Grand Prix 2012 Brazilian Grand Prix Practice, Qualifying & Race Discussion

So it all comes down to the final race. The prancing horse versus the charging bull. The passionate Catalan versus the efficient German. Red versus Blue. Enough of the clichés, Vettel has a 13 point lead over Alonso going in to the race between the lakes so only has to finish in front of the Spaniard to claim his third title in a row. All the pressure will be on Ferrari and Alonso to give the Spaniard his third title and they probably need something to go wrong at Red Bull to stand any chance of winning, if their pace in the USA was anything to go by.

After his victory in the USA Lewis Hamilton will be hoping to leave McLaren on a high note. Lotus, surely, would love a second victory in 2012 but as fast as the car is it can't compete with the top 3 teams. Felipe Massa is starting to regain some of his old form and will, without doubt, be required to ride shotgun to Alonso. Mark Webber will be looking to win again at Interlagos but I doubt Vettel will suffer similar "brake" problems as he had last year.

The constructors championship is all sown up with Red Bull champions again. McLaren could steal 2nd place from Ferrari but a stronger performance from Jenson Button is needed in Brazil. Last year he was 3rd, two McLaren men in the top 4 could win them a few extra millions from FOM.

The final factor to build in is the weather. Brazil is notorious for changeable weather conditions and a sprinkling of rain could turn things Alonso's way. So tune next Sunday for the final event of 2012, but before then feel free to express your opinions below and don't forget to check out the circuit write up.

http://cliptheapex.com/pages/autodromo-jose-carlos-pace-interlagos/

 

[Dizzi]

Wet races at the start of the season are okay, when drivers are more equal in the standings. Wet races at the end of the season are too susceptible to manipulation.
If it's raining Red Bull are more than likely going to be screaming dangerous (like Lorenzo did in the motogp). If the race is stopped & Seb wins by default then it's going to be one damp squib of a championship.
I see no reason why the rules can't say car setup may be changed if the start of the race is deemed wet, especially if qualifying has been dry.

 

[Brogan]

In that situation, it would probably be worthwhile breaking parc fermé rules and starting from the pit lane.
The correct set up in wet conditions could easily pay dividends and outweigh the costs of starting from the pit lane, especially if the race is started behind the safety car.

 

[Dizzi]

That's true. It would be rather amusing to see 22 cars starting from the pit lane & the safety car starting the race with just he HRTs behind

 

[tooncheese]

They can change the brakes and radiator ducts if qualifying and race are held under different conditions, but also the difference between dry and wet setup is not that much with the grip they have.

 

[OnTheRaggedEdge]

Hamilton's looking unbelievably quick, Vettel and Redbull solid as usual, Alonso's lagging behind but overall the car seems to be reasonably competitive.

Quali predictions (Dry)
1. Hamilton
2. Vettel
3. Alonso
4. Webber
5. Massa
6. Schumacher

Race (Wet)
1 Hamilton
2. Alonso
3. Massa
4. Webber
5. Button
6. Schumacher
7. HULKENBERG
8. Vettel

Redbull pitcrew have been phenomenal all season but surely Vettels due a bad stop?

 

[Josh]

I'm going to stick my neck out and say I want Vettel to win it.

 

[Galahad]

I'm going to stick my neck out and say 99 times out of 100 Vettel will win it. The press seem to think Alonso has supernatural powers. Or they're trying to hype up what is almost a done deal...

 

[racecub]

If its very rainy Vettel might slide off So might alonso I guess. But things would be a bit more even.

 

[Bill Boddy]

It always looks as though the Red Bull rides the front wing closer to the ground than the other cars. I assume that this is because of the angle the car is set up, with a high back end. If so, when it is set up for the wet do they just raise the front or the whole car?

 

[Brogan]

I'm not sure they raise the car at all, do they?

The wet tyres have a larger diameter than the slicks, due to the extra tread blocks, so the only significant difference in set up I suspect is overall downforce, which is achieved by the wings.

 

[no-FIAt-please]

Surely the wing levels are set by parc ferme rules?

 

[Brogan]

They are, but I though Bill was just asking about the difference between a dry and wet set up.

 

[Fenderman]

Minor adjustments to wing angle can be made on raceday and we know that a few turns of adjustment are possible on the front wing during pit stops. I think, but stand to be corrected, that removable rear wing Gurney flaps are still legal in F1 as well although I don't recall any mention of their use this season. Traditionally those have been used when races have been wet from the start and then just pulled off when conditions have improved enough.

 

[sushifiesta]

Brogan I didn't know that! I guess the amount you want to raise the car is about equal to the depth of rain you have and with a quick browse I found that the wet tyres are 1cm greater in diameter. No F1 race is going to take place with 1cm of rain on the track so like you say I doubt they need to change the setup to raise the ride height, they just have to bolt the wet tyres on.

EDIT: Counter-intuitively, I guess they may even want to lower the ride height! Although that would be gambling on the race being wet all the way through and the same effect could probably be achieved by varying tyre pressures.

 

[Fenderman]

Getting the tyre pressures right is a real headache in the wet. On the one hand lower pressure can soften the ride which is desirable in the wet and with less air in the tyre theoretically more heat will be generated in the sidewall and "tread". On the other hand that can make the tyre more vulnerable to overheating as the track dries out and the softer ride becomes undesirable. So it's yet another gamble the teams have to make.

 

[teabagyokel]

It's really quite simple for Ferrari. They have to go high downforce, because they will not win this one if it is dry.

 

[racecub]

But why would you not go high down force? The Mclarens showed its faster in the dry as well round there.

 

[snowy]

If you are on anything other than pole you might want to overtake.

 

[racecub]

Hmm, this is true. So most likely Lewis and Seb definitely on high downforce, and the rest? What a difficult decision for them. Alonso will most likely have to overtake, but it's going to rain. I'd still go for high downforce even if I had to overtake.

 

[Bill Boddy]

The reason that I asked the question about setup is that we have seen several cars touching the track with the front wing, causing sparks. This would not seem to be a brilliant thing to happen if there is any standing water on the track. Water ploughs?