F1 in 2017: What can we expect from next year's rule changes? | F1 News Its never too early to think about next year Hopefully Ferrari will be getting it more right than this year.
My only concern is that with enhanced aero, the cars will be more difficult to follow, and consequently passing opportunities will be less. I cannot understand why the FIA went in that direction. Never mind, we will see what happens.
I'd be happy if they actually get competition. Apart from Mercedes, the competition between the other teams is awesome. Ferrari and RBR, Williams, Force India, Toro Rosso and slowly but surely Mclaren...It's excellent!
Frankly i'm not very excited..Ferrari is in the gutter, i don't see how they'll make a better car then the Bulls or the Mercs, so i guess it will be the same crap, and let's face it, none of trhe real issues have been adressed, crap like DRS will still exist, i for once don't expect nothing new...then again, it could be because i got a ticket for speeding today...it sucks!!
Ferrari seems to be a bit in no man's land at the moment. Definitely behind Mercedes and even RedBull since their engine upgrade. But def. ahead of Williams and Toro Rosso. Disappointed in Williams and Haas, they really haven't made much progress. McLaren has though, from the back of the field to knocking on the top 10 door, slowly but surely gaining ground, and with 2 top drivers. With the amount already invested by McLaren/Honda and the token free development of next season, I expect Honda to be an even greater force.
They could be the revelation next year, if not in 2018 ... I hope I don't have to eat my words, but I cannot see McLaren languishing at the back for ever, nor Honda accepting the role of "also ran" for too long. These last 2 years have been punishment enough; I expect McLaren to be able to race for podiums, and the occasional win.
My opinion entirely; there are several races to watch within a GP for those who know what to look for ... It has always been like that.
It seems Ferrari is always "rebuilding" and never incrementally improving. I don't know what next year holds... comments that the cars will look radically different seems a bit overstated. Aside from wider tires... still on the stupid 13" Yugo wheels... and a wider/lower wing... I don't see a whole lot of difference that a lay person would even notice. I wish the low nose would go away... bring back 2009 which I thought were great looking... mean looking cars. I'm hoping the mechanical grip makes the difference with the over-taking issues. Who knows. I'm pretty much losing interest every week. I hate saying that. I'm starting to daydream about 2020 when the new engines are in place. I just don't get that visceral excitement anymore when I watch. I find myself not looking forward to the races like I used to. Stupid stuff like driving around for 10 laps for a wet start... how ridiculous considering the first lap or two are typically the most exciting part of the race these days. I don't know... I'm not even sure exactly when the next race is... that says a lot for me. So hopefully next year makes F1 somewhat exciting again. The entire F1 industry just seems neutered.
Or, having made up a large chunk of their once-huge deficit, they may find - like Ferrari has - that the last increment is really, really hard.
I for one hope it's a move in the direction of greater competition. There's plenty to question about the approach of late, but regardless the most important thing is wheel to wheel action...ill take that please
Mclaren's problem is it's stupid engine. Uses to much fuel, doesn't produce much power, and on top of that, power delivery is terrible. If that engine get sorted out they'd be fighting tooth and nail with Ferrari and Red Bull already.
So what was the excuse when they had the best engine on the grid - Mercedes power, and were uncompetitive compared to Ferrari and Red Bull? History has now shown us that it wasn't all Martin Whitmarsh's fault as Ron Dennis suggested, after all! There seems to be loads of people getting their hopes up that the 2017 changes will end Mercedes' dominance of the sport, but the changes could just as easily put us straight back to square one if Mercedes get everything right from the start and the rest do not! Let's not forget that Mercedes dominance already stems from a major change in the regulations that they got right from the beginning! I for one will wait for the 2017 cars to actually start racing before I get My hopes for an end to Mercedes domination, a Ferrari resurrection, and closer, more exciting racing! - 37 years of following F1 had taught Me that lesson!
The idea is getting more downfoce from the diffuser, that it's less sensible to running in dirty air than the wings. Also the new arrow shaped front wing is designed to work better in those conditions. That's their theory...
True, but, the crew that got it right for Mercedes the first time is gone. Brawn & Schumacher rebuilt that team...
you are aware that that car was from 2014, and we're now in 2016, right? 2 entirely different cars. They got it wrong with their then totally new car, they have a new team in place etc. Wise choice. Yes and no...there are some very smart people working at Mercedes still, and they learned a thing or two from when Brawn was there so I fully expect them to be at or near the pointy end of the grid. Add to the fact they don't have any competition they can fully work on their 2017 car right now yet still stay ahead of the rest. I just hope that RBR doesn't get too focused on this year trying to beat Mercedes and loses track for next. I specifically don't mention Ferrari because, unless their newly promoted team members already started work on next years car a few months ago (knowing that Allison would leave), I seriously doubt they can do anything.
The point I was making is that McLaren are perfectly capable of making a poor chassis - They don't always get it right (as demonstrated from 2009 to 2014 when they had the Mercedes power plant [openly recognised as being the best in F1 at the time], and were still uncompetitive). At the moment the Honda power-unit is letting them down, but there's no guarantee that if they get the power-unit sorted for 2017 they will also have a superb chassis that allows them to instantly challenge for race wins and the Championships, as some on here seem to be suggesting will be the case.
That's very fair. I bet they'll remain at the front, I hope/think that it'll be a much tighter field. Although it seems like with rule changes in the recent past that someone always gets out front
2009 to 2012 they where either 2nd or 3rd. Hardly ''uncompetitive''. The Mercedes engine back then was indeed the best (best driveability) but the worst engine was only 15-20hp down on the most powerful. Hardly an incredible advantage to have that engine. The Honda engine is like a boat anchor. Look at tracks like Barcelona, Monaco, Hungary, where a good chassis and aero makes a difference...They do better there than on other tracks that are more dependent on power. Is their chassis/aero the best? I don't think so, I believe that's for the RBR and Merc...but IMO they've made significant improvements to it and are in front of Williams/Ferrari.
Now the cars are wider. They can add the additional cooling they need, plus like they said earlier, no more stupid tokens. Thats constant development. However, the engine formula is the same until 2020, so that suits the Merc as well because they have the formula and can also do constant development.
