[Official] United States Grand Prix Thread

[bjohnsonsmith]

Originally Posted by Knowlesy

Fabulous race, some great drives and a great result.

Sadly, I fear we are just building to a double points farce the more races Hamilton wins.

I really hope that doesn't happen. There was criticism from the outset about this and now F1's got enough headaches to deal with.

[JeremySmith]

Originally Posted by bella

i think if vergne gets a slap for forcing grosjean off the track he should get it recinded (sp) for avoiding maldonado in kamikaze mode on the last lap

Ditto... That happened right in front of me, they had to call 911...

[divxx]

Great race by the Lotus guys, I think many (including me) thought they'd bring up the rear here at a high speed circuit without the usual backmarkers present, but instead I kept seeing them fighting with McLarens and Ferraris. It was all very tight for the minor points positions today.

[canamman]

That race turned out pretty decent to watch. Few guys were
going wide and some good passes were had. Of course
I was holding my breath the whole time the tractor was
removing a car from the track.

[v8man]

Originally Posted by IceMan_PJN

I hope you're right, but every time Hamilton has a good run of wins something happens and Rosberg gets handed the championship again. I'm afraid mechanical issues are going to come into play again, once again gifting 2014 to Rosberg. If an issue doesn't send Hamilton to the garage, it will probably at least prevent him from taking the fight to Rosberg.

It looks to me that Hamilton is the one is is getting the favors today, the commentators that we get in Aus which is the Skye feed said that Hamilton had a wing adjustment at the first stop when changing from the option to the prime tyre but Rosberg didn't get it and this is a normal change according to the this commentator, and it was after this first stop that Hamilton caught and passed Rosberg. Looks like they are playing favorites to me?

[Born Racer]

It's very possible that Hamilton asked for it and Rosberg didn't and that it didn't affect his car.

[Knowlesy]

It was said during the race that Hamilton requested this, specifically two clicks on the front wing.

[GT6]

That race will probably mean the end of button in F1 a few flashes but overall a woeful performance

[Born Racer]

Originally Posted by Knowlesy

Fabulous race, some great drives and a great result.

Sadly, I fear we are just building to a double points farce the more races Hamilton wins.

I've been worrying about this for a while and it's taken a bit of excitement out of the championship battle for me.

[Born Racer]

Originally Posted by GT6

That race will probably mean the end of button in F1 a few flashes but overall a woeful performance

I wouldn't go as far as to call it woeful. His battle with Alonso was much better than Magnussen's. I wasn't impressed by Kevin's defence. He just moved to the inside before Turn 1 and got himself a bad exit, immediately getting overtaken, whereas Jenson resisted Fernando for much longer.

[Aysedasi]

Originally Posted by Knowlesy

Maldonado was indeed excellent, barring his penalty.

I confess I don't have much time for Pastor, but he did a good job.....

[Knowlesy]

Originally Posted by Born Racer

I wouldn't go as far as to call it woeful. His battle with Alonso was much better than Magnussen's. I wasn't impressed by Kevin's defence. He just moved to the inside before Turn 1 and got himself a bad exit, immediately getting overtaken, whereas Jenson resisted Fernando for much longer.

Jenson's race with Fernando was brilliant and Magnussen's defence was abject, I agree. It probably cost Kevin less time though!

It was a weird performance from Button really. The last lap where he let Grosjean through (in an absolutely buggered Lotus let's not forget) in his desperation to let the leader through was weird and can't have impressed Ron Dennis particularly, even if it was ineffectual in terms of points.

All weekend he seemed creepily happy, like a man who has accepted he won't have a McLaren seat next year and has, perhaps, got a belting sports car option on the table.

His performances have been pretty good this year, but not really consistently good enough. He'll never recapture that 2011 form, which was possibly much helped by a pressure free situation anyways (Vettel unbeatable, Hamilton busy pumping lead into both feet), and has been on a bit of a drift ever since in terms of maintaining a high level.

I will be sad to see him go, but the time is surely right.

[Teretonga]

Originally Posted by Knowlesy

Jenson's race with Fernando was brilliant and Magnussen's defence was abject, I agree. It probably cost Kevin less time though!

It was a weird performance from Button really. The last lap where he let Grosjean through (in an absolutely buggered Lotus let's not forget) in his desperation to let the leader through was weird and can't have impressed Ron Dennis particularly, even if it was ineffectual in terms of points.

All weekend he seemed creepily happy, like a man who has accepted he won't have a McLaren seat next year and has, perhaps, got a belting sports car option on the table.

His performances have been pretty good this year, but not really consistently good enough. He'll never recapture that 2011 form, which was possibly much helped by a pressure free situation anyways (Vettel unbeatable, Hamilton busy pumping lead into both feet), and has been on a bit of a drift ever since in terms of maintaining a high level.

I will be sad to see him go, but the time is surely right.

Maybe he is happy because he knows Alonso is not coming to McLaren..... Maybe plan B or C is on the table and something really exciting (for Alonso) is happening that doesn't include McLaren.... I don't know but we will see how it plays out...

[bella]

Originally Posted by Aysedasi

I confess I don't have much time for Pastor, but he did a good job.....

same, and it makes me feel dirty!

he was on it, in the same way jev was when he made up all those places in a couple of laps at the end of a race. i wish he was a little more controlled in his lunacy, but i guess that's just something that's going to take a long time to do.

fair play, pastor.

i think it's a bit rubbish that grosjean could run wide on so many corners towards the end to keep his pace competitive and not get a kicking rather than slow down to stay inside track limits. if it was proper grass and not tarmac offline he'd not have been able to do that...

[Lancsbreaker]

Originally Posted by Gingers4Justice

Turned it off.

