2018 Azerbaijan Grand Prix Race Thread
Posted: Sat Apr 28, 2018 2:04 pm
Tomorrow's race is poised to be a nail biter!
I get the feeling Ferrari will get caught out on strategy again with the two Mercedes being able to split theirs.davidheath461 wrote:Mercedes race pace was mediocre in Friday. If it's a clean race then Vettel has this in the big.
That's forgetting Kimi is going to force others into pitting, and if he can clear the bulls quickly.Black_Flag_11 wrote:I get the feeling Ferrari will get caught out on strategy again with the two Mercedes being able to split theirs.davidheath461 wrote:Mercedes race pace was mediocre in Friday. If it's a clean race then Vettel has this in the big.
He will need a phenomenal start and then some serious early pace if Ferrari want to get him into a position where he can cause a bit of mischief, and unless he goes ultras second stint with a third on the softs, it's hard to see him having the pace to do any real blocking after the rest of the front runners pit, especially with S3 being one giant drag race. As much as I think Ferrari screwed Kimi last time out in order to try and block Bottas back into Vettel, that seemed like a decision done on the fly. To do the above would require pre planning with the strategy, and I don't think even Ferrari would go that far this early in the year, purely from a motivational perspective.Rockie wrote:That's forgetting Kimi is going to force others into pitting, and if he can clear the bulls quickly.Black_Flag_11 wrote:I get the feeling Ferrari will get caught out on strategy again with the two Mercedes being able to split theirs.davidheath461 wrote:Mercedes race pace was mediocre in Friday. If it's a clean race then Vettel has this in the big.
He's going to be on the faster tyre at the start if he has a good start he should have one bull by turn one and the other once drs comes on we have seen how powerful the tow is here.Flash2k11 wrote:He will need a phenomenal start and then some serious early pace if Ferrari want to get him into a position where he can cause a bit of mischief, and unless he goes ultras second stint with a third on the softs, it's hard to see him having the pace to do any real blocking after the rest of the front runners pit, especially with S3 being one giant drag race. As much as I think Ferrari screwed Kimi last time out in order to try and block Bottas back into Vettel, that seemed like a decision done on the fly. To do the above would require pre planning with the strategy, and I don't think even Ferrari would go that far this early in the year, purely from a motivational perspective.Rockie wrote:That's forgetting Kimi is going to force others into pitting, and if he can clear the bulls quickly.Black_Flag_11 wrote:I get the feeling Ferrari will get caught out on strategy again with the two Mercedes being able to split theirs.davidheath461 wrote:Mercedes race pace was mediocre in Friday. If it's a clean race then Vettel has this in the big.
What's the difference in compounds between the US and SS? In China it was 2 seconds or more between compounds and that's why Verstappen had the pace to overtake. Tow means nothing in the same speed cars, it might and I mean a big might make the difference between a Ferrari and RB depending how much quicker the Ferrari is. These cars are awful for overtaking.Rockie wrote:He's going to be on the faster tyre at the start if he has a good start he should have one bull by turn one and the other once drs comes on we have seen how powerful the tow is here.Flash2k11 wrote:He will need a phenomenal start and then some serious early pace if Ferrari want to get him into a position where he can cause a bit of mischief, and unless he goes ultras second stint with a third on the softs, it's hard to see him having the pace to do any real blocking after the rest of the front runners pit, especially with S3 being one giant drag race. As much as I think Ferrari screwed Kimi last time out in order to try and block Bottas back into Vettel, that seemed like a decision done on the fly. To do the above would require pre planning with the strategy, and I don't think even Ferrari would go that far this early in the year, purely from a motivational perspective.Rockie wrote:That's forgetting Kimi is going to force others into pitting, and if he can clear the bulls quickly.Black_Flag_11 wrote:I get the feeling Ferrari will get caught out on strategy again with the two Mercedes being able to split theirs.davidheath461 wrote:Mercedes race pace was mediocre in Friday. If it's a clean race then Vettel has this in the big.
Just last race you saw how Max was able to do same.
What can Mercedes really do though? It's a one stopper and RB might have the pace to keep up which changes everything. Pit the first Mercedes and Vettel reacts meaning the second Mercedes is just waiting for a VSC or SC,Black_Flag_11 wrote:I get the feeling Ferrari will get caught out on strategy again with the two Mercedes being able to split theirs.davidheath461 wrote:Mercedes race pace was mediocre in Friday. If it's a clean race then Vettel has this in the big.
