Quarter of Bahrain circuit staff arrested

F1 Fanatic round-up

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In the round-up: a quarter of staff at the Bahrain International Circuit – all Shia – were arrested last month.

Links

Top F1 links from the past 24 hours:

Bahrain races to restore normality (FT, registration required)

“The government-owned Bahrain International Circuit is due to host the Formula 1 race. But about a quarter of its staff – all Shia – were arrested in early April and most have since been suspended or sacked, according to one of those detained who declined to be named for fear of retribution. The group included three women and two senior staff, he told the Financial Times.”

Bernie Ecclestone’s back on the charge

“I don’t even care if we don’t have a Concorde Agreement. It makes no difference to us. What we might do is run the championship and ask the teams for money to enter.”

NB. This page includes auto-playing video.

Monaco GP – Conference 1 (FIA)

Michael Schumacher, asked by Byron Young if he held up Lewis Hamilton on purpose during the Spanish Grand Prix: “I don’t recall it and I don’t think it would make sense because I think I have a lot more?? although Seb is my friend, but then Lewis is running a Mercedes engine and that’s obviously a lot more important to me, not that I try to favour or not favour anybody. No, that certainly must have been a misunderstanding, but not my idea. I try to keep out of everybody’s way and just do my own thing.”

Byron Young on Twitter

“Having told me in Spain Schumacher made him drive onto the marbles while chasing Seb, today Lewis denied it flat! Hmmmm.”

New tarmac at Sainte Devote

Voxvocis on Twitter

“Darker section is where the tarmac has been replaced after yesterday’s fire.”

Image courtesy of Voxvocis

Via the F1 Fanatic live Twitter app

Concerns over Sainte Devote asphalt (Autosport)

Paul di Resta: “The track was resurfaced there about four weeks ago, and it had obviously settled quite nicely. My concern is that it happened right on the entry and the apex and, with the heat we’ve got now, with temperatures not going much below 20 degrees and with track temp at 45 during the day, is how that’s going to cure.”

Why are Toro Rosso being so coy about their new sponsors (Aabar)? (Daily Telegraph)

“Toro Rosso have signed a new sponsorship deal with Falcon Private Bank, although they haven’t made much of it. […] the Swiss private bank is owned by Aabar Investments (in turn almost wholly owned by the Abu Dhabi government), which already has a 40 per cent stake in Mercedes GP and a nine per cent stake in their parent company Daimler.”

The Horse Whisperer – Spanish dazzle (Ferrari)

In response to this article from Spanish newspaper AS.

Jenson Button almost hit by forklift truck as Monaco problems pile up (The Guardian)

“I was never going to be injured seriously. He wasn’t going to kill me. He would have bumped into me. They are doing all they can but when it is back to back it is very difficult. The guys are working non-stop to get it built. It makes it a bit difficult and dangerous – maybe we should be wearing hard hats in the paddock.”

F1 Fanatic on Twitter

“The next part of “The making of Senna” will be up on Friday.”

Via the F1 Fanatic live Twitter app

Nick Heidfeld – classic F1 2011 (BBC)

“Heidfeld’s second pick is the 1990 Japanese Grand Prix, which Heidfeld calls a ‘classic F1 moment’, and which is proving popular among the current drivers – both Alonso and Buemi also chose this race.”

Follow F1 news as it breaks using the F1 Fanatic live Twitter app.

Comment of the day

Gucha went to a screening of “Senna” yesterday which included a talk about the film:

The film is amazing. I tried hardly not to cry as I did the first time around.

It was so exciting to see John Watson in the audience.

Also the aftershow discussion, especially the Bernie part, was hilarious.

Quotes:

“When Bernie suddenly entered we thought he was on his knees.”

“Bernie had two specific suggestions: ‘make it in sepia’ and ‘no actors, cause I ******* hate actors'”

“Then he asked ‘Where have you seen the footage?’
– Ehm, on the internet??
– Internet!
– Bernie, I told you about internet.
– Now, I want you to find the guy who put it on internet and send him a cease and desist order. If that doesn’t work, call the police. If the police doesn’t help, I don’t know, kill the guy!”
Gucha

From the forum

Macca wonders if F1 could have a NASCAR-style ‘All stars’ race.

Happy birthday!

