This blog will expand on themes and topics first mentioned in my book, "The Automobile and American Life." I hope to comment on recent developments in the automobile industry, reviews of my readings on the history of the automobile, drafts of my new work, contributions from friends, descriptions of the museums and car shows I attend and anything else relevant. Copyright 2009-2026, by the author.
George Russell claimed victory in the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, securing the eighth win of his Formula One career and his third victory of the 2026 season.
Team-mate Kimi Antonelli recovered from P16 on the grid to finish P5, making impressive progress through the field after his Q1 exit in qualifying.
George converted pole position into the race lead at the start and controlled proceedings throughout a race shaped by multiple Safety Car periods.
The opening stages saw the field neutralised following an incident with Alex Albon at Turn 1, with subsequent Safety Car interventions creating several race restarts and strategic decision points.
George managed each restart effectively, maintaining track position and pace at the front to build the platform for victory.
Kimi capitalised on the interruptions and alternative strategies to move through the field, combining strong race pace with decisive overtaking to secure a top five finish.
George Russell took the chequered flag ahead of Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar, while Kimi Antonelli recovered to P5
Driver
Grid
Result
Fastest Lap
Start Tyre
Stop One
George Russell
P1
P1
1:44.916
Medium
Soft (Lap 32)
Kimi Antonelli
P16
P5
1:45.413
Medium
Soft (Lap 31)
George Russell
It's been an incredible weekend and probably one of the strongest of my career so far. I really enjoyed that race and that final stint was some of the most fun I’ve had in a Formula One race. We had strong pace throughout and were able to build a good gap, so when the Safety Car came out it was a little frustrating, but around a circuit like Baku that's always a possibility.
The restart was probably the most stressful moment of the afternoon with Max right behind me, but I managed it well and from there it was all about staying focused and not making any mistakes. In the final stint we were both pushing hard, and whilst it was intense in the car, those are the moments you enjoy as a driver.
I've felt comfortable all weekend, and at the moment things seem to be coming naturally behind the wheel. We're in a good place, but Formula One changes very quickly so you have to keep pushing. The aim is to keep working hard, keep building this momentum and hopefully continue fighting at the front over the races ahead.
Kimi Antonelli
Today was about damage limitation. I took no unnecessary risks at all and focused on maximising the points scored for the team. It was difficult to make progress at times because we were in an overtaking train, but I focused on staying out of trouble and taking the opportunities when they came.
It was one of those weekends where everything doesn't quite go your way. The pace wasn't quite there for me today, but given where we started, I have to be happy with P5. I just tried to race the race in front of me, stay patient and bring the car home. We were able to benefit from some of the opportunities that came our way and score as many points as possible.
Luckily, we have another race coming up very soon, so I'm fully focused on that and really looking forward to it.
Bradley Lord, Deputy Team Principal
It's been a really impressive weekend from George, he simply hasn’t put a foot wrong. He hit the ground running in FP1 and set the pace from then on. Even with the way the Safety Cars and restarts unfolded, he managed everything that was thrown at him and delivered a race that was completely error free, even with Verstappen breathing down his neck in the final stint. Around Baku, that's easier said than done.
Today's race was always going to be a different challenge for Kimi. With the limited running he had through the weekend, it was important that he didn't come into the race thinking it was Monza Part Two and trying to force the issue. Instead, he drove the race that was in front of him, showed a really good grasp of the bigger picture, and recovered well to P5. That was an impressive performance in its own right.
It's a great way for the team to start this demanding triple-header. We've scored strongly with both cars, executed well throughout the weekend, and given ourselves a solid foundation heading into the next race. Malaysia is a special event for us given our title partnership with PETRONAS, and we'll take the learnings from this weekend, keep working hard, and look to maximise our performance again next week.
