F1/ Formula E/ Motorsport Thread

I think its just because recently we have had a couple of seasons go right down to the wire, whereas this season was wrapped up long before the end.

You could always tell if Vettel was leading after 1 or 2 laps he was going to win, just takes away a little excitement in my eyes

 

Behind Vettel its not been too bad with various teams/drivers have a good/bad spell but of course they are all racing for 2nd...

 

The difference between teams in terms of their financial muscle would be a start to evening up the grid. And also lower the barriers to new start up teams. You used to get throughout the history of F1 alongside the works teams, privateers and new teams but the sheer budgets required now actively threaten to reduce the number of teams year on year. How long before Marussia and Caterham even Sauber give up the ghost ?

It is in a way analagous to the situation in many sports where a few teams have all the power to the detriment of the sport. The FIA have had to use convoluted rules, DRS, tyres to make racing more competitive as they were well aware many fans were getting turned off by the constant stream of processionals.

 

I'm not too sure about that Molly. I can see where you are coming from in one way. F1 is the white heat of technology at the edge and certain manufacturers do use that to better their road cars or use it as a promotional element in their marketing. But deep down in all sports people are looking for a human element and there are fears that the technology has become too preeminent over the human component of the driver.

You can say that it has been this way for a long time with driver aids for example. But it is turning people off and if any sport does become predictable then people will turn off. Viewing figures for events where the outcome can be predicted to a reasonable accuracy are lower for a reason. People like to see the unexpected unwritten drama every once in a while in their chosen sports that they watch.

At present certainly after the change Pirelli made with their tyres it has become more of a question of who will finish second after the first few corners such is the mechanical reliability of the modern F1 car. And if this keeps repeating itself people will get bored. I wonder why for example Marussia or Caterham even bother sometimes. This is in no way a slight on Vettel of Red Bull or Newey. They should be admired for what they have acheived and Seb is an excellent driver but the spectacle is missing partly because in a way Webber has not been up to the challenge when certain manufacturers dominated both number 1 and 2 at least duelled it out for the World title.

Some drivers would even like a reduction in technology and when they talk about F1 of the past the admiration they have for their forbears is visible in their faces and voices.

 

Nico Hulkenberg has joined Force India again which means either Sutil or di Resta will have to find out who is leaving.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/formula1/25205390

Race schedule for 2014 has been released:
16 March Australia (Melbourne)
30 March Malaysia (Sepang)
6 April Bahrain (Sakhir)
20 April China (Shanghai)
11 May Spain (Barcelona)
25 May Monaco (Monte Carlo)
8 June Canada (Montreal)
22 June Austria (Red Bull Ring)
6 July Britain (Silverstone)
20 July Germany (Hockenheim)
27 July Hungary (Budapest)
24 August Belgium (Spa-Francorchamps)
7 September Italy (Monza)
21 September Singapore (Marina Bay)
5 October Japan (Suzuka)
12 October Russia (Sochi)
2 November USA (Austin)
9 November Brazil (Sao Paulo)
23 November Abu Dhabi (Yas Marina)

The Manhattan GP has been put on hold, the dull Korean and Mexican GP's have been abandoned. There is a new venue in Sochi to tie in with that town's hosting of the Winter Olympiad in February and the Austrian GP is back at the old Osterreichring which is reasonable given the success of Austrian drivers in the sport. Red Bull have overhauled the circuit and the pit complex. Wonder if the other teams will feel disgruntled as no doubt they will have more data for their drivers when the race takes place.

The Bahrain GP will be a night time affair partly for spectacle and partly for audience ratings.

 

As the year draws to it's inevitable close I think it might be nice to remember those who have passed away this year while competing in the world of motorsport. Despite the advances in safety measures, track design and medical procedures it remains a sport which claims lives.

Thomas Bourgin Age 26



11th January. Died in the Dakar rally in Chile following a head on collision with a police support vehicle.

Christian Devereux Age 51



5th May. Died after a car collision at the Donnington Historic Festival at Donnington Park.

**** Trickle Age 72



May 16th. A legend in NASCAR he committed suicide. He had lost his granddaughter in an accident which may have been a contributory factor.

Yoshinari Matsush ita Age 44



27th May. Died after an accident in a practice run in the Isle of Man TT at Ballacrye. He came off his bike in wet conditions after a tankslapper and hit a roadside sign.

Mark Robinson Age 38



9th June. Track marshall who died at the Canadian F1 GP. While retrieving the Sauber car of Esteban Gutierrez he was run over by the rescue crane.

Jason Leffler Age 38



12th June. Died at the Bridgeport Speedway in NJ during a test run. He was a former NASCAR racer who had returned to sprint racing which uses open wheel cockpits on dirt tracks. A suspension failure led to a collision with a wall and blunt trauma to the neck.

Wolf Silvester Age 55



22nd June. Died at the Nurburgring during a VLN Endurance Racing Championship of a heart attack. The stress of driving at high speed around this still notoriously difficult circuit is presumed to have precipitated the cardiac arrest.

Allan Simonsen Age 35



22nd June. Died at the 24 Hours of Le Mans Car after his car slid off the track and hit the armco barrier. At that precise point there was a tree behind the armco. Therefore all the energy of impact transferred into the car. Although talking after the crash he slipped into a coma and the deceleration injury is thought to have caused a ruptured aorta and brain damage.

Andrea Antonelli Age 25



21st July. He was competing at the Moscow Raceway in a World Supersport race in wet conditions. He lost control of his bike and in an incident that mirrored the death of his compatriot Marco Simoncelli was hit in the head at 250 kph by another racer.

Maria de Villota Age 33



11th October. Maria suffered a horrific crash while testing for Marussia F1 last year a year to the day she died. She thankfully recovered despite losing an eye but the severity of the cranial injuries for which was still due to receive operations are thought to have precipitated a heart attack. She died in Sevilla just months after being married and becoming an inspirational speaker to others who have survived traumatic injuries.

Sean Edwards Age 27



15th October. Died in an accident at Queensland Raceway after the cars throttle jammed resulting in a high speed collision with a wall.At the time he was leading the World Porsche Supercup standings. He like Maria was the child of a former F1 race driver.

God bless them all.
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The new rule changes regarding the new engines, energy recovery systems and effects on the aesthetics of the car from Gary Anderson:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/formula1/25158104

 

Kobayashi is back, great news

 

Pity he is in a crap car, really want him to do a race in a red bull or something just to see how he would do (obviously never going to happen)

I reckon if him and Vettel were in the same car he would beat him if he didn't crash, although the risk of crashing is massive.

 

Kobayashi and Maldonado would be my dream team

 

Some rather valid points here I think. It's less about driver versus driver to the finish than some degree of gimmickry than it used to be.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/formula1/26178312