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2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Thread

Posted: Tue Mar 26, 2019 3:18 pm
by UnlikeUday

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Tue Mar 26, 2019 4:20 pm
by KingVoid
Tyres are too hard.

Easy one stop

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Tue Mar 26, 2019 4:22 pm
by mikeyg123
KingVoid wrote:Tyres are too hard.

Easy one stop
I think we just have to except that's the way it is now.

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Tue Mar 26, 2019 7:37 pm
by Exediron
Bahrain is notoriously abrasive, so the one-stop may not be as easy as everyone thinks. But yeah, they'll definitely try for it.

I'm looking forward to this one, as always. In the spirit of the unpopular opinions thread, I think Bahrain is one of the three best tracks on the calendar for producing good racing.

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Tue Mar 26, 2019 8:19 pm
by JN23
Exediron wrote: I'm looking forward to this one, as always. In the spirit of the unpopular opinions thread, I think Bahrain is one of the three best tracks on the calendar for producing good racing.
Absolutely agree! Was listening to a WTF1 podcast about the time they used the endurance circuit here in 2010. Remember that? That was awful.

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Wed Mar 27, 2019 12:22 am
by pokerman
mikeyg123 wrote:
KingVoid wrote:Tyres are too hard.

Easy one stop
I think we just have to except that's the way it is now.
Do we want the drivers to race hard or tip toe around?

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Wed Mar 27, 2019 12:23 am
by pokerman
Cheers :thumbup:

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Wed Mar 27, 2019 3:56 am
by mikeyg123
pokerman wrote:
mikeyg123 wrote:
KingVoid wrote:Tyres are too hard.

Easy one stop
I think we just have to except that's the way it is now.
Do we want the drivers to race hard or tip toe around?
Both. As it is now they all tiptoe round to make a one stop work anyway.

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Wed Mar 27, 2019 7:00 am
by iano
pokerman wrote:
mikeyg123 wrote:
KingVoid wrote:Tyres are too hard.

Easy one stop
I think we just have to except that's the way it is now.
Do we want the drivers to race hard or tip toe around?
Trouble is, even when not worried about tyre wear may not really be racing.

Last race we saw Bottas not have to race, but without a hole in the floor he could need to race Hamilton, although that is rarely a tight race.

Ok, no idea where Ferrari are, but Red Bull was clearly well behind Bottas pace (and assumedly Hamilton if the car is not broken). But Red Bull were too far ahead according to Magnussen, so it is not looking good for racing at the top of the grid unless by fixing what was wrong in Melbourne we have Ferrari racing Mercedes again.

Looks like a gap to Red Bull. Then a gap behind Red Bull.

So just maybe, having to conserve tyres will actually make it more interesting.

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Wed Mar 27, 2019 7:40 am
by Zoue
pokerman wrote:
mikeyg123 wrote:
KingVoid wrote:Tyres are too hard.

Easy one stop
I think we just have to except that's the way it is now.
Do we want the drivers to race hard or tip toe around?
I'd prefer the drivers to race hard and harder tyres are a step in the right direction there as far as I'm concerned. But as long as they have to conserve components in the way they do they'll be keeping the pushing to a minimum

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Wed Mar 27, 2019 2:18 pm
by pokerman
mikeyg123 wrote:
pokerman wrote:
mikeyg123 wrote:
KingVoid wrote:Tyres are too hard.

Easy one stop
I think we just have to except that's the way it is now.
Do we want the drivers to race hard or tip toe around?
Both. As it is now they all tiptoe round to make a one stop work anyway.
Well they tip toe even more when the tyres are too soft.

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Wed Mar 27, 2019 2:31 pm
by mikeyg123
pokerman wrote:
mikeyg123 wrote:
pokerman wrote:
mikeyg123 wrote:
KingVoid wrote:Tyres are too hard.

Easy one stop
I think we just have to except that's the way it is now.
Do we want the drivers to race hard or tip toe around?
Both. As it is now they all tiptoe round to make a one stop work anyway.
Well they tip toe even more when the tyres are too soft.
In all seriousness why can't we have some races with high tyre deg and others with low tyre deg? Variety is the spice of life.

