Australian Grand Prix 2018: Grand Prix Weekend Thread

[davec]

Originally Posted by gert

Driving through the pitlane was not faster than driving on the track. Vettel still lost about 20 seconds by making that stop.

By driving on the VSC limit Hamilton (and Raikkonen and most others) could not travel the same distance during those 20 seconds that they would have have travelled at racing speed. Hence, he came and Raikkonen came out behind.

True! ignore me, I should not have ideas when drinking Gin.....

[littleman]

To prevent a repeat of today's "Lucky" win, shouldn't the pit lane be closed under a VSC ?

I thought the VSC was to prevent drivers gaining an advantage whilst an incident was cleared up ie: Just maintain the race's status quo.

It's clearly an unintended loop hole which makes a mockery of all the racing that's gone on before hand.

I'm an Alonso fan and it worked out just fine for him, but nevertheless the finishing positions were a little hollow for everyone.

[Alfaholic]

Originally Posted by steve nielsen

"crashgate" anyone?

that VSC caused by the Haasrari was very convenient for Vettel and Ferrari

Originally Posted by steve nielsen

a. they have very close ties with Ferrari

b. it's not like they crashed like Piquet jr , hardly any danger

[conspiracy mode] Perhaps if Magnussen had parked a little bit more inconveniently to create a safety car earlier, Grosjean would not have had his 'problem' and might have got a good points finish [/conspiarcy mode]

[gert]

Originally Posted by littleman

To prevent a repeat of today's "Lucky" win, shouldn't the pit lane be closed under a VSC ?

Not sure if that's a good solution either.
What would you do then? Let them pit under SC? Or after the Safety Car is gone?

Let's suppose Grosjean stopped together with Raikkonen (i.e. a lap before Hamilton did).
If Hamilton would now have to wait until the SC bunched the field up or until the SC was gone, that would have given a massive advantage to those who had already stopped.
In this case Raikkonen - who was 3rd on the road after his stop, with all others in the top 6 yet to pit.

[Adam43]

All of the methods for dealing with a problem on track (whether live track, yellow flags, VSC, SC, red flags,...) have a downside. This is the VSC one. However in other situations it is better than the others and race control can’t tell when they make the call. Of course the race control has the impact on the race as a low priority at that point.

[Tourer]

Originally Posted by Adam43

All of the methods for dealing with a problem on track (whether live track, yellow flags, VSC, SC, red flags,...) have a downside. This is the VSC one. However in other situations it is better than the others and race control can’t tell when they make the call. Of course the race control has the impact on the race as a low priority at that point.

Exactly.

With conventional SC periods, stopping before the SC generally confers a benefit in terms of track position. With a VSC, stopping during the VSC confers a benefit.

Either way, race "neutralisations" have an impact, as do Pace Cars in the USA - swings and roundabouts.

[F1Guy]

Originally Posted by steve nielsen

"crashgate" anyone?

that VSC caused by the Haasrari was very convenient for Vettel and Ferrari

No, nothing like. Haas did not deliberately put the wheel nuts on improperly. It was 100% a genuine mistake. For both KM's and RG's pitstops. If KM and RG had finished in the positions they were in, there was 22 championship points, and $5'000'000+ in prize money up for grabs. They wouldn't throw that away for Ferrari. Hass did not deliberately sabotage their own race for Ferrari's gain. Period.

However, the call for Romain Grosjean to stop the car immediately where he was, WAS deliberate. Apparently, a quick thinking Haas engineer made the call to the pit wall, and the call was made to RG by his race engineer to stop the car immediately. Nothing wrong with that call you say? Yes sure, the wheel nuts on the left side weren't done up properly, but it did not pose that much of a issue that RG couldn't continue further down the track (the nut cannot come undone once on the spindle anyway) and pull up in a "safer" spot that would not have caused the yellow. Just as Magnussen did earlier.

The radio conversation between RG and his engineer is available. I just hope it is released to the public. Hopefully in the highlights video package(s) that F1 releases a day or two after the GP.

[littleman]

At the present time F1 rules insist every car must stop at least once to change tyres.

Therefore I don't understand why a driver who's changed tyres should be potentially penalised. If tyre changing was optional then fair enough.

Surely the driver who's elected to stay out longer should carry all the risk, after all they're the one who's knowingly taking a gamble.

As the rules stand at the moment they can take the gamble with no risk at all.

[Tourer]

Originally Posted by littleman

At the present time F1 rules insist every car must stop at least once to change tyres.

Therefore I don't understand why a driver who's changed tyres should be potentially penalised. If tyre changing was optional then fair enough.

Surely the driver who's elected to stay out longer should carry all the risk, after all they're the one who's knowingly taking a gamble.

As the rules stand at the moment they can take the gamble with no risk at all.

That cuts both ways - the driver making the earlier stop for tyres is also taking a gamble on how the race will play out, how long the new tyres on the car will stand up etc.

swings & roundabouts

[S griffin]

Watching the highlights, it's obvious the downforce needs to be cut further, as overtaking is now harder than ever. And an extra DRS zone or more compounds are not the answer.

Ferrari and Vettel cleverly exploiting the VSC to beat Hamilton and Merc, shows the title is not a forgone conclusion. Feel really sorry for both Haas, they both were running in the points, then lost it all due to finger trouble. Hope this isn't a one off pace wise

Great to see Fred back near the front where he belongs, here's to a better season for McLaren

[littleman]

I can certainly understand the manufacturer argument that F1 is an excellent proving ground for current and future road car technology.

This is especially true of engines and probably other mechanical and electrical components.

However, I don't see any evidence to suggest that the highly sophisticated aerodynamics of modern F1 cars plays any worthwhile role in road car applications.

