Grand Prix 2011 Monaco Grand Prix Practice, Qualifying & Race Discussion

Well how about that then, in a similar case in 2010 the doom and gloom merchants have vanished with a cracking grand prix in Spain. With the champagne still flowing we move on to Monaco a week later.

Mclaren will be a lot happier after running Red Bull all the way to the finish at a circuit where Red Bull normally run out of sight and could be favourites going into the Monaco race. Red Bull, however, will be the team to beat after 4 wins out of 5 races with Vettel looking unbeatable at the front but Spain showed that he wouldn't have it all his own way with Hamilton chasing him all the way to the end, even if Vettel extended his ever growing lead at the top of the championship

Ferrari seemed to have dropped back again after a superb start in Spain and eventually Alonso wound up 5th. But no doubt the Scuderia will be challenging the Mclarens and Red Bulls come the Grand Prix on Sunday. Felipe Massa's early season promise has vanished and he's back to his 2010 level and his seat will be back under scrutiny if he continues this lack of speed

Michael Schumacher will have reason to be optimistic after a strong race, beating his team mate and finishing a strong 6th as he best of the rest behind the Ferraris,Mclarens and Red Bulls. Mercedes no doubt have become the 4th fastest team over Renault who are now fighting over the lower points with Sauber and Force India.

However the big question on everyones lips will be DRS which didnt help overtaking in Spain (which is better) but more importantly where it will be placed on a circuit where straight track is at a premium so safety is a concern.

HRT continue to improve and are taking the fight to Virgin which for them is a massive achievement and its not long before they overtake them while Team lotus's optimism on Saturday didn't replicate on Sunday with a DNF for Kovalainen. But on a track where they would be weak, to get into Q2 is a massive achievement.

Hope seems to have returned to F1 after a surprisingly exciting race in Spain and it seems as if the feared Red Bull domination has been alleviated by the charging Mclarens and while Monaco is never a classic due to the nature of the track, it's certainly a spectacle

For Galahad's superb write up see here http://cliptheapex.com/pages/circuit-de-monaco/

 

[johnnoble1990]

Okay. By the looks of things Hamilton can choose his tyres, although i can't find any confirmation. His time has been deleted, so officially he set no time. F1 times have suggested the same thing. If you ask me this could be a good thing. Start 9th, run softs early and watch while people he couldn't overtake anyway build a gap, then first inevitable safety car and then by time he's running supersofts against everyone else's softs he can prove that overtaking is possible at Monaco.

 

[Brogan]

Confirmed no penalty for Massa.

So just Hamilton is relegated.

 

[McZiderRed]

Jenson also drives for McLaren and he's 2nd on the grid. Was it just Lewis' engineer/side of the McLaren garage that called the one Q3 lap strategy? Does Lewis have no voice?

Surely, Lewis has just as much say over the decision on the number of laps to drive as Jenson does, so to pin the 'blame' on McLaren is wrong. It was Lewis' side of the garage that made the wrong call and, as far as I remember, Lewis is part of the Lewis side of the McLaren garage, therefore Lewis is just as much to blame for today as McLaren...

Anyway, I'm happy as Jenson is P2 on the grid.

 

[johnnoble1990]

Indeed.
I was almost tempted to start a thread on McLaren strategy....

I have been tempted on many occasions to start such a thread. There strategy philosophy always seems to be to do something different. It then sometimes pays of (China), but usually doesn't (everywhere else). They must realise what they are trying may not be right when 8 of the other drivers left the pits ages ago and the only one who hasn't is aiming for 10th.

 

[Chad Stewarthill]

McLaren screwed up, they can protest but it'll come to nothing - and rightly so. They put their car on the circuit knowing where all the other cars were, their computer timing will tell them where Massa will be when Hamilton is on a flyer. He and or they made the wrong choice so it's hard cheese. Get over it and enjoy racing for 6th tomorrow Lewis (well that's my prediction!).

Massa was in the pits. How did Mclaren make the 'wrong choice'? Lewis was just starting his [only intended] flying lap when Ferrari chose to send Massa back out.

 

[gethinceri]

I stand (sit actually) corrected. Still, I think McLaren screwed up again and it won't be the last time.

 

[Chad Stewarthill]

I stand (sit actually) corrected. Still, I think McLaren screwed up again and it won't be the last time.

Can't disagree there.

 

[Chad Stewarthill]

Okay. By the looks of things Hamilton can choose his tyres, although i can't find any confirmation. His time has been deleted, so officially he set no time. F1 times have suggested the same thing. If you ask me this could be a good thing. Start 9th, run softs early and watch while people he couldn't overtake anyway build a gap, then first inevitable safety car and then by time he's running supersofts against everyone else's softs he can prove that overtaking is possible at Monaco.

didn't he set a time on the lap he was baulked by Massa? just not a particularly good one. BTW, the BBC website shows him in 10th place on the grid, with what looks like his Q2 time!

Edit:
I guess if his only time from Q3 was actually slower than his best Q2 time that'll be the reason why he would be in 10th place, promoted to 9th by Perez's absence.

 

[Brogan]

Honestly, there is not much that you can do. As you just said it is almost impossible to overtake here and all I can do is try to score as many points as possible. Tomorrow is all about damage limitation. I am sure that Sebastian (Vettel) will walk away with it - it’s as simple as that.

http://www.formula1.com/news/interviews/2011/5/12108.html

 

[Cookinflatsix]

If Lewis comes fourth and Vettel does not win, then a disaster will have been avoided. Let's look at any positives with the situation;

He starts behind a bunch of desperados with lots to prove, including Webber, Massa, Alonso. If there is an incident he might be well placed to avoid a pile up the likes we haven't seen so far this season

The chances of safety car deployment must be the highest do far this season

He might be able to gamble on an alternative strategy and tweak it when the SC appears, e.g. Start on primes, initially aim for 1 stop, but at the first sign of SC, he pits for options and then sprints through on a 2 or 3 stopper

Button might take Vettel at the start and hold him up till SC

Main thing is that, after the crashes and offs seen in the last few days a safety car is almost a certainty and if Whitfarces Mclaren are to actually outsmart others on strategy, this would be the best time

Finally big Ron is there

 

[FB]

Am I the only one here who's quite happy with the qualie results? Glad Perez is okay, the boy was doing well until he binned it. Good to see Williams in the top 10 and OMG Schumie out qualified Nico - chalk one up for the old timer.

 

[snowy]

Lewis is going to have to adopt an aggressive strategy and go for the undercut. He needs to decide to pit one lap earlier than his opposition would dare to pit. He has to strap on that hardly used set of options and drive like the clappers.

I'm guessing McLaren will choose to go long...

Perhaps you are the only one FB.

 

[snowy]

Why would the official FIA website be referring to Saturday as Samcoday in the Timing Information download page?

Have they been hacked? I'm damned if I'm downloading any of those PDF's until they get that straightened out.

 

[Brogan]

Am I the only one here who's quite happy with the qualie results?

Looks like it

 

[Sarinaide]

Am I the only one here who's quite happy with the qualie results? Glad Perez is okay, the boy was doing well until he binned it. Good to see Williams in the top 10 and OMG Schumie out qualified Nico - chalk one up for the old timer.

Yeah, content with it, would love Nando to dust your boy on the grid again, then play pass me if you can....ala Singapore.

 

[Brogan]

What's really got to annoy Hamilton is his Q2 time of 1:14.275 is the 4th fastest over the 3 sessions and would have been good enough for 2nd row on the grid.

 

[Sarinaide]

It is where the delivering at the right time counts the most.

 

[gethinceri]

Hey, new avatar. Like it!

 

[Jen]

Am I the only one here who's quite happy with the qualie results? Glad Perez is okay, the boy was doing well until he binned it. Good to see Williams in the top 10 and OMG Schumie out qualified Nico - chalk one up for the old timer.

I'm always happy with quali and all the better for having a bit of a mix up (except for the finger puppet, sorry FB). There are two options for tomorrow - it will be really stunning or a pile of pooh - I suspect the pooh will be invoked depending on who you support.

For me, I will be quite happy if Seb isn't on the podium. If only because I want to see a season that isn't finished before the end of the summer.

 

[no-FIAt-please]

I agree he has to make a couple of places up at the start, stay on the gear box and then try undercut them when they pit. Either that or a safety car at the right time is his only hope really... Funny how he doesn't think Jenson can stop Vettel and I would have to agree with him, wouldn't dare stick one up the inside.