F1 fans?

[dcmidnight]

I dont get the point if you're in the bottom half of the field - is it just essentially a big practice session?

 

Seems weird to me, they need to stop messing with the formats so much, it becomes impossible for fans to follow even if you watch every week.

[lefthack]

Mac and Charles running identical lap times with very different sector times, that was nutty. I agree that Charles is the best qualifier on the grid, but he can't seem to convert the poles to wins. Tomorrow should be fun to watch even though it has little if any impact on Sunday. 

[lefthack]

It's nice to see KMag step up now that he has a teammate that can race. 

[lefthack]

🤣

[golfortennis]

Agreed on the weekend format as well.  All yesterday did was confirm that it would be a RB 1-2 barring retirement.  Race was a snoozer but....

 

Anyone else finding F1 to be turning into something of a clown show?  First they take way too long to deploy the safety car, which only affected RB's race, but still.  Then you have the absolutely disgusting incident in the pit lane on lap 51.  Does someone in F1 think it's been long enough since someone was last killed on track, they're due for another one?  Any publicity is good publicity and all....unreal. 

[Barto78]

Looking forward to this weekends race.  Should be dominated again by RBR, but glad to see McLaren make some gains last week.  The best part of the season will be the race for 2nd-4th on the grid and to see if McLaren can ever get their act together.  

 

Go Max & RBR

[lefthack]

I want to see Alonso or George on the podium. Checo takes out Lewis in the first corner and the both DNF. 

[lefthack]

Watching FP2 and my wife says "oh God, not Danica again. I don't hate her because she's a woman, I hate her because she's an idiot and a terrible commentator." 🤣 

 

I think this will be a good race. 

[iBanesto]

Perez the "Street Race King".

 

[dcmidnight]

On 5/5/2023 at 10:21 PM, lefthack said:

Watching FP2 and my wife says "oh God, not Danica again. I don't hate her because she's a woman, I hate her because she's an idiot and a terrible commentator." 🤣 

 

I think this will be a good race. 

 

For someone that has as much seat time as she does - shes just awful.

[golfortennis]

So I was all set yesterday afternoon, saw lap 1.... and I can't tell you the rest because I just woke up this morning.  But I'm happy to report it appears my insomnia has been cured.

 

At least there were no additions to the clown show files this week.

[lefthack]

I enjoyed watching Max charge from 10th ( he lost a place at the start) to 1st. I also enjoyed watching George pass Lewis. KMag was running top 10 in a Haas! Passing a Ferrari in a freaking Haas! 

 

While not the best track, if they put the DRS zones back where they were, there would be better racing. But there were some great scraps and no safety cars.

 

Alonso is 4/5 podiums so far this year, that's nutty. 

 

<edit> Even Roger enjoyed it. 🤣

Edited May 8, 2023 by lefthack

[JimmyC59]

Did you see before the driver introductions, they wouldn't let Jackie Stewart past the ropes.

JACKIE STEWART!!!

[lefthack]

18 minutes ago, JimmyC59 said:

Did you see before the driver introductions, they wouldn't let Jackie Stewart past the ropes.

JACKIE STEWART!!!

 

I'm sorry sir... "You mean Sir" - Sir Jackie Stewart 🤣

[TiScape]

8 hours ago, JimmyC59 said:

Did you see before the driver introductions, they wouldn't let Jackie Stewart past the ropes.

JACKIE STEWART!!!

yet they let Vin past… 🤯

Edited May 9, 2023 by TiScape

[lefthack]

[iBanesto]

18 hours ago, lefthack said:

I enjoyed watching Max charge from 10th ( he lost a place at the start) to 1st. I also enjoyed watching George pass Lewis. KMag was running top 10 in a Haas! Passing a Ferrari in a freaking Haas! 

 

While not the best track, if they put the DRS zones back where they were, there would be better racing. But there were some great scraps and no safety cars.

 

Alonso is 4/5 podiums so far this year, that's nutty. 

 

<edit> Even Roger enjoyed it. 🤣

 

Haha doesn't even look like Federer.

 

[golfortennis]

21 hours ago, lefthack said:

I enjoyed watching Max charge from 10th ( he lost a place at the start) to 1st. I also enjoyed watching George pass Lewis. KMag was running top 10 in a Haas! Passing a Ferrari in a freaking Haas! 

 

While not the best track, if they put the DRS zones back where they were, there would be better racing. But there were some great scraps and no safety cars.

 

Alonso is 4/5 podiums so far this year, that's nutty. 

 

<edit> Even Roger enjoyed it. 🤣

 

About the only thing of your first paragraph that was something was Magnussen.  Hamilton let Russell go by him(they were on different strategies and weren't going to fight).  And Verstappen?  For pete's sake it took him less than 35 laps to go from 9th to having a 30 second lead on every other  car except his teammate, who was 15 behind.  On one level that seems impressive, but on the other, that's what he was supposed to do with that car.  And he would have been on pole if Leclerc doesn't cause the red flag.  Full credit to Red Bull for putting the best car out there, but it doesn't make for interesting racing.  At least Ferrari and Red Bull sometimes made it interesting during Mercedes' dominance. 

 

I'm not even sure how impressed I'd be if he won starting from pit lane.  That car is just so much better.  Unless we have a Ferrari 2019(?) situation waiting to sprout?   

 

[mshills]

43 minutes ago, golfortennis said:

Full credit to Red Bull for putting the best car out there, but it doesn't make for interesting racing.

 

100% agree.  No matter the era, one single dominant ride makes me lose interest quickly.

