F1 fans?

[LBB]

Does any of the rear size have anything to do with the size of the fuel cell now that refueling during the race is not allowed?

[iBanesto]

Eagle MK1 Westlake.

 

 

 

[lefthack]

It's race week in Spain and Red Bull is coming strong. If Ferrari fixed whatever they did wrong last time, we could see a real  4 way fight. 

[LeftDot]

5 minutes ago, lefthack said:

It's race week in Spain and Red Bull is coming strong. If Ferrari fixed whatever they did wrong last time, we could see a real  4 way fight. 

 

Red Bull? Or Racing Bull? 

 

The article I saw suggested a big ol upgrade for the team formerly known as Torro Rosso. Haven't seen any news for Red Bull Proper. 

[lefthack]

2 minutes ago, LeftDot said:

 

Red Bull? Or Racing Bull? 

 

The article I saw suggested a big ol upgrade for the team formerly known as Torro Rosso. Haven't seen any news for Red Bull Proper. 

 

I think Max is looking for a triple header. 

[LBB]

On 6/19/2024 at 12:58 PM, lefthack said:

It's race week in Spain and Red Bull is coming strong. If Ferrari fixed whatever they did wrong last time, we could see a real  4 way fight. 

And cheers to a circuit that pretty much guarantees a 2 stop, and likely offers some different strategy options based on last year.  C1/2/3 will be used again this year.

[lefthack]

I'm telling you, Lando is right there. If he can drive a mistake free race, he can beat Max. The only advantage Red Bull has is Max. 

 

https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/f1-spanish-gp-norris-verstappen-fp1-report/10625582/

[LBB]

I try not to get too excited over FP1, given that teams are doing a mixture of long runs and cars are rarely fueled the same even when they go out on softs.  Especially since the softs are a legitimate race tire to start or finish the race on and the teams will want to know how the tire degrades.  So Max...or even Norris could have been on varying amounts of heavy fuel when they posted those FP1 times...which is plausible given how fast FP2 times were.  FP3 is the real benchmark as that's when the drivers are specifically preparing for qualifying.

 

Looks to be a great weekend...we haven't had this much anticipation in a while.

[lefthack]

On 6/21/2024 at 11:09 AM, LBB said:

I try not to get too excited over FP1, given that teams are doing a mixture of long runs and cars are rarely fueled the same even when they go out on softs.  Especially since the softs are a legitimate race tire to start or finish the race on and the teams will want to know how the tire degrades.  So Max...or even Norris could have been on varying amounts of heavy fuel when they posted those FP1 times...which is plausible given how fast FP2 times were.  FP3 is the real benchmark as that's when the drivers are specifically preparing for qualifying.

 

Looks to be a great weekend...we haven't had this much anticipation in a while.

 

Yeah, I don't really pay attention until FP3 and even then it might not be telling.

 

But Lando with .02 on Max for pole is awesome. But Lando knows the only way he will beat Max is if he has a perfect race and Max doesn't. But I really like his chances. 

[lefthack]

[lefthack]

No yellow flags and all 20 cars finished. The battle between George and Lando was good and had Lando not failed the launch, he might have won it. 

[RoverTiger]

2 hours ago, lefthack said:

No yellow flags and all 20 cars finished. The battle between George and Lando was good and had Lando not failed the launch, he might have won it. 

That 3.6 second stop didn't help him either.

[lefthack]

1 hour ago, RoverTiger said:

That 3.6 second stop didn't help him either.

 

Seriously. Max had a 1.9 first stop, that's just silly.

[LBB]

McLaren did have the fastest car this weekend.  Not just on the single lap for pole, but with tire deg on race day.  It would have been a real fight between Max and Lando all day had George not got in between them.  Where is Latifi when you need him to create a late race safety car...LOL.  Still great racing though...and man...wth is up with Checco.  I don't expect him to be great every race, and it's clear he doesn't have as significant a car advantage over the mid field...but he seems nowhere to be found.  

 

 

[LBB]

Wonder what may have happened if Hamilton is farther back around lap 46.  Clearly Lando was still banging in solid times on his Mediums and they had to pit to cover Hamilton with the pit window.  If Lando can extend his second stint to say lap 50...I think he really comes out banging on softs.  There was that period around lap 56 where the gap stayed around 4.5-5.5 seconds where either he had to do some tire management.  Not often you hear GP on the radio telling Max he needs to drive faster...LOL.  Normally it's GP telling Max to slow down at the end of the race.

 

 

 

[lefthack]

1 hour ago, LBB said:

Wonder what may have happened if Hamilton is farther back around lap 46.  Clearly Lando was still banging in solid times on his Mediums and they had to pit to cover Hamilton with the pit window.  If Lando can extend his second stint to say lap 50...I think he really comes out banging on softs.  There was that period around lap 56 where the gap stayed around 4.5-5.5 seconds where either he had to do some tire management.  Not often you hear GP on the radio telling Max he needs to drive faster...LOL.  Normally it's GP telling Max to slow down at the end of the race.

 

 

 

 

Yeah, when they told Max to step on it, he kept the gap pretty consistent, but his tires were falling off towards the end. 

 

McLaren knows it's down to details now. Tires, strategy, and lap times. 

[LBB]

20 minutes ago, lefthack said:

 

Yeah, when they told Max to step on it, he kept the gap pretty consistent, but his tires were falling off towards the end. 

 

McLaren knows it's down to details now. Tires, strategy, and lap times. 

Also it's good to see Norris getting more used to success, which in turn will help him stay more even keeled to manage the highs and lows.  2021 Sochi in the rain was a clear example of a driver not ready mentally to handle the pressure of the situation.

 

I'm all for drivers showing emotion for grabbing pole and winning...but Norris is turning that all important corner in his career where he's acting like he's been there before.  Good for him.

[lefthack]

Just now, LBB said:

Also it's good to see Norris getting more used to success, which in turn will help him stay more even keeled to manage the highs and lows.  2021 Sochi in the rain was a clear example of a driver not ready mentally to handle the pressure of the situation.

 

I'm all for drivers showing emotion for grabbing pole and winning...but Norris is turning that all important corner in his career where he's acting like he's been there before.  Good for him.

 

He had a tough year last year with all the haters on social media talking about his inability to win. He held a record nobody wants, "most podiums without a win" is painful..

[LBB]

5 minutes ago, lefthack said:

 

He had a tough year last year with all the haters on social media talking about his inability to win. He held a record nobody wants, "most podiums without a win" is painful..

F1 is a brutal sport to be evaluated on.  There can only be one winner...and if you're not in the fastest car, it comes down to luck and cashing in on the few opportunities that present themselves. 

 

McLaren have delivered him a car he can now win with...and only time will tell how long this car will stay at or near the top.  It's up to Lando to cash in on these opportunities, and I think he's in a better place this year to do so than if McLaren delivered him a top car a few years ago.

 

It's crazy to think that the McLaren was near the back of the midfield 25-30 races ago the beginning of 2023.  We saw how quickly the Aston Martin fell off from early in the 2023 season.  It's also kind of nice to see RB experiencing some of the variability in car development/upgrades...LOL.