Posts by driftingbison4

stormyharbor13 said:The Swiss pulled it off in 2010 too. Then the Spanish did, but they eventually checked out and tanked in the group stage. Nobody talks about those wins like they were some massive achievement today.

That’s exactly my point. You can absolutely knock out a future World Cup winner right at the start of a tournament. I'm just saying we shouldn't waste all our energy on prep work when we've got bigger fish to fry, like facing Cameroon and Mexico. Once we get past Brazil, then we can start talking big.

By the first match, we'll already know exactly what kind of squad we're dealing with. After that, everything is up in the air. Based on how everyone is talking here, it sounds like the best strategy is to just let Brazil win, rest the players, and try not to get any yellow cards. If that's the "plan," they might as well stay home and just send their per diem money back to the Midwest.

We’ve got to go all out to take down Brazil in the opener. Honestly, I’d even take the risk of getting knocked out in the group stage if it meant winning that first one. Let’s be real—we aren’t exactly a powerhouse squad with endless depth, so we don't have the luxury of pacing ourselves or fine-tuning our tactics game by game.
Nick needs to completely tune out Cameroon and Mexico and put 100% of his focus on this opening match. We’re kicking off the World Cup against Brazil, the heavy favorites. This isn't just some random game; over 2 billion people are going to be watching this. After the World Cup final—which, let's face it, is way out of our league—this is basically the most-watched TV event on the planet.

If you ask me, we should treat this opening match like it's the championship game. For us, it effectively is, whereas for Brazil, it's just a warm-up. No playing it safe, no tactical math, just pure pursuit of the win. Whatever happens after that, happens.

restlesssurfer6 said:Everything becomes interesting once there's a looming catastrophe on the horizon.
I’m just sitting here hoping a rescue helicopter shows up eventually.☕

It isn't particularly interesting otherwise—😬

Man, I hope a helicopter shows up for you soon too, then maybe things will actually get interesting for us—plus, it'd save us all from you constantly wishing for someone else's bad luck.

I just wanted to add one more thing regarding the whole Vettel-Webber-Red Bull dynamic. I totally get Webber—he’s a straight shooter, "what you see is what you get" kind of guy. It's also pretty obvious to me that Christian Horner is seriously lacking in certain management skills (specifically when it comes to playing the PR game).

What I don't get is Vettel. Up until now, I've been making excuses for his outbursts, chalking them up to him being young, but he's really not at an age where he needs someone to hold his hand through everything. I feel like I haven't actually heard his side of the story—the real, honest version. Every time I watch the coverage on ABC, they're constantly talking about him, following him around, and interviewing him, but since the entire broadcast is clearly sponsored by Red Bull, you aren't going to hear anything meaningful. It’s funny how right after a race, you can hear from Martin Haug, Christian Horner, Michael Schumacher, Nico Rosberg, Adrian Sutil—basically every German in Formula 1—but Vettel always has to go check in with the higher-ups at Red Bull before he's allowed to speak.

It reminds me of those kids hitting puberty who are just a walking ball of hormones with nothing to blow off steam on. It makes me wonder—does he even have a clue what he's doing? If not, then his mood swings make perfect sense. On the other hand, maybe Red Bull should just let him go out and shoot a bull in the field or something just to help him chill out.

stormybadger8 said:Mark Webber is such a jerk. Honestly, Red Bull should've kicked his ass out of the seat ages ago. I mean, seriously? You can't just shove your own teammate into the grass like that. It’s just dirty driving.🙄 Look, being an idiot like that is one thing when you're dealing with just anyone, but doing it to a teammate? Especially when you've already overtaken them and there’s zero realistic chance of them ever getting back ahead of you? That’s just straight-up moronic. I don't get how Sebastian Vettel can be such a clown sometimes. Like, does he seriously not realize what a complete jerk he's being right now? Instead of just letting the guy go so he can find his pace, or even just taking the hit himself, he just rolls over and lets this idiot mess up his own race. Honestly, man, you look at teams like that and just think, "What is wrong with these people?"

Look, let's be real—I’m not exactly Mark Webber’s biggest fan given some of the stuff he’s pulled in the past, but I totally get where he's coming from. The guy just says what he thinks and acts on his gut. Until a boss steps in and tells him he's not allowed to overtake Sebastian Vettel, or until they start feeding him hand-me-down parts, he’s going to fight for every inch. If you don't have the guts to stand up to him, you better stay out of his way.

