Belgian GP - Circuit of the Americas

placidsurfer9 said:this kid is a future champion!! 🙂

I'm with you on that. Maybe he isn't quite "ready" to take the title just yet, but give him a year or two and he'll definitely be there.

placidsurfer9 said:this guy is the next champion!! 🙂

Maybe this year. If he doesn't grab the title now, he's never getting it. In the coming years, the trophies will be going to 🙂killers like Sebastian Vettel, Kazuki Nakajima😁, Takuma Sato🙏🙏🙏 and Timo Glock, maybe even David Coulthard😬 if he actually finds a decent team down the road🤣. As for Hamilton, he might as well kiss those championship dreams goodbye, just like Alonso☕.

1 22 Lewis Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes 1:46.887 1:46.088 1:47.338 12
2 2 Felipe Massa Ferrari 1:46.873 1:46.391 1:47.678 16
3 23 Heikki Kovalainen McLaren-Mercedes 1:46.812 1:46.037 1:47.815 16
4 1 Kimi Räikkönen Ferrari 1:46.960 1:46.298 1:47.992 14
5 3 Nick Heidfeld BMW Sauber 1:47.419 1:46.311 1:48.315 18
6 5 Fernando Alonso Renault 1:47.154 1:46.491 1:48.504 18
7 10 Mark Webber Red Bull-Renault 1:47.270 1:46.814 1:48.736 19
8 4 Robert Kubica BMW Sauber 1:47.093 1:46.494 1:48.763 20
9 14 Sebastien Bourdais STR-Ferrari 1:46.777 1:46.544 1:48.951 19
10 15 Sebastian Vettel STR-Ferrari 1:47.152 1:46.804 1:50.319 16
11 11 Jarno Trulli Toyota 1:47.400 1:46.949 13
12 6 Nelson Piquet Jr. Renault 1:47.052 1:46.965 15
13 12 Timo Glock Toyota 1:47.359 1:46.995 13
14 9 David Coulthard Red Bull-Renault 1:47.132 1:47.018 15
15 7 Nico Rosberg Williams-Toyota 1:47.503 1:47.429 12
16 17 Rubens Barrichello Honda 1:48.153 9
17 16 Jenson Button Honda 1:48.211 9
18 20 Adrian Sutil Force India-Ferrari 1 :48.226 9
19 8 Kazuki Nakajima Williams-Toyota 1:48.268 9
20 21 Giancarlo Fisichella Force India-Ferrari 1:48.447 9

stormybadger8 said:maybe this year. if he doesn't grab the title this season, he never will. not ever. the upcoming years belong to the killers, 🙂Sebastian Vettel, Kazuki Nakajima😁, Takuma Sato🙏🙏🙏 and Timo Glock, maybe even David Coulthard😬 if he actually lands a decent seat down the road🤣 . as for Hamilton, he might as well just pack it up and forget about championship dreams, same goes for Fernando Alonso☕

I don't buy it. if he doesn't win this year, he'll definitely get it next year!

stormybadger8 said:Look, if he doesn't snag the championship this year, he's probably never going to see it, period. We're entering an era where the trophies are going to be snatched up by absolute killers like 🙂Sebastian Vettel, Kazuki Nakajima😁, 🙏Takuma Sato🙏 🙏 and Timo Glock, maybe even 😬David Coulthard🤣 if he can actually land a decent seat down the road , so Hamilton might as well just kiss those title dreams goodbye, much like Alonso will have to☕

👍 I'm right there with you,

Raymond Ortiz89 said:Yeah, he absolutely nailed that drive. It was phenomenal—every single driver on the grid could’ve learned a thing or two from him. 🤣

But honestly, I think he'll be nowhere to be found tomorrow. 🤷 Toyota and Honda are still kicking butt.

I'm with you—Bourdais was completely screwed by that strategy.👎 He cruised through Qualifying 3 without breaking a sweat, but he didn't actually do anything meaningful. Probably going to be the exact same story during the race.😢 Sebastian Vettel’s taking the points for sure. Honestly, I wouldn't be shocked if Timo Glock or Jarno Trulli pulled it off too—not to mention our resident rain master, Rubens Barrichello. 😬

ruggedcrane6 said:I can't believe it. If he doesn't pull it off this year, he’s definitely getting it next season!

