2019 F1 General Discussion Topic

[moley]

 

3 minutes ago, shyVRS245 said:

Can't see him aiming for a 7th place somehow.

Today he went for it and it paid off despite having a 'slower' car. Mad Max went for it and it didn't pay off.

[camelspyyder]

1 hour ago, shyVRS245 said:

Max 67 laps on the hard tyres. One stop clearly the right tactic.

 

But slow. He was losing ground to Albon hand over fist in the last 20 laps.

 

Speaking of Albon, he has very nearly caught Gasly in the championship, despite being a total rookie, and so far only having 6 races at RBR compared to Gasly's 12. Making the RBR decision for the second car in 2020 less difficult every week.

 

Checking the results for Albons 6 races at RBR, I'm really very surprised to see he has scored more points than Max 4 times out of 6.

 

I think he's looking like a perfect second driver for the team.

 

 

Edited 27 October, 2019 by camelspyyder

[camelspyyder]

47 minutes ago, moley said:

It does seem that way. Mercedes have never been that strong tactically and now it appears that its rubbed off onto Ferrari. I think their big problem is they appear to be favouring Vettel over Leclerc and making poor decisions during the race. Their drivers aren't seeing eye to eye and that won't help either.

Hamilton 74 points ahead with three races to go, so barring any disasters in Austin Hamilton should pick up the trophy next race. 

 

Ferrari have, even more than 2017/18, chucked the championship away this year. Fastest in testing, and fastest at several of the early races that they meekly surrendered to Mercedes, they made a miserable start to the season and let Hamilton  build a big lead.  At that stage they were favouring Vettel, and had they stuck with that decision, he would have racked up a lot of points when the Ferrari finally became clearly the fastest car on every circuit. However, they chose to shift their focus to  LeClerc, who should really have been given the Barrichello role, and sat behind Seb at every race. One of the Ferrari drivers as #1 could have challenged for the title this year, but their split priorities have left them both 100 points behind in the fastest car. Shocking team management. They should have new race team manager, and leave Binotto to build the cars which are superb.

 

 

Edited 27 October, 2019 by camelspyyder

[camelspyyder]

Once again the public choose a driver of the day who did really well?

 

Penalised for dangerous driving in qualifying.

Went off with a Mercedes at turn 1, smashing its floor.

Hit the other Mercedes whilst passing it (not for the first time - he hit Hamilton in Bahrain in similar fashion) getting a puncture himself.

Finished 47 seconds behind his rookie teammate.

 

Stunningly immature weekend all round by Max I thought. Reminded me again of his first 3 1/2 accident prone years.

 

Perez & Hamilton were my top 2.

 

 

 

 

 

Edit. And now (45 minutes after the finish) Max is attempting to deflect the criticism coming his way by suggesting that Hamilton should have been penalised in Qually as well, and blaming Bottas for the puncture. Needs to man up really.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited 27 October, 2019 by camelspyyder

[shyVRS245]

Max's arrogance could get him, a marshall or another driver killed if he thinks safety is a decision for drivers to decide. Not clever to ignore any flag particularly a caution one. 4 Hours for the stewards to punish Max was a joke as ignoring a yellow flag is a slam dunk penalty.

[camelspyyder]

Circuit of the Americas?

 

2 long straights - and a variety corners. I reckon there'll be 5 pole contenders again as the cars strengths will mostly even out. However bar the weird High altitude advantage Red Bull had, Ferrari have been fastest everywhere since the summer break.

 

Vettel for pole I think, the latest Ferrari aero changes seem to have brought the car closer to his liking.

 

 

[camelspyyder]

Meanwhile - In Florida, and as expected...

 

https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/miami-grand-prix-hits-trouble-meeting/4589223/

 

It’s hard to believe it, but yesterday a well-organized group of old ladies gave a global sport and a multiple Superbowl-winning NFL franchise a lesson in how to make your point and influence a county commission meeting that just made the Miami Grand Prix far less likely to happen.

Miami’s already had one failed F1 bid, as a street circuit race in downtown failed to come to fruition for a multitude of logistical reasons and local resident opposition. But shifting it to a new track in the car parks around the Hard Rock Stadium should be simple, right?

Wrong. A former county commissioner for Miami Gardens – the city in which the Dolphins stadium is situated – has rallied a vociferous opposition group, mainly consisting of elderly ladies from the nearby community. It had already got the city council to vote against the plan with its claims of ‘deep pockets overriding quality of life’; now it has managed to get two motions approved by the county that means far more bureaucratic red tape to be cleared before it can happen.

Perhaps the most shocking thing about this meeting was how badly prepared F1 and the Dolphins were. While the opposition easily filled its half hour of initial lobbying, the F1 group came up 10 minutes short. The opposition managed to get its attorney to speak twice, the second time to counter F1’s presentation, but the other group did not. In fact, it took the F1-supporting county Mayor to interject and ask some questions to help its cause…

The opposition’s far-fetched – and borderline preposterous – claims of the “deadly effects” of F1 thus went unchallenged. It seems the Mayor has a right of veto over the motions, but if he does so it will look like some blatant railroading against a community’s wishes.

The moral of the story? Never underestimate some angry old ladies, whoever you think you are.
 

 
   Charles Bradley, Global Editor in Chief
   motorsport.com

Edited 30 October, 2019 by camelspyyder

[camelspyyder]

Miami Gardens is just a huge residential area. It's like trying to put on a GP in Walthamstow. 

 

What are Liberty taking on here?

 

Better find more venues like Hanoi where it is, dare i say it, more acceptable, and cheaper, to bulldoze a suburb for a racing track and the neighbours won't complain about the noise.

 

 

Edited 30 October, 2019 by camelspyyder

[camelspyyder]

Just to show how difficult this Miami GP is going to be, David Beckham's Inter Miami have spent the last 5 years trying to site their stadium in 5 different locations in the city. Even now the final approved site has been found to be on severely contaminated land (arsenic and barium etc). The new team are going to start playing in the league some 33 miles out of town until their own downtown Miami home is built. That's like Liverpool having to play as far away as Man City!

 

Last time I went to the F1 site, the Hard Rock stadium (1991) it was out in the sticks. It would have been easy to put a GP on then before the suburb was built. Mind you back then Miami allowed IMSA Sports car races right in the best bits of the city down at Bayfront Park.

 

I think F1 is really going to struggle to get this one.

 

 

Edited 30 October, 2019 by camelspyyder

[shyVRS245]

10 minutes ago, camelspyyder said:

Just to show how difficult this Miami GP is going to be, David Beckham's Inter Miami have spent the last 5 years trying to site their stadium in 5 different locations in the city. Even now the final approved site has been found to be on severely contaminated land (arsenic and barium etc). The new team are going to start playing in the league some 33 miles out of town until their own downtown Miami home is built.

 

Last time I went to the F1 site, the Hard Rock stadium (1991) it was out in the sticks. It would have been easy to put a GP on then before the suburb was built. Mind you back then Miami allowed IMSA Sports car races right in the best bits of the city down at Bayfront Park.

 

I think F1 is really going to struggle to get this one.

 

 

Last time I visited Miami was also December 1991, small world.

[camelspyyder]

1 hour ago, shyVRS245 said:

Last time I visited Miami was also December 1991, small world.

 

Lol,

 

I've worked in Miami a few times this century too, but only went to the Hard Rock (or Joe Robbie Stadium as was) in 91, I thought.

 

However checking the result. which was USA 0-1 Columbia (Soccer), shows me the date was actually 22 Apr 90.

 

I'd love to go back. South Beach is one of my favourite places anywhere.

[moley]

I drove to Miami from Savannah this May. Didn't see a lot of Miami, only went there to get to the cruise port. If they want to run a GP in Miami why not use the I95, everyone else does. 

[camelspyyder]

Today's press: Max unhappy at disrespectful post race comments from 9 times champions Ham & Seb. Says he would never publicly criticise them.

 

Hmmm. Short memory Max?

 

Obviously forgot your own post race sniping at Hamilton over the qually yellow flag offences. (or non offences in the 9 times champions cases)

[Ryeman]

Making F1 sustainable means more of the drip drip drip of mediocrity IMO - Chase Carey is a tv revenue guy and America is his priority:

 

https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/article.2021-car-revealed-as-fia-and-f1-present-regulations-for-the-future.3ZkeTsu1sNCrFGP1HI9KVy.html

 

[shyVRS245]

New 2021 specs released which should give more downforce for following cars, cars will be 25kg heavier and 3 seconds a lap slower. That sounds exciting.

[Gti Jazz Blue]

57 minutes ago, shyVRS245 said:

New 2021 specs released which should give more downforce for following cars, cars will be 25kg heavier and 3 seconds a lap slower. That sounds exciting.

I don't mind if they are 10 seconds a lap slower as long as we get more actual racing - as in the cars aren't so compromised following the car in front with loss of down force, brakes too hot, engine too hot etc etc. 

[shyVRS245]

6 minutes ago, Gti Jazz Blue said:

I don't mind if they are 10 seconds a lap slower as long as we get more actual racing - as in the cars aren't so compromised following the car in front with loss of down force, brakes too hot, engine too hot etc etc. 

Agree they need to be able to overtake and Pirelli have been given new format so that the tyres last longer and do not dictate who wins races on which tyres they use.

[camelspyyder]

7 hours ago, Gti Jazz Blue said:

I don't mind if they are 10 seconds a lap slower as long as we get more actual racing - as in the cars aren't so compromised following the car in front with loss of down force, brakes too hot, engine too hot etc etc. 

 

What is the sort of actual racing you're looking for?

 

All action staged for TV like NASCAR? 

BTCC style biff and bang?

Super competitive single seaters - like Formula Ford maybe.

 

Unfortunately they can't un-invent racing car aerodynamics.  Any series with slicks and effective wings/underbodies has limited overtaking, unless there's a tyre war.

F1 has been mucking about with the aero rules for 30 years and has never solved the problem of overtaking aero-dependent  cars of similar performance. At least we have DRS or there'd be no passing at all in F1. Even Touring car series are having to use DRS now because their aero is sophisticated too. The 2021 F1 rule changes wont make any difference to the "racing" after Adrian Newey and his peers optimise their cars within the new rule framework.

Edited 1 November, 2019 by camelspyyder

[camelspyyder]

7 hours ago, shyVRS245 said:

Agree they need to be able to overtake and Pirelli have been given new format so that the tyres last longer and do not dictate who wins races on which tyres they use.

 

The tyre size change is purely for fashion.

 

Liberty want the tyres to at least look modern, the current ones on 13 inch rims do not.

Edited 1 November, 2019 by camelspyyder

[shyVRS245]

Lewis, LeClerc, Max, Vettel and Bottas the top 5 in FP2.

[camelspyyder]

Hamilton apparently got at least 0.5 seconds from a Kubica tow down the back straight on that lap, without which he'd probably be 3rd.

 

Stupid turn 19 causing loads of laps to be deleted by the stewards, after last year where they were all allowed to run off the track every lap, this time they're not.

Should have put some grass there to stop the drivers taking the mickey.

 

Bottas and Albon struggling for pace in FP2.

 

 

 

Edited 1 November, 2019 by camelspyyder

[camelspyyder]

That was close. Well done #77

[shyVRS245]

2 minutes ago, camelspyyder said:

That was close. Well done #77

2nd runs in Q3 a bit of an anti-climax though. Congrats to Bottas from Seb and Max.

[camelspyyder]

So RedBull didn't protest Ferrari, but asked the FIA for a technical clarification on the fuel flow rule.

 

This was published his morning. Mere hours later Ferrari seemingly blew an engine and then tonight failed to gain pole position for the first time in 3 months.

 

???

 

Surprisingly, given their usual prodigious straight line performance, I don't think I saw Ferrari doing any purple sector 2 at all today. And that is one of the longest straights in F1 currently.

 

Interesting.

 

Have they been caught out?

 

 

Edited 2 November, 2019 by camelspyyder

[camelspyyder]

Hamilton + Wolff publicly wondering why Ferrari aren't much faster this weekend?

 

https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/146972/mercedes-ferrari-engine-edge-has-shrunk-in-us