#+ Max might be the least Ferrari fan on the grid...

[souvenir116]

Max: I mean I like the Italian anthem, but I cannot change it for that one [Dutch anthem] unfortunately, but when I'm not winning, I happily listen to that one... It's a beautiful one.

Yeah, Austria 2022 for example 🤭

[interlagostrack]

my ranking of the 2025 f1 lineups

ferrari - hamilton/leclerc there isn't much to explain here: lewis is the best and most complete driver to ever compete in f1, and even if he is not at his best, he's still better than the rest of the grid and that's it. charles is exceptional and with a little bit of luck and a car he can trust, he can prove once and for all he is the best driver of his generation.

mclaren - norris/piastri as much as it pains me to admit it, right now, mclaren is the strongest team on the grid. i always liked oscar, i know he is an amazing driver and i think lando turned out better than i expected this year (he still needs to mature a bit). both lack consistency tho.

redbull - verstappen/lawson i put them in 3rd place because yeah, we know if max has a fast car he can (put the other drivers on the wall and) deliver some results. i'm curious how they'll be this year, since they lost some key players last year, especially newey. i don't think lawson will be too hot, he might be just the next driver to have his career ruined by rbr.

mercedes - russell/antonelli i honestly believe george is one of the fastest drivers on the grid and he's also a clean driver who's not afraid to take risks BUT i don't trust mercedes to develop a car that's consistently fast (especially without lewis' input). kimi is a prodigy but i fear toto is screwing up his career by making him skip f3 and not letting him do another year of f2. his 2024 was of highs and lows and he would probably benefit of more time, but oh well

williams - albon/sainz here we have two reasonably good drivers on a reasonably good team and that's it?. like, i don't mean to be offensive, but i look at this team and all i think of is "mid" (and that if williams manages to give them a decent car and they manage to not crash every couple of laps)

haas - ocon/bearman i really like this duo! esteban is one of my favorite drivers and i do hope he finally has an opportunity on a team that supports him and recognizes his talent. oli already proved he is talented enough with all the times he was called to replace a driver last year, and i think a midfield team will be better for his first full season than the pressure that will come antonelli's way.

sauber - hulkenberg/bortoleto as much as it pains me to admit, hulk had a pretty interesting season last year (in parts thanks to kmag, but i do admit he is a better driver this time around) and i like gabi, i think he has a lot of potential to develop on a midfield team, without so much pressure and he will benefit from a more experienced teammate (even if i think it will be a miracle if they manage to score points any time this year).

aston martin - alonso/stroll ok, so hear me out: i don't think lance is a disgrace to motorsports, as most fans like to make of him AND i don't think alonso is god's gift to f1 either. to me, lance is a pretty average driver, with some good moments, and alonso is an okay driver that got luck with his 2 titles and somewhow convinced the media he is a genius. at least lance seems like a nice guy. i don't think newey is enough to save this team btw and i don't care too much about them

racing bulls - tsunoda/hadjar i don't have much of an opinion on hadjar and i think yuki is too good for this team and he will crush another teammate. i also think we should give yuki a gun and let him alone with marko for 15 minutes.

alpine - gasly/doohan this will be a shit show, both are good drivers but i think there will be too much drama behind the scenes and not enough results on track because the car won't be good enough.

literally no one asked me, but i'd love to hear other opinions so my ask is open or whatever

[slythereen]

Tbh I think the most logical and realistic theory to why RBR is pushing the lestappen agenda so much more than Ferrari is that it just benefits Max more than it does Charles. Charles is already like an angel to the F1 community. He’s EXTREMELY well liked across all fans. No one genuinely dislikes him (there are trolls that hate on him to annoy the lecfosi but otherwise). Unfortunately Max doesn’t have that same luxury. He’s seen as an evil jerk by probably a good half of the F1 community (although it’s improving). Being seen having such kind and gentle interactions with Charles helps soften that reputation. And the only drivers whose interactions with Max get this much attention is Charles and Daniel. However, I don’t think Daniel has the same positive effect on Max’s reputation that he used to, or at least not as much. Not since he got his seat again at another’s expense, and even more so after he got the contract renewal instead of Liam Lawson. The general view of Daniel is still positive I’d say, but not nearly as much. Plus, when Max and Daniel interact on behalf of RBR, it just excludes Checo and looks more like a different agenda, which pisses some people off even more and doesn’t help anyone. Charles on the other hand, there is literally no negative side effect to their interactions to be widely seen, so RBR is going to take advantage of that.

yes, this is also a strong theory in my mind! the added baggage around doing it with daniel these days is a good point. charles is unproblematic and has great star power on the grid and that’s why all the top teams like to flex their charles interactions on social media (not just rbr).

i think charles comes with the added bonus that he has never really spoken badly about max and clearly approves of his (controversial) driving style. last year, the friendly rivals “full of respect” narrative that rbr was big on was a dig at lewis for sure, but it was also about max being seen as friendly/fun at the height of a (brief) title battle. especially when rbr (or christian) still gets some good press for “defending charles more than his own team” (every time ferrari fucks up, the chrisrian horner quote goes around? great staying power for rbr). yes, there was the austria 19 scuffle (and the great lestappen unfollowing) but everyone talks about that in a fond way now because of the change in their friendship since. and austin is a good example (“no i don’t mind max trying to punt me to dallas, i - an angel! - would do the exact same”).

i think it also benefits rbr to suggest that they might be able to get charles. yeah, it’s unfortunate for the Look if they can’t get him (and suggests that even the best car can’t lure whoever they want), but this is charles. the suggestion that they’ve even been able to get him to consider it for longer than a second is powerful, precisely bc no one thinks charles will ever leave ferrari (and many think rbr would be the last place he’d go, because of their “bad” rep).

charles benefits from it too, imo. rbr was definitely driving it and charles seems more passive with it (liked the merc tweet, but not rbr — which i think is more about the “mr russell” joke than merc). the padel date is new buy in. for him, it’s useful to suggest he has options elsewhere — but i also think max’s reputation benefits him for the exact opposite reason (suggesting he’s not just a “soft” angel and is in fact as brutal and deranged as max on track, given the chance).

so. yeah. there’s also a very strong plausibility that this is all just rbr capitalizing on rehabbing max’s reputation and charles taking the extra bargaining leverage with ferrari.

[thef1diary]

🎯 let’s play: would you rather, fuck marry kill/kiss, this or that, top five, etc.

Top five drivers

I’m gonna do drivers who are currently on the grid

1. Daniel Avocado. He’s the driver who got me interested in f1 and he’s always gonna be first.

2. Carlos Sainz *insert extremely long surname*. El Matador!! He’s the reason why I wanna go to a race in person this year, so I can see him race in red.

