In over 20 years of hardly missing a race, I have absolutely no intention of getting up early for this one. There seems to be such a massive difference between all the cars, Mercedes a class apart but whilst Rosberg is a good qualifier, he's not a racer. Sky and BBC try and build up the rivalry between them - it's non-existent compared to the rivalries of the past - bring back the behaviour of Schumacher and Villeneuve trying to ram their opponents off the track.
I found the Lewis/Nico rivalry exciting myself, last season. Not sure if I'll be as 'into' it this time though. And I'll be at work when it's on so got to stay offline until I get home and watch the beeb highlights.
Another season of not watching it for me. Before the race starts you already know there are only 2 cars that can win the race: the two Mercedes. Unless they have mechanical difficulties. They're at least 2 seconds a lap quicker than the rest of the field. 5 seconds quicker than the McLaren. Although they could be even faster than that. We don't know how much quicker they are in race trim because neither driver has ever driven the car to its full potential. Even when Hamilton and Rosberg have fought one another at the front, both cars have their engines turned right down so as to preserve them for the next race. They don't race, they coast round in front of the rest of the field. Only 15 cars started the race and they give points to the top 10, so it's getting to the point where you get a prize for turning up. I've watched Formula 1 since being a young kid and often defended it, but there's nothing to defend any more. Races are won by cars sandbagging themselves. Hamilton and Rosberg are driving so much slower than their cars are capable it will feel like a Sunday drive in the country. Where's the enjoyment in watching that?
I agree that it was awful to watch but didn't the commentary team mention that the Mercedes must have been going for it as they were using too much fuel which they wouldn't have been if they were turned down? Or did I misunderstand as usual?
I didn't watch it, so can't comment on the specifics in this race, but I would ask: have the Mercedes ever run out of fuel? The information available to the commentators on individual teams is dependant on what those teams decide to release. Mercedes work in the entertainment industry. They are funded by sponsorship. The more people watch the bigger contracts they can negotiate from their sponsors. If they're out front every race and start mouthing off about how easy it is then no one is going to watch. F1 isn't like football where you want your team to win at all costs and win easily. Most F1 fans will have a favourite team and driver who they would like to win, but what they really want to see is good racing. We're not getting that at the moment, it is easy for Hamilton and Rosberg, they prove that race after race after race, but Mercedes can't allow anyone to know that. They want to keep on winning but they also need to engage with race fans and stress how hard they are working. So they invent drama like low fuel or sticking gear boxes. It never effects their lap times or puts them in danger of not winning the race, but it gives people something to talk about other than, "this is really ******* boring."
