Official Formula 1 thread

[strat61caster]

Originally Posted by Atticus808

i tried to watch a bit of F1 last season, and i will probably still watch a bit. but what turns me off of watching it is the winners are always the same few. don't you get bored of that?

Yes absolutely. Most watch for the unexpected brilliance, 2012 had 7 different winners in the first 7 races and set a record for most different winners in an F1 season. Two of the winners were first timers, some lamented that the tires created unpredictability and the winners were just benefactors of luck but it was one hell of a roller coaster.

Everyone has a handful of races they remember whether it's Vettel dominance or Hamilton pummeling his car into the ground to take the win or Raikkonen putting in unparalleled consistency to steal the win. Canada 2011 comes to my mind, Jenson Button had 5 pit stops, a drive through penalty, damaged his car and with 30 laps to go was in dead last place. This is the last lap:

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KBQm2LPev5c"]F1 2011 Canada - Last Lap (English Commentary) - YouTube[/ame]

Originally Posted by rice_classic

l probably just Torrent the far superior SKY SPORTS broadcast from the UK anyway

Interesting, I always preferred the BBC broadcast. Sky always seemed too stiff and conservative to be interesting compared to Jordan and Coulthard, am I missing something or is it just the added production value that's won you over?

[cfusionpm]

To be honest, I really liked Bob Varcha back when it was on Speed. I really don't like any of the NBCSN commentators, and especially not Diffy. If I had to pick, I like Jordan and Coulthard from BBC too, and they should be having Mark Webber guest starring there for Melbourne.

Whenever I look online for races, all I see is SkyF1... If I don't watch it live (or from my dvr) I would prefer BBC as well.

[rice_classic]

My 2014 insights (not that anyone cares).

Red Bull: While I agree that Red Bull's success made for a shitty season, just like being a Broncos fan made for a shitty SuperBowl (go Hawks) but this year I'm actually excited for RedBulls problems. Why? Because Vettel. I have long wanted to see Vettel in a car that wasn't the best. I want to see if the 4 time champion exhibits the same traits other champions exhibit when not in the #1 car. Senna, Prost, Schumacher, Alonso all did that and I'd argue Massa did that too (Still consider him a WDC). I don't think Button/Hamilton/Kimi have done this. So I'm excited to actually see Vettel's mettle be tested. I've long held the belief that Vettel is only a 4 time champ because of Newey and Redbull, not because of Vettel. If I'm right, it'll feel good and if I'm wrong it will be exciting to watch so I win regardless!

Mark Webber: Smart man that Mark Webber. He must of read the 2014 regulations and had some insight into the future. Considering what I've seen in F1 for 2014 as a fan, if I were MW I'd rather be racing a 919 Porsche instead of playing 2nd fiddle to Redbull's golden child. Who knows, the 919 may actually be a faster car.

Williams: Go Massa! I've long waited to the see Williams return to being a strong team. I think they took a lot of resources from last year early on and put them to 2014 and hopefully their ongoing development stays ahead of the curve. I'd like to see Williams get some top 5 finishes and I think they can with what I've seen from testing.

Mercedes: Not much to see here. They look fast and are an early favorite but they also looked strong last year but were plagued by tires, what will plague them this year?

Mclaren: New rookie driver looks fast, car looks strong. Mclaren, Merc and Ferrari are shaping up to be the top 3 teams out of the gate.

Ferrari: The team to watch. Not for wins, no.. for the drama. Alonso and Kimi?! Who can wait?! The bigger question is who punts who first? Who will step up as #1? Remember that's a big freakin' deal at Ferrari, they always have a #1 driver, but this year they have two. Extra points to Ferrari (and Merc) for making the least ugly cars.

I don't have much to say about the other teams.

Pirelli: Oh gawd, please don't make another "redbull" tire this year. Please make a tire that can be run flat out and last more than a couple laps. Please! Please!

Formula 1 in general: IMHO, it is no longer the pinnacle of motorsport. It only the pinnacle of motorsport budgets. The cars make the sport look like a joke. The "spec" has crippled ingenuity. They are no longer the fastest race cars either. LeMans, to me, is the new pinnacle of motorsport. Often times it's more fun to watch, they allow a variation of technologies and can you say Delta Wing? Advanced hybrid systems, Diesel, DI Petrol, electric AWD, turbo etc etc. At some tracks the LMP1 (LMPC) cars are faster than F1 cars.

Considering the technical ingenuity in competing series, the speeds of competing series and the ridiculous look of the current F1 cars it's becoming more and more difficult to see F1 as the pinnacle.


Conclusion and prediction: 2014 should be a very good year for a Formula 1 fan. New engines, tires and drivers along with less aero will provide for a shakeup of the usual and provide new drama. The looks of the cars may grow on us (pun intended) as the season shapes up and if the racing is really good, the little stuff will all seem like genius.

[rice_classic]

Originally Posted by strat61caster

Interesting, I always preferred the BBC broadcast. Sky always seemed too stiff and conservative to be interesting compared to Jordan and Coulthard, am I missing something or is it just the added production value that's won you over?

I'm talking about the one with Coulthard, Eddie Jordan and Mark Brundel as announcers.

I don't know if it's sky sports or BBC. I should just say, "The British one".

[strat61caster]

Originally Posted by cfusionpm

To be honest, I really liked Bob Varcha back when it was on Speed.

Varsha Jordan and Coulthard would be my dream team with Hobbes and Matchett for some technical asides during the boring bits and Buxton in the pits, although I do miss Peter Windsor. Varsha was great at guiding the commentary along even if he didn't add much himself.

Originally Posted by rice_classic

I'm talking about the one with Coulthard, Eddie Jordan and Mark Brundel as announcers.

I don't know if it's sky sports or BBC. I should just say, "The British one".

I've never seen that combo (do you mean Martin Brundle? He was with Jordan and Coulthard for 2011 before moving to Sky apparantly, I watched that season on Speed channel). Sky Sports typically has Damon Hill, Martin Brundle some people I forget.

http://www1.skysports.com/f1/presenters

I like Damon but his observations never wowed me, nothing like Coulthard and Jordan who seemed to give you a brand new angle every fifteen minutes even if they did have to resort to some b.s. to do it. Brundle does a good job guiding but like Varsha I never felt he added much.

[rice_classic]

Originally Posted by strat61caster

I've never seen that combo (do you mean Martin Brundle? He was with Jordan and Coulthard for 2011 before moving to Sky apparantly, I watched that season on Speed channel). Sky Sports typically has Damon Hill, Martin Brundle some people I forget.

I get Martin Brundle and Mark Brundel confused. But I've watched both BBC and SkySports and since they're speaking with a British accent it all seems like the same broadcast.

Here's the lineup for BBC for 2014.. I knew I've seen Eddie Jordan yapping away somewhere!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/lat...r-line-up.html

Allan McNish completes BBC’s F1 team for 2014 along with Suzi Perry, David Coulthard, Eddie Jordan, Ben Edwards, James Allen, Lee McKenzie, Tom Clarkson and Jennie Gow.

[strat61caster]

Originally Posted by rice_classic

I get Martin Brundle and Mark Brundel confused.

Who's Mark Brundel? My google is coming up empty.

nvm:

[ame="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Blundell"]Mark Blundell - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia[/ame]

[rice_classic]

It's not looking good for Schumi.

http://www.theepochtimes.com/n3/5533...sidebar=morein

[White64Goat]

Gotta believe in miracles..................

[cfusionpm]

So Red Bull used their "filming days" to run more tests on their car in preparation for Melbourne. Everyone figured this was just extra testing instead of actually filming (despite Red Bull doing a LOT of filming promo stuff...). But it looks like ALL they got was Ricciardo walking on a green screen, Vettel's voice, and entirely computer generated cars. Looks like they couldn't even get them running well enough to shoot a damn commercial???

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFHmYFlbFn8"]Transforming Formula One: 2014 Rules Explained (Full Version) - YouTube[/ame]

[torqdork]

Originally Posted by rice_classic

It's not looking good for Schumi.

http://www.theepochtimes.com/n3/5533...sidebar=morein

I still can't deal with it. A world sporting champion struck down in the prime of his life in a completely unrelated recreational activity with his family is beyond unfair. Nothing is written, but Schumi's ordeal is devastating to imagine and an enormous setback not only to he and his family, but to his philanthropic foundation. A real shame, devastating and depressing at the same time given recent reports. Health is the great equalizer, eh? I've had a couple of friends pass recently from unexpected illness and accident so this hits home. I'm not all that religious but have prayed for him.

[Lischynski]

@torq


Such is life, my friend.

My favorite athlete, Josh Harding was diagnosed with MS, which took him out of the NHL , and he is literally the nicest guy in the league, and one of the hardest workers. Guys like that don't deserve this sort of thing.

[headlikeahole]

My biggest fear is that Schumi remains in some kind of middle ground, unable to live a fulfilling happy life. I can't speak for MS, but I know personally I rather pass away peacefully then live a severely limited life, and burden my family with caring for me. People can be happy living with physical or mental limitations, but for a guy who was world champion and lived an active life... it might be hard for him to see the silver lining.

It's just bad news all around

[rice_classic]

One report I read was a doctor talking about the length of the coma. At over 10 weeks now, if he does come out of this, if he survives it will be with significant deficiencies. So if he does survive, he will most likely live the rest of his years with severe brain damage and/or limited speech and motor skills.

It really doesn't appear as if there is a good outcome either way.