Little snippet of a Brocedes fanfic im tempted to write.

Nico did not care that he was commiting damage to the property, he needed answers that no one was giving and the calls that were going unanswered. The door gave way to his third bash from his shoulder, it ached so badly and he could hear Vivian barely calling his name.

He looked around the apartment and found it so bare.

Like no one had been living here at all.

Everything that had a home on the shelves and walls, all gone.

"Nico"

He scanned each room and found it all the same, everything was gone that had been there. Nico could feel his body going cold, Niki's words echoing through his skull.

No, he would not just give up this world.

This had been his dream

Scratched that, It had been their dream, together.

Them vs The world.

When did it change from that to fighting against each other.

Thats when he spotted it on the glass table on the living room. There sat a picture frame and a letter with his name in dark ink.

He slowly approached the glass table and picked up the photo frame.

A younger version of himself smiling looking up at a younger version of Lewis who had his arms wrapped around Nico's shoulders.

One word to describe the feeling of that photo.

Love.

He felt his hands begin to shake as he placed the photo frame down and lifted the letter and opened it. Nico could feel Vivian behind him a few steps, she had been silent the moment they had entered the living room.

He read the words etched on the paper out loud.

Nico

In a world where I have to choose Racing and You.

....

Just some thoughts on almost driver team pairings and the potential butterfly effects from each, all very much AU.

Lewis Hamilton decided Mercedes was just too big a risk from McLaren in 2013. This resulted in their second choice (Hulk) joining Nico Rosberg instead, both giving Hulk podiums and wins and giving Rosberg the 2014 championship a couple years ahead of schedule. Maybe Lewis as Niki Lauda’s number 1 choice in a fading McLaren still joins Mercedes in 2015 but he’s joining a team where Nico is their most recent champion and as such their competition over the next few years is less resentful and Nico has the confidence to fight without mind games . In short brocedes but they were both champions before becoming teammates and it changes everything.

Carrying on from this thought in normal 2016 Nico Rosberg tells Toto he’s retiring at the end of the season regardless of the outcome far earlier than he actually does and they do manage to sign Hulk before he signs with Renault again ending his podium drought.

Toto gets his wish and when Valteri is struggling in 2018 on his one year contracts he actually does manage to sign Max Verstappen from 2019. Does this mean there’s a Max v Lewis championship battle ahead of schedule? I can definitely see it for 2020 in the HAM-BOT-VER podium era as well as 2021 of course. Knock on effects involve Daniel Ricciardo staying on at Red Bull and although I can’t see him beating Lewis or Max in 2021 the dominance of the car in 2022/3 may have made him a world champion if losing his edge was a result of his McLaren days rather than a natural progression. If it was a natural progression it is also more likely that Charles could have had a proper shot at the championship in 2022 as he did beat Checo (barely) even with Ferrari being Ferrari that year and it would be interesting to see how dominant Red Bull would have been in 2023 potentially without a driver that’s 15 seconds ahead- I can see multiple race winners for a start even if they get the championship.

A long shot that would likely never have happened but Sebastian Vettel returns to Red Bull in 2021. Ferrari drops him early on in 2020 (let’s say Checo never won that glorious race and he stays on at what becomes Aston Martin for a straightforward swap) and Red Bull was very much looking for a more experienced driver and what’s a better storyline than having Seb return to partner Max? This has ramifications of if Seb got his edge back and it was a three way title fight in 2021 plus he stays longer in the sport with a fast car, or if he was more a Checo/Valteri figure but managed to take valuable points off Lewis (let’s say Silverstone) for a less controversial end to the championship. You also get more of a relationship between Max and Seb instead of just parallels and likely some weirdness from Charles about that too. It’s definitely a bit of a middle finger to Ferrari as well.

The Ferrari Driver Academy does the sensible thing and does not listen to Haas about wanting German sponsorship. Thus Mick goes to partner Kimi at Alfa Romeo instead and gets a more functional team to develop in. Would definitely be curious to see if that would have made a difference!

Ron Dennis does not put a rookie in the fastest car on the grid but still speed runs his progression. As such Fernando gets his third world championship and Lewis still gets his a year later (sorry Kimi).

Oscar Piastri does in fact go to Alpine. This could mean Daniel Ricciardo stays on another year at McLaren with no broken contract when the car actually does get fast (would be interesting to see if he could make that work or not) and also that they might have a spare seat in 2025 where they would court one of their favourite sons for a Carlando reunion in a McLaren that could potentially fight Ferrari long term. Alternatively Alpine is breaking apart at the seems and Mark Webber still does his a plus managing and gets Oscar out of there for 2024 anyway. For 2023 it would mean that Pierre Gasly stays on at Alpha Tauri and that whole mess of Alpha Tauri musical chairs is avoided.

BONUS. Honda pushes for Max to join Aston Martin in 2026 just as he’s potentially looking for an out from Red Bull amidst new engine regulations and an uncomfortable environment. We know they want to work with Max again already. There may not be a championship fight but we do get Alonso and Max as a chaotic and sensational teammate pairing doing more than the car is capable of and a team where all drivers, manufacturers, and financial backers are properly pushing in the right direction. Or maybe he joins after Fernando takes a step away from driving and is in the back room pulling in those points with Lance still around.

BONUS. I just like to think of the pure chaos that would be a George and Max teammate pairing that is not going to happen but would be pure gold. Max gets infinitely annoyed at Mercedes for not knowing how to build a car but has enough experience fighting for wins and podiums in previous not too competitive Red Bull cars that he makes the best of it but George makes it very very hard at times and he is so not used to a teammate that won’t just get out of his way at this point that the “princess dickhead” tiffs become very common. George has a bunch of resentment that he’s not treated as first driver even now and from his side he’s not about to let Max pass just because he’s Max Verstappen and it’s just very funny to watch. Alternatively (in very much crack territory here) Horner has enough of Toto posturing about Max and signs Checo for one more year before stealing George in 2026. Toto shows up for a duel at dawn.

Would u agree that Brocedes were the next ProSenna (at one point colleagues, then friends, then enemies then friends again) but Merc’s failed intervention, nvm the apparent favoritism widened the gaps instead of filling them in? Ur thoughts also on Merc’s tendency to erase Nico from the narrative and their history that is happening a lot lately 👀

I think they were the new great sporting rivalry. Any sporting rivalry that has its own Wikipedia page is one of the greats - were they the next Prost/Senna? Well, I don’t necessarily think it’s useful to compare them, in the same way I don’t think we should call any driver the next Ayrton Senna, they’re their own person and just say champion or multi-champion if that’s what you mean. For the sake of argument though, let’s compare.

In terms of being two drivers with wildly different driving styles who were each other’s greatest rivals, and at one point at the same team, they fit the bull. Hamilton favours a more instinctual, Senna-style drive that is sometimes (fairly or unfairly) characterised as “talent”. Rosberg favours a more analytical, data-driven style that was a hallmark of Prost (hence his nickname “the Professor”) that is sometimes characterised as “hard-work”.

Likewise their media personas fit the bill. Senna was a more fiery presence who often spoke without thinking, part of a great history of Brazilian drivers of usually similar media approaches, whereas Prost was frequently accused of being cold and a media-robot, like Rosberg. Where this falls down is that if Prost and Rosberg were both as robotic as their detractors suggest, the rivalries would not have been nearly so explosive. In either case they fit, broadly into the red-oni blue-oni archetypes (look this up on TV tropes).

Here is where the comparison falls down: Senna and Prost did not have the personal history of Hamilton and Rosberg. Likewise they only lasted only two seasons at the same team and both were multi-world champions. Whilst Prost pips Senna mathematically with four to Senna’s three, consensus in the motorsport community suggests that had Senna not died he would have exceeded Prost. Part of this owes to him being younger and from a different racing generation to Prost. Following Prost’s retirement from racing they learnt to respect each other and built a friendship away from racing. The death of Senna means that people often forget about this stage of their relationship. Hamilton and Rosberg fell apart completely following Rosberg’s retirement.

I do think Mercedes exacerbated the problem. Toto Wolff was an inexperienced team principal walking into a situation in which even great and seasoned team principals like Ron Dennis, Ross Brawn and the like would have struggled with. He routinely made unbalanced calls (i.e. punishing Nico one time and not balancing it with punishing Lewis another) and was overly deferential to the opinion of Niki Lauda, who was a lot of a lose canon at this point. Toto was very aware of his mistakes of this era when Valtteri replaced Nico, to the point of actively mistreating Valtteri to make sure there was a clear second driver. He has then been aware of his mistakes with Valtteri leading them to lose a solid second driver and has been downright chaotic in his management of George and Lewis. My general opinion is that whilst he might be a good executive to have at Mercedes, he is an absolute mess as a driver manager.

However, to be balanced and fair to Toto and the broader Mercedes team, great rivalries like these are never managed well. That’s what makes them memorable and it’s also why they rarely stay at the same team for very long. Mercedes stuck it out where other teams would have fired one or both and convinced both of them to stay where one or both might have left. Likewise, the aura of a rivalry like that does something to the world of motorsport. It’s essential sacred, and their sacred duty to preserve it to the best of their ability. At every turn, Toto and Mercedes wanted to avoid getting involved, avoid handing out punishments and avoid anything that might damage that rivalry. When they did come down they came down on the side of the existing world champion, as per the theology and philosophy of racing.

'I'll make Seb's life a misery' Lewis Hamilton discusses rivalries with Sebastian Vettel and Nico Rosberg and reveals why he will NOT join Ferrari [part 2/2]

In the second of our two-part exclusive interview, Lewis Hamilton talks with SunSport’s Formula One man Ben Hunt

While Hamilton is battling against Vettel for the title, he no longer has to fight it out with his former team-mate, Rosberg. The two had known each other since they were kids, but their relationship turned toxic at Mercedes, and when quizzed if he was happy Rosberg retired, Hamilton added: "It has not made things easier for me but it has made the environment a better place to work in. When you remove a negative and then replace it with a positive, it is like having a circuit-board and you have a bad fuse, that’s the whole frickin' unit gone. When you replace that fuse, the whole thing works again. I am still pushing myself to new limits. He could be here and I’d still be driving like this and he knows it. It’s like when you have been in an unhealthy relationship. You only stay in it because you love that person. It is not until that relationship ends and you get further down the line you realise, 'Shit, that relationship was not good for me.' We are now positive as a team. The hurricane that was built within this team is now blowing towards Ferrari." If he wins the title here in Austin, or next week in Mexico, Hamilton will equal the four titles held by Vettel and Alain Prost; however, he would become the only British driver to achieve the feat and this will cement his place as the nation’s greatest. Sometimes in his post-race interviews his sincerity is missed, but Hamilton says being a British-born four-time champion would be incredibly special. He said: “It definitely means a lot. What does it mean to me winning a fourth world title? It is difficult to say until you have got it because you don’t know how you will feel. It is a strange sport, because people complain and say that I’ve won it because I’ve got a great car, but every single world champion has a great car. It is not like tennis where it is down to the athlete. Here, it is down to the team. It is about the driver being able to exploit that complete package. But to take a step ahead of the other great drivers in Formula One, I would be very, very proud. I don’t know if you even notice but when I am on the podium and when I look back and see the British flag, I am very proud of it and I hope people see that. It is a very humbling experience."

okay okay OKAY sorry for the ask you’re about to get. have not gotten sleep and am a little(very) delulu right now. also it’s sebcedes and mick i am delulu always. sorry if this feels like i’m barging in unprompted. angel is lewis obvs, but devil vs “guy who looks like my dad who i try not to look at”. gut reaction is immediately angel lewis devil nico looks like dad/trying to ignore seb. BUT seb doesn’t look like mick’s dad he just looks like A dad. and alsooooooo is mick trying to ignore seb? i think he’s trying to not look at nico. and seb can always be characterized as a devil lbr. but then i stared thinking about it more, and about how much has changed over the last few years. and also about how mick has changed over the last few years, at least in the way he presents himself to the world, i don’t know that man. okay. when they’re on the grid together seb is the devil and nico is the guy mick is trying not to look at. post seb retirement and post mick losing the haas seat nico is the devil and seb is the guy he tries not to look at. lewis stays the angel

Anon I'm going to offer you three ways to solve this sebcedes dilemma*

First of all: Lewis as the angel, Nico as the devil, Seb as the guy Mick is trying not to look at. You hit the nail on the head with this one. There is an obvious connection between Seb and Michael. It could probably be argued that Mick wishes he were able to have the relationship with Michael that Seb had. In that respect, looking at him is painful. Lewis is the angel because he's beautiful and powerful and holds himself at a distance. Nico is the devil because Mick has fallen victim to Lewis pov anti-Nico rhetoric.

Second: Seb as the angel, Lewis as the devil, Nico as the guy Mick is trying not to look at. Seb is the angel that is tacitly telling Mick how to act. Lewis is the devil that's inviting Mick on a slightly inappropriate Colorado sexcation. Nico is the guy Mick is trying not to look at, because he's the last guy to ever race Mick's father (as a teammate), and he's a shadow from Lewis's past that Mick is simultaneously grasping at and trying not to ignore.

Third: Nico as the angel, Seb as the devil, Lewis as the guy Mick is trying not to look at. This is true to the historia abscondita universe. Mick is so in love with Nico that he becomes angelic. Everything he sees is filtered through Nico's point of view and amplified by Mick's own drive and fury. Seb is an irrational enemy, someone that shieled Mick from the "truth". Lewis is the guy that replaced Mick's father as king and has hurt Nico in ways that Mick can't fully think about just yet.

