F1 specific (chit chat thread)

[forestfan]

... yet don’t think they’ve even had a driver on the grid since Massa…

Not a full time driver, but did have Pietro Fittipaldi covering for Grosjean after his Bahrain crash a couple of years back

It does help to be called Fittipaldi, Senna or Piquet… I see there’s another Fittipaldi grandson(?) in F2, along with Drugovich, who sounds more like a doped up Russian

He's wining the F2 series at the moment, from Kiwi Liam Lawson, who was pretty good in DTM.

Yeah, Druggie that is as opposed to Fittipaldi XVIII… don’t know how close he is to an F1 opportunity. I wonder where the surname comes from, presumably some Eastern European ancestry?

[bluenosey]

... yet don’t think they’ve even had a driver on the grid since Massa…

Not a full time driver, but did have Pietro Fittipaldi covering for Grosjean after his Bahrain crash a couple of years back

It does help to be called Fittipaldi, Senna or Piquet… I see there’s another Fittipaldi grandson(?) in F2, along with Drugovich, who sounds more like a doped up Russian

He's wining the F2 series at the moment, from Kiwi Liam Lawson, who was pretty good in DTM.

Yeah, Druggie that is as opposed to Fittipaldi XVIII… don’t know how close he is to an F1 opportunity. I wonder where the surname comes from, presumably some Eastern European ancestry?

Yeah, it sounds like he could have played for Yugoslavia in the 70s or 80s. Will have to Google....

The late Carlos Reutemann was Argentinian but had German ancestry.

[Mystery]

I'll boldly predict nobody in this year's F2 series is going to make a career of F1. Someone might get there (a la Jolyon Palmer) but they are all heading for sportscar racing at best.

[forestfan]

I'll boldly predict nobody in this year's F2 series is going to make a career of F1. Someone might get there (a la Jolyon Palmer) but they are all heading for sportscar racing at best.

Which ones have big sponsorship money though?

How do you identify a future star in one of the feeder series - is it raw pace, consistency, outperforming team-mate, etc.?

[murf]

Not raw pace. Mick Schumacher didn't get a single pole position when he won the title.

Mind you I don't rate him. Rarely outshone Mazepin who we assume is rubbish and bought his place and now Magnussen (average F1 driver at best) is showing him up with no testing.

[forestfan]

Raw race pace is different to qualifying pace, as we used to see with “Trulli trains” etc…

F2/GP2 seems to have a mixed record in producing stars, obviously Hamilton came through that route as champion and Leclerc looks set to become another, but many other names on the honours list have had forgettable or non-existent F1 careers. Also it appears a F2 champion cannot defend their title which seems a strange rule given the small number of open F1 seats?

[Mystery]

I'll boldly predict nobody in this year's F2 series is going to make a career of F1. Someone might get there (a la Jolyon Palmer) but they are all heading for sportscar racing at best.

Which ones have big sponsorship money though?

How do you identify a future star in one of the feeder series - is it raw pace, consistency, outperforming team-mate, etc.?

Mainly all of those really, but in F2 and F3 these days you want to filter out the reverse grid races mentally. It's the performance in the main race where the grid is decided by qualifying where people really pay attention. The rest is just window dressing for the show.

[forestfan]

Zhou incredibly lucky to escape relatively unscathed from that crash. Hitting the catch fencing floor first after vaulting the tyres was a touch of fortune. Wasn’t this the issue with “ground effect” 40 years ago, cars having a habit of going airborne when they touched?

[Bob Newhart]

Was there some kind of problem with those climate change looneys?

[forestfan]

Sounds like there were people on the track at some point, don’t think it had any direct effect on what happened.

[forestfan]

Sainz waits 150 races for a win… and then has to receive the trophy from Nadine Dorries

[Lister]

Sounds like there were people on the track at some point, don’t think it had any direct effect on what happened.

Just heard on Ted's notebook the protesters were trying to get publicity on a major scale, god knows what might have happened if not for the red flag.

[forestfan]

I thought Russell was going to do a David Purley for a moment, fortunately Zhou’s car didn’t catch fire unlike Grosjean a couple of years ago.

