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1 Jun 2009, 09:21 (Ref:2473209) | #1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Formula 1 2009, Round 7: ING Turkish Grand Prix, Istanbul
First of all, an apology to all my devout followers who didn't hear from me during the build-up to the Monaco GP. I was unable to post due to other commitments and Burnsie was temporarily MIA so no thread was posted.
But now, I'm back! And it's time to move our focus to the seventh round of the 2009 Formula 1 World Championship, coming to you from the Istanbul Park circuit in Turkey, near the UK/Asia border. We enter this round with a air of mystery: Ferrari, with a horror start to the season, bounced back at Monaco with a well-earned 3-4 placed finish. Was this merely a fluke, or have Ferrari finally entered the ring as a title contender? Red Bull, after having its highly anticipated double diffuser debut at Monaco, seemingly disappointed with only Mark Webber finishing in 5th after Sebastian Vettel lost a fight with the Sainte Devote tyre barrier. Was this also a fluke? Will they return to fighting for wins? So it was the Brawn juggernaut that rolled on, with Jenson Button taking a commanding victory over team mate Rubens Barrichello, who has responded maginificently to the pressure Vettel was giving him in their fight for second place in the championship. Now, Button leads by an astounding 16 points in the championship, with Barrichello a further 12 points ahead of Vettel, who now sits a very distant third. Will their streak come to end? Will it be here? Who truly knows... The Istanbul Park circuit is, at the moment, one of the most revered on the calender, behind Spa, Monaco and Suzuka, is a shining beacon of hope that not all new tracks will lack character... The anti-clockwise (one of only two on the calendar) features long straights, twisty curves, and of course, Turn 8. The triple-apex, high speed rollercaoster ride has recieved claim from all worldwide for its challenge and has even led Bernie Ecclestone to proclaim it "the best race track in the world". I'm sure by 'race' he meant 'money' and by 'track' he meant 'spinner'... Predicting first at the moment isn't very difficult. In fact, predicting second isn't very difficult at the moment either! The quesiton is now if, not when, a Brawn car succomb to mechanical difficulties this year. After only 6 races, Jenson Button, Rubens Barrichello, Mark Webber, Timo Glock, Fernando Alonso, Lewis Hamilton, Nico Rosberg, Nick Heidfeld and Giancarlo Fisichella are the only drivers to have finished all of them. This season is a case of perservering for some, (BMW Sauber), frustration for others (McLaren), and jubilation for Brawn and Red Bull, who have a strangle hold on the first 4 positions in the championship. But will this weekend throw up an unexpected winner? The only thing Ferrari have going for them coming into this round is that between Kimi Raikkonen and Felipe Massa, they are the only two drivers ever to win around here. Raikkonen took home the trophy in 2005, the inaugural race, and Felipe Massa, who was scored three successive wins here, starting in 2006. Will this be the scene of Ferrari's turnaround, or will it be Brawn and Button who clean up all before them again? There's only one way to find out... TURKISH GRAND PRIX - STATISTICS All Formula 1 smileys courtesy of Andy Blackmore Design Formula 1 2009 World Driver's Championship Standings 2009 Formula 1 World Constructor's Championship Standings
Istanbul Park Circuit
2008 IV Petrol Ofisi Turkish Grand Prix
Previous Winners
External Links Local Clock and Weather Circuit Diagram Event Timetable Internal Links Fantasy F1 Predictions Comp IRC Chat |
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"A lot of people go through life doing things badly. Racing’s important to men who do it well. When you’re racing, it... it’s life. Anything that happens before or after... is just waiting." - Steve McQueen |
1 Jun 2009, 09:22 (Ref:2473212) | #2 | ||
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Now, finally, the BBC and 10/OneHD broadcasting schedule:
BBC Broadcast Schedule BLUE = Radio 5 Live |
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"A lot of people go through life doing things badly. Racing’s important to men who do it well. When you’re racing, it... it’s life. Anything that happens before or after... is just waiting." - Steve McQueen |
1 Jun 2009, 14:20 (Ref:2473393) | #3 | ||
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Many thanks Chatters, great to have you and the graphics back..
