F1 - 2016 Malaysian Grand Prix

[billt460]

Originally Posted By: gofast182
As whip said, the cars are properly fast now and will be even moreso next year.


So when they were faster and far less complicated a decade ago, they were "improperly faster" ???

Originally Posted By: gofast182
That said, in the past the primary reason to slow the cars down from time to time is due to safety concerns.


The last guy killed in F1 was Bianchi... Who had zero business on that track in that condition. (Pouring rain and standing water). Where was all of this "safety" concern then? There was nothing wrong with safety during the V-10 Schumacher era, when virtually every lap record was set over a decade ago, (see Montoya's example), and STILL have not been broken. No matter how you look at it, the cars were faster a dozen years ago, less complicated, and cheaper.... And just as safe. Their driver safety record proves it.

Originally Posted By: gofast182
Anyway, the beauty of F1 is the engineers aerodynamicists function at such an incredibly high level they always manage to claw back what was regulated away (and the cycle repeats).


As I said, a Hamster on a wheel.

 

[IndyIan]

Originally Posted By: billt460
Originally Posted By: gofast182
As whip said, the cars are properly fast now and will be even moreso next year.


So when they were faster and far less complicated a decade ago, they were "improperly faster" ???

Originally Posted By: gofast182
That said, in the past the primary reason to slow the cars down from time to time is due to safety concerns.


The last guy killed in F1 was Bianchi... Who had zero business on that track in that condition. (Pouring rain and standing water). Where was all of this "safety" concern then? There was nothing wrong with safety during the V-10 Schumacher era, when virtually every lap record was set over a decade ago, (see Montoya's example), and STILL have not been broken. No matter how you look at it, the cars were faster a dozen years ago, less complicated, and cheaper.... And just as safe. Their driver safety record proves it.

Originally Posted By: gofast182
Anyway, the beauty of F1 is the engineers aerodynamicists function at such an incredibly high level they always manage to claw back what was regulated away (and the cycle repeats).


As I said, a Hamster on a wheel.

That's the point of F1 though, who can build the fastest solution to the current set of rules... Outright speed is kind of interesting but lap times aren't really what I watch F1 for. In the current cars I do like that they can spin up the tires in 3-4-5th gear, where watching video of the the older engines(especially the 2.4L) its amazing how quick they can go WO without wheelspin coming out of the corners.
I do wish F1 would stay with one set of rules for longer periods of time though, as it allows teams to catch up to the leader and get closer racing that way, instead of a spec car.

 

[billt460]

Originally Posted By: IndyIan
I do wish F1 would stay with one set of rules for longer periods of time though, as it allows teams to catch up to the leader and get closer racing that way, instead of a spec car.


That's my biggest gripe. The constant never ending, "Rules-Go-Round", F1 is constantly mired in. As you say, if they kept the rules in place for a longer period of time, (several years), it would allow the lesser teams time to become competitive. (Without going bankrupt in the process). And it would make for much better racing, instead of having one, or at the most two teams capable of winning. Right now if you take away the top 3 teams, (Mercedes, Ferrari, Red Bull), everything else is nothing but expensive filler. Manor as much chance of winning, as Jennifer Jo Cobb does to win a Camping World truck race. It's all but amazing that Haas has done as well as it has in it's first year. Considering what they're up against.

 

[gofast182]

Bilt, it's fine not to like F1 but here you are in a thread that I post with the intent of positive discussion about F1 (if you do like it, it sure is hard to tell). The "formula" in formula 1 is the set of rules. It's been evolving since the beginning of the sport. Some of the eras or phases are better and more loved than others, it's just the way it is. How fast these cars are going with the constraints they have makes them, perhaps, the most impressive cars to-date despite the insanely bloated cost. But after 2014, everyone knew what they were signing up for and we still managed to get a new team out of it, Haas.
F1 is also built on dynasties. While I think they did an abysmal job at ensuring parity and more teams should be in contention, I don't necessarily want a new team winning each weekend just for the sake of it. The McLaren Honda dynasty in the 80's, Williams in the 90's, and the Ferrari dynasty in the early 2000's, these are legendary periods of excellence that are looked back up as great achievements in engineering and driving. The Mercedes era will be exactly the same when looked upon some years from now.
The funny thing about F1 that some people miss is: the more it changes the more it stays the same.

