Mercedes waiting for Schumacher decision

F1 Fanatic round-up

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In the round-up: Ross Brawn says Mercedes won’t look for another driver until they know what Michael Schumacher’s plans are.

Race commentary debut

This weekend I’m going to be doing live television commentary on motor racing for the first time.

I’ll be covering International GT Open and European F3 Open alongside regular lead commentator Ben Evans.

The whole thing will be broadcast live online so if you want to you can watch along on Saturday and Sunday. See here for details of when and where it’s on:

Links

Top F1 links from the past 24 hours:

Brawn confident Schumacher will stay (Sporting Life)

“We are focused on Michael for as long as it takes, and whatever it takes. Then we will see where we are elsewhere.”

Red Bull: No fears over team harmony (Autosport)

Christian Horner: “There is a genuine respect between the two of them. Sebastian [Vettel] has achieved so much in such a short space of time, but he knows in Mark [Webber] that he has got a very genuine competitor. And Mark knows that Sebastian is the benchmark, or has been the benchmark for the last few years.”

Andre Simon (Joe Saward)

“Andre Simon has died at the age of 92. The Frenchman was one of the mainstays of the Gordini team in the 1950s, but also drove for Mercedes-Benz.”

Silverstone: Flushing away goodwill (GrandPrix)

“The most unacceptable bit was the toilets. There were just five Portaloos. You tried not to use them but, eventually, you had no choice. They were disgusting and, as far as I could see, they weren’t cleaned over the weekend. No effort had been made to place them on a hard-standing area. And there were no washing facilities at all. The whole thing had to be a health hazard. I won’t begin to describe what it was like – except to say it was an affront to everyone’s dignity.”

F1 diary: British Grand Prix (The Telegraph)

“I leave hoping the day’s events won’t expose Silverstone to too brutal a backlash. The circuit management can’t be blamed for the weather – and it’s not the only sporting venue affected: quite a few horse race meetings have been culled and Wimbledon only escapes because centre court has a retractable lid.”

The Bulls vs the Prancing Horses (ESPN)

Karun Chandhok: “You really get the feeling that nine races in, Lotus should have had at least a couple of wins under their belt, with a car that clearly has very good pace on a variety of circuits.”

Games remind F1 great Stewart of rare failure (Reuters)

“When triple Formula One world champion Jackie Stewart thinks of the Olympics, it brings back memories of the biggest disappointment of an otherwise glorious sporting career.”

From lapper to rapper for Lewis Hamilton (The Sun)

“F1 ace seals recording deal on night out with US star J Cole.”

Comment of the day

Sinnr says F1’s popularity won’t improve in America until it has better television coverage:

We also need better TV coverage. We are bombarded by endless commercials and idiotic comments sometimes. I watch on line and record the coverage here. It’s amazing how much we miss because of so many interruptions. Also the coverage on Fox is pre-recorded. […]

I will be going to Austin come November. There are more fans of Formula 1 here than it’s made out to be. I was at the last race at Indianapolis and I met fans that, like me, drove all the way from Atlanta and Miami. There is an F1 following here, real die-hard fans, who get no respect.
Sinnr

From the forum

Happy birthday!

Happy birthday to Pawelf1, Robert, Voaridase and HoolyF1!

If you want a birthday shout-out tell us when yours is by emailling me, using Twitter or adding to the list here.

On this day in F1

Jacques Villeneuve won the British Grand Prix today in 1997.

ITV had taken over the F1 broadcasts in the UK that year and for their home race they introduced an innovation: Martin Brundle’s first grid walk:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fhomkcvjjJM

Image © Mercedes/Hoch Zwei

Author information

Keith Collantine
Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...

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72 comments on “Mercedes waiting for Schumacher decision”

  1. Congratulations on your new gig, Keith! Might get me to watch these two series this weekend.

  2. The US TV coverage used to be better than the UK coverage. Lots of commercial but the entire race, unlike the abbreviated BBC coverage back in the 80s. Now it’s plain depressing, the exception being the no-frills, no commentary P1 and P3 streams on speedtv.com.
    I typically watch Speed TV live with a stream for back up during commercials. Fox’s delayed coverage spoils that trick. The streams of BBC and SKY coverage make me wonder what the UK red button extra streams are like. Ah well, at least I’ll be able to travel to 3 local-ish grands prix next year!

    1. Unfortunately US television broadcasts 10 minutes of commercials for every 20 minutes of programming. It’s very annoying during a races and qualifying.

  3. Having spent a lot of time in the USA I can support the COTD. Matchet and Hobbs are actually good knowledgeable commentators, Bob Varsha is the professional talking head responsible for most of the gaffs . Most infuriating are the ads telling you that SpeedTV broadcast the WHOLE race live, a) it’s a lie, b) that’s why we are watching now.

    1. I’ve never seen a single ad on SPEED claiming they broadcast the entire race live.

      Bob Varsha & Steve Matchett are both pretty invaluable in my mind. Hobbs is starting to get a bit senile & often confuses drivers when it’s fairly obvious which driver is on screen. He also lets his personal bias show far more than any professional broadcaster should. Will Buxton has been a great addition to SPEED, his enthusiasm knows no bounds. Their recent addition of a post race show is a great improvement. They’re clearly trying to do what they can, but with the amount of budget they receive compared to their overseas equivalents it is always going to be hard. Sky sends some 80 odd people. When you include the BBC there must be over 100 UK TV broadcasters present at every race. SPEED sends a grand total of 1. And I can assure you no one’s coverage is 100x better than SPEED. The biggest problem I have with the coverage is the ad breaks, but that’s not something that’s likely to change. In fact it sounds like those of you who’ve been blessed with ad-free race coverage might be in the same boat sooner than later.

    2. I Love the Pope
      13th July 2012, 2:45

      We love Hobbs! And at least the commercials are “family friendly” for the most part on Speed. Its mostly “Royal Purple,” “Fram,” and “Pep Boys” type stuff. The Fox broadcast I tape because I edit out the commercials for the kids.

  4. Good luck on the commentating Keith

    1. Looking forward to listening to you Keith. Can’t say I’m looking forward to listening to Hamiltons album though ;)

  5. F1 coverage seems to be an issue in alot of countries. I have lived in Lisbon for the past 10 years, the coverage used to be neglected, nowdays in cable tv the coverage is even worse, the commentators have no clue about what they are talking about, thankfully i have one of those set-up box that allows me to watch the BBC, expensive, glitchy and probably illegal. I had no idea Jackie had another passion, guess that hat now makes alot of sense, multi talented guy.

  6. I spend time in the US with family a few months a year & the only thing wrong with the coverage of F1 in North America is the amount & length of the commercials, However thats the same with just about everything over there.

    Coverage-wise the broadcast’s are actually very good. They have 3 very good, entertaining & knowledgable commentators, A great pit reporter & they produce some good VT’s.
    Bob Varsha has a lot of knowledge/passion, David Hobb’s brings racing experience & Steve Matchett brings a great technical knowledge & is able to explain tech bits in a detailed way that even the less tech-savy fan is able to understand.

    I actually prefer listning to them than any of the commentators in europe.

    1. I agree with you 100%. I live in Canada, and if it weren’t for the commercials I’d choose SPEED over either Sky or BBC any day. (In fact, I’m always watching SPEED but I tune in to BBC every time commercials are on). At least the commentary isn’t obvious country biased and unlike the British commentators, the American commentators don’t bash drivers if they do something wrong. That’s just my opinion.

      1. @kingshark I live in Canada too.. but, I watch my races on TSN. Just wondering how do you watch the races in BBC and SPEED?

    2. I’ve got to agree that our coverage isn’t all that bad. I mean, excepting one race a year, when was the last time you saw IndyCar practice live on your television? Or any other motorsports series that isn’t NASCAR?

      Admittedly, we do have 3 races a year run on a delay, and lots of commercials… but New Jersey will bring that number down to 2 next year, and I believe Sky hasn’t committed to ad-free races for 2013 — so we might just be closing the gap there too (admittedly, not how we’d want.)

