2009 Grand Prix of China - April 19th

🙂

Jonathan Booth5 said:Well, I guess that was a pretty decent opening 🙏

I mean, obviously, it worked perfectly when I was the one running the show
thanks😎

Nah. I don't really think we're going to see any massive shifts coming down the pike.
Brawn GP, Red Bull Racing, and Toyota are likely staying right where they are—the heavy hitters at the top of the pack.
Maybe even BMW, if they play their cards right.

See, my take is that Ferrari and McLaren aren't going to make those big aerodynamic breakthroughs until they actually get back home to their home turf in America. I just can't help but wonder... will it be too little, too late for those two teams?

Haha, I’m not entirely sold on the claim made above.
To be honest, Nigel Tozzi spent an hour and a half delivering opening statements at yesterday's hearing, and if a guy can successfully swindle McLiarse out of $100 million, I don't see why it would be any trouble for him to mess with Brawn GP. Yes, I am referring to the difuzor, and we should expect a final decision sometime this afternoon.

Everyone seems to have written off Ferrari, but they say those who laugh last, laugh longest...😁
If the regulators decide to ban the difuzor, then god help the rest of them, because here comes Ferrari...👍

slynomad32 said:Everyone wrote off Ferrari, but hey, they say laughter is the best medicine—especially when you're the one laughing last.😁
If they ban diffusers, we’re all screwed. Ferrari, here I come.👍

And why on earth do you think Ferrari could actually outpace BMW, Red Bull, Toyota, or Williams if they don't have a difuzor? You really think they're faster than Brawn GP without one?☕ I’m not entirely convinced that the DD diffuser is such a massive game-changer on its own. Sure, it’s an advantage, but I don't see these three teams suddenly falling behind Force India because of it. They might slip a couple of spots in the standings, but even with that dip, they'll still be sitting comfortably ahead of Ferrari and MCM. ☕

It would be a massive win for Ferrari and MCM if they just made diffusers legal again. If they could design their own, they might actually stand a chance at catching up to some of these other teams. Honestly, given their budget and sheer manpower, it should be the easiest thing in the world for them to pull off.☕

stormybadger8 said:And why on earth would you think Ferrari could outpace BMW, Red Bull, or be certain they’ll beat Brawn GP, Toyota, and Williams without a difuzor...☕ I'm not entirely convinced that this DD difuzor provides such a massive advantage in its own right; it’s certainly an edge, sure, but saying those three teams will drop below Force India without it? That’s highly unlikely... they might slip a couple of spots in the standings, but even with that dip, they'd still remain ahead of Ferrari and MCM... ☕

It would actually serve Ferrari and MCM much better if difuzors were legalized again, allowing them to develop their own versions to potentially overtake certain teams... given their sheer scale and the amount of capital at their disposal, they should find it the easiest path to implementation...☕

I PARTIALLY AGREE AND YOU HAVE A POINT BUT I HAVE MY OWN BLIND THEORY BECAUSE YOU KNOW THAT DIE-HARD FANS WILL DEFEND THEIR TEAMS AT ANY COST...
😁

And besides, if they end up being ruled illegal, I can't help but wonder how the Brawn team would handle it.
Their car might end up looking like a total wreck...🤷

slynomad32 said:And honestly, if they actually turn out to be illegal, how do you think the Brawn guys would even handle it?
Their car might end up looking like a total wreck without them.🤷

One thing is certain: any team running those diffusers definitely has a standard version ready to go, and quite a few teams using the basic setup likely have their double-decker versions either finished or nearly there.

Either way, things should get pretty interesting at the GP of USA-Austin. 👍

I wasn't aware that using caps lock was considered shouting... my apologies🤷😉

mistybear87 said:One thing is certain: every single team running those double-decker diffusers already has a standard setup ready to go, and a good number of the teams sticking with the traditional design are likely already halfway through developing their own double-decker versions...

In any case, things should get interesting at the GP of USA-Austin 👍

But honestly, we won't truly know where everyone stands until the playing field is leveled and everyone is running the same specs ☕

slynomad32 said:And let's be real—if those parts turn out to be illegal, how do you think the Brawn guys would handle it?
Their car would probably end up looking like a total wreck🤷

Rubens Barrichello mentioned his diffuser was basically trashed after the first lap in Australia—so clearly, it's not all about the diffuser...

Kevin Long20 said:Rubens Barrichello mentioned his diffuser got absolutely trashed right after the first lap in Australia, so clearly, it’s not just about the diffuser itself...

Look, obviously it isn't just about the diffuser; it's an aero component that triggers a whole domino effect of issues, but if it was actually smashed, there's no way that car would have had that kind of grip.☕

The diffusers have officially been cleared as legal.
Now, I expect we’ll see a massive wave of similar tactics during the GP of USA-Austin, much like those clever little tricks McLaren used with their taped-up diffusers. 😁

slynomad32 said:Everyone seems to have written off Ferrari, but as they say, it's the last one laughing who laughs the hardest.😁
If they actually go through with banning diffusers, it’s going to be a disaster for everyone involved. If that happens, I’m officially switching my allegiance—Ferrari, here I come.👍

And even that final glimmer of hope is slipping through your fingers.😂😂

Maybe you’ll finally find some satisfaction once they actually manage to pick up a few points here and there.🙂

Because at the end of the day, wins just aren't happening.😛

slynomad32 said:I wasn't aware that using all caps was considered shouting; my apologies.🤷😉

Well, now you know.🤣😂

And please, do keep it in mind moving forward.☕

Jonathan Booth5 said:The diffusers have been cleared as legal.
I can already see a bunch of teams trying to pull stunts like the McLaren ones at the GP of USA-Austin, where they were basically just taping everything together to cheat the system. 😁

And don't even get me started on the aero paint... 👍

My expectations are getting a little higher here—if Renault manages to nail that double decker setup, I could actually see Alonso standing on the podium.
If they blow it, though, I’m sticking to my original call: Alonso finishes in the points.

ironfalcon43 said:your last bit of hope is slipping through your fingers...😂😂

maybe you'll finally learn to be satisfied with just a few points here and there if they actually manage to score something...🙂

because winning isn't everything when you have nothing...😛

we'll see how it plays out...☕
And unfortunately, I’d go as far as to say things look even bleaker for you over at McLaren...☕

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/74483

"The thing that really gets under our skin is that we actually went to [Charlie] Whiting to ask for some clarity on a diffuser setup just like this one, only to be told straight up that it wouldn't fly, so we dropped the idea entirely despite our engineers having very similar concepts in mind," Marko remarked.

"I can't help but wonder how much this is going to mess with cornering speeds. My gut tells me we're going to run into trouble shortly when these cars start moving far too fast, and honestly, the way that double diffuser manipulates airflow is almost certainly going to make overtaking a nightmare all over again, which flies right in the face of the actual spirit behind the regulations we all agreed upon in the working groups."

this specific part is absolutely crucial....

honestly, I've had it with those amateurs over at the FIA, that whole bureaucratic mess is just completely unprofessional

oops... I'll probably end up getting a yellow card from mistybear87 again for acting out like this😁

Roger Williams3 said:I’ll admit my expectations have climbed a bit—if General Motors pulls off that double Diffuser, I want to see Alonso standing on the podium.
If they don't, then I'm sticking to my original prediction: Alonso finishes with some points.

Word on the street is that General Motors might already have their own version of the double Diffuser ready to go...

By the way, both Red Bull and General Motors are claiming they went to the NASCAR officials with a nearly identical diffuser concept, only to be told straight up that the whole thing is illegal.

Honestly, at this point, who can actually say what's true anymore? 🤷