US Grand Prix (Indianapolis Motor Speedway) Sept 27-29, 2019

To me, Canada feels the most similar to Russia on the calendar in terms of the track layout and the overall vibe of the circuit. I honestly don't know if Ferrari can really make their mark there. There's just a slim chance they walk away with a win.

ruggedhawk20 said:They actually left this fosna alone!?

What kind of logic is that!?!?

It's because you can't see the lady garden or anything else on the fosna, unlike those other guys who got scrubbed. 🕺

Three races without a single retirement. Honestly, expect a massive DNF this Sunday... 😬

stormyviper2 said:To me, Canada feels just like Russia on the calendar—similar track vibe and everything. Not sure if Ferrari can actually pull off something special there. Honestly, slim chance they take the win.

If you haven't noticed, Ferrari has been absolutely killing it on every single track since the summer break. They've got the best car on the grid right now—period. That's why the Mercedes guys are sweating bullets; the only reason they aren't underwater is because Lewis Hamilton built up that massive 100-point cushion during the first half of the season.

Without those points, they’d be looking at a 21-year-old world champion. But whatever. Charles Leclerc will probably just spend the next 30 years chasing titles.

Ferrari is definitely on the upswing. It’s honestly a shame they weren't this good from the jump, because with Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes losing their edge, he’s going to cruise to the championship title with a massive points lead. There are only about five races left after this weekend, so it's basically a wrap.

ruggedhawk20 said:If you haven't noticed, Ferrari has been absolutely killing it on every single track since the summer break. Right now, they’ve got the best car on the grid, period. That’s why Mercedes is basically sweating through their suits—the only thing keeping them relevant is that massive 100-point cushion their golden boy built up during the first half of the season.

Without those 100 points, we'd be looking at a 21-year-old world champion. But whatever. Charles Leclerc will probably just coast his way to titles for the next 30 years anyway.

Ferrari fixed their qualifying and strategy issues, sure, but Mercedes actually had the faster car in all three races.

wiredfalcon2 said:Ferrari stepped it up during qualifying and strategy—but let's be real, Mercedes had the faster car in all three races.

So they didn't win then!? Honestly—with a five-time champ behind the wheel, that shouldn't even be an issue.

ruggedhawk20 said:So they didn't win then!? If you've got a five-time champ behind the wheel, that shouldn't be such a massive hurdle.

That’s just your take on why it "shouldn't be a problem," and honestly, it's way off base. There's a huge difference between catching someone and actually blowing past them. At Spa-Francorchamps, you had Vettel blocking Lewis Hamilton, then at Monza it was Charles Leclerc playing defense, and in Singapore, it was just Mercedes messing up the strategy. Just because Mercedes has a faster car during the race doesn't mean they're two seconds a lap quicker. They might have a slight edge, but you still need everything else to line up—strategy, track position, clean air, overtaking... it's never that simple.

Google says there's a chance of rain this weekend at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway🎉 If it doesn't hit during the race, at least qualifying and practice look wet—which might actually make things interesting and unpredictable for once—given how much chaos rain throws at the grid.

I bet the guys in red are praying for a dry track right about now...

ruggedhawk20 said:If you haven't noticed, Ferrari has been running flawlessly on every single track since the summer break. Right now, they honestly have the best car on the grid. That’s why the Mercedes drivers are sweating bullets—they’re basically just clinging to that 100-point cushion their star driver built up during the first half of the season.

Without that massive points lead, we’d be looking at a 21-year-old world champion right now. But hey, whatever. I guess Charles Leclerc will just spend the next 30 years chasing down titles.

Singapore was pretty much what we expected; that engine really started to show its strength out there. I am a bit more uncertain about how things will play out at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, though.😉

wiredseal7 said:Google weather shows some potential rain hitting Indianapolis Motor Speedway this weekend 🎉 If that doesn't happen, at least qualifying and practice look like they might get soaked, which could make things interesting and unpredictable (expect some chaos on the grid).

Honestly, the guys in red are probably praying for a dry race right about now...

The folks over in Norway are calling for epic rain on Saturday, but only until 3 PM:
https://www.yr.no/place/Russia/Krasn...ochi/long.html

wiredfalcon2 said:That’s just your take on why it "shouldn't be a big deal," and honestly? You're dead wrong. Catching someone is one thing—blowing past them is another. Look at Spa where Sebastian Vettel blocked Lewis Hamilton, or Monza with Charles Leclerc playing defense, or even Singapore where Mercedes just blew the tactics. All that proves is that Mercedes has a slightly faster car during the race. It doesn't mean they're two seconds faster per lap—they're just a bit quicker, and you still need everything else to line up—strategy, traffic, overtakes...

Basically, Ferrari has the better driver.

Everything else is just a bunch of excuses.

stormyviper2 said:Singapore was pretty much expected—the engine really showed its strength there... Not totally sure how things will play out at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway though. 😉

Since when did the engine become the deciding factor for Singapore!?

ruggedhawk20 said:Since when did the engine become the deciding factor for Singapore!?

I mean, maybe because about 75% of the track is just one massive straightaway, unless you're blind or something? XD

At the end of the day, if you look at the lap times, Ferrari was only making up ground on the straightaways. Everywhere else on the track, they were getting absolutely smoked, which makes it pretty obvious that the engine is the real issue here. XD

ruggedhawk20 said:Basically, Ferrari's driver just outclasses whoever is in the Mercedes.

Everything else is just a bunch of mindless noise.

In other words, you're dead wrong.

wiredfalcon2 said:Ferrari stepped up their game with qualifying and strategy, but Mercedes had the faster car in all three races.

What actually worries me is the possibility that Mercedes might just throw in the towel—maybe even on purpose...
Because if Ferrari gets their act together like they usually do, they might decide there’s zero reason to change anything for the 2020 car, since this one is already pretty much 🙂

The FIA and the fans aren't going to whine and demand massive rule changes, new tires, or bans on whatever else just because Mercedes is dominating. After all, the season turned out to be "exciting," right?

Bottom line: I can see us heading into 2020 with Ferrari looking like kings in testing, then Mercedes coming out swinging to snatch the title before the summer break, and then we're right back where we started...

Either that, or the Earth is just one big flat pancake. Look, I get it—living in a place where everything feels like a shady backroom deal or some massive conspiracy, but in Formula 1, the real "conspiracy" is just everyone lobbying behind the scenes to tweak the rules or grab a bigger slice of the pie. On any given track, every single team is purely looking out for Number One. They aren't thinking about the "greater good" or making the sport better for everyone else. There’s a reason for that. First off, they have to justify every cent their stakeholders dump into the team. Then you've got sponsors, who basically only care about being attached to a winner. If you're having a bad race, you're invisible on TV. You don't get those prime-time interviews that actually drive up visibility and cash flow. When you win or even just land a podium, you're everywhere in the media. Every sponsor logo plastered all over your suit or the car gets massive exposure because of that moment. Those sponsors paid for the glory, not for you to play nice and finish fifth. Everyone wants the races to be exciting, sure, but they want *them* to be the ones holding the trophy at the end.

Honestly, it’s all just amateurs playing games... F1 isn't really a sport anymore, it's pure politics. Anyone who's been paying attention for a while now knows that.

wiredfalcon2 said:Basically, you're just wrong.

Show me the proof.