2017: Thoughts that swirl in my mind, oh...and the season so far

Justin:

The lay of the land, post Nico...

So, I hadn't posted since December. Don't let my late response to the 2017 season trick you into thinking I'd lost interest.


Actually, before and after Australia (wasn't a classic race was it?) I was missing the Rosberg vs Hamilton element, which did diminish my interest a fair bit to start with. I think no matter what the racing was like this year and no matter who was at the front, I was genuinely going to miss the inter-team rivalry of Rosberg vs Hamilton.

More questions than answers

I completely respect the decision Nico took at the end of 2016, but it left so many mouth-watering questions unanswered. How would Lewis cope racing against a guy that had beaten him to the title? How would Nico cope in defending his title, knowing he'd given everything last time out? How would Mercedes cope with two world champions and a rivalry beyond any intensity level they'd experienced before? It all sounded quite fun! But that is not the season we have unfolding before us.

Ok..so the stuff above was written around a month ago and left in draft as I was nowhere near being finished for my first post.. 

The Russian GP was absolute rubbish/ total boredom, but of course mega congrats to Bottas on his maiden F1 victory. The races in China and Bahrain were pretty good. The race in Spain however, was another level entirely.

My main gripe with Formula 1 for, well the entire hybrid era, is that there has scarcely been any racing for the lead.

We had mega action in Bahrain 2014, and besides one or two laps here and there, that was about it until 2016. Even then, for the most part when there was action for first, the two Mercedes crashed into each other (Spain and Austria).

Spain helped me forget many of the issues I have with F1 right now.

Hamilton Vs Vettel. One on one. Fighting for the lead. Fighting for the win.

That's what I wanted. That's what we all wanted. On track action.

It did amuse me when Hamilton mentioned in passing that Vettel squeezing him off track was dangerous. Erm, I'm pretty sure Hamilton left Nico with no road a fair few times in the past (Austin 2015 to name just one). In fact, that's probably one of the reasons Nico started fighting back in 2016 and getting his elbows out more in one on one combat with Lewis.

So, it is Lewis Vs Seb for 2017. I'm more interested after Spain, for sure. Let us see what Monaco brings. I expect Red Bull to be a lot closer for this one, as engines don't matter as much. With that, a nod to Fernando Alonso's mighty P7 on the grid in Spain, and the fact that the McLaren should be quick around Monaco.

Driver of the year so far...

Nico Hulkenberg has stood out a mile at Renault. Brilliant qualifying performances followed by solid races for the most part. I think Renault must be the most improved team from 2016. Hulk looks like he made a good choice going for the factory seat.

Fernando at Indy!

P5 on the grid. Legend. I'll be watching! Vamos!!!!!!!!!

Nicky Hayden

Incredibly sad to hear of the passing of the 2006 MotoGP Champion. I didn't watch a lot of biking on TV, but from the stuff I did see, he came across as one of the most genuine chaps out there. And he was bloody talented and extremely quick. He beat Rossi to the title for cripes sake, in the same team. That's how good he was. BT Sports and Suzi Perry did a beautiful tribute to him.