Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix 2022Formula 1 

  • Thread starter Jimlaad43
  • 339 comments
  • 21,117 views
Max showed this race that he doesn't know how to overtake. After a 2021 season where every time he met a Mercedes his only move always ended up with the Mercedes having to turn out of the corner to avoid an out-of-control-Red Bull. And when he found himself on the outside against someone doing the same thing, he turns in and then gets surprised when he hits a tyre wall at 52G.

He's just an online racer - divebomb and crowd other cars off the track is his only tactic. In this race in the three times they passed and repassed each other, Charles just used his brain to let Max have the apex of T1 and get a terrible exit so he could have an easy DRS pass down the next straight. Max needs to rethink his tactics because he isn't in the quickest car again.


Also
Screenshot_20220320-212418.png

Can we keep this constructors championship order for a bit longer :lol:
 
Max showed this race that he doesn't know how to overtake.
I have to disagree. In his first few seasons in Formula One he wasn't in the championship chase but was usually by far the most entertaining driver to watch. He could pass his way through the midfield and often did it brilliantly. Since finding himself at the very front of the grid, it's changed, sure, with Marko and Horner mentally poisoning his driving style when there is a lot more at stake (wins and titles rather than 3rds or 4ths) but to say that he doesn't know how to pass is a bit unfair; Marko and Horner have a lot to answer for.
 
He can absolutely get past drivers, but that's when he has the car with speed to dictate things on the exit and that they can't fight back so once he's ahead through a section you can't overtake on, he uses his undoubted speed to whizz away.
Whenever he tried to pass Lecelrc today in the faster car, he tried the exact same tactic all three times, getting worse results each time, and they were the same as last year too. Max doesn't do multiple corner wheel-to-wheel battles. He doesn't do setting drivers up and getting them on the exit, it's divebomb and force them off (literally Sao Paulo and Abu Dhabi lap 1). It's taking Senna's flawed tactic of I pass or we crash and not trying to have another tactic when that doesn't work on a faster car, as we saw with Leclerc today.
 
Last edited:
Just watched the highlights on Channel 4.

Not got much to add to the race commentary, but was there fake crowd cheering sounds added to the live broadcast? It was awful having every highlight-worthy moment spoiled by the sport version of canned laughter.

Second question - Zhou Guanyo or Guanyo Zhou? Alex Jacques was saying what I thought was Zhou's surname first, then his first name, and it appeared like that on the graphics.
 
Roo
Just watched the highlights on Channel 4.

Not got much to add to the race commentary, but was there fake crowd cheering sounds added to the live broadcast? It was awful having every highlight-worthy moment spoiled by the sport version of canned laughter.

Second question - Zhou Guanyo or Guanyo Zhou? Alex Jacques was saying what I thought was Zhou's surname first, then his first name, and it appeared like that on the graphics.
Yes there was crowdcheering.mp3 multiple times in the broadcast. They only recorded one cheer it seems.

In many parts of China and Asia the family name stands in the first place so you call him Zhou Guanyu like he would like to be called.
 
Last edited:
Roo
Just watched the highlights on Channel 4.

Not got much to add to the race commentary, but was there fake crowd cheering sounds added to the live broadcast? It was awful having every highlight-worthy moment spoiled by the sport version of canned laughter.

Second question - Zhou Guanyo or Guanyo Zhou? Alex Jacques was saying what I thought was Zhou's surname first, then his first name, and it appeared like that on the graphics.
If I remember the quick discussion yesterday during Q, the commentators said he would prefer Zhou Guanyo which was reflected on the position boards during the convo.
 
Roo
Second question - Zhou Guanyo or Guanyo Zhou?
Zhou Guanyo.

Family name: Zhou
Personal name: Guanyo

Eastern tradition is to have the family name first and he has asked to be referred to as such. So to refer to him in the same vein as Berger, Schumacher or Hamilton, you'd say Zhou even though it's his first name.
 
