MF1 Forum

A mere nine months early for such a topic, but seemed as good a place as any to stick the provisional calendar:

25 March: Australia (Melbourne)
8 April: China* (Shanghai)
15 April: Bahrain (Sakhir)
29 April: Azerbaijan (Baku)
13 May: Spain (Barcelona)
27 May: Monaco
10 June: Canada (Montreal)
24 June: France (Le Castellet)
1 July: Austria (Spielberg)
8 July: Great Britain (Silverstone)
22 July: Germany (Hockenheim)
29 July: Hungary (Budapest)
26 August: Belgium (Spa-Francorchamps)
2 September: Italy (Monza)
16 September: Singapore*
30 September: Russia (Sochi)
7 October: Japan (Suzuka)
21 October: USA (Austin, TX)
28 October: Mexico (Mexico City)
11 November: Brazil (Sao Paulo)
25 November: Abu Dhabi (Yas Marina)

*Provisional


First ever triple-header for F1 - France/Austria/UK

https://www.sauberf1team.com/news/the-planned-technological-partnership-between-the-sauber-f1-team-and-honda-is-cancelled

No Sauber-Honda for 2018. The deal has officially been cancelled.

Sauber to continue with Ferrari but with access to latest-spec engines: http://www.f1fanatic.co.uk/2017/07/28/sauber-continue-ferrari-splitting-honda/

Sounds like a pricey upgrade on current deal so one wonders whether a Ferrari development driver might find himself in a Sauber seat next year.

Well, yes. Ericsson-Leclerc. I'm about 80% certain this is their lineup for 2018. Giovinazzi will run as third driver to Ferrari, Haas, and Sauber. Raikkonen will remain at Ferrari for yet another year, simply because there is nobody to replace him with.

... and where would that leave Wehrlein?  Tell you what, I'll ask that exact same question in the '2018 Driver Speculation' thread and see what kind of answers I get.

I'm sure I posted this somewhere but cannot find it. These topics are all the same sometimes.

https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/honda-talks-toro-rosso-sauber-engine-935338/

Honda linked to Toro Rosso for 2018.

On the 'Snippets' thread about a week ago, think it came from German media.

Question of whether Toro Rosso wants to once again shift their powertrain supply away from that used by its Red Bull parent.  I thought part of the explanation of coming back to Renault units was so the entire RB family was running much the same back end.

https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/toro-rosso-honda-negotiations-937685/

More words on a Toro Rosso-Honda matchup.

So it might be all about Marko hedging his bets for future Red Bull engine supply - assuming McLaren wouldn't veto a deal with a top team.  Interesting.

McLaren probably would veto, but FIA rules would overrule that veto if Honda does not supply enough engines.

McLaren 'B' team... problem solved.

Toro Rosso is sticking with Renault units for next year: https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/toro-rosso-honda-engine-talks-breakdown-942096/

Toro Rosso-Honda and McLaren-Renault looking likelier:

https://www.grandprix247.com/2017/09/04/mclaren-and-honda-a-step-closer-to-divorce/

It sure is.  It would be a more obvious move to make if so many Renault units hadn't failed this season... but it might be enough to keep Alonso on board and give McLaren a shot at fourth place in 2018.  Shame, I sorely wanted to see Honda get their shit together but there's just insufficient progress.

Ross Brawn has been involved in the McLaren engine discussions as the Formula One Group is keen to have Honda in F1.  Apparently he said they were looking for "a solution to keeping Honda in the sport and giving McLaren more opportunity".  No idea what that bit about more opportunity means.

This goes just as well in the 2018 Drivers Speculation, or the engine thread, but let's post this here:

An announcement should be imminent confirming the following:
1. Carlos Sainz to Renault
2. McLaren to use Renault engines for 2018
3. Toro Rosso to use Honda engines for 2018

Step 2 of this could include:
1. Carlos Sainz to Renault as soon as Malaysia
2. Palmer leaves Renault
3. Pierre Gasly replaces Sainz at Toro Rosso

Step 3 of this could include:
1. Alonso stays at McLaren-Renault for 2018
2. Matushita to Toro Rosso-Honda for 2018, leaving McLaren since they are no longer tied to Honda.

All these announcements should happen before or during the Singapore GP next weekend.
https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/131722/sainz-renault-deal-sets-up-mclaren-changes

Holy schmoly... that's a lot of news waiting to drop in the next few days.

All the 'step 1' movements seem to be set in motion, it's really only the timing of some (see step 2) that are up in the air.

Indeed. And step 3 is even more speculative. Is McLaren-Renault enough to keep Alonso onboard? Is Matsushita even able to reach the required points for an FIA Super License?

As it stands, Matsushita won't be fit for F1 come next season, he'll have scored too few points in Formula 2.

If only he was a better driver.... I suppose they could give him a bunch of FP1 outings next year and see whether he can amass sufficient Super Licence points for 2019.

Who knows with Alonso.  I suspect a switch to Renault power will be enough to persuade him to stay on, he does at least seem to be enjoying this current style of F1 car mated to tyres that don't shred after two fast laps.

https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/gasly-confirms-toro-rosso-chance-951689/

Gasly speaks too soon again. Claims he is in the running for a Toro Rosso drive from Malaysia onwards.

And then says the media is putting words in his mouth: http://www.f1fanatic.co.uk/2017/09/11/media-twisting-words-chance-malaysia-drive-gasly/

McLaren-Renault sort of confirmed: http://www.skysports.com/f1/news/12479/11033348/mclaren-to-switch-from-honda-to-renault-engines-in-2018

Also in that piece it's stated that Palmer will see out the season with Renault.

Red Bull to ditch Renault at end of 2018: http://www.f1fanatic.co.uk/2017/09/14/red-bull-honda-2019-renault-end-engine-deal/

Didn't want to start a thread for the 2019 season quite yet, and besides, this tale follows on nicely from previous postings.


Edit: Now that the whole story is out (rather than F1 sources giving a BBC journo some early info.) we know it was Renault who told Red Bull to go take a long walk off a short pier, and not t'other way round.  Red Bull now stuck with Honda from 2019 until... new engine rules in '21 I suppose.  Perhaps Cosworth will make a return, or that rumour of Porsche buying Red Bull will come to something.

Confirmed:
* Toro Rosso to end Renault partnership at end of 2017 season
* Carlos Sainz to Renault on loan for 2018
* McLaren-Renault for 2018 to 2020

Source on McLaren-Renault
http://www.f1fanatic.co.uk/2017/09/15/mclaren-confirmed-split-honda-renault-engine-deal-2018/

Hope this keeps Alonso in F1 and sees McLaren back in their rightful place as the third or fourth best team on the grid.

https://www.grandprix247.com/2017/09/18/aston-martin-we-want-to-be-more-involved-in-the-sport/

Aston Martin Red Bull for next season?

Saw the Aston guy chatting on Channel 4's race coverage, all quite vague stuff, much hanging on what happens with future engine regulations; and even if they turn out well, I can't picture Aston doing an F1 engine without cash coming from the Red Bull side.

Title sponsor, rather than engine manufacturer.

Title sponsor next year but also talking about engines depending on future (2021) regulations.

Paddy Lowe has a cunning plan for Williams in 2018 which I shall condense into this tasty little morsel: Be better.  Full wordage: https://www.grandprix247.com/2017/09/21/lowe-we-will-be-making-substantial-changes/

That is clever. It is akin to my football coach strategy: Get the ball into the goal.

Sage advice.

The fans complain of too many grid penalties for engine/gearbox failures, the FIA responds with two fingers raised in a V: http://www.f1fanatic.co.uk/2017/09/21/power-unit-components-will-last-half-season-2018/

"From next year the maximum number of engine components each driver may use without penalty will drop from four to just two for some parts of the power unit.  Drivers will be limited to two examples each of their MGU-Ks, energy stores and control electronics. Of the remaining power unit elements – the internal combustion engines (ICE), turbochargers and MGU-Hs – drivers will be limited to three examples of each."

Merde.

Sacre bleu!

För helvete!

OK then. So basically, the FIA is just showing Liberty who is boss. That's fun.

Fun for the boys at the FIA, but then I'm fairly certain they don't actually watch F1 races.

Red Bull Racing will officially be known by the following from the 2018 season onwards:

Aston Martin Red Bull Racing

Oh boi. Still Renault engines, remains to be seen whether they get rebadged or not.
http://www.f1fanatic.co.uk/2017/09/25/aston-martin-becomes-red-bull-title-sponsor-2018/

Alonso will be running the 24 Hours of Daytona: http://www.racer.com/imsa/item/145227-alonso-to-contest-rolex-24-with-united-autosports

In other news, I stopped waiting and purchased my ticket and camping for the 24 Hours of Daytona.

And with McLaren protege Chuck Norris along for the ride.  Also I see it's mentioned the door is open for Alonso to run Le Mans next year, should Toyota come knocking.

Mercedes evaluating a Red Bull-esque high-rake design philosophy for 2018: https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/133044/mercedes-may-emulate-red-bull-concept-for-18

Seven dry-weather compounds for 2018: https://www.f1fanatic.co.uk/2017/11/23/pirelli-names-new-tyre-2018-hypersoft/

Super hard
Hard
Medium
Soft
Supersoft
Ultrasoft
Hypersoft
Intermediate
Wet

Oh yes baby. Super hard. Can you even say that on TV? Hmm.

Radical idea: Bring three compounds for every race, always call them Soft, Medium, and Hard although use different compounds.

For example, in Monaco the soft would be hypersoft, the medium would be ultrasoft, the hard would be supersoft. We need not know, the teams will know, and we could just keep track of the same 3 tyre colours:

Soft - purple/red
Medium - white
Hard - orange

The Pirelli press releases ahead of every weekend could just look like this:
"For Canada, Pirelli is bringing compounds 2 to 4 (which we super cool fans know to be ultrasoft to soft)" or "For Bahrain, Pirelli is bringing compounds 5-7 (medium to super hard)".

Don't try to inject common sense into the matter, remember this is F1 we're talking about.

Alonso has already done over 50 laps with the super hard on, can he keep this up right to the chequered flag?

