Formula1

[Chicken Run Supreme]

^^^That really would be rubbing salt in the wound.

[wolf359]

^^^That really would be rubbing salt in the wound.

You have to wonder how deep his 'disillusionment' goes. He has seemingly unfollowed F1 and FIA on socials. If they take this piss it might just be enough for him to walk away. Lets face it he doesn't need it and has absolutely nothing to prove.

[westham,eggyandchips]

Let him walk if he wants to walk. Great driver, but there are some good drivers that are coming through.

He ain't the be all and end all of F1. He'll still go down as one of the greats.

[Rays Rock]

New FIA president saying LH may face sanction and reprimand for failing to appear at the FIA back-slapping awards. If he gets a reprimand, it will be his 3rd thus earning a 10 place grid penalty at the 1st race of the season.

Apparently, it's in the sporting code that 1st, 2nd and 3rd in the championship must attend.

Lewis’ reply was that he was feeling pretty cut up by events this season. Christian Horner responded Immediately by stating that Max hadn’t intentionally cut up Lewis and that Max was leading going into the turn, due to late braking which happened on the straight some 200 metres after the turn

[Denbighammer]

https://www.motorsportmagazine.com/arti ... itself-mph

Good article, including a rather withering summary of Verstappen's driving style.

[White Goodman]

I don't think Hamilton should retire.

He's still at the top of his game and if I was a betting man I'd say MB are likely to make as good a fist of the regs as anyone else, most likely better.

He'll always have 7 championships and to go now would look like he was running scared, not just from MV but George Russell too (and the Ferrari pair if the Scuderia produce a competitive car).

Better to stay, gamble on that car being a front runner and try to beat them all. It's a better look for posterity imho.

Of course, the danger is that the opposite applies. Depends on his confidence in MB handing him another top car I guess.

I have my doubts that MB aren't going to hobble GR until LH retires anyway but we live in hope that they'll let them race, at least for the first handful of races.

Looking forward to next season already.

[wolf359]

Looking forward to next season already.

Eight weeks until pre-season testing in Barcelona 23-25th February (this won't be broadcast though) .The one in Bahrain in mid-March is though.

Will be interesting to see what they have all produced and how much of their time they have truly split last year.

[k-r-c]

I have my doubts that MB aren't going to hobble GR until LH retires anyway but we live in hope that they'll let them race, at least for the first handful of races.

You cannot have drivers in your team taking points off each other - it only worked in the years when Merc were so dominant it didn't matter. If next year is as close they cannt afford two team mates battling out.

You have to image should Hamilton continue he will be number 1 and George will have been told to bide his time and learn from him - obviously it all depends on how good other teams are and how Hamilton starts the season if he is indeed Hams wingman like Checo will 100% be to Verstappen.

Georges time will come and he doesnt need to rush it. I wonder how far the Mercs are ahead if it all as im sure that will play on Hamiltons mind - he may well come back do a year smash the field if so then say im off.

[White Goodman]

Georges time will come and he doesnt need to rush it. I wonder how far the Mercs are ahead if it all as im sure that will play on Hamiltons mind - he may well come back do a year smash the field if so then say im off.

He'll only be able to smash the field if he has a big technical advantage. If he does, I agree he'll likely win but it wouldn't be overly impressive.

I should just say, not just for Hamilton but anyone who finds themselves in that position.

Agree on the team mates squabbling over points but surely they won't impose team orders from the start of the season. What if MB have a significant car advantage and George goes out and wins the first two races?

The only way you guarantee team harmony is to make it known at the start of the season each driver's duty to the team but will look pretty bad if it is clear to fans that George is as fast or heaven forbid, faster.

[-DL-]

I don't think Hamilton should retire.

He's still at the top of his game and if I was a betting man I'd say MB are likely to make as good a fist of the regs as anyone else, most likely better.

He'll always have 7 championships and to go now would look like he was running scared, not just from MV but George Russell too (and the Ferrari pair if the Scuderia produce a competitive car).

Better to stay, gamble on that car being a front runner and try to beat them all. It's a better look for posterity imho.

Of course, the danger is that the opposite applies. Depends on his confidence in MB handing him another top car I guess.

I have my doubts that MB aren't going to hobble GR until LH retires anyway but we live in hope that they'll let them race, at least for the first handful of races.

Looking forward to next season already.

