142 replies to this topic

[Nustang70]

Feel free to make other predictions too.

WDC: Hamilton
WCC: Mclaren
Team Lotus will regularly challenge for the final points-paying positions.
Williams will make at least the 5th best car.
Due to overextending themselves this year, Renault will suffer next year.
Toro Rosso and Force India will go backward.
Sauber will improve and Virgin will improve.
Massa will really challenge Alonso next year.
Vettel will out-perform Webber most of the time, as will Hamilton over Button.
Schumacher will be closer to Rosberg.
If Hulkenberg gets a seat at Force India next year, he will outperform whoever his teammate is.

[weareracing]

Lewis WILL deliver, the Scuderia will clean up in the Constructors and many driver moves will take place leaving some on this forum in dis-belief at driver placement!!

[George Costanza]

Michael Schumacher will be like his old self largely due to the Pirellis....


Yes, He will win the Championship.

[BenettonB192]

I expect McLaren and Ferrari to be more competitive from the start next season. Mercedes should also be in a better shape and either Rosberg or Schumacher will win a race.
RB could still have a small advantage mechanically and aerodynamicaly but McLaren and Ferrari have the experience with KERS. I predict Vettel, Hamilton and Alonso will fight for the championship. It's quite possible that one team nails the combination with the new tyres tho and then it could be less close championship.

[Asconte]

If RBR improves on what is already a formidable package, than I cannot see how they can be defeated, unless they will manage to defeat themselves. Webber's lack of performance in AD remains unexplained and mystery.

McLaren duo is next in strength as a team.

Alonso, Rosberg, and Michael are all candidates for strong individual efforts.

Renault is unpredictable.

Than comes Tier 2.

[intothepits]

Williams will impress, Barrichello makes more surprises during the season... McLaren or Ferrari though I think will have it nailed, likely McLaren. Hamilton will impress, as will Fernando, Red Bull... I think after winning the championship they will go into the season much more relaxed and will be not as fast as before, however still a force to be reckoned with.

Mercedes... Still an unknown quantity, they did well in 09 (as Brawn) because there was a lot of effort put into that car from Honda and others.. Not sure they will be championship contenders again, but we will see.

[JosTheBoss]

Red Bull & Webber.

[korzeniow]

Next season will be dominated by Renault-powered cars.

The title battle will be between Kubica and Vettel, Hamilton behind them with ocassional standout performance.

Ferrari will suck despite Alonso giving his best.

Sauber will improve and will be best of the rest. They will win that title over Mercedes after though battle.

Force India will underperform as well as Williams.

Lotus again will be the best of backmarkers, but this time Virging will be much tougher competitor.

HRT will be even more shameful.

[Bonaventura]

HRT will disappear
the usual suspects will fight for the title
RBR will be strong
Ferrari, too
McLaren only marginally behind them
and with a very good KERS and a strong Lewis in the fight for the title

Mercedes will be better, but no title contender
Rosberg will win his first GP
Schumacher will win one, too.
Ferrari will have troubles inside the team

In the end Lewis gets the WDC

[topical]

As usual, depends 90% on the car. If someone comes up with an ingenious idea over the winter that will be the deciding factor in who becomes champion. If not, then expect Ferrari, Mac and Red Bull to be fighting it out. Maybe Renault or Mercedes might spring a surprise, but I wouldn't be very confident about that.
Vettel in a Newey car should start out as favourite but Newey has a record of getting it wrong occasionally and he's due a bit of a turkey...fingers crossed 2011 might be that year. Otherwise, expect Vettel, Alonso and Hamilton to once again fight it out for the title. Will be interesting to see how Webber goes and I expect Button to pick up when he left off in the second half of 2010 - getting soundly beaten by Hamilton.

[aditya-now]

Red Bull & Webber.

Ferrari and Alonso

[marcoferrari]

Hopefully Ferrari will be a winning constructor again with Felipe bettering his results on Pirellis...
And I am also expecting a lot of Jaime, but it will also depend on how good the next Torro will be... But I think constant battles for 12th-13th place in qualifying and for 10th places in race could be there...

