No F1 thread?

[DeskJockey]

Frustrating end for Charles, gifting Max the championship at this race. See what the outcome of the verdict about budget breaches does, if anything.

[Mito Man]

I really didn’t want Max to win it before we got the outcome. But I guess they would have just delayed it for a 5th time.

[DeskJockey]

Either way there's a shadow hanging over both his titles. Must take the edge off things.

[MikeHunt]

Its a strange way to win a title, I enjoyed the first series of drive to survive but I can’t help feeling it coincidental that f1 has become wwe.

[duncs500]

Lame when they don't know they've won the title when finishing the race in the car. A bit of a damp squib.

Also, how did nobody know it would be full race points in commentary?

All very weird.

Ah well, hopefully it's a bit closer next year.

[duncs500]

I'm sure there won't be any titles removed from Max or RB for breaking the rules. It will be some pretend punishment that has no real bearing on anything that matters. A fine maybe.

[duncs500]

MV has been top drawer this season to be fair though, so an entirely deserved title from his point of view.

[Zonda_]

MV has been top drawer this season to be fair though, so an entirely deserved title from his point of view.

Difficult to judge though, Ferrari had a lot of reliability issues and hopeless strategy calls that were not of LeClercs doing. It won’t happen but I’d like to see them in the same car.

[Mito Man]

I disagree, Max drove very well and Leclerc made a lot of silly mistakes on his own. Dropped it and spun a few times. Then went through a mediocre phase during mid season when he was often being outperformed by Sainz who is average at best. Only 1 retirement more than Max too.

[Rich B]

MV has been top drawer this season to be fair though, so an entirely deserved title from his point of view.

yep, he totally justified all that extra money Redbull spent these past few seasons...

[dinny_g]

Either way there's a shadow hanging over both his titles. Must take the edge off things.

This…

[tim]

There's no shadow over this year, he dominated and is a worthy champion. It's a bit of a shame there was no over-the-lime razzamatazz about it, but I doubt he cares that much. Too busy banging Kelly Piquet and counting his money I imagine. C*nt. lol

[DeskJockey]

If they're found to have breached the budget cap then that'll taint this title. He'll not have had any stake in that (you'd think), but what benefit did he gain from it?

[JonMad]

Also, how did nobody know it would be full race points in commentary?

Yeah, that was amusing on the C4 highlights. 'The screen is showing you full points but that's definitely wrong and we've poured over the rulebook so we know'.

[dinny_g]

F1 are really shooting themselves in the foot with the casual spectator while at the same time trying so desperately grow the sport around the world.

I'm an occasional spectator, watching some of the old skool "Big" races like Silverstone, Spa, Monaco etc but wouldn't call myself a fan anymore but it's lost all integrity as a sporting endeavour over the past few years. There were some headline reports on the radio this week that summed things up for me:

"FIA to delay announcing the results into Financial Irregularity" - Gee, what a surprise, they need to crown "Their" guy first...

"Verstappen to avoid Grid Penalty for practice incident! - Wow, I'm stunned, I NEVER saw that coming...

"Leclerc handed 5 Second Penalty" - Doesn't that put him third and hand Verstappen the title. Oh, not yet - rain race so no full points

"FIA to award full points for the race" - Ah for fucks sake...

Etc.

Now I appreciate 3 and 4 there were probably the correct semantic application of the rules but perception is reality and in my mind, the whole thing has become a bit of a sham.

My F1 obsessed mate wants to come over next year with his son to go to Silverstone but there's no way I'm dropping £600 or £700 for tickets for me and mini dinny to go to a race that will be decided by the suits behind closed doors.

Shame really but money talks

[integrale_evo]

I thought they explained the points situation fine on C4. The race went over half distance so full points were to be awarded. There was some confusion over it because due to the delays and weather conditions they weren’t sure the race was going to make half distance within the allowed time limit, which was why they couldn’t clarify the points situation until it actually reached that point.

[Mito Man]

It was explained on BBC news - it should have been 3/4 points as this was a new rule following Spa last year. However Masi when updating the rules to reflect the changes completely left out the clause on how many points should be awarded. So after the race the FIA just awarded full points as there’s currently no 1/2 or 3/4 points rules and will remain like that until next season when they can amend it.

[Swervin_Mervin]

I thought they explained the points situation fine on C4. The race went over half distance so full points were to be awarded. There was some confusion over it because due to the delays and weather conditions they weren’t sure the race was going to make half distance within the allowed time limit, which was why they couldn’t clarify the points situation until it actually reached that point.

Yeah that's not quite what they said though. It was understood that it was 3/4 points if they reached half-race distance and full points at some point further on from that, and it was half points for less than half race distance.

But yeah, they ballsed up the wording of the rule change. So AIUI, if the race had run half distance but was then suspended, it would have been 3/4 points, but because the race wasn't suspended it was full points. Which, as several commentators have pointed out, means that under the current rules you could run half a race and stop, and only award 3/4 points, but if you run 3 laps or more and then run out of time, then it's full points.

Which is retarded obvs. Because FIA. It's yet another fvck up and sadly detracts from the racing.

[Swervin_Mervin]

Oh and I've come to the conclusion that Le Clerc is actually not that great. He's quick, yes, but he buckles under pressure (has made umpteen mistakes this season, which you don't need when your team are highly likely to hobble a great chance) and he just lacks that ruthlessness that makes for a future WDC prospect.

If Merc can up their game than I genuinely think that Russell will be more likely to challenge Verstapppen over the next few years. Or, as an outside chance, Lando if McLaren can get themselves up there.

[mik]

I'm an occasional spectator, watching some of the old skool "Big" races like Silverstone, Spa, Monaco etc but wouldn't call myself a fan anymore

Pretty similar here - will try to watch the races if I remember on a Sunday when C4 catch up, but I don't enjoy the "show/spectacle" elements, and whilst the outright speed is always impressive, I find far more enjoyment in watching lower-level motorsport where cars are more evenly matched and overtaking is commonplace.