Oh yeah that’s defo Stuttgart then that Are making this decision

Toto Wolff has recently cast doubt on whether Lewis Hamilton will return to competing in F1 next year and suggested he might retire.

 

Whilst I don't believe him for a moment, it does raise an interesting question.

 

If Lewis were to announce his retirement tomorrow, who would Mercedes choose to replace him alongside Russell?

 

 

 

Personally, I'd want experience and would pay whatever it required to get Alonso in there, but I suspect Vettel would be a good fit. Maybe even a recall for Bottas.

 

Who would others pick?

My baby Nando is not for sale :angry:

 

 

Alpine-Renault Are winning 2022. it’s El Plan!

 

 

 

 

Hahaha no but seriously, i don’t think it will happen. I can see Vettel or Bottas as a possibility. But also Nick De Frejs (can’t mind his exact surname but the Formula E dude for Merc) would probably be most likely I reckon. Proven entity within the Merc set up at an elite level.

 

Either that or this is all a giant conspiracy ruse by Masi and Wolff to lure Kimi to Mercedes

Mohammed Ben Sulayem has been elected to replace Jean Todt as FIA President with 62% of the vote

If Lewis were to retire (I'd doubt it) I'd go for Norris.

Vettel is finished, he has lost all his spark, he should have retired himself last year.

Bottas has been the worst driver this year despite having the best car, so letting go of Bottas has been the best thing Mercedes has done this year.

Norris or Gasly would be the obvious picks for me, although I would be very happy to see Alonso in a Merc too.

Audi have reportedly written to Stefano Domenicali to confirm they will announce their intention to enter F1 in 2026, The announcement is expected early next year. Assuming Mercedes remain in the sport thieir entry will see the German manufacturer formerly known as Auto Union compete against their great rivals in Grand Prix racing for the first time since WW2,

 

Whilst it will most likely be as an engine supplier a full team hasn't been ruled out. The most likely partners are believed to be Red Bull and McLaren.

 

Porsche are still believed to be considering an entry too.

 

Both companies are owned by the Volkswagen Group

 

 

 

Meanwhile Lewis Hamilton is still waiting to hear what his punishment will be for not attending F1;s end of season gala.

Edited December 20, 20213 yr by Severin

I'm sure he'll be forced to start on wet tyres at next season's opener :lol:

 

Even if you disregard the events of the last race I'm not sure how he was expected to be there given he had the small matter of being knighted the day before the ceremony and flights to France from the UK are now very much banned?

I'm sure he'll be forced to start on wet tyres at next season's opener :lol:

 

Even if you disregard the events of the last race I'm not sure how he was expected to be there given he had the small matter of being knighted the day before the ceremony and flights to France from the UK are now very much banned?

He's covered under essential reasons through work. As the season's runner up he is contractually obliged to attend.

He's also a resident of Monaco which means under their travel rules it's treated as French.

 

He didn't even try to use the Knighthood as an excuse because it was not a good enough reason. Windsor is right next door to Heathrow after all.

 

He made a choice not to go but he knew there'd be consequences.

 

Personally they should give him a $50,000 fine and reprimand. That'd be his third of the year and incur a 10 place grid penalty for the next race. But since reprimands don't carry over to the next season it would be wiped clean. Then the FIA can hold him accountable in a meaningless way and everyone can move on.

 

 

Mick Schumacher will combine his race seat at Haas in 2022 with a role as Ferrari's reserve driver.

 

The 22-year-old German will share the Ferrari reserve position with former Alfa Romeo driver Antonio Giovinazzi.

 

Giovinazzi will assume the role at 12 races while Schumacher will fill in at the other 11 when the Italian is racing in Formula E.

 

A reserve driver stands in for the regular drivers if they are unable to race.

 

Schumacher's race seat at Haas would be taken by Brazilian Pietro Fittipaldi if the German was needed by Ferrari.

They're very desperate to get the Schumacher name back at ferrari but Sainz has given them a headache now with how well he's done. Ferrari originally gave Sainz a 2 year contract just to warm the seat for Mick whilst he bedded himself in at Haas so let's see what they do if he outscores Leclerc again.

