#max can get p4 for his home race

[readingbythestreetlights]

my podium prediction for tmrw (based completely on personal preference for what i want to happen and vibes):

george p1 ; oscar p2 ; alex p3

(i do feel slightly bad not having max win his home gp, but mans won enough races already this year)

[mywritersmind]

MESSY - LN4

pt.2

summary : Lando will not quit in attempts to keep seeing y/n piastri. The Azerbaijan Grand Prix ends triumphantly for the piastri family, followed by a flirty dinner, and paper being thrown at her in the early morning.

OG SUMMARY (After a steamy night together, neither Y/n or Lando expected to see eachother soon. Well, when they find eachother in the paddock and come to the realization that Y/n is a Piastri and Lando is Oscar’s teammate… things get interesting.)

listen up : piastri!reader. nothing major!! mentions of sex.

word count : 1453

⋆｡‧˚⋆

I’m fucking extatic.

My mom and I came to Baku on a whim and now I'm hugging my champagne soaked brother after a pole position with my sisters on facetime.

The race was genuinely insane and my mom cried the whole time. Turns out all the F1 I watched at home is a million times better in person.

Especially when this time I can see everybody’s faces.

An hour later I'm waiting for Oscar to change while my mom is on a call. I look up when someone enters the room, he’s dark haired with huge brown eyes. “Oh- Hi.” His accent hits me and I'm star struck at my third favorite driver, Carlos Sainz.

“Hi.” I smile and look back at my phone, sort of freaking out on the inside.

He doesn’t move though, “Uh… I'm looking for Lando, have you seen him?” At the mention of the McLaren driver's name I feel my stomach twist.

“No sorry.” He nods and looks around the orange room.

“You’re not here with him?”

Here with him?

“No… I’m Oscar’s sister, Y/n.” His face makes an ‘o’ expression before shaking off and smiling.

“Shit! Your brother did well today. I’m Carlos.” I laugh a bit and am about to respond before Lando enters the room in black jeans, a mclaren shirt, and socks only. He looks at Carlos and I back and forth before raising a brow. Carlos turns to see him and says something in a hushed tone.

“Right…” Lando glances at me but rips his eyes away quickly.

“I didn’t know Piastri had a sister.” Carlos crosses his arms as I stand.

“Four, actually.” I laugh a bit, “Norris have you seen Oscar? We’ve got reservations.” I want to talk about his race but it feels wrong. P15 to P4 is pretty wild though. And sort of hot.

He basically laughs in my face, “He’s gonna be a while… No chance you’re making those reservations.”

I give him an annoyed look, “Great.”

“Don’t hate the messenger, love.” He doesn’t even flinch, but Carlos does.

He looks at Lando, horrified like he did something scandalous. As if he feels bad, he looks at me, “Look- your family can join us if you want.” Lando is the one to give him a look this time.

“So your guys’ reservations will work, but mine won’t?” I cross my arms at the men.

“You used your own name to make them?” Lando asks, I nod and as he tries to hide his smile he says, “Yeah you can come with us.”

⋆｡‧˚⋆

Oscar is confused at the invite but goes along with it. My mom decides to stay at the hotel for some work calls which makes me more nervous. I’m now alone with my brother, my hookup, Carlos’ clueless ass, Alex Albon, and Max Verstappen.

I almost cry when Alex’s girlfriend joins us. Lily and I follow eachother and have DM’d a few times but meeting in person is like me being saved.

“So, Y/n! Enjoy the race today?” Alex asks me cheerily, pouring more water into his glass with an arm around Lily.

“No race talk!” Lando and Max say in unison. I don’t really know how they do it. They race each other for two hours, are always pissy after, then just switch to being friendly so quick.

I look at Carlos who’s talking merrily with Alex, surprising considering he was a lap away from a podium before his dreams were crushed by a RedBull and a prayer.

The table we’re at is large and oddly enough, round. The restaurant is beautiful and mostly deserted except for our table. I’m next to Lily and Oscar, Lando across from me.

I’m acutely aware that he’s across from me because he hasn’t taken his eyes off me. I watch his hands move his Monza pole ring around his finger. God his hands. His hands that were all over me-

“Y/n, What are you ordering?” Lily asks which shakes me from my imagination.

After ordering we fall into comfortable conversation which eventually ends in me making fun of Oscar with photos from our childhood. “Right then! That’s enough.” Oscar eyes me when my phone swipes to a photo of Osc dressed up as a car.

“We know Oscar’s kink now.” Max jokes and I cringe, “What? They always stem from childhood!”

“So who you calling daddy then, Verstappen?” Lando doesn’t miss a beat, Max side eyes him. “No need to be ashamed, Osc.”

“Not in front of my baby sister, please.” He looks around the group who are all laughing.

“Come on, you're a year older than me!” I sigh, “You don’t know what I get up to.”

He makes a disgusted face.

“Or who.” I add simply, sipping my drink as Lando chokes on his. His face is red after Max slaps him on the back.

Oscar ends up changing the conversation around to old karting days and how I was dragged along. I eventually excuse myself to the bathroom, checking my hair and washing my hands, as I leave I run into Lando.

“Hi pretty.” He smirks as I roll my eyes.

“Would you stop staring at me? Oscar isn’t blind.”

He shrugs, “No.”

“No?”

“No. It’s kinda difficult when you look like that.” I’m going to pretend that didn't do something to me and move on.

“Nice race today. Sort of impressive.” I match his cool demeanor which he loses after my words.

“A compliment?” He grins, god his smile is ridiculous and when it’s directed at me I want to faint, “Thanks love. Wanna celebrate with me later?”

“Careful with the nickname, Norris. I’ll be celebrating with the man who actually won.”

Speaking of, Oscar joins us in the hall, his face dropping when he sees us, “Please tell me you aren’t friends already.” I stand up straighter, “I can’t have you two combine forces against me.”

This makes me laugh, “Don’t worry, Osci.” I squeeze his shoulder before stepping away.

Lando follows, “Yeah I don’t think we’re the friends type.��� I eye him behind me, he just winks.

⋆｡‧˚⋆

I’m pretty sure the world is working against me. Or maybe for me?

We’ve got an extra day in Baku to spend with Oscar. I woke up early, getting hot chocolate and settling on my balcony with my book and pajamas.

I’m happy in the early light, breathing in the fresh air when I hear a whistle. My eyes are drawn down to the man running shirtless, shading his eyes from the sun while looking up at me.

“Good morning!” Lando sings, that smile already planted onto his face. He looks way too tan, sweaty, and fit for five in the morning.

“Morning.” I say back.

“Watcha reading?” I raise a brow, confused because no guy ever cares about that.

“Um. Little women.” I close the book and flash him the cover. He nods.

“I have something for you!” He reaches into his pocket and I wouldn’t be surprised if he pulled out a boom box.

He pulls out a crumpled piece of paper, “Are you sending me a nude by hand?”

He laughs out loud, “No! It’s my number!” He throws it up but the wind pushes it right back down, landing at his feet.

He frowns and tries again, “You’re quite bold for a one night stand.” The paper falls again and I try not to laugh. He grabs it, looking up at me once again. I can see the blueness of his eyes even from stories up.

“Who said it was just a one night stand?” He squeezes the paper tighter. When he throws it once more, it finally lands on my balcony but Lando’s eyes jet to the balcony next to mine.

“The hell are you doing?” My brother's voice makes my eyes go wide. I had forgotten he’s right next door.

“Coming to see you, of course!” Lando opens his arms wide.

I can practically hear Oscar shaking his head, “Go away.” Lando nods and starts to jog backwards, his eyes meet mine once last time, making my breath stop short.

He smiles wider, turning around and following his route.

I shake my head, smiling to myself and opening the crinkled ball of paper. It reads his number and a small note.

Give me a chance, Y/n. You won’t regret it.

[gguk-n]

Hello!! I was wondering if you could please write a redbull driver with multiple wdc x platonic grid

But the older drivers like max Charles Lewis lando etc get jealous of her constantly being with the younger ones like franco kimi and Ollie all fluff n funny n fans going crazy bout their jealousy

Thank you

Rivals of the Track

{Reader's POV}

It was the Azerbaijan GP, Kevin wouldn't be racing so Ollie had replaced him for the race. He was this tall lanky British teen who rightfully corrected me saying that he was an adult now, he was funny. Ollie was with his best friend Kimi, who had come to support him for the race. I found their friendship endearing and reminded me of my best friend who would try to come to as many races as she could. The other drivers would argue about who my best friend was, but I knew who my best friend was and it was Y/BFF/N.

"Y/N, did you colour your hair?" Kimi asked. "You can tell?" I asked slightly shocked, "I just went for a lighter shade of burgundy than the last time" I elaborated. "Yeah, you look prettier" Ollie chimed. "Thank you. You boys are so sweet, unlike some people I know" I said looking at the other drivers who were stood a few feet away who were very confused when I asked them if anything was different about me. "You're always pretty" Franco added. "Okay, okay, flattery will only get you so far" I laughed. "We're being honest. Having some one as talented and beautiful on the grid that we can learn from is an honour" Kimi said solemnly. "Okay, is there a body you boys wanna hide?" I asked laughing. They laughed back.

"Can you introduce us to Lewis?" Franco whispered while we were stood there waiting for the media interviews. "Sure" I said. "He's so cool and we aren't sure if he'll talk to us" The other two boys added. "Oh, no, my babies, he's a sweetheart. You could just walk up to him and start talking. I was scared of him when I first joined too but we're pretty good friends" I explained. The 3 boys smiled at me, nodding in agreement.

Every time I would be talking to these 3, trying to make them feel at home like all the times the others did, I could feel eyes on me. I wasn't sure why they were all glaring at me.

I was doing my post quali media after qualifying P4. "So, what a race? Are you expecting a win or a podium?" The interviewer asked. "Obviously going to go for the win, podium isn't too far away either, let's see, I have a Ferrari and a McLaren to fight off though" I laughed. "We've seen you hanging around with the younger drivers, do they remind you of your rookie days?" she asked. "Yes, they are so nervous and scared but full of energy. They are fun to hang out with too" I said. "Does this mean you find the older drivers boring?" she prodded. "Never said that" I tsked. "I'm just trying to make them feel at home" I said. "Well, the fans are eating your interactions up. They find it so cute, you're like the mother duck and they are your ducklings" she said. "I wouldn't say that they are wrong" I chuckled. "I interviewed your teammate Max a while back and he didn't seem too pleased with your blossoming friendship. Why is that so?" the interviewer pointed out. "We're all competitive. I guess they are competitive about friends too" I shrugged. "It was nice talking to you, can't wait to watch you on the podium" she stated. I smiled and talked away.

