Been catching up on the Channel 4 highlights after reading the Autosport updates. Very scary moment for Stroll and equally concerning to hear on his radio that he was calling for a red flag at that stage of the race. How does that compare to something like Mansell's blow-out in Adelaide 1986, I wonder?
Restart was made all the more energetic by the reactions from the Channel 4 team, especially with that scream as Hamilton went off! Have to say there was a lot of smoke coming out of Hamilton's brakes on the grid so I wonder whether that had any effect on his lock-up.
Congratulations to Perez and glad to see Vettel back at the sharp end with the first-ever F1 podium for Aston Martin. Seems to me that he has regained the confidence and energy that made him stick out during his time at Red Bull.
Gutted for Verstappen, but thankful that he got out of that incident okay. Channel 4 team clearly unhappy with Pirelli over the tyre failures that took him and Stroll out.
Huge break for Max but still a net loss since he would've gained points without his tire failure. Constructors is where it really hurts for Mercedes since it looks like Perez is up to speed in his car while Bottas was completely useless.
Bit of a side thought I've had for a while but I wish F1 would require all three compounds to be used during the race. If nothing else, no more teams running one tire for so long to where they could spetacularly fail as they did today.
I think Bottas and Mercedes relationship has now completely broken down.
Wolff's comments about Bottas earlier this weekend were nothing short of disgraceful, and Bottas has been treated like crap by both the team and Lewis. It's time for Bottas to leave.
Did Lewis say something post-race (I wasn't able to catch any post race interviews before going to work)? As far as I knew Lewis was still willing to go to bat for him.
Granted, I wouldn't blame Bottas for leaving after Toto basically lied to the media in order to throw him under the bus
I think Bottas and Mercedes relationship has now completely broken down.
Wolff's comments about Bottas earlier this weekend were nothing short of disgraceful, and Bottas has been treated like crap by both the team and Lewis. It's time for Bottas to leave.
As far as Lewis is concerned, it was more about what he didn't say - I didn't hear him say anything directly about Bottas, only that Lewis himself was happy with the 'strategy' that put him on the front row. However, Bottas was clearly very upset that Lewis and the team didn't bother to reciprocate and even attempt to get Bottas further up the grid. Perhaps I'm being harsh on Lewis here, but the team certainly aren't giving Bottas a fair shake at the moment, and I reckon it's clear from Lewis's behaviour that he knows that Bottas is gone. Wolff's comments about the pit incident at Monaco were ridiculous, and even though he withdrew the remarks later, it was still quite telling that he tried to blame Bottas at all.
Huge break for Max but still a net loss since he would've gained points without his tire failure. Constructors is where it really hurts for Mercedes since it looks like Perez is up to speed in his car while Bottas was completely useless.
Bit of a side thought I've had for a while but I wish F1 would require all three compounds to be used during the race. If nothing else, no more teams running one tire for so long to where they could spetacularly fail as they did today.
Agree with it being a net loss for Max as he really needed this win I feel. The Mercs have been uncharacteristically weak on street circuits so RB really needed to capitalise and a double podium was really what they needed. I wouldn't be surprised if we're back to HAM-BOT-VER territory in France or HAM-VER-BOT.
I think Bottas and Mercedes relationship has now completely broken down.
Wolff's comments about Bottas earlier this weekend were nothing short of disgraceful, and Bottas has been treated like crap by both the team and Lewis. It's time for Bottas to leave.
Completely agree. I've always thought Toto was a class act but I've lost a huge amount of respect for him after he blamed Bottas for the pit issue. Personally, I feel that after Bahrain last year Russell was always headed to that Mercedes seat for 2022. There's a huge buzz around him, he impressed at Bahrain and given Toto's his manager, short of Bottas winning the championship, it seemed the likely course of action. Wouldn't be surprised if Bottas is blamed for more stuff going forward as a way of making it seem like he's not up to the job.
Personally, I don't feel like Mercedes are coming out of this at all well. It's like they're offronted that they're actually having to work to win the championship for the first time since the start of 2018. Toto protesting the flexi wing in spite of the fact that their wing also appears to be just as flexi, Lewis moaning about the Monaco circuit and blaming the team for all the issues; all the constant moaning over the radio today about Checo being faster. It's like they've forgotten that most of the time in sport you have to fight and work hard to win things.
It's a good point how future tracks might suit the Merc more and maybe bring Bottas into play.
Still I feel there's too many excuses for him, he's been there a long time now and should be stronger mentally. I do accept the car this year is probably trickier but top drivers can adapt and overcome. Will be interesting how a new driver can do. Russell came into a car he never driven with an poor fitting seat and did great but maybe it was much easier. I guess under current logic if Bottas is getting all these excuses then there isn't much to be expected for a while after drafting in a replacement.
