[Misc] F1 2021

[Icy Gull]

In changeable conditions, its always noticeable that the top drivers seems to make the best of it. Hamilton and Max 1-2. Alonso bagging an unnoticed 6th, Raikonnen and Russell getting points in slow boat cars. Norris should have won today and that's where Mclaren should have made the decision for him with the radar info rather than the namby pamby "What do you think Lando? like it was some crap focus group on breakfast cereals. Tell him to pit otherwise he will be driving a lorry next year. His time will come though, too good not to win.

Missing Ron Dennis there!

 

[A1X]

Jammy Max and not jammy Lewis?

Take away the rain and Lewis finishes 2nd and Max 8th.

 

[KeegansHairPiece]

Take away the rain and Lewis finishes 2nd and Max 8th.

Exactly, and 8th was a very decent performance from Max to get up there when the likes of McClaren, Ferrari, Alpine have got some pace.

Nevertheless with the rain he did something special to get from 8th to 2nd, wasn’t just a pit call, he must have been on it the moment he left the pits.

 

[Deleted member 2719]

Take away the rain and Lewis finishes 2nd and Max 8th.

I agree, but max was not jammy, getting from p20 to p8, it took skill and bravery with a cool head.

Max gained 14pts extra because of the rain, lewis gained his 100th win and 7 pts more because of the rain and Landos adrenalin call to stay out.

Surely they are both a bit jammy That is F1.

I think the anti-maxs brigade are a bit sore that he still got good points and has a new engine.

This year, will keep giving.

 

[Guinness Boy]

I agree, but max was not jammy, getting from p20 to p8, it took skill and bravery with a cool head.

Max gained 14pts extra because of the rain, lewis gained his 100th win and 7 pts more because of the rain and Landos adrenalin call to stay out.

Surely they are both a bit jammy That is F1.

I think the anti-maxs brigade are a bit sore that he still got good points and has a new engine.

This year, will keep giving.

I don't think there's an Anti-Max brigade on here. It's the most entertaining battle for years and pretty much what everyone wanted to see. If Max wins the title at the end he will have deserved it. However, it's clearly a two horse race for the title, involving a British driver so it's not surprising on a site that's mostly got British contributors that most will be patriotically supporting the Brit.

 

[Icy Gull]

I know that Bottas has probably given up but Lewis has been struggling at starts recently as well as overtakes. I was thinking that Lewis might be being outperformed by the younger drivers in decent cars but I am now wondering if he is making the Merc look a much better car than it is by his race craft.

I am struggling to remember the last time the Mercedes looked dominant in race trim and Bottas has been driving like an out of his depth driver all season considering he is in what is perceived as being the best car on some tracks, not just since he got the boot

I reckon the Red Bull and the McClaren are probably the best cars now with the occasional surge by Ferrari.

It will be some achievement if Lewis wins this year and I suggest that Max has to be the red hot favourite. Hopefully the McClarens will continue to mix it with the Mercs and Red Bull for the rest of the season

 

[Nobby Cybergoat]

I know that Bottas has probably given up but Lewis has been struggling at starts recently as well as overtakes. I was thinking that Lewis might be being outperformed by the younger drivers in decent cars but I am now wondering if he is making the Merc look a much better car than it is by his race craft.

I am struggling to remember the last time the Mercedes looked dominant in race trim and Bottas has been driving like an out of his depth driver all season, not just since he got the boot

I reckon the Red Bull and the McClaren are probably the best cars now with the occasional surge by Ferrari.

Yeh, Merc nowhere near as dominant. A car designed to perform from the front and it isn't at the front. Bottas shows just how average it is. Others have caught up and overtaken. Lewis is doing a great job to be in contention this year.

I see Max steadily pulling away from here though.

 

[dolphins]

Yeh, Merc nowhere near as dominant. A car designed to perform from the front and it isn't at the front. Bottas shows just how average it is. Others have caught up and overtaken. Lewis is doing a great job to be in contention this year.

I see Max steadily pulling away from here though.

I thought I read something somewhere a short while back that they've been concentrating their efforts into the design of the 2022 car. Lack of development of this year's car (apart from the odd little tweak) was considered a risk worth taking so that with the dramatically different cars next year, the 2022 Merc would be decent right out the box, without having to do catch-up which it is suspected the other cars will need to do.

 

[Nobby Cybergoat]

I thought I read something somewhere a short while back that they've been concentrating their efforts into the design of the 2022 car. Lack of development of this year's car (apart from the odd little tweak) was considered a risk worth taking so that with the dramatically different cars next year, the 2022 Merc would be decent right out the box, without having to do catch-up which it is suspected the other cars will need to do.

Yeh mate. A few teams have thrown all their chips at next year.

 

[Audax]

I know that Bottas has probably given up but Lewis has been struggling at starts recently as well as overtakes. I was thinking that Lewis might be being outperformed by the younger drivers in decent cars but I am now wondering if he is making the Merc look a much better car than it is by his race craft.

I am struggling to remember the last time the Mercedes looked dominant in race trim and Bottas has been driving like an out of his depth driver all season considering he is in what is perceived as being the best car on some tracks, not just since he got the boot

I reckon the Red Bull and the McClaren are probably the best cars now with the occasional surge by Ferrari.

It will be some achievement if Lewis wins this year and I suggest that Max has to be the red hot favourite. Hopefully the McClarens will continue to mix it with the Mercs and Red Bull for the rest of the season

McLaren and Ferrari are definitely a lot closer to Merc than they were last year,but I'm not sure they can be considered better than the Merc across the season so far. My assessment at the moment:

1. Red Bull. With Verstappen at the wheel, it's the better package. Not by much, however - I suspect even the sensational raw talent that is Verstappen is being held back a touch by the way the RB handles.

2. Mercedes. They're a little up and down, seems a little circuit dependent. On average, close to RBR but not at the same consistently high standard.

3. McLaren. Especially in Norris' hands. Ricciardo stymied somewhat (still, based on Sochi evidence, but getting closer) by the car quirks. Suspect Norris would also improve if the quirk could be ironed out a little. A little track dependent, however, which has kept Ferrari close.

4. Ferrari. More consistent than McLaren, I think due to having a car that's more suited to both drivers. Lacking in the PU side which has meant they've suffered compared to McLaren.

and then from there, I think roughly:

Alpine / Alpha Tauri (hard to say with Tsunoda underperforming)
Aston Martin
Williams (Russell showing what it can do)
Alfa Romeo
...
...
...
Haas

 

[Icy Gull]

McLaren and Ferrari are definitely a lot closer to Merc than they were last year,but I'm not sure they can be considered better than the Merc across the season so far. My assessment at the moment:

1. Red Bull. With Verstappen at the wheel, it's the better package. Not by much, however - I suspect even the sensational raw talent that is Verstappen is being held back a touch by the way the RB handles.

2. Mercedes. They're a little up and down, seems a little circuit dependent. On average, close to RBR but not at the same consistently high standard.

3. McLaren. Especially in Norris' hands. Ricciardo stymied somewhat (still, based on Sochi evidence, but getting closer) by the car quirks. Suspect Norris would also improve if the quirk could be ironed out a little. A little track dependent, however, which has kept Ferrari close.

4. Ferrari. More consistent than McLaren, I think due to having a car that's more suited to both drivers. Lacking in the PU side which has meant they've suffered compared to McLaren.

and then from there, I think roughly:

Alpine / Alpha Tauri (hard to say with Tsunoda underperforming)
Aston Martin
Williams (Russell showing what it can do)
Alfa Romeo
...
...
...
Haas

Can’t disagree with much of that.

I guess my point is whether Lewis is on the wane? He’s 36 now so it has to be a possibility but seeing how he blows Bottas away nearly every race (and did before the new contract renewal with few exceptions) it has made me reconsider. Or is it that he is making the Merc look better than it is?

