Reverse on the Left: 2020-08-23

Friday, August 28, 2020

Dope Vid. #305

Video courtesy of Nightride.

Thursday, August 27, 2020

What to watch this F1 Weekend (Aug 28th - Sept 2nd)

Formula 1 - Grand Prix of Belgium; from circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Belgium. Practice 1. Friday @ 4:55am - 6:30am (ESPN) live
Formula 1 - Grand Prix of Belgium; from circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Belgium. Practice 2. Friday @ 8:55am - 10:30am (ESPN2) live
Formula 1 - Grand Prix of Belgium; from circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Belgium. Practice 3. Saturday @ 5:55am - 7am (ESPN2) live
Formula 1 - Grand Prix of Belgium; from circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Belgium. Qualifying. Sunday @ 8:55am - 10:30am (ESPN) live
Formula 1 - Grand Prix of Belgium; from circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Belgium. Race. Sunday @ 9:05am - 11am (ESPN) live
Garage Squad. Mon/Wed @ 4pm - 5pm (MotorTrend) replay
Bitchin Rides. Mon/Tues/Wed @ 5pm - 6pm (MotorTrend) replays
Auto Mundial. Season Premier. Tuesday @ 7pm - 7:30pm (MotorTrend) new
Motorweek. Tuesday @ 7:30pm - 8pm (MotorTrend) replay
Geared up. 1971 Mercedes-Benz 280 SE 3.5 Coupe. Tuesday @ 9pm - 10pm (MotorTrend) new
Wheeler Dealers. Audi Avant. Wednesday @ 9pm - 10pm (MotorTrend) new

We're heading to Spa for another F1 weekend with the new technical directive of removing high-power 'party modes' from the entire paddock, come the Italian GP. The race in Spain was as hot as ever, but Merc's changes post-70th Anniversary GP seem to have worked. Their tire management was solid and race pace was typical top shelf quality. Hamilton broke more records this weekend with his 156th podium while taking his 88th race win, spoiler alert, but what was more intriguing was what happened elsewhere in the field. Bottas had a bad start which has lead to him spending the race trying to get back into his starting position, without success -- he tried to salvage it a bit by taking the fastest lap point on a new set of tires, late. Verstappen split the two Mercs, taking 2nd, showing really good race pace and tire management although Albon got caught up in mid-pack fighting and took 8th as result; his performances on Saturday are what he's trying to get a better handle on. Leclerc had some really bad luck, with his engine cutting off late in the race, requiring a restart, a long pit-stop and some seatbelt re-fastening, which lead to a retirement decision. Seb's strategy from Ferrari was a bit flakey, but he ended up one stopping after no safety cars showed up and his tire management looked ok and was able to hold onto 7th for his first points in some time. Perez came back from quarantine and picked up right where he left off, looking strong in the race and finished 4th before a pretty odd blue flag penalty (based on the replays I saw) and it's associated 5-second penalty was applied, leading to him swapping spots with Stroll who was 2.3 seconds back at the checkered flag. Stroll had a great race and between his strong outings and Perez looking consistently sharp, the decision for the Racing Point 2021 driver line up will be difficult to say the least. Mclaren got points from both cars despite this not being a strong track for them and Gasley finished in the points once again, just behind Albon, who replaced him on the top Red Bull team. With the checkered flag dropped, the Driver's Championship standings are as follows: Hamilton, Vertstappen (-37), Bottas (-43), Leclerc (-87), Stroll (-92), Albon (-92), Norris (-93). As you can see, there has been some shuffling at the top, but this season is far from over. Spa rewards top end power so this should be another Merc powerplant favorable circuit. We'll see how the new regulations, tire selection and temperatures all factor into the race finish.

Enjoy your motorsport weekends.