Formula 1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix 2022Formula 1

[sillybilly]

Christian Horner suggested Checo suffered from higher deg because of his setup potentially being more quali focused:

Red Bull: Verstappen/Perez F1 lead swap in Azerbaijan GP not team orders

www.motorsport.com

It's 100% PR spin and if Horner "insists" on something it's probably phoney baloney - they probably remapped some of Checo's engine or throttle maps to multi-12 mode so that he would be slow or burn his tyres...

Perez was quicker in almost all sessions and in qualifying and suddenly ends up with a qualifying setup that ruins his race pace and it's not team orders?

I mean Perez is usually a tyre conservation style driver - I can't remember much history of him being fast but bad on tyre, or ending up with setups for that style driving??

Even if were true then it's a question of why did they risk his race pace and use a qualifying setup that would be bad for tyres - the RBR was so fast in a straight line at Baku in the practise sessions they could gamble on making a pass on track if they had superior race pace...

I'm a gonna believe it was "team orders" for their desired outcome - whether it be adjustments on the setups, engine mapping or radio instructions etc.

-

First race I can remember in almost 30 years that I consciously gave up on before the finish I didn't care to see the last 10 laps or so, there might have been races I missed from other commitments or sickness etc but this is the lowest level of my interest in the sport. I'm still a bit addicted but care so much less.

 

[rsh]

It's 100% PR spin and if Horner "insists" on something it's probably phoney baloney - they probably remapped some of Checo's engine or throttle maps to multi-12 mode so that he would be slow or burn his tyres...

Now you look like Jos.

 

[NICKname]

Ah, it's the return of the great big "red bull are dumb evil meanies who would do anything to sabotage their own success for no good reason" conspiracy.

Everyone knows that Perez would've won all 22 races last season if Red Bull allowed him to. And if they hadn't forced Gasly to repeatedly get lapped by Verstappen he'd be a three time world champion by now.

 

[McLaren]

Didn't Checo acknowledge that he was indeed off-the-pace? Then there's team radio of Max's last 2 laps where he had hit a purple sector 1 & his engineer is telling him, "Just bring it home. Take it easy, no need to push" highlighting that he was just in top form start to finish.

I think both guys were in just different zones by the end of it.

 

[sillybilly]

Ah, it's the return of the great big "red bull are dumb evil meanies who would do anything to sabotage their own success for no good reason" conspiracy.

Everyone knows that Perez would've won all 22 races last season if Red Bull allowed him to. And if they hadn't forced Gasly to repeatedly get lapped by Verstappen he'd be a three time world champion by now.

dumb evil meanies ? true.
sabotage and conspiracy not so much.

Do they always put most of their effort on the one thing that they think is their best bet - exactly like 90% or the F1 teams 90% of the time? sure.

Usually the detriment to their second driver just looks like a byproduct of a lack of effort / resource in that area - but there are these occasions (not 22 in a season) where it's perplexing just how they get it so wrong on one side of their garage... It's very very rare maybe 1 in 5 seasons that their #2 is faster almost every session but then way slower in a race...

So for me this doesn't look like the same old great big... it is confusing. I enjoyed seeing another Ferrari mechanical fail, and I can't wait to see the next one for RBR too.

 

[Magog]

It's 100% PR spin and if Horner "insists" on something it's probably phoney baloney - they probably remapped some of Checo's engine or throttle maps to multi-12 mode so that he would be slow or burn his tyres...

Perez was quicker in almost all sessions and in qualifying and suddenly ends up with a qualifying setup that ruins his race pace and it's not team orders?

I mean Perez is usually a tyre conservation style driver - I can't remember much history of him being fast but bad on tyre, or ending up with setups for that style driving??

Even if were true then it's a question of why did they risk his race pace and use a qualifying setup that would be bad for tyres - the RBR was so fast in a straight line at Baku in the practise sessions they could gamble on making a pass on track if they had superior race pace...

I'm a gonna believe it was "team orders" for their desired outcome - whether it be adjustments on the setups, engine mapping or radio instructions etc.

