In the round-up: The family of Michael Schumacher have admitted during court proceedings that he remains unable to walk since his December 2013 skiing crash.
Links
Your daily digest of F1 news, views, features and more from hundreds of sites across the web:
Michael Schumacher’s lawyer denies magazine’s claims: ‘He cannot walk’ (The Guardian)
"Felix Damm told the court 'he cannot walk' and was unable to stand even with the assistance of therapists."
Singapore Grand Prix sees worst-ever ticket sales (Today Online)
"While the Singapore Grand Prix posted its worst-ever spectator turnout this year — even lower than during the 2009 financial crisis — Trade and Industry Minister S Iswaran said on Monday (Sept 19) that it was too early to draw 'any major conclusions', as he attributed the dip in ticket sales to the economic uncertainty here and worldwide."
"With Singapore Grand Prix's deal to host Formula One races due to expire after next year's night race, Minister for Trade and Industry S. Iswaran has said more time is needed for the business' new owners before an agreement can be struck with the Republic."
"Singapore’s approach to littering is famous, with stringent penalties, which Arrivabene apparently fell foul off when he put out his cigarette butt on the street."
RBR denied permission to fix Verstappen clutch (Autosport)
"It was a clutch issue but they (the FIA) couldn't see an issue with it so we couldn't change the clutch."
Alonso says motivation is key to contract extension (Reuters)
"After one year and a half without being close to the podium, I have more motivation. I come out as a lion in every race."
Wolff relieved Hamilton 'Plan B' didn’t cost Rosberg win (Crash)
"When we saw that Lewis had the brakes under control we knew that the undercut was possible and by undercutting Kimi we actually triggered the situation where Daniel had the chance to pit again."
Mercedes drivers didn't have brake problems in Singapore (Motorsport)
"The quickest race car we can build doesn't allow the driver to brake flat out every lap, so they have to manage their brakes the same way they manage tyres and manage fuel. So you can't do qualifying laps every lap."
2016 Singapore Grand Prix (Motorsport magazine)
"He’d gone for a rather different set-up to that of Rosberg, trying to take fuller advantage of the ride height control given by the car’s huge front heave spring by running it low."
F1 Driver Power Rankings (Eurosport)
My Singapore Grand Prix review for Eurosport.
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Social media
Notable posts from Twitter, Instagram and more:
Start tangle, early pits stop, MGU K failure… Gutted all this had to happen the day we were starting P6 in the #SingaporeGP , Not our day!
— Carlos Sainz (@carlosainz) September 19, 2016
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Comment of the day
An important addition to Stats and Facts from @Gridlock:
After years of absolute dominance, Dieter Zetsche has the second-best moustache in the paddock.
@Gridlock
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mfreire
20th September 2016, 0:12
Sad to hear about Schumacher. But I am honestly not surprised after the kind of injuries inflicted upon him after his accident.
Singapore is a place where you are not even allowed to chew gum. The F1 group should provide some particular guidance involving laws in countries that probably wouldn’t be laws in most Western European countries.
thatscienceguy
20th September 2016, 11:49
Or you know, just don’t litter. Anywhere.
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
20th September 2016, 12:08
The authorities in Singapore have refuted the story (thanks to Adam for the tip):
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/no-truth-in-reports-ferrari-boss-fined-for-littering-in/3141276.html
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
20th September 2016, 14:30
Ferrari have now sent a mass email out with the same link, stating “With reference to the rumours about events in Singapore involving Maurizio Arrivabene, please check out the following link”. They don’t appear to have commented on it themselves one way or another.
anon
20th September 2016, 19:30
@keithcollantine, mind you, given that most news sites are trying to retract the story as rapidly as possible, Ferrari doesn’t really need to make much of a comment – the actions of those news sites alone is telling enough.
kpcart
20th September 2016, 13:05
I agree… why do people litter? it is such a dirty disrespectful habit.
knoxploration
20th September 2016, 17:44
I’d just about guarantee Schumacher has never woken up from the coma in the first place, personally, and that he remains bedridden because he’s not actually been conscious at any point since his hospitalization.
