Hey, Will Brawn, Toyota and Willaims "win"? - After the last revelation about him offering to clean up the rules, I certainly hope so BTW. Or, will all the others "breathe a sigh of relief?".... There is no third solution as I *believe* that's the only options available to the WMSMC (?). Incidentally, while we've had lengthy discussions about the cost if BGP is legal, I wonder about the costs if it's found to be illegal?..... Cheers, Ian
I can't see it being banned now not now they've allowed it to do 2 races and not said anything other than court apearance 14th April. I think if they were going to ban it they would have done it at the end of the first race. It's not out of the question but i'd be suprised if they did now.
They're legal. having toyota / BGP / RBR at the front is good for F1... Bernie has a hard-on for McLaren, and that alone will keep the diffusers legal. No way bernie will permit ruling that will benefit McLaren!
I think they'll make it illegal because it's not good for business for the title to be wrapped up too quick. In the past they've manipulated it to keep it close so I don't see this season being any different.
..hmm, not a Ferrari fan by any chance are you...? (no, your avatar picture is pure coincidence).. ;-)
I thought everyone here on FChat is here because they ARE Ferrari fans.........if you are not, then why are.........nevermind.....trolls. Personally, I hope they find the diffusers LEGAL. And I am die hard Ferrari fan, I want Massa to win one WDC with Ferrari. But I sure do not expect my team to fall flat on its technological development face. Which they did. I am also a fan of Jim Hall and Smokey Yunick, two of best if not the best race car builders at reading the loopholes in the rules and designing the fastest car on the track. To me that is what racing is all about, techological advancements. Like designing a KERS battery that would fit inside the front wing of an F1 car. No, I am not talking about allowing extra gas inside the rollbar, or other methods of cheating. Anyway, if the diffusers are found legal, then the non-diffuser teams should be given a reasonable time to catch up, and during that time, be allowed to have an interim slightly larger rear wings to match the down force of the diffusers. If the diffusers are found illegal and not in the good spirit of the INTENT of the rules, then the diffuser teams should be given reasonable time to change their chassis to conform to the "spirit of the rules" and the non-diffuser teams have that interim increased rear wing to allow for a more equitable downforce. You might ask if the diffusers are found legal, why give the non-diffuser teams and temporary bandaid since its their own fault for not coming up with the idea themselves? I think someone already mentioned the reason, certainly neither FOM or FOTA (except for Brawn and Toyota) want to see the WCC won early in the season. And yes they also sort of care about the WDC and the effect on ticket sales for the races the last quarter of the season.
It should be legal because it represents great use of available technology. However, due to the costs associated with recreating cars, I think the FIA will side with the other 7 teams and make it illegal going forward (but protect the current results). Since F1 is in cost-control mode, I can see them sacrificing the well-being of the few for the many. Especially true if that "many" includes the likes of Ferrari and Renault. That's why we already hear Ferrari crying about $20MM in incremental costs to redesign the car with the diffuser. Multiply that by 7, and F1 has a $140MM problem. At the end of the day, I would still expect Brawn to be a better developed car. It would not surprise me if they already have a design without the diffuser as a contingency if the others balked. OTOH, if they don't such a ruling could put the best story in F1 this season out of business.
Legal but the FIA will have to allow more testing time for the others to catch up. If the current restrictions remain too much of the season will have passed for them to adapt. Of course in the name of fairness Brawn etal will have to be allowed the same amount of extra track testing.
And that will work as well as last year's changes to the engines for reliability after which the Renault suddenly had about 40 hp more...
In true Max Mosley fashion, the decision will be the opposite of whatever the majority of fans want to see...
IMO that wasn't a bad thing either. Renault caught up and made the races more interesting. Its not like they came away with an advantage just parity.
Unfortunately, this seems more similar to the Michelin vs Bridgestone debacle from a few years back. It's a case of the haves vs the have-nots, and when F1's marquee team is part of the "have not" crowd, we've seen some strange reversals on technological advances.
Hey the question was what do we think it will be, not what we want it to be Personally, as I've said in other threads, I hope it's deemed legal and Ferrari figures out a way to catch up.
I really do hope they find them legal. Motorsport has always been about exploiting the rules to your advantage, as opposed to cheating. Whether you homologate the Porsche 917 by making 25, or exploit the Ilmor pushrod engines like Penske did in 1995 to run away with it at Indy, innovation within the rules should be celebrated, not hindered. Having said that, I really hope Ferrari gets their act together. It's beginning to look like, (dare I say it?), the preSchummy era......
I doubt it will have anything to do with the technical regulations but rather with the ratings/entertainment factor. Pissing of Ferrari and McLaren is a big mistake and the FIA will be careful not to.
