Artimus
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Great pole lap from Hamilton. Nico's excuse of "understeer" isn't convincing - he was murdered by Lewis.
F1 season 2015
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Scottyg
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Scottyg
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Artimus
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Why is it do you think that whenever Rosberg falls back to he just catches up with Hamilton and then just sits there some 3 to 5-seconds back and never attempts a challenge? Wonder if Rosberg will do the double-park at Monza this year as he did last year waiting for Hamilton to catch up and go by... After you, Lewis. 
Artimus
Shortback
You must be the only person left on the planet that thinks Rosberg is as good a driver as Hamilton.Why is it do you think that whenever Rosberg falls back to he just catches up with Hamilton and then just sits there some 3 to 5-seconds back and never attempts a challenge? Wonder if Rosberg will do the double-park at Monza this year as he did last year waiting for Hamilton to catch up and go by... After you, Lewis.
This new, calmer Hamilton, is tearing Nico a new one.
Why is it do you think that whenever Rosberg falls back to he just catches up with Hamilton and then just sits there some 3 to 5-seconds back and never attempts a challenge? Wonder if Rosberg will do the double-park at Monza this year as he did last year waiting for Hamilton to catch up and go by... After you, Lewis.
Same reason Lewis struggles when behind Rosberg. Aero plays just too big a part on the cars and it means that you basically can't get that close and sustain it. Also if there's a sniff of an overtake I believe that Hamilton has the aggression to take it whereas I think Rosberg doesn't have that.
Don't get me wrong, I think that Rosberg is a very good driver, and he's been closer to Lewis than I thought he would be, but he lacks that final something IMHO. Look at Verstappen and despite the hype, he's completely erased the doubts I had due to the hype; I think Verstappen has that aggression and is a likely future world champion. I think Sainz is also a possibility even though he's much lower key.
You must be the only person left on the planet that thinks Rosberg is as good a driver as Hamilton.
This new, calmer Hamilton, is tearing Nico a new one.
I think you've hit the nail on the head there, Hamilton is much calmer and letting the driving do the talking and Rosberg doesn't have a reply at the moment.
Don't know about anyone else, but I'm finding this season a bit monotonous
It seems all about the race for 3rd to me
Undoubtedly Hamilton & Rosberg are great drivers, but IMO they do have an unfair advantage in that there car is streets ahead of everyone else's
I just wonder what the racing would be like if they were all in exactly the same car ...
I do feel for the 2 Mclaren drivers, Button & Alonso, but saying that the money they're on may be I don't feel that sorry for 'em
I think Mclaren need to take that Honda Civic engine out of their F1 cars and put a real F1 engine in
It seems all about the race for 3rd to me
Undoubtedly Hamilton & Rosberg are great drivers, but IMO they do have an unfair advantage in that there car is streets ahead of everyone else's
I just wonder what the racing would be like if they were all in exactly the same car ...
I do feel for the 2 Mclaren drivers, Button & Alonso, but saying that the money they're on may be I don't feel that sorry for 'em
I think Mclaren need to take that Honda Civic engine out of their F1 cars and put a real F1 engine in
If it's the DRIVER that's soooo hero worshipingly good then why is Alonso and Button - who when in the same car as one's hero were keeping him just as honest - are driving around at the back? 
I'd respectfully propose a maximum of 2-years for any driver to be in any team and then CHANGE: can you imagine Kvyat or Verstappen in a Mercedes
Just playing here as it really doesn't matter anyway as think all of these guys are amazing at what they do
BUT I respect the ENGINEERS just as much
I'd respectfully propose a maximum of 2-years for any driver to be in any team and then CHANGE: can you imagine Kvyat or Verstappen in a Mercedes
Just playing here as it really doesn't matter anyway as think all of these guys are amazing at what they do
BUT I respect the ENGINEERS just as much
But I think that's the point - Alonso and Button are great drivers, again it's interesting seeing the two of them in the same car. I thought Hamilton would blow Button away but he didn't, so my respect for Button has definitely increased, likewise keeping up with Alonso.
As for the Honda engine... wow, what a bag of nails. I think somewhere here (or previous year's thread) someone was saying it was unfair that Honda were effectively free to develop whatever they wanted; I seem to recall saying it wasn't unfair and we wouldn't know where they are until this year. Wow, I didn't think it would be this terrible! Bernie bangs on about not wanting Manor in the sport but compared to McLaren at least they generally keep running, although I also concede that McLaren have at least got some points!
Painful to watch Button (and grudgingly Alonso) trundling around in such a bad car. I can't imagine Button has long left in F1 and he deserves another crack at the title IMHO.
As for the Honda engine... wow, what a bag of nails. I think somewhere here (or previous year's thread) someone was saying it was unfair that Honda were effectively free to develop whatever they wanted; I seem to recall saying it wasn't unfair and we wouldn't know where they are until this year. Wow, I didn't think it would be this terrible! Bernie bangs on about not wanting Manor in the sport but compared to McLaren at least they generally keep running, although I also concede that McLaren have at least got some points!
Painful to watch Button (and grudgingly Alonso) trundling around in such a bad car. I can't imagine Button has long left in F1 and he deserves another crack at the title IMHO.
My Xmas present was tickets to Spa - so heard/saw it first hand.
Sat on the Kemmel straight for the qualifying and the chicane/pit entrance for the race.
The Honda engine sounded awful - you always knew when the McLaren was heading towards or going away from you.
Great weekend and glad the rain held off for the race.
What's GOOD about F1 and this AUDI-SPORT Forum is that views can be expressed in such a N I C E manner: ALL F1 drivers are G R E A T and so are you guys... 
Here's one I took earlier and soooo long ago now I can't remember but it sure didn't have a V8 in the back:
Here's one I took earlier and soooo long ago now I can't remember but it sure didn't have a V8 in the back:
Artimus
Shortback
It's all opinion and banter, but it would be nice to see the top 5 drivers challenge each other in a one make race at the end of the season.
I agree the engine makes all the difference! but it's not Mercedes fault everyone else is crapiola! What are Ferrari doing to improve their driver's chances? As Williams were saying; if you have a Mercedes engine, you only need to have a better chassis to beat them... so build a better chassis then!?! seems easy enough.
I respect McLaren for effectively taking a year's sabbatical to be Honda's guinea pig, and it may pay dividends in another year or so, but I was really hoping they'd do better this season ...more's the pity.
I still think Whitmarsh allowed the sabotaging of Hamilton's race weekends to help keep Button's stats looking good! there were just too many pit lane ****-ups and slower (than Jenson's) pit-stops in that last season with them ...and who short fuels a car to the point it can't get back to the pits in qualifying? It could only be either sabotage or incompetence, and there's no excuse for either ...Heads should have rolled and they didn't, so I don't blame him for bailing out.
I agree the engine makes all the difference! but it's not Mercedes fault everyone else is crapiola! What are Ferrari doing to improve their driver's chances? As Williams were saying; if you have a Mercedes engine, you only need to have a better chassis to beat them... so build a better chassis then!?! seems easy enough.
I respect McLaren for effectively taking a year's sabbatical to be Honda's guinea pig, and it may pay dividends in another year or so, but I was really hoping they'd do better this season ...more's the pity.
I still think Whitmarsh allowed the sabotaging of Hamilton's race weekends to help keep Button's stats looking good! there were just too many pit lane ****-ups and slower (than Jenson's) pit-stops in that last season with them ...and who short fuels a car to the point it can't get back to the pits in qualifying? It could only be either sabotage or incompetence, and there's no excuse for either ...Heads should have rolled and they didn't, so I don't blame him for bailing out.
So... What was up with Hamilton/Mercedes?
Ah, looks like tyre pressure related.
Ah, looks like tyre pressure related.
Ozmosis
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So a new record for penalties this weekend. Resulting in McLarens actually starting the race ahead of their qualifying positions, despite having a 5-place and 10-place grid penalty! Simply because the Red Bulls and Torro Rossos had more. Manor had their best starting positions ever!!
Becoming a farce??? Bring back in season testing. It is also what led to the tyre issue (as Pirelli cannot test the tyres on a current car!).
Happy that there were no penalties for the tyre 'infringement'. Not because I am a Mercedes fan, simply because this was spotted before the start of the race and could have easily been resolved before the race began!
Becoming a farce??? Bring back in season testing. It is also what led to the tyre issue (as Pirelli cannot test the tyres on a current car!).
Happy that there were no penalties for the tyre 'infringement'. Not because I am a Mercedes fan, simply because this was spotted before the start of the race and could have easily been resolved before the race began!
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I think it's fair to say the driver's championship is a cert now for Lewis, he needs to retire at least twice, with Nico winning both of those races for it to open back up, and I can't see that happening...
Has the dominance of the Merc's spoilt this year? I've kinda lost a bit of interest, just like when Vettel was killing it, and I'm a Hamilton fan!
Has the dominance of the Merc's spoilt this year? I've kinda lost a bit of interest, just like when Vettel was killing it, and I'm a Hamilton fan!
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Well I always watch the races when I can, but yes I think you are right Jojo. Even when Vettel was dominating there was still reasonably close racing. Now it is always further down the field. Let's be honest too, if Rosberg had not had his engine 'pop', then he surely would have finished second.
The last time there was as much domination was when Schumacher and Barrichello were at Ferrari.
Vettel's facial expression on the podium spoke a million words!
I know there are some big changes coming in 2017, but even those do not look likely to change much. Bigger front wings (yeah, we need that!!!!), more ground effect aero, wider tyres... The situation with overtaking will be the same.
The last time there was as much domination was when Schumacher and Barrichello were at Ferrari.
Vettel's facial expression on the podium spoke a million words!
I know there are some big changes coming in 2017, but even those do not look likely to change much. Bigger front wings (yeah, we need that!!!!), more ground effect aero, wider tyres... The situation with overtaking will be the same.
Artimus
Shortback
I think the biggest failure of the FIA is as said, banning in season testing. Testing would allow those in the midfield to catch Mercedes, who are in competition with themselves, and allow the next generation of drivers to get some much needed experience.
Those last five laps from Hamilton were very telling of Mercedes' advantage over the rest of the field! They've been sandbagging, and it must be gut wrenching for the rest to finally see what they're capable of when push comes to shove.
Those last five laps from Hamilton were very telling of Mercedes' advantage over the rest of the field! They've been sandbagging, and it must be gut wrenching for the rest to finally see what they're capable of when push comes to shove.
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Well maybe the in season testing would not let the other teams 'catch up' so much, as obviously Merc would advance too. But it would stop these ridiculous penalties, because the teams could make the engines etc more reliable, and Pirelli could actually test the tyres.
Now, we know that Pirelli are told how their tyres should perform by the FIA. Remember that's the contract they signed. This also gave them their dodgy image of tyres collapsing etc as the FIA wanted to make every race like the Canadian GP from a few years back (which became a great race because of abnormal temperatures and the track surface! ).
The other problem is the format of requiring the teams to 'preserve' their cars during the race. Stupid fuel level limits, fuel usage etc have taken away the "flat out racing". Even Hamilton was heard to say that the last 5 laps were "not cool, man!". This is supposed to be the pinnacle of racing. Not endurance!
Now, we know that Pirelli are told how their tyres should perform by the FIA. Remember that's the contract they signed. This also gave them their dodgy image of tyres collapsing etc as the FIA wanted to make every race like the Canadian GP from a few years back (which became a great race because of abnormal temperatures and the track surface! ).
The other problem is the format of requiring the teams to 'preserve' their cars during the race. Stupid fuel level limits, fuel usage etc have taken away the "flat out racing". Even Hamilton was heard to say that the last 5 laps were "not cool, man!". This is supposed to be the pinnacle of racing. Not endurance!
Not so much the dominance of Mercedes but the failure of Nico to mount a decent challenge. Last year was at least interesting because they were fighting amongst themselves, this year not so much. Nico started poorly and has failed to recover IMHO.
It has been at least interesting to see Ferrari's resurgence and there's some half decent scraps for the 3rd downwards... but on the whole not as interesting as last year.
I think in season testing would allow others to catch up despite Mercedes also being able to develop, ultimately I think they would all converge in terms of performance due to diminishing returns.
I think the fuel saving isn't really the issue it was thought it might be - at the end of the day the cars will always be under-fueled for the distance as has always been the case because more fuel = more weight = less speed, why do you think cars used to run out of fuel so frequently?
There will always be an element of management going on, it's just how much does that spoil the show...
Just watched the F1 at Monza (on Sky+ as I was away on hols when it was on live)
I'm afraid, IMO, it predictable ... AGAIN!
I propose Vestappen and Hamilton swap cars to make it more interesting
I'm afraid, IMO, it predictable ... AGAIN!
I propose Vestappen and Hamilton swap cars to make it more interesting
I read the title of that article with great interest,
"Volkswagen close to buying Red Bull F1 team"
Then I read the first few lines,
"German car giant Volkswagen is close to agreeing a deal to take over the Red Bull Formula 1 team, says BBC F1 chief analyst Eddie Jordan."
I then lost interest as it's from Eddie Jordan. How can Audi run a car with a Ferrari engine in it ? .I would have thought Audi would be put off by what has happened to Honda. Also Renault have copped a lot of bad press with the failures and poor performance.
Although I think Audi would probably do a better job than Honda it's still a massive undertaking and fraught with issues.
I do think that the one comment made on Sky Sports was interesting about Mercedes giving Renault some help to keep them in the game seems more plausible.
http://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/m...nd-renault-chiefs-open-formula-1-co-operation
"Volkswagen close to buying Red Bull F1 team"
Then I read the first few lines,
"German car giant Volkswagen is close to agreeing a deal to take over the Red Bull Formula 1 team, says BBC F1 chief analyst Eddie Jordan."
I then lost interest as it's from Eddie Jordan. How can Audi run a car with a Ferrari engine in it ? .I would have thought Audi would be put off by what has happened to Honda. Also Renault have copped a lot of bad press with the failures and poor performance.
Although I think Audi would probably do a better job than Honda it's still a massive undertaking and fraught with issues.
I do think that the one comment made on Sky Sports was interesting about Mercedes giving Renault some help to keep them in the game seems more plausible.
http://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/m...nd-renault-chiefs-open-formula-1-co-operation
If they buy red bull, it would be run as red bull brand with ferrari engine until 2018. Then it would be re-branded to Audi and they would run Audi engine. It takes 2-3 years to develop an engine, that's why the delay. They talked about this on sky sports f1 today during free practice. That said, volkswagen might be looking at a fine in the US for 18 billion dollars!, which might stop them from buying the team. Eddie Jordan is pretty much always the first one to tell news that no one is talking about yet. He was the one who said that Hamilton signed a contract with Mercedes, when everyone else said that he is nuts. Even Mercedes denied that at that time.
Red bull boss is very close to VW bosses.
Red bull boss is very close to VW bosses.
In November 2014 it was reported: "Fiat-Chrysler Automobiles announced this morning that it plans to spin off Ferrari in a public listing. The Italian manufacturing conglomerate has owned the smaller sports car company for 45 years, and now, they're parting ways."
My guess is that the VW Group has more than enough cash to purchase Ferrari.
That's not going to happen. They basically split, not sell the company. What it means is that ferrari will be a standalone company listed on NY stock exchange. Only around 10-20% will be available to public. The rest will be offered to current shareholders.
Artimus
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I tent to think the opposite about Eddie tbh ...he's seen as cuckoo, but still has contacts from his time of being Jordan Team Boss, they confide in him because he knows how to keep their name's out of the story.
You never know, maybe VW are already running secret Engine test programs?? I'm sure that's what I'd be doing if I were about to enter a sport that puts limits on development! Honda are paying the price for not doing just that.
I would have thought that if VAG were going to get involved they would be sponsoring Red Bull for a few years while they got an engine sorted.Then step in and take the team over They are competeing against themselves in the World Endurance Chamionship with Porche and Audi so there is an oppertunity to save some money and can one of those programs.
It is pretty obvious that audi would leave endurance championship if they join f1. I am pretty sure that this was the plan from the start when Porsche went back to endurance. They don't want to fight sister brand.
Scottyg
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Scottyg
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I can't help but think of those members within the VW Group already circuit racing in 2015: in WEC you have: Audi, Porsche, Lamborghini, and Bentley; circuit racing: VW, Seat, Audi, Porsche, Lamborghini, and Bentley; and in WRC: VW, Skoda, and Seat.
And then there's Ducati in MotoGP, and Bugatti providing road-car technology that other non-VW Group manufacturers just can't.
I for one can't see why VW under whatever banner doesn't jump at the chance of F1 participation: I'd also like to see current the 4.0 litre twin turbo V8 as the base-engine for 2018 as it's such an amazingly good motor in each and every chassis (RS6/7 and S8) I've had the pleasure to experience; it'd keep costs down, too.
And then there's Ducati in MotoGP, and Bugatti providing road-car technology that other non-VW Group manufacturers just can't.
I for one can't see why VW under whatever banner doesn't jump at the chance of F1 participation: I'd also like to see current the 4.0 litre twin turbo V8 as the base-engine for 2018 as it's such an amazingly good motor in each and every chassis (RS6/7 and S8) I've had the pleasure to experience; it'd keep costs down, too.
Artimus
Shortback
Mateshitz ...or whatever his name is... needs kicking out of the sport! When the going gets tough, he whine's like a seized bearing.
Well after this has come to light today the VAG group may be reining in the spend a little as this could get very expensive.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-34320147
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-34320147
