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My thinking is that you want to sign the two best drivers available, leaving out Alonso who is just too disruptive to be worth it. For Red Bull and Merc, that would be Sainz alongside Max or George, with Albon getting the other seat. Red Bull need to find a seat for Lawson next year, so just let DR and Yuki scrap it out and drop whichever one comes second (which, sadly, I think is going to be DR). Sargeant just doesn't look like he's ever going to be a top driver so hoof him and give Antonelli a chance at Williams alongside someone experienced like Perez, Magnussen, Hulkenberg etc,
AML need to get shot of Stroll. I would like to think that Alonso may have had a caveat in his contract to that effect, but he has such an ego that it suits him not to have a competitive team mate.
"Surely Albon on a short contract at Merc and Antontelli to Williams would make more sense?"
This would make sense for Mercedes, Albon may even do well and beat Russell.
Albon has a Williams contract for 2025
[i]Albon has a Williams contract for 2025[/i]
Yes, but do they have a car for him?
simondbarnesFull Member
Albon has a Williams contract for 2025
and he could probably pick which release clause to use to head to Mercedes
“Surely Albon on a short contract at Merc and Antontelli to Williams would make more sense?”
Problem with that is Albon may find himself without a drive after only one season if Kimi did a stellar job in a Williams.
That Merc place is slightly tarnished. Any driver looking at Merc will see it as a one year only deal, with the new hot-shot lined up to take your seat. And Toto's best buddy George is going nowhere soon.
Sainz needs to sign with Audi now and play the long game, or he could be without a seat altogether.
Or Aston need to hoof Lance out and place Sainz there (but that's not going to happen).
It would be a risk for Albon but if he beats Russell and Antonelli fails to live up to the hype he could be there as long as he likes. If he doesn't beat Russell and Antonelli is indeed the next big thing then he would probably be out, certainly of the team, and maybe without a drive altogether.
I can't see what Audi can offer Sainz, he's probably getting a bit old to take on a long term project like that, and there's absolutely no guarantee they'll be quick (the BMW project was underwhelming for instance), if he wants a shot at a title he needs the second RB or Aston seat (and to beat a highly rated team-mate, but if he's genuine championship-material then he needs to be able to mix it with them, and he's doing ok against Leclerc) Personally I'd love to see Verstappen to Merc next year, them to still struggle and then a seven way title fight between Sainz and Perez in the RBs, the Ferraris, McLarens and Alonso, not sure how realistic that is though.
Sainz is only 29! 🙂
Just feels like he's been around forever.
lol wtf happened there with norris, usual fia shitshow
the-muffin-man
I struggle to get excited by anything Sprint Race related.
Same, it was quite a good session though. Looks like the highlights are up on the f1 YT channel now.
YT Highlights of the last Sprint in the rain looked fun for the drivers :
1) Can you avoid crashing?
If no then No Time Recorded
If Yes then:
2) Can you keep all 4 wheels on the track?
If no then No Time Recorded
If Yes then:
3) You made it? Blimey, I guess we better record the time*.
*Oh hang on, someone reckons the saw you off the track, time deleted**.
**Nah, you are all right, they were thinking about the previous lap, time reinstated.
AND another win for Verstappen. Hamilton second, good result for him. Perez third, think he's trying to keep his job.
13 second gap in ten laps! ☹️
after starting 4th
Russel once again highlighted the gulf in talent he needs to close to his team mate
Russell still finished closer to Hamilton than Hamilton did to Verstappen 😂
Great to see Hamilton take second, at one point I thought it might look like a win
Erm id wait till you watch qualy before saying that!
Well, they were running divergent setups for quali because Merc still don’t understand their car. That’s their biggest problem: not that they don’t have a good enough car, but that they’ve just been pissing in the wind for three years.
Interesting race so far! 😀
We need more Rosberg commentating! He’s great!
Well, they were running divergent setups for quali because Merc still don’t understand their car. That’s their biggest problem: not that they don’t have a good enough car, but that they’ve just been pissing in the wind for three years.
Yes i know but why? they should of left Hamilton's car set up as it was for the sprint race, it was good enough to take provisonal pole for the sprint (till Norris's time was reinstated) i know the rain played a part of this and then it came 2nd in the sprint race only being beaten by Max in dry conditions
So why the hell would you change anything for the normal qualy and race? thats the best result Hamilton's had in years and then they change things and screw up their chances!
Great drive from Norris, possibly his best in F1. Piastri needs to sort his race pace out, he was no where even before the damage. IIRC before his first stop he was losing something like 1.5-2 seconds per lap to Norris.
RickDraper
Great drive from Norris, possibly his best in F1. Piastri needs to sort his race pace out, he was no where even before the damage. IIRC before his first stop he was losing something like 1.5-2 seconds per lap to Norris.
Yeah, i really like him but his on track performance is not quite there at the moment. Or is Norris just doing an amazing job at the moment?
The Stroll incident was absolutely gutting, DR was actually doing a pretty decent job until then. If my understanding of why he got a penalty is correct*, that's just, wow. You think your opinion of the officials can't get possibly any lower then they manage it.
* Hulkenberg passed him under SC after he got whacked, and Danny then retook the position. It was deemed an illegal overtake behind the SC.
So why the hell would you change anything for the normal qualy and race? thats the best result Hamilton’s had in years and then they change things and screw up their chances!
Well, quite: that’s the point, they seem to have a fundamental disconnect between their car and their understanding of it. It’s about correlation generally: not just a case of understanding why it’s slow when it’s slow, but also why it’s fast when it’s fast.
Or is Norris just doing an amazing job at the moment?
One of those weekends that shows how much of Perez’s performance is the car and how much of Norris’s isn’t.
Well, they were running divergent setups for quali because Merc still don’t understand their car.
well, that's often what Hamilton and the team says. When folks ask Russell; he says the cars are pretty similarly set up.
I think what we're seeing this year is really how amazing the Red Bull design (with Max driving it) actually is. Most of the teams can get near the Red Bull in terms of speed now and the grid is really tightened over quali and single flat out laps, but only at specific tracks. The Ferrari is good here, but the balance is out there, McLaren can run a one stop at this track, but this other track eats its tyres. and so on. That RB is really a thing of wonder that it is so good more or less everywhere.
Bez
Well, quite: that’s the point, they seem to have a fundamental disconnect between their car and their understanding of it. It’s about correlation generally: not just a case of understanding why it’s slow when it’s slow, but also why it’s fast when it’s fast.
Right, perfectly normal to trim the adjustments slightly to improve deg, reduce understeer or whatever but it was like they made a pretty decent car useless. It does seem to be extremely sensitive to conditions so it's possible that played a part too 🤷♂️
You're totally right though, fundamentally they still do not understand that car.
Also another stewarding/rules moan, Sargeant's SC penalty. Come on! Here's F1's explanation...
During the Safety Car period, Nico Hulkenberg emerged from the pits almost side-by-side with Logan Sargeant – who was on-track on the racing line heading towards Turn 1.
Having carried more momentum into Turn 1, Sargeant swept around the outside and took the position. Replays show it was very close as to who crossed the Safety Car line first – but on review by the stewards, they could see Hulkenberg was fractionally ahead of the Williams.
They'll let pretty major stuff slide then give him 10s and 2 penalty points for that. 🤷♂️
That Logan Sargeant penalty was bonkers. It was so close, and Sargeant was barrelling out of the pits.
He probably couldn't even see Hulkenberg until it was too late.
Regarding the Merc & poor performance of Hamilton, I think that Hamilton apologised to the team afterwards as it was his insistence on driving the set-up change in that particular direction that didn't work.
But then that itself is potentially a symptom of Hamilton losing faith in the team’s ability to make the right setup decisions. I suspect the whole disagreement over the direction they took in the concept for the current regulations meant that that aspect of the relationship would thrive or die based on results. Over two years later, no real results.
So why the hell would you change anything for the normal qualy and race? thats the best result Hamilton’s had in years and then they change things and screw up their chances!
I think the setup changes on Hamilton's car were at his request - he kinda apologized at the end of the race. My guess is that they dialled in some extra understeer to try and protect the rear tyres, hoping that it would improve their race pace. Whatever the case, Merc seem to have a car that can be competitive with Ferrari and McLaren when they hit the sweet spot of setup, but has a very narrow setup envelope. On top of that, I think McLaren got a bit lucky with the cooler temperatures on Sunday suiting their car, so they hit the sweet spot and Norris was able to make his tyres last. Perez killed his tyres trying to battle back to the front but Norris was able to drive conservatively and protect his.
Wait till he gets a load of Ferrari’s decisions.
