Even longer since than that. The thing is, these cars were supposed to fix the problems, and they really haven't.
imo there's too much "saving" save tyres, save engines, save parts etc. with 24 races it's now just a grand. even in the first 5 or 6 laps nobody passed and it settled into a pattern.
Where do we reckon Carlos will end up? He's in good form right now, surely somebody is going to want him.
Merc or Aston? I think Merc would like Max but the Red Bull turmoil seems to have died down, so I guess he's staying, although I did recently read that Adrian was being wooed by Ferrari. I have always rated Carlos as a great driver - he might not be as fast as Charles on one of his great days but Charles doesn't have many great days! Maybe Carlos is a very good number 2 driver but I think he could do well in the right team.
The Aston seat is his if he wants it apparently, initial negotiations have centred on the length of the contract.
there's a merc seat open and alonso has been talking retirement so there could be two aston seats (if thry have any ****ing sense) there could be a red bull seat as the brat tries very hard escape his contract ot seems ferrari have gone early and thrown it wife open. personally I think they've made a big error cos I don't really rate Leclerc and I think Hamilton is miles past it.
Alonso and Sainz at Aston would be a ****ing mighty partnership. Two Spanish stars driving that team forward with their new facilities, works Honda engine and talented design team. Lawrence Stroll would be crazy to turn that **** down. Sainz won’t be short of offers after today- we already know Andreas Seidl will offer him a lead role in the Audi team for 2026, which might yet be a prime seat, however I think there are doubts behind the scenes as to Audis development, plus James Key has to prove himself the star designer we thought he might go on to be. There could still be some silly season **** going down in the future- Red Bull have still got to find a partner for Max at best, or a replacement at worst- and there are clear links to Oscar Piastri with his agent being Mark Webber, so if Red Bull buy McLaren off for him that would also open a McLaren seat where Carlos is highly regarded and left on very good terms. The crazy thing right now is that people up and down the grid will no longer be certain whether to take up a works Mercedes deal! They look utterly lost!
On his best days (like today), Sainz can beat Leclerc. On his best days, Leclerc takes Sainz to the cleaners. It's very much like Coulthard and Hakkinen. Coulthard was a very good driver, and on occasion when he got it all together, he could beat Hakkinen. But Mika (much like Charles) is ultimately the quicker driver, and far more likely with the right car and team operation, to win a Championship or two. Not just me that thinks that, the whole F1 paddock does, barring Sainz's weird cousin.
I hope he doesn't end up with Red Bull. They just seem so focused on winning at any cost - usually at the expense of their drivers.
I hope that he doesn`t finish up at Red Bull too. I remember when he was with Max before at Toro Rosso and they were always falling out. It will only happen again,and just end in tears and we all know who will be favored.
He's not as good, but they're not a million miles apart. Incredibly quick over a single lap, with a tendency to outperform the car. Mika was less prone to incidents later in his career (though was similar to CLC in mistakes made when he had a poor car and overdrove slightly, until *that* accident). They both had a quick teammate that could beat them on occasion. In terms of pace, the only driver really in the field that could keep up with a generational talent (for Schumacher, read Verstappen). Mika's racecraft was better though. Main difference being that Mika was fortunate enough to have a dominant car for a couple of seasons. Charles hasn't had that yet. The main point of the comparison though is regarding team mates. But it would be wrong to say "nothing like him".
Le clerc can be quick over a lap yes. I would not say i've ever seen le clearc out perform his car and IMO he makes silly lack of concentration errors. the reality though is mikka has a dominant car therefore he won championships as you say. I simply do not see Le clerc having the brain power. I was again slightly surprised to hear him post qualifying making a horrid admission he didn't know what was wrong with his car all of a sudden. he had a feeling while fastest in FP3? then turned up in quali without confidence? whats that all about?
Honesty? That’s all. He’s always been disarmingly honest. He tends to make mistakes (though not as many as people seem to think) because he overdrives, trying to keep up with the RBR pace etc. Basically not settling for second. He doesn’t actually make mistakes particularly when out in front (that’ll be Ferrari). Even the best make silly errors though - think Mika (one k) at Monza. He used to make a load of errors when he wasn’t in the quickest car too. (Proviso here - Mika is by miles my favourite driver ever, so I’m not criticising him).
He makes himself sound a bit dim at car set up. Do you recall him just driivng off circuit when under no pressure at all 2 years ago and saying "why am i so unlucky" French GP, or brazilain gp on formation lap. For me concentration seems to be an issue with this lad.
