Ladies and gents,
I am now stopping the blog for Christmas. So do not expect to see anything here until Boxing Day at the earliest. Many thanks for all your support in recent months. The blog has been growing at a terrific rate, thanks mainly to word of mouth as I am not able to political reasons to advertise its existence on http://www.grandprix.com. Many will be disapointed with what has happened with the old website, but I cannot do both and I believe that the future is with blogging, rather than straight news writing. I think this is because people no longer trust websites unless they know that the people involved are clearly active in F1. Thus my energies are going into the blog and while I may link it to http://www.grandprix.com one day (if an agreement can be reached) I am building it up as a separate entity. If you could pass this on to other readers, it will speed the process enormously.
In the meantime, have a great Christmas.
joeblogsf1 
you too joe. me off to argentina now for “le dakar” cu soon and have a great x mas and 2010
I think this is because people no longer trust websites unless they know that the people involved are clearly active in F1.
Spot on. I personally reserve judgement about whether a particular rumour has merit until I’ve seen your take on it.
You’ve done a phenomenal job. Well done and Merry Christmas!
Merry Christmas Joe!
I don’t think I’ll be able to survive :O gotta get my fix somewhere else.
Merry Christmas Joe!
Thanks for all your blogging this year Joe, I’ve really enjoyed reading it. I’m not sure how you manage to put out so much material though! Have a good Christmas.
Hi Joe,
Just a quick message to say merry Christmas and a happy new year.
All the best for 2010
Kris
Thanks for all you do Joe.
Merry Christmas to you too!
PS – I purchased a few copies of ‘…Saboteurs’ to give as gifts this holiday season! 😉
Cheers,
Kevin Y.
Merry Christmas Joe, thanks for the content this year! If not always in line with my own thoughts, what you’ve provided was always well written and passionately argued.
Enjoy the break, next year will be mental!
Joe,
Thanks for everything this year. I have to admit that grandprix.com is the first of my F1 bookmarks – as it’s the site I trust most. I don’t know if there has been an issue, and apologies for raising it if there is, but I used to really look forward to Mike Doodson’s contributions too.
Hope you have a great Christmas, and I look forward to your musings when they return.
Bill
Merry Christmas Joe – have a proper break!
And a Merry Christmas to you too, Joe. I have been a closet follower of blog and website for years… in fact you are my only source of F1 stuff, as most of my interest lies in sportscars (not all doors and roofs by the way)… you don’t need me to tell you that you do an excellent job here.
Bring back F1 News!
PT
I find what you write here to be more interesting than what is written on grandprix.com. Keep it up.
Likewise I find Jame Allens work on his blog more interesting that what happens on ITV-F1, which he still writes for, some of the time.
Thanks everyone. It is nice to feel wanted…
Merry Christmas Joe – may you have a great time with the family!
Thank you so much for all your hard work this year – your site is often the first reliable source of info and one of the best on the web.
I think you are right in your assertion that blogs are taking over from news sites – I am certainly turning to trusted blogs for the story first these days!
Merry Christmas Joe. This is my favourite F1 blog because I usually agree with what you say and you write with such honest passion about the sport.
Hoping Lewis will be champion in 2010, but he has some really tough opposition!
A very Merry Xmas Joe! Hope you will enjoy a very prosperous and exciting New Year.
Dear Joe,
Not only are you my favourite F1 journalist, but I’ve been a fan of yours years before I ever knew your name or who you were. Back in the mid-90s, I was an avid reader of F1 News magazine, and was always enthralled at the depth & insight that their news pages had, and the scoops they got that nobody else did. I also enjoyed your Globetrotter columns in the same mag, but for me those anonymous (so I thought) news pages were the best in the business.
It was only much later on, probably after you left for a while, that I realised that the title “News Editor – Joe Saward” on the credits didn’t just refer to someone who laid out the columns, but who actually wrote all of it! When your inimitable style then appeared at Bernie’s mag under your name, my suspicions were confirmed.
But then Bernie’s mag & F1 News (RIP Derek) folded, and you vanished into the ether for a while as far as I could tell. When I then discovered grandprix.com a while later (having had a few suspicions in the meantime as to who might be writing a certain column on ITV-F1.com ;-)) I was simultaneously grinning at my discovery while kicking myself for not having found it earlier. Still, I had a great time doing a LOT of back-reading of all the stuff I’d missed in the interim.