I met the others in my drivers room. "I think this is a confidentiality breech to have all the other teams here" I laughed. "We're staging an intervention" Max stated. "For what? I don't have an addiction" I pointed out. "Since we're losing our bestie" Lando said. I couldn't help but laugh, "Who?" I asked. "You, you dumbass" Charles said. I sat on the chair that was unoccupied. "What's up my fellow drivers?" I asked. "We aren't only your fellow drivers, we're best friends" Lewis said. "Arguable but okay" I shrugged. "Are we not best friends?" Daniel fake cried. "My best friend is Y/BFF/n. You guys, I tolerate at best" I laughed. I could see all them visibly pout. "We don't like it" they said in unison. "What do you not like?" I asked. "You hanging out with the younger drivers or that we aren't best friends. Are we too old for you?" Carlos asked. "I'm as old as you guys. They just remind me of my siblings, they are like my ducklings and I'm their mother duck" I chuckled reminded of the analogy. "So, you aren't replacing us?" Oscar quipped. "Obviously not, they are my children. You guys are my friends" I said face palming myself. "Group hug?" Yuki asked and then we all huddled together. "What about us being best friends?" Max asked. "Still Y/BFF/N. I don't feel like a girl when I'm around you guys, she reminds me. We all have something special, we're competitors and friends" I said. They all seemed to nod in agreement.

After an abysmal race, I was laying in my hotel room going through twitter when I saw people talking about how I had taken the younger drivers under my wing and how they would follow me around like lost puppies while you could see the others stare daggers at them. At some point in the weekend, Max did almost carry me away from them, out of jealousy it seems and the gif was circulating all over the internet. I laughed at the tweets, my friends can get jealous, they would be jealous when I hang out with Y/BFF/N but I do need a get away from all the testosterone, but they are nice people, just bad at communicating.

[coco-loco-nut]

Book Club - Part 5

Pairing: Lance Stroll x Reader, Grid x Reader

Summary: the wedding, not too much grid involvement (sorry!!!)

masterlist

________

You didn't expect planning a wedding to be this hard. You and Lance agreed on something more low-key, but that doesn't really happen when you are both famous in your own right and you are marrying the son of a billionaire, so you settled on a fancy but small wedding. Lawrence funded the whole wedding, wanting the day to go off without a hitch, besides you and Lance getting hitched obviously. Lance took care of planning the Honeymoon, leaving you and Lawrence to plan the wedding.

"Y/n, go take a break. You are stressing out over nothing my dear. Let me handle it, your wedding shouldn't be stressful," Lawrence rests his hand on your shoulder and you nod, taking a deep breath. Your soon-to-be father-in-law has done a great job so far at bringing your vision to life, so you trusted him to argue with the beach venue in Greece. You walked away and went to the mini library of the Switzerland home.

Your bridal party/mini vacation to a small beach town in Corsica, planned by none other than George Russell and Chloe Stroll, was fabulous. The weekend flew by so quick, and Daniel made it his personal mission to get you drunk off your ass 24/7. The whole book club, besides Fernando made up your bridal party, in addition to George, Logan, and Chloe.

“Y/n, you look beautiful,” Chloe and Claire help the stylists put finishing touches on you. The greek sun has tanned you perfectly the past couple days, and given you a beautiful glow. There is a knock on the door and Chloe is quick to open it. Your bridal party walks in, dressed in their tan suits.

“My daughter, you look stunning,” Kimi hugs you, he is giving you away on your request.

“Thank you,” you whisper. Your bridal party consists of Chloe (your maid of honor), the book club (minus Fernando who is with his teammate), George, and Logan. Logan’s groomsmen is also filled with drivers as well as Chloe’s husband Scotty who is serving as his Best Man.

“Alright, time for one last meeting before testing,” Checo says, one of your wedding photographers making sure to catch the moment on camera. An hour filled with laughter passes quickly and soon enough, Lawrence is guiding you to your first look with Lance. It was one thing that you and Lance were certain of, wanting the private moment for yourselves.

Lance is standing on the balcony staring at the ocean, waiting for you. You spot a photographer standing in a corner of the large space, trying to remain invisible as you slip onto the balcony.

“Come here often?” your voice shakes slightly as the breath leaves you. He looks utterly handsome in his suit and perfectly styled hair.

“I- you look- wow,” he says, taking in every inch of you. Both of you look at each other, tears pricking in your eyes.

“I can, and will, say the same thing about you,” you grin, stepping towards him. He carefully pulls you into him, kissing you.

“I can’t wait to make you my wife,” he rests his forehead on yours.

“Half an hour,” you could hear the sounds of your guests filling in.

“Then they will be able to see the most beautiful woman in the world,” Lance smiles, your heart racing.

“It will be a shame that they won’t be looking at you. How will they know that I am the luckiest girl in the world,” you return his smile.

“No, I am the luckiest guy. I get to marry a multitalented woman. You are an incredible racer, the most beautiful woman on earth, the kindest soul, and yet you choose me,” he continues his flattery.

“I am a good racer, not incredible,” you laugh. You aren’t like Max, Charles, Lando or Carlos, you don’t fight for podiums as often, but you do tend to hang around P4 or P5. You aren’t a world championship winning driver, it’s why Red Bull signed you to replace Checo in the upcoming season following his retirement. They need a solid second driver, and they know that Max will teach you more and push you.

“Nonsense, my baby is going to be driving for Red Bull, they chose you for a reason,” Lance reassures you.

“Y/n, Lance, one more minute,” Chloe interrupts.

“I’ll see you out there,” you squeeze his hands, a motion he returns. After a quick kiss, you follow him off the balcony. Your stylists do some quick touch ups before your party is escorted outside, you watch as the procession starts, Lance leading the pairs down the aisle. The grid takes the coupling in stride, holding arms with each other and making everyone giggle at them, including you.

“Are you ready, Kirppu?” Kimi asks, tears in his eyes.

“Remember, I’m training you for whenever those three get married,” you glance at your adoptive siblings.

“I know, they adore their older sister. Let’s not make Lance wait any longer,” Kimi sighs as you squeeze his arm. You and Kimi walk gracefully down the aisle, a wide smile on your face, and Kimi’s usually stoic face full of emotion. When the officiant, aka Sebastian Vettel, asks who is giving you away, he proudly identifies himself as your father, and when he sits down beside Minttu he is crying like a baby. The ceremony flies by, but you and Lance soak in every detail. Your vows to each other are short and sweet, not needing to say a lot to profess your love to each other.

“You may now kiss the bride,” Sebastian says, Lance wastes no time in wrapping an arm around your waist and pulling you into a kiss. The guys on both sides of you go nuts, Kimi cries again, and you pull apart with a grin. Lance picks you up and carries you down the aisle.

The reception takes place on the beach, you changed into a shorter, flowier, white dress for dancing and sand purposes, Lance’s suit jacket is off and the top few shirt buttons are undone. You and Lance entered first for the sole purpose of wanting to see how the ‘couples’ entered. Each driver pairing made the both of you laugh your butts off, very glad that there is video evidence of it.

You both refused to let Netflix film and other celebrity news outlets photograph any parts of the wedding, they weren’t invited and if they wanted media from it, they can pay the both of you a hefty sum. The security provisions for keeping away paparazzi meant that everyone was able to truly enjoy themselves.

“Family photo!” Minttu says, pulling you and Lance over as the reception starts. The first picture is just Robin, Rianna, and you carefully holding Grace, then Lance gets added in, then Kimi and Minttu join, then Lance leaves the picture so it is only you 6.

“My icecubes,” Kimi smiles at the pictures adoringly.

“One day we are going to drive for Ferrari together, just like Iskä,” Robin looks up at you and you smile, knowing that you will be far to old to do that when he is in F1.

“Heck yeah, little bro,” you hug him. Maybe you will get to be his race engineer, congratulating him when he wins his first championship.

“You two will be champions of the world together,” Lance winks at you and Robin.

“You look like a princess and a prince,” Rianna says, you pick her up and hug her. Kimi is silently combusting while watching his kids be cute together.

“That makes you a princess too, since you are my little sister,” you tickle her and she squirms out of your arms into Lance’s.

“I’ll protect you, don’t worry,” he angles her away from you as she laughs.

“Hey!” you laugh as well.

“Ok kids, let your older sister and brother greet their other guests,” Minttu says, Lances heart swells hearing himself included. You both make your laps around the tables, greeting the guests before dinner is served. The speeches are wonderful, and before you know it, you are dancing with Kimi for your Father-Daughter dance.

“Are you ok, Dad? You are crying more than I think you ever have,” you smile softly, as he uses a had to wipe his eyes.

“I just never expected to grow so close to you when I offered to mentor you, and now you are for all intents and purposes my daughter, and I’m so proud of how much you’ve accomplished this past year. If I had it my way, your last name would be Räikkönen, not Stroll now,” Kimi sniffles.

“About that. My new legal name is Y/n Räikkönen-Stroll. I talked to the family about it and they agreed, I was going to wait to surprise you,” you reveal, his smile quickly growing.

“I’m so happy to call you my daughter,” he hugs you as the song ends.

