Yankee_Jack
Key Player
Here is the circuit
F1
- Thread starter Jackflash
- Start date
Yankee_Jack
Key Player
Looks like it’s going to be a race where the starting will potentially dictate everything. Max starts on soft implying a possible two pit stop but searing start, whereas Lewis is on the intermediates and could drive a one stop race. From the start there’s a relatively short sprint to the first corner.
Yankee_Jack
Key Player
Max bumped Lewis off the track and stewards say no investigation necessary as Lewis stretches out the lead.
Car 44 and driver stretching out the lead tires meaning nothing,
Car 44 and driver stretching out the lead tires meaning nothing,
Yankee_Jack
Key Player
Car 44 now gaining almost a second a lap lead. Distinctly different performance between champion and challenger.
Yankee_Jack
Key Player
What a totally shit end of the race. After driving a clearly superior race, Hamilton was fucked by a crash, a safety, a tire change and a restart that Max was cheating on.
Yankee_Jack
Key Player
And Bottas was nowhere to be found in assistance
Yankee_Jack
Key Player
FIA rubbed out 57 laps of superiority by abandoning yellow car rules to enable a one lap race with the hitherto superior driver on compromised tires. Absurd. With the lame statement from the FIA Director to Wolf that "this is motor racing mate". WTF is that. It's cheap.
Max is not a bona fide world champion, not the superior driver in the superior car. 57 laps demonstrated that.
Max is not a bona fide world champion, not the superior driver in the superior car. 57 laps demonstrated that.
Lewis was easily winning then got totally fucked by the racing authority WHO CHANGED THE RULES ABOUT CARS UNLAPPING THEMSELVES. They justified it by saying they wanted one lap of racing. BUT BUT BUT, this left Verstappen right on Hamilton's exhaust. MV had brand new fresh tyres, Lewis had very worn tyres. There could only ever be one winner in this circumstance and effectively the FIA cheated the rules to hand Verstappen the title on a plate. Disgusting!!!!!! I hope Mercedes appeal and if possible I'd like to see them take legal action against a corrupt organisation that changed the rules during the race to manufacture a result.
Yankee_Jack
Key Player
Exactly this cannot be allowed to go unchallenged … it disrespected the integrity of the sport and turned it into a farce.
No way did Verstappen bump Hamilton off the circuit, No one knows more than Hamilton that when you exit a sharp apex you keep a straight line past the peak of the apex and then drift over to the far side of the circuit to maintain your momentum and speed. Hamilton made contact with him right at the peak of the apex then took an unfair advantage of a shortcut and should have given the place back .Verstappen got underneath him before the turn ,and rightly stayed within the white line perimeters of the circuit, putting Hamilton at fault for not allowing him space.
Just watched Mark Webber saying that when the FIA changed the protocols/rules regarding the unlapping of the cars it was a NIGHTMARE for Lewis and Max HAD IT ALL TO GAIN. They justified doing it to get a one lap race to the finish. But this was NOT a race because of the condition of the respective tyres on the cars. Lewis had tyres with over 40 laps of degradation and wear on them; Max had a brand new set of softs. This could NEVER be a race under these circumstances. It was a calculated assassination of Lewis's chances.
Look, racing incidents, contact and the like are subjective matters open to opinion. What the FIA did was NOT subjective. They CHANGED the fcuking rules DURING THE RACE, for whatever reason, and MUST HAVE KNOWN THAT LEWIS DIDN'T STAND A CHANCE IN HELL OF WINNING WHEN THEY DID SO! I'm not blaming Max here who did what he had to do under the circumstances and did it well but those circumstances were fabricated by the FIA who I consider must be either totally corrupt or completely insane to do what they did. It was grossly unfair and robbed Hamilton of a race win that he richly deserved after being in front for 57 laps. That meant he was robbed of his 8th world title and I believe that's exactly what the FIA wanted.
Mercedes have issued two appeals. If they fail I hope they withdraw from Formula 1 racing with immediate effect. Who would want to remain in a sport where the regulating authority could make such a manifestly corrupt decision?