3. Dare I say Max Cuntstappen? He’s grown on me so much in the last few months and even though I might not root for him winning too often, I can acknowledge that he’s literally writing a new chapter of history in f1.

4. Charlie Lechair. I can’t say I’m a Ferrari fan if I don’t have both in top five. I need him to win Monaco at least once okay! Put him and any driver together and it’ll be chaos. He makes me wanna learn French again.

5. Landoooo. Again he’s a driver that has grown on me a lot, I don’t know it was the facial hair or not 😭 but I am waiting for his first win, and honestly he seems like the guy I’d love to be besties with so there’s that.

[violentdelightsandviolentends]

Okay okay, in my opinion and this might be controversial, Carlos should get a contract extension if Charles gets one.

For some reason people seem to tjink last season Charles was way better than Carlos, which is just massively biased by Charles last few races being better. Abu Dhabi and Vegas saved his championship standings, as otherwise he would have finished below Carlos.

Why bring it up? Because somehow people think Carlos is lesser than Charles, when realistically if ferrari let them fight, they beat each other. Leclerc is ferraris golden boy, hence the contract, but if ferrari is smart they keep sainz because he can beat charles at times which is great to have in a team

The rumor about carlos having to win 5 races better be bullshit, because if carlos needs to win 5 races (total of races charles won in recent years for them) then Charles, becaus ehe has a contract, should at least win double that? Meaning that car is essentially needing to win more than half the races, meaning red bull needs to have a huge drop in performance and max needs to be beat. Which is ironic, because the only time that happend in 2023 Carlos won and not Charles

I do like charles, just hate his toxic fans, the normal once are very very nice

For Lando, the discourse is stupid. He got an extension with a team he wanted to win with yet people focus on him "not wanting to race max" dezpite him literally saying the opposite. If he did go to red bull they'd be angry because "he thinks he's better than max Hhaha nowins". They just like to hate on Lando. Most of them are toxic charles fans ironically😂

TLDR: carlos deserves a contract, Lando is fine where he is, Charles is.... Charles, and you are amazing, have a nice day!❤️

I just can’t understand why ferrari would let carlos go. he’s a brilliant driver, got them their only win of last season using his own intelligence and tactics, has proven himself time and time again. sure, this season he wasn’t the most consistent, but I do think a part of that was technical issues with the car and tactics/strategy. and they work well as teammates!! they clearly like each other (sure maybe they’re not in love or anything but there’s definitely a camaraderie there)

charles definitely is the golden boy. which isn’t a bad thing!! he lives, breathes and bleeds ferrari, and his commitment to the team is just astonishing. their bias is a tiiiiiny bit obvious - but as long as it doesn’t effect their driving/relationship, it’s not going to make much difference. it’s like this.*

the charles fans are passionate for sure. there’s a group of them on twitter that are a little nasty, they go after other drivers on a personal level for literally no reason. and the way they hate carlos… it’s excessive.

lando catches so much hate and for what reason?? he said he didn’t want to go up against max, not because he was scared, but because it’d wreck his career. max is literally number 1, will continue to be red bulls number 1 until he retires lol (and rightly so). the car, the team, the strategies… red bull has built them around maxie. how would lando ever fit into that??

lando has grown up in mclaren, he’s improved the team so much, it’s his home, his family. obviously he’s not going to give that up to go and be beaten by max every week, on track and in the garage.

the toxic f1 girlies love to go for landos neck for having no wins, but like… there are people on the grid who’ve been racing for upwards of 10/15 years and never won… haven’t got podiums for years (or ever)… I think maybe we need to focus on moving those drivers on, and bringing new talent in? perhaps? and giving mick his fair chance finally but that’s a whole other conversation

thanks for this, my love!! I enjoyed the rant <3

*Charles Leclerc, 2023. A direct quote.

[f0point5]

Honestly I am not a Lando fan so this might be biased but while I do think there’s too much drama being made about Lando’s quote (and honestly, I think the biggest problem is in how he articulates himself and not always in what he says) I think there is a difference to a driver like Charles for example.

And of course this could simply be down to the fact that Charles has won races, even lead the championship for a short while, but his mentality just strikes me as different.

Just like Max has said he’s not there to be second, Charles has also stated that he’ll never be satisfied with P2. He’s always rating Max as the one to beat, like when he said that Max was out after a few laps and he’s the measuring stick so to speak when he was asked if Ferrari were closer to RedBull after Australia, but he wants to do it on track not bc something happened to Max.

(I’m not saying he wouldn’t have taken the win in Australia but he wants to beat Max bc he was faster not bc Max DNF‘ed)

And look, I’m sure Lando wants to beat Max as well but what he says (at least from what I’ve heard) is more along the lines of oh if Max‘s wasn’t here I would‘ve won, being 2nd behind Max is like a win, etc.

Do you see the difference?

I partially agree, but as I said, I think most of the point being made is in the context of Lando being perceived to have a losing mentality, and his “no wins” stats. I don’t think Lando said or honestly meant anything different to what Charles has said, but the difference in how they are perceived is what dictated the reaction.

I do agree that Lando has a bit more of a kind of schadenfreude approach, like he almost wishes Max out of existence rather than wanting to beat him on track BUT I also think that has more to do with the fact that Lando would take a win however he could get it just to say he’d won. And that is so everyone would get off his back about it. Charles has the freedom to say “it only counts if I beat Max properly” because he’s got wins under his belt. No one is doubting Charles’s ability to win a race, they’re only doubting his ability to beat Max, so that’s where his challenge is. Whereas people doubt Lando’s ability to just even hold it together for a race win, regardless of Max. So Max is so far out of his league in terms of competition, I think Lando thinks about it differently. I think he would have a different perspective if say, he’d won in Singapore last year.

I do also think low-key that Lando needs to stop speaking on Max generally. The media really wants to make them rivals but Max doesn’t have a rival, so frankly if I were Lando I would stop invoking his essence because it will never make you look good.

I think Lando’s problem has always been that he speaks without thinking and he’s not super articulate. And it was cute when he was 19 but he’s slowly approaching being considered part of the old guard of the grid now, as well as being tipped as one of the top drivers, he needs to be able to get his point across better now.

[bohnsky]

Vegas 23

Vegas was silly, way too much unnecessary show and all it really did was making me want to rewatch the Ocean's movies.

