Formula 1 2014: Round 12 - Belgian Grand Prix

JacquesDeLad · 24-08-2014 3:27pm

zombieHanalei wrote: »

As someone who for the best part of a decade has watched the sport objectively and not supported any team since Jordan pulled out in 2004/5, and not supported any driver since Schumacher retired in 2006, I have to say that I find the likes of this partizan anti-Hamilton stuff quite bizarre!

Taste of his own medicine? Whinging? (Based on that interview???) Wow, just wow....

As someone who has been watching the sport for three decades I've never been anti-Hamilton or any driver (though maybe Andrea DeCrasherous for crimes against armcurves).

I don't like drivers who play mind games through the press rather than do their talking out on the track, which Hamilton has done with Alonso, Vettel and Rosberg. It's "Why always me?" kind of stuff from him.

I like that he's an aggressive driver but he's dangerous at times and he almost took out two cars in Hungary in similar fashion to how Rosberg hit him today. Yet he'll go out do the same thing in the next race. He doesn't learn.

Tzardine · 24-08-2014 3:28pm

Unrepentant stuff from Nico.

Lets see how he changes when Toto & Niki get him into a room.

zombieHanalei · 24-08-2014 3:29pm

In your first sentence, you state you're not anti-Hamilton. In your very next sentence you explain why you don't like him.... Fair enough!!!

RayM · 24-08-2014 3:32pm

A marvellous display of arrogance there from Nico Rosberg.

oceanman · 24-08-2014 3:36pm

Tzardine wrote: »

Unrepentant stuff from Nico.

Lets see how he changes when Toto & Niki get him into a room.

toto and niki wont say very much to rosberg...at the end of the day he is still their number one in the team and leading the championship.

Tzardine · 24-08-2014 3:39pm

oceanman wrote: »

toto and niki wont say very much to rosberg...at the end of the day he is still their number one in the team and leading the championship.

I disagree.

For both of them to be so visibly and audibly critical of Nico when interviewed I expect him to be given a stern talking to.

dloob · 24-08-2014 3:42pm

RayM wrote: »

A marvellous display of arrogance there from Nico Rosberg.

His saying it's just the british fans and they should learn the rules has probably ensured he will be booed for the remainer of the season

zombieHanalei · 24-08-2014 3:46pm

I don't like what Nico did today, but I don't really see why he has to pretend to be sorry. He made a rookie error but he now has a comfortable advantage in the title race as a result.

They'll have their meeting, he'll take a bit of a verbal beating from his bosses, but he knows that in a few days it will all have blown over and the aftermath will be that he extended his lead over Lewis from 11 points to 29 points. That's the bottom line for Nico so I can see why he wouldn't be one bit sorry for what happened today.

JacquesDeLad · 24-08-2014 3:56pm

zombieHanalei wrote: »

In your first sentence, you state you're not anti-Hamilton. In your very next sentence you explain why you don't like him.... Fair enough!!!

And you said you watched the sport objectively. Fair enough indeed.

zombieHanalei · 24-08-2014 4:05pm

JacquesDeLad wrote: »

And you said you watched the sport objectively. Fair enough indeed.

Yep, quite fair in fact. Until such a time as someone proves otherwise (and despite your "witty" sarcasm, you absolutely have not achieved that), then it is indeed correct of me to state I watch this sport objectively.

mrsoundie · 24-08-2014 4:13pm

HigginsJ · 24-08-2014 4:32pm

I like the animosity between Hamilton & Rosberg. It adds a nice under current to the championship battle & unlike the Vettel/Webber battle both these guys are capable of winning every race.

It is extremely unlikely that both will score points in every race from now to the end of the year so there are still plenty of momentum shifts to come. The timing of the incident was very unfortunate for Hamilton but he did seem to be struggling for pace on the first 2 laps following his good start (or Rosbergs poor start)

My criticism of Rosberg in the last few races is that he hasn't been taking chances to make up places. Maybe due to his starting positions or his innate racers instinct but Hamilton has been driving as if he has nothing to lose whereas Rosberg has not been willing to take risks. I would worry about Lewis's spirit as he was in very resigned mood both during & after the race.

Anyway roll on the rest of the year & a 1st corner crash taking out both Merc drivers in the last race of the year & Ric winning the WDC due to double points

andyman · 24-08-2014 4:33pm

If Max Verstappen does something similar next season I can see many views here being a lot different.

_rebelkid · 24-08-2014 4:39pm

According to people of the written press, Lewis has claimed that Nico said in Merc de-brief that he hit Lewis to "prove a point"...

Infoanon · 24-08-2014 4:49pm

_rebelkid wrote: »

According to people of the written press, Lewis has claimed that Nico said in Merc de-brief that he hit Lewis to "prove a point"...

If Lewis has said that then it shows that Lewis is starting to crack.

It was a racing incident - It was Nicos fault - and almost certainly they will clash again.

Infoanon · 24-08-2014 4:54pm

_rebelkid wrote: »

According to people of the written press, Lewis has claimed that Nico said in Merc de-brief that he hit Lewis to "prove a point"...

If Lewis has said that then it shows that Lewis is starting to crack.

It was a racing incident - It was Nicos fault - and almost certainly they will clash again.

Mike Litoris · 24-08-2014 5:23pm

The above has just been reported on Skysports news. Response from all sides are going to be interesting.

24-08-2014 5:27pm

LIGHTNING wrote: »

Have to laugh at some of the comments in here. I don't see why Rosberg has anything to apologise for. He gets grief in here about not being aggressive enough like Lewis he then makes a move and Lewis decides to close the door. When you close the door like that there is always a chance that you can get clipped. He knew that and he got tagged, unlucky but that's what happens.

That's exactly what I've been getting at. He gets plaudits when he drives aggressively and it comes off (Hungary and Bahrain this year alone) so when it doesn't work out he has to accept it.

zombieHanalei · 24-08-2014 5:28pm

Infoanon wrote: »

If Lewis has said that then it shows that Lewis is starting to crack.

It was a racing incident - It was Nicos fault - and almost certainly they will clash again.

Jaysus I know there are question marks over the mans mentality but I highly doubt he's starting to crack with so many races left to go. Lewis relaying something that was said in a meeting in no way signifies mental weakness.

His comments in the car during the race on the other hand.... It was disappointing to see him throw in the towel. He should have learned that lesson after the Silverstone qualification. Give up and nothing will happen, stay out and something might happen.

Long way to go, things are getting that bit more toxic between Nico and Lewis with the passing of each race, it's adding a bit of spice to proceedings.

24-08-2014 5:29pm

Just as a side note, I honestly think that Alonso, Vettel, Kimi or Button in the Merc this year would be at least matching Rosberg in terms of points so far.

Tox56 · 24-08-2014 5:38pm

Infoanon wrote: »

If Lewis has said that then it shows that Lewis is starting to crack.

It was a racing incident - It was Nicos fault - and almost certainly they will clash again.

How on earth is that a sign of him starting to crack?

mrsoundie · 24-08-2014 5:40pm

Deleted User wrote: »

Just as a side note, I honestly think that Alonso, Vettel, Kimi or Button in the Merc this year would be at least matching Rosberg in terms of points so far.

Yes, if all the little incidents we had didn't. If all cars were equal, I would bet the house on Hamilton, being in the lead. But that's just me.

Gillespy · 24-08-2014 5:41pm

Deleted User wrote: »

That's exactly what I've been getting at. He gets plaudits when he drives aggressively and it comes off (Hungary and Bahrain this year alone) so when it doesn't work out he has to accept it.

Why are you ignoring the fact none of those cases resulted in a DNF for Rosberg? Isn't that a major difference.

Is it still a racing incident if he has admitted to doing it? I guess we'll have to wait for his book to know whether Monaco was deliberate also.

Deleted User wrote: »

Just as a side note, I honestly think that Alonso, Vettel, Kimi or Button in the Merc this year would be at least matching Rosberg in terms of points so far.

Why are they less likely to encounter mechanical problems? 5-4 in wins, the difference is Hamilton has had rotten luck. What would they have done different today?

dloob · 24-08-2014 5:58pm

The team has confirmed that Nico says he deliberately hit Lewis to make a point.
Be interesting to see what the FIA has to say about that!

andyman · 24-08-2014 5:58pm

I really hope it's not true.

Although why would Hamilton make such a claim if it wasn't? He'd have nothing to gain from it and all to lose if he was exposed as a liar..

EDIT: just read above ^^^ Wow. I genuinely can't believe this.

Autosport · 24-08-2014 6:08pm

It could be frustration from Nico's part that Lewis is more of a daredevil driver and would likely be very difficult to overtake and decided I'll give Lewis a tap and see what happens. Now that's just my opinion so don't shoot me down

Itssoeasy · 24-08-2014 6:09pm

What point is nico trying to make then ? He's supposed to have done it to make a point according to Lewis.

24-08-2014 6:11pm

mrsoundie wrote: »

Yes, if all the little incidents we had didn't. If all cars were equal, I would bet the house on Hamilton, being in the lead. But that's just me.

Looking at Rosberg's record it's 4 wins, 6 2nds and a 4th. I don't think that's exceptional. If you want to compare to Hamilton then I doubt any of those drivers would've got no points today.

Gillespy wrote: »

Why are they less likely to encounter mechanical problems? 5-4 in wins, the difference is Hamilton has had rotten luck. What would they have done different today?

Not held their line quite so closely.

Other than DNFs I'd expect any of those drivers to be 1st or 2nd in each race. Even if just finishing 2nd to Hamilton in each race and just winning the ones he DNFs would be 219 points. One win over Hamiltion other than that would be 227 points. Button, Alonso, Vettel and Kimi in a car with that kind of speed advantage would be a lot more measured IMO.
Brawn never had as big an advantage and Button won 6/7, Red Bull hadn't as much advantage and Vettel dominated, Alonso has shown that he'll always get close to the best out of the car and Kimi is ever-reliable.

CFlat · 24-08-2014 6:13pm

And some people think Lewis is cracking. The FIA are surely going to have to step in here. Intentionally hitting another car is a big no no.

dloob · 24-08-2014 6:19pm

Why would you come out and admit something like that?
There is going to be blow back from it.

andyman · 24-08-2014 6:20pm

It carries a racing ban doesn't it?

I really hope not, I don't want the title to come down to something like that. Have Nico DQ'ed from this race and start again at Monza with an 11 point lead.

_rebelkid · 24-08-2014 6:23pm

Toto has cleared this up. He says Nico admitted to "deliberately not avoiding contact".

Santan · 24-08-2014 6:23pm

when is hamiltons contract up anyone know

Jordan 199 · 24-08-2014 6:28pm

Santan wrote: »

when is hamiltons contract up anyone know

It's up at the end of next year.

Santan · 24-08-2014 6:33pm

just wondering is that when vettel's contract is up at red bull also

dloob · 24-08-2014 7:06pm

So he didn't deliberately crash he deliberately didn't avoid crashing

Charlie-Bravo · 24-08-2014 7:18pm

dloob wrote: »

So he didn't deliberately crash he deliberately didn't avoid crashing

Yeah, so in essence what Rosberg is saying, he put himeslef there and it is Hamilton's move over onto the racing line that caused the contact :rolleyes: still his fault and the FIA needs to look at people driving like that. Aryton Senna used to do that and didn't care for the outcome, he made the other driver go defensive in future.

stevenmu · 24-08-2014 7:18pm

_rebelkid wrote: »

Toto has cleared this up. He says Nico admitted to "deliberately not avoiding contact".

That puts a very different spin on it IMHO. That's Nico effectively saying "I'm here and I'm fighting for this position, you have to either hit me or leave me space". AFAIK that's perfectly within the rules, and it's the type of driving Hamilton (and other like Kimi or Alonso) receives praise for.

SnowDrifts · 24-08-2014 7:22pm

F1 is too much of a nanny state as it is... it was a racing incident between two drivers fighting for a championship. The FIA don't need to look into it at all. Monza is gonna be great!

Myrddin · 24-08-2014 7:25pm

I thought Rosberg was awful today, his racecraft isn't in the same league as Hamilton's imo. He's a mid-field driver in the fastest car, nothing more. That might seem harsh, I dunno, he hasn't once impressed me this season...be in failing to get past cars despite being on newer/faster tires, or just making silly errors at times. Nothing special about him, maybe except during Quali, he's pretty good at controlling Q3, but come Sunday he relies on his car more than his skill I find. The move on Hamilton today was awful stuff, Hamilton on the racing line, in front, & Rosberg heading into an ever disappearing wedge...silly silly stuff. But once again, & predictably so, Hamilton lost out & Rosberg didn't. I thought Hamiltons post race interview was hugely impressive, & he controlled his emotions very well, which couldn't have been easy.

If it's true that he deliberately crashed didn't avoid the crash into Hamilton today, then that's pretty damn shocking. He ruined his nearest rivals race & all he had to do was sacrifice 1st for 2nd...definitely should be a ban if that's the case. I was very impressed with how open & frank Toto Wolfe was about the incident, I'd expect strong words from Lauda but Wolfe surprised & impressed me.

I thought the boo'ing was awkward on the podium. I don't agree with it, but in this instance he has no one to blame but himself. I thought EJ maybe dwelled on it a bit on the podium & possibly shouldn't have engaged the crowd on it, but I suppose he was trying his best to make light of a bad situation. But I don't understand why anyone would be surprised about it, he really doesn't endear himself to the crowd or fans AT ALL. I mean, we're talking about a man who thanked Petronas on the podium, & never mentioned his fans. He's a PR guy in racing overalls, & it'd kill me to see the title to go to someone like that. I really hope Hamilton can pull this one out of the bag.

/rant

24-08-2014 7:28pm

stevenmu wrote: »

That puts a very different spin on it IMHO. That's Nico effectively saying "I'm here and I'm fighting for this position, you have to either hit me or leave me space". AFAIK that's perfectly within the rules, and it's the type of driving Hamilton (and other like Kimi or Alonso) receives praise for.

Exactly, Hamilton's overtaking against non-back markers, especially before this season, was about sticking it up the inside and letting the other driver decide to let him through or crash. Hamilton today could've just taken the corner a metre wider than usual with little down-side but as usual he was no-compromise.

Gillespy · 24-08-2014 7:30pm

stevenmu wrote: »

That puts a very different spin on it IMHO. That's Nico effectively saying "I'm here and I'm fighting for this position, you have to either hit me or leave me space". AFAIK that's perfectly within the rules, and it's the type of driving Hamilton (and other like Kimi or Alonso) receives praise for.

It was nothing like that. It was a stunt Maldonado would do and now that he has admitted it, it actually looks deliberate.

SnowDrifts wrote: »

F1 is too much of a nanny state as it is... it was a racing incident between two drivers fighting for a championship. The FIA don't need to look into it at all. Monza is gonna be great!

Racing incident if he admits to doing it on purpose?

Infoanon · 24-08-2014 7:32pm

stevenmu wrote: »

That puts a very different spin on it IMHO. That's Nico effectively saying "I'm here and I'm fighting for this position, you have to either hit me or leave me space". AFAIK that's perfectly within the rules, and it's the type of driving Hamilton (and other like Kimi or Alonso) receives praise for.

Theres a lot of spinning going on : Autosport original headline was 'Wolff says Rosberg's crash comments were misconstrued' , now changed to misinterpreted.

If Lewis collides with Nico in the future it will be immediately viewed as Lewis getting revenge, I doubt if Lewis comments have gone down well with Mercedes top brass either.

SnowDrifts · 24-08-2014 7:32pm

Gillespy wrote: »

Racing incident if he admits to doing it on purpose?

Wolff says Rosberg's crash comments were misinterpreted

zombieHanalei · 24-08-2014 7:32pm

SnowDrifts wrote: »

F1 is too much of a nanny state as it is... it was a racing incident between two drivers fighting for a championship. The FIA don't need to look into it at all. Monza is gonna be great!

It wasn't a racing incident if one driver deliberately causes contact. Racing incidents happen all the time as a result of mistakes, misjudgement, poor timing, and drivers coming together in a scenario where both felt they had the right of way. Intent to collide with another driver falls outside the limits of "racing incident" in my opinion.

I do agree with your hope the FIA stay out of it though.

andyman · 24-08-2014 7:33pm

Deleted User wrote: »

Exactly, Hamilton's overtaking against non-back markers, especially before this season, was about sticking it up the inside and letting the other driver decide to let him through or crash. Hamilton today could've just taken the corner a metre wider than usual with little down-side but as usual he was no-compromise.

It's a bit different than just having your front wing in line with the rear tyres.

Rosberg should have yielded. In essence, he has admitted to causing an avoidable collision.

Gillespy · 24-08-2014 7:34pm

SnowDrifts wrote: »

Wolff says Rosberg's crash comments were misinterpreted

Semantics and you know it. Merc beginning the cleanup.

ItsChecoTime · 24-08-2014 7:41pm

Magnussen demoted to 12th after Alonso incident. Not a huge fan of Hamilton or Rosberg tbh but will be rooting for Hamilton after today, Nico admmitted he could have avoided hitting Hamilton, if he goes on to win the championship his victory will be tainted by this imo

smellslikeshoes · 24-08-2014 7:58pm

Not going to wade into the right/wrong of what happened but for us neutrals this is going to make the rest of the season a bloody cracker

Anyone else think Ricciardo could end up being in with a shout at the end of the season with the Mercs at eachothers throats? Points scored in last 6 races, Rosberg 98, Hamilton, 73 Ricciardo 102

v3ttel · 24-08-2014 8:13pm

Formula 1 2014: Round 12 - Belgian Grand Prix

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