Author: John Ratto

Opening Commentary

We open the second half of 2017 in much the same circumstances as we opened the start of the year: What the heck is going on in Washington and will any of it amount to more than a hill of beans. The country, and really the whole world, is awaiting the verdict with bated breath.

With the failure to repeal Obamacare in rear-view mirror, and the strong possibility for tax reform immediately ahead, the verdict on the Trump presidency is far from being determined, especially with allegations still pending regarding Russian meddling in the election. Nevertheless, the stock market is still afire, setting new highs seemingly every other day. Someone or something must be going the right thing. And, given all of the new wealth being created and the general optimism in the business community, it should come as no surprise that the market for both new and used Ferraris remains relatively strong.

With that in mind, here is a recap of what transpired in the second half of 2017. We sincerely hope you can attend at least a few events over the next few months, and don’t forget to visit our NEW! IMPROVED! website at ferrariclubvegas.com.

July 11: Board Meeting at Bravo Italian at the Galleria Mall

More than half of the Board attended, so the turnout had to be considered a success especially since one member is recently deceased. Our financial situation was discussed briefly, with a very slight increase in the bottom line noted. The addition of a new member, Larz McAdoo (wife Diane), was also acknowledged. Please be sure to greet these two warmly when meeting them so they may feel welcome. A memorial for Rocky LaBriola (our deceased Board member) was then discussed without any definite action planned. Other than that, the subject matter was the same as it has been for the previous several meetings: creating and selling merchandise to generate income, future drives and other events, the holiday party, and the progress of the Website, which is mostly complete and ready to be used. The next Board meeting was scheduled for September 19th at the home of Ted and Arlene Schlazer. The terms of several Board members will be expiring soon…we welcome all members to run for these positions.

September 19: Board Meeting at home of Ted and Arlene Schlazer

The usual suspects gathered at the home of Ted and Arlene Schlazer to map out plans for the remainder of the year. It was decided that we would accept the kind offer of Towbin Motorcars (our dealership) to host the Holiday Party on December 2 in their new showroom. Other issues were then discussed, including plans for a Club booth at the upcoming Siena Italian car show on October 8. Finally, a slate of upcoming socials was agreed upon, and a date (11/14) was set for the next Board meeting, allowing the wining and dining to begin. The Board and the Club thank Ted and Arlene for their kind hospitality.

September 28: Social at Siena Italian Trattoria

It was a beautiful Vegas evening, and it brought out a large turnout (both in members, over 20, which required deploying an additional table in the banquet room) and Ferraris (I spotted 6 in the parking lot). We also had the pleasure of welcoming several newcomers (including Burton and Ann Weast, among others) to the fold. The food was very good, as usual, and the conversation was animated, much of it centering on the trips several members recently made to Monterey Car Week. All-in-all, it was a very pleasant evening.

October 1: Mass Shootings on the Strip

This was truly ‘a day that will live in infamy.’ It seems incomprehensible that one crazy person could cause such carnage in less than 15 minutes. We all mourn the victims and pray for their families, and hope that such insanity will never happen again.

October 8: Italian Sports Car and Motorcycle Day at Siena Trattoria

Well, this was the 8th annual (my, time does fly by) and it was perhaps the best ever…even though injury forced me to leave my car at home. We again thank Antonio and his crew, led by Kumiko, for making it happen so smoothly. Of note was that our Ferrari Club of America Chapter had its own little booth with logo polo shirts for sale (nice ones!), all for the first time. Thanks to Chuck and Kerrie for making that all happen.

October 26: Social at Bravo Italian at the Galleria Mall

Despite its proximity to Halloween, we had an excellent turnout for this get-together at a venue that most of our members had never been to. It was a simply outstanding fall Las Vegas evening, so we started out with libations on the restaurant’s welcoming covered patio. After moving inside for the main course, the restaurant proved to be very hospitable, assigning our group a nice section of the premises, and the food was praised by all. During the post dinner conversations, I especially liked hearing about Paul and Shawna Hesselgesser’s trip to Italy for Ferrari’s 70th anniversary party; it sounded like a blast.

November 14: Board Meeting at Dean’s Place

Wow! It is really getting dark early! Despite the seemingly midnight hour, 5 members of your Board rousted themselves to Dean’s Place near the Silverton for a meeting. The usual issues were discussed, including financials, the web site, and branded clothing items for sale. We also went through a short list of members who have not renewed; they will be dealt with appropriately. Finally, we got to the good stuff, including special access to the upcoming Mecum Auction for our members and the Holiday Party scheduled for December 2. And lastly, the next Board meeting was scheduled for January 16 at the home of Elda and Dave Fanucchi.

December 2: Annual Holiday Party at Towbin Motorcars (our dealership)

It was a great night. Nearly 30 members and guests turned out in their evening finery, and Towbin’s new, exclusively Ferrari showroom (have you checked it out yet?) looked spectacular. Oh, did I forget to mention that there were some extremely desirable baubles (I’m asking Santa for the white 599 GTB Fiorano) strewn about to stimulate our saliva glands, perhaps in preparation for the dinner to come. And what a fine dinner it was, with a menu fashioned after the famous Montana Restaurant located in Modena just outside the factory walls, the food was praised be everyone. Did I forget to mention that the cocktails and wine were served graciously at an open bar? All-in-all, it was one of our finest Holiday parties and we thank the dealership and the Towbins for providing the venue and the delicious cibo (that would be Italian for food)…and for making it a special evening. T-was a grand kick-off to the Holidays I would say.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Socials will resume in January, after the hubbub of the holidays has subsided, and everyone’s wallet has somewhat recovered. The new year and warmer weather in March should also mean some drives, including hopefully several to some new locations. The next Board meeting is scheduled for January 16. Meanwhile, be sure to visit our new website for the latest information. FerrariClubVegas.com

FORMULA 1 NEWS RECAP

Overview of the F1 season as of July 2017

This is one of the best seasons in recent memory. All of you so called Ferrari aficionados should be watching every race because this really is ‘must see TV.’

We begin July with 8 races (nearly half of the season) completed, and the competition is very, very close. Mercedes leads Ferrari by 250 points to 226 in the constructors’ standings, with Red Bull (137) and Force India (yea for the underdogs – 79) the best of the rest. Meanwhile, Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari!) leads Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) by 153 points to 139 in the drivers’ championship, with Valtteri Bottas (111 – Mercedes), Daniel Ricciardo (92 – Red Bull), and Kimi Raikkonen (73 – Ferrari) trailing.

What makes this season special is that the cars are so competitive. The front runners are evenly matched, and they aren’t that much faster than the cars in the middle of the pack. This makes for exciting racing. When the leaders pit and return in the mid-field, they find it difficult to pass the cars ahead which leads to drama, uncertainty, and hard fought battles. Yes, the races have all been won by either Red Bulls, Mercedes Benzes, or Ferraris, but that is certainly better than previous years when M-B dominated by winning virtually every race. This year, races start with the possibility of 5 teams (the top three plus Force India and Williams) winning, or at least being on the podium.

As far as the young drivers go, my opinion of Esteban Ocon (Force India) remains the same – this is a future star. He is quick and poised, and seldom makes errors. One of the top teams will snatch him quickly once his contract has been fulfilled. Meanwhile, Lance Stroll (Williams) has proved a surprise. He seemed lost the first 5-6 races, and headed for an early termination of his career in the big time. Then, he turned things around in Canada and is suddenly a new man, and driving expertly. Congratulations, your future looks good. Max Verstappen, last year’s top youngster, has been somewhat of a disappointment this year, mainly because his bar has been set so high. Last year everything went well for him. When he tried an audacious pass, he squeezed by and the move was a success. The car seemed unbreakable. This year, things are different. When Max tries those crazy passes, he comes into contact with the other car. His own car has shown a propensity to fail him. How will he handle adversity? At the other end of the spectrum, Palmer, Vandoorne, Wehrlein, and Ericsson haven’t shown much, meaning that there may be a slew of empty seats for next season.

As of July, it looked as if it would be a real battle to the end. Finally, a truly exciting and competitive season, with Ferrari smack dab in the middle of the fray. So, let’s see how it played out.

July through November: F1 Viewing at Siena and other venues

July 9: GP of Austria (9)

The hot subject during Practice was the continued and obvious bad blood between Vettel and Hamilton over the safety car period shenanigans that transpired two weeks earlier at Azerbaijan. In the end, Vettel (under duress) apologized to all, and Hamilton managed to look like the total innocent. Yeah, right. The good news was that no further penalties were assessed. The even better news is that this sets up a contentious battle between the top two drivers throughout the remainder of the season.

At 2.7 miles, this is a short, quick circuit, with fast laps at just over 1 minute. Pirelli supplied the ultra-soft, super-soft, and soft tires for the 71 lap race. Qualifying was uneventful until the last few minutes, when Grosjean’s Haas stalled on track and effectively ruined everyone else’s quickest laps. In the end, Bottas and Vettel were quickest, and Hamilton (4th quickest on the super-soft tires while everyone else was on the faster ultra-softs) was assessed a 5 grid spot penalty for changing out his transmission. After Qualifying, the commentator asked for a camera-opportunity moment Hamilton-Vettel handshake to show everything was ‘cool’ between the two championship leaders; Hamilton refused. Ouch. Given Hamilton’s penalty, the grid was Bottas, Vettel (about 5 hundreds of a second behind), Raikkonen, Ricciardo, Verstappen, Grosjean (a surprisingly good result from the Haas driver), Perez (Force India), Hamilton, and Ocon (force India).

Verstappen made a terrible start (clutch failure) leading to several minor collisions as the other cars tried to pass him before entering the first turn. While Sainz and Kvyat suffered some damage, Verstappen and Alonso were forced to retire. At the end of an eventful lap one, the leaders were Bottas, Vettel, Ricciardo, Grosjean, and Raikkonen, who quickly dispatched the Hass ahead and began to run down Ricciardo. Meanwhile, Hamilton was doing his thing and by lap 10 the order was Bottas, Vettel, Ricciardo, Raikkonen, and Hamilton. This running order then went unchanged for many laps. The weatherman was calling for rain before the end of the race, so everyone was doing their best to get as many laps out of their original tires as possible. No one wanted to pit for fresh rubber and then be forced to pit again a few laps later for rain tires. This resulted in a relatively boring stretch of racing. Around lap 35, when the rain failed to materialize, the drivers (except Bottas and Raikkonen, who soldiered on) began to stop for fresh rubber. Bottas finally changed tires on lap 41, while Raikkonen (for team strategy reasons) pushed on to lap 46. On lap 48, when the dust had settled, the running order remained relatively unchanged: Bottas, Vettel, Ricciardo, Hamilton, and Raikkonen.

With the rain out of the picture, everyone got down to the business of serious racing. Vettel, who was about 4 seconds behind the leader, began to slowly reel in Bottas. Hamilton was doing the same to Ricciardo. And, everyone was complaining of tire degradation. What had been a dull race was suddenly looking very interesting. By lap 68, Vettel was on Bottas’ tail, and Hamilton was immediately behind Ricciardo. This led to several attempted and failed passes, and some exciting action. But, in the end, not much changed. The final result was Bottas, Vettel (less than a half second behind), Ricciardo, Hamilton, Raikkonen (who had to slow down due to car problems), Grosjean (an excellent result for Haas), Perez, and Ocon.

July 16: GP of England (10)

Is this England? Must be! It was cloudy, cool, and damp all weekend. Pirelli supplied the super-soft, soft, and medium tires for the 52 lap race on the ultra-fast Silverstone circuit, where the top guys were AVERAGING over 150 mph and experiencing up to 6 lateral Gs on some of the corners (this is astronaut stuff people). Qualifying started in wet conditions, with most on the intermediate-wet tires. As the session progressed, though, the sun came out and the track dried; by Q3 everyone was running on race rubber and near the max. When it was over, the sharp end of the grid was Hamilton, Raikkonen, Vettel, Verstappen, Hulkenberg (Renault). Bottas was relegated to 9th after a penalty for changing his transmission while Ricciardo suffered car problems and was forced to start at the very rear of the field. These two started on the soft tires, while the other top cars opted for the super-softs.

Verstappen made an exceptional start, jumping past Vettel for 3rd in the first hundred yards. Meanwhile, back in the field the inevitable first corner collision damaged or eliminated a slew of the mid-field and brought out the safety car, which exited on lap 5 with the running order Hamilton, Raikkonen, Verstappen, and Vettel. Bottas, who had started 9th, was up to 5th by lap 8. Vettel was the first to pit for new tires (lap 18) followed immediately by Verstappen. Hamilton, however, delayed his first stop to lap 26, while Bottas, who had started on the on the soft (harder) tires managed to go until lap 33; he reentered in 4th place and on the preferred super-soft tires and looked to be in the cat-bird seat for an excellent result. The running order was Hamilton, Raikkonen, Vettel, Bottas, Verstappen, and Ricciardo who had worked his way through the field from last. By lap 44 Bottas had passed Vettel for 3rd, but seemed too far behind second place Raikkonen to mount any serious threat in the few laps remaining.

Then, disaster struck Ferrari. Raikkonen’s left front tire disintegrated and he was forced to pit for new rubber on the second to last lap while Bottas sailed by into second place. Then, disaster struck again. Vettel also experienced a tire failure (last lap) which forced him to also pit for new rubber. So, in the end, when all was said and done, the finishing order was Hamilton, Bottas, Raikkonen, Verstappen, Ricciardo, Hulkenberg, and Vettel.

