Mickw212
Active Member
Those Jags were megga bits of kit! You lived & worked in one of sports cars best era`s Mactech!!! Lucky man!
Formula 1, Moto GP, WSB, 2021 Season
- Thread starter AMGeed
- Start date
TECH TUESDAY: The key developments that helped Mercedes come from behind to win their 8th constructors’ title | Formula 1®
Interesting back story as to why Lewis’s Mercedes was so dominat in the last few races of 2021, and how a great team had turned around the rear floor regulation change from the start of the year.
Warning: It is a bit techy and counter intuitive, but shows the depth of talent in the Mercedes engineering team
Interesting back story as to why Lewis’s Mercedes was so dominat in the last few races of 2021, and how a great team had turned around the rear floor regulation change from the start of the year.
Warning: It is a bit techy and counter intuitive, but shows the depth of talent in the Mercedes engineering team
- Joined
- Nov 6, 2007
- Messages
- 13,663
- Location
- North Oxfordshire
- Car
- His - Denim Blue A220 AMG Line Premium / Hers - Obsidian Black R172 SLK55
And all Horner could think of was that they must be cheating
- Joined
- Jul 12, 2011
- Messages
- 15,234
- Location
- Near Salisbury
- Car
- MX5 1.8 Sport, Range Rover 5.0 SC, BMW X1
Horner clearly has some useful talents or RB would have dropped him long ago but diplomacy, recognising when it is better to keep your own council and sportsman like behaviour do not seem to part of that make up.And all Horner could think of was that they must be cheating
Yes, I can confirm that Christian Horner is certainly passionate and emotional, or he would not be the only driver I have ever engineered who burst into tears in the car….
I’m guessing it is that passion to win which allows him to lead RBR, but I agree that there are other areas of his character which are certainly ‘work in progress‘!
- Joined
- Jul 12, 2011
- Messages
- 15,234
- Location
- Near Salisbury
- Car
- MX5 1.8 Sport, Range Rover 5.0 SC, BMW X1
But those elements also get him and the team publicity and there is rarely any such thing as bad publicity!
- Joined
- Jan 3, 2013
- Messages
- 7,540
- Car
- AUDI S8 V10, S210 E320 CDI (R.I.P.)
Very interesting read, even though I only understood about half of itTECH TUESDAY: The key developments that helped Mercedes come from behind to win their 8th constructors’ title | Formula 1®
Interesting back story as to why Lewis’s Mercedes was so dominat in the last few races of 2021, and how a great team had turned around the rear floor regulation change from the start of the year.
Warning: It is a bit techy and counter intuitive, but shows the depth of talent in the Mercedes engineering team
grober
MB Master
Was Christian Horner's job on the line if Red Bull Racing had come second ---yet again.--- a bit like unsuccessful Premier League clubs have to ritually sacrifice a manager if they don't do well? Dietrich Mateschitz doesn't strike me as a man who likes to come second every time?
- Joined
- Nov 6, 2007
- Messages
- 13,663
- Location
- North Oxfordshire
- Car
- His - Denim Blue A220 AMG Line Premium / Hers - Obsidian Black R172 SLK55
I had pondered that question myself and the answer is… we'll probably never know.
Whether his position was under threat or not, I concluded that due to the advantage the aero rule changes had handed them at the start of this season, RBR were of the collective opinion that 2021 represented their best shot at the WDC / WCC that they were likely to get and threw the kitchen sink at it. Their relative performance next season will likely go some way to either validate or disprove that view.
- Joined
- Apr 26, 2013
- Messages
- 1,962
- Location
- North West of London
- Car
- Not driving currently - medical
I thought Max won the WDC, and Mercedes won the WCC.
Therefore Red Bull actually won nothing...
Therefore Red Bull actually won nothing...
- Joined
- Jan 3, 2013
- Messages
- 7,540
- Car
- AUDI S8 V10, S210 E320 CDI (R.I.P.)
Red Bull seemed to bring more updates to the car as apposed to Mercedes bringing one large update in Silverstone. This must have dented their development on their 2022 car. Honda also accelerated their engine development and apparently brought forward their engine 12 months.
Looking back, Red Bull's tactic of threatening to leave unless there was an engine freeze was also in their favour. Mercedes had a few PU problems this year however were unable to resolve them due to the freeze.
- Joined
- Nov 6, 2007
- Messages
- 13,663
- Location
- North Oxfordshire
- Car
- His - Denim Blue A220 AMG Line Premium / Hers - Obsidian Black R172 SLK55
That’s why I commented about their relative performance next year
Additionally, due to Honda’s exit RBR have responsibility for the powertrain going forward too - which is a significant burden. I would be astonished if their deal with Honda didn’t include some element of support for at least the next year or two, but even taking account of their having recruited talent from Brixworth they have a big hill to climb.
One slight amusement is that with the whole car being “in house”, Christian’s list of people to blame has shrunk considerably
Lewis Hamilton: Mercedes driver to decide on F1 future after Abu Dhabi inquiry
Lewis Hamilton will not decide whether to return to Formula 1 this season until he sees the results of an inquiry into the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
Hamilton is "disillusioned" with F1, his Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff has said, as a result of last year's title-deciding race.
Hamilton lost the championship to Red Bull's Max Verstappen after FIA race director Michael Masi did not apply the rules correctly in a late safety-car period.
Insiders say Hamilton has lost trust in the governing body as a result.
Mercedes declined to comment on the situation surrounding Hamilton's future when approached by BBC Sport.
