#mercedes in this season gets to be supportive of others but also successful

[moviecritc]

Hi! Could you do a driver!reader who is dating Max and is in ferrari and the whole Carlos thing is happening to her so in Australia she ignores team orders and goes to win the race. Charles is mad at her and in the post race interview when asked about it she is just like "Happy multi 21 day everyone" and like Max is so fucking proud his gf is in her reputation era 💅💅💅

on the edge ⋆ max verstappen

pairing: max verstappen x driver!reader

word count: 1.7K

warnings: charles leclerc being himself (a bitch)

a/n: this is my first request it makes me very very happy!! thanks anon for your request, i hope you like this. i love max with all my heart and i love writing about him aswell.

just wanted to tell you guys that for the requests you can ask for reader and oc, even though when it's not a request it'll probably be an oc bc i love to give names to my characters <3

masterlist | wattpad | letterboxd

Y/N didn't have a seat for the upcoming Formula 1 season, and that stressed her out quite a bit. She and Charles had been teammates for three years, and she really thought Ferrari would keep her on the team, but upon learning that Lewis Hamilton was leaving Mercedes, they were the first to snatch him up and turn their backs on her.

Now she had two options: give up, pray to sign with Williams or Haas, or outperform herself this season and force her way into one of the top five teams. And for now, she had chosen the second option. P3 in the first race and in the top five in the second. She was extremely motivated for Australia.

Y/N loved the view of the fireworks from the podium, the champagne, and, above all, celebrating with Max Verstappen. Because let's not lie, it was obvious that Max would be on most of the podiums.

They kept their relationship out of the media. Being coworkers, neither of them wanted their relationship to hinder their success in Formula 1, but that didn't mean they didn't support each other every time the other achieved something.

Max had been with her throughout her Formula 1 career. They were the same age, but when Max debuted in the competition, she was still in Formula 2, battling against Albon and Russell for the title. A year before his debut, Y/N got a spot at Alpha Tauri as a reserve driver. It was in that year that Max and she started a relationship, at first quite casual and sporadic until they realized they were too obsessed with each other not to formalize it. And four years later, they were still together, sharing an attic in Monaco and competing together for the championship.

"It's going to be great for both of us, I'm sure," Y/N nodded. Before each race, they had a kind of ritual where they wished each other good luck, hugged, and kissed.

"I see a Y/Nstappen 1-2," Max assured before giving her a long kiss, resting his arms on his girlfriend's waist.

"I hope so,"

"Oh, come on. You're starting fourth, it'll be bad if you don't get on the podium," Max said. He knew her situation in Formula 1 was tense and did everything he could to make her feel good and positive. Max loved racing with her, and if she ended up off the grid next season, he would probably suffer from seasonal depression.

They kissed once more and were about to hug when someone knocked on Max's door to get them to the drivers' parade. They couldn't complete their little ritual, but neither of them gave it too much importance.

They went out to the parade where she was asked about her future in Formula 1, as they had been doing since the season started. That also annoyed her, would it always be like this from now on? Would everything be oriented towards whether she was unemployed or not? She answered with the best smile she could and ended the interview as quickly as possible.

She returned to Max, who was leaning on the fence of the truck they were being taken in for the parade. She leaned on the railing, holding it with her hands. Then Max discreetly placed his hand on hers, making her smile at the contact. Max wasn't very fond of physical contact, but if he could manage to brush against her shoulder, he would, maintaining professionalism wasn't as easy as it seemed.

"How's it going, mates?" Surprisingly, Leclerc approached them to start a conversation, first fist bumping with Max and then with Y/N, pressing his lips a little.

Their relationship as teammates was quite complicated at the moment. She was killing it in the few races that had passed, while Charles was just doing okay. Plus, although when Y/N joined the team, Charles and she had gotten along very well, that year they had been growing apart for obvious reasons.

They talked for a while about the race and expectations, especially Max and Charles, while Y/N disconnected from the situation a bit. Sometimes she was surprised that Charles and Max got along so well.

"Good luck today, Y/N," Charles said before leaving with Gasly.

Y/N blinked and looked at Max, puzzled. "What did he mean by that?"

"What do you mean?" Max frowned a little.

"He wished me luck, as if he thought I needed it," she insisted, biting her cheek.

"Everyone needs some luck, Y/N," Max said, knowing how nervous she could get when something didn't fit in her head.

"He didn't say anything to you," Y/N argued, crossing her arms.

"I mean…" Max tilted his head a little, eliciting a little smile from Y/N. "Don't dwell on it too much, you'll do great."

She loved that, how Max was able to lift her spirits in any situation, getting a little smile out of her. She loved him for that.

The parade ended, and they each went to their garage, fist bumping as a farewell because anything else would cause a stir in the media. In the Ferrari garage, her engineer commented on the strategies that focused on supporting and defending Charles even if he started two positions below her.

She gave Charles a short glance before going to the cars and taking their respective positions. It’s light and away we go. Y/N was so focused on passing Lando Norris that she didn't realize her boyfriend was no longer in first place, actually, he wasn't there anymore. She asked the engineers what had happened; Max had had some problems with the brakes and had retired from the race. "Don't fuck with me," she said, not fully believing it. "Is Max okay?"

"We don't know, focus on the race," her engineer emphasized.

"When you know, tell me, please," Y/N added, without receiving a response. There had been no accident, no red flag, so he was probably fine. But if there was smoke and sparks, there was always a chance that something had happened to him in the pits.

Y/N took a couple of breaths and refocused on the race. She looked on the bright side; she was third and had a chance to win. A few laps later, she managed to overtake Lando Norris. She pitted, and in the last third of the race, she was in first place. Behind her was Charles, so she thought they would change the strategy, and he would be the one defending the position.

"Y/N, let Charles pass," her engineer said, taking her by surprise.

"What?" Y/N practically shouted. "But I'm in first,"

"They're team orders, let him pass,"

"He's slow! He's over half a second behind me, letting him pass will make me slow down!" She couldn't believe this was happening.

"Y/N."

"If he can overtake me, let him, but I'm not letting him pass. I'm winning this fucking race."

And so it was. Y/N crossed the finish line first, and when she got out of the car, Max was there to greet her with a hug. He tried to make her not notice that there were hardly any people from her team there, but Y/N realized it, and her gaze darkened a little. Still, Charles came second, and when he parked his car, several Ferrari mechanics went to congratulate him.

Max watched Y/N, worried that she would take it badly. But then he saw her exchange a triumphant

look with Charles, who, upon seeing her, turned serious. And if that wasn't enough, she blew a kiss to Charles and then went with Max, who put an arm around her shoulders.

"That was incredible," Max said.

"The race or Charles's face?" she questioned, with an ironic smile.

"Both. I thought you'd be sad because there was no one to greet you,"

"You were there,"

"From your team, I mean," Max explained.

"You and I are a team, Maxie. Have you never thought about that?" She looked at him with a smile. "You're right, we are,"

"Are you okay?" Y/N asked. "I got quite worried when you DNF’d."

"I'm okay, no serious damage,"

"And emotionally?"

"I'm fine. Proud of you, above all," Max nodded. "Now go celebrate your podium, I'll be watching you from below,"

They gave each other a brief kiss on the cheek, not caring too much about the cameras; she had just won the race, she deserved at least a kiss from her boyfriend. She received her prize with a smile and celebrated the podium with Charles and Lando, more with Lando than with Charles. The McLaren driver had congratulated her countless times that day, but Charles barely spoke to her.

"Are you okay, mate?" Y/N asked, knowing what was coming.

"You didn't follow team orders," Charles said directly.

"Oh, right. That," she shrugged, raising her eyebrows. "You came second, Charles. It's not that bad,"

"Damn, but if they tell you to let me pass, you let me pass. What does it matter to you?" he raised his voice a little.

"What does it matter to you? You have your golden seat at Ferrari. Some of us have to work really hard to have a seat, crazy, right?" Y/N rolled her eyes with a smile and turned around, leaving Charles with a word on his lips.

Y/N reached the interview area, where Lando and Oscar were doing their respective interviews.

"Y/N! You won the race by disobeying team orders, does it feel the same as winning a race fair and square?" a man asked.

"Fair and square? I was fast enough to cross the line first, the rest weren't. I think that's how a race is supposed to be won," she argued. She smiled widely; she saw Max was also around, waiting for his turn for interviews.

"Don't you have any remorse?" he questioned.

"Not one,"

She ended the interview after that; she didn't feel like explaining. As she turned around, she found Max with an almost mischievous smile. They fist bumped, and he went to do the interview. "Max, can we ask you about the win of your girlfriend?"

"About Y/N,"

"Yes, about Y/N," he nodded.

"I'm extremely proud of her, it's her second victory, and even though I had to retire, I'm glad she won this race,"

"Even given the circumstances of the victory?" the reporter questioned.

"With the circumstances of the victory," Max assured with a broad smile.

