#i liked merc but let’s be real it was only because of lewis

[your-littlesecret]

i have a lot of feelings and i can’t really understand half of them apart from

[f1crecs]

Fic Rec List - Fics with 500 Kudos or Less!

we wanted to post this as a thank you for 500 followers and to highlight some of the fics we think are underrated!

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like we're the last people on earth by @pessimisticidealist | Lando/George | T | 17.6K

Lando joins Mercedes alongside George Russell for the 2026 season. George expects it to go poorly, incredibly so. And he's correct. The characterizations in this one are clear and feel very real, the tangled emotions and the potential catastrophes falling slowly into something terrible and wonderful and complex. Alex's involvement in the whole ordeal turns it into a wonderful exploration of the 2019 rookies.

Lewis was right, ultimately, George thinks; his only consolation is that it isn’t Alex who he’s going to destroy, who’s going to destroy him. Maybe Lando is a little more oblivious, but — no, no, he knows they will consume each other and themselves, if not this year then next, if not the next then not long after. Nico still floats around the paddock on race weekends like a lost moon, still interviews Lewis with longing heavy in his voice. Lewis speaks to him like he would any other reporter. George doesn’t want to do that to Lando, either. He doesn’t want Lando to do that to him. “Thrilled, of course, Lando’s a good mate,” he tells the press, with vacant eyes and a fixed smile. “No one deserves the Merc drive more than him.”

plant new seeds in the melody by @lellabella | Lando/Oscar | T | 20k

In this magical realism AU, Lando and Oscar are both still McLaren drivers, with one small twist: they both have powers. The worldbuilding in this fic was exceptional: vivid and so well developed, I could picture it all unfolding before my eyes. Both Lando and Oscar's powers fit them so well, and I love how the author carefully built the development of their relationship around them becoming more comfortable with each other's abilities. Despite all powers, though, they are still so very Lando and Oscar at the core of this fic, and I loved the characterisation and writing so much.

But now that Lando is the senior driver, he's supposed to be the one who handles his feelings with maturity, not hopelessly crushing on a younger rookie. This isn't ogling handsome Carlos from afar; he wants to wrap Oscar in a blanket and make him hot chocolate and know that he's okay. He wants to see Oscar smile not just because it's pretty but because he genuinely cares about his happiness. That part is new.

nsfw: live in five by @danifesting | Daniel/Max | E | 25k

Daniel discovers Max's Twitch stream and quickly becomes obsessed with them. This fic explores Max and Daniel getting to know each other and learn each other. I really liked the Max characterisation in this. Very direct but also very open to learn. One of my favourite parts is the mod group chat and how it serves as extra information for the reader, set's the tone nicely and helps you understand the overal context of Max and Daniel.

“I should probably explain my different set-up. This is not permanent. I will be back to my normal room at home in two weeks but for now, I am visiting my boyfriend.” electricsld: oh! a boyfriend! andpussycats: say more max dr3rd: yeah maxy, say more “Well, he is very sweet and he does not mind that I need to stream while I visit him. We live in different places, so we, of course, do not get to see each other very often, but it has been very nice to visit.” dr3rd: is he handsome? Max wants to roll their eyes at Daniel fishing for compliments but they contain themself. “Yes, very handsome. So handsome I cannot believe he picked me.”

I Know Your Name (But Not Who You Are) by @wanderingblindly | Charles/Max | T | 7.7k

Charles isn't in Monaco anymore, instead, now he's in Arizona. He's suffered loss at the hands of racing. Max turns up unexpectedly. Great fic if you want to cry and sob and scream into your pillow at 2 am! Amazing writing that just makes you want to lie in bed and contemplate life :) this is such an underrated fic!

There’s not another soul in the desert, just the brief rustle of an autumnal breeze ghosting along the loose earth. But behind Charles’s eyelids, in the space between him and the world above, it’s them. It hasn’t been them in a long time, he hasn’t let himself think of it. He isn’t running from anything, fluttering from city to city, crossing oceans he never touched as a boy. He’s searching, maybe, for a place where the wind can blow it all away. The sun feels warm as he raises his arm, fingers outstretched as he tries to hold that boundless blue in his palm.

nsfw: Everybody Wants to Rule the World by @kaytheologiearchive | Nico/Sebastian | E | 23k

It's 2022, Sebastian is driving for Aston Martin when their new team principal is announced – Nico Rosberg. The author said it best herself – this fic is all about "the absolute fantasy of being the villains favourite girl". And Nico makes a lovely villain, snarky and a bit pretentious but with the ability to back up his words and make his promises reality. I especially love Seb's character arc, starting with 2022!Seb, reluctantly forced to accept that his world champion days are over, to then finding his spark again under Nicos guidance and returning back to his charming, selfish, index-finger-in-the-air ways. Really they are both absolute assholes in this but thats what makes them perfect for each other.

“I’m here for the same reason you are,” he says, megawatt smile back on his face. “To win you a title.”Seb sits back in his seat, grinning bitterly. “Don’t let Stroll hear you say that. The only reason he bought this team is to try to get a title for his son. I’m just here to play mentor until they build us a car one of us can win with, and then he’ll turn me loose.” He doesn’t add, just like Ferrari did. He doesn’t have to.Nico scoffs. Seb’s met so few people who actually scoff in real life. “Lance Stroll,” he says, disdain dripping around every consonant, “is never winning a title. You still could, though, and you know it. You’d have retired if you didn’t think so.” Seb opens his mouth, prepared to contradict him, and Nico silences him with a wave of his hand. “Don’t give me your go-to line about the love of the sport. You’ve only ever been here for one reason. The media might forget, you might even want them to forget, but I know what you’re really like.”“And what’s that?” Seb asks. Against his better instincts, and even though he knows Nico can’t have a single good motive for being here, he’s intrigued by whatever Nico’s about to say. Nico’s always been an enigma to him, Nico’s opinion of him doubly so.“You’re ruthless,” Nico says, almost in a whisper. “You’re brutal, and ambitious, and you’ll do whatever you have to to take everything you want.”

