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Author: Steve Turnbull

Long time F1 fan with a passion for motorsport history and former editor of now defunct website UpdateF1.
Reflections on the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
Opinion

Reflections on the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix

BySteve Turnbull December 14, 2021December 14, 2021

Having had time to reflect on the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, I feel a sense of disappointment despite it being one of the most spectacular finishes to a season I’ve witnessed. The inability of race control to decide what they should (or could/could not) do was an embarrassment to the sport. Experienced they may be…

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Nothing against the likes of Jake Whitehall or Ros Nothing against the likes of Jake Whitehall or Rosé, but how good was it to see an actual motor racing legend in @jackyickxofficial waving the chequered flag at the Belgian GP? 🇧🇪
Your C+S Power Rankings for the Belgian Grand Prix Your C+S Power Rankings for the Belgian Grand Prix are in - and welcome back Lewis Hamilton with a strong drive! 🇧🇪 Who’s Hot 🔥 +3 🇬🇧 Lewis Hamilton – Yes, it was a Perez-style weekend of poor qualifying before blitzing through the field, but P18 to P7 was impressive nonetheless. +2 🇲🇨 Charles Leclerc – Held off Verstappen early to secure his fourth podium in six races. Deserves to be fighting for wins. +1 🇦🇺 Oscar Piastri – After back-to-back wins and pole on Saturday, Lando was sitting pretty before Oscar took a strong win. Who’s Not ❄️ -3 🌧️ F1 in the wet – Does F1 race in the wet? The answer should be yes or no. ‘Yes, sort of, but not really’ is an incredibly frustrating approach… -2 🇬🇧 Aston Martin – It’s all about Newey and 2026 at AM, but having the slowest car on way to P14 and P17… ouch. -1 🇮🇹 Kimi Antonelli – Mostly impressive debut season starting to enter a difficult period. Struggled with confidence. Standings After Round 13 – Who’s Hot 🔥 1. 🇦🇺 Oscar Piastri – 10 2. 🇬🇧 Lando Norris – 8 3. 🇲🇨 Charles Leclerc – 7 4. 🇹🇭 Alex Albon – 6 5. 🇩🇪 Nico Hülkenberg – 6 Standings After Round 13 – Who’s Not ❄️ 1. 🇬🇧 Aston Martin -7 2. 🇮🇹 Ferrari -6 3. 🇫🇷 Alpine -5 4. 🇳🇿 Liam Lawson -5 5. 🇨🇦 Lance Stroll / 🏁 The race itself / 🇦🇹 Red Bull Racing -4
In a world of race tracks closing down, @champagne In a world of race tracks closing down, @champagneandslicks is thrilled by the announcement of @moretonmotorsportpark - a proposed Speedway and Motocross venue right here in our home city of Brisbane.
The 1989 Belgian Gra... Sorry, Tour de France. T The 1989 Belgian Gra... Sorry, Tour de France. That year’s event included several laps of the Circuit Spa-Francochamps in reverse direction. This is the field downhill through Raidillon into Eau Rouge. 📸 Graham Watson
RIP Hulk Hogan 1953-2025 🇺🇸 Pictured above RIP Hulk Hogan 1953-2025 🇺🇸 Pictured above - Hulk looming over the start of the 1984 Indy 500 in the video for his ‘Real American’ theme song.
Vale Ozzy Osbourne 1948-2025. Farewell to the Pri Vale Ozzy Osbourne 1948-2025. Farewell to the Prince of Darkness 🦇 Rest in Power 🤘
One of the stupidest things you’ll see today - 2 One of the stupidest things you’ll see today - 25-year old Chad Kohl ran across the track midway during the 1993 Champion Spark Plug 500 at Pocono. He had been drinking and popping caffeine pills for 13 hours. Why did he do it? “I don’t remember. I don’t know why I did it”. 📺 via @nascarman_rr
It makes the Tyrrell P34 look conventional… ✅ It makes the Tyrrell P34 look conventional… ✅ 6 wheels ✅ 4 wheel steering ✅ 2 engines ✅ Driver at the back This one of a kind Mazda 323 was built by New Zealander Neville Laker and competed in events including the Race to the Sky hill climb. What started out life as a Mazda 323 BD became something of a curiosity with the addition of a second engine in the back, which provided power to two extra wheels mounted in the middle of the car. To accomodate the modifications, the driver’s seating position was moved centrally and towards the back of the car (see third slide) - making for a 6x6, four-wheel steering, twin-engined (both supercharged rotary engines according to some reports) Mazda 323 with the driver sitting in the back. Crazy, huh? And guess what - the car still exists, locked away in Laker’s shed to this day. 📸 Unattributed
Vale Felix Baumgartner 1969-2025. Farewell to one Vale Felix Baumgartner 1969-2025. Farewell to one of the ultimate daredevils - the only man ever to skydive from the edge of space and race in the Nurburgring 24 Hour.
High praise indeed… Alain Prost sees a little bi High praise indeed… Alain Prost sees a little bit of himself in Oscar Piastri: “I like the way he behaves. It’s a little like me, thinking about when to do the right manoeuvre for overtaking and being a little bit more clever. I like him.“ 📸 via @fosgoodwood
The Peel Kart Grand Prix… Go karting at over 100 The Peel Kart Grand Prix… Go karting at over 100mph around the Isle of Man 😯😯 📺 Duke Video
Alan Permane’s appointment as Racing Bulls team Alan Permane’s appointment as Racing Bulls team principal got us thinking about this savage message he delivered to Giancarlo Fisichella over the radio at the 2006 Australian Grand Prix: “Giancarlo, you are two seconds a lap slower than Fernando! This cannot be possible. You have the same fuel load as him, you cannot be two seconds slower, come on!“ Ouch!