#max verstappen #max verstappen x reader #max verstappen x you #max verstappen fanfic #max verstappen fluff #max verstappen imagine #australian gp 2024 #charles leclerc #mv1 #mv1 x reader #mv1 fic #mv1 x you #mv33 #mv33 x reader #mv33 imagine #mv33 fic #mv33 x you #max verstappen one shot #noraverse 🫧

[umlewis]

lewis hamilton during the press conference on day three of pre-season testing, bahrain - february 23, 2024 (transcript under the cut)

Journalist: "What changed between the summer and the decision to make the call for Ferrari?" Lewis: "Obviously in summer we signed and obviously I, at that time, saw my future with Mercedes, but an opportunity came up in the new year and I decided to take it. It was obviously the hardest decision I think I've ever had to make. Obviously I've been with Mercedes for… I think it's, like, 26 years they've supported me, and we've had an absolutely incredible journey together. We've created history within the sport, and it's something I take a lot of pride in. I'm very proud of what we've achieved. But I think ultimately I'm writing my story, and I felt like it was time to start a new chapter." [time jump] Lewis: "For every driver, I think, growing up, watching the history, watching Michael Schumacher in his prime, I think probably all of us sit in our garage and see the screen pop up and you see the driver in the red cockpit and you wonder what it'd be like to be surrounded by the red. You go to the Italian Grand Prix and you see the sea of red, of Ferrari fans, and you can only stand in awe of that, and it's a team that's not had huge success, really, since… Mostly, obviously, from Michael's days, but since 2007, and I saw it as a huge challenge, and without a doubt… Even as a kid, I used to play on GP2 as Michael in that car, so it definitely is a dream and I'm really, really excited about it." Interviewer: "Lewis, have you ever been to Maranello? Lewis: "I have not. I bought my first Ferrari in 2010, I think. That was my first present to myself. I don't have it anymore, but I didn't get to go during that time. Being with Mercedes, I didn't think it was a good look to go, at the time." Journalist: "Are you on Duolingo already? Are you planning to have lessons? What's the game plan with that? Thank you." Lewis: "In all these years, I've not managed to learn any other languages, so… But of course I will definitely try. I do remember when I was karting in Italy and I was able to pick up a few lines, and so hopefully that will come back to me pretty quickly. But just to go back to, just about the new chapter… This chapter's still not finished. I'm still 100% focused on delivering for this team this year and trying to finish on a high. That's a big, big goal for me and the team, and I have absolute faith in everyone in the team and, what we've done so far, I think it's great, so I really hope that we are somehow able to close the gap to the Red Bulls, somehow." Journalist: "Can you tell us a little bit about your relationship with Fred? How important was he in your decision? Was he the only guy that could have convinced you to go there?" Lewis: "I've got a great relationship with Fred. Obviously I raced with him in Formula 3, and we had amazing success in Formula 3 and also in GP2, and that's really where the foundation of our relationship started, and we just always remained in touch. And I thought that he was gonna be an amazing team manager at some stage and progress to Formula 1, but at the time he wasn't interested in that, and it was really cool to see him step into the Alfa team, and then when he got the job at Ferrari I was just so happy for him. And I think just the stars aligned. It really wouldn't have happened without him, so I'm really grateful and really excited about the work that he's doing there and… Yeah."

#lewis hamilton #f1 #formula 1 #fic ref #fic ref 2024 #not a race #2024 not a race #pre-season #pre-season 2024 #testing #testing 2024 #bahrain #lando norris #valtteri bottas #lance stroll #esteban ocon #logan sargeant

[i-am-church-the-cat]

history of man

Or Brocedes in 3 parts

Part I: Before

Nico is not jealous that Lewis is a championship contender in his first season in F1. Lewis has always had to work hard for the things that Nico has with ease: recognition, support, community. Racing might have been in Nico’s blood but Lewis bled for racing and all he could feel for his best friend was proud.

Anyway, he was busy, too. Working with Williams, trying to build the historic team back up to its former glory, while also trying to prove that he’s a serious racer worthy of a championship car and not just riding the coattails of his father’s success in the sport.

Then Lewis wins a championship. It is the greatest moment of Nico’s life, probably third only to his own future championship or his wedding day. Lewis seems to have everything he wants at McLaren and Nico would have considered going with him there, being teammates like they always planner, if McLaren had wanted anything to do with him.

Instead, he is offered a deal at Mercedes, a team that people don’t think is going anywhere, but if they’re good enough for Micheal Schumacher then of course they are good enough for him. Playing second fiddle to a championship winner isn’t as hard as it sounds. If Lewis could do it, so could Nico, even if he didn’t get nearly as much recognition for it.

Though neither of them are getting much attention at the moment, what with Red Bull and Vettel totally dominating. Nico thinks Lewis is more upset about it than he is, having to listen to more than a few rants on the subject. He tries to be supportive, but it’s hard when Nico is so happy. He’s a racer in Formula 1 with his best friend, competing against certifiably the greatest F1 driver of all time. The only thing that could make it better is if he was competing against Lewis or for a championship. Or competing against Lewis for a championship.

That really would be the dream.

But Lewis loves McLaren, and even if they aren’t in fighting shape right now, that doesn’t mean they won’t be soon. And even if Lewis was considering leaving, he wouldn’t come to Mercedes of all places. He’d probably go to Ferrari as long as Fernando wasn’t there.

Nico uses all these reasons and more to keep himself from getting his hopes up when Micheal announces his retirement. When Lewis admits to him his frustration with McLaren. When Toto tells him that he’s been in talks with someone he “thinks you’d get along great with, Nico.”

He continues to rationalize it all the way up to when Lewis shows up at his apartment, using his key and announcing his presence with a loud “Rosberg!” and the sudden brute force of someone colliding with him.

“Oof.” Nico flops back into the couch, halfway up from where he’d tried to get up to greet Lewis. He pushes at the other boy, feeling like they were 12 again, wrestling in their hotel rooms.

“What you big bully?”

Lewis pulls back and grins, shark-like with a kind of kiddy glee.

“I’m coming to Mercedes.”

—

Part II: During

“I’m coming to Mercedes.”

A pause. Then, “Well, obviously, I’ve only been convincing Toto to sign you for the last year.”

George fully expects the pillow aimed at his head and dodges deftly. He and Alex are both grinning like fools, and George can see all his plans for the future start to unspool.

Lewis wins his 8th championship with Ferrari that first year, a feat only the man himself could have predicted. George is having too much fun getting paid to bully his best friend.

Next year though. Next year.

“This is a championship winning car, mate,” Alex says after the first day of testing. “I can feel it. Can you feel it?”

George swallows, the memory of how responsive the car had been that morning. Like writing a sonnet with a steering wheel.

“Yeah. I can feel it.”

It was a championship winning car. It won both championships that year, the Mercedes driver pairing ending up 1st and 2nd again after a long time. It was his first championship, and he deserved it, working so hard to prove himself out from under a world champion’s shadow.

George was so damn proud of him.

Watching Alex on the top step was like a dream, draped in the red-white-blue of his flag, doused in champagne and breathing heavy, as if he’d been holding his breath since the end of testing. Sure, it stung a little losing his own chance at a championship, but he’d put up a hell of a fight and he would again next year. George had no doubt that in 2027, he’d be the world driver’s champion.

Alex turned to him from the too step, wide smile and something devilish in his eye.

“Let’s do this again next year, George,” he said, somehow agreeing with everything George himself had been thinking. George grinned in return and could only shout an affirmative.

And they did do it again next year. Two championships, one-two, podium steps and drenched in champagne.

George looking up. Again.

Alex was a terrific driver. George knew it because he’d been there while Alex learned how to do it. How to win. George knew how hard Alex was to beat because he’d watched him climb further and further away from second place.

Maybe that’s why it was always going to end up this way. Alex had made himself unbeatable and only George was there to see all of it. That’s why it only could have been him that saw the chink in the armor of Alex’s driving.

George had won. He was on the top step. He was the 2028 world driver’s champion.

And Alex wouldn’t look at him. Wouldn’t give him the big smile that use to come so easily to his face. When did Alex stop smiling? When did Alex stop smiling at him?

George had barely eaten the entire week leading up to Abu Dhabi. That didn’t stop him from spending hours emptying his stomach at the memory of Alex’s clenched jaw and shunted eyes.

That’s why-

“I’m retiring.”

—

Part III: After

“I’m retiring.”

The flash of the camera hurt his eyes. You’d think by 2034 they’d have made cameras that weren’t so earth shatteringly bright.

It wasn’t a decision Logan had made lightly. He was the first American WDC since Andretti, he had the chance to be the only repeat American winner. Except there wasn’t really a chance. This season had taken everything Logan had and he’d still just barely been able to beat out Oscar. He couldn’t do it again and he didn’t want to try.

It wouldn’t get him his best friend back.

The story was old hat by now. The Mercedes curse. You’d think after Alex and George Toto would stop hiring childhood best friends as teammates. But the opportunity to sign the current WDC Oscar Piastri had been too good to pass up. He had three under his belt, now, definitely more after this, since he wouldn’t have Logan here to make it harder for him.

But it was a classic tragedy. Everyone knew the ending by now. The former-Williams driver gave their entire soul for that one championship, just to show that they could do it. Then the real winner went off and grew into the phenom they were always supposed to be. Now without the dead weight of their best friend hanging onto him.

They’d sworn it wouldn’t happen to them. They’d both worked so hard to keep the resentment from boiling over. But the threat of being dropped if Logan got another P2 in the championship had been the straw that broke the camel’s back. It hadn’t been Oscar’s fault that the team had decided to shift to him after all Logan had given them. But that didn’t mean Logan could let it go, either.

Now there were landmines around their relationship. Both too scared to reach out because of the chance of stepping on one and burning down everything they’d built. So the silence and the distance stretched and the structures crumbled anyway.

Logan moved back to America. He wasn’t going to be Nico, sitting in the same apartment, all but begging Oscar to come back to him on live tv. He wasn’t going to be George, reaching out every other year just to feel the rejection all over again. He might have been doomed to leave Oscar like this from the beginning but that didn’t mean he didn’t get to choose what he did with the rest of his life.

He was 34. He was still in top shape. He didn’t want to stop racing. He just couldn’t race Oscar anymore.

Logan did IndyCar for a couple of years, ending up next to Kyle again. Somehow losing the championship to him wasn’t as hard as losing to Oscar had been. In 2036, he retired for real this time, no other championship but at least a few wins under his belt.

He pretended not to be invested in F1. But he couldn’t not watch the races. Couldn’t not see Oscar win his fourth championship, then his fifth.

