#this year there was different team each weekend and you could see it in quali too blah blah blah'

[chussyracing]

my guy. what competition did you have in 2023 that you don't want more in 2024.

[vinvantae]

Unmasked

Part 8/16

<<< previous part

Word count - 3.6k

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Yourusername tagged Charles Leclerc in their story

It was the first race of the season and the official ‘hard launch’ of yours and Charles’ relationship, from this point you were allowed to start posting clear images of each other - but you had been begging the team to have a proper meeting about your reveal but Mattia kept pushing it, delaying and delaying until it was too ‘inconvenient’ because of the race weekend and the focus would now be on the upcoming race instead of you. Instead, you were told to just keep your head down and focus on your performance on and off the track as both Charles’ girlfriend and as Thirty.

Your jaw felt tight as you pulled your Ferrari polo over your head, Charles humming softly behind you as he gathered his things for the day - in seemingly much higher spirits than you. The car had performed well during testing and so his hopes were high for a good result in the first race. “Are you nearly ready to go, y/n?”

“Yeah, of course. Just need to grab my bag… I dropped most of my stuff off at the motorhome yesterday.” You smiled, taking his hand as he offered it to you. “You ready for quali?”

“I’m actually buzzed.” He said, grinning and pulling you closer. “Starting the season off with a new car and with the best girl at my side?”

You rolled your eyes playfully. “Charles, I’ve been at your side for years.”

He playfully narrowed his gaze, lifting his hand to cup your jaw - leaning in and pressing a gentle kiss to your lips. “You know what I mean, don’t be a tease. I’m sorry that they keep dismissing your meeting, I know it must be getting frustrating.”

“You have no idea.” You sighed softly. “And I want to talk to them about us as well… I don’t know if they’ll want to handle this differently now there’s real feelings involved.”

“Well, either way I’m here for you. I know I say this a lot but I like you and regardless of what they say I can see a future for us.”

“Those are some big words, Charles… you really think about the future like that?” He could tell your voice was timid, that you were unsure.

The Monaco native simply nodded. “Not to scare you off or anything. I know it’s quick to say it but I’ve always felt strongly for you and this whole situation has just cemented it for me.”

“It doesn’t. I’ve just… I’ve just been alone for so long it feels strange to have someone who wants to stay in my life long term…”

The fact your admission didn’t shock Charles broke his heart- having the career you did, didn’t allow people to get close and those who were lucky enough to be in your life, like your father, were nowhere. He wanted to be that person for you, the person you could always turn to even if the rest of the world seemed to turn its back.

“Well, you’re stuck me with me for as long as you want me around.” He spoke softly, almost as if he was scared that his voice could break you if he raised it.

You gave him a gentle smile before the two of you head out to the paddock for qualifying day - they wanted to use you and Charles coming together as a distraction from the Thirty rumours, so you complied. You knew biting back would just result in them pushing your meeting further and further but you just couldn’t afford to get sued either. You were under their thumb, so for now you had to let them play their cards before you showed yours.

Although you knew yours and Charles' relationship was F1’s worst kept secret, you were surprised just how many people seemed to care when you stepped into the paddock hand-in-hand. Your teammate seemed used to it, chatting idly away to you as you made your way to the Ferrari motorhome but you couldn’t help but sense every single pair of eyes that fell on you.

“Look at the lovebirds, so cute!” You turned at the sound of Carlos’ voice - his Redbull teammate not too far behind. “I approve of this pairing.”

“That fast, huh?” You teased.

“I’m just surprised it took you so long.” Max chimed in. “We’ve all known each other for nearly 2 decades at this point… so if anything, this is slow.”

“Carlos didn’t know us.” You corrected. “It was really nice to spend time with everyone in Bali though, I felt really welcomed.”

The two Redbull drivers both gave you kind smiles, your childhood friend went to speak again but they were ushered away by their coaches - wanting to get them ready for free practice. You would have to disappear into your mask for the next few hours, put on your persona - visor down, race suit on. Charles gave you one more kiss on the cheek before ushering you into the motorhome, making it seem as if you were simply a couple spending some time apart. But you were subtly guided into your driver's room to get ready yourself.

You just wanted this weekend over with.

*********************

Yourusername added to their story

You and Charles sandwiched Max on the grid when the race finally rolled around, the Champion’s teammate beside you on the second row. You knew Redbull were going to be tough to beat, their car seemed significantly better than last year and with Mercedes seemingly struggling the fight was going to be between you and them. Your third championship was within reach and you were going to fight tooth and nail to get it - not letting your relationship with Charles sway that. Sure, you wanted him to win his first but at the end of the day, you’d be lying if you said you didn’t want that feeling again.

It was dark as you sat in the cockpit of your car, eyes flickering across the track in front of you as the team worked on your car. Your race engineer repeated race strategy over the comms to you and you simply nodded along - tapping your fingers on your steering wheel.

Charles walked past your car and patted the halo lightly, sending you a smile before heading to his own car - race helmet hanging from his fingers. His fireproofs clung to his figure and you couldn’t help but study his figure; his broad shoulders into his little waist - it was crazy the way some of these men were built and the Monegasque was no exception to that. There were many times during your trip that you wanted to throw caution to the wind and just have your way with him. But you needed to behave, as much as you wanted to enjoy these new feelings with him, getting another Championship was at the front of your mind.

As the cars circled the track in the formation lap, your mind cleared of everything - it was the first race of the season and you were determined to make it the best one yet. If you were going to take your helmet off some day soon, you had to make sure everyone remembered why you had the seat in the first place. You deserved to be here and you had to prove that to yourself and everyone else.

You pulled up to your grid spot, angling your car in just a way to get the best start. And with one more deep breath, the lights began to count down.

“It’s lights out and away we go.”

The first race of the season and you’d got a 1-2, the absolute perfect start - it couldn’t have gone any better, especially with both Redbull cars not finishing the race. As soon as you stepped out of the car, Charles wrapped you up in a hug - his strong arms squeezing you tight. “We did it!”

You held in your laughter knowing there were cameras nearby that could pick up audio and gave him a squeeze back. A warm touch was placed on your shoulder and you turned to see the kind eyes of none other than Lewis, the Redbull DNF meant he was joining you both on the podium - he’d been one of your biggest rivals the last few years but he always had nothing but kind words to say about you, even in during your toughest battles.

“Amazing race today, Thirty. Just saw a clip of your overtake on Checo before he went out, so smooth.” He smiled, his gaze flickering across your helmet.

It took everything in you not to thank him, so you simply gave his hand a firm shake. He gave you an understanding smile and went back over to his team. You could see the media hoping you’d come over for a post-race interview but before you could even think about it you were ushered straight inside to wait for the podium. Their fear you would reveal the secret was becoming larger each day, especially with the speculation - so any time they could get you away from the press they would.

“You didn’t say anything out there did you?” Your handler spoke up, you shook your head. “You didn’t do anything that would give you away?”

They were the standard questions he asked after every race, but more than ever they irked you - you’d been doing this for years, they just never trusted you. You bit your tongue and nodded again, wanting nothing more than to take your helmet off and run out on the podium.

“Good. Now, you know the next bit - go out, get your trophy, champagne and then back to your room.”

A stray tear rolled down your cheek, the worst part of it all was not being able to celebrate with your team after the race. Share your achievement with the people who had helped you get there. It broke your heart. Sure, they had Charles’ win to celebrate this time but when it had just been you on the podium you watched them all cheer without you. This time however, you were caught a little by surprise when on the podium, Charles’ hand came up to rest on the side of your helmet - it was just for a moment but the way he looked at you made your heart skip a beat. And with no nearby mics to pick up any audio he leant in and whispered.

“Champagne in your room after this.”

You were so glad to be wearing your helmet because your cheeks flushed as dark as your race suit. God, I wish I could kiss you right now. You were brought back into the moment as your visor was coated in champagne by Lewis, the Brit smiling big as he tipped the bottle over your helmet. You returned the favour by spraying him directly in the chest - savouring the moment of celebration before you were locked away.

