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

Honestly, they completely blew it. This was the perfect opportunity for them because they’ve been stuck in a rut on this track for five years now. Once we hit Bahrain, they’ll be right on their heels, making it easy to maximize points before the first round of updates rolls in.

Kimi Räikkönen’s turbo gave out; it overheated during the red flag. The rest of the engine seems fine.

Paddy Lowe mentioned that according to their data, Ferrari was running a detuned engine and didn't even get a second shot at qualifying, so they actually believe they're much closer to the front than anyone realized.

Does anyone actually know what’s left noof the budget from this?
http://www.f1fanatic.co.uk/2016/03/0...ace-announced/

Timothy Castillo6 said:Does anyone happen to know how much of this was left notused up?
http://www.f1fanatic.co.uk/2016/03/0...ace-announced/

What about those Ferrari medium tires? 😁

As for the Mercedes, Nico was struggling with his brakes, and he was also right on the edge with his tire wear—specifically, that rear left was completely spent:
http://www.autosport.com/news/report...-had-to-retire

John Elkann’s comments following Los Angeles:

graniteharbor502 said:Those Ferrari medium tires? 😁

As for the Mercedes situation, Rosberg was struggling big time with his brakes, plus he was right on the edge with his rubber—that rear left was basically shot:
http://www.autosport.com/news/report...-had-to-retire

What I’m actually wondering is, did they have any clean SOFTs left over? 🤷

Timothy Castillo6 said:I'm wondering, did they have any clean SOFTs left? 🤷

These are the tires used during the race:


And these were the ones available for the GP weekend...


So obviously there were softs left—maybe even an extra set for everyone...
They barely even drove in FP1 and FP2, at least not on slicks...
In FP3, they couldn't exactly burn through a mountain of rubber, and everyone ran SS for qualifying. As far as I recall, nobody even bothered trying the softs 🤔
Basically, every team definitely had at least one more set of softs lying around. Maybe Sainz, Verstappen, and Wehrlein didn't, but for the rest? It's obvious they had them... Hamilton probably had 5 or 6 sets left over...

They were absolute beasts out there, running such a clean race without a single botched pit stop or any stupid mistakes, just straight up dominance and wins.

They assumed they could make up ground during SS, but unfortunately, that plan fell through.

coastalwolf6 said:But they were banking on those clouds clearing up during the SS—unfortunately, things just didn't go their way.

Shit happens

Exactly. 😁

So, turns out Ferrari actually didn't have another set of those new soft tires on them. I just went down a rabbit hole looking at the tire regulations, and man, it's a mess. For the whole Grand Prix weekend, they're allocated 13 sets of dry tires plus whatever wet weather stuff they need, but here's the kicker: 6 of those sets have to be handed back after Free Practice (even if you didn't touch them!), and those 6 sets are what you're stuck with for qualifying and the race. On top of that, whoever makes it into Q3 gets one extra set of the softest compounds, which also has to go right back to Pirelli once qualifying wraps up. Honestly, the whole rule feels pretty ridiculous.

Then nothing's left to say.

Morgan Hill4 said:Turns out Ferrari didn't actually have another fresh set of Softs. Just checked the tire regs. For the whole GP weekend, they allocate 13 sets of slicks plus wets, but 6 sets go back after FP—even if you didn't touch them. Those 6 sets are reserved for qualifying and the race, plus whoever makes it into Q3 gets one extra set of the softest compound, which also goes back to Pirelli after qualifying wraps up. Honestly, the rule is pretty retarded.

Man, I had no clue about this nonsense. 🤦
Good grief, that is peak stupidity right there. 😵
Realistically, nobody’s getting through qualifying without burning at least 3 sets of SS to finish in a decent spot (basically just making it through Q2),
and even then, only Mercedes can pull that off. Everyone else needs at least 4 sets of SS, leaving them with maybe one Medium and one Soft. 🤦
Mother my race, races where everyone just shreds tires like crazy are going to be absolute madness. 🤦 😵

If this table is actually right, then for teams like Williams/FI/RB/STR, even attempting to hit Q3 is insanity, let alone actually driving in it. 🤣
Because according to this, anyone who missed Q3 ended up with 7 sets of tires...
while those who made Q3 had 2 fresh sets and 4 worn ones...
maybe they could have had 3 vs 3 like Ferrari if they hadn't run two laps in Q3...

