Official Formula 1 thread

[Azzudien]

400,000euro fine for brake ducts. Love F1 but the regulations are getting ridiculous.

[NoHaveMSG]

Originally Posted by Azzudien

400,000euro fine for brake ducts. Love F1 but the regulations are getting ridiculous.

It is less about the brake ducts, and more about the act of copying another competitors design. It is a stiff penalty, but you need to have them to discourage the act.

[Stephen W.]

Originally Posted by Azzudien

400,000euro fine for brake ducts. Love F1 but the regulations are getting ridiculous.

Ya think? In March the FIA viewed everything and said, in writing, that Racing Point was "completely compliant". Now they're not. What changed???

Originally Posted by NoHaveMSG

It is less about the brake ducts, and more about the act of copying another competitors design. It is a stiff penalty, but you need to have them to discourage the act.

But that's the crux of the matter. Racing Point did nothing wrong. They even have a letter from the FIA to that affect. Other teams have done far worse with no ill effects. So, why hit Racing Point so hard now? I say something is rotten and it sticks!

[NoHaveMSG]

Originally Posted by Stephen W.

Ya think? In March the FIA viewed everything and said, in writing, that Racing Point was "completely compliant". Now they're not. What changed???




But that's the crux of the matter. Racing Point did nothing wrong. They even have a letter from the FIA to that affect. Other teams have done far worse with no ill effects. So, why hit Racing Point so hard now? I say something is rotten and it sticks!

The ruling now is they are using Merc brake ducts Mclaren is wondering how much else of the car is Merc.

I am sure everyone is wondering again about fuel flow irregularities on last years Ferrari's, or their dual battery packs from 18'.

[The Red One]

Now Ferrari, McLaren and other teams may join in intention to appeal for a higher fine, ...finding a way to win off track?

Here’s a quite long explanation on what was involved:

https://www.racefans.net/2020/07/22/...ill-it-matter/

Racing point should just paint over the offending part Pink and claim its no longer Looks like those of Mercedes…

[NoHaveMSG]

Hulk through to Q3!!!!!!!

.........I'm going to just call that he is going to get taken out in first lap melee, as is his luck.

Edit: and he qualified 3rd

[strat61caster]

Originally Posted by The Red One

Racing point should just paint over the offending part Pink and claim its no longer Looks like those of Mercedes…

Looking like the competition is explicitly allowed for several components.

RP bought the design off Merc last year, they used the front ducts in '19 so they're legal this year but didn't use the rear ducts this year so they're not grandfathered in under the 'no copying these parts' rules in effect this year.

I get where the other teams are coming from, if the penalty is a slap on the wrist is there something like brake ducts or front wings that would be worth buying off Merc or Red Bull or Renault? Especially for next season?


In other news the midfield battle seems so much closer than it has ever been, pretty much no idea who's ending up in or out of the points aside from Merc.

My money is RP makes a bad strategy call and puts Lance and Hulk on top of each other mid/late race and Hulk gets crashed out because there's no way he finally gets a podium this weekend.

[Spuds]

Originally Posted by NoHaveMSG

Hulk through to Q3!!!!!!!

.........I'm going to just call that he is going to get taken out in first lap melee, as is his luck.

Edit: and he qualified 3rd

Why does RP employ Lance Stroll again?

[The Red One]

Originally Posted by Spuds

Why does RP employ Lance Stroll again?

[strat61caster]

Originally Posted by Spuds

Why does RP employ Lance Stroll again?

To be fair, he was a reasonable pick up for RP for 2019 as a young driver with potential, even without Lawrence helming the team imho. Lance is the last driver to put Williams on the podium and he did it his rookie year with Massa as a teammate only trailing by 3 points despite having 2 more dnfs. Ocon wasn't bringing a ton to the table, (not to mention all the times he and Sergio clattered into each other) an opinion backed up by his ok performance vs Ric so far this year, not many free agents for 2019 iirc and FI/RP has a preference for multi year contracts anyway.

Resigning him for next year vs Hulk or Vettel will definitely be nepotism though. Sergio has proven he's a better overall package last year and Hulk only took two weekends to blow past Lance.

Lance isn't awful, he almost snagged a podium last year at the German GP (Hulk put his car in the gravel the same turn Hami did iirc) but there are certainly quicker drivers available next year that would definitely be interested given RPs current pace.

[The Red One]

Max has been racing just behind the Master and the lessons were not lost today, Had RB lowered the recommended Pirelli pressures today? RB/Honda did good.

Hulk was quite the gracious competitor to let his team-mate take his position on first look. (Hulk had some bad blistering and shaking happening and had asked for the tire change) I thought that bad team politics got extreme. What a F1 comeback these past 2 weeks have been for him.

Charlie was shining again in a not so shiny car.

Seb… Just do an immediate divorce NOW. There is nothing between him and Ferrari and its getting to be hostile on the radio.

My sympathy for Bottas & Rick(tells Seb I can spin on the inside pass just like you do) as they were shinning bright before the race.

He should have done it without the mask, Looks like some cartel owner asking for compensation...

Pic, 2019 June : Max & a Pink Panther Perez fan overflow as bonus at his side.

[strat61caster]

Kind of an odd reaction from Lawrence imho, thin too skin as I didn't get the impression the other teams were out to prove they're dirty, they want to understand the ruling and how it could apply to other gray areas.

[The Red One]

Originally Posted by strat61caster

Kind of an odd reaction from Lawrence imho,

I’m a regular spectator at his privately (Fabulous) owed track (Le Circuit) Laurence has quite the Immediate reactions sometimes when something is not going his way! He personally races many of his exotic cars there and at one point stopped a race after he had gone off track a few years ago...

His reaction does not suprize!


People with too much loot... But for the better of F1 needs them.

[Martinius]

The whole fiasco over Tracing Point is the fact that the ruling confirmed the rear brake ducts were designed illegally, yet they are allowed to race them for the rest of the year with no further penalties. The FIA is incompetent, and they tried to make a ruling where everybody is happy, and we can see how well that turned out.