2016 Scuderia Ferrari F1 Team - Ferrari

[giantfan10]

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My thought is that if team Ferrari can get that car within 3 tenths, they will have enough to win every race. Why?

Because last year when team Merc was under pressure, they made big mistakes. Some were total cluster f*%ks. It was not just one person on the team, but the whole team did not handle pressure well and seemed to crack too easily when the wick was lit. Even when their was only a little pressure we immediatly hear tension in the radio exchanges. 

In my mind Merc has been so dominant for so long, their management of high pressure in the racing moment has atrophied. They have had very little experience with pressure because they simply have done such a good job they haven't had to deal with much. 

Success has its own problems and we have seen that manifest between Nico and Lewis already. Pressure added into that amalgam from a competitive rival team will only exacerbate that issue dramatically. This is a huge issue at Merc because Lewis will want first pilot exclusivity period end of story, while Nico will have absolutely zero time for any of that kind of talk. Nico is so sick of losing he may finally crack and go bonzai if it really gets bad (Spa), and I'm betting Ferrari will be able to bring enough speed to really apply pressure. 

Certainly, teams have routines and all sorts of measures they utilize to "be prepared" for pressure, but nothing is like the actual moment.  No training, no books, no counsel, are going to prepare anyone like actual battle and in this regard I think Ferrari has much in their favor. Just my 2 cents. 

I'm guessing if team Ferrari can get close enough, their engineering prowess under James Allison, and superior race strategists will put them over the top of Merc when all race laps are finally measured and logged.

Now this is how Ferrari is going to win the championship? Ferrari comes close, it supports only one driver for WDC, beats the Mercedes cars and Mercedes wouldn't change their approach? You are expecting the Mercedes to screw up their strategies every race? =D>

looks like his opinion to me .....its pretty apparent from last year that the Mercedes team does not handle close competition on track well i also believe that Ferrari will be on par with Mercedes this coming season.. will they win the championship? i have no clue. Most Mercedes fans seem to think that reliability in testing AUTOMATICALLY means that said team has a faster car and it will be a second a lap faster in races this coming season..all wishfull thinking based on last year. if that was to happen after Q3 in australia then that would be the time to thump your chests ,

[Phil]

My thought is that if team Ferrari can get that car within 3 tenths, they will have enough to win every race. Why?

I think Ferrari's biggest advantage in any title race is that they are more willing to get dirty if needs be, meaning they'd be happy to use any edge possible, like i.e. forcing one driver to play backup or help his team-mate. We've seen this in past races, in qualifying where they've tried to slip stream each other to gain higher top speed for a better lap time, even if it means potentially compromising one driver over the other.

Mercedes, I don't see this happening. They've made a pledge to deliver equality between their drivers, at least to the point both deserve an equal shot and for them it's obviously an important image, not the least that they can't be seen to be too unfair to their German driver (Rosberg) as a German company, but also not towards Hamilton as the reigning WDC either.

So... slight advantage for Ferrari, if they are in a position to exploit it. Will they be? Hard to say - I don't think 3 tenths is close enough. 3 tenths is massive. Technically, it means that every 3 laps, that Merc could pull a second gap which basically means it's driving off into the distance. Unless of course the Ferrari somehow qualifies ahead. Maybe 3 tenths is close enough to assume that it would be general close enough to mask driver errors or weather conditions that might narrow that gap a little more.

[Chuckjr]

I probably should not have said every race, but I do think infighting and team strategic failure will be a big factor in this years title, and it will cost them a number of races. I think Ferrari brings a big stick with team relations management. I also think Ferrari will be able to beat them in outright pace at a few races.

Seeing one team drive off into the distance, imo, will only further lessen driver accomplishments…driving the most dominant car in F1 to wins and titles is not much to pat yourself on the back for as a driver, and everyone knows the Merc is that incredible of a car. As a team this must be incredibly satisfying.

I like your points Phil and I believe them to be valid.

[NathanOlder]

haha, you're a funny chap. This is totally in the wrong thread, but i just have to correct you, these 2 have been in the same Chassis and same engined cars (2005 Formula 3 Euro) Lewis won 15 races. Seb won 0. its the only time you can call their cars similar. So we can go with that
Ok it was Sebs rookie year, so the next year, Lewis went off to win the GP2 and Seb stayed and was beaten by Paul Di Resta.

I'm the old boy so it's strange that you're the one living in the past! What people do in the junior formulae isn't always a guide to how they'll be in maturity. Same principle even within career high spot - Nikki for instance was considered a joke in 1970. And, to follow your own logic, where is Paul Di Resta now?

All said with respect. BTW, as someone new to this Forum, can you tell me please which thread I should writing this nonsense into?

Regards.
David[/quote]


10 times out of 10 you said. Id bet on Vettel only ever beating his team mate 10 times in a row only happening once in his career. And that was Webber in 2013. To say he would beat Lewis 10 times out of 10 in similar machinery is just foolish.

