Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix (Los Angeles - Central Park) 03.20.2016.

stormybadger8 said:If his grandmother were a man, she’d be named Duško 🤣.
God forbid we talk about whether Ferrari was this or that—what if Mercedes hadn't had such an absolutely pathetic start?

Ferrari basically threw away a victory that Mercedes practically handed them on a silver platter, but honestly, if both teams had actually performed at their actual level, they would have blown it just as badly as last year...
Because let's get real, for heaven's sake, Lewis Hamilton was faster than Nico Rosberg the entire time—noticeably so—and he only ended up behind him because his start was even worse than Rosberg's...
I mean, if Hamilton had finished the first lap in the lead, then Vettel would have been trailing Hamilton by at least 20+ seconds at the end. 😉

I wouldn't call it handed to them... It was fairly earned both at the start and on the track. If we're going to analyze that whole chaotic mess, things probably wouldn't have unfolded this way without the SC.

Ferrari is looking a lot like Williams has been lately.

They just threw those wins away.

Joshua Rivera56 said:I wouldn't call it a handout... It was earned fairly on the grid and out on the track. If we’re looking at the whole mess, things probably wouldn't have played out this way without the SC.

Just like how Alonso's stupidity combined with the absolute idiocy of Ferraria Rosberg and Hamilton handed them a 1-2 on a silver platter, Rosberg and Hamilton basically served Ferrari a 1-2 at the start because of their own screw-up... I don't see much of a difference here.😉

It just reminds me of that shady business with Michael Schumacher in Singapore.🤔

First signs that he's just washed up for F1.🤔
What are we calling him now? AlDed, FeDeda, Deda? Or what?😬

Or maybe I'm wrong. Maybe Flavio pulled some strings so he could land that seat at Mercedes.😬

stormybadger8 said:If his grandma were a guy, she'd be called Duško... 🤣
Man, if Ferrari wasn't struggling with this or that, imagine how things would look if Mercedes hadn't had such a disastrous start...

Ferrari snatched a victory that should have gone to Mercedes, but let's be honest—if both teams had actually performed at their peak, the result would have looked just like last year...
Let's be real, for goodness' sake... Lewis Hamilton was clearly faster than Nico Rosberg the entire time, and you could really feel it. He only ended up behind him because his starts were just worse than Rosberg's...
If Hamilton had finished the first lap in the lead and Rosberg followed right behind him, Vettel would have ended up trailing Hamilton by at least 20 seconds... 😉

What are you even talking about? Lewis Hamilton couldn't get past Max Verstappen. He spent ten laps just trailing behind him... Before the crash, both Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Räikkönen were holding off Nico Rosberg without any issues... Honestly, Vettel would have overtaken Hamilton if he hadn't been stuck in the pits for that long...
Even if Ferrari switched to the Medium tire, Rosberg would still pull ahead... though Hamilton would likely stay behind him...

Of course, if there hadn't been a safety car, they would have had a real shot. But on those medium tires and a track like this, Rosberg really should have taken the win...
Mainly Mercedes... aside from the start, their tactics were absolutely flawless. A well-deserved win!...

Jason Campbell70 said:It's like Ferrari being stuck in Williams mode for the last few seasons.

They completely blew those wins.

Exactly!. 👍

It’s just like that sketch in Monty Payton where the guy fights himself for the championship title—and ends up winning by actually managing to surprise himself! 🤣

Why on earth would those idiots opt for the used SS from qualifying after the SC? They could have easily gone out twice on fresh softs or even mediums; if nothing else, they might have actually finished second instead of completely blowing everything in their hands.😵

Drew Bennett68 said:It definitely looks better than last year.

Hey there, legend! 🙂
I’m afraid it might just be an illusion.

dustyskipper77 said:What are you even talking about? Lewis Hamilton couldn't pass Max Verstappen if he tried. He was stuck behind him for ten laps. Before the crash, both Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Räikkönen were holding off Nico Rosberg without breaking a sweat... Honestly, Vettel would've cleared Hamilton if he hadn't spent forever in the pits.
Even if Ferrari had switched to mediums, Rosberg would've overtaken him, and Hamilton would still be stuck in the rearview mirror.

And obviously, if there wasn't a safety car, they might have stood a chance. But on mediums at a track like this, Rosberg was destined to win...
Bottom line: Mercedes was tactically flawless after the start. A well-deserved win!

The issue with every single car on the grid is overtaking. Unless you've got a massive gap of over a second per lap, you're stuck—and even then, if the car ahead is lightning fast on the straight, good luck.

