2022 - Race 4 Imola

[F1nKS]

Two weeks off, back to the European continent.

1. Does RBR = Really Bad Reliability

2. Is this the week that Mercedes brings some upgrades to get them back into the hunt? Or will hear more whine from Hamilton cry about the team putting him in a bad place to lose against his teammate?

3. Will the Ferrari dominance continue?

4. It seems some drivers are really making a case on track that they should not be driving next year (latifi, stroll, Vettel). Will anyone of these change their narrative?

[Bagwan]

Another sprint race formatted weekend ahead .
At least you can call it a race now .

The reds are ahead , but it's wet , so it could be fun to watch anyway .

[F1nKS]

Rain benefited Max. Haas and Mclaren had good days.

Mick Schumacher putting pressure on Hamilton. How the table has turned.

[Bagwan]

Was it just the tire graining that had Max that much faster in the last laps ?

I noticed that Charles said he wondered about whether Red Bull was hiding pace until the end .



I'm also noticing almost nobody around here .
I had a few days where I couldn't get on the site , and was prompted by my machine to e-mail the admins and they fixed it .

I'm still wondering if anyone else has had the same trouble getting here .

[F1nKS]

Was it just the tire graining that had Max that much faster in the last laps ?

I noticed that Charles said he wondered about whether Red Bull was hiding pace until the end .



I'm also noticing almost nobody around here .
I had a few days where I couldn't get on the site , and was prompted by my machine to e-mail the admins and they fixed it .

I'm still wondering if anyone else has had the same trouble getting here .

There is probably two issues going on:

1. The site was down for a few days for everybody

2. Mercedes actually sucks, so all the Hamilton fanboys have departed.

[airshifter]

Was it just the tire graining that had Max that much faster in the last laps ?

I noticed that Charles said he wondered about whether Red Bull was hiding pace until the end .



I'm also noticing almost nobody around here .
I had a few days where I couldn't get on the site , and was prompted by my machine to e-mail the admins and they fixed it .

I'm still wondering if anyone else has had the same trouble getting here .

Yeah, dead site for 2-3 days I guess. I'm not sure who is fixing what but I'm glad they did.

As for today, I'm not sure what it was. It seemed like Charles had things easily in hand until near the end of the sprint, then Max clawed it back over time. Hard to say, and the Ferrari looked fast. Maybe Max is just getting mature enough to not fight too hard and see how the race goes. Leclerc made the start look way too easy, and I thought he was the easy winner myself.

Tomorrow could be interesting with tire strategies and the like, and I'm sure Ferrari and Charles want to reach the top step.

There is probably two issues going on:

1. The site was down for a few days for everybody

2. Mercedes actually sucks, so all the Hamilton fanboys have departed.

Yeah, I think some of the Merc and Lewis fans will just disappear. With Merc struggling so bad it seems hopeless for them right now. Makes me glad I don't get too invested in either drivers or teams!



I had actually replied to the thread earlier and managed to delete it fixing a typo. For some reason I should just avoid editing on mobile.


But RB need to get the car reliable or Ferrari (and Merc) are going to eat them up. Latifi, Stroll, Seb.... yeah time for at least two of them to go. I find it odd that Seb is struggling so bad, but it's been a while since he has been in a fast car and that probably hurts the talent base some.

Good sprint today overall. Some action at least with the fight at the front, Sainz making up for the qually accident, and Alonso fighting his butt off and just missing the points. I was pleased to see it work out for KMag and Haas with their tire choice. For a little while I thought it might come back to him more, but I think the safety car might have played a part there. Great to see the McLarens up near the top again, and Bottas did well to stay up there himself. I'm sure he grins ear to ear when he can place in front of the Mercs.

Sergio seems to be coming alive, I'm not sure if he is coming to grips with the new regs better, or somehow last year boosted his confidence. He seems much more capable this year, but qually is still a bad spot for him.


The porpoising is still strange.... some cars have it horribly and are fast, other cars seem stable but are slow. Those Ferrari's look like they could be spine crushing through a race, but they are still really fast.


Hopefully we have some good racing tomorrow!

[F1nKS]

Overall entertaining race. Is Sainz having the "ocon effect" - Sainz can't get any luck at all.

Just shows all those in the media crowning Ferrari, that it is a long season and anything can happen.

Some interesting team driver splits

Mclaren: Norris (3), Ricardo (18)
Mercedes: Russell (4), Hamilton (13)
Alpha Tauri: Yuki (7), Gasley (12)

[N. Jones]

Albon beating Latifi is all the proof we need that Latifi has to go.

[F1nKS]

Albon beating Latifi is all the proof we need that Latifi has to go.

What does it say when Albon beats Hamilton?

[sgr]

Toto groveling to Hamilton at the end of the race was pathetic.