The Formula 1 Stuff Thread

[MBKF1]

Mexicola said:

Bring back bridge corner and everything will be sweet. That new section they added in 2010 is physical nonsense.

I can see why they did it. The whole Bridge / Priory section didn't offer much in terms of close racing, at least now you've got a good section which leads into a good daring overtaking spot. But yeah, I miss Bridge a lot, cracking corner.

VetteIfan said:

MBKF1 said:

Stroll's got the time to develop and become a world champion in the future, and could easily surpass any records Jacques achieved, that would shut him up.

One good race for Stroll and he's now a potential world champion. His Baku performance was very good but his previous 7 races less so, let's not jump the gun. 

Probably should've worded it better. I totally agree, he's still got a lot to prove, apart from Baku his first few races have been poor, and Massa has outclassed him in all areas. What I mean is in terms of time frame. If he remains competitive and is in F1 for the next few years then he'll just keep slowly improving, and with a potential 15-20 years in F1, he's certainly got the time to become a world champion in the future.

[Jiggy]

Stroll has raw talent. Very raw. But he's richer than most F1-teams, so he'd never get dropped unless he loses his license due to on-track incidents, so he could literally drive around like an amateur for 3, 4 years until he's no longer a novice and learned to drive really well.

Bet Hulkenberg would've gotten a podium by now if he was as rich as Stroll, just because he wouldn't have been dropped by Williams after his debut season.

It's all about how high his ceiling is and that's kind of really hard to tell right now, so he could end up being whatever.

[AMSKRR]

JensonBottom said:

Silverstone has to be the dullest historic track around, although at least the racing is ok. I'd love a return to Brands Hatch despite how ridiculously unlikely that is and how the races would be a procession, its just so cool.

Eh, I disagree. It's such a fast circuit and some of the corners like Maggots and Becketts are fantastic to watch cars go through. 

I love Monza, but would anyone suggest that it has better corners/more challenging corners than Silverstone? It's mainly long straights with chicanes, with two 90 degree corners, and a long hairpin. But it is classic and fun to watch and race on games.

[Hughesy]

Mexicola said:

Bring back bridge corner and everything will be sweet. That new section they added in 2010 is physical nonsense.

Miss the old section so much. We walked on it when we went to BTCC.

[Beans_]

You guys seen that Kubica is being giving a second test to see if he is capable of running at a competitive level. Be good to see him back if he can drive the car. 

[Jiggy]

Imagine if Palmer gets dropped for an one-armed man, fucking hell, how embarrassing.

[ImDyingYouIdiot]

Jiggy said:

Imagine if Palmer gets dropped for an one-armed man, **** hell, how embarrassing.

For a one-armed man who could have been World Champion if BMW wouldn't have dropped the freaking ball in 2008.

[RevolvingPrawn]

Apparently this is the Shield cockpit protection. Pretty much just Red Bull's aeroscreen but going down the nose further. Gonna be tested next weekend at Silverstone, by Ferrari.



https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/f1-fia-test-shield-silverstone-practice-927240/

[Jiggy]

Absolutely disgusting.                                             

[MBKF1]

I hope it's not that blue colour, more like the dark aeroscreen Red Bull tried out last year. I'll wait to see it in the flesh before giving a judgement on it. 

[Liaveil]

It's actually not as bad as I thought it would be. Certainly a monumental step forward from that awful halo device.
I could learn to like it.

[Hughesy]

At least it doesn't look like a thong... I still don't agree with the FIA that F1 needs it. I hope there's some kind of cooling duct for the drivers.

[GoldenColt]

I hate it, just like I hate any single one of these devices.

[ImDyingYouIdiot]

It's decent in the render, let's see how well it looks on an actual car.

What I'm worried about is the additional weight, not like the current cars are exactly light weights. Not to mention the cooling of the driver and the visibility during wet sessions.

[AMSKRR]

It's just stupid. If we want an open cockpit, keep an open cockpit. If you want a close one just redesign the cars around that ffs FIA. Stop ruining the look of the cars. 

