F1 2025 - Watchalong Thread #2

[Brazilianadventure]

Thread two

We are over halfway through the season. It looks like the WDC will either be Lando or Oscar. Hoping for a grandstand finish in Abu Dhabi.

Lewis 💔
He is so hard on himself. He is doing so many things outside of f1 and I can't help wondering if he really loves it any more. I think mission 44 is more important to him and he is one of the only drivers to say much about things outside of f1..
I think he is brilliant, both as a driver and as a human being. I still think he will drive 26/27 and then retire, and I'd hate to see him go on a low like this, but also think Ferrari is killing his mental health and wonder if it's worth it. I hate seeing him like this.

My heart was breaking for Lewis yesterday. I’m desperately hoping he has a better day today.

@StitchHappens yes, I completely agree.

Lewis always comes across as a genuinely nice guy (a friend who used to have corporate-
type tickets to F1 said that when Lewis and Jensen were teammates, Lewis came across very well when he was doing meet & greet type stuff, Jensen less so…) and it is heartwarming to see him looking out for the youngsters such as Antonelli and Hadjar. And he does a huge amount outside of F1 as well, like you say, with his Mission 44.

Well done Charles, he was so surprised he was on pole.

It's heartbreaking watching Lewis. I do feel that he should be more media savvy by now and not saying these things in public. I really want him to have a good break and come back in better form.

I wonder what he's doing on the 8th of August

YESSSS LANDO!!!!!!! What a race!!!!!

Awesome race from Lando. Well done Oscar and George. Feel sorry for Charles.

Alonso 5th.

Verstappen only 9th.

I was holding my breath for those last couple of laps! Amazing victory for Lando.

LANNNNNNNDOOOOOOO!

Very happy in our house. They also sounded knackered. Love that Lando moved the trophies before celebrating.

Yes made me laugh him moving the trophies!

Just seen today’s post race interview with Lewis Hamilton. So, so sad. He is clearly very miserable.

I'm torn by that result. I'm glad lando won, and it's close going into the summer break, but I'd really like to see him doing it on the track, rather than making mistakes and banking on his team to strategise him out of it. I know it takes skill to manage the tyres as well as he does, but it seems like he's making a lot of on track errors to me. I definitely feel like piastri is driving better.

8th August - Lewis - music track with Rose is my guess. Just putting it out there 😆. (Probably wrong!)

I feel like the lone Oscar fan here with all the Lando fans! It’s not that I hate Lando, he’s just the enemy (and can be annoying sometimes).

Will be interesting to see what happens with the Mercedes contracts. If Red Bull drop the ball with the new regs next year I’m sure Max will be looking to move.

Feel awful watching the Lewis interviews even though he’s not a driver I follow nor am I a Ferrari fan. I’m going through a bad patch myself at work and I have also found myself in a negative mental spiral recently. It’s not fun.

@bluetonguei really like Oscar and think he is the likely Champion this season.
Lando (and George) were rookies the year we went to Silverstone and were funny about how none of the big boys really had anything to do with them.
And he's British, I have been longing for a British driver I like sincJenson. I appreciate Lewis' brilliance but just can't warm to him.

Because Toto was seen coming out of the Ferrari area in Hungary, and Fred was seen coming out of Mercedes, the online rumour mill is now in overdrive saying that Lewis is going back to Mercedes, possibly over the summer. (No mention of what happens to poor Kimi though!)

I am assuming it’s just the usual silly season stuff.

I do agree that I think it’s more likely that Oscar will be world champion, not Lando, which might just finish Lando off mentally. Although having said that, Lando did do well to hold off Oscar on Sunday - I didn’t think he’d be able to.

Nothing to do with them. Can't see in the sun!

I thought Lando stepped it up a level on Sunday as I was expecting him to crack and Oscar beat him. Good on Lando. He’s clearly working hard at managing his emotions more effectively. If he continues like this, he deserves to win the WC this year. I think he has a touch more speed than Oscar but struggles with his emotions impacting his consistency.

Oscar is usually as cool as a cucumber but he made a few uncharacteristic errors this past weekend so the pressure must be affecting him too (although he hides it well). Having Mark Webber as a manager must be a huge source of help for him. If Oscar doesn’t manage WC this year, his time will most definitely come. He’s a great driver, has a cool head and balls of steel (as demonstrated as early as his “I will not be driving for Alpine” tweet).

And poor Lewis. What a shit show Ferrari continues to be. The silly season stories won’t be helping so hoping he gets away somewhere and clears his head.

Oscar fan here :)

Everyone is welcome.

I am first an F1 fan and I think Oscar is doing so well. I really like his temperament as he seems so calm but there is an odd glimpse of passion/frustration.

I think his mentality may be the difference this year. I also think having Mark (and Anne) Webber as his manager helps.

I do wonder why Lando hasn’t taken up Nico Rosberg’s offer of help. Nico knows exactly what it takes to be a World Champion.

I’m sure I’ve heard Lando say that he often speaks to Vettel and gets advice/help from him.

I loved Spa so much I’m planning next year. It is between Zandvoort or Hungaroring.

Anyone been to either or has any insights.

So this is my first F1 this year

Can I watch F1 on sky sports?

When is the final?

I am finding it so hard to follow!

TThere is no final just a series of 24 races. The person with the most points across all the races wins the drivers championship.
1st 25points
2nd 18
3rd 15
4th 12
5th 10
6th 8
7th 6
8th 4
9th 2
10th 1

Finish outside of the top ten gets no points.

On top of that there is the constructor championship, there are 10 teams each with 2 cars. Getting high up in this is really important as it determines how much money the team get.

All the races, plus practises and qualification are on sky sports. They also have extras. There are a lot of podcasts that can help explain what is going on.

Any specific questions?

Thank you kindly 🙏

Will keep watching and trying to follow 😭