2017 Azerbaijan Grand Prix: June 23–25

The red flag just made a complete mess of everything. Half the field got wiped out because of it. If that hadn't happened, the whole result would look totally different.

It’s obvious Sebastian Vettel took him out on purpose... and then Hemač immediately starts crying over the radio, comes over to me, and hits me... unbelievable.

rustyridge10 said:so Sebastian Vettel didn't just dive into Lewis Hamilton on purpose... 🙏 maybe a sudden gust of wind just pushed his car right into him...

🤣🤣🤣

🙏

mellowtiger83 said:😁

I actually agree that Lewis Hamilton should've taken a pit stop penalty or maybe a 5-second time penalty, but man, Sebastian Vettel deserved to sit in the garage for a solid minute after that.

Is there even a bigger penalty than what Vettel actually got?
As far as I know, there isn't, so I don't see the issue.🤷

Sure, let's say we agree Hamilton earned his penalty, but someone already pointed out how obvious the NASCAR setup was—placing them right next to each other just so they could drop the hammer with a pit lane order...

The real kicker here is that neither of them seems to think they did anything wrong...
The truth is, Hamilton was being a total jerk and deserved it, and Vettel clearly can't control himself when he loses his cool, so he deserved it too...

Regarding temperament, I'll give him this: Fernando Alonso is way better at handling this stuff than Vettel. He’d just calmly tell the team over the radio, "Hamilton tried to kill me, kill me!!!"
"Man, I barely survived that brake testing," or "I feel like a new man." And Charlie would probably just hand Hamilton a penalty based on that alone...
But instead, our genius Vettel lost his mind. Instead of just sucking it up, staying quiet, and walking away with the win and a massive 15-point lead, he decided to wave his hands around and completely blow the whole thing. Pure perfection.

for the rule-followers out there:
To keep things from getting messy before the safety car finally ducks back into the pits, once those lights go dark, drivers have to keep it steady. That means no sudden lunges, no slamming on the brakes, and nothing else sketchy that might put someone at risk or mess up the restart flow.
and about those lights:
Once the Race Director gives the green light for the safety car to head off, the process stays just as strict. At the start of its final lap the safety car will turn off its orange flashing lights. The drivers need to stay lined up in formation, but they’re all aware that once the next lap kicks off, it’s full-on racing again.

I mean, seriously, the way Ricciardo handles his braking points—it’s actually insane. What is going through that man's head? 🙏🙏🙏

The only thing I can't wrap my head around is why they didn't hand out a penalty to Valtteri Bottas.

stormybadger8 said:Is there even a harsher penalty than the one Sebastian Vettel received?
As far as I am aware, there isn't. So, where is the issue? 🤷

Granted, we can agree that Lewis Hamilton deserved a penalty, but as someone already pointed out, it looks like a blatant setup by NASCAR. They just happened to place them right next to each other and then issued the penalty/order to pit...

The core issue here is that neither driver seems to think they did anything wrong at all...
The reality is that Hamilton was certainly playing the villain and earned his penalty, and Sebastian Vettel clearly lacks self-control when he loses his temper and earned his too...

Regarding that specific trait, I will admit Fernando Alonso is significantly more composed than Sebastian Vettel. He would have deadpanned over the team radio, "Hamilton tried to kill me, kill me!!!"
"Good grief, I barely survived that brake testing," or "I feel like I've been reborn." Then Charlie would have slapped Hamilton with a penalty just for that kind of talk...
But instead, the idiot Sebastian lost it. Instead of just taking the hit, staying quiet, and subsequently securing the win and a solid 15-point lead, he went waving his arms around and managed to mess things up as thoroughly as humanly possible...

Do you think Sebastian Vettel could have anticipated Hamilton slowing down? Yes. Was it confirmed via telemetry that there was no brake testing? Yes.

Does Sebastian need to calm down? Yes.

Don't tell me he couldn't have seen it coming. But the fool has to go. He has to. Where are you going? Just stop.

I understand his frustration, especially seeing Sergio Perez right on his tail while Lewis Hamilton wanders around aimlessly, but friend, calm down.

jadeseal7 said:I just don't get why Valtteri Bottas wasn't penalized.

Kimi had the advantage, sure, but the curb caught Valtteri Bottas off guard.

No. He absolutely deserved a penalty, perhaps a "drive-through."

jadeseal7 said:Man, Ricciardo’s braking feel is just insane. I mean, seriously, what is actually going through that guy's head? 🙏🙏🙏

I just don't get why Valtteri Bottas didn't pick up a penalty for that.

Just a racing incident, really. He basically just screwed himself over.

stormycobra27 said:He’d probably just give Valtteri Bottas a call and ask him to come over and help him keep an eye on Sebastian Vettel 😁
.

