2020-21 Formula 1 Off-season threadFormula 1

[kikie]

Maybe a little bit off topic but look at the size difference between a 15 y.o. Renault and a current F1 car. I didn't know that.

 

[mustafur]

figured, the modern hybrid systems force a big increase to the wheelbase, which I'm not fond of.

Would like if they brought in a restriction of maximum wheelbase but it will likely lead to every team having the same so it wouldn't work.

Similar news shared:

Haas Brought to you by central Russia.

 

[McLaren]

1 Italian website is reporting Lewis declined a Mercedes' offer and another source claims Mercedes is blocking Lewis' demands in favor of Russell. Seems like a fitting tweet from a journalist on the gossip.

 

[spacecowboy73]

The less practice the better. Brings more unpredictability to each weekend and could shake up the grid more often.

Yeah and less reason for fans to show up at the gate.

 

[kungtotte_]

I think they're just haggling, and Russell's performance just gave Mercedes a bit more leverage to haggle with.

If they're realistically going down that route (signing Russell instead) Mercedes needs to haggle with Williams for a contract release too, and Williams aren't going to part ways with a top end driver they're getting for pennies on the dollar without a juicy payout.

 

[TenEightyOne]

Williams aren't going to part ways with a top end driver they're getting for pennies on the dollar without a juicy payout.

The story seems like bollocks... but I'm sure that a large wedge of now-cash would suit the new Williams board right down to the ground.

 

[Blitz24]

The story seems like bollocks... but I'm sure that a large wedge of now-cash would suit the new Williams board right down to the ground.

The money could help them build better cars pitch to the next driver in the Mercedes pipeline that they too can be like Bottas and Russell.

 

[kungtotte_]

The story seems like bollocks... but I'm sure that a large wedge of now-cash would suit the new Williams board right down to the ground.

They'd have to spend some of it on a new driver though, and getting someone of Russell's calibre on Russell's paycheck ain't going to be easy. It might be a wash, unless it's an obscene amount of money.

 

[TenEightyOne]

They'd have to spend some of it on a new driver though,

Bottom end teams don't usually pay for drivers, more the other way around. A wedge from Mercedes could be very handy right now, or some other kind of tit-for-tat engineering favour.

 

[Dennisch]

I wonder if Hamilton wants to at least try the red suit for 1 season.

 

[Blitz24]

I wonder if Hamilton wants to at least try the red suit for 1 season.

He's going to go to get a sponsorship from Budweiser?

 

[TenEightyOne]

He's going to go to get a sponsorship from Budweiser?

He doesn't drink, so that would be ideal.

 

[McLaren]

I wonder if Hamilton wants to at least try the red suit for 1 season.

The amount of heel turn from the Tifosi would be legendary, beyond the time I watched some bitch about Vettel whilst conveniently supporting him 2017-2018.

 

[Boedefeld]

Yeah and less reason for fans to show up at the gate.

Oh no, how will the fans ever get over 30 minutes less of cars staying in the garage and not driving instead of actually using the time that is given to them.

Do you even watch this sport lmao

 

[ScottPuss20]

Shorter practice sessions are way better - a lot less stuffing around and more action. That's what we want isn't it?

 

[mustafur]

I would rather just 1 practice session, it's the easiest way to bring in mixed race conditions without making it gimmicky, Hulkenburg proved that you can still have a decent race despite only having Q1 to practice in, if everyone was in the same boat as him it would of made a very interesting race.

 

[SlowGrayAudi]

I would rather just 1 practice session, it's the easiest way to bring in mixed race conditions without making it gimmicky, Hulkenburg proved that you can still have a decent race despite only having Q1 to practice in, if everyone was in the same boat as him it would of made a very interesting race.

But he still had Perez data to pour over didn't he?

I think 1 hr long practice session then straight into qually would be ideal.

