*****Official Formula 1 Thread*******

[KC native]

Everyone else gets an official thread, so I want one too.

I've seen several people make mentions of F1 on here. So, I'm giving us a thread. No more Speed bs coverage. NBC looks like they are taking it serious and will have some good coverage.

With DVRs now, it's no longer a pain in the ass to watch the races. So watch them and discuss

And if you don't watch F1. You suck. Best racing on the planet.

5799DB !important;">Breaking sports news video. 5799DB !important;">MLB, 5799DB !important;">NFL, 5799DB !important;">NBA, 5799DB !important;">NHL highlights and 5799DB !important;">more.

Following is this week’s coverage schedule for the Rolex Australian Grand Prix on NBC Sports Network:

Date Program Time Network
Friday, March 15 Practice #1 12:00 a.m. NBC Sports Network
Friday, March 15 Practice #2 1:30 a.m. NBC Sports Network
Sat., March 16 Qualifying 2 a.m. NBC Sports Network
Sat., March 16 Qualifying Re-Air 1:30 p.m. NBC Sports Network
Sunday, March 17 Australian Grand Prix 1:30 a.m. NBC Sports Network
Sunday, March 17 F1 Extra 4 a.m. NBC Sports Network
Sunday, March 17 Race Re-Air 1 p.m. NBC Sports Network
-

More practice times for the entire season can be found here.

2013 FORMULA ONE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE (Subject to change, all times ET):

Date Grand Prix Time Re-Air (NBCSN) Network
Sun., March 17 Australia 1:30 a.m. 1 p.m. NBC Sports Network
Sun., March 24 Malaysia 3:30 a.m. 3 p.m. NBC Sports Network
Sun., April 14 China 2:30 a.m. 1 p.m. NBC Sports Network
Sun., April 21 Bahrain 7:30 a.m. Noon NBC Sports Network
Sun., May 12 Spain 7:30 a.m. 2 p.m. NBC Sports Network
Sun., May 26 Monaco 7:30 a.m. 10:30 a.m. NBC
Sun., June 9 Canada 2 p.m. 7 p.m. NBC
Sun., June 30 United Kingdom 7:30 a.m. Noon CNBC
Sun., July 7 Germany 7:30 a.m. Noon CNBC
Sun., July 28 Hungary 7:30 a.m. 1 p.m. NBC Sports Network
Sun., Aug. 25 Belgium 7:30 a.m. Midnight NBC Sports Network
Sun., Sept. 8 Italy 7:30 a.m. 1 p.m. NBC Sports Network
Sun., Sept. 22 Singapore 7:30 a.m. 1:30 p.m. NBC Sports Network
Sun., Oct. 6 Korea 1:30 a.m. 4 p.m. NBC Sports Network
Sun., Oct. 13 Japan 1:30 a.m. 1 p.m. NBC Sports Network
Sun., Oct. 27 India 5:00 a.m. 1 p.m. NBC Sports Network
Sun., Nov. 3 Abu Dhabi 7:30 a.m. 6 p.m. NBC Sports Network
Sun., Nov. 17 USA (Austin) 1 p.m. 6 p.m. NBC
Sun., Nov. 24 Brazil 11 a.m. 4:30 p.m. NBC

[Dylan]

Thank you.

KC native, any reason why or any thoughts on the new Pirelli's this season? I've noticed some teams have had nothing good to say about the tires so far.

And then, finally your thoughts on Lewis Hamilton.

Hamilton writes an exclusive column for BBC Sport. This week he was asked 'to name one driver currently racing in F1 that inspires him in some way'

"Fernando (Alonso), really. He feels to me like he's the most complete driver here. And with pure speed, he is rapid. He is such a quick driver but he's also very, very smart in how he does it. I really admire him for that.

"Fernando is always there. He has been the most consistent driver apart from Sebastian, who has also done an awesome job but he's been in the most dominant car.

"Before I got into F1, Fernando was the driver I most admired. Having driven alongside him and then been in the sport and seen him progress, it remains the same.

