The Official F1 2021 silly season *contains speculation*
Discussion
RonaldMcDonaldAteMyCat said:
There's a reason Hulk's been available to the top teams, if they wanted him, for a number of years. But nobody has. There must be a reason he is consistently overlooked?
He and Perez are hard to separate in terms of performance, however Perez brings $10m+ and Hulkenberg expects a salary. That's the reason he left the sport. I don't know why Hulkenberg never got a shot in a top team. I think that the regulations for the majority of his period in F1 meant he was at a weight disadvantage. I view it as simply an abundance of drivers and a shortage of top seats rather than any performance shortcoming.
RonaldMcDonaldAteMyCat said:
There's a reason Hulk's been available to the top teams, if they wanted him, for a number of years. But nobody has. There must be a reason he is consistently overlooked?
A poster in a previous thread who clearly HAD worked with him said it was lack of money at crucial times to employ decent management to help negotiate him into the rooms for the more premium seats. Coupled to bad timing with him not being available when better seats were. I'm a firm believer in Brundle's feeling that the best drivers usually end up in the best cars but I'm inclined to believe the poster saying Hulkenberg has just had rotten luck with timing when it really mattered.HustleRussell said:
RonaldMcDonaldAteMyCat said:
There's a reason Hulk's been available to the top teams, if they wanted him, for a number of years. But nobody has. There must be a reason he is consistently overlooked?
He and Perez are hard to separate in terms of performance, however Perez brings $10m+ and Hulkenberg expects a salary. That's the reason he left the sport. I don't know why Hulkenberg never got a shot in a top team. I think that the regulations for the majority of his period in F1 meant he was at a weight disadvantage. I view it as simply an abundance of drivers and a shortage of top seats rather than any performance shortcoming.
Yes he brings quite a few million pesos from uncle slim, but you’re expected to give over the real estate on the car and pay Chico’s wages from all that.
What you end up with is a load of Mexican stickers and not much left over.
ajprice said:
The second RB seat will be interesting if it's Perez or Hulk, whether they're treated the same way as the juniors brought into the team ("the car is set up for Max, keep up or you're out"), or whether they'll listen to them, they've both been around longer than Max, and can give decent feedback on the car and what's right or wrong with it.
It’s a Newey product... it’s the design philosophy more than general set up issues. Gasly impressed enough go be offered the cursed seat at RedBull. Couldn’t make it work, banished back to Alpha Tauri where once more he’s getting the max out of what he has. He’s clearly able to dial the car in for the various circuits. Horner has said the problem is their car has a very narrow operating window... that’s the problem.
Perez or Hulk just might be able to work with it but if they can’t will they be dismissed here as useless too?
Since the departure of Mark Webber, Red Bull have employed drivers who’s only F1 experience is Torro Rosso. Perhaps the team would benefit from a driver with wider experience to help develop a more rounded car.
Hulk has a reputation for giving excellent feedback, and might be the man to help turn a fast car into a car that’s fast and drivable.
So let’s see him in the 2nd RB seat for 2021.
(I will admit to being a bit of a Hulk fan who expected him to arrive in F1 and become a superstar. One more year to finally get that podium would make me happy.)
Hulk has a reputation for giving excellent feedback, and might be the man to help turn a fast car into a car that’s fast and drivable.
So let’s see him in the 2nd RB seat for 2021.
(I will admit to being a bit of a Hulk fan who expected him to arrive in F1 and become a superstar. One more year to finally get that podium would make me happy.)
If Williams drop Russell I'd love to see him in albons seat, at least we'll be able to see if he lives up to the hype that's been around him for the last couple of years. And he'll finally be able to get some points.
Also doesn't albon have some Thai sponsorship money? Maybe he could go to Williams or haas
Also doesn't albon have some Thai sponsorship money? Maybe he could go to Williams or haas
Edited by Angpozzuto on Monday 26th October 19:49
It’s been mentioned before about gasly upsetting a few people in the red bull camp and that’s one of the reasons he won’t be asked back.
Is it possible that he pointed out all their flaws (the car behaving like it does) way back but they were too arrogant to accept it? Now they have got another driver in the same predicament, not being able to tame a super edgy car, they have finally come to realise gasly wasn’t the issue but are too proud/don’t want a ‘I told you so’.
Is it possible that he pointed out all their flaws (the car behaving like it does) way back but they were too arrogant to accept it? Now they have got another driver in the same predicament, not being able to tame a super edgy car, they have finally come to realise gasly wasn’t the issue but are too proud/don’t want a ‘I told you so’.
I'm not sure Marko wants drivers going up and down the ranks like yoyo's. It gives the impression he doesn't know what he's doing 
Gasly back to TR at the time made sense. Would they really pull him back up again to the top team? To do so would just highlight the failing was within Red Bull, not the driver surely?
I think they'll put someone new and/or more interesting in to the seat. Quite possibly Hulk. Whoever it is, needs to be someone the media can get behind and get excited about - because it's Red Bull, and that's always a driving factor.
I could drive for them next year, never finish a lap and be pointless, and it wouldn't make a difference in terms of standings. Max alone would carry them to 2nd in the WCC and no one else is close enough to challenge that position. The second driver could be anyone...
(Would Max carry the entire team to 2nd regardless...? He's currently on 162 points solo and the nearest team, RP, via both drivers are on 126 points..)
