#idk how many other motorsports I can think of

[superm4ks]

Just saw a tweet saying max has never lost a position during a SC restart since he joined RB. Now idk how reliable this stat is (lol) but u sometimes mention how his restarts are crazy so I was just wondering why are his restarts so good? Like what does he do taht the rest just isn't doing?

omfg my vertsussive ((😭??)) journalism era .. The stat is very reliable. Let's TALK ABOUT ITTT ‼️‼️‼️

According to this op who checked specific time stamps for every VSC and SC deployed until 2021, available here, Max has driven behind 88 safety cars since he joined red bull, 103 total, and he never lost position on a single one. Which means he's either kept position or actually managed to overtake. He gained position 17 times. For comparison wid another yk pretty good driver, during the same period Lewis gained position 5 times, and only lost track position 3 times. All 3 to Max. Thats 2016-2021. I think Singapore 2022 ruined the record because I'm pretty sure Max lost position under the sc there. Idk how many times he's gained so far either, but I can think of a few races this year alone, so it wud be interesting to check. Hes been able to gain position for about 20% of restarts between 2016-2021, which is like .. not even comparable to other drivers numbers its his stat its definitely a Verstappen thing and the easiest way to explain it is: its a grey area, it allows for somebody wid enough nerve, skill and commitment to take ownership and use it for their own benefit. Enter the nerve, skill and commitment baddie, whos been haunting motorsport since before he cud vote.

SC restarts were cheat codes that inevitably lead to a verstappen amendment because FIA is bitches. During SCs Max liked to get his insane self right next to whoever was in front of him, and I mean RIGHT NEXT to the mf, and make them eat shit and d1e the moment they were allowed to restart. These are called 'restart tactics' I prefer 'jeddah appetizers'. Like literally he wud bully these men, run them wide or pinch them against walls like they owed him lunch money and then take off. This is still legal mind u, u can gain position after a SC, its literally racing, the updated rule last year was more of a 'fucking calm down Max' type of thing. Not the first of its kind, as we know. Even tho they kinda backtracked wid the first one and now u can twerk a lil bit under braking but not too much. I love f1. Anyway.

Article 55.14 of F1’s sporting rules states: “In order to avoid the likelihood of accidents before the safety car returns to the pits, from the point at which the lights on the car are turned out, drivers must proceed at a pace which involves no erratic acceleration, or braking nor any maneuver which is likely to endanger other drivers or impede the restart."

--- BASICALLY, yall ((max)) can drive side by side, yall can weave to warm up the tires, but those lil ((Dutch)) footsies better keep it chill until sc is gone and maintain position. Now a casual wud read this and think, oh, so they nerfed him, he cant commit the crime anymore, but Max read that and thought oh, okay, so I'll literally just keep doing it, in a different way, and I'll gaslight other drivers into letting me do it ((literally, I'm not joking)). They said cars had to stay in position, they didn’t say how. They didnt say he couldnt simply keep his delta, in a situation where its practically impossible, and gain under the VSC, for example.

Max excels at rolling starts because one, the audacity 😐((I think sharl and lewis the only 2 drivers who ever managed to beat him at his own game)) two, the timing and skill is computer level of specific. It is a very VERY meticulous process, and it takes making hands-on decisions about multiple components, racing lines, tires, acceleration, lifting, in a very, very short amount of time. So pretty much Max SC restarts are him not beating the made in a lab allegations. But most sim racers, ex drivers, engineers, will just tell you that the reason he's so good at this is because he practices more than everybody else in the world, probably. U do it enough times and it becomes second nature, u know exactly how the car is gonna behave so what seems like 'instinct' and the product we see, as fans, a bunch of slow cars suddenly going ‼️‼️AHSHSHSHDJSHF actually takes a lot of thinking on their side. Max does a lot of thinking in the car he doesn't get credit for, because the mad max narrative is also such a huge part of who he is, and it is true, to a certain extent, but its not mindless aggression, never has been. Its a deliberate choice and its got a simple purpose: gaining or maintaining position. I'm not saying he never got too reckless or that he never pushed it, but he always did it for a reason, and he had full control of his car, always.

Thats the crucial difference between Max and somebody whos just aggressive, because if Max was truly just a meathead behind the wheel, he wud not be known for mastering one of the few aspects of racing that rests entirely on strategy and skill, the restart. Thats why doctor markonstein put his ass in an f1 car when he was 17, because if a teenager wid no experience and a temper can control an f1 machine to the point he becomes an actual threat, imagine what he can do in his 20s 😐. Maybe in his 20s he can lift less than a quarter of a second before the control line to stay behind the leader and be allowed to overtake him at the restart.

[autumnapricot]

Heyy, i think that someone maybe asked this already? But because i want to be special and get my own answer ill ask again: how on earth do i get into MotoGP? Understanding F1 was easy and i managed to get into brocedes lore too but how do i get into MotoGP😭?

i did answer this once already, yeah, but no prob! 🤍

it‘s just a little hard for me to answer because i‘ve been watching motogp for such a long time that i‘m a bit at loss at how to give you advice on how to get into it from a fresh start basically, so i apologize if it‘s not helpful! 😅

i don‘t think getting into motogp is that much more complicated than f1, tho? but idk hahah maybe it is

my best guess or advice would be to kind of tune in to the race weekends and get a bit of a feel for it. unfortunately i don‘t even know where you can stream it live (and costless, i totally understand not wanting to pay for any membership especially in the beginning!) because i‘m blessed with servustv and their great comms too, but it‘s the german tv, so.

what i linked for the other anon too are these season primer posts that a lovely lovely user takes the time to create for motogp! i think these are super helpful for someone who doesn‘t know anything about the sport and how it works. totally recommend having a look these to get some info before diving into anything else!

motogp season primer 2025

motogp season primer 2024

further sources you can have a look at can be:

motogp: unlimited > a documentary series on on the 2021 season, available on amazon prime, not the best in terms of explaining any technicalities but it is entertaining and shines lights on the different characters

there can only be one > a series on youtube that follows the championship episode for episode on the races, there are a lot of looks of the behind the scenes

motogp‘s youtube channel in general, they post a lot of race highlights, they also used to make pretty cool summary videos (example 2019 recap series) but i think they don‘t do that anymore. (probs because there’s there can only be one) but there are also full races to watch online there and loads of other things!

hitting the apex > also a documentary from the 2010‘s

in general i might want to add that motogp is still very different to f1.

