Formula 1 2015: General Discussion Thread

Myrddin

antodeco wrote: »

Or offer development tokens for various things over the weekend:

Most completed laps over 3 practice sessions (minimum amount required) - This would also improve attendance's as we would have more cars out.

Most overtakes (minimum number required) allows token to be used before next race

Best average laptime

Something like the above would keep it even throughout all the teams

Would it though? Most laps completed in practice sessions would be an easy grab for Merc...their reliability is higher than anything out there currently. Most overtakes only benefits faster cars, the cars that need the actual tokens are hardly even hitting the DRS button short of blue flags. Average laptime again will be down to fastest cars, Mercedes can be fast all the time, so again I'd see the above being an easy way to generate tokens.

Myrddin

Re the new FI wing...would any stalling effect not just approximate the wing before this years new regs, ie those hideous gentlemans appendage ones from last year?

Jesus, we don't need more rules and tokens and hoops to jump through.

ricimaki

https://twitter.com/Lotus_F1Team/status/613389345760915456

Search #ArrivabeneIsEverywhere in twitter :pac:

tigerboon

[Deleted User] wrote: »

Jesus, we don't need more rules and tokens and hoops to jump through.

Totally agree. Started watching F1 30 years ago and have to say that it is completely unwatchable now. Artificial rules to make up for the lack of major manufacturers. Do Mercedes really think racing against a bunch of garagistas with bank sponsorship is giving them any credibility. WEC and in particular Le Mans is now the credible pinnacle of motor sport

challengemaster

ricimaki wrote: »

Search #ArrivabeneIsEverywhere in twitter :pac:

Brilliant

Uno my Uno.

tigerboon wrote: »

Totally agree. Started watching F1 30 years ago and have to say that it is completely unwatchable now. Artificial rules to make up for the lack of major manufacturers. Do Mercedes really think racing against a bunch of garagistas with bank sponsorship is giving them any credibility. WEC and in particular Le Mans is now the credible pinnacle of motor sport

It's hardly correct to call any of the teams Garagistas. Even manor is a multi million pound operation run by racing professionals. It's unfortunate that Renault appear to have lost interest but another manufacturer will fill the vacuum.

challengemaster

Uno my Uno. wrote: »

It's hardly correct to call any of the teams Garagistas. Even manor is a multi million pound operation run by racing professionals. It's unfortunate that Renault appear to have lost interest but another manufacturer will fill the vacuum.

Cosworth I believe want to get back into F1, if it makes financial sense for them to do so ofc.

Ghost Train

challengemaster wrote: »

Cosworth I believe want to get back into F1, if it makes financial sense for them to do so ofc.

they did work on a v6 turbo engine so probably wouldn't be huge leap.
http://www.racecar-engineering.com/news/cosworth-reveals-2014-f1-power-unit/

tigerboon

Uno my Uno. wrote: »

It's hardly correct to call any of the teams Garagistas. Even manor is a multi million pound operation run by racing professionals. It's unfortunate that Renault appear to have lost interest but another manufacturer will fill the vacuum.

But they are not major car manufacturers and the sport is being made unwatchable by crazy rules aimed at trying to level the playing field. Real competition, Honda, is being hampered by these very rules. What manufacturer will replace Renault if they cannot develop their car to a competitive level at least over the first season. Teams like Williams are important but F1, to be credible as the pinnacle of motor sport, needs to have a good handful of the major manufacturers competing. Dropping races like the German GP isn't helping the cause either.

ScumLord

tigerboon wrote: »

But they are not major car manufacturers and the sport is being made unwatchable by crazy rules aimed at trying to level the playing field.

The problem is without rules and regulations one or two teams could be a lot faster than everybody else. Most car manufacturers don't sell Formula 1 cars to the general public either so it's a bit harder for them to use F1 to promote their cars, unlike GT series where the cars look somewhat like the road going version.

If you want close racing you have to have rules and restriction or the race would become a precession with big gaps in between cars. I think the only way you could let F1 teams off the leash would be to ban major car manufacturers so that that kind of obscene money is gone.

They need to make development more a part of the sport, there's essentially two competitions in F1, the race on the track and the engineering off the track. I think the organisers need to accept that it's also a engineering competition and bring in rules and rewards for good engineering. At the moment all they do is restrict the engineers, but there should be development rewards for things like most economical, fastest and whatever other kind of targets there could be. That would control the development in a sporting way.

challengemaster

So... Rosberg goes to Goodwood FOS



while Hamilton goes to Glastonbury

Myrddin

challengemaster wrote: »

So... Rosberg goes to Goodwood FOS...while Hamilton goes to Glastonbury

What did Vettel get up to, or Alonso, Button, Kimi or Massa for that matter?