Logan wonders if he’ll go for nine, just to kick fate’s balls.

In the end, Logan can’t say no when Williams invites him to a couple of races. They’re the team that supported him when no one did and he can’t refuse James anything.

When Sky Sports here he’s coming, they beg to have him on. He reluctantly agrees.

When Oscar wins in Miami, Logan is there. There are so many cameras on him as he watches his ex-best friend win Logan’s home race. All he can think is that it was always going to end this way.

—

I've seen it, in the poems and the sands

I've pleaded, with the powers and their plans

I tried to rewrite it but I can't

It's the history, the history of man

history of man - maisie peters

#girl help i wrote this in an hour on my phone #i am not rereading it #idc if it’s good or not it’s about the EMOTIONS OKAY? #brocedes #nico rosberg #george russell #logan sargeant #galex #loscar #history of man #f1 rpf fic #my writing #fic: history of man

[russellius]

THE TIMES: The Formula One driver and his father, Steve, on failed driving tests and sleeping in horseboxes

George

My earliest memories are of living in a mobile home while my parents built a house in a field in the middle of nowhere, near Wisbech in Cambridgeshire. I rode a pedal tractor around the site, hurtling through corners and reversing with a trailer.

At 25 I am the youngest of three. Cara is 37 and works as my personal assistant. Benjy is 36 and caught the karting bug when he was just 11. He was a brilliant driver, becoming a national and world karting champion. Unfortunately, even starting at such a young age, it was already too late for him to have a professional career. I took up karting when I was six and he helped me a lot. Benjy was like a mentor. He eventually gave up racing at university, so Dad’s focus was on me.

I didn’t see much of Dad during the week. He got up early and came home late running a business selling seeds and pulses. As a kid you miss having your father around, but it’s only now that I appreciate he was doing it so I could race at the weekend. Dad didn’t come from a lot and did well to create a successful business. We weren’t poor but we weren’t wealthy like the families of some F1 racing drivers now.

After long hours at work Dad drove us in a camper van to racetracks around the country. It was very much a family affair. Dad was the mechanic, Mum did the cooking and collected data on my driving. When I drove well, there were celebrations and the mood was great but because everyone was so emotionally and financially invested, when I suffered a poor weekend the mood was bad.

Dad has always been hard on the ones he loves. As a young kid, that was difficult to deal with. The pressure didn’t just filter down to me, it affected the whole family. I felt the weight of failure and expectation. If I made a silly mistake and spun off the track, I can now understand why Dad might have thought, “What the hell am I doing this for?” He had to work his arse off to support my racing, so if I didn’t put in enough effort, it must have been hard.

I now live in the world of F1, where tens of millions of pounds are spoken about like peanuts. Even in Formula Two or Three, every driver has to find huge amounts of money to get on the grid — it’s just crazy. When I was 16 and moving up through the ranks, I realised Dad didn’t have that sort of capital. I thought, “Oh shit, if I can’t find that sort of sponsorship or get picked by a team, my F1 dream is gone.”

Winning the F2 championship in 2018 was a big moment but I’ll never forget the day I signed for Williams F1 in September 2018. I was racing in F2 in Sochi, Russia, when Claire Williams, the deputy team principal at the time, called me in and offered a deal. Mum and Dad were the first people I told and they both cried. I told them to save their tears for when I won a race.

I joined Mercedes for the 2022 season, alongside Lewis Hamilton. It was a huge opportunity for me to learn and grow in F1, as well as show what I’m capable of. It was not an easy season for Mercedes but I feel very fortunate to be in this position, plus Lewis is such an incredible bloke on and off the track. He is so experienced, whereas I’m a 25-year-old who is just totally focused on trying to be the best F1 driver I can be. I’m pretty inspired by what he has achieved.

Dad is a strong character but he has become more emotional since his children have left home. He’s also friendlier now and doesn’t mind making a fool of himself from time to time. My only regret is that F1 doesn’t leave much free space to see each other but we do speak on the phone all the time.

Of course he still watches the pennies and will only fly economy — he won’t let me pay for their flights either. I know my parents can afford to fly business but it’s the principle for them. I want to make sure I reach a position with my racing where I can afford to give them the best in their retirement. They totally deserve it.

Steve

The F1 guys are OK on the racetrack but they are never as good as their dads on normal roads. George is always telling me to slow down as we approach a junction, though his mum thinks it’s fantastic when he takes her out and drives quickly.

There was just one occasion when George didn’t put the full effort in and it caused quite a commotion. He failed his first driving test at 17 because he thought that being a great driver on the track was good enough. He came home fuming that the examiner was wrong. We had to go back to the test centre in King’s Lynn so George could confront him. That didn’t go down well.

George was a cheeky little boy, a bit of a comedian. I worked a lot but it’s strange that I can only remember the racing side of his life, not watching him grow up at home. We enjoyed a nice life but had to work hard for it. I came from a family of farm workers with very little money and wanted to get away from agriculture and better myself but I ended up owning a wholesale seed business.

My wife, Alison, and I knew George was going to be a racing driver at the age of two. He was born on the track, coming to races to watch his brother and help out in the garage. He had a toy tractor that he rode around the pit lane and collected stickers from each race to stick on his “George Russell Racing” tractor.

As George progressed through the racing ranks it became more and more expensive. We invested in a motorhome to travel to races — before that I would sometimes sleep in a freezing horsebox. There were sacrifices. Alison and I didn’t go on our first holiday together until two years ago, on a trip to Lanzarote. By then we had been together for 38 years. People think that now George is in F1 we hang out with Lewis Hamilton and Toto Wolff, the Mercedes principal, every weekend in the sunshine, but it couldn’t be further from the truth. Now Alison and I rarely go to races because we don’t want to interfere.

It was hard letting George fly the nest because we had been a close family, always doing our racing together. He is methodical and organised but his feet are firmly on the ground. There are plenty of people in the family to put him straight if needed.

There’s no magic wand to become an F1 driver — it takes hard work and dedication. It was only when I stood on the track with George before his first grand prix that I looked up at the enormous crowd and thought, “Oh my God, we’ve actually got here.”

#george russell #f1 #*m #q #23 #(oh brother) #:) #ch

[ummick]

Mick Schumacher: Toto Wolff says F1 teams 'missing out' as Mercedes boss praises reserve driver's impact

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff says other F1 teams are "missing out" on Mick Schumacher as the German driver struggles to find a full-time seat for the 2024 season.

Schumacher is Mercedes' reserve driver this season after being replaced by Nico Hulkenberg at Haas at the end of 2022 following two difficult seasons with the American team. Schumacher, son of seven-time world champion Michael, was criticised by Guenther Steiner for a series of expensive crashes last season, with the Haas team boss revealing in his book that Schumacher had cost in excess of £1.6m from big crashes in Saudi Arabia, Monaco and Japan. Wolff, though, feels Schumacher was not in an environment to thrive at Haas and would expect him to perform well at the next team that signs him. "I think teams are missing out, to be honest. I think he was burned last year," Wolff said at the Canadian Grand Prix. "You need to give and provide an environment and framework that is different to every driver, we are all different human beings. And whoever gets him will have a very good pilot." Schumacher's hopes of returning to the grid full-time in 2024 are looking slim with limited openings available. A promotion at Mercedes will not happen as George Russell has extended his contract and Lewis Hamilton is on the verge of signing his own extension. As things stand, the only openings in 2024 are at Alfa Romeo/Sauber, Williams, AlphaTauri and Haas - with a return to the latter almost certainly out of the question. Wolff also says he cannot make a Mercedes customer team - Williams, McLaren and Aston Martin - take on Schumacher. "I'm not even sure that we can facilitate [a seat], because every time we speak highly of him, somebody feels to say something negative," Wolff said. "Wherever I can speak highly and praise Mick, that's what I'm doing. But at the end, it's every team's authority to decide on their drivers and I very much respect that. Our contracts with the teams were never 'you have to take our junior driver', 'you have to take our reserve driver', because when I was at Williams, I also wanted to have my own choice."

Wolff: Schumacher giving Mercedes tremendous advantage

Wolff also hailed the impact Schumacher is having in his role as reserve driver with Mercedes. Hamilton and Russell praised the work the 24-year-old had done in the simulator on the Friday night of the Spanish GP which helped the team unlock more pace in the W14 and culminated in a double podium finish on the Sunday. Wolff says having Schumacher's experience to do simulator work on race weekends at European grands prix gives Mercedes a big advantage and reiterated he would have no hesitation in having Schumacher step up to cover should Russell or Hamilton be unavailable for a race. "It's great to have a mature, successful and experienced Formula 1 driver supporting us," Wolff said. "In the simulator with his feedback, that is a tremendous advantage on some of the European grands prix, having him in the sim overnight and providing data for the Saturday is a super advantage for us. "And on the other side is that, if George or Lewis were to have fish poisoning - well, Lewis can't have fish poisoning, it would be avocado poisoning - then we know we have a super guy that would drive the car well. And as much as I like the situation for the benefit of the team, I would every day of the week prefer that Mick sits in a cockpit and actually races."

#mick schumacher #f1 #formula 1 #fic ref #fic ref 2023 #not a race #2023 not a race #between canada and austria 2023 #with george #with lewis

[myimaginarywonderland]

There's so many conflicts thoughts I have about the whole Massa championship thing so I am going to make these as clear as possible:

He does not deserve to win a court case. If anything that should have been solved a long time ago. The title is rightfully Lewis. He won it fair and square.

What happened as a result of Crashgate is literally the teams and drivers fault. Not saying that Crashgate was right but people have been fucked over by bad pits tops as a reault of the safety car for years now.

You can not take the title over 10 years after something has happened. There's no grounds for that.

But what this does mean is that Abu Dhabi could have been challenged.

And it makes me absolutely mad.

It doesn't even matter how that would have turned out. I would have been fine with a failed case and the title going to Max.

But it hurts because there's a driver who lost his title years ago fighting for it, he'll even getting support.

And yet, when Lewis spoke out about probably the lowest moment of his career, how he was (rightfully) robbed just weeks, months after it happened he was shut down, insulted, called names.

It fucking boils my blood. Not because I am naive enough to think anyone in the FIA would ever admit to that mistake but because everyone saw how they deliberately changed the rules on live TV. How they actively sabotaged the race. We heard other drivers who were also fucked over being put in a position where they were so confused, so lost why anything was happening. They didn't understand it.

It doesn't matter who you supported in that season. It doesn't matter what you say.

The decision that were made in that last race went against the rules and helped Max win the championship.

It doesn't matter what happened over the course of the season, what incidents occurred, who lost points were because at the end, it meant that they both went into the race with a chance to win the championship. That at the end of that race they both could have come out as champions.

Let me make it clear, I am not blaming Max for the FIAs decision. He was just the person who they decided in that moment was going to have to deal with shit. They choose him to win and he couldn't really do anything about it.

But the fact that after that race, a race where not only Lewis was robbed of a championship but also multiple drivers where fucked over, lost possible positions and points, the fact that after that no one dared to challenge it is what gets me.

Massa last the championship years ago and is fighting for it now.

Lewis was going to be the greatest driver this sport has ever seen, he was going to break yet another record, he was going to be the champion but they took it from him. That race could have been one of the most important in the history of this sport.

And yet, no one fought for Lewis. Not a single person in that team.

And we all know that Lewis could have never even dared to make an appeal. They would have never let him talk about it. He faced all the backlash, the emotions alone.

Mercedes not only lost the race that day, they also did nothing,not a thing to appeal. And I am sure had they said something, other teams that were fucked over would have also supported them.

What angers me about this isn't that Massa is trying, it's the fact that Lewis was never given that option.

It's the fact that with Lewis winning it was all "poor Massa" but with Max winning it was all "Finally, deserved" and Lewis instantly got shut down to silence.

It's the fact that everyone expected Lewis to move on from one of the biggest robberies this sport has seen within weeks but everyone is okay with Massa grieving even after years.

It's the fact that Massa's fight is encouraged and that Lewis, should he even consider it, would be hated more than ever.

It's the fact that Mercedes didn't even fight for it but Aston Martin instantly had evidence to get back Alonso's podium.

It's the fact that Mercedes let down the driver who gave them their full success.

It's the fact that if the team wanted and cared they would have done something. Just look at how other teams fight for their drivers.

It's the fact that this sport just continues to prove that Lewis is alone. That even with friends on the grid, with support, it's not enough.

#f1 #sir lewis hamilton #lewis hamilton #again this is not against Max #he was just the person they used to hide behind

[doctoriletyougotogalaxy]

Deniz Melissa Benetton

Rocco Benetton is the son of Luciano Benetton, one of the four founders of the Italian fashion brand Benetton. He met Bahar Boyner, the sister of Boyner Holding's founder, their distributors in Türkiye, in 1995. They got married in 1998, and in 1999, their daughter Deniz Melissa Benetton was born.

Deniz spent half of her childhood in Italy and the other half in Türkiye. The excitement of Formula races in Italy and his father's F1 background drew her into the sport, and at a young age, she developed an interest in it. Deniz participated in regional karting races and achieved unexpected success. In 2015, she joined the Ferrari Academy, where she won 1 Formula3 and 1 Formula2 championships. In 2018, she took his first step into Formula 1 by becoming a test pilot for Ferrari. In 2019, she filled Kimi Räikkönen's vacant seat and finished her first season in Formula 1 in 10th place. In the 2020 season, she had a victory in Canada and finished the season as 8th. In 2021, she moved to McLaren and ended the season in 5th place with 2 victories. In the 2022 season, she finished 6th. At 2023 season, she moved to Mercedes, she is currently racing for this ream.

Deniz considers Türkiye as her second home. She is native at Turkish and Italian, fluent in French, and English, and she speaks German and Spanish midly . Also she tries to learn Russian and Japanese.

Thanks to her achievements in the lower category series and her family's business, she didn't face many difficulties in finding sponsorships. As the only female driver on the grid, she receives both strong support and negative reactions from different groups. She responds to the sexist questions with a sharp tongue, and during these moments, her friends like Vettel and Hamilton also defend her, and she appreciates these moments.

Being the only female driver on the grid, Deniz is featured in more programs on SkySports and the F1 YouTube channel compared to others. She is close friends with Lando Norris, and she tries to get along with everyone on the grid, admiring Vettel and Räikkönen. She feels happiest and pushes herself the most during races in Italy and Türkiye. When she won in Türkiye in 2021, she couldn't hold back tears of joy.

Deniz is known for being sarcastic. When she first appeared in front of the cameras, she was perceived as insincere and faced criticism, but over time, she got used to being in front of the cameras and felt more comfortable as she established a genuine connection with the people around her, leading to more positive feedback. Of course, there are still some misogynistic detractors, but there is also an army of supporters fighting for her on the internet.

Above all, she is a nerd, geek, and fangirl. She knows even the smallest details about various subjects, from superheroes to Eurovision history, from old Hollywood sci-fi movies to astronomy. Sailor knots, morse code, origami, sign language... She doesn't stop until learn everything about a subject she interested to. If she doesn't wear F1 merchandise, she's probably wearing Star Wars or Marvel merchandise because her wardrobe consists mainly of that. After learning to read and write, she researched F1 history and documented every significant event in an old notebook. She has an extensive F1 almanac that starts from the first race in 1950 and covers scandals like Spygate and Crashgate, as well as details like Nelson Piquet's race rankings in different races and the rules that applied in different years. She was also successful at school lessons until she fully concerned to F1. She thinks about studying astrophysics after her retirement from F1. Also she writes various fanfictions on Tumblr and AO3, but her account is unknown.

Her favorite sport after F1 is swimming. While she's swimming, she doesn't think about anything else. There's nothing better for her to clear her mind and relax before and after races.

She actually loves Turkish cuisine more than Italian cuisine. She spent all her summer holidays in Turkey during her childhood and holds a deep affection for the country. She shares celebration messages for national and Islamic holidays on social media.

Sometimes, she sees videos that edited in a romantic way about her  and other pilots. And although she was embarrassed by them at first, she no longer cares. She maintains a professional attitude towards her work. (No one knows that she constantly listens to War of Hearts by Ruelle and thinks about Mick Schumacher.) Her closest friends on the grid are Lando, Carlos, Charles, and Mick. She spends most of her time with them during events and F1 media department chooses her with mostly these 4  to make content.

She is a huge fan of literally every driver that she watched at her childhood; Vettel, Raikönnen, Schumacher, Button, Webber, Rosberg, Alonso... She thinks that she is the luckiest person because she was reserved pilot at Ferrari while Vettel and Raikönnen racing. She had biggest crush on Sebastian and Jenson when she was a child. In 2019, while playing an ask game, Seb asked her who was her childhood crush is. She immediately blushed and started laughing while throwing hinting looks at Seb, after he understand, he started laughing too and said that it was cute. She covered her face with her hands and stand up by saying that she needs to find someone to hit her with a car. And everyone knows about her crush on Jenson because she revealed this in her very first interview made by Jenson Button's himself.

Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc are like brothers to Deniz. She loves spending time with them. Charles is always so kind to her, and a photo of her sleeping on Carlos' shoulder after FIA's prize night is wandering around the internet.

Mick Schumacher and Deniz know each other since they were babies. She found a photo of them with pacifiers in their mouths, for Netflix show producers from their infancy. She posted the photo on Instagram and got a response from Mick, another babyhood photo. They didn't grow up together, just 2 people who knew each other but lived far away. After the accident of Michael Schumacher, they made a phone call, did not speak, just cried loudly. They met at some karting races and had a little chat while their mothers taking photos. Years passed without intimate acquaintance until they met again at the F1 paddock. Mick's kindness and endless radiance of sunlight drew her in immediately as it evoked some warm childhood memories. She tries very hard to keep things professional. But some fans on the internet are catching how she acts different and timid around him. How she blushes and laughs awkward-long after she making him laugh. No, she should keep things professional.

She started a campaign to get women's attention to motorsports with Susie Wolff. Also, she attends to some activities for protecting environment. She posts some campaigns and news about global warming at social media. After his retirement, she started supporting Sebastian Vettel's bee campaign. She also fights for homophobia, Islamophobia, antisemitism, sexual discrimination, racism, animal rights... She just tries to make the world a better place.

#formula 1 #formula one #f1 #f1 original character #original character

[dobbiamo-capire]

FERRARI: IN HUNGARY THEY SAY GOODBYE TO THE CHAMPIONSHIP

Like every Monday, I’ll translate the best bits of Italian newspapers under the cut. Sorry for the delay, this was A LOT.

As always, translation under the cut, every mistake is on me, pls share to support my effort in sharing italian press with you all✨

‘Red sunset’ (Gazzetta dello Sport), ‘Sprofondo rosso’ (word game between ‘profondo rosso’, a movie title, and ‘Sprofondo’ that translate as ‘sinking red’)(Corriere della Sera), ‘Trial Ferrari’ (La Stampa), ‘Autogol’ (own goal, they used it last week too) (La Repubblica): the press review highlights some particularly catastrophic titles from the main national sports and non-sports newspapers. It couldn’t be otherwise. Ferrari stepped in Hungary with ambitions not only of victory, but even a 1-2, instead Carlos Sainz started second and finished fourth at the finish line, Charles Leclerc finished sixth starting third, but in the middle of the race he was leading and in control of the race before yet another strategic mistake by the pit wall of the Scuderia di Maranello that definitively set down any ambition for success from the monegasque.