Gasly back to TR at the time made sense. Would they really pull him back up again to the top team? To do so would just highlight the failing was within Red Bull, not the driver surely?
I think they'll put someone new and/or more interesting in to the seat. Quite possibly Hulk. Whoever it is, needs to be someone the media can get behind and get excited about - because it's Red Bull, and that's always a driving factor.
I could drive for them next year, never finish a lap and be pointless, and it wouldn't make a difference in terms of standings. Max alone would carry them to 2nd in the WCC and no one else is close enough to challenge that position. The second driver could be anyone...
(Would Max carry the entire team to 2nd regardless...? He's currently on 162 points solo and the nearest team, RP, via both drivers are on 126 points..)
I wonder if Fernando Alonso is wishing he’d kept his powder dry rather than rushing in on the Alpine deal
Another terrible career decision
up there with retiring with some fanfare having systematically pissed everybody off, producing a weird retirement announcement video (?) in which he revealed his personal museum, a shrine to his past F1 career, all the while pretending he had bigger fish to fry, before slinking back into frame not two years later to announce a triumphant and historic return 
Another terrible career decision
up there with retiring with some fanfare having systematically pissed everybody off, producing a weird retirement announcement video (?) in which he revealed his personal museum, a shrine to his past F1 career, all the while pretending he had bigger fish to fry, before slinking back into frame not two years later to announce a triumphant and historic return Edited by HustleRussell on Monday 26th October 23:27
TheDeuce said:
I'm not sure Marko wants drivers going up and down the ranks like yoyo's. It gives the impression he doesn't know what he's doing
Gasly back to TR at the time made sense. Would they really pull him back up again to the top team? To do so would just highlight the failing was within Red Bull, not the driver surely?
I think they'll put someone new and/or more interesting in to the seat. Quite possibly Hulk. Whoever it is, needs to be someone the media can get behind and get excited about - because it's Red Bull, and that's always a driving factor.
I could drive for them next year, never finish a lap and be pointless, and it wouldn't make a difference in terms of standings. Max alone would carry them to 2nd in the WCC and no one else is close enough to challenge that position. The second driver could be anyone...
(Would Max carry the entire team to 2nd regardless...? He's currently on 162 points solo and the nearest team, RP, via both drivers are on 126 points..)
RE Verstappen carrying RBR to 2nd: Ferrari seem on the up though.... and Sainz will probably do better than Vettel hasGasly back to TR at the time made sense. Would they really pull him back up again to the top team? To do so would just highlight the failing was within Red Bull, not the driver surely?
I think they'll put someone new and/or more interesting in to the seat. Quite possibly Hulk. Whoever it is, needs to be someone the media can get behind and get excited about - because it's Red Bull, and that's always a driving factor.
I could drive for them next year, never finish a lap and be pointless, and it wouldn't make a difference in terms of standings. Max alone would carry them to 2nd in the WCC and no one else is close enough to challenge that position. The second driver could be anyone...
(Would Max carry the entire team to 2nd regardless...? He's currently on 162 points solo and the nearest team, RP, via both drivers are on 126 points..)
HustleRussell said:
I wonder if Fernando Alonso is wishing he’d kept his powder dry rather than rushing in on the Alpine deal
Umm... They want to find the least damaging way to exit the supply deal with Honda, probably with some sympathetic understanding from Honda to allow RB to maintain at least the performance the PU gives them today. I'm not sure signing Alonso would help that effort 
faa77 said:
TheDeuce said:
I'm not sure Marko wants drivers going up and down the ranks like yoyo's. It gives the impression he doesn't know what he's doing
Gasly back to TR at the time made sense. Would they really pull him back up again to the top team? To do so would just highlight the failing was within Red Bull, not the driver surely?
I think they'll put someone new and/or more interesting in to the seat. Quite possibly Hulk. Whoever it is, needs to be someone the media can get behind and get excited about - because it's Red Bull, and that's always a driving factor.
I could drive for them next year, never finish a lap and be pointless, and it wouldn't make a difference in terms of standings. Max alone would carry them to 2nd in the WCC and no one else is close enough to challenge that position. The second driver could be anyone...
(Would Max carry the entire team to 2nd regardless...? He's currently on 162 points solo and the nearest team, RP, via both drivers are on 126 points..)
RE Verstappen carrying RBR to 2nd: Ferrari seem on the up though.... and Sainz will probably do better than Vettel hasGasly back to TR at the time made sense. Would they really pull him back up again to the top team? To do so would just highlight the failing was within Red Bull, not the driver surely?
I think they'll put someone new and/or more interesting in to the seat. Quite possibly Hulk. Whoever it is, needs to be someone the media can get behind and get excited about - because it's Red Bull, and that's always a driving factor.
I could drive for them next year, never finish a lap and be pointless, and it wouldn't make a difference in terms of standings. Max alone would carry them to 2nd in the WCC and no one else is close enough to challenge that position. The second driver could be anyone...
(Would Max carry the entire team to 2nd regardless...? He's currently on 162 points solo and the nearest team, RP, via both drivers are on 126 points..)
TheDeuce said:
I'm sure Sainz will! But unless he can teleport his car off the start line directly on to the podium there is no way next season they will be challenging Red Bull. A flea would have a better chance of tracking down it's own fart in a hurricane than Ferrari troubling the top spots next season.
I can't remember the points allocation but are you saying 3rd every week will beat 4th + 5th every week? If so, okay, i understand.Gassing Station | Formula 1 | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff