re: F1 2019 Season Thread (Next race: Dec. 1 Abu Dhabi)

Here's part 2 of Johansson's proposal to improve Formula 1. I'm mostly in favor of these ideas. He wants to lower downforce by 70% and increase power. Faster speeds + less downforce = slower cornering speeds and more passing. He also wants to go back to the tire war days.

Summary:
Reduce downforce by 70%: +10-15sec
Wider, taller, improved tires: - 3-5sec.
Increase power by 300-400hp: - 3-5 sec.
Reduce weight by 150-200kg (331-441lbs): - 3-5 sec.

He also wants to modify the race tracks. This I wholeheartedly agree with.

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Chicanes should be banned as far as I’m concerned, and for a track designer to put one in when they have a clean sheet of paper is beyond me. Abu Dhabi is a perfect example: they could have done pretty much anything they wanted with a budget that was through the roof, and we end up with arguably the most boring race track ever made.

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Part 2

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Paul Ricard getting no changes (as of yet) just shows that they aren't big on changing tracks.

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Yeah they're trying to do everything on the cheap. Hence the shitty street circuits like Hanoi.

It occurred to me while watching MotoGP one time that one reason there is so little overtaking in F1 but so much in motorcycle racing is that the bikes are very narrow relative to the track. There are multiple lines through almost every corner. But in F1 there is usually only one line. So I think it would help to widen the tracks to open up more possible lines. But that's expensive and the poor guys that own the tracks are already getting squeezed by FOM so much that they can barely make any money. So yeah, I don't see any tracks getting modified unless the FOM is willing to help pay for it.

I'll probably just do general admission if I go this year. Thinking about Mexico, but have a few other things planned so might have to put it off a year.

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I would also like to start a petition to bring back Grid Girls.

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Can I get an "Amen!"?

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so little overtaking in F1 but so much in motorcycle racing is that the bikes are very narrow relative to the track

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Just something to think about, but what also adds to overtaking is the speed differential that is created within the same set of cars, but at different times of the race. For example, one car can be the faster car (qualifying), but have completely worn hard tires and be slower at the moment than a car that it was quicker than the day before. By taking refueling out of the race, F1 doesn't have the weight dynamic that other series have during the race.

Seeing F1 cars absolutely blaze through corners at high speeds is one of the coolest things about these cars, so I personally struggle with wanting to take away downforce.

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Seeing F1 cars absolutely blaze through corners at high speeds is one of the coolest things about these cars, so I personally struggle with wanting to take away downforce.

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I don't disagree. For example, the way they go through Maggotts/Becketts/Chapel or the esses at Suzuka is nothing short of amazing.

But...

It's the technology that allows that more than driving skill. There's nothing wrong with the technology and that's one of the great things about F1. However, I'd like to see more focus on the driver and I'd like to see better racing.

Some new fans came into the sport due to the Netflix series but how long are they going to remain if every race is like the last one? What does it say about the sport when F1's Crown Jewel, the Monaco Grand Prix, is the most boring race on the calendar?

By the way, here's part 3.

Not Well Done Baku

Gasly....geez. The Torpedo will be in that seat by year end.

Torpedo wrecking his car at Baku like the sun rising in the east