Happy birthday to Lustigson!

On this day in F1

Vittorio Brambilla died ten years ago today. The Italian, who retired from Formula 1 in 1980, scored a single win in the 1975 Austrian Grand Prix.

Brambilla famously crashed shortly after taking the chequered flag in the rain-hit race.

The crash was missed by the camera man in this clip (nothing changes, eh?) but you can see the deranged nose on his March:

Image © Red Bull/Getty images

Author information

Keith Collantine
Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...

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82 comments on “Quarter of Bahrain circuit staff arrested”

  1. a quarter of its staff – all Shia – were arrested

    Sheer conincidence, I’m sure.

    1. pun intended?

      1. Typo.

    2. =D

      Good one.

    3. Forgive my ignorance, what’s Shia?

      1. SouthPawRacer [Stealthman]
        26th May 2011, 14:34

        An Islamic denomination, I believe.

  2. I try to keep out of everybody’s way and just do my own thing.

    Interesting quote from a man who made his reputation on aggressive driving and sometimes controversial tactics.

    1. Interesting that this Byron Young can be stirring up BS, since Lewis said nothing about being held up to anyone reputable.

    2. MS is a master of political speak. His ‘own thing’ is to be aggressive and sometimes controversial. That said, I find that he has been quite fair lately in keeping out of everybody’s way when he has lagged in pace. That said MS has proved many times his capacity to be unfair as well. Doesn’t sound like this LH/MS thing is anything of substance though, and if there was anything to it we would have heard a lot more and immediately following the race.

  3. With regards to the whole Lewis-Schumacher thing, i have to admit i got a bit annoyed with Lewis yesterday when i heard his claims. Yes, Schumacher did force him to take a slightly narrower line into turn 13, but there was nothing much more he could have done and he definitely didn’t block him (unlike Karthikeyan). Now however, after hearing that Lewis has denied flat that he made these claims from the only man that he supposedly made them to, Byron Young, i think that Young has either put words in Lewis’ mouth or twisted his words somewhat. It seems odd that Lewis would only make the comment to one journalist, when he will be interviewed by many in succession post-race, just as it seems odd that he would bring up what was clearly a nothing-incident when other backmarkers, notably Karthikeyan’s Hispania held him up a lot more. Young claims Lewis said Schumacher forced him out onto the marbles which would be lying on the outside of turn 12 where Lewis overtook him, when in fact Schumacher himself went out onto the marbles to let Lewis pass on the inside, on the clean line. I regularly read Young’s column in the Mirror, and its often a shocker. I find it unbelievable how many inaccuracies his reports include despite his presence at the track, considering how far up the tabloid journalist ladder he is. I just read it going, “thats wrong…no Vettel had a problem, he wasnt struggling with the conditions…no he jumped him in the pits, not on the track…no it hasn’t been banned…”. Probably shouldnt read it, i know, but what im saying is that Lewis probably doesnt deserve the stick he’s taken over the last 24 hours. I don’t really have much respect for Young as a journalist, and though he could easily be in the right and its Lewis who’s lying, i think he’s manipulated Lewis’ answers (or something) to get a “sensational” story.

    1. Icemangrins
      26th May 2011, 3:36

      Amen to that !

    2. Byron Young, like many “journalists” in British tabloids, seem to have a thing against Hamilton and continuously make up things that he is supposed to have said, then these false “quotes” get disseminated around other news sources. The quotes usually are designed to give a negative impression of Hamilton. He will say something, then Young et al will misquote and twist it to make it sound unpleasant. My advice to F1 fans is only believe something if it is quoted on Autosport.com (they never get it wrong and verify everything) or see it coming out of Hamilton’s mouth on TV, or it is in a few reputable newspapers like the Telegraph, Time or Guardian all saying the same thing. I think it is pretty disgraceful that he is treated like this by journalists from his own country – Button never gets this treatment.

      1. It’s amazing how much of a stir Lewis has made in F1. It seems like reporters either hate him and put words in his mouth to make him look like a d!(% OR they love him a little too much and try to make everyone else look like a loser and like he is god. Before Lewis, I don’t remember any driver causing such media stir, and if you go back far enough before the internet, the Sennas, Mansells, Prosts, etc didn’t have the outlet to get the same hype/hate…

        Either way, love him or hate him, the dude is fast….