But here are my thoughts on Vegas and my favorite drivers 6,5 months into liking f1:

1. Alex Albon  

I've got to say, quali made me fucking happy and the first few laps, when both Williams could hold their positions. I'm sure no one really expected them to stay up there, but I feel like they would've deserved at least some points. 

Also, when he fell during the Netflix Cup. 

2. Sergio Perez 

VAMOS!!!! I'm so happy for Checo!!! 

I was so scared, after that turn one ichident, but luckily everything turned out okay. Even though I feel like Red Bull don't celebrate that championship 1-2 enough. It seems like they tend to forget that Checo brought Max his first Championship AND Red Bulls first 1-2. 

Also, I was so stressed in that last lap. Why did it have to be so fucking close again? My heart can't handle that. Plus, I'm getting really mad at the German commentators again. They just keep bullshitting on Checo to the point that I actually think about watching with the English commentary. And then when he does good in the race, they just act so surprised as if he hadn't done this before, qualifying badly but then totally killing it in the race.

3. Charles Leclerc/Lewis Hamilton 

My little Ferrari heart was happy for the majority of the weekend, but it also broke a little. Being a Ferrari fan comes with tons of mixed feelings. 

Also, I was a little mad at Charles for overtaking Checo on the last lap, but I can't really be mad at him. He deserves that 2nd place and I'm happy for him, even if he himself is not happy with 2nd. 

I feel a little bad, because I haven't been rooting for Lewis at all, but I just needed Checo to get that 2nd place in the championship. Now that that's out of the way, I can root for Lewis again :) 

Also them having a few moments together this weekend made me happy. 

4. Lance Stroll 

I'm so happy!!! 

Here the commentators were shocked as well, because Lance is like Checo a victim of their constant bullshitting. He's showing the world that he does deserve his seat and I couldn't be happier for him! 

5.  Lando Norris 

I'm sad. It was a horrendous weekend for him. Even without the crash. I just hope he really is fine and doesn't just say that to not worry us. 

Also can we talk about how wag coded Max Fewtrell is? I love it. 

Honorable mentions: 

Logan. I was so happy for him in Quali! I just wish the race would have ended a little better for him. And then I watched a clip of him and remembered how fucking American he is. Don't get me wrong, I don't have anything against Americans. I love Americans, but they can be real silly. And Logan is often very silly. 

Carlos. I refused to wake up at 5am to watch fp1, waking up to "red flag because of SAI", "FP1 will not be resumed" and "FP2 will be delayed for 2 hours, because the track needs to be fixed". Let me tell you, I was imagining the worst. I thought Carlos had sent it into the wall or something. It took me a while to understand what had actually happened. And how dare them give Carlos a fucking 10 place grid penalty for THEIR mistake? I'm furious! Well at least he got P6. 

Max. I have finally decided that I love Max. I am no longer torn when it comes to him. My favorite thing about this weekend (after Checo securing 2nd in the championship) might be that Max tried to help Checo on that last lap. I really didn't expect him to, but that was sweet, just a little too late. But that's not his fault. 

Liam. I miss him. He seems like a fun guy and I really liked him and Yuki together. 

That's it, thanks for reading. 

[preet-01]

A short prequel of sorts for my last Lewis x John Elkann ficlet. I cannot stop thinking about this pairing.

Born with a silver spoon in his mouth, John had never wanted for anything.

If he even thought about something, it would appear in front of him. Not quite served on a silver platter, but as close to it as humanly possible.

So he had never wanted for anything in his life, at least not until he’d run into one Lewis Hamilton — not yet a Sir but still so chivalrous.

A chance meeting had turned into a years long desire for the British racing driver. How anyone got anything done with Lewis near them, John would never know, but god did he want to find out.

His first thought is to throw money towards getting closer to Lewis. It’s a path that tended to always work. But Lewis had been a star from the day he touched one of those RC cars. And he was labeled the billion dollar man — Lewis had no need for the endless amount of money that John had at his disposal.

He has done work harder, get crafty and go out of the box.

Stepping outside of Italian aristocracy and industrialists, John finds himself in the presence of fashion icons and celebrities that he can’t name off the top of his head. But during every event Lewis greets him with his perfect gap-toothed smile and a joke about it being a small world.

If only he knew the effort John went to and the “anonymous” donations he’d made.

Lewis�� social circles are filled with parties and designer clothes. It truly is a blessing that Ferrari designs clothes and gives John an in. There are professional benefits to it, celebrities that wouldn’t have thought to come to a Ferrari fashion show are booking it in their calendars.

The next step to actually getting Lewis is getting him away from Mercedes. The team that had once lauded Lewis as their star had been slowly declining over the years and in John’s opinion wasn’t worthy of Lewis anymore.

But despite all his efforts, Lewis remains oblivious.

Until after the Singapore Grand Prix, Lewis on the podium and alone. A win that could have been his had something been different lost. A team that barely acknowledged him.

Lewis would typically fly with the team, but John offers a ride on his private jet and for once he actually accepts. There’s a hidden hurt in Lewis’ eyes that he would not have gotten to know Lewis so well, he would’ve missed it.

“How come you’ve been at so many races recently, man? I don’t think I’ve seen you this much ever,” Lewis questions.

“I am a fan of the sport first and foremost. Might as well enjoy the benefits of running Ferrari,” John replies. “And there are contracts that I want to be finalized,” he adds.

“Charles and Carlos? It would be a good idea to lock down drivers before it becomes chaotic with the other half of the grid not having contracts finalized during the summer,” Lewis notes.

“Charles, yes. With Carlos, however, we want to keep the seat open should someone else want it. Perhaps a world champion,” John replies vaguely. He’s curious to see what Lewis will say.

“Nothing could take Max away from Red Bull, especially not now that Daniel’s back there as well. And I doubt Fernando would return to Ferrari after his run,” Lewis says.

“They’re not the only champions on the grid and definitely not the ones I want,” John tells him.

“Oh, but I said after Monaco-“

“I know, but just keep it in mind. If we do sign Carlos again it’ll only be for a year,” John cuts him off.

He’ll have to forget being subtle because Lewis is perhaps one of the most oblivious men he’s ever met.

[sillyf1blog]

F1 preseason testing review

With fp1 starting tomro, I thought I should do a little review of what the pecking order of the grid appears to potentially be after preseason testing :3

As is usual with testing don’t take this too seriously and be ready for a fat wall of text

Red Bull

As expected it appears that the usual suspect is first in the pecking order again (Red Bull nyot mr popo). Adrian Newey has once again cooked up a Frankenstein's monster of a car, seeming to take some ideas from Mercedes whilst mixing it their own in some places.