“The Dutch shower. Ferrari goes on holidays as the leader of the championship of words and mistakes, Red Bull has the real one in their hands. They walk with their heads down, Sainz and Leclerc with their hearts torn apart by cyclone Max, and from the same acts of self-harm: fourth and sixth after starting second and third. Like Imola we had arrived for the 1-2 too, but the smile disappeared along with Friday's sun, when the Reds, in the heat of 30 degrees, were uncatchable. In pieces and with one more enemy: Mercedes”, the beginning of the piece that opens the sports pages of Corriere della Sera.

“On holiday with the blues. Hungary was supposed to be a hunting ground for Ferrari, hungry for points and glory after Leclerc’s crash and chase from the back for Sainz in France, has turned into hostile ground. And the Budapest race is going to be added to the list of horrors (and mistakes) of a season born under a lucky star (two successes and a second place in the first three races) and which was gradually complicated due to breaks, whacked strategies and blunders of the drivers. The month of July is a faithful segment of this: opened with Carlos Sainz's first success in F1, continued with the amazing victory of Charles Leclerc in Austria (complemented, however, by the roast engine of the spaniard) it ended in the worst way possible with Sainz 4th and Leclerc finished even 6th", reads the columns of La Gazzetta dello Sport.

“False move. Even more: Ferrari own goal. In Budapest, where they were aiming for a 1-2, the Reds do not even get on the podium – writes Repubblica – it is true that the Red does not shine, favored in theory. But especially the strategies are the things that turns it off altogether. Especially those on Charles: they put on him hard tires, reacting to Verstappen’s pit stop, while he was in the lead (lap 40 of 70) with over 7’’ lead over the Dutchman. Too bad it is the only useless compound, as the Alpines demonstrated in the meantime, fro the temperatures precipitated by 30 degrees compared to the Friday when the monegasque was flying like his teammate. Charles disagrees, asks to stay out, but Ferrari has no other mediums and for the softs it's too early. Verstappen overtakes him twice. Russell one. Leclerc lost at least the podium. The pit to the softs 15 laps from the end is just an admission of guilt.”

“It is on the strategies that the paths and destinies of the protagonists parts away – analyzes La Stampa – Verstappen starts with soft tyres and then moves twice to mediums. This is the strategy suggested by Pirelli, which excluded the hard compounds for the race at the Hungaroring. It's like at the restaurant when the chef does not recommend a dish: better leave it alone. And instead Leclerc, always him, takes the strategy that in retrospect (but also beforehand, says Pirelli) turns out to be wrong: medium, medium and hard. The difference in performance is disarming. Verstappen flies to the finish line for his 28th win. His lead over Leclerc with nine races to go rises to 80 points, the one of Red Bull over Ferrari is plus 97. Second places are also at risk: Mercedes is 30 lengths from the Prancing Horse, Perez is minus 5 from Leclerc, Sainz has been overtaken by Russell. To sum it up: it's over, the title is virtually assigned. Stage wins are the only thing that’s left, there are still 9, even if the start of the championship had promised much more to the ambitions of the Ferrari drivers.”

#trust italians to being dramatic #and put a food comparison just for fun #italian press #charles leclerc #carlos sainz jr #ferrari #scuderia ferrari #f1 #hungarian gp 2022

[autismtana]

more brittany meta (season 5 return, burnout, and impostor syndrome)

To add on to my previous post about Brittany in seasons 3-4, it's very possible that when she returns to McKinley for the glee club reunion in season 5, she's experiencing impostor syndrome.

There's internalised pressure to live up to the new expectation that she's a genius and is thriving in her current environment. It's also an experience that isn't unique to just Brittany; Rachel and Mercedes are also trying to prove that they've 'made it' and are having a meaningless competition to see who is the biggest success story of their graduating class. The two of them were 'big fish in a small pond' in high school, and are reverting back to that status because often adults when they return to their childhood home/environment tend to fall into old patterns.

Brittany's high school years weren't great. She spent pretty much her entire high school life being constantly belittled by peers and teachers (including so-called Good GuyTM Mr Schue) for not conforming to traditional academic standards, she had to deal with Sue, who often treated her like crap, she and Santana had to deal with prejudiced double-standards, and there is also canon evidence that she was sexually assaulted at a cheerleading camp. On top of that, she was held back, which was not a positive experience for her; statistically, holding students back in school creates more challenges than solutions.

In Brittany's case, she was away from her friends, she broke up with Santana, and she still wasn't really getting any academic support. And yet MIT believes in her and tells her she's a mathematical genius, which is an amazing opportunity but she takes it on, not necessarily because it's what she wants, but because she thinks it will be taken away from her if she doesn't get onto it fast enough.

It's also important to mention that while Brittany was travelling to and from MIT to meet with them, there were a lot of characters expressing disbelief about what she was doing. Brittany encountered a lot of what I would consider ableism from other characters (Finn, Artie, Rachel, Will). Brittany has shown to lack confidence in her abilities and her own intelligence, and internalise what other people say about her. So just like Mercedes and Rachel, when she returns, maybe there's this sense of "I need to double down on how smart I am so that these people who have belittled me won't actually think I'm a joke". It's also very telling that during Fondue for Two, she's nice to Mercedes, who's always been a good friend and treated her with kindness ("Brittany is my Troubletones homegirl", "I like Brittany") but she roasts Rachel, who's generally been condescending to her.

It's also noteworthy that Santana, in her conversations with Brittany in 100, doesn't ever belittle Brittany's intelligence, and she continually expresses her belief that Brittany is a genius. Her concern for Brittany and statement that "this isn't you" isn't born out of lack of faith in Brittany, but because Brittany appears to be genuinely miserable and creatively unfulfilled.

Also, since we're in April and April is Autism Acceptance Month, I should probably acknowledge that I'm 100% an autistic!Brittany truther. I think Brittany's demeanour in this episode is an interesting example of autistic burnout. There is real depth to Brittany S Pierce beyond surface-level that often goes unacknowledged.

#glee meta #brittany pierce meta #neurodivergent brittany #autistic brittany #brittany pierce #glee rewatch #brittany DOES have depth you're just not looking hard enough #brittana #tw: mention of sa

[angelhummel]

It seems the Gleeks/klainers like you who have been there from the beginning love season 5b and the newer crowd in last five years hate it. And I think it’s what they did to Blaine’s character in that arc.

He’d been such a high achiever, leader of glee club really, getting into Nyada and engaged and they made him into this dependent wreck who lied and smothered Kurt. I don’t like what they did to his character at all.

weeell of course you know that i'm gonna disagree with that whole last part bc that's not what they did at all

they clearly showed us blaine struggling with body image issues that were exacerbated by his mental health issues. he was never a perfect person who had it all together, even when he was leading show choirs and getting good grades and getting into elite performing schools. we see these issues as early as season two. being oblivious to kurt's obvious feelings, overstepping with people like burt when he asked him to talk to kurt about sex, being unsure of himself - with his sexuality, not understanding people's intentions with him, not sure if he could even be a good boyfriend himself. He was kind of always a "wreck" and it's funny that that used to be what people hated about him and now people seem to see it as a reason to love him all the more

And like. Idk I think he had a dark point in s5 where he was handling things wrong and not communicating or coping like he should've been. I don't think he was 100% leaning on Kurt for support or smothering him. We actually get to see them doing their own things in those few episodes, like Blaine with June and Kurt with Peter Pan. They still support each other when they're off doing their own thing, but say that a success for one of them is a success for both of them bc they're partners who root for each other and know how to cheer the other one on

But even before that I mean, Blaine just went through a huge life change in graduating high school and moving from Lima to New York. That's no small feat. Everything's different, school is stressful, Kurt gets put in the damn hospital. Things are chaotic, and different, and scary. And we see all the NY characters coping with their new circumstances at different points in time. Sam, Santana, Mercedes, Rachel, Kurt - they all have different points of doubt, of feeling like they don't belong or not knowing what direction to go in. Blaine was far from the only one floundering, and it's unrealistic to expect any of them to be 100% sure of themselves and their lives at any point in time, but especially in s4-5

And I appreciate your ask and how you phrased it, with the dichotomy between original fans and newer fans. Because to me that also reads as the divide between older fans and younger fans. As in like, people who were teenagers or older who watched the show when it aired, and the teens or young adults who have just gotten into the show in the last few years*. Because those viewing experiences are bound to be different

I've had around a decade to watch and rewatch Glee, to process everything in it, and for my thoughts and opinions to morph and mature. Not to mention a decade of brain development and personal growth and life experience that would shape how I view a teen show like this. I didn't start watching Degrassi or PLL until relatively recently, and I know my thoughts on those shows now aren't the same as they would've been if I was watching them when they originally aired, either as a kid, teen, or even young adult

Obviously I'm not saying age = wisdom but when it comes to something like media analysis I do think that more life experience gives you more perspective and helps you understand things like this a little differently. I mean my blog is just shy of being 5 years old and I know there are things I said in 2018 that I don't agree with anymore. You just process things differently and you're gonna have changing opinions the older you get, that's just how it is

all this to say i think you mischaracterized blaine and did his s5b self an injustice lol. but that's just my opinion. i'd like to hear from some older/younger/newer/older fans and see if this is a common pattern

*im sure there are plenty of people who watched the show when it aired and were way too young for it, and grown adults who are still getting into it today. this statement was just a generalization and not meant to speak for everyone in the fandom

#glee #blaine anderson #season 5 #my thoughts #long post #asks #anonymous #theres more i wanted to saaay #like about s6 blaine and how he shows that he can function without kurt lol #thats what s6 was for #and also like things are bound to be different for people watching the show ten years into the future #looking back through the lens of early 2010s and what that was like #bc thats not the same either #its a totally different world now than it was even one decade ago #but yeah theres just a lot of factors going on #and everyone's going to have a different opinion #i just wanted to express mine as someone who was there almost from the start #and really literally grew up with the characters being right in their exact age group and all #anyway yeah let me know if anon is right about that #if there are any young fans that recently got into the show who feel this way #or if they feel the way i feel or a secret third option #or people my age or older who watched the show back in the day who agree with me or agree with anon idk #im sure everyone has a different opinion on it but

[vro0m]

vro0m’s rewatch - 142/310

2014 Italian GP

Welp. So last GP was absolutely insane in terms of narrative. Let's see how this one goes. I guess we'll get the final words on what happened last time around but I already explained all that in my last review so I might not go into details here, except if there's new information.

But first : quali report. Raikkonen was out in Q2 because of a lock up, he's 12th. Alonso is only 7th, the highest placed car without a Mercedes PU. Both Mclaren on the third row. Williams filled the second row, while the Mercedes locked the front row. And this time, it's Lewis on pole. 

We get a Lewis interview. This is his first pole since Spain. It's been a long time. He's enjoyed it, he says, but it's a long way to go the next day. She says he's been more chill than she's seen him in a while. She asks if it's experience or age? He hopes it's not age, "cause… I'm definitely noticing that". He does think it’s through all these experiences, he's matured, and he'll continue to make mistakes "and do and say the wrong things" but it'll make him grow. He thinks this year with all the pressure and everything that's gone on, he's learned to recover quicker.

The journalist says since Spa Mercedes has backed him and supported him a lot and said all the right things in public and she asks how big of a conversation there was between him and the team and between him and Nico. He says it wasn't that big of a thing. He came to Italy with some friend early in the week and literally as he got there he received a message that he had to be at a meeting the next day in the UK.

And so he asked if they couldn't do it on Skype and they were like "no, we need you here" so he went and first it was just Toto, Paddy and him, and it was just a normal meeting and very relaxed but very serious, and then they had a collective meeting but again it was pretty relaxed "and the end result was 'so we'll leave it to you… to race' and I'm like… 'and you called me all the way here to tell me that?'" he jokes. "Like I could be chilling sipping piña coladas man!" He reiterates it was relaxed even though it's a serious matter as they have the potential to be one of the most successful teams. She asks about his trust in Mercedes and whether he's always felt supported this season or if there were times when he doubted if they would back him. I love her for asking that question because it feeds directly into what I was talking about in the previous review. It's the key point.

"I've never ever felt that… the team hasn't backed me," he says. "I've felt… I'm sure back in Monaco, felt a bit… weird, it was almost like irony, there's only me that's a certain way and… everyone else is a different way but… it's okay we've moved on from that but generally the team has just been… fantastic. I've never felt so good in a team."

(Note the hints of paranoia again, whether based or not. During his answer about Monaco we're shown images of the GP but once we go back to him he's taking his hand off his ear and we've already established that this is his tell. He might not have moved on as much as he says.)

She reminds us the stewards didn't see a problem with what happened in Monaco, and they didn't see a problem with what happened in Spa either. She asks if he sees a problem with these or if he's forgiven Nico for these situations. He doesn't take a moment to think before he answers.

"It's not a case of forgiving, it's in the past, there's nothing– there's no point dwelling on these things. Can't go back and change it so all I can do is shape the future so that's what I'm gonna try and do."

She asks if he trusts him going forward. He says again it's not really the question. Of course on track you need to be respectful and hope the others will also be. He says he's had incidents in the past and you can't go into the next race worrying about what will happen if you're next to the same guy again. You have to go into it thinking it's not gonna happen again and it's gonna be a good race. She straight up asks who's stronger on track. OK girl. He says (very smart answer) : "That's for you to decide, and for the fans to decide. I mean, it doesn't really matter what I think. I do my talking on the track and that's what my dad has always told me to do." She says then that presumably if she asks him who's stronger mentally he'll give the same kind of answer. He talks over her to say Nico is very strong mentally. She says he is and they tend to think about him as being much more emotional. He doesn't agree. He says he thinks having handled "hopefully not too badly" all the things he's gone through and being 30 points behind and still fighting and still thinking he can win, "it hopefully shows some of that strength". (He's right, it does. And being strong has little to do with being or not being emotional.) She asks what it's going to come down to, winning the championship. He says reliability, it's what he's been struggling with, and yes, mental strength. He says he now has to do what he did this weekend (getting on pole) every weekend. And every weekend he has to do what he hopes, what he plans to do during the race.

DC says Lewis is a changed man compared to last year, much calmer, much more confident. He says Nico tried to race like him and failed and got chastised and the public didn't like it so Lewis knows he has him beaten in every wheel to wheel situation from now on. "Psychologically he just knows he's the better racer."

On the grid Niki says the mess has been sorted out and they had a good driver meeting in the morning. "The message is very simple : race against each other… but USE YOUR HEAD."

It's time for the race!

Formation lap. 

And they're racing! 

Terrible start from Lewis! A few meters off the grid he's already lost two places. What the fuck. I thought it was Nico at first, wow. Lewis what the absolute fuck. So now it's Nico in the lead then Magnussen, then Massa, then Lewis. And now his recovery systems won't work. Oh apparently it's race start mode rather than recovery system (they're saying RS over the radio everyone is confused about the meaning). Massa overtakes Magnussen for P2. And… yes! Lewis overtakes him as well. Ted says the team confirms it's the start mode that fucked up hence the terrible start. Now he's back on the pace and matching Rosberg. And Chilton is beached in the gravel and DNF. Lewis says his rear tyres are going but he's absolutely flying. OH! Nico locked up and went straight on at the end of the straight! He has to slalom between blocks and he loses a bunch of time! He's still in the lead though. He's lost 1.8 seconds. It could have been way worse. 

Lap 10. Nico, 1.9 seconds ahead of Massa, 0.3 seconds ahead of Lewis. Then 5 seconds down we have Magnussen, Seb, Jenson, Alonso, Perez, Bottas and Raikkonen in P10. Lewis catches up in the pit straight and goes round the outside in the first corner which gives him the inside line in the second corner and he is ahead! P2! Now it's all about the chase. He's been chasing all season, not much of a change. The gap is 2.2. Now 2. 1.6. 1.2. 

Lap 20. It's not a fascinating race. Nico, Lewis +1.1. Then Massa 7 seconds down, Magnussen, Valtteri, Jenson, Alonso, Raikkonen, Daniel and JEV. The pit stops are starting which explains why Seb disappeared from the top 10. Massa pits from 3rd. Rosberg should come in soon as per radio comm. "It's hammertime." Nico pits. Valtteri pits. Lewis comes in. He's still 1.5 behind Nico. Daniel pits. Bono tells Lewis he'll need the tyres at the end but Lewis sets the fastest lap anyway, and then also sets a fastest first sector, so Crofty and Brundle agree that he's clearly ignoring him. And he's already down to 0.6 behind. Imo he knew he had the pace to pass him now instead of waiting for the end of the race and he's going for it. AND NICO GOES DEEP AGAIN IN THE SAME PLACE! AND LEWIS IS AHEAD! Let's gooooo! And there's yellow flags out, Alonso has stopped. 

It's lap 30. Lewis sets another fastest lap. Now it's Rosberg's engineer telling him he has to look after his tyres to attack at the end. Lewis is already 2.6 seconds ahead, a lap and a half after he's taken the lead. I'm bored, which hasn't happened a lot this season. The gap is now 4.3. 

It's lap 40. There's really not much happening, even down the field, very few overtakes. Lewis is still 4.3 ahead of Nico, then we have Massa, 15 seconds down, and Seb 18 seconds down on him. After that it's Valtteri, Magnussen, Perez just overtook Jenson for P7, Ricciardo, and Raikkonen is P10. And Daniel overtakes Jenson for P8, and then Perez for P7. Jenson overtakes Perez for P8, but he fights back and gets his place again. Nothing else is happening. 

10 laps to go. Daniel attacks Seb for P5. Seb defends but can't hold him off too long. 5 laps to go. Nico is not closing that gap. Suddenly Lewis locks up badly and it's down by a bit but that's not even threatening. 3 laps to go. 2 laps to go. Kvyat went straight in the chicane and hit one of those blocks. He's fine and still going. Final lap. 

And it's the end of the race.

Well that was a good ol' boring one but at least Lewis wins! Nico is P2 and Massa P3. That's 238 points for Nico vs. 216 for Lewis. 

"Nice work Lewis, get in there pal! Beautifully recovered mate, beautifully recovered," says Bono. 

Lewis isn't too expansive in his body language as he gets out of the car. Very tuned down. Just a thumbs up. 

While Massa and Lewis congratulate each other and talk joyously, Nico swears in Italian with the Mercedes representative for some reason. Lewis is just hanging out with a towel on his head.

Forever hiding his hair. It's such an insecurity to him. He turns around asking if they have the caps. Rosberg talks to Massa in Italian as well, he answers in a Latin mix of languages. When it's Seb there he often talks to him in German. Sometimes I wonder if he does it on purpose to keep Lewis out, but I don’t know. Crofty comments on Lewis hiding under the towel. "Doesn't he like his hairstyle at the moment?" he asks. "No idea," says Brundle. "But I'm not one to talk about hair." Yeah you both just stay off the subject, it'll be better for everyone.

I personally love his baby curls, he's so cute.