 

[Samus]

I've long thought 4 hours was far too long for the best drivers in the world to practice, they shouldn't be able to simulate an entire race within the sessions. But I also understand the point that people at the track want to see the cars on track, so it's a fine line to balance. What they've gone for seems like a pretty reasonable one.

 

[Touring Mars]

Lando Norris has tested positive for coronavirus and is displaying symptoms...

 

[Liquid]

In a double PR blow for McLaren, there is apparently a video posted by a karting track owned by the Sainz family (not sure if it's Rally Carlos or Track Carlos) which features someone blacked up.

 

[MagpieRacer]

In a double PR blow for McLaren, there is apparently a video posted by a karting track owned by the Sainz family (not sure if it's Rally Carlos or Track Carlos) which features someone blacked up.

Rally Sainz Snr.

Its sad to see this happen, not good for their brand but with Sainz Snr in the Dakar and Jnr in Maranello its clearly a PR company f* up which has resulted in them being dragged.

Like with any situation though, other dirt gets dragged and spun to make them look bad.

Seeing people compare it to Mazepin though makes me laugh. If this was Mazepin, he would have been the one in blackface.

 

[Liquid]

Jnr in Maranello

Yeah, that's true actually; he's not driving for McLaren any more. I just saw both Lando Norris and Carlos Sainz trending on Twitter at the same time and my brain was stuck in 2020.

 

[MagpieRacer]

Yeah, that's true actually; he's not driving for McLaren any more. I just saw both Lando Norris and Carlos Sainz trending on Twitter at the same time and my brain was stuck in 2020.

Gonna take some getting used to.

But yeah, I highly doubt that either of them had any direct hand in this. I expect we'll see some statements from the family pretty sharpish.

Edit. Carlos Sainz Karting is owned my a parent company (Diver Karting) Sainz Snr is the president of the company but Jnr isn't a part of it officially. It seems whoever does the PR, marketing and day to day running of that company will find themselves in very hot water quite fast, given that Sainz Snr (president) is running the Dakar and will have been prepping for months so the likelihood of him having seen this is very slim. Now their name is being dragged through the mud without any input or control from them.

Sad to see and I hope the right people get held accountable for this.

 

[Jimlaad43]

Race start times have been changed back to beginning on the hour, rather than at 10 past. It's also likely that they'll go back to the traditional 2pm start time (in Central Europe) rather than 3:10pm that they've done for the last few years.
https://www.racefans.net/2021/01/06/f1-races-will-start-on-the-hour-again-in-2021/

 

[Cap'n Jack]

It's also likely that they'll go back to the traditional 2pm start time (in Central Europe) rather than 3:10pm that they've done for the last few years.

Oh yes please! I’ve lost too much sleep this year while trying to catch the races live here in Australia (and falling asleep 10 laps from the finish), while also having to wake up at 6:30am the next morning for work.

 

[SlowGrayAudi]

Oh yes please! I’ve lost too much sleep this year while trying to catch the races live here in Australia (and falling asleep 10 laps from the finish), while also having to wake up at 6:30am the next morning for work.

Are you sure falling asleep wasnt due to the races being boring as well? They weren't all exactly winners

 

[Cap'n Jack]

Are you sure falling asleep wasnt due to the races being boring as well? They weren't all exactly winners

No, it’s my own poor choice of watching the races in bed. Anything will make me doze off if I watch it in bed.

 

[SlowGrayAudi]

No, it’s my own poor choice of watching the races in bed. Anything will make me doze off if I watch it in bed.

That'll do it haha

 

[Veinz]

Glad we wont be seeing anymore pink, that livery was getting pretty tackey. Bayberry green is very nice.

 

[EngieDiesel]

Looks like BWT is out of the picture entirely. Cognizant is an IT company and I've noticed that IT firms seem to love using green in their branding these days, so there likely won't be any offensively colored stripes on the car. And given how much the information side of things has grown over the last couple decades, having a partner that can help on that end does make a lot of sense.