2015 Formula One Australian Grand Prix

[clemencaman]

In 2002 there was like 6 finishers in a totally dry race. Sometimes it just goes like that.

i mean, one team not in the startgrid, honda with no chance to develope their engine with 9 token left... mercedes 1.5sec faster then the second team... moneyproblems all around the smaller teams... very complicate rules... and so on... i watch f1 gp since 1976 with an age of 6... i was a real fan, saw a lot of gp´s live at the track, but since last year i start losing interest... and when you compare f1 with motogp...

 

[Alberto Casado]

i mean, one team not in the startgrid, honda with no chance to develope their engine with 9 token left... mercedes 1.5sec faster then the second team... moneyproblems all around the smaller teams... very complicate rules... and so on... i watch f1 gp since 1976 with an age of 6... i was a real fan, saw a lot of gp´s live at the track, but since last year i start losing interest... and when you compare f1 with motogp...

? I am not disagreeing on F1 having a low, very low, moment. But motogp of lately is 2 teams and end of the story. Not to talk about complicated rules that were introduced to change this (and didn't, not a single bit):

Teams have to run a spec ECU (computer black box), but, until 2016, can run their own engine management software. Factory teams also must use spec Bridgestone tires in Medium and Hard compound, 20 liters of maximum fuel capacity per race, and a maximum of five engines per season.
To level the playing field, and help those teams who cannot afford a pit full of software engineers and who only have access to slower or thirstier motors, Dorna is allowing exceptions to the rules. Those entrants will now compete under the “Open” option.
Teams entered under these Open rules have to run the spec software as provided by Magneti Marelli, but they can use Bridgestone’s Soft compound tire, are allowed 24 liters of fuel per race, and can use up to 12 engines per season.
A wrench was thrown into the works when Ducati — clearly a “Factory” effort — decided to work within the Open option rules for 2014.
So another addendum to the rules was introduced; it is effectively an Open-option handicapping system in case those teams get too good. If an Open-option team (and that includes all the bikes on that team) finishes a dry race in first place, once; second place, twice; or third place, three times; then the team’s fuel capacity is restricted to 22 liters of fuel (from 24) and they can no longer use the soft option Bridgestone tire.
A second wrench jarred things a bit more when NGM Forward Racing (leasing full-spec Yamaha engines) announced that their FTR chassis would not be ready for the season, and they would be leasing both the engine and rolling chassis from Yamaha — in other words, a MotoGP machine with different bodywork.
This rather upset Honda, who had followed Dorna’s instructions literally, and produced an entirely standalone “production” race bike — the RCV1000R. Although a complete machine based on the factory bike, the specification is somewhat diluted, most noticeably with conventional valve springs instead of pneumatic ones, and that limits it to a lower rev ceiling and therefore less power.
So we have almost three different classes in any MotoGP race in 2014!
(excerpts from https://ultimatemotorcycling.com/2014/03/26/2014-motogp-rules-confusion-riding/)
​

Do no let hear Bernie about looking at motoGP for solutions, because that is a sloppy mess even worse than F1.

 

[Jimlaad43]

15 starters was unfortunate, not an issue. Manor just didn't have enough time to get ready, Bottas was injured, and 2 cars broke down before the race, rather than getting in the way during the first few laps. It was then even more unfortunate that 2 more drivers went on lap 1.

It was unfortunate, but I think we'll have to wait for Bahrain before we have a chance of a decent GP. Melbourne is a great circuit, it's just hard to pass on. Sepang and Shanghai are both boring and should be chucked off the calendar soon.

 

[Kjell Eilertsen]

i watch f1 gp since 1976 with an age of 6...

So you started watching F1 in 1976 at an age of 6 years old, still you are 38 years old? Somethings not adding up here but it might be your profile age

i was a real fan, saw a lot of gp´s live at the track, but since last year i start losing interest...

I've watched since 2000, last year was the most exciting year since 2000 imo, if you wanna stop watching the sport cos you're getting bored with it then just do it, no need to blame the sport for your faltering interest or trying to convince others to join you.

and when you compare f1 with motogp...

It's still 10 000 times more fun, to me, cos MotoGP is utter boredom to me, but you know what, we're all different and find different things interesting.

And to all of you going "the sport is dying"...
The fact that you lost interest does not mean the sport is dying.
The fact that less people are watching it on TV does not necessarily mean the sport is dying, it's a fact for all video entertainment, it's shifting towards streaming and F1 is doing way too little to keep up!
The fact that less people attend the races might be a sign that interest is taking a plunge, but it might also be directly related to the completely retarded prices of tickets combined with an economic recession going on.
I'm not claiming that the sport ain't loosing fans, but I've yet to see anyone provide solid proof of it being so. I'd love to see some less complicated rules, but I'm not sure that it's actually possible.

 

[Darth]

've watched since 2000, last year was the most exciting year since 2000 imo

Maybe not the most exciting year since 2000 but certainely the best in 5 years.

