Motorsports Thread

[Deleted member 26715]

It'll all be about the start, if Perez gets away then unless they screw up his strategy it's his win, it'll be a 1-2 for RB again, Perez will just react to anything that Verstappen does.

 

[Drago]

That's not a cert. He's done OK the last few races but his long term form is patchy. He only kept ahead the last race because Max had a diff problem that was preventing him getting his brake balance right. You'll note how Damon Hill changed his tune about Perez smiting Max when it became known Max had a sick car and Perez still couldn't shake him off.

And then there's the gusty wind forecast for today. In the blink of an eye any driver can suddenly lose a dollop of downforce when the wind gusts, as happened to Max during his first Q3 attempt yesterday. Then the flags kneecapped Max yesterday, and could equally do so for Perez today.

And then there's Alonso. A wily old fox who suddenly got his sheet magnificently together for Q3.

Perez might romp off, but it's far from being a foregone conclusion for multiple reasons. It's far less a certainty for Perez than it would be for Max if he were P1 and Perez were P9.

 

[Deleted member 1258]

That's not a cert. He's done OK the last few races but his long term form is patchy. He only kept ahead the last race because Max had a diff problem that was preventing him getting his brake balance right. You'll note how Damon Hill changed his tune about Perez smiting Max when it became known Max had a sick car and Perez still couldn't shake him off.

And then there's the gusty wind forecast for today. In the blink of an eye any driver can suddenly lose a dollop of downforce when the wind gusts, as happened to Max during his first Q3 attempt yesterday. Then the flags kneecapped Max yesterday, and could equally do so for Perez today.

And then there's Alonso. A wily old fox who suddenly got his sheet magnificently together for Q3.

Perez might romp off, but it's far from being a foregone conclusion for multiple reasons. It's far less a certainty for Perez than it would be for Max if he were P1 and Perez were P9.

A lot depends on how much resistance Leclerc and Russel can put up, Max should just breeze past Russel but after what happened in that sprint race he might just try and put up a fight, and Leclerc is fast enough to give Max problems.

 

[Deleted member 26715]

He only kept ahead the last race because Max had a diff problem that was preventing him getting his brake balance right.

Not convinced that's true, each time Max tried to push, Sergio went quicker the next lap to keep the gap, we don't know & never will how much he had in hand,

 

[Illaveago]

I hope the Shetland detective wins !

 

[AndyRM]

I've only recently started getting back into F1 because my fiancee is into it. She is firmly in the Team Max camp, while her dad is very much Pro Hamilton. I don't give a hoot either way, but it's hilarious watching them get wound up about their fancy go-karts.

I helpfully contribute to the conversation by asking if they only have a limited supply of red shells, and who's the best at aiming with a green one.

 

[Drago]

Not convinced that's true, each time Max tried to push, Sergio went quicker the next lap to keep the gap, we don't know & never will how much he had in hand,

Sergio did respond each time Max tried to Push, but Perez had performance in hand and Max was nursing a poorly car so its litte surpriseit ended hiw it did. Had they been in equal machinery, ie, both functioning properly, there's little doubt which way it would have gone. Indeed, had it been the other way around d there's little doubt Max wou,d have cleared off and left Perez 20 seconds behind. It was tidy driving, but in no way the type of dominant performance we've seen from the likes of Max, Hamilton, Robert over recent decades.

Perez is good, but occupies that territory just between the best and the hangers-on. He's a Webber, a Riccardo (in his prime), a Brarichello. Not quite top flight but without doubt among the best of the rest.

 

[FishFright]

Not convinced that's true, each time Max tried to push, Sergio went quicker the next lap to keep the gap, we don't know & never will how much he had in hand,

Verstappen did have damage though. That hole must have caused an amount of extra drag.

 

[FishFright]

Sergio did respond each time Max tried to Push, but Perez had performance in hand and Max was nursing a poorly car so its litte surpriseit ended hiw it did. Had they been in equal machinery, ie, both functioning properly, there's little doubt which way it would have gone. Indeed, had it been the other way around d there's little doubt Max wou,d have cleared off and left Perez 20 seconds behind. It was tidy driving, but in no way the type of dominant performance we've seen from the likes of Max, Hamilton, Robert over recent decades.

Perez is good, but occupies that territory just between the best and the hangers-on. He's a Webber, a Riccardo (in his prime), a Brarichello. Not quite top flight but without doubt among the best of the rest.

Exactly what you want in a number two driver.

 

[figbat]

Verstappen did have damage though. That hole must have caused an amount of extra drag.

That was in the sprint race.

 

[Drago]

15 laps in and Max has clinically sliced his way through the pack to 2nd and is now homing in relentlessly on Perez. Bear in mind Max is on H and Perez on M tyres and still he's reeling him in.

 

[FishFright]

That was in the sprint race.

Probably right , covid brain fog .

 

[Drago]

Perez will just react to anything that Verstappen does.

Or not, as it turned out.

Max probably put in the drive of his career and totally outclassed Perez with both sheer pace and tyre management.

 

[icowden]

Or not, as it turned out.
Max probably put in the drive of his career and totally outclassed Perez with both sheer pace and tyre management.

Or was it that Red Bull shafted Perez by telling him nothing about Max whatsoever and bringing him in on lap 20 to change tyres.

 

[Drago]

The race had barely ended and the conspiracy theorists are making excuses. Never heard such a L.O.B.

Perez was on mediums and his lap times had plateaued despite the car getting lighter. They know from rqce sims at pradtice that 20 laps at Miami is a lot on the medium, they actually kept him out probably a lap or two longer than was wise and Perez was on the radio complaining that his fronts had gone, so I'm not quite sure how you you think they brought him in early - he well and truly had his moneys worth out of them. They were knackered, they had little choice but to box him.

You will note that Max did less laps on the medium that Perez, so Lord only knows why you think they pitted Perez early after 20 on the same compound.

And as for not telling Perez anything about Max, that is simply fiction. I pay for the full FIA F1 access and listen to all the team comms (the ones that interest me at any rate) and there was lots of chatter between Perez and his crew about Max. The countown was almost comical as Max scythed through the pack and the crew reported each move to Perez, and as Max got closer Perez stopped even acknowledging the messages (probably deep in thought trying to figure a way to change that which he knew was coming.) From the later chatter it seems towards the end that Perez was trying to convince himself that Max had a problem, but Perez was clearly grasping at straws by then.

Perez shafted himself. A top flight driver in their prime like Vettel or Hamilton in their day, or Max now, would have cleared a 20 or 25 second gap to the next car. Perez started on quicker tyres than Max and failed to exploit them while he had the chance. Perez either simply did not have the pace, was poor with his tyre management, or his strategy was poor, or a mixture of the three. No excuses, Verstappen simply outclassed him in his prime wry tyre choice, subsequent tyre management, and sheer racecraft.

One amusing moment. Alonso put in another great performance and has such mental bandwidth that as he was going round he was watching Stroll on the screens and even called the team to tell them to congratulate Stroll in the way he'd handled a particular corner. How does the guy multi task to that level?

Hamilton got a bit petulant - does he do anything other than petulant these days? - on the radio when it became clear that George was going to breeze past him. Such great teamwork. Not.