  4. Four things to say:

    1. Happy birthday Lustigson, my fellow Simpson avatared fanatic

    2. If anyone wants to read the Financial Times article without subscribing, you can simply type “Bahrain races to restore normality” into google, click the FT link and bypass it that way

    3. I don’t understand Spanish, so I couldn’t read that AS article and thus don’t get what the Horse Whisperer is going on about (not that I ever do). Could someone enlighten me?

    4. I reckon the Telegraph is probably reading too much into that Toro Rosso story. It’s hardly a major sponsorship deal, nothing that indicates a buy out’s a brewin. Then again, maybe I’m wrong. One thing’s for sure, those Falcon logo’s have ruined the Toro Rosso livery

    1. re thing 3 :


      AS reported that President of Santander, Emilio Botin, had had harsh words with Ferrari team principal Stefano Domenicali during the recent Spanish Grand Prix weekend about the team’s performance. From ()

      1. attempt to link failed , was meant to say James Allens site.

    2. Ok, I’m hardly fluent, but it’s something like this:

      Santander can’t be too happy about Ferrari doing terribly. Especially not at their home grand prix (that they sponsor). Emilio Botin is always about the paddock, and of course loves Fernando, but wasn’t too happy on Saturday. He got angry with Domenicali, asking for explanations, as their investment isn’t giving a good impression on the company. Forty million dollars a season should return more, apparently.

      I think that’s the general feeling.

      1. Forty million dollars a season should return more, apparently.

        That’ll give you HRT or Virgin, and if you push the purse a bit further it may buy you Lotus.

        1. Also, Thanks Ned for the tip (FT)

        2. Exactly. If Santander want more for their money, they could but HRT or Virgin. Hell, buy the track too and rename all the corners! The post race review on their website could read:

          “Santander Cosworth won the Santander Spanish Grand Prix this weekend. The Santander driver, Fernando Santander Alonso had a moment going through the Santander corner 5 laps from the end but recovered to reach the top step of the Santander podium. Santander Alonso thanked his Santander team when he lifted his Santander trophy.”

          1. Good idea, rename Alonso as well :)

          2. I’m sure he’d do it for a small fee…

      2. Given the situation in the Spanish finance and real estate sectors, I’m sure they feel a little sheepish to see their 40 mil getting lapped. Was Costa offered up to appease the bank?

    3. Hi Ned.

      Fully agree with the birthday wish Lustigson, have fun.

      The spanish article is about an alledged vocal fight between the Santander director and Domenicali. There is bound to be something about it, why else would the Whisperer even mention it and therewith inform the world of it.

      As for the telegraph thing, it might just be simple, but with then again it might be about Aabar securing they have a big enough say in dealing with Exor, News Cort et all if the opportunity arises.

  5. Forty-seven doctors and nurses are facing trial and rights groups are concerned at claims that the police have tortured doctors to secure confessions.

    In the context of reports like this, how can the FIA put Bahrain back on the calendar this year? How could the FIA look to world in the eye and claim any kind of moral high ground at all if they did so? What would be the impact on its lofty PR programmes, such as ‘Make Roads Safe’ and ‘Make Cars Green’ when they ignore the persecution of people who have sworn the Hippocratic Oath? How can the FIA suspend a driver’s super-licence if they do anything slightly offensive when it would have blood on its own hands?

    Talk about double standards. To sanction a return of the Bahrain GP in the current circumstances would render the FIA morally bankrupt.

    1. how could the IOC hold the olympics in china? quite easily, as it turns out.

      1. That’s different isn’t it? China, rightly or wrongly, hgas been accepted.

        This on the other hand, is like going to South Africa during the Apartheid. That mistake has been made before.

      2. First, the IOC does not run political/social programmes specifically designed to improve the quality of life millions by minimising motoring deaths and injuries. I don’t see how the FIA can do this and at the same time turn a blind eye to the situation in Bahrain. A life is a life, and one tragically lost in a car accident is not ‘worth’ more than one lost at Manama’s Pearl monument. By ignoring the latter it severely devalues the former.

