2018 Scuderia Toro Rosso F1 Team - Honda

[1158]

TR was never going to be as good as everyone was saying after the test but they may not be as bad as they appear now.

The car was rushed to get the Honda PU in, just like McLaren with Renault. The big difference is McLaren have more money and staff and 2 experienced drivers. Hartley and Gasly are rookies that haven't been on this track before. The conditions were improving through Q1 and were at their best at the end of the session when Gasly made his mistake. In 2017 Sainz and Kvyat were in the car. I'd wager Sainz in the STR13 would have been quicker than the 2017 time even with the frankenmobile.

Just like McLaren, STR will need time to "fix" the package. They also need to get their drivers up to speed. They should be shooting for 8th (team standings) right now with an eye to 7th or 6th late in the season. The caveat to that statement is IF they continue to develop the car through the season, something they haven't done the last few seasons for a few reasons.

[Talisman]

bad result but cleaner laps from both drivers would have sent them into q2. The midfield really is as insanely tight as it appeared in testing and today things didn’t go STRs way. In other races it will. Having more experienced drivers would help but that isn’t the STR way. Points will be difficult tomorrow but I have no doubts at all that STR will be fighting for points pretty regularly.

[Sayeman]

Wondering what Redbull will do. Renault has given them the May deadline, but I dont see Honda making meaningful improvements by then.

Would it be too crazy to suggest that Redbull will stick to Renault power and Honda leaves the sport by the end of the year? Honda and TR have been sweet talking each other, but Honda wont be hanging around to supply a small low-budget team.

You say May deadline, I thought Renault had said 'go away' anyway, you do not have a choice?
Can they still opt to use Renault next year?

Horner said they will choose the most powerful of the two available.

[Squid]

TR was the only team that did not improve its time compared to 2017. Lost 0.1

This is what bothers me

It shouldn't bother you that much when you account for all the facts:

• Inexperienced drivers

• Compromises due to late engine switch

• Missed out on the better conditions of the later qualifying

These likely masked the true performance of the car to an extent. The drivers seem very confident that the car is capable of making Q2 regularly. There are at least several tenths unaccounted for.

[Ground Effect]

Wondering what Redbull will do. Renault has given them the May deadline, but I dont see Honda making meaningful improvements by then.

Would it be too crazy to suggest that Redbull will stick to Renault power and Honda leaves the sport by the end of the year? Honda and TR have been sweet talking each other, but Honda wont be hanging around to supply a small low-budget team.

You say May deadline, I thought Renault had said 'go away' anyway, you do not have a choice?
Can they still opt to use Renault next year?

Horner said they will choose the most powerful of the two available.

They may not have the option to choose, Horner may make it sound that way. But there is a distinct possibility that Renault will decline to give Red Bull an engine next year, so Honda may be their only option. That's why Honda will have to give it their all this year. There's reliability, now they have to look for power and efficiency.

[Sayeman]

They may not have the option to choose, Horner may make it sound that way. But there is a distinct possibility that Renault will decline to give Red Bull an engine next year, so Honda may be their only option.

Don't think FIA/Liberty will let Renault do that if Honda doesnt come good. Racing is bad enough as it is, RedBull dropping to midfield won't help the show.

[loner]

I honestly expected a bit more from the car + engine, but luckily the gap isn't that big. They have 2 rookie drivers and I think they haven't brought an updated rear yet, which is probably the biggest compromise they had to make to fit the Honda engine. I expect them to move up during the season, because the engine is sounding/looking good.

INDEED

[etusch]

Don't think FIA/Liberty will let Renault do that if Honda doesnt come good. Racing is bad enough as it is, RedBull dropping to midfield won't help the show.

I think FIA are very happy with the situation. If they were not they will delay 3 pu rule for let Renault and Honda catch

[Revs84]

Wondering what Redbull will do. Renault has given them the May deadline, but I dont see Honda making meaningful improvements by then.

Would it be too crazy to suggest that Redbull will stick to Renault power and Honda leaves the sport by the end of the year? Honda and TR have been sweet talking each other, but Honda wont be hanging around to supply a small low-budget team.

You say May deadline, I thought Renault had said 'go away' anyway, you do not have a choice?
Can they still opt to use Renault next year?

Horner said they will choose the most powerful of the two available.

Horner also said that a final decision will not be taken by May but after the summer break

With or without a Red Bull agreement, I don't see Honda leaving. They have unfinished business in the sport, especially after the humiliation they endured in the last 3 years. They need to prove they can do it, especially now, in a time that Honda is finding again it's mojo and what once made it such an innovative, exciting and class leading car and engine manufacturer.

I for one think that TR will move up the grid this year, but only later on in the season, when chassis progresses, engine is further upgraded and drivers warm up more to the F1 challenges.

Reading comments today, I can't understand why all the sudden doom and gloom just because they finished 16th and 20th. Maybe wrong expectations? TR and Honda said it themselves that the start of the season will be a tough one and they won't be able to catch up with FI, McLaren and Renault until later in the season.

Don't forget that the project's main target is to have a competitive package by end of season 2018 and challenge more closer to the top 3 in 2019. A new engine deal doesn't come good in few months. It takes time, research and money.

With that said, I expect TR to be 5th - 6th team fastest by end of season and ending season in 6th - 7th. For me that would already be a huge feat and nothing to be disappointed about.

About Honda joining Red Bull? Sure, that would be great, but not even close to the idea of TR + Honda fighting for a championship in 2019! Granted, might be a bit far-fetched, but not impossible, because whilst the other teams might have funding, these guys have real soul and passion for what they do, and if anyone can do it, it's them.

[loner]

about 18 laps and kaboom
but TBH i find the way the smoke come out of the rear interesting not the usual way it was exploding .. not mocking seriously
in another note how gasly gained more than 10 seconds in 6 laps ?!!

[Sayeman]

I don't know man, Racepace doesnt look that good either. Are they slower than Sauber? What a rubbish start of the season. Can someone explain why Hartley was 40 sec behind Leclerc after the safety car restart?

Another engine blow up? Nice. who would have thought?

Just leave the sport Honda. Utterly incompetent, 4 years in, still nowhere.

[Ground Effect]

I don't know man, Racepace doesnt look that good either. Are they slower than Sauber? What a rubbish start of the season. Can someone explain why Hartley was 40 sec behind Leclerc after the safety car restart?

Another engine blow up? Nice. who would have thought?

Just leave the sport Honda. Utterly incompetent, 4 years in, still nowhere.

Do we have an official reason yet? It looked a bit strange, not like a normal engine failure, plus they told him to make it back into the pits.

[loner]

Can someone explain why Hartley was 40 sec behind Leclerc after the safety car restart?

they must of told him to drive it in safe mode to guarantee finish the race

[Oonnnn]

It’s confirmed PU related from TR’s twitter

[Fulcrum]

They are definitely the slowest team on the circuit, but this isn't entirely due to power deficiency.

The car looks to be heavy on tyres. They're pretty reasonable at the beginning of a stint, but they're falling off badly from the midpoint of the stint onward. Three factors are likely contributing to this:

- pure chassis related issues.
- inconsistent power/torque delivery.
- chassis-engine coupling not optimal relative to other teams.

Who knows which component is most prominent, but for sure, the third one will improve with each race.