Honestly, anyone following NASCAR knows exactly what Mark Webber is like, so I’m genuinely stumped by Christian Horner. You’d think he would have handled this situation right at the start of the season instead of letting it slide. Somewhere around the time we were heading toward Turkey, Webber clearly realized he had a shot at the championship, and now he's locked in. He's biting hard and isn't letting go—he's like a pit bull at this point. All the sweet talk and patting him on the back isn't going to cut it anymore.

If we had someone like Flavio Briatore or Jean Todt running the show, none of this mess would even be happening. Instead, we’ve got Christian Horner signing another one-year extension, while they never seem to bother renewing contracts for the second driver. Honestly, that seat could go to pretty much anyone next season—except maybe Kamui Kobayashi. That guy seems just as wild as Mark Webber was.

Arthur Doyle70 said:And regarding Webber and that "not bad for a number two driver" comment... 🤣🤣 🙏

Honestly, after that exchange with the pit wall, I think Webber gained another fan in me. First off, they congratulate him from the pit lane by saying, "You won the United States GP" instead of "We won the United States GP," and they say it with such a cold, detached tone. Man, even if Alonso were congratulating Hamilton on a win, he’d probably be warmer and more sincere than those folks at Red Bull.

It makes total sense why Webber lost his cool and snapped back like that. But honestly, the response from the pit wall was even worse—something along the lines of, "Do you think you could manage a smile?" 😲

To top it all off, none of the bosses even bother to show up on the podium to meet him.😠

That last little jab from them gave me the definitive answer as to why his own team can't stand him. Apparently, he just isn't photogenic enough to sell their ridiculous energy drink!

I'd almost bet that Red Bull would rather see Hamilton take the world title if they can't find a way to make sure it's Vettel. Their marketing "experts" clearly couldn't handle the idea of Webber snagging the first championship for Red Bull. He looks too much like a regular guy who enjoys a beer (being from Australia and all) rather than one of those high-strung meatheads who typically drink their red chemical concoction.

I just don't get why they bothered extending Webber's contract if they can't tolerate him. Did they seriously think he'd just settle down and quietly wait for retirement?

silvercobra68 said:So now we've got 22 uneducated idiots—15 of whom were imported from third-world countries—just chasing a ball around. After the game, they head off to hang out with models, who aren't exactly scholars either. Then they get married and have kids who turn out just as clueless. The people watching this stuff think it's "totally awesome," and everything goes to hell. Eventually, they'll stop educating their own kids too, sending them out to kick a ball (basically a wrapped-up rag) in some desperate hope that their own child can pull them out of poverty and misery.

Look, unlike Formula 1 drivers, who pretty much all come from the most developed nations, went through elite schooling, married intellectuals, and spent the gaps between studying for doctorates and driving their kids to the fanciest private academies (where, obviously, tuition is waived because they're so gifted), they actually drive F1 cars.

Come on, Joe, have a drink on me. Don't go mixing the "glamour" you see on TV during a race with the actual reality of an F1 driver's life. If you look past the polished PR bios most modern drivers have, you won't find much difference between them and equivalent superstar soccer players.

I love F1, don't get me wrong, but soccer is my number one. In any other scenario, I’d be pissed at ESPN for not broadcasting F1, but the World Cup is above everything else.

Canada is always a killer race and looks great on screen. I'm pulling for Kubica since it's basically his home turf.

BTW, who's calling the race? Blažičko is over in Africa, Šapit quit, and he's still busy working on some study program for the World Cup?
Slavko Cvitković? Neven Novak? Jergović?

If Formula 1 tracks were actually profitable, they’d be popping up all over the USA, the UK, Austria, Finland, and other developed nations that have a history of producing their own teams or drivers. In England, the struggle isn't even about building something from scratch—it's just a matter of tweaking an existing circuit, but they can't seem to make the math work. It feels like tracks only get built in countries where Bernie manages to convince them it’s either a goldmine or some massive branding win, or places that simply don't know what else to do with their cash. Honestly, who knows how long this continues; probably until Bernie finally moves on.

As much as I love Formula 1, I'm genuinely relieved we didn't end up with one here. Can you imagine? IBM would have handled the design (likely resulting in the first F1 track featuring concrete bridges and makeshift barriers), Bechtel would have done the heavy lifting, Exelon would have set up those temporary grandstands, Turner Construction would have been in charge of painting the lines, and the finish line would probably look like a cheap replica of some toll booths you'd find in Denmark.
Who would ever see that money again? Even if they tried to recoup the costs by running ads for cigarettes and booze, they wouldn't touch a cent of it.

