Brazilian GP

If the sprint race was finally exciting because of the jumbled qualifying maybe that's what they need to do. Pick the grid at random like the FA Cup draw. You'd still get a more or less normal grid for the main race but it would be created through a sprint race where the quickest drivers have to actually go for it. It'll never happen!

Multi 21 all over again. Max, selfish bar tender despite a request. He was allowed by Cheko to try to overtake Alonso and when the request to switch back came, cue spoilt brat.

When they arranged the first switch I said to myself, "Max let Cheko back through? No way Jose". SO easy to predict.

Having Stroll occupy that seat in an F1 car is akin to seeing a member of the owner's family in a Board Director position in a family company. Instead of hiring the most talented or competent person, the family member will be given the job.

Doesn't make it right or fair, but you can see why he's in the seat.

Agreed re Max's behaviour in Sunday's race - especially when you consider how much Perez did for him in Abu Dhabi in 2021, never mind anything else.

I hope Perez does finish second in the championship now. To me, he is more likeable than Leclerc even though Leclerc is more talented in my opinion.

Christian has apparently stated that "Max will be happy to help Cheko out" in the finale. Whoop de whoop.

It's sad that the best Fernando can get next year is the Aston.

I'd love to see Alonso have a great season, he's clearly still got a lot of fight in him.  I really hope Aston give him a decent car but as Nando has left it is almost certain that Alpine will be the surprise package next year.  Still the Strolls vs Alonso will no doubt take us back to the 2007 season. It'll be great TV. 

The Hamilton v Verstappen incident was not what it seems. I initially thought that Verstappen’s was opportunistic, and Hamilton turned into a car that was alongside. But the stewards said that Verstappen carried more speed than usual around turn 1 to get partially alongside Hamilton for turn two. In the same way that Sainz used Verstappen as a brake in the sprint race, Verstappen seemingly used Hamilton’s car as a brake in the actual race. Yes, Hamilton could have left more room, but the acute angle of Verstappen’s entry to turn 2 meant that he would have never made the corner without either running wide or running off the circuit if Hamilton's car hadn't been to his left. I wouldn’t have peanlised Verstappen; I’m not sure what these penalties achieve, people want to see racing in F1, they are finally getting exactly that. Verstappen would do the same thing again, especially if it only adds 5 seconds onto a pitstop. 

Fundamentally though, and rather rarely, Interlagos was a weekend where he came up short on wheel-to-wheel combat. Verstappen usually always wins this war, in the past it’s almost been like the other drivers are afraid to race him. There was a time that when whatever moves that Verstappen tried, nine times of ten he would come out on top. Whether it was his blocking or lunges, Verstappen would actually and mentally dominate the other driver. Hamilton was put up a good fight against Verstappen since they started racing each other for real since last year, some of the tactics that Verstappen has deployed might come back to bite him.

There is a rumour going about, and it is only a rumour. Verstappen refused to let Perez by last Sunday because the former feels aggrieved at Perez provisionally taking pole position at Monaco, then crashing on his final Q3 run, that prevented Verstappen from improving his laptime. There is something strange about Verstappen. He has hinted that he does not want a long career in F1, and has no interest in chasing records. Perez has been a decent performer for Red Bull, with wins and podiums. I would suggest keeping Perez happy is a bit more important than it was keeping Albon or Gasly happy, for the constructor’s championship. I do wonder about Red Bull in F1. The main driving force behind the investment is sadly no longer there anymore, it would surprise me if there was no change to their F1 activities – the Red Bull team, Alpha Tauri, the development of Red Bull Powertrains, the junior programme. Does an energy drinks company really want to be involved in poiwertrain development for 2026? The end goal is to sell energy drinks, Mateschitz may have had a passion for it, but people at a more corporate level might not.

I am glad Max got the penalty for his move on Hamilton because his method of overtaking is totally unfair. There was an overhead shot of the incident and it clearly showed Max releasing the brake early to get around the outside of turn one and then straight line it to the outside of turn two, leaving nowhere for the other car to go except off the track. Now that the stewards understand his modus operandi he will maybe find himself with a few more penalties in the future.