Motorsport Off Topic Thread
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Soldato
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Its going to be understandably odd for some. Well, most actually. Any of the drivers who joined in 2006 or later have only ever known 7 speed gearboxes and 2.4 NA V8s. Who out of the whole field has ever driven anything else? Button, Kimi, Massa, Alonso and thats it, isn't it?
It won't make any difference to the pecking order.
The top drivers/cars during the last few years will continue to be at the top.
These drivers are at the top of their game and while some may need 100 laps (in testing) to adapt to the new car behavior, by the time we get to Race 1, they will all be used to it.
And we as spectators won't notice any difference.
I expect Vettel to profit greatly from this change. Webber has stated that this change will suit Vettel down to a 'T', so I have to trust in what he said.
It's almost as if the FIA felt that Vettel needed a little help, so they thought up new regulations which would suit him. Providing RBR produce a reliable car, we may get to see a whole bunch of records broken.
I want to see Ricardo's reaction, when he watches Vettel pull away from him at a rate of 2s/lap, during the race. This must be a demoralising experience for any team-mate (as Webber will attest to).
The top drivers/cars during the last few years will continue to be at the top.
These drivers are at the top of their game and while some may need 100 laps (in testing) to adapt to the new car behavior, by the time we get to Race 1, they will all be used to it.
And we as spectators won't notice any difference.
I expect Vettel to profit greatly from this change. Webber has stated that this change will suit Vettel down to a 'T', so I have to trust in what he said.
It's almost as if the FIA felt that Vettel needed a little help, so they thought up new regulations which would suit him. Providing RBR produce a reliable car, we may get to see a whole bunch of records broken.
I want to see Ricardo's reaction, when he watches Vettel pull away from him at a rate of 2s/lap, during the race. This must be a demoralising experience for any team-mate (as Webber will attest to).
I'm puzzled by this bit. Are they saying the cars are going to be geared for even less top speed than these days? I would have thought with the extra torque from the turbos they'd be running much longer gearing, especially as I believe they're not allowed to change ratios all year - they'll want the car geared long enough for silly speeds at Monza and Spa surely!
Sorry, only just seen this.
Yeah i got bored and was a bit underwhelmed to be fair. Was only me and my girlfriend there and they have filled half of it with tanks and other army vehicles, which i am really not bothered about seeing.
Just no atmosphere at all, just a big cold building with rooms full of mainly under performing F1 and other racing cars and army vehicles with A4 pieces of paper stuck to them with really nothing of interest written on them.
Worth £8 i suppose, just not the £20 it cost me in fuel to get there and back
I see what you mean. If you had the same spread of gearing split into 8 bits rather than 7, then the top segment would be smaller, meaning the point you change to 8th would be further up the rev range than if it were 7 gears.
Unless its in combination with the lower rev limit? But with that you would be changing into every gear at lower revs than before?
The teams have said there will be tracks where they don't use 8th gear.
I thought the whole point of the 8-speed 'box was to work in conjunction with the freezing of ratios once declared at the start of the year and ensure that the cars could reach the crazy top speeds of Monza, Spa etc and run Monaco on the same gearbox (just not using all the gears in the latter) as a cost saving?
I'm fed up with these so-called 'ultimate' racing machines not reaching 200mph on the straights at so many circuits - even the ones with crazy long straights like China...
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BAR Honda took an F1 car to Bonneville and it did around 250MPH I'm sure?
*Off to Google!*
Ah-ha! 246.983MPH!
*edit Also I don't understand why they go to Jerez. I know it's in Spain but it's usually cold, often wet, windy or foggy (sometimes all 3) and any running they do get is usually hampered by the weather. IMO They'd be better off going to Qatar or something. If need be they could get the MotoGP lights up a few weeks early and run around for hours at night so it's not too hot. Or stage all three test sessions in Bahrain so they can leave a lot of their gear there for all three test sessions.
*Off to Google!*
Ah-ha! 246.983MPH!
*edit Also I don't understand why they go to Jerez. I know it's in Spain but it's usually cold, often wet, windy or foggy (sometimes all 3) and any running they do get is usually hampered by the weather. IMO They'd be better off going to Qatar or something. If need be they could get the MotoGP lights up a few weeks early and run around for hours at night so it's not too hot. Or stage all three test sessions in Bahrain so they can leave a lot of their gear there for all three test sessions.
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Soldato
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Qatar is slippery and dusty and pretty unrepresentative for an F1 test.
Jerez, Barcelona and Valencia (the good one) are within a couple of hours, so parts can be ferried quickly.
It's not that long ago that Silverstone was still used for winter tests when we had unrestricted testing and teams could just ring up and turn up. Teams still do the occasional shake-down at Silverstone prior to the first test (Mercedes did that either this year or last).
Jerez, Barcelona and Valencia (the good one) are within a couple of hours, so parts can be ferried quickly.
It's not that long ago that Silverstone was still used for winter tests when we had unrestricted testing and teams could just ring up and turn up. Teams still do the occasional shake-down at Silverstone prior to the first test (Mercedes did that either this year or last).
The problem with Jerez is it bears no resemblance to an F1 track. The surface is unlike any circuit they race on, the corners are unlike anything they have on a race circuit, and the weather is usually pants. I'm with MissChief, its a pretty redundant test. There are far more suitable tracks to test at in Europe, and many more just outside that would provide better weather.
That said, aren't they in Bahrain for a couple of the pre season tests this year?
That said, aren't they in Bahrain for a couple of the pre season tests this year?
yes they are in Bahrain i believe for the 2nd and 3rd tests, due to both the engines and tires needing to be tested in a climate more akin to most of the races on the calendar rather then turning up at malaysia for example and hoping.
sky scanner
Hmm, looks like that's about as cheap as you can get.
This is why I bailed on going to see testing last year. With it being quite short notice, its not as cheap as you might think.
Come to the Spanish GP instead
. We can have an OcUK Mini Meet!
This is why I bailed on going to see testing last year. With it being quite short notice, its not as cheap as you might think.
Come to the Spanish GP instead
. We can have an OcUK Mini Meet!
Associate
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Hmm, looks like that's about as cheap as you can get.
This is why I bailed on going to see testing last year. With it being quite short notice, its not as cheap as you might think.
Come to the Spanish GP instead
Heh, me and a few mof my friends are gonig to Barca as well this year, going ot be good I think