No.

I'm guessing that they print the colors on them when they're manufactured, so they wouldn't be able to change the colors depending on which three they bring.

New Alfa Romeo-Sauber livery applied to the 2012 Sauber car

(https://cdn-2.motorsport.com/images/mgl/0LxdBRv0/s8/f1-alfa-romeo-sauber-livery-unveil-2017-sauber-alfa-romeo.jpg)

Looks fairly snazzy; will look slightly less so with the halo bolted on but so will they all.

A rather minor change is announced now that the FIA has released the official entry list for the 2018 Formula One Season:

Scuderia Toro Rosso will be known as Red Bull Toro Rosso Honda, dropping Scuderia and including Red Bull in their name.

The entry list also confirms number 16 for Leclerc and 35 for Sirotkin.

Okay, so 'Red Bull Red Bull Honda' it is.

Tweaks to race times in 2018: https://www.f1fanatic.co.uk/2018/02/01/f1-revises-race-session-start-times-2018/

All races to start at ten past the hour; European races to commence one hour (and ten minutes!) later than in previous years.

Indeed. No more 2pm races for me, instead 3:10pm is on the cards. Or 1pm to 2:10pm for you Brits.

An extra hour for beer (or cider) before the off.

https://www.f1fanatic.co.uk/2018/02/05/f1-announces-new-grid-kids-scheme-replace-grid-girls/

How is this for beautiful? Grid kids will replace grid girls. That is, local motorsporting talent will take to the grid. Imagine a 10-year old boy/girl getting to see these F1 cars up close, and holding up a sign for their hero. That's quite something. The families of the kids are granted paddock passes for the races too.

Seems like a good option until autonomous bi-pedal robots are viable.

Three practice sessions for Kubica in 2018 - Spain, Austria, and some other place: https://www.racefans.net/2018/02/15/kubica-three-practice-outings-2018/

Not exactly tracks known for their super sharp turns, except for that final part of Catalunya.

I'd like to force him onto the track in Singapore or something other hot and twisty. Those are the nasty ones.

Oliver Rowland, 25, has been named the Official Young Driver for Williams F1 Team:

http://www.williamsf1.com/racing/news/2018/02/williams-martini-racing-signs-oliver-rowland-as-official-young-driver

Rowland, being 25, is 3 years older than Sirotkin and 6 years older than Stroll.

Quite funny that be.

Shit.  Dimwits at the FIA going to introduce standing restarts this year: https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/134695/f1-testing-standing-restart-procedure-this-week

Always found it harsh, but unavoidable, that drivers lose any gap to their rivals when a safety car is used, but to throw defending themselves from a standing start into the mix crosses way too far into unfair territory for me.  Clearly been introduced as a tacky way of adding 'entertainment' to the show.  And what about the safety aspect?  So potentially we have drivers out of position relative to speed of car/their ability, a wide variety of tyre types/ages, and marbles down one side of the grid.  Should all make for some spectacular crashes into turn 1... guess it's a good job the FIA insisted on the halo to keep drivers safe.

Not to mention a restart on proper cold tyres. Locking brakes down turn 1. Crashes galore.

I think this will be used once in race situations, then deemed unsafe and pulled.

Sounds about right for the FIA - but then the 'I' does stand for 'Incompetent'.

Edit: Not sure what I was thinking, obviously the 'I' stands for 'Idiotic'

Fairly Idiotic Apes?

Got to say that my first thought saw 'Idiotic' sandwiched by somewhat racier language....

Hmm, how best to describe the FIA?  Perhaps 'Fundamentally Idiotic Approach' best fits the bill; or are they the 'Foremost Inept Association'; or do they specialize in the 'Formulation of Inane Arrangements', etc, etc.

Quote from: Chrill on July 28, 2017, 03:52:05 AM
Well, yes. Ericsson-Leclerc. I'm about 80% certain this is their lineup for 2018. Giovinazzi will run as third driver to Ferrari, Haas, and Sauber. Raikkonen will remain at Ferrari for yet another year, simply because there is nobody to replace him with.

Hah.

Quote from: Chrill on September 09, 2017, 11:20:55 AM
This goes just as well in the 2018 Drivers Speculation, or the engine thread, but let's post this here:

An announcement should be imminent confirming the following:
1. Carlos Sainz to Renault
2. McLaren to use Renault engines for 2018
3. Toro Rosso to use Honda engines for 2018

Step 2 of this could include:
1. Carlos Sainz to Renault as soon as Malaysia
2. Palmer leaves Renault
3. Pierre Gasly replaces Sainz at Toro Rosso

Step 3 of this could include:
1. Alonso stays at McLaren-Renault for 2018
2. Matushita to Toro Rosso-Honda for 2018, leaving McLaren since they are no longer tied to Honda.

All these announcements should happen before or during the Singapore GP next weekend.
https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/131722/sainz-renault-deal-sets-up-mclaren-changes

All but the last one:
Hah.

I'm bowing to your greatness as I type this.

Hammy quickest but only a tenth ahead of Max.  Merc was half a second clear of the field after P2 last year so hopes are raised of a proper fight in the offing.

Sauber currently adrift at the back....

Yes. Sauber sucks this year too. That's a bit of a shame. They needed a boost this year, and well I guess it won't happen for the flyaway races anyway. Sure they don't yet know and understand the car, but even then they are simply too slow. Over half a second behind the closest team.

Charlie Whiting has spoken and all who insist on using race helmets to differentiate drivers will listen to his words and be free of such arcane trappings: https://www.racefans.net/2018/03/23/fans-dont-need-see-helmets-identify-drivers-whiting/

I don't know (or care to know) the driver numbers, and anyway they are far harder to pick out on a moving target than a helmet-sized blob of colour.  So then I should use the cameras as an identifier: the black one is team leader, the yellow is for the second chap.  But do I know who drives car no. 1 at all teams... no, I do not; and if I did learn this the process becomes: ah, now that was the yellow camera on the Toro Rosso so that must be their second driver Pierre Gasly (it could be Hartley, I have no idea).  Not as quick (for me) as using the helmet, plus I'm not even sure how easy it is to notice the cameras - guess I'll have to try it on Sunday.

I didn?t think the helmets were that much harder to see than normal. It will be hard to identify drivers if they have a similar helmet to their teammate, but it was anyway.

The helmets are rather difficult for me since I only know maybe a third or half of them. I usually go with numbers, because those I know by heart. Except for perhaps the newest ones, I can't yet tell the Toro Rosso guys apart. I do know 9 is Ericsson, 16 is Leclerc, 2 is Vandoorne, 55 is Sainz, 7 is Raikkonen and so on.

Found it an effort to see the helmets so mainly picked out drivers based on which other cars were around them - directors tend to focus on cars in pairs/groups rather than solitary vehicles.  Halo is still absolutely hideous to me in a head-on shot, and I realised on Sunday just how often these are used.  Real shame that we've lost the shoulder cams because halo blocks most of the picture, and that the T-cam gives us a close-up of the halo rather than seeing the car's nose & suspension.

I barely even notice the halo on the head-on shots, it stands out a lot more from the side. It blends in with the car from the front. I?m not saying it?s attractive, but I can?t wait for people to stop talking about it constantly. It?s there. It is what it is.

Kind of like my apostrophes turning into question marks. Not ideal, but everyone gets the point.

Whereas I barely notice it from the side.  How odd.  Anyway, I won't really talk (complain) about it anymore because it doesn't undermine the racing... that's the job of the over-developed front wings and an excess of aero in general.  I continue to pray that Ross Brawn hacks away at it in favour of more ground effects aero.

I'm afraid 2021 is the year they are aiming for in terms of new aerodynamics. I quite like the profile of current cars, but the front wings are excessive.

Surely, it should be easy to mandate some sort of clean air rear diffuser part. Something like a grade of how much bad air a car is allowed to produce. I'm sure teams happily add something to the car that provides dirtier air even if doesn't help their own lap times.

I don't see why for 2019 they couldn't mandate the maximum number (or surface area) of planes/flaps/plates (whatever they're all called) that can be used on a front wing - and probably in the barge board area as well.  Cars will be slower in the twisty bits but it should be easier to follow; and in 2021 really hack away at the front wings and allow some ground effects to compensate.

While I agree with you, I sadly don't make the rules!! :o

Of course not.  Over the years that's been left to people who seemingly don't actually watch F1.

Ferrari (also McLaren & Haas) taking eight sets of ultra-softs per car to China, two more than Merc's drivers will have: https://www.racefans.net/2018/04/03/ferrari-select-ultra-softs-chinese-gp/

Seems like an extra visit to the pits may be in the offing for Seb & Kimi - assume Merc will do a one-stopper.

Honda's technical director speaks:

"During the race in Australia, we had an issue with the MGU-H and turbocharger on Pierre?s car and this had the knock-on effect of also damaging the ICE (internal combustion engine.) Therefore, in Bahrain, Pierre will use a new ICE, MGU-H and turbocharger. The MGU-H and turbo have both been modified, in light of what we learned in the first race.  Given the problems we encountered in Melbourne, we have decided, as a precautionary measure, to also change the MGU-H and turbocharger on Brendon?s car, fitting the new modified components."

And so it begins....

Oh gosh, Honda is having issues and Alonso finished really well in Australialand.

After pre-season, I genuinely thought McLaren were in poor shape and Honda looked OK.

Remember: McLaren was only midpack because of Honda. All Honda's fault.

Oh gosh, Gasly qualified P6 on pace and got promoted to P5 after Hamilton's penalty. Alonso and Vandoorne only just managed to reach Q2. Bummer, that.

Hallelujah. P9 for Marcus from P17 on the grid. P4 for Gasly from P5 on the grid. Vettel wins with an absurd final stint on softs.

What a race. Absolutely spectacular.

I think the Williams car is probably good enough to be midfield. Stroll was destroyed by Massa last year, and Massa was destroyed by Bottas two years ago. They have two woeful drivers. I'm interested to see what Kubica does in his Friday sessions.

Sirotkin can't be woeful, Paddy "money had nothing to do with it" Lowe said he was the best driver on the planet who was available to drive for Williams this year.