Vic_08

Myrddin wrote: »

Re the new FI wing...would any stalling effect not just approximate the wing before this years new regs, ie those hideous gentlemans appendage ones from last year?

They may have been ugly but they allowed the cars get closer to ones in front before the turbulent airflow killed the downforce. This years wings are worse, a step back for close racing.

Myrddin

Vic_08 wrote: »

They may have been ugly but they allowed the cars get closer to ones in front before the turbulent airflow killed the downforce. This years wings are worse, a step back for close racing.

I see, interesting. Dying to see how they get on now in the race on Sunday.

donspeekinglesh

Myrddin wrote: »

What did Vettel get up to, or Alonso, Button, Kimi or Massa for that matter?

Button was at Goodwood.

Myrddin

donspeekinglesh wrote: »

Button was at Goodwood.

Good for him, not that I'd mock him if he weren't :rolleyes:

PopePalpatine

Massa was at Goodwood too: https://instagram.com/p/4cO-SsHLWH/?taken-by=massafelipe19

_rebelkid

Myrddin wrote: »

Good for him, not that I'd mock him if he weren't :rolleyes:

He hasn't missed one.

Ghost Train

Vettel was at the hungaroring

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oBmb4p7lrY0

mickdw

Was hamilton really not at goodwood this year on any day?

_rebelkid

mickdw wrote: »

Was hamilton really not at goodwood this year on any day?

Not as far as I could see. I caught most of the three days, and didn't see him. Anthony Davidson and Nico Rosberg were there for Mercedes.

T-Bird

mickdw wrote: »

Was hamilton really not at goodwood this year on any day?

Too busy hanging out with his homies and enjoying his showbiz lifestyle... Even asked to be dismissed from testing so that Rosberg gets more track time.

Hope he gets crucified at Silverstone. He should be doing all the stuff he is doing now when he has retired.

Dozyart

T-Bird wrote: »

Too busy hanging out with his homies and enjoying his showbiz lifestyle... Even asked to be dismissed from testing so that Rosberg gets more track time.

Hope he gets crucified at Silverstone. He should be doing all the stuff he is doing now when he has retired.

Fuck that noise,do it while you can and if you wind up the haters in the process,all the better

Myrddin

Didn't Mansel spend more time on Golf courses than race tracks?

ScumLord

T-Bird wrote: »

Too busy hanging out with his homies and enjoying his showbiz lifestyle... Even asked to be dismissed from testing so that Rosberg gets more track time.

Hope he gets crucified at Silverstone. He should be doing all the stuff he is doing now when he has retired.

Why wait until you're old to enjoy your money? No one here would be able to sit on the kind of money he has. He could easily argue that going to the festival was a promotion and networking event for him.

It's not like he's falling behind or anything, it's not like he can spend more time in the car to practice. All he can really do is the preparation work required, stay in shape and stay relaxed.

It could also be argued Rossberg, did need to pander to the fans at Goodwood because he's not quite as popular as his teammate. Maybe Hamilton was doing him a favour by staying away from a British motor event where he would have drawn all the attention.

Ghost Train

Did anyone see Hamilton on Graham Norton? Didn't see it myself just wondering how he came across. I think it's fair enough the driver decide themselves what they want to do, would be interesting to know if there's much they're forced into doing

skipper_G

Ghost Train wrote: »

Did anyone see Hamilton on Graham Norton? Didn't see it myself just wondering how he came across. I think it's fair enough the driver decide themselves what they want to do, would be interesting to know if there's much they're forced into doing

Saw him on there yes, he came across okay. Had some banter with Jack Whitehall about driving, nothing too memorable. Find it bizarre he didn't want the time in the car at the test, with the limited testing these days.

Myrddin

skipper_G wrote: »

Find it bizarre he didn't want the time in the car at the test, with the limited testing these days.

That is surprising for me too, whatever about attending non F1 events, but testing is something I'd have thought important.

ScumLord

Myrddin wrote: »

That is surprising for me too, whatever about attending non F1 events, but testing is something I'd have thought important.

Apparently testing is boring and drivers hate doing it. Hamilton doesn't really need more practice, it seems that if everything goes to plan he will get poll and he will win the race. He might value time to unwind more than more practice.

challengemaster

ScumLord wrote: »

Apparently testing is boring and drivers hate doing it.

This is along the lines of what I was thinking - take Williams for example. They stuck a load of non-regulation parts on the car for testing. That change is of no benefit to a driver, if anything it's the opposite.

