I feel it’s been like that for a long time . I remember Eddie Jordan saying that the first words Ron Dennis said to him when he entered F1 were “ welcome to the Piranah club “
At the time I was in favour of letting Sainz start where he qualified . on the day after the race I thought they are all ( Team bosses ) Ruthless and the cold hard facts ,as you mentioned , are if Sainz started lower then his ability to take points off Mercedes was possibly reduced , and we are talking Millions here between 2nd & 3rd in the constructors championship . what concerned me the most though was it could open up a whole can of worms .
the thing is that kind of call is not for self serving teams. karma will strike mercy and the other teams especially ferrari will have long memories. red bull diddled a wdc by whinging at massi. merc diddle other teams in return I'm sure ferrari were diddled by merc in their illegal engine too.
From what I can gather, this as all come about from some rogue article and the FIA are all over it like a cheap suit, which is amazing considering what they let slide. Makes you wonder what the motivation is if it's all unsubstantiated bullshine. Guess it will all come out in the wash
Hogwash, perhaps (given the breaking news that the investigation is off). Another day, another farce. A fictional story of more F1 skulduggery (for entertainment only - any similarity with real events is entirely coincidental)... Darth: “Hey Ben. It’s been almost two years since you became President. Congratulations. You’ve always had my full support, of course. It’s a pity that some others just seem intent on backstabbing and undermining your authority.” Ben: “Yes, it has been difficult. People should show me more respect and do what I say.” Darth: “Indeed. One particular person has been a thorn in your side from the beginning. Not just his ludicrous and petty complaints about Abu Dhabi 2021. He always seems to be looking for ways to undermine you.” Ben: “You mean Toto? He has been consistently obstructive.” Darth: “I couldn’t possibly name names but, now that you’ve mentioned him, I think you’re right. I’ve seen the same things. And it’s so unfair. It makes you look weak and unable to lead. Almost as though he has an ulterior motive.” Ben: “Like what?” Darth: “Oh, it’s not my place to speculate on what job he’d like to step into. I’m just sad that whatever goes on in his scheming mind, it always seems to end up undermining you.” Ben: “He does. But I don’t know how to fight it. He seems to have much greater standing in F1 than I have.” Darth: “Well, knowledge is power, and he always seems to know things that the rest of us don’t. Almost as though he has access to information that the rest of us aren’t allowed to access.” Ben: “Well, he’s married to the head of the F1 Academy.” Darth: “So he is. So he is. But surely they wouldn’t... would they? I suppose it would explain a few things.” Ben: “Well, women do talk. And who’s to know what’s being discussed while she’s cooking and cleaning?” Darth: “Quite so. If that’s what’s happened, it’s the FIA’s duty to investigate. And you wouldn’t need to worry about it looking like a vendetta. It would actually look worse if the FIA didn’t investigate.” Ben: “You think so?” Darth: “I do. There again, I’m speaking as your friend, so perhaps I’m biased.” Ben: “But we don’t have any evidence, do we?” Darth: “Of course not. You haven’t started the investigation. Nobody would expect you to have any evidence yet.” Ben: “So the FIA should launch an investigation based on no evidence?” Darth: “Well, now that you’ve suggested it, I realise how right you are - you need the investigation to find the evidence. That’s exactly the kind of principled leadership that the sport needs.” Ben: “How will the other teams react? He does seem to get support.” Darth: (laughs) “My dear Ben. You know how cut-throat F1 teams are. You really think the other teams would defend Toto?” Ben: (chuckles) “True. And if the FIA did announce an investigation into Toto and all his competitors supported him, it would look like a farce which wouldn’t help anyone.” Darth: “Toto would be tainted by an unproven allegation, and the FIA would look incompetent. Who would want that?”
Not sure if you have all seen it but 'Lucky!' the documentary on Bernie & F1 is on Quest tv channel in the UK. I missed the first 3 but ep 4 is on tonight at 11pm (quest +1 at midnight) . Not sure if there is a catchup version of Quest and no idea if its any good.
You could have started with poppycock or maybe balderdash! And probably something along those lines. And yet again demonstrating that the FIA isn't fit for purpose.
And why did they give it to her? There are many better, retired female drivers that aren't married to the boss of an F1 team.
Barcelona was set to lose out from 2026 as the Spanish Grand Prix moves to the capital of Madrid. No more street circuits Liberty Media,please. But some Spanish politicians are agaist it,saying morey could be better spent on moe hospitals etc. Socialist Workers’ Party criticising the mayor for “thinking about her photo in a Ferrari F1 car” rather than the needs of the city.
I'd be all for more street circuits if they stopped trying to glam it up. Maybe do the streets of Wakefield and hold it right when the clubs are kicking out so we can get some real culture on the F1 map.
The streets of Liverpool would be fun, that would show McLaren how to quickly get the tyres off a car!
