Hamilton's problem in Brazil '07

[natterjak]

It must be the masochist in me (being a LH fan), I've just re-watched the Brazil GP of last year. Of course I knew at the time but I'm getting old and can't remember - what was it that caused Lewis to lose 30 seconds at around quarter race distance? The commentary on the race just says gearbox problems, but surely something more conclusive was released post-race?

[heebeegeetee]

Ferrari reckoned he pressed the pit lane speed limiter, like Kovie did in the following race, Aus '08.

[MonkeyHanger]

heebeegeetee said:

Ferrari reckoned he pressed the pit lane speed limiter, like Kovie did in the following race, Aus '08.

Went for a visor tear-off and hit the limiter by mistake didn't he ?

[natterjak]

Really? They showed a replay from outside of the car and his fuel flap didn't seem to be open. I thought it opened on pit lane settings.

[MonkeyHanger]

natterjak said:

Really? They showed a replay from outside of the car and his fuel flap didn't seem to be open. I thought it opened on pit lane settings.

That was Heikki's response when asked about it IIRC.

Edited by MonkeyHanger on Friday 8th August 22:14

[thestig84]

It wasnt the pitlane limiter. Most in depth reason was his gearbox had a fault, went into limp mode which sent it straight to neutral (can hear the box of neutrals on un-edited on board vid). He then followed a procedure of the radio and got it going again.

I think they turned everything down after too, making sure he got to the end.

[deadslow]

Without realising it, hit the talent limit. Has managed to do it this year as well.

[heebeegeetee]

deadslow said:

Without realising it, hit the talent limit. Has managed to do it this year as well.

I'm not sure we've got too close at all to his limits yet, but we'll see.

God knows how good he'll be once he gets experienced.

[coetzeeh]

heebeegeetee said:

deadslow said:

Without realising it, hit the talent limit. Has managed to do it this year as well.

I'm not sure we've got too close at all to his limits yet, but we'll see.

God knows how good he'll be once he gets experienced.

He is very experienced - he's been racing for more than 15 years, how much time does one need?

[heebeegeetee]

coetzeeh said:

heebeegeetee said:

deadslow said:

Without realising it, hit the talent limit. Has managed to do it this year as well.

I'm not sure we've got too close at all to his limits yet, but we'll see.

God knows how good he'll be once he gets experienced.

He is very experienced - he's been racing for more than 15 years, how much time does one need?

Have you watched GP2? They've all been racing for 15 years too, in fact the championship leader is 29 years old, they're all very experienced too, yet the amount of accidents they have is amazing, i always think. Some of the stuff you see seems to be real novice stuff, yet they've all been racing for years.

Every time i've ever read about it, everyone says that stepping up to F1 is stepping into another league all together. Its not just driving the cars, but all the peripheral stuff as well. The demands on the drivers time and the level of technology and analysis they have to get involved with is manyfold compared to what they've done before. Then there's the media aspect - Hamilton went from being unknown outside of the sport to being a household name within about 2 races.

He's not experienced at F1, and that's the important factor. But he's getting there. I think we've got a long way to go yet, that's for sure, i think there's a strong possibility that we just ain't seen nothing yet.

[kevin ritson]

heebeegeetee said:

He's not experienced at F1, and that's the important factor. But he's getting there. I think we've got a long way to go yet, that's for sure, i think there's a strong possibility that we just ain't seen nothing yet.

Exactly, but don't let facts get in the way of the pathetic envy from those usually moaning about a lack of national pride...

[NeilBeforeZod]

kevin ritson said:

heebeegeetee said:

He's not experienced at F1, and that's the important factor. But he's getting there. I think we've got a long way to go yet, that's for sure, i think there's a strong possibility that we just ain't seen nothing yet.

Exactly, but don't let facts get in the way of the pathetic envy from those usually moaning about a lack of national pride...

There's a telling quote in the latest Kovi interview in the McLaren fan club rag. He reckons that it's bloody hard to even get to F1, but it's even harder once you're in it. I would imagine that the level of technical analysis is unprecedented and with the current level of data logging and telemetry must take some getting used to. Overall, you can't expect anyone to jump into probably the most competetive form of motorsport in the world and perform at 100% of their potential immediately. It must take time to learn the tricks of the trade that are F1 specific. How long did it take Schumacher, Senna, Prost, Fangio, Moss, Clark, etc to get to be competitive or dominant? I'd wager it wasn't immediate.

[telecat]

Everybody forgets as well that F1 cars are probably the first time a Young driver climbs into a bespoke racing car. All the Junior formula are either one make where information on basics is set by the Manufacturer, or a single make dominates, such as Formula 3.

[RichB]

deadslow said:

Without realising it, hit the talent limit. Has managed to do it this year as well.

[flemke]

deadslow said:

Without realising it, hit the talent limit. Has managed to do it this year as well.

Lucky for him that his limit appears to be a lot higher than everyone else's is.

[natterjak]

Anyhow, getting back on topic I re-watched the ITV review of '07 season this morning and the summary seemed to be that it was an un-explained fault which lost him 30 odd seconds. Not too many things happen on an F1 car these days which can't be explained I suppose, with all the sensors and data logging they have.

[thestig84]

deadslow said:

Without realising it, hit the talent limit. Has managed to do it this year as well.

Not sure if you still mean he hit the pit lane limiter or you implying he was at fault.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HNP_auAdM6Q

This video lets you hear and see it was noting to do with his driving. Just faced with a box of neutrals before the corner. All the other youtube videos edit the video or have commentry over the engine noise so you can see or hear it going wrong before he presses the pit lane limit button a bit later in case it came on by itself.

[heebeegeetee]

thestig84 said:

deadslow said:

Without realising it, hit the talent limit. Has managed to do it this year as well.

Not sure if you still mean he hit the pit lane limiter or you implying he was at fault.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HNP_auAdM6Q

This video lets you hear and see it was noting to do with his driving. Just faced with a box of neutrals before the corner. All the other youtube videos edit the video or have commentry over the engine noise so you can see or hear it going wrong before he presses the pit lane limit button a bit later in case it came on by itself.

I was probably wrong on my earlier quote, perhaps it was the nuetral button that Fezza reckoned he hit.

NeilBeforeZod said:

How long did it take Schumacher, Senna, Prost, Fangio, Moss, Clark, etc to get to be competitive or dominant? I'd wager it wasn't immediate.

And all those drivers had a nice quiet year or two to play themselves in. Hamilton has been followed and analysed closely right from his very first race, he literally has had nowhere to hide right from the off, which i would suggest is unprecedented. Apart from JV maybe, but then i never really considered he was a rookie when he came to F1, any more than Mansell was when he went to Indy.

[flasher]

deadslow said:

Without realising it, hit the talent limit. Has managed to do it this year as well.

His talent limit is obviously way higher than yours. He's driving F1 and you are bhing about him on the internet. Spot the irony?

[deadslow]

flasher said:

deadslow said:

Without realising it, hit the talent limit. Has managed to do it this year as well.

His talent limit is obviously way higher than yours. He's driving F1 and you are bhing about him on the internet. Spot the irony?

Sorry, what irony is that?