 

[Nelson Ullinskey]

15 starters was unfortunate, not an issue. Manor just didn't have enough time to get ready, Bottas was injured, and 2 cars broke down before the race, rather than getting in the way during the first few laps. It was then even more unfortunate that 2 more drivers went on lap 1.

It was unfortunate, but I think we'll have to wait for Bahrain before we have a chance of a decent GP. Melbourne is a great circuit, it's just hard to pass on. Sepang and Shanghai are both boring and should be chucked off the calendar soon.

Jim, I'm going to refrain from rating your post because I respectfully disagree with your first paragraph, but completely agree mostly with your second paragraph

In my honest opinion, only 15 starters is a catastrophe considering the circumstances. Considering Manor were just plain late in getting their car ready and Bottas had a back injury, then I could perfectly understand having only 17 cars take the grid. But considering two had engine failures before the race even started is what I think is a ridiculous catastrophe, especially when each car can only use 4 engines a year.

 

[Kjell Eilertsen]

Maybe not the most exciting year since 2000 but certainely the best in 5 years.

Depends on what you where looking for, it wasn't exciting in terms of the championship, but there was some really exciting racing going on throughout the field, and that racing was better last year than ever since 2000 imo. I actually don't care much about the championship, I watch each race for the race itself.

 

[Kerkland J. Bond]

I don't know about everyone else, but Nasr had me on the edge of my seat.

 

[Rob]

Jim, I'm going to refrain from rating your post because I respectfully disagree with your first paragraph, but completely agree mostly with your second paragraph

In my honest opinion, only 15 starters is a catastrophe considering the circumstances. Considering Manor were just plain late in getting their car ready and Bottas had a back injury, then I could perfectly understand having only 17 cars take the grid. But considering two had engine failures before the race even started is what I think is a ridiculous catastrophe, especially when each car can only use 4 engines a year.

Nasir takes out half the grid into the first turn and is hailed as hero; Ferrari, the mighty Scuderia, can't change a tire (something NASCAR does roughly 300 times a race with five bolts on the tire); and one of the richest teams in F1 can't get two of its engines to fire. This isn't auto racing, it's the lottery -- the state gets rich and the people who are dumb enough to watch get robbed of any *real* racing, with the announcers (politicians) blowing sunshine up your dress. It better get better. Because if it doesn't, thank God I have been lucky enough to live somewhere that is not monopolized by this trash.

I should have not wasted my time on the F1 garbage and gone to the real Australian races (V8 Supercars) and the Florida E-Prix. Hey guess what? I think more than 20 cars started AND finished those races, and I'm pretty sure that the order of finish had at least some correlation to driver talent. F1 is in serious, serious trouble. It's not getting better. Whistle past the graveyard all you want. Schumacher years? Yea...I tuned out then too. I wonder if worldwide viewership will drop another 35% this year. I hope so. Might wake them up. Letting high school kids drive F1 cars is a greeaaaat idea.
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Raikkonen lined up fifth on the grid and got alongside new Ferrari team-mate Sebastian Vettel on the run down to Turn 1. But in the tight first corner he was clipped from behind by Carlos Sainz and then received contact from Sauber's Felipe Nasr, which meant he was fighting with a damaged car for the rest of the race.

"I got hit by Sainz on the rear wheel, the floor got damaged at the rear," Raikkonen explained after the race. "I then got hit by the Sauber quite heavily so it damaged the front wing."

Read more at http://en.espnf1.com/australia/motorsport/story/194707.html#WVskXlUbiviX0qM4.99

 

[Kerkland J. Bond]

I should have not wasted my time on the F1 garbage and gone to the real Australian races (V8 Supercars) and the Florida E-Prix.

Why are you then?

 

[Milos]

Why are you then?

now this is one really good point I wanted to bring up too but I was a bit too late it seems

 

[Rob]

Why are you then?

Because I thought it might have knocked some sense into itself after last year. Signs were promising, but the results tell an entirely different story. Don't look to the media for validation because you will find it...their interest is to keep you watching. And although I'm not giving up on the sport just yet, it's falling down the priority chain. This area is for all opinions.

And if you think I'm just a one off, dig deeper into the world-wide popularity of F1. It's in a nosedive. And if you think I'm just ranting about one race (I'm prepared to soldier on, though, for a while) then maybe you will listen to drivers who have actually race in F1 instead of the sycophants in the media and the fanboys on the forums (hey, I was F1's biggest fan before last year):

Mercedes' Australian GP win was 'boring', say rival F1 drivers
No sooner had Mercedes cruised to the chequered flag at Sunday’s season-opening Australian Grand Prix, their rivals were all but conceding the 2015 Formula One championship was as good as over.

Dominant in 2014, Mercedes were again in a class of their own with double world champion Lewis Hamilton coasting to victory over team-mate Nico Rosberg.

Despite taking it easy throughout the 58-lap race, concerned more about saving tyres and fuel than checking their mirrors for challengers, Mercedes finished more than half a minute clear of third-placed Sebastian Vettel’s Ferrari. Only two other drivers finished on the same lap as the Silver Arrows.

“You have to be realistic,” said Vettel after his first race for Ferrari. “This weekend it was in their hands and they did a great job, not just as a team but individually. They are the favourites, they had a huge advantage last year and I think they did a good job increasing that advantage this year.”

Vettel won four titles in a row for Red Bull before Mercedes overtook them last year, and that team’s principal Christian Horner said 2015 was looking like another procession. “On today’s evidence we’re set for a two-horse race at every Grand Prix this year,” he said.

“Take nothing away from Mercedes, they’ve done a super job, they’ve got a great car, they’ve got a fantastic engine, and they’ve got two very good drivers. But the problem is the gap is just so big you end up with three-tier racing and I don’t think that’s healthy for Formula One.”

Mercedes won 16 of 19 races last season and started 18 on pole. If Sunday was anything to go by, they may be even more dominant this year. “I feel a bit for the fans,” said Australia’s Daniel Ricciardo, who finished sixth for Red Bull. “It was a boring race. It was frustrating.”

Even the Mercedes drivers have said they fear their dominance could drive fans away. In the lead-up to the race, Hamilton admitted he would be bored as a fan while Rosberg said he hoped the others could catch up.

“I hope they can give us a challenge, because it’s important for the sport and the fans,” the German said. “Half of me, or part of me, thinks about the show because I want to give people a great time at home watching on TV or at the track.”

 

[the_sigman]

I should have not wasted my time on the F1 garbage and gone to the real Australian races (V8 Supercars) and the Florida E-Prix.

V8's were worse than F1 this weekend, so this proves once more that Melbourne is not a circuit that will give you good races.

 

[Milos]

but it is fun to drive if you ask me someone mentioned on the interview or something.. once you get the flow going, it gets you really excited.

 

[Darth]

F1 simply needs its time. The engines are very complex
and the restrictions very strict (finally the wooden floor is gonne after like 20 years). Many people were complaining
when the V8s were introduced as well. Lets be patient, its
been like this forever at times of change.

 

[Rob]

F1 simply needs its time. The engines are very complex
and the restrictions very strict (finally the wooden floor is gonne after like 20 years). Many people were complaining
when the V8s were introduced as well. Lets be patient, its
been like this forever at times of change.

My time is too valuable to be patient. There are two many other series' out there (some even run or sanctioned by the FIA) that are better. It's not the dominance I have a problem with, it's the everything but. I think people have correctly stated the problems here over and over. I'll say it one more time -- If NASCAR can collapse in the United States and IndyCar was once the dominant open wheel series a few decades ago, there is no guarantee that "the world" will continue to support this colossus that Bernie et al. has built. I used to tell myself after watching Prost and Senna race -- this is going to be something special...and it became something very special until last year. They are killing it. Too much evidence to trot out since I know hardcore F1 fans will always defend it. But numbers don't lie.

 

[Philip Heck]

Then go away and don't annoy the people that have fun watching F1.... Jesus.

 

[Eckhart von Glan]

as someone who has followed formula one on and off since the days of niki lauda, james hunt and arturo merzario (remember him?) i was glad this morning i had the whole thing taped on my harddrive while i was still comfy in bed. took me 12 minutes after breakfast (ah, fresh warm croissant with honey ...) to fast forward through the lot with real time from time to time (Vettel leaving pits to pass Massa, Verstappen calling it a day, l1 t1 slowmo replays). 12 minutes is not a lot and it looks like this year my harddrive might come in handy a few times more. That said, after years of monstrosities we finally have a halfway decent looking grid (except for the mclarens which are so dull it makes you wonder they maybe forgot to give them a proper paintjob) so at least the online photo-galleries were fine

 

[clemencaman]

So you started watching F1 in 1976 at an age of 6 years old, still you are 38 years old? Somethings not adding up here but it might be your profile age

Dont know what went wrong with my age, i am 44 an born in dez 1970...

 

[Warren Dawes]

My situation was similar to Eckhart. I had other activities away from home all day Sunday, so I only got to watch the main news highlights, the start, first lap, and the two Mercs crossing the finish line. Looks like I pretty much saw the lot.
How any motorsport fan can get excited, watching a year long series where two cars (thank heavens the are two of them) cruising around out front and still winning by huge margins and lapping most of the field, is beyond me.
Yes the V8 Supercars were somewhat of a procession too, but at least they were close together. They weren't racing for Championship points at Melbourne, so that may have removed the incentive to take too many risks.
I did watch a lot of Saturday's live TV coverage, so got to see some more interesting racing in the support classes. The local TV coverage was cringeworthy, mostly poor quality interviewers talking to so called "TV personalities" in an attempt to promote their own local TV programs. Hopefully, the international viewing audience was spared most of that.