 

I did laugh at security trying to keep Sir Jackie Stewart behind the rope and not letting him get to Federer (and I am sure others.)  Stewart was having none of it!  That was amusing.

[lefthack]

1 hour ago, golfortennis said:

 

About the only thing of your first paragraph that was something was Magnussen.  Hamilton let Russell go by him(they were on different strategies and weren't going to fight).  And Verstappen?  For pete's sake it took him less than 35 laps to go from 9th to having a 30 second lead on every other  car except his teammate, who was 15 behind.  On one level that seems impressive, but on the other, that's what he was supposed to do with that car.  And he would have been on pole if Leclerc doesn't cause the red flag.  Full credit to Red Bull for putting the best car out there, but it doesn't make for interesting racing.  At least Ferrari and Red Bull sometimes made it interesting during Mercedes' dominance. 

 

I'm not even sure how impressed I'd be if he won starting from pit lane.  That car is just so much better.  Unless we have a Ferrari 2019(?) situation waiting to sprout?   

 

 

I guess I just enjoy the whole race, not just who wins. When it was Lewis winning everything, I still enjoyed the fights in the middle. I'm happy to see Gasly have a capable car. Can it win? No, but he's scraping for points. Look at what Yuki is doing in what is possibly the worst car on the grid. Give him Checo's car and see what he does. 

 

Hamilton has come to grips that George is faster than he is and he's working on an exit plan. So I'm dying to see who gets his seat. 

 

The reality is Newey is a genius and the ground effect cars are his whole world. F1 handed him the championship with the new regulations. It's going to be hard to beat him and he just signed a new contract that I'm sure is HUGE. 

[golfortennis]

4 hours ago, lefthack said:

 

I guess I just enjoy the whole race, not just who wins. When it was Lewis winning everything, I still enjoyed the fights in the middle. I'm happy to see Gasly have a capable car. Can it win? No, but he's scraping for points. Look at what Yuki is doing in what is possibly the worst car on the grid. Give him Checo's car and see what he does. 

 

Hamilton has come to grips that George is faster than he is and he's working on an exit plan. So I'm dying to see who gets his seat. 

 

The reality is Newey is a genius and the ground effect cars are his whole world. F1 handed him the championship with the new regulations. It's going to be hard to beat him and he just signed a new contract that I'm sure is HUGE. 

 

I enjoy the midfield fights as well.  But Russell and Hamilton was not a fight, and Verstappen going by anyone is not a fight.  Even Perez he blew past.  Tsunoda has shown well, although AT is a complete gong show.  Talk is DeVries doesn't last the season.  There just really weren't any battles Sunday.  That track sucks for racing, especially when you have such gaps between cars.

 

What is funny about the new regulations is that they raised the cars, and made overtaking *more* difficult than last season.  Mercedes asked and they received.... 

[lefthack]

2 minutes ago, golfortennis said:

 

What is funny about the new regulations is that they raised the cars, and made overtaking *more* difficult than last season.  Mercedes asked and they received.... 

 

Hey, at least his back doesn't hurt. Also look at Alonso, 4/5 podiums in what was a mid field car at best last year. He's driving so well. 

[lefthack]

https://www.roadandtrack.com/news/a43825543/f1-drivers-hated-miamis-nascar-style-driver-intros/

 

Only in America. 🤣

[golfortennis]

1 hour ago, lefthack said:

 

Hey, at least his back doesn't hurt. Also look at Alonso, 4/5 podiums in what was a mid field car at best last year. He's driving so well. 

 

He is, although what does that say about the rest of the field that north of 40 driver is doing that well in a car his 25 year old teammate can't do too much with.  If only Alonso had been a better teammate early on in his career and stayed at one team, what kind of record might he have had in the best car?  Seems like his skill should have led to more than 2 WDCs.

[lefthack]

1 hour ago, golfortennis said:

 

He is, although what does that say about the rest of the field that north of 40 driver is doing that well in a car his 25 year old teammate can't do too much with.  If only Alonso had been a better teammate early on in his career and stayed at one team, what kind of record might he have had in the best car?  Seems like his skill should have led to more than 2 WDCs.

I think it's a combo of Lawrence spending a fortune and Alonso is just that good. I think Hamilton may have peaked, most drivers are done by 35. Alonso showed he can drive anything. 

[lefthack]

[golfortennis]

1 hour ago, lefthack said:

I think it's a combo of Lawrence spending a fortune and Alonso is just that good. I think Hamilton may have peaked, most drivers are done by 35. Alonso showed he can drive anything. 

 

Except a McLaren attempted entry to the Indy 500.  But not his fault the engineers thought inches were centimeters. 

[jwhite86]

Feel bad for Nyck de Vries... looks like he's drawing the short straw

 

I wish he was in the Williams instead of Logan, a lot less pressure to perform 

[lefthack]

7 minutes ago, jwhite86 said:

Feel bad for Nyck de Vries... looks like he's drawing the short straw

 

I wish he was in the Williams instead of Logan, a lot less pressure to perform 

 

Yeah, it's a pretty bum rap in a team that seems lost. They wanted to break from Red Bull in design and now have the worst car on the grid. They would be dead last if their drivers were bad.

[grm24]

On 5/9/2023 at 6:37 PM, golfortennis said:

 

Except a McLaren attempted entry to the Indy 500.  But not his fault the engineers thought inches were centimeters. 

Alonso ran pretty well in the Indy 500 for McLaren when he had his car prepared by Andretti in 2017 until his engine grenaded.