"Official" F1 Predictions and Gossip 2021

[Mike Douglas]

Positions after the third race of of 23 for 2021 at Portimao in Portugal

Leaderboard

Name Pts Played Av Pts
grand aigle 185.0 3 61.67
EddieEdwards 175.5 3 58.50
Sp1Eagle 169.0 3 56.33
Latvian Eagle 164.5 3 54.83
Skintagain 137.0 3 45.67
TAK 134.0 3 44.67
Bintang 132.5 3 44.17
Pint of Speroni 132.0 3 44.00
RednBlue 130.0 3 43.33
TOKYOPAUL 122.0 3 40.67
Richard 119.5 3 39.83
N Herts Eagle 118.5 3 39.50
Scrumpy 115.5 3 38.50
Mike Douglas 112.5 3 37.50
Eagle's Nest 107.5 3 35.83
MASSIV 107.5
hong_kong-hg 104.5 3 34.83
Ridcully 94.0 3 31.33
Maidstoned Eagle 93.0 3 31.00
Hibernator 88.5 3 29.50
Percy Dalton 82.0 2 41.00
eagles073 70.0 3 23.33
Jacko 66.5 3 22.17

[Mike Douglas]

The Rules :
Only 2 months to go now so time to dust off the spreadsheet, convene the stewards meetings and decide on the Rules and Regulations for 2021.
If any one would like to suggest any changes feel free, but this thread is not democratic and the power hungry despot in charge will as per F1 make his own mind up.


2021 GP Drivers and Teams :
Blue colour indicates a confirmed 2020 contract
Green indicates a confirmed/current Reserve/Test Driver for the team


Red Bull Racing - Honda
33. - Max Verstappen - Red Bull Racing
11. - Sergio Perez - Red Bull Racing
23. - Alex Albon - Red Bull Racing reserve driver

McLaren F1 Team - Engine Mercedes
03. - Daniel Ricciardo - McLaren F1 Team
04. - Lando Norris - McLaren F1 Team

Scuderia Ferrari Mission Winnow
55. - Carlos Sainz - Scuderia Ferrari Mission Winnow
16. - Charles Leclerc - Scuderia Ferrari Mission Winnow
94. - Pascal Wehrlein - Simulator Driver
99. - Antonio Giovinazzi - Reserve Driver
nn. - Callum Ilott - Test Driver

Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport
44. Lewis Hamilton - Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport
77. Valtteri Bottas - Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport
nn. - Stoffel Vandoorne - Reserve Driver
nn. - Nyck de Vries - Reserve Driver

Alpine F1 Team - Engine Renault
14. - Fernando Alonso - Alpine F1 Team
31. Esteban Ocon - Alpine F1 Team
nn. - Daniil Kvyat - Reserve Driver

Williams Racing - Engine Mercedes
63. - George Russell - Williams Racing
6. - Nicholas Lafiti - Williams Racing
nn. - Roy Nissany - Test Driver

Aston Martin F1 Team - Engine Mercedes
18. - Lance Stroll - Aston Martin F1 Team
5. - Sebastian Vettel - Aston Martin F1 Team
nn. - Nico Hulkenberg - Reserve & Development Driver


Alfa Romeo Racing - Engine Alfa-Romeo badged Ferrari
07. - Kimi Raikkonen - Alfa Romeo Sauber F1 Team
99. - Antonio Giovinazzi - Alfa Romeo Sauber F1 Team[/COLOR]
88. Robert Kubica - Reserve Driver
nn. - Callum Ilott - 2nd Reserve Driver

Scuderia Alpha Tauri - Engine Honda
22. - Yuki Tsunoda - Scuderia Alpha Tauri
10. - Pierre Gasly - Scuderia Alpha Tauri

Rich Energy Haas F1 Team - Engine Ferrari
47. Mick Schumacher - Rich Energy Haas F1 Team
09. Nikita Mazepin Magnussen - Rich Energy Haas F1 Team
51. Pietro Fittipaldi - Reserve Driver


