Monaco GP 2008 !

[pino]

1st practice session times :

1. RAIKKONEN Ferrari 1m15.948s

2. HAMILTON McLaren 1m16.216s

3. KOVALAINEN McLaren 1m16.248s

4. MASSA Ferrari 1m16.292s

5. ROSBERG Williams 1m16.653s

6. KUBICA BMW 1m16.834s

7. ALONSO Renault 1m17.498s

8. BARRICHELLO Honda 1m17.511s

9. WEBBER Red Bull 1m17.798s

10. FISICHELLA Force India 1m17.835s

11. GLOCK Toyota 1m17.942s

12. BUTTON Honda 1m18.153s

13. BOURDAIS Toro Rosso 1m18.245s

14. HEIDFELD BMW 1m18.263s

15. NAKAJIMA Williams 1m18.274s

16. TRULLI Toyota 1m18.360s

17. SUTIL Force India 1m18.360s

18. PIQUET Renault 1m18.955s

19. VETTEL Toro Rosso 1m19.176s

20. COULTHARD Red Bull no time

[pino]

No surprises at the moment really, except for Jarno who hit the barrier, hopefully the car will be ok for the pole/race

[aryan]

I'd also say Heidfeld at P.13 is a bit a surprise.

Piquet needs to find some speed real fast. 1.5s slower than Alonso.

Bourdais is 0.9 faster than Vettel in the new car. He was comfortably one second faster than him in the early part of the session as well when only their two cars were running.

And of course, all this means nothing if the race is wet...

[Knock-on]

No surprises at the moment really, except for Jarno who hit the barrier, hopefully the car will be ok for the pole/race

Can't see him being on pole mate, even if you put him in the Ferrari :D

[Valve Bounce]

If anyone is intrested, it's on the net!!

I'd also say Heidfeld at P.13 is a bit a surprise.

He stopped on track with damage on the rear of his car.

[Valve Bounce]

The sun is shining, Kova is strapped in, and Heidfeld is out on the track

[Valve Bounce]

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,and the chat room is open: http://hyena-hosting.com/chat/phpMyChat.php3

[ArrowsFA1]

Monaco rocks :s mokin: The wide open spaces of somewhere like Turkey give you little impression of the sheer energy & speed of an F1 car, particularly on tv, but watching the tv pictures from Monco really does.

The in-car camera really gives you the idea of, not only how quick these guys are, but just how precise they must be. Also, the head-on shot through the Swimming Pool complex is awesome.

[samuratt]

I have to say that monaco is, without a doubt, the most challenging circuit I have ever been with my PS2. XDDDD

[MAX_THRUST]

Got to ask, what the hell is MAX doing there?????

Has this man got no brain? What will be in the paper Sunday I wonder. He has to be the most self important, arogant fool. I want to watch the racing and not here about that sad old mans story again. He has to go from the FIA. Wrong thread I knowl.

Can't wait for Sundays race.....not much passing but always my favourite.

[ioan]

Got to ask, what the hell is MAX doing there?????

Has this man got no brain? What will be in the paper Sunday I wonder. He has to be the most self important, arogant fool. I want to watch the racing and not here about that sad old mans story again. He has to go from the FIA. Wrong thread I knowl.

He does what he wants, it's a free world after all! :rolleyes:

[jens]

http://217.204.13.141/resources/documents/1735067717__MON_08_Session2_Lap_Times.pdf

Very hard to make a concete analysis as the laptimes fluctuate a lot, but it looks like McLaren is capable of beating Ferrari on this circuit.

Oh and looking at the lap chart I guess Toyota sucks for the second year in a row.

[Dave B]

Got to ask, what the hell is MAX doing there?????.


