2015 Russian Grand Prix

GwilymJJames · Post by **GwilymJJames** » 07 Oct 2015, 17:39

PREVIOUSLY ON FORMULA ONE

AND NOW

GP Rejects is proud to present...
In association with Larsen's Biscuits...

THE 2015 RUSSIAN GRAND PRIX THREAD (Fireworks pew pew pew)

FEATURING SUCH EXCITING THINGS AS...

The triumphant return of Robert Merhi
Umm...
Oh, it might rain, probably won't though.
Err...
Nah, that's it.

DanielPT · Post by **DanielPT** » 07 Oct 2015, 17:47

That podium won't be too far off from this year's race either, IHMO. Although it would be a welcome change seeing Bottas in it within this year context.

Post by **Ataxia** » 07 Oct 2015, 18:34

Pirelli are bringing the supersofts this year, so we might have some fun. The circuit has potential; the GP2 and GP3 races weren't bad last year, but I suppose it's easier to criticise rather than find the positives...so I'll try that.

OMG GAIZ SOCHI IS SOOOOO DULL AMIRITE ITS LIKE WATCHING PAINT DRY!!!11!1!ONE!1!!

Regardless, Mercedes are currently worried that the track surface is too similar to Singapore, so it *might* not be plain sailing for them. They're odds-on to reclaim the WCC this weekend, though.

Post by **Londoner** » 07 Oct 2015, 18:53

F1's the weak link this weekend, sandwiched between the Bathurst 1000 and the BTCC finale. I'm half expecting the rain predicted to hit Sochi to in fact hit Brands Hatch, it's tradition that the BTCC title decider is held in torrential rain.

Salamander · Post by **Salamander** » 07 Oct 2015, 19:41

East Londoner wrote:F1's the weak link this weekend, sandwiched between the Bathurst 1000 and the BTCC finale. I'm half expecting the rain predicted to hit Sochi to in fact hit Brands Hatch, it's tradition that the BTCC title decider is held in torrential rain.

You're forgetting NASCAR's at Charlotte this weekend. If anything's guaranteed to out-snoozefest F1 at any circuit, it's that.

AustralianStig · Post by **AustralianStig** » 07 Oct 2015, 21:35

Aaand Lotus are locked out of their hospitality area again!

I actually think this track has incredible potential to throw up a great race. Looking forward to seeing what happens on the super-softs.

Dj_bereta · Post by **Dj_bereta** » 08 Oct 2015, 01:42

I have to say Sochi circuit is the most underrated track in F1. I have to admit the last sector is lackluster, but the first section is so good! I love to see three or even four cars wide in the start into the braking zone of turn 2.

I'm looking forward to see what is going to happen in the race with the supersoft tyres. I hope the TV Directors don't over focus Mercedes.

Collieafc · Post by **Collieafc** » 08 Oct 2015, 12:05

I was going to comment on just how glum looking that podium is but given the events that happened the race before, its understandable.

Its also still early days for the track as well. And even if its dull, it wouldnt have been out of line with much of the season.

golic_2004 · Post by **golic_2004** » 08 Oct 2015, 12:12

Salamander wrote:
East Londoner wrote:F1's the weak link this weekend, sandwiched between the Bathurst 1000 and the BTCC finale. I'm half expecting the rain predicted to hit Sochi to in fact hit Brands Hatch, it's tradition that the BTCC title decider is held in torrential rain.

You're forgetting NASCAR's at Charlotte this weekend. If anything's guaranteed to out-snoozefest F1 at any circuit, it's that.

As much as I am a NASCAR fan, I'd have to agree that Charlotte hasn't been the most exciting track as of late.

Salamander · Post by **Salamander** » 08 Oct 2015, 19:07

golic_2004 wrote:
Salamander wrote:
East Londoner wrote:F1's the weak link this weekend, sandwiched between the Bathurst 1000 and the BTCC finale. I'm half expecting the rain predicted to hit Sochi to in fact hit Brands Hatch, it's tradition that the BTCC title decider is held in torrential rain.