Rabbit, Rabbit (it takes a village) by @481boxboxbaby | Lando/Oscar | M | 25k

Oscar wakes up to find four baby bunnies in his shower. In the world of this story, that's as good as peeing on a stick. This boy is knocked up, and there are six possible baby daddies. This is a sweet, funny and heartfelt fic that takes a cracky idea (magic bunnies means you're pregnant) and treats it seriously. Oscar is definitely a bit of a pillow princess and good time guy - that's why he has bunnies - and the fic follows his journey of self discovery, growing as a person along the way and learning that knowing himself is far more important than knowing who the daddy is. The guy who steps up, and who Oscar chooses in the end, is maybe a little unexpected but it absolutely worked for me.

“Oh,” Oscar blushes a fierce shade of red. “We’re not a throuple. They’re just friends. I mean, maybe one of them is the other father but - um - that’s sort of the thing.” The midwife raises an eyebrow and cocks her head to the side, waiting for him to go on. Oscar instead looks at Liam and Logan, desperate for one of them to bail him out. “You see, there’s a roster,” Logan says, his expression awfully serious like he’s trying to be as tactful as possible, even if he did just start off by outing Oscar as a hoe.

THREE SCENES IN A CITY by @loveisworry | Alex/Charles | T | 6.8k

Charles and Alex and a party. This is the kind of fic that you read, and then you remember for the rest of your life. This is a truly stunning urban fantasy, very immersive and atmospheric.

'Charles, the city’s chosen son, knows these streets better than the backs of his hands, which are often smeared with ink. There’s a scar where his left thumb joins the meat of his hand that he always forgets about. He’s had it since he was a child, and doesn’t remember it’s there because he doesn’t remember how he got it. Without a story to hang onto it disappears'

[thisismeracing]

King of my heart | extras | Yn tells Lewis she's dating Mick

― Summary: Yn and Mick finally broke the friendship barrier and started something else. It's time Yn tells her brother what's going on between her and his teammate. ― Word count: 1k ― A/n: This can be read as a stand-alone, but it’s better when you’ve read the series. ― Warnings: curse words; mention of anxiety; typos - not proofread.

⁕ see my masterlist | my taglist | KOMH Masterlist ⁕ you can support my writing by reblogging, and leaving a comment

There was a knock at Lewis' hotel door and he rushed to open it, confusion written on his face since nobody told him someone would show up. The second he opened the big wooden door he smiled, though it only lasted for the blink of an eye because he quickly gathered how Yn seemed apprehensive.

His sister was wearing one of his Merc white shirts paired with sweatpants and slippers. Her curls were up in her head messily gathered together by a colorful hair tie.

"Hey, bitsy, what's up?" he asked while opening the door wider for her to get inside. Yn did exactly that, running to one of the big armchairs in the room and folding herself there like a cat would.

"How would you feel if I told you I'm dating someone?" She asked before Lewis could say anything else. That was his sister, she would rush through things when nervous, too many expectations would make her feel sick and Yn hated feeling sick, so it was normal for her to just blurt her questions or confessions whenever something important was on the line, just like she was doing at the moment.

Lewis arched his brows, "Ok, I guess, as long as you're happy. But do you think you're ready for a new relationship?" he asked genuinely interested in her answer.

"I don't know, but I really like him, Lew. And I always wanna be around him, it's just...I- mhm I've never felt like this before." She confessed, eyes cast down. It wasn't that Yn was afraid of Lewis judging her because he would never, but he was her older brother and she held his opinion on the highest space. She was just afraid to let him down.

"I'm happy for you guys, then. Is Mick going to tell me too or-"

"Wait! How'd you know it's Mick?" Yn eyed Lewis up and down and he gave her one of his signature laughs.

"You think you're folling people? Be for real, Yn. Everyone knows or suspects. And even if you weren't obvious, I'm your older brother, I know you. I knew you were interested in him from day one didn't I?"

Yn huffed, rolled her eyes, got up, and then crashed on the oldest Hamilton hugging him.

"Thank you. I was a bit taken aback, afraid you were gonna be mad because I kind of promised to stay away."

"I knew if you truly liked him you wouldn't be able to stay away, bitsy."

She breathed in his scent and took a step back. Lewis caught a single tear on her cheek and held her face with both of his hands.

"You're safe with me. Spill it," his gentle tone made yet another tear roll down, and Yn chuckled holding back a sob.

"I'm afraid." Her voice was a weak whisper, but the British heard her perfectly. "I think things may be happening too fast, and I want them to go like this, but I'm also scared of all the attention we're getting. I mean, everyone is talking about us, and we haven't even started dating officially. I'm scared of how this can go and I don't want you to be caught in the crossfire, Lew. The media is always looking for things to point out when you're the subject and I-"

"Hey, breathe." Lewis held her face tighter as if by doing so he was holding her together too. Yn closed her eyes, breathed in and out following his lead, and then they sat on the edge of the bed. "Don't worry about me. I'm the oldest. I can take care of myself." There was a hint of humor in his comment and Yn chuckled.

"I know, but-"

"No, Bitsy. No buts. Stop worrying about me. I'm happy you're with Mick. If I had to choose a guy from the Grid it would most likely be him. I've seen the way he treats you and how careful he is with you. He's a good guy. Please, don't let your anxiety get in the way. People will talk about us it doesn't matter if we do things right or wrong, at the end of the day, you do what you gotta do to be happy, you hear me?"

Yn nodded, tears flowing down her face again. "Thank you, Lew."

"You don't have to thank me, Yn. I always going to have your back. Now, where's your phone, I wanna talk to your boyfriend."

She rolled her eyes chuckling, "he's not my boyfriend...we haven't discussed titles yet."

"You two are so oblivious," Lewis rolled his eyes exaggeratedly and unlocked Yn's phone, "if you change your password to his birthday instead of mine, I will be hurt," he tried to lighten the mood again, already searching through her contacts for the Schumacher's name.

"Hey, Mick...Can you come to my room real quick? I gotta talk to you...Yeah, my sister is crying here, and...yeah...yeah...I'm waiting."

"What the heck, Lewis?!" Yn screeched and Lewis just laughed.

It was barely a minute after and there were frantic knocks at the door. Lewis got up to answer and Yn buried her face in her hands, embarrassed by whatever prank her brother wanted to throw.

When Mick got inside he had his cheeks flushed from using the stairs and eyes wide, "what happened?" he asked and Lewis crossed his arms trying to hold back his laughter.

"Nothing, Mick. I told him about us and he wanted to prank you or embarrass us together, I dunno," Yn got up from the bed and she smiled at his reluctant face. His eyes were traveling between the siblings, but his body was turned in Yn's direction.

