2016 Formula 1

[Alferd Packer]

Nico Rosberg has announced his retirement from Formula 1.

This one honestly surprised me.

[Sea Skimmer]

I'm not, not when it's the second longest F1 career and highest number of races (200+) yet driven for him to reach the point. The odds of winning again would be low given that history, and the personal disappointment that would be involved with loosing would certainly be high. And it's not like being an F1 driver is just a job, it's a totally life consuming thing to engage in and he's wants to spend more time with his family, you simply can't travel the world constantly and do that, and you can't make up for it later either. He's got his millions and a chance to end on a high note, anything else strikes me as a bit silly.

[atg]

I'm not expecting it but I'd love for Alonso to be Rosberg's replacement. Alonso v Hamilton round two, 10 years after the original? Yes please.

[Captain Seafort]

I'm not expecting it but I'd love for Alonso to be Rosberg's replacement. Alonso v Hamilton round two, 10 years after the original? Yes please.

Christian Horner would love that, but I doubt anyone else would. Even from the perspective of having the two best drivers on the grid in equal machinery I don't think it would produce the sort of brilliant competition you're thinking of, precisely because of the sort of internal politics that caused chaos last time round.

[Alferd Packer]

I think they should get a clear #2 driver. Someone young who can develop into a world-class talent while routinely scoring strong points in the car. Pin your WDC hopes on Hamilton, but have enough talent in the second car to give you a strong shot at the WCC. I just don't know who that driver would be. I would say Wehrlein, but I don't think he's there yet. Perez? Hulk? Bottas? Someone in GP2? Hell, an eligible IndyCar driver?

[atg]

I would say Wehrlein, but I don't think he's there yet. Perez? Hulk? Bottas? Someone in GP2? Hell, an eligible IndyCar driver?

Wehrlein I don't see reaching a top team anytime soon. He did well against Haryanto but then Ocon came in a performed equally in machinery he wasn't familiar with. Hence Ocon being picked up by Force India. Renault have already said Hulk won't be released from his contract and I'd be surprised if Force India would let Perez go.

I think the most likely candidate from the midfield to be chosen would be Bottas. Good but not at the same level. William's use Merc engines, so Merc could use a new engine deal to get him released from his contract.

[Phantasee]

I'm not expecting it but I'd love for Alonso to be Rosberg's replacement. Alonso v Hamilton round two, 10 years after the original? Yes please.

I want this to happen so bad.

[Thanas]

Might make it more interesting again.

I had hoped Ferrari would be more competitive but it seems like Mercedes has a total stranglehold on it. This pleases me as a German but that said I really hope the following seasons are more interesting.

[Alferd Packer]

I would love to see a three-way fight next season. Right now, the Mercs have the best car, Red Bull have the best drivers, and Ferrari have...uh, Arrivabene? Still, who knows if Mercedes can continue to get the car right in light of the new regs, so anything is possible.

[Thanas]

I would love to see a three-way fight next season. Right now, the Mercs have the best car, Red Bull have the best drivers, and Ferrari have...uh, Arrivabene? Still, who knows if Mercedes can continue to get the car right in light of the new regs, so anything is possible.

I am not sure if the drivers of Red Bull are better than Lewis Hamilton or Sebastian Vettel or Fernando Alonso tbh.

[Captain Seafort]

I am not sure if the drivers of Red Bull are better than Lewis Hamilton or Sebastian Vettel or Fernando Alonso tbh.

Hamilton and Alonso are certainly better than either of the RBs, at least for the moment. Vettel, on the other hand, is massively overrated. He's quick, but he's not a racer. Of those driving last season I'd rate Hamilton, Alonso, Riccardo, Verstappen, both Nicos, Button and Bottas above him. Raikkonen too if the right one turns up.

[Alferd Packer]

I am not sure if the drivers of Red Bull are better than Lewis Hamilton or Sebastian Vettel or Fernando Alonso tbh.

I mean, you can make a convincing argument in either direction, but Mercedes only has one driver right now. So yeah, I would agree that you can make a team of drivers who beat Red Bull on raw talent, but that team currently doesn't yet exist.

Also, I firmly believe that Max is only going to get better. I'm not sure how much better Lewis or Seb or Fernando or even Daniel are going to get.

[Thanas]

Vettel, on the other hand, is massively overrated. He's quick, but he's not a racer.

You know, we always have this argument and there is no rational reason to devalue Vettel the way you do. By any objective standard he is a damn good racer.

