My short review of the #C4F1 review of the 2016 F1 season

Channel 4s review lineup

Aside from an all too short contribution from Lee McKenzie (looking provocative in a pair of black knee length boots), the show was entirely predictable and almost boring. Of course it wasn't really intended (at least I hope not) as a review of the year but rather as a review of the Lewis Hamilton Nico Rosberg rivalry during the season. It didn't actually work as that either since it became more of a see how much of a prat Steve Jones can be type of show.

The clip that amused me most came when Toto Wolff was describing an occasion (which I don't recall seeing or hearing about before) in which Rosberg, apparently, tried to persuade the team to get Hamilton to pass him as he was quicker on track. He was quoting this in an effort to convince viewers that Hamilton's tactic during the closing laps at Abu Dhabi was unsporting and unfair. Of course he was completely ignoring Rosberg's unsporting behaviour during so many races in the past.

The entire show only served to emphasise how little I want Steve Jones to appear next year and how much more suited he is to sleazy late night sex orientated shows.

#C4F1 Rosberg's decision to retire was the most sensible but certainly not the bravest #F1

"Uneasy lies the head that wears the crown"

I've got rather tired of all the professional Formula One pundits rabbiting on about how Rosberg's decision to retire was a brave one. I think it was the most sensible decision he has ever made and, in fact, it borders on being a cowardly choice too. I realise that race commentators and journalists have to say pleasant things about the participants where possible because they need to get access to them to do their jobs. But is not telling the truth also a part of their job?

And the truth in this case is probably that Rosberg, in the dark corners of the night, must have come to the conclusion that this year was probably the very last one in which he would, with the help of his team, have even a glimmer of a chance at the world championship. This is because next year the rule changes will most likely end the total dominance of Mercedes and give Ferrari and Red Bull the opportunity to battle it out for wins. And Rosberg must know full well that he is, at best, a competent driver rather than a true racer. He must also know that in a straight all-out race he is utterly unlikely to best Lewis Hamilton or even Alonso or Vettel. He would also come off worst with newcomers like Verstappen in wheel to wheel action. So for a man whose future seems uncertain the most attractive option would be to claim the old political option of wanting "to spend more time with my family"

As for the Abu Dhabi final itself, I'm not sure that Hamilton himself adopted the wisest course of action in holding back Rosberg in the hope that he would fall into the clutches of the Ferraris and Red Bulls. It's understandable that he would want to influence the result in that way. After all there is not one driver in history who would not, at least, have contemplated it. Rosberg with his history of unsportsmanlike behaviour would certainly have done the same himself. Personally in Hamilton's shoes I think I would have driven off into the sunset leaving the world to the inevitable conclusion that the best driver did not win the championship. He should really have known that there would be people and Toto Wolff in particular who would view his action unfavourably and contemplate penalties against him in the future. Quite possibly, by disobeying team instructions to let Rosberg pass he was sticking his fingers up at Mercedes and making a comment about their nationalistic and legally dubious support of Rosberg throughout this season.

The intriguing question remaining is who will replace Rosberg in 2017? Mercedes will have to decide quickly as testing begins in a mere couple of months. They will probably have to pay for someone to be released from an existing contract. Hamilton says that he doesn't care but that may be just his way of psyching his opponents out. Alonso is one possibility who I'm quite sure he'd rather not have as a team mate again even though he is Spanish rather than German and therefore extremely unlikely to get the support that Rosberg had within the team hierarchy. Vettel has apparently already ruled himself out although I'm sure Mercedes would have loved to prise him away from Ferrari. I doubt Vettel fancies his chances against Hamilton even with technical support from the team as he is not much more of a genuine racer than Rosberg.

I wonder how Red Bull are enjoying the rivallry between Verstappen and Ricciardo bearing in mind their experience with Vettel and Mark Webber. It might be better to sell one or other of them rather than risk their cars in almost inevitable future clashes. I hope they end up giving as short a contract as they can get away with to somebody like Bottas as he will give Hamilton very little bother. I cannot wait for February to come round.

#BBCF1 #F1 The amusing speculation about Alonso's drive for 2015.

As I've often said, it's not just the racing that appeals to me about Formula One - it's also the side issues such as who is moving to whom and trying to second guess the outcomes. I also know I keep crowing about how I got Lewis Hamilton's move to Mercedes right - and just look how well that's turned out!
Well now we have Fernando Alonso who has voluntarily terminated his contract with Ferrari. Apparently he is wanted by McLaren for their new parnership with Honda which will probably mean Jenson Button heading for the scrap heap.

