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The 2019 F1 season.

Another really enjoyable race with a battle for the lead and some shenanigans. Can't see why you wouldn't like LEC, he is humble and polite with a good attitude in front of the camera and extremely fast in the car - unless your name is Vettel as LEC went back on the agreement to tow VET in the second Q3 run. I believe there was a heated debrief at Ferrari after that; hence Binotto telling LEC after the race in Italian "well done and you are forgiven".

Not to take anything from LEC as his drive was top drawer but huge props to HAM for pushing so hard so close to the back of the Ferrari for pretty much the whole race. He is 60 odd points in the lead of the WCC and was still pushing like hell for the win. The way he was able to keep so close in the slipstream in the braking zones right up until his tyres were cooked was impressive. Shown up even more by where BOT tried the same and didn't really get close to LEC.

Seems like LEC is working his way through the prodigy playbook:

Stunning first season ruining his team mates career in Ferrari feeder team
Hired by Ferrari (who almost never hire rookies)
Establishes speed in first races getting pole at second race
Bides time just behind experienced (no1.) team mate
Regularly out qualifies said experienced teammate
Now regularly out racing teammate causing him to increase errors
Wins first race in difficult circumstances emotionally
Breaks team agreed rules, pissing off team mate and team but forgiven by winning again - in Italy
Oh and lays down a marker to the existing "big dog" on the way
 
cutting42 said:
Another really enjoyable race with a battle for the lead and some shenanigans. Can't see why you wouldn't like LEC, he is humble and polite with a good attitude in front of the camera and extremely fast in the car - unless your name is Vettel as LEC went back on the agreement to tow VET in the second Q3 run. I believe there was a heated debrief at Ferrari after that; hence Binotto telling LEC after the race in Italian "well done and you are forgiven".

Not to take anything from LEC as his drive was top drawer but huge props to HAM for pushing so hard so close to the back of the Ferrari for pretty much the whole race. He is 60 odd points in the lead of the WCC and was still pushing like hell for the win. The way he was able to keep so close in the slipstream in the braking zones right up until his tyres were cooked was impressive. Shown up even more by where BOT tried the same and didn't really get close to LEC.

Seems like LEC is working his way through the prodigy playbook:

Stunning first season ruining his team mates career in Ferrari feeder team
Hired by Ferrari (who almost never hire rookies)
Establishes speed in first races getting pole at second race
Bides time just behind experienced (no1.) team mate
Regularly out qualifies said experienced teammate
Now regularly out racing teammate causing him to increase errors
Wins first race in difficult circumstances emotionally
Breaks team agreed rules, pissing off team mate and team but forgiven by winning again - in Italy
Oh and lays down a marker to the existing "big dog" on the way
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Verstappen aint going to like this. He was all set to be the next 'big dog' but CLC has the talent AND the car. Can we campaign to get Max in the other Ferrari when Seb retires?
 
Rack Kit said:
Verstappen aint going to like this. He was all set to be the next 'big dog' but CLC has the talent AND the car. Can we campaign to get Max in the other Ferrari when Seb retires?
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Ideally we will have three different cars and three different top drivers. HAM for a few more years but clearly he will decline at some point to be replaced by whoever, take your pick. ALB is a RB man and unless he messes up will stay there, much as I like NOR immensely he is not showing the SAI the door enough in races but I am hopeful he can develop. I have high hopes for RUS but it is too hard to tell in his current car. OCO will have a lot to prove in Renoo next year as RIC is still a beast (as HUL) has found out but it could be the making of him.
 
I seem to remember reading during the break that Ricciardo has a specific release clause in his Renault contract if a Ferrari becomes available.

That would be......interesting.
 
cutting42 said:
Ideally we will have three different cars and three different top drivers. HAM for a few more years but clearly he will decline at some point to be replaced by whoever, take your pick. ALB is a RB man and unless he messes up will stay there, much as I like NOR immensely he is not showing the SAI the door enough in races but I am hopeful he can develop. I have high hopes for RUS but it is too hard to tell in his current car. OCO will have a lot to prove in Renoo next year as RIC is still a beast (as HUL) has found out but it could be the making of him.
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Hopefully Honda can really push on with their engine to give RB a proper chance against the Mercedes. I'd much rather see Max, CLC & Lewis battling it out for the next couple of seasons until the new regs come in. What happens after 2021is anyone's guess but it'll take a couple of seasons after that before it all settles down again.
 