Andrew Shovlin, Trackside Engineering Director
Congratulations to George and the team on a fantastic victory. He has been quick throughout the weekend and converted a brilliant pole position into an assured race win today. The Safety Cars kept things interesting and there was pressure at each restart, but George managed the race superbly and delivered when it mattered most.
Kimi also did an excellent job to recover from P16 on the grid to finish fifth. After yesterday's disappointment, he stayed focused and made the most of the opportunities that came his way. His pace was strong throughout the race and he worked his way through the field with several decisive overtakes.
The Safety Cars meant there was little opportunity to relax at any stage of the race, particularly for George at the front, but both drivers handled the challenges well and extracted the maximum from the opportunities available to them.
We've had a competitive car from the first laps in Baku and it's pleasing to have converted that pace into a strong result. George was in control throughout the race, while Kimi's recovery drive demonstrated both the pace of the car and his determination after a difficult qualifying session. We leave Azerbaijan with good momentum and plenty of positives to take into the next event.
So this is about as crazy a post as you will get in this group. Often, we have posts of folks with new R 107 acquisitions. This is a bit different. Not looking for value or advice on whether or not I should restore. Yesterday at a flea market I purchased three matchbox classics for $1. One was this 1973 R 107 in rough shape but made in England. It even has provenance. "Billy." Seriously, to what degree toys like these have led to some of you much later in life being endeared with the beauty of the R 107? Why is there such a committed following to this car's design and colors?
The last two race weekends have delivered good results, but they don't change our assessment of where we stand. There are several teams capable of fighting at the front on any given weekend and in Madrid, we performed well but also benefited from things falling our way during the race. We are realistic about that.
Now we head into the first of three triple-headers to end the season. It will be a demanding period for the whole team, both at the factories and trackside. There is very little time to reset between races, so preparation, reliability and operational execution become even more important. These are the moments where our championship position can be strengthened or lost.
We start in Baku. It is one of the most unusual circuits on the calendar. It asks a lot from the car and the drivers. You need good straight-line speed, confidence in the braking zones and a car that can handle the low-speed corners through the old city.
Recent results have been encouraging, but they don't guarantee anything. Baku will expose any weakness very quickly. We have to approach the weekend with humility, do the basics well, and earn every point.
Third Driver Insight
Baku is a unique challenge. With its long straights, energy management is always a key factor, but it also offers some of the best overtaking opportunities on the calendar. To be quick here, you need to use every centimeter of the circuit and commit to getting close to the walls.
From a driver's perspective, taking those risks can be very rewarding, especially through Sector 2 where the corners are extremely tight and the barriers are always within touching distance. If you can carry speed through that section, it can make a significant difference over a qualifying lap. The downside is that even the smallest mistake usually results in damage and can easily bring a session to an end.
It's a fantastic circuit and one of the highlights of the season. Despite being a street track, it produces great racing and plenty of overtaking, which always makes for an exciting race and some memorable battles.
Did you know?
This year's Azerbaijan Grand Prix marks a significant milestone as the event celebrates its 10th anniversary.
The Baku City Circuit is the fourth longest on the F1 calendar this year.
The 2.2 km start/finish straight contributes to a difficult restart for the leader, with a strong tow for the driver behind leaving them vulnerable into Turn 1.
The name Baku derives from the shortened Persian name Bad-kuye, meaning "wind city", along with Bad-kube, which means "wind-hitting." Both terms refer to the famously consistently strong winds that blow through the city.
Baku hosted an F1 Sprint weekend for the one and only time to date in 2023.
In 2024, the event moved dates to September for the first time, having previously taken place in the first half of the season (April or May).
F1 first visited Baku in 2016, when the race was known as the European Grand Prix. It has been known as the Azerbaijan Grand Prix every year since.
The team has recorded three wins in Baku with three different drivers – Nico Rosberg (2016), Lewis Hamilton (2018), and Valtteri Bottas (2019).
George has also triumphed in Baku, winning the F2 Sprint race in 2018.
Third Driver Fred Vesti claimed his maiden F2 victory in Baku in the 2022 Sprint race.
