In the round-up: Pirelli’s Paul Hembery says drivers support plans to reintroduce qualifying tyres.
Links
Top F1 links from the past 24 hours:
Interview with Pirelli’s Paul Hembery (GP Update)
“We’ve spoken to a number of drivers who drove when there were qualifying tyres and, I have to say, universally they’ve all said they loved it because there was that bravado aspect of it; you know you’ve got to be in the zone and you can’t make one error because you know you’ve only got that one chance.”
An Evening with F1 Driver David Coulthard (Road and Track)
“[Hermann Tilke’s] a touring car racer himself, he’s raced at the Nurburgring, so you’d think someone like Hermann who’s been around one of the most scariest challenging race tracks in the world come up with something a little more exciting.”
Buddh International Circuit – Construction Update (Facebook)
New pictures from work at the Buddh International Circuit.
Thanks to harishvadde for the tip
Haug concedes Mercedes needs time (Autosport)
“You could argue that our anticipation from the beginning was not exactly spot on. and we had this cooling issue we had to concentrate on resolving, so once the train had started and you need to run behind the train, then it’s quite difficult.”
Windsor Returns To Speed F1 Team (Speed)
“Beginning with Speed’s live coverage of the Belgian Grand Prix from Spa-Francorchamps the weekend of August 26-28th, Windsor will provide exclusive interviews with significant members of the F1 fraternity, including drivers, engineers and team officials.”
Sauber F1 Team – time matters (YouTube)
Pantano joins DRR for two events (IndyCar)
“The native of Padua, Italy, will return to the IZOD IndyCar Series after competing in the Auto GP Series last year and Superleague Formula in 2009. He won the GP2 title in 2008, and has competed in F3000 and Formula 1.”
Follow F1 news as it breaks using the F1 Fanatic live Twitter app.
Comment of the day
Should a driver be let off a penalty just because they don’t finish a race? I agree with Laird18 on this one:
Letting Heidfeld’s penalty lapse [in Germany] would be understandable only if his penalty was designed to correct an unfair advantage he’d gained in that particular race. But it wasn’t! He was given the penalty for effectively dangerous driving (“causing an unavoidable collision”), so it is totally illogical that this isn’t carried over to the next race.
Laird
From the forum
Ichtyes tallies up the points in the alternative Constructors Championship
Happy birthday!
Happy birthday to Luts and Electrolite!
On this day in F1
Alain Prost cut Nigel Mansell’s championship lead to two points after winning the Austrian Grand Prix 25 years ago today.
Mansell dropped out just after half distance when the halfshaft broke on his Williams.
Michele Alboreto and Stefan Johansson gave Ferrari their best result in a winless season, finishing second and third, as shown in this Italian TV news report of the race:
Image © Pirelli
electrolite (@electrolite)
17th August 2011, 0:02
It’s my birthday Keith :P I think I messaged but probably did it wrong somehow.
jake
17th August 2011, 0:20
Happy Birthday!
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
17th August 2011, 0:23
Sorry I overlooked them! Have added them in now. Have a good one!
Mouse_Nightshirt (@mouse_nightshirt)
17th August 2011, 19:22
My birthday hasn’t appeared for two years running, I’m sure I’m on that list. Don’t mind though!
But Happy Birthday Electrolyte!
BasCB (@bascb)
17th August 2011, 8:14
Happy birthday Electrolite!
The same to Luts, for sure.
damonsmedley (@damonsmedley)
18th August 2011, 15:14
Happy birthday Elctrolite! I hope you’ll be in the Collantine Cup again this year!
James
17th August 2011, 0:08
I think the resource restrictment agreement needs to extend to cover tyre suppliers too. Developing a qualifying tyre will cost more money, have little relevance to road car technology and do little to “the show”. If we’re going to make qualifying more entertaining then we need to bring back refueling (and not requiring teams to announce the weight of the cars). But as this is not going to happen if the next 10 years at very least (if ever), I feel we should stick with what we have. It isnt broke, so doesnt need fixing.
And on that note, the entire sport can take something from that comment. Some things are tinkered with for the sake of tinkering with them.
Rob Haswell
17th August 2011, 0:13
That doesn’t make sense because the teams are in competition with each other but Pirelli are in competition with no-one. The RRA is designed to prevent the larger teams dumping great wads of cash into securing a championship, forcing all the smaller ones to do the same as well, possibly putting them out of business in the process.
Pirelli can spend as much or as little as they like – it doesn’t really matter what they produce because everyone gets the same product.
James
17th August 2011, 0:16
Pirelli are throwing wads of cash at the wall if they develop a qualifying tyre. It makes little sense for them. It is widely believed that they’re not exactly rolling in cash at the moment.
rfs
17th August 2011, 1:15
Pirelli won’t spend much more than they already are if they make a qualifying tyre. All they have to do is make a tyre that’s softer than their current super-soft. Or, if they want to be cheap, they could just use their current super-soft as the qualifying tyre, since that only lasts one or two hot laps anyway. And as Rob said, they’re not in competition with anyone so they can spend as much or as little as they want.
