Official 2020 Austrian & Styrian Grand Prix Thread *Spoilers

[Derek Smith]

I saw Moss racing, although never in F1. He was a class above everyone else in a sports car race.

I saw Clark racing, again never in F1, but in F2, saloons, sports cars and other races. He once drove a 7-litre Ford saloon at Brands in pouring rain. At the end of the first lap, driving a car that was a handful in the dry, and, going by the other drivers in identical cars, even worse in the wet, he was approaching Druids when the next one appeared from under the bridge into Clearways. An awesome drive. He slowed later into the race, not, as we thought, because he had a problem but, it seems, to let the others catch up.

Stewart, Reuteman, Andretti (oh! him in that GE Lotus - made for each other) and then onto Senna, Schumacher, Mansell and many others, some taken too soon to see if they fulfilled their potential; which was best? It's a stupid question.

The driver who impressed me the most was Clark, but that is, I think, not only because me made everyone else look so slow, but that he enjoyed driving and transmitted this to the spectators. At Crystal Palace one race, I think the last race meeting ever held there, Clark was in a Ford Lotus-Cortina, up against a 4.9 Ford sports car, in the hands of a much fancied driver, at least by him. Clark harried him all the way, but could not pull enough acceleration from a corner to get in front, when he'd have left him for dead. On the 'slow down' lap, he hung the back out on the corners, generating lots of smoke and even more opposite lock, in theory to give the photographers a shot, but I reckon it was also because it was so much fun.

How would he fare now? I don't think he would, not because of lack of talent but because he would not have thought it fun. That means, of course, to some, that he could not be the best driver ever. Tell that to anyone who's seen him race.

Memories of great drivers and great drives aren't made better by suggesting the driver is the best ever.

[Roofless Toothless]

paulguitar said:

He's well on his way to surpassing M. Schumacher, and doing so without most of the advantages MS enjoyed, and what's more, without resorting to dirty driving as Schumacher did several times.

Hamilton's achievements are a fair reflection of his talent, which has been mesmerizing since he was a kid in karts.

My sons used to race in karts in the late 80's, mainly at Hoddesdon. For a number of reasons I had to call it a day in 1990, and placed an ad for all our gear in Karting magazine. A certain Mr Anthony Hamilton came round to my house, and stood in my garage with his son looking at our Cadet kart. He was quite a little lad at the time, perhaps about six years old - the kid that is, not Anthony!

He bought the kart, a black framed Allkart, far from new. Both my sons had raced it. I have a book at home with a picture of Lewis sitting in the thing.

I used to go to the occasional meeting at Hoddeson after we retired, looking out for old friends and rivals, and after a while I was told to Keep an eye on a youngster in the Cadets. It was Lewis of course, and even at that age it was clear to see that he was a bit special. I doubt he was still driving our old Allkart by that time, but I nevertheless got that funny feeling you have when someone picks up your guitar and makes it 'sing' in a way it never did in your hands!

I am exasperated by one or two posters on here that are so negative about Lewis's abilities. Anybody with a ha'pence of knowledge about the sport and who have watched it at all levels will know the truth.

[shirt]

Deesee said:

Last two laps with Lando

https://twitter.com/F1/status/1282591846636548097?...

Scenario 7? Renault just might have the best PU on the grid in race mode.. (well for short bursts)..

Fortunate there with the contact of the 2 cars ahead and Perez limping home.

This season will be all about the midfield. Only person not happy about this is probably Carlos sainz

[ghost83]

Deesee said:

Last two laps with Lando

https://twitter.com/F1/status/1282591846636548097?...

Scenario 7? Renault just might have the best PU on the grid in race mode.. (well for short bursts)..

I like lando and I hope he does eventually get a wdc but I hate all the driver coaching

[Roofless Toothless]

ghost83 said:

I like lando and I hope he does eventually get a wdc but I hate all the driver coaching

I thought it wasn't allowed?

[glazbagun]

Roofless Toothless said:

ghost83 said:

I like lando and I hope he does eventually get a wdc but I hate all the driver coaching

I thought it wasn't allowed?

They allowed it in 2016(17?) as it was proving too hard to police.

[Roofless Toothless]

glazbagun said:

Roofless Toothless said:

ghost83 said:

I like lando and I hope he does eventually get a wdc but I hate all the driver coaching

I thought it wasn't allowed?

They allowed it in 2016(17?) as it was proving too hard to police.

Bang up to date as usual.

[ch37]

ghost83 said:

I like lando and I hope he does eventually get a wdc but I hate all the driver coaching

I think that was an exceptional case (in how frequent the commands were) because he was being given the green light to use modes that presumably are putting more stress on his engine / fuel use and that he wouldn't normally be using to that degree. It's not as though they were telling him to use a certain gear in a corner or take a line differently.

