F1 is Back!

Wow! The F1 season sure snuck up on me fast. While last season wasn�t a huge surprise � What can ya say the boys in Red are almost beyond reproach with Michael.

Anyway for the nay sayers who dispise F1 there have been some significant rule changes in F1 this year. Some of these almost assure a more level playing field for the teams that don�t have the deep pockets the of teams like Ferrari & Williams. Here is a short list of the rule changes that jumped out at me:
1) New aero package restrictions. Some estimates I�ve read that there will be a loss of between 20 & 30% in overall down force.
2) The �ONE� Engine rule: Teams must use the same engine in �two� consecutive race weekends.
3) New tire restrictions: One set of tires allowed per weekend. This means that teams must run the same tires in qualifying and the race. Only tire changes are allowed if you have damage to the tires. Man I bet those are going to have to be some �ROBUST� tires?
4) Pit stops: Fuel only? But if you need to change a damaged tire (see #3 above) it must be done in a separate pit stop � no fuel.
5) Cumulative qualifying: Friday & Saturday. With teams being required to qualify with full fuel load on the second day.

While all of this is assured to make for more interesting racing � unless something goes tragically wrong, my money is still on the Prancing Horse again this year.

Thoughts?

Oops, I made a mistake. It seems that the first qualifying run is still on Saturday (not Friday) with the second run the morning of the race in full race trim with a full fuel load and no topping off before the start.

Enjoyed watching some practicing. Can't wait until Sunday.

I love the technology in F1 and I hope that these changes make for some actual racing. Other wise it will still be the worlds most expensive high speed parade.

Joe wrote:

> I love the technology in F1 and I hope that these changes make
> for some actual racing. Other wise it will still be the worlds
> most expensive high speed parade.
>

That has always been a big complaint from fans of other forms of racing. I have a lot of friends who love NASCAR who rib me about how few actual passes take place in F1. But I have to reminded them it�s a heck of a lot better than watching 40+ bricks going around in circles.

IMHO because of their rarity, the skill-set required & technology involved - one pass in F1 is 100 times more exciting than 20 lead changes in any NASCAR Nextel Race.

While last year Ferrari did walk away with the constructors championship as well as the #1 & #2 spot in the Drivers Championship. I feel that the rule changes made last years season more interesting than in the past. Because of this years rule changes I expect it to be more far reaching.



Post Edited (03-05-05 11:01)

Been looking forward to the start of the season for a couple months now! It will indeed be very interesting to see how the rule changes affect everyone...but I'm with Bret...I wouldn't bet against Ferrari!

My son is excited too (he's only 5 but learning well ;) ). He has a picture of Michael Schumacher in his car on his wall...

Last year it was amazing how much Ferrari dominated, but there was some fantastic movement in the second tier with BAR Honda and Renault really coming up through the ranks...and quickly.

Ditto, everything you said.

Be careful, someone said looking forward to Sunday ... only in Australia and thereabouts ... Saturday night here. "GO JACQUES"

yup...TiVo set to 9:30 tonight (EST)

Sadly, I remain a skeptic. Any time there are singificant rule changes like a new aero package, the deep pocket teams get a big advantage because they have the R&D budget.

I fervently hope I am wrong and that we actually get to see some wheel-to-wheel competition in F1 this year, with cars passing on the track instead of just in the pits.

Well....I just have one thing to say.........

.............................FORZA FERRARI...................................

Well what a let down that race was. I don't know about you guys but I feel the new rules have detracted away from racing, the drivers are now more concerned with tyre and engine conservation than they are racing.

Gone are the days of the classic Schumacher fight through from the back - I guess we'll never see that again, no more flying laps on new boots either. Not good.

Everyone was just coasting round, probably be better in malaysia when the drivers will know they can have a new engine before the next race.

Watched qualifying and the race. Qualifying was unwatchable. Too hard to keep track of with the aggregate time format. The race was ok (I've seen worse). If the engines have to last 2 races, does that mean the drivers will only push them to the max every other race?
Good to see some other F1 fans here!

I can't belive noone has mentioned the vintage MGS on the race track!