Discussion
chris_gilmartin said:
Given a) the enormous effort & expense of flying everything to Australia b) likelihood of points due to the depleted field c) the paddock has plenty of drivers in it, I was amazed that Williams didn't put Susie or anyone else out instead of Bottas. Are the cars so complicated to drive these days that it's simply not possible to jump in and have a go? André Lotterer managed it in the Caterham.
I thought the issue was that because Bottas had qualified for the race nobody else was allowed to take his place in the race, whereas if he'd withdrawn before qualifying then someone else could have stepped in to qualify and race in his stead. Obviously this wasn't possible as the injury developed during qualifying.thegreenhell said:
chris_gilmartin said:
Given a) the enormous effort & expense of flying everything to Australia b) likelihood of points due to the depleted field c) the paddock has plenty of drivers in it, I was amazed that Williams didn't put Susie or anyone else out instead of Bottas. Are the cars so complicated to drive these days that it's simply not possible to jump in and have a go? André Lotterer managed it in the Caterham.
I thought the issue was that because Bottas had qualified for the race nobody else was allowed to take his place in the race, whereas if he'd withdrawn before qualifying then someone else could have stepped in to qualify and race in his stead. Obviously this wasn't possible as the injury developed during qualifying.Also Susie does not hold a Super Licence so is not eligible to actually race in F1, hence why she can only give it a go on Fridays.
It was heartening to see a surprise result, and there were some good battles in the midfield....but I still can't get over how slow the cars look compared to the mid 2000s.
It's a dilemma. High downforce and durable tyres as we had a decade ago - but leading to single file racing with spectacular cars, or the current situation...the cars looking slow in the corners but able to run side by side. We saw some overtaking moves yesterday (as we did between Alonso and Vettel at Silverstone last year) in parts of the circuit that have previously been single file. Some of the passing moves were as if it was a wet race.
It'd be interesting to see if we can get a best of both worlds (current downforce and mid 2000s tyres?)or if we will lose the overtaking moves...
It's a dilemma. High downforce and durable tyres as we had a decade ago - but leading to single file racing with spectacular cars, or the current situation...the cars looking slow in the corners but able to run side by side. We saw some overtaking moves yesterday (as we did between Alonso and Vettel at Silverstone last year) in parts of the circuit that have previously been single file. Some of the passing moves were as if it was a wet race.
It'd be interesting to see if we can get a best of both worlds (current downforce and mid 2000s tyres?)or if we will lose the overtaking moves...
te.I think maybe I should just cut my losses and give up on F1, since I couldn't get any enthusiasm for yesterday's race. It still appeared clinical and soulless, not to mention qualifying on Saturday being delayed for a long ol time due to a sprinkle of rain. Where as I can still get excited watching old races of years gone by.
Something significant in F1 is still missing for me and I get the feeling it's unlikely to come back any time soon.
Something significant in F1 is still missing for me and I get the feeling it's unlikely to come back any time soon.
Fire99 said:
not to mention qualifying on Saturday being delayed for a long ol time due to a sprinkle of rain.
A sprinkle?!? Were you watching the same quali as the rest of us? I don't disagree too much with the race not being too much of a thriller, but the tactical element was interesting and seeing Verstappen do what he did at such a young age was pretty impressive too. I've not scoured the thread or others to see if this has been raised before, but are there perhaps some rose-tinted specs being worn regarding the quality of F1 in years gone by?
mantis84 said:
I've not scoured the thread or others to see if this has been raised before, but are there perhaps some rose-tinted specs being worn regarding the quality of F1 in years gone by?
Rightly or wrongly, and don't shoot the messenger, but I think the reason we look back with such fondness at F1 in the 70's, 80's and early 90's is that there was always a feeling of excitement caused by the ever present element of danger and the possibility of instant death in every race.Now that has been virtually removed, along with exploding engines, Murray Walker's voice, drivers being able to swerve more than once to block an overtake, and the introduction of over bearing rules and DRS to guarantee a 'fake' overtake - it's all gone a bit .....'sterile'?