It was then you decided to put your toe across the line, as the three of you stepped off the podium and out away from the cameras - you turned to Lewis, approaching him before your handler could haul you away. “Thank you. For everything… I-”

Before you could get another word out, your handler grabbed you by the wrist and dragged you away - not before you managed to get a look at Lewis’ reaction. His face had split into a big smile. “Thank you as well!”

You were practically shoved into your room by your handler, who slammed the door behind you. “What the fuck was that? You know the terms of your contract, y/n. Are you trying to get sued?!”

“All I said was thank you.” You said calmly, finally pulling your helmet off. “The media knows I’m a woman so what’s the harm in saying thank you to Lewis? I could still be anyone.”

His jaw clenched. “You better hope he says nothing or else this will have big consequences.”

He left the room in a huff when you didn’t respond, simply slumping on the sofa - letting your head roll back onto the back. Your eyes fluttered closed as you finally took a moment to yourself to be happy with your result. P2 in the first race of the season. If this is how the rest of it was going to be then maybe your third championship really was possible.

“Knock knock.” Charles pushed open the door just enough to come into the room with a bottle of champagne, locking it behind him. “As promised… felt wrong celebrating without you.”

Your teammate sat beside you, offering you the bottle of which you took a large sip. “That was, uh, cool what you did… with Lewis.”

“Could’ve fucked my entire career but-” You shrugged. “Honestly, fuck it. I’ve raced him my entire career… I would’ve said more if-”

Charles chuckled and draped an arm across your shoulders, letting your head rest against him. “You said plenty. You have no idea how much that meant to Lewis, he was absolutely buzzing. Giggling like a little school girl.”

That made you smile. “Oh, good… I really… I don’t regret doing it, I know Lewis understands what I’m going through - I trust him to keep his cool around the press even if I don’t have to ask.”

“Cheers to that.”

You tilted your head to look at him, his green eyes already directed at you. His hand came up once again but this time could rest on your skin - his thumb brushing across your cheek before he pressed a chaste but meaningful kiss to your lips. Your eyes fluttered closed as you savoured the feeling, chasing his lips as he pulled back - just enough where you could feel his breath against your skin.

“...be mine?”

You let out a breathless chuckle. “Am I not already?”

He scoffed playfully. “You’re such a tease, mon amour… please, be my girlfriend… for real.”

“Mhmm, pretty boy. Love when you beg” You giggled softly, pressing your lips to his. “I’d love to be your girlfriend, Charles.”

You weren't sure what response you expected but he simply rested his forehead against yours, his hand still resting on your jaw - a small, soft smile on his face. “I really like you, y/n. And no matter what happens with your career, I’ve got your back. You’ve been through hell and back for this team and I won’t let them tarnish your reputation.”

“Thank you… and just for the record, I really like you too.”

A knock on the door summoning Charles to the media pen brought you both back to reality, and with one more kiss he left the room - allowing you to turn on the TV just in time to catch none other than Lewis in front of the camera.

“Congrats on your first podium of the season, Lewis, how are you feeling?”

He nodded eagerly. “Really good, I’m really happy - I know the Redbulls not finishing definitely played its part and we have some work to do with the car but yeah I’m very happy with the result.”

“You had some nice words for Thirty after the race, did they give you anything?”

You chewed nervously at the skin around your fingers but just as you predicted Lewis simply shook his head. “Nothing. They’re as elusive as ever.”

“Thank god.” You mumbled, finally deciding to strip out of your race suit and back into your polo shirt - putting your admin disguise back on before your handler finally decided to send someone to let you out of your room.

When you entered the garage, you started helping pack away - post-race was always the most frustrating for you. To blend in they insisted you do the extra work, but you were exhausted - you’d just done nearly 60 laps of a grand prix and then they expected you to do grunt work too? It was almost as if Charles could hear your internal monologue because he came up behind you, leaning across your shoulder to press a kiss to your cheek.

“My girl… let’s get you out of here, hmm?” His voice was low. “You’ve worked hard enough.”

You let out a sigh of relief, turning to face him. “You read my mind, my hero.”

He lent in and kissed you, his hand finding its home on your jaw - feeling bolder about his affections now you were official outside of the contract. You had almost forgotten that this had all started off as fake but was now very real. He wasn’t kissing you because he had to, he was kissing you because he wanted to. And you were still trying to wrap your head around it all - but while you did, you were going to enjoy every second of it.

When you pulled back from the kiss, you locked eyes with your PR manager who gave you a thumbs up.

“I almost don’t want to tell them it’s real.” You scoffed lightly, taking his hand to tug him out of the garage. “Let them just think we’re really good actors.”

The Monaco native chuckled softly from beside you, squeezing your hand. You were hoping to escape from the paddock, so you kept your head down - your Ferrari cap blocking your face but alas, you were walking next to Charles bloody Leclerc so it was never going to be easy. He was very quickly distracted by some fans at the barriers, stopping to sign and take photos. You waited patiently, playing the role of a good girlfriend, but let your eyes scan the rest of the paddock.

You turned your head when you felt eyes on you - Lewis’ intense gaze had fixated on you from across the way as Bono spoke to him. The cogs turning in his brain were almost visible - like he was putting the pieces together. You gave him a shy wave and he gave you a two finger salute before nodding towards a small passage between two of the Mercedes motorhomes.

“U-Uhm, I’ll be back in a second, Charles.” Your boyfriend acknowledged you with a simple smile, allowing you to slip away towards the former Champion.

It felt bizarre, sneaking into a darkened alleyway with Lewis Hamilton but you were intrigued by what he had to say. There was barely a foot between you as you stood with your back to the wall, his eyes studying you through long lashes. You could feel your heart pounding in your chest.

“...it’s you isn’t it.” His voice was quiet, eyes boring into yours. “You’re Thirty.”

You pressed your lips into a line and he raised a challenging brow, daring you to deny it. “How did you figure it out?”

His smile alone was worth it. “I could never forget your voice… I can’t believe it’s really you.”

There was a different look in his eyes, as if he was really seeing you for the very first time - his rival, his fellow driver. “I… I have so much I want to say to you, y/n. Maybe we can have a proper talk sometime? I’ll give you my number…”

You were collecting Champion’s phone numbers like pokemon cards at this point - after giving you his number and making him text you so he had yours he placed his hand on your shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze, not too dissimilar from the one he’d given you after the race. “It was nice to meet you for real, y/n. Don’t be a stranger.”

It took a moment for you to catch your breath before you returned to Charles who had finally drawn away from the fans to offer you his hand - frowning a little when he saw the clearly exasperated look on your face. “Everything okay?”

You dragged him back to the car, letting out a deep breath - the driver still staring at you with concern. “Lewis knows.”

“...fucking hell. I saw him in the media pen, he didn’t say anything. Reckon you can still trust him?” He asked, placing a hand on your thigh.

“Don’t think I have a choice.” You chuckled nervously. “So that's you, Sebastian, Max and Lewis… Do you think anyone else is suspicious of me?”

“If they are, they’ve not said anything to me.”

The car park was slowly beginning to empty as the rest of the grid made their way to their cars and bikes. You studied each of them, Fernando, Esteban… Yuki… Valtteri… any one of them could suspect you but you’d never know. You let your eyes return to Charles who still had a worried look on his face, so you lent across and pressed a deep kiss to his lips - this time he was the one chasing you as you pulled back; his chest rising and falling and the green of his eyes almost hidden in its entirely by the depth of his pupils.

“How about…” You said, feeling breathless yourself. “...we go back to our hotel and celebrate our podium.”

His eyes widened a little. “You mean-”

“Oh, I mean…”

You lent in, your hand brushing up his thigh as you whispered absolute filth into his ear - you could practically feel his heart racing as you cupped the back of his neck to kiss him once again. Charles had to fight every urge to pull you into his lap and take you right here in the car park but you deserved more for your first time together. He moved back again and started the engine. you gave him a playful smile.

“Take me home, Winner.”

****************

Gif credit @yesloulou

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[sargeantposting]

A little earlier in the F2 season, we caught up with Williams Racing Academy Driver Logan Sargeant.