You had to shed a tear for Ferrari. A race that had started well and had then progressed nicely was suddenly turned into a catastrophe…for both cars. Better luck in Hungary; it can’t get much worse than this.

July 30: GP of Hungary (11)

This short, twisty track should favor the Ferraris, and it did as the Qualifying order was Vettel, Raikkonen, Bottas, Hamilton, Verstappen, and Ricciardo. The track also proved to the liking of the McLarens; both were in the top 10. Pirelli supplied the super-soft (everyone qualified and started on these), soft, and medium tires for the 70 lap race.

Race day was clear and warm, but the inevitable crashes on the first lap happened anyway. Red Bull teammates Riccardo and Verstappen came together in the first corner (it looked to be Verstappen’s fault and he was ultimately given a 10 second penalty); Verstappen was able to continue while Ricciardo was out after less than 20 seconds of racing. Hulkenberg bumped Grosjean as well, and the safety car was deployed until lap 6, when racing resumed with the order Vettel, Raikkonen, Bottas, Verstappen, and Hamilton. On lap 28, with Vettel and Raikkonen circling comfortably in the lead, Vettel began to experience steering/suspension problems; his lap times slowed down a bit and suddenly the outcome was in doubt. Most of the leaders stopped for tires (all switched to the softs) between laps 30 and 33. During his stop, the Ferrari mechanics quickly determined that Vettel’s car could not be repaired and would need to continue in its current condition.

By lap 35, Verstappen (the sole driver near the front who had not stopped) was comfortably ahead, while Raikkonen, Bottas, and Hamilton were jammed up behind Vettel in second place, who was struggling with his car but still setting competitive lap times. Verstappen finally stopped for new rubber on lap 44, when he also served his 10 second penalty. By this time, all of the leaders were frustrated with following Vettel at a slightly reduced speed: Raikkonen was complaining on his radio, while Hamilton clearly wanted to get by Bottas so he could have a shot at passing the two Ferraris. On lap 46, Bottas, who was also having some mechanical issues, stepped aside and let his teammate by to try his luck. Ferrari command, on the other hand, instructed Raikkonen to stay where he was, hinting he should block any attempt by Hamilton to pass. This led to a series of laps with Hamilton trying to get by Raikkonen for second place, and being unable to do so. It was very tense until Hamilton began to experience brake issues, probably caused by following Raikkonen too closely, and was forced to drop back a bit. So it went to the end, when, in a sporting gesture, Hamilton handed 3rd place back to Bottas in recompense for having allowed him to pass earlier. The final finishing order was Vettel, Raikkonen, Bottas, Hamilton, and Verstappen.

So, the racing Gods give, and they take away. After experiencing rotten luck in England, Ferrari was lucky in Hungary. Also of note, both McLarens finished in the top 10, and Fernando Alonso did the fastest lap of the Hungarian GP. Is it possible that the comatose monster has awakened? We’ll have to wait until late August, after the summer break, to see, and to learn how this most interesting season plays out. It is VERY close.

August 27: GP of Belgium at SPA (12)

With the summer break in the rear view mirror, the teams headed to Belgium and the famous SPA-Francorchamps circuit, home of the majestic and daunting corner known as Eau Rouge, where the drivers were experiencing 5 Gs of lateral loading and 3 Gs of vertical loading…simultaneously! Not only is SPA challenging, but is also long at 4.5 miles. Hence, only 44 laps would be run. Pirelli supplied the ultra-soft, super-soft, and soft tires.

Practice and Qualifying saw huge crowds under overcast skies; but only a stray drop of rain fell the entire weekend, a huge surprise. The big news pertaining to Ferrari was that both Vettel (3 years) and Raikkonen (1 year) had extended their contracts with the Scuderia. Once again, the cars were averaging nearly 150 mph. With everyone starting on the ultra-soft tires, the grid order after Qualifying was quite familiar: Hamilton (who tied Michael Schumacher for most pole positions ever), Vettel, Bottas, Raikkonen, Verstappen, and Ricciardo.

Vettel and Hamilton both made good starts and barreled up the eau rouge hill side-by-side, with Hamilton managing to hold the lead. This seemed to be the order of the day, as there were many challenges, but few passes were made. When things settled down on lap 8, Verstappen suffered engine problems and came to a halt on the track. Raikkonen apparently ignored the resulting yellow flag, and was given a 10 second stop-and-go penalty, which essentially dashed his hopes of a podium finish. Pit stops began on lap 12, with many of the drivers (including Vettel and Hamilton) going to the soft (hardest available) tires, indicating that they planned no more stops. These stops let Raikkonen, who had not stopped, move to the lead, until Hamilton passed him on lap 17 with an absolutely stunning and daring move that had to be seen to be believed. Raikkonen then stopped for tires and to serve his penalty, and the race settled into a period of relative calm, except for the two Force Indias duking it out lap after lap. The bad blood between these teammates ultimately spilled over and they collided (lap 30), scattering debris over the track and bringing out the safety car for a long period. Naturally, everyone stopped for fresh tires, but the choices were surprising: Hamilton opted for a fresh set of softs, while Vettel chose ultra-softs. This set up a most interesting sprint to the finish, when racing resumed on lap 33. Vettel challenged Hamilton on the re-start, but just failed to make the pass stick and Hamilton managed to hold the lead. Meanwhile, further back, all the drivers were giving it their all to move toward the front, with Raikkonen and Ricciardo going three wide to both pass Bottas simultaneously in another particularly daring move. At the front, Vettel closed up on Hamilton several times as the laps dwindled away, but was never able to mount a serious threat for the lead, giving a final finishing order of Hamilton, Vettel, Ricciardo, Raikkonen, and Bottas.

September 3: GP on Italy at Monza (13)

During Practice, it was made known that both Red Bulls had been assessed a 5 place grid penalty for changing their engines. Monza is another high speed, low downforce circuit that would likely favor the Mercedes cars, but in Practice the Ferraris were close on their heels. Pirelli supplied the super-soft, soft, and medium tires (along with the wets) for the 53 lap race. Everyone of note, except Red Bull’s Ricciardo (who was mired at 17th on grid), qualified on the super-softs; Ricciardo instead opted for the softs.

Qualifying was greeted with heavy rains that severely delayed proceedings. Once it resumed and ended, the results were startling: Hamilton, Stroll (Williams), Ocon (Force India), Bottas, Raikkonen, Vettel, Massa (Williams), and Kvyat (Toro Rosso).

After lots of dicing and some passing in the first few laps, the running order was Hamilton, Ocon, Stroll, Bottas, Raikkonen, and Vettel. Soon thereafter, both Bottas and Vettel passed both Stroll and Ocon, and the M-Bs were running out front with a Ferrari on their tails. A few laps later, Verstappen (with his streak of bad luck continuing) collided with Massa and suffered a puncture that forced him to the back of the pack. Meanwhile, Ricciardo (Verstappen’s teammate) was working his way up the field while Hamilton was slowly pulling away from those chasing him. While Raikkonen and Stroll opted for early pit stops (between laps 15 and 20), most of the leaders delayed their stops until after lap 30 (and Ricciardo, who had started on the more durable soft tires, to lap 38); this was a period of many passes and jockeying for position in the mid-field, and it made for some exciting racing. After that, the leaders maintained order to the end, with the final tally showing Hamilton (who takes the points lead), Bottas, Vettel, Ricciardo, Raikkonen, Ocon, and Stroll. This was a disappointing finish for Ferrari in front of the enthusiastic home fans.

September 17: GP of Singapore

This curvy, twisty track should favor the Ferraris and the Red Bulls, and be unfavorable to the M-Bs. But, during practice, the Ferraris were off the pace and did not look competitive; meanwhile the Red Bulls were at the top of the charts. Pirelli supplied the ultra-soft, super-soft, and soft tires for the 61 lap race to be run at night to avoid the sweltering weather of the day. In other news, McLaren announced it would shift to the Renault engines (from Honda) for the 2018 season. During Qualifying, the Ferraris suddenly found pace and challenged for the best times. Vettel said, “The car simply came alive.” Perhaps they had been sandbagging a bit in Practice? In any case, the starting order was Vettel, Verstappen, Ricciardo, Raikkonen, Hamilton, and Bottas – a nice change of pace.

The skies threw a monkey wrench into things when it began to rain a few minutes before race time. Vettel and a few of the other front runners opted to start on the intermediate tires rather than the slicks, and the race began on schedule and as planned. That lasted for about 100 feet: Raikkonen made an amazing start from 4th, and was immediately beside (and outside) and then a bit ahead of Verstappen, while Vettel, who started poorly, cut across the track to block Verstappen into the first turn. So you had Raikkonen on the far outside, Verstappen right next to him, and Vettel moving towards them – 3 cars fighting for space on less than half the track. Collision…all three were out. Meanwhile, Hamilton calmly motored by on the deserted other half of the track to take the lead with Ricciardo close behind. All the carnage brought out the safety car and by lap 7 the running order had settled down to a rather strange Hamilton, Ricciardo, Hulkenberg, Perez, Palmer, and Bottas; all on wet tires. But the rain was slowly abating, and by lap 20 the boldest were switching to dry tires. By lap 30 all had done so, and on lap 35 the running order was Hamilton, Ricciardo, Bottas, Hulkenberg, and Sainz. Not much happened from then until the end, with Hamilton taking the victory.

This result is a disaster for Ferrari. Both Vettel and the team scored zero points in a race they should have won. It may be the end of Ferrari’s and Vettel’s dreams for a championship in 2017.

October 1: GP of Malaysia

This track features many tight turns and two long straights. As such, the general opinion was that it really did not favor any of the cars. The Red Bulls and the Ferraris were quickest in Practice, so there was hope in the red garage. Pirelli supplied the super-soft, soft, and medium tires for 56 lap race.

Vettel changed his engine after Friday Practice, and experienced problems when he attempted to qualify. When the problems persisted, he failed to set a time in Q3 and was relegated to starting the race from last place…one more arrow in the quiver of Ferrari bad luck. With nearly everyone (except notably Vettel on the softs) qualifying (and therefore starting) on the super-soft rubber, the order was Hamilton, Raikkonen, Verstappen, Ricciardo, and Bottas.

To add insult to injury, Raikkonen experienced engine problems on the installation lap and did not participate in the race. This left Hamilton and Verstappen to battle for the lead, with Hamilton taking it through the first laps. Bottas made the best start of all and was quickly up to third. Meanwhile, Vettel had the bit between his teeth and was up to 12th (from 20th) by the end of lap 2. Then, something unusual happened. On lap 4 Verstappen simply motored by Hamilton to take the lead. And, just behind the leaders, Ricciardo was pressing Bottas very hard for third. So, with all this action at the front, this was really good racing. By lap 10, Ricciardo had passed Bottas for third, and Vettel had made his way into the top 10. He was 7th on lap 13, when the first tire stops were made, and Vettel was 5th by lap 25, and on Bottas’ rear bumper. But Vettel simply could not pass the more powerful Mercedes, which seemed to be deliberately holding up the Ferrari’s progress, to the benefit of Hamilton and Ricciardo who were not much farther up the road. This led to all of the leaders stopping for tires in the next few laps. Vettel naturally switched to the super-soft tires, and looked to have the advantage in the remaining laps because everyone else of note was forced to take on the soft rubber. So, at lap 30 the order was Verstappen, Hamilton, Ricciardo, Vettel (who had finally found a way past the Mercedes), and Bottas; an exciting sprint to the finish seemed to be in the offing. Unfortunately, despite much effort exerted, neither Ricciardo nor Vettel was able to pass the Mercedes ahead of them and that order prevailed to the end.

This was another major lost opportunity for Ferrari. The way Vettel ran during the race suggested the very real possibility of a Ferrari one-two if the gods of fate had been smiling on the red team.

October 8: GP of Japan

Pirelli supplied the super-soft, soft, and medium tires for the 53 lap race. Heavy rains seriously affected the practice sessions, leaving all the teams scrambling to find the right settings for their cars. Some teams were more busy rebuilding cars that had crashed in the heavy weather. All of this combined with grid spot penalties galore meant that the starting order was a bit different than the actual qualifying times might have produced: Hamilton, Vettel, Ricciardo, Verstappen, and Ocon. Bottas’ rebuilt car was penalized to 6th, Raikkonen’s to 10th: both would start on the soft tires while everyone else of note was on the super-soft rubber.

By race time, the weather had turned sunny and quite warm, calling into question whatever vehicle setup had been performed previously. The start was uneventful, but less than a lap into the race it became obvious that Vettel was having engine problems; he retired shortly thereafter. Meanwhile, Raikkonen, trying valiantly to move up, went off road and lost several spots instead. He was running 14th on lap 5. However, by lap 20, the running order was Hamilton, Verstappen, Ricciardo, Bottas, Raikkonen, and Ocon. On lap 21 Ocon was the first to stop for fresh tires, followed closely thereafter by Hamilton, Verstappen, and most of the others. They all switched to the mandatory soft rubber. Raikkonen and Bottas, who had started on the soft tires, delayed their stops to laps 29 and 32 respectively, and switched to the super-softs. The closing laps were exciting, with Verstappen challenging Hamilton for the lead, and Bottas challenging Ricciardo for third. But, in the end no one was able to make a pass stick and the finishing order was the same as that indicated at lap 20.

So, it was another disaster for the boys Marenello. Hopes for a championship in 2017 are gone. Wait until next year.