*In general, a sebcedes dilemma is when you must categorize three or more people/objects/concepts as sebcedes. I do this all the time. Every group of three things is sebcedes, somehow.

my favorite hetcedes girl!lewis dynamic would be kind of a continuation of 'desire unfolds' by bestliars where girl!lewis (or louise, elle, etc) also hits the wall of women's racing and is like a role reversal of your wag story. I know non racing lewis au's usually have him (or her in this case) go into music or fashion but I can't imagine early 2000s girl!lewis would know that about herself and wouldn't pursue that in time for it to make sense (i feel like for these wags you had to have become famous in your career before your wag status, or else it won't pan out). The Catholic guilt narrative especially without racing in the way would make it so they got married rather young. Their relationship would still be complex and not perfect because I envision in this au nico would still be racing and have 7 or so championships, not because he wants to but because he has to carry the ambition for both of them (2014,15,16,17,18,19,20 is easy to achieve in the Mercedes dominance when you have no teammate competition). I don't think she would want him to stay home and have a happy family and instead be encouraging him to stay in F1 for as much success as she wished she had. And if they did have kids I still think she would be at every race lol. It could also be interesting to explore how that level of dominance and success would contrast with his personality (as i don't think he would be partying it up with hollywood like lewis did during that era, so he wouldn't be F1's figurehead in the same way lewis is today). Also him equaling Michael's championships after how his relationship with Michael was????

But also, I can't creatively write to save my life so this won't be a thing I write lol. I wish I could tell someone my idea and instantly get a fabulous fic back lmao

I also love your toto idea! I know you said that it would be difficult to do girl!nico/lewis because of how he would feel entitled to end up with her, but I think that entitlement and almost cockiness could be an interesting side of him to explore. Especially when he has all the options of women you could want in front of him but he's still expecting Nico to be his. Could be interesting!

I would personally find that super depressing to write because the constant background information of what we know: lewis is the greatest racer of all time, the 7 titles nico is winning is hers and the only reason she can't and is instead known as his wife is due to her sex. ofc not all fics are supposed to be happy and romantic but there's no happy ending beyond lewis having to accept and have her man vicariously living out her dreams (ergo be discontent of that potential What If life forever). you as a reader would pity lewis the whole time

you do raise a good point that she would be too young to know herself yet to get into fashion/music, although probably later in life with nico's money she'd have access to those avenues.

although the idea that nico is the one who wants to retire and be with his family while lewis is the one who keeps pushing him to renew his contract and bribes him with another baby he won't have time to properly see is kind of interesting.

but it's not my flavour, sometimes the more realistic idea is not the better fic. but I would read it if someone wrote it and did the dynamics right

I personally find it easier to do girl!nico hitting the racing ceiling and being perfectly discontent about it because she has so many safety nets, even as Toto's problematically younger gf where the power is imbalanced, she's still the daughter of a world champion, she's still rich, she still graduated from imperial college. with the hetcedes you proposed lewis married young, there's still that class insecurity, that universe's GOAT chose her because they were childhood friends but now he has all the pick of beautiful women in the world should he want (even if he's 100% loyal), and the discontentment would just be too much.

with girl!Nico hetcedes of "lewis still chooses her" it veers too much into traditional heterosexual romance for my taste. but yeah I'd be down to read it someone else wrote it hahaha, there's just a lot of delicate gender power dynamics to keep in mind when doing a gender swap fic and still have it be compelling. a lot of work!

https://www.tumblr.com/leosxrealm/741425875076186112/why-do-i-feel-like-lewis-is-retiring-soon-hes?source=share

Why do u think that

honestly that just popped in my head when i first saw the rumors/announcements

and i feel like i should give some kind of warnings here - i’m fairly new to f1 (yes leo we know you’ve mentioned that 1000s of times) but i have seen bits and pieces of the f1 world here and there before. so i might be completely wrong about literally everything

moving on🗣️

i started officially following and watching f1 since last september/october, and i’ve always thought lewis looked kind of lonely?

he doesn’t have a lot of friends on the grid. he is civil with his fellow drivers but that doesn’t mean he considers them a friend (imo)

that doesn’t mean he doesn’t have friends at all. he does have friends outside of f1 but due to him traveling sm, he doesn’t get to meet them often.

both his friends on the grid (seb and nico) are retired. (and other issues that i’m guessing we all know)

also the reason he doesn’t have a lot of friends might be because of his “introverted” personality (he doesn’t interact with drivers a lot or participate in conversations)

“introverted” in brackets bc it might be forced (?)

this is from an article i was reading

and it just might be because all other f1 drivers (except alonso) have met as kids at some point in their life (he doesn’t get along with alonso so he isn’t really left with a lot of options)

and i’m pretty sure these were rumors (about lewis wanting to quit after the 2021 season) but you can’t help but think if there’s a possibility they might be true

i think (this is just my opinion don’t come after me) that lewis did want to quit after 2021, we all know he ain’t a quitter so he gave f1 and mercedes another chance, but with max/red bull domination, he doesn’t see much hope for himself, of him winning another title

mercedes hasn’t been the same like it was in the 2010s neither have ferrari

makes you question why would lewis wanna go to a team that hasn’t been doing good lately, and then lewis posted on instagram with that caption “chance to fulfill another childhood dream. driving in ferrari red.”

and welp, he can only do that when he’s still on the grid

also the fact that he’s 39 and he just might think that his time’s almost over. he’s gonna be 40 in 2025 by the time he joins ferrari

“bUt aLoNsO iS sTiLL dRiViNg” he’s not alonso. seb retired in his 30s, lewis might wanna do it now

lewis has signed a multi-year contract with ferrari and i think he might stay till 2026/2027 to check out the new team (audi) and then leave

and yeah all that stuff makes me think that lewis might be leaving soon </3

racing might be the only thing lewis has known and i’ve only known racing with lewis in it. ngl, i might not be his biggest fan but i’ll miss him

also such a random and probably mean thing to say but i don’t think red is lewis’ colour. or maybe i’m just too used to seeing him in merc colours :(

side note: my inbox is open for discussion just don’t be rude :]

that’s all i have to say

“tHaTs aLL i hAvE tO sAy” proceeds to write an entire essay

easy, so easy

for obligatory otp asks! and @unabashedlycasualangel because the other ask got too long and split it in two. enjoy <3

Who would end a heated argument by defending their actions with ‘because I love you!’?

Lewis and Nico fight all the time, even when there is no championship to win between them, even when only one is left on the grid. They fight about breakfast, they fight about schedules, about attending parties or staying at home watching a movie on their couch. It's in their DNA, ever since they were young and naive enough to think they could have it all. It almost ruined them. Lewis gets riled up. Nico is the quiet, calm one, behaviour learned when they used to bully him. Too pretty, too girly, hair too long, are you sure you're a boy? He knows that yelling won't get him anywhere. He lets Lewis yell, get it out of his system, say whatever he needs to say. Nico knows it's better like this than not talking at all, than ignoring each other when they are two feet apart. Like this, Nico knows his existence affects Lewis.

