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Formula 1 - 2019

46K views 463 replies 48 participants last post by  PSk 
#1 ·
#420 ·
I knew my RedTeam would figure out a way to blow the Mexican GP: they 'lock-up' P1 & P2(after a dopey penalty to Verstappen).....they screw-up the tire "strategy".....they bungle Leclerc's too many pit-stops.....
they let Hamilton's whining 'out-smart' them.....I have no idea what Vettel's "plan" was.....hence, Hamilton wins.

Awful, just plain awful!

Regards
 
#421 ·
VET's plan was to win. But they simply couldn't get him in HAM's slipstream.

Pitwall once again this year did every effort to handle out the race win to Mercedes.

Awful tyre strategy, absolutely no clue how to handle that tactically.

HAM led Max into a trap in the first lap, and Max was his own enemy today with Sainz.

Ferrari simply stays a drama queen team
 
#422 · (Edited)
Max did his expected typically ambitious overtake, and he reaped the rewards, banging into cars. He still needs to develop a little more self control, be wiser in his moves. Sad that other drivers feel they must give him extra room in order to avoid a collision.
 
#423 ·
I was shocked at what was happening in the pits today. I can understand the need for a fast pit stop, but how many wheels went unbolted? The Alfa wheel just fell off, and one thankfully didn't make it to the race track. Even Mercedes had an issue with the lock nut not fully tightened.

What happened to Kimi having to retire before the end of the race? Not a word from the commentators about Alfa during the race. It could happen that Alfa would be upfront running with the best and the focus would be on why the others are doing so poorly.

It was obvious that before the race started the reporter going up and down the starting grid wanted only to talk to the front leaders. The back of the pack was totally ignored. The guy in the last place has just as much to say as the pole sitter.
 
#424 ·
Quite a tense race even though not that much overtaking at front. Nice to see the event so well supported in Mexico. Mercedes got from well outside the top 4 after the first corner to P1&3 without overtaking a Ferrari on track. Hamilton put a marker down by not giving way to Verstappen (why should he?) in turn 1. Not so important for this season but for the future when the two will have the same situation one way or the other numerous times it will stick in Verstappens memory.

Mercedes took a strategy chance and it came off - another day it wouldn't. But really for Ferrari, if you're P1 and P2 with two of the fastest cars and drivers after lap 1 then to finish where they did is a pretty poor show. Arguably Verstappen would have had the win without his incidents. Arguably Leclerc could have won if he had one stopped (or if they hadn't fumbled his stop).

I got the impression from Audio that when Hamilton pitted and Vettel had the option of shadowing him next lap that Vettel himself was keen to run longer - a poor decision as it turned out.

And with reference to the above comments on interviewing other teams / drivers, velocedoc is of course correct. Unfortunately while these guys might have just as interesting things to say, the audience for them is not as large so spending time broadcasting them might result in viewers being lost, which no broadcaster wants.

Again kudos to Albon for a decent P5, not bad for a driver who only took over the seat mid season, he has scored P6 or higher for every race in the car. Also the first Thai driver since Prince Bira may spread the sport fanbase.

Several cars simply retired towards the end to protect cars for the last few GP's. It's the end of the season and they're running out of permitted gearboxes & engines so it makes sense to avoid penalties.
 
#425 ·
#427 ·
Warning - what follows is a rant.

The promoters or organizers or whoever decides on the non-racing parts of the USGP keep disgusting me. A couple years ago, there was the idiot who boomed out "Are you ready to rumble?" Yesterday, the performance of the national anthem caused me to mute my TV. I guess I am a traditionalist when it comes to that song - a position undoubtedly the result of my serving 28 years in the military. What was done to the Star Spangled Banner yesterday was unacceptable.

Race wasn't bad.

Mike
 
#439 ·
Yesterday, the performance of the national anthem caused me to mute my TV. I guess I am a traditionalist when it comes to that song - a position undoubtedly the result of my serving 28 years in the military. What was done to the Star Spangled Banner yesterday was unacceptable.
I agree. I'm not American, but I rolled my eyes also and thought "you gotta be kidding me!" I didn't like the arrangement, didn't like the production (why did the guy have to stand on a box, towering over the women?), and didn't like the performance (I thought the guy sang out of tune, and the voices didn't harmonize). Pity.
 
#433 ·
Mercedes started the development of their engine a few years before this engine spec came out. They also were the strongest ones to push for it. No one began developing it until the rules were finalized. I wouldn't say that was illegal, but certainly sneaky and unsportsmanlike. I don't give them the respect I would for someone that just built the best engine starting when the rules came out.

It's taken years for anyone to catch up in the engine department and now that someone has, they are under suspicion. If anything, it's taken too long to catch up.

For Austin, Ferrari dialed in more down force to match Mercedes in the corners and they did. Their straight line speed suffered, however they were not even using the engine that has been doing so well. They used the older engine #2. Engine #3 had an oil leak that they were trying to figure out. So you can't really draw any conclusions from it yet. It is just speculation.
 
