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F1 2013 thread

36K views 371 replies 40 participants last post by  1andOnlyDobz! 
#1 ·
Since today marks the start of the 2013 calendar, I thought I'd start a thread about it. Who do you think will win this year??


My money is on Fernando Alonso of course. If the f138 is within 2-3tenths of the fastest car Alonso wins...simple :)

Lights not quite out but away we go:...
 
#50 ·
it's a matter of principle. the amount of times webber has abided by team orders when he had the faster car. vettel only started catching mark after he was told to turn the engine down to save fuel and tyres and whatnot and told TWICE that vettel wouldn't attack him. vettel then pulls out a very ridiculous move and basically pisses in the face of mark and anyone who's told him the rules. it's ridiculous.

multi 21 basically means hold position. keep the status quo.
 
#23 · (Edited)
Great race. Kind of confirms what I've always believed which is the current 'cream of the crop' are the 2 drivers who have been such since 2005. Fernando Alonso and Kimi Raikkonen. What makes them more dangerous now is even though they may not have the one lap pace of a Sebastian Vettel or Lewis Hamilton, they know how to race, as exhibited today. Raikkonen played that Grand Prix perfectly while Alonso knew what he had to do to get past Massa, Sutil and Vettel and he did so in one strategy call. Championship looks to be interesting. Here's what I reckon the pecking order is:

Red Bull: Fastest over a single lap but anything longer and they're quickly drawn in. Didn't help themselves by not doing many race simulations in testing.
Ferrari: Pretty good in qualifying and probably the fastest overall race package.
Lotus: Just like last year, they're probably 3rd or 4th in terms of qualifying but in the race they're comparable with Ferrari. On pure pace they're probably a tenth or two off but they're the easiest on the tyres which will be vital at points this season.
Mercedes: Like Red Bull, the car is a better qualifier than racer. Qualifying-wise they can mix it up with Ferrari and maybe Red Bull depending on circumstances. However, in the race, it's clear the car is fundamentally slower than Red Bull, Ferrari and Lotus.
McLaren: Oh dear. Made a bold move to go revolutionary with their design, feeling they'd reached the end of the development curve with their former car (which was actually pretty handy). 5th fastest car in qualifying but at least 6th and well and truly mid-pack in the race. I'm in the minority that support the decision to make the change. Like McLaren though I expected they'd at least be closer to the front, possibly on a par with Mercedes' race pace.
Force India: Fairplay. The car is handy. On a par with McLaren in qualifying trim and a beast on race day. They're definitely a step ahead of the other midfield runners now and for the time being, they've surpassed McLaren overall.
Sauber: Tough to say. Gutierrez was ok but behind both Toro Rossos in the race, something Sauber won't want. I do however fancy Hulkenberg would have made it into the points. I'd have pegged him for 7th-9th.
Toro Rosso: Not too brilliant in quali but their gamble for a wide set up range has paid off in race trim. Both Ricciardo and Vergne in particular were pacey in the race, getting in amongst McLaren. What a change from last year I suppose. It must be said though that Toro Rosso have started strong before then petered out.
Williams: Like McLaren they seem to have gone the wrong way. I have a feeling though that Williams' woes are what McLaren feared with their 2012 design later on in the season.
Marussia: They've jumped Caterham and in Jules Bianchi they appear to have a very handy driver. 10th place in the Constructors' Championship is very achievable with him at the wheel.
Caterham: They got rid of 2 drivers who should still be on the grid, Kovalainen in particular. And..they're paying for it. They seem to have bulit a garden shed that Pic to his credit is doing a half decent job with (though I wonder whether that's due to Chilton not being all that good).
 
#54 ·
I agree with the rest in that Vettel was at fault. I dont mind the ignoring of team orders. But if Webber was second going for Vettel, you know Webber would do nothing stupid in the attempt to overtake and attempt to overtake on merit, just like any other overtake, not attack it wrecklessly in the manner Vettel did. If Vettel was patient he could have potentially overtook Webber with a clean racing move, no problems. Of course this would have required the team to tell Webber that Vettel wants to go for it. But yeh Vettel just comes off as a hot head with an inflated ego, what can you do. He's the face of Red Bull.
 
#58 ·
Another reason to dislike VET, respect to HAM and ROS for dealing with the situation in a more mature manner.

What were Ferarri and ALO thinking? Force India were hilariously bad in the pits, I was rooting for them, tough luck to SUT and DIR.

Is it just me or anybody else enjoying the DRAMA? Since we're on a wrestling forum I kinda feel that all the drama is scripted to add a little spice to an otherwise banal sport, as of late, in the sense of heated rivalries. Wouldn't put it past Bernie to ask VET to turn heel, despite him getting a Cena reaction.
 
#60 ·
If I was Webber I would of rammed Vettel of the track so neither get the 25points. Red bull need to tell him he's nothing without the car, so if he's not gonna play nice go play 2nd fiddle to a decent driver.

Also well done Alonso on doing a lap, keeping a red bull at bay with a fucked front wing. Also had the wing fell off in the pitlane, he would of lost control and killed people.


So to sum up Malaysia, Vettel steals 25points and Alonso saves the lives of the pit crew. *insert Alo face*
 
#66 ·
Double team orders race. Really, that overshadows everything else for me. I know team orders are legal, and I'm ok with that, but the way the drivers handled Brundle's questions didn't exactly do their teams any pr favours.

