Your Reject of the Race - Spa!

Captain Hammer · Post by **Captain Hammer** » 26 Aug 2011, 10:40

You all know how this goes. A few early nominations have already sprung up for general silliness down as Les Combes, but for me, Pastor Maldonado is in the box seat after he set a lap time of nearly fifteen minutes ...

jpm · Post by **jpm** » 26 Aug 2011, 10:53

Eric Boullier?

The Passenger · Post by **The Passenger** » 26 Aug 2011, 11:16

Erkki Mustakari, Finnish TV commentator and FINLAND'S LEADING F1 EXPERT. If I were playing a drinking game where you take a shot every time FINLAND'S LEADING F1 EXPERT says something that is completely wrong (apparently, DC and Michael were fighting for the lead when they had their crash in 1998, also the famous overtake on Schumi by Häkkinen took place in 1998 or 99) or just generally has no idea what's going on, I'd probably have died of alcohol poisoning halfway through FP1. At least Mika Salo will be replacing him in the booth for the rest of the weekend.

Ferrim · Post by **Ferrim** » 26 Aug 2011, 12:14

Funny nomination: Michael Schumacher for choosing a combination of helmet colours that makes him almost indistinguishable from Nico Rosberg.

QuickYoda41 · Post by **QuickYoda41** » 26 Aug 2011, 13:25

It makes no difference for the Hungarian commentators. :lol:

fjackdaw · Post by **fjackdaw** » 26 Aug 2011, 13:45

The Passenger wrote:Erkki Mustakari, Finnish TV commentator and FINLAND'S LEADING F1 EXPERT. If I were playing a drinking game where you take a shot every time FINLAND'S LEADING F1 EXPERT says something that is completely wrong (apparently, DC and Michael were fighting for the lead when they had their crash in 1998, also the famous overtake on Schumi by Häkkinen took place in 1998 or 99) or just generally has no idea what's going on, I'd probably have died of alcohol poisoning halfway through FP1. At least Mika Salo will be replacing him in the booth for the rest of the weekend.

Mika Salo doing what Mika Salo does best... replacing people.

Shizuka · Post by **Shizuka** » 26 Aug 2011, 16:27

QuickYoda41 wrote:It makes no difference for the Hungarian commentators.

bathplug RTL Klub.

Ed24 · Post by **Ed24** » 26 Aug 2011, 18:16

Ferrim wrote:Funny nomination: Michael Schumacher for choosing a combination of helmet colours that makes him almost indistinguishable from Nico Rosberg.

The helmet has 21-carat gold plating. With current gold prices, the helmet's probably worth more than the car!

For those interested, here's a video of Schuberth making the helmet for him:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ky5ZoiEKtgU

DanielPT · Post by **DanielPT** » 26 Aug 2011, 18:44

Ed24 wrote:
Ferrim wrote:Funny nomination: Michael Schumacher for choosing a combination of helmet colours that makes him almost indistinguishable from Nico Rosberg.

The helmet has 21-carat gold plating. With current gold prices, the helmet's probably worth more than the car!

For those interested, here's a video of Schuberth making the helmet for him:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ky5ZoiEKtgU

In the case of Schumacher, it is better that they gold plated his helmet instead of his front wing. Someone once had the bright idea of encrusting a diamond on the front wings of a midfield team in Monaco... :roll:

FullMetalJack · Post by **FullMetalJack** » 26 Aug 2011, 19:09

DanielPT wrote:
Ed24 wrote:
Ferrim wrote:Funny nomination: Michael Schumacher for choosing a combination of helmet colours that makes him almost indistinguishable from Nico Rosberg.

The helmet has 21-carat gold plating. With current gold prices, the helmet's probably worth more than the car!

For those interested, here's a video of Schuberth making the helmet for him:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ky5ZoiEKtgU

In the case of Schumacher, it is better that they gold plated his helmet instead of his front wing. Someone once had the bright idea of encrusting a diamond on the front wings of a midfield team in Monaco...

