Phil: My co-blogger's thorough and insightful analysis deserves a pat on the bottom, at the very least. I agree the Hamilton/Webber collision was nothing more than a racing incident, and that having scored maximum points at Monza and Singapore, Alonso is certainly the man to beat at Suzuka. I think we also agree on the downright odd teammate relationship that Lewis and Jenson have: Lewis when interviewed after the race seemed understandably downbeat (after all, two consecutive DNFs won't do great things for his championship chances) and said he still hoped either himself or Jenson would be world champion this year. Or Jenson? Then, one day this week, I read an interview with Jenson himself telling the world what a great driver Lewis was and how much he hoped he could get his title chase back on track. Is there some patting of bottoms going on behind the scenes?
Anyway, teammate rivalries, or otherwise, lead me on to this very good, very technical opinion piece on how Michael Schumacher has 'lost it' permanently. Not only is he being outdriven by his teammate Nico Rosberg, but the margin by which is being beaten is getting wider. Is Rosberg getting faster, or is Schumi getting slower? Here it is http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/motorsport/formula_one/9037790.stm
Finally, I've been dipping into the BBC's archive of classic races, which are updated before every race, starting with the 1982 Detroit Grand Prix:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/andrewbenson/2010/09/your_classic_grand_prix_-_race_2.html#more
You'll think the cars are crude until you see the BBC's graphics. And why did someone at the BBC think that the best 'establishing shot', the image that says 'Formula 1' to the British viewing public, is a shot of Niki Lauda eating a slice of toast?
Plenty of overtaking though.
Showing posts with label bbc1. Show all posts
Showing posts with label bbc1. Show all posts
Thursday, 30 September 2010
Wednesday, 22 September 2010
It's pissing down in Singapore
Phil: My co-blogger texted me the other day to remind me I hadn't blogged for a while. There's actually very little to add to his analysis of Monza's action, and only the arse-licking to take away. All I can constructively add is that, as I predicted, Webber and Hamilton are definitely not running away with it: a win for Alonso, second for Button, and fourth for Vettel versus sixth for Webber and DNF for Hamilton means the gap has narrowed considerably.
I stumbled across an interesting calculation today (bear with me, this gets better) of how the championship would look if we were still using the old points system, which I much preferred:
Hamilton 75
Webber 74
Alonso 67
Button 67
Vettel 66
I post this as a reminder of how close this season really is: less than a win between first and fifth in the title race, with five races still to go.
A bit of an update on the mid-season reshuffle. Nick Heidfeld returns to F1, replacing Pedro de la Rosa at Sauber. Romain Grosjean takes over his testing role at Pirelli. Does this mean Schumacher is likely to continue in 2011? Heidfeld was presumably hanging on to the test seat at Mercedes on the assumption that he wouldn't last the season, so does this mean he will be back next year?
There are also rumours that the BBC are looking to replace Jonathan Ledgard in the commentary box. In case you were wondering, he is the bloke who talks when Martin Brundle isn't talking. The favourite to replace him is Moto GP commentator Charlie Cox, although from comments posted online a return for James Allen has been suggested, or Brundle by himself. My co-blogger and I are of course available, should anyone from the BBC be reading the blog. The truth is, though, that all this means is that Murray Walker is irreplacable.
It's pissing down in Singapore.
I stumbled across an interesting calculation today (bear with me, this gets better) of how the championship would look if we were still using the old points system, which I much preferred:
Hamilton 75
Webber 74
Alonso 67
Button 67
Vettel 66
I post this as a reminder of how close this season really is: less than a win between first and fifth in the title race, with five races still to go.
A bit of an update on the mid-season reshuffle. Nick Heidfeld returns to F1, replacing Pedro de la Rosa at Sauber. Romain Grosjean takes over his testing role at Pirelli. Does this mean Schumacher is likely to continue in 2011? Heidfeld was presumably hanging on to the test seat at Mercedes on the assumption that he wouldn't last the season, so does this mean he will be back next year?
There are also rumours that the BBC are looking to replace Jonathan Ledgard in the commentary box. In case you were wondering, he is the bloke who talks when Martin Brundle isn't talking. The favourite to replace him is Moto GP commentator Charlie Cox, although from comments posted online a return for James Allen has been suggested, or Brundle by himself. My co-blogger and I are of course available, should anyone from the BBC be reading the blog. The truth is, though, that all this means is that Murray Walker is irreplacable.
It's pissing down in Singapore.
Tuesday, 6 April 2010
The German renaissance
Phil: I'm going to leave Alonso's penultimate lap engine blowout to my co-blogger, as I know it's a subject dear to his heart. Instead I'm going to congratulate Sebastian Vettel, Mark Webber and Red Bull on their 1-2 at Sepang. The title race is tight, very tight, as I'll explain, but if Adrian Newey's car can give Vettel reliability as well as speed, I think he has to be the favourite.
Alonso's early exit means that he has had to concede the lead of the world title chase to his teammate Felipe Massa, who now leads with 39 points. Alonso and Vettel follow on 37 points, then Button and Rosberg on 35 points. Four points separate the top five drivers. What's more, the new points system was designed to ensure drivers have to win races to win the title. Three drivers have won the first three races of this season, but the man at the head of the title race isn't one of them. Consistency is still the most important thing where the world title is concerned.
Something else that's noteworthy. A quarter of the field, or four of the top 10 in the drivers' title chase, are German. When Michael Schumacher drove his first race in 1991 he was the only one. Sebastian Vettel, born in 1987, was only four years old at the time. My point is that he, Rosberg, Sutil and the rest are the Schumacher generation: the young German kids who grew up with him as a motor racing role model (those of us with slightly longer memories realise that he might not be altogether the best role model for an aspiring young driver to have).
All that remains is for me to name my Skiver of the Day, which dubious honour today goes to BBC1, for shunting the coverage to BBC2 mid-race to make way for some God-bothering. Aren't Sundays sacred any more?
Alonso's early exit means that he has had to concede the lead of the world title chase to his teammate Felipe Massa, who now leads with 39 points. Alonso and Vettel follow on 37 points, then Button and Rosberg on 35 points. Four points separate the top five drivers. What's more, the new points system was designed to ensure drivers have to win races to win the title. Three drivers have won the first three races of this season, but the man at the head of the title race isn't one of them. Consistency is still the most important thing where the world title is concerned.
Something else that's noteworthy. A quarter of the field, or four of the top 10 in the drivers' title chase, are German. When Michael Schumacher drove his first race in 1991 he was the only one. Sebastian Vettel, born in 1987, was only four years old at the time. My point is that he, Rosberg, Sutil and the rest are the Schumacher generation: the young German kids who grew up with him as a motor racing role model (those of us with slightly longer memories realise that he might not be altogether the best role model for an aspiring young driver to have).
All that remains is for me to name my Skiver of the Day, which dubious honour today goes to BBC1, for shunting the coverage to BBC2 mid-race to make way for some God-bothering. Aren't Sundays sacred any more?
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