"Back in 2007, we were both immature and misbehaved. We took a long time to recover from that. Fernando probably said a lot of things through anger, as I did, and that got twisted and turned in the media which impacted on the fans. So there are people who don't like me and people who don't like him.

"He will go down as a legend. He will win more world championships. And to be in an era when there's a legend and to have him say such positive things about me, is a really cool feeling."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/formula1/22209168

Hamilton had some very interesting things to say about why 'racing has become more strategic' this season, and on Perez and the way he was driving in the Chinese Grand Prix.

Thanks!

[PornChief]

Seems like a 100 years ago that I went to Adelaide to see the 1st Australian GP (well, 1st of the modern era at least). That track was the best street circuit ever, and that race had Gods like Mansell, Piquet, Prost, Senna, Rosberg and Berger. I was young and we drank a lot so I don't remember much except I met Prost, he was cool, must have been about 5 feet tall.

[PornChief]

also, Vettel is gay.

[KC native]

Originally Posted by Dylan

Thank you.

KC native, any reason why or any thoughts on the new Pirelli's this season? I've noticed some teams have had nothing good to say about the tires so far.

And then, finally your thoughts on Lewis Hamilton.

Hamilton writes an exclusive column for BBC Sport. This week he was asked 'to name one driver currently racing in F1 that inspires him in some way'



http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/formula1/22209168

Hamilton had some very interesting things to say about why 'racing has become more strategic' this season, and on Perez and the way he was driving in the Chinese Grand Prix.

Thanks!

Two of my best friends are Lewis Hamilton fans. I've never been too keen on him. He's a great driver. He's just never really been likeable to me however he has matured and become much more tolerable over the last couple of years.

He is right about Alonso. He is the best driver out there IMO. Vettel is a phenom but Adrian Newey has given him the best car by far for the last 3 years. Ferrari gave Alonso chicken shit to start the year last year and he still managed to challenge for a championship. If ol' Crashy McCrasherson, Romain Grosjean, hadn't put him out on the first lap of one of Alonso's DNFs then Alonso may have won the championship last year.

On Perez, I understand them being ticked but I understand why he was driving that way. Whitmarsh told Perez prior to the race to be a lot more aggressive but McClaren hasn't given Perez the car to be more aggressive with. McClaren's lack of pace has been the real surprise of this year so far to me. Neither Button nor Perez have been able to put together a good race yet.

I love the new tires. It has made the teams react and respond. They can't just hit autopilot. The only teams complaining about the tires right now are the ones that can't get them to work properly. It has lessened the impact of Adrian Newey's aerodynamic dominance which I think is good for the sport.

[KC native]

Originally Posted by PornChief

Seems like a 100 years ago that I went to Adelaide to see the 1st Australian GP (well, 1st of the modern era at least). That track was the best street circuit ever, and that race had Gods like Mansell, Piquet, Prost, Senna, Rosberg and Berger. I was young and we drank a lot so I don't remember much except I met Prost, he was cool, must have been about 5 feet tall.

That is ****ing awesome. lucky bastard.

[Dylan]

KC native: I really appreciate your willingness to respond to my questions. Thanks!

[bandwagonjumper]

It might be a stupid question but how do NASCAR and Formula 1 compare? How much do the top drivers earn and could top drivers like Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton compete in NASCAR?

[PornChief]

Originally Posted by bandwagonjumper

It might be a stupid question but how do NASCAR and Formula 1 compare? How much do the top drivers earn and could top drivers like Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton compete in NASCAR?

F1 drivers are paid way more, Alonso gets 30m euro, drivers on crap teams get a lot less, around 500,000. Mark Webber gets 10m euro which is about average. They'd make it easily in NASCAR, but that would be like Peyton going to the CFL.

[Al Bundy]

Good win for Sato in the Indy car series.

[KC native]

Originally Posted by bandwagonjumper

It might be a stupid question but how do NASCAR and Formula 1 compare? How much do the top drivers earn and could top drivers like Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton compete in NASCAR?