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Wed Mar 27, 2019 2:47 pm
by Black_Flag_11
A 3rd drs zone has been added on the straight up to T4. Not a big fan since theres already a lot of action into that corner.

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Thu Mar 28, 2019 2:42 am
by pokerman
mikeyg123 wrote:
pokerman wrote:
mikeyg123 wrote:
pokerman wrote:
mikeyg123 wrote: I think we just have to except that's the way it is now.
Do we want the drivers to race hard or tip toe around?
Both. As it is now they all tiptoe round to make a one stop work anyway.
Well they tip toe even more when the tyres are too soft.
In all seriousness why can't we have some races with high tyre deg and others with low tyre deg? Variety is the spice of life.
By coincidence I've just watched the Bahrain 2007 GP and they were setting fastest laps throughout the race, I think I prefer that kind of racing to watching tyre management.

It's actually creeped into MotoGP now were on some tracks they potter around for the first two thirds of the race and then when they are confident that the tyres will last to the end of the race then start to actually race, is that racing?

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Thu Mar 28, 2019 3:43 am
by Exediron
pokerman wrote:It's actually creeped into MotoGP now were on some tracks they potter around for the first two thirds of the race and then when they are confident that the tyres will last to the end of the race then start to actually race, is that racing?
If it's about who can get to the end in the shortest time, yes. Racing does not equal pushing flat out for an entire race. That's a very specific kind of race, which is a sprint.

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Thu Mar 28, 2019 11:06 am
by Swiss1
pokerman wrote:
mikeyg123 wrote:
pokerman wrote:
mikeyg123 wrote:
KingVoid wrote:Tyres are too hard.

Easy one stop
I think we just have to except that's the way it is now.
Do we want the drivers to race hard or tip toe around?
Both. As it is now they all tiptoe round to make a one stop work anyway.
Well they tip toe even more when the tyres are too soft.
Problem is they have to conserve tyres, fuel and engines. Maybe now the tyres can last longer and hopefully not destroyed after closely following another car for a single lap.

From a cost point of view limiting the engines is understandable, but not good for the sport. Fuel as well, in the end the more fuel you use the more you must carry, should be up to the teams to decide which route to take.

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Thu Mar 28, 2019 1:12 pm
by Zoue
Swiss1 wrote:
pokerman wrote:
mikeyg123 wrote:
pokerman wrote:
mikeyg123 wrote: I think we just have to except that's the way it is now.
Do we want the drivers to race hard or tip toe around?
Both. As it is now they all tiptoe round to make a one stop work anyway.
Well they tip toe even more when the tyres are too soft.
Problem is they have to conserve tyres, fuel and engines. Maybe now the tyres can last longer and hopefully not destroyed after closely following another car for a single lap.

From a cost point of view limiting the engines is understandable, but not good for the sport. Fuel as well, in the end the more fuel you use the more you must carry, should be up to the teams to decide which route to take.
It's only understandable because the current engines are so expensive. But if you could spend $30M and get three engines per year that are technical miracles, or $30M and get 30 engines per year that are not quite so advanced, then I know which one would produce the better racing and allow the drivers to push more.

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Thu Mar 28, 2019 1:15 pm
by M44
Big weekend for Ferrari really?

Think the top three will be extremely close this weekend.

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Thu Mar 28, 2019 1:49 pm
by Caserole of Nonsense
tyres too hard. canada 2010 was awesome hence pirelli were tasked with making softer tyres. some of the best racing recently were high deg races as it gives a bigger differential between cars depending on how they manage tyres, new v old etc. undercut more powerful but risk running out at the end. far more interesting strategy for me.

f1 has always generally been win in the slowest time possible. if you give them hard tyres yes they can push more but in effect all they are doing is lapping a bit faster. the aero still wont let them get close without drs. but with that you get a reduction in the differential between cars hence it makes it even worse. and we get boring 1 stoppers.

