As Asia might be the Hot Commodity right now, with
Vietnam's inclusion to the F1 Fraternity, but Others say Not So Fast...
Watching 'N listening to Friday's second Free
Practice session from Sao Paolo, I chuckled over Martin BillyBob' Brundle
musing over how Interlagos was an Old School racing venue, with its tight
confines and twisty layout vs. the new "Wider's Better" tracks such
as Abu Dhabi's Yas Island circuit.
Although it would be nice for Liberty to put its
Money where Its Mouth is, in regards to keeping Legacy Race Circuits on the
Calendar. Since after all Brazil was hosting its 36th event, which was an
absolute donnybrook!
As Max Verstappen
was certainly HOT-HOT-HOT! Following the outcome of the Brazilian Grand Prix,
where the Hot Headed Niederlander' got wrongly Turfed Off by his former F3
rival...
And although I still tended to think that the
Brazilian Grand Prix contract ended in 2019? With apparently No real urgency to
renew it prior to this year's just concluded event. I finally decided I'd
better see if I could determine when the existing contract actually concludes.
As the current Brazilian Grand Prix contract
expires in 2020, while interestingly, Liberty Media previously claimed a
reduction in its Sanctioning Fee was part of a $50m loss last year.
Yet all's not wrong in Brazil, as apparently
the Mayor of Rio de Janeiro has just optimistically
"Tweeted" News of Indy Cars desire to return to Brazil. With the only
Fly in the Ointment being that IndyCar has Denied any such plans.
And whilst I wasn't surprised over the
confirmation of Brazilian FIA Formula 2 racer Sergio Set Camara joining
McLaren's Young Driver Programme as
their 2019 F1 Test and Development Driver. As I tend to recall reading previously
somewhere this was linked to Petrobras backing the Woking outfit, Ci?
As may be this will become one of Zachery Brown's
really, really, B-I-g' Announcements for 2019, albeit the Petrobras link has been
rumoured for a year now. While Set Camara's currently team-mates with some
Bloke named Lando Norris at Carlin in F2...
But I was surprised to learn of another Brazilian's
name joining Formula One's Paddock. As Haas F1 announced Pietro Fittipaldi as a
Test Driver for 2019. With Pietro set to sample his first Formula 1 drive
behind the wheel of the Haas VF-18 at the Post Abu Dhabi GP Test Session.
Ironically this appears to somewhat be a
straight Seat Swap, as previous Haas F1 "Simulator Jockey;" err
Tester Santino
Ferrucci has secured a full-time IndyCar Drive for
Dale Coyne Racing (DCR) in 2019, in the seat he shared with Fittipaldi and Zachary
Claman DeMelo this year
whilst Ferrucci drove a third DCR entry, the No. 39 at Portland and
Sonoma alongside Coyne's "Main Man" Sealmeister B', nee Sebastain
Bourdais in the #18 with Fittipaldi running aboard the #19.
And Wada' Yuhs Know? Thar was 'Ol EMMO'
Himself being interviewed on the Grid, as Martin BillyBob' Brundle and his Grid
Walk Sidekick Lando Norris held Court with Emerson Fittipaldi, Pietro's Grandpappie'
briefly before the start of the race.
As the Brazilian Promoter had brought EMMO',
Felipe Massa and Rubino', nee Rubens Barrichello Trackside to appease the Fans
in the absence of having a Full-time Brazilian F1 Driver on the Starting Grid
after Massa's re-retirement last year...