"Well, there goes my older brother's fun," the Hamilton sighed, and Yn rolled her eyes yet again that night, walking to Mick and hugging him. "Welcome to the family, Schumacher," Lewis smiled at the blonde.

"I'm sorry to inform you that it can get crazier than this." Yn adverted.

"I won't mind it if it means I got you," he whispered and she smiled.

― ⋆🪩 VOICEMAIL: It's been forever since I last updated it, but I'm gonna start working on it, I promiseeee <3 we're having this series finished in no time! I hope you guys liked this extra, let me know your thoughts by leaving a comment/ask and reblogging *mwah*.

Taglist: @sachaa-ff @ferrariloverr @mellowpizzapuppy @mickslover @dalsuwaha @formulakay3 @mishaandthebrits @non-stop-imagines @iloveyou3000morgan @crimeshowjunkie @saintlewis @fdl305 @carojasmin2204 @chaoticevilbakugo @wondergirl101ks @smiithys @shhhchriss @f1kota @lunnnix @leclercsluv @baby-is-crying @balekane_mohafe @uuuseeerrr12 @karmabyfernando @crashingwavesofeuphoria @81astri @pinksstrawberry @callsign-scully @moonyschocolate3 @v1naco @dearxcherry @p8dris (let me know if your tag was supposed to be only for my other works and you don’t wanna be tagged on the series! <3)

[vro0m]

Seeing how confident McLaren is about their car and their drivers makes me nervous. I saw that Toto extended his contract at Merc through 2026 and it just feels like same sh*t, different toilet. I think Toto should just be satisfied as the owner of the team and step aside and let another TP come in and change the culture at Merc. I think that could potentially attract new engineers that could help with the development of the car.

Lewis is struggling with his qualifying times and George is overconfident. At this point, it's starting to feel like Merc is just not that girl. Why are they starting all over again with their car? I'm fairly new to f1, but I thought it takes years to develop a championship-winning car, yet they're developing a brand new one over the winter? That doesn't feel right to me.

Also, I didn't understand TeamLH bragging about Lewis retaining Monster as his sponsor, when Monster jumped ship from Merc to McLaren. Isn't losing sponsorships a bad thing, since the team is losing money that it would likely use to develop the car that would help Lewis win his 8th WDC? A loss for the team is a loss for Lewis..unless I'm wrong.

I truly hope Merc proves me wrong, but something's gotta give. I just don't have confidence in them.

Do you think that Merc needs a major overhaul or do you think they're going to make progress continuing on the path that they're on?

Okay i was gonna answer this in the morning but i can’t sleep so here we go, sorry if it’s a bit unhinged.

Here’s the thing. In my book, the second rule of F1 is never ever listen to a team principal. (The first rule being, of course, you always, always have to do better than your teammate.) So I’ll believe McLaren’s confidence is warranted when I’ll see it. Hell, I’ll believe they really are confident and it’s not basic 101 PR when I’ll see it. And mind you, Toto seems pretty confident too. (The only thing I’m happy about here is that he also said they’ve been working on their pitstops but due to Rule 2, I’ll also only believe it when I’ll see it.)

They’re starting over with their car because, as you noticed, the past two cars were Not Working. So no real choice here but to get back to square 1 rather than spend a third year trying to make a car that doesn’t work, work. Building a championship-winning car is less a matter of time (I mean especially nowadays with the costcap and windtunnel allocation etc. it’s getting irrelevant), and more a matter of getting it right. RedBull got it right and they won. The problem is : the others need to develop to catch up to them because they didn’t get it as right as RB, and that takes time and resources and is very complicated. And if you have a bad starting point, it’s that much more difficult. Basically there were too many things that needed changing with this car concept anyway. So they’re starting over. But it's also not like they don't have data and experiments from the past two years. They know more about these regs and cars than in 2021. Are they gonna win the ‘24 championship with the W15? No. But they weren’t gonna win by keeping the last, dysfunctional car concept either anyway. At least now they have a chance to develop in the right direction.

I did not read anything about the Monster sponsorship because i really, really don’t care. I didn’t even know that was a thing. I don’t think Monster leaving Mercedes is gonna make a dent in their budget. First of all, there’s a costcap now, so they can’t throw money at a bad car to make it good anyway. Second of all, they have a lot of other sponsors. Third, they’re the second most expensive team in the paddock. And fourth, their parent company is worth 85 billions of dollars. Lewis’ 8th has pretty much nothing to do with Monster or any sponsorship.

To answer your main question : no, I don’t think Merc needs a major overhaul. Given that you’re fairly new to F1 I concede it might not look like it in the current context but changing TPs is actually Not All That. And it generally doesn’t really solve anything. If anything I’m against major overhauls. Imho a stable ground is the best ground to build up on. Toto is... Toto. But he’s not the reason why the car is bad. It’s a whole team. 2’000+ employees. You can’t pinpoint any of the problems they have on one singular person. I mean Ferrari has had 5 different TPs in the last 10 years and that has solved exactly zero of their problems, and they still haven’t won a championship since 2007.

They are making progress. All of them are. It’s just, it’s F1. We’re talking about such tiny tiny differences in performance now, millimeters off of a piece of carbon fiber, milliseconds off of a time sheet. The time the pecking order could be turned upside down from one race to the next has been gone for decades. It’s all about the long game when the differences are so subtle. Even more now that they, again, can’t just throw money and wind tunnels at issues. It’s frustrating when it’s not your driver/team on top but success is mostly cyclical in this sport. Right now it’s RedBull. Next who knows. Merc is just not that girl, at the moment. It is what it is.

ETA : btw I think firing Toto would really throw Lewis off so. Another reason not to imo.

[yesterdayiwrote]

I just…

It pisses me off that last year George was in the hunt for P2 in the WDC until very late in the season and Mercedes did *nothing* to help him. No team orders, no preferential treatment, no strategies to give him a fighting shot to hop up the rankings. They made him work for every step of it. Kept telling everyone they treat both drivers equally and they don’t work like that. Every time he made a call to gamble he got called a ‘safety car merchant’ if it came off. Got called lucky. There was always an excuse why him beating his teammate wasn’t deemed legitimate by some voices…

Fast forward twelve months and we’re not even half way through the season and the two drivers are in the same positions but inverted and the team has already admitted they’re designing the car to suit Lewis. George has been giving tow repeatedly in Quali when it’s usually taken in turns, and today got given a hacky pit stop that ruined his chances of a home podium and allowed Lewis to get back ahead of him (compounded by a free pit stop).

