F1 Official Thread - Grand Prix of Britain

[D Double]

and that's me done for the year.

 

[Sinner]

 

  

  

 

[robsheedwallace]

Gutted is not even the word. Lewis walk away from the car/track says it all. Defeated. :\

 

[zk1mpls]

Glad the race is over. Thank you two-hour race limit. So sleepy now. Lol. P3 and P8 for Fernando and Felipe, respectively. Great drive for Paul Di Resta.

Mr. Finger won again.

Imagine if JB took himself and Seb out on that first re-start.

 

[Sinner]

^ I know! I was like 

 as soon as he locked-up.  Good swerve to avoid. 

Man, P2-5 all swapped places while ALO extended his lead. 

 

[flashout01]

if Pastor knew his car would fail anyway he'll probably clip Alonso or Vettel before he'd retire

 

[Sinner]

Seb and JB are in the Stewards room regarding that SC re-start. I don't expect any penalties though... 

Also, how about Massa's drive?  It was impressive, especially his save against Senna.  That was 

EDIT ~ Meanwhile, 10-place grid-penalty for Schumi in Suzuka. 

 

[Thierry Henry]

Katy Perry? She got tons on make up on :x


I'd still plow through that







^my feelings when Hamilton retired >:

I have nothing else to say about this race. Very happy for JB, bringing in some much needed Constructor points.

Good job by Di Resta, it won't be long before he's on a podium . Mark my words.

Was expecting more out of Checo today

I hope Kobayashi doesn't disappoint in the next race in front of his home crowd.

 

[zk1mpls]

F1 Drivers playing F1 2012. Looks like Hamilton felt the deadzone before turning into the pits there.


They're using the Playseat F1 and the Fanatec Clubsport wheel with Formula rim right there, btw.

Latest edition of McLaren's "Tooned" if you haven't seen it.

 

[robsheedwallace]

Lewis even lost on a sig race?!?!

 

[Sinner]

Haha... I was looking forward to that BBC vid!  Funny stuff!!!  I wish they would have shown the complete lap from the drivers tho! 

And LOL at how serious they all seemed...

Heikki with his TR1 iD's! 

* and Lewis' racing boots... lol

 

[zk1mpls]

Tried out Champions Mode in F1 2012. Pretty fun game mode. Would've been even more fun if you found some grip in your car.

Had a few moments in the race where I missed out on the braking point while trying to fiddle with the brake bias and engine mapping.

 

[Sinner]

Speaking of which... updated.  

http://niketalk.com/t/275333/gran-t...ve-is-your-engine-ready/7250_50#post_16327256

 

[Thierry Henry]

http://www.f1zone.net/news/lauda-says-hamilton-staying-at-mclaren/15914/

http://www.f1zone.net/news/mclaren-ups-money-offer-in-bid-to-keep-hamilton/15911/

Very contradicting





And what's going to happen to next year's race at NJ?

http://www.f1zone.net/news/new-fears-over-new-jersey-race/15919/



I also believe Massa is staying

http://www.f1zone.net/news/ferrari-set-to-announce-massa-for-2013/15909/

 

[Sinner]

Yeah, various reports coming in all the time... journos having a field-day with it.  But from what I know the "Niki Lauda to Mercedes" came during the SG GP, while his comments that Lewis is staying with McLaren is the more up-to-date quote (yesterday, I think).  The bottomline is, who the hell really knows?  Just read the reports, but read em with a grain of salt.  

 

[Sinner]

Mercedes announcement today?  

Watch this space! 

 

[noskey]

Announcement? Expecting good news when I wake up in the morning

 

[zk1mpls]

I really want Lewis to stay in McLaren. If he somehow ends up in Ferrari...

 

[zk1mpls]

Speaking of which... updated.  
http://niketalk.com/t/275333/gran-t...ve-is-your-engine-ready/7250_50#post_16327256

Those AutoArt models are cool. Especially the ZondaR ones. Didn't know they were made/based in HK. Do they have a store over there?

 

[zk1mpls]

Duh.

http://www.f1zone.net/news/f1-enemies-now-united-against-red-bull-says-marko/15924/

F1 ‘enemies’ now united against Red Bull says Marko
By Editor on Wednesday, September 26, 2012


Photo credit: Red Bull GEPA
McLaren and Ferrari have joined their lead drivers in the “unholy alliance” against Red Bull.