You're forgetting NASCAR's at Charlotte this weekend. If anything's guaranteed to out-snoozefest F1 at any circuit, it's that.

As much as I am a NASCAR fan, I'd have to agree that Charlotte hasn't been the most exciting track as of late.

Same, Charlotte's been terrible for years.

CoopsII · Post by **CoopsII** » 09 Oct 2015, 08:41

Seems like lots of slipping around in FP1. That made it quite interesting.

yannicksamlad · Post by **yannicksamlad** » 09 Oct 2015, 09:26

CoopsII wrote:Seems like lots of slipping around in FP1. That made it quite interesting.

Yes I remember last year the GP2 and GP3 drivers were all over the place on lap 1- it seemed very dusty even on day 2 of the weekend. And because it was so slippery I thought it was quite an entertaining track for racing.
Very bland setting ...but for racing it was OK I thought

novitopoli · Post by **novitopoli** » 09 Oct 2015, 14:01

The day the world stood still.

SuzukiSwift · Post by **SuzukiSwift** » 09 Oct 2015, 14:07

They should randomly spill diesel fuel during the race to make it more interesting, or at least more like Mario Kart.

dr-baker · Post by **dr-baker** » 09 Oct 2015, 16:58

novitopoli wrote:The day the world stood still.

269 mph in a wet session? That's impressive!

Post by **Miguel98** » 10 Oct 2015, 13:03

So, how will Nico Coulthard get bathplugged tomorrow?

Post by **Bobby Doorknobs** » 10 Oct 2015, 13:20

Observations from qualifying:

Sustained - David Coulthard's new favourite word.
Christian Horner has won back some respect from me for speaking everyone's mind on Eddie Jordan.
Maldonado still gets flak for making mistakes, despite seemingly half the field also losing control at some point on various parts of the circuit, which did I mention has low grip levels anyway?
You know this season's on the predictable side when Ben Edwards is congratulating a Mercedes driver for getting pole a full minute before the session ends.

tBone · Post by **tBone** » 10 Oct 2015, 13:38

Simtek wrote:Christian Horner has won back some respect from me for speaking everyone's mind on Eddie Jordan.

This should probably be in the "unpopular opinions" thread, but I think Eddie Jordan is quite often right.

Also, what on earth was Massa doing? It made me think Grosjean would deserve that seat so much more..

good_Ralf · Post by **good_Ralf** » 10 Oct 2015, 15:58

Simtek wrote:
Maldonado still gets flak for making mistakes, despite seemingly half the field also losing control at some point on various parts of the circuit, which did I mention has low grip levels anyway?

I'm getting sick of commentators criticizing Maldonado even when he makes the most trivial errors that any driver could make. The guy's never been more consistent in his career than 2015 and they still mock him even in races where he delivers the goods e.g. Austria.

CoopsII · Post by **CoopsII** » 10 Oct 2015, 17:14

tBone wrote:
Simtek wrote:Christian Horner has won back some respect from me for speaking everyone's mind on Eddie Jordan.

This should probably be in the "unpopular opinions" thread, but I think Eddie Jordan is quite often right.

I missed all this. Who said what about who now?

Post by **Bobby Doorknobs** » 10 Oct 2015, 17:24

CoopsII wrote:
tBone wrote:
Simtek wrote:Christian Horner has won back some respect from me for speaking everyone's mind on Eddie Jordan.

This should probably be in the "unpopular opinions" thread, but I think Eddie Jordan is quite often right.

I missed all this. Who said what about who now?

Eddie was talking about the whole Red Bull-Renault saga, and when they went back to the commentary booth Ben Edwards started talking to Horner on the pit wall about it. This was his response.

Fetzie · Post by **Fetzie** » 10 Oct 2015, 17:50

Simtek wrote:I missed all this. Who said what about who now?

EJ thinks Mateschitz might buy the sport from CVC.

