**** Abu Dhabi Grand Prix **** (contains spoilers)

[suffolk009]

Double points, driver announcements, 3 car teams, mechanical failures deciding the championship?
Lots to discuss!

SKY UK TV TIMES (show, start)

FRIDAY 21 NOVEMBER
Practice 1 08:45 09:00
Practice 2 12:45 13:00

SATURDAY 22 NOVEMBER
Practice 3 09:45 10:00
QUALIFYING 12:00 13:00

SUNDAY 23 NOVEMBER
Grand Prix 11:30 13:00

[suffolk009]

1) Button
2) Rosberg
3) Bottas

[suffolk009]

Uh, oh.

Just read on twitter that McLaren deny taking a B spec car to the race. Just updates.

So forget my Button to win prediction.

[suffolk009]

paolow said:

So this is live on Sky only? Will be watching this at my local with the monday off if so. Whatever happens it will be quite something...
Like Brazil in 2008 - I want to see it happen - whatever the result

BBC website says they are covering it LIVE. But I couldn't find programme times. If anyone has them I'll stick them into the o/p.

[suffolk009]

One comment during Sunday's race was that no driver has ever won four in a row and not taken the title.

[suffolk009]

scubadude said:

Rosberg to win, Hamilton will toy with our emotions by qualifying badly, fighting to the lead from the back then spinning off and starting the last lap 3rd only to pass Button in the last but one corner after Rosberg has already finished leading to him being WDC for just 20seconds and reliving Massa's torture :-)

That could never happen.

[suffolk009]

Lewis has technical problems and is way out of the points. Rosberg wins the race and the championship.







Rosberg is later disqualified for a "technical infringement".

[suffolk009]

VladD said:

Who's going to fill the vacant seat?

On another thread Woof has offered to pony up £36,000 for a Caterham drive. With my crowd-funding addition that could be £36,010.

[suffolk009]

Looking at some of the F1 News sites, they seem to think Chilton and KK will be in the Caterhams.

I believe a team is only allowed to race four different drivers per season.

[suffolk009]

SniffPetrol today, on the subject of Sauber solving their money worries:

"Sauber has solved its current financial troubles by ceasing to be an F1 team and instead becoming a German court charging Bernie Ecclestone with bribery."

[suffolk009]

Just read Joe Saward on the subject of Forza Rossa. After the Romanian elections, it now looks unlikely there will be in F1 in 2015.

Is it just my assumption that they were the likely buyer for Caterham?

[suffolk009]

Some reports this morning that Will Stevens will be driving for Caterham this weekend.

Woof must be gutted.

[suffolk009]

pic.twitter.com/G1z4Yx99Mj

ETA: I'm having a fit of the Bernie's - can't get this twitter stuff to work for me. Anyway, it's a nice picture of some Caterham airfreight being unloaded with a fork-lift in their pit garage.

Edited by suffolk009 on Tuesday 18th November 09:36

Edited by suffolk009 on Tuesday 18th November 09:36

[suffolk009]

^^^^ Thanks chaps, appreciate it.

[suffolk009]

DanielSan said:

The big question of the weekend. Will Mclaren actually announce their driver line up before winter testing starts?

A man in the pub told me that Alonso is still putting fresh demands on the table.

[suffolk009]

I think it will be a completely dull race.

Hamilton to beat Rosberg in qualy and then just lap after lap of the same come Sunday. It will make the Putin Grand Prix look interesting.

ETA: In fact, it will be so dull, so processional, that people will wonder if they should only be awarded 1/4 points.

Edited by suffolk009 on Tuesday 18th November 16:57

[suffolk009]

furtive said:

whatleytom said:

Anyone know if mclaren are running next years car this weekend, minus Honda engine?

They are sending the Honda engined car out to take place in the end of season test

Is there any TV coverage of the test? Or must we rely on Bernie's favourite; Twitter.

[suffolk009]

DanielSan said:

So I finally lost patience and tweeted this
@McLarenF1 any danger of a driver announcement this weekend or are you still pandering to the Spaniard while disrespecting your drivers?

Not expecting a reply but it made me feel better.

Just seen this tweet.

McLaren ?@McLarenF1 · 49m49 minutes ago
Guys, we know you're awaiting news on our driver line-up. We'll announce after Dec 1 – you'll hear it here first. All eyes now on Abu Dhabi.

DanielSan, I think you are under-estimating your influence with McLaren PR department! Having said that, Ron is clearly still pandering to the Spaniard.

ETA: Joe Saward now also reporting McLaren delaying decision. No mention of DanielSan's involvement!

Edited by suffolk009 on Tuesday 18th November 19:58

[suffolk009]

Europa1 said:

I think the sport needs to take a break from its relentless navel gazing and look around at other sports (I am thinking particularly of the Premier League and NFL) to see how they distribute reveues and look after smaller, less successful teams.

The constructors should be just that. Not manufacturers. A Manufacturer will pull the plug on an F1 project with the tick of pencil (Toyota, Honda, Ford, Renault). Constructors remain because that is their core business, not selling road cars (or indeed tacky baseball caps).

If they had equal (or even more equitable) division of the spoils then the small teams would have a guaranteed income because they participate. This would mean that those constructors would then have the chance to build a business with real capital value. That is a positive feedback cycle of inward investment.

Only by building value in all the teams will the grid be made up of constructors who are in the sport to stay. The unseemly pursuit of manufacturers and their big £££s by F1 will be the sport's undoing. There will never be more than a couple of manufacturer teams in F1, no manufacturer is going to suffer the embarrassment of being consistently midfield.

Manufacturers are fickle when they are losing, whereas constructors knuckle down and get on with trying to win again.

[suffolk009]

NRS said:

MG CHRIS said:

For all the talk of caterham scoring points to beat saulber and maurrasia where the hell are they going to get the performance to get close to points.
Let the team die and move on what point are they trying to make with this while letting go of all the employes don't get it myself.

They don't need performance to get the points. Send one of the cars straight down the grid into the first corner, taking out a lot of cars at the back. Then get points with the other car. This will be helped by the collisions at the front when Hamilton also takes out Rosberg in the first corner, before retiring later in the race due to reliability problems. It is later found out that these were engineered into the car to help the German win, but Hamilton negated this with his first corner move to take him out. Both Hamilton and Rosberg are disqualified from the season and Riciarrdo wins the driver's championship.

Heavens! Even Flavio would have trouble selling that crash to a driver.