2014 Spanish Grand Prix - Barcelona

[AfroDude41]

I remember Ted Kravitz saying in Jerez that Caterham may be debuting a Lotus style twin tusk nose for this race. We may see other teams have different nose sections debuting for this race

[SiLo]

Would be ironic if Lotus drop the twin tusk nose just as Caterham adopt it. I doubt it is the cause of their issues but I can't see how it can be that much better than any of the other, more reliable (certainly in yaw) solutions.

[Unc1eM0nty]

It will be interesting though, they haven't been to Catalunya yet this season, so we don't know whether they might still have massive tire wear like last season.

I think Mercedes have already proved that their tire wear issues are a thing of the past, they're now one of the best if not "the" best at conserving tires.

There are signs that both Redbull & Ferrari are making big gains, I don't think their capable of catching Mercedes just yet though, so far Mercedes have only had to show their hand once and that 2 second gap has not disappeared just yet.

[Harsha]

I think this Gives the ample sign of which team has More Downforce if RBR can match Merc in spain with the Loss of BHP i'm afraid they will have a bigger advantage once the engine is sorted out. If Merc was still ahead Case is closed

[prince]

I think this Gives the ample sign of which team has More Downforce if RBR can match Merc in spain with the Loss of BHP i'm afraid they will have a bigger advantage once the engine is sorted out. If Merc was still ahead Case is closed

Looks like lot of people are talking about RBR's downforce performance in qualifying and I am not sure if someone has looked at the performance throughout the race. In qualifying, when you know that on straight line, you can beat all the demons like a child's play, you wouldn't want to push through turns and that's what Merc were doing and still on par with RBR in downforce sector. If you take a look at the sector two times in Shanghai race (downforce sector), you will see that Nico's Merc was doing better than RBR (look at FIA.com timing information on sector times and sector speeds) as he was pushing to get back to P2. Lewis case was that, he was on a different planet and like in qualifying, he wasn't pushing through corners and because of which he maintained high level of tyre performance. Even in Bahrain, Merc's advantage of more than 2 sec per lap, wasn't just down to straight line performance. Niki Lauda was telling that, if they perform better in Barcelona, rest of the year is not a problem. So, naturally, there would be evidence of where RBR and Mercs stand in terms of downforce.

Sector Times from Shanghai

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SECTOR 1
POS NO DRIVER TIME
1 44 L. HAMILTON 26.423
2 1 S. VETTEL 26.596
3 6 N. ROSBERG 26.622
4 19 F. MASSA 26.806
5 14 F. ALONSO 26.821
6 11 S. PEREZ 26.858
7 27 N. HULKENBERG 26.859
8 3 D. RICCIARDO 26.862
9 25 J. VERGNE 26.949
10 7 K. RAIKKONEN 26.980
11 10 K. KOBAYASHI 26.982
12 77 V. BOTTAS 27.026
13 21 E. GUTIERREZ 27.047
14 20 K. MAGNUSSEN 27.086
15 9 M. ERICSSON 27.112
16 4 M. CHILTON 27.136
17 26 D. KVYAT 27.188
18 13 P. MALDONADO 27.215
19 22 J. BUTTON 27.337
20 8 R. GROSJEAN 27.508
21 17 J. BIANCHI 27.589
22 99 A. SUTIL 30.607
SECTOR 2
NO DRIVER TIME
6 N. ROSBERG 30.212
3 D. RICCIARDO 30.428
44 L. HAMILTON 30.628
13 P. MALDONADO 30.697
1 S. VETTEL 30.730
20 K. MAGNUSSEN 30.831
14 F. ALONSO 30.859
11 S. PEREZ 30.874
25 J. VERGNE 30.879
21 E. GUTIERREZ 30.886
27 N. HULKENBERG 30.908
77 V. BOTTAS 31.053
7 K. RAIKKONEN 31.071
26 D. KVYAT 31.093
22 J. BUTTON 31.120
19 F. MASSA 31.122
4 M. CHILTON 31.233
10 K. KOBAYASHI 31.317
9 M. ERICSSON 31.348
8 R. GROSJEAN 31.629
17 J. BIANCHI 31.968
99 A. SUTIL 35.231
SECTOR 3
NO DRIVER TIME
6 N. ROSBERG 43.516
44 L. HAMILTON 43.928
77 V. BOTTAS 43.969
3 D. RICCIARDO 44.074
27 N. HULKENBERG 44.164
21 E. GUTIERREZ 44.195
1 S. VETTEL 44.198
7 K. RAIKKONEN 44.210
14 F. ALONSO 44.215
11 S. PEREZ 44.216
26 D. KVYAT 44.218
20 K. MAGNUSSEN 44.269
22 J. BUTTON 44.304
19 F. MASSA 44.451
4 M. CHILTON 44.506
13 P. MALDONADO 44.549
10 K. KOBAYASHI 44.566
25 J. VERGNE 44.761
9 M. ERICSSON 44.959
17 J. BIANCHI 45.132
8 R. GROSJEAN 45.196
99 A. SUTIL 51.872