I’ve stuck up for Merc a lot, but it just feels like they’re employing tunnel vision a lot recently. I can’t say I genuinely feel like they’re supporting George at the moment and it’s a real shame to see. He’s being let down and you don’t hear him get nearly as many apologies as the other side of the garage gets over minor inconveniences.

Of course he’s fucking disappointed to miss out on his home race, especially after what happened last year, and especially because he did everything right today. Merc need to get their arse in gear all around, but everyone’s focusing on them re-signing Lewis, but they’re at risk of taking George’s loyalty for granted if they don’t sort out what’s going wrong for him recently too. They’re only where they are in the constructors off the back of having two drivers. They can��t afford to put all their resources into just one driver like they have done in the past…

[freeuselandonorris]

F1 Ask Game

thank you @bright-and-burning and @goingxmissing for the tags!!

Who is your favorite driver?: i go back and forth between lando and oscar! i think lando has my heart the most though, honestly, goblin child that he is.

Do you have other favorite drivers?: i love lewis, i love charles, i still have a soft spot for max and daniel although definitely not to the extent i used to... but honestly i'm kind of fond of most of the grid and its peripheral characters (including the previous generation of ex-drivers like nico (i used to be OBSESSED with nico when he was driving for merc!), jenson et al) and the up-and-comers like liam, ollie, kimi. i just like drivers!

Who is your least favorite driver?: there's nobody i really hate, but i'm less keen on perez and hulkenberg. fernando annoyed me for a while when he was just waltzing into random other series, nabbing the best car and winning everything and then fucking off again when he was trying to catch the triple crown, but i find him pretty funny these days.

Do you pull for drivers or do you like teams as well?: i think @goingxmissing made a very good point that liking a driver generally means you end up liking the people around them too, but i'm generally a driver not a team person. i'm papayapilled currently because my two favourite drivers are with them, but i wouldn't particularly follow mclaren regardless of who drives for them (i'm also less than impresed with some of the choices they've made recently, but let's not get into that.)

If you like teams, what team do you pull for?: mclaren obviously, and i am very fond of mercedes although that's a deeply frustrating endeavour at the moment. but yeah, none of the teams are particularly meaningful to me.

How long have you been into F1?: well, i guess technically we're talking about 25 years lmao. i started watching when i was a kid because my mum loved mika hakkinen, so i have fond childhood memories of watching the hakkinen v schumacher years and being fascinated by it. but in terms of watching it by my own volition, this is the 11th straight year i've been watching. mental.

What got you into F1?: see above for the original inspiration! but i came back to it in 2013 because i started working as a subtitler for live tv and one of the channels we covered happened to be sky F1 (so yeah i basically got paid to watch F1. it was great.) a few months of covering the 2013 season - the fabled "multi-21" season of seb and mark nearly killing each other - and i was hooked.

Do you enjoy Fanfic/RPF?: oh yes lmao.

How do you view new fans?: having survived the wilderness years where nobody gave a fuck about F1 and many of the fans were middle aged "well actually..." men, it fills me with joy to see so many younger and more diverse fans coming to the sport. sometimes i see takes that make it pretty clear there's a lack of understanding of the history or previous context of the sport, but so what? we all started somewhere.

If you could take over as team principal for any team, who would it be and why?: oh my god, i don't think i'd want to, it looks stressful as fuck lmao. i'd quite like to be a strategist though, if only i had any capacity for it. maybe for merc. i'd like to work under toto (ahem).

Are your friends and family into F1 as well?: yes! my mum, obviously. a lot of my non-F1 friends (i.e. friends i didn't meet through motorsports fandom) are also into it to varying degrees, and i'm lucky enough to have forced quite a big group of people on here into being my actual real life friends now too. i'm very lucky.

Are you open to talking to other fans/making friends?: yes!! i am not always brilliant at responding to DMs in a timely fashion (i get very easily overwhelmed when i have lots of unread messages lmao) but i love the anons in my inbox and it still makes me so happy when people send me messages saying something (...usually piss related lmao) reminded them of me 🥹

i feel like everyone has maybe been tagged already...? if not comment and i will tag u!

[charles-leclerc-official]

Australia 2024 qualifying analysis

I'm not going to waste time with an intro, let's get into what happened. Won't be covering everyone but will be going over the big things of note.

Max P1 Carlos P2 and Lando P3 are the top three in qualifying.

Charles: So what happened to Charles?

Charles is good at qualifying and he's been flying around this track, so for him not to be in the top 3 that is a sign something went wrong.

And yes conditions with the car and I suspect the track were not ideal for him during quali.

Rear wing - Ferrari went with a single bar rear wing for FP3 and quali, this changed the balance and thus some other set up elements needed to be changed to compensate. I suspect they did this change because they are trying to create less drag for the race. Possibly in anticipation of not getting a lot of DRS

Front wing shift: Change the balance if the rear you have to change the front. Charles apparently requested a very aggressive front(makes sense) but it seems that was an over correction and that led to the car being less predictable. A less aggressive approach would probably have been more suited to the quali conditions.

Track conditions: wind and temperature differences in addition to the tyre wear and the change in tyre pressure all are contributing factors for why he might have lost grip on certain corners. With low drag and low traction that easily could create the conditions Charles described as being both oversteer and understeer. Like once a slide happens the car can easily do this.

Driver error: also have to acknowledge that Charles isn't perfect and he didn't have time to do the best he was capable of yesterday. It happens.

All this being said, the Ferrari and Charles had the best race pace during free practice, and that rear wing change might pay off for the race.

Charles qualified P5 but will be starting P4 due to Sergio's grid penalty

Carlos: He put in some good laps. Lost a good chunk of time on turn 10 to Max. But I will say I am impressed with his performance given he is still recovering from surgery.

Sergio: Sergio qualified P3 but took a 3 place grid penalty for impeding Hulkenberg's flying lap during quali. It seems this was more a failure of his team to inform him that a car was coming up behind. He will be starting P6.

Lewis and Yuki: The big upset of quali was Yuki knocking Lewis out of Q3. Very exciting for Yuki, and damning for Mercedes. Because that is Lewis Hamilton in that car, the Mercedes has not had the setup this weekend, and they have been struggling for any real straight line pace all season.

Yuki really is proving he is the top driver at VCARB and that was an impressive lap from him.

