The Bahrain Grand Prix Thread

Let's have a bit of build up to this then. Really looking forward to this season, what with Schumi back, Button vs Lewis, the new regs and the new teams etc. Could be a 4 horse race for the constructors championship with McLaren, Ferrari, Merc and Red Bull. I'm cheering for McLaren and Red Bull personally, but I also have a soft spot for Sauber, in particular Kobayashi. There, I've nailed my colours to the mast nice and early, can't be accused of jumping on any bandwaggons.

My predictions, based on very little, are that Fernando will edge Lewis for the title. Vettel third, in contention until the last couple of races. Schumi forth, just ahead of Massa, then Button. Schumi and Hamilton will win 1 wet race each (Schumi at Spa).

As for the top 10 in Bahrain:

1. Hamilton

2. Massa

3. Alonso

4. Vettel

5. Webber

6. Button

7. Rosberg

8. Kubica

9. Kobayashi

10. Barrichello

Schumacher DNF after collision on the first lap. Let's see if ANY of that pans out.

Schumy DNF due to engine fault, youll see

The Fezzas appear light years ahead of anyone going into the first race, and, don't let your natural bias influence you, Ari', Alonso is far quicker a driver than Massa.

Nazi boy to get chucked out of F1 altogether as someone has just read the small print underneath Jodl's signature. Which read...

"Under no circumstances should any member of the German nation complete in any sporting events....ever"

Obviously, we should have read it earlier and saved ourselves from years of hurt due to penalty shoot out ****ups

The Fezzas appear light years ahead of anyone going into the first race, and, don't let your natural bias influence you, Ari', Alonso is far quicker a driver than Massa.

I'm not biased against Alonso, I think he will beat Massa over the course of the season. My prediction is based on Alonso having a 1 minute lead going into the last lap, then having a rear tyre blow out.

jeez it's come around so quickly.

I think Alonso is odds on for the title, people say him and Massa don't get on but as they are now under the same red umbrella I think they'll get on just fine.

It's what happened at McLaren that interests me, if they treat Button like they treated Alonso there will be fireworks

jeez it's come around so quickly.

 

I think Alonso is odds on for the title, people say him and Massa don't get on but as they are now under the same red umbrella I think they'll get on just fine.

 

It's what happened at McLaren that interests me, if they treat Button like they treated Alonso there will be fireworks

There was a bit more to it than that. Lewis being Ron's favourite didn't help the situation, but most of the problems stemmed from this MSN conversation.

Coughlan now works for Stefan GP BTW.

Yayyyyy its nearly here love the first race of the season, get to get all the hype out of the way and see whats what. Bring on Sunday!

Not a track for you petrolheads to ever aspire to visit to watch a GP, but good layout and best viewed on TV. About as much atmosphere as a Skates Reserve match.

Wish we could get excited like you guys but the TV rights belong to some bloke in Bahrain who sometimes remembers to put it ontyo Pay TV and sometimes puts it onto Free to Air. But always with Arabic commentary.

And no. trying to watch footie on line down here is b a d en o u g h but F1 with the stuttering.

Grumble grumble but will enjoy reading about it.

MORE new regulations???

Such as?

No refueling is the major one.

Other noticeable changes include.

Skinnier front tyres.

No KERS (FOTA agreement - regs allow for it).

Top ten qualifiers start the race on the tyres they qualified on.

Other noticeable changes include.

 

Skinnier front tyres.

No KERS (FOTA agreement - regs allow for it).

Top ten qualifiers start the race on the tyres they qualified on.

This rule is totally unfair imo. Yea it MIGHT mix things up a bit but surely coming a 11th is better than coming 10th because of this rule? Totally stupid. F1 must be run by some right divs.

This rule is totally unfair imo. Yea it MIGHT mix things up a bit but surely coming a 11th is better than coming 10th because of this rule? Totally stupid. F1 must be run by some right divs.

Yes, in theory anyway.