  7. I guess now Mercedes is almost out of Hamilton`s list.
    Red Bull is already complete.
    That leaves Hamilton with the follow options:
    -Go to Lotus, and they are going to drop Grosjean or Kimi
    -Go to Ferrari to take Massa`s sit, and to be Alonso “number 2”
    -Stay at Mclaren

    Someone wants to bet to see what he will do?

    “You really get the feeling that nine races in, Lotus should have had at least a couple of wins under their belt, with a car that clearly has very good pace on a variety of circuits.”

    Dejavu, didn`t Vallenevue already said this… don`t know if Lotus thinks the same, but it is certanly that they car seems to be one of the fastest and more cosntant in the F1 grid right now.

    1. Go to Lotus, and they are going to drop Grosjean or Kimi

      I don’t think that’s really an option. Raikkonen signed a two-year deal with the team, while Grosjean is managed by Eric Boullier. I can’t see them dropping either driver for Hamilton.

      What’s more, the stories of Hamilton moving to Lotus were posted within hours of Red Bull announcing Webber will stay in 2013. The Daily Mail, which is notorious for spreading rumours when they’re not simply making them up, was pushing for Hamilton to move to Red Bull (as if they could influence Red Bull’s driver line-up, but that’s just the Mail‘s style). When Webber was confirmed for next year, Hamilton joining the team was no longer an option, and then lo and behold, The Daily Fail runs a story linking Hamilton to a drive with the most competitive team that, according to Wikipedia, still has an availability.

    2. Someone wants to bet to see what he will do?

      Leave F1 to pursue a career in hip hop?
      Might as well put a tenner on it, I’m sure you’d get some great odds :)

      1. That was great.

      2. hahahaha

  8. If it means more motorsport to watch I’ll gladly listen to you, Keith.

    I think we’re incredibly lucky in Britain with our F1 coverage, having two world class channels covering the action without interruption. Watching the IndyCar coverage is enlightening in that respect, as the US broadcaster take a huge number of breaks (especially ABC) and while Sky don’t take them all, it still grates. We missed Scott Dixon’s engine going bang on Sunday, and it’s a return to the bad old days of F1 on ITV, who at least only took a few breaks during the race.

  9. “F1 ace seals recording deal on night out with US star J Cole.”

    My opinion on the matter

    1. I don’t get it.

      1. To put it nicely, he finds it commical.

        1. she, I believe.

          1. Yes, I find it commical.

            And yes I`m a she ;)

          2. *facepalm*
            It is kind of obvious considering your username.

  10. I live in USA. I’m bilingual and used to watch the coverage in speedtv.the commentators are really good, the only one I didn’t like is the old man he is to biased towards Hamilton and he should be neutral. Then when Perez got into f1 fox deportes (fix sports in Spanish) started broadcasting the race. They show the race live and the only thing they don’t show is practice 1 and 2. During the race they only go to commercials twice or so and they broadcasted the race live during the races that were broadcasted delayed on fox in English.

  11. good luck on your commentary gig!

    i agree with sinnr 100%. why FOM hasn’t leaned on speed to do something (especially now that there’s 1 and soon 2 u.s. races) i don’t know.

    i’m not sure how the toilet situation at silverstone could come as a surprise to anyone :[ those guys that take buses and mobile homes to the infield of races have the right idea – your own private wc, bed, grill and air condish.

    1. why FOM hasn’t leaned on speed to do something

      Because they can’t. FOM have no right to tell any broadcaster how they are to broadcast the race, They have no say on how each broadcaster handle it.

      SPEED have as many commercials as they do because thats how American TV is, Nothing Bernie can ask them to do that will change that.
      The closest American sports broadcast’s have got to commercial free is the TNT Nascar Daytona races where there were no commercials but the bottom half the screen was filled with advertisements.
      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wbm0onM5ZCQ

      The problem with SPEED in terms of delayed coverage etc… is that Nascar comes 1st. I’ve seen them cut away from F1 sessions in progress to give you breaking Nascar news & delay F1 qualifying by 15-20mins to show Nascar practice.
      Frustrating for F1 fans I know, However when you look at the ratings Nascar gets on Speed & the rest of the Fox network it makes sence.