Hamilton is in a lose/lose situation no matter when he retires. If he retired tomorrow, he'd be shot down as not having the balls to fight MV, if he stayed on and was dominant and retired, he'd get accusations of it's just the car and he should stay another year to see what RB and MV could come up with next year, and it would be ad nauseum. He's in the unenviable position that there will now never be a right time.

He's going to be a month off of 38 at the end of next season - and he has nothing left to prove. He's made for life, and doesn't need to be driving in a sport that could kill him.

I guess it all depends on his hunger to get that 8th title, and whether he genuinely believes the rules will be there on an equal footing for all drivers.

If that ridiculous turn out the other week hadn't had happened and he was carrying the trophy home for the 8th time, I strongly suspect the retirement announcement would already have been made, as there are no more worthwhile records he could hold.

[Bend it like Repka]

Honestly, some of the nonsense posted on here. There have never been team orders at Merc until the season is obvious in how it will play out.

Bottas and Rosberg have always been free to race Hamilton. You must have you anti Hamilton glasses on if you've never noticed that.

Russell will be free to race first half of the season and I expect him to score a win over Lewis early on.

The implication he needs car superiority is nonsense. Played out over a season, with Merc, Red Bull and Ferrari all in equal cars, Hamilton and Max would end out ahead of the rest by a reasonable margin.

[k-r-c]

Honestly, some of the nonsense posted on here. There have never been team orders at Merc until the season is obvious in how it will play out.

As I mentioned in my post I said it depends how Hamilton starts the season. Of course if Russel wins races and is well ahead then yes they will indeed support him as number 1 I imagine.

However both Mercedes’ and Red Bull will see Hamilton and Verstappen as their number 1 drivers before the season begins - however results in the first half a dozen races can have implications on that.

[Gaz]

The implication he needs car superiority is nonsense. Played out over a season, with Merc, Red Bull and Ferrari all in equal cars, Hamilton and Max would end out ahead of the rest by a reasonable margin.

I agree with this, I can't think of another driver who consistently delivers at such a high level across a season. In the odd one-off, most of the drivers will deliver, but it is the consistency across a weekend, and across a season that separates the good from the great. Hamilton and Verstappen are often seconds ahead of the field.

[DublinDave]

I'm with DL on this...
He's 38, has £250 mil in the bank & lives in a tax haven...
Only 1 man in history has the same world titles that he has & no one will beat his race wins, points, poles, starts, podiums etc in his lifetime even if he lives to 100...
MV is dangerous, he'll either kill himself or someone else before he's 25 at this rate & perversely, the FIA handed him a title on a silver platter because he's "good for the sport" & gets tongues wagging in the press...
With all the above to consider, would any sane man be willing to lose it all a la Senna..?
Not me...
If he retires he's still the greatest driver that has ever lived, if he carries on, he's on a hiding to nothing...

[-DL-]

If you find yourself with an hour to spare, like I have today whilst the Mrs is chilling and the boy is enjoying his prezzies, this is well worth a watch.

[wolf359]

77 days to go, in the meantime for later

[westham,eggyandchips]

The man wants answers......

[wolf359]

The man wants answers......

The journos have been told if they 'step out of line' they will lose their accreditation. So you'll hear a lot about 'line in the sand' and 'not dwelling on the past' once the new season starts.

[wolf359]

Putting pressure on the FIA to make sure something is done , I feel. F1 Will of course exist after Lewis but will lose a fortune in the short term if he was to go out like this.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/formula1/59951382

Lewis Hamilton will not decide whether to return to Formula 1 this season until he sees the results of an inquiry into the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

Hamilton is "disillusioned" with F1, his Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff has said, as a result of last year's title-deciding race.”

I wonder which senior people are unhappy. I’m sure when the money rolls in they’ll cheer up. Be nice if they grew a spine though.

“Some senior F1 insiders are concerned that the governing body has not fully grasped the threat to its credibility created by the final race of the season.

It has been a month since the Abu Dhabi race. But when asked about the timing of the inquiry's findings or what matters it will seek to address, the FIA said it was not yet ready to answer queries.”

[Johnny Byrne's Boots]

I think what the FIA have done to themselves will sink in when Hamilton is still the one everyone want to interview, appear on their channel and photograph, while Verstappen runs around going "I'm world champion you know, I'll do your interview".