2015 Bahrain Grand Prix - Sakhir

Anthony Baker84 said:Well, at least it’s obvious why Mercedes needs Hamilton, though I suspect Kimi probably secured his own new deal as well. 😍

Of course they locked him down with a new contract. He was outperforming Sebastian Vettel on mediums while Vettel was struggling on softs. It’s common sense, really.

I suppose I shall refrain from further antagonizing the Sebastian Vettel devotees—specifically targeting Pilatus. I may have overstepped slightly. My apologies.🤔

and maybe a bit of a dumb question here—why didn't they just switch Sebastian Vettel over to softs when he pitted for that new front wing?

Edward Howard2 said:The maestro takes a slap from Raikkonen in the mid-field. 😂🙏

It was close. Just about one lap left when he absolutely laid into him. A solid slap.🤣🤣[Applause]

Hats off to Fernando Alonso, really. He put up a hell of a fight against that absolute junk heap of a car. It’s a shame he ran straight into a pack of slower cars, but honestly, given what he was driving, you couldn't have expected anything else.🙂

Anthony Baker84 said:Just one potentially silly question—why didn't they switch Sebastian Vettel over to softs when he pitted for that front wing change?

Probably because the UH didn't have them anymore. What's your take?😁☕

Anthony Baker84 said:Ferrari still doesn't have enough pace, even with the Drag Reduction System, to overtake a Williams if they're running on the same tires.

I have to disagree there... honestly, I don't think it was just because Sebastian Vettel had a rough day today. Besides, he's really in a league of his own when it comes to overtaking ability.

I honestly don't get why everyone is acting like grabbing second place is some kind of championship win 🤷
There’s only one winner, and everyone else is just part of the pack...
Come back and talk to me when he's actually standing on top of the podium next to Lewis Hamilton 👋Sebastian Vettel already pulled that off earlier this season, yet here we are celebrating a runner-up spot 🙏that was basically handed to him on a silver platter 🙏
Daniel Ricciardo absolutely schooled Nico Rosberg out there today—even the legends were doing it... then, thanks to Sebastian Vettel being totally out of it and Nico Rosberg struggling with his brakes, he managed to luck his way into second
So yeah, that's my take on it ☕

Anthony Baker84 said:And maybe a bit of a silly question, but why didn't they switch Sebastian Vettel over to the softs when he pitted for that new front wing?

Honestly, I think Ferrari just miscalculated and figured it wasn't worth the hassle.
They went with the harder compound thinking they were playing it safe, assuming they could just breeze right past Valtteri Bottas whenever they felt like it. 🤦
Man, talk about a massive blunder!!!

Jason Campbell70 said:Must be nice. 🤮

Don't sweat it, I guess you'll get your turn eventually.

Ferrari is less than five seconds behind the Mercedes-AMG in a clean race without any SCa interference.
They’ve made way more progress than any other team on the grid—it's pretty obvious if you're actually watching.

Last year, Mercedes-AMG would have pulled a gap like that within the first few laps.

Tbf,

Since we’re touching on the team orders over at Mercedes-AMG, I think you hit the nail on the head. I'm actually quoting a colleague from another forum here.

My take is that Nico Rosberg was intentionally moved aside because that’s what Toto Wolff ordered. He told him to step aside because Kimi Räikkönen was going to overtake him, simply because he’d been talking trash about Lewis Hamilton after the last race.🙂

Edward Howard2 said:I don't really get why everyone is acting like second place is some kind of championship win 🤷
there's only one winner, and everyone else is just a loser...
let me know how it feels when he's waving from the top step of the podium instead of Lewis's spot 👋 Vettel managed to pull that off earlier this season, but here we're all celebrating a runner-up finish 🙏 which felt like it was handed to him on a silver platter 🙏
Ricciardo absolutely schooled Rosberg on track today—even the master couldn't stop him... then, thanks to a struggling Vettel and Rosberg's brake issues, he basically lucked his way into second...
so, yeah, that's my take ☕

Just take a breath and relax...

Lewis Hamilton was phenomenal again—just a routine win, though I suppose we all saw it coming...

