Grand Prix 2014 Spanish Grand Prix Practice, Qualifying & Race Discussion

Hola amigos!!

The F1 circus rolls into not-in Barcelona for the 2014 Spanish Grand Prix, the fifth round of the championship. As it is the start of the European season, this Grand Prix is usually the scene of technical updates from all teams, or last-minute bits and bobs to hopefully reverse the awful job the engineers did at the start of the season, depending on your cynicism. Now, all teams say that they can get half-a-second per lap, so the field theoretically shouldn't change order, but inevitably this is never the case. So, it will be interesting to see which teams have been overly-optimistic. I mean, there's one thing talking the talk, but can they walk the walk (or in this case just go really fast).

Often hailed as a 'complete' circuit which tests all aspects of the cars - i.e. a byword for producing awful races - the circuit often used to hold pre-season tests, so teams had a reasonable ides of what to expect, but some guy in the FIA decided that it does rain in Spain, and it doesn't necessarily fall mainly on the plain. So the tests were shoved off to the Middle East, and the teams only now have an almost-certain ides of what to expect. Something to point out, though, it is often said by some people that those cars who are good in the (unfortunately) tight last sector should be good at Monaco.

In terms of classic races, er, well I suppose 2011 wasn't bad, nor '91 and '92. Oh, and of course everyone's favourite safety ambassador won in 2012.

Usually it's bone dry here, with the last wet race in 1996, and thus is inevitably more boring and predictable than usual. Stick a hairpin at the end of the main straight!!! But I suppose it'll be good to see a dry quali for once!!

Ready....Steady....Discuss!!
 
Not sure how you can call 2010 a boring season. It was quite exciting actually, 3 teams capable of winning, 5 drivers going for wins more than once, and nearly a 5 way battle for the title if McLaren didn't falter near the end.

2013 from the past 4 seasons is probably the only one I can call boring, 2011 wasn't great, but it had some good ontrack action.

I think what we are discovering is that Webber wasn't a very good driver, and this is why those years were boring.
 
I think what we are discovering is that Webber wasn't a very good driver, and this is why those years were boring.
Couldn't disagree more Batman. Webber never liked the blown diffuser and at the races where it played a lesser role he shone. At all times in F1's history the drivers themselves have always highly rated any driver who could win at Monaco, Webber did so twice. That alone deserves respect. We have no way of knowing how he would have performed in the current cars but as they lack the technology Vettel loved so much, the hot blown diffuser, I believe he would have had the same sort of results Ricciardo has been achieving. The current car would have been very much to his liking.
 
Webber struggled with the rear end of the car and at his worst he drove it into the wall at Korea 2010. With the increase in torque and rear end instability this year, I'm not too sure he would've fared any better.
 
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Quintessentially ...... You didn't mention his two flawless drives at Monaco where the slightest error puts you into the armco. I could also mention a brilliant drive when he beat Alonso at Silverstone where a very different set of skills are required. Silverstone one of the fastest circuits, Monaco the slowest. Regarding his mistake in Korea, maybe you should take a look at the sports very best. Schumacher, Alonso, Hamilton, Vettel have all binned it in the wet, Senna even buried his McLaren in the armco at Monaco in the dry. I find it hard to understand why people like to criticise a driver who spent a large part of his career in the top six. he deserves better than reading that sort of crap.
 
RasputinLives ..... I've also never suggested he's perfect Ras, just that he deserves to be recognised as being top six in motorsports premier series prior to his retirement. Incidently I treat a lot of his poor starts with a fair portion of suspicion, many settings are made from the pit wall, though I have little understanding of this and I'm sure many will correct me if I'm wrong.
 
I don't see what it's got to do with the Spanish Grand Prix, but the fact is Webber's last three seasons in F1 (2011-2013) were very disappointing. You can blame the diffuser or Vettel but he was nowhere near his team mate. He was a decent driver no doubt (I'd probably have ranked him 9th on the grid in his final year) but missing out on his chance to win the WDC in 2010 was pretty much the end for him.
 
the fact is Webber's last three seasons in F1 (2011-2013) were very disappointing.
Your judgement is incredibly harsh. 2011 3rd, 2012 6th, 2013 3rd. I don't see how you can rank him 9th when he's averaged 6th during most of his career, once he had a decent car. Regarding missing the title in 2010, yes a huge disappointment especially for Webber himself though one mistake in the wet hardly deserves downgrading his entire career. When Alonso was asked where he lost the title in 2007 he answered Japan when he crashed out in the wet. Same thing really except I don't hear people downgrading Alonso's career due to an error in difficult conditions.
 
After 2010 I would have ranked him as the 5th best driver on the grid (behind Hamilton, Vettel, Alonso and Button) but with Kimi coming back and Webber's 2011-2013 performances I put him 8th/9th behind Vettel, Alonso, Hamilton, Kimi, Button, Hulkenberg, Rosberg and possibly Grosjean (late 2013 spec). I think that's fair considering the gap between him and Vettel.

Note I am not criticising his performance in 2010, I'm talking about the fact that his performance level dropped considerably after 2010.
 
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Nico looks to have the sightly faster car and was compromised by the early red flag in Q3. You never know with the predicted tyre wear etc

I also reckon Vettel will be lapped. How the mighty have fallen.
 
"Whilst there's a lot of people hanging their balls in the pool on Fridays, we're still working very hard and pushing very hard so that we have a strong race."

Seb Vettel

Karma, Seb, Karma
 
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