2021 AMG Mercedes F1 Team

[TheRacingElf]

It's only going to get harder for Hamilton from here on out, so it'll be a question of consistency.

That's quite an assertion. Do you think that Red Bull's pace advantage will remain for the season and that Mercedes won't be able to get closer to them?

It's easier for RBR to keep their advantage than it is for Merc to overtake them, remember that resources are split between this and next year. So if you devote too many resources this year it will hurt you next. It took RBR basically the whole 2020 season to catch up, and Mercedes stopped developing halfway.

But what did Mercedes do when they stopped development on the W11 midway through last year? They didn’t spend it all on the development of the W12 I don’t think, looking at it atleast. I have a sneaky suspicion they started on their 2022 car already with the 2021 car being kind of an afterthought.

[dans79]

It makes complete sense, you're just looking at it from the wrong way.

I don't think so, because there are many legitimate reasons why it would need to be modified. You have a new larger or wider driver for one, or many of the electrical components that aren't homogenized might be more or less a fire hazard if a new version is used.

[NL_Fer]

What is causing the derates? Mercedes ERS always had enough capacity for deployment on all the straights.

The MGU-K is still 120kw, so they must have less harvesting this year. How come?

[dans79]

What is causing the derates? Mercedes ERS always had enough capacity for deployment on all the straights.

The MGU-K is still 120kw, so they must have less harvesting this year. How come?

My assumption is, they changed the deployment scheme for this race weekend to deal with the aero/balance issues they're having.

[SiLo]

That's quite an assertion. Do you think that Red Bull's pace advantage will remain for the season and that Mercedes won't be able to get closer to them?

It's easier for RBR to keep their advantage than it is for Merc to overtake them, remember that resources are split between this and next year. So if you devote too many resources this year it will hurt you next. It took RBR basically the whole 2020 season to catch up, and Mercedes stopped developing halfway.

But what did Mercedes do when they stopped development on the W11 midway through last year? They didn’t spend it all on the development of the W12 I don’t think, looking at it atleast. I have a sneaky suspicion they started on their 2022 car already with the 2021 car being kind of an afterthought.

Maybe, but only from a conceptual standpoint. They weren't allowed to do any CFD or windtunnel testing on the 2022 regs until 1st Jan this year.

[PhillipM]

It makes complete sense, you're just looking at it from the wrong way.

I don't think so, because there are many legitimate reasons why it would need to be modified. You have a new larger or wider driver for one, or many of the electrical components that aren't homogenized might be more or less a fire hazard if a new version is used.

Then you would need to use your tokens on the chassis if you needed to fit a larger or wider driver. Making it a moot point.

[dans79]

It makes complete sense, you're just looking at it from the wrong way.

I don't think so, because there are many legitimate reasons why it would need to be modified. You have a new larger or wider driver for one, or many of the electrical components that aren't homogenized might be more or less a fire hazard if a new version is used.

Then you would need to use your tokens on the chassis if you needed to fit a larger or wider driver. Making it a moot point.

not necessarily, that's why they have the seat fittings. Plus almost all the teams are already running the survival cells to the minimum allowed dimensions.

[PhillipM]

Yes, and the drinks bottle and extinguisher are on the *outside* of it. Not the inside.

[PlatinumZealot]

What is causing the derates? Mercedes ERS always had enough capacity for deployment on all the straights.

The MGU-K is still 120kw, so they must have less harvesting this year. How come?

Software adjustment to the extra power to come from the big plenumI hope.

[proteus]

Races like this cement Hamilton as one of the greatest, he won in a slower car. Verstappen has more pace than last year in the race. Hamilton just played it to perfection, got track position and had enough pace in hand to fend off Verstappen. Kept a cool head and just raced his heart out. That's a champion move. It's only going to get harder for Hamilton from here on out, so it'll be a question of consistency.

He was extremnely lucky that the track is build like an airport. He was actually doing mistakes under pressure. He went off track and simply got back on due to the common flaw in modern circuits. I will leave his 29 expeditions over the corner number 4, because race control itself doesnt know what they want and what is a track limit and track itself.

He brilliantly managed to salvage the win, but not as smoothly as some are trying to portrait it. Luck was a big factor.

[cheeRS]

Races like this cement Hamilton as one of the greatest, he won in a slower car. Verstappen has more pace than last year in the race. Hamilton just played it to perfection, got track position and had enough pace in hand to fend off Verstappen. Kept a cool head and just raced his heart out. That's a champion move. It's only going to get harder for Hamilton from here on out, so it'll be a question of consistency.

He was extremnely lucky that the track is build like an airport. He was actually doing mistakes under pressure. He went off track and simply got back on due to the common flaw in modern circuits. I will leave his 29 expeditions over the corner number 4, because race control itself doesnt know what they want and what is a track limit and track itself.

He brilliantly managed to salvage the win, but not as smoothly as some are trying to portrait it. Luck was a big factor.

He did not get lucky at all. He's the most skilled and accomplished driver in F1, perhaps in F1 history - but that is certainly debatable so I won't push it.

I saw a single lockup during the battle with Max at the end that caused him to go wide a bit, but it's not "lucky" that there was no gravel when he went wide. You're thinking about it backwards. When there is no gravel or grass runoff, drivers take more risk because they know they can go wide or brake later/lockup and not end their race in the gravel. Max was doing the same - he admitted almost loosing it out of turn 13.

Hamilton won the race on pure, absolute, fair merit. Just like Max won Abu Dhabi last year and got pole on Saturday. Lewis kept Max behind and managed worn tires better than Max and fully exploited his track position. That's a champion's drive - something Max has never been in a single seater FYI.

[proteus]

Races like this cement Hamilton as one of the greatest, he won in a slower car. Verstappen has more pace than last year in the race. Hamilton just played it to perfection, got track position and had enough pace in hand to fend off Verstappen. Kept a cool head and just raced his heart out. That's a champion move. It's only going to get harder for Hamilton from here on out, so it'll be a question of consistency.

He was extremnely lucky that the track is build like an airport. He was actually doing mistakes under pressure. He went off track and simply got back on due to the common flaw in modern circuits. I will leave his 29 expeditions over the corner number 4, because race control itself doesnt know what they want and what is a track limit and track itself.

He brilliantly managed to salvage the win, but not as smoothly as some are trying to portrait it. Luck was a big factor.

He did not get lucky at all. He's the most skilled and accomplished driver in F1, perhaps in F1 history - but that is certainly debatable so I won't push it.

I saw a single lockup during the battle with Max at the end that caused him to go wide a bit, but it's not "lucky" that there was no gravel when he went wide. You're thinking about it backwards. When there is no gravel or grass runoff, drivers take more risk because they know they can go wide or brake later/lockup and not end their race in the gravel. Max was doing the same - he admitted almost loosing it out of turn 13.

Hamilton won the race on pure, absolute, fair merit. Just like Max won Abu Dhabi last year and got pole on Saturday. Lewis kept Max behind and managed worn tires better than Max and fully exploited his track position. That's a champion's drive - something Max has never been in a single seater FYI.

Thats your opinion and you have full right to have one. I have my own and in mine he got saved by the track design. Same thing happened in Belgium last year as well. Loosing his car and jet having no consequences because runoffs are tarmacked.

So yes, he was lucky that the track is designed in a way that mistakes like that are more or less unpunished. This is the problem of modern F1, and thats why drivers fail to respect track limits in lots of venues. Like i said, he acomplished a win with his skill, but also with giant amount of luck. If the ztrack would be more unforgiving, he could have ended his race in that corner, in anycase he would lose a big amount of time.

[dans79]

If the ztrack would be more unforgiving, he could have ended his race in that corner, in anycase he would lose a big amount of time.

all the drivers push the limits, that's what the get paid to do. They push some corners harder than others, because they know what they can get away with. Even on street circuits they push the limits.

[JPower]

He was extremnely lucky that the track is build like an airport. He was actually doing mistakes under pressure. He went off track and simply got back on due to the common flaw in modern circuits. I will leave his 29 expeditions over the corner number 4, because race control itself doesnt know what they want and what is a track limit and track itself.

He brilliantly managed to salvage the win, but not as smoothly as some are trying to portrait it. Luck was a big factor.

Luck implies that something happened to make his win improbable. Nothing happened yesterday to give him an advantage that was out of his control.

[El Scorchio]

He was extremnely lucky that the track is build like an airport. He was actually doing mistakes under pressure. He went off track and simply got back on due to the common flaw in modern circuits. I will leave his 29 expeditions over the corner number 4, because race control itself doesnt know what they want and what is a track limit and track itself.

He brilliantly managed to salvage the win, but not as smoothly as some are trying to portrait it. Luck was a big factor.

He did not get lucky at all. He's the most skilled and accomplished driver in F1, perhaps in F1 history - but that is certainly debatable so I won't push it.

I saw a single lockup during the battle with Max at the end that caused him to go wide a bit, but it's not "lucky" that there was no gravel when he went wide. You're thinking about it backwards. When there is no gravel or grass runoff, drivers take more risk because they know they can go wide or brake later/lockup and not end their race in the gravel. Max was doing the same - he admitted almost loosing it out of turn 13.

Hamilton won the race on pure, absolute, fair merit. Just like Max won Abu Dhabi last year and got pole on Saturday. Lewis kept Max behind and managed worn tires better than Max and fully exploited his track position. That's a champion's drive - something Max has never been in a single seater FYI.

Thats your opinion and you have full right to have one. I have my own and in mine he got saved by the track design. Same thing happened in Belgium last year as well. Loosing his car and jet having no consequences because runoffs are tarmacked.

So yes, he was lucky that the track is designed in a way that mistakes like that are more or less unpunished. This is the problem of modern F1, and thats why drivers fail to respect track limits in lots of venues. Like i said, he acomplished a win with his skill, but also with giant amount of luck. If the ztrack would be more unforgiving, he could have ended his race in that corner, in anycase he would lose a big amount of time.

Likewise if Max had tried that overtake at a less forgiving circuit, he's stuck in a gravel trap or in a wall, ends his race at that corner, and is collecting zero points instead of 18. Driving off the circuit further than Hamilton did had no consequence for him either. What's good for the goose is good for the gander.