Good old Webber; he's sure not one to keep the team business quiet. That was the most awkward podium interview yet, but everyone must have seen it coming. I don't blame him for being pissed. I have to think that Vettel acting out like a spoiled child, passing whenever he wants and fair warning be damned, has done as much, if not more, to sour team harmony as Webber's public dirty laundry airing. I supose it all spices up watching RedBull run off to another superseason...

As far as Hamilton's post race; I guess it was nice of him to acknowledge his teammate but he came across too apologetic. I wasn't his decision to hold station, but considering the amount of criticism he gets it makes sense that he'd want to show he wasn't demanding #1 status.

The race itself wasn't all that eventful. Aside from Alonso's wing failure (which could have caused a much bigger incident other than just putting him out early, so there's that to be thankful for), Button's unexpectedly strong position prior to his disaster pit stop and the Lotus sluggishness relative to last week there wasn't that much to note. Or, if there was, it faded in comparison to the obligatory post-race controversy.

Oh well. I have Indycars in St. Petersberg to watch now. I haven't followed anything pre-season and have no clue what to expect.
 
#69 ·
Vettel is a piece of shit. End of story. If there was no team orders to basically cruise to the finish and Vettel overtook him then fair enough. You deserve that win. But when your team orders something, your teammate obeys and you decide to do the cheap ploy then lets face it, you're a dickhead.
 
#71 ·
All this time I thought Webber would be better off without Red Bull, and that Vettel hogs the spotlight.. everyone at work was telling me I have no clue.

I was right about Vettel, massive cunt of a bloke.
 
#89 ·
I think they need to change up qualifying now that they have these tyres. They shouldn't have had the soft tyres around to be honest but I think Pirelli did it because either they or the FIA messed up on the wear ratio between tyres. The softs grain too quickly and the mediums are actually pretty stubborn for mediums. Using mediums and hards could have offered a 1 stop race for someone like Button.

On quali, it's been like that for a while tbh. Most cars are only on it right at the end. Personally I'd have the top 10 from the second round of qualifying do a one-lap shootout. A mix of this qualifying rule and the last if you will. It'll use less tyres because it's one run maximum, it forces cars to actually put in a timed lap and it'll put on a spectacle for the fans imo.

And yes, Alonso's girlfriend is VERY hot :D
 
#128 ·
@sXe, Webber has had his fair share of impeding on Vettel. I don't think Vettel looks at this as 'getting one back', but I wouldn't be surprised if it churned on his mind. It's easy for fans & press to make these assumptions after races, but when you are in the head of the moment, strategy locked in mind, and with both men doing something different, Vettel's actions can't be vilified, especially to the degree he has. In most other cases, if it was another set of team-mates, reactions would be very different. Red Bull made the situation around it much worse. They knew the strategies both men are undertaking, they should know their personalities well enough. They were telling a 3 time World Champion to sit back, and they weren't doing it with much vigor.



The smilies on this site go over my head. Even the most basic smilies. Didn't think there was enough 'tone' to see it any other way either.
 
#168 ·
Agreed. When a guy on the front row of the grid manages to end up well out of the points, there's a problem, regardless of who it is. I'm not an advocate of having everlasting tyres because dealing with wearing tyres is a valid and valuable quality in a driver; knowing when to push 100% and when to conserve. However we're now at a point where the tyres determine the race. Qualifying means absolutely nothing. Not to mention the fact we keep getting random tyre failures like Di Resta's in Practice. It's getting to the point where the tyres may not even be safe!
 
#205 ·
Shame but we all knew it was going to happen. Webber had enough of being screwed over by his own team, his own team mate. At least he'll get a good deal out of it though. Raikkonen probably replaces him. Interesting to see who goes to Lotus because they could be looking at getting 2 new drivers if Grosjean's inconsistency carries on.
 
#296 ·
I still think Ferrari getting Kimi back, considering what happened last time around, is a clear message of intent to Fernando.
 
#297 ·
Probably is. Ferrari are putting out the message that Ferrari comes first. They're in it for the Constructor's Championship rather than the Driver's Championship (though that'd be good for them too). That's where the money is. They've backed Fernando to the hilt but nothing came to fruition so now they've changed their philosophy and brought in the most consistent driver in F1 atm.
 
#365 ·
Force India have confirmed Perez to team with Hulkenberg. May be harsh for Di Resta but truthfully I'd have picked Hulk and Checo over him too. Guy will somewhat unfairly leave F1 entirely probably but the guy imo didn't exactly set the world alight in the way the beeb desperately tried to portray him as having done.
 
#2 ·
Thank you! Saved me having to start a thread.

I'm still not sure what to expect based off pre-season testing. I'm so tempted to set my alarm to wake up for practice so that I'll have a better clue, but being up at 4am and not being able to crawl back into bed might be tough three days in a row.
 
#7 ·
Didn't see practice, then again I'd have to of streamed it. Good to see the Lotuses are keeping their pace, no surprise that McLaren have dipped off with their 'unconventional' set-up, was always going to happen. Seasonal hopes would be Rosberg getting another win, or few. And one for Massa. If he keeps up his pace, and pushes hard on Alonso, no other man deserves it.
 
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