In the round-up: Toto Wolff says Mercedes expect further developments in the new rules for the 2021 F1 season.
What they say
Wolff was asked what he made of Ferrari’s decision not to veto the new rules for 2021.Expressing the veto is a very strong, very strong move and it was always clear that Ferrari would be very sensible with that power that’s been given to them.
We all participated in the rule-making: Ferrari, Red Bull, ourselves. And some others believe that maybe the 2021 regulations de-tune what is the pinnacle of motor racing a little bit in terms of technology.
But I’m confident that together with the FIA in the next months we’re going to, when it comes down to the detail, we’re going come up with some good regulations. It’s a starting point. For us, we take it is a as challenge. It’s a very, very different car in 2021 and now it’s time to look ahead and do the best possible job.
Quotes: Dieter Rencken
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Social media
Notable posts from Twitter, Instagram and more:
I am really excited about Juju Noda going to F4 but please do not put more pressure on her shoulders than you would any other junior driver. Don't say if she's 14 and not blinding it's over. Don't put her gender on her. No boy goes into F4 with that weight and it's not fair.
— Hazel Southwell (@HSouthwellFE) November 9, 2019
- Find more official F1 accounts to follow in the F1 Twitter Directory
Links
More motor racing links of interest:
Massa tips Leclerc to win a title before Verstappen (Autosport)
"He is a future world champion, and I think we will not have to wait long. I do not exclude that he can achieve that goal even before Verstappen."
Toyota Surprised By Rebellion’s Lack of Pace (Sportscar 365)
"The gap to LMP2 is just amazing. Last year they were 5.6 seconds faster than the best P2. This year they are only 2.3 seconds faster. It’s just unbelievable. I cannot understand how the Rebellion can be so slow."
World’s Fastest Gamer van Buren Given Mahindra Sim Role (e-racing365)
"Rudy van Buren, the inaugural champion of the World’s Fastest Gamer esports competition, has joined Mahindra Racing as its second simulator development driver."
Jordan King: 'There was a post-it note on Wilms Tumour' (F2)
"They said that they were sitting in the living room and Dr Campbell - who was my GP - was there with his book and he said that he had never seen it before, but there was a post-it note on Wilms tumour."
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Comment of the day
How many teams will be affected by the budget cap when it comes in?
I can definitely see five teams running at the cap, as Brown says (Mercedes, Ferrari, Red Bull, McLaren, Renault), but I suspect Racing Point might join them. They’re making huge investments in bringing their facilities up to date and have at least two $2bn+ net worth guys in their ownership group, one of whom most likely wants his son to have the best possible car.
Maybe they won’t push as high in overall budget as they won’t go as deep into the exemptions as others (they don’t have a superstar driver taking home $30m+, for example) but I think the temptation to match the big teams on the capped spending will be very high.
Neil (@Neilosjames)
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Phylyp (@phylyp)
10th November 2019, 1:41
Intriguing thought about RP, @neilosjames
Sensord4notbeingafanboi (@peartree)
10th November 2019, 20:53
Brown gave me the impression that 5 teams will be at the cap and the rest below with Renault and McLaren below, that would leave the big 3, RP and maybe Str on the cap.
Jere (@jerejj)
10th November 2019, 7:57
Re COTD: The five biggest at least, yes, and yes, RP could be one as well, but not necessarily. We shall wait and find out.
Juju Noda, I only became aware of her today, thanks to Hazel’s tweet. A fun fact I also found out: Her idol is Lance Stroll.
F1oSaurus (@)
10th November 2019, 9:55
I fail to see how this is a surprise anyway. Or is it the surprise that the budget cap is set so low that it hits teams like McLaren and Renault?
Krommenaas (@krommenaas)
10th November 2019, 10:42
McLaren and Renault probably don’t feel “hit” by the cap but rather blessed that it’s something they can reach. They’re the two biggest beneficiaries of the cap as it now is as it allows them to join the group of top spenders while still outspending half the grid.
JohnH (@johnrkh)
10th November 2019, 8:16
I think where Leclerc has the edge over Verstappen in is his approach, though both are very quick and obviously talented. Leclerc has a better handle on his a emotions I think.
But that may not be the deciding factor who comes out on top. With Russell and Ocon on the way through Verstappen may find himself wrong footed to get a drive in a Merc or Ferrari. But having said that if RB can catch back up then he will not need to move to challenge for a WDC.
Jere (@jerejj)
10th November 2019, 10:53
@johnrkh Ocon isn’t going to be Mercedes-tied beyond the end of this year anymore, but a fully-fledged Renault-driver, i.e., not on-loan like Sainz was there.
anon
10th November 2019, 11:10
@jerejj, the way that both Toto and Abiteboul phrased their response was carefully worded though – they stated that Mercedes would not have direct control over Ocon during his contract with Renault, but did not make any mention of what happens after his current contract with Renault ends.
Additionally, Ocon will still retain links with Mercedes as Abiteboul has confirmed that Mercedes are still acting as his management company – so, whilst he is not on loan, at the same time Ocon isn’t completely cutting all ties with Mercedes either.
Sensord4notbeingafanboi (@peartree)
10th November 2019, 20:57
All about who gets the winning car first, both have what it takes to win. Max is so quick that it doesn’t matter if he goes for broke a few times and Leclerc has more common sense than the whole Ferrari pitwall.
GT Racer (@gt-racer)
10th November 2019, 14:36
Watching Juju Noda from here on is going to be interesting because while you hear a lot about her achievements in (Unofficially) breaking lap records at such a young age there are still a lot of unknowns regarding how good (Or not) she really is.
I’ve heard some believe she’s something really special while others believe there’s been a lot of smoke in mirrors to make her appear better than she is.
There’s certainly a lot of questions about her karting record as it seems they have been incredibly selective in what they entered her in. There is also a lot of questions about how legal the cars she ‘broke records’ in were at the time, Especially given how much faster than the lap records she went at times. At Okayama for instance she was over 1 second faster than the F4 lap record which in spec cars that are as restricted as they are seems a but unusual.
I hope she’s as good as they say she is & I hope she does really well but I really fear that even if she’s good she will never match the hype & I just hope that doesn’t hurt her career in any way.
Robbie (@robbie)
10th November 2019, 14:46
I don’t think it should be a surprise that Massa would back a Ferrari driver over Max in the debate about which driver might win a WDC first. Personally my money would be on Max, but of course as we all know it is going to come down to the car. Odds are Mercedes will dominate again next year, and then who knows after that. But of course here’s hoping there is more parity amongst the pu’s next year and that would really bode well for 2021 as well. Obviously it would be great if Ferrari and RBR were a steady and solid match for Mercedes next year, but Merc have had such a strangle hold on the Championships in the hybrid era, they have to be given the nod for 2020 as well until others show otherwise. Other than that, for me if MV and CL had equal cars that they were equally comfortable in, my money would be on Max all day long.
Velocityboy (@velocityboy)
10th November 2019, 20:48
I think everyone considers 2021 a starting point. It will likely take the engineers 2 years to fully exploit the gaps in the rules and/r seek clarification of the rules. During that time the FIA and Liberty will modify the rules to close some of the gaps etc., so we probably won’t come close to a final set of rules until mid 2023 or early 2024.
Velocityboy (@velocityboy)
10th November 2019, 20:55
Regarding the COTD:
I usually find myself rubbishing anything he says, but JV has an interesting take on the budget cap. He was openly questioning if a team like Williams deserve the help that a budget cap will provide by saying:
“Only the top three teams will spend the $175 million. Williams put about $16 million in its pocket last year while finishing last. So the management and the shareholders are happy.
Even if the cap was $50 million, Williams would spend 20 and stay at the bottom. So it’s a joke. Nobody wins.”
I found that to be a very interesting point. If the smaller teams adjust their budgets accordingly so they still spend x% of what the larger teams do, has the cap really achieved the desired results?
Balue (@balue)
11th November 2019, 13:34
Obvious that the first of the two to become champion is the first one to go to Mercedes which is likely Verstappen.