Rate the Race - Russian GP

[jens]

RB have 'shiny object syndrome'. Most of the team members are utter mercenaries. I've been working with TJ13 now for two years and our chief editor cornered one of our RB contacts about why it seems that the team does prefer RIC this year. The answer was simple: "Ric delivers the points and hence the bonus payments for us, so he's who our loyalty lies with." They are completely indifferent to Vettel as of this year. He's merely there because they are obliged to run two cars.
I have to admit, I was one of the guys who thought Mark was just past it, but having seen how a bloody four-times WDC is basically thrown under the bus, I get a new understanding for what he must have gone through. Mind you, I don't quite understand why he took that shit for four years. He'd have been better off at any other team. RB in my opinion is a pure one car team.

You have been working with TJ13? Wow, well, I am not in position to detect the validity of the claim, but okay.

However, as for the question, why did Webber stay for so long, the answer is easy. There was no better place to go. Same with Barrichello in Ferrari. I am sure the team didn't revolve around these drivers and they were unhappy at times due to that, but if you are in the best car on the grid and can get at least occasional wins, it is better than be mired in midfield and barely get a few points on your scorecard.

Drivers all want to make a career and get good results. Difficulties and also complications in intra-team relationships are part of the natural game. This is something you have to suck up, deal with, and carry on. If you are picky, complaining and bang the doors by leaving, it is likely you destroy your career. Look at what is happening with Alonso. He fell out with McLaren in 2007 and had to sit in midfield cars for two years. Now it looks like he has fallen out with Ferrari and has nowhere else to go than back to this "disliked" McLaren. You have to be at least a bit diplomatic (or a"hated" PR-driver as the saying goes), if you want to have a good career, and not make enemies in the business.

Webber may not have had an easy time in RBR, but there are no guarantees he would have had it better elsewhere. Why could Vettel leave unlike Webber? Because he is much younger, can still have a meaningful career, and can basically be the unofficial #1 driver at Ferrari. Whatever that means, but certainly Ferrari expect him to be an important part of their future plans. Webber had nowhere to go, he would have been a #2 everywhere else too. And he was getting old, so it was important for him to get any results he still could.

[yodasarmpit]

Well that was not the most exciting race ever, in fact it was pretty awful.
Whilst not the greatest, I don’t think we can pin the blame completely on the track, unfortunately like the past four years we now have a team that is so far in front that there is no competition - with Nico going off on the first lap Lewis was able to stroll away into the distance unchallenged.

As for the track, turn 3 was good.


2.5 out of 10

[zako85]

The race track is aesthetically pleasing. Here is your daytime Abu Dhabi v2.0. However, the race was really ruined by the tires. Pirelli brought the tires that can last a race. Once teams figured this out, most drivers were just put on one stop strategy while making the tires last to the end, and that was that.

[555-04Q2]

It gets 10/10 for me, maybe because I was full of vodka when I watched it. Get it? No? Oh well...

[steveaki13]

It gets 10/10 for me, maybe because I was full of vodka when I watched it. Get it? No? Oh well...

Now come on 555 be a good boy, do you want your 10 to be counted in the official results?

[Storm]

I could not watch even a single lap on Sunday (or any other thing on tv that day) but I guess I did not miss much

[schmenke]

I was out of town and didn't watch it. Didn't even bother to record it on the DVR. Sounds lilke it would have been a waste of disk space anyways .

[zako85]

You have been working with TJ13? Wow, well, I am not in position to detect the validity of the claim, but okay.

However, as for the question, why did Webber stay for so long, the answer is easy.

Ex post, it does seem like Webber could go to Lotus after 2011. Boullier was inviting him in public promising that at Lotus Webber will be number one. Of course, ex-ante Webber couldn't have predicted how successful the Lotus cars could be in 2012-13. Raikkonen did better those seasons than Webber.

[zako85]

This was the most boring race of season so far. The first few laps were worth watching to see Rosberg's silly mistake. For me, this was another bit of evidence that Rosberg is kind of losing his composure right now and likely doesn't deserve to win the title as much as Hamilton.

[rjbetty]

4 - since a few results were a bit different, and the new track combines to give novelty value, hence the score.
Did I give a score for Japan? 7 for that.