        Second, the IOC was hugely damaged by the Salt Lake bid scandal, expelling 10 members and sanctioning a further 10. Clearly, the moral compass of its membership was suspect then and again when it awarded the Games to Beijing, given that the second principle in the Fundamental Principles of Olympism, Olympic Charter states that The goal of Olympism is to place sport at the service of the harmonious development of man, with a view to promoting a peaceful society concerned with the preservation of human dignity. I’m not sure that banging thousands of opposition supporters up in jail is very dignified behaviour.

        Add in the fact that the IOC also tried to censor Tibetan protest videos on YouTube and it brings into question even further their moral credibility.

        Unfortunately, you appear to subscribe to the school of thought that two wrongs make a right. I’ve never been able to work out that viewpoint.

        1. Well, you have to admit, people in Bahrain don’t die due to car acciednts, do they?!
          (I’m sorry, I couldn’t resist, I know jokes like that are immature ..)

      3. Yeah, but it would be a bit different to do that in spring of 1990.

    2. Do any of these reports have anything to back up what they are saying?

      It is always “apparently” and “suggest”. Its hard to believe something said by a person who is on one of the two sides, who clearly has a conflict on interest.

      1. Sure in some cases the people involved do not want their names uncovered (who would under risk of being detained, beaten or just killed), but a lot has been confirmed by several sources.

      2. We have more reasons to believe that they are true than to believe they that are lies. There is more to lose if they are true than if they are lies. There are many reports of all kinds of abuses, including the arrest of schoolgirls (as they were also involved in the protests).

        China is no better (well maybe marginally), but the issue is that we are not willing to stop watching F1 races just because the F1 world is willing to have a mutually profitable (beneficial) relationship with these unacceptable regimes.

  6. Saw on the BBC Gossip page that Lewis is fuming with Schumacher. Apparently he blocked him when he was chasing down Vettel. All I say to that is equality is restored from Brazil 2008 and his best friend Glock.

    Why complain about it though? He wouldn’t have got past Vettel anyway.

    1. You do realise that had Glock not risked the tyres, Lewis would have already had 5th in the bag as Timo would have been further down.

      Anyway, anything which helps you weather the Ferrari drought.

      1. Depends which way you look at it. Glock could’ve easily made the turn had he slowed down earlier.

        Your missing the point though, I’m simply stating that Lewis should wind his neck in as he has had his fair share of good fortune in races.

        Oh and I’m not a Ferrari fan so the final part of your comment is slightly misguided there.

        1. Well this Young guy seems to be the only person carrying this story, Lewis doesn’t seem to have mentioned it to anyone else, which leaves me more than a little skeptcial as to its veracity.

          RIISE, what about the rain at the end of the Brazil 08, Kubica unlapping himself causing Lewis to go wide and then the fact that Toyota decided to leave their drivers out on dry tyres in the first place – brilliant luck. Also if Glock had slowed down earlier surely Lewis would have been able to get past anyway because Glock would have been going more slowly?

    2. You do realise that this is another false load of rubbish from the British media. I feel sorry for Hamilton having to put up with this. I think he said he had to go round the outside of Schumacher, and Byron Young of the Mirror interpeted that falsely as him saying he was blocked. I wish Hamilton could sue every journalist who misquoted him, but he probably wouldn’t have anytime for racing if he did.

    3. All I say to that is equality is restored from Brazil 2008 and his best friend Glock.

      That is without question the most ridiculous conspiracy theory in F1. There is nothing to support it whatsoever. You demean yourself by giving it credence.

      1. Agreed…personally I never suspected a conspiracy, but my stance on that race was and remains that LH, rather than stamping his authority on the situation, did practically everything in his power to lose the WDC that race, as he had done in the previous year-end races, and needed the super slow lap of Glock to win it, whereas with the pressure at it’s greatest FM did everything right that weekend, ie. did all he could from his end to secure a WDC, again, when the pressure was at it’s greatest. So I still look to see if LH truly has the ability to handle pressure when at it’s greatest, and as far as I’m concerned FM proved he has that in him.

