Starting a new thread for the 2024 season.
All of the drivers are confirmed for next season and they are exactly the same as this season after Logan Sargeant was confirmed at Williams. Not sure if there has never been any rookies at the start of a season.
Now just waiting for the new names of the second Red Bull team (rumored to be Racing Bulls as the logo was leaked on Reddit) and what the Sauber team will be called after the Alfa Romeo naming agreement came to an end.
I thought Sauber signed Hugo Boss as the title sponsor? :017:
So many talented drivers waiting for their shot in F1, that's why we need more teams - they need to let Andretti and one other into the sandbox - 4 new drivers right there.....
https://youtu.be/5z_qf4WBUIA
Quote from: Scargo on February 01, 2024, 01:50:27 PMhttps://youtu.be/5z_qf4WBUIA
It's such a special team that is at the very core of F1. I can't see how any driver wouldn't want to join them.
Especially when they give you $100 million a year!
I'm convinced that's why he left - the $$$$$. MBZ wouldn't give him what he wanted, that's why talks went on so long.......so they forced him to play his trump card.
But now that he's made his move all sorts of other dominoes are ready to fall, the silly season for '25 will be crazy. Most people think Sainz will go straight to Sauber/Audi but several other contracts are up at the end of 24 too. Rumor has it that Red Bull has already signed Albon to a 3 year deal, if that one is true then what happens to Ricky Racer? He was supposed to have his breakout year this year with Stake/Kicks/Toro Rosso/Racing Bulls and then move to the varsity team in 25.....now what? Ocon is free the end of 24 too, and since he was "on loan" from Mercedes to start with, will he end up at Benz with George? Gonna be wild next year.....
One article said that Merc offered Hamilton 1 year with a 1 year option and no other stuff he wanted. He wanted a multi year deal with an ambassador add on (I assume that just means more money). So he entertained the approach with Ferrari and they offered him everything he wanted and some more.
Williams team principal confirmed that Albon is contracted to them for 2025 - wonder if they exercised an option recently so they can be bought out. Maybe the Red Bull deal will help the Williams finances.
Toto has said that George is ready to lead the Merc team - so they are not looking for a lead driver. That could limit who wants to be number 2 to him, contract may say different things. Would not be surprised if George is renegotiating his contract as he gets paid a lot less than others, but his bonus scheme is much greater.
There are a lot of drivers available next year:
Sainz - rumored to have signed a letter of intent with Audi for 2026, unsure how that will impact his options for next year. Didn't his dad drive for Audi in the Dakar?
Gasly - I suspect he will get extended with Alpine
Ocon - As Dave pointed out, was a Merc Jnr driver. Not sure if that ended with the works drive with Alpine/Renault, but he is managed by Toto Wolff. Personally I do not rate him. Will probably get extended by Alpine.
Alonso - Could be a great partner for Merc and would keep the link of having an F1 champion in the team. Could be a drive at the twilight of his career whilst Merc get their preferred junior ready.
Stroll - cannot see him being anywhere else but Aston Martin.
Ricciardo - I believe he will replace Checo has a dependable number 2. If he had not broken his hand, might already have been in the Red Bull.
Tsunoda - He is a Honda supported driver, could end up at Aston Martin as they will have a Honda works deal in 2026.
Checo - Considering how dominant Verstappen was, he under performed last year scrambling to make it into 2nd place by the end of season. He should have had that sown up much earlier than he did. He could be an option as Merc number 2.
Bottas - He could end up back at Merc, Toto likes him and did say that not having him in the team was just unfortunate as George was ready to take the seat next to Hamilton.
The rest of the drivers will probably either move on from F1 or stay in the seat they already occupy.
In answer to your above question about Sainz Sr., he never drove for Audi in WRC competition or in the Dakar.
Quote from: Scargo on February 06, 2024, 05:04:35 PMIn answer to your above question about Sainz Sr., he never drove for Audi in WRC competition or in the Dakar.
I read this last night, he won this years Dakar with Audi
https://www.audi.com/en/sport/motorsport/dakar/dakar-rally-2024-event.html (https://www.audi.com/en/sport/motorsport/dakar/dakar-rally-2024-event.html)
I stand corrected, thanks for that!