Other times, they fight about important stuff, about careers, about life. Lewis doesn't understand why Nico can't keep his mouth shut when he's commenting for SkySports. Why he needs to state his opinion on stuff that really doesn't matter coming next race. How can Nico stand all the hate he gets online after? Nico could say it's Lewis' fault that he gets that hate in the first place, but he doesn't. No one forced Nico to retire, no one handed Lewis the championships that came after. It would do Lewis an immense disservice to ignore the work he's done ever since Nico took a step back. Driving at 300 kph brings out the worst in them and Lewis learned how to control that. He's the better one out of the two of them.

What Nico doesn't understand is why Lewis cares. It's just a job and Nico is good at it. He won’t stop anytime soon just because he’s hurting a few fragile egos. If they can’t take then it means they’re in the wrong business.

"It's because I love you," Lewis tells him after he races in Jeddah. "It's because I hate seeing those words said about the person I love.” He deflates, like a balloon. “Idiot,” Lewis adds lamely, as an afterthought. Nico doesn’t — can’t say anything to that. He stares at Lewis and Lewis stares back. They don’t tell each other— that. Nico suspects they’re still too emotionally stunted for them to reach that level of vulnerability. And yet Lewis is defying everything and anything Nico has even known once again.

“You—“

“I love you,” Lewis says again, the easiest thing in the world. “I love you and I wish you loved yourself the same way I do.”

“I—“ Nico has to clear his throat. “You do realise I can’t know what that means.”

Lewis sighs. “Come here, sweetheart.”

Nico goes into Lewis’ arms, lets himself be hugged, kissed, loved. Once you start it’s easy, so easy.

obligatory otp asks! <- send me any number from here + a ship!

So, if Lewis to Ferrari is literally one step away from happening, I have a few takes, which tbh might not be up everyone’s alley, but honestly they are crucial in the sense (both from an engineering-ish and psychological perspective) (engineering-ish because I’m supposedly an engineer who is one semester away from graduating with my Engineering Bachelor’s?!)

So Engineering wise, let’s look at the car preferences. Charles likes oversteer, he prefers the limit of it. Lewis however, prefers understeer. And this could be quiet a problem because in the case if Lewis joining Ferrari, they would have to again do the equation of who to prioritize in car build, over or under, Lewis or Charles

Another thing to look at is Strategy. We all know Ferrari is the biggest fuck up when it comes to their strategy calls, they down right have no sense in it. And yes, while Mercedes have had this kind of shit show going in last year (COTA was a damn clear example) I don’t think Ferrari are suited enough for the type of shitshow that would happen if they have 2 number 1 drivers.

Additionally, we all know that after Micheal, Mercedes was kind of revolving around Lewis. Yes they’ve fucked up in 22 and 23, but let’s not forget the years prior, where lewis was DOMINANT (I’m looking at you haters of max and RBR dominance).

Now to a more psychological side of things. Ferrari have just renewed with Charles, it’s literally been 1 week. In their renewal, they stated that Charles is the team leader, he is the number 1 driver, he is the one who will lead and guide Ferrari. Which we saw in this week, with the contract announcement video, the shift in momentum in Ferrari, Arthur becoming one if Ferrari’s development driver AFTER he was dropped by the Ferrari Drivers Academy. You can’t say that Charles had a hand in this.

If Lewis were to join Ferrari, this shift that Charles is the number one man in the Scuderia would mostly collapse. I mean, if you have a 7-time world champion in your arsenal, you would do everything to give him what he wants. Whether that would be car preference, priority, the better strategy, etc. And Ferrari IS a messy team in that sense. They focus on politics and sponsorships A-LOT, I mean, the Santander backup for carlos and how the sponsors have played a part in the build of the car and the priority Carlos was very prominent. They would shift from “Charles is our man, our number 1 driver” to Lewis in MERE SECONDS.

In addition, Lewis KNOWS how to play these political games. I mean, going from McLaren to Mercedes, after Micheal retired to today, where you had multiple teammates and YOU had the priority (let’s not look at Brocedes rn, I’ll still get to it) and you had the team do EVERYTHING you want, in order for YOU to Dominate. Yeah, Lewis knows how to play the games. And let’s not forget what he said when rumors that he was going to Red Bull were like. He clearly said that he won’t leave, he’ll stay in order to re-build the team back up to its glories, etc etc. Or was it his way to jsu say he’s ONLY opposed to energy drink vroom vroom team not red prancing horse vroom vroom team?

As for Brocedes, again, it was a game if politics. PURE POLITICS within Mercedes. Lewis is continuing his games and kind of building a team to his liking, but he was met with one who’d known his games, who’d known how to play them (que Nico aka Britney). The fact that Nico was a factor that brought Lewis to Mercedes, yet left after winning, leaving the entirety of the sport, just shows that there was something within the team, and maybe Nico wouldn’t have had the way he’s had in 2016 ever again in the team, where he wouldn’t have been able to race or do what he did in 2016.

So, from engineering and psychology, the Lewis signing to Ferrari wouldn’t make sense, and Lewis and Charles would be okay team mates, they won’t be the best of friends because of the fact that they both are number 1 drivers. Of course only time would tell, but brainrot has been brainrottinh since last night and I just needed to get this off my chest (que more that you know playing in my head rn) (I did Not realise how long this is until rn and I’m extremely sorry fir this long ass ask

These are all very good points, without a doubt. And it's really interesting to read your take on this situation from an engineering standpoint especially, so thank you so much for sharing your thoughts! ❤️

But I honestly can't agree or disagree with any of them for two reasons:

There is no guarantee this rumor will actually pan out and prove to be true.

We have no way of knowing, one way or another, how this would all play out should it turn out to be true and Lewis does end up joining Ferrari for the 2025 season.

The 2024 season still hasn't even started, and so many things can - and likely will - happen long before any of this even comes into effect, if it does at all.

Whatever may end up happening in the future, only time will tell how it will all go down. And it will be very interesting to follow the development of this whole situation, if the rumor has any real truth to it.

