The Official 2016 Hungarian Grand Prix Thread **Spoilers**

[Dr Z]

Date(s): Friday 22 July - Sunday 24 July 2016

UK Broadcast Timings (and local time)

All sessions are live on Channel 4 and Sky F1.

Session	Day	Sky F1	Channel 4	Session Start	Local Time
Practice 1	Fri	0845	0855	0900	1000
Practice 2	Fri	1245	1255	1300	1400
Practice 3	Sat	0945	0955	1000	1100
Qualifying	Sat	1200	1200	1300	1400
Race	Sun	1130	1200	1300	1400

Hungaroring, Mogyoród



Pirelli's info on the nature of circuit on a scale of 1-5:

Downforce	4
Lateral loads	4
Tyre stress	3
Asphalt abrasion	3
Asphalt grip	4

Live timing for all sessions available here:

http://www.formula1.com/content/fom-website/en/f1-...

Info such as lap times, PU use, technical reports, stewards decisions etc for the weekend will appear here:

http://www.fia.com/events/fia-formula-one-world-ch...

Weather forecast:

http://www.myweather2.com/Motor-Racing/Hungary/Hun...

Session	Comment	Air Temp (°C)	Cloud Cover	Rainfall (mm)
Practice 1	Patchy rain	29-30	18%	1.2
Practice 2	Light shower	32-31	70%	0.4
Practice 3	Sunny	30-29	24%	0.0
Qualifying	Sunny	32-32	24%	0.0
Race	Patchy rain	33	39%	0.9

The tyre choices requested by the teams:



Pirelli nominated tyres are Medium and Soft for the race.

2015 Qualifying

Pos.	Driver	Constructor	Q1	Q2	Q3
1	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	1:22.890	1:22.285	1:22.020
2	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	1:22.979	1:22.775	1:22.595
3	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	1:23.312	1:23.168	1:22.739
4	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing-Renault	1:24.408	1:23.230	1:22.774
5	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	1:23.596	1:23.460	1:23.020
6	Valtteri Bottas	Williams-Mercedes	1:23.649	1:23.555	1:23.222
7	Daniil Kvyat	Red Bull Racing-Renault	1:23.587	1:23.597	1:23.332
8	Felipe Massa	Williams-Mercedes	1:23.895	1:23.598	1:23.537
9	Max Verstappen	Toro Rosso-Renault	1:24.032	1:23.781	1:23.679
10	Romain Grosjean	Lotus-Mercedes	1:24.242	1:23.805	1:24.181
11	Nico Hülkenberg	Force India-Mercedes	1:24.115	1:23.826	-
12	Carlos Sainz, Jr.	Toro Rosso-Renault	1:24.623	1:23.869	-
13	Sergio Pérez	Force India-Mercedes	1:24.444	1:24.461	-
14	Pastor Maldonado	Lotus-Mercedes	1:23.895	1:24.609	-
15	Fernando Alonso	McLaren-Honda	1:24.563	No time	-
16	Jenson Button	McLaren-Honda	1:24.739	-	-
17	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber-Ferrari	1:24.843	-	-
18	Felipe Nasr	Sauber-Ferrari	1:24.997	-	-
19	Roberto Merhi	Marussia-Ferrari	1:27.416	-	-
20	Will Stevens	Marussia-Ferrari	1:27.949	-	-

2015 Race

Pos.	Driver	Constructor	Laps	Time/Retired	Grid
1	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	69	1:46:09.985	3
2	Daniil Kvyat	Red Bull Racing-Renault	69	+15.7482	7
3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing-Renault	69	+25.084	4
4	Max Verstappen	Toro Rosso-Renault	69	+44.251	9
5	Fernando Alonso	McLaren-Honda	69	+49.079	15
6	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	69	+52.025	1
7	Romain Grosjean	Lotus-Mercedes	69	+58.578	10
8	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	69	+58.876	2
9	Jenson Button	McLaren-Honda	69	+1:07.028	16
10	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber-Ferrari	69	+1:09.130	17
11	Felipe Nasr	Sauber-Ferrari	69	+1:13.458	18
12	Felipe Massa	Williams-Mercedes	69	+1:14.278	8
13	Valtteri Bottas	Williams-Mercedes	69	+1:20.228	6
14	Pastor Maldonado	Lotus-Mercedes	69	+1:25.142	14
15	Roberto Merhi	Marussia-Ferrari	67	+2 Laps	19
161	Will Stevens	Marussia-Ferrari	65	Suspension	20
Ret	Carlos Sainz, Jr.	Toro Rosso-Renault	60	Fuel pressure	12
Ret	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	55	Hybrid system	5
Ret	Sergio Pérez	Force India-Mercedes	53	Brakes	13
Ret	Nico Hülkenberg	Force India-Mercedes	41	Front wing	11

Fastest Race Lap: 1:24.821 (L68, D. Ricciardo; Red Bull-Renault)

---

One of last year’s highlights, this race. It’s also a McLaren stomping ground of sorts, so it’s nice to come here. I expect a very competitive field for this one, with Red Bull giving Mercedes a scare and taking the fight to them at the front, with Ferrari close by. Take note of where the current Red Bull drivers finished last year--it should be a fascinating duel between them. Also, a certain Mr. Alonso placed 5th in the best finish for McLaren since they put the Honda engine at the back. It will be interesting to see how McLaren go here, one year on from that result.

A little bit of information from Pirelli about the track that helps to understand the tyre choices from the teams:

Pirelli said:

There is only one significant straight on the Hungaroring, which means that the tyres do not get much opportunity to cool down. As a result, the medium tyre in particular (a low working range compound) will be constantly working at the upper end of its working range if it is hot. However, rain has been seen at the Hungaroring in the past too: notably [in 2014].

As well as being tough on tyres, the Hungaroring is very physically demanding on the drivers. They have often compared it to Singapore (renowned as the most physically demanding track of the year) due to the high number of corners, significant ambient temperatures, and comparatively little airflow though the car.

The Hungaroring is a circuit that is quite well balanced in terms of traction, braking and lateral energy demands. All the forces acting on the car are roughly equal in their extent, meaning that a neutral set-up is needed. The teams tend to run maximum downforce to generate the most aerodynamic grip.

So, Soft is the better race tyre while the Super Soft being sub optimal as it’s working range is slightly lower than even the Medium tyre. But because the Super Soft is the grippier tyre and its pace advantage is quite substantial in comparison to the Soft, the Top 10 teams will have to rely on that tyre for the 1st stint (as they'll be forced to qualify on it in Q2). This opens up the possibility for drivers starting outside of P10 to have a longer 1st stint on the Soft and make progress through the field as the front runners pit.

Edited by Dr Z on Thursday 21st July 10:53

[cgt2]

MAX -imum attack!

[FreiWild]

Let's hope it does not rain, so we don't get another ridiculous safety car start.

[Jasandjules]

This is likely to be quite a scrap

[lee_fr200]

1.hamilton
2. ricciardo
3.button

[cgt2]

I'm convinced Max is going to be right up the sharp end. It's a very Red Bull focused track and last year he went from 9th to 4th, one place behind Ricciardo. Yes the Mercs had problems but with the way he is driving now he has to be a contender for a win on merit.

I can see Max pulling a pass on this track in one of those places where people say it's impossible (as Mansell did on Senna in the 1989 Hungarian GP whilst lapping Johansson).


If Max beats Ricciardo again there are going to be some fireworks at Red Bull though.

[Sir Bagalot]

cgt2 said:

If Max beats Ricciardo again there are going to be some fireworks at Red Bull though.

What do you mean if?

Lewis, according to the press, reckons that Max is becoming a force to be reckoned with. At the British GP Lewis stood on the podium, and beside him was a future WDC. And I'm not talking about Nico

[Dr Z]

cgt2 said:

I'm convinced Max is going to be right up the sharp end. It's a very Red Bull focused track and last year he went from 9th to 4th, one place behind Ricciardo. Yes the Mercs had problems but with the way he is driving now he has to be a contender for a win on merit.

I can see Max pulling a pass on this track in one of those places where people say it's impossible (as Mansell did on Senna in the 1989 Hungarian GP whilst lapping Johansson).


If Max beats Ricciardo again there are going to be some fireworks at Red Bull though.

Red Bull started showing some improvement mid way through last year and Ricciardo split the Ferraris in qualifying. Given how much Red Bull have closed the gap and then made gains on top of that in other tracks this year so far, I very much think this race could be a repeat of Monaco except without the rain. Danny Ric desperately needs a good result, and there will be an uproar if Max beats him again.

In four of the coming races not including this one, I think Red Bull have a realistic chance of being 2nd best or equal best with Merc. Ricciardo must win all those to have any chance in the title fight. He can't afford to have Max beating him if Red Bull are in a winning position or take the podium spots above him. I find their rivalry more interesting than the boring Lewis vs Nico main plot this season!

[thegreenhell]

This has to be McLaren's best circuit of the year. They won't beat the Mercedes or Red Bull in a straight fight, but they could be in the running for best of the rest, especially if Ferrari's recent poor form continues.

[suffolk009]

Qualy: Lewis, Nico, Max
Race: Lewis, Max, Seb

[cgt2]

If Rosberg does end up taking a gearbox penalty I cannot see him getting higher than 5th on this track.

[lewisco]

Merc were confident it was hydraulic/electronic issues with the gearbox so hopefully no need to break the seal on the box itself which would incur a penalty. That was straight after the race on Sunday though so who knows.

[cgt2]

lewisco said:

Merc were confident it was hydraulic/electronic issues with the gearbox so hopefully no need to break the seal on the box itself which would incur a penalty. That was straight after the race on Sunday though so who knows.

I hope they do have to have to break it and put Mr Annoying back five places (or just behind Max will do fine )

[Flooble]

As noted on the other thread, you can replace almost everything in the gearbox (like, er, gears) so it's highly unlikely he will have a penalty since the car still had drive all the way to the end.

[MartG]

Flooble said:

As noted on the other thread, you can replace almost everything in the gearbox (like, er, gears) so it's highly unlikely he will have a penalty since the car still had drive all the way to the end.

Slightly off topic - one of the Indycars had a gearbox issue during last Sunday's race - it pitted and they swapped the gear pack and had him out again in not much over 5 minutes !

[oyster]

FreiWild said:

Let's hope it does not rain, so we don't get another ridiculous safety car start.

This makes me sad.

In my 30+ years of watching F1, 2 of the things I always look forward to at a Grand Prix are the standing start and the chance of rain.

Now it seems destined that we'll never see the 2 of them together again.

[Flooble]

Indycars don't ever race in the rain do they?

[MartG]

Flooble said:

Indycars don't ever race in the rain do they?

They do on street circuits, not on the high speed ovals

[Dr Z]

http://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/arrivabene-says-...

Even Arrivabene has had enough. Sounds like they want to see where they are in this race and make a decision to divert more of the resources to 2017.

[CraigyMc]

MartG said:

Flooble said:

As noted on the other thread, you can replace almost everything in the gearbox (like, er, gears) so it's highly unlikely he will have a penalty since the car still had drive all the way to the end.

Slightly off topic - one of the Indycars had a gearbox issue during last Sunday's race - it pitted and they swapped the gear pack and had him out again in not much over 5 minutes !

They are built to swap easily. http://www.xtrac.com/sectors/motorsport/single-sea...