The ole man's still got it.
With all of the teams launching their 2024 cars (well at least the liveries) and official testing due to start next week. The F1 season is almost here!
One unique thing for this year, there will be no rookies on the grid.
I have absolutely no idea how this season is going, but a few observations on the teams:
Red Bull - Adrian Newey said that this is another evolution of their car, so may give hope to the other teams that they can close the gap. Potential for some off track drama with Christian Horner being investigated for inappropriate behavior, but given Helmut Marko's racist comments resulting in nothing more than a slap on the wrist I am cynical about whether anything meaningful will come out of this.
Mercedes - Meant to be an all new car and they have abandoned all previous design ideas and are fully going in on the Red Bull "downwash" approach that every other team has done. Hamilton is leaving at the end of the year, so they will be focusing developments on Russell.
Ferrari - Already secured the biggest shock of the year by signing Hamilton. Rumor is that Adrian Newey could be heading that way. This year they need more consistent car and team strategy performance.
Alpine - Have to be hoping for a climb up the grid, but they were inconsistent last year. They lost a lot of good people last year, so it remains to be seen if they will make progress.
Aston Martin - Started so well last year, but then struggled in the second half of the year. Alonso is still a master, but he needs support of the team and a teammate.
Williams - Had a great season last year with Vowles has the new TP. They are investing heavily and Albon really could wring better results out of the car than it deserved. Be great to see them make another step forwards - maybe a podium this season. I think Albon could be the key to the silly season - I will be surprised if he is still in a Williams next year.
Sauber - Alfa Romeo sponsorship was not renewed, so they are back to Sauber. This is a transition 2 years for them, before they become Audi. I just don't think they will have made the steps forward they need.
McLaren - I am a big fan, and really hope they have made a step forward to compete for podiums all season. Zak Brown has cleverly (or lucky) managed to secure both of drivers before the silly season really starts.
RBVisaCashApp AKA AlphaTauri AKA Torro Rosso - in the off season they have moved some of the team to the UK to be closer to Red Bull Racing. And I are taking the maximum number of components from Red Bull. There is a lot of talk that they have made a step forward etc etc.
Haas - they fired their biggest asset (Gunter) and have made the technical director the TP. I cannot see them being anywhere but at the back, as the reports after Gunter was fired, said that Haas was not investing in technology to help them move forwards. They take as many components from Ferrari as they are allowed, so they should have a decent foundation to build a car.
I am really hoping for a more competitive season with teams (I honestly do not care who) challenging Red Bull. Or at the very least Checo challenging Max to make it more interesting!
I'm glad football is done so we can get back to racing!
I think this could be a good season with some possible winners other than Red Bull....but then I say that every year! :grin:
Craig, thanks for your take on this. I tend to completely ignore F1 during the off-season and then always have to get myself up to speed before the new season starts. Your insight is helpful. Thanks.
Quote from: MiniDave on February 13, 2024, 03:30:20 PMI'm glad football is done so we can get back to racing!
At least the Chiefs won!
Yes they did! They're expecting a million people downtown at the parade today. Don was thinking of riding his bicycle down just to see the craziness......me, I'll watch it on TV, TYVM.
Everything I've read recently looks like every car on the grid will be running body work similar to Red Bull, which is fine but to me F1 more and more resembles a spec series. What happened to crazy wings and noses, 4,6, 8, 10, 12 cylinder engines, with and without turbos?
I love that the innovations have made the cars so reliable and fast, but you can't see or hear any of it......might as well be electric cars......oh wait, they have those too! :rolleyes:
Testing has finished and unsurprisingly it looks like Red Bull are fastest, but the gap appears to have closed a little bit. Some debate based from Reddit on who is following, but Ferrari, Merc and McLaren look like they are all in the mix. Some analysis I read, suggested that Ferrari may have better race pace than Red Bull, but we will see this weekend.
At the other end of the field, Haas look slow, but so do Alpine and Sauber.