[Fastcake]

Next season will be dominated by Renault-powered cars.

That's a rather bold prediction, can that happen engine freeze and all.

At this stage all I can say is that Red Bull, McLaren and Ferrari will challenge for the titles.

Also something Hamilton/Alonso/Schumacher does will end in endless controversy

[douglasross]

That's a rather bold prediction, can that happen engine freeze and all.

At this stage all I can say is that Red Bull, McLaren and Ferrari will challenge for the titles.

Also something Hamilton/Alonso/Schumacher does will end in endless controversy

That final sentence is not a prediction more a statement of fact based on any of the last twnty or so seasons

[CrashPad]

Teams fighting for the championships and winning races (all 8 drivers!) will be RBR, Mercedes, Ferrari and McLaren. Mercedes will make the biggest leap forward and is going to be the team to beat, with Ferrari and McLaren gaining some advantage from their experience with KERS. RBR will be strong all along, but they still suffer from reliability issues.
I am gonna go out guns blazing and say Rosberg will win the WDC! Schumi will win race(s) but Rosberg will still kick his ass.
Massa will be a lot better this time around with Pirellis but Alonso is the stronger one still.
Webber wont be an embarrassment but Vettel will beat him with quite a margin. Kubica will replace Mark for 2012.
Hamilton vs Button is going to be exactly like this year, with Hamilton being the consistent performer with some silly mistakes along the way, while Button suffers from lack of pace but will shine here and there nevertheless.
McLaren is the WCC!

Best of the rest is going to be Williams, sadly still no wins for them, but an inspired season all in all.
Sauber and Renault are their closest challengers in the battle for midfielders no.1 spot. Sauber is the better car but thanks to Robert Renault will finish ahead.

Toro Rosso, Force India and Lotus will have their own fight between the midfielders and backmarkers. Lotus will improve the most from the new teams and will actually be the best of this group.

Virgin wont be much better than this year.
Someone will buy HRT or they just pull the plug anyway.

Lewis will win the opening round.
Rosberg wins at Monaco.
Schumi wins at Spa.

Raikkonen will drive for every team in the silly season 2012 rumors.
Fernando will remain a dick.

I shall return in 11 months to see how far off I was

Edited by CrashPad, 07 December 2010 - 11:52.

[marcoferrari]

Teams fighting for the championships and winning races (all 8 drivers!) will be RBR, Mercedes, Ferrari and McLaren. Mercedes will make the biggest leap forward and is going to be the team to beat, with Ferrari and McLaren gaining some advantage from their experience with KERS. RBR will be strong all along, but they still suffer from reliability issues.
I am gonna go out guns blazing and say Rosberg will win the WDC! Schumi will win race(s) but Rosberg will still kick his ass.
Massa will be a lot better this time around with Pirellis but Alonso is the stronger one still.
Webber wont be an embarrassment but Vettel will beat him with quite a margin. Kubica will replace Mark for 2012.Hamilton vs Button is going to be exactly like this year, with Hamilton being the consistent performer with some silly mistakes along the way, while Button suffers from lack of pace but will shine here and there nevertheless.
McLaren is the WCC!

Best of the rest is going to be Williams, sadly still no wins for them, but an inspired season all in all.
Sauber and Renault are their closest challengers in the battle for midfielders no.1 spot. Sauber is the better car but thanks to Robert Renault will finish ahead.

Toro Rosso, Force India and Lotus will have their own fight between the midfielders and backmarkers. Lotus will improve the most from the new teams and will actually be the best of this group.

Virgin wont be much better than this year.
Someone will buy HRT or they just pull the plug anyway.

Lewis will win the opening round.
Rosberg wins at Monaco.
Schumi wins at Spa.

Raikkonen will drive for every team in the silly season 2012 rumors.
Fernando will remain a dick.

