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VW/Audi/etc won't be coming in, not in 2017 at least (look at Honda's position having rushed their engine development compared to Merc who took 4 years)
Ignoring the fact that VW have some pretty big bills to pay at the moment they would use either Audi or Porsche for the engine given their knowledge built up from LMP hybrid development.
The more I read about Eccleston the more of tw*t I think he is.
I think Ecclestone's just being clever. Just trying to make merc (most likely) or ferrari (less likely, since they;re FIA/Todt bum chums) blink first and cave in. Scare Merc with the fact that there could be a better customer team than them regardless, and with one merc can control the situation, but with the other, couldn't.
tw*t maybe, but a damn clever businessman clearly.
VW are not going to come into F1 anytime soon, they are facing fines and recall costs in the billions plus drops in revenue for 2016, and could be wrapped up in litigation for a long time.
Eccleston is a tw*t who simply follows the money, but even he can see that Merc dominating for years isn't going end well (which effects the bottom line of course). If people don't believe other teams can even challenge for a race win then people will (and are) switch off. Even the 92 season that big Nige won at a canter had a greater variety of winners than this season.
It is worth noting that viewing figures were down in the UK for the Texas GP despite Hamilton being up for the championship win.
not helped by it being on sky rather than beeb.
I watched on RTL and listened on radio 5 live.
edit: and also on at funny hours compared to the bulk of races
I should say that's viewing figures down against previous years at the same venue, and for both BBC and Sky, despite the Sky broadcasting on both F1 and Sports 1.
Probably not helped by Hamilton seemingly not being liked in the UK and Europe. I wonder if had it been Button going for his 3rd championship if the ratings would have been better?
it's also now the season for Strictly and all the other nonsense voting shows in the run up to Christmas.
RTL only managed to show quali because it was delayed to Sunday, and either they rescheuled sunday am telly to fit it in, or got lucky with showing live quali in the slot that would normally have been saturday quali highights.
Even a TV station that always shows every FP1/2/3 session and Quali and Race all live plus highlights, demoted F1, so they can show the German equivalent of britian's got talent.
And then of course the race is also prime time sunday telly. Timezones might just about let mexico and brazil be shown live without affecting the prime time money spinners. (edit: and if not, they're demoted to BBC2)
Bernie - the ultimate wheeler dealer - he's ace - announcing this to divide and conquer
With this, a big pay-off to Renault to re-enter F1, whilst burying the hatchet with Red Bull and allowing Honda to catch up will help Bernie have 4 teams in his pocket
Yep, he's greedy - but he's so cunning!
Viewing figures are down due to the stupid decision to put F1 on Sky
Probably not helped by Hamilton seemingly not being liked in the UK and Europe. I wonder if had it been Button going for his 3rd championship if the ratings would have been better?
last years sports personality of the year was...... LH. The Englishman won 209,920 of the 620,932 votes cast.
What happened to less pit wall and driver communication? Seems like the teams are still telling the drivers when to switch engine modes or when to put in some easy laps or to push. I though all of this was banned only safety messages allowed?
Also not sure if this idea has been mentioned, but would reducing the amount of telemetry the teams are allowed to gather help make F1 more exciting.
It seems to me that the teams have loads of sensors and statistics and can predict quite accurately how different parts of the car will react so they know exactly how hard to push something or not.
But every time the conditions are changeable and the teams don't have loads of stats on what's going to happen next things get mixed up a bit.
They could still have all the sensors they want for safety reasons ie they can see when the brakes are overheating and about to explode. But they wouldn't know if they are just running a bit hot.
Bernie - the ultimate wheeler dealer - he's ace
er
Viewing figures are down due to the stupid decision to put F1 on Sky
Bernie - the ultimate wheeler dealer - he's ace
Bernie, the king of back handers!
[i]"Formula 1 boss Bernie Ecclestone says Sepp Blatter should remain in charge of Fifa despite facing corruption charges.
If people allegedly have been corrupted to make things happen in their country, it's good.
He also backed Russian President Vladimir Putin and said there was "no place for democracy."