Race Maximum Speeds

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INTERMEDIATE 1
POS NO DRIVER KPH
1 19 F. MASSA 286.0
2 77 V. BOTTAS 284.9
3 6 N. ROSBERG 284.8
4 27 N. HULKENBERG 283.5
5 11 S. PEREZ 282.7
6 22 J. BUTTON 280.8
7 26 D. KVYAT 280.5
8 20 K. MAGNUSSEN 280.4
9 44 L. HAMILTON 279.7
10 14 F. ALONSO 279.1
11 10 K. KOBAYASHI 278.7
12 21 E. GUTIERREZ 278.3
13 25 J. VERGNE 277.4
14 13 P. MALDONADO 276.4
15 9 M. ERICSSON 275.3
16 7 K. RAIKKONEN 274.8
17 8 R. GROSJEAN 274.8
18 17 J. BIANCHI 273.8
19 3 D. RICCIARDO 272.5
20 1 S. VETTEL 272.4
21 4 M. CHILTON 271.2
22 99 A. SUTIL 244.9
INTERMEDIATE 2
NO DRIVER KPH
6 N. ROSBERG 276.0
77 V. BOTTAS 274.7
11 S. PEREZ 274.1
27 N. HULKENBERG 273.9
20 K. MAGNUSSEN 272.0
19 F. MASSA 271.7
22 J. BUTTON 271.2
44 L. HAMILTON 270.9
10 K. KOBAYASHI 269.1
21 E. GUTIERREZ 269.0
26 D. KVYAT 268.2
14 F. ALONSO 268.2
25 J. VERGNE 268.1
13 P. MALDONADO 267.4
9 M. ERICSSON 265.6
1 S. VETTEL 265.5
7 K. RAIKKONEN 265.2
3 D. RICCIARDO 265.1
4 M. CHILTON 264.7
8 R. GROSJEAN 263.2
17 J. BIANCHI 259.8
99 A. SUTIL 220.3
FINISH LINE
NO DRIVER KPH
77 V. BOTTAS 265.4
6 N. ROSBERG 263.4
27 N. HULKENBERG 263.1
20 K. MAGNUSSEN 262.0
19 F. MASSA 262.0
44 L. HAMILTON 261.7
11 S. PEREZ 261.6
22 J. BUTTON 260.8
7 K. RAIKKONEN 258.8
10 K. KOBAYASHI 258.6
14 F. ALONSO 258.1
21 E. GUTIERREZ 257.6
13 P. MALDONADO 256.8
3 D. RICCIARDO 256.3
17 J. BIANCHI 256.3
26 D. KVYAT 256.2
4 M. CHILTON 255.0
25 J. VERGNE 254.8
9 M. ERICSSON 254.4
1 S. VETTEL 254.1
8 R. GROSJEAN 250.4
99 A. SUTIL 210.4

http://184.106.145.74/f1-championship/f ... es_V01.pdf

http://184.106.145.74/f1-championship/f ... ds_V01.pdf

[Harsha]

@Prince
Its the other way round we have to see for comparison. If RB is Producing Merc times in DF Sector-ed tracks then Bulls are having a big performance under their Skin. Currently you cant compare 100% as they are taking pieces from the car to gain any respectable top speed in circuits.
If they managed to do so RBR will have an advantage and once their issue is sorted with drive-ability we can see how fast the RB10 will show its cornering performance. Right now the Bulls can put down power only with Downforce not with the drive-ability where mercs had both which will make serious performance difference.