[bluenosey]

So, after being nagged by one of my mates, I took the plunge last year and bought a 3 day general admission pass. I think the GP alone was £179 so £249 for 3 days seemed good value, especially after all the lockdowns. Time to do these things whilst you can. So I thought I would share my experience with the great and good of FISO - warning, if you are not interested, you will get bored

We decided to drive each day, arriving nice and early to beat the traffic. We each had a roaming seat for the Friday which meant we positioned ourselves on the pit straight, pretty much opposite the Alfa Romeo and Haas pits. First untimed session was a washout but I was taken aback by the number of spectators for a Friday. I think the gate was 106,000. Hardly any cars ventured out as the heavens opened but by the time of the second untimed practice, the circuit had dried out. The last time I went was 2004. Eddie Jordan's last year, BARs with the Takuma Sato fan club and Columbians supporting Juan Pable Montoya. No Brits really in contention, although Jenson was on the up and finished 4th. I had also been in 85 (Keke's 160 mph lap in quali), 92 (Mansell mania), 96 and 97 (both Jacques Villeneuve wins)

The current cars are immense through Maggotss/Becketts, so much grip. Copse is also a sight to behold. One thing that was noticebale or audible, the F1 cars are now quieter than the F3 cars, and the F2 cars make a sort of hybrid whoosh alongside the turbo popping. We finally found our place for qualifying - the Luffield Complex, which has a sort of terracing providing elevation and if you position yourslves in the sweet spot, you see the exit of the Wellington straight (a DRS zone) and also the accleration up through Woodcote. Also there's a little bit of a natural ampitheatre. So, some 22,000 steps later, I'd got my bearings. I ended purchasing a Hesketh racing cap - can't beat retro - a litle bit different from the masses. In fact in terms of merchandise, the teams must have made a killing. Now, F1 clothes have always been expensive, but £50 for a baseball cap seems extortionate. Didn't put 1000's off mind. Aston Martin were very popular. Lots of green, even if there cars were at the back of the grid. So Friday was a nice "sighting day", although after being directed to the wrong car park, I ended up with a parking fine. Grrr. However, it did turn out that the fine was the same cost thereabouts of the car park, so no damage was really done, although this meant a swift change of parking plan for Saturday/Sunday.

Saturday I got there for 8am. Straight to Luffield. Fold up chairs parked and set for the day. Now, apart from the day before I had never seen an F1 car in the rain, really pushing it. With 15 minutes to go, again the heavens opened so that meant wet qualifying. At which point so many brollys went up I could see eff all ! Luckily the rain stopped and the crowrd was then treated to an exhibition of driving skill. Now, in the dry, it was my belief that Max had about 0.3 secs on the Ferraris. The Mercs had made up ground but not quite there yet. As it was, with about 5 mins to go, it started to rain heavier and Sainz scored a popular pole position (especially with the ladies). The grid was sort of how you would expect, Russell a bit lower but Lando a class act. A great performance from Latifi, disappointing for the Haas cars but the one driver really underperforming is Ricciardo. Miles behind Lando. I think Daniel is a top, top bloke but I would be surpised it he was in F1 next year. After qualifying we were treated to an F2 and F3 race. Both were immense with a drying line. Jack Doohan (son of Moto GP legend Mick) won the F2 sprint race. Isaac Hadjar winning the F3 race. Some great overtakes out of Wellington into Brooklands/Luffield. We were also treated to a few historic F1 cars. I was particularly pleased to see Alan Jones's 1981 Williams, with the British Leyland livery. which my Dad worked for at the time. It broke down the following lap after I had bigged up the livery Anyway, a swift getaway followed from Dadford Road capsite. Left at 6.30pm. Back fro 7.30 pm. Job done.

Early start Sunday. Left at 6am, got there about 7am. Place heaving already . Went to park the chairs only to find the enclosure was General Admission "plus". We didn't have the plus . So, lesson learned, chairs parked inside bend for Wellington straight, one from the front. Had a great view, but couldn't see as much of the track. That didn't matter when the F3 boys arrived in a swarm of noise. At least 2 went off and again, it was an incredible spectacle and some fella named Leclerc won. No, not Charles but younger brother Arthur, much to the delight of the three Alpha Tauri clad Frenchman in front of me. The F2 race seemed a bit more restrained, only for me to find out afterrwards about the Nissany incident. Putting it mildy, he would have died 3 years ago. The halo saved his life. But I didn't know this at the time as American Logan Sergeant won. Unusal hearing the stars and stripes at a GP event. Wonder if he's a future Mclaren driver with GP becoming a bit more targeted towards the American market ? Anyway, that wet the whistle nicely for the F1 race. I had no idea what was to follow.