He does what he wants, it's a free world after all! :rolleyes:

Could I respectfully request that we leave you-know-who out of this thread? Monaco is always a special event so let's keep at least one thread on-track (pun slightly intended) and talk about the racing. :)

[Azumanga Davo]

Onya Fisichella! Another wonderful showing. I know it's practice but any occasion he outperforms is always welcome to me. :)

[pino]

2nd Practice session times :

1. Lewis Hamilton (Gbr) McLaren-Mercedes 1'15"140
2. Nico Rosberg (Ger) Williams 1'15"533
3. Kimi Raikkonen (Fin) Ferrari 1'15"572
4. Felipe Massa (Bra) Ferrari 1'15"869
5. Heikki Kovalainen (Fin) McLaren-Mercedes 1'15"881
6. Robert Kubica (Pol) BMW-Sauber 1'16"296
7. Fernando Alonso (Spa) Renault 1'16"310
8. Jenson Button (Gbr) Honda 1'16"351
9. Kazuki Nakajima (Jpn) Williams 1'16"372
10. Rubens Barrichello (Bra) Honda 1'16"48
11. Nick Heidfeld (Ger) BMW-Sauber 1'16"426
12. Timo Glock (Ger) Toyota 1'16"688
13. Mark Webber (Aus) Red Bull 1'17"094
14. David Coulthard (Gbr) Red Bull 1'17"131
15. Nelson Piquet Jr. (Bra) Renault 1'17"246
16. Giancarlo Fisichella (Ita) Force India 1'17"251
17. Jarno Trulli (Ita) Toyota 1'17"379
18. Sebastien Bourdais (Fra) Toro Rosso 1'17"581
19. Adrian Sutil (Ger) Force India 1'18"176
20. Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Toro Rosso 1'18"225


btw let's keep Mosley off here thanks !

[Ranger]

At this rate, Grid position 20 has Vettel's name written all over it!

[Valve Bounce]

I thought Vettel is supposed to get a 5 places penalty; that would make it grid position 25, no??

[SGWilko]

btw let's keep Mosley off here thanks !

Stop keep referring to him then..... :rolleyes: ;)

[SGWilko]

Could I respectfully request that we leave you-know-who out of this thread?

Who's been reading far too many J.K. Rowling books then? ;)

[Dave B]

Who's been reading far too many J.K. Rowling books then? ;)
Not me. I skim-read one of the Hairy Pittas and couldn't be arsed with any more. :)

[ioan]

Let's go back to f1 in Monaco.
Qualifying has already started, and the new car isn't helping STR a lot, they should have sticked with the old chassis, they got better results with that one.

[pino]

Rosberg is flying today :eek: :up:

[ioan]

Stunning lap from Rosberg!

[pino]

Coulthard off was a drive mistake or a mechanic failure ?

[ioan]

Driver mistake, he lost the car under braking and touched the wall.

[ioan]

Felipe on pole, again! Well he was fastest on all of the 3 qualy sessions.

[pino]

Driver mistake, he lost the car under braking and touched the wall.

Thanks, another pole for Massa then :up:

[ArrowsFA1]

Driver mistake, he lost the car under braking and touched the wall.
You must have had the chance to see the Red Bull data before the team :eek:

Anyway, great pole position for Felipe :up: He seemed as surprised as anyone :p : but he's all set to take the win tomorrow.

[aryan]

Body language told me that Massa has more fuel than Kimi.

Kimi would have been more upbeat in the press conference had it been vice versa.

Based on all sector times, Lewis seems to be about 0.2 sec slower than the Ferraris.

Still, there is the possibility of rain and that can turn everything around...

[gloomyDAY]

I was shocked. Tazio was right because Massa is on fire!

Is the season over?

There are plenty of races to be had, but Ferrari is giving everyone else a beatdown. I don't think there's much hope in reversing the fortunes for Ferrari because they're just dominating the entire championship.

[jens]

Great job by Felipe! :up: Many have doubted about his Monaco abilities... and also Kimi has been expected to be really strong on this circuit. This weekend proves that FM is capable of beating KR almost anywhere. Ferrari faster than McLaren? Hmm. Yeah, Ferrari was expected to be stronger this year with also the shorter wheelbase, but still a bit surprised that McLaren couldn't take the pole, especially as the Macs have had an advantage over one lap. If McLaren is unable to beat Ferrari even on 'mechanical' circuits, then are the hopes of seeing a close season coming over? Hamilton lost the pole by about 0,05 secs in Q3, so the strategy McLaren has chosen for him, isn't quite working. One lap less fuel and he could have been on pole with a lot better outlooks.

Williams - very good as expected and as they have usually been at Monaco. :up: Rosberg still surprised a bit though as he actually looked like a match to Ferraris and McLarens in Q1 and Q2. I think he is on a heavier fuel load (P6 in Q3) and may have opted for a one-stopper.

BMW is another disappointment. They were expected to be strong on this circuit. Heidfeld was a disappointment again, but Kubica didn't set the world alight either and BMW looks like only 4th fastest package this time. Are the thoughts like BMW is really not able to develop as quickly as the top teams throughout the season really becoming true?

Great job by Jarno, I certainly didn't expect to see that car in Q3 before qualifying. His last attempt in Q2 was excellent and he clocked a time, which was slower than the fastest time by 0,488, so Toy has managed to keep the loss around half a second per lap. Good show by Timo too and he looked like a match to Jarno throughout the qualifying until JT's very last attempt in Q2. Nonetheless a very good performance, especially as Jarno is almost unbeatable on the streets of Monaco anyway. :D

Red Bull and Honda are more or less there, where expected. In 2007 DC looked a tad quicker than Webber in quali (before he got penalized), but this year Webber seemed quicker than DC by about a tenth throughout the qualifying. An encouraging performance. Jr and Naka got absolutely trashed by their team-mates. Piquet was all over the place, running wide and almost clipping the wall. But hard pushing was filled with tiny mistakes and he failed once again.

Btw, this time Sutil seemed good too, IMO. I wonder whether Fisichella had a problem, because his loss was way too big. Vettel looked determined at the start of Q1, but faded in the end. An interesting STR team-mate battle carries on: 3-3 in qualis between Sebs (can't compare races as they hardly ever have a problemfree race).

[aryan]

pretty much sum up my feelings jens.

If Ferrari can beat McLaren in Monaco, and over one lap, the season is really over! Ferrari fans rejoice!

How many more reaces should we give to Piquet to fail in Q1? I mean, Bourdais in a Toro Rosso beat him...

Rosberg might be the wild card tomorrow. I've been impressed with his speed since Thursday, and I'm sure he has more fuel than Kubica.

What's happening to Nick? He can't be 1 sec slower than Rob, can he?

I really feel like Truli is over driving that car. I think the Toyota is slower than all other midfield players on this track...

Looking forward to the race... and the weather forecast

[ioan]

The forecast is rain tomorrow at 14:00.

[truefan72]

I am severely dissapointed with LH/McLaren, but I'd like to know the race fuel loads of each of the top 4 cars.
I also don't understand why he ( and Kimi too) backed off with time to spare when he could have pushed for another lap and possibly pole. As we know Pole is half the battle at monaco so I'm not sure why they backed him off after his last lap..to save what, fuel?
Why wasn't anybody communicationg to him that Massa was purple in sector 1&2 and that he needed to push for pole with one more lap. The same argument goes for kimi too. I just don't understand.

Anyway, we'll see how the race develops tomorrow. All bets are off if it rains.

Another reason to change the stupifd rules.
1.no fuel rule in Q3, - I want to see the fastest times
2.no setup freeze after Qualifying - teams need to adjust for weather conditions, or to make whatever adjustments they see fit.

didn't F1 used to have a sunday warmups?
bring it back. You can't change the grid, but you can make necessary adjustments.
but I digress.

oh well.

I guess Lewis should have pushed harder. I think he might have been a bit overconfident and didn;t continuewith the same ferocity he displayedon Thursday and Saturday morning.

Congrats ioan :)

[aryan]

I also don't understand why he ( and Kimi too) backed off with time to spare when he could have pushed for another lap and possibly pole.

