2010 Bahrain Grand Prix

It wasn't a particularly exciting race, to be honest. Those cars with those nose designs are probably some of the ugliest I've ever seen. That said, this season might actually turn out to be interesting since Ferrari, Red Bull, and McLaren all seem to be right in the mix (at least, that's how it looks to me). I guess I'm happy enough with the king's 6th place finish. 🙏

Daniel Booth37 said:Not exactly an exciting race. Those noses on the cars are arguably the ugliest I've ever seen. That said, the season might actually get interesting since Ferrari, Red Bull, and McLaren all seem to be in the mix. Happy enough with the king taking 6th. 🙏

Based on your handle and that last sentence, your expertise is pretty obvious. 🙏

As for the RS27-2010—it was already clear before the season even started that it would be the weak link. Adrian Newey has been the top designer for the last 15 years, and Sebastian Vettel is clearly the successor to the great seven-time world champion, but the RS27-2010 is a complete disaster.

Even Red Bull's second team has a better engine. 🙂

stormybadger8 said:I am so done with this Renault engine 🤦

Honestly, they should have just gone with a Cosworth. For heaven's sake, at this rate, any chance of another championship is just blowing away in the wind.👎

It’s actually pretty fascinating how three out of the four cars running Renault power are performing flawlessly, yet somehow, Sebastian Vettel is the only one struggling.😉

Vettel needs to change something about his driving style.

Arthur Roberts12 said:Sebastian Vettel needs to change something about his driving style

Are we really going to slap the "car wrecker" label on Sebastian Vettel now, just like we did with Kimi Räikkönen?🤦

Jason Campbell70 said:Are we really going to slap that "car wrecker" label on Sebastian Vettel now, too? Just like they did with Kimi Räikkönen? It feels like we're just looking for excuses to pin bad luck on drivers who actually give a damn. 🤦

I’m just saying, this kind of thing only seems to happen to him. It’s a statistical anomaly at this point. You look at the grid and there are four different cars out there running Renault engines, yet somehow, he's the only one caught in this specific mess.

I can't bring myself to believe that this was just a coincidence anymore. It feels far too deliberate for that.

Stefan GP is long gone

And don't even get me started on US F1🙏

But what about HRT? Did any car actually manage to cross the finish line? Was it that Nunčak guy's car, or maybe that driver from India🤷

Take it easy, Ferrari fans—even your engines aren't performing the way they should lately. 🙂

Joshua Newman2 said:Whoa:

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/82153

The toxic relationship between Vettel's Red Bull and the Renault engine powering him just keeps dragging on.

Honestly, even an entire season wasn't enough for Red Bull to actually learn anything useful.
I have no clue who made the call on the engine deal, but they should have cut ties with Renault ages ago and given Christian Horner his walking papers. Zelen is clueless, and frankly, so is half the crew sitting on that pit wall. That statement from the race engineer today? It’s nothing but street talk—you don't say stuff like that during a real race.
What is Gerhard Berger even doing there?

Regardless, if you're asking me to pick a winner for 2010, I’d still put my money on Vettel, even though Fernando Alonso is going to be incredibly dangerous if he manages to build a points lead in those first five or six races.

Let's just wait until we hit the overseas races; things are bound to boil over by then.

Morgan Murphy7 said:That guy Nunčak, or whatever his name is, from India... 🤷

He dropped out in the very first lap. 😁

Arthur Roberts12 said:I’m just saying this seems to only happen to him, even though there are four cars out there running on Renault engines

it doesn't feel like a coincidence to me anymore...

and you gotta factor in that Vettel was actually ahead😉

hollowgull5 said:you also have to account for the fact that Vettel was actually leading at one point😉

it happens to him even when he isn't in the lead

dustyskipper77 said:Classic Newey—he focuses on raw speed first and treats reliability like an afterthought. If the car keeps breaking down, they won't stand a chance against Ferrari; Alonso and Massa will be right there to snatch up every gift they get. 😁

A faulty spark plug and general car unreliability are two totally different issues. This one falls squarely on Renault—or whoever is supplying them—since you’d expect a high-tech plug to actually hold up at 18k RPM. I don't recall ever hearing about a spark plug killing an F1 engine like this... honestly, just a rough break for Sebastian Vettel.

Let’s be honest here: Vettel just doesn't have the driving skill, and he’s basically wrecking engines left and right. He’s more like a new version of Kimi Räikkönen—if Kimi could somehow manage to avoid flipping his car during a rally one day. 🙏

dustyskipper77 said:Alonso totally crushed it—showing Massa who's boss right at the start, and then outsmarting that kid Vettel during the race too.

