Posts by steelmaker83

Kyle Edwards5 said:There were some whispers floating around about a potential upgrade for the Renault engine ahead of this race; maybe one of their tweaks actually holds water for once...🤔
On the flip side, I really don't see this being some massive catastrophe for Ferrari. It’s just qualifying, after all. Nobody is realistically banking on a pole position or a win from them anyway...
We'll just have to wait and see how things play out between Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton.

What do you mean "nobody expects it"? Sergio Pérez said the wins start from right now.

Kimi Räikkönen thinks Ferrari is performing better than the results suggest... and he's right. I respect the fact that he’s being self-critical.

stormybadger8 said:Ferrari 🤦🤦🤦

Honestly, I have zero clue which kid 😵

Vettel FP3 - 1:23.225
Vettel Q1 - 1:24.124
Vettel Q2 - 1:23.688
Vettel Q3 - 1:23.334

😵

What kind of brat was messing around with the car? Wouldn't that just slow them down? 😵🤣
Or are they just having massive issues with track temps? 🤔

The weirdest part is how much slower they were in S1 and S2 during qualifying compared to FP3. S3 wasn't even that bad—he actually looked faster in qualifying than in FP3—but S1 was a complete disaster...
All of Vettel's qualifying times were about half a second slower in S1 compared to his S1 pace in FP3...

That’s what happens when you take advice from some "brilliant" development driver...

And what's the deal with Honda? When are they actually planning to make use of those leftover tokens?

stormybadger8 said:I honestly had no idea this nonsense existed. 🤦
Honestly, it’s pure idiocy at its peak. 😵
Realistically, nobody can make it through without using at least three sets of SS, and even then, they might finish in a decent spot—meaning making it out of Q2.
And even that might be a stretch for anyone except the Bear; everyone else needs at least four sets of SS just to end up with one medium and one soft left over. 🤦
It's absolute madness in races where tire degradation is already off the charts. 🤦😵

If this table is actually accurate, then it’s sheer insanity for teams like Williams, Force India, Red Bull, or Aston Martin to even bother trying to hit Q3, let alone attempt it. 🤣
Because based on this, anyone who didn't make Q3 burned through seven sets of tires...
while those who did make Q3 used two fresh sets and four worn ones...
maybe Ferrari had a 3 vs 3 split if they didn't run two laps in Q3...

So, according to this logic, Ricciardo definitely would have snatched a podium if he hadn't made Q3 and ended up 9th in Q2 instead...
He would have started just one spot further back but would have had two extra sets of fresh rubber, plus he'd have started on a new set...
meaning instead of separate U-SS, N-SS, N-S, U-SS, he could have run N-SS, N-S, N-SS.
And if he'd run N-S, N-SS, N-SS, he might have even grabbed the win, since there's always a chance he wouldn't have had to pit before a red flag...
Who knows, maybe he even would've started on SS...

You get one extra fresh set specifically for Q3, so passing into Q3 isn't actually a bad thing.

The real stupidity is this whole sweeping "cost-saving" approach. Why restrict tires at all? Why limit fuel flow? Why even have these damn tokens? It all just ruins everything.

So there it is. It’s just like that 2003 race in the USA, all over again.

Look, the whole point of qualifying isn't to wipe out the best driver on the grid...

Daniel James8 said:The only Seb said in German that it was actually hilarious not being out on track and missing those late-session attacks during practice.

Those two clowns are just whining about how great Mercedes is... 😢

If he finds it so funny, why didn't he just stay out and drive? Why did he make such a theatrical exit from the car five minutes before the session ended? This whole thing is a scripted fiasco.

Jerry Moore61 said:I'm watching Sky right now. Toto Wolff just called qualifying "Rubbish!"

It looks to me like every single team decided to boycott this, especially Ferrari. This proves Formula 1 is heading straight for a cliff. The commentators on Sky keep repeating that this is a total disaster!

Unbelievable. This is basically just a private party for Mercedes and Lewis Hamilton.

Now Niki Lauda is talking trash about qualifying too—which only confirms this is a targeted boycott.

Because nobody is addressing the REAL issue: those damn tires!!!!

And they aren't addressing it because those exact same teams REFUSED to use the tires for qualifying.

They can all go to hell. They are the ones responsible for this mess!

northerncobra31 said:this wasn't a boycott, they just didn't want to burn through their tires.

