1282 replies to this topic

[f1paul]

Well, after a very annoying Friday but a very enjoyable Saturday, what are we going to get today, I mean tomorrow (it depend where you live I guess). 

 

Firstly........................

 

The weather!!! A few of us have been weather forecasters for the past few days but who cares, we can't control it. We can't exactly go outside and blow as hard as we can. Lets just wait and see. For those who do care, I think it's raining heavily right now and it's going to continue til about 10am and then there will be light rain just before, during and after the race. Temperatures will be at 12 degrees celcius which is pretty cold with a strong wind blowing to the NE. (Damn it I'm now one of those weather forecasters) 

 

Secondly......................

 

The Grid kinda (just ignore the back)

 

1. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes, 1:31.678

2. Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari, + 0.186

3. Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes, + 0.187

4. Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari, + 0.462

5. Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull, + 1.355

6. Felipe Massa, Williams, + 1.829

7. Nico Hulkenberg, Renault, + 1.902

8. Sergio Perez, Force India, + 2.028

9. Daniil Kvyat, Toro Rosso, + 2.041

10. Lance Stroll, Williams, + 2.542

 

Qualifying Two

11. Carlos Sainz, Toro Rosso, 1:34.150

12. Kevin Magnussen, Haas, 1:34.164

13. Fernando Alonso, McLaren, 1:34.372

15. Marcus Ericsson, Sauber, 1:35.046

16. Antonio Giovinazzi, Sauber, No time set

 

Qualifying One

16. Stoffel Vandoorne, McLaren, 1:35.023

17. Romain Grosjean, Haas 1:35.223*

18. Jolyon Palmer, Renault, 1:35.279*

19. Max Verstappen, Red Bull, 1:35.433

20. Esteban Ocon, Force India, 1:35.496

 

*Receives five-place grid penalty

 

So what happened today. Wellll it was a frantic FP3 and Vettel was fastest. Then we had a 2 hour break and then an Italian guy crashed. Some people were speeding (something I've never done, touches wood) we had an angry Spanish guy who was driving like a man possessed, oh yeah and Alonso missed out on Q3   . Vettel was a chicken and Hamilton took pole. Oh yeah and I missed out on some real Autosport Forum discussion between Hami and Vetty fans. 

Some stuff you may or may not like

 

Teddy Bear

 

3 guys with 3 hats

 

A wolf

 

Final bits of qualy (how dare you miss it anyway!)

 

Hammer's pole lap

 

Those 4 black big things and who's got what

 

(yeah I just copied and pasted this from you Marklar in the qualy thread, what you gonna do about it) I'm now scared. 

 

The circuit

 

9 corners to the left and 7 to the right (thank God it doesn't go to more than 10 or else I'd be struggling)

 

Missed anything....Errr enjoy the race and remember to argue not nicely afterwards. Oh yeah, and always look at the positives guys and support the sport you love. (if the sport you love isn't F1 then don't support it)

 

By the way, I'm okay I think, I might take a lie down. See Ya   

Edited by f1paul, 08 April 2017 - 19:37.

[Marklar]

For a second I thought that someone started a Hamilton vs. Vettel thread

[TomNokoe]

Could be a classic

[f1paul]

For a second I thought that someone started a Hamilton vs. Vettel thread

Well this will probably turn into one (that's not the signal to start bickering) 

[PayasYouRace]

9 corners to the left and 7 to the right 

 

Hold on. I thought one of Tilke's design features for this circuit was to have an equal number of corners in each direction. Some sort of yin and yang bollocks, because China.

[f1paul]

Hold on. I thought one of Tilke's design features for this circuit was to have an equal number of corners in each direction. Some sort of yin and yang bollocks, because China.

Yeah number 8 innit, it's unlucky in China.

[PayasYouRace]

Yeah number 8 innit, it's unlucky in China.

 

That explains a lot of Grosjean's problems.

[Marklar]

Isnt 8 the lucky number in China?

[f1paul]

Nephew's preview of the race, a bit calmer and shorter than my OP https://mymotorsport...milton-on-pole/ (he's a quieter person than me BTW but Massa's gone wild on his post, hope he notices) 

[Ellios]

Vettel following Schumacher in wanting to have a good looksee 

 

[f1paul]

Isnt 8 the lucky number in China?

