2012 F1 KOREAN STYLE GRAND PRIX: RACE *** SPOILERS ***

This "race" was a total snooze fest.


Today Red Bull Stratos is a lot more interesting than Red Bull F1.

 

This Stratos event is intense!!

 

That's an understatement. I'm at the edge of my seat.

 

The start was the most exciting part of the race. The announcers on Speed tried to make some drama out of Vettel's right front tire wear. He slowed down but had such a commanding lead that nobody could catch him.

First 1-2 finish by any team this season.

 

Maybe I am not thinking about this right, but it seems to me Ferrari and Alonso would have been well served to let Massa get Alonso and be a rabbit. Chase down the Red Bulls and try to put pressure on their pace (and the sensitive front right tire.) If it turns out that Reb Bull were playing opossum and could dial up the pace, then just have Felipe pit/drop back and let Alonso back by. No harm, no foul.

Imagine if Felipe could have forced Red Bull into a pit stop, possible passing incident with a forced mistake.

Would have made more interesting race, regardless.

I do think Ferrari may have missed an opportunity to help Alonso by keeping Phil behind.

 

Redbull diving was also more interesting.
Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

Some the opinions expressed here make this thread even more interesting than the race.

Certainly a lot funnier.

 

The race was still a good one, but seemed too easy for Red Bull. That's not to say there weren't battles behind the front rows. I hold Bernie and Co. personally responsible for some of the stagnation of the sport by freezing the engines for so long and banning testing, the real x-factor in past years. With both of those sidelined, the potential for change is lessened. F1 should not be a static sport, but rather a sport where the best teams in the world push the envelope from start to finish.

I an concerned the FIA will govern the turbos to the point that they run like moderately loud sewing machines. High rpm boosted engines can sound fantastic if setup properly, but if they are limited to low rev AND boost limits, the show will be muffled to say the least. The glory of the early turbo days lay within the grenade laps where all the stops were pulled out, the spectacular failures, etc. If nothing ever breaks and no one is allowed to surge ahead, you have stagnation.

 

Wait...

You actually think, at this stage of the championship, that Ferrari should let their drivers race? You think it would have been a good idea to let Massa pass Alonso (costing FA 3 much needed points in the WDC)?

Wow. Just wow.

 

Yes just wow ... face plants desk. Obviously DF1 does not realise that Alonso AND Ferrari can still win the WDC.

The end result is if Ferrari don't bolt on some clever and very good upgrades to Clifford we have lost this one to Vettel and RB. Whatever they bolted on to the RBs a couple of races ago was bloody impressive. Hats off Adrian!
Pete

 

Why would Massa have forced RB's to race?

They would have just let him passed. Ferrari are out of the WCC and Massa is waaaaaaaaaaay out of the WDC so he simply does not count. So Massa might have got the 10 points and they would have got slightly less ... so what. Ferrari needed Vettel to get zero points.
Pete

 

Right.
The new born Massa is not only faster than Alonso but so fast as to worry the RBs?
Either they put something in his Wheaties or your tobacco.

 

. Not my tobacco, but wlanast's. I was responding to his post.
Pete

 

I know.
Sorry if I confused things.
My point stands though.

 

Good point.

I was hoping RedBull's tires would take a dive off a cliff.

 

wlanast and nsxrebel,

The only way Massa could have helped Alonso was if he took out Webber. Why:
1. There is no way he could have caught Vettel,
2. Both Vettel and Webber would have been instructed by their team to just let him past as he (Massa) is not a player in either championship.
3. If Massa had been able to catch Webber it is unlikely that Massa's tyres would have survived to the end of the race, thus take him out and park your car. Hardly sporting (remember we are post MS win at all costs with no shame days).

Pete

 

The way Massa could have helped Alonso is if he forced Webber and especially Vettel to be harder on their tires than they would like to be. Obviously, passing Webber does nothing for the WDC.

No way does Red Bull instruct their drivers to let Massa past. Even if they did, you think especially Vettel will listen? They can't even stop Vettel from setting fastest laps at the end of races when they want to preserve hardware.

So I maintain that Ferrari has nothing to lose. If they see at the end that the WDC possibility is hurt at the end of the race, bring Massa in for an "emergency" pit stop and slot him in behind Alonso and order is restored.

I am not saying Massa could have caught Vettel, but he was 13 seconds back with about 20 laps remaining.

 

Ouch! But he wasn't that slow on the race .

Accurate prediction .

Somebody has to have the fastest lap. As long as it's not faster than before, no harm done.

Like he had before < he he>. Mathematical chances mean nothing if all others above you have to DNF and you pretty much have to win every race left. Realistically, it's a 2-horse race now.

Not only that, but that circuit is reportedly used only once a year for F1. The better question is who's behind it? With that paltry attendance, it must be losing A TON of money.

I'd have liked Felipe to respond something like 'Message I'm faster than Alonso and need to slow down confirmed'. But he's a classy guy. Or at least non-confrontational.

Believe it or not, Alonso has had BETTER luck than Vettel (3 DNFs vs 2), so don't push it man <lol >.

Indeed. When Alonso was finally catching up to Webber at the point of almost being able to use DRS, he put a couple more seconds on Alonso in a heartbeat. That Massa order looked pretty bad, but it was the right call for the WDC (WCC would have been the same).


Hey gang, what was the deal with the microphone lady asking Vettel for his cap? That was bizarre. I'm sure she was reprimanded later, no? Wonder if Vettel gave it to her afterwards. And I meant the cap .

 

You're funny.

 

I'm a contrarian, and having a little fun with mental gynastics. Just trying to make a boring race more interesting. Obviously no one here is actually running a team and responsible for hundreds of millions, lol!

 

They are not that stupid mate. Again Massa is a non-contenter.

Yes Vettel has an ego, but note how Webber sets the faster lap of the race in the last couple of laps (it is a game they play against each other) ... Vettel didn't challenge that.
Pete

 

Actually the WOW would be this....http://en.espnf1.com/korea/motorsport/story/91893.html

"It's not looking good for Alonso and in the post-race press conference he said Ferrari has been without a major upgrade for six or seven races."

Letting Massa pass him and pressure(potentially) Webber would have cost nothing in comparison. If it didnt work out Massa could fall back in order behind FA. Not an earth-shattering thing to do.

 

have you considered that Ferrari calculated that there was no way massa COULD catch them? I mean, I know we're all much smarter than those silly people running those multi million dollar teams, but it IS possible that they know more than us.

I have zero doubt in my mind that if Massa could have done ANYTHING to help Alonso, they'd have done it.

 

Possibly, but throwing out the idea is not something that should get one assaulted here. The teams certainly have data showing what is going on. I find it amazing how a person gets slapped here for stating an idea. One that actually supports the team. Oh well back to my goldfish LOL!

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/formula1/19941812

Great stuff on the current Red Bull and the other top teams.