2015 Singapore Grand Prix - 18-20 September

[Mandrake]

Another unlucky moment for Rosberg. In Monza his engine lets go while Hamilton is in the lead, now Hamilton has his share of bad luck but Rosberg only challenged for 4th place...strong race for Ferrari/Vettel. Hope Merc will continue to mess things up a bit so we get ourselves some interesting end to the season.

[Jordan44]

In a way, this weekend could be far more damaging to Rosberg's title bid than Monza. Vettel is now close, if Ferrari can maintain being a credible threat to Mercedes, then sooner or later the team will have to lean towards Lewis in response, even if it's just in terms of them alternating who gets to stop first and what not.

One would think the Merc advantage will return is Suzuka, but I guess we'll see!

This is very true. If Mercedes secure a 1-2 in Suzuka then I don't think they'll bother. But if Vettel splits them or even wins they may have to give Hamilton full support.

[LionKing]

Imho, monza showed that Mercedes is way in front pace wise. Singapore is an anomaly and very different from all the next races. That pace advantage Lewis showed at Monza was too big. Suzuka wont be as big i think, but more the usual gap.

Mercedes will no longer be able to under inflate their tires compared to competition. The question is that how much is the effect on the overall performance. Suzuka will be interesting to watch. But I would prefer a rainy race, much more exciting.

[Jordan44]

Imho, monza showed that Mercedes is way in front pace wise. Singapore is an anomaly and very different from all the next races. That pace advantage Lewis showed at Monza was too big. Suzuka wont be as big i think, but more the usual gap.

Mercedes will no longer be able to under inflate their tires compared to competition. The question is that how much is the effect on the overall performance. Suzuka will be interesting to watch. But I would prefer a rainy race, much more exciting.

There is no evidence to suggest they ever under inflated their tyres. The final conclusion from Monza made it very clear they followed the correct procedure which I can only assume was referring to the Pirelli engineer watching them inflate the tyres and being happy it was set at 19.5PSI. Furthermore, Paddy Lowe confirmed they never dipped under the minimum pressure at any point during the race.

Personally I think the two are unrelated and people are making an assumption with no good explanation.

[mikeerfol]

Imho, monza showed that Mercedes is way in front pace wise. Singapore is an anomaly and very different from all the next races. That pace advantage Lewis showed at Monza was too big. Suzuka wont be as big i think, but more the usual gap.

Mercedes will no longer be able to under inflate their tires compared to competition. The question is that how much is the effect on the overall performance. Suzuka will be interesting to watch. But I would prefer a rainy race, much more exciting.

Should be in the Suzuka thread obviously but speaking about rainy races...
https://twitter.com/fergieweather/statu ... 0109596672

[Jonnycraig]

Now here's the million dollar question, will this new found form from RBR and Ferrari carry over to Japan?

No chance. Merc were screwed by a complete lack of traction out of the countless stop start corners here. They will be fine at Suzuka which flows.

[LionKing]

The other teams that were measured were over the limit, Mercedes was below. They were relatively under-inflated. The question is whether other teams would have lowered their pressure a bit more too but did not in order to stay above the limit all the time. As far as I know, FIA can check the cars for compliance anytime they want during the weekend.

So after the clarification of the procedures this week, we will see at Japan what happens.

[Jordan44]

The other teams that were measured were over the limit, Mercedes was below. They were relatively under-inflated. The question is whether other teams would have lowered their pressure a bit more too but did not in order to stay above the limit all the time. As far as I know, FIA can check the cars for compliance anytime they want during the weekend.

So after the clarification of the procedures this week, we will see at Japan what happens.

You didn't read the conclusion. Mercedes were measured below because the FIA did not define their procedure correctly. Temperature and pressure are proportional. Mercedes switched off their tyre warmers on the grid, and the pressure fell. At that point the FIA measured it and it showed them as under. But the report said they followed the procedure, which meant they set their pressure at the correct temperature to ensure it was operating at a safe level in the race. So Merc did nothing different from the other teams. Ferrari showed as safe because they left their tyre warmers on for the duration. The final conclusion was that the FIA need to clarify how they are going to check pressures, and Mercedes were not told to take any action.

[Jonnycraig]

Gates open during the race.....huuuuuuuge fine headed the promotors way.

[Jordan44]

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CPWXjtBUEAImsVG.jpg

Gates open during the race.....huuuuuuuge fine headed the promotors way.

Ouch. So that's the one the drunk Brit walked through?

[knabbel]

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CPWXjtBUEAImsVG.jpg

Gates open during the race.....huuuuuuuge fine headed the promotors way.

