2015 Malaysian Grand Prix

[andyone]

People are soo exited about ferrari. I think the sfetycar made a huge difderence. And favor for ferari to win. Luck and they have a good pace but wont outrun the silver arrows that easily

[zako85]

I think too that the safety car helped Vettel. The Mercedes cars pitted after only 5-6 laps out, while Seb stayed out, gaining a considerable position advantage. Having said that, considering how Mercedes cars struggled with tires at the end of stints, I think Vettel would have given them a headache as is even without safety car.


Overall, great race. Oh how the mighty have fallen. Seeing Red Bulls lapped by Vettel was priceless. And when was the last time when both Red Bulls finish behind Toro Rossos?

[Hawkmoon]

If I had to bet I'd place money on Mercedes resuming command in China. The problem is that Ferrari were less than a tenth off pole in the wet and then won the race in the heat. Two very different sets of conditions. I haven't seen Mercedes allude to it but did they compromise their race setup in order to cover potential wet weather? That would explain why the Ferrari, possibly setup for the dry, was so competitive in the race. But wouldn't that have compromised their qualifying pace?

I think it's probably safest to say that a combination of Vettel really liking Sepang, the F15T being gentle on it's tyres and Mercedes getting their strategy wrong led to the Scuderia pinching a win. As happy as that makes me I'll take it as a bonus in what looked like it could have been another win-less season.

[The Black Knight]

If I had to bet I'd place money on Mercedes resuming command in China. The problem is that Ferrari were less than a tenth off pole in the wet and then won the race in the heat. Two very different sets of conditions. I haven't seen Mercedes allude to it but did they compromise their race setup in order to cover potential wet weather? That would explain why the Ferrari, possibly setup for the dry, was so competitive in the race. But wouldn't that have compromised their qualifying pace?

I think it's probably safest to say that a combination of Vettel really liking Sepang, the F15T being gentle on it's tyres and Mercedes getting their strategy wrong led to the Scuderia pinching a win. As happy as that makes me I'll take it as a bonus in what looked like it could have been another win-less season.

I think you're underestimating the leap forward that Ferrari have taken here over the winter. Even if you look at the times they were doing in Australia after they cleared the Williams, they were very comparable to Mercedes. Ferrari themselves said that they would have been 15-20 seconds up the road from where they were had they not been stuck behind the Williams. There isn't much difference between wet and dry set up nowadays anyway.

As for qualifying, Vettel's laptime was set on a much dryer track than Hamilton's lap. Hamilton's lap really was something else for the time it was on. He would easily have improved on that had Nico not blocked him on his second attempt. He didn't pull it together then for his final run

A clearer picture probably won't present itself for another couple of races but I am not too convinced that Mercedes have a huge advantage. They may have an advantage in qualifying but certainly not as much in race trim.

[journeyman racer]

Needless to say. When I found out Vettel had won, I was surprised. So obviously, something must've happened. It's knid of weird though. That's Vettel's first win since 13. So he's gone a whole season without a win. But it doesn't feel like he's gone through a drought. It's reminded me of when Raikkonen won the 07 AGP, his first win for two seasons. It didn't feel like a drought had been broken as well. It was just normal. Funny how that happens with some?

I hope you enjoyed your cricket match,

Well, it was alright. But considering that I'd have preferred to see NZ win and they didn't, it was a little hollow.

because you picked a day that made you miss a really good race.

Mate. There'll be a race in a couple of weeks. There'll be a MGP next year (Or maybe not, the way it's going?) Cricket WC is once every four years, and it was the first time in Melbourne/Australia for 23 years, and the first time I could go. For those reasons alone, I would've missed the AGP for it.

And I couldn't agree with your last statement any more than 100%. The transparency is amazing with the haters and fanboi's.

Well. You let 'em go as long as they keep up their façade. But once they turn, you get the artillery ready!

[jens]

I think you're underestimating the leap forward that Ferrari have taken here over the winter. Even if you look at the times they were doing in Australia after they cleared the Williams, they were very comparable to Mercedes. Ferrari themselves said that they would have been 15-20 seconds up the road from where they were had they not been stuck behind the Williams. There isn't much difference between wet and dry set up nowadays anyway.

As for qualifying, Vettel's laptime was set on a much dryer track than Hamilton's lap. Hamilton's lap really was something else for the time it was on. He would easily have improved on that had Nico not blocked him on his second attempt. He didn't pull it together then for his final run

A clearer picture probably won't present itself for another couple of races but I am not too convinced that Mercedes have a huge advantage. They may have an advantage in qualifying but certainly not as much in race trim.

Sounds like a sensible analysis though I do think "circumstances" came together for Ferrari to win this race. And that hot conditions naturally suit them better. Ferrari may not be miles behind on other circuits, but Mercedes is still the favourite to rack up the majority of wins this season.

[kfzmeister]

Ferrari did a nice step forward and VET was definitely a surprise win. Mercedes , especially HAM, struggled to get the car set up optimally (ROS claimed that he had better pace).

The extreme heat really did a number on the Mercs tires, conversely Ferrari who struggle still a bit to get their tires into the optimum operating window, benefited from the extreme weather.

It will be interesting to see how the rest of the season unfolds.

[Tazio]

The team have added an additional vortex generator (marked in green) to the outer shoulder of the sidepods upper surface. The vortices generated by these devices help to keep the airflow attached to the sidepods surface where it then feeds the rear of the car and diffuser.
Changes have also been made to the airflow conditioner that sits alongside the sidepod (blue) with its base moved further forward on the floor, aligning it closer to the bargeboard ahead. Owing to this the airflow conditioner shape has changed to accommodate it, with a large curve allowing a now straighter upper section to occupy a similar position.
These changes are aimed at not only increasing the performance of the airflow moving around the sidepods undercut but also protecting this flow from the front wheels tyre wake.
The additional space now available on the outside of the floor has led the team to mount a detached floor scroll (yellow) astride the normal scroll on the floors edge. This will assist in both energizing the flow travelling around the sidepod and blocking that flow from the front tyres wake.
http://www.grandprixtimes.com/news/display/10082

Ya''awl boys are going to be owing me a lot of USDs before this season is over.
Probably by Monaco.

[steveaki13]

Ya''awl boys are going to be owing me a lot of USDs before this season is over.
Probably by Monaco.

This boy never bet you a thing You just promised to give me wads of cash if Mclaren fail to podium dawg.

[Tazio]

I don't think you understand how the F.A.M. operates!