In the round-up: Fernando Alonso says Liberty Media’s American attitude to racing will benefit Formula 1.
What they say
Alonso was asked about his experience of American racing culture following his participation in last year’s Indianapolis 500:
It’s a little bit more about the show, about the spectator, maybe less technical information and more about the show, the drivers, about the cars.
I think it’s a great thing and probably the direction Formula 1 will go in the future now with Liberty etc… I think the show will be the main priority for everyone.
Quotes: Dieter Rencken
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Social media
Notable posts from Twitter, Instagram and more:
@DanTicktum fully committed at Abbey corner. pic.twitter.com/qfpSJxSbci
— TIM HARVEY (@timharvey7) October 23, 2018
When the season hasnt even started but we have the footage we need already… @JeanEricVergne pic.twitter.com/eJZNU95X54
— Antonio Felix da Costa (@afelixdacosta) October 23, 2018
If @LewisHamilton had won the title last weekend it would have been live on free-to-air TV in his home country – it won't be this weekend:https://t.co/oohDlLO1qy #F1 #USGP #C4F1
— Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine) October 23, 2018
- Find more official F1 accounts to follow in the F1 Twitter Directory
Links
More motor racing links of interest:
Smart assistant technology puts fans' fingers on the pulse (Reuters)
"‘What’s the heart rate of the two drivers fighting out at the front of the grid?’ Ping! Up it comes."
FIA Formula 3 championship's 2019 teams revealed (FIA)
"Seven of these outfits are currently competing in the FIA Formula 2 Championship (ART Grand Prix, Campos Racing, Carlin, Charouz Racing System, MP Motorsport, Prema Racing and Trident) whilst Jenzer Motorsport are no strangers to the paddock having successfully competing in all seasons of GP3. Hitech Grand Prix and HWA RACELABcomplete the grid; they both have a proven record of success in other categories."
The upgrades Ferrari got right and wrong (Autosport)
"While some elements of Ferrari's designs have been successfully modified, it is clear that major ideas - like the Singapore wing and the floor first trialled in Japan - did not add to performance and the team lost many races finally understanding that."
Why is Vettel making so many mistakes? (BBC)
"He seems so desperate to avoid clattering into the driver on the outside that he is tightening his corner, in a bid to steer clear of them, and his inputs are making the car spin, with the help of some minor contact."
The Iceman doesn't melt as Ferrari call it right (Sky)
"I have sympathy for Esteban Ocon and Kevin Magnussen who applied their skills, poured the sweat, and risked their lives at COTA only to be disqualified for technical reasons outside their control. The rules have to be applied, you can't be a little bit tolerant on aspects such as fuel or weight, but as a driver that doesn't make it any easier."
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Comment of the day
The driver line-up for the 2019 F1 season hasn’t been finalised yet, but one of the key questions for 2020 will be whether Valtteri Bottas can hold on to his seat:
It’s so easy to forget that if China and Baku had been different, Bottas would have been in such a more comfortable position this season. The reality is that he is being compared to Nico Rosberg, who when Bottas joined Mercedes, was the defending world champion.
As much as I like him as a driver, he has failed to ruffle the feathers of Lewis Hamilton in the way that Rosberg did. Naturally this may have been the reason Mercedes hired Bottas in the first place, as a solid team mate to Hamilton, but one who could not feasibly challenge Lewis for the championship.
Top teams often will choose one driver over the other, its natural sadly. I do feel though that Bottas will be out of Mercedes as abruptly as he was hired, and that is a shame!
The Limit
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On this day in F1
- 25 years ago today Ayrton Senna won the Japanese Grand Prix, then punched newcomer Eddie Irvine
Biggsy
24th October 2018, 0:37
That piece by Palmer is absolute nonsense. The conclusion is that Vettel is spinning because he is avoiding hitting other cars, so that when he hits them, he spins… What?
Yes, he might be trying to avoid hitting them, but he is doing that only because he already put himself in a position where the contact is inevitable. So this whole article isn’t analyzing anything. It’s just telling you that sky is blue.
