[Misc] F1 2021

[pb21]

It is a rule that they have to use at least 2 of the tyre compounds in a dry race.

Oh, I didn't know this. So, Hamilton would likely have to have hard tyres fitted if he intends to stop once?

 

[Marty___Mcfly]

Don’t know anything about F1, just jumping on the bandwagon as it’s so close this season. Surely both teams have run simulations on the quickest way to complete the race. Hence why Max is starting with the soft.

It’s not that simple. It’s also about track position, what your direct competitors choose to do during the race and seeing off their challenge, what the rest of the field do - they try to avoid coming out if the pits in traffic, any incidents / safety cars etc, sometimes the tyres don’t perform as they expect, weather conditions, etc.

The teams have a whole team of guys back at base working through thousands of strategy permutations DURING the race based on what’s happening.

 

[Marty___Mcfly]

Oh, I didn't know this. So, Hamilton would likely have to have hard tyres fitted if he intends to stop once?

Yes if they go for a one-stop strategy. If they did 2 stops could go for MED-MED-SOFT or MED-SOFT-MED

 

[amexer]

Soft tyre- faster / more grip, but goes off quicker so lasts for less laps

Medium- less grip than softs (so slower), last longer / more durable than softs.

Hard- less grip than mediums (so slower), last longer than mediums.

It is a rule that they have to use at least 2 of the tyre compounds in a dry race.

Usually due to the life span of the various tyre types the optimum race strategy will be one or two pitstops.

This explains potential strategies for today-

https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/...e-abu-dhabi-grand.6hiSWQGOq4LE0hQUTH5AHa.html

They could actually both one-stop then go into hards - with Lewis just having a longer first stint.

Thank you Very informative. Last question. In a dry race why dont they use the same one tyre. Surely want somebody to win race because they drove better not because they made a better choice of tyres

 

[GREASED WEASEL]

Mazepin tested positive

Perhaps no SC after all then

 

[Garry Nelson's Left Foot]

I don't think so

I think LH would chose P2 (med) over P1 (soft)

Maybe but the way I see it is:

Hamilton has to finish, and finish ahead of Verstappen.

Verstappen's on pole, on softs and will, barring a disaster, get away quicker and head off into the distance. Unless Hamilton can jump him in the pits he will have to pass Verstappen on track. That's a very difficult thing to do at the best of times but when the red bull has faster straight line speed(as shown on Sky during the breakdown of both drivers' qualifying lap) AND Max wins if they both crash then that to me suggests the advantage is with Verstappen.

However, I'm not Lewis Hamilton(I've been known to crash golf carts...) so my armchair reasoning could be way off!

This still seems to be the prevailing wisdom:

“The two title contenders start on different types of tyres, after Verstappen made a mistake and locked up in the second part of qualifying and damaged the set he wanted to use for the opening stint.”BBC

Max is set to win the initial sprint race but he is actually in a marathon race.

Yes, I saw the flatspotting in qualifying yesterday. So they go to hards if they're one stopping and hards and back to softs if they two stop. I'm not sure how significant the flat spot is in the scheme of things now Verstappen is on pole.

Hopefully we get a fitting finale to what has been an outstanding season.

 

[GOM]

Red Bull altered the downforce on the rear wing prior to qualifying to increase straight line speed.
It will be interesting to see if this has any effect on cornering with a full fuel load, which I don't think they did in practice with that wing setting.

 

[Marty___Mcfly]

I wouldn’t assume the quali lap from Max and Lewis is necessarily reflective of race pace. I mean it could be, but I think there is still the potential for Merc to boss things today in terms of race pace.

 

[Bold Seagull]

Was anyone else surprised that Lewis again went out ahead of Bottas on his last run, having seen the power of the tow?

For me Merc are probably quite happy to be second and looking to win it on strategy, rather than have Max on softs gunning for Lewis at T1. Sit LH in behind and wait for the tyre deg. Lewis looks after his well (though I think we're all past seeing through the "these tyres are done. man" radio call ).

Either that or Bottas' last act in the team is to screw over the guy who's always made him look as average as he actually is.

Not really thought about it like that. Did Mercedes make a qualifying strategy call as soon as Max scrubbed those medium tyres in Q2, last thing they would need is Max charging on a faster tyre at the start of the race. Time will tell, although my son’s U12 match has been moved to 12.30 so likely watching on All4 if I can get a signal at Braypool!!

 

[Bry Nylon]

Mazepin tested positive

Perhaps no SC after all then

That’s the icing on the cake

 

[GREASED WEASEL]

Maybe but the way I see it is:

Hamilton has to finish, and finish ahead of Verstappen.

