Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes are the biggest losers from Imola Grand Prix cancellation
They’ve been talking about it for weeks. In fact since the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix at the beginning of March, Mercedes have pinpointed this weekend in Imola as a new beginning not only this season, but in this new phase of ground-effect regulations first brought in last year. Toto Wolff has made no secret of F1’s return to traditional European circuits as marking a line in the sand for his team’s prospects in 2023, with Lewis Hamilton and George Russell waiting eagerly in the cockpit to see how far they can reduce the hefty gap – 128 points in the constructors’ standings – to Red Bull out in front. News on Wednesday then of the cancellation of this weekend’s Emilia Romagna Grand Prix comes as a bitter blow to their development plans. In the wider scheme of things, though, Mercedes’ fortunes are very much not a priority. The swiftness of those at Formula 1 on the ground in Imola has not gone unnoticed in the past few days. F1 made the right call to cancel given the severe flooding in the region, even if as expected the race cannot be rescheduled this year. For a sporting entity and a governing body, the FIA, who have repeatedly blundered in recent months, this time the communication between executives, teams and the media was clear throughout in an ever-changing situation. As opposed to Australia in 2020 amid the coronavirus outbreak, as well as Spa in 2021 with heavy rain eventually rendering racing redundant, the call here was decisive while matters of far more importance to local bodies in northern Italy, not least the emergency services, take greater hold. However, given the sheer anticipation at Mercedes for an upgrade package which was set to include a trio of new sidepods, floor and front suspension, this delay is far from ideal. As recently as the weekend, engineering director Andrew Shovlin said: “We took some decisions on how we develop the car – how the car works aerodynamically, how we shape the characteristics of the car, how it is in terms of handling. "What we are going to be bringing to the track in Imola is the first step of that work. This takes quite a long time to develop in the wind tunnel, you can’t just do these things overnight. But the Imola package is the first step in that direction.” At Imola, with three practice sessions, qualifying and a 63-lap race on a traditional European circuit with 19 turns – even if rain was forecast – the technicians and engineers at Mercedes would have gathered swathes of useful data regarding the W14’s performance, consistency and raw speed. An immediate evaluation would have been collated: have the upgrades made the car quicker? But it is no longer the Imola package. Rather unsatisfactorily, it is now the Monaco package. Out of all 23 race circuits on the 2023 schedule, the twisty turns of the principality are perhaps the last place upgrades would want to be tested first time out. The unique dimensions of the Monaco street circuit are out of quilter with the vast majority of tracks on the calendar, meaning upgrades designed to improve the quality of the car over the course of a season may not have a positive impact in Monaco. Thankfully, the race that follows is in Barcelona – a track which before the pandemic was traditionally used for testing. A more appropriate analysis can be ascertained during that weekend in Spain. While Ferrari were also expected to bring improvements this weekend, the focus was undeniably on the Mercedes garage. Now, that anticipation and development plan will have to be re-routed. Hamilton stated after the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in April that he was “counting down the days” until the anticipated upgrades at Imola: the scene of his ultimate humiliation when he was lapped by old foe Max Verstappen in last year’s race. Unfortunately for the seven-time world champion, he will have to wait that little bit longer. Read More F1 Imola Grand Prix cancelled F1 Grand Prix – live: Lewis Hamilton reacts after Imola race cancelled Will Imola Grand Prix be rescheduled? Where are Mercedes and Ferrari? Frankly, you don’t want to hear the answer ‘Nasty piece of work’: Lewis Hamilton’s Mercedes slammed by Toto Wolff Lewis Hamilton would be taking gamble by leaving Mercedes, says former rival
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Am I just tired or is it ME?
ME, or myalgic encephalomyelitis, is a serious, long-term chronic illness that impacts the sufferer, leaving them often suffering from extreme exhaustion. ME has for a long time been under-researched, but as awareness of the condition grows, more people are coming forward for help. As a grouping of symptoms, instead of a clearly identifiable illness, ME is very hard to diagnose and thus people can suffer for years before getting help for it. Symptoms can include exhaustion, digestive issues, muscle weakness, shortness of breath and irregular heart rate. But how do you know if you are suffering with ME, or are just really exhausted? Overlapping symptoms Covid has made ME more prevalent, but people still find it so difficult to know what may just be tiredness. “It is really difficult to tell the difference. ME and CFS (chronic fatigue syndrome) have a lot of overlap [with tiredness] and there have been a lot of issues with long covid with these long persisting post-viral malaise, where even if people sleep well, they may still feel exhausted,” says GP and men’s health specialist Dr Anand Patel. If you have had covid or another viral illness, this may increase the likelihood of having ME. Get checked out “If you have had persisting symptoms for more than a few weeks or they are really severe, speak to your GP,” says Patel. Particularly if “you are sleeping okay, your diet, caffeine and alcohol intake are okay, but your symptoms are persisting. They may check your thyroid and blood count”, he explains. “A quarter of our appointments these days are classed as ‘tired all the time’. It is very difficult to weed out what is what when ME and CFS are groups of symptoms that are bundled together. It is not necessarily something that will cause medical harm, but will cause really significant symptoms to sufferers,” says Patel. “With ME, you may be so tired you can barely stay awake in the day. We are still in the exploratory stage of what does cause it, but if you have had psychological trauma or illness it is more likely to be ME that has caused these prolonged symptoms. It can be hard to find things during tests and scans, but of course, there are conditions we don’t have tests for or are hard to identify,” he explains. Be clear of your symptoms “It is really difficult to diagnose something if you can’t find it, so a patient needs to explain symptoms and how they are feeling. Many people with it don’t feel seen, and a doctor may be struggling to find a specific answer,” Patel explains. Keeping a diary of symptoms may help to make it clear. Vitamin deficiencies Consider what the other causes may be. “Tiredness could be caused by blood count and anaemia, thyroid function and deficiencies, dietary changes and vitamin deficiencies,” says Patel. “If you have a varied diet, these are unlikely. B12 and folic acid deficiency are common, they make blood make new cells and are important in nerve function. Also, it could be vitamin D deficiency, a lot of people need to take a vitamin D tablet every day in the UK because we don’t get enough sun and slap on factor 50 as soon as it does come out,” Patel says. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Dr Alex George: Five months of sobriety has made a ‘huge difference’ Everything you need to know about Sophie, the new Duchess of Edinburgh Beyonce kicks of Renaissance tour in string of glamorous outfits
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