i personally enjoy the racing in motogp much more than f1, although dorna/ motogp try hard to push motogp to be „f1 on two wheels“ (we all hate dorna in the motogp household as do we hate the fim stewards but,,different topic) and in these past years, the bikes have vastly changed with loads of added aerodynamics and electronics etc that are frankly too much and take away from the racing itself because there‘s so many devices to activate at all time, there‘s the entire aspect of the (fuckass) tire pressure regulations that has resulted in drama one too many times etc etc etc. anyway, in 2027 a lot of the devices and shit will be banned with new regulations and we hope for more pure racing action again!

there is also a lot less media training from the riders (which i for one enjoy) and also most of the riders speak in their native languages (italian or spanish…) and their english isn’t the most fluent, so most interviews and even in the documentary series are spoken in their native language (with english subtitles/translations added)

so long story short, motogp is considered the pinnacle of motorcycle racing as much as f1 is the pinnacle of motorsport/ car racing, but they‘re both still different.

this is already too much probably oops

my motogp user is @fastianini but in warning i am a marc marquez girlie through and through so, ehm. if you don‘t like marc following me is not a good idea i would say. hehe.

you can always hit me up with questions on here tho and lmk how your motogp journey goes!

toodaloos! 💗

[celltheory]

i know this is a me problem but i cannot get super invested in challengers because i do not care about either of those men at all...josh o'connor used to be so special to me...and now...still cannot articulate why i find men so boring and/or offputting. used to feel like i was ~protesting too much~ iykwim but now...i don't know. the ratio of fandom's investment in men vs. women is so tiring but is def not going to change and there are reasons why that's true that i understand. but i just...ugh.

tennis at its peak to me was serena/caro/angie/maria/vika/venus/etc and all the contrasting and weird dynamics that were SO different from each other. you can add aga in there too. and it was interesting because of the expectations of how they were meant to act vs. how they did. and now i really dislike them both and am disappointed/angry about a lot of their views, but the chrissie/martina rivalry was so INSANE. like that documentary haunts me and the book about them is like...wow. and the men's versions just do not hit the same for me. like roger/rafa is so boring and i think if i had been paying attention during the peak of it, i'd be more interested in it? but it's so...blah. i think maria/serena tensions are insaaane and for so many reasons and i think it's partially understandable, partially a shame that their rivalry and careers get reduced to these very simplistic tropes that i think are deeply unfair to both of them. like people think maria is one thing and she really is not? and flattening her is shit for so many reasons...god. anyway. i don't know what my point is. i know that a WTA movie wouldn't hit the same way as challengers. and i know it's also just not a movie for me. because the whole ot3 never really works. writing the fic for it was like ok. do i care about him being pathetic? and the answer is no!

rafa/novak is actually kind of interesting to me ngl i miss that account....the history was like damn ok! rn i'm def more lenient of caring about ~shit people or i guess being interested. like obviously not the most vile people like zverev is just so horrible to me i cannot. and then there's more opinion based ones like rublev drives me bonkers because the babygirlism of him is disgusting to me and i think...whatever. this isn't my point. this was supposed to be a post about how i wish i could get invested in f1 but i cannot. the pathway of like...nba fandom (a select few, imo most steph/klay which was like...not really for me but now that they're seperated and watched the wnba game sitting apart...well i am interested!) to f1 fandom to the motorsports thing which i do NOT get is so baffling to me.

hockey is like...the one sport i know the most about and have loved for the longest period of time but i just...i am not built to be romantic about sports or like...oh my god these men hugged. wow. what does it MEAN. like i don't get any of it. i've tried reading the articles and the books and i just find it so embarrassing. and boring! and obvious? unless it gets turned into something that i do not really think exists but it sounds smart. i don't know. like team dynamics etc are so interesting to me but i also think they're so segmental. and contextual that i get sooo bored of like...the reading into it. and then i feel bad because people act like you should be murdered if you read into it with women. but i get that because women's sports already has so many existing relationships that it's not as fun to play pretend because it's a lot easier to forget about male athlete's rl partners etc than like...the fact that mpp is marrying laura stacey. like dartmouth's laura stacey. can you believe that? i still cannot tbh. i don't know! i have no point. sometimes i feel like i am hanging onto fandom and i really should not because i feel like such a drag. the new tennis rpf fics has actually been so good because it isn't boring m/m pairings with no tension. SORRY! but like damn...is this growth? idk. i don't even have anything to bring to the table rn...

also back to challengers the only positive emotion i've had about it in a while was comparing that trio to ben affleck/jlo/matt damon. now that is interesting.

it is baffling to me that qinwen/iga has been the pairing that's hit the most out of every wta pairing i've randomly decided to try. aryna/paula does not interest me at all i'm so sorry. the emma/qinwen was v good and i think the edge of it is what i like. too far but not really at all. unless you're like...rpf should be illegal. which i obviously don't feel that way but i def experience a lot of internal shame about it. i miss writing but i think the unfinished twu fic that will never become anything makes me not want to start writing anything that isn't a one shot that taps out by 10k for sure.

[f0point5]

I'm going to get killed for this but here i go.

Drivers and teams don't owe women in motorsport the pr that they are giving them. Is there a lot of sexism in motorsport? 100% yes. Are women getting special treatment in many ways? Yes.

If there was no pressure for inclusion and general pressure from the internet, none of the teams would have included them selves in the f1 academy. None of the girls would have gotten the opportunities they have gotten if they weren't women because none of them are good enough for f3, let alone for f1. And that is ok they are not men, and they shouldn't compete with the men.

I really wish that women could do it without the men because that would be it.

I don't appreciate how f1 teams are using the female drivers for pr and all that jazz. It just doesn't feel genuine. It's good for the girls, you know, to get their name out there, but it's just weathers them down as drivers (i think the same with men when i see them promoting stuff)

Ok you can all kill me now, i made my peace. 🖖

Yeah people about to get out the pitchforks 😂

I agree to an extent tbh. I think the teams getting involved in F1 Academy is a performative PR move and F1 Academy is great for these women to get their names out there, get their bag, even have a career in motorsport in some way like commentating or racing other series. But I think to think any of these girls will make it to F1 is unrealistic.

I haven’t seen lap times or any real analysis because I don’t follow the series so idk which of them, if any, would make it racing in F3. My initial guess would be none but I can’t substantiate that. And when I say make it I mean be in top 5 prospects because anyone can pay their money and trundle round in the back.