As for Paul Di Resta , he beats Vettel in equal machinery, and he ends up as an F1 reject. If he had the Red Bull backing and Vettel had none, it would have been a completely different story. I still think Lewis is the only driver on the grid to win a race every season he entered. He like Vettel has beaten his team mate in every year but 1. Lewis team mates have won 62 race wins and 3 world titles. Sebs team mates have won 12 races and no titles. So Lewis has fared better against tougher team mates. Before F1 and during F1 Lewis has fared better. And if Lewis wins again this year he will have probably more wins and better win ratio than Seb. I think they are very similarly matched. But for some reason you think seb will win every race against Lewis in equal cars???!!!!

[sgth0mas]

My thought is that if team Ferrari can get that car within 3 tenths, they will have enough to win every race. Why?

I think Ferrari's biggest advantage in any title race is that they are more willing to get dirty if needs be, meaning they'd be happy to use any edge possible, like i.e. forcing one driver to play backup or help his team-mate. We've seen this in past races, in qualifying where they've tried to slip stream each other to gain higher top speed for a better lap time, even if it means potentially compromising one driver over the other.

Mercedes, I don't see this happening. They've made a pledge to deliver equality between their drivers, at least to the point both deserve an equal shot and for them it's obviously an important image, not the least that they can't be seen to be too unfair to their German driver (Rosberg) as a German company, but also not towards Hamilton as the reigning WDC either.

So... slight advantage for Ferrari, if they are in a position to exploit it. Will they be? Hard to say - I don't think 3 tenths is close enough. 3 tenths is massive. Technically, it means that every 3 laps, that Merc could pull a second gap which basically means it's driving off into the distance. Unless of course the Ferrari somehow qualifies ahead. Maybe 3 tenths is close enough to assume that it would be general close enough to mask driver errors or weather conditions that might narrow that gap a little more.

I seem to recall toto actually saying the equality between drivers was tied to their performance margin relative to other teams. The idea was then that if the gap was vlosed by other teams...the dynamics would change.

Mercedes are like all other teams...they will take any advantage necessary to win.

I really hope ferrari is less than .3 off pace. If they can actually qualify ahead...i think we will see a flustered merc team with even fewer W's than last season. Their drivers are pretty emotional and hamilton is incredibly passionate. The emotions seem like his only weakness. Hes a phenominal driver and represents the title well...so ferrari have to exploit emotions. Vettel and kimi are relatively calm under the strain and theyre underdogs so they're well positioned.

[f1316]

A team can certainly make a close title race , even though the car is slower, so long as the margin is small enough.

Fuel strategies used to help in years like 1998, but also 2010 springs to mind. Mercedes certainly don't seem like they'll have RB reliability problems of 2010, but I do see their two drivers taking points off each other. Vettel, I believe, will be similarly ahead of Kimi as last year and if a Ferrari ever has the chance of winning, I suspect 9/10 times it'll be him.

[Phil]

Mercedes are like all other teams...they will take any advantage necessary to win.

Not all teams are equal. Not all of them are in F1 for the same reasons too. Sure winning is the end goal for all of them, but winning has a different effect for each of them. I strongly believe for Mercedes, image is just as important, as they want to sell cars and build up an image. I don't think they can or will be as ruthless as Ferrari has demonstrated in the past.

As long as they have a car that is likely to win the WDC and both drivers are close enough to each have a shout, they will remain neutral to the point they wouldn't ask one to sacrifice his own race/result for the other.

Personally, I think Ferrari is capable of being so cunning, that they would use both their drivers to fully exploit that. They have done this numerous times; i.e. pitting their 2nd driver earlier to force their competitor ahead into an early pitstop so that their lead driver has a more favourable outcome. By doing so, they'd clearly be compromising the position of their 2nd driver, but the reward of course would be potentially bigger.

It's similar to last years race, I think Hungary (?) when both Williams were ahead of both Mercedes. They didn't have the pace to keep both behind and had they been more cunning, they probably could have held on to a victory but it would have meant using one driver as a scape goat. Speaking as a fan of F1, I wouldn't want to see that, but as a team put in that position, I would exploit every possible advantage I could. I think Ferrari is that capable.

[sgth0mas]

Mercedes are like all other teams...they will take any advantage necessary to win.

Not all teams are equal. Not all of them are in F1 for the same reasons too. Sure winning is the end goal for all of them, but winning has a different effect for each of them. I strongly believe for Mercedes, image is just as important, as they want to sell cars and build up an image. I don't think they can or will be as ruthless as Ferrari has demonstrated in the past.

As long as they have a car that is likely to win the WDC and both drivers are close enough to each have a shout, they will remain neutral to the point they wouldn't ask one to sacrifice his own race/result for the other.

Personally, I think Ferrari is capable of being so cunning, that they would use both their drivers to fully exploit that. They have done this numerous times; i.e. pitting their 2nd driver earlier to force their competitor ahead into an early pitstop so that their lead driver has a more favourable outcome. By doing so, they'd clearly be compromising the position of their 2nd driver, but the reward of course would be potentially bigger.

It's similar to last years race, I think Hungary (?) when both Williams were ahead of both Mercedes. They didn't have the pace to keep both behind and had they been more cunning, they probably could have held on to a victory but it would have meant using one driver as a scape goat. Speaking as a fan of F1, I wouldn't want to see that, but as a team put in that position, I would exploit every possible advantage I could. I think Ferrari is that capable.

Found the article...these are not my words...but Toto's:

http://www.espn.co.uk/f1/story/_/id/126 ... es-drivers

"Our main objective, and this is what we decided with the drivers, is that we have a big responsibility to the team and a big brand. It's not just about the two guys out there but about 1000 people working on those cars, and if it ever comes to the call of interfering between the two of them because we would risk losing a race win, we would do that. We don't have the gap anymore from last year where we can just let them push each other until the very end. We need to manage the gaps between the two of them."

Winning is paramount at any of the top F1 teams. If ferrari close the gap even more, toto himself said it will change the race dynamics.

[Phil]

I fear you haven't understood what I've been saying or I haven't articulated myself properly. Let me try again:

Yes, Mercedes does want to win and they will not allow both cars to push and race each other to the point that they destroy their tires so that they are vulnerable towards another team that is also competitive. They will focus on optimising a 'winning strategy' for each driver, but may enforce team-orders i.e. to hold station and "bring the cars home" as many other F1 teams have also done in the past.

What I believe Ferrari to be capable of goes farther than that. IMO, they have demonstrated in the past that they are willing to compromise one drivers race if it could gain a benefit for the other. Effectively, a No 1 and No 2 driver situation. That could go as far that they would split the strategies of both drivers to gain a potential advantage. We've seen this at various stages in the past when Alonso was their lead driver and last year with Vettel on top of things, or while Schumacher was racing for them. That could mean that i.e. that they might put one of their drivers on an alternative tire strategy in order to put more pressure on their closest rivals. The possibilities are endless what a team could do to gain an advantage if it was willing to sacrifice one drivers race for the other.

I don't believe Mercedes would go to those lengths to win, because as most likely the team to beat again this year, while they are out to secure "WINS" (as Toto quoted), they also have a responsibility for the sake of their image to a fair WDC challenge which I'm sure they'll take serious enough not to upset one or both of their drivers too much. Look at Malaysia 2013.

[Sevach]

I agree, stuff like leaving your "number 2 driver" on old tires longer than he needs to just to force the adversaries of "number 1" driver to overtake him.
Ferrari already done this last year when there was minimal gain to be had, you can bet that if it's for keeps they will doing it, that's a sure thing.

Oh and the Williams 1-2 was Silverstone, Hungary had a Ferrari 1-2 after lap 1.

[turbof1]

Pardon me? What do I see there? Driver banter?

I'm very much willing to have less stringent rules in the team threads. However, can we please find it in ourselves not to lower ourselves to a discussion about 2 drivers who even never raced at any time for a team the other one has driven once for?

Let's make this a bit easier on you guys and remove the involved posts before it gets any more wild then an angry amazon tribe. Discussion between 2 drivers which are teammates: absolutely no issue with that. You can even have number 1 and number 2 driver discussions, or compare team tactics with a different team. But please let's refrain from discussing something wild as comparing Hamilton and Vettel and trying to argue who is best. It's futile.

[NathanOlder]

Good call. Just hope no amazon tribes are logging on, as they may find that offensive.

[GPR-A duplicate2]

Ferrari needs more time to be ready for 2016 F1 season - Vettel

When asked if he felt Ferrari would be fully prepared when the season kicks off in Australia in two and a half weeks, Vettel said: "I hope in a couple of weeks, yes.

"We still have some time. We still have another two days here. Let's try to use them and go from there."

Kimi Raikkonen had a gearbox problem that limited his running on Tuesday but Vettel made good progress on Wednesday morning, logging 63 laps.

Vettel said he was "not concerned" following the reliability problems Raikkonen suffered.

"You don't want these things to happen," he said.

"If it happens here, it's not a problem. If it happens in a couple of weeks, it's a bit worse, but it's not an issue.

"In the tests, you take the time to look and it takes time.

"We'd have liked to run a bit more but this is what the test is for.

"In the end, we are pretty happy with where we are."

[F1NAC]

Footage of Ferrari

[Chuckjr]

Alison revealed at Lotus that he was worth his salt. This is now a car which has been his to direct completely. If the whole team is this pleased straight out of the box, and with all the considerable updates you know Alison has planned, Ferrari have to simply keep their heads down and they will be there in Oz if not within a couple races. That's all any good team needs to have a legit go at the crown.

Certainly the championships will finally move away from the coronation ceremony we have endured since the new engine formulae was put into play. [-o<