“No more happy as I am to call you my dad,” you squeeze him tight. As the night ends, you and Lance are whisked away to catch the private jet to wherever Lance planned the Honeymoon.

instagram

y/username now and forever Y/n Räikkönen-Stroll ily @/lancestroll

lancestroll can’t wait to spend forever with you ❤️

fernandoalonso félicitations , beautiful wedding!

kimiraikkonen Congratulations, Kirppu, so glad to have a new addition to the family.

y/username thanks dad!

sebastianvettel Congrats to the happy couple! Always a good wedding when Kimi cries!

logansargeant poor Nico, his grid wife has a grid husband now

nicohulkenberg No one can separate us, our love is eternal

y/username who said I can’t have both! 🥰

lancestroll @y/username …me, your husband???

redbullracing our favorite grid couple! p.s. let us know what name your are racing under - Admin

y/username Y/n Räikkönen, two Strolls on the grid would be too chaotic. love you admin 🫶

comments on this post are limited

[aviscarrentals]

why i believe alex replacing logan is the worst possible decision williams could make

#1: logan’s confidence

we saw this exact thing happen with checo last year. after his brief stint of trading wins with max, max continued to consistently wipe the floor with him via the gap in their performances. this continued to eat away at checo’s confidence until, by the end of the season, he was t-boning alex albon in singapore for no reason and somehow retiring twice in suzuka. now that there has been an extended break and he has had the chance to grind and truly work on himself nonstop, he has returned with incredible form. but who knows how long this will last? as soon as there’s a race that isn’t a red bull 1-2, he will be completely torn into and i believe the downward trajectory of last year will repeat itself.

this is very similar to what logan went through last year. once he was announced, there was so much hope for an incredible debut season, but that never came his way. i think the first big nail in the coffin was getting his first p20 at his home race and i think the biggest hit was qatar. even though he should never ever be ashamed of putting his safety first, i understand why, from an athlete’s perspective, he would look at that race as a failure.

fortunately for him, he has had a team with incredibly strong leadership backing him up. giving him the opportunities he needed, never giving up on him, celebrating the single point he scored last year like he lassoed the fucking moon, and re-signing him because he has such incredible potential as a formula 1 driver. everything went wrong for logan, except for williams, who did everything right.

except now, williams has publicly stated that they have no faith in him to score points. now the only support logan has is random fans at races, strangers on the internet, and his own friends and family. that must feel fucking awful. logan has been so positive throughout the struggles of this year and last, but he has to be hurting right now. there’s no way he isn’t.

logan sargeant is not a bad driver. you can disagree with me as loud as you want to, but i won’t hear a word of it.

absolutely stunning junior career aside, logan showed incredible improvement towards the end of the season. not only did he score a point in austin, but he came unbearably close in mexico, and if it weren’t for a hydraulics failure, he very easily could have had two points finishes in a row.

this year may seem like it has gotten off to a bad start for him, but i heavily disagree. in bahrain he had great pace and was steadily climbing closer and closer to the points when he had a brake failure. the car switched his balance completely on its own and made it literally impossible for him to turn. even max couldn’t recover from that.

in jeddah his pace was wonderful again. i think his biggest struggle currently is qualifying, but he was overtaking beautifully and making his way up the field. while 15th isn’t a spectacular finish, he was matching alex quite well throughout the whole race. (also jeddah sucks so he gets a pass 👎)

george russell did not score a SINGLE point during his rookie season for williams and he is now a race-winning future championship contender and beating his 7x wdc teammate in the standings at p4. logan has already beaten that AND he has an experienced driver that he seems to get on with quite well as a teammate to mentor him, which george didn’t have; he was william’s number one driver from day one. logan has so much potential that is only being hindered by his lack of confidence, unpreparedness (reminder he was brought to f1 an entire year earlier than he was originally supposed to be; they planned for him to be a 2024 rookie), and a shitty car.

#2: alex albon

now poor alex is in the worst position of his life. brother already probably feels like shit for putting logan through this (even though it is NOT his fault and he has absolutely zero say in this decision) and if he doesn’t score any points this weekend, he will be torn to shreds by the media.

i have already seen multiple posts including alex in their list of fuck yous. this will do incredible damage to him pr-wise and will also make him feel even worse if he doesn’t somehow pull off a miracle performance.

#3: albert park

alex is an incredible driver, constantly pulling a back marker car into the points. however, this is a track that he has historically struggled at (in the exact same turn might i add!!) for multiple years in a row. who’s to say this mistake could not be made tomorrow or sunday as well? that will make everyone involved look and feel horrible.

not to mention that the fw46 is NOT SUITED for albert park. AT ALL. vcarb’s official website describes it as a ‘medium-high’ downforce track, which is exactly what the car is suited to struggle with, making it nearly impossible for albono to score points (which, like stated before, will be terrible for him) as well as making this gp a likely inconsequential race! meaning this is the perfect opportunity to let logan drive on the limit and really showcase his true talent and capabilities as a driver.

but now williams has chosen to do the complete opposite and ruined logan’s trust in his team as well as any other offers from rival teams for him for the 2025 season. if logan’s own team would bench him for his teammate, why should they take him over a talented upcoming rookie? (this is a rhetorical question; i truly believe he has the potential to, with a good enough car and team behind him, become a race-winning driver in the future.)

#4: james vowles and the future of williams

james has justified this decision by mentioning how every race counts and that a single point can make a world’s difference in the midfield. while this is true, james has also been on the record multiple times saying that he doesn’t give two shits about this season (as well as the next few). he has stated that his goal is long-term, to rebuild the team and return it to its former success of the 90s and early 2000s. so why ruin the reputation of your driver who you have been supporting since his junior career over the possibility of a single point or two? that is a short-term solution, not a long-term one. james is usually a wonderfully eloquent speaker, however, he has completely contradicted himself here.

in my opinion, the best decision would be to race logan. while i love alex to death, he’s the one who crashed his car, completely on his own with no fellow drivers or failures on the car’s side to blame. logically, he should be the one to sit out the race, no?

like i briefly touched on before, i also think this is a golden opportunity to put logan in a race where they will most likely come away with nothing anyways and give him the opportunity to pull off something incredible (which he absolutely can under the right circumstances). if he was able to have a good drive on sunday, he would be a star and williams would look like geniuses. with this decision, everyone just looks like an asshole.

final thoughts

to conclude, i am no certified expert, but this decision makes zero sense to me, as it also does to many others from what i’ve seen. i usually wholeheartedly agree with all of james’ decisions, but this one beats me. i cannot for the life of me figure out why williams would choose this.

there is a part of me that hopes williams will reverse this decision before sunday in order to save themselves from all of the pr backlash they are facing, but i understand that that is very much wishful thinking. the only good thing that can come from this is williams finally learning how to be prepared and/or logan being able to channel his frustration into motivation (although i don’t think there’s any way for him to possibly work harder than he already has).

if anyone disagrees with me and thinks this is the right decision for williams to make, i would love to hear why. no one has to agree with me, these are just my personal thoughts on the situation.

-avis 🏎️💨

[cheriladycl01]

My love, is mine all mine - Max Verstappen x Norris! Reader x Charles Leclerc Part 1

Plot: Norris' Twin sister is also a driver in the 2021 line up and is in her rookie era. Not only do the commentators struggle to now talk about the pair in the race, but they also struggle to talk about talent. What happens when two drivers find her eye-catching.

A/N: A lot of back story explaining the 2021 season so far!

"So when we talk about the Norris twins, obviously due to Y/N being female it has pushed her career back further than her brothers, where she is debuting into McLaren alongside her brother we will be able to see a real test of talent"

"Yes i think it will be really interesting to see them both in the same team competing against one another while still driving for that same team. They have very similar driving styles and I can imagine them helping one another out when it comes to pole positions and keeping both of them within the top ten for points" Jenso replies to Nico.

This was from an interview at the start of the 2021 season, just before your first race in Bahrain. When Zac Brown reached out to you, you were more than happy to take up the offer. Being able to not only race alongside your brother once again but by being his team mate as well had you so excited for the season.

Bahrain went really well, Lando being in his 3rd year of Formula 1 and within the same team now felt comfortable in his car, and it had the pace this year and he came P4, you had some difficulties where you weren't fully used to the difference in the F1 car, compared too your old F2 but still managed to wrangle 6 points for the team in P7.

Imola came after a larger break where you and Lando got to travel home for a few weeks before and check on everything in the MTC before travelling to Italy. Lando got a podium in P3 and like the interview had said, he kept enough of a time gap to help you defend of the two Ferrari's behind you. You came P4. To say that Charles wasn't happy with this, as you knocked him down a place was an understatement.

Portugal was the week after and you travelled straight there, sightseeing with your brother, Daniel, Carlos and Charles. You would often leave them in bars and clubs and find yourself in cafe's and museums. Portugal wasn't as good as a race as you could have hoped, but even with car issues you still managed to get points in P9, while your brother came P5.

After this race, where you went straight to Spain, you started to get home sick. Only having your brother by your side as your parents and other siblings couldn't come out for the last few races due to their own busy schedules. Spain was an incredible race for you making you feel better for the next week ahead. You came P4 managing to overtake Charles on the last lap, which again heavily annoyed him, and very nearly catching up to the Mercedes in P3 while you left your brother in the dust in P8.

There was another break after this race, you and Lando both went home you saw Max and his girlfriend who you'd missed dearly and your family, then Charles had invited you and Lando to come spend some time on his yacht in Monaco with his younger brother who you knew of from the F2 garage when he'd been invited to come watch.

You had been nervous for the race in Monaco, it was a difficult track and so far, you hadn't been in a position where you hadnt gained the team points. However Monaco was clearly not your race, from the mixture of your nerves and car issues you came P12, while you brother stood on the podium, in P3.

The next week in Azerbaijan went so much better, with Max, and both Mercedes not having pace, you'd managed some effortless overtakes and insanely quick pit stops. You'd had a second pit stop and was on fresher tires that your brother so you were behind him, you were flying and going much quicker than him but your engineer didn't want you to go for the overtake.

You did anyway against their advice, pushing until you were behind Charles Leclerc's Ferrari, you went for a cheap move that you knew was safe but would have him fuming in interviews afterwards until you were up alongside Pierre Gasly, you were P4 and he was P3, driving alongside him you couldn't tell who went over the checked flag until you heard from your radio engineer that this was your first podium win.

You cried... of course you did. But this was the start of a rocky patch for you and Lando, he was fuming at you the minute you got out of your car. You were asked not to go for the overtake but you did anyway. He was yelling in your face angrily, taking away the beaming smile.

Lando hadn't realized you'd got your first podium, he was just angry that you'd bumped him down a place. You looked upset on your podium, a sad smile as you raised you trophy, stood up there with Sergio and Sebastian. They'd both given you a hug trying to cheer you up having seen on the TV what happened with you and Lando.

"Well done on your win Y/N" a voice startled you as you turned to your side seeing Max Verstappen stood there congratulating you.

"Thank you. I'm sorry about the DNF, France will be better next weekend for you I'm sure" you smile, a light blush held on his face.

"I'm also sorry about how your brother reacted. I've been in this sport for 6 years now and as a word of advise sometimes you have to go against what your team ask of you, you gained more points for the team today than you would have if you did stay put behind your brother. So take it as not only as a win for you but a win for McLaren as well" he smiles before pulling you into a comforting hug. His words had really hit you, nobody had said that to you today, but then again Seb and Checo probably didn't here the opposing radios yet as they'd been on the podium with you.