Huge props to Kimi Räikkönen, he had an incredible race. He kept that Mercedes-AMG right on the pace the entire time and ended up breathing down Hamilton's neck at the finish.
Nico Rosberg managed to jump Sebastian Vettel three separate times, but ultimately looked pretty average given how much that car is struggling lately.
Sebastian Vettel definitely underperformed today... but I won't be too hard on him, I think it just wasn't his day. It’s just a shame Kimi wasn't ahead from the get-go; he probably would have taken the trophy today...🙏
Fernando Alonso nearly snatched some points 👏 and Mass gets one point, while Daniel Ricciardo was solid and, of course, Valtteri Bottas, who didn't even have to break a sweat against an off-form Vettel....🍿

Patrick Bailey4 said:I don't know about that... I don't think it was just Sebastian Vettel being slow today—plus, he's kind of in a league of his own when it comes to overtaking skills

Not sure, honestly. Valtteri Bottas doesn't seem to have the same straight-line speed as Vettel with DRS enabled, or maybe he just couldn't close the gap at all. There's no real strategy there, just floor it and hope for the best, I guess.

Anthony Baker84 said:I’m not entirely convinced that Valtteri Bottas possesses the same straight-line pace as Sebastian Vettel when the DRS is active; frankly, neither of them managed to make any real headway on the straights. At least in this scenario, there isn't any complex tactical philosophy involved—you just floor it and that's that.

Look, Sebastian Vettel did shave nine seconds off Valtteri Bottas's time quite rapidly, I'll give you that, but the man was absolutely abysmal in the actual wheel-to-wheel combat today, regardless of what anyone might say about the raw numbers.

I can't quite make sense of that one—looks like I might have missed the context here! If you were trying to share something specific or get my take on a topic, feel free to drop it again. I'm all ears. kaže:
They just didn't beef up the windage enough. 😁

Just enough to take the edge off one of those more aggressive drivers.

Tyler Bennett5 said:So, what’s the game plan for Valtteri Bottas and Felipe Massa in tomorrow's race?
They’re logging onto the forum and starting to chat with us.
The guys out front are pulling away by about half a second to a full second, while those trailing behind are lagging by at least another half a second.
You could always grab some of those Villers tapestries and give them a little poke if they try to sneak up on you in the dark.

Well, they certainly couldn't find a way to mess with the drivers' luck today.

I suspect Sebastian Vettel just had a slightly off day; nothing major, really.
Kimi had another great start and a solid race. Rosberg is finally showing some aggression—he hasn't been this assertive in quite a while.
Excellent work from Filip Nasr 👍
And yet another mediocre race, at least in my opinion.

Edward Howard2 said:but they're out here acting like second place was some massive trophy win 🙏 basically handed to them on a silver platter 🙏

Come on, don't be like that—Kimi Räikkönen earned that second place.

Kimi was absolutely on point today—flawless execution and significantly faster than Sebastian Vettel.👍
Lewis Hamilton was just out of reach, though it honestly looked like he had more in the tank.🥱
Nico Rosberg is clearly spiraling right now.🍿
Sebastian Vettel was pretty mediocre today, but hey, things happen...

The way Nico Rosberg just absolutely slapped Sebastian Vettel aside🙏...
I’m really hoping we get to see this trio up on the podium in the upcoming races too...

The group of haters:

Edward Howard2 said:Kimi got totally played 🙏

Honestly, man, shouldn't you just consider retirement already? Is there anything else you are actually good for? 🤦

Jason Campbell70 said:Kim Raikkonen was just out there messing around. 🎉

steelmaker83 said:The front end?

Patrick Bailey4 said:Nico Rosberg is just slapping around those ridiculous Ferrari drivers 🙏

darkmarlin16 said:Kim Raikkonen is at it again

steelmaker83 said:The front end...

Jason Campbell70 said:Budavi Finac. 🤦

Jason Campbell70 said:What a lucky soul. 🤮

and then I find myself inclined to agree with my colleague sagi

nimblesurfer17 said:Those who underestimate Kim Raikkonen are just lost. 🕺

and if I may add, it isn't even that they are lost, but rather that they are operating in this specific mode: