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A little over fifty years ago Bruce McLaren lined up on the grid for the 1966 Monaco Grand Prix in his McLaren MB2, it…
Recent headlines have been dominant towards Sergey Sirotkin and his teammate Lance Stroll being hired as pay-drivers, creating skepticism regarding the ability of such…
Former Grand Prix winner Dan Gurney passed away on January 14, in California, aged 86. Dan would strap on his helmet, hop into whatever…
Liberty Media begin their second year as Formula One's owners with a massive challenge ahead of them. They have invested $8 billion and upon…
I cannot see how Alonso is going to make any difference as to how his chosen team – Alpine – is going to perform in 2021. Alonso last stood on the podium in 2014 and the last time he won a race was in 2013. Alonso has always had the ability to talk himself out of great teams but, the French outfit probably has no options. Alonso has to remember there are some fantastic young drivers on the grid nowadays and his inclusion may just show how desperate Alpine are!!
What can we expect for Alonso's F1 return?
Good read Michael. as it simply sums up F1’s dilemma. Shall we go fast and continue with the boring racing or shall we put the excitement factor back in? In a way an F1 car has turned a full circuit. Once upon a time speed was sought after vigorously. Remember the talented engineers and mechanics inventing way to squeeze more speed from their cars. 1968 saw wings added to the cars and then the fight was on to aerodynamically design and build a car that stuck to the track. And that they succeeded. Now F1 cars can attain any speed they like, I recall David Coulthard testing a variable speed (automatic) McLaren F1 car. He never reached top speed and it was deemed too dangerous to race. And it is said you can drive an F1 car on the ceiling of a tunnel. So the answer is simple, revisit the 1980’s. Now that would soon give you a champion driver, and I say that with respect to all F1 drivers current and past. Visions of Mansell or Senna alighting from their race cars totally spent proved the cars were fast and difficult to drive, therefore victories, or finishing a race reflected a true race driver. Who could forget that battle at Monaco in 1992, and back then Monaco was effectively driven one handed given the tight confines and the cars having a manual gearbox, between Senna and Mansell. The great Murray Walker rated this GP in his top five of all time. A simple race at a great circuit yet it was what was once a typical F1 race.
Why speed isn't everything in Formula One
Max’s latest crash, again self inflicted , could not have come at a better time or better place. There is no question to how he sits currently in the F1 world and watching the body language displayed when he returned to the pits it was evident he knew what he had done. Then to come from last on the grid to ninth, at Monaco with teams only stopping once, is a solid effort by anyone. He probably enjoyed it. If he remains, and I think he will, as composed as he was on the weekend we will see a different Max. He knew he was on thin ice and only a big effort would suffice. Bayden you are correct on your scenarios but after recently signing a lucrative contract with the team he would prove an expensive loan driver.
Judgement day approaching for Max Verstappen
I agree with Frozen North, RG is a waste of time, he is not alone neither. All the formula does at the moment is attract teams to enter, never been short of new teams. It’s the drivers who need to be changed. If you read headlines you’d think Alonso is the only driver in F1 and he is being treated as a hero for his versatile role. I dare anyone to read Jim Clark’s diary of 1965!!!!
Grosjean's Haas, F1 future at a crossroads
As an Aussie fan it would be nice to see Dan in a Ferrari, but somehow I don’t think so. Ferrari, as we know, have always selected their second driver to simply be that. Vettel will stay as you probably wouldn’t find a better mentor and Ferrari will select their next #1 from lower in the field. As much as I don’t like to mention it but Dan is in the twilight of his F1 career although still being in his prime. There is no doubt the F1 grid is getting younger and with the anticipated changes coming from Liberty these could be decisive factors in how teams select drivers in the future.
It's time for Raikkonen to fire in Bahrain
Motor racing or Motorsport, that’s the big question. Ever since the first automobile race the notion was ‘win on Sunday sell on Monday’. If we perceive F1 as motor racing then the formula is working very well for Mercedes, and Ferrari. Hopefully Liberty will choose motorsport. We, they, must put the sport back into motorsport and give us more to be excited about. Something worth going to or watching on the tele. F1 has never had a problem with slapping its fan base in the face, Indy 2005 as an example. I don’t think F1 can be sustainable in its current form as it continues to treat fans with disrespect. The Blueprint has to be to encourage more racing and Liberty, as they have shown, don’t really care who elects to go elsewhere. And if we put any credence in what we have been hearing from Liberty then I feel we are in for a treat come 2021. I am looking forward to Bahrain for the very reason of the unveiling.
What should F1's racing blueprint be beyond 2021?
As always race results will determine who goes, if anyone goes, and who stays. Reliance on their respective cars performance to display any title aspirations will be the crucial factor for all drivers. If Dan is going then RBR will have already made that decision. If that does happen question is where, will he become the first Australian to drive for Ferrari, or will he partner Lewis. It is very early to be worrying about this and I am sure it won’t influence how any driver approaches their racing. Any driver worth having in a car will ultimately end up in a team that has a chance of winning the title, but lets not forget this or any move may very well coincide with a performance drop in a team.