However Alonso himself is now rumoured to prefer Mercedes as an option - well he would, wouldn't he? The only way he could slide his nasty little backside in there would be by waiting a year or so on the sideline until Lewis Hamilton's contract is up.

But if he is seriously considering that option then he is underestimating the pragmatic qualities of the German people. Alonso must have forgotten that he is now 33 years old and well past his prime by F1 standards. Remember that Mercedes must have somewhat double sided memories of being lumbered with Schumacher in his declining years. Another year would make Alonso 34 and even further down the slippery slope (not to mention out of touch with the fast changing technical developments and new skills required). He could well spend a year waiting and then find himself utterly unwanted (needless to say this would be my ideal outcome).

Hopefully somebody will point out to McLaren that Button is himself 34 right now and if he is considered to be past his prime then so must Alonso. Admittedly the greasy Spaniard is a lot more pushy but that will not sit well with a rising star such as Magnussen who would become the No2.

Although I'd really like to see Alonso out of the sport altogether, I feel sure that somebody will tell him the facts of life and he will push his way into Mclaren on false promises of a long term relationship. This will release Button into a well earned retirement (or Sports cars) and eventually Magnussen into a team which appreciates young talent (maybe an opportunity for Williams here).

The satisfaction of Lewis Hamilton's win at Monza this afternoon somewhat marred by.........

The, maybe unworthy suspicion, that it was stage managed by Mercedes as a punishment for Nico Rosberg's dubious *accident* at Spa. The grounds for my suspicion are:
1) That Nico allegedly overcooked the same corner twice. He's a top ranking driver so would not have made a genuine mistake twice in the same race. I think the first was a practice run designed to show that he was vulnerable at that corner.
2) Lewis was relatively subdued after the race and up until now (more than 1 hour after the race) has not tweeted his joy at winning. It's as if he knows that his win was not entirely genuine.
3) Toto Wolff's body language and interview responses instantly gave me the impression of a puppet master. He looked so smug when watching the monitors during the incident and when asked about it afterwards he replied that

If it was staged then it was very successful

Well yes but not what you expect from an honest team manager really.
None of this should be allowed to take anything away from Lewis' performance however. Mercedes could not possibly have engineered an overtake by Lewis if he had not recovered from his disastrous start so magnificently.
Although I really love to watch Lewis winning I do not want the only sport I like to be stage managed in any way by anybody at all.

# BBCF1 Mixed emotions at the end of the 2013 F1 season

By and large I suppose I am glad the season has ended. It has not been a wonderful season in many ways. Lewis Hamilton has done far better than could reasonably be expected in his first year with Mercedes, Red Bull's dominance has been tedious in the extreme. I still don't see why the BBC has never been able to acknowledge that the booing which greets Sebastian Vettel's every appearance on the podium emanates mainly, if not exclusively, from the tifosi present. I supose that the BBC thinks that if it criticises Ferrari or it's fans so overtly they will not get so much access for interviews etc in the future. How stupid is that? And how typical?

Maybe, with the rule changes next year, Red Bull's stranglehold will come to an end - but I won't be holding my breath. But equally I don't really want to see another year of Ferrari dominance - we had enough of that with a certain M. Schumacher - for the life of me I cannot decide which would be worse, another year of Vettel's bloody finger or a year of Alonso's poor sportsmanship and Ferrari arrogance.

Looking back on the year, it seems that a surprising number of my predictions came true. In a previous post I suggested that Red Bull would pick a replacement for Mark Webber from within Toro Rosso - partly because otherwise there would be no point in maintaining a second string team and partly because Vettel would simply not accept another really talented and independently minded driver as No 2.
I also said that McLaren would lose Mercedes engines because it makes no sense to supply top line engines to a direct competitor. I know both Ferrari and Renault do it but they supply second rate teams rather than ones who will be competing for the front of the grid in every race.

My most significant failure was in Ferrari signing Kimi Raikkonen as a replacement for Massa. I though that Alonso would have the same resentment as Vettel especially as Kimi is heading toward the twilight of his career and will undoubtedly be looking towards a successful season to end with.

I think Massa may have made an error of judgement by going to Williams rather than Lotus in a straight driver swop. But maybe it comes down to driver sponsorship. On the other hand you can never underestimate the cunning of Frank Williams. I'm sure that Massa will fill whatever role williams gives him extremely well.

