Official Japanese F1 Grand Prix 2013

I'll beat Mr JC to the thread this time.

So, it's probably going to be a given that Mr Finger Wagger is going to win this one, but will he wrap the championship this weekend, or will Alonso just punt him off the track and show that he still loves Kimi and Hamiliton?

I think it's traditional to have a first corner incident, isn't it? It would be interesting to see someone sacrifice themselves to at least to try and muscle past him.

That'd mean they'd have to catch him first! If he gets pole then......

Well, if they are prepared to go off too, then it's simply a case of not using the brakes until it's too late, I'd have thought. Seemed to work for Prost/Senna!

Not that anyone would condone such dangerous tactics...

If a driver is prepared to accidentally shunt him off, he might as well throw in a jump start as well

I like your practical, no-nonsense approach!

Still on topic, how did Williams manage to get fined £51k for not putting a wheel on properly? I mean thats a hefty sum to not put a wheel on. I'm sure people have been fined less for worse.

Yay for Webber! With his starts he's got to be a nailed-on certainty for... 5th.

It was refreshing to see Vettel's Red Bull have a KERS failure instead of Webber's. Perhaps Webber's mechanics swapped his scorchio'd Korean chassis for Vettel's.

The run down to turn 1 and the forst few laps tomorrow are going to be awesome, as Webber is going to do EVERYTHING to stop Vettel getting past - Multi 21 might look little more than handbags after tomorrow.

As an aside, it was really great to see how the drivers were tackling the Esses differently, with different lines, gentle v aggressive steering, throttle modulation, left foot braking, etc. The difference between the two Red Bulls was especially marked.

FFS.

Meh.

Heard the result. I won't need to watch it.

That's two hours of my life I'll never get back...

Switched over after the race and watched MotoGP. Exciting motor racing, almost forgotten what it was like. Now watching BTCC. Come on F1, MTFU!

My sentiments exactly.

I really really dislike Vettel, weber was almost in tears on the podium.

Watching it on the red button having caught the end first thing to see Vettel doing the expected.
Fair play to him, he clearly is on top of his game, but without a top driver as a teammate, next year, we don't really get to see how good he is. Well done to Grosjean.
Quite a good race to watch compared to a few others

F1 will remain predictable and repetitive until Adrian Newey retires....

Lotus should sign Newey up and then their resurrection will be near complete! Newey would relish the new challenge!!!

I thought Lotus/Renault had no money - to the point of not bothering to pay kimi?

That may prove an obstacle!

If you can't get the sorcerer...

...go for his apprentice.

Hope it works out for McLaren.

Interesting article, but reading down it McLaren need Alonso like they need a hole in the head.
He was an utter disaster for them last time. They have a great driver line up now.

A good read. I agree I am surprised McLaren are so keen on Alonso seeing how it worked out last time!

Also, after Hulkenberg last week, it was Ferrari that referred to the tyres as "bananas". Is there an in-joke going on?

Interesting that RB moved Webber to an unplanned 3 stop strategy halfway through the race. Mr Finger did what was needed and no one apart from Roman anywhere near to spoil the party.
Let's hope 2014 gives us more to watch and talk about because the rest of this season is just going to be more of the same and maybe a few driver changes to think about.

Check results, delete off Tivo

Well they nicely (and deliberately?) screwed up Webber's chances there.

Please oh please let that fuc - sorry - flippin' redbull blow up next time out!
It'sa real shame as the midfield had some decent action in it once again.

The last team to put an obvious car advantage to good use were Williams. When their cars were dominant they did though place different drivers in them. This proved it was the car that was the dominant force and humbled the drivers who won Championships in those cars. Everyone knew it was the car that gave them those guys their championships but because the team kept changing the driver line-up it was much easier to accept.

When Ferrari had their period of car dominance they made the error of keeping Mr Schumacher. Despite Schumacher having success before Ferrari a lot of people actually questioned his talent during the Ferrari years. This was probably madness but unfortunately his final fling at Mercedes did little more than justify the critic’s claims of his abilities.

Unfortunately Red Bull are now doing the same with Sebastian Vettel. It is clear to everyone that the Red Bull is the dominant car. The problem is the team are providing a driver with multiple championships and records and sadly many people now doubt this driver’s ability. Worst of all though is how Mr Vettel has reacted. Red Bull have given him a dominant run and this has changed a nice kid into an arrogant finger wagging ungracious guy who hardly any of the drivers now like. It is terrible to see fellow drivers blank him on podiums and for F1 fans boo him. Sadly this is turning Seb into someone who is far from a "worthy" champion.