I was positioned close to a TV at the start and had said and bored everyone to tears around me that Carlos had to get the jump on Max to make a race of it. He didn't...but seconds later we saw a car skidding off to the right of the screen and a bit of carnage. Ocon's car came limping round, tyre flapping off the rim. We saw Alex Albon spun into the barrier and massive groans with George Russell's car stationary at an angle. Then nothing and then word filtered back that there had been a car upside down. No one could access their internet. Then someone got in and said "Zhou is stuck outside" and I'm like, eh ? Then someone said the car had gone over the tyres, and my web page loaded and it also mentioned a track invasion. Talk about not knowing. Nothing over the tannoy, which had defaulted to a DJ. Then news broke Zhou was out and OK, to massive appluase. The big screen then showed the replay to a collective gasp. I've seen it several times since and it was such a freak accident. The car skittling upside down meant there was no purchase in the gravel trap and then the horrfiic site of the car "leaping" the tyre wall, clattering the wire fence and landing wedged sideways. Jeez, that was scary. Thank god he was OK. Halo did it's job again and eventually, we had countdown to the restart amid much anticipation.

Sainz did just enough this time and defended stoically to hold off Max. Hurrah. Then we had the sight of two Ferraris and Red Bull more or less four abreast. Charles went down the insisd of Sergio, breaking the RB's wing and his own. Lando got round Lewis for 5th as the cars slowly settled down a bit. Max then started to close on Carlos and then, arrgh, Sainz ran wide, letting the Red Bull in. That's it, I thought but a few laps later, the two Alpha Tauris tangled and unbeknown to us, Max picked up some debris dmaging his floor and Carlos retook the lead. Ferrai fans went nuts. And then Lewis, after passing Lando, started to close in on the two Feraris and the crowd could sense a British victory. Now, I said Ferrari should switch the cars round at the time. Clearly Leclerc was faster but instead the team pitted Carlos whilst Lewis continued to close, sending the crowd into a frenzy. Eventually, Charles pitted and ended up again, behind his team mate. Lewis eventually pitted but by now Perez had made rapid progress through the field unlike Max, who was passed by Vettel of all people to massive cheers from the crowd (wouldn't have happened 5 years ago I thought ). Eventually, Charles got by Carlos, albeit it took a long time and then that was that, more or less, or so I thought. Then you get one of those moments that changes everything. Esteban Ocon's Alpine trundled round sounding very rough and the didn't quite make it to a gap where it could be towed away. Cue the safefy car. Clouds started to gather overhead. How would this play out ? So Charles and Lewis pitted. Well, that's what I thought but in fact the Scuderia pitted Carlos and left Charles out. The cars all nose to tail then the safety cars pulled in.....the next few laps were utterly breathtaking.

That battle between all the top runners was literally unbelievable. I still can't get my breath. First Sainz got Leclerc and instantly Perez was all over Hamilton. Sergio got by Lewis and then tried to get by Charles, they both went wide and Lewis went past both. The crowd went nuts until the next section, where the order was reversed !!! Literally, there were people in Red Bull, Ferrari and Mercedes tops going bat shit crazy, jumping up and down, yelling, urging their team or driver on. So Perez went by and pulled away. Carlos had by now checked out. Lewis then passed Charles and then it was my turn to almost wet myself when Charles went round the outside of Lewis at Copse. Yes, the outside of Copse. "Balls of steel" I said a bit too loud and it was one of the best and bravest moves I've ever seen. Up there with Mansell round the outside of Berger at Mexico or Webber taking Alonso through Eau Rouge. Charles you are the man . Eventually Lewis got through and ended a Mansell esque charge drive 3rd, Perez an amazing 2nd from nowhere and finally, a win for Carlos Sainz, the housewives favourite, to massive applause. Even when that was done we had Schuey Jnr giving Max a hard time for 7th and just missing out. Wow, what a race. What a day. That is easily the best British GP I have seen and must be one of the best of all time. It concluded a great 3 days.

