2019 Chinese Grand Prix - Shanghai, April 12-14

[Juzh]

Vettel vs Bottas

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wzD-ou_Iu_M

As is quite obvious by now, ferrari is total trash in pretty much any corner type that's below 200 kmh. They're making a lot of time on the straights, but obviously not enough. Vettel is ahead up until braking for for the back straight, then loses massive amounts of time in that single corner complex, only for him to reel it almost all back on the straight, then lose it again in the final hairpin and final turn.

Also, remember to check out google drive folder in my singature, quali laps have been uploaded.

I went through every corner here and, while in corners below 150kph Ferrari is down ~10kph I wouldnt say its trash in comparison.

Seems Vettel lost most of time in corner before back straight, not in others.

Good thing is they look reall good in high speed corners, every bit as fast actually.

10 kmh is a big difference, not to be understated. As for being "trash", it's all relative ofcourse, but ferrari should really only be compared to red bull and mercedes, both of which are in a different league in that regard. Vettel loses ~1 tenth in the final hairpin and then another tenth and a half in the final corner by being 11 kmh down on bottas trough there (181 vs 170). Those tenths add up.

Looking more closely at Verstappen's first (and only) q3 lap I'm fairly confident he would be P3 easily had things gone right for him in Q3. He missed a few important apexes and left some time on the table in the final corner, the car seemed too planted trough there and steering wheel too calm with no corrections at all.

[Mattchu]

As I think others have stated it looks like the Ferrari just doesn`t have a very good front end at the moment. In the video [thanks Juzh] the Merc seems to have a much better turn in and grip predictability than the Ferrari.
Vettel seems like he`s wary the car is "going to the outside" and has to make little corrections to smooth it out. Bottas` car just seems to go exactly where he wants it...

This is with very little fuel in though so maybe the extra weight of a full tank could make the car handle better.

Hopefully someone does a Danny Ric from last year and goes on the soft for a blaster of a final stint!

[GrandAxe]

I think the Ferrari straight line speed and their exceptional starts (compared to Mercedes) will put Seb into the lead at the start. It really comes down to the delta through turn 1/2 as the Mercedes will have almost zero chance to pass Ferrari on the DRS straights.

I expect an undercut by Merc, and it will be down to the speed delta of the soft/ mediums that will determine the race.

Looking forward to a nail biter tomorrow!

Its unlikely to turn out that way. This track chews tyres and because of their low downforce front wing, the Ferrari is understeery, which might only worsen the tyre wear characteristics of the track for their car - they are likely to be slow.

Max is the one to look out for.

[cokata]

Vettel vs Bottas

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wzD-ou_Iu_M

As is quite obvious by now, ferrari is total trash in pretty much any corner type that's below 200 kmh. They're making a lot of time on the straights, but obviously not enough. Vettel is ahead up until braking for for the back straight, then loses massive amounts of time in that single corner complex, only for him to reel it almost all back on the straight, then lose it again in the final hairpin and final turn.

Also, remember to check out google drive folder in my singature, quali laps have been uploaded.

Thank you very much for all the hard work you put into those. It is very much appreciated.

Looking at this my assumptions are correct. The Ferrari was *almost* as bad as a midfield car in the slow speed corners. RBR and Merc are on a different level there compared to all the rest. Leclerc was a little more respectable with the slow speed corners, but he did make a crucial mistake in the corner leading up to the back straight he got on the throttle to early and had to back out for a moment because the front end couldn't live with it. That would have cost him a lot of time all the way to the braking zone.

[cokata]

The only thing that is weird is Riccardo's lap. If i am going by the telemetry, i don't see where he is loosing so much time compared to the top teams. He looks quick everywhere - straight line, slow speed, and high speed. Something is off there.

[ringo]

Ferrari seems to have better traction exiting the turns, but doesn't go so well in the middle of the turns.

I am predicting a Hamilton win at this track.

Hamilton
Leclerc
Vettel
Verstappen
Bottas

I just have hunch Bottas wont hold it together for the whole race.

[Juzh]

The only thing that is weird is Riccardo's lap. If i am going by the telemetry, i don't see where he is loosing so much time compared to the top teams. He looks quick everywhere - straight line, slow speed, and high speed. Something is off there.

https://streamable.com/4sb9e

[TAG]

Hamilton made the best of a day were Bottas was faster. Still all to play for tomorrow. A good start will go a long way towards victory for him.

Hamilton and fast off the line starts are like oil and water.

[Capharol]

The only thing that is weird is Riccardo's lap. If i am going by the telemetry, i don't see where he is loosing so much time compared to the top teams. He looks quick everywhere - straight line, slow speed, and high speed. Something is off there.

https://streamable.com/4sb9e

it seems the Renault keeps up, but when you look really good, they lack aero and power.

[Phil]

Hamilton made the best of a day were Bottas was faster. Still all to play for tomorrow. A good start will go a long way towards victory for him.

Hamilton and fast off the line starts are like oil and water.

Apart from 2016, he was actually rather a good starter and beat Rosberg off the line quite a few times to snatch the win away. But you are right; where starts are concerned for this year, i’m not too optimistic, given his start in Melbourne was pretty bad and Bahrain wasnt better; though to be fair, at least two on the good side had bad starts (Leclerc too), so who knows.

I’m actually quite interested to see if Hamilton is compromized. He only has a used set of mediums (because his first attempt in Q2 wasnt good enough) and the new unused soft wont help him much i think. Apart from that, his strategy will be dictated to what happens behind him. His best chance for winning will be if he can get by Bottas quick, either at the start or soon after. If not, i see limited possibilities, unless circumstance and luck play a big role tomorrow in that something unpredictable happens. But yeah, i think Bottas will be strong. At least we will have a good race i hope.

[Carl Mccoy]

The 2004 Schumacher race lap record is still impressive. It will probably never be beaten on this track

[Chuckjr]

I must say: Kudos to Mercedes. They seem to have a hell of a car again. I am really surprised that they can hold this level of developement over so many years. It's a really big thing that is going on therre. It's a pitty that they always talk themelves down. They are by far the best at the whole package and everyone should know that by know. Absolutely impressive. Dominating such a long aera is new. And there seems to be no end for that.

Everytime there is a test or they have a not so good weekend they manage to bring chances which make the car superb again, I don´t understand how they do it.

Really?
Established and healthy corporate head.
Virtually unlimited r & d resources world wide.
A literal army of engineers.
An astronomical budget.

[Mach]

Mercs are just too strong....once again

[Carl Mccoy]

Mercs are just too strong....once again

In Bahrain Ferrari wipe the floor with Mercedes.

[dtro]

Mercs are just too strong....once again

In Bahrain Ferrari wipe the floor with Mercedes.

Points say somethin’ different.