How many reference point does a driver take?

[Richard]

There is a youtube video of Brundle and Schumacher comparing their data through a corner. Its the same as the V and U profile discussed above for Mika and DC. The U gives a better lap time, even though you lose speed earlier.

If your car is on the limit of adhesion (braking, turning, accelerating) as you go through a corner, then it is all determined as you enter the corner because you have no slack for adjustment. Good drivers use their spatial awareness and feel for the grip (like a 6th sense) rather than a conscious markers.

It's a bit like a footie goalkeeper knows where he is in relation to his goal posts even though the posts are behind him.

[raymondu999]

care to pass a link for that vid? I'd love to see that vid

[marcush.]

a good hint at this is:
There have been more than one example of drivers not participating in free practise sessions but beeing thrown in Q with not even the slightest chance of sampling the car or track as their opponents did for hours in the days before...but it never shows in the lap times during the Q sessions ,no in a ways it seems that eventually these guys with less practise time seem to do inevitably very good under those conditions....

Or on a different note:I have seen overlays of very similar laptimes from drivers in the same car doing all quite differently ,and I even saw lap times of the same driver doing constant laptimes but not reproducing consistency in his doings on track...there is surprisingly many ways to get a decent laptime out of what you got in hand.