red snow Posted October 5, 2016 Share Posted October 5, 2016 3 hours ago, StefCurry said: I don't remember which race was, but Nico was twice in Hamilton DRS zone and hadn't done anything to pass him.. While Hamilton has the upper hand when it comes to Nico and him fighting directly it's still not a dead cert each race. I recall him complaining about having to stay out of DRS zone to save his tyres in one race. It's pretty hard to overtake the same model car - that's what made the red bulls so impressive (although an overtake wasn't completed). In an ideal world Rosberg would try and pass Hamilton but when he has tried in the past and there's an accident he's demonized for it. Risk management can be as effective at winning champions as exciting driving unfortunately. I think given his recent driving and the fact this is Rosberg's best chance yet of winning a title that it'd be great to get an actual race where these two are directly fighting for track position (like the red bulls were). Hopefully once Mercedes have secured the constructors title as then there's no chance of team orders. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
williamjm Posted October 5, 2016 Share Posted October 5, 2016 1 hour ago, red snow said: I think given his recent driving and the fact this is Rosberg's best chance yet of winning a title that it'd be great to get an actual race where these two are directly fighting for track position (like the red bulls were). Hopefully once Mercedes have secured the constructors title as then there's no chance of team orders. It's far from certain, but there is at least a chance that we could get a direct fight between them for the championship at the final race, which could be fun to watch, although Abu Dhabi maybe isn't the most exciting track for a head-to-head battle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StefCurry Posted October 6, 2016 Share Posted October 6, 2016 Ok, if Nico misses this year, actually he won't ever be the world champion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Werthead Posted October 6, 2016 Share Posted October 6, 2016 6 hours ago, StefCurry said: Ok, if Nico misses this year, actually he won't ever be the world champion. It's not impossible, but I do wonder if there's any reasonable statistical chance of Hamilton having this much bad luck next year. In particular, it's almost impossible for any car to complete every race of the season without a mechanical failure. Statistically, Rosberg is due one before the end of the season which would allow Hamilton to close right up, if not take back the lead outright. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StefCurry Posted October 7, 2016 Share Posted October 7, 2016 Again Nico is at the top in Practice. Let's see what he can do in qualification. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StefCurry Posted October 9, 2016 Share Posted October 9, 2016 Nico has finally won the Japanese Gran Prix. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
williamjm Posted October 9, 2016 Share Posted October 9, 2016 2 hours ago, StefCurry said: Nico has finally won the Japanese Gran Prix. It's not impossible for Hamilton to win the Championship now but it's out of his control - even if he won every race then Rosberg could still win by being second every time. All it would take for it to become competitive again would be for one breakdown or accident for Rosberg so there's still some hope but it does look Rosberg's Championship to lose. Hamilton has been unlucky but his form has also been inconsistent, this was far from being one of his best weekend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Werthead Posted October 10, 2016 Share Posted October 10, 2016 He was also having some kind of weird nervous breakdown off the track which wasn't helping things. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
red snow Posted October 10, 2016 Share Posted October 10, 2016 12 hours ago, williamjm said: It's not impossible for Hamilton to win the Championship now but it's out of his control - even if he won every race then Rosberg could still win by being second every time. All it would take for it to become competitive again would be for one breakdown or accident for Rosberg so there's still some hope but it does look Rosberg's Championship to lose. Hamilton has been unlucky but his form has also been inconsistent, this was far from being one of his best weekend. And Rosberg is far more consistent - I'd say it's his to lose now. Those crap starts can't all be faults with the car. The cars starting procedure may be different but it's Hamilton who consistently has awful starts. How much time/positions has he lost from the first corner alone this year? Hamilton has had bad luck but he's also failed to maximise his weekends. 11 hours ago, Werthead said: He was also having some kind of weird nervous breakdown off the track which wasn't helping things. He just seems a bit stranded since the summer break. I seriously wonder if something has happened/happening in hos private life (positive or negative) that's distracting him. It could simply be the hunger's not there. In a "this season is against me but I've won 3 championship - could be worse" kind of way. The thing is with the changes next year it might not simply be a case of beating rosberg to win. Update: in fairness to Hamilton he asked Mercedes to withdraw the complaint against vettel saying "drivers should just get on with it". So even if he was fuming initially it was maybe more anger at himself. I think it's good when drivers realise it was a racing incident and Hamilton knows as well as anyone about that style of driving. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StefCurry Posted October 10, 2016 Share Posted October 10, 2016 This is Nico's year, definitely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StefCurry Posted October 12, 2016 Share Posted October 12, 2016 Ferrari won't be in 2 place because of their stupid strategies and decisions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StefCurry Posted October 17, 2016 Share Posted October 17, 2016 Nico Hulkenberg is in Renault for next years. Is it really the step forward for German? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
williamjm Posted October 17, 2016 Share Posted October 17, 2016 1 hour ago, StefCurry said: Nico Hulkenberg is in Renault for next years. Is it really the step forward for German? I think it's a calculated risk. Force India are clearly better than Renault this year but Renault have been concentrating on next year and beyond. Force India put in a consistently decent performances but they're unlikely to be contenders for more than occasional podiums, I think Hulkenberg is betting that a team with a major manufacturer behind them could have much more potential, even if F1 history has plenty of examples of big manufacturers failing to deliver. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
red snow Posted October 17, 2016 Share Posted October 17, 2016 1 hour ago, StefCurry said: Nico Hulkenberg is in Renault for next years. Is it really the step forward for German? Renault have enough money to be contenders. Force India will always be best of the 2nd tier teams without more funding. So it's a long term move for Hulkenberg as he knows his chance for getting into the big 4 (i still include Mclaren) has passed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loge Posted October 18, 2016 Share Posted October 18, 2016 You shouldn't judge Renault by their current performance. Lotus was facing bankruptcy when Renault bought them (back). They can't have done much development work last year. They should improve a lot over the next years, especially with an experienced driver like Hülkenberg. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Werthead Posted October 18, 2016 Share Posted October 18, 2016 Yeah, the current driver line-up is one of the strongest in the sport's history given the quality right down the field. People like Perez, Hulkenberg, Bottas, Sainz and Grosjean are all quality drivers who'd do excellently in a top car, but they're being logjammed in mid-field by the top drivers not going anywhere and by some teams wanting to explore the hot new drivers coming up behind them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StefCurry Posted October 18, 2016 Share Posted October 18, 2016 21 hours ago, williamjm said: I think it's a calculated risk. Force India are clearly better than Renault this year but Renault have been concentrating on next year and beyond. Force India put in a consistently decent performances but they're unlikely to be contenders for more than occasional podiums, I think Hulkenberg is betting that a team with a major manufacturer behind them could have much more potential, even if F1 history has plenty of examples of big manufacturers failing to deliver. Force India are still "alive" because of Sergio Perez and his investors. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StefCurry Posted October 18, 2016 Share Posted October 18, 2016 10 hours ago, Loge said: You shouldn't judge Renault by their current performance. Lotus was facing bankruptcy when Renault bought them (back). They can't have done much development work last year. They should improve a lot over the next years, especially with an experienced driver like Hülkenberg. Lotuses were incredible with Kimi Raikkonen and Romain Grosjean. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StefCurry Posted October 18, 2016 Share Posted October 18, 2016 1 hour ago, Werthead said: Yeah, the current driver line-up is one of the strongest in the sport's history given the quality right down the field. People like Perez, Hulkenberg, Bottas, Sainz and Grosjean are all quality drivers who'd do excellently in a top car, but they're being logjammed in mid-field by the top drivers not going anywhere and by some teams wanting to explore the hot new drivers coming up behind them. Luckiest is Max Verstappen with his famous daddy.. I'm sure these all drivers would be very good in top teams. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Werthead Posted October 18, 2016 Share Posted October 18, 2016 It's a stretch to say that Verstappen had a famous daddy. When they said Jos Verstappen's son was entering F1, I think the overwhelming reaction was "Who?" It's also clear that Verstappen does deserve to be there on merit. He's had a much larger amount of career success already in two seasons than his dad did in nine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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