It's Daniel Ricciardo's time
Qualifying on Saturday afternoon is when the gloves are off. We will get to see who is where. I’m desperately hoping we are going to see other challengers taking it to the top teams, testing really doesn’t tell much, at least not always. Yet there is much talk of the improvement of many of the mid grid teams and confidence levels increasing that we just might see some other contenders stepping up for podiums. Torro Rosso for me are the biggest dark horse, their driver signing and association with Honda have been quite clever. We have a two time WEC Champion in one of the STR13’s with little pressure on his expectations and Honda, a proven engine supplier, will not have wasted their time with McLaren, really Mercedes are the only team that has mastered the Hybrid era. By all accounts it is a very relaxed relationship between Torro Rosso and Honda which is providing good signs. The status quo will remain but they will be chased by a more ambitious group of mid grid teams hopefully giving decent racing.
Five key questions for Formula One in 2018
Agreed, its a shame we have to endure teams making a full blown effort towards the end of the season all for nothing, why not from the start of the season, on the edge. I wish for something like 2009, this time with a couple of teams rocking the establishment and it is a season of racing, lets not have circuits suiting respective cars and race predictability, lets have the drivers facing off no matter where. Some freshness is needed. I’ve not sat on the edge of my seat or held my breath watching F1 for a long tome.
A new season dawns: 2018 F1 championship predictions
It will no doubt be a status quo start to the season. Fortunately it begins in Australia which has a great circuit and not at some boring track in the Middle East. We haven’t seen anything happen in the off season that has sparked an interest in any one team or driver. But, during the latter part of season 2017 we seen something happen which could add great interest to the season. Torro Rosso signed Pierre Gasly and Brendon Hartley, two of the most credentialed drivers to enter F1 for a while, and they changed over to Honda engines. Torro Rosso have in years gone by, since their purchase from Minardi by Red Bull, ticked over doing exactly what the team was bought for to act as a junior team to Red Bull Racing. Now with anticipated budget cuts Torro Rosso are aiming to stand alone and have selected drivers and an engine to take them into the new era of F1 in few years. Torro Rosso will be the standout this season and will challenge for victories. The rest you have stated Michael is pretty spot on. Maybe some of the older drivers should take gardening leave as there seems to be some talented young drivers waiting in the wings, that would spice up the racing.
A new season dawns: 2018 F1 championship predictions
Its sometimes more effective to listen to the comments rather than read the stats from pre-season testing. Renault aren’t expecting much from any of their engines this season. I feel Torro Rosso is in the box seat with their driver line up and their coupling with Honda. Honda moving to Torro Rosso may have answered Renault and the FIA’s demand as to which engine supplier Red Bull will be aligned with for 2019, Max and Dan will drag Red Bull up the grid for another season but I don’t think they will trouble Mercedes and Ferrari, if anything Red Bull should be wary of little brother.
No Bull from Red Bull Racing in 2018
Yes, nice to see the cars on track for 2018. We all will be watching with interest up until the grid forms in Melbourne. And that is when we will know if there are to be changes to who steps on the podium this season. I do hope there are challenges from lower on the grid this season. Too early to get excited, I did think though that the wheels had fallen off McLaren’s 2018 assault very early. Toro Rosso still for me will be the stand out, we have to go back to 2009 when we seen any dramatic testing which set the tone for that season.
F1 preseason testing is all about optimism
I couldn’t agree more. But I can see why Renault is farming out their engines. They no doubt want to see if McLaren or Red Bull can assist them in building a competitive unit. If, and it is a big if, Renault don’t get it right then Toro Rosso with their Honda units will already have three teams struggling behind them. If anything any failure from Renault will allow some serious racing in the mid pack.
Why F1 2018 will be more than just Mercedes vs Ferrari
Haha so it was ‘Sergio Marchionne’ rookie mistake, I like you were pedantic its what is needed in this case.
I don’t think the halo will have any difference, if it did, good or bad it would have been found out during the test runs last seasons.
Yes true on Max, he will still show that he is on his way to the top, gutsy driver
You are correct about Honda, never count them out, they were happy to leave McLaren where they had all the pressure, now with Toro Rosso, where there will be less pressure and with Pierre Gasly and Brendon Hartley waiting to prove themselves
Williams need something to happen quickly, but I can’t see anything on the horizon
Big year for Danny and Perez, they both need to do well as under preforming will raise questions where to now.
A feisty year I believe with the young ones
Testing times ahead for F1's new owners
A fair assumption there Lachlan. As usual we would be silly to take anything from the testing and off season. Apart from Mercedes Ferrari has the only other driver pairing that will be competitive this season. Yes, Redbull are always thereabouts yet Max needs a team mate to hang around for a while to gather continuity in the teams development. It will be a ‘Status Quo’ for the rest as big changes coming for 2022 with some teams electing to use 2021 as a transition season, Haas has already acknowledged they are to sacrifice 2021 to concentrate on 2022. I too think McLaren will be the big surprise this season.
My 2021 F1 season preview