I've never seen a Mercedes, Renault, Ferrari or even a Honda product on the motorway sporting a huge, complicated front wing, barge boards, a rear wing with a DRS device or a blown diffuser.

Clearly then, F1 can get rid of it's aero obsession because it serves no particular purpose outside of the sport and ruins the racing in the process.

[crmalcolm]

Originally Posted by littleman

However, I don't see any evidence to suggest that the highly sophisticated aerodynamics of modern F1 cars plays any worthwhile role in road car applications.

I've never seen a Mercedes, Renault, Ferrari or even a Honda product on the motorway sporting a huge, complicated front wing, barge boards, a rear wing with a DRS device or a blown diffuser.

They may not be huge wings, but complex aero does play a part in modern road cars, and will become even more prevalent as the drive for efficiency continues.

The elements on a road car may be different to those on an F1 car, but the technology and understanding behind those elements can be derived from the track.

[wnut]

Originally Posted by crmalcolm

They may not be huge wings, but complex aero does play a part in modern road cars, and will become even more prevalent as the drive for efficiency continues.

The elements on a road car may be different to those on an F1 car, but the technology and understanding behind those elements can be derived from the track.

Not an expert on this car, but how many of the ducts actually do anything and are not just blanked off fakes?

[S griffin]

Usually though it’s tin tops and sportscars that help develop aero for road cars

[crmalcolm]

Originally Posted by wnut

Not an expert on this car, but how many of the ducts actually do anything and are not just blanked off fakes?

Honda have claimed that everything on the front end serves a purpose. The following has been written about the car:

'vents and wings that both increase downforce and create an aerodynamic “air curtain” around the car. The Type R’s air curtain is formed by the front splitter’s winglets that work in conjunction with the fascia’s side vents to channel air around the front wheels and down the sides of the car.'

'Located between the bottom of the front bumper cover and the Type R’s chin spoiler is a pair of hard-to-see vents. These are tasked with channeling cold air to the chunky 13.8-inch front brake discs'

'winglets at the ends of the side sills direct air around the back wheels'

[Richard C]

I know people like to give Romain Grosjean grief for various reasons. But I think this needs to be called out...

https://twitter.com/andrewyee/status/977945393370750981

So clearly the pit guys were gutted to have the same issue (human error) happen for both cars. Especially given that both cars were doing so well. I don't know what exactly Grosjean is telling them, but I assume it boils down to... "Don't worry, we will get them next time".

Richard

[Nikki Katz]

Ah good, f1’s back, I needed that extra bit of sleep yesterday

[wnut]

Originally Posted by Richard Casto

I know people like to give Romain Grosjean grief for various reasons. But I think this needs to be called out...

https://twitter.com/andrewyee/status/977945393370750981

So clearly the pit guys were gutted to have the same issue (human error) happen for both cars. Especially given that both cars were doing so well. I don't know what exactly Grosjean is telling them, but I assume it boils down to... "Don't worry, we will get them next time".

Richard

Praiseworthy behavior indeed, someone that knows a bit about team building even when he himself would have been gutted.

[RWill2073]

Originally Posted by Richard Casto

I know people like to give Romain Grosjean grief for various reasons. But I think this needs to be called out...

https://twitter.com/andrewyee/status/977945393370750981

So clearly the pit guys were gutted to have the same issue (human error) happen for both cars. Especially given that both cars were doing so well. I don't know what exactly Grosjean is telling them, but I assume it boils down to... "Don't worry, we will get them next time".

Richard

Thanks for sharing. That is great to see. But I'm curious. Was it human error or a faulty gun? It happened to the same wheel on both cars. That seems more like an equipment failure than a human error. Either way, good on grosjean.

[peebee2]

No, different wheels. One rear, one front.

[F1Guy]

Australian GP highlights..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_c...&v=SONGEiVMygg


Team radio..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5sVsKTV_UCo

(unfortunately no Haas radio whatsoever).

[chillibowl]

Originally Posted by F1Guy

Team radio..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5sVsKTV_UCo

(unfortunately no Haas radio whatsoever).

Kimi: Where is my pit board?

[sizzle]

Oh dear

https://www.motorsportweek.com/joesaward/id/00191

I also have a rhetorical question: what do you think would happen if an F1 technical director became rather "tired and emotional" (as Private Eye used to say) on a flight home from Australia (while in team travel gear), and was to cause trouble on the plane, including making rude remarks about his team principal - to the man himself. I guess such a thing would be a firing offence, wouldn't it?

[VIVA GT]

Originally Posted by sizzle

Oh dear

https://www.motorsportweek.com/joesaward/id/00191

I also have a rhetorical question: what do you think would happen if an F1 technical director became rather "tired and emotional" (as Private Eye used to say) on a flight home from Australia (while in team travel gear), and was to cause trouble on the plane, including making rude remarks about his team principal - to the man himself. I guess such a thing would be a firing offence, wouldn't it?

This is an intriguing piece of gossip, I wonder who/which team it was. Seeing how poorly they did in the race my initial thoughts are that it could be Williams, but then would have expected Paddy Lowe to be more professional than that...

[BertMk2]

Originally Posted by sizzle

Oh dear

https://www.motorsportweek.com/joesaward/id/00191

I also have a rhetorical question: what do you think would happen if an F1 technical director became rather "tired and emotional" (as Private Eye used to say) on a flight home from Australia (while in team travel gear), and was to cause trouble on the plane, including making rude remarks about his team principal - to the man himself. I guess such a thing would be a firing offence, wouldn't it?

Let me guess - there's no actual details beyond that about the supposed incident? Did anything actually happen or is this yet another Saward article that is essentially "I'm an F1 journalist and you're not - you ****ing peasant"?