The Future Of Formula 1 Is Here... And It's Not Pretty

Hello Halo


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Fans hate it.

Drivers are divided... and that's if they're being honest.

It's that curved thing you'll see above all of the drivers in this year's Formula 1 cars that almost looks like the strap on a thong.

It's called a halo, but it does anything but make this year's cars look like angels.

It's been introduced to improve driver safety and protect them from flying debris and crashes which claimed the lives of Jules Bianchi at the Japanese Grand Prix in 2014 and Justin Wilson in an Indycar event in 2015.

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff revealed what he'd like to do with the halo.

"I'm not impressed with the whole thing and if you give me a chainsaw I would take it off," he said.

"I think we need to look after driver's safety, but what we have implemented is aesthetically not appealing and we need to come up with a solution that simply looks better."

Toto's comments came at the unveiling of the car every driver (who's not in a Merc) wants to beat, the 2018 Mercedes-AMG F1 W09.

World champion Lewis Hamilton tried lightening the mood with a joke.

“I hope they don’t get much heavier.... I can be a bodybuilder next year and get the beach body I want," said the Brit.

Take a look at the first onboard view with the halo with Hamilton's team mate Valtteri Bottas at the wheel.

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Mercedes have won four drivers' and constructors championships on the trot and are showing no signs of slowing down anytime soon.

Hamilton's also hinted he'll be ready to sign another fat contract, possibly before next month's opening race, the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne.

If anyone's got a good shot of dethroning the champions, it's Ferrari.

Sebastian Vettel almost had one hand on the title last year before car (and driver) went AWOL in the second half of the season.

The all-red SF71H (we're not entirely sure what that stands for either) also features the dreaded halo.

It features a longer wheel base bringing it closer to the specs of the Merc.

We'll leave it to Ferrari gun Kimi Raikkonen to deliver the verdict.

"It looks nice and usually when it looks nice there is speed also."

Let's hope he's right because if looks could thrill, the Aussie Formula 1 faithful should be in for some worthwhile late night racing on the couch this year.

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Sean Maynard

10 December 2018

Article by:

Sean Maynard




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