Motorsports Discussion Thread

[Supercrumpet]

Anyone interested in striking up some F1 discussion? Was quite the finish to the race, and sets a fantastic precedent for the season to come.

 

Great start to the motorsports year in general as well. All three F2 races from that weekend were absolutely fantastic, full of action. Nascar has been getting underway, seven unique winners in the first seven races. Extreme E has had a good start to the entire series, based on the headlines I've seen. I'd like to actually watch some if I have the time. I know MotoGP and Formula E have also gotten going, but I don't follow those quite as closely, as much as I'd like to.

[BWG]

Let's talk about Mustangs, Camaros, and poorly edited videos of BWG!

 

I used to watch every NASCAR race and some NHRA, but when Mark Martin retired, it became a lot less. It does help my kids fall asleep when watching all of those left turns.

 

 

 

[Avacado]

2 minutes ago, BWG said:

Let's talk about Mustangs, Camaros, and poorly edited videos of BWG!

 

I used to watch every NASCAR race and some NHRA, but when Mark Martin retired, it became a lot less. It does help my kids fall asleep when watching all of those left turns.

 

 

 

 

 

I used to have an 04' GT, Loved that car, got totaled one morning on the way to class (Some lady failed to yield left turn on green) and I got T-boned. I had JUST made my last payment on her. I really do miss that ride.

 

[BWG]

3 minutes ago, Avacado said:

 

 

I used to have an 04' GT, Loved that car, got totaled one morning on the way to class (Some lady failed to yield left turn on green) and I got T-boned. I had JUST made my last payment on her. I really do miss that ride.

 

 

That stinks! So, what did you replace it with? I have a friend that has a new edge. My Audi beats it surprisingly. But, he can do a burnout and quattro won't let me.

 

Those vids were stock other than wheels and tires, but it's tuned on e-85 with a few other mods. Should run 11.1 with the right driver or me practicing more. 2nd maro got the jump, so I hopped it a little trying to get back in front, and I did.

 

But, I'm getting ready to sell it.

[Supercrumpet]

On 4/6/2021 at 7:50 AM, BWG said:

Let's talk about Mustangs, Camaros, and poorly edited videos of BWG!

 

I used to watch every NASCAR race and some NHRA, but when Mark Martin retired, it became a lot less. It does help my kids fall asleep when watching all of those left turns.

 

 

 

 

Funnily enough drag racing is one form of motorsport that I'm not super interested in watching at a professional level, which is rare. I can appreciate the time and engineering that goes into it, but purely from a spectator standpoint the action to prep ratio is pretty low. Definitely looks like fun though, and credit to you for going out and pushing your cars, doesn't happen often enough.

 

In a similar vein I went autocrossing for the first time ever a few weeks ago in my '03 BMW 330i. It's got like 202k miles on it, bone stock, and it's more of a backup car now that I take on some errands once every week or two to keep the juices flowing and whatnot. Had a great time and the car held up super well (plus I have to say I was surprised by my own performance), really looking forward to the next opportunity to do so. Long live amateur motorsports!

Edited April 7, 2021 by Supercrumpet

[Supercrumpet]

Had some FSAE business at KSU last weekend, and Road Atlanta was right on the way from Clemson. Decided to swing by for the end of the Formula D weekend there, was a really cool experience.

 

 

[Bastiaan_NL]

I've seen you live 

So jealous, one day I'll be there at Road Atlanta!

 

I was up until around 4am to watch the finals, I love the 6 hours time difference..

[Avacado]

42 minutes ago, Bastiaan_NL said:

I've seen you live 

So jealous, one day I'll be there at Road Atlanta!

 

I was up until around 4am to watch the finals, I love the 6 hours time difference..

And when you get there, you better stop by and say hi, I'm only a 3 hour drive from Atlanta.  @Supercrumpet You live in Clemson? That's even closer. 

[Bastiaan_NL]

5 minutes ago, Avacado said:

And when you get there, you better stop by and say hi, I'm only a 3 hour drive from Atlanta.  @Supercrumpet You live in Clemson? That's even closer. 

No doubt that would be part of the vacation! 
I heard the party's at Road Atlanta are like no other FD event  

[Supercrumpet]

Wild past few weeks in motorsports. Had some really crazy races in Indycar, F1, Nascar, and Formula E.

 

Anyone thinking about going to Petit Le Mans? Few FSAE guys and I are starting that conversation, since we usually go.

[Supercrumpet]

Went to my first Nascar race last weekend with the gf at the Charlotte Roval (infield road course, not full oval), and had a fantastic time. Very pleased with the seats I picked, and the late race drama was really cool to experience in person with the crowd. Only got one picture and no videos because I was too busy enjoying the race, but I suppose that's not such a bad thing. Couldn't have asked for better weather either.

 

About to buy Petit tickets too. Anyone else planning on going?

 

[Andrew]

 

[Supercrumpet]

20 hours ago, Andrew said:

 

 

What a disaster of a race though, in regards to how the result was achieved.

 

And I think we can all at least agree on this:

 

[Andrew]

4 hours ago, Supercrumpet said:

 

What a disaster of a race though, in regards to how the result was achieved.

 

And I think we can all at least agree on this:

 

 

Spoiler

 

I'd honestly say no. Mercedes had 2 chances to bring in Hamilton for fresh tyres but chose not to.

Both drivers were tied on points, only a moron would've thought the race would end under SC.

[Supercrumpet]

On 13/12/2021 at 13:48, Andrew said:

I'd honestly say no. Mercedes had 2 chances to bring in Hamilton for fresh tyres but chose not to.

Both drivers were tied on points, only a moron would've thought the race would end under SC.

 

And I honestly disagree lol, with how unpredictable the FIA/race director/stewards are about this sort of stuff, and how inconsistently long it can take to clear a car, I think I would have done the same. Staying out like they did also would have given them the upper hand if the race was red-flagged, which I think they would have done if they couldn't have cleared Latifi's car in time (as opposed to ending the race under SC).

[J7SC_Orion]

...I used to b a big F1 fan, meaning I would get up at 4.30 am local time to watch the races. These days, I just watch the odd race and/or summaries as it has become what looks like a scripted reality tv show.

 

IMO, things were already off the rails in Saudi Arabia re. inconsistent rule applications. I also did not like  F1 singling out Verstappen before the last race with a warning - if anything, it should have officially addressed both leading drivers.

 

As to the race in Abu Dhabi, it was a farce, including the outrageous (and in my opinion dirty) blocking Perez was allowed to get away with lap after lap...just checking the time lost by Hamilton / gained by Perez's teammate Verstappen says it all. 

 

As to the final lap, clearly neither C.Horner nor T.Wolff should even be allowed to have direct contact with the race director during a race.

 

In the end, Verstappen won the deserved driver's title while Mercedes added another constructor's title...sort of what I was hoping for, but in a different manner not tainted by what we saw.

[Andrew]

Apparently Hamilton asked Mercedes to drop the protests on the results. If true then that just shows Mercedes are bad losers.

 

As far as the FIA being inconsistent, yeah they have been. I've seen a lot of people on the internet saying the FIA are racist because they don't want a black person to have the most championship wins. No.

 

 

If that were true, Hamilton wouldn't have the most wins and wouldn't be tied in first place with Schumacher for championship wins. Also during Silverstone this year, they would have DQ'd him after the incident he had with Max. This would have put Max in the lead during the final race by a fairly decent margin rather than it being tied. In fact, he wouldn't be racing at all if they were racist. They'd come up with some stupid rule as to why he can't race and his seat would be taken by some one else.

 

Not only that, but Hamilton isn't going anywhere next season. There are big rule changes for next season, but I doubt Mercedes are just going to drop off in performance as a result. I'm pretty sure they'd still have one of the quickest car on the grid so there's a good chance Hamilton could still get that 8th championship.

 

What's even more ridiculous are people saying Max doesn't deserve the win. I am pretty sure the Red Bull is a better car, or at least it was during the first half of the season. You can tell just by how many laps Max had led during the entire season.

Mercedes won a lot of races through having a better strategy than RB. Both drivers deserved to win the championship, they're both extremely good as are the teams.

[Andrew]

Seems like that rumour about Hamilton asking Mercedes to drop the protests may have been true.

 

Mercedes will not pursue appeal against F1 title-deciding Abu Dhabi result - BBC Sport

WWW.BBC.CO.UK

---

Mercedes decide not to pursue their appeal against the results of the Formula 1 title-deciding Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

 

[J7SC_Orion]

1 hour ago, Andrew said:

Seems like that rumour about Hamilton asking Mercedes to drop the protests may have been true.

 

Mercedes will not pursue appeal against F1 title-deciding Abu Dhabi result - BBC Sport

WWW.BBC.CO.UK

---

Mercedes decide not to pursue their appeal against the results of the Formula 1 title-deciding Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

 

 

....may be, or may be it is the result of more corporate interest decision-making to limit (further) brand damage. Toto Wolff said that he and Hamilton won't be attending the gala where the trophy will be handed to Verstappen. In that announcement, he indicated that he is 'following Hamilton's decision not to attend'. Technically, Hamilton is required to attend as one of the top three drivers, according to the rule book. I doubt the FIA will pursue that though if indeed it comes to pass. 

 

...anyway, it's like a big pile-up on a busy, foggy highway...lots of damage and debris with mostly losers - and a lengthy accident investigation to follow (also announced by FIA).

 

..one can argue that this situation would not have occurred under the late Charlie Whiting as race director, though that's Monday-morning-quarterback stuff. I do think that Michael Masi hasn't had enough time to build up his authority, and I reiterate my point in my earlier post, and that is that Christian Horner and Toto Wolff should never have been allowed to have direct verbal communication with Masi during a race for a variety of good reasons, including their monetary role in F1 negotiations.  I blame those two for most of it though do understand their motivation from a corporate POV.

 

Finally, I wonder if time heals all wounds - though some of it will stick. I do recall the situation between Hamilton and Rosberg when the latter beat his teammate Hamilton for the driver championship. There were some questionable behaviour on/off track and some odd calls (or no calls) during some races. 

[Supercrumpet]

Taking a look at the season as a whole, yes Max is more deserving of the WDC, but that may be easy to forget if you only look at Lewis' pace and performance since Brazil or so. Just very weird to think about since the points didn't quite play out that way.

 

And if I'm not mistaken, a change was already made, stating that team principals will no longer be allowed to speak directly to the race director to influence decisions like we saw on Sunday, so that's a step in the right direction.

 

Oh, and as far as still getting enjoyment out of watching - I can understand losing interest due to this or that, but man, I'm still just fascinated by the engineering and tech that goes into them, so I'm still quite entertained by just watching the cars lapping out there, regardless of what else is going on. I totally understand that that's not the case for everyone though. Nice thing about sport is there are always multiple reasons to watch, enjoy, and be a fan.

Edited December 17, 2021 by Supercrumpet

[J7SC_Orion]

3 hours ago, Supercrumpet said:

Taking a look at the season as a whole, yes Max is more deserving of the WDC, but that may be easy to forget if you only look at Lewis' pace and performance since Brazil or so. Just very weird to think about since the points didn't quite play out that way.

 

And if I'm not mistaken, a change was already made, stating that team principals will no longer be allowed to speak directly to the race director to influence decisions like we saw on Sunday, so that's a step in the right direction.

 

Oh, and as far as still getting enjoyment out of watching - I can understand losing interest due to this or that, but man, I'm still just fascinated by the engineering and tech that goes into them, so I'm still quite entertained by just watching the cars lapping out there, regardless of what else is going on. I totally understand that that's not the case for everyone though. Nice thing about sport is there are always multiple reasons to watch, enjoy, and be a fan.

 

...I would still consider myself a good fan, just not one who gets up for most races at 4.30 am anymore (Pacific NW time zone)...at a reasonable early morning hour for me, there are already plenty of YouTube and other summaries waiting for me.

 

As to Max, I will say that he was exciting to watch as, IMO, a couple of times in recent races in particular, he was driving beyond 100%

 

 

[Supercrumpet]

Anyone else following this year's F1 season (or any other series) closely so far? Gonna be up nice and late for the next couple nights watching the Australian GP + qualifying life.

[Andrew]

5 hours ago, Supercrumpet said:

Anyone else following this year's F1 season (or any other series) closely so far? Gonna be up nice and late for the next couple nights watching the Australian GP + qualifying life.

I am and I'm watching (most) of the races live. The new regulations have made a huge difference to the actual race. They're back to racing like they were in the 90s with cars that look like they're from the 90s.

 

Aston Martin went a bit crazy with their design though. I'm surprised the FIA only gave them a 5000 euro fine for their Australia car.

[Supercrumpet]

1 hour ago, Andrew said:

I am and I'm watching (most) of the races live. The new regulations have made a huge difference to the actual race. They're back to racing like they were in the 90s with cars that look like they're from the 90s.

 

Aston Martin went a bit crazy with their design though. I'm surprised the FIA only gave them a 5000 euro fine for their Australia car.

 

Honestly I'm holding my breath a little on judging the new regs since both of those circuits have been pretty good with overtaking already. I'm curious to see if there's a change at tracks like Catalunya. The first two races were definitely fantastic though.

[Supercrumpet]

Bumping this thread to see if anyone that's joined EHW recently has some motorsports interest.

 

What series will you be watching/following this year?