2021 Formula 1 Season Thread

[The-Real-Deal82]

I think we all realise F1 isn’t as good as it used to be but that is generational. My father would say the 60’s and 70’s was better than any era since and kids these days will say the same about the current sport.

The problem now is most kids don’t have access to F1 like we did and it’s losing viewers hand over fist in countries when it’s disappeared onto PPV. Most of my mates who followed F1 throughout the late 80’s, 90’s and early 21st century have ceased watching it now and that’s down to Sky tv. Hopefully Liberty realise F1 needs a bigger presence on terrestrial tv in order to have any form of following for future generations.

 

[ericwn]

OK chief.

You’re welcome kiddo.

 

[pachyderm]

What I see when I see the the front end of the Mercedes...

 

[The-Real-Deal82]

Great win for Hamilton. The strategy paid off but it’s great to see Verstappen in a close car bringing the challenge.

 

[pachyderm]

Great win for Hamilton. The strategy paid off but it’s great to see Verstappen in a close car bringing the challenge.

It's hard for me to tell anymore.

Was it a great race?

Or are Mercedes pretending ?

 

[michael9891]

It's hard for me to tell anymore.

Was it a great race?

Or are Mercedes pretending ?

It's clear for everyone to see how close the 2 teams are this year. Mercedes were a good half a second or more per lap ahead of Red Bull/Ferrari the last few years. Now it's down to how Lewis & Max perform and strategic decisions at the right time.

 

[Glideslope]

I'm just pleased with a Honda setting Fastest Lap.

I'm going to miss Honda.

 

[Glideslope]

Great win for Hamilton. The strategy paid off but it’s great to see Verstappen in a close car bringing the challenge.

Max deserves credit for his driving as Hamilton overtook. After turn one at the beginning I didn't think the pass would be uneventful.

He has grown allot. I think if his tires were as fresh as Lewis' he could have held him off in the RBR Honda. Many in the Paddock as well as myself feel the 2021 RA621H is stronger than the Mercedes.

Mercedes has obviously solved the early issues with rear downforce as both drivers easily put the power down now.

Nikita Mazepin should be back in Karts IMO as well.

 

[The-Real-Deal82]

Max deserves credit for his driving as Hamilton overtook. After turn one at the beginning I didn't think the pass would be uneventful.

He has grown allot. I think if his tires were as fresh as Lewis' he could have held him off in the RBR Honda. Many in the Paddock as well as myself feel the 2021 RA621H is stronger than the Mercedes.

Mercedes has obviously solved the early issues with rear downforce as both drivers easily put the power down now.

I think this year it’ll come down to driver consistency and team strategy. Max is maturing and he’s up against the ultimate test in Hamilton.

Nikita Mazepin should be back in Karts IMO as well.

I totally disagree with you here. I’d put him in a video game league, that way nobody gets hurt.

 

[Glideslope]

I think this year it’ll come down to driver consistency and team strategy. Max is maturing and he’s up against the ultimate test in Hamilton.


I totally disagree with you here. I’d put him in a video game league, that way nobody gets hurt.

I agree with the “Video Game” analogy. I was trying to be restrained.

 

[CWallace]

It's hard for me to tell anymore.

Was it a great race?

Or are Mercedes pretending ?

I think the RBR is better on full tanks. Max launched better and kept Lewis out of DRS for much of the early race.

On the flip side, I think the MB is better on light tanks. Yes, Lewis had fresher tires and I am sure that played a major role, but the RBR has always looked easier on it's tires than the MB and I think that allows RBR to push harder on full tanks - the MB suffers too much tire wear when heavy.

Man, embarrassing day for the #2s - Bottas and Pérez could not pass LeClerc and while the Ferrari is not the truck it was last year, it's still slow as a f**k and the #1s were putting a second a lap on it.

I'd be worried if I was Pérez since Liam Lawson is doing well in F2 and will likely be called up to F1 next season, meaning Pérez will be pushed out. Bottas is probably safe only because I think Russell is a hard-charger and the team might be worried about how well he would mesh with Lewis.

