2011 Formula 1 Grand Prix of Europe

[PeterJB]

Perhaps this is why Red Bull are playing down rumors of hiring Hamilton. They know that he would never want to play 2nd fiddle to Vettel, and realistically would probably outperform him anyway, as both drivers are ones that have their teams moulded around them, so having two in the same team would never work.

Kobayashi should go there.

 

[Ardius]

Pretty hard role to find really because ideally you don't want this second driver to be too fast otherwise you're team will just split points up between the two drivers (think Mclaren 2007) but you need someone who's sufficiently fast to be up the pointy end...

Jenson Button, Nico Rosberg, Mark Webber and maybe Massa are probably the best ones for that sort of role I guess.

You can find a happy medium - Jenson Button is proving this very well at the moment. Rubens was very good too, even if some rather famous events make it seem like he wasn't.

As far as a team is concerned, McLaren 2007 is perfect. McLaren won the WCC that year (though they were disqualified obviously)! Sure, the two drivers take points out of each and the WDC can become harder to attain, but I think most teams prefer having this "problem". It could be argued that the publicity and marketing of such a titanic and close fight is almost as great as a WDC, so its almost worth it. People still talk about that year today..ironically Raikkonen's season that year is mostly forgotten, only that he won the WDC one time.

1988 McLaren anyone? Everyone won that year..except for the fans I guess who were allowed only 1 win from any other team than McLaren.

Whether or not Red Bull would like anyone to challenge Vettel in their team is a problem..but the point is Webber is the opposite problem.

 

[BlacqueJacques]

I think instead of criticizing/dumping on Webber; how about all those other monied teams that can't catch Vettel?

I cheer for Webber because he has to be 2nd driver and yet everyone expects him to beat Vettel

I do agree Webber may be struggling coming to grips (pun intended) with the Pirelli's though.

 

[Ardius]

Its not that he needs to beat Vettel, but he needs to be doing far better than he has recently. I think most people expect him to run a weekend like Valencia - only a few tenths off Vettel all weekend and able to run near his pace enough to fight off the top cars of other teams.
If he can't do this consistently enough, he doesn't deserve the seat anymore and Red Bull are well within their rights to look for better.

This is the same for all the teams really. If they end up with a vastly weaker teammate who is not pulling his weight in results, then why keep him on the team? This is why Liuzzi got dumped by Force India, its why Massa is constantly under question and its why McLaren are so happy with Button. Some teams are more lenient than others, as of recent Renault and Toro Rosso have been particularly ruthless with their drivers. Then there are some teams like Williams who will fire WDC drivers .

 

[Peter.]

The main reason why Vettel is so far ahead in the championship is because, while he has been sailing from win to win, he has had no consistent challenger for the title. Hamilton was consistently challenging him at first, but a string of bad races put him out of it, then Button won at Canada, but he has also failed to be a consistent challenger. Now we have Alonso who looks to be the closest person to Vettel right now. We'll have to wait and see if he can keep a consistent challenge to Vettel.

 

[SaberFire]

Seriously, why are people saying things like "If Vettel wins again, it's going to be soooo boring" and "I won't bother watching if Vettel etc.,".
The drivers championship is about finding the best driver. The constructors championship is about finding the best car.
They've found each other, and they're both doing a damn fine job. So why all the hate?

And as far as Webber goes, I don't buy the fact that Red Bull supposedly treat its drivers equally. I don't think I've ever heard one nice thing said about Mark Webber from Helmut Marko, and I'm pretty sure it's within Red Bull's interest to push SV more into the spotlight. He's young, fast and popular. Compared to Webber, who I just can't see adorning a 4-pack of Red Bull any time soon.

And on another note, I just don't think Webber has the motivation this year.

 

[Grayfox]

including a new track in India

Or the return of a classic, Brazil.

 

[F1 fan]

Or the return of a classic, Brazil.

Huh? What are you talking about?

 

[Grayfox]

Huh? What are you talking about?

http://www.formula1.com/races/in_detail/brazil_845/

I remember this track from Formula 1(PSone) game.

 

[Barra333]

http://www.formula1.com/races/in_detail/brazil_845/

I remember this track from Formula 1(PSone) game.

And each of the last 20 F1 seasons

 

[Grayfox]

Last one i remember seeing was in 07.

I may have missed the last 3 races on it.

 

[Barra333]

Last one i remember seeing was in 07.

I may have missed the last 3 races on it.

I think you may have slept through them. They do start at 4am Aussie time

 

[F1 fan]

Last one i remember seeing was in 07.

I may have missed the last 3 races on it.

So you missed Hamilton's last lap Championship win, Button and Brawn Gp's championship wins and Hulkenberg's pole.

 

[Ardius]

Wow, how can you miss a whole GP weekend? And not notice the calendar each year?

Well at least you have 3 excellent races to catch up on! 👍 Well, 2010 wasn't that great, but 2008 and 2009 were corkers.

 

[Grayfox]

Well either missed or i don't remember(i have a bad memory).

Wow, how can you miss a whole GP weekend? And not notice the calendar each year?

Australian TV cares little about F1, they care more about the foozball, and if aired it would have been late and the race itself would air(no Practice or Quili sessions)

I only started to get good ONE HD reception this year.

 

[sems4arsenal]

Another Topic to talk about ...Massa's awesome Strategy I mean C'mon Ferrari.

 

[granturismite]

Well either missed or i don't remember(i have a bad memory).



Australian TV cares little about F1, they care more about the foozball, and if aired it would have been late and the race itself would air(no Practice or Quili sessions)

I only started to get good ONE HD reception this year.

I'm on Australian EST, and the Brazilian and Canadian rounds are awful for us. the start at 3am. I accidently slept through Brazil 09, and 08 was recorded because I had a HSC exam the next day. all I could think of was "What happen in the race?" It was excruciating

 

[RTSolvalou]

I'd like to see a Barrichello-Webber swap.