I shall return in 11 months to see how far off I was

Kubica is a good driver, but from marketing point of view he is useless... Sorry, but I can t imagine Dr. Marko saying to Mateschitz that "you must hire Kubica for 2012... " There are few promising youngsters from the Red Bull programme waiting and could be also better used in marketing/promotion...

[the9th]

Team Lotus will win its 80th grand prix. David Hunt is a genius. Jarno Trulli is Mario Andretti.

Edited by the9th, 07 December 2010 - 12:38.

[lustigson]

Raikkonen will drive for every team in the silly season 2012 rumors.

That's no prediction, that's the truth!

[MadYarpen]

Raikkonen will drive for every team in the silly season 2012 rumors.

Add to that "Kubica to Ferrari" right after bahrain!

[Wingcommander]

The top four (RB, McLaren, Ferrari & Mercedes) will remain, with Mercedes improving. Rosberg will score his first win, and Button&Massa will be faster with the Pirellis. Schumacher won't impress.

Kubica could finish on podium in few races, but otherwise the Renault isn't fast enough. Sauber will overtake Williams, and we will see some classic moves from Kobayashi. Toro Rosso and Force India will struggle. TR doesn't have enough resources, and FI has lost too many people from it's design team.

Lotus will challenge the midfield and score some points. Virgin will be closer, and maybe get a lucky point. HRT...well I'll be amazed if they can achieve anything.

Edited by Wingcommander, 07 December 2010 - 12:50.

[Smile17]

Interesting poll so far. Looks like the Hamilton/Mclaren brigade is at it again. It's a prediction poll not who do you want to win... Pure confidence in Hammy and Macca ofcourse..

Well, I'd say Ferrari and Alonso, who else? It's the best combination. RedBull is also looking good for 2011, they will still have the fastest car me thinks. So it's up to Massa to up his game.

Edited by Smile17, 07 December 2010 - 12:56.

[Dunc]

Ferrari, McLaren, Red Bull & Merc will be the big four teams again. The change to Pirellis will throw up a wildcard , a smaller team will become much more competitive because its car will work with the tyres better than expected, hopefully it will be Williams. Lotus will get a point.

I don't see a new title challenger from the big teams though hopefully Schumi & Rosberg will win races. If the driver in the wildcard team has the discipline, he may be a challenger.

Massa will be dropped by Ferrari at the end of the season. Button will outperform his critics expectations. Kimi will be linked with drives at Red Bull, Ferrari, McLaren, Mercedes, Williams, Sauber, Force India, Torro Rosso, HRT, Lotus and Virgin

[Anomnader]

Interesting poll so far. Looks like the Hamilton/Mclaren brigade is at it again. It's a prediction poll not who do you want to win.

Well, I'd say Ferrari and Alonso, who else? It's the best combination.

lol, you're funny.


I think Redbull will be tops again, after that its going to be down to who adapts to the tyres best.

[WhiteBlue]

I will open my predictions by saying that Ferrari will not have the fastest car in Bahrain. They are only good at copying what others invent and that will be increasingly difficult with restricted resources in 2011. Red Bull will once again have the fastest car initially. Mercedes will catch up with the other top teams but their genuine deficit in simulation technology will not be compensated next year. They will once again be the tail end charlie of the top teams.

Having the fastest car the media attention will again focus on Seb Vettel and Mark Webber. Seb will put his experience to good use and will have less reliability problems with his car. Ann Neal will continue to over sell Mark Webber and will finally piss off everybody in the paddock with her sniping. Horner will detach a bimbo to record everything she publicly says in the paddock. They will catch her telling an Australian mate that Mark's RB can really contains a special bug juice formula that she invented and sold to the royal navy. She will be banned from the paddock and retreat from public life to prepare the ultimate Mark Webber book that will conclude his racing career at the end of 2011.

Vettel, Hamilton, Alonso and Rosberg will all dominate their team mates with Alonso by the highest and Rosberg by the smallest margin.