I think Ferrari are making better decisions under Fred though. We haven’t seen the bizarre strategy errors that plagued them for years before that. Their car is the closest to Red Bull on most tracks and they haven’t majorly dropped the ball yet.
I think Ferrari are making better decisions under Fred though.
Yeah, maybe. They were still asking LeClerc what he thought of Plan D half way through the race though.
Good race that.
It was once you ignored Verstappen out front which Im pleased to say the broadcasters did. I was hoping Hamilton was going to catch Russel by the end but I guess the tyres were shot on both cars by then
[i]I think Ferrari are making better decisions under Fred though.
Yeah, maybe. They were still asking LeClerc what he thought of Plan D half way through the race though.[/i]
Perhaps they decided to change their strategy based on their pasta at lunch?
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Speaking strategy I wondered what Aston Martin were doing sending Alonso out on softs. It turned out to be a great call. Oh and well held Fernando!
Rosberg was brutal about that! 🙂
Pointing out he started 3rd and finished 7th, and telling Crofty* that the race strategy was awful for them to have have even had to go to softs at the end. They had a faster car than Merc and possibly Ferrari this weekend and wasted it.
(*who was praising Aston/Alonso)
I think Rosberg is wrong. The day before Alonso was telling us the car was good for 7th in the race. There's a big difference between quali and race speed.
Speaking strategy I wondered what Aston Martin were doing sending Alonso out on softs. It turned out to be a great call.
They only had one set of hards so they had to make another stop anyway. If they'd had a set of hards available, they would have fitted those.
Alonso didn’t have any more hard tyres left so they had no choice.
So they cocked up then - 3 pit stops when everyone else did 2 or even 1.
But they seem happy to just go racing with only one car! 😉
So looks like F1 is taking inspiration from school sports day and is planning to let more people go home with some points.
Maybe it'll clarify the order at the bottom end of the field, but most teams/drivers currently fluke a point or two in the season.
Of all the things that need changing in F1, the points system has to be near the bottom of the list.
Rosberg has clearly got to the point of happy to say anything to get attention. He clearly still hasn’t got over being number 2 driver to Hamilton
Rosberg has clearly got to the point of happy to say anything to get attention. He clearly still hasn’t got over being number 2 driver to Hamilton
tbf, Rosberg did win a world title driving the same car as Hamilton. How many other drivers can claim that?
The points thing is curious. Personally I’d say that two additional points-paying places makes no real difference and if they were going to bother changing it then they’d be better off awarding them to all finishers. But some people seem to be reading between the lines and inferring that it may be in anticipation of an additional team on the grid…
But yeah, the fact that sprint races just amplify the dominance of the best teams and add jeopardy to the low end teams (Williams must hate the opportunity to have more chassis damaged) means the sprint format isn’t working IMO. And the point for fastest lap is largely just a lottery won by whoever’s got a 20-25 second gap over the next car on the last lap. (Which, again, if you’re Red Bull, you can probably engineer—except they don’t need to.)
Rosberg was never a No.2 like Bottas or Checo - he was always a feisty little shit who put up a good fight.
So looks like F1 is taking inspiration from school sports day and is planning to let more people go home with some points.
Worth reading Joe Saward on this....he reckons it won't happens is there's some bizarre thing where the FIA get money for points the teams and drivers score and the teams don't want to give the FIA any more money (no, I had no idea either, but i have had a drink so may have misunderstood 😂)
(no, I had no idea either, but i have had a drink so may have misunderstood 😂)
Yeah, they pay huge amounts in entry fees based on points scored in the previous season (plus a flat rate)
If you are champions then you pay even more.
https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2024-teams-entry-fees
The drivers also have to pay for their super licence and the more points you score the more you pay...
https://racingnews365.com/verstappen-must-pay-fia-unprecedented-amount-for-new-f1-super-licence
Every day is a school day
The drivers also have to pay for their super licence and the more points you score the more you pay
Now we know the real reason Rosberg quit 😀
Williams must hate the opportunity to have more chassis damaged
Exonerative passive voice, not a Sargeant fan by any chance?
https://www.mcsweeneys.net/articles/an-interactive-guide-to-ambiguous-grammar
tbf, Rosberg did win a world title driving the same car as Hamilton. How many other drivers can claim that?
No-one, and the only other person to beat him over a season was Jenson Button, so he's in some pretty rarified air up there
Rumours circling that Miami will be Sergeants last race - to be replaced by Kimi Antonelli after that.