Wanting to get to know him just a little bit better, and with a big date in Austin now on the horizon, we tasked him with answering 22 questions about racing and life in general.

Here’s what he had to say…

What race day rituals do you have?

If weekends are going well, I tend to stick with the same underwear for each day. Before you worry, they’re different pairs! I have a Friday, Saturday, Sunday set. But if it’s not going well, I have to make a change!

What's your go-to coffee order?

Latte, but it's a double espresso before quali.

What's the inspiration behind your racing number?

This year it’s six because I can’t choose in F2, but when I am allowed to pick, it would be No3. Three for Dale Earnhardt, an all-out American hero.

Your favourite drink?

I’ve only just turned 21… but it’s water, of course.

If you had to cook one main course to impress a loved one, what would it be?

Oooo… I’m not much of a cook, but I can tell you what I would order in! I love a good prime rib.

What’s your favourite film?

Love the Jump Streets, but I’ve got a lot of time for Step Brothers. But if I had to choose out of the two, I’d go Jump Streets. I suppose I have to choose which one?! But 21 and 22 are both pretty good. Ah, I can’t decide.

Who is the toughest rival you've come up against so far?

It’s got to be the battle in Formula 3 between myself and Oscar Piastri.

Your favourite cheat meal?

Fortunately I have a quick metabolism, so they come relatively often… my American roots mean it would have to be a nice, juicy burger.

How many attempts did it take to pass your driving test?

Just one, which is apparently pretty rare for racing drivers! That’s including the practical and the theory.

Which track are you most looking forward to in 2022?

It’s got to be Monaco, but I’m looking forward to seeing the F1 team in Miami.

You can choose one song only to listen to before a race, what is it?

Lose Yourself - Eminem.

Is there one circuit not on your calendar that you'd love to race at?

Obviously it’s either Miami or Austin; to have a home race would be amazing. That said, I’d love to race at Suzuka some day.

Who is your favourite sports team outside of F1?

Anything Miami! We’re talking Heat, Dolphins, Marlins, Inter Miami… they’ve all got my support.

Least favourite exercise your trainer set for you in the offseason?

I’d say it’s got to be all the extra cardio I had to do to get ready for F2.

What's a better feeling, nailing a quali lap or executing a late overtake?

I saw what Nicky and Alex said to this answer and I have to agree. Nailing a quali lap all day long. It’s my favourite part of a weekend, I love putting it all on the line.

Is there anyone you idolised when growing up?

In racing, my first hero when I was a kid was, funnily enough, Jeff Gordon. I just loved watching him and the way he fought on track.

Favourite sport that's not F1?

At the moment, I’d have to say NFL. But it switches between that and the NBA.

If you could invite anyone in the world to a dinner party, which three people would you choose and why?

I would invite Leo DiCaprio, I feel he’s kind of cool. Then let’s also invite Margot Robbie and Brad Pitt. Let’s make it an A-List movie night!

What is your favourite Grand Prix?

Well, I could be biased and say Austin. I mean, how can you argue against 450,000 fans across the three days last year? That was pretty awesome. But I’ve got to say I love Silverstone as well.

What's been your favourite moment of your career so far?

My rookie race in Macau where I finished third. Definitely, 100%, hands down my favourite track in the world.

One word to describe how you're feeling about the 2022 season?

Confident.

One word that best describes Williams Racing to you?

Supportive.

[georgegraphys]

I think we have to acknowledge two things and these two things have correlations to each other nor it is fully wrong or right

a) Antonelli is/is going to be a talented driver

b) He is not ready for Formula One right now

Those two points exist and they don't have to contradict each other. Both of them exist at the same time and it's alright.

Kimi is fast. There's got to be a reason why Mercedes wants him (or even if it's just Toto). The pressure on him is immense with the constant yapping made by his team and boss and also the literal expectations people made that "oh he'll beat this, he'll beat that". When George steps in to Mercedes, no one expects him to beat Lewis Hamilton straight away but somehow some delulu people expect Kimi to pull a world championship on his first year.

A person could be really talented. They could be a wonderkid. But when we're talking about Formula One, it extends beyond just being "fast". You need to have the physique, mentality, talent, and connection to be in Formula One. You're going to have to race 24 races in a year, some of them were double headers, triple headers with sprint races and more. Not to mention you got to have the mentality as well to deal with the public eyes on you, the social media spotlight, and some teams' have a crazy amount of PR duties to be done by their drivers. Formula One, in this day and age, extends beyond racing. It is more than racing whether we like it or not.

Mercedes are one of the teams that has a crazy amount of PR work from sponsors for their drivers. It's just 4 months and 9 races in and George already has 31 duties, averaging on 1-2 per races and 1-2 off-race. And all of those were done in between media day, practices or even before and after quali. Sometimes it's so fast paced that he had limited time in some events because he had to travel again to another event in such a short amount of time and you can't say that does not take a toll on someone mentally and physically. It does.

Then apart from the public duties, we have these crazy spotlight from fans, general public, and the media. One bad race, one mistake, one bad radio transmission and they will grill the hell out of it for days, and weeks or even months for the obsessed people. And if you see how it is for F1 athletes on social media right now, it is very easy for them to just throw hate. Fill your comments with threats, cyberbullying these athletes to hell and back, and do other vile things.

My point here is that in these recent years/decade, racing has extended beyond just racing. Whether you hate it or like it, you need to accept that. It is no longer just turning into a race weekend and just racing. Drivers have crazy PR duties ahead of them now, they have crazy spotlight ahead of them. Every piece of their private life is scrutinized. Look at those freak WAG fan accounts on instagram and tiktok. Look at how people dig into a driver's past, family, and relationship. Look at the general media twisting around words and narratives to gain more clicks and milking slight misunderstandings. For someone like Kimi who has yet to a) polish his driving skills fully when people expect the craziest stints out of him b) reach the matured age and is basically still a minor with all these expectations on his back. It is very wise to say that he is not ready for what Formula One is currently and he should be given some time to prepare himself instead. I'm not saying that Kimi would flop like "driver A" or "driver B". He is talented. But the way Formula One works nowadays? You can't just be talented and fast. You need to be ready, physically and mentally. You can pull a Max Verstappen as an example, but F1 in 2015 and F1 in 2025 is DIFFERENT. Things work differently now and you can't refer back to how things work 10 years ago where there are less spotlight.

Not everything needs to be a "gamble" when the consequences can be avoided and you can do it with better ways.

[umgeorge]

george russell is interviewed on media day, miami - may 2, 2024 (transcript under the cut)

Interviewer: "A lot of chat around the paddock and in the press about Mercedes' potential interest in Max Verstappen, potentially to be your teammate next year. What would you think if Max was to come here and to be your teammate? You've obviously taken on Lewis, one of the greatest of all time, as your teammate here, but Max the driver who's defining the current generation. How would that be, as a teammate?" George: "Yeah, I'd be all for it, to be honest. I think coming into Mercedes in 2022 was off the back of Lewis' legendary years and victories, and that was a huge task for anybody, jumping into a team where he's been for so long, and I believe in myself. And you need to go up against the best in the same machinery and show what you've got, so I feel that having Lewis as my teammate for the past three years… He's been a hell of a teammate, such a great driver, and we push each other every single week and I think it's fair to say that, so I would welcome Max. I wanna go against the best, I want to… Everybody wants to prove what they've got, so… Yeah. Make it happen." Interviewer: "On the flipside of that, you could be partnered with Antonelli next year. Obviously Mercedes are continuing their process with him and testing over at Imola. Have you kept an eye on his progress and heard from the team about how he's been faring?" George: "Yeah, I've heard he's been doing a good job. Obviously when you're driving alone it's always difficult to get a reference, and for him it's just gaining the necessary experience. There's no doubt that he's gonna be in a Mercedes at some point in the future. Is that next year? Is that in years to come? Time will tell, but he's a great driver and he's won everything in his junior career, so there's no reason not to see him in Formula 1, mixing with the best in the years to come." Interviewer: "And finally from me, we've moved from one sprint weekend into the next sprint weekend. A very different format last time out. So much data, I imagine, to colate in just those three hours after the sprint race and make the changes to the cars before qualifying for the grand prix. What did you guys learn in China that you can bring over to this wekeend, be it positives, or, I guess on Lewis' side of the garage particularly it was certainly negatives." George: "I personally really enjoyed the new format. I think it felt a little bit more chronological, with having the sprint quali first, straight into the sprint race. I think of course a learning is that if you turn the car upside down and then you go straight into a qualifying session, every single lap in Q1 or Q2 is vitally important for how it sets you up for Q3, the tires you have left, and it's very difficult to adapt in such a short period of time, so probably better the devil you know than trying to find that sweet spot."