 

[Apple fanboy]

Bottas did himself no favours in his performance and in the way he held Lewis up for a bit. Yes it made no difference in the end, but still not a great way to win over the team for a new contract.

Lewis not only brought the 22 second down to nothing, he saved some tyres for the pass. I thought Mercedes had blown it when they didn’t pit immediately after Max. But shows what I know!

Ricardo finally beat Norris which I was expecting from race one to be honest. You have to think why are Alonso, Vettel and Kimi making the numbers at the back? You’d think they would rather go out nearer the top.

 

[ericwn]

we start out w/ like BMW, Mercedes cla$$

in time = Ferrari/Lamborghini

I’m sorry I have no idea what your comment means.

 

[Apple fanboy]

I’m sorry I have no idea what your comment means.

I thought it was just me.

 

[michael9891]

we start out w/ like BMW, Mercedes cla$$

in time = Ferrari/Lamborghini

I've never been good at solving cryptic puzzles.

Anyway, back in the real world. Drivers should all be given at least some time to prove themselves. But I can't see past Mazepin being a 1 season failure. Hasn't done himself an favours getting in the way of Lewis today & Lando yesterday.

 

[The-Real-Deal82]

I don’t think Mazepin will see out the season the way things are going. I think they’ll be pressure in Haas to drop him.

Anybody else think Hamilton deserves credit for his reaction skills at turn 1 at the start? I know the commentators said Max had his elbows out but it was thanks to Lewis we didn’t see a big shunt. It may be a bit of psychological dominance from Max but I think it also demonstrates the experience of a 7 time WDC to concede and play the long game. I think the psychological battle will come into play later this season. Lewis used to be quite weak in this regard in his early F1 career but has often proved much better under pressure. He nearly always got under Nico’s skin and forced him into errors, even in the closing stages of 2016. I think he could do the same to Max who is hot headed. It’ll be a fascinating battle and I hope it remains close!

 

[michael9891]

I don’t think Mazepin will see out the season the way things are going. I think they’ll be pressure in Haas to drop him.

Anybody else think Hamilton deserves credit for his reaction skills at turn 1 at the start? I know the commentators said Max had his elbows out but it was thanks to Lewis we didn’t see a big shunt. It may be a bit of psychological dominance from Max but I think it also demonstrates the experience of a 7 time WDC to concede and play the long game. I think the psychological battle will come into play later this season. Lewis used to be quite weak in this regard in his early F1 career but has often proved much better under pressure. He nearly always got under Nico’s skin and forced him into errors, even in the closing stages of 2016. I think he could do the same to Max who is hot headed. It’ll be a fascinating battle and I hope it remains close!

Watching it live it looked like they came together at the beginning. It wasn't until I saw a close up you could see Lewis pull out at the last second. Good reactions to avoid possible disaster.

 

[BenTrovato]

I don’t think Mazepin will see out the season the way things are going. I think they’ll be pressure in Haas to drop him.

Anybody else think Hamilton deserves credit for his reaction skills at turn 1 at the start? I know the commentators said Max had his elbows out but it was thanks to Lewis we didn’t see a big shunt. It may be a bit of psychological dominance from Max but I think it also demonstrates the experience of a 7 time WDC to concede and play the long game. I think the psychological battle will come into play later this season. Lewis used to be quite weak in this regard in his early F1 career but has often proved much better under pressure. He nearly always got under Nico’s skin and forced him into errors, even in the closing stages of 2016. I think he could do the same to Max who is hot headed. It’ll be a fascinating battle and I hope it remains close!

Lewis was definitely on his game in Spain. Calm, cool and ready to avoid disaster.

Listening to Toto before the race where he said they had "options" if Lewis wasn't first into turn one was a big hint that they knew Max was going to dive in no matter what. My takeaway from that is that Mercedes knew they could win the race from second place. That car is on another level. Red Bull has made massive gains but Max is making it look better than it is.

