[Official] Bahrain Grand Prix 2019: Grand Prix Weekend Thread - Round 2 of 21

[chillibowl]

Originally Posted by S griffin

At least his mistake in Melbourne didn't force him into the pits. I really think Leclerc has shown himself to be the real deal. Anyway we can forgive his mistakes due to it being his second season

indeed and first race for one of the most scrutinized teams in all of sports...for me i would say he exceeded first race expectations.

imo he did enough to showcase his quality in his first race, justified his signing, and called into question Ferrari's strategy of favouring the multi WDC winning diver in seat number 1....a feat most 2nd seat Ferrari divers never accomplish.

Originally Posted by ApexTurtle

Is there anything I said that is untrue? What is your way of looking at it then?

just me, but i would give him a lot more credit for successfully avoiding his team mate (who left him no space imo) going into the first corner.

no doubt he could have done better but 'very poor' is on the harsh side for me.

[ApexTurtle]

Originally Posted by chillibowl

just me, but i would give him a lot more credit for successfully avoiding his team mate (who left him no space imo) going into the first corner.

That's another way of looking at it. I would say Vettel did not have to give any space, and in hindsight Leclerc would have been better off backing down earlier and staying ahead of Verstappen. But I have no doubt he will learn such things quickly

[chillibowl]

Originally Posted by Anyopenroad

No and no. Ricciardo’s car was not safe to touch. Needed specialist team which could not be there in the short time available. And it wasn’t far enough off the track to be left there.

yeah, that was the reason for my question...given the need for more time to rescue the car should they have red flagged the race, recovered the Renaults, and then had either a standing or rolling start for a shoot out at the end.

also i wonder if Charlie would have come to that conclusion faster than his replacements.

last year, i believe, Charlie brought in some new produces and even did some practices of it during one of the test sessions, presumably, for situations like this.

have to admit my opinion is clouded by Leclerc's failure though...if he was still in the lead i would have hated seeing that lead taken away.

but since he wasnt and the eventual winner was there more due to being in the right place (as opposed to outright speed), i would have liked to see something more entertaining at the end.

all in all i would have liked to see a shoot out.

[bjohnsonsmith]

Originally Posted by chillibowl

yeah, that was the reason for my question...given the need for more time to rescue the car should they have red flagged the race, recovered the Renaults, and then had either a standing or rolling start for a shoot out at the end.

also i wonder if Charlie would have come to that conclusion faster than his replacements.

last year, i believe, Charlie brought in some new produces and even did some practices of it during one of the test sessions, presumably, for situations like this.

have to admit my opinion is clouded by Leclerc's failure though...if he was still in the lead i would have hated seeing that lead taken away.

but since he wasnt and the eventual winner was there more due to being in the right place (as opposed to outright speed), i would have liked to see something more entertaining at the end.

all in all i would have liked to see a shoot out.

Given the circumstances, I think the right decision was made. There's the old saying, yellows breed yellows.

[chillibowl]

true true, with the size of the front wings there probably would have been contact on a restart and the race would have ended under yellow anyway.

still would have liked to see a shoot out though!

[F1Pete]

Just imagine when Leclerc's Ferrari had the failure and the other cars were set to pass andthe Renault's retired sending out the safety car. He would have won based on being saved by the SC. I would have been furious because it would have taken the role of reliability away from the equation.

Anyway, thank God that did not happen. I often hate that safety car when it artificially mixes things up.

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[chunterer]

Originally Posted by ApexTurtle

That's another way of looking at it. I would say Vettel did not have to give any space, and in hindsight Leclerc would have been better off backing down earlier and staying ahead of Verstappen. But I have no doubt he will learn such things quickly

He's clearly learning very fast and from a level already much higher than most drivers.

Spatial awareness is not an issue for Leclerc whereas it certainly is for his teammate!

When a driver is confident in himself and his car he knows dropping a place or two is recoverable so it's worth making a move.

[Adam43]

I think some context needs to be given. 0.3s behind his established team in the first race for the team (his second season too). Slower when running linger than the dominant driver/car in the in the race.

Of track, yep, he still needs to get some consistent lappery (we saw that a little a Bahrain too). Not the only one to have a little off.

Poor? Or on par with expectation?

Whatever we have, IMO, an OK and a very good race. Two in many more to come, could go either way.

[S griffin]

You can't expect him to just come in and dominate his 4 time champion team mate, but you can expect him to give him a hard time, which he has done so far

[chillibowl]

Originally Posted by S griffin

You can't expect him to just come in and dominate his 4 time champion team mate, but you can expect him to give him a hard time, which he has done so far

right!

personally i like that the average age grid age is going down/new talent emerging and getting chances to drive but im also not a fan of the unreasonable expectations being placed on them.

its like if a kid cant win a world title in their first couple of seasons their career is over so throw them on the scrap heap to make room for the next so called wunderkind!

or maybe this is me just being old!

