Magyar Nagydíj

[Caesar 0]

I agree. Probably the F2012 is not as bad as it looked in Hungary where the characteristics of the track, the hot weather, etc. might have showed a distorted picture of the actual performance of the car. On the other hand, what we saw in Hungary is real, Ferrari/Alonso are leading the Championship because of many circumstances like a win in the wet in Malaysia, a pole in the wet in Germany, a perfect race in Valencia that happens once or twice in a season at best...

If we went to Spa right now, I think a dry and hot weekend could be a hell for Ferrari and a heaven for Lotus and McLaren. As you say there will be improvements but I see Ferrari in more need of development than Lotus, McLaren or Red Bull.

I understand that Alonso considered yesterday's race as a good result, it could have been much worse, but he(they) knows that the car has to be competitive right after the summer break. Spa and Monza are the last 2 races in Europe and if the F2012 didn't show competitive for poles and wins, the advantage could disappear very fast.

I don't know if I'm being pessimistic but I get the impression that Ferrari's R&D department is jammed, full of ideas that don't work. They solved some serious problems once F1 got back to Europe and that's it, they've brought nothing new in the last moth. Thanks to the advantage they have, they can afford it but once F1 leaves Europe again it will be difficult to do what they haven't done in the previous months. They have 5 weeks before they go to Belgium, 8 weeks before they start racing outside Europe. They could even say, ok we're going to go damage limitation in Belgium and Spa and will have a rocket of a car for Singapure onwards. They could score 0 point in Spa and Monza and Alonso might still be leading the championship. What I mean is that this championship is for Ferrari to lose it but without the right development of the car they might easily lose it.

Maranello, 30 July - Its hot in Maranello, as it is in all of Italy, which is hardly surprising as this summer has seen several heatwaves with epic names such as Ulisse, Minosse, Caronte and Scipione. Fernando Alonso’s summer is also looking hot as he starts the holiday on a +40: that’s not a case of a bad fever, but the result of a more or less perfect first part to the season. The Spaniard is the only driver to have finished every race in the top ten, bringing his run of consecutive points finishes to 23, which is one step away from the outright record held by Michael Schumacher.

During the weekend on Hungarian soil, the F2012 was never a front runner. It’s been a while since that has happened, the Bahrain Grand Prix to be precise, but despite this, Fernando still managed to increase his lead in the classification to 40 points over the second placed man. A Ferrari man has not had such a lead since 2004, at the end of Michael Schumacher’s five year golden era.

However, in Maranello there is not the slightest sign of any let-up, quite the contrary. Everyone is aware that only a significant step forward in the performance of the F2012 can allow us to entertain any hopes of title glory. Those outside Ferrari who thought that Montezemolo’s comments after the wins in Valencia and Hockenheim were purely platitudes have been proved wrong. When the President said that he was concerned because the opponents were very strong and numerous, he was definitely not trying jinxing our chances: the technical verdict from Budapest shows that at least three cars – Lotus, McLaren and Red Bull – were quicker than Ferrari round the Hungaroring. Therefore a further push is needed to give Fernando and Felipe a more competitive car, starting immediately with the two races that bring the European part of the season to a close, at Spa on 2 September and Monza one week later, otherwise those forty points will not do much good and the championship aspirations, given that even the Constructors’ title is still within reach, will inevitably evaporate. So Stefano Domenicali was very clear when asking for a further effort from all his staff at the traditional post race technical briefing that follows every Grand Prix at the Gestione Sportiva. What’s important is that everyone is aware that Ferrari’s destiny is in their hands.

There’s a lot cooking on the technical front, as Alonso said yesterday to the media after the race, but the key is to cook it to perfection before serving it up: you don’t want to rush it to the table until its ready nor overdo it. Either of these routes could leave a bad taste in the mouth. There are five weeks before the event in the Ardennes, two of which are taken up by the compulsory break agreed among all the teams. The next days will see plenty of heat generated at Maranello, most of it generated by the energy going into the work of each and every one within the Scuderia, rather than from the weather. Then, it will be time to recharge the batteries prior to the final three month rush which will be very intense and won’t leave a moment for taking a breather.

i hope italian cooking doesn't burn out this time

[BradSpeedMan 6]

You are bordering on the nonsensical. Hungary suits the Red Bull best? So why, in the hands of both Webbr and Vettel could they not show that?

I'm gonna keep coming back to this as we go along, race per race, all for you Steve.. just read another view from f1times...

The slow and twisty nature of the Hungaroring should have suited the RB8 down to the ground. It’s the kind of track where Red Bull have been formidable in 2012. However Sebastian Vettel finished a distant fourth in both qualifying and the race whilst Mark Webber wasn't a factor all weekend.

Could their lack of performance have been down to the changes they were forced to make recently by the FIA?

If that is the case that then it has definitely had an impact on the RB8’s performance, considering Hungary is a place you would put money on Red Bull winning. That doesn’t bode well for Spa and Monza, which are traditionally two of Red Bull’s weakest circuits.

http://www.totalf1.com/full_story/view/425440/Why_Kimi_Raikkonen_is_now_a_serious_title_threat/

[dribbler 6]

I'm gonna keep coming back to this as we go along, race per race, all for you Steve.. just read another view from f1times...

The slow and twisty nature of the Hungaroring should have suited the RB8 down to the ground. It’s the kind of track where Red Bull have been formidable in 2012. However Sebastian Vettel finished a distant fourth in both qualifying and the race whilst Mark Webber wasn't a factor all weekend.

Could their lack of performance have been down to the changes they were forced to make recently by the FIA?

If that is the case that then it has definitely had an impact on the RB8’s performance, considering Hungary is a place you would put money on Red Bull winning. That doesn’t bode well for Spa and Monza, which are traditionally two of Red Bull’s weakest circuits.

http://www.totalf1.c...s_title_threat/

It's all good, my dearest Bradley. The cumulative colours of our opinions doth make for a particularly bright and enjoyable rainbow.

That aside, if these experts are suggesting that because Red Bull were weak at Hungary, they will be weaker at tracks they have traditionally been weak at, is pure nonsense. The very fact Red Bull were weak at Hungary may play ino their hands at tracks with almost opposite characteristics.

But let's see.

[Insider 0]

Well, I've been away on tour. Did see some of Hungary but not enough to form an opinion. It would appear though that Macca still have their head in a rectal pose with regard to driver strategy. It's either a JB failure or a LH failure depending on which weekend we look at. Nando's lead is flimsy, I agree but Ferrari have made a step, for sure. I'm just waiting for Kimi and Romain to get it all together and blow the opposition away. They've probably had the fastest tub all year but they're under-performing despite recent points and podiums.