"Thank you, i really needed to here that Max" you smile genuinely.

"Hey, that overtake was so risky!" a voice shouts over, and thundering footsteps stand behind you.

"Huh?" you'd asked looking over your shoulder, Max's gaze following yours.

"Charles, leave her alone!" Max says with pointed eyes at the Ferrari golden boy coming close to you.

"No, she needs to stop doing overtakes like that at the last minute. They are dangerous and have no thought behind them, you even put your own brother at risk today because she can't listen to her own team" he yells his exaggerated hand gestures going everywhere.

"Her overtakes today was phenomenal. She just got her first podium, her brother has already spoiled that don't make it worse by being a prick" Max says, but Charles is fuming and too far gone that the stuff coming out his mouth is there from pure anger.

"She shouldn't have even had that win today! It's not fair, she shouldn't even have that seat!" he exclaims, Max gasps and you look down.

"Charles!" he exclaims, but before you can hear anything else you are out the door running towards the McLaren motorhome. You packed up your stuff saying quick apologies to the engineers who would take anything you left behind. You didn't have a car here so you walked from the track to the hotel, a few people spotted you but thankfully didn't interrupt seeing the tears streaking down your face. They must have seen both Charles and Lando yelling at you today.

You booked a flight to London for that night, you had your bags packed and sent to the airport before you had Seb offer to drive you to the airport.

"Thank you Seb, I really appreciate it" you smile, looking down at your phone. It rung with Lando's icon popping up. You pressed decline and put your phone on do not disturb.

"It's okay. I saw the videos of Lando and Charles with you surfacing. I'm sorry" he admits, rubbing your shoulder, as you turned to look away from him so he couldn't see the tears coming down your face.

In no time you were at the airport, you'd thanked Seb who promised he'd see you in France and asked you to let him know when you were safe and home.

You sat in the airport alone, your covid mask on, but you knew people still recognized you as you went through security and waited for the plane where they would take pictures of you. Some even came up asking for pictures or signing their merch, but where it was so late there wasn't too many that it alarmed you or security.

When you landed in the UK, your dad was right there pulling you into a hug, cussing his son out saying how he should have been there to celebrate the win. You cried to him, telling him about how shit you felt after what Lando and Charles had said.

"Lets go home" he says rubbing your shoulders.

As you both walk into the house, you can overhear you mum and younger sister on the phone to someone.

"No mum, I just want to know if she's home safe" you hear your twin's voice across the phone.

"Look hunny, your dad's gone to the airport but I don't know if he's got her yet. She's upset though Lando" you hear your mum reply.

"I know, and I know its my fault, i didn't realize she got the team more points because she overtook Charles and Pierre. I didn't get to apologize because she left right after the race"

"Because you were?" his mother pushes and he groans.

"Mum"

"No Lando where were you"

"At the club"

"Yes you were at the club, celebrating while your sister was packing her bags in her hotel room crying her eyes out because she gets her first win in F1, and her brother cant even congratulate her and watch her podium with the rest of their team? She'll see you in France but for now she needs some time alone" you mother rants at him.

"Arghhh that boy Flo, can you believe him. When i next see him, i swear to god!" she exclaims and you and your dad finally make yourself known.

"Hey guys!" you try to smile, but it doesn't reach across your face like they are used to. Flo immediately runs up to you pulling you into a hug. You started to cry into her again, before Cisca, your mother and father all join in the hug.

"Come, we'll order your fave tonight as a treat okay?" your mum guides as she sits you down at the table.

Taglist:

@littlesatanicassholebitch @hockey-racing-fubol @laura-naruto-fan1998 @22yuki @simxican @sinofwriting @lewisroscoelove @cmleitora @stupidandunnecessary @clayra-g @daemyratwst @honey-belden @moonypixel @lauralarsen @vader-is-hot @ironcowboycopnickel @itsjustkhaos @the-untamed-soul @beebo86 @happylittlereader @ziejustme @lou-larcher5 @thewulf @purplephantomwolf @chasing-liberosis @chillyleclerc @chanthereader @annoyingmoonballoon @summissss @evieepepi08 @havaneseoger08 @celesteblack08 @gulphulp @fandom1ruined2me @celebstories @starfusionsworld @jspitwall @sierruhh @georgeparisole @dakotatankbig @youcannotcancelquidditch @zzonsbeek @tallbrownhairsarcastic @mellowarcadefun @ourteenagetragedy @otako5811 @countingstacksandpanicattacks @peachiicherries @formulas-bitch @cherry-piee @hopexcroc @mirrorball-6 @spilled-coffee-cup @mehrmonga @bigsimperika @blueberry64857959 @eiraethh @lilypadlover

[mysteriouslyjovialcolor]

United States 2024

-Thought Lewis would start from the pit lane (to change his setup) but I guess George is?

-“COTA: Constant Outstanding Track Action” (haha how do they come up with these things)

-“I get the feeling that the Scuderia are pretty confident this afternoon” I hope so

-“You’re on your own now” Hello? Taylor Swift?

-Having both Ferraris in a row behind you seems frightening

-WHAT WAS THATTTT

-CHARLESSSS OHMYGODD

(Had to look away for a second at the start and when I looked back a Ferrari was leading and I thought it was Carlos, but it’s Charles????)

-Through goes Leclerc!!!!!!

-Lewis??? Oh no!

-Just remembered that the safety car does in fact exist this season. Welcome back queen.

-“That was just opportunistic for Max”

-I was looking forward to Charles and Max racing! I hope we get it!

-Logan definitely cursed the Williams at his (sort of) home race today- as he should

-Guys I really think cosplaying the McLaren allowed Gasly to mimic their speed as well

-How are we only ten laps in? So much has happened

-Completely forgot to check on how Liam Lawson is doing

-p9, not bad

(Please Daniel come back)

-Carlos: “No power…it’s costing me a lot”

Ferrari: “I know”

I know?? I knowww? Do something about it!

-Go Yuki! Go!

-McLaren to Oscar: “Feedback on Plan A please”

Oscar: “Ambitious”

He has such a way with words

-Unfortunately for Mercedes, I think a good race for them would be just George finishing the race (I mean Lewis is already out, they’re already having a bad day)

-“Found a bit of an issue” Now Red Bull?? Now??

-“What?!” ~George Russell on his 5s penalty.

-So valid

-“Total joke George, with the penalty, total joke”

-Don’t know if I’ve mentioned, but I’m so grateful for radio subtitles.

-No hate to Liam but I will hate if he puts Nico out of the points

-“Hopefully he (Perez) can hunt down Piastri and Norris” Now that’s ambitious

-Did the Haas get new strategists? Did they successfully pull off an undercut?

-Woah, Yuki and Nico!

-“If Gasly gets enough points, Alpine can overtake Williams in the constructors” Yes let’s do that

-“Clever strategy down at Haas” omg

-Now that’s a rookie Fernando Alonso won’t have issues with- let’s go Franco!

-“Don’t leave me out for too long, I don’t want to be under pressure” Ferrari please pull through

-Alex Albon: always bringing the excitement to the midfield

-“It hasn’t gone right for Pierre Gasly in this second stint” Oh well, you can only cosplay someone for so long

-“I don’t know what that means” haha Carlos

-“Germany situation” McLaren pit wall, just saying anything

-Please let me have Charles and Max racing

-I’m asking for a miracle

-So many 5s penalties today

-Well there go my dreams for a Max vs Charles

-“It does look like the Ferraris have got it covered up front” at least that’s going well

-NO KEVIN!

-Okay that wasn’t too bad. I thought he was retiring

-“Couple of feisty drivers here” Yes, Kevin and Franco. Do your thing!

-Franco really is so impressive

-Yellow flag? Yuki?

<interlude cause for the next few minutes all I could hear was my own heartbeat>

-The driving that both Max and Lando have shown today????

-Screaming, crying, throwing up

-HAPPY BIRTHDAY CHARLES LECLERC

-He wins in Monza! He wins in Austin! (Both from p4!)

(Holy shit post race Sainz)

-Funny how the last USGP I watched was also a Ferrari win

-Ferrari wins are always so special. Everyone is so happy; i.e I’m so happy

-🎉🎉🎉

-George actually had a not so bad race himself

-And yay on Haas points!

[charles-leclerc-official]

2024 Austin Grand Prix Race Analysis

Charles brought home his third victory of the 2024 season with an impressive drive going from P4 to P1 in the first corner of lap 1. Behind him Max and Lando continued to battle while this weekend set up a very tight race for the WCC.

Table of Contents Ferrari - Charles - Carlos - Data Analysis Red Bull - Max - Max vs Lando: footage analysis - Data Analysis Mclaren - Lando - Oscar - Data Analysis Mercedes - George Conclusion

The Austin GP set the stage for the final stint of the 2024 season, and it’s looking like it has promised 3 way battles through Abu Dhabi. 

The thing I want to note before getting to the individual team sections is the yellow flag in qualifying. In Q3 George spun out in the middle of the session. After most drivers had put in one lap, but before most could complete their second lap. This impacted the qualifying results of many teams and drivers. Most notably Max who was looking like he was on track to score pole. Both Ferrari drivers were in the middle of good laps as well. And Lando and Oscar were also trying to improve. It interrupted what was already a competitive qualifying session, so it’s impossible to say what might have happened if qualifying hadn’t been interrupted. Max might have been on pole, but either Ferrari might have been able to get there, Lando might have kept it. I just wanted to point this out because I don’t think the qualifying results really reflect the best most of the top 10 had to offer for the session. 

Going off that I won’t be going over too much quali data. Because it wasn’t definitively representative, and it ended up not mattering that much with the race results. 

Final note, I don’t have much to say about the sprint. It happened. The points gained will be important in the WCC, and Max’s win is an important reminder that wins are on the table for him and Red Bull again. 

Ferrari

First thing to note about Ferrari is that while it was widely reported that Ferrari did not bring any upgrades, that isn’t quite true. Yes no aerodynamically new parts were brought to the track, however the front wing in Austin was not the same as the one used in Singapore. Since the FIA gave clarification on the permissible flexibility of the front wings Ferrari made a new wing with a more flexible composite. This wing is the same design as the one used in Singapore, but it’s more flexible. Since nothing about the design changed no upgrades were reported, but this was a key change to the car. 