It's just a reflection of where F1 is with the amount of data on the pitwall and the adjustability of mapping etc. At least it's not a genuine '5 second boost per lap' overtake button or something artificial like that, there is presumably a significant balance of risk in turning the wick up that much. It also highlights just how much a driver has to do whilst piloting a car at 190mph, the skills may have changed over the years but clearly still a lot is required of the driver.

Edited by ch37 on Monday 13th July 10:13

[Exige77]

Roofless Toothless said:

paulguitar said:

He's well on his way to surpassing M. Schumacher, and doing so without most of the advantages MS enjoyed, and what's more, without resorting to dirty driving as Schumacher did several times.

Hamilton's achievements are a fair reflection of his talent, which has been mesmerizing since he was a kid in karts.

My sons used to race in karts in the late 80's, mainly at Hoddesdon. For a number of reasons I had to call it a day in 1990, and placed an ad for all our gear in Karting magazine. A certain Mr Anthony Hamilton came round to my house, and stood in my garage with his son looking at our Cadet kart. He was quite a little lad at the time, perhaps about six years old - the kid that is, not Anthony!

He bought the kart, a black framed Allkart, far from new. Both my sons had raced it. I have a book at home with a picture of Lewis sitting in the thing.

I used to go to the occasional meeting at Hoddeson after we retired, looking out for old friends and rivals, and after a while I was told to Keep an eye on a youngster in the Cadets. It was Lewis of course, and even at that age it was clear to see that he was a bit special. I doubt he was still driving our old Allkart by that time, but I nevertheless got that funny feeling you have when someone picks up your guitar and makes it 'sing' in a way it never did in your hands!

I am exasperated by one or two posters on here that are so negative about Lewis's abilities. Anybody with a ha'pence of knowledge about the sport and who have watched it at all levels will know the truth.

I used to race karts at the time and was a member at Rye House. Those dam pot holes on the way in !!

I remember Lewis well from those Hoddesdon days. I saw him around all the Super one tracks up and down the country. One could tell even then he was special but never imagined he could go all the way.

I think he did Formula Yamaha one year and I was on the dummy grid watching his race. He had a moment at the start a dropped down the field and it was fantastic to see him work his way back to the front. He was on a different level to the other kids.

Had a few run ins with his Dad, he was always too important to queue for scrutineering or to sign on but I guess he can be forgiven for that now.

Lewis is the consummate professional driver right at the top of his game. Great over one lap, great in wheel to wheel, great at looking after his tyres and car over a long run.

I think there’s still more to come !!

[Roofless Toothless]

I remember seeing a cartoon in one of the motorsport magazines many, many years ago, where an army of engineers were sitting at the back of a pit garage, all with computer screens and keyboards in front of them.

An exasperated driver rushes in and cries, "it's gone off without me!"

Not so far from the truth nowadays.

[stevesingo]

Deesee said:

Last two laps with Lando

https://twitter.com/F1/status/1282591846636548097?...

Scenario 7? Renault just might have the best PU on the grid in race mode.. (well for short bursts)..

Not by a long way. There was a comparison of Lando's last lap of the Austrian GP with Hamilton's. Lando was something like 0.7 quicker overall. Even using all the engine mode and overtake he could, the Merc was still faster on the straight, Lando being much faster in the corners due to the fresh tyres.

[Gary C]

Roofless Toothless said:

I remember seeing a cartoon in one of the motorsport magazines many, many years ago, where an army of engineers were sitting at the back of a pit garage, all with computer screens and keyboards in front of them.

An exasperated driver rushes in and cries, "it's gone off without me!"

Not so far from the truth nowadays.

?

Telemetry only flows one way, or am I missing your point.

[thegreenhell]

stevesingo said:

Not by a long way. There was a comparison of Lando's last lap of the Austrian GP with Hamilton's. Lando was something like 0.7 quicker overall. Even using all the engine mode and overtake he could, the Merc was still faster on the straight, Lando being much faster in the corners due to the fresh tyres.

He wasn't on fresh tyres. They were a few laps younger than Lewis', perhaps, but they'd still done over 30 laps by that point.

[kambites]

thegreenhell said:

He wasn't on fresh tyres. They were a few laps younger than Lewis', perhaps, but they'd still done over 30 laps by that point.

I thought he pitted a few laps from the end?

[ajprice]

kambites said:

thegreenhell said:

He wasn't on fresh tyres. They were a few laps younger than Lewis', perhaps, but they'd still done over 30 laps by that point.

I thought he pitted a few laps from the end?

Sainz switched to softs to get the fastest lap.

[stevesingo]

thegreenhell said:

stevesingo said:

Not by a long way. There was a comparison of Lando's last lap of the Austrian GP with Hamilton's. Lando was something like 0.7 quicker overall. Even using all the engine mode and overtake he could, the Merc was still faster on the straight, Lando being much faster in the corners due to the fresh tyres.

He wasn't on fresh tyres. They were a few laps younger than Lewis', perhaps, but they'd still done over 30 laps by that point.

I'm talking the Austrian, not the Styrian. By the by, the point being the Merc was still faster on the straights even when the Renault was turned up to the max.

[paulguitar]

Roofless Toothless said:

My sons used to race in karts in the late 80's, mainly at Hoddesdon. For a number of reasons I had to call it a day in 1990, and placed an ad for all our gear in Karting magazine. A certain Mr Anthony Hamilton came round to my house, and stood in my garage with his son looking at our Cadet kart. He was quite a little lad at the time, perhaps about six years old - the kid that is, not Anthony!

He bought the kart, a black framed Allkart, far from new. Both my sons had raced it. I have a book at home with a picture of Lewis sitting in the thing.

I used to go to the occasional meeting at Hoddeson after we retired, looking out for old friends and rivals, and after a while I was told to Keep an eye on a youngster in the Cadets. It was Lewis of course, and even at that age it was clear to see that he was a bit special. I doubt he was still driving our old Allkart by that time, but I nevertheless got that funny feeling you have when someone picks up your guitar and makes it 'sing' in a way it never did in your hands!

I am exasperated by one or two posters on here that are so negative about Lewis's abilities. Anybody with a ha'pence of knowledge about the sport and who have watched it at all levels will know the truth.

Great post, and what an amazing memory to have. It must give you a certain kind of inner glow to have watched Hamilton's career and know you have a small personal connection.

[Derek Smith]

Roofless Toothless said:

My sons used to race in karts in the late 80's, mainly at Hoddesdon. For a number of reasons I had to call it a day in 1990, and placed an ad for all our gear in Karting magazine. A certain Mr Anthony Hamilton came round to my house, and stood in my garage with his son looking at our Cadet kart. He was quite a little lad at the time, perhaps about six years old - the kid that is, not Anthony!

He bought the kart, a black framed Allkart, far from new. Both my sons had raced it. I have a book at home with a picture of Lewis sitting in the thing.

I used to go to the occasional meeting at Hoddeson after we retired, looking out for old friends and rivals, and after a while I was told to Keep an eye on a youngster in the Cadets. It was Lewis of course, and even at that age it was clear to see that he was a bit special. I doubt he was still driving our old Allkart by that time, but I nevertheless got that funny feeling you have when someone picks up your guitar and makes it 'sing' in a way it never did in your hands!

I am exasperated by one or two posters on here that are so negative about Lewis's abilities. Anybody with a ha'pence of knowledge about the sport and who have watched it at all levels will know the truth.

My 'prime' sport used to be rugby. At one club, Worthing, we had an under 17s match and one of the club committee told me to go and video the match, paying special attention to the second row lad.

I asked which one (there's two locks) and was told it was obvious. And it was. Joe Launchbury was a jewel of our team. His quality shone through. Another lad, played for county for a while, was Jordan Turner-Hall. He was 15 when people came from other teams just to watch him. He played for Quins 1st XV when he was 17. It's easy enough to pick out the ones who stand a chance at going for the big time - internationals and such. Shame about Jordan being injured, but it was always on the cards. His idea of tackling was to come out of one only slightly less injured than the other chap. It's a shame he bulked out. As a centre he was impossible to tackle on a 1:1. At one match, the opposition put three players on him. He ran them ragged. Great to watch quality.

Some people are so good from an early age that it is impossible to feel jealous. I was pleased to have seen Jordan and Joe from such an early age. I can't even feel chuffed that I picked them for great things as so did anyone else who saw them.

[KevinCamaroSS]

Roofless Toothless said:

I remember seeing a cartoon in one of the motorsport magazines many, many years ago, where an army of engineers were sitting at the back of a pit garage, all with computer screens and keyboards in front of them.

An exasperated driver rushes in and cries, "it's gone off without me!"

Not so far from the truth nowadays.

Certainly agree as far as road cars are going. Racing cars? A million miles away from the truth.

[Roofless Toothless]

Gary C said:

Roofless Toothless said:

I remember seeing a cartoon in one of the motorsport magazines many, many years ago, where an army of engineers were sitting at the back of a pit garage, all with computer screens and keyboards in front of them.

An exasperated driver rushes in and cries, "it's gone off without me!"

Not so far from the truth nowadays.

?

Telemetry only flows one way, or am I missing your point.

I said 'many, many years ago' ...

Although they banned direct control of the car from the pits, coaching the drivers how to twiddle the knobs to get the same effect seems like another way of achieving the same thing to me.