The Official Formula 1 Racing Thread

[Rey C.]

I honestly have no idea how Merc/Lewis did that. Just shows that you don't have to have the fastest car to win.

As for Max Verstappen... :nono: He still has a lot of growing up to do.

 

[Supafly]

I think both Vettel and Verstappen lack the instinct and judgement of the likes of Michael Schumacher, who just knew not to stretch things too much. These two keep making fatal mistakes.

As for Mercedes... they have both the superior pit teams and the strategic teams and their drivers are disciplined enough to manage fading tires etc. Which makes all the difference

 

[Supafly]

The F1 2021 rule changes:

My favorite issue is the long due cost caps, and the caps on wind tunnel usage, which will level the chances of bigger to smaller teams. Plus the body changes that will hopefully make truly competitive races easier, by giving cars a better chance to close up to the car in front of them. I am hopeful!

 

[Supafly]

The US GP was the race that brought the sixth title for Lewis Hamilton - and it was the one that showed that the team is the best, at this point. Bottas start to win

And regarding Vettel... what can I say. In Germany, we say:

"If you got shit on your heel, you got shit on your heel"

He must have brought some strong curse upon himself

 

[Supafly]

 

[Rey C.]

I got to take in my first F1 race. I got a chance to enjoy the fun city of Austin. And I got to see my favorite driver pick up his sixth championship. I am happy, but I am tired.

 

[Supafly]

You really picked the right race

 

[Rey C.]

Thanks. It was good just to be there to see Lewis win #6. But if we go back again, I'll have a better idea of where to sit next time.

 

[Supafly]

Second-to-last GP of the season coming up. Interlagos, in Brazil

 

[Supafly]

The race is done, and man! where do I start.

But the major takeaway from this race is:

Ferrari has two pilots that have some serious personality issues to sort out. If you thought that the italian team already had some bad luck and trouble, this was getting ridiculous. Both had managed to get back to places in the points, had chances to come in around place 4 to 7, if they do well, but they had to fight each other, none of them gave the other enough room to stay safe, and the double wipeout was the consequence. I can't believe they can top that in the last race, but we'll see.

 

[Supafly]

Looking back at the season for Ferrari

 

[Supafly]

Just for the Lulz

 

[Rey C.]

Even though Senna won his first race in a Honda (Lotus-Honda), and his championship years in the McLaren-Hondas made me a great admirer of Honda... and I loved the original NSX, I've never owned a Honda car. Once I put their IRL involvement behind me, I began to want to see them do well in F1. I was hoping that it would happen with McLaren. But that was a big nothing burger. Now though, they seem to have all the wheels turning with Red Bull. I'm glad. I just hope they stick around for awhile.

Honda will continue to supply engines into Formula 1's new era of 2021 after extending their deals with Red Bull and Toro Rosso.

Returning to F1 after six seasons away, the McLaren-Honda partnership failed to succeed with engines initially proving unreliable.

A split two years ago saw Honda initially team up with Toro Rosso, Red Bull's junior team, to stabilise their F1 project before adding the senior outfit to their supply chain this year in effective works status.

The Brazilian GP was the first time Honda-engined cars had finished in first and second places of a race since 1991. :thumbsup:

Other Honda rumor/news: American Honda/HPD may be getting set to join NASCAR. But to do that, they may be leaving the IRL (Penske's newly purchased IndyCar series) and sadly, IMSA.

 

[Supafly]

The last GP of this year's season is here! And qualifying brought us this grid:

1. Hamilton / Bottas

2. Verstappen / Leclerq

3. Vettel / Albon

4. Norris / Ricciardo

 

[Rey C.]

Congrats to Lewis on his 88th(?) career pole. Considering that Bottas had an all new power unit (two for this weekend, in fact), Lewis' record lap for pole seemed that much more impressive.

As for Ferrari, what can you say? They weren't set to capture pole, but for Leclerc not to even make it to the line to start a qualifying lap before the flag flew? Come on, guys! And Vettel has been pathetic all weekend: two careless spins and lots of crushed carbon fiber. Easy to see why Mattia Binotto had this to say on Friday, even before Saturday qualy:

Binotto: Happy to know Hamilton is available in 2021

Ferrari principal Mattia Binotto sang Lewis Hamilton’s praises on Friday, fuelling speculation that the Italian team could seek to sign the six times Formula 1 world champion for 2021.

“Lewis is certainly an outstanding driver, a fantastic driver,” Binotto told reporters at the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix when asked if he would like to sign Mercedes’ Briton.

“Knowing that he’s available in 2021 can make us only happy.

“But honestly it’s too early for any decision, so we are happy with the drivers we’ve got at the moment and I think certainly at one stage next season we will start discussing and understanding what to do.”

 

[Supafly]

Maybe taking the Ferrari Challenge™ is a great thing for Lewis. It appears that Mercedes championships are almost automatic for him, and he could probably double his income by negotiating that Ferrari contract :rofl:

 

[Supafly]

 

[Rey C.]

Maybe taking the Ferrari Challenge™ is a great thing for Lewis. It appears that Mercedes championships are almost automatic for him, and he could probably double his income by negotiating that Ferrari contract :rofl:

It'll be interesting to see what happens next year around the summer break. Will Lewis stay or go? Will Toto stay or go? If Lewis went to Ferrari, it would most likely be Vettel who would lose his seat. Where would Vettel go? Would he just retire, rather than have to look for a seat somewhere else? Would Verstappen then go to Mercedes? If he wound up at Mercedes, would Vettel be welcomed back to Red Bull?

Wonder how Lewis feels, knowing that with the simple stroke of a pen he could shake up F1 like we haven't seen for over a decade? Personally, I think that he'll stay at Mercedes, as that's who gives him the best chance of winning more championships. Ferrari could make a faster car, but the clueless management and erratic pitwall strategies would still have trouble winning a championship against a strong driver in a "just fast enough" Merc. But we'll see.

 

[Rey C.]

Well, now we know (pretty much for certain) who young Maxie won't be driving for in the near future. Insulting McLaren or Renault wouldn't be such a big deal. But at some point (probably before Max's career ends), I believe that Ferrari will make a come back. And given the choice of Ocon and Russel in their car vs. Max + whomever, there's no guarantee that Mercedes would want Little Big Mouth either. So, better hope that Red Bull and Honda come up with a dream package from here on out, Max. He should follow Lewis' example in this respect, not Alonso's.

Ferrari appear to slam the door shut on Max Verstappen’s hopes of a future with the legendary Italian team as their boss belittled the Dutchman during the company’s end of season media dinner at Maranello.

Mattia Binotto and Louis Camilleri confirmed that Sebastian Vettel’s 2021 seat may be up for grabs but the talk was mainly about Lewis Hamilton, as Binotto swept away any lingering speculation that Fernando Alonso might return to a red cockpit.

“We have talked about him, but he no longer sits with our plans,” the team boss said of the Spaniard.

As for Verstappen, Camilleri is still furious with the Dutchman after he accused Ferrari of “cheating” with its 2019 engine, and told guests on the day, “There is no place here for those who say these things."

He also preferred not to elaborate, “Silence is sometimes the strongest weapon. We are Ferrari. Why give credibility to a 22-year-old boy?"

Boy! Boy! Camilleri went full blown southern fried on [NOBABE]the kid[/NOBABE]. Ouch!

 

[Supafly]

Verstappen has learned some things in the past season, but he still has the mindset of a 17yearold streetracer. Which makes hium the perfect fit for Red Bull, they cater to that crowd. He has to do a LOT of growing up to get an offer from the major teams like Mercedes or Ferrari.