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The-Real-Deal82

macrumors P6
Jan 17, 2013
17,309
25,451
Wales, United Kingdom
Lots of talk on the F1 boards today that Lewis and Mercedes are done. He won’t be back ( with Mercedes ) in 2023.

I’ve only seen posters who aren’t so keen on Hamilton promoting that to be honest, nothing credible or likely. I don’t think he’s driven badly this year in what is only 4 races apart from his struggles at Imola and we as fans don’t have the knowledge into why that might be. So many people are loving the fact he had a difficult race and comparing him to George who didn’t look like he had the same difficulties with his own car. I don’t think Lewis has anything to worry about right now and the team need to focus on getting the car issues sorted out. We’ll see Lewis see out his contract I am sure.
 

CWallace

macrumors G5
Aug 17, 2007
12,525
11,540
Seattle, WA
In other news, both F1 Race directors tested positive for COVID post-Imola and might not be able to attend the Miami Grand Prix as current US guidelines require a negative test at least 24 hours prior to boarding a flight bound for the US.

If both cannot attend, Michael Masi might be taking up the role again for the event.
 

Apple fanboy

macrumors Ivy Bridge
Original poster
Feb 21, 2012
56,970
55,966
Behind the Lens, UK
In other news, both F1 Race directors tested positive for COVID post-Imola and might not be able to attend the Miami Grand Prix as current US guidelines require a negative test at least 24 hours prior to boarding a flight bound for the US.

If both cannot attend, Michael Masi might be taking up the role again for the event.
Oh no! Can we email him to help him decide on the race outcome? I’d hate it to be a fair race without any Max bias. Perhaps he could arrange for his favourite driver to get a lap head start or something? Just to be sure!
 

ericwn

macrumors G5
Apr 24, 2016
12,114
10,906
Oh no! Can we email him to help him decide on the race outcome? I’d hate it to be a fair race without any Max bias. Perhaps he could arrange for his favourite driver to get a lap head start or something? Just to be sure!

Give him time! He’s gonna request additional runoff areas for at least three car widths on the track first.
 
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Apple fanboy

macrumors Ivy Bridge
Original poster
Feb 21, 2012
56,970
55,966
Behind the Lens, UK
Watching the footage from Miami and what a dull, soulless racetrack. It’s looks like another Sochi style, close walled race in a car park to me. I know it’s a marketing thing and to try and get Americans interested in the sport, but it’s frustrating to see it come to places like this IMO.
Well my chances of watching the race highlights are slim. By the time it starts I’ll be asleep!
 

CWallace

macrumors G5
Aug 17, 2007
12,525
11,540
Seattle, WA
It is certainly a unique track and does remind me very much of Sochi in that it's not a street circuit (as it uses no public roads), but it is a temporary circuit so it neither looks nor feels like a traditional dedicated race facility. I will say Sochi is a better-looking track than Miami.

The closest analogy I can think of would be if you had an F1 track inside an Amusement Park like Disneyland.

Certainly a far sight better facility than the Caesars Palace Grand Prix, but I think the 2023 Las Vegas Grand Prix is the one folks will be talking about from that year onwards, not Miami.
 

Pezimak

macrumors 68040
May 1, 2021
3,436
3,828
Watching the qualifying and they have messed it up on the first session, one of the Alfa’s not Bottas was on a flying lap and came round to meet 5 flipping other cars all bunched up crawling along spread across the track.. and as such it totally ruined Alfa’s lap and they didn’t have time to do another and was out. I hope it turns out they punish all those drivers..

The track is damn tight, pointlessly so, they had a blank sheet and came up with this? Plenty of proper actual tracks in the US but they went for this, the presenters did say they are in Miami just as much for the entertainment and publicity business side as the racing side, it shows.
I can see plenty of crashes tomorrow purely because the track is so stupid. Round one of the corners they even have one patch on the inside and another on the outside of new tarmac!

A race track built for entertainment, not racing.
 

Pezimak

macrumors 68040
May 1, 2021
3,436
3,828
Watching the footage from Miami and what a dull, soulless racetrack. It’s looks like another Sochi style, close walled race in a car park to me. I know it’s a marketing thing and to try and get Americans interested in the sport, but it’s frustrating to see it come to places like this IMO.

Just watching the quali, totally agree, a track built purely for entertainment and publicity, not for racing.

Red Bull were used for a publicity stunt video of Perez driving from New York to Miami in an old school F1 car, one of the V8 or V10 ones, God it sounds amazing, but when you see these films you know the standard they are creating for the race.
 

Apple fanboy

macrumors Ivy Bridge
Original poster
Feb 21, 2012
56,970
55,966
Behind the Lens, UK
Just watched the qualifying. Ferrari seamed to have nailed it.
Max I think has some issues with the car. Will he finish?
Good result from Bottas. How he must love out qualifying Lewis!
Good improvement from Lewis though. Hopefully enough to stop the Lewis is finished talk.

As for the track, looks like the focus has been on the spectacle rather than the track. If only they realised a better track provides the entertainment not a fake beach and marina.
Watching the race will be tricky. Start time here is late. Some SC issues for sure.
 

Glideslope

macrumors G3
Dec 7, 2007
8,323
5,786
The Adirondacks.
Just watched the qualifying. Ferrari seamed to have nailed it.
Max I think has some issues with the car. Will he finish?
Good result from Bottas. How he must love out qualifying Lewis!
Good improvement from Lewis though. Hopefully enough to stop the Lewis is finished talk.

As for the track, looks like the focus has been on the spectacle rather than the track. If only they realised a better track provides the entertainment not a fake beach and marina.
Watching the race will be tricky. Start time here is late. Some SC issues for sure.

It was interesting how rapidly George's performance dropped in Qualifying? Could be back to the Old Hamilton/Bottas Team Role. Certainly hope not as George clearly can out drive Lewis in 2022.
 

Apple fanboy

macrumors Ivy Bridge
Original poster
Feb 21, 2012
56,970
55,966
Behind the Lens, UK
It was interesting how rapidly George's performance dropped in Qualifying? Could be back to the Old Hamilton/Bottas Team Role. Certainly hope not as George clearly can out drive Lewis in 2022.
I think they both were allowed to race. Just maybe the track suited Lewis more? Hard to say. But I thought there looked like less bouncing on the Mercedes’ than I’ve seen on the earlier races. Maybe they are starting to get some aero data and upgrades.
 

Pezimak

macrumors 68040
May 1, 2021
3,436
3,828
Just finished watching the qualifying, super stoked to see the first 9 place drivers, Stroll annoys me and he’s in tenth. Congratulations to Sainz for not crashing this time and getting a decent result!
I can only see lots of safety cars though I have to say, we‘ll see.
 
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CWallace

macrumors G5
Aug 17, 2007
12,525
11,540
Seattle, WA
Both AMGs looked like they were on ice. I expect Lewis' superior car-control skills allowed him to advance whereas George was doing all he could to keep it off the walls.

As for the race, it is there first and foremost for the sponsors - just like Monaco. Much like the proposed Grand Prix of America, the original plan was to hold the event in a much more glamorous part of Miami, but when that failed, it likely would have died out if not for Stephen M. Ross having the money to convince The Circus to come (and since he owns the Hard Rock Cafe stadium and surrounding area, he was able to pay for building a circuit).

Personally, I do not see this race as surviving past the original contract timeline. Las Vegas will bring the glitz and glamor and I expect it will quickly become the Sponsor Darling that Monaco and Singapore are. And F1 is putting their own money (to the tune of a quarter billion USD) into Vegas, so they will be much more invested - literally so - in making that race a long-term proposition.
 
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