October 22: GP of the United States

The weather for Free Practice 1 on Friday was cool and misty, leading to a damp track and a lot of slipping and sliding, even on the intermediate wet tires. The big news in the pits was that Verstappen had extended his contract with Red Bull, and that Alonso had done the same with McLaren. The weather improved as the day progressed, but Vettel still managed to spin in FP2, and thereby lose a lot off valuable laps for car set-up. During FP3 on Saturday morning, heavy winds combined with undulations in the track had the cars searching for grip and good lap times. After all of that, Qualifying seemed almost boring: Hamilton, Vettel, Bottas, Ricciardo, and Raikkonen. Verstappen was penalized to 17th for an engine swap.

Pirelli supplied the ultra-soft, super-soft, and soft tires for the 56 lap race; everyone chose the ultra-softs except Verstappen, who, starting 17th, opted for the softs.

Boxing announcer Michael Buffer was brought on to introduce the drivers and generally put a Texas-sized level of bombast to the proceedings. No one confused this with Monaco, that’s for sure. But all looked rosy when Vettel jumped Hamilton at the start and managed to hold the race lead at the end of lap 1. The first 5 or so laps were ultra-exciting, with Bottas and Ricciardo fighting side-by-side for long stretches for third place, Raikkonen dueling with Ocon, and Verstappen coming up fast through the field thanks to some audacious passes of slower traffic. But, then the inevitable happened, Hamilton, with the advantage of DRS, squeezed by Vettel on lap 6 for the lead, and slowly began to pull away from the Ferrari. Nonetheless, the exciting racing continued with a tight duel between Raikkonen and Ricciardo, who eventually dropped out with engine issues. Most of the leaders made their first tire stops between laps 17 (Vettel) and 27, when the running order was Hamilton, Vettel, Bottas, Raikkonen, and Verstappen. Second stops were made between laps 34 and 46. During this period, more exciting racing was the order of the day, as Sainz (Renault) and Perez (Force India) went wheel-to-wheel repeatedly while fighting for position, and Raikkonen managed to snatch third from Bottas (who pitted for tires shortly thereafter). Then, on lap 51, after his second stop, Vettel made a simply astonishing pass on Bottas to regain second. On the last lap Verstappen made an audacious pass of Raikkonen that the stewards deemed a bit too audacious; they awarded Verstappen a 5 second penalty which made the finishing order Hamilton, Vettel, Raikkonen, and Verstappen. This was an excellent race and a very good result for Ferrari, especially after the disappointments of the previous three contests. But, in the end, Hamilton managed to win again.

October 29: GP of Mexico

The little used track was dusty during the practice sessions, providing little grip and eliciting many spins and slides. Moreover, the cars were clearly a bit down on both power and downforce due to the elevation (7,000 + feet) and resulting thin air. The cool, cloudy weather only exacerbated these issues, which continued into Qualifying on Saturday, when the crowds (in support of local here Sergio Perez) were huge. During Qualifying, fast lap jumped from driver to driver, with many temporarily at the top of the timing chart. But, in the end it was Vettel who reigned supreme with a picture perfect lap. The starting order was Vettel, Verstappen, Hamilton, Bottas, Raikkonen, and Ocon. Ricciardo was penalized to 16th for an engine change.

Pirelli supplied the ultra-soft, super-soft, and soft tires for the 71 lap race. Everyone at the front started on the ultra-soft rubber.

After a poignant moment of silence for the victims of the recent Mexican earthquake, the cars rolled off. Both Verstappen and Hamilton pushed the issue a bit too far at turn one…and the requisite collisions ensued. After the three top qualifiers bumped one another a few times, Hamilton had a punctured tire, Vettel had a damaged nose, and Verstappen, relatively unscathed, had the lead. He then proceeded to run off into the distance, and remain there for essentially the entire race. Meanwhile, Ricciardo dropped out and Hamilton and Vettel were in the pits, and then at the back of the pack. As the race played out, Vettel was on a charge to the front (in part, with a brutal pass of Massa on lap 13 for 15th place) while Hamilton made little such headway. The first stops were made on lap 20, and second stops were generally made on lap 33 when the safety car slowed the field. After the dust had settled, the running order was Verstappen, Bottas, Raikkonen, and Ocon; Vettel was 8th and Hamilton 16th. By lap 52, Vettel, with a series of fast laps, had clawed his way to 6th, and then to 5th by lap 55, and 4th by lap 58. But that was the extent of it; the final finishing order was Verstappen (the only Renault powered car – of 6 – that finished), Bottas, Raikkonen, Vettel, Ocon, Stroll, and Perez.

With this result, poor Vettel is once again cheated of a potential win, and Hamilton captures his 4th world championship. The first race of 2018 is in March…set your clocks.

November 12: GP of Brazil

Meanwhile, before March 2018, there are two more races to be run in 2017, and the first was at Interlagos in Sao Paulo, Brazil (population about 21 million). Pirelli supplied the super-soft, soft, and medium (no one liked these) tires for the 71 lap race. The Practice sessions saw the top 10 cars posting very competitive times, but cool, damp, misty conditions scrambled things up in Qualifying, when Hamilton spun in Q1, damaged his car, and was relegated to starting the race from pit lane. Ricciardo, who suffered an engine change penalty, was moved back to 14th. Both of them would start on the soft tires, while everyone else was on the super-soft rubber. As the weather got worse, times got slower and the final starting order was Bottas, Vettel, Raikkonen, Verstappen, Perez, and Alonso.

Race day was sunny and hot, quite different than the Qualifying conditions, a distinct advantage to Hamilton whose pit crew was free to change the settings on his car overnight as he was starting in pit lane. Bottas made a good start, but Vettel made a better one and pushed past the Finn to take the lead at turn 1. He managed to make it stick without any contact, but there was plenty of that in the field behind the leaders. By lap 10, when the dust had settled and the safety car was back in the pits, the running order was Vettel, Bottas, Raikkonen, Verstappen and Massa. Hamilton was moving up fast (he was 10th, and then 7th by lap 15, and 5th by lap 22) while Ricciardo was still mired in 14th. Tire stops began on lap 28, with all the leaders switching to the soft rubber. There was a close moment when Vettel reentered side-by-side with Bottas, but the Ferrari took control and then managed to slowly eke out a lead over the Mercedes. Hamilton and Ricciardo, who had both started on the soft tires, delayed their pit stops to lap 44, with both switching to the super-soft rubber. So, on lap 45 the running order was Vettel, Bottas, Raikkonen, Verstappen, and Hamilton (who, on the fresher and stickier rubber, was catching everyone ahead). He passed Verstappen on lap 60, and then mounted an assault against Raikkonen, who fought him tooth-and-nail for the final spot on the podium. In the end, Raikkonen prevailed and the final finish was Vettel, Bottas, Raikkonen, Hamilton, Verstappen, and Ricciardo.

This was an excellent result for Ferrari, but it was too little and too late.

November 26: GP of Abu Dhabi

A night race at a spectacular venue located in an exotic locale…what more could you ask for? How about some action? Qualifying went to script except that Bottas claimed pole over Hamilton, with Vettel, Ricciardo, Raikkonen, and Verstappen following. In other words, the big 6 were in lock-step. Pirelli supplied the ultra-soft, super-soft, and soft tires for the 55 lapper, and all of the top qualifiers opted for the ultras; no surprise there.

It was a clean charge to the first corners with the leaders holding positions and, despite some challenges in the mid-field, nary a collision to spice things up in the opening lap. And so it went through lap16 when the pit stops began, with everyone switching to the mandatory super-soft rubber. Raikkonen was the first of the lead group to pit; Hamilton was last, on lap 24. Meanwhile, Ricciardo suffered yet another mechanical failure and dropped out of the fray on lap 21. And so they circulated for the next 30 some-odd laps. Hamilton made a half-hearted challenge to his teammate for the lead, but nothing came of it. Vettel seemed to be running alone the entire time. Only Verstappen made a credible effort to move up, but he was rebuffed by Raikkonen and nothing came of it. The final finishing order was much the same as that at the start: Bottas, Hamilton, Vettel, Raikkonen, Verstappen, and Hulkenberg (Renault). The Force India duo finished 7th and 8th.

Well, they saved the worst race of the season for last, and it was a turkey of a weekend.

Recap of the 2017 Season

When all was said and done, Mercedes still had the best car (and the best driver) and therefore was able to win both the drivers’ and constructors’ championships. Ferrari was a very competitive second, with Red Bull third. Haas, our American team, improved, but still only managed to finish in 8th spot (of 10). The results:

Top Constructors Top Drivers

Mercedes 668 Hamilton (M-B) 363
Ferrari 522 Vettel (F) 317
Red Bull 368 Bottas (M-B) 305
Force India 187 Raikkonen (F) 205

Both Ferrari and Red Bull significantly closed the gap to the leader, and Force India and McLaren both look to be strong next season. The Red Bulls, piloted by Ricciardo and Verstappen, were right on Ferrari’s tail, despite less than stellar reliability, and to be honest luck. Given all of this, next year looks to be a barn burner.

Looking at the drivers, Hamilton has now won his 4th championship (along with most poles and a slew of other ‘bests’) and must be considered among the all- time greats. Bottas did well in his first year at Mercedes, and looks to be a future contender. Vettel is still excellent, but no longer can be considered at the top of the heap. Raikkonen is past his prime; he is still very good but no longer a real contender. Then, there is Fernando Alonso. He is still one of the best, but needs a competitive car to demonstrate his prowess. Hopefully, McLaren will provide one for him next year. Among the younger guys, Ricciardo seems to have taken a step back; he was clearly not quite as quick as Verstappen, his younger teammate. That puts Verstappen at the top of the heap in the ‘future contenders’ bracket. Baring mishap, he is a future champion. Of the other youngsters, Ocon looks to be the best.

The 2018 season begins in March. Applications for Personal Seat Licenses for the best spots at Siena are now being accepted.

Last Words

So, another F1 season is over and another year has passed by. We hope that 2017 was a good one for you and your loved ones, and that your holiday season has been wonderful. See you in 2018!

John Ratto

Opening Commentary

Starting virtually immediately after the election, the stock market took a strong turn upward, likely in anticipation of a more business and tax friendly team in power at the capital. Then, some strange accusations began floating around concerning Russian interference in the election, Russian influence on Trump aides, wire-taps at Trump Tower, etc., etc. Six months later, and the news still centers on these issues. Oh well, discord seems to be the flavor of the day because…

Our Club was also ravished by strife and animosity during early 2017. We were at loggerheads with former president and owner of our original website, Jeff Wenger. As a result, some very nasty e-mails were transmitted by both sides, the types of e-mails that only further feuds rather than resolving them. I am happy to report that all now seems to be peacefully resolved, and everyone is playing nice once more. Perhaps Washington should follow in our example? Given all that, I can only once again remind you to visit our NEW! IMPROVED! website at ferrariclubvegas.com.

As for Formula 1: My source at the Barcelona test sessions reveals that he sees little to choose between the Ferraris, Red Bulls, and Mercedes Benzes. To me, this says that our team will be more competitive than it was last year. He says ALL the cars are MUCH faster than last year (probably due to being wider, having bigger wings, and having much wider tires). He further said the cars look better. He indicated that the Williams and Toro Rosso cars were the best of the rest, and that only the McLaren-Hondas were significantly off the pace.

Ferrari values are something that interests most of us. From what I see, values for the older, collectible cars seem to have stabilized at a level about 20% less than they were 2 years ago, but still far higher than they were say 5 years ago. No collectible experiences consistently increasing prices, so a slight down turn followed by a period of price stability should be viewed as a positive, at least in my opinion. Meanwhile, prices for the late model, bread-and-butter cars continues to decline gradually as newer, more advanced (and under warranty) models are introduced. This has always been the case. The trick is to identify when a depreciating model will become an appreciating collectible. 328s and Testarossas did that not long ago, which will be next?

Here is a recap of what transpired in the first half of 2017. We sincerely hope you can attend at least a few events over the next few months.

January 17: Board Meeting at the home of Elda and Dave Fanucchi

The Board gives many thanks to Elda and Dave for hosting this meeting in their home. The turnout was quite good, with President Chuck Damus, Treasurer Scott Howard, Stephane Pedaggi, Dan Fogle, Ted Schlazer, and yours truly in attendance. Items discussed included the Club’s financial health (so-so), the new President of the Desert Region (Rod Biddle in an upset victory – your vote counts!), and our own Board elections (with both Chuck and Ted being re-elected). Then, the new website was reviewed, and progress was noted. Please visit it: Ferrariclubvegas.com. Stephane and Cindy brought some new club merchandise for inspection and it was deemed nice stuff…and bought quickly. Check the website to purchase your own items; more are being added as we speak.

January 25: Social at Brio

The turnout (about 14) was less than stellar, but hey, it was the first social of the New Year held on a cold winter’s night. The atmosphere was warm and jovial, however, and the food was up to Brio’s normal high standards. In the end, a good time was had by all.

February 23: Social at Mastrioni’s

Despite another relatively small turnout – perhaps due to the nasty cold that has been going around (at least a few people ‘called in sick’ at the last minute), everyone seemed to have a wonderful time. This restaurant has very good Italian food and it is easy to get to, but the parking situation is poor. Oh well, you can’t have everything.