Sure, they weren't interested in wasting rubber. But let's call it what it was: a boycott. They made a massive scene by jumping out of their cars before the timing screen even flashed their names. Plus, they were clever enough to hammer out fastest laps simultaneously so the broadcast director couldn't even keep up with them...

It was calculated and skillful work. This wasn't some amateur hour operation...

northerncobra31 said:What a disaster. It doesn't matter if they waited five minutes before or gave up five minutes after; the end result is identical.

Sure, but not for someone looking for perfection... because perfection demands a climax, not a fizzle.

Now it’s up to Bernie Ecclestone. If I were in his shoes, I’d give those teams hell—repeatedly.

Still, you have to hand it to them; they pulled off a masterclass in chaos.

And there’s one more thing you all need to wrap your heads around: this was essentially a soft boycott by the teams who couldn't stand this format in the first place. Everything felt a little exaggerated because of that...

vividlynx68 said:The new format is garbage... Zero tension...

The format isn't the issue here. The real problems are:

- tire management (it’s ridiculous that they have to baby their tires during qualifying; for qualifying, tire supply should be unlimited)

- the gap between the top teams (though that's a minor point, since it's obvious some drivers weren't even pushing for faster laps just to save rubber)

So, in typical FIA fashion, they come up with a decent concept and then completely ruin it with a stupid technicality...

graniteharbor502 said:Unlikely. Maybe toward the end of the season, if Honda pulls off some decent development on the PJ.

Even that would be progress. I’m looking for at least double the points we had last season. If we hit that, I'll be satisfied.

McLaren clearly went all out, while everyone else played it safe. Honestly, that’s a massive win for them. The key is that they actually showed progress. Maybe, if things align in some crazy way, they could snatch a win or a podium... which would be pretty damn cool enough

Alright, now we’re getting somewhere. Here is the breakdown for everyone...

Every Australian woman is more than welcome here...

sinnko, you’re slowly building up enough momentum for a proper grand opening of this thread, but you aren't quite there yet....

So, what's the plan for the USA 2015 race?

stormybadger8 said:Didn't they just go public?
And if I recall correctly, their stock performance hasn't been exactly stellar lately...
It wouldn't surprise me if Sergio is feeding this narrative about Ferrari being ultra-competitive just to pump up their share price...
We should probably ask ruggedhawk20 about that; he lives for this kind of speculation.

Regarding all of that, though, Ferrari's chances look extremely slim to me...
Mercedes isn't just incredibly fast; they are also insanely reliable...
I mean, they managed to pull off laps equivalent to 19 full races using just one engine in eight days—that's basically an entire season's worth of running.
At this rate, two engines and two gearboxes per car should easily last them the whole season.

On the other hand, Ferrari looked decent, but certainly not reliable.
They seemed quick, but only during the SS and US tests, and even then, it felt artificial...
That was only once on Soft tires, which could easily be attributed to weather conditions or running with a light fuel load, etc. On the Medium, they were lagging badly behind Mercedes...
Meanwhile, Mercedes were consistently putting up blistering times on both Mediums and Softs every single time they hit the track for a decent run.

All in all, that Goofy theory is completely ridiculous; it’s almost laughable.
I’m actually expecting a serious surprise from FI, rather than from Ferrari.
Maybe even from Red Bull, which you can never count out—they looked better than good this time around compared to previous tests in this V6 era...
Even McDonald's shouldn't get too cocky; it wouldn't be a shock if they somehow stumbled into the top tier.

As for Ferrari, nothing looks promising.
Reliability wasn't impressive, and the pace was mediocre at best...
Most importantly, there's zero noise from Alison claiming the car is top-tier, nor is Ariverbene bragging, and nobody is saying anything positive regarding the PU...
It's just Sergio talking up the "super Ferrari" in the media, while Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Räikkönen are describing it as a decent, yet insufficient, step forward...

After the IPO, the stock was a bit of a fiasco; at one point, it was trading at nearly half its initial value. The issue is that Ferrari inherited a massive debt from FCA (nearly $2 billion), and investors aren't seeing the sales growth that Serra promised (they're currently selling fewer than 8,000 units annually). Serra believes the right path for Ferrari is to push past the 10,000 units per year mark...

Everyone knows what happens when a market becomes oversaturated...

I'm not a fan of the direction Ferrari is taking. That doesn't mean they won't be successful, but it feels like they're manipulating the market. It's something a luxury brand really shouldn't be doing...