Who will replace Nico
Poll: Who will replace Nico
Total Members Polled: 510
Discussion
HustleRussell said:
From the Williams drivers thread
It changed from that before and Red Bull's wings were clipped, then we had Merc all about the engines, so if it does become all about aero again then we may see a closer field rather than 2 Merc's class A then Class B's then the also rans.HustleRussell said:
tommunster10 said:
I'd be thinking nows a good time to put some money on Williams being up the sharp end again. Not enough to beat Merc but more like when they first got Merc power and were sometimes just behind the Mercs.
Firstly this deal with Stroll, the money his Dad's invested he'll be wanting the Merc engine with a better mode than the others but not obviously the mode Team Merc get to use...
Also the dealing between Merc and Williams i'd wager Williams get a close engine to Merc but not quite good enough to ever really compete.
I think we could see Massa up front and Stroll being heralded as a star based on this.
And obviously Bottas will suddenly be coming 2nd.
Williams will certainly not be fighling with Force India i'd say they will on par with Red Bull / Ferrari next year due to the Merc engine with a few more bells and whistles than the average but not as many as Merc F1...
Utter piffle in my opinion, for 2017 Formula 1 ceases to be an engine formula and becomes an aero formula once again, Mercedes, Ferrari, Red Bull et al will outspend Williams in the wind tunnel by a factor of several to one. With the lifting of engine development tokens, Mercedes' engine advantage will drastically close. The rich teams have already had a preview of the 2017 tyres. The rich teams have Hamilton, Bottas, Riccardo, Verstappen, Vettel, Raikkonen... Williams risk being eclipsed by McLaren, Torro Rosso, maybe even Renault....Firstly this deal with Stroll, the money his Dad's invested he'll be wanting the Merc engine with a better mode than the others but not obviously the mode Team Merc get to use...
Also the dealing between Merc and Williams i'd wager Williams get a close engine to Merc but not quite good enough to ever really compete.
I think we could see Massa up front and Stroll being heralded as a star based on this.
And obviously Bottas will suddenly be coming 2nd.
Williams will certainly not be fighling with Force India i'd say they will on par with Red Bull / Ferrari next year due to the Merc engine with a few more bells and whistles than the average but not as many as Merc F1...
I doubt it will be as much about aero as you think, but i'd love to see Lewis have more competition this season but would feel a bit sorry for Bottas if the Merc is no longer the car to be in...
Personally for me Merc will dominate and in 2018 they leave F1 in an official team capacity.
tommunster10 said:
......., but i'd love to see Lewis have more competition this season but would feel a bit sorry for Bottas if the Merc is no longer the car to be in...
Big Lewis fan here and I hope for the same, F1 needs a more effective opposition to push everybody forward. Bottas will have a much more productive season with even a below-par Mercedes that he would sticking with Williams although I do agree they will get a boost from the fall-out with the Bottas deal.Some people are making a big thing of the $20m from Stroll, and a potential $20m from Merc for Bottas, but $20m is only 10% of the Williams team's budget for a season. It's obviously a positive for them if they can get the extra money, but isn't going to make a huge difference in the big scheme of things. Mercedes, Ferrari and Red Bull have budgets 2.5x larger than Williams, not just 10% here or there.
thegreenhell said:
Some people are making a big thing of the $20m from Stroll, and a potential $20m from Merc for Bottas, but $20m is only 10% of the Williams team's budget for a season. It's obviously a positive for them if they can get the extra money, but isn't going to make a huge difference in the big scheme of things. Mercedes, Ferrari and Red Bull have budgets 2.5x larger than Williams, not just 10% here or there.
I think the thing to note is that margins in F1 are tiny, if that 10% increase in funding along with some stronger factory support for the engine leads to 1% increase in lap times, it leads to a big improvement in the results and points. When 10th of a second over a 2 minute lap decide whether you're in the middle of the starting grid, or near the front, tiny gains against the other teams do make a huge difference.The Surveyor said:
thegreenhell said:
Some people are making a big thing of the $20m from Stroll, and a potential $20m from Merc for Bottas, but $20m is only 10% of the Williams team's budget for a season. It's obviously a positive for them if they can get the extra money, but isn't going to make a huge difference in the big scheme of things. Mercedes, Ferrari and Red Bull have budgets 2.5x larger than Williams, not just 10% here or there.
I think the thing to note is that margins in F1 are tiny, if that 10% increase in funding along with some stronger factory support for the engine leads to 1% increase in lap times, it leads to a big improvement in the results and points. When 10th of a second over a 2 minute lap decide whether you're in the middle of the starting grid, or near the front, tiny gains against the other teams do make a huge difference.I'd go as far as to say they have a pretty good idea already of where he will be qualifying come Australia based on the sheer amount of testing he's done.
"Add to that at least $20-million funding for a high-tech simulator at Williams HQ in Grove and an intensive private testing programme, on the road since August, using a Mercedes hybrid powered 2014 Williams FW36.
No expense has been spared as a 20-strong test team puts Stroll through his paces, including five Mercedes technicians to look after two specially built test engines, plus Pirelli providing so-called Academy tyres with hard, medium and soft compounds for the youngster to mimic a grand prix weekend."
Edited by tommunster10 on Thursday 5th January 20:21
The Surveyor said:
I think the thing to note is that margins in F1 are tiny, if that 10% increase in funding along with some stronger factory support for the engine leads to 1% increase in lap times, it leads to a big improvement in the results and points. When 10th of a second over a 2 minute lap decide whether you're in the middle of the starting grid, or near the front, tiny gains against the other teams do make a huge difference.
Agreed, but, and it is a big but, only if you have the drivers to make use of those gains. Williams do not.CrouchingWayne said:
Has anyone got any links to stories on Stroll Snr and Jnr working th lower ranks? I find it fascinating how he's shot through everything. I'm looking forward to seeing him race. If my dad was a billionaire I'd probably do the same.
"Stroll purchased the entire Prema F3 team and hired skilled Ferrari engineer Luca Baldisserri to oversee the winning 2016 season. He also bought Williams a new high-tech racing simulator for his son to practice on with the team.In preparation for his future role, Lance was sent on a worldwide test program equipped with a 2014 Williams-chassis car, two Mercedes engines, five Mercedes engineers, and an additional 20 staff members. This was to cater to his every need while he learned the car and the engine he'll be racing with."
Personally, i find it shows the very worst of Motorsport. I'm sure others will think its great. I don't envy Lance and if i were him or his Dad i'd do the same, but i won't be 'routing' for him.
If fact on balance i'd not do the same, the level Stroll snr has taken it is obscene and clearly Lance isn't that naturally gifted as he's had to buy big on everything.
2016
1 Prema Powerteam 887
2 HitechGP 535
Edited by tommunster10 on Friday 6th January 12:23
I wouldn't worry too much about unfair advantages.
With the restrictions on in-season testing and limits on the number of engines available there is only so much "practice" that Stroll will be able to do. Each time he moves up a formula the other guys have extra experience to draw on and now he is at the pinnacle he is competing against people who have been doing this for decades.
e.g. when karting, he could garner a huge advantage by running around all week every week as he'd be competing with guys the same age who maybe only got to drive for an hour or two each weekend; it's not like he would be racing a 20-year old kart driver who had been competing since he was 8. Similarly in F3, GP2 or other feeder formula etc. he'd be racing guys within a year or two of his age and thus any extra experience he had would be advantageous. By the time you get to F1 the "other guys" have been driving for decades - Felipe Massa probably has more hours in an F1 car than Stroll does all told!
With the restrictions on in-season testing and limits on the number of engines available there is only so much "practice" that Stroll will be able to do. Each time he moves up a formula the other guys have extra experience to draw on and now he is at the pinnacle he is competing against people who have been doing this for decades.
e.g. when karting, he could garner a huge advantage by running around all week every week as he'd be competing with guys the same age who maybe only got to drive for an hour or two each weekend; it's not like he would be racing a 20-year old kart driver who had been competing since he was 8. Similarly in F3, GP2 or other feeder formula etc. he'd be racing guys within a year or two of his age and thus any extra experience he had would be advantageous. By the time you get to F1 the "other guys" have been driving for decades - Felipe Massa probably has more hours in an F1 car than Stroll does all told!
Flooble said:
I wouldn't worry too much about unfair advantages.
With the restrictions on in-season testing and limits on the number of engines available there is only so much "practice" that Stroll will be able to do. Each time he moves up a formula the other guys have extra experience to draw on and now he is at the pinnacle he is competing against people who have been doing this for decades.
e.g. when karting, he could garner a huge advantage by running around all week every week as he'd be competing with guys the same age who maybe only got to drive for an hour or two each weekend; it's not like he would be racing a 20-year old kart driver who had been competing since he was 8. Similarly in F3, GP2 or other feeder formula etc. he'd be racing guys within a year or two of his age and thus any extra experience he had would be advantageous. By the time you get to F1 the "other guys" have been driving for decades - Felipe Massa probably has more hours in an F1 car than Stroll does all told!
It would certainly re new my faith in F1 if he got 'found out' at that level, but i don't think he will, for reasons I've outlined, his Dad won't let him get found out. The Williams will be a good car.With the restrictions on in-season testing and limits on the number of engines available there is only so much "practice" that Stroll will be able to do. Each time he moves up a formula the other guys have extra experience to draw on and now he is at the pinnacle he is competing against people who have been doing this for decades.
e.g. when karting, he could garner a huge advantage by running around all week every week as he'd be competing with guys the same age who maybe only got to drive for an hour or two each weekend; it's not like he would be racing a 20-year old kart driver who had been competing since he was 8. Similarly in F3, GP2 or other feeder formula etc. he'd be racing guys within a year or two of his age and thus any extra experience he had would be advantageous. By the time you get to F1 the "other guys" have been driving for decades - Felipe Massa probably has more hours in an F1 car than Stroll does all told!
ELUSIVEJIM said:
I had to laugh at Massa stating he would not have come out of his 5 minute retirement to another team unless it was Williams. 
Actually I don't think that is quite as laughable as it sounds. There is a chance he could have secured a drive with a lower ranked team like Sauber, Haas, Manor, etc, but he didn't want to drop down the order... Williams is at least a competitive seat. I don't blame Massa for taking the offer, I mean who would turn down several million $ for a year of work doing something they love? But having said that I think he stopped at the right time and I find it hard to see him doing anything very special next year. (hope I'm wrong, it would be great to see him win another race).
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