The 2012 Malaysian Grand Prix Thread

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Malaysian Grand Prix - Driver of the day ?

Fernando Alonso
51
24%
Sergio Perez
95
45%
Lewis Hamilton
4
2%
Mark Webber
16
8%
Bruno Senna
10
5%
Paul di Resta
11
5%
Jean-Eric Vergne
4
2%
Nico Hulkenberg
4
2%
Michael Schumacher
14
7%
 
Total votes: 209

Ed
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Post by Ed » Mon Mar 26, 2012 10:09 am

Thanks jacfan for the commentary during the race

Indeed it was an exciting and unpredictable race

No one expected Alonso to win this race after struggling with a difficult car and only managing 9th in qualifying. The same for Perez who qualified 10th but under wet conditions both did extremely well and at some stages of the race were lapping a second quicker than Hamilton and Vettel behind them which comes as a surprise given that both Hamilton and Vettel have performed really well under wet conditions in the past.

Perez is doing all the right things at the right time. The pressure on Massa is huge and it would not be a surprise to see Perez in the Ferrari in a few races

Hamilton and Webber had good races and scored some points while neither Vettel nor Button scored any points, both mainly due to incidents with Karthikeyan. In both cases, the incidents could have been avoided however it seems that Button and Vettel assumed that Karthikeyan would move out of the way. It is easy to blame Karthikeyan for everything but neither had to be so close to Karthikeyan when passing him and they have far more to lose. He was at least 2 seconds a lap slower. It does bring into question though, why very slow cars are even allowed to race in F1 and perhaps the qualifying rule should be changed to 105%

Raikkonen did well to finish 5th and Senna was impressive in the wet and reminded us of his Uncle. di Resta, Vergne and Hulkenberg all did well to finish in the points and Schumacher benefited from yet another late retirement by Maldonado to score the last point. It is clear though that Mercedes while very quick on a single lap have major issues in the race with tyre wear.

For full results of the race, click here

This is a fantastic start to the 2012 F1 Season

Axey
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Post by Axey » Mon Mar 26, 2012 11:46 am

I think the only reason all you guys are slating HRT for being slow and they should change the rules is because they arent a Minardi
I dont recall when minardi was struggling through qualifying the whole F1 community calling for them to be thrown out because they was liked they were the underdogs but ofc HRT has no history and no sweet spot with the fans
Sauber FTW
Massa FTW
any ex Sauber driver FTW
Perez and Koboyashi FTW
btw did i mention i like Sauber

Ed
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Post by Ed » Mon Mar 26, 2012 1:20 pm

Axey wrote:I think the only reason all you guys are slating HRT for being slow and they should change the rules is because they aren't a Minardi
I dont recall when minardi was struggling through qualifying the whole F1 community calling for them to be thrown out because they was liked they were the underdogs but ofc HRT has no history and no sweet spot with the fans
I think there should be some regulation to limit slow cars from racing otherwise it would be a circus. The point I was making was that teams need to be able to compete in Formula 1 to enter. I don't think anyone has anything again new teams entering, on the contrary, look at Caterham (which was Lotus), they were a late entry in 2010 yet in their 3rd year they are very close to the midfield and I am sure many are cheering them while HRT have continuously struggled and for the last 3 years have not managed to take part in the first race of the season. I am sure they are doing the best they can but - and I am not trying to be harsh here - it isn't good enough

Over the years there have been different ways to have qualifying limits and I am sure if Minardi where in the same position, no one would have an issue with them not allowed to start

Thaddeus
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Post by Thaddeus » Mon Mar 26, 2012 5:31 pm

Interesting that Button said it was his own fault and Vettel called Karthikeyan an idiot and a cucumber.

Mind you, I think that after two full seasons in the sport a team should be aspiring to at least turn up to pre-season testing and not to have a car 2s off the pace.

Still, whilst the backmarkers are still a bit pointless the rest of the field is super-competitive. Should be a great season.

jacfan
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Post by jacfan » Mon Mar 26, 2012 6:14 pm

Yes I tend to agree re Massa.... I really like Massa but just don't think he has much of a future given his performances for quite some time now. Not sure that he ever completely got his mojo back after his accident with a wheel nut.

As for HRT well I have to agree with Ed on this one. Formula one is supposed to the pinnacle of motor racing and if teams cannot compete at the level required then they are actually a hazard to other drivers and even their own drivers.

I am not surprised that Vettel is blaming Karthikeyan.... he is not one to admit that he could possibly be to blame for an accident (IMHO, so no need for all the Vettel fans to jump up and down).
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Axey
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Post by Axey » Mon Mar 26, 2012 8:36 pm

Ed wrote:
Axey wrote:I think the only reason all you guys are slating HRT for being slow and they should change the rules is because they aren't a Minardi
I dont recall when minardi was struggling through qualifying the whole F1 community calling for them to be thrown out because they was liked they were the underdogs but ofc HRT has no history and no sweet spot with the fans
I think there should be some regulation to limit slow cars from racing otherwise it would be a circus. The point I was making was that teams need to be able to compete in Formula 1 to enter. I don't think anyone has anything again new teams entering, on the contrary, look at Caterham (which was Lotus), they were a late entry in 2010 yet in their 3rd year they are very close to the midfield and I am sure many are cheering them while HRT have continuously struggled and for the last 3 years have not managed to take part in the first race of the season. I am sure they are doing the best they can but - and I am not trying to be harsh here - it isn't good enough

Over the years there have been different ways to have qualifying limits and I am sure if Minardi where in the same position, no one would have an issue with them not allowed to start
I remember several times the minardis having the rules tweaked so they could enter the races and several times they were on the cusp of not qualifying or didnt qualify yet there wasnt an outcry for them to be sanctioned
Sauber FTW
Massa FTW
any ex Sauber driver FTW
Perez and Koboyashi FTW
btw did i mention i like Sauber

Ed
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Post by Ed » Mon Mar 26, 2012 9:53 pm

Axey wrote:
Ed wrote:
Axey wrote:I think the only reason all you guys are slating HRT for being slow and they should change the rules is because they aren't a Minardi
I dont recall when minardi was struggling through qualifying the whole F1 community calling for them to be thrown out because they was liked they were the underdogs but ofc HRT has no history and no sweet spot with the fans
I think there should be some regulation to limit slow cars from racing otherwise it would be a circus. The point I was making was that teams need to be able to compete in Formula 1 to enter. I don't think anyone has anything again new teams entering, on the contrary, look at Caterham (which was Lotus), they were a late entry in 2010 yet in their 3rd year they are very close to the midfield and I am sure many are cheering them while HRT have continuously struggled and for the last 3 years have not managed to take part in the first race of the season. I am sure they are doing the best they can but - and I am not trying to be harsh here - it isn't good enough

Over the years there have been different ways to have qualifying limits and I am sure if Minardi where in the same position, no one would have an issue with them not allowed to start
I remember several times the minardis having the rules tweaked so they could enter the races and several times they were on the cusp of not qualifying or didnt qualify yet there wasnt an outcry for them to be sanctioned
Axey,

I wouldn't get carried away with that. Last year on a number of occassions, the stewards allowed drivers to race despite not making the 107% rule, Karthikeyan was allowed to race in Malaysia and China despite qualifying outside the 107% I don't remember anyone complianing, everyone loves to see new teams giving it a go but with due respect to HRT, this is their 3rd year and they still have serious issues and that is probably why there is an outcry

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