OT: Racing 2009 (Spoiler Alert)

GB_Simo · Post by **GB_Simo** » Thu May 21, 2009 10:20 pm

I've only called a couple of results all season, so take these as an indication of who not to go for:

Monaco: If I say Rubens Barrichello often enough I will eventually be right. The old boy is generally pretty good around the streets and he's in the car to have right now. Tempted to go with Lewis as the dark horse but you said dark, not stupid, so I'll agree with Don's pick of Webber.

Indy 500: Dario. On decent form this year, Kansas aberration notwithstanding, solid through practice and qualifying and a past winner from the outside of the front row, however fortunate he may have been. Completing the set of KV dark horses, I'll go for Moraes.

Coca-Cola 600: Jeff Gordon. Does Ryan Newman count as a dark horse?

Dave · Post by **Dave** » Thu May 21, 2009 10:58 pm

GB_Simo wrote:Tempted to go with Lewis as the dark horse but you said dark, not stupid, so I'll agree with Don's pick of Webber.

Simo, you didn't pick friend of Petrolheadblog.com Nelson Piquet Jr. THAT is stupid. I thought about Lewis as well, but I'm not sure if KERS will be of any help at Monaco. What do you think?

GB_Simo · Post by **GB_Simo** » Thu May 21, 2009 11:25 pm

Dave wrote:Simo, you didn't pick friend of Petrolheadblog.com Nelson Piquet Jr. THAT is stupid. I thought about Lewis as well, but I'm not sure if KERS will be of any help at Monaco. What do you think?

I'm going to be screwed once they put Grosjean in that Renault, aren't I?

Not sure about KERS either, Dave. It's a short and narrow run off the line to Sainte Devote, so a) there's not much space to boom past people and b) by the time you're going fast enough to use KERS without spinning the rears up, it's nearly time to start braking. It's difficult to see how it can help the lap time all that much, and any attempts to use it as an overtaking aid can surely be thwarted if the bloke ahead just drives down the middle of the road for a bit.

Rodster · Post by **Rodster** » Fri May 22, 2009 9:19 am

I guess this can go into quote of the year maybe quote of the decade. Jacques Villeneuve was asked about his feelings about Brawn GP's success this year, with the team's roots traced back to the British American Racing outfit that Villeneuve helped set up, he said: "There is a part of me that is very happy because I built that team up.

So let me get this straight Jacques, you're trying to take credit for BrawnGP?

You were so far removed from BAR/Honda and BrawnGP, I seriously doubt anyone takes your claims of credit seriously especially when car design drastically change from one year to the next. And last I remember BAR was an utter joke because of you and Richards. But since this bloke is trying to get back into F1 i'm sure he's willing to say anything for attention.

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/75508

GB_Simo · Post by **GB_Simo** » Fri May 22, 2009 12:36 pm

Rodster wrote:And last I remember BAR was an utter joke because of you and Richards. But since this bloke is trying to get back into F1 i'm sure he's willing to say anything for attention.

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/75508

JV's presumably trying to latch on to one of the new entries being discussed, on the off-chance that they fancy having the 1997 world champion on their books and well aware that none of the established teams will go anywhere near him.

Is it definitely Richards you're thinking of, Rod? Richards was the one who forced Villeneuve out of BAR in 2003 and presided over the team's most successful period.

Rodster · Post by **Rodster** » Fri May 22, 2009 12:38 pm

GB_Simo wrote:
Is it definitely Richards you're thinking of, Rod? Richards was the one who forced Villeneuve out of BAR in 2003 and presided over the team's most successful period.

Yes and maybe Team USF1 although Team USF1 have stated they are first seeking American drivers but JV is as close to an American driver without living in the US.

GB_Simo · Post by **GB_Simo** » Sat May 23, 2009 9:33 am

Dave wrote:I thought about Lewis as well, but I'm not sure if KERS will be of any help at Monaco. What do you think?

I also think I didn't expect him to do that...

I know I said it's a short run to Sainte Devote tomorrow but it's long enough for Raikkonen to get Button, surely? I'm not a particular fan of Button but his ability to pull a big lap out when it's needed is something I'm beginning to grudgingly admire. It'll be especially impressive if he's done it with plenty of fuel in, given that he'd looked lost for most of the weekend leading up to Q3.

