😮 F1 — Hamilton Leaving Mercedes for Ferrari! 😱

billbillw · February 2

Jstas wrote: »

Kex wrote: »

I’m not convinced that there’s any other equally extreme Motorsport.

Uhhhhh....WRC?

Oh, wait, you said "equally extreme".

Yeah, I'll agree there.

WRC is WAY more extreme!

The racing itself might be more extreme, but F1 cars are definitely more extreme with respect to combined HP, downforce, cornering ability, acceleration, and cost per vehicle. An apples to oranges comparison really. IMO, the most extreme racing is that dang Isle of Man TT. That stuff is bat$hit crazy.

Kex · February 2

Jstas wrote: »

Uhhhhh....WRC?

Oh, wait, you said "equally extreme".

Yeah, I'll agree there.

WRC is WAY more extreme!

You’re not wrong! 😂

I think the top speeds experienced, and G forces exerted on F1 drivers, are probably higher though.

The fastest I’ve ever driven is 100 mph (where it was legal, and on a freeway) and even at that speed, it takes intense concentration to focus on what all the other drivers on the road are doing that might cause a problem. It does help when the car you are driving gives you confidence in braking and handling prowess.

My steed was a Mercedes-Benz 300CE coupé. A fabulous vehicle that just purrs at 100 mph as if it’s going on a picnic. The speed itself is not a problem for the car. It was designed for that. It’s really the potential for problems if another driver does something unexpected because they didn’t check their rear view mirror or use their turn signal. 😬

Kex · February 2

We’ve already decided to take my kid that is really passionate about F1 to the Porsche Experience in L.A. once he gets his license (soon). We want him to experience the simulators and the cars on a track. I’m expecting to join him for my own driving education as to what a car is truly capable of in a controlled environment.

Porsche Driving Experience

I also expect to take him to an F1 event if he’s still into that in a year or two. Maybe for his 21st birthday, and probably one of the European events, in the VIP lounge.

OleBoot · February 2

billbillw wrote: »

Jstas wrote: »

Kex wrote: »

I’m not convinced that there’s any other equally extreme Motorsport.

Uhhhhh....WRC?

Oh, wait, you said "equally extreme".

Yeah, I'll agree there.

WRC is WAY more extreme!

The racing itself might be more extreme, but F1 cars are definitely more extreme with respect to combined HP, downforce, cornering ability, acceleration, and cost per vehicle. An apples to oranges comparison really. IMO, the most extreme racing is that dang Isle of Man TT. That stuff is bat$hit crazy.

My dad took me to the IoM TTs when I was a kid and I went later when in my 20s. It was crazy enough then when they were going speeds nowhere near what they do now. Mike Hailwood won. When I went with my dad the Ferrari wouldn't start and the VIP lounge was closed.

Upstatemax · February 2

Kex wrote: »

We’ve already decided to take my kid that is really passionate about F1 to the Porsche Experience in L.A. once he gets his license (soon). We want him to experience the simulators and the cars on a track. I’m expecting to join him for my own driving education as to what a car is truly capable of in a controlled environment.

Porsche Driving Experience

I also expect to take him to an F1 event if he’s still into that in a year or two. Maybe for his 21st birthday, and probably one of the European events, in the VIP lounge.

We were all set to take my kids to the Montreal Grand Prix this past year, tickets purchased and hotel booked. The wildfires and smoke put an end to those plans.

I was really excited to get them to an event, but when were scheduled to be arriving, the air quality was horrible and no expectation of it improving. I wasn't willing to expose my kids to that, so we cut our losses and called it off.

Kex · February 2

From the official F1 app:

Toto Wolff and Lewis Hamilton sat down for breakfast in Wolff’s home in Oxford, UK, on Wednesday morning. The meeting had been in the diary for a while, pencilled in as their annual get-together.

Typically, this catch-up acts as their first face-to-face meeting after parting ways to head off for winter break and recharge ahead of the following season. They would then discuss their year ahead. But as Wolff said on Friday – speaking for the first time since the news broke that Hamilton was leaving after more than a decade to join Ferrari for 2025 – this breakfast turned out to be very different.

“What happened is that we got together for coffee in my place in Oxford, with him returning to the factory [this week], and he said to me that he has decided to race for Ferrari in 2025,” said Wolff. “That was basically it and we had a good hour of conversation and this is where we are.”

Wolff didn’t try to hide the fact he was surprised by the news. After all, Wolff said they were “very aligned” when they headed off on holidays last winter.

Even when he heard rumours a few days before, it didn’t trouble him too much as he admitted he was happy to wait until their prearranged meeting to discuss.

“In a way, Formula 1 and my previous life have made me imperious to surprises,” said Wolff. “I’ve been confronted so many times in my life with black swans that it was a surprise, but we went open-eyed into this phase of our relationship. We knew that it could be a year, it could be two; we knew that it would come to an end at the latest the end of 2025.

“The surprise was that I heard the rumours a couple of days earlier, but I wanted to wait for the breakfast we had planned. This is when he broke the news.

