I'm asking this as I genuinely don't know which team has the best car. There is a good argument to say Lotus is the best overall package based on the last race, but was that a bit of a flash in the pan due to the extremely hot temperatures or the uniquely dull Hungaroring circuit? Red Bull have shown flashes of being quickest but have the changes they've had to make to their car slowed them down a touch? McLaren won the last race, are they now considered quickest? The real interest is that Alonso has a decent lead in the championship in what appears to be an inferior car. Can he hold on or will Ferrari improve so he has a genuinely competitive car? I've ticked the box to add a poll but not sure if it's working.............
I don't think that this season has a stand-out car in the same way that last season did for the simple reason that form this season has fluctuated so wildly. That said, I do believe that there is a hierarchy which has established itself more recently. Mercedes started strongly but their development has been poor, perhaps linked to the Double DRS system which gave them an advantage early on but nowadays is providing them with complications in packing all the systems with the introduction o new updates. Conversely, Ferrari have developed what was initially the fifth or sixth best car on the grid into one near the top. I'd say that the best car on the grid is between Mclaren, Red Bull, and Lotus - at the moment! I think the Ferrari has improved but their poor showing in Hungary showed it still has a way to go. I also wouldn't be surprised if Mercedes came out and did strongly at the next two races, Monza and Spa being low-downforce tracks.
Lotus have been the fastest with the majority of the season with McLaren a close second. Red Bull, Ferrari and Mercedes have shown flashes of being up the front and winning but have quickly gone back within a race or 2.
Lotus have certainly been the most consistent. Always hunting around the podium places but seemingly not enough raw speed to get the win. McLaren have been quick, slow, quick, slow, quick, Red Bull likewise and Ferrari! Mercedes have dropped off a cliff since the start of the season. It seems no team has got a car that works on alomost all tracks. Last year Red Bull always had a car that was quick no matter where it went, but no one, other than Lotus, seem to have done that. So for that reason, I'll say Lotus have, just because they have always been a pain to the other teams as they keep getting in everyone's way by being near the front all the time!
It does seem like Lotus are either 2nd or 3rd best at every race with Ferrari taking the other 2nd or 3rd best at every race position and then McLaren alternate between being the best or well of the pace with Red-Bull being the best car for most of the time.
In my opinion: Australia:McLaren Malaysia:McLaren China: Mercedes/McLaren Bahrain: Lotus Spain: McLaren/Lotus/Williams Monaco: Mercedes (Rosberg admitting it) Canada: Red Bull/Lotus Valencia: Red Bull Britain: Ferrari/Red Bull Germany: McLaren/Ferrari Hungary: Lotus McLaren at 5 races Lotus at 4 races Red Bull at 3 races Mercedes at 2 races Ferrari at 2 races Williams at 1 race
Lotus are the most consistant team this year where as the others are yo-yo'ing around them. Mclaren when on form have looked the best and I believe they have had the fastest car all season bar silverstone only for slip ups to knock them down the order
Overall, i'd say either Mclaren or Red Bull, but I went for Mclaren, Lotus a very close 3rd, with Ferrari/Williams 4th.
I'd say Lotus, they've always been up there despite having a rookie driver and a lead driver that hadn't raced in F1 for a few years, to be competitive with that arrangement has to be lauded, I can see them winning soon.
Red Bull... It's like a transformer. Each time they look like they're might be struggling, they simply bolt on another questionable component to see them trough it. It's only a matter if time before there's an 'oil' button on the steering wheel. *Runs away*
It's difficult enough trying to work out who has the best car at each grand prix given the differences in pace between qualifying and the race. Near impossible to pick a best for the season.
I had to go with Lotus. The races this year have shown different teams at the top at different events. Red Bull were quick at Valencia, Mclaren at Montreal, and so on. So I've gone for the team which has consistently been amongst the top 2 or 3 best teams so far this season, and that has to be, without a doubt, Lotus
Gary Anderson says McLaren are the best on Saturday, Red Bull the best on Sunday: please log in to view this image Although his method for working out race pace is flawed as most drivers just focus on tyre management rather than outright speed and also it doesn't account for different strategies affecting fastest laps. By his calculations, Sauber was the fastest car in Monaco by over a second, Red Bull were dominant in Canada and Mercedes were fastest in Valencia. You can't really go wrong with his "raw pace" calculations though - however Autosport should double check things before publishing it, according to his percentages it's actually Mercedes who are 4th in raw pace and Ferrari 5th. In overall race pace I think McLaren and Red Bull have been the best two cars, with McLaren having a slight edge. McLaren have only had one really bad race (Silverstone) and even then Hamilton was sporadically quick at times. I'm really not sure about Lotus, it's either: 1. Kimi is still getting back up to speed and this makes Grosjean look a lot better than he really is. A good handling car is flattering both drivers. They should have won multiple races and be comfortably leading both championships but the drivers have failed to consistently deliver. 2. Kimi has found the speed, and Grosjean is a fantastic driver. The car is quick, sometimes the quickest but not the best overall - the drivers are doing a great job to take the fight to the big teams. I think it's the second one but there's some doubt.
They have Toro Rosso as the 4th fastest car for race pace. These stats are pointless really, you could just as feasibly define the order by where they are in the championship, in fact I think that would be a far more accurate reflection given it's based on finishing positions rather than fastest laps. Love the picture they use for Mercedes.
The reason why McLaren fell back for a period was to do with that they had their floor banned after the Chinese GP as it was deemed illegal. Gary Anderson sure likes to play dumb! And let's be honest Seb and Mark have been the best duo with the hand they have been dealt with. No matter how many things get banned on that car they're still up there unlike Jenson and Masa for example making both cars look worse than they actually did considering their team mates were always up there fighting with both Red Bulls.
I'll think you will find that Mercedes input many millions of euros into this new update ahead of Spa. As this picture represents..