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

jadeseal7 said:The way Ricciardo handles his braking points is something else. I mean, what is that guy actually doing? 🙏🙏🙏

It’s just baffling to me why Valtteri Bottas didn't get penalized.

Perhaps there was grounds for a penalty, though that is purely speculative. Having reviewed the footage several times, it appears to be a standard racing incident. One driver was on the inside, the other on the outside, an overly tight corner, sheer stubbornness, and simply not enough time to react.

The guys over at Hass are honestly just incompetent... they haven't been able to sort out those brake issues since the season kicked off. If they don't get their act together, Haas is going to struggle big time with driver relations, and they'll end up bleeding even more points. Meanwhile, Williams blew a massive opportunity for a double podium today due to a technical failure—talk about a missed chance to finally climb out of the gutter. And man, I’m surprised by how much Alonso is trashing his own team lately... he’s starting to take it a bit too far.

Max Verstappen needs to look for a new crew if he actually wants to stay competitive, because Red Bull Racing just isn't delivering a decent car right now.

goldenranger6 said:The folks over at Haas are honestly just struggling... they haven't been able to sort out those brake issues since the season kicked off. If they don't get a handle on it, the team is going to lose even more ground regarding their driver standings. Meanwhile, Williams really blew it today—a mechanical failure cost them a shot at a double podium and a chance to finally climb back up the ranks. And I have to say, it’s a bit surprising to see Fernando Alonso being so vocal about his team lately... he might be crossing a line.

Max Verstappen needs to look at changing teams if he actually wants to compete—Red Bull Racing just isn't delivering a top-tier car right now.

Alonso has definitely gotten a bit cranky with all that complaining. We all know the engine situation is subpar, but honestly, if you aren't happy with the ride, just walk away.

Wait, you think Red Bull Racing can't give him a decent car? How can they manage to provide one for Ricciardo then?

That’s two races in a row where the kid's been screaming at the limit. And he isn't even fighting for some random P-8 or P-9 spot; he’s right there in the thick of it at P4, battling for a podium. People really need to wrap their heads around that. It doesn't matter how much Ricciardo’s car is struggling right now—what actually matters is how many people on the grid had to retire today because of mechanical failures while his teammate just cruised to the finish.

Today was anything but typical. You can't look at this result and think you know what the actual power gap between these teams looks like.

The kid has the raw speed and the guts, but the car just can't keep up with him.

Setting aside all the incidents and whose side everyone is taking for a moment...

Man, that was one hell of a race. 🙏

goldenranger6 said:That’s two races in a row where the little guy's engine just decides to give up the ghost. And it's not even happening in a P-8 Poseidon or a P-9—we're talking about the P4 Processor, a car that's really fighting for a spot on the podium. They honestly need to take a hard look at this. It doesn't matter if the car looks fast for Ricciardo; what matters is how many people on the team had to DNF today because of reliability issues while his teammate cruised to the finish line.

Today’s race was anything but typical—it definitely didn't give us a clear picture of how the teams actually stack up against one another.

Shit happens, what can I say? 🙂 Life goes on, and there are plenty more races ahead of us.

jadeseal7 said:Regardless of all the incidents and whose side everyone is taking.

This was one hell of a race. 🙏

Exactly, Sound of Silence. We should just cement it into the calendar permanently. 👍

mellowtiger83 said:I completely agree—Sound of Silence needs to be a permanent fixture on the calendar! 👍

Honestly, it’s the one track where everything just goes sideways—drivers flying off at every turn, tire degradation issues, brake failures, setup nightmares, all mixed with those massive straights and tight corners. When you throw a championship battle into that mix, it brings out the high-stakes, high-tension Formula 1 we all actually want to watch.

By the way: Lewis Hamilton is absolutely fuming because he wants his steering wheel back 🤣🤣

https://streamable.com/80zn3

Oh man, Lewis Hamilton... goodness me 🙏

I already posted this.

The struggle continues.

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

God, what a driver. 🙏🙏🙏

Kudos to Sebastian Vettel, honestly. He wasn't being naive when he backed off to avoid Lewis Hamilton and just let Sergio Perez take the hit instead... because we all know how this goes—Lewis would’ve walked away scot-free again, just like back in 2007. If he hadn't, the post-race chatter would've been an absolute circus of people debating whether it was Perez's fault or Sebastian's fault, while Lewis just cruises away celebrating another win like nothing happened.

Then there's the other thing. Lewis Hamilton's whole vibe was basically trying to muscle his way onto the track in the dirtiest way possible, just to assert dominance and secure a safer spot for the XX restart in the upcoming races. It was essentially him sending a message: "Hey, if you try to overtake me at the restart, you might just end up losing your front wing." 🙂
Sebastian Vettel’s (dirty) response? He basically told him, "Not on my watch." 😉 I think fighting dirty with dirty was the right move here, even if it meant risking a potential black flag.