Stonking race.  Shame Ricciardo dropped out, and the whole Kimi running over a mechanic thing wasn't great, but apart from that it was terrific entertainment.

Let's play a game. Name a driver who on paper should be faster than Sirotkin or Stroll.

I'll start:

Pastor Maldonado
Felix Rosenqvist
Esteban Gutierrez
Felipe Nasr
Jolyon Palmer
Pascal Wehrlein
Daniil Kvyat
Jean-Eric Vergne
Sebastien Buemi
Robert Kubica (maybe)
Antonio Giovinazzi
Alexander Rossi

Perhaps some other IndyCar drivers should be included, but I've only just started watching again so really don't know; likely also some potential from F2 (Markelov, Rowland, Ghiotto) but didn't see any of last season so can't say.  Anyone else from FE... maybe Sam Bird?  And that just leaves recent retirees Rosberg & Button, and not so recent retirees Mansell & Hakkinen as Sirotkin/Stroll beaters.

How about Nick Heidfeld? Or yet a return for Massa? Maybe there's room for Barrichello.

It's been a long time since anyone accused Heidfeld of being quick, but still he might be able to take on the Williams pair.  Massa should definitely be on the list, don't know how I forgot about Baby.  I mean, even if he's lost half a second of single-lap pace since last year he'll still be quicker than Stroll & Sirotkin.  Also wouldn't surprise me if Rubens wasn't faster than S&S, at least for short stints.

How about Paddy Lowe himself? Or Claire Williams? Perhaps the injured Ferrari mechanic would be a better option also.

All viable candidates.  And let us not forget your goodself.

This is true. I finished P2 in a gokart contest at work, but the winning lad is too old for an F1 rookie.

Robert Wickens
Josef Newgarden
Will Power
Simon Pagenaud
Scott Dixon

Those are all guys in IndyCar who I would definitely give a chance. Wickens should have won his first IndyCar race at St. Petersburg a few weeks ago, and then finished second on Saturday in his first ever oval race.

Wickens was on course for F1 way back when, wasn't he? I recall him being a massive talent, winning F3 and F2 and whatnot around 2008-2011 or somesuch.

Ferrari's party mode is clearly quite partyish. That's another front row lockout. Good for them. Vettel on course for 75 points in 3 races? Can't ever have been a driver win 3 races at the start of the championship and then ending up not world champion?

Hard to imagine there has been.  I'm sure whoever interviewed Seb on the Bahrain podium mumbled something about how long it's been since a driver won the first 2 races of a season but failed to win the title - or he might've even said that it's never happened.  I wasn't really paying attention.

This is fantastic for Ferrari and for F1.  Everything crossed for a good race, especially for Kimi.

I recall reading it, and Prost did win the first two races of the 1982 season but then practically disappeared for the rest of the season.

If I were Ferrari or Mercedes, I wouldn?t be very happy that race control waited to throw the safety car until after I could pit for a situation that had already existed for a while. That gave RBR the strategic advantage and led to all of the mayhem that happened after that. When there is a crash with a car on the track, that requires an immediate safety car. But that safety car wasn?t immediate and the timing gave an advantage to a specific team.

The delay was due to debris being just off the racing line, but drivers complained. That's why a SC finally came out. Since no cars were at a standstill, the track was at first deemed clear.

I still don't see why Red Bull could pit if Ferrari and Mercedes could not. They had the same opportunity, right?

Vettel said he'd just gone past the pit entrance bollard when the safety car was deployed otherwise he would've dived in; Hamilton (well, Mercedes) evidently didn't believe pitting was the right move.

Still, good of the junior Red Bull boys to create some havoc from which the senior Red Bull boys could try and prosper.

Quote from: Penfold on April 16, 2018, 02:01:12 AM
Vettel said he'd just gone past the pit entrance bollard when the safety car was deployed otherwise he would've dived in; Hamilton (well, Mercedes) evidently didn't believe pitting was the right move.

Still, good of the junior Red Bull boys to create some havoc from which the senior Red Bull boys could try and prosper.

Indeed. This tactic is proven to work since Melbourne, by Ferrari/Haas. However, it dates back to the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix with Renault! ;D

I think Hamilton could have pitted, but Bottas and Vettel could not have because they had just passed the entrance or were close enough that they could not react in time to pit.

IndyCar sometimes has issues with closing the pits when a full course caution comes out because it affects strategy, but this is why they do it. It affects strategy either way.

You like the halo? No?

Well, let's see what we can do with it:

(https://scontent-arn2-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/31444888_1793600910706945_4454558505373794304_o.jpg?_nc_cat=0&oh=41ae70836e9b1877ba2e9ede7f001f8a&oe=5B541640)

Actually isn't a bad idea. I mean, the thing is there, we might as well use it.

I do enjoy having the speed/revs/gear info during the onboard shots, that's a clever way of displaying it/disguising the halo.

Yesterday - Max V says he will learn from mistakes of China: "It doesn't mean drive slow. It means drive fast but maybe a little more in control."
Today - Max V crashes into barrier.

Maximus Verstappi (as is his Latin name) is certainly not impressing so far this season. We rate him dead last, we do.

Which will surely motivate him into producing a fast, but considered performance on Sunday.

Quote from: Chrill on April 29, 2018, 08:40:02 AM
I've added your ratings (including the change on Raikkonen) to the tables, here (https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1dnPSeVbYFM6KP0SW2SPGzJch7KAiLuaUvD4hpSWSHek/edit#gid=512518002). Interesting to see your take on Ricciardo-Verstappen since our ratings differ. Let's take that to the "2018 Season" (http://minardif1.com/forum/index.php?topic=42.0) topic! :)

My take is this, it is not a drivers responsibility to move over and let another driver by, even if it is their teammate. Any driver who does that doesn't deserve to be racing. It is the team's responsibility to manage how the drivers race. RBR gambled and ended up with a crash.

Max & Ricciardo were racing hard. I did not appreciate Max's move inside Ricciardo earlier in the race when they touched, but he got away with it and they were clean. Daniel ended up with the lead and pitted first, Max out drove him on old tires and regained the spot. When Ricciardo was going to pass, there was no way Max was going to let him pass on the inside. Near the end of the straight, Max moves slightly back to the racing line for the corner, but comes back to cover the aggressive move. The inside move was never there, Ricciardo went for it anyway and braked late, locked up the front and hit Max.

I don't fault Max for blocking. I think Ricciardo's move was too aggressive for a teammate, but don't completely fault him either. This was a racing incident. When you give young men really fast cars and tell them to go battle each other, this will happen from time to time.

(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Db9lCbaWAAE-BIt.jpg)

(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Db9lDDTWAAADmI0.jpg)

Yup, the stewards definitely agree that neither driver is more at fault. I find it strange though:

* Verstappen was reprimanded for moving twice when you are only allowed once. A reason for the reprimand is that his movement is small.
* Ricciardo was reprimanded for trying to overtake too late. WHAT? Is that even a thing?

In my book, this is like calling a penalty in football but also giving a yellow card for diving to the attacker.

Here's why I blame Verstappen:
* The driver behind is a team mate, so such defensive driving is unacceptable.
* They had already clashed earlier in the race.
* He moved under braking.
* He has a (recent) history of coming together with other drivers, touching both Hamilton and Vettel in the last race.

Ricciardo was definitely too aggressive, but he was also the faster of the two.

In the end, this would have been avoidable had Red Bull simply kept Verstappen calm after China. They failed that. Ricciardo thought Verstappen moved right (which he did, but not much) and there was a gap on the inside after that. When Ricciardo noticed Verstappen moving back to the left, he appeared not to react fast enough. The Aussie had time to move right and take avoiding action, in my book, but it's easy to say from the confines of my living room. :P

I don't see Dan making the corner down the inside given how late he was on the brakes, but Max can't go closing the door after he's already moved the other way - before the braking zone you can defend one way and then move back towards the racing line, not move towards the racing line and then back the other way.

Ricciardo also would not have been so impatient had Verstappen not already nearly taken them both out twice with overzealous defending. Rather than making progress with his decision making, Verstappen looks worse this season than he ever has.

Clip of Magnussen squeezing Gasly towards a wall: https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/headlines/2018/4/video-f1-gasly-magnussen-dangerous-azerbaijan.html

Rather nasty, twice. I'd say it's also a worse incident than the usual "causing an incident" due to the high speed nature. I'd award Magnussen 3 points on his license for that first touch, and potentially another two for dangerous driving later down the straight where Gasly backs off after almost being forced into the pit wall. Unpleasant to watch.

Very lucky to get away with only two points added to his burgeoning collection.  Another couple of such incidents and it'll be a one-race ban for KMag... who's his replacement?

Quote from: Penfold on May 01, 2018, 02:21:11 AM
Very lucky to get away with only two points added to his burgeoning collection.  Another couple of such incidents and it'll be a one-race ban for KMag... who's his replacement?

Toni Gigi.

Who?

Antonio Giovinazzi. Come on, you're better than this.

Sounds vaguely familiar.  Where might one have seen him race?

Quote from: Penfold on May 01, 2018, 02:55:01 AM
Sounds vaguely familiar.  Where might one have seen him race?

It's the guy who bins whatever car he drives. Be it in practice or race, Sauber or Haas.

Tad harsh.  Still, at least he seems fast, his tendency to crash can be ironed out (probably).

(https://image.ibb.co/dLy9KS/4948948.png)

(https://scontent-arn2-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/31564242_437163733378552_2609361265620942848_n.jpg?_nc_cat=0&oh=0160d5274711fd377d4e26bf23686b33&oe=5B533AF6)

Yeah, that crash of his was pure racing comedy, and the clueless remark about Ericsson was just genius.

I enjoy how I no longer need to communicate with words. I can just post images.

Those look like words to me....

They look like words, they smell like words, they taste like words. What are they? A figment of your imagination.

In order to rerail (nice) this topic, here's some information about tyre selections for Spain. Williams went softy softy.

https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/williams-most-aggressive-by-far-in-spain-tyre-picks-1032504/

I actually like Grosjean and think he will be unfairly remembered as a bad driver, but it might be time for Haas to move on after this season. We'll see how the rest of the season goes, but he doesn't seem to be delivering as much as he should. I don't think Magnussen has much of a future either, honestly, but he has been driving much better this season than last season.

