2018 Chinese: Pre-Race news

FerrariSteve · 11th April 2018, 19:45

Not sure if I like this track or not tbh, quite frankly that long back straight scares me, I think the Mercs are going to be very strong there.
That said, I'll be crossing my fingers and wishing Ferrari the best! Can Seb win again? that would be awesome and a huge blow to goldenboy, I'd like to see Kimi win too but I'm not sure if that's going to happen. Not meaning to be too harsh on him but I know he performs well in Qually but he seems to go to sleep during the races.

**brawnydog** · 11th April 2018, 19:56

Originally Posted by FerrariSteve

Not sure if I like this track or not tbh, quite frankly that long back straight scares me, I think the Mercs are going to be very strong there.
That said, I'll be crossing my fingers and wishing Ferrari the best! Can Seb win again? that would be awesome and a huge blow to goldenboy, I'd like to see Kimi win too but I'm not sure if that's going to happen. Not meaning to be too harsh on him but I know he performs well in Qually but he seems to go to sleep during the races.

I would love to see Vettel and Raikkonen scrapping it out for 1st. [emoji3] We need Raikkonen to have a good strong points finish.

Sent from my LG-H812 using Tapatalk

**Vettel165** · 11th April 2018, 20:02

I see Ferrari again at the top of the speed (top) charts of that main straight.

Look at other Ferrari engine-powered cars! Ferrari has done an amazing job this winter by leapfrogging all of the Mercedes-engine powered cars on pure power. This was already seen in Barcelona (testing). Ferrari car philosphy is for me the best this year. The car has a high rake (RBR style) with low drag ,the car is having in my opinion even less drag than Mercedes. I wouldnt be suprised if Ferrari is having a better aero efficiency in medium-high speed corners with that car than Mercedes. This was a big weak factor by Ferrari last year.

With than new evolution of a car, the car should only get better from race to race. It wasnt just setup changes that brought Ferrari much closer to Mercedes in Bahrain, but they slightly changed many things in the car, front wing, floor, and that did the difference. The car looked glued to the track and with better stability in the corners as Red Bull or Mercedes. Of course we will need some time to really find the right setup for every track, high-downforce,low-downforce, but when they do, they could be very fast.

We will see, I as a Ferrari fan will stay humble. I think its gonna be interesting season until the end. I could be of course wrong, everything I did say its just a speculation and my own opinion.

**mwk360** · 11th April 2018, 20:43

Wolff:"So we started to analyse what went wrong in Bahrain in order to improve for China and come back stronger. We're quite happy that this is a back-to-back race as that means that we won't have to wait long to get racing again”.

Hope we are ready to counter mercs

**Ferrarichamp** · 11th April 2018, 21:01

sounds like Wolffie is getting desperate for that first win

**mardyrt** · 11th April 2018, 23:01

One thing is for sure, Mercedes does well on Mediums, its their favorite tyre.
We can save a 1 medium, and 1 soft, we have 3 sets of softs, and 2 mediums.
We can use 3 sets of ultras, and still have 5 left, and you would use only 4 sets in qualifying, usually.
Also, for cooler conditions in Spain, a lot of pundits said that Mediums were the faster tyre, because the tyre would slide, generating heat and it would not blister, but ultrasofts would slide too and generate heat but because of the softness of the compound, it would blister.
So, we will see in China. Hope we get a good step from the upgrades, and they can raise the rear ride height, and have the car how it was designed for, and it will give good front end because of the lower front wing due to higher rear ride height.

**mardyrt** · 11th April 2018, 23:06

Originally Posted by Vettel165

I see Ferrari again at the top of the speed (top) charts of that main straight.

Look at other Ferrari engine-powered cars! Ferrari has done an amazing job this winter by leapfrogging all of the Mercedes-engine powered cars on pure power. This was already seen in Barcelona (testing). Ferrari car philosphy is for me the best this year. The car has a high rake (RBR style) with low drag ,the car is having in my opinion even less drag than