Binotto also claimed the same thing, and said that in the time frame the 2nd floor stay was done compared to when the technical directive was put out, the timing makes zero sense and Ferrari could in no way have implemented the 2nd floor stay in that time frame. So Mercedes HAD to have been told up front about it, or did at the time illegal modifications to the car that by pure coincidence where declared legal without a single team knowing the same day. I mean, surely not did the FIA just hire ex Mercedes and Special advisor to Toto Wolff to work for them? Ferrari "concerned" after FIA hires former Mercedes F1 executive (motorsport.com)
Its about time Ferrari (Binotto) started flexing its (his) muscles in F!, without them the sport is almost a dead duck. Red Bull / Mercedes / Alpine / Aston Martin can kid themselves, but the reality is nobody would miss them if they packed up. Tony
Are they not allowed to run 'illegal' parts in free practice? Maybe it was just them proving to themselves that it would/would not fix the bouncing problem?
practice is practice but why develop any questionable parts at all given the budget gap? Ferrari and RB should be in the FIA’s face questioning these directives and parts development which were done at the insistence of a team that can’t deal with their sudden downfall. I hate Marko but I loathe Toto the whining azz clown. If I were a top executive at MB I’d tell Toto to stfu and concentrate on next year’s car. He’s become an embarrassment to them.
I am at loss to understand why some new parts are legal, and others illegal. Teams keep introducing new parts regularly through the season ( front wings, rear wings, sidepods, floor, vanes, body panels, etc ...), and even power unit modifications, but a couple of stays on the Mercedes at Montreal immediatly created an uproar. What is the difference between these "updates" and a couple of metal rods? Can someone explain what changes are allowed, and what is banned.
Merc were planning on running the additional stays in the race and only removed them when other teams complained that a TD cannot change an existing rule so Merc realized they were exposed to being DQ’d for running the illegal—as in not complying to the rules—stays. But again, this is not the crux of the scandal. What is really scandalous is that on the day the FIA proposed—via the not technically appropriate method of a TD—Merc already has their cars equipped with said says. So not only did Merc lobby the FIA, run HAM’s car at the extreme settings they used in Baku to exacerbate the issue and give HAM his acting debut, they were given a a break by the FIA and then tipped off by the FIA—maybe Wolff’s ex-personal assistant recently hired on by the FIA?—ahead of every other team. Pretty disgusting behaviour by all involved.
Adding a stay would cost them, what? £2.50 One is within the rules and the other is not. If it's in the rules it's OK, if it's not it's banned. And we know this how?
We know this because of the protest looming over their heads: Mercedes to remove second floor stay amid F1 protest threat (motorsport.com) The stay may cost nothing but knowing where they have to place it for maximum effect and within the allowance of the FIA, takes time and (some) money. The time frame between the stays and the TD simply do not add up, and are highly questionable given that the FIA not 2 weeks ago hired Toto's #1 confidant.
Not really relevant, is it? It’s even cheaper to let some air out of the tires to some pressure below the FIA-imposed minimum—that’s also illegal. Because Merc said so? Mercedes to remove second floor stay amid F1 protest threat https://us.motorsport.com/f1/news/mercedes-to-remove-second-floor-stay-amid-f1-protest-threat/10324528/ Also, see my post quoting Horner questioning the timing of the TD and Merc having the stays made and installed on the cars where no other team did.
OK, so it's just the usual speculation and prejudice then. Not sure why everything has to be so tribal. I guess it must just be human nature.
F1 never used to be like that, with so much hostility among followers . It started at the turn of the century. Now just like football it turns into tribal warfare, with supporters confronting each others, split by silly allegiance. I think the media encourage it too, like in other aspects of life. INstead of pushing it back, many seem to welcome it, unfortunately. Years ago, the journalists contented themselves of just reporting on the sport; nowadays, they want to be polemists, and influencers too. It's a sad fact for me, a follower for more than 6 decades, to see that F1 is becoming more and more a media circus, and less of a sport.
Technically:: Lewis is a professional race car driver, while Toto is a professional liar--as are all team principals.
A principal defends the interests of his team, and that means lobbying, influencing, questionning, protesting, which involves using all his communication skills. It is therefore not surprising that lying, and scheming, are among the tools he will use. When will people stop believing everything they are told?
Regarding that second stay... I do find it curious as well... especially when Ferrari say they themselves could not have done it. I wish the other teams would push enough to force Merc to demonstrate and prove how this second stay came about. I'm not saying they're guilty but Mercedes is not known as the most honest team. While I think a lot of that.. if not most of it is totally partisan, I do think they've earned at least some of the side-eye they get.
If you care about the sport as much as you say you do, you should care about double standards and unearned privileges. Let’s not conflate these sentiments with tribalism.
You miss the point DF1 Who misses Jaguar, Brawn, Force India, Torro Rosso, Renault, Sauber etc etc..........some have morphed into new teams but the fundamental point is that F1 is Ferrari to a vast proportion. It did have more clout but the current crop of FIA delegates are somewhat anti Ferrari for some reason!!
Here's my take. Ferrari would be GREATLY missed by all if it left. Even those that dislike Ferrari. I would feel the same way if Mclaren left. Any other team? Not so much. I'm a big red bull fan as well, but the real reason I'd miss them is because they are quite "fresh", they do a lot of good for the sport as in not being uber corporate, bit of a party atmosphere and so on. If Red Bull got sold tomorrow to Porsche and they kept all things as it is just with a giant porsche logo spray painted over the red bull bit, my life wouldn't change. I always liked Minardi even though they where rubbish, when Red Bull (toro Rosso) bought them I liked it because they only changed the livery and got a bit more money, but the core of the team remained the same with their base in Faenza. I still call Alfa Romeo Sauber to this day as everything about that team is Sauber to me, the only thing that changed is that Alfa Romeo is the sponsor. When it's now likely that Audi has bought part of it and will likely buy more, I did get a little sad as I thought maybe it would move away from their little base in Switzerland. but then I remembered their windtunnel is there and they're a bit harder to move. I realize all the teams mentioned now are teams that do it different than the standard team, i.e. get a warehouse near silverstone and doing races (yes I'm aware RBR is next to silverstone as well).