March 14: Board Meeting at Settebello Pizzeria

It was a beautiful evening to dine al-fresco, so that is exactly what we did. The turnout was good, with all Board members present except Scott Howard and Michael O’B. The good news is that we have a new member, Juan Valdes (be sure to greet him warmly if you should meet him at a future event), and the so-so news is that the Club’s bank balance hasn’t changed much. Publishing a calendar to generate income was discussed, as was the new website and the merchandise offered on it. Please visit: ferrariclubvegas.com to get up to date. Future events, socials, and drives were also discussed. At a subsequent special, double-secret board meeting held on March 22, it was decided to move forward with publishing a calendar Ted Schlazer will be the organizer of this effort, and we applaud his willingness to take on the task.

March 23: Social at the Bootlegger Bistro

A few relatively new faces (hello Al and Lorene Lindahl, owners a divine 458) and a few faces not seen lately (hello Paul and Shawna) were present to join some stalwarts, and a lively conversation ensued. It almost felt more like a board meeting than a social to be honest. Everyone seemed to enjoy the food prepared by this long standing Vegas institution and some even ordered desert.

April 9: Drive and Breakfast at Lake Mead

This drive was postponed from Saturday to Sunday due to weather concerns. As a result, some who were originally scheduled to attend dropped out, while others joined in. In any case, we had 6 cars making the jaunt, which is not a bad turn out, especially considering that each car was full (read 2). And what a great drive it turned out to be. The weather was superb. And there was virtually no traffic either coming or going, and not a constable was spied. As a result, the pace was pretty quick, and we were eating breakfast (not bad food) and taking in the spectacular views of Lake Mead before we knew it, and we were all back home before 1 pm. Good day.

April 27: Social at Bonefish Grill – Summerlin

Although attendance was sparse, where is everybody these days?, rumor has it the food was great and the conversation even better. Reports say our group was so animated that they had to be evicted at closing time. You all missed a great evening!

May 16: Board Meeting at the home of Chuck Damus and Kerri Howard

The core group (Damus, Fanucchi, Ratto, Scott Howard, and Schlazer) was present, while Mike O and Stephane P were not. The financials were reviewed quickly, as nothing has changed. Then the website issue was discussed. It seems that peace, or at least détente, has been negotiated with Jeff Wenger, and I say hallelujah to that. However, the notifications Jeff promised to add to his website have been delayed. In any case, the barrage of nasty letters has ceased, and the Board asks your forgiveness for being exposed to the vitriol. Meanwhile, ownership of our new website was discussed and the matter was resolved to the satisfaction of all. Events, past and future, were next on our agenda. The calendar shoot has been postponed due to lack of perceived interest. What’s wrong with you people? We are offering hot models combined with hot cars (a combination that never goes out of style), and the opportunity to have photos of your car in an upscale calendar. Seems like a no-brainer to me. The tentative date for the Holiday Party is December 2.

May 25: Social at Table 34

Despite a rash of no-shows, the turn-out was decent…and the food was great. Those that had the halibut seemed especially pleased. Once again, the conversation was animated, and extended long after the last plates were cleared from the table. Overall, it was a quite pleasant evening. Other than the no-shows, the only negative was that the winds prevented us from enjoying our food out on the deck.

Early June: Death of Rocky LaBriola

The Club was informed that one of our members passed to the great race track in the sky. Rocky was a long time Ferrari enthusiast and a current member of the Board of Directors of the Las Vegas Chapter. Our condolences and prayers go to Bianca, Rocky’s wife, and we all wish that he may rest in Peace.

June 22: Social at Vintner Grill

We had a strong turn-out, as we usually do, for our annual trek to this popular spot. After being ‘at sea’ for extended period, Michael and Karen Obradovich were in attendance to get their land legs back. The food was a bit hit-and-miss this visit, with some dishes being spectacular, others just OK. But the thing about VG is that the eye candy there will give you diabetes, and I say what a way to go.

UPCOMING EVENTS

The blazing hot months of summer are usually down-time for the Club. Socials and drives are generally less often, if ever, scheduled during this period. So, we ask all of you to bide your time, save up your energy, and then be ready and raring to go when the action resumes in September. Significant events in the fall include Italian Sports Car and Motorcycle Day at Siena Restaurant in early October. The next Board meeting is scheduled for July 11 at Bravo Cucina Italiana in the Galleria Mall. Socials will also resume in September, and they will usually be scheduled for the third Thursday of the month, so try to keep those evenings open. Meanwhile, be sure to visit our new website for the latest information. FerrariClubVegas.com

FORMULA 1 NEWS RECAP

March through June: F1 Viewing at Siena and other venues

Overview as of March 2017

As a new season begins, hope spring eternal for Ferrari once again being at the front of the grid. Can it really be 10 years since Ferrari’s last championship (with Kimi Raikkonen at the helm)? Based upon what I have heard of the testing in Barcelona, things are looking up for our red chargers, and a good year lies ahead. As mentioned above, they look to be seriously quick, and right on the pace of the Mercedes-Benzes that have dominated for the past 3 years. Maybe 2017 will be the ‘next year’ we have been waiting for.

As for other F1 news, the dust has settled since Rosberg won the championship last year, and then promptly retired. In response, M-B poached Valtteri Bottas from Williams to fill the empty seat. Talk about being in the right place at the right time, this should be a career defining move for the Finn. The big question is whether he can match the pace of team leader Lewis Hamilton. Bottas’ exit meant that Williams, which had already engaged newcomer Lance Stroll to fill the spot left by the retirement of Felipe Massa, had another position to fill, and they responded by bringing Massa out of retirement. Great! The Brazilian is a competitive driver, a nice guy, and a willing interviewee. The retirement of Jensen Button opened a spot at McLaren-Honda, which was filled by last year’s tyro, Stoffel Vandoorne. Good luck to him with that difficult beast of a car, and in trying to keep up with teammate Fernando Alonso.

Personally, I have been quite impressed by another youngster (not quite a rookie, though), Esteban Ocon, who is French despite his given name. This kid looks to be the next Max Verstappen, but perhaps with a bit of caution thrown into the blend. The Force India team also looks to be quite competitive, especially considering their relatively small capitalization.

So, it is with hope and a prayer that we welcome a new season. GO FERRARI!! We hope to see some of you at Siena Trattoria for race viewing, where prayers are sometimes answered

March 19: GP of Australia (1)

As usual, the first race of the season was held ‘down under,’ where our winter is summer. Pirelli supplied the ultra-soft, super-soft, and (plain old) soft tires for the 57 lap race at Albert Park, and all of the fast qualifiers chose the ultra-softs for qualifying and to (therefore) start the race. The experts predicted that these tires would last about 20 laps, and that most teams would opt for a one stop strategy. The top 5 qualifiers were no surprise: Hamilton, Vettel, Bottas (new in the M-B), Raikkonen, and Verstappen (Red Bull). After that, though, there were quite a few surprises, with Grosjean (Haas!) 6th, Massa 7th, and Sainz (Toro Rosso) 8th. Ricciardo (Red Bull) spun and crashed in Q3, and was relegated to 10th.

The start was relatively uneventful, with Vettel making a move for the lead that was rebuffed by Hamilton; then everyone settling down to the business at hand. In the early laps, Vettel lost little ground, and it was clear that Hamilton was pushing hard to stay ahead of the Ferrari. Perhaps because of this, Hamilton seemed to be having tire wear issues, which was confirmed when he pitted for new rubber on lap 17, earlier than anticipated. Now in undisturbed air, Vettel laid down some really fast laps in an attempt to pad his margin over Hamilton, and hopefully be able to retain the lead after he stopped for tires. Meanwhile, after his stop, Hamilton came out behind Verstappen, who, as usual, proved to be very difficult to pass even though Hamilton was on fresh (soft compound) tires. All of this led to Vettel being able to make his stop on lap 23 and then being able to rejoin the fray barely ahead of Hamilton. Ferrari in the lead! Then something truly surprising happened, Vettel increased that lead (to about 10 seconds) throughout the remaining laps of the race, probably because Hamilton had used up his new tires while trying to pass Verstappen. Most of the remainder of the race was relatively uneventful. Bottas managed to make the tires on his Mercedes last until lap 26, when he pitted and subsequently finished 3rd. Raikkonen pitted on lap 27, and finished 4th. Verstappen was 5th, Massa 6th, and Sergio Perez once again drove a savvy race to bring his Force India to 7th. Both Haas cars failed to finish.

April 10: GP of China (2)

Friday practice was wet and cold, and not many laps were turned. Saturday morning practice was better, and it brought big hopes: The Ferraris were fastest of all, with the Mercedes close behind.

Pirelli supplied the super soft, soft, and medium tires for the 56 lap race, and all qualified and (planned) to start on the super softs. Verstappen had engine problems in Q1 and was relegated to 16th on the grid. Throughout Qualifying, times were close, and when the dust settled the order was Hamilton, Vettel, Bottas, Raikkonen, and Ricciardo.

Sunday was misty and cold, and the track was wet as race time neared. Given the circumstances, virtually all opted to start on the intermediate wet tires. With the sun popping out and the track drying fast, this proved to be ill-advised. Vettel stopped virtually immediately (lap 2) for dry weather tires, which also proved ill-advised as a couple of accidents and safety car periods in the next few laps allowed everyone else to stop under safety car controlled conditions. When things had settled down (by lap 7), everyone was on dry tires and the running order was Hamilton, Ricciardo, Raikkonen, Verstappen, and Vettel, with everyone bunched up at the front. How did Verstappen manage to climb from the rear of the pack to 4th you may ask…with some of the best and bravest driving I have ever witnessed. He simply ‘went for it’ and succeeded in blowing by everyone in the iffy damp conditions. He went from 16th to 7th after only 1 lap! By lap 15 he had passed – spectacularly, I might add – Raikkonen and Ricciardo as well, and was running second. Meanwhile, Vettel was clawing his way back towards the front. He was 3rd by lap 23 (with an epic pass on Ricciardo) and second by lap 28 (with a pass on Verstappen who had worn his tires with so much vigor) and soon was dogging Hamilton in the lead. But, victory was not to be. Although everyone stopped once more for fresh tires, Hamilton managed to control the gap from the lead and take the victory, with Vettel a close second, Verstappen 3rd, Ricciardo 4th, and Raikkonen 5th.

This, my friends, is getting interesting.

April 16: GP of Bahrain (3)

Free Practice 2 (Friday) saw the Ferraris, M-Bs, and Red Bulls trading fast times throughout, engendering hopes that it would be a competitive race. The times were again very close during Qualifying, but in the end the M-Bs ruled, with a big surprise: Bottas, not Hamilton, was on pole. Vettel managed 3rd, Ricciardo 4th, Raikkonen 5th, and Verstappen 6th. Less than 1 second covered the top 6. Pirelli supplied the super soft, soft, and medium (no one seemed to use these) for the 57 lap race. All the front runners qualified and started on the super-softs.

Vettel made a good start and was able to pass Hamilton at the first turn, and then push Bottas throughout the early laps. In fact, the opening laps were all very exciting, with passing throughout the field. After the dust had settled, the order at the front was Bottas, Vettel, Hamilton, Verstappen, Ricciardo, Massa, and Raikkonen. By lap 8, Bottas seemed to be having tire issues and was slowing down, thereby bunching the field. On lap 11, Vettel, on Bottas’ tail but unable to pass, was the first to stop (choosing another set of super soft tires, meaning that at least one more stop would be required). He was followed shortly thereafter by virtually everyone else when the safety car was deployed due to the failure of Verstappen’s Red Bull. Interestingly, the M-Bs switched to the soft tires, thereby threatening to go to the end without another stop. Bottas’ stop for tires was very slow, which then delayed Hamilton who was waiting his turn behind him. Seeing the pit box occupied, Hamilton dawdled on pit entry to prevent those behind from gaining an advantage, which caused the marshals to assess him a 5 second penalty. In any case, the running order behind the safety car was now Vettel, Bottas, Ricciardo, Hamilton (still to serve his penalty), Massa, and Raikkonen.

When the safety car pulled off, Bottas tried several moves to pass Vettel, but all were rebuffed in exciting fashion. Then, Vettel, on the faster super-soft tires, began to pull away from the field, while some good passing was happening in his wake, with both Hamilton and Raikkonen forcing their way past Ricciardo, and Alonso-Kvyat-Palmer battling tooth-and-nail for 13th. Hamilton passed Bottas on lap 27, and Vettel pitted for a second time on lap 34, fitting the required softs. He returned behind Hamilton, and on lap 36 the running order was Hamilton (still not having served his penalty), Vettel, Raikkonen, Ricciardo, and Bottas. Now on fresh tires, Vettel began to track down Hamilton, forcing him to stop for a second time, on lap 42. Hamilton served his 5 second penalty in the pits, and returned about 18 seconds behind Vettel and 9 seconds behind Bottas. On new tires, Hamilton put ‘the pedal to the metal’ and began setting fast laps in hopes of making it back to the front. He caught and passed Bottas on lap 46, when the gap to Vettel had been reduced to 10 seconds. In the remaining laps, Hamilton cut Vettel’s lead to about 6 seconds, but was not able to mount a serious threat to the Ferrari’s supremacy. The final order was Vettel, Hamilton, Bottas, Raikkonen, and Ricciardo, with Grosjean in the Hass 8th.

THIS WAS A GREAT RACE WITH A GREAT OUTCOME – HAPPY EASTER! Ferrari is reborn.

