formula 1 Formula 1 World Championship 2016 Season Discussion

[Skiver Veteran]

On 27/11/2016 at 2:49 PM, Frank B. said:

 

Man of the race: Nico Rosberg

Reject of the race: Lewis Hamilton

 

Firstly - I am a Hamilton fan, not going to hide it so obviously this can be viewed as biased but I like to believe I can be fairly open...

Was it a "dirty tactic"... probably
Was he wrong to disregard team orders... yes
Would I want or expect anything different... absolutely not

I think people can say what they will but to me, all this showed was firstly a determination to get that title, no matter what it took (within the rules). Secondly, I think we should all admit how brilliantly he drove to achieve that, dropping down to .5/.6 of a second gap to then extend that to 1.3 seconds on demand is some achievement. I get the areas were not overtaking area's but with that level of pressure, lap after lap he did it fairly flawlessly. 

I'm not sure what Mercedes can do to reprimand him, ban him from a race? In 2017 with all the rule changes, not going to happen. They cannot sacrifice any points at the start of next season as they have no idea how it will pan out. Take away wages? The guy flies around the world in his private Jet, I'm not sure that's going to bother him too much. Sack Him? Can you imagine how quickly any other team would snap him up? Again maybe massive fanboy moment here but I think anyone to deny the fact that right now he is one of the best drivers on the field is in denial.

 

Not to take anything away from Rosberg because he won that title fair and square through his own skill but had he not have had the issues at the start of the year and the final nail being the DNF in Malaysia I think Hamilton would have won it fairly easily again so I don't doubt Ferrari would  lose Kimi's contract if Hamilton suddenly became available.

 

[Riggers]

Also like to add "was it dangerous?" which in my opinion is the most crucial thing here. I`m no Lewis Hamilton fan but i think some of the things Rosberg has done are a lot dodgier than what happened in Yas Marina. Running your team mate of the road twice or reversing down an escape road to shaft anyone behinds qualy runs springs to mind.

 

Mechanical issues are part of F1, Rosberg has been fortunate that he has had very few but still needs to be congratulated for doing the job. Personally i`m not a big fan of Mercedes (i think they have to much influence and treat the viewing public like idiots) but lets be real, this was a 2 horse race and one horse had quite a few issues while the other didn`t. Hopefully next year horses from a couple more stables can be competitive so we don`t have this boring situation whereby one car is a good second faster than its nearest rival!

Roll on 2017, come on Renault and Honda, sort out a decent engine...

[MightyJordan]

 

[Chasethebase Veteran]

Meanwhile...

 

http://www.formula1.com/en/latest/headlines/2016/11/f1-fia-confirms-2017-calendar.html

 

Quote

March 26 - Australia (Melbourne)
April 9 - China (Shanghai)
April 16 - Bahrain (Bahrain)
April 30 - Russia (Sochi)
May 14 - Spain (Barcelona)
May 28 - Monaco (Monte Carlo)
June 11 - Canada (Montreal)
June 25 - Azerbaijan (Baku)
July 9 - Austria (Spielberg)
July 16 - Great Britain (Silverstone)
July 30 - Hungary (Budapest)
August 27 - Belgium (Spa-Francorchamps)
September 3 - Italy (Monza)
September 17 - Singapore (Singapore)
October 1 - Malaysia (Sepang)
October 8 - Japan (Suzuka)
October 22 - USA (Austin)
October 29 - Mexico (Mexico City)
November 12 - Brazil (Sao Paulo)
November 26 - Abu Dhabi (Abu Dhabi)

This means no German GP once again, and no more clash with Le Mans thank goodness.

[+Frank B. Subscriber²]

 

[+Frank B. Subscriber²]

 

[+Frank B. Subscriber²]

 

[MightyJordan]

^^ Blimey, next year just got even more interesting...

[philcruicks]

Wow, wonder who's gonna take his place!? bring back JB!!!

[+Frank B. Subscriber²]

Just now, philcruicks said:

Wow, wonder who's gonna take his place!? bring back JB!!!

Probably Pascal Wehrlein.

[philcruicks]

6 minutes ago, Frank B. said:

Probably Pascal Wehrlein.

Possibly, some will question if he's ready, but look how Verstappen stepped up, he should be given a chance.

I've been thinking it was rather unfair that Ocon got the nod for a promotion when Wehrlein has scored Manors only point and IMO raced better this season.

[MightyJordan]

9 minutes ago, Frank B. said:

Probably Pascal Wehrlein.

It would explain why he didn't get one of the Force India seats (although I think that was decided way before this).

[MightyJordan]

 

[MightyJordan]

 

[+John. Subscriber¹]

Alonso, Wehrlein, Verstappen. Either way I'd be happy.

[Chasethebase Veteran]

 

 

[MightyJordan]

1 hour ago, Steve B. said:

 

 

[Skiver Veteran]

Yep, was not expecting that news!

 

8 hours ago, MightyJordan said:

It would explain why he didn't get one of the Force India seats (although I think that was decided way before this).

 

Well if everything Nico has said so far is to be believed, he only decided after he won the championship. 

 

I think Wehrlein is the most obvious choice here, he's part of the Mercedes driver program, I'm under the impression he got his Manor seat with Mercedes backing so it's probably worth cashing in on their investment. 

 

Max is the most desirable choice but I think RBR saw this sort of scenario coming in the years to come, hence the switch part way through. I know contracts are never bulletproof but the get out clauses normally come with things like a team not performing etc. I also think getting that chance this year, his first win and the possibility of a changing of the guards thanks to regulation changes it would probably be a bit premature for Max to make a big decision like that. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Chasethebase Veteran]

 

These colours can only mean one thing.

[i11usive]

 

 

[+Frank B. Subscriber²]

 

[+Frank B. Subscriber²]

 

[MightyJordan]

 

[+John. Subscriber¹]

36 minutes ago, MightyJordan said:

 

!

[MightyJordan]