Originally Posted by PornChief

F1 drivers are paid way more, Alonso gets 30m euro, drivers on crap teams get a lot less, around 500,000. Mark Webber gets 10m euro which is about average. They'd make it easily in NASCAR, but that would be like Peyton going to the CFL.

Yea, and that's before sponsorships. F1 top drivers make a **** ton of money. Michael Schumacher used to pull down more than Michael Jordan when he was at his peak.

[KC native]

Fantastic race again today.

Alonso showed some grit. 3 pit stops in the first 30 laps because his wing was broken, but still managed to pull out 8th spot.

Perez went out there and gutted it out too. Tough defensive drive and nice finish. Out drove Button by a lot.

Vettel is Vettel. I wish Fernando wouldn't have had the technical problems. Should have been a great fight between them at the front.

Paul Di Resta ran a fantastic finish for himself and Force India. Can't believe he pulled off P4. He was almost on the podium but Crashy McCrasherson pulled out a great race.

[KC native]

Race is at 6:30 AM CST for the early birds. I will be DVRing this per my usual.

Should be a great race.

Nico Rosberg beat Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton to pole position at the Spanish Grand Prix.

The German took his second consecutive pole by 0.254 seconds from Hamilton, with Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel third ahead of Lotus's Kimi Raikkonen.

Ferrari's Fernando Alonso could manage only fifth on the grid in front of his adoring home fans, just 0.001secs quicker than team-mate Felipe Massa.

McLaren's Jenson Button was only 14th with team-mate Sergio Perez ninth.

Scot Paul di Resta was 10th as the top 10 was completed by Lotus's Romain Grosjean in seventh and Red Bull's Mark Webber in eighth.

Brazilian Massa was subsequently handed a three-place grid penalty for blocking Mark Webber during the Red Bull driver's timed lap in the second session, relegating the Ferrari driver to ninth on the grid.

"Congrats to Nico - really happy for the team," said Hamilton. "It's down to all the great work from the guys at the factory. But we've got to approach tomorrow with caution because it's going to be tough. I didn't have two option tyre sets, but I think Nico was quicker today."

Since 1997, the Spanish Grand Prix has been won from pole position every year bar one, when Vettel won from second in 2011.

But Mercedes have struggled for race pace this year and team principal Ross Brawn sounded doubtful when asked if they could win the grand prix, admitting others had been in better shape during the race-simulation runs in Friday practice.

However, world champion Vettel said: "Mercedes were in a league of their own. We were surprised by the pace they had today. I am happy to sit in third right behind them because they were out of reach.

"I expect them to be strong in the race because they have been quick all year on this track and I expect the people behind to put some pressure on, Lotus and Ferrari. We will have to look after ourselves and our own tyres and then see what we can do."

The improved Toro Rossos of Daniel Ricciardo and Jean-Eric Vergne were 11th and 12th ahead of Force India's Adrian Sutil.

"The car didn't feel too bad in Q1," said Button of his poor qualifying. "I got held up on my lap and lost about 0.3secs in last corner from this morning but then in Q2 I just didn't have the grip on my last run. The tyre pressures came in massively high. We're just looking now to see if they were set properly."

On whether he was surprised by team-mate Sergio Perez's pace, he said: "I am considering where we are. He did a good job, obviously got everything right."
Williams continued to struggle - both cars failed to get past the first knock-out session despite a major upgrade package.

Valtteri Bottas was 17th, 0.058secs ahead of team-mate Pastor Maldonado as the corner-entry instability that has plagued them all year seemed to still be a problem.
Deputy team principal Claire Williams said: "It's not why we come racing to not get drivers into Q2. The boys all work really hard, and we've got to improve. You never panic in these situations. The grid is so tight, we were only one tenth off getting into Q2 so I don't think it's time to panic."

Sauber's Esteban Gutierrez was handed the same punishment as Massa for impeding Kimi Raikkonen and will start the race in 19th position. The Mexican was previously given a five-place grid penalty for the last grand prix in Bahrain for his part in an incident with Adrian Sutil during the Chinese Grand Prix.