April 30: GP of Russia (4)

The weather was cool and perfect all weekend; the racing was a bit hotter. Pirelli supplied the ultra-soft, super-soft, and soft tires for the 52 lap race on the 3.5 mile circuit. Given that the surface at Sochi is not abrasive, everyone planned a one stop race and started on the softest, and fastest, ultra-soft rubber. With the top guys trading fastest laps at the very end of Q3, the starting order was undetermined until the final seconds, but in the end the Ferraris (!) prevailed: Vettel, Raikkonen, Bottas, Hamilton, Ricciardo, and Massa. This was significant, as it showed the Ferraris were equal to the Mercedes in qualifying trim, which had not previously been the case.

The Ferraris made a good start from the front of the grid, but Bottas made a great one from 3rd; he passed both red cars to take the lead. Farther down the grid, there was the usual crash heading into turn two, and the safety car was then deployed for a couple of laps. When racing resumed, the running order was Bottas, Vettel, Raikkonen, Hamilton, Verstappen, and Massa. Ricciardo, who was falling off the pace due to brake problems, retired on lap 5. While some stopped for new tires as early as lap 22, others postponed their stops until lap 35; all switched to the mandatory super-softs and were good to go to the end. Bottas, losing ground on worn tires, was the first of the leaders to stop (lap 28), followed by Raikkonen (lap 30) and Hamilton (lap 31). Vettel, still running competitive times on his worn tires, postponed his stop to lap 35, hoping to have the freshest tires for a hard run in the late laps. He rejoined the fray in second place, about 5 seconds behind Bottas. Then Vettel began to slowly reel the Finn in, reducing the gap to about 1.4 seconds by lap 43. But catching Bottas was easy compared to passing him. Although Vettel was nipping at his tail, managed to cut the lead to less than 1 second several times (and was thus able to activate his DRS), and had the fresher tires, Bottas’ determination and race traffic thwarted Vettel’s attempts to take the ultimate prize. The final order was Bottas (first career win), Vettel (less than a second in arrears), Raikkonen, Hamilton (who was far off the pace, perhaps due to overheating problems when running in dirty air), Verstappen (never a factor in this contest), and the Force India duo of Perez and Ocon.

This was another exciting race and another excellent (if not perfect) result for Ferrari. Vettel now leads the drivers’ standings by 13 points, while Ferrari and M-B are virtually deadlocked at the top of the manufacturers’ scoreboard.

May 14: GP of Spain (5)

The big news centered on the updated engine and aero packages most of the teams debuted for this race. While it seemed that all the cars improved marginally, the Red Bulls and the Force Indias seemed to improve the most. Meanwhile, out on the track, the M-Bs were fastest in Free Practice 1 and 2, while the Ferraris topped FP 3. The Red Bulls were close behind.

Pirelli supplied the soft, medium, and hard tires for the 66 lap race; but the soft tires were clearly the fastest by a significant margin. Everyone qualified and started the race on them. After a competitive, but uneventful, qualifying session, the starting order was Hamilton, Vettel (5/100 second behind), Bottas, Raikkonen, Verstappen, Ricciardo, and Alonso (surprise!).

Race day was sunny and nice, but quite windy, so much so that the cars were affected on the track. Competitive racing and Ferraris near the front must be a tonic for enthusiasm: Siena’s deli was packed with viewers on Sunday morning, Mothers’ Day be damned. When the lights went out, the top two got off clean with Vettel snatching the lead (!), but behind them all hell broke loose. Raikkonen, Verstappen, and Bottas tried to go through turn 2 three-abreast…it didn’t work…crash. When the dust had settled, Vettel was pulling away from second place Hamilton with Bottas significantly farther back, Ricciardo was 4th, and the Force Indias were 5th and 6th. Both Raikkonen and Verstappen were out. With the cars so evenly matched this year, there were exciting battles throughout the race and throughout the field. Of special note was a virtually race-long, wheel-to-wheel, tussle between Magnussen (Haas) and Sainz (Toro Rosso).

On lap 15, which seemed early, Vettel was the first of the leaders to stop for tires. He opted for another set of soft tires, all of which hinted of a possible 3 stop strategy. He returned to the fray behind Bottas (now second), and was trapped there for several laps, unable to use his fresh rubber to full advantage, and thereby ruining whatever strategy was contemplated. Hamilton, meanwhile, held out to lap 22 for his first stop, and switched to the longer lived but slower medium rubber, hinting of a possible one stop strategy. He returned in third place, but, clear of traffic, he began catching the leaders. At this point, Vettel made a spectacular pass on Bottas and stabilized his lead over Hamilton at about 6 seconds. Hamilton, clearly unhappy on the medium tires, stopped again on lap 37 to switch to the faster soft rubber. Vettel responded with his second stop on the following lap; he switched to the mandatory mediums. He rejoined the race side-by-side with Hamilton and the two duked it out for several hundred yards before Vettel snared the lead. This was nail biting. But the Ferrari lead was short lived, utilizing his DRS and soft tires, Hamilton managed to pass Vettel for the lead on lap 44, and to fight Vettel off to the end and take the victory. The finishing order was Hamilton, Vettel, Ricciardo (who seemed to run the entire race by himself), and then the Force India duo of Perez and Ocon (BTW this youngster bears watching – he is consistent, doesn’t crash, and is FAST).

This was another exciting race. If you aren’t watching F1 in 2017, you are missing out.

May 28: GP of Monaco (6)

The Ferraris looked to be fastest of all during the three Practice sessions, which was significant because Monaco is narrow and chock full of turns, making passing very difficult. Meanwhile, the Mercedes were a bit off the pace.

Pirelli supplied the ultra-soft, super-soft, and soft tires for the 78 lap race, but all the teams seemed to feel that even the ultra-softs were too hard for the conditions. Everyone qualified and started on the ultra-soft tires, and it looked as if only one stop would be required. Hamilton experienced lack of grip in Qualifying and was fighting the car throughout; he was lucky not to have hit a wall and failed to get to Q3. The Brit was relegated to starting in 14th place, highly unusual for him. Meanwhile, the fast guys qualified as follows: Raikkonen, Vettel, Bottas, Verstappen, Ricciardo, and Sainz (Toro Rosso).

After an uneventful start (unusual at Monaco), the starting order was pretty much maintained during the early laps, with the two leading Ferraris slowly pulling away from the rest of the field. At first, Vettel seemed satisfied to follow 3 or 4 seconds behind Raikkonen, but by lap 17 the German was close behind his teammate and threatening to pass. But, passing at Monaco is very difficult, and the status quo was maintained to lap 26, when the leaders began catching the slowest backmarkers, and passing even them proved to be difficult. Was it time to make a pit stop? After a few laps in slow traffic, the leaders began to pit for fresh tires; Verstappen was first (lap 33), Bottas second (lap 34) and Raikkonen followed on lap 35. All switched to the mandatory super-softs. But, when several backmarkers stopped for tires, Vettel was suddenly in clear air and opted to delay his stop to lap 40. Running on the still viable ultra-softs and with no one ahead to block his path, the German laid down some scorching laps, and was able to pit and return to the race just ahead of Raikkonen; he then proceeded to build a nice lead in the laps that followed. After all the front runners had pitted and resumed racing, the order was Vettel, Raikkonen, Ricciardo, Bottas, Verstappen, and Hamilton, who had delayed his first stop to lap 47 while working his way through most of the field. Several accidents and safety car periods in the closing laps bunched up the field, but no one at the front was able to pass for position. The final finishing order was Vettel, Raikkonen, Ricciardo, Bottas, and Verstappen. Hamilton was 7th, and both Haas cars finished in the points.

This was Ferrari’s first win at Monaco in 16 years – a significant event. Of note was the obvious displeasure Raikkonen displayed on the podium; he apparently felt that Ferrari shafted him with the pit stop strategy to benefit Vettel. There can be no question that things worked out badly for Kimi who could have easily won this race, but he was hit by a perfect storm rather than a planned assassination. It could not have been predicted when the backmarkers would pit, or that the ultra-soft tires still had so many fast laps in them. Vettel took a chance and it paid off. Moreover, once Vettel was ahead of Raikkonen, with both were on equal rubber, he easily built a significant lead, so the victory was not undeserved.

BTW: McLaren driver Fernando Alonso qualified 5th at the Indianapolis 500 and was fighting for the win when his engine blew in the final laps. Well done Senor!

June 11: Grand Prix of Canada (7)

The talk during Practice was of Fernando Alonso, and his stated desire to either start winning (unlikely) or leave McLaren-Honda. Thus the ‘silly season’ has officially begun. Meanwhile, out on the track, the Force Indias and Mercedes looked quite strong in Practice, while the Red Bulls struggled with engine issues.

Pirelli supplied the ultra-soft, super-soft, and soft tires for the 70 lap race, and all agreed that once again even the softest compound was too hard for the task at hand. Everyone complained of lack of grip, and qualified on the ultra-softs. Keeping even them warm proved difficult. In the end, Qualifying was relatively uneventful, and the starting order was Hamilton, Vettel, Bottas, Raikkonen, Verstappen, and Ricciardo. The Force India pair was 8th and 9th.

Verstappen made an astonishing start from 5th, and immediately catapulted to second; unfortunately, he clipped Vettel’s front wing in the process. Meanwhile, a bit farther back in the field, Massa, Sainz, and Grosjean came together, bringing out the safety car and relegating both Massa and Sainz to the scrap heap. Once racing resumed on lap 4, Vettel realized he needed a new hose, and pitted. He resumed in 18th on the super-soft tires, seemingly prepared to run until the end. A few laps later, Verstappen got his comeuppance, as his engine failed, putting him out of the contest. On lap 15, the leaders were Hamilton, Bottas, Ricciardo, Perez (Force India), Raikkonen, and Ocon (FI). Raikkonen was the first of this group to stop (lap 18) for new tires, opting for the super-softs. Ricciardo was next to stop, but he chose the soft rubber. Meanwhile, Vettel, on the super-soft tires while everyone ahead of him was on the ultra-soft rubber, was having difficulty working his way back to the front. He was 13th by lap 15 and 10th by lap 20. The last two to stop for new tires were Hamilton and Ocon (both on lap 33). After the dust had settled, the running order was Hamilton (with a substantial lead), Bottas, Ricciardo, Perez, Raikkonen, Ocon, and Vettel.

On aging tires and with little to lose at this point, both Ferraris made second stops for ultra-soft tires in hopes of running down the cars ahead in the remaining laps. Soon thereafter, however, Raikkonen began to experience brake problems, and he slowed down to assure finishing the race. By lap 55, Hamilton and Bottas were off in the distance, but a heated battle was being waged for 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th. Ricciardo, heading this group, was clearly holding up the rest, while 4th place Perez (Force India) was preventing his teammate (Ocon, 5th and on much fresher tires) from passing him to challenge the Red Bull. Vettel was bringing up the rear, obviously waiting for something to go wrong ahead so he could pounce. When nothing transpired over the next 10 laps, Ocon made a desperate move on Perez, which was rebuffed, but which allowed Vettel to make a daring pass on Ocon. Two laps later Vettel passed Perez, but time ran out before he could catch Ricciardo for a podium finish. The final finishing order was Hamilton, Bottas, Ricciardo, Vettel, Perez, Ocon, and Raikkonen.

So, it was not the best of results for Ferrari. But, given the obstacles that were overcome, it was the best that could be expected.

June 25: GP of Azerbaijan (8)

This street circuit clearly illustrates the dichotomy (and challenge) of Formula 1: It has a massively long (nearly 1.5 mile) straight, and 2 miles of tight, narrow corners. In fact, the straight is so long that the tires lose temperature there, so when the cars enter the turns they have less grip than the drivers anticipate. Given these circumstances, it was no surprise to see virtually every driver be repeatedly forced to take the escape roads (or clip barriers) when entering a corner too fast. Nevertheless, Qualifying proceeded, producing the following somewhat standard starting order: Hamilton, Bottas, Raikkonen, Vettel, and Verstappen. The Force India duo claimed 6th and 7th, while Ricciardo, who clipped a barrier a bit too forcefully in Q3, was relegated to 10th.

Pirelli supplied the super soft (all qualified and started on these), soft (but still too hard), and medium (no one wanted any part of these rocks) for the 51 lap race over the long 3.5 mile circuit. Everyone also seemed to be planning a one stop strategy.

Sunday morning saw a huge turnout for race viewing at Siena. The joke was that grandstands would need to be built if the crowd grew any larger. The opening lap saw two collisions. Vettel’s nose was clipped, and in a more serious accident Bottas and Raikkonen came together. While the two Ferraris fortunately experienced only minor damage, Bottas suffered a puncture and had to limp around the long circuit before entering the pits for new rubber. He rejoined in last place, lapped by most of the field. After the dust had settled, the top runners were Hamilton, Vettel, Perez (Force India), Verstappen, and Raikkonen. Around lap 12, Verstappen suffered an engine failure and Kvyat hit a wall, bringing out the safety car and initiating pit stops for new tires by virtually everyone. When the safety car exited on lap 16, a rash of accidents occurred immediately, most likely due to the bunched conditions and cold tires. In response, the safety car was deployed again.