My hot take is, I’m fine with F1 being 20 men. I really don’t think it’s a problem. Racing in general is accessible to 1% of people, 0.0001% of those make it into F1, it’s not like every guy gets a shot and they shut out women.

If a girl comes up through whatever rank and is just good and can get a seat, awesome. But if they don’t…I don’t see the big deal honestly.

[heartberrydog]

You think "product placement" in fics breaks immersion? realistically, it could, although I find that if the author is well researched on the topic it helps strengthen the immersion. for example, mentions of real japanese shops/groceries for a fic set in japan. or mentions of time and genre appropriate bands or artists if a character x is known to like a genre of music. dazai actually has a real brand amongst his likes in a manga character sheet, ajinomoto, which is a popular msg seasoning product. (coincidentally, I realized recently that this is a brand I use...lol)

I mean, it really depends on the product tbh. I mostly hate it when it’s useless, like inserting a real life brand of clothing to (cheaply, imo, and most times people overdo it, too) express that someone uses designer clothing, or mentioning the specifics of someone’s car when it’s purely irrelevant (this one gets a pass when the car model is relevant at identifying it, for example. Not like “he gets into his black Mercedes Benz edition 69” or whatever idk anything about cars and I also don’t care. Everything mentioned here is really a matter of context and reason). These are two I’ve noticed pretty often.

As for music, even if the band names are time-accurate and taste-accurate for the character, I just can’t stand actual bands/musical artists being mentioned in fiction 😞 Music genres are fine, but inserting an existing musician into a fictional Universe just doesn’t sit right with me. I don’t have a proper reason for this except maybe that it feels like a cheap 'cheat-code' at actually DESCRIBING someone’s tastes, or the music they’re listening to. It’s like “I’m not going to bother researching music and describing it properly so here have this band and Google them yourself so you can get the vibes”. This can kind of have exceptions when the purpose of the artist is to make a lyric-singing scene, but that really depends on execution. (For example, if you’ve read MOTORSPORT, that scene where Dazai and Chuuya sing Kendrick Lamar in a car. Honestly, I believe MOTORSPORT in general has a lot of these exceptions where many kinds of "product placement" are done right. Though it also has a handful of misses in this regard.)

As for the thing about shops/real places, I also feel like that's unnecessary most times. Just say "a X-type store", the specification of the store name isn't needed unless it's, again, with the purpose of character's identifying the place, the character's are tourists and unfamiliar with the places and so they notice the store names a lot more than a person that's lived there for long would, or a place with particular importance. Case in point, bar Lupin. I find Lupin fine, and honestly the specification is needed, because it becomes a motif.

I feel like the best way to do this right is through dialogue, though. Most of the exceptions I could think of would be practiced in dialogue. Because the thing is, I feel like brand names and the like are unnecessary specifications, most of the time, which the narrator has no place making—it's a useless add-on, but if the characters where having a natural conversation and that comes up in a natural way, I feel like it works. And it can also be good characterization, but it has to be done right.

Though this isn't brand name specific, I also feel this way about character quirks. Like, let's use coffee as an example. Let's say I want to express how a character takes their coffee as means for characterization and humanization. That's all fine and dandy. It just depend how I do that. If I say "he takes a sip from his coffee, with two sugar cubes added," or anything similar, that feels awkward imo. I like to call this 'forced-characterization'. The way to integrate that nicely is either making the character ask someone else for the coffee, another character saying they made the coffee X way how they know Character likes it, or making the coffee-making process itself important. There are definitely other ways to do it both right and wrong, and either of this can be adapted as either based on context and approach, but I hope you get the general picture.

Likewise, with clothing brands for example, if I want to characterize someone as a very expensive kind of person I don't just do that by enumerating brands of clothing they own because I assume the reader either recognizes those brands or can look them up to get the idea. Actually, this might just be a bigger reason behind it. Name-drops are so often made with the assumption that the reader knows those things already—that's what breaks the immersion. The writer is using my external, real-world knowledge as a tool in their fic. In order for that tool to have effect, I get reminded of said external, real world knowledge in a way that takes me out of the fic and brings me back into the, you know, external, real world. If the name-drop has an actual story-related reason for being there, it's fine most times.

Okay I yapped that much for no reason this might just be it djhgdkh Not deleting the other stuff, though. And the point about being forced-characterization most times is still one I stand by, so.

P.S.: Didn't know about the Dazai thing, but since you mentioned it being in his 'likes', I'm guessing it was in a character-sheet?? Which is metatext. I'm talking about strictly what is mentioned in the work🙏

Have an amazing day!! (๑>◡<๑)

[superm4ks]

max is so max. him getting peeved that prince harry interrupted his pre race preparation. im very sonder when i think about how max would probably prefer to be winning in any other time period except this one. but he's winning in this decade and that means that even the man that openly despises media and marketing is being called for some of the biggest opportunities like that's my baby people can't get enough of him bc he's so him there will never be another him <3

Oh absolutely 'max would probably prefer to be winning in any other time period except this one' thats sooooo real in so many ways lemme just focus on that a lil bit because u put it perfectly. Not just in terms of his commitments outside racing but also like the racing itself, the cars, the engines, the circuits, the grand prix weekends. Hes been called 'old school' by so many people from team principals to engineers and other drivers and he is, its part of what makes him soo fucking delicious as a competitor even now wid a car that lets him do anything he wants. Hes still gonna jump the start hes gonna go round the outside and push bitches to defend his line and hes gonna overtake in the pit lane like listen I'm sure people understand this on some level but Max one of the last of a very rare breed of drivers that will go extinct the more sanitized motorsport becomes. Seb is gone, was gone before he was gone tbh, Lew and Nando will have to retire eventually lmfao and once they do? Thats it. You got sharl to pick up the mantle but who knows how or when he'll be able to do so, wid what car, in what team, and against who. The next gen is vaguely exciting wid Norris and Russell hovering the 'slightly above average' mark never truly making it stick, the others dont stand out long enough to establish any type of potential. Yuki to me the only guy who still makes me lean forward a lil bit to c what he does but he keeps getting thrown under shadows and idk if he still has time to escape them. So now u got this superstar, this absolute gunman of a mf, clinging to that last shred of true motorsport heritage and closing out the final chapter of that book. And he can sense it too. Thats why hes been so openly against the sprint format and already sounding the alarm for the 26 regs because cars will get even slower and racing will becoming almost exclusively about deploying the battery so u can overtake on a straight. And Max loves f1 but he loves racing more lmfao. He'll prolly just fuck off to endurance and tbh so will I

[coella-cox]

Oh a lot of discourse™️ about that SM episode and…

I don’t think screaming meals even knows what they want to be or do (lowkey they kind of just want to make money? or views?) they seem stuck between being a podcast about racing, or a podcast with racing drivers about whatever, or just being boys talking into a microphone (imo…they aren’t interesting enough to do the last one and that’s why no one listens to clems wine corner). And they keep trying to anticipate what their female audience would want (and missing horribly) while also clearly trying to move beyond that audience into…idk (and they don’t either).

