:)Quote:
Originally Posted by Jens
This is emblematic of your entire post. I was being facetious you silly boy. (Red Bull and McLaren have consistently ended session in the center of the time sheets) ]http://f1tests.co.cc/2012.php[/url]
Printable View
:)Quote:
Originally Posted by Jens
This is emblematic of your entire post. I was being facetious you silly boy. (Red Bull and McLaren have consistently ended session in the center of the time sheets) ]http://f1tests.co.cc/2012.php[/url]
Of course teams dont show their full pace capability but does that really have anything to do with catching the rest of the grid on the hop? What advantage would intentional sandbagging at pre-season testing actually give?
Surely all teams are working at 100% in every area (no matter what) to ensure they have the best possible package with the available resources they have. I just dont see this knowledge of where they are in the pecking order as a significant advantage/disadvantage.... I suspect that a consistant tyre, fuel load, aero etc testing program has far more value than disguising raw pace and this (consistant testing) is their main and most valuable objective and ultimately helps determine what their raw pace will be.
I was in Barcelona last week for two days of the testing. From what I saw there the McLaren looks very good on slow speed corners and gets on the power slightly earlier than the Red Bulls but I think the RBR still generates more downforce through the high speed ones than the McLaren, not much appears to have changed in that area since last year. McLaren have a huge upgrade coming for the next test which might close this gap. I'm sure RBR aren't standing still either. I honestly think that Mercedes will have leap frogged Ferrari, at least at the start of the year. That Ferrari didn't look like an easy car to handle to me at all, but hard to judge this considering they are trying out so many different things at the moment. All up in the air really, but the McLarens and RBR's look close.
I think it is a bit of an illusion that someone may successfully fool the rest of the field. Insiders and teams have a lot of data, they are working next to other teams, see them all the time and I think they have a pretty good idea, where does anyone stand and what is really going on - including someone plays tricks. The only people, who can be surprised, are us, the fans, who do not have enough information available. :) Would an F1 team really sandbag just to catch out some F1 fans? Nah...
I think some engineers in the paddock have a very good idea, how does the current pecking order look like. But us, the fans on forums, keep discussing and wondering, how good each team might be and what could it all mean. We are merely guessing due to lack of information. And this generates all kinds of random views (like sandbagging) without a serious rationale behind it.
Good post Jens, :up: and very logical. In my way of thinking there is always gamesmanship between teams, and they really don't want the competition to know their ultimate speed. It may be a little bag of sand. ;) The engineers also know this, and they know that they can't take everything they observe as gospel. I think Wedge put this quite well:
Red Bull Managed to develop the EBD right under the other team’s noses, the same goes for McLaren’s F-duct.Quote:
RBR traditionally sandbag in GP weekends and it never hurt them. They look nothing special in FP until Vettel does his magic in Q3.
If you expose your speed then why draw needless attention? RBR tried to counter this by using stickers of fake exhausts! Ferrari admit their car has problems but then to what extent?
However these things are grossly exaggerated by the press, and many times are based on nothing but a Journo's whim. :)
Found this:
http://f.blick.ch/img/incoming/crop1...-8-nach-12.jpg
F1 media publications have done their evaluation of tests. :p : The ranking of Lotus is largely based on Jerez and at the present moment looks quite random as we don't know the effect of chassis issues. Force India has been the most impressive midfield team and may well beat Ferrari themselves.
These odds were posted about 1/2 way through preseason testing. You know what they say opinions are like.... everybody has one. :) ;)
http://img696.imageshack.us/img696/3...o20120223u.png
http://img820.imageshack.us/img820/3...o20120223u.png
I guess this belongs in here rather than the car launches thread:
Marussia forced to delay new Formula 1 car launch after failing final mandatory crash test - F1 news - AUTOSPORT.comQuote:
Marussia has been forced to scrap plans to run its new Formula 1 car at this week's Barcelona test after failing its final mandatory crash test.
Wonder if it's the same part of the test that caused HRT trouble? Either way it's a bad way to start the season. I was just thinking they've been very quiet recently.
here you ahve Alonso's thoughts about where Ferrari and everyone else is standing right now:
Fernando Alonso relaxed about Ferrari F1 team's pre-season preparations - F1 news - AUTOSPORT.com
Lot of "we hope" and "faith" in that statement. Reading between the lines, I think he's expecting to be fighting for 5/6th with Mercedes.Quote:
Originally Posted by mstillhere