Del Boy
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Post by Del Boy on Feb 28, 2023 22:09:53 GMT
I know Dirty Epic has been very busy of late, and seeing as he usually does a sterling job on our F1 discussions, I thought I would do the 2023 introduction to save him a job The new F1 season is nearly upon us and after a series of low key launches and a test at Bahrain there are lots of question marks as ever. The first race in Bahrain will give us a lot of answers regarding the true speed of the teams. The top three from 2022 of Red Bull, Ferrari and Mercedes look to be starting 2023 in the same order as they finished last year. The midfield looks to have had some movement, with Aston Martin, Alpine, Alpha Tauri and Alfa looking similarly matched. The back end of the grid looks to be Haas, McLaren, Williams. On the footage below from the Bahrain test, Red Bull and Ferrari look to be the benchmark. The Mercedes car does look quick but seems somewhat unsettled, bouncing on the exit of corners. Alpine looks quick if a little understeery. What on earth is all the noise on the McLaren lap ? bouncing perhaps ? looks a handful. The Aston looks quick but some bouncing on entry and down the straights is noticeable. The Williams lap looks smooth but seems slow in the corners. A lack of downforce perhaps ? It could be a high fuel load, who knows. We will have a better idea after next weekend. Enjoy the season everyone. Click The Watch On YouTube Option on the screen below after pressing play
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Post by Dirty Epic on Mar 5, 2023 10:01:59 GMT
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Post by Dirty Epic on Mar 5, 2023 19:05:59 GMT
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Del Boy
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Post by Del Boy on Mar 6, 2023 21:25:44 GMT
Due to my work schedule I couldn't watch the race live, however I've just watched extended highlights of the season opener at Bahrain. The true race pace seemed to follow the indicators from testing at the front of the field. The Red Bulls did look superior here, the Ferrari looks quick but Leclerc's retirement with a failure is a concern. Alonso was a joy to watch and rolled back the years. He looked so confident with this years Aston Martin and took a well earned podium. The Mercs never looked like altering the top two teams here. Here's hoping the rest of the field perform better on other tracks to make this an interesting season.
Race Highlights- click on watch on You Tube
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Post by Sam Tyler on Mar 6, 2023 22:51:35 GMT
I must admit that I found the race to be a bit sterile when I watched it last night and the only redeeming feature was Alonso's performance. I've never liked him but there was no mistaking his ability, his passion and the quality of his drive to get to the third step of the podium, he made the difference to what was for me quite a dull race. The only other driver that created some interest was Ocon but that was for all the wrong reasons. Credit does have to go to Stroll in the second Aston for his drive despite his injuries but for the Red Bull and Mercedes duos it just seemed to be 'business as usual'.
The DRS did have some impact but I would be so glad to see the back of it and the return of wheel-to-wheel driving with drivers doing their utmost to out-drag each other. Yes Alonso did benefit from the DRS and it allowed him some great racing through the bends as Hamilton tried to fight back but I miss the days with the likes of Mansell and Senna inches apart at 200mph with vortices off of their rear spoilers.
So in my opinion a bit of a lacklustre race interspersed by moments of magic courtesy of Alonso.
Sam.
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Del Boy
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Post by Del Boy on Mar 7, 2023 14:34:52 GMT
Cant argue with any of that Samuel. I do wonder if they could limit the amount of times a driver can use the DRS in a race. This would cause the driver to adopt different strategies in its deployment, but also allow overtakes to pass people trying to block them as they did in days of old.
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Post by Dirty Epic on Mar 7, 2023 21:19:19 GMT
Good review Sam, yes reckon unless they get gremlins or other teams raise their game it's Red Bull's to lose... but it does happen. Alonso in the mix was good and Ocon and even Stroll after his accident didn't have a bad race but they're nowhere near a credible challenge right now and Ferrari's hit the woes again too. Still if it is a Red Bull whitewash we've had it with other teams in the past and it's up to rivals to raise their game and take them on too. Season is long could see some surprises?
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Post by Gene Hunt on Mar 7, 2023 21:32:05 GMT
Still if it is a Red Bull whitewash we've had it with other teams in the past and it's up to rivals to raise their game and take them on too. Problem I have with that harks back to RB's cost cap breach which is believed to have given them an advantage not only last year, but also into this year. I fear for the sport as it is right now as it has been a mess since Massi changed the rules on the fly in the 2021 season finale to give Verstappen the title. Gene.
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Post by Sam Tyler on Mar 7, 2023 22:09:43 GMT
Still if it is a Red Bull whitewash we've had it with other teams in the past and it's up to rivals to raise their game and take them on too. Problem I have with that harks back to RB's cost cap breach which is believed to have given them an advantage not only last year, but also into this year. I fear for the sport as it is right now as it has been a mess since Massi changed the rules on the fly in the 2021 season finale to give Verstappen the title. Gene. Very true, I'm not a great Hamilton fan and I'm definitely not a Verstappen fan but Hamilton should have got his eighth title that day. Sam.
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Del Boy
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Post by Del Boy on Mar 8, 2023 6:46:08 GMT
That race was a mess, the ending left a bad taste and Massi got things wrong. Precedents were laid out during the season with both Hamilton and Verstappen getting away with foul play. It 100 percent was the worst season for poor governance in the sport.
I do hope 23 is not a whitewash season and feel the Red Bull won't have it all its own way. The penalty they have with testing will hopefully close the field later on with others developing their car and closing the gap ?
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