In the past, Ecclestone has referred to women as "domestic appliances" and praised Adolf Hitler as someone who "got things done."[/i]
Fair play to Sauber and Force India pushing F1 to the EU courts over unfair pay awards, Bernie will make it go away some how. It's insane that last year Ferrai earned more than Mercedes yet Mercedes won the title...
I just find F1 boring and unbalanced these days, give me BTCC/WTCC/WEC. Not perfect by any means but raw action, fairer and more interesting to watch.
F1 really needs to get rid of Ecclestone, he was great back in the late 70's / 80's, but it is too much of a closed shop with him [s]ruining[/s] running the show.
Allow more than one tyre manufacturer into the show, cut back on electronic aids / telemetery / allow multi fuel formula, and stop threatening to take F1 away from established circuits because you want an extra few million to race there.
According to the Telegraph that mrsH showed me Lewis is impossible to like in the UK. I replied 'stop reading the daily newspapers and BBC news website (that seems to be the worse BBC outlet). It's all trolling/story spinned crap.
I feel a bit for NR, but there can only be one number one, and he's not it.
He's not even number two! I think that Vettel has really shown his talent this season. As much as I want to chop that finger off he's beaten Rosberg who's driving a much superior car and totally thrashed his team mate, who's no slouch either.
While Hamilton is being compared to the greats like Senna the reality is he is very far behind. Rosberg has had a so so year (generous as he couldn't start or stay on the track) but a number of the other top drivers put in the Mercedes could/would have won the championship.
I've had the "pleasure" of doing a business deal with Eccelstone, just one wouldn't do another. Whatever you think of him the success of F1 is in large part down to him, eg yes the history of F1 lies in Europe but if the Middle East and Asia are prepared to pay daft money to host we can watch on TV. He's Mr Teflon even skipping a conviction having bribed the banker to get control of F1 back.
I can't see ANY way VW/Audi/Porsche (all part of the group) would be in F1 in the near future, the diesel scandal has very far to run and if the US lawyers think the group has a single spare cent to spend on racing they'll be all over that.
While Hamilton is being compared to the greats like Senna the reality is he is very far behind. Rosberg has had a so so year (generous as he couldn't start or stay on the track) but a number of the other top drivers put in the Mercedes could/would have won the championship.
Senna won his championships in all conquering McLarens! Remember 88, where Mclaren won all the races except italy!
also, i have never truly understood the hysteria around senna, when i was growing up watching F1, I thought he was always a bit underhand - he renegaded deal with Prost into the first corner in san marino, rammed drivers off the road, bullied people on track..... amazing driver but there is a pattern, to win you have to be a bit nasty, take no prisoner and drivers like senna, mansell, schumacher, hakkinen and alonso have that about them, so does Hamilton.
I'm not a huge Senna fan (Prost was better IMO) but he did win races in a Lotus before being at McLaren. Hamilton has only ever won in the best cars on the grid.
Monaco 1984.
jambalaya - MemberWhile Hamilton is being compared to the greats like Senna the reality is he is very far behind. Rosberg has had a so so year (generous as he couldn't start or stay on the track) but a number of the other top drivers put in the Mercedes could/would have won the championship.
Far behind in what regard?
On pure pace and car control, personally I think he's always been there or thereabouts.
What he's lacked has been race-craft and temperament. Two things he has massively improved over the last two years. Worthy triple champion IMHO.
Rosberg's been made to look a bit pants, because Ham is at the top of his game.
Hamilton has only ever won in the best cars on the grid.
rubbish - he won twice in a dog of a mclaren in 2009
[quote=jambalaya ]While Hamilton is being compared to the greats like Senna the reality is he is very far behind. Rosberg has had a so so year (generous as he couldn't start or stay on the track) but a number of the other top drivers put in the Mercedes could/would have won the championship.
We've already done that there are several other drivers who would be WDC if they were team mates with NR at Mercedes - I'm not so sure any of them would be WDC if they were team mates with LH.
