View Poll Results: Who Will Win?
Hulkenburg
0
0%
Sainz
0
0%
Magnussen
0
0%
Grosjean
0
0%
Vandoorne
0
0%
Perez
0
0%
Ocon
0
0%
Gasly
0
0%
Hartley
0
0%
Leclerc
0
0%
Ericsson
0
0%
Stroll
0
0%
Sirotkin
0
0%
Voters: 39. You may not vote on this poll
Russian Grand Prix - Who Will Win?
09-29-2018, 04:06 PM
#16
MB qualified 1-2...it’s a silver arrow top grid! Bottas ahead is interesting however at MB, team strategy comes first and I expect to Bottas to make it interesting but ultimately yield to Hamilton on subtle team orders...the chance to increase the gap between Hamilton and Vettel in the driver’s championship is too tempting. In other news, what happened to Ferrari? Their cars seemed to lack the leader’s pace they showed in the earlier races...has MB closed the gap already? Hamilton for the win...unless Vettel crashes into him at turn 2 trying to make a pass...
Last edited by Akunob; 09-29-2018 at 04:56 PM.
09-30-2018, 10:09 AM
#19
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What happened is F1 at its worst. Best car and driver on the track on a given day does not win. One can ramble on about how F1 is a team sport with two championships in play, one for driver and manufacturer, but as a spectator and fan I walk away from a race like that with an empty feeling. Sigh.
09-30-2018, 10:38 AM
#20
If Hamilton was in a chasing position in the championship or maybe a closer point differential it'd feel a bit different, but today I really thought they had the luxury to not do this. Quite a buzzkill.
On another note, am I too naive to think Max could've just tried to run the softs to the end of the race, trying to defend w all he had? Worst case he would've been passed by the top 4 anyways, one of which he maybe had a marginal chance of catching with hypersofts which they didn't even put on?
On another note, am I too naive to think Max could've just tried to run the softs to the end of the race, trying to defend w all he had? Worst case he would've been passed by the top 4 anyways, one of which he maybe had a marginal chance of catching with hypersofts which they didn't even put on?
09-30-2018, 10:41 AM
#21
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If Hamilton was in a chasing position in the championship or maybe a closer point differential it'd feel a bit different, but today I really thought they had the luxury to not do this. Quite a buzzkill.
On another note, am I too naive to think Max could've just tried to run the softs to the end of the race, trying to defend w all he had? Worst case he would've been passed by the top 4 anyways, one of which he maybe had a marginal chance of catching with hypersofts which they didn't even put on?
On another note, am I too naive to think Max could've just tried to run the softs to the end of the race, trying to defend w all he had? Worst case he would've been passed by the top 4 anyways, one of which he maybe had a marginal chance of catching with hypersofts which they didn't even put on?
09-30-2018, 10:44 AM
#22
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What happened is F1 at its worst. Best car and driver on the track on a given day does not win. One can ramble on about how F1 is a team sport with two championships in play, one for driver and manufacturer, but as a spectator and fan I walk away from a race like that with an empty feeling. Sigh.
09-30-2018, 11:00 AM
#24
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09-30-2018, 01:06 PM
#25
What happened is F1 at its worst. Best car and driver on the track on a given day does not win. One can ramble on about how F1 is a team sport with two championships in play, one for driver and manufacturer, but as a spectator and fan I walk away from a race like that with an empty feeling. Sigh.
One thing is for sure: had it been Ferrari in front at the start, the team would have had Kimi move over within the first 5 laps to allow Vettel through.
09-30-2018, 02:57 PM
#26
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The only high point of the race was Max's drive. The rest was pretty much horse****.
09-30-2018, 03:26 PM
#27
I disagree with most, I think MB’s strategy was both expected by every savvy F1 fan watching and absolutely the right call given how dangerous Vettel and Ferrari still are. With the driver’s championship mathetically not yet in the bag, MB HAS to favor a Hamilton win (critical for points) over a Bottas win (really just a moral victory). Bravo to Toto for making the gutsy, yet unpopular call...this is big money sports not backyard racing and team strategy comes first. Ferrari, Red Bull and Force India need to watch and learn how you win a championship! If there was one flaw, it was that apparently Bottas wasn’t informed of the expected team order ahead of the race however as a consumate professional, his post-game comments show that he totally understands the situation. Hamilton was equally very gracious and empathic to Bottas, (a total classy move)...and this explains why Hamilton/Bottas is currently the best driver pairing in F1 right now.
09-30-2018, 05:18 PM
#28
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I disagree with most, I think MB’s strategy was both expected by every savvy F1 fan watching and absolutely the right call given how dangerous Vettel and Ferrari still are. With the driver’s championship mathetically not yet in the bag, MB HAS to favor a Hamilton win (critical for points) over a Bottas win (really just a moral victory). Bravo to Toto for making the gutsy, yet unpopular call...this is big money sports not backyard racing and team strategy comes first. Ferrari, Red Bull and Force India need to watch and learn how you win a championship! If there was one flaw, it was that apparently Bottas wasn’t informed of the expected team order ahead of the race however as a consumate professional, his post-game comments show that he totally understands the situation. Hamilton was equally very gracious and empathic to Bottas, (a total classy move)...and this explains why Hamilton/Bottas is currently the best driver pairing in F1 right now.
But refueling would have helped. Hardly anyone was able to pass without having a vastly superior car (I.e. Red bulls charging through the field).
09-30-2018, 05:39 PM
#29
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In Finnish, the word "Bottas" means "bend over."
09-30-2018, 06:49 PM
#30
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For me, a pretty decent race overall.
I understand MB's decision and can't fault it. There would be big regrets at the end of the season if Hamilton had been told to give it back to Bottas, and Vettel wound up winning WDC by a few points (lots of things can still happen, WDC is by no means locked up yet). Plus, it looked to me like Hamilton was getting pretty close to Bottas anyway.
Would have been really interesting to see what would have happened if Verstappen had been able to stay out on the soft tires. Kind of surprising that Red Bull didn't seem to know how the car would do with super softs.
I understand MB's decision and can't fault it. There would be big regrets at the end of the season if Hamilton had been told to give it back to Bottas, and Vettel wound up winning WDC by a few points (lots of things can still happen, WDC is by no means locked up yet). Plus, it looked to me like Hamilton was getting pretty close to Bottas anyway.
Would have been really interesting to see what would have happened if Verstappen had been able to stay out on the soft tires. Kind of surprising that Red Bull didn't seem to know how the car would do with super softs.