Whilst they didn’t actually set the fastest time in testing, when compared to lap times set on similar compounds they do appear to be the fastest. And when maxes reaction to driving the car is:

You should probably be a bit worried if your nyot a max fan

Ferrari

Italy’s national team seems to be pretty damn quick, and the closest to Red Bull with them topping both the second and third day with the fastest time overall. They seem to have fixed their problems with tyre deg and drivability, so their race pace should be much stronger than it was last year. This means that Leclerc's crazy quali pace can be properly benefited from. I doubt they will can fight Red Bull for the title but most likely on a race by race basis instead.

Mercedes

Mercedes have made drastic changes to their car this year, and they seem to be working to an extent, lap time wise they are easily the 3rd fastest at the moment, and might nyot be too far behind Ferrari (who they would defo like to beat to stick it to Lewis). Mercs most likely issue this year could be if their car is too radical, as they made some interesting decisions design wise (which considering Red Bull took ideas from them, means that the big concept change might nyot have been needed)

McLaren

Well it’s better than last year at least. The Sisyphean task of McLaren trying to get to front has once again stalled slightly as they have seemingly fell a bit back from Ferrari and merc. However McLaren have some mystical ability to drastically improve their car after the first few races, and considering how far they moved up in 2023 they could potentially worth upgrades properly match Red Bulls pace. The source of their problems right nyow could be that unlike Ferrari and Mercedes, they didn’t make any huge changes which means they might have just fell behind a bit.

Aston Martin

Aston Martin seem to mostly be consolidating their place in the top half of the grid this year, pace wise they seem to be just behind mclaren, but in some runs Alonso did they could be just ahead of them aswell. They prolly won’t be a big focus this year, they will prolly just be a consistent points scorer and occasionally pop up on the podium every now and then.

RB

Team ugly ass name could be a quite a surprise potentially, I’d pre season testing is anything to go off of, they have improved on their late 23 pace and are firmly middle of the pack, just behind the top 5 and ahead of the bottom 4. And they don’t just appear to be copying Red Bull, as their car is mostly an evolution of last years with just some new Red Bull parts added on. This year might really allow Daniel and yuki to really show how good they are as both will be fighting for that second Red Bull seat.

Williams

similar to aston they seem to have just stayed put this year, this will most likely be a year of just trying to solidify their position from last year again this year and then work from there. most of the news from this team will be about if logan stays or not and if they can get Alex to resign for them as well, other than that there probably wont be much coming out of these guys.

Alpine

Alpine in pre season testing looked... interesting, lets say that

im not really gonna talk about them here, this post is long enough as it it is, so i will make a post specifically for alpine as i have a lot to say, to make it short here, they could be one of the slowest teams on the grid. but that's based on testing, so we will see what comes from it.

Sauber

Sauber does seem to be a bit quicker this year, and the car seems a lot more understood by the team and more drivable. i imagine the year is going to be spent mostly just trying to make whatever gains possible and try to prepare for Audis full take over of the team. however there could be some interesting decisions driver wise, Bottas and Zhou are generally considered some of the most at risk drivers, as a seat at Sauber is quite valuable as it will become a full works team eventually, so it could be likely that some more high profile drivers like Carlos or Nico could move to the team as has been rumored

Haas

as i think most people expected Haas was at the back, the team is in a bit of an uncertain position, with long time leader Steiner given the boot by gene. Ayao Komatsu spent most of the off season after getting the promotion doomer posting about how haas might not be fully ready for pre season testing and that they dont fully understand the tyre deg issues yet as they spent the entire test doing long runs to try and fix it

it also doesn't help that with the way things are going currently their main driver Hulkenberg wants out. i fully expect that Haas will finish last this year, and this is all coming off the back of news that Andretti was rejected by f1 over fears they "wont be competitive", when they let a team like Haas clown around the place at the back of the grid.

[singsweetmelodies]

i won't be able to watch the race today but i'm already dreading the result, SO i decided to make this table of predictions to prepare myself for every eventuality*

*that i could think of

i'm only predicting the wins (+ more or less how they came about to be) otherwise i'm going to be here all morning and be late for my event. i might still be late for my event, but... here goes!

SINGAPORE GP 2023: POSSIBLE WIN SCENARIOS

feat. (completely unbiased of course) commentary by katie singsweetmelodies

carlos and george take each other out at the start. charles leclerc wins the singapore gp 2023! 🎆🥰❤️

if this one comes true, i will never shut up about it and will literally be dancing on the rooftops. DREAM SCENARIO BABY!!! (yeah, sorry georgie, i am SO willing to sacrifice you for a charles win.) we want that win #6... we want it SO MUCH 🥹

george russell passes sainz on the start and proceeds to win the singapore gp 2023! 🩵

if this one comes true, i will still be very happy (and not just because it means sainz DIDN'T win.) i love george. a second win for him would be very nice indeed <3

carlos sainz keeps it together and somehow wins the singapore gp 2023 😐

if he actually does this, i may - through gritted teeth - finally utter the words "fine, carlos sainz is a good driver." (i will however also mutter something under my breath about how 2023 is the year of ugly people, and charles is too beautiful and too good to have his name on the list with the likes of the fucking red bull duo anyway. good RIDDANCE that it's sainz who's the only non-RB winner in such a hideous year.)

we have a repeat of singapore 2017, with the top 4 all taking each other out & lewis hamilton proceeding to win the singapore gp 2023! 🎆💜

if this one comes true, my ferrari heart will be in bits BUT i will simultaneously be fucking ecstatic for lewis. i WILL yell "get in there lewis" an inordinate amount of times, and celebrate that 104 with everything in me.

lando somehow wins from p4 (🤔) and gets his first win in spectacular but chaotic style. lando norris wins the singapore gp 2023! 🧡

if this one comes true, i will be... baffled, first and foremost. but then also pretty happy. i have no idea how this one could reasonably come true, but it would be low-key iconic if it did, tbh.

the chaos at turn 1 is even more chaotic than in singapore 2017, which means that fernando alonso from (wherever he qualified, i forgot lmao oops) wins the singapore gp 2023! 🥶

if this happens, i... will celebrate that it's not a red bull? i'll celebrate it for exactly 14 seconds and then turn off the tv. i'm not an alonso fan. to me, he's barely a step up from another rbr win. yes, it IS a step up. but like, the step is 1cm high.