Overall the car performance at Austin was strong. From free practice, to the sprint, to qualifying to the race itself the SF-24 was in fighting form. 

The pace both drivers extracted from the car this race really showed what the car is capable of, and I think highlighted all of the work the team has done to recover post triple header. Apart from that pesky fastest lap point Ferrari maximized results in the race. 

Charles

Charles qualified P4 and finished in P1 securing his third win this season.

As stated above, Charles’ qualifying was compromised by the yellow flag in Q3 he looked like he was on an improving lap from his first Q3 lap, but he had to abort and ended up qualifying P4.

This ended up working because come the race he was poised to pull off one of the moves of the season. Stealing the lead into turn one, overtaking the top 3 and securing P1 until the finish line. 

The move itself was more than a snap reaction. Charles noted after the race that he’d considered being able to gain places based on what he knew about how Max was going to drive into turn 1. The positioning on turn 1 on this circuit can be big in terms of who controls the front. There’s a lot of space to lose the lead and with the wide runoff a gap can be left. 

Charles made a pretty good prediction about what his opponents ahead would do into that turn and planned on how he wanted to take advantage of that. Excellent strategy. It’s an overlooked aspect of race strategy, it does matter who you are racing and what the stakes are for them, and you can use that knowledge to your advantage if you are really paying attention. 

Now an inside start at COTA is best. So Charles was positioned to be able to pull a move like this. 

I think the footage speaks for itself as far as the execution of this overtake goes. Smooth, perfect line.

Once Charles took the lead the race was over. The SF-24 had excellent pace all weekend, that combined with Charles’ tyre management really allowed him to build a sizable gap to comfortably lead the rest of the field. 

Another stellar performance from him, that brilliant overtake followed by masterful tyre management won him the race. 

Carlos

One of Carlos’ best weekends in some time. He was also on the pace this weekend, which I think highlights that the SF-24 was really suited to conditions on track and the team really got the setup right for both drivers. 

Carlos qualified P3 and again, that might have been better or worse if he’d been able to finish his lap. But a P3 start is solid. He started P3 and finished P2. 

In turn one at the start he was overtaken by Charles when Charles took the front. However because of Max and Lando’s fight going so far off track and Lando falling back Carlos did gain a place on Lando at the start, which would be important later in the race. He stayed P3 with Max ahead, but he was ahead of Lando in the Mclaren, which was a win for Ferrari because keeping the Mclaren cars behind in dirty air is crucial. 

Carlos had a minor problem with his car in the early laps. It was fixed pretty quickly, but that made it so the focus of the team was split on making sure his car was good instead of being able to focus on track strategy. Since he was struggling with power in the car on turns he lost roughly 1-2 seconds which notably dropped him out of Max's DRS.

The interesting thing about Carlos' race that I will dig into a little more with Max’s section is when he undercut Max in the pits. That was when he jumped from P3 up to P2, securing the front of the field for Ferrari. 

After that it was about maintaining the correct pace behind Charles. 

What we saw from this point onward was basically the same pace intervals Ferrari set in Australia just reversed(Australia had Carlos in front, whereas this time Charles was in front, but strategically it’s effectively the same scenario). Where Carlos stayed roughly 5 seconds behind Charles. He needed to stay in clean air, but also be close enough he’d be able to react if something did happen to Charles. Once they were in control of the front they went back to the same strategy and management they used before for the same situation and it worked perfectly. Carlos kept the correct pace, catching up to Charles and then hitting those lap times, and coming in for the 1-2 finish. 

Good drive from him, some of his best tyre management all year I would say.

Data Analysis

Comparison of Charles and Carlos race pace. 

Their pace on the hard tyres was pretty much identical. You can see the way the team were managing to keep them roughly on the same pace through that stint. This is when both drivers had the benefit of clean air. Carlos was far enough back he didn’t have to worry about dirty air off Charles which made things easier for him as well. This is one of the benefits of having control of the front so you can make it so both drivers are getting good conditions to set pace. 

Carlos on the mediums was slower by an average of 3-5 tenths of a second. This is mostly explained by the fact he was further back and needing to deal with more dirty air. Also the mechanical issue as mentioned earlier.

Here is a look at the top 4 on the first stint which I think highlights how powerful that clean air was this race. Carlos, Max, and Lando all getting similar pace on the mediums, while Charles is able to just keep a healthy gap ahead. 

Red Bull

Max

Max had his best weekend in some time. The RB 20 has had some improvements and they seem to have solved some of the issues with the car that were hindering it’s pace and raw speed. He started off with a win in the sprint, starting from pole there. 

Max qualified P2 and finished P3.

As stated above the qualifying interruption forced him to abort a lap some believe would have put him on pole, it was looking like a good lap, but it’s impossible to say for sure as others could also have improved. Nevertheless it doesn’t take away from the fact that Max was back competing at the front this weekend. 

At the start of the race Max went for a move to overtake Lando on the inside. Both ran wide, and Max did overtake Lando into turn 1. Because of how wide he and Lando went that opened the door for both Ferraris and specifically Charles to jump ahead. Max did manage to keep Carlos behind, but importantly Carlos did jump ahead of Lando here.

I will cover his turn 1 overtake in the footage analysis section below. But in short Max was ahead at the apex and had the right to the racing line at that point. 

Max was in P2 until the second stint of the race when he was undercut by Carlos in the pits. I found this to be a strange strategic oversight on Red Bull’s part. They didn’t seem very concerned about that undercut. Which I don’t see the advantage to be gained there. I don’t think this was intentional but instead was a pretty significant mistake on the part of the team. They seem to have underestimated Ferrari’s race pace this weekend. So that is how Max lost the place to Carlos.

While Max was running his best race in a few rounds the car was far from perfect. It struggled with race pace in terms of the tyres. 

Max vs Lando

Turn 1 lap 1: this was the first incident between these two when Max attacked off the line going into turn 1 and ran Lando wide. This was allowed because it was the first turn and first lap so there is a lot more leniency when it comes to incidents like this. Now Max had completed the overtake before Lando went off the track. He was ahead at the apex and stayed on the racing line. He ran wide but not wide enough for it to be penalty worthy.

Here are the key moments of his turn 1 overtake. The key moment is in panel 2 when he has his wheels clearly ahead at the apex of the corner. He also stayed ahead in panel 3, so it's pretty clear he did have the right to the corner and was ahead when it counted.

Lap 52: On lap 52 going into turn 11 Max was the defending driver. Lando on fresher tyres had caught up to him and was trying to make a pass. He’d already made quite a few attempts which Max expertly defended.

Lando stayed ahead and this was rewarded with a 5 second penalty from the stewards. Because of this he finished ahead of Max, but was dropped down a place due to the penalty because he did not finish more than 5 seconds ahead of Max.

Let’s take a look at the footage. This interaction has already been torn apart by many others but here is a quick breakdown of the key moments.

The thing to note here is that Lando was not comfortably ahead of Max in the lead up to the corner as shown in panel 1. He was oscillating with Max's pace, which is pretty normal when you see cars go side by side on these long straights. To say a moment when he was ahead for maybe a second was a complete overtake is not accurate and would completely change the definition of a successful overtake.

Another key moment is shown in panel 3 where Max's wheels are clearly ahead at the apex, again giving him the right to the corner.

Finally the moment that defined this exchange is in panels 5 and 6, where Lando was completely off the track, got ahead of Max. He overtook Max off the track. Which is a very clear cut penalty, especially after Max was ahead.

Max was in the right. He was racing according to the current standard of the rules. Lando did not have a right to that corner, and he overtook off the track. This is a well established precedent that Max and all the other drivers were well aware of. You can take issue with the current rule all you like, but drivers are supposed to drive according to the rules as they are currently understood, and they permit for this kind of maneuver from Max.

I will cover more about Lando and Mclaren’s side of this in his section below.

Data Analysis

Here is Max vs Lando on race pace

I think this shows the lacking pace Mclaren were having on the mediums. They were the weakest out of the top 3 on that compound. The thing to not on the hard stint is that Lando pit later, so when he was chasing Max he was on 6 lap newer hards. But you can see that Max was setting a much slower pace compared to Lando, even before Lando pit, so that was the target pace Red Bull were aiming for, and given Max noted a lack of performance on the hards it makes sense they'd need to slow down to extend the life of the tyres. Max didn't have much of a choice, the tyres and the car decided the pace.

Max's P3 finish and sprint win were important for Max's WDC bid because finishing ahead of Lando in both the sprint and the race itself allowed him to keep his gap to Lando and even increase it by a few points.

Mclaren

Another messy race for Mclaren, which seems to be their calling card this season.

The most notable parts of Mclaren’s race happened on lap 1 and lap 52. 

Lap 1: Lando started on pole, but lost the lead into turn one, to Max and Charles and Carlos. So right away Mclaren lost their lead and had to play catch up in the race.

Lap 52: Lando overtook Max off the track and the team told him not to give the place back. 

The biggest error from the team came with the order they gave Lando to keep the position after he overtook Max off the track. This was an extremely risky call and one they should not have made if they were not willing to face the very likely consequences.

I think the radio exchange between Lando and the team is very telling here.

Here the team is telling Lando he is in the right. And they maintained this after 2 laps when they would have had time to look at the footage and see Max was ahead. I think at this point they were hoping that it wouldn't stick because both cars went wide, not because they actually thought Lando was ahead.

The thing at the end is Lando kind of reviewing what they should have done, and he's right. They took a massive risk and it didn't pay off and it wasn't worth taking. The team should not have supported Lando in a risk like this, he needs them to give him the best information and there was no way for Lando to know any differently until he was out of the car what that pass actually looked like. So jsut bad support and a horrendously bad strategy call from the team.

Mclaren appealed the stewards decision of the 5 second penalty. And they changed their opinion in the documentation. Stating that Lando had already overtaken Max before reaching the corner, and thus Lando was the defending driver. Well during the race they were saying that Lando was ahead at the apex. So they changed their opinion based on the footage. Because they could not argue that Lando was ahead at the apex, he wasn't. But their argument also falls apart because if Lando had already overtaken Max he would have been ahead at the apex now wouldn't he? He wasn't, the footage is very clear on that front.

So they really just wanted to try to bend the rules in their favor. And got very upset when the stewards and FIA didn't do that for them.