  7. Regarding the BIC’s staff being sacked, it is true as investigations have revealed that they were a group of them who were conspiring against the government in a harmful and violent way. The stories of abusive arrests are all exaggerated, it’s the opposition’s new way of going against the government because it’s the only thing left that they can use. The investigations have revealed that they weren’t peaceful at all as they have terrorized us all causing many deaths and injuries. They weren’t protesting for Bahrain but in support of a sectarian foreign agenda and fabricated so many lies to get international support, since then the country turned against them including many Shias! The thought of opposition supporters working for the BIC possibly trying to ruin a Grand Prix by allowing the protesters to infiltrate the event is a very scary thought!

    I know many of you won’t understand where I’m coming from, and I don’t blame you because sadly you are still not getting the full picture from the International media. Although the media are starting to acknowledge our voice, they still think we are “paid government PR”- something I find quite hilarious! As Bahrainis we know exactly what happened as we have experienced it firsthand and know all the background information about the opposition and how they work. What happened was nothing but a clear sectarian issue that we Bahrainis from both sects refuse! We all love our country and want to see it progress, and what they did was try to destroy it. Sadly, the International community claim to support us but are really doing us much more harm. Our government needs to more transparent so that the world can see the real picture. I guess they are being extra protective in sharing information after being continuously bashed by the International media. I’m confident sooner or later the truth will come out and you all will feel better about supporting Bahrainis and our GP. All we want is for people to hear us out and take our views into consideration because we are the citizens of Bahrain after all, not the International reporters who pick and choose what floats their boat.

    1. we are the citizens of Bahrain after all

      So were the people who got arrested?

      You support your government, I get that, but a quarter? Doesn’t that ring alarm bells?

      Also, is there any point where you can show me evidence to suggest that
      a group of them who were conspiring against the government in a harmful and violent way.
      is true? Because that’s a very bold claim.

      1. I guess its in part about who gathers evidence and by what methods.

        Keeping women detained and threathening with rape and beating them up regularly is bound to give confessions to all sorts of things. But it rather shows what is wrong in the first place.

        Sorry LAK, but from what I have heard your government is just making sure you yourself get only the full picture that your government wants to show. That’s why independant media have been closed down, barred from reporting on it and expelled from the country.

        1. @Mike this is what people are saying, but If I get anymore information I will provide it.

          @BasCB If the women were really threatened with rape I would be the first one against that! The government are not feeding us anything, in fact they are being quite quiet on what exactly goes on, which is hurting them because all the International media hear are the lies the opposition give out. Sadly the independent media is controlled because they were extremely biased I guess, so now they are extra strict on who to trust to give do a fair report.

          1. Such cases are reported by reliable sources on multipe accounts LAK. Be it about female doctors, students, reporters.
            This kind of thing is exaclty what your government is keeping quit about so all of you do not shove them out for their outrageaus behaviour.

    2. Spinmastermic
      26th May 2011, 3:30

      LAK your government has thrown out all the international media. They fired on and killed unarmed protesters. Whats the world supposed to think?? What is the real picture?

      1. If i lived there, I wouldnt be saying anything anti govt on the internet.

        1. Very true, your one of many who don’t dare to do that! ;-)

          1. The opposition control all the human rights organizations and have used them for their own sectarian agenda, the opposition have injured Asian workers and a few have died and the HR organization didn’t bother to take care of them which shows that they are a fraud! They have been using their organizations to tarnish Bahrain’s leadership image which we all know are certainly not dictatorships! Will write another forum post soon with videos and proof of the opposition’s terrorism.

          2. LAK, if you have the possibility to freely look at how credible organisations like MSF etc. are, have a look.

            Do not let yourself be fooled by someone trying to convince you some groups in Bahrain are able to sway what these people do all their lives and worldwide.
            And cerainly do not think or alledge that some extremist or Iran are behind such control and influencing of these interenational and reputable organisations.
            In fact Iran is fighting them exactly the same way your government is. Blocking their access and making them look bad with staged evidence for their own people.

    3. LAK, come on, own up and come clean. You have no credibility. You are a stooge of the ruling Al Khalifa family. With F1Fanatic being such a high-profile site, the Bahrain government has given you the important task of telling a lie often enough so that it becomes the truth (a favourite practice of Lenin, Hitler, George W Bush, etc).

      As the FT reported on 23 May (Manama fights back in cyberspace):

      Pro-government activists have also logged on [to Facebook, YouTube and Twitter] to counter anti-regime voices that were pointing the world’s media to video clips of repression and reports on human rights abuses.