hopefully vettel and hamilton will take each other out at the start and then ferrari will be forced into thinking about strategy for kimi. its the only way that will happen. the ultras have lasted well at other tracks so he should get a decent stint. if he can pass a couple of cars and then undercut a couple of cars his ferrari has the potential to win. hes gonna need something though, and i cant remember the last time he got a big lump of it, and thats luck.Rockie wrote:He's going to be on the faster tyre at the start if he has a good start he should have one bull by turn one and the other once drs comes on we have seen how powerful the tow is here.Flash2k11 wrote:He will need a phenomenal start and then some serious early pace if Ferrari want to get him into a position where he can cause a bit of mischief, and unless he goes ultras second stint with a third on the softs, it's hard to see him having the pace to do any real blocking after the rest of the front runners pit, especially with S3 being one giant drag race. As much as I think Ferrari screwed Kimi last time out in order to try and block Bottas back into Vettel, that seemed like a decision done on the fly. To do the above would require pre planning with the strategy, and I don't think even Ferrari would go that far this early in the year, purely from a motivational perspective.Rockie wrote:That's forgetting Kimi is going to force others into pitting, and if he can clear the bulls quickly.Black_Flag_11 wrote:I get the feeling Ferrari will get caught out on strategy again with the two Mercedes being able to split theirs.davidheath461 wrote:Mercedes race pace was mediocre in Friday. If it's a clean race then Vettel has this in the big.
Just last race you saw how Max was able to do same.
The tow here on same tyres is worth 3/10th.F1_Ernie wrote:
What's the difference in compounds between the US and SS? In China it was 2 seconds or more between compounds and that's why Verstappen had the pace to overtake. Tow means nothing in the same speed cars, it might and I mean a big might make the difference between a Ferrari and RB depending how much quicker the Ferrari is. These cars are awful for overtaking.
Well, if they get away as is, they are in the driving seat in regards to strategy, can do the undercut and overcut on Vettel. As some have alluded to already though, I think the VSC/SC is going to be the big fly in the ointment on any potential strategy today. We saw last year that with the close walls and limited/dangerous runoff, an SC situation is likely. Red Bull have shown they probably react the best to this kind of issue the best so far this year, could be a good day for them.Zoue wrote:I'm still thinking this may be a Mercedes win. They are already quicker on the straights than the Ferrari and with DRS they have a great chance of pulling off an overtake. The caveat is them staying close in the twisty bits, of course, but I do fancy their chances
i think ferrari have the fastest car here personally. i think merc still have more of a q3 boost then ferrari but if kimi had nailed his lap they would have been about 4 tenths down which is a big chunk. if they get away in order i think that vettel will pull a gap in the first two sectors, stay out of drs early and will have the pace to pull away.Zoue wrote:I'm still thinking this may be a Mercedes win. They are already quicker on the straights than the Ferrari and with DRS they have a great chance of pulling off an overtake. The caveat is them staying close in the twisty bits, of course, but I do fancy their chances
Interesting Data.UnlikeUday wrote:Pirelli's recommended pit strategies:
Quickest theoretical strategy for tomorrow is a one-stop strategy:
Start on supersoft for 20 laps, then soft for 31 laps.
Second-quickest strategy is also a one-stopper:
Start on ultrasoft for 10 laps, then 41 laps on soft to the flag.
Ideal two-stopper:
Start on ultrasoft for 10 laps, then supersoft for 20 laps, then supersoft again for 21 laps to the flag.
Forgetting they are slower through the twisty bits which lead onto the straights for drs, so might not be in drs range in the race.Zoue wrote:I'm still thinking this may be a Mercedes win. They are already quicker on the straights than the Ferrari and with DRS they have a great chance of pulling off an overtake. The caveat is them staying close in the twisty bits, of course, but I do fancy their chances
Would a two stop tyre strategy that involves finishing on the ultrasoft be any good?UnlikeUday wrote:Pirelli's recommended pit strategies:
Quickest theoretical strategy for tomorrow is a one-stop strategy:
Start on supersoft for 20 laps, then soft for 31 laps.
Second-quickest strategy is also a one-stopper:
Start on ultrasoft for 10 laps, then 41 laps on soft to the flag.
Ideal two-stopper:
Start on ultrasoft for 10 laps, then supersoft for 20 laps, then supersoft again for 21 laps to the flag.
Grosjean the most consistent out there ..UnlikeUday wrote:Speeds around the Baku circuit:
Source - http://www.f1i.com/wp-content/uploads/2 ... d-Trap.jpg
Not always wise to read in to Merc's Friday pace. I think they run slightly more fuel than Ferrari and Red Bull, and it used to be pretty close even pre-2017 on Fridays, and then Merc would have that clear advantage again in the race.davidheath461 wrote:Mercedes race pace was mediocre in Friday. If it's a clean race then Vettel has this in the big.
Not sure how I'm forgetting it when I said "the caveat is them staying close in the twisty bits?"Rockie wrote:Forgetting they are slower through the twisty bits which lead onto the straights for drs, so might not be in drs range in the race.Zoue wrote:I'm still thinking this may be a Mercedes win. They are already quicker on the straights than the Ferrari and with DRS they have a great chance of pulling off an overtake. The caveat is them staying close in the twisty bits, of course, but I do fancy their chances
A lot will depend on how fast Kimi clears the Redbulls.
Wow, the Ferraris are really slow on the straights.nabby81 wrote:Grosjean the most consistent out there ..UnlikeUday wrote:Speeds around the Baku circuit:
Source - http://www.f1i.com/wp-content/uploads/2 ... d-Trap.jpg
Fixed that for you!Llotyhy wrote:Let the Max mayhem commence!