Yer China I would give a low 9 but Turkey a high 8. It was good and we did have 2 overtakes for more points nere the end, Webber on Alonso, Rosberg on Button. If you take away the controlled race by Vettel last weekend, it was very good IMO.
Best Driver: Fernando Alonso Worst Driver: Liuzzi Best Rookie: Ambrosio (Out qualified Glock) Best Team: Red Bull Worst Team: Force India Best Overtake: Button on Hamilton (vice versa) Funniest-moment: Massa not holding the clutch while in the pits Most Surprising Result: Rosberg slipping down the field Least Surprising Result: Vettal winning Special Mention to: Koba getting 10th from last Race Rating: 8/10 Best BBC commentator/presenter: Brundle Worst BBC commentator/presenter: Jordan Best Commentary moment: Nolk Hiedfeld Overall BBC coverage rating: 7/10
I am begining to have difficulty with the irrelevance of one particular gadget introduced this year, the same driver/ team protagonists continue taking the laurels as indeed they fully deserve, I am in favour of the DRS device not being available. The massive overtaking advantage it provides is grossly unfair, we have seen cars and drivers sweeping past and off into the distance when in reality, they had no right to such an advantage.
Certainly its use in Turkey did nothing to deflect the accusations of artificiality. The FIA may have got the length of the zone wrong in Turkey but I thought the positioning was good, with the final complex of turns giving the passed driver the opportunity to fight back. In terms of irrelevance, though, if Turkey wasn't just a one-off then you could be right. In principle I'm very much in favour of an aerodynamic solution to an aerodynamic problem, but with the Pirelli tyres and the reintroduction of KERS maybe DRS isn't needed. Perhaps it's not that there's too much overtaking in F1, just that it's the wrong type of overtaking.
genji: Ironic eh, for me the bloke with his feet on the pedals should be the only component that dictates the overtaking.
Well, perhaps - you could argue that Adrian Newey has as much input into Vettel's overtaking as Vettel himself, potentially, but I know what you mean in terms of being in the moment. Autosport reports that the F1 community in general are ok with it, or at least not criticising it.
Best Driver: Vettel Worst Driver: Schumacher Best Rookie: Perez Best Team: Red Bull Worst Team: Best Overtake: McLarens Funniest-moment: - Most Surprising Result: Kobayashi Least Surprising Result: Vettel winning Special Mention to: - Race Rating: 8/10 Best BBC commentator/presenter: Brundle Worst BBC commentator/presenter: Coulthard Best Commentary moment: German reporter talking to Vettel Overall BBC coverage rating: 8/10
Interesting discussion here Genji and Ernie. Genji's ennui is perhaps inevitable when one car is so dominant. But to contrive against it by forcing identical cars would fly in the face of the whole concept of F1. I would also agree that Adrian Newey is the biggest single factor in F1 but we cannot have our cake if we also eat it. It is the nature of competition that we must allow for dominance, and actively promote this concept as the original incentive! (Of course, this is no argument for a lack of ethics - Ferrari and Briatore please take note). In terms of the F1 community being at ease with it; they have finally countered the perennial criticism: a lack of action and of course in particular, overtaking. The present criticisms may well be justified but they would seem trivial by comparison if the original argument is to increase the appeal of F1 to a growing audience who will be less concerned with its subtleties. Ernie: I completely agree that the guy at the wheel should be wholly in charge of his car. External (governing) contrivances are the worst type. Once again we find we cannot have our cake and eat it… Power to the driver!
Maybe that's part of it - I certainly don't relish the idea of heading back into a Schumacher/Ferrari kind of era but I'm fully in agreement over what the reaction to such dominance should be: the other teams raising their game and taking on the dominant team/driver. Dominance per se shouldn't be restricted or compromised. It wasn't just that, though. I expected Vettel to win the race by the time it had started so that didn't affect my enjoyment. It was more about watching the other drivers sliding inexorably back into their grid positions. Alonso held 2nd place just as Button held 4th for a while but the writing was on the wall some time before they handed those positions back to Webber and Hamilton respectively, and likewise as Button fell back into Rosberg's clutches and assumed his starting position of 6th. Renault - started 7th and 9th, finished 7th and 8th. Massa - 10th to 11th. It was more that there was no fight behind Vettel - there was a bit of a show but no real battles and they were always going to finish pretty much as they started. I mean, if you hadn't watched the race and just glimpsed the qualifying and race results, you'd be forgiven for thinking it was another F1 procession. But, like I say - it might just have been a one off.