Aside from that, you've got aero rakes stuck to the cars and it seems like most of the laps are fiddling with settings to get data.

If it was pre-season testing you'd have a point. At this stage, the drivers know the cars. Time in a simulator is probably more beneficial than testing.

skipper_G

challengemaster wrote: »

This is along the lines of what I was thinking - take Williams for example. They stuck a load of non-regulation parts on the car for testing. That change is of no benefit to a driver, if anything it's the opposite.

Aside from that, you've got aero rakes stuck to the cars and it seems like most of the laps are fiddling with settings to get data.

If it was pre-season testing you'd have a point. At this stage, the drivers know the cars. Time in a simulator is probably more beneficial than testing.

If he had wiped the floor with Rosberg over the race weekend in Austria I could understand missing the test however Hamilton seemed to struggle a little around that specific track in comparison to Rosberg. That's something which he could use the extra testing time to try and understand. Just seemed odd to me.

ScumLord

skipper_G wrote: »

If he had wiped the floor with Rosberg over the race weekend in Austria I could understand missing the test however Hamilton seemed to struggle a little around that specific track in comparison to Rosberg. That's something which he could use the extra testing time to try and understand. Just seemed odd to me.

He can't win them all though. Nico and Hamilton have been within thousandths of a second of each other all year, it's been mostly a case of who get's pole wins the race due to F1 aero making passing too risky.

And like challengemaster points out, he probably doesn't want to mess with his feel for the car by testing upgrades that might not go ahead. Let the test drivers get their go in the car and do that mundane work.

Being in a good head space is something that appears to be important to Hamilton, I think everyone, including himself knows he has the skill to win.

skipper_G

ScumLord wrote: »

He can't win them all though. Nico and Hamilton have been within thousandths of a second of each other all year, it's been mostly a case of who get's pole wins the race due to F1 aero making passing too risky.

And like challengemaster points out, he probably doesn't want to mess with his feel for the car by testing upgrades that might not go ahead. Let the test drivers get their go in the car and do that mundane work.

Being in a good head space is something that appears to be important to Hamilton, I think everyone, including himself knows he has the skill to win.

Yeah, you're probably right about the head space thing, Hamilton gets the boost by stepping away to keep his head right & Rosberg gets the boost from the test as he seems to be the more mechanical of the 2. Probably a win win for us, because they should both be raring to go for Silverstone.

Going Strong

Renault's F1 future in doubt.

Renault boss Carlos Ghosn says Formula E is a big part of the brand's motorsport plans but Formula One future is unclear

http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/car-news/92030/renaults-f1-future-in-doubt-as-it-ups-formula-e-investment

ScumLord

They need to poop or get off the pot so their customers can make a decision on using new engines. I would expect more teams to jump ship next year if they can.

I would wonder if Reno did pull out what would Honda do? Are they tied in to exclusivity with McLaren?

greedygoblin

ScumLord wrote: »

They need to poop or get off the pot so their customers can make a decision on using new engines. I would expect more teams to jump ship next year if they can.

I would wonder if Reno did pull out what would Honda do? Are they tied in to exclusivity with McLaren?

Honda's exclusivity deal with McLaren is just for one season afaik. Honda can supply whoever they want next season.

mickdw

greedygoblin wrote: »

Honda's exclusivity deal with McLaren is just for one season afaik. Honda can supply whoever they want next season.

Really. As a full works team with same status as mclaren? I very much doubt that.

greedygoblin

mickdw wrote: »

Really. As a full works team with same status as mclaren? I very much doubt that.

Here is a recent interview with Hondas chief of motorport. McLaren as you say are the works team, and are the only team being supplied by Honda this year. That's what I meant by exclusivity. Though going by that interview anything would appear possible next season.

mickdw

greedygoblin wrote: »

Here is a recent interview with Hondas chief of motorport. McLaren as you say are the works team, and are the only team being supplied by Honda this year. That's what I meant by exclusivity. Though going by that interview anything would appear possible next season.

Fair enough he does recognise mclaren as the works outfit and acknowledges that they would have to work in different way with a 2nd team.
My point was that I couldn't see mclaren signing up with honda, doing the donkey work this year as and then having someone coming in on an equal footing.

T-Bird

ScumLord wrote: »

Why wait until you're old to enjoy your money? No one here would be able to sit on the kind of money he has. He could easily argue that going to the festival was a promotion and networking event for him.

It's not like he's falling behind or anything, it's not like he can spend more time in the car to practice. All he can really do is the preparation work required, stay in shape and stay relaxed.

It could also be argued Rossberg, did need to pander to the fans at Goodwood because he's not quite as popular as his teammate. Maybe Hamilton was doing him a favour by staying away from a British motor event where he would have drawn all the attention.

