Coulthard calls for top speed parity.

[FB]

Over recent years F1 has seen many rule changes, mainly with the intention of reducing cornering speeds. Red Bull apologist ambassador, David Coulthard, is now suggesting there should be some mechanism to reduce the differential straight line speeds of F1 cars in light of Mark Webber's rather clumsy move on Heikke Kovaleinen at Valencia.

I'm not sure quite how DC anticpates this will be achieved. Cars will run different levels of downforce which will lead to different straight line speed and some are more aerodynamically efficient than others. Cars have different engines which provide different power outputs, the Renaut engine being so far down on power compared to the others Christian Horner has considered adding a set of bicycle pedals inside the Red Bull cockpit so the drivers can make up some of the difference ( ).

I'm really struggling to see what has motivated these comments from Coulthard. F1 cars have always had speed differences whether on the straights or in the corners and one incident which (in my opinion) was caused by a mistake from Webber shouldn't dictate new rules. Does DC want F1 to become even more of a spec. series with even the set up being standardise? The next logical step will be to start handicapping the faster drivers so that they all travel at the same speed. Perhaps we can look forward to the brakes being activated by automatic systems at the track side to avoid a driver braking too soon or too late?

http://news.theage.com.au/breaking-news-sport/cap-top-speeds-says-f1-veteran-20100702-zthd.html

 

[KraXik]

This guy is really starting to annoy me.

He is such a sell out!!!!

Shall all the cliptheapex members pool our money and buy him to be our 'ambassador' of frilly knickers and dog ears? I would be bet if we throw him a few thousand he will be in those knickers and dog ears quicker than he could drive around Monaco!

 

[Enja]

His worries about safety come now, and not when he was driving? The mid-nineties and early 2000s were a bad team for top speed parity.

I can only sense his motivation here is to get a backdoor advantage for Red Bull.

On a tenuously related note, I'm pretty amazed he still works for the BBC given his obvious connections to both an existing team in the middle of the entire sport and a global brand that sells high-energy drinks and advertises itself at every available opportunity.

 

[snowy]

I'm amazed!

I specifically left instructions that the drinks cabinet was to be locked at all times while Coulthard is staying at this hotel. unish:

 

[Speshal]

given his obvious connections to both an existing team in the middle of the entire sport and a global brand that sells high-energy drinks and advertises itself at every available opportunity.

Would that be the very same energy drink company that sponsor the very car he is driving in DTM would it?

Do you think he gets a penny every time he says red buell (sic) cos he can't pronounce it anyway.

 

[slickskid]

I almost found his comments pretty ironic really although again they seem to have come from the red bull school of exageration.

"Obviously the Red Bull (has) massive top speed relative to the Lotus and it just catches the drivers out.

"You don't want to have more than six, seven eight kilometres an hour difference between the fastest and the slowest cars.

"I think the FIA and the drivers and the designers will be having a conversation about that after this terrible incident."

Sounds a reasonable quote really until you start looking at data in relation to top speeds

Race speed trap.
23 6 M. WEBBER 305.6
24 19 H. KOVALAINEN 302.6

INTERMEDIATE 1
22 6 M. WEBBER 279.0
24 19 H. KOVALAINEN 277.4

INTERMEDIATE 2
20 M. WEBBER 301.0
24 H. KOVALAINEN 294.9

FINISH LINE
23 M. WEBBER 232.5
24 H. KOVALAINEN 228.7

Curiously while kovi was slower through the speed trap in the race (but not 6,7 or 8 kmh) he was actually quicker in every other session that weekend.

 

[cider_and_toast]

I pointed that out in the "Get out of my way" thread Slick.

Coulthard and Webber claimed that the Lotus was 4 or 5 seconds a lap slower than the Red Bull. If you look at the times from the whole weekend they were never near 4 or 5 seconds slower. It's more like 2 to 2.5 seconds slower at worst.

I couldn't stand Kryten when he was a driver but he's getting even worse now he's a commentator. Let him go off and concentrate on his DTM commitments and let Anthony Davidson take over.

 

[Brogan]

I really would like to hear how he proposes to design and implement such a system.

Seriously! What the hell is happening to F1 that every time there is an accident caused by a driver screwing up that someone starts screaming for rule changes.

Have these ex-drivers, pundits and other media journalists lost sight of the fact that motorsport is by its very nature, dangerous?

Yes you can make motorsport safe(r) but to try and remove the essential parts of racing would be castrating the sport to the point of making it irrelevant.

 

[Wombcat]

It's not the top speeds that make the difference, but the cornering speeds. And a lower cornering speed means that you will have to brake earlier. That's why Webber ran into Kovalainen.

 

[KekeTheKing]

As you guys have already pointed out, the incident with Webber and Kovalainen had absolutely nothing to do with top speed disparities. Mark was pretty close behind Heikki all the way down the "straight" at Valencia, and the crash occurred when Kovalainen started to brake for the corner/get out of the way.

Every other driver on the grid this year has been able to avoid incidents when they are closing up on other cars. This is number two for Mark in 2010. And the notion that the Red Bull has a massive top speed advantage over anyone is ludicrous. They are regularly near the bottom of the list of cars through the speed trap, which is a symptom of the high level of downforce their car creates.

I can hear Eddie Jordan right now telling DC what utter nonsense he is talking.

In this day and age of F1, when drivers can take flight, land upside down, roll over, crash at high speed into the barrier, AND WALK AWAY, the notion of equalizing top speeds on safety grounds is patently absurd.

Luckily these sentiments were uttered by Coulthard, and so they will consequently be discarded as the ramblings of a Red Bull fanboy.

 

[MajorDanby]

I think this is a simple case of DC realising some of his comments made little sense last weekend. He is now trying to back-pedal, but all his is succeeding with is digging himself into a deeper hole.


Incidentally I agree with those people that state that DC should not hold his position with the BBC unless he can remain impartial.

 

[teabagyokel]

I've got an idea, in pictorial form:



Any questions?

 

[MajorDanby]

 

[Wombcat]

I've got an idea, in pictorial form:



Any questions?

Didn't Williams put "keep your distance" on their rear wing at a certain moment (when some people crashed into Montoya in consecutive races).

 

[Brogan]

Didn't Williams put "keep your distance" on their rear wing at a certain moment (when some people crashed into Montoya in consecutive races).

Perhaps all the other drivers need to put "Keep your distance Mark" on the back of their cars

 

[siffert_fan]

More brilliance from DC. Eliminating the top speed disparity will make passing even more unlikely, ensuring that every race will be a parade. Just what F1 needs!!