Formula 1 and MotoGP talk

What are your thoughts on the new cars?

Demir@demir · 6mo ago

I haven't gotten used to the battery thing yet, but it doesn't seem bad, the cars are very fast. Mercedes also says they still have extra power kept in reserve, it's unclear what will happen this season

They're not fast, mate, the cars are slower compared to previous years - when the battery runs low it drastically reduces speed, and you can tell this from how some cars overtake others like they're shot out of a slingshot. The number of overtakes in the new F1 has increased significantly, but I want you to notice - drivers used to actually overtake before, now whoever has the better car just plays tag until they open up a gap. That's why I'm going to start watching WEC, F1 doesn't have that flavor from previous seasons anymore.

It's a rare sport where the racing enjoyment keeps dropping because of the regulations - I wish they'd go back to using V10s, everyone would breathe a sigh of relief, but that'll never happen. In this one, Mercedes is basically racing against itself - they built such a car that Mercedes drivers overtake 6-7 people like it's a game, effortlessly, and still pull away from the rest even while holding power back. Even a guy like Max can't move up. Also the guy's turned to other racing series - I think even he's gotten bored of F1. Most of the drivers have already called the cars a Mario Kart anyway.

Well, hopefully for the best mate, I hope it somehow becomes fun as a sport again.

Özgür Mehmet Gümüşay@jitristt · 6mo ago

Ferrari is being smart by using a small turbo, gaining an advantage at starts. Mercedes came in with a powerful engine this year and looks set to dominate. Honda, on the other hand, we can say completely flopped. Ferrari is in a good spot too, trying new things is exciting, but that old flavor isn't there. In MotoGP, Toprak scored his first points. That was the first goal anyway, you could say. Even though Yamaha is a mediocre team, Toprak is putting in an outstanding performance. He'll post better laps on tracks he's strong at. And beating the former champion is a whole other story…

Ferrari's small turbo doesn't use any technique that violates the rulebook, but Mercedes's variable compression-ratio engine is technically illegal - it's just that the test conditions in the rulebook aren't enough to prove they're cheating. Also, Mercedes deliberately used weak hydraulics for closing the front wing, which means that at the end of the straight, as the wings close, the pressure the car generates on the front wing delays the wing closing, causing it to close later than it's supposed to according to the rulebook.

Mercedes designed a clever car that's technically illegal by the rules but not illegal according to the test systems - they've made great use of the gray areas. Mercedes engineers are very talented at this sort of thing, but of course they ruined the racing spectacle in the process. It's not really Mercedes's fault though, it's because the FIA isn't as smart as the engineers when writing the rules, that's why this happens.