      Speed, Fox & ESPN are all about Nascar. In terms of viewership, sponsorship etc… Thats where they get the most of everything & thats why F1 (And everything else) gets bumped down in terms of importance.
      Look at the way ESPN treat Indycar for the races they show, There Indy coverage is pathetic compared to there Nascar coverage. Quite frankly the under-funded (certainly compared to ESPN) Versus production blows ESPN out the water & thats just got better since NBC started putting some money in.

      F1 has a lot of fans in North America & races held there have always been extremely well attended. However as long as Nascar gets the viewership it does & attracts the sponsorship it does, It will always be the priority for broadcasters.

      1. it’s a 2-way street – broadcasters expect a certain amount of content for their purchase (tricky with sports) and demand to justify it, while the commercial rights holder has strict terms of their own. obviously, both fom and speed are both happy with the craptastic u.s. coverage and it’s monetary situation. what a shame.

  12. I have to say that I think the lotus is one of the best cars, but definitely not the “fastest.” I think a car’s ultimate pace is really shown in qualifying, which is why we see ferrari, red bull, mclaren, sometimes mercedes up in the top spots. The lotus is fast enough to make it into q3 in the 4-6 range and then, because it is very easy on its tires, it appears very fast in the race

    1. Maybe you are right..

  13. I used to watch the SpeedTV/FOX broadcasts of races, with the BBC feed on the background to switch to during the commercial breaks. Gradually, I’ve become so fed up with the SpeedTV coverage that I hardly ever bother with it anymore. I think the network just does not give the commentators the amount of support they would need to produce a BBC-caliber broadcast. Hobbs and Matchett are able to provide insight into racing and technical issues, and they and Varsha are often able to put things in historical context, but they aren’t always up to date on the latest F1 news at the time the race broadcast starts. They also sometimes don’t know who’s being shown on the FOM video feed, including the drivers. I realize Bob Varsha isn’t always able to fit F1 into his busy Barrett-Jackson auction schedule, but come on. It all just gives the impression that F1 isn’t a huge priority for the network — which, of course, it isn’t. But it would be nice if the race broadcasts didn’t make that so obvious.

    I’d probably still be watching, though, if it weren’t for the multitude of commercial breaks. No need to elaborate on that — we all hate it. I’m not sure why they can’t do the side-by-side thing IndyCar does, but I’m sure there must be some perfectly good Murdochian reason…

    1. but they aren’t always up to date on the latest F1 news at the time the race broadcast starts.

      I’d put that down to them not been at the tracks.

      All SPEED broadcast’s are produced/commentated from the studio in Charlotte. Will Buxton is trackside but I gather not all the information he sends back gets to Varsha/Hobbs/Matchett.

      If they were sent to the tracks they could put together a BBC/Sky quality Pre/Post race. From a Charlotte studio is always going to limit them.

  14. F1 coverage in Aus really needs to be pay per view HD real time including all practice sessions. It can stil go FTA but us afficondos are willing to pay for premium coverage arent we?

    And hooray for WEB staying at RBR. I dont want to have to buy a heap of new fan gear.

    1. As many others I’m sure, I would love to be able to pay whatever people in UK pay to get Online Sky F1 here in Australia.

      I would rather watch Sky F1 in horrendous quality on-line (by “other” means) rather than watching that Free TV coverage with commercials every 7th lap.

      1. I remember what it was like watching it on 9. I’m quite happy with 10.

      2. Wouldn’t even be so bad if the commercial breaks inserted a delay into the race so you didn’t lose any of the action. As it is right now always seems like you miss something important in the races.

    2. F1 coverage in Aus really needs to be pay per view HD

      No, it doesn’t. Formula 1 is barely keeping its head above water on free-to-air – the racers get about 400,000 viewers on average. Pay per view would simply kill whatever following the sport has.

      Besides, a lot of Webber’s and Ricciardo’s sponsors subsidise the cost of coverage on free-to-air (they made a real fuss when the central and western states were on a time delay). There is no way they would agree to letting the sport be broadcast on pay-per-view.

