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#433101
Caught this interesting bit of paddock talk while reviewing Peter Windsor and Scarbs TRE offerings. All of it we've heard before but check out what Peter says at 3:36.

[youtube]j8yEoSjOlSY[/youtube]

Barcelona will be the first test of speed from what the teams are saying and unlike Jerez, it's a real circuit with known F1 datapoints, let's see what we get this weekend.
#433145
I have to say I normally ache for the F1 season to start, I so hate the off season but this year I'm filled with dread.

I think its over before its begun, Merc might even dominate more than last year. I don't support any particular team or driver right now but last year I found boring as heck. I have no problems with Lewis being champion again but I'd like to see someone make him fight for it this year. ;) I love wheel to wheel racing, when the top car just heads off into the distance well, its boring ..for me anyway..
#433146
I have to say I normally ache for the F1 season to start, I so hate the off season but this year I'm filled with dread.

I think its over before its begun, Merc might even dominate more than last year. I don't support any particular team or driver right now but last year I found boring as heck. I have no problems with Lewis being champion again but I'd like to see someone make him fight for it this year. ;) I love wheel to wheel racing, when the top car just heads off into the distance well, its boring ..for me anyway..


Nico made him fight for it last year to the point of taking him off once, gearboxing him for 15 laps or so in Bharain, wheel to wheel anytime either had a chance, beating him in quali, winning 5 races, leading him in the WDC for most of the season.

I am trying to think back at any such fight for Seb in the 3 years after the first.

Or for Alonso in his WDC winning year

Or MS in almost any year at Ferrari (except when he broke his leg and Irvine actually got in the mix)

Now, obviously as you said before you have watched F1 for decades, so you might have noticed we had more wheel to wheel last year than at least 2 decades

or maybe Lewis and Nico did not fight as hard as Senna/Prost/Mansell, funny tho all the unbiased pundits who have watched for decades pretty much said itwas th most wheel to wheel since

I know Murray said so, and I reckon he hasnt become that senile
#433162
I have to say I normally ache for the F1 season to start, I so hate the off season but this year I'm filled with dread.

I think its over before its begun, Merc might even dominate more than last year. I don't support any particular team or driver right now but last year I found boring as heck. I have no problems with Lewis being champion again but I'd like to see someone make him fight for it this year. ;) I love wheel to wheel racing, when the top car just heads off into the distance well, its boring ..for me anyway..


I and all the F1 supporters I know agree 100% Cevert.

F1 desperately needs an injection of competition but after the first test as you say it does look like a repeat of the regulated boredom that we saw last season. Mercedes engine advantage was almost 2 sec per lap last year and may be the same this season because of the inadequate engine development regs. Most of the engine is frozen unfortunately making it very difficult for competitors to catch up to the Mercedes technology.

The only hope is that even with a reducing number of tokens that some brilliant engineers at Renault or Ferrari can make a breakthrough or an innovation so that there is wheel to wheel racing between the top drivers at the front of the grid.

Fingers are crossed for this test.
Last edited by overboost on 17 Feb 15, 04:07, edited 1 time in total.
#433166
You guys must have been super bored during the Vettel era.

Anyway, since the engine regulations are so restrictive, Renault is finding that it has more than enough to make a good step for 2015 and save some tokes to leap frog in 2016. Go figure. It turns out that the regulations weren't restrictive, it was sh!tty engine builders getting caught with their pants down. I know, we all want competition, but for the time being, I am happy to see the best man and the best team winning.

Autosport Renault has revealed that it may tactically delay using Formula 1 engine development tokens early this season in a bid to make bigger gains for 2016.

Following an FIA ruling over the winter, power unit manufacturers are now free to introduce their 32 development tokens at any point over the season rather than having to hit a pre-season deadline.

That moves means any upgrade work that cannot be completed over the winter could be implemented early in the campaign instead.

OPINION: Engine loophole is a big chance for F1

But Renault says that it is considering taking an entirely different route and delaying upgrades until the closing stages of the season.

That would allow it to use this year's engine development tokens to make early headway on 2016 power unit performance.

Renault F1 managing director Cyril Abiteboul told AUTOSPORT: "We have been capable of not only thinking of the next few races or next season, but the next seasons.

"Even though we have two years of partnership to go before hopefully there is a renewal, we need to maximise the value of money from the token allocation that we have.

"I think that there is a bit of strategic thinking to employ for this decision and therefore for the in-season development strategy for 2015."

Abiteboul believes that Renault has made enough of an improvement for 2015 that it could afford to hold tokens back with an eye to 2016 without compromising short-term performance.

"I think we need to stay calm. I believe, and I hope I am not wrong, that we have enough of a performance step in order to look and envisage carefully the options for in-season engine development and do the right thing, not only for 2015 but also for 2016," he said.

