Allow me to explain why most comments you read about the Singapore start are wrong...

Hi, I'm back.

I had to jump in, for what it's worth, to explain why the response to the first lap crash at the Singapore GP was an even bigger clusterfuck than the clusterfuck itself.

I think peak bullshit came when the collective British and Dutch twitter contingent clutched their pearls after Ferrari put out a tweet containing a simple, if not fully grammatical, statement of fact:

VER took #Kimi7 out and then he went to #Seb5 #SingaporeGP

— Scuderia Ferrari (@ScuderiaFerrari) September 17, 2017

Yup, Max did bump into Kimi who then hit Vettel.   That is how the incident played out, mechanically.   Heavens forbid anyone describe the sequence of events.

What's more interesting is the WHY it happened.   And here, the Spanish fans, pining for Alonso blamed Vettel,  Italian Kimi haters blamed the Finn, the British mostly remarked on Hamilton's skill at being on the other side of the track while tisking at Vettel's "Schumi chop",  a move Lewis successfully pulled off at Monza two weeks ago.  The Dutch? They mostly showed class by blaming Italians for having better food that they ever will.  And Vettel fans, they pretty much blamed Max.

In short,  everyone just saw their bias. Is it worth it to assign blame?  Sure, but it was a racing incident firmly in the "shit happens when you point a bunch of cars into a corner you all have to get to first to win" bucket.

Two points, before we start

1) on a wet track, the "dirty" side has more grip.
2) Singapore, like Monaco, is a track you where, to win,  you have to lead out of the first corner.   Even more so in the rain.

OK so, to the start.  Vettel on the "clean" side has a poorer start than Verstappen and Raikkonen on the "dirty" side.  In fact everyone but Bottas has a great start on track left. Look at Alonso, Wow!





Verstappen, at the start, is pointing towards the right, hoping no doubt to cut off the Ferrari.

Vettel, for his part does what any driver in his situation would have done and is, by the rules, allowed to do, move to cover.






At this point Max realizes Kimi smoked him and and turns left to block him.   Notice how much room there is between Max and Seb,  the notion the Dutchman changed direction because of Vettel is not very likely.

Vettel cannot see the other Ferrari so it's plausible he though Max was going for the inside and increases the angle to cover more.

A-HA! you say...  Wrong.

That Vettel actually timed the "chop" on Max to perfection is demonstrated by him not hitting the Red Bull at any time.   By millimeters, yes but fully ahead of the blue car when Kimi bangs into him.

















Of all three, the one who is certainly blameless is Raikkonen, you can look at the clip and you can plainly see he is 100% straight up until the contact.

Vettel played a legal. but risky game and paid for it, no doubt. But you don't win a championship against Lewis and Mercedes by playing it safe,  Not in F1 and not on a track where you have to lead from the start to win. (unless you have Nelson Piquet jr.)

Max, as he has been known to do in the past, changed plans in the middle of something and shifted his attention from Vettel to Raikkonen.    He's aggressive and he has a lot to prove after the terrible season he's had so far.  That is part of his attraction but also something he has not quite worked out (see Hungary).

More interesting might be speculating if Vettel would have run into Raikkonen, had the contact not happened.   That might have been a possibility but, that's also science fiction and in the end, the stewards made the only possible call:

"Shit happens".

You be the steward: 2016 Hungarian GP edition.

The Hungarian GP was, like all the races this season except for Spain, a tale of two races.   There was the Mercedes class and the rest.

In Mercedes class, it was all over by turn one:  Rosberg, too busy looking behind,  got out-braked by Hamilton and Ricciardo.   He made a good move on the australian in turn two but by the end of lap one his teammate was already a second ahead.    The gap between the two varied but Rosberg never even tried to attack Lewis.  In the final stages it looked a lot like team orders to keep station were in effect.   The two silver cars finished a second apart but were a massive twenty seconds ahead of third place Ricciardo.    In post race interviews Hamilton revealed they were doing the minimum necessary to save the engine.    Pretty demoralizing for the rest of the field, bit dull for anyone but diehard Lewis fans.

