With Sochi over, we only have three races left and the winner of the WCC has been decided! Well I suppose that's not too much of a surprise. Mercedes have dominated all season so we all saw their victory far down the road. There is still potential for change below 1st place though!
I was really hoping for a stronger finish from Williams, but while Bottas did deliver a great result, Massa failed to score even a single point. From here, something very unusual would need to happen for Williams to take 2nd place away from RBR. Worse still, Ferrari continues to nip at their ankles with just 38 points separating the two. There is no room for error at Williams, so they cannot afford to choose another weak tire strategy that cost Massa valuable places.
At this point Williams will also be looking towards next year. If they maintain 3rd, they will receive a handy sum of money and potentially increased sponsorship/endorsement as well. This additional money would seriously increase their chances of having an even more competitive car next year. they just need to make sure to keep those red cars behind them at all times.
Talking of Ferrari, here is a team whose performance has been wholly underwhelming throughout the season. The mid season updates have propelled them sideways, and they have really been struggling to compete with the power of the Mercedes-engined cars. They have a lot of work to do before next season if they are going to be competitive. Perhaps a new driver would help them out?
McLaren and Force-India are also keeping each other close. McLaren seem to have found a better aero setup and have begun to perform with much more strength than before the mid-season break. Jenson Button has increased his finishing position from Monza onwards (excluding his DNF in Singapore). McLaren outperformed Force India by a wide margin at Sochi, so look for Force India to react to the charge mounted by McLaren as the gap gets smaller.
The WDC has gotten so much closer! Bottas, Alonso, and Vettel are all separated by 2 points. Ricciardo is a bit farther ahead, but his lack of performance at Sochi is indicative of the low power of the Renault engine in his Red Bull. With another high speed track on the way in Austin (similar average speed as Sochi), we may see RBR continue to struggle against the likes of Williams, McLaren, Force-India, just about anyone with a Mercedes engine. It may be a stretch, but it is still possible for Bottas to claim 3rd in the WDC. Not bad for his second year in Formula 1.
Looking at the table for the WDC, 8 of the top 11 cars have Mercedes engines, and everyone below 11th has a Ferrari or Renault engine. I'm really looking forward to the re-entry of Honda and hoping it will mix things up.
COTA is three weeks away, so teams have plenty of time to reflect on Sochi and learn from mistakes.
I was really hoping for a stronger finish from Williams, but while Bottas did deliver a great result, Massa failed to score even a single point. From here, something very unusual would need to happen for Williams to take 2nd place away from RBR. Worse still, Ferrari continues to nip at their ankles with just 38 points separating the two. There is no room for error at Williams, so they cannot afford to choose another weak tire strategy that cost Massa valuable places.
At this point Williams will also be looking towards next year. If they maintain 3rd, they will receive a handy sum of money and potentially increased sponsorship/endorsement as well. This additional money would seriously increase their chances of having an even more competitive car next year. they just need to make sure to keep those red cars behind them at all times.
Talking of Ferrari, here is a team whose performance has been wholly underwhelming throughout the season. The mid season updates have propelled them sideways, and they have really been struggling to compete with the power of the Mercedes-engined cars. They have a lot of work to do before next season if they are going to be competitive. Perhaps a new driver would help them out?
McLaren and Force-India are also keeping each other close. McLaren seem to have found a better aero setup and have begun to perform with much more strength than before the mid-season break. Jenson Button has increased his finishing position from Monza onwards (excluding his DNF in Singapore). McLaren outperformed Force India by a wide margin at Sochi, so look for Force India to react to the charge mounted by McLaren as the gap gets smaller.
The WDC has gotten so much closer! Bottas, Alonso, and Vettel are all separated by 2 points. Ricciardo is a bit farther ahead, but his lack of performance at Sochi is indicative of the low power of the Renault engine in his Red Bull. With another high speed track on the way in Austin (similar average speed as Sochi), we may see RBR continue to struggle against the likes of Williams, McLaren, Force-India, just about anyone with a Mercedes engine. It may be a stretch, but it is still possible for Bottas to claim 3rd in the WDC. Not bad for his second year in Formula 1.
Looking at the table for the WDC, 8 of the top 11 cars have Mercedes engines, and everyone below 11th has a Ferrari or Renault engine. I'm really looking forward to the re-entry of Honda and hoping it will mix things up.
COTA is three weeks away, so teams have plenty of time to reflect on Sochi and learn from mistakes.
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