FORMULA 1 ROLEX BELGIAN GRAND PRIX 2021......PRACTICE 1/2/3..▄▀▄▀▄▀ SPOILERS▄▀▄▀▄▀...

Max on top for now but he’s on softs the MBs were on hards.

 

Max is .08 off the lead and the broadcasters believe RBR is running a lower engine mode.

 

Now Max is at the top of the sheets…

 

[FP2] Max Verstappen crash
https://streamable.com/n9y50u

 

Max lead time marginally faster but on soft tyres...merc's right behind on medium I think. I do hope you're right that it's just a engine mode but I've got a feeling it won't be as close.

 

thought MB was on the hard. I think that this will be a MB front row lockout before Jeeves’ penalty.

 

if they where on the hards it's been a fun championship. Whilst it lasted.

 

Rain on Sunday can change all this. Maybe an FA win- GO Fernando

 

Fernando Alonso's Helmet Cam at Spa | 2021 Belgian Grand Prix

 

Very unfortunate Verstappen crashing and no Mercedes around.

Who Red Bull are going to blame now, one wonders.

 

Not a great second session for the good guys . . .

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Both Chuck and Max were trying to hard. While it appears that Hammy and Bottles are stroking it.

 

Not Max. He is a genius and beyond any doubt. Will they rage at the track on Social Media? Call a Lawyer!!??

 

Running the lower downforce really shows up the instability of that RB we saw in previous seasons.
Understeer into snap oversteer

 

Adrian Newey

 

Balance is tricky with Spa and throw in damp areas etc. I was surprised to see so much dry running.

 

Perhaps you better can join the Elton & friends website as possibly more friends for you over there. Myfirstpony.com….

ciao
Oscar

 

A truly dull first day. I guess everyone is going to coast for the second half of the season.

 

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Looks like everyone is in line for grid penalties this year.

 

Fernando is far from being that good in the wet, in fact last time i remenber him driving a Ferrari at spa in the rain he crashed....

 

How many more close calls or deaths will it take. Im open to improvements that can keep some of the character. Its worth a try at least.

 

How F1 engine change processes are clouding the Red Bull vs Mercedes battle for Spa supremacy
By: Alex Kalinauckas
Aug 27, 2021, 3:15 PM
The times set in the opening practice sessions for the 2021 Belgian Grand Prix suggest there is once again very little to separate Red Bull and Mercedes at the front of the Formula 1 pack. But one unseen element at power-sensitive Spa means neither can be sure it has an edge just yet

Across the two one-hour practice sessions at Spa on Friday, the general trends of 2021 re-emerged, but with a couple of key differences. Both of F1’s leading teams again appear to be very close on pace and small things led to differing results in FP1, which was topped by Bottas, and FP2, where Verstappen went quickest before crashing late on.


Overall FP2 order

Pos.

Driver Team Time Gap
1 Verstappen Red Bull 1m44.472s
2 Bottas Mercedes 1m44.513s +0.041s (mediums)
3 Alonso Alpine 1m44.953s +0.481s
4 Gasly AlphaTauri 1m44.965s +0.493s
5 Stroll Aston Martin 1m45.180s +0.708s
6 Norris McLaren 1m45.386s +0.914s
7 Sainz Ferrari 1m45.517s +1.045s
8 Giovinazzi Alfa Romeo 1m45.789s +1.317s
9 Latifi Williams 1m46.198s +1.726s (mediums)
10 Mazepin Haas 1m47.335s +2.863s
Both Mercedes and Red Bull were again experimenting with rear wing and overall downforce levels, which will again be key factors in the sessions that matter as F1 has returned to such a power-sensitive circuit.

The running logged so far has created the following picture: that Mercedes has the edge on straightline speed, while Red Bull is quicker in the corners.

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Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB16B

Photo by: Jerry Andre / Motorsport Images

Data Autosport has seen on Friday suggests that Verstappen's best time on the medium tyres early in FP2 - compared to Bottas’s effort on the same rubber that was +0.041s slower - was mainly gaining time at the first part of Les Combes, the Turn 9 ‘corner with no name’ and the ***nes chicane.

Verstappen’s crash wasn't the only unexpected development of the day. Perhaps the most significant, if not considering the impact of another shunt on Red Bull’s cost cap considerations, was how the two Mercedes didn’t improve when switching to the soft tyres during what are typically the qualifying simulation efforts in the middle of FP2.

There were several reasons why they did not.

The main reason why the Black Arrows pair did not improve, and why Verstappen only gained 0.125s on the softs as he jumped ahead of Bottas, was because all three apparently had their engines turned down
Firstly, both Hamilton and Bottas apparently reported not feeling much of a grip improvement with the red-walled rubber – which tallies with Pirelli estimating that there is just a 0.5s difference between the mediums and the softs.

They were also not happier with the W12’s balance and overall handling once on the softs, with the “massive bump right at the compression point” Hamilton suggested has appeared in the middle of Eau Rouge – and “kind of ruined it a little bit”, per the world champion – also contributing to their negative feelings on this run in particular. The result was Bottas ending up 0.429s slower than he went on the mediums, while Hamilton was 0.354s down in the same comparison.

But the main reason why the Black Arrows pair did not improve at this stage, and why Verstappen only gained 0.125s on the softs as he jumped ahead of Bottas, was because all three apparently had their engines turned down compared to their fastest laps on the mediums.

This suggests both teams were concentrating on the mediums for their qualifying simulation efforts, and it has been suggested that Red Bull apparently turned up Verstappen's engine for a second flying lap on that compound, which explains why he improved by 0.53s from a 1m45.127s to a 1m44.597s – in turn 0.084s slower than Bottas’s best. It is therefore likely both teams will try and get through Q2 on the mediums if qualifying is dry.

In Mercedes’ case, the reason why it turned down the engine mode for the soft tyre runs was also because it needed to do a full calibration of the new power units fitted to both cars, with Hamilton and Bottas joining Red Bull’s Sergio Perez, the two McLarens, Alpine driver Fernando Alonso, Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, both AlphaTauris, Williams racer Nicholas Latifi and Aston Martin's Lance Stroll in taking their third and final allotted new engine for 2021.

In order to try and ensure the desired reliability levels with new power units, teams typically run through all the engine modes to make sure everything is working as it should. And with the soft run seemingly not the most important one in practice at Spa today, we can surmise that is why both Mercedes and Red Bull opted to turn their engines down when typically they would have them turned up. The typical practice caveats apply too, as neither, and Red Bull in particular, shows its full power hand in Friday practice.

But the various changes in engine modes at both squads correspondingly make it trickier to pinpoint which one has the best ultimate pace at Spa so far. And, thanks to Charles Leclerc crashing and bringing out the red flags before Verstappen’s shunt ended FP2 early, there is zero long-run data to analyse in regards to a possible competitive order. So, the one-lap efforts are the only indicators and, as we’ve covered, they came with additional caveats thanks to the new engines.

https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/how-f1-engine-change-processes-are-clouding-the-red-bull-vs-mercedes-battle-for-spa-supremacy/6654858/

 

He's on that site arguing why donkeys are much better than ponies.