#436 ·
No. There are only 2 teams with a financial backing to be able to catch up. Both teams are not running Merc engines. RBR lost 4 years with the wrong engine.
Scuderia lost 4 years with the wrong car concept. And instead of getting better they started cheating this year.

I'm not a Merc fan. But they are simply doing the best job. It's not their fault.
 
#441 · (Edited)
Official press conference is not social media junk !

Or do you think VES would officially state such comments if not true ? Did anything happen except of Binotto and LEC saying 'oh, bad boy, it' s not true.... ' since then??
Did you notice any comment from VET to deny? No, why then? FIA did not deny as well. And 'suddenly' that wonder boy Leclerc is nowhere again. Back on earth?

Just have a look on top speed charts in Mexico and COTA. Only 2 days after that FIA bulletin clarification appeared. And, suddenly(!), just suddenly they stopped that very, very slow outlap from pits to grid only they were doing since they started to be so 'quick' in quali. What an amazing coincidence since that bulletin appeared!! They've been the only one doing that. With no reason?

Since months there have been rumours where from that top speed gain came from. Every single engine manufacturer exactly knows about what's possible today in F1 with that frozen rules and what sounds like a 'miracle'.

It was a highly brillant move from Honda to let ask FIA via RB's chief engineer to clarify that point of fuel delivery rules. No official protest case needed, no official FIA investigation needed, no official scandal like Renault and that braking system. That's the Japanese way. Brillant!

Renault still in Japan claimed they were running an FIA confirmed braking system. And what happened? Disqualified. No official details about. Also highly unlikely?
 
#442 ·
PSk said:
Well I for one cannot understand why ALL the other teams did not copy the separated turbo charger concept that Mercedes has been using. It is so **** obvious and shows thinking out of the box that the other teams simply lack.
Way to easy to separate that success to that single point only. It's the whole package with all that stupid recovery systems AND mostly about combustion chamber and they are using a kind of precombustion chamber like a Diesel system.

Listen from inboard view how 'strange' the 2019 Honda engine sounds; it's like an Alfa engine running way to rich and creating ignition disrupting.

It's not a surprise Honda made that big step.
 
#443 ·
True, but it was a brilliant starting point. And yes I've read of them "somehow" using pre-ignition to their advantage. Amazing stuff.

The only way for Ferrari to catch up, is for the rules to change to somehow suit them or for an important engineer to leave Mercedes with his/her tail between their legs and Ferrari grab them ... but that won't happen because they're not Italian.

Sorry to say this but as romantic as motor racing is, romance has no place in designing of race cars. You need cold hard logical thinkers => English and Germans
Pete
 
#444 ·
I don't believe there is any cheating going on, though it is of course something that might be asked after this much winning. MB haven't had the fastest car for much of this season and last season and they certainly haven't had the most powerful engine.

Worth remembering that MB had several years where they were in development mode to meet the current regs when their results were utterly dire, as alluded to above. Is focussing efforts on a long term goal a few seasons away rather than short termism cheating? Would that still make a difference 6 years on? Regulation decisions are agreed by a majority of teams so they would be very lucky to dupe a majority into agreeing something that was advantaging one team.

And worth remembering also that the team spun out of the short lived Brawn team which incredibly managed a world championship with Jenson Button after having to replace their engine at absurdly short notice. So the team had good bones from the start.

What I see is a well led, well organised team with a self perpetuating virtuous combination of things that lead to success. Good people don't want to leave because its a nice place to work and they're winning. They've managed to bag arguably the current top driver who can get them results they sometimes don't deserve. The leadership operates a very free rein and give staff and engineers a lot of room. They're probably well paid with all those win bonuses.

For sure one day that combination will be broken and it will all come tumbling down (Hamilton spotted that happening at McClaren so if he leaves , see what happens). But actually I think there is a lot to admire in the way the team is run and managed. I believe they are spending less than Ferrari and achieving more.

New spending limits coming after 2020 will mean a level playing field for all teams and shared componentry will tend to equalise the cars more. Then we'll see if clever engineering / better engines / faster drivers really make the difference.
 
#445 ·
I don't believe there is any cheating going on, though it is of course something that might be asked after this much winning. MB haven't had the fastest car for much of this season and last season and they certain
That's wrong. In race conditions most of the 2019 races Merc had the best and fastest car. 2 or 3 races maybe not the fastest engine but with the recent top speed drop of the Scuderia just 2 days after a certain bulletin was launched they still know they have the best engine.

But, who believes in racing there is no cheating, still believes in Santa Claus.

And, the Italians never cheated in history of motor racing, no!!?

Not Autodelta with the GTA, not Abarth Corse with Delta Integrale at WRC. Never! :grin2:

And UK racing teams never did that, too. Never Lotus did that with Type 88, never Brabham with BT46B, never TWR with XJS homologation for wheel chains homologated in a hot African country, never did Tyrrell with water cooling for brakes, never did Benetton with traction control in 1994.......

No, I don't 'believe' in cheating..... >:)
 
#446 ·
Or do you think VES would officially state such comments if not true ?
??? Does Verstappen have more credibility than others?

Did you notice any comment from VET to deny?
Does he have to deny it for it to be untrue?