Just prior to the restart that followed, a strange occurrence between Hamilton and Vettel transpired. Rather than speeding up in anticipation of the restart, Hamilton virtually came to a halt…right in front of Vettel, who inadvertently ran into the back of the Mercedes and damaged his front wing in the process. Hamilton’s action and its result seemed to incense Vettel, who then came abreast of the Mercedes and banged wheels with it. Despite all of this happening at maybe 30 mph, it was a dangerous move and the announcers all felt that a penalty (on Vettel), or even perhaps a double penalty (Vettel and Hamilton) was deserved. Then, a few seconds later when racing resumed, even more carnage ensued in the field, prompting the marshals to red-flag the race so the track could be cleared of the myriad debris that was splayed over it. This also permitted a manic rush to repair damaged cars. When the race resumed 20 minutes later (lap 21), the running order was Hamilton, Vettel, Ricciardo, Stroll (the teen Canadian rookie in a Williams), and Massa (also Williams).

The bunched field then produced a period of great racing, as the fast cars in the rear slowly worked their way back to the front. This was a series of side-by-side battles that represented the very best of F1. After about 10 laps of this engaging racing, it became apparent that Hamilton, still at the front, was having problems with the bodywork of his car: the cowl around the driver’s compartment was not properly attached, and it was getting looser by the lap. The Brit was finally forced to stop on lap 32 to rectify the issue, which gifted the lead to Vettel. But, just a few (suspiciously) short seconds later, it was announced that Vettel had been assessed a 10 second stop-and-go penalty for banging wheels with Hamilton many laps earlier during the safety car period. Vettel served the penalty on lap 34, and was able to rejoin the race immediately ahead of Hamilton. But, these two were now in 7th and 8th places respectively, while the leaders were Ricciardo, Stroll, Magnussen (Haas), Ocon, Alonso (of all people – demonstrating just how strangely this race had evolved), and Bottas, who had benefitted greatly from all that had transpired.

As the race continued, Bottas, Vettel, and Hamilton charged up through the field, each looking to make the best possible result from the strange set of circumstances that had occurred. By lap 40 (of 51), the front runners were Ricciardo, Stroll (hanging on for what would be the best result of his young career), Ocon (in the Force India), Bottas, Vettel, and Hamilton. By lap 45, all the leaders (now Ricciardo, Stroll, Bottas, Vettel, Hamilton, and Ocon) were running within view of the driver immediately ahead and behind…it was going to be a close one at the end. In the final 100 yards down the long straight heading to the checkered flag, Bottas managed to pip Stroll for 2nd. So the final result was Ricciardo, Bottas, Stroll, Vettel, and Hamilton. Raikkonen’s Ferrari expired on lap 46, the victim of one too many collisions.

So, once again it was not the best result for Ferrari. Mercedes padded its lead in the constructors’ standings, while Vettel managed to extend his lead over Hamilton by a few points in the drivers’ competition.

To call this race eventful would be the understatement of the year. It was exhausting to simply watch it. Looking back, there were an awful lot of ifs…Would Hamilton have won if his car had not experienced the bodywork issue? Would Vettel have won if he had kept his temper in check after rear-ending Hamilton during the safety car period? Where would Raikkonen have finished if his Ferrari were not bled dry by a thousand paper cuts? And there was one big question: Why didn’t Hamilton try to pass Vettel while following in his wake for the last 16 laps of the race. This is simply not like Hamilton. Was Hamilton having problems with his car? Was the Ferrari simply faster? This is important because it holds the future of the season.

Recap of the 2017 F1 Season through June

So, as of the end of June, with 8 races (nearly half of the season) in the books, things are close…really close. Mercedes leads Ferrari by 250 points to 226 in the constructors’ standings, with Red Bull (137) and Force India (yea for the underdogs – 79) the best of the rest. Meanwhile, Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari!) leads Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) by 153 points to 139 in the drivers’ championship race, with Valtteri Bottas (111 – Mercedes), Daniel Ricciardo (92 – Red Bull), and Kimi Raikkonen (73 – Ferrari) trailing.

As of now, it looks as if it will be a battle to the end. Finally, a really exciting and really competitive season, with Ferrari smack dab in the middle of the fray. We encourage you to visit Siena Italian Restaurant some Sunday race morning to pay homage at the church of Formula 1 in Las Vegas, and have a nice breakfast to boot. The grandstands are under construction.

John Ratto

Happy New Year!!

Opening Commentary

Nothing too exciting happened in the first half of 2016, and I guess you could say that was a good thing. These days, more than ever, it seems that no news is good news. In fact, one of the few things of real note to transpire (beyond the usual terrorist attacks) in the past six months was England leaving the EU. It was dubbed BREXIT by some pundit. How cute! Too bad my spell checker rejects it. I guess I must have the May 2016 update, and not the August. So yesterday!). Based upon the first wave of aftermaths, this was not a positive event.

Meanwhile, as we Americans prepared for 2016 – Part II, the big issue looming was the presidential election. Along with all of the other offices up for grabs, this election will have an important effect on the future of our country. So, I hope you all voted to make your opinion count. And, it was a close one, with one candidate (Hilary Clinton) winning the popular vote and another (Donald Trump, our next president) winning the electoral count.

As for Ferrari in F1: they have been sloppy, unlucky, and plagued by poor strategy. The tough competition (mainly from Mercedes and Red Bull) has made them pay for their foibles. ‘Wait until next year’ is becoming an all too familiar refrain in the realm of the Prancing Horse. Yet, it is time to cue it up again.

Perhaps due to the sluggish worldwide economy or the stratospheric price levels achieved in 2015 and the few years prior, prices for classic cars finally dropped (something I have been long predicting) in 2016, a phenomena not seen for many years. As Ferraris led the charge upward, they are also the most prominent losers. But the results from the multiple major auctions in Monterey in August suggest to me that there may be a correction, but certainly not a collapse. Prices offered were not significantly lower than a year ago; rather sellers’ expectations were somewhat higher. It will be of great interest to see the impact of the outcome of the election on car prices, if any.

So, here is a recap of what went down in the second half of 2016.

July 19: Board Meeting at Siena

Initially, it seemed there would be a small turn out, probably because so many Board members are typically away during the summer months. However, when the meeting was called to order, we easily had a quorum, with President Chuck Damus, Stephane Pedaggi, Rocky LaBriola, Scott Howard, and John Ratto in attendance, along with a few others to observe.

Two new members were noted, along with a small increase in our bank balance. The ongoing saga concerning the website was discussed; it was unanimously agreed that work should proceed under the auspices of Chuck and Stephane. Finally, the Christmas Party was set for Celebrity Cars on December 2.

September 13: Board Meeting – Home of Michael and Karen Obradovich

We give many thanks to Michael and Karen for hosting the Board and making the meeting it a very nice event. Some potential new members were in attendance, along with the usual crew. Our discussions centered on the progress of the website, which is now close to being operational. See FerrariClubVegas.com for the work in progress. In addition, we identified the Board Members whose tenure will expire at the end of the year, and pressed President Chuck Damus to wield the gavel for another term. Elections should be held within the near future, so be looking for your ballot.

September 22: Social at Siena

Perhaps it was a bit breezy, but what a beautiful, cool day. Fall has fallen upon us, and after a long, hot summer, that’s a good thing. We trekked up to Siena to re-boot the social season and, after the summer break, we had a great turn out. About 20 made it to the event, including fan favorite DeShawn. Nice to see you young lady. Also present was Paul Johnson, past president and all around good guy who now lives in Virginia, or some such place. It is always a pleasure to see him. The food was good (especially the lobster ravioli, from what I gathered) and the conversation lively. Man, it’s good to have something to do the fourth Thursday of the month.

September 25: Red Rock Concours d’Elegance

Just as last year, it was great weather and a very nice show, with more than 100 classic, exotic, and special interest cars splayed over the long fairway at the Red Rock Country Club. Peter Brock, famed automotive designer (Shelby Daytona Coupe and Corvette Stingray, among others) gave a most interesting presentation on the historical development of automotive aerodynamics and efficiency at the pre-show banquet. The overall Best of Show went to a car with neither, Greg Wood’s 1933 Rolls-Royce Phantom II, reportedly a prize winner at Pebble Beach in the not too distant past. Among other trophy winners of note were a sublime 1959 Alfa Romeo Giulietta Spyder (Classic Sports Cars class) and FCA member Lindsey Freeman’s near-perfect Ferrari 328 GTS (Modern Super Cars class). Mark your calendars for next year’s show – this is a good one.

October 9: Italian Sports Car & Motorcycle Day at Siena

It was another beautiful, balmy day – ain’t Las Vegas grand in October. And, the turnout was, as usual, excellent for the 7th annual iteration of what has become a staple and a classic on the calendar. A pleasant surprise this year was the large number of motorcycles on display, including some very rare, vintage examples of the Ducati, Motto-Guzzi, and Aprillia marques. And, oh, there were also a La Ferrari, various top shelf Lamborghinis, and a brand new Aston Martin DB11 on which to feast you eyes, not to mention a Ferrari 333 SP, to numb your aural senses. Our thanks go to Kumiko (the brains behind the operation), Giancarlo (the man behind the food), and Antonio (the puppet master) for hosting this spectacular event. Be sure to attend next year – Columbus Day weekend – well worth the effort.

October 23: F1 – Grand Prix of the USA

We viewed the race at the home of Karen and Michael Obradovich. Please see the race recap below for more information.

November 15: Board Meeting at Bravo Italian Cuisine at the Galleria Mall

Every member of the Board that attended (Chuck Damus, Elda Fanucchi, Ted Schlazer, Dan Fogle, and John Ratto) enjoyed the food, service, and ambiance of this very nice and reasonably priced restaurant in the Galleria Mall; check it out if you have a chance, perhaps on one of your Christmas shopping trips. The usual matters were discussed: financials, new members, producing calendars to raise funds, and the new website. Ah, the new website. Progress has been made and we urge you to 1) visit the website often so that it moves up the Google ranks (ferrariclubvegas.com) and 2) submit photos of you and your car in iconic Vegas locations for inclusion as the site grows. Our next Board meeting is penciled in for Tuesday, January 17, 2017.

December 2: Holiday Party at Celebrity Cars

We had a nice turnout, about 30, for a very nice evening. I especially appreciated the room. Sometimes we are crowded like sardines for these events, but Celebrity Cars offered real space, and some excellent cars to drool over while sipping some drinks as well. The food was warm and comforting and quite good, all especially appreciated on a frigid LV evening. By the time the event drew to a close, everyone seemed to have enjoyed it greatly. HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!

Final Thoughts on July – December 2016

Well, the stock market settled down after the initial BREXIT turmoil, and then it took an upturn after Trump’s victory. Maybe Armageddon has been postponed to 2017.

All-in-all, it was a successful 6 months for our Club. We had some nice events, and more will ensue in the coming months. Our new website is in progress and nearing usefulness. Be sure to check it out at FerrariClubVegas.com. See you soon and happy trails until then.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Look for socials to resume in January, once the Holiday dust has settled. They will usually be scheduled for the third Thursday of the month, so try to keep those evenings open. As the weather warms, there will be more drives; we will keep you posted. But, you should also visit the new (or the old) website for the latest information. FerrariClubVegas.com

FORMULA 1 NEWS RECAP

July through November: F1 Viewing at Siena and other venues

So, as we head into the second half of the season, where do we stand? The Mercedes-Benzes are still the cream of the crop by a significant margin. When they finish without issues, they generally finish 1 – 2, and with significant margins of victory. They lead the constructors’ championship and their two drivers are in a death match for the drivers’ championship. The Red Bulls and the Ferraris are the best of the rest, with (in July) a slight edge going to the Red Bulls. Each of these top three teams has experienced bad luck (mostly self inflicted by Mercedes, team strategy inflicted by the Red Bulls, and Daniil Kvyat inflicted by the Ferraris) and mechanical issues during the first half of the season, but these problems have been spread evenly so the points order reflects the strength of the teams, and the drivers.

Rosberg is seeing his hopes for a first championship slip away. His big, early-season lead has dwindled, and Hamilton, the better driver, is on the hunt. Rosberg looks desperate, and seems willing to do whatever it takes to maintain his slim lead. Do we have more M-B/M-B collisions on the horizon? Meanwhile, young Max Verstappen (Red Bull) is simply a revelation. Yes, he’s in a good car, maybe one he didn’t really deserve, but he is driving as good as, or perhaps better than, his far more experienced and far more highly-regarded teammate, Daniel Ricciardo.

Among the other teams, Force India is a pleasant surprise. They are truly competitive, which is hard to achieve for an underfunded squad. On the other hand, Williams is a disappointment. Despite having the superior M-B engines, they have regressed from a strong performance in 2015 to non-contenders in 2016. Two other teams deserve mention: McLaren-Honda and Haas-Ferrari. McLaren has risen from the ashes of an abysmal 2015 to be a consistent points scoring threat; and driver Fernando Alonso (no dreamer) predicts far better results in the future. Haas, our fledgling US team, is running consistent and strong, and has managed to score about 30 points for their efforts. This makes them a mid-pack team in their first season, something better than expected.

Given all this, it looks like there will be some good racing and exciting confrontations in the second half of the season. We hope to see you at Siena on Sunday mornings for some Church of F1.

July 10: GP of England (10)

The big news in the pits was that Kimi Raikkonen had signed on for another year with Ferrari. Pirelli supplied the soft, medium, and hard tires for this fast, 52 lap race, perhaps fearing that the really soft rubber would disintegrate under the heavy loads. Qualifying was run under cool, cloudy skies, and the starting order produced no real surprises: Hamilton, Rosberg, Verstappen, Ricciardo, and Raikkonen. After a 5-spot penalty for changing his gear box, Vettel was relegated to 11th on the grid.