      Other online campaigns have targeted the credibility of human rights professionals, moderate government officials and even foreign diplomats.

      Then add in reports that local journalists working for foreign news agencies have been arrested and beaten, including a photojournalist with the German press agency and Defense News, and a reporter for France24 and Radio Monte Carlo, who were detained for hours and questioned about their reporting. Both said they were abused during their detention and released late Sunday and early Monday.

      To quote the FT: “They blindfolded, cuffed, and then beat me,” said Mr Mahdi. “They were claiming I ‘published lies’ that harmed the country’s image.”

      Reuters’ Manama-based correspondent, Frederik Richter, was expelled from Bahrain this month. Local journalists at Al-Wasat, the country’s only independent voice before changes made under government pressure last month, have also been arrested. The list goes on and on.

      1. Obviously, Russel, Mr. Mahdi blindfolded, cuffed, and beat himself up, in an attempt to promote a sectarian agenda… somehow… uhh….

        And to LAK – when the government itself is saying that it’s prosecuting doctors for providing emergency medical care... what do you expect? Sympathy for the plight of the government?

        Do you have some pat explanation for that, too? Maybe that the doctors were providing violent and conspiratorial sutures, or that they were performing divisively sectarian operations to treat internal bleeding from beatings and gunshot wounds?

        Get a grip.

        Let’s see – I can believe every single recognized news outlet in the world, including non-general-interest publications like The Economist, which backs up its current events coverage with comprehensive historical context, and is read extensively worldwide by policymakers and government officials…

        …or I can believe you, guy-on-the-internet, who essentially says that every reporter and news organization in the West suddenly and simultaneously began fabricating precisely the same story when a few isolated rabble-rousers upset the happy, carefree population of Bahrain.

        And this, all in support of ‘a sectarian foreign agenda’, which was apparently agreed upon by Reuters and the BBC and Fox News and CNN and the Washington Post and the New York Times, a group of companies that, while being western businesses and competitors, managed to put their heads together in a vile conspiracy to foment sectarian strife in a tiny desert island, for no apparent reason whatsoever.

        Maybe they were just bored.

        Sure. You go wit’ ya bad self, LAK. Fight for the honor of the King.

        Just remember that, in the end, evil often treats its friends worse than its enemies.

        1. +10 PeriSoft

        2. +10 again

        3. Wow… that was a very well written put-down

        4. This won’t be COTD. But it’s my COTD.

          1. I refuse to take sides on this. But LAK is one of the nicest members of this site. She never causes arguments or is nasty to anyone. So, even if you’re completely right, that was a little harsh. She’s actually living through all of this, remember. Maybe you should tone it down a little.

          2. Damon Smedley is right on this.

            Sure, I do disagree with LAK and I think she is being misled by her government to disbelieve what they did.

            But that is not reason to blame someone of being a stoodge etc. She is in the middle of it and has her right to judge what see sees around her. Argue with her YES, but keep it civilized.

          3. Thank you SO much @damonsmedley and @BasCB for your supportive and kind words! You can disagree with me all you want, but there is a difference between arguing sensibly and just attacking with no sense of respect for the other side. It’s not like I’m the only deluded one saying my own crazy pro-dictatorship stories, the whole country here is outraged and are all siding with the government against those who conspired to ruin our country and everything we’ve worked so hard to achieve.

            Yes our government is not perfect, yes there is huge room for improvement, but our democratic steps in reform is just 10 years old! We are the most democratic country in the region. We love the fact that we are a monarchy, much more stable and consistent. Our leadership has an amazing relationship with its people always reaching out and always doing the best to serve us. I’m just sharing the voice of the majority of Bahrainis who have been totally ignored by the International media, and the government’s over protectiveness is not helping in giving out a clearer picture to the world. I’m sure they will sooner or later and we will hopefully all be on almost the same page! I’m not blindly supporting the govt, I’m saying the way they went about asking for change is wrong. What they did was ruin and damage, not improve and fix.

            The govt is determined to push for the inevitable dialogue and reforms which we all wanted from the start before the opposition hijacked this whole thing and turned it into a coup of welcoming foreign agendas into our country WITHOUT even taking our consent AND claim that they are being democratic?!!

