Formula 1

[PDAD]

58 minutes ago, charlierc said:

I know Red Bull is known for its impatience but Lawson got 2 races before getting shoved back to Red Bull's junior team? Really?

 

Feels like they're paying the price for years of poor driver management and a focus that seems to lead to them only being able to make cars Verstappen can drive. Which is a strategy with a time limit given Max won't be there forever.

Yeah it's a pretty brutal decision. Pretty mad state of affairs that if Yuki gets a point in Japan, in a Red Bull, people would probably see the decision as a success... 

 

Feels like a Man Utd manager swap, what's really going to change?

Edited March 27, 2025 by PDAD

[charlierc]

On 27/03/2025 at 19:54, PDAD said:

Yeah it's a pretty brutal decision. Pretty mad state of affairs that if Yuki gets a point in Japan, in a Red Bull, people would probably see the decision as a success... 

 

Feels like a Man Utd manager swap, what's really going to change?

I guess we're about to find out given the Japan-Bahrain-Saudi triple header that starts with this weekend's trip down Suzuka way.

 

Verstappen has gone on record more than once to say he's not happy with such a call and that the team should be focused on fixing what's clearly a car nobody seems to like driving. Guess we'll see if they will actually listen - given how dominant they were between the 2022 rule change and about midway through last year, it's strange to think they might only have the 3rd or 4th best car.

[charlierc]

Well, of all the races in F1 history, that was one of them. Although even then, Verstappen nicking a victory that didn't look on, McLaren tying themselves in knots again and decent drives for points by Hadjar and Bearman meant there was still some fascination.

 

We can hope Bahrain is a bit more exciting though of nothing else.

[Crazyfool01]

13 minutes ago, charlierc said:

Well, of all the races in F1 history, that was one of them. Although even then, Verstappen nicking a victory that didn't look on, McLaren tying themselves in knots again and decent drives for points by Hadjar and Bearman meant there was still some fascination.

 

We can hope Bahrain is a bit more exciting though of nothing else.

I got up early and nodded off during it  ... think that sums it up tbh 

[steviewevie]

F1 at 75

[charlierc]

On 13/05/2025 at 13:40, steviewevie said:

F1 at 75

Yeah this piece was cool and interesting. 

 

Maybe a movie dramatising this would go down better with the F1 purists than this upcoming Brad Pitt thing

[charlierc]

Hmm... Clearly mandatory 2 stops wasn't the way to make Monaco exciting after all

[Crazyfool01]

19 hours ago, charlierc said:

Hmm... Clearly mandatory 2 stops wasn't the way to make Monaco exciting after all

I fell asleep again 🙂 was optomistic before the race 

[charlierc]

Until the safety car, Barcelona was looking like an ok race but not the most amazing ever. The last 6 laps after it, however - crikey.

 

Red Bull really screwed up by first putting Max on a bad tyre for the restart and then incorrectly telling him to move for Russell when it looked like he was compliant with the rules and the stewards even later declared Max's defence against Russell was fine. Having said all that, Verstappen's choice to seemingly crash into Russell on purpose was so dumb and arguably got away with getting a 10 second penalty for that.

 

Hulkenberg to P5 in a Sauber that had been dreadful for most of 2025 - brilliant. Would be awesome if he finally got that podium he's been waiting years for.

[Crazyfool01]

40 minutes ago, charlierc said:

Until the safety car, Barcelona was looking like an ok race but not the most amazing ever. The last 6 laps after it, however - crikey.

 

Red Bull really screwed up by first putting Max on a bad tyre for the restart and then incorrectly telling him to move for Russell when it looked like he was compliant with the rules and the stewards even later declared Max's defence against Russell was fine. Having said all that, Verstappen's choice to seemingly crash into Russell on purpose was so dumb and arguably got away with getting a 10 second penalty for that.

 

Hulkenberg to P5 in a Sauber that had been dreadful for most of 2025 - brilliant. Would be awesome if he finally got that podium he's been waiting years for.

10 seconds for max there was absolutely ridiculous ... reckon he deserves a race ban for that 

[charlierc]

On 01/06/2025 at 21:24, Crazyfool01 said:

10 seconds for max there was absolutely ridiculous ... reckon he deserves a race ban for that 

Quite a few did. Rosberg on Sky was adamant it was worthy of a disqualification.

 

Max does have to tread carefully as he's on 11 points now, meaning one even minor indiscretion takes him to 12 penalty points and means a race ban. Which is something Red Bull could unquestionably do without as Max seems to be the only one who can drive that car. 

[charlierc]

Well if nothing else Norris crashing into Piastri provided an interesting talking point to conclude the Canadian event. Was a race that kind of threatened to promise more than it was set to deliver, as can happen sometimes.

 

Mercedes 1/3 is decent going too. Maybe their car is now able to work in hot weather after all.

[charlierc]

Pretty much now looks guaranteed the fight for the title is Norris v Piastri. They had a decent battle yesterday until the first pit stops then ultimately traffic prevented more. Especially Colapinto.

 

Red Bull - woof. Max being taken out by Antonelli on lap one was one thing but Yuki is drowning in that car right now. It's kinda sad.

