F1 Canada 2012: Montreal GP Recap & Discussion

Jason Campbell70 said:One wannabe champ has been exposed, and there's still one more waiting in the wings. ☕

Oh, I am just thrilled you finally caught your little "champion" red-handed. 🤣
By the way, Ferrari's tactics were absolute genius. 🙏
Not that my guys were much better🤦, but at least they didn't embarrass themselves quite so badly on track. ☕

Whatever. Given how badly Lojzek got wrecked, I'm staying in a good mood and skipping the rest of this thread.

Fernando says they were gunning for the win on a one-stop strategy just because Lewis Hamilton was absolutely flying out there.

Another damn engine failure for the Ferrari 😢—honestly, this season is just one disaster after another! It’s such a bummer seeing how much Fernando Alonso dropped off toward the end; he was fighting so hard out there... Mad respect to Lewis Hamilton, though. I lowkey felt like he was going to take the win today, and it actually made me think back to what Jason Campbell70 said about nobody even mentioning him as a favorite... There was definitely a time when he was the guy to beat. As for the pit strategy... man, all this tire stuff and tactical nonsense is super confusing to me. Honestly, instead of calling things "unpredictable," it would be way more interesting to see how the guys handle the tires without DRS... This current setup feels too easy and there’s basically zero actual racing. They really should ditch the DRS and come up with some wings that don't create so much dirty air behind the car, so they could actually close the gap in the corners—even if it meant slower lap times overall.

hollowgull5 said:is there any way they just didn't have enough tires at Ferrari🤔

oh, they had plenty of rubber—they just didn't have much sense

Frank Collins85 said:If some seventh driver manages to take the win, I might actually have to start believing that Bernie Ecclestone scripted the entire 2012 season himself.

☕

I'm stoked about Lewis Hamilton and those other McLaren wins this season, but man, what is going on with Button lately? It’s been a rough run of races. I really hope it isn't some kind of sabotage against him.

darkmarlin16 said:Fernando claims they went for the win on a one-stop strategy because Lewis Hamilton was simply too fast.

They gambled on a one-stop strategy to snatch the victory, yet what did it yield? A fifth-place finish that was barely secured.🤦

It would have been far more prudent to protect the position he held for 75% of the race; instead, we witnessed an unnecessary depletion of points. In a field this competitive, can anyone truly argue that every single point isn't vital?🤣

He could have comfortably maintained his lead in the Drivers' Championship, rather than subjecting his fans to this outcome. Suppose they had attempted a tactic similar to Vettel's at the GP Monaco (2011)—where overtaking is virtually impossible—but driving four seconds slower than the field during those final ten laps just to stay out? This track, with its long straights, doesn't offer that kind of luxury; perhaps only the Italians could pull off such a maneuver.

Regardless, we look toward future victories. We await the upcoming upgrades and the GP Valencia; at the very least, those remain as a small consolation.☕

hehe finally Lujo takes the win 🙂 and man, what a way to do it 🙂 just straight up bullying them on track—something Ferrari and even Red Bull won't be forgetting anytime soon during those last 20 laps 🙂

Congrats to the Mercedes pit wall, the strategy crew, and even the person cleaning the windshields 🙏 🙏 🙏

Total disaster from the Ferrari pit wall. 😠
To make matters worse, I realized Alonso actually got lucky. If this race had gone on for just one or two more laps, three other drivers would have overtaken him, and then we’d be looking at a complete catastrophe. 🤦

They completely blew it. They ruined an incredible drive by Alonso, stripped him of his championship lead, and basically handed 5 points to Vettel on a silver platter...
Honestly, I'm livid.

What were they even thinking down there? Trying to hold position against Vettel while waiting for someone else to pit first?
If that was the plan (and it probably was), then the Red Bull crew are idiots too, though they're at least a class above. Their total loss is only 3 points, which feels like managed damage compared to this.

Whatever. I need a minute to recover from this mess.
"Don't count your chickens before they hatch"—I guess that was the guiding principle for these geniuses. 😠

It's a miracle everyone knows exactly how those Pirelli tires behave. Actually, "miracle" is an understatement.

Red Bull actually held their own at the end, while Ferrari clearly had the pace compared to them.

I mean, I don't know, but realistically, Alonso could have cruised to second if they hadn't botched the strategy—who knows, maybe even a win was on the table. But even then, would Vettel have managed third? Even if he hadn't pitted early, I'm not sure he could have kept Romain Grosjean or Sergio Perez from jumping him.

Red Bull had a massive top-speed issue and struggled big time to overtake anyone in front. If they ended up stuck behind someone after the pit stops, I doubt they had the guts to pass.

So, in a perfect scenario for Vettel:
Lewis Hamilton 25, Alonso 18, Vettel 15
And in the worst case for Vettel:
Alonso 25, Hamilton 18, Romain Grosjean 15, Sergio Perez 12, Vettel 10.
It's hard to say how many points Red Bull saved by pitting when they did; maybe as many as 15.😳

Still, their strategy was pretty stupid, though nowhere near as brainless as Ferrari's.

But the award for "Master Strategists" definitely goes to Jenson Button's side of the garage.🙄
Get into Q3 on the hard tires, drive through Q3 just to settle for 10th, start the race on those hards, and then pit at the exact same time as the guys who started on softs.
Honestly, I haven't seen any tactics stupider than that.
I literally have no clue what they were thinking or what they were trying to pull.😕

As for Alonso, there was this one joke he made before the race:
He said he was worried his Ferrari mechanics wouldn't want to change his tires if his Spanish buddies scored a goal against the Italians.🤣
Who knows, maybe that was actually the problem.😬 🤣

Once again, Ferrari has proven they completely fall apart the moment they're forced to think on their feet.

Whether their initial strategy was intentional is anyone's guess, but regardless of the plan, how do you ignore reality? When you see the pace Lewis Hamilton is putting up, look at how many laps are left, and watch those tires disintegrating lap after lap, why on earth wouldn't you react?

My internal logic was telling me Alonso would be diving into the pits for supersofts about 13 laps before the finish. That actually makes sense—they stay out and just pray to God the rubber holds together until the checkered flag.

I get it; when Hamilton pitted and the tires still looked decent, they probably figured both he and Vettel could limp home. They likely accounted for Vettel holding up Hamilton for a single lap, but everything fell apart faster than a cheap tire under the blistering sun at Indianapolis.

Nothing to do now but dissect this entire mess—degradation, track temps, and the pit wall's decision-making—and get ready for GP Valencia.

The one silver lining is that the qualifying deficit has been slashed to almost nothing, and the race pace is looking better than ever.

This is going to be absolute madness right up until the final lap at Interlagos.

steelmaker83 said:Ferrari just proved once again that they fall apart the second things require actual improvisation.

Whether a one-stop strategy was actually the plan, only they know that much.

Not even close!
A one-stop definitely wasn't the plan. If it were, that first stint would have lasted at least another 10 laps.
That first pit stop was executed perfectly, and regardless of what was originally on the sheet, it forced their hand for the rest of the race.

steelmaker83 said:I get it—when Lewis pitted and the tires still looked decent, they probably figured both him and Vettel could stretch it out. They likely factored in Vettel holding up Lewis for a lap, but everything just went south like a set of Pirellis under that blistering Indianapolis sun.......

Hitting the pits the lap after Lewis was a total gift for second place, even if there was a slim chance they could have jumped Lewis himself right then.
It looks like they decided they couldn't catch Lewis and then tried to play math games with Vettel instead.

steelmaker83 said:The fact that they closed the gap in qualifying to almost nothing, combined with this race pace being better than ever, is encouraging.
This is going to be a wild ride all the way to the final lap at Interlagos...

At this stage, wins are the only thing that matters. Wins are the only way to build a cushion against everyone else and erase these kinds of blunders.
If someone can pull off a couple of wins in a row, or maybe two out of the next five without making massive mistakes, that’s how you win the championship.

Look, despite all of Ferrari's tactical blunders, I have to give credit where it's due for one masterstroke attempt.

Letting Vettel through before Casino Corner, banking on the idea that Ferrari's DRS would negate the advantage of Vettel's superior tires.

In the end—it didn't work. But honestly, hats off to the genius who actually thought of that.

And if it was Alonso himself...🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏

Roger Wright94 said:Pitting the lap after Lewis was a guaranteed move for second place, assuming they could have even jumped Lewis in that moment.
I guess they decided catching Lewis was out of reach and then tried to play math games with Vettel instead.

Why on earth would they conclude they couldn't catch Lewis?! Ferrari looked great on supersofts during that first stint, actually beating McLaren. What reason did they have to think they stood no chance?

My take is they simply overestimated their tire management and underestimated the degradation. They clearly thought those tires would hold up longer, plus they were likely terrified that if Vettel stayed out, he’d end up snatching that spot from them at the end.

In the end, they blew it even harder... but hey, you learn from your mistakes.

Jason Campbell70 said:Look, despite all of Ferrari's tactical blunders, I actually have to tip my hat to one masterstroke of a decision.

Letting Vettel through before Casino Corner, based on the theory that Ferrari's DRS would neutralize the advantage of Vettel's superior tires.

In the end, the move failed miserably, but credit to the genius who came up with it.

And if it was Alonso himself...🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏

Alonso really tried everything. Honestly, I was surprised by how much resistance he put up against Lewis Hamilton, unlike Vettel, who just gracefully stepped aside....

A shame.....

steelmaker83 said:Alonso really threw everything he had at it. I was actually surprised by how much resistance he put up against Lewis Hamilton, especially compared to Vettel, who just stepped aside so gracefully....

Like I said—there are true champions, and then there are those who just pretend to be.

..it’s funny how people can just twist things to fit their own little narrative... 🤣 😁

I'm not looking for a fight here, but couldn't you argue that Vettel actually played it smarter than Alonso? He knew he couldn't match him, and trying to fight back might have just ended in a total disaster and zero points for both of them—exactly what almost happened with Alonso while he was out there struggling...

..though honestly, that "fight" looked more like a wounded kitten trying to hold its ground since he had zero chance after those tires were absolutely trashed. That’s why you could say Alonso's move was "stupider" than Vettel's... he didn't have a prayer, so all he really did was risk losing everything for nothing...

ruggedfox28 said:..how certain situations can be viewed from whatever angle suits someone best... 🤣 😁

Look, I’m not looking for a fight here, but why can't we just say Vettel played it smarter than Alonso? He knew he couldn't match him. By trying to fight back, Alonso was basically just risking a total meltdown and losing points for both of them—which is exactly what almost happened when Alonso tried to hold his ground...

..though even that "resistance" looked more like a wounded kitten struggling because he had zero chance once those tires were completely trashed. That’s why you could argue Alonso's move was actually "stupider" than Vettel's; he didn't have a prayer, so all he really did was risk losing everything for nothing.

Why are you even wasting your breath on this kind of nonsense?🤷

stormybadger8 said:And why are you even bothering to waste your breath on this kind of nonsense...🤷

Feeling pretty good today... 😬