2012 Formula 1 Thread

[pachyderm]

Originally Posted by CWallace

He's an Aussie who covers for Varsha when Varsha has to do Barrett-Jackson auctions.



All coverage is on SPEED. Free Practice Three is on right now. Qualifying is at Noon Central Time. Race is 12:30PM Central tomorrow.

Because SPEED has lost the contract, they decided not to send the team to Austin for the weekend so they are broadcasting from the studio as usual (though they were all there earlier in the week).

wtf? out of spite?

[CWallace]

Originally Posted by pachyderm

wtf? out of spite?

I imagine it has more to do with that there would be no real Public Relations benefit of doing it since SPEED only has one more race broadcast afterwards.

If SPEED had retained the rights, I expect they would have had a big shindig in Austin like they had when the USGP was in Indianapolis.

[northernbaldy]

Just watched qualiy on the bbc, not bad
Its a bit slippery! So should be exciting tomorrow*


















*only if vettel has a problem or gets punted off the track, otherwise he will just piss off into the distance

[pachyderm]

Originally Posted by northernbaldy

Just watched qualiy on the bbc, not bad
Its a bit slippery! So should be exciting tomorrow*


*only if vettel has a problem or gets punted off the track, otherwise he will just piss off into the distance

he he he. yeah. i'm rooting for alonso so i hope that won't happen but ya gotta think it will.

that said, one of or both of the mcclarens might break. webber might(surely) will tangle with someone... i firmly believe that something good will happen and aide alonso again this week...

[Macman45]

I wonder how Lewis will fair next season with the Silver Arrows? He has been frustrated this year with a car that wasn't quite there, reliability issues etc. I think he and the Mercedes team could be potential contenders in 2013.

[spencers]

I'm here at the F1 USA track today. CAN'T WAIT for this race to start!

[CWallace]

Webber will certainly have a bad start because he's Webber. Massa and Alonso were starting on the clean side of the track, but that changed once Grosjean was kicked back. Ferrari than "changed" Massa's transmission (by breaking the FIA seal) so that kicked him back five spots and promoted Alonso to the clean side again.

[pachyderm]

Originally Posted by Macman45

I wonder how Lewis will fair next season with the Silver Arrows? He has been frustrated this year with a car that wasn't quite there, reliability issues etc. I think he and the Mercedes team could be potential contenders in 2013.

the mcclaren clearly was the 2nd best car. but on several days it was the best and, as you pointed out, reliability cost him a couple of wins. he's good for a win or two for them(mercedes) ...

[Don't panic]

interesting race, i really liked the track, i think it will become a classic.

[AirThis]

Originally Posted by Don't panic

interesting race, i really liked the track, i think it will become a classic.

Hopefully, yes. But I wonder what the track will be like when there's more grip. I was surprised to see that those who attempted overtaking moves outside the 'ideal line' weren't really disadvantaged. For instance, I wonder if the pass Kimi made on Hulkenberg after turn 1 will still be possible in a few years once there's more grip on the racing line.

In any event, it was an exciting race. F1 needs more of that IMHO.

[whooleytoo]

Originally Posted by AirThis

Hopefully, yes. But I wonder what the track will be like when there's more grip. I was surprised to see that those who attempted overtaking moves outside the 'ideal line' weren't really disadvantaged. For instance, I wonder if the pass Kimi made on Hulkenberg after turn 1 will still be possible in a few years once there's more grip on the racing line.

In any event, it was an exciting race. F1 needs more of that IMHO.

I think the track design helps too, with very wide approaches to tight corners. Anyone doing the optimal line into turn 1 is at risk of someone diving down the inside; if they move left to cover that they risk the other car cutting back and getting better acceleration out of the corner and into Turn 2.

Certainly the low grip helped a lot, but in any case - it was good to see lots of overtaking at 4 corners on a track (down the inside on turn 1, on the cut-back and on the outside of turn 2, at the end of the long straight with DRS, and - surprisingly - down the inside of turn 16 (Perez and Button both passed here).

[AirThis]

Originally Posted by whooleytoo

I think the track design helps too, with very wide approaches to tight corners.

Yeah, I agree about the track being wide enough in the right spots. Other F1 circuits should be designed in a similar manner. We saw plenty of overtaking, and not only on the straights or in the pits. I liked the fact that drivers were free to choose their line. On tracks that are more grippy it's sometimes difficult to notice the difference in driving styles. In the aerial shots taken of turns 3 through 7, you could clearly see the different trajectories used by various drivers. I found that to be quite interesting.

[smithrh]

My gosh this thread has been quiet...

In any case, the season is over with a pretty good finish. Some German guy won it, or so I hear.

And while I don't mind Diffey much, I do think that after a year, Varsha will be back with Hobbs and Matchett (and I think Buxton) at NBC.

It's a shame how Fox dicked with Speedvision. In the end, they got what they deserved but as usual, the fans suffer for it.

I do hope that NBC picks up the 24 hours of Le Mans, plus all of the other under-covered motorsports, but that may be too much to ask.

[zagato27]

Originally Posted by smithrh

My gosh this thread has been quiet...

