I'm driving home today so I won't see it but the Styrian anthem was a highlight of last year.
Lord Sir Lewis Hamilton of Stevenage
Max Verstappen
Evil Daniel Ricciardo
Less Evil Sebastian Vettel
There was something in the air that night Fernando
Sharl Leglerg
MSC mk2
Alex Albon
Alex Albon
Alex Albon
I'm driving home today so I won't see it but the Styrian anthem was a highlight of last year.
Yeah, it was that, but mocked up to some sort of weird Christian pop / synth backing track, and sung by a man dressed absurdly on a very small podium while the drivers looked on in bemusement.
Where the fuck is the rain? We were promised it!
Yes he is.Originally Posted by Jimmy Floyd
Mazepin's been getting the better of his teammate again. Not that I'm considering that suspicious. Russell's got another chance of points. Let's see if he actually keeps that.
Any race where I hear 'the wind is starting to pick up' on commentary before halfway is doomed.
Russell is cursed so something will stop him.
Done.
He needs to get out of that Williams as soon as he can.
He should probably be in the Mercedes by now, Bottas is useless.
I don't know where he goes. He could switch to Mercedes but what are you really gaining from that? He's better waiting for Vettel, Kimi or Alonso to retire.
He should 100% want the Mercedes drive.
They’re also falling back in the constructors race which is what the team care most for, because of Bottas.
Remember we also have a regulation change coming. Judging by how far the gap has closed this year you’d suspect that’s Mercedes having most of their eggs in the 2022 basket.
This is one of the all time worst races.
Oof. I can't see Lewis winning the title. He needs mad efforts like Bahrain and converting missed opportunities like Baku just to stay in touch.
He’s already been at Williams one season too many. There doesn’t seem to be any inclination that any of those three will retire.
I can't imagine him not being in the Mercedes next year. They need a Hamilton succession plan and it ain't VB.
The margins this year are closer than they appear for the most part. For example, if Lewis held Max off for 1 more lap last week, he arrives here with a championship lead.
The bad news for him is he's started developing the habit of just losing out. It used to be he'd always be on top by hook or by crook. Add in that there are clearly two #2 drivers behind them that wont threaten this title race and it looks to be slipping away.
Yeah the tide has turned. The good luck and important strategy calls all seem to be going Max’s way and there doesn’t seem to be much Lewis can do about it. It’s fascinating viewing.
The key telling point is Lewis isn't even angry or annoyed. You can see the look of a man who knows he can do nothing about it right now.
Some rain mixed in to next weekend would be great.
Meanwhile, normal (that is to say complete batshit) service is resumed in MotoGP. Quartararo wins ahead of Vinales and Mir. Marquez had a good recovery ride to finish 10th (21st on the grid). 4 wins for the Frenchman.
I fully expect Russell to be in a Mercedes next year, I also have a sneaking suspicion that Ocons new contract may signal how much longer Hamilton is sticking around.
Is he worthy of the second seat alongside Russell? I’m thoroughly unconvinced by Ocon.
He's another of Toto's boys, and if he stays clear of Alonso for the rest of this year and next then you could certainly make the case. He also had a year away and actually came back, which you wouldn't expect if he was rubbish.
Alright, I'll play some F1 musical chairs here:
Kimi retires.
Bottas takes his seat.
Russell to Mercedes.
GP2 / Engine Supplier Money Child to Williams. Schumacher?
Lewis, Seb and Fernando carry on for another year. Kimi left his decision late this season which is why I'm seeing him as the first to blink.
In other non-F1 news the racist Kyle Larson missed out on a record equalling 4th NASCAR win in a row with a flat tyre on the last lap at Pocono this weekend.
2023. Get in there Lewis.
Shits on my Ocon theory, I suppose they'll need to find someone else to bring in alongside Russell. Eyes on the second Williams seat for a clue on that one I reckon.
With the older guys hanging around (and being good), it really limits the drives.
Shambolic from Ocon in Q1. Fernando is donning him.
George
Knocks out Leclerc, Sainz, Ricciardo. Mega lap.
Amazing session for the young English drivers.
I love grids like that. Hopefully Lando can challenge for the lead and Russell can finally get a monkey off his back.
George through to Q3 on the mediums is a genuinely incredible achievement. Lando in P2 is great, but I imagine the race pace wont be up there with Mercedes and Red Bull.
Unfortunately, it'll probably be quite a dull race, unless we get some changeable weather.
We'll get something from the grid mix-up. However long that lasts.
What an awful decision that is from the stewards to give Lando a penalty. No contact whatsoever, not even brushing of tyres - Perez should have backed out. Too desperate to get past early on.
All of those penalties were ridiculous. You could tell the Norris one wasn't when Christian Horner didn't think it was. Is it now official steward policy for people to be allowed to chuck it up the outside and have the racing line car cede position?
The Norris one all the more daft as Perez only got into the position he was in by exceeding track limits on one of the corners in the run up to the incident.
Alright lads, get on it:
https://www.hamiltoncommission.org/the-report
Truly groundbreaking stuff.Support and empowerment: we call on those in leadership positions to support Black children to excel in STEM subjects, and to empower them to choose – and succeed in – fulfilling careers
Accountability and measurement: we call on those in leadership positions to step up, to acknowledge the unfairness that exists and to commit to change – the first step being to collect data to form a benchmark from which to improve.
Inspiration and engagement: we call on those in leadership positions to work harder to show Black children that STEM subjects, engineering and motorsport ARE for them, and to excite them about the opportunities that they offer.
Yet we will ignore that entirely.Students who are eligible for free school meals do worse, in general, regardless of ethnicity, in all subjects - the dominant factor here is poverty.
In other news Lando Norris was held up at Wembley at the weekend. They nicked his 100k watch.
Russell. Mercedes. ASAP.
It’s going to happen isn’t it? It’s inevitable at this point.
Hamilton and Russell sensational there.
Russell taking that stonking lap with the track to himself and crowd going mad may be my favourite moment of the season.
What time is the sprint race? I'm hype for that.
Russell is world champ material. Then again Button wasn't and he won one, so you never know, but yeah, he's brilliant.
It's always hard to gauge car v driver but when you're getting 8-10 and your team mate is getting 18-20 there's something happening.
As good as George is, that’s also a reflection of Latifi’s ability as well.
Latifi is toilet but he's still beating the Haases, so I'm taking that as an indication that Russell is A list.
The other hint was when he took over from Hamilton in Bahrain. He donned Bottas despite not having his own seat nor knowing what the buttons on the wheel do.
He got close enough to Bottas in Bahrain for it be a donning and he is undoubtedly going to Mercedes next year, otherwise their driver line up is going to look very odd when Hamilton goes.
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote