F1 2024 -Watchalong thread

[Brazilianadventure]

Happy New Year.

Thought I would start the 2024 thread given there is more political intrigue with the FIA.

2 resignations and one person choosing to not renew their contract. https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/formula1/67906883

Plus allegedly another ex-Red Bull employee moving to the FIA. https://x.com/silverarrowsnet/status/1744375322131231089?s=46&t=lJm6-66fq4MtGcwwAsK6Kg

Hi Aussie here who loves F1! Particularly hoping McLaren and Racing Bulls do well this year 😊
I also think Horner will not keep his job for long…but guess we will see.

I agree it will depend on the internal RB power struggle. We all know Marko should have gone last year.

Sadly I think the woman involved is far more likely to lose her job and probably won’t get another one in the F1 paddock.

A side issue is the investigation into Toto and Susie Wolff as we haven’t yet got an outcome. There is gossip it was Christian Horner who triggered this. If it’s the case it may explain Toto’s comments.

I thought the Wolff thing was all quashed, was it not?

Not according to Toto. The FIA backtracked on 8 December but I saw a brief clip of Toto at testing where he implied it wasn’t over. I think it’s part of the reason why Toto and Zac are being very vocal about the FIA needing to be transparent about CH.

There does seem to be a downplaying by some of the allegations and messages with little regard for the power differential between a TP and a subordinate.

Glad I’ve found you.
Disappointed with the race so far. I wanted a mix-up this season, not a bloody re-run of the last couple of years! I’ll keep hoping for a RB mishap….

So so boring. DH has fallen asleep and is snoring! I am still watching but just so boring. Not sure I can bear to watch another year of Verstappen not only winning every week but so easily with no competition

I could have written that !

husband asleep with cat on his chest.

poor Sky trying to make it sound exciting 😱

Clearly we are just going to be watching for 3rd onwards where Ferrari, McLaren & Merc seem reasonably close.

I also struggled to stay awake at times.

Ffs what a let down

Booooring. I will have a nap now as I struggled to stay awake during that.

Lovely start🥳

Unfortunate for Leclerc with the issues, was also rooting for Zhou to finish in the points but sadly not!

It's going to be another boring season, then (on the track, at least).

Red Bull still benefitting from their cheating 3 years ago. So much talk of "teams will lose championships if they breach the cost cap", when it was introduced - meh. Such a disappointment!

I fell asleep! Oh well.

Camera is avoiding CH I see.

Yes, I noticed that. Very different from when he arrived in Bahrain a few days ago and was happy to be talking to the media about how it was all done and dusted.

I've really not missed the Dutch national anthem...

Well...
It was very boring sadly. I ended up doing chores and just keeping an eye on the race in the background by lap 10.

Most exciting thing was the shenannigans between Tsunoda and Riccardo. Yuki was very cross about the team orders, and then chucked his car up the inside of Daniel after the chequered flag, which was a bit dodgy. Netflix will be eating that bit up I'm sure.

Shame about the Mercs issues and Le Clercs brakes. Great race by Sainz and Stroll, who came through the pack after Hulkenburg bumped him.

Looks like all the excitement will be about P2-5 in the driver's and constructors again for 2024.

Yuki had plenty of laps to overtake the Haas so giving DR on softs a chance made sense but waiting until Max was about to lap them fucked them both.

F1 has completely lost its way, its as boring as watching paint dry or grass grow.

Who really wants to see the same team & driver win all the races and by some margin too? its not as if MV has a team mate even remotely able to challenge him, prob because when he has, we get Team Orders...

Unless things change, supporters will stop watching, followed by sponsors.

@GPTec1 I agree the FIA have to do what they did to the Mercs and change the rules to bring RB back to the pack.

Yes we have always had dominant teams but there has always been more winners with surprises e.g. Ocon, Gasley, Ricciardo at Monza, Maldonardo, Kimi at Ferrari etc.

There have been dominant teams in the past, yes, but not to this extent, where you have the same driver winning by 40secs or more every race.

Red Bull should have been properly penalised for exceeding the cost cap. The advantage they gained that year has clearly been carried forward to the next years.

A major regulation change is definitely needed.

There have been dominant teams in the past, yes, but not to this extent, where you have the same driver winning by 40secs or more every race.

It's incredible isn't it, well done to them. Hopefully the others will catch them soon.

There were a couple of years with Schumacher which were just as bad for dominance, it was fairly common for Schumacher to lap everyone up to the man in second place, (which was usually Barrichello). There was one big difference though - reliability. Cars used to break down so much more back then. Also having to refuel during pitstops could cause chaos. Despite Ferarri being so far ahead, there were plenty of races that were much more varied due to breakdowns etc. It was also easier to pass back then, so you often had more overtaking on track behind the Ferraris.

This is the most dominant any one team has ever been IMO. Not one breakdown in this race, and I can't remember when last a Red Bull DNF'd for something mechanical.

Every time there's a race like this I get annoyed, it's boring to watch and feels like a waste of time. I can guarantee the moment I decide to give it a miss, it'll start to get interesting.

Exactly @Sulusu , the reliability these days is incredible. Every car finishing the first race, it's amazing. At least the current aero rules allow for overtaking.

I love modern F1, I've been watching for nearly 30 years and this is the best it's been IMO, despite Max's dominance.

Yes, well done for cheating to gain an advantage