Agreed. Grosjean and Magnussen are, on paper, a really strong team. I definitely see them picking up a Ferrari junior for 2019. Unless of course Ferrari slaps two kids at Sauber and keeps Raikkonen on board for another year.

Except for Giovinazzi, who else could earn a Sauber/Haas seat? Antonio Fuoco is mediocre at best.

Quote from: Chrill on May 01, 2018, 07:32:40 AM
In order to rerail (nice) this topic, here's some information about tyre selections for Spain. Williams went softy softy.

https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/williams-most-aggressive-by-far-in-spain-tyre-picks-1032504/

...and they'll likely go slowly, slowly.

Williams protests about almost everything that happened in Baku: https://www.racefans.net/2018/05/07/williams-lodge-protest-over-alonsos-return-to-the-pits-on-lap-one-in-baku/

They do. Some, such as Alonso, they would benefit from. Others, such as the Kimi/Ocon thing, I don't see why they care about. The only possible outcome is that Ocon, who retired, will get a grid penalty for Spain. Do they really expect to jump him? Or do they expect Kimi to get the blame?

And then there's the Magnussen/Gasly incident.  Is their complaint that the stewards were too lenient with KMag?  Gunning for grid penalties for competitors in the vain hope of scraping a point in Barcelona, how the mighty have fallen.

... and the stewards told Williams to sod off, for the following reasons:

1. In relation to the incident described in Document 34 (Sirokin/Perez) it is noted that this was a case where one car crashed into the rear of another, and was not similar to other first lap incidents where cars were side-by-side. The penalty was similar to other penalties for similar collisions and was consistent with the minimum grid penalties given previously.

2. The fact that the written decision in Document 34 did not reach the team until 1728hrs was not deemed relevant because this was well before the time for any protest or appeal had expired. This is mentioned in the context of the team?s argument that some other incidents were not penalised or were not penalised sufficiently

3. In relation to the incident described in Document 43 (Magnussen/Gasly) the team, in its written request for review, argued that the penalty on Magnussen was "inconsequential". The team is reminded that since the meeting of 2013 between the FIA and representatives of the teams and drivers, the consequences of penalties are not taken into account.

4. Further to the above, and in relation to other penalties, since the beginning of 2016 there have been a total of 87 incidents involving alleged "causing a collision" in the Formula One Championship. Of these, as a result of the "let them race" policy, 55 have resulted in No Further Action. 14 have resulted in 10 second penalties and 9 have resulted in 3 grid position penalties for the next race. A very small number involved other penalties. Therefore the penalties imposed on Magnussen, Ericsson and Sirotkin were entirely consistent with previous practice and with the penalty guidelines. The cases of No Further Action were also consistent with previous practice.

5. The Race Director specifically referred to the actions of the driver of Car 14 (Alonso) in returning to the pits after his incident in lap one and noted that firstly, the Safety Car was present, and secondly that the driver took care to avoid the racing line, avoid following traffic and minimised risk.

6. Williams Martini Racing was aware of the actions of the driver of Car 14 (Alonso) as it occurred. Their team at the "mission control" in the UK saw it on the live television feed and the team on the pit wall would have seen the driver of Car 14 enter the pits, as it had to drive past them. Therefore it cannot be argued that this is a "new element".

7. In relation to the incidents referred to above, all "no further action" incidents were well promulgated prior to publication of the results. Therefore the team had ample opportunity and time, being aware of all the other penalties above, to lodge an appeal where no penalty was imposed (noting that no appeal is permitted where time penalties or grid penalties are imposed).

8. In relation to the incident involving cars 14, 27 and 35 (Alonso, Hulkenberg and Sirotkin) on lap one, as the stewards took no decision on this matter, the team could have protested the matter within the permitted time limit, but chose not to exercise this right.

9. Differing penalties imposed or incidents where no further action was taken, cannot be regarded as a new element.

10. In relation to the media reporting tabled by Williams Martin Racing in its request for a review, these reports are not considered significant and relevant.

Should get a good fight between Merc & Ferrari in Barcelona, not much between them in quali and the red guys looked strong on the soft tyres.  Red Bull might even come into play as they were quite nifty on the long runs in practice.

Shitty race, the new Pirellis that Mercedes asked for clearly worked well for the ones requesting them. I'm not happy with that.

Overall, Magnussen kept a clean race and Grosjean was a knobhead. Verstappen crashed once more but survived. Vettel was nowhere despite running new threads. All in all, not a great race.

I think Red Bull also wanted those tailor-made Pirellis.  Great.  I know Silverstone and Paul Ricard will get the same type of tyre but not sure where else.  On a totally unrelated matter, I'm thinking of using Bottas and Mad Max in the British and French GP.

Nobody anywhere near Merc pace so that was pretty crap.  Not sure why Ferrari pitted Vettel before Bottas, if Merc hadn't screwed Valerie's stop he would've jumped Seb right then.  Not that it mattered in the end.

Poor old Grosjean, taken out by Ericsson once again....

Quote from: Penfold on May 14, 2018, 01:33:35 AM
Poor old Grosjean, taken out by Ericsson once again....

(https://i.imgur.com/9duFf2w.jpg)

 :) I'm enjoying these Row Man/Ma Cuss cartoons.

Renault to introduce its new MGU-K at some point in the future (yes, that really is the gist of this story): https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/reliability-concern-delaying-key-renault-update-1038774

Renault will, however, be bringing an engine upgrade for Montreal (as will Honda and presumably Ferrari & Merc) and Cyril Abiteboul reckons they can find half a second with its engine this year.  Which would be good.

No actual need to pit in Monaco as even the hyper-softs could do all 78 laps: https://www.racefans.net/2018/05/22/hyper-soft-wont-make-monaco-a-two-stop-race-pirelli/

Time for a special Monaco tyre?

The excitement in Monaco comes from the venue and any potential safety cars anyway, not normal passing. Not sure if the tire matters.

We could do with a "Monaco soft" in gold colours, eh. It will automatically puncture after covering 45% of the race distance. This requires two stops.

Quote from: Matt on May 23, 2018, 07:59:39 AM
The excitement in Monaco comes from the venue and any potential safety cars anyway, not normal passing. Not sure if the tire matters.

Back in the olden days (i.e. before mandatory tyre stops and when mid-race refuelling was illegal - so pre-1994) cars only pitted for new wings or in case of punctures, so 78 laps with zero tyre stops (and zero passes) wouldn't seem strange to me.  Of course, back then the cars were nowhere near as reliable and a certain Ayrton Senna was racing, and Senna at Monaco was quite something....

Safety cars at Monaco only add excitement because drivers have to pit and so grab that opportunity to dive in.  Remove mandatory stops and everyone would simply line up behind the safety car and then carry on as before, albeit closer together.  Fortunately, I am perfectly happy to watch F1 cars dart round Monaco in a procession.  It's one race where I truly don't care whether or not there is any overtaking - not to say that it couldn't perhaps be improved with different tyres.

Now personally I'd love to scrap mandatory stops, bring back qualifying tyres, and have two compounds for race day: one that can do the full distance with ease, and one that can do somewhere over half the race but averages out at a few tenths quicker per lap than the harder tyre.  No doubt incredibly difficult to get the compounds bang on in that way but my God I'd like them to try.  Also requires no DRS so those running the softer compound have to actually fight the no-stoppers for position.  And yes, I realise all this would mean zero stops for Monaco, but I suppose the approach could be tweaked so that no tyre lasted the full race.

One tyre does 40%, one does 70-90%. Boom, you'll either have to pit once and run hard+softs, or pit twice and run soft+soft+soft.

That would suit me for Monaco.  Also happy to have drivers trying to make it round without stopping and coming under heavy attack.

Hyper-softs not as durable as that Pirelli chap reckoned - or at least they'll likely lose tons of performance rather quickly: https://www.racefans.net/2018/05/25/2018-monaco-grand-prix-friday-practice-analysis/

So usual thing really, plenty of tyre management as the front runners wait on the safety car.  Stroll or Hartley, I think one of them may be first to hit a barrier.

Quote from: Penfold on May 25, 2018, 07:36:41 AMStroll or Hartley, I think one of them may be first to hit a barrier.

It was obviously going to be Verstappen. And so it was.

That was a typical Monaco GP, really. Ricciardo broke down but kept on going with 6 gears, and well that's all he needed. The top 6 finished where they started. Verstappen made P9 or P8, something like that, decent drive.

Only 3 retirements, and only 2 of those from an actual crash which was caused by Leclerc. Might be faulty brakes, I don't think it was a driver error.

Ericsson P11, half a second behind Sainz in P10. That is more than just OK considering he started P16.

https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/vandoorne-alonso-monaco-gp-sacrificed-strategy-1042439/

Stoffel is openly unhappy with his tactics, claiming his race was ruined for Alonso's sake. Uh-oh, trouble in paradise?

With Alonso potentially on the way out, and Vandoorne not setting the world on fire this year, who will be driving that orange car next year? Norris + someone outside the team?

https://streamable.com/0vyq7

What actually happened here? Stroll bottoms out like crazy and Ericsson overtakes him around the outside. This was not in relation to one of Stroll's two punctures, as far as I recall.

It was his first puncture.

Renault bringing an upgraded power unit for Montreal, it's said to be worth 20 bhp and has shed a few kilos - not sure if available for all Renault-powered cars; Toro Rosso getting Honda's latest spec unit, its boost may also be around the 20 bhp mark; Ferrari has an engine upgrade but it may be used only by Vettel: Kimi's been running PU no. 2 for a while and Haas & Sauber went to their second units in Monaco; Mercedes delays new power unit until France over reliability concerns.

Haas and Sauber both introduced the new engine in Monaco. That seemed all very planned, although Ferrari has been open for a while that Canada is their target. So that means the customer teams are not expecting a massive enough boost in Canada, or they would have run Monaco with the old engine.