By the first European race in Barcelona Alonso will start throwing his toys and demanding team orders. By Silverstone he will demand that Ferrari dismiss Massa's race engineer Smedley for not delivering the traces of Massa's qualifying runs online to Fernando's race engineer. Massa will get crucified on a Brazilian airport when he visits his wife and children for the summer break. Ferrari will loose the Monza race again to Toro Rosso.

McLaren will finally launch their MP4-12C for the twenty fifth time at the magic round about in Swindon and will finally deliver the car to customers. They will simultaneously announce their new F1 engine for 2013 which will have the most revolutionary MAGnetic Internal Combustion Kinetic Energy Recovery System (MAGICKERS). Martin Whitmarsh and Ron Dennis will be wearing pointy hats and wands at the final launch.

Vettel will be champion again and everybody will say that he knew it before the season.

[kosmic33]

I see we also have a 1 man maldonado brigade too!

Edited by kosmic33, 07 December 2010 - 15:38.

[seahawk]

Little early for such a poll, without knowing the cars nor having seen them on the track.

[Rob]

As soon as the first race has finished, rumours about Kubica replacing Massa will start.

[DracoN]

Kobayashi takes hes first win in 2011

[Santosdf]

Maldonado in the poll for champion ??? I predict he will do fine, but behind Barrichello and will be fighting Perez in the Sauber like they did in gp2.

[phil1993]

The top four (RB, McLaren, Ferrari & Mercedes) will remain, with Mercedes improving. Rosberg will score his first win, and Button&Massa will be faster with the Pirellis. Schumacher won't impress.

Kubica could finish on podium in few races, but otherwise the Renault isn't fast enough. Sauber will overtake Williams, and we will see some classic moves from Kobayashi. Toro Rosso and Force India will struggle. TR doesn't have enough resources, and FI has lost too many people from it's design team.

Lotus will challenge the midfield and score some points. Virgin will be closer, and maybe get a lucky point. HRT...well I'll be amazed if they can achieve anything.

I think I agree with all of that. Schumi might take a podium or two though. And Maldonado will crash a lot.

[Bonaventura]

" Felipe, Fernando is faster than you...."

[Santosdf]

" Felipe, Fernando is faster than you...."

I guess they will change it to " Felipe, Fernando in too close behind you " Just to save a $ 100, 000 , but we will hear team orders to Felipe, that's for sure.

[chuffbiscuits]

I reckon McLaren and Hamilton's experience with KERS will give them an edge next year, but it's hard to see the RB7 not being the fastest car again, as Newey designed the fastest non-DD car last time around. Definitely a year for going aggressive, what with KERS and adjustable wings you can only use when attacking another driver. I'm with those who think next year will be even better than 2010

[Nustang70]

Little early for such a poll, without knowing the cars nor having seen them on the track.

Well that's sort-of the point. It's supposed to be a little hocus-pocus.

[korzeniow]

I reckon McLaren and Hamilton's experience with KERS will give them an edge next year, but it's hard to see the RB7 not being the fastest car again, as Newey designed the fastest non-DD car last time around. Definitely a year for going aggressive, what with KERS and adjustable wings you can only use when attacking another driver. I'm with those who think next year will be even better than 2010

Why? How? Edge over who?

[PNSD]

Teams have had long enough to test reliability with KERS... the only addvantage the KERS drivers will have is with the braking... but with improved systems I figure that wont take long... Remember it is what held Giancarlo back at Ferrari, he couldnt get used to the braking system with KERS...

[zarooch]

WDC: Vettel or Kubica
WCC: RedBull

[emburmak]

Lewis WILL deliver, the Scuderia will clean up in the Constructors and many driver moves will take place leaving some on this forum in dis-belief at driver placement!!

MS will be blistering, I hope and fight for the WDC against the young lions. Of course winning it is totally another matter!

[chuffbiscuits]

Why? How? Edge over who?

