2021 - Race 19 Brazil

[The Black Knight]

Could they do that and stay below the cost cap? What is the penalty for breaking the bank? Maybe this close to the end of the season, they think they have the funds to do it within the cap.

Is Engine part of the cost cap? Am not certain. Can someone confirm?

[gm99]

Qatar has almost a mile long straight which would suit the Mercedes perfectly.

Almost a mile is a bit exaggerated, it's just over 1 km (two thirds of a mile), so about the same as Austin or Barcelona.

[Zico]

Is Engine part of the cost cap? Am not certain. Can someone confirm?

The PU appears to not be included in the cost cap.. although Horner expects it to be at some point in the future.

https://www.planetf1.com/news/christ...gine-cost-cap/

So.. a 5 place grid drop for a huge power hike?

According to motorsport magazine:

https://www.motorsportmagazine.com/a...an-gp-analysis

The top speed advantage Hamilton had over Bottas in Q3 was 5.5kmh. That equates to roughly 43BHP extra power ( a) from a new engine and b) run in a much more aggressive mode). Will correlates pretty accurately with a 0.35s laptime advantage mentioned in the same article. 43bhp is a pretty significant number.

0.35s per lap over a 71-lap race is around 25s. Now he probably would not have net gain the whole race, but it does paint a pretty grim picture for RB. This is all without the diffuser stall effect even considered.

[Nitrodaze]

Almost a mile is a bit exaggerated, it's just over 1 km (two thirds of a mile), so about the same as Austin or Barcelona.

It is exactly 0.66362443 mile to be exact. Which is long enough for the Mercedes engine to be problematic for Redbull.

[airshifter]

Everything I've seen leads me to believe that Merc did exactly what is being discussed here. They took a powerplant and turned it up to 11 knowing it only had less than half usual the usual distance to cover. With so many things impacting overall performance this really should be easy for them to do if they know the major components will handle it. With the MGU-H in the system, they can raise boost quicker than conventional turbos, and really the most restrictive element is still fuel flow. A lot of variable were left uncapped, and fuel flow was the major way to keep the outputs sane in the turbo hybrid era. You can run almost any engine leaner and produce more power at the expense of longevity, though I don't know if they have reached that point with the latest Merc engine setup. The tuning possibilities are huge with the current tech, and no doubt they have explored them in depth.

It seems like a good tradeoff.... at certain circuits. In the case of Merc, everything points to them having more degradation in power vs Honda, so if they were already pushing limits it makes sense to set it up for more output through a shorter life cycle. If you have to swap engines regardless, more chance they will gamble towards the end of the season.

Even at lower power increases than some suspect, extra HP is even more advantageous on certain tracks. With the hybrid systems in place, they might be able to not use energy stores as often in slower parts of the track that are chassis limited for speed. That gives them even more electrical energy available to use it where they can, and especially for overtaking work.



BUT... keep in mind other teams can easily do the same. Though we don't know if anyone would take a new ICE for a race weekend unless they really needed a new engine, it's always possible. And, if they are really backed in a corner, there is a chance that a team has the ability to turn one up to 12 instead of 11, limiting use to a race weekend or such. If the title fights stay as close as they are, it's possible that RB and Merc could both uncork a one race distance screamer and take an all or nothing approach to the final races.

Which would be awesome really. Team boss to engine development manager.... "Release the hounds!"




As for the straights, several circuits have longer straights than Losail, including COTA, Mexico and Yas Marina.

[Nitrodaze]

Yeah , Max escaped without penalty , and was pretty lucky to do so .
It looked a little ugly to me .

So , if that wing actually cost him time in qually , when he was already 4 tenths ahead , how fast is that thing ?

It seems that Red Bull is genuinely surprised at this speed they have suddenly found .
But , I'm not .

That said , it was a stunning show from Lewis all weekend , who leaves Sao Paulo without a scratch on his car .
The whole gambit relies on him driving just as he did today , recovering a 25 place deficit to win .

The lastest release of the onboard video show it was clearly intentional. Verstappen can be seen to delay turning into the corner until he had Hamilton off the track before he started turning the wheel. It is very hard to see why the stewards did not take punitive action. Check this out

[The Black Knight]

The lastest release of the onboard video show it was clearly intentional. Verstappen can be seen to delay turning into the corner until he had Hamilton off the track before he started turning the wheel. It is very hard to see why the stewards did not take punitive action. Check this out

Agreed. I think there needs to be a rule that these sort of incidents be reviewed after if the stewards decide no action and a grid penalty applied the next race should they get it wrong.

[Bagwan]

I find it concerning that the stewards seemingly had no way to see the footage from Max's car at the time .

I can't see it , myself , either , as it won't show me in my region , but if it's as definitive as you guys and many others imply , then it's a mess .

I remember thinking at the time that there would be a hell of a job for the stewards if Hamilton couldn't pass him before the end of the race .
And then , moments later , I shook my head , remembering the second Lewis had in his pocket in Monaco , realizing it was merely a matter of time until Hamilton passed him .

Having this incident to put Max in the black cowboy hat for the final races was just a bonus .
I don't know if they even can penalize him here , but Merc wins again even if he escapes penalty .

[Nitrodaze]

Agreed. I think there needs to be a rule that these sort of incidents be reviewed after if the stewards decide no action and a grid penalty applied the next race should they get it wrong.

If you and l can see it, it really beggars the question of why the so-called stewards cannot see it. It just smacks of incompetence or corruption. They were able to see seatbelt was loosened. Which is harder to decern than a driver running another of the track.

[denkimi]

The lastest release of the onboard video show it was clearly intentional. Verstappen can be seen to delay turning into the corner until he had Hamilton off the track before he started turning the wheel. It is very hard to see why the stewards did not take punitive action. Check this out

They didn't take punitive action because pushing people of the track is allowed for some years now.

Unless you have passed someone completely before the braking zone, if the defending driver is on the inside he can push the one trying to overtake off the track. You don't have to leave any space, even when they are wheel to wheel.
And if they touch, the one trying to overtake will usually be blamed.

Very stupid and dangerous, but that's how the rules are applied nowaday.