I’m in America and regardless of drive to survive no one really know about f1- and believe me when I say NO ONE knows about Indy car (and mind you Clem drives f2…) so the boys can do with that information what they will. But ultimately I think they need to accept that they do a VERY niche thing and so their audience might never expand beyond niche. Obviously it’s hard being in content creation and seeing people like Yung Filly dabble in Motorsport while being an entertainment/content mongul but Yung Filly is…better at it? Lol

Anyways one day I will write the essay about how many men don’t view women/girl fans as legitimate and how they simultaneously discredit the fans support and also crave it (but they want it from other men! bc that legitimizes it to them bc men don’t usually think of women as fully complex and intelligent peo- [GUNSHOT])

Also… there is an underlying tension of like social/class divides between the boys and their potential audience and as a spectator…you can feel the tension simmering lol

And Rory has to spend hours editing podcasts down to absolutely nothing bc of this underlying tension and idk babes…let the mask slip and just adopt critical thinking skills

Idk be open to changing and growing and being corrected and they won’t have to worry about being canceled or whatever it is that they think of when they say “politically correct” on the pod

[robinfrinjs]

Heyy

Idk if someone already asked you this but what is your opinion on Sophia Floersch/Florsch/Flörsch (i don't know how to write her name correctly sry)

oh and have a nice day

Hi Anon! I've been asked this several times lol. First of all it's either Flörsch or Floersch the ö stands for oe and if you write o you're giving her a completely different name lol.

So first of all, while the crash was horrible and I wouldn't wish it on anyone. Her crash definitely gained her a lot of traction (same goes for Romain actually).

I personally don't think she deserves most of the attention she's getting. A lot of people, and a lot of men (because she's 'hot'). Still continue to hype her up and still believe she'll make it to F1 somehow?

Quite honestly, her single seater career is done. She's been doing well in prototypes and I hope she can find a future in there.

Her 'not like other girls' and brining other women in motorsport down to 'feel better' approach sucks and is damaging. She's constantly brought down any initiative to bring more women into motorsport because 'Hello I am there (with no real results to show)'.

Like I've said before initiatives like that are so important, and while they're not always perfect it shows that women CAN. Her whole bringing down W Series and it's drivers but meanwhile being besties with Beitske is also so confusing?

But anyway, she has such a big mouth and pretends she is the best female racer to have ever existed with barely any results to back her up. She's lucky she had funding behind her because otherwise she'd never have been able to do so many seasons in F3. A huge problem in motorsport is funding which makes it even better to have W Series because it's seats are FREE. For a lot of women in there it's their only option and bashing them because of it is not it.

I hope she does well next season and I very much hope she learns to shut up.

[race-week]

Hi Al! I was wondering if you could give some insight into what would make the role of race director difficult to fill and how they get chosen? I get that in the current situation the FIA may want to keep Masi just to save face but I read in multiple articles that there weren’t really many other candidates available anyway. It just seems like one could hardly do a worse job than he did across the 2021 season and I find it difficult to believe that there aren’t any more qualified candidates out there 😐 Idk if this is a controversial ask… I’m just always eager to hear your perspective on things. Thanks!

Hi anon,

This is really long and kind of jumbled so I’m sorry.

So there isn’t a lot of information out there about the requirements of a race director seeing as Charlie Whiting served as Race Director from 1988 until March 2019 and he kind of carved out the role for himself. But what we do know is that all FIA race directors require a certain type of Super License (but not like the drivers Superlicense), essentially in order to be able to get this they have to work up the ladder in various motorsport and FIA regulated series in different roles.

And for an F1 race director, they like them to have experience being a race director in single seater open wheel racing, Masi was deputy race director and race director of F2 and F3 before F1.

There are race directors for every motorsport series, but each series has its own more niche set of rules and there is a shortage of people who have the experience to hold the role of race director; and as such you have people like Scot Elkins who, for 2022 will be race director for Formula E, Extreme E, DTM and DTM Trophy. Theres just not the influx of people with the right qualifications or characteristics it seems.

Also to be honest with the scrutiny of the media and the fans, would anyone really want to be F1’s race director, especially after this year, where people were wishing death upon Masi on Twitter.

It’s not an easy job by any means and yes Charlie was able to do it, but he also shaped the role into what he wanted it to be, and the idea was always that Charlie’s race director position would be taken over by at least 3 people.

He’s made mistakes and most of those mistakes can be traced back to the handling of Canada 2019 or Austria 2019 where he was accused of penalising things too harshly and as such he adopted more of the “let them race” mentality. In my opinion one of the biggest glaring mistakes he made (that got very little attention) was green flagging the race I think in Imola 2020 with recovery vehicles still on the track.

I think whoever you put in that position; without the correct support system and a proper team around them, they would struggle and they would make mistakes.

I don’t think it’s a matter of kicking Masi out on the off chance that someone could possibly do a better job, I’m sure they would have offered the role to Scot Elkins (as he did quite a few races as a stand in deputy) and he probably turned them down, I think the better thing is to give a bit of an overhaul in race control, get someone to handle comms (and only important comms are passed on to race director), get a permanent deputy in.

It’s a high pressure job and not necessarily one where the guy can just read the International Sporting Code and go through a training PowerPoint to prepare, and that’s why they like people having had worked in other motorsport series.

Marcin Budkowski’s name has floated around a bit but he was always being prepared for a more technical role within the FIA rather than the pure race director role as his background is in engineering rather than racing.