Red Bull's investigation of Christian Horner is taking longer than some of their partners (Ford being the most vocal) would like. Should be concluded before the season opener this weekend.
And just so you do not miss the race live, the first two races of the season are taking place on Saturday. You can ready why here (https://us.motorsport.com/f1/news/f1-2024-why-bahrain-saudi-gp-on-saturday/10574517/)
Some say if they were going to can him they would have done so long before now.
No matter which way the decision comes down there will be an uproar - this is a typical no-win situation.
I think it's going to be in his favor, and I wonder if Ford has had any influence in the final say so?
Quote from: MiniDave on February 27, 2024, 11:22:17 AMSome say if they were going to can him they would have done so long before now.
No matter which way the decision comes down there will be an uproar - this is a typical no-win situation.
I think it's going to be in his favor, and I wonder if Ford has had any influence in the final say so?
With the reports saying he is travelling to the first GP of the year, it feels that he will not be getting fired. Ford is a major partner now, so I assume they will have some influence. If they are not satisfied they could probably pull their support.
Yeah, I'm betting on a fine of some sort and a reprimand at best......he'll be on the pit wall for tomorrow's practice....I'm looking forward to seeing whether anyone has anything for Max this year......
And allegations against Horner have been dismissed.
Be interesting to see if any details from the investigation are "leaked" in the next few days.
Well, he said he hadn't done anything wrong.....I guess we'll just have to believe him. So, on with the business at hand
They say the Red Bull looks smooth, composed over the bumps as well as fast in both slow and medium corners, it's also easy to drive on the limit.....all things that make a car a race winner in the right hands.....
In the hands of Max, Checo is struggling.
So, whadya think" Did Red Bull only have the engine turned up to 7 or 8? I guess we'll know tomorrow, but it does look like Mercedes is planning to tak e it to them this season - could be interesting!
One thing they speculated was that the Merc drops off in race pace and the Red bull just gets faster.
We'll know more tomorrow in qually when they turn them up to 11!
Well, that answers that!
Max pulls it out again, Charles was a tick faster in Q2 than Max's pole lap in Q3, so it's clear the Ferrari has got the pace, whether they can keep it up is the question.
Hamster says his P9 qually was due to setting his car up for the race, so will George fall back from P3 and Hamster move forward?
The Hulk has been out-driving Kmag ever since he joined the team, 10th today was major for him! But, will he be able to run there or simply drop thru the order like last season?
The Alpines look dismal, the rest of the bottom of the order are pretty much as expected. The Stake/Sauber cars are the easiest to see on the track with the day glo green livery!
Should be a fun race tomorrow!
Well, the more things change the more they stay the same.......Max walks away from the crowd, Checo follows thru tho by the end he was 22 sec back of Max. Carlos Sainz made some great passes and finished only a couple of seconds behind Checo, Charles had brake problems all race long and did well to come home 4th. As usual these days, the real race to watch was from 2nd on back!
The Mercs had overheating issues, the big Macs pretty much held station and finished in the points too.
The rest don't really matter.....
So
Max
Checo
Carlos
Charles
George
Lando
Lewis
Oscar
Alonso
Stroll
Stroll actually had a tough race and did well to finish in the points after he got punted by the Hulk in the first lap and came back from dead last.
So the first race is in the books, next up Jedda - in a week......and also on Saturday.
Alpine gets some more bad news......
https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/motorsports/f1-news-alpine-horror-as-technical-director-steps-down-alongside-head-of-aerodynamics/ar-BB1jdCbJ?ocid=msedgntp&pc=HCTS&cvid=33e449f30f36412fad0569ec9485e1ef&ei=18 (https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/motorsports/f1-news-alpine-horror-as-technical-director-steps-down-alongside-head-of-aerodynamics/ar-BB1jdCbJ?ocid=msedgntp&pc=HCTS&cvid=33e449f30f36412fad0569ec9485e1ef&ei=18)
Definitely not a "classic"!
It was good to see that the gap to Red Bull has been closed in qualifying, but Max just has phenomenal race pace. He was obviously managing the pace through the race as his fastest lap was 1.4 seconds faster than anyone else.