Rodster · Post by **Rodster** » Sat May 23, 2009 10:34 am

GB_Simo wrote:
Dave wrote:I thought about Lewis as well, but I'm not sure if KERS will be of any help at Monaco. What do you think?
I also think I didn't expect him to do that...

I know I said it's a short run to Sainte Devote tomorrow but it's long enough for Raikkonen to get Button, surely? I'm not a particular fan of Button but his ability to pull a big lap out when it's needed is something I'm beginning to grudgingly admire. It'll be especially impressive if he's done it with plenty of fuel in, given that he'd looked lost for most of the weekend leading up to Q3.

In Formula 1 the same could be said for most F1 drivers. Formula One is all about being in the best car(s). Button has that this year so it's to be expected, really. Put Michael S, Hammy, Alonso, Massa, Kimi, Vettel, and they would probably do the same thing.

Dave · Post by **Dave** » Sat May 23, 2009 11:05 am

[quote="GB_Simo"]I also think I didn't expect him to do that...

That was a surprise; at least friend of Petrolheadblog.com Nelson Piquet, Jr. also found a way to spin out

Now, who had BMW, Toyota, and Lewis Hamilton as the cars knocked out in Q1 prior to the weekend?

We're sure BMW stopped developing last year to start developing this year's car earlier? Talk about an awful season...

EZSnappin · Post by **EZSnappin** » Sat May 23, 2009 12:02 pm

GB_Simo wrote:I know I said it's a short run to Sainte Devote tomorrow but it's long enough for Raikkonen to get Button, surely?

Does anyone know what speed to they have to hit before they can access KERS? I think it isn't available from a dead stop, so the question is will he have enough time to get to speed, then hit KERS, then break for Sainte Devote. Will be interesting to see how it plays out, especially since Kimi's car has had problems with the KERS all year.

Rodster · Post by **Rodster** » Sat May 23, 2009 12:33 pm

From what I remember of the last race KERS is available to the driver once the system is charged up. As soon as the driver puts his foot on the accelerator it's their for use.

Massa should have better utilized KERS at the start of the Spanish GP but instead wound up in third behind Button.

EZSnappin · Post by **EZSnappin** » Sat May 23, 2009 12:49 pm

So the warm-up lap charges the system? I thought there was a minimum speed (say 60) before it kicked in. Regardless, Massa did chuff it in Spain. Hopefully, Kimi doesn't tomorrow.

Rodster · Post by **Rodster** » Sat May 23, 2009 12:58 pm

Actually Massa had a solid race. It was Kimi who screwed up his own race during qualifying in Spain. Massa OTOH got hosed by the fuel rig system and he limped home. He could have easily been 2nd or 3rd in Spain but had to dial back the car so as not to run out of fuel.

I don't know for sure if there is a speed limit for KERS but obviously it's better to turn on the system at a certain speed is crucial to get the maximum benefit. Even if the system is immediately available using it when you're doing 5 MPH isn't as beneficial as using it when the car is doing 100MPH. Be that as it may an F1 car has some serious acceleration so getting up to 100 MPH may take a 3-4 seconds from a standing start.

The problem for Kimi even with KERS is that the first corner is not that far away from the start/finish line.

GB_Simo · Post by **GB_Simo** » Sat May 23, 2009 2:33 pm

Rod, I know you love those red cars but those two Brawns and Webber had Massa beaten before there was any sign of a fuel issue last time out...

EZSnappin wrote:So the warm-up lap charges the system? I thought there was a minimum speed (say 60) before it kicked in. Regardless, Massa did chuff it in Spain. Hopefully, Kimi doesn't tomorrow.

The report from Ferrari in Spain was that Massa's KERS didn't immediately work for some reason at the start, which is apparently why we only saw it being used just before he hit the brakes. They do tend to protect Massa a bit in their press releases but given the reliability of their system so far, it's not a great leap to believe them. Regardless of the reasons for his not having it until too late, Massa's getaway in Spain was good enough that he might have had a shot at passing at least one Brawn with KERS.

KERS is charged up in the garage before the cars go out to the grid as well as during the formation lap; every system is different and frankly I don't know the ins and outs of any of them, but presumably charging it in the garage lets the drivers check on their installation lap whether or not it's working and then check again during the formation lap.

