Formula 1 2015 Discussion

OGG said:
Crashtor.

Fuck that guy. The FIA needs to step in. He is unfit to race F1. Super License or not, he is eventually going to cause the next fatality. It is unacceptable for him to continue to endanger himself and the other drivers. Enough already. If Lotus can't afford to field a team without his sponsorship money, then they have no business continuing in the sport either. Tough shit, deal with it or GTFO.
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It's looking more and more like Renault will buy Lotus, so maybe they won't need his money and he will be relegated to racing shopping carts at the mall where he belongs.
 
Yeah, poor Kimi. His future at Ferrari was already hanging by the thinnest of threads. He just can't catch a break. That race may have sealed his fate.
 
And today, Ferrari apparently stated that Kimi will keep his seat in 2016.

So then what about Bottas?
 
OGG said:
And today, Ferrari apparently stated that Kimi will keep his seat in 2016.

So then what about Bottas?
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Three car teams? They talked about it before this season and with some of the other teams in trouble I could see F1 doing it to fill out the field.

To be honest, I would rather watch relatively competitive three car teams race than the back markers fill the grid.
 
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Hmm maybe this is the problem with F1 and only a few teams doing well. Perhaps there should be a cap :shrug:...then again it isn't working out that well for McLaren Honda but that's a big delta from the top 4 to the rest of the pack

The full breakdown is below - the figures in brackets show income from sponsors, then partners and then from TV/FOM...
F1 2015 team budgets:

1. Red Bull Racing (€266m + €35.7m + €167m) = €468.7m
2. Mercedes (€122m + €212.4m + €133m) = €467.4m
3. McLaren Honda (€144.5m + €216.5m + €104m) = €465m
4. Ferrari (€208.5m + €34.5m + €175m) = €418m
5. Williams (€52.5m + €22.9m + €111m) = €186.4m
6. Lotus (€69.5m + €13.6m + €56m) = €139.1m
7. Toro Rosso (€68m + €9.45m + €60m) = €137.45m
8. Force India (€49.5m + €12.2m + €68m) = €129.7m
9. Sauber (€44m + €9.25m + €50m) = €103.25m
10. Manor (€0.5m + €32.5m + €50m) = €83m
 
The only way there will be a cap is if the Strategy Group votes unanimously to approve it, and they're the ones who would suffer most if was approved. They've repeatedly voted it down, so I don't think that's going to happen.
 
Yeah I know it won't happen but it almost seems that if it doesn't there may only be 3 or 4 teams that can afford it and have a chance to win...eventually that seems to be not good for the sport
 
It's not good for the sport, but F1 is not a sport. It's a business, and the prime objective of any business is maximizing short-term profit. They'll probably end up maximizing themselves out of existence.
 
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My favorite race of the year is coming up this weekend - The Grand Prix of Belgium at Spa Francorchamps. With one of the most breathtaking corner complexes in motorsport, Eau Rouge and Radillon it is truly a drivers track and it is the longest circuit on the Formula 1 calender. The high speed nature of the circuit and the constantly changing weather provide for some of the most entertaining races of the season.

Honda is bringing updates to its power unit this weekend and they claim that they should have around the same HP output as Ferrari at least on the ICE side of things (they are still awfully quiet about ERS though), as a result both McLaren drivers will be on their 7th engine of the season and thus will take grid penalties (such a stupid rule).

Ferrari has also updated their power unit too, so it will be interesting to see how much closer they are to Mercedes. And now that the start procedure has been put into the drivers hands only with no assistance from the pit wall the start if the race could get very interesting.
SpaFrancorchamps-circuit%20Fr.jpg

Spa-Francorchamps_overview.jpg

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It hasn't been the same since F1 coverage moved from FoxSports over to NBCSports and lost Bob Varsha. Half of the fun of watching that race was hearing him endlessly profess his love for the circuit and using the exceptionally Belgian pronunciation every time...

Spah Frankkorshahm
 
That Eau Rouge-Raidillon corner complex is absolutely epic. You go into Eau Rouge basically flat out, speed wise, hoping for the max downforce to keep you on the track, then you have to aim for the apex of Raidillon without being able to see over the crest of the hill. Staying on the circuit there is a mix of aerodynamics, luck, and driver skill. I remember reading or hearing that Eau Rouge and Raidillon killed engines in the old days, with the bottoming out at the bottom of Eau Rouge sometimes twisting crankshafts as the oil level shoots past the windage tray, followed by Raidillon starving the upper part of the motor for oil. Probably not a thing anymore, but it sure sounds like it could be a real thing in the old days.

For those of you who don't follow F1, here is a shot of Fernando Alonso getting Eau Rouge-Raidillon a little wrong, but managing to save things. It is a in car cam, so you get some idea of how blind that corner really is once you shoot up the hill. Remember you can see more than the driver in this clip, as you can see the top of his head.

TURN DOWN THE AUDIO....

 
Oh, and the uphill out of Eau Rouge into Raidillon is reported to be an 18-19% grade, so the damn thing is steeper than it looks.
 
Speaking of Kimi, he signed for 2016 with Ferrari, at least according to BBC Sports (link below). This should start off some more silly season madness, as his departure from Ferrari was supposed to be an opening for Bottas, who would vacate a Williams seat for any number of drivers.

http://www.bbc.com/sport/0/formula1/33993734
 
OGG said:
It hasn't been the same since F1 coverage moved from FoxSports over to NBCSports and lost Bob Varsha. Half of the fun of watching that race was hearing him endlessly profess his love for the circuit and using the exceptionally Belgian pronunciation every time...

Spah Frankkorshahm
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At least they kept Hobbs and Matchett. Those guys are hilarious, especially Matchett.

Spa is awesome! One of my favorite tracks, too. It's a lot of fun to (sim)drive, and the '67 version is even more fun.
 
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Flatspotter said:
At least they kept Hobbs and Matchett. Those guys are hilarious, especially Matchett.

Spa is awesome! One of my favorite tracks, too. It's a lot of fun to (sim)drive, and the '67 version is even more fun.
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Absolutely!

The current batch of commentators that NBCSN has covering F1 are fantastic all the way around.

Hobbs is almost certainly drunk as a skunk during each telecast. That, or he's got some dain bramage.

I still wish they had been able to sway Varsha over to their network though.
 
Varsha>>>Diffey.

I prefer the classic lineup of Varsha, Hobbs, and Matchett...with Will Buxton on the pit lane. That group just seems to have a real chemistry that really adds to the race coverage. I could listen to Matchett and Hobbs crack very dry jokes all day long, with Varsha as the straight man.
 
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