One of my favourite moments from the Brazilian GP, and indeed this year, was when some Brazilian TV presenter, during the post race podium interviews, asked Mark Webber if he would miss Seb. Mark gave a flash of teeth and disappeared stage right. I will miss Mark. Not just a very talented driver but a sportsman of the old school.

#F1 - Mid point in 2013 season with some questions answered and some not really.

Any questions that were still remaining about Lewis Hamilton's wisdom in changing to Mercedes have been fully answered now with his decisive win in Hungary. Of course the man himself is not too happy at the moment after his recent split from Nicole. I'm somewhat dismayed that he wears so much of his heart on his sleeve. We have got used to his obvious displays of emotions when he has been denied a win by car or pit crew failings or when other circmstances are not in his favour. But I'd be happier if he was more stoical regarding his love life. Though it is a huge point in his favour that his very apparent unhappiness did not prevent him winning at the weekend, he even admitted that he had lost his focus. Even an unfocussed Lewis is one hell of a driver!

The other substantial question outstanding is Webber's replacement at Red Bull. Up until about ten days ago the choice was between Kimi Rӓikkӧnen and one of the young, up-and-comers from Toro Rosso. But apparently Alonso's manager has been talking to Christian Horner so the Ferrari driver's hat is also in the ring. Who'd ever have thought that a two times world champion would be considering leaving Ferrari but such is the pull of Adrian Newey. Alonso has openly criticised Ferrari's lack of development this year (something else that has never happened before). When asked directly, by Lee Mackenzie, if his management had been in talks with Red Bull he said "not that I know of" but he was grinning as he said it.

Vettel, when asked who he would prefer between Kimi and Alonso as a tem mate next year, answered that he would rather have Kimi as they have a better relationship. I can see his point because I don't think any driver could have a good relationship with Alonso as they would be constantly checking for knives in the back.
I should think that Alonso is coming in for his share of stick from the disgusting tifosi who must be utterly dismayed by the Ferrari performance this year.
Personally I would much rather Alonso stayed where he was just to keep him in check for next year.
I think Kimi may be getting too old for a Red Bull long term plan. He is still hot but is getting to the age where a fall off in reaction times must be expected.
So I have no doubt that Red Bull management would sign Alonso but if Vettel holds any sway at all he will probably veto it. So the choice may well be between Toro Rosso's Daniel Ricciardo and Lotus driver Romain Grosjean who may well have blotted his copybook with a spot of carelessness in proximity to Jenson Button on the Hungaroring on Sunday.
All things considered it is an exciting thought to be contemplating over the 4 weeks until Spa - my favourite circuit and Grand prix event in the calendar.

#bbcf1 Tweeting through my blog cos I don't want too see results of the German GP

It must be just about over and I daren't turn twitter on again for the next few hours until the BBC has condescended to show the highlights (or lowlights if Lewis hasn't won).

I'm very perturbed to read that Lewis Hamilton and Nicole Scherzinger have split up #F1

Of course it may only be a product of the rumour mill that churns constantly around any celebrity couple but I know he was unhappy that she had committed to the awful X Factor again this year and she wasn't at Silverstone with him for the British GP.

Admittedly I never thought that Nicole was exactly right for Lewis, although she is undeniably gorgeous, she is involved in an industry that is not known for the mental abilities of its participants. And Lewis is a bit of a thinker.

On a slightly skewed side note; I'd say that a singer on the panel of X factor cannot have much of a music career left because surely they would prefer to be recording than listen to a bunch of talentless wannabees spewing garbage in the spotlight of momentary notoriety. And they would be making more money too. So maybe Lewis has decided that he no longer wants to associated with a woman on the slippery slope to professional obscurity.

But, in truth, I don't care who he is doing pit stops with as long as he is happy because a happy Lewis is a faster Lewis!

Should be an exciting British Grand Prix tomorrow. #BBCF1

And not just because Lewis Hamilton is on pole with the Red Bulls on the second row, but also because the drivers in the second rate teams will be pulling out all the stops to prove they are worthy of taking Mark Webber's seat for Red Bull next year.
Favourite at the moment is Kimi Raikkonen who has only qualified in 9th position but has nothing at all to prove in terms of ability. Other hot contenders are Paul Di Resta of Force India who has qualified in 5th and Daniel Ricciardo of Toro Rosso from 6th position.
My money would be on Daniel Ricciardo as that would be fulfilling the purpose of Toro Rosso in providing seats and a training ground for up and coming potential 1st team drivers. If Red Bull don't make use of Toro Rosso drivers then I cannot see the point of running the team at all.
I'm sure that Kimi would actually be the best choice as far as getting wins in the near future is concerned but at 33 years old he is already past the peak of his ability and has only a few years left of performance at the top level. Also I don't think that if vettel is given any influence in the decision Kimi would be a popular choice with the current world champion. I don't see Kimi accepting team orders with the same gentlemanly grace as Mark Webber and ceding any victories to the No 1 driver.

