2008 F1 Season

[Marco-R34GTT]

I'm still confused about the sudden loss of form for Ferrari back in 05 and 06. It just seems they were so shit, was it really because renault was way faster or that ferrari was way off in lala land during these two years?

in 05 the Bridgestones were shocking...

still, I'm of the view F1 is less with only a single tyre supplier...

[m3gtr]

I'm still confused about the sudden loss of form for Ferrari back in 05 and 06. It just seems they were so shit, was it really because renault was way faster or that ferrari was way off in lala land during these two years?

There was no loss of form! Schumi had a chance for the title up until Japan when his engine blew - right to the wire kinda stuff. Renault only managed to win the constructors championship by 5 points.

05, yes, was a different story but obviously not what we came to expect from a multiple championship winning team with Schumi at the wheel... and not an entirely catastrophic season by any means.

[m3gtr]

in 05 the Bridgestones were shocking...

still, I'm of the view F1 is less with only a single tyre supplier...

Agree and agree.

Michelin was THE tire to have in 05. Its a shame they were muscled out of the sport but i think they jumped before they were pushed,...

Again..it was a case of the FIA, ferrari, Bridgestone bandwagon...how many times have we seen this??

[m3gtr]

maybe he's getting a few fast laps in, pit, do another shorter stint, then come in fuel up and do the long stint til the end. Is that how it works?

James, im not sure. Lets say Gonzo is super light...as in 10 laps lighter than the rest of the field. He comes in on lap 11 and short fuels for the second stint, keeping the option tyre. 10~ 15 more banzai laps and he pits again - takes the prime with more fuel. Longer 3rd stint on the harder tyre, 20 + laps... hmm

maybe its possible but hes going to have to strangle that Renault, and i mean throttle it good. Hes got the ability - lets see how he does.

Mark my words, watch Gonzo closely.

Edited April 27, 2008 by m3gtr

[Marco-R34GTT]

No no, youve got me wrong. Im talking modern day, Schumi, Brawn, Todt, Stepney era...

Think about how much Ferrari have kicked up a stink when their domination was taken off them. They have looked for anything and everything to thwart the success of their rivals and have aired their dirty laundry publicly on many occasions. They have acted like the spoilt kid throwing the toys out of the pram when they werent winning.

It made me sick to see them crying to the FIA over Renaults mass dampers because, plainly, Renault were kicking ferraris ass with technology they developed and Ferrari werent happy. They kick and scream, dampers are banned and theyre back in the hunt again! see what the odd tantrum can get you?

It got McLaren thrown out of the championship last year despite the fact both teams had protagonists involved.

So are you forgetting the outcry that occurred in F1 during Ferrari's 'golden era'..

Christ, many people were calling for Schumacher to retire firstly (ie: Lauda, uncle Ronny, Prost).. Secondly, how many regulations were put in place to make F1 more 'competitive' (ie: cut Ferrari's legs from under them??), lifting the front wing even higher (50mm raise in 2001 and another 50mm in 05/06 I think...), the stupid pitstop rules from 2005... How many different qualifying formulas did they try?? People were BLAMING Ferrari for their dominance... Which was mainly down to hard work, disciplined drivers, unity, continuity, modern team facilities and a solid team structure... Damn, how many times did even Ferrari/Schumacher falter prior to the 2000 breakthrough??? Shumacher at Jerez in 1997?? Schumacher stalling at Japan in 1998 just to name a couple... There was a which-hunt from 2002 onwards... The fact that Ferrari held onto it for a couple more years proved the team's resilience....

Listen, I agree with you on one point... I think the Massa blocking Alonso thing at Monza 2006 was absolute bollocks... However I can't think of another example were the FIA have been biased... I'm not condoning what they did at Monza either, I condemn it, it ruins the sport and I'm astounded that it even occurred...

Edited April 27, 2008 by Marco-R34GTT

[Roy]

btw, feck renaults mass damper. No one and i mean NO-ONE goes out and in the space of 2 weeks finds nearly 2 seconds. I dont care what they changed. There is no way on God's green earth that revised damper is worth 2 seconds.

Thats absolutely preposterous even if hes running light.

They were saying as far back as Aus GP that they had suspension upgrades to go on teh car. In Malaysia they said they had major aero upgrade in the wings and that was the first time i read that they has a new suspension system similar to what was previously banned.

Renault are pretty good at developing parts mid season. Far stronger then Williams, Toyota and RBR who often go walk about mid season as they are slow with new development

I dont think they have gained two seconds, but they have gained a solid 0.5 per second looking at the times they recently had in testing etc and in qualifying form it appears they may be able to dial a bit more out of the car. Plus running light in Spain means you can jump a few places on the grid. Did you see how close qualifying was? It was silly close and you woudl only have to go 3 or 4 laps shorter to get great track position

[Marco-R34GTT]

Renault are pretty good at developing parts mid season. Far stronger then Williams, Toyota and RBR who often go walk about mid season as they are slow with new development

Sounds like the Sauber of old (ie: Alesi/Herbert/Salo/Diniz/Heidfeld/Massa years)...

Knocking on the door for points in the first few races then they just died in the arse...

[benm]

The pre-race telecast should be starting soon on the 'streaming channel'

Well right now actually.

Edited April 27, 2008 by benm

[m3gtr]

HOLY SHIT!! live streaming is the feckin BOMB!

[dezz]

tis...means I can go to bed 1 hour earlier with a 4:30am wake up while still having watched the whole GP, and its live...

not to mention the pre race stuff can't even be compared with the drivel channel 10 churn out....

Hey Cam McConville, its Heikki, not Hiyeeki.

[m3gtr]

tis...means I can go to bed 1 hour earlier with a 4:30am wake up while still having watched the whole GP, and its live...

not to mention the pre race stuff can't even be compared with the drivel channel 10 churn out....

Hey Cam McConville, its Heikki, not Hiyeeki.

Am i the only one getting laggggg???

[dezz]

Am i the only one getting laggggg???

thought i was the only 1...if it continues like this I'll be stopping it right at the start of the race and watching it delayed at 10:50pm on the big screen

[dezz]

for me its the picture which is seriously laggy...audio is fine but the images are well behind what I'm hearing

[m3gtr]

likewise, the audio is fine but the picture is now 10 minutes behind...looks like were not the only ones trying to watch..

I dunno if i want to try and watch this...ill just download the race from the net tomoz or watch it on the plasma in a few hours...

guess its not as phat as i thought!

Edited April 27, 2008 by m3gtr

[dezz]

mines not 10 minutes behind, but enough to be unwatchable...maybe 15-20 seconds delay on the video for me, not to mention the video is like watching a slide show of images its that choppy, i'm getting ill just watching it

So looks like a 10:50pm race for me.

[benm]

Which will actually be about 11:15pm after Rove finishes and Ch10 add their crap to the beginning.

[dezz]

Which will actually be about 11:15pm after Rove finishes and Ch10 add their crap to the beginning.

I'll just have to go play some COD4 until then

[m3gtr]

feck that...its ruining the experience...im gonna go wash some clothes or something...

[Roy]

Only have 6 beers to get me through to end of the race. Maybe i need to down a bit more satay chicken to slow up on the piss front. I love being at my folks place, eat and drink like a king

[Whiplash]

geeez that McLaren is burried!