I also don't think Mercedes thought they needed to worry and possibly didn't push too hard. That yes they were low but the chances of a mid field car knocking them out was not high. Well Yuki proved them wrong. Some of this comes from underestimating Yuki(never underestimate Yuki).

Esteban: Esteban really surprised us all getting that Alpine into Q2. Given how many problems with pace and weight the Alpine has had that is just some solid driving from him.

Alex: Alex did put in a good performance for qualifying being the only Williams on the field. He got the car pretty close to the points and was competitive with the rest of the midfield. Hopefully this translates to good results for the race. So far it looks like he is delivering for Williams this weekend.

Mercedes: Mercedes was shockingly bad. There is something fundamentally wrong not just with the setup but the entire design philosophy. They have two talented drivers who are simply not able to compete because the car does not have the straight line speed. It struggled a lot during free practice, so it isn't surprising that both Mercs are so low, but it is not a promising look for the car as a whole.

Zhou: Zhou had probably the hardest quali. He damaged his front wing on the curb of turn 10 and that really cost him any hope of having a good time. Stake also did not have a spare front wing for him, so he will have to start from the pitlane and run with a damaged front wing. Not only was his quali compromised his race will be as well.

[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

[lewisvinga]

I am so glad that I’m not the only one who is pissed off with the Carlos fans. I literally have been so afraid to speak out about it because they are literally crazy. They will attack you just because you said Carlos hair doesn’t look fluffy. I thought that the Italian men who were fans of Charles Leclerc Were wild, but the Carlos fans are even crazier. Like, Ferrari is not going to regret giving you Carlos up. It’s a team, and this is a competitive sport. They do this so often that they are used to people leaving the team and going to win somewhere else.

They’re not going to specifically beg Carlos to say just because he’s won twice and one of those wins were practically handed to him due to Max’s car. just because he won once fair and square and the other one was practically given to him on a silver platter, doesn’t mean that Ferrari is going to cry and get on their hands and knees, and beg for him to stay just because he won.

No wonder people call the tifosi the most delusional, fan base. And those saying people who are crying about Carlos leaving and saying they’re going to regret it and stuff are the same people who call Lewis Hamilton crymilton 😭

Like, I really like Carlos and Charles, but their fanbase makes me want to hate them. Same thing with the Daniel Ricciardo fans. I remember someone telling you about the racism and hatred Yuki was facing after Bahrain. I remember someone telling you about how the stands were acting like Daniel has never done anything wrong in his entire life.

Both men are extremely beautiful and talented, but their fans make people hate the drivers themselves. People say that, “if you were a real fan, you wouldn’t let the fans put you off.”

How are you supposed to not be affected by the fans when they are being so toxic? When they ruin the entire experience for you? Make it make sense

Sometimes I wish I didn’t have ADHD in autism because when I hyper focus on something, I cannot get out of it no matter how hard I try

And rn that’s f1 😭

you explained it PERFECTLY😭😭😭😭

like i really like carlos, don’t get me wrong that’s a fellow madridista 🤞 but the carlos fans saying that ferrari is gonna regret it after he what?? won 2 races only because red bulls car wasn’t working?

he’s talented don’t get me wrong, but if anyone else was starting right behind max would’ve won the race , ( anyone with a good car that is bc we all know merc is shitty asf rn but i think charles or the mclarens could’ve won🤷‍♀️🤷‍♀️)

same w daniel fans, i saw so many ppl being racist to yuki over bahrain on twt n it was insane

like they’re attractive and have showcased their talents before, but damn some fans make me so annoyed 😭😭

f1 feels like a kpop fandom icl, bc stg on f1twt you can’t criticize ANYONE but on fbtwt everyone gets criticized for anything even the best players but no one gets as upset as f1twt

(although some criticisms on fbtwt are just wrong bc ppl do tend to get racist but saying a player has been in a bad spot doesn’t get ppl upset like saying something slightly negative abt drivers 😭)

[milflewis]

or can you make sewis toxic

the gc said what if seb n lewis were teammates at merc during baku 2017 earlier today and my brain is fucking melted and this came out. what if lewis went to ferrari after 2016. what if baku happened while they’re were both in the title fight for a wdc with ferrari and make it be the worst possible scenario. what then

“I’m not very nice today,” Sebastian laughs, titling back in his chair, smile bright and toothy, red shirt loose and too big along his shoulders. His fingers are ringless, tapping away on the arm of his chair, no bracelets either excerpt for a thin material one, faded blue, and a thick sensible watch. “Sorry.”

He doesn’t sound sorry but then again, Sebastian never does. Lewis only shrugs, letting his eyes soften, reaching over to bump Sebastian’s chest with his closed fist, light and easy. Mattia is peering over the file in his hand from across the room. “It’s alright, man. Losing can be difficult to swallow.”

Sebastian is far too good at his job to glare at Lewis. His smile simply widens, chin tilting down so he can glance up through his lashes. “You’d know all about that, wouldn’t you?”

Lewis laughs, stretching his legs out in front of him, feet crossed at the ankles, until his back clicks quietly. “I would,” Lewis says and the helmet painted in Lewis’s colours on the shelf behind Mattia holds the exact same number of stars, one grey, two silver, one red, as Sebastian has titles. You’re not special, Lewis thinks. Not to me. I see you. I know you as a racer. As a human being. I. See. You.

I’m not Mark Webber, Lewis had said to him, last year after they had handed him the trophey and he’d become the first Ferrari world champion since Kimi. Sebastian had only laughed, furious and spitting and grinning, no?

Nah, Lewis had leaned in close, smelling his sweat and champagne and the race track that always seems to cling to Sebastian. I’ve beat you in your own team, haven’t I?

That hadn’t wiped the smile off of Sebastian’s face, nothing had that year, not once he started losing and never stopped, but something in his eyes had flickered, got you, and he had said, they aren’t my team, like it was awful and terrible and the worst thing he could think of. He didn’t say they’re yours because apart from the very few times Sebastian very distinctly is, he generally isn’t much of a liar.

Lewis had known him a long time at this point, as a friend and stranger and colleague and rival and teammate and ally and rival, and had just shrugged. Yeah, they are, man. They’re Ferrari, they’ll never be mine. And they’ve got to be someone’s — too needy not to be.