[f0point5]

I started watching f1 last year when Imola got cancelled (that was going to be the first race I would've watched) and I remember that even back then I already saw memes about Max winning all the time, the Max Verstappen podcast etc. Monaco quali was insane and then I became a Max fan right after Spain. And I just really fucking miss Rocky. I'm so with you on the preference of the 30 sec gap, bc I already know he's capable of fighting it out so now I just want him to chill each weekend and joke about pit stop trainings, actually pit on the last few laps for fastest lap only, get fastest lap on very used tyres etc.

I know I'm not an old fan, so I don't have a lot of experience with the sport tbh, I did watch some from the previous years but like I genuinely don't get people who can't enjoy when someone dominates so beautifully and actually performs perfectly. It's not boring, it's legendary and it's beautiful. And I feel lucky I got to experience that season in real time. Sorry for the rant this is kinda off topic, like just out of the blue but I'm still not over Miami and Imola was just shit and I'm in the feels about missing Rocky:(( I just knew I could rant to you because you get it 😂 (I kinda think we agonize over this more than Max himself but whatever. It's important TO ME)

Rocky was a legend. Honestly as someone who’s been watching a while I fully forgot 2022 the second 2023 started and I’m still thinking about it. That season was EVERYTHING. You picked the worst season to get in because I’m not sure we’ll ever see another one like that. It’s like 2021 level epic except it was actually fun to be a Red Bull fan.

Bring back pitting for softs. Bring back holding up 9 fingers at Zandvoort. Bring back “so what he takes a gearbox penalty he’ll be leading by lap 6”. I even miss Perez’s shit qualifying -> dotd shenanigans. 2023 was special.

I get why people don’t enjoy it, it just depends what excites you about racing. I’m the kind of person who gets excited by seeing how close you can get to perfection. Some people are excited by the fight. People like different parts of the sport I guess.

But then I guess if it’s not your favourite team dominating it’s a bit meh. Like I always appreciated Merc dominance but I was praying for their downfall and looking forward to the odd race where Max would win.

But yeah 2023 SEASONED. This season is not seasoning idc who says it is

[adrena-dine]

Singapore GP 2022: a summary

F1 finally back there after two years 🥺

The yassification of helmets (special mention to Guanyu’s 😍😍)

Announcement of the 2023 calendar with 23 races and 6 sprint races 🥴

Lando going out of the plane and having a ride in Singapore’s wildest taxi, it’s the cultural shock for me ✋🏼

Just him going out of the taxi, jet lagged af and then FANCY LIGHTS NO BRAKES VODKA MUSIC

Btw @ lando.jpg saved my week. And my life. Lando i love u 🫶🏼

Guanyu was the man of the weekend

McLaren special livery is soooo beautiful 😵 black cars always differently

Guanyu and Yuki officially prolonged in their teams I am so happy

But Pierre is maybe leaving so now Yuki is giving him the silence treatment (the video of them getting bathed like lil babies added 10 years to my life)

AM and RB may have spent too much money 😅😅😅😅

While AM was saying nothing about it Christian and his team were crying screaming throwing up accusing everyone of lying 🤨🤨🤨🤨

But they still celebrated Max’s bday as nothing was going on

Daniel was just happy to be there and literally crashed into everyone’s interview and press schedule. Especially George’s.

Lewis’ nose ring drama back again

25000€ is kinda expensive for a little diamond isn’t it ?

RB messing up Max’s strategy. Oopsie doopsie.

CHARLES ON POLE

Alonso amazing quali

George p11 ?? What’s going on sweetheart ?

Lewis saw the light for once

Delayed start 💀

Sergio overtook him at the start. Ew.

Nicholas yeeting himself into Guanyu

Lewis loves Lando so much that he decided to put himself between him and max to save Lando’s position 🤪🤪🤪

Max, Seb and Lewis fighting for their dear lives during the last lap meaning that we witnessed 12 world championships fighting each other

So many safety cars that I lost count

Both alpine dnf 😶‍🌫️😶‍🌫️😶‍🌫️

Esteban putting so much oil on track that we could make fries on it

SLICKS DO NOT WORK HERE

isn’t it george ?

Sergio behaving like a Parisian on the road and just trying to get the safety car out of the way

Yuki and Alex said « hello 👋🏼 » to the barriers

Not the Marshalls having to fight with Alex’s front rear to get it out

McLaren p4 and 5 ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️ congrats boys

Shoutout do Daniel that did p16 to p5. Man knows how to drive ☺️☺️☺️☺️☺️

Thé grandstands were shouting AUSSIE AUSSIES for Daniel, if you see someone crying in a corner it’s not me 🙃🙂

Charlotte stealing everyone’s heart during podium ceremony

Not the drivers doing a Joshua Hong and emptying entire bottles of water on their heads

Waiting for checo results will update (man might lose his victory)

[formulatrash]

Hey Hazel! Do drivers generally share their data with their teammates? Are certain drivers known for not being as forthcoming as others? Curious about both F1 and FE. Thanks!

so in terms of is it usual: yes, moreso in FE maybe than in F1 because the time to process it is so short that they need everything they can get.

in F1 effectively they are forced to share, these days, because after FP1 ends in Bahrain, say - and I'm just using RB as an example because I know Jake Dennis does this but all the big teams and even most of the smaller ones will be doing this - all the data gets downloaded off the cars and sent back to RB base. then whoever the lucky schmuck in the simulator is (last year sometimes Alex, this year frequently Jake or one of their junior drivers) will immediately commence running laps to try and iron out anything they can see in the data that's combined with the first feedback from the drivers.

that will be joined by the data from FP2, FP3, quali, the race, etc and the simulation team will run as much of it as they possibly can to adapt that weekend and to prepare for the next (or ones five races down the line) - so in that sense, they always share data because the team has everything.

trackside, of course, there will also be a detailed engineering debrief and they will have tHe DaTa there - which isn't the entire reams of gigabytes and gigabytes of stuff that comes off every sensor on the car (although the drivers do get shown bits of that sometimes to look at) but basically the equivalent of the brake, throttle, gear trace etc that you'd get if you've ever looked at your rFactor or iRacing data. every team will have a slightly different format but I think McLaren showed theirs in something awhile ago. lemme find.

ok so this is obviously a) not real data and b) simplified but you can see some here.

basically what the engineers have on their screens during the session is what they'll (mostly) be looking at unless another area has been flagged to immediately discuss. so they go through that with the drivers and correlate it to anything they're talking about and then the feedback goes back to the simulation team (who'll prob be in the debrief via call) and they try and make a deeper correlation. say, if a driver says 'there was a massive vibration every time I shifted through fourth' then they'll find the data that shows that and then, with the full picture of everything that was happening, run that in the simulator to try and recreate it and then fix it.

but when drivers talk about not sharing their data what they mean is they won't let the other driver see that stuff they get in the debrief, or even after. so the printouts (or more likely iPads etc) that their performance and strategy engineers give them. obviously the overall team has sight of everything but it's a case that drivers can get snippy about letting each other see.

a few - well, fuck it, we're talking like 10-15 years ago - when simulation was much less a part of high level motorsport then yeah you could stop your team mate seeing your basic telemetry and that would basically cut them off. but now simulation plays such a massive role you effectively can't completely, you can just be an asshole at the racetrack.