So I can see tomorrow being an out and out scrap with no quarter given anywhere.

Malaysian GP ends in contoversy but a podium for Lewis Hamilton

The rain, which had played its part in qualifying, held off for the most of the race itself and until the end there was a significant lack of drama. Except for Alonso proving once again how utterly stupid he can be when he continued to race with a front wing dragging on the ground, endangering himself and other drivers with the carbon fibre shrapnel being distributed on the racing line.

After the final round of pitstops Webber was in the lead having managed his tyres better than second placed Vettel. Lewis was running third though low on fuel. Team mate Nico Rosberg was behind but catching rapidly.

Team orders ensued. Vettel was told to maintain track position but disobeyed and overtook with 13 laps remaining. Rosberg was also told to remain behind Lewis although he was obviously quicker at that time. After a yelp of protest he remained in 4th place denying himself a podium finish. Twitter and the forums have been ablaze with opinions and criticisms ever since.

I think the situation is fairly clear. You either have team orders or you don't. And if you have them then they should be obeyed by the team otherwise there's just no point. Vettel must have lost a lot of respect amongst the team now and maybe some of their co-operation. What, for instance, will happen now should the situation be reversed and Webber be required to rein in to give Vettel an advantage. He'd be within his rights to say 'Bollocks'. Vettel's immaturity may have cost him more than the prestige of a dubious race win was worth.

In post race interviews he managed a rather hollow sounding apology.

There have been suggestions that he should be penalised, though how that might be achieved escapes me. He could not be fined any amount that would inconvience him in any way. Nor can points be taken away from him and given to Webber - he did not flout any FIA rules. Making him miss a race would effect the whole team in terms of the constructors championship. It's a puzzle that Christian Horner will have to solve or lose authority within the team.

The situation in the Mercedes team could not have been more different. After the race Nico Rosberg still managed to smile and said that he was content to follow orders. Lewis said that he felt Rosberg deserved to take third although the fuel shortage causing him to slow down was clearly not his fault.

The repercussions will be felt for some time to come with a number of people calling for a ban on team orders altogether. Although this would provide more competitive racing in some teams, in others notably Ferrari, the orders would simply be coded to fool the stewards. Enforcement would be impossible.

Formula One would not be the great sport that it is without the win-at-all costs attitudes of some drivers but it seems to me that Lewis Hamilton represents the best of both characteristics. He is a good sportsman in as much as he will not voluntarily take unfair advantage of his rivals but utterly ruthless in overtaking and defence of his racing line. I'd rather watch Lewis race and lose than all your winning Schumachers and Alonsos put together.

Lewis Hamilton manages 5th in gripping #F1 season opener

A really tense season opener in Melbourne for the Australian GP had tyre management as the central issue rather than straightforward car performance. I am truly delighted that Lewis achieved 5th place despite early doubts about Mercedes performance this year. Truthfully he might have done better had Mercedes not perhaps overreached themselves by trying a for an optimistic two stop strategy complicated by a flat spot caused by Lewis locking up while defending an Alonso overtaking move.

Lewis Hamilton seems a lot happier interviews than I've seen him in for a couple of years. Today's performance with the Merc must have bolstered his confidence considerably but I also wonder if shedding all that corporate crap that was part and parcel of driving for McLaren has also helped. I notice that Jenson Button is appearing in a really horrible Santander advertisement lately and I suppose that it would have necessarily involved Lewis had he stayed with the team.

It was also Suzi Perry's debut as lead presenter and she seemed to cope well although, not surprisingly, there was much less banter with DC during their pieces to camera together. Maybe this will warm up as the season progresses and EJ returns. We will see.

However I cannot shake off my gloomy pessimism concerning the BBC's pathetic F1 coverage. I really hate these 'highlight' shows. Ok you get the best of the racing but all the news from the garages is missing as well as key interviews with drivers and team members. It annoys me that the BBC is prepared to spend money on fatuous Red Nose Days and awful television programmes such as The Voice which does nothing at all to improve anyone's televisual experiences. And it is only an attempt to get up ITV's nose something which does not appear anywhere in the BBC charter. It's only going to get worse - we now see less than half of the races live. I miss Martin Brundle too and I'm sure that one day Sky will poach David Coulthard and Lee McKenzie because their reporting team is so weak currently.

