Grand Prix 2020 British Grand Prix Practice, Qualifying & Race Discussion

The Stone.
Old Stoney.
El Silverado.
Names used for Silverstone by the types of people who say "pot-ah-to" rather than "pot-ay-to".

It is the “Home of British Motor Racing”.

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There's one thing that's a sure bet for the British Grand Prix - the expectation of fans in anticipation of the race will be colossal, what we need is for that anticipation to be met.
But of course, the local roads and villages won’t be jammed with fans; the stands won’t be throbbing with flags, cheers and smells. There’ll be a Formula 1 corona bubble (reminds me of fizzy pop) making the sensation different, a peculiarity, a “one-off” (until the following weekend’s rerun).

I thought I'd take a little look at the long-lasting corners on this circuit, the ones steeped and fermented in the motor racing ecstasy of the dozens of F1 races the former RAF training base has hosted.
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Today's first bend is Abbey, a right hander which is taken super-fast, entertaining for lap one as the cars get there fairly soon after the lights...those out of usual grid position will need to have sharp senses but for the rest of the race it's a challenge but not manic.

Considering Abbey was foot to the boards the rate at which cars arrive for Woodcote used to be startling - today they'll still be flat out and this is where aero and grip are king, allowing the speed to be carried down to Copse, which used to be turn one but now...

...drivers will be smashing it at top speed, a downshift and downforce pushing the car to scraping point as it turns in - topping 180mph for some. A balancing act though, and the runoff area's going to see some rubber for those who're really up for it.

Then Maggots, which used to also be a fast flash down into Becketts but now begins a swooping descent which shows racing nicely from the right camera angle, but it's processional nowadays rather than an overtaking opportunity, Chapel's not really worth mentioning but what comes next?

Stowe has always been a great turn, the Hanger Straight allowing drivers to give it the beans, and until the radical changes of this century was the fastest turn-in/braking point on the circuit. Overtaking? Well, a big set of conkers and perfect timing might help, especially as the track's wide, early in the race there might be some fun but later on most drivers will be focusing on a good exit to carry to the end of the lap...

...which is preceded by Club (my favourite spot to watch on a general entry ticket), back in "the day" this was yet another full throttle face bender but now it's a narrow tricky one which needs to be done right so as not to compromise the next lap.

So that was a little wander through the longer-serving corners, is the circuit improved? No – it’s different, just like the sport is different.
It's always been a power circuit, and that's something the BRDC were committed to retaining...it will be challenging on engines and tyres, limited testing and racing might cause retirements for mechanical reasons and if the right rubber isn't available well - we can only wait until practice & qually - weather currently looking breezy and cool for August.

So who's going to benefit this weekend? Here's what I think...
Mercedes to continue their domination.
Racing Point to be second runners.
Ferrari to have found a "miraculous" ;) engineering fix to their woes.
The others? No idea.

I haven't been to a race in its present guise, but when I was a frequent visitor in the 90s it was Brooklands/Luffield/Woodcote that gave me the greatest pleasure (with many thanks to Camel owner RJ Reynolds and Williams F1 for the freebies), every race I saw there was great and I always loved the event. I hope this one is something to relish.
 
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You'll get into trouble doing that.

Beat them indoors where no-one can see.

That's nothing compared to the fact that Lando Norris has let a 6 year old girl play with his helmet.

 
I really worry for Alex Albon's future...

The performance of the "second driver" at Red Bull has very much reflected the performance that we used to see at Benetton with Schumacher... At Benetton, there was always rumours that the focus was all on Schumacher - For obvious reasons, the same seems to be true at Red Bull, but, Verstappen probably deserves it!

Not really - I am sure his Dad has been telling him what he saw at Benetton when he was Schumacher's teammate. He has the mentality " Look after No1 and screw your teammate if you have to" mentality

It is because of this I think Red Bull have become a weaker team because both Ricciardo and Sainz were options they did not want to massage Max's ego

I sometimes feel Red Bull do seem to screw Albon at the moment. In terms of replacements the Moose would be available after next week
 
I was flicking through an old F1 Racing Magazine talking about the clash of the titans between Vettel and Hamilton about to kick off in 2016 . Based on then it was believed that on pure speed and racing Hamilton would win but in terms being able to get the team behind him and play the politics to do it would be Vettel. One key difference then was Ferrari had James Allison then to run the team like Ross Brawn and sort them out and guess who he has been working for since 2016 ... Mercedes that can't be ironic with both teams fortunes
 
It's not Mercedes fault where the teams have ended.

Ferrari in the past agreed with Mercedes about hybrid era to stay at the front and have two custimer teams that dont seem to do much for them . Mercedes have customer teams but they are clearly getting every detail right to maintain their superiority with the engine
 
It's not Mercedes fault where the teams have ended.

Ferrari in the past agreed with Mercedes about hybrid era to stay at the front and have two custimer teams that dont seem to do much for them . Mercedes have customer teams but they are clearly getting every detail right to maintain their superiority with the engine

I don’t disagree with you, but what I worry is the Mercedes might have undue influence... as soon as Ferrari caught up with Mercedes, their engine was throttled back... Mercedes also seem to veto anything that might have any impact on their dominance (as you would expect, mind you)...
 
The TV coverage was frustrating because while Bottas's front tyre looked pretty critical, I could see behind that Lewis had the same wear pattern, though slightly less severe. They then cut to lots of midfield overtakes when I just wanted to see the state of the tyres, and whether other cars were suffering.
 
sobriety - I don't disagree with that (and of course Horner would say that in retrospect), but, given that there's no chance in the championship, sometimes, you just need to roll the dice... By stopping, there was no chance of winning. By not stopping, there was a chance of winning (not least given the Mercedes tyre failure...)
 
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