I'm not aware of any speed limit restrictions on KERS usage, but the commonly held belief is that below around 60 mph it's a disadvantage, because the extra horsepower promotes wheelspin and you end up losing ground instead of gaining it. Kimi won't have long at all to fire up KERS off the line, but Button's starts this season haven't always been sparkling (a case in point being his getaway in Barcelona two weeks ago, where he was lucky that only Barrichello hooked up well enough to pass) so Raikkonen's got a fair chance of leading early on.

Rodster · Post by **Rodster** » Sat May 23, 2009 3:30 pm

I felt bad for Lewis and he said it best "what was I thinking?". I know what he was thinking, he had his mind on his hot girlfriend and not his driving.

Dave · Post by **Dave** » Sat May 23, 2009 5:40 pm

Rodster wrote:I felt bad for Lewis and he said it best "what was I thinking?". I know what he was thinking, he had his mind on his hot girlfriend and not his driving.

It isn't often that a defending World Champion messes up in a way that looks just like my mistakes in racing sims...

I'm enjoying catching bits of the Indy 500 marathon on ESPN Classic. Getting to the end of the 1992 race. Damn, it looked cold in Indy that day.

And it figures, 30% chance of rain in Indy tomorrow, 60% chance in Charlotte...and no chance at the one place that could use it, Monaco.

Rodster · Post by **Rodster** » Sun May 24, 2009 10:26 am

Congrats to Jenson, Ruebens and BrawnGP. Ferrari for once had a solid race with 3rd and 4th. Lets see if they can continue the march upwards for the Turkish GP.

GB_Simo · Post by **GB_Simo** » Sun May 24, 2009 10:31 am

GB_Simo wrote:Button's starts this season haven't always been sparkling (a case in point being his getaway in Barcelona two weeks ago, where he was lucky that only Barrichello hooked up well enough to pass) so Raikkonen's got a fair chance of leading early on.

Nostradamus I am not. Having just seen the onboard of Kimi's start, he fluffed it.

As so often when it's dry, we were but a single alien invasion away from an entertaining Monaco Grand Prix, weren't we? It was all over at the front as soon as Barrichello's tyres went off, and probably even before that. Vettel's tyres at least had a go at livening things up; the performance of the super-softs must have taken a few people at Red Bull by surprise, because we know already that their car works the tyres hard.

I still don't understand why McLaren didn't start Hamilton from the pits with a heavy fuel load, or why Buemi felt that Nelsinho needed any help parking himself in the barriers.

toonarmy · Post by **toonarmy** » Sun May 24, 2009 1:36 pm

It was good to see Button win the greatest race in the world. It's also good to see Ferrari make some gains. Massa is great in Turkey, so perhaps Ferrari can keep moving forward. I am not a big Ferrari fan, but it just doesn't seem right to have the big teams not in contention.

GB_Simo · Post by **GB_Simo** » Sun May 24, 2009 2:12 pm

GB_Simo wrote: Completing the set of KV dark horses, I'll go for Moraes.

Not been able to find a way to see the 500, but...yes.

Rodster · Post by **Rodster** » Sun May 24, 2009 2:49 pm

GB_Simo wrote:
Not been able to find a way to see the 500, but...yes.

Try here:

http://www.myp2p.eu/broadcast.php?match ... art=sports

GB_Simo · Post by **GB_Simo** » Sun May 24, 2009 3:17 pm

I've always loved you, mate. Everywhere I was looking, streams were being taken down as soon as they were being set up. Thanks, Rod.

Dave · Post by **Dave** » Sun May 24, 2009 3:24 pm

I am surprised that no one seems to be able to hang with the Ganassi duo at this point.

Too damn many yellows...

toonarmy · Post by **toonarmy** » Sun May 24, 2009 4:44 pm

The favorite won yet again today. Button at Monaco. Helio at Indy. On to NASCAR.

Dave · Post by **Dave** » Sun May 24, 2009 4:57 pm

While I picked the wrong Penske driver, I must pat myself on the back for calling out Townsend Bell as a dark horse. Hell of a drive by T-Bell today.

Brilliant strategy by Penske to short-fill Briscoe to provide some cover for Helio late in the race. Once he kept Wheldon behind him after the last restart, it was game over.

And, I must add this:

Versus coverage >>> ABC coverage