The unfortunate truth is that the family themselves are responsible for all these rumors, through their insistence on not providing any real information to the public. Would even an annual update hurt them? No. Would their admitting to his condition have changed the outcome? Not even slightly. But they insist on rigid privacy, despite the fact that he was a public personality known almost worldwide, and so they create a vast echo chamber for rumors instead.
I don’t entirely blame the family for their decision, but I do blame their advisers, who should have warned them away from this path.
Xcm
20th September 2016, 19:54
@knoxploration seems to be the only person getting it.
You can’t have your cake and eat it too… After your fourth or fifth WDC, you have to accept that you don’t get privacy anymore, as said above, it doesn’t take your right to privacy away, but it does put the onus on you to prevent people guessing.
It’s been over 2 years, if you don’t want speculation, shed some light on the situation yourself….
pcxmac (@xsavior)
21st September 2016, 5:54
were you thinking about the graded GCS when you posted that.
With out any real evidence, you can’t claim MSC is or isn’t conscious, and to what degree.
Facts are he took some heavy vascular damage to his brain/head which probably affected him in much the same way a severe stroke would. Brain damage isn’t a funny affair, but it can be ‘funny’ in how it affects you and what you can and can’t do after it happens.
I don’t think it’s appropriate to blame the family or advisers for how people manufacture baseless claims/rumors. it’s just the way people are. Respect the man, choose or don’t choose to pay attention to unwarranted speculation.
knoxploration
21st September 2016, 22:28
Please do explain how the rumor mill would be making up these stories about him walking, if Schumacher’s representatives were making clear, factual statements about his actual condition. Because truth be told, they wouldn’t be — and without those rumors, life would probably be easier for his family, not harder.
That’s why it is totally appropriate to blame their advisors.
pcxmac (@xsavior)
25th September 2016, 16:01
“The unfortunate truth is that the family themselves are responsible for all these rumors, through their insistence on not providing any real information to the public. Would”
I am not going to ask you to define ‘advisers’ because your statement in the previous post was pretty defined.
I do not blame the family themselves, because they are not responsible for unwarranted/idle speculation. This is a natural phenomenon, people will speculate till the end of time. I think you need to think about who is really responsible for whose behavior in this case.
Strontium (@strontium)
20th September 2016, 0:24
I was thinking, with regard to the Singapore Grand Prix, next year will be their 10th race. I think it would be really cool to celebrate by having a one-off day race. Certainly on the F1 game it looks stunning, would it look as good for real? I love the night element of this race, but it would definitely be exciting to see just once, what it is like in the day.
Also, are they definitely set on keeping the new bridge layout they introduced last year? I thought the whole reason they brought that in was to improve the racing through there, and it’s quite conclusive to say that, if anything, it is now worse. Also, they ought to consider changing the pit exit again. There was a crash last year, and a couple of close moments this year. It seems very unnecessarily tight at the point that the cars fall back onto the racing line.
mfreire
20th September 2016, 1:26
The South African Grand Prix was always held on a Saturday from 1985 and before, and a number of GP’s back in those days were held on Saturdays. So it’s definitely a possibilty.
Corey (@dragon86)
20th September 2016, 2:27
As much as that would be nice, I wouldn’t want it. The race already starts at 8 in the morning on the US East Coast, and I like my breakdast with F1 mornings.
Jerejj
20th September 2016, 4:44
@Strontium FP1 and FP3 sessions are already run in daylight mostly, so those are the sessions where it’s possible to see what it’s like in the day.
Stig Semper Fi (@stigsemperfi)
20th September 2016, 7:30
You would think if they wanted to improve the racing, they would have just gotten rid of the original chicane.
kpcart
20th September 2016, 13:07
there are other tracks where you can watch in the day, the night element makes this interesting… watching the onboards, it feels like when you go to an indoor karting track at night.
MtlRacer (@mtlracer)
20th September 2016, 0:58
Mr. Carey’s moustache is not just for show, it conceals a scar obtained when he flew threw the windshield of a car during his college years. Part of the scar on his chin is visible in many pictures.
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
20th September 2016, 9:42
@mtlracer Well I never knew that – thanks for that one!
