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What is happening to McLaren?

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CatharticF1

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Apr 22, 2012, 8:38:59 PM4/22/12
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At season start they looked the team to beat, but Lewis didn't have any better pace in the last stint than Alonso in the much derided Ferrari and Button wasn't much better. I was quite expecting the championship to be between Lewis and Jenson, but it occurs to me now that expectations aside, McLaren haven't had 'race winning pace' since the season opener.

They seem to be going backwards..

Hornplayer9599

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Apr 22, 2012, 9:25:21 PM4/22/12
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Sloppy pit crew action(s) haven't helped matters, either.

--
What's considered psychotic behavior anywhere else is company policy
here.

--The Management

Bobster

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Apr 22, 2012, 10:57:39 PM4/22/12
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On Apr 23, 2:38 am, CatharticF1 <rasf1pos...@gmail.com> wrote:
> At season start they looked the team to beat, but Lewis didn't have any better pace in the last stint than Alonso in the much derided Ferrari and Button wasn't much better. I was quite expecting the championship to be between Lewis and Jenson, but it occurs to me now that expectations aside, McLaren haven't had 'race winning pace' since the season opener.
>
> They seem to be going backwards..

I think there is podium or better pace in the cars and drivers, it's
strategic calls and pit work that are letting them down. The McLaren
is the only car that's had good pace in every race so far. Now that
might mean that it's the only car that's worked in every set of
conditions, or it might mean that they understood their car better and
faster than the other teams who are now catching up.

The last two races Button has been well placed for a charge late in
the race, and looked to have the speed to do something with it, but
had the rug pulled from underneath him by, respectively, a botched pit
stop and a puncture. Hamilton was poorly served in the last race and
had 3 podiums before that. Everybody else has been more up and down
performance wise - so far.

RzR

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Apr 23, 2012, 4:17:49 AM4/23/12
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On 23.4.2012. 2:38, CatharticF1 wrote:
> At season start they looked the team to beat, but Lewis didn't have any better pace in the last stint than Alonso in the much derided Ferrari and Button wasn't much better. I was quite expecting the championship to be between Lewis and Jenson, but it occurs to me now that expectations aside, McLaren haven't had 'race winning pace' since the season opener.
>
> They seem to be going backwards..

they never went forward...they never had the impressive race pace that
distinguished them from the others...full tank they are slow as balls

build

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Apr 23, 2012, 4:26:01 AM4/23/12
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On Apr 23, 10:38 am, CatharticF1 <rasf1pos...@gmail.com> wrote:
> At season start they looked the team to beat, but Lewis didn't have any better pace in the last stint than Alonso in the much derided Ferrari and Button wasn't much better. I was quite expecting the championship to be between Lewis and Jenson, but it occurs to me now that expectations aside, McLaren haven't had 'race winning pace' since the season opener.
>
> They seem to be going backwards..

No not backwards at all. The Macca is still the benchmark.

As I said in my preview, the Macca was quick enough initially with
heavy fuel but tapered off rather quickly, that was a circuit thing
*and* the lower track temps, almost 10 degrees lower on Sunday added
to the problem. Macca will be there or there abouts in Spain.

beers,

Bigbird

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Apr 23, 2012, 1:38:54 PM4/23/12
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Are Mercedes going backwards since last weekend?

The cars have different strengths and weaknesses but the biggest truth
is that unless you have a perfect understanding of the tyres it's hit
and miss whether you will extract the speed from the car. This is one
of the reasons we have heard so much less, AFAIAC, about the cars
aero...everything at the moment is secondary to being able to switch on
and manage the tyres.

WebSlave

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Apr 23, 2012, 3:40:27 PM4/23/12
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Bigbird wrote:

> The cars have different strengths and weaknesses but the biggest truth
> is that unless you have a perfect understanding of the tyres it's hit
> and miss whether you will extract the speed from the car. This is one
> of the reasons we have heard so much less, AFAIAC, about the cars
> aero...everything at the moment is secondary to being able to switch on
> and manage the tyres.

