Long live the new king!

neonfox65 said:Man, I would love to see them bring Bottas over to Ferrari 😁

Same here. Let's watch that myth finally crash and burn. 🤣
Honestly, Bottas would get absolutely played in that Ferrari seat. It feels like we might actually see a 20-0 qualifying sweep for once, though who knows, maybe he'd even snag a win if Vettel's car dies. 😁
And what’s even worse? I'm pretty sure Kimi could pull that off without breaking much of a sweat...

Bottas is a total dud. Back in 2014, he had a killer car that was second only to Mercedes... damn, to this day, nobody besides Williams even stood a chance of touching Mercedes' qualifying pace, and there he was, sitting in a car that was faster than a Mercedes in qualifying by like 0.200 seconds, if I remember right... 😳
And even then, Bottas couldn't even grab a pole, let alone a win or a podium. 🤦

stormybadger8 said:And honestly, what's even worse—I'm pretty sure he could take down Kimi without much trouble at all...

Kimi was beating unknown, and then Bottas beats unknown—so I don't know what you're talking about👋
Plus, in this last race, Bottas actually beat Kimi👋

stormybadger8 said:Look, the reality is Vettel's car just wasn't working for him—it was clearly a small, underpowered Red Bull clone, and he was desperate to get out.
The team knew exactly what was up too, and they didn't give him the time of day—honestly, by the start of the season, they already made it obvious who their real priority was...
Just look back at those races where they ordered him to let Ricciardo past right at the start of the season... which is totally messed up, especially when they were the ones screwing him over with mechanical issues and half-baked pit wall decisions and all that.

🙂🙂🙂

Even Alonso was halfway out the door at Ferrari, so it doesn't matter if he played Kimi... 👋

Sure, some people might try to find excuses, but I haven't seen any logic quite like the stuff used for Alonso—people still spinning tales about how he was some masterclass driver who was way better than his teammates, even though we know he definitely took some losses there.😍

Alonso never lost to a teammate quite as humiliatingly as Vettel did to Ricciardo.👋

darkmarlin16 said:It isn't just Vettel who got caught out during those specific races.

That is certainly true, though one could argue that Ricciardo wasn't exactly spared from being blindsided in certain races either, wouldn't you agree? Yet, when the dust finally settles and the final results are tallied, Ricciardo emerged as the victor, and that is simply the reality of the situation. Of course, one must consider that such a victory carries very little weight when looking toward the subsequent seasons or upcoming Grands Prix. In Formula 1, does anyone truly possess any sort of guarantee?

darkmarlin16 said:It wasn't just a beatdown; he was straight-up humiliated. That newcomer absolutely tore through him in a car practically built to suit his style.

I don't think that's quite right... He dealt with way more technical setbacks, specifically with the chassis. That was a constant headache for him all season...☕

neonfox65 said:🙂🙂🙂

Daniel Ricciardo 3. 238 points
Sebastian Vettel 5. 167 points

The bottom line: he absolutely smoked him.👋

Even Sebastian Vettel actually let Valtteri Bottas pull ahead of him in that Williams, which ended up finishing right behind Red Bull at the end of the day. Man, I would give anything to see them bring Valtteri Bottas over to Ferrari.😁

Why though?

He’d just get played, just like Kimi Raikkonen.

darkmarlin16 said:Why?

I’d feel like a total sucker—kind of like Kimi Raikkonen...

I wouldn't say that. Honestly, I think it would be a tight squeeze...

darkmarlin16 said:We’d end up getting played just like Kimi Raikkonen.

Just to put some context to his driving stats—over his last two seasons at Scuderia Ferrari, Kimi Raikkonen was outclassed by his own teammates in 22 out of 26 total races.

A 2-17 record against Fernando Alonso.
A 2-5 record against Sebastian Vettel.

2 is actually greater than 17 🙂

rowdyrider12 said:2 is actually bigger than 17 🙂

Well, fine then. Last year, some "visionaries" were trying to convince us that 1 was greater than 17. 🙂

Sebastian Vettel: Keeping the vibes right matters when picking a new teammate

Sebastian Vettel thinks Ferrari needs to weigh "morale and team atmosphere" heavily when deciding who joins him behind the wheel next season. It’s still anyone's guess whether the team will stick with Kimi Raikkonen given his recent struggles—though word on the street is Valtteri Bottas from Williams is the frontrunner.

“I know my role. At the end of the day, this is about the team, so I think that’s the most important thing for Kimi and me right now. Of course, I want to beat him, and he wants to beat me, but one thing I really value about Kimi is that—to quote him—he doesn't give a damn! We're both pulling in the same direction, which is helping the team.”

Since Ferrari is the priority here, the German driver adds that any decision regarding the driver lineup should prioritize team spirit... believing that's how Scuderia Ferrari gets back to the top.

“Anyway, I think it's vital that we keep our morale and atmosphere up and stay focused on the same goal. That’s what’s going to let us become strong again and reach the top—which is the dream.”

This is like the second time Sebastian Vettel has been begging for Kimi to stay... honestly unbelievable. It feels like he's just terrified of facing competition—like he's trying to avoid a repeat of 2014 when Daniel Ricciardo absolutely crushed him right after arriving. But since Daniel isn't coming, and it's likely just Bottas, I have no idea who he's actually scared of...

Is there any chance they might bring Fernando Alonso back? 🙂

rowdyrider12 said:Maybe they bring back Fernando Alonso? 🙂

So, just as he’s on the verge of glory with Honda—is he really heading back to those hacks in Maranello? 😵

rowdyrider12 said:Maybe they bring back Fernando Alonso? 🙂

Yeah, right—letting him be second string again? No thanks...

neonfox65 said:And let it be someone else again? No thanks.

Why does it matter? He’s still in second.

But from behind. 🤣

So, they're sitting in second-to-last right now—his team is struggling—but things should look up next year. They've just jumped into a new project, and since the Japanese engineers are still getting up to speed, it's a learning curve... we'll have to see if Ferrari actually makes a move to climb out of that runner-up spot next season, but honestly, they always seem to be stuck playing second fiddle. 🤣

neonfox65 said:Right now, his team is sitting in second place—which isn't ideal, I suppose—but things should look much brighter next year. They’ve just stepped into a whole new project phase, and since the Japanese engineers are still essentially in the learning curve, there's plenty of room for growth. We’ll have to wait and see if Ferrari can actually make a move to shake off that runner-up spot next season, but it feels like they're constantly stuck playing second fiddle. 🤣

If you look at the last 15 years, Ferrari has managed to snag 6 titles, while McLaren has only pulled off 1. ☕

jadeseal7 said:In the last 15 years, Ferrari has snagged 6 titles while McLaren only managed one...☕

Look, I'm telling you what's actually been happening since 2009. Since then, Ferrari hasn't even come close to building a car capable of winning a championship...

neonfox65 said:Look, I’m giving you the straight facts on everything that’s happened since 2009. Since then, Ferrari hasn't even come close to putting together a car capable of fighting for a championship.

Who was actually out there battling Red Bull for the title? If it wasn't McLaren, nobody.

And honestly—if Fernando had been stuck driving a junker back then, he wouldn't have won anything either; just because he's piloting a literal space shuttle now doesn't change what happened! 🤣

Honestly, I think the McLaren was faster than the Ferrari—back then, Ferrari only really hit third in terms of raw pace during 2010 and 2012. But thanks to Alonso, they actually had a shot at fighting for the title. Like I’ve said before, from 2009 up until now, Ferrari hasn't produced a car that was truly the fastest on the grid... not even once!