I'm beginning to have doubts about the wisdom of Lewis Hamilton's move to Mercedes #F1

These are not just based on the stunning looks of the new McLaren (above) but also on the rumours concerning the future of Ross Brawn. It was upon the leadership of the best tactical brain in Formula One that I based my recommendation to Lewis Hamilton, in many letters and texts (not answered!) last year, that he should join Mercedes.

Of course there were other considerations such as the amount of money that Mercedes can afford to invest. Just ask yourself how many people can afford to buy McLaren road cars as opposed to the number who can buy S class Mercs. It's simply a matter of the practical use and potential profitability of all the development transferable from the racing arm to the sales division. Not to mention the publicity value.

Suppose for instance that Mercedes wins the championship and consider the publicity that would be generated as a result. It might equate to millions of sales of road cars. Then think of McLaren winning a season. That would generate the same level of publicity but might only help with selling a handful more of their exotic and enormously expensive road cars. Then consider the potential of a percentage of the profits being used to develop the racing machines. No contest really. It's Mercedes by a mile.

Now I look at the new McLaren and I'm starting to have nagging doubts. It looks like a winner to me, especially with Lewis behind the wheel.

So Lewis, my old mate, if the new Merc turns out to be a dud and Ross Brawn departs the team I'm truly sorry. But it will teach you not to take advice from a cynical old misery guts like me, won't it?

The 2012 Formula One season ends in Brazil

While the race at Interlagos was as full of drama as you could possibly want, I found the end itself somewhat of an anti-climax. Sebastian Vettel, otherwise known as 'the fingerer' (see above) clinched the championship from 6th place while his rival Alonso finished second.

But the real disappointment for me was Lewis Hamilton being taken out from P1 by an importunate move by Nico Hulkenberg who was on the wrong tyres for the wet conditions at the time. This was, of course, Lewis' last race for McLaren and it would have been pleasing for him to leave on a winning note.

I'm sure next season is not going to be a vintage one for Lewis. He will have his work cut out for him trying to gather the Mercedes team around him and assisting in the badly needed improvements. 2014, if I survive that long, could well be different when the new rules come into force with the resultant benefits to the AMG design.

Other unanswered questions this year include the matter of who will replace Jake Humphries on the BBC commentary team. I can only wish that he takes Ben Edwards with him into football oblivion. Edward's voice rises to an annoying contralto pitch during moments of excitement in the commentary box. I'm sure he is a gifted football commentator but his knowledge of Formula One leaves something to be desired. On the contrary Gary Anderson's contributions have been highly informative and utterly fascinating. So I hope he is staying. The BBC who have completely ballsed up their contract with Bernie are staying predictably silent on the matter.

And talking of Bernie - it worried me that he has been wittering on about an increase in the number of Asian circuits at the expense of some European tracks. Quite frankly Abu Dhabi is a boring circuit and Singapore takes place at a silly time of day. I nodded off during the Indian GP and I hate the thought of losing Spa or Monaco for the likes of those. Would I continue to watch Formula One if I could no longer watch cars racing over Eau Rouge or negotiating La Rascasse? Well probably, but it would certainly not be the same thing at all.

With Lewis out of the driver's championship

I don't know whether I'd rather Alonso or Vettel wins instead. Really I'd prefer it if neither won - anything, ever again.

That utterly obnoxious habit that Vettel acquired of sticking a finger up in the air after every success annoys me as much as does Alonso's cheating.

Can we not just fast forward to next season instead!

Lewis Hamilton in a slight Twitter slip up

It's perhaps understandable given the intense media pressure that the young driver has been under during the last few weeks.

Apparently a particularly stupid member of the press told Lewis that Jenson Button had unfollowed him on Twitter. Without knowing that Jenson had never followed him in the first place, he obviously looked on his list of followers to find JB conspicuous by his absence.

Unfortunately Lewis then, unwisely, took to Twitter to express his dismay. And of course as always happens in these situations, it then transpired that JB had never followed him in the first place which is the element of the story that I find strangest. Admittedly Lewis' tweets are full of rather banal platitudes which can be quite mind numbingly boring but that is really no reason not to follow your supposed friend and colleague. Especially considering that Button's tweets consist mainly of his cycling exploits and plugs for his girlfriend's exercise regimes.

