Post: #101

Qualifying sucked. But it appears that the teams have unanimously agreed to scrap the new format and return to last years rules.

It seems like drivers are pushing the cars harder. The extra exhausts for the turbo wastegates seem to have improved the sound.

Haas was given a considerable advantage by the crash and race stop. The car is clearly better than many of the others out there, but the bizarre qualifying rules put them at the back at the start. Then the crash did give them an advantage.

I'm still concerned about Honda/McLaren. I hope for their sake that this isn't another "development" year for their engine, and that Button and Alonso can redeem themselves. Both are excellent drivers and close to retirement. It would suck to see them go out with a whimper.

Post: #102

(03-20-2016 12:49 PM)porscheguy Wrote:  Haas was given a considerable advantage by the crash and race stop. The car is clearly better than many of the others out there, but the bizarre qualifying rules put them at the back at the start. Then the crash did give them an advantage.

I agree that the red flag gave Grosjean's strategy a boost. They kept saying how he finished the race without a real pit stop. I figure if the race wasn't red flagged Grosjean probably would've finished 10th or so. And I think that's the expectation for Haas going forward for the season, maybe not in the points every race, but definitely pushing for 10th.

Post: #103

It's crazy how HAAS has come in and in their first race scored points. Really good and professional of them. The race was actually good and exciting but qualifying was lame.

Post: #104

I won't knock Haas for their result. Because even though it was purely chance, they had their shit together enough to take full advantage of it. That alone says a lot.

Post: #105

Haas done well but it shouldn't be that big of a surprise given the nature of their technical partnership with Ferrari. Ferrari not only supply the power trains but also critical parts as well as advice and expertise which other new teams would normally need to acquire on their own. They're basically the Ferrari B team in the same way Toro Rosso are to Red Bull.

Regardless 6th is still an excellent and surprising result for them. Although given the timing of the red flag as well as some attrition (loss of a red bull and a ferrari) definitely helped.

The good thing is that should Haas be successful this could encourage other new teams to enter to F1 under similar relationships with existing established teams. Mercedez being the obvious choice although I think they're currently looking at forging the same technical relationship with Manor

Post: #106

The Alonso crash was definitely wild. He didn't go headfirst into the wall (like Dan Wheldon) but I do think it calls into question the safety of the gravel/sand traps again. All it takes is a car going off at the wrong angle and it's very easy to dig/flip. Of course as an alternative massive asphalt runoff means drivers aren't punished for mistakes. No easy answer.

I didn't think qualifying was as bad as people made it out to be. The teams seemed to do a pretty poor job of timing driver placement on track so they were in position to stave off elimination with the clock running. I think with a bit of experience the teams would have gotten better and if it shuffled grids so much the better.

I don't think the cars sound any better. The separate wastegate exhausts aren't really helping anything (the wastegate is almost never used since turbo overrun energy can more effectively be fed into the MGU-H) except it eliminates a minor inherent silencer effect from the tubing. I still long for the days of V8s and V10s.

Otherwise, good to see Vettel jump the Mercedes at the start. Kind of surprising Ferrari made such a tactical error on tire selection after the red flag but at least Hamilton didn't win. If Rosberg can up his game hopefully it means there will be a three way championship fight this year.

Post: #107

So the sun has set on the most remarkable managerial careers in Formula 1, with Ron Dennis this week being forced out of his role as chairman and CEO of the McLaren Technology Group, following a protracted period of tension between him and his fellow shareholders. This ends an 36 year association with McLaren, although he remains a shareholder.

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php...laren-role

Ron's life story is inspirational. He started his working life as a teenager, working as a race car mechanic. Through sheer hard work, willpower, vision and determination, over the course of half a century he has built a diverse high technology group with several business divisions, car maker and racing team all worth over a billion GBP with such success that he was awarded the title of Commander of the British Empire in the year 2000. Never mind his own net worth, reportedly over $800 million.

Nonetheless he divides opinion. He has on occasion dealt harshly with his employees and in recent years he has been a rather intimidating figure, especially within the racing team. Publically we know of his poor relationship with long-serving former driver David Coulthard, his coup against former team principal Martin Whitmarsh, his failure to promote junior drivers like Nick Heidfeld and Ricardo Zonta, and his falling out with Fernando Alonso, and firing test driver Kevin Magnussen on his birthday, amongst others.
His strictness and stubbornness are also well-known. For example, he used to insist that his drivers keep their hair short, and beards shaved. His work ethic and dedication to the company eventually led to the end of his 22 year marriage.

On the plus side Ron revolutionised the sport starting in the 1980's, by using unique materials such as carbon fibre and even gold for car components. He also transformed the marketing side, with his team partnering with several blue chip companies over the years.

Unfortunately, in recent years there has been a boardroom battle, with Ron trying several times to buy out his partners with no luck. After a last minute Chinese-backed bid was rejected by the board, Ron's time was up.

Post: #108

Anyone has plans on watching the Melbourne GP? This year the cars look better than ever and are faster (maybe most lap records will be broken?) although at the top Lewis seems to have no rivals.

Post: #109

So the first race of the 2017 season, the Australian has been completed.
The 'other' story of the day was the debut of Canadian teenager Lance Stroll, whose father is a billionaire investor. He's spent about $80 000 000 (80 million dollars!!!) in less than a decade, funding his son's racing to make sure he reached this level.

Sebastian Vettel won for Ferarri, with the two Mercedes, driven by hamilton and bottas, finishing second and third. Hamilton would have won again, but Mercedes scheduled his pit stop a bit too early, and Ferrari capitalised.
A lot of hype related to the new regulations, but i was partly disappointed.

Post: #110

(03-26-2017 10:19 AM)brick tamland Wrote:  So the first race of the 2017 season, the Australian has been completed.
The 'other' story of the day was the debut of Canadian teenager Lance Stroll, whose father is a billionaire investor. He's spent about $80 000 000 (80 million dollars!!!) in less than a decade, funding his son's racing to make sure he reached this level.

Sebastian Vettel won for Ferarri, with the two Mercedes, driven by hamilton and bottas, finishing second and third. Hamilton would have won again, but Mercedes scheduled his pit stop a bit too early, and Ferrari capitalised.
A lot of hype related to the new regulations, but i was partly disappointed.

Yeah, it was a pretty boring race even though it was nice to see someone else than Mercedes win. I hope the new regulations haven't made overtaking impossible this year.

Post: #111

First F1 race I've watched in a long time, mainly because I was curious about this Stroll kid.

Race was pretty boring in my opinion, I don't know how other tracks compare.

Post: #112

This was a street circuit, quite tight and little room to overtake. Parts of the track are literally public roads, so that's that.
Stroll is F1's test tube baby so to speak. His father is in the "1%". If Lance, followed the usual career path he'd still be in a developmental series, until at least age 22 or so, becoming an official test/substitute driver for an F1 team in the meantime, then hope for a race opportunity.
But his father is paying $35 million for him to be an F1 driver in 2017 and beyond, never mind the other $45 mill. spent since the boy started racing.
By comparison, Lewis Hamilton's father worked 2 jobs to pay for his son's early career in karts. Michael Schumacher had to immediately hand over the trophies he won after races to the guy sponsoring him while he was a boy.

Post: #113

Well cars are now more about AERO development and not mechanical grip... So you can't really follow. What hamilton says is what's happening... which is basically you can make the cars faster but you won't get entertaining races with more overtaking unless you make the cars more about mechanical grip instead of Aero.

Also going back and listening to the engines the V10 was great the V8 was good but the V6 is just underwhelming... it's like listening to a bunch of bikes...

Post: #114

(03-26-2017 07:32 PM)zigZag Wrote:  Well cars are now more about AERO development and not mechanical grip... So you can't really follow. What hamilton says is what's happening... which is basically you can make the cars faster but you won't get entertaining races with more overtaking unless you make the cars more about mechanical grip instead of Aero.

Also going back and listening to the engines the V10 was great the V8 was good but the V6 is just underwhelming... it's like listening to a bunch of bikes...

The wider tyres do increase grip. It's really a combination of the 2. The amount of wing surface etc has increased, but tyre grip has increased relatively (to wing surface) more. However combined the 2 will increase the amount of downforce in corners even more due to higher speeds (compared to last years cars).

Quote:First F1 race I've watched in a long time, mainly because I was curious about this Stroll kid.

Race was pretty boring in my opinion, I don't know how other tracks compare.

In Melbourne it's very hard to overtake. There are a few more tracks like that (for instance Monaco). But most tracks should (the new cars will make it harder to overtake though) offer more excitement.

Post: #115

Stroll is proof that F1 needs a homosexual driver. He fills the void Rosberg left. He's new, but I predict he won't last long.

Mercedes will win races this year, but I'm afraid their championship won't be as secure this year. The cars from '14-'16 were developed initially under the guidance of Ross brawn. But as we all know Brawn was kicked out MB by Wolff and Lauda because their pride wouldn't allow them to share the spotlight. This is the year they begin to pay for that mistake.

Ferrari clearly have forward momentum. They've almost closed the gap to MB. MB has lost the momentum as their gains weren't as great as Ferrari. As proof of Ferrari, look at Haas. Haas doesn't even build their own chassis and aside from mechanical glitches, they could be fighting for 6th in the constructors this year.

I can't feel sorry for what has happened with Renault engines. Renault were the most vocal proponents of the current formula.

Honda needs to pack it in, or pay attention to the teams in Europe and set up an operation there. You can't be as isolated as they are and ever hope to win. They had the same problem in their last foray into F1. Toyota was just as bad.

The question that's on everyone's mind is where Alonso goes after this year? Some think he may bow out early and take a break, but with what he's being paid, I don't see that happening. Raikonnen and bottas are both out of contract this year. Red Bull is falling back to the midfield. Will MB take Alonso knowing he doesn't play nice with Hamilton? Will Ferrari take Alonso back?