            Thank you again Damon and BasCB for your support and kind words :) The fact that you respected my views is enough so thank you for that..

        5. Perisoft, the sectarian agenda is a reality we have been battling for years. Everybody here knows that and it is a 100% true. Hillary Clinton, Cameron, Obama have all asked Iran to stop meddling with Bahraini Affairs.

          Believe it or not yes doctors that supported the opposition have committed massive crimes and reports have shown that they used medication illegally to fake nerve gas exposure and make injuries appear worse and showed everything on Iranian media channels, while the opposition used their links with the International media to spread those lies. People from different sects were abused and denied treatment, a few people died as a result! – I know this all does sounds too crazy to be true, but bear with me a little as this is what has happened here in Bahrain! I’m not the only person on the internet that says these things! The whole country is outraged against the opposition and in support of our government. We have gone through so much pain. Bahrain is a tiny island and news travels fast so it is very easy for us know what is real and what is not.

          What I find very funny but sad is that you claim to be supporting the people of Bahrain, and what you really are doing the complete opposite. At least take the time to listen to our voices then speak. It is our country and our that you are defending, so at least listen to what we have to say..

          I really appreciate your comments don’t get me wrong because I know you all mean well.

          Just remember that, in the end, evil often treats its friends worse than its enemies.

          I wholeheartedly agree with this quote, and hope the real evil and wrongdoers get reprimanded, and hope people get to see the real picture about Bahrain. I’m a strong believer and know that the Bahraini government and people will only get what they deserve, and we will rise above this.

      2. Wow! :O was I just called a stooge of the royal family?! Trying not to laugh, but wow! Believe me the government has much more important things to do than tell me to defend them on F1F! (No offense Keith you’re site is the best) Don’t believe such ridiculous stories. The reason why there is an outrage on twitter of pro-government supporters is that they all feel the same way about their country! It’s sad that there so many of us trying to get our voices through since February, and we are still not getting through.. Not sure what will it take, the government’s strict measures on Int’l press isn’t helping either, but they have been unfairly attacked when they allowed them in, so I can’t really blame them either.. Damned if they do, damned if they don’t..

        I don’t know why am I even attempting to convince you all, but I do feel that it is my duty to clarify things because they are not true! If all this abuse is true I would be the first one here to disagree with our government. I will provide video links and proof in a forum post. We’re living a totally different reality, we are the ones who have been abused, terrorized, and targeted by the few opposition members who have a clear political agenda who literally wanted to plan a coup and overtake the government. People from both sects disagree with them as the benefit of Bahrain is to remain part of the GCC and not become another province of Iran! We are talking about war here, and we were almost on the brink of a civil war because of the opposition who are controlling the people by making them feel that it is a religious duty to fight us! This is all so wrong!

        We the people of Bahrain from both sects and the government realize the need for reforms, but what they did was something totally different! They refused to enter dialogue and refused any peaceful solution. The opposition claim to want democracy but ignored the voices of more than half of their fellow citizens!

        Our voices are louder than ever, many protesters have stopped supporting the opposition as they realized that they have mislead them. We are moving on towards unity and reforms. Bahrain has always been a civilized country where the law is respected. If half of the anarchy and crimes happened elsewhere the authorities would have been way more stricter than the Bahraini government. But with these exaggerated lies spreading it’s almost impossible to convince any outsiders that there are no mass killings going on!

        The expatriates also agree with us and support our government, which is the biggest proof that they too see the same thing if you think we are biased. I know for sure the truth will come out sooner or later, it has to, and then you will all know that Bahrain is innocent of those claims that every human being would be against!

        Keep an open mind about things, don’t believe everything you read. I know I’m a Bahraini so you may all think I’m blinded by my loyalty to my country, but there are hundreds of voices like me. The stories about Bahrain are too polarized, and there is only one truth and one reality, so something is off about the reporting. Why are people reporting two sides of the story? Think.. Someone must be exaggerating the truth.. Only the days will tell..

        1. “Not sure what will it take.”

          I have a suggestion. When you go pick up your check for your work here today, recommend to management that independent media is allowed to report on the events of the past few months. That will dispel all the crazy conspiracy theories, no?

