F1 World Championship 2013 Thread

[MightyJordan]

Probably a good thing Red Bull lodged the protest before the race instead of after; they'd seem even more petty, otherwise.

[Hawk^]

Reject of the race Sergio Perez?! really? at leat he did something instead of following the train :) reject of the race is massa because he drives like a drunk monkey. or charles pic for causing a red flag i can't decide :)

[MightyJordan]

Reject of the race Sergio Perez?! really? at leat he did something instead of following the train :) reject of the race is massa because he drives like a drunk monkey. or charles pic for causing a red flag i can't decide :)

It was Max Chilton who caused the red flag; Charles Pic retired much earlier after his car caught fire at the pit entrance. But yeah, I agree with Perez not being reject of the race. I would have said Massa for making the same mistake twice if the red flag hadn't occured. But it did, so Chilton's my reject of the race. Maybe he should consider switching to touring cars next season? His older brother Tom's made a fairly good career out of it. ;)

[Hawk^]

Ooops, Yeah sorry about that my mistake. Chilton not Pic.

[+Frank B. Subscriber²]

Reject of the race Sergio Perez?! really? at leat he did something instead of following the train :) reject of the race is massa because he drives like a drunk monkey. or charles pic for causing a red flag i can't decide :)

Perez crossed the line between aggressive driving and being a boneheaded idiot imho. His moves on other drivers in the chicane following the tunnel were bordering on dangerous driving.

[Noir Angel]

This tyre thing has the potential to get rather messy, if my understanding is correct and the regulations clearly prohibit using current cars for a tyre test it's hard to see what defence Mercedes could possibly have, I am hoping there is more to this than meets the eye because from what I am seeing at the moment a very smart guy (in Ross Brawn) has made a very basic faux-pas.

I hope however that whatever ramifications arise they don't involve stripping of wins or points as I wouldn't imagine Mercedes gained all that much of an advantage from it.

Also, I smell sour grapes from Red Bull, Mercedes won this GP because they had the best car, I doubt the tyre test is what made the difference.

Perez crossed the line between aggressive driving and being a boneheaded idiot imho. His moves on other drivers in the chicane following the tunnel were bordering on dangerous driving.

I didn't see anything dangerous in it, you always have to take a risk to overtake, especially at Monaco. I don't get modern F1 fans at all, they complain that it's not competitive enough then slate any driver that does try to pass as being dangerous or reckless.

[MightyJordan]

Also, I smell sour grapes from Red Bull, Mercedes won this GP because they had the best car, I doubt the tyre test is what made the difference.

Mercedes definitely have the best car, but I'd say the track helped out a bit too; we all know how notoriously difficult it is to overtake at Monaco.

[+Frank B. Subscriber²]

Monaco GP: Romain Grosjean penalised for Daniel Ricciardo clash

Romain Grosjean's clash with Daniel Ricciardo in the Monaco Grand Prix has earned the Frenchman a 10-place grid penalty for the next Formula 1 race in Canada.

The Lotus driver ran into the back of Ricciardo's Toro Rosso on the approach to the chicane on lap 62 while trying to take 13th place.

Both cars had to retire as a result of the tangle, which caused a safety car due to the amount of debris spread over the circuit.

The incident came after Grosjean had crashed in both Thursday and Saturday practice.

Grosjean's team-mate Kimi Raikkonen was also called to the Monte Carlo stewards having been caught exceeding the prescribed speed during a safety car period.

The Finn escaped with a reprimand.

Raikkonen finished 10th in the race, having run fifth until a collision with Sergio Perez's McLaren resulted in a puncture.

Source: Autosport

[Noir Angel]

Mercedes definitely have the best car, but I'd say the track helped out a bit too; we all know how notoriously difficult it is to overtake at Monaco.

In fairness though their tyre deg was no worse than anyone elses here, in fact if anything it was a problem for RBR above anyone else. I guess we will see at Canada whether they have actually made some progress on the tyre wear front.

As for the Grosjean incident: It looked a bit clumsy but I feel a 10 place penalty is a bit harsh as it looked a bit like Ricciardo wrong footed him by breaking early.