Driver Car Team Q1 Q2 Q3
1 Nico Rosberg 9 Mercedes 1:21.913 1:21.776 1:20.718
2 Lewis Hamilton 10 Mercedes 1:21.728 1:21.001 1:20.972
3 Sebastian Vettel 1 Red Bull 1:22.158 1:21.602 1:21.054
4 Kimi Raikkonen 7 Lotus 1:22.210 1:21.676 1:21.177
5 Fernando Alonso 3 Ferrari 1:22.264 1:21.646 1:21.218
6 Felipe Massa 4 Ferrari 1:22.492 1:21.978 1:21.219
7 Romain Grosjean 8 Lotus 1:22.613 1:21.998 1:21.308
8 Mark Webber 2 Red Bull 1:22.342 1:21.718 1:21.570
9 Sergio Perez 6 McLaren 1:23.116 1:21.790 1:22.069
10 Paul Di Resta 14 Force India 1:22.663 1:22.019 1:22.233
11 Daniel Ricciardo 19 Toro Rosso 1:22.905 1:22.127
12 Jean-Eric Vergne 18 Toro Rosso 1:22.775 1:22.166
13 Adrian Sutil 15 Force India 1:22.952 1:22.346
14 Jenson Button 5 McLaren 1:23.166 1:22.355
15 Nico Hulkenberg 11 Sauber 1:23.058 1:22.389
16 Esteban Gutierrez 12 Sauber 1:23.218 1:22.793
17 Valtteri Bottas 17 Williams 1:23.260
18 Pastor Maldonado 16 Williams 1:23.318
19 Giedo van der Garde 21 Caterham 1:24.661
20 Jules Bianchi 22 Marussia 1:24.713
21 Max Chilton 23 Marussia 1:24.996
22 Charles Pic 20 Caterham 1:25.070

[Dylan]

Sunday, May 12 at 8 a.m. ET - That is better than 6 a.m.

Who is going to win the Spanish Grand Prix?

Red Bull have always been strong in Spain. I think Vettel will be hard to beat.

Kimi is strong in Spain. He has won this race twice. Kimi is 10 points behind Vettel after four races. Would like to see him win the race.

Alonso has not won here since 2006-not a good track record. Then again, he finished second last year.

Mercedes - Have they improved their race pace? Not sure.

Pirelli will bring medium and hard compound tires to Spain. Supposedly, they tweaked the hard compound tires so they hold up longer. But will they be durable?

I find the tire strategy confusing...I am not sure how long the driver can push the new tires.

My picks

1st place: Vettel / Kimi - Each driver will receive half a trophy..
2nd Alonso
3rd: Webber

[KC native]

Finally got around to finishing the race.

Phenomenal drive from Alonso and Massa. Ferrrari decided they would just drive it hard the whole race and make 4 stops. Game changing strategy and it will be interesting to see if they keep it up. The mantra this year has been protect your tires as much as possible and Ferrari said **** that and went for it. This will make the strategies later in the season much more interesting.

Kimi was Kimi. The mad Fin was excellent as usual. He has a great chance to win the driver's championship. There are mounting rumors that he could be headed to Red Bull to replace Webber next year. I don't know if I see Kimi at Red Bull. He really hated all the extra shit he had to do at Ferrari and Red Bull would have the same requirements for him.

Mercedes is ****ed. They can pound out a fast lap to qualify high but they have problems with tire wear and they don't look like they are getting any better. They locked out the front row during qualifying and both Hamilton and Rosberg finished outside the top 5.

McClaren is also in a similar situation. Perez was faster than Button again and they made him stay behind him at the end of the race. Their lack of performance has been the biggest head scratcher of this season.

[Donger]

The Pirelli tires are just ridiculous. Four stops, really? I read that the guys are so worried about degradation that they are seriously backing off. Something like three seconds a lap SLOWER than GP2 on the same track. That isn't F1.