planetf1.com

Posted: **Sun Apr 09, 2017 7:59 am**

Driver of The Weekend 2017 - China

Cast your vote for the 2017 Chinese Grand Prix!

Rules & Format

- Voting is based on driver performance (not who has the prettiest girlfriend/best haircut)
- Voting is based on performance of the whole race weekend, so qualifying counts towards your assessment.
- You only get one vote
- The poll will start on either on the day of the GP (or Monday if I am unable to for some reason)
- The poll will run until Friday so that it will always end before the next GP
- The top three voted for drivers will earn points towards a championship table as follows:
- 1st: 5 points
- 2nd: 3 points
- 3rd: 1 point
- Ties will be decided by finishing position

Standings after Australia

Code: Select all

   |  Driver      | Points |
1  |  Vettel      |   5    |
2  |  Giovinazzi  |   3    |
3  |  Hamilton    |   1    |

I'm thinking Vettel but I'm going to leave it a while and look at some drives further down the grid a bit later.

Posted: **Sun Apr 09, 2017 8:12 am**

My driver of the weekend is Valterri Bo..

No. I don't know. Lewis got a good pole and managed the Grand Chelam yet my vote goes to Vettel on this occasion.

Also, I'd love to know which prankster actually DID vote for Bottas.

Posted: **Sun Apr 09, 2017 8:15 am**

Verstappen

Posted: **Sun Apr 09, 2017 8:18 am**

voted alonso on the basis i like his hair. A LOT. you have to factor those things in sometimes

Posted: **Sun Apr 09, 2017 8:20 am**

Peter McG. wrote:voted alonso on the basis i like his hair. A LOT. you have to factor those things in sometimes

I agree. You have to look the part.

Posted: **Sun Apr 09, 2017 8:25 am**

Peter McG. wrote:voted alonso on the basis i like his hair. A LOT. you have to factor those things in sometimes

I may have broken my own rule once or twice for a well trimmed beard to be fair.

Posted: **Sun Apr 09, 2017 8:31 am**

I went for Max on entertainment and effort.

In reality, it should probably go to Hamilton though

Posted: **Sun Apr 09, 2017 8:31 am**

Got to be Vettel for that comeback drive and those aggressive overtakes to get himself back in contention. Similar from Verstappen, with a stunning first lap and some great moves, but a couple of mistakes later in the race too.

I see a lot of mention of Alonso, but didn't he just get lucky with the safety car before slowly falling back until his car broke down? Looked like a good drive from Sainz, Ocon too. It's hard to judge anyone outside the top 6 today to be honest because the racing at the front took all my attention.

Posted: **Sun Apr 09, 2017 8:39 am**

I vote Hamilton, he was untouchable all weekend.

Posted: **Sun Apr 09, 2017 8:50 am**

For me it was a toss between Alonso and Vettel. Max was great on Sunday but didn't have much chance to shine on Saturday so has to be excluded (for me). Alonso I think was superb, but there again so was Vettel and the overtakes he made probably swung it for me. Vettel for the weekend

Posted: **Sun Apr 09, 2017 9:27 am**

Easily Alonso

Posted: **Sun Apr 09, 2017 10:18 am**

Disappointing start to the season from Ric

Vettel was excellent, so too Alonso.

But that grand chelem from Hamilton was impressive. He’ll get my vote.

Posted: **Sun Apr 09, 2017 10:21 am**

Hamilton.

Posted: **Sun Apr 09, 2017 10:56 am**

Max is the most entertaining, and daring, even with his drama.
But then again, the majority of F1 drivers are whining bitches

Posted: **Sun Apr 09, 2017 11:03 am**

Invade wrote:My driver of the weekend is Valterri Bo..

No. I don't know. Lewis got a good pole and managed the Grand Chelam yet my vote goes to Vettel on this occasion.

Also, I'd love to know which prankster actually DID vote for Bottas.

Bottas ran a very impressive race imo. P6 only 48 seconds off the lead is a great result for Williams

Posted: **Sun Apr 09, 2017 11:09 am**

I'm going for Alonso. Stoff isn't half as bad as Alo is making him look this weekend and he's driving like a boss but not getting any rewards.

I think they'll be closer next weekend as Stoff was great around there last year but if it looks like it did this weekend then maybe it's true that Alonso lost some performance when he tempered his driving style to the tyres because his ultra aggressive turn in is back in these regulations and he looks unreal so far.

Posted: **Sun Apr 09, 2017 12:41 pm**

Invade wrote:My driver of the weekend is Valterri Bo..

No. I don't know. Lewis got a good pole and managed the Grand Chelam yet my vote goes to Vettel on this occasion.

Also, I'd love to know which prankster actually DID vote for Bottas.

I voted Lewis but was tempted to go with Vettel. I actually think they performed pretty much equally but Lewis just edging it both in qualy and the race. It's exciting to see two guys with 7 championships and almost 100 wins between them; both at the top of their game and in relatively equal machinery; battling for the championship from round 1. This season is shaping up to be the best in years!

Posted: **Sun Apr 09, 2017 1:34 pm**

Hamilton, Verstappen, Vettel were all great. Hard to pick one of those. Alonso was set to finish 8th (I don't think KMag was going to catch him) but totally unpredictable factors like Honda didn't allow him to.

Posted: **Sun Apr 09, 2017 1:55 pm**

Voted Hamilton.
He was under intense pressure to respond to Vettel and Ferrari.
He delivered a masterclass.

Posted: **Sun Apr 09, 2017 2:46 pm**

I voted for Hamilton, a flawless performance all w/e in a car no one can say is still dominant, ask Bottas.

However I understand any votes for Verstappen, very impressive to drive from near the back all the way up to second in the tricky conditions, however let's not forget the mistake under braking that gifted second place to Vettel.

Vettel for his overtakes which took him from 5th to 2nd place.

Alonso for somehow running in the points again in the McLaren before it broke down.

Finally Sainz for being the best of the rest.

Posted: **Sun Apr 09, 2017 2:50 pm**

Sainz really is the forgotten man here. All the midfield credit is going to Alonso but Sainz pulled a blinder with his strategy call and finished the race in the highest position possible for that car. He has also, once again, demolished his teammate. Sainz is one to watch for the future and I think he will move up the grid next season (if not at Red Bull then at Ferrari or Mercedes).

Posted: **Sun Apr 09, 2017 3:53 pm**

sandman1347 wrote:Sainz really is the forgotten man here. All the midfield credit is going to Alonso but Sainz pulled a blinder with his strategy call and finished the race in the highest position possible for that car. He has also, once again, demolished his teammate. Sainz is one to watch for the future and I think he will move up the grid next season (if not at Red Bull then at Ferrari or Mercedes).

I don't think he's being forgotten. It's just that this is DotW, not DotD, and a driver being beaten in qualifying usually is not in contention for DotW.

Posted: **Sun Apr 09, 2017 4:12 pm**

sandman1347 wrote:Sainz really is the forgotten man here. All the midfield credit is going to Alonso but Sainz pulled a blinder with his strategy call and finished the race in the highest position possible for that car. He has also, once again, demolished his teammate. Sainz is one to watch for the future and I think he will move up the grid next season (if not at Red Bull then at Ferrari or Mercedes).

Sainz drove a great race but for me a driver needs to do something really special to win DOW if he is out qualified by his team mate.

Posted: **Sun Apr 09, 2017 7:23 pm**

Lewis for his podium semi-mullet, but for driving Vettel, Lewis was ace but Seb had to work for it.

Posted: **Sun Apr 09, 2017 7:40 pm**

Hamilton for sure. The pressure he was under was huge this weekend.
Ferrari pressured him on Saturday and he came through. Verstappen came at him during that wet period and he managed to withstand it and brush him aside. Yet no mistakes all weekend. Flawless performance.

Vettel also drove great all weekend but it took him too long to pass Kimi and that cost him a shot at the win.