Late last year, after Sebastian Vettel secured his second consecutive title, Italy’s La Stampa newspaper said Lewis Hamilton and Fernando had formed a new friendship akin to an “unholy alliance”.

In 2007, the pair clashed spectacularly as McLaren teammates, but since Red Bull’s Vettel took his dominant grip, Ferrari’s Alonso and McLaren’s Hamilton are now ‘friends’, regularly praising one another and embracing in parc ferme.

According to Red Bull’s Dr Helmut Marko, the friendship is all about knocking German Vettel off his dominant perch.

Asked by Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung newspaper if Austrian Marko is expecting Ferrari-McLaren ‘mind games’ in the dash to the 2012 finale, he admitted: “Yeah, sure.

“It is going to be intense.”

He admitted it is “interesting”, that McLaren and Ferrari, “who were enemies for decades, now suddenly are friends”.

 

[Sinner]

Speaking of which... updated.  

http://niketalk.com/t/275333/gran-t...ve-is-your-engine-ready/7250_50#post_16327256

Those AutoArt models are cool. Especially the ZondaR ones.

Didn't know they were made/based in HK. Do they have a store over there?

Yes, there is! They sell a bunch of random AutoArt accessories as well as models... but there are other shops with a bigger variety, I must say.  

But yeah, I can't stand Marco and his rants.  They've been hurt the most with that engine-mapping rule change a few races ago, which is why they're whining about it now.  

 

[Thierry Henry]

http://www.f1zone.net/news/senna-fine-after-singapore-back-burns/15929/

Ouch! Glad he's ok!


http://www.f1zone.net/news/brawn-admits-mercedes-interest-in-hamilton/15931/




http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2012/9/13848.html

 

[Sinner]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/mo...-join-Mercedes-in-100m-move-from-McLaren.html

Lewis Hamilton to join Mercedes in $100m move from McLaren

Lewis Hamilton will on Friday bring to an end one of the most controversial and long-running transfer sagas in Formula One history by announcing that he is leaving McLaren, the team he has been with over half his life, for rivals Mercedes in a three-year deal which could be worth as much as $100million (£61.6million).

By Tom Cary, F1 Correspondent

The announcement is almost certain to end the career of the most successful driver in F1, seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher, whose return three years ago to the sport he once bestrode like a colossus palpably failed to live up to expectations.

It is not yet clear whether Schumacher will be offered some sort of ambassadorial or management role with the Brackley team.

The Daily Telegraph understands that Mercedes are waiting for their board in Stuttgart to sign off on the new Concorde Agreement, the commercial pact which binds the teams to the sport, before making an official announcement regarding Hamilton. That announcement should arrive today.

Right up until the end the move was kept shrouded in secrecy. McLaren are only understood to have been informed of Hamilton’s decision yesterday, and may hold a press conference of their own this morning, at which they will announce their next move.

There is no doubt, though, that Hamilton’s rejection, particularly after McLaren returned more than once in recent weeks with improved deals, reportedly matching Mercedes’ offer, will come as a bitter blow to the team who nurtured the 27 year-old from young karter to F1 world champion.

Hamilton famously walked up to McLaren’s then team principal, Ron Dennis, at the Autosport Awards ceremony as a 10 year-old in 1995 and said: “I want to race for you one day.” Less than three years later he was signed by the Woking team, who put him through the British Formula Renault, Formula Three Euroseries, and GP2 championships on his way up the motor racing ladder.

Hamilton’s decision to move to pastures new will no doubt be seen by some within the team as a betrayal. The McLaren principal, Martin Whitmarsh, who had always said he was confident of hanging on to Hamilton, and who claimed in Monza three weeks ago that there was “no plan B” in the event that the 2008 world champion left the team, seemed more confident than ever in Singapore last weekend.

Hamilton, too, reacted to his retirement from the lead in that race with maturity, praising his team for producing a car which has taken pole at the last four races, winning three of them.

In truth, it must have been a final act of kindness from a driver who had already made up his mind to gamble on a fresh start.