The other off track story was the drama around Christian Horner, with evidence against him sent to lot of F1 Paddock Pass holders and rumors that Jos Verstappen (Max's dad) was having direct meeting with Toto about the free Mercedes seat.
Quote from: MiniDave on March 02, 2024, 09:21:16 PMAlpine gets some more bad news......
https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/motorsports/f1-news-alpine-horror-as-technical-director-steps-down-alongside-head-of-aerodynamics/ar-BB1jdCbJ?ocid=msedgntp&pc=HCTS&cvid=33e449f30f36412fad0569ec9485e1ef&ei=18 (https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/motorsports/f1-news-alpine-horror-as-technical-director-steps-down-alongside-head-of-aerodynamics/ar-BB1jdCbJ?ocid=msedgntp&pc=HCTS&cvid=33e449f30f36412fad0569ec9485e1ef&ei=18)
Looks like this was coming for a while as the announced a new structure and had people already in role for the announcement. The new team principal is looking for people to blame. In my opinion he did not come across well in the latest season of Drive to Survive as he undermined Otmar Szafnauer.
Otmar's comments after the race were to the point (https://www.planetf1.com/news/otmar-szafnauer-blames-alpine-decisions-bahrain-gp)!
I don't know if having Max go to Mercedes is a great idea, it's clear that their car is improving, but Red Bull clearly has designed their car around him.....would he be able to just get in and go to the front the way he does now?
And......I think he supports Christian.
This summer/fall will see the greatest "silly season" in recent memory! Lots of musical chairs, it will be fun to see who's where when the music stops.
Jos Verstappen has said that Horner should leave and him staying is tearing the team apart.
The rumor is that if Horner leaves it could trigger a release clause in a lot of other contracts - the main one being Adrian Newey.
Agree it will be a brilliant silly season - I think there are a couple of drivers that hold the key positions - Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon.
Jos is the one who needs to vacate the scene. In my opinion, he's probably been knock'n the hair off Horner's sexting pal, so Jos is wanting him out of the scene an off the team in order to clear the way from himself. Max has been at a point in his stellar career where he no longer needs daddy to be wiping his nose and changing his diapers. Jos needs to get out of the way so Max can get a real manager.
Enuf of the Peyton Place crap, let's get back to the rac'n.
PS: The other daddy I do not care for is Lawrence (money-bags) Stroll.
end of rant
I think you're right about both those guys, but at least Daddy Bigbucks is putting his money where his mouth is, investing billions in Aston Martin, as well as keeping his son employed.
I read there were emails and texts released but I haven't seen them - a couple of guys have and told the gist of what was in them, but I think they have since been taken back off the net. At least I can't find them anywhere......
And I agree, time to hit the track and stop with the BS. I understand this track favors the McLarens so I'm looking forward to seeing what they can do.
There is definitely more drama off track at the beginning of the season than I remember!
Jos Verstappen thinks he has more influence than he really does.
Lawrence Stroll needs to fire his son to be taken seriously. Having said that Lance had a great recovery drive after he last at the end of the first lap in Bahrain and finished 10th one place behind Alonso.
I also like that F1 has added the F1 Academy to the support races in Saudi Arabia. Women in Saudi Arabia have only had the right to drive since 2018 and is well know for repressing women.
Very interesting perspective in this article, written by a female journalist who covers bicycle racing (Tour De France sort of stuff) and how she viewed the incredible display of wealth involved in F1 at last year's Austiin race. It was a bit preachy but I thought she had a point......
https://web.archive.org/web/20240301170542/https://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/a46975496/behind-f1-velvet-curtain/
And the Horner scandal rumbles on. Today there has been stories in the media that Red Bull has suspended the complainant against Horner, who has been widely reported to be one of his PAs. There was also the release of a bunch of text messages that are meant to be from Horner to this person.
The reason this is big is that in the UK it is being reported on the front page of mainstream media. It has moved from a sport based drama to a full on mainstream.
The UK has some strict employment laws about retaliation against employees that raise good faith concerns. So this could run and run.
