Pre-Season 2017 Testing, Car Launches & Chat

[The Artist.....]

From these times, it seems that McLaren are now the slowest of all the teams...

They'll have to hope that the rumours that they have been having to run their engine detuned this week are true.

 

[Il_leone]

Incubus The power battle goes back to when Ron fell out with Mansour and really tried to seize the moment to sack Whitmarsh and take control

Ron was suppose to be the saviour of Mclaren and so far he has left them in a worse mess

 

[Il_leone]

F1Brits_90 Some of it was Alonso's own making though which he will probably regret if he does not win another title in burning bridges with Mclaren and Renault

 

[Bill Boddy]

The Pits and Bottas is better than Hamilton as are Vettel than Raikkonen. It's only testing you know.

 

[gethinceri]

Where were Mercedes best soft laps?

 

[Bill Boddy]

Barcelona?

 

[FB]

Let the engine arms race begin - Ferrari evaluating radical 'double anchor' injector idea

 

[Bill Boddy]

Aerodynamics are only for those with an engine that is not strong enough - Enzo Ferrari.

 

[FB]

According to the BBC coverage Stoffel managed 28 laps in the McLaren this morning then it went in to the pits for a rest for the next 90 minutes. Maybe instead of just painting the car to look like the Spyker they should run that instead.

 

[sobriety]

Engine change. How can Honda build something so fundamentally broken with so much forewarning?

It's not like they haven't got a hugely sucessful motogp engine manufacturing arm to use as a blueprint....

 

[FB]

Only Jolyon Palmer managed fewer laps than McLaren but the BBC aren't bothering to explain why. Just checked on the Sky feed and they don't know either.

 

[FB]

Second test, day 1 times - from the BBC Formula 1: Lewis Hamilton fears Ferrari have fastest car in 2017

Are Mercedes sandbagging?

Final pre-season test, day one, fastest times

1 Felipe Massa (Brz) Williams 1:19.726 **

2 Daniel Ricciardo (Aus) Red Bull 1:19.900 ***

3 Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Ferrari 1:19.906 *

4 Lewis Hamilton (GB) Mercedes 1:20.456 *

5 Valtteri Bottas (Fin) Mercedes 1:20.924 *

6 Esteban Ocon (Fra) Force India 1:21.347 **

7 Nico Hulkenberg (Ger) Renault 1:21.989 *

8 Kevin Magnussen (Den) Haas 1:21.676 *

9 Daniil Kvyat (Spa) Toro Rosso 1:21.743 *

10 Stoffel Vandoorne (Bel) McLaren 1:22.537 *

11 Pascal Wehrlein (Ger) Sauber 1:23.336 *

12 Marcus Ericsson (Swe) Sauber 1:23.630 *

13 Jolyon Palmer (GB) Renault 1:24.790 *

* = time set on soft tyre; ** = super-soft tyre; *** = ultra-soft tyre. Others medium

 

[teabagyokel]

Nah, Massa is on to win the Championship.

 

[Greenlantern101]

Now that would make for a fairytale ending. How do I claim the film rights?

 

[teabagyokel]

I can see a cold opening: "Sao Paulo, 2008." Brundle's commentary plays - "Is that Glock?"

Cut to a man in red crying in the motorhome.

...


Either that or you could make the story of 2009. 'Brains and Brawn', 'On the Button' or 'For Fuck's Sake: A Honda Dream'?

 

[Bushi]

Crying?! He headbutted a glass frame to extincting.

 

[marksawatsky]

Sounds like the best thing McLaren Honda could do this season is to work on making the engine a quick-change operation. You know, come in for a pitstop, change tires, adjust wing, swap engine, back on track.

 

[Il_leone]

Nice time by Massa but don't expect Williams to be challengers- they will fade gradually as the season goes on

They have a bit more pace than last year

Interestingly Ferrari are putting up some seriously quick times

 

[Greenlantern101]

My hopes of a tight fought season are increasing. Perhaps foolishly.

 

[RasputinLives]

Williams won't be allowed to beat the Merc A team.

Red Bull however are notorious testing sandbaggers so I suspect they are in good shape. Ferrari usually over promise but I guess we'll see.