2017 FORMULA 1 PIRELLI BELGIAN GRAND PRIX: RACE *** SPOILERS ***

I'm really getting to like listening to Alonso's radio. At the end of the year someone needs to put together a "best of".

Today it was the equivalent of "oh shut up!"

 

You know the above is not true.

 

I guess we all support and understand him in his frustration about the poor McLaren/Honda combo. It is actually a scandal that such a great driver is stuck with such inferior material. Mainly Honda is to blame, they got the worst engine in today's F1.

 

Max is not available next year - Red Bull have him under a water-tight contract until the end of the 2019 season (much I suspect right now, to the annoyance of Max!), and can afford to say "go away" to both Mercedes and Ferrari should they make an early approach for him.

Trust Me when I say that Bottas is pretty much already signed up to Mercedes for 2018!

I still believe Max is the No.1 future target of Ferrari right now, and between Mercedes and Ferrari, My monies on the Italians being able to offer the most money! (Whether they can offer the better car in the future though is another matter!)

The only possible fly in that ointment I suspect is Ferrari academy driver Charles Leclerc.

If he gets the expected Sauber F1 drive for 2018 and goes well, Ferrari may decide to replace Kimi in 2019 with Leclrec and run him alongside Seb.

Then 2020 could see Ferrari pay-off Seb's contract to be able to run Max and Leclerc, or we could see Seb and Leclerc in 2020 at Ferrari, both fighting Max in the Mercedes!

 

It´s a shame, but he´s paid 28m a year for doing so.

He disrepecting the team and all the people that work for it. It´s starting to get annoying.

 

Totally agree!

Seb should have cut back underneath Hamilton coming into Les Combes, stood on the brakes and done a MotoGP style block pass that would have forced Hamilton to either brake hard to avoid the Ferrari, or cut the corner to maintain the lead and gain a penalty.

Sadly, the only driver who thinks that way had to park his car after only 8 laps!

 

I read you... But he's paid 28m because he deserves it!
Disrespect is delivering a very non competitive car to a double world champion. He is performing the very best the car can deliver. So, professionay,, you can blame him for 0 percent. The people at the factory should be proud having such a great driver driving their crap car. Once again, and it's sad for the great people that Woking still houses, Honda is a disaster. A guy like Alonso has the right to complain heavily. And I don't mind his public offensive talk.

 

Funnily enough when I read comments of the average Dutchman on F1 related subjects, my comments are entirely true.

 

https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/131470/force-india-to-stop-drivers-racing-each-other

Force India's Sergio Perez and Esteban Ocon will not be allowed to race together in the future after they collided again in Formula 1's Belgian Grand Prix, says Otmar Szafnauer.

Perez appeared to squeeze Ocon towards the wall on the run down to Eau Rouge on lap 30 of 44, with the pair making contact that broke Ocon's front wing and punctured Perez's right-rear tyre before the Mexican retired late on.

The incident comes after the pair collided in Baku earlier this year, with both cars damaged.

Force India said at the time that both were responsible and that they would continue to let them race but after their collision at Spa, chief operating officer Szafnauer said that would change.

"I only saw what you saw [on TV], but it looked like Sergio squeezed Esteban into the wall and came out the loser of that scrap," Szafnauer told Sky Sports.

"In the future they'll never have that opportunity again. We've let them race up until now.

"If they can't do it in a manner which is good for the team then they won't be racing anymore.

"They shouldn't be coming together. We've given them the latitude to race and I've always said that.

"We've told them if it happens again, if a Baku type incident happens again, then we'll be calling the race from the pit wall in the future.

"If we stay fourth it will cost us nothing, but it's definitely cost us points."

 

Disagree completely, silly season just got very interesting. There is no such thing as an unbreakable contract in F1, never has been, never will be with all of the money and the huge egos. The situation with Red Bull and the Vertappan's is now untenantable, Max will be at Mercedes next year. Mercedes is in a difficult spot, if they do not pull out all of the stops to get him now that the relationship with Red Bull is over, they are dog whistling that they are not in F1 long term, if they do get him Hamilton is unhappy. The way I see it after today is:

Mercedes: Lewis and Max
Ferrari: Seb and Kimi
Red Bull: Daniel and Carlos
Williams: Perez (and Carlos Slims $$$) and Lance
Renault: Bottas and Nico
Force India: Ocon and?
Toro Rosso: 2 new young drives

Leclerc does a year at Sauber, if great then he moves up to team with Seb the following year, if not Kimi could get another year.

