Grand Prix 2015 British Grand Prix Practice, Qualifying & Race Discussion

Out of the ashes of World War II came a lot of military installations scarcely needed now blowing up enemies was not a priority. Well not so much of a priority.

Silverstone airfield on the Bucks/Northants border was such an installation. With Brooklands going the other way - a victim of the Luftwaffe - British motorsport needed a new home. Today Silverstone has evident primacy over Brands, Donington and the Top Gear test track.

Its corners are famous - Copse relegated from Turn 1 status but unbowed, Abbey renewed, Stowe tricky, Luffield frustrating, Maggots/Becketts flowing.

F1 is scarcely in rude health, with implausible grid penalties adding to its promoter describing it as "crap". What it really needs is barnstormers. And this one's on the BBC, so some people might chance upon it!

Hamilton inherited a sketchy win from Rosberg last year, just as Rosberg had profited from Hamilton and Vettel losing out in 2013. This year, you suspect there'll be Mercedes again to the fore.

It'll be windy. It might be wet. Good ol' Silverstone.

 

[Westy]

I do hope Charlie Whiting continues the no tolerance of track limit infringements from now on. We have heard the same tone before at tracks and then it is forgotten about the following weekend. The track is clearly defined and all racing/qualifying should take part within the confines.

 

[Jen]

I feckin love F1. I LOVE IT. although it must be said I have been drinking quite heavily since before lunch time.

It is the only way to enjoy the sport that is now a shadow of its former self. I will be having a bevy or two whilst watching this afternoon!

 

[Road of Bones]

I'm going out for a nice walk and a pub lunch today. I'll watch the race this evening, probably. I enjoyed the Hunt/Lauda documentary followed by Grand Prix on the TV last night much more than the actual F1 racing this season. I am genuinely unhappy about this - particularly seeing as I endured the Red Tide of the early '00s and Vettel's perpetual Wingasm of the early '10s without getting this dispirited and disinterested in the whole dismal spectacle- I used to get quite cross about things back then, but I can't even muster up that these days.
At least the GP2 is entertaining...

 

[olegg]

Not so much overtakings but so interesting race

 

[ramilas1]

Road of Bones (post #123), never falter when it comes to mustering up a bit of anger.
It is, certifiably, the only way to stay sane in the face of such abysmal mediocrity!

 

[Dario Resta]

Well, that was thoroughly enjoyable, but maybe (unusually) slightly ruined by the rain. Merc's beautifully timed pit stop for Lewis was a bit the like Trainline.com's app. It was good for Lewis, rubbish for everyone else.
Best race of the year so far for me.
Why the hell can't Williams come up with a decent strategy though? They never seem to think further than "ooh, we're in the lead".

 

[Brogan]

It could have been a lot worse for Rosberg if Hamilton had pitted a lap later.

Rosberg though would either have had to follow Hamilton in and stack (assuming Hamilton was still in the lead), or go around for another lap, which would have put him in third or lower.

Hamilton would arguably have still got the win, just ahead of Vettel.

 

[teabagyokel]

Story is that Hamilton and Vettel absolutely nailed it!

 

[Incubus]

i'm not sure it would have made much difference Dario Resta . this Williams isn't suited to anything that resembles a wet track.

 

[teabagyokel]

It is a car built for top speed. It is mightily unfortunate that the rain came today - there's every chance they could have held Rosberg off for the double-podium.

 

[Dario Resta]

It could have been a lot worse for Rosberg if Hamilton had pitted a lap later.

Rosberg though would either have had to follow Hamilton in and stack (assuming Hamilton was still in the lead), or go around for another lap, which would have put him in third or lower.

Hamilton would arguably have still got the win, just ahead of Vettel.

True, it could have been worse for Rosberg, but if Hamilton had stayed out for another lap, then Rosberg could have pitted instead without stacking. Rosberg would then have most likely won the race. Anyway, that's all ifs and buts. It was a great call by Lewis' side. They do get it right sometimes. Mind you, if it hadn't rained as it did, when it did, I'm sure there would have been some more than negative comments on here about Mercedes' strategy hurting Lewis.

 

[Dario Resta]

i'm not sure it would have made much difference Dario Resta . this Williams isn't suited to anything that resembles a wet track.

As it turns out, the rain would have scuppered any chance for Williams, but why did they not let Bottas go early in the race, when Massa was obviously holding him up? He could have scarpered and let Massa back the Mercedes up a bit at least.

