FORMULA ONE - 2020

nocones said:

In reply to New York Nick :

I think they aren't worried.  Vettel is more about brand marketing and recognition.  You will be able to say AMR home of a 4x World Champion.  I don't think there is any way AMR/BWT is competing for a Contstructors or Drivers Championship in the next few years.  Even if Vettel cruises around at the back of the field and Stroll puts up consistent 5-10th place finishes the marketing as a "lifestyle brand" is still there.  People will want to come be VIPs to instasnap with Vettel.  I don't think as many will want to instasnap with Checo no matter how many races he wins.  If Checo was the key to Actively winning a championship now that equation could change.  

My thoughts.

I think that's a pretty likely scenario.

In reply to nocones :

All good points. Winning 4 world championships does give you some serious marketability.  Being second best in a two driver race though has to sting the legacy... we will have to see if that happens twice.

Keith Tanner said:

Confident doesn't mean hothead. You can have a strong belief in your abilities without being an ass.

Keith, well said, if only more people were told this; whether it's the oh so serious amateur or multiple time champ.

Petulance is so self defeating........I refer to those types as Veruca  " I want it now daddy, I want it now"

Apparently Kimi is driver and fire marshal today with a flaming car...

Max on pole over Valteri by just a tiny bit, Lewis in third another hair behind with Lando starting beside him. Hopefully it leads to an entertaining race.

Can I say that I really don't like this track?  So busy with no real indication of where you are.   The straights may give us some decent passing, but the flavorless, characterless track is like a droning sound in your ears.  

It's definitely a stark contrast from last weekend. The lights are neat but it's not an interesting track at all. 

Hamilton is still feeling the aftereffects of being sick. If you've talked to anyone who's had this thing - or you're a lucky winner yourself - you know how it much it takes out of the patient. Two hours in an F1 car is not an easy day, he'll have to dig deep not to make any mistakes, never mind fight for a win.
 

https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/article.hamilton-admits-hes-not-100-and-expecting-a-tough-race-physically-after-p3.3oncLuGhn0GUAxSmgD8RYc.html

It's easy to forget how physically demanding a F1 car is to drive.  Not only is each lap a workout, but reaction times and inputs have to be dead consistent lap after lap.  I sure couldn't do it.

D.C. just congratulated Max on his first ever pole position.  That can't be right, is it?  First at Yas Marina, sure...

Streetwiseguy said:

D.C. just congratulated Max on his first ever pole position.  That can't be right, is it?  First at Yas Marina, sure...

Yeah, I had to check that. It's his third overall according to Wikipedia. I think the commentators were so focused on Mercedes domination at this track that they forgot about all other races :)

Just saw news that Silverstone is renaming the start-finish straight the "Hamilton Straight".  

Pretty cool.

The cars seem too big for the track. That R25 Renault looked far more fun and appropriately sized for Abu Dhabi. I have no doubt that Lewis is still feeling affects of Covid, it kicks the crap out of some people. Looking forward to the race but am sad that it's the last one of the year.

Overall, I don't really care for the track in Abu Dhabi at all.  But there's something about that pit exit tunnel that I think is really cool.

wae said:

Overall, I don't really care for the track in Abu Dhabi at all.  But there's something about that pit exit tunnel that I think is really cool.

This track sucks.  Characterless, and even with the multiple long straights, no passing.  Can't close enough on someone w/o damage, so unless there's a clear advantage, you get stuck.

Boring race.

I can usually find something interesting in a race. Not this one. 

Based on how Lewis sounds on the radio, he is really struggling. He may look pretty rough on the podium. 

The only interesting thing that happened was that Sainz held up Stroll under the SC in the pits.  So Carlos may get a penalty for doing that.

They came out of the pits at the exact same time, Carlos passed cars to get behind Norsis, Stroll didn't.    Had Stroll kept up with Sainz, a 5 second penalty would have meant something.  But he didn't.   Had Stroll kept ahead of Gasley, it would have mattered.   Which is to say, Racing Point can complain about Sainz all they want, but one has to play to how the ref calls the game- and Stroll gave away any chance a penalty would make by doing nothing.  And look at that, Stroll lost another position, on the last lap.

Well done McLaren- got third place!

Lewis was cooked after that but the way he was talking about 2022 I think we'll see him behind the wheel for a few more years

The most exciting thing about that race was around lap 38 when I almost tripped over one of my dogs on the way to refill my coffee.

Good on Max for leading the whole thing, and it's really awesome to see tRacing Martin take 3rd in the constructors'.  But I almost feel like I could have saved myself an hour or so and just read the highlights later on.

I literally fell asleep during this race

The excitement level of this race was perfectly summed up by Max's radio transmission with several laps left: "OK guys, you can turn the engine down if you want..."

Well, I napped through the last ten laps.  

Has Alex done just enough to keep his ride, in combination with the Thai ownership stake?

Is today's Red Bull/ Merc pace representative of the real pace, or did Merc just not really care today?

Will the McMerc be a force next year? 

Will Danny Ric and Max be properly in the title fight? 

All these questions will be answered next season, on As the Wheel Turns.

Money talks, I think Albon is safe. Unless Perez walks in with a suitcase full of pesos. 

I think Red Bull were trying harder near the end of the year, Mercedes publicly stated they were concentrating on the 2021 so the gap closed up. And it's not like Max being able to pull off one victory is an indication that Mercedes lost the plot, he was only on pole by 0.026s with Lewis close behind. Lewis was definitely not at full function today but more importantly this race is one that is determined by one lap in Q3. Had Lewis been healthy it's quite likely he could have 0.1s faster in qualifying and that would have been the race victory.

McLaren is looking very much like a team on the way up.  A good driver pairing, a healthy culture, a good engine for next year. Hopes are high!

Keith Tanner said:

Streetwiseguy said:

D.C. just congratulated Max on his first ever pole position.  That can't be right, is it?  First at Yas Marina, sure...

Yeah, I had to check that. It's his third overall according to Wikipedia. I think the commentators were so focused on Mercedes domination at this track that they forgot about all other races :)

Isn't it that mercedes has been dominating all races since the track opened?

Although the track has been open since 09....