[Closed] The F1 2015 thread...

This one's about Graham Hill

Nothing to do with his devilish good looks or charm. No no.

An article for those who like their F1 engine analysis!...

http://somersf1.blogspot.co.uk/2015/03/tokens-comparing-powerunits-and.html

Excellent link Muffin Man - thanks!

The bit about the variable length intake trumpets and why this alone supports the FIA's decision not to give Honda the full token allocation for use throughout the 2015 season was very interesting.

This sentence made me chuckle mind:

"I think it is also important at this juncture to talk about variable length intake trumpets (VLIT)"

I hadn't made the natural leap myself but after reading on it made perfect sense!

variable length intake trumpets

interesting
[url= https://twitter.com/F1__1995 ]Twitter feed from 1995 season as it happens :D[/url]

like that 🙂

boxing gloves are off at renault and red bull with he said she said saga ( http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/formula1/32050898)

Alonso tries to confound the media by denying everything Mclaren have said regarding the crash, its not windy and I'm not in 1995, furthermore you're not my muvvvaaaa!
( http://www1.skysports.com/f1/news/24184/9776231/fernando-alonso-says-steering-locked-for-barcelona-testing-crash)

ooerrr and we havent even started racing yet.. I bet Bernie, Dieter and Ron didnt have much to say around dinner last night ( forget about monsoons and humidity, its going to be frosty!)

so why didnt Alonso just say things these straight away - was he told not to? would it cause the car to come under a safety investigation? why would he sit back and wait and here all this rubbish from McLaren and not just tweet what happened as he always does....

i see a frosty relationship brewing - unless that car improves utterly drastically in the next few races i suspect he will either take the rest of the year off or he'll have some get-out-clause that will let him in elsewhere...

Oooh! This floats my boat. Maybe Monaco too.

[url= http://www.shapeways.com/product/2S3TP84YA/mini-spa-francorchamps-topographic?li=more-from-shop&optionId=42171044 ] 3D circuits[/url]

LOVE that Tweeter feed 😀

looks like the 4 engine limit has been upped to 5 , as agreed by all engine manufacturers (and therefore the teams)-just got to get it past the FIA.

errrr so much for the cost cutting then?

[quote=back2basics ]looks like the 4 engine limit has been upped to 5 , as agreed by all engine manufacturers (and therefore the teams)-just got to get it past the FIA.

Isn't there some loophole regarding the number of races on the calendar and the wording of the engine limit? They get to have 5 if the number of races listed on the calendar is above a certain number, and there was a race listed which never was going to happen which takes it above that number (the conspiracy theory being that it was only ever there to allow for this loophole).

@aracer's got the biscuit 😀

storming first wet lap by lewis.

I enjoyed that.

Rosberg playing dirty again 👿

didn't help him 🙂

he wasnt playing dirty, he was being a racing car driver, he wanted to get across the line with hardly any time left so he had the most dry track he could in order to put in his best lap,

when Lewis passed him and realised what he was doing, HE DID THE SAME!

they both ended up with lots of cars around from other drivers ALSO DOING THE SAME so lots of traffic

if they had just gone for it like vettel did, they would have both improved

nice to see the McLarens turning up that engine and getting into Q1 - oh no wait....................

Looked like a block to me. Lewis was behind him on his timed lap whilst rosberg had backed off for whatever reason. He stayed on the racing line at a considerably slower speed than ham. Does that not equate to a block?

I'd have called it a block. Lewis just returned the compliment to show who is boss

yes it was a block and lewis did the same.. just them playing around. I think the comment after qualifying shows he's not taking the bait. I bet he is happy the Ferrari is in the mix to help him out.

I hope Ferrari gets the win.. that will well and truly set the cat amongst the pigeons.

I was amused that, since Red Bull have now been written off as rubbish, there was no commentary at all on their progress or comment on the fact that they are 4th and 5th on the grid.

quite funny Nico asking about Hamiltons lines and being told "nope" 🙂

good drives by Verstappen and Vettel. The rain really does bring the best out of the drivers 🙂
The Red bulls moved up but the proximity of the Torro rosso ,ust put them under pressure.The Torro rossos are pretty handy with the [s]Ferrari[/s] Renault I meant 🙂 power pack and town hungry rookies.

Prediction
Rosberg
Hamilton
Vettel

Torro Rosso are using Renault PUs, same as Red Bull. Which makes there performance even more impressive, and Horner's whinging even sadder. Maybe the chassis isn't quite as good as they are telling themselves it is.

Who is the new bloke in the other Merc? Wheres Nico? I've not seen him turn up for a race for the past 8 or so races..

Good improvement for McLaren hopefully beating FI in qualifying by China.

Defo a block in my book, Nico had won me over a bit after the way he went up to congratulate Lewis at Abu Dhabi and has conducted himself since. Straight back to to twunt status after that.

