Formula 1 2019 - General Discussion Thread

Debub

El_Duderino 09 wrote: »

I wish you’d said what that link was for. I’ve made an effort not to click on any of the Schumacher stories. His family have asked for privacy and have have given updates which amount to “we’re not telling you anything because we want privacy” and I want to respect that.

Apologies - I have corrected my post. just wanted to share this bit of positive news, that's all

El_Duderino 09

Cork Trucker wrote: »

Found this on Twitter, hard to believe it's 20 years ago to the very day that Jordan took their only dry win in F1 and HHF took the last victory of his career,Salo took the final podium of his career also. The video fittingly finishes with the Irish National Anthem.

https://twitter.com/mrdemmendaal/status/1172070698308780032

Great looking cars those Jordans. The bitten’n hissen and buzzin hornets in particular

Cork Trucker

El_Duderino 09 wrote: »

Great looking cars those Jordans. The bitten’n hissen and buzzin hornets in particular

Loved the cars of that era. The 98/99 Jordan's were probably the best looking of the lot with the exception of the 1991 7UP livery/

skipper_G

H3llR4iser wrote: »

Meh...what's the reationale behind them again? Is there a cost cutting reason (as in, using the same process as other race tires Pirelli makes)? Or is it yet another dumb "fans-want-big-wheels" knee jerk reaction?

It was a change brought on at the behest of tyre manufacturers, Pirelli and other potential suppliers. The 18 inch wheels have more in common with road car technology than the 13 inch wheels

PopePalpatine

IIRC, Michelin asked for 18-inch wheels as a condition for their return.

El_Duderino 09

skipper_G wrote: »

It was a change brought on at the behest of tyre manufacturers, Pirelli and other potential suppliers. The 18 inch wheels have more in common with road car technology than the 13 inch wheels

And that’s fair enough. The current tyres have almost no real world application so it makes it less attractive to potential suppliers. Considering the flack Pirelli gets (alongside the overall advertisement) it must be easier to justify the spend if they get to double it up with r&d for its core business.

I wonder if the push for real world application has been accelerated by the recession in 2008. Where companies now want a benefit beyond he advertising. Or has it always been this way?

skipper_G

El_Duderino 09 wrote: »

And that’s fair enough. The current tyres have almost no real world application so it makes it less attractive to potential suppliers. Considering the flack Pirelli gets (alongside the overall advertisement) it must be easier to justify the spend if they get to double it up with r&d for its core business.

I wonder if the push for real world application has been accelerated by the recession in 2008. Where companies now want a benefit beyond he advertising. Or has it always been this way?

It's always been there it's the nature of the business. Modern F1 is typically very slow to change because as you rightly pointed out F1 fans are notoriously change resistant. We have 13 inch wheels basically because "that's how it is in F1". WEC and Formula E both use 18 inch wheels, I don't see the issue myself.

v3ttel

El_Duderino 09 wrote: »

Be fair though. You’re not comparing like with like. Vettel is one of the elder statesmen of the sport and CL is in his second season - first season in the Ferrari. Expectations at the start of the season were for Seb to definitely beat CL over the season. If CL was able to keep within a reasonable points difference, it would be a massive success.

Right now he’s marginally ahead after winning 2 races, and beating Seb in 7 qualifying sessions in a row. Seb making race ruining mistakes regularly, CL winning 2 races on the trot.

It’s not as simple as all that but Seb’s stock is falling rapidly.

Agreed, it's not as simple as all that.

I guess people are much quicker to write drivers off than is reasonable, and the only thing that matters is the last handful of races in most peoples mind. Leclerc is a super talented driver and plenty of folks predicted he would win races this year, there was no way he was going to be blown away by Vettel, who is definitely not at his best with the current car.

I get that some people just don't like him and therefore, some want to write him off (not aimed at you specifically) or make stupid comments about him "running away" from a team mate.

El_Duderino 09

v3ttel wrote: »

Agreed, it's not as simple as all that.

I guess people are much quicker to write drivers off than is reasonable, and the only thing that matters is the last handful of races in most peoples mind. Leclerc is a super talented driver and plenty of folks predicted he would win races this year, there was no way he was going to be blown away by Vettel, who is definitely not at his best with the current car.

I get that some people just don't like him and therefore, some want to write him off (not aimed at you specifically) or make stupid comments about him "running away" from a team mate.

There was a huge probability that he would be blown away by Seb. If he could avoid being blown away by Seb it would be seen as a good introductory season to the team. It takes massive revision to say otherwise.

People thought he would win this season but they said that thinking Ferrari had the best car in the grid (remember pre season testing where Ferrari looked to be significantly faster than everyone else?)

People thought CL would probably win this season but I’m pretty sure that was assuming Seb would also be winning races.

I wouldn’t agree with anyone saying he’s running away from his teammate. I just think he’s being beaten fair and square by a relative rookie

Frank Bullitt

PopePalpatine

That looks much better than the last time the Enstone squad tested them.

Anjobe

v3ttel wrote: »

I guess people are much quicker to write drivers off than is reasonable, and the only thing that matters is the last handful of races in most peoples mind...

It isn't just the last few races though, this has been going on with Vettel for 2 1/2 seasons. Having a competitive team mate has made the situation starker, and perhaps even accelerated his decline, but he has been performing poorly and making too many mistakes for a long time now.

El_Duderino 09

Anjobe wrote: »

It isn't just the last few races though, this has been going on with Vettel for 2 1/2 seasons. Having a competitive team mate has made the situation starker, and perhaps even accelerated his decline, but he has been performing poorly and making too many mistakes for a long time now.

It seems he’s just lost his mojo. There’s a great line from Cutty in The Wire where he tells Avon he’s lost his edge. “Whatever it is in you that lets you flow the way you flow, and do that thang. It ain’t in me no more”. I feel that’s the way Seb looks at the moment.

