Motorsports Thread

[matticus]

One thing I noted about the race ...

If you weren't following the sport over the winter, watching the race you would have no idea there had been significant rule changes since the last race of 2021. No porpoising, no significant increase in drafting, nothing of note.

 

[glasgowcyclist]

Great to see my team back at the front after so long. The dicing with Verstappen was good to watch, Leclerc certainly has the measure of him.
Then to see Verstappen trundle into the pits to retire, I couldn't stop laughing. And when Perez's car died, meaning a double DNF for Red Bull, I thought my sides would burst. Fantastic!

Good on Hamilton hanging in there too for a decent 3rd spot. I'll bet he was pissing himself as well that RB got nothing this weekend.😂

 

[Reynard]

One thing I noted about the race ...

If you weren't following the sport over the winter, watching the race you would have no idea there had been significant rule changes since the last race of 2021. No porpoising, no significant increase in drafting, nothing of note.

The cars look so different, it was making me go all cross-eyed!

This was the first time I'd actually seen the new cars "in the flesh" - the front ends of the cars were noticeably looser under braking right across the board and seemed less settled generally. You can really see the effect of the venturi from the side-on shots as speed rises and falls.

Overall limitation now seems to be the tyres, not the cars... What the rules giveth with one hand, it taketh away with another...

But as i said in a previous post, you can't make a judgement purely on the outcome of a single race.

Oh, and as an aside, it's a general rule of thumb that the driver who wins the first race of the year never goes on to win that year's world championship. So your 50p bets on Leclerc are wasted, you might as well have been better off buying a creme egg.

 

[Deleted member 26715]

The dicing with Verstappen was good to watch,

Was it my imagination or was Max somewhat less desperate in his attempts, it was good honest fair racing which we know he can do (but chooses not to), none of the suicide we're both going to crash if you don't let me through like we had last year. Now the monkey of not winning the world championship is off his back is he prepared to settle down, has somebody (FIA) had words about his on track conduct, or is he simply following the new rules, although they are still very ambiguous

 

[icowden]

If you weren't following the sport over the winter, watching the race you would have no idea there had been significant rule changes since the last race of 2021. No porpoising, no significant increase in drafting, nothing of note.

Were you watching the same race? The Mercedes was porpoising badly into the corners - that's why Lewis couldn't take Perez, and why the Mercedes is so far off the pace. The cars that have it sorted are the Ferraris and Red Bulls.

There wasn't supposed to be an increase in drafting - in fact the reverse which many have suggested may be negating the benefits of being able to follow more closely. Personally I think the fact that 3 teams were in the mix and the fact that you had Haas and Alpha not far off the Mercedes shows that there have been some big changes.

The biggest reported issue is that Pirelli's tyres are pants - drivers not happy with them and they have failed to reduce degradation (at least at this race).

Nice bit of Karma coming to bite Red Bull. Anyone else notice the massive cheer from the stadium when the Red Bulls broke down. Gives you some idea of their popularity after last year...

 

[Bonefish Blues]

Was it my imagination or was Max somewhat less desperate in his attempts, it was good honest fair racing which we know he can do (but chooses not to), none of the suicide we're both going to crash if you don't let me through like we had last year. Now the monkey of not winning the world championship is off his back is he prepared to settle down, has somebody (FIA) had words about his on track conduct, or is he simply following the new rules, although they are still very ambiguous

Listening to his interview and his reported comments I very much think it isn't.

 

[matticus]

There wasn't supposed to be an increase in drafting - in fact the reverse which many have suggested may be negating the benefits of being able to follow more closely

mea culpa - I meant "following closely". (in bike racing the two phenomena are pretty much the same!)

 

[matticus]

Were you watching the same race?

well yes and no .... I was a bit vague there: I actually only watched a few minutes of Highlights, but did hear the whole thing on R5.
I promise you; although the qualifying talk was 90% about stuff around rule changes, new car designs not working, this driver struggling with new team-mate blah blah .. during the RACE I heard nothing different to last year. (and certainly no porpoise talk!)

Just a subjective analysis.

 

[glasgowcyclist]

Was it my imagination or was Max somewhat less desperate in his attempts,

Maybe just a little and perhaps because it's only the first of many races. However, Mark Webber remarked on Verstappen still using his dive from a very long way back and expecting the driver ahead to make way - or else. Leclerc is less compliant than Hamilton and made that clear to Mr V yesterday. Should make for some fireworks ahead.

 

[glasgowcyclist]

All those that failed to finish had the same engine and pump.

Were they the only ones with that engine and pump?

 

[classic33]

Were they the only ones with that engine and pump?

Most of the teams have the same pump. However there were three teams with the same engine. Three of those cars failed to finish.

 

[icowden]

well yes and no .... I was a bit vague there: I actually only watched a few minutes of Highlights, but did hear the whole thing on R5.
I promise you; although the qualifying talk was 90% about stuff around rule changes, new car designs not working, this driver struggling with new team-mate blah blah .. during the RACE I heard nothing different to last year. (and certainly no porpoise talk!)

Just a subjective analysis.

Fair enough. Actually during qualifying porpoising did seem to be less of a problem (or at least wasn't mentioned at all). Certainly in the main race it was mentioned a few times on Sky, particularly when Lewis was trying to get past Perez.

I think the Jury is still out on whether the changes will make better racing. Certainly if the tyres continue to be shoot then the changes are a bit moot - it's uncertain whether the tyre problems are specific to Bahrain.

 

[Reynard]

Bahrain is known for chewing tyres, so let's wait and see. This weekend's race should give us a clearer picture.

Regarding the Red Bull & Alpha Tauri - makes me wonder whether in the search for outright speed, they might have compromised on engine reliability. It may be fixable, but if it's a more fundamental issue on the engineering side, that could pose a problem. Especially with limited components available, they could rack up serious grid penalties later in the season.

The second rule of motor racing - to finish first, first you must finish... It's not always the fastest car and driver that wins the WC at the end of the year, it's the one who is the most consistent. Keke Rosberg's win in 1982 is the classic case-in-point there.

 

[icowden]

Maybe just a little and perhaps because it's only the first of many races. However, Mark Webber remarked on Verstappen still using his dive from a very long way back and expecting the driver ahead to make way - or else. Leclerc is less compliant than Hamilton and made that clear to Mr V yesterday. Should make for some fireworks ahead.

Interestingly the drivers were given new driving standards to absorb:-

https://www.bbc.com/sport/formula1/60815007.amp

They at least suggest that Max won't be getting away with forcing people off the track this year. It'll be interesting to see how often he is put on the naughty step.

 

[Deleted member 26715]

Were they the only ones with that engine and pump?

No it's a regulated part, all cars have to use it