Sunday dawned cloudy and wet: the cars all started on the full wet tires and behind the safety car, which paced the field for 6 laps. Meanwhile, a nice viewing crowd at Siena was comfortable and dry, with warm food to sooth their souls. As the skies cleared and the track dried, the more adventurous drivers began switching to the intermediate wet tires, which led to some lurid slipping-and-sliding on the still wet raceway. Nevertheless, by lap 15, most began to change to the medium slicks and the race was finally truly on. In the still damp conditions, Verstappen in the Red Bull, running third, was ‘The Man.’ He ran down and passed Rosberg in second, and then began drawing up on leader Hamilton. The track conditions emboldened some and scarred others, leading to some daring passes throughout the ensuing laps. At lap 25, the order was Hamilton, Verstappen, Rosberg, Ricciardo, Perez, and Raikkonen. Meanwhile, Vettel was stuck in the mid-pack due a couple of spins on the still damp surface. But, the M-Benzes were back on their pace as the track dried completely, and soon Verstappen fell away from Hamilton and into the clutches of Rosberg. After some daring, but futile, attempts to pass the youngster, Rosberg finally squeezed by on lap 38, only to then begin suffering gearbox problems. He asked for assistance from the pits to resolve the issues, and was provided with sufficient information to do so (against the rules). The final finishing order, pending disciplinary action for Rosberg, was Hamilton, Rosberg, Verstappen, Ricciardo, Raikkonen, and Vettel. Rosberg, realizing that his lead over Hamilton had now evaporated, was in a nasty mood during the post race ceremonies, and I’m certain his mood only got worse when the stewards announced shortly thereafter that Rosberg had been penalized 10 seconds, moving Verstappen up to second place.

July 24: GP of Hungary

Pirelli supplied the medium, soft, and super-soft tires for this 70 lap race on the tight, twisty, tough to pass Hungaroring track. As the ‘silly season’ progresses, the big news in the pits was Rosberg re-signing for two more years with M-B, and turmoil in the management/technical/administrative division of Ferrari. The Pope doesn’t like it when the red cars don’t win. Oh, and Hamilton had a major accident in practice. Qualifying began with heavy rain and a couple of related red-flag delays. Once the rain eased and the cars were on track, they spun and crashed repeatedly, leading to more red flags, and more delays. Then, in Q2, as the track dried, things got very interesting as a new fast time was set and then eclipsed every few seconds. Things, and the track, settled down in Q3 and the starting order was not unexpected: Rosberg, Hamilton, Ricciardo, Verstappen, and Vettel. Surprisingly, the McLarens were 7th and 8th, continuing their march up the field. Raikkonen, meanwhile, was caught out in the last minutes of Q2 and failed to make it into Q3; he would start 16th.

Sunday morning saw a nice turnout at Siena for the race viewing. Nearly 20 were on hand for food and F1. After an exciting, but uneventful, start, Hamilton snatched the lead and began to inch away from his teammate Rosberg. All of the leaders had started on the super-soft tires, and by lap 15 they began to pit for new rubber, generally the soft tires. Raikkonen, meanwhile had started on the soft tires, and was able to go far longer. By lap 20, he had moved from 16th to fifth (albeit with no stops). Raikkonen finally made his first stop on lap 20, switching to the super-soft tires. Most of the front runners made their second stops around lap 35-40, and they generally again opted for the soft tires. After this round of pit stops was completed, the running order was Hamilton, Rosberg, Ricciardo, Raikkonen (having made only 1 stop), Vettel, Verstappen, and Alonso (more good performance from the McLaren-Honda). Raikkonen made his final stop on lap 51: when he resumed on fresh super-soft tires he immediately began to set fastest lap times. However, when he caught Verstappen, he simply could not (despite some serious attempts) find a way around the youngster and had to remain where he was. Meanwhile, Vettel was challenging Ricciardo for third, but his efforts were also thwarted. The final results were Hamilton, Rosberg, Ricciardo, Vettel, Verstappen, Raikkonen, and Alonso. With this, Hamilton has passed Rosberg for the lead in the drivers’ championship.

July 31: GP of Germany at the Hockenheimring

Pirelli supplied the medium, soft, and super-soft tires for this 67 lap race. During practice the topic of discussion centered on the turmoil at Ferrari management resulting from the sudden death of (top technical advisor) James Allison’s wife. He has apparently left the team, and his return seems unlikely. Qualifying itself was unsurprising and uneventful, except for the fact that one second covered the times of the top six, who all would start on the super-soft tires. The order would be Rosberg, Hamilton, Ricciardo, Verstappen, Raikkonen, and Vettel.

Hamilton (and Verstappen, and Ricciardo) immediately jumped Rosberg, who had tire spin, at the start, and that was pretty much that. Rosberg was in fourth place and defending from the Ferraris on his heels rather than challenging the leaders. After little real action, the first round of pit stops began on lap nine, and the second round on lap 28, after which the running order was Hamilton, Rosberg, Verstappen, Ricciardo, Vettel, and Raikkonen. Then things got testy. Verstappen made a clean pass on Rosberg, who forced the Red Bull wide and off the track. Rosberg was given a 5 second penalty for the uncalled for action, which winded up dropping him behind Ricciardo, who then caught and passed teammate Verstappen. The finishing order was Hamilton, Ricciardo, Verstappen, Rosberg, Vettel, and Raikkonen.

So, as we head into the summer break, Hamilton has snatched the lead for the championship, and Rosberg is crying in his beer (Champagne?). The championship is still up for grabs though, and we can only hope for some fierce competition for it from now until the end of the season. Wouldn’t it be nice if Ferrari were in the thick of it?

August 28: GP of Belgium at SPA

Summer vacation is over, and it was time to get back to work. It certainly wasn’t fall weather at SPA though; it was extremely hot and dry all weekend – global warming at work? This, at a place that is normally cool and damp, messed up everyone’s tire plans. Pirelli supplied the medium, soft, and super-soft tires for the 44 lap race on the long (nearly 5 mile) circuit. It took the team engineers about 5 minutes to conclude that the super-softs would be next too useless (no longevity) in the Las Vegas like weather conditions. The other news concerned big grid spot penalties being taken by Hamilton and others to replace engines, gearboxes, etc. Hamilton would start at the very back, along with Alonso; others merely dropped to middle of the field. This provided Rosberg, who took pole position, with an opportunity to wrest the championship lead back from his teammate. The starting order would be Rosberg, Verstappen, Raikkonen, Vettel, and Ricciardo, with most of the leaders on the soft (rather than the quicker but fragile super-softs) tires. Hamilton, starting from the last row, opted for the even harder and slower, but longer lived, mediums.

Verstappen got a poor start, while the Ferraris immediately behind him did just the opposite. As a result, both Ferraris were ahead of Verstappen going into turn 1. Verstappen refused to give any ground when it was clearly the best option, and a three car collision ensued; both Ferraris and the Red Bull were soon in the pits to replace tires and bodywork. Then, only 5 laps in, Magnussen (Renault) had a major shunt and the race was red flagged for about 15 minutes to repair the damaged crash barriers. Meanwhile, everyone changed tires, some for the second time, which essentially threw all the tire strategies out the window. When the racing resumed, the top three were Rosberg, Ricciardo, and Alonso. Hamilton, who managed to avoid all the drama ahead, was already up to fourth, while Vettel was 11th, Verstappen 14th, and Raikkonen 15th. As the race settled down, lots of good tight driving ensued, as is normal at this famous circuit. Dare-devil passes and battles for position were the order of business all up and down the field, except at the top where Rosberg seemed to be in control. After a most exciting race, the podium positions went to Rosberg, Ricciardo, and Hamilton, permitting Hamilton to maintain his lead in the championship by 9 points (very close!). Of note: the Force India duo (Hulkenberg and Perez) finished fourth and fifth – these guys are for real. As to the Ferraris, Vettel managed to salvage sixth and Raikkonen ninth. Verstappen, finally driving like the novice he truly is, finished 11th.

September 4: GP of Italy at Monza

The weather was hot as Qualifying began at this fast, long track, and the Tifosi were out in force to cheer for the hometown team, Ferrari. Pirelli supplied the super-soft, soft, and medium tires for the 53 lap race. The starting order would be Hamilton, Rosberg, Vettel, Raikkonen, Bottas, Ricciardo, and Verstappen. While most of the field elected to start on the fastest super-soft tires, the Mercedes duo opted for the slower, longer lived soft tires. The buzz in the pits was that the Ferraris would take the lead on the softer tires and then hopefully control the race. It was a nice thought, but it didn’t play out.

The start did give hope though: both Vettel and Raikkonen (along with a slew of others) passed Hamilton, who made a terrible start, in turn one. In the following laps Hamilton slowly moved back towards the front, while Rosberg, in the front, slowly pulled out a lead over the pursuing Ferraris. At lap 10, the running order was Rosberg, Vettel, Raikkonen, Bottas, and Hamilton. The drivers (including both Ferraris) on the super-soft tires began to make tires stops on lap 15, while the Mercedes duo on the soft tires managed to last until lap 24. Since both Ferraris opted for new super-soft tires, it seemed they would need three stops. Meanwhile, since both Mercedes chose medium tires when they pitted, it was clear that they were on a one-stop strategy. These differing strategies meant that the front runners were spread out on the track, leading to few dices for the top positions, and a relatively uneventful race. The final finishing order was Rosberg, Hamilton, Vettel, Raikkonen, Ricciardo, and Bottas. Thus, Rosberg sliced Hamilton’s lead in the championship to a mere two points. It looks like this will go down to the wire.

September 18: Grand Prix of Singapore

Being run at night, the race in Singapore is unique and visually spectacular. Being run in 100 degree plus temperatures and near 90 percent humidity, on a very tight and twisty street circuit, it is a real challenge for the cars, tires, brakes, and drivers. Pirelli supplied the ultra soft, super soft, and soft tires for the 61 lap race. As expected, the Red Bulls and Ferraris were quick on the tight circuit. What wasn’t foreseen was Hamilton’s difficulties in practice and Vettel’s suspension failure in Q1 that relegated him to start at the back of the field. After a qualifying that saw close lap times, the starting order was Rosberg, Ricciardo (Red Bull), Hamilton (perhaps still suffering from his practice woes), Verstappen (Red Bull), and Raikkonen. But, the advantage looked to be with the two Red Bulls, who were to start the race on super soft tires while all the other top runners were on the shorter lived ultra soft tires, except for Vettel who was on the most durable soft compound.

The start was eventful. Verstappen made a bad one, got caught behind slower drivers, and then collided with Hulkenberg (Force India) who spun majestically before destroying his car. Meanwhile, Vettel, starting from the back, passed several cars ahead in the first quarter mile of the contest. But, soon the safety car appeared to allow Hulkenberg’s debris to be removed, and the field was bunched up. After racing had resumed for a few laps, the order was Rosberg, Ricciardo, Hamilton and Raikkonen running nose to tail, and Alonso. Verstappen was back in eighth, while Vettel was up to 17th. Hot brakes then became an issue that would endure throughout the race, and affect mostly the Mercedes drivers, who had to periodically slow down to prevent complete failure. Pit stops for those on the ultra soft tires began around lap 15, and the leaders all seemed to choose different tires for their second stints. On the other hand, Vettel endured to lap 25 on his soft tires, and then changed to the ultra softs for a hopefully quick second stint; he returned in 10th place. Most of the leaders stopped again for tires around lap 30. Of note was Raikkonen’s subsequent performance: he actually caught and passed (an exciting move that involved banging wheels) Hamilton ON THE TRACK on lap 33, something you just don’t see this year. As a result, on lap 40 the running order was Rosberg, Ricciardo, Raikkonen, Hamilton, Vettel (only one stop), and Verstappen. A rash of final pit stops then occurred between laps 43 and 50 (during which Hamilton passed Raikkonen), and then it was an exciting dash to the finish with many wheel-to-wheel battles for position among very closely matched cars. But the real action, for a change, was at the front, where Ricciardo (on fresh tires) was catching Rosberg (who had stopped one time less) by 2 seconds a lap. Unfortunately, time ran out and Rosberg retained his victory, by less than a second. The final finishing order (with little time separating the top 5) was Rosberg (who retakes the lead in the championship), Ricciardo, Hamilton – with Raikkonen on his bumper, and Vettel (who, remember, started last). So, this was a great race and a good result for team Ferrari.

October 1: GP of Malaysia

Practice saw the Red Bulls and Force Indias to be quite quick, and the conditions to mirror Singapore: very hot and very humid. Pirelli supplied the hard, medium, and soft tires for the 56 lap race. After a tight but generally uneventful Qualifying session, the starting order was Hamilton, Rosberg, Verstappen, Ricciardo, Vettel, Raikkonen, Perez (Force India), and Hulkenberg (Force India). Pretty much all of the top qualifiers were to start on the soft tires.

Vettel made a great start and was up dicing with the leaders into the first turn. Unfortunately, there wasn’t enough room for everyone and a three car (Vettel, Rosberg, and Verstappen) collision ensued. As a result, Vettel was out, Rosberg spun and dropped to 17th place, and Verstappen dropped back a few positions, which he quickly reclaimed. Meanwhile, at the back of the pack, Alonso, who had started last, was up to ninth. When the virtual safety car was deployed, Rosberg stopped for new tires, switching to the hard compound. After things had settled down, the top four were Hamilton, Ricciardo, Verstappen, and Raikkonen. Rosberg then set himself to the task of working his way back towards the front as the others began to stop for new tires around lap 20 (most switched to the hard compound). At lap 32 the running order was Hamilton, Ricciardo, Verstappen, Raikkonen, and Rosberg. Hamilton’s engine then (lap 41) blew up in a big way, and the leader was out, leaving the Ricciardo/Verstappen Red Bull duo in the lead and running pretty much nose-to-tail, They duked it out for a few laps but then settled down to finish in that order with Rosberg third and Raikkonen fourth.