Lewis Hamilton steals the show with bold purple-sequined outfit for his arrival at Miami Grand Prix

Lewis Hamilton steals the show with bold purple-sequined outfit for his arrival at the Miami Grand Prix... with Roger Federer, Elon Musk, Serena Williams and Patrick Mahomes among star-studded list of race-day attendees Hamilton turned heads, but Charles Leclerc & Nico Hulkenberg showed out  Celebrities like Roger Federer, Will.I.Am and Skepta  all arrived for the race  DailyMail.com provides all the latest international sports news  By Jake Fenner For Dailymail.Com Published: 18:08, 7 May 2023 | Updated: 18:09, 7 May 2023 Lewis Hamilton made a strong first impression in Miami Gardens as the seven-time world championed wowed with his outfit ahead of Sunday's 2023 Miami Grand Prix. The Mercedes F1 driver entered the paddock in a bedazzled outfit covered in purple sequins finishing it off with a pair of black Dr. Martens boots in the baking Florida sun. With highs around 80°F (27°C), Hamilton made one of the bolder choices in outfits of the rest of the grid - but he wasn't the only one making their mark. Haas driver Nico Hulkenberg stepped out in a matching shirt and shorts bathed in pink and palm trees while Alpha Tauri's Yuki Tsunoda went with a simple white linen outfit. Ferrari's Charles Leclerc went with an oceanic theme - arriving in baby and sea blue colors. Mercedes F1 driver Lewis Hamilton turned heads with his purple sequined attire in Miami It's ahead of the second ever Miami Grand Prix - which should prove to be full of excitement Ferrari's Charles Leclerc went with an ocean-themed outfit, arriving bathed in blue Haas' Nico Hulkenberg has seemed to fully embrace the Miami theme with this outfit Meanwhile Alpha Tauri's Yuki Tsunoda went with a linen set to stay cool in the Florida heat Aston Martin teammates Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll both looked set to race Last week's race winner Sergio Perez arrived and looked ready to win once again A number of celebrities arrived early to watch the drivers prepare for the race and see all the behind-the-scenes action. Tennis legend Roger Federer was spotted taking a hot lap in a bright green Mercedes AMG roadster driven by Mercedes reserve driver Mick Schumacher. Icons in the world of music were also on hand, with the Black Eyed Peas' Will.I.Am, music producer Timbaland, legendary rapper Wyclef Jean, and grime artist Skepta all seen in the paddock area. Retired Formula One racer Juan Pablo Montoya was seen walking around the garages while three-time world champion Jackie Stewart was seen speaking to Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross. Other legendary athletes like tennis star Juan Martin del Potro and World Cup winner Blaise Matuidi were photographed in Miami Gardens. Fashion designer Tommy Hilfiger was seen walking the grid with his wife Dee before the start of the day as well.  Tennis legend Roger Federer was seen taking a hot lap in a Mercedes prior to the race start Musician Will.I.Am is no stranger to Formula One tracks and was seen again in Miami Grime artist Skepta and pop artist Becky G were also in the Sunshine State to take in the race Iconic music producer Timbaland was pictured inside the Red Bull garage before proceedings Legendary rapper Wyclef Jean was also seen down near the Hard Rock Stadium Other athletes on hand include tennis star Juan Martin del Potro & ex-footballer Blaise Matuidi Former F1 driver Juan Pablo Montoya was photographed in the paddock as well Sir Jackie Stewart (L) was seen speaking to Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross (R) From the world of fashion, Tommy Hilfiger and his wife Dee were spotted on the grid Advertisement Share or comment on this article: Lewis Hamilton steals the show with bold purple-sequined outfit for his arrival at Miami Grand Prix via Formula One | Mail Online https://www.dailymail.co.uk?ns_mchannel=rss&ns_campaign=1490&ito=1490

Hey, Caro, can you please introduce us to that sweet beau, Lewis Hamilton?? He's a speed driver, right??

lemme talk about this champ and beautiful man — he is a must-know. 

lewis hamilton is a speed driver: in fact, the best racer in the world. with the fastest formula 1 lap in all history, and: if he wins this season (which has just started last week, your timing to get into this is perfect), lewis can boast a whopping 8 world championships. in short: you’re asking about the right guy. let’s go.

so i repeat, he won seven years (yeah, he’s a capricorn). which equals the current record holder, mister michael schumacher himself, i’m sure you heard of him. so, about time all the world knows more about this stunner as well, sir lewis carl davidson hamilton

lewis is so good and works his butt off so hard, he has more titles — he was knighted last year — and gigantic trophies than he can carry. since we’re talking f1 where drivers have to be light and agile inside the car, lewis is of course gloriously tiny, 5′7. so, the exhausted british short king on your news and twitter feed who walks around like this on a podium after doing 300 kilometers+ is dead sure to be him. can’t miss the guy.

wanna know more? lewis is an allrounder in every field and does everything what people say he can’t. unless he’s not somewhere modelling clothes being gorgeous (he collabs with tommy hilfiger for sustainable unisex collections)...

... taking care of his nieces or godson steve which regulary melts the f1 community...

... is using his favorite little scooter...

... showing up at the met gala as one of the few guys who really get the gist looking beautiful as always...

... playing with his cute crinkly bulldog roscoe who’s always by his side and F1′s most famously beloved driver pet...

...doing the absolute most with his activism and veganism — he even created his own plant-based restaurant chain — because as i said he’s a king, lewis never shies from taking a stand even if a lot of people hate him for it because it’s a white-dominated sport...

...or posts inspirational things that make you believe in yourself...

...lewis drives, can you guess:

for mercedes!

the #1 team which usually only red bull can currently challenge. which means he has a sexy, shiny, impossibly fantastic car — with his lucky number 44, that’s how you can spot it — that is almost always leading the field. if you see this on your sports tv channel on a saturday (qualifying) or sunday (race day), i assure you it’s lewis. 44, glossy black car, pole position, check. a great talent in a perfect car equals one hell of a winning streak.

— but if you ask me, the man is even sexier, cooler, and cuter and the real highlight. just so we’re clear on this. lewis is always a breath of fresh air. believe it or not: this guy is 35 (!!) years old. needless to say, prettiest fashion icon on the grid. and yes, he has amazing hair and tattoos.

killing it. 👍 lewis brings a presence to the grid.

who’s he making proud, then? now some notes on his circle, the people you spot him with. 

family hamilton first, who do we have: 

dad anthony, lewis’ former manager. at one point he worked 4 jobs so lewis could start his career in karting. carmen, his mom. linda, his stepmom, pictured below. his brother, nicolas, also a race driver. nicolas has a disability (cerebral palsy), he competes in the uk touring championship with a modified car since 2015. like nicolas, lewis is the only (!) black driver in his tournament and they are frequently sending out very important messages about it.

now for mercedes: accompanied he is by the calm and collected finnish valtteri bottas as his taciturn team colleague and runner-up champion. valtteri is the type to sit in a north pole sauna, lewis is ever-active, so they balance each other well. no trouble there, they’re a cool duo.

and i’m not kidding, valtteri is truly finnish. this is his twitter, summarized:

add the smart, austrian mercedes boss toto wolff who has the best height difference to him. these two get along very jokingly. where lewis goes, toto is not far. very dynamic duo, this is the success factory of formula 1.

while his most competitive love-hate relationship sparking the famous ‘silver war’ was retired german champion nico rosberg since day one. who came from priviledged backgrounds while lewis did not, they are the biggest team rivals of recent f1 times and people still talk about it. the ups and downs were huge but they sure had tremendous times as friends.

while the most smooth and consistent relationship — besides with roscoe — has got to be his bond with his whirlwind assistent/physio angela cullen! 

lewis credits her for so much and treats her reveringly. you haven’t seen anything like this, they are glued to each other.

lewis’ off-grid relationships come and go because he’s so busy, colleagues come and go all the time, but angela stays a constant. so if you’re asking about who the most important woman on the circuit is to lewis, that is his personal angel(a) indeed. look how wholesome.

i mean, a picture says it all.

last but not least. lewis’ best ever friend is german driver sebastian vettel (formerly ferrari, now aston martin, struggling a lot currently :/), former 4-time world champion. these two are THE match made in heaven and support goals. seb has the humor, lewis has the cheekiness, seb is a father, lewis has his uncle duties, it just fits. everybody should have a seb to their lewis.