Ferrari may have blinked too soon and Seb may have just pulled the same brilliant move that Hamilton did when he signed for Mercedes and locked in before Max could have destablized him.

The fastest driver on the grid will be in the fastest car next year, Max and Mercedes and Toto and Niki will be explaining to Lewis that it's not personal, it's just business.

 

Lewis might be answering the age old question of how much is car and how much is driver. He drove flawlessly today and clearly can extract a lot more out of the car than Bottas. When Seb was chasing the last few laps, I was thinking "cmon...just blow one corner". But it never seems to happen. Disappointing that with so much better tires Seb actually lost ground to Lewis the last five laps. If Seb can't get the jump at the start, I'm worried Monza will be a repeat.

 

Dirty air. Story of 2017 per Brundle. Passing is way down.

 

--Mercedes boss Toto Wolff says it is a "no-brainer" for the team to retain Valtteri Bottas in 2018 and says only the finer details are holding up an announcement on his contract extension.

"It’s a no-brainer as it stands for next year to continue with Valtteri," Wolff said at the Belgian GP.--

--Lewis Hamilton is set to sign a three-year contract extension with Mercedes following Sebastian Vettel's Ferrari renewal, according to the Mail on Sunday.

Hamilton's current contract, which he signed back in 2015, is due to expire at the end of the 2018 season but the three-time world champion has claimed there is no other team he would want to drive for.

The Briton has, however, spoken about retiring from Formula 1 at the end of his deal - but it seems he is now ready to commit to a new contract with the Silver Arrows - who he joined four years ago.

'Lewis Hamilton has asked Mercedes for a new three-year contract, a deal that would tie him to the world champion team until 2021,' Jonathan McEvoy reports.

'The Mail on Sunday understands Hamilton is likely to be granted his wish — with only the money left to be haggled over — despite Mercedes chairman Niki Lauda letting slip that he spoke to Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel about bringing him in as a replacement for the Briton.' (Full story - external link)--

 

I'd love for Max to get the seat alongside Lewis but really doubt it'll happen. Elton will be his *****.

Yep. It's a sad state of affairs when some armchair fan like myself can predict the funny Delta wing concept wouldn't suddenly allow for close following. What a shambles. Earliest fix is 2019 for this ****.

 

You guys have to remember the only time Toto and Niki lie is whn there lips are moving. Lewis is the present, but Max is the future. Either they take a run at getting Max or it is true Mercedes is leavng F1 as a manufacturer.

 

Max is one driver of the future and the rest is indeterminate at this point and all signs point to a continued grid as we see it with Mercedes and Ferrari manned as they are. Certainly things could change but no signals are coming out of either team. Max will be at Red Bull and Ferrari and Mercedes do not appear to need him at all. Red Bull on the other hand appear to need him and a better motor.

 

Hamilton says engine mode error helped him fend off Vettel
https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/hamilton-vettel-power-mode-error-spa-946000/?s=1

Hamiltons records in a nutshell; engine mode.

 

So he's at 90% throttle, and still has the balls to claim Ferrari has the superior car? The man is deluded as ****.

 

So it was not even all on purpose but a wrong engine mode??? And then he taps himself on the shoulder what great laps he did to fend of Vettel??? Look at me, I took the wrong engine mode but I am the greatest

 

Don't forget the glazed brakes, cold tyres and any other excuses I missed.

 

Thank goodness he can carry the terrible Mercedes to victory all would be lost without him.....sounds like Mansell in 1992.

 

He also said this Bas to Vettel in that room......

"It was too close," exclaims Vettel about his run up Eau Rouge behind Hamilton.

"I lifted," replies Hamilton.

 

Lifting in Eau Rouge when the guy behind you is running full throttle...Where again was this discussion about sportsmanship and how one does not want to win by playing dirty

 

Don't forget the vibrations, Bas!

 

Force India debrief pretty much sums it up.....

https://twitter.com/5amThomas/status/901792769902993409