"We have options. We have to see how we play with the resources we have to develop this year's engine or bring forward a bit of next year's engine regulations."


If only we had a more informed membership instead of people living in a make believe world where every one and everything is against them. Paranoia even. I'd go see a doctor.
#433168
CookinFlat6 I have a question... do you think Rosberg got spanked or do you think it was really that close?

I ask because sure Rosberg got the better of Hamilton over the season in qualifying (partly due to some silly mistakes here and there by Hamilton) but we all know Hamilton was the better driver all season long especially with the retirements.

Hamilton should have won at Australia but his car let him down in the worst way possible, later on in the season it's less of a thing but the first race this was a team problem.

He owned the next 4 races, including at Bahrain where he should have lost if Rosberg was good enough.

We get to Monaco and Rosberg by this stage is losing 4-1 and behind, now Rosberg does the dirty in Q3 meaning Hamilton didn't get to complete his second run and chances are he would have gone more than 1 tenth faster especially since his banker lap is in and now can go all-out. We get to the race and Hamilton follows Rosberg comfortably for many laps until he gets rubble get into his visor and suddenly (yes it's visible on the timings) he drops off and Riccardo starts to catch.

Hamilton should have won at Canada, He was comfortably quicker all weekend except for Q3 where he had a few lock ups and I'm sure over the whole race he would have come out on top for sure).

He should have won at Austria, you think he was only under 2 seconds behind at the end of the race after starting in P9 when his quali lap got disqualified when it was so obvious that he didn't gain from going wide and it wasn't intentional, he lost the rear of his car, otherwise he would have started P4.

You might say Nico should have won at Silverstone but Hamilton was the faster driver and even before they did their first pit stops Hamilton was gaining ground fast, he pitted and even before Rosberg's car died it was game over for Nico.

The first race Rosberg won comfortably was Germany, he lead with ease although it was made easy by hamiltons brakes giving up in Q1, Rosberg cruised but cruised fast during the race however Hamilton's fastest lap was impressive, based on Hamiltons fastest lap compared to Quali times it shows Hamilton had the pace exceed Rosberg.

We get to Hungary and Hamilton's car gives up again, safety cars mess up the race which should have been a win for Rosberg BUT we all saw Hamilton out-race Rosberg by just looking at each driver trying to overtake other drivers.

At Spa Nico had the jump on Hamilton in qualifying and Rosberg won this qualli fair and square with relative ease, Pole isn't really a huge "must" at Spa because the you can be overtaken fairly easily on the first lap. Hamilton got past and then Nico did the dirty again!

Rosberg went into Italy on a downer after being told of by his team, Hamilton meanwhile dominates up until the start of the race where he has another car problem but even after that he manages to get it working again and still manages to outdrive Rosberg.

Singapore was in the bag from the start of practice for Hamilton, unfortunately we missed out on a potentially awesome race because Rosbergs car died on him. Hamilton's crotch adjustment got him that 0.007 extra to get pole.

At Japan I honestly expected Rosberg to win but it was a wet race and Hamilton is better in the wet, If it was a dry race Rosberg would have won but it was wet :/

Russia was just a dumb, easy track and Nico's lockup into turn 1 ruined it for him although from the get go again Lewis Hamilton was dominating, possibly the easiest weekend for Hamilton

We get to Russia and Rosberg smashes Qualifying, by far his best qualifying in 2014. However Hamilton managed to stick with Rosberg and did a beautiful overtake that was borderline too far so it was a perfect overtake, I was surprised Rosberg didn't win this one.

At Brazil Rosberg was very fast all weekend and dominated up until Q3 where he only just managed to get pole even with Hamilton having two rather big lockups on his quali lap, Hamilton had it in the bag up until his team made him stay out for a second hammertime lap which ended up in a mistake losing him 10+ seconds when he was ahead just before the spin (he had made up the second he needed to) but he didnt give up and chased Rosberg down got it back down to under 2 seconds. We saw again Hamilton's overall pace was far superior.

Dubai was an interesting race, Hamilton appeared to have it comfortable up until Q3 when Rosberg somehow pulled out an awesome lap, I expected Hamilton to come home in second place but unfortunately for Rosberg he had a pathetic start (might have been related to the car problem that came in later on) but at the same time Hamilton got a stupidly good start, one of the best starts without aids cough Renault ;).


For me overall I think Hamilton outrace Rosberg in all bar like 2 races... and minus both drivers silly qualli mistakes/cheating again Hamilton did better (Rosberg won with cheating and eachothers mistakes) but then again qualliying is 1 lap, a race is 60+ laps so 1 lap pace isn't good enough, you need consistency.


As for this thread, sorry for my offtopic ;)
I think Mercedes will show some speed this test, Williams too followed by a tight mix of Ferrari, Red Bull, Sauber, Lotus, McLaren and Toro Rosso (no specific order). I think Hamilton will get the fastest lap of the test but I think Rosberg will do the most laps (again)

Mercedes
Ferrai
Renault / Honda

^ Engine Order (We still don't know if Honda have pulled it out the bag, the wildcard status is frustrating!)

Mercedes
Williams
Red Bull / Ferrai
Lotus / McLaren / Toro Rosso

^ Constructor Order
#433170
You guys must have been super bored during the Vettel era.

Anyway, since the engine regulations are so restrictive, Renault is finding that it has more than enough to make a good step for 2015 and save some tokes to leap frog in 2016. Go figure. It turns out that the regulations weren't restrictive, it was sh!tty engine builders getting caught with their pants down. I know, we all want competition, but for the time being, I am happy to see the best man and the best team winning.

Autosport Renault has revealed that it may tactically delay using Formula 1 engine development tokens early this season in a bid to make bigger gains for 2016.

Following an FIA ruling over the winter, power unit manufacturers are now free to introduce their 32 development tokens at any point over the season rather than having to hit a pre-season deadline.

That moves means any upgrade work that cannot be completed over the winter could be implemented early in the campaign instead.

OPINION: Engine loophole is a big chance for F1

But Renault says that it is considering taking an entirely different route and delaying upgrades until the closing stages of the season.

That would allow it to use this year's engine development tokens to make early headway on 2016 power unit performance.

Renault F1 managing director Cyril Abiteboul told AUTOSPORT: "We have been capable of not only thinking of the next few races or next season, but the next seasons.

"Even though we have two years of partnership to go before hopefully there is a renewal, we need to maximise the value of money from the token allocation that we have.

"I think that there is a bit of strategic thinking to employ for this decision and therefore for the in-season development strategy for 2015."

Abiteboul believes that Renault has made enough of an improvement for 2015 that it could afford to hold tokens back with an eye to 2016 without compromising short-term performance.

"I think we need to stay calm. I believe, and I hope I am not wrong, that we have enough of a performance step in order to look and envisage carefully the options for in-season engine development and do the right thing, not only for 2015 but also for 2016," he said.

"We have options. We have to see how we play with the resources we have to develop this year's engine or bring forward a bit of next year's engine regulations."


If only we had a more informed membership instead of people living in a make believe world where every one and everything is against them. Paranoia even. I'd go see a doctor.


Well there it is then! Looks like Renault have just thrown in the towel for 2015 after just one test.

Lets hope Ferrari can do something to make it interesting. Not hopeful though.
#433171
CookinFlat6 I have a question... do you think Rosberg got spanked or do you think it was really that close?


Good question Ry, and I am thankful you provide an opportunity to discuss some of the 'grey' areas that make F1 so compelling, and not the usual stuff from the usual retards, young and old.

Rosberg got spanked silly on one hand, yet ran Lewis close on the other. Only in a 'sport' like F1 could something like this exist. As the players skill and talent is much less the decisive factor than it is in almost any other sport (maybe this is the difference between sport and entertainment). There is so much outside the realms of the players control and ability to control that it takes the absolute best players to overcome the stuff Lewis has done year in year out

For example, a whole win taken away in Spa one year, yet thre are many who point to that year and say he was matched to someone on the same points or 1 more or less. Thats just not rational.

Then lets take the year he was 'beaten' by Button. He was beaten in points over the 18 races, but when we look closely at the only stat that would be acceptable in almost every other proper sport he wasnt beaten at all. That year out of all the races that both drivers finished, Lewis wins, he was faster all year,more poles, fastest laps etc, didnt have less wins, but had much more dnfs, more crashes with a Massa proven to act on instructions to disrupt Lewis' races.

Yet many so called sports fans would look you in the eye and say button matched Lewis and BEAT him that year. So thats the difference between a proper sports where the fans respect ability, and the sports run by guys like Bernie, Max, Luca, Charlie W.

So to cut a long story short (and before the typical F1 'melons' turn up to moan that others are not discussing the topics they want to read being discussed) - in a made up, corrupt, flexi rules/flexi wings/spinklers on track/doubl points sport - where a safety car can be kept redundant while cars drive blind corners yards from marshalls clearing debris from a stricken car, then anything goes and the drivers talent or skills sometimes have to be 3x better than the other guy to match him, IF he has the ""luck"" on his side (luck like SC, penalties, Dnfs, etc etc)

So Lewis smashed Nico driving wise, like he smashed Button and truth be told Alonso and ofcourse Heiki, however he was run close by Nico and the goblins that run F1. At least he didnt get a race taken away hours after and just after the rules were changed and backdated for the race.

