Japanese Grand Prix 2011, Suzuka Circuit - Race 15/19
- Thread starter Glaucus
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Man of Honour
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- 21 Nov 2004
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lol, the chat between Button and Vettel when they sit down. Button - "So that is how we are racing then." 
Man of Honour
- Joined
- 21 Nov 2004
- Posts
- 46,282
Stewards got the two main calls right today. No punishment for Vettel on the start as that would have been unprecedented (I won't count Fuji 2008 where locking your wheels results in a penalty!). Likewise, it was good they investigated the HAM/MAS contact but it was only very slight and both cars didn't appear to be seriously damaged. Those sort of minor contacts happen all the time lower in the field and are not even investigated!
I wish Lewis would just mock him for being a puppet and a chimp.
And that I think is the problem! He isn't just seeing through it all for what it is. He doesn't seem capable to rise above it. He is actually getting upset and offended by some of his rivals comments.
He needs to man up FFS. Fire some shots back from time to time. And stop accepting blame for literally everything. MAN. THE. ****. UP!
It isnt equal machinary though - the RBR is still clearly faster on the circuits that count (ie those at the beginning of the season to amass a high number of CDC points for others to chase)
Of course its great for McLaren (and possibly Alonso) to chase down, and occasionally win but the damage is done early in the season
Majority of the time the RBR was just in its own race, it was that superior - and difficult to judge whether it was SV managing his car to the end or whether 2nd place car was actually catching
Quali performance is important, sure, but with all the storming drives (with KERS & DRS admittedly) from way back, its less important now than it used to be - with the "undercut" performance on race day much more important than 1 or 2 places on the grid imo
Simple for me - I cant afford nigh on £500 for the year, its just not going to happen (even if I enjoy a lot of Premiership footy too, I just cant justify that expense) , still furious about this but makes no odds unfortunately
I still think the move right at the start was too strong - whether there is armco or a wall there shouldnt matter, he purposefuly drove JB off the circuit. Im only after continuity in the rulings, and that definitely wasnt the right decision. At that point in the race a drive through would have put him in amongst a lot of traffic and from there anything could have happened. (although he would probably been let through by a few not wanting to get involved).
Massa/ Hamilton was something of nothing really - barely worth investigating
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Rams into Massa? Hamilton held his line
Hopefully next season Red Bull will be caught - of course I won't be able to watch most of next season- will probably "watch" the Sky coverage after the race.
No he really never held his line, he moved over clearly
Button in a dry race was masterful, and it looks like that's Hammy's season finished. He looks a shadow of the racer of past seasons, and Button is pulling away in the drivers championship. Can't help but think that Ham might only be a 1 time WDC now...
I wouldn't say it's his season finished, if Button retires next race and Hamilton wins, he'll be back within a couple of points.
That's the thing with this new points system, you can make up seemingly huge deficits very quickly.
He's only 32 points behind - for drivers competing at the sharp end of the grid, that can be turned around in just a couple of races.
Pretty much identical to my reactions today!!!
Well done to JB.. that was a stunning race, really good to watch, thoroughly enjoyed it..
I think it's the tyres that are killing him. This race made me even more convinced!
indeed, MSC and Webber had a coming together which caused damage and no one battered an eye lid....
but sshhh don't tell Mr men on his hate campaign.
He's never been this far behind a team mate. His teammate is racing so much better than him. His teammate has just signed a multi-year deal for the team that a short time ago was regarded as his. The team are saying that his teammate gives better feedback and helps develop the car. Only 32 points behind when over the last 5 races his teammate has outscored him comprehensively. Doesn't look good does it?
& only just missed out on fastest lap 1:36.569 vs 1:36.568 (Button).
Really impressed by the rookies this year.
Well done to Vettel
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He was a good chunk behind Button after Canada, not 32 points but no small margin either and within 2 races he was back in front in the standings.
I agree that it's not looking good for him at the moment but I think it's premature to write off a driver like Hamilton with so many races left.
Whitmarsh says:
"We weren't immediately aware that Lewis appeared to suffer a slow puncture to the right-rear in the first stint. That created a growing pressure differential across the rear axle, and potentially led us to add too much front wing to compensate for the lack of balance at the rear.
In hindsight, that may have led to Lewis fighting to find a satisfactory balance for the next two stints as we attempted to restore the set-up he'd enjoyed during the previous two days. It was a challenging afternoon for Lewis, but he never gave up, kept pushing and scored some strong points for the team. He had the pace this weekend, so I'm sure he'll be as tough as ever in Korea next weekend."
Looks like they screwed up his setup by playing with the front wing angle during pit stops?
"We weren't immediately aware that Lewis appeared to suffer a slow puncture to the right-rear in the first stint. That created a growing pressure differential across the rear axle, and potentially led us to add too much front wing to compensate for the lack of balance at the rear.
In hindsight, that may have led to Lewis fighting to find a satisfactory balance for the next two stints as we attempted to restore the set-up he'd enjoyed during the previous two days. It was a challenging afternoon for Lewis, but he never gave up, kept pushing and scored some strong points for the team. He had the pace this weekend, so I'm sure he'll be as tough as ever in Korea next weekend."
Looks like they screwed up his setup by playing with the front wing angle during pit stops?
Not quite writing him off, but this appears (to me anyway) to be the first time Hamilton looks so far behind a teammate in so many ways...