Statistically LH has won more races than Senna, with a higher start to win conversion rate and the same number of WDC. It's tricky to compare drivers from different eras who've never raced each other, but we only need 3 pieces of evidence here:
Hmm, well it gets tricky here, because video clips of Alonso vs Hamilton don't seem readily available - I presume there are copyright issues, but I give you the 2007 season.
Oh, and in answer to dragon, Hamilton has won races every year he's been in F1, he's been in far from the best car some of those years.
It wasn't that bad a car during that portion of the 2009 season, as Heki in the other car got a 4th place and a few other solid 5th and 6ths during the same period.
@nemesis - Bernie is is the ultimate wheeler dealer because viewing figures don't matter, like the line from Oiliver "in this life one thing counts, in the bank large amounts"
Comparing sportsmen from different eras is fabulously difficult. Also I appreciate this has been discussed before but I see Vettel and Hanilton as kind of the same, very good drivers able to pt themselves in the best cars and that's the most important thing in F1, the car
It wasn't the best car on the grid though.
It's a different world. Would senna be able to drive today's cars with all the knowledge of computers and technology that is required? Would he even be fit enough compared to today's drivers?
It's such a different game there's really little point in comparing them
Hamilton is up there with Alonso - maybe even better as he's been pretty canny getting into the right car in at least 3 seasons
Vettel has massively impressed me this year - to get 3 wins this year against the might Mercs is mighty impressive - so i would put him up there with Hamilton & Rosberg
I never thought i'd admit that!!
It wasn't that bad a car during that portion of the 2009 season, as Heki in the other car got a 4th place and a few other solid 5th and 6ths during the same period.
Let's leave it there before you embarrasse yourself further
It wasn't that bad a car during that portion of the 2009 season, as Heki in the other car got a 4th place and a few other solid 5th and 6ths during the same period.
I wasn't sure which side of the argument he was trying to come down on there either ❓
Those who sat Vettel is in the top flight might wish to explain why he was whipped by Ricciardo last year.
Race Vettel Ricciardo Vettel Ricciardo Vettel Ricciardo
Australia 12 2 DNF DSQ 0 0
Malaysia 2 5 3 DNF 15 0
Bahrain 10 13 6 4 23 12
China 3 2 5 4 33 24
Spain 15 3 4 3 45 39
Monaco 4 3 DNF 3 45 54
Canada 3 6 3 1 60 79
Austria 12 5 DNF 8 60 83
Great Britain 2 8 5 3 70 98
Germany 6 5 4 6 82 106
Hungary 2 4 7 1 88 131
Belgium 3 5 5 1 98 156
Italy 8 9 6 5 106 166
Singapore 4 3 2 3 124 181
Japan 9 6 3 4 139 193
Russia 10 6 8 7 143 199
United States 18 5 7 3 149 214
Brazil 6 9 5 DNF 159 214
Abu Dhabi 19 20 8 4 167 238
Total Best 9 10 3 11 167 238
Best Qualifier: Ricciardo Best Race Results: Ricciardo Most points: Ricciardo
I have never truly understood the hysteria around senna, when i was growing up watching F1, I thought he was always a bit underhand - he renegaded deal with Prost into the first corner in san marino, rammed drivers off the road, bullied people on track..... amazing driver but there is a pattern, to win you have to be a bit nasty, take no prisoner and drivers like senna, mansell, schumacher, hakkinen and alonso have that about them, so does Hamilton.
Senna was different from Schumacher though.
Senna would be ruthless on the track but humble off it. He did tonnes of charity work for Brazil, set up a foundation and was a very religious man. He was also seen to be very concerned of the well-being of other drivers too, Donnelly's crash at Jerez being one example constantly cited by his peers and also the way he rushed to Zanardi's rescue (his actions were said to save his life) after his massive crash at Spa in '93. He was two different people in and out of the car and the line was drawn around the cockpit.
Schumacher was ruthless at all times, never apologising for errors, defending them even. Hew would act all arrogant and aloof throughout his career (pt.1 especially) and would exploit any tiny advantage at any time. Being defacto No.1 at Ferrari was a prime example. It was only in his second F1 career that he learned to be more open and accepting of any flaws in his skills.