Take the Mercs away though and you still had a rather old school Hungaroring, no passing race.    The only bright spot was that "washed up, good for nothing" Kimi Raikkonen charging from fourteenth on the grid to sixth.    Along the way,  the only real controversial on track incident, the collision with Max Verstappen's Red Bull.

The best Formula One interview ever.

Are you bored with hearing about Lewis Hamilton's underwear or Nico Rosberg's sweat absorbing sanitary napkin?  

Here is a perfect antidote.      Alex Kersten is a genius.



Enjoy.

You be the steward: Kimi vs Valterri Pt II, The Finnish revenge.

For the second time in three races  it was a clash of Finns ad Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen and Williams' Valterri Bottas argued over ownership of  a tight right hand turn.

In Sochi last month is was Bottas on the outside with Raikkonen going for a low percentage lunge on the final lap.    Today, in Mexico City, positions were reversed.

Perkele ensued.



Bottas blamed Raikkonen saying the Ferrari driver knew he was on the inside and should have given him room.     After the Sochi clash, Bottas said he did not know Raikkonen was there and Raikkonen should have given him room....

Raikkonen said it's just racing and it did not matter.

Officials called it a racing incident which seems about right.

The two incidents were very similar but, once again the FIA's lack of consistency confuses:  Raikkonen, whose car was damaged and had to retire in Russia was hit with a grid penalty and license points.  Bottas who was able to continue and eventually finished on the podium was not sanctioned.

F1 deserves consistency.

Raikkonen Caught in the F1 Echo Chamber

In the past month, the drumbeat about Kimi Raikkonen's future at Ferrari has risen from a whisper to an all out group chant.
Journalist and commentators, perhaps tired of repeating Max Verstappen is "only 17" or that Nico Hulkenberg has won Le Mans, have been calling for forks to be stuck in Kimi because the man is beyond done.

Done?

Granted, 2015 started well for the Ferrari Finn but has since served up a streak of unfortunate events:  the spins the missed qualifying laps, the being shoved  but, if Kimi is at Ferrari to support what is a rebirth clearly led by Vettel then he's not doing that bad of a job.

Going into the British GP he is fourth in the driver standings, behind Hamilton Rosberg and Vettel.  He is also an asset to Ferrari in the fans eyes, he was voted most popular driver in the recent GPDA F1 survey,  ahead of Fernando Alonso and Jenson Button.

If there are behind the scenes reasons why Ferrari would not want to renew Kimi's contract they might be related to communications, feedback,  perhaps cost.  It's unclear what Raikkonen's demands might be and how prepared he is to take the pay cut Sergio Marchionne will inevitably demand.

But if you were Ferrari, would you change now and with who?  It's certainly not a given any of the options will perform better.

Jim Hunter/Flat12

First it was Nico "the most underrated driver in F1" Hulkenberg.  The Hulk is a good driver (hey, he won le Mans, did you hear?)  but there must be reasons why he's been consistently passed over by major teams.  Timing of course but perhaps his being the tallest driver in the current field, at just over 6 feet, is seen as a problem.

Red Bull Photo

Daniel Ricciardo has been named but, aside from a rumored ironclad contract with Red Bull, it would not be  clever management to again pair Vettel with a driver that gave him a hard time before.  Yes, Ricciardo has hardly been dominating Kvyat this season but what Ferrari needs is peace of mind and stability, not any chance at drama.

Another option would be promoting one of the reserve drivers but I just don't see Vergne or Gutierrez as having what it takes to fill Raikkonen's shoes.

Bottas is the man everyone has decided will be Raikkonen's replacement.    Without a doubt a driver with a lot of talent but also one who has been out qualified by Massa,   Add to that that Bottas is a driver in the Mercedes family via Toto Wolff and it becomes potentially more complicated for Ferrari.  Would Ferrari be worse off swapping one laconic Finn antihero for a laconic Finn who seems very serious?

Ultimately Ferrari's decision might come down to securing the best available driver for the next few years,  There is no obvious choice out there.  Alonso's not coming back, Hamilton is a couple of years away if ever.  Rosberg I don't see happening,  Button's done, all the youngsters are too unproven.   If you are going to get someone with an eye to the future, Bottas is probably your best choice.

For his part, Raikkonen has to show he still has the desire to be in the game.   One gets the feeling that psychologically he may not be the Iceman of legend but rather a driver who needs to feel  the embrace and reassurance of the team.   Ferrari has done that before but perhaps some in the team do not want to deal with another Felipe.

Saturday at Silverstone Bottas was out qualified by ol ''washed up" Felipe Massa and Raikkonen out qualified Vettel.   There are no points for Saturday but there is delicious irony in that.


While on the subject of Silverstone, a big hand to all the British fans, all 350000 who are expected for the week end.   At a time where it has become fashionable to literally shit on F1,  from social media all the way to Bernie himself it's fantastic to see a crowd much larger that that at this year's 24 hour of Le Mans.  

Face it Bernie,  Silverstone and Monza ARE the beating hearts of Formula 1.

Simon Gale/Flickr

Watch Kimi Raikkonen hoon a 730 HP Ferrari F12

If you still clung to any faint hope Fernando Alonso might stay at Ferrari after all, forget it.

In Brazil Kimi would have gotten a radio call rather than being allowed to have fun holding up Fernando despite much older tires...



...and you certainly would not have seen Ferrari release a clip of just Kimi, without Alonso,  doing press duties with and F12 at Fiorano.

Kimi being Kimi,  he gives some of the the journos in the right seat some blank WTF stares, although, I did catch at least one smile...

Anyway,  let's hope Kimi and Vettel are more compatible stile wise and that next year, Ferrari can build them a car they can both find "simpatica".

Back to the clip, can I point out the awesome exhaust plume that seems to be shooting out of the left exhaust?

Epic Spa .Gif

Kimi Raikkonen through Eau Rouge/Radillon.

(it's a large gif,  give it time to load)

Kimi Raikkonen mowed a lawn today...

Kimi, the legend

laRepubblica

Fresh on the heels of Bernie Ecclestone kvetching about contracts teams force drivers to sign "limiting their ability to be characters" while at the same time bitching about the contract he signed with Monza limiting his ability to make more money.  Kimi Raikkonen was at the Goodwood Festival of Speed where he drove his 07  Ferrari up the hill along with John Surtees in his 158 from 1964.  

How excited was Kimi about the historical moment linking two Ferrari World Champions is that glorious automotive showcase on Lord March's fabulous estate?..

Prancing Horse

Spectacular picture, but the F14T was proving a handful for Kimi Raikkonen in Bahrain today.

Kimi made quite an impression....onto the wall

Slight issue with a curb and a wall for Kimi on the last day of testing in Bahrain.  Curb plus turbo torque plus pushing equalled one bent Ferrari.

Laps turned pie charts by Minardi.com

More crucial we saw cars lapping within one second of last year's pole time in Bahrain.  Mind you this is with cars with massively reduced aero, a tiny engine and engineered to use a third less fuel.  Because Formula 1 is awesome despite all the naysayers.

The key to this testing session is the number of laps turned,  don't get caught up in lap times.  By number of laps turned, mercedes teams have a definite edge with Ferrari second and Renault in the back.

The final testing session is next week.  We should see some aero development and real race setups then.     More crucially, after that session engine specs will be frozen.   Expect Renault to petition for an extension.

Driving a simulator has a strange effect on Kimi?

After Sports Illustrated's  epic "Juan Pablo Montoya returning to F1 for "Chap" Ganassi"  headline,  it's worth noting news of Raikkonen being "forced to drive a simulator" by Ferrari.

Amazingly, as per Great Britain's quality tabloid The Daily Star,  Raikkonen has come out of this harrowing experience looking a lot like Heikki Kovalainen.   

Oh well, I guess all Finns look the same.  Perkele!

Kimi speaks!

Yes, this is the picture they chose to release...

Ferrari released the first video interview with Kimi Raikkonen on his return to the Scuderia.  The Finn is filmed driving a Ferrari FF though the winter fog of Emilia-Romagna and yeah, it's pretty much classic Kimi:

"It's exciting... (yawn).  I have no idea where we are".



The FF is "quite nice... my friend's dad, Marrku Alén has one".