Lando

This wasn’t all the team’s fault. Lando is responsible for a lot of the circumstances that led to this issue in the first place. He qualified on pole and finished in P4. 

Lando’s driving this race was sloppy and again showed his lacking abilities at wheel to wheel. First he lost the lead going into turn 1. And again, he didn’t just lose the lead, he lost the lead to three other cars. His pole win in Singapore was aided by the fact the rest of the field saw a drop in performance. When he needs to actually defend the lead it’s fairly predictable how this will go. 

He ran wide in an attempt to defend from Max (which was a very predictable outcome, everyone knew what Max was going to try)

However the other issue came when he was trying to pass Max which eventually led to the lap 52 incident. He was attempting the same pass multiple times and Max easily defended. I don’t know why he kept trying what was essentially the same move. He had a pretty big tyre advantage at that point so his chances of passing Max eventually were high, but he was still struggling. 

I think one issue with his wheel to wheel in this case is Lando seems to assume if there is a big enough pace difference between his car and the defending car then the defending car will go easy or simply roll over. Max was not in a great position pace wise, but he still defended expertly. 

Assuming that a pass should happen or should be easy is not a good way to approach these battles. Especially when a championship is on the line. Max had no reason to make this easy, even if it meant driving harder and burning through his own tyres more. 

This race was a replay of Austria in many ways. Again Lando’s lacking ability at actually competitive wheel to wheel battling on track was the main issue here. 

The rest of the problems came from the team making a very bad call to not give the place back. 

Overall a mixed to lacking race from Lando. 

“Lando was ahead of Max before they entered the turn, therefore he’d already overtaken Max”: That’s not how that works. You need to have the car you’ve overtaken behind you. Being side by side and slightly ahead does not constitute an overtake on a straight. I recommend watching Lando’s overtake of George in the COTA sprint opening lap, he was ahead before the turn, but the overtake was not complete until he managed to make it stick. I also would recommend paying attention to the Ferrari’s (and the Ferraris vs George) that sprint as well to see some examples of when things get close before the overtake sticks. Going side by side and even being ahead does not mean the overtake has stuck, you need to be able to stay ahead at the corner. Or get the defending car fully behind you. Lando did neither of those things. It was not a complete overtake and thus Max remained the defending driver. 

To overtake a car must be ahead of the defending car at the turn (Lando was not in this case)

And the overtaking car must be capable of making the corner (again Lando did not make the corner) A defending driver is allowed to defend their line, so that is part of the necessity to make the corner. Lando did not fulfill. These are well known precedents that Mclaren should be aware of. 

Furthermore this is a harder overtake to make. That corner is one where an overtake on the inside is significantly more advantageous. Max knew that so that’s where he defended. Lando tried for the same less successful overtake approach and it’s not surprising it was difficult to make it stick. This comes down to an issue with his wheel to wheel skills. 

“Max forced Lando off the track!”: Max was the defending driver, he made the apex under control, and thus he gets to determine his racing line. Lando took a risk going around the outside, that is a well known risk on that particular move. 

Oscar

Oscar's weekend was middling. I think that after looking at his first 2 years on this track that Austin overall is not a strong track for him.

He qualified P5 and finished P5.

Now his race was somewhat hobbled by the fact he was asked to slow down by the team. Mclaren did not want him to get the fastest lap (which Lando was holding until it was taken by Franco and then by Este) and also they didn't want him to be too close to Lando in case Lando did get a penalty.

So his race results were a result of his own qualifying and then sealed by team strategy as a result of what was going on with Lando further up the field.

Data Analysis

A comparison of Lando vs Oscar's race pace.

Very similar. Lando got slightly better results out of the medium tyres, but overall they were pretty much matched.

Comparison of Oscar vs Lando's qualifying laps.

The places where Oscar lost the most pace compared to Lando in quali was the low speed corners. Looking at the more detailed telemetry I think Oscar's main problem here was his timing. His throttle, and brake applications were just not timed right at certain corners.

Mercedes

This was a rough weekend for Mercedes. Both George and Lewis had incidents. George spun out in qualifying at turn 19, and Lewis spun out at the very same corner during the race.

The car had been difficult all weekend. With both drivers struggling with the car. The upgrades Mercedes brought to the weekend don't seem to have added any performance to the car and in fact have made it more difficult.

Lewis spoke about how he's never had issues like this at this track before. And I think that is telling. He noted bouncing in the car, making it too unstable.

I think that the current Mercedes car is very sensitive to conditions. There were pretty strong winds at Austin and I think the car was struggling all week being destabilized by the crosswinds. With unstable upgrades and a car that is very sensitive to the wind neither driver had a strong chance to succeed this weekend.

George

After he crashed in qualifying George had to start from the pitlane because his car needed repairs. He managed to finish the race in P6 which made for an incredibly strong recovery drive from him. An underrated drive of the race.

Conclusion

Overall I think this race strengthened Max's WDC bid. It also brought Ferrari closer to the WCC. Not only that Charles is now in the fight for P2 of the WDC. Interesting race from the standpoint of quite a few cars and how they are adjusting to upgrades changes to the cars. This has set the stage for a very competitive final 5 races this season.

That's all I got, see you in Mexico!

[hyacinthsdiamonds]

WAIT, HELP, WHY DON'T CHARLES AND MAX FOLLOW EACH OTHER ON INSTAGRAM? WHAT DID I MISS?

It all starts at the Red bull ring, better known as the temple of lestappen. It's where our boys shared the podium for the first time in F1 in 2019 and that race in particular is also the reason why they don't follow each other on social media lmao.

So our boys start 1-2, Charles in pole position starts well while Max has issues with his antistall that cause him to drop down to eighth after the first couple of turns. Max recovers and starts marching through the field. Around lap 23 Charles pits and Lewis takes the lead of the race but he damages his front wing by going wide and driving over a sausage kerb so he had to pit for a replacement and Max, then p2, inherited the lead. He then pits the following lap, handing the lead back to Charles and the stage is set for him to charge through Seb and Bottas to battle Charles for the win. And that's what happened with three laps to go, when Max managed to pass Charles. Now lap 69 - I'm not even kidding lmao - is where the drama happens, ofc Charles is going to fight Max for the win and Max is going to fight to hold onto the win, so Max takes a wide line through the corner on the inside of Charles, they do make contact and Charles leaves the track and drives over kerb as a result. Max holds onto the win and Charles is absolutely pissed.

Now these pictures are hilarious to look at when you think about how they were theree years later, the second time they shared the podium in Austria;

But yeah 2019, Charles pretty pissed and he felt Max should've gotten a penalty or something from the stewards but the stewards deemed it a legal move.

Now this is pivotal, not just in the story of Max and Charles, but in Charles' own story and career in formula 1. It's a turning point for him. He takes note of this situation and is very much like "well if he can do it, so can I" and "I'm just as good as him and I'm going to prove that to myself, to him and to the world" from then on out. He's more aggressive and takes more risks post Austria 2019, and he goes on to win in Spa and Monza that year. Max finishes in P3 in the championship, Charles finishes P4, just twelve points between them. They finish the year in Abu Dhabi with another podium, this time Max is in P2 and Charles is in P3.

During the media exchanges post race Austria 2019, Max is asked about Charles and gets "is this going to affect you two" type questions and Max is like "why wouldn't we be ok? we're going home on the same flight so*shrugs*". At some point post the race Charles unfollows Max on social media because until then, they had followed each other and it should be noted that Charles typically follows everyone on the grid with the exception of Max (+ Bottas, he likely unfollowed because of the bowling incident of the Hungarian gp 2021 lmao, Charles is many things, consistently petty included 😂😭). So they do share a flight home to Monaco, on Max's jet I'm pretty sure lmao, and it's just so funny to imagine a petty, pissed Charles sitting across from Max, who is most likely completely unaware about the unfollowing, and waiting for him to notice lmao. Max or whoever runs Max's account majority of the time, also unfollowed Charles in turn. They've tagged each other in posts over the years (such as Seb's leaving dinner) so they know the others @, and they like posts about the other, but neither has made the move to refollow the other on their public Instagrams which is funny and so petty and so annoying all at the same time lmfao. The follow button is too much for them lmao.

[raceweek]

Hey what happened in the 2020 season with Alex? (Sorry new fan and still learning)

omg you never need to apologise to me for not knowing things i literally know nothing

the 2020 season from the alexnation perspective was like being in a hamster ball being hurled around for 5 months straight basically but here’s the breakdown:

so for context 2019 was really really good for alex he was promoted as a rookie and he shunted a fair few times and most of the time wasn’t on maxs quali pace but red bull were the third quickest team so he wasn’t expected to win or anything. alex ultimately beat pierres points tally from his 12 races in the red bull within 7 as a rookie so like. whilst it was insane behaviour for red bull to promote him in the first place he did perform phenomenally

then we turn to 2020 pre season testing. mercedes was dominant as per (dreamy sigh) and the red bull was quick but looked. edgy. for both alex and max but ferrari were fucking nowhere so it was still like really positive for red bull bc it was basically two extra places gained and then. global pandemic. and then as a footnote to the whole you know. global pandemic. sebastian vettel was dumped from the love island villa (ferrari (everyone gasped))

and then! triple header one and the first race in austria had max running an upgraded front wing and none for alex and it was like understood i think like it wasn’t a big deal at the time

and then everything that could have possibly happened. happened. in the race and alex and lewis…yeah. but the world did in fact keep spinning!

and then alex got p4 in the second austria race (altho. significantly off of maxs pace in p3 for sureee) and everyone was like if only max had a rear gunner (wistful) which in my opinion is an insult to lewis and the w11 but whatever. nothing else really happened here other than horner and marko making kissy faces at seb during this time but that’s just contextfkdkd

so then the next race in hungary alex qualified p13 and even though max only qualified p7 and it was the third race of the season alex was getting eaten alive and george was on live tv like red bull are making him look like an idiot and he’s not an idiot and they need to fix it for him and it was like fucking hell what is going ONNN we haven’t even made it to the third race yet (like imagine anyone coming out and declaring this after australia quali this year like. wild scenes)

so then one week break and then triple header two started and during the races at silverstone they start talking in the media about when the best time to demote alex is even though the only times he’d finished outside the top six was brazil 2019 and austria 2020 which. pls consult youtube if you need further info here

they also changed alexs race engineer in silverstone so More turbulence altho completely welcome this time (simon rennie come back we love u, ur so sexc haha x)

then during the final triple header 2 race in barcelona he gets put on the most ass strategy known to man like with context this was criminal behaviour actually

and then one week break and then triple header 3 starts (do you feel like a hamster yet) at spa and unbeknownst to us all at the time but later confirmed by will buxton and dts horner is in the mf pitlane in spa propositioning seb like one more year and then you can come home which. have some decorum alex is behind you in the garage. but anyway in the general media everyone was gagging for pierre’s red bull return so there were bigger fish

anyway. SPA. they did this to my boy

and alex made the best out of it but as per the comeback kid episode of dts that everyone loves (🙃) alex was made out to be useless and it was like. wtf did you expect

