Agree. Everyone understands the cost savings for longevity of engine and trannys, but grid penalties should not be imposed for crashes. Think about the cool down lap crash Vettel had with Stroll last weekend -- that could have resulted in a 5 grid spot penalty if the gearbox was damaged and has nothing to do with on track competitiveness! I also can't think of a way for teams to get around this... it's not like they're going to crash their cars on purpose to try and get a new gearbox into the car without a penalty.

Other news.... Joylyn Palmer is OUT at Renault after this race and replaced by Sainz who moves over earlier than expected. Daniel Kvyat will be back in the Toro Rosso along side his rookie teammate Gasly starting at the USGP.

 

Poor Palmer. Things just didn't work out well at all for him. I doubt we'll ever see him again in F1. And now the human torpedo is back!

I don't think the Merc's pace will be as good in race conditions. Look for Seb to take the lead after the first round of pit stops. Unfortunately Hamster will probably finish second to maintain the championship gap.

 

I am hoping that Max will take Hamster out to even the score.

 

The Ferrari power units have morphed into Honda power units....

 

I feel really bad for Vettel. That just sucks but it's part of the game. I understand there is a regulation that requires them to talk to the media afterwards but I certainly don't blame Vettel for simply slipping away quietly. This was most likely the kill pill for his championship hopes.

 

Pretty sad for Vettlel and the rest of this season.

 

I don't feel sorry for him at all. He's reaping the karma from when he was on top of the world at Red Bull and he treated Webber like $#it.

You reap what you sow.

Gary

 

So by that logic, when is HAM getting his karma? It was always OK for Nico to be subservient but never the other way around.

 

No argument there, Dave--can't put a date on it but if anyone deserves it LH does. I'd be willing to bet that if Nico had a different teammate there's a good chance he'd be defending this year.

Gary

 

 

I was a reluctant admirer of Max today. Super driving. He is driving that car beyond its limit. This Senna/Schumacher territory....faster than predicted by race engineers!!!

 

14 seconds faster than Senna in the V10 Macca with more HP and tire. amazing. hammy looked pretty spent after that drive. watching cars through S Curves was like watching fighter jets. nice to see it stays on the calendar for 2018:

25 March -- Melbourne, Australia
8 April -- Shanghai, China*
15 April -- Sakhir, Bahrain
29 April -- Baku, Azerbaijan
13 May -- Barcelona, Spain
27 May -- Monte Carlo, Monaco
10 June -- Montreal, Canada
24 June -- Le Castellet, France
1 July -- Spielberg, Austria
8 July -- Silverstone, Great Britain
22 July -- Hockenheim, Germany
29 July -- Budapest, Hungary
26 August -- Spa-Francorchamps, Belgium
2 September -- Monza, Italy
16 September -- Marina Bay, Singapore*
30 September -- Sochi, Russia
7 October -- Suzuka, Japan
21 October -- Austin, USA
28 October -- Mexico City, Mexico
11 November -- Sao Paulo, Brazil
25 November -- Yas Marina, Abu Dhabi

 

Agreed. I love Suzuka with the clockwise and counterclockwise halves of the track. All tracks should crisscross like that so that we’d all get even tire wear!

 

Brendon Hartley to drive Toro Rosso at COTA?

https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/h...austin-964827/

Would be great if he got a shot just to see what he could do..

 

What if the driver crashes the car intentionally after the race to get the new parts? The grid penalties serve a purpose, whether or not they are good for racing or the sport is open to debate.

BTW, did you see the onboard video from Lance's car showing that the incident was 100% Vettel's fault?
Lance was clearly seen driving a consistant line through the corner maintaining the same distance off the curbing, steering held steady at a slight left turn angle, until the Ferrari cuts right in front of him and bam! wheel on wheel.

Maybe Seb thought that Max was on his left again....