Ricciardo is going to be starting far back in Canada. Remember that broken engine he nursed home at Monaco? Yeah, it's broken. Needs replacing.

... and with Verstappen crashing it's going to be a lean race for Red Bull this weekend.  At least it should be sunny.

No penalty for Dan this weekend: https://www.racefans.net/2018/06/08/red-bull-make-repairs-to-ricciardos-mgu-k/

Great start by Stroll with him nipping between the two McLarens before quickly passing 'It is I' and J.R. Hartley, but then just as quickly the limitations of his ability kicked in and his control over the car evaporated.

Good win for Vettel to tighten up the old title fight.

France next up. Despite a ten year absence, two current drivers have won the race - Kimi and Fernando. Of course that was at Magny-Cours, but still.

Paul Ricard was last used for F1 in 1990. I wasn't even born until 1991.

I would've certainly watched the race but can't say I have any particular memory from it.  Checking Wiki... Ivan Capelli finished second for Leyton House, his joint highest placing and the team's best - although they were the old March team under new ownership and did have a couple of wins under their previous guise.

I can see Bottas bagging his first win of 2018, arguably what should be his third though. Bahrain and Azerbaijan.

I am expecting Merc to go well in France but I can see Val being pipped to the post by Hammy.

Quote from: Penfold on June 15, 2018, 02:47:48 AM
I am expecting Merc to go well in France but I can see Val being pipped to the post by Hammy.

I am expecting Bottas to match the Hamster. I am expecting a miserable Ferrari showing, akin to their Spain performance. I am expecting that the podium will once again have Verstappen on third.

Yep, we can pretty much assume that the Pirellis won't do Ferrari any favours in France, or at Silverstone for that matter.  Vettel should be strong in qualifying though, and hopefully data gathered during Barcelona GP will lessen the pain in the race, so perhaps he might be able to nick a podium.

I also predict Leclerc to get a bit too cocky and overdrive his car this weekend on "home" ground. He'll bin it in quali or race.

More importantly, can your boys take down the Germans on Saturday?  Now wouldn't that be something to savour.

Imagine that. Germany kicked out in the group stage. I think we can. We have a real solid defense, haven't let a goal past us for 3-4 games. If we secure the defense, we just need to be lucky up front once. Or, you know, 0-0/1-1 is still pretty neat for us.

Sirotkin clearly is referring to his balls.

https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/136904/why-sirotkin-seat-problems-should-finally-be-solved

I?m just going to point out that, throughout the past two seasons, I said that I did not believe that McLaren had as good of a car as they claimed or that their lack of performance was all on Honda. Can we say that is confirmed yet? McLaren always says they have an unbelievably great chassis when there is no evidence to prove it. In the past that was just during preseason testing and then disproven as soon as the races started, with Honda it was during the season as well. They have no excuses anymore.

Nobody ever believed that, did they? McLaren was never closer to the front at, for example, Monaco. The Honda engine was surely a disadvantage, but the chassis was never good enough to fight for wins.

I struggle to see Alonso remaining at McLaren in 2019. Then again, I couldn't see him staying for 2018 or 2017.

Monaco 2017 showing compromised by not having Alonso and because Van Door, who had been seventh in Q2, decided to hit the wall before Q3 even began.  If you take qualifying performance in Hungary & Singapore, the other obviously low-power circuits, I'd say McLaren had the fourth best aero/chassis package last year.  The Honda engine really was shite in 2017, it ran out of hybrid power before the end of long straights and it had a life expectancy of about eight hours; this year, Honda's offering has improved markedly and McLaren has gone the other way.

Talking of McLaren's 2018 woes, they have aero issues which don't show up in the wind tunnel: https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/mclaren-cant-see-key-aero-problem-in-testing-1047361/

Basically, this year's aero effort is crap.  The car seems to produce good downforce at high speed but you can see from the mph numbers that the car is incredibly draggy, it's also not working that well right now in slow- or mid-speed corners.  Apart from that, everything's fine.

Quote from: Chrill on June 20, 2018, 02:33:10 AM
Imagine that. Germany kicked out in the group stage. I think we can. We have a real solid defense, haven't let a goal past us for 3-4 games. If we secure the defense, we just need to be lucky up front once. Or, you know, 0-0/1-1 is still pretty neat for us.

Should've been 1-1.  Last ten minutes made for unpleasant (but somewhat familiar) viewing: Despite being a man up your boys were sat (stuck) deep in their own half with an overwhelming urge to give the ball back to the Germans as quickly as possible, and to cede needless free kicks just outside the penalty box... it was like watching England play.


F1: I feel like I've said this before, but apparently Renault is now finally ready to introduce its new MGU-K: http://classic.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/137020?_ga=2.229396892.1050451900.1529923272-462676180.1476909048

Well, yes, the final free kick was very unnecessary to give them. Oh well, we only need to win 1-0 to Mexico and we're through anyway. 3 points today, that's all we need.

Congrats!  And as a massive bonus we see Germany dumped out of the World Cup... what a great pair of results.  :)

It was lovely indeed. I've rarely seen Sweden so totally dismantle a proper nation. That Mexico game was obviously not supposed to finish 3-0 (and a more fair result was perhaps 2-0) but the truth is Mexico only ever had one proper chance to score while we had several.

Switzerland up next, half their defense is having to miss the game due to yellow cards. Poor guys. We can take them down. On paper, they're easier to beat than Mexico. Then, we may just face the English. Oh boy, that's a battle.

Seems that quarter final match is on.  Can't believe Belgium fell for it....

I'd love to have a chance at the English at their own game! Well, first we must play sixth-ranked team Switzerland who tied with Brazil. We're definitely on the lucky side of the last 16, but then again it's the last 16 so there's no easy draw.

Play like you did against Mexico and the Swiss shouldn't be an issue; I reckon Colombia for us will be a tougher contest - although we are generally playing better these days under Southgate's stewardship.

Oh yeah, F1... umm, grid drop for Vettel after he impeded Sainz in Q3.  Seb now starting from sixth place.

Bummer for Ferrari fans, including Chrill, but it's definitely a fair penalty. Here's hoping Raikkonen (just kidding!) can have a go at the Mercedes. Perhaps nudge Hamilton in the "right" direction at the start.

Leclerc drops 5 places with a gearbox penalty, yet still lines up in front of Ericsson on the grid. Why is that? Because Ericsson was even crappier than normal in quali.

I'm not a Ferrari fan but I am tired of Mercedes winning.  Sadly not even a chance of rain to spice things up for us so we're down to your fantasy scenario of Kimi having a pop at the Mercs, unless Mad Max or Grosjean do something a little bit crazy... but what are the odds of that?

Spot-on prediction.

adhdfdhusfhdusfhdusfhdaus Bottas was my weekly.

(https://media.giphy.com/media/4ZxicT7ZQYcLShHOiz/giphy.gif)

At least Denmark lost, that should cheer you up a smidgeon.

Quote from: Matt on July 01, 2018, 09:23:54 AM
Spot-on prediction.

... and I so nearly went for "unless Mercedes make a rookie error under VSC and then suffer their first ever double mechanical DNF".

Mercedes making rookie errors during VSC was likely, however. The double DNF was not.

The double points for Sauber also wasn't expected.

Denmark losing kind of hurt. Their goalkeeper is pretty neat, he deserved to go through after saving a penalty in the 115h minute!

What?  I thought there was some massive footballing rivalry between you guys!  I do agree about Kasper Schmeichel though, he's a real chip off the old block.

No Italy or Netherlands at the contest and now we've lost Germany, Spain, and Portugal... not exactly a classic showing by Europe's 'big guns'.

Quote from: Penfold on July 02, 2018, 01:26:45 AM
No Italy or Netherlands at the contest and now we've lost Germany

Yeah, that was us. All of them. Every single one. We beat Netherlands to the playoffs, there we beat Italy. We then won the group in which Germany finished dead last.

Not being a particularly avid follower of Swedish football (incredible, I know) your team's antics against the Dutch had passed me by, and I'd clean forgotten about you taking out the Italians.  I'd say you really deserve some sort of reward... though I suppose England (possibly) in a World Cup quarter final wouldn't be a bad prize, we are eminently beatable.

Well, the Swiss are ranked 6th even though they have two shaky games so far this world cup. Beating Serbia was expected, tying Costa Rica was a shame, and getting a point out of Brazil impressive. Our luck may rest in the fact we played our best in our final round, they played their worst in their final round.

I want to say I believe in Sweden but the fact is we're ranked 24th or something, the Swiss are 6th. Maybe a more fair standing would be the Swiss something like 10-12 and Sweden 18-20, but still.

I always take those rankings with a massive pinch of salt, and I pay even less attention to them for World Cup matches.  Some of the most notable failings thus far: Top seed Germany beaten by Mexico (ranked 12th) & then humbled by lowly S. Korea (57th); Japan (61st) almost doing Belgium (3rd); Poland (8th) losing to Senegal (27th); Spain (10th) drawing with Morocco (41st), scraping a 1-0 win against Iran (37th), and being put out by Russia (70th).

As for the Swiss, well this is how they've fared against England over the years: https://www.11v11.com/teams/england/tab/opposingTeams/opposition/Switzerland/

That's a side that has 'beatable' written all over them, and as you said, your guys have been getting stronger.  Certainly the dismantling (your word!) of Mexico won't have done team confidence any harm....

Nobody cares if the English can beat Switzerland. You won't have to, we did it for you. Sweden v England however... Well, we have a nicely fought recent past. You beat us in the 2012 Euros, we tied in the 2002 and 2006 World Cups. We beat you in that 4-2 friendly in Stockholm which is our most recent game.

According to statistics, Sweden v England is a close run affair. According to the way Sweden are playing, rarely conceding... Well, I think it will finish 1-0. I just don't know which side will score the one. I gave Sweden a 40% chance to do Mexico, a 50% on Switzerland, now I'd say a 25% chance against you lot. It's achievable.