One endeared himself to his peers and the public, the other was respected but not overly liked. For the record I'm a fan of both of them on the track for their sublime car handling skills but I only ever liked Senna off the track. Hamilton seems to be following Senna Alonso the Schumacher model. Vettel seems to be somewhere in the middle with his sense of humour.
one could argue the same that ricciardo won 3 races last year in the inferior renault rbr the same as vettel this year with arguably a worse engined car.
I think that vettel had orchestrated the move to ferrari with a combination of lack of on track results and amblivalence.
He was also seen to be very concerned of the well-being of other drivers too
Apart from Prost!
2 hours to go. I'm weirdly excited about this one! Not sure how because both championships have been decided but I think it's gonna be a good'un! 🙂
interesting to too see how ruthless hamilton can be. he's a born racer but does he have a soft center ? Mind you Rosberg is getting more irrational day by day.
ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
safety car - - so we'll see now if Lewis is under team orders to stay behind Nico so he can claim 2nd spot in the WDC...
I take it all back, not a super exciting race that one. Vettel was not doing well at all! Wonder what was happening there. Bit of a lame performance from Ferrari all round really. Also looks like Lewis is throttling back slightly now that he has his world championship, which is fair enough I guess! 😉
I have to say that Herman and pals have done a great job at the stadium section as it must be awesome driving through there and having the podium presentation in front of the stands. After all the trash talk about Renault I wonder how rbr can ask for a competitive engine., Seems to me they beat a couple of Ferraris and several Mercedes.
I was glad Bottas managed to survive the crash and come in 3rd as he should've done in the last race. Super drive from NIco and Kvyat and all in all a decent addition to the calendar.
I think the frustration with Hamilton is that elusive number of wins in a season. The less said about the new mchonda engine the better
Hamilton defo in cruise mode - although i think he played a little game of fastest laps near the end to force a mistake so he could pass Rosberg - i do believe Mercedes want the 2nd spot all sewn up and Hamilton was not allowed to pass.
Renault takeover of lotus seems dead in the water - i suspect Bernie, annoyed that Renault would stop supplying other teams if they became a works Team, has told them they wont get the 50-odd million due as a "historical" team....
this has probably resolved the RBR situation and they will run with Renault 1 more year.
Ferrari looked a disaster ! both drivers seemed to be unsettled in the car - perhaps they have stopped all work on the 2015 car and look to 2016.
McLaren took a step forward last race - and 7 back this race!
In order to change the status quo for 2016 the FIA is seriously going to have to allow pre/in season testing before next years start.....
Manor are about to die? think the Merc engine deal is dead....
And Force India are going to be rebranded Aston Martin F1.
The silly season is in full swing already.
In order to change the status quo for 2016 the FIA is seriously going to have to allow pre/in season testing before next years start.....
This would have to be available to all though, so nothing would change.
Next year will be a repeat of this - the next big shake-up will be 2017 with the new regs.
This would have to be available to all though, so nothing would change.
Well, with stable regs, the fastest cars will tend to have less improvement available to them so there is some natural closing of the gap over time.
what is the deal with booth, lowden and Bell leaving. Rumour has it Bell has gone to Lotus / Renault.
It would be a big shame if they disappeared after such a fight to be on the grid this year.
I'm suprised no one has approached Mercedes about a similar deal Haas has done with Ferrari
Remember the token system means that this year mchonda can't change the fundamentals that need fixing to get their engine progressing. So my guess is they're bringing forward some changes to support the new engine and so have got half this year's engine and half next year's. No wonder it don't work too good. I really hope they're going to get closer to the rest next year.
The news on Manor
With the latest disagreement between LH and Mercedes,and the latter's"warmth"as LH is putting it towards the spoilt brat, is it likely LH will not bother renewing his contract when it runs out?
Not if it's still the best car. LH is a decent driver, but he knows he isn't going to win championships without the best car - nor is anyone else of course.
