On McLaren, China will be very, very interesting. If we see anything like a similar gain there, suddenly their positivity for later in the season won't look so stupid!
Considering Schumacher's current situation it did bring a small tear to my eye when Brundle mentioned that he hoped Michael was watching.
If there's a title battle this season, it won't involve Rosberg. He was woeful today. Let Vettel walk all over him at the start, couldn't overtake in traffic for toffee, and then seemed to be too busy worrying about how everything else was panning out rather than getting his head down and driving. He doesn't have the ability that Alonso and Hamilton, and to a lesser extent Vettel have demonstrated to turn any situation into a winning one. When he was only battling Hamilton he could rely on the odd mistake and reliability issues to gift him results, but when Vettel and Raikkonen look capable of regular podiums and challenging for wins, that isn't going to be enough. Also, is Verstappen 17 years old or in his 17th season? Stunningly mature drive, and he can certainly overtake.
Vettel, Raikkonen, Hamilton and Alonso have one clear reason/attribute as to why they are better than Rosberg. They are world champions.
I'm amazed by Verstappen, such a mature and fast driver at the moment. If Ricciardo and Kvyat aren't careful they will both be replaced by Verstappen and Sainz jr in the near future.
Rosbergs twitter profile says it all, his OWN description of himself is "I can driver around in circles fast". That is all he can do. He just isn't a proper racer. He takes 3 or 4 laps to pass 1 car when Hamilton takes 1 lap. Gets flustered wheel to wheel, we saw him make a mistake again today as soon as Vettel was behind him. Whenever he is with another car on a similar pace, he can't make moves stick. And don't even get me started on him asking for advice on the radio, in qualifying trying to ask what lines drivers were taking in the wet? wtf? a real racer works that out himself. Nowhere near Hamilton, Alonso, Ricciardo, Kimi, Button etc as a racer, and say what you want about Vettel as a racer too, but that boy is absolutely ruthless when he gets a chance to pass too, something Rosberg just isn't. Driving fast is a skill, Racing well makes you a champion.
I think it's natural that this is true to a point. Toto said he saw today's result as a wake up call, and I think at this stage that's what it is. Merc lost today because they were a bit complacent and were caught out on strategy. Yes, the pace of the Ferrari is real and they have to be on top of their game to beat them, but as it stands now they can if they don't make operational/strategic errors. However if Ferrari continue to regularly win races or if they start to get ahead in the development war then of course it may get less good humoured.
China is going to be very interesting. Was this a freak race with conditions and strategy aiding Ferrari or are they really capable of fighting Mercedes across the season.
Wow, Ferrari's rise has been staggering. I think a lot of today was circuit and conditions specific, but it's great that there's a team now who can push Mercedes and at times beat them. I still suspect Mercedes are half a second clear, but if Vettel can stay in touch and Ferrari can keep improving then we could have a title race. McLaren's progress is promising too. OK a double DNF is pretty much as bad as it gets but they've upped the pace so much in just a fortnight. Rosberg really was pathetic this weekend. If he carries on like this I hope he loses his drive for next season, there are plenty out there far more deserving of that seat.
Today reminded me a lot of Australia 2013 when Raikkonen won on a two stopper. I think everything just came together for Ferrari today. However you don't have those weekends if you're fundamentally a second off the pace. They're close now.
Should also be said that Pirelli's tyres are spot on again. The degradation and delta between the compounds contributed to a great race today.
Very disappointed to see the blind Rosberg bashing, totally unneeded and frankly almost football fan like. Whilst I don't dispute that Lewis is a higher calibre driver, people seem to have very short memories about his less favourable interviews, comments and radio traffic! I have followed this sport for many many years, and love the fact that you can jump on a shuttle bus to a track in any country and travel in harmony with other fans who celebrate the sport! The forum on here is showing more and more the similarities with the football forums!
It's great tyre management on that Ferrari which is really giving them competitive race-pace. Fantastic work from them so far and good to see James Allison continuing the good work he showed at Lotus. This is a Formula that should suit Ferrari being a works team and they are making real steps in the right direction which is good for F1. McLaren Honda are progressing and it could be a real spectacle if they all catch up. I think Merc have a fair bit of time in their pocket on raw speed and no doubt they will manage their tyres better in cooler conditions so they will up the ante in Europe. All in all though, today was a good day for F1.
I disagree. Rosberg has a seat all drivers would dream of having and it is becoming clearer by the race that other more naturally talented drivers would benefit more from it. Personally speaking, I think I've been consistent in my appraisal of him: he's a very well-connected rich boy who has reached his limit, that's all. On the other hand, I appreciate that he was loyal to the team during their leaner years.