Alonso was also impressive all weekendbut the mclaren can't handle the way he drives it.

Verstappen was the star on Sunday but was unable to show his pace on Saturday.

Posted: **Sun Apr 09, 2017 7:40 pm**

sandman1347 wrote:Sainz really is the forgotten man here. All the midfield credit is going to Alonso but Sainz pulled a blinder with his strategy call and finished the race in the highest position possible for that car. He has also, once again, demolished his teammate. Sainz is one to watch for the future and I think he will move up the grid next season (if not at Red Bull then at Ferrari or Mercedes).

I agree with what some others have said. This is about driver of the weekend. In recent races, I think 4 out of the last 5 races, Kvyat has beaten Sainz in qualifying. And last race in Australia, Kvyat was clearly stronger IMO. Sainz may have beaten him in qualifying, but in the race at one point, Kvyat was far quicker so that the team had to make Sainz allow him through, then after Kvyat has pulled away by about 5 seconds pretty quickly, he had an issue and had to pit. But even then, he still managed to finish just one position below Sainz.

Then, in this race, Kvyat qualified 9th and Sainz didn't even make it into Q2. So just because of that, I'd struggle to vote him as driver of the whole weekend. But even when he started the race, I know it will have been hard for him but he did make a mess of it. He went too fast into the 1st corner for the tyres he was using and actually lightly crashed into the wall and was very lucky to avoid damage. But yes, from then on, he was outstanding and it was a very impressive race. But Kvyat didn't get the chance to show what he could have done and judging from his pace last weekend, he may possibly have been as good or better than Sainz again.

I can't say Sainz has "once again, demolished his teammate". So far this season, I think they have both been about evenly matched and I'm actually confident it will stay that way. I think Kvyat just had a poor season since he left Red Bull. But his skill and performance seems to be back now this year with a fresh start.

Posted: **Sun Apr 09, 2017 8:43 pm**

SR1 wrote:Disappointing start to the season from Ric

Ricciardo's reputation in the wet hasnt been the greatest and it showed again when max mugged him and left him for dead. But when it dried up dan had the pace advantage.

Still the strongest driver pairing on the grid. Redbull just needs to catch up and we should have one of the best seasons ever.

Posted: **Sun Apr 09, 2017 9:28 pm**

I came here expecting to see a bunch of Max votes, so I'm a little surprised that Lewis is leading by so much.

Either way, I voted for Alonso. Completely outperformed his car on both Saturday and Sunday. If not for reliability, he'd have scored points in both races with a car that should not be anywhere near the top 10 on merit. He's making Vandoorne look like a chump, and we all know he's not.

Verstappen would be my second choice today.

Posted: **Mon Apr 10, 2017 5:45 am**

mds wrote:
sandman1347 wrote:Sainz really is the forgotten man here. All the midfield credit is going to Alonso but Sainz pulled a blinder with his strategy call and finished the race in the highest position possible for that car. He has also, once again, demolished his teammate. Sainz is one to watch for the future and I think he will move up the grid next season (if not at Red Bull then at Ferrari or Mercedes).
I don't think he's being forgotten. It's just that this is DotW, not DotD, and a driver being beaten in qualifying usually is not in contention for DotW.

In my view many votes give too much importance to the result of quali. Any driver will sacrifice their performance in qualifying if it means getting an advantage in the race. Remember, no points on Saturday. That's specially relevant in a race like China, where you know beforehand that quali is going to be dry and the race (at least partially) wet. I don't think that Sainz was DotW (too many mistakes), but it doesn't make a lot of sense to discount him because Kviat outqualified him.

