F1 ROLEX SAKHIR GRAND PRIX 2020: Qualy *** SPOILERS ***

I can say the same about you.

You demise Stroll and give him zero credit for anything he accomplishes.

As far as Fittipaldi is concerned: I'd be surprised if any team will hire him going forward. He'll probably stay on as test/reserve driver and that's that. He is a Michael Andretti by another name.

 

Looking forward to the 2 Mercs actually racing each other for once.Max has nothing to lose so could be exciting.

George might even beat Max to a WDC

 

Was Leclerc really "out of tires" (given that others did three runs), or was Ferrari just making sure they weren't up front?

Seems like Ferrari has been battling to the rear all year.

 

Point is...Russell in his first time qualifying in the W11 was .026sec off Bottas pace.

Strolls podium(Baku 2027)in a backmarker car was by attrition....not by merit. Same goes for Monza 2020 with Gasly, Sainz & Stroll. Crap has to happen up front for these guys to see a podium.

 

Yes, Leclerc was out of tires.

 

So explain why he isn’t already in the Bottas seat?
Don’t get it.

 

My guess is Mercedes already has a WDC caliber driver with a proven history, but getting old.

 

https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/153998/russell-pressed-wrong-button-in-sakhir-qualifying - Non Mercedes tested drivers from other PU's/teams would be slower to adapt than Russell.

George Russell has revealed he accidentally pressed his Mercedes car's neutral button during qualifying for the Sakhir Grand Prix, as he continues to adapt to his temporary Formula 1 environment.

Russell qualified second behind Valtteri Bottas for the inaugural Sakhir race, which will take place on the 'outer looper' layout at the Bahrain International circuit, finishing just 0.026s from pole on his first outing for Mercedes as Lewis Hamilton's stand-in.

The decision had already been taken for Russell to wear race boots that are one size smaller than usual to make sure he fits into the cockpit of Hamilton's W11, where he explained he has been making occasional errors activating systems on the steering wheel in practice and qualifying for this weekend's race.

When asked by Autosport if there were anything things he had had to unlearn from his experience for Williams in the first Bahrain race, Russell replied: "I guess arguably I probably would've been better off if I'd just came in with an open mind and not raced this circuit - or at least half of this circuit - last week.

"Because I spent all last week breaking at 'this point', turning at 'this point at Turn 1' and 'doing this, doing that'. And this car is just completely different.

"Then all the procedures - learning new procedures, learning new buttons.

"FP1 was a mess - pressing the wrong buttons here and there.

"Even in qualifying, I pressed neutral at one point instead of something else."

Russell explained that such a scenario occurred because had was in "such a routine down at Williams", where he has raced since entering F1 as the reigning Formula 2 champion at the start of 2019.

He added: "You don't even think about these things and it just naturally happens.

"[Mercedes has] been trying to modify as much as physically possible just to make things easier for me.

"It's been a lot of work and still takes a bit of time - it takes a couple of races just to understand all of that."

Russell then jokingly appealed to Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff that more time aboard the W11 would rectify the situation, saying: "Toto, a few more races please and I'll be there!"

 

https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/153995/bottas-sakhir-qualifying-performance-not-my-best

Valtteri Bottas says his pole position performance at the Sakhir Grand Prix came despite him not delivering the best of qualifying sessions during his time in Formula 1.

The Finn edged out new team-mate George Russell by just 0.026 seconds on the Bahrain outer loop track, to allow the Mercedes duo to lock out the front row of the grid. Both cars will also start on the medium tyre after using it to get out of Q2.

On a weekend where Bottas has been under pressure not to be outperformed by Russell, who is standing in for Lewis Hamilton as the seven-time champion has COVID, the Finn said he was happy he did enough after a scrappy run in Q3.

"For sure it's a different situation to have a new team-mate but ultimately I just wanted to focus on my own doing, and not to waste energy anywhere else," said Bottas. "I think I managed to do that.

"I think strategy wise we are in a great place as a team and good to see George locking out the front row as well. It's good to be on pole, I'm happy for that but not my best qualifying. I'm happy it was enough."

While the three long straights could offer plenty of overtaking opportunities in the race, Bottas is worried that cars may still not be able to follow each other closely enough.

"It's a bit of an unknown really how the racing is going to be," he said. "It didn't feel that easy to follow other cars, so I'm really pleased to be on pole and go from there.

"Hopefully we'll see a fun race. It feels a bit of a Mickey Mouse track, in a way, it's quite bumpy and twisty. But let's see tomorrow."

 

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Stroll is not only driver number 1, he is the team owner. And still he is very far behind Perez.

