2015 Pre-season Testing

[Juzh]

Belgium and Hungary for example, one in the pits (or rather the strategy) and and one on the road. Or Russia.

Granted, smaller mistakes like going off the road without destroying your tyres didn't really costed them a lot.

Belgium it only cost them because it was on lap 2.
Hungary again they got off lightly. A spin on lap 1, a messed up strategy, end result -> 3 and 4th. It takes multiple screw ups on all fronts so we can have any kind of race for 1st place.
Russia? Colossal mistake into T1, compromised strategy -> 1st and 2nd.

[Juzh]

As long as your team is the one doing all the winning, sure.

Here's a tip - step away from the concept of "your team". Then you'll see 2014 as interesting. There was a tight head to head battle for the WDC, and similar battles in the following pack with some young guns challenging experienced drivers, plus intrigue about the future of Ferrari and Mclaren.

That's a bit difficult to do. And if you're not playing favourites F1 becomes much less interesting. For me anyway.

[turbof1]

Belgium and Hungary for example, one in the pits (or rather the strategy) and and one on the road. Or Russia.

Granted, smaller mistakes like going off the road without destroying your tyres didn't really costed them a lot.

Belgium it only cost them because it was on lap 2.
Hungary again they got off lightly. A spin on lap 1, a messed up strategy, end result -> 3 and 4th. It takes multiple screw ups on all fronts so we can have any kind of race for 1st place.
Russia? Colossal mistake into T1, compromised strategy -> 1st and 2nd.

You are of course mostly right, but the point was they got punished . Russia too, although they managed to crawl out of that hole. However, Belgium was much more costly then you like to admit. They did lost one car there. Hamilton would not have finished if it happened later in the opening stage, and depending on when it hypothetically happened later then that, would either have not scored or any points, or very very few. And also look at it in a different way: because it happened to Nico in the openings stage, he had a full race to recover from his broken wing.

That's a bit difficult to do. And if you're not playing favourites F1 becomes much less interesting. For me anyway.

Discussing it on a board where everybody surely will have a preference for different teams, does mean discussing the season from a neutral point of view in order to have equality. I understand that it is harsh not to see your favorite team winning (speakin in general, don't know your specific facorite), but rating a season means taking out your bias for one team. I'm sure there are fans of different teams then mercedes who still think it was a decent season. I for sure think it was!

[Gaz.]

As long as your team is the one doing all the winning, sure.

Here's a tip - step away from the concept of "your team". Then you'll see 2014 as interesting. There was a tight head to head battle for the WDC, and similar battles in the following pack with some young guns challenging experienced drivers, plus intrigue about the future of Ferrari and Mclaren.

That's a bit difficult to do. And if you're not playing favourites F1 becomes much less interesting. For me anyway.

Unlike football, it is entirely normal for a F1 fan to be a neutral fan of the sport, or a Ferrari fan. RBR superfans seem to be a new thing who were strangely silent from 2005-2008 or before when the team was Jaguar or the fizzy drinks sponsored Sauber. It just reminds me of a 30 year old Manchester United fan as he watches every game from his home in Uxbridge.

[Vasconia]

As long as your team is the one doing all the winning, sure.

Here's a tip - step away from the concept of "your team". Then you'll see 2014 as interesting. There was a tight head to head battle for the WDC, and similar battles in the following pack with some young guns challenging experienced drivers, plus intrigue about the future of Ferrari and Mclaren.

But what fans want is a close battle between the considered(by the vast majority) best drivers of the field. You know who they are, Hamilton, Alonso, Vettel,etc.

A close battle between teammates is only really interesting when there is an important degree of tension and controversial situations(Prost/Senna, Alonso/Hamilton,etc).

Plus, it is not that interesting one you really know from the very first race that the winner will be one of the drivers of a certain team.

For reasons like that fans loved the 2010 season although there was a little degree of overtakes and the races were in general more boring than now.

[Cale24]

I'll be very interested to see how the Rosberg/Hamilton turns out this year. If I am not mistaken, Rosberg has had a good run during testing and has done significantly more laps/miles to Hamilton. I wonder if this will have any effect on their relative performance come Melbourne.

I'll also be very interested to see the toss up between Kimi and Seb. I think they'll be quite well matched, but I think Vettel may have the edge here and there (just a hunch). Then of course there is Alonso. I really hope he'll be fit enough to drive in Melbourne. Very interested to see how Button will do. He can be extremely quick on a good day - the team up with Lewis at McLaren showed this, but he can also be a bit lost at times. I hope we will see both Alonso and Button at their best level with a car that will hopefully be in the mix.

+1. With Rosberg and Hamilton, and I think it will again come down to a metal game. Hamilton having broken up for the 23rd time with his woman will have him slightly rattled I think- and unless he gets the contract situation resolved before Melbourne, that also will be a chink in his armour. And Rosberg will be more determined than ever, a bit like Massa versus Kimi in 2008 as far as the competitive dynamic goes.

Button certainly earned respect during his time alongside Hamilton- far more so than his 09 Brawn campaign. He still has some great Saturdays and especially Sundays left in him- but I fully expect Alonso to have the upper hand. Also, at age 35, a driver's ultimate speed begins to very slightly edge away imo, so all the more tough against a slightly younger driver widely still regarded as the best in the sport. He has his work cut out thats for sure- will also be interesting to see how well the Mp4-30 responds to their different driving styles.
Looking to be a great season, no matter how fast those Mercs are.

[f1316]

Hamilton/rosberg battle in itself is ok if rosberg can stay competitive, what makes it boring is the fact they're 30s down the road and any mistakes are virtually not punished 90% of the time. See 2014 for example.

Although I generally agree with you, there are some mistakes that got punished. Belgium and Hungary for example, one in the pits (or rather the strategy) and and one on the road. Or Russia.

Granted, smaller mistakes like going off the road without destroying your tyres didn't really costed them a lot.

Russia not a great example since the advantage was so huge rosberg could drive through the entire pack

[turbof1]

@Vasconia: You can place Rosberg and Hamilton in the list of controversy between teammates:
-Rosberg's corner cultting in Canada
-Rosberg's car parking during Monaco
-Hamilton's defiance for team orders to let Rosberg through
-Rosberg cutting Hamilton's tyre
-Hamilton countless rants in the media (being more hungry, for instance)

Maybe the 2014 season needs to grow old, getting that flair of nostalgy? Or is it Rosberg not having enough prestige?

Imo fans are primarily concerned with action on track. Fights like Bahrain that create crawling-on-top-of-the-seat suspense.

[NathanOlder]

. It takes multiple screw ups on all fronts so we can have any kind of race for 1st place..

We had races for 1st place in Loads of races this year. Nico vs Lewis.

And intense battles for the podium also, it just wasn't your man Seb producing the results, unfortunately for you anyway.

[Harsha]

Am i in 2015 or 2014?
The 2014 Season is over its not a great one but not a bad one, its a very good entertainer with some drama. for a 10 we can give it a solid 7.5.
But we need a Two team battle like 2012 or 2010 to hunt for the title. Which is what a bit hard considering the Advantage of Mercedes now had over the rest of the field. Great Job by Mercedes for building such ominous monster and not allowing others to catch up.
So we need other teams to do a good job and until then we have what we have despite what ever others wanted.
Hope 2015 is atleast good as 2014 if not better to make others to get attracted.

[Vasconia]

@Vasconia: You can place Rosberg and Hamilton in the list of controversy between teammates:
-Rosberg's corner cultting in Canada
-Rosberg's car parking during Monaco
-Hamilton's defiance for team orders to let Rosberg through
-Rosberg cutting Hamilton's tyre
-Hamilton countless rants in the media (being more hungry, for instance)

Maybe the 2014 season needs to grow old, getting that flair of nostalgy? Or is it Rosberg not having enough prestige?

Imo fans are primarily concerned with action on track. Fights like Bahrain that create crawling-on-top-of-the-seat suspense.

Yes, for reasons which are hard to explain Rosberg seems not to have that prestige or respect between many fans, at least according to many comments I have seen/read in different forums. I have a great respect for Nico, only his traditional lack of character when its about overtaking and his slightly worse performance after Spa prevented him at winning the WC.

You should add some quite aggressive defensive movements from Hamilton during the season. For a yet another unknown reason when Hamilton is involved those movements seem to be normal, but when happens with Rosberg(Spa) some fans tended to overreact.

I personally didnt dislike the 2014 season but I missed to see more teams involved, and obviously drivers like Vettel or Alonso.

[WaikeCU]

@Vasconia: You can place Rosberg and Hamilton in the list of controversy between teammates:
-Rosberg's corner cultting in Canada
-Rosberg's car parking during Monaco
-Hamilton's defiance for team orders to let Rosberg through
-Rosberg cutting Hamilton's tyre
-Hamilton countless rants in the media (being more hungry, for instance)

Maybe the 2014 season needs to grow old, getting that flair of nostalgy? Or is it Rosberg not having enough prestige?

Imo fans are primarily concerned with action on track. Fights like Bahrain that create crawling-on-top-of-the-seat suspense.

It sure was one of the classic seasons imho. It has all the ingredients for a true classic. First of all, it's the new era with the revolutionary technology. A whole different interpretation of putting the power onto the tarmac. Secondly Mercedes have produced a masterpiece in the W05. What's also incredible is the fact Hamilton and Rosberg were teammates/rivals when they were just kids racing karts. Back then they were already dreaming how cool it would've been to be together as teammates in F1 battling for the WDC. The dream eventually became reality. They were dominating really, but rather than just one car dominating, they both pushed each other around the race track to go even harder and sometimes even beyond the limit. As soon friction started, the mindgames started too and that is just fuel for even more excitement. They took the Championship down to the wire.

[Just_a_fan]

I think 2015 will be another 2007. I can see Mercedes imploding if Rosberg manages to best Hamilton on track occasionally. Then they'll end up losing points and someone else will sneak through to clinch it at the last race. Perhaps Kimi again or Seb as the Ferrari appears (at this stage) to be a solid car.

Also, if any of the other teams are closer to Mercedes' pace this year, I think Rosberg might struggle. We know Hamilton is good in wheel-to-wheel racing but there remains a question mark over Rosberg. It would probably benefit Hamilton if another team were closer to the Mercedes.

What will be interesting will be to see if Rosberg's approach to the race weekends changes in line with Hamilton's. If Rosberg concentrates on race pace a bit more then we could be in for some fireworks - and some other teams winning races when the Mercedes repeat Spa race after race!

[turbof1]

@Vasconia: Yes I get that. In that respect 2010 was a very good year: having 3 teams involved and 2 pairs of teammates vying for the title. Concerning the championship it was very tense. Having 5 people involved instead of 2 is of course more appealing. If I had to choose between 2010 and 2014, 2010 wins of course.

Agreed that some of Hamilton's moves were controversial too. There are surely other things I forget, but you get the point .

I think if Rosberg wins alteast once the WDC, I think people will start to think differently about 2014, and about Rosberg.

[Vasconia]

@Vasconia: Yes I get that. In that respect 2010 was a very good year: having 3 teams involved and 2 pairs of teammates vying for the title. Concerning the championship it was very tense. Having 5 people involved instead of 2 is of course more appealing. If I had to choose between 2010 and 2014, 2010 wins of course.

I think if Rosberg wins alteast once the WDC, I think people will start to think differently about 2014, and about Rosberg.

Sure Rosberg deserves more credit. When he was usually ahead of Shumacher in 2010/2011 many people said that it was because Michael was old and was not the same Michael. This was true but he was still fast and Nico did a great job. When Nico started last season ahead of Lewis I think many people started to understand what realy happened in 2010/12 and how fast can Nico be.

The only problem with him is that when things go wrong and he has to be agressive enough to overtake a tough guy like Lewis, he failed to do it.