-

First race I can remember in almost 30 years that I consciously gave up on before the finish I didn't care to see the last 10 laps or so, there might have been races I missed from other commitments or sickness etc but this is the lowest level of my interest in the sport. I'm still a bit addicted but care so much less.

You can bet he and his engineer wanted a setup that could get pole but there is no setup they could ever do that will make up for Max's natural talent.

 

[NICKname]

dumb evil meanies ? true.
sabotage and conspiracy not so much.

But you wrote this: "they probably remapped some of Checo's engine or throttle maps to multi-12 mode so that he would be slow or burn his tyres...". Sounds like a sabotage conspiracy to me.

Usually the detriment to their second driver just looks like a byproduct of a lack of effort / resource in that area - but there are these occasions (not 22 in a season) where it's perplexing just how they get it so wrong on one side of their garage...

If anything this happens less at Red Bull than the other two big teams. Mercedes and Ferrari both have a habit of seemingly forgetting about their second driver. Mercedes is even doing that to Hamilton this year, they'll give Russell a solid strategy because he's always in the top 5 and then they have no idea what to do with Hamilton. From what I remember Red Bull even gave Gasly and Albon decent strategies, no matter how far behind Verstappen they were. Red Bull definitely messes up from time to time, and it happens to their second driver more often than their first, but it's not as if Mercedes and Ferrari are any better in that regard.

It's very very rare maybe 1 in 5 seasons that their #2 is faster almost every session but then way slower in a race...

Perez wants to be a championship contender. Qualifying is Verstappen's biggest weakness, so Perez tries using qualifying-oriented setups to beat Verstappen in qualifying hoping it'll give him enough of an advantage in the race to beat Verstappen overall (considering that in normal circumstances he has no hope of beating Verstappen's race pace). It seems like it might work at some tracks (Jeddah, Monaco), but at other tracks (Baku) it really doesn't. It's a better strategy than whatever Bottas 2.0 was meant to be.

And doesn't that seem like a much more reasonable explanation than essentially "Red Bull doesn't want Perez to be successful and intentionally ruins his races"?

I enjoyed seeing another Ferrari mechanical fail, and I can't wait to see the next one for RBR too.

But how many races has your favorite team won lately? 🤔

 

[Samus]

No different from the "Mercedes are sabotaging Bottas" comments the last few years.

People will come up with anything to support/hate certain drivers.

 

[sillybilly]

But you wrote this: "they probably remapped some of Checo's engine or throttle maps to multi-12 mode so that he would be slow or burn his tyres...". Sounds like a sabotage conspiracy to me.

Jumping to conclusions here. It's perfectly fine for RBR to do what they like strategically for this race and to manage engine for future races etc.

From what I remember Red Bull even gave Gasly and Albon decent strategies, no matter how far behind Verstappen they were. Red Bull definitely messes up from time to time, and it happens to their second driver more often than their first, but it's not as if Mercedes and Ferrari are any better in that regard.

Well two wrongs, or three wrongs don't make a right. I hate Red Bull, Mercedes and Ferrari.

Another element might also be mental resilience if Perez thinks he's not being helped enough then he goes off the boil and starts under performing, and to a small extent that is still on the team. From outside it looks like RBR has a toxic relationship with 2nd drivers - less so with Perez - but still gotta wonder if they unintentionally get less from the #2.

And doesn't that seem like a much more reasonable explanation than essentially "Red Bull doesn't want Perez to be successful and intentionally ruins his races"?

It hardly intentionally ruins his race, he comfortably came second place! even without Ferrari fails the consistent pace and speed of RBR he would have been 3rd or 2nd.

RBR would intentionally have wanted him to be a strategic element to get in the way of LEC if possible and 100% success there.

But how many races has your favorite team won lately? 🤔

It's not all about winning. Except that in F1 it does seem to be and that is one of the reasons I am falling out with the sport and it's pundits.

I have 7 favorite teams, combined they only have 1 podium this year, but they did get a couple of wins last season. This years cars look good but it's an average season so far.