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1 Nov 2012, 18:53 (Ref:3161162) | #1 | ||
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Round 18: Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
I didnt have time for a Grand Prix-view this week but thought it's time to get the race thread started!
After an exceptionally dull Indian GP we move to Abu Dhabi....which is also generally very dull! The championship battle has fizzled out in the eyes of many with Vettel having been handed the crown already by most fans but dont be too quick to write the obituaries for Fernando Alonso's championship challenge. The Ferrari should have lots of new parts this weekend and the team are confident of them finding a lot of performance. They wont have the double DRS that is so important for qualifying so Alonso will have to come from behind to win on Sunday but in terms of race pace they only need to find a tenth or so and apparently the new bits and pieces should be providing such an advantage.... For Alonso however the key to his title assault could come in the form of an unlikely ally. Lewis Hamilton and McLaren will have high hopes this weekend the MP4-27 should be very competitive around Yas Marina. If Hamilton and Button can hook the Macca up this weekend they could be in the thick of the fight for the win. Raikkonen and Lotus have lost a certain amount of their spark of late and Grosjean looks terrified of getting close to anyone on track so I dont expect the Enstone based squad to be too much of a factor in Abu Dhabi. Sauber were in the news for hiring Nico Hulkenberg earlier in the year and the Swiss squad can make a giant leap towards cementing sixth in the Constructors Championship with a decent finish this weekend. If Perez or Kobayashi can finish in the top eight they will have had a great weekend and would likely leave Force India with an insurmountable gap in the table. Caterham and Marussia's fight for tenth will run until the end of the season but Abu Dhabi wont give Caterham any opportunity to claim a 12th place finish. Marussia published huge losses in the last year and retaining the tenth spot would give them a huge infusion of cash going forward. For Caterhman the focus is shifted towards Heikki Kovalainen's future and it looks likely to be resolved in the next fortnight with the Finn staying put for at least one more year. Last edited by Born Racer; 1 Nov 2012 at 22:21. |
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1 Nov 2012, 20:42 (Ref:3161209) | #2 | |||
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That's so frickin uncool man! |
1 Nov 2012, 21:07 (Ref:3161218) | #3 | ||
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Ahead of the Red Bulls, surely?
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1 Nov 2012, 21:59 (Ref:3161255) | #4 | ||
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That's so frickin uncool man! |
1 Nov 2012, 22:05 (Ref:3161259) | #5 | |
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1 Nov 2012, 22:23 (Ref:3161271) | #6 | |||
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About Alonso and the McLarens obviously the worst case scenario for Fernando is if the Red Bulls keep winning and McLaren fill third and fourth place but I really think that Abu Dhabi will play to the strengths of the McLaren and it wouldnt surprise me at all to see them win this weekend and leave Vettel and Alonso fighting with each other for a podium spot and keep the title fight close |
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1 Nov 2012, 22:33 (Ref:3161276) | #7 | ||
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2 Nov 2012, 00:12 (Ref:3161329) | #8 | ||
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Not the scene of any great races. And certainly a track that must have been the inspiration for DRS, particularly if you were to ask Fernando Alonso about how difficult it can be to overtake at this track. |
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2 Nov 2012, 00:15 (Ref:3161332) | #9 | ||
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That's great, let's get the ball rolling...
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2 Nov 2012, 00:52 (Ref:3161349) | #10 | |
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I dunno, I'd say 2010 was quite entertaining.
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2 Nov 2012, 03:39 (Ref:3161383) | #11 | |||
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2 Nov 2012, 03:53 (Ref:3161388) | #12 | ||
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I think media is jumping to conclusions too fast about Vettel taking the title. Sure he's got the points lead, the better car (just) and is odd favourite. But McLaren was also all of those things after the first 3 rounds (and 1-2 in points).
But like Frostie said, the Ferrari is only a tenth or so behind, and that's on RB tracks. But that can change. If Vettel doesn't lead from the start and is forced to sit in the hot air of another car and use his tyres more, especially at this track. If he doesn't get the setup right, which has happened plenty of times this year where he struggled in quali but was one of the fastest in the race (Monaco). If the unreliable RB has issues again which is has much higher chances of happening compared to Ferrari. Apart from his 5th at Hungary and the 2 retirements, Alonso has been on the podium in every race since Canada in June. He's very consistent at every track, despite always qualifying further back. Definitely not over. Vettel needs 1 more win before he can feel safe, I think. |
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2 Nov 2012, 04:02 (Ref:3161390) | #13 | ||
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Oh and the other thing I forgot to mention is if Pirelli spring the super softs on RB, that'll be to Ferrari's advantage.
Vettel cruising for 30 laps at Indy, Alonso apparently doing qualifying laps every lap, and Vettel's tyres, I'm assuming, were still in worse condition at the end when he attempted the fastest lap and failed. Unless he just didn't push too hard on that lap. |
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2 Nov 2012, 05:01 (Ref:3161403) | #14 | ||
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It's probably wrong that I'm looking forward to the V8 Supercar support event more than the F1 this weekend. Wonder if any of the F1 guys will be talked into coming down to the Gold Coast 600 next year?
I presume the usual crowd will be at the front again and this super exciting circuit will bring us the best racing this season. Or not. |
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2 Nov 2012, 05:31 (Ref:3161413) | #15 | |
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It ain't over. If someone smacks into the side of Vettel, he bins (I read far too many Britishisms on this forum), has a puncture, Ferrari gain some pace, McLaren get in the way... 23 points in 3 races makes it unlikely for Alonso to win, but not that unlikely. |
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2 Nov 2012, 05:32 (Ref:3161416) | #16 | |
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Valencia is utterly terrible. |
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2 Nov 2012, 09:06 (Ref:3161482) | #17 | ||
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Hvil i Fred Allan. (Rest in Peace Allan) |
2 Nov 2012, 09:56 (Ref:3161507) | #18 | |
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2 Nov 2012, 12:41 (Ref:3161561) | #19 | |
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If first practice was anything to go by, then this is definitely a McLaren track. Early days, though.
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2 Nov 2012, 13:02 (Ref:3161571) | #20 | ||
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call me cynical, but they've definitely found the best way of exploiting a couple of loopholes during this season, particularly the last few races. either that or their imagination departments deserve a really big bonus... |
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2 Nov 2012, 14:14 (Ref:3161588) | #21 | |||
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in addition to making the best use of the rules they have figured out the tires...something that the other top rivals still seem be struggling with. |
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2 Nov 2012, 14:37 (Ref:3161593) | #22 | |
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good point. it seems like such a long time ago now but at the start of the season did they suffer particularly with tyre wear? all i remember is the car not being especially fast?
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2 Nov 2012, 15:06 (Ref:3161599) | #23 | ||
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it was a long time ago but i think one explanation for the number of different winners we had at the beginning of the season is because all the teams struggled with understand their tires. im not sure if it was necessarily about preventing excessive tire wear but just finding out how to extract the most out of them.
certainly though setup and developing parts that could help with that was huge and something that Ferrari has failed with. |
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2 Nov 2012, 18:24 (Ref:3161630) | #24 | ||
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I can't say I like this race anymore than the Indian or S. Korean GP. Another GP on another artificial track.
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"If you're not winning you're not trying." Colin Chapman. |
2 Nov 2012, 19:26 (Ref:3161645) | #25 | |||
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Ok, so it was only friday practice, but... ! It looks like Ferrari have ok race pace, but if second practice is indicative of their qualifying pace then they are in trouble. |
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That's so frickin uncool man! |
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