New qualifying format...

[Henk]

It think it is quite fair to recap who was right and who was wrong a few weeks ago:

The more I think about the consequences of the new Q format, the more I like it. It will be stewarding hell, but a good improvement to "the show". Yes, it is a show (and a sport).
The old Q format was becoming too predictable but for two flurries of action when everyone tried to improve a the same time in the last minute of Q2 and Q3, and then everything happened too fast to follow. Now things will happen one at a time and it will be easy to know where to focus as an spectator. One could make awesome graphics showing, for example, the current sector times of the last 3 cars plus the sectors of their best laps so far. A 4-way split screen allows to follow precisely those cars.
A bit of chaos will be thrown in the mix, but the order will still be decided by who is fastest on track when it matters, and people will learn to love the accasional last minute save or last minute fumble, including the need to come back through the field come race day...
Here comes a bold prediction: this will be called the best format ever way before year's end.

But while I get my foot out of my mouth, I think the system was maligned more on concept and perceptions than on real life effects. Yesterday in Sochi we did have cars on track for the final minutes. But instead Raikonnen had the track for himself for the first 2 minutes, the first significant time was set more than 4 minutes into the session and we were delighted with superslow motion replays and shots of mechanics in their pit boxes between 6 and 4 minutes to the end. And then came all the "excitement" of the final minutes.

This is Q3 from Sochi in 3 screenshots. Completely different to the elimination system /sarcasm off/.
http://i.imgur.com/8tnThTk.png

P.S. That said, there is nothing wrong with the current system, IMO, one of the best we've had.

The format we have returned to fits well with the way we humans experience the world. The natural human tendency is to remember and give more credence to what we experience at the end of a period. Crescendos are good. So loading the action and excitement towards the end of the session is much better for human satisfaction than having an arrangement with an even more exciting mid session but nothing happening at the end. The human mind works in a particular way and it takes an enormous effort to replace feeling with rationality.

It's possible to have both. The elimination system usually ended 3 minutes early. By pushing back the first elimination 3 minutes you would have had your last minute fun. I would opt for just 1 elimination time in the middle of every session where 3 cars are dropped at the same time.

For most of the time in Q1 and Q2 in Sochi I was looking if Mercedes or Ferrari cars were going to make the cut. There is no excitement there. I want them to go out in the first minute and then be done with it. I want to see the fight for Q2 in the first session with cars at their limits.

Part of this is also the fault of the directors that yesterday showed Rosberg walking down the pitlane in the middle of a hot lap from Bottas. The same thing was done when the other system was in place. I'm sorry for the people who hadn't noticed yet. It's a disease and they will do it again in the race.

[zac510]

It's possible to have both.

You've missed the point there. Even if you did have both, most people's memory would still be dominated by what happens at the end of the session.
I'm familiar with the research henry is citing.

Part of this is also the fault of the directors that yesterday showed Rosberg walking down the pitlane in the middle of a hot lap from Bottas. The same thing was done when the other system was in place. I'm sorry for the people who hadn't noticed yet. It's a disease and they will do it again in the race.

This is a good point though; a shot of a driver outof a car is a bad signal to the viewers that the "session is over" and that memory might dominate their impression of the session.
The producers should really try to avoid that kind of signal in the last minute or two of the session.

[henry]

The psychology and human factors of FOM coverage is very poor.

The producer often cuts from exciting on track action, with a pass attempt imminent, to show static pictures of a good looking/important/just there human being. The pass then gets shown in a replay. And their graphics is poor with information scattered across the screen or for some information, like gap to leader, across multi screens.

The quality of graphic presentation has a big impact on how well a viewer can follow qualifying, and so how much they get out of it. Over in MotoGP Dorna have evolved a much more involving presentation.

[Vasconia]

The psychology and human factors of FOM coverage is very poor.

The producer often cuts from exciting on track action, with a pass attempt imminent, to show static pictures of a good looking/important/just there human being. The pass then gets shown in a replay. And their graphics is poor with information scattered across the screen or for some information, like gap to leader, across multi screens.

The quality of graphic presentation has a big impact on how well a viewer can follow qualifying, and so how much they get out of it. Over in MotoGP Dorna have evolved a much more involving presentation.

Absolutely, its annoying how they cut good battles just to show us something uninteresting.

[strad]

The producer often cuts from exciting on track action, with a pass attempt imminent, to show static pictures of a good looking/important/just there human being.

This represents what I have been complaining about. This emphasis on glitz and supposed glamour over the substance of racing.

[OkKim]

A little bit off-topic, but what about this qualifying idea.

At qualifying start the lap time clock at the beginning of sector 3, following sectors 1 and 2, stop the clock at end of sector 2.

When coming from the pit sectors 1 and 2 were warm up, after the fast lap the sector 3 would be cooling down when driving back to the pit.

So during two laps is possible to run one fast lap, now three laps needed. More active fast laps and less traffic.

[hollus]

Shhhhh, that makes sense, so shut up, don't give them any ideas. They are already talking about tweaking quali again for 2017