Hard to get excited about so few cars so spaced out on a Tilkedrome.

I think up to the point you turned it off, you must have been watching something completely different from the race everyone else watched......

I've said it before, but I really don't see the point in posting to (effectively) criticise something you didn't watch.......I mean, I hated "The Apprentice" this week - didn't watch it of course, as I hated it.......difference is I don't post about it

There were in fact plenty of battles in this race - in fact we almost missed Hamilton's pass on Rosberg as we were busy following another scrap - director just cut back to Turn 1 in time.

[chunterer]

Grosjean went a bit mental after JEV ploughed through as if he'd shot his bolt and then went completely to pieces, albeit with a car that apparently wasn't steering properly!!

That was JEV's second highly convincing display of controlled and attacking driving, and you have to say if you take tyres and strategies out of the equation, has absolutely hammered Kyvat in the last few races on balance?

T'is true despite the lack of runners (even more so after Checo's naivety on lap 1) there were some stonking scraps. I think Perez had a decent idea but totally failed to realise at the point he would need to get round the inside of that sharp left hander on the inside, he would inevitably meet another car coming across from the right on it's normal line. Cerrasshhhhhhhhh!!

Reminded me of a few of those end of season Interlagos races over the last few years where everyone's just decided to go balls out and have a laugh!

[Aysedasi]

Originally Posted by chunterer

That was JEV's second highly convincing display of controlled and attacking driving.....

Not quite so sure it was all that controlled, but it was entertaining to watch!

[chunterer]

Originally Posted by Aysedasi

Not quite so sure it was all that controlled, but it was entertaining to watch!

Well, yes, maybe up until torpedoville it was haha.

He did keep his head after wards as well and I think that despatching Romain and Jense is successive laps was pretty ace. One of those periods when a driver clearly decided it's now or never!

I do wonder sometimes why some pedallers all of a sudden take on a totally different in car attitude!!

[Gingers4Justice]

Originally Posted by Lancsbreaker

I think up to the point you turned it off, you must have been watching something completely different from the race everyone else watched......

I've said it before, but I really don't see the point in posting to (effectively) criticise something you didn't watch.......I mean, I hated "The Apprentice" this week - didn't watch it of course, as I hated it.......difference is I don't post about it

There were in fact plenty of battles in this race - in fact we almost missed Hamilton's pass on Rosberg as we were busy following another scrap - director just cut back to Turn 1 in time.

Bare in mind I skipped an entire night's sleep to watch the Shanghai WEC round and I watched every second of Sky's build-up - I think I was just tired, moody and "raced out", and the fact it wasn't a classic didn't help.

Still don't think it was a classic but I have no idea what came over me in declaring to the forum that I'd turned over

[alan1302]

Originally Posted by v8man

It looks to me that Hamilton is the one is is getting the favors today, the commentators that we get in Aus which is the Skye feed said that Hamilton had a wing adjustment at the first stop when changing from the option to the prime tyre but Rosberg didn't get it and this is a normal change according to the this commentator, and it was after this first stop that Hamilton caught and passed Rosberg. Looks like they are playing favorites to me?

You don't just think Hamilton asked for a change and Rosberg didn't?

Why does everything have to be a conspiracy these days? Hamilton just out raced Rosberg again.

[bella]

Originally Posted by chunterer

I do wonder sometimes why some pedallers all of a sudden take on a totally different in car attitude!!

by jove, i think he's finally found his arse. odd how it seemingly took red bull to show him the door for him to do it. must be something to do with the ~freedom.

nah to be fair he's been a god in races for a long time, is he not still a bit wobbly in qualifying?

[IceMan_PJN]

Originally Posted by alan1302

You don't just think Hamilton asked for a change and Rosberg didn't?

Why does everything have to be a conspiracy these days? Hamilton just out raced Rosberg again.

Exactly. I was under the impression that the driver and team discussed changes before they take place rather than it just simply happening without input from the driver. Whether it's the driver asking for the change or the team looking at data and thinking the change would help, either way I expect that both ends discuss it first.

[JeremySmith]

Originally Posted by alan1302

You don't just think Hamilton asked for a change and Rosberg didn't?

Why does everything have to be a conspiracy these days? Hamilton just out raced Rosberg again.

Yes Lewis asked for two turns on the front wing...

[JeremySmith]

Originally Posted by bella

the shame is that 10db louder might well drown out all the noises that are so refreshing to hear. it's different but it's really something, isn't it?

as a hard product at the moment from a spectator point of view f1 is as good as it's been in recent memory. it's a real shame all the background drama is drowning it out. the two need to coexist.

(first one to say if the engine noise was louder it would drown the drama out gets glared at )

You have a real point there bella.. I read this evening that the V8's were measured at a SPL of 145DB and the V6's Turbo PU's were measured at a SPL of 135DB.. I would have thought that were was a greater difference ?

[Greem]

Originally Posted by JeremySmith

You have a real point there bella.. I read this evening that the V8's were measured at a SPL of 145DB and the V6's Turbo PU's were measured at a SPL of 135DB.. I would have thought that were was a greater difference ?

The measured volume (in terms of sound pressure level) is all but meaningless if the sound is a single frequency that the human ear can't hear - it's the "quality" of the sound, not just the quantity, that matters. Unfortunately the quality bit is tremendously subjective.

The older engines had a shrill edge, top-loaded with (painful!) high frequencies aswell as a guttural bottom end which made your trousers & bones shake. The newer engines are turning more of that wasted energy into motive power - the amount of energy needed to get a sound at (say) 15KHz to still be painful a couple of hundred yards away is *immense*.

Personally, I still like the new sound. I fully appreciate that makes me a bit bonkers, however.