I think LH's suggestion was that the team were quite happy for NR to win as they felt it would sooth his disappointment somewhat and likely help with longer term team harmony. I'm pretty sure he's not suggesting they'll be favouring NR long term - it seems pretty clear that for Merc, LH winning is a good thing in terms of marketability.
More likely is that if 2016 plays out as this year has (eg NR gets comfortably beaten again) then he'll be off to another team at the end of the year rather than becoming a whipping boy for LH. It'd also suit the team as they can look for some new talent should LH get to a point of retiring or even considering a move to Ferrari (if they look like they could be competitive) to complete the racing driver CV (though Vettel will likely be a blocker to that though maybe a swap between Merc and Ferrari...)
IMHO in a few years if McHonda look competitive he'll be persuaded to return to them to "emulate" his "hero" Senna.... Lewis has never mentioned Ferrari at all IIRC, where-as Vettel grew up watching Schumi in a Ferrari.
I still dont believe Alonso will be in a McHonda for the first race of 2016.
Actually, if this interview is accurate, he does seem to be writing off any chance of going to Ferrari...
I can't see him going back to McL at least not while Ron is in charge unless they have an obviously better car than the competition. It's clear that being able to be himself is something important to LH and he's not going to be allowed to do that at Ron's McL.
I'm amazed Ron's still at McL. His intention was to buy out the Arab investors and take back the company - he has no money to do this, due to no income from sponsors, and i wonder how long he can keep blaming Honda for being at the back.
when we saw a glimpse of that Honda engine 2 races ago they were midfield at best, yet, the car still looked unstable compare to the likes of RBR and Merc - if you look at all the flaps and winglets and little aero bits on the Car, i think Ron's view of just getting the engine power up is not going to cut it next year, when Honda can turn round and announce they have an engine with parity of Ferrari or Mercedes. (not that i think that will happen either, i think Honda will sell out end of next year)
i dont think the Mclarens have the talent in the aero department anymore, in fact thats been the case for about 3 years now.
Shame to see S. Wolff retiring - but the writing was on the wall when Williams overlooked her when Bottas hurt his back , considering she was labelled the official reserve driver. All it was , was a promo stunt for Williams (yes i know a womans in charge there too) to get more Press.
Peter Prodromou and his team from RB might disagree about no talent at McL 🙂
The view of those in the know seemed to be that Mexico backed up that they had a decent chassis with IIRC .3s gap to the car on P1 in the 2 twisty sectors and .8 on the 1 sector with the long straight.
Susie is the Williams [b]test[/b] driver, not reserve IIRC - I know it's a slight difference but important in that context but I agree that it made clear she wasn't going to get a drive at Williams and without sponsorship, she wasn't going to get a seat at a smaller team.
deputy team principal Claire Williams said Wolff would not be under consideration - although she refused to confirm the likely deputy.
"Susie Wolff is our test driver not our reserve driver,"
http://www.bbc.com/sport/0/formula1/31893787
Button has been on record saying McLaren won't win a race in 2016 either. The current chassis is an odd one, BBC noted mid season that most in the paddock felt it was between 5-6 from best, which is quite a way down the pecking order.
McLaren as a team have a huge hole to dig themselves out of both aerodynamically and with the Honda PU. Currently they seem to be perusing the wrong strategies. Whether Peter Prodromou can get them thinking in a different way aerodynamically remains to be seen. And Honda seem to be in a mess, with fundamental flaws all across the PU.
It is so bad right now that Alonso only started the Mexico race for the PR, they knew that his car was bust before it took the grid.
Wasn't that he was feeling rather blue... 😉 He could well be right of course but they shouldn't have another season like this one - they will be able to fix the fundamental issues on the engine (compressor too small/can't spin fast enough) fairly easily and the chassis seems reasonable at worst - bear in mind that because of the poor PU output, they'll be compromising the aero to reduce drag.
Or Honda might do a Renault and make the new engine even worse 😆
@nemesis, umm i think your over simplifying how Honda can claw back the massive deficit, considering neither Ferrari or Renault have been able to all season starting from 3rd position on the grid. Yes they could make up to the mid field in 2016 if everything goes ok with out of season developments, but its a law of diminishing returns - the last 1 second to make up being the hardest to find.