Posted: **Mon Apr 10, 2017 6:16 am**

Alonshow wrote:
mds wrote:
sandman1347 wrote:Sainz really is the forgotten man here. All the midfield credit is going to Alonso but Sainz pulled a blinder with his strategy call and finished the race in the highest position possible for that car. He has also, once again, demolished his teammate. Sainz is one to watch for the future and I think he will move up the grid next season (if not at Red Bull then at Ferrari or Mercedes).
I don't think he's being forgotten. It's just that this is DotW, not DotD, and a driver being beaten in qualifying usually is not in contention for DotW.
In my view many votes give too much importance to the result of quali. Any driver will sacrifice their performance in qualifying if it means getting an advantage in the race. Remember, no points on Saturday. That's specially relevant in a race like China, where you know beforehand that quali is going to be dry and the race (at least partially) wet. I don't think that Sainz was DotW (too many mistakes), but it doesn't make a lot of sense to discount him because Kviat outqualified him.

The main thing that sets DotW apart from DotD is that Saturdays are to be taken into account - that's pretty much the definition of DotW. So of course it makes sense to discount a driver that hasn't performed optimally on Saturday.

Posted: **Mon Apr 10, 2017 6:19 am**

Exediron wrote:IIf not for reliability, he'd have scored points in both races with a car that should not be anywhere near the top 10 on merit. He's making Vandoorne look like a chump, and we all know he's not.

Just to comment on this bit: I heard from various sources that for the second weekend running they were not driving the same car.
Even then Vandoorne was not THAT far off in qualifying (half a second with a car supposedly less developed) and in the race his car started acting up really fast.

Posted: **Mon Apr 10, 2017 6:38 am**

mds wrote:
Exediron wrote:IIf not for reliability, he'd have scored points in both races with a car that should not be anywhere near the top 10 on merit. He's making Vandoorne look like a chump, and we all know he's not.
Just to comment on this bit: I heard from various sources that for the second weekend running they were not driving the same car.
Even then Vandoorne was not THAT far off in qualifying (half a second with a car supposedly less developed) and in the race his car started acting up really fast.

I hadn't seen that for this weekend, although I admit it's entirely possible. My understanding was that at least the power train for both cars was identical this time, and that Alonso had dropped the experimental wing from Australia, which I took to mean they'd be running the same wing. What were the sources you saw saying they were running different specifications?

And I think half a second faster than an extremely highly rated (if inexperienced) teammate is doing very well, assuming of course the cars were comparable.

Posted: **Mon Apr 10, 2017 6:52 am**

Exediron wrote:
mds wrote:
Exediron wrote:IIf not for reliability, he'd have scored points in both races with a car that should not be anywhere near the top 10 on merit. He's making Vandoorne look like a chump, and we all know he's not.
Just to comment on this bit: I heard from various sources that for the second weekend running they were not driving the same car.
Even then Vandoorne was not THAT far off in qualifying (half a second with a car supposedly less developed) and in the race his car started acting up really fast.
I hadn't seen that for this weekend, although I admit it's entirely possible. My understanding was that at least the power train for both cars was identical this time, and that Alonso had dropped the experimental wing from Australia, which I took to mean they'd be running the same wing. What were the sources you saw saying they were running different specifications?

And I think half a second faster than an extremely highly rated (if inexperienced) teammate is doing very well, assuming of course the cars were comparable.

Read around on other fora but haven't asked about sources.

No question Alonso is doing very well though, but it's hard to rate exactly how well. I am, however, getting a bit fed up with him calling every one of his races "his best ever" or something along those lines.

Posted: **Mon Apr 10, 2017 6:56 am**

mds wrote:
Exediron wrote:
mds wrote:
Exediron wrote:IIf not for reliability, he'd have scored points in both races with a car that should not be anywhere near the top 10 on merit. He's making Vandoorne look like a chump, and we all know he's not.
Just to comment on this bit: I heard from various sources that for the second weekend running they were not driving the same car.
Even then Vandoorne was not THAT far off in qualifying (half a second with a car supposedly less developed) and in the race his car started acting up really fast.
I hadn't seen that for this weekend, although I admit it's entirely possible. My understanding was that at least the power train for both cars was identical this time, and that Alonso had dropped the experimental wing from Australia, which I took to mean they'd be running the same wing. What were the sources you saw saying they were running different specifications?

And I think half a second faster than an extremely highly rated (if inexperienced) teammate is doing very well, assuming of course the cars were comparable.
Read around on other fora but haven't asked about sources.