Another thoroughly enjoyable race. Leclerc was fantastic and while some of his moves were on the edge of acceptability I would say that the judgement call from the stewards was right. Lewis's complaints stem from a lack of consistency with the application of the rules and not any deep rooted criticism of Leclerc and it will be interesting to see if the stewards now apply similar levels of leniency in future races. As said above Hamilton's pursuit does not seem like that of a chap cruising to a 6th WC.... at heart he's a true racer and F1 is all the better for it. Finally while I know it's fashionable to criticise Vettel right now I can't help but feel for him... it's 2014 all over again.
 
At what point when you go off at the first corner do you need to go down the escape road and weave around the polystyrene blocks or is that purely a call for the stewards?
When asked whether he thought Vettel had gone over the white line Stefano Domenicali said 'his shadow hadn't so that was ok'.
 
Good race, but I don't really understand how Leclerc can miss a corner and not be required to surrender a position, where Hamilton's corner miss forced him to drop the place to Bottas. I thought that leaving the track due to braking error required the driver to surrender the position ?

In any case still a good race and will not have an effect on the overall championship. Sad to see Vettel imploding, and Verstappen out so early.
 
sean99 said:
Good race, but I don't really understand how Leclerc can miss a corner (turn 1) and not be required to surrender a position, where Hamilton's corner miss (on the same corner I think) forced him to drop the place to Bottas. I thought that leaving the track due to braking error required the driver to surrender the position ?
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Yes, same corner. LEC was doing everything to defend and clearly carried an advantage by rejoining the track still in the lead - However HAM was not "right" behind at that point so a little debatable if the time lost should have allowed HAM past which is why I believe the stewards did not issue a penalty.

When HAM locked up (not that badly actually) I believe he "could" have made the corner just about but made the decision to take the chicane to allow BOT to have a go. He knew his tyres were done and there was a chance for BOT to use his newer tyres for the win.
 
Mark Hughes does know a good story when he hears one. How about this?

Seb is three points away from a one-race ban: despite not being a nominated reserve, Fernando Alonso has been bending Binotto's ear for some time about returning to the Scuderia. What if......?
Then again, Nico has offered to help out if they're short of a driver. But that was a joke. I think.

All good copy when the silly season is fading away.
 
Tony Lockhart said:
And of course Kubica is leaving Williams at the end of the season. Just makes me sad.
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Yes, me too. I so wanted it to work out but like Herbert after his accident Robert has just not been the same driver. I wish him all the best in whatever he tries to do next. To even get back on the grid at all a is a massive achievement and he should be commended for his tenacity and courage.
 
Really surprised Hass are keeping Gosjean , he has made so many errors in recent times , he should be driving for free considering the amount of damage he has caused !
I think Hass think their car will be poor again next year or Hulk is going to want a lot more than Gros to drive it
 
Eyebroughty said:
Did not expect this.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/formula1/49752610
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Shame that - must be a better up & coming driver a available somewhere?
Tony Lockhart said:
And of course Kubica is leaving Williams at the end of the season. Just makes me sad.
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I'm just pleased for him that he did mange to get back in an F1 car. Just the aim of doing that will have helped him to recover to a level he might not have done with that as a target. He gets maximum respect from me for racing against the best drivers going literally one handed.

To be honest I'm surprised that the C4 crew haven't done a piece on him (unless they have and I've missed it). Would've been nice to hear from him. He was one of my favourite drivers at the time before his accident but still have big respect for what he's achieved to get back in an F1 car.
 
Tony Lockhart said:
Charlie Clark really is something special.

And my heart is going to be thumping as those start lights illuminate tomorrow!
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...and a certain S. Vettel, Esq. cannot be but just a little worried. Given that he's third on the grid, is he liable to do something crazy to reassert the "natural" order of things?
 
And so the stupid talk about reverse grids has reared its ugly head again.

“Ok, rookie driver, you’re on pole, but please spend the first ten laps of this stupid ‘Saturday Mini-Race’ looking in your unusable mirrors because the rest of the field is way faster than you and they’d rather not crash their £$m cars overtaking you.“
 
I think the time is ripe for someone to come up with a high-speed F1-car response/lifting vehicle.
Losing so many racing laps due to a car (sat on its wheels, not smashed up, not on fire) just looks so amateur.
 
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