CoopsII · Post by **CoopsII** » 10 Oct 2015, 18:20

Simtek wrote:Ben Edwards started talking to Horner on the pit wall about it. This was his response.

Thanks, that was pretty funny but clearly Horner is feeling the pressure if he can be riled that easily.

Fetzie · Post by **Fetzie** » 10 Oct 2015, 21:03

CoopsII wrote:
Simtek wrote:Ben Edwards started talking to Horner on the pit wall about it. This was his response.

Thanks, that was pretty funny but clearly Horner is feeling the pressure if he can be riled that easily.

He's probably thinking "we've been saying all year that the Renault engine has the performance of the one in a 1.6 Megane, and now we might end up having to eat a truck-load of humble pie so we don't have to push the car around the track next year".

Post by **mario** » 10 Oct 2015, 21:17

CoopsII wrote:
Simtek wrote:Ben Edwards started talking to Horner on the pit wall about it. This was his response.

Thanks, that was pretty funny but clearly Horner is feeling the pressure if he can be riled that easily.

I have to agree with you there - it's funny when you first hear it, but you're right that Horner is normally more diplomatic and less easily riled when talking about Eddie.

Horner is potentially in a very unenviable position though - with rumours that Ferrari has called Red Bull's bluff over their demands for a 2016 engine and have withdrawn from talks, Horner could well be staring at the prospect of losing his job before the year is out.

Fetzie · Post by **Fetzie** » 10 Oct 2015, 21:31

mario wrote:
CoopsII wrote:
Simtek wrote:Ben Edwards started talking to Horner on the pit wall about it. This was his response.

Thanks, that was pretty funny but clearly Horner is feeling the pressure if he can be riled that easily.

I have to agree with you there - it's funny when you first hear it, but you're right that Horner is normally more diplomatic and less easily riled when talking about Eddie.

Horner is potentially in a very unenviable position though - with rumours that Ferrari has called Red Bull's bluff over their demands for a 2016 engine and have withdrawn from talks, Horner could well be staring at the prospect of losing his job before the year is out.

Not only losing his own job, but those of about 850 other people too, if no buyer can be found for the Red Bull Racing and Scuderia Torro Rosso teams.

Having a big "I told you so" moment with my friends who thought I was being an idiot for saying (three years ago) that the future of the RBR team would be instantly in doubt as soon as they stopped winning.

Post by **DemocalypseNow** » 10 Oct 2015, 21:34

mario wrote:Horner is potentially in a very unenviable position though - with rumours that Ferrari has called Red Bull's bluff over their demands for a 2016 engine and have withdrawn from talks, Horner could well be staring at the prospect of losing his job before the year is out.

In some ways it would be a potentially unfair ending to proceedings - after all, it was Mateschitz and close ally Marko that did much of the public chastising of Renault, rather than Horner, who at times at least tried to use somewhat more diplomatic language to described the shortcomings in the powertrain.

In terms of connotation, calling them 'two or three years behind Mercedes' sounds damaging, and yet is absolutely correct - Renault simply will not bridge the gap until there is an overhaul of the engine rules, allowing them to start from a blank slate, or development is completely unfrozen.

All senior figures in the Red Bull empire were too easily baited by the media. Playing the fool and denying anything was amiss could have made them look inept to the Average Joe, but it would at least have left them space to manoeuvre behind the scenes and attempt a shift of suppliers while everyone was busy looking the other way. RBR seem to have forgotten the entire modus operandi of Formula 1 overnight; politics.

Fetzie · Post by **Fetzie** » 10 Oct 2015, 21:39

Biscione wrote:In terms of connotation, calling them 'two or three years behind Mercedes' sounds damaging, and yet is absolutely correct - Renault simply will not bridge the gap until there is an overhaul of the engine rules, allowing them to start from a blank slate, or development is completely unfrozen.

Although opening up engine development would also allow Mercedes to move the goalposts by continuing to develop their own engine, so Renault (and Honda) would need to work faster than Mercedes to catch up.

