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*****OFFICIAL FORMULA ONE GRAND PRIX THREAD***** (4 Viewers)

Tight grid should mean a good race except it's Lusail which makes me skeptical.
Sprint race did not suggest a good full race. Very few overtaking opportunities.

I expect Max will try to retake the lead from Russell in lap 1, but I think it will be more of a DRS train until pit stops.
 
I'm about a quarter way through Senna on Netflix. It's not great but it's definitely watchable as a race fan if only to spot the cliches and inaccuracies. The actor playing Ayrton is good and it's cool to see his life story stretched out to six hours.
 
Tight grid should mean a good race except it's Lusail which makes me skeptical.
Sprint race did not suggest a good full race. Very few overtaking opportunities.

I expect Max will try to retake the lead from Russell in lap 1, but I think it will be more of a DRS train until pit stops.

It demonstrates how DRS dependent the current generation of cars are. Hopefully active aero will be an improvement in 2026 although it'll always be tough to pass on a track like Lusail with its endless array of high speed sweepers. I'm surprised the Qataris haven't reconfigured it to provide another passing zone--it's not even a particularly good track for bikes.
 
I think it will be interesting to see how aggressive Verstappen is going into turn 1. Max has nothing to gain or lose in this race, but really neither does Mercedes/Russell. Sure, they both want to win but neither are a factor in the constructor’s championship - so both could hold their ground leading to an incident.

If Max were up against a McLaren or Ferrari - he would be super aggressive knowing those cars would have to back out of any potential danger. But knowing that Russell can be just as aggressive/stubborn could impact how Verstappen approaches it.
 
Such a weird race with retirements, restarts and penalties but still not a particularly good one. The mediums were the tire to be on which dictated strategy. Imagine Norris' stop-and-go if the drivers' championship was still in the balance.

Another good result for Gasly who has been fortunate with the timing of safety cars but was still able to hold off Sainz' damaged Ferrari at the end. I've always considered him kind of mid but he's been very racy lately.
 
Jack Doohan in and Ocon out for Abu Dhabi. It's a high pressure weekend for Young Jack amidst all the Alpine/Colapinto rumors especially considering Doohan hasn't raced anything this year.
 
It's being widely reported that Qatar was the last straw for Perez at Red Bull. I guess we won't have to wait too long for confirmation.

You know I'd love to see Tsunoda promoted to the big team but I'll probably have to be content with the Racing Bulls' team radio comedy stylings of Yuki and Isack Hadjar.
 
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Alpine has released Esteban Ocon early, and he won't drive the car in the final race. Jack Doohan will take the seat to close out the 2024 racing calendar.

Guess tensions between Ocon and Alpine got to a place where this seems like the right move for Alpine, while they are battling Haas for 6th place with millions on the line.
 
It's being widely reported that Qatar was the last straw for Perez at Red Bull. I guess we won't have to wait too long for confirmation.

You know I'd love to see Tsunoda promoted to the big team but I'll probably have to be content with the Racing Bulls' team radio comedy stylings of Yuki and Isack Hadjar.
Writing is on the wall for Checo. Like him, but he just hasn't delivered. Hasn't been able to pull himself out of this tailspin that started last season.
 
Friend of the thread Logan Sargeant has found his ride for 2025. He'll be racing a LMP2 sports car in the European Le Mans series as part of a team with three-time W series champion Jamie Chadwick. The ELMS effort is in preparation for a Hyundai factory WEC team in 2026.

ELMS has only six races so it's possible Sargeant could fit some other events into his calendar if the opportunities present themselves.

 
The grid penalty against Max was a joke. It would have taken some measure of 'lobbying' by Russell to get the stewards on board with it.

Alonso said it best,

“So in Abu Dhabi, if I’m in a slow lap, I will push crazy to the car in front to have penalty I guess, if he’s impeding me.”
 
I finished the Senna series yesterday. It's not as good as the 2010 documentary (also on Netflix) but it's certainly watchable. For those bothered by subtitles, I'd say it's probably 60% in Portuguese/40% English--the dubbed version is up to Netflix' usual high standards and features the actors' voices.

The hagiographic portrayal of St. Ayrton is a little much at times but Brazilian actor Gabriel Leone's performance is very believable. It covers the usual plot points: his youth and early career, his championships and his feuds with the FIA and Alain Prost. His personal relationships aren't shown with much depth. I could have done with less from the fictional characters--the little Brazilian kid inspired by Senna is pure cliche and the woman journalist is a recurring plot device who always pops up to provide exposition. The racing action is done very well (albeit repetitiously) through a combination of CGI and archival footage.

The final episode was more than a little melodramatic but was still quite moving for me. It really took me back 30 years to that dark weekend in Imola.
 
It's an okay series overall, but watching Senna's convo with Sid and the events that occurred that entire weekend including his own fate hit me again. Like many others, it took me back to when it happened live and what we all felt.
 
With a 1-2 start McLaren will wrap up that WCC in style.

And what an effort from Hulk and Bottas.
Unless Piastri wrecked them both going into turn 1...

Surely, McLaren will issue team orders to not race each other - particularly at the start.

But, again, Mc:aren have struggled with that issue all season.
 
Norris needs to get off the line faster than usual or Piastri will have no choice but to pass and keep Sainz behind.
McLaren can survive Sainz winning, but not if they take each other out. They have a comfortable lead over Ferrari - even more so with Leclerc's starting position - so a couple of top-5 finishes will win the championship.
 
The Formula 2 championship is going down to the final race. Gabriel Bortoleto leads Isack Hadjar by 4.5 points. The half point comes from a dead heat to three decimal places in Italy.

Bortoleto starts second tomorrow with Hadjar one row behind.
 
Dream finish today would have Sainz win on the way out and have that 25 be enough to give Ferrari the constructor's title.
-QG
 
Interesting season.

Next year should be fun with a load of "rookie" drivers - I don't think all will officially classify as rookies given some of the drives this season, but a lot of new faces.

Given that we are at the end of this cycle of rules, I am not expecting any team to make any major jumps up - but clearly there were 4 teams capable of winning any given race this year. I think that is what Liberty have been shooting for - a bit of racing parity. (I wonder if they have put their thumb on the scale at times to create that drama - but, in the end, its what brings fans to the tack and eyeballs to the screens).


If I were handing out awards:

Max - best driver
McLaren - best team
Haas - most improved from last season
Alpine - most improved from start of season

Red Bull - most team drama off the track
Mercedes - Invisible Arrows

Sauber - best looking lime green car in the field
Baby Bulls - best supporting team award

Williams - most cars wrecked in a single season by 3 drivers
Aston Martin - won teh Newey Lottery for 2026

Ferrari - most dysfunctional strategy team on pit wall
 
You can retire the last trophy and permanently give it to Ferrari at this point. Impressive they could continue that legacy post-Binotto.
-QG
 
The Formula 2 championship is going down to the final race. Gabriel Bortoleto leads Isack Hadjar by 4.5 points. The half point comes from a dead heat to three decimal places in Italy.

Bortoleto starts second tomorrow with Hadjar one row behind.

The F2 race was an anticlimax. Hadjar stalled at the start and was a lap down before he could get refired. Bortoleto drove a conservative race but was still able to bring it home second behind Joshua Durksen, the greatest Paraguayan driver of all-time.
 

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