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2015 Mexican Grand Prix is a lot like old times

The last time Formula One visited Mexico, in 1992, 26 cars powered by eight engine manufacturers (counting Honda and Mugen-Honda separately) lined up on the grid; it would have been nine engine makers but the Brabham-Judd cars failed to qualify. In 1992 Lewis Hamilton was seven years old, Sebastian Vettel was five, Max Verstappen was still five years away from being born. Two of the current Sky Sports F1 commentary team, Martin Brundle and Johnny Herbert, were drivers. The starting three were Nigel Mansell on pole – 39 years old, this the year he'd win his only World Championship – and Riccardo Patrese both driving Williams-Renault cars, followed by Michael Schumacher in a Benetton-Ford. Only 13 of the 26 starters would finish. The circuit is has been reworked to today's safer standards, the track surface is brand new and slippery, but the atmosphere and packed grandstands haven't changed. Nico Rosberg was another point of consistency, scoring pole position for the fourth race in a row to beat his now-World-Champion teammate Hamilton by almost two-tenths of a second. The last time Rosberg turned pole position into a victory? The Spanish Grand Prix back in May. Vettel locked up third for Ferrari, followed by the Infiniti Red Bull Racing duo of Daniil Kvyat and Daniel Ricciardo. Williams went two-up as well, Valtteri Bottas in sixth ahead of Felipe Massa in seventh. Max Verstappen turned in a great late lap to reserve eighth place, Sergio Perez did all he could in front of his home crowd to get ninth, teammate Nico Hulkenberg the caboose in the top ten. In that 1992 race the first three on the grid finished the race in the same order after Mansell dominated, and it was almost the same in 2015. If Rosberg had driven the whole season like he drove today the Driver's World Championship would still be up for grabs. He got a great start and held his line through the first corner, coming out ahead of Hamilton through the initial kinks, pulling away as soon as he got to the straight. Hamilton was never more than a few seconds behind, but every time the Brit inched closer the German found a few more tenths to keep his distance. The field got bunched up when the Safety Car came out on Lap 53 after Vettel spun and got stuck in the barriers, but Rosberg handled the restart perfectly. Both drivers made small mistakes in the last few laps while driving on the edge, but Rosberg earned a strong victory, crossing the line two seconds ahead of his teammate.

Ferrari California replica from Ferris Bueller is so choice

We like car auctions well enough, but often the high-end affairs are a bit too much like outdoor museums - very beautiful and very cold, and you're not allowed to touch anything. A perfect case in point is the upcoming Mecum auction during the 2013 Pebble Beach weekend, which will feature the legendary replica Ferrari 250 GT California Spyder used in none other than Ferris Bueller's Day Off. Only three were made. The current owner spent ten years restoring this car. It is his love, it is his passion. (Well, it was before he decided to auction it, anyway.)
Actually built by Modena Design and Development in El Cajon, CA, the official name of the stunning replica is Modena Spyder California. Built up on a tube frame, with a meticulously maintained interior and powered by a 500-horsepower small block V8 the car is so choice. If you have the means, we highly recommend picking one up.
Mecum hasn't suggested a predicted auction price for the Hollywood relic as of yet, but with the perfect pedigree to pull Gen X heartstrings, and the proliferation of stupid-wealthy fourtysomethings in and around northern California, we wouldn't be surprised to see a decent value. Just don't wait on it, life moves pretty fast around Pebble Beach. If you'd like to read a full description of the car with fewer script-quotes, look, it's real simple, scroll down.

Race Recap: Belgian Grand Prix is new skirmishes, same war [spoilers]

It's been four weeks since we last saw a Formula One race, when Lewis Hamilton improbably put his Mercedes-AMG Petronas in P1 in Hungary. Even more improbably, he held onto the first spot at the finish of the race, ahead of Kimi Räikkönen in the Lotus and Sebastian Vettel in the Infiniti Red Bull.
Resuming the season at Belgium's Spa-Francorchamps circuit this weekend, Hamilton picked up his recent - and just as improbable - pole-setting form by putting the Mercedes in P1 for the fourth time in a row. The effort came during a qualifying session visited by intermittent rains and dry spells, his 54th trip to the front of the pack, tying Niki Lauda.
But neither the fireworks and surprises, the mid-field full of backmarkers, nor the tire strategies and timing choices changed the mission for the drivers in with a chance at the title: finish in front of Vettel.