Quote from NSX_FReeDoM :

that would be bloody awesome. a 1-2 in their debut race.

At this stage im not saying anything, Renault have looked poor all through the tests and then to pull that means alot of teams must of been holding back.

or just them, idk but this blows alot of things i was thinking out the window.

Rosberg just hit a 1:18.0 confirming quite a few have been holding back on their pace.

McLaren back on the flow-viz - http://www.imagesforme.com/out.php/i403524_flowvis.JPG look how colourful it is

Looks like snot to me, like I said the Mclarens have got a cold thats why they're off the pace.

Remember that the traditional first race first corner pileup could influence things.

They don't call it silly season for nothing.

interpid how do you know what times Rosberg did, where do you watch livetiming?

Quote from Intrepid :

Warp drive faliure?
New paint?
Gas explosion?

Who they gonna call?

So that was why the Mclaren's were slow...

The ghost of Ron Dennis was hanging onto it

I see chavs listening to rap in their headphones while doing spray-art on the floor. Now, who let polish imigrants to the pits?

So why does that stuff come out of the cars?

Hmm.. I can't see it as sandbagging myself.

You might make a statement about having issues when you're not to try and persuade the other teams to lay off trying to improve their cars but...

a)I don't believe any team would go as far as getting their no.1 driver to stack it to prove the point. Simple fact, Hamilton crashed more than once which proves he went past the capabilities of the car, (at least on those two occasions). So we have to conclude he must have been pushing, (relative to what the car can do), no matter how it may look to the outside observer.

b) I don't believe any team has sophisticated enough simulation software to not have to actually bother trying to find out how the car performs in the real world. At the very least I don't believe engineers and the team would put their faith 100% in such technology at the posibility of it costing them the championship. So why deliberately waste testing time by cruising and not trying to find the true envelope? I don't believe any team would ever do that. So we have to conclude they're not and they're just not able to push the car.

c) Why would Hamilton be showing signs of frustration, (taking loads of curb etc), at having slow times if he knew in reality that they were sandbagging. Or is that a double bluff? Well given a) & b) and taking in to consideration Hamiltons own temperament, (which I don't believe he has any capability to change), I don't think he's doing it to bluff, he is genuinely frustrated.

Live Timing: http://directo.thef1.es/tests/

Quote from gezmoor :

c) Why would Hamilton be showing signs of frustration, (taking loads of curb etc), at having slow times if he knew in reality that they were sandbagging. Or is that a double bluff? Well given a) & b) and taking in to consideration Hamiltons own temperament, (which I don't believe he has any capability to change), I don't think he's doing it to bluff, he is genuinely frustrated.

Well he took curb in one session, and then didn't touch it in others suggesting they were testing suspension settings and not simply a sign of frustration. At first it looked like frustration until you looked at the rest of the videos coming from the test that suggest this was a set program of attack.

When you think about it it does make perfect sense.

They may well be in trouble, they have yet to set a competitive time once in 09 spec but when you watch the body language of the car it doesn't correlate to what I hear from the 'no rear grip' brigade.. even this might be the case

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/73744


Can't say I like that at all

This puts more emphasis on who's got the best car because someone that is Mr Consistent will lose out

Quote from Intrepid :

Well he took curb in one session, and then didn't touch it in others suggesting they were testing suspension settings and not simply a sign of frustration. At first it looked like frustration until you looked at the rest of the videos coming from the test that suggest this was a set program of attack.

When you think about it it does make perfect sense.

They may well be in trouble, they have yet to set a competitive time once in 09 spec but when you watch the body language of the car it doesn't correlate to what I hear from the 'no rear grip' brigade.. even this might be the case

So what you're saying is that the car is going slowly, yet it's tail isn't all over the place. Well surely this makes perfect sense doesn't it?

The last thing they want to do is be towing the car out of another wall, so the sensible thing to do, would dial the engine back, keep the car on the road, and work with what they have got. This could be why we're seeing slow launches, poor lap times, and the car not stepping out.

The car isn't go slowly, the driver is going slowly. If there was rear traction issues we would see them very easily. Not once have I seen the McLaren go for it under acceleration, even through corners that have large run-off.

Quote from Intrepid :

The car isn't go slowly, the driver is going slowly. If there was rear traction issues we would see them very easily. Not once have I seen the McLaren go for it under acceleration, even through corners that have large run-off.

Sorry, I didn't know you have exclusive camera footage on the pedals

I don't understand what the difference is here. You not seeing the McLaren go for it, could just as easily be down to the car being dialled back.

Quote from Intrepid :

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/73744


Can't say I like that at all

This puts more emphasis on who's got the best car because someone that is Mr Consistent will lose out

I just had a look at previous seasons results.
The only season (going back as far as 1990) where going by number of wins rather than points would change the outcome was last year.

Quote from Bean0 :

I just had a look at previous seasons results.
The only season (going back as far as 1990) where going by number of wins rather than points would change the outcome was last year.

And last year the title was won by a black man. Coincidence? Hmmmmm.....


(sorry, trolling a bit)

Quote from Bean0 :

I just had a look at previous seasons results.
The only season (going back as far as 1990) where going by number of wins rather than points would change the outcome was last year.

Then there is no problem to fix?

MotoGP is exciting and doesn't need it, and I don't think anyone can say Burns didn't deserve his title in 2001 with just 1 win!

How it would have changed history - http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/73069

Can't say I like either of the new rules at all. Extra points for first place was a much better idea.

I'd love to see them try to police the cost cap. I predict every team signs up for it, because they know they'll be able to get around it.

Regardless of how little it would have changed the OUTCOME of the previous championships, it's going to massively change HOW that outcome occured. And it will change it for the worse.

Stupid rule. I might even stop watching F1 - and I've NEVER, EVER threatened to do that before in 21 years of watching F1 (and have only missed a few races in all that time).

Imagine this scenario - 2 races left, two drivers (Driver A and Driver B) tied 'for points'. but Driver A has 3 races win more than Driver B. Your robbed of a grand stand finish!

Especially in a sport where it's so equipment dependant the drivers in cars that can't always fight for wins will be pretty much removed from the chance to win the WDC.

There are so many scenarios - 9 wins 9 DNFS beats 8 wins and 10 second places...etc....

Also consider a driver that may not have the natural talent and speed will suffer. These types of drivers rely more upon dedication and consistancy. Richard Burns springs to mind. These guys will suffer most

Reward a winner of the race more points... yes.. but this... no

Also teams will have to pick who will be their number 1 driver much earlier in the championship

Rubbish rule changes, final nail in the coffin. It will be like watching a server on LFS, where everyone is trying to win at turn 1

"Imagine this scenario - 2 races left, two drivers (Driver A and Driver B) tied 'for points'. but Driver A has 3 races win more than Driver B. Your robbed of a grand stand finish!" This kind of argument's a red herring. Both systems can provide both close finishes and blowouts (there've been plenty of championships where there was a >10 point differential going into the last race). The correct argument is that it's a *completely braindead way of doing things* that does not in any way reflect overall driver skill. It'll be a horrible train wreck and be revoked after one season if not sooner.