2011 Formula 1 Season

[Diamicles]

Ok, so there has to be some F1 fans in here.

What are your initial impressions of the season, after Australia and the winter testing?

Red Bull looks really strong again, and McLaren doesn't look too far behind, and will probably catch up quick. Will HRT actually qualify for a starting grid position with the 107% rule in effect?

Who's going to be the surprise team this year? My money is on Renault or Mercedes, if they get their acts together in time they could challenge for a top 3 manufacturer spot, especially if Ferrari doesn't show improvement quickly.

Who's your favorite for the driver's championship this year? I'm a big fan of Jensen Button and would like to see him get another title.

Lets get some F1 discussion going!

[*Shinzon*]

I watch whenever I can, Primarily only because I can never seem to actually sit down and watch the full thing. At any rate, Vettel has been a beast again and is still setting the fastest times without use of Kers during early tests which probably doesn't bode well for anyone else.

[Diamicles]

my DVR was my best friend for getting back into it the last 2 seasons, I'm not up at 1230am or w/e to watch them

Red Bull is supposed to have KERS ready for Malaysia this weekend. Free Practice shows Webber, Button, Hamilton, Vettel and Schumacher as top 5 fastest times, in that order.

[Elesirdur]

I'm kind of amazed Schumacher stuck it in again this season, or that Mercedes let him. I'm excited to watch another 4-way race this year between Vettel, Webber, Button, and Hamilton, with Rossberg and Alonso always ready to make it interesting.

As for watching the races, I typically just torrent them a day or so later. Even if they do broadcast them in Canada we get the crummy TSN commentary, and I really enjoyed DC and Eddie Jordan going at it last year in the booth.

[Esvedium]

I'm super excited that f1 is on again. The "first" race in Australia was good, but I'm anxious to see what Red Bull can do once they get their KERS system up and running. I really don't want to see a run-away season like ferrari back in the day, though, so hopefully McLaren, Fernando, etc. can step up and make it a good season.

I wonder if Massa will ever be competitive again. He seems to have lost the drive to win after the spring to the head incident. =/ Not that I can really blame the guy.

I'd really like to see Webber finish on top this season, but if we get another "down to the last race of the season" finish and I really don't care who wins.

Also, Kubika needs to get back in the driver's seat soon!

[*Shinzon*]

If you guys like a weekly breakdown of racing, what this show Fridays. Really great show and it's how I get my racing news regularly.

[Diamicles]

another interesting and very entertaining race in Malaysia! The new Pirelli tires are making things very interesting, and it's fun to watch the different pit strategies.

Vettel looks really good at this point in the season, but it looks like McLaren should be closing the gap in the next couple of races. That is unless Red Bull gets their KERS working.

good to see Renault continue to make progress, Petrov was having a great race before he launched his car and broke the steering column...and obviously Heidfeld performed well and got on the podium. The R31 chassis seems to be very strong this year. It's unfortunate that Kubica isn't behind the wheel, but I'm sure everyone at Lotus Renault GP is happy so far with the performance of the drivers.

Ferrari looks almost desperate at this early point in the season. Not a big fan of Alonso so I didn't mind seeing him have to make an extra stop, but it's good to see Massa have a good performance.

[Eliseos]

If Red Bull can get their KERS working in the next couple of weeks, I don't think anyone is touching Vettel for the championship. He doesn't look like he needs it, but it will definitely help Webber, especially to eliminate starts like in Malaysia.

[*Shinzon*]

Didn't get to watch it again, I'll be getting a breakdown of the events friday and from whatever I read during the race. I did see that Vettel is really bringing a strong effort so far this season.

[Eliseos]

Apparently Hamilton was given a 20 second penalty for weaving, and Alonso a 20 second penalty for causing an avoidable accident. I don't really think Alonso should have been penalized, after all he had to pit to get a new wing, and Hamilton's car was fine. I think positioning is unchanged.

[Esvedium]

I really don't care for Alonso (going all the way back to Brazil 2003), but to penalize him for that "incident" is dumb.

Another good race in Malaysia. Vettel was just as dominant as in Australia. I really hope that someone can start to mount a challenge to the Red Bulls. I'd rather see a repeat of something like 2009 instead of 2001. If they get their KERS system reliable, though, I'm not sure they'll be catch-able. Vettel is dominant without it already.

[Enedin]

Good race, this one was. But all I hope is that Vettel's victories won't all be such cruise-start-to-finish. I'm hoping he can show more, because at the moment, he is looking to become a dull champion.

[Diamicles]

I wouldn't say he's a 'dull champion' really, it's just that putting Vettel in the RB7, he's just that much better than everyone else right now. It's hard to be interesting if no one else is in your league! And I'm a big McLaren fan, and they need to step up quick to give Red Bull a run for it's money.

Maybe Renault will step up too - they are at least close to McLaren's pace, it would be great to see a 3 or 4 way battle for the drivers and manufacturers titles.

[Eliseos]

Speed mentioned there is a pretty big announcement tomorrow night in regards to the new Austin,TX track for F1. Hopefully they announce that F1 accepted the plans and will be part of the 2012 circuit.

Here's a wiki link that shows the course layout, looks pretty complex.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Austin_Formula_One_circuit

[Mugekuge]

Here i am hoping Ferrrari fixes their 150º Italy and find a way to compete with Red Bull, i like that US track design.

[Korietsu]

Honestly, first day the Austin F1 Circuit is open I'm going for track day.

[Esvedium]

Here's a wiki link that shows the course layout, looks pretty complex.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Austin_Formula_One_circuit

Please, oh please let the track layout stay like it is shown there. Coming out of the Esses of 5-9, get close to the guy in front of you and set yourself up into turn 11, then that long strait from 11 to 12, could be a great overtaking spot right there. Might be possible to overtake into turn 1, too, depending on how long the front strait is. As long as there is no chicane/kink before 12...

[Blabj]

Vettel winning even without KERS just goes to prove how near enough god status red bull are right now in F1. It'd be a safe bet for them to win constructors championship again this year.

[Diamicles]

I would love to go see a Formula 1 race weekend in person! Ever since I heard that Austin was getting a GP track and potentially a F1 GP, I've been trying to talk my wife into going there, even though she doesn't like watching much racing outside of NHRA.

[Eliseos]

Yeah, if they do have the US GP in 2012, I am definitely going.