Then why are you here. It was the first time since Lewis signed the contract on the heels of 2016 that he saw Sebastian desperate and it was even partly real. Maybe I just want to win with every team, Lewis had watched Sebastian’s fingers pull at the sleeves of his race suit, the material damp and thick. That’s what the papers are saying, anyway, so it must be true.

Sebastian hadn’t said anything to that, jaw still set and tight, knuckles white where he had twisted them into the material. Lewis could’ve forgiven him for choosing Nico over him, or at least, not choosing Lewis. Could’ve and did. He was even able to forgive him for not saying anything when the shit stupid jokes came back after he signed and the Tifosi lost their shit, bouncing back and forth between ecstasy over getting Lewis Hamilton in Ferrari, stealing him from Mercedes as if Lewis hadn’t walked away on his own two feet, and the horror of having a black driver in their beloved team.

What he is not able to let go, and probably couldn’t even if he tried, is Sebastian not taking back what he said after Baku, never telling anyone that he was wrong, even after the FIA of all people stood in Lewis’s corner. It wouldn’t have hurt so much except —

Well, Lewis had thought, hadn’t he, and —

— it didn’t matter. Not in the end.

Sometimes, Lewis looks at Sebastian, beside him on the podium, across a team briefing, staring in front of him, behind, right there, and he hates him. He’s pretty sure that they could’ve, maybe, possibly, been something.

Sometimes, he even catches Sebastian staring back but for all that he swans around, all open palms and look here, look, look, I’ve got nothing to hide, I swear, he can be so very difficult to read. And it’s been a over a year since Lewis has trusted himself around the other man.

[silverstonesainz]

🏎️💨 THE FORMULA 1 TAG GAME! 🏎️💨

Creds to @avida-heidia-5 for making this!

thank u @vinvantae & @rose-tinted-juls for the tags! if u see this and u havent done it, i'm pointing at u to do it.

who or what got you into F1?

my best friend got into it first, and spent the better part of two weeks to watch dts so that i could get a general run down before she let me watch races. and the only reason i did end up watching it was through her showing me a photo of charles leclerc everyday for a week of the two, and wore me down.

who was the very first F1 driver you supported? do you support them now? have your opinions on them differed or stayed the same since then?

danny was the first driver i watched and paid attention to, and i still do keep up with him and wish him all the best. and i would say that my opinions on him have evolved with time and his ever changing situation.

who’s your current favorite F1 driver?

if it isn't already obvious, it's carlos. my top 3 is carlos, charles, & danny. theyre my guys

(see more under the cut!)

is there a driver pairing or pairings you support? what made you attracted to that pairing in the first place?

maxiel is really the only pair that i would say i support. i think of them so often, more than charlos or even carlando. maxiel is real special to me. i think galex is a close second because ever since it an anon mentioned the idea of george and alex in merc together, i havent been able to shake it.

do your parents, siblings or relatives have a favourite team and/or favourite driver(s)?

i am the only person who really keeps up with f1. but id like to think my mom supports carlos bc she asks about how he does sometimes. (also fernando bc... viva españa!)

do you have any favourite races? are there any that stand out to you the most?

baku '22 (it was the first race i ever watched and its sooo wretched), canada '22 silverstone '22, austria '22, abu dhabi '22, & singapore '23. these all are races that are engraved in my memory, all the good and bad. i have many– too many– thoughts about em actually.

do you have a favourite circuit? can be from the past or from the current calendar.

i do looove circuit gilles villeneuve a lot, the hairpin at turn 10 turns me on. some special mentions: singapore, suzuka, & cota.

have you ever been to an F1 race in real life? feel free to tell us your experience going to one if you like.

noooo, i wish. one day thought when im a wag

have you ever met an F1 driver in real life?

no, but i have seen george, lewis, & checo in person!

do you have a favourite F1 car? if so, what is it?

i can't think of any off the top of my head except the all chrome mclaren from once upon a time. but i wouldnt say its my favorite, just the one in the forefront of my memory

do you have a favourite one win wonder?

i'll say george because i love how emotional he gets. and i mean he makes me so angry but what a win for him ya know?

do you have any favourite quotes from the F1 world? this can either be inspirational or hilarious.

all of kimi's radios in the one compilation. he is sooo funny, and sooo dear to me. when seb said he wants to go home after hs crash with mark (?). it's on purpose, from carlos in singapore '23. of course daniel's whole enjoy the butterflies spiel. sooo dear to me even if i hate butterflies. special mention: for the first time in formula one, carlos sainz is victorious!!!

[kritischetheologie]

Daniel this season and/or his choices since leaving Red Bull

why did this get so long

overall: Daniel had the bad luck to be born too close to Seb and Lewis, no one born between 87 and 97 will ever win a title because by the time the old guard was fading the new guard was rising, especially since Max got started so early; in an alternate universe where Max went to F2 in 2015, Toro Rosso in 2016, and Red Bull in 2017, Daniel might have had time to cement himself as the number one driver and had a real shot at it in like 2018, except that he wouldn't have, because Red Bull were always gonna do to him what they did to Mark Webber, once Max came along, and also it took them until 2021 for them to actually have a championship-winning car and I don't think he had it in him to wait that long and also, again, Mark Webber.

on leaving Red Bull: on the one hand the worst decision he ever made, made solely as a result of DTS induced Main Character Syndrome, on the other hand an absolute necessity having witnessed the entire arc of Mark Webber, see above.

on going to Renault, Specifically: literally makes no sense. His biggest problem in the 2018 season is engine reliability so he goes to the people making the engines. please. there's gotta be more to the story, but I don't know what it is. if that throwaway line in DTS that Merc were interested in him is correct, I think in hindsight he made a massive mistake in going to Renault, but fuck, I understand wanting to be first driver somewhere, the Valtteri Bottas / Checo Perez gig is a tough fucking pill to swallow, especially at that point in his career.

on leaving renault when he did: honestly it makes sense they were not actually a good team alpine are mid when Pierre wins a title for them next year you can all laugh at me but he wanted to help a mid team become good like Lewis did at Merc but honestly????? that shit only happens once in a generation and we don't talk about how lucky Lewis got with his career choices and how easily it could have been Lewis going to Red Bull in 2013 instead if Mark had gone to Ferrari or retired and then Nico wins like 8 titles and Hamilton is the guy who won one title once and anyway where were we. losing followers that's where we were. daniel was right to get the fuck out of renault.