 

[Indydriver]

Originally Posted By: billt460
Originally Posted By: Indydriver
..... no one does the grid walk like Will Buxton.


Thank God. I doubt the broadcast world could take 2 of him. Unless there was over the counter Valium available.


Well, there's always Robin Miller or Mikey Waltrip!

 

[billt460]

Originally Posted By: Indydriver
Well, there's always Robin Miller or Mikey Waltrip!


Anyone will do who doesn't act like they O.D.'d on Meth, and washed it all down with a quart of Espresso. Actually, I'm waiting for him to bump into someone and get decked.

 

[Indydriver]

Originally Posted By: gofast182
Bilt, it's fine not to like F1 but here you are in a thread that I post with the intent of positive discussion about F1 (if you do like it, it sure is hard to tell). The "formula" in formula 1 is the set of rules. It's been evolving since the beginning of the sport. Some of the eras or phases are better and more loved than others, it's just the way it is. How fast these cars are going with the constraints they have makes them, perhaps, the most impressive cars to-date despite the insanely bloated cost. But after 2014, everyone knew what they were signing up for and we still managed to get a new team out of it, Haas.
F1 is also built on dynasties. While I think they did an abysmal job at ensuring parity and more teams should be in contention, I don't necessarily want a new team winning each weekend just for the sake of it. The McLaren Honda dynasty in the 80's, Williams in the 90's, and the Ferrari dynasty in the early 2000's, these are legendary periods of excellence that are looked back up as great achievements in engineering and driving. The Mercedes era will be exactly the same when looked upon some years from now.


The funny thing about F1 that some people miss is: the more it changes the more it stays the same.


I thought about this today when they showed the list of past winners in Malaysia. There were four in a row from Red Bull. During the midst of that dynasty, people began to hate Vettel et. Al. There are fundamental risks in creating a series as either a "Constructor" or "spec" series. The former tends to lead to periods of dominance while the latter will have much broader competitiveness. Witness Indy which migrated from one to the other.

 

[billt460]

Originally Posted By: gofast182
Bilt, it's fine not to like F1................


I love F1. I just can't stand the fact that by the time everyone gets the rules straight, they change them. Rarely for the better. Just look at the stupid mess they made of qualifying at the beginning of the year. What did they honestly think that was going to accomplish? It's a great sport, in spite of the fact you have idiots trying to train wreck it every year. We would see a lot better racing if these people simply went away. The sport itself is great. These guys who continually play musical chairs with the rules are what needs to go.

 

[billt460]

And for what it's worth, just so you don't think I'm picking on Formula 1, it's not much better in NASCAR. Who in God's name was stupid enough in that series, to formulate a rule book that allowed a guy who missed 11 races, to WIN the Championship? Again, it's not the sport itself, but the idiots who are running it. Look at the stands lately in NASCAR if you need proof of that.

 

[whip]

Originally Posted By: billt460
Originally Posted By: whip
Not really. the cars are always getting faster. The FIA has to figure out ways to slow the down.


Then why make them faster? That mentality is like hitting yourself on the head with a hammer, because it feels good when you stop. Every year they make every one of the rules that allow the speeds they achieve. A book full of them. ("Sporting Regulations" they so wittingly enjoy tagging them with). Then turn right around and invent some way to limit the speed they just allowed them to create. Talk about a Hamster on a wheel! And spare me how all of this "technology" is going to bleed down to the Prius you're going to buy your daughter on her 18th birthday.

The teams make the cars faster, and the FIA makes the rules to slow them down. The safety record is good because of the FIA. How fast would the cars be if the FIA didn't intervene?
Will the technology bleed down to a Prius? No idea, but it will bleed down to the high performance hybrids from Ferrari, Honda, and McLaren.
The rules in F1 have to change rapidly because technology changes so rapidly.