"ncasolowork2" (ncasolowork2)
05/12/2014 at 09:07 • Filed to: None
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"ncasolowork2" (ncasolowork2)
05/12/2014 at 09:07 • Filed to: None | 0
| 5 |
So there are spoilers inside. Don't click if you don't want to know what you already know.
Mercedes crushed everyone again. no surprise there, but just how much they crushed everyone by is a bit impressive. The only driver who was able to run faster than 1s+ per lap slower was Ricciardo. Vettel probably did too, but he started too far back to maintain a gap of less than 66 seconds at the line. Lewis beat Ricciardo by 49 seconds and Vettel by 76 seconds or so.
Alonso was probably more than the 1 or 2 laps away from being lapped that the results would indicate. Alonso made 3 stops and had fresh enough tires at the end that when Kimi fell way behind the Merc duo Alonso was able to stay out in front. Still just 6 lead lap cars is crazy. and this was supposed to be the race the other teams closed the gap to Mercedes.
I have to believe Monaco is the ONLY race this year any other team has a shot at winning. For two reasons. 1) If Nico and Lewis race it is the race most likely to end in tears. 2) The track is the least engine dependent track on the schedule and one thing is certain. The Red Bull cars are probably the best cars on the grid, but their engine is the worst engine on the grid.
dinobot666
> ncasolowork2
05/12/2014 at 09:17 |
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If you can't view the race, you can at least hear what it sounds like:
davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com
> ncasolowork2
05/12/2014 at 09:57 |
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Vettel posted the fastest laps yesterday. If he'd started on the 2nd row, do you think he'd have been able to hang with the Mercedes boys?
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ncasolowork2
> davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com
05/12/2014 at 10:07 |
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Not a chance. He would have been back with Ricciardo. Vettel made 3 pit stops. Mercedes made just 2 pit stops. If Rosberg and Hamilton each make an extra pit stop they crush Vettel's fastest lap. For context Ricciardo ran the same strategy as Mercedes.
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davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com
> ncasolowork2
05/12/2014 at 10:25 |
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They only pitted him early to get some space for clean air, right? It is crazy to think that the Mercedes are that far out front and they may have been driving with tire conservation in mind the whole time...
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ncasolowork2
> davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com
05/12/2014 at 10:51 |
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I think the Merc drivers were pushing their strategy. They ran a 2 stop strategy while conserving their tires to make sure they lasted properly for their 2 stop strategy. Rosberg did set fastest lap of the race (at the time) the lap before he pitted for a second time. That's how much life he had left in his prime tire at the end of the stint. Hamilton felt like he came in a lap or two early at the end of his second stint. The scary part isn't that Mercedes is 'preserving tires' it is that they are able to run that fast on one less stop than everyone else.
Remember that Mercedes caught the two Ferrari drivers as Alonso got by Kimi. Alonso was able to stay ahead of the two Merc drivers because he had fresh options on otherwise he would have been lapped as well.
As far as Vettel goes? It is anyone's guess if he pitted early to get clear track or if he was pitted early because he was chewing up his tires. This isn't the first time this year Vettel has had higher wear on his tires than Ricciardo. In the last race Red Bull initially planned to stop Vettel more than Ricciardo but ended up sticking to the same strategy. The problem is Vettel still destroyed his tires more than Ricciardo and Daniel beat him by 20 seconds. Here Vettel lost a lot of time due to grid position, but he still needed 1 more stop. That doesn't bode well for Vettel.