Idk who the guy doing the interviews is (it’s actually Alesi lmao) but he asks Lewis if he likes to complicate his own life. The crowd is a mix of cheering and a little bit of booing I think. Lewis thanks them anyway and comments on how big the crowd is. Doesn't answer the question. The man moves on to Nico. Some people in the crowd have huge poles and one of them gets theirs to him on the podium and there's a marker tied to it and Nico takes it to sign his flag but I think he doesn't do it in the end as he gets interrupted by the interviewer. He gets booed significantly more than Lewis as well. The interviewer asks a question I can barely hear and then turns to them and says "Ragazzi, no!" Nico says Lewis deserved the win and thanks the crowd in Italian, saying the atmosphere was fantastic. He gets more cheers now. Lewis grabs the pole/pen/flag to sign it. Then Nico signs it as well. Someone in the crowd has a Freedom For Lombardy flag which. Okay. The crowd reacts wildly to Massa. Loads of noise. Both the question and the answer are in Italian. He says there's no better place to be on the podium. He thanks the crowd. He says he's not red anymore but he's with them always. The man goes back to Lewis and Nico and says he needs to talk to them but can't do it very loud because it's a secret. "Are you friend again?" Lewis goes "huh???" and the man repeats the question. Nico has his arms crossed. Lewis says "of course" and touches his back briefly.

"We are teammates" (which isn't the same thing) "and we always will be so…" The guy interrupts him to say it's the best picture to see when they are friends because they've raced all their life together and they like the way they drive and the way they fight so they are very pleased to hear that. "Grazie a tutti !" Lewis says. That was awkward. The man goes back to Massa. He tells him he has to say something in English as well. So he says some normal pr stuff in English. He gets cheered loudly. 

Lmao. So the post race content is from BBC again while the race was Skysports and both broadcasters have the same conspiracy theory : that mistake Nico made was so weird, was that the undisclosed penalty for Belgium? Jordan is crazy enough to ask Toto. Toto says "You mean whether we told him to miss the braking, go through the chicane and let Lewis pass?" with a smile on his face because he knows exactly how insane that sounds, especially when Lewis was supposed to be in the lead as he was on pole. Jordan says "I'm just asking a questi–" "No," Toto cuts him off. Then he laughs. "Sure?" asks Jordan. "Sure," he answers. "100%. I mean this for the drivers' world championship, it's very tight, he was under pressure, this is what you could see." He also says Lewis wanted the win and you can't take that away from him, his pace was amazing. He confirms the start issue was technical and on their side.

Lewis has a big smile. He says it was another hard day but he loved every minute of it. He says initially when he had issues and knowing how fast Nico would be he thought he wouldn't be able to make it but you can't get stuck in that kind of thinking. He says the issue at the beginning has to do with engine mapping and goes into an elaborate explanation that isn't very interesting to write down here. Anyway he had to floor it and he was grateful he didn't lose too many places.

She asks about Bono telling him to play the long game and him not listening.

He smiles as she asks the question. He says he has a great team working with him and guiding him during the race and what they're telling him is advice not orders and they work it out together. (Somewhat interesting that there was a whole issue last GP about him being able to trust his team or not and this time he decides to not listen to them and do his own thing instead.) He felt he had the pace and a good balance and had to seize the opportunity because in the first stint he caught up but couldn't overtake him on his old tyres. "I put pressure on him… you know I did it a couple of races ago and… he doesn't seem to like it so I try to do that always now," he smiles mischievously.

She says he's brought the gap down to 22 points. He says he still has a long way to go but one step at a time. He's more serious now. He talks of the fan support and his family being incredible so he's gonna take that energy and try to move forward. She asks if he feels like he's regained some control over the events. He hums. "I don't know, we'll see in the next race but… I just gotta take it as it comes, you know? You never know what's gonna happen, I mean, today I still had a problem. But to be able to be successful with that problem is a great feeling, it's even more empowering than perhaps starting from pole and just winning from there so… but I hope– I'm still looking for that weekend which… you don't have any problems."

Maybe next time? 

I read on Wikipedia Lewis said he was uncomfortable with the public booing Nico.

#f1 #lewis hamilton #vro0m's race reviews #2014 #2014 italian gp

[f1]

FIA over-reacted to porpoising concerns after Baku Symonds | 2022 F1 season

Formula 1’s chief technical officer Pat Symonds believes the sport’s governing body went too far in its bid to reduce ‘porpoising’ after the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. The FIA introduced a series of rules changes in response to the punishment some drivers suffered from the bouncing their cars experienced following the introduction of heavily revised regulations this year. Lewis Hamilton in particular was visibly pained by the rough ride he endured at the Baku City Circuit. A new metric limiting how much cars may bounce was introduced by the FIA. For 2023 the physical dimensions of the cars’ floors is being changed in an effort to reduced the ‘porpoising’ phenomenon. But Symonds believes the changes go too far. “I think they overreacted a bit after Baku,” he told Auto Motor und Sport. “In Baku we saw the worst impact because a team tried something that didn’t work and then went public quite loudly. “Had they not intervened, the problem would have been solved. Most teams now understand how to control bouncing.” As the season progressed teams such as Mercedes increasingly mastered their porpoising problems. However it remained a factor at some circuits, including Yas Marina, scene of the season finale. Symonds, who has decades of experience as an F1 engineer, admitted he had failed to anticipate the problem when he and his team drew up the ground effect rules which the FIA introduced in 2022. “I have to admit, it wasn’t on our radar,” he said. “But we should have had [foreseen] it. “We had the ability to discover it beforehand because we worked with dynamic simulations. For example, we used them to check what happens when a car spins and gets air under it. So the type of accident that Mark Webber once had in Valencia. This requires special software that we could have used to anticipate and understand the bouncing. Advert | Become a RaceFans supporter and go ad-free “I should have known too, because I used to work on ground effect cars. I had simply forgotten. Without a doubt, bouncing changed things. The teams first had to solve this problem before they could work on their aerodynamics. Bouncing is not purely an aerodynamic problem. A lot of mechanics also play a role, for example the suspension stiffness.” Aston Martin’s rear wing end plates could face a ban Some aspects of teams’ designs also came as a surprise to him, including Mercedes’ radical ‘zero-pod’ concept and an aggressive rear wing used by Aston Martin which Symonds suspects will soon be outlawed. “We couldn’t see anything on the cars that would have damaged our concept,” he said. “A few things were definitely more radical than we thought. “For example the Mercedes. We later tested and reviewed the concept in CFD and I have to say that the shape of the Mercedes is easier to follow than the other cars. “The Aston Martin rear wing was also something we didn’t expect. I see a risk in this idea that it could go the wrong way if the idea is pursued further and pushed to the limit. I expect the FIA ​​will ban that for 2023.” F1’s biggest teams enjoyed the most success under the new rules. Only a single podium for McLaren’s Lando Norris at Imola prevented Red Bull, Ferrari and Mercedes from sweeping the rostrum places across 2022. Symonds admitted the completion wasn’t as close as he expected under the new rules but is hopeful that will change next year. “We underestimated that some teams still have large aerodynamics departments that got more out of the new rules,” he said. “But we are hopeful that the gap from front to back will narrow quickly. This could already be observed to a small extent during the season.” Advert | Become a RaceFans supporter and go ad-free 2022 F1 season Browse all 2022 F1 season articles via RaceFans - Independent Motorsport Coverage https://www.racefans.net/

#F1 #FIA over-reacted to ‘porpoising’ concerns after Baku – Symonds | 2022 F1 season #Formula 1

[formulamelia]

2023 Bahrain Grand Prix - Race Report

First of all, hello again, everyone from the 2023 Formula 1 season for which we have been awaiting and even counted the days for over 160 days after a looooooooooong winter break. The Bahrain Grand Prix has been good for all of us motorsports fans, as we have missed the action. It was a great race, despite some unexpected events taking place. So what happened during this race for which we have counted the days? Let's take a look together.

Raining Penalties For Alpine and Esteban Ocon!

As you would remember from the last season, everyone was annoyed by the FIA's decisions: from Red Bull fans to Mercedes Fans, Ferrari fans to Haas fans. Unfortunately, nothing seems to have changed for the 2023 season. As the French driver Esteban Ocon made a millimetric mistake on his grid spot, he was quickly faced with a 5-second time penalty as the FIA cited the reason as ''incorrect starting position''. Alpine and their young driver Esteban Ocon opted to serve the given time during their pitstop; they were shocked by a 10-second penalty. This time the reason cited by the FIA was ''penalty served improperly''. As the young Frenchman served this penalty during his 2nd pitstop, he was hit with another 10 seconds, this time for ''speeding in the pit lane''. As a result, despite having a reasonably lovely qualifying, Ocon couldn't have a lasting advantage. We are extending our support to the young driver.

None Can Stop Super Max!

Red Bull & Max Verstappen's well-known team-driver compatibility continues to elicit admiration and jealousy from fans & opponents. As he is the ''defending champion'' for the 2nd time in 2023, Max Verstappen seems to have his eyes on the 3rd championship in a row. As confidence in himself and his car and aggressive driving style continues to elicit admiration and hate from others, the young champion seems to have vowed to show the same mesmerizing performance. Max opened the season with a victory as he was 12 seconds ahead of his teammate in 2nd place. We congratulate him and wish for the continuation of his success.

What Happened To McLaren?

McLaren, a team loved by many racing fans, made an unlucky start to the season. The team that added the 2021 Formula 2 Champion, young Australian rookie Oscar Piastri to their lineup next to the young Briton Lando Norris; had to pull their rookie out of the race with a steering wheel issue while they saw the chequered flag in only 17th place with Norris also having similar troubles. We hope that these troubles are soon gone for McLaren. Looks like the new technical regulations caused a prominent disadvantage for some of the teams. As we mentioned are affected by the new directories, it would be a shame on our end to not have mentioned Mercedes, one of the most successful teams in the history of our sport. As Mercedes made an unexpected start to the last season (2022) but later developed great for the 2nd half, they made an unlucky start for the 2023 season. While they are experiencing some aerodynamic issues currently, we are sure they will handle it as soon as possible and return to the front of the grid as they should. We wish them the best of luck.

