April 25, 2018

F1 on The ESPNs: Azerbaijan 2018

My apologies for not getting this posted in any sort of timely fashion.  Between becoming old and the continuing problems with my hip, I'm limited to half-hour long stints at the computer more or less.  So no time to waste talking about myself, let's talk about Baku!  Here's the track map:


This is, of course, the circuit famous for its climb past a castle... really, as mentioned before, it's only a curtain wall... in a section of uphill track that's more narrow than anything you'll find at Monaco.  Then it's topped off by a stupidly long straight that, despite having a bend in the middle at Turn 20, is still totally flat out.  This is also the circuit where Seb Vettel and Lewis Hamilton had their little nose-and-tail show last year.  I'm sure we won't see anything quite as interesting this race, but one never knows, does one?

Here's ESPN's coverage schedule:
Saturday
Practice 3: 500a - 630a  live on ESPNews
Quals: 800a - 930a  live on ESPNews
Sunday
2018 Grand Prix of Azerbaijan: 700a - 1000a  live on ESPN2

With any luck, an F1Update! will come along after.  See you then!

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April 18, 2018

We All Need This


While I haven't given up on the F1U! for China, I'm having difficulties actually doing it.  I know it's late already, but... 

...dammit.

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April 14, 2018

F1 Quals: China 2018

A gray, unpleasant-looking day greeted the teams and drivers as they worked on their vehicles with differing degrees of urgency.  Some, like Ferrari, were desultorily polishing the carbon-fiber bodywork to a mirror finish, knowing in their heart of hearts that a shiny car goes through the air better.  Some, like Williams, just stared at their cars with ill-disguised hatred.  And then you had the left side of the Red Bull garage, filled with a frantic but well controlled amount of energy bordering on panic.  


This because Smiley Ricciardo had a pretty comprehensive-looking engine kablammo with a half-hour remaining in P3, requiring an engine change.  On the positive side, they had a new Renault engine in their traveling kit.  On the negative, however, Renault never did finish putting it together before delivering it to the team... at least according to Christian Horner, Red Bull team boss.  So instead of just bolting it in place and away they go (ahem), they had to build the engine (including scavenging parts from the recently-deceased power unit) then attach the rest of the car to it.  There was no real chance they'd get it done in time for Ricciardo to qualify, but they tried anyway.  And got him out with two minutes left in Q1.  Where did he qualify?  How about the rest of the field?  Here's the provisional grid for the 2018 Grand Prix of China:

Pos
Driver Car Q1 Q2 Q3
1 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari 1:32.171 1:32.385 1:31.095
2 Kimi Räikkönen Ferrari 1:32.474 1:32.286 1:31.182
3 Valtteri Bottas Mercedes 1:32.921 1:32.063 1:31.625
4 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:33.283 1:31.914 1:31.675
5 DH Verstappen Red Bull Racing
1:32.932 1:32.809 1:31.796
6 Smiley Ricciardo Red Bull Racing
1:33.877 1:32.688 1:31.948
7 Nico Hulkenberg Renault 1:33.545 1:32.494 1:32.532
8 Sergio Perez Force India Mercedes 1:33.464 1:32.931 1:32.758
9 Carlos Sainz Renault 1:33.315 1:32.970 1:32.819
10 Lettuce Grosjean Haas Ferrari 1:33.238 1:32.524 1:32.855
11 DP Magnussen Haas Ferrari 1:33.359 1:32.986
12 False Esteban! Force India Mercedes 1:33.585 1:33.057
13 Fernando Alonso McLaren Renault 1:33.428 1:33.232
14 Stoffelwaffle McLaren Renault 1:33.824 1:33.505
15 Death To Flying Things Scuderia Toro Rosso
1:34.013 1:33.795
16 Sergey Sirotkin Williams Mercedes 1:34.062

17 Pierre Ghastly Scuderia Toro Rosso
1:34.101

18 Pleasant Stroll Williams Mercedes 1:34.285

19 AMX-30 Leclerc Sauber Ferrari 1:34.454

20 Sony Ericsson Sauber Ferrari 1:34.914


Smiley made it to Q3, ending up in sixth.  Pretty sure those mechanics earned their pay this week.  The rest of qualifying, however, wasn't all that much of a much.  The Ferraris simply slapped down the Mercs, and even when Bottas topped Q2, you just knew the red team had it under control. And so it was.

There is talk that the Mercs are set up for warmer weather, expected at race-time.  It was 53 degrees and windy during quals, and the track wasn't much warmer... hard to bring tires up to temps like that!  If Ferrari set their cars up to heat the tires quickly, they'd get the advantage during quals, but would possibly overheat their tires if the track gets warmer.

We shall see... race is late tonight/early tomorrow!

PS - so much for Toro Rosso, huh?

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April 11, 2018

F1 on The ESPNs: China 2018

Back to back overseas races are hard for everybody involved with F1.  Do a whole race weekend in East Corner-Of-Nowhere, pack up, fly a couple thousand miles, unpack in West Where-The-Hell-Are-We, then go racing again.  This time around, you're looking at about a 12 hour flight from Bahrain to Shanghai on Etihad Air, which includes a 2 hour layover in Abu Dhabi.  It looks like it's on a Boeing Dreamliner, so at least you've got that going for you.  Here's the track map for the 2018 Grand Prix of China:


As I mentioned last year, exactly the same as it's been since 2004.  Though there's been a resurgence in noting that the circuit is shaped like the Chinese character "shang", meaning "high" or "above" or "ascend"... or "up", maybe?  I dunno.  It's the first part of Shanghai... wait... does that mean it's "High hai"?

China has coughed up some good races in the past, often because of rain, so we can cross our fingers that we'll get another Bahrain-level event this weekend.  That'd be fun.  Here's the broadcast schedule for ESPN's coverage:

Friday
Practice 3: 10p-1130p  live on ESPNews
Saturday
Quals: 1a - 3a  live on ESPN2
Sunday
2018 Grand Prix of China: 1a - 330a  live on ESPN2

For a wonder, ESPN came out and said that Quals and Races will be commercial-free for the rest of the season.  I'm okay with that.

See ya!

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April 07, 2018

F1 Quals: Bahrain 2018

Gotta admit, the circuit in Bahrain looks awful purty at night.  But for whom did the stars shine, and for whom did they fall?  Here's the provisional grid for the 2018 Grand Prix of Bahrain:


Pos
Driver Car Q1 Q2 Q3
1 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari 1:29.060 1:28.341 1:27.958
2 Kimi Räikkönen Ferrari 1:28.951 1:28.515 1:28.101
3 Valtteri Bottas Mercedes 1:29.275 1:28.794 1:28.124
4 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:29.396 1:28.458 1:28.220
5 Smiley Ricciardo Red Bull Racing
1:29.552 1:28.962 1:28.398
6 Pierre Ghastly Toro Rosso Honda 1:30.121 1:29.836 1:29.329
7 "DP" Magnussen Haas Ferrari 1:29.594 1:29.623 1:29.358
8 Nico Hulkenberg Renault 1:30.260 1:29.187 1:29.570
9 False Esteban! Force India Mercedes 1:30.338 1:30.009 1:29.874
10 Carlos Sainz Renault 1:29.893 1:29.802 1:29.986
11 Death To Flying Things Toro Rosso Honda 1:30.412 1:30.105
12 Sergio Perez Force India Mercedes 1:30.218 1:30.156
13 LeMans Alonso McLaren Renault 1:30.530 1:30.212
14 Stoffelwaffle McLaren Renault 1:30.479 1:30.525
15 Embryo Verstappen Red Bull Racing 1:29.374 No Time

16 Lettuce Grosjean Haas Ferrari 1:30.530

17 Sony Ericsson Sauber Ferrari 1:31.063

18 Sergey Sirotkin Williams Mercedes 1:31.414

19 AMX_56 Leclerc Sauber Ferrari 1:31.420

20 Pleasant Stroll Williams Mercedes 1:31.503


While Vettel's on pole, it wasn't until the final run in Q2 that he started to show more speed than his teammate Raikkonen.  In fact, it took a truly outstanding lap from the German to beat Raikkonen in Q2, and in Q3 it was Vettel's last run that wound up being just a bit too good for anybody to catch.  The other flying Finn, Valterri Bottas and his Mercedes, put up good times but nothing to rival the Ferraris, and Lewis Hamilton left himself with a massive problem on Sunday.  Not only did he not get on the front row, but he had to change a gearbox between Australia and here. Apparently he very nearly was unable to finish the first race of the year... I had read somewhere that he had an oil leak that got into the gearbox and played all sorts of merry hell with the finely machined chunks of space-age technology in there.  In any case, that means a five-spot grid penalty, and that means he's actually starting in 9th, right where the midfield can bounce him around in Turn 1.

Speaking of the midfield, it's somewhat disheartening to see McLaren getting so stiffly roflstomped by Toro Rosso; not only did the former Minardi team beat both McLarens, but it wasn't even close... and the Ghastly one even made it into Q3, where he ends up in fifth after Hamilton's penalty.  AND I even got a nickname for Brendon Hartley, who ran into a bird during today's sessions.  Neither Force India impressed today... I didn't realize one was in Q3, they were so not-fast.

But the biggest pain has to be felt by Haas.  From looking like serious contenders for "best of the midfield" rights to having Lettuce miss out on Q2 by literally the slimmest of margins (he and Alonso set exactly the same time, 1:30.530, in Q1, but since the McLaren driver did it first, he ended up in 15th and moved on).  There must be much confusion and consternation in the American team's pits right about now. Why is K-Mag now being called "DP" Magnussen?  Heh... you asked for it.

On international television, too.

The less said about Williams, the better.  That was ugly, and Pleasant Stroll looked seriously pissed in an interview afterwards.

So the race is late tomorrow morning.  I hope to be along sometime that evening with the F1Update!, but my computer woes are beginning to become terminal.  My hard drive coughed up a "terminal failure" report to the various startup menu tests this morning, but eventually it booted.  I've spent the best part of the afternoon copying important things to flash drives and external hard drives and writing down passwords for places I don't often access.  I do have my laptop, of course, but that's a whole different set of problems to deal with.  In any case, sooner or later it'll be up.

See ya then!

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April 03, 2018

F1 on The ESPNs: Bahrain 2018

The plane from Spain lands mainly in Bahrain.


No, I don't know what that means either, but it made me giggle.  The Great F1 Thingy is in the teeny island nation with the big oil money-filled bank accounts, Bahrain... as opposed to the teeny island nation with the big oil money-filled bank accounts, Abu Dhabi.  Basically the same place, except for the revolts and the shootings and... yes, well.  Ahem.  Let's take a look at the track map, shall we?

Ah, nothing like reusing an old classic.  I'm less than thrilled that there's still a race here, but what's a little bit of ethics when there's money to be made?  In the past, I'd say that this was a dead-solid Mercedes victory... it's the sort of circuit that their car loves... but who knows yet?  They looked good in Australia, but they couldn't get past the Ferrari for the lead with more than 25 laps to work with.  So I officially declare this race to be wide open.

Which means that Mercedes will make everybody look silly.

ESPN has the coverage again, and they're confusing the hell outta me with their programming choices.  Let's take a look: 

Friday
Nothing!  It's all streaming.
Saturday
Practice 3: 700a - 800a  live on ESPNews
Quals: 1000a - 1130a live on ESPN2
Sunday
2018 Grand Prix of Bahrain: 1000a - 1230p live on ESPN2

If we're lucky, they listened to all the screaming of US F1 fans and will improve their coverage, maybe by having a real person watching for when to run commercials.  If we're not lucky... there will be a very pissed off duck.

F1Update! afterwards.  Eventually.  See ya then!

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