Ouch. So that's the one the drunk Brit walked through?

Have you ever seen a sober Brit on holiday

[basti313]

Now here's the million dollar question, will this new found form from RBR and Ferrari carry over to Japan?

No chance. Merc were screwed by a complete lack of traction out of the countless stop start corners here. They will be fine at Suzuka which flows.

I do not think it is that easy. If the car lacks mechanical grip this will carry over to every other track. The question is if they can mask it with their engine in Suzuka.

And I also think it is not a question of tire pressure, but how Mercedes treats the tires. Since the tire test they know something others do not know...and now they maybe can not use it anymore? What we know is, that Merc lets the tires cool before the start, whereas Ferrari heats them as long as they can.

[giantfan10]

The other teams that were measured were over the limit, Mercedes was below. They were relatively under-inflated. The question is whether other teams would have lowered their pressure a bit more too but did not in order to stay above the limit all the time. As far as I know, FIA can check the cars for compliance anytime they want during the weekend.

So after the clarification of the procedures this week, we will see at Japan what happens.

You didn't read the conclusion. Mercedes were measured below because the FIA did not define their procedure correctly. Temperature and pressure are proportional. Mercedes switched off their tyre warmers on the grid, and the pressure fell. At that point the FIA measured it and it showed them as under. But the report said they followed the procedure, which meant they set their pressure at the correct temperature to ensure it was operating at a safe level in the race. So Merc did nothing different from the other teams. Ferrari showed as safe because they left their tyre warmers on for the duration. The final conclusion was that the FIA need to clarify how they are going to check pressures, and Mercedes were not told to take any action.

I dont see the benefit of taking your cooling blankets off early... was there an explanation by merc as to why?

[Jordan44]

Now here's the million dollar question, will this new found form from RBR and Ferrari carry over to Japan?

No chance. Merc were screwed by a complete lack of traction out of the countless stop start corners here. They will be fine at Suzuka which flows.

I do not think it is that easy. If the car lacks mechanical grip this will carry over to every other track. The question is if they can mask it with their engine in Suzuka.

And I also think it is not a question of tire pressure, but how Mercedes treats the tires. Since the tire test they know something others do not know...and now they maybe can not use it anymore? What we know is, that Merc lets the tires cool before the start, whereas Ferrari heats them as long as they can.

Hamilton's pace on the softs today wasn't too bad at all. But if we look at their soft runs in practise Ferrari were still about three tenths quicker. I believe that to be their genuine pace. Ferrari and Red Bull have made progress, and Merc's engine advantage is masked here. Mercedes only grabbed pole by 0.2 seconds last year, so it would make sense that Ferrari have found 5 tenths more from their engine and chassis upgrades combined.

Based on this I think the 1.5 deficit came from the supersoft tyres. Was this Austria 2014 repeated again, the setup they chose overheated the supersofts? Coupled with the fact they may not be the best chassis for this track, it could easily explain why they found themselves so off the pace.

I expect Toto will come out in a few days and say they cannot explain what happened, but go to Japan and everything returns to normal because their engine will be doing most of the work, like in Monza, and we also have the medium and hard tyres here, which Merc seem to be better on than any other team.

I dont see the benefit of taking your cooling blankets off early... was there an explanation by merc as to why

They didn't give a reason. Who knows.

[basti313]

No chance. Merc were screwed by a complete lack of traction out of the countless stop start corners here. They will be fine at Suzuka which flows.

I do not think it is that easy. If the car lacks mechanical grip this will carry over to every other track. The question is if they can mask it with their engine in Suzuka.

And I also think it is not a question of tire pressure, but how Mercedes treats the tires. Since the tire test they know something others do not know...and now they maybe can not use it anymore? What we know is, that Merc lets the tires cool before the start, whereas Ferrari heats them as long as they can.

Hamilton's pace on the softs today wasn't too bad at all.

Sure? If I remember it correctly Kvyat gapped him quite well even with his brake problems...on the other hand the pace of Rosberg in the last stint was not too bad.

Ferrari and Red Bull have made progress, and Merc's engine advantage is masked here. Mercedes only grabbed pole by 0.2 seconds last year, so it would make sense that Ferrari have found 5 tenths more from their engine and chassis upgrades combined.

Yes. But now comes the crazy thing: Ric lost 4 tenth on Vet in the first sector when they were racing in the middle of each stint. That would mean, that the RedBull is an incredible beast except for the engine (two straights in the first sector).
This performance will make it hard to find an engine for next year...