No one I've asked seems to be sure whether "the same tyres" means the ones you set your fastest lap on or the ones you're wearing at the end of qualifying, because if it's the latter there's nothing to stop you doing a balls-out lap for quali then coming in for a pitstop and just doing an out-in lap to finish up on the tyres you want.

Latest 'get round the rules' wheeze:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2010/mar/12/renault-mclaren-f1-wing

Something clever using ducting and the drivers knee!

I actually liked the old format we've had the last couple of years. Was interesting trying to second guess who had gone light fuel to get higher up the grid and who was tankering to try and stretch out their first stint. Not saying this format is bad, but knowing everyone has the same fuel load will remove a dimension from the race.

It appears that the new tyres regulation for the top ten has directly replaced the fuel regulation for the top ten. Should make things interesting, though does indeed need clarifying as to whether it's the actual tyres they set their fastest lap on, or just the same type of tyres, that they need to start the race on.

Lewis and Jenson to kick arse, will piddle myself if Schumi pulls out a DNF!!!

Bloody frustrating for me - I haven't worked on a Sunday since my old retail days back in 2001, however I need to be in at my Mon-Sat opening place of work this Sunday as we're having a paint job done which has to be done out of hours. Meh.

Latest 'get round the rules' wheeze:

 

http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2010/mar/12/renault-mclaren-f1-wing

 

Something clever using ducting and the drivers knee!

any pictures of this ???

how is it gonna work ??

It appears that the new tyres regulation for the top ten has directly replaced the fuel regulation for the top ten. Should make things interesting, though does indeed need clarifying as to whether it's the actual tyres they set their fastest lap on, or just the same type of tyres, that they need to start the race on.

 

Lewis and Jenson to kick arse, will piddle myself if Schumi pulls out a DNF!!!

 

Bloody frustrating for me - I haven't worked on a Sunday since my old retail days back in 2001, however I need to be in at my Mon-Sat opening place of work this Sunday as we're having a paint job done which has to be done out of hours. Meh.

It's the set they complete their fastest lap on. I got clarification today.

any pictures of this ???

 

how is it gonna work ??

Do you really want to know?

It's the set they complete their fastest lap on. I got clarification today.

Cool. Does make sense rather than t'other scenario. Roll on quali.

If a crap team got a car into the top 10, they'd be as well just sticking a brand new set of boots on and not putting in a lap. I'd rather start 10th on fresh tyres than probably 10th on worn tyres.

Any possitions going for master tactician at Renault Ponty?

We saw the same thing with fuel levels last year, Ari'. Plenty of teams surprised themselves into the top ten then bogged the car down with fuel for Q3, sacrificing track position for a one-stopper.

Do you really want to know?

yes i do !!

yes i do !!

Ok, bear with me here because there's some supposition here, some dodgy terms, some 2nd hand info and probably a guess or two that's way off (and a few graphics would help) but the gist of it is this...

The upper rear wing of the cars has to comprise of a maximum of two separate elements, and a separate element is broadly defined as an aerodynamic piece which spans the end fences with an open face greater than a given distance (something like 6 inches, I believe). This means that you can only have two wing-shaped pieces, wholly open to airflow, on the rear wing itself. What McLaren have done is to create a third element which is fully separate on the trailing edge but is part of the top element on the leading edge, except for a slot in the centre. This means that the two wings are essentially one, but air can pass over almost the entire lower surface of the uppermost wing (this is the important bit) once it has passed through the slot. In itself that's not such a biggie, most teams have, at one time or another, messed about with slotted wings in this way but no advantage has really been found from it I suppose.

Anyway, McLaren have coupled the rear wing to the "Shark fin" type engine cover which, unlike most, is ducted from the chassis itself, over the engine and to the end of the fin which, in turn, is joined to the rear wing in front of the slot. Reason why that is advantageous to follow.