Firstly before I reply, I have to say that I am not a Hamilton hater, nor a fan boy or a begrudger(?). I do regard him to be one of the best drivers out there at the moment. But, I do think he is taking his eye off of the ball and falling behind.

Rosberg won 3 out of last 4, Hamilton should have won Austria but I don’t think he was there 100% and was a bit lack lustre. Also the same for Monaco, I think that if he was on the ball he might of realised that it is almost impossible to pass there regardless (to an extent) of tyres etc.

My opinion was based on a posts here & here. His own website is reflecting his celebrity status more and more, with an F1 car here and there. Jet setting from one country to another, watching a boxing match in one part of the world after a race, going to a film festival, fashion show, a number of TV shows, doing his own music and gong to music events.

Surely all this is such a short amount of time and between races would tire anyone out and distract them from their main focus? Yes he is still young and is entitled to what he want and when he wants. But I think it should be in moderation. Besides the season doesn’t last for the whole year, and he can play the ambassador more between seasons.

When things go wrong he always says that he as always gave it 100%. But I don’t think Hamilton the racer has been turning up to the last few races. In my opinion he is burning himself out and doesn’t know it. He is his own boss now and probably hasn’t got anyone around him to tell him to slow down a bit.
Fair play to him if he can do it all and win races, especially the way he did at the start of the season.

flazio

FOM put up a recap of the 2014 Brit GP. Reminder that Hamilton only won because Rosberg had engine trouble and had to retire. The Mercs aren't breaking down this year so I believe, and for obvious reasons neither Sky or the BBC will admit this, Rosberg would be the favourite going into this race.

Zcott

flazio wrote: »

for obvious reasons neither Sky or the BBC will admit this, Rosberg would be the favourite going into this race.

Hard to say. Rosberg was in command last year until engine trouble. The year before Hamilton was in command until a tyre blew. If anything I'd probably say Hamilton has the home advantage.

Myrddin

I'd say Rosberg has this one, Lewis doesn't seem at his best the last few races. That disaster in Monaco has been hard to turn around. If it doesn't change soon, Rosberg will take the lead of the championship & then the pressure really gets turned on. Though in saying that, Lewis traditionally seems at his best when up against it.l

tripperman

Zcott wrote: »

Hard to say. Rosberg was in command last year until engine trouble. The year before Hamilton was in command until a tyre blew. If anything I'd probably say Hamilton has the home advantage.

I think rosberg has the advantage heading into Silverstone, he has found a rhythm of late and is getting the best out of the car on a consistent basis, he has that edge of having been faster and in control last year before the engine gave up, I think Hamilton has taken a bit of time out from testing and Goodwood, it could be a way to relax himself for next weekend

Ghost Train

Great if Rosberg can keep closing the gap and mount a championship challenge

Frank Bullitt

I also have noticed that Hamilton seems to be maybe slightly taking his eye off the ball.

As has been pointed out, he does fashion shows, music, hangs out with Pharrell Williams etc etc, and fair play to him if thats what he wants to do that. I can't say I'm a fan of the social media/marketing ploy that he seems to play, this "still I rise" and instagram posts that kind of go in line with the "the world is against me" persona and that its an eternal struggle to compete or live with this.

It's not been done in F1 before, generally speaking you would only really hear of driver antics and what they did in their own time through the grapevine, which added to the mystery of these guys. I think Hamiltons approach just jars with how it has been for such a long time. Drivers weren't huge celebrities or anything like that, but he obviously likes the attention he gets from it, and the platform it gives him.

As for Rosberg, I had more or less written him off from the word go, but he has upped it a lot in the past few races, and if he can keep it going then we MIGHT just have a championship on our hands. He goes well at Silverstone, and if he were to win, I think we would see a different Hamilton after that.

Myrddin

Gintonious wrote: »

He goes well at Silverstone, and if he were to win, I think we would see a different Hamilton after that.

+1, agreed. Silverstone has Nico's name on it I feel

ScumLord

Myrddin wrote: »

+1, agreed. Silverstone has Nico's name on it I feel

That's a good thing. I hope Nico comes with that belief. I still think Hamilton will pull out all the stops for his home GP, he won't want to be beat there and I'd put my money on him winning.

Myrddin

ScumLord wrote: »

That's a good thing. I hope Nico comes with that belief. I still think Hamilton will pull out all the stops for his home GP, he won't want to be beat there and I'd put my money on him winning.

I'm not so sure, I think Hamilton will sink a bit lower before he bottoms out. I've a niggly feeling Nico could be a dark horse for the title actually.