Jaguar in 2004?

AdrianSutil · Post by **AdrianSutil** » 26 Aug 2011, 19:47

Jaguar in 2004?

yep. Promoting the new Ocean's film. Klien crashed on the first lap and the diamond went...missing.

Captain Hammer · Post by **Captain Hammer** » 27 Aug 2011, 02:46

McLaren obviously learned from that mishap and now they're in the habit of setting diamonds into their drivers' helmets.

Oddly enough, Jenson Button doesn't do it.

Post by **mario** » 27 Aug 2011, 07:45

Captain Hammer wrote:McLaren obviously learned from that mishap and now they're in the habit of setting diamonds into their drivers' helmets.

Oddly enough, Jenson Button doesn't do it.

Didn't McLaren once set some diamonds into his steering wheel as part of a publicity stunt for De Beers at the Monaco GP though?

That said, there is more than one version of that story floating around; IIRC, Jaguar denied that they lost the diamond whilst there was also the rumour that the stones set into the bodywork of the car were zirconium silicate (zircon), which is a common substitute for diamond due to the similarity of its optical properties.

Faustus · Post by **Faustus** » 27 Aug 2011, 08:08

mario wrote:
Captain Hammer wrote:McLaren obviously learned from that mishap and now they're in the habit of setting diamonds into their drivers' helmets.

Oddly enough, Jenson Button doesn't do it.

Didn't McLaren once set some diamonds into his steering wheel as part of a publicity stunt for De Beers at the Monaco GP though?

That said, there is more than one version of that story floating around; IIRC, Jaguar denied that they lost the diamond whilst there was also the rumour that the stones set into the bodywork of the car were zirconium silicate (zircon), which is a common substitute for diamond due to the similarity of its optical properties.

Didn't Hamilton and Kovalainen have diamonds in their helmets in Monaco 2008?

Klon · Post by **Klon** » 27 Aug 2011, 12:22

Well, of course we must look at those who have left us in Q1:

HRT & Virgin - seriously?

Paul Di Resta - less spinning, faster driving please

Mercedes - come on, you can't fit a tire properly?

Shizuka · Post by **Shizuka** » 27 Aug 2011, 12:30

Klon wrote:Mercedes - come on, you can't fit a tire properly?

Apparently they can't :lol:

Klon · Post by **Klon** » 27 Aug 2011, 12:48

Heikki Kovalainen - know your place, for heaven's sake.

TomWazzleshaw · Post by **TomWazzleshaw** » 27 Aug 2011, 12:51

Pastor Maldonado - What the hell was that all about?

Shizuka · Post by **Shizuka** » 27 Aug 2011, 12:52

Wizzie wrote:Pastor Maldonado - What the hell was that all about?

+1

Paul Hayes · Post by **Paul Hayes** » 27 Aug 2011, 12:53

Pastor Maldonado making an effort to protect Jenson Button from reject of qualifying there, certainly...

the Masked Lapwing · Post by **the Masked Lapwing** » 27 Aug 2011, 12:53

Pastor, Pastor, Pastor...

Ed24 · Post by **Ed24** » 27 Aug 2011, 12:57

We have to give it to Maldonado, because we may not see him in a race for a while.

Pointrox · Post by **Pointrox** » 27 Aug 2011, 12:58

Pastor McDonaldo/Lewis Hamilton (no idea who's to blame) for going full retard in Bus Stop chicane.
Mercedes pit crew for apparent inability to use a pneumatic wrench properly.

Post by **Londoner** » 27 Aug 2011, 13:23

MALDONADO! That little stunt was unbelievable!

Peter · Post by **Peter** » 27 Aug 2011, 13:27

And i'll take back all the +1's going to Maldonado here and say, Hamilton was at least equally at fault for all this crap.

