Well everyone is claiming that the hotter weather will make it much more difficult for Ferrari to pull off another 1 & 2 finish, but I guess we'll just have to wait and see. How has Ferrari done there the last 4 years?
My guess: the barracuda has some unforseen problem (fuel scavaneging? *ahem f2002 ahem*), and Schuey hits 3rd. Unforseen / unlikely winner (not so extreme as Sato, but possibly Webber)? Maybe a 2nd place for Alonso, and Kimi suffers due to McLaren's craptacular performance. --Dan
Interestingly the Mc Larens set new track records while testing. Just like they did over the winter. And just like the Williams did. That makes me ponder two things: 1) as said the Michelins might work better in Sepang and 2) I have the nagging feeling Mercedes and BMW are just not as confident about their engines surviving an entire weekend and therefore way down tune them. Ferrari engines have been almost bullet proof for the last few years and so maybe our team runs them a lot less detuned than Merc and BMW. In testing the Mc Larens and Williams might go at full rpm, but on the race weekend they have to scale back too much. So maybe they learnt something from Melbourne (where none of those engines blew, Kimi had a fuel pump failure I believe) and rise the rpms again. That and the weather might narrow the gap to Ferrari. So hopefully we're in for a closer race. As for the track record in the past: Ferrari has done very well at Sepang.
With bulletproofness comes reliability, with reliability come positions, with positions come championships. Ferrari goes for championships not races. What we are witnessing is the rivals having to dial back their engine performance to Ferrari levels to achieve weekend lifetimes from their engines. Last year BMW seemed to have 25-40 HP advantage on Ferrari, now not.
I think you're dead on with your comment. Which is kinda ironic if you think about it: Everybody is lamenting that the rules are changing to break the Ferrari dominance, when in reality it plays into our hands. I always thought the one engine per weekend is a silly idea. It is supposed to reduce costs, but I always said the best engine manufacturers will just find a way to build an engine that is powerful AND reliable. The arms race will just continue.
am not sure it ends up as a ferrari 1-2 again, just because the shock of melbourne will have altered many plans and strategies of the opponents. but you can never discount schumi, regardless of the situation. personally i have a feeling that alonso is going to win this one. the renault's were the best of the rest, and michelins will be favored, and he is so hungry for a win.
Quite possible. Didn't he get his first pole ever last year at Sepang? Everybody thought Renault was qualifying on fumes...
I was driving Sepang for the first time on EO Sports F1 game this weekend and was surprised about the elevation changes. In my previous sim it was all flat (which was wrong of course). The track actually does have a nice flow to it and has a few really difficult corners and combinations. I always thought it was a dull track, but combined with the elevation changes, it actually is quite tricky. Gee, we need some hills at the USGP...
I've seen a USGP Indy layout that has a rise and a crossover. Was quite interesting and included more grandstand seating in what is now the oval tracks turn 3. It's unfortunately not very likely however since TG is not selling out what is currently avail.
PC It is the "official FIA F1 2002" game from EO Sports. It is pretty good and the Sepang track is well represented. I used to play GP4 with an add-on Sepang track somebody wrote, but it lacked the elevations. And it is stunning how much of a difference that makes: Sepang has many though turns uphill where you can't see the apex or past the turn. Not easy. And a lot of different combinations of turns. I used to bad mouth the track, but now I have to say, this is a pretty clever track. The surroundings are still a bit dull (not counting the grandstand).
Agreed. Any kind of change in the rules is pretty much guaranteed to increase costs. I read an interesting opinion--Alan Jenkins, perhaps?--that suggested rather than one engine, why not require tires to last all weekend?
DC has told Autosport that the Merc lump was rev-limited to 17ks in Melbourne, whilst the Ferrari and BMW were at or near their 19k maximum.
Hopefully!!!!!! But even if there not oh well, I know it was a good race, I cant wait till I can see another F1 race live again but alas it will be awhile. I kinda hope to see at least one Renault on that podium. I'm begging for them to be on the podium by the end of the year so Alonso can get to a even better team. Alonso's driving shows how well he can drive, he proves it's not about what car you drive but how well you can drive it. And after all isn't that what racing is all about? I can't believe he's younger than I am and yet he has accomplish so much.
Tires for a weekend? I'm afraid those rubber compounds would have to be so hard, the cars would be extremely nervous under breaking and making passing even more difficult. Not sure though. I just read an interesting article in which they said, that because of the newly required reliability of the engines the top teams had to do so much more winter testing than before, that it already cost them more than what they thought they might safe by having the one engine per weekend rule. No surprise there.
I have only been watching F1 closely for the past 5 years or so but from what I remember Ferrari and Williams always do well here. The BMW engine helps out on the two long straights and elevation changes. With McLaren having the problems they are, I am guessing they will not crack the top 5. I think maybe Ralf, MS, Button, Barichello, Montoya, Kimi, Webber? You never know with this new qualifying rules and such though. Hopefully, it will be a more interesting race then Melbourne.
There is a good chance for rain during the weekend. Hopefully, this will take away Michellin's hot weather advantage.
I think its too early to count out the McLarens, well Kimi at least. That was only one race. Hopefully the race will be more exciting than the one at Melbourne *yawn* but with the new engine rules who knows. You know what suprised me was that the Hondas finished the race last time. All last year it seemed one would blow its engine 5 laps into the race.
I really don't know what will happen sunday. Ferrari were saying the bridgestone won't be as good at the Malaysian GP. And then McLaren making a lap record during test sessions. Finally I hear Gerhard Berger(Former BMW director )saying that Williams won't be capable to close the gap with Ferrari in the first half of the year.
Lap records come in increments of 0.001 seconds faster than previous. The Ferraris (both of them) were 3 full seconds faster in Austrailia than the previous lap record.