Eric Boullier is no longer with McLaren.

https://www.mclaren.com/formula1/inside-the-mtc/mclaren-racing-announces-changes-leadership-structure/

"Simon Roberts, COO of McLaren Racing, will oversee production, engineering and logistics. Andrea Stella is appointed Performance Director, responsible for trackside operations. Gil de Ferran takes up the new role of Sporting Director, to maximise the effectiveness of the team?s racing package."

No more Bouillon Powder at McLaren, a tragic loss for the team.  Suggestions that Alonso had a hand in the promotions of Andrea Stella & Gil de Ferran.

I didn't think we'd need to beat the Swiss as I reckoned your boys would take them out, in fact I was more confident of that than of us beating Colombia.  Ours should be a tight game on Saturday; I'll go more optimistic than you on the scoring and say it finishes 2-1, but like you I'll bottle it and refuse to guess who's victorious.

What is the general opinion over there about the SWE-ENG game? In media and among the regular folk.

We seem to think we are in with an absolutely genuine chance, that it's going to be tight and difficult but definitely possible.

Tight and difficult game, that pretty much sums it up.  Having said that, although the Swedish team is well regarded and recognized as having experience on its side, people are also thinking that this is a golden opportunity to reach the semis, really our best chance since Italia '90.  Of course, too many soul-crushing defeats over the years for anyone to simply assume that we'll win.

Who do you favour in the other quarters?  Brazil, France, and Croatia?

Quote from: Penfold on July 06, 2018, 01:21:26 AM
Tight and difficult game, that pretty much sums it up.  Having said that, although the Swedish team is well regarded and recognized as having experience on its side, people are also thinking that this is a golden opportunity to reach the semis, really our best chance since Italia '90.  Of course, too many soul-crushing defeats over the years for anyone to simply assume that we'll win.

Who do you favour in the other quarters?  Brazil, France, and Croatia?

Belgium, France, and Croatia. Admittedly the Belgium-Brazil game is the closest one to call.

Let us not discount Russia. State funded doping may well take them to the semi finals.

In regards to Sweden having experience on its side... No we do not. None of these lads have ever progressed deep in an international competition. 0 of them have ever entered a World Cup before. Some of them did win the U21 Euros in 2015, so there's that. On penalties nonetheless. Oh yes, we too can win on penalties.

Great call on Belgium.

Thank you. On another note, both Saubers finished in the top 10 for FP3, and Leclerc won "best of the rest" honours while challenging Red Bull. I don't know what is up with that.

Ericsson was trailing Leclerc by 7 tenths, but that was mainly down to straight line speed. Is Ericsson simply not capable of driving his car in a lower downforce configuration, or is Leclerc using a more efficient engine. It seems weird.

Perhaps no one has told him that the pedals go all the way down....

I'm so impressed by Sauber's turn of speed that your mate Marcus is going to be my pick.

We can think Ericsson for missing his DRS button into turn 1, and thus causing a safety car and therefore causing a Grosjean-Sainz crash and another safety car, for this thrilling race finish. Good race, some impressive driving from Vettel and some sad moaning for Hamilton who lucked into a safety car.

Had Ericsson as my pick but more than happy to lose weekly points in exchange for such a fantastic finale.  Enjoyed it as much as a certain football match played in Russia on Saturday afternoon....

Have to say that I agree with Gasly about his penalty. I watched a replay of the race and already knew that he received a penalty, and when I saw the incident, I could not believe it was a penalty. Is every instance of contact going to be a penalty now? Because that contact was barely anything.

I haven't seen their touch. Was it shown on TV? I cannot seem to find YouTube replays of it either.

Here you go: https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/headlines/2018/7/gasly-penalty-promotes-perez-into-points.html

It was only a little nudge... if the cars didn't have so many bits of carbon fibre down their flanks they might not have even touched, or at least it would've been a completely unremarkable glancing blow.

I fully agree with your assessment then. Absolutely no penalty.

On a separate note, does Mercedes have some weird philosophical objection to pitting under safety cars?  I can't for the life of me understand why they left Bottas out there after Ericsson had binned his motor.  The only thought that makes any sense is that his spot on the podium was sacrificed in the hope that he'd hold back Seb long enough for Lewis to get past, not exactly a likely turn of events given the age of Hammy's tyres.  Actually, there is one other thought that makes sense: incompetence.

Quote from: Penfold on July 10, 2018, 04:04:17 AM
On a separate note, does Mercedes have some weird philosophical objection to pitting under safety cars?  I can't for the life of me understand why they left Bottas out there after Ericsson had binned his motor.  The only thought that makes any sense is that his spot on the podium was sacrificed in the hope that he'd hold back Seb long enough for Lewis to get past, not exactly a likely turn of events given the age of Hammy's tyres.  Actually, there is one other thought that makes sense: incompetence.

I think Mercedes made a fair call this time around, as did Ferrari/Red Bull. Mercedes felt they could not pass Vettel on track. They decided "Whatever Ferrari do with Vettel, we do the opposite". It worked for Lewis, moving from P6 to P2 in the end. It did not work for Bottas, but it could just as well have worked had he held on a little longer.

Lewis had nothing to lose by staying out, had fresher rubber than Bottas (okay, only 4 laps), and judging by the first stint had been easier on his tyres than Valerie.  Bottas had a guaranteed second place to lose, and the only reason he held on until lap 47 is because of the second safety car - in fact, remove those additional slow laps from the equation and Hamilton would've been vulnerable to Kimi once they were both past Bottas, and perhaps Dan even gets his Red Bull past Val.

Well, Bottas was arguably a closer call but Hamilton was definitely correct in staying out.

I agree on Hammy, my issue was with them not pitting Valerie.

Good chance of a wet qualifying tomorrow but the rain clouds will likely clear before Sunday afternoon.  Rain... wouldn't mind a spot of that myself, it's been a good seven weeks since any appreciable precipitation.

Here too. We're in the low-to-mid-30s and have been for a while now. Most recent proper rainfall was in early April which is unusual. What do you mean climate change?

A friend of mine is flying to Cyprus tomorrow, she's thrilled because it is colder there. YES, she's leaving Sweden to cool down in Cyprus.

Sounds normal to me.

Similar weather here but not so hot, more like mid- to high-twenties with the occasional blip above thirty; and rain kept coming until late May but since then just a few mm.


So beginneth the power unit penalties (for the non-Honda folk): https://www.racefans.net/2018/07/20/ricciardo-set-for-grid-penalty-after-changing-three-power-unit-parts/

So, Dan 'The Pie Man' Ricciardo starts from plum last... well at least all will be fresh for the Hungaroring next week.

Most of our days are around 90 (looks to be around 32 in celsius), but with the humidity, the heat index is closer to 100. We get thunderstorms fairly regularly around 5:00-7:00 pm.

Ricciardo is good at overtaking. Could add some excitement to the race.

"Heat index" is not something I'm familiar with, but yes humidity is an issue for us. Sweden is very humid, so our 33C (91F) is rather unbearable. Coupled with ventilation failure at work, I've avoided being at the office this week :P

"Heat index" is basically the summer version of "wind chill." What temperature it actually feels like, given all of the conditions.

Seems we are on for a wet qualifying so hopefully a few guys out of position come Sunday.  Just a shame that DRS tends to allow anyone in a top car to rapidly progress through the field... ooh, a 20 mph overspeed courtesy of pressing this little button, I wonder if that will be exciting to watch.

In a wet FP3, Sauber rocked a 1-2 finish with Leclerc ahed of Ericsson by the usual 4-5 tenths. I'm told they have set their car up toward a rainy qualifying so as a Swede I'm hoping for that.

Could get real messy, any of the 20 could spin out which means the other 19 need to abandon the laps.

Is Force India going into administration after the Hungarian Grand Prix?

Learn German:
https://www.auto-motor-und-sport.de/formel-1/force-indias-schicksal-bestimmt-fahrermarkt-renault-mit-option-auf-ocon/

To sum it up:
* Suspending payments starting this week
* Going into administration over the summer break
* Lawrence Stroll will buy the assets and move Lance Stroll there for 2019
* Esteban Ocon will replace Carlos Sainz at Renault for 2019

Could result in:
* Sainz to McLaren
* Alonso to leave F1
* Vandoorne to Williams
* Perez to Haas

Also mentioned in the article:
* Fiat/Ferrari boss Sergio Marchionne's health has delayed a Leclerc-Raikkonen decision. Raikkonen may stay on for 2019

With Force India falling into administration, it is possible drivers may begin swapping teams mid-season. Let us keep our eyes open.

AMuS (the newspaper) is a very reliable source of motorsport news. They revelead Sauber's purchase to Strongbow and later to Alfa Romeo, they also first revealed Lewis leaving McLaren for Mercedes and Schumacher retiring from F1 at the end of 2012.

Quote from: Chrill on July 23, 2018, 05:56:08 AM
Is Force India going into administration after the Hungarian Grand Prix?

Learn German:
https://www.auto-motor-und-sport.de/formel-1/force-indias-schicksal-bestimmt-fahrermarkt-renault-mit-option-auf-ocon/

To sum it up:
* Suspending payments starting this week
* Going into administration over the summer break
* Lawrence Stroll will buy the assets and move Lance Stroll there for 2019
* Esteban Ocon will replace Carlos Sainz at Renault for 2019

Could result in:
* Sainz to McLaren
* Alonso to leave F1
* Vandoorne to Williams
* Perez to Haas

Also mentioned in the article:
* Fiat/Ferrari boss Sergio Marchionne's health has delayed a Leclerc-Raikkonen decision. Raikkonen may stay on for 2019

With Force India falling into administration, it is possible drivers may begin swapping teams mid-season. Let us keep our eyes open.

AMuS (the newspaper) is a very reliable source of motorsport news. They revelead Sauber's purchase to Strongbow and later to Alfa Romeo, they also first revealed Lewis leaving McLaren for Mercedes and Schumacher retiring from F1 at the end of 2012.

https://thesportsrush.com/lawrence-stroll-has-bought-force-india/
Some rather unreliable and unkown news site reports that Lawrence Stroll has already bought Force India outright.

I guess technically Stroll would no longer be a 'pay driver'.  Not sure what would be an appropriate moniker....

Still, if true at least the Force India boys & girls would gain some long-term job security - though perhaps not for the management.