BTW, making teams qualify on varying fuel loads might be more entertaining than what we have now, but I like knowing which driver & car combo is fastest at qualifying on low fuel. So I disagree on that.
BasCB (@bascb)
17th August 2011, 8:32
I don’t think Pirelli would spend more for this tyres. I think to them its about agreing with the teams, FIA, FOM on a good package that makes for great racing, good publicit opportunities for Pirelli and has reasonable cost for all.
I like to see its not Pirelli really pushing for the Q-tyres, as i am sceptical it could work in the current format and without bringing a lot of extra tyres.
matt90 (@matt90)
17th August 2011, 0:11
It’s only ex-drivers who drove on the quali tyres before who said they loved the idea.
jake
17th August 2011, 0:29
ofcourse they do. They would also love Double Diffusers and anything else that gives them more grip. It doesn’t mean it’s worth spending loads of money on an idea that from outside the car, won’t change anything.
vjanik
17th August 2011, 15:10
why are people against companies investing more money into F1? we as fans should be glad that a company wants to spend more money on F1. be it sponsoring a team, a track, or using their R&D budgets to design tyres, engines etc. i dont get this whole cost saving fetish that seemed to have developed over the past few years. yes we are in a recession and it is in the public consciousness to save money, but why prevent someone from volunteering their resources? please tell me what is the downside? if you belive that Pirelli will go bankrupt as a result of developing a qualifying tyre than that is a very strange opinion.
Robbie
18th August 2011, 14:33
Well for me it is hard to argue your point that if Pirelli wants to do this then why not…that said, I just think it is one more element that makes it hard to distinguish why said driver just did said great lap time…was it the tires? DRS? KERS? And for me it is also about the constant tinkering year after year with the variables. Makes it hard to compare one year to the next as to how a driver or a team is actually doing.
Imho, they need less tinkering, more stability in the rules, less gadgets that confuse whether the driver is actually having a stellar drive or is it just that his combination of gadgets worked better than the others’ that day.
I just don’t see how quali tires is really going to do anything to add to the show…they’ll all be on them, and if one team tends to do better on them than others then we won’t be talking about how good the drivers are on the team, but how good the car is on those special tires.
So some drivers may like the idea of having the pressure of one shot at a hot lap with these tires, but that will also make them even more irrate and call for bigger penalties when they get blocked by a car and don’t get that lap in.
Just because they can doesn’t mean they should, imho.
F1Yankee (@f1yankee)
17th August 2011, 0:30
so, will windsor replace will buxton as speed’s pit reporter (and only on-air person at the race) or supplement the show with additional content? i guess if there’s an answer it would change anyway.
Robyn
17th August 2011, 2:56
No…I think he’s joining the team in addition to Buxton. And because Buxton seems universally adored, I think I’ll keep my editorial comments about that to myself. ;-)
Scalextric
17th August 2011, 3:13
@willbuxton on Twitter:
Thanks for your concern guys. I’m staying firmly put at SPEED. Loving every moment and having @PeterDWindsor back will only enhance that.
And earlier..
Great to see final confirmation that @PeterDWindsor will return to the SPEED family. A good guy & top journo. Can’t wait to work with him.
BasCB (@bascb)
17th August 2011, 8:21
From what Speed, Buxton and Windsor have written so far, it rather looks like Speed add to their F1 coverage with Windsor continuing to do something like his The Flying Lap (online broadcast show) that will be shown on Speed, and probably even more extensive than his weekly show so far:
I just hope we can still get his shows outside the US.
bosyber (@bosyber)
17th August 2011, 12:17
It sounds indeed quite a bit like an branch of the Flying Lap episodes mixed with the BBC features. Unless it means no more Flying Lap, well done Speed.
Sam
17th August 2011, 0:43
Yay, I like the SPEED guys so Windsor will certainly be a welcome addition. Always struck me as kind of a know-it-all-but-has-never-actually-done-it-all kind of guy though.
Hope he proves me wrong.
BasCB (@bascb)
17th August 2011, 8:17
To be honest, he has done quite a lot as well, having been in a team role at both Williams and Ferrari in the past.
I agree that its a welcome addition.
TED BELL
17th August 2011, 2:29
GOOD: Peter Windsor, His insight to F1 will benefit the TV audience. I call his addition a plus for sure.
BETTER: Will Buxton, This guy is great, full of energy and brings another side to reporting F1, honest and fair commentary.
BEST: Qualiifying Tires, actually a pointless waste of time that will add nothing to the sport. The better teams will still be better and those less fortunate will still be cleaning the toilets. This is the wrong way to go if spicing up F1 is the goal.
What is your next idea Mr. Hembery??
Prisoner Monkeys (@prisoner-monkeys)
17th August 2011, 2:46
Gymkhana 4: The Hollywood Megamercial was released overnight. It’s Ken Block tearing around the Universal Studios backlot. After watching it, I got to thinking. I know his drive of the Pirelli test car has been postponed, but what if Gymkhana 5 featured his run in the car in some way? I know he can’t do his usual stuff in it, but I could see the car featuring in some way. It would be an interesting way of getting the sport out there – Gymkhana 4 has only been online a few hours ago and it’s already had over 50,000 views on YouTube.
