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Have McLaren said anything about whether they'd still ask Piastri to make way for Norris should the opportunity arise in Vegas? After all there's still a mathematical change of Norris winning the WDC so I'd see it as a measure of their competitive spirit as to whether they are still chasing it. How Piastri reacts is anyone's guess though.
Based on the Sprint, I'm not expecting Oscar to help out anymore.
The chop at the start and holding onto the lead for so long doesnt seem like Oscar is going to just roll out of the way.
He was happy to give up the Sprint win as the drivers dont place any value on it.
Its all about setting the scene for '25 between the McLaren drivers.
Stella seems to be of the view that it’s still a possibility, so I’m sure that if they find themselves able to keep the WDC alive with the need for a car swap they’ll do it. But realistically I think the chances of that being the case in Vegas are slim, and beyond that negligible, so I think from this point on it most probably just plays out straight on track. Whatever happens, it won’t go down well if the thing that kills the WDC stone dead is Oscar refusing to toe the line.
Based on the Sprint, I’m not expecting Oscar to help out anymore.
The chop at the start and holding onto the lead for so long doesnt seem like Oscar is going to just roll out of the way.
He was happy to give up the Sprint win as the drivers dont place any value on it.
Its all about setting the scene for ’25 between the McLaren drivers.
I think Oscar did it right. He needs to show what he can do, which he did. It's advantageous for him to be as far ahead as possible if, for example, Norris has a problem, then a good lead for him over Verstappen still gets the team the win. Different if Norris is being hassled by Max but he wasn't. And then swap at the last minute, or if Max starts threatening Norris. But when the yellow flag came out I was thinking that's going to be a safety car and was silently shouting swap now! swap now! and they dithered then.
If they wanted Oscar to really help they should have swapped the lead early and then told him to go full Alonso.
Defend like a Lion, back everyone up in the middle section to allow Lando to drive away.
Leaving it to later in the race, just added risk, due to a red flag/safety car (which almost happened)
McLaren still arnt acting like a championship winning team.
They should have made a better call on Saturday around swapping drivers and they should have kept Lando out on track on Sunday to keep track position as the rain became heavier. They were too busy racing George and not Max.
andrewh
I think Oscar did it right. He needs to show what he can do, which he did.
Piastri didn't do a very good job holding up Max though, basically waved him straight through. Max couldn't afford a DNF so he could have been pretty robust with him.
Piastri was never in a position to really help Lando in the main race.
If Piastri has sufficient self-belief then he should expect to be in a position next year where he could need some help from his team mate. Doing whatever he can at this point in the season doesn't affect his WDC chances but might make all the difference in 2025.
the-muffin-manFull Member
Piastri was never in a position to really help Lando in the main race.
well as i mentioned above, he could have for example held him up by not doing this:
In other news: Bottas out at Audi, Bortoleto in according to AMuS
https://www.planetf1.com/news/valtteri-bottas-out-audi-f1-2025-driver-lineup-gabriel-bortoleto
If they're going for a rookie why pick him over Porchaire? Seems an odd choice. Nothing against Borteletto but I can't see one being loads better than the other so why not take your own reserve rather than someone else's?
well as i mentioned above, he could have for example held him up by not doing this:
Perhaps he felt he'd done his bit to help the day before! 🙂
Sauber/Audi’ statement is very odd:
”After open and constructive discussions with Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu, we mutually concluded that conditions to continue together could not be met so we agreed that it is time to part ways.”
I would have expected the messaging to be “we’re bringing in young talent alongside a seasoned campaigner”, but (although I’m sure it isn’t actually this) it reads a bit like “these guys wanted too much so we went with our next best option”.
In other news: Bottas out
Probably concentrating on his gravel career.
Just seen this posted on Twitter, don't think the first part went out on the broadcast - no wonder George was ticked off with the team!
https://twitter.com/sim3744/status/1853807472521171440
Probably concentrating on his gravel career.
On four wheels as well as two...
https://www.planetf1.com/news/valtteri-bottas-secret-rally-test-rumour-audi-f1-future
Surprised Audi have not asked Colapinto to drive for them, he's a rookie who has proven himself worthy of an F1 seat where as Bortoleto has no F1 experince apart from test sessions in the 2022 Mclaren
Rumours suggest Colapinto may be close to getting a seat elsewhere* (or maybe already has one) so he may have been unavailable anyway.
* Red Bull, Vcarb or Williams, depending on which rumour you prefer and which way the wind’s blowing in Milton Keynes today
Alpine officially announce Mercedes engine deal...
https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/alpine-to-use-mercedes-f1-engines-from-2026/
How many teams is that now?