On the top of the chassis, infront of the driver there is a scoop (there's one on many cars, including Robert's R30), and it's primary use is to funnel cool air into the c*ckpit area for driver 'comfort'. I say comfort but it can still nudge about 50/60 degrees in there in the desert. Anyway, I digress, what McLaren have done is exited the air into the c*ckpit to one side and the driver is able to cover the vent with his knee forcing the air along further ducting , out of the back of the chassis, up over the engine and out of the shark fin to pass through the sandwiched wing elements.

The fast-moving air passing over the bottom surface of the wing causes it to stall as it negates the action of the air passing over the top surface of the wing. Normally stall is the last thing you want as it completely removes the downforce generated by the wing, however, at maximum speed on the straight you don't want any downforce because downforce equals drag and slows the car down. So stalling the rear wing and removing the downforce generated should free up the missing MPH, somewhere into double figures in fact.

Getting the wing to stall would appear to be pretty easy. The clever part is getting it to stall when you want to and be effective at giving downforce when you don't and this is where the Macca designers have to be credited with thinking outside the box.

Personally I think it's a tad outside the spirit of the regulations prohibiting active aerodynamic devices and the rules concerning holes in the chassis which should only be used for cooling and/or the passing through of cables, etc, but the Stewards have cleared it so that's that.

Regardless, we matched their top speed on the straights in free practice today so any advantage they have appears small on the face of it, but I guess the real test is tomorrow in qualifying.

Ok, bear with me here because there's some supposition here, some dodgy terms, some 2nd hand info and probably a guess or two that's way off (and a few graphics would help) but the gist of it is this...

 

The upper rear wing of the cars has to comprise of a maximum of two separate elements, and a separate element is broadly defined as an aerodynamic piece which spans the end fences with an open face greater than a given distance (something like 6 inches, I believe). This means that you can only have two wing-shaped pieces, wholly open to airflow, on the rear wing itself. What McLaren have done is to create a third element which is fully separate on the trailing edge but is part of the top element on the leading edge, except for a slot in the centre. This means that the two wings are essentially one, but air can pass over almost the entire lower surface of the uppermost wing (this is the important bit) once it has passed through the slot. In itself that's not such a biggie, most teams have, at one time or another, messed about with slotted wings in this way but no advantage has really been found from it I suppose.

 

Anyway, McLaren have coupled the rear wing to the "Shark fin" type engine cover which, unlike most, is ducted from the chassis itself, over the engine and to the end of the fin which, in turn, is joined to the rear wing in front of the slot. Reason why that is advantageous to follow.

 

On the top of the chassis, infront of the driver there is a scoop (there's one on many cars, including Robert's R30), and it's primary use is to funnel cool air into the c*ckpit area for driver 'comfort'. I say comfort but it can still nudge about 50/60 degrees in there in the desert. Anyway, I digress, what McLaren have done is exited the air into the c*ckpit to one side and the driver is able to cover the vent with his knee forcing the air along further ducting , out of the back of the chassis, up over the engine and out of the shark fin to pass through the sandwiched wing elements.

 

The fast-moving air passing over the bottom surface of the wing causes it to stall as it negates the action of the air passing over the top surface of the wing. Normally stall is the last thing you want as it completely removes the downforce generated by the wing, however, at maximum speed on the straight you don't want any downforce because downforce equals drag and slows the car down. So stalling the rear wing and removing the downforce generated should free up the missing MPH, somewhere into double figures in fact.

 

Getting the wing to stall would appear to be pretty easy. The clever part is getting it to stall when you want to and be effective at giving downforce when you don't and this is where the Macca designers have to be credited with thinking outside the box.

 

Personally I think it's a tad outside the spirit of the regulations prohibiting active aerodynamic devices and the rules concerning holes in the chassis which should only be used for cooling and/or the passing through of cables, etc, but the Stewards have cleared it so that's that.