I think Perez is most likely headed for Ferrari. (not because Sauber is ferrari powered).
Kobayashi for McLaren when the time comes.

History has however shown that these things may never happen, if the top teams are happy with their drivers, then there's nothing anyone can do about it, some talented people are going to miss out on the podium for their whole F1 career.

 

[aarror]

I'm on Australian EST, and the Brazilian and Canadian rounds are awful for us. the start at 3am.

Pah, here on the west coast of Canada all the European rounds are at 5am, and the Aussie/Asian rounds are either 1am or 2am. Only Brasil and Canada are at reasonable hours. (8am and 10am respectively). For the season finale in Abu Dhabi last year I had to get up at 5am to watch it, and I had 3 lacrosse games later that day, then I had to drive 2 hours home. (If you don't know what lacrosse is, look up NLL on youtube).

 

[Touring Mars]

Seriously, why are people saying things like "If Vettel wins again, it's going to be soooo boring" and "I won't bother watching if Vettel etc.,".
The drivers championship is about finding the best driver. The constructors championship is about finding the best car.
They've found each other, and they're both doing a damn fine job. So why all the hate?

And as far as Webber goes, I don't buy the fact that Red Bull supposedly treat its drivers equally. I don't think I've ever heard one nice thing said about Mark Webber from Helmut Marko, and I'm pretty sure it's within Red Bull's interest to push SV more into the spotlight. He's young, fast and popular. Compared to Webber, who I just can't see adorning a 4-pack of Red Bull any time soon.

And on another note, I just don't think Webber has the motivation this year.

I think we have been spoiled/lucky in recent years insomuch as the title race has been very close and has only been decided in the last race (or two). Few people want the title being decided too early, but F1 has and always will have periods where one exceptional driver/car combo stands out above the rest... closer championship fights are arguably more enjoyable and more memorable for most... although clearly not memorable enough for everyone (see above For the record, the only other person I know who doesn't remember Brazil 2008 is my nephew. But he's 3.)

 

[Pezzarinho17]

I think we have been spoiled/lucky in recent years insomuch as the title race has been very close and has only been decided in the last race (or two). Few people want the title being decided too early, but F1 has and always will have periods where one exceptional driver/car combo stands out above the rest...

I think this is a very valid point as to why a lot of people didn't enjoy the race last weekend. The races this year have completely spoilt us with all the action and drama. I wouldn't put Europe '11 as right at the opposite scale, but certainly not as high on the action as has been seen so far this season. If that race had been in the middle of any other championship over the last 10 years though it would have stood out as a highlight with battles throughout the field.

Every season will have races that don't match the others, so people look at the effect it had on the championship instead. With the result just extending Vettel's lead, that doesn't look too dramatic either and he is walking it so far. People say how F1 championships have been close and exciting since 2007, and yet I couldn't pick out 1 exceptional race from those years in comparison to what we have seen so far in 2011. Europe '11 would have fit in nicely!

 

[RTSolvalou]

I think some people are confused about the ban for the next race (unless they changed the policy).
They are banning the ECU programming that keeps the hot exhaust gas going at a fast rate when the car is not accelerating or maintaining speed (pretty much), thus they are wanting to stop cars from burning fuel when they're in a position where they should be closer to idling.
They are not banning the blown exhaust/blown floor, teams are allowed to blow the exhaust gas pretty much anywhere they want it to go.

This will affect all teams that use this constant-ish exhaust rate ECU mapping the same, and probably drag them back a bit closer to the teams that weren't using it, although the overall pecking order probably won't change, they've been saying it will hurt Renault in particular, but I think slightly the opposite, perhaps the mid set exhaust will be more of an advantage now.

 

[PeterJB]

What teams don't use it?

 

[prisonermonkeys]

What teams don't use it?

Virgin, Williams, Hispania, Toro Rosso and Sauber.

 

[livemusic]

...For the record, the only other person I know who doesn't remember Brazil 2008 is my nephew. But he's 3.)

And Massa's father wishes he could forget:

 

[Ardius]

What teams don't use it?

Virgin, Williams, Hispania, Toro Rosso and Sauber.

Technically Lotus too if we are talking about teams/cars that didn't start the season with it or have unrefined designs. I think its fair to assume they can more easily revert their design or cope without "off throttle".

 

[BlacqueJacques]

Pah, here on the west coast of Canada all the European rounds are at 5am, and the Aussie/Asian rounds are either 1am or 2am. Only Brasil and Canada are at reasonable hours. (8am and 10am respectively). For the season finale in Abu Dhabi last year I had to get up at 5am to watch it, and I had 3 lacrosse games later that day, then I had to drive 2 hours home. (If you don't know what lacrosse is, look up NLL on youtube).

There are a couple of races in Asia that are on late evening/early morning that aren't too bad-better than those 5 a.m. starts here on Vancouver Island for the European races-but I still get up early; sometimes even for qulaifying on Saturday.

Hope to be in Montreal in person next year; and maybe include the U.S. grand prix!

 

[Alex.]

Another Topic to talk about ...Massa's awesome Strategy I mean C'mon Ferrari.

Almost seems like they make sure he has no chance of beating Alonso

 

[sems4arsenal]

Almost seems like they make sure he has no chance of beating Alonso

Exactly ,Why don't they just give him a chance (They only do when ALonso is out of the race).Yes Felipe isn't as good as Alonso atleast not this year but this will not help him improve now will it

 

[Peter.]

Almost seems like they make sure he has no chance of beating Alonso

As far as I know, he got held up in the pits with a pretty bad pitstop. Besides, he really wasn't going to beat Alonso anyway.