Well it's set up to be an intriguing season, can Perez keep up the fight and put pressure on Lewis and complicate strategy and can Bottas recover to help out.
Some will not know or forget that before these so called poor treatments of Bottas, it was earlier on in the season all to play for, fresh season and I think it was Totto or other main Mercedes boss came on the radio to tell Bottas to hunt him down and really try to encourage him, he was coasting and actually did improve his laps. I think at that moment the team knows it's not happening with this guy and the despondency is generated by Bottas.
As far as Lewis is concerned, it was more about what he didn't say - I didn't hear him say anything directly about Bottas, only that Lewis himself was happy with the 'strategy' that put him on the front row. However, Bottas was clearly very upset that Lewis and the team didn't bother to reciprocate and even attempt to get Bottas further up the grid. Perhaps I'm being harsh on Lewis here, but the team certainly aren't giving Bottas a fair shake at the moment, and I reckon it's clear from Lewis's behaviour that he knows that Bottas is gone. Wolff's comments about the pit incident at Monaco were ridiculous, and even though he withdrew the remarks later, it was still quite telling that he tried to blame Bottas at all.
Ah, I didn't know about the situation in regards to Lewis and the strategy. Kinda smells like a lighter version of the Vettel/Webber days in that case. Still, I personally wouldn't put too much blame on Lewis, as it seems like he's understandably much more focused on his performance this year since RBR and Verstappen are much more pertinent threats. While I enjoyed how much of a nice change of pace it was for Lewis to vouch for Bottas, it also really isn't his job to do that either. It definitely seems like Bottas is getting a bigger shaft from the team, the higher ups in particular (though his drives so far haven't done him many favours, either).
Completely agree. I've always thought Toto was a class act but I've lost a huge amount of respect for him after he blamed Bottas for the pit issue. Personally, I feel that after Bahrain last year Russell was always headed to that Mercedes seat for 2022. There's a huge buzz around him, he impressed at Bahrain and given Toto's his manager, short of Bottas winning the championship, it seemed the likely course of action. Wouldn't be surprised if Bottas is blamed for more stuff going forward as a way of making it seem like he's not up to the job.
Personally, I don't feel like Mercedes are coming out of this at all well. It's like they're offronted that they're actually having to work to win the championship for the first time since the start of 2018. Toto protesting the flexi wing in spite of the fact that their wing also appears to be just as flexi, Lewis moaning about the Monaco circuit and blaming the team for all the issues; all the constant moaning over the radio today about Checo being faster. It's like they've forgotten that most of the time in sport you have to fight and work hard to win things.
Toto's comments about Bottas missing the mark in Monaco genuinely made me bust out laughing because of how stupid it was. It also showed quite a bit in terms of how the team think of him imo. Like I said, I wouldn't blame Bottas for leaving based on that comment alone, because it seems like the team is turning into a toxic environment for him. While his performances this year have very rightly garnered a lot of criticism, there's still a baseline of respect and professionalism that needs to be maintained by all involved, and throwing your guy under the bus as badly and stupidly as that is a good way to kill that relationship in the long-run.
It definitely seems like Mercedes are a bit off balance this year. Between their car not being quite as strong as previous years, Red Bull actually being quite close, if not ever-so-slightly ahead in terms of pace, and what seems like a lower amount of confidence between both their drivers and some of the personnel, I get the feeling that they're being put in long-unfamiliar territory and are having a bit of a time trying to figure it out. Red Bull should do their best to take advantage of this situation while they can, because knowing how Mercedes operates, it likely won't last very long.
Meanwhile... I've said a few times that Mazepin deserves a shot at redemption in F1 and, imo, in the last couple of races he's done a reasonable job an a ****-box car. Today he could have killed himself and his teammate with that jink, so there's his shot gone. What a knob.
Hamilton missed the first corner and finished P15. Verstappen had problems on his rear left tyre. At least both championship contenders equally didn't score a point today, balanced.
I know you dont want to see a driver crash, but it is good that Max crashed where he did.
If it was in slow speed section or just as he got on to the straight he would've/could've limped into the pits and lewis would've won, while max would've been plum last.
Wow, a lot to pick through after this one. Where do I even start?
-Leclerc didn't stay in the lead for very long, highlighting the Ferrari's lack of race pace.
-Hamilton pits from the lead with Verstappen and Perez behind, but his stop is slow.
-Verstappen and Perez pit and get out ahead of Hamilton, which was definitely a welcome sight. For once Hamilton was left without his rear gunner.
-Perez allows Verstappen to get away by keeping Hamilton at bay.
-Stroll's rear left tyre blows out and he crashes into the wall. At this point it seems like an unfortunate accident.
-Race restarts and the top 3 hold station as Sebastian Vettel makes his way past Gasly into 4th. Yay!
