Poll: Azerbaijan Grand Prix 2019, Baku - Race 4/21

Rate the 2019 Azerbaijan Grand Prix out of ten

  • Total voters
    98
  • Poll closed .
ci_newman said:
Yeah I'm sure the voting wasn't like that last year? I found the polling useful whether to decide to watch the race or just read the headlines if I couldn't watch live
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I’ve always set the poll to vote before the results can be viewed. It stops posters from seeing with others have rated the race and gives better objectivity.
 
Anyone hear about Nico Rosberg?

Apparently he was banned from attending this race and next because he gave his world-driver-champion-access-all-areas pass to a photographer mate of his at the last race…

More drama than on the track today!
 
BuffetSlayer said:
Giving another car room is a requirement really, particularly if its a team mate with no run off. As you point out the consequences could be dire. So it wasnt him letting Bottas past by being nice. It was him not running a car into to the wall in the interests of self preservation. Even if he did get ahead, it does not mean he would have stayed there. Chances are Bottas would have won it back as his pace was great this weekend. Just seems like sour grapes to me.

First Lewis said the race was lost in quali. Then it was lost by being too nice at the start of the race. Which is it Lewis? His entire body language post race puts the lie to his congratulatory comments. He was seething.

It was all smiles and back patting from Lewis when Bottas wasnt in contention. Now he has come back and shown not just clear intent for the WDC but also his driving ability, Lewis doesn't like it.
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Of course he won't like it but, he won't shy away from the challenge.
 
Watched the c4 highlights. I guess we need to be thankful no more drains came up and dragged the race out like quali.... Was nice to see the Merc keep it clean. Did I hear right that Baku's pay the highest fee to host the race....
 
Disappointingly quiet race. I was shouting at Mercedes to push and move to a two stop in order to counter Leclerc, but they know far better than me and held their nerve. Bottas did well - seemed to be able to keep ahead of Hamilton when he had to. The difference is, when Bottas is on a great weekend then Hamilton is normally a couple of seconds behind him. When Hamilton's on a great weekend, Bottas is normally 30 seconds and maybe two places behind him.

I think that Verstappen will give Honda 4 races in 2020 before beginning to ask some serious questions around the other teams, if they're not competitive. With so many drivers at top teams out of contract in 2021 with all the manufacturer uncertainty, it should be interesting...

The season's barely begun, but wow does Ricciardo need the summer break right now. I reckon the stewards delayed their decision just to make him come up and explain how exactly he managed to reverse into another F1 car during a race.
 
One point does anyone think the bonus point for fastest lap needs to be scrapped? it's not rewarding the fastest driver it's just rewarding those who have had a poor enough race that they can afford to pit and put on fresh tyres without losing any places to the 2nd tier teams. Maybe it would be better to average the fastest lap with finishing time somehow, so that finishing 2mins behind the race winner after an unecessary pit stop to put on fresh tyres for a hot lap isn't rewarded?
 
mmj_uk said:
One point does anyone think the bonus point for fastest lap needs to be scrapped? it's not rewarding the fastest driver it's just rewarding those who have had a poor enough race that they can afford to pit and put on fresh tyres without losing any places to the 2nd tier teams. Maybe it would be better to average the fastest lap with finishing time somehow, so that finishing 2mins behind the race winner after an unecessary pit stop to put on fresh tyres for a hot lap isn't rewarded?
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8 March:

The_Abyss said:
F1 continues to simplify the sport every day in every way...

Will the lesser teams in the top 10 risk their track position in order to gain just an extra point? There'll probably be a couple of races a year finish under the safety car as they go for last lap glory. Or, more likely, there'll be a second car of Mercedes or Red Bull adrift of the leaders but with sufficient gap to the midfield to come in and change tyres without risking position and then do a glory lap.

What problem is this exactly trying to solve, I wonder?
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MM-Seat said:
Of course he won't like it but, he won't shy away from the challenge.
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Oh I know he will bring it - one of his better traits is his determination. I just wonder how dirty he will be riding from now on :)

Elbows at full extension no doubt! Should make for some interesting racing as I don't think Bottas is going to settle for playing second fiddle this season. He seems a very much changed driver, for the better.

Cant rule Hamilton out, but I do think his usual calm and stage managed presentation to the cameras will become a tad frayed! For example, he didnt thank the fans today at Baku. Normally they are great and he loves them (cue puking emoji).Today not a word. Maybe its because he is black? Lol. :p
 
Quartz said:
I listened on the radio and apart from Hamilton almost getting Bottas right at the end and Ferrari screwing over Leclerc, it was just boring.
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Agreed
Thank goodness for highlights how anyone lasted watching it live is beyond me.

Boring except for merc at end
 
413x said:
Agreed
Thank goodness for highlights how anyone lasted watching it live is beyond me.

Boring except for merc at end
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Yeah, was pretty dull race, didnt really pay much attention to most of it, Start/pitstops/end... I had it in a split windows whilst watching the first round of the DH mountain biking WC at Maribor, which was far more enjoyable.
The Mercs although close at times never much looked like they would pass each other, as soon as they got within 1.6-1.3 seconds you could see the car struggle to keep up, and when Lewis finally did get within DRS he could quite get close enough on the last few corners to capitalise, the one time I thought he might actually do it, back markers got involved. Great job from the both of them though, well earned win for Bottas, and I hope this is a sign that he's going to start pulling his weight and actually earning that pay. He has definitely been much more confident and punchier this season, but is dosnt seem consistent yet.
Mega result, would have preferred to have seen Lewis take it but cant grumble, a 1/2 is a 1/2, terrible race though.
 
So how much closer do we think LeClerc would have been if he had 2 stopped rather than spending a chunk of laps at the end of his first stint dawdling? Not sure whether I missed something on the C4 highlights but he went from being in the lead to being 30+ seconds behind Verstappen in a few minutes of the show, not sure how many laps that covered. Seemed crazy to not being him in earlier.

Dull race in the end, after some promise at the start nothing really happened. 6/10
 
PinkFloyd said:
So how much closer do we think LeClerc would have been if he had 2 stopped rather than spending a chunk of laps at the end of his first stint dawdling? Not sure whether I missed something on the C4 highlights but he went from being in the lead to being 30+ seconds behind Verstappen in a few minutes of the show, not sure how many laps that covered. Seemed crazy to not being him in earlier.

Dull race in the end, after some promise at the start nothing really happened. 6/10
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Ferrari were concerned that the soft tyres would fall off a cliff with the higher track temperatures. They were putting all their bets on a late safety car to bring him pack to the front, with newer soft tyres. Even after he pitted, we saw how dreadfully the softs performed, he didn't close the gap to Verstappen who was on 30-lap old medium tyres.

Their gamble on the medium tyres (and his crash) in Q2 screwed any chance he had for a podium position without a safety car.

Frankly, given all the red flags in practise and in quali, I'm very surprised there wasn't a safety car in the race (I dont count the VSC, although that did cause Hamilton to lose 2seconds on Bottas so cost him any chance of the win).
 
mmj_uk said:
One point does anyone think the bonus point for fastest lap needs to be scrapped? it's not rewarding the fastest driver it's just rewarding those who have had a poor enough race that they can afford to pit and put on fresh tyres without losing any places to the 2nd tier teams. Maybe it would be better to average the fastest lap with finishing time somehow, so that finishing 2mins behind the race winner after an unecessary pit stop to put on fresh tyres for a hot lap isn't rewarded?
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It would function better without the big gap between the teams, but I don't think it's a bad thing as is. It gives a little more to play for at the end and I'm sure we'll see someone come a cropper chasing it before season's end.
 
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