          1. That’s totally unnecessary given that you cannot have an informed opinion of where LAK is coming from.

            Personally, having personally known and then fairly extensively studied authoritarian government, to me it sounds like LAK is blinded to the suffering of a segment of Bahrain’s population and is rather wholeheartedly taking on the government stance on things. That doesn’t make her(?) statements automatically dishonest.

  8. MVEilenstein
    26th May 2011, 2:02

    Really hard to take you seriously when your government is murdering political enemies.

  9. Autosport is saying that RBR is revising their pit stop procedures to prevent Ferrari from pre-empting their stops:

    http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/91708

    Interesting to hear from Horner that they made a dummy call to Webber which caused Alonso to pit. Given the greater emphasis on pit stop timing this year, I wonder how much of this ‘espionage’ is going on in the pitlane.

    1. I thought that was really interesting too. I’m sure that wasn’t an isolated incident of deception (or perhaps in motorsport the more appropriate term would be chicanery) at the front of the grid, after all Ferrari hired an expert in cypher to help them with their radio communications.

      1. I hope Ferrari hired a new cypher expert after “Fernando is faster than you” ;)

        1. Yep, the new code is “Fernando is NOT faster than you *wink wink*”

          They just haven’t figured out a way to *wink* during a radio transmission.

          1. I think that “Do you understand this mnessage” was as good an attempt as any…

          2. “It looks like Fernando can’t keep up today… semicolon-right-parenthesis!”

    2. Well, the reaction from Ferrari was something along the lines of:
      “They must be kidding, that’s what everyone is doing, closely watching and spying on the others”

      Interesting it is, in that it explains that badly timed stop for Alonso that certainly did not help him.

    3. Why would Red Bull admit they know Ferrari have spotted something relevant? Keep your gob shut and use the fact to your advantage. Jeez You had a chance to ruin their strategy next time they threatened to ruin a race LIKE THIS WEEKEND.

    4. Perhaps they were doing this for a while, say as long ago as in Abu Dhabi last year, which caused them to make a pit stop decision, apparently based on what Webber was going to do, that was incredibly foolish in the end.

  10. That Bernie line is a classic for him. Sure the teams will be afraid to sign up late and have to pay. Who will fall for that? HRT?

    Its just to lure the smaller and cash strung teams in. Now that he is contractually bound not to offer any bonusses for early signing, he just does the opposite and fields penalties for signing late.

    I guess the big teams who he needs to sign for a credible field will not even do more than have a quip about it at their next press releases.

  11. Does anyone know of any cinemas in the Bath or Bristol area that will be showing Senna?

    Unless they’re just not showing it until it’s released, I can’t seem to find one showing it.

    1. I’d imagine the Vue at Cribbs Causeway will be showing it – at least, that’s where I’m hoping to see it!

      1. I’m going to start pestering my local cinema right away! :P

  12. COTD! Thank you, Keith!

    And sorry for bad grammar. Long day, heh.

    John Watson also told about his first run-in with Jean-Marie Balestre in the stewards room.

  13. http://sporza.be/cm/sporza/auto_motor/F1/110526_investeerder_over_dambrosio

    It’s in Dutch but let me sum up what Lopez says. D’Ambrosio has at the very latest until the end of the 2011 season to find more considerable backing in Belgium (or elsewhere). Genii Capital will stop their funding of D’Ambrosio at then end of this year.

    Rumour is, according to Lopez, that there is interest to have D’Ambrosio run under a foreign license in a country that does have sponsors that are willing to pay for D’Ambrosio (perhaps France seeing his linguistic background?).

  14. The whole Hamilton quote thing is ridiculous. But the interesting thing is what Schmacher said. Instead of leaving at at the first four words, he decides to give us a detailed insight into how he carefully weighs a situation in deciding whether to do something dastardly. It’s weird and disturbing.

  15. As far as Bahrain, Keith left out the part of the report where the Shia track staff were beaten and tortured as they were dragged from their former place of work. The Bahrain GP circuit is now the scene of a crime, as well as a terrible idea for F1. Kidding aside, this stuff is just ridiculous now. What is Bahrain goig to do, bring in more guest workers or Saudi troops to run the track?

  16. The Bahrain news made me laugh. I know I shouldn’t but it is just that silly.

    I thought the suggestion that Schumacher held up Hamilton was ridiculous at the time and I still think it’s absurd now.

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