(^this is vet having hurried to be the first one to congratulate lewis on his latest championship win)

so now you know more about sir lewis carl davidson hamilton! you will hear a lot from him this season, he’ll continue to champion many a cause, and be in the fast lane as always.

I don’t like Toto but acting like he is the devil for supposedly favouring a world championship winning driver (he didn’t) and then saying Ross Brawn is the greatest team principle ever is so funny to me. Ross obviously had no problems with the Schumacher/Barrichello dynamic at Ferrari what makes you think he wouldn’t of clearly favoured Lewis if he stayed on at Mercedes especially after the 2014 win?

I didn’t say he wouldn’t have favoured Lewis. The reading comprehension was poor here, and you’re obviously asking a bad faith question in an attempt to get a rise out of me, which is rude and childish. People can hold different opinions from you, especially over something like sports, without it needing to be an affront to you personally. But I will answer it for the benefit of others because I have stuff to say on this topic.

It’s natural to favour the existing world champion. If you actually read the criticism I have of Toto, it’s that he doesn’t know how to manage a second a driver, not that he creates them. It’s probably a good idea for most teams, especially where teams where one driver is an existing world champion still capable of putting in a serious bid for a further world championship, to have a clear second driver.

The Schumacher/Barrichello dynamic is a good example of this. They managed to turn it around from the nightmarish Schumacher/Irvine pairing to one of the most solid driver pairings that has ever existed, with minimal animosity between the drivers. Barrichello considered Schumacher a friend! Was it always managed with grace? No! Absolutely not! (See Ferrari getting team orders banned). Was Barrichello one of the best second drivers in the history of Formula 1? Easily.

Ross Brawn wasn’t team principal at Ferrari or Benetton. Was he crucial to Schumacher winning those seven world championships? Yep. Did he get a say in the Schumacher/Barrichello roles? Probably not he was a technical director. In charge of the car, not the people. He was very kind to Barrichello and Button both when they raced at Brawn, he gave them equal opportunity within the team for a shot at the championship and it created a wonderful dynamic between them (aided by Button and Barrichello’s easy going and companionable personalities). He was one of the best TPs for me not just in his handling of his drivers but in financially putting his own money into the team for a whole year, which could easily have bankrupted him, not just out of belief that BAR could win a world championship, but also out of love for everyone that worked there. Not just the drivers, but all the technical staff, the mechanics, the engineers, the people in hospitality and back at the factory in manufacturing and administration. He saved hundreds of jobs and livelihoods. What team principal can say they did that?

Also he wasn’t going to stay on at Mercedes. He was retiring. He was never seriously going to entertain staying. But if we do entertain the notion, what do I think he would have done? Managed it a damn site better than Toto is what. For starters, he would have had a respect for Nico after years of working together that Toto just didn’t have and didn’t seem much interested in building. He would have respected Lewis as an individual but not have tolerated his attitude towards the team - beyond Nico, Lewis routinely made thinly veiled or outright accusations that the Mercedes team were unfair and sabotaging him somehow. Like that hurts if you’re Nico but if you’re the guy assembling Lewis’s car I would have wanted to scream and throw things. It’s a horrible thing to say to your colleagues who are doing the best they can to support you. Ross Brawn cared about those staff just as much as he cared about his drivers.

Who else do I consider incredible team principals, for comparison: Eddie Jordan. He never won a world championship with his team, but he had a real knack for discovering and encouraging talent. This was partly because of his background as a driver manager and partly because he realised that if the team wasn’t going to be able to win world championships, the best he could do was nurture drivers and let them go. Drivers that began their careers with Jordan: Michael Schumacher, Alex Zanardi, Rubens Barrichello, Eddie Irvine, Ralf Schumacher and Takuma Sato. He created a team that was very much a family, despite constant monetary woes, and he allowed drivers that had raced only with unreliable, backmarker teams the chance to show people that they were solid drivers. It’s why his opinion of drivers is held in such high regard (and coincidentally he was one of the first to predict and to back Hamilton’s move to Mercedes).

Ricciardo's 'ballsy' move: 'My instinct was telling me it was right'

The plane stopped climbing, the seatbelt sign extinguished, and Daniel Ricciardo exhaled for what felt like the first time in months. The Australian formula one ace was on his way from London to Los Angeles to meet some mates for a mid-season break, and was finally on his own time. No commitments, no fans, no media, no hangers-on. It was the headspace he'd been craving.

Out of contract at the end of 2018 and set to become an F1 free agent for the first time, Ricciardo had been determined to explore every option, even as the speculation over his future intensified by each passing month, and against the backdrop of teammate Max Verstappen committing to Red Bull Racing on a big-money deal until the end of 2020 last October. But the clock was ticking, and the 10 hours crossing the Atlantic gave him pause for thought. It was time to shake things up.

Earlier this month, Ricciardo dropped the bombshell that he'd be leaving Red Bull, home to all seven of his F1 wins since joining the team as the successor to compatriot Mark Webber in 2014, to join Renault, the French manufacturer ramping up its involvement in the sport as constructor in its own right in addition to being a supplier of engines to multiple teams, including Red Bull. It was a move few, certainly not Ricciardo's current employers, saw coming.

Leaving a race-winning team to move to a midfield outfit with aspirations of reprising its most recent glory days of 2005-06 with Fernando Alonso is, Ricciardo admits, "ballsy". But the 29-year-old feels it's a move that's necessary, both personally and professionally.

"I think a lot of people expected me to take the soft option and stay because they see me as a soft guy," Ricciardo told Fairfax Media in an exclusive interview.

"I'm maybe perceived as someone who is a friendly guy who wouldn't push back and make a big decision. It's good for everyone to see that I have the balls to make a call like this."

For most of 2018, much of the speculation over Ricciardo's future focused on Mercedes and Ferrari if he was to leave the only F1 family he's ever known. His five seasons at Red Bull Racing follow a two-year apprenticeship at its sister team, Toro Rosso. Mercedes has been the sport's dominant team since F1 switched to V6 turbo hybrid engines in 2014, while Ferrari, with Sebastian Vettel leading its charge, seemed the squad most likely to knock Mercedes from its perch. But doors that could have flapped open never quite came ajar.

As Ferrari dithered over whether to retain Vettel's 38-year-old teammate Kimi Raikkonen or promote promising young Monegasque driver Charles Leclerc, Mercedes elected to re-sign Valtteri Bottas to play support act to world champion Lewis Hamilton for a third season in 2019.