Basically, it looks like Ricciardo would've definitely grabbed a podium if he hadn't made Q3 and finished 9th in Q2 instead.
He would've started just one spot further back but would've had 2 more fresh sets of rubber, and he'd have started on a brand new set...
So instead of running used SS, new SS, new Soft, used SS, he could have run new SS, new Soft, new SS.
And if he'd run new Soft, new SS, new SS, who knows, maybe he would've even snatched the win, since there's always a chance he wouldn't have had to pit before a red flag...
Who knows, maybe he'd even have lucked out and started on SS...

Has anyone had a chance to look over the tire selections for Bahrain?

Mecke is running with 1 Medium, 6 Soft, and 6 Super Soft
Ferkani is going with 3 Medium, 4 Soft, and 6 Super Soft

Who on earth managed to mess this up? 🙂

Mercedes is playing the exact same hand they pulled in Los Angeles. The plan seems to be burning through a single set of mediums early on just to bank a one-stop strategy for the race. Typical.

The Bahrain circuit isn't exactly kind to the Soft tires. Between racing under the lights and all that grit scattered across the track, the surface gets incredibly abrasive. It’s a tough setup for anyone trying to make those compounds last.
Mercedes seems to have found their sweet spot on the medium tires, which explains why they’re being so stubborn about sticking to just one set. It makes sense, really—they need the Softs and Super Softs strictly for practice and qualifying. But let's be honest: the race itself is an entirely different beast.

And if he actually manages to puncture one, what's he even going to drive on?

rowdyrider12 said:Has anyone actually taken a look at the tire selection for Bahrain?

Mecke is going with 1 Medium, 6 Soft, and 6 Super Soft
Ferkani is opting for 3 Medium, 4 Soft, and 6 Super Soft

Who on earth messed this up? 🙂

Perhaps no one at all, though I can't help but feel that Ferrari might have actually made the smarter call here. They could potentially run a strategy of SS+M+M, couldn't they? And we must consider that the opening stint is likely to be shorter this year, assuming the teams are forced onto the Super Softs during Q2. Consequently, it seems to me that Ferrari possesses a certain degree of tactical flexibility that the others lack, even if it doesn't guarantee they won't find some new way to trip over their own feet. 😬

stormybadger8 said:Honestly, I had no idea what that whole blurry mess was even about. 🤦
Good grief, that is just pure, unadulterated stupidity at its absolute peak. 😵
Let’s be real here—nobody is making it through without at least three sets of SS + m, and even then, you’re lucky if you finish in a decent spot. I mean, if you want to actually land a respectable position, like even just scraping into Q2, you need that rubber. It’s just the way it works.
And honestly, even Bear could pull that off. If he just takes at least four sets of SS, they’ll be left sitting there with nothing but a single set of mediums and one soft to their name. 🤦
Mother of my race, these races where they absolutely shred their tires are going to be pure insanity! 🤦😵

Look, if this table is actually accurate, then for teams like Williams, Haas, Red Bull, or Aston Martin to even sniff Q3—let alone actually make it through—would be absolute madness. Just pure insanity. 🤣
So, looking at this, it almost seems like everyone who didn't make it into Q3 ended up with seven sets of tires... turns out that's how it works!
While those guys who made it into Q3 were sitting pretty with two fresh sets and four used ones...
Maybe they could have actually pulled off a 3 vs 3 against Ferrari if they hadn't wasted those two laps in Q3...