 

[hans kraay fan club]

But you forget he was racing in a car that was streets ahead of the other cars, I used to beat everyone at dodgems like that, I was untouchable in car 5, everyone in car 5 won, it was local knowledge.
100 wins on paper looks impressive, take in the whole picture it looks meh.

How do you 'win' dodgems?

 

[KeegansHairPiece]

How do you 'win' dodgems?

It pretty much sums him up.

 

[Guinness Boy]

How do you 'win' dodgems?

I now have this vision of Mouldy jumping out of car 5 yelling "I'VE WON, I'VE WON" and being regarded by the other drivers in much the way people do the special kid who's just been on the Big Wheel for the first time.

 

[Deleted member 2719]

I don't think there's an Anti-Max brigade on here. It's the most entertaining battle for years and pretty much what everyone wanted to see. If Max wins the title at the end he will have deserved it. However, it's clearly a two horse race for the title, involving a British driver so it's not surprising on a site that's mostly got British contributors that most will be patriotically supporting the Brit.

Okay, let's say they like him and are enjoying the current action and future action.

There are a lot of Brits on here that do not fly the flag though, check out the Brexit thread.

Back on topic, I have a crush on Lando, probably my first gay experience, should I tell the missus

 

[Deleted member 2719]

How do you 'win' dodgems?

Come on you have done it, elbow over the edge, white shoes, peroxide hair, shouting "lets ave it" to the fairground man who has jumped in NO5.

I now have this vision of Mouldy jumping out of car 5 yelling "I'VE WON, I'VE WON" and being regarded by the other drivers in much the way people do the special kid who's just been on the Big Wheel for the first time.

You just could not resist it, you have just outed yourself as Raleigh Chopper, king of the abuse throwing.

 

[Audax]

Can’t disagree with much of that.

I guess my point is whether Lewis is on the wane? He’s 36 now so it has to be a possibility but seeing how he blows Bottas away nearly every race (and did before the new contract renewal with few exceptions) it has made me reconsider. Or is it that he is making the Merc look better than it is?

I started that post intending to include another nugget re: Mercedes and totally forgot ... Thinking back to pre-season testing, Mercedes were way off the pace and looked to be in serious trouble. Between the tests and the first race they managed to recover a lot of performance, but I suspect lurking beneath the surface they likely do still have something "not right" with this year's car. It's left them in a position where they can find themselves "in the pack" with a car that's designed to be fast "out front". Much like the mega-quick Red Bull of the Vettel title years struggled once it was behind another car, I think the Merc and it's characteristics also see it struggle when it's in the dirty air.

 

[Garry Nelson's Left Foot]

I know that Bottas has probably given up but Lewis has been struggling at starts recently as well as overtakes. I was thinking that Lewis might be being outperformed by the younger drivers in decent cars but I am now wondering if he is making the Merc look a much better car than it is by his race craft.

I am struggling to remember the last time the Mercedes looked dominant in race trim and Bottas has been driving like an out of his depth driver all season considering he is in what is perceived as being the best car on some tracks, not just since he got the boot

I reckon the Red Bull and the McClaren are probably the best cars now with the occasional surge by Ferrari.

It will be some achievement if Lewis wins this year and I suggest that Max has to be the red hot favourite. Hopefully the McClarens will continue to mix it with the Mercs and Red Bull for the rest of the season

I find the red bull/mercedes debate really interesting. The red bull has been designed for Max and in his hands it's the fastest car on the track. Lewis is battling manfully in an inferior car but I think it's only inferior to Max's red bull, not Perez's.

I had the same view as you about Bottas, he looks like he's given up the ghost and has done for most of the season so I was really surprised to see that he's about 30 points ahead of Perez in the driver's championship. It's surprising but he's outperforming Perez by a fair bit. The Mercedes despite being inferior is actually top of the constructors championship.

It's an interesting situation.

 

[banjo]

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=r4OkujLInlA


Where’s my LEGO.

 

[Icy Gull]

Lewis qualified on pole using mediums in Q2. Question, as he has been penalised by 10 places due to an engine change can he not choose whatever tyre he wants like everyone else who didn’t finish in the top 10?