All-purpose open-wheel (F1, IRL) racing thread

Yeah, Abu Dhabi pays a ton to be the last race of the season. On paper it looks like a semi-interesting track but it just isn't. Terrible race year after year.

I love Monaco, but it's gotten especially absurd now that the cars are so big. Baku is pretty cool. People love Singapore and I don't get it -- there isn't a single thing about that track that is interesting. Valencia was the worst. The New Jersey circuit they were trying to get going looked somewhat promising, but they've shifted to a Miami parking lot track that looks awful.

 

As was anticipated at Abu Dhabi, the eminently forgettable Daniil Kyvat is out at Alpha Tauri, to be replaced by my my my my my (Yuki) Tsunoda!

Tsunoda to make F1 racing debut with AlphaTauri in 2021, in place of Kvyat | Formula 1®

We don't know if Red Bull is going to throw Alex Albon out the airlock, but even if he keeps his job, there's a lot of turnover on the grid for 2021:

IN: Mick Schumacher (Haas), Nikita Mazepin (Haas), Yuki Tsunoda (Alpha Tauri), Fernando Alonso (Renault/Alpine)
OUT: Romain Grosjean (Haas), Kevin Magnussen (Haas), Daniil Kyvat (Alpha Tauri), Sergio Perez (Racing Point)
NEW TEAM: Sebastian Vettel (Racing Point/Aston Martin), Carlos Sainz (Ferrari), Daniel Ricciardo (McLaren)

Amusing that if Albon does lose his seat to Perez, the only teams that won't have had a change in their driver lineup for 2021: Mercedes, Alfa Romeo and Williams.

 

Purely a guess, but I think Albon is going to stay put. He closed out the season pretty well.

 

F1 did some "best moments of his F1 career" videos on their YouTube channel and for Kevin Magnussen, they included the infamous "suck my balls" incident. Best laugh I've had all day.

 

Perez in, Albon out at Red Bull, should make for some interesting duels between them next season:

 

Glad to see I was wrong. Sergio deserves the seat. Albon is just so ... underwhelming.

 

I don't like Albon with the mumbling and the whining and such, but boy, this seems like a quick hook, especially for a team that has such a ballyhooed development model.

 

Ultimately Red Bull needs to figure out what's more important: the racing team, or propping up the young driver program.

They put Kvyat, Gasly and Albon in the car before they were ready because they wanted to stay in the program and it keeps biting them in the ass. You just can't justify keeping Albon when he's that far off Verstappen's pace. Moving to Perez is the smart move for the team.

Perez is on a one-year deal with Red Bull and probably already has something lined up at another team for 2022. My prediction: Yuki Tsunoda gets promoted to Red Bull and it all starts over.

 

RIP, identical twin brother of Mario Andretti (and father of John Andretti). Sat in the car for photos before the 1969 Indy 500 while Mario was recovering from burns in a practice crash.

 

Hamilton knighted in New Year's honours list

It's official. Gonna take three stabs at this joke.

1. I hope that when the queen raises her sword, Bono can be heard in the background shouting, "Get in there, Lewis!"
2. Looking forward to seeing Valtteri pit with a puncture in Australia and the crew pulls Lewis' knighthood insignia out of the right front
3. Score bug indicator changed from HAM to SIR.

 

Somehow he's going to cross the "Sir" with "Still I Rise." Just waiting to see how and where.

 

Cyril Abiteboul is out at Renault/Alpine.
Renault announce shock departure of F1 team boss Cyril Abiteboul ahead of Alpine rebrand | Formula 1®