2021 Schedule :

1 28th March Bahrain Grand Prix Sakhir (SKY)
2 18th April Italian Grand Prix Imola (SKY)
3 2nd May Portugese Grand Prix Portimao (SKY)
4 9th May Spanish Grand Prix Circuit de Catalunya, Barcelona (SKY)
5 23rd May Monaco Grand Prix Monte-Carlo (SKY)
6 6th June Azerbaijan Grand Prix Baku (SKY)
7 13th June Canadian Grand Prix Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, Montreal (SKY)
8 27th June French Grand Prix Circuit Paul Ricard, Le Castellet, near Marseille (SKY)
9 4th July Austria Grand Prix Red Bull Ring, Spielburg (SKY)
10 18th July British Grand Prix Silverstone (SKY + Channel 4)
11 1st August Hungarian Grand Prix Budapest (SKY)
12 29th August Belgian Grand Prix Spa-Francorchamps (SKY)
13 5th September Nederlands Grand Priz Zandvoort (SKY)
14 12th September Italian Grand Prix Monza (SKY)
15 26th September Russian Grand Prix Sochi (SKY)
16 3rd October Singapore Grand Prix Singapore (SKY)
17 10th October Japanese Grand Prix Suzuka (SKY)
18 24th October United States Grand Prix Austin (SKY)
19 31st October Mexico Grand Prix Mexico City (SKY)
20 7th November Brazilian Grand Prix Interlagos (SKY)
21 21st November Australian Grand Prix Melbourne (SKY)
22 5th December Saudi Arabian Grand Prix Jeddah (SKY)
23 12th December Abu Dhabi Grand Prix Yas Island (SKY)

Rules as follows :

First five places to pick

Win 25 pts
2nd 18 pts
3rd 15 pts
4th 12 pts
5th 10 pts

Correctly predicting driver in top 5, but not in correct position 2 pts.

Pole 10 pts
Fastest lap 10 pts
Driver of the day - Choose your driver of the day, and get half a point for every position gained during the race. No minus points for lost places.
Note that on weekends with a sprint race, the starting position will be as at the end of the sprint race.

5 Bonus points to be awarded if prediction is made before first practice for the race, times as per BBS clock and actual practice start times. (When a sprint race is taking place, cut off will be the start of the sprint race).
NOTE - A forecast prior to FP1 can not be changed (even if a late grid penalty occurs). A forecast made after the start of FP1 can be changed with no penalty at any time up to the start of Qualification. A forecast made after the start of Qualification will attract a 10 point penalty.
Long term forecasts MAY be changed between races. However, by definition, they may not be altered again until after completion of the next race.



Therefore, maximum points for a race week are now

(25+18+15+12+10+10+10+5 = 105 Points)

Predictions are welcome by PM, please PM Mike Douglas and I will post them on the thread before the race if this option is used.

Note : Timings are taken as per post or edit times if post is changed.

[Richard]

So, Melbourne postponed and China cancelled, then ...

[Mike Douglas]

Originally Posted by Richard

So, Melbourne postponed and China cancelled, then ...

Changes so far (reflected in the list above):

Australian GP moved to the 21st November.
Chinese GP is postponed not cancelled but no date set yet.
Vietnam GP cancelled
A new GP at Imola scheduled for the 18th April
A possible GP at Portomao to be scheduled for the 2nd May
Brazil GP moved forward 1 week to the 7th November
Saudi Arabian GP moved back one week to the 5th December
Abu Dhabi GP moved back one week to the 12th December.

[CT_Palace]

Originally Posted by Mike Douglas

Changes so far (reflected in the list above):

Australian GP moved to the 21st November.
Chinese GP is postponed not cancelled but no date set yet.
Vietnam GP cancelled
A new GP at Imola scheduled for the 18th April
A possible GP at Portomao to be scheduled for the 2nd May
Brazil GP moved forward 1 week to the 7th November
Saudi Arabian GP moved back one week to the 5th December
Abu Dhabi GP moved back one week to the 12th December.

Ohhhhhhhh the hokey-cokey ....

[biggus mickus]

Lol.

Been looking at the car changes on Youtube. Lots of small changes, Especially the floor. If you like engineering, its good watching.

[CT_Palace]

Originally Posted by biggus mickus

Lol.

