Chaos is predicted for the next F1 race at the wonderful Spa Francorchamps, because... drivers will have to juggle the clutch to get the cars off the line all by themselves. And F1 is worried.
There've been predictions of some getting better starts than others. Some might get really slow starts and cause issues for those behind them. The guy on pole might, get this, find himself compromised and unfairly end up somewhere else other thank first.
You can sense sympathies are not overflowing for the drivers and teams now faced with having to get their cars off the line themselves rather than with assistance from the pit wall. Quite right. If these are the most talented guys in the world, surely they should be able to cope with something that's a fundamental of passing your driving test? It would be like the driving examiner using their He-Man controls to help you out with the hill start. Not on.
The bigger deal is the fact that auto-start systems were allowed in the first place: how many of us realised the drivers weren't actually responsible for their brilliant or blithering starts? That Merc's recent runs are on the shoulders of a software engineer rather than Lewis or Nico? As the start can sometimes be the most exciting part of a race, it's good news that they'll be a bit more genuine, rather than cheating fans with something the drivers have little control over.
Hamilton on holiday
There was outrage this week as news emerged that Lewis Hamilton had been on holiday during F1's summer break. LEWIS HAMILTON CONTINUES HIS HEDONISTIC HOLIDAY, screamed the Daily Mail. TOPLESS LEWIS HAMILTON GRINDS UP AGAINST WOMAN IN BARBARDOS, observed the Express. #0f**ksgiven, said Lewis on Instagram, as indeed might the rest of us if we were on holiday with Rihanna.
But it was the fact a rich, famous bloke chose to actually go on holiday during F1's mid-season holiday, rather than stay at home drinking chilled coconut water and analysing the errors of the last race in Hungary that seems to have surprised so many F1 observers. Ooh, you wouldn't catch Vettel doing that, I bet Nico's loving this, etc, etc, yawn.
Is this really the state F1's got itself in? Where it's abnormal if drivers do a modern James Hunt? To their credit, Mercedes-AMG bosses don't seem too fussed, and nor should they be. A big part of the £100m they're reportedly paying Lewis is because of his social media profile, and this sort of stuff is all part of it. And if he now goes and storms Spa, breaking a surprisingly poor recent-years record there, well, maybe they'll all be at it. Cheers!
Who fondly remembers the Network Q RAC Rally? There was a fuss at the time that it was replacing the legendary Lombard RAC Rally, but in nine years it became a proper staple in the British motorsport calendar, thanks in no small part to McRae, Burns (who won it three years on the trot) and Carlos Sainz (who broke down 300 metres from the finish, lost the world title but got to watch co-driver Luis Moya throw his helmet through the back window).
Now it's back. Not quite as title sponsor of the main event, but Network Q has still become headliner of the national element of the 2015 rally. As it's been revived to mark 25 years of Network Q, this hopefully gives a green light for retro liveries and other 1990s archive stuff, Goodwood Revival-style.
It also begs a great question: what other classic motorsport sponsorship collaborations would you like to see return?
Haas has it: no more new F1 teams for 2016
The only new F1 team coming to F1 next year is Haas: it's emerged this week that two others approached the FIA with a view to joining the circus, but were refused entry as they didn't pass the new due diligence rules. Which are? Proof of tech ability and resources, funding, experience and HR, plus the overall value they bring.
Variety is the spice of life and all that, but we don't want another Andrea Moda or Mastercard Lola, do we? There are plenty of really good GP3 and GP2 teams out there, but those series are one thing and F1's a sucker for swallowing vast amounts of cash for the uninitiated. At least it's now protected them from this shock - you wonder if Caterham, Virgin and HRT wish such regulations had been in place back in 2010.