      1. I’m not sure the pay per view model would work terribly well with something like formula 1 either. It makes a lot of sense with sports like boxing where you have one of big events that garner a lot of interest. A series that spans almost an entire year would not really fit that model in my eyes. It would be really unpopular with fans.

      2. That’s a PPV premium service for all sessions AND free to air as it is now for the casual viewer. It would add revenue not take it away.

    3. I can’t stand Network Ten. They screwed us fans in favour of higher TV ratings by broadcasting it on Channel Ten in SD. That really grinds my gears! Going from HD to SD is not acceptable in this day & age. And don’t get me started on the ad breaks.

      Now, if you don’t mind, I’m going to watch some Netball in HD on One… *facepalm*

      1. Not everyone has a HD TV!!!

  15. I just thought in light of the Vettel moving to Ferrari rumours and the ‘team harmony’ concerns that may become an issue if he were to move that I would like to propose an idea that F1 teams can adopt especially if 2 top drivers are at team at once.

    All of this No. 1/No. 2 business has always existed in F1. Tony Brooks to Stirling Moss to pick an old and obvious example. More obvious (than Schumi even), Lotus during the Clark/Chapman years. Everyone knows that Lotus couldn’t wouldn’t or didn’t support their second driver.

    I’ve always felt this to be an artificial problem, another example of F1 refusing to honor simplicity. Someone PLEASE explain why F1 won’t take the two or more cars = two or more teams approach that EVERY race series in the U.S. has?

    Yes, the Penske team is the Penske team, but each driver has separate pit crews etc. The guys on Castroneves team are trying their damnedest to beat the guys on Briscoe’s team. NASCAR same thing. The Hendrick team has five teams under that umbrella. Jeff Gordon is NOT going to defer to Jimmy Johnson. NHRA: John Force Racing isn’t a one car team: each car has its own crew, own driver, own garage, own pit stall, own set-ups.

    Do they help each other overall? Sure. But each driver is Number One within their own particular team — subteam if you want to look at it that way. You get the same thing in endurance and sportscar racing. You get the same thing in motorcycle racing — even in MotoGP, F1′s two-wheel equivalent.

    Do it that way and there’s no more of this ridiculous nonsense of “Number 1 status,” favoritism and “team orders.” The only order Roger Penske gives is, “don’t crash each other.” Each team within his team is racing the other flat out, from driver to tire changer.

    Just having a different race engineer doesn’t cut it. So please explain why F1 can’t/won’t do this. I can’t fathom the argument that there’s not enough room in the pits, garages, etc. With the money Bernie has forced tracks to spend on pit facilities, the enormous garage spaces in the Tilkedromes; that argument makes no sense to me.

    And none of this, “it’s faster and safer the way we do pit work in F1″ business either. No limit to the number of crew used on a pitstop? Why? It’s no less prone to error, and, given the crowding, more dangerous than the IRL/USAC/CART/NASCAR seven man limit. And it doesn’t have to be faster: Pneumatic jacks have been built into racecars at least since AJ Watson introduced them to Indy in the 1950s. You mean all that superfine engineering talent can’t make a lightweight system for F1 (I assume that they’re all paranoid about extra weight, but come on!) especially since the cars are already full of pneumatic and hydraulic systems? The same pit box for each car, raising the issue of “queing” for stops — why? Why is this necessary?

    Sorry to rant so far afield, but all this “Number 1″ status stuff could be stuffed once and for all if F1 took up the “teams within a team” approach. “But in F1, you have to beat your teammate!” No kidding. It’s the same in every other form of racing. Those other drivers/riders are just given a truly equal chance to do so.

    1. History and tradition. Motorsport in Europe at the top level has always been about proving whose car was fastest. If you split the teams up by driver then it’s not about the car any more.

    2. Ferrari is paying and will keep paying a price, they not going to win WCC until they either create a car that is a total domination – which is highly unlikely or get equal drivers.

      Personally I would love to see Hamilton in Ferrari next year and Bottas taking his place in McLaren.