Rumours circling that Miami will be Sergeants last race – to be replaced by Kimi Antonelli after that.
That's a stupid rumour, Antonelli isn't old enough until the end August.
Also discussed by Joe Saward....Williams can apply for special dispensation using the "it was ok verstappen" line
Exonerative passive voice, not a Sargeant fan by any chance?
That wasn’t implied at all. Albon is 2-1 up in the crash cup this year, isn’t he…? I simply mean that a competitive race, particularly a sprint which has a slightly increased sense of urgency, is always going to add risk of collision for any team—and more so for those in the lower midfield than anywhere else on the grid. So there’s very little risk for the Red Bulls running away at the front, but a very real one for the likes of Williams. Just another thing that amplifies the differences between certain teams rather than closing them up.
That’s a stupid rumour, Antonelli isn’t old enough until the end August.
Well spotted! 🤣
Not F1 but Penske have 2 drivers (including the race winner!) DQ'd from the St Petersberg Indycar GP back in early March and one other Penske driver docked 10 points .
Not sure on the technical side yet but it seems like they somehow enabled push-to-pass a lap earlier than they should have.
https://www.indycar.com/news/2024/04/04-24-stpete-penalties
edit- better article with some explanations and background here
https://racer.com/2024/04/24/how-team-penske-took-push-to-pass-beyond-the-limit/
Based on that article, the only way push to pass could have been activated early was if the team found some way of spoofing the signal, in other words, it must have been deliberate cheating, not an oversight. It's up there with the Ferrari fuel flow scandal and the Toyota WRC turbo restrictor, where a bunch of engineers must have sat down and planned how to cheat. That's extremely disappointing coming from Penske, they really should have been suspended for the season for that.
(If you don't know the Toyota turbo restrictor scandal, all engines were required to run a standard size inlet restrictor to limit power. Toyota made one that looked from the outside to be a solid chunk of metal, but had a mechanism inside that could be opened up with a special tool to give a larger inlet. It was held open by pressure from the hose clamp that held the pipework on. When the clamp was loosened to remove the restrictor, the mechanism would spring closed and it would look legitimate. Utterly deliberate cheating that multiple senior engineers must have known about. As I recall, Toyota were suspended from competition over it.)
Edit: And now Scott Dixon's leading the championship. That dude is just unbelievable, he's won at least one race each year since 2005.
Hulkenberg allegedly signed to Audi.....shame, I thought Audi were coming in with some ambition
Twodogs
Hulkenberg allegedly signed to Audi…..shame, I thought Audi were coming in with some ambition
Depends who they have in the other seat, I can imagine him filling the "Bottas@Merc" role pretty well. Quick enough to score good points but not quick enough to fight your number 1 driver.
Also - I remember reading that he gives brilliant technical feedback. When he stood in for Stroll at Racing Point apparently it was his comments that lead them to upgrade the suspension.
AMuS reporting Newey to leave Red Bull...
https://www.auto-motor-und-sport.de/formel-1/f1-adrian-newey-red-bull-abgang-ferrari/
My first reaction was "Ferrari? Ain't gonna happen..." Then I thought "is Newey planning on getting Lewis his 8th title...?"
AMuS reporting Newey to leave Red Bull…
Hmm AMuS isn't always spot on with its news - part of me wonders if this story is a destabilising tactic by the people behind the WhatsApp leaks
BBC reporting it now...
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/articles/cmm3v9ny78eo
...and I've always found AMuS fairly reliable.
I can see him at Aston Martin - the links are already there and he gets to continue with Honda too.
Lordy, I honestly didn't think he'd leave RedBull.
...so where does this leave Max!?
With any luck he could have a shit chassis and a shit engine for 2026!! 🤣🤣🤣
Wow, wasn't expecting that. I always assume the rumours are just random media making stuff up with "anonymous sources" and that everyone gets bored and moves on to the next shiny thing. At the moment it's just that Newey is leaving Red Bull, not that he's signed anywhere else - time for a good few months of rumour mill around that yet.
Newey leaving RB is the most interesting thing to happen to F1 for a while. 🙂
It is!!
If there's even a sniff of a chance (and there's got to be) that he's joining another team then RB really have to put him on gardening leave. So even mid-life upgrades might not fall under him for much of the season.
Max's loyalty to RB is also now being severely tested. We might just find out what sort of exit clauses he has too