Daniel had the chance to do the funniest thing (have an Enchante pop up store at Austin) and he did, good for him
The universe took all of Red Bull's good luck and gave it to Yuki Tsunoda as karma
Didn't get a video but here's Lewis's post-race interview speech:
"Since 2021 Ive just, everyday, getting up trying to fight to train to put my mind to the task and work as hard as i can with this amazing team. And this is my last race here at the British Grand Prix with this team. So i wanted to win this so much for them, because I love them, I appreciate them so much because of all the hard work they've been putting in all these years. I'm very grateful to everyone in this team everyone at Mercedes and all our partners, and otherwise to all our incredible fans. I can see you lap by lap as I was coming round and there's just no greater feeling than to finish at the front."
"A big big thank you to everyone back at the factory and here. I love you guys, god bless you."
I think the white racesuits gave Lewis war flashbacks or something because he's been depressed the whole week... Every interview he just sounds so done. Free my guy š
it goes without explanation with zhou's new helmet is dope as hell. i will provide explanation anyways.
(above, zhou's helmet design as posted to the KV design twitter)
the central design on zhou's helmet is almost certainly inspired by the traditional craft of mother-of-pearl inlay in lacquerware, a practice which originated in China over 6 thousand years ago, and which has been developed and practiced in discrete forms historically in Korea and Japan alike. (continued under the cut!)
(on the left, a korean (goryeo dynasty) lacquerware stationery box; on the right, a chinese (song dynasty) lacquerware lidded bowl for cosmetics or incense. both photos via the met museum website)
traditionally, lacquerware is created through the refinement of a toxic plant sap into a naturally deep and glossy adhesive coat that is built up and polished often on top of wooden furniture and decorative items, such as chests and jewelry boxes. in the above examples, you can see two types of lacquerware practice.
on the left is mother-of-pearl inlay, which is created through the careful grinding down of tortoise or abalone shell into thin iridescent sheets which are then carefully cut into shape and imbedded into the coats of dark lacquer, being repeatedly covered and then polished down in the lacquer until the shiny shell surface is level with its surroundings. it's both visually stunning and incredibly labor-intensive: for a case like this, there would have been separate artisans making the wooden base box, making the metalware (hinges and clasps) for the box, applying the base layers of lacquer, and then completing the inlay itself.
on the right is (what i understand to be) a predominantly chinese lacquer practice, which is carving into the layers of lacquer to form images in relief. while this practice is not replicated on zhou's helmet, the image selected does display the pattern of the peony flower, which i believe to be the flower depicted in the inlay! the striations of the central petals seem to match zhou's. of course, this is speculative and only based off an amateur's eye, especially considering the motif of scrolling foliage is fairly ubiquitous and somewhat generic in east asian decorative art.
(on the left, zhou's 2024 helmet (detail). on the right, a detail image of a korean chest decorated with mother-of-pearl. zhou's helmet via twitter, right image via the met museum website)
the 'metallic' or 'holographic' effect a lot of people have recognized is a natural property of polished mother-of-pearl: look at the iridescence of the design! while it has been exaggerated to some extent on zhou's helmet (for good effect, i must say), you can clearly see the inspiration when compared side-by-side with a more predominantly mother-of-pearl composition: the variegation between blues, greens, and warmer peachy-reds is mesmerizing.
i really want to drive home how brilliant of a design this is and give the due appreciation to KV Design, who made this helmet for zhou. clearly a lot of thought and creativity went into it, and I can't wait to see it in action. >:D
Doriane win and Abbi championship win in Qatar.. I'm being fed so good this weekend
"Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery that mediocrity can pay to greatness.ā- Oscar Wilde.
Another one! Fair warning that it's the longest one so far, but I blame that on the 3 safety cars
P1 is Max Verstappen, who takes his first Chinese GP win, leading by about 14 seconds!
Yes the car is great, but the guy behind the wheel is also having to deliver - Crofty about Verstappen post-race
Red Bull also sets the fastest pit stop of the race, double stacking Verstappen and Perez under the full safety car and setting 1.9 and 2.0 seconds respectively.
Lando Norris is P2, his best finish since 2023 brazillian GP. He was also voted DOTD, winning just ahead of Hamilton and Alonso, who were also fan favourite picks. He was a little unhappy after he missed out on pitting under the safety car, but all ends well for him.
