Motorsport

I don't think so. I think that about halfway through the conference it dawned on him that they were not getting any questions from the usual suspects. Which leads me to believe they actually really weren't there.

/edit I've found some confirmations. Massively disrespectful, also to Esteban and Pierre.

I'm not sure we can ever know whether the reduced press conference attendance was some sort of calculated sleight. Of course there will be plenty of journalists with qualified respect for Max, especially British ones. He keeps running his rivals off the road and then playing the victim. No amount of winning will change things because the reservations stem from his attitude and approach not his ability.

Seems like Max decided long ago he wasn't fussed about being internationally popular (like Hamilton) or his legacy (like Vettel). He just does what he does and refuses to accept any criticism or make any changes. It is what it is at this point.

Similar to when he said Hamilton only won cos he had the best car. Well yeah he did for the most part but you've still got to do your bit, something he hasn't done quite often enough in the same position. Rather he spoke his mind though than turn into a media trained bot like Hamilton did for a good few years.

This British media whinge card they pull every so often is also fucking garbage really. The British mainstream media largely couldn't give a shite about F1 and in fact when Hamilton was winning every year he was hated by plenty here. The British F1 media would be criticising Verstappen if he was running Leclerc/Sainz/Alonso/whoever off the road. Its got absolutely nothing to do with the fact that his only ever title rivals have been British. In fact F1 is largely unpatriotic in terms of competitor support compared to most sports imo.

You cant tell me the British Media slate Verstappen for 1) regularly being an arsehole and 2) regularly showing appalling driving standards whilst the rest of the world outside Holland never say anything bad about him and purely praise his supreme talent.

He does an awful lot of whinging for someone who doesn't care what people think.
 

F1 for me has always been a weird one. There is obviously some element of tribalism, in that I like Ferrari, Red Bull etc. But whenever someone wins the championship multiple times, then they turn on them. 

But it isn't like football that you support Arsenal, United etc. It is a real I want to see a fall from grace for that driver.

All those guys you mention were different characters and came from very different backgrounds. I guess that's why it's interesting! Not sure I agree that it's about success more than anything else.

We all know people we otherwise respect who drive selfishly or turn nasty in certain competitive situations. Up to each individual what they are happy to overlook and make allowances for.

I'd describe Hamilton as aloof more than arrogant in his earlier years. Then he went through years of saying the same media driven thing after every win - "shout out to all the fans out there". I think its probably only the last 5/6 years where he's become comfortable in himself.

Vettel, yeah complete redemption arc from seeming a bit of a dick to genuinely sound guy.

Alonso, always been about him and him only.

Not sure what it says about me, but I’ve always gravitated towards the arrogant, egotistical, assholes of the sport Always loved a bit of Senna, Alonso and Vettel. Verstappen is tame in comparison, although I’d guess every F1 driver is an egotistical nightmare to a certain extent.

Vettel somehow even managed to skirt the fine line between asshole and complete dude, too.

Would probably have somehow wound up in both Team Hunt and Team Lauda if I was old enough.

At the end of the day, sport is entertainment and nice guys are boring.

Watch to the end for the surprise.

On the Finnish side of things.

www.autosport.com/wrc/news/wrc-champion-rovanpera-tests-red-bull-f1-car/10671145/

Who needs talent when your Dad keeps you employed?

Same vid popped on my timeline. It is amusing to see them cut together.

Maldonado and Stroll are bad in different ways though the end results were similar. Pastor was pretty talented and could be exceptionally fast on occasion. He just had totally the wrong temperament for motorsport. Drove far too aggressively with no margin and was actively dangerous as a result. That Barcelona win was deserved though.

Whereas to me Stroll fundamentally isn't F1 level and looks like he's on the edge of his capacity too much of the time. He's not as actively dangerous, but he's a bit slow in all regards and has so many incidents where he seems caught off guard.

He's a lot more similar to Latifi, except his dad bought a team so he's had a long career rather than been binned off as soon as his level became obvious (2018 after being well beaten by Sirotkin).

It's so unfair when you think of the many many better drivers that have been booted to the wayside or never even got a chance.

At times I feel a bit sorry for Lance too. He must be acutely aware of his limitations but he's kind of trapped given the level of his father's backing.

It's only going to stop when he calls time himself and who'd willingly walk away from being an F1 driver in their twenties? He's not quite so bad that it's untenable but he must know what everyone thinks. He must see it on the faces of his own mechanics.

Edit: hadn't seen Nazo's post. Yes exactly!

Hahaha.

I guess I'm saying the same thing in a more situational way. I think he just gets overwhelmed with the amount of stuff a modern F1 car requires drivers to manage.

Ross Brawn used to say that Schumacher only needed 60% capacity to drive the car so could dedicate the rest to strategy and tactics.

Stroll seems to require 99% attention just to stay on the track.

Lance Stroll is 35th on the list of all time number of F1 starts.

Not sure what my point is, other than its mildly amusing.