The only problem was leaving the circuit. 142,000 in small town in Northamptonshire doesn't work. Got back to the car at 6.30pm. Left the car park at 9.45pm. That wasn't fun but it didn't take the shine of a memorable weekend

Since then I've watched the race on TV. Really, Leclerc should have won. And that manoevre on Hamilton was the dogs tits. That's 2 GP wins Ferrari have cost him. But, my word, what a race

[Mystery]

Nice report Bluenosey. My wife and I resolved to do the GP for the first time next year, hopefully staying at the hotel if it's open. We've been for various reasons in the past - running races, single seater ride, world sportscars, the Experience (highly recommended btw) but not for the GP. It was a great race and for a change a crash like that at the start gets a bit overshadowed by the actual racing.

[murf]

We did the GP like that every year when I was a kid, in a caravan near the circuit. Carried on into my teens with my brother but not been back since bar a day trip to the one off at Donington.

Back in the day it was Brands Hatch on alternate years and that was far, far better than the bland airfield that is Silverstone. I've spectated and/or marshalled at a lot of circuits and Silverstone was my least favourite by miles. Facilities there might be better now but the track changes are rubbish!

Zhou was a lucky boy, the timing of the pitch into the air and over the barrier could not have been any better. Surprised the rollover bar disintegrated, maybe they aren't as strong these days as the halo does the job for it.....

[forestfan]

About time we resurrected the F1 predictions game?

[murf]

About time we resurrected the F1 predictions game?

Yep, I still play the Superbru game but it isn't the same.

Been doing my predictions in one game or another since only 6 drivers scored points - 'Pick 6' it was back then. Think I may even have used that concept to start the first FISO picking game back in the day.

Have never like any Fantasy F1 games so only predictions have worked for me.

[forestfan]

About time we resurrected the F1 predictions game?

Yep, I still play the Superbru game but it isn't the same.

Been doing my predictions in one game or another since only 6 drivers scored points - 'Pick 6' it was back then. Think I may even have used that concept to start the first FISO picking game back in the day.

Have never like any Fantasy F1 games so only predictions have worked for me.

I did a work Fantasy F1 game in about 2004… remember having to pick a tyre manufacturer so that is going back a bit! With only two drivers per team and 10 teams it’s always a bit limited though, especially when it becomes obvious which ones you need or nobody would touch with a bargepole.

[Ralfbergs]

To make it topical - started watching F1 this year after like 20 years break when I watched it with father in childhood (and considered only few aspects of it interesting). Don't know what led me to it, but the intriguing end of last years f1 plus somehow drew my attention, plus I recently tore my ACL, so got more time on my hands - and suddenly F1 seems really interesting to me and fun. Maybe some aspects of it was also watching Drive to survive previous season (even though I watched first races of this season before watching it), but I have to say I really was mistaken about it being as boring as I remember it (yes, some races can be, but overall, this year it has been really interesting). So therefore, for FISOers here who also dabble in FPL - I made a sidegame, if any are interested, feel free to register - its for fun and basically doesn't require from you much besides registering:

viewtopic.php?p=3623346#p3623346

[Ralfbergs]

About time we resurrected the F1 predictions game?

Yep, I still play the Superbru game but it isn't the same.

Been doing my predictions in one game or another since only 6 drivers scored points - 'Pick 6' it was back then. Think I may even have used that concept to start the first FISO picking game back in the day.

Have never like any Fantasy F1 games so only predictions have worked for me.

I play F1 fantasy season game on Fanteam. Its ok if you get your team right from the start, otherwise I imagine it gets boring fast. But they do have weekly F1 games too. Post above though is about FPL playing, not actual Formula One, but maybe those who like it, might also like to combine such style of scoring and topicality for FPL playing.

[forestfan]

I’m not sure if the “golden age” ever really existed, there’s always been some boring races and processional seasons in terms of the title. I think too many finishers and not enough close racing has been the biggest issue in more recent years, and they seem to have addressed the second one of those with recent changes.

[Malrom]

my experience in F1 goes back to the 70's and 80's!

