Mercedes updates seem to be working but looking at the time set by Mercedes today, it's scary to think what the top two teams, Red Bull and Ferrari especially Red Bull, will do if they tried an out and out qualifying run like Mercedes did today. Neither Red Bull nor Ferrari tried a qualifying simulation, a 3 lap run like Mercedes. We will have to wait until qualifying, two weeks from now to see the real pace of these cars.
Last year Williams set the fastest time, a 1 minute 20.2 in testing. Webber's qualifying time for the race was a 1:19.9.
HRT, they are the team which has been sandbagging and no one even noticed it. Now they have come out with their clown car, too late for others to copy anything:S
@genius83
If memory serves me right, Bridgestone got it wrong for Canada, and brought compounds that were perhaps two steps apart and not one. Then there was the track surface having been relaid, the track itself which is unlike other tracks and sees very little racing except for when F1 visits Montreal. It used to be part purpose built race track and part normal roads. The weather, as you pointed out, must have played a role in it but track temperature at Barcelona was a nice 31 C yesterday.
What is happening with Pirelli is totally different to Bridgestone. Pirelli tires are getting destroyed, they are not blistering nor graining, they are losing performance and practically shredding, the tire is being totally worn out. Bridgestone would go through phases and drop in performance but it would also come back and at no stage was the difference anything like 9 seconds.
Another feature of Pirelli tires, if it can be called that, is it's inability to rubber in the track. It just isn't happening. Where as previously, as the track would rubber in, cars would start to go faster and faster and the rubber laid by them help look after tires too unlike on a green track. With Pirelli it seems to be almost like a green track every time a driver goes out. Their compounds are too soft, perhaps thats what they were asked to do and they have produced what was asked but what is the fun in seeing some one pass another driver just because the guy in-front has no grip.
Pirelli supply tires to different disciplines of motor racing and it can't be very difficult to make a hard compound tire. Bridgestone were always very conservative and they were on the other end of the scale where a car could do an entire race on one set of tires. I highly doubt that they would have been in this position.
I hope you are right and that come Oz the tires behave differently but i for one am very skeptical about it.
@m_waqas
No promise for what you have asked as it is quite hard but will try to look for it. Just one question what type of person you are searching. Like Engineer, Mechanic, Technical or Media related, It would certainly help.
Genius, what do you think he will be looking for? Clearly, he isn't looking for Georgio Ascanali:P
It's quite obvious what his interests are so you better look on the media side first. I'm pretty sure you will find what he is looking for right there.
@Eddie
Good boy, attendance marked:D
No idea about the last car, probably a Sauber? Looked white to me :S