      I also worried for Jenson, I have no idea who would want to sign him after his contract is out with McLaren :(

      1. Well, he’s got a few seasons left to get through this low ebb. He’s just not getting on with the car at the moment in qualifying. In the last race his pace was pretty good. Once the team figure out how to make the rear end a bit more predictable Jenson will be on it again like last year I think and will then be able to set about helping Hamilton as he’s too far back to challenge for the title himself now.

  16. Congratulations and all the best Keith!

  17. Interesting to note that Brundle has had more F1 races as a commentator than as a driver. His first grid walk was actually pretty good; shame they haven’t improved much over the years (mind you, the grid looked a lot more quiet in 1997). I didn’t see Sky’s grid walk last Sunday, but Coulthard’s grid walk for the BBC was not very good.

    1. @adrianmorse After watching that clip that was what I was thinking too. What a quiet grid walk. So quiet that drivers still drove through most of the grid.
      After the clip finished I bounced around YouTube and came across the Belgium GP for 1992. No grid walk, but an even quieter grid. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eMGy8lvV91I
      and without Keith’s web site around we had to rely on Murray Walker giving us all the latest news and rumours before a GP. Memory lane…..

    2. Coulthard’s grid walk was really bad after the other ones he done where pretty good from what I remember. I don’t think it’s just his own fault, It’s probably a team thing to know and tell him in his earpiece who and where to look out for people if no drivers are about.

      What I thought was really a disaster was the Eddie interview with Hugh Grant. Wish Eddie would get it into his head F1 fans don’t care what whatever famous person he is talking to is doing with their life. Just ask them who they are supporting and move on.

      I think the Hugh Grant interview was the most boring I ever seen in F1 and that’s saying something with the BBC’s fascination of talking to Di Resta all the time although at least it seems Paul is beginning to finally loosen up a bit.

      1. @snowman I saw Sky also interviewed Hugh Grant.

        zzz…

        1. I Watched the race on sky and was delighted when they interviewed Hugh Grant. I pay a monthly subscription to Sky of over £60 month so I can watch the channels that interest me (Sports being a big part of that) but what I really wanted to know when I tuned into the F1 coverage on Sunday was what Hugh Grant was doing with himself at the moment. It’s hard to find coverage of every time a celebrity walks their dog/mows the lawn in the UK.

          Thanks Sky

          1. do I sense some sarcasm in that post @aledinho?

      2. That’s dead on @snowman, I quite like DC’s laid-back style but he was winging it a little too much there. The only person he managed to find was his own colleague…I hope it was just a one-off breakdown in communication or they picked the wrong moment to start. Martin Brundle seemed better prepared, even in that very first grid walk.

        Wish they’d use Lee McKenzie and Gary Anderson more instead of Eddie. He’s ok playing drums – at least you can’t hear him talking.

        Shouldn’t complain though, other countries have got it much worse, looking at all these comments. And a new era of TV commentary is about to begin! Congratulations Keith, will try and catch some of your races this weekend.

  18. Sky Sports had done grid walks with the WSBK from the early to mid 90s.

  19. @keithcollantine Congrats. I have Setanta Africa, I’ll try wacth it. I don’t know wheter or not fellow Angolan driver Luis Sá Silva (Angola Racing Team) will be there, if so keep an eye on him :)

  20. Just a personal thought on MSC: Might it not a good idea of giving chances to new and young drivers? A lot of decorations can be put on his continuation as F1 driver but putting them aside, it only seems to me that he is just one greedy man. A wise man always knows when to leave at his heyday. No? Then follows disgrace undermining he has done so far even though it’s dubious to some.

    1. @leotef

      Just a personal thought on MSC: Might it not a good idea of giving chances to new and young drivers?

      Good thinking. Hey, you know what? At the end of the year, Sebastian Vettel will have had three years in a car that is capable of winning the World Championship. Maybe it’s time he moved to a team like HRT so that someone else can have a go at trying to win the World Championship.

      Mercedes are under no obligation to “give a chance to new and young drivers”. Like any other team, they have to take the two drivers that they feel are best for their team. So long as they feel that Michael Schumacher is one of the two best drivers available to them, he will continue to race for them.

      1. +1. If he’s performing well, feels good about it and Mercedes still wants him there’s no point in pulling the age card. He’s not driving worse than young Roseberg IMHO.