No question Alonso is doing very well though, but it's hard to rate exactly how well. I am, however, getting a bit fed up with him calling every one of his races "his best ever" or something along those lines.

I think he's decided to laugh instead of cry... it has to be one of the two! He is driving rather beautifully at the moment though.

Posted: **Mon Apr 10, 2017 8:17 am**

Massa. (Edit: a missed click voting for Max, but I hope Felipe likes it!)

Posted: **Mon Apr 10, 2017 8:27 am**

mds wrote:
Exediron wrote:IIf not for reliability, he'd have scored points in both races with a car that should not be anywhere near the top 10 on merit. He's making Vandoorne look like a chump, and we all know he's not.
Just to comment on this bit: I heard from various sources that for the second weekend running they were not driving the same car.
Even then Vandoorne was not THAT far off in qualifying (half a second with a car supposedly less developed) and in the race his car started acting up really fast.

I believe it was also reported on RTBF. Anyway, I have heard the same.

Posted: **Mon Apr 10, 2017 11:27 am**

mds wrote:
Exediron wrote:IIf not for reliability, he'd have scored points in both races with a car that should not be anywhere near the top 10 on merit. He's making Vandoorne look like a chump, and we all know he's not.
Just to comment on this bit: I heard from various sources that for the second weekend running they were not driving the same car.
Even then Vandoorne was not THAT far off in qualifying (half a second with a car supposedly less developed) and in the race his car started acting up really fast.

It was Stoff's turn this week and the only difference I've seen was a new Turbo and MGU-H for him. A revision rather than a major upgrade though but it gave him a few more kph through the traps.

Both tested new rear wing Saturday morning but it was left off for the race and the front wing Alonso used in Oz was ditched.

Posted: **Mon Apr 10, 2017 11:49 am**

Lotus49 wrote:
mds wrote:
Exediron wrote:IIf not for reliability, he'd have scored points in both races with a car that should not be anywhere near the top 10 on merit. He's making Vandoorne look like a chump, and we all know he's not.
Just to comment on this bit: I heard from various sources that for the second weekend running they were not driving the same car.
Even then Vandoorne was not THAT far off in qualifying (half a second with a car supposedly less developed) and in the race his car started acting up really fast.
It was Stoff's turn this week and the only difference I've seen was a new Turbo and MGU-H for him. A revision rather than a major upgrade though but it gave him a few more kph through the traps.

Both tested new rear wing Saturday morning but it was left off for the race and the front wing Alonso used in Oz was ditched.

Interesting, thanks!

I wonder whether being called "the flying waffle" knocked him back.

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/C84O2CyXgAEyXUx.jpg

Posted: **Mon Apr 10, 2017 12:06 pm**

Fiki wrote:
Lotus49 wrote:
mds wrote:
Exediron wrote:IIf not for reliability, he'd have scored points in both races with a car that should not be anywhere near the top 10 on merit. He's making Vandoorne look like a chump, and we all know he's not.
Just to comment on this bit: I heard from various sources that for the second weekend running they were not driving the same car.
Even then Vandoorne was not THAT far off in qualifying (half a second with a car supposedly less developed) and in the race his car started acting up really fast.
It was Stoff's turn this week and the only difference I've seen was a new Turbo and MGU-H for him. A revision rather than a major upgrade though but it gave him a few more kph through the traps.

Both tested new rear wing Saturday morning but it was left off for the race and the front wing Alonso used in Oz was ditched.
Interesting, thanks!

I wonder whether being called "the flying waffle" knocked him back. https://pbs.twimg.com/media/C84O2CyXgAEyXUx.jpg

I think not racing before in China and not having FP1+2 to get up to speed hurt Stoff more than anything this weekend which is why I'm thinking Bahrain might be the best bet for him to show what he can do properly.

Posted: **Mon Apr 10, 2017 12:28 pm**

Max for the race, Alonso for the weekend

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DOTW China - Officially Unofficial Driver Of The Weekend

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