Just because Ferrari might catch up to Mercedes doesn't mean they'll actually pass them. There’s no way they have a full second per lap advantage, even when comparing old Medium tires on the Mercedes versus fresh SS tires on the Ferrari.
Plus, I highly doubt Ferrari has any major advantage on the straights compared to the Mercedes.😉
So, until they have a real gap, they don't have a shot. Then again, the Mercedes drivers aren't exactly having an easy time passing the Ferrari either...

Ferrari's biggest headache is just trying to beat the Mercedes in qualifying so they can actually start ahead of them.😉

P. S. str, it's blindingly obvious that Red Bull is easily one of the top three fastest cars this season. It doesn't get any more obvious than that.
Everyone is going to struggle against them, not just the Mercedes.

Man, Ferrari really could have handled that better. I’m left with this lingering impression that they essentially handed over the victory. That red flag was just the lifeline Mercedes needed to claw their way back into contention, which, if we are being honest, means Ferrari is actually posing a legitimate threat to Mercedes, a development that should be viewed positively for the overall season 👍
. However, when you are competing at this elite level of motorsport, making such amateurish tactical blunders is simply inexcusable. What on earth were they thinking, opting for two sets of Medium tires?? They didn't even attempt a single 🤦. If they were truly that apprehensive about how those Mediums would perform, surely they could have implemented distinct strategies for their drivers following the red flag? Perhaps putting Kimi Räikkönen on the Medium tire while assigning Sebastian Vettel to the S / SS? Instead, they seemed to settle upon the worst possible course of action.
On another note, the sheer pace of Red Bull is quite striking, which suggests that Williams is almost certainly going to slip from third place in the standings.
As for Max Verstappen, it is much like what the Americans say, he went from hero to zero. It was a magnificent start to the race, only for him to completely fumble the second half. Sometimes, one must pay the price for a lack of experience. The Dutchman really needs to focus on developing his patience and maintaining his composure.
Regarding the collision between Fernando Alonso and Gutierrez, I view that as a clean racing incident. I sincerely hope that no penalties are handed out. Once again, F1 has pleasantly surprised us with the incredibly high standard of safety that the drivers enjoy within their cockpits 👍
. All things considered, I would give this race a 7/10.

stormybadger8 said:Just like how Alonso, with all his nonsense, basically handed Ferrari a 1-2 finish by being just as stupid as Rosberg & Hamilton were when they screwed up the start for Ferrari... I honestly don't see any meaningful difference here. 😉

But personally, this whole Alonso situation just reminds me of what Schumacher pulled back in Singapore. 🤔

It’s the first real sign that he’s just not cut out for F1 anymore. 🤔
Are we going to start calling him AlDed, FeDeda, Deda, or what? 😬

Then again, maybe I'm wrong. Maybe Flavio Briatore recommended him just so he could snag a seat at Mercedes. 😬

Look, Ferrari earned their positions through actual driving on the track, whereas Mercedes won through SC calls, pit stops, and pure strategy. That's a massive distinction, at least from my perspective as an F1 fan. Vettel and Raikkonrn earned their way; for Mercedes, they earned it via the pit wall and the garage, while the drivers themselves didn't do much more than the absolute bare minimum required.

Haas pulls off a one-stop strategy 😲

I almost neglected to mention that Kimi Räikkönen was acting more like a firefighter in the pits today rather than the Iceman we know and love 😬
And Rosberg keeps this momentum going, sitting at four wins now. If Nico manages to pull it off in the next race, Hamilton is going to see that championship slip right through his fingers. Mark my words. 🙂

I don't buy these excuses from Ferrari. Claiming they were "surprised by Mercedes on medium tires" is nonsense. There was a ten-minute red flag; they had plenty of time to see exactly what the competition was planning.
It's also obvious that Mercedes wasn't the only team to notice the track temperatures dropping and realizing the SS wouldn't be at 100% capacity.
Decisions like these only serve to decrease their chances of ever challenging Mercedes-Benz.

Williams actually admitted that opting for the medium tires was a total no-brainer—so, honestly, huge props to Ferrari 😁

By the way, qualifying is returning to the old format starting in Bahrain.

John Thomas8 said:I don't get these Ferrari excuses, "Mercedes caught us off guard with mediums," please. There was a ten-minute red flag; they had plenty of time to see what everyone else was planning.
Same goes for the track temp—they weren't the only ones who noticed it dropping and realized the SS wouldn't perform at 100%.
Decisions like this just kill any chance of actually challenging Mercedes.