Look, racing incidents, contact and the like are subjective matters open to opinion. What the FIA did was NOT subjective. They CHANGED the fcuking rules DURING THE RACE, for whatever reason, and MUST HAVE KNOWN THAT LEWIS DIDN'T STAND A CHANCE IN HELL OF WINNING WHEN THEY DID SO! I'm not blaming Max here who did what he had to do under the circumstances and did it well but those circumstances were fabricated by the FIA who I consider must be either totally corrupt or completely insane to do what they did. It was grossly unfair and robbed Hamilton of a race win that he richly deserved after being in front for 57 laps. That meant he was robbed of his 8th world title and I believe that's exactly what the FIA wanted.
Mercedes have issued two appeals. If they fail I hope they withdraw from Formula 1 racing with immediate effect. Who would want to remain in a sport where the regulating authority could make such a manifestly corrupt decision?
PS: If that result is allowed to stand then that's me done for life with F1. I couldn't give a flying fcuk about a sport that's bent at the top.
That un-lapping rule has always been in the rule book for as long as i can remember, it was stopped about ten years ago and then re-introduced a couple of years later, i think its objective was to get lapped cars to the back of the field, giving the leaders a clear run.
As for tyres, Mercedes had the same opportunity to go onto softs as did Red Bull. At the time Red Bull seeing the remaining ten laps as a possibility of clawing some time back and putting pressure on Mercedes. This is race tactics.
As for tyres, Mercedes had the same opportunity to go onto softs as did Red Bull. At the time Red Bull seeing the remaining ten laps as a possibility of clawing some time back and putting pressure on Mercedes. This is race tactics.
Not so, JF. Lewis asked about a tyre change but was told that he'd lose track position if he pitted. Mercedes obviously expected existing rules (those that applied when the race started) to be adhered to. THEY WERE NOT! The FIA said they wanted the race to finish, so they waived/changed the rules to Lewis's huge disadvantage and Max's huge advantage. Frankly it stinks!!
Hearing that Christian Horner and Red Bull applied pressure to Michael Masi to change the ruling to allow Max to close on Lewis. This is plain disgraceful and I understand that if Mercedes' appeal is rejected it might go to the Sport Arbitration people. And so it should. How would it look, if during an important football Final, a goal that was blatantly offside was allowed to stand because the ruling body changed the rules during the game!! It's a complete and utter nonsense.
Now seen that both appeals have been rejected and that is me finished with a sport that not only blatantly allows cheating but participates in it itself. The FIA in my opinion are corrupt cheats and I'll have nothing more to do with their so-called sport. Ever!
Now seen that both appeals have been rejected and that is me finished with a sport that not only blatantly allows cheating but participates in it itself. The FIA in my opinion are corrupt cheats and I'll have nothing more to do with their so-called sport. Ever!
HUGE fallout online after this farce. People calling for Masi to resign and if not, sacked. FIA being called Fix It Again and stand accused of trying to break the Mercedes/Lewis monopoly as they have been trying to do for years. From what I read, the comments are better than 25/1 against this result. Obviously anti-Hamilton fans are happy but their comments are mostly one-eyed or blinkered. One guy said it was like a team being 3-0 up in a game then being told that the next goal wins the match!!
The feeling is that Lewis won the race on the track then lost it because the race director did an unprecedented thing with accepted safety car protocol. It meant that Lewis, who had a buffer of 12 seconds and 5 cars between him and MV, suddenly found that there were NO cars and less than a second. He had no chance against MV with fresh soft tyres!! Verstappen was shamelessly promoted into this position by the actions of Michael Masi who now will surely pay for his dark day's work with his job. In any event, his credibility has been shattered beyond repair.
So many people are mocking F1 over this and, like me, quite a few have said that they will never follow the sport again. Bribery? Corruption? Bias? Sheer incompetence? Red Bull pressure from Horner? All these things have been suggested but who knows why Masi decided to rewrite the rules on the last lap of a race that had already been deservedly won by Hamilton.
It seems that Mercedes have referred the case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport but whatever the outcome it's a black day for F!.