Klunk - Member
quite funny Nico asking about Hamiltons lines and being told "nope"

Been a while since I last flicked two fingers at the telly!

my pers. opinion is they should make f1 cars for a better range of conditions and send them out in lightning and monsoons 🙂

I see vettel and lewis taking each other out on the first lap (not before a certain someone in a black and gold car has already done it at the first corner) and rosberg goes on to win

Rosberg wins by 1minute Sunday and the championship by 60points too.

There. Ive not jinxed him at all.

Prediction
Rosberg
Hamilton
Vettel

I very much doubt it

Hamilton
Rosberg
Vettel

A bit more action than the last race!

Agree. Daft changing tyres so soon though..

Still how good is LH through traffic compared to Nico?!!

Agree. Daft changing tyres so soon though

Nah - Vettel would need to get a full pit-stop ahead to make his call work.

It'll kill Rosbergs race though, he's stuck in traffic and isn't the racer Lewis is.

Possibly not as ruined as I thought! 😀

Vettel made Rosberg look a bit pedestrian..

We have a race on!

Loving this.

ooops

Good to see Raikkonen now up to 5th, from 11th, via a puncture.

How many bloody tyre stops??

"Don't talk to me in the corners" who's a grumpy chap, not going your way eh 😀

Bad strategy from Merc.

Bad strategy from Merc.

Yep - too complacent.

Almost feel sorry for Alonso and the dreadful timing of his Ferrari flounce. Almost.

Rosberg looks disinterested today (I'm a bit behind and have just watched him back off from passing Raikkonen at the pit lane end).

This will be good for F1.

Also makes Horners moaning look even more pathetic - Merc can be beaten, if you do a better job.

Bottas!

"Don't talk to me in the corners"

Not sure this race is a sign of the future tho, it always seems to throw up an unexpected result somewhere.

Eddie Jordan doing the podium interviews. Sound is off.

why couldn't it be Raikkonen, anything would be better than that finger ! 🙁

Where are the F1 haterz?

credit where credit is due .. ferrari did a great job on the tyres and strategy. Vettel drove like he did in RBR and delivered. I bet Alonso must wonder if he needs to stop walking under ladders.

I wonder if the setup was compromised by the wet weather q3 yesterday and configuration took a bit more out of the tyres. That said Ferrari ran close and still managed to get round in 2 stops.
I still think its Hamiltons title to lose but in Vettel/ Ferrari they have a formidable and creditable challenger.

I was expecting the stongman pose rather than the finger today 🙂

and I still hate f1 🙂 .. I think I saw the manor car once as a blur in the background being lapped ( although it couldve been a mirage of sennas Mclaren) 😯

F1 haterz? Will have to wait until the highlights this afternoon.

Mercedes strategy was absolutely woeful. So they unnecessary use an extra set of tyres in quali yesterday then today they decided to pit very early under the safety car forcing them on to the slower 3 stop strategy and to make it worse they didn't even have enough tyres on Hamilton's car to make that strategy work. That will be a painful debrief.

Good progress by McLaren strong in the high speed twisty stuff. Just need to get that PU working and some extra aero bits and they will be beating RB.

odd the safety car pit stop wasting 10-12 laps running on the medium tyre.

did lewis start on a new set ? if so they were only 3 racing laps old 😕

Also makes Horners moaning look even more pathetic - Merc can be beaten, if you do a better job.

Especially when STR are beating the main RB team. Red Bull have lost Newey (full time at least) plus Prodromou and need to rebuild. Horner needs to manage that process and do it with dignity.

Ferrari? One swallow doesn't make a summer - bring on China!

The race was lost with Lewis's engine delays. He missed all the valuable tyre data on choices needed IMO

IMHO i think Ferrari surprised everyone with quite simply tyre degredation - them being a lot less than the others! im not saying that the engine in the red car aint fast, cos it is, but today the tyre issue certainly helped, that could all be down to setup though,

regardless lets hope the battle continues this season,

2 thinks, 1, nico , i used to rate him a lot but since mid season last year when Lewis left him for dust (yes i am a lewis haterz) and won the title fair and square, he seems lost! like he's putting on an act when he has to say the lines "the team did a great job, wait for the next race..." etc.etc, then his real face just shows a glum bored look like he really "doesnt need this anymore..." expression.
2 - will be interesting to see how Merc handle a REAL fight now, not only within team mates but also from another team,
they leaped from behind RBR & ferrari a few years back before the engine changes to well out in front, lets see how they do now.

nobody saying it? ok i will
Congrats to Vettel, a brilliant drive by a brilliant driver, managing tyres, hot laps when he needed and cutting through traffic - and well done Ferrari - i bet they shut up now about needing a "new direction" for F1.
ps. where is Luca de M these days???

Do keep up, Luca was sacked last year.

Actually it was pretty obvious just how much it meant to Vettel and despite the finger wagging I did feel pleased for him. A bit.

@scottcheg - i know 🙂 i meant where has he ended up since his sacking , given their success today i wondered is we would get some comments from him ....

Fair enough 🙂

He's keeping a dignified silence. And working on the Audi F1 car.