-Verstappen maintains his lead. It looks like he'll win the race but god says no and his left rear tyre blows out in the exact same fashion as Stroll's. The red flag comes out. Pirell's integrity as a tyre manufacturer as called into question yet again. As you can imagine I was very upset about this but with Perez in 1st and Vettel in 3rd, I wanted the race to be called there and then.
-A standing restart is called minutes later. It seems like Hamilton will win and turn the tide of the championship.
-Race restarts and Hamilton jumps Perez but immediately locks the brakes and goes straight on... He drops TO THE BACK OF THE FIELD. I lose it because it means that Perez wins, Vettel gets second and Verstappen maintains his lead in the championship! Not only that but Red Bull EXTEND their lead in the constructors championship! Unbelievable. Well done Baku.
Mercedes are in real trouble now. Red Bull has the upper hand and a strong second driver in Perez. Why are Mercedes hanging Bottas out to dry? What is their rhetoric? Why is Toto getting so worked up? They are ruining things for themselves. The team has to work together but I'm not seeing that anymore. They're making more mistakes than ever and it indicates to me that they're imploding. All this of course is good news for Red Bull and the sport because Mercedes have been unstoppable for years. This competition is great.
I think Bottas needs to get out of Merc as soon as he can for his own sake at this point. I don't think I've ever seen a person so seemingly broken on the field, I have no doubts that the pressure of potentially losing the championship plus the apparently lack of support from his team is reaching a tipping point for him. Maybe do a Vettel and move to another team - if any accept him at all - and then bounce back.
So the situation around the crashes and yellow flags is concerning. Look how many drivers went through full pelt, and how long it actually took double yellows to display. Even after that the Alfa's go through full beans. Unacceptable. (Note that as always, radio is slightly delayed. The messages in reality came 5/10 seconds earlier)
(Sorry about the one yesterday mods, forgot I was posting an uncensored clip!)
Also Stroll's.
Masi also needs to answer why it took him nearly 90 seconds to deploy SC for VER. It should have been instant, before VER even came to a stop. Same for Stroll.
Impressive from AMR all round - but for Stroll's accident, they could well have both finished in the Top 6, even if Max and Lewis hadn't dropped out, That's a fantastic result for them...
My mate was outraged because he went to watch the race highlights on F1 TV last night, only to find that the thumbnail for the highlights programme was a photo of Max kicking his punctured tyre... pretty silly from whoever decided that was a good choice of image!!
So the situation around the crashes and yellow flags is concerning. Look how many drivers went through full pelt, and how long it actually took double yellows to display. Even after that the Alfa's go through full beans. Unacceptable. (Note that as always, radio is slightly delayed. The messages in reality came 5/10 seconds earlier)
(Sorry about the one yesterday mods, forgot I was posting an uncensored clip!)
Also Stroll's.
Masi also needs to answer why it took him nearly 90 seconds to deploy SC for VER. It should have been instant, before VER even came to a stop. Same for Stroll.
With a buffoon like that in charge, it's a matter of time before there is another big accident involving more than one car. I walked away from the TV after Max' crash so I missed all of that, but with Stroll it was already obvious how long it took.
Yeah, huge Checo fan and really pleased he got the seat after being (very unfairly IMO) dropped from RP last year. However, I don't think Monaco or Baku are really indicative of performance going forward. I'm careful not to be lulled into a false sense of security as on the regular circuits earlier in the season, it was pretty much business as usual, albeit with a slightly stronger RB car with Perez above Albon performance wise but below Danny Ric.
However, having said that, being positive, I don't think the Mercs were all that weak at Baku. Hamilton managed P2 in quali; Bottas was only so far down because he didn't get a tow. For all of Hamilton's comments about Checo being so much faster than him it didn't seem that way to me. There was a good stretch of the race where a Hamilton overtake seemed inevitable but Perez's superb defending stopped Lewis overtaking. What really worked in RB's advantage was that they were able to do a Mercedes and have two cars running up front, slowing down the P3 car and providing a lead to the car in P1. Indeed, I voted Vettel for driver of the day because I'm a big fanboy but on reflection I think Checo was the standout driver. Many have tried and failed to defend from Hamilton for a decent stretch - even Leclerc, who I consider the best defender on the grid (before yesterday anyway!) hasn't managed something like Checo did.
So, I guess in short, I still see Mercedes as the favourite to win the championship but there are reasons to be cheerful and Perez really showed he's a force to be reckoned with. I hope the RB musical chairs stop and they fully invest in Checo.
My mate was outraged because he went to watch the race highlights on F1 TV last night, only to find that the thumbnail for the highlights programme was a photo of Max kicking his punctured tyre... pretty silly from whoever decided that was a good choice of image!!
Same. I've got football training on Sundays so I always miss GPs. Highlight thumbnail already told me "Verstappen crashed out" before I've even seen the lights go out.