I'm also going to nominate Schumacher for RoTR, 24th on his 20th anniversary, all that gold in his helmet for nothing, huh? Not his fault, but, what a shame. I also think that this is the lowest Scuamcher has EVER qualified, no?

Paul Hayes · Post by **Paul Hayes** » 27 Aug 2011, 13:29

Peter wrote:And i'll take back all the +1's going to Maldonado here and say, Hamilton was at least equally at fault for all this crap.

As I've said on the race discussion thread, even if you think that Hamilton was being overly aggressive when trying to get through during his qualifying lap, surely there's a big difference between being overly aggressive during an active race or qualifying lap, and deliberately ramming someone during a slowing-down lap?

Post by **Londoner** » 27 Aug 2011, 13:30

Peter wrote:And i'll take back all the +1's going to Maldonado here and say, Hamilton was at least equally at fault for all this crap.

I'm also going to nominate Schumacher for RoTR, 24th on his 20th anniversary, all that gold in his helmet for nothing, huh? Not his fault, but, what a shame. I also think that this is the lowest Scuamcher has EVER qualified, no?

Give Schumi some slack there. How was he supposed to know his rear wheel decided the WO2 chassis it was attached to was a piece of crap and decided to part ways.

That was slightly silly by Hamilton at the Bus Stop, i'll have to admit.

Ed24 · Post by **Ed24** » 27 Aug 2011, 14:00

If not for Maldonado, Force India would be the obvious candidate, I think, so far.

Two years ago they were on pole, this time they brought one driver into the pits too early, and the other crashed out. Also, the decision to rely on weather forecasts and put Hulkenberg in for FP2 yesterday was fairly questionable.

Post by **mario** » 27 Aug 2011, 14:02

East Londoner wrote:
Peter wrote:And i'll take back all the +1's going to Maldonado here and say, Hamilton was at least equally at fault for all this crap.

I'm also going to nominate Schumacher for RoTR, 24th on his 20th anniversary, all that gold in his helmet for nothing, huh? Not his fault, but, what a shame. I also think that this is the lowest Scuamcher has EVER qualified, no?

Give Schumi some slack there. How was he supposed to know his rear wheel decided the WO2 chassis it was attached to was a piece of crap and decided to part ways.

That was slightly silly by Hamilton at the Bus Stop, i'll have to admit.

I'd agree - Schumacher did nothing wrong there, and if anybody is at fault for a mechanical failure of that sort it is the team that produced that part. Besides, we might well see Schumacher stage a decent recovery and make his way into the points, which would go some way towards restoring the reputation of the team.

Incidentally, Peter, as things currently stand, yes, this would be Schumacher's worst starting position in his career (the next lowest would be 22nd on the grid in the 2006 Monaco GP). That said, strictly speaking we only have the provisional results from qualifying - in theory, if, say, a couple of the backmarkers needed to have an engine or gearbox change between qualifying and the race, then the grid penalties that would result in might well lead to Schumacher being promoted from 24th.

Phoenix · Post by **Phoenix** » 27 Aug 2011, 14:51

So far, Mercedes is the prime candidate for me. Unproperly fitting a wheel is bad enough in itself, but to do that when one Michael Schumacher is celebrating the 20th anniversary of his F1 debut is abismally rejectful. And it's not the first time the Mercedes mechanics make this kind of mistake, remember Hungary and Japan last year.

Also, Paul di Resta really had a shocker. He went over the limit more often than not both in FP and in qualifying, and to make matters worse he gets pipped out of Q2 by Kovalainen at the very last moment.

Salamander · Post by **Salamander** » 27 Aug 2011, 15:15

Maldonado takes the cake for me at the moment - utterly shameful. I can understand being upset, but you don't take it out when you're still on the track. Honourable mention to McLaren as well for bringing in Jenson Button before the end of Q2 and thus costing him a spot in Q3. What were they thinking?