*dutch national anthem starts playing in the background* AND MAX VERSTAPPEN WINS THE SINGAPORE GP 2023! the eleventh fucking race in a row, hoo-fucking-ray.

if this one comes true, i will shake my fist at the fia and insist that it's all their fucking fault for not GIVING MAX A FUCKING GRID DROP, like, you know, the PRECEDENT SAYS THEY SHOULD HAVE. he should have gotten six places at least, in my opinion. nine would've been apt, too. but nooooooo. the great white hope is above all precedent and penalty, apparently. (anyway yeah if verstappen wins i will have no celebrations whatsoever. except maybe a tiny, petty internal one that at least it wasn't sainz. but yeah, nah. if verstappen wins, i won't be very surprised, but i will NOT be amused.)

in a move that shocks genuinely EVERYONE, sergio pérez wins the singapore gp 2023! 🇲🇽

i have no idea how this one could reasonably come to pass, tbh. maybe verstappen's engine dies??? and the ferraris and mercs.... either take each other out, or are WAY slower than yesterday. maybe the red bull was sandbagging???? very drastically??? nah. this one won't happen, let's just be real. but if it somehow does, my enthusiasm will be one fraction of a percentage higher than it would've been for a verstappen win. that is all.

liam lawson wins the singapore gp 2023! 😱👏

yeah no this isn't going to happen - i just wanted to say it. liam lawson, you are my HERO for knocking max verstappen out in q2. you will be p1 of my heart no matter who wins this weekend <333 (except if it's charles or lewis. or pierre, somehow. because, you know. priorities. xD)

RIGHT, well. now at least i feel like i'm mentally prepared to open my f1 app tomorrow evening and see pretty much any result. 👍. let's do this thing

[error04landonotfound]

Same anon, but that’s the thing. No VSC happened. Should one have happened? Sure. But it didn’t, double yellows did. Lando didn’t lift (both Ferrari drivers did, data shows that) and he as punished for it. It was a pretty slam dunk penalty not sure why it took forever to give it. Every driver used the radio for things, that’s not the problem that Max was pointing out. It’s the saying one thing publicly (in front of the media) and one privately. Drivers have been flagged for driving slowly since last year and no one has been given a grid drop. Max was the first and it was caused by George if we wanna be like that. It’s one standard for Max and one standard for everyone else.. and a penalty point?!? Come on now. This can also create a dangerous situation where drivers now do what George did in order for another driver to get a penalty (see Alonso’s comment).

I mean, if we're both in agreement that a VSC should've happened, I'll take that as a win. And I'm honestly not even mad at Max for that whole issue; I'm more angry with the length of time it took to figure out if he needed to be penalized, and then to apply it (like you said). Tbh, I think the whole craziness with Lando's penalty was FIA-cooking, and trying to keep the WCC title fight alive going into this weekend (because I'm sure that, at the very least, we can agree that MBS is a snake). I fear I just like being salty about stupid penalties for far too long (in my defense, I'm not the only one!)

Again, with Max, I get the frustration with saying one thing in public and another thing in private. Admittedly, I'd be pissed about that, too. I'm not saying it's right in any way, but I think we, as fans, tend to forget that drivers are, to some degree, two-faced? (Idk if that made sense). I think we all sort of knew (Lando fans, especially) that George isn't always the perfect PR-trained personality he displays in public. So yeah, I wasn't surprised by Max's comments about George, but I was lowkey surprised that he made them because generally, that's the sort of thing you'd want to resolve privately, no? Honestly, as entertaining as it's been to witness (because it's admittedly nice to have a break from Lando being the center of controversy in people's eyes), it's messy AF, and I'm not sure it should've ever been aired out the way it was, on BOTH sides. That's just my take on it.

Now, with the grid penalty, you'll recall I did say I thought more drivers than just Max were going to be penalized before the race. I'm not entirely sure what the stewards' thought process was (if they have one, because at this point, it's debatable), or why they thought only Max deserved a one-place drop. The penalty point (that I wasn't aware he was awarded until your ask) is vile and unnecessary, tbh, and I can DEFINITELY see why y'all would be mad about that (again, I'd be mad too). Is it too much to suggest that I think we're all in agreement that the FIA/stewards/race control have been pretty awful/weird this year? Obviously, we're not always going to agree on the application of penalties, but some of them have just been weird and undeserved, and others have gotten away with none whatsoever. Just me?

And for what it's worth, anon, I think you made a very valid point about other drivers pulling a George in the future (*cough cough looking at you, Alonso). While I did initially chuckle at Fernando's comment (because let's be real, he's old in F1 years!), I genuinely hope nobody tries to do it. Like you said, it's not safe, and it's also straight up not cool.

I hope I gave a satisfactory answer? A lot of this might be rambling (what's new 🤦‍♀️).

[whatismylife3]

I get why people are sceptical about the “Drive it out” video - this kind of thing should have been done long ago and they should provide more details on what the plans are to tackle this problem. I do think we need to give it chance though to see what they actually do.

However. I am seeing a lot of finger pointing at other drivers fanbases for being the main problem and I just wanna say… it literally not down to just one driver fanbase, it’s basically ALL OF THEM.

No driver fanbase is without toxic and disgusting fans lbr-

• a popular Charles fan page on here said Carlos needed to kill himself and had consistently made derogatory comments to him. I have now blocked them so I dunno if they are still doing it but there was definitely a severe lack of people calling them out at the time. Seemed to be one Carlos fan did and that’s when people said something.

•merc fans sent death threats to Nicky after Abu Dhabi - and I’m saying merc fans because that’s what I saw and tbh no other team fans really had a reason.. unless they just hated max so maybe I should say mostly merc fans.

•there has been racist abuse towards any driver who is not white from multiple fanbases - pretty sure I remember Alex’s family having to be told not to look at comments on any socials because people were saying they eat cats amongst other things, and the amount of people who were awful to Zhou when he was announced by Alfa Romeo was insane. Can’t mention racist abuse without mentioning Lewis - the fact there are people who think it’s okay to call him slurs is vile. I get people don’t like have to like him, but the fact some peoples first insult to him is racist will never make sense and shows more about that person than Lewis. I do see this more on twitter tbh.

•people constantly wishing drivers to crash… even after Silverstone this year! Wtf is wrong with those people?! Drivers have died - most drivers on the grid know someone who has died from this in their career. I usually only see other drivers fans call out people who say that. Fans of the same driver seem to be quiet most of the time.

•Lando fans vs Daniel fans on the regular and they get really nasty. I’m fed up of the war going on between them.

•Lewis fans vs max fans CONSTANTLY at it when at least those drivers can show respect towards one another. They might not be friends but they seem way more mature than some of their fanbases. I know there are respectful fans on both sides and I actually interact with some (lbr, their teams are the ones typically in the media making little comments anyway) - but there are definitely those who act like either driver murdered that persons entire family and is the reason for every war ever to happen. Like my god, some people need to touch grass.

