Spare Parts (F1 odds and ends)

This is an utterly stupid idea.

In a short race, presumably on Sunday tyres unless we're going to double the tyre cost, no pit stops will mean it's largely decided at the first corner. If someone's in say 6th place, what's the incentive to risk damaging their car and perhaps dropping right to the back of the Sunday grid in an accident. The smart choice will be just to hold your position.

This is apparently going to be run on a Friday when people are at work making it more difficult to attract either bums on seats or TV viewers. And what then happens on Saturday? Nothing presumably, so we've got the entire F1 circus, thousands of people including the media etc, sitting on their hands at great expense for no useful purpose.

That's apart from dumbing it down.

Other than that, a great idea.

 

Have to say I agree that doing it on a Friday is not good at all.

 

If I understand it right, qualifying on Friday, race one Saturday, the real race on Sunday.

Your points about it all being over by the first corner could be fairly accurate. Who's going to want to risk those major points on a Sunday? Though there could be some strategy in finishing further down for better position on Sunday, which will just be whack.

I think if they want to trial this, there almost has to be a non-championship event added somewhere. Given the calendar and cost involved, that's not going to fly.

 

There is a pre sprint race quali with everyone on soft tyres. Outcome is perhaps not a given, said to be at a later time. Then the sprint race where more than half the grid won't race with enthusiasm, preserving engine and car. Those with a genuine chance of scoring points might race but no one is going to risk damaging the car for 1 point (the difference 1 place represents). Would anyone undertake a risky move on the first corner? It might be about tyre management.
I can't see it being anything more than a crowd pleaser on Fridays, which of course will translate to revenues for Liberty and race circuits. From a racing purity perspective it will fall a long way short.

 

They have said Canada is cancelled this year , and that it will be replaced by Turkey on the same dates .

Turkey is about to go into its first full lock down .

How will that work apart from chasing the money ?

 

Strangely even though they are going into their first lockdown their cases peaked on 20th April and is coming down quite quickly! That said Canada's cases are fairly level currently. The twist is when you look at cases per population, then Turkey has twice the rate per 100,000 population that Canada has!!!!
I wonder if it's something to do with the flights and packing everyone in to a plane for so many hrs? Maybe it was more about money as Canada promotors did suggest that they were trying to get money out of Canadian Gov to support the race fees!! So maybe that failed and this way they save face to a degree.

 

I believe Canada refused to shift on quarantine requirements. At the moment everyone arriving from outside North America has to undertake a 14 day quarantine upon arrival. That's pretty unworkable for F1

 

I wonder what restrictions turkey will have in place ?

 

A logical reason. I don't believe the statistics from some countries. I have friends in India and they say it is far worse than reported, up to 10 times worse. In some parts they are even running out of wood to burn the bodies in the traditional way.
Do you believe the Turkish numbers? I think it is doubtful they are accurate.
Changing the subject, I am wondering about the Red Bull tyre wear, I would guess they are working on that but also wonder if the rake of the Red Bull has an impact on this.

 

In the past there has been quite a bit of stick for Crofty but I think his in race chatter is at times amusing. Even his blunders are no worse than Murray's and Murray was fondly remembered for them. Let's be honest, to do what he does is not easy. His job is to appeal to all degrees of fan base to the new fans as well as the old, impossible task. It has helped that they changed the format a little, a while back. There are times when I don't hear/listen to him but nor would he expect me too. ,
His job is to inform in an entertaining way and there are times when you think, 'plonker' but so we did with Murray. If he was deeply technical and skilled in the racecraft we would not need the observations of Martin or Ted or the others. His job description starts with the word 'entertain' even if for the wrong reason at times.

 

The brain drain continues at Mercedes.

Red Bull recruit more staff from Mercedes for new in-house engine project | Formula 1®

I have seen this happen in corporates. I would guess Merc may have been wrong footed, but also, do they have a talent pool to bring along that this opens the door for. Have the poached staff gone for the money or are they bored. By all accounts the culture at Merc is good so I suspect they are bored and want a challenge while picking up a pay rise.

 

unless redbull are getting Paddy Lowe'd.

 

Mercedes have spoken of having a culture where nobody is irreplaceable. Whether that extends to half a dozen senior departures at once, we shall see!

Good to see Red Bull making a proper go of their power unit operation.

 

https://www.racefans.net/2021/05/07/red-bull-approached-100-mercedes-engine-staff-and-got-15-wolff/

Red Bull approached 100 Merc staff, poached 15. Sounds like they offered to triple their salaries.

 

https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/...o-junior-programme.y2L7w88HceBfvZJlM4Hd0.html

I suspect this is as much a marketing exercise for Mercedes as it is an opportunity for the young man.

 

We all talk about the FIA helping Ferrari in the past but it seems they now react to anything Lewis hamilton says 1 week after.

First it was the red bull rear wing, then it was tire pressure, now Its pit stop times.

 

We're going back to Turkey,
I like that.

 

Pit stop times have very little relevance given how fast they are these days, the key is timing the stop and nailing that out-lap. That's what's undoing Merc.

 

Carlos Reutemann has died .

I always liked him , but he had issues I feel .

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/formula1/57757338

 

I always thought he lost the 1981 championship because he had head problems ( not Patrick ) .

Now although that certainly didn’t help , I watched a Peter Windsor tribute to him today where he said that Carlos raced the Southafrucan race with the promise from Bernie that it would be a championship race .

He won , the race ultimately didn’t count costing him 9 points !

barring that he would have been champion .