2018 Japanese Grand Prix - Suzuka, 5-7 October

[MtthsMlw]

That's Hamilton's 80th (!) Pole. What a mental guy.

[NathanOlder]

So the F1 app in Q2 showed us that only Lewis and Bottas went on S tyres but at the beginning of Q3 they said only Lewis did ...
What was happening in reality?

Bottas went out in Q2 on supersofts but only did an out/in lap. So the app was showing what tyres he was on at the end of the session. Both Mercs qualified on Softs in Q2

[GrandAxe]

So the F1 app in Q2 showed us that only Lewis and Bottas went on S tyres but at the beginning of Q3 they said only Lewis did ...
What was happening in reality?

Both did and are starting on the softs.

[Sieper]

Vettel called it “I think it is too dry”. Ferrari is under such pressure, they HAVE to gamble. They did. And lost again.

[MtthsMlw]

Vettel called it “I think it is too dry”. Ferrari is under such pressure, they HAVE to gamble. They did. And lost again.

He still defended the decision in an interview though. I wonder when he'll start losing his patience.

[siskue2005]

Ouch. That’s nasty from Verstappen there.

In case anyone missed it.

DC (David Coulthard) - You wouldn’t want to get in the way of the WDC battle would you?
MV (Max Verstappen) - Is it still a battle? I’m not sure!
DC - Fair point.

yeah nice comment from Max

[atanatizante]

So the F1 app in Q2 showed us that only Lewis and Bottas went on S tyres but at the beginning of Q3 they said only Lewis did ...
What was happening in reality?

Bottas went out in Q2 on supersofts but only did an out/in lap. So the app was showing what tyres he was on at the end of the session. Both Mercs qualified on Softs in Q2

Thanx!
That means:
1.Max starting on SS tyre potentially could pass Lewis at the start ... but knowing he`ll start on the "dirty" side of the track could fend off by Bottas who is starting on the normal racing line?
2.Merc is setting for a long first stint hence trying a one-stop strategy ... is that possible here? Could be a S-SS one or a S-M one?

[LM10]

Super lap from Lewis in those greasy conditions.

It was a lap in dry conditions. We know he’s the best, but please stop overhyping.

i heard it was the tifosi's tears which made the track so damp in q3

Do you think you’re funny? Pretty classless and childish, just my opinion. And which tears are you talking about? The championship battle already ended in Singapore and the Tifosi know that.

[yelistener]

A big shame that we didnt get to see how fast the fastest-of-alltime F1 car could go at Suzuka. On the ideal condition the pole should be at least 1.5s faster than 2017.

And Ferrari's strategy is a yoke.

[Juzh]

Ouch. That’s nasty from Verstappen there.

In case anyone missed it.

DC (David Coulthard) - You wouldn’t want to get in the way of the WDC battle would you?
MV (Max Verstappen) - Is it still a battle? I’m not sure!
DC - Fair point.

yeah nice comment from Max

As if there was a battle still going on anyway. Just more classic baiting from the british commentator (DC).

[TheGkbrk]

It wasn't a gamble really for Ferrari. I could see it was dry from my TV.

[simieski]

Had it started raining when vet/rai boxed and went out on ss or did they both fluff it by getting on damp curbs?

[Sieper]

It wasn't a gamble really for Ferrari. I could see it was dry from my TV.

The presenter on our local TV called it the right decision (at Q3 start). Ferrari are now in a position that they needed this to work. It didn’t. Merc took the other choice and it was totally right. Maybe Vettel should have kept his leg straight, he knew it was the wrong decision. But I can’t blame him, at all.

[TheGkbrk]

Had it started raining when vet/rai boxed and went out on ss or did they both fluff it by getting on damp curbs?

For their first SS runs it wasn't really raining. Kimi did a mediocre lap putting him 4th. Vettel made a mistake running out of track and finished the lap about 9 secs behind.

[TheGkbrk]

It wasn't a gamble really for Ferrari. I could see it was dry from my TV.

The presenter on our local TV called it the right decision (at Q3 start). Ferrari are now in a position that they needed this to work. It didn’t. Merc took the other choice and it was totally right. Maybe Vettel should have kept his leg straight, he knew it was the wrong decision. But I can’t blame him, at all.

Surely it was a team decision, no reason to blame Vettel but his mistake in his first SS lap cost him at least 4 places.