now, in FE you do have telemetry you can download after a session but the pit wall doesn't have live data for most things during it (only a few very basic safety sensors, they don't even have battery remaining etc) so the first thing they do when the car comes into the garage is get that out and start trying to process it. of course, during an FE weekend 1) you cannot make any programmatical changes to the car (teams have to submit their programming a week in advance) and 2) you only have very little time, with no off-site data centres allowed. so basically they dump it into laptops and try and do what they can as fast as possible. in that sense it's more like ye olden dayes because during a race weekend there won't be that simulator work - but it commences as soon as everyone gets back to the factory, of course, with both cars data. and if you're a manufacturer who supplies another team, then you'll have all four (or six or eight or however many you supply) cars' worth to work with.

has probably every single FE driver on the grid had a snippy weekend where they don't share nicely? almost certainly, they are bitches who love to compete. but then once it's factory time of course they have to run each others' data in the simulator to improve the car for next time so it would be self-sabotaging to try and not let it be combined.

err anyway. err. I don't even know if I've answered the question there. oh, drivers notorious for not sharing - lol, Fernando. pretty sure I can say that without getting taken out by a specialist NDA enforcer cus I am certain he's done it at every team he's been at. maybe he's learned to share now after his time in WEC.

in FE I honestly don't think there are any that don't share, it'd kind of be stupid not to. probably JEV and Sam when they were in a real huff with each other during the incredibly dark period of Season 2, maybe JEV and Antonio during the-

actually you know what I know one team mate pairing absolutely will not share because they hate the living daylights out of each other. but I don't think I can actually say who it is until they've at least stopped being team mates. or maybe they are sharing now and that's how things came good. anyway. it does happen...

hope that makes sense I seem to have gone off a lot lmao.

[fcb-mv33]

You don't know much about F1 if you think Lewis is the only one with toxic title rivalries. The difference with Max and Charles is that it's not a real championship fight. Red Bull are just pretending they're on the back foot due to the points cushion. Come back IF Charles ever comes close enough to contend for the title and Red Bull will show their disgusting true colors again. // I'm pissing myself. You're telling op that it's not a real championship fight because of a "points cushion" while telling them they don't know much about F1. Like honey a lot can change from race to race, see the literal start of this season. Does thou not remember Bahrain? Ferrari were the ones with a points cushion, what happened to that again? Oh right... And gentlemen, a short look back to the past, does Sebastian Vettel's comeback during the 2012 season mean nothing? Does his sensational recovery drive in the last race in Brazil that year mean nothing? Like fortunes change quickly in this sport, you never celebrate or claim the championship is yours until you reach the chequered flag at the deciding race because it could be gone with the wind before you know it. Lewis fans like to forget Massa and "is that Glock" but that happened. Massa had the title for just under a minute before it was taken from him through no fault of his own, he did everything he was supposed to but Ferrari shot themselves in the foot at crucial points during the season which allowed Lewis to close the gap and win the championship BY A SINGLE POINT. It ain't over until it's over. There's no such thing as point cushion when both drivers are insanely gifted with cars that are able to compete with each other. There was a points cushion for Lewis though from 2014-2020 because the gap was that big as no car could compete with Mercs so he was only really competing with Nico and Valtteri, Nico eventually did beat Lewis in 2016 and let's not forget the frequent "Valtteri it's James" and engine penalities that Bottas had to deal with, so Lewis may as well have been doing the Hungarian Grand Prix 2021 restart at every race. As for Red bulls disgusting true colours? Mate Merc celebrated a crash that sent another driver to hospital. Red bull antis call red bull toxic but look at what Merc did to Nico and Valtteri. Valtteri admitted to turning to alcohol to cope and Nico literally quit racing in f1 because it took such a toll on him. Merc is far from innocent.

Op has never said no one but lewis has had toxic title rivalries or toxic rivalries in general in F1, but it's telling how he behaves regarding them, I mean we all heard his comments in Silverstone... People like to bring up Esteban to point and be like "SEE MAX HAS A TOXIC RIVALRY OUTSIDE LEWIS" when Esteban and Max were seen chatting and joking around with each other multiple times during multiple race weekends this year. Whatever their current relationship is like (for however long they're both in F1 they'll be coworkers at least), neither are clinging to Brazil 2018 and letting that weekend define them like so many max antis do. Lewis seems intent on Silverstone 2021 being his defining race.

Honestly I love how this year is showing how Max just genuinely loves a good fight on track, he genuinely wants to chat all things racing post quali or race with Charles or Checo and it’s adorable…it’s nice after last season he gets this cause you can see how much he genuinely loves it this year. He loves the respect not only with the drivers but also the team…it’s nice for him and it shows he was so not the toxic one last season….

And yes it will not be over till I hear the words which I won’t even speak right now…it’s not over till it’s over but I have a shit load of faith in Max🧡

[vro0m]

vro0m’s rewatch - 121/304

2013 Belgian GP

Alright. Post summer break. Oooh bad weather. Well it's Spa, no surprise.

Okay quali report. It was dramatic. Q1 started wet with everyone on inters. Then it dried up and some people tried the slicks towards the end. And it worked! Backmarkers such as Chilton, Bianchi and Van der Garde made it into Q2. Q2 was pretty uneventful but it started raining again in Q3 so everybody had to go back to the pits for wets. Di Resta was already on inters so he had a free track and set a good time, it even looked like he could get the pole as the rain came down harder after that. But right at the end, it eased off enough for Rosberg to beat his time. Webber, Seb and Lewis were still on track though, each one beating the last one's time. Lewis was the last to cross the line, and he snatched the pole, again! On the images, you see his team absolutely fucking losing it out of sheer surprise. "I can't believe it!" he said on the radio. 

So that gives us as top 10 Lewis, Seb, Webber, Rosberg, Di Resta, then Jenson, Grosjean, Raikkonen, Alonso and Massa. 

It's Lewis’ 4th consecutive pole. He says this one was even more surprising than the last one, given the changing weather. He explains his lap in detail again, showing how tricky the conditions were, even pinpointing the parts of the track where you see it going from wet to dry or vice-versa. The tyres were not doing good again and he had a lot of understeer. (It's not really reassuring for the race performance.) He says he was trying to look where he was on the TV screens in the pit straight, and then he saw his team cheering so he thought it must have been good.

I finally caught the name of the skysports presenter and it's Simon Lazenby and he's talking with Anthony Davidson about Lewis feeling more and more at home in the car and in the team. They're highlighting again that it takes time for that to happen as we saw when Schumacher made his return. (And as I talked about in a long-ass rant about driver-car fit in a precedent review, I think it was 2012 Abu Dhabi GP quali). 

Oh. My. God. Platine blond Seb. Hello. Hello, platine blond Seb.

We get a Lewis interview. He says he's been training 6 days a week during the break. He's back with a lot of energy. He says it's nice to separate yourself completely, he didn't go on the Internet at all, didn't read what was said about the sport.

He thinks it's positive to keep his mind fresh, step away for a little bit and then come back. Simon asks if he feels that the British fans are rooting for him given how good of a season it's been for British sport. He says it's incredible, he's from Stevenage and who would have thought he'd be doing what he's doing now. Who would have thought he'd have the support that he has. He feels he has such an important role and he's very grateful for it.

Last year was the big crash at the start caused by Grosjean.

He says it's not a good weekend to remember and also it was a tough time for him as he'd just lost his auntie which was really difficult. But this year's completely different. No one's asking him what team he's going to, he's happy where he is, he's just won. There's nothing to worry about, he can just focus on winning.

He didn't think he'd come here with such a good car, he says it's funny, incredible how things happen. He feels like all things happen for a reason. "There's a reason that I felt the need to move, there's a reason that I decided to come this way and there's a reason why the car is good this year."

Simon asks if he truly believes he can win the championship that year. He feels like he has the support, and that he's ready, he's been waiting and training and he feels like he's in the best place. He just hopes the fans know that he's flat out, 100% and he appreciates all the support and he's here to do it for them. 

