MorrisF1

Hey, kids. Despite having the technical aptitude of a baked potato, I’ve put together a small video (well, radio, really) rambling about why testing shouldn’t be taken seriously. I’ve covered a few of the points above, but thought I’d give this a crack, see how it goes. I had initial planned to set up a Youtube account, but as I’ve no idea how often videos will appear (if at all) I’ve postponed that. Morris Dancer

Between the end of last season and now I tipped, several times, two bets for the Drivers’ as well as sometimes mentioning two others (one Driver, one Constructor). The bets I liked most were with Ladbrokes, each way with boost (fifth odds top 3) of Bottas at 16 and Alonso at 12. I’ve said for a while a key factor will be whether the Renault engine stacks up, which is even more about reliability than pace (with better reliability Red Bull would’ve outscored Ferrari in 2017). If the Renault is tasty, then McLaren and Alonso stand a good chance, particularly as the Red Bull drivers are quite even and Alonso is likelier to have an overt number one status. If the Renault is rubbish, then Bottas only has to finish top 3 of four drivers (the others being his team mate, Vettel and Raikkonen) which seems eminently possible. The two other bets I mentioned less frequently were Vandoorne at 81 each way, because of a bit of buyer’s remorse (not impossible, but probably a bit daft on my p...

All in all, the 2017 season was not a classic, but it was quite good for the most part. There was a genuine title contest until the last quarter, and a fiercely competitive midfield, behind Force India. Up until about Singapore, the 2017 title was closely contested in a very engaging rivlary between Vettel and Hamilton. A combination of the Singapore wipeout and a sudden bout of Ferrari gremlins put paid to that, alas. Further down, Red Bull and Force India were firmly 3 rd and 4 th , with Williams doing well to secure 5 th and a very close battle behind them between Renault, Toro Rosso and Haas. For McLaren and Sauber, it was a year to forget. Both teams have different engines next year, McLaren ditching the Honda for Renault, and Sauber no longer having to use a year-old Ferrari (indeed, they’ll be known as Alfa-Romeo Sauber following a new title sponsorship). The penalties situation was frankly ridiculous. We have a 20 car grid, which is a bit small, and drivers ...

Well, that wasn’t exactly a rival to Canada 2011. The race was perhaps the most tedious of the season and the only retirement due to reliability was Ricciardo (he had been running in a green position). One is not delighted. There are a few interesting snippets to discuss, though. Off the line it was formation flying at the sharp end but Hulkenberg had a stinker, getting passed by both Force Indias. He got Ocon at the first corner (the Frenchman had nowhere to go, Hulkenberg beside him and Perez ahead) and later passed Perez off-track. The Mexican rightly complained and the German got a slap on the wrist, a mere 5s time penalty. I rate Hulkenberg highly, but he was clearly in the wrong in this instance, and the penalty was weak. The Mercedes were in a league of their own, Hamilton following his team mate closely but unable to effect a pass. Further back, Ricciardo was close behind Vettel, and Verstappen was close behind Raikkonen (the Red Bull looked a shade faster in ra...

Ha. Well, it’s been that sort of year. I decide against backing Bottas and, contrary to all indications, he manages to win pole. Good for him, galling for me. In Q1 the Toro Rossos were absolutely dreadful, with Hartley dead last and Gasly ahead only of his team mate and the Saubers (who at least have the excuse of using a year old Ferrari engine). Grosjean ended up being the fastest chap to be eliminated at this stage, which is unsurprising as the Haas has looked a bit ropey all weekend. In the second session it was unsurprising Stroll, who had struggled in Q1, and Magnussen were eliminated, but slightly more surprising both McLarens were. Alonso was edged out by Massa, who, despite retiring, remains significantly faster than Stroll. Sainz was another slight surprise, qualifying in 12 th and reporting a problem with power right at the end of the lap. Then we had the final session. Contrary to all expectations, Bottas pulled out the fastest lap on his initial run and ...

Hartley has another 10 place grid penalty, this time for the MGU-H. In first practice, which is a lot hotter than qualifying or the race will be so is not especially useful as a guide, Vettel was fastest, a tenth ahead of Hamilton, Verstappen following close behind. Raikkonen, Bottas and Perez were next, with Alonso, Vandoorne, Massa and Ricciardo rounding out the top 10. In second practice, the order was reversed at the sharp end, with Hamilton two-tenths up on Vettel (but the Briton looked substantially better on long runs). Ricciardo was next, with Raikkonen and Bottas next and Verstappen sixth. Perez, Ocon, Hulkenberg and Alonso came next. At this stage I think it’s looking nice and tight, though I think Hamilton has the advantage. Hamilton was again fastest in third practice, three-tenths up on his team mate. Raikkonen was two-tenths off Bottas, and a hair’s breadth ahead of Vettel. Ricciardo and Verstappen were a few tenths down the road and, half a second ba...

A very eventful start, and congratulations to Mr. B on backing Vettel to lead lap 1. Annoyingly, of the bets I shortlisted the only ones that didn’t come off were the long shot and the one I actually backed (Ricciardo spun on lap 1 and could easily have crashed out... but didn’t). To make matters worse, between 3 and 4pm Betfair decided to void my bet on Hamilton not reaching the podium (which came off). My initial attempt to contact them didn’t work as the site kept timing out. Before the race started there was some concern at Ferrari over the electronics, definitely on Raikkonen’s car and maybe Vettel’s too. Happily, this seemed not to cause a serious problem. At the start, Vettel just about managed to get ahead of Bottas thanks to a better second phase off the line. Meanwhile, Ricciardo spun off-track and came very close to crashing out. But he didn’t. The swine. Grosjean lost control slightly which unfortunately coincided with Ocon passing him on the outside, puttin...