[turbof1]

It isn't all about downforce - downforce ultimately only adds extra grip. Mechanical grip is important too.

This was evident from last year: Mercedes didn't have the same downforce as red bull, but they did have a massive advantage in the last chicane, where the FRIC shined out.

[prince]

@Prince
Its the other way round we have to see for comparison. If RB is Producing Merc times in DF Sector-ed tracks then Bulls are having a big performance under their Skin. Currently you cant compare 100% as they are taking pieces from the car to gain any respectable top speed in circuits.
If they managed to do so RBR will have an advantage and once their issue is sorted with drive-ability we can see how fast the RB10 will show its cornering performance. Right now the Bulls can put down power only with Downforce not with the drive-ability where mercs had both which will make serious performance difference.

Sorry, they took out pieces in Bahrain as it was power dominated circuit, not downforce. But here in Shanghai, they had all those pieces present (presuming you are talking about winglets). Please see the images on RB10 forum for reference.

[Harsha]

It isn't all about downforce - downforce ultimately only adds extra grip. Mechanical grip is important too.

This was evident from last year: Mercedes didn't have the same downforce as red bull, but they did have a massive advantage in the last chicane, where the FRIC shined out.

Yes but how much difference We might have between Merc and RBR in terms of DF points last year and this year
But what you said is right Mechanical Grip is what put Merc on top in Spain- Spa Time last year , lets see can RBR had a candle to hold atleast

[Harsha]

Sorry, they took out pieces in Bahrain as it was power dominated circuit, not downforce. But here in Shanghai, they had all those pieces present (presuming you are talking about winglets). Please see the images on RB10 forum for reference.

OOPS i mixed Bahrain with China
but my other point still stands i belive

[turbof1]

There's of course also the question "how much downforce did mercedes NOT run". With such a massive advantage, they could keep downforce lower to have a lower fuel consumption.

Barcelona will show everybodies true colors.

[Harsha]

There's of course also the question "how much downforce did mercedes NOT run". With such a massive advantage, they could keep downforce lower to have a lower fuel consumption.

Barcelona will show everybodies true colors.

A Very big Point if its true then teams can switch focus to 2015 by improving their cars and hoping to Push mercs as much as they can in 2015

[Steven]

There's of course also the question "how much downforce did mercedes NOT run". With such a massive advantage, they could keep downforce lower to have a lower fuel consumption.

Barcelona will show everybodies true colors.

A Very big Point if its true then teams can switch focus to 2015 by improving their cars and hoping to Push mercs as much as they can in 2015

Ignoring the fact that if everybody abandons 2014 early, Mercedes can do so as well...

My money is on another Hamilton win and a strong race for Alonso in front of his home fans.

[SiLo]

We can all hark on about RBR downforce, but I will happily bet that when it comes to race time. The Mercs will once again wipe the floor with everyone. They have so much pace in hand its not even funny. As Hamilton said during the race in China, he was just racing himself.

[iotar__]

I don't think it's that easy to respond to other teams in F1, development/updates plans have to be confirmed much earlier and are hard to cancel. Having said that - I doubt development/abandoning 2014 will have big impact on this or next season. 1. Merc should win both championships early enough even if some other team matches them 2. All the developments in 2014 should be transferred to 2015.

Lopez mentioned big step from Renault http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/113596, even if it was bigger for slower Lotus it makes me think again that Red Bull underperformed in China and should be closer to Merc in Barcelona (plus more engine updates). Not close enough and speculating: even if updates bring downforce/time gains it's going to be harder for RB to put it all together with balance, tyres and adjustments to different tracks. 2013 is not comparable - tyre change helped them and there were less unknowns. Merc have it all figured out including drivers.

It should be tight in qualifying and maybe tyres can mix it up in the race. If it's dry and without problems I would bet on Rosberg in China but Hamilton in Spain (although N.R. was faster last season). Vettel's "problems that don't exist" will be cured with car updates and he'll be third.