Soldato
Yeah I noticed that, just one hefty radiator.
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Soldato
Not sure about Mercedes PU being left behind, I think Ferrari have just made a bit of a leap, as is evident not from just the works team but also customer teams.They were talking up their PU in the off season which I don't think many people took serious.
Mercedes drivability woes are probably the main cause of their lack of pace rather than the PU being predominantly to blame, the package as a whole just isn't working right now. They did look much better in qualy than in FP1 & 2 though so they'll get there at some point.
A three way battle between Ferrari, RB and Merc would be fantastic.
Soldato
Yeah, all the cars will be as compact as possible, as you want the centre of gravity to be as low and central as you can, but I doubt anyone are as tight as the Mercedes.
If you compare the picture of the Alpine for example to the Mercedes picture from Barcelona the difference is still pretty amazing, especially when you consider the Mercedes radiator is in there too.
Soldato
Mercedes definitely had some traction issues on the first morning of Bahrain testing. Hamilton could barely brake or accelerate without locking up or spinning the wheels.
I don't think the PU is holding them back too much - it even be a deployment thing, where Mercedes are just deploying more energy on other straights in which case you'd expect their speed trap numbers to be lower - and their bigger issue is more of a downforce thing, but I think most people expect them to get on top of this sooner rather than later.
You're right about that being their main problem, but the weakness of the Merc customer teams doesn't suggest they have the best PU any more.
Definitely. This Lewis trash talk is like a young teenage daily mail comment section.
Glad ferrari are up there. Surprised max isn't on pole. Still expect max to take it.
I want sainz to win. Out of the top 10 he's the most likeable. Has always seemed like a really nice guy.
Biggest disappointment has to be mclaren and particularly ricciardo! Huge backwards step!
Notable mentions to bottas and magnusson and haas
team I support .. Alpine.. Yeah basically no change from last year.
Personally id love to see bottas beat Hamilton but doubt it will happen.
For me this is Hamiltons proving year. Last few years he's had an easy ride. GOAT? Not sure. With better team mates I'd say yes. And he is brilliant. This yeah how he handles himself, how he does on track will go a long way to me agreeing if he's the GOAT.
But I feel he needs a difficult year where he outperforms the car, beats a few people in slightly better cars etc to really silence the critics.
It's the hard years that make /break.
Yeah, i'm gutted for Mclaren if this race is an indication of their pace going forward this season.
Yeah, i'm gutted for Mclaren if this race is an indication of their pace going forward this season.
If ricciardo has a bad year in a bad car it could kill his reputation going forward
I don't know man. I don't think it is just a coincidence that the Ferrari powered bottom teams are now suddenly in the midfield and snapping at the heels of the Merc, whilst Mclaren, Aston Martin and Williams all look rubbish....
I'm certain the difference is the engine here, and that the Ferrari engine is a beast.
It’s not just the Lewis stuff. It’s also listening to e.g. Scam say Verstappen is a bad person because of the mistakes of his father etc. It’s downright embarrassing and just baseless slander, in all directions at multiple different drivers and team principals (with 99% of the people in this thread never having met them etc). Same as people STILL making comments about last year instead of focusing on the new season. It’s not one rule for Lewis comments and another for everyone else, be respectful towards everyone ffs.
Honestly, any F1 fan should just be happy there’s actual competition for once.
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That's it isn't it. Many support a team/driver rather than the sport.
I actually like not supporting a top team. It takes away a lot of fan boying.
Having said that I do prefer Hamilton to verstappen at a personal level. Hopefully verstappen calms down a bit now and isn't so 'erratic' in some of his challenges. I do like watching fireworks though!
Lewis was still robbed last season. It's been confirmed. That will always but a bad mark on F1 for me and I just can't watch it with the same emotional attachment as I did before.
Soldato
Exactly that, good thing is max will always know deep down that he didn’t really win his first championship out right, he was given it.
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Soldato
I understand where you ae coming from, and it was nice of the FIA to throw Massi under the bus to avoid F1 getting any of the blame at all. It's basically made the result of the 2021 season invalid to real fans of 'sport' where rules are everything, but I can understand why they didn't want to overturn the decision as well. Lets hope that they have learned a lesson here, spectacle isn't worth ruining the sport for, but it is owned by 'muricans so doubt it'll sink in for long.
Man of Honour
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Spot on.
Soldato
Mad F2 race coming to a close now. Two cars released without wheels attached (one blocking pitlane), Vips having over a 4 second lead, only to suffer the mare of all pitstops but made it back up to third, Iwasa coming from last to lead now with fresher tyres and in P7, and now the restart with 2 laps to go!
Soldato
Seems like Ferrari have done a better job of optimising their ICE for the 10% Vegan fuel the FIA has inflicted on the teams this year.
I never said he wasn't, I'm British after all, I like to see our drivers win. That doesn't mean I call Christian Horner a ****, when all the TP's are the same. That doesn't mean I call Max fans bigots. That doesn't mean I accuse Max of being a bad person because of something his father did.
You can feel aggrieved for Lewis without being a piece of **** (not aimed at your comment @azazl187). That's what so many in here fail to do. The worst part is how the moderation team allow so much of it to slip through, so it encourages the pitch forked armed neanderthals to continue.
Soldato
+1
It was chaos. They need to look at how pit stops are regulated. That was very dangerous, and it wasn't even the only time we saw a car move with the gun attached.
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