2016 European Grand Prix - Baku City Circuit, Fri 17 – Sun 19 Jun

[GPR-A duplicate2]

Hamilton full lap onboard:

https://streamable.com/n6az

The whole lap, he was lifting just before 150 mtrs on long straights and on shorter lengths, he was lifting before 100 mtrs. I guess it is natural at this stage due to low grip levels.

[kooleracer]

Is it possible that we see here the best form from mercedes. They really nailed it

Mercedes seems to be able to switch there tyres on and keep them in the window. They seemingly have learned from the harsh lesson in Singapore 2015. It has helped them tremendously in 2016. However there ace driver Hamilton should also be applauded.

[dren]

Looks like it won't matter if Hamilton botches the start again, he'll be able to make up for it here.

[GPR-A duplicate2]

Based on both quali and long runs, Force India looks like the second best team here! Lewis' and Perez's long runs looks similar and Nico and Hulk's long runs look similar. Although Ferrari looks quite off pace on quali run, they are much better on long runs and are in the mix with Nico and Hulk's times. Bottas' long run is comparable with Nico and Hulk. Red Bulls are off pace, both on quali as well as on long runs.

Well, this is still Friday!!!

[giantfan10]

Im amazed at all the predictions made after practice.... im willing to bet good money that come qualifying Ferrari will be 2nd followed by red bull with williams maybe sticking their nose in there.....and the gaps will be much less than 1 second or whatever it is right now... im also willing to bet that Rosberg will not be 7 tenths behind Hamilton.
Questions some of you predictors should ask...
Which teams are using old engines for practice?
What are the engine settings?
What are the fuel loads?
And lasty if the times are indicative of what qualification will be how big of a liar is Wolff and the rest of the Mercedes team insisting that Ferraris engine is on par with theirs?

[GPR-A duplicate2]

So, it is natural that Lewis (second ICE bolted in China, Baku will be sixth race on that ICE) and Vettel (third ICE in Russia, Baku will be fifth race on that ICE) are conserving their ICEs.

[FoxHound]

So Hamilton was a total 2.6 km/h up on Vettel in the Ferrari, which completely explains the 2 seconds deficit Ferrari had on Mercedes in FP2.

[Fulcrum]

Sorry, that's not an argument that holds much water with me. That's actually part of my point. Placing kerbs on this track where they have effectively neuters it.

Why do the drivers need to have 'something' to 'negotiate' with?

You've stated it yourself. Without kerbs the balancing act is negotiating the wall, which seems a much better application of skill than 'negotiating' an arbitrary point like a kerb.

As such, removing the kerbs would place a much higher emphasis on the driver than the car.

OK, maybe I'm missing something and if I am I apologise, but what would you prefer instead of a kerb?

A wall or a white line with identical flat tarmac to the main track on the inside of the white line?

In essence, yes, or very nearly. There are plenty of turns on this very track where the kerb literally hugs the wall. Examples being, turns 1, 3, 5, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14.

Turns 2, 4, 6, 7, 8, 15, 16 all create artificial apexes and I don't see the point of this when the track is physically bound by concrete blocks. The safety argument, slowing cars down with strategic kerb placement, doesn't correlate because the kerbs are tight on entry to T1, T12, T13, T14, all with high approach speeds or high apex speeds.

I don't see how the kerbs here can even be motivated as safety features at all. They're raised, destabilise the car, and are likely to cause more accidents than they 'prevent' from an errant driver getting too close to the wall. What's more, they're extremely dangerous in the wet - not that important here as it doesn't rain much.

The approach to turn 15 is actually made more dangerous by the completely idiotic kerb placement on the outside of the track in the approach.

To summarise, my general argument is that the placement of the kerbs creates for a far worse layout than could be experienced were they placed consistently close to the walls throughout, the best examples being T15 and T16. Both of these corners have been 'sanitised' in a manner that detracts from the circuits potential.

[dans79]

To summarise, my general argument is that the placement of the kerbs creates for a far worse layout than could be experienced were they placed consistently close to the walls throughout, the best examples being T15 and T16. Both of these corners have been 'sanitised' in a manner that detracts from the circuits potential.

Maybe you should start designing tracks then, and will see how well they hold up to public scrutiny.

[Juzh]

Ferrari and red bulls off the pace. It's clear now. They won't be troubling podim positions at all.
Formula PU106C:
mercedes
williams/force india

Formula rest:
ferrari/toro rosso/red bull/mclaren

Er....Ferrari's PU up to Mercedes in Canada. Maybe Baku adds another 50bhp to the Merc ?

Just having fun.

Perhaps it really does on some sections?

[FoxHound]

@Juzh

From the 6 minutes of Red Bull and Ferrari footage I've seen, they have massive issues and all in relation to traction in and out of corners, when accelerating, turning or braking.
I'm guessing the track is "green", but both teams will be hoping the track rubbers in.

[kooleracer]

So Hamilton was a total 2.6 km/h up on Vettel in the Ferrari, which completely explains the 2 seconds deficit Ferrari had on Mercedes in FP2.

Indeed people still seem to think that we are in 2014 and 2015. In fact the last race Ferrari had the highest topspeed measured on the finish line during qualifying.

2sec is explained by: Order of most important elements according to my assessment

-Best driver
-Best chassis ( Aero & especially mechanical)
-Best understanding of tires
-Marginally best power-unit
-Best race strategy calls so far this season

[giantfan10]

So Hamilton was a total 2.6 km/h up on Vettel in the Ferrari, which completely explains the 2 seconds deficit Ferrari had on Mercedes in FP2.

Indeed people still seem to think that we are in 2014 and 2015. In fact the last race Ferrari had the highest topspeed measured on the finish line during qualifying.

2sec is explained by: Order of most important elements according to my assessment

-Best driver
-Best chassis ( Aero & especially mechanical)
-Best understanding of tires
-Marginally best power-unit
-Best race strategy calls so far this season

Actually the main reason Ferrari is off the pace is because they are both running pre montreal engines with the substandard turbo and compressor. So obviously clipping is an issue . Confirmed by Motorsport.it
Much ado about nothing IMHO.
Wouldnt be very surprised if red bull was running pre upgrade engines in friday practice too.
Motorsport.it
"Without the updates brought to Montreal (the new turbine cost them two tokens development) the MGU-H unit is returned to the troublesome version found in the first races of the championship, and on the 2.2 km main straight of Baku, the difference was felt.
In the box of the Ferrari no one seemed very worried"

[Schuttelberg]

Good on Lewis for a candid opinion about the other drivers moaning!

[SR71]

So Hamilton was a total 2.6 km/h up on Vettel in the Ferrari, which completely explains the 2 seconds deficit Ferrari had on Mercedes in FP2.

Indeed people still seem to think that we are in 2014 and 2015. In fact the last race Ferrari had the highest topspeed measured on the finish line during qualifying.

2sec is explained by: Order of most important elements according to my assessment

-Best driver
-Best chassis ( Aero & especially mechanical)
-Best understanding of tires
-Marginally best power-unit
-Best race strategy calls so far this season

Yep, these two things account for the 2 second deficit in a practice session...

Glad to see new F1 fans in the forums!