If Stroll heads to Force India, Ocon to Renault, and Perez to Haas... who fills the seat next to Lance?  The ejected Haas driver?  What level of talent would Stroll Sr. want to see destroying his lad on a weekly/fortnightly basis?

There was a rumor a couple of weeks ago that they wanted Kubica to go with them to Force India.

Ahh, so they want someone to help Stroll with his driving.  Guess that's fair enough, and a great result for Kubica if it comes off.


Renault to hand Artem Markelov first taste of F1 in next week's Hungaroring test: https://www.racefans.net/2018/07/24/renault-hands-f1-test-debut-markelov/

Quote from: Penfold on July 24, 2018, 01:14:41 AM
I guess technically Stroll would no longer be a 'pay driver'.  Not sure what would be an appropriate moniker....

This is Ericsson levels of pay driving. Sauber was rescued by his sponsors before being sold to Alfa Romeo and Fiat. Is daddy Stroll looking to do something similar, or is he genuinely buying an F1 team for his own kid? I mean, I once got a moped from my parents but that's nothing compared to an entire F1 team.

An all-new power unit for Bottas means penalties galore and shunts him right to the back of Sunday's grid.

Hulkenberg also to start from the back - or one from the back, not sure whether he or Bottas will earn the biggest grid drop.

So, Hulkenberg starting from the back didn't work out too well....

Race in general ruined (yet again) by the all powerful DRS, expect more of the same at Monza which is to have its DRS zones lengthened. 

Quote from: Penfold on August 27, 2018, 02:56:57 AM
Monza which is to have its DRS zones lengthened.

To be fair, with the extremely slim wings used at Monza DRS loses efficiency. Then again, they don't need DRS at all at that track.

I don't know how much slimmer the wings will be at Monza, but in Spa the top speed achieved at the 'Intermediate 1' trap (that's along the Kemmel straight) was Bottas's 345 km/h (Ricciardo managed 342 km/h); Vettel, who didn't activate DRS down the Kemmel, was the slowest of the lot with a best of just 320.6 km/h.  So that's a fairly huge margin and clearly Red Bull gained tremendous speed despite running a sliver of a rear wing.

More related to slipstream than DRS, I'm sure. The slipsteam effect is insane with these cars.

I'm not so sure, I mean I remember how potent the slipstream effect was back in the day (i.e. before cars were made narrower in '98) but I don't believe it compared to DRS.  Not only is the overspeed greater than from pure slipstreaming, but the speed holds at this high level (or even builds further) after they've pulled out into clean air, makes the overtake all too easy.  Vettel on Hammy on lap one: no DRS (obviously) and he jumps him courtesy of a slipstream (and a fast car!), but he is only just ahead of the Merc as they enter Les Combes because once Seb's car has to push itself through clean air Hammy is able to pull back up to the Ferrari - compare that with any of the DRS passes where the attacker just keeps pulling away right to the braking zone.  Actually, the best illustration of how dire DRS was at Spa, was Ericsson making a move on Hartley into La Source only for Brendon (on old tyres and in a car with lower top speeds throughout qualifying) to fly back past him down Kemmel, I found that absolutely laughable.

Fair enough in regards to Hartley v Ericsson, that's a valid point.

I'd like to see F1 trial solutions like banning DRS for an entire race. Monza would be the place to try it. Or, for that matter, allow it for all cars always. That would negate the disadvantage of being at the front.

Please just use it on shorter straights to help drivers get in a position for an unassisted overtake, the run into La Source would be a perfect example.  Unfortunately, we have Charlie Whiting deciding matters and he didn't think it was a problem that DRS made passing so easy at Spa - in other words, we're screwed.  Charlie has also previously ruled out giving drivers a set number of DRS uses per race, to be available whatever their position, as he doesn't believe it should be anything other than an offensive tool (well, I do find it offensive, and Charlie is a tool...).

Renault's C-spec engine is more powerful, a gain of perhaps 0.3s per lap in quali at Monza, but it is also more likely to go bang: https://www.racefans.net/2018/08/28/renault-new-f1-engine-significantly-more-powerful-less-reliable/

I like the gamble. It's a bit like "Ricciardo may win, Verstappen may too, but most likely they'll go bang on lap 33 despite running 5th and 6th anyway"

Stroll has had a seat fitting at Force India, but Ocon and Perez will race for the Pink Racing Panther Point in Monza.

https://www.racefans.net/2018/08/28/stroll-visits-force-india-but-ocon-to-drive-at-monza/

Pink Panther Racing... they should try and get that name cleared with whoever holds the rights these days.

New power units for Ricciardo and Hulk will leave them at the back of Sunday's grid.  Seems that Hulk's ten-place grid drop for stupidity at Spa gets superseded by the engine penalty... so apart from some points on his licence, he gets off scot-free for taking out four drivers.

In other news: Monza is wet, will stay wet throughout the day, and might still be a bit on the damp side tomorrow morning.  Should be dry for qualifying and looking fine for the race.

Ricciardo's engine cut out during FP1, but he managed to exit safemode and make it to the pits. He then returned to the track to continue practice.

Ericsson also at (or near) back of grid after engine/gearbox damage courtesy of yesterday's rather spectacular crash.  Got to love DRS.

?There are many classes of drivers and then there's the Haas ones, who have the third- or fourth-best car of the grid and are out in Q2."

Some standard Alonso hyperbole, but also a great quote.

Wondering how many points Haas would have with a Perez/Ocon pairing.  Got to think somewhere north of 100 is possible, and with that they'd be secure in 4th ahead of Renault.  Still, they won't end any lower than fifth courtesy of McLaren building a fairly awful car (and only having one Alonso), and Force India having to start from scratch after twelve races.

Great to see Kimi on pole... although Seb didn't seem too happy about it!

Why Haas (well, Grosjean) has been disqualified from Monza GP:

Renault said Haas had breached article 3.7.1 d of the Technical Regulations, which focuses on the radius of the leading corners of the floor's reference plane.

Back in July, governing body the FIA issued a Technical Directive clarifying the regulation and stipulated that teams must bring their cars into conformity before the Italian Grand Prix.  It emerged during the hearing that Haas emailed the FIA, as is common in these matters, with details of their new solution but because of the limited time, given the summer break and two-week shutdown, they had asked for some flexibility in the matter.

Haas said they would "endeavour to introduce this upgrade for the Singapore GP but will be somewhat at the mercy of our suppliers".  The FIA did not respond to the latter point, with Haas telling the stewards at the hearing that it was their understanding that "a lack of response on the matter of timing indicated that their solution and timing were accepted".

But the stewards said in their statement: "While the Stewards are also sympathetic to the difficulties of producing these parts, the Stewards noted that at least one other competitor was able to comply in the time provided."

- Difference with Haas is that as they don't produce their floors in-house it's a longer process to make this change, meaning their options at Monza were to race with the old floor or not race at all.  Perhaps the FIA should check their inbox more often.

Paddy Lowe confirms that if Williams make a mid-season driver change, it will be Robert Kubica stepping up to replace Stroll:

https://autoweek.com/article/formula-one/path-clearing-robert-kubicas-return-formula-1-seat

With this dragging on, word is that Force India does not want to draft Stroll yet since they expect the Perez-Ocon pairing to bring in more points. Stroll may have to wait until 2019 before joining Force India Racing Point Pink Panther F1 Team.

Whoever drives for them this year, the important point is that we've finally nailed down the team name.

I'd abbreviate it though. FIRPPPF1.

FIRPPP F1.  I'm assuming the final two 'P's' are silent, so the name rhymes with 'burp'.

No. Fir pee pee pee Eff one.

Fir pee... sounds painful.

https://racer.com/2018/09/14/wolff-angry-over-lies-about-ocon-as-wehrlein-leaves-mercedes/

Big talk from someone who still employs Bottas, to the detriment of many Mercedes junior drivers. Ocon is as ready to move up now as Leclerc is. Bottas has shown that he is not world champion material. Do not talk about other teams not taking the best talent when you also fail to.

Quite outrageous that these lesser teams would put their own interests first.  I mean, how dare Renault snap up Ricciardo when Merc needs that spot for one of their future stars?  As for the second of Ocon's "offers on the table with contracts", well that must've been with Force India who, for no good reason, suddenly decided to hand a seat to Lance Stroll sometime in early August.

If Mercedes fails to secure a seat for Ocon for 2019, why would he trust them with his future? He's definitely proven himself worthy of F1, and cutting ties to Mercedes might be his way back to the grid.

Well, rumours still place Ocon at Williams but I could see that seat going to Markelov of F2 "fame" and of Russian money. Or to Ericsson.

Perez is such a frustrating driver. He has both speed and race craft, but then just goes off the rails sometimes.

Crunching Ocon into the wall was bad enough, but a day after the event and I still can't believe he just steered into Sirotkin... absolutely bonkers!  Good job it wasn't on the other Williams....

Engine penalties for Sochi: Alonso, Ricciardo, Verstappen, Gasly, and Hartley.  Five cars out of twenty isn't bad going, but I'm kind of hoping we can get to seven or eight starting at the back of the grid.

I think we could make these penalties more fun. Let those guys literally line up alongside each other. If there's no room, I don't care, park outside the track. Then at the start, demolition derby.

Or... you qualify as normal but then have to start from your grid spot facing backwards. 

I'd be up for that. In P5, Verstappen reverses off the grid and pulls a handsome three-point turn before accelerating down the start/finish line.

Also, loving that signature of yours. I may need to update mine now that is becoming apparent Ericsson is not, after all, joining Ferrari for 2019.

Quote from: Chrill on September 28, 2018, 03:47:03 AMIt is becoming apparent Ericsson is not, after all, joining Ferrari for 2019.

And there we have it.

So, no Ericsson at Ferrari in 2019; yet again, F1 fans are deprived of a toe-to-toe fight between two titans of the sport.

I know it's belated, but I realised I hadn't commented on this tragic turn of events.

Ericsson mentioned that he was interested in IndyCar. Could we have Felix and Ericsson?