So it was with some sadness that I noticed grandprix.com slowly appearing to wind down over the last year or so. Your excellent colour pieces slowly dried up, and from a couple of posts you made at one point, it seemed you’d grown very tired of all the sport’s politics and I even wondered whether you were about to jack it all in.
Then about six months ago I found my way here, and discovered where you’d been putting all those colour pieces and much more besides. I’ve still yet to catch up with all the Sidepodcasts, which will be a mammoth task but, I suspect, a very enjoyable one. And yes, I’ve been spreading the word about this site as far and wide as I can since I got here.
Finally, I’m sorry if this post seems too gushing for you or anyone else on here – buckets can be provided! However since I discovered this place six months ago, I’ve been looking for an opportunity to say all this, and this seems like the best chance I’m going to get.
Merry Christmas, a very Happy New Year, and thanks for all your wonderful words over the years, may there be many more!
Sheepy.
Happy Christmas Joe!
Thank you for a great year of posting! It’s realy appreciated the work you put in for this great blog.
Have a good christmas.
Jon
Happy holidays, Joe! Keep on blogging in the new year. It is highly appreciated by F1 fans like myself who are looking for this little bit of extra information only an insider would know. I find myself checking your multiple times a day… Cheers!
In case you’re wondering what element of you I check multiple times a day: it’s your blog 🙂
Merry Christmas to you Joe ,
Have been getting your GrandPrix+ Mag for a while and discovered your blog earlier this year , both will be invaluable next year as I travel Europe in my VW California on a six month sabatical taking in all 9 Europe GPs and other racing etc .
Having read your GP Sabs book and having a previous interest in those events I spent a day or so in Paris looking up all the sites to include having a coffee on the corner where Benoist rolled out of the Car after his arrest .
Regards
Kevin
Merry XMas Joe, thanks for all your work, I’ll support you wherever Ican.
Thanks for all the insights and opinions throughout 2009, Joe. Happy Christmas to you sir.
More power to you Joe. & Merry Xmas.
Merry Christmas, Joe. Have a great day, and I will look forward to reading your output when it re-starts.
Merry Christmas Joe.
Thanks a million for bringing this great blog to F1 fans all over, it is a truly unique which really provides the feeling of bringing the fans to the inside of the F1 world. Your stories,leads and views are high quality and timely, not corporate-ized, and the community connection between the readers and you is not just on a news website level, but as fans who share a high passion for the sport itself. Hope you have great success in the new year ! Happy holidays
Happy Christmas and all the best for the New Year, Joe — and thanks for this blog. Here and Autosport are my two main F1 destinations — Autosport for breaking news and here for trenchant analysis. Cheers.
Have a nice Christmas Joe. 🙂
Merry Christmas, Joe.
We have seen the unfortunate proliferation of F1 “news” sites that merely repeat what other publications report. Other news sites repeat FIA statements and what is passed off as “information” from biased sources such as PR agents and driver management. What we need more than ever is insightful analysis from experienced writers. We need more high-quality writing from knowledgeable sources. I know when readingd your blog that you write from experience, which is invaluable.
First thing I read every day. I wish USF1 would allow you to peek inside and tell its story
Merry Christmas to you, too, Joe. Thanks for all you do.
-Jan
Joe,
I have been a reader of grandprix.com for a few years, but I admit that the blog is more enjoyable to read. There are numerous “news” sites purporting to cover F1; most of these are merely repeating the reports of other outlets, or FIA statements, or what is put out by a driver or team PR flack, manager, etc.
What we lack is insight and analysis from someone who knows the sport and its participants. Thus, the blog is a great read because you obviously know your business. In my own blog I try to emphasize writing rather than merely regurgitating what has already been reported by 1000 other sites. My university journalism professor once said there always will be a market for good writing. That is why I read your blog; it is enjoyable and informative at once. A rare feat.
Merry Christmas, I’ve been following you blog all year and now find it and James Allen’s blog my main F1 newsources. I will continue to read daily in the new year!
sorry about two comments; had mobile trouble and switched to the laptop with obvious redundant results
I’ve seriously enjoyed this blog, Joe, and commend you for your hard work. Have a safe and enjoyable Christmas and New Years.
Mike S.
Omaha NE
(expecting 18 inches snow Christmas Eve. Ugh!!)
Thanks for a great year of opinion & info Joe
Here’s to a New Year with bigger and better things, for the site & F1 in general
Merry Christmas Joe, and thanks for your insight and diligence in our favourite sport. I hope you have a restful time off with your family.
Merry Christmas Joe!
A Merry Christmas to you to Mr. Saward and I look forward to your blog and my cup of coffee in the mornings of next year.
Merry Xmas, Joe, keep up the good work…
I wondered why the Web site has appeared to be going downhill. Oh, well, I’ve switched over to keeping your blog on my bookmarks bar anyway and I check in daily. It’s a shame, though, that the Mole appears to have gone on extended vacation. I always thought that was Peter Windsor (mostly from the blurred picture, I admit). Now that he has a team to run, I guess he couldn’t have stayed on as the Mole anyway.
Voodoo Bob
Hi Joe,
I think you are absolutely right, you are now my first source for F1 news, and I have thoroughly enjoyed following you over the last few months, and look forward to continuing to in the new year. I’ll pass on the word,
Thanks,
Jon
Have a good one Joe..
And a real big thanks for your Blog, excellent stuff. 🙂
Looking forward to your guide through the never ceases to amaze me mire of F1 next year.
Joe, as a regular reader I want to thank you for you great work in keeping me up to date. I would also like to wish you and yours a happy christmas.
I stayed away from the web for the day yesterday so – belatedly – Happy Christmas and the best of luck in the New Year.
There’s a massive audience out here in search of good F1 features and as a member, thank you for feeding me this year. I look forward to great anticipation to the 2010 preview GP+ – the 2009 review was great! 🙂
Just thought I’d say that I first discovered your blog earlier this year when the “Liegate” scandal hit in Melbourne. Someone quoted you on the F1 Fanatic site, saying how hypocritical so many F1 journalists were pontificating about honesty when they weren’t exactly the most honest people themselves, and I found it so refreshing and decent the way you expressed yourself. Especially after reading the vicious yet holier than thou journalism of ‘The Times’. I’ve been hooked on your blog ever since.
Happy New Year!
Joe- I’ve been reading your website for + 5 years- since before it was grandprix.com.
The blogs are a far more personal interaction with your readers and I always enjoy your views- even though I don’t always agree- to me that’s the sign of a good journalist- one who makes compelling reading even though you know that sometimes you’ll have a different view.
Good luck with whatever shape the blog/ website take in the future and please keep up the regular posts.
dc
Thanks for all the great work Joe, your blog has been the find of the year for me; and rekindled my interest in F1.
Have a great break.
Cheers
Julian F
Hi Joe,
Getting the word around about the blog leaves me with mixed feelings. On one hand, it’s great, and I’d love to see it prosper and be here. On the other hand, if my friends find out about it then they’ll know as much about F1 as me and I won’t be able to keep coming out with information they don’t know…
Actually, on a more serious note, with an increase in popularity there is likely to be an increase in the number of comments which are left on the blog. One of the things I’ve really liked about this blog, as opposed to others, is the quality of the comments, and the limited number. I tend to read all the comments which come to this blog, whereas with others I very quickly tire of wading through 150 one-eyed Hamilton vs Alonso vs Schumacher fans with the me-too-ers, for the couple which are worth reading.
I know you moderate the comments, presumably for at least legal reasons, and your comments on the readers’ comments are also great. I’d be interested to know you policy on moderation – do you filter out any comments? Do you have plans to do so if the numbers get too high?
I’m sure there are various camps with different viewpoints on whether comments should be filtered (for other than legal reasons), and while being able to comment does tend to give a sense of inclusiveness, for me at least I’d rather have fewer high quality comments, even if at times mine don’t make it out there.
Cheers,
Jon
The policy on screening is that I do not publish personal messages, bad language, libels or anything I consider to be offensive to others leaving comments. I publish most criticism of myself, even if I do not think it is justified, but if it is rude or offensive I will not put it on the site. I think that is fair. There have also been occasions when I have not published comments because it would have made the people who wrote them look very stupid, but I tell them if this was the case.