on going to McLaren: I think he didn't realize he'd be as bad a fit as he's been? I think he didn't realize their car would have the issues it had last year? I think abu dhabi fucked him up?? I think they've treated him terribly and clearly have a toxic atmosphere but also I've seen Lando get like, a dozen 5 second pit stops all season and they really are not screwing Daniel Specifically they really are just That Incompetent.

on not going to Haas next year: literally absurd. you're a race car driver. drive a race car. Seb, who has 4 titles and 3 children, gets to be like "idk it's not worth it anymore to risk my life in a bad car I'll go take care of my children." Daniel, who has no titles and no children, does not get to prefer sitting in the Merc garage to actually being in a car. Does he think he'll ever get to drive it??? Does he think they won't replace Lewis with Albon (SEE ABOVE ON HOW HE GOT SHAFTED BY THE YEAR OF HIS BIRTH). What is his game plan? at this point, the only things he can do are drive fast and get attention and sitting in the Merc garage every week lets him do NEITHER.

honestly no lie he should have gone to indy and become a massive fucking star america loves him my DTS girlie friends are already flirting with getting into indy we went to a race last year we drank some beers on a hilltop and had a great time, we would watch every fucking race if he went to indy. HE COULD DO FOR INDY WHAT HE DID FOR F1. JUST FUCKING GO TO INDY DANIEL. IS THE PINNACLE OF MOTORSPORT IN THE ROOM WITH US RIGHT NOW????

[alexi-01]

also that quote coming out after a race where george was crying and begging for team orders to compensate for his well-deserved penalty while lando and oscar both just freely raced each other without either crying or begging for a position //

not only that but they worked together (with their engineers) to help make sure they had both built a gap to de vries so they could both pit & come out in front of him, first with oscar backing the train up so lando could look after his medium tyres & run long while perez (the main threat to their 10th place) was stuck in that train, then lando speeding up & using his tyres up so oscar could get closer to the back of him & build his own gap. they worked together as a team on what was obviously a pre-agreed strategy to put themselves in a position that guaranteed one of them, depending on how their respective strategies fell, would be able to get that 10th place for the team. as it happened it worked out even better because due to them both being monsters on the inters & yuki struggling with his car they were both able to get score.

meanwhile george was whining on the radio & asking the team to get lewis to help him out because he screwed up twice despite having what would have been the preferential strategy - & to try & get the position over lewis cos let's be real on his past form, everyone knows he would have tried to get more than 5 seconds ahead of lewis & claim lewis was too slow to keep up or something. even though he's not once put the team above himself or helped lewis out the entire time he's been there. mercedes ignoring him & then basically telling him to shut up & concentrate on driving was hilarious though.

i giggled when merc ignored him like he was a little fly in their ear and didn’t even relay what gr was asking to lewis

[supermaks]

That interview you posted is the 4953 time Max praised Lewis and called him one of the best meawhile Lewis can't even say Max's name makes you think

Idk it's nothing new like Lewis pulls this with every serious rival used to be the same with Seb, Nico lets not, with Nando it persists to this day because Nando is his own brand of asshole and still a threat if the car works. It's just his thing. He literally said he didnt care about George finishing ahead this year because they're fighting for scraps by merc standards, not for the title. Max is Lewis' only real rival from that generation of drivers so he's gonna be the only one Lewis doesn't coddle. Plus, yk ... lil bro won. Twice now. It’s prolly personal although Lewis did recently say he has 'zero problems' with Max. Also he's been doing the 'this guy' act since before 2018 so that doesnt add up. On the other hand, like u said, Max has no issue praising Lewis. With his full chest too lmfao. But I think to somebody like Max it doesnt even register as 'praise', it's just a fact. Sidenote theres something about Max's relentless pragmatism that I still can’t tell if it's genuine or a really intense defense mechanism. Lewis isn't like that at all, he's a lot more elaborate on how he talks about things. If he insists on praising the car and Newey but never Max it's definitely on purpose. My point is, it's not cruel or whatvr, it's just a lil Hammer spice. I actually find it very complimentary of Max's abilities kdljskfj

[racingliners]

F1 2022 Re-watch: Round 3 - Australia 

So yeah re some previous rambly posts, I subbed to F1 TV because I was kind of tuned out for the bulk of the 2022 season and bc it ended up being Seb’s last season in F1, I wanted to re-watch all of them in full. bc Seb caught covid (😭) I’m starting from Australia!

Since I’m mainly doing this for the laughs I have no idea what I’m doing avwvguhrgug I’ll probably put a lap number before any sarcastic comment for context.

Anyway, onwards! (under a read more bc this will get chatty)

Starting with the F1 intro. noice. (quietly bops)

As I am a religious Channel 4 viewer I just got major whiplash from Will Buxton doing commentary esblhrlbi.

I actually really like Albert Park, it’s not a bad track, dare I say it quite underrated.

Seb in 17th, the AMR22 really was a tractor 😭

Jolyon Palmer?!?!? I forgot he worked for F1 these days.

I’m also really not used to Aus not being the tradional season opener. Does not pass the vibe check.

[Start/Lap 1]: A clean turn 1???? sounds very fake.

A clean first sector???? sounds very fake

My god I can’t believe the grid all had their braincells on the first lap. Astounding.

[Lap 2]: nvm Sainz spun into the gravel. (I very vaguely remember this from C4 Highlights)

Unrelated, Zhou’s helmet design is really pretty.

[Lap 3]: Aston Martin Safety Car!! My beloved!! (The soft spot I now have for them after Seb’s two seasons with AM asdfghjkl)

[Lap 5]: Oh, pitting Lance to run the mandatory compound for 1 lap, then pitting again for hards. That’s clever. (Bernie Collins and Seb shared AM’s braincell lets be real).

I’ve also very suddenly realised that while I’m re-watching all of Seb’s races from 2022 bc it was his last season, there is no guarantee I will see much of Seb. I did not think this through.

I have once again slipped back into the routine of constantly checking for Seb’s name on the leaderboard. (pls don’t ask me how I’m going to cope this year bc I probably won’t)

I’m also humming the jaws theme everytime one car gets close to another.

Still not used to Will Buxton commentary eagheguh Palmer & Sam Collins are great though!!

[Lap 11]: Not Seb going through the gravel and dropping to plum last 😭

[Lap 12]: The McLarens following the Mercs. Merc on Merc powertrain violence

[Lap 13]: “Lots of unforced driver error” It’s because we had such a clean first lap that the racing gods demanded clownery as payment.