There's a Greenpeace protest happening at the track. There are paragliders above the track and some people have "landed" (quote, I don't know how they landed there, if it was paragliding too or something else) on the grandstand's roof. Apparently they're about to deploy a banner but they can't get to the track from where they are so the start probably won't be delayed. Ted says the organisers and F1 have said it's now a problem for the police, which has been "quite slow" to respond. 

Formation lap 

And they're racing! 

Lewis gets a good start, several people lock up in the midfield but everybody manages to get out of turn 1 safe and on track. Seb overtakes Lewis rapidly. Webber got a bad start. It seems Redbull has found straight line pace though. Rosberg is under pressure from Jenson, who's under pressure from Alonso. After a couple of laps, when the DRS is enabled, Lewis is already way too far to benefit from it, almost 3 seconds behind Seb. Redbull is telling him to look after his tyres though. Massa says his KERS is not working. Alonso overtakes Jenson. Webber overtakes Jenson. 

Lap 10. Seb is 4.2 seconds ahead. Alonso is 3 seconds behind Lewis but closing on him, then Rosberg and Webber are fighting over 4th place. Lewis pits on lap 12. That's early. He's out in P9. Lewis overtakes Grosjean for P8. Rosberg pits, out in P9. Grosjean overtakes Lewis. They're fighting… Alonso pits. Webber pits. Alonso is behind Lewis. Lewis overtakes Grosjean. Seb pits. Alonso overtakes Lewis. And Seb overtakes Jenson for the lead. 

Lap 20. It's not a fascinating race so far tbh. Seb still in the lead, Alonso 7 seconds behind, Lewis 2.2 seconds behind, Rosberg 5.2 seconds behind, Webber 1.5 seconds behind. Webber is edging closer to Rosberg. Lewis is dropping back and is saying his tyres are not doing well. But it's too early to pit. Raikkonen just went off in a corner trying to overtake Massa and pits immediately to retire. He had been having brake issues from the start. Lewis pits for the second time. Massa pits. And Di Resta and Maldonado collide. Maldonado manages to pit, Di Resta DNF. Alonso pits. 

Lap 30 already. Seb still leading, now ahead of Alonso, Jenson in P3, Lewis P4, Rosberg P5 but of course still some pit stops coming. Seb pits. He's still in the lead. Jenson pits, Lewis is back on the podium. 10 laps to go. Maldonado gets a 10 seconds stop and go penalty for the collision. 

And that's the end of the race. 

Seb, Alonso, Lewis. That wasn't interesting at all.

Sewis full strength in the cool down room, though.

Lewis tells Seb how Alonso could keep up with his pace even when he had DRS. 

It's Lewis 44th podium, which is level with Niki Lauda. Apparently Niki's last podium happened 28 years before this, to the day.

Seb and Lewis are too busy chatting to listen to DC.

People are booing??? Loudly? Seb? What is happening. Now they are cheering?! Seb is as confused as I am he says so to DC. DC says they're not gonna highlight why that is exactly at the moment but I guess it has to do with the protest then. HAHAHA while DC is talking to Alonso, Seb and Lewis conspire and they come up behind him and dump the rest of their champagne on his head. Absolute children.

The crowd loves it lol. As soon as he gets to Lewis, Lewis says "it wasn't me" with the biggest stupidest grin on his face. He says it's a privilege to be compared to someone as legendary as Niki, glad to see so many great fans. He says he's not too optimistic for Monza seeing everybody's pace there in Belgium but he thinks they'll be better in Singapore. 

This is extremely chaotic btw I can't really translate the atmosphere into words but the microphones go on and off, there's feedback, the crowd is very loud and reacting to other stuff than what is said, and yelling stuff at the protesters...

We don't hear more from Lewis this time. 

[donaidk]

Mick Schumacher - Perfect Strangers

Thank you so much for requesting! I had lots of fun with this one 😂 and did leave it a bit open if maybe in the future someone would like a second part to this one. Hope you will like it, and have a lovely Monday! 🥰🧡

Inspiration song

Masterlist | Taglist/Queue | Request

“ You okay alone? I have to go but wouldn’t want to bore you with press events. ” Seb turned to me after talking to Britta for a little, while I watched the mechanics tend to his car in the garage. “ You can stay here, I’m sure no one minds the company. ” He added, sending me a little smile, making me nod.

“ Yeah, I would probably get lost anyways if I went out there. ” I let out a laugh, staying in my seat next to the engineers as he gave me a quick hug and then left the garage, following Britta who was already telling him everything he needed to know. Today was the second time I met her, but I still liked her calm, collected demeanor and energy. I could see why Seb was so content about working with her for the past years.

While they were gone I watched as the team got ready for FP1 and the camera crews walked around the paddock, catching drivers for interviews and capturing moments for interludes they will have during the coverage of the practice rounds on TV. I was more familiar with watching the practices, qualis and races on TV than attending them, even though I would have had the chance to do so. Sebastian was a great friend of my dad, making him like an honorary uncle or godfather to me when I was a bit older and spent quite some time with him and Hana. I even looked after Emilie when they had somewhere to go and were sure I won’t put him in danger. We were lucky that I was trustworthy from a really young age, meaning they could trust me with him as soon as he was fine without Hana being there for a few hours. There wasn’t an occasion when I would have rejected babysitting the young Vettels.

“ Can I get a coffee from somewhere? ” I turned to Seb’s engineer when I saw he wasn’t occupied with something else. I really didn’t want to bother them as they were doing an important job here. At the same time, I needed directions not to get lost around the paddocks.

“ Of course. They have different kinds in the canteen. But we have a machine here too, if that’s enough for you.  ” He pointed at a door in the hallway, making me follow his finger with my gaze. “ It’s the staff room, but driver guests are welcome to use it. ” He added with a smile which I returned, thanking him before standing up.

Inside the room I could easily spot the machine that was already going with a cup under it, slowly being filled with the dark liquid. While it finished up I took another cup and a capsule from the holder on the counter. When the machine turned off I quickly changed out the empty capsule and also the cup from it, putting it to the side. I was sure someone would come back for it later. Sure enough, just when the machine finished my coffee the door behind me opened. I was just looking for some sugar and creamer, not really paying attention to my surroundings, and jumping a little when someone greeted me. Turning back immediately my eyes met with a boy, who was around my age and I could recognise him as Mick. Probably anyone would have recognised him.

“ Sorry, didn’t want to scare you. ” He let out a chuckle, stepping to the counter next to me. “ Was this under the machine? ” He asked me pointing at the mug that I put to the side.

“ Yes. Hope you don’t mind me taking it out. ” I smiled at him stepping to my own cup and adding a bit of sugar and cream into it. “ Sugar? ” I asked him, handing the container to him when he nodded a little. I took a sip from it, to make sure it had enough of everything, before turning to the room.

“ You’re Y/N, right? ” He asked and although I nodded as an answer, I couldn’t help surprise getting onto my face. It wasn’t shocking that people knew his name and almost anything about him, but I couldn’t tell the same about me. “ Seb talks quite a lot about you. At least once every weekend. Also, I think we met before already. ” He explained, making me sigh and hide my face in my palm a little.

“ Never thought I would be a topic for Seb to mention all the time. ” I shook my head, leaving the room when he was ready and we went back to the garage together. “ Hope he only said good things about me. Although I’m pretty sure he probably embarrassed me already, even without me coming to races. ” I let out a sigh entering the garage and sitting down on my previous spot.

“ Not too embarrassing. Just the usual child stories. Although I would say they were more about his children, mentioning you on the way too. ” He shrugged a little, sitting down next to me, at the end of the ‘table’. “ But he made sure we knew you’re coming today. ” My eyes widened a little, before letting out a laugh. If people didn’t know him so well, they could have misunderstood me for one of his children. If I would have been younger, probably, as I was too old for that to be a possibility.

“ So I wasn’t even a surprise? That’s upsetting. ” I let out a sigh, swirling my cup a little, to dissolve the sugar on the bottom of my coffee, as the first sip was still quite bitter. “ Oh, congrats for the championship. I almost forgot. ” I let out a laugh, my hand slapping my forehead a little, as I realised how impolite I was with not even mentioning it.