[f1ck-em-all]

hi!! long response ahead (sorry <3)

for the growth i've seen, it's largely comments lando's made to the media concerning female engagement in the sport, and the way he handled a few misogynistic interview questions this season. they might be small moments, but it all adds up to a bigger picture imo. all the drivers on the grid have said questionable things about their sex lives and women in general, but they've all (for the most part...) moved on to set better examples to the point where i can feel largely comfortable supporting most of them (bar the obvious one of m*z*p*n)

he was told he was the no.1 popular driver for women after the f1 global survey and he talked about being happy to get girls and women engaged in the sport itself, bypassing the implication of a few interviewers (who implied the whole "isn't it nice to have hoards of women fawning over you" kinda thing, and the "oh they think you're cute and that's why they watch" sorts)

"Especially, I guess, with the women. There are so few women in motorsport and racing, so the more I can hopefully impact on that and give them the chance to believe they can be here in Formula 1 – maybe not just as a race driver but also engineering or mechanic-ing or whatever – there are plenty of spaces for them to do that,"

“If I can have an influence on them, that’s great. But I guess the more fans the merrier as well. It’s a nice thing to see,"

a smaller thing, where when he launched his kart he talked in a very inclusive way to include young girls in his interviews about the "next generation" getting on to the motorsport ladder

"Anything I can add to that to allow more boys, more girls to take part in racing if they can, and help them achieve their goals, then I’d love to be part of that. It's a cool thing to be part of and see over the next few years,"

a misogynistic question at his karting launch (which involved a random, unrelated picture of a few women in swimsuits) asked about how his popularity must make it easy to "get girls", and he circumnavigated it in a respectful way without devolving into the kind of 'locker room talk' that twitch clip involves, at most saying it was "nice" (lol) to have the girls present the trophies on the podiums during his karting days.

i think there was an event in austin? maybe mexico idk, where crofty asked him a similar question in the context of "you must have so many women throwing themselves at you", essentially almost pimping him out (?? idk it's hard to describe) and he once again navigated the question, if somewhat visibly uncomfortable, respectfully.

it might not be enough for you, which is totally fine!! but i at least gather some maturing has been done, and he's figured out a way to talk about these things without coming out and sounding like a bit of a twattish 16 year old lol

i just think it's important to remember that all the guys are just... rich, largely privileged men at the end of the day. there will inevitably be some questionable comments throughout their careers stemming from the cultures they've grown up in, but if they can go on to show that they're better people (even if it's up for interpretation from person to person) then i see no reason to not support them, but also no reason to tell others they're "wrong" for not forgiving or forgetting. but it does pay to be reasonable about these things, as we never really know the whole picture!

anyway... sorry for the long response!! and hopefully this has been a little helpful in explaining my thoughts :))

have a lovely day xx <3

Hi again anon! Don’t apologize for the length of this post, thank you for taking the time out of your day to detail all this, it’s quite a bit of info. All in all, I agree with you! Lando does occasionally just give me the ick as he clearly is still a young guy navigating a space that was never actually designed for people as young as him, and as a result has made quite a few mistakes over the course of the past few years.

Watching people coddle him from criticism is what rubs me the wrong way most of the time, as he is no longer a kid and should be made aware of the moments he fucks up, as we all should be. As I like to say, he’s not a child or a god, so there’s no reason to coddle or worship them. But also he’s a person, so there’s definitely ways to go about criticizing without perpetuating cancel culture.

Thanks again anon! Very few people in my asks have been as sensible as you today. Mwah!

[chal-lelerc]

ok so like. here’s my harry potter house thing. i’m ngl i tried to do this but then i deleted it bc it was getting too long and i didn’t have the attention span but. it kept sticking in my brain so i decided to pick it back up and as such, i’ve lost the original post but it was a quarantine activity (sort drivers into houses, assign quidditch positions, explain) posted by @verstappened​. houses done first, then positions, then explanations for both. i tried to make feasible teams, i.e making sure there arent too many of a single position per house, so this really screwed some of the sorting but oh well.

i did the houses first, then positions, then explanations in that order for the most part.

5/13/20: the sorting was mostly done before i heard all the differing opinions (of which there were many!)

5/19/20: alright so this is literally like 2 months old but i’ve just finished it lolol

Lewis Hamilton:

Slytherin: THE GLORY MAN. the aloof kind of superiority, confidence, is top dog, he’s simply the pinnacle of it all. kind of lethal and doesn’t do the whole ‘looking up to others’ things (outwardly, but he seems very soft on the inside tbh). very majestic and is almost a gryffindor, the kind of slytherin that Merlin is. hard-working, got here from incredibly humble beginnings, which kind of stands out from the rest, but he’s clearly now at the top level of society. still very protective of Others. scarily ambitious. Was originally a gryffindor but I wanted the brits to be in different houses for their quidditch positions to work. Could honestly go either way though.

Seeker: more glory. periodt. he stays winning and scoring the most points. clutch-man. Speedy boy, kind of in a different world than everyone else when competing (he’s always at the front lifetimes away from everyone else lmao. playing a diff game.)

Valtteri Bottas:

Hufflepuff: HE SEEMS. LIKE. A. BIG. CHILD. always relegated and brushed off but is literally God-Tier and no one can convince me otherwise. i consider him to be rather reliable (reflecting only the 2019 season at least lmao). a bit of a vindictive streak bc he knows what he’s Capable Of even when others underestimate him. has a very bright smile.

Beater: have u seen him. he’s a big boy even though he’s 5′8 and only an inch taller than lando norris he seems bigger than he is ok

Charles Leclerc:

Slytherin: this bitch. what a snake. hiss hiss.

Chaser: he wants what lewis hamilton has but chose the wrong position. still a star in his own right. pride and joy of his house, will be at the lead of every formation play unless told otherwise by his head of house, to which he will brood and complain ab but comply in the end bc he wants Team Success and loyalty to his Family. scores the most points on the team and people act like he carries even though he literally has a partner(s).

ok but fr my gut said charles is a slytherin (do i really need to explain why? very critical, doesn’t accept inferiority, somehow succeeds. just a feeling his brain seems to fit motorsport politics well), but i was seriously contemplating whether he’d be a gryffindor to max’s slytherin instead. but then i saw someone mention the whole lion schtick and i was like for all of max’s brattiness he is Gryffindor so sharl is snake. sorry don’t make the rules just follow them.

further edit: this was written before he started streaming (this is how old this draft is) and can u believe him he’s the epitome of the “not all slytherins r evil wenches” idea

Sebastian Vettel:

Ravenclaw: idk for all of Seb’s goofiness he just seems cerebral to me. Seems to know mildly irrelevant facts and is really quite smart however is hopeless in the modern age. Kind of that wise old(er he’s not that old) man knowledge. I’d trust him to give me all the life advice I need but also to write a 10 page essay on the nuances of the effect of emotion on verbal language (which we all know he is very experienced with).

Keeper: it’s the protective Dad Power.

