marmer wrote: ↑02 Jan 2018, 22:08
carisi2k wrote:Red Bull were only 0.9 of a second off Mercedes with a hand grenade of an engine so how is Mclaren going to get any where near Red Bull with the same engine when Red Bull have optimised around that engine for 4 years. Mclaren and Renault were only faster then Toro Rosso at the end of the year when Renault started giving TR spare parts as an engine.
As for Toro Rosso and Honda the spec 4.0 Honda was apparently at least the equivalent of the 2017 Renault in HP at somewhere in the low 900's. With some more evolution for the 2018 engine. I wouldn't mind on betting Toro Rosso surprising Mclaren and Renault in 2018 especially as there will be some Red Bull input into chassis integration throughout 2018 in preparation for their move to Honda in 2019.
By the end of the year Renault actually where not that far from force India and faster than Williams McLaren just behind that. They had more or less both managed to put daylight between them and Toro rosso
Gee I wonder why this was the case. Up until the announcement in Singapore, Toro Rosso was ahead Renault. After Japan Toro Rosso had lost their number 1 driver to Renault and fired, hired and then re fired there number 2 driver and ended with 2 rookies with PU's built of scrap metal blowing up in just about every session. Carlos Sainz scored 54 points in 2017. 48 of them with Toro Rosso before he left for Renault. Nico Hulkenberg only scored 43 points the entire 2017 campaign.
Mclaren Honda with an improving spec 3.8 Honda engine was of course better then Toro Rosso whose had spare parts where a PU was supposed to be post Singapore. Wazari has said that the spec 4.0 was 20-30hp better then the 3.8 and we know from a post in the Honda and Mercedes thread that the spec 3.8 was producing 881hp which puts it somewhere in the 901-911hp range. Roughly right in the Renault power range. We also know that it was more reliable at the end of 2017 then the Renault.
With Toro Rosso's performance before Singapore and Honda's progression throughout 2017 I would not put it out of the midfield fight at all. Unless the Mclaren is truly able to compete with the Red Bull on performance then expect a great midfield fight in 2018.