sunsalem

Big Moments from 2018:

VetteDrmr

A. it's just about always been that way...
B. IMO the best change comes slow, over time.

Have a good one,
Mike

sunsalem

Therein lies the problem.

The "best" changes come when they are needed.


I wonder if this thing will fit in a Z06?

VetteDrmr

sunsalem

That's really funny...thanx, Mike.


FINALLY some good news about Michael Schumacher:
http://gptoday.com/full_story/view/6...tion_revealed/
I hope he can get to the U.S. soon.

Christian Horner continues a War of Words with Renault:
http://gptoday.com/full_story/view/6...by_management/
I have to agree.
Renault has looked bad from the very beginning of this powerunit spec (that THEY insisted on! ).

McLaren's POV on cost caps:
http://gptoday.com/full_story/view/6...y_as_possible/
Mighty McLaren is facing the financial results of the poor seasons they have had during the last 5, which started with Mr. Dennis insisting on dumping MB for Honda.

Some 2021 concept cars revealed:
http://gptoday.com/full_story/view/663497/The_Formula_One_Concept_Vehicles_Coming_ Out_In_2021/
Pretty wild looking ideas...at least it IS different.
Gotta wonder just how often some of those bits & bobs will go flying off the cars during wheel-to-wheel racing.

BrianCunningham

sunsalem

Winter testing will be broadcast Live:
http://gptoday.com/full_story/view/663614/F1_to_broadcast_winter_testing_live_for_ first_time_in_2019/
Meh.

Surprise!...MB doesn't want more manufacturers, but wants powerunit regs to stay right where they are:
http://gptoday.com/full_story/view/6...manufacturers/
Gotta give him credit for saying this with a straight face.

VetteDrmr

Not even broadcast, but just live-streaming...

First off, F1 has had a hard time keeping even 4 manufacturers in the game, and 2 of those aren't really that competitive. And Wolff makes a decent point about the package performances converging. I really think that if F1 would (once again on m soap box) get rid of the stupid 3 (THREE?) PU packages per season we would see costs actually go down, performance go up, and perhaps get more manufacturers in the game.

That said, F1 is by far the most political racing series I've watched, and part of each team's job is to work that aspect of the sport just as hard as they do every other part.

BTW, just in case I don't get back on here for a few days, y'all have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Mike

sunsalem

"Convergence?"
I'm not seeing it, except possibly at a snail's pace.

Last season, MB won 11 of the 21 races (52%), Ferrari (29%), RB (19%).
Only one other team managed even a podium (Force India took 3rd at Azerbaijan).
Manufacturers agreed to this amount.
Don't you think this creates a huge, intimidating barrier to anyone wanting in to the sport?
The current manufacturers know this...when I thought about it I realized this is a great way to keep competition down.
Does that help or hurt the sport from a fan's perspective?
Same to you, Buddy.

VetteDrmr

But, you can't attribute those stats to PU packages. RB did fantastic with that ^%*%$%$ (their expletives, not mine) Renault PU. So much better to be going to Honda next year.

Hmm. I've always seen that as "F1 is so important to us that we'll spend what it takes to be in the game.", and that only 4 manufacturers have taken the deep plunge.

Well, remembering that racing, like any other spectator sport, is entertainment, the politics can be interesting. But they can also get so heavy-handed (look at the 70s) as to taint everything. Right now, it's probably about the max it can be without getting to the level of tainting.

Have a good one,
Mike

sunsalem

Yes, they did do fantastic with the Renault PU.
However, look at the other teams running the Renault PU...

RB, by and large, has had the best chassis in F1 for a decade (thank you Mr. Newey).
They have never had the most powerful engine on the grid....not even when winning championships.

And that's a good thing?

It's still ridiculous...and depressing.

VetteDrmr

Well, about the only way I've ever seen to really reduce costs is to set up a spec for whatever you want to contain costs on. Spending caps don't really work; the companies just work around that. Testing limits don't, because they just spend the money on sims.

F1 has many different mentalities, but being seriously constrained isn't one of them.

Before we worry about how many teams/manufacturers are in the hunt for a win, I'd like to see the car counts get up to around 30, even if they're competing for the back 1/3rd of the field. Let the blue flags/signs mean what they mean in just about every other series: it's a notification that you're being lapped by lead cars, but it's a notification only. The leaders have to work the traffic, and the best at that usually comes out ahead. Not always, but usually.

Have a good one,
Mike

sunsalem

OK, sounds good to me.

Good point.

Considering the hyper-aggressiveness of F1 drivers, I think we would see an awful lot of carbon fiber spread around tracks.

sunsalem

Race attendance up in 2018:
http://gptoday.com/full_story/view/6...igures_for_F1/

VetteDrmr

In the beginning, probably. As they get more experience they'll drive better, cleaner, and busier. And those that don't will get replaced, because in this fantasy world of mine the lower tier teams can't afford drivers that shed too many body parts (car, that is ).

Have a good one,
Mike

mattastick

The rules up to this point have actually limited how fast teams could develop PUs. Remember the token system when we started the hybrid era? That meant whoever had the best out of the gate had a sustained advantage. Hence the Merco dominance.

As for PU convergence, Ferrari have caught or possibly surpassed Merco in terms of hp. The extra electronic monitoring from the FIA maybe screwed that up, but I bet they'll be back strong next year. Renault had to have shown Ric something promising for next year, otherwise he wouldn't have left RBR. Honda is getting closer. Moving from McLaren to STR seems to have significantly improved their development pace, and having 2 teams next year likely will continue that slope. If you change the regs now, the engines that are down on power stop developing them and focus on the new regs. The PU suppliers catching up happens anytime the rules are stable. In the end, the V8s were nearly identical in terms of power output. Same thing for the V10s before them, and the V12s before them, the turbos before them, etc. etc. etc. The longer the rules stay stable, the more convergence we'll see.

PS, Renault won all of the championships with RBR because of flexibility of engine mapping and driveability, not power output. And RBR had a great chassis.

sunsalem

Yeah, I think it will eventually end up that way.
I think it will take a lot more time than most might think
We're talking about changing a racing CULTURE.
F1 drivers started in karts and worked their way up thru series where argy-bargy was part & parcel to driving.
Can they learn to do things differently to the point where it nearly becomes instinct when they're behind the wheel and the adrenaline is flowing?

No question MB was the smartest of the bunch with the newest regs.
Ross Brawn knew MB had been working secretly on a revolutionary turbo system for several years and cleverly guided the writing of the regs. to their benefit.
Brawn is a genius.
Remember how he found the loophole that allowed him to build his blown diffuser for the 2009 season?
I hope so.
I'm a fan of DR...great kid.
Unfortunately, Max has shown he is faster over one lap and race pace most of the time and I'm sure it got to Ricciardo.
I think the reason he jumped had to with his realization he probably wouldn't be able to become WDC driving alongside MV.
After 5 years, MB is still the best powerunit.
How long will it take for others to catch up?
RBR mastered/tamed the Renault engine and made it work with their chassis.
A great partnership that was destroyed by Ross Brawn and MB:
http://gptoday.com/full_story/view/6...18217s_health/

sunsalem

Who won the Battle of Pit Crews?
http://gptoday.com/full_story/view/6...est_2018_stop/

Grid penalty change confirmed:
http://gptoday.com/full_story/view/6...nge_confirmed/

Would someone please whisper "Robert Kubica" in Ricciardo's ear?
http://gptoday.com/full_story/view/6...ng_the_limits/

F1 drivers choose the best among them:
http://gptoday.com/full_story/view/6...top10_peers/ly one:

Kimi...there's only one:

sunsalem

sunsalem

A little OT but pretty cool video: