[Rono63]

Originally Posted by ///M Power-Belgium

MAX ran the QF with a rain setup . Probability of precipitation is 65% in the race (!)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IeNaWoTHVLQ

Max also said he is hoping for a dry race because the McLarens will be even harder to beat in the rain.

McLaren still has a higher down force setup than RBR.

Should be an exciting race either way.

[Rono63]

Originally Posted by HeelToeShift

Sprint race was rather boring except for Max's overtake on Pia and the fact that he won in a downright slower car.

Quali - I think Max is set up for a rain race, which should do him well.

Lec absolutely just dunking and posterizing all over Sham who would thank his lucky stars to get out of Q1 these days.

Tsu is nowhere near Max and Had is proving to be the best rookie out there by some margin.

Apparently you didn’t see the telemetry where RBR was a lot faster in the straights with their low down force setup.

Now that RBR has added more down force for the race, it is slower.

[afadeev]

Originally Posted by Rono63

Apparently you didn’t see the telemetry where RBR was a lot faster in the straights with their low down force setup.

Now that RBR has added more down force for the race, it is slower.

Correction - RBR added "rain spec" downforce on Max's car, but it looks like Yuki is running low downforce dry config (with his old-spec rear wing) as he is only 0.3 seconds off Max's pace. Yuki even managed to outqualify Hadjar and Lawson for the first time in forever.

a

[G30M]

Originally Posted by Rono63

Max also said he is hoping for a dry race because the McLarens will be even harder to beat in the rain.

McLaren still has a higher down force setup than RBR.

Should be an exciting race either way.

in the dry McLaren drivers were told not to max out the engine due to fear of overheating (something to do with Merc PU reliability issue)

rain means max Merc engine output is ok to be had

[Killed by Death]

Don't care for Russell Boy but feel bad for Kimi.

[GuidoK]

Yeah Mercedes has had a really bad weekend so far.
I didn't expect that. It's not really hot and last year they did really well.
But somehow they can't get that car in the right window now.

And Ferrari is now all over the place. LEC has had a fantastic qualifying and his sprint was also decent. But Hammy....this is not his weekend....abysmal performance.
If it rains tomorrow I expect Hammy to start from the pits on a 100% rain setup to try and make the best of it.

[///M Power-Belgium]

Originally Posted by G30M

in the dry McLaren drivers were told not to max out the engine due to fear of overheating (something to do with Merc PU reliability issue)

rain means max Merc engine output is ok to be had

Piastri and Norris got a new Merc PU + Turbo , so they should be fine at Spa .
It's impossible to push max. PU (HP) output in the rain , by the lack of traction.
It's just too slippery and tricky to run with full power in the wet.

The McLaren car balance is astonishing ,and that's also a big advantage in the rain.

[G30M]

Originally Posted by GuidoK

Yeah Mercedes has had a really bad weekend so far.
I didn't expect that. It's not really hot and last year they did really well.
But somehow they can't get that car in the right window now.

And Ferrari is now all over the place. LEC has had a fantastic qualifying and his sprint was also decent. But Hammy....this is not his weekend....abysmal performance.
If it rains tomorrow I expect Hammy to start from the pits on a 100% rain setup to try and make the best of it.

not sure what happened to Merc and AM. seem to be getting slower by the race.

i don't see George overtaking Max in the points by the summer break

I still think Ferrari is handicapped by the team of hopeless engineers and strategists who have no idea how a formula 1 race works ...

[G30M]

Originally Posted by ///M Power-Belgium

Piastri and Norris got a new Merc PU + Turbo , so they should be fine at Spa .
It's impossible to push max. PU (HP) output in the rain , by the lack of traction.
It's just too slippery and tricky to run with full power in the wet.

The McLaren car balance is astonishing ,and that's also a big advantage in the rain.

they are running the highest downforce in Spa. they don't seem to like change much, just roll with one package and use it every single race. eg Red Bull ran a low downforce sprint race, Max was slower throughout, esp in the twisty bits but he made it work by getting ahead and then nobody can pass him. then they switch to more downforce in the feature race.

[M5Rick]

2PM race start GB time and 3PM Europe time, on US east coast its 9am.

[G30M]

TOto has just said in an interview if he signed Max it would have been Max-Russell line up. but he says it doesn't look like he's going to have Max

[Killed by Death]

Originally Posted by G30M

I still think Ferrari is handicapped by the team of hopeless engineers and strategists who have no idea how a formula 1 race works ...

Not since 2008

[G30M]

Originally Posted by Killed by Death

Not since 2008

Christian Horner is looking for a job in 2026 ...

[///M Power-Belgium]

Originally Posted by G30M

they are running the highest downforce in Spa. they don't seem to like change much, just roll with one package and use it every single race. eg Red Bull ran a low downforce sprint race, Max was slower throughout, esp in the twisty bits but he made it work by getting ahead and then nobody can pass him. then they switch to more downforce in the feature race.

McLaren doesn't need to have the fastest car to win the race.
As I said : They win the race with the tires because they last forever by the the tire / brake cooling trick.

Even in the dirty air , they just wait until MAX's tires are gone and then they overtake at the right moment in the race (like cherry picking)!
2 more laps in the sprint race , and Piastri won the sprint race because MAX's tires were almost gone while Piastri's tires were still fine.
15 laps pushed Piastri with a 0.5/0.8 sec. gap behind MAX (in the dirty air)!
If MAX ran with a McLaren , the 2025 WDC would already have been over ..

[HeelToeShift]

Originally Posted by ///M Power-Belgium

McLaren doesn't need to have the fastest car to win the race.
As I said : They win the race with the tires because they last forever by the the tire / brake cooling trick.

Even in the dirty air , they just wait until MAX's tires are gone and then they overtake at the right moment in the race (like cherry picking)!
2 more laps in the sprint race , and Piastri won the sprint race because MAX's tires were almost gone while Piastri's tires were still fine.
15 laps pushed Piastri with a 0.5/0.8 sec. gap behind MAX (in the dirty air)!
If MAX ran with a McLaren , the 2025 WDC would already have been over ..

If Mclaren didnt have their tire cooling trick, Pia would not have won a single race. His tire management is absolute garbage and he generally worked backwards in races because he is so bad in this area.