He [Norris] is not a happy bunny - Crofty, probably, about the missed pit stop
Woop Woop! I told you we would get past the Ferraris. - Norris, after crossing the finish line
Checo Perez places P3, yet another Red Bull double podium! There was an interesting 5 second gap from him to Norris, likely due to Norris having fresher tires. At the beginning though, he pulled some nice moves, regaining his position from Alonso within a few laps of him losing it.
P4 and 5 were the two Ferraris, Leclerc finishing in front of Sainz for the first time this season. They had a bit of a clash at the start, but nothing that the broadcast really focused on.
P6 was George Russell
P7 was Alonso, who was placed on an interesting strategy for the last several laps. He pitted for mediums, allowing him to overtake Ocon, then Hulkenberg, then Hamilton and Piastri.
P8 was Piastri who, keep in mind, has never driven at this circuit before
P9 was Hamilton, who is DOTD in my heart. He struggled with his tires at the start, being only one of four drivers on softs (everyone else on mediums, except Magnussen). He seemed to fare better after pitting for mediums, making his way to finish P9 after starting P18 :)
We also got a few moments of Nico Rosberg trying to be on some sort of wavelength with Lewis while commentating:
He's Lewis Hamilton, so yes he canā¦get into the pointsā¦im sure he'll move up fine - Nico Rosberg
I'm making no ground with this tyre - Lewis Hamilton That's not what we want to hear - Nico Rosberg
I can't even catch him, Mate. This car is so slow. - Lewis Hamilton That's exactly what I was going to say - Nico Rosberg (Lap 17)
P10 was Hulkenberg, yet again managing points for HAAS
P11 was Esteban Ocon
P12 was Alex Albon, who had a complaint about Ocon "moving like a ---- everywhere on the breaks." on Lap 1
P13 was Gasly, who set the slowest pit stop (19.3 sec) after an incident in the pits where a loose tire hit a mechanic when he was set to be released.
Is he okay? - Pierre Gasly All good here Pierre - Alpine
An unfortunate no-points finish for Zhou, who places P14 at his home GP, but still a very emotional day for him.
This is a dream to me as a kid, so thanks for all the Chinese fans here and back home watching TV and thank you to my teamā¦let's keep working. - Zhou Guanyu, after he gets out of the car
Sauber, as always, had issues with their pit stops. Zhou's first one was quick compared to their previous ones, at only 3.0 seconds, but his stop under the physical safety car was the second slowest at 5.3 seconds.
He had a short fight against Sargeant and picked up some damage after contact with Magnussen near the end, losing his front wing end plate in the process, which couldn't have helped his position.
P15 was Magnussen, who always seems to be at the scene of the crime. He also picked up a 10 second penalty for infringing on the safety car.
P16 was Stroll, after picking up a 10 second penalty for causing a collision. He also had a battle for 16th with Magnussen, which was pretty interesting.
P17 was Sargeant, who was doing pretty well for the most part. Then, he stacked up a 10 second penalty for the same reason as Magnussen.
DNFS
The first yellow flag was also the first DNF of the race, caused by Bottas whose engine reportedly failed. The FIA changed the yellow flag to a virtual safety car, then a full safety car, all within a minute or two. Truly a testament to their amazing decision making skills.
The second yellow flag was caused by Yuki Tsunoda's spin out at lap 27, after contact with Kevin Magnussen that led to Tsunoda having to DNF and Magnussen going into the pits for a punctured tire.
Just minutes later, his teammate also DNFs, as Stroll collides with the back of Daniel Ricciardo's RB under the safety car. This was likely due to the fact that Ricciardo was the only one who hadn't pitted for fresh tires during the last safety car, as well as the fact that he was trying to avoid bumping Piastri, who was trying to avoid Russell, who was trying to avoid Alonso. Stroll recieved a 10 second penalty for causing a collision, but Daniel retired on lap 33 after reporting floor damage.
This idiot just slammed on the brake! Check wing damage - Lance Stroll
I've got no fucking rear on exits - Daniel Ricciardo
Before that though, his drive was going "superb" (in the words of Nico Rosberg), as he was P9 and had made a switcheroo overtake on his teammate at turn 3.
*clawing at the bars of my enclosure* I DONT HATE LIAM BUT YUKI DESERVED IT MORE I DONT HATE LIAM BUT YUKI DESERVED IT MORE I DONT HATE LIAM BUT YUKI DESE