Kimi is bad at names but "some day I will remember some of them".   Classic!



Kimi is not stressed by new rules and technical changes in 2014.



and the fans? "having fans is a bonus".

Kimi Raikkonen will miss Austin and Brazil.

Kimi Raikkonen will miss the final races of 2013 (Photo: Andrew Ferraro/ Lotus F1)

Kimi Raikkonen will not race the final two Grand Prix of the season at Austin and Interlagos choosing instead to undergo surgery in order to remedy his recurring back problem, a result of a crash in 2001,  which flared up at the Singapore Grand Prix earlier this year.

Since the Abu Dhabi race, according to the Finnish paper Turun Sanomat which first broke the story,  Kimi's condition has worsened to the point where he cannot sleep without strong painkillers.

Raikkonen had just visited Maranello for a seat fitting for the 2014 car and no doubt this development was discussed with the team brass,  Ferrari must be relieved this can be taken care of now rather than later int he year, but there must be a question mark there.   Raikkonen will be operated in Austria.

So who will fill Raikkonen's seat for the final two races?   Will Lotus give their reserve driver, Davide Valsecchi a chance or will they try to make a deal with Saube perhaps, to have Hulkenberg drive?

Lotus is passive/aggressive with Kimi

Lotus still butthurt by Kimi Rakkonen's departure.

We all remember the whiny twitter posts from Lotus after Raikkonen announced he had enough of driving for free and would  be off to the land of tortellini and Lambrusco.

After statements proclaiming Gosjean as team leader, we figured things were tense at Lotus but not quite this bad.



The transcript in case you haven't figured it out:

Alan Permane: "Kimi, Get out of the fucking way!"
Kimi Räikkönen: ''Don't shout there fucker! I get out of the way when I have a chance, but not during fast corner''

The message was sent towards the end of the race as Grosjean was catching Raikkonen who was dealing with played out rubber.

Lotus apologized, possibly to to avoid a fine,  and put a cute polar bear picture on their Facebook page...

“With hindsight, this radio message could have been sent in a less emotional way. There was a lot of tension, a lot of potential technical problems, and some of the words that flew around were simply not appropriate.  Said Lotus team boss Eric Boullier  “I know that quite a few people were surprised and I can only apologize for that on behalf of the team. It won’t happen again.”

Passive aggressive again.
(via YouTube and WTF1)

Let's talk about Alonso and Raikkonen...and a bit about Massa.

Since the Raikkonen announcement, the only ones more giddy than Ferrari fans (and Bernie Ecclestone) have been the, mostly British, Alonso haters convinced the Iceman will wipe the floor with him and force him into a hissy fit.

Got news for you guys:   not happening.

Kimi and Fernando are now seasoned professionals:

Kimi will be 35 next season, Fernando 33.   They have been around the block.  It's not to say Fernando might not get impatient with the team but if he does it will be because Ferrari will not have been able to come up with a competitive car not because of Raikkonen hiring, an operation apparently a year in the making.

But, with Hamilton at Mclaren you say: 

Very different situation.  Alonso went to Mclaren in 2007 convinced he would be the #1 driver (he was a 2 time Champion after all) he found the team had other ideas to go along with stolen owner's manuals.    With Ferrari next year, it's clear the whole point of hiring Raikkonen is to change directions away from the champion and brazilian doormat driver combos the Scuderia had for the last 13 seasons.
Since the Mclaren days  Alonso had changed and matured tremendously, his never give up attitude now a model for Hamilton 2.0, you may have noticed.

Oh but Kimi will be faster than you Fernando, you say:

No,  Kimi will push Fernando hard but there is no doubt Alonso is, all else being equal, the strongest driver in F1 today.  If anything Alonso should feel measuring himself in the same car against one of the other three top drivers of the moment is much more satisfying than being faster than Massa,    Red Bull for Vettel picked an obviously "#2" second driver.

I also read comments from Brazilian fans lamenting how Ferrari ruined Massa's career, forcing him to be subordinate.  Massa  was touted as Schumacher's protege but then when the big man retired Ferrari hired Kimi as #1 and after Massa almost won the championship, Ferrari hired Alonso.
Did "Felipe, baby" stand up and leave? No, he (understandably) wanted to be a Ferrari driver so badly he accepted the subordinate role.