Aldoid
24th October 2018, 1:39
I didn’t make it all the way through it… not that far, to be honest.
Phylyp (@phylyp)
24th October 2018, 3:29
Ha ha, thanks for saving my time from clicking through.
Sonics (@sonicslv)
24th October 2018, 9:08
No, you should read it again. It just explain why Vettel’s car seems very easily spin out. The main idea is this
So the idea is the car is already on the very edge of oversteering that a slight bump from contact is enough to make the rear tires lost its grip hence the spin. Afterwards he just writing his idea why Vettel in that position from phycological level. I feel you totally misunderstood on the idea he’s trying to tell.
ColdFly (@)
24th October 2018, 9:10
Disagree Biggsy, the article is another insightful article by Palmer.
It might be a bit long, but he describes really well how oversteer (less rear grip than front).
And you have to give the guy kudos for being honest about his own driving; “It was a really clumsy few corners from myself at the time, and one of those moments you immediately recognise as stupid.”
PS @phylyp, I suggest you read it and make up your own mind.
PPS “It’s just telling you that sky is blue.” Actually, the sky is not blue (sorry to break the news). The sky has no colour (reflects all colour), but water molecules scatter the blue light more than (e.g.) red light. Hence the sky appears blue unless you look straight into the sun ;)
Phylyp (@phylyp)
24th October 2018, 9:23
@sonicslv @coldfly – thank you both, I’ll give it a read.
Phylyp (@phylyp)
24th October 2018, 11:52
@sonicslv @coldfly – thank you both, that was definitely an interesting read. And as you mentioned, @coldfly , it was good to see his honest admission of how he made a similar error, and the thinking that led to it.
grat
24th October 2018, 22:40
As Palmer’s idea of eliminating Friday Practice, we should take it to it’s logical conclusion– No practice at all, and the drivers are blindfolded until they’re in the car for Q1– and then a helicopter randomly drops caltrops on the track during qualifying and the race.
I’m sick of this refrain that F1 needs to be more difficult, and that the drivers have it too easy. If you eliminate Friday practice, then the teams that spend the most money on their simulators and supercomputers will win. The big teams can spend their way out of any hole that the FIA or FOM tries to put them in, and the divide between the big three and the rest will continue growing.
I can’t think of a single cost-cutting measure implemented in the last 10 years that’s improved competition, or F1 as a whole. I’m not even sure they’re lowering costs for the teams.
V12Beard (@v12beard)
24th October 2018, 0:47
Alonso, by constantly badmouthing every aspect of F1, is only illustrating why he’s not in a championship contender right now or next season and why every top team told him to ‘no thanks’ when he came calling.
budchekov (@budchekov)
24th October 2018, 2:53
It is getting rather tiresome isn’t it, any chance of getting someone else in his car for the next three races ?
Phylyp (@phylyp)
24th October 2018, 3:05
@v12beard @budchekov – I have taken digs at Alonso in my past comments for his attitude and other comments, but don’t see what’s the issue here. He’s given a statement – innocuous by his standards – about his preference and opinion about “the show” aspect of motorsport in the US (ugh, as much as I despise “the show”).
It’s probably no different from, say, Hamilton appreciating last year’s flamboyant driver introduction at COTA, while others were not as enthused.
Or have I missed something else that he’s said, apart from the “what they say” piece?
ColdFly (@)
24th October 2018, 9:15
Read it again, and still cannot find anything wrong with Alonso’s comments.
Maybe either the complainer is prejudiced or I’m becoming blind for his complaining (he has complained a lot in the past).
AndrewW
24th October 2018, 10:58
Doesn’t need to be compared to others’ statements. It stands on its own merits and favourably so for anyone reading it objectively.
Neil (@neilosjames)
24th October 2018, 2:17
I really don’t think Mercedes will replace Bottas in 2020 as long as he keeps up his 2018 level of performance.
He’s quick, reliable, fairly consistent… and he occasionally beats Hamilton, who is one of the very best drivers I’ve ever seen and who would probably come close to 21-0 against more than half the current grid. And there’s no point trying to compare him to Rosberg because everything – team-mate relations, atmosphere in the team, penalty for a bad weekend, reward for a great weekend, outside influences, driving style requirements, pressure, key attributes, etc – is different in a two-car, one-team championship.
Mercedes have Hamilton driving at what looks like the highest level he’s ever been at and Bottas pushing him far more than people seem to think. I can’t see the sense in changing a winning formula just to try out a guy like Ocon, who – much as I hope he’s a big part of F1’s future – hasn’t yet done anything to suggest he’d be better than Bottas.
Unless Bottas chooses to leave, or really drops the ball in 2019, I think the next Mercedes driver change will be to replace Hamilton.
Phylyp (@phylyp)
24th October 2018, 3:35
@neilosjames – I’m of two minds here. Yes, no need to rock the boat, as you rightly say. And Ocon hasn’t proven himself in a “big team” way that would convince Mercedes to take that plunge. I also get the impression that he’s quite hungry/ambitious, so might not settle for Bottas’ role.
However, the other thing that comes to mind is this – in the – admittedly unlikely – event that Ferrari take the WCC this year, or even close the gap down significantly, the Mercedes board might pressure Toto to ensure it doesn’t occur again, and that will be down to the driver alongside Hamilton.
While Mercedes definitely appreciate Hamilton’s patronage (for advertising and building the brand), their priority will be the Mercedes brand first and foremost. It probably won’t do for the team to be strongly challenged – or trumped – in the constructors title, but only receive accolades because one of their drivers won the WDC convincingly.
DB-C90 (@dbradock)
24th October 2018, 6:49
I agree – I suspect that their big fear is that Hamilton may elect to go to Ferrari at the end of next year (after winning WDC 6) to try to complete his carreer with a WDC or 2 at the prancing horse.
Bottas will continue as one of their drivers unless he really drops the ball in 2019.
hahostolze (@hahostolze)
24th October 2018, 7:20
Two of the biggest talents in F1 got there through F3’s Van Amersfoort racing. Yet somehow the team has been ousted out of the new F3 series. Clearly not enough powerful friends…
anon
24th October 2018, 7:52
@hahostolze, or maybe it is because the team is generally one of the smaller outfits in Formula 3 and the ones which have been chosen are the ones which generally are the larger and more successful teams? Must everything end up in conspiracy theories?
hahostolze (@hahostolze)
24th October 2018, 9:04
@anon it’s not conspiracy. Sure, it’s partly down to size, but the ‘bigger’ teams like Campos, MP, Charouz, Trident and Jenzer have rarely shown any real ability at running a team competitively, subsiding on mostly pay drivers for existence. There is no real sign they would be able to succeed in F3 where they need to split their attentions. Meanwhile both VAR and Motopark have shown they can do multiple series at once and welll (as @geemac points out). Furthermore, some of these teams have survived all this time in GP/F2 by being close to the series founds and runners. It’s no big secret. But it clearly shows that those commercially involved would prefer F2 teams to branch out, rather than competitive F3 teams to move up. And that’s very unfair and makes little sense. So yeah, there is reason to gripe, without calling it a conspiracy.
GeeMac (@geemac)
24th October 2018, 8:56
Not having Van Amersfoort Racing or Motopark doesn’t really make sense to me @hahostolze. They are proven competitors at this level and deserve a slot in the new series.
Fikri Harish (@)
24th October 2018, 8:37
Great!
Now that F3 (née GP3) teams only has three cars instead of four, the odds of an all ART podium has just dropped from 50% to like, 25%.
In all seriousness though, I do hope that Prema could challenge ART’s superiority. People like to criticize F1 for being a two-tier championship and yet that’s what GP3 was like 75% of the time, with the ART drivers fighting for victories and championships while the rest are basically fillers.
And GP3 was supposed to be a spec series.
GeeMac (@geemac)
24th October 2018, 8:51
While I agree with this to an extent, the highlight of the “Alonso Indy Experience” for me was the way his first test was covered. The stream that Indycar put up on YouTube was incredible and in hindsight I can’t believe how enthralled I was watching one car go (literally) round and round in circles. Part of that was the fact that the commentators were so good at discussing and summarising the technical challenge of going racing at Indy – from the way the car is set up and how it behaves round the track in different conditions to the challenges of plotting your way through the race. It was at times unapologetically technical, but it had to be at times, and I came away from it wishing F1 commentators were the same. It gave me much more of an understanding of the challenge of oval racing and I am more interested in IndyCar now than I have been since the early 90’s CART heyday as a result.
Don Dahler
24th October 2018, 19:18
Well said!
Phylyp (@phylyp)
24th October 2018, 19:54
@geemac – could you mention an example that comes to mind? It is something I long to hear/read more of in F1, and some years ago, I enjoyed Ted’s Notebook for its behind the scenes tidbits (granted, I don’t enjoy some of his presentations these days).
GeeMac (@geemac)
25th October 2018, 8:47
@phylyp Well the broadcast was well over a year ago now so I can’t remember the exact details, but the times they spoke about the different aero tweaks they make to the cars through practice and qualifying (particularly round the blockers in the sidepod and the gradual trimming out of wing levels) and the driver’s use of their weight jackers through the race was pretty interesting I thought.
Phylyp (@phylyp)
25th October 2018, 10:24
@geemac – many thanks, that’s good to know. It makes me wonder whether instead of having only ex-drivers as pundits in their commentary teams, channels like Sky or C4 should also try bringing in someone formerly on the pitwall, such as a race engineer or a performance engineer.
Jere (@jerejj)
24th October 2018, 9:47
I disagree with Alonso. F1 first and foremost is a sport, and that’s how it should always remain as; Racing over the show, not the other way round.
– Regarding Keith’s tweet: No, that couldn’t possibly have been the case as the selections for which races CH4 broadcasts live were made long ago, before the season had even started, so no way they could’ve predicted the outcome of the US GP that far in advance, LOL.
– Palmer has a point. Regarding the last paragraph of the column; ”It begs the question, is Friday practice actually a good thing, or would the show be better without it?” – Yes, it is. Removing the Friday sessions altogether would at first yes produce similar races to the US GP, but in the long-term, things would eventually go back to the usual ways.
– I agree with the COTD.
Phylyp (@phylyp)
24th October 2018, 10:58
@jerejj – very true – the rich teams will just fire up another cluster of computers to better predict and extrapolate car performance, while the rest of the grid will end up having to find their way on setup the hard way.
Daves
24th October 2018, 12:49
Wolff spewing more drivel again.
What “good” team will take him other than Mercedes?
If it’s a Merc customer the only decent team is Force India – Perez would have to leave as Stroll isn’t.
None of the other teams, other than Williams are going to take him as a temporary unless Merc voids his contract which is not likely.
Unless they ditch Bottas which is not likely since Hamilton knows he is his butler, it’s more nonsense from the one with the forked tongue.
StefMeister (@stefmeister)
24th October 2018, 13:32
One of my biggest critisism’s of the direction Liberty have taken the TV broadcast’s this year is the loss of some of the technical information. We used to see a G-force graphic & had the ERS deployment info in the driver battle graphic for instance yet we have seen neither this year.
The whole presentation has to me felt significantly dumbed down compared to what we had previously & while not every change has been bad I think overall it hasn’t exactly been better.
Phylyp (@phylyp)
24th October 2018, 13:58
But all that’s been replaced with a fancy “tshiiiiiink” “drawing a sword” style of sound effect when a lap record is set, so that’s an improvement! Yay!! @stefmeister
(yes, this is me being sarcastic, and I fully sympathize with you and echo your complaints).