Mercedes AMG Petronas W14

[Nitrodaze]

I would have thought that when Ferrari management made it clear no offer was made to Hamilton would put all the rumors to bed. Sure anything can happen in F1, but it's not as if every team wants him on the team for the price he commands, nor does he probably want to race for just any team that offers the right price.

It takes two to tango, and I doubt Lewis is looking to move to any struggling team.



As for the new car, I'm waiting to see how the upgrades work. Time will tell, but Merc themselves have admitted that the Barcelona track would favor the car more than most tracks, and is almost the polar opposite of Canada in terms of setup.

As for Sam Colins, I think he does much better on the tech segments vs anything live or racing related. I know Palmer often has to correct his thinking on race strategy and such. But most of his car related segments seem fairly good. At the same time, I don't take what he says as any more valid than some of the others... he's just reporting what is thought and known about the cars.

As usual, what's new?

Firstly, l would not call Ferrari a struggling team. Like Mercedes, they are trying to understand their car. The upgrades they brought for Barcelona are yet to be analyzed and understood. Sainz's pace in Q3 at Barcelona shows there is untapped performance in that Ferrari, that is not what a struggling team looks like. You may argue, so did Norris, but Mclaren is not struggling either.

I agree Hamilton may well stay with Mercedes but the delay in agreeing terms could suggest that anything is possible in the short term while the contract has not been nailed down.

The Aston Martin upgrade looks interesting. It certainly suggests that they are likely to have a hike in performance if they have their high-speed corning and speed on the straights sorted. If we have a dry running on Sunday, we shall know the relative performance delta between the teams in the lower sharp end of the grid.

On Sam Colins, he does the engineering and technical analysis of the racing; cars etc and Palmer does the racing analysis; strategy, race craft etc. They complement each other perfectly and l really enjoy watching their stuff.

[airshifter]

Well I consider Merc to have had a hard time coming to grips with the car this year, and they are at 150% of the WCC points of Ferrari. If you look at the top of the field, they are the ones with the real issues at this point. They have been better in qualification for sure, but one lap pace does help much if race pace isn't there.

At this point I don't think Lewis is talking to anyone other than Merc personally, and they seem to always push contracts until late in the game.



ETA: If F1 TV would get rid of Buxton entirely it would be a better experience! Most of the others do well in their respective roles, even those that have less intensive roles. Buxton comes across like a know it all trying to add drama even when it doesn't exist.

[Nitrodaze]

Well I consider Merc to have had a hard time coming to grips with the car this year, and they are at 150% of the WCC points of Ferrari. If you look at the top of the field, they are the ones with the real issues at this point. They have been better in qualification for sure, but one lap pace does help much if race pace isn't there.

At this point I don't think Lewis is talking to anyone other than Merc personally, and they seem to always push contracts until late in the game.



ETA: If F1 TV would get rid of Buxton entirely it would be a better experience! Most of the others do well in their respective roles, even those that have less intensive roles. Buxton comes across like a know it all trying to add drama even when it doesn't exist.

His body language does not gell well with the rest of the team. He talks the talk but he does not come across as a team player. I agree, l thought he would be the anchorman to pull the team together much like Simon Lazenby does for Sky. They are a new team though, so it may improve with time. Unfortunately, the rest of the team are impressing better and outshining him.

That said, Buxton is one of those original and disruptive F1 media thinkers, going by his previous blogs and podcasts before joining F1 Media. He is considerably more experienced than the two that flank him. His previous team collaborations have not been a lasting affair, it seems but l might be very wrong here. This gig seems like a great opportunity for Buxton to shine as a presenter and leader. For whatever reason, he just does not seem very comfortable in the team. I think he is very capable of so much more under the right circumstances. I just hope that such circumstances does not dampen the refreshing delivery from the other two.

[Nitrodaze]

I look at the last three races and wonder if Mercedes can hang on to second in the championship. By their form in those last three races they should be comfortably ahead. But they have thrown away points due to on-track antics. We have seen two near-misses that could have taken both Mercedes cars out of the race. Both involve Russell blocking Hamilton.

There seems to be a pointless rivalry brewing between the drivers at this point where there is nothing to gain in the driver's championship but plenty to lose in the constructor's championship. Mercedes's philosophy of letting their drivers race each other is looking like the very reason they may lose second place in the constructors to Ferrari.

At this point of the season, most teams would place their lot behind the driver with the most points. Yet we have seen the prospects of their driver with the most points compromised by not affording him the most opportunity on track to maximize his chance in the races. There have been occasions when one driver with the faster newer tires have been left running behind the other with older slower tire and Mercedes has failed to make the switch and when they do, it is usually after a delayed decision.

Looking into Mercedes, l feel they are not respecting their seven-time world champion properly. And Russell appears to be overcompensating to try to beat Hamilton and making costly mistakes in the process.

Mercedes seems to be their own enemy as they fight themselves and give away points in the process. This is obviously a sign of things to come.

If Mercedes can produce a championship-winning car, the rivalry between the two Brits is going to be huge, possibly ugly, and polarizing in a team with predominantly British employees. It would be a re-enactment of the Hamilton-Rosburg battles with a twist.

Bring on 2024!

[Used to be Starter]

I realize it is best for the team overall to not have their drivers contest with each other, but if you want to attract the best drivers to your team letting them duke it out on track is good for the sport.

[Nitrodaze]

I realize it is best for the team overall to not have their drivers contest with each other, but if you want to attract the best drivers to your team letting them duke it out on track is good for the sport.

Well, Redbull did not think so. As they compromised Perez to build a car for Verstappen to win the championship with ease.

With Mercedes, the team is fighting for second in the championship and Hamilton is fighting to snatch second place from Perez. The Russell situation is only compromising both of these aspirations, l think. This is not the sort of season to let their drivers race themselves.

[The Black Knight]

I would rather less money and more wind tunnell time than 2nd in the championship if I were Mercedes.

[Nitrodaze]

I would rather less money and more wind tunnel time than 2nd in the championship if I were Mercedes.

I think that is just what Aston Martin is doing. Giving up top position in the championship for more wind tunnel time in 2024 where they expect to be even closer to Redbull than they were this year.

It would not surprise me if Ferrari suddenly backed off to let Merccedes take 2nd place.

[Nitrodaze]

Check this out https://medium.com/motor-racing/bugg...s-ba4c682d3c95