Carlos Sainz will not be taking part in the Saudi GP this weekend as he has appendicitis. He is being replaced by Oliver Bearman who is an 18 year old Briton who is part of the Ferrari Academy and was named as the Ferrari reserve driver this weekend.
It's always sumthin at Ferrari, isn't it? I thought Swartzman was their backup driver? Talk about being thrown right into the fire - no practice, straight to quallifying!
And speaking of Qually.....Alonso on top in Practice 2? Who expected that? Or the Al pee-ings up from dead last like last week? Qually in about 30 minutes.....
Ooops....my bad.....Olly did get to practice in P3
So, qually went pretty much as expected with Max easily on pole, Charles chasing him but still a half second back (which is a lot these days in F1), Pez third, Alonso 4th and feeling pretty good about his chances for a podium tomorrow.
Bearman did pretty well for his first time in an F1 car in anger, finishing 11th and only 7/100s of a second behind Stroll in 10th in Q2, well above 9 other drivers who aren't rookies!
I think this could be a fun race - certainly for 2nd on back, and if Max gets away well that's where the race will be. I hope The Bear man doesn't take anyone out in the first corner and has a good, even if unspectacular, first F1 race. If he can finish in the top 10 that will really cement Ferrari's faith in him as a future prospect. I don't know how quickly Sainz can come back from his appendectomy, and whether he'll miss any more races or not.
I don't know what to think about DannyRickyBobby......Tsunoda (9th to DRB's 14th) has been out-qualifying and out-racing him. I think with every race his chances of moving back up to the varsity team grow dimmer.
Alpeeen fell back into their new normal, the only folks they beat were the Sarge and a guy who DNF'd before he even got to qually. Well, that's not fair to the team, they did get him on track and only missed getting to try in Q1 by seconds.
In Q2 only .4 sec between Max in 1st and 10th place, in Q3 there was a whole second.......
Quote from: MiniDave on March 08, 2024, 09:24:00 AMIt's always sumthin at Ferrari, isn't it? I thought Swartzman was their backup driver?
They have 3 named reserve drivers for the season Antonio Giovinazzi, Schwartzman and Bearman. Just depends which one of them is nominated/present at the track that weekend. Bearman was the nominated reserve driver this weekend, he was already present for the F2 race (which he qualified on pole position for and had to withdraw as there is a regulation that prevents drivers competing in both on the same weekend).
Well, once again Max makes it look easy, and Perez did his part too to come home second, 8 sec behind Max. Charles came 3rd and well done to him.
It was interesting to see Carlos in the pits watching the race after having his appendix out the night before!
Lots of interesting tactics in the rest of the pack including Kmag holding the pack back so that the Hulk could take 10th.
And the real story - Ollie Bearman taking 7th in his debut for Ferrari. It was a bit of a nail biter with both Norris and Hamster chasing him down hard on the last 10 laps, but he held them off!
Alonso did a masterful job holding off Russel too.
All in all a fun race to watch, if not for the winner. Charles also got fastest lap on the last lap of the race, so well done to him too!
Stroll had his usual race, clipping the wall, breaking his front end and driving straight into the wall.The safety car he caused made a number of teams go for different tire strategies, Hamster was not happy with the choice they made for him, but given the fact that he's leaving the team at the end of the season, they're going to maximize George's chances at his expense.
Australia:
Well, after Max took pole again I expected more of the same, but it was not to be. 2 of the "names" out with mechanical issues early in the race left it all to play for.
Carlos was uncertain for this race due to having his appendix out two weeks ago, but he suited up and ran strong all weekend. He even beat Charles in Q3.
Checo got a penalty for impeding and started in 6th instead of 3rd.
The McLarens looked strong all weekend, and at times the Mercedes looked pretty good too.
I won't spoil the finish, but it was nice to hear a different anthem being played on the podium!
Follow up: the stewards decided that Russel's crash on the last lap was due to Alonso braking and slowing down erratically, so he got a 20 sec penalty, which moved him back two places on the final grid, promoting his teammate and Tsunoda forward.