Kimi has also stood on the podium in Azerbaijan as he finished third in the F2 Feature race in 2024.
Circuit Characteristics
Circuit Length
6.003 km
Race Laps
51
Race Distance
306km
Number of Corners
20 (12 L / 8 R)
Distance from Pole to First Braking Zone
130m
Pole Position Side
Right
Pit Lane Length Under Speed Limit Control
329m
Drive-Through Time at 80 km/h
14.8s
Braking Events (>2G)
8
Heavy Braking Events (<0.4s @ >4G)
1
Braking Energy
High
Top Speed
341 km/h (expected)
Race Lap Record
1:43.009 (LEC / 2019)
Absolute Lap Record
1:40.203 (LEC / Q3 / 2023)
Race Characteristics
Safety Car Probability
60%
Average Track Temperature
27.2 °C
Average Ambient Temperature
22.6 °C
Maximum Track Temperature
40.1 °C
Maximum Ambient Temperature
29.6 °C
Wet Session Probability
0%
Race Records - Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team in Azerbaijan
I lived through the Oil Shocks of 1973 and 1979, have taught about them in university classes for many years, but only now am beginning to understand just how important they were in American History. You can read about them and their impact on the automobile in my 2nd edition of my Automobile American Life, I don't want to recount those events here but rather brainstorm (as my granddaughter likes to say) about what might happen in the near future, assuming that this present gas price spike and availability will end within the next six months. What might this period of enormous instability lead to?
1. Price for gasoline may drop some, but they will never return to the levels 0f 2024-6. In 1974, the price of gas did not return to 30 cents per gallon, er even close to it. In 1981, the price of gas did not return to the cost of gas in the summer of 1979. Gasoline will be more costly, more people will buy electric cars, but overall it will cost more to live, and income inequality will only increase. Couple that with AI adoption and efficiencies and uncertainty over the future of work can only be exacerbated.
2. American global power can only decline further. In the early 1980s, Historian Louis Galambos authored the book America at Middle Age. Post-2026 one can readily write a book on America "in retirement" from its role as a Global leader. Just flip historian Stephen Ambrose's seminal work on post-1945 and the rise of American global leadership on its head.
3. Regional transitions in America will be as pronounced as the "southernization" of America in the 1970s and 80s. Where migration will go chasing after opportunity is only to be guessed now.
4. "Small is Beautiful" will be followed far more than what happened after the publication of a book by that title in the 1970s. Life will also revert to analog in revulsion of AI and the false promises of the digital.
5. The outrageous wealth of the present will no longer be a characteristic of the American scene. The fetish of a constant and never-ending economic growth will end.
Between 1970 and 1990, the American automotive industry both responded to and reflected social changes
transforming the United States. In 1970, the industry still was shaped by the assumptions of postwar America: cheap fuel,
large families, suburban growth, strong domestic manufacturing, and confidence in mass consumption. When we think of the cars of that time, a bloated Mustang or GTO, or Oldsmobile Vista Cruiser come to mind. The VW Beetle certainly was on the roads, but the Hondas and Toyotas were unusual toy-like vehicles.
And the topic of quality moved to front and center. Detroit hubris -- on the part of both management and labor -- resulted in the production of a vast number of so-called "crap" cars: Pinto, Vega, Duster, Westmorland, PA made - VW, and others -- soured Americans of domestic brands. The American car remained fixed on the use of the carburetor in its fuel systems, but with EGR and Decel equipment, drivability and reliability became an issue. In the past, "American Made" was something to be proud of, but no more.
By 1990,
that environment surrounding the car had weakened significantly. and automobiles had become smaller on average, more fuel efficient, more technologically
complex, more globally influenced, and more segmented by lifestyle and status. Japanese Nissans, Hondas, Toyotas and Mazdas were seen in every community, even the Detroit suburbs. And pickup trucks were more ubiquitous in suburban driveway, as well as Lowe's and Home Depot's parking lots.