 

[soccerman17]

Unlucky for Williams for the rain to come, once that came it didn't really matter what strategy they used, just not enough downforce on the car compared to Mercedes to ever really compete with them. That being said, they may have still gotten at least a podium spot if not for Hamilton and Vettel's brilliant strategy and Rosberg's impressive driving in the wet.

But lets not forget what happened before the rain came. How on earth did Williams manage that at the start? Mercedes wasn't great off the line but those starts were fantastic for Williams, especially Massa! What was Hamilton thinking when he went for that move right after the safety car? I think its safe to say he wasn't really thinking. Underestimated the Williams, overestimated his own ability, or both, but it definitely didn't work out.

Should Williams have let Bottas through? Should they have let him be more aggressive going after Massa? Depends on who you want to win and what you want to see in a race, but they definitely would have had better odds at the win if he would have made it through, and it would have been better entertainment if they let Bottas have at him. Anyways, I think its pretty clear that they should have made sure to pit before or on the same lap as Mercedes, the extra lap of tire degradation meant that the Mercs had faster in laps than Williams to go with the faster pit stops. A different strategy could have stopped Hamilton from getting through and Bottas from having to fight off Rosberg like he did. Hindsight is 20/20, but the foresight could have been much better.

 

[Dash Racing]

But, on the other hand, if Bottas thought he was quicker, and Massa was ruining their chances, why not disobey the team's order and push to overtake anyway? If it worked out, the team would soon forget he'd gone against their orders. That sort of team orders crap is bad all around anyway. The idea that the engineers know better than their drivers what is going on on the track is just daft. It's high time drivers started telling their teams to shove their team orders where the sun don't shine.

 

[Galahad]

Bottas was fortunate to be in second position anyway, having been rather too obliging to Hamilon at the original start, and then benefitting when Lewis overcooked it on the restart.

When you see the extraordinary pace they can run at in clear air when forced, it's a pity the Mercedes don't try harder to pass on the track itself. This appears a particular problem for Rosberg.

 

[Dario Resta]

Unlucky for Williams for the rain to come, once that came it didn't really matter what strategy they used, just not enough downforce on the car compared to Mercedes to ever really compete with them. That being said, they may have still gotten at least a podium spot if not for Hamilton and Vettel's brilliant strategy and Rosberg's impressive driving in the wet.

But lets not forget what happened before the rain came. How on earth did Williams manage that at the start? Mercedes wasn't great off the line but those starts were fantastic for Williams, especially Massa! What was Hamilton thinking when he went for that move right after the safety car? I think its safe to say he wasn't really thinking. Underestimated the Williams, overestimated his own ability, or both, but it definitely didn't work out.

Should Williams have let Bottas through? Should they have let him be more aggressive going after Massa? Depends on who you want to win and what you want to see in a race, but they definitely would have had better odds at the win if he would have made it through, and it would have been better entertainment if they let Bottas have at him. Anyways, I think its pretty clear that they should have made sure to pit before or on the same lap as Mercedes, the extra lap of tire degradation meant that the Mercs had faster in laps than Williams to go with the faster pit stops. A different strategy could have stopped Hamilton from getting through and Bottas from having to fight off Rosberg like he did. Hindsight is 20/20, but the foresight could have been much better.

I think you can forgive Hamilton's attempt at the restart. Sirotkin pulled exactly the same move on Stanaway at the restart in GP2 yesterday and won the race. Granted, Stanaway didn't seem to know the rules and didn't defend hard enough, but Lewis wasn't far off making it stick. Maybe he thought it was his best chance.

 

[Brogan]

I'd rather see a driver try and fail than not try at all.

 

[Incubus]

Well Bottas did try to take Massa in the race's first phase after it re-started and couldn't. What's more he was given the green light to try it pretty early on after the safety period.

 

[Brogan]

It's worth mentioning that this was the first non-dry race of the season.

Had to be the British GP during the summer after the hottest week ever recorded in July

 

[Brogan]

One thing which appears to have been overlooked is Mercedes' fake pit stop, which was designed to make Williams question their own strategy and pit early.

I thought it was against the rules to send mechanics out into the pit lane if there is no intention to pit?

Edit: Maybe not. Seems sufficiently vague to allow them to get away with it.

23.11 Team personnel are only allowed in the pit lane immediately before they are required to work on a car and must withdraw as soon as the work is complete.