THEN between spa and monza helmut marko was like oh btw alex hasn’t actually had the same parts as max for most races this year okay bye and alexnation was like…wtf. but then no one else really cared and it was like UMMM OKAY

and then monza happened and alex was in a first lap sandwich involving pierre and then second lap crashed into grosjean (alexs fault - live laugh love x) and had a huge chunk of his floor missing so finished p nowhere and then. pierre won and good for her i guess but then ex drivers were on live tv demanding alex step down for pierre which like no one has ever done this in the history of the sport as far as im aware so it was fucking savage especially when this was the first race alex had finished outside of the points for red bull in (with the exception of the two aforementioned events)

and then mugello wooooooooooooo!! alexs first podium!!!!!! i was gassed at the time but it was sort of sad looking back like if you listen to his team radio across the line from getting p7 in canada and then compare it to his first podium in mugello it’s. yeah! we were enduring it!!

and then sochi happened in its own weird bubble and alex was nowhere really got caught behind carlos hitting the wall at the first corner after a poor quali and that was that

then. triple header number four starts with horner giving alex an ultimatum of we’re backing you but we want results in the next three races or ur finished hunny which. okay

then first race of the triple header max ends up blocking alex in his quali run (live laugh love 2.0 x) and then:

YEAH

nurburgring was the they race me so hard incident. available to view elsewhere bc god knows im not reliving that!!

imola was again nightmarish. red bull media team said alex was working with a mental coach (patrick his trainer had got mental health qualifications basically) and was supporting him etc which. here comes paul di resta live on air laughing about how max wouldn’t need mental support. it was once again. brutal. especially bc he was getting a load of xenophobic abuse online already like fuck off

back on the track alex basically spun on his own but thought he had been hit and no one thought to tell him before he went into the media pen that he hadn’t actually been hit so it was fucking awkward and yeah twitter was brutal again

then istanbul happened. red bull looked promising but both max and alex finished well off so it was just whatever really lewis did a madness no one really cared about red bull

then final three races of the season started with the grosjean crash in bahrain which ended with alex on the podium and then checo won sakhir and alex wasn’t really there and then we were at the final race in abu dhabi where red bull officially signed checo (as confirmed by will buxtons analysis of the curtains. god i can’t believe this season was real)

but alex didn’t find out for like two weeks later when the season was well and truly over and was taking drinks to the factory for everyone and it was heartbreaking and then he didn’t have a seat and spent the next year saying it killed him so. yeah…TA-DA

[f1-birb]

this is a triple header that I don't think I'll get over for possibly years

Austin. Mexico. Brazil. What a trio of races for Lando, holy fuck

Austin, P2 in quali, P4 in the sprint shootout and then keeping P4 in a tricky sprint, and then P3 promoted to P2 in the race at a track we didn't think would suit the way it did

Mexico, P19 in quali after poor calls from the team, started in P17 and then battled to P8, fucked by pitting under the SC a lap before the red flag, dropping to P10, falling to P14 on the restart to avoid collisions and then clawing his way up to P5 in a glorious series of overtakes, including one overtake of the month

Brazil, what more can I say, fucked by the late sending out in Q3 and qualifying P7 after the weather caused a red flag, P2, P1 and P1 in the sprint shootout and then P2 in the sprint itself and then the race.

the race, an incredible start where he went from P6 to P2 with an intelligent move (and almost synchronised with Lewis on the other side of the Astons), maintained P2 on the second restart, got close enough to Max to have a go at overtaking him and then just parked himself in P2 to bring it home with a drive of spectacular pace and tyre management

the season to now: from 7 podiums, 2 sprint podiums, a sprint pole, a fastest lap, played his part in a world record pit stop, an overtake of the month, 5 driver of the day awards, the most points he's ever had in a season (195), he's currently P5 in the driver standings and there's still 2 races left...

he's just made of raw talent and grit and consistency and he's so exciting to watch and I adore him with every fibre of my being

[anonduck07]

2024 Chinese GP: Recap + Results

Another one! Fair warning that it's the longest one so far, but I blame that on the 3 safety cars

P1 is Max Verstappen, who takes his first Chinese GP win, leading by about 14 seconds!

Yes the car is great, but the guy behind the wheel is also having to deliver - Crofty about Verstappen post-race

Red Bull also sets the fastest pit stop of the race, double stacking Verstappen and Perez under the full safety car and setting 1.9 and 2.0 seconds respectively.

Lando Norris is P2, his best finish since 2023 brazillian GP. He was also voted DOTD, winning just ahead of Hamilton and Alonso, who were also fan favourite picks. He was a little unhappy after he missed out on pitting under the safety car, but all ends well for him.

He [Norris] is not a happy bunny - Crofty, probably, about the missed pit stop

Woop Woop! I told you we would get past the Ferraris. - Norris, after crossing the finish line

Checo Perez places P3, yet another Red Bull double podium! There was an interesting 5 second gap from him to Norris, likely due to Norris having fresher tires. At the beginning though, he pulled some nice moves, regaining his position from Alonso within a few laps of him losing it.

P4 and 5 were the two Ferraris, Leclerc finishing in front of Sainz for the first time this season. They had a bit of a clash at the start, but nothing that the broadcast really focused on.

P6 was George Russell

P7 was Alonso, who was placed on an interesting strategy for the last several laps. He pitted for mediums, allowing him to overtake Ocon, then Hulkenberg, then Hamilton and Piastri.

P8 was Piastri who, keep in mind, has never driven at this circuit before

P9 was Hamilton, who is DOTD in my heart. He struggled with his tires at the start, being only one of four drivers on softs (everyone else on mediums, except Magnussen). He seemed to fare better after pitting for mediums, making his way to finish P9 after starting P18 :)

We also got a few moments of Nico Rosberg trying to be on some sort of wavelength with Lewis while commentating:

He's Lewis Hamilton, so yes he can…get into the points…im sure he'll move up fine - Nico Rosberg

I'm making no ground with this tyre - Lewis Hamilton That's not what we want to hear - Nico Rosberg

I can't even catch him, Mate. This car is so slow. - Lewis Hamilton That's exactly what I was going to say - Nico Rosberg (Lap 17)

P10 was Hulkenberg, yet again managing points for HAAS

P11 was Esteban Ocon

P12 was Alex Albon, who had a complaint about Ocon "moving like a ---- everywhere on the breaks." on Lap 1

P13 was Gasly, who set the slowest pit stop (19.3 sec) after an incident in the pits where a loose tire hit a mechanic when he was set to be released.

Is he okay? - Pierre Gasly All good here Pierre - Alpine

An unfortunate no-points finish for Zhou, who places P14 at his home GP, but still a very emotional day for him.

This is a dream to me as a kid, so thanks for all the Chinese fans here and back home watching TV and thank you to my team…let's keep working. - Zhou Guanyu, after he gets out of the car

Sauber, as always, had issues with their pit stops. Zhou's first one was quick compared to their previous ones, at only 3.0 seconds, but his stop under the physical safety car was the second slowest at 5.3 seconds.

He had a short fight against Sargeant and picked up some damage after contact with Magnussen near the end, losing his front wing end plate in the process, which couldn't have helped his position.

P15 was Magnussen, who always seems to be at the scene of the crime. He also picked up a 10 second penalty for infringing on the safety car.

P16 was Stroll, after picking up a 10 second penalty for causing a collision. He also had a battle for 16th with Magnussen, which was pretty interesting.

P17 was Sargeant, who was doing pretty well for the most part. Then, he stacked up a 10 second penalty for the same reason as Magnussen.

DNFS

The first yellow flag was also the first DNF of the race, caused by Bottas whose engine reportedly failed. The FIA changed the yellow flag to a virtual safety car, then a full safety car, all within a minute or two. Truly a testament to their amazing decision making skills.

The second yellow flag was caused by Yuki Tsunoda's spin out at lap 27, after contact with Kevin Magnussen that led to Tsunoda having to DNF and Magnussen going into the pits for a punctured tire.

Just minutes later, his teammate also DNFs, as Stroll collides with the back of Daniel Ricciardo's RB under the safety car. This was likely due to the fact that Ricciardo was the only one who hadn't pitted for fresh tires during the last safety car, as well as the fact that he was trying to avoid bumping Piastri, who was trying to avoid Russell, who was trying to avoid Alonso. Stroll recieved a 10 second penalty for causing a collision, but Daniel retired on lap 33 after reporting floor damage.

This idiot just slammed on the brake! Check wing damage - Lance Stroll

I've got no fucking rear on exits - Daniel Ricciardo

Before that though, his drive was going "superb" (in the words of Nico Rosberg), as he was P9 and had made a switcheroo overtake on his teammate at turn 3.

[purrple-sectors]

Wow the Australian gp was truly a wild race (I know I'm late to this but I just watch the races when I can and this is me rambling)

First Max dnf, was surely a suprise. Maybe Red Bull isnt that dominating? Maybe we will have a championship fight? I'm excited to find out!

Lewis's dnf, Mercedes really didnt have a good time this weekend

Why does Stake (Sauber) keeps messing up their pitstops, at this point its getting a bit painful to watch

George crash on the last laps and the fact it wasnt a red flag?! The man was on the MIDDLE of the track, this could have ended up very badly

Carlos winning??!! Wth this man was two weeks ago on the hospital for an emergency surgery... HOW?!

Double points for Haas, HECK YES

So proud of Oscar getting p4 on his home race! And p3 for Lando !!! This is a good day to be a McLaren fan

Alex didnt get any points, and this is for sure going to give alot of backlash to Williams for the decision of giving him Logan's car

Gunther Steiner FREAKING INTERVIEWING THE TOP 3 IN WHAT ALTERNATE REALITY WE ARE IN?!