Can't remember when I went to a Formula1 race last.
Went a lot to Hockenheim with a bus, it's not very far from Switzerland.
I also saw races in Zandvoort and was sitting in the VIP stand, all in stone and the numbers written with chalk.
The same year (1977) I travelled to Zolder (Belgium), we were allowed to walk through the pits and I met my favorite driver Jody Scheckter, all this for a minimum fee and no security.
Completely unbelievable these days. Not sure if it was the same year, but one year I went to Monza, also a very short trip from Switzerland. Not really a highlight in my Formual1 "career".
Cars raced by and I saw them not even half a second

Those were the days

I still follow Formula1 today, but not watching all the races, at least not from the start to the finish.

[bluenosey]

Some really appalling behaviour by a minority of the the so called Orange Army at Spielberg. Anyone should be able to go to a GP. The nobheads that lifted up the skirt of the lady wearing a Hamilton top ought to be jailed. I hope we're not going to get this at most European GP and if Ferrari mount a charge, I can see there being issues at Monza.

[forestfan]

Some really appalling behaviour by a minority of the the so called Orange Army at Spielberg. Anyone should be able to go to a GP. The nobheads that lifted up the skirt of the lady wearing a Hamilton top ought to be jailed. I hope we're not going to get this at most European GP and if Ferrari mount a charge, I can see there being issues at Monza.

I didn’t hear about that incident… booing, while a bit distasteful, comes with the territory to an extent when you have partisan supporters but things like that are basically assault.

[Ralfbergs]

Some really appalling behaviour by a minority of the the so called Orange Army at Spielberg. Anyone should be able to go to a GP. The nobheads that lifted up the skirt of the lady wearing a Hamilton top ought to be jailed. I hope we're not going to get this at most European GP and if Ferrari mount a charge, I can see there being issues at Monza.

I didn’t hear about that incident… booing, while a bit distasteful, comes with the territory to an extent when you have partisan supporters but things like that are basically assault.

I heard there were some misogynistic comments towards female supporters who were not supporting Verstappen and yes something about skirt lifting and filming and such. Don't know much details about it as the F1 commentators didn't delve into details about what happened, only mentioning that they condone the behavior etc and this is what I gathered from reading comments about it on twitter (not that I searched much, just wondered what happened).

About booing - yeah I think booing itself is ok, I mean yes it can be distasteful, but at least thats something which is understandable and comes with being a fan of one of the teams or racers (only what I dislike is if there are cheers if someone crashes or something like that).

[bluenosey]

Great win for George but Max has a very short memory.

At Abu Dhabi last year, Sergio parked his Red Bull in front of Lewis, holding him up for, maybe, about valuable 8 secs allowing Max to close up to Lewis.

Come this year and Sergio needs the points to finish second in the championship ahead of Leclerc. He lets Max through and if Max can't pass the cars ahead, they will switch the cars back round.

Max can't get past Alonso but refuses to cede the position back. He's already champ. It's a couple of points to help his team mate who helped him last year. But he won't do it. Unbelievable petulance. Great driver but that was shocking towards his team mate. Won't help his popularity one bit.

[Malrom]

Great win for George but Max has a very short memory.

At Abu Dhabi last year, Sergio parked his Red Bull in front of Lewis, holding him up for, maybe, about valuable 8 secs allowing Max to close up to Lewis.

Come this year and Sergio needs the points to finish second in the championship ahead of Leclerc. He lets Max through and if Max can't pass the cars ahead, they will switch the cars back round.

Max can't get past Alonso but refuses to cede the position back. He's already champ. It's a couple of points to help his team mate who helped him last year. But he won't do it. Unbelievable petulance. Great driver but that was shocking towards his team mate. Won't help his popularity one bit.

Sergio said it all: He (Max) showed who he really is !!

It took him a while to realize it, at least I knew it before....

[Mystery]

I particularly liked the clearly BS assertion after the race that they're all ok now and VER will help PER in Abu Dhabi. 2nd place in the championship is now to be decided between who is ahead on track between Perez and Leclerc so there is almost no likelihood of Jos's child being asked to do anything.

[Ralfbergs]

I personally hope that Leclerc gets 1 point more than Perez in last race, so Verstappen can tell what his excuses were to him then If that would have been at least a podium place maybe I could understand but this I can't normally excuse