With a bottleneck at the top two teams, most expected Ricciardo to stay with Red Bull, where he's demonstrated an ability to win multiple races in machinery that, in his tenure, has never been capable of a championship push. But a surprise player came onto the scene in the immediate aftermath of Ricciardo's second win this season, around the streets of Monaco.

"Renault first expressed some interest around then, with Cyril [Abiteboul, Renault F1 managing director] contacting Glenn [Beavis, Ricciardo's manager]," he says.

"There were several options. I spoke to Renault, I had a couple of meetings with McLaren, and I got to speak with [Red Bull company founder] Dietrich [Mateschitz] in Barcelona and again in Austria.

"Initially, I had it in my mind that I'd be staying [at Red Bull]. But the more I thought about starting something different and taking on a new challenge, I got excited. I met with Renault and got a sense for their long-term plan. Obviously I want to win tomorrow, but the strength of Ferrari and Mercedes at the moment means it's very hard for anyone to take them on in the short-term."

Ricciardo says Renault didn't promise him the earth – in fact, the French team did quite the opposite.

"The thing that struck me about Renault was that they were prepared to be honest," he says.

"Straight away, they said 'we're not going to be quicker than Red Bull next year', but what they told me about their plans for 2020 and for when the next rule changes come in for '21 … they had some good structure in place, they're recruiting a lot of good key people, and they're preparing to win. They have a winning mentality and a realistic way of going about it, which I liked."

As Renault's approach became more serious, Ricciardo still had a two-year deal from Red Bull on the table, but something about the thought of standing pat didn’t feel quite right.

"There's been times this year that I've felt exhausted, maybe a bit jaded, and for the first time in my career, not completely enjoying F1," Ricciardo admits.

"There's been times when I've thought 'this is why [2016 world champion Nico] Rosberg retired', and he had it a lot more intense than me. Or why Casey Stoner retired from MotoGP very young. I can see how you could feel burnt out or a bit over it.

"I pushed for a one-year deal, which Red Bull agreed to, but still in the back of my mind, I wasn't sure. What if I was in the same position, had the same feeling a year from now? Would there still be other options available? I didn't want to snooker myself."

Renault set a deadline for Ricciardo to accept its two-year deal over the Hungarian Grand Prix weekend in late July, but he needed more time to ponder his options.

"Renault wanted an answer in Budapest, and the Red Bull offer was still there," he says.

"There was too much going on, so I managed to buy a few more days. But I had to make a call."

Three days after that race weekend, Ricciardo was in London, bound for LA, and with a decision to make. He'd been on the phone to his manager right up until his flight boarded.

"For the first time in I can't remember how long, I had 10 hours to myself, didn't need to be at a race weekend, didn’t need to be at an event, and I was on my own time," Ricciardo says.

"There was something about being alone on that flight that gave me the clarity I needed. The one thing I kept coming back to was being energised again, wanting a new challenge, and that the chance to change excited me. So as we got phone signal as I was coming into LA, I called Glenn and told him it was Renault."

Ricciardo met his three friends in LA, and as the quartet headed to Las Vegas for the weekend, spent most of the four-hour drive on the phone.

"The others all went out when we got to Vegas, but I stayed in the hotel because of how exhausted I was," he says.

"The next morning, I called [Red Bull motorsport adviser] Helmut [Marko] and then [team principal] Christian [Horner]. Helmut said he wasn't too surprised, that he expected it in a way. He said he had a feeling that I wanted to move on. Christian, at first anyway, thought I was taking the piss.

"After I'd made those calls, I felt like a big weight had come off my shoulders straight away. They weren't easy calls to make. But my instinct was telling me it was right. My gut feel was telling me it was right. I was waiting to have that feeling the whole way through the process as it went for months, and I got it for the first time on that flight to LA. When I finished that last phone call and it was done, I knew. I turned my phone off and left it in the hotel safe for three days …"

Ricciardo says the decision to leave is "one of the toughest" he's made in life, not just his racing career.

"It's been a 10-year journey with Red Bull. I was in their junior program in 2008, so amazing memories and things I'll always be grateful for, and things I'll never forget," he says.

"I'm sad to move on, absolutely, but excited by the challenge at Renault. Personally I felt it was good for me to have a fresh start somewhere else, I think it will be healthy.

"I've been pretty stressed all year, and now life feels pretty stress-free." (X)

Saw your post on what it would be like if Lewis was a woman. Now imagine if Nico was a woman.

How do you think that would turn out in terms of Nico's career and Brocedes?

My bestie @colors-of-feeling and I have imagined girl!Nico in depth we're scholars 🤓 cc: @thatoneidiot16 who also asked for it

considering ceteris paribus (everything else stays the same), Nico's f1 seat would absolutely be credited due to her dad being a world champion; even though she has feeder series wins. Combine that with the years in the Williams without a podium... yeah 😶 (like girl!lewis has wins in her first f1 year and literally wins the WDC + doesn't have a famous surname so no one could deny her talent.. but I digress, in this universe lewis is the dude he's always been)

the childhood karting friendship with Lewis 🥺 obviously they couldn't brag about tearing up hotel rooms anymore, but I assume they were still kicking ass together in karting so lewis has a base respect for her that other drivers might not. The 'Britney' nickname becomes more misogynistic "it's cause you're so beautiful" ok and when I catch you mark webber???🔪🔪🔪, which is reducing her to just a pretty face

I think once she starts beating Michael Schumacher in the same car people start being like ok. hold awn. I feel like the media would try to ship Lewis/Nico a lot "childhood sweethearts" angle that would probably push them further apart. Nico immediately starts dating Vivian (guy/girl?) at 18 and lays on the PDA thick while Lewis goes through a string of famous gfs (which is what happened in this universe too lol)

I do wonder if early 2013 Lewis gets bothered by the "ha, beaten by a GIRL" narrative but he will grow since then. The inherent tragedy of brocedes is that they never really make it, so once again~ the mind games, the breakup, now with gendered dynamics at play! (People assuming she's too sweet/innocent to do war crimes 🥺) assuming Nico's a dumb airhead cause she's blonde even tho she got into imperial college... but it's ok she's learnt to play with those assumptions. culminates into Nico winning the 2016 WDC and retiring. it would be kinda sick if at her retirement announcement she was like "oh, we're expecting🤰 ☺️" (cause irl Nico retired to be a family dude, and I assume girl!nico couldn't get pregnant/take months off from f1 while racing) would be kind of a power move idk

Nico is a part of the itty bitty titty gang. It's not relevant but it's something I thought about.

either Lewis and Nico were each other's first times OR they see each other as siblings and are grossed out ppl ship them.

Valtteri Bottas admits he didn’t realise how hard four-time Formula 1 champion Lewis Hamilton works until he partnered him for the first time at Mercedes this year.

Bottas joined Hamilton at the title-winning F1 team for 2017 after the shock retirement of last year’s world champion Nico Rosberg.

The pair have built a strong and friendly working relationship, which is in stark contrast to Hamilton’s previous partnership with Rosberg.

