2013 Canadian GP - Montreal (June 9)

Richard Vaughn62 said:McLaren absolutely choked today... total disaster. Drivers on completely different strategies just ended up strung out in a line. Sutil, who was dealing with every possible headache, three pit stops, and a drive-through penalty, still finished ahead of them. Unbelievable. 😲

The Race was a total snooze-fest if it wasn't for the chaos; without the mess, there wouldn't have been any overtaking at all. Red Bull is out of the running again—they built a 4-second lead in just the first three laps. 🤦

Damn those McLaren fans. They should honestly get together and stage a ritual protest right outside Witmarsh to give the bosses a piece of their minds.☕
On a track where they’ve practically owned the place the last few years, they can't even scrape together a single point.🤦

Plus, this breaks a 64-race streak of McLaren scoring points... and that's on a track that usually suits them perfectly, with zero issues or crashes involved.

If anyone deserves to be kicked to the curb before Monday morning rolls around, it's those two clowns.

graniteharbor502 said:Because for me, there are always several drivers and favorites for the win before a Race starts. For you, there’s always just one.
And you constantly unfairly badmouth the current leader and three-time world champion.

Alright then, where was that pre-Race post of yours predicting who the actual favorites were?
It's not always just one guy. Today, Fernando Alonso was making a serious case for being the favorite, which I explained—he came incredibly close to actually pulling off the win. And calling him "finger" isn't some unfair smear. Today proved he's got talent. There was a real chance his finger could have ended up broken during one of those two incidents, which would have handed the win to the maestro. I factor all this into my predictions; I see this kid as someone prone to these kinds of reckless moves, and honestly, he usually lives up to my expectations.

Edward Howard2 said:So, where was that pre-race post of yours predicting the favorites?
It’s rarely just one person. Today, Fernando Alonso looked like the clear favorite—I explained why, and he came incredibly close to taking the win. Honestly, blaming Prst isn't even uncalled for. Today proved it. There was a real chance Prst could have broken a finger in one of those two incidents, which would have handed the victory to the maestro. I factor all of this into my predictions. I see Prst as a kid prone to these kinds of reckless moves, and more often than not, he lives up to my expectations.

Edward Howard2, if Alonso is what a driver should be, then you're what a forum member should be.

Watching him on the track is a joy; reading you on this forum is a joy. 🙏

Drew Bennett68 said:Is it? Sutil blew his penalty. So, did Lujo seriously calculate that he could hold off Alonso on the straight?🤷
It looked to me like Alonso pulled two lock-ups right after he cleared Bottas at the start, but apparently, nobody’s talking about it.🤷

Hands down, the absolute dumbest move the FIA has made in the last few seasons.🙄
Dammit, PIC and driver Chilton blocked him for three or four laps while he was trying to lap them, and nobody even said a word.🙄
Vettel blew three seconds on a lap just trying to lap Kimi Räikkönen, and honestly? Nothing. Not a single thing happened.🙄

And what about Sutil? He backed off from the penalty just because Hamilton was trying to snatch his DRS, all while whining over the team radio.🙄

Jason Campbell70 said:Edward Howard2, man, if Alonso is the king of drivers, you're basically the king of this forum.

Watching him tear it up on the track is a blast, and reading your posts here is just as much fun. 🙏

Haha, thanks, thanks... 😁 I'll definitely try my best to keep living up to the hype moving forward. 😂

And honestly, it’s a total joy reading you shut people down with nothing but pure facts and solid logic. 🙂

Anyway, does anyone actually know why Sebastian Vettel didn't get penalized for holding up the line during qualifying? 🤔

Edward Howard2 Asks:
Thanks, thanks... 😁 I'll do my best to live up to expectations moving forward. 😂

You’ve spent every single season making excuses for them.

You'll probably end up with those too. 😂

Man, what a total disaster—some freaking crane crushed the track right when they were moving the car 😲

Saturday: Felipe Massa 🙏 ... oops ... Valtteri Bottas 🙏

Sunday: Sebastian Vettel 🙏

Monaco retrospective: was that Tina Katanić?

Yeah, Bottas had Saturday, but let’s be real—Sunday wasn't any better from a driving standpoint.🙏
It sucks that Williams is such a total mess right now, but regardless, that fight at the start deserves 🙏 🙏 🙏

With a car that's basically a wreck, managing to hold off Fernando Alonso with that kind of masterclass driving in only his 7th career race is seriously impressive. 👍
To stay even 100 meters ahead of Ferrari in a car that slow is actually a straight-up miracle.
And his composure and positioning on the track, combined with clearly having great spatial awareness, is definitely worth some respect.
The kid handled those first few laps without any incidents or "dirty" moves...

Man, if he were in Grosjean's seat over at Lotus, who knows? Maybe he would've already grabbed a few podiums by now...

Passed away, the official from the Canada race

The following guys absolutely crushed it this Race:

Sebastian Vettel - because he basically dictated the entire pace of the race like a boss.

Fernando Alonso - just another one of those legendary masterclasses from him. He couldn't catch Sebastian Vettel because Vettel just checked out and pulled away while he was stuck sitting in a pack; at one point he was a massive 47 seconds back, then finished about 15 seconds behind. Honestly, if he’d had a better starting spot, I’ve got zero doubt he would've taken the win.

Jean-Éric Vergne - seriously, a career-defining drive right there. He completely shut down Daniel Ricciardo.

Paul di Resta - his pit strategy was absolute perfection, which is how he managed to snag 7th place.

Felipe Massa - he was out there throwing shade at actual World Champions, such a solid performance.

Lewis Hamilton - actually did a killer job considering he's such a total tire shredder.

darkmarlin16 said:Elvis Presley deserves credit for this race:

Sebastian Vettel - for his exceptional ability to control the pace of the race.

He seemed to be having a bit of fun along the way, even venturing off onto the grass to tidy up the lawn—which was looking a bit overgrown—just to put on a show for the fans; however, that little detour seemingly backfired during the trophy ceremony... 🤣

As for Fernando Alonso, I find it difficult to forgive him for that massive deficit he conceded at the start, despite the fact that he was clocking the fastest laps from the midpoint until the checkered flag. 🤣

I am completely fed up with the performance on the supersoft tires. I have no clue what the tire allocation looks like for the upcoming races, but this is looking incredibly grim.

Furthermore, this suggests we’re going to run into massive headaches during qualifying sessions moving forward. Mercedes are leading the pack, Red Bull is right there too, which puts us at a maximum of fifth. Then you've got Lotus or some other third party jumping in, landing us in sixth or seventh, leaving us with a grueling climb through the field ahead of us.

There is simply no way to secure a championship like this.

Silverstone should be the circuit that plays more into Ferrari's hands and finally lays everything bare (assuming the weather stays warm): specifically, whether the tires were modified and if Red Bull can once again utilize their full downforce at peak efficiency without worrying about tire degradation.

Credit where credit is due to Sebastian Vettel, but I want to see him in a different car facing different challenges to establish a realistic perception of his actual talent. The kid is good, no doubt about it, but the symbiosis he has achieved with this car is incredible—which is ultimately the goal in Formula 1—but I want to see him when the situation isn't perfect.

Every great Formula 1 driver has gone through a period like this in their career; it's precisely then that they prove their worth to a true observer. Sebastian Vettel hasn't done it yet, but he's young, and he'll get there eventually.

My driver picks for the Canadian Grand Prix:

1. Fernando Alonso
Climbing from 6th to 2nd is a hell of an achievement. He sliced through all four cars ahead of him during overtaking. Three of those were absolute monsters—both Mercedes drivers and Mark Webber, who was, let’s be honest, in a winning car. It was a masterclass: aggressive, smart, clean. Just the classic Alonso we’ve come to expect. A couple of bad qualifying sessions probably cost him the win.
He had a little scrap with Lewis Hamilton, but I wouldn't call those mistakes.

2. Sebastian Vettel
He basically won this thing on Saturday with a phenomenal qualifying lap, then left Mercedes in the rearview mirror at the start. When conditions are perfect for him, he delivers a convincing victory. The only stain on his performance was two massive errors that easily could have sent him into the wall. Someone once said "fortune favors the bold." In this case, I’d say "fortune favored him more than common sense did."

3-4-5
Felipe Massa — Honestly, I'm surprised I even put him here, but I can't ignore that overtake on Kimi Räikkönen at the end, nor his overall vibe today. He threw away way too much time in qualifying. If he’d actually made it into Third Qualifying Session, he had the car and the pace to be in the top five.

Jean-Éric Vergne deserves huge credit. Started 7th, finished 6th against that field. Phenomenal.
Paul di Resta was also deluxe (jumping from 17th to 7th), though he played a different tactical game.

PS: Sergio Pérez a) beat Jenson Button again b) didn't wreck anyone.

Bottas... 😉

That first lap was pure madness, even if the Ferrari crew refuses to admit they missed it...
But honestly, keeping Alonso behind him and defending that position twice? That was the highlight of the race for me.
Williams is a total junker compared to Ferrari—and I mean a heavy-duty junker. The Magnificent almost swallowed him whole during most of that first lap.

Someone get Bottas a better car so he can actually give us something to watch once in a while.😁

stormybadger8 said:Bottas... 😉

That first lap was pure fantasy, even if the guys at Ferrari won't admit it and are pretending they saw nothing...
But honestly, seeing him keep Alonso behind him and defend his position twice? That was the highlight of the race for me.
Williams is a total junk heap compared to Ferrari—and I mean a heavy one. The Magnificent almost caught him for the entire first lap.
Someone get Bottas a better car so he can actually give us something to watch more often.😁

Fair enough regarding Bottas. But you're saying the highlight of the race was a defense in the first lap???
So we’ve really hit rock bottom when the excitement peaks just because Alonso couldn't overtake someone within two miles during the opening stint.
Good grief, how much did you guys love Abu Dhabi 2010 then? Must have been an absolute orgasmic race!

And don't even get me started on the last race. Try defending against Pérez in Monaco. Once Bottas actually manages to pass someone, maybe then he'll earn some respect.

My bad, I forgot I was talking about a joke when it comes to Alonso—aka The Magnificent. Here I am worrying about Pérez and Bottas. Where is my head?

stormybadger8 said:Bottas... 😉

That first lap was pure fantasy, even if the guys at Ferrari refuse to admit they missed it...
But keeping Alonso behind him and defending that position twice? That was the highlight of the race for me.
Williams is a total junker compared to Ferrari, and a heavy one at that... The Magnificent almost caught him during nearly the entire first lap.

Give Bottas a better car so he can actually entertain us more often.😁

You really outdo yourself; I honestly don't know how you pull it off. Just know you've set the bar incredibly high this time. You can't afford to blow it now—you can't go back to saying Mark Webber is the better driver...

I’m scrolling through the Formula 1 news feeds, and I noticed there isn't a single soul saying anything about the Lotus catastrophe.

John Ruiz5 said:I’ve been scrolling through the Formula 1 news sites, and yet, strangely enough, there isn't a single soul offering any commentary regarding the lackluster performance from Lotus.

There were brake issues affecting Kimi's situation, along with some fuel troubles as well. It seems quite evident that the Canadian Grand Prix simply wasn't suited to the Lotus car, and one can't help but wonder if they have perhaps begun to fall behind in their technical development cycle.

graniteharbor502 said:Brake issues in Kimi's case, along with fuel problems. It seems the Canadian Grand Prix was clearly not a good fit for Lotus. Perhaps they’ve also begun to fall behind in terms of car development.

If we see just a few more races like this outside of the top tier, Kimi will end up signing with Red Bull. I am convinced that no amount of sentimentality will keep him tethered to an uncompetitive team. And while, as a Renault fan, it might be a bitter pill to swallow, I don't think anyone could truly blame Kimi for making such a move.