f1anatic Posted March 15, 2008 Posted March 15, 2008 Well qualifying done, looks like McLaren will not face that stiff of a competition from Ferrari. And BMW must have sandbagged during testing. What was that Kubica ? I love that boy and hope he does well. My man Massa...well...oh well. Those cars are insanely hard to keep on the island. I wonder how they will fare in the rain...probably another 1998 Belgium GP in the making. And finally the cars are an eyesore. U G L Y - the 2009 season cannot come soon enough with its new technologies (regen braking), new clean aero, wider cars and slicks.
KartRacerBoy Posted March 15, 2008 Posted March 15, 2008 Watched qualifying and stayed awake! The cars were great to watch. I was surprised at the huge effect loss of tuned engine braking had. Kubica's remarks at the post qual conference said it all. "My car is better under braking than last year. Which makes me think we were lacking in the engine braking dept" Can't wait to see the tire smoke at the start of the race from the standing start! When's the last time what happened on the run to the first corner was a mystery due to all the smoke? Mid-90s? The question about Kubica is his fuel level. Remember Ron Dennis after qualifying last year when he made the fool statement that BMW obviously had short fueled the first stint? Is he right this time? BMW hasn't shown one lap pace during testing. And although they were up front in 3rd practice, the word was Ferrari and McLaren were running with lots of fuel and couldn't get a fast lap at the end due to traffic. We'll see. I'd love to see BMW up there with the top 2 fighting for wins. Three team race! Better yet, I want Williams to be up front and on the podium this year. Patrick Head is GOD. What a no-nonsense bloke.
KartRacerBoy Posted March 15, 2008 Posted March 15, 2008 BTW, Vettel for STR was pretty awesome. Seabass got his ass kicked. I hoping it's a seat time thing as Vettel had the second half of last year to adapt to the car and Bourdais has had a matter of months with not much testing. We miss you Scott Speed. You were as good as Luizzi.
NHLEG Posted March 16, 2008 Posted March 16, 2008 So, who stayed up until this morning to watch the race live? What an awesome race! F1 is back! Yes, up front it was more like last year and follow-the-leader racing, but further back there was actually passing! So glad they got rid of TC and the supermodified ECU's (although I still question why McLaren was so involved with MSFT in it's research and production). The drivers actually have to really drive again rather than pointing the wheel (while turning a bunch of dials and pushing a bunch of buttons...check out Ferrari's new wheel here http://www.formula1.com/news/technical/2008/787/505.html ...WOW!) and pushing the gas to the floor. SPOILER/RESULT INFO TO FOLLOW: So if you plan to watch the replay on SPEED this afternoon, STOP READING! Both Ferrari's OUT and all Ferrari powered cars DNF! HA! I LOVE IT! I do NOT like Kimmi and never have! He got LUCKY last year! On a brighter note, it was nice to see a car other than Ferrari and McLaren on the podium. Kinda tired of just 2 dominant teams (although McLaren looks almost unbeatable this year...Lewis BLEW the field away!) And, although he was Ferrari powered as well, it was nice to see Bourdais do as well as he did until the left bank went POOF with 3 laps to go. On a WTF note, what does Honda need to do to get their act together? I know it's only the first race, but man...Only Q2, Button out on lap 1, and Rubens, Rubens, what a nightmare of screw-ups! I thought Ross Brawn was supposed to fix these screw-ups? The new Force India didn't fare much better either. Aren't they supposed to have these really deep pockets now? Bad luck first lap crash like Button and a hydraulic failure. I think we are going to see some of the mid-level teams like Renault (still hard to believe they are "mid-level" after their success with Alonso just a few years back), Williams Toyota, and Toyota, step it up this year. I'm not talking wins or anything like that, podiums are a real possibility with all the changes this year. Looking forward to a GREAT season!
PhilT Posted March 16, 2008 Posted March 16, 2008 Watched it from start to finish, great to see Hamilton dominating grom the start, hopefully this year he won't screw up again ! Double Award Winning Legacy GT Wagon
KartRacerBoy Posted March 16, 2008 Posted March 16, 2008 Just watched the race on tape this morning. Great results. Don't write off Ferrari. Raikkonen was really fast on soft tires for a very long first stint, almost saved by safety cars, but he was ultimately screwed by two of his own mistakes on pass attempts. Lucky to get a point due to Barrichello/Honda DSQ. Massa was nowhere today. Kimi had the luck of free fuel strategy, but he still had a ton of fuel on the soft tires in the first stint. I gave Massa credit for speed but not raciness last year. I may have to take that back. The two safety cars really screwed with the ultimate results, but I was glad to see Williams and Rosberg in P3. Great start for Rosberg and a steady race. Yay!!!!
KartRacerBoy Posted March 16, 2008 Posted March 16, 2008 BTW, I dislike Alonso after last year but he is still one hell of a racer. Good day for him. What the heck happened to Kovalainen to give Alonso back the P4 after Heikki passed Alonso?
panamajack Posted March 16, 2008 Posted March 16, 2008 where cn I watch the season online? I dont have the SPEED
KartRacerBoy Posted March 16, 2008 Posted March 16, 2008 Oh. NO TIRE SMOKE at the standing start. SHIT. Too little HP, too much grip, and clutches too good. Add 250-300 hp and let's see smoke!
PhilT Posted March 16, 2008 Posted March 16, 2008 where cn I watch the season online? I dont have the SPEED Try TSN Double Award Winning Legacy GT Wagon
f1anatic Posted March 16, 2008 Author Posted March 16, 2008 Well Kimmoid and Massa drove an abyssmal race. kimmoid looked at some point that he is the current tricycle champion (with supporting side wheels). Alonso - good racer, I dislike him. Hamilton, dislike him too but drove very well - as did Kovalainen till just about 1 lap to go. too much chaos. If 7 people finished the race in dry, the next wet race will be worse than Belgium 1998. I think electronics have a role in modern F1 cars. They looked like people roller blading NOT top of the art racing machines. I like Kubica - was pissed off when he got punted out by Nakajima. There's a reason no Japanese f1 driver ever made it to a race win - let alone a championship. Anyways, with the exception of Heidfeld, the people who finished the race (except DQed Rubes) are the future of F1.
NHLEG Posted March 16, 2008 Posted March 16, 2008 BTW, I dislike Alonso after last year but he is still one hell of a racer. Good day for him. What the heck happened to Kovalainen to give Alonso back the P4 after Heikki passed Alonso? After the pass on the straight, he went to rip off a tear-off on his visor and hit the "Pit Speed" button on his wheel by mistake. Now that's one I've never heard before!
Leonardo Posted March 17, 2008 Posted March 17, 2008 After the pass on the straight, he went to rip off a tear-off on his visor and hit the "Pit Speed" button on his wheel by mistake. Now that's one I've never heard before! A funny way to say he thought the race was over!
NHLEG Posted March 17, 2008 Posted March 17, 2008 A funny way to say he thought the race was over! That's what all the commentators were speculating as well, but if you watch the tape, he slowed down before the start/finish. Makes no sense. Here is Kovalainen's story. http://www.grandprix.com.au/default.aspx?s=newsdisplay&id=2139
rs6er Posted March 18, 2008 Posted March 18, 2008 That's what Mark Gene says happened to Hamilton last year in the Brazil GP last year when he inexplicably slowed. He says Hamilton hit the pit lane speed limiter button by accident.
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