Results 21 to 24 of 24
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3rd June 2016, 08:44 #21
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I guess this depends on point of view as there's a case to be made for both sides. I do agree that Hamilton would have kicked up more of a fuss of moving over, but I always felt that rather than arrogant selfishness, it's much more about being worried his team aren't in his corner. I understand a team order would have been hard to take given the huge misfortune already suffered this season. Then again, I'm not sure Hamilton would be as slow as Rosberg was in Monaco.
Red Bull
...but I cannot think much of the way he talks when things go wrong. It sort of brings up memories of Alonso at his worst. Slamming the team in public is still considered one of the cardinal sins.
Verstappen. I'm undecided. I admire his driving, at least on days when he remembers that the transparent bit of the helmet goes to the front.
As for Max, the kid is only 18, so has a lot of gaps to be filled in, which he will do.
Fezza
I'm not sure I agree with all your points on Vettel, but then you certainly expected that No driver drives at his best in a car that's going backwards.
But now Marchionne starts to undermine the atmosphere with his incessant pressure. Arrivabene is being questioned, Kimi too. His real weakness is his need for harmony in the team, something you arenb't afforded in the shark tank that is F1.
Speaking of which, am I the only one who's thinking Ferrari's season looks like it may be going the way of 2013, after a promising yet unfulfilled start?
I totally agree the blithering Marchionne is the weak link here. Reminds me so much of reading in James Allen's Michael Schumacher book how Schumacher, Brawn and Todt had to form a protective cocoon around themselves to shield them from the ranting di Montezemelo. And yeah, I think Seb is of a gentler nature than most (and easier to like now he's away from Horner and Marko), so really needs a good atmosphere. He, Kimi, Arrivabene and Allison (Can't see it being long till he's next in line in Marchionne's sights if things don't improve soon) really need to stick together right now.
Williams
As for Williams, I noticed after I'd posted that I hadn't bolded the headline properly. On reflection I decided to keep it that way since it proved a fitting illustration of how sadly anonymous the team are becoming as the Mercedes PU's advantage continues to be whittled away.
Force India
Agree on Checo, he's definitely much improved and I think it may have to do with the characteristics of this year's car, because the simultaneous drop in Hulks performance looks a bit too coincidental.
...it is almost overlooked that, while not as obvious as with RIC, Hulk was equally shafted by his team. He was called in way too early (seven laps before Checo)
Thanks Jens
Hopefully 2017 will be even closer, but I wouldn't be surprised if the gaps open out and it's all about aero again like before. Also be careful what you wish for, as Red Bull might enter a period of relative dominance again, which we only recently came out of. Overall things actually look less interesting for next year and I may not even bother at all.
Perez is far more consistent than 2012, and tbh I think that Sauber was actually a rocketship that in Alonso's hands would definitely have challenged for the title, but the drivers were just that inconsistent.
I agree totally with Sainz. Interestingly, Franz Tost predicted this before the 2015 season.
@McLaren: Lol, I had hoped for better too. Looking closer though, they reckon they just had problems with tyres in Monaco. The chassis definitely isn't top, but I think it's still pretty good, yet only really on the level they were previously (2010-11). Better than Williams anyway. I think they can do better than they show as it looks like Button could have fought for 5th in Bahrain. Given that complete rookie Vandoorne finished 10th, I think with regular drivers there could have been a small chance of 5th and 6th there.
As for Haas, that's a good point that they've taken Sauber's place. I worry for next season though as I think things will get hard for them...
I can see Renault cancelling development on 2016 and concentrating on 2017 soon. If Kvyat doesn't lose his head and his career completely (not looking too great right now) then I can see him making a decent home here, as he still has a lot to give.
Haha if McLaren don't get it right next year (and I'm not really seeing it unless they change structure) I will start to accept they aren't really going to.SPAM - Going off topic to give you the deals you don't want.
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3rd June 2016, 09:28 #22
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Many thoughts, rj. Instead of quoting every sentence I try to make it short:
* Ferrari - I think we need to wait till Canada to evaluate, how their season is going to end up like. RBR looks good on twisty circuits, but on faster circuits with PU advantage Ferrari may easily be second best like they were last year.
* Vandoorne's debut seemed fine, he even outqualified Button. Sometimes rookies can put in very good performances on their debut, recall Magnussen (2014) and Pérez (2011).
* Force India has outqualified McLaren on every circuit, just had some misfortunes early in the season, which disturbed their point score in races. F.I was comfortably better than McLaren even at Monaco, where power unit counts less.
* McLaren chassis is better than Williams, for sure. But behind Mercedes, RBR, Ferrari, and possibly Toro Rosso. "Tyre issues" is just a way of explaining actual chassis weaknesses, just like Ferrari has trouble heating up tyres in qualifying. It is an inherent weakness of the car.
* Ericsson is indeed beating Nasr. I don't think Ericsson is great, but I suspect Nasr himself is quite an inconsistent driver. On occasions can be good (like on debut race last year!), but can have pretty unimpressive patches of form too.
* Wehrlein hasn't put in much of a gap over Haryanto in qualis, but seems relatively stronger in races. Maybe a new Button or Räikkönen, who struggles in qualis, but is good in races?
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3rd June 2016, 09:29 #23
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As for 2017... Well, actually I don't think Red Bull is going to dominate, because power unit will still be important (even if less so). And I do think Mercedes still has at least some PU advantage next year. But that's for another topic.
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3rd June 2016, 19:47 #24
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I don't think Redbull need the fastest engine to haul in Mercedes. They need an engine that is reasonably close to the Mercedes engine's horsepower and they would make up the difference with aerodynamics poweress. Monaco clearly shows that Redbull have the better aero package compared to the Mercedes. But they are very close. Translate this to 2017, it could be a lot closer, particularly if Renault can make a further step forward with the engine by the start of the 2017 season.
Sordo https://youtu.be/NKqJQLKlqDA?si=199ai_aOf2Qs8qJ7 Munster https://youtu.be/c_7JuAJ1W18?si=_GaShLZCbhDzO1Y3 Neuville https://youtu.be/squR_MO6I6c?si=rJEuQEKWMo-qghX5
WRC Testing