Grand Prix 2010 Monaco Grand Prix Practice, Qualifying & Race Discussion

Typical F1. You wait three weeks for a race and then two come along at once.
So it's on to one of F1's 'Marmite' tracks since drivers, teams and fans alike either love it or hate it. One thing's for sure though, Monaco provides a unique challenge and is one of the few tracks left on the calendar where mistakes aren't rewarded with a three mile wide run off area. Instead, drivers who over-cook it at Monaco are met with the sound of cracking carbon fibre and the end of their afternoon.

As we all know, qualification on Saturday is the key to race performance on Sunday. The debate has raged this year as to whether the first session of qualification should be split but this now looks unlikely to happen. The back markers however, will have to be even more vigilant of their surroundings.

Several areas of the track have been re-surfaced but the road is always going to be bumpy and some of the kerbs around the Swimming Pool and Nouvelle Chicanes have been raised to prevent them being cut by drivers.

To win in Monaco you need a perfectly balanced car instead of massive straight line speed. Expect McLaren and Red Bull to be right on the pace all weekend. Ferrari and Mercedes have pace but whether their cars are subtle enough for Monaco remains to be seen. Because there is less requirement for top end speed this is a good chance for Renault and Force India to push the big four and they may cause an upset.

Williams and Toro Rosso seem a bit out of sorts at the moment and if Williams' aero package problems at Spain were anything to go by, don't expect a great deal of improvement this weekend.

At the back of the grid the 6 mobile chicanes will once again be raising the blood pressure of those towards the front of the grid. Expect plenty more "Charlie, Charlie......" radio calls this weekend. Virgin look set to continue with only one updated car. The battle between the three could be a lot closer here because again it's not all about speed.
 
Re: 2010 Monaco GP Practice, Qualifying & Race Discussion

snowy said:
No Ferrari are right, after all they only got rid of the spare car to cut costs and the teams have abjectly failed to reduce expenditure, so why not increase it?

Now that the banks have been bailed out and everyone's forgotten why we gave them billions, they have loads of money to lend but can't find anyone rich and stupid enough to lend it to. F1 is an ideal candidate for ludicrous loans and speculation.
:thumbsup:

They bring all the parts to a race weekend for a '3rd car', but it's not assembled. I don't really see why we can't have a 3rd car, what happens if there's a red flag and half the cars are wiped out? It robs F1 and the fans of a good race.

I'm all for it.
 
Re: 2010 Monaco GP Practice, Qualifying & Race Discussion

The FIA have admitted that there was a "lack of clarity" concerning the last lap in Monaco.

According to a statement the incident, “Showed a lack of clarity in the application of the rule prohibiting overtaking behind the Safety Car.

“Adjustments to the regulations are necessary to clarify the procedure that cars must meet when the last lap is controlled by the Safety Car whilst also ensuring that the signaling for teams and drivers is made more clear.”


As I said at the time, the fact that they deliberated on it for 4 hours implied that it wasn't a cut and dried case.

So why then did they punish him so severely?

James Allen suggests that they could have done any number of things under article 153 of the Sporting Code such as:
? reprimand (blame);
? fines;
? time penalty;
? exclusion;
? suspension;
? disqualification.

Another poor show by the stewards in my opinion.

http://www.jamesallenonf1.com/2010/05/fia-admits-lack-of-clarity-in-monaco-gp-last-lap/
 
Re: 2010 Monaco GP Practice, Qualifying & Race Discussion

Enja said:
snowy said:
No Ferrari are right, after all they only got rid of the spare car to cut costs and the teams have abjectly failed to reduce expenditure, so why not increase it?

Now that the banks have been bailed out and everyone's forgotten why we gave them billions, they have loads of money to lend but can't find anyone rich and stupid enough to lend it to. F1 is an ideal candidate for ludicrous loans and speculation.
:thumbsup:

They bring all the parts to a race weekend for a '3rd car', but it's not assembled. I don't really see why we can't have a 3rd car, what happens if there's a red flag and half the cars are wiped out? It robs F1 and the fans of a good race.

I'm all for it.

Unfortunately I think it's an appalling idea, I was attempting to be sarcastic in that post.
 
Re: 2010 Monaco GP Practice, Qualifying & Race Discussion

Brogan said:
The FIA have admitted that there was a "lack of clarity" concerning the last lap in Monaco.

Another poor show by the stewards in my opinion.

Damon Hill wasn't particularly happy with the situation he found himself in and actually questions the role of the driver steward. So there's another tangled web the FIA need to sort out:

"It was a fascinating experience but I wonder whether it is right that drivers are put in the position of interpreting the regulations," Hill was quoted as saying by The Times.

"I imagined I would be there as a consultant providing driver insight to the stewards, who would then make the decisions. My expertise is as a driver rather than a lawmaker or interpreter of regulations."

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/83714
 
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