It’s pure idiocy that they left Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Räikkönen out on used SS tires, especially since those were the exact tires used to clock that exit lap and initial flyer.
Basically, they didn't even get a launch advantage over someone on fresh softs...

If they’d gone with new softs and botched it, whatever, they tried.
If they’d gone with mediums and failed, no big deal...
But this looked like the mechanics were out grabbing beers and just couldn't be bothered to swap the rubber.
There is absolutely zero tactical logic to justify this...
From what I saw, they were probably the only ones who didn't swap tires; it looks like everyone else went for fresh rubber before the restart. 🤔

Dammit, it was obvious that this strategy would cost them track position, and then they handed themselves a slower tire profile right when they needed to hunt down and pass Mercedes. 🤦
It would have been fifteen times more logical to start on softs and then either pit for another set of softs later or try to hunt them down on that used SS set...
This makes no sense, even for a car that was faster than the competition, like how Germany dominated in Los Angeles last year. 🤦
Surely they aren't so brainless that they thought they could make up a 25-second gap to Mercedes on old SS tires before hitting the pits...
Even Mercedes couldn't pull that off on SS, let alone Williams or F1, much less anyone actually serious about winning. 😵

The only way this strategy makes any sense is if:
1. Sebastian Vettel pulls away upfront.
2. Kimi immediately jumps Nico Rosberg at the restart and holds him up for the next 20 laps...
3. Sebastian pits and comes out ahead of Kimi.

But that’s practically impossible. It's a stretch to think Kimi could hold Nico Rosberg back for 20 straight laps while running about 1.2 to 1.5 seconds slower than Sebastian...
Plus, that would likely leave Kimi out of the points... and even then, it would still make more sense for Kimi to be on softs rather than SS.

It increasingly appears to me that Germany is evolving into a far more cohesive unit. Perhaps they no longer possess that overwhelming raw pace during a race, but their tactical responsiveness on track has certainly improved.
As for Ferrari, they were once overflowing with potential, yet somehow managed to spill it all.
Regarding STR, what exactly was their strategy? Did they truly believe they were merely a mid-tier outfit, or am I simply anticipating a season of entertaining mediocrity without any actual substance?
I find myself somewhat relieved for Daniel Ricciardo, seeing him outperform the rest once again, as well as for Haas.
Fernando Alonso showed remarkable resilience; one particular clip clearly demonstrated how much of the cockpit remained intact compared to the wreckage of the rest of the car.

STR definitely has the pace, but man, they have even less common sense than Ferrari...
Maybe it's just the climate affecting them 😬 but hey, it's still an Italian team 🤣

Someone seriously needs to slap little Max Verstappen and bring him back down to earth; the kid took a page out of Fernando Alonso's book, but applied all the wrong lessons...
Someone should explain to these kids that you actually need to show some respect to your teammate on track by showing some backbone, not just whining over the team radio...
Look, Alonso had a legitimate reason to complain to the team about moving Sergio Perez ahead of him, but I have absolutely no clue what Max Verstappen was thinking when he decided his team should ditch Carlos Sainz 🤦

stormybadger8 said:STR clearly possesses raw pace, yet they seem to possess even less common sense than Ferrari...
Perhaps it is simply the climate affecting them, 😬 given that they are an Italian outfit after all, 🤣

And someone really ought to give young Max Verstappen a much-needed reality check to bring him back down to earth; the boy has certainly taken cues from Fernando Alonso, though clearly for all the wrong reasons...
Someone should explain to these youngsters that respecting your teammate on track is standard procedure, rather than just whining incessantly over the team radio...
While Fernando Alonso certainly had grounds to complain when they moved Sergio Perez ahead of him, I haven't the slightest clue why Max Verstappen thinks the team should be pushing Carlos Sainz aside instead. 🤦

I find myself in complete agreement.
He is undeniably talented, but he is far too immature to be behaving this way. It would be best if Carlos Sainz Jr. just gave him a firm lesson.
Which is precisely why I doubt they will achieve anything meaningful this season.

George Anderson5 said:Fernando Alonso really managed to escape by the skin of his teeth. One clip showed just how much of the cockpit stayed intact compared to the rest of the car.

From what you can see in the photo, the Monocoque looks completely untouched.
And the side impact protection is still right where it should be.

It looked spectacular, sure, but was it actually a massive crash? Not really.