HAAS has now scored 4 points, finishing this race in 9th and 10th, and are NOT in last place!
Alpine had another miserable qually, Albon took Sargeant's car for the race and Liam Lawson may find himself on the grid yet if Ricciardo can't improve quickly.
Sauber and Alpine just seem lost, RB V-card seem like they can fight for points at least, with Yuki finishing 7th and DannyRickyBobby down in 12th
Riccardo is not having a good time. Perhaps it was not the McLaren after all.
William's giving Albon Sargent's car was a bit of a gut punch for him. I am still surprised that he got a second year. There gamble did not work out though as Albon did not score points.
It was interesting that Checo said he thought the two Ferraris would have finished ahead of him and Max both in this race even if Max's brakes hadn't locked up on him.
Encouraging to see that at least on some tracks other cars are competitive with the Red Bulls, and like I said - it was nice to hear some new anthems played at the podium ceremony. Fun to hear the Italians singing theirs with real gusto too!
Fred Vasseur is getting a lot of credit for the improvement this season, and that may be justified, but then I wonder why he couldn't do any better at Alfa when he was running them?
Max thinks they'll be back in front at Suzuka, but then so does Sainz - we'll see. By then he should be fully healed up at least. Norris joked that he was going to have his appendix out for the next race, to make him "lighter" :grin:
Liberty Media (the owners of Formula 1) have bought MotoGP. I wonder if this will finally result in a joint F1 and MotoGP weekend, it has been talked about on and off for years.
That would seem to me to dilute the market for both series.....
Rumor has it that Horner has formed a coalition with the Thais who own 51% of Red Bull to oust all of the Austrian members from F1 - so not only Marko but also young Mateshitzloadofmoney too. This will put him over both Red Bull and the RB junior F1 teams as well as RB powertrain.
I wonder how Honda is going to do in 2026 after "selling" all of their F1 engine/power unit guys to Red Bull in 2023, when Red Bull hired them all to continue their efforts for the Red Bull team only?
2025 will be a fascinating year if even a small percentage of the driver changes that have been prognosticated come to be!
Sounds like your F1 "silly season" is starting early and covering more topics.
Quote from: MiniDave on April 01, 2024, 12:26:33 PMRumor has it that Horner has formed a coalition with the Thais who own 51% of Red Bull to oust all of the Austrian members from F1 - so not only Marko but also young Mateshitzloadofmoney too. This will put him over both Red Bull and the RB junior F1 teams as well as RB powertrain.
The interesting outcome of that is that Max said that if Marko leaves Red Bull, so will he.
Yeah, I'm not buying that......
One thing that I predicted may be coming true - Alpine is taking offers for its F1 team, and the #1 buyer - Andretti. I've said all along that that's the simplest, quickest, easiest way for them to get on the grid, especially since they were planning to use Renault motors.....although Alpine say they're not for sale, the rumors just keep getting stronger that that's exactly what they are.
We'll see what happens.
Another thing that happened today......Alonso resigned with Aston. I wonder what they're going to do with the underperforming Stroll the younger? I read one suggestion that they hire Yuki to pair with Fred, since they're going to be the defacto Honda team next year, and Yuki is sponsored by Honda - seems like a good match all around.
The only issue for the Andretti buying Alpine, is the deal they have with GM (Cadillac) for engines in the future. The motorsport.com article said that any sale of the "Enstone" team would include a commitment to use Renault engines for a minimum period of time.
Alonso resigning settles one of the seats for next year. I agree that they need to start looking for an alternative for the 2nd seat at Aston. Whilst I could see Yuki going as part of the Honda deal, he looks like he is in the prime spot to take over for the 2nd Red Bull seat. Pretty sure he would prefer to be the second driver at Red Bull than at Aston.
In other Red Bull driver news, Danny Ric's seat is under pressure. Rumor on Reddit is he has been given a timeline to get on par with Yuki, otherwise they are going to replace him with Liam Lawson.
And final Reddit rumor, that Carlos Sainz has signed with Mercedes. The same publication that broke the Hamilton to Ferrari story is saying that it is a done deal and they are working out the best time to announce.
I wouldn't be surprised to see Carlos sign with Mercedes now that Alonso has re-signed with Aston - it's really the only top-ish team he can go to right away, but I also wouldn't be surprised to find it's a short term contract, with their Kimi Antonelli waiting in the wings and Wolff wanting to get him behind the wheel of an F1 car ASAP.
Carlos in a 2 year contract, Kimi goes to Williams and replaces Carlos at Mercedes in 26 as he goes to Audi?
I don't think anyone wants to go to Alpine, so those two guys are pretty much stuck if they want to stay on the grid. I had Yuki going to replace Baby Stroller, but I'm just not sure Daddy Bigbux would let that happen, no matter how poorly he does. Made sense to put Yuki in a more high profile Honda team, and I believe Aston (at least in Alonso's hands) will continue to improve - it may wind up dragging Stroll Jr. up the order too, who knows?
I think Perez will get another 1 year contract at Red Bull as long as he drives as well as he has been this year.....so I doubt either Yuki or DannyRickyBobby will be going there next year. So where does that leave both of those guys? Right where they are, except if Danny doesn't really get going, Liam will be replacing him for sure. Danny could be "retired" again.....and this time it will be permanent.
Quote from: MiniDave on April 12, 2024, 12:27:04 PMI wouldn't be surprised to see Carlos sign with Mercedes now that Alonso has re-signed with Aston - it's really the only top-ish team he can go to right away, but I also wouldn't be surprised to find it's a short term contract, with their Kimi Antonelli waiting in the wings and Wolff wanting to get him behind the wheel of an F1 car ASAP.
Carlos in a 2 year contract, Kimi goes to Williams and replaces Carlos at Mercedes in 26 as he goes to Audi?
I don't think anyone wants to go to Alpine, so those two guys are pretty much stuck if they want to stay on the grid. I had Yuki going to replace Baby Stroller, but I'm just not sure Daddy Bigbux would let that happen, no matter how poorly he does. Made sense to put Yuki in a more high profile Honda team, and I believe Aston (at least in Alonso's hands) will continue to improve - it may wind up dragging Stroll Jr. up the order too, who knows?
I think Perez will get another 1 year contract at Red Bull as long as he drives as well as he has been this year.....so I doubt either Yuki or DannyRickyBobby will be going there next year. So where does that leave both of those guys? Right where they are, except if Danny doesn't really get going, Liam will be replacing him for sure. Danny could be "retired" again.....and this time it will be permanent.
Agree with everything you said. There are still 12 seats available, so a lot of dancing until the music stops.
So, did Max wrap up the 2024 Championships in China - 5th race of the year?
He finished 16 sec ahead of the field, he's only 15 pts ahead of his teammate but Red Bull is 45 pts ahead of Ferrari in P2....but at the rate their going can Ferrari catch them?
I don't think so unless something dramatic happens.....and I can't imagine what that would be other than the two
Red Bulls taking each other out.
Alonso had a record day, even tho his strategy wasn't the best. Once again his teammate lets the squad down, finishing last and wrecking two other cars and putting one of them (Ricciardo - of course) out of the race.
The Ferraris did what they could but they still finished well back of the front 3 in 4th and 5th. I don't know if this track just wasn't suited to them or what.......
Hamilton was pretty down about his car during most of the race but still managed to finish in the points.
Next up - Miami.
I have no idea who will feature there, other than Max of course.
Adrian Newey is leaving Red Bull! And some how he has negotiated that he join another team next year.
I read that he still needs to negotiate some terms to avoid gardening leave.....speculation is that Ferrari is #1 in line to get his services, but I think ANY team would love to have him onboard.
If he actually gets to go to work in 2025, I wonder if that's quick enough to have an effect for 2026? Actually, I'd like to see him at one of the lesser teams like Williams (he's linked with them too) or even McLaren or Aston to get them over the finish line a few times - but my best place to see him is at Audi!
Maybe it's just damage limitation and spin, but Red Bull quickly trotted out Verstappen to say that they have a LOT of good people in their team and that their success is not just down to one person......uh-huh.
