Realistically there was nothing Max could have done in terms of backing up the pack etc. once it was revealed that Oscar was starting on the hards as he was always going to run longer. And all Yuki could have done better was to back Lando up in the mickey mouse final section (like Perez v Hamilton in 2021) but that would have only been for 1 lap max and then he'd have been a sitting duck on the next long straight. Also what does he care considering the team dumped him anyway.

I see Max's Spain meltdown getting a lot of spotlight now but that was only significant assuming EVERYTHING else remained the same afterwards which is highly unlikely (just like the 2008 title fight post-Singapore in a non-crashgate world). Lando pretty much sealed the deal with his perfect Brazil weekend as that put him in such a comfortable position he could even afford the DSQ in Vegas and still not need to win any further races. Red Bull need to look at why their car was so crap in the mid part of the season as to why they fell short even with Max's heroics almost compensating for that. There was also his spin at Silverstone which you easily push the narrative cost him at least the 2 points he ultimately came up short by.

Next season will be interesting to see the early pecking order. Everyone expected wholesale changes to the order from 2021 to 2022 but the only thing that really changed was Ferrari came flying out the blocks initially before flopping back to their regular selves and Merc massively dropped the ball on the ground effect regs. If it's true what is being said that 2026 will be more power/engine oriented and that Merc will have the best package then there's nothing to suggest McLaren won't remain the dominance force, especially as they halted next year's development earlier than the likes of Red Bull & Ferrari this season. Certainly would expect Williams and Alpine to be teams to keep an eye on. Aston Martin will need a few seasons I would think to enjoy the fruits of Newey's labour.

streets are saying Helmut Marko got the axe?

23 hours ago, Cody Piastri said:

streets are saying Helmut Marko got the axe?

He's leaving now:

Red Bull has announced motorsport adviser Helmut Marko will leave the team after 20 years at the end of 2025.

The 82-year-old has been an integral part of Red Bull's success since the team was formed in 2005, as they won six constructors' championships and eight drivers' titles.

Marko, who was the right-hand man of the late Red Bull co-owner Dietrich Mateschitz, has overseen the development of 20 drivers, most notably world champions Sebastian Vettel and Max Verstappen, with whom the Austrian has a close relationship.

It should be noted that Marko has retired of his own volition, rather than been axed or sacked etc.

Lambiase is also expected to announce he is to be leaving his role as Verstappen's race engineer for another role within the team, this time based at Milton Keynes. He has missed races this year for personal reasons, these are believed to be the same reasons for his decision to opt for a role change.

Interestingly, Lando Norris won the title by the smallest margin in F1 history.

What about Lauda in 1984, I hear you say?

Lauda won by a mere 0.5 points so when looking purely at whole numbers that is also true. However, when you account for changes in the number of races and scoring systems since 1984 and caluclate the winning margin by the percentage of possible points available, Lauda's victory over Prost was 0.51% of available points. Norris took the crown from Verstappen by 0.31% of available points.

There's a full breakdown here - Did Norris actually win Formula 1's closest championship fight of all time? · RaceFans

F1 will return to Portugal for two races in 2027/28 at the Autodromo do Algarve. It will replace Zandvoort

Fantastic news. A great location and a decent track. Would prefer it replaced Miami, Qatar, Vegas or any of the other rubbish tracks but you can't have it all. However, it is also a move away from adding more street circuits in favour of an actual racetrack, which can't be bad.

Yeah good to hear this news, was one of my favourite tracks to drive on the video games too.

This is great news. I feared Zandvoort's exit might've meant room for Thai GP or that second Saudi race.

Long term F1 fan, watched every race of Senna, Schumacher and others, Max Verstappen eclipses them imho talent wise, the best car beat the best driver in 2025, congrats to Norris but he was right place right time as opposed to having any special drives.

On 27/12/2025 at 22:42, What Lies Beneath said:

Long term F1 fan, watched every race of Senna, Schumacher and others, Max Verstappen eclipses them imho talent wise, the best car beat the best driver in 2025, congrats to Norris but he was right place right time as opposed to having any special drives.

Agree with you on Norris. Decent drive and great at his best but very much right time right place. If Piastri continues to improve at the rate he has so far, Norris will have a tough time of it. Maybe the confidence of being Champion will calm him though.

For me, Verstappen is very much one of the greats but I'm not prepared to say he's surpassed the two you mention. I have never witnessed a more naturally gifted and utterly intuitive driver than Senna (maybe Jim Clark but he's before my time so haven't seen it all). Schumacher though is the driver Verstappen reminds me the most off - the preference for oversteer, the brake/throttle combination through corners and the use of minimal grip - all hallmarks of Michael's style. If Jos Verstappen (no slouch of a driver himself) learned one thing from his rather difficult time at Benetton it was that and he imparted that to Max for sure.

I don't think it's fair to compare drivers from different eras as it's effectively a different sport each time but these would by my top 3 picks for each (I've skipped the first two decades as my knowledge there is too sketchy) -

1920s - 1. Rudolf Caracciola 2. Louis Chiron 3. Tazio Nuvolari

1930s - 1.Rudolf Caracciola 2. Tazio Nuvolari 3. Bernd Rosemeyer

1940s - 1. Tazio Nuvolari 2. Achille Varzi 3. Nina Farina

1950s - 1. Juan Mauel Fangio 2. Stirling Moss 3. Alberto Ascari

1960s - 1. Jim Clark 2. Jack Brabham 3. Graham Hill (shout out to Rindt and Gurney)

1970s - 1. Niki Lauda 2. Jackie Stewart 3. Mario Andretti (shout out to Fittipaldi and Villeneuve)

1980s - 1. Ayrton Senna 2. Alain Prost 3. Nigel Mansell (shout out to Berger and Villeneuve again too)

1990s - 1. Ayrton Senna 2. Michael Schumacher 3. Mika Hakkinen (shout out to Alesi)

2000s - 1. Michael Schumacher 2. Fernando Alonso 3. Kimi Raikkonen

2010s - 1. Fernando Alonso 2. Lewis Hamilton 3. Sebastian Vettel (shout out to Verstappen)

2020s - 1. Max Verstappen 2. Fernando Alonso 3. Charles Leclerc