@HoHum (@hohum)
20th September 2016, 1:25
Please Pirelli can we re-name the compounds for next year;
Ultra soft as now
Soft = current Super Soft
Medium = current soft
Hard = current medium
Extra hard = current hard
This would better reflect the actual usage of the tyres and avoid the silliness of the hardest tyre choice of the 3 choices available at many races being the Soft.
ColdFly F1 (@)
20th September 2016, 5:45
I support this change wholeheartedly.
Not because of actual usage, but because both Soft and Super Soft are referred to as S.
nase
20th September 2016, 8:04
@coldfly
‘because both Soft and Super Soft are referred to as S’
By whom?
Bleu (@bleu)
20th September 2016, 8:31
In the television graphics, all tyres are referred with single letter. Supersoft with red S and soft with yellow S.
nase
20th September 2016, 13:48
@bleu
Huh, I never noticed that.
ColdFly F1 (@)
20th September 2016, 15:59
Indeed @bleu.
Although US uses 2 letters; FIA probably doesn’t want to use SS (add any Mosley joke here).
OmarRoncal - Go Seb!!! (@)
20th September 2016, 1:30
So sad to have the first confirmed news that Schum can’t walk at all. Life takes irony to awful extremes sometimes. A guy know worldwide for being the fastest, and that outside the track has given tons of his money to charity, and when he retires for real, can’t even enjoy the fruit of his hard dedication.
I’m nobody to judge him, but I feel it’s some kind of terrible karma. Who knows if Damon or Jacques could have actually died because of his dirty tricks?
BrawnGP (@brawngp)
20th September 2016, 5:15
…wow
ColdFly F1 (@)
20th September 2016, 5:51
Amazing, starting a considerate post and then doing a 180.
nase
20th September 2016, 8:07
Yeah, the transition from compassionate to downright horrible was remarkably quick.
Wesley (@)
20th September 2016, 21:30
I make a point to stay away from people who run hot and cold like this.
Peppermint-Lemon (@)
20th September 2016, 8:25
What an awful thing to say at the end of your comment. You should be embarrassed.
tonyyeb (@tonyyeb)
20th September 2016, 9:28
Utterly shocking. Can’t believe I just read that.
mog
20th September 2016, 9:46
Omar, at the risk of ridicule here by other Fanatics, I agree with your sentiment on both counts. I wouldn’t wish Schumacher’s injury on anyone, and I hope he gets better.
However, if karma existed Schuey would be a prime candidate for some retributive rebound. I think even his greatest fans would admit there is room for this observation, and I think its more intriguing speculation than a judgement.
beneboy (@beneboy)
20th September 2016, 13:17
I take it you also think Senna deserved to die as karma for his crashes and agressive driving style ?
Honestly can not believe some of the crap people post on here sometimes.
nase
20th September 2016, 14:11
In all seriousness, your opinion does deserve to be ridiculed.
While I agree that Schumacher’s behaviour was rather unsporting from time to time, the allegation that he endangered lives is post-factual nonsense. Therefore, one has to interpret your statements as a way of saying that Schumacher deserved to be crippled in a random accident because you found the way he sometimes behaved in his sport distasteful.
This is as asinine as it is insulting. Please grow up. Or dump your opinion in some other part of the internet.
kpcart
20th September 2016, 13:11
I don’t agree with you thinking he might have killing Villeneuve or Hill… they were slow speed touches. his dangerous moves were the late blocks, like the one Verstappen did to Kimi in Spa at 300kmh. Schumacher did them a few times in his career, ie to Hakinnen also in Spa, and to Hakinnen back in f3. also- he did not kill or injure anyone, so how is it karma that he is injured????
grat
20th September 2016, 14:05
You’re right– you’re not someone to judge him.
So why did you?
@HoHum (@hohum)
20th September 2016, 1:35
A little late, but I had to wait for the so called highlights. I hope the actual race was better than the highlights, start and crash, crash, crash, crash, commercials, restart, MV and DK zigging and zagging, commercials, pit stop, pit stop, pit stop, pit stop, commercials, a car going fast, some cars going slow, commercials, pit stop, pit stop,commercials, etc. etc. Great close-up slo-mo of the wheel gun though.
ColdFly F1 (@)
20th September 2016, 5:52
They missed the Mo?
Todfod (@todfod)
20th September 2016, 8:25
The actual race was better. I thought it was one of the better races this year.
George (@george)
20th September 2016, 13:36
@hohum I agree with @todfod , the race had quite good pacing strategically and a steady stream of on-track action, which I guess didn’t come across in the highlights.
caci99
20th September 2016, 14:36
@hohum
LOL, I was smiling all along your comment, but that last sentence made me laugh hard :)
LovelyLovelyLuffield
20th September 2016, 5:25
Well… he can’t walk… what else can he do? Desperately searching for positives here…
Sonics (@sonicslv)
20th September 2016, 7:46
If anything, Alex Zanardi still achieve a lot even though he also can’t walk. And that including competing in race cars too.
Oli (@dh1996)
20th September 2016, 8:18
Ahem … https://youtu.be/5j9SlA-fWNk?t=21s
Todfod (@todfod)
20th September 2016, 8:29
Yeah.. but Zanardi didn’t have a traumatic brain injury. A brain injury affects the person’s motor skills, so it doesn’t seem possible that he will ever compete in any sport again. I hope Schumi can at least get back to a semi normal life again, and enjoy his time with his family.
nase
20th September 2016, 14:19
@sonicslv
Alex Zanardi has to be one of the greatest guys ever.
However, Alex Zanardi has been able to get on with his life because he “only” lost his lower legs. Now, in Schumacher’s case, there was no mention whatsoever of his legs. For all we know, he fell on his head and slipped into a coma. So if he can’t walk, it’s probably not his legs’ fault, but really bad news for him.
evered7 (@evered7)
20th September 2016, 6:29
Terrible news that Schumi can’t walk. But if he is able to lead a life like Sir Frank Williams, then I am all for it. He was at most races and was running a F1 team successfully.
I will be greatly joyed if he has his other bodily functions have been restored. If he is able to talk, laugh, eat like a regular human being, I think that is a great accomplishment considering the length of his hospitalization.
P.S. I don’t know much about Sir Frank and his living but seeing him in the races in the wheelchair, I took some assumptions regarding his health. Sorry if I am wrong.
Just searching for positives for my hero.
Maddme
20th September 2016, 9:57
Frank Williams severed his spinal column in a car accident in 1986…
BasCB (@bascb)
20th September 2016, 6:31
Maybe the thing that mostly influenced attendance for lower priced seats etc at Singapore is the fact that the Malaysian GP is right around the corner, and it is quite likely both cheaper to buy a ticket AND far cheaper to spend the night there?
I think on the other hand Malaysia will suffer too, becaus the big wigs that did turn up in Singapore are unlikely to all turn up again right next door only 2 weeks later.
Tim Crimson (@tim-crimson)
20th September 2016, 8:13
The worst aspect about the Schumacher news is not that he’s unable to walk. It’s the fact that his family has to make a statement at all to prove some sleazy tabloids and their baseless rumors wrong in a legal action. It’s not about how much someone earned in his career, how successful he was or how famous he is – there’s just no justification for not accepting his current state and his privacy. His management is trying to enforce his privacy just as they did before his accident and that’s absolutely justifiable.
If you don’t have the right to remain silent on someone’s health status anymore, than there’s something fundamentally wrong. I have never been a big Schumacher fan but of course there are times when I wonder about how he’s doing. But do I have the right to know? Surely not.
petebaldwin (@)
20th September 2016, 11:48
Of course it’s Schumi’s right to keep everything private if he wants to but it has to be understood that with the popularity he has, there is massive international interest in how he’s doing and if they choose to release nothing, some people will start speculating.
In any situation where there is a complete lack of solid information, speculation can quickly turn into “fact” and then someone will cash in with an “exclusive story.”
Philip (@philipgb)
20th September 2016, 12:30
@petebaldwin
It’s not so much about his right to privacy, he chose and benefited from the life of a public figure and it’s to be expected there is still media and public interest in his condition. The family has a right not to share information and the press has a right to publish any information they do fairly come by.