Max Verstappen:

Gryffindor: WAS REALLY GONNA PUT HIM IN SLYTHERIN BC HE’S A NASTY LIL SHIT. TOTAL BRAT. GIVES FUCK ALL WHAT OTHERS SAY. BUT HE IS LION AND LION IS HE SO GRYFFINDOR IT IS. also just bc he needs to oppose sharl in every way possible it’s called Poetic Cinema. also his driving style is clearly the bravery and confidence to the point of recklessness that is prevalent among gryffindors.

Chaser: again, he must oppose Charles. so, not a seeker although he’s clearly singularly the most prized competitor. just like Charles, pride and joy of house, their star chaser. the comparisons never end. the competition never ends. the fighting never ends. one of the most interesting and dynamic performers to watch, is predictable in that he’s not predictable except that he will always be aggro to the max. will always be in trouble for getting rough bc that’s Not His Job but that’s just the gryffindor disregard for rules. master point scorer.

Alex Albon:

Gryffindor: was really a toss up btwn this and Hufflepuff but the ultimate deciding factor was the fact that I wanted all the British Boys to be seekers. he really just sticks it out as max’s teammate like a real one (nothing against max, everything against Helmet Merco) for the good of the team, still is sweet with max anyway. fitting that they’re in the same house too.

Seeker: he’s not the small boy that lando and lewis are but he is (thai/)British. very special boy (big ups on the promotion even tho it was Sad Times for Pear) deserves very special job. also he has a hot girlfriend (alex albon who i only know lily he’s boy toy) idk how that’s relevant but it seems fitting.

Carlos Sainz:

Ravenclaw: bc he’s a spaniard but is still better at english than Lando (i think everyone is tbh). Seems to be a quiet type of smart, sensible, but perhaps this is just the consequence of being compared to Lanno at all times LMAO (no hate all love bby Lannd). would be the type of ravenclaw to follow his friends on absolutely idiotic ventures but would step in to prevent near death or likely-legal-problem causing actions (and only then; otherwise it’s every man for themselves and everyone is free to make a fool of themselves and break some laws. carlos may dabble in such practices.)

Chaser: seems to be a go-getter, not going for points doesn’t even cross his mind. will always be the one driving up the pitch, the strategist of sorts bc he seems big(ger) brain (than lando lololol).

Edit: I wrote this part ab him long ago but this entire section of this post is now irrelevant and canceled.

Lando Norris:

Hufflepuff: you all know why. zero explanation needed. like, none.

also has a bit of an aggressive streak which tends to catch ppl off guard. is not afraid to confront u (hello pageNO) and at times defies the hufflepuff stereotype of being perpetually happy go-lucky (he has his bad days!). but when with His True Crew he is absolutely a hufflepuff ball of energy.

Seeker: small and speedy. energetic to the max. small. quirky and different from the rest, so he gets the special job. small. everyone would kill to protect him. small.

Daniel Ricciardo:

Gryffindor: AW I DIDN’T EVEN REALIZE THAT I PUT HIM AND MAX TOGETHER. LOOK I EVEN MADE THEM BOTH CHASERS. AH HOW BIGBRAIN MY MIND IS. everything ab dan is gold. golden skin, the colors in redbull and renault, his smile, just the vibes. he’s just got the enthusiasm and charisma and this intensity of a gryffindor. super aggressive, his late breaking (from his rbr at least) is legendary and maddening with how he pulls it off. is almost a hufflepuff but the gut said no.

Chaser: is Max’s teammate. so yeah. was obviously the star until younger max came to the show. a bit lost in limbo bc of it but they still work well together.

literally want to make him a hufflepuff so. bad. but i couldn’t split up maxiel. also his vibe is just different from other ‘puffs like stroll so.

Esteban Ocon:

Slytherin: ask max.

Chaser: being characterized off of their relationship with max seems to be a theme here. will go head to head with max w/ absolutely zero shits given. talented, but the rivalry with max is entirely secondary to charles imho. still yet to show his full potential but is still quietly a thorn in max’s side. many are interested to see what he is able to do in the immediate future.

Pierre Gasly:

Hufflepuff: GUYS HE WANTS TO OWN A PANDA

Chaser: constantly trying to prove himself and score big boy points. had a stint as seeker until lando came along. did not do as well as ppl had hoped, returned to chaser and proceeded to crush it from there. praticed a lot with charles as children (the friendship dynamic w/ their houses was definitely unforseen but is amazing).

Daniil Kvyat:

Hufflepuff: really wanted to make him a slytherin but the quidditch positions didn’t work out. firmly believe this works though. more of the rough and tumble type, definitely the kind that will sock u in the nose if u write off hufflepuffs as a joke. could honestly probably be a gryffindor too with how unapologetically aggressive he can be in the name of His Beliefs. gives me big dumb himbo vibes now that i think ab it tbh which is mostly the justification here. also he has a child omg.

Chaser: but the one that’s always headbutting bludgers out of the air (torpedo bitches). also had a stint as seeker before but it Was Not His Thing. he’d much rather be chasing and throwing things than seeking things. also he’s pierre’s mate :,) would’ve been a beater but romain and valtteri will not be anything else so daniil took the boot whoops.

Sergio Perez:

Slytherin: it’s just the vibe. knows his weaknesses and is able to make up for it with his confidence and talent in his strengths. very ambitious, plays the right cards at the right times to get the right results. something ab him puts me on edge, but like in a good way; i feel like there’s always a trump card up his sleeve, like when he gets to q3 out of fucking nowhere in a racing point.

Keeper: he gives me the same vibes as seb idk what it is. very dependable, backbone of his team.

Lance Stroll:

Hufflepuff: guys have u seen the guy. he’s just here to have a good time. may seem a bit airheaded at times but he means well 99% of the time. untapped potential. seems like a no thoughts head empty canadian hockey boy (and every one of these types is a hufflepuff don’t fight it); may or may not be the only accurate description of him.

Chaser: he’s just trying his best out here. i

KEEPER?: SO I DID A QUICK GOOGLE AND HE USED TO BE A HOCKEY

GOALIE?????

so scratch my initial thoughts (tbh i didn’t really know where to put him and i originally had romain as keeper but that’s an issue to fix later on now) BECAUSE LANCE STROLL IS A keeper GOALIE AND NO ONE CAN REFUTE THIS. ABSOLUTELY NO HUMAN OF THIS EARTH. WHAT GLORIOUS INFORMATION TO STUMBLE ACROSS.

Kimi Raikkonen:

Slytherin: guys i really don’t have an in depth analysis of this but i don’t think iceman needs one.