Hmmm, was surprised how quickly the wheels came off* the Mercedes team. Too used to winning from the front?

*Ho ho

hi, both their drivers were in 2nd and 3rd. The Ferrari's second (world champion) driver was beaten by someone without a title by getting on for a minute.

So...

cheekymonkey888 - Member
and I still hate f1 .. I think I saw the manor car once as a blur in the background being lapped ( although it couldve been a mirage of sennas Mclaren)

I think we are seeing Bernie getting childish again.

He obviously doesn't want Manor there and has made comments to the same (threats to withhold money etc). I wouldn't be surprised if he has told the TV producers not to show the Manor cars in the race or qualifying. He did it to Force India during qualifying a few years ago when they were in dispute with him over contracts.

hora - Member

hi, both their drivers were in 2nd and 3rd. The Ferrari's second (world champion) driver was beaten by someone without a title by getting on for a minute.

So...

Are you forgetting that Kimi had this little problema on lap 1?

[img] [/img]

He then had to crawl back round to the pits, then make his way through the field with a damaged car.

Off the BBC F1 page.

Sebastian Vettel's Malaysian Grand Prix win has come as a welcome surprise to those fearing another year of Mercedes dominance.

I believe that normal service will resume at the next race, Mercedes made a school boy error by pitting both cars when the safety car was deployed. Probably due to a mixture of over confidence and arrogance that their car is best in the field at the moment.

Vettel’s win whilst impressive and a good talking point; his overall pace wasn’t that fantastic Kimi who pitted for a puncture finished 4th less than a minute down the road.

It occurred to me yesterday that during the 2014 season I made a comment along the lines of "the cars look rubbish, if only they looked like the 1990 Ferrari 640, I'd watch F1 again".

Blow me, both Ferrari and McLaren have rocked up with cars that look a lot like the pretty Ferrari from 25 years ago (liveries aside)...

Anyway, I watched the race in the gym yesterday and struggled to maintain any enthusiasm. It dawned on me that in addition to the belching frog engine noise that lacks any character whatsoever, the TV camera shots of the cars failed to convey any sense of speed or drama.

Good result (and made Horner look pretty stupid given all his posturing after Oz) but in reality, given the extreme temperatures, I suspect that Merc will be back to normal dominant self from here - the Ferrari's ability not to overheat its tyres will be a disadvantage on cooler tracks which is basically every track in comparison. While Oz is known for not being representative, Merc were still way faster there and that hasn't changed in on flyaway race when the teams won't have changed a huge amount on the cars.

Mind you, no doubt Ferrari will be pushing Pirelli to be more aggressive on their tyre choices to play to their strengths. Suspect Bernie will support that too.

Still, good to see Vettel back to some form and hopefully last year was just a blip.

@PJM1974
i agree

those skid blocks that spark are supposed to do something like that,

its because the cars are so on the edge now , you either look like your running on rails or your off in the gravel.

the changes to tyres and aero rules etc are just not working,
i dont mind the new engines, but give them more power and less aero and bigger tyres!!!!

but give them more power and less aero and bigger tyres!!!!

They have plenty of power IMO. As for bigger tyres, they look cool but they'll likely mean less overtaking IMO - what happens when it rains? You have less mechanical grip and get better racing...

I saw a number of cars going round corners sideways when the power was put down too early. Tyres shredding, brake dust, wheel to wheel action.

Dramarama

so whats the sticking points with Merc & Lewis contract then - did Ferrari's win suddenly make Lewis want to chase "the dream" with them now?

I reckon it's just Lewis taking ages over reading the thing. He's doing it all himself. He's said as much in his column on the beeb website

I'm with Pook...he's probably got to keep looking up all the big words and legal speak to try and understand the thing. Although his stance has changed slightly from 'it's all done bar the paperwork' to 'there's just a few things left to agree' I noticed yesterday.

Well it't looking interesting after the 1st days practice.

Ham still on top, Ferrari close, and Honda turning the wick up on their engine for 10th and 12th. And both Manor F1s on the track at the same time!

Although his stance has changed slightly from 'it's all done bar the paperwork' to 'there's just a few things left to agree' I noticed yesterday.

At a complete guess hes doing something he did/must have done whilst at Mclaren when he was a newbie but brilliantly overcame Alonso to get the team behind him....is he playing psychology, doing this to get the Merc team fully backing him? Show hes better on the track whilst doing it- 'back me and I'll be the one'?

A guess but I do think theres more to Lewis than just raw talent and dappy/crap fashion sense.

BTW- I forgot to admit retro83 was right earlier in the week ^ 😳

I agree with the above- looks like it's gonna be another interesting weekend!

[url= http://www.jamesallenonf1.com/2015/04/chinese-grand-prix-free-practice-hamilton-on-top-as-raikkonen-impresses/ ]James Allen on F1[/url]

@the-muffin-man
everyone else running heavy fuel race distance, mclaren not.
😉