[f1since08]

I'm gonna have a go at a silly season prediction.
Merc: Lewis Hamilton & Fernando Alonso
Ferrari: Sebastian Vettel & Sergio Perez
Red Bull: Daniel Ricciardo & Max Verstappen
Force India: Esteban Ocon & Pascal Wehrlein
Williams: Felipe Massa & Lance Stroll
Toro Rosso: Carlos Sainz Jr & Pierre Gasly
Haas: Kevin Magnussen & Charles Leclerc
Sauber: Marcus Ericsson & Antonio Giovinazzi
McLaren: Valtteri Bottas & Stoffel Vandoorne

[Liaveil]

As much as I'd like Alonso vs Hamilton, Ferrari is the more likely of the two and even that's a seriously long shot. Bottas is on form at the moment so Mercedes have no reason to change him even if Alonso is the stronger of the two.
Again, a lot of the driver market is going to depend on whether Kimi retires or not. It's probable this year as it's showing he's passed his best and isn't able to help in the constructors battle. I'd probably agree that Perez is the strongest candidate for the Ferrari drive but Grosjean is also a solid option assuming Alonso is completely out of the running.
Sainz is another major player in the driver market I think even though I don't rate him that highly compared to other drivers out there. Marko keeps saying he's tied to Toro Rosso but it wouldn't surprise me if he moved yet. I don't want to get my hopes up but with Kubica being announced to be doing another test is it possible he could yet return? Highly unlikely but he could shake the driver market a bit if he is fit enough and motivated enough.

[Apex]

@fIsince08 
my predictions:
mercs - verstappen and Hamilton 
ferrari - vettel and Perez
red bull - ricciardo and sainz 
force india - ocon and wherlein
Haas - grosjean and Leclerc
Renault - hulkenburg and kubica 
torro rosso - kvyat and gasly 
mclaren (Mercedes) - alonso and vandoorne
williams - bottas and stroll
sauber - giovanazzi and massa

[MBKF1]

I'll have a go at silly season as well, actually dreamt this up earlier this week so I'll copy and paste it here:

Mercedes | Hamilton / Bottas
Ferrari | Vettel / Perez
Red Bull | Ricciardo / Verstappen
Force India | Ocon / Wehrlein
Williams | Massa / Stroll
Haas | Grosjean / Magnussen
Renault | Hulkenberg / Sainz
Toro Rosso | Kvyat / Gasly
McLaren | Alonso / Vandoorne
Sauber | Ericsson / Giovinazzi

As much as I'd love to see Alonso in a Mercedes and Kubica back at Renault, I unfortunately highly doubt it will happen, so I'm expecting a relatively stable silly season. I'll go into more detail below (for anyone that's vaguely interested in my reasoning).
________________

Mercedes | I'm pretty sure Bottas has done enough to keep a contract for next year. Super quick, consistent, not making (many) mistakes. For Mercedes, why would they need Alonso? They've already got a premier driver in Hamilton, and Alonso would undoubtedly make the current harmony in the team unstable, so why change it.

Ferrari | We say it every year, will Raikkonen retire? Every year we say yes, but this time I honestly think he will. Half the points of Vettel, and he's just clearly not got the pace anymore. With Perez consistently putting in brilliant performances in the Force India, I think he'd be a superb partner to Vettel. He's got the experience (7 years now, can you believe that?!), and he's damn quick.

Red Bull | I doubt Ferrari will take Verstappen right now, so I'm pretty sure Red Bull will remain as it is.

Force India | With Perez gone to Ferrari, it makes sense for Wehrlein to be promoted to the now de-facto Mercedes B-team.

Williams | Stroll will remain, and I reckon Massa will carry on for another season too. I can't see many other possible candidates (possibly Sainz, or Wehrlein), and to be fair, Felipe is doing a fine job this year, so I think he'll stay.

Haas | I'm sure Grosjean will be high on the Ferrari list, but after missing out to Perez, he'll remain at Haas alongside Magnussen. I'm sure Ferrari would like to put one of their juniors (Giovinazzi or Leclerc) in there, but I doubt it'll happen.

Renault | With Hulkenberg staying put, and Palmer surely going, it's a potentially great seat in terms of the longer future. I would cry of joy if Kubica returned with them, but unfortunately I just can't see it happening right now, unless he does the most incredible testing in the next few months. Alonso is a possibility, but he can't afford to wait another 3 years to potentially win a championship. So I reckon Sainz would be a good fit, he's young, very quick, and he's desperate to get to a higher team. Renault could be good for him with no place at Red Bull.

