The definition of insanity, so they say, is doing the same thing again and again and expecting a different result.
Well here I am. Again. Hoping against hope it will be different this time.
On Thursday afternoon Formula One has another jab at reinventing itself with a new five-year plan.
A day later at the British Grand Prix a promising new format kicks into life. Then on Saturday we will have the first sprint race in the sport’s 71-year history.
And, just to add extra zest, on Sunday, world champion Lewis Hamilton, goes looking for redemption in front of the faithful with the world title slipping from his grasp.
Four days of revision and rebirth? Well maybe.
After five defeats on the bounce - his longest in eight years - Hamilton must win on his home turf, as he has six times in the last eight years, or you can start reading the last rites on his chances of a record eighth championship this year.
And maybe forever.
With Red Bull on the rise the lingering fear in Mercedes hearts must that their time as top dogs is done.
Of course Hamilton has been written off many times before. And still he rises.
It’s almost Shakespearean that it should come to this. And here. A shoot out on this blasted Northamptonshire heath, this altar where 100,000 fans come to worship their hero.
Will Hamilton be denied the title that would statistically establish him as the greatest of all time?
But then he is not the only one with his future on the line.
Thursday's launch comes in a social media blitz across Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.
Platforms that had no real significance to F1 even five years ago are the foundations of its reinvention. How ironic. F1 has adapted.
And I’m hoping caution has been abandoned and the vague shadows we have already seen, tantalisingly, on Twitter presage revolution rather than evolution.
I want the talk in 2022 to be of dramatic cars and dramatic racing rather than pit stops, strategy, undercut and overcut. Cars and drivers going wheel to wheel, lap after lap after lap. Real sport.
After 30 years of trying to open the eyes of those in the paddock to the fans’ despair I came to the conclusion that, much as F1 needed to change, those who held the power didn’t want it to.
Despite a wide range of vested interests real power is concentrated in very few hands.
And to be fair, if you were winning races, attracting sponsors, smothered in television coverage, would you want things to change?
My cause for renewed hope is centred in the character of Ross Brawn and Stefano Domenicali. Brawn has won world titles as a designer, team boss and team owner. A pragmatic and principled man who knows all there is to know about car design. Now the sports’ technical director, the future is being carved in his experienced hands.
Alongside him is new F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali, another former Ferrari high flyer, who is highly respected within the sport. A principled, well regarded, nice guy.
And then there is the nebulous third element: owners Liberty Media with an American penchant for the show as much as proper competition.
Until now race weekend schedules have been based on nothing more than historical precedence.
Liberty have pushed the button on historical change and a format that offers a voracious media something to feed on every day. Vacuous Friday practice is replaced by evening qualifying to tie in with the average working day. Saturday has the drama of a sprint race and Sunday is, as ever, the denouement of it all.
Liberty have surely made the changes with tremulous hearts because so much is at stake. But credit to them for long overdue changes. I, for one, am excited at what lays ahead.
Damon Hill, the 1996 champion, nailed it when he said: ”There’s plenty of room for jeopardy.”
He was talking about the sprint race format but it equally applies to the tinkering with the schedule and, effectively, the sport’s very soul.
Critics point out audiences in America’s Nascar series have halved since 2002 because of continual tinkering.
The grapevine suggests V6 1.6L engines will remain for 2022 along with energy harvesting from the brakes (MGU-K) but reusing heat from the turbo (MGU-H) will be ditched, potentially promising the return of the spine-tingling roar of F1 engines.
While different tyres and remodelled aerodynamics promise a far more equal competition.
After many years at the crossroads maybe, just maybe, F1 has finally got the sat nav working.
'Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore'
Rating: 3/5
Directed by: David Yates
Starring: Mads Mikkelson, Eddie Redmayne, Ezra Miller, Jude Law
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Yemen's Bahais and the charges they often face
The Baha'i faith was made known in Yemen in the 19th century, first introduced by an Iranian man named Ali Muhammad Al Shirazi, considered the Herald of the Baha'i faith in 1844.
The Baha'i faith has had a growing number of followers in recent years despite persecution in Yemen and Iran.
Today, some 2,000 Baha'is reside in Yemen, according to Insaf.
"The 24 defendants represented by the House of Justice, which has intelligence outfits from the uS and the UK working to carry out an espionage scheme in Yemen under the guise of religion.. aimed to impant and found the Bahai sect on Yemeni soil by bringing foreign Bahais from abroad and homing them in Yemen," the charge sheet said.