Been looking at the car changes on Youtube. Lots of small changes, Esperanto the floor. If you like engineering, its good watching.

I do the same. But **** me there's some anoraks out there who think they are knowledgeable/entertaining/funny enough to set up a YT channel.

[CT_Palace]

Looks like Red Bull will take over the Honda engine at the end of this season. They are building / assigning garage space solely for engine work and development.
And hints of new engine regs in the near future (for a simpler and therefore cheaper drivetrain) suggest that Red Bull may continue in the engine game for some time.

[in-exile]

[Mike Douglas]

It will be interesting to see how his undoubted skills transfer to F1.
From the BBC:
The Alpine Formula 1 team has announced former Suzuki MotoGP team boss Davide Brivio as its new racing director. Alpine - formerly Renault - says Brivio's specific role will be announced in the coming weeks and he will report to chief executive Laurent Rossi.
Brivio joins the team with more than 20 years in the MotoGP Championship, which included a double success in 2020 as his Suzuki team took the title with Joan Mir crowned champion.

[biggus mickus]

The Merc/Hamilton contract is dragging its heels.

[Sp1Eagle]

Originally Posted by biggus mickus

The Merc/Hamilton contract is dragging its heels.

Was thinking this. Less than 2 months until the season starts...

[in-exile]

[Mike Douglas]

Nice tribute from Alonso although I must admit I have no memory of this gentleman,

Fernando Alonso has paid tribute to Spanish former Formula 1 driver Adrian Campos, who has died aged 60. Campos competed in 17 grands prix for Minardi in 1987-88. He had since run teams in the junior categories and played a formative role in the career of his compatriot Alonso, 39. Two-time F1 world champion Alonso won the Euro Open by Nissan series with Campos Racing in 1999.
"[It's] one of the saddest days for the motorsports family," Alonso tweeted. "[He was a] driver and great promoter of this sport. Thank you for dreaming about Formula 1. Thank you for believing in young people." "As a driver and then founder and president of Campos Racing, Adrian leaves an incredible legacy in motorsport," added the F1 Organisation.
Campos entered 21 races for the lowly Minardi team in his F1 career, starting 17 of them and retiring from all but two. His best result was 14th at the 1987 Spanish Grand Prix. After leaving F1, he competed in touring cars and endurance racing before going on to form his own team, which has competed in Formula 2 and its forerunner GP2, Formula 3 and touring cars, among other series.
In 2009, his was one of four new teams that had entries to F1 accepted. The project ran into financial trouble before its first race and was rescued by a wealthy financier and renamed Hispania Racing Team. Campos took the role of executive vice-president. HRT lasted three seasons of uncompetitive performances, handing Daniel Ricciardo his first F1 seat in 2011, before folding at the end of 2012.

[Sp1Eagle]

Originally Posted by biggus mickus

The Merc/Hamilton contract is dragging its heels.

Tick tock..

[Richard]

So, in the least surprising development ever, Lewis has re-signed.

But only for one year, which strikes me as a little odd.

[CT_Palace]

Originally Posted by Richard

So, in the least surprising development ever, Lewis has re-signed.

But only for one year, which strikes me as a little odd.

Break the record, retire?

[Sp1Eagle]

Formula 1 bosses are to discuss a new proposal to introduce shorter 'sprint' races in an attempt to increase entertainment levels this season.

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[biggus mickus]

Originally Posted by Sp1Eagle

Formula 1 bosses are to discuss a new proposal to introduce shorter 'sprint' races in an attempt to increase entertainment levels this season.

To view the link you have to Register or Login

I wonder what they would do with engines? The wear would mean using a different engine. Costs?

[Sp1Eagle]

Formula 1 teams have backed a plan to hold shorter 'sprint' races at three Grands Prix this season.

Details are still to be ironed out, but all teams gave their support to the idea at a meeting of the F1 Commission.

Teams and F1 bosses also agreed to the introduction of a freeze on engine development from the start of 2022.

This could be enough for Red Bull to finalise plans to continue running Honda engines when the Japanese company pull out at the end of this year.

And bosses agreed to bring forward the introduction of new engine regulations by a year to 2025.

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