The Official 2018 F1 Silly Season *Contains Speculation*
Discussion
jamiebae said:
I think it was more that an opportunity presented itself for Renault to get hold of a future star without having to pay a ton of money so they jumped at it. It was a very shrewd bit of business on the part of Renault and I don't think it reflects badly at all on Kubica's showing in testing.
I agree. Sainz vs Kubica is an easy choice. Kubica va Palmer, etc, less clear (which is where the process started) for Renault
rdjohn said:
I think you are right. Shifting gears is one thing, controlling the clutch at launch where places are easily won, or lost, would be an issue as well as controlling this lot.
At Goodwood, he struggled to fasten his HANS, but did not have sufficient dexterity to buckle his chin strap.
And yet he managed the Renault test.At Goodwood, he struggled to fasten his HANS, but did not have sufficient dexterity to buckle his chin strap.
jsf said:
As someone who straps drivers into F1 cars for a living, none of that matters. If Zanardi can manage to drive a racing car with no legs and throttle controls on the wheel, i'm sure Robert could manage a clutch 3 times a race.
And if Zanardi was in contention some would be hypothesising that he had an unfair weight advantage by having no legs.
MissChief said:
A touring car with hand throttle and half a dozen buttons you might use ten times in total is a far cry from 15 buttons, four dials and two or three rotating switches.
If it was the limiting factor, do you not think Renault would have spotted that in the simulator time and first test?rdjohn said:
Perhaps they did, but don’t need an extra $8million?
But on the positive side, Joe Saward has changed and now thinks that it looks like a probability. He tends not to speculate on stuff like this.
He tends to be more accurate and doesn't write "filler" unlike some journalists. Nice bloke as well.But on the positive side, Joe Saward has changed and now thinks that it looks like a probability. He tends not to speculate on stuff like this.
HustleRussell said:
What are we to make of Daniel Ricciardo outscoring the wünderkind by 32 points when he only had one fewer DNF this season? I think the Verstappen hype train needs checking and Ricciardo needs to be recognised as Max’s equal.
I probably go with the team principal view in this case. They have access to far more information than we do on performance, who had old/tired engines, etc. And they have retained Max as a priority with a hefty pay rise... but allowed Ricciardo talks to stall?
Points are an indicator of performance, but I'd be reluctant to read too much into them beyond the title battle.
HustleRussell said:
I really don't know and that is why Ferrari IMO have painted themselves into a corner retaining Vettel for so long. Whoever comes in will have to accept that they're the de facto number 2.
Suits some drivers though? Never really seem to have bothered Irvine for example. He was happy to be paid a lot of money to be number 2. Rubens and Felipe, ditto. It's not like it's a surprise that they run a 1/2 driver program. Ditto for Merc while Hamilton is there; there is no way they are going to risk another Rosberg/Hamilton type battle, it was too destructive.HustleRussell said:
I take your point but unless Bottas' performance at the weekend was indicative of what we can expect in 2018 I can see Mercedes having the same problem. IMO next year it could well be the second driver who makes or breaks the constructor's championship. If you are Mercedes or Ferrari you don't want your number two driver finishing 3rd of 4th, you need them finishing 2nd. Bottas and especially Kimi haven't done enough of that. Somehow Kimi was under pressure from Red Bulls yesterday!
I agree. They need a number 2 driver policy, he just needs to be a bit closer... tough though as Lewis is driving beautifully and is arguably at the top of his game.HustleRussell said:
I can't see next year being this close, I reckon Mercedes are going to nail the three engine performance / reliability balance.
We'll see. Ferrari has been pretty reliable this year - and they blocked the move to allow extra engines, reportedly because of the effort they have gone to in engineering for 3 engines.Interesting from Pirelli (partial extract from Autosport article)
"As always, Pirelli has had to define tyres that will cope with predicted levels of downforce at both the start and end of 2018. Development is unlikely to be as dramatic as it was this year, the first season of the new rules, but it will still be significant.
"We've received simulations from the teams," confirms Isola. "It's expected that at the beginning of the season next year's cars will probably be one second quicker than the current cars, so you have a step. And during the season the average rate of development is between 1-1.5s per lap, to give you an idea of normal development."
So another 2.5 secs quicker by end of next season.
That would mean ~1:34 quali laps at Abu Dhabi (maybe even faster with the hypersoft tyre), vs ~1:40s in the early 2010s and start of hybrid era.
"As always, Pirelli has had to define tyres that will cope with predicted levels of downforce at both the start and end of 2018. Development is unlikely to be as dramatic as it was this year, the first season of the new rules, but it will still be significant.
"We've received simulations from the teams," confirms Isola. "It's expected that at the beginning of the season next year's cars will probably be one second quicker than the current cars, so you have a step. And during the season the average rate of development is between 1-1.5s per lap, to give you an idea of normal development."
So another 2.5 secs quicker by end of next season.
That would mean ~1:34 quali laps at Abu Dhabi (maybe even faster with the hypersoft tyre), vs ~1:40s in the early 2010s and start of hybrid era.
suffolk009 said:
Sauber annouce they are partnering with Alfa Romeo next year. They will be Alfa Romeo Sauber F1 Team.
Good news for Sauber, less so for other teams with the wider package being available - more like the Force India deal (a Merc underneath + FI aero)?Strengthens Ferrari's negotiating position for 2021+
Good stability for the Swiss team, who have some great people and kit - and who have been very loyal.
MissChief said:
kambites said:
So just Williams without two confirmed drivers now then?
Decent article by Benson on BBC about Kubica and how he didn't exactly set the track alight at the tests. Don't have it linked here but worth a read. Benson has little credibility to me.
liner33 said:
Very few times though unfortunately, there were quite a few weekends where he just didn't turn up , the result of keeping a driver for the team rather than the drivers convenience I fear.
That wasn't their (Paddy Lowes) analysis."This was one of the more impressive Felipe Massa seasons in his four-year stint with Williams, having postponed a short-lived retirement to replace Mercedes-bound Valtteri Bottas. Massa certainly left a strong impression on new technical chief Paddy Lowe.
“I’ve only really observed him from a distance, but it’s been a real pleasure to work with him,” says Lowe. “Firstly, he’s always happy in his work - always cheerful, always enthusiastic. Then, in the car, completely dependable.
“There are a lot of drivers who have bad days and then you don’t know where you are. In our case, we needed that reference, [or] we’d have been a bit lost, so he’s been great for the team and a great support to Lance by being so consistent, and also literally helping Lance - he’s given him quite a lot of coaching, a lot of important advice around techniques for different things, whether it’s warming tyres or tactics.”
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