Ferrari for their part have been very loyal to him, perhaps more than any other team would have been, maybe because he was happy to wear the Santa suit at company christmas parties.

I don't see where he could drive next year,  Sauber perhaps if the Swiss team can find a way to keep Sirotkin as test driver for the first year.  There he would bring good relations with engine supplier Ferrari and a wealth of invaluable experience.

Kimi Raikkonen at Ferrari is official...

OK,  don't think I'm going too far out on a limb here,  (a probably fake) Stefano Domenicali posted this picture, captioned "#2014Helmet", on his Instagram page....

Kimi at Ferrari is a done deal.

Fire and Ice,  Kimi in Red....the pun headline writers will be working overtime from now until wednesday when Ferrari will make the official announcement,according to members of British, Italian and German media.  

Wednesday is the opening of the Frankfurt auto show so, it would seem to be be an occasion for headlines.   If it really is Kimi though, knowing the effect this would have on Massa, might indicate Ferrari has given up on the title chase for this year ahead of Singapore, the final possibility for Alonso barring the unlikely scenario of multiple DNFs at Red Bull.

If it really comes to be, Raikkonen would give Ferrari arguably the best driver pair going into the new turbo era for F1.  They both excel at reliability and both are fighters behind the wheels.  

For the fans it would be a win win situation but will Ferrari be able to manage the human side with two roosters in one Scuderia after all these years with a clear top chicken strategy?

Ferrari plan a return to Le Mans, Kimi In red and other fun summer rumors.

The summer break does not mean magazines and web sites shut down and, with little real news to report, there is much space for rumor and speculation.  Here is a quick roundup of the most entertain bits floating around.

Ferrari back at Le Mans?

Ferrari planning a return to Le Mans LMP1

This would of course be awesome for endurance racing and, with the return of Porsche to the top category would mean a return to the glory days of the series when Ferrari fought with other top manufacturers for top class honors at the French classic.

Ferrari would be able to utilize the same hybrid turbo engines as in F1 and would be able to take advantage of its wind tunnel, now underutilized because of F1 resource limitation rules.    Ferrari would also compete directly with top manufactures, Audi, Porsche, Toyota, perhaps Honda and Nissan as opposed to "Soft drink manufacturers" as Luca di Montezemolo likes to refer to Red Bull.

Of course, if you are a regular reader you are well familiar with Ferrari's periodic threats to leave F1 used as a bargaining tool for better deals and the cost of a full competitive LMP1 program would surely be a stretch.

Kimi in Red

Kimi Raikkonen back in red.

According to the German Bild, Ferrari have topped Red Bull's offer to the Finn of $15M plus bonuses plus sponsorship for his motocross and hockey teams.

Why would Ferrari make an offer to the driver it dumped with one year left on his contract in order to grab Fernando Alonso?    Well,  fans would love to see it but this is more likely Ferrari shooting back after the Red Bull rumors which now seem to have been, clumsily, orchestrated by team Alonso.   Nobody is untouchable is the message from Maranello.
Reality though is that unless Lotus can come up with cash to pay Raikkonen, he will be Vettel's teammate in 2014.

Bibendum and the amazing Karin Wilzig

Michelin wants back in F1

Pirelli have yet to finalize their agreement with Formula One beyond the current season and the French tire giant, who left the series after the 2006 season, had expressed an interest in bidding for the contract.

A tire war, with Michelin competing with Pirelli on track, is unlikely as it would distract from the new 2014 spec "eco" engines, very much the pet project of FIA president Jean Todt.     While it would not be impossible for Michelin to prepare tires for 2014 F1 season even at this relatively late date (Pirelli made all new tires for the German GP in 3 days),  Bibendum's team has said in the past said it it would like to get rid of F1 high sidewall balloon tires in favor of something that looks more like a consumer product. and that would require major design changes to the cars.
While not out of the question, figure this rumor to be more of a pressure tool on Pirelli in the short term.

Kimi Raikkonenen, Training For The Canadian GP

Legend.