 

[Apple fanboy]

Lewis was definitely on his game in Spain. Calm, cool and ready to avoid disaster.

Listening to Toto before the race where he said they had "options" if Lewis wasn't first into turn one was a big hint that they knew Max was going to dive in no matter what. My takeaway from that is that Mercedes knew they could win the race from second place. That car is on another level. Red Bull has made massive gains but Max is making it look better than it is.

Max and Lewis are getting the best out of their cars, that’s for sure. Or is it that Perez and Bottas are getting very poor performance from theirs?

 

[fridayxiii]

My takeaways from the race: as others noted, Lewis is indeed one cool cat. Calm, cool, collected, and confident. Also, Mercedes appears to outmaneuver RBR when it matters most. I think strategy determined the outcome as much as driver skill & car performance on Sunday if not more.

 

[Apple fanboy]

My takeaways from the race: as others noted, Lewis is indeed one cool cat. Calm, cool, collected, and confident. Also, Mercedes appears to outmaneuver RBR when it matters most. I think strategy determined the outcome as much as driver skill & car performance on Sunday if not more.

100% it was a strategy victory. But Lewis still had to put those laps in without using up all his rubber.

 

[fridayxiii]

100% it was a strategy victory. But Lewis still had to put those laps in without using up all his rubber.

Very true. The more I watch F1 the more I'm amazed at how quickly grip falls off when tires hit a certain point & how the drivers manage. Must be unnerving to have that much power available, be forced to brake as late as possible, and wonder if your tires will hold or when they'll let loose. I've pushed grippy tires in a car setup for spirited driving on twisty roads close to the edge, and when you get there you feel it in the pit of your stomach.

it does indeed take a deft touch to preserve tires as Lewis did.

 

[Apple fanboy]

Very true. The more I watch F1 the more I'm amazed at how quickly grip falls off when tires hit a certain point & how the drivers manage. Must be unnerving to have that much power available, be forced to brake as late as possible, and wonder if your tires will hold or when they'll let loose. I've pushed grippy tires in a car setup for spirited driving on twisty roads close to the edge, and when you get there you feel it in the pit of your stomach.

it does indeed take a deft touch to preserve tires as Lewis did.

Pirelli have designed them that way on purpose to make it more exciting. But certain drivers can always exploit them for extra laps and or performance.

 

[The-Real-Deal82]

My takeaways from the race: as others noted, Lewis is indeed one cool cat. Calm, cool, collected, and confident. Also, Mercedes appears to outmaneuver RBR when it matters most. I think strategy determined the outcome as much as driver skill & car performance on Sunday if not more.

It’s always about the complete package. Car, driver, pit crew and strategy IMO. If all those elements are not in tune, no amount of driver compensation makes up for it every single time. I do think Hamilton is reminding people he’s one of the greatest and Max is shining as one of the brightest prospects for the future. I do think at this point in time Hamilton edges him slightly, but that’s because of time in the sport and the fact he’s extremely experienced with the pressures of managing a world championship victory.

I hope Hamilton gets another contract and Red Bull maintain this momentum because we need a close battle after years of Mercedes doing the best job. Two teams going at it has been sorely missed.

 

[Apple fanboy]

It’s always about the complete package. Car, driver, pit crew and strategy IMO. If all those elements are not in tune, no amount of driver compensation makes up for it every single time. I do think Hamilton is reminding people he’s one of the greatest and Max is shining as one of the brightest prospects for the future. I do think at this point in time Hamilton edges him slightly, but that’s because of time in the sport and the fact he’s extremely experienced with the pressures of managing a world championship victory.

I hope Hamilton gets another contract and Red Bull maintain this momentum because we need a close battle after years of Mercedes doing the best job. Two teams going at it has been sorely missed.

Agree with all the above. Pretty sure he’ll get another contract should he want it. Pretty sure he does from what I see.
Not sure Bottas will though. I think they need to bring in a young gun now who can eventually replace Lewis. Clearly that’s not going to be Bottas.
Could be Russell. But my money would be on Norris.