And lastly SportTV comentators officially calling the cold down room the Max podcast, this is not a drill, they clearly said it and the fact it was on a race Max wasnt on the podium makes it hilarious. "Oh- it seems we aren't getting the Max podcast this week" -them

This is all I remember, I was multitasking while I was watching the race so I probably missed on alot of things haha

[petit-papillion]

FP1

Lots of running on track in this one session on a track we haven't been to since 2019. Despite it having rained just a day earlier, the grass in turn 7 suddenly catches fire and the session is briefly red-flagged so the marshalls can put it out.

Sprint Quali

Track again on fire at the end of SQ1. In SQ2 RUS unexpectedly out, ZHO unexpectedly through to SQ3 to the delight of the Chinese crowd. Light rain but conditions fine. LEC P2. Then rain arrives for SQ3 and everyone is skating like Bambi on ice. Charles spins, crashes into the barrier but miraculously has no damage to either wings. He does go into the pits to have his car checked and get new tyres. It's cost him time and he ends up only P7. Max and Lando go off track, get their laps deleted, then Alonso takes pole, then Hamilton, then Norris. NOR gets his lap deleted again, and just as we think HAM has sprint pole, it is reinstated! Crazy quali!

P1: NOR / P2: HAM / P3: ALO

Sprint

Chaotic start that sees Norris lose pole immediately and drop numerous places. Of course VER eventually works his way up to the front from P4 and wins by 13 seconds. Behind him lots of battles take place between ALO, SAI, LEC and PER. At one point ALO and SAI collide, leading to some floor damage for SAI and a puncture for Alonso, ultimately retiring him from the Sprint (he later also receives a 10-second penalty for causing a collision). PER takes advantage of all the squabbling in front of him and moves up to 3rd. LEC tries some daring passes on SAI who resorts to pushing LEC completely off track in a move Nico Rosberg deemed penalty-worthy (but FIA deemed not worth a further investigation after noting it). LEC fights back though and passes SAI with a wonderful overtake for a P4 finish.

P1: VER / P2: HAM / P3: PER

Quali

In Q1 SAI hits the gravel in the last turn, spins, and luckily ends up only barely hitting the barriers on the other side of the track. The car is stalled for 1 min 17 seconds before he is able to restart it, while the session is red-flagged. He limps home on the ruined tires and without a front wing. Car is repaired by the time the track is cleared of gravel. Aston Martin later filed a complaint that he was stopped on track too long and should have been penalized, but as usual the FIA rules are too vague (what is too long?) and the complaint is dismissed. Lewis shockingly doesn't make it through to Q2 and qualifies P18.

P1: VER / P2: PER / P3: ALO

Petit's Race Notes

Carlos tried to fight Charles at the start leading to not only RUS but also HULK to get ahead of both of them.

Charles was going to work his tyre management magic again with a 1-stop, but BOT's car died and caused a safety car allowing everyone to pit.

Right before the start Lance Stroll missed seeing the train of cars in front of him braking and ended rear-ending RIC quite spectacularly (ultimately leading to RIC retiring) which also damaged PIA's car.

More chaos at the restart as K-Mag made a pit maneuver on Yuko who ended up retiring.

Then it rained penalties: 10 seconds for STR and MAG for causing a collision; 10 seconds for RIC for overtaking HUL during SC (and because he couldn't serve it before he DNF-ed, it will be a 3-place grid penalty in Miami); SAR also gets a 10-second penalty for a SC infringement.

The Ferrari's are not doing as well on the Hards as on the Mediums and we cannot catch NOR (who had been sure the Ferrari's were faster than him before the race started) and PER, but we do stay ahead of RUS and ALO (whose team gambled with putting him on Softs during the SC, and were forced to pit him again).

ZHO gets to park on the grid and soak in the love from the Chinese crowd as the first Chinese driver to ever drive in the Chinese GP. 🥰

Top 3: P1: VER | P2: NOR | P3: PER

Fastest lap: Fernando Alonso

Driver of the Day: Lando Norris

Fastest pit stop: Red Bull/Max Verstappen (1.90)

[merryslilhobbit]

The Saga of F1 2023

Given the announcement today that the Abu Dhabi GP may be cancelled, I thought what a crazy year this has been in Formula 1 (note: this is my first full season for a few years, so I may be exaggerating, however...). And we're nearly at the end already - time flies when you're having fun...

**I have probably forgotten some exciting stuff here, so I apologise. Feel free to comment/message & I can add more craziness in.

The Honey Badger Returns

Despite everyone assuming Daniel Ricciardo would be on the sidelines for 2023, just one test drive after Silverstone in July led to RB/AT dropping Nyck De Vries (yes, he was already on his last legs with the team) and putting Daniel straight in at Hungary. Fans got very excited to see Danny Ric back, only for him to crash a few weeks later, damaging his hand & being out for 5 races. A perfectly-timed (second) return at Austin/COTA was only average (thanks to damage) but his P4 qualifying & P7 finish at Mexico (more on that later) showed that the Honey Badger is very much back. And as Karun said, there's a honey badger circling for that 2nd RB seat. Drive to Survive will be wetting themselves over this storyline, I guarantee it.

Checo, the Red Bull Bumper Car and that beautiful floor

To be fair, Checo had a very good start to the season and looked like he would be challenging Max for the WDC. Then came Monaco, where he gave the world its first look at the Red Bull floor thanks to a collision with a barrier. Much excitement ensued! Just a few races later and another barrier collision led to an updated photo of an updated floor. Since then he's decided that colliding with other drivers instead of barriers is better - see Alex Albon in Singapore and Charles Leclerc in Mexico, to mention just a few. And now that I've mentioned Mexico.... a very good qualifying performance, within a couple of tenths of Max (finally!) only to be outshone by Ricciardo in P4. Checo had a great start, but pushing too hard (desperation?) led to that collision with Leclerc that took him out of his home race on the first lap. It's worth remembering that despite all of this, Perez is still second in the WDC.

The One Where Drivers Almost Passed Out

Qatar gave us a whole new drama with three mandatory pitstops during the race due to questions over tyre reliability/safety, serious overheating in the cockpit - Logan Sargeant retiring due to ill health, Lance Stroll saying he was almost blacking out, Stroll and Albon barely able to get out of their cars, several taking themselves to medical to get attention, Alonso suffering burns.

Qatar also gave us....

Lewis Hamilton crashing into George Russell.

And as for Russell...

Remember how he crashed out of Singapore on the final lap of the race, when pushing for a podium? Yeah.

Aston Martin & Alonso - a match made in heaven?

Remember at the start of the season Fernando Alonso got all those podiums? All those wonderful celebrations with the team? And how he loved driving the car? So much so that he was commenting on Stroll's overtakes during Miami. And lots of great advice and teamwork over the radio.

Not so much now sadly.

To Race Or Not To Race

The Chinese Grand Prix was removed from the provisional calendar before the season started due to remaining covid restrictions.

The Australian Grand Prix had a record three red flags.

The Italian Grand Prix was cancelled due to flooding.

The Belgian Grand Prix was almost rained off.

The upcoming Las Vegas Grand Prix seems to be somewhat controversial.

The Abu Dhabi Grand Prix may be cancelled due to unrest in the region.

Everyone Gets A Penalty

Track limits has dominated a few races (Austria, Qatar) and caught multiple drivers out, sometimes on multiple occasions. Definitely been a talking point of the season, and how to fix it. The biggest victim of penalties this season, however, seems to be poor Esteban Ocon (so much so it's become a running joke/meme), following the Bahrain Grand Prix where he received 3 and Austria (30 seconds).

Biggest drama of penalties, however, had to be Hamilton and Leclerc's disqualifications from the Austin GP following the race when their floors were found to be too low.

Celebrations & Broken Trophies

Despite a miserable start to the season, Lando Norris has been on fire since Austria with several podiums but has to be a bit careful now after he broke Max Verstappen's winning Hungarian GP trophy. Oops! To be fair to Lando, Red Bull have broken a few trophies themselves this season....

So what's left?

There's a spare Williams seat that needs filling.

Oh and silly season has arrived late, with just a handful of races left. Will Alonso stay at Aston? Will Stroll sell the team? Will Checo keep his seat for 2024?

Somehow I don't think 2023 is quite done yet....

[f1]

We couldnt have done more today insists Russell after taking P4 in Miami

Mercedes weren’t at their best in qualifying for the Miami Grand Prix but race day saw George Russell come home fourth as the Silver Arrows closed the gap on Aston Martin. The Briton was satisfied with his result – but not pleased to be out of the fight for victory. Russell took sixth in an action-packed qualifying session on Saturday while his team mate Lewis Hamilton ended up starting 13th on the grid, but the pair finished a respective fourth and sixth on Sunday to score a combined 20 points to Aston Martin’s 15 – Fernando Alonso having completed the podium for the team in green, behind winner Max Verstappen, and Sergio Perez. READ MORE: Verstappen overhauls Perez for Miami GP victory as Red Bull intra-team battle steps up a gear “I mean P4 in those circumstances, we probably weren’t expecting it really, quite a satisfying race,” said Russell afterwards. “Good overtake on the Alpines, good overtake on Carlos [Sainz]. Pace relatively speaking was strong. We couldn’t have done more today. I’m proud of that but of course we want more, and we want races like this today to be for the win.” This feature is currently not available because you need to provide consent to functional cookies. Please update your cookie preferences Russell reveals his Miami finish exceeded his expectations after ‘really satisfying race’ Red Bull, however, dominated the race with Verstappen coming from P9 to win, five seconds ahead of team mate Perez – who in turn finished more than 20 seconds ahead of third-place Alonso. The reigning champions are therefore leading by 122 points in the constructors’ championship heading to Imola, while Aston Martin are second and Mercedes a close third. MUST-SEE: will.i.am gets race day at the Miami Grand Prix off to a stunning start with an orchestral version of ‘THE FORMULA’ “I wasn’t really surprised, no [about Red Bull's pace]. That’s where they are at the moment,” said Russell. "We said at the start of the season they are so far ahead. They’ve got it easy at the moment. I wonder if they are even running full power, they are just so far ahead. “It’s a bit of a shame for the sport, but kudos to them for the good work they’ve clearly done and shown what is possible when you get it right. That’s what we are going to be chasing and let’s see what we can achieve,” he concluded. via Formula 1 News https://www.formula1.com