      2. With many people being used to video games, and how you can always have a try at “something different” its logical we get that sort of suggestions meant for real. But sure enough it does not fit with a real sport NOT to try and have the best car, best team and the best driver together!

    2. If he still having fun, there is no point for him to leave. He didn’t loose any speed, he did loose a dominant car and reliability not that great this season, but he is still one of the most capable on the grid so good on him!

      ps. not a fan

    3. I think its fascinating watching Schumacher claw his way back up the order. I’d love to see Mercedes throw everything behind Michael to see if he can bring home the bacon for all us old codgers and show the world we still have something to offer at any level!

    4. I agree @leotef

      You should look at this Kelly Slater: Greatest Athlete of All Time?

      They are all greedy, it shouldn’t be the greatest but the greediest. They should have all quit after 1 world title.

      1. Kelly Slater is a ripper in the water! He deserves every accolade he receives.

  21. Congratulations on the commentary gig, good luck!

  22. Good luck, Keith!

  23. I’ve just read that Spa has a three year deal “in principle” :-)

  24. So Hamilton is involving himself in the music industry? This souds (excuse the pun) like it could be hilarious. He looks fairly wasted on those pics from The Sun article :D

    As far as I’m concerned Schumacher should be treated like any other driver on the grid. Yes, he’s not getting any younger, but he’s certainly not getting any worse. He’s had terrible luck this year but still managed to deliver when he’s had the opportunity.

    Lotus really ought to bag a victory and soon. They have a fantastic car, definitely in the top 3 at the moment. It seems thie ractual race execution leaves a lot to be desired unfortunately which is frustrating because both drivers are more than capable of winning a race. Grosjean is a rookie but he’s taken to F1 (for the second time) like a duck to water.

    1. Going for the tabloid side of the story he is so wasted in that picture I`m surprise he can walk.

      I`m in no position to judge what is good or bad for a professional sportman, but hearing how Bradley Wiggins didn`t even go to his son birthday party and haven`t have a drink in a year is leave a lot to say about his preparation…

  25. jimscreechy (@)
    13th July 2012, 15:10

    Schumacher really needs to hang up his gloves now. Even given the unfortunate mishaps of the season he’s been fairly securely trumped by Rosberg who is admittedly a very good driver, but not what I would call a ‘great’ F1 talent.

    Pushing mid-forties his results are only going to get worse not better! The margins of response time, stamina and muscular precision that were with him in youth are dropping but the tiny but essential percntages that distinguish the young from the aging and merely good from the exceptional. He can harp on as much as he wants about desire, passion and commitment, but all that doesn’t amount to a hill of beans when your not scoring points because you no longer have what it takes… and please note, I am not saying he never did, seven world championships is no small feat, its just that age does more cruel things to the body than it does to the mind… or at least certainly it does them faster. I remember my grandpa at 80 saying he felt like a young man trapped in an old mans body, but he wasn’t so stupid to believe just becuase he felt that way he could challenge me in a head to head on the tennis court. The sooner Schumi realises his day has passed the better. Ross Brawn and Norbert Haug need to stop feeding his deluded ego (and their own romatic nostalgic memories) and tell it to him straight.

    1. @jimscreechy.
      IMO, if MS dint had all his misfortunes this season ; NR wouldnt have trumped MS this season. Probably MS would have been third or fourth in current’s driver standing and with 11 races left in this season , who knows MS would have got his 8th title. He has not lost all of his skills and this even SV recognize . No one is feeding his deluded ego , it is his passion , his commitment towards the sport which is giving him strength to continue despite being 43. If Merc want to win a WDC, they need Schumi and not Rosberg . Rosberg cant give those vital inputs which are required to move a middle pack running car to a front running car .

      1. a fact people dont see

        last 2 races have been trouble free for MS and look how many points MS scored in comparison to NR . MS just needs a reliable car and he will deliver you championship . Just like his early days at ferrari , a team which was going no where when he arrived and then won consecutively from 2000 – 2004 . Mercedes will win if they give MS some time and also reliable car .

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