I'm looking forward to Istanbul, to see if all the new tech/areo is actually working. Monaco was not exactly the best yardstick to measure the effectiveness of any (if any) improvements. That's why as much as both Ferrari and Maclaren look to have made up ground, I'll wait and see what happens this weekend. |
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1 Jun 2009, 15:09 (Ref:2473424) | #4 | ||
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I would be utterly astonished if Ferrari's Turkish GP winning streak continued. However, from a championship perspective, I think I would be grateful if anybody - even Ferrari - manages to just haul the Brawns back a bit.
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"The more I see of the world, the more am I dissatisfied with it; every day confirms my belief of the inconsistency of all human characters, and of the little dependence which can be placed on the appearance of either merit or sense." -- Elizabeth Bennet, 'Pride & Prejudice' |
1 Jun 2009, 15:37 (Ref:2473445) | #5 | ||
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Great intro Chatters. |
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1 Jun 2009, 16:32 (Ref:2473497) | #6 | |||
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The Brawn appears to be an exceptional all round race car, leagues ahead of the others. What also amazes me is the reliability - no pre season practice, and it has never failed. Exceptional again. |
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Locost #54 Boldly Leaping where no car has gone before. And then being T-boned. Damn. Survivor of the 2008 2CV 24h!! 2 engines, one accident, 76mph and rain. |
1 Jun 2009, 17:53 (Ref:2473544) | #7 | ||
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Its predicted to be a strong track for Red Bull, where the high speed corners should give them the edge over Brawn. Of the 2 RBR drivers, its Vettel's turn for the strategy pick so he'd have to have a good chance of winning if everything goes smoothly.
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1 Jun 2009, 18:19 (Ref:2473553) | #8 | ||
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I don't think there is a strategy rotation going on at RBR, and I think Webber will not win because he's cursed. So I'm predicting yet another Button win when both Red Bulls get stuck behind Lewis for half the race or something ridiculously boring and Rubens' mirror to conveniently fall off during his short middle stint and lodge itself in the rear wing
Turkey hasn't produced a gem of a race for 3 years so I'm not holding out much hope for a decent scrap |
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1 Jun 2009, 18:43 (Ref:2473561) | #9 | ||
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The Red Bulls are also cursed to be stuck behind other cars on the grid by reason of not being quick enough in qualifying. Rubens will indeed complain of his softer tyres going off in whichever stint he happens to use them in,as will everyone else,but they can always blame the car.Tearing off one of his mirrors and chucking it into the airbox will no doubt make him feel much better when it comes to picking up yet another second place trophy. The weather,by the way,will be hot with race day track temperatures set to be well over 40 degrees! |
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1 Jun 2009, 23:32 (Ref:2473725) | #10 | ||
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Nice job as usual, Chatters !
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2 Jun 2009, 00:42 (Ref:2473740) | #11 | ||
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Red Bull Front Row, Brawns Close Behind so No Go Fast button cars can get the jump would be a dream come true.
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2 Jun 2009, 22:07 (Ref:2474361) | #12 | ||
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And believe it or not, the weather forecast for this weekend is...DRY
(Actually it rained for the LMS race in '06...) |
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3 Jun 2009, 00:48 (Ref:2474397) | #13 | ||
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Stunning work Chatters as always..
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3 Jun 2009, 01:33 (Ref:2474405) | #14 | ||
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i cant wait for this race - turkey as a circuit does tend to give a good look at just what sort of physics are involved in driving a modern f1 car. plus the undulations look great for tv cameras.
so even if the racing is dull (which i sincerely dont think it will be this year - as following in the wake of the leading car is critical and should be much improved compared to last season) i cant wait for the spectacle. add to that i think RBR will at least be a match for the brawns with the high speed corners. toyota should also come back to the fore at a track which should suit them a little better than the last couple, williams should look alright (in practice at least), and ferrari will hopefully have form. would KERS would be an asset here? long back straight? Wouldnt think the circuit would suit this years Mclaren (or bmw for that matter) very much with the lack of rear end downforce, so they should struggle. and brawn will be brawn.... |
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3 Jun 2009, 01:59 (Ref:2474416) | #15 | |
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Very keen to see how this race pans out. I personally think that Ferrari will be aggressive with strategy and with KERS can steal the race from the start meaning that it will be a bit of a traffic jam until the first stops are cleared.