“ It’s okay, but thank you. I’m just looking forward to the next season now. Gonna be quite a change. ” He smiled at me, shrugging a little but then his shoulders stayed a bit lifted as his muscles tensed. I looked up at him with an understanding smile.

“ You’re gonna get into it. First years are for getting used to the championship and the car. ” I told him, hoping I wasn’ saying something that sounded stupid. I followed the sport but wasn’t as knowledgeable about it as some fans. “ I’m sure every fan knows how hard it is. ” I added as I thought that could be a concern of his. His team loved him, I was sure they would support him however the next year turns out.

“ First seasons are always for learning, but… you know, they think experience comes easily with my name. ” He sighed, rather lifting his cup to his lips, probably to mask the smile fading away from his face. I couldn’t fault him though, there was probably immense pressure on him. Of course, mostly from the outside world, as people around him probably knew quite well how talented he was. Just as Seb always mentioned how skilled and kind he was.

Everything sped up when Seb and Charles arrived back at the garage and they started getting ready for practice. We mostly just stayed silent, sharing a few thoughts when something happened, so we won’t disturb the engineers and he can also mostly focus on the data and how everything went with Ferrari. I knew this was already his time to learn  everything, and didn’t need any distractions. I was fully content with just watching the practice runs and how the crew worked around the car when it was brought back in before one more round around the circuit. I was just about to get a bit bored with everything when it was time for lunch and we could leave. For the afternoon I went for a little walk close to the track, and only met up again with Seb for dinner in the hotel’s restaurant.

I was a bit surprised when Mick joined us, but didn’t mind it one bit. He was funny and it felt like we have known each other for years already, even though this was just the second time in our whole lifetime. I could see Seb watching us, like a hawk, his grin not leaving his face once. I saw as he tried to speak up, the smirk giving him away, but by pushing his leg with mine I got him to close his mouth before uttering a sound. Britta almost choked on her next bite as she knew exactly what was happening, but tried playing it off. Luckily it didn’t seem like Mick realised what was happening around him, and I was glad Seb couldn’t make the night uncomfortable for everyone. He had that effect on situations like this, mostly when it was about me or his own children. They were lucky they were still too small to understand it.

“ You seemed to get on quite well. ” Seb spoke up when we were already on the floor of our rooms making me roll my eyes. He wasn’t someone I was about to have this conversation with gladly.

“ Well, he’s my age and kind. Not like you. ” I poked his side with my elbow, making the both of us laugh as we got to our rooms. With a quick goodnight both of us entered our separate rooms and got ready for the night. I was maybe looking forward to the next day a bit more than that day. Knowing I will have a bit more company made everything better.

The following day we got to the track early as Seb still had some interviews to do before practice. I knew we wouldn’t be able to have lunch together as the afternoon was about Qualification and he needed to focus, but I was sure I would find someone to eat with or maybe just go by myself this one time. What surprised me stepping inside the garage was Mick sitting in the same position as yesterday and a mug of piping hot coffee waiting for me next to his one. With a glare sent at Seb, who was snickering at the situation, I walked closer, sitting down on the stool. His gaze immediately lifted from his phone, looking at me with a smile.

“ Morning. ” I greeted him with the same smile, my hand moving to the cup in front of me. “ Is this for me? Or are you getting ready for a long day? ” I asked him chuckling, seeing as he shook his head a little, maybe even rolling his eyes.

“ Yours. The way you made it yesterday. Hope that’s really how you like it. ” He added, although I already got an answer to my question. It was really sweet of him to think about me, and even more, remembering how I made it just a day ago.

“ Thank you. Glad I didn’t hold back on the sugar then. ” I shook my head a little, taking a sip already and I was sure he followed my usual ‘recipe’ as it tasted the exact same way. “ Perfect! ” I added with a content sigh, my body finally waking up. I wasn’t made for early mornings, even though on most days I started my schedule quite early.

We had an almost exact repeat of the previous day, the only differences being that we had lunch, just the two of us, and that I stayed for the afternoon, watching the quali and rooting for Seb. I may have missed a few laps, being too distracted by our conversation but even when he only reached P13 I knew it wasn’t because of us not watching him. Seeing how frustrated he was I left him to Britta, knowing he didn’t like company so soon after suffering a kind of defeat. He usually just needed time to calm down and look at everything with a calm head again.

“ There’s usually a party on the beach after the races here. Usually the younger drivers are the one attending with some of the crews. But if you would like to come and Seb will be in the mood to relax, they probably wouldn’t mind having you guys there. ” Mick made me turn towards him from my position, a smile getting onto my face, while his was a bit unsure. “ I wouldn’t mind anyways. So you two can be my guest. ” He shrugged a little, his eyes averting between mine as I was looking straight at him.

“ Sure, thank you. He usually gets back to normal if he has some time to calm down. ” I let out a sigh looking towards the hallway where Seb disappeared just seconds ago. I was pretty sure that inside he was fuming at his starting position while Britta tried to talk a bit of sense into him.

Although I took a car back to the hotel with him, in the end he chose to have dinner in his room and I went to the canteen alone. Thinking back to the night I can’t even remember how I ended up at a table with some of the guys who were my age, with Mick to my side. There were a few of the F2 and even F3 drivers too, everyone talking and joking together. even though everyone had to have an early night we still spent a few hours together just talking, before everyone went to their own rooms. I did toss and turn for a little until I finally fell asleep and then stayed in bed almost all morning.

The first thing I got out of bed for was lunch before getting ready for the race and the party afterwards. I didn’t put on anything special as I always prioritised comfort over look and didn’t pack anything party worthy anyways. A light blouse, jeans and a sandal had to do it as it was everything I had for the few days I planned on spending in Abu Dhabi. Who thought I would get invited to a championship party during my first ever true race weekend. Not me, that’s for sure. I knew we would maybe have a drink or two with the ones close to Seb if the race goes well, but didn’t think I would get to celebrate with younger ones, no matter in which position they cross the finish line.

We left the hotel together for the track with Seb, the car dropping us off at the parking lot just prior to the entrance to the paddocks. I tried focusing on him,just making sure he knew he had my support too, although I couldn’t help but get into a short conversation with Mick. When I turned back to the older man he was already putting on his helmet, but sent me a smile, from which I knew he wasn’t mad at me for not being always next to him. I watched as he got into his car but then left for the grandstand, as I really didn’t want to be in the way of anyone, and opted for watching the race from the usual position. I thought it would be less stressful this way, as I was an outsider more than someone who knew a drive personally, but I was still a bit disappointed for him when they finished the last lap in front of us. I took the stairs down to the paddocks, entering the Ferrari garage even before Seb arrived back.

“ You did good. ” I hugged him when he got to me, although I knew simple words couldn't help after a season like his. It still felt right to tell him, making sure he knew we were still proud of him.

“ Thank you, but it wasn’t the best last season I would have asked for. ” He shrugged a little, putting down his equipment on the table next to him. “ I’m gonna have to get some interviews, photos done and change. We can leave after that if you don’t mind staying until then. ” He informed me, while I crossed my arms in front of myself.

“ Actually, Mick invited me to like a season ending party at the beach. Most of the younger drivers will be there, and you’re invited too if you would like to come. ” I told him, waiting patiently for his answer. “ But I don’t mind staying if you would like some company. ” I added, realising I took him not minding my absence for granted.

“ I’ll probably just have a quiet night, but you go and have fun. I’m fine with leaving you to him and the others. ” He shook his head, with a small smile still visible on his face. “ I’m gonna be miserable enough for the both of us, and we will have enough time to catch up after today. ” He added with a laugh when I was about to change my mind, pulling me into a side hug.

That’s how I ended up in a car with all the youngsters, after a quick introduction, that took us to the beach. It was probably a private section of the sandy path next to the water, as it wasn’t crowded and every face that came up to me was already familiar in a way. I couldn’t fault them for only partying in their own circles, as I could imagine the chaos some fans getting in would cause. No one needed that when they came here to relax a bit, after a stressful season full of training and working. I was just happy to take part in it and have a few drinks with the guys before dancing the night away. Looking back, I wasn’t that fed up with my choice of flat sandals, as even that was killing my feet when we got back to the hotel.