Looking at it from the outside, it seems like everyone makes a killing in the Formula 1 business except for the actual track owners, the Japanese factory teams, and our local PBS.

Arthur Roberts12 said:Honestly, digital is fine, but there’s nothing like actually holding a magazine in your hands. I love stacking them up on my coffee table just to see how big my collection is getting.

I mean, if you've got money to burn, go ahead and subscribe to the print version and have them mail it to you once a week from across the country. By the time one issue actually hits your mailbox, the next one is already out.

I don't personally subscribe to Autosport, but I do pick up a few other mags that aren't strictly about Formula 1. That said, I totally get missing that tactile feel of paper. On the flip side, being able to search through digital text is a lifesaver when you're trying to track down a specific article but can't remember which issue it was in.

Plus, if you're really desperate to read something while you're sitting on the throne, you can always just print it out on a color laser printer😁. Honestly, that might actually end up being cheaper than paying for a full print subscription plus all the shipping costs
.

Chris Hall4 said:Does anyone know if there's an English F1 magazine out there since we don't have our own local racing mags? This little booklet from AAA is basically useless... they’ve still got USF1 listed in there!

You can check out the Digital edition from Autosport. You just grab a subscription and you get the whole magazine as a PDF.

wearyraven41 said:What a hell of a race! The top 12 drivers all crossed the line within just 8 seconds of each other. 🙏

Wait, did you even watch the race? They all finished under the Safety Car. 😂

Zachary Thompson2 said:Look, regardless of how much you root for Vettel, you have to admit the kid made a massive blunder. He saw that Robert Kubica was significantly faster and was going to blow past him. It was only a matter of time before it happened in that corner or the next, so risking a podium like that was just reckless. Oh well, hopefully he learns from it.

The Ferrari drivers are both idiots. 😍

Congrats to Brawn, Jarno Trulli, and Lewis Hamilton. 👍

I’m not some F1 "historian" who keeps track of every single crash, and I don't really root for anyone specific—I try to watch F1 with total objectivity. But what does stick with me are those insane driver moves that clearly come from desperation, rage, jealousy, stupidity, or just plain ignorance. Especially when one person's blunder ends up costing another driver or their entire team everything.
Now, Sebastian Vettel definitely isn't part of the "unskilled or untalented" crowd, but this isn't his first year in the game, and it certainly isn't his first slip-up like this. That's probably why he went on record saying he felt like an "... idiot and was so, so sorry." Most likely, his engineers were barking at him from the pit wall to stop fighting with Kubica because their tires were shot and he didn't stand a chance.
In fact, Brawn probably warned Button about 5 or 6 laps before the incident that his biggest threat was actually Kubica (who was about 10 seconds back at the time), rather than Vettel, who was hovering around 4 or 5 seconds away.

The thing is, some people just never learn that being a great driver means using your head, not just chugging "Red Bull." If Brawn were running his show, he wouldn't have let that happen. He could’ve learned a thing or two from Lewis Hamilton about how you win championships by knowing when to ease off a little, instead of charging ahead like a madman.

How many times has Robert Kubica dealt with bad luck like this? And honestly, it’s rarely even his fault when things go south.
As of today, I am officially done with Sebastian Vettel. This isn't his first screw-up, but this is the first time he’s actually blocked a legendary driver from proving you can win even without a Kinetic Energy Recovery System or some questionable diffuser setup.

What an absolute joke...

wiredseal7 said:What happened with Brawn/Honda is easily one of the weirdest chapters in Formula 1 history—I mean, seeing them crawl up from the back of the pack to become untouchable by the start of the season (which, fingers crossed, we'll see again tomorrow) is just wild.

The Mercedes engine was the real game-changer here. My guess? Honda probably threw in the towel because of the development freeze and decided to let Brawn run with a better engine just to see if it actually worked. They didn't really have any other way to fix their engine situation. I'm not sure if all of this was planned—probably not—but either way, everything lined up perfectly right when it mattered most.

Beyond that, McLaren could make a killing here—it might even push Mercedes to go out and buy Brawn outright (partly due to that whole technology "exchange" 😁). But from what I can tell, the sponsors are already lining up at the door 🙂

I’m thinking the exact same thing. If Mercedes takes over Brawn, and then Honda steps into McLaren instead... man, those good old McLaren Honda days would be back 🙂 My only worry is that if that actually happens, it might just blow things up in Johnson's face.

At first, I honestly thought this was just a classic bait-and-switch for sponsors, which you see all the time in pro sports these days. But now? I think I was wrong. I seriously can't wait for tomorrow. I just hope there isn't a total disaster right at the start. I really want to see how the "old guard" over at Brawn GP holds their own against hungry drivers like Kubica, Vettel, and Rosberg until the checkered flag.

feralcanyon73 said:They’d be right where they are even with the Honda engines.☕

I honestly think that if Honda's engine hadn't been such a game-changer for the car's performance, Ross Brawn would never have put up his own cash to buy out the team after Honda pulled their funding. It was pretty obvious he knew exactly what made that car so fast and precisely what was missing.

nimblesurfer17 said:Why though?🤷
I have my doubts that Brawn GP would even be where they are today if they were still running those Honda engines... 🤣🤣
At this point, Mercedes is basically the heart of the car... 😁
All they need to do now is change the team colors... 👍

If this guy pulls off a win tomorrow, he’ll have officially made the greatest move in history. Someone mentioned they’d give anything to be sitting in on the next Honda board meeting, but honestly? I’d give anything to have been in that last room with Ross Brawn. I’d almost bet money that Brawn was just sitting there with his hands in his pockets, quietly praying Honda would pull the plug because he knew deep down that their engine didn't stand a chance.
It’s honestly such a smart move that he went with the Mercedes engine instead of the Ferrari one. It sets him up perfectly to absolutely smoke those Englishmen over at McLaren.

We've already seen how Hamilton struggles when the pressure is on in Formula 1. So, what's going to happen when he heads out to tackle the legendary Top Gear test track in one of the industry's most "iconic" rides—the Suzuki Liana? Is he actually any faster than Damon Hill, Nigel Mansell, or Jenson Button?

This Sunday, USA Network, Top Gear.

http://www.topgear.com/content/news/stories/2462/

Richard Moore53 said:Look, for my dad, that medication absolutely wrecked his appetite and his liver. Honestly, he wouldn't have passed away quite so suddenly—or in such a heartbreaking way—if it hadn't been for that drug, which was basically still in experimental stages and nobody even knew if it truly worked. I just wanted to offer a suggestion... no matter how severe the illness was for him, Xeloda might have finished him off sooner. By the way, he was getting it via prescription, and since I believe it’s prescription-only here in the States, I don't see why you should be paying out of pocket for it... anyway, I truly wish you nothing but the best!🙂

By the way, the diagnosis was identical to what your colleague went through.😢

Sadly, my dad went through some similar struggles, though his diagnosis was different because by the time they found the tumor, there were already distant metastases. Actually, the metastases were what they found first. Given the specific diagnosis, Xeloda wasn't covered by our insurance since the alternative was a really brutal round of chemo—something my dad refused because he saw firsthand what people on the ward were going through. He actually handled the Xeloda quite well, and his health actually seemed to improve for a while during that period. Unfortunately, the disease had progressed so far that a cure just wasn't possible, but we knew that long before he even started that therapy. I won't get into all the heavy details right now because it was a long time ago and it's hard to revisit, but I do know that the medication helped him.

As for the liver stuff, it's pretty much common knowledge that almost any medication impacts the liver, especially heavy-duty drugs and chemotherapy. In my opinion, there isn't really a way to avoid liver impact, regardless of which therapy you choose. You just have to do everything you can—supplements, diet, etc.—to take the pressure off the liver and help it bounce back faster once the cycle is done.

I'm joining in with the well wishes.

Richard Moore53 said:And what do you care? Cancer took my dad away from me.😢

Wow, what a "brilliant" response. I’m sure that’s going to be incredibly helpful. Even if you're right, where do you get off being that condescending to someone just asking a question? For some people, that medication actually works.

Back when I was dealing with this medication, I actually used to pick it up in Canada because it was about 20% cheaper there. I can't give you an exact price since that was nearly five years ago, but the savings were definitely noticeable. Since I was traveling to England and France pretty frequently back then, I made a point of asking around to see if I could grab it over there, too. No luck in England—couldn't find it at all. In France, they wouldn't even sell it to me; apparently, it’s strictly hospital-only over there. They require you to be under constant medical supervision while you're taking it, which isn't how things work here in the States.