Okay, Korea was pretty exciting. A new venue, the idiosyncracies and crazy weather made for an interesting outcome and new championship leader. Maybe I'm partial, as I've been to Korea and liked it, but what about the rest of the year?
Has it been the classic type of Formula 1 season we'll remember for time to come or has it been a case of the Red Bull's crashing into each other and/or failing, Ferrari putting all their eggs into the Alonso basket and the McLaren just not fast enough when they need it most?
The new teams, as well, interesting as they can be, it wears thin when you see them so far off the pace running around under budget cap performance whilst the others spend away and lap them every chance they get. "Take that, another $20M you don't have or want to spend". Sort of reminds when the 3.5 litres were running with the turbos, sort of.
The TV coverage has been excellent for the most part, a big improvement over the years, and now with team radio and the replay function you can follow along without the need of the blathering. FP1 streaming on SPEED TV is the best part of the weekend. BBC have been solid, but that main dude, try as he may, doesn't really know a lot about F1 and it shows, painfully. Sometimes though the pit reporting is good. Sometimes.
Now the video game F1 2010 has been the best in years. With a great campaign highlighting the Gen Y need to be so 'frickin' awesome. I'm sure they've done very well for themselves with this one, but again, if everyone could drive F1 then it wouldn't be F1, so the video game is a little over the top. IMHO. Just a touch.
Bernie's 80th birthday has also highlighted where the sport is going in the future and how it's roots look likely to be upturned to accomplish all this expansion. The new venues are great but at the sake of the classic's perhaps not as much. Yet, would rather see new venues than another truncated classic like the Hockenheim tragedy. Why or why did they ruin such a great circuit? And, for what??
Looking forward to the final races, it seems Fernando has the upper hand, all the team behind him and peaking at the right time. F1QA readers seem to think so too, and we all know what a knowledge filled set they are. The Red Bull's, if Fernando snatches it, will rue their lost opportunity, as they were the speed dominant team all year but we all know to finish first, first you must finish. Which McLaren do, yet just don't have the speed this year and seemingly have not exploited enough filming days or their own F1 classiche department to get their updates in working order, usually wasting valuable race day time on the track testing while others are getting up to speed.
The new guys, well, let's see who is still in the sport next year, besides Kobayashi, before any comment is made. Kubica, great year again, but is he or Renault actually for real? Lots of promise, yet, where's Kimi when you need him? Pay drivers abound instead, who have always been around but now it's getting a little ridiculous.
Though blame the on-going trend of putting 14 year olds in single seaters backed by mass lucre and eventually it will make its way to F1 because by that time said 14 year old is now 20ish and the backers need a return on the developmental costs, a year or two in F1 smashing cars while WC's are in rally cars is what you get.
Rosberg, Schumacher, well again time will tell. Rosberg loses Jock Clear as his engineer next year, who moves on to a broader role within the team and that will play into Schumi's hands. Jock is reknowned for getting his charge up to speed (Jacques Villeneuve anyone?) quickly and a lot of the difference between those two is up to chassis like/ dislike and engineering prowess. Hope Schumi sticks around.
Barrichello is still flying and re-signed for next year. Heidfeld too, hopefully he'll catch on somewhere as well. Luizzi driving for his career says he has a contract. Trulli too. What's happened to the Italian drivers in F1? Too emotional in this age of engineer driven racing. Poor Enzo must be rolling, though he hardly hired his own.
Off now to the ghetto circuit of Sao Paolo where the barrio streams past in the camera background as the cars wiz by burning fossil fuels and cash, as the poor watch at the fence. Will Fernando clinch or do the others still have anything left?
Indeed, it is shaping up for another exciting finish to the F1 season, before Abu Dhabi. Will it produce the type of excitement we've been treated to sometimes this year or will some other element (rain?) intercede and create it's own amusement.
In any event, surely it will provide entertainment value, trick or treat, because that's racing and this is and has been Formula 1 2010. Happy hallowe'en!!