People tend to point to Germany last year as the obvious start of the decline. When Seb was winning the race and leading the championship and he just slid off and crashed.

He might pull out of it but at the moment he’s in a fairly heavy tailspin.

Frank Bullitt

In black they look fantastic.

El_Duderino 09

Gintonious wrote: »

In black they look fantastic.

I feel this might be one of the changes where the reaction is “I hate it” at first, but in a year nobody will even remember any opposition.

I think it looks cool.

Lower profile tyres will make suspension stuff a lot harder. They'll have to add travel so there should be scope for development outside of the wind tunnel which I like the idea of.

mickdw

I think it will make things easier for the engineers.
Suspension is arguably much more controllable and measurable than the sidewall of a tyre.
Getting rid of the movement in the tyre is surely what the engineers would be looking for.

Nope.

Cork Trucker

Quick question here for anyone who can answer it as my brain isn't as good as i had hoped. When was the last F1 race where all 3 drivers to reach the podium were of the same nationality? What got me thinking was the video i posted of Monza 1999 yesterday, Frentzen/R. Schumacher both German and Salo who is Finnish stood in for a German in M. Schumacher. For the life of me i cannot remember it in the last 20 years. I've seen podiums aplenty powered by the same engine manufacturer but never drivers of the same nationality on all 3 steps. Would be a good question in a motorsports quiz.

donspeekinglesh

Cork Trucker wrote: »

Quick question here for anyone who can answer it as my brain isn't as good as i had hoped. When was the last F1 race where all 3 drivers to reach the podium were of the same nationality? What got me thinking was the video i posted of Monza 1999 yesterday, Frentzen/R. Schumacher both German and Salo who is Finnish stood in for a German in M. Schumacher. For the life of me i cannot remember it in the last 20 years. I've seen podiums aplenty powered by the same engine manufacturer but never drivers of the same nationality on all 3 steps. Would be a good question in a motorsports quiz.

Great question! I was convinced there had been at least one all German podium, but apparently not. This tweet (found via Reddit) is from 2012, but I don't think there's been any since then:
https://twitter.com/virtualstatman/status/183805685664972801

Cork Trucker

donspeekinglesh wrote: »

Great question! I was convinced there had been at least one all German podium, but apparently not. This tweet (found via Reddit) is from 2012, but I don't think there's been any since then:
https://twitter.com/virtualstatman/status/183805685664972801

Just looked up that race, it was an all French podium

First
France Patrick Tambay
Ferrari
Second
France Alain Prost
Renault
Third
France René Arnoux
Ferrari

Cork Trucker

OSI wrote: »

1983 San Marino Grand Prix

1st Patrick Tambay - Ferrari
2nd Alain Prost - Renault
3rd René Arnoux - Ferrari

Cheers, only seen this after i posted the reply with the same drivers. Hard to imagine it's 36 years since one nationality completed the podium.

El_Duderino 09

According to reddit there was an all British podium in 1968 in Watkins Glen.

Jackie Stewart, Graham Hill and John Surtees.

flazio

Can't see a Hamilton, Norris, Russell podium happening anytime soon. I think I'm right in saying it's the only combination possible at the moment unless Ocon gets in early.

El_Duderino 09

flazio wrote: »

Can't see a Hamilton, Norris, Russell podium happening anytime soon. I think I'm right in saying it's the only combination possible at the moment unless Ocon gets in early.

Yes.

There are also 2 Finns 2 Germans and 2 French.

I think the British would claim Albon if he were on the podium with 2 Brits.

And they’d call it a French podium if LeClerc was there with Ro-Gro and Gasley.

Cork Trucker

El_Duderino 09 wrote: »

Yes.

There are also 2 Finns 2 Germans and 2 French.

I think the British would claim Albon if he were on the podium with 2 Brits.

And they’d call it a French podium if LeClerc was there with Ro-Gro and Gasley.

Almost certainly, Thai flag though.

Cork Trucker

El_Duderino 09 wrote: »

According to reddit there was an all British podium in 1968 in Watkins Glen.

Jackie Stewart, Graham Hill and John Surtees.

68 & 83 so far only it seems? you'd have thought it would have happened more than that in nearly 70 years.

Cork Trucker

OSI wrote: »

I'd love to know Albon's reasoning for racing under the Thai flag. I gather he was born, raised and has lived in the UK all of this life so it's interesting choice. I hope it's not just sponsorship reasons.

Probably for historical reasons, first Thai racer in F1 and that, something he can never have taken from him so a place in F1's history books. Did he race under the UK flag earlier in his career? i know Nico Rosberg despite being born in Germany and growing up in Monaco raced under the Finnish flag earlier in his career despite admitting he can't speak Finnish fluently, possibly Keke never conversed in the language with him very often as a child.

El_Duderino 09

OSI wrote: »

I'd love to know Albon's reasoning for racing under the Thai flag. I gather he was born, raised and has lived in the UK all of this life so it's interesting choice. I hope it's not just sponsorship reasons.

He said he loves the uk and has had a great life there as you outlined above. But he also said he just is Thai.

Could be for sponsorship though.

kksaints

Cork Trucker wrote: »

Probably for historical reasons, first Thai racer in F1 and that, something he can never have taken from him so a place in F1's history books. Did he race under the UK flag earlier in his career? i know Nico Rosberg despite being born in Germany and growing up in Monaco raced under the Finnish flag earlier in his career despite admitting he can't speak Finnish fluently, possibly Keke never conversed in the language with him very often as a child.

He's actually the second Thai driver in F1. B Bira drove for 5 seasons in the 1950s.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Birabongse_Bhanudej