Speaking to Motorsport.tv’s weekly programme The Flying Lap, Bottas said: “I always knew he was a good driver, but I never knew how much he works.

“He works hard, he spends a lot of time with the guys, at the race weekends, visits the factory quite a bit.

“I didn’t know him as a person at all really, it was only what I’ve seen from the outside. This year, I’ve learned he’s a very nice guy, just a normal human being, as the rest of us.

“[He has] good manners, good respect and doesn’t play any games.”

Bottas has impressed, winning two races and playing a key role in helping Mercedes win its fourth consecutive constructors’ title, but he has been outclassed by champion Hamilton, who has taken nine wins.

The Finn has excelled on tracks with low abrasion surfaces, such as Russia, but struggled on tracks at the other end of the spectrum.

“The issues I’ve had in some races this year, especially after summer break - where we had circuits like Spa, Suzuka, Malaysia - those were places I struggled the most, the Tarmac is a bit rougher,” he said.

“There are longer corners, more high-speed corners where you put more energy through the tyres. On smooth asphalt, you can drive it a bit differently. So we have seen a bit of a pattern there.

“I’ve seen a clear direction on which things I need to work on in terms of my driving style and how I set up the car on those kinds of circuits.

“Definitely from those races I have struggled, I’ve learned massively. I’m confident if I went back again, I will perform better.”

With a year under his belt and a contract extension that ensures he will stay with the team for 2018, alongside Hamilton, Bottas is hopeful of making a step forward next year.

“I’m personally expecting much better,” said Bottas. “I’ve learned massively this year from the whole team, from Lewis and from my own struggles.

“I believe if I work hard during the winter, analyse everything and start the new season with a team I know and with a car that I know much better because I didn’t know it at all this season, I’m expecting much more.”

Race Results

Pos No Driver Car Laps Time/Retired PTS 1 44 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 78 1:43:28.437 25 2 5 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari 78 +2.602s 18 3 77 Valtteri Bottas Mercedes 78 +3.162s 15 4 33 Max Verstappen Red Bull Racing Honda 78 +5.537s 12 5 10 Pierre Gasly Red Bull Racing Honda 78 +9.946s 11 6 55 Carlos Sainz McLaren Renault 78 +53.454s 8 7 26 Daniil Kvyat Scuderia Toro Rosso Honda 78 +54.574s 6 8 23 Alexander Albon Scuderia Toro Rosso Honda 78 +55.200s 4 9 3 Daniel Ricciardo Renault 78 +60.894s 2 10 8 Romain Grosjean Haas Ferrari 78 +61.034s 1 11 4 Lando Norris McLaren Renault 78 +66.801s 0 12 11 Sergio Perez Racing Point BWT Mercedes 77 +1 lap 0 13 27 Nico Hulkenberg Renault 77 +1 lap 0 14 20 Kevin Magnussen Haas Ferrari 77 +1 lap 0 15 63 George Russell Williams Mercedes 77 +1 lap 0 16 18 Lance Stroll Racing Point BWT Mercedes 77 +1 lap 0 17 7 Kimi Räikkönen Alfa Romeo Racing Ferrari 77 +1 lap 0 18 88 Robert Kubica Williams Mercedes 77 +1 lap 0 19 99 Antonio Giovinazzi Alfa Romeo Racing Ferrari 76 +2 laps 0 NC 16 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 16 DNF 0

Note – Gasly scored an additional point for setting the fastest lap of the race. Verstappen received a 5-second penalty for an unsafe pit-stop release. Grosjean received a 5-second penalty for crossing the pit exit line. Stroll and Magnussen each received 5-second penalties for leaving the track and gaining an advantage.

Alfa Romeo Racing Team Quotes

Weather: cloudy, 22.2-24°C air, 30.4-34.6°C track

Here’s to the next 300

Do you know what’s the best way to celebrate your driver’s 300th race weekend in Formula One?

Not sure about that, but we can be certain that ours wasn’t the best one. Poor Kimi had a wretched weekend. First he was forced to run around between paddock and pitlane to welcome the Royals of a country that wasn’t even his. (Your Majesties, please do not take offense at that – we loved having you over.) In practice, he had his feathers ruffled by a Force India (or, to quote the great man himself, “whatever the f… they are called now”) before seeing all the promise of our early weekend results fizzle out into an underwhelming qualifying session. Sunday wasn’t the finest time either. Kimi pleaded and protested, said he didn’t want any celebration. But alas, our love for the Iceman knows no boundaries and a cake was duly produced and presented to him in the pitlane. He even had to force a smile. Was it the sign we were waiting for, that things were turning around for our weekend? Heck no, it wasn’t. A contact on lap one, a too-close-for-comfort moment with Lance Stroll and an otherwise uneventful race later, we had nothing to show to mark this day. Kimi couldn’t even find solace in his team-mate’s race, Antonio having a torrid weekend as well.

A day to forget, but there’s still hope: Finland could still win the ice hockey World Championships.

Frédéric Vasseur, Team Principal Alfa Romeo Racing and CEO Sauber Motorsport AG: “It was a difficult weekend for us and our race was effectively compromised on Saturday. At some stages, our cars were among the fastest on track, but Monaco being Monaco it meant there was no way to make up any ground. Despite the difference in pace, overtaking here was nearly impossible and even with a different strategy we finished the race close to where we started. Leaving with no points after the promise we had shown in practice is disappointing, but hopefully we can get back to scoring ways next time around in Canada.”

Kimi Räikkönen (car number 7): Alfa Romeo Racing C38 (Chassis 03/Ferrari) Result: 17th Fastest lap: 1:16:436 Tyres: Start on soft tyres, after 48 laps change to medium tyres

“We didn’t expect this to be an easy weekend and unfortunately it turned out to be the case. It was quite a boring race and there was nowhere to pass: we finished where we were on lap one. Even though I had front wing damage, some issues before and after the stop and I was hit by Stroll, none of these things ultimately had any impact on our finishing position. Once you’re behind a car, you’re stuck there unless they have a massive issue – it’s just how it is in Monaco. We tried something different with the strategy as it made no sense to copy what those in front of us did, but in the end it didn’t make us move forward. The only thing that could have given us a chance was rain, but it didn’t come.”

Antonio Giovinazzi (car number 99): Alfa Romeo Racing C38 (Chassis 04/Ferrari) Result: 19th   Fastest lap: 1:16:299 Tyres: Start on soft tyres, after 46 laps change to medium tyres

“It was not a very entertaining race for us. I lost a position to a Williams in the first corner and, even though my pace was faster, I couldn’t find a way through. I tried a move at Rascasse but there was not enough space for two cars, we touched and I got stuck. It was really frustrating to stay behind slower cars, it ended up to be a fairly boring race for me.”

https://twitter.com/EvenstarSaima/status/1133013809898168321

Weekend Gallery

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Round 6 / #MonacoGP #Kimi7 #Kimi300 Results, Gallery, Video Race Results