Last edited:
Roo
Second question - Zhou Guanyo or Guanyo Zhou?
Yes.

His family name is Zhou, and his given name is Guanyu. It would natively be written Zhou Guanyu, but we'd write it as Guanyu Zhou

The graphics should therefore reflect "Zhou" not "Guanyu".
 
Max showed this race that he doesn't know how to overtake. After a 2021 season where every time he met a Mercedes his only move always ended up with the Mercedes having to turn out of the corner to avoid an out-of-control-Red Bull. And when he found himself on the outside against someone doing the same thing, he turns in and then gets surprised when he hits a tyre wall at 52G.

He's just an online racer - divebomb and crowd other cars off the track is his only tactic. In this race in the three times they passed and repassed each other, Charles just used his brain to let Max have the apex of T1 and get a terrible exit so he could have an easy DRS pass down the next straight. Max needs to rethink his tactics because he isn't in the quickest car again.


Also
View attachment 1126820
Can we keep this constructors championship order for a bit longer :lol:
Max braking while turning after the Pit straight was one of the biggest brain fades I've ever seen. IDK how he thought that would turn out well.
 
Interesting race. Glad to see some twists between quali and the race. My thoughts:

Sad to see Bottas fade so badly, but very cool to see Zhou get the wooden spoon.

How about the Haas boys? I think most would have put money on Q1 exits and zero points. They almost had a backdoor double points day- that's just cool, given where they were 2 weeks ago. Those folks showed they kept their eye on the ball and any distractions were kept out of the racing this week.

That Ferrari engine is just so spicy. Love to see them chucking out the power, reliably. Seems LeClerc had a bit more in reserve. Glad to see the Prancing Horse on top, again.

Sad to see the reliability issues, for RBDT, as the race would have been very interesting for the top 4 spots with that SC. Hope the RB team figure out what happened.

To me, jury is still a bit out on passing. Saw some DRS trains, still, but I think Albert Park will be a true test.
 
As someone who has, on many occasions, just wandered away from the TV during an F1 race or straight up fallen asleep...this race was a massive refreshment.

As mentioned a couple pages back I was hoping new cars would lead to some mechanical failures, but gooooood lord...I may have underestimated the impact.

The catastrophe at Red Bull is devastating for Max's chances if it becomes a Ferrari/RB fight all season, and it extends a helping hand to Merc if they can find a way back into competition.

The stand out for me was Magnussen in the Haas - I'd assume that's his best ever finish, and the best finish for a Haas (or tie at the very least) since their inception? Also, holy crap snacks...Mclaren are going to have a lot of soul searching to do.

Unlike some other people here, I was actually happy to see the cars performing like actual cars - and not the "on rails" boredom that F1 has become. I was happy to see people locking up, actually maneuvering like normal race cars in some instances. The performance gaps are still there, but there seemed to be a lot more fight back when being overtaken. When Max was hurling the car down the inside on Leclerc I told my father it wouldn't last because the tires and brakes wouldn't handle that every lap...and sure enough it didn't.

Like many people here I don't like Ferrari as a company. I hate their "legacy" payment nonsense, and their childish "take my ball and go home" nonsense every time an F1 rule is changed...but I don't hold that against the drivers or even the principal - more the douche bags who run the company. So...great to see Leclerc and Sainz with a 1-2.
 
Seeing the void between Magnussen and Schumacher, I'm beginning to wonder if last year's car really was as bad as it looked...
 
steiner red eyes.jpg


Also let's not forget Schumacher's race was slightly compromised by the spin at the beginning of the race, and at the end when he didn't pit under Safety Car, pretty much being a sitting duck. That Haas is better than the results look at the moment. I'm confident Jeddah is a double points finish for us.
 