ADx_Wales · Post by **ADx_Wales** » 27 Aug 2011, 17:24

If not Pastard Maladjusto for what would be considered a travesty if it was anyone but Hamilton at the minimal:

Either Force India for reject of qualifying at least, or for Paul Di Resta for not making instinctive decisions to stay out and do laps.

Same goes for Button, "I didnt have laps left" Isnt it as many laps as you can in the time limit? Or is this first year A1GP Qualifying?

Post by **mario** » 27 Aug 2011, 17:34

ADx_Wales wrote:If not Pastard Maladjusto for what would be considered a travesty if it was anyone but Hamilton at the minimal:

Either Force India for reject of qualifying at least, or for Paul Di Resta for not making instinctive decisions to stay out and do laps.

Same goes for Button, "I didnt have laps left" Isnt it as many laps as you can in the time limit? Or is this first year A1GP Qualifying?

McLaren might have misjudged how much fuel Button would burn during that session - after all, the teams have done very few laps this weekend, and most of those at relatively low speed - so it might have been that Button was short of fuel and had to return. After all, had he run out of fuel and stopped on track, that would have been as good as going out in Q2 anyway as the rules prevent you from continuing the session.

Still, it does look as if Maldonado has put himself right in play for the RotR today - regardless of his scrap with Hamilton (and some have said that a five place penalty is fairly lenient in the circumstances), he was already being beaten by his team mate and Sutil, despite smashing into the barriers at the start of the session, still beat Maldonado.

Dj_bereta · Post by **Dj_bereta** » 27 Aug 2011, 17:57

Hamilton for your move against Maldonado.
Maldonado for purpose crashing with hamilton and for failed in taking hamilton out of qualify.
Alonso: for a poor qualify for a 2-times champion.
Force India for wasting performance.
Mercedes: For another flying wheel.
Williams Strategists for sending Barrichello and Maldonado in wrong time.
Stewads: Hamilton and Maldonado are guilty but only Maldonado are penalised.("The stewards said both drivers were guilty of "causing a collision" and were punished under article 16.1 of the regulations.")
http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/94028

Salamander · Post by **Salamander** » 28 Aug 2011, 01:44

Dj_bereta wrote:Hamilton for your move against Maldonado.

What on earth was wrong with Hamilton's move? Maldonado left the door wide open in that corner - not saying he was at fault for the initial contact, but if you go that wide around a corner with a car bearing down on you, don't act surprised when it pops up on your inside.

Dj_bereta wrote:Stewads: Hamilton and Maldonado are guilty but only Maldonado are penalised.("The stewards said both drivers were guilty of "causing a collision" and were punished under article 16.1 of the regulations.")
http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/94028

I would assume that Maldonado's penalty was for his actions on the cool-down lap.

Captain Hammer · Post by **Captain Hammer** » 28 Aug 2011, 04:26

BlindCaveSalamander wrote:What on earth was wrong with Hamilton's move? Maldonado left the door wide open in that corner - not saying he was at fault for the initial contact, but if you go that wide around a corner with a car bearing down on you, don't act surprised when it pops up on your inside.

It was an aggressive dive down the inside that muscled Maldonado wide. It was obviously done to try and beat the clock so that he could get an extra lap in, but it was pretty clear the flag was going to fall before Hamilton was anywhere near the line. What's more, it's also what triggered Maldonado's reaction. If Hamilton hadn't lunged into the Bus Stop like that, Maldonado wouldn't have sideswiped him like that. The stewards probably felt that Hamilton was not respecting the other drivers' right to get a clean lap in. Even if Maldonado was slow into the Bus Stop, Hamilton forced him wide in a foolhardy attempt to get another lap in. It's unlikely Maldonado would have made Q3, but if he hadn't been muscled aside, he might have been able to set a lap time good enough or fourteenth. All in all, Hamilton's lunge was pretty selfish.

