The big retro 2022 AUTOhebdo: our rants

Valentin's rant

The Japanese Grand Prix fiasco

The 2022 Japanese Grand Prix brought back very bad memories for followers of the great circus of the Formula 1 and to all those who still had the images of the disastrous 2014 edition in mind. Those that we would like to bury forever and that we never want to relive again.

The mad rage in which he found himself Pierre Gasly after passing a crane truck on the track in almost zero visibility conditions due to bad weather was more than legitimate that day, eight years after Jules Bianchi's terrible accident.

While the safety car was deployed, the driver Alpha Tauri was working to rejoin the rest of the peloton at high speed after a first pass in the pit lane. It was then that he crossed paths with a recovery vehicle that had come to collect the Ferrari de Carlos Sainz, made a mistake in the same place.

The Norman's anger was shared by many pilots, the latter having already expressed their incomprehension at the fact that such a situation could still occur.

Let's hope that the conclusions published by the FIA ​​after this race are finally accepted, because what we saw that day is simply unacceptable.

And the confusion around the second world title of Max Verstappen awarded that day ultimately seems paltry compared to what could have happened.

The Japanese GP could have once again turned into drama / © DPPI

Medhi's rant

The WTCR shutdown

It was with the World Touring Car Cup (WTCR) that I began my reporting for AUTOhebdo in 2018. I have very warm memories of it almost five years later.

Not only were the races fought at loggerheads, but those involved in the discipline were warm towards the young journalist that I was. The calendar honored the international dimension of the sport, with a suspenseful final in Macau in 2018, and an epic final round in Malaysia the following year. In short, the WTCR was a little corner of paradise little known to the general public.

Unfortunately, everything went wrong following the Covid-19 pandemic. Non-European destinations have been canceled, the number of entrants has fallen and the manufacturers have gained too much influence while the spirit of the TCR is customer competition.

The promoters were unable to curb this rise, which led to a withdrawal of the five Chinese Lynk & Co during the 2022 season against a backdrop of divergence over Goodyear tires. Having become starving, the starting grid no longer had much interest, and it was better to stop the costs before the disaster became obvious.

However, the TCR product remains extremely relevant in a tense economic context. The TCR World Tour, based on the continental TCR events (Europe, South America, Australia, etc.) must give Tourism a boost in 2023.

The WTCR epic ended in relative anonymity in Jeddah / DPPI

Gautier's rant

The cancellation of the French Rally Cup final

This rant is in no way aimed at the organizers, the Ligue des Hauts de France and the Federation who fought until the last second to try to maintain this popular and festive event.

The culprits are those for whom protest, however legitimate it may be, can only take the form of blocking and depriving others of their freedom. The competitors were unable to start because their safety and that of the spectators could not be ensured due to a lack of fuel to supply the emergency vehicles. Some had already arrived in Béthune to prepare their rally, often at the cost of immense personal effort.

The Coupe de France is a world of amateurs, in the noblest sense of the term, who work during the week to take up the challenge of competition on the weekend.

Thanks to everyone's efforts, the event was able to be rescheduled from February 16 to 18, 2023. Let's hope that no qualified crew will be left on the side of the road due to lack of vacation days or budget, which would be a cruel injustice .

The cancellation of the French Rally Cup is a hard blow for fans / © DPPI

Dorian's rant

The attempted sit-in at the British GP

Let's not forget: this season could have been marked by a terrible disaster, narrowly avoided during the British Grand Prix. No, I'm not talking about the terrible accident Guanyu-Zhou – although the violence of the collision gave chills to all the spectators and drivers – but many of the demonstrators entered the track during the first lap.

In the “Wellington Straight”, six people came to sit on the tarmac, quietly, as if they were going to share a picnic. It's sad to say, but fortunately the accident at the first corner caused a red flag and the drivers were driving slowly in this area! If the police had communicated, in advance, a potential risk of invasion of the track at the start of the Grand Prix, security flaws were still present and this could quickly have turned into a tragedy. A few days later, seven people were taken into custody after their dangerous action.

I don't want to enter into this debate, the one where we have to say whether this or that action is good or bad. The basic message is laudable, obviously because the climate emergency is there, but the form... Has unconsciousness taken over conviction? What were these people hoping for when they sat down on the track? This is a unique precedent in the world of Formula 1 and motorsport, and I fear it will happen again, like other international competitions. Until the day the tragedy arrives...

