55 replies to this topic

[SamH123]

We don't have to wait long for Abu Dhabi but how much is there to look forward to?

To be honest the track specs look bad for Ferrari. Slow and quite like Monaco/Singapore, I think Ferrari really need some working upgrades to challenge here.

Hamilton has been good here, so hopefully he can keep Vettel honest.

[sergeym]

We don't have to wait long for Abu Dhabi but how much is there to look forward to?

To be honest the track specs look bad for Ferrari. Slow and quite like Monaco/Singapore, I think Ferrari really need some working upgrades to challenge here.

Hamilton has been good here, so hopefully he can keep Vettel honest.

Actually Ferrari was looking pretty good in India. They were slower in quali but pretty close in race.

[ANF]

The track specs look bad. Period.

[muramasa]

just looking at google earth.

I was surprised how very close the circuit is to abu dhabi intl airport.

also ferrari world looks awesome

[korzeniow]

How could anyone do such a bad job designing this circuit.

Since the island is man made the designer could ask for anythng, literally !!

[medeni73]

Horner said on german TV that he expects that RB will be weakest in Abu Dhabi from all 3 last races...another throwing of dust in the eyes?

[UPRC]

Oh, Abu Dhabi is next? Guess I won't be watching F1 for the second weekend in a row then. What a sad state the championship is in after the way it started...

[sergeym]

Oh, Abu Dhabi is next? Guess I won't be watching F1 for the second weekend in a row then. What a sad state the championship is in after the way it started...

I dunno about "sad state" Alonso & Vettel are exremely close in standings and it is likely to go to the end, unless on of them has DNF.

[apoka]

I dunno about "sad state" Alonso & Vettel are exremely close in standings and it is likely to go to the end, unless on of them has DNF.

It's sad if you are not a fan of one of those two drivers. You can already see that the forum traffic is affected by Hamilton being out of the WDC race. The races became more predictable as well. It seems ages ago that Maldonado and Rosberg could win races. Actually, it's more or less back to the level we had in F1 in most years.

[Alfisti]

Hands down the worst track of the season, absolute nightmare of useless and pointless twisty nothingness. Cut out at least 5 to 8 corners. Terrible.

[showtime]

Horner said on german TV that he expects that RB will be weakest in Abu Dhabi from all 3 last races...another throwing of dust in the eyes?

Listening to Horner is always a waste of time.

Adam Cooper ‏@adamcooperf1
#F1 Q: Why do we suddenly have a dominant driver in a dominant car? Christian Horner: "The honest answer is we have no idea..."

[Alfisti]

It's sad if you are not a fan of one of those two drivers. You can already see that the forum traffic is affected by Hamilton being out of the WDC race. The races became more predictable as well. It seems ages ago that Maldonado and Rosberg could win races. Actually, it's more or less back to the level we had in F1 in most years.

And all we had then was people bitching it was too unpredictable or the tyres were somehow unfair. Bunch of soft cocks on this forum.

[choyothe]

Hopefully the gap between Vettel and Alonso is over 25 points after this weekend, I'm not convinced Vettel won't suffer another mechanical DNF this season yet.

[SpaMaster]

And all we had then was people bitching it was too unpredictable or the tyres were somehow unfair. Bunch of soft cocks on this forum.

Exactly. The moment you have long-lasting tyres F1 becomes boring again.

[fisssssi]

Hopefully the gap between Vettel and Alonso is over 25 points after this weekend, I'm not convinced Vettel won't suffer another mechanical DNF this season yet.

Hopefully not.

[SpaMaster]

Hopefully the gap between Vettel and Alonso is over 25 points after this weekend, I'm not convinced Vettel won't suffer another mechanical DNF this season yet.

Ha ha, I guess I am not the only one looking for a 25 pt cushion!

[BigCHrome]

Useless track, Newey will surely win it again. That car is just amazing.

I'll eat my hat if this race is even remotely exciting.

[Baddoer]

Welcome to the most useless track in history!

[SpaMaster]

Lot of disgruntled Hamilton fans saying it is all the car of Vettel. Truth is only Vettel has won WDCs in that car, not his teammate, and his teammate has not produced that kind of dominant performance in that car this year. Even then, Red Bull has looked this good only since Suzuka. That is what 3 races? McLaren similarly looked great the previous few races, but they did not make it count. (3 consecutive wins, was it? Hungary, Belgium, Monza?) Their cars had reliability problems, but their drivers also messed up the set-up, one or the other was constantly qualifying behind when the car was a beast. It was all a wasted opportunity. McLaren team and drivers wasted their opportunity. Vettel and Red Bull are not. This particular stretch is Red Bull's - the past 3 races, and since Abu Dhabi is next, it is all crying-a-river for their favourite drivers.

Edited by SpaMaster, 28 October 2012 - 18:30.

[Disgrace]

Why bother?

[SCUDmissile]

Here, we were saying all this about Valencia and that was the best race of the season.
Lets wait and see.

Ferrari are coming with updates, redBull will be strong, but theyhave to use 2012 spec alternators again and McLaren are always good here.
It is a sunset start as well.

But this track has some of the most pointless, idiotic corners on the planet.

[OoxLox]

It's lucky this race looks like James Bond on wheels with all the cash, yachts, lights and so on. The 'oooh' factor wears off after a few laps though. The only time I've watched this one all the way through was in 2010 and even then the circuit characteristics conspired to ruin the excitement. It's just awful and I can't wait for Texas (which looks like a very decent track for a new one) and Brazil. Korea, India and now this.... dunno if the long hauls these days are more wearing for the fans or the teams ;)

[SpaMaster]

..
But this track has some of the most pointless, idiotic corners on the planet.

Ha, ha. Can't help but for this one. So true. Singapore also has corners like that, but at least it was non-purpose built street circuit. Abu Dhabi is a master-class on that regard.

[DaddyCool]

Going by the last 3 years, I will be very surprised if this is not a Hamilton/Vettel fight once again.

[johnmhinds]

How could anyone do such a bad job designing this circuit.

Since the island is man made the designer could ask for anythng, literally !!

They did though, they asked for a street circuit in the desert and that's what Tilke gave them.

Quiet why anyone thought a street circuit layout with massive runoff areas was a good idea we'll never know.

[MrMontecarlo]

They did though, they asked for a street circuit in the desert and that's what Tilke gave them.

Quiet why anyone thought a street circuit layout with massive runoff areas was a good idea we'll never know.

That's the thing. Permanent tracks should be fast.

[MortenF1]

Not the best circuit but it's one where Hamilton usually fares well, so I have my hopes he will be able to qualify on the front-row here, and hopefully push for the win. Updates for Ferrari here, right?
I'm not expecting a very different pecking order for this race, but perhaps a more competitive performance from Force India all weekend? If so, they might trouble Lotus and perhaps Massa in the race.
As this track is rear tyre-limited, I don't dare think about what's in store for Mercedes...

Edited by race addicted, 28 October 2012 - 19:57.

[juicy sushi]

How could anyone do such a bad job designing this circuit.

Since the island is man made the designer could ask for anythng, literally !!

This is my main problem with the middle-eastern tracks. They had buckets of money, were built in the middle of nowhere so there's nothing to hit, yet rather than trying to top Monza, they recreated Magny-Cours.

[Jackmancer]

I'll eat my hat if this race is even remotely exciting.

Any chance for rain?

[HuddersfieldTerrier1986]

It's a sh*t track. Unfortunately, it's unlikely to drop off the calendar anytime soon. Even seeing the hotel changing colour as it goes from daylight to dusk is uninteresting. I'm certainly not getting my hopes up for an exciting race.

Edited by HuddersfieldTerrier1986, 28 October 2012 - 20:10.

[HuddersfieldTerrier1986]

Any chance for rain?

Ironically, if memory serves, they had some rain before FP1 last year and it was a damp track at the start of that session.

[MrMontecarlo]

Not the best circuit but it's one where Hamilton usually fares well, so I have my hopes he will be able to qualify on the front-row here, and hopefully push for the win. Updates for Ferrari here, right?
I'm not expecting a very different pecking order for this race, but perhaps a more competitive performance from Force India all weekend? If so, they might trouble Lotus and perhaps Massa in the race.
As this track is rear tyre-limited, I don't dare think about what's in store for Mercedes...

Rear tyre limited? I'm not familiar with that concept, could you explain?

[Goron3]

Rear tyre limited? I'm not familiar with that concept, could you explain?

Basically, traction out of slow corners is very important given how slow most of the corners are. Once your rear tyres are gone, you're a sitting duck on the straights!

[MortenF1]

Thanks, Goron. A circuit that requires a lot of acceleration out of slow corners, is (usually) rear tyre limited. A circuit with long sweeping corners where you scrub off speed, is often front-tyre limited. It's about which end of the car get's more beaten up.

Edited by race addicted, 28 October 2012 - 20:50.

[Goron3]

Thanks, Goron. A circuit that requires a lot of acceleration out of slow corners, is (usually) rear tyre limited. A circuit with long sweeping corners where you scrub off speed, is often front-tyre limited. It's about which end of the car get's more beaten up.

Perfect explanation!

Out of interest, do we know what tyres are being used this year? If I remember correctly, last year everyone 2 stopped, right?

[MortenF1]

Perfect explanation!

Out of interest, do we know what tyres are being used this year? If I remember correctly, last year everyone 2 stopped, right?

Soft and medium. http://www.autosport....php/id/103480/

Yep, two-stoppers.

[Mc_Silver]

I expect great battle between Lewis, Vettel and Alonso here. Lewis loves this track and has always been strong. I hope there will be no problem for any of drivers. It would be nice to watch straight fight between them. However, Vettel and Red Bull have upper hand in qualifying

[BigCHrome]

It's not that Lewis loves the track, it's that the surface is very smooth so the car and its stiff suspension work well.

[Mc_Silver]

It's not that Lewis loves the track, it's that the surface is very smooth so the car and its stiff suspension work well.

I am not so sure about that. I looked the differences between button and lewis in qualifying and race, there was pretty big gap between them

[chrisblades85]

It's not the Vettel and Red Bull dominating that is taking away my enthusiasm for the sport, it's the same corner, plonk in another vast open space track that F1 keeps going to. Ooooh a hotel changes colour. That's the highlight.

I've always wanted more races, but if half of them are going to be the crap they bulid now, don't bother.

[Mc_Silver]

It's not the Vettel and Red Bull dominating that is taking away my enthusiasm for the sport, it's the same corner, plonk in another vast open space track that F1 keeps going to. Ooooh a hotel changes colour. That's the highlight.

I've always wanted more races, but if half of them are going to be the crap they bulid now, don't bother.

First half of the year has been great but in second half big guns started to show their dominance and there is no tyre issues anymore, strategies are settled which also made racing more boring

[juicy sushi]

It's not the Vettel and Red Bull dominating that is taking away my enthusiasm for the sport, it's the same corner, plonk in another vast open space track that F1 keeps going to. Ooooh a hotel changes colour. That's the highlight.

I've always wanted more races, but if half of them are going to be the crap they bulid now, don't bother.

On the other hand, I have time and motivation to enjoy other things in life so much more now.

[PorcupineTroy]

The most sterile track in professional motorsports. If Vettel's right rear can hold out past the first corner this year he will likely sail off into the distance.

God I feel so bummed out right now. I just can't stand this track.

[Sakae]

Listening to Horner is always a waste of time.

Adam Cooper ‏@adamcooperf1
#F1 Q: Why do we suddenly have a dominant driver in a dominant car? Christian Horner: "The honest answer is we have no idea..."

What do you want him to say?

[Kelateboy]

I dunno about "sad state" Alonso & Vettel are exremely close in standings and it is likely to go to the end, unless on of them has DNF.

13pts separates Vettel and Alonso. A DNF for Vettel will not be the end of the world for him, especially if Alonso fails to win the race. However, a DNF for Alonso will put an end to his championship hope especially if Vettel car stays in 1 piece!

[Kelateboy]

First half of the year has been great but in second half big guns started to show their dominance and there is no tyre issues anymore, strategies are settled which also made racing more boring

Are we talking about the same first half of the year when Pirelli was constantly thrashed for bringing jelly tyres to the race?

There were many threads on this very forum lamenting on the end of "proper" racing due to Pirelli tyres.

[Jimisgod]

I'm looking forward to it, because I'm going to the beach instead.

[Kelateboy]

Ferrari are coming with updates, redBull will be strong, but they have to use 2012 spec alternators again and McLaren are always good here.

Not in Abu Dhabi, probably in the last 2 races.

http://www.autosport...t.php/id/103710
Red Bull faces alternator switch by the United States Grand Prix

[skywing]

I wonder if the track is a little dirty... http://www.youtube.c...p;v=aucmzz6JZ4s

[sock22]

I predict that Vettel will get pole again and since the first corner massively favours the polesitter, he will get a massive lead through the first sector and never be seen again. Oh yeah, basically the same as the last three races.