Pre-silly-season-silliness.

[Zynerji]

Craziest multi driver swaps.

Alo to RBR, Perez to AT, Gasly to Alpine.

Just because.

Go!

[adrianjordan]

When is Ricardo's McL contract up?

Gasly to McL and Ricardo back to AT

[Big Tea]

Zhou to Ferrari. He is without doubt the best new driver this season.

[Stu]

Zhou to Ferrari. He is without doubt the best new driver this season.

I predict that he will be rookie of the year…

[Stu]

Hamilton to retire before the end of year, Ocon moves back to Mercedes; allowing Piastri the drive that he deserves at Alpine.

[continuum16]

Well we might be able to get rid of the “pre” from the thread if this is true Fabrega is usually pretty sound, so there’s potential in this…



I don’t think Ferrari, Red Bull, Merc, Haas, Alfa, or McLaren would change, so we have Alpine, Aston, Williams, and AlphaTauri in the mix… could be an explosive week in the news cycle!

[jumpingfish]

Vettel - Hulkenberg?

[chrisc90]

Well we might be able to get rid of the “pre” from the thread if this is true Fabrega is usually pretty sound, so there’s potential in this…



I don’t think Ferrari, Red Bull, Merc, Haas, Alfa, or McLaren would change, so we have Alpine, Aston, Williams, and AlphaTauri in the mix… could be an explosive week in the news cycle!

And Mercedes’.

RB would be stupid to get rid of Perez. He’s doing awesome this year and is a great driver with some epic races and overtakes/defence.

Hamilton to retire before the season ends is a good shout. If he can’t pick his lows/motivation up then not really Much point in racing.

[JordanMugen]

Hamilton to retire before the season ends is a good shout. If he can’t pick his lows/motivation up then not really Much point in racing.

The racing for P11 is actually much tighter and more exciting than for P1, it should be much more enjoyable racing actually?

Albon, for example, said he rather enjoyed his drive to P11.

With all that midfield fun available, it seems unlikely that Hamilton wouldn't see through the end of his contract to 2023.

[CHT]

It is not going to be easy for WDCs to quit F1 in their mid-30s and live the next 50 years of their life without racing, fame, glamour and media attention. Joining another racing series may be an option, but there is no guarantee of success or a chance to fight for the championship. Many F1 drivers have tried without much success in the past. Unfortunately for Lewis, the extraordinary 7 to 8 years as Merc driver are perhaps the best period in f1 history, so he may find it hard to deal with the inevitable downhill slide from here. With Ferrari and RBR seats filled for the next 2 years, making any switch right now will only mean taking a bigger risk of joining a mid-field team and potentially getting lapped by ex-teammate next year.

If Merc seat is vacant, I reckon Vettel will 1st in the queue?

[Stu]

Hamilton to retire before the season ends is a good shout. If he can’t pick his lows/motivation up then not really Much point in racing.

The racing for P11 is actually much tighter and more exciting than for P1, it should be much more enjoyable racing actually?

Albon, for example, said he rather enjoyed his drive to P11.

With all that midfield fun available, it seems unlikely that Hamilton wouldn't see through the end of his contract to 2023.

I would say that Albon’s enjoyment of racing for P11 is due to achievement vs expectations; Hamilton’s lack of enjoyment is the opposite.

In most races at most tracks for the previous 7 years P1 would be a realistic SMART expectation; because of the vacuum in which everything on the new cars was developed (engine, aero, fuel), MB/AMG (and LH) also believed that it would be an achievable expectation this year (in fact, listening to some of the pre-season/launch interviews with the likes of James Allison/Toto Wolff they were full of confidence). Very easy to imagine why the reality of the situation (as it is now) could get Hamilton down. Hopefully the whole “season is over stuff” is just for the media, while they get to the bottom of the issue restricting the pace of the car.

If not, then mid-season retirement is definitely on (if poor motivation leads to a reduced focus, the mid-grid pack is a very dangerous place - see Vettel, very much a former champion now).

[Jambier]

Hamilton have a contract until 2023 with Mercedes.

With them giving basically everything, 8 years in a row a dominating car, quitting them the minute they are not dominating would be very bad.

Then, with 7 titles in the pocket, yes, it make sense to quit F1 at the end of the season if the car is still slow. But not before.
And even then. Why not try out 2023 ? He might have a chance again for the title.

After 2023 there are no reasons to stay. But once again, quitting in the season would be very bad.

[chrisc90]

Hamilton to retire before the season ends is a good shout. If he can’t pick his lows/motivation up then not really Much point in racing.

The racing for P11 is actually much tighter and more exciting than for P1, it should be much more enjoyable racing actually?

Albon, for example, said he rather enjoyed his drive to P11.

With all that midfield fun available, it seems unlikely that Hamilton wouldn't see through the end of his contract to 2023.

I would say that Albon’s enjoyment of racing for P11 is due to achievement vs expectations; Hamilton’s lack of enjoyment is the opposite.

In most races at most tracks for the previous 7 years P1 would be a realistic SMART expectation; because of the vacuum in which everything on the new cars was developed (engine, aero, fuel), MB/AMG (and LH) also believed that it would be an achievable expectation this year (in fact, listening to some of the pre-season/launch interviews with the likes of James Allison/Toto Wolff they were full of confidence). Very easy to imagine why the reality of the situation (as it is now) could get Hamilton down. Hopefully the whole “season is over stuff” is just for the media, while they get to the bottom of the issue restricting the pace of the car.

If not, then mid-season retirement is definitely on (if poor motivation leads to a reduced focus, the mid-grid pack is a very dangerous place - see Vettel, very much a former champion now).

Exactly what I was going to reply with.

Albon isn’t used to those sort of finishes, so a huge buzz for him and the team.

LH used to being at the top, usually top 4. Being near enough mid-last would be down heartening for him. Imagine being on the top for 95% your career then struggling massively.

It will be interesting to see what comes given more technical tracks with overtakes into corners. Although Imola did see us good overtakes outside of the drs zone. GR into the chicane. Bottas into turn 17 to name a couple

[chrisc90]

Plus it all depends on the drivers entering F1 aswell from F2.

Isn’t it that if they are WDC in F2 they can’t compete another year in the series? Not sure on exact ruling but sure I’ve heard it somewhere

[Big Tea]

Remember the other pies Ham has a finger in. F1 is a shop window for him. Where else can he get as much exposure for working a weekend as he does in F1, even if he is not leading.