Baha'Ullah, the founder of the Bahai faith, was exiled by the Ottoman Empire in 1868 from Iran to what is now Israel. Now, the Bahai faith's highest governing body, known as the Universal House of Justice, is based in the Israeli city of Haifa, which the Bahais turn towards during prayer.
The Houthis cite this as collective "evidence" of Bahai "links" to Israel - which the Houthis consider their enemy.
Christopher Robin
Starring: Ewan McGregor, Haley Atwell, Jim Cummings, Peter Capaldi
Three stars
What's in the deal?
Agreement aims to boost trade by £25.5bn a year in the long run, compared with a total of £42.6bn in 2024
India will slash levies on medical devices, machinery, cosmetics, soft drinks and lamb.
India will also cut automotive tariffs to 10% under a quota from over 100% currently.
Indian employees in the UK will receive three years exemption from social security payments
India expects 99% of exports to benefit from zero duty, raising opportunities for textiles, marine products, footwear and jewellery
More from Armen Sarkissian
The specs: 2018 Maxus T60
Price, base / as tested: Dh48,000
Engine: 2.4-litre four-cylinder
Power: 136hp @ 1,600rpm
Torque: 360Nm @ 1,600 rpm
Transmission: Five-speed manual
Fuel consumption, combined: 9.1L / 100km
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Tips to avoid getting scammed
1) Beware of cheques presented late on Thursday
2) Visit an RTA centre to change registration only after receiving payment
3) Be aware of people asking to test drive the car alone
4) Try not to close the sale at night
5) Don't be rushed into a sale
6) Call 901 if you see any suspicious behaviour
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylinder turbo
Power: 240hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 390Nm at 3,000rpm
Transmission: eight-speed auto
Price: from Dh122,745
On sale: now
'Will%20of%20the%20People'
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Tips for job-seekers
- Do not submit your application through the Easy Apply button on LinkedIn. Employers receive between 600 and 800 replies for each job advert on the platform. If you are the right fit for a job, connect to a relevant person in the company on LinkedIn and send them a direct message.
- Make sure you are an exact fit for the job advertised. If you are an HR manager with five years’ experience in retail and the job requires a similar candidate with five years’ experience in consumer, you should apply. But if you have no experience in HR, do not apply for the job.
David Mackenzie, founder of recruitment agency Mackenzie Jones Middle East
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
Five famous companies founded by teens
There are numerous success stories of teen businesses that were created in college dorm rooms and other modest circumstances. Below are some of the most recognisable names in the industry:
- Facebook: Mark Zuckerberg and his friends started Facebook when he was a 19-year-old Harvard undergraduate.
- Dell: When Michael Dell was an undergraduate student at Texas University in 1984, he started upgrading computers for profit. He starting working full-time on his business when he was 19. Eventually, his company became the Dell Computer Corporation and then Dell Inc.
- Subway: Fred DeLuca opened the first Subway restaurant when he was 17. In 1965, Mr DeLuca needed extra money for college, so he decided to open his own business. Peter Buck, a family friend, lent him $1,000 and together, they opened Pete’s Super Submarines. A few years later, the company was rebranded and called Subway.
- Mashable: In 2005, Pete Cashmore created Mashable in Scotland when he was a teenager. The site was then a technology blog. Over the next few decades, Mr Cashmore has turned Mashable into a global media company.
- Oculus VR: Palmer Luckey founded Oculus VR in June 2012, when he was 19. In August that year, Oculus launched its Kickstarter campaign and raised more than $1 million in three days. Facebook bought Oculus for $2 billion two years later.
U19 World Cup in South Africa
Group A: India, Japan, New Zealand, Sri Lanka
Group B: Australia, England, Nigeria, West Indies
Group C: Bangladesh, Pakistan, Scotland, Zimbabwe
Group D: Afghanistan, Canada, South Africa, UAE
UAE fixtures
Saturday, January 18, v Canada
Wednesday, January 22, v Afghanistan
Saturday, January 25, v South Africa
UAE squad
Aryan Lakra (captain), Vriitya Aravind, Deshan Chethyia, Mohammed Farazuddin, Jonathan Figy, Osama Hassan, Karthik Meiyappan, Rishabh Mukherjee, Ali Naseer, Wasi Shah, Alishan Sharafu, Sanchit Sharma, Kai Smith, Akasha Tahir, Ansh Tandon
Farasan Boat: 128km Away from Anchorage
Director: Mowaffaq Alobaid
Stars: Abdulaziz Almadhi, Mohammed Al Akkasi, Ali Al Suhaibani
Rating: 4/5
Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