“But you know with me you can be very straightforward, because I’m straightforward too, so once he said: ‘this is what I’m trying to do’, that was the fact and I didn’t try to convince him otherwise, but just looking forward: ‘OK, what are we doing about communications? What’s the timing? How do we protect the team best? And how do we protect this 2024 year to be successful together with our two drivers without causing too much awkwardness?’”

Wolff and Hamilton became friends very quickly in their 12-year-long professional relationship, so you imagine it will have hurt the Mercedes team boss that his star driver wanted a break-up. Wolff, though, said it didn’t because he needed “to keep calm” and manage the 2024 season. His executive mindset kicked in.

“When he told me first, my next thought was pragmatic, what does it mean? When are we communicating this? What are the pressure points? How are we managing this season going forward, and what is it we are going to do in terms of driver line-up,” he said.

“That was the mind, the Mercedes, the team’s mind, kicked in. Now, having slept a few nights on it, it means that our professional journey comes to an end, working together, but it doesn’t mean that our personal relationship ends.
“I’ve found a friend, we’ve built a relationship over the last 10 years, and he faced a very, very difficult situation, taking a decision of where to drive, maybe for the first time since 10 years without being able to brainstorm with me. And therefore, I will always respect the difficulty of the situation that he faced. And in the future, we will discuss whether this could have been done in a different way or not. But I hold no grudge.”

When Mercedes came to renew Hamilton’s contract, there were differences in what each side wanted. Hamilton is understood to have been keen for a three-year deal, Mercedes wanted to offer only one to keep their options open.
They knew that, at some point, they would have to switch Hamilton out to bring the next generation in. So, they agreed on a one plus one contract, a guaranteed year with options on both sides to extend it into the next season. It was a risky approach, but one that made sense given what Mercedes was trying to manage.

“When we decided Lewis and us to go for a short-term contract, we knew why we were doing it,” said Wolff. “It is to leave him options open and at the same time us. It’s an exciting situation at the end of 2024 with some drivers becoming available, others just signed a few weeks ago (Charles Leclerc extended with Ferrari and Lando Norris did the same with McLaren) so these ones would have been opportunities.

“If it was six weeks earlier, there would have been more opportunities, but it is what it is. But in 2025 and beyond, the driver market is very interesting and we need to look out to the future. Who is it that we can partner with George? What’s the best combo? What’s the best combination? And I think in terms of the drivers who could hopefully join, that could join, there are a variety of options. At that stage, I wouldn’t want to commit to 'this is when we’re going to do it'. I want to take my time.”

Viking64 · February 2

Upstatemax wrote: »

We were all set to take my kids to the Montreal Grand Prix this past year.

I went to that race in 1999.

Milito · February 2

Waiting for the next season of Drive to Survive this month. My wife even likes it.
My daughter-in-law has never been interested in racing and she started watching it several years ago and has become a big F1 fan along with my son. They went to the Austin COTA race last year along with my 2 grand children. She also got a turntable last year. I kid her about now liking racing and spinning vinyl as she knows I like both.
I hope Ferrari has better team management than in the past as I'm sure Hamilton won't put up with mistakes like has happened in past seasons. I know they got a new team principle last season which seemed to improve management of races.
Kex if you think 100 mph feels fast in a car, you should do 90 mph in a go kart a few inches above the ground. I have driven a car 145-150 mph and the kart felt much faster.

Kex · February 2

Yeah… I’m not that brave @Milito! 🤣

It’s not that it feels fast per se. I’m just very aware of the potential for catastrophe if another driver does something unexpected. Surviving a crash at 100 mph is not a given.

Milito · February 2

I did it when there was no traffic on the road in the late 60's. Much more traffic there now.

I was 10 years old when I did that in the go kart.

Geoff4rfc · February 2

Kex wrote: »

I’m not convinced that there’s any other equally extreme Motorsport.

I'll disagree with you there. While I take nothing away from F1 racing, Moto GP is pretty intense but they are on 4 stroke engines. Prior to the displacement change, the bikes were 500cc 2 strokes.

There were only handfuls of men that could ride those bikes at championship levels

Fellow Texan, Kevin Schwantz..RGV 500 Suzuki

Milito · February 2

IMO it takes bigger balls to ride fast on 2 wheels than on 4 wheels.

Geoff4rfc · February 2

Milito wrote: »

IMO it takes bigger balls to ride fast on 2 wheels than on 4 wheels.

While I have no racing experience on 4 wheels to validate that statement, one of my old racing buddies just recently asked me, "Dude, remember when we used to use wheelbarrows to carry our balls when we walked through the pits?"

Lol, true statement

Incidentally, my friend is now a cage fighter, I think he's still using a wheelbarrow

Kex · February 2

Geoff4rfc wrote: »

I'll disagree with you there. While I take nothing away from F1 racing, Moto GP is pretty intense but they are on 4 stroke engines. Prior to the displacement change, the bikes were 500cc 2 strokes.

