Discussion Forum

I'm a fairly moderate F1 fan, and this made me happy.

Just heard that Flabbio's done a runner.

Naughty, naughty.

It'll be interesting to see what action the FIA take on Monday. Well...I'm sure it won't be that interesting. Probably just exclusion from this year's championship and a slap on the wrists.

I wonder if there's anything on Fernando. He seemed a bit shifty when he was asked questions about it in Monza. I'm sure he'll come out of it clean though. He's set at Ferrari for next year anyway, so I don't suppose it'll matter.

I suppose his resignation reveals his guilt, but it would've been nice to see the fat scruffy liar get more of a comeuppance though.

Well done Nelsinho!

NO!

It might have implications at QPR, if that's more your cup of tea.

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Quote: Mark Lowton

It might have implications at QPR, if that's more your cup of tea.

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QPR (Queer Pair Raving) NO!

BTW, cup of tea, where's our Earl?

Ta da:

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Briatore's QPR role in spotlight

Flavio Briatore would have to step down as majority owner of QPR if he was thrown out of Formula 1 by the FIA, BBC Sport understands.

If Briatore is investigated for alleged race fixing, then charged and found guilty, he would fail the Football League's fit-and-proper person test.

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But, since he's already done a runner, I doubt the FIA would give two hoots about pursuing this.

This story has had some quality in-depth coverage by the Times over the last couple of days.

Just for information.

If Piquet really did do that deliberately, as appears likely, then in my opinion he's crazy. He could so easily have been killed.

Regards

Skoob.

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Quote: Skoob1999

He could so easily have been killed.

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Nah, I don't think so.

The amount of control these guys have over the car is absolutely unbelievable, and the cars are designed to crash at high speeds with little or no injury to the driver.

His crash wasn't at high speed (at least not by F1 standards), and he slung it into the wall nicely. The driver is cocooned in a carbon fibre cockpit, and their head's well protected by their helmet and roll bars.

Ploughing into a wall straight on at 200 mph could've been a different story, but he just ricocheted from one side of the track to the other, and controlled the slide around - as far as I'm led to believe, anyway.

It must've been a tough decision for him to make.

In hindsight, it was reckless, for sure, but at the time, what was he going to do?

If it's all going on behind closed doors, it's his word against theirs, and he's not going to have any proof.

If he didn't go along with it, he would've been sacked, I'm sure.

I feel sorry for him.

I'm not really a fan, but the Times really splashed this story and it made interesting reading.

Simon Barnes called it "The Worst Act Of Cheating In The History Of Sport" claiming that the Renault team put not only the life of Piquet Jr at risk, but also the lives of other drivers, pit men, and race marshalls.

I hear what you say about the safety standards of the cars Mark and I agree, but things can and do still go horribly wrong.

Henry Surtees was killed in a Formula 2 race at Brands Hatch when he was struck by a wheel from a crashed car.

There was also the incident where Felipe Massa had his skull fractured by a flying spring which hit him just above the eye.

As I said, not really a fan and got my information from the Times. The impression their various commentators give suggest it was an extremely dangerous thing to do.

Made fascinating reading though.

Regards

Skoob.

I agree that these incidents highlight how vulnerable others are when an accident occurs.

How Renault got away with very little punishment for allowing Alonso to drive with a loose wheel beggars belief.

Well, I can hazard a guess that because it was Alonso (who is Spanish) and because it was the Spanish grand prix which he would have missed (the FIA having given Alonso a 1 race ban for the incident), that Bernie (the rights holder and man who makes money out of F1) didn't want to be out of pocket by not having so many Alonso fans at the race, and so the punishment was allowed to slide.

I guess the FIA is really running scared of losing another engine manufacturer as well - in Renault - but that should not have any relevance on the punishment doled out, and it leaves a bad taste in my mouth that they're lenient on them because of it.

McLaren got fined $100m for having some technical papers relating to a Ferrari a couple of years back. Piquet's crash was engineered to take place in a site where it would cause the most inconvenience, and had the potential to present a major risk to other drivers, and the spectators. Nicking a few bits of paper doesn't seem to be on the same level, really.

You guys are discussing a sport other than soccer?

You do have lives! (even if it is just cars driving in circles)

I'm so proud of you for broadening your horizons. Now, let me introduce you to a little thing called a safety blitz.....

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Quote: Jalapenoman

You guys are discussing a sport other than soccer?

You do have lives! (even if it is just cars driving in circles)

I'm so proud of you for broadening your horizons. Now, let me introduce you to a little thing called a safety blitz.....

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It won't last J-Man.

It's the Manchester derby on Sunday.

Manchester United v Manchester City

Wish I could be there, but I'll have to settle for watching it on TV.

The football season is just warming up. It really is the greatest game on the planet, with the possible exception of chess (which I can't really play for shit but I give it a go)

The football steamroller is gathering momentum.

And I mean real football, the beautiful game.

Come on J-Man, challenge me on this one. So Quarterback Sneaks and Hail Mary's are more exciting than watching Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo dismantle some of the tightest defences in the world?

99% of the planet can't be wrong my friend

Yours in sport

Skoob.

Skoob,

I believe that the Dallas Cowboys currently have a roster of 24 cheerleaders. This brings to mind that there are at least 48 things better about our version of football than yours.

Tonight, I intend to watch Boise State taking on Fresno State for bragging rights in the WAC Conference (unless I go with my son to watch a local high school game). Tomorrow is College Football Saturday. This will be followed by Pro Football Sunday and then Monday Night Football. What a great weekend!

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Quote: Jalapenoman

This brings to mind that there are at least 48 things better about our version of football than yours.

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Cheeky

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Quote: Jalapenoman

Skoob,

I believe that the Dallas Cowboys currently have a roster of 24 cheerleaders. This brings to mind that there are at least 48 things better about our version of football than yours.

Tonight, I intend to watch Boise State taking on Fresno State for bragging rights in the WAC Conference (unless I go with my son to watch a local high school game). Tomorrow is College Football Saturday. This will be followed by Pro Football Sunday and then Monday Night Football. What a great weekend!

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Yanks and footy! Whatever next, high tea with cucumber sandwiches on the lawn!