No German GP means 20 races in 2017

36 comments on “No German GP means 20 races in 2017”

1. 

   Canderous (@yoshif8tures)
   25th November 2016, 0:15

   In future years to come, after Rosberg and Himiltoj have long since retired and the stats show that Rosberg will be the 2016 champion, nobody will remember the how’s or whys of who had poor reliability or DNFs, because in the end all that matters is who’s name is at the top regardless of how many wins or pole positions. And in my mind that’s all that matters because to be second is really the first of the losers.
   1. 

      pSynrg (@psynrg)
      25th November 2016, 7:16

      And Lewis Hamilton is the second least losing driver in the history of F1. Good stuff innit! :)
      1. 

         PorscheF1 (@xtwl)
         25th November 2016, 8:17

         @psynrg How about Prost losing by half a point, or Ickx, or Massa, or Hamilton/Alonso in ’07, there have been drivers much more deserving of the title in a season that also didn’t get it. Hamilton is the better driver of the two but I can only be happy for Rosberg if he clinches the title, whatever imaginary asterisk some fans will add. Out of the last three seasons Rosberg deserves one title, and most likely Hamilton will clinch a fourth one next year.
         1. 

            pSynrg (@psynrg)
            25th November 2016, 8:42

            @xtwl I have no issue with Rosberg winning the title. I would actually be gutted for him if he lost it at this stage, by what would be an incredibly cruel twist. The only ‘fair’ situation would be if he was genuinely out raced by at least three drivers.

            The remark above is just a counter to the Lewis will be the first loser. In this instance yes, but there’s no escaping the fact that he is the 2nd least losing driver in the stats books…

            Ultimately I don’t think Lewis will come away from this season too disappointed in himself (assuming the almost inevitable.)
            1. 

               pSynrg (@psynrg)
               25th November 2016, 8:43

               …by stats books I mean – the driver with 2nd most number of wins (not just this season!)
            2. 

               krxx
               25th November 2016, 16:21

               @psynrg
               And Lewis Hamilton is the second least losing driver in the history of F1. Good stuff innit! :)
               In this instance yes, but there’s no escaping the fact that he is the 2nd least losing driver in the stats books
               …by stats books I mean – the driver with 2nd most number of wins (not just this season!)

               – Actually, being 2nd on the list of ‘most number of wins’, doesn’t mean you’ve incurred the 2nd least of ‘defeats’, i.e. races you’ve participated in which you didn’t win. For example, a rookie will have far less losses than any of the WCs. And in fact, the driver that leads HAM in the ‘winners list’, is also the ‘bigger loser’.
2. 

   Paul A (@paul-a)
   25th November 2016, 0:17

   Shame about the German GP. Ecclestone is quoted as saying: “They’re saying, or I think they’re saying, ‘We’d be prepared to continue with the same terms and conditions that we’ve had for the last two or three years,’ which are no good for us.” Sheesh — Bernie you are really getting greedy prior to retiring … or getting fired.
3. 

   @HoHum (@hohum)
   25th November 2016, 0:18

   Bernies bluff is being called, just ask yourself who most needs who, the people who own the tracks or the people who own F1? It’s going to be like a run on the banks, where will it end, and more interestingly will Malone want to re-negociate ? And will it be a complete turnaround in the balance of power come 2020 when contracts with the teams need to be re-negociated. ( I’ll leave it to ANON to correct my factual errors but I believe my premise is sound.)
   1. 

      beneboy (@beneboy)
      25th November 2016, 18:45

      @hohum
      Hopefully we’ve finally reached the day when classic circuit owners realise that the old “pay us more every year, or we’ll take away our event that you make a loss on, every single year” argument from Ecclestone only works because they agree to it.
      The more circuit owners that walk away from his deals, the better. Let them run a season with almost every race held in some bloody awful circuit in a horrible dictatorship of a country with no racing pedigree and hardly any fans, and see how easy it is for them to sell it to fans and sponsors.

      Even if it took a few years for them to go crawling back to the classic circuit owners, what have they got to lose ?
      A loss making event that fewer and fewer fans are willing to pay to attend each year that requires you to spend a fortune on upgrades and that does nothing to help you, and won’t even give you a highlights reel to use to promote their sport.
      1. 

         pcxmac (@xsavior)
         25th November 2016, 22:52

         its great for F1 to see circuit owners walking away from Bernie. It means things will become more competitive, which means prices will go down, and opportunities will increase.

         More people need to say NO to F1. Until F1 has been brought down low enough so that stupidity is not tolerated, and that political corruption has less opportunities to screw over those who don’t wield the “power”. If F1 only had 15 races next year, that would be great. It would cause people to really think about changing things so that more people win, instead of rich lazy liars filling their coffers.
4. 

   Harvey Lorenzo
   25th November 2016, 1:26

   Since Germany will drop off I think the 2017 calendar can use a few more tweaks:
   Australia 26 March
   Bahrain 9 April
   China 16 April
   Russia 30 April
   Spain 14 May
   Monaco 28 May
   Canada 11 June
   Azerbaijan 25 June
   Austria 9 July
   Britain 16 July
   Hungary 30 July
   Belgium 27 August
   Italy 10 September
   Abu Dhabi 24 September
   Singapore 1 October
   Japan 15 October
   Malaysia 22 October
   United States 5 November
   Mexico 12 November
   Brazil 26 November
   1. 

      BasCB (@bascb)
      25th November 2016, 7:20

      Why not have Baku and Canada the other way round? That way you have less trouble from jet lag and it gives an extra day of travel. Not sure Sochi that early in the year is a great idea, then again, I don’t think Sochi is a great idea anyway.

      And i am sure that if Abu Dhabi wouldn’t be paying huge amounts to be the season final, we could happily have Brazil there. But since they do, they will be the final race again.
   2. 

      mfreire
      25th November 2016, 15:22

      Having a GP in Abu Dhabi is a bad idea. Average temperatures there are still in the 100’s. Personally I would have the Malaysian GP right near the Australian GP and the AD GP in the Malaysian GP’s spot.
      1. 

         mfreire
         25th November 2016, 15:22

         *Having a GP in Abu Dhabi in September is a bad idea
         1. 

            Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
            25th November 2016, 15:59

            No, you were right the first time. At least as far as Yas Marina is concerned.
            1. 

               pdaavv (@miuzi05)
               25th November 2016, 18:22

               And that’s why GP circuits have so many safety marshals and medical personnel, to deal with burns like that.
            2. 

               mfreire
               26th November 2016, 5:06

               Yes, absolutely. I think we all know Yas Marina is a boring, dreadful track and it has no business even existing at all in its current layout. But I personally like the idea of having one GP in the Middle East; if I had to pick one track at the moment to have an F1 race it would be at the Dubai Autodrome.
   3. 

      Jerejj
      25th November 2016, 16:31

      @Harvey Lorenzo Abu Dhabi is too hot in September, and here’s a better version of the calendar should only Germany drop:
      1. Australia March 26
      2. China April 9
      3. Bahrain April 16
      4. Russia April 30
      5. Spain May 14
      6. Monaco May 28
      7. Canada June 11
      8. Azerbaijan June 25
      9. Austria July 2
      10. Britain July 16
      11. Hungary July 30
      12. Belgium August 27
      13. Italy September 3
      14. Singapore September 17
      15. Malaysia September 24/October 1
      16. Japan October 8
      17. USA October 22
      18. Mexico October 29
      19. Brazil November 12
      20. Abu Dhabi November 26
5. 

   OmarRoncal - Go Seb!!! (@)
   25th November 2016, 2:49

   Alonso sells us every year that he has driven one of his best seasons ever. That and saying he will get the third in even probably eleven years time!!! I don’t deny his commitment, but after many years saying he would end his career in Ferrari, in his own words the best team, and then going back to McLaren, in his own words the team, well, this guy is his own marketing department! Let’s see if the so-called samurai can achieve that slippery third title.
   1. 

      Mashiat (@mashiat)
      25th November 2016, 14:30

      @omarr-pepper So we’re making up facts now? I don’t recall Alonso saying he was at his absolute best in 2008, 2009, 2010, 2013 or 2015. But hey, it’ll be easier just to make things up so I can diss a driver I dislike.
      1. 

         OmarRoncal - Go Seb!!! (@)
         25th November 2016, 15:54

         @mashiat oh boy! Now I will have to spend all my weekend to look for the links of what he has said every year!!! So far I remember he said it back in 2012, then 2014 just before jumping to McLaren, and last year he gave his more-than-100% “fact” a couple of times.
         1. 

            Mashiat (@mashiat)
            25th November 2016, 16:01

            @omarr-pepper You made my point for me. He made those statements in 2012 and 2014, years which you would find hard to argue as his best. So none of this “Alonso sells us every year…” At the end of 2015, he actually stated that he wasn’t driving at his best in the year, whereas this year he has been on fire. His results and the difference to JB proves that.
      2. 

         JerseyF1 (@jerseyf1)
         25th November 2016, 21:29

         2009: https://www.jamesallenonf1.com/2009/10/alonso-i-have-the-worst-car-but-i-am-at-my-best/
         2010: https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2010/oct/21/fernando-alonso-2010-f1-season
         2015: http://www.espn.co.uk/f1/story/_/id/13973662/fernando-alonso-one-my-best-races-deserved-fifth
6. 

   evered7 (@evered7)
   25th November 2016, 8:01

   So Alonso is never doing Le Mans?

   Great of Vettel to praise Max. Hope he has seen the lines and tries them the next time in rains. Get a look at Alonso’s starts as well :)
7. 

   ColdFly F1 (@)
   25th November 2016, 8:53

   that had all been equal, he would have been champion

   I’m also of the opinion that HAM is the (slightly) better driver within the MercedesAMG team.
   But shouldn’t ‘all been equal’ also mean that ALO, VET, RIC and even VES should have had a chance in that car to define the real champion?