In that sense, the auto industry
became a mirror of a society that was more anxious about energy, more diverse in taste, more unequal economically,
and less dominated by a single national industrial model. Government, not industry, became the nation's largest employer.
One of the clearest connections was energy. The oil shocks of 1973 and 1979 changed how Americans thought about
size, efficiency, and dependence on foreign oil. The big V8 cars that had symbolized abundance in the 1950s and
1960s suddenly looked to many as wasteful and vulnerable. Consumers began turning toward smaller, more efficient vehicles,
especially imports from Japan. This reflected a broader change in American society: the end of unquestioned postwar
abundance and the rise of a more constrained, uncertain economic culture shaped by inflation, scarcity, and global
competition.
The industry also reflected major changes in class and work. In 1970, Detroit still stood for unionized industrial power
and broad middle-class prosperity. By 1990, the weakening of manufacturing, plant closures, foreign competition,
and automation had all reduced that sense of security. The struggles of Chrysler, the downsizing of GM and Ford, and
the rise of transplant factories in the South all mirrored the larger decline of the old industrial order. The auto
industry showed, in visible form, the shift from a manufacturing-centered America to a more globalized and unequal
economy.
Cars also tracked social fragmentation and the rise of consumer identity. In earlier decades, the auto market had been
more unified around a few dominant domestic brands and body styles. By the 1980s, the market was far more
segmented: economy cars, luxury sedans, sporty coupes, minivans, pickup trucks, and imported status cars all served
different social identities. This reflected a society becoming more individualistic and lifestyle-driven. Cars were no
longer just transportation; they increasingly signaled personal values, class position, age, and taste. The success of
brands like BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Honda, and Toyota in the U.S. also showed that American consumers were more
open to global products and more skeptical of automatic loyalty to domestic firms.
The changing role of women and families also appeared in the industry. As more women entered the workforce and
dual-income households became more common, practical concerns such as reliability, fuel economy, safety, and
convenience grew in importance. The success of front-wheel-drive sedans, hatchbacks, wagons, and eventually
minivans reflected changing household patterns. The minivan in particular became a symbol of the 1980s suburban
family, just as the large station wagon had been earlier. The design and marketing of cars increasingly addressed
working parents, commuter households, and family flexibility rather than older male-centered performance ideals
alone.
Government regulation was another major link between social change and the industry. Rising concern about
pollution, safety, and fuel use led to emissions controls, catalytic converters, fuel economy standards, airbags, and
other changes. These reflected a broader transformation in American society. One can argue that rising concern over pollution, safety and fuel use was a ruse, representing a decided minority of citizens who increasingly expected
technology and regulation to address collective risks, Note how Americans in large numbers ignored seat belts until the heavy hand of the federal government was raised high. Political rhetoric often attacked government
intervention, government wielded power as never before of citizens who drove cars. The car became one of the most visible sites where environmentalism, consumer protection, and public
policy reshaped daily life. After Vietnam and Watergate, distrust of government became commonplace.
One way to get around government regulations was to own a pickup truck. Pickups initially did not follow emissions and fuel consumption standards. This helped to continue the use of larger engines and more traditional designs in trucks even as cars downsized. As a result, pickups became a refuge for buyers who wanted size, power, and simplicity. Their growing popularity showed how regulation could unintentionally redirect consumer demand rather than eliminate it.
Between 1970 and 1990, the pickup truck changed from a mainly utilitarian vehicle into one of the clearest symbols of modern American life. In 1970, pickups were still associated mostly with farmers, tradesmen, small business owners, and rural drivers. They were work tools: simple, rugged, cheap, and secondary to passenger cars in status and comfort. By 1990, however, the pickup had become much more than a work vehicle. It was increasingly comfortable, better equipped, more powerful, and more attractive to suburban and lifestyle buyers. This transformation reflected larger changes in American society, including the decline of the old industrial order, the growth of the Sun Belt, changing ideas of masculinity and class, and the rise of consumer culture.
In the early 1970s, pickups still occupied a modest place in the American market. The Big Three—Ford, Chevrolet, and Dodge—built trucks mainly for hauling and labor. Interiors were basic, ride quality was rough, and advertising emphasized durability and utility. But the decade also brought forces that began to reshape the truck’s role. The oil shocks of 1973 and 1979 made Americans more aware of fuel costs and economic vulnerability, while inflation and recession changed buying habits. At the same time, many Americans were moving away from old industrial cities toward suburbs, exurbs, and the South and West. In these newer landscapes, pickups fit well: they were useful for home improvement, small-scale contracting, towing, recreation, and rural-suburban living. The pickup increasingly matched a country that was spreading outward geographically and becoming less centered on dense urban manufacturing regions.
The 1970s also marked the beginning of the pickup’s cultural expansion. As passenger cars became smaller, more regulated, and in some cases less powerful because of emissions and fuel economy pressures, pickups retained an image of toughness and freedom. They were less tied to the anxieties surrounding downsized sedans and more connected to older ideals of strength, independence, and practicality. This mattered in a period when many Americans felt the postwar promise of secure industrial prosperity was weakening. The pickup appealed not only as a tool, but as a statement about self-reliance in an era of uncertainty.
By the 1980s, the pickup’s importance grew substantially. Manufacturers improved cabs, styling, suspensions, trim levels, and options. Trucks became easier to live with daily. Features once associated with cars—air conditioning, nicer upholstery, better sound systems, automatic transmissions, and more polished dashboards—became more common. Buyers no longer had to choose between utility and comfort. This reflected a broader shift in American consumer culture: products increasingly had to serve both practical and lifestyle purposes. The pickup became a dual-identity vehicle, suited to work during the week and personal use on weekends.
The 1980s also brought major changes in class and labor that made the pickup more socially meaningful. As manufacturing jobs declined and the unionized industrial economy weakened, many Americans moved into smaller businesses, service work, contracting, construction, and decentralized forms of labor. The pickup fit this more flexible economy. It served electricians, landscapers, carpenters, repairmen, and self-employed workers whose livelihoods did not depend on the old factory system. In that sense, the pickup reflected the shift from the mass industrial workplace to a more fragmented, entrepreneurial, and insecure economy.
At the same time, the pickup became a cultural symbol of masculinity and regional identity. In the South, West, and rural Midwest, it increasingly stood for independence, toughness, and anti-elitism. As politics moved rightward in the Reagan era, the pickup also fit the imagery of traditional values, manual work, and skepticism toward urban liberal culture. Yet this symbolism extended beyond actual labor. Many owners were not farmers or tradesmen at all. They were suburban consumers buying into the image of capability and ruggedness. This reflected a broader pattern in 1980s America, where identity and lifestyle were often expressed through consumer goods.
By 1990, the pickup had become much more than a tool of labor. It was part work vehicle, part family vehicle, part class marker, and part cultural statement. Its rise showed how American society had changed since 1970: the country was more suburban and Sun Belt-oriented, more fragmented economically, more consumer-driven, and more invested in identity through vehicles and lifestyle. The pickup truck’s transformation from basic hauler to mainstream symbol reflected the larger transformation of America itself.
Finally, the decade also celebrated luxury, image, and success. That is why the same
era could produce both the popularity of compact imports and the prestige of high-end European sedans and loaded
personal luxury cars. The auto market showed a society divided between thrift and display, economic insecurity and
status consumption.
In sum, the American automotive industry between 1970 and 1990 reflected the nation’s larger transformation from a
confident, mass-industrial society into a more globalized, energy-conscious, consumer-segmented, and economically unequal one. The changes in what Americans built, bought, and valued in cars were not separate from social history;
they were one of its clearest expressions.