•Carlos vs Charles fans - so many people were mad about Silverstone for Charles… but the truth ferrari fucked up and that doesn’t mean Carlos didn’t deserve a win. Vice versa - I’ve seen some Carlos fans hating on Charles when something happens that affects his race.

There are so many more examples but I’d literally be constantly listing so I’ve put the ones I’ve seen most and some examples that have just stood out to me.

Instead of pointing the finger at each other, which does absolutely nothing but causing fights, actually hold fans accountable for their words. Not just of drivers you don’t like, but people who support your driver. All that person is doing is contributing to the toxic and hateful environment that seems to be all I see when I now go online. All it does is create a bad name for the driver and make people think all the fans of that driver behave that way. I’m sick of coming online and wondering what fucking fan war I’m about to witness and what happened when I was offline.

And I know people will say “but this drivers fans are worse”, I DONT CARE. I’ve said what I’ve said. It’s about making EVERYONE accountable for their words/actions instead of just the fans of drivers you don’t like. If you don’t hold everyone accountable, even if you’re friends with someone saying this toxic stuff, you’re part of the problem. that does include drivers too - but some people are very picky on which driver they think needs to be held accountable and which doesn’t… which makes no sense. Either hold every driver to that same standard or none of them, don’t pick and choose which driver needs accountability and which doesn’t

End of rant. I just needed to say this💀

[vro0m]

vro0m’s rewatch - 118/304

2013 British GP

Welcome back to Silverstone! You’re not ready for that drama believe me.

LEWIS IS ON POLE! Almost half a second ahead of Rosberg! Let's gooo! The journalist says what they saw in quali was "the Lewis of old". I like that. It speaks to me. I love him hungry and fighting.

Oh. My. God. The summary shows so much Lewis content! I'm excited! 

But let's start by taking a look at the championship standings : Seb is comfortably ahead with 132 points, followed by Alonso with 96, Raikkonen with 88 and Lewis with 77. Mercedes is also currently third in the WCC. 

Quali report. Jenson couldn't get into Q3, neither could Perez. Ferrari and Lotus criticized Pirelli for bringing the hard and medium tyres, saying it was too conservative. Alonso barely made it into Q3, while Massa couldn't. Raikkonen was outqualified by Grosjean. Di Resta was 5th but he got disqualified for… brace yourself… an underweight car. Yep. Underweight. Seb is ahead of Webber. Lewis was unhappy with the balance of the car in FPs but he still took pole position. 

Lewis is with Martin Brundle, in the paddock, surrounded by fans, to talk about the pole lap. He says they have the best fans there in the UK, of course. He's very proud that he got the pole for them. Oh he says the pit straight is bumpy so the car is bottoming. Very foreshadowing lol. He's explaining his lap I understand about 5% of what he's talking about but he's loving it so I'm loving it. He has a stuffy nose. Brundle says he must have known immediately– but Lewis cuts him off : no, you never do, because Nico has been particularly quick. He didn't even look at the dashboard, and then a couple of turns later he was told Seb had crossed the line and he was on pole. Brundle asks if he can try to make these people happy (and gestures to the small crowd around them) at the end of the race. Lewis says he'll try his best.

OHhh Webber has announced his retirement I guess? 

Oh. My. God. They did a British quiz with all the British drivers so Lewis, Jenson, Max Chilton and Paul Di Resta. (also Johnny and Anthony). Lewis is eating a lollipop 😭

Jenson is CHEATING massively and even admits it.

So round 1 was British questions, I guess. Round 2 is F1 related question. First off they have a composite image of 5 drivers and they have to find out who they are. Lewis is remarkably good at it, but he might also have cheated. He finds 4 out of 5 of them quickly.

Then they have to guess who are the blacked out people on podium pictures. Round 3. One person in each team (Johnny and Anthony) are blindfolded and have to guess what they are eating. First was fig, it's alright. But the second one is pickled onion and they're not too happy about it, though the four drivers are having the time of their life. Third is mustard. Four is something called gherkin (? I guess it’s just pickles in British English). Then anchovy paste. I mean it's just torture at this point and they're all giggling like school kids. Lewis’ team wins 11 to 7. He receives a toy bone for Roscoe!

During the drivers' parade Lewis talks again about the fans and how many came and bla bla bla.

He says it's surreal and the support means everything to them. It'll be hard to keep the Redbulls behind but they'll do everything they can.

The grid walk is lasting ages, can we race please? 

Alright, here we go. 

Formation lap 

They're racing! 

Amazing start for Lewis while Seb overtakes Nico. Massa also had an unbelievable start, he's up 6 places! Lewis sets the fastest lap, but he's only 1.2 seconds ahead of Seb. This is not going to be easy.

Ohhh fuck. 

Lewis has a puncture. Like a serious completely-destroyed-tyre-puncture. I at least hope he can go back out once he gets to the pit but that's a long way to go, there might be further damage at this point. Damn it was so sudden and the tyre disintegrated for some reason… loads of tyre debris on the track. Lewis is sent out again. He's dead last, of course. We're on lap 10.

Same for Massa??? Same tyre. He spun. But he's driving back to the pits as well. Alonso and Webber pit, they might be expecting a Safety Car but it doesn't come. Green flags all around again. Brundle says Massa has more damage than Lewis but he's also sent out. Rosberg pits from P2. Lewis is up in 18th already. Seb is called in. He's still in the lead and Rosberg is still P2. 

AND ANOTHER ONE?! It's JEV this time. Same tyre, same damage! Honestly wtf Pirelli? This race should be red flagged, it's dangerous af. What is happening. Raikkonen almost received a huge piece of tyre in the head. Yes, they're sending the Safety Car out. There's so much debris on the track. The drivers are told to keep off the kerbs. Lewis is P14 now. Lap 20.

The Safety Car comes in. There's a four way battle between Sutil, Alonso, Raikkonen and Grosjean for P3. No DRS at the moment but they're all under a second from each other. Lewis is attacking Gutierrez for P13. It's done. Everything is close. Lewis is now P12. It's lap 30.

Alonso pits. Grosjean pits. Lewis is P9. P8. He's now attacking Di Resta who gets called in anyway and Raikkonen is just behind him as well. He gets overtaken. By Alonso as well? Well they do have fresh tyres I believe. At least fresher than his. Force India double stack their drivers. Rosberg pits from P2, he's out in P2. Seb pits from the lead in answer. He's still ahead. Webber overtakes Alonso for P4. JEV retires. Lewis pits, he's out in 11th, and gets immediately overtaken by Di Resta. But he doesn't give up and attacks back. It doesn't work. Lewis gets the DRS. It's very close. Lewis gets ahead! 

