Is the RB19 Dominant?

[Sieper]

Mercedes was quite close in Australia. Certainly able to keep AMR at bay. Let’s see what will happen the next races. Imho the RB19 is the best car this season, but we’ll just have to see what transpires.

[PlatinumZealot]

In Baku it was 0.5 seconds a lap out front of Leclerc.

[ValeVida46]

In Baku it was 0.5 seconds a lap out front of Leclerc.

On average, but if you look at the pace discrepancy once the safety car went into the pits on Lap 14, by lap 20(6laps later) they were 8 seconds up the road and by lap 32 (18 laps later) it was 18 seconds.
So they had a second a lap advantage, and even if we speculate that Le Clerc was saving tyres for the end of the race, the Red Bulls still managed to increase that gap while one supposedly overcooked tyres.

[Sofa King]

Baku showed the true pace of the RB19, as it’s not very often we see the Red Bulls pushing to the Max, who was chasing Sergio to get within DRS. On Lap 19, the top 8 were all on 7-9 lap old hards near their peak performance and all from the top 4 teams. Only HAM had DRS. Red Bull was 1.30-1.77 seconds a lap faster than all the other cars. That is dominance. Someone else here can put it in a historical context.

In Baku it was 0.5 seconds a lap out front of Leclerc.

On average, but if you look at the pace discrepancy once the safety car went into the pits on Lap 14, by lap 20(6laps later) they were 8 seconds up the road and by lap 32 (18 laps later) it was 18 seconds.
So they had a second a lap advantage, and even if we speculate that Le Clerc was saving tyres for the end of the race, the Red Bulls still managed to increase that gap while one supposedly overcooked tyres.

[organic]

I've personally lost interest in the season. The rb19 is far too dominant - over a second per lap across bahrain, saudi and Baku - and it's made an already weak product fairly dire.

I'll be tuning back in when things are less of a washout at the front or when the cars are enjoyable to watch. The regs have produced boats and now they can't even race well because the dirty air has been reintroduced.. and the frontrunners are not close to being challenged.

It's all been said before, but this level of dominance feels more debilitating to the viewing experience than the W11 did

On the basis of the results so far Singapore and Monaco look like races that the RB19 could lose as a result of qualifying, but anything else seems unlikely

[Matt2725]

I've personally lost interest in the season. The rb19 is far too dominant - over a second per lap across bahrain, saudi and Baku - and it's made an already weak product fairly dire.

I'll be tuning back in when things are less of a washout at the front or when the cars are enjoyable to watch. The regs have produced boats and now they can't even race well because the dirty air has been reintroduced.. and the frontrunners are not close to being challenged.

It's all been said before, but this level of dominance feels more debilitating to the viewing experience than the W11 did

On the basis of the results so far Singapore and Monaco look like races that the RB19 could lose as a result of qualifying, but anything else seems unlikely

Regarding the W11 and 2020, the racing was better that season I reckon and we also had some interesting circuits thrown into the mix that hadn't been seen in a while or ever.
I'm confident to suggest a RB driver will win the WDC this year (99% chance it's Verstappen) and RB will be the constructors champions again with again, almost certainty.
But what do you do? Tweak the regs again which could (again), cause another disparity at the front. Or do you leave them alone and see if anyone catches up?

The other option would be a larger deduction in wind tunnel/CFD time for the WCCs (or those in P1 at the reset) when the allocation is handed out.

[chrisc90]

I've personally lost interest in the season. The rb19 is far too dominant - over a second per lap across bahrain, saudi and Baku - and it's made an already weak product fairly dire.

I'll be tuning back in when things are less of a washout at the front or when the cars are enjoyable to watch. The regs have produced boats and now they can't even race well because the dirty air has been reintroduced.. and the frontrunners are not close to being challenged.

It's all been said before, but this level of dominance feels more debilitating to the viewing experience than the W11 did

On the basis of the results so far Singapore and Monaco look like races that the RB19 could lose as a result of qualifying, but anything else seems unlikely

Regarding the W11 and 2020, the racing was better that season I reckon and we also had some interesting circuits thrown into the mix that hadn't been seen in a while or ever.
I'm confident to suggest a RB driver will win the WDC this year (99% chance it's Verstappen) and RB will be the constructors champions again with again, almost certainty.
But what do you do? Tweak the regs again which could (again), cause another disparity at the front. Or do you leave them alone and see if anyone catches up?

The other option would be a larger deduction in wind tunnel/CFD time for the WCCs (or those in P1 at the reset) when the allocation is handed out.

RB will have a increase in tunnel/CFD time come October when the cost cap penalty expires. So they are already running at a disadvantage to usual. Something that could impact the '24 car more than anything, unless RB are very happy with the RB19 and start progress on the RB20 very very early on compared to usual instead of bringing upgrades in the 2nd half the season.

They tweaked the regs last year, twice, TD039 and the raised floor/throat height between seasons and it didnt really affect the pace of the RB compared to others.