Cobnapint said:
mantis84 said:
I've not scoured the thread or others to see if this has been raised before, but are there perhaps some rose-tinted specs being worn regarding the quality of F1 in years gone by?
Rightly or wrongly, and don't shoot the messenger, but I think the reason we look back with such fondness at F1 in the 70's, 80's and early 90's is that there was always a feeling of excitement caused by the ever present element of danger and the possibility of instant death in every race.Now that has been virtually removed, along with exploding engines, Murray Walker's voice, drivers being able to swerve more than once to block an overtake, and the introduction of over bearing rules and DRS to guarantee a 'fake' overtake - it's all gone a bit .....'sterile'?
As for the rest of your post, I agree to an extent, but last season was still brilliant IMO, in spite of the things you mention. This season is still in its infancy so could improve a lot yet, but we can't demand or expect wild crazy races every weekend because that would not be realistic. Could it be argued that part of the problem is that as technology advances, cars can get quicker and quicker to the point where the danger element becomes re-introduced? So the result is having to hold back on the sorts of speeds that might be possible and introduce the over-bearing rules and things like DRS to maintain the overtaking and actual racing element of the sport.
There will always be aspects of change that don't please everybody. In the 1970s, there were massive complaints about the "sterility" of some of the then new venues - such as Paul Ricard or Zolder.
On the whole, the racing has been better over the past four or five years compared to the previous decade. My concerns are with the long term viability of the economic and financial aspects of F1.
On the whole, the racing has been better over the past four or five years compared to the previous decade. My concerns are with the long term viability of the economic and financial aspects of F1.
Eric Mc said:
There will always be aspects of change that don't please everybody. In the 1970s, there were massive complaints about the "sterility" of some of the then new venues - such as Paul Ricard or Zolder.
On the whole, the racing has been better over the past four or five years compared to the previous decade. My concerns are with the long term viability of the economic and financial aspects of F1.
For whatever reason, I've also lost interest in F1, it just doesn't excite me any more and I have little or no interest in the current crop of drivers or corporate manufacturer dominated teams. I didn't watch this week's race in full, just caught snippets throughout the day when it was repeated.On the whole, the racing has been better over the past four or five years compared to the previous decade. My concerns are with the long term viability of the economic and financial aspects of F1.
If you look at the financial prospects for F1 one thing leads to another, a significant number of long term fans are switching off because they've lost interest, there's been a move from free to air to pay per view, the traditional circuits are finding it increasingly difficult to justify the race costs with a dwindling number of paying spectators, hence sponsors are not willing to pay top dollar for less coverage. F1 is heading towards a manufacturer dominated 'sport' funded by their marketing departments and designed to help them sell cars, with races run in far flung states desperate for some kind of international exposure, or subsidised venues where the manufacturers particularly want to sell cars. Then you've got the CVC situation...
RYH64E said:
For whatever reason, I've also lost interest in F1, it just doesn't excite me any more and I have little or no interest in the current crop of drivers or corporate manufacturer dominated teams. I didn't watch this week's race in full, just caught snippets throughout the day when it was repeated.
If you look at the financial prospects for F1 one thing leads to another, a significant number of long term fans are switching off because they've lost interest, there's been a move from free to air to pay per view, the traditional circuits are finding it increasingly difficult to justify the race costs with a dwindling number of paying spectators, hence sponsors are not willing to pay top dollar for less coverage. F1 is heading towards a manufacturer dominated 'sport' funded by their marketing departments and designed to help them sell cars, with races run in far flung states desperate for some kind of international exposure, or subsidised venues where the manufacturers particularly want to sell cars. Then you've got the CVC situation...
Can't argue with any of that.If you look at the financial prospects for F1 one thing leads to another, a significant number of long term fans are switching off because they've lost interest, there's been a move from free to air to pay per view, the traditional circuits are finding it increasingly difficult to justify the race costs with a dwindling number of paying spectators, hence sponsors are not willing to pay top dollar for less coverage. F1 is heading towards a manufacturer dominated 'sport' funded by their marketing departments and designed to help them sell cars, with races run in far flung states desperate for some kind of international exposure, or subsidised venues where the manufacturers particularly want to sell cars. Then you've got the CVC situation...
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