Tyres. Those super-soft tyres. They were past their prime. They are at their peak for one lap only. The second lap, you've lost 0.2 to 0.3 by default. There was no point going for another lap, also considering that they would have burned one lap of their race fuel in this process.

[aryan]

right now at 8:45 AM the sky is clear, but rain is forecasted from 10 AM to 6 PM.

It seems we are in for a wet monaco.

I know there is potential for mayham and disasterous starts behind SC, but we also know that this, a wet Monaco, is as close as it gets to seeing the true abilities of the drivers.

May this be a memorable and exciting one!

[Valve Bounce]

Here's the webcam for Monte Carlo Casino, and it looks very wet on the ground right now. http://www.patricksenecal.com/webcams/w-english0112.php

[Valve Bounce]

I was just thinking: if the two Ferraris win the start and go one two on the track, will the second driver slow down just a little to keep the third car well behind the leader?

[truefan72]

if it is a wet start ( from a standstill) expect massa to be passed by 2-3 drivers before Mirabeau...

I don't mind wet races, but I have no interest in seeing carnage at Monaco.

[F1boat]

If it is dry, we must see whether Lewis is heavier than the Ferrari cars, but if he is not, the season will be difficult. If it rains, I think that Hamilton has a slightly better chance than the red drivers, but I think that Fernando will be the man to watch!

[Hawkmoon]

I don't think we have that much info to go on about the top 4 in the wet.

Sure Massa has a weakness in the wet but going on last year Hamilton had a shocker at the Nurburgring and a good race in Japan, as did Raikkonen and Kovalainen.

My money is on Raikkonen if it rains.

[Ghostwalker]

weather forecasts for Monte Carlo. (http://www.accuweather.com/world-index-forecast.asp?partner=accuweather&locCode=EUR%7CMC%7CMN000%7CMONTE%20CARLO%7C&u=1)
It says Rain all afternoon.

[F1boat]

In the Porshe Supercup Race - extremely wet conditions.

[ShiftingGears]

I have to say it's probably going to be one of the top 4, minus Massa.

However I wouldn't complain if Webber, Alonso or Kubica won :p :

[F1boat]

It will actually be a lottery...

[jens]

If it is a wet race, I think we will see a rolling start behind the Safety Car. After 1998 Spa it has happened on a lot of occasions, when the track is wet in the beginning. And it'll almost certainly happen at Monaco. The organizers don't want to risk with a huge pile-up and as TV channels have a lot of say these days - a delay and a restart would destroy all the time schedule. Therefore I'm afraid we might see the first 10 laps behind SC. :s

I'm seriously sceptical about a "great race" in the wet at Monaco. Let me guess - over half of the race will be driven behind SC. The safety rules these days are so strict that SC will be brought out even for a tiny reason. :rolleyes:

[71minus2]

just watched the last half of the Porsche race and it didnt seem that wet, well there were no massive puddles or running water visible.

If it is a SC start then the race will be crap, the start is the only place to overtake unless you have the nerve to bansai it out of the tunnel.

[F1boat]

just watched the last half of the Porsche race and it didnt seem that wet, well there were no massive puddles or running water visible.


Actually I saw! There was watter falling from the Porshe like a small waterfall!

[Valve Bounce]

Look!! here is the webcam - see for yourself. http://www.montecarlo-online.net/webcam.htm

If the track is wet, doesn't matter how much rain is not falling, the wheels are going to get a lot less grip... get it!! Like NO TRAX!!

[jens]

We haven't had a very surprising race winner for a while. The last true surprises... oh wait, let me see, there seems to be some logic. :p :

1996 Panis (his 1st win)
<3-year-gap>
1999 Herbert (Stewart's first win)
<4-year-gap>
2003 Fisichella (his 1st win)
<5-year-gap>
2008... (whose 1st win?)
:D

Who may become a new winner? I have a strange feeling that one day Webber will win a race - I don't know if it happens today, but one day... :p : It would also be Red Bull's first win. Can't believe Toyota will win its 1st race (they'll mess up with strategy as usual). What about 'unproven wet weather driver' Rosberg? Or... what about Vettel? Or Force India's first win? :crazy: Fisi has already won in a real dog of a car, so why not? :p :

Kubica's win won't be such huge surprise I think and he'll win sooner or later, so I don't consider him among "shock" results now.