Why has Hamilton decided to handle his own training this year. Does he think he's Schumacher (in addition to thinking he's Senna?). Schumacher in his prime was never defeated by a teammate. Hamilton spent years getting played by a dedicated carousel rider several years older than him. Last year he brought Justin Bieber as his date to Monaco.

Post: #116

BTW, check out the book "Total Competition: lessons in strategy from formula 1". It was written by Adam Parr (former CEO of Williams) and Ross Brawn. It discusses concepts of leadership by Sun Tzu and Ross Brawn. Parr put it all together. Parr went on to get a PhD after he was ousted from Williams (despite the fact that he produced their first race win in 8 years) so old Frank could put a woman in charge.

It discusses a lot of F1 history and behind the scenes shit that took place over the past 30-35 years in f1. It goes right up through the beginning of the 2016 season. Worth a read if you're really into f1.

Post: #117

^^ Schumacher was never defeated by his teammate because they were there to help him win.

I am sure you remember the Austrian GP, the race where his teammate Barrichello was going to win the race but had to pull over and give him the win.
Eddie Irvine use to hold up traffic and do all kinds of tricks, to ensure Schumacher got the win.

Ferrari had team orders which allowed Schumacher the win. He never was paired up with a top driver, only drivers that were capable.

Hamilton has never had a team that was behind him 100%, he was always racing against his teammate. Funny how he always seems to get the short end of the stick or have "unlucky" circumstances that caused him not to win a race or his car to break down.

Last season it was obvious Mercedes wanted Rosberg to win the championship, funny how he retired straight after the win.

Post: #118

Why should any team get behind Hamilton? He brought Justin Bieber to Monaco last year. As his date. Did you see how those two looked like they had a slumber party the night before the race and dyed their hair the same color?

BTW, last I checked, Hamilton had three world titles. Hamilton started his career with McLaren when they were not just a top tier team, but they were the de facto Mercedes works team. He didn't have to drag second rate Minardis and Jordans around the track in the hope that enough people in front would fuck up or break down so he could get one point. He didn't have to make sure his sponsors pulled through with money to buy him a race seat in F1. Hamilton fans always think there's a conspiracy against the guy whenever he doesn't win. He's had a career most drivers can only dream of.

Post: #119

Alonso will skip the Monaco GP and will be participating in the indy500. He'll be racing under the Mclaren-Honda-Andretti banner in a car with Mclaren orange and black livery. While it makes for something interesting, it's troubling that mclaren have washed their hands of this season. Honda is the dominant engine in Indy, it's a shame they can't get it together for f1.

Post: #120

(04-03-2017 09:00 AM)rudebwoy Wrote:  Last season it was obvious Mercedes wanted Rosberg to win the championship,

Post: #121

The Alonso Indy 500 thing is a bit odd. He's still one of the best but that's besides the point. It wouldn't have happened if Ron Dennis was still in charge, simply because you're taking the lead driver out of the most prestigious race of the year, the Monaco GP. I don't see what the payoff is for McLaren?
There's the safety issue too, as he's never done oval racing, three and four wide racing with the slipstream effects. It would be a real tragedy if he had a career ending crash driving part time. Remember Robert Kubica?

Post: #122

Kubica? How about Dan Wheldon? Justin Wilson?

The McLaren Honda partnership has been such a disaster that they're going to bend over backward for Alonso. I thought they were making every effort to resign him for next year but at this point they are probably almost as worried just to keep him in the seat through the 2017 season.

If Alexander Rossi could step out of the Manor and into an Indycar and win last year, there's absolutely no reason Alonso can't be more than competitive this year. And he's talked about Le Mans aspirations so the "Triple Crown" is on his mind.

Post: #123

delete

Post: #124

He's one of the modern greats. I'd still rather watch him race at the Monaco GP. This is just a sign that there's rumblings behind closed doors. As for 2018, re-signing with McLaren is easy enough. His salary is already astronomical. But he wants a car that can win. McLaren can't give him that this decade at least. If he can't join Mercedes (or maybe Ferrari) in 2018, he'll probably walk away, and start racing in the WEC.

Post: #125

Resigning is easy - why? For him? He's supposedly making $40 million a year for the three years of the McLaren Honda contract. That's over $100 million even if the numbers aren't totally accurate, more than enough for a man who has none of Lewis' flashy tastes. And in return he's had a front row seat (or to be accurate - a back row seat) as Hamilton and Rosberg have fought a private battle for the championships he so dearly wants. I totally agree that there is nothing to motivate him to return to F1 in 2018 except a truly competitive seat. Or the racing world's most blatant sunk cost fallacy.

As fortuitous as Vettel moving to Red Bull or Hamilton moving to Mercedes before their dominant runs has been, Alonso seems cursed by the opposite fortune. It's a shame for such a talent, but from the McLaren v1 acrimony to the Crashgate fiasco, it's difficult to argue that he's not made his own bed.