The likes of Sauber and Lotus will be next year's Caterham and Marussia. I'm so mad at Bernie and the rich teams for refusing to address the problems in the sport. They'll all suffer together when all we have are left are manufacturers that no longer see the sport as worth the investment. Pissed off at the lot of the short sighted bastards.
And Gutierrez once again showed that even when the car is there, he's the one that still can't take advantadge.
Sadly they only worry about the here and now, not the long term future of the sport. As a fan of F1 this sounds ridiculous, but I kinda hope that F1 implodes and we go back to real racing teams. F**k all this manufacturers and crazy pop companies crap... Even McLaren are now a monstrous corporate entity... and they can't do crap with their resources. Toto Wolff pissed me off royally this weekend. What will that team do when Merc gets bored? Oh, he'll retire with a big effing pay off. As for Ferrari who have been milking the sport for years, they don't deserve their privileged position. I'm just mad at the lot of 'em.
When I called Rosberg on pole I was not expecting it to be so one-sided, fair play to the lad. Hope Hamilton can keep himself collected and not stick a stupid move up the inside in turn 2...
Last time Hamilton struggled in qualifying he had an awesome set up for the race.. Anyway really impressed with Rosberg, he backed up his words with impressive pace
Rosberg's pole lap was a stunner; he'll probably think of it as close to perfect. I have a gut feeling Hamilton's brake troubles are probably the result of unbalanced hydraulic pressure; something completely beyond a driver's influence. This type of problem is very difficult to overcome because its source could be any of the multitude of components between brake pedal and discs. Therefore I expect it likely to be present during the race, and that Hamilton's best strategy - especially if he does not get the jump at the start â will be to nurse his car to second place. With regard to F1's current difficulties, I think it is a bit too easy to blame the teams since it is natural (and expected) that all Team Principles will look out for their own. The problem exists at an altogether higher level. I mentioned politics earlier in the thread and must return to this unsavoury topic⦠Bernie's master-stroke was brokered many, many years ago and was deliberately unequal to competitors â thereby ensuring teams would have huge practical difficulties in reaching any meaningful agreement which might threaten his own position as F1 god. This is the key ingredient perpetuating what has been (unless you are associated with god) a ridiculous situation for a very long time. Red devils (and all bulls who seek to emulate them) are associated with god; but for god to continue to reign, he perpetuates a squabble amongst those who might usurp him! Don't blame the managers; they are essentially messengers doing as they are toldâ¦
Oh I don't disagree with that at all Cosi, but the teams have some blame in allowing themselves to be manipulated in such a way for many years. And now, rather than doing the right thing and demanding that something be done to fix the problems, they're all sat on their hands, letting it all happen and protecting their own little slice of the pie. I find it disgraceful tbh.
Opinion (my own insurance) I share your frustration, Bhaji. I stress again: the following is nothing more than opinion… In terms of teams allowing themselves to be manipulated, unless they get together to form a breakaway, what choice do they have? Practical solutions rarely coincide with idealistic notion. Anyone not happy either goes elsewhere or buys into what is on offer – and now there is nowhere else to go! Bernie's genius was to 'buy' insurance from the outset, knowing that Ferrari's structure and position as a national icon in a country with a history of ultra right wing politics would be easy to exploit if key personnel felt suitably rewarded/encouraged. When Bernie saw his nightmare of a rival series loom large at reality's door, he was only too willing to double his insurance by including another team to threaten his own perceived favourite, particularly since this old favourite had declared it had nowhere else to go! All that was needed was to find and promote a rival with similar ambitions by repeating a similarly generous offer! Better still, he already knew of a team with just such a business model – and one based on similar political background – to out-Ferrari Ferrari! What could be more perfect? Bernie had (just in time) diverted his nightmare. There came a moment when devil number one 'threatened' not to participate: all that was needed was to say "boo!" to the boogey-man. But that moment has passed and Bernie has shored-up the weakness in his coast*-line. Right. If you'll excuse me, it's past my bed-time. *A Freudian slip; a combination of 'cast' and 'cost'.
Each of the big teams brokered their own deal with the devil. They have all feasted on their share of the pie that was offered up to them by Bernie. They all turned their back on FOTA, and they are all unwilling to fix the mess they have had a hand in creating. Mr. Ecclestone created this mess, and the rich teams are guilty of signing up for it. Right now... they are all guilty of killing F1 imo. Killing it for small teams, killing it for tracks that can't afford to hold races and killing it for fans that can't go see the spectacle. Shame on the lot of them!
Can't see Lewis challenging Nico today if his brake imbalance isn't sorted. It all seems an unexciting prospect with the mess f1 is in, lack of teams, descent amongst some teams, Bernie admitting it's all his fault and the continuing concern for Jules. Hopefully the race will exceed expectations and f1 will repair the damage before it's too late. Big changes are surely on the horizon.
Is it just on light tanks he is having an issue? Seemed to be doing okay in FP1 and FP2 when there was more fuel in the car. Could mean he will be strong early on but then maybe have issues as the fuel burns off later?
I think Brundle was onto something when he was saying that it's not a circuit which is great for heavy braking, which is clearly what Hamilton does. He's often struggled in quali this season so maybe it's the fact he's got one hand on the trophy which is causing the issues? Maybe he's getting Nico's hopes up and then he's going to get him down today, who knows. For the championship sake, Rosberg better win this race, 24 points in 2 races doesn't seem possible unless Hamilton retires. In theory, Hamilton only needs to win one race then he doesn't have to do anything else but cruise to second place in every other race saving his car. But this season has had quite a bit of repitition in it. Australia - Hamilton retires, next four he wins. Spa (when the season restarted) - Hamilton retires, next four he wins. What came after he won four last time? Monaco, Canada and Austria. Let's hope it's the exact same results in each Edit: I completely forgot until now, but didn't Hamilton complain in Q2 about vibration after his fastest lap? So he has to start on tyres which aren't as good as Rosberg's if it's correct.
I confused myself with this earlier in the season. I think you only have to start on Q2 tyres if you didn't run in Q3. Was to encourage Q3 running... I think? Either way I feel Rosberg has this race sowed up for whatever reason, just hope that we have a good race somewhere in the field, at least we'll ave Vettel coming through to watch