Grand Prix of Japan (Indianapolis) 10/09/2011

Satisfied—at least we managed to get past Nice 😳

And I went ahead and snagged one of those three podium spots for the race, so I don't have to stress about fighting for a view 😍

Gumbek is absolutely dominating🙂

Honestly, if we could just manage to secure pole position once in a while, we wouldn't have to constantly invent these elaborate tactical schemes just to scrape our way toward a victory.🙂

I only saw Rubens' wreck... it’s wild how he just flew over the gravel like it was nothing more than grass... good luck dealing with actual sand later 🙄

Chris Ortiz said:Gumbek is absolutely dominating🙂

Honestly, if we could just manage to secure pole position once in a while, we wouldn't have to constantly invent these elaborate tactical schemes just to scrape our way toward a victory.🙂

It seems Red Bull has simply settled into a calm state—the proverbial calm before the storm. Tomorrow during qualifying and again on Sunday, everything will finally be laid bare.

There is no way Vettel and Red Bull are going to just hand McLaren and Button the front row on a silver platter.

People seem so incredibly certain about the outcome that they are already mentally preparing for the 2012 season; frankly, whether they finish first or twenty-fourth in Practice 1 or Practice 2 hardly matters at this point.

When Sunday arrives, the only thing that truly carries weight is the points.

Michael Lee4 said:I only saw Rubens' wreck... it’s wild how he just flew over the gravel like it was nothing more than grass... good luck dealing with actual sand later 🙄

And again, if it hadn't been for that sand, Hamilton would have been the champion back in 2007 😉

mistybear87 said:And again, if it hadn't been for that sand, Hamilton would have been the champion back in 2007 😉

Look, I'm talking about safety here, so cut the nonsense. If that gravel trap had actually done its job, Rubens wouldn't have totaled the car. Bottom line: it’s unacceptable for a car to just fly over a barrier like that and slam into the tires. I'm not saying the barrier shouldn't be there, I'm saying they need to stop the car, not let it skip across the track like a stone on water. 🙂

Michael Lee4 said:Look, I'm talking about safety here, so cut the nonsense. If that gravel trap had actually done its job, Rubens wouldn't have totaled the car. Bottom line: it’s unacceptable for a car to just fly over a barrier like that and slam into the tires. I'm not saying the barrier shouldn't be there, I'm saying they need to stop the car, not let it skip across the track like a stone on water. 🙂

It's neither the first nor the last time. 🤷

Brian Campbell36 said:It seems Red Bull has simply settled into a calm state—the proverbial calm before the storm. Tomorrow during qualifying and again on Sunday, everything will finally be laid bare.

There is no way Vettel and Red Bull are going to just hand McLaren and Button the front row on a silver platter.

People seem so incredibly certain about the outcome that they are already mentally preparing for the 2012 season; frankly, whether they finish first or twenty-fourth in Practice 1 or Practice 2 hardly matters at this point.

When Sunday arrives, the only thing that truly carries weight is the points.

Exactly.
It’s not the first time I've seen Red Bull treat Friday practice like a casual Sunday drive.
I remember seeing Ferrari sitting at the top of the charts on Fridays before, making you think they had something special. Then Saturday rolls around, everyone else finds another gear, and suddenly it turns out Ferrari was just faster during those specific Friday laps. They can't seem to replicate that pace once the pressure of qualifying hits. It just stops dead.

Raymond Anderson4 said:Exactly.
It’s not the first time I've seen Red Bull treat Friday practice like a casual Sunday drive.
I remember seeing Ferrari sitting at the top of the charts on Fridays before, making you think they had something special. Then Saturday rolls around, everyone else finds another gear, and suddenly it turns out Ferrari was just faster during those specific Friday laps. They can't seem to replicate that pace once the pressure of qualifying hits. It just stops dead.

Actually, when Red Bull looks lazy during practice, that's when they're absolutely lethal on race day. I'm more worried when they're sitting P1 or P2 in FP1, FP2, or FP3—that usually means they're going to struggle.🤣

Michael Lee4 said:Look, I'm talking about safety here, so cut the nonsense. If that gravel trap had actually done its job, Rubens wouldn't have totaled the car. Bottom line: it’s unacceptable for a car to just fly over a barrier like that and slam into the tires. I'm not saying the barrier shouldn't be there, I'm saying they need to stop the car, not let it skip across the track like a stone on water. 🙂

For that exact same reason, today's cars just aren't built to handle driving through heavy rain. 😢

Come on sleepers, wake up🙂

stormybadger8 said:Come on sleepers, wake up🙂

🙂

Kobayashi No1 🙏👋🙂😍

stormybadger8 said:Come on sleepers, wake up🙂

Hey, take it easy on me. I've had enough already after a restless night spent dreaming about you and mistybear87! 😱

Frank Collins85 said:Hey, take it easy on me. I've had enough already after a restless night spent dreaming about you and mistybear87! 😱

😱 You're dreaming about me? 😱

I find myself wondering the same thing... anyway, hey guys, I have to head out to the countryside for a bit, so I won't be able to catch any of the qualifying sessions.

Kamui 👋

Hamilton 🤣

stormybadger8 said:Hamilton 🤣

Can you imagine how he'd look without those glasses? 🙂🙂

I wonder if McLaren can maintain this level of proximity to Vettel and Red Bull tomorrow.

Japanese Grand Prix 2011
Qualifying

1 Sebastian Vettel (Germany) Red Bull 1'30.466
2 Jenson Button (UK) McLaren 1'30.475
3 Lewis Hamilton (UK) McLaren 1'30.617
4 Felipe Massa (Brazil) Ferrari 1'30.804
5 Fernando Alonso (Spain) Ferrari 1'30.886
6 Mark Webber (Australia) Red Bull 1'31.156
7 Michael Schumacher (Germany) Mercedes-Benz 1'32.116
8 B Senna (Brazil) Renault 1'32.297
9 Vitaly Petrov (Russia) Renault 1'32.245
10 Kamui Kobayashi (Japan) Sauber 1'32.380
11 Sutil (Germany) Force India 1'32.463
12 P di Resta (UK) Force India 1'32.746
13 Rubens Barrichello (Brazil) Williams 1'33.079
14 Pastor Maldonado (Venezuela) Williams 1'33.224
15 Buemi (Switzerland) Toro Rosso 1'33.227
16 Jaime Alguersuar (Spain) Toro Rosso 1'33.427
17 Perez (Mexico) Sauber 1'34.704
18 Heikki Kovalainen (Finland) Lotus 1'35.454
19 Jarno Trulli (Italy) Lotus 1'35.514
20 J d'Ambrosio (Belgium) Virgin 1'36.439
21 Timo Glock (Germany) Virgin 1'36.507
22 Daniel Ricciardo (Australia) HRT 1'37.846
23 N Rosberg (Germany) Mercedes-Benz -
24 Vitantonio Liuzzi (Italy) HRT -

Vettel has managed to edge ahead once again, but Button is breathing down his neck. If the weather stays clear and those stars align for a dry track, the sheer pace shown by McLaren suggests we are in for a spectacular race tomorrow.
It seems Massa is starting to consistently outpace Alonso. One has to wonder: is Ferrari simply incapable of breaking into the top four during qualifying sessions?
As for Webber, he is performing exactly as expected; he always demonstrates the true strength of Red Bull during the race and will likely fight tooth and nail for a spot on the podium.

What on earth happened with Rosberg? Schumacher looks absolutely brilliant in 7th, whereas where would Rosberg have landed if he hadn't faltered? Perhaps a position or two right there alongside him?