[F1boat]

If we have a shock winner today, I think that it might be Sutil, Vettel or Bourdais. And Webber and Coulthard, too.

[Valve Bounce]

Looks like a wet race - I just wonder how many cars will retire! I think it is possible to get a surprise winner today under the conditions of no TRAX, no engine braking, and a lot of gung ho from the lessor qualifiers.

We could argue/ponder how many laps DC will last before somebody accidentally trips over him.

Interesting.

[71minus2]

Actually I saw! There was watter falling from the Porshe like a small waterfall!

And a Porsche has a lot of surface for water to run off!

I guess its a wait and see exercise, hopefully it'll be a normal start.

[F1boat]

DC has won twice in Monaco and is lucky here. I would not rule out his victory.

[ArrowsFA1]

Mark Webber:
"I think quite a few guys are nervous about the rain. We love the challenge of driving in the wet, but driving around here is a bit insane really. It is very, very slippery. And although it is good for people at home if they want to watch cars hitting fences, it will not be a great motor race if it is really wet and raining."
Lewis Hamilton:
"So as long as we choose the right tyre, and I don't make any mistakes, we should be able to bring the car home in a strong points finish. I think with it wet, it just gives you even more of an opportunity to win. When it is dry here and you are stating third, it's very hard to overtake - it's almost impossible to overtake. Especially when the car next to you is almost doing the same times. So in the wet you can get a little bit closer, you are less reliant on downforce, and you can press other people into mistakes, and expect other people to make mistakes. So I'm sure that if it's wet there are going to be some Safety Cars, so it could be a really exciting race."
Jenson Button:
"In the wet, people are going to make more mistakes so there are possibilities to overtake, but it's very risky around here," he explained. But we've got to give it a go. The pace in the wet is pretty good. I'm happy with the car in the wet. I know there is some onboard footage, and it is as bad as it looks on the onboard footage – it's very, very slippery out there, very twitchy, especially in the Swimming Pool complex, because there are a lot of white lines. And it's high speed as well, so you're turning into the Swimming Pool, and there's white lines, and it will give a bit of a twitch, so it's pretty scary here in the wet. But it's also a lot of fun, and I'm looking forward to it now that we've had practice."
http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/67714

[jens]

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/67715

Quick news before the race. DC will start from P15 due to gearbox change.

[jens]

From Autosport.

10:05 The World Series by Renault cars have completed their race on a damp and drying racetrack. The race was started under safety car for safety reasons, and also ended under safety car after a two-car crash at the Massenet.

One more hint that we will see a rolling start if the track appears to be wet in the beginning.

[ShiftingGears]

I really hope the organisers and the drivers just man up and start it like a proper grand prix.

[Valve Bounce]

DC has won twice in Monaco and is lucky here. I would not rule out his victory.

Well he just received a 5 grid penalty because he had to change his gearbox - so while you may not rule out a DC victory, you'd have to rely on a calamity to hit 14 cars ahead of him. maybe a rainstorm will wash them into the harbour - who knows.

[Valve Bounce]

..........and maybe the sun will come out and dry the track.

[cosmicpanda]

I can't get the webcam picture - is it raining in Monaco?

[ozrevhead]

http://www.camvista.com/europe/monaco/montecarlocasinosquare.php

try that one

[ozrevhead]

..........and maybe the sun will come out and dry the track.
And thus Marks setup being screwed

[cosmicpanda]

http://www.camvista.com/europe/monaco/montecarlocasinosquare.php

try that one

thanks.

I can't tell from the still picture but it definitely looks grey and very overcast.

[Valve Bounce]

I have live coverage from ITV and although it doesn't look like rain, some people are standing under umbrellas

[elinagr]

hamilton will pit another 1 so he will be back of kubica,

[Ghostwalker]

hamilton will manage 1st spot unless pit stop goes wrong.