Did anything happen except of Binotto and LEC saying 'oh, bad boy, it' s not true.... ' since then??
Do they have to say anything else? They explained the performance drop.

FIA did not deny as well.
??? FIA did not acuse or penalize anyone. Do they have to deny it? What strange comments in this rant.


I'm not saying they didn't use the fuel metering trick. But one race pace and an explanation for it is not enought to conclude they did it. If they repeat the poor performance with engine #3 in the next few races, we can make the conclusion but in this race they were not even using engine #3.

And a clarification is just that. It clarifies something that was not sufficiently specified. If you continue to do it, it is cheating. If you comply with the clarification, it is not cheating. The FIA did not examine anyone's engine for this. If they considered it cheating, they would make an investigation and punish the offender. When the teams asked for the clarification, the FIA knew who they were suggesting, so the FIA doesn't have to guess at who they should investigate, if they need to investigate.
 
#452 ·
Don´t know where your informations are coming from, but Dennis Jenkinson witnessed that event in 1978 and wrote about differently in MotorSport issues July and August 1978.

A lot of political decisions were made; that doesn´t mean that car was legal.
 

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#453 ·
You need to hear it from the horses own mouth then! The car was banned 6 days later- so no cheating! I am not going into a compettion of quotes, so thats it for me. I have a lot of quotes and I was there myself enjoying the race and finally an Alfa win which was according to rules!

 
#454 ·
Don't like the new format - hear my growl!

Now for the real reason for this post.

There was an interesting comment by Guenther Steiner in the latest (and last print) issue of "Auto-everyother-Week" (personally, no loss, and I'd been a subscriber since 1966).

According to Steiner: "At the moment, it is a very difficult situation, and we're not the only ones in this position. . . . We don't have a contract with Formula One Group beyond 2020, and so in literal terms, that means that there is no Formula 1 beyond 2020 because no one has a contract. As a result, we cannot give contracts to anybody beyond 2020."

Seems the issue is the politics of the sport. They'll likely sort it out, but in doing so, will they lose teams like Haas?

Mike
 
#455 ·
Brasil 2019 GP: A superb race from Max, showing Hammy 2 times how he overtakes.
That was pure Lewis-style, brilliant moves. Race control tried to **** up Max´s race and to give Hammy the opportunity but Honda is up to power now. And Renault.......well beaten even by own customer team again and again. What RB could have achieved 2017/2018 with an other engine....... !!
Hammy as well robbed Albon a podium position, and LEC again, again, again ........stupid, stupid, idiotic. Binotto is way too soft, he should learn lessons from Niki & Toto.

Silence here in this thread is sadly but supposedly caused by that epic ****ty software change. I still can´t believe what happened. Most stupid change ever.
 
#456 ·
Not sure if it was aerodynamics or Honda Power that made the difference, but it was a telling moment to see the Honda Engined Toro Rosso clearly outdrag the championship winning Merc of Hamilton on the rush to the line.

What a wonderful moment too for Gasly who has had a tough time this season. I have rarely seen a man smile so much and that's always a pleasure.

Poor Albon punted out of a best ever second place by an ambitious Hamilton lunge on the penultimate lap. He at least had the good grace to put his hands up for the error to the stewards, though it's obviously easier to be magnanimous when you already have your 6th championship in the bag. It's possible that saved Verstappen from an overtake later on.

A very bad day at the office for Ferrari. Silly boys. 75% Vettel, 25% Leclerc I reckon. Leclerc should have waited to the start/finish straight to do his overtake because he must have known Vettel would be able to come back.

Finally, a best ever result for Alfa with a 4th and 5th and best ever for Giovanazzi. Cars looked quicker than recent results indicated all weekend but even so they outperformed grid positions by some margin (helped by Ferrari self harming and a few mechanical issues with others). Probably secures their position in manufacturers championship with a (very slim) chance of overtaking racing point.

Who said F1 was boring?
 
#458 ·
Gotta agree with Bertiebloke - 75% Seb's fault. Leclerc's mistake was where he made his move. Vettel punted him and took them both out. Bet it will be an interesting meeting at HQ.

Glad officials saw Hamilton's move on Albon for what it was - ill advised. How about Sainz - last to podium! Cool that Sauber, I mean Alfa, got good points, even if many of those points were because of what went on in front of them. But, you gotta finish.

Mike
 
#459 ·
- 75% Seb's fault.
Watch the video; LEC punted himself giving not enough space. Similar to oMnza when he tried the same with HAM; but Lewis steered with 2 wheels off the track to avoid contact. LEC is driving dangerously and he´ll have a big incident soon if he don´t change his style.
 
#460 ·
I agree that it was Vettels fault. The experts agree and I've gone over the video. From the rear, you can see how much space Vettel had on the right. Still 3 to 4 feet (a meter at least). From the car cam, Leclerc's car was straight as an arrow and did not deviate one cm left or right. The movement on his steering wheel was equal back and forth just to keep the car going straight. No movement to the right at all. Vettel bounced off Leclerc ever so slightly, but at the wrong place for these fragile cars.

Nothing has revealed that Leclerc is a particularly dangerous driver, but someone seems to hate him so much.

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