🙄
Wait, what race are you even talking about? I watched the whole thing and didn't see any "outsmarting" happening. All I saw was Alonso choking on Red Bull's exhaust fumes until his engine gave up. Then suddenly "Lonso" breezes past some slow car... and that's apparently the sign he's become a mature driver... wow.
I guess his training sessions just involve kneeling in some little chapel praying to a saint that everyone ahead of him dies from exhaust poisoning, huh...

Morgan Murphy7 said:Let’s get real, Vettel can't drive for beans and he's basically just wrecking engines at this point.

Let's be even more realistic here... 🙏

Nobody actually knows what they're talking about 🙏

Morgan Murphy7 said:Let's be honest, Sebastian Vettel doesn't have the hands for this and he's just killing engines. He's basically a new Kimi Räikkönen, if you assume he won't eventually end up stuck in a rally car roof one day. 🙏

Goddammit Newey, if he ever actually designs for Renault 😬 😉
😲 Wait, what am I even talking about? It's not like I'm some kind of Vettel fan...😁

Arthur Doyle70 said:If Adrian Newey had been tasked with designing the engine for the team waiting for Renault 😬 😉 it might have actually turned out to be something decent
😲 Wait, hold on, what am I even saying? It’s not like I’m some huge fan of Sebastian Vettel...😁

The Renault era is long gone

It's basically like driving a Chevy Nova at this point 😁

Morgan Murphy7 said:there's no more Renault

it's basically just a Lada 😁

Oh... my bad...😁 🙏

mistybear87 said:I picked a great woman 😍 😬

🤣 🤣 you really did—no doubt about it. just hope every single race ends up being incredibly boring so 😍 Pat stays happy at home 😛

I think it’s high time I stopped keeping you all in the dark and gave you an exclusive breakdown of the mystery surrounding Vettel's engines (and a few other things, for that matter).

It’s all Flavio Briatore's fault.

The story kicks off at the start of last season when early testing confirmed the Renault team's darkest suspicions: they had engineered yet another dud. They knew this wouldn't do anything to help retain Fernando Alonso, who is practically screaming for wins and dreaming in scarlet. Since it was already obvious that Alonso's stay wouldn't be a long-term affair, the groundwork had to be laid for his inevitable return once he eventually exits.

At that point, Briatore ordered his team to devise subtle, hard-to-detect ways to sabotage Vettel's engines. This was the masterstroke: a plan to fuel Vettel's growing frustration within the Red Bull car, while ensuring the Renault engines remained bulletproof for everyone else on the grid.

Simultaneously, he pulled a low blow by threatening Ron Dennis, hinting he'd expose his little affair with John Hewitt unless Ron vetoed Red Bull's move to Mercedes engines. It was a calculated play to protect his own interests regarding excess production capacity at the engine plant, while simultaneously preventing Red Bull from opting for reliable power that wouldn't fail them. We all know how it played out: the veto was issued, Ron Dennis slunk away from the F1 world in disgrace, and John Hewitt even nudged the Japanese contingent to clear out entirely, preventing a scandal that would make Max's entourage look virtuous by comparison.

By the end of last year, Alonso made the expected jump to Ferrari, leaving Renault to mourn their most decorated driver. It was immediately apparent to everyone that Felipe Massa wouldn't be able to keep pace, and that Kimi was essentially gone. Ferrari would need a second driver capable of matching the perpetually simmering Alonso, and they would look for salvation in none other than the increasingly frustrated Vettel—whose engine failures will once again conveniently prevent him from clinching a championship.

With Vettel arriving at Ferrari, Alonso will find himself reliving that old, somewhat forgotten anxiety he felt back in 2007 when Lewis Hamilton was busy giving him driving lessons at McLaren. Beyond the bruise to his massive ego, his dream of a perfect red squad—where he could pair up with a seven-time champion and announce their joint retirement to a life of bingo and trashy TV—will go up in smoke.

Returning to McLaren is, of course, off the table, as Hamilton will have evolved from the lead driver into the team principal and his own personal race engineer by then. As for Red Bull, nobody in their right mind would sign up there, given their reputation for blowing up engines more reliably than Jacques Houdek makes pastries. However, there is one team where he has always been welcome, a team that treated him with nothing but care. He just happens to find himself there alongside his closest friend among the drivers (that boy with the prominent nose), and stepping back into the cockpit of the team management will be his mentor and friend, Flavio, who is trading a year-long sabbatical in the style of Ross Brawn for a stroll along the pit Wall.

And they shall live happily ever after.

There you have it. Now you know.