[oqvist]

It will be knockout for the first two sessions and business as usual for the last? 

 

[wuwhere]

NNO, Q1 is new Q2 is new but Q3 is old, until they come up with something new and exciting.

 

[MuZo2]

NNO, Q1 is new Q2 is new but Q3 is old, until they come up with something new and exciting.

I think its same like Australia.
Whilst the teams had agreed in Melbourne to revert to the old (2015) format, this wasn't an option provided by Jean Todt when he attended the F1 Commission last week. Instead, despite the Melbourne agreement, Todt wanted a hybrid format, featuring Q1 and Q2 as seen in Melbourne, whilst Q3 would revert to the old style.
Unhappy with the volte face, and the way the matter had been handled having reached unanimous agreement in Melbourne, McLaren, Red Bull, Toro Rosso and Force India voted against Todt's proposal meaning that the new format is used again this weekend.

 

[xkonfuzed]

Not a fan of Hamilton's but can't deny that was a spectacular lap.

 

[Hutnicks]

  Not a fan of Hamilton's but can't deny that was a spectacular lap.

No denying that.
 
The team principles will be having strokes now over that format.
Rosberg must be eating his own liver right about now.

 

[xkonfuzed]

  No denying that.
 
The team principles will be having strokes now over that format.
Rosberg must be eating his own liver right about now.

I feel bad for him honestly. Faster all weekend except Q3. 
 
New format doesn't really affect the front runners much, its the guys at the back of the pack that are suffering. And its catastrophically boring. IMO it must be scrapped. 

 

[Herueyes]

It was a SEXY lap... ;-D

 

[Hutnicks]

  I feel bad for him honestly. Faster all weekend except Q3. 
 
New format doesn't really affect the front runners much, its the guys at the back of the pack that are suffering. And its catastrophically boring. IMO it must be scrapped. 

 
I suspect John Death will not be in charge of the FIA much longer if this whole F1 mess is not addressed.

It was a SEXY lap... ;-D

There's something you rarely hear. It was the accompanying giggling that got to me.

 

[WraithApe]

 
New format doesn't really affect the front runners much, its the guys at the back of the pack that are suffering. And its catastrophically boring. IMO it must be scrapped. 

 
I second that - about half of qualifying is watching an empty track and the end of each session is spent waiting for the clock to tick down after the order has already been decided. No last minute drama. The directors were so bored by the end of Q2 they preferred to film a car being pushed back into the garage than give Williams TV time (which is presumably the main reason they went out again). Who on earth thought this was a good idea? Still, it wouldn't surprise me if Bernie and the FIA stick with the format in the face of overwhelming criticism, that's how pig-headed they are.
 
Great final lap by Hamilton in Q3 - hope he gets a good start in the race this time! I'm not a huge fan of MC Hammy either; I admire him as a driver but only root for him cos he's a Brit, rather than being bowled over by his winning personality.

 

[Hutnicks]

In other news. I was waiting for this one.  The Sky sports crew really needs to look at their own records before offering career advice to WDC's
 
 
http://wwos.ninemsn.com.au/2016/04/03/13/56/formula-one-fernando-alonso-slams-johnny-herbert-about-retirement
 
 
And.   http://www.bbc.com/sport/formula1/35954305
 
The Qualy issue is going to become the poster child for everything wrong with F1 these days.

 

[xkonfuzed]

Appalling luck for Vettel. Engine failure before the race even started. Shame really, as a Ferrari fan I was looking forward to a battle at the front row between him and the Merc guys. Nontheless Raikkonen still got podium at least. 
 
On another note, just how quick is that Haas car Grosjean is driving? He really is on a roll, its quite shocking actually. Williams are known for their straight line speed and for him to just breeze past them with ease on the straights was a sight to behold. 

 

[Hutnicks]

  Appalling luck for Vettel. Engine failure before the race even started. Shame really, as a Ferrari fan I was looking forward to a battle at the front row between him and the Merc guys. Nontheless Raikkonen still got podium at least. 
 
On another note, just how quick is that Haas car Grosjean is driving? He really is on a roll, its quite shocking actually. Williams are known for their straight line speed and for him to just breeze past them with ease on the straights was a sight to behold. 

Kimi in fine form.  Not a bad race at all. I can already hear Bernie suggesting that a first corner incident should be mandatory from now on to mix up the grid
 
The HAAS thing is quite perplexing. I suspect they are not using the same "last years news" engines TR are getting.

 

[oqvist]

Haas is using the 2016 Ferrari engine. Essentially the same Seb and Kimi is using. They got access to Ferraris wind tunnel even so it´s not strange they are competitive. Williams whine about this but they never mention the bribe money they get from FIA. They get more money from Bahrain while not performing. 
 
Sadly Ferrari is not really competitive. Obviously pushing their package harder then Mercedes yet still quite a bit off. Really sad to see how easy Hamilton could secure a third with such a battered car just say it all. 

 

[Hutnicks]

  Haas is using the 2016 Ferrari engine. Essentially the same Seb and Kimi is using. They got access to Ferraris wind tunnel even so it´s not strange they are competitive. Williams whine about this but they never mention the bribe money they get from FIA. They get more money from Bahrain while not performing. 
 
Sadly Ferrari is not really competitive. Obviously pushing their package harder then Mercedes yet still quite a bit off. Really sad to see how easy Hamilton could secure a third with such a battered car just say it all. 

I knew HAAS was on the very border of using too much Ferrari tech, but did not know it was the current spec engine. Thanks for the info. Sir Frank will be apoplectic if HAAS has better earnings than him this season. I imagine Dieter Dead Bull will be none too happy either.
 
Just shows how total the package Merc really is. On the one hand hats off to them and why the hell can no one else get it done? On the other, another runaway Merc stampede season will all but kill the sport dead.

 

[xkonfuzed]

 
I knew HAAS was on the very border of using too much Ferrari tech, but did not know it was the current spec engine. Thanks for the info. Sir Frank will be apoplectic if HAAS has better earnings than him this season. I imagine Dieter Dead Bull will be none too happy either.
 
Just shows how total the package Merc really is. On the one hand hats off to them and why the hell can no one else get it done? On the other, another runaway Merc stampede season will all but kill the sport dead.

Mercedes really are sucking every bit of life there is to the sport. But I guess you can't blame them for designing a car that is superior to everyone else's.