Back when Nico Hülkenberg was Germany’s next bi Back when Nico Hülkenberg was Germany’s next big thing. A record 9 wins during the 2006/07 A1GP season to secure the championship for Team Germany. The next Schumacher? Championships in Formula 3 Euro Series and GP2 would follow. F1 success seemed like it would be next. But it didn’t transpire that way. 239 races. 16 years. And finally - the result that mattered most. P3. A podium. Champagne. At last.
Here are your C+S Power Rankings after the British Here are your C+S Power Rankings after the British Grand Prix 🇬🇧 Who’s Hot 🔥 +3 🇩🇪 Nico Hülkenberg – FINALLY! Richly deserved, long overdue podium, secured with a mega drive from P19 to P3. +2 🇬🇧 Lando Norris – Got lucky to inherit the lead, but you can only win the race in front of you. With 3 wins in 5 races, the WDC fight is on. +1 🇨🇦 Lance Stroll – Something happens when it rains – Lance Stroll looks like a Formula 1 driver. Who’s Not ❄️ -3 🇩🇪 Mercedes Strategy – One to forget for Mercedes, exacerbated by some truly questionable strategy calls. -2 🆕 Rookies – A mix of bad luck (Colapinto, Antonelli) and mistakes meant none made the chequered flag. -1 🧱 LEGO Trophies – Oscar to Hulk: “How does it feel to wait 15 years for a podium in F1 and it’s made out of LEGO?” Points After Round 12 – Who’s Hot Standings 🔥 1. 🇦🇺 Oscar Piastri – 9 pts 2. 🇬🇧 Lando Norris – 8 pts 3. 🇹🇭 Alex Albon – 6 pts 4. 🇩🇪 Nico Hülkenberg – 6 pts 5. 🇲🇨 Charles Leclerc – 5 pts Who’s Not Standings ❄️ 1. 🇮🇹 Ferrari –6 pts 2. 🇫🇷 Alpine –5 pts 3. 🇬🇧 Aston Martin –5 pts 4. 🇳🇿 Liam Lawson –5 pts 5. = Lance Stroll, The race itself, Red Bull Racing – -4 pts each
Fuji Speedway’s fearsome 30-degree banked Daiich Fuji Speedway’s fearsome 30-degree banked Daiichi corner — built as part of abandoned plans to build a NASCAR-style oval in the shadow of Mt Fuji. After funding ran out, the circuit was completed as a road course layout with the single constructed banked section connected up with a mile-long straight and a series of fast flowing corners. The banked section was fiercely dangerous, with a blind crest on the 200mph entry. Vic Elford recalled how drivers “dropped into” the banking—rather than “climbing” up to it like on more traditional ovals. The dangerous banked corner was never used again after 1974, when Hiroshi Kazato and Seiichi Suzuki were killed in a horrifying, fiery accident. 📸 Unattributed
Feel old yet? 😳 2000 feels like yesterday. It Feel old yet? 😳 2000 feels like yesterday. It wasn’t. We’re now closer to the start of the 2050 season than the end of the 2000 season.
Back when Jaguar was awesome… Martin Brundle in Back when Jaguar was awesome… Martin Brundle in a V12 XJR-12 Jaguar going head to head with Squadron Leader Mike Lawrence (Rolls-Royce powered twin-turbofan SEPECAT Jaguar) at RAF Abingdon, 1990. Brundle won the unique drag race, clocking 220mph at the finish line. Brundle recalled the occasion on Twitter: “The race was officially started by a guy sitting in a BL Metro flashing his lights halfway down alongside the runway, the Jet was literally melting beside me. Crazy PR gigs like that seemed easier back in the day.” “[It] was an extraordinary experience as the fighter jet took off just above my head on full after-burners, as my Jaguar Le Mans car was moving around in the turbulence. Awesome.” 📸 The Independent / XJR Magazine
Here are your C+S Power Rankings for the Austrian Here are your C+S Power Rankings for the Austrian Grand Prix 🇦🇹 Who’s Hot 🔥 +3 🇬🇧 Lando Norris – Could this be the start of the McLaren pendulum swinging back to Lando? Great all weekend. +2 🇳🇿 Liam Lawson – After a nightmare-ish start to 2025, it finally all came together for Liam with a career-best P6. +1 🇧🇷 Gabriel Bortoleto – Overtook Alonso on the way to his maiden F1 points, underlining his solid start to life as an F1 driver. Who’s Not ❄️ -3 🇦🇹 Red Bull – Dreadful weekend at home, ending a 77-race scoring streak. Yuki must be ruing his ‘demotion’. -2 🇬🇧 Williams – Reliability starting to become a concern after 3 mechanical failures in the last 2 races. -1 🇦🇷 Franco Colapinto – Granted, the car is terrible, but we expected more from Franco. Tepid pace and clumsy racecraft. Points After Round 11 – Top 5 Overall 1. 🇦🇺 Oscar Piastri – 9 pts 2. 🇬🇧 Lando Norris – 6 pts 3. 🇹🇭 Alex Albon – 6 pts 4. 🇲🇨 Charles Leclerc – 5 pts 5. 🇳🇱 Max Verstappen – 4 pts
Fun day out at @qldraceway for Two Days of Thunder Fun day out at @qldraceway for Two Days of Thunder - great event. TA2 and Legends Cars the highlights.
Looks what’s turned up in an Aussie backyard!! 😮 Who knew a Jordan 194 was hidden away in an East Gippsland shed? This rolling chassis (painted in ‘96 B&H colours) will be up for auction soon after more than two decades in private ownership. The ad reveals that little info is known about the car other than that it was acquired after the 1994 Adelaide Grand Prix and served as a display car for a period. Head to My105 on Facebook to learn more - makes you wonder what other pieces of F1 history are tucked away in sheds around Australia.. 📸 @my105_team
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