AndreaModa · Post by **AndreaModa** » 10 Oct 2015, 22:32

Fetzie wrote:
Biscione wrote:In terms of connotation, calling them 'two or three years behind Mercedes' sounds damaging, and yet is absolutely correct - Renault simply will not bridge the gap until there is an overhaul of the engine rules, allowing them to start from a blank slate, or development is completely unfrozen.

Although opening up engine development would also allow Mercedes to move the goalposts by continuing to develop their own engine, so Renault (and Honda) would need to work faster than Mercedes to catch up.

There's a theoretical 'horizon' though, in terms of the current engine performance. How close Mercedes currently is to that is pure conjecture, but if development was unfrozen (defrosted?) then Renault, and Honda have so much more to gain than Mercedes.

On the subject of Pastor, yes he attracts a fair bit of criticism, some of that unwarranted, but let's not beat around the bush here, he's been absolutely smashed by Grosjean this year. Qualifying today was another example of that.

And I see from Autosport that Toro Rosso are apparently close to a Ferrari supply deal, which would make sense considering they've historically run Ferrari engines, and would fit nicely into Ferrari's portfolio now Manor have switched to Mercedes. That still leaves the big team without an engine, but I'm certain they'll be there next year with Renault engines and a healthy side order of humble pie. If I were Renault, I'd absolutely hammer Red Bull in these negotiations.

Fetzie · Post by **Fetzie** » 11 Oct 2015, 02:32

https://twitter.com/andrewbensonf1/stat ... 2438122496

The Stewards are ok with Sainz starting the race tomorrow.

TomPryce · Post by **TomPryce** » 11 Oct 2015, 10:47

Well, wasn't DC on fire with his cutting stab at Eric Boullier

Post by **tommykl** » 11 Oct 2015, 11:23

Your average Hamilton fan wrote:SABOTAGE! Oh wait, it's Cheatsburg? That German twat is such a car breaker!

Post by **Miguel98** » 11 Oct 2015, 11:23

Great job Mercedes. Somehow, this shite always happens to Nico.

Fetzie · Post by **Fetzie** » 11 Oct 2015, 11:24

Hamilton does two fastest laps, then is told that he is saving too much fuel...

Post by **Miguel98** » 11 Oct 2015, 12:10

Hey, at least Fernando's humour is on point.

Post by **Miguel98** » 11 Oct 2015, 12:44

Much better than last year's bore fest.

Oh KImi... But hey, PEREZ PODIUM

Salamander · Post by **Salamander** » 11 Oct 2015, 12:51

I could tell earlier on, when Raikkonen tried counter-attacking Bottas, that he did not know where the limits were. Given the amount of times he's complained about other drivers, he really should've known better.

Aguaman · Post by **Aguaman** » 11 Oct 2015, 13:13

Good race considering last GP. Funny how in the recent few races the newer tracks had better racing but whatever.

- Anyway great to see Perez getting a podium
- Love seeing a Ferrari on the podium
- As weird as this sounds I like the head of state being at the races. Though Putin is not well you know
- Great to see Pastor, Alonso, Nasr and Kvyat scoring
- I saw Bottas retiring or having his race ruined by someone a mile away. Just didn't think it would be Kimi
- Good to see that Grosjean is okay
- Poor Ericsson
- I love the Sochi track. Would be awesome to drive on
- lolHulkenberg.
- Poor Rosberg.

Salamander · Post by **Salamander** » 11 Oct 2015, 13:16

What Bottas wanted to say about that crash.

Fetzie · Post by **Fetzie** » 11 Oct 2015, 13:35

If the stewards give Raikönnen a 20 second penalty (not outside the bounds of possibility, equivalent to an in-race drive-through), it would put him down to 8th (1:38:13 compared to Maldonado in 8th at 1:38:12). That would be enough to give Mercedes the constructor's championship this afternoon.

Unless my maths has completely failed me.