[janneppi]

Räikkönen aims for the donkey of the race title. Abysmal performance.

[VkmSpouge]

Best race so far this year, plenty of excitement thanks to the weather. Hamilton was pretty lucky today but also pretty fast, deservedly won. Rubens Barrichello did well to score points for Honda and Sebastien Vettel also drove well. I felt really sorry for Adrian Sutil.

[ioan]

There is one Ferrari driver who was better than the other for the 2nd year in a row! ;)

[jens]

Well, I'll mention here things I haven't talked about in other threads.

Firstly I feel extremely sorry to Kovalainen. He is just incredibly unlucky. He has shown that he could be capable of matching Hamilton, but... we just have never seen this, 'cause something has constantly happened to him. I really hope he'll have a string of strong and problemfree drives in the near future to show, what he is worth.

Rosberg is a very talented driver, but he seems to have one flaw - wet weather racing. I can't recall a single wet race, where he hasn't binned it. Actually he has one bright moment - clocked 6th time in wet qualifying for the Japanese GP last year. He doesn't seem to be quite 'speedless' in the wet (made some FL's at Monaco too), but has to find consistency to put in constantly quick laps, not just a few of them.

Nakajima on the other hand seems steady and collects the points, when the opportunity arises. His strength isn't raw speed, so he is trying to capitalize on consistency. Actually it looks quite strange that Kazuki is only 1 point behind Nico in the WDC, but I think the rest of the season will enable Nico to pull clear in the points standings.

Barrichello - points after ages must be relieving. However, Button has seemed to be messing up a bit too often in recent wet races (Fuji last year, also Nürburgring).

[aryan]

Heikki has had a string of bad luck now.

I think this is the third consecutive race where he has really been unlucky.

And yet when you look at his times, he's there with Hamilton.

I really hope he has a couple of strong performances to put this away. He shouldn't let this turning into a monkey on his back. He's such a top chap!

I also did notive Nakajima only being one point adrift of Rosberg. Unlike you however I'm not that too sure whther Rosberg will pull away as he should in the next races. Remember that Nakajima is just a rookie and he is bound to improve with time and with more races under his belt.

[Valve Bounce]

Firstly I feel extremely sorry to Kovalainen. He is just incredibly unlucky. He has shown that he could be capable of matching Hamilton, but... we just have never seen this, 'cause something has constantly happened to him.

.

You see, Anthony has this red button on his mobile (cell) phone and when he presses it ........................ :eek:

[PSfan]

Was I the only one who thought it was a bit strange that the McLeran team didn't seem to put much effort into "checking" out Hamilton's rear suspension after his little bump? Most teams would stick and arm in there and give the suspension a little shake to make sure everythings in proper order.

[SGWilko]

Was I the only one who thought it was a bit strange that the McLeran team didn't seem to put much effort into "checking" out Hamilton's rear suspension after his little bump? Most teams would stick and arm in there and give the suspension a little shake to make sure everythings in proper order.

Yes, you were. ;) :D

[Mintexmemory]

:wave: Hi everyone, back on board after winter hibernation, same old I see - virtually every pre-race hope / prediction wide of the mark (some not even in the same time zone). What yesterday showed quite clearly is that Ferarri have come to believe that results will just fall in to their lap and adopted an overly conservative approach with Massa - who doesn't like the wet.
Massa, Raikenen and Alonso (ultra wets fer chrissakes) are all at a disadvantage to Hamilton and Kubica when it comes dealing with the loss of traction control. Mclaren are far from out of it this year and with Canada next they'll be on a high, Go Lewis - a deserved Monaco win so soon in his career will be a boost for the rest of this season.

[Corny]

question: did we see a single overtakingsmanouvre in yesterday's race?

[donKey jote]

question: did we see a single overtakingsmanouvre in yesterday's race?

Alonso on Webber :D
straight before getting stuck and losing his patience behind Heidfeld :p :