Motorsport

Well that is me done with f1.

It highlights the fickle nature of F1 quite well really. If there are to be any changes, there's a responsibility for them to be made public. Much like the nonsense with the Ferrari engine 'settlement', shaking hands behind closed doors over stuff like this is as much a problem as the thing they are trying to fix in the first place.

It'd funny because despite seven titles this will raise Hamiltons stock even further. Especially in the UK. His handling of this has been something to admired.

If he could come back next year and do it, it would be something else.

Yup, I do think elements of the media are a bit too cosy as well. Bernie used to use paddock passes as a weapon and even though he's gone I still detect a reticence from sports media to hold the FIA to account as much as other governing bodies.

I guess we have to give the FIA (and to some extent Mercedes and their ability to force the FIA to make changes via participation) the benefit of the doubt that this 'investigation' will be meaningful. Not got much faith, but I'll give them a few months and judge based on actions.

I can't easily walk away from F1 as I've stuck with for thirty-something (sometimes reasonably dull) years, but a lack of integrity and further degradation of driving standards would certainly do it. The hybrids had already massively reduced my interest in attending GPs, as the noise was about 50% of the motivation but at least it's still a good TV spectacle. If the rules continue to be changed/applied on a whim to close cars up and engineer a certain situation, I'm out altogether.

There's precedent here. In the 90s I watched every minute of every BTCC race and it was amazing. Fast RWD saloons, driven by top drivers, and was super competitive. Then they introduced new rules that made the cars worse (FWD and far less exciting), the calibre of drivers dropped, and success penalties were added to try and ensure the Championship was competitive. I watched the first weekend of that season, which only confirmed fears, and aside from the odd race in the past 20 years, I've never gone back. I'm certainly not alone in this. F1 could go the same way if they aren't careful. It's already made the cars less exciting once...

All you disgruntled F1 fans should check out MotoGP next year

Culmulating in TOCA(2)!
loved that shit

Yeah, not going anywhere regarding F1 you bunch of old grumps. It was a shitshow, but it had me glued to the TV every Sunday rather than not bothering after a couple of laps, as was normally the case in the previous 7 years.

Hopefully the new cars deliver as promised and the FIA and Liberty can be less retarded (it is the hope that kills ya).

Oh, and those MotoGP races are mental

Perverse innit

I'd take Hamilton cruising to any easy win in the Dutch grand prix with Max retiring on the formation lap.  

I'm going to the Dutch GP next year, covid permitting, so can any fan fiction for that race revolve around my boy Lando picking up his 9th win of the season there while his orange army cheer him on. Cheers.

Maybe they will get themselves another private tyre test with a current car.

Maybe they will have to pay the full bill for all the Bose headphones Toto goes through in a year.

and a desk made out of tempered glass.

Very few are saying it was corrupt in so far as there wasn't an agenda from the FIA around which driver won. Rather they broke their own rules to engineer a final lap showdown, and did so in such a way that massively disadvantaged half the grid and advantaged the other half. People accept the concept of 'luck' (e.g. Latifi crashing, rain at Sochi etc) but it's not luck when the referee randomly changed the rules a few laps from the end of the season and move cars around and shortened the SC process. That's why it was controversial.

Anyway, Toto has done an interview and spoken a hell of a lot of sense. Claims Hamilton is far from guaranteed to race next season now. Frankly, if the FIA don't make changes, I wouldn't blame him. After Abu Dhabi, he can walk away with his reputation and legacy enhanced, perhaps more so than if he'd won the 8th normally. He's not the one with most to lose.

the-race.com/formula-1/wolff-mercedes-legal-win-almost-guaranteed-outside-ica/

Yep, these vague threats and sabre rattling do nothing.

They will be appeased in some private manner and the circus will go on for another year.