The regular controversies which have punctuated their relationship in recent seasons, the tension which was increasingly palpable, makes the move understandable.

Mercedes may have won just one race in 50 since returning as a full works team in 2010, but they have huge financial resources at their disposal, a much larger brand and a team principal in Ross Brawn who has delivered over half the world championships on offer this century.

The car’s competitiveness is an issue but Hamilton has clearly gambled on the capitalising on new engine regulations in 2014, when a 1.6-litre V6 turbo will be introduced. Mercedes, as one of the sport’s manufacturer teams, are expected to throw everything at that season.

Brawn yesterday said there was no reason that the team could not be competitive in 2013, arguing that the recruitment of a glut of experienced F1 engineers over the last 12-18 months would begin to show in 2013.

“I think we can [be competitive],” he said. “Next year is very important and it has got to be another strong progression. We have been a patchy this year. We have won a race but we have not been consistent enough. “The changes we have made at in the last two years will be measured in 2013. Geoff Willis, Aldo Costa, Mike Elliott, our new head of aero. I’m very excited about Mike. He’s a really strong guy. That has to show through in 2013 and I am pretty optimistic and confident that it will.”

Hamilton, whose move is certain electrify the paddock and is likely to kick-start a merry-go-round as far as race seats for next season are concerned, will go into the team as a clear No1, racing alongside his old karting team-mate and friend Nico Rosberg.

The move raises all sorts of questions; from how much influence XIX Entertainment, Simon Fuller’s management company, had over the decision — XIX are expected to be able to make more money out of Hamilton’s contract at Mercedes, who will grant them greater freedom to exploit his image rights – to who McLaren will get to line up alongside Jenson Button next year.

For the moment, though, F1 will just soak up one of the most sensational transfer stories in recent history.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/mo...l-void-left-by-Lewis-Hamilton-at-McLaren.html

Sergio Perez expected to fill void left by Lewis Hamilton at McLaren

McLaren have lined up Sergio Perez to replace Lewis Hamilton after losing their star driver to rivals Mercedes, The Daily Telegraph understands.

By Tom Cary 

Sauber’s 22 year-old Mexican was known to be top of their wish-list in the event that Hamilton succumbed to Mercedes’ overtures and an announcement could even arrive as early as Friday morning.

A member of the Ferrari academy, Perez has impressed in his two seasons in Formula One to date, his ability to manage his tyres seeing him fly through the field in Malaysia, Canada and most recently Italy, where he drove from 12th on the grid to finish second to Hamilton.

In Singapore last week, Perez denied that he had been approached by the Woking team but made it clear that he was available, insisting his relationship to Ferrari would not count against him.

"I have a nice connection to Ferrari through the Ferrari Academy, but I'm just part of the academy – not part of the Ferrari team,” he said.

“So it doesn't affect [any possible move]. I feel ready to fight for championships at top teams.”

It was an intriguing statement in the wake of comments from Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo to the effect that Perez was still too inexperienced to replace the struggling Felipe Massa at Maranello.

Montezemolo may yet live to rue allowing Perez to slip through his fingers. The attraction of Perez, apart from his ability behind the wheel, is his relationship with Telmex and its chairman and CEO Carlos Slim, the world’s richest man. The telecommunications giant would be a welcome addition to the McLaren stable should Vodafone decide not to renew its title sponsorship deal, as has been rumoured.

How Perez will work alongside Jenson Button remains to be seen. The 2009 world champion said in Singapore last weekend that he wanted a “quick and experienced” driver alongside him in the event that Hamilton left.

“Two people who have experience are better than one because there will be days when you go in a direction when your set-up doesn't work and his does,” Button explained. “That works for both so you definitely want someone with experience. You don't want a newcomer stepping into the car next year.”

However, asked if Montezemelo might therefore be right about Perez, Button appeared to row back on his comments.

“He might be but I think he [Perez] is a quick learner,” he said. “A guy who can look after his tyres as well as he does is not stupid. He learns well.

“I don't know what he is like setting up a car but he can't be bad if he is doing as well he is. But maybe if you had an experienced driver in the car it would be even quicker. Who knows?”

 

[Thierry Henry]

 

[iceman3699]

Vettel to Ferrari in 2014...book it!