Last edited:
Thought the race was incredible. Shame about the RB reliability issues; Max really seemed to be struggling with the pressure, his radio messages seemed much calmer last year. Fair play to Binotto and co. - they really appear to have hit it out the park considering that Alfa and Haas are also looking really strong. Always thought Leclerc was a championship contender so hope that this form continues and he gets a chance to prove himself. Zhou was really impressive, I thought he wouldn't have the chops but I was proven wrong! Amazing to see a Haas resurgence. Also seems as though Russell isn't up there with Lewis.

Seeing the void between Magnussen and Schumacher, I'm beginning to wonder if last year's car really was as bad as it looked...
I was thinking the same. Mick's best finish last year was 12th so it's not impossible to think that a more experienced driver could have got them into the points in one race. K Mag's a good thing for the team and Mick - shows the team what the car's truly capable of and gives Mick something to work towards. Just shows that whilst they needed the money, Mazepin really wasn't a good thing for the team. With more decent results like today I imagine more sponsors will quickly become interested. Seems Latifi's the new Mazepin now - significantly behind his teammate and only there because he brings in the money. Thought Albon did a sterling job considering how slow the Williams seems.
 
Last edited:
Zhou Guanyo.

Family name: Zhou
Personal name: Guanyo

Eastern tradition is to have the family name first and he has asked to be referred to as such. So to refer to him in the same vein as Berger, Schumacher or Hamilton, you'd say Zhou even though it's his first name.

I'm surprised you even find this 'newsworthy'.
 
Ferrari 1 and 2

Today was a good day.

Hopefully they can continue their consistency throughout the season its been 13 years without a title for Ferrari. Ferrari fans want to believe again!! Dont let us down.
 
I was thinking the same. Mick's best finish last year was 12th so it's not impossible to think that a more experienced driver could have got them into the points in one race. K Mag's a good thing for the team and Mick - shows the team what the car's truly capable of and gives Mick something to work towards. Just shows that whilst they needed the money, Mazepin really wasn't a good thing for the team. With more decent results like today I imagine more sponsors will quickly become interested. Seems Latifi's the new Mazepin now - significantly behind his teammate and only there because he brings in the money. Thought Albon did a sterling job considering how slow the Williams seems.
Latifi has always been a far better racer than qualifier, but this was one of his worst weekends so far.
 
Just watched the race replay. Not much to add to what's already been said, do I do identify with the conflicted feelings of not liking Ferrari, but liking Charles and Carlos. :lol:

Was pretty happy to see Lewis snatch a podium finish. The Merc massively suffers from to porposing issues, and was at a major disadvantage in heavy braking zones, but Lewis (and Russell) still managed to drive the wheels off the car. Both Red Bulls having engine issues definitely helped. I do think that Mercedes will probably have the hardest time overcoming their issues this season, as eliminating porposing from their car will likely mean a decent drop in speed at all but the smoothest tracks.

While I'm even less of a Red Bull fan than a Ferrari fan, that was a painful result for them, for both cars to have engine issues in the closing laps. Hopefully this isn't the main issue for the Red Bulls throughout the season. Also, it might just be because of the chosen radio messages, but Max really seems to crumble when things start going wrong that he can't control, that is compared to other drivers.

Hass and Alfa Romeo were definitely my heroes this weekend. KMag getting a Top-5 finish was just pure bliss, and one of the happiest moments in F1 in recent years. Bottas getting 6th was equally wholesome, even though his opening stint was pretty poor. Also Zhou showed that he can be pretty racey. He's not exactly the fastest driver, but he isn't afraid to challenge for positions, which is a great sign for a rookie driver. Both of these cars are definitely quick, and I have a feeling that they'll cause some havoc in the midfield, maybe even creating some awkward situations for the Top-3 every now and again?

Biggest losers were definitely Aston Martin and especially McLaren. Not much to say about these guys, other than I really hope McLaren can quickly sort out whatever issues they have.
 
Main points RB need improving in is low speed corners where the traction difference is awful compared to Ferrari. They should be atleast level with Ferrari into Jeddah.

