MorrisF1

A second very exciting video (radio), in which I blather for just over three minutes about where Ricciardo might end up next year. For added comedy, turn on the closed captions. Morris Dancer

A tense rather than dramatic race, but I’m really pleased Ricciardo won. He put in a phenomenal performance to win despite losing his MGU-K early on in the race (luckily after his pit stop) and thoroughly deserved the win. Speaking of wins, the terms on the bet shifted overnight from top three placed to top two placed. On the former terms, on which I made the bet, it was green. On the latter, it was red. So, how would it be settled? In unrelated news, I reserve the right to make a voodoo doll of Mr. Sandpit. He backed No Safety Car, which we’ve both backed for several years here, and I chose not to. And there wasn’t one. A great 7.5 or so winner, even though it has annoyed me quite a bit. Before the race began there was bad news for Sirotkin. His wheels weren’t attached by the designated time and he got a 10s stop and go penalty, which is pretty damned harsh. Off the line it was pretty much formation flying. Vettel started well but the Monaco start is short and ti...

Qualifying was really rather interesting and close. Behind Ricciardo, who dominated it throughout. Verstappen had buggered his car (crashed in third practice) sufficiently it couldn’t be mended in time. So, he starts last and has a five place grid penalty for a change of gearbox into the bargain. Slightly surprisingly, Magnussen was the slowest man to set a time (the Haas has been oddly ropey all weekend, the only car to struggle to find pace on the hypersoft), with, less surprisingly, Stroll just ahead of him. Hartley and Ericsson were also eliminated. Q2 was quite interesting in that every driver eliminated came from a different team. Hulkenberg, beaten for the first time straight up by Sainz, was fastest of those departing, a tiny margin ahead of Vandoorne, with Sirotkin close behind. Leclerc managed to qualify just ahead of Grosjean. During Q2 the Mercedes chaps tried qualifying on the ultrasoft, but after the first run both were in the elimination zone so they wisely o...

Grosjean has a 3 place grid penalty for the incident during the first lap of the last race. Given this is for keeping his foot down so his car drifted across the track, endangering other drivers and taking out Hulkenberg and Gasly, this seems a rare case of a grid penalty being excessively lenient. Meanwhile, Liberty hasn’t exactly dampened down suspicions they’re trying to make everything a bit too American. Rumours abound that the proposed second US GP will get the green light and include a special deal (presumably minimal fee) for Miami. With the likes of Spa, Silverstone, and Interlagos regularly rumoured to be unable to afford to stay in the sport and last minute deals being made, this will antagonise other circuits (and European/Japanese/South American fans) if similar generosity is not forthcoming for classic circuits that offered excellent racing. There’s also been Twitter rumbling about avoiding the hypersofts at the start being a big advantage due to them graining...

Another red bet. Mildly aggrieved this weekend. Two bets, both red. A qualifying bet that was 0.04s off, and a two-halves DNF bet which involved a driver crashing into someone else, and being ok to continue. Humbug. Off the line, Hamilton easily held the lead but there was a tussle behind him which led to Vettel getting ahead of Bottas. Grosjean lost control in dirty air, his car spun (generating a lot of smoke) and he ended up taking out not only himself, but Hulkenberg and Gasly too. This prompted an immediate safety car (and pit stops for Sirotkin and Hartley). That was mostly it as far as race excitement went. Hamilton pulled away effortlessly from Vettel and retained total control throughout the race. Bottas failed to pass Vettel at the pit stop despite pitting later, because of a slow stop. However, in the latter part of the race Vettel pitted under the virtual safety car. Few others did, and he emerged (due to being delayed as Perez entering the pit lane meant h...

I feel mildly aggrieved that I backed Bottas for pole with a hedge at 1.5, he missed pole by just 0.04s yet the hedge went unmatched. So close, and yet so unprofitable. A small misjudgement on my part, but after ill fortune at the first two races (and a narrow miss at a very long odds bet in Azerbaijan) I’d like the rub of the green. Hartley didn’t make qualifying, surprising no-one. What did surprise many people was that Hulkenberg failed to escape Q1. This was largely due to a fuel pressure problem, which forced a quick pit stop and appears to have compromised his pace when he finally set a lap (this is the first time in 2018 Sainz has outqualified his team mate). Less surprising was the departure of both Williams (Sirotkin had a three place grid penalty for the crime of being sandwiched between two cars last time out, and Stroll increased his insurance premiums by dismantling some advertising with his car), and Ericsson. In Q2, neither Force India progressed, with Perez ...

In a slight surprise, there’s been agreement for 2019 to alter the front and rear wings in a bid to increase overtaking. I don’t think that’s been especially bad this year, so far, but it was tricky in Australia and probably will be in Spain too. It also indicates a more gradual change to 2021, rather than trying to make all the aerodynamic changes in that year, which I think is a sensible approach. The front wing will be simpler, the rear deeper (more DRS effect), fuel weight will rise 5kg, and weights will be separate for driver/seat/car (be interesting to see how that affects taller chaps like Hulkenberg). Have slightly mixed views about such changes, as the basis of F1 is to be as technologically advanced as possible, but it’s unfortunate such aero advances decrease overtaking (although the tyres need a look too). It’s also emerged that F1 is keen to sign Miami up for a 10 year deal regarding a street circuit. I’m not a fan of street circuits, and I also don’t thin...