Poor old Lewis has subsequently come in for a lot of undeserved stick from the press and the twittersphere while he attempts to extract his foot from his mouth. I'm sure he is looking forward to the time when he can park his backside in the seat of his new Mercedes AMG formula one car and get on with what he is best at.

Of course I'm sorry that Lewis Hamilton won't be with a British formula one team for next year

But I really believe that the move to Mercedes is the right one for him. I knew over the weekend that he had possibly reached a decision because he kept tweeting pics of things with a prominent mercedes logo. The poor choice by McLaren to race with a faulty gearbox at Singapore probably settled his mind.

I am convinced that Mercedes is the best move for Lewis because as I have said before, they are the source of the engines which have supplied his victories with McLaren. And I cannot imagine that they will continue to supply top of the line machinery to a competing team no matter what it says in their contract. It would make no sense whatsoever!

As a factory team Mercedes have enormous financial resources with which to develop their engines and it is in their direct interest to do so. Those resources will now be behind Lewis for the next three years at least.

As a strategist, Ross Brawn is without equal. He would never have made the kind of fundamental errors which Martin Whitmarsh has made recently.

Of course as a team Mercedes/Hamilton have a lot of work to do to get to regular pole position on the grid but I believe that the double DRS system will prove to be an enormous advantage in the right hands.

I do not think that all the talk about turning Lewis into a global brand played any part in his decision because I am beyond certain that all he wants to do is win world championships. The money and accolades are entirely secondary to him.

Lewis Hamilton out of Singapore GP and probably the championship as well

Watching Lewis struggle with a box full of neutrals on lap 23 of the Singapore GP made me feel quite ill. A DNF at this stage of the year has made it unlikely that he will be able to catch Alonso. Which means that the slippery Spaniard has more than likely been gifted the laurels in 2012.

What causes me almost as much despair is the revelation that McLaren knew about the gearbox fault during yesterday's practice and chose to try to work with the existing box rather than accept a penalty for changing the box. They would still have been in a position to collect some points. Which means that it was yet another costly error of judgement at McLaren.

I also noticed that during a post race interview team boss Martin Whitmarsh kept tugging at his left ear lobe. This kind of body language instantly arouses my suspicions.

Some further thoughts on Monza, Ferrari and Lewis Hamilton #f1

I spent some time this afternoon watching a YouTube clip showing Vettel's overtaking move on Alonso on the Curva Grande on lap 26.

Vettel received a drive through penalty which would have cost him points, had he not retired later with a failed alternator.

But I'm not sure that he deserved the penalty even with the possibility that it was in revenge for a similar move by Alonso during the same race last year. It seemed to me that Alonso deliberately moved onto the grass when there was space available on the tarmac in order to dramatise the situation.

Which only confirms my opinion that Alonso consistently blurs the distinction between being unsportsmanlike and a cheat. And having heard the boos that greeted Lewis Hamilton on the winners podium, my opinion that the tifosi and Ferrari are welcome to Alonso has also been confirmed.

There is a downside to Lewis Hamilton winning at Monza #f1

It sounds strange to say that but I think that it's made his decision about moving to Mercedes a lot harder. That is, of course, assuming he hasn't made up his mind already.

When quizzed by the BBC crew just before the race, team boss, Martin Whitmarsh was vague. I would have thought that if Lewis had signed for next year, Whitmarsh would have revealed it.

I'd like to think that Lewis Hamilton reads my blog entries

Because after two (yes 2!) posts explaining why he should consider a move to Mercedes, it transpires that their people have been in serious discussions.
Further to my concerns about McLaren's finances it also turns out that they will have to pay for the engines from Mercedes as from next year. And even so it is unlikely (as I also said) that they will get top-of-the-line engines.

Lewis has been busy this morning posting 'thoughtful' tweets. He has gone climbing somewhere quiet and peaceful and his pics have been labelled with such as - "Best place to think......"

You can understand Lewis' dilemma. He has been with McLaren a long time and it was Ron Dennis who gave him his start in Formula One. However Ron no longer plays any part in the racing team and Lewis must feel that the team no longer supports him fully in the way that it does Jenson Button.

Cold hard logic dictates that a move now is sensible. But it is worrying that Lewis' management team, Simon Fuller's XIX Entertainment, support the move to Mercedes. They would, no doubt, like to position the driver as a global brand like David Beckham and the Spice Girls.
I cannot imagine a worse outcome. I just want Lewis Hamilton to be himself and to be happy.

Because Lewis drives best when he is happy.