I bet both him and Ron Dennis will be repeating that same line for years to come.😉

stormybadger8 said:I honestly think both him and Ron Dennis are going to be recycling that same exact line for years to come.😉

I really hope not. Hamilton's got the raw talent, and honestly, he’s bound to snag another title sooner or later. It's just a matter of time.

ruggedcrane6 said:I'm hoping he doesn't. Hamilton has the talent and should grab a title sooner or later!

Psychology is a brutal thing, don't forget that. The kid is good—maybe even great—but after that absolute disaster last year, I wouldn't be surprised if history repeats itself this season. Honestly, it feels like it's coming. Once you lose your nerve like that, you might never get it back.☕

They'll just call him the Eternal Runner-Up.☕

stormybadger8 said:I’m with you there—it was an absolute disaster of a strategy call for Bourdais. Honestly, they completely botched it.👎 He was cruising through Qualifying 3 like he had nothing to prove, barely breaking a sweat while putting in absolutely zero effort, and if you ask me, I wouldn't hold my breath for anything different when the race actually starts.😢 I’d put my money on Sebastian Vettel to take the points, no question about it, though honestly, I wouldn't be shocked if Timo Glock or Jarno Trulli managed to snatch something away from us too. And of course, you can never count out Barrichello when the weather turns sideways—that guy is basically the king of finding grip in a monsoon. 😬

So, what’s the deal with Nakajima? Have you guys actually managed to dig up any kind of legitimate excuse for that absolutely disastrous performance? 😕

stormybadger8 said:I wouldn't say😕 Bourdais nailed a perfect🙏 🙏 🙏 lap in Qualifying 1, since the cars are light for Qualifying 2😉. I mean, there's no way he had less fuel in Qualifying 1 than in Qualifying 2—that’s just impossible☕.

And why on earth is it "impossible" to run low fuel in Qualifying 1 just like in Qualifying 2?

Is there some secret rule stating you have to carry more fuel in Qualifying 1 than in Qualifying 2?

Just look at the times. You'll see Bourdais was only slightly faster in Qualifying 2 than he was in Qualifying 1. That tells me he was running almost as light in Qualifying 1 as he was in Qualifying 2. Compare that to the other drivers where the gap between Qualifying 1 and Qualifying 2 is massive
. 😉

stormybadger8 said:Mental health is a hell of a thing, and you can't ever let yourself forget that. This kid might be talented—hell, he might even be damn near perfect—but after that absolute disaster of a season last year, I’ve got a bad feeling that history is about to repeat itself. Honestly, everything about this situation stinks, and I suspect we're looking at a total meltdown. Once you lose your footing like that, there's just no coming back from it.☕

They’re going to end up calling him the Eternal Second.☕

Man, I still get a bitter taste in my mouth just thinking about that moment—you know, when he completely lost his head and absolutely laid into Kimi in the pits. It was such a mess.
Let’s be honest here—he absolutely does not deserve that top spot on the podium.

Roger Williams3 said:But why would it be impossible to run with just as little fuel in Qualifying 1 as you do in Qualifying 2?

Is there actually some rulebook out there stating you have to carry less fuel during Qualifying 2 than you did during Qualifying 1?

Just take a look at the lap times and you'll see that Bourdais was only marginally faster in Qualifying 2 compared to Qualifying 1, which pretty much suggests he was running almost as light in Qualifying 1 as he was in Qualifying 2—totally different from the rest of the drivers, where you see a massive jump in pace between those two sessions.
😉

Sure, but what makes you so certain he was running that light in Qualifying 2?

Raymond Ortiz89 said:Yeah, but how can you be so sure he was just cruising through Qualifying 2?

I don't know, man. Just looking at the lap times—Bourdais has the smallest gap compared to the top 10 drivers between Qualifying 1 and Qualifying 2. That’s how I’m getting there.
😉

Look, I'm not saying he can't drive. At all. I'm just saying we have to consider the possibility he wasn't even trying that hard in Qualifying 1.

I mean, if he was actually that fast in Qualifying 1, why did he tank so hard in Qualifying 2? Especially since he should've had way less fuel in the car (he was only 0.233s off his Qualifying 1 time)!

BTW, isn't it basically a rule that everyone takes it easiest during Qualifying 2 of the whole session?

Roger Williams3 said:And why is it impossible to run with low fuel in Qualifying 1 just like in Qualifying 2?

Is there some rule stating you have to carry less fuel in Qualifying 2 than in Qualifying 1?

Just look at the times. You'll see Bourdais was slightly faster in Qualifying 2 than in Qualifying 1, which suggests he was running almost as light in Qualifying 1 as he was in Qualifying 2.
😉

As far as I know, there aren't any fuel restrictions in Qualifying 2. Everyone knows the fastest laps happen in Qualifying 2 because the cars are basically empty. For Qualifying 1, I haven't a clue—maybe it's related to race trim?🤷 But it doesn't matter; his time in Qualifying 2 was 0.3 slower than in Qualifying 1, and everyone knows cars run heavier in Qualifying 1 than in Qualifying 2.

P.S. I don't know the rulebook by heart, but do you honestly think it's possible he had less fuel in Qualifying 1?🤣 By that logic, he was driving on fumes.😂 Plus, if that were actually an option, why wouldn't teams like Honda or Force India try it every single time?😉 They’d be sitting on Pole Position at the end of Qualifying 1 every damn weekend.🙄

Roger Williams3 said:I don't know, but looking at the lap times—where Bourdais barely saw any difference compared to the top 10 drivers between Qualifying 1 and Qualifying 2—that's where I'm getting this idea.
😉

I'm not saying he can't drive, I'm just saying we have to consider he might have been cruising through Qualifying 1.

I mean, if he was actually that fast in Qualifying 1, why did he tank so hard in Qualifying 2? Especially since he should've had way less fuel in his tank (he was only 0.233s off his Qualifying 1 time).

It seems pretty obvious it’s all about the fuel load.😉 At that exact weight, the car probably handles perfectly.🤷 If my memory serves me right and Vettel took Pole Position at the last race, then STR clearly figured something out that everyone else missed.🤷

Good grief, who am I even fighting here—a bunch of windmills? 🙄

And besides, who’s actually banning or capping fuel loads during Qualifying 1?

Nobody.

I mean, sure, Force India and those other bottom-feeders probably dump money into their Qualifying 1 runs, but even then, it’s clearly not enough to help them actually kill it in Qualifying 2.

stormybadger8, you gotta read my posts a little more closely—I never said Bourdais had less fuel in Qualifying 1 than in Qualifying 2 (that's not what I meant at all). I was saying he had just a tiny bit more, which is why he was only 0.233s faster in Qualifying 2 compared to Qualifying 1, unlike most of the other drivers who saw a massive jump in speed when they hit Qualifying 2.

But yeah, like I said, just fighting windmills over here.

Roger Williams3 said:Good grief, who am I even arguing with here? It feels like I'm just tilting at windmills at this point.🙄

And besides, who is actually out there banning or capping how much fuel they run during Qualifying 1?

Nobody.

Look, Force India and those other bottom-tier outfits are almost certainly dumping extra fuel into the car during Qualifying 1 to secure a spot, but even then, it’s clearly not enough to help them make any real dent in Qualifying 2.

stormybadger8, you really need to read my posts a bit more closely—I never once claimed that Bourdais was running less fuel in Qualifying 1 than he was in Qualifying 2 (that's not what I meant at all). My point was that he had just a tiny bit more, which explains why he was only 0.233s faster in Qualifying 2 compared to his time in Qualifying 1, unlike a whole bunch of other drivers who saw massive jumps in pace when moving from Qualifying 1 to Qualifying 2.

But hey, like I said, I'm just fighting windmills over here.

That might sound logical on paper, but honestly, who knows what's actually going on behind the scenes.🤷

Way to go, Lewis! Finally—he actually knocked Massa down a peg. Maybe now he'll get a little reality check.🤣

Qualifying results from the US Grand Prix - Circuit of the Americas:

1. Lewis Hamilton McLaren 1:47.338
2. Felipe Massa Ferrari 0:00.729
3. Heikki Kovalainen McLaren 0:00.866
4. Kimi Räikkönen Ferrari 0:01.043
5. Nick Heidfeld BMW 0:01.366
6. Fernando Alonso Renault 0:01.555
7. Mark Webber Red Bull 0:01.787
8. Robert Kubica BMW 0:01.814
9. Sebastien Bourdais Toro Rosso 0:02.002
10. Sebastian Vettel 0:03.370
11. Jarno Trulli Toyota 0:00.000
12. Nelson Piquet Renault 0:00.016
13. Timo Glock Toyota 0:00.046
14. David Coulthard Red Bull 0:00.069
15. Nico Rosberg Williams 0:00.480
16. Rubens Barrichello Honda 0:01.204
17. Jenson Button Honda 0:01.262
18. Adrian Sutil Force India 0:01.277
19. Kazuki Nakajima Williams 0:01.319
20. Giancarlo Fisichella Force India 0:01.498