TomWazzleshaw · Post by **TomWazzleshaw** » 28 Aug 2011, 10:43

Captain Hammer wrote:It was an aggressive dive down the inside that muscled Maldonado wide. It was obviously done to try and beat the clock so that he could get an extra lap in, but it was pretty clear the flag was going to fall before Hamilton was anywhere near the line. What's more, it's also what triggered Maldonado's reaction. If Hamilton hadn't lunged into the Bus Stop like that, Maldonado wouldn't have sideswiped him like that. The stewards probably felt that Hamilton was not respecting the other drivers' right to get a clean lap in. Even if Maldonado was slow into the Bus Stop, Hamilton forced him wide in a foolhardy attempt to get another lap in. It's unlikely Maldonado would have made Q3, but if he hadn't been muscled aside, he might have been able to set a lap time good enough or fourteenth. All in all, Hamilton's lunge was pretty selfish.

Hamilton was trying to avoid the same fate as teammate Button as he himself was running perilously close to falling outside the top 10 at the end until the last gasp attempt.

J Washburn Stoker · Post by **J Washburn Stoker** » 28 Aug 2011, 11:11

Captain Hammer wrote:All in all, Hamilton's lunge was pretty selfish.

I thought so too, but...

Captain Hammer wrote:What's more, it's also what triggered Maldonado's reaction. If Hamilton hadn't lunged into the Bus Stop like that, Maldonado wouldn't have sideswiped him like that.

... deliberately hitting another car surely merits a ban from the race. There is no situation where using your car as a weapon of retaliation could be justified.

(Whether or not it was deliberate is still up for discussion, but I'll run with your implied premise here that it was; it looked deliberate to me but I guess the stewards weren't convinced.)

Salamander · Post by **Salamander** » 28 Aug 2011, 11:13

Captain Hammer wrote:It was obviously done to try and beat the clock so that he could get an extra lap in, but it was pretty clear the flag was going to fall before Hamilton was anywhere near the line.

I thought it was more that Hamilton was already on a good lap and didn't want to risk dropping out because of being caught in traffic. Surely you saw how the Williams' and Kovalainen were squabbling for track position - I don't see anyone decrying that. Sure, they didn't touch, but it was not much different to Alonso forcing Liuzzi off the track at the same corner last year - the only difference is that Maldonado refused to give way.

Captain Hammer wrote:What's more, it's also what triggered Maldonado's reaction. If Hamilton hadn't lunged into the Bus Stop like that, Maldonado wouldn't have sideswiped him like that.

Sorry, but that's bullshite. The only person to blame for the collision on the slow-down lap was Maldonado. Their collision may have been the catalyst, but at the end of the day Maldonado is the one in control of his car - if he has a problem with Hamilton he should take it up with him out of the cockpit. To do what he did is childish and unsportsmanlike.

Captain Hammer wrote:The stewards probably felt that Hamilton was not respecting the other drivers' right to get a clean lap in. Even if Maldonado was slow into the Bus Stop, Hamilton forced him wide in a foolhardy attempt to get another lap in.

What? Maldonado was already wide - sure, it was for the turn in, but as I said, if you have a car bearing down on you in a competitive situation and you leave the door open like that, don't be surprised when it pops up on your inside.

Captain Hammer wrote:It's unlikely Maldonado would have made Q3, but if he hadn't been muscled aside, he might have been able to set a lap time good enough or fourteenth. All in all, Hamilton's lunge was pretty selfish.

So what was Maldonado's sideswipe, then? And I don't know what sport you're watching, but F1 drivers as a rule tend to be pretty selfish - at least, on track. There is no room for manners when you're dicing for position in the world's top racing series.

AdrianSutil · Post by **AdrianSutil** » 28 Aug 2011, 13:30

Bruno Senna, sadly - Great quali ruined in first 10 seconds, also destroyed Alguersuari's race.

Honourable mentions: Perez - Another solid quali turns to nothing. Runs into back of Buemi, drive-thru penalty, then suspension failure.