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Haas congratulate Fittipaldi despite Q1 elimination:

https://streamable.com/0au0j1

 

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What we know is that Russell is a damned good qualifier at Williams and races solidly. Bottas is a pretty good qualifier, but makes mistakes under pressure. Max can be overly aggressive when he senses a “lesser” driver is in front of him, so this thing is really wide open. Russel may be the coolest head among the three.

 

Only had used softs available. Made the best with what he had! (And then some)

 

Interesting....Aitken was a sleeper. Who knew?

 

First you have to arrive to arrive first.

Keke won a WDC based on that.

 

Not until the checkered flag waves. Then again, his value isn’t defined by a single race or season. I think his consistency is his greatest strength. I don’t feel he is the fastest qualifier, but he smashes it on race day with pinpoint performance and control. (Charles is the fastest qualifier, imo. Not being a fanboy either)

 

With all the experience, Vettel does not do what you have posted above this year. The most over rated WDC on the planet. It just astonishing to me.

 

Armed with the current Mercedes the qualities of LH yield multiple titles. A team needs both, car and drivers, and the ability with management structure to maintain the results year after year. Enough of the car talk. It is the total package that has defined Mercedes in this era.

 

i would definitely not sign hamilton for next season - or if i did it would be for a helluva lot less than he is asking.
russell showed it is 90% car - at least for qualifying.

lets see how his race craft is......

 

leclerc did well to drag that dog onto the second row.

 

https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/153996/leclerc-explains-decision-to-abandon-sakhir-gp-q3-early

Charles Leclerc has explained his decision to get out of his car and end Formula 1 qualifying for the Sakhir Grand Prix early after opting for a single Q3 run.

Leclerc had squeezed through to Q3 after Ferrari team-mate Sebastian Vettel dropped out in Q2 at the Bahrain International Circuit on Saturday, and was not expected to mix with the front-runners.

But a stunning lap put Leclerc second after the first runs in Q3, outpacing both Mercedes drivers on the soft compound tyre and only trailing the Red Bull of Max Verstappen.

Leclerc expressed his satisfaction with the lap over team radio, and was spotted shortly afterwards getting out of his Ferrari SF1000 car, despite having more than half of the session still to run.

Although both Valtteri Bottas and George Russell were able to improve for Mercedes to lock out the front row, Leclerc clung on to fourth place in the final classification despite his early run.

The Monegasque revealed after qualifying that he could only do one run in Q3 as he had run out of fresh soft tyres, and that he wanted to get in the lap early to avoid hitting traffic later on.

"I didn't have a new set," Leclerc said. "I took the decision to go early in the session instead of waiting to the end of the session for two reasons.

"First, I was expecting the traffic to be a mess at the end of the session, and second, I just had the ideas clear, and I just wanted to get out on-track and do the job which we did.

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"To be honest, I don't think I could have done anything better going later in the session, so I'm extremely happy about today."

Leclerc feared the lap had got away from him as early as Turn 1 after braking later than normal, but made use of knowledge picked up watching the onboard from Pierre Gasly's car to string together the lap.

"I don't like to say it's a perfect lap, you can always do something better," Leclerc said.

"But honestly, everything I wanted to do, I did it. I was scared because I broke very, very late into the first corner, but managed to make the corner anyway, and had a good exit too.

"I think I got a snap in Turn 4, and then I thought oh my God, I don't know if the tyres are going to last until the end of the lap.

"I did such a huge step from FP3 to quali in terms of driving, using a lot more of the track in entry on the kerb on the right [exiting Turn 8], looking at Pierre Gasly's onboard actually, so thanks Pierre!

"And the last corner, which I've been struggling with the whole quali, this one I finally managed to do it well also in my last lap. I'm extremely happy."

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But Leclerc downplayed Ferrari's chances of staying so high up the order in the race, believing it will face a tougher time over the 87-lap distance.

"A few times this year, we've been qualifying further ahead than probably what we should have," Leclerc said.

"This brings us a lot of hopes for Sunday, and then it's frustrating in the car on Sunday, but let's be realistic.

"Tomorrow is going to be a difficult day, I don't think we are going to be as competitive as today.

"I don't think we are the fourth-fastest car on-track. Let's wait and see, but I'll try to maximise what I have."

 

Even if you guys can’t agree that wingman bottas is mediocre, at least agree that almost any other driver on the current grid would be able to win behind the wheel of that mercedes car...

took a back marker driver who has never scored a point in an unfamiliar team, machinery and compromised cockpit fitments only 1 race weekend to almost snap up pole....

 

Bear in mind that Russell tested at the end of the 2019 season in the W10, of which the W11 is just an evolution. Not saying you're wrong, but Russell arguably has a little bit of an edge against other drivers who would be completely unfamiliar with the Merc. Overall I agree though... Put an F2 driver in the Merc and they're still likely to get several points.