2020 Austrian Grand Prix - Spielberg, 3-5 July

[mclaren111]

Yes. Sainz career gone once he move to Ferrari. After 2 years they will throw him off.

It is very difficult for them to recover 1sec gap with Hungary update with limited test.

in other hand it is good decision by Ferrari to sack Vettel. He is lucky.

I hope in 2023 Ferrari will do one more restructure to kick out Binotto and Lecrec.

As the engines are same i.e V6 till 2024, Ferrari cannot win till Major engine rule change.

Sainz's career wasn't going anywhere anyway. His talent or lack thereof will be his ceiling.

I hope everyone enjoys watching Mercedes win everything and haven't gotten enough of it yet, because that is what we are going to get a lot of in this shortened season.

Snooze fest!

Zzzzzzzzz. Zzzzzzzzz. Zzzzzzzzzz.

Agreed...

At least the Midfield battle will be good... Let's hope the TV coverage is good as well...

[FittingMechanics]

because there is a difference between 1 lap pace or racepace and .... it will be around 29 degrees again, and not sure if the mercs have solved their cooling problem (which bothered them last year at Austria) and maybe that ACE of them is not so much of an ace as most here thinks

I'm not a fan of Mercedes but I feel that hoping Red Bull will be able to jump Mercedes solely on going to alternate strategy is wishful thinking.

Regarding the cooling:

• Europe is not in a middle of a heatwave like it was last year
• Mercedes had a year to improve their cooling
• Mercedes knew two first races will be in Austria for at while now

Red Bull regressed in qualifying compared to Mercedes this year. I find it hard to believe they didn't regress in race pace as well. If they end up faster in race pace compared to last year, that may indicate that their "party mode" was nerfed by the new fuel flow meter just like Ferrari's was.

[Racer X]

Just a bit more to go!

[Just_a_fan]

Yes definitly one stop..
Pitstop around lap 30 or so.
Max is on mediums but the mercedes has DAS.
And to mention that one lap pace gives them a big advantage on undercuts.

Max goes to soft will be an advantage if he can keep those mediums from graining. Pressure from Racing Point might force him to push too early.

It should be a fascinating chess match tomorrow. Will also be good to see how the teams' long run pace holds up. Really looking forward to the race!

Watching the 2 Mercedes disappear into the distance on such a boring little track isn't really what I'd call a fascinating chess match.

You assume it's not going to get messy in turn 1 or the turn at the top of the hill? I can see Max sending one in and saying "I pass or we crash" to Hamilton.Likewise, Hamilton will want to pass Bottas as early as possible (if possible) so will be feisty on the first lap. I think the result will be down to whether there is clean racing or a bit red mist on that first lap.

[Moore77]

because there is a difference between 1 lap pace or racepace and .... it will be around 29 degrees again, and not sure if the mercs have solved their cooling problem (which bothered them last year at Austria) and maybe that ACE of them is not so much of an ace as most here thinks

I'm not a fan of Mercedes but I feel that hoping Red Bull will be able to jump Mercedes solely on going to alternate strategy is wishful thinking.

Regarding the cooling:

• Europe is not in a middle of a heatwave like it was last year
• Mercedes had a year to improve their cooling
• Mercedes knew two first races will be in Austria for at while now

Red Bull regressed in qualifying compared to Mercedes this year. I find it hard to believe they didn't regress in race pace as well. If they end up faster in race pace compared to last year, that may indicate that their "party mode" was nerfed by the new fuel flow meter just like Ferrari's was.

Mercedes' problems wouldn't be cooling, going by what we have seen through second half of last year and winter testing this year. They gotten on top of their cooling issues last year itself with a Germany upgrade. Petronas has also provided them new lubricants last year for those cooling issues. Andy Cowell at the launch of W11 mentioned that, they have now calibrated the manufacturing of engine components to work on much higher temperatures.

The questions marks are on the reliability side this year, which they say they have fixed it now. There were some hydraulic components that needed changing on Bottas' car just before the start of qualifying yesterday as they figured some problem there. They had enormous pressure to find performance on their PU as Ferrari was leaping ahead last year, that caused them to compromise on reliability. With that pressure gone, they probably need not have to push their PU harder anymore. Based on last year's reliability record in races, they can definitely ease off more for this race, as soon as they maintain 1-2 after the first corner.

[Unc1eM0nty]

I wouldn't write off Max just yet, weren't his long runs just as fast as Mercedes ?

No way will Merc have a .5 sec lap advantage during the race, Max just needs to make sure he gets a good start, he can't afford to drop any places and that will be hard when all those around him are on the soft tire.

