A question to the wise about the constructor championship. Is there any way....

[nixon]

Redbull team will not win. Looking at my bookie outfit they have them as 1 to 2 favorites. In other words bet 100 dollars to win 50. It seems to be a no brainer and easy money.Also of note it seems Redbull's cars are reliable in that they seldom don't finish a race do to technical failure. Or is there a chance that one of the other teams has changes in the works that will enable them to challenge red bulls dominance in the second half of the season.

Thanks in advance
Any input appreciated

[dj_bytedisaster]

It's not as safe a bet as you think. They are leading at the moment, but that is down to the fact that Alonso took himself out at Malaysia and his lackluster drive in Monaco. Also Mercedes were appallingly bad on the tyres so far, but completely unrelated to the dodgy test of course, they had Red Bull in check on tyre degrad in Monaco. So as it looks now, RB might end up the only team that can't get the MAOM's to work and might well slip back as the season goes on.

[zako85]

Grosjean is not consistent enough to let Lotus get close enough to RBR. The only other title contender is Ferrari. Vettel is slowly out scoring Alonso. Even if Alonso beats him, the points spread will be small. Ferrari really needs Massa's help in the WCC. However, Massa was rattled pretty badly in the Monaco crash. Who knows how long he will take to fully recover, physically and emotionally. So right now, I would bet cautiously on RBR to win.

PS: I don't think Mercedes will be a contender. For one, the Monaco win does need to imply much. Monaco is a quite unique race track in the calendar. We need to see a couple more races to make a full judgement on Mercedes.

[faster69]

Red Bull has been the third best car this season. Vettel has been utterly incredible. They may even have the fourth best car come Montreal if Mercedes have improved and Lotus has maintained development. Webber has been nowhere other than Malaysia and Monaco (probably his best circuit) and Vettel has gotten everything possible out of the machinery he's been given.

A Lotus in the hands of Vettel would be leading the championship no question about it.

[Ranger]

A Lotus in the hands of Vettel would be leading the championship no question about it.

With a Red Bull in the hands of Raikkonen? Doubt it.

[faster69]

With a Red Bull in the hands of Raikkonen? Doubt it.

Massa matched Kimi in 2007 and then beat him straight up in 2008. I think that myth has been put to bed.

And even when he did finally win in 2007 he had to have the most incredible sequence of events for it to happen. Hamilton had one of the biggest all-time chokes in sporting history. Even had to have Massa slow down and hand him the win in Brazil.

Then you have the Monaco Grand Prix. Kimi had a third year driver in a much slower car swarming all over the back of him lap after lap.

He's gonna get blown away next year at Red Bull. But it doesn't matter because his fan bois will have every excuse in the book. "Vettel has been there since 2009" "Vettel is team leader even if it's not stated" maybe something about "the car not suited to Kimi's driving style". There will be every excuse they can think of.

20 wins from 183 races for a guy that has always had a car capable of race wins except for 2001 is a pretty mediocre performance.

[Ranger]

20 wins from 183 races for a guy that has always had a car capable of race wins except for 2001 is a pretty mediocre performance.

This proves you are merely a statistic farmer who never watched nor understood any of those races.

[faster69]

I have missed about 6 races in 19 years.

He's always been in good teams, has had years where he was really on it (like 2005), but could never put it together consistently. Poor qualifier at the death, inconsistent racer, but when there's no pressure on can pull out a fastest lap of the race.

One world championship is about all he deserves.

[Koz]

Red Bull has been the third best car this season. Vettel has been utterly incredible. They may even have the fourth best car come Montreal if Mercedes have improved and Lotus has maintained development. Webber has been nowhere other than Malaysia and Monaco (probably his best circuit) and Vettel has gotten everything possible out of the machinery he's been given.

A Lotus in the hands of Vettel would be leading the championship no question about it.

So what makes you think the Red Bull is the third best car?

[faster69]

Clearly it is. It's just that Raikonnen and Alonso have been abysmal in qualifying. Ferrari and Lotus two best cars. They just don't have a superstar driver like Red Bull do.

[henners88]

And even when he did finally win in 2007 he had to have the most incredible sequence of events for it to happen. Hamilton had one of the biggest all-time chokes in sporting history. Even had to have Massa slow down and hand him the win in Brazil.
I agree Kimi was lucky to win in 2007 but he was the most consistent and scored more points which is all that matters.

I don't remember Hamilton choking that race but my memory is hazy. I remember him missing his breaking point in frustration on the opening lap when trying to get a position back from his team mate, but I'm not sure that is regarded as a 'choke'. He compromised his race but if anything he showed too much courage, especially as he was a rookie too. His championship wasn't helped by a software malfunction on the car that put his gearbox into neutral from sixth gear. It cost him places and time and by that time it was all over. A badly managed year by McLaren with two very capable drivers, but Hamilton could be proud he'd had the most impressive rookie season in the sport for a long time.

I'd like to see Kimi win a championship by dominating, rather than inheriting and its clear his has the ability and speed.

[henners88]

Clearly it is. It's just that Raikonnen and Alonso have been abysmal in qualifying. Ferrari and Lotus two best cars. They just don't have a superstar driver like Red Bull do.
So Mercedes have the two best drivers on the grid judging by the amount of pole positions so far, if we use your logic of course. They just don't have the car to carry the speed through the race.