Button is a realist, and thats exactly how he stated it about no wins in 2016.
Despite what people may think, those in the know, know that aero & chassis is totally linked to the engine, because it has to react to a lot of factors other than top speed, how the engine retards/braking, acceleration forces / pitches and kers harvesting, and of course torque.
even the best CAD modelling for the chassis and estimates of these figures from Honda cannot create the exact environment the chassis / engine combination will be running with.
so even if Honda turn up in 2016 with a mega powerful engine, there still need time to mate it to the chassis and aero package - even if McLarens current one is the best of the field in 2015 (not that i am saying it is) thats no guarantee it will mean they will fight for wins in 2016
...and you also missed out from the report you quoted :
"The team does not have a designated reserve driver, with only test driver Wolff and development driver Alex Lynn on their books in addition to the race drivers."
So given that your options are - bring in a driver who has never driven the car before, or, use your TEST driver as your reserve driver.....seems straight forward to me...
anyhow, clearly Williams didnt want her to step up to a RESERVE driver either 2015 or 2016, so i dont blame her in leaving, although i am surprised she didnt go for a smaller team and at least get a race seat - but as we know, big money usually needs to go with them, and i am not sure she got any sponsors/backers....
[quote=back2basics ]i am surprised she didnt go for a smaller team and at least get a race seat - but as we know, big money usually needs to go with them, and i am not sure she got any sponsors/backers....
You appear to have just answered your own question - nobody gets a seat at a smaller team without major backing, and sadly it's quite difficult to get that as a Scottish woman (as opposed to being the leading driver in your country).
Ref McL - I'm not saying that they will, just that with fundamental issues, they're relatively (note that word) easy to fix and get a significant benefit - same as Ferrari did from last season to this. I would say that best case for 2016, they end up with a car similar in relative pace to this year's RB - not quick enough to win on it's own merit but throw in a wet/topsy turvy race and it could win.
Ref SW, I guess I don't agree with the statement that bringing in a driver who doesn't know the car is always worse than using the test driver. Just look how Pedro De La Rosa did whenever he raced and he was extremely well regarded as a test driver.
Similarly Luca Badoer was a disaster when he subbed in for Massa in 2009.
Testing and racing are different skills.
or Renault have been able to all season starting from 3rd position on the grid.
Renault have offered some updates to RB, but were slapped down. They are probably keeping the real leaps forward for next season when they won't have to deal with RB at all. Unless they own them.
Renault's 'upgrades' started off claimed as something like .8s per lap and then got downgraded as time went on to IIRC about .2 benefit. Hardly worth RB going for on an unproven reliability given Renault's recent history...
There's no point holding upgrades back as it'll reduce their ability to upgrade the engine next year - hence why Merc introduced their new engine which is the basis for the 2016 engine.
claimed as something like .8s per lap and then got downgraded as time went on to IIRC about .2 benefit
Cobblers. RB spin machine on full. Any advantage would be taken on and tried if they were serious.
But Renault don't have to give any advantage, however small, to a bunch of sore losers who refuse to work with you due to 'Hopelessness'
RB'll be reaping the benefit of that next year. Maybe with a Judd V8?
LOL - Judd - there's something we haven't seen for a while 🙂
Any advantage isn't an advantage if it means not finishing so it's hardly that clear cut.
I agree with the general point about RB's behaviour though - I see this very much as a situation of their making. Marko in particular.
We're going to need a new thread soon - I have a feeling most of the discussion is already about next year now both championships are done and dusted, and the only question is which irritating German comes second 😉
they will be able to fix the fundamental issues on the engine (compressor too small/can't spin fast enough) fairly easily
Not sure about that. The Honda engine has the compressor sited in the V between the cylinders to keep the package as small as possible - I think they were told by McL to keep it small/tight for aero reasons - which means a small compressor.
The Merc has a bigger compressor sited on the end of the engine driven by a very high speed shaft that runs through the V.
