The 2021 F1 season

[Wet Coast Racer]

Not sure how the Sky F1 Commentary Team would take to that.....

Hey, if it wasn't for that silly Frenchman punting him off the track at the beginning, it's clear that this would have been the finish.

That was an intriguing race to follow. The difference between what Ricciardo could get out of his car, compared to Sainz, was remarkable.

[Kevan]

Ocon was the first person to finish a race without pitting for 24 years. That should tell you something.

That should have been second in 24 years.

[NicoRosberg.]

Perhaps, with the benefit of hindsight.

This is Ocon's tire come the race's end, and he was not lapping as fast during the race as Hamilton remember:

ococon.JPG

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Ocon lost a heap of laptime at the end. It was a low-risk affair for him though, a point at stake, not (potentially) a career-defining 8th world title.
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Had Hamilton stayed out, dropped back to 5th and then had a blow out, you'd he even more unhappy.

Hamiton's own part in Merc ending up in no man's land has to be acknowledged.

[Kevan]

Lewis is kinder on tyres...and they both travelled the same distance...OK Ocon started a car length behind.

[NicoRosberg.]

Generally he is, but we are still talking very fine margins.

Had the team overrode his refusals to come in earlier than they did he may well of made the podium.

[Kevan]

They should have pitted immediately after Perez...or run to the end, either way the MB Strategyometer 2000 obviously hasn't had the Y2K patch.

[NicoRosberg.]

Again, that is hindsight. Ocon has said he was half a lap from a blowout.

That leaves pitting earlier, which Mercedes decided on.

They called the strat right, but allowed their driver to ignore them. He is to blame as much as them then, perhaps more.

[Wet Coast Racer]

Here's a question for the rules experts.

Would it be possible, during Free Practice sessions, or maybe Qualifying, for a team/driver to put in half a dozen laps on a set of intermediate tires and get them through that graining stage, so that when used later during a race they would immediately perform as advertised?

Or is there no way around this problem?

[Kevan]

Again, that is hindsight. Ocon has said he was half a lap from a blowout.

That leaves pitting earlier, which Mercedes decided on.

They called the strat right, but allowed their driver to ignore them. He is to blame as much as them then, perhaps more.

The dude in charge of strategy gets paid a lot of money to take hindsight into consideration. Relying on computers to make decisions for you is turning F1 into an expensive game.

[NicoRosberg.]

He did not rely on computers. He listened to Lewis, as that driver has in the past sometimes called it right from the cockpit.

Not this time.

[MT Tam I am]

Initially I thought Hamilton should pit when asked. Being kinder on tires, he ran them slick before the Red Bulls did. I assumed he would need tires sooner. So when RB pitted I was surprised as the rain might end and then come in for slicks might give LH the win. He stayed out and went fast initially but as the lap times started to fall and the rain picked up, he was doomed.He'd made a call the week before to stay out a lap then came in for inters and won. He did make his own decision.

Later I thought Jenson Button wrong when he said Lewis did not know he'd come out behind Perez, and I disagreed. He had to know. Nope, Jenson was correct. At the end he did acknowledge this coming out behind but not when he had so much racing in the moment. I understand this but he may need a little soul searching too. Lewis Hamilton is a very mature driver compared to say Vettle.I rarely see him (LH) so agitated.

[MT Tam I am]

Here's a question for the rules experts.

Would it be possible, during Free Practice sessions, or maybe Qualifying, for a team/driver to put in half a dozen laps on a set of intermediate tires and get them through that graining stage, so that when used later during a race they would immediately perform as advertised?

Or is there no way around this problem?

What are wet weather tire rules?

• Drivers are required to use 2 different type of dry tires in the final race. This doesn’t apply, however, if intermediate or full wet tires are being used by the driver.
• For the qualifying session, full wet and intermediate tires can only be used if mandated by the Race Director. Also, if the final race is starting behind the safety car due to rain, then the driver must start with wet tires. Once rain subsides, the driver and team can decide to switch to a dry tire in the first pit stop.

https://thesportsrush.com/f1-news-f1...nd-prix-races/


I like the way you are thinking. ".... can only be used if mandated by the Race Director" may be the spoiler,

[Wet Coast Racer]

So if the Race Director allowed/mandated that teams could/should use intermediate tires during some portion of free practice, then potentially every team could have at least one (lightly used) set per car put away for (wait for it) a rainy day!

The only drawback, I think, is that this would reduce the number of softs and/or mediums and/or hard tires they're allowed. Hmmm ... if we see Christian and Toto using this strategy in future, then clearly they must be readers of SCI. Eh?

[MT Tam I am]

I thought they had to give back the tires after every race. I do not know. If a team reused their qualifying tires it was not announced.

I simply found this on internet and do not hold myself as any rules expert.

[Kevan]

I know we're only privy to some of the team radio feed but I'd like to think either Lewis is sharp enough to ask where he'll come out back on track or how many places he'll lose, likewise I'd like to think his crew chief would tell him this info anyway without being asked...but by all accounts neither seems to be true.