October 9: GP of Japan

The weather was cloudy, cool, and damp the entire weekend, always threatening rain but never truly delivering, quite a contrast from the heat of Singapore and Malaysia. The Ferraris had a new front wing that seemed to improve performance (to the level of the Red Bulls, but not the Mercedes), while both Haas cars seemed quick despite their ongoing brake issues. In any case, the top five qualifiers were within 0.5 second, so it was close. Based on speed, the order would have been Rosberg, Hamilton, Raikkonen, Vettel, Verstappen, and Ricciardo, all on the soft tires. But, Vettel was given a 3 spot penalty for the collision on the first lap of the previous race (down to seventh), and Raikkonen was penalized 5 spots (to eighth) for changing his gear box. In the end, this year Ferrari simply cannot win for losing.

Pirelli supplied the soft, medium, and hard (prime) tires for the 53 lap race. Since the race coincided with Siena’s extremely popular ‘Italian Sports Car Day’, the viewing venue was packed, and we were immediately treated to a spectacular start…including a typically bad start by Hamilton and typically good starts by the Ferraris and Verstappen. Luckily, there were no collisions at the front, and after the first lap the running order was Rosberg, Verstappen, Perez (Force India), Vettel, Ricciardo, Hulkenberg (FI), Raikkonen, and Hamilton. Things settled down by lap 3, and pit stops for tires began on lap 11 (Vettel went longer after starting on the hard tires), with most everyone opting for the hard compound for their second stints. Most made their second stops between laps 27 and 35, again choosing the hard tires in hopes of making it to the end. On lap 36 the running order was Rosberg, Verstappen, Hamilton, Vettel, Raikkonen, Ricciardo, and the Force India duo of Perez and Hulkenberg. By lap 45 Hamilton was on Verstappen’s tail, and made some bold moves to pass, all of which were thwarted by the Red Bull youngster. Moreover, Verstappen was catching, and then hounding leader Rosberg as the race drew to a close. It made for some very exciting racing. In the end, the finishing order was Rosberg, Verstappen (less than 5 seconds behind), Hamilton (less than a second farther back), Vettel, Raikkonen, Perez, and Hulkenberg; less than a minute covered the top 8. With this result, Mercedes-Benz clinched the constructors’ title, and Rosberg pulled out to a significant (33 point) lead over Hamilton in the drivers’ championship.

October 23: GP of the USA

We finally made it to our home GP, and (unlike last year’s monsoon) Austin, Texas graced it with some perfect weather. Pirelli supplied the medium, soft, and super-soft tires for the 56 lap race. During practice, the top three teams kept trading fastest times, leading to hope that it would be a close battle for pole. But in the end, the starting order was the seemingly preordained: Hamilton, Rosberg, Ricciardo, Verstappen, Raikkonen, Vettel, and Hulkenberg (Force India). Of note was that Hamilton, Rosberg, and Verstappen were to start on the soft tires, while everyone else was to be on the faster (but shorter lived) super-softs.

Race viewing itself was a real treat as it was hosted by Michael and Karen Obradovich in their spectacular Summerlin home. We thank Mike and Karen for their hospitality. Great food and good company greeted about 20 of us who attended; would it also be a good race?

Atypically, everyone made a decent start, so the running order was not shaken up at the get-go. Of the leaders, only Raikkonen managed to improve his position, and then by only one spot. The guys starting of the super-soft tires were predictably the first to stop for new rubber, beginning on lap 9, with most opting for the medium tires for their second stints. By lap 16, when most everyone had stopped, the running order was Hamilton, Ricciardo, Rosberg, Verstappen, Raikkonen, and Vettel. Second stops began on lap 27, with Verstappen’s engine failing shortly thereafter. Then, on lap 39, Raikkonen had a pit stop snafu associated with an air gun used on the wheel nuts, and he was out as well…another bit of bad luck for Ferrari in a season filled with little else. In the end, the finishing order was Hamilton, Rosberg, Ricciardo, and Vettel. With this result, Rosberg’s lead over Hamilton in the driver’s championship was reduced to 26 points. With only three races to go, it is going to be a real fight to the finish.

October 30: GP of Mexico

It was a warm, cloudy weekend in 7,000 foot high Mexico City. After a few practice laps, it became obvious that the track was slick with little grip. Everyone was slipping and sliding on the super soft, soft, and medium tires that Pirelli supplied for the race. More than 100,000 fans showed up for qualifying, indicating the level of enthusiasm in our southern neighbor for F1. They were naturally cheering loudest for home town heroes Perez and Gutierrez, but to little avail as the qualifying order was Hamilton, Rosberg, Verstappen, Ricciardo, Hulkenberg, Raikkonen, and Vettel. Not an auspicious result for Ferrari, to say the least.

The race was completely sold out. Hamilton (known for his poor starts) got an excellent jump, too good in fact as he missed the first turn entirely. Were the championship battle nerves getting to him? Then, Rosberg tangled with the ever over-driving Verstappen, and both were very lucky to be able to continue. And then a few more drivers collided and the safety car was deployed. Once the dust had settled, the running order was pretty much the same as that at the start. Pit stops began on lap 12, with most opting for the soft or medium tires for their second stints. Vettel was the last to stop, stretching his first tires to lap 32. He returned in sixth place (behind Hamilton, Rosberg, Verstappen, Ricciardo, and Raikkonen) with a chance to possibly win. But, several of the cars ahead were able to make their tires last until the end, thus thwarting Vettel’s plans. Those (including Raikkonen and Ricciardo) that did stop again did so between laps 45 and 50. By lap 56 Verstappen was challenging Rosberg (both on old tires) for second, while Vettel on his newer tires was slowly reeling in everyone ahead of him. But Verstappen mangled his tires trying to pass Rosberg and quickly fell into the grip of Raikkonen (on nearly new tires) who managed to pass him with a spectacular move. Several laps later, Vettel was on Verstappen’s tail and challenging to pass. Verstappen made a few questionable blocking moves, and then lost control and went off track, completely missing one of the turns. Now, it is well accepted that if a driver misses a turn to protect his position, that driver must relinquish the position. They usually do so without being told. However, Verstappen maintained his spot ahead of Vettel and, with only a couple of laps to go, race control decided to postpone any action until after the race was complete…sheer idiocy. Verstappen then proceeded to block Vettel so that his teammate Ricciardo could challenge Vettel from behind. Vettel was rightfully livid and most of his radio comments to the team were bleeped out. The finishing order was Hamilton, Rosberg, Verstappen, Vettel, and Ricciardo. However, immediately after the race was over, Verstappen was penalized and the official finishing order was Hamilton, Rosberg, Vettel, Ricciardo, Verstappen, and Raikkonen. Wow, what a race! Two races to go to decide the ever tightening quest for the championship.

November 13: GP of Brazil

The big news in the pits was that, long after the last race weekend was complete, Vettel was penalized 10 seconds for dangerous driving in Mexico, and thus relegated from the podium to fifth place. But, everyone seemed to agree that the penalty was truly for the choice words criticizing race control that Vettel yelled over his radio at the end of the race. Petty – petty, sounds like something Roger Goddell of the NFL would do.

In any case, the weather proved to be the overriding factor in Brazil: practice was hot and humid, qualifying was cloudy and cool, and the race was run in pouring rain. Pirelli supplied the soft, medium, and hard tires for the 71 lap race, but it hardly mattered as the tires of choice were either the full or the intermediate wets. The differing conditions meant that any information obtained during practice was useless. Nevertheless, the qualifying order was pretty much as usual: Hamilton, Rosberg (only 0.1 second behind), Raikkonen, Verstappen, Vettel, Ricciardo, and Grosjean (Haas).

Initially the start was delayed 15 minutes due to rain and a sloppy track, but when conditions failed to improve, the race was started behind the safety car with all drivers on the full wet tires. After 7 such laps, the safety car pulled off and racing began. Lap times were 18 seconds slower than qualifying times. By lap 10, the bravest souls were switching to intermediate tires, hoping for drying conditions and a competitive edge. Didn’t happen…the rain increased and cars were slipping and sliding, and spinning too. Lap 15 saw a major shunt, and redeployment of the safety car. Immediately after it pulled off, another major accident involving Raikkonen caused the race to be red flagged. After a couple more delays and re-starts, racing in earnest began again on lap 35; the running order was Hamilton, Verstappen, Rosberg, Perez (Force India), and Ricciardo. Despite the continued lack of grip, there was some exciting racing going on, with Verstappen and Vettel making some bold moves. Lap 48 saw another crash and safety car period, and the racing did not truly resume until lap 55, when some great racing took place, especially by Verstappen whose prodigious skills are only matched by his lack of etiquette. The final finishing order was Hamilton, Rosberg, Verstappen, Perez, and Vettel. So, we go to the final race of the season with Rosberg hanging on to a 12 point lead over Hamilton in the championship.

November 28: GP of Abu Dhabi

Finally, the final race of the season arrived. It seemed like a long campaign. Oh wait, it was. What was not too long ago a 12 race season is now a 21 race season. It is all about the money, honey.

Pirelli supplied the ultra soft, super soft, and soft tires for the 55 lap race on the low grip track. Evening qualifying meant changing conditions throughout, but it failed to produce any real drama, other than visual. The starting order would be Hamilton, Rosberg, Ricciardo, Raikkonen, Vettel, Verstappen, and then the Force India duo of Hulkenberg and Perez. The two Red Bulls would start on the super soft tires, while everyone else would be on the ultra softs.

The start went well except for a miscue by Verstappen that ended with him smacking Hulkenberg and then spinning. This guy is a great talent, but he pushes the issue too often; in this instance he was very lucky that his car suffered no damage allowing him to rejoin in last place. Most made their first stops on about lap 15. But Verstappen, who started on the harder compound tires, managed to persevere until lap 25, by which time he was up to third place! Of note was that Vettel also delayed his first stop, hoping to gain an ultimate advantage. In any case, lap 20 was exciting, with Raikkonen, Ricciardo, and Vettel having a heated battle for fourth place just prior to making their first stops, and then Rosberg (who had already stopped) fighting his way past Verstappen for second. Second stops began on lap 29, and when the dust had settled the running order was Vettel (1 stop), Hamilton (8 seconds adrift), Rosberg, Verstappen (1 stop), Raikkonen, and Ricciardo, By this time, everyone was on the soft tires and it looked as if Vettel might try to make it to the end with only his one stop. But, as his times began to slow, Vettel stopped for a set of ultra-soft (and ultra quick) tires on lap 38, rejoining in sixth. Over the next laps, Rosberg dogged Hamilton for the lead, while Vettel was charging back toward the front on his new, sticky tires. He passed Raikkonen on lap 42, Ricciardo on lap 46, and Verstappen soon thereafter. Meanwhile, it looked as if Hamilton was deliberately slowing down to let the chasers close in on Rosberg, and thus perhaps shake things up and win the championship after all. All of this made for an exciting finish with the top 5 covered by only 5 seconds. The order was Hamilton, Rosberg, Vettel, Ricciardo, Raikkonen, and then the two Force Indias.

With this result, Rosberg claims his first world title.

Recap of the 2016 Season

First of all, we must bid a fond farewell to the retiring duo of Jensen Button (who won one championship he didn’t really deserve to win) and Felipe Massa (who lost one he deserved to win). These two were real gentlemen and true ambassadors of the sport, and damn good drivers to boot. We will miss their driving abilities and candor in post race interviews. Ciao!

Teams: Just as in 2015, the Mercedes were consistently the fastest cars, and their dominance is demonstrated by the commanding point’s margin they (and their drivers) amassed. At the start of the season, Ferrari and Red Bull were about equal; but as the season played out the Red Bulls improved more than the Ferraris. However, Ferrari fans (that would be us) can’t really cry too much because it could have been worse, far worse. Look at what has happened to the previously powerful McLaren and Williams teams, they were handily beaten for fourth overall this year by a low budget, low profile team named Sahara Force India (of all things!). New blood near the top is always welcome, so hear-hear Force India.

Drivers: While Rosberg won the title, there is little doubt that Hamilton is just that tiny bit faster. Raikkonen revived his career with a strong showing this season, and will be in a Ferrari again in 2017. Vettel drove well, but seemingly without real verve. He was in pout mode far too often. The Red Bulls clearly have THE up-and-coming duo with Ricciardo and Verstappen. Verstappen, a contender at such a young age, seems destined to be a talent for the ages. However, he must learn to be patient and considered, rather than overly rash and bold. Right now, he has Senna type skills, but also Senna type overconfidence. Meanwhile, my favorite driver, Fernando Alonso, toils relatively unnoticed in an uncompetitive car (McLaren-Honda); I’d really like to see him at the front again.

We interrupt this article for some late breaking news: Less than a week after winning the title, Nico Rosberg announced his retirement from F1. Stunning! This opens up the most desirable seat on the grid. Who will Mercedes choose? A challenger to Hamilton? Or a youngster to groom for the future? Tune in, this could be very interesting.

John Ratto