Formula 1 2024

The race was, yes. But the results of it are making the championship very very spicy.

Did anyone watch the practice sessions? There was a short red flag in FP3 for a lizard on the track.

I saw the highlights. That lil bastard hauled ass when the Marshalls came for him.

Did they have any follow-up on what happened to the scared little guy?

He’s been signed as Sauber-Audi’s second driver for next season.

Very silly season.

On CNN’s crawl, in between Giant Panda news and a Chinese Nuke Sub sinking, RB confirmed Danny Ric is out effective now.

That was kinda surreal.

Frustrating end to the Honey Badger’s season/career. It seemed everyone knew Ricciardo was out after the weekend, but RB JV wouldn’t actually say anything until now, three days later. Kinda really shitty.

He has clearly lost a step. I was sure he was going to take back his old seat but as useless as Perez has been I can’t say Danny Ric deserved it.

I’m not so upset by the benching, but how they went about it. Liam Lawson knew it was coming weeks ago, and Ricciardo only found out Sunday night after the race? Honey Badger is the kind of guy you give a proper sendoff to - celebrations and donuts and effusive praise everywhere. Let him spend that last time happy with all of his F1 friends and family, not moribund and uncertain about the future. Hell, Logan Sargeant got better treatment.

Vice President Kamala Harris Loves U2 and F1 (youtube.com)

Well, how about that?

F1 is back! I guess I’ll take the revolver out of my mouth.

That was an exciting sprint. Lots of hard racing. Too bad Norris messed up at the end. Here’s hoping the race tomorrow is as exciting!

Ferrari Shit-Canned the wrong driver. That’s all I gotta say about that.

Ho leee crap! That Norris/Verstappen scrap was so great that I forgot to drink beer for the last 15 laps! Great job Ferrari though!

Great racing, yes, but I’d still like to know exactly what he difference is between leafing the track to gain an advantage, and forcing a driver off the track. When Norris passed Verstappen, seems like both of them could have received a penalty.

The difference, apparently, is the whims of the stewards

It’s very annoying. Verstappen lets off the brakes knowing he will never make the corner, but since he’s not breaking he’s ahead at the apex and therefore entitled to push the other driver off.

My race was ruined. The local ABC station dropped the ball and around lap 38 went to a yellow screen. Came back after a few minutes, but did it again for a long time, so I bailed out.

I had to wait for the replay a few hours later. Of course, that had Nicole Briscoe promising to be right back, right where they left off every few laps. She’s a liar, by the way.

I wonder how long before some drivers decide to not run off the track while attempting a pass. Just take the hit and hope for the best. I know, it will never happen. Don’t start. Formula One Demolition Derby will never happen (on purpose).

I really wonder what the problems with Carlos and Max cars were? Nothing was seemed to have been addressed during a pit-stop, and both finished just fine. Smelling fuel in the cockpit would be distressing…

If other teams are starting to catch up or surpass Red Bull’s cars, this is going to start happening. Hell, Norris did it in Austria, and another hot championship fight could be coming next year (this year’s looks like it’s almost over, barring a DNF). 2021 wasn’t that long ago, and that was carnage. Lando’s hotheaded enough that one of these times, he’s going to put them both in the wall instead of getting out of Verstappen’s way.

Verstappen’s driving requires that other drivers are willing to lose the race to save their cars. The moment another driver takes that same outlook into the corner is the moment Verstappen starts having a very bad time.

I’ve spoiled myself with F1TV. Especially this time of year, when the TV is dedicated to football for the entirety of Sunday. Barchetto’s a bit annoying, but Ruth Buscombe now Divey is a delight. Her strategy and engineering insights during the weekend are fantastic, even if there’s a bit of obviousness at times.