Verstappen's on pole, on softs and will, barring a disaster, get away quicker and head off into the distance. Unless Hamilton can jump him in the pits he will have to pass Verstappen on track. That's a very difficult thing to do at the best of times but when the red bull has faster straight line speed(as shown on Sky during the breakdown of both drivers' qualifying lap) AND Max wins if they both crash then that to me suggests the advantage is with Verstappen.

However, I'm not Lewis Hamilton(I've been known to crash golf carts...) so my armchair reasoning could be way off!

I think it depends on the tyre deg on MVs car with full fuel loads

You may well be right,from another armchair reasoner

 

[Marty___Mcfly]

Thank you Very informative. Last question. In a dry race why dont they use the same one tyre. Surely want somebody to win race because they drove better not because they made a better choice of tyres

The tyre strategy is part of the sport / the competition. I guess it’s meant to make things more interesting. They used to do refuelling as well but that got binned off and now they just have a tank big enough to run the whole race. I quite enjoyed the ‘fuel’ element of the strategies and arguably that was easier to fans to understand than all the tyre stuff- eg put less fuel in to be lighter / faster but have to do more pit stops, or put more in to go slower for a longer stint. Appreciate it was a bit dangerous with the odd fire etc but overall I thought it added something.

 

[GREASED WEASEL]

That’s the icing on the cake

Excellent!

 

[Bold Seagull]

In Q2 I feel like it was a strategy choice for Max to set his fastest time on softs. I know he had a lock up on mediums but he could have just put another set of those on and bagged a time that would have secured a top ten spot no worries - like Merc did on mediums.

Red Bull it seems took the call to prioritise a better getaway at the start which the softs will give them- so they must think they have a strategy to win the race from there.

For Lewis- his Q3 lap looked fine but no ragged in any way which made he think it was more of a (fast) banker lap than pushing on the absolute limit. If I were Lewis, I think I would rather go into the first corner behind Max than in front of him- Lewis in an interview after said ‘at least I can see where he is from there’

So I still hold out hope that Lewis could have very good race pace and maybe he isn’t that worried starting P2 - Max being on softs possibly a bonus in strategy terms.

Horner said that with little time left in Q2, and midfield teams setting fast times on softs on an evolving track, they felt they couldn’t risk a poor lap on meds and potentially not making Q3. I think they felt Max could still make a mistake or 2 on the softs and still set a time. Perhaps that’s just Horner, but it made sense that without a time in the bank in Q2, it was a risk with 1 run left.

 

[Garry Nelson's Left Foot]

I think it depends on the tyre deg on MVs car with full fuel loads

You may well be right,from another armchair reasoner

Yeah, I've happily skipped over things like tyre deg and the like because I have no idea whatsoever about it beyond it's a thing!

Hopefully it'll be a cracker of a race.

 

[Marty___Mcfly]

Horner said that with little time left in Q2, and midfield teams setting fast times on softs on an evolving track, they felt they couldn’t risk a poor lap on meds and potentially not making Q3. I think they felt Max could still make a mistake or 2 on the softs and still set a time. Perhaps that’s just Horner, but it made sense that without a time in the bank in Q2, it was a risk with 1 run left.

Yes I see that played a part. But also- before quali alot of the chat was about whether Red Bull would choose - as a strategy option - to run Max on softs in Q2 so that they would start on softs. At that stage it seemed like Merc had the faster car - so Max would likely be starting P2 and the softs would give an advantage off the line.

I doubt they would have chosen to start on softs starting P1 - but hindsight is a wonderful thing and they went into quali expecting to be underdogs.

 

[Icy Gull]

I can’t help thinking that this might be a massive anti climax, much like the overhyped MASSIVE PL games are so often

No Sheffield Wednesday comments please

 

[Deleted member 2719]

Imagine last lap max leading lewis by 1.5 seconds lewis decides to go late nudge max off and he wins the race.

May the best man win...........or the best car win.

 

[Icy Gull]

Imagine last lap max leading lewis by 1.5 seconds lewis decides to go late nudge max off and he wins the race.

May the best man win...........or the best car win.

Hedging your bets I see! Max wins and it’s the best man winning, Lewis wins and it’s the best car winning. Am I right?

 

[amexer]

The tyre strategy is part of the sport / the competition. I guess it’s meant to make things more interesting. They used to do refuelling as well but that got binned off and now they just have a tank big enough to run the whole race. I quite enjoyed the ‘fuel’ element of the strategies and arguably that was easier to fans to understand than all the tyre stuff- eg put less fuel in to be lighter / faster but have to do more pit stops, or put more in to go slower for a longer stint. Appreciate it was a bit dangerous with the odd fire etc but overall I thought it added something.

Thank you once again.Will watch any sport but have steered away from F1 because didnt fully understand but because of today will be watching.
For people like me dont think tyre issues make it more interesting. As I said I want in a tight race want winner to be best driver not the one who makes best tyre decisions