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Thu Mar 28, 2019 1:55 pm
by Zoue
Caserole of Nonsense wrote:tyres too hard. canada 2010 was awesome hence pirelli were tasked with making softer tyres. some of the best racing recently were high deg races as it gives a bigger differential between cars depending on how they manage tyres, new v old etc. undercut more powerful but risk running out at the end. far more interesting strategy for me.

f1 has always generally been win in the slowest time possible. if you give them hard tyres yes they can push more but in effect all they are doing is lapping a bit faster. the aero still wont let them get close without drs. but with that you get a reduction in the differential between cars hence it makes it even worse. and we get boring 1 stoppers.
well that's one way of looking at it. Another is that the more fragile tyres we have had in recent years have meant that drivers can't afford to get caught in too much turbulent air behind another car as this accelerates the deterioration of the tyres. Less degradeable tyres mean the drivers don't have to manage them quite so much and can afford to push more when needed.

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Thu Mar 28, 2019 6:33 pm
by j man
Black_Flag_11 wrote:A 3rd drs zone has been added on the straight up to T4. Not a big fan since theres already a lot of action into that corner.
So unnecessary. Overtaking is going to be a joke.

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Thu Mar 28, 2019 8:34 pm
by Swiss1
Zoue wrote:
Caserole of Nonsense wrote:tyres too hard. canada 2010 was awesome hence pirelli were tasked with making softer tyres. some of the best racing recently were high deg races as it gives a bigger differential between cars depending on how they manage tyres, new v old etc. undercut more powerful but risk running out at the end. far more interesting strategy for me.

f1 has always generally been win in the slowest time possible. if you give them hard tyres yes they can push more but in effect all they are doing is lapping a bit faster. the aero still wont let them get close without drs. but with that you get a reduction in the differential between cars hence it makes it even worse. and we get boring 1 stoppers.
well that's one way of looking at it. Another is that the more fragile tyres we have had in recent years have meant that drivers can't afford to get caught in too much turbulent air behind another car as this accelerates the deterioration of the tyres. Less degradeable tyres mean the drivers don't have to manage them quite so much and can afford to push more when needed.
Agree, degradation is good, but then you can't follow another car without destroying your tyres. So not sure what the solution is. Prefer them being able to race push hard, but needs more than just the right tyres to do so.

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Thu Mar 28, 2019 10:14 pm
by pokerman
Exediron wrote:
pokerman wrote:It's actually creeped into MotoGP now were on some tracks they potter around for the first two thirds of the race and then when they are confident that the tyres will last to the end of the race then start to actually race, is that racing?
If it's about who can get to the end in the shortest time, yes. Racing does not equal pushing flat out for an entire race. That's a very specific kind of race, which is a sprint.
When the leaders are lapping no quicker than the back markers then I fail to see how it's a race.

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Fri Mar 29, 2019 12:27 pm
by Option or Prime
Interesting Leclerc faster than Vettel in FP1, same lap too!

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Fri Mar 29, 2019 12:31 pm
by Johnson
Vettel possibly had a damaged barge board when he set that lap. Ferrari will dominat this weekend. You can get Leclerc at 11/1 to win this race. That price won't last long.

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Fri Mar 29, 2019 12:43 pm
by UnlikeUday

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Fri Mar 29, 2019 12:57 pm
by Zoue
Interesting leaderboard. I can't help but feel there's a lot more to come from more than one team. McLaren within 2-3 tenths of Verstappen's Red Bull doesn't feel representative to me!

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Fri Mar 29, 2019 1:00 pm
by UnlikeUday
Zoue wrote:Interesting leaderboard. I can't help but feel there's a lot more to come from more than one team. McLaren within 2-3 tenths of Verstappen's Red Bull doesn't feel representative to me!
True blue as FP1 in Bahrain is 1 of the most unrepresentative sessions on the F1 calendar!

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Fri Mar 29, 2019 1:02 pm
by Johnson
UnlikeUday wrote:
Zoue wrote:Interesting leaderboard. I can't help but feel there's a lot more to come from more than one team. McLaren within 2-3 tenths of Verstappen's Red Bull doesn't feel representative to me!
True blue as FP1 in Bahrain is 1 of the most unrepresentative sessions on the F1 calendar!
Yes good point, I did forget that. Singapore FP1 too.

All other sessions are at night now aren't they?

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Fri Mar 29, 2019 1:24 pm
by UnlikeUday
Johnson wrote:
UnlikeUday wrote:
Zoue wrote:Interesting leaderboard. I can't help but feel there's a lot more to come from more than one team. McLaren within 2-3 tenths of Verstappen's Red Bull doesn't feel representative to me!
True blue as FP1 in Bahrain is 1 of the most unrepresentative sessions on the F1 calendar!
Yes good point, I did forget that. Singapore FP1 too.

All other sessions are at night now aren't they?
Yes. Night sessions will be cooler & maybe windier as well. A big difference between FP1 & FP2 which won't prove handy to most teams.

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Fri Mar 29, 2019 2:47 pm
by sandman1347
Too early to draw conclusions but I think Ferrari fans can breath a sigh of relief. Australia has once again just been a bogey track for them. They are clearly much stronger here in relation to their rivals than they were in Melbourne. Not saying they will necessarily lock out the front row but, at the very least, things will be much more competitive in qualifying.

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Fri Mar 29, 2019 3:04 pm
by Siao7
sandman1347 wrote:Too early to draw conclusions but I think Ferrari fans can breath a sigh of relief. Australia has once again just been a bogey track for them. They are clearly much stronger here in relation to their rivals than they were in Melbourne. Not saying they will necessarily lock out the front row but, at the very least, things will be much more competitive in qualifying.
Agreed, but Hamilton 1.2 sec slower than Leclerc? Not buying it, not just yet anyway. I agree that Ferrari looks better here so far compared to Aus.

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Fri Mar 29, 2019 3:22 pm
by Tassadar
So far so good for Ferrari. Much better than last weekend. Gotta see what happens though. I think we still see a 1-2 for Mercedes in qualifying.

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Fri Mar 29, 2019 4:16 pm
by Option or Prime
Renault in front of Red Bull in FP2, not sure what happened to Ricciardo though! Ferrari look quick but if temperatures in Melbourne did them can they last in Bahrain?

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Fri Mar 29, 2019 4:26 pm
by kleefton
Option or Prime wrote:Renault in front of Red Bull in FP2, not sure what happened to Ricciardo though! Ferrari look quick but if temperatures in Melbourne did them can they last in Bahrain?

Probably just a glory run by Hulk. In an attempt to turn some heads maybe.

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Fri Mar 29, 2019 4:38 pm
by Bacus
Option or Prime wrote:Renault in front of Red Bull in FP2, not sure what happened to Ricciardo though! Ferrari look quick but if temperatures in Melbourne did them can they last in Bahrain?
Horner said that they missed the window with the soft tyres, plus Max had a scruffy first sector.

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Fri Mar 29, 2019 4:51 pm
by UnlikeUday

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Fri Mar 29, 2019 5:03 pm
by Siao7
This looks a little bit more like it. Not sure if Merc is sandbagging, but Ferrari seems to have improved indeed

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Fri Mar 29, 2019 5:06 pm
by JN23
Siao7 wrote:This looks a little bit more like it. Not sure if Merc is sandbagging, but Ferrari seems to have improved indeed
My impression is that the gap is larger than it will be come qualifying. Possibly 2-3/10ths by then

Re: 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix Free Practice & Qualifying Threa

Posted: Fri Mar 29, 2019 5:09 pm
by Siao7
JN23 wrote:
Siao7 wrote:This looks a little bit more like it. Not sure if Merc is sandbagging, but Ferrari seems to have improved indeed
My impression is that the gap is larger than it will be come qualifying. Possibly 2-3/10ths by then
0.6sec is not a huge gap though.

And thinking about it, Merc wasn't sandbagging in the FP sessions Australia, so I think this is probably legit (with a pinch of salt!)