Chinese GP 2012 - Shanghai

[WhiteBlue]

What a race!! Entertaining and very close for the first 50 laps. The pit stop strategies provided a lot of opportunities to gain or fail.

First of all I pull may cap for Nico and Mercedes. Well done! There was probably nothing that could have been done better. Great shame about the wheel nut failure on Michael's car. It could have been a one/two. Michael was very philosophical about it.

The McLarens did well as expected with a glitch in Button's last pit stop. Without that we could have had a real end fight between Button and Rosberg. Hamilton was expected to do better but made it a hattrick on third.

Red Bull made good calls on strategy and have the third fastest car IMO. Vettel drove a good race considering what happened at the start. Webber was equally good with a scary moment when his car almost flipped over.

Grosjean and Räikkönen are quite competitive. Kimi drove a fantastic race but was on a wrong strategy. Grosjean did very well to come home sixth.

Williams are the other surprise of the season P7 and 8 are ery good considering where they came from last season. Maldonado is a touch too agressive IMO. He had several episodes of trading paint with other drivers this race.

Ferrari are nowhere in terms of pace, probably sixth fastest car. It is still masked by Alonso who pulls the car higher than it really belongs but he can only do so much when the car is rubbish.

The Saubers are very competitive - basically on a level with Ferrari or better. Both drivers are highly agressive. A pitty that they will probably fall back soon.

It looks like a great season ahead of us after this first "regular" race.

[raymondu999]

On the exhausts you could also see Vettel arguing that the reason he was able to make the tyres work and get the most out of the two stop strategy was because of the more predictable nature of the a spec exhausts. That said I think it's costing him a tenth or two in quali and with the field as tight as it is that is giving away too much in terms of track position.

Possible though. A more predicatable car could allow him to build a good rhythm quicker, and settle in to a "tyre saving but fast" driving style.

[Websta]

I can't believe the wheel stand that Webber did out of that corner! I hope we get some onboard footage of that incident. It was bitter-sweet that Rosberg drove off into the distance - I am very happy that he won the race comfortably, but I am upset that Schumacher DNF'd as I suspect he would have joined Nico on the podium. I hope Merc keep piling on the wing angle in Bahrain to keep that tyre wear down again!

[myurr]

I can't believe the wheel stand that Webber did out of that corner! I hope we get some onboard footage of that incident. It was bitter-sweet that Rosberg drove off into the distance - I am very happy that he won the race comfortably, but I am upset that Schumacher DNF'd as I suspect he would have joined Nico on the podium. I hope Merc keep piling on the wing angle in Bahrain to keep that tyre wear down again!

Thing is though, when Schumacher came out from his stop he ended up behind Hamilton. Some of that was probably the wheel not being properly attached. He also looked like he was suffering with heavier degradation based on his pace before his stop. So whilst I have no doubt we'll see Schumacher back up there soon, and it was a shame to see his race end like that, I don't think he had the pace or longevity in the tyres to make the podium this time out.

[Dragonfly]

I can't be sure but it seems to me the tires give up faster if they bear alternating loads, like during fighting for position. Only Nico had the chance to nurse them while the rest had to fight and overtake.

[nacho]

Quite a strategy disaster for Kimi. They managed to lose track position in every stop even though they pitted too early for stops, and in the end fell off the cliff with tires.

[WhiteBlue]

Webber adding to the drama of the 2012 Chinese GP with memories of his sports car flips and Valencia.

[amouzouris]

i also think that they are gearing the first 3 gears shorter as well to help the car with the low traction..shorter gears means that the car will be on lower revs when it is exiting the corner so it will be able to control its power better....i use this effect in the game 'F1 2011' in monaco to have better traction on exit...so this would be a limiting factor as well because they can't have an extremely long 7th gear thus it limits its top speed...i hope you get what im trying to say and that it makes sense..

Shorter first 3 gears would make it even more nervous as you put on the power out of a corner.

F1 2011 is as far from a simulation as Mario Kart.

im not saying that the game is a simulation..i was just trying to get different opinions on the subject..if it would work in the real world..

[snoop1050]

check out webbers traction control kicking in as he floors it! so much traction the front end launchs into the air like a drag car or vtec just kicked in yo

[raymondu999]

Dear God. How did that happen? Did he hit a bump?

[Giblet]

[raymondu999]

But, for the life of me, I cannot understand why you think traction plays no role in top speed at this track. What's so special about Shanghai?

A car's top speed on a straight would be traction limited if he can't get the power down quick enough to reach terminal velocity before the next corner. Once he reaches terminal velocity before the next corner then that's just drag limited.

Somewhere like the pit straight; if you don't hit terminal velocity; then your "top speed" there is determined by how much speed you carried through the last corner; and how well you can put your right foot down (aka traction) because you're accelerating the whole straight.

Traction helps you accelerate out of corners - it doesn't affect terminal velocity.

[amouzouris]

But, for the life of me, I cannot understand why you think traction plays no role in top speed at this track. What's so special about Shanghai?

A car's top speed on a straight would be traction limited if he can't get the power down quick enough to reach terminal velocity before the next corner. Once he reaches terminal velocity before the next corner then that's just drag limited.

Somewhere like the pit straight; if you don't hit terminal velocity; then your "top speed" there is determined by how much speed you carried through the last corner; and how well you can put your right foot down (aka traction) because you're accelerating the whole straight.

Traction helps you accelerate out of corners - it doesn't affect terminal velocity.

yes but even in a long straight..even a non dragy car with traction problems...will take longer reach its terminal velocity..so they might gear it shorter to reach a higher top speed than it would if it was geared longer...

[kris]

motogp an alternate career option for webber

[raymondu999]

You're obviously not maximising the car in the coners then. In that scenario you'd add some wing with no topspeed penalty, as you weren't at terminal elocity anyways.

You won't see cars banging on the limiter in 7th on the straight in clean air.