75 replies to this topic

[Jon83]

1/10 - Not sure I can be bothered with much more of this.

[Ben1445]

Look at all them 1/10s... 

[jjcale]

What a bunch of moaners ... that was a perfectly acceptable race.

Edited by jjcale, 13 May 2019 - 08:25.

[Bloggsworth]

Never mind my opinion of the race, who were the three who gave it a 10? We either have satirists in our midst or three people who suffer from cronic insomnia...

Edited by Bloggsworth, 13 May 2019 - 08:26.

[SenorSjon]

Wasn't the worst Spanish GP. I really wondered if Verstappen could overtake the one-stopping Leclerc again. Alas, then the SC came (for 6 long laps!) and most of the strategy battles were over. That was the nice thing to see unfold.

 

I rate it a 4 though, Merc are way too strong. Vettel as only driver this weekend not penalized for skipping the bollard and the mentioned SC-procedure eating away time. I almost fell asleep waiting for it. In IndyCar, the last SC was hold on a bit to let everyone pit and they the FCY was given.

 

F1 really needs some kind of slow zone to prevent this. Or go back to SC's from 10 years ago that could last only a few laps.

[ANF]

Timelapse

[Jerem]

Best driver: Grosjean's final laps were absolute masterclass, managing to keep the car on track most of the time
Worst driver: Hamilton got spanked pretty hard on Saturday, he must be distracted by some fashion-related activity.
Best team: Ferrari delivered as expected.
Worst team: Unimpressed with Mercedes' strategy, did they really need to 2-stop?
Best overtake: Vettel on Leclerc was beautifully executed
Best moment: Lewis saying the SC was going 'way too slow', it got me a F1 bingo.
DRS + tyres: I think all cars had them but I didn't really pay attention

 

The race in one sentence: Most exciting F1 race I've ever watched, gave it a 10.

(Sorry, this is a nervous breakdown)
 

[RacingGreen]

Best driver: Grosjean's final laps were absolute masterclass, managing to keep the car on track most of the time

 

 

I am assuming you are using the race directors definition of "being on the track" to mean "keeping the car vaguely within the Catalonia region of Spain most of the time."  

 

But let's not be too worried about F1 because some real racing still exists and the Isle on Man TT starts at the end of next week. Now that's a real track. 

[CoolBreeze]

I gave up watching on the 5th lap. I knew the winner from there on. Hours later, when i checked the results, I wasn't wrong. Watching the football titanic battle between CIty and Liverpool games was so much more interesting.

 

Really amazing how boring F1 has become. 5 races in, 5 same damn winners. The FIA is really a bunch of morons.

[Tsarwash]

Timelapse

That could replace the highlights package. Just show that instead. 

[Currahee]

That was the 1st race in over 20 years where I went and done something else. I cut the grass and washed the car. Absolute shitshow.

[Rinehart]

After first practice the inevitable 5 x 1-2's at the start of the season was assured and confirmed DRS + wider wings doesn't work because the 3 teams with half a billion dollar budgets have locked out the top 6 places with locked in performance that won't change all season. I'm sure there will be a couple of random races this season but Spain was the epitome of the overall predictable procession that F1 is. 

[Balnazzard]

2/10 but only because of the safety car at the end and how it atleast brought some action to the track for last 10 laps..

Hopefully Barcelona is finally dropped out of F1 for next year. This is one of those tracks that has not offered almost any really exciting races during its history, atleast none that I could really remember during the time that Ive watched it from 1998.

Dont really care that Spain will lose its F1 race after so many years, F1 should only return to Barcelona if they actually rebuild the track to something more interesting.

Edited by Balnazzard, 13 May 2019 - 11:48.

[chr1s]

Another Hamilton snooze fest! God even he must be getting bored now!

[P123]

What a bunch of moaners ... that was a perfectly acceptable race.

I think fatigue over another Merc 1-2, because all of the talk about 'I watched only 10 mins', 'I skipped through the highlights', 'First race I've gone and done something else'..... I mean, really!? As races at Barcelona go, this one was among the more ordinary, and I can think of some from the 90s that were even worse. You'd think F1 never had a boring race in it, until Barcelona.

[TomNokoe]

The race itself was okay, but in the overall context of the championship was absolutely awful.

[Nonesuch]

What a bunch of moaners ... that was a perfectly acceptable race.

 

That may well be the case, but even for F1 standards this was quite dull.

 

Thing is, F1 standards are increasingly no longer the standard. There's tons of other great international racing available for free, to everyone online.

 

Those extra few seconds F1 cars are faster around a lap don't mean much in the grand scheme of things. Their racing product is just not up to snuff.

[Ben1445]

^ This.

[P123]

Not that (although I agree that laptimes mean sod all in terms of good racing). Because F1's 'racing product' (as in on track action) has been inferior to US open wheelers since at least the 90s. Even Clio Cup will give more action. It's not that all these supposed F1 refugees have gone off to watch different racing. Less and less people watch motorsport of any kind. The figures for IndyCar are garbage. WRC has dropped. NASCAR races at tracks with half empty grandstands these days.

