Nico Rosberg has driven his last F1 race

Who saw this coming ?

Today Nico Rosberg announced his retirement from Formula 1.

Apparently he had made the decision before the lights went out at the start of the last grand prix, so the 2 big questions are Why and Who is going to replace him?

So why has he quit, in a statement he shared on social media  he states it has always been his aim to be world champion and he has now achieved it. Well done Nico. for Nico winning the world championship has been a tough job and we have seen that on his face during difficult moments along the way and we have seen it played out in the press speculation regarding his friendship with Lewis Hamilton. Now Nico Rosberg is formula 1 world champion and be retiring he never has to defend it, he will be the undefeated F1 world champion 2017. Of course there is a phrase, when you're at the top there is only one way to go.
In Nico's statement there is also a mention of being a husband and father, Thanks to some very strong characters in the 1970's Formula 1 has become a lot safer than it was and the number of deaths has fallen but Motor sport is still dangerous and being a dad and not missing your kids grow up must be everyone's dream. But it doesn't happen overnight, Nicol will have to tie up all his loose ends and then learn how to be around for his family.  I think there is some merit in his comments about spending time at home.
Lets no forget the rosberg family is a racing family and its been 36 since his dad won so I do not think this is the last we have heard of the Rosberg's in racing, who know his daughter may have a carrier in the sport herself.

My personal view is that Nico was not the fastest f1 driver on the grid in 2016 but the combination of car and driver consistency gave him a well deserved championship win.

So Who's Next ?

Twitter and face book have been alive with speculation today as to who will replace Rosberg.

My view is that the likes of Massa and Button have made their decisions and have not taken those decisions lightly so I don't feel they will just come back due to a nice car being dangled.

There has also been a lot of fantastic captions and pics posted on social media which have been really amusing, these have hinted at Verstappen and of course Alonso. Again its only my opinion but i think verstappen is safe and secure at Red Bull and I will keep saying until we see the winter training i think 2017 will be a good year for red bull with the new regs.

The question around Alonso is also for me relatively simple, Alonso is one of if not the best f1 driver on the 2016 grid but i think he will stay where he is certainly for 2017 as he has gone through the pain with his team and already chosen to stay



This is not finished, but got a few things on so will finish later...

PLEASE COMMENT WITH YOUR VIEWS

Louis & Lewis, Smith & Hamilton, Formula 1 & Gymnastics

Formula 1 World Champion 2016 Nico Rosberg !!!!

For me Rosberg deserved to win the championship this year, 

I do not however believe he is the best racing driver on the grid and yesterday we said goodbye to 2 greats Massa and Button. 2 great talents in a small pool of awesome drivers which includes for me Alonso, vettel and of course Lewis Hamilton, who has to be the best driver in Formula 1 right now. But watch out Max Verstappen is coming and he is going to kick everyones ass. 

 I bet Hamilton was quite deflated at not reigning world champion anymore, having won 3 times.  

Earlier this year we witnessed the specticle that is the Olympics where Max Whitlock stormed through to win a number of medals and become the most successful British Male Gymnast, Well deserved in my opinion. In doing so he took the title away from Louis Smith and this was in addition to Louis standing next to a successful Max at the British Championships in liverpool earlier in the year. Louis Smith was quite visibly gutted, and has since apologised for the way his response looked. 

There's the background and now I will go on to explain how I feel both of the above have let fans down. 

Louis Smith MBE

 Last Month we were reading the headlines that an Olympian who has dedicated his life to his sports has been suspended due to some stupidity on his behalf and I will not be defending him here for his actions.
     I will however pass on a little advice to him (assuming he ever reads this). My career was damaged by similar stupidity albeit not my comments and my political career still hasn't fully recovered 7 years on, friends made jokes and I found it funny at the time. Take this as an opportunity to reflect and regroup, sort yourself out, review friendships and interactions with friends and more than anything else move forward. Social media is like an Olympic final, its great to be part of it but a small slip and it's dangerous and can be all over.
   I'm much more reflective now
Louis Smith  has for me become more arrogant over recent years and I has watched this happen. Maybe fame takes its toll, or maybe to complete immersion that the sport demands has limited horizons, But the bottom line is that his behaviour this year has been an embarrassment and a let down to all his fans.

Lewis Hamilton

Yesterday I watched the last grand prix of the season. and what a fantastic race it could have been, 12 points separated Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg. Lewis needed a win but Nico only needed 3rd.
Formula 1 ! the pinnacle of motorsport ! the fastest drivers combine with the fastest machines to display skill and take the win. (I say fastest machines I have opinions on the regulations of the sport).

Yesterday we witnessed a racing driver (I'd say the best in the world) not doing what i would expect. Hamilton was not driving as fast as he could smashing lap records but deliberately driving slowly!!! the championship this year was decided by the performance of driver and car throughout the whole season taking us right to the last race. The only guys racing near the front were 3rd and 4th, 5 laps from the end i turned to my wife and said this is crap I didn't turn on to watch this. I felt really let down.
I remember being in a pub in my youth when the track Love Me Tender came on the karaoke a guy sat near me said "God I hate this, the king of rock n roll singing ballads what was he doing". I thought of this yesterday "the fastest driver in the world going slow".
Is it anything for a win? Is deliberately going slow attempting to fix a result in the same way a cricketer may drop a catch or as goal keeper may let one in ?
Maybe I'm being harsh but something about a driver going slow in Formula 1 doesn't feel right.

2017 new cars, new regs, I think Redbull and Verstappen may well be in the mix at the top of the championship.

Louis and Lewis, good luck in the future and learn from 2016