Speaking of F1. I managed to end up in Miami this weekend and was invited out to some special F1 event with a group of people. Anyway, I met a guy who represents Nascar drivers here doing something for f1 and we got talking cars, so long story short I have access to Nascar races now hanging with the drivers and garages.
You're one of the jet setters now! :celebrate: :great:
The NASCAR race is here this weekend - I could have gone as some of the car clubs had a special deal for $40 seats (compare that to F1!!!) but I think it's going to be rained out. Nothing more miserable to me than paying to sit on metal benches in the pouring rain while nothing happens on track.
So, are you going to hit up some of the races now? Are you going to see the F1 race while you're there? Can he get you in?
I couldn't stay for the races but looked at several cars. He probably could have gotten me in though. I need to look at the Nascar schedule and actually take advantage of his offer.
Well, that was an interesting Sprint race - yes Max won again, and Charles was pretty close at the end, only about 3 seconds back but as usual the real fun was happening further back - where Sainz could not get around DannyRickyBobby no matter how hard he tried and Kmag was refining his technique of keeping others behind while the Hulk built up a gap and stayed in the points. Lap after lap he would force the Hamster off line or even off the track - accumulating penalties along the way. Folks said it was "dirty racing", but......it sure was fun to watch. Hamilton to his credit said it was fun racing that hard.
Also - as usual - Stroll was out at the first corner of the first lap. I realize it's his daddy's team, but they aren't going to win any championships with only one driver scoring - who isn't Verstappen.
Big race is this afternoon - it's kinda frustrating to have to wait to watch the race, when they're in Europe it's already recorded when I get up in the am.
Well, Red Bull did not get their sums right this time! Although Max might have been able to hold them off, but the safety car changed all that and Lando was in the exact right place at the right time to take advantage of it, then simply drove away from the pack to win his first one for Big Mac!
It was interesting to see that Max could not gain on him at all - in fact by the end of the race he was 7 seconds behind Lando - and neither of the Ferraris seemed able to get there either - they both closed up within 2 seconds of Max but that was it.
Back in the pack they were going at it hammer and tongs, and Sainz and Piastri had a coming together which broke Piastri's wing - the net result was he finished in 13th instead of 3rd or 4th and Sainz got a 5 sec penalty that dropped him from 4th to 5th, moving Perez up a notch.
So, the win definitely brought McLaren and Lando up in the points - it's no longer a runaway but there is significant separation between the top teams. Long way to go in this season still tho.....
One other small detail - Red Bull have already replaced Newey - giving a long term contract to Pierre Wache' till 2028 - so he'll be the one to design the new cars for when the regs change in 2026. Newey now has a clear field to choose from, the big money is still on him going to Ferrari, but it's not a sure thing just yet.
Quote from: 94touring on May 04, 2024, 04:16:12 AMSpeaking of F1. I managed to end up in Miami this weekend and was invited out to some special F1 event with a group of people. Anyway, I met a guy who represents Nascar drivers here doing something for f1 and we got talking cars, so long story short I have access to Nascar races now hanging with the drivers and garages.
Well if you can share the joy, I would love that for the NASCAR race at Circuit of the Americas.
I was so happy for Lando, even if I did get a spoiler as they were showing the race in the bar at the furniture store. He has missed out a number of times and really deserved for the luck to come with him. I remember the race in Russia where he could have won but it rained!
Quote from: Brit_in_TX on May 06, 2024, 10:07:23 AMQuote from: 94touring on May 04, 2024, 04:16:12 AMSpeaking of F1. I managed to end up in Miami this weekend and was invited out to some special F1 event with a group of people. Anyway, I met a guy who represents Nascar drivers here doing something for f1 and we got talking cars, so long story short I have access to Nascar races now hanging with the drivers and garages.
Well if you can share the joy, I would love that for the NASCAR race at Circuit of the Americas.
Ha! Yeah I need to look up the schedule. I've been dealing with a ton of stuff at home, being pulled 20 different directions. Part of the reason for me going to Miami was to undwind! I need to go back to my day job for downtime lol.