The Official 2012 F1 Thread. Spoilers possible!

[wxwax]

Originally Posted by A. T. T-W

Because of McLaren surely?

I don't like Hamilton much but I don't think that he has any control over how much fuel the team had put in his car.

Yes, absolutely, didn't mean to imply he dictated fuel levels.

[JBSmith]

Originally Posted by wxwax

Sorry to hear that the McLaren mechanic who had a problem on Hamilton's first pit stop in Bah-rain has left the team. I assume that means he was fired, which certainly seems harsh for what they describe as a volunteer position.

A "volunteer position"? As in "he volunteered for that particular job," or "he works on the team for free"?

[srad600]

This was definitely an interesting race, lots of passing going on. Great day for Williams as a team, and for Pastor as a driver...not so much for Bruno. Schumacher was trying to execute a pass so I agree he was at fault, but it did look like Senna made way too many moves to block...some karma for Schumi.

Good drive through the field for Hamilton, no crashes or incidents...even with Massa...which I was mentally preparing for. I was surprised at Jenson's lack of advancement though.

Kimi...I believe he will win at least one race this year, it's only a matter of time.

[Jurgen]

I get off work in the morning-- usually watch qualifying, then get some sleep and then watch the race.

1. I'm really enjoying the RACING this year, yes some of it is pit stop lead changes, but it beats some recent years processions. Commentators keep saying its due to DRS-- that is part, but it seems like rule changes, especially the limited testing and weird tires has really mixed up the field. You either get it right in the off season or you don't.

2. Williams, Lotus, Ferrari at the front. Classic old school F1.

3. I keep being amazed by Alonzo's driving. He seems by far the best to have if you don't have an UberCar. Kimi also seems to have this ability.

4. Qualifying. I like the lack of certainty. Was it last year where they lined up two by two-- Redbull, then McLaren, then Ferrari, then Mercedes, then...
Now it is a big mixing bowl, Teammates, even top teammates can be far apart. (See McLaren)

5. Woot, Glad to see Sir Frank get a win.

6. Matchett is an idiot-- "Well maybe Kimi is going to try and go the rest of the way on these tires..." With a full 1/3 of the race left.

7. Lotus is close, damn close, will they have what it takes to begin winning and stay on top?

8. The first 1/3 of the race a was sick of the constant Hamilton commentating. But he did have a heck of a drive. I'm not impressed with top teams/drivers going from 22 to 10. Back markers are too easy to pass by a superior car. But I am impressed coming from the way back and moving past 12-11-10-09... Even your own teammate, who is a pretty good driver.

9. What's happened to Petrov? Last year he seemed better, almost like Perez this year. Now he's firmly in the rear. (Maybe my memory is foggy? )

10. Is McLaren/Hamilton the car to beat?

11. Is the track finished yet in Austin?

[Ace100]

Originally Posted by Jurgen

10. Is McLaren/Hamilton the car to beat?

Nope. I think you're seeing something similar to Alonso. Hammy has his faults, most of them residing in his head, but he can drive an almost good car to a higher position than it deserves. His achilles heel is his tire and brake management. That's what señor eyebrows has over him, although they are actually more alike than different.

I'm going with Kimi and Grojean this year. Kimi has a fire in him that I can't really recall from the past. Consistency will win this years championship, something at which Button would normally excel in but McLaren seems to find ways to torpedo. Kimi seems to have it.

Kimi is the one to beat with Grojean as the wildcard.

Of course, I could be completely full of it...

[wxwax]

Originally Posted by JBSmith

A "volunteer position"? As in "he volunteered for that particular job," or "he works on the team for free"?

The former. Your question does make me wonder how much a pit mechanic makes in F1.

[wxwax]

Originally Posted by Jurgen

6. Matchett is an idiot-- "Well maybe Kimi is going to try and go the rest of the way on these tires..." With a full 1/3 of the race left.

9. What's happened to Petrov? Last year he seemed better, almost like Perez this year. Now he's firmly in the rear. (Maybe my memory is foggy? )

10. Is McLaren/Hamilton the car to beat?

Like you, I have issues with Matchett. But I give him credit for immediately noticing the track temp had dropped by a degree or two in Q3 and explaining how it was catching-out some drivers. Button still hadn't figured it out 20 minutes after failing to make it out of Q2. So Matchett has his moments.

Petrov drove for a better team the previous two seasons. Now he's at the bottom of F1.

So far, it doesn't look like there is a car to beat. Each successive track has seemingly suited a new team. Great for us!

[Jurgen]

Oh and I forgot one.

Is being the left rear wheel changer at McLaren similar to being the Drummer in Spinal Tap?

[Jurgen]

Saw someone mention a fire in the Williams garage. Figured it was something small... Hope all are Ok, what a way to ruin the first win in a long time.

Pastor Maldonado grabbed Williams F1 team's first victory in the series in eight years on Sunday at Barcelona, but shortly after Maldonado's win, an explosion happened in the team's garage.Seven people were hospitalized because of the explosion, which happened in the fuel area.
From Reuters:
Williams said the fire had "originated from the fuel area" and three of their staff were in hospital.
"The team, the fire services and the police are working together to determine the root cause of the fire and an update statement will be released in due course," Williams added.
Caterham, who have an adjacent garage to Williams, said four of their staff had been taken to the medical centre for examination - one with a minor hand injury and three with respiratory issues.
Force India deputy team principal Bob Fernley said one of his staff had suffered smoke inhalation
Maldonado was photographed carrying his 12-year-old cousin -- who was clutching the winner's trophy -- from the garage area just after the explosion.

[Tripped1]

Originally Posted by Jurgen

Saw someone mention a fire in the Williams garage. Figured it was something small... Hope all are Ok, what a way to ruin the first win in a long time.

Yeah, definitely wasn't small...more like pretty friggin insane.

.....and holy shit, can you imagine the money up in smoke in a Formula One pit.....yikes.

[UngaWunga]

Looks like it was just Senna's car that burned. No big deal.

[g®eg]

Originally Posted by wxwax

Schumacher loses 5 grid spots for rear-ending Senna. Have to say, it did look to be entirely his fault.

looked like Singapore last year all over again....
I wish I would have checked the news before time ran out to enter my picks for the race... I had Hamilton winning

*sigh*

zero points....

[g®eg]

work of art:

[srad600]

Humm, I'm beginning to wonder if the Ferrari is as bad as the talking heads make it seem...a bit of sandbagging going on to spice things up?

[wxwax]

Some interesting tidbits.

Frank Williams thanks the other teams for helping in the fire. He says the damage was relatively light, which I hope means the cars weren't damaged.

Hamilton's McLaren apparently still had 1.3 liters of fuel -- enough to pass post-qualy inspection -- but the team didn't want to take a chance and ordered him to stop on track, incurring the penalty.

And the most irresponsible headline of the season so far, from Planet F1: "Red Bull undone by unknown assailant" The headline implies that a person sabotaged the Red Bull front wings, but the story has nothing. Drivel.