Yes of course "tongue in cheek" , I don't know how to green font. Max is a gentleman to the (wait for it) MAX . Very likeable. Although he
did kick his car once.

.

Red Bull has a great team . They have one great driver and one very good driver . Can't lose sight that Checo would be leading the championship for RB if there was no Max . They are firing on all cylinders . Race strategy is excellent . Pit stops are flawless . They have raised the bar .

It is the responsibility of all the other teams to step up and meet the challenge . It is NOT the responsibility of the FIA to dumb down or alter rules so others can catch up . That is not what competition is about .

Fact: not every team can win the championship just like in all sports . Dominance is the level everyone works to achieve . Some make it and some don't . Life's an ongoing struggle for excellence . And that's the way it should be .

I watched the Pre-race coverage. They all took a short train ride and then walked a few minutes to the track to show how green they are. Of course, they did not mention the truckloads of camera gear and the camera staff that had to get to the track.

And on F1 itself, they have the very same thump thump thump "music" blasting with a DJ dancing around at every venue. When it is just a beat, with no music involved, an iPod hooked to the speakers could do that. It sure is boring to hear thumpa thumpa thumpa and no real tune or other instruments at all for an hour. I guess I am a total geezer and truly don't understand the appeal of that. I guess there must be no royalty payments with techno "music" and no challenge to change from one song to the next. Get off of my lawn!

Sorry this is getting boring…
Is their tech/aero that much better, or are they just better at “interpreting” the rules?

I know Mercedes dominated in the past but not like this, it’s getting dull to watch.

The Mercedes period:
2014 16 of 19
2015 16 of 19
2016 19 of 21
2017 12 of 20
2018 11 of 21
2019 15 of 21
2020 13 of 17

Apart from '17 and '18, it was mostly a watch to see who finished 3rd.

Max isn't killing the sport, nor is Hambone. The FIA killed the sport when they let the manufacturers have way too much say in the rules making and determining what the formula of Formula One will be, by regulating motor parameters so tightly that there is essentially one design package that everyone has to design to, and by then freezing development under the totally bs argument about costs and wastes. The team that gets this right at the time the regs are tweaked are essentially guaranteed to win it all (unless you are Ferrari, who throw away more championship talent than is deserved, mainly due to very piss poor strategists). The teams further the killing when they start changing the car (and the strategy) through the season for one driver over the other (cough red bull cough). As for the show, well, Liberty are getting what they wanted, but that has absolutely nothing to do with racing.

Still, I watch, waiting to see who will finish 3rd.

Max had to work to win the last two races. It was not a start from the pole, and lead every lap, and get the fastest lap to boot.

Well said, good points there. I'd like to add the cars are too big and the wheels are butt ugly

This is the difference between F1 and IndyCar.

F1= different cars.
IndyCar=spec cars.

Which is better for the fans?

And in other F1 related news.....

https://sports.yahoo.com/f1-driver-carlos-sainz-reportedly-chases-down-thieves-who-stole-his-300k-watch-in-italy-023425989.html

The aero and suspension package work together in a way that is significantly better than the other teams can manage. Mercedes went down a bad development path partly due to a misalignment between their simulations and reality, too.

When I was in law school I did a summer study in London in '98. I had been an F1 fan for years at that point but had never seen an F1 car in person.

We went to a bar one night in London and they had a Williams car there. I couldn't believe how small it was. I literally thought it was a 2/3rds replica or something.

Back to the Italy GP: the penalties are sometimes pointless. George's was of no consequence and he was stupid for getting it. Hamilton's penalty should have been a drive thru or worse. You are found at fault for crash but all you get is 5 seconds, meanwhile the guy you hit ends up out of the points.

I tried to get the F1 App to solve my Spectrum cable issue over the weekend. Now I know why I have not been able to get it installed; my bank (USAA) thinks the charge is fraudulent I suppose since it is from England.

Took me about and hour and a half on Saturday morning to get to the bottom of it. At first F1TV thought my email address didn't work so I couldn't verify. Then the agent realized the payment didn't go through.

USAA actually sent me a text on Friday when I made the purchase asking if it was OK. I responded immediately that it was OK. They still didn't pay. Then on Saturday the first agent I spoke with said it was paid, it wasn't. I called back after still not being able to login; next agent looked and found that the payment still wasn't authorized. At that point quali was over so I just gave up.

Thanks to Spectrum, Disney, and USAA for a great weekend.

Whew that was quite the crash by Stroll . Glad it appears he's OK. The crew will be working like dogs to fix that mess .

WOW !!!! Quite the Q2 session . Should be an interesting fight for pole .

VER out of top 10. And facing sanctions for impeding cars behind. And he was a whiner

Liam showing he belongs . Yuki I am sure is looking over his shoulder. And Haas with both cars in top 10 ? What ???

Like to see Kmag get a podium, or Hulk

Promises to be a more interesting than usual race.

I unabashedly support a #16 victory.

Interesting quali. Both Haas and Ferrari turn on their tires very quickly but also take the best out of them sooner than other teams. With Max being so far out of position I am going out on a limb and predicting George for the win.

Best
Les

Both Haas in, and both Red Bulls out of Q1. Who I wonder what the Odds in Vegas were for that bet.