The feeling is that Lewis won the race on the track then lost it because the race director did an unprecedented thing with accepted safety car protocol. It meant that Lewis, who had a buffer of 12 seconds and 5 cars between him and MV, suddenly found that there were NO cars and less than a second. He had no chance against MV with fresh soft tyres!! Verstappen was shamelessly promoted into this position by the actions of Michael Masi who now will surely pay for his dark day's work with his job. In any event, his credibility has been shattered beyond repair.
So many people are mocking F1 over this and, like me, quite a few have said that they will never follow the sport again. Bribery? Corruption? Bias? Sheer incompetence? Red Bull pressure from Horner? All these things have been suggested but who knows why Masi decided to rewrite the rules on the last lap of a race that had already been deservedly won by Hamilton.
It seems that Mercedes have referred the case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport but whatever the outcome it's a black day for F!.
Yankee_Jack
Key Player
Since MV couldn’t overtake LH until LH had resumed racing, why didn’t LH just limp it around to the finish line. Did he have to resume racing in a particular time frame after the safety car checked out?
Highly respected pundit and former team owner Eddie Jordan with a wealth of F1 experience, has said that what happened is WRONG!! Further, he is demanding to know WHO applied pressure and lobbied the race director to allow that farcical last lap. (Doesn't take a genius to work that out does it, Horner?) He also wants to know WHY it was agreed to and WHY ONLY FIVE cars were allowed to unlap themselves allowing Verstappen to close the gap on Lewis from 11 seconds to virtually nothing.
The media is awash with absolute outrage over this with many personalities crying "foul"; saying Lewis was "robbed"; many claiming it was an outright fix in a bid to end the Mercedes/Lewis monoploy. Safe to say that it looks like the only people outside the FIA who don't believe this result should be overturned are Red Bull, one-eyed MV supporters and most of Holland. Surprising that!!
Yankee_Jack
Key Player
Highly respected pundit and former team owner Eddie Jordan with a wealth of F1 experience, has said that what happened is WRONG!! Further, he is demanding to know WHO applied pressure and lobbied the race director to allow that farcical last lap. (Doesn't take a genius to work that out does it, Horner?) He also wants to know WHY it was agreed to and WHY ONLY FIVE cars were allowed to unlap themselves allowing Verstappen to close the gap on Lewis from 11 seconds to virtually nothing.
The media is awash with absolute outrage over this with many personalities crying "foul"; saying Lewis was "robbed"; many claiming it was an outright fix in a bid to end the Mercedes/Lewis monoploy. Safe to say that it looks like the only people outside the FIA who don't believe this result should be overturned are Red Bull, one-eyed MV supporters and most of Holland. Surprising that!!
As with all sports .... the media and sponsors are king! Time for them to exert pressure since their brands are indirectly impacted by this situation.
If I understand correctly, from the radio that I heard, Mercedes decided not to pit Lewis to avoid losing position on the restart. A tactical decision but one driven by the expected rules ... they have a fair reliance claim on their side ... then at the 11th hour the rules changed on them, they had no way to respond without further negatively impacting their position. They were effectively hand-cuffed and then Max was playing smart-ass mother fucker on the restart by pulling alongside and nipping in front of Lewis ... I guess fuck sportsmanship and the rules. And all the while during the yellow flag ... Hamilton was continually complaining that the safety car was driving below the required speed ... who ordered that ... this slowed the lapping, making it take longer to reach the final lap/end of race and giving Max another advantage to restart.
It would have taken another act of God for Lewis to win that race at the end. God had already acted through the crash causing the safety car ... what an asshole.
All that is correct. Lewis asked to change his tyres and his request was rejected for two reasons;
1. He was bound to lose track position to Verstappen if he pitted.
2. Mercedes obviously expected existing safety car rules to continue to apply in which case Lewis would have won the race.
2a They did NOT expect the rules to be changed at the last minute, a change that gave Verstappen an OVERWHELMING advantage that guaranteed he would cross the line first.
This was a clear case of collusion between Red Bull and the race director against Mercedes/Lewis and in favour of Red Bull. As many prominent people are saying, Hamilton was robbed by the FIA and, if they hope to retain a shred of credibility, this result must be overturned.