Stephen Jones (@aus_steve)
17th August 2011, 5:59
that’s actually not a bad idea.. having an F1 car in the vid would suit block’s crazy crazy style..
i can’t see him drifting an F1 car though.. even the current drivers don’t seem too adept at it
Prisoner Monkeys (@prisoner-monkeys)
17th August 2011, 8:27
I don’t think it would be possible to drift in a Formula 1 car. If it happens, it usually happens by accident.
When Quantum of Solace was made, the dogfight and parachute jump were made with a next-generation camera system called “Snakehead”. The cameras could be pre-programmed to follow a very precise series of movements over and over again. I could see Gymkhana V using the system to track Block over multiple runs in the Fiesta HFHV (“High Function Hoon Vehicle”, a variant on the Fiesta WRC that can be quickly converted for rallying, gymkhana or rallycross) and whichever Formula 1 car he uses. Because of those movements, the footage could be played on top of one another, making it appear as if Block is racing himself.
That’s how I’d do it.
BasCB (@bascb)
17th August 2011, 8:22
Sounds like a very good Idea.
raymondu999 (@raymondu999)
17th August 2011, 3:45
I firmly believe that the qualifying tyre would be an excellent idea. We could see more driver skill. I am of the firm belief that a softer tyre will show even more qualities (in terms of speed) of a good driver as the faster driver will gain much more time than the slower driver. We could see tenths or seconds being the normal difference between teammates rather than hundredths.
But I maintain my position that it will hurt drivers who lock up too much. A single lockup, especially early on, on these quali tyres will ruin their whole quali run as that set of tyres will no longer be good for much. Even the smallest lockup would fry the tyre and that would be it.
RumFRESH (@rumfresh)
17th August 2011, 5:52
Hope Windsor’s involvement with Speed won’t reduce the amount of time available for his ‘The Flying Lap’ episodes. Either way he’s a great guy, if only Speed TV didn’t have commercials every 10 minutes.
Icthyes (@icthyes)
17th August 2011, 7:58
I hope the same and from the looks of the announcement he’ll be staying in London so I don’t think there’s any reason for it to cut into it :)
BasCB (@bascb)
17th August 2011, 8:28
I gather it means something like having The Flying lap shown on Speed (hope that will be additional to being shown online) and some added interviews and features done by Windsor as well.
AndrewTanner (@andrewtanner)
17th August 2011, 7:25
Still not really getting the point behind qualifying tyres. Like James said, if it ain’t broke…
I think its quite hard to judge Tilke’s work fairly without knowing what restrictions he has to work in. I thought DC would appreciate that.
BasCB (@bascb)
17th August 2011, 8:46
I agree with the COTD as well when reading the article on Hamilton having most penalties so far, it struck me how there is still a lot to be imprved to make penalties more balanced, less penalties for just ruining one owns race and more conistantly looking at serving penalties for infringing someone else badly.
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
17th August 2011, 8:51
Good news for everyone who wanted to see the safety car in the new F1 game:
http://twitter.com/f1fanatic_co_uk/statuses/103734599930232832
Mike
17th August 2011, 9:00
Yay :D
Fixy (@)
17th August 2011, 16:22
:D
DVC
17th August 2011, 14:17
I don’want to see it in the real thing, but I suppose if it is then it should be in the game as well.
TFLB
17th August 2011, 9:19
Another thing about penalties: penalties which have no effect on race position really annoy me. Why penalise a driver with no effect? Like Hamilton’s penalty for hitting Maldonado in Monaco – he still finished sixth as he was the last unlapped car. In situations like that the penalty should be carried over to the next race.
Rob
17th August 2011, 13:36
You can’t just make up punishments retrospectively – that isn’t looking for justice to be done, that is spite.
Who would judge whether a punishment has punished someone enough? “We gave you this punishment but we hoped it would hurt you more than it has, so now we are adding extra punishment even though the offence you committed was punished according to the rules.”
Rob
17th August 2011, 13:40
The Hamilton example is different to the Heidfeld one because it was possible for the punishment to be applied to Hamilton, but it didn’t cause him to lose any points. Heidfeld’s penalty couldn’t be applied to the same race, so then it seems logical to hold it over until it can be applied.
ajokay (@)
17th August 2011, 9:20
Sounds an awful lot like the single-lap qualifying we used to have, to me.
BasCB (@bascb)
17th August 2011, 10:58
It really does. I did not like that much, just for that reason.
Better to have time and tyres for different approaches. I like some going out at the start and then at the end, some waiting for a stint in the middle to get free track and the top guys going out for a hot lap right in the end.
Lucas "Mr. Veloce"
24th August 2011, 21:40
what will happen to the top 10 tyre rule?
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
24th August 2011, 22:09
Hopefully they’ll get rid of it.