There were only handfuls of men that could ride those bikes at championship levels

I was more thinking of four wheel vehicles. 😜

I’ve ridden bikes, but more for touring than racing, so I really can’t express an opinion on that aspect. Love the photos you’ve been posting on occasion. 🤩

Geoff4rfc · February 2

Kex wrote: »

Geoff4rfc wrote: »

I'll disagree with you there. While I take nothing away from F1 racing, Moto GP is pretty intense but they are on 4 stroke engines. Prior to the displacement change, the bikes were 500cc 2 strokes.

There were only handfuls of men that could ride those bikes at championship levels

I was more thinking of four wheel vehicles. 😜

I’ve ridden bikes, but more for touring than racing, so I really can’t express an opinion on that aspect. Love the photos you’ve been posting on occasion. 🤩

Ahh, well that being said, I believe F1 is the epitome of 4 wheel racing. I'd love to hop in the seat of an Indy car....and show off my lack of skills

invalid · February 2

H1 Unlimited hydroplane racing is more dangerous than Formula 1 (F1) racing.

txcoastal1 · February 2

invalid wrote: »

H1 Unlimited hydroplane racing is more dangerous than Formula 1 (F1) racing.

Because the brakes suck

Milito · February 2

I forgot which NASCAR driver drove a F1 car 3-5 years ago. He said the thing that impressed him the most wasn't the cornering or how fast it was, it was the brakes and how fast it would slow down.

audioluvr · February 3

I've got two Mercedes. Well actually Jeeps when they were owned by them. My GC has a Mercedes 3.0L diesel. That thing is bad A$$!

Geoff4rfc · February 3

Milito wrote: »

I forgot which NASCAR driver drove a F1 car 3-5 years ago. He said the thing that impressed him the most wasn't the cornering or how fast it was, it was the brakes and how fast it would slow down.

I would use dual carbon brake pads by Scandinavian brake systems, also known as SBS but commonly known in the pits as Stop B i t c h Stop. Never any brake fade. Those were by far the best pads I ever used. They would haul my liter bike down from 185 to 120 in the blink of an eye.

F1nut · February 3

Milito wrote: »

I forgot which NASCAR driver drove a F1 car 3-5 years ago. He said the thing that impressed him the most wasn't the cornering or how fast it was, it was the brakes and how fast it would slow down.

That was Jeff Gordon in 2003, 21 years ago.

"I stepped on the brakes the first time and the blood rushed out of my head," Gordon said.

Milito · February 3

LOL, didn't realized it was that long ago.

Here's another one.

https://youtu.be/86lQaRq5N4U?si=FUToWWFBJQ-q3kmX

F1nut · February 3

Back when F1 cars sounded like F1 cars.

Kex · February 3

Okay Grandpa! 🙃 😜

Milito · February 3

I've been watching F1 races since Phil Hill won the World Championship in the 60's, the first American to do so. The F1 cars today don't sound near as good as cars several decades ago.

https://youtu.be/qvWxhhi0_yk?si=mrRWNd76qU1CwGBq

I hope you don't think a current F1 car sounds better.

Kex · February 3

Honestly have no clue, as I’ve never heard either IRL, so I’m not going to offer an uninformed opinion.

I was just teasing F1nut for once, to thank him for all the LOL’s he sends my way. What can I say? I love the guy, and it’s clearly mutual, since I make him laugh out loud so much! 🤣

gmcman · February 5

This will be interesting for sure. Red Bull obviously has something figured out, Verstappen just flat out walks away from the start, every drag race to the 1st turn belongs to him.

I don't think Hamilton can put his foot down any harder than anyone else in that regard. Hamilton can drive the wheels off his car, but the Mercedes just can't keep up now. Not saying Verstappen isn't a great driver, definitely man and machine.

Jstas · February 5

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ADs8tvU2xDc&t=141s

Jstas · February 5

Personally, I always liked the sound of Champ Cars better.

And by Champ Cars, I mean the C.A.R.T. cars, not the abomination Indy Cars that are running around now thanks to Tony George

They're like a cross between F1 and WRC. All the open cockpit, high downforce, open wheel goodness with the snarling, turbocharged rasp of a 2.5-2.8L V8 running 35+ pounds of boost. Unless it was that Buick V6, that just sounded like a lawnmower on BEAN-O.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I3fSQxDEQ6Y

Buick V6 noises

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZRzFdb_0QI

Not nearly as nice as the V8.

I mean, c'mon! Listen to that!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mj_nRZduchU

It's like "C’était un Rendez-vous Paris" that I could listen to all day! It's just a film from a camera mounted on the bumper of a 450 SEL 6.9 but the "soundtrack" is a 275GTB and that high strung, narrow angled, carbureted V12 just sings!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EL6fbi0ysQ0

And yeah, new F1 doesn't sound nearly as good as old F1 and even older F1.

Geoff4rfc · February 5

Jstas wrote: »

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ADs8tvU2xDc&t=141s

OH YEAH...and the MotoGP bike takes it....although Pedrosa never took a MotoGP championship he was still a bad a s s. I wonder how they'd fare on a road course....unless the bike was out in front, I'd be wary of going through turns with cars around me.....

😮 F1 — Hamilton Leaving Mercedes for Ferrari! 😱

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