New race directors, new cars 🏎️
The controversy at the end of last season has been addressed by removing Michael Masi and replacing him with two alternating race directors. Not long before he became controversial, I said I liked him. I think I still do, and so it's a bit of a shame that he is the fall guy. But at the same time, he is the one who made the questionable (or plain wrong) decisions. It seems that the possibility of Hamilton retiring has disappeared.
Will we have another season as close as last year? The teams are showing their new cars, except... they're not really. They're showing a car in their livery, and keeping stuff secret. And the pictures they're released don't show what's really interesting - the underneath. For years, if ever a car turned over, there was nothing interesting to see under there. Now they are encouraged to use that area, and the view from underneath would give away how they hope to gain an advantage. With luck, someone will have "done a Brawn" and jumped forward. If it works how the FIA expect, the field will have closed up. But my experience is that it never works how the FIA expect because brainy engineers with big budgets will defeat their puny rules.
I forgot "new driver". Zhou Guanyu at Alfa Romeo might be reasonably good, judging by previous results. I'd like to be a bit more excited about a new driver, though. Alex Albon has a second chance at Williams. Will he be better without the pressure of Red Bull? Nikita Mazepin is still in a seat because his father is a billionaire. Stroll's father is a billionaire, but he sometimes looks like he deserves to be there. Most people didn't move, except George Russell, who might give Lewis Hamilton a bit more of a challenge. And Valterri Bottas is at Alfa Romeo where you have to wonder what his motivation is. There won't be any race wins for him this year.
Testing starts on Feb 23rd in Spain. That's next Wednesday!
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