Mercedes, Williams, Aston, Alpine, and McLaren?
Aston are taking Honda engines in 2026.
Dan Fallowes is leaving Aston. I did wonder where he fitted in with Newey's role
So another race director bites the dust! Niels Wittich has gone with immediate effect. What’s going on at the FIA???
Perhaps he said bugger in front of Ben Sulayem!
No F1 fan is interested in a livery launch. F1 liveries aren’t special now and change every other race with some ‘special, one of a kind’ livery anyway.
Agree. The liveries won’t last more than a couple of races before some pr excuse to change them and try and drum up some interest for the sponsors
at a local F1 anonymous...
Hi, My name's Nick, I'm an F1 fan of 20 plus years, I like a livery launch
Whaaaat?!? #SurprisedFace
[i]@nickc
…I bet the Ferrari livery launch is your fave! ?[/i]
Full face makeup and everything I bet. It means the red faces are not just after strategy calls 🙂
I like a livery launch
They are offally good.
I can't stand them, what a load of tripe
Maybe it’s just that your heart’s not in it.
It's because it signals that the season's just around the corner, I like to see how they change,- whether they keep 'traditional' colours, etc etc. It was my daughters' entry point to become one of the blighted - when she was very young, she like to copy them and draw them, so they have fond memories, and now we have a league table as a bit of fun. Plus yonks ago I got an invite to a Jordan launch and it was a day off work, and a bunch of fun- drinkies and freebies.
Damn, looks like Williams is in a real mess
https://thejudge13.com/2024/11/13/williams-to-miss-the-las-vegas-grand-prix/
That article was painful to read. Are they all like that on that site? Never mind the clickbait headline
TL;DR - “So Williams will be in Las Vegas, whether they can run two of their latest specification cars is highly doubtful following Vowles assessment, but at least one car must make it onto the track in practice to fulfil their contractual obligations, but to all intent and purpose Williams could well be out of the 2024 Las Vegas Grand Prix.”
at least one car must make it onto the track in practice to fulfil their contractual obligations,
Exactly. They will patch together whatever they can, giving Albon the best parts available. Not showing up at all would cost them a huge penalty so they'll turn up with something that looks like a car. To fulfil their obligations, they basically need to line two cars up for practice, have each one drive out of pit lane and then park up.
Monaco is signed up until 2031 but at a later weekend. Means that Canada should be able to be run earlier and be paired up with Miami. Also avoids the Indy 500 clash.
mashrFull Member
That article was painful to read. Are they all like that on that site? Never mind the clickbait headline
It's gone to pot in the last few years, used to be alright.
Monaco is signed up until 2031 but at a later weekend
Slowly but surely Monaco is realising that it might need F1 more than F1 needs it. They've given up on having their own schedule (because the market that used to happen on Fridays hasn't happened for years), they've given up on doing the TV production themselves and now they're moving from the traditional date. But what they really need is some sort of re-think of the circuit layout so there's a chance that it might turn back into a motor race for modern F1 cars.
I'm glad it stayed TBH.
Admittedly the race is generally cack, but watching qualifying with the likes of Leclerc, Verstappen, Senna or Mansell hustling a car that has precisely no-effing-business being on a circuit that tight is still one of my favourite spectacles in f1.
Went to the see the Classic GP this year in Monaco, that was worth a visit, amazing how close to the cars you get on track, you could feel the noise!
Actual racing and overtaking, but still bucket-list levels of cost to go and experience!
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I’m glad it stayed TBH.
Admittedly the race is generally cack, but watching qualifying with the likes of Leclerc, Verstappen, Senna or Mansell hustling a car that has precisely no-effing-business being on a circuit that tight is still one of my favourite spectacles in f1.
Same. I wouldn’t want any more like it, but as a one off it’s amazing
I think Monaco would be great as an elimination shootout instead of pretending it's a race. Run qualifying on Saturday to set the order for the shootout race on Sunday. In the first round of the shootout, all 20 cars have 4 laps to set a time (1 warmup, 2 timed laps, 1 cooldown). Eliminate 4, then repeat until there are 4 left. Repeat and have the top two compete for the win. Would be a lot more exciting than that joke we had this year. I tried explaining it to some mates down the pub, they were bewildered.
I think they really should make some individual rules about Monaco - maybe mandatory pit stops, or something like that?
I think they really should make some individual rules about Monaco – maybe mandatory pit stops, or something like that?
Think that they have to use 2 sets of tyres, so they already are.
