Oz GP

[RallyRaider]

Who saw 1st qualifying? What a farce...

[ales]

It was always going to be that way Luckily, you didn't have to wake up at 4 am to watch it after going to bed 2 hours earlier.

[RallyRaider]

Originally Posted by ales

It was always going to be that way

Thanks to Max yes, but it shouldn't be. Who am I kidding, only constant we can expect in F1 rule changes is stupidity. Funny how we had a system that worked just fine for 45 years, until those who know best abandoned it. If they are so damn clever why must they now tweak the format every year?
The bizarre rulings continued in the support races. In the V8 Supercar 19 lapper they weren't allowed to change tyres, so most of the field had to stay on wet tyres as the track almost fully dried. Abject lesson in how to take the "sport" out of Motorsport.

[ales]

A large part of the blame for the current qualifying format should be placed and Jordan's and Stoddart's doorsteps as they blocked the proposed change for the better. Ultimately, they went on and changed it for the worse. All that was needed, IMO, was a small tweaking to the 12-lap system to encourage the teams to use all the 12 laps and all 60 minutes of the session. It was so bleeding obvious that the aggregate system was never going to work I just don't know why they implemented it.

Are the V8 supercars usually allowed to change tyres (haven't been following much since the Ambrose whitewash started)? I do remember seing pitstops, so I presume this was an OZ-GP-support-race-special rule? Sounds pretty stupid.

[RallyRaider]

Problem ain't the agreggate, rather the single lap system. Whilst there is no way to make it completely fair, under the old system (pre 1996, even pre 2003) the teams and drivers were able to control their own destiny. How exacty can you blame Stoddart and Jordan for the current system?

Only thing worth watching in V8 Supercars is Ambrose! And he is off to NASCAR next year. I think the rule about tyres was just for this event, probably due to lack of pits space.

[ales]

I seem to recall that Jordan and Minardi blocked the attempt to get rid of the single lap qualifying system because they didn't want to lose the TV exposure (the reason the single-lap system was introduced in the first place). And I agree, it is a problem, but aggregate times make it 2 times worse!

No more Ambrose? Yay!

[RallyRaider]

Originally Posted by ales

I seem to recall that Jordan and Minardi blocked the attempt to get rid of the single lap qualifying system because they didn't want to lose the TV exposure (the reason the single-lap system was introduced in the first place). And I agree, it is a problem, but aggregate times make it 2 times worse!

I thought it was Ferrari boycotting changes at Siverstone last year? Anyway, not relevant as it should never have been changed in the first place. Max hasn't even achieved his original aim of making the show more TV friendly.

Again the aggregate part isn't an issue for me, rather the lottery that occurs when we have weather like today. One good thing was to see Kimi and Montoya's Michelins faster than Rubens' Bridgestones in the wet at the end.

Originally Posted by ales

No more Ambrose? Yay!

Are we the complete opposite in everything?

[ales]

What the aggregate times do, though, is take away the possibility to recover from a mistake or bad luck on the first day of qualifying in the second session. There is no way that Fisico will lose the pole with the gap he has unless he stuffs it, and there is no way for Schumi, Massa, and Sato to move up the grid from their positions. So I totally agree that this format should never have been introduced, but even less so should it have been change for the worse.

We do seem to have reasonably similar views on rallying :22yikes:

[ales]

Anyway, the results and some predictions of mine

Pos No Driver Team Laps Time/Retired Grid Points

1 6 Giancarlo Fisichella Renault 1:33.171

2 16 Jarno Trulli Toyota 1:35.270

3 7 Mark Webber Williams-BMW 1:36.717

4 11 Jacques Villeneuve Sauber-Petronas 1:36.984

5 15 Christian Klien Red Bull Racing 1:37.486

6 14 David Coulthard Red Bull Racing 1:38.320

7 8 Nick Heidfeld Williams-BMW 1:39.717

8 3 Jenson Button BAR-Honda 1:41.512

9 19 Narain Karthikeyan Jordan-Toyota 1:44.357

10 9 Kimi Räikkönen McLaren-Mercedes 1:44.997

11 10 Juan Pablo Montoya McLaren-Mercedes 1:45.325

12 2 Rubens Barrichello Ferrari 1:45.481

13 18 Tiago Monteiro Jordan-Toyota 1:46.846

14 5 Fernando Alonso Renault 1:47.708

15 21 Christijan Albers Minardi-Cosworth 1:49.230

16 20 Patrick Friesacher Minardi-Cosworth 1:50.864

17 17 Ralf Schumacher Toyota 1:51.495

18 1 Michael Schumacher Ferrari 1:57.931

19 12 Felipe Massa Sauber-Petronas

20 4 Takuma Sato BAR-Honda

If tomorrow's qualifying session takes place in conditions equal for everyone, then I don't see Fisico losing the pole, Mclaren drivers moving up more than 1 position unless someone in front of them makes a total mess of it, and the same gors for the last 3. If that is the case, then the race could well be Fisichella's to lose as the ones behind him don't have the cars as fast as his, and those behind them will probably be stuck in traffic too much and wear their tyres much more than the leader because they will need to overtake. Unless the two silver bulls take each other out in the first corner. And of course Renault's starts will make sure Fisichella doesn't lose the lead at the start of the race. Should both Mclarens survive the race, they may well end up on the podium. As far as I know, dry conditions are predicted for tomorrow.

[RallyRaider]

That's true I guess, aggregate doubles the chance of a mixed up session like today. However it is the single lap format that make things a lottery if the weather intervenes. Mistakes should be part of the game, but poor Massa stuck on dry tyres in a sudden downpour is downright unfair. I almost felt sorry for Schumacher too. Almost

Good thing we agree on rallying, it is the most important after all.

[ales]

I disagree that it's the most important thing!

[RallyRaider]

Yeah Kimi should be able to put .7 of a second on Karthikeyan tomorrow and move up to ninth, that is about it though. As for the race, Melbourne is has been almost as bad as Monaco for overtaking lately, will the hard compound tyres change that? McLaren have been way down the list in top speeds so far this weekend so overtaking the faster outright Red Bulls and Sauber may not be so easy.

[RallyRaider]

Originally Posted by ales

I disagree that it's the most important thing!

That's a relief!

[ales]

My point exactly. If Fisi keeps his cool, the race will be much easier for him than anyone else.

[RallyRaider]

In the wash a Fisi win would be a great result, still he hasn't got it in the bag just yet. Webber P3 is welcome for the home town boy too. So it's not all bad news.

Okay so Melbourne isn't Webber's home town but you know what I mean.