Even though I woke up with a killer headache, I wouldn’t have traded it if it meant changing the previous night's outcome. Despite the hangover, and having to fly home early, I felt refreshed and ready to take on the usually boring life at home again. It always filled me with energy if I could get out of the usual rhythm, and this time maybe the new contact in my phone helped too. To the stage that Seb was giving me curious looks when we got into the car already, and even more when just looking at the meaningless device made me smile a little wider.

[ilovejevsjeans]

Why there’s far more to Russell than qualifying specialism

The old adage in Formula 1 that the first person you must beat is your teammate may be cliched, yet it rings true. Drivers constantly compare themselves with the man across the garage, knowing the importance of becoming the in-house alpha.

It makes qualifying head-to-head records a valued statistic for many drivers. As pally-pally as Lando Norris was with Carlos Sainz at McLaren, he took some pleasure in pipping the Spaniard on Saturdays across their two seasons together (11-10 in 2019, 8-8 in 2020). Fernando Alonso’s 21-0 whitewash of Stoffel Vandoorne in 2018 meant so much to the two-time F1 world champion that he was still trotting out the statistic 18 months later.

But even Alonso’s qualifying prowess looks workmanlike compared with that of George Russell. In his 46 appearances with Williams , not once has he been outqualified by a teammate. He equalled Alonso’s 21-0 sweep in 2019, when paired with Robert Kubica – a grand prix winner – and leads Nicholas Latifi 25-0 in their season-and-a-bit together. The only F1 teammate to ever outqualify Russell is Valtteri Bottas, who pipped him to pole in their single race together at Mercedes – and we all know who really walked away as the moral winner that weekend…

It has led to the moniker of ‘Mr Saturday’ being attached to Russell by TV types, who then rattle out those statistics like tickets from a slot machine every time he makes it through to Q2. As impressive as his qualifying record is, to reduce his significance to that of a quali-day footnote belies the true power of Britain’s burgeoning F1 star. Last year in Sakhir he offered a glimpse of what he could one day do for Mercedes, jumping in at the last minute and making full use of the tools at his disposal. But to be true world champion material requires a greater contribution: it’s being a leader, rallying those around you, and being a figurehead in the team’s progression in every area.

They are valuable skills which those around Russell at Williams have seen him hone since making his debut in 2019. “He’s just got better and better, and developed almost with every race,” says Dave Robson, Williams’ head of vehicle performance. “Not so much in terms of the driving, that’s always been very strong. But in terms of his understanding of the whole game that we play and everything that we need to get right and we need his help with, it’s just improved endlessly.

��His role within the team is particular, he takes it in his stride in leading that. He’s an excellent asset in all regards.”

The evolution into a leadership role was something Russell was required to embrace quickly. As the depth of the team’s plight became clear in early 2019, there was a contrast in the response of the two drivers: while Kubica – the more experienced, seemingly senior head – subsided into negativity, the junior Russell accepted the state of affairs and got stuck in trying to make a difference.

“2019 was an incredibly difficult baptism of fire,” recalls Robson. “Once he’d got his head around the situation we were in, he was extremely good at being clear about the order of the problems that needed tackling.”

Dealing with a car as devilish as the FW42 helped Russell hone his development skills and feedback, helping the team make big strides in each of the past two seasons and move off the foot of the pecking order in 2021. He even gleaned some helpful slivers of information during his one-race sojourn with Mercedes, feeding back to Williams that it should change its clutch paddle designs after sampling a different steering wheel.

The technical understanding he has forged is “right up there” with the best drivers Robson – once a race engineer to Jenson Button and Felipe Massa – has worked with: “His technical understanding of what the car has to do, how the tyres have to work, and some of the compromises you have to make, is now as good as anyone, I think, in the pitlane.”

It has made Russell not only an important asset to his team, but also to his teammate. Nicholas Latifi joined Williams as a rookie in 2020, and while paired with a younger driver who had just 21 grands prix to his name, he was quickly able to lean on Russell to help his own performances as he got up to speed in F1.

“It’s been hugely beneficial to have a teammate like George,” Latifi says. “Definitely in those opening races at the beginning of the year and throughout the year, [I was] learning from him what I can in the data, seeing what he is asking for from the car, what he thinks the car needs to go quicker, when I was just trying to find my feet and get up to the limit – for sure relying a bit on that information was very helpful.”

Latifi’s confidence may have grown into his second season, but he still finds it a “great help” to have such a strong reference in Russell – even when on the wrong side of the qualifying scoreline. “Part of it just stems from having George as your teammate,” Robson says of their head-to-head record. “He does have an incredible ability to pull something out when it really matters.”

But it is not just Russell’s on-track capabilities that have made him such a powerful and important figure within Williams. The soft skills he has developed off-track, knowing how to best work with the team around him and keep heads up – even through the trickiest of times – has been hugely important to Williams.

“It’s not just his technical input, but also the way he interacts with everyone and his positivity,” says Robson. “Although he can, quite understandably, get frustrated in the heat of the moment, his positivity and general way he is so constructive is very good and exactly what we needed over the last couple of years. He’s played a big role.”

At just 23 years old, Russell has a growing voice and authority that few of his peers boast. It has earned him the respect of the entire F1 grid, evidenced by his appointment as the GPDA’s newest director at the start of this year following Romain Grosjean’s exit from the series, wishing to represent “the younger half of the grid”. Internally at Williams, he has also used his eagerness to speak up to good effect, wishing to make himself heard from day one.

There’s something about him: when he talks, people listen,” says Robson. “It’s important, provided he’s talking about the right thing. Perhaps right at the beginning, he didn’t always get [that] right, but it didn’t take him long to suss that out and understand.”

Robson’s comment is another sign of Russell’s willingness and ability to learn from his mistakes, a trait that fits perfectly with the culture built by Mercedes in its evolution to a title-winning F1 juggernaut.

It was something that he has already had to put into action this year, having brazenly pointed the finger at Bottas for their crash at Imola and then proposed a theory that had tinfoil hats quivering across the F1 Twittersphere. On the flight home after the race with Mercedes head honchos Toto Wolff and James Allison, Russell said he was given some “tough love”, but he acted quickly: he apologised, retracted his comments, and vowed to learn from the saga.

It’s exactly the kind of growth Mercedes wants to see, and will undoubtedly be part of its considerations when it decides on Russell’s future for 2022. He is a free agent, as is Valtteri Bottas, the man he would surely replace should Wolff decide the time is right to cash in on his investment.

But where would that leave Williams? Robson does not mince his words, admitting it would be a “huge loss” for the team both on- and off-track.

“It’s been fantastic working with him, right from when we first put him through the evaluation,” Robson says. “It was obvious George had something about him, some genuinely outstanding talent to drive the car. And it’s been probably frustrating at times, but a great journey to be on with him.

“Of course he’d be a massive loss. I think we’ve all put in a lot of time and effort to help him where he needed a bit of help, to guide him, and it would be a real shame to lose that without really seeing the benefits of it in our car.”

CEO Jost Capito says he would “of course” hand Russell the multi-year deal he craves from 2022, should it be viable. “I think he would fit very well to Williams for our future as well,” Capito says. “If he believes in our future, there might be a chance to keep him.”

It is a future that Russell has helped forge for Williams. Steps such as the sale of the team and investment from Dorilton Capital has secured the team’s immediate future, but Russell’s role must be recognised.

Robson agrees, saying he “can take a good amount of credit” for the team’s progress since hitting rock bottom at the start of 2019.

Williams may have a strong history for backing and cultivating young talent, giving the likes of Jenson Button, Nico Rosberg, Nico Hulkenberg, and Valtteri Bottas their starts. But to be the force that helps lift the team out of its hardest moments, acting as the catalyst in its revival, arguably makes Russell the most important of the bunch – even if he doesn’t stick around to enjoy the fruits of his labour. (X)