But did a reporter posted a false story to profit and benefit from that interest? If that reporter did so in good faith that the information was accurate fair enough, but were they just willing to make an unfounded claim to sell copies?
Robbie (@robbie)
20th September 2016, 14:17
It’s one thing for regular civilians to speculate when info has been scarce. It is a completely other thing for a reporter or journalist to publish something as fact when he or she has not corroborated the ‘facts’ through 2 or 3 independent sources first. Since it is a fact that MS is not mobile, it is careless at a minimum, and borders on lawsuit worthy at the other end of the spectrum, for a reporter to publish obvious unsubstantiated untruths.
Unfortunately more and more these days we see that the truth matters less and less than a momentary sensationalistic impact. See the Arrivabene littering story…see Donald Trump.
Adam (@adamgoh)
20th September 2016, 11:57
Keith, the article about Maurizio Arrivabene being arrested and fined is fake. See http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/no-truth-in-reports-ferrari-boss-fined-for-littering-in/3141276.html?cid=fbcna
lockup (@)
20th September 2016, 16:44
@adamgoh I suppose we ought to believe that one? Tentatively! I guess it gets Sky & co off the hook, puts BBC, Grandprix.com& co on it. Disappointing tho, I really liked the idea :))
charliex (@photogcw)
20th September 2016, 14:48
Interesting numbers listed at the bottom of the Singapore GP attendance article. I noticed some sparse grandstands around the track during the race.
“Each edition of the race costs about S$150 million to organise, with the Government co-funding 60 per cent of approved costs. In turn, the race generates an average of nearly S$150 million in incremental tourism receipts each year.”
The organizers come close to breaking even but the national government kicks in a greater share to cover costs. With its present contract expiring after 2017, does the government believe the GP is a worthwhile, though money losing, venture?
Mashiat (@mashiat)
21st September 2016, 11:26
@photogcw I would guess that Singapore gains in other ways other than ticket sales etc.
charliex (@photogcw)
21st September 2016, 15:38
The article did list the race as a promotion for tourism but did not give exact numbers. But many F1 races do that and it’s difficult to measure the exact impact. So while some national/regional governments will pay a major share of the cost, others will not and the sport has lost races due to that fact. This year’s USGP is really a make or break event for its very existence.
NewVerstappenFan (@jureo)
20th September 2016, 17:30
Schumacher cannot walk… What kind of news is that? Can he communicate, can he drive an electric wheel chair, is he himself, or nonresponsive? Is he relearning how to live?
Cannot walk, that is like my lawyer confirming I wont drive in F1 next year.
I imagine with damage to his head, there are many resonable options, many good news to report, walking is something that is way up the ladder of recovery.
Stephen Crowsen (@drycrust)
20th September 2016, 18:34
When I read about the poor attendance at the Singapore GP I wondered if it was available on Free to Air TV or if it was only available on Pay TV, but I haven’t been able to find any broadcaster of F1 races in Singapore.
Faulty
20th September 2016, 20:41
I came here expecting a juicy story about a Wild Maurizio doing some sexy things to get arrested.
I am dissapoint. Would not click again.
Peppermint-Lemon (@)
20th September 2016, 23:50
I just wanted to say how much I enjoyed watching the Valencia 2012 race on sky f1 this evening, seeing Schumacher on the podium after an awesome drive where he destroyed Nico, fought brilliantly with Webber and shared the podium with kimi and alonso. Seemed like good timing to show the race after this mornings news about MSC. Schumi has taught me one stand out thing over the years… No matter how difficult things can get in life, one should never EVER give up. We need to keep sharing the sentiment with him and continue to encourage him in his fight. On behalf of all F1 fanatics here, I wish him a full and speedy recovery.
ResultantAsteroid
21st September 2016, 0:21
+1000
HeyLookAtThat
22nd September 2016, 23:01
Hmmm…. I’m still putting my vote behind Dieter Zetsche. It’s the bald head. It offsets the bushiness of the moustache. Plus, he kinda looks like my dad.