   I think we’re all focussing our worthiness discussions too much on a very small population. What I know is that on Sunday we’ll have a WDC who amassed the most points in 2016 (or most 2nd places).
   1. 

      @HoHum (@hohum)
      25th November 2016, 11:11

      @coldfly. “most 2nd places, iirc it has been done that way before.
      1. 

         Richard (@rick1984)
         25th November 2016, 14:24

         @hohum dont think theres ever been a championship gone to countback, think the closest was lauda beating prost by 0.5 of a point in 1984.
         1. 

            @HoHum (@hohum)
            25th November 2016, 20:00

            @rick1984, Hi Richard, I was actually referencing a vague memory of a year when the WDC went to a driver who was very consistently 2nd, while several winners had poor results when they did not win.
8. 

   frood19 (@frood19)
   25th November 2016, 9:37

   i like the graphic of all of button’s cars. weirdly, though i didn’t think so at the time, the honda livery is pretty cool. certainly very distinctive and well measured.
9. 

   Tony Mansell
   25th November 2016, 11:17

   As much as WDC’s define a driver. So do drives. We’ve been inundated with articles about Senna’s Donnington, Schumacher’s Spain and Lewis’ 2008 Silverstone over the last 2 weeks since Max tore up the manual and the field in Brazil. If we care to look further back there are drives by Stewart & Clark at the old Spa and the heroics of Fangio too numerous to list.

   And that’s Nico’s problem as much as a lack of WDC’s. He has no defining drive. No moment where you go yep, that is a driver of the highest class. He doesn’t because he isn’t. As good as he is, at the moment he is about to rub shoulders with one hit wonders like Villeneuve who is rated far below his father despite having one more WDC than him.

   A WDC might get you in the record books but that’s all it gets you.
   1. 

      Robbie (@robbie)
      25th November 2016, 12:16

      Yeah, these shmucks that have only one WDC…what useless trash they are.
      1. 

         Tony Mansell
         25th November 2016, 14:32

         Predictable retort. Snore. DO I really need to caveat a comment with ‘they are all top top drivers, just to get f1’ or is this your first time on the internet?
   2. 

      hobo (@hobo)
      25th November 2016, 15:43

      (@tony mansell) – Honestly, I think this is one of the more solid critiques of ROS that I’ve read, and seemingly unbiased. He’s had a very good career thus far and is a really good driver. But to your point, I don’t think he will be brought up in conversation in years to come–unless he wins more WDCs, which will be difficult with HAM as a teammate. And so, lacking drives which tell his story, he will probably become lost to history. In my opinion, much like Button will, almost-champ Massa, and others.

      But time will tell. I’m no HAM fan but he’s clearly one of, if not the best driver of his era. Thus, if ROS beats HAM this year maybe it will give ROS a boost and he will let loose more in the future, perhaps leading to better drives. Or maybe he’ll stop pushing as he will be content. And maybe HAM will be even more motivated and stamp his authority in 2017. Or maybe RBR/TH or Ferrari will steal the show. We’ll see.

      Regardless, I’m of the mindset that ROS is a worthy champ should he close it out this weekend. And having new members of the WDC club is a good thing.
      1. 

         Tony Mansell
         25th November 2016, 16:21

         Yes that was what I was thinking of. When we talk shop with our petrolhead friends we tend to talk about races or moves rather than stats. Still my favourite move of all time is Webber on Alonso at Spa even if Eau Rouge had long since been tamed. The audacity, the precision. I think with all drives a period of contemplation has to happen. Senna at Monaco or Donnington ARE so great because it was a long time ago and we still talk of it. Im a huge fan of Nico the person and he is super quick and consistent driver but LH like Max is a once in a generation driver. They have the drives and the moves to back that up, not just the stats (ok future tense for Max)
         1. 

            bosyber (@bosyber)
            25th November 2016, 19:18

            Interestingly Tony, @hobo, Button at least had some great races, like Canada 2011, parts of 2012, but also a lot of 2003.
10. 

    Sensord4notbeingafanboi (@peartree)
    26th November 2016, 3:02

    In response to COTD. I agree with your conclusion, but I would say that that is heavily based on the assumption that Nico’s season was plain sailing. I called it assumption because if you analyse the season up until Malaysia, Nico should be champion on all accounts. After Malaysia we can argue that Nico was just managing the gap, as we did with Lewis last season after Lewis won the title. Those races were of no relevance to who is the quicker man. Based of the whole championship, I would say Lewis should win it, but I can’t simply know if I can look at the championship that way. Lewis had many noticeable mechanical glitches, but only one cost him dearly, and actually at one point Ham had more PU’s than Nico, for a short while that is. Ham and Nico had many bad starts but Nico’s summer bad starts cost him victories against Lewis, not to mention that Nico was recipient of borderline discriminatory penalties. Considering this final stretch I would still think that Nico deserved to win 2014 more than 2016.

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