2016 Formula 1 Season

[LeroyPatrol]

recording stopped before I could see the post race interviews. Watched last night. Good race and funny to see Lewis slowing lol. Obvious what he would like to do. I hope next season with the rule changes is a bit more competitive.

........Leroy

[Tiny]

recording stopped before I could see the post race interviews. Watched last night. Good race and funny to see Lewis slowing lol. Obvious what he would like to do. I hope next season with the rule changes is a bit more competitive.

........Leroy

I'll fill in for you Leroy; the post race interviews were actually quite jovial, all in a good mood, Lewis congratulated Nico on the championship, shook hands & all.

re; Lewis slowing, I had a good chuckle when the team told him to pick up the pace & he said "In the lead right now, I'm comfortable where I am."

Lewis Hamilton is adamant he did nothing wrong or unfair by slowing down the pace and allowing rivals to close in on Mercedes team mate Nico Rosberg during a tense title decider in Abu Dhabi.

The defending champion was repeatedly asked to increase his pace by his team during the closing stages of the race, particularly when Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel closed in on fresher tyres. But Hamilton, who needed Rosberg to miss the podium in order to snatch the title, gave such instructions short shrift during the race, and afterward said he had not done anything untoward.
“I don’t think I did anything dangerous today, or unfair,” Hamilton said. “We’re fighting for a world championship, I was in the lead of the race, so I control the pace. That’s the rules.
“For me I’m in the position where I’ve had a lot of points lost during the season so I’m out there fighting, and I generally never try to do anything to harm the team. But we had already won the constructors' championship so today it was down to me and Nico, and the team still felt they needed to interfere.
“I don’t know why they didn’t just let us race. I knew being in the lead I was losing the championship, and there was never a moment I felt I was going to lose the race. I don’t really have much to say to them to be honest. There was never a moment I felt I was at risk.”
Despite his frustrations, Hamilton said that Rosberg’s triumph - rather than their on-track fight - that should be the main talking point.
“We shouldn’t let it overshadow the fact Nico is champion,” he said. “It’s an amazing feeling to win the world championship.
“I feel good, I did everything I could this year, especially in the final races. But Nico had a clean year without any real issues to be honest, that’s why we sit in these positions. He did a fantastic job so congratulations - and I look forward to fighting with him next year.”

[irritant]

I get the feeling Lewis might be looking to join another team.

[ol' boy]

I get the feeling Lewis might be looking to join another team.

Nope... Nico Rossberg quites F1 !

[LeroyPatrol]

Yeh heard that on the 7am news

[Seymour Butts]

I certainly wasn't expecting it from Nico.
Like others I guess, I thought Lewis would be the one to leave Mercedes first

[ol' boy]

I've actually been really impressed with Nico's behaviour this year...
I thought a few years ago, he was a bit cocky, but he has been a real gentleman about the way he conducts himself.
Good on him for retiring...
You must think there was an offer from somewhere?? 18 million is a bit to turn down.
And to get out of the fastest team.... wow.

Would LOVE to see our Ricciardo in a Merc battling with Lewis next year.

Not sure what the change in race cars is going to mean either?

[Uncle Fester]

+1 about Nico.

From what I read:

Ecclestone wants to see Alonso driving Merc. Lets see what money will do.

Engines stay basically the same next year so I would expect Merc still to dominate (unfortunately)

Just wider tyres, more downforce(effects all cars the same), more rules, not that exciting.
...but drivers like the idea of the wider tyres, maybe more action in the curves.

[LeroyPatrol]

Alonso is old and won a couple of championships. We want younger drivers like Max Verstapen actually racing. Remember what vettle was like when he started?

[Seymour Butts]

I've been scrolling through all the comments made by both Mercedes but more importantly the ones made by Lewis.
Lots of cheap shots in Hamilton's comments.
I get the feeling he's really pissed off.
At least Nico is retiring 'Un Defeated' Lewis now has to win another one to do that.

[ol' boy]

Lewis is too busy being Raper isn't he, he just drives F1 cars on weekends

[Seymour Butts]

It seems next years dates are confirmed

[ol' boy]

Niki Lauda is having a sook over Nico's retirement;

The former world champion was angry at Rosberg for the timing of his announcement and the fact he gave the team no prior warning about what his future intentions were.
“What annoys me the most is that now Nico is telling us that he would have continued had he not won the world championship,” Lauda was quoted as saying by Germany’s Die Welt newspaper.
“This is something he could have at least hinted at when he signed his contract. In this case, we could have prepared a Plan B — we would have had to in order to be ready. But it is as it is.
“We all gave him the opportunity to become world champion in a fantastic car — and then he tells us he wants to retire.
“This has created a huge hole in this great working team. And we’re left looking dumb.”

[Uncle Fester]

Alonso is old and won a couple of championships. We want younger drivers like Max Verstapen actually racing. Remember what vettle was like when he started?

So is Ecclestone.

If I was part of the Mercedes team and wanted to stay on top, I would be looking first at the driver who came third in the championship.

[ol' boy]

Niki Lauda actually said they have approached Alonso... its between him or bringing up one of the younger drivers