Apparently the common wisdom at the time was that this couldn't be done as the shaft was spinning so fast that there would be tolerance issues - someone forgot to tell the Merc engineers and they found a way to do it.
Honda are keeping the compressor in the same place for 2016 as it would entail a complete engine redesign.
I'm sure that Merc will remain top of the pile but it's generally agreed that Ferrari's engine is close enough that it's not going to determine the overall performance of the car. The point being that they improved significantly from 14 to 15 by correcting fundamentally wrong decisions on layout.
Similarly Honda's engine and turbo is based on the compressor spinning much faster (IIRC 130k rpm vs 100k) than others and hence being able to be smaller but they can't actually do it without the thing falling to pieces so it's only running at the speeds others are and hence is limited in its potential to recover energy.
And regarding the tokens, by all accounts you can near enough redesign the whole engine with the tokens on offer given that several non-critical parts of it wouldn't need redesigning.
Red bull are going to have to pull a major rabbit out of the hat if they're going to be racing next year. If I were an employee (and assuming they know as much as we do) I'd be touting my cv round all the other teams to be sure I had a job next year. So they could get an engine but lose key staff, which may well damage them more than taking a 2015 spec Ferrari.
I think this engine dominance will last 2 or 3 years more at most. A similar thing happened with the last reg change and eventually everyone saw sense and they more or less equalised the engines. Ferrari Renault and especially Honda can do a much better job than they have this year, so I'd expect them to have the capability to make bigger gains than merc as there will be a limit on how much power you can get by burning a given amount of fuel. Delivering it is the tricky bit...
Some interesting insight there sharkbait, thanks for that!
I agree with what nemesis and a few others have been saying, the sooner we can get parity between the engines te better. As much as I'm a Hamilton fan I would still prefer to see a tightly contested championship!
The whole Red Bull thing is probably the most fascinating thing happening in the sport right now. Is got some incredibly enticing elements to it- not least the all dominant wünder-team brought crashing down by their own hubris. I'm following it with much attention.
[quote=thepurist ]If I were an employee (and assuming they know as much as we do) I'd be touting my cv round all the other teams to be sure I [s]had a job[/s] was in F1 next year.
I'm sure they're far more ignorant than all the experts on here, and I thought RBR had reassured the staff that they wouldn't be sacking anybody whatever happens, just redeploying skills onto other projects.
Maybe a way of equalizing performance would be to rule that manufacturers could only keep their engine spec 'secret' for a limited time and thereafter would have to be published for other teams scrutiny!
It's a shame it's all so complicated but one simple change would be to make the only pit to car comms a simple light system of red - stop, amber - caution, green - pit or something similar so the engineers can save the engine if they have to and let the drivers thrash it out.
Probably naive and will just lead to other cans of worms but the drivers need to be able to race flag to flag and that's the only thing that's going to save F1.
Speculation but stranger things have happened...
http://thejudge13.com/2015/11/05/exclusive-red-bull-secure-an-engine-for-2016/
Reported here too, so not wild speculation...
http://en.f1i.com/news/32461-are-red-bulls-engine-problems-solved.html
Who would they blame when things weren't going right?
LOL
Who would they blame when things weren't going right?
Thatcher
Do you think Red Bull could be setting themselves up as the 'independent' engine supplier?
They get to design an engine exactly as they want, and then sell it to others for a few million to recoup some of their expenditure.
Could do though I'm not sure I'd see RB being keen to share their designs and be a supplier - they're not a car manufacturer afterall but maybe if it made good commercial sense they could. And I guess as we've seen recently, if you have an engine you can choose who to provide them to.
[quote=the-muffin-man ]They get to design an engine exactly as they want
I don't see any suggestion of them doing that.
I don't see any suggestion of them doing that.
At the minute no - but the speculation seems to be they'll taken the Renault block and develop their own ERS gubbins to go with it. If they develop that well (which seems to be the hard part) it's only a small (in F1 terms!) step to develop the whole thing.
With the rule changes for 2017 the engines may become a little less complicated too.