 

Sauber look suddenly like they mean business in the midfield. Not bad given I'd written them off. Certainly a contrast given Williams are tailing off after a strong start.

[charlierc]

Well if nothing else, Silverstone was a pretty good watch on Sunday. Shame it could've been a closer fight between the McLarens but for Piastri's penalty, even if it was also a bit odd by Piastri to be so aggressive on the brakes on a wet track.

 

Hulkenberg's first podium is pretty awesome ngl. 15 years and finally getting a first in his F1 career. Plus even more something to think he held on to deny Hamilton, who's usually a master of the place.

Edited July 7, 2025 by charlierc

[Crazyfool01]

Cracking race that … probably the best one so far this season . Changing conditions always makes things a bit livelier … 

[charlierc]

Well, that weekend at Spa could've been more exciting. The sprint felt oddly half-arsed from everyone with very little overtaking jeopardy, while the race felt compromised because in retrospect they really didn't need to wait 1hr20 to get going.

[charlierc]

I know I've come across as talking to myself at times in the thread so here we go again lol. 

 

Hungary yesterday was fascinating. Didn't think Lando would win after his lap one error but those last few laps were a great watch. It's set up really well for a title battle as Lando and Oscar are both fascinating and flawed contenders, so a pretty even bout has decent potential after the summer break. 

 

Also, feels like Ferrari have already broken Lewis Hamilton. It's like the way it went wrong for Vettel there at 4 times the speed. 

[Crazyfool01]

38 minutes ago, charlierc said:

I know I've come across as talking to myself at times in the thread so here we go again lol. 

 

Hungary yesterday was fascinating. Didn't think Lando would win after his lap one error but those last few laps were a great watch. It's set up really well for a title battle as Lando and Oscar are both fascinating and flawed contenders, so a pretty even bout has decent potential after the summer break. 

 

Also, feels lke Ferrari have already broken Lewis Hamilton. It's like the way it went wrong for Vettel there at 4 times the speed. 

you arent , i watched the first 30 or so and then nodded off ..... woke up with about 15 to go with Lando in the lead ... never imagined he'd hold on . great for the championship it worked out that way around and also great that him and oscar are able to race it out ... 2 horse race but at least its not a precession 

[charlierc]

On 04/08/2025 at 11:25, Crazyfool01 said:

you arent , i watched the first 30 or so and then nodded off ..... woke up with about 15 to go with Lando in the lead ... never imagined he'd hold on . great for the championship it worked out that way around and also great that him and oscar are able to race it out ... 2 horse race but at least its not a precession 

Yeah I remember the Mercedes domination in the mid-2010s where 2014 and 2016 stand out more due to an actual fight while 2015, where Rosberg was iffy, was a lot less fun. It will be interesting to watch how this plays out because McLaren do seem pretty content just to let Lando and Oscar fight, which creates fireworks potential given we don't know if this will be their only shot at this. 

[charlierc]

I think that might go down as a significant race in the destiny of this championship. Norris can still do it but he really now needs Piastri to have a DNF. Malaysia 2016 is an easy one to fixate on given that had such an influence in denying Hamilton the title that year, but the comparison speaks for itself.

 

Curious race at Zandvoort. Was fairly meh for long parts but there were plenty of drama moments in there. Hadjar going from crashing on his first formation lap to a rookie podium is brilliant, Antonelli could've done without another scrappy mistake like that, Sainz getting the penalty for an incident Lawson caused is wild and the less said about Ferrari's day, the better. Even more for one of those Ferraris given Hamilton first crashes out by himself and then gets a grid penalty for next week for a violation I don't think anyone has done before.

[charlierc]

Clearly Verstappen still knows how to dominate a race when able to get into the lead. Good drive from him. Why McLaren felt the need to tie themselves in knots with strategy for their two drivers and give both Norris & Piastri cause to be annoyed is another matter.

[charlierc]

Qualifying in Baku yesterday looked wild. 6 red flags, mixed up grid and a few big names getting it wrong. Hopefully the race has even a fraction of that madness. 

[Crazyfool01]

1 hour ago, charlierc said:

Qualifying in Baku yesterday looked wild. 6 red flags, mixed up grid and a few big names getting it wrong. Hopefully the race has even a fraction of that madness. 

Will be a procession surely ? I guess the tightness of the circuit might make for some flags but aren’t overtakes a nightmare here ? Also need to remember the earlier start than normal 

[charlierc]

Just now, Crazyfool01 said:

Will be a procession surely ? I guess the tightness of the circuit might make for some flags but aren’t overtakes a nightmare here ? Also need to remember the earlier start than normal 

Baku is an either-way track. Some races there have been very processional, but the super-long straight and the second DRS zone can be good overtaking zones and some races have been very chaotic with red flags and safety cars. Last year's was pretty solid - Piastri made a great move on Leclerc then held on for dear life against a car that had looked faster.

 

Guess in 2 hours we'll know for sure. At the very least McLaren and Ferrari being a lot further down despite practice hinting they were the two best cars means they'll want to try and get back up the order.

[Crazyfool01]

Makes things interesting. Hopefully llando doesn’t blow this chance