For example we had a race where Lewis started at the back and beat Nico who started on pole, this was a sporting skills smash, yet entertainment wise, they finished closely "matched" at the end. So to a quarterwit looking at that result on wiki, its clear Nico was narrowly beaten by Lewis - as we all know "only points matter" - but to a true sports fan, it was a smashup. Just like 2011. But ofourse its the same quarterwits who will then say it was a boring race because they finished 1 place apart - etc etc etc

Some detail may be awry, but I trust you get the gist. No doubt the usual boycotters or quarterwits will starts screaming about how fair F1 is as it all balances out, in between complianing how Merc have all the ""luck""
#433173
Most of the engine is frozen unfortunately making it very difficult for competitors to catch up to the Mercedes technology.


So why does Horner want a tech freeze on the ERS bits?? Anyone can make an ICE, its the ERS that gives Merc such an edge (the bit relevant to manufacturers road cars).

So Red Bull are making it hard to catch Merc by calling for a freeze on the tech parts Merc are good at.

I dont expect an answer so dont bother, not saying ofcourse you dont have an answer because you dont understand any of it

:doh:
#433178
RyRy, great analysis of the races last year. The only one I'd take issue with is Germany. Rosberg was comfortably ahead but Lewis was gaining hand over fist( having started last) . Had the powers that be put out a safety car when they should have done, following Sutil's spin coming onto the start finish straight, and on a corner!!; lewis would have been in a position to challenge for the win. He'd just dived in the pits as the car spun, a brilliant call by Mercedes. But the powers that be DIDNT put out the safety car. They preferred to risk the life of marshals who had to run across the track, so they could ensure a German win at a German track following the world cup success.

Sorry this is a bit off topic, but it's a thing that irritates me. Bianchi's freak accident drew a lot of reaction and backlash yet the callous risking of marshals at Hokenheim , that was fine apparantly.

Anyway, back to the test! I'm looking forward to Merc going for a performance; they haven't done that yet, only done race sims and heavy fuel. I guess from this they'll decide whether to bother using tokens up or saving them all for later in the year ready for the 2016 season, because due to the stupidity of Horner and Ferrari, they have that luxury now.
#433182
RyRy, great analysis of the races last year. The only one I'd take issue with is Germany. Rosberg was comfortably ahead but Lewis was gaining hand over fist( having started last) . Had the powers that be put out a safety car when they should have done, following Sutil's spin coming onto the start finish straight, and on a corner!!; lewis would have been in a position to challenge for the win. He'd just dived in the pits as the car spun, a brilliant call by Mercedes. But the powers that be DIDNT put out the safety car. They preferred to risk the life of marshals who had to run across the track, so they could ensure a German win at a German track following the world cup success.

Sorry this is a bit off topic, but it's a thing that irritates me. Bianchi's freak accident drew a lot of reaction and backlash yet the callous risking of marshals at Hokenheim , that was fine apparantly.

Anyway, back to the test! I'm looking forward to Merc going for a performance; they haven't done that yet, only done race sims and heavy fuel. I guess from this they'll decide whether to bother using tokens up or saving them all for later in the year ready for the 2016 season, because due to the stupidity of Horner and Ferrari, they have that luxury now.


I got a bit carried away haha, I've probably got a few things wrong as I can't remember it all... and yeah you're right. I was annoyed about that point when the race went on a SC should have been deployed straight away and then the marshalls running across the track was just icing on the cake for a f... up. Inconsistancy all season with the punishments and safety car deployment.

I'm actually surprised other cars didn't dive into the pits as from my view it was a no brainer.

For entertainment purposes I want the Ferrari and Honda Engines to be equal to mercedes.... but from a British perspective I want Mercedes to be 3 seconds faster than the rest because I want Lewis to spank Rosberg again.
#433183
Maybe you want the Mercs to be on a level field with the other two if you want Lewis to spank Rosberg....since other cars can mix it up when Rosberg doesn't 'bring it'. The reason why it was so close in 2014 was due to default 2nd places which Rosberg could pick up despite numerous screw ups and not being fast enough. He actually managed to lose to Redbull twice in Spa and Hungary simply for not being quick enough.
#433203
...If only we had a more informed membership instead of people living in a make believe world where every one and everything is against them. Paranoia even. I'd go see a doctor.

:rofl::rofl::rofl:
#433204
CookinFlat6 I have a question... do you think Rosberg got spanked or do you think it was really that close?


Good question Ry, and I am thankful you provide an opportunity to discuss some of the 'grey' areas that make F1 so compelling, and not the usual stuff from the usual retards, young and old...

Great question and I'm sure a great answer would have followed!!
Too bad the response started so insultingly, as I stopped reading!
:banghead:
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