[Ben1445]

Not that (although I agree that laptimes mean sod all in terms of good racing). Because F1's 'racing product' (as in on track action) has been inferior to US open wheelers since at least the 90s. Even Clio Cup will give more action. It's not that all these supposed F1 refugees have gone off to watch different racing. Less and less people watch motorsport of any kind. The figures for IndyCar are garbage. WRC has dropped. NASCAR races at tracks with half empty grandstands these days.

Well that brings it all back to the point of F1 being the supposed 'pinnacle'. I've said before that because of that it basically becomes the standard bearer for motorsport in general. By tradition it is people's most recognisable and accessible* portal into the sport. If the 'racing product' is terrible at the top, why should potential viewers get excited about any of the rest of it? If anything that just rams home how unacceptable it is for F1 to be in this state.

 

And anyway, whatever the perception, overall viewership decline for all forms of motorsport should absolutely have people thinking that something needs to change. The response should certainly not to sit around saying it is fine the way it is whilst viewership drops, wallets empty and series collapse around them.

 

_{*or was, before pay-wall came and ruined it. Also I respect that it is quite a regional statement, it's not always the top or most accessible motorsport in a given area.}

[MasterOfCoin]

Well that brings it all back to the point of F1 being the supposed 'pinnacle'. I've said before that because of that it basically becomes the standard bearer for motorsport in general. By tradition it is people's most recognisable and accessible* portal into the sport. If the 'racing product' is terrible at the top, why should potential viewers get excited about any of the rest of it? If anything that just rams home how unacceptable it is for F1 to be in this state.

 

And anyway, whatever the perception, overall viewership decline for all forms of motorsport should absolutely have people thinking that something needs to change. The response should certainly not to sit around saying it is fine the way it is whilst viewership drops, wallets empty and series collapse around them.

 

_{*or was, before pay-wall came and ruined it. Also I respect that it is quite a regional statement, it's not always the top or most accessible motorsport in a given area.}

The pinnacle refers to engineering and technology aspect.....not the pinnacle of racing which it never was......once people wrap their minds around that and stop trying to Indy-fy F1, we would all better off......the only thing i would change about F1 right now is the prize distribution.....the WDC is really a farce because it all depends on the WCC, and how well you did over the winter....

[Ben1445]

The pinnacle refers to engineering and technology aspect.....not the pinnacle of racing which it never was......once people wrap their minds around that and stop trying to Indy-fy F1, we would all better off......the only thing i would change about F1 right now is the prize distribution.....the WDC is really a farce because it all depends on the WCC, and how well you did over the winter....

Motorsport fans know that. General public does not. General public sees F1 news on TV that one team is dominating, maybe watch a race and see bad on track racing. Decide that it is boring and only depends on who has the best car anyway.  General public decides motorsport is not for them and never even considers other forms of racing where the racing is actually better. Motorsports viewership generally declines. 

 

That was my point. 

[Imateria]

Par for the course this year, which means not much happened. It's certainly not the worst race I've ever seen at this track (98 and a few of the early 2000's races were particularly aweful) but the only real racing going on was in the midfield and that was only after the SC at the end. Something drastically needs to change before F1 dies, and soon.

 

Thank god for FE though, some seriously quality racing and I can't wait for Berlin. Can't say the same for Monaco.

[Berner]

My son-in-law fell asleep. So much for attracting a younger demographic. Meanwhile the NBA game with the Raptors and 76ers was a nail biter...not that I like, follow or understand basketball. Just saying: if you're a twenty-something urban young adult, which are you going to follow? 

Edited by Berner, 13 May 2019 - 16:54.

[JHSingo]

I keep seeing the argument that "oh, we've had bad races before", or "this track never produces good racing anyway", like that's justification to just accept that everything is fine and dandy. It shouldn't be.

 

The sport needs change - big change. The difference between the top teams (or lately, top team singular) and the rest is beyond a joke. If the rest of the season plays out how the first few races are, we'll have to go back to 2013 to find the last time Mercedes didn't win the championship. How crazy is that?

 

I've said before, and I'll say it again: prolonged domination by anyone, of any sport, is not good for that sport. Yes, hats off to Mercedes for doing such a good job for so long blahdiblah, but surely even the staunchest of Mercedes fans must be getting a bit bored by now? I was a Schumacher fan in the early 2000s, but I'll be honest that I loved seeing guys like Montoya take it to him, just because it was nice to see someone different win for a change.

 

I hope there's some twist to this season, otherwise it'll be a very long one indeed. As for this race, 1/10.

Edited by JHSingo, 13 May 2019 - 18:18.

[BalanceUT]

Best driver: Hulkenberg
Worst driver: Stroll
Best team: Mercedes
Worst team: Racing Point
Best overtake: Sainz 
Best moment: Naming of "Grosjean Corner"
DRS + tyres: flappy and round

Race in a sentence: Ferrari is in deep doo-doo.