Beater: see above^. y’all must get the vibe.

tbh could also be a keeper tho similar energies to seb and checo, but honestly his no fucks given attitude is ultimately what swayed me

Antonio Giovinazzi:

Gryffindor: he just has that majestic quality (that could also fit a slytherin but i only see red when i see antonio). look at that lion’s mane. also he’s one of kimi’s to paddock friends? seems fitting that he’s a gryffindor to kimi’s slytherin.

Chaser: plays second fiddle to the duo that is max and daniel, often regulated to vibing on the side. but he’s there and he’s important and he has potential (i’ve been seeing ppl talking ab a ferrari move and i’m positively shaken). [edit: again, this post is old.]

im sorry its glaringly obvious idk much about him asdfjasldkd

Kevin Magnussen:

Slytherin: guys lots of these are just self explanatory sorry if i seem like im taking the cheap way out but it’s fact. brundle and crofty call him a great white shark for crying out loud.

Beater: unapologetically chaotic. lurking around the edges making people feel hunted. spends more time playing baseball in the middle of the matches than quidditch and sometimes it backfires but it’s good fun and it sometimes works.

Romain Grosjean:

Hufflepuff: y’all he’s such dad energy and he likes to cook. gets written off a lot but he actually cares (he’s a part of the grand prix drivers assoc.!). he seems so wholesome and he spends time with his kids and their school work when he can do u feel those water drops yeah those r my tears.

Beater: i really wanted to make him a slytherin beater to make him teammates with k-mag but he’s just. not a slytherin. but i kept the beater part. spends the majority of the hufflepuff v. slytherin matches sending bludgers kevin’s way even when he doesn’t mean to. it’s always reciprocated.

George Russell:

Ravenclaw: I’VE SAID IT BEFORE AND I’LL SAY IT AGAIN THIS KID. is so marvelously well spoken and he just has such a simple yet effective way with words. he knows what’s reasonable to expect but never fails to expect the most that he can given his circumstances. again, mentioned this before but a lot of it is his accent. the glottal stop is a historically stereotypically rural (i.e. “uneducated”) thing but I’m American and I Don’t Listen to the Rules, so the accent just makes him seem so sophisticated to me especially when he’s saying things like “horriiiiiiiific” and presenting his hefty powerpoints.

Seeker: my British Boys Are Seekers headcanon continues. definitely a Golden Boy of the team kind of guy (hello tragic dumpsterfire that is williams :/ ).

Nicholas Latifi:

Hufflepuff: same boat as lance. his twitch streams are so wholesome he’s just chilling man. twitter made me write him off as daft and unnecessary at first but like fuck twitter i’m all here for ninky latvia now.

Chaser: lowkey gives me keeper vibes as well? the sensible, level-headedness. but obvs that’s lance so chaser it is. still the level-headedness that helps him hold down the fort btwn pierre and daniil who can tend to get a bit imaginative, and also the energies of them + lando.

5/19/20: so it’s quite clear to me that i grew tired of brain functions the more time i took on this and the later ones are a bit lacking and for that i’m very sorry. that being said i’m still happy to see this finished bc the idea was VERY exciting for me.

[apr1lias]

I was tagged by @formulola (thank you so much 💞) to answer these 30 questions and then tag 20 blogs (idk if I’ll tag 20 but we’ll give it a go).

Right here we go!

Name/Nickname: Eden

Gender: Female

Star sign: Gemini ♊️

Height: 5”3 or 160cm

Time: 13:05

Birthday: 5th June

Favourite band/group: Coldplay

Favourite solo artist: Taylor Swift

Song stuck in your head: There’s been nothing much today, but recently it’s been Grace Kelly by Mika

Last movie: Ok so I watched the Greatest Showman for the first time on New Years Eve and idk why I waited as long as I did, it was amazing!

Last show: Genuinely I do not watch much TV, so the last thing I actually chose to watch was La Casa de Papel/Money Heist (and I wanna watch some other Spanish TV shows to try and help me learn the language).

When did I create this blog: May 2020

What do I post: Motorsport content (so F1, F2, F3, MotoGP and occasionally Frec) and football (I live blog when my team plays and it used to be my username). Hopefully, when I can be bothered, I’ll be able to post edits too because I really wanna create but have 0 motivation to do so right now.

Last thing I googled: how to calculate from feet and inches to metres (for the height part)

Other blogs: Yes, I have a sideblog for figure skating and gymnastics - @dmitri-alievs (I still get very confused so I accidentally reblog to the wrong account every now and then).

Do I get asks: Sometimes (especially now Chiara can send picture asks) but anyone is welcome in my inbox because I will happily talk about anything lol

Why did I chose my URL: Well Virtuosi = best team (with Prema but I already know people with the Prema URL) so I decided that I wanted a motorsport url and chose that, since I mainly post feeder series content.

Following: 199

Followers: 149

Average hours of sleep: 5-7 hours I think

Lucky number: 5

Instrument: I used to be able to play the guitar, but one of the strings broke a while ago, so I can’t now.

What am I wearing: tracksuit trousers and a pyjama t shirt because I woke up literally an hour ago.

Dream job: Sports journalist, either for football or motorsport.

Dream trip: Going to every F1 race with paddock passes (very unrealistic). But I would love to go on a European road trip because there’s so many places I wanna go but I’ve not travelled enough, or to NYC.

Favourite Food: Pie and Mash (honestly East London staple food)

Nationality: British

Favourite Song: Right now it’s With or Without You by U2

Last book I read: I’m in the middle of reading Don Quixote by Cervantes (it’s very hard work lol)

Top three fictional worlds: honestly idk

Tagging: @laptimedeleted @myimaginarywonderland @theglory-days @russellscuffle @jedivszombie @jurivips (only if you want to ofc!!)

[mickstart]

Thanks for tagging me @teamfiasco!!!!!

Rules: answer 30 questions and tag 20 blogs you are contractually obligated to know better

1) Name/Nickname: Laura! That's technically a nickname BC my first name is hyphenated

2) Gender: Nico Rosberg

3) Star Sign: capricorn

4) Height: I... I think I'm like 5'3 or something??

5) Time:  7 45 am

6) Birthday: 13th January!!! Close!!!

7) Favourite bands/groups: god I wish I followed music I'm so sorry I can literally only think of cobra starship or queen

8) Favourite solo artists: Mika!!! (Not the driver) and I guess Marina counts now and also Carly Rae Jepsen is living in my head rent free r/now. Also miss Monae.

9) Song stuck in your head: fucking. Boy Problems thanks miss jepsen

10) Last movie:  uhhhhhhh I haven't watched a movie in so long I struggle to sit through them. Oh wait! High school musical trilogy!

11) Last show: Uhhh Deep Space 9 I think?

12) When did I create this blog: DHDHSHS ummm October? November? Not long ago at all.

13) What do I post: vroom vrooms

14) Last thing I googled: how to do a challenge in hitman 2

15) Other blogs: simhealing is my simblr! I have a writing blog I don't use and haven't set up

16) Do I get asks: shdhshs for some reason the last few days YEAH!!!

17) Why I chose my url: Mick's starts in F2 are absolutely blinding and I wanted a unique Mick related URL so I named myself after a Mick start

18) Following: 208 dhdhsh I try to be mutuals with as many people as I can but I get overloaded so easily and especially during the F1 season my dash was almost giving me panic attacks BC too much information.

19) Followers: 382 omg.... Guys 😳🥺

20) Average hours of sleep: LMAO

21) Lucky number: idk I don't really think about this but I usually say 13 to be edgy / because it's my birthday

22) Instrument: ummm guitar? It's so versatile

23) What am I wearing: pyjamas lmao

24) Dream job: writer! Author or librarian or motorsport journalist Literally anything that will let me write.

25) Dream trip: ik I went over this before but I have a really dumb fixation with seeing Chernobyl

26) Favourite food: Satay curry!!

27) Nationality: English but like, Wales adopted me

28) Favourite song: I Have No Idea

29) Last book I read: idk it's not a Book book but War of The Foxes BC I asked for Siken for Christmas like the sad single bitch I am

30) Top three fictional worlds: Mass Effect, Star Trek, high school musical BC I wish I could randomly burst into song and have it be good

DHDHDHSHS I have. no idea who to tag and I'm sorry for the long post I'm on mobile and I really can't be bothered to get on my laptop just to add a read more

[lastonthebrakes]

Yeah, as someone that has grown up consuming reality tv, that’s how I take DTS and MotoGP Unlimited, with a handful of salt. There’s always a storyline. I think Marc summed up everything pretty well in a 2016 press conference (I think it was the kickoff for Qatar 2016), he still has a lot of respect for Vale, but sees him with different eyes. As you can tell, my talk about about Marc and COTA 2021 being my first race, he’s my favorite. Like I said, I’m not sure where I heard his name before (not in the same way I heard Vale’s name), but seeing him win at COTA felt right. I didn’t pay much attention to commentary so it’s not like I knew at the time that Marc has a very good win rate in the US; I had no reason to believe he was the favorite. The best way I can describe it was seeing Max win races last year. It felt right in my head. It’s sad I haven’t seen much of him this year, but hope he heals up soon. (I’ve watched his docs on Red Bulls website so those were also fun to watch!!). I will admit that at first, Fabio wasn’t a favorite of mine, but seeing him race and what he does, he makes it hard for me to not not like him. He’s just so silly. I think the first thing I saw of him was doing a fortnite dance to celebrate his championship last year lmao I think this was partially bc I heard about Pecco being the favorite this year (oof) and I’m just an overall fan of the underdog, the nonchampion, etc. I want more champions on the grid. Kinda skipping ahead to next year, I’m really excited to see Alex and Diggia at Gresini. Alex is finally able to get some breathing room from under his brother and I think Diggia is a strong rookie this year so I’m excited what he has for next year. I think that’s it for current riders, I’m mostly indifferent to everyone else. For past riders, I took a bit of an interest in Dani. It’s interesting seeing how great of a rider he is, yet almost always came second best. How many people in Motorsport that came second best are in the same conversation with the likes of people like Vale, Jorge, and Casey? And Jorge has always been interesting. He has an ego the size of the sun and posts the most random shit on instastories. A study should be done on him

NOT THE FORTNITE DANCE BEING THE FIRST THING YOU SAW FROM FABIO SDFHSDFSK he's cringe but he's free <3

yeah i’m really excited to see just how the grid shakes out for next year, especially who gets the other factory ducati seat. we’ll see how alex adapts to a new bike but i do believe gresini will be a good environment for him. and diggia has always been very interesting to me, like last year when it was announced that he would be coming to motogp, it was almost as if he gave up on his moto2 season and was saving himself sfhjdfdjd idk how to explain it really but that man loves the spotlight! and i’m sure he’ll do even better next year so it’s gonna be exciting. and the whole story surrounding the gresini team is so touching you can’t help but have a soft spot for them tbh

ah dani my beloved<3 him never winning a championship in the motogp class is my villain origin story but he was so so special, probably the nicest riding style i’ve ever seen and one of my all-time favorite riders. there’s also a red bull docu on him called “the silent samurai” and i def recommend checking it out! as for mr 5 time world champion jorge i think literally everybody who’s ever had a glimpse of him wants to study him like a bug lmao and the rivalry between him and dani is in and of itself fascinating

[slow-button-off]

I'm so confused by Sainz Sr because apparently he tried playing politics when Carlos was in Toro Rosso as well???? (Idk much about it because I've only ever kept up with Ferrari and Mercedes) But how???? He's a rally wdc but he doesn't have much money or influence outside of Spain. I know he supports the Spanish far right and the feeling is mutual, but again how much reach can they have outside of Spain????

The only thing truly suspicious is how many Spanish people are in Ferrari rn, the head strategist included, and the comment Sainz's Spanish sponsor made making fun of Charles.

But what kind of influence does Sainz Sr have in F1 to play political games with 2 different teams????

Hiya!

I've finally calmed down lol!

He has two big sponsors in estrella and santander. I think that might be the main thing when it comes to ferrari.

In Toro Rosso it was I would assume, same as you I never paid attention, it was also a bit about two kids from two former drivers up against each other. and the kid with the "lesser"(in many ways lesser but primarly I am taking about career) father got the preferred treatmeant. The Sainz name does have pull in motorsports. And AFAIK they were using the spanish press quite a bit.

Maybe the Sainz name also has some pull at Ferrari. I mean motorsports is a pretty interconnected community. So Sainz sr. definitely knows some people.

And there were rumours that jean todt returning to Ferrari was shut down because the Sainz side feared favouritism because his son is Charles manager. But I am also really confused because all the main Ferrari people I am pretty convinced prefer Charles if they prefer someone.

But honestly, I have about as much clue as you which is none.

Maybe if someone knows something they might want to contribute because I surely missed something.