[+Frank B. Subscriber²]

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[MightyJordan]

I never heard who ran the car in the test; was it definitely Pirelli?

[+Frank B. Subscriber²]

I never heard who ran the car in the test; was it definitely Pirelli?

No. Hamilton and Rosberg drove the car during the test.

[MightyJordan]

No. Hamilton and Rosberg drove the car during the test.

Uh oh, then the s**t's gonna hit the fan...

[mps69]

If you were Merc or any other team for that matter, would you let an outsider like Pirelli drive your car. I know I wouldn't.

[MightyJordan]

If you were Merc or any other team for that matter, would you let an outsider like Pirelli drive your car. I know I wouldn't.

Rules are rules. It's not like Pirelli would give the task to an amateur...

...and I just read their test driver this year is Jaime Alguersuari. Well f**k.

[JoeC]

I can agree with RotR going to Perez, there was one overtake (for want of a better word) where he basically tried to get past into the chicane by driving half of his car into a gap that was always going to disappear, and the other half of his car straight into the crash barrier. I think it was him taking Raikkonen out but I could be wrong, just got back in after a gig with the band and watched the race before I go to bed :p

[simonlang]

it was a good race.

[MightyJordan]

Highlight of the race (for me)...

[MightyJordan]

Ferrari, Red Bull and Lotus not asked about secret Pirelli F1 test

Leading Formula 1 teams Lotus, Ferrari and Red Bull insist they were never asked about the possibility of testing a 2013 car for Pirelli after the Spanish Grand Prix.

As the row over Mercedes' secret Pirelli test escalates ahead of a report being sent to the FIA by the Monaco GP stewards, rival teams remain deeply unhappy about what has happened.

And with the FIA having made it clear that permission for Mercedes to test its 2013 car was conditional on other outfits being offered the same opportunity by Pirelli, a number of top teams have said the chance to run a contemporary car was never mentioned to them.

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner said he was aware of a letter from Pirelli sent last year that offered the possibility of individual tyre tests, but he claimed there was never a mention of it being possible with a current car.

[simonlang]

i think it's rather weird to claim ferrari was not asked, everyone knows now - as they write - ferrari did a 2 days tire test for pirelli after bahrain. not surprised they were best with tires in barcelona then...

but thats just my subjective impression. everyone knows the only thing about ferrari i like are the colors and that they are italian.

[MightyJordan]

Williams confirm Mercedes engine deal for 2014 and beyond

Williams have confirmed they will use Mercedes engines from next season.

?I?m delighted to announce our new association with Mercedes-Benz for the 2014 Formula One season and beyond,? said team owner Frank Williams. ?Mercedes-Benz has been one of the sport?s most successful engine suppliers and we believe that they will have an extremely competitive engine package.?

?I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Renault for their continued hard work since we renewed our engine partnership at the beginning of the 2012 season. We have enjoyed a strong relationship that has resulted in much success over the years, including powering us to winning ways once again last year at the Spanish Grand Prix.?

[Noir Angel]

i think it's rather weird to claim ferrari was not asked, everyone knows now - as they write - ferrari did a 2 days tire test for pirelli after bahrain. not surprised they were best with tires in barcelona then...

but thats just my subjective impression. everyone knows the only thing about ferrari i like are the colors and that they are italian.

I don't buy it either, as the Sky commentators said those that pay their spies should sack them if they were able to miss something so big. The timing of this row only appeared like it had one goal: to disrupt Merc's preparation for Monaco. Unfortunately for them it failed, miserably.

Wherever there's political posturing Red Bull and Ferrari are never far away from it.

[MightyJordan]

Pirelli's about to hold a press conference online "on the development tests for 2014 Formula One tyres": http://www.pirelli.com/tyre/ww/en/f1/f1webcast.html - Maybe they'll clear up the test "scandal" with Mercedes too.

[Noir Angel]

Ferrari are being dragged into it now as well. How ironic

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/107799

[philcruicks]

Pirelli's about to hold a press conference online "on the development tests for 2014 Formula One tyres": http://www.pirelli.c.../f1webcast.html - Maybe they'll clear up the test "scandal" with Mercedes too.

Anyone listen to the press conf? Or know what came of it?