If history is anything to go by Vettel could go real aggressive in fuel again and try to do a runner from the start on the soft tyres....it will be very interesting as the cars are all so similar over a single lap that strategy will be very different for teams. I think the real challenge this weekend will be seeing who goes most agressive on fuel loads, RBR or Ferrari as RBR have had a few weekends compromised by KERS cars. Brawn will just sit back and let others do what they need to do and happily punch out competitve lap after lap which will see them on the podium when their ultimate pace over a race distance gives them more flexible strategies |
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3 Jun 2009, 06:56 (Ref:2474472) | #16 | ||
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The first race there was a thriller, mainly because of the first corner incident messed up the field and there were lots of fast cars stuck down the order and had to fight their way through. But the last few races have been real bore fests.
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4 Jun 2009, 00:39 (Ref:2475052) | #17 | |||
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Or until the KERS system fails. |
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4 Jun 2009, 14:35 (Ref:2475360) | #18 | |||
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but with the cars all so close in lap times, quali should be very exciting with their being potentially 6 cars able to post laps a few tenths apart. and of course Toyota may try to mix it all up by securing pole at the expense of their race stratagy. politics aside, should be a great weekend. Chatters, nice addition (or i just noticed it for the first time) of the on-board link in the graphics. |
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4 Jun 2009, 21:25 (Ref:2475568) | #19 | |||
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Two Brawns, 2 Red Bulls in random order on first two rows. Williams on row three, maybe even a Toyota or two. Then Ferrari. Ahhh, I can dream.... |
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Locost #54 Boldly Leaping where no car has gone before. And then being T-boned. Damn. Survivor of the 2008 2CV 24h!! 2 engines, one accident, 76mph and rain. |
4 Jun 2009, 22:54 (Ref:2475633) | #20 | ||
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Despite what happened to Vettel in Monaco, Webber showed that RBR is pretty fast. On previous open-sweeping tracks they have been fast, everything points to them being suited to this Istanbul track.
For those who watched Monaco closely, would have seen the fantastic turn in on the tight corners for Ferrari. With the KERS and rear end improvements they may be up there this round. As yet its unproven on an open circuit. BMW have more improvements too but is their best bet trying to keep up with midpack? Finally, the Brawn juggernaut just keeps on going. Where's the DNF? Where's the driver error? Play fair! |
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5 Jun 2009, 01:33 (Ref:2475695) | #21 | |
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BMW are not using their KERS this weekend and are going to play with their new diffuser instead.Hope springs eternal.
Weather still looks to be fairly warm and dry for the race weekend.So it's excellent weather for parking your Ferrari at the side of the road and having a glass or two of 'vino' with a marshal. Toyota have yet another chance to grab defeat from the jaws of victory by using the wrong strategy,and Red Bull have yet another chance to get stuck behind them using the right one. Williams will again show that their car likes to 'lie-in' on a Sunday morning and Renault will again show that having two drivers of vastly differing abilities doesn't work. Hamilton will be quick,but he may have to wait for his car to catch up with him. The Brawns will disappear.But unfortunately for the other teams they will then reappear at the next GP. |
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5 Jun 2009, 06:35 (Ref:2475779) | #22 | ||
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To finish first, first you must finish.....Don't go down to the woods today...
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5 Jun 2009, 11:16 (Ref:2475905) | #23 | ||
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Watching FP2, Webber was about .15 up on Lewis' fastest time after sector 2 but ended up .25 down
Is the final sector negating any advantage the aero-efficient cars have over the aero-ineffecient cars? |
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5 Jun 2009, 12:38 (Ref:2475945) | #24 | |||
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5 Jun 2009, 15:17 (Ref:2476018) | #25 | |
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McLaren are pleasently surprised by their pace in Friday practice.
http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/75852 There was just 0.7 seconds seperating the top 16 teams in second practice,with just Force India and STR Outside the group. The tyres,once again,seem to be playing a big part in proceedings. |
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