Oh yeah you're right http://blog.tutormin...chinese-numbers (maybe I have gone a bit mad)

[PayasYouRace]

Oh yeah you're right http://blog.tutormin...chinese-numbers (maybe I have gone a bit mad)

 

Oh. Never mind about Romain then.

[Hellenic tifosi]

Seems that everyone is planning one stop, according to Pirelli. However, if it starts wet and only dries around lap 5-6, then it could get a little bit tricky.

[PayasYouRace]

Seems that everyone is planning one stop, according to Pirelli. However, if it starts wet and only dries around lap 5-6, then it could get a little bit tricky.

 

That's an exciting prospect actually. Which tyres do you switch to? I'd assume most would try to make the distance on a single set, but maybe some would go for faster tyres and make a stop?

[TomNokoe]

Seems that everyone is planning one stop, according to Pirelli. However, if it starts wet and only dries around lap 5-6, then it could get a little bit tricky.

One stop on a green track with 13°C air ??? They'll grain the hell out of them.

[Hellenic tifosi]

Well, Pirelli mentioned that the ideal strategy is stopping once to change into softs.

 

That means that maybe you make a 20+ lap stint on the SS and then the remaining on the soft. However, what happens if you start on inters and then you need to pit for dry tyres on lap 5? With this in mind, why on earth did Ferrari ruin a set of Supersofts during Q2?

[jjcale]

 

...

 

Teddy Bear

 

...

 

Ted interviews Hermann Tilke during the notebook and starts quoting Shelley's poem "Ozymandias" to him - but can only remember "Look on my works, ye Mighty..."

 

A quy on youtube quotes the whole stanza and adds a killer line 

FiddlerSteve2 hours ago

2:43

"And on the pedestal these words appear:

'My name is Ozymandias, king of kings:

Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!'

Nothing beside remains. Round the decay

Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare

The lone and level sands stretch far away."

 

Not exactly a compliment to Tilke, Ted!

Show less

 

And yes...I endorse this message!!

[ArrowsLivery]

Lets go Bottas!! Hopefully he can get a great start and pass Vettel.

[Claudius]

I'm actually excited for the duel Hamilton vs Vettel. The cars seem close enough and they are in their primes.

I hope it's going to be a classic year.

[Marklar]

@adamcooperF1
1. Fascinating aspect to a wet race in China is that teams and drivers have so little experience of the 2017 wets and intermediates
2. There was some artificial wet running in Barcelona last month, but Williams & Toro Rosso missed it, as did HAM, VET, RIC, HUL, OCO, ALO
3. Since then Pirelli changed to a new, softer wet - and most drivers did just an installation lap with it on Friday, so they don't know it
4. Red Bull, Sauber and Force India didn't run the new wet at all on Friday. Only VAN (4 laps) and BOT (3 laps) did more than one
5. The inter has not changed since Spain, but similarly some drivers barely ran it on Friday. RAI didn't try it at all, VET did one lap
6. Thus the reconnaissance laps to the grid will be crucial today as the drivers get a feel for tyres and conditions

[Fomalhaut]

Then come rain and red flag 

[Jvr]

It is still raining in Shanghai right now. However, latest forecast suggests that rain will stop by the noon but temperatures will be 11 - 12 degrees during the race.

 

And right now the dew point is 11 when the temperature is 12 while raining. 

[kamikaze1]

Almost time to crash for a few hours before the race! 

[Joseki]

I'm currently watching IndyCar streaming qualifications on Facebook, then a quick nap then F1 time. Nice weekend.

[Jvr]

Does anybody know if there are any other series running on the track before F1 race? That could do a big difference on that how wet and green the track would be before the race.

[Marklar]

Does anybody know if there are any other series running on the track before F1 race? That could do a big difference on that how wet and green the track would be before the race.

Just the Porsche Cup (12 laps, from 11:20 - 11:55)

[Disgrace]

Parc fermé is still a thing. If it's wet, we already know how this will go.

[ArrowsLivery]

Parc fermé is still a thing. If it's wet, we already know how this will go.

 

It wasn't a problem circa 2008, but some of the newer drivers constantly complain to Charlie about the conditions. 

[Scuferrari]

Parc fermé is still a thing. If it's wet, we already know how this will go.

 

Why don't they abolish that incredibly stupid rule? It has nothing to do with costs...

 

In the 90's and early 00's we had great wet races. Because of different set ups. Lot's of overtakes and surprises. Weakest teams had a great opportunity and a driver could make a BIG difference with skill and a proper setup.

 

Now everybody has more or less the same setup, we don't see many overtakes unless a front runner starts from behind. And due to this standardized sh!t the car with the most downforce wins. Just with a bigger advantage. And drivers can make a difference of 0.4-0.5 sec instead of 2-3 tenths in the dry. In the 90's you could attack and make a difference of 1-2 seconds per lap.

Nowadays everyone tries to stay on track with shitty full wet tyres and aquaplaning because of dry setups with some compromises for everybody.

 

Setup changes from Q to the race are as important for F1 as water in the desert.  Imagine a car doing a mediocre performance in Q and storming through the field to take the lead because the car is set up for a full tank, great balance and barely any tyre degradation compared to the cars in front after Q.

 

And then ....starting to lose it's advantage by mid race and suffering more and more as the tank gets emptier, especially in the last stint because other cars went for maximum performance and now they have fresh tyres and only 15 laps to go....

[Kristian]

Could be a classic

Or could be a safety car fest.

I have a bad feeling about the capabilities of the tyres after what we witnessed on Friday.

[OO7]

Parc Ferme has little to do with it.

[Kelateboy]

Yeah number 8 innit, it's unlucky in China.

 

Number 8 is very lucky in Chinese - it is very sought after. It sounds like "Fat" meaning "Wealth".

 

https://www.travelch...cky-number8.htm

[Marklar]

Two infos
-Track is damp. But a start on slick tyres seems possible
-The hospital 5 km away from the track will have today the required neurosurgery team from the other hospital in case the helicopter cant start

Edited by Marklar, 09 April 2017 - 04:07.

[apoka]

Looking forward to the race. Ferrari vs. Merc could be a classic this season.

[sportyskells]

I have noted in the opening post of this thread there a mistake that needs correcting plus Giovinazzi joins the 5 place grid pen club (gearbox change) therefore he starts 20th

[lbennie]

still drizzling, Martin says no chance of drying by race start. 

[Niceone]

still drizzling, Martin says no chance of drying by race start.

So SC start

[search]

So SC start

 

even if so, we'll get a real start anyway now, just a couple of laps later

[RedBaron]

[HoldenRT]

By race start it will be dry onwards IMO, but beforehand it'll probably be damp/drying.  Possibly some dry spots but also some wet spots for people who want to take the early risk for dries.  The extra downforce could help this year with the crossover point, but overtaking offline will be 'interesting'.

[septerra]

Alright, hoping for some overtaking action.

 

Great race if Kimi gets podium, Ferrari win, Bottas and Ham duel, Giovanazzi gets better result than Marcus, Max doing some wowzers, Ricciardo getting amongst it, Hulk keeping top 8, Alonso doing some miracles and scoring point(s).............

 

gogogo

[STRFerrari4Ever]

Hello everyone, hoping for a great race and I'm sure we're in for a treat

[thegamer23]

Looks almost sunny!

Edited by thegamer23, 09 April 2017 - 05:24.

[kamikaze1]

Come on Kimi!  Have the Grand National winnings on him at 16/1!   Now's the time!

[Ev0d3vil]

Still very dry in sector 3.

[thegamer23]

And Hamilton goes off at the hairpin!
Looks tricky out there

[LiftAndCoast]

With no more rain, those inters will be done pretty quickly.

[CoolBreeze]

The title is misleading. 

 

Anyways, any pictures of the current situation of weather?

[TomNokoe]

Looks almost dry in parts

[thegamer23]

Ricciardo trying with the slicks

Hamilton too!

Edited by thegamer23, 09 April 2017 - 05:39.