Indeed. Tyres are the reason the power balance has changed from race
to race.

Four winners from four teams. Everything is still very open. Someone
in another forum noted that Lotus seems to be the best team on full
tanks (and they also test on friday without using much DRS -
simulating the race - while others use it more around the track).

With Mugello tests and Barcelona coming up, I think we might see some
settling in the situation. Some problems will no doubt be solved. But
like someone said, McLaren has so far been the most consistent team
pace wise, but various other issues have denied them the results they
otherwise would have been capable of grabbing.

-Webs-

Timmy

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Apr 23, 2012, 5:56:12 PM4/23/12
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Bigbird wrote ...
Sadly, that means most cars are only truly competitive for 10/15 laps in
every race. The rest of the time, they're marking time, waiting for the
'best' time to change tyres, hoping to fuck they gain some slight
advantage for a couple of laps over the other cars. Get it wrong and
you become the rabbit in the race.

This article by Gary Anderson is interesting, coming from a true insider

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/formula1/17816565

In particular this part

"...It was also interesting to hear Mercedes' Michael Schumacher
complain about the Pirelli tyres.
He is a professional racing driver, and it's all about looking after
your tyres. You do that by getting the right balance on the car.
When I was involved with Bridgestone tyres with Jordan in the early
2000s, in the middle of the tyre war with Michelin, Schumacher and
Ferrari had tyres we were not even allowed to look at.
They cost so much money that Bridgestone could not afford to supply them
to everyone. And whenever we did have an opportunity to run a derivative
of those tyres, our lap times were much, much better.
It's a bit sad that Michael now sees things the other way around,
because a lot of his competitiveness in those days was down to the
working relationship he and Ferrari had with Bridgestone, one to which
nobody else had access..."



RzR

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Apr 24, 2012, 4:11:27 AM4/24/12
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although i agree that schumacher is overrated, opportunistic piece of
crap (not entirely his fault, just his bullshit on track in duels), the
point of a racing driver is NOT "looking after the damn tires", but its
rather going all out and actually racing

CatharticF1

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Apr 25, 2012, 8:12:49 PM4/25/12
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Are you turning?

Timmy

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Apr 25, 2012, 8:45:46 PM4/25/12
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CatharticF1 wrote ...


>
> Are you turning?


Careful - you'll attract texarsegate


Bobster

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Apr 26, 2012, 1:29:00 AM4/26/12
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On Apr 24, 10:11 am, RzR <2r4z...@gmail.com> wrote:

> the
> point of a racing driver is NOT "looking after the damn tires", but its
> rather going all out and actually racing

'Twas ever thus. To finish first, first you must finish. Drivers have
always had to look after the car, watch their tyres, keep an eye on
fuel, not cook the brakes and so on - except, possibly, during the re-
fuelling, no tyre restriction era in the 90s. It's long been part of
the game.

RzR

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Apr 26, 2012, 11:03:12 AM4/26/12
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yeah but to quote alonso, this is ridiculous

Richard Miller

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Apr 23, 2012, 12:49:42 PM4/23/12
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In message
<c6c59f35-3159-4acc...@w7g2000vbg.googlegroups.com>,
Bobster <mega...@gmail.com> writes
Apart from Webber, who has been dramatically consistent.

On the subject of inconsistency, we have a good chance - if Kimi can
hold it together - of starting the season with five different teams
winning the first five races; and even if not, if Lewis, Mark, Schumi
or... OK, not Massa!.. it would still be five different drivers out of
five.

When was the last time that happened?
--
Richard Miller

Sir Tim

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Apr 26, 2012, 4:20:25 PM4/26/12
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Richard Miller <ric...@seasalter0.demon.co.uk> wrote:

> When was the last time that happened?

Where's Brian? We miss him.

--
Henry Birkin, Bt.
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