[search]

I wouldn't write off Max just yet, weren't his long runs just as fast as Mercedes ?

no, around half a second slower. Comparable to Perez'

on the slower tires, I think he may struggle to keep the midfield cars behind, during the first laps

[El Scorchio]

It should be a fascinating chess match tomorrow. Will also be good to see how the teams' long run pace holds up. Really looking forward to the race!

Watching the 2 Mercedes disappear into the distance on such a boring little track isn't really what I'd call a fascinating chess match.

You assume it's not going to get messy in turn 1 or the turn at the top of the hill? I can see Max sending one in and saying "I pass or we crash" to Hamilton.Likewise, Hamilton will want to pass Bottas as early as possible (if possible) so will be feisty on the first lap. I think the result will be down to whether there is clean racing or a bit red mist on that first lap.

Hamilton is not going to crash into Bottas. He’s way smarter than that. Every time last year he gave him acres of space when fighting for position. Probably too much if he’s honest with himself.

If there’s an accident, I’d be surprised if it’s the two Mercedes cars hitting each other. I’m afraid to say that Verstappen is the likely one to be the cause of any crash on the first lap.

[yelistener]

I don't think it's still worth a try to guess if any other team could challenge Mercedes in 2020. They're 0.5s faster than the closest competition in a 1:03 track and they still have DAS yet to use.

If anything, in 2020 their race pace could be more dominant than their Q3. DAS is of little to no use for a one lap performance, but in a 50-lap race, that could really come in handy.

[FittingMechanics]

I don't think it's still worth a try to guess if any other team could challenge Mercedes in 2020. They're 0.5s faster than the closest competition in a 1:03 track and they still have DAS yet to use.

If anything, in 2020 their race pace could be more dominant than their Q3. DAS is of little to no use for a one lap performance, but in the 50/70-lap race, that could really come in handy.

And it's a track that didn't really suit them in the past.

[Sieper]

because there is a difference between 1 lap pace or racepace and .... it will be around 29 degrees again, and not sure if the mercs have solved their cooling problem (which bothered them last year at Austria) and maybe that ACE of them is not so much of an ace as most here thinks

I'm not a fan of Mercedes but I feel that hoping Red Bull will be able to jump Mercedes solely on going to alternate strategy is wishful thinking.

Regarding the cooling:

• Europe is not in a middle of a heatwave like it was last year
• Mercedes had a year to improve their cooling
• Mercedes knew two first races will be in Austria for at while now

Red Bull regressed in qualifying compared to Mercedes this year. I find it hard to believe they didn't regress in race pace as well. If they end up faster in race pace compared to last year, that may indicate that their "party mode" was nerfed by the new fuel flow meter just like Ferrari's was.

Well, it is mercedes that pulled out of the protest against Ferrari’s last years shenanigans and now their new PU seems at least as strong as last years Ferrari.

[MtthsMlw]

Wonder if Vettel might go Hard - Medium or even Soft?

[yelistener]

I don't think it's still worth a try to guess if any other team could challenge Mercedes in 2020. They're 0.5s faster than the closest competition in a 1:03 track and they still have DAS yet to use.

If anything, in 2020 their race pace could be more dominant than their Q3. DAS is of little to no use for a one lap performance, but in the 50/70-lap race, that could really come in handy.

And it's a track that didn't really suit them in the past.

Yes, the overheating problem is the only one unsettled right now. Q3 already proved Mercedes no longer have the straight line speeds disadvantage like in 2019.

Sunday race will be hotter than Saturday. If Mercedes indeed overcome the heat problem, then we'll see them lapping LOTS of cars this year lol

[El Scorchio]

Wonder if Vettel might go Hard - Medium or even Soft?
https://twitter.com/pirellisport/status ... 95392?s=19

I’d like to see him doing something really different. Try and put the horse amongst the pigeons. Really they have nothing to lose so why not be creative. Start on hards and hope for a fortuitously timed safety car?

[FittingMechanics]

Yes, the overheating problem is the only one unsettled right now. Q3 already proved Mercedes no longer have the straight line speeds disadvantage like in 2019.

Sunday race will be hotter than Saturday. If Mercedes indeed overcome the heat problem, then we'll see them lapping LOTS of cars this year lol

I can understand the overheating problem, you design the car for a specific thermal load and then you go to Austria at 700 meters above the sea level in the middle of a biggest heatwave in the last few years. Your car starts overheating and the thin air can't cool your car down. They didn't have the issue on any other races, so I am sure that they just played it closer to the limit than the other teams, usually that means you are maximizing potential.