Lap 41, Lewis up in P10. Oh! HO! SEB SLOWED DOWN, ROSBERG IS IN THE LEAD. "Lost drive, lost the gearbox". It's over for him. Safety car is out, he's stopped in the pit straight, they can't get him there. 10 laps to go. Rosberg pits. Webber pits. 9 laps to go. 8 laps to go. Rosberg is told they think one of his tyre is starting to delaminate? But he just pitted. Or was that from before his stop? The lapped cars are unlapping themselves. 7 laps to go. Here they go again. 6 laps to go. P8. ANOTHER TYRE FAILURE HOLY SHIT. It's a McLaren. Perez. 5 laps to go. Yellow flags. P7. Perez is out, there's too much damage to the floor. Alonso overtakes Ricciardo for P5 but here comes Lewis and he's up in P6! 4 laps to go. Webber overtakes Raikkonen for P2. Alonso overtakes Sutil for P4, Lewis is half a second behind… 3 laps to go. And Lewis is up in P5! 2 laps to go. Alonso overtakes Raikkonen for the podium. LEWIS IN P4! Final lap! He's just half a second behind Alonso but that's a lot to ask. 

It's the end of the race! 

Rosberg wins ahead of Webber and Alonso. Lewis went from P1 to P22 to P4, what a recovery. And these exploding tyres are seriously concerning. 

We hear from Paul Hembry, the Pirelli motorsport director. They are currently analysing the tyres to understand what happened and get the facts. They'll let people know when they have the answers. The journalists ask further questions but he basically just says they can't answer until they're done with the analysis. 

Alright let's hear from Lewis.

Natalie Pinkham asks if it's similar to losing a tyre on a highway. He says it's just as dangerous, if not more. (His body language is very low energy). He says it's very unfortunate, the fans have been great, it looked like they were on their way to a win, the car was great… but big congratulations to Nico and the team. He's just glad he was able to catch up and get some points. Yeah lol thanks Natalie, I was about to write that going from 22 to 4 wasn't just "catching up" and so she says, and then asks if it's not rather spectacular finishing where he finished after what happened. Definitely, he agrees. Back there he doubted he could get any point at all, so he's very grateful for the result and he's looking forward to the next race because given how well the car was performing, they have more chances of winning.

She asks about the testing they did with Pirelli and how the argument in defense of it was that it was to work on the tyres, "clearly more work needs to be done". He looks down and hums. He looks up and smiles. He's uncomfortable, clearly he's been instructed about this topic. "Yeah… I don't know really what to say!" he chuckles.

He's just gonna bite his tongue and hold it in, he says with a wide smile, shifting his weight from one foot to the other.

"But does it concern you in terms of safety?" she asks in a softer tone. "Yep." He nods. "Big time, but um…"

He looks serious."They need to do something."

We hear his radio at the end of the race. Brawn congratulates him for a wonderful drive and says he's sorry it didn't work out. He says "fantastic job this weekend guys, it's a shame about the tyre." 

[whatsthecraicwithsports]

What's Next For Lewis Hamilton?

As we finally head in to another race week, now might be a good time to discuss the question that's begun to crop up more and more over the course of the last 6 months and will undoubtedly be asked this weekend:

With his contract with Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team coming to an end this year, what will Lewis Hamilton do now?

There are a couple of options, some more realistic than others, so let's start with the most unlikely.

Lewis Hamilton Joins Red Bull

Even though we would all love to see Lewis and Max battle it out once again and being teammates would only add to the drama, there's absolutely 0 chance of this happening.

Despite Checo Perez's contract also expiring at the end of the season, Red Bull already have a solid option in Daniel Ricciardo - the team's current 3rd driver - should they decide not to re-sign Sergio.

Plus, Christian Horner has already ruled out a move for the Goat to the Bulls.

Still in F1 Silly Season, anything can happen. I just wouldn't be holding my breath on this one.

Lewis Hamilton Joins Aston Martin

Coming in at the second least probable way this contract situation ends is Lewis Hamilton making a return to a British team.

A move to the Silverstone-based team would however be reliant on one of two things:

Fernando Alonso retires (and based on his performances this season, that is still most likely a few years off)

Lawrence Stroll kicking his own son out of a seat.

The chances of either of those things happening are up there with Nikita Mazepin returning to the sport in terms of likelihood - not statistically impossible, but it certainly feels like it.

Lewis Hamilton Joins Ferrari

A wise man once said "Everyone is a Ferrari fan. Even if they say they're not, they are Ferrari fans." And it's true. The Prancing Horse is synonymous with Formula One. In many ways, Ferrari is Formula 1.

There is not a driver on the grid who will not have, at some point, had a dream of driving for the team from Maranello. And Lewis Hamilton is no exception.

However, it's been no secret that the team has been in a slump in recent years; providing no World Drivers Championships since Kimi Raikkonen clinched the title by one point in Brazil all the way back in 2007. And if the beginning of this season is anything to go by, that does not appear to be changing any time soon.

If Lewis were to leave Mercedes due to the poor form over the 2022 season and the shaky start to 2023, logic would dictate that he would be leaving to join a team in a stronger position than the one he currently finds himself in. The unfortunate reality for Formula One fans is that, at this moment in time, Ferrari are not that team. There have been times over the past couple of season where you wouldn't be out of place by believing that Ferrari may never win another World Championship again.

Lewis Hamilton Retires

If there are no viable alternatives, is it out of the question that the 7x World Champion calls it quits?

If you ask the man yourself: Yes.

The events of Abu Dhabi 2021 sent shockwaves throughout the racing community, and re-lit a fire in Lewis Hamilton. The Mercedes driver has stated, even under the scrutiny of a lie detector, that he will not retire until he reclaims the 8th title that was stolen from him back in 2021.

"Working on my masterpiece, I'll be the one to decide when it's finished." - Lewis Hamilton

Lewis Hamilton Stays at Mercedes

Both the most obvious and the most likely of options at this moment in time. Hamilton is more than just a driver for the German manufacturer. He is Mr. Mercedes. The team will likely move heaven and earth to retain his services if not for his unfathomable talent, but for his sheer value to the Mercedes brand as a whole.

Plus, Hamilton isn't the only one to make his intentions about his title ambitions clear, with team principle Toto Wolff vowing that Mercedes will get Lewis his 8th title. Wolff even went as far to claim that Lewis still has another four years in him which, if Fernando Alonso's resurgence is anything to go by, could yet prove correct.