It’s sad to say but “fortunately” that the British GP was neutralized from the start… / © DPPI

Gonzalo's rant

Lack of engine reliability Alpine

With engine freeze approaching, Alpine had clearly chosen to focus on the performance of its powertrain, even if it meant it being a bit less reliable. On the track, the V6 hybrid Viruses-Châtillon proved to be very efficient but, as feared, the durability was not there.

Just ask Fernando Alonso. The double Spanish world champion will give you a long list of mechanical problems that he may have encountered throughout the year.

Hydraulics, faulty battery, water pump… the tricolor power unit gave big headaches to the Asturian who had to abandon 5 times (6 with the non-start in the Sprint in Austria) during the race for various problems . Esteban Ocon also experienced misfortunes.

At the arrival, Alpine certainly grabbed 4th place among the Manufacturers but the French team could have secured it much earlier, if its soldiers had not encountered so many problems, unlike their rivals from McLaren.

The A fléché teams must now find the solution to avoid these repeated breakdowns and above all finally become a cutting-edge team by holding the lead to the top three.

Alonso walking in front of his Alpine parked, an image that we will have seen too much this season / © DPPI

Jérémy's rant

Binotto's communication

Far be it from me to shoot at the ambulance. The friendly Mattia Binotto left his post, but I had so much trouble all year Charles Leclerc that I couldn't not reserve my rant for the future ex-main team of Ferrari.

Between strategy problems and reliability concerns, the Monegasque was frankly not spared. That's not even what I blame the Scuderia for, by the way. In motorsport, we must accept that reliability is sometimes lacking and mistakes, even gross and repeated, happen. But while Leclerc did not lose face and never betrayed his team publicly in complicated moments, Mattia Binotto's reactions on the contrary irritated me a lot.

The highlight was the huge miscommunication at Silverstone, where he almost yelled at the Monegasque with an inquisitive finger, like one would lecture a kid. With two fingers, he grabbed him by the neck and volleyed him in the behind...

And then, what can we say about his positions after his own strategic errors. In Monaco after a double error with Leclerc? No luck with traffic. At Silverstone after sacrificing Leclerc on the altar of Sainz's first victory? “ Blame it on external circumstances (a Safety Car)”, or even “ Carlos [Sainz] would have lost more positions ". In Hungary, where the tough guys who didn't work at all against the rest of the competition were shod at Leclerc and made him lose again despite a leading position? “ A lack of pace in the car ».

By wanting to defend the Scuderia too much, Binotto tarnished the image of the brand, his own, and did not respect his driver.

The situation had become untenable for Mattia Binotto / © DPPI

Julien's rant

Fernando Alonso's attitude

You will tell me that I am rambling like a little gentleman and you are probably right. Fernando Alonso fascinates me on the track as much as he tires me off it. Time has no influence on the double world champion, as spectacular as ever and filled with sacred fire on the track.

Among his 2022 feats of arms, I particularly remember his USA GP where he took off on theAston Martin of his future teammate Lance stroll, hit the safety barrier, returned to the pits like a crab, and took off again to finish 7th! The Asturian deserves to have two or three world titles, that’s undeniable. But he also reminded us why his last victory dates back to the 2013 Spanish GP…

The scenario is always the same: Fernando arrives at a stable, it's a state of grace, the idyll is total, everything is wonderful. And then the first snags occur, the barbs become more and more frequent and the impetuous person ends up looking elsewhere, full of gall and wrath.

Alonso is completely right to be concerned about the precarious reliability of his engine in 2022. He has every right to leave the French team for Aston Martin, even if he could have done it more elegantly. On the other hand, harpooning his teammate Esteban Ocon at Interlagos then throwing him to his fans and the press afterwards, or shouting about his love of "the green car" for weeks while he still drives in Alpine is not of the standard of such a great pilot.

In history, I regret almost as much the passivity of the French brand, as if paralyzed by the aura of Alonso. And I tell you my note that Fernando will never have one word louder than the other at Aston where there will be no shortage of tickets.

The Spaniard is still as indomitable after 40 years / © DPPI