Toro Rosso | With Sainz gone to Renault, it makes total sense for Pierre Gasly to make the promotion, but do Toro Rosso retain Kvyat? I think they will, simply because Red Bull currently don't have another driver in their programme ready to make the step. The only reason I can see Kvyat going is if Red Bull do what they did with Verstappen a couple of years ago, which is signing a big talent from F2 / F3 who isn't currently contracted to another team, and putting them straight into F1. But I doubt this will happen for 2018.

McLaren | I think Alonso will stay, whether it's Honda or Mercedes power, but 2018 will be the absolute final straw. One of the other reasons I think he'll stay is because he's got his heart set on winning the Indy 500 and Le Mans, and I can't see any other team other than McLaren allowing him to do it.

Sauber | With new Honda power, I wonder whether one of their junior drivers will be promoted (either Matsushita from F2, or Fukuzumi from F3, but they're both not ready yet in my opinion). I'm sure they'll keep Ericsson, and I reckon Giovinazzi will get a full crack at a season with them, despite his Ferrari affiliation.
________________

I've said it before along with Chris, but I think Charles Leclerc is more than ready for the step up to F1, and I honestly think he would be the perfect replacement at Ferrari alongside Vettel. If I were Marchionne, he'd be the guy I'd pick to replace Raikkonen. But I don't think it will happen, and unfortunately I don't think he'll even get a seat on the grid at all, despite his immense talent and incredible form. I say this simply because Ferrari historically don't take huge risks on young rookies. I hope I'm proven wrong though.

[Apex]

@fIsince08
my prediction 
mercs - verstappen and Hamilton 
ferrari - vettel and Perez
red bull - riccuardo and sainz 
force india - ocon and wherlein
Haas - grosjean and Leclerc
Renault - hulkenburg and kubica 
torro rosso - kvyat and gasly 
mclaren (Mercedes) - alonso and vandoorne

[RevolvingPrawn]

Here's mine.

Mercedes | Hamilton / Bottas
Ferrari | Vettel / Grosjean
Red Bull | Ricciardo / Verstappen
Force India | Ocon / Perez
Williams | Massa / Stroll
Haas | Leclerc / Magnussen
Renault | Hulkenberg / Kubica
Toro Rosso | Kvyat / Sainz
McLaren | Alonso / Vandoorne
Sauber | Ericsson / Wehrlein

I can see Grosjean going to Ferrari over Perez, mainly because in Canada he wouldn't play the team game, and after Baku just straight up blaming his teammate (even though he's mostly right) rather than moving on and forgetting about it. It's almost like his ego has inflated a bit this season, and I think Ferrari would rather go for Grosjean who'd be more compliant overall.

With Haas more or less being a Ferrari B-team it'd make sense for Leclerc to fill Grosjean's old seat if he carries on with his cruise to the F2 title.

I can definitely see Renault bringing back Kubica, cos even with a gammy arm he'd be faster and more consistent than Palmer.

Sainz is locked into his Red Bull/Toro Rosso contract, and Christian Horner has said today that it's likely Kvyat will stay, despite Gasly waiting for a seat.

Alonso will go for a 1 year extension at McLaren cos none of the big teams want him. The rest will more or less stay the same.

[GoldenColt]

baconbrawler said:

@fIsince08
my prediction 
mercs - verstappen and Hamilton 
ferrari - vettel and Perez
red bull - riccuardo and sainz 
force india - ocon and wherlein
Haas - grosjean and Leclerc
Renault - hulkenburg and kubica 
torro rosso - kvyat and gasly 
mclaren (Mercedes) - alonso and vandoorne

So, Bottas out of F1? Sounds... interesting. ;)

[Jiggy]

Mercedes | Hamilton / Bottas
Ferrari | Vettel / Grosjean
Red Bull | Ricciardo / Verstappen
Force India | Ocon / Perez
Williams | Wehrlein / Stroll
Haas | LeClerc / Magnussen
Renault | Hulkenberg / Sirotkin
Toro Rosso | Sainz / Gasly
McLaren | Alonso / Vandoorne
Sauber | Ericsson / Matsushita

To elaborate:

Mercedes: They like Ham and Bot and vice versa.

Ferrari: Kimi out because old and because Leclerc finna win the F2-championship and now needs a drive. But Ferrari don't do rookies and Haas is competitive enough to please young Charles. Grosjean moves up because he's good, Ferrari likes him and Perez doesn't open up a spot for Leclerc.

Red Bull: Honestly, they should consider making their own engines, Red Bull could maybe pull it off. Because Max' biggest gripe is the Renault-engine. Still, both drivers are very pleased and settled within the team.

Force India: No better place to go for both drivers, with top-team spots hard to come by. Ocon won't mind, as this is effectively his rookie-season.

Williams: Massa retiring after all, stays around the team to mentor Stroll. Wehrlein to Williams because Mercedes and because Sauber is getting Honda-engines. I hope he doens't piss off the team.

Haas: Grosjean leaves, F2-champion Leclerc joins, Magnussen has proven to be a solid driver who could lead the team, so stays.

Renault: Hulk still kicking himself that he isn't at Mercedes right now, but whatever, maybe Renault is actually good in 2018. Next to him is Sirotkin, who has been linked with the team for a while and is the main reason Renault was only handing out one-year-contracts for the second seat. Can't imagine it being anyone else but Sirotkin. Well, maybe Alonso, but that is a huge stretch.

Toro Rosso: Kvyat drops out because he's been crap since his demotion. Gasly gets the chance to deliver. Sainz is stuck.

McLaren: HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHHAHAHAHAHAHA

Sauber: MAUAUFHUAFOAUFJA THEY ACTUALLY SWITCHED TO HONDA-ENGINES THE FOOLS oh well, they're getting in a Honda-protege now then. Also Ericsson is never leaving. How much money can a Swede have, really?

[Chadwick8505]

My predictions for 2018

Mercedes- Hamilton and Bottas
Ferrari - Vettel and Grosjean 
Red Bull - Ricciardo and Verstappen 
Force India - Perez and Ocon
Williams - Stroll and Kyvat 
Toro Rosso - Sainz and Gasley 
Haas - Magnussen and Leclerc
McLaren - Alonso and Vandoorne
Renault - Hulkenberg and Sirotkin (maybe Kubica)
Sauber - Erickson... I literally can't name their second driver. Wehrlein? had to look it up, it's Wehrlein.


Bottas as is doing a fine job at Mercedes, playing the second seat well and not getting in Hamiltons way but can still win for the team. I don't see a reason to change anything. 

Its probably time for Kimi to retire again (as much as I don't want to see him go). I think it comes down to Perez and Grosjean. Grosjean gets it for me because of the Haas connection with Ferrari, it should be a smooth transition. I also don't think Perez will play the second driver well. 

Red Bull... their contracts are too solid to allow Verstappen to go anywhere yet. I doubt he was able to get a performance/reliability exit clause. 

Force India, it isn't broken so don't fix it. As long as Perez has no place to go at least. 

Williams, Massa is fine and might stay, but I think not. Stroll will stay because money and nothing else. Kyvat may need a seat, although Horner is suggesting otherwise. I think if kyvat gets dropped, Massa will step aside for him. 

Toro Rosso, Kyvat should be done in my opinion. Gasley is ready and itching to go, so I'd give it to him. 

Haas, losing Grosjean to Ferrari, being the Ferrari B-team, Leclerc makes the most sense. Magnusen is fine so might as well keep him. 

Renault, get rid of Palmer, and put Sirotkin in because they already have him. They aren't up to speed enough to attract Alonso or another big name yet. 

McLaren, with a Honda at the back no one is interested so they're stuck with what they got which really two good drivers so why change?

Sauber... does it matter? With a good engine they're last. I can't imagine how bad it'll be with a Honda. So unless Honda wants someone special there, nothing will change. 

[MBKF1]

JAKE HUMPHREY IS HOSTING F1 LIVE TOMORROW IN LONDON, WITH COULTHARD COMMENTATING AND EDDIE JORDAN THERE TOO, REJOICE! THE F1 DREAM TEAM IS BACK!