 

Regardless, we matched their top speed on the straights in free practice today so any advantage they have appears small on the face of it, but I guess the real test is tomorrow in qualifying.

thank you for expaining that, and i almost understood most of it!

We're only 25 minutes into the first live coverage of the season, and already seeing Alonso and Schumacher on my telly is turning my stomach. Eugh.

Interviewing Karun Chandhok. Seems pretty likeable, but you have to feel for him and Senna. I wouldn't bet on either HRT making it to the end of the race.

Ponty, what do the rules say about drivers holding their arms out of the car in wing shapes to aid downforce? lol

Can you imagine it? Little holes cut either side of the (ockpit so they can stick their arms out like we all did as kids! Would that be classed as an active aero aid?!?!

Ponty, what do the rules say about drivers holding their arms out of the car in wing shapes to aid downforce? lol

 

Can you imagine it? Little holes cut either side of the (ockpit so they can stick their arms out like we all did as kids! Would that be classed as an active aero aid?!?!

Are you still drunk?

Interviewing Karun Chandhok. Seems pretty likeable, but you have to feel for him and Senna. I wouldn't bet on either HRT making it to the end of the race.

I'm not sure they'll make the start, let alone the end!!!

Are you still drunk?

A little maybe. Polished off a bottle of spiced rum to myself last night!

Virgins both about 5s of the pace so far.

Q1 bit of a none event. Just waiting for the 6 new cars, plus one to drop out.

Vettel Pole

Massa second, Alonso third, Hamilton forth, Button 8th

I think we shoulda got around 7th really, judging by the early Q pace. Still, there's a long way to go.

Apparently Robert had a snap oversteer moment in sector 2 on his Q3 lap which cost him about 0.6s over the same sector in Q2. Shoulda been 7th or better as I thought. Ah well, we'll be carrying less fuel than most tomorrow so anything's possible.

Eventful first corner.

Hmmmm... Nice James Bond style smokescreen from Webber which totally ****ed our race cos Sutil tw*tted Kubica behind it.

Petrov is doing well though.

Don't they look slow off the line with the heavy fuel load

Yup, looked like they all pulled away in second.

Looks like Petrov is out with a problem. Shame, he was doing alright.

Yeah, looked like something wrong on the pushrod by the way it was waggling around.

Kubica overtakes a Sauber and Toro Rosso and is up to 11th. Considering Sutil sent him back to 21st on Turn 1, Lap 1, I'm really pleased with the way he's going.

Annoying to come 11th after all that but there you go.

ALO

MAS

HAM

VET

ROS

SCH

BUT

WEB

LIU

BAR

KUB

We're only 25 minutes into the first live coverage of the season, and already seeing Alonso and Schumacher on my telly is turning my stomach. Eugh.

Ditto :axe: :smt108

My hopes of Alonso and Schumacher crashing into each other and both being out for the season were dashed.

My hopes of Alonso and Schumacher crashing into each other and both being out for the season were dashed.

After my comment early in the Hungarian GP last season regarding Felipe Massa (a half-hearted "crash, you bugger, crash!", due to my dislike of those red cars) which came true within half an hour, I'm not going to say anything like that this season!!!

They are the two people I most want to do badly though. As I said to hubby earlier, I dislike the Fezza's, and dislike Alonso. Seeing the two combined actually makes me shudder. Eugh.

what a complete bore that was today

Shame about Vettel's spark plug problem. Just hope the Red Bulls find some reliability and the McLarens find some speed before the next race.

Shame about Vettel's spark plug problem. Just hope the Red Bulls find some reliability and the McLarens find some speed before the next race.

Rumour is that the Maccas have to downgrade their diffusor for the next race because the current one exploits the starter hole in an illegal manner. Saying that, the rumour said that we had the same problem, something which the official RF1 denied earlier, so who knows? The diffusor on the McLaren does form around that hole though, something ours doesn't.

Anyway, my point is, they might be chasing the speed they already have rather than gaining any. Fingers crossed anyway.