Would not at all be surprised if Norris was brought in by Mercedes as Hamilton's heir apparent after 2022.
I don’t think anybody doubts he’s the best driver. Good to see him win in a competitive race. Hopefully most of the races are close this year and I don’t miss them by falling asleep) not due to the quality of the race).
Russell's largely believed to be tabbed to take Bottas' seat, no? Assuming Lewis wins a title this year or next, he'll have the record for most championships, and he'll be the first ever to 100 career wins. He will also be 38 entering 2023, which is pretty old for an F1 driver not named Kimi Raikkonen. You'd have to imagine that he'd call it a career at that point.
Ah okay, I see what you mean. Yes, indeed. I think he does one more after this season then quits. Who takes over at that point? I think it's too early to call. Lando is certainly good, and it'll likely be career defining for him to see how he stacks up against Dani Ric over the course of this season. I don't think he's Max/Leclerc levels of good though, and you'd think Merc would want someone like that. It also depends whether they would want a number 2 to Russell (again, depending on how good Russell shows himself to be). I don't think Lando (or George) would want to play second fiddle to the other, which would really mean a bit of a change of strategy approach from Merc. Interesting to watch though, absolutely (and if Ferrari don't provide CLC with a proper car, or RBR don't give Max a championship by then, well...)
Leclerc's under contract through 2024, Verstappen through 2023. Definitely possible that Merc saves a seat for them (or something happens to force the hands of Ferrari/RBR), but I do think that Norris gets underrated a bit. He doesn't have the dynamism of the other two, particularly in passing, but he's quick: he outqualified a pretty good veteran in Sainz last year, and was one of only five drivers to record the fastest lap in multiple races (the others being Hamilton, Bottas, Verstappen and Ricciardo) and I can see his consistency at such a young age appealing to a team like Mercedes that will expect that they can generally put the best car on the track.
Oh there's no doubt he's good. I'm just trying to work out how good, which will become much more evident this year against Dani Ric (as will Sainz vs CLC). The Macca has Merc engines too, which gives them some sway when it comes to Lando, so your idea may well hold some water!
Great article. Thanks for posting. Good for Lewis - he did lose his way (I think he got mixed up with the “wrong kind” of friends) but he sounds like he’s back on track and good on him.
Tiger was asking for trouble when he crashed then. Not very clever. Tiger Woods car crash: Golfing great drove at almost double the speed limit - BBC Sport
Great to see Hampshire's Justin Rose leading the Masters after 6 holes of the third round at the US Masters. He has usually played the role of best of the rest as he has often finished.in the top.ten in many majors without going on to win them. Hopefully, this is his big year. Come on Justin!!