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Originally Posted by Richard Casto
What jumps to mind for me was all of the comments about lack of differentiation between F1 and GP2 lap times. I can't remember if that was pre or post sale to Liberty.
Richard
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“When I quit F1 I said to someone about the current cars, ‘we’re qualified, we’ve come through the ranks, so that effectively we’re qualified to fly F18s, but now we’re flying passenger jets’,” Mark Webber said.
“There’s no doubt that (Max) Verstappen is a talent but after just a handful of races, he’s already ahead of the car. F1 shouldn’t be like that.
“F1 cars should command more respect. When you warm one of them up in the garage for the first time it should be a case of ‘f***ing hell! I’ve made it to here and now I have to crack this final mission’.
“Talk to drivers who started in Formula 1 around the same time I did: we all came away from the first F1 test thinking ‘I’m not too sure about this,’ which is completely how it should be and that resonates with the fans.”
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- Mark Webber, 2015
https://www.eurosport.com/formula-1/...21/story.shtml
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The current cars are physically easier to drive [than those from previous eras] ... I did 100km in the Force India, as fast as I could go, on slicks in the dry .. but my neck didn’t hurt. I’m 56 years old – I shouldn’t be able to do that!
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- Martin Brundle, 2016
https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/f...vious-era.html
I recall a quote from a GP2 driver who found the power-steering assisted 2016 F1 car to less taxing to drive than his GP2 car during their F1 testing, but I can't quite find it.
Those 2014-2016 F1 cars were so darn slow, they were at times 10-15 seconds per lap slower than 2004 F1 cars at the start of a race with full fuel, making them much faster in 2017 was
absolutely the right decision.
Going 2-3 seconds per lap slower from where they were in 2020 is fine (I think they were 0.5-1.5s per slower in 2021 which made little difference), but to go 10 seconds a lap slower again would be the wrong move IMO.
In 2016, Super Formula cars from Japan were
much faster than F1 cars in corners (F1 much faster on the straight due to much more power of course). It was ridiculous. The F1 driver could do little more than wait, wait some more and then finally pick up the throttle due to lack of grip -- they couldn't attack the course in the aggressive manner which the Super Formula drivers could.
While they are occasionally ponderous due to the weight (due to extra safety measures since 2016), have we not been thrilled by how attacking, exciting and edgy the 2017-2021 cars with their big wings and big tyres were/are, especially in qualifying? When they are on the limit, they are really on the limit, and they can unload and spit the overambitious driver off at any moment which is rather exciting!
Qualifying Highlights | 2021 Dutch Grand Prix
Of course F1 adding better tracks like Zandvoort, Mugello etc has helped a lot too.