very good drivers, but the car went from front of the pack to crap before the summer break, and both drivers never seemed to get on top of the car when they needed to. Binotto steps down, which was probably needed at this point, but I'm not entirely sure the fault was all on him. Fast car, wonky reliability, bizarre strategy calls, inconsistent pits, inconsistent drivers at times.... There are a ton of reasons Ferrari are where they are, and have been for years. Mattia being gone may be the first casualty, but I don't think it's the last

Goodbye and good riddance to the W13. Toto saying the cars are being placed in the lobby of HQ is a great thing, as Mercedes owns up to royally botching this season with an uncharacteristically bad car. Exactly what the concept was that they got wrong hasn't been said, but I'm not sure the extra slim sidepods were it. If there's any team that has the manpower and resources (most important, even in a cost cap series), it's Mercedes. Given the extra wind tunnel time they get finishing 3rd, and given RB is losing time, I think they can cut the gap. That said, they haven't been in this position since 2013, and with that car they knew what they needed to do for 2014 and stopped developing that car much earlier. Not entirely sure that can translate to 2023, but I have hope. George looks like the future, and Lewis didn't look like he got slower (though he had moments that didn't make sense, like Spa). They are the most stable team on the grid at this point, with the most decorated driver and the cache to back it up. Let's see how they get on next year

The midfield has the greatest shakeup. Will any of the moves get those teams out of F1.5? Who knows...

Alpine fills their driver hole with Pierre Gasley. This isn't a bad move for either party. Gasley has been much more consistent at AT (after getting booted from RB) and shown flashes of speed and consistency. Both he and Ocon seem pretty evenly matched skillwise, so they should make a solid team. The only things that may be a problem will be which driver will be top dog, and whether Renault/Alpine can give them and engine and car to break from the pack.

McLaren is also in a decent position to make some moves and break from the pack, but it's hard to say whether they will. Lando has great pace for sure, but it's harder to tell if it's the car or him that's holding him back from greater success. Piastri is the wild card, as he now has to prove the contract kerfuffle with Williams and Alpine were worth it to McLaren. I'm sure Zak Brown and company want to show and prove. Here's hoping they can

I've got no clue on Alfa. Zhou's results were hampered a bit by car reliability and some unfortunate crashes. Valtteri seems happy and made some decent moves through the field to end up 10th in the driver's standing. But unless the team has some cash injection or a development breakthrough, they may be facing more of the same

Grazzie Mille to Vettel. Got 4 chips at RB, but couldn't quite get it done at Ferrari, and seemed to waste his talents at Aston Martin. Even when they dropped the 'stroker' (cheater) engine in they couldn't quite beat Petronas, though not for lack of trying. Germany 2018 is going to stick with him. That said, it was nice to see him grow into a beloved elder stateman on the grid, with the 'Multi21' aftermath behind him. Here's hoping he enjoys his time away from F1 and goes to do great things.

That said, not sure Aston Martin is any better off with Alonso snapping up Vettel's barely cool seat. From a marketing view, it works great. On skill, Alonso still has quite a bit in the tank. Can Aston harness any of that? I have my doubts. I don't think he's that much faster than Vettel (if at all), and Vettel had struggles with that car. Regardless, he will likely do better than Stroll, who's just here because his dad owns the team, not because he's any good. He's still weaving on the straights at this point in his career,, which is all you need to know.

Gunter is a personality, that's for sure. As a team principal? Not sure getting two ex-girlfriends as your drivers is a great strategy long term or short term, but it was great K-Mag was back last year, and Hulk should be a welcome return as well. Was bringing Nico back better than sacking Mick? No clue. Mick has huge shoes to fill and likely will never be his pops, but he never was supposed to be. Does he have more upside than either of the seasoned Haas drivers? I'd like to think so, but there weren't many memorable drives during his tenure, and K-Mag outdriving him most of the season couldn't have helped. Regardless of whose driving, do they have a decent car to drive, or will they be near the back of the pack again? I'm betting on the latter, and more spicy clips on Drive to Survive from Gunther.

AT has a weird year. They had moments of competitiveness, and moments of malaise. Yuki should be placed as the man at that team, but it doesn't look like any of the data or development from RB has trickled down to AlphaTauri, so they could be in a similar spot next year. Can Nyck D handle the bright lights? Better conspiracy question: Will RB lok at either of their drivers over Danny Ricc (more on him later) when they chose to dump Perez? Not saying it will or should happen, but given Marko's history, I wouldn't bat an eye if it comes to fruition.

Glad Alex Albon has a seat, but it's at Williams, so...I guess he's doing it for the love of the race, maybe? I do think he got a raw deal at RB, but there's not a big enough sample size to say if he deserves a better ride. The car has been fast in qualis, so there's something buried in that heap. Will Alex be the one to help develop the car and program, or is he biding his time? No clue. Prepare for another blue flag season.

Ricciardo. I'm not sure what to say. He left RB not to be #2, only to go back as a #3 (if that)? Renault and McLaren weren't great stints for him, whether it was the car never suited his style or his skill regressed (or somewhere in the middle). But to play the understudy in a production you KNOW is not gonna go your way is puzzling. He knows how things went with him and Max. He's seen how the junior drivers have fared. He's seen how Sergio has been handled. Why would you sign up for another chance at any of that? He's fast, yes, but he was JUST faster than Max before he left, and I'm sure Max is much faster than Danny now in that RB. And there's no telling whether Helmut wakes up, has his coffee, and pulls a junior driver from F3 to pair with Max, let alone promoting Nyck from AT. If there's some ambassador role he's playing, great. Sounds like an easy paycheck. But as a move to stay a F1 driver? I don't quite get it.