In any case, the season is over with a pretty good finish. Some German guy won it, or so I hear.

And while I don't mind Diffey much, I do think that after a year, Varsha will be back with Hobbs and Matchett (and I think Buxton) at NBC.

It's a shame how Fox dicked with Speedvision. In the end, they got what they deserved but as usual, the fans suffer for it.

I do hope that NBC picks up the 24 hours of Le Mans, plus all of the other under-covered motorsports, but that may be too much to ask.

X2, Dang! Forgot about Le Mans. Fingers crossed that it's televised.

[CWallace]

Varsha did include Buxton along with Hobbs and Matchett when he wished them well at NBCSN, so perhaps he has been added. Though Will didn't mention in his sendoff from Interlagos that he'd be at NBCSN.

As for LeMans, the channel formerly known as SPEED may still carry it, but I am worried about how much they would cover.

When they first started carrying the 24, they covered the entire race except when they had to break away to cover FP2 and Qualifying at Montreal (when the Canadian GP was on the same weekend). Once FOX took over, they also cut away for Nationwide qualifying and Sprint Cup practice along with some of their track-side shows.

With the replacement channel also adding baseball, soccer and college football...

[hanschien]

Originally Posted by CWallace

Varsha did include Buxton along with Hobbs and Matchett when he wished them well at NBCSN, so perhaps he has been added. Though Will didn't mention in his sendoff from Interlagos that he'd be at NBCSN.

I think he may have accidentally included Will but probably meant Diffey. But I hope Will does get the job at NBC.

[RaceTripper]

Originally Posted by CWallace

As for LeMans, the channel formerly known as SPEED may still carry it, but I am worried about how much they would cover.

Actually, Speeds coverage of Le Man style sports car racing is improving in 2013. They are bringing back coverage of the 12 Hours of Sebring and Petit Le Mans after a two year hiatus due to ALMS's failed so-called TV package with ESPN.

[smithrh]

I had heard or read - somewhere - that Will had been signed before I heard Varsha say it.

Originally Posted by RaceTripper

Actually, Speeds coverage of Le Man style sports car racing is improving in 2013. They are bringing back coverage of the 12 Hours of Sebring and Petit Le Mans after a two year hiatus due to ALMS's failed so-called TV package with ESPN.

My worry is that "Speed" will no longer exist at that point and all of those great-sounding plans will be for naught.

[robbieduncan]

Fantastic end to the season. Would have preferred Alonso to win. Not because I like him, but I think he deserved it based on the rubbish car he was driving

[RaceTripper]

Originally Posted by smithrh

My worry is that "Speed" will no longer exist at that point and all of those great-sounding plans will be for naught.

There have been rumors that FOX will rebrand SPEED as a more generalized sports station, but I still think they'll honor the commitment to televise Sebring and Petit, and bring Le Mans as well.

[smithrh]

Originally Posted by robbieduncan

Fantastic end to the season. Would have preferred Alonso to win. Not because I like him, but I think he deserved it based on the rubbish car he was driving

I was hoping for a Hamilton win, with Alonso getting enough points to win the championship - plus Massa on the podium. Close but no cigar there.

Overall, still a great season, much drama on and off track.

Originally Posted by RaceTripper

There have been rumors that FOX will rebrand SPEED as a more generalized sports station, but I still think they'll honor the commitment to televise Sebring and Petit, and bring Le Mans as well.

I do hope it's broadcast - it's a unique race that deserves coverage.

I do wonder if Nascar was really the albatross around Speed's neck here - they must have been losing money big time - and prime time spots.

[CWallace]

FOX has confirmed that SPEED will be replaced in 2013 with a more generalized sports network intended to compete with the NBC Sports Network. While this network is expected to continue with autosport content, they will also be broadcasting college football, baseball, soccer and cage-fighting.

As for NASCAR coverage, I'd argue that probably has helped the channel, otherwise SPEED would not have continued to add NASCAR-themed shows and content.

[smithrh]

Originally Posted by CWallace

FOX has confirmed that SPEED will be replaced in 2013 with a more generalized sports network intended to compete with the NBC Sports Network. While this network is expected to continue with autosport content, they will also be broadcasting college football, baseball, soccer and cage-fighting.

As for NASCAR coverage, I'd argue that probably has helped the channel, otherwise SPEED would not have continued to add NASCAR-themed shows and content.

A cursory search shows 2012 to be a pretty bad year for Nascar ratings.

I'd not be totally surprised if Fox had doubled down on coverage, lost, and decided to quit, with F1 being the victim.

We'll see if there's 2013 Nascar coverage on a channel like Speed. If not, then there's your sign, so to speak.


That's all water under the bridge, looking forward to 2013 F1, which is not that far away! I've heard that the TV contract stipulates practice and qualy coverage as well as races, so I'm happy for that.

[bjm2660]

It'll be March before you know it.

[zagato27]

^^^Too darn long to wait! Haven't looked, anybody started the 2013 F1 thread. GO Ferrari/Alonso! Gosh I hope they develop a good car this year. I can only hope. Then again, I'm kind of pulling for Kimi too. Anybody but you know who. Cheers