Two races in, three Mercedes wins, and Ferrari nipping at their heels. But opinions on the new regulations are split. George Russell loves this car and loves this engine. Max Verstappen says the rules are fundamentally flawed and that the racing is a joke. Lewis Hamilton believes that this is the best racing he has ever experienced in F1. Whilst Sergio Perez believes that it's all very fake.
It's strange the perspective you take when you are wining and when you aren't.
Japan will the last race before Miami on the 3rd May, the F1 teams and management don't really fancy taking all their stuff to an active war zone, so Bahrain and Saudi Arabia have been cancelled. It makes absolute sense not to run these races, the risk are way too high. It will also give those not happy with the way their season has started an extra few weeks of down time to try and sort out their various problems. What is clear is that the way the new engine and chassis regulations have been developed and interpreted by the different teams has caused different challenges.
Mercedes and Ferrari look to have got things there or thereabouts. If McLaren manage to get both their cars on to the grid we will see how well they perform, although they do look to be behind the two leading teams. Haas, Racing Bulls, and Alpine are going okay, and Audi (the other new engine manufacture, are you watching Honda and Ford?) are performing well above (my) expectation. Red Bull might think they are having a bad time of it, but they have still scored points in both races this season and sit fifth in the Constructors Championship.
Williams have scored a point, and Cadillac got both cars to the end of the race in China. Aston Martin are blaming everything on the Honda engine, but the reality is Adrian Newey has created another MP4-18, where the chassis and the engine simply don't work together. The Wiki article on the MP4-18 is fascinating as it discusses how this was the beginning of the end of Newey's relationship with McLaren as the car was really not good, but all the team (as far as Adrian was concerned) had to do was persevere and it would all get better. It didn't, and the MP4-19 was also pretty dreadful.
So, a marmite season so far. Some (me) are enjoying the racing, other think it contrived and too much like Formula E. I'm enjoying actually watching the driver have to do something behind the wheel, with less grip, and the ability to follow closely with the active aero. Perhaps Formula One could learn more from Formula E and get the drivers to manage the regeneration of electrical energy, as well as having more control over where it can be deployed.
Here's the UK timings, fellow F1 zombies.
It's strange the perspective you take when you are wining and when you aren't.
Japan will the last race before Miami on the 3rd May, the F1 teams and management don't really fancy taking all their stuff to an active war zone, so Bahrain and Saudi Arabia have been cancelled. It makes absolute sense not to run these races, the risk are way too high. It will also give those not happy with the way their season has started an extra few weeks of down time to try and sort out their various problems. What is clear is that the way the new engine and chassis regulations have been developed and interpreted by the different teams has caused different challenges.
Mercedes and Ferrari look to have got things there or thereabouts. If McLaren manage to get both their cars on to the grid we will see how well they perform, although they do look to be behind the two leading teams. Haas, Racing Bulls, and Alpine are going okay, and Audi (the other new engine manufacture, are you watching Honda and Ford?) are performing well above (my) expectation. Red Bull might think they are having a bad time of it, but they have still scored points in both races this season and sit fifth in the Constructors Championship.
Williams have scored a point, and Cadillac got both cars to the end of the race in China. Aston Martin are blaming everything on the Honda engine, but the reality is Adrian Newey has created another MP4-18, where the chassis and the engine simply don't work together. The Wiki article on the MP4-18 is fascinating as it discusses how this was the beginning of the end of Newey's relationship with McLaren as the car was really not good, but all the team (as far as Adrian was concerned) had to do was persevere and it would all get better. It didn't, and the MP4-19 was also pretty dreadful.
So, a marmite season so far. Some (me) are enjoying the racing, other think it contrived and too much like Formula E. I'm enjoying actually watching the driver have to do something behind the wheel, with less grip, and the ability to follow closely with the active aero. Perhaps Formula One could learn more from Formula E and get the drivers to manage the regeneration of electrical energy, as well as having more control over where it can be deployed.
Here's the UK timings, fellow F1 zombies.
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