[Captain Seafort]

You know, we always have this argument and there is no rational reason to devalue Vettel the way you do. By any objective standard he is a damn good racer.

Every so often I start to come around to that point of view. Then Seb the Shunt demonstrates how he got that nickname and my opinion plummets again.

[Thanas]

Every so often I start to come around to that point of view. Then Seb the Shunt demonstrates how he got that nickname and my opinion plummets again.

You must really hate Alonso and Hamilton then.

[Captain Seafort]

You must really hate Alonso and Hamilton then.

Everybody has shunts on occasion. Seb gives off vibes of being a shunt waiting to happen. Hamilton certainly dropped considerably in my estimation in 2011 (assuming that wasn't simply big magnets installed in his and Massa's cars by Bernie to make things interesting), and has taken a while to build back up, but now it's the exception rather than the rule (as with Alonso). Vettel does it either by steaming into a situation with what appears to be little more than crossed fingers, or by having no idea where the back of his car is (see his infamous collision with Webber in Turkey for the definitive example).

[Thanas]

You must really hate Alonso and Hamilton then.

Everybody has shunts on occasion. Seb gives off vibes of being a shunt waiting to happen. Hamilton certainly dropped considerably in my estimation in 2011 (assuming that wasn't simply big magnets installed in his and Massa's cars by Bernie to make things interesting), and has taken a while to build back up, but now it's the exception rather than the rule (as with Alonso). Vettel does it either by steaming into a situation with what appears to be little more than crossed fingers, or by having no idea where the back of his car is (see his infamous collision with Webber in Turkey for the definitive example).

LOLOLOLOLOLOL.

So Vettel gives off "vibes".

Nice argument you got there. It basically amounts to "I DONT LIKE HIM".

So remind me when Vettel behaved badly this season and how that was more egregious?

[Captain Seafort]

So remind me when Vettel behaved badly this season and how that was more egregious?

Brake testing Kvyat in the middle of a flat out left hander in Russia, and weaving in the braking zone that got him punted down to fifth in Mexico spring to mind. Admittedly Verstappen is prone to this, and if he doesn't get a grip of such things he stands a good chance of becoming another Vettel - I developed a pretty high opinion of Vettel during the latter stages of the 2009 season, which then started to go downhill with the repeated fuckups in 2010.

Telling Charlie Whiting to fuck off wasn't exactly his finest hour either.

[Thanas]

LOLOLOL.

Really, none of that was really outrageous and worse than any the moves Hamilton pulled.

[Captain Seafort]

"Outrageous" is really an exaggeration of my view of Vettel. I don't think he's close to being a Schumacher/Maldonado-type thug, I simply don't think he's anywhere near as good a driver as a lot of people, including you, think he is.

[Phantasee]

Vettel, on the other hand, is massively overrated. He's quick, but he's not a racer.

You know, we always have this argument and there is no rational reason to devalue Vettel the way you do. By any objective standard he is a damn good racer.

Watching him dominate in Newey's superb RB7 was a bit boring. What gave me the opinion that he's not a racer, just a good pilot in a good car, was how he just cruised in first after winning quali every weekend, until he got challenged by Button's superb drive in the 2011 Canadian Grand Prix. Remember Jenson going from last to first over the course of the rain-delayed race? And how Vettel was relatively unbothered by anything until the last lap, when he got a little pressure from Button and span out?

[Thanas]

Watching him dominate in Newey's superb RB7 was a bit boring. What gave me the opinion that he's not a racer, just a good pilot in a good car, was how he just cruised in first after winning quali every weekend, until he got challenged by Button's superb drive in the 2011 Canadian Grand Prix.

By that logic Hamilton doesn't know how to drive either considering how many times he caused a crash through recklesss idiocy.

[Phantasee]

Hamilton (and Senna) crashed because they took risks while racing. Vettel can't actually race, he can just keep a lead Newey gave him.

[Thanas]

Hamilton (and Senna) crashed because they took risks while racing. Vettel can't actually race, he can just keep a lead Newey gave him.

His performance in a vastly inferior car (first before he came to RB and now after RB at Ferrari) belie that.

[atg]

So in one of the worst kept secrets in F1 Bottas has officially joined Mercedes and Massa comes out from a Mansell-esc retirement.

Will be interesting to see how Bottas goes at Merc. I'm feeling he'll be a solid #2 to Hamilton, but wont push him. Hamilton should be favourite to win the season if Merc can keep their advantage.