Audi have reportedly written to Stefano Domenicali to confirm they will announce their intention to enter F1 in 2026, The announcement is expected early next year. Assuming Mercedes remain in the sport thieir entry will see the German manufacturer formerly known as Auto Union compete against their great rivals in Grand Prix racing for the first time since WW2,

 

Whilst it will most likely be as an engine supplier a full team hasn't been ruled out. The most likely partners are believed to be Red Bull and McLaren.

 

Porsche are still believed to be considering an entry too.

 

Both companies are owned by the Volkswagen Group

Meanwhile Lewis Hamilton is still waiting to hear what his punishment will be for not attending F1;s end of season gala.

I would quite like to see one or both of the VW group manufacturers actually go in with a full team. They would have sufficient time to build up a base and build a car for 2026. Could easily pinch staff in 2024 to have them on staff in 2025 (after gardening leave) and on enough time to build a car for the 2026 season.

 

Would be nice to have an extra team on the grid again

 

 

 

Agree with what you suggest as a penalty for Lewis. It was petulant and there should be a token punishment for it (I literally can’t at all the British media and Brit’s online talking about how much of a sportsman he is and how much grace he’s shown in this. Actions speak louder than words and by not showing up that said all you actually need to know about his character. I get it, no one wants to pick up a silver when they feel robbed of the gold but you go and do it because that’s what a sportsman does. Even at the amateur levels, never mind when you’re paid millions a year for it)

Rumours are currently flying that Lewis is about to announce his retirement, fueled in part by his unfollowing of first F1 and then everyone on Instagram.

I am absolutely here for a retirement strop. Mostly for the absolute CHAOS it would cause in the drivers market. (And also because I can’t stand his poor sportsmanship and his constant whinging whenever he’s not 30 seconds in the lead)

That's interesting - I wonder whether the idea is that he doesn't think he's able to win another World Championship, or maybe the knighthood has sort-of naturally brought his career to a close?

was reading the Italian papers and la Gazzetta dello Sport was giving a 0-10 ranking to the season:

 

10 Verstappen, 10 wins for a 10 pilot with a couple exceptions (Brasil, Arabia)

9 Hamilton, started slow (Monaco, Baku) but 2nd half was almost perfect, he shouldn't retire

8 Sainz, best from the 2nd class

7 Alonso, slow start but great ending

6 Norris, exploded in the first part of the season but lost steam towards the end

5 Leclerc, 2 poles but irregular year

4 Ricciardo, a win but an overall disappointing season

3 the Mercedes-Red Bull shenanigans, Horner and Wolff give a poor image to the brands

2 Bottas, worst than ever at Merc, with his constant problems advancing slow cars

1 Mick Schumacher, disaster of a season, showed nothing and had too many accidents

0 FIA/Masi, inconsistent criterium all season

No way was Micks season a disaster, very little you could do in a tractor!

 

Lewis retiring would indeed be madness, Merc would surely not have seen it happening again just 5 years after Nico.

Mick's season was, at the very least, a solid one. Comprehensively beat his teammate and occasionally competed against superior cars. Mick has always taken a year of learning and looking ok before winning the title in his second season. He won't do that of course but next year is when he can be truly judged.

 

 

Bottas at 2 is a bit harsh too. Yes he underperformed but often his races and strategy were sacrificed to assist Lewis, including several extra engine changes to fine tune the setup so that could have the perfect engine at the crucial time.

Edited December 26, 20213 yr by Severin

I was surprised at the bad ranking for Schumacher too

Especially when there was no mention of Mazepin easily the worst of the worst

Think its cos that article saying Schumacher was the one that costed most €€€ this year from crashes etc

 

I do agree about Bottas and his inability to pass cars

Think that Mick had higher value when he did crash because he'd typically lose it into a wall pushing that pos haas for all it was worth. Mazepin kept it on the track less, far less, but tended to have less massive impacts and so his damage value per crash was lower.

 

It's like the man vs woman thing for car insurance. Women have lower insurance rates even tho statistically speaking they aren't "safer" or "better" drivers. It's just that when they do crash they were typically driving slower and less overall damage is caused so less money for insurers to payout.