When Hamilton decided to move from McLaren to a new team it proved to be one of the greatest decisions the in the history of sport. And that decision, despite push-back from those around him, was made entirely by Lewis alone.

And when all is said and done and a decision must be made, it is Lewis Hamilton who will once again be in the driving seat (pun intended).

Should he retire, he will do so as the most successful Formula One driver of all time. Should he continue, chances are he will only cement that fact.

[violentdelightsandviolentends]

first off, i would absolutely love to hear all of your thoughts! second, the beef between carlos and charles fans is actually insane. like omg we get it, you prefer one to the other, that doesnt mean that you talk so much shit about the other!! i feel like they just need to get over themselves, like im such a charles girl but like at the end of the day, i love seeing ferrari succeed. whether that is carlos or charles on podium, just be happy that your fav is actually finishing in points and isnt last. - 🏁 anon

exactly!! and i’m not sure why they’re pitting the ferrari boys against each other now more than ever, because carlos has only got 20 more races and then he’s going, so. f1 twt is crazy man, it’s a scary place sometimes lmao

okay so here are my driver thoughts, based on the actual driving and performances and not personalities/who I like best -

- red bull - i think rb would be silly to let checo go. I don’t feel very strongly about him as a person, but he’s proven time and time again that he can at least get close to max. we know no ones matching max’s level, so being close is the best you can do. checo has had wins and lots of podiums these past couple of years, and has proven that he can drive that car reliably with minimal mistakes. if I was rb, i’d be keeping him. there’s no way i’d trade a reliable driver like checo for danny ric i’m sorry but it doesn’t make sense

- ferrari - i fully understand why they’ve chosen to bring lewis on for 25, but there’s no way they’re not slightly debating their decision at the moment. carlos has been on the podium for 100% of races he’s started this year, and lewis hasn’t even finished top 5. yes maybe it’s the car etc etc but… there’s no way they’re not doubting their choice even a tiny bit. if lewis doesn’t prove himself quickly next year i think there are gonna be some regrets

- mercedes - I don’t know if they’re gonna be able to sign any of the big names. they say they have their eye on carlos, fernando etc but honestly they’re not a desirable team. no one wants to go to a team that’s struggling with the car and has been for years. no one wants to go to the team that’s fucked it all up for a 7 time world champion. alonso said himself the other day that it’d be a downgrade for him. they might sign kimi and try and teach and mould him into a senior driver. signing someone young and new might be their best bet honestly

- VCARB - GIVE LIAM LAWSON THAT GODDAMN SEAT. car issue or not, dannys career has taken a steep decline over the last few years. I just think we’re holding so many young racers back (lawson, doohan, drugovich) to keep the same older ones on the grid, even when they’re not performing. yuki is really shining this year so far, and he’s outshining danny massively. judging by his performances this year and last, I don’t think any teams are gonna want to sign mr ricciardo. if they didn’t want him after mclaren and he’d won in that car… why would they want him now?

- mclaren - obvs the papaya boys are going to be there together until at least 26, so no worries there. but… i hope there’s a car upgrade soon, because at the moment, that doesn’t look like a race winning car to me. it won’t happen (at least not for like 5 years at least), but… dare i say i’d love to see lando in a red bull 🤭. it’s obviously unrealistic but god imagine him in that rocketship of a car, with his talent… same with oscar!! I think if you gave those papayas a better car (it’s decent, don’t get me wrong), they’d be unstoppable

- I don’t think logan or zhou will have seats next year. not too sure about the haas guys… they’re weirdly actually doing okay at the moment. I think that williams seat will definitely be open, so it’ll be very interesting to see who slides into that.

- not sure where carlos will end up honestly. most probably sauber, because they’ll be audi in 26 and his dad has a lot of links there. but, I think he’ll really struggle in that car for 25, because frankly, it’s fucking terrible. I just hope he’s happy with wherever he ends up.

that’s all from me for now 😌 please let me know, my f1 girlies, what you think!! who’s going where? who do you want to go where? let’s talk about it <3

[f1]

Christian Horner hits out at ludicrous plans to hold sprint race in Azerbaijan

Red Bull still hold all the cards going into this weekend’s Australian Grand Prix but for their team principal, Christian Horner, it is the next round in Azerbaijan that is of greater concern. In Melbourne Horner bluntly dismissed plans to hold a sprint race in Baku as “ludicrous” given the risk of cars crashing on the high-speed, street circuit. At Albert Park Red Bull are on a roll that for now at least looks to be unstoppable, with a pair of one-two victories in the opening two meetings, their drivers Max Verstappen and Sergio Pérez taking one win each. Verstappen leads his teammate by one point in the drivers’ championship. Their car remains the class of the field, with Ferrari and Aston Martin still lagging behind, especially in race pace. There is no indication that will change in Australia while Mercedes can hope only that they might at best move closer to the front runners. However for all that they hold an advantage now, Horner and Red Bull are more than aware of the restrictions of operating under the F1 cost cap, which is particularly pertinent for the team, already under the cosh of a wind tunnel usage reduction imposed as punishment for breaking the cap last season. It informed Horner’s exasperation with F1’s decision to hold the first of this season’s six sprint races in Baku at the end of April. “The reality is it’s absolutely ludicrous to be doing the first sprint race of the year in a street race like Azerbaijan,” he said in Melbourne. “I think from a spectacle point of view, from a fan point of view, it’s probably going to be one of the most exciting sprint races of the year. From a cost cap perspective, all you can do is trash your car and it costs a lot of money around there.” F1 brought in the sprint race format in 2021 with mixed results. It is popular with promoters, adding an extra competitive session to the weekend in place of practice but the races themselves have been largely pedestrian, with drivers and teams unwilling to take risks that may compromise their race day performance. The sport is already in discussions to potentially revise the sprint race format before Baku, which currently consists of qualifying on Friday in the afternoon deciding the grid for Saturday’s sprint race and the sprint itself deciding the grid for Sunday’s GP. The format is also felt to be unsatisfactory and could potentially be replaced by making the Saturday race a standalone event and holding a second qualifying session on Saturday morning to decide Sunday’s grid. However for Horner and some fellow team principals, including McLaren’s Zak Brown, the major issue was holding a sprint on a circuit that could prove enormously costly to teams. skip past newsletter promotion after newsletter promotion “One race is enough in Baku, the fact that we’ve got two, there could well be some action there,” Horner said. “A sprint race in Azerbaijan is something to be certainly wary of.” via Formula One | The Guardian https://www.theguardian.com/sport/formulaone