The team and Hamilton are said to be aligned on the issue and waiting to see what action the FIA takes to address the matters raised by the Abu Dhabi race.
The FIA has launched an inquiry into the events at Yas Marina and is aware both of Hamilton's unhappiness and that it has a big task on its hands to win back the seven-time champion's confidence.
New president Mohammed Ben Sulayem has said he has contacted Hamilton since his election five days after the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
"I don't think he's 100% ready to respond right now," Ben Sulayem said last week. "We don't blame him. I understand his position."
Some senior F1 insiders are concerned that the governing body has not fully grasped the threat to its credibility created by the final race of the season.
It has been a month since the Abu Dhabi race. But when asked about the timing of the inquiry's findings or what matters it will seek to address, the FIA said it was not yet ready to answer queries.
The FIA admitted in a statement last month that the events of Abu Dhabi were "tarnishing the image" of F1 but also said that it had "generated significant misunderstanding and reactions from F1 teams, drivers and fans".
Announcing the inquiry, the FIA said it would be done in time for "any identified meaningful feedback and conclusions to be made before the beginning of the 2022 season".
The first of two pre-season tests starts on 23 February, while the opening race is in Bahrain on 18-20 March.
The future of Masi is in doubt as a result of his handling of the race, which came at the end of a season in which there were repeated concerns among teams and drivers over the consistency of application of the rules.
One senior source told BBC Sport that Mercedes had dropped their appeal against the results of the race after agreeing a quid pro quo with the FIA.
This deal was said to be that Masi and FIA head of single-seater technical matters Nikolas Tombazis would no longer be in their positions for the 2022 season.
Mercedes deny that any such deal was reached, and insist that they dropped their appeal after receiving assurances only that the issue would be treated seriously and appropriate action would be taken by the FIA.
Wolff said last month that Mercedes would "hold the FIA to account".
He did not clarify how he intended to do that but said he had "confidence, trust and faith" that the teams and drivers could work with the governing body to create a "more robust decision-making process".
Several senior figures have told BBC Sport that they do not see how Masi can retain his position as race director, but some have cautioned that the FIA is in a difficult position because there is no obvious replacement...
- Joined
- Jul 12, 2011
- Messages
- 15,234
- Location
- Near Salisbury
- Car
- MX5 1.8 Sport, Range Rover 5.0 SC, BMW X1
I can well understand his anger and frustration at the way the FIA behaved but I think his best recourse is to get back on the tracks and make his point by battling to regain the Championship.
Dryce
Hardcore MB Enthusiast
- Joined
- May 17, 2006
- Messages
- 11,492
- Car
- GLE
From the other side of the TV screen I have found my feelings towards F1 have become quite jaded over the last couple of weeks.
I feel zero incentive to watch. I just don't care about the coming season.
I don't blame Max Verstappen but much as I can logically reconcile him as champion my gut says it was gifted by a race director who got caught in the moment and didn't play to the rules.
And I can accept that this seems an overreaction. Suppose Latiffi had crashed a couple of laps earlier and the race had restarted with a lap to go under the safety car after all the lapped cars had been allowed to get by - then same outcome but not this feeling of the result having been so blatantly manipulated. The safety car rules are not satisfactory but the feeling would be that they were the same for everyone. At Abu Dhabi the race director intervened and altered the result of the race and the championship - and that just does not sit right with me.
What makes it worse in my eyes is that those who feed off the sport in the media were and are largely willing to buy into the tainted status quo - I suspect afraid that they will despoil their own dinner table if they criticise the sport that puts the food on it - while those at the top of the sport seem to act like there was nothing to see and it will all blow over.
I feel the same, I've been so apathetic I've hardly posted in this thread since the last race. It's been the biggest turn off for F1 since the crooked days of Jean-Marie Balestre.
If Hamilton decides to quit I probably won't watch during the coming season.
- Joined
- Apr 26, 2013
- Messages
- 1,962
- Location
- North West of London
- Car
- Not driving currently - medical
As at today, I feel just the same. But when March comes around, I bet I’ll be just as eager to see the 5 lights go out as I have been for many years. I mean, the problems will be sorted out to everyone’s satisfaction by then...
Won’t they?
Stratman
MB Enthusiast
Maybe the reality of what Masi and the FIA have done will hit home next season, when Hamilton will still be the one everyone wants to talk to, to interview, to photograph and to endorse whatever, while Verstappen hops around in the background going "I'm the world champion talk to me!"
- Joined
- Jul 15, 2009
- Messages
- 2,374
- Location
- Land of the Long White Cloud.
- Car
- Sold .. E350 CDI Sport Saloon 265. Mini JCW. Current
Biggest problem for me is there’s now going to be a small alarm bell ringing in the back of my mind when/if I decide to watch, as to wether someone, somewhere is manipulating the outcome of each race, wherever it is held.
- Joined
- Nov 6, 2007
- Messages
- 13,663
- Location
- North Oxfordshire
- Car
- His - Denim Blue A220 AMG Line Premium / Hers - Obsidian Black R172 SLK55
While I suspect that Hamilton's disillusionment with the FIA is very real, his "indecision" can't help but put pressure on them to actually do something meaningful instead of sticking to their more usual "we're right, everyone else is wrong" line. However...
Certainly their early statement on the matter was indicative of the usual tin-eared nature of the upper echelons of the FIA, but one would hope that more than a month on from the debacle there are the sound of a few thuds around the place as pennies drop. Otherwise, this is the likely outcome:
