AMG.Tzan wrote: ↑02 Mar 2024, 19:10
dialtone wrote: ↑02 Mar 2024, 18:59
organic wrote: ↑02 Mar 2024, 18:54
And this was no different - in fact worse - without the budget cap, which is what the discussion began with if you wish to check my initial reply
That's really not entirely true. The 2014-2020 Merc dominance was already going on engine freeze period. The last period of consistent winning from a team without cost caps was really the Vettel RB era, and that was a LOT closer racing than we saw since the 2014+ engine freeze rules and now this new budget cap era. Early 2000s Ferrari was also much closer racing after a couple of years, like 2003. After 2004 dominance they killed Ferrari for 2005.
What we are seeing the last 10 years is not really the same as the old way.
Not really!
2014-2016 the championship goes down to the last race of the season 2 times and ends just 3 races from the end in 2015!
2017-2018 Ferrari shows up with a faster car yet Hamilton bleaches them!
2019-2020 were dominant seasons by Mercedes yet we got a ton of Mercedes vs Ferrari battles all through 2019 and some Red Bull battles at the end!
2020 ended up like that because of COVID but it was half a season with multiple new exciting circuits like Mugello and some new winners (Gasly, Perez)
2021 we got the greatest duel ever
So I wouldn’t say 2014-2021 were boring! 2011 and 2013 were far more boring…
It is OT here... So this is my last message on this:
2014-16 nobody but mercedes fans care that it came down to last race.
2017-18 nope, Ferrari was slower, the worse engine didn't allow to capitalize on a good car, and these were also the first years where the engine freeze was removed (so kinda proving my point). the way ham passed vettel in spa in 2017 still haunts me.
after 6 years on the formula we're finally getting some competition in 2019-20 and after removing engine freeze 3 years earlier and finally having Honda catch up and allowing at least RBR to properly race.
No one in good faith can argue that budget caps or freezes at the START of a formula help competition. Whoever nails the formula has won the era.