As Mansell/Senna proved if you're in front you can go as slowly as possible and still keep the car behind.
And Senna proved, a slip in concentration and it will all end in tears.
individual rules about Monaco – maybe mandatory pit stops, or something like that?
Make a usable lane to shortcut the chicane after the tunnel and give each driver 3 opportunities to use it during the race - anything more is a mandatory stop/go pitstop penalty.
Make a usable lane to shortcut the chicane after the tunnel and give each driver 3 opportunities to use it during the race – anything more is a mandatory stop/go pitstop penalty.
If you want mickey mouse racing then go and watch formula e or world rallycross.
mickey mouse racing
Heck, if Bernie can suggest sprinklers I'd say anything is fair game. After this year there was a bit of chat about improving the race, with even some of the drivers acknowledging that although they love racing at Monaco there wasn't much to get the fans excited on Sunday. Even Karen Spice had a totally uncharacteristic whinge about it and suggested tweaking the layout to improve overtaking.
Or put the drivers in formula fords, but with much more powerful engines.
Brawn GP film on bbc two at 9pm tonight. I haven’t managed. To see this yet, looking forward to it
Its on iPlayer too.
That Brawn GP docuseries is well worth watching! Thanks for the heads-up @P20
The Brawn doc is good, but not new? Sure I’ve seen it before?
The Brawn doc is good, but not new? Sure I’ve seen it before?
It was produced by/for one of the streaming platforms so will have been available for a while
If it's with Keanu Reeves it's the same one as was on Disney+ last(?) year. Still worth another watch.
Yeah it is
Interesting little protest from Red Bull here that apparently affects 50% of the cars on the grid (not mclaren though)
Would love to know what is going on behind the scenes at the FIA at the moment. My guess is that a lot of people want Ben Sulayem out and he's thrashing around to try and retain control.
Watched the Brawn doc and though it was really interesting. I remeber it all happening at the time but good to see what actually went on behind the scenes.
Bernie Ecclestone is a really horrible little shit though isn't he. He had nothing good to say about anyone.
Even Karen came across ok, once he'd stopped whinging that he wasn't winning at the start of the season. I just wanted Keanu Reeves to go all John Wick on Ecclestone!
Thing that struck me most was just how odd and awkard Kaenu is.
Keanu at times is a little odd, but it’s been very enjoyable looking back at that season, the story and the behind the scenes bits
Looks like Andretti/GM are finally getting the green light too for 2026...
https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/gm-closing-in-on-2026-f1-entry-after-andretti-exit/10675255/
Looks like Andretti/GM are finally getting the green light too for 2026…
Two things:
Michael Andretti seems to have annoyed the other teams so badly that him leaving was a non-negotiable demand. Sad because you would imagine that the Andretti name would be very attractive for marketing the sport in the U.S.
Donald Trump has just been reelected as President. The DOJ was drawn into investigating F1 for limiting competition by excluding Andretti. It was bogus IMO but a Trump led DOJ could harass F1 into leaving North America. Much cheaper to just agree to let a GM team in. My feeling is that they will be lucky to equal Toyota's results, fools and their money...
Both GM and Ford have had amazing racing results over the years when they commit to it. However they are both companies who's business is shifting tin boxes to the masses and if the numbers don't add up, or they think they have achieved the key measures of success, they have no romantic, philosophical or any other type of commitment and will close the whole thing down.
I suspect that GM will be extremely committed for the first year or so and then be totally results and reward driven. The Andretti team are far more racers and race driven so committed to the racing. If they get in, they will stay in. Even if this means switching engine suppliers later.
Oh dear, Lawson knocks Perez out in Q1.
Oh dear, Lawson knocks Perez out in Q1
i know, it’s getting quite painful to watch. Tsunoda way up in the top ten too, I can’t imagine Perez will be there next but I wonder who will replace him
Reporting that buying Perez out of his seat will cost RB $20M.
He has a big incentive to keep being crap.
Have just been listening to the race commentary on BBC website, and for some reason it's gone over to adverts for drum n' bass!!! FFS
Aye, 7 different winners this year despite Max's early run of wins. looking good for next year if the racing's as mixed up as that. Really pleased for Russell though.
I’m looking forward to finding out how George’s pole to flag win wasn’t actually that good.
God, the Rolls Royce procession really is an unneeded tacky thing we could do without. Driver of the day for a Lewis thoroughly deserved.
Yeah the Rolls Royce procession was a bit odd.
‘Let’s just drive them round in luxury cars. With tinted windows so no body can see them’