Unrelated but I said this to a mate the other day, but I miss glossy car liveries!! The matte ones are fine but shiny liveries just hit different. (Merc please go chrome for 2023 it would be v sexy)

[Lap 16]: Anyway Seb in P16 woo

Kevin mowing the lawn at turns 9 and 10

[Lap 18] Ah Leclerc leading Verstappen by almost 9 seconds. Remember when we had hope for the title fight? (Man watching the season long Ferrari clown show back is going to be fun, and by fun I mean devastating).

Speaking of car liveries, please have less black on the car this year McLaren. It just makes the car look unfinished. The accents of blue are so pretty though.

(I love how this is the most important thing on my mind rn eaugheuigh)

[Lap 22]: Seb thinking about an overtake!!! And the camera cut away!! why???

[Lap 24]: Seb DNF noooooo 😭😭😭😭

(I really should have looked up race results before starting this huh)

Well, zero joy sparked. But I have paid for F1 TV so we carry on through gritted teeth.

The AMR22 was a tractor, but damn it she was a beautiful tractor.

[Lap 25] “Keep getting unlucky with safety cars” Me 🤝 Lewis: Permanently traumatised by the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix

“The only time we will see an Aston Martin leading the race this weekend” Will Buxton I will fight you

[Lap 26]: THE FUCK Yuki, Mick do not frighten me like that.

I still keep checking for Seb on the leaderboard even though he’s out. Pain.

Back on livery watch: The blue and pink Alpine my beloved.

[Lap 30] oh we have passed half-distance. yay.

Lewis getting past Nando: ‘Cause I seee sparks flyyyyy’

[Lap 33] Bold of anyone to call Magnussen “Alonso’s rear gunner”

[Lap 35] Cuts to Leclerc in case we forgot about him

[Lap 36] “Is that Ferrari very slow or...?” “No that’s just how it looks” And yet Apollo gave them the gift of prophecy re the second half of the season 😭

Another livery watch update: Alpha Romeo v pretty.

[Lap 39]: Oop Verstappen DNF

Back to livery watch: Red Bull I’m begging you to go back to having a dark metallic blue instead of the matte navy. Keep the bright red tho.

The “Leclerc you’re my red flag”  sign. Bestie that does not mean what you think it means.

[Lap 41]: The midfield once again saving the entertainment value of the race. I fully support Fernando’s rights to go a little bit feral.

Albert Park when the sun starts to go down >>>>>

(Yes a circuit’s aesthetic/surroundings completely plays into whether or not I like it. shh)

[Lap 45]: ...did AM tell Lance that he got a penalty or?????

[Lap 46]: How did I not notice Albon in P7??? pet power! (he still had to stop but whatevs)

[Lap 48] Albon on 46 lap old tyres 😳

I have now learned I’m watching the F1 TV feed and not the global feed (which I’m assuming is Sky F1???) so I’ll need to actually pay attention to what I’m clicking on for the next race 😅

[Lap 49]: It’s taken almost the whole race for Nando to start bitching on the radio iaefbhsebh. At least it feels like a race now (said with the upmost affection for my favourite menace to society)

[Lap 51]: There you go Nando, Pierre got past Lance

also is Alex going to pit at some point???

“I think don’t hit the one [car] painted the same as yours” F1 TV make Sam the lead commentator pls.

“The McLaren is a quick car” words I thought I would never hear

[Lap 54]: Charles 🤝 RBR Seb: Can I go for the fastest lap 👀

I also think it’s bs that you have to finish in the top 10 to get a point for the fastest lap. If you get the fastest lap, you should get the point. Don’t disrespect the non-points finishers like that @FIA 

[Lap 56]: Three laps left and Albon still hasn’t pitted

Williams did you forget about your driver????

Shit I’m emotionally invested in Albon now

Oh man if his tyre fails I will not take it well

[Lap 57]: Don’t cut to Leclerc!!! I need to know if Albon has pitted yet!!!

There he is!!!

[Lap 58] “Are you still awake” Perez @ Williams pit wall

Oh thank fudge Albon pitted

[Lap 58/end] Charles & Ferrari taking a dominant win. doesn’t feel real tbh.

Albon got P10!!!! hell yeah!!!

Charles really did learn from Seb by going for fastest lap despite being told not to vvuuehrfgusrhguh

Rocky name drop!!! Yes I’m still fond of him shhh 

Okay so that race was a bit of a slow burn, ty to the midfield for bringing the bulk of the entertainment. Overall 6 and a half front wings out of 10.

[yesterdayiwrote]

Carlos was expendable lol ever since then because Charles is Ferrari's golden boy not being naive here and I know not every driver is safe but let's speak facts here Merc isn't stupid enough to sack George when they can't even get max on their team nor will ever be

half of these drivers could have been sacked but they need their golden boy in each team and George is merc's golden boy be for real 💀💀

also let me real who or which team would even entice George like that?? Yes he's good and great but he still needs to prove if he can win a championship and besides there's no seat that is enticing anyways

I think you're misunderstanding multiple points of what I'm saying.

No, Merc won't sack George if they can't get Max, I've never said that they will. This conversation has only ever been about a scenario where Max is available and what Merc would do in that situation.

Never underestimate a team's ability to screw any of their drivers over, or change allegiance at any time. Lewis was Merc's golden boy and they still decided they could no longer give him everything he wanted. Everyone's a 'golden boy' until they're not. Personally I would question the extent that George is their 'golden boy'. He's very loyal to Merc and they've rewarded him accordingly. I've still yet to see Merc put longterm faith into George to the extent that other teams have into their own 'golden boys'. I'm sorry, I just don't see what you obviously do?

And I've never said a team's going to entice him away? I've never once spoken about George going elsewhere, in fact I've said multiple times that his options elsewhere are slim and holding that seat remains his priority... but that won't be of any concern to Mercedes if they had a choice of drivers. It's not even relevant to the conversation?

I don't WANT Merc to get rid of him, I strongly believe right now he's Merc's best option and that they should have signed him for a longterm contract. The fact they haven't suggests two possible options imo. That they're either taking for granted that he won't go elsewhere, or that they're wanting to keep their options open for new regs... neither of which suggest he's quite the 'golden boy' you're suggesting? I think Merc are stupid to even talk about Max, even if it is Toto just stirring the pot?