I dont think there will be any attempts to 'kerb' the RB to be honest in terms of reg tweaks. RB will be far too wise to that and you will just see a car that runs at 85-90% capacity, or just enough to be a couple tenths ahead of their competitors. Something with is very easily done on the fly during the race with the ERS deployment.

Granted we dont really get much 'racing' with the RBs at the moment, no complaints from me and they fully deserve the 'advantage' they have. They built a good car, and deserve everything they achieve.

[mendis]

If not for a disruption in 2014, where Mercedes got ahead with the engine and Renault dropped the ball, the Red Bull would have continued the domination. Since 2009, they are the team with strong aero understanding. With Honda providing an equal engine, Red Bull is back to dominating again. I bet, no matter what regulation changes FIA might introduce, if the engine parity continues, Red Bull will always stay ahead, even if not with the current margin they have. But with RB currently running with handicap of wind tunnel time, still having a second a lap advantage is not a good omen. When they get their full wind tunnel time back, they might further that advantage.

[LM10]

If not for a disruption in 2014, where Mercedes got ahead with the engine and Renault dropped the ball, the Red Bull would have continued the domination. Since 2009, they are the team with strong aero understanding. With Honda providing an equal engine, Red Bull is back to dominating again. I bet, no matter what regulation changes FIA might introduce, if the engine parity continues, Red Bull will always stay ahead, even if not with the current margin they have. But with RB currently running with handicap of wind tunnel time, still having a second a lap advantage is not a good omen. When they get their full wind tunnel time back, they might further that advantage.

RedBull started dominating last year. Before that, they needed the floor changes of 2021 to beat Mercedes for the title.

As for the wind tunnel time, they’re still enjoying the advantages of having spent more money than others. The effects of the penalty might not be seen before around halftime through the season.

[AR3-GP]

I think F1 needs to go back to equal windtunnel hours for everyone. It's an elephant in the room. No one is talking about it, but it's not F1 at all to have something like this. You might as well have success ballast.

[Zynerji]

They just need to share design data.

[chrisc90]

They just need to share design data.

Lol. No they don’t. Might aswell make it a spec series if you think sharing design data is a good idea

[mendis]

They just need to share design data.

Great idea! I have better one. Red Bull should design and manufacture manufacture all 20 cars on the grid!

[mendis]

If not for a disruption in 2014, where Mercedes got ahead with the engine and Renault dropped the ball, the Red Bull would have continued the domination. Since 2009, they are the team with strong aero understanding. With Honda providing an equal engine, Red Bull is back to dominating again. I bet, no matter what regulation changes FIA might introduce, if the engine parity continues, Red Bull will always stay ahead, even if not with the current margin they have. But with RB currently running with handicap of wind tunnel time, still having a second a lap advantage is not a good omen. When they get their full wind tunnel time back, they might further that advantage.

RedBull started dominating last year. Before that, they needed the floor changes of 2021 to beat Mercedes for the title.

As for the wind tunnel time, they’re still enjoying the advantages of having spent more money than others. The effects of the penalty might not be seen before around halftime through the season.

So Mercedes was one trick pony that lost all the advantage with a few mm cut to the floor, despite getting tyre change of choice mid season. That says a lot.

We are two months in to the season with Red Bull penalty enforced on October last year and another 5 months to go, with Red Bull having over a second advantage. No one is catching them. They might even be hiding their true pace. They might even be loading the car in qualifying to give an impression that everyone is close. Come race day, everyone goes full tank and RB19 is a second ahead.

[ValeVida46]

They just need to share design data.

I wouldn't be against that idea, but it needs to be balanced. For example the main issue I have is when eras of dominance occur, it generally takes years to back. Williams, McLaren, Ferrari, Red Bull and Mercedes are all prime examples, through a host of rules and eras. If as a spectacle you want close racing, that isn't artificial or overly punishes the winners or losers you need a pragmatic and balanced approach.
Reward the winners, but not at the expense of the sport.

The question really is how. Your proposal is good but how would you implement it without hurting the innovation aspect? For me, it would be formula based. If a team wins 50% of a seasons races, the other teams can have a consensus vote on one aspect of the car they want design data on at the end of that season.

So there are 5 factors at play.
1. A team needs to demonstrate clear superiority, that also encompasses results that they can't(or shouldnt) manipulate to fall under 50%.
2. Teams would need consensus agreement as to what aspect of data they want shared. Call it 50%, with deliberation between them permissible to allow for consensus.
3. The winning team still gets rewarded and isn't sacrificing the entire lamb for next season as it's only 1 aspect.
4. The sport doesn't suffer processional races, or predictable results with 85% + certainty. If they do, there's a tangible consequence that doesn't overly punish the winning team.
5. The hit to a dominant team is not harsh, still rewards innovation, and allows for a faster convergence in speed between all the teams.

Given the rule change was meant to give closer racing and less ability to dominate, this has clearly failed and we are seeing the exact same pattern repeat. This pattern needs breaking, and rather than relying on penalties for budget cap breaches to close the field, something more tangible is required for the now and the future.