Aston Martin, Alonso, and an F1 Fairy Tale!

Undoubtedly, the surprise of the race and the season is Fernando Alonso in Aston Martin. Aston Martin made an AMAZING start to the season, giving the fans a fairy tale. After adding Dan Fellows, trained by Red Bull's Adrian Newey, to their lineup of engineers, the team appears to have made a strong car. The ''sly old fox'', 42-year-old Fernando Alonso, opened the season with a podium in 3rd place.

Get Well Soon & Congratulations Lance Stroll!

We continue our report with Aston Martin. The young Canadian driver of the team, Lance Stroll, had a horrific accident on his bicycle before the race. Despite having platinum plates placed in his hand with a surgical operation, Stroll was present at the race and saw the chequered flag with points. We hope that he gets well soon, and we also extend our congratulations to him. Let's see what he does with Aston Martin's strong car.

Ferrari & Frustration, AGAIN!

We talked a lot about Ferrari's unfortunate mistakes throughout last season. Unfortunately, the Red team made an unlucky start to the season again. Young Monegasque Charles Leclerc had guaranteed 2nd place throughout the race when on the 41st lap, his engine lost power, and he came to a halt. Since Leclerc is deeply frustrated, strong rumors of a team change for him are circulated on social media. We are curiously following him and wishing him the best of luck.

Red Bull Opens The Season with Bıg Victory!

The successful team Red Bull, having secured a constructor's championship after 9 years in 2022, opened the 2023 season with a double victory after Ferrari's young Monegasque stopped on the track and Sergio Perez snatched the 2nd place. Red Bull is cited as a favorite to take 1st and 2nd places frequently. We congratulate the team and the 2 drivers.

In summary, while raining penalties marked the race, Red Bull drivers saw the chequered flag in 1st and 2nd place. On the other hand, Aston Martin completed the podium with Fernando Alonso in 3rd place and made a surprise start to the season.

With that, we say goodbye for now, and looking forward to seeing you in Jeddah :)))

#f1 #motorsports #formula 1 #formula1 #bahrain grand prix #bahrain gp 2023

[anklelily5]

About Best Electric Cars of 2022 and 2023

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#electric vehicles 2023 #electric vehicles best #Electric Vehicles #Solar Power

[race-week]

Paddocks Power Couple? We’re too Ordinary.

Times article - here in full.

Susie and Toto Wolff are the power couple of motorsport, although mention it to them and Susie will grimace and explain why she hates that label.

“It sounds so corny,” she says. “This idea that we’re a power couple, I don’t see it. We have struggles that normal couples have of managing family logistics, especially with our jobs involving so much travel.

“We support each other massively. Obviously there has been success along the way, which we’re not just proud of but grateful for. So no, I don’t relate to this power couple tag.”

They certainly have achieved success. Toto is in charge of Mercedes, who have won the driver and manufacturer championships in Formula One for the past seven years and are in contention to make it eight this season. The 49-year-old Austrian oversees all Mercedes’ motorsport programmes, including Venturi Racing in Formula E (FE), which Susie, a 38-year-old Scot, is in charge of. A few weeks ago they found themselves at the FE season finale in Berlin, both covered in champagne with reasons to celebrate.

Nyck de Vries had just won the drivers’ championship for Mercedes, while Norman Nato had won the race for Venturi and was joined on the podium by Susie, who took over the reins in 2018 and has turned around the team’s fortunes. It was a double celebration for Venturi as their other driver, Edoardo Mortara, finished second in the championship. There was no big party, however. They had promised their four-year-old son, Jack, that they would be home that night and he had been allowed to stay up late to wait for their arrival. “We’re not really good at celebrations,” Toto says. “For us what we do is just to be there for each other. That evening, flying back to Jack who was waiting in his pyjamas and then we had a late dinner.

“Though, wait, maybe if I tell you about my alcohol consumption the other day,” Toto says as he lets out a big laugh, and who could blame him for allowing himself a day off?

They are speaking while on holiday in Sardinia, where they have managed to find a week to spend together as a family. The final FE race fell in the middle of the F1 summer break and Jack was sent to stay with his grandparents in Scotland while the couple both worked. They have a rule that Jack is not allowed at the track when they are working.

This is because they think that it is unfair on Jack and the staff, who travel so much and cannot bring their own families to races. You get the sense that their style of management is as similar as their sense of humour.

The interview is conducted over video but their camera is turned off, which Susie explains is the result of her pale Scottish skin now being the colour of a lobster. Her husband joins the conversation a minute later and jokingly disagrees with the lobster comparison, saying her skin resembles the Austrian flag, courtesy of the tan lines from her swimsuit. This makes the man from Vienna and his wife laugh a lot.

The pair continue to bounce off each other throughout the interview, something that comes from their ten years of marriage. Toto is also quick to praise his wife’s talent as a team principal and says that he would happily work for her one day.

“I would work for her immediately,” Toto says. “If she comes up with a good project and she pays me well and I can have a share of the business, yeah, I will do it in a heartbeat. And I mean it seriously.”

The feeling, though, is not reciprocated and Susie is adamant that she would maintain her independence. “For me it was a conscious decision not to work for Toto, because as his wife it would have been seen as nepotism; also I had to stand on my own two feet,” Susie says. “I had to find my own project.

“So that’s why I went off to find my own challenge. But when I was discussing it with Toto, this idea of maybe doing something in Formula E or becoming team principal, he said, ‘Go for it, absolutely go for it.’ ”

Jack was only one when she took the job, but starts school next month in Monaco, to where they have recently relocated from Switzerland. They live down the road from Lewis Hamilton. The Mercedes driver has already been over for dinner and plays with Jack, even giving him one of his helmets.

“Jack asked the other day when [the next] race is, as he realised there hadn’t been one for a while,” Susie says. “I told him how many sleeps away it was and he said, ‘OK, because I’m thinking that maybe I’m going to give Lewis my helmet.’ I said no to him and explained Lewis had given him his helmet and you don’t have to give it back.”

Most children are in awe of the best drivers, which explains Jack’s disappointment upon discovering that his dad does not actually drive the cars. “I say I’m going to my race cars, and then he can relate to that, to the race cars,” Toto says. “Until like, one year ago, he thought that I was actually driving the car. So that came a little bit as a disappointment that I wasn’t.”

He is impressed, though, to know that his mum used to race. Susie became the first woman in 20 years to take part in an F1 weekend when she drove during free practice at the 2014 British Grand Prix. She was a development driver for Williams, which is how she met Toto, who was an investor in the team before he moved to Mercedes in 2013.

With F1’s second half of the season packed full of races, the Wolffs are enjoying the last day of their holiday and preparing to go to the beach.

With two parents who are such big names in motorsport, it seems likely that their son will follow them into it. But for now it is time for the one thing that they have made clear they both prioritise over anything else: their family.

#I honestly forgot I have a times subscription so here is the article in full #sorry if it’s formatted weirdly #Toto Wolff #susie wolff #f1 adjacent

[fcb-mv33]

I’ve been watching F1 for 21 years already, yes I’m a bit older than most of the users here but still use tumblr and honestly I support Ferrari because they are Ferrari and Red Bull coz I like their “I don’t care what you think about us” attitude and who is a bit indifferent towards Mercedes and Lewis. Like yeah they always won with most of the time no competition and I don’t care coz the battle of the other teams/midfield are more interesting than them btw. But as the years pass by especially last season, I come to actually dislike them. Well I can say I hate Merc and Toto after last year. It really grates on my nerves their holier than thou attitude and acting as if F1 revolves around them, but want to slap them in the face that for all of Ferrari’s shenanigans, for all of Ferrari’s controversies, 2019 “illegal” engine and all, Ferrari is still the most prestigious team in the circus. And the anon who said it somewhere is right. If Ferrari is a religion then Red Bull is vengeance.

Toto with the “it’s not our fault if you can’t beat us” attitude as if he’s the one who build the team from the ground up and didn’t inherit a well-established team from Brawn. And the Merc illegal tyre tests and oil burning and their headstart with the hybrid engine that gave them the edge in the hybrid era.

Don’t let me start with their fans. SMH. Probably the most toxic fans in the whole circus. And their fans wondering why many people dislike Lewis and Merc. Well I’m sorry to say it but their fans is probably 80% of the reason. As Susie said “You can be successful without being an asshole” (Well Susie honey that also applies to your team and your husband btw)

I’ve had two or three asks that are just almost the exact same as yours…Honestly it’s why Red Bull are my team, their attitude is great because what you see is what you get, there is no bullshit with them because they will tell you how they are feeling, no PR bullshit with their drivers and they are a fun team. And I think they get so so much unnecessary shit (expect Marko fuck him). I mean Christian gets way way too much shit but at least you never get bullshit with him.

I’m not surprised to see people getting a turn off Toto and Merc cause of their attitude last season. Ive said my attitude for them changed after Silverstone and I’ll stand by that they are a pure assholes who absolutely do not like competition for more than one race🤷🏼‍♀️. Their fans…I got a lot of shit for saying lh fans are worse than Max ones but I stand by that especially after Abu Dhabi.

(Pls Susie had some high and mighty attitude in DTS when she said that and other lines….it was annoying)

#anon💜 #I just cannot stand that team #DTS made me dislike them more #the get what they ask for #new pitstop rules? okay Merc😊 #new race director? okay Merc😊 #shit penalties? here you go Merc😊 #lol they are ridiculous #lots of love honey🧡🧡