Driving a car with KERS means getting used to different braking characteristics, for example, and the drivers with KERS experience will have a head start. Add to that the fact that LH was the most effective user of the device in 2009 and McLaren made the best job of integrating it with their car. "Edge" doesn't mean "season-long dominance thanks to KERS", it just means having a slight advantage in the deployment and use of one of the key technologies on next year's cars. Ferrari and Renault didn't have the same success with KERS as McLaren and ran it at fewer races, Merc will have a good unit but a team and drivers unused to it, and Red Bull will have to depend on Renault's KERS and a steep learning curve.

[PNSD]

After betting against Vettel and RBR last year I wont make the same mistake again.

RBR really are a top team. They are currently the best team in F1... who would bet against them.

As a former BAR/Honda/Brawn fan I hope Merc can produce. I might hate Schumacher, but I want to see him do well again.

[metz]

Maldonado in the poll for champion ???

As pointless as Petrov.

Kobi has a better chance.

[Zava]

Vettel WDC, either Macca or Red Bull WCC (voted for Mclaren)

[BullHead]

I'm going for Vettel and Red Bull again.

I expect the battle to be a repeat of 2010 though, and Hamilton, Alonso, Mac, Ferrari are just as likely....

Also Webber quite possibly, and Button too...

Edited by BullHead, 07 December 2010 - 22:08.

[korzeniow]

Driving a car with KERS means getting used to different braking characteristics, for example, and the drivers with KERS experience will have a head start. Add to that the fact that LH was the most effective user of the device in 2009 and McLaren made the best job of integrating it with their car. "Edge" doesn't mean "season-long dominance thanks to KERS", it just means having a slight advantage in the deployment and use of one of the key technologies on next year's cars. Ferrari and Renault didn't have the same success with KERS as McLaren and ran it at fewer races, Merc will have a good unit but a team and drivers unused to it, and Red Bull will have to depend on Renault's KERS and a steep learning curve.

Is is really that of advantage? In this year season drivers got used to f-ducts and blown diffusors, which is far more complicated (going into and out of the corners, managing throttle, special Q3 mapping engine and stuff) than some extra HP at straight line.

Even if it's some advantage it will be lost halfway trough the first winter test session.

[HAM]

I just hope HAM, VET and ALO will all have a bit more equal cars in 2011 to make it more worth watching. Lewis will win it if his car is 84% as good/fast as Vettel's car.

[korzeniow]

I just hope HAM, VET and ALO will all have a bit more equal cars in 2011 to make it more worth watching. Lewis will win it if his car is 84% as good/fast as Vettel's car.

Wasn't this the case in 2010 season ?

[Asconte]

Teams fighting for the championships and winning races (all 8 drivers!) will be RBR, Mercedes, Ferrari and McLaren. Mercedes will make the biggest leap forward and is going to be the team to beat, with Ferrari and McLaren gaining some advantage from their experience with KERS. RBR will be strong all along, but they still suffer from reliability issues.
I am gonna go out guns blazing and say Rosberg will win the WDC! Schumi will win race(s) but Rosberg will still kick his ass.
Massa will be a lot better this time around with Pirellis but Alonso is the stronger one still.
Webber wont be an embarrassment but Vettel will beat him with quite a margin. Kubica will replace Mark for 2012.
Hamilton vs Button is going to be exactly like this year, with Hamilton being the consistent performer with some silly mistakes along the way, while Button suffers from lack of pace but will shine here and there nevertheless.
McLaren is the WCC!

Best of the rest is going to be Williams, sadly still no wins for them, but an inspired season all in all.
Sauber and Renault are their closest challengers in the battle for midfielders no.1 spot. Sauber is the better car but thanks to Robert Renault will finish ahead.

Toro Rosso, Force India and Lotus will have their own fight between the midfielders and backmarkers. Lotus will improve the most from the new teams and will actually be the best of this group.

Virgin wont be much better than this year.
Someone will buy HRT or they just pull the plug anyway.

Lewis will win the opening round.
Rosberg wins at Monaco.
Schumi wins at Spa.

Raikkonen will drive for every team in the silly season 2012 rumors.
Fernando will remain a dick.

I shall return in 11 months to see how far off I was

WOW

[EddyCurrents]

Following a recent break, where I spent a few days holidaying in the future, I can now reveal what actually happened in 2011:

Mercedes:
Michael Schumacher struggles as he professes himself unhappy with the smell of the new Pirelli rubber, claiming that it makes him car sick. His mechanics grow increasingly disgruntled with having to clean the vomit out of his cockpit after each race.

Virgin:
After Nick Wirth bolsters the power of his CFD computing farm with the addition of two PlayStation 3s, an iPhone, a kettle and a toaster, the team achieves a stunning breakthrough in aerodynamic performance, worth on average eight seconds per lap. They romp away to win both championships before the summer is over. Sadly, Richard Branson is not on hand to join the celebrations as he is half way to the moon in a hot air balloon.

Red Bull: Technical Director Adrian Newey receives a lifetime ban from the sport when it is discovered that the Red Bull cars have no physical presence at the track and are instead holographic projections transmitted from a TV studio in the team's base in Milton Keynes. Christian Horner is furious when Mark Webber admits that he has been racing for the entire season with no brain. The secret of Sebastian Vettel's perma-smile is revealed - botox.

McLaren: The team suffers a major blow before the season starts when, during a marathon 36 hour team talk from team principal Martin Whitmarsh, over half the team resorts to eating their own livers in order to escape the spirit-crushing tedium. Lewis Hamilton takes his aggressive driving style to new heights when, during the Monaco grand prix, he crashes into himself. Jenson Button's qualifying woes continue until, at Spa, his mechanics discover a pea under his seat.

Ferrari:
Fernando Alonso becomes the first driver in F1 history to eat his team mate, claiming that Massa's rump went excellently with a fine chianti and fava beans. Stefano Domenicali says that the act of cannibalism only strengthened the team's respect for Alonso and his commitment to winning at all costs.

Lotus: In order to avoid trademarking issues, the team changes its name to Team Lotus Racing Group Team. Jarno Trulli receives a three race ban for drunk driving, when it is revealed that his drinks bottle is filled with the 2007 vintage of his own "Jarno" wine. Heikkki Kovalainen adds another 'k' to his name.

HRT find a novel way to give all their drivers race time and compensate for the fact that they have insufficient funds to close an engine deal: Bruno Senna drives, while Christian Klien and Karun Chandhok push. The car is instantly two seconds a lap quicker.

Toro Rosso, Williams, Force India and Sauber bemoan the lack of interest in the midfield runners from spectators and TV broadcasters alike. They boycott every grand prix from Silverstone on. Nobody notices. Nobody cares.

Edited by EddyCurrents, 08 December 2010 - 09:32.

[Szoelloe]

Following a recent break, where I spent a few days holidaying in the future, I can now reveal what actually happened in 2011:

Nobody notices. Nobody cares.

Ok:

Ferrari will be strong from day 1, but not nearly strong enough. Massa and Alonso fight will be interesting to watch, it is the last chance for Massa to prove himself. Mc will be in a similar situation as this year. Red Bull was so good this season that they cannot drop significantly, unless they fxxk up really bad with the Renault KERS. Merc on the other hand will make a significant step forward, but that is hardly a surprise or a feat since they had a dog this season. Renault will stay put in 5th-6th realistically, Kubica putting the car usually higher than what could be expected, but that is expected, isn't it? Williams? Until they lock Patrick Head out of the designing office it will be a nice-looking blue car on the grid, but nothing else. The rest I don't have a clue. In fact I don't have a clue at all about 2011 until at least the first 2 tests, so I thought I will take my shot. It is way too early to predict.

Edited by Szoelloe, 08 December 2010 - 09:57.

[EddyCurrents]

Yes, I was trying hard to be funny. What a shame our comedic sensibilities don't coincide, but I guess everyone's different. Szoelloe, maybe if you tell me what me what makes you laugh, I can find a way to tickle your funny bone.

Edited by EddyCurrents, 08 December 2010 - 13:58.