So, looking at this, it really feels like if Ricciardo hadn't missed out on Q3 and ended up stuck in P9 after Q2, he would have definitely snatched at least a podium finish.
Man, if I could just snag one more spot on the grid, everything would change. I’d be sitting pretty with two extra sets of fresh rubber, plus I'd actually be starting the race on a brand-new set of tires! That would make all the difference.
So, I was thinking—instead of running those U-SS, N-SS, N-S, and U-SS sets, wouldn't it make way more sense to just go with N-SS, N-S, and then N-SS? It feels like a much cleaner way to handle it.
Man, if he had just pulled off that N-S, N-SS, N-SS move, who knows? He might have actually snatched the win right out from under them! There’s a massive chance he wouldn't have even needed to pit before a red flag came out and ruined everything.
Who knows? Honestly, maybe he would have even gotten lucky and ended up starting on the SS...

The data looks spot on to me. Honestly, I think I just completely misread the rulebook when I was looking it over earlier. My bad!
So, looking at the setup for the race and qualifying, they're handing out seven sets of tires in total. But here’s the kicker for the drivers who actually make it through to Q3—they get one set of the Softs handed back to them. It really changes the math on tire management, doesn't it?

Since Ferrari is bringing some kind of update to Bahrain, I’m honestly expecting to see Vettel right up there in the practice sessions!

stormybadger8 said:I honestly had no idea this nonsense existed. 🤦
Honestly, it’s pure idiocy at its peak. 😵
Realistically, nobody can make it through without using at least three sets of SS, and even then, they might finish in a decent spot—meaning making it out of Q2.
And even that might be a stretch for anyone except the Bear; everyone else needs at least four sets of SS just to end up with one medium and one soft left over. 🤦
It's absolute madness in races where tire degradation is already off the charts. 🤦😵

If this table is actually accurate, then it’s sheer insanity for teams like Williams, Force India, Red Bull, or Aston Martin to even bother trying to hit Q3, let alone attempt it. 🤣
Because based on this, anyone who didn't make Q3 burned through seven sets of tires...
while those who did make Q3 used two fresh sets and four worn ones...
maybe Ferrari had a 3 vs 3 split if they didn't run two laps in Q3...

So, according to this logic, Ricciardo definitely would have snatched a podium if he hadn't made Q3 and ended up 9th in Q2 instead...
He would have started just one spot further back but would have had two extra sets of fresh rubber, plus he'd have started on a new set...
meaning instead of separate U-SS, N-SS, N-S, U-SS, he could have run N-SS, N-S, N-SS.
And if he'd run N-S, N-SS, N-SS, he might have even grabbed the win, since there's always a chance he wouldn't have had to pit before a red flag...
Who knows, maybe he even would've started on SS...

You get one extra fresh set specifically for Q3, so passing into Q3 isn't actually a bad thing.

The real stupidity is this whole sweeping "cost-saving" approach. Why restrict tires at all? Why limit fuel flow? Why even have these damn tokens? It all just ruins everything.

steelmaker83 said:Look, you get an extra fresh set just for Q3, so missing out on Q3 isn't actually a bad thing.

This whole "saving" obsession is pure idiocy. Why even bother limiting tires? Why limit fuel flow? Why even have these damn tokens? It all just ruins everything.

It’s pretty obvious...
Go ahead, look at the table again and see what it actually says. 😉

The table says Sets available for the race...😉
So if that's accurate, everyone who made it into Q3 according to this table only has 6 sets of tires, while everyone else gets 7...
To even make it to Q3 and finish the job, they have to burn through at least 3 sets of Softs if they're dominating like the Bear, or if they don't drive like Ferrari and skip Q3 entirely, they end up burning 4 sets of Softs and have basically nothing left for the actual race.

With all those "brilliant" tactical choices 🙄 in play, thanks to the qualifying stupidity, everyone who makes Q3 ends up with just 1 set of mediums, 1 set of Softs (which they obviously need per the rules), and a massive pile of trashed Softs...
and maybe—and I mean *maybe*—one fresh set of Softs left over...