[F1Pete]

I personally don't really like that the grid is so young. For example, when Sky did the carting race with Johnny H and the three kids. I was thinking just that, they are kids. I am not taking anything away from their driving talent. They look like kids, act like kids, but they have been driving for a long time.

Verstappen was a kid when he started in F1. Then he put on some muscle , started shoving other drivers and became a man really quickly. He is a force to be reckoned with in every way.

Then I think back to when Kimi started and he didn't even have his license. It's all good!



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[steve_r]

I know what you mean, but when the helmets are on and the lights go out, does it really matter? None of them drive like kids! Schooled from an early age for a F1 career, and picked up as children by F1 teams and brought through the the teams F1 driver programs. By the time they arrive in F1, most of them really are decent and ready to go.

In the old days a lot of the drivers were there simply because they had sponsorship though a cigarette company, and new drivers would typically not be expected to really perform until they had a couple of seasons experience.

[F1Pete]

...and after smoking a pile of cigarettes.

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[djinvicta]

Im looking forward to watching Vettel being pushed hard by Leclerc. Vettel wont like it and will get clumsy as he does. Lets hope Ferrari let them "kick it out" on track. I have a feeling the Team has become bored with Seb and since the leaving of a few top people are now focusing on new young blood. Wouldn't Max provide spectator entertainment there with Charles Leclerc? There's a thought..

[Aysedasi]

I was thinking the same thing about Leclerc. How quickly will Ferrari realise that his is the basket they should be putting their eggs in for the future.....?

[Greem]

Originally Posted by Aysedasi

I was thinking the same thing about Leclerc. How quickly will Ferrari realise that his is the basket they should be putting their eggs in for the future.....?

Something intangible tells me that's *exactly* what they're doing. I can't quite put my finger on it (nor Vettel's) but there's just something about the way CL is being allowed to join in the public fun with cardboard moustaches and so on that suggests he's the current Golden Boy.

Maybe it's the change from Arrivabene to Binotto; maybe it's something different, either way the Scuderia seem a little less up their own rear ends than they have been in recent years.

[ApexTurtle]

When was the last time Ferrari promoted someone to the main team in just their second F1 year? I think it's great, Leclerc is obviously talented and together they stand a much bigger chance of beating Mercedes.

[djinvicta]

Yes.. Greem and Ayse are with me.. well ahead.. Watch this lad.. him and Max are the future big ones..

[F1Pete]

Don't forget Kimi.

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[djinvicta]

Love Kimi.. bet his Bank Manager is his best mate...

[djinvicta]

Yet if I chose a Saturday night out with the F1 crowd..Kimi would win..

[S griffin]

Originally Posted by ApexTurtle

When was the last time Ferrari promoted someone to the main team in just their second F1 year? I think it's great, Leclerc is obviously talented and together they stand a much bigger chance of beating Mercedes.

Alesi had one and a half seasons with Tyrrell before joining them having turned down Williams’ option on him

However for inexperience, you really need to look at Gilles Villeneuve

[Greem]

Originally Posted by djinvicta

Yes.. Greem and Ayse are with me.. well ahead.. Watch this lad.. him and Max are the future big ones..

It seems very amusing to me that we're touting the next generation when, realistically, Hamilton & Vettel are very far from finished in F1.

Personally I think Vettel is closer to the end than Hamilton, but I think both of them could (not necessarily will!) be around and at the top for years to come.

[wnut]

Originally Posted by Greem

It seems very amusing to me that we're touting the next generation when, realistically, Hamilton & Vettel are very far from finished in F1.

Personally I think Vettel is closer to the end than Hamilton, but I think both of them could (not necessarily will!) be around and at the top for years to come.

Agreed, and Leclerc is still a long long way from winning a WDC.
I think we need to see a lot more of him before we start making sweeping statements about how good he is, having said that, he looks very promising indeed.

[bjohnsonsmith]

Originally Posted by djinvicta

Im looking forward to watching Vettel being pushed hard by Leclerc. Vettel wont like it and will get clumsy as he does. Lets hope Ferrari let them "kick it out" on track. I have a feeling the Team has become bored with Seb and since the leaving of a few top people are now focusing on new young blood. Wouldn't Max provide spectator entertainment there with Charles Leclerc? There's a thought..

Max might provide spectator entertainment with Leclerc but hasn't Ferrari become the kiss of death? Alonso couldn't deliver, though he came close to winning the WDC twice and likewise, Vettel's been the bride's maid twice since he joined the Scuderia.