RB also need improving so that they can actually finish the race, and learn to make pitstops without damaging the car. And fixing the fuel pump would be cool too, since finishing the race is a somewhat important thing as far as I know.
 
Last edited:
This race had a bit of everything...seems that nothing will be certain this year, surprises everywhere -- great for fans. Engineers have much data to assess and strategize for next GP...Charles, Carlos, George, Kev...must be a thrill to have the work pay off this way. Talk about a new era.

Hamilton quietly on podium...enjoy this season fellas!
 
I was surprised by how far off the pace McLaren were. They looked solid in testing, so it was a shock to see them at the back of the grid.

Six Ferrari-engined cars in the top 11 makes me think they've done some good work on the power unit. Let's hope it's legal this time around.
 
McLaren is just another good example that test times are completely irrelevant.

Mercedes will come back in a near future. Since the issues are that obvious they are surely able to gain much speed with lots of setup work alone and curing the porpoising. Would assume there is a second alone in this matter to find. On top of that everyone will be able to find seconds in the actual cars with the very limited testing times and the completely new design philosohies.

What worries me a bit. The distance from Leclerc was already 40 seconds to Hamilton before the SC, both with 2 stopps. Like I said I'm assuming this will be much less in the near future. But there was another gap of 30 seconds to the first midfield car in Magnussen from Lewis while both were on 2 stopps at this time. Ocon was on 12 and already lapped while Zhou and Bottas on 11 and 10 only had 5 seconds in hand before als beeing lapped by Leclerc. Even with the time consuming battle with Max Charles managed to put a minute and ten seconds after 75 % race distance on the first non Ferrari, Red Bull, Mercedes. 1.5 seconds per racelap. That isn't very promising for any midfield team to close the gap to the big three. No second Brawn story in sight...
 
McLaren is just another good example that test times are completely irrelevant.

Mercedes will come back in a near future. Since the issues are that obvious they are surely able to gain much speed with lots of setup work alone and curing the porpoising. Would assume there is a second alone in this matter to find. On top of that everyone will be able to find seconds in the actual cars with the very limited testing times and the completely new design philosohies.

What worries me a bit. The distance from Leclerc was already 40 seconds to Hamilton before the SC, both with 2 stopps. Like I said I'm assuming this will be much less in the near future. But there was another gap of 30 seconds to the first midfield car in Magnussen from Lewis while both were on 2 stopps at this time. Ocon was on 12 and already lapped while Zhou and Bottas on 11 and 10 only had 5 seconds in hand before als beeing lapped by Leclerc. Even with the time consuming battle with Max Charles managed to put a minute and ten seconds after 75 % race distance on the first non Ferrari, Red Bull, Mercedes. 1.5 seconds per racelap. That isn't very promising for any midfield team to close the gap to the big three. No second Brawn story in sight...
Leclerc had done Soft Soft Medium at that point, Lewis had done Soft Hard Medium. The hard tyre proved to be awful which made that gap a bit bigger.

But yeah Mercedes are behind. We have to remember that they've had the smallest time in the wind tunnel and the fewest allowances for CAD and CFD analysis, so this car has not had as much analysis done to it as the others could have had. The small sidepods are not as understood by Mercedes as they'd like yet because they've probably had to do more real-world understanding with it than in simulation. They'll get sorted, they're not exactly that far off Ferrari and Red Bull as everyone is making them out to be. It is still the third best car on the grid.
 
And yet...

View attachment 1126625


View attachment 1126629

Guanyu got his lap time in Q2 deleted for leaving the track at T4, so why is Perez's one and only Q1 lap allowed to stand? He'd be starting 20th (with the agreement of other teams) if this rule was being applied consistently.
I was prettty sure that Perez went back out and did an improved time near the end of Q1?

The competency of the FIA to organise a way to consistently monitor and police this is probably to rely on human error.

They might still be packing Red Bull cash after the end of the season and the RBR might have teflon coating when human error is possible.
 
Back