Pity that IndyCar isn't on a FTA channel over here, I reckon it could rack up some decent viewing figures with a little bit marketing behind it - particularly if Alonso makes the jump.

Quote from: Matt on September 28, 2018, 07:48:47 AM
Ericsson mentioned that he was interested in IndyCar. Could we have Felix and Ericsson?

You could, but you already got the one more likely to succeed in IndyCar.

I think Ericsson, as I've mentioned before, would excel in endurance racing. He lacks absolute top speed, but can manage a car really well. He always runs longer stints than those around him, this could be very beneficial in endurance racing. Have a crack at Le Mans 24h with Alonso.

If Vettel wins all four remaining races, Hamilton retires in two and finishes 2nd and 3rd in the others... Well then, they are tied on points and tied on number of victories. Hamilton would be crowned champion courtesy of finishing 2nd more times.

So yeah, that's the opportunity Vettel is presented with.

... and Vettel has earned himself a three-place grid drop for not slowing down enough when the old red flags were waving in P1.  As if Hammy winning this race didn't already seem a dead cert.

I mean, that's Vettel's fault entirely. Red flags always mean red flags. You have to slow sufficiently.

Oh boy. Kimi, it's been a while. I thought it would never happen. He won! At 39 years, Kimi is the oldest race winner since Nigel Mansell in 1994. How about that.

Fantastic drive by Kimi, but he still needs a win sometime in 2020 to make the top ten list of oldest race winners.

Also... what a great race.  Much credit to Mercedes for playing their part by keeping Lewis out for way too long on those softs.

Well, had he pitted earlier he'd run the same risk with that second set of softs. The Mercedes car was simply not set up well for the race. Thanks to a rainy Friday, the teams only had 60 minutes of dry running. This makes the case that teams perhaps get too much time to prepare for a race. I'd say replace FP1 and FP2 with some sort of junior racing, or a 120-minute practice only allowing third drivers to take part.

He did 26 laps (1 under VSC?) on that first set of softs but only 19 laps on set number two; I'd say better to flip it around and run longer when fuel load is lighter and the track is more rubbered in - plus they might've been able to get him out into the gap between Kimi & Max.  They might also have suggested that he didn't hammer the tyres right from the start, Bottas managed to keep going for 33 laps on his softs - admittedly they looked pretty knackered by the end, but still not as bad as Hammy's first set.

I'd love to see one of Friday's sessions ditched and replaced with a race for reserve drivers.  I think the teams would need to have a third car specifically for this purpose, too awkward with engine changes/risk of car damage to use one of the regular cars, but I don't see why it couldn't be done.

Having a third car is expensive. There's a reason they no longer keep a spare chassis available. If such a junior race was introduced, Liberty would have to cover a whole share of its costs.

I was thinking it would need to be part of an F1 world with a budget cap set at a level attainable by most - and not too far above the reaches of the poorest entrants - so that all teams would expend roughly the same percentage of their annual allowance on this third car.  Alternatively, Liberty could simply bung everyone the extra millions to make it happen.

Red Bull said a while back that the high-altitude Mexican GP would be their best chance of another win in 2018, and they're certainly living up to that billing so far.  Doubtless Merc & Ferrari will be able to crank up the power in qualifying, but it does seem we'll have the two Bulls in the mix - at least until their cars break.

I said Ricciardo would break down. He did. Oh boy. Hami finally officially crowned world champion for a fifth time. Only two more to go before he equals Schumacher. Can he do it? Yes. Will he? Maybe.

Probably, no rain will affect the Brazilian GP. Maybe, though:
https://www.racefans.net/2018/11/08/rain-may-arrive-too-late-to-affect-brazilian-gp/

That about sums up the article.

I'd rather have a dry Interlagos.  Five-place grid drops for Ricciardo and Ocon, plus Hulk did a number on his car in P2 so we'll see whether he's damaged Mr. Gearbox.

Ericsson to start from P6 tomorrow. That isn't too bad. Swedish media is saying that Sauber have been actively giving Ericsson a less efficient engine mode to make Leclerc look good because getting him into Ferrari would trigger a massive bonus for the Sauber F1 team. I don't really believe it, but Ericsson had a really good day at the job today. P6 is easily his best grid position in F1, so hoping he can make something of it. Finishing P7 would be the best realistic result unless people in front DNF. Here's hoping for a five-car pileup at the start and Ricciardo's engine to fail. Ericsson ahead of Leclerc in a Sauber 1-2 finish. Anyone?

Chances are right up there with England winning the next three World Cups... :)

Still, fantastic job by Eric's son.

Ericsson winning gives you a return of 501 times your investment. I mean, Leicester winning the Premier League was something like 5000 times, so this is a given really.

(https://i.imgur.com/2DxOML9.png)

Well. That sucked, Ericsson. Car broke before the race even began, then damage from Grosjean. Then Magnussen. Then Magnussen again. That led to a DNF. I really hoped for a good result for Ericsson before leaving F1, and P7 was definitely doable since Leclerc finished there. Real shame.

Disappointed in Verstappen shoving and pushing Ocon post-race, but then again what the hell was Ocon doing trying to unlap the leader so aggressively? 10 second Stop/Go was absolutely fair, and 3 points on his license too.

Ocon got off pretty lightly with just a bit of shoving... I remember when Senna floored Eddie Irvine for having the temerity to unlap himself whilst Ayrton was battling with (insert driver name here) for position.

Perhaps it was a subtle message to Mercedes: You think Bottas is a good wingman for Lewis, but give me a chance and I'll show you how much a truly committed no. 2 can help... the first one is free!

I call it a 50/50 accident, if Ocon had not been a lap down. But he was, so it was on him. But Max has taken out more than his share of people with dumb moves that he has never yet taken responsibility for, so I am not interested in hearing from him either.

Sympathy for Max... not an easy thing to conjure.

https://www.formula1.com/en/video/2018/11/Ride_onboard_with_Ocon_for_the_laps_leading_up_to_Verstappen_clash.html

Feel free to form your own opinion. In my book, Ocon came from too far behind and didn't have what it took to overtake safely. Since he had Verstappen alongside him into turn 1, Ocon should have backed off. I agree with the 10 second Stop/Go penalty.

... and if he had managed to nip past Max, he would've had a few more laps before his shiny new super-softs lost their edge and he got blue flags waved in his face.  Talk about a pointless endeavour.

Sure, but he'd be some 5-6 seconds further ahead than if he hadn't first passed Maximus Von Stappi.

Briefly nip off into the distance by hammering your tyres, or conserve them by driving more cautiously behind Max... I wonder which would be the more sensible approach?  :)

Surely hammering your tyres, they'd last the distance.

They'd last in as much as they wouldn't explode, but what's the fastest way to drive 31 laps on a set of super-softs?  Then there's the time lost in passing, and then being re-passed by Max.

Alonso wrapped up his career in mediocre fashion, but at least he stopped caring so that's cool:
https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/alonso-whiting-corner-cutting-penalties/4304116/

Cut the corner to gain an advantage thrice, resulting in 3 times 5 second time-penalties added to his time total, and 3 licence points. He does not care.

https://www.aftonbladet.se/a/8w02dW

Learn Swedish you muppets.

EDIT: And if you don't, here is a Google Translated version of the article:

"A disaster if this proved true"
Material fraud may have inhibited Marcus Ericsson
SPORTBLADET less than 3 hours ago

Marcus Ericssons last season in Formula 1 may have been characterized by major injustices.
Material fraud may have hampered his achievements.
"It is not the most fair sport in the world we are dealing with," says reporter Janne Blomqvist in Viasat Motor's F1 podcast.

The Swedish racer left Formula One after five years. The 28-year-old was forced away from his stable Sauber in favor of Antonio Giovinazzi and Kimi Raikkonen.

A few weeks ago, Ericsson revealed that, while in Formula 1, he ruined the Australian television profile Sarah Todd's marriage when he went out on a date with her.

Now, new - completely different - information about Ericsson's time in Formula One. Viasat reporter Janne Blomqvist says about major injustices that have taken place in Ericssons stables - material ones that have had a negative impact on Ericsson and benefited team mate Charles Leclerc.

"I have witnessed evidence that something is not right, that it is different simply. The brand did not look so strong, and something needed to be done. The brand being Charles Leclerc. But it does not take anything from Leclerc's performance, because he is very good, says Blomqvist in Viasat Motors F1 podd.

Blomqvist says, however, that he can not or can not reveal his sources, but at the same time claims that they are relatively reliable.

"There are indications that it has not been right, and I mean very clear indications," he says.

At the same time, he says that many do not know about the injustices in progress.

"It would be a disaster if it came to light. Not everyone in Sauber knows what's going on. The worst thing that could happen is that this is coming out, it would be a giant scandal. It's so sick, because everyone knows what's going on, says Blomqvist.

I don't really buy it. It sounds like what Nasr said when Ericsson was beating him. Plus, Sauber was in a close points fight in the constructor's battle, so the idea that they were purposely inhibiting Ericsson makes no sense. And Ericsson arguably had some of his better drives near the end of the season.

I strongly disagreed until Abu Dhabi, really, because Leclerc was massively faster down the straights compared to Ericsson, yet Ericsson and Leclerc both stated they ran "virtually" the same setup. Ericsson did not make up any ground on Leclerc in sector 3, running about one tenth faster or slower over the race and during quali. We saw a similar thing in Azerbaijan where Ericsson struggled to keep up during the straight.

The busy little elves over at racefans have cobbled together some articles on who spent what in 2018.  Brief(ish) summary version here: https://www.racefans.net/2018/12/29/analysis-how-f1-teams-spent-2-2-billion-in-2018/

More detailed team-by-team analysis here: https://www.racefans.net/2018/12/19/how-much-f1-teams-spent-race-2018-part-one/ and here: https://www.racefans.net/2018/12/26/the-cost-of-f1-revealed-how-much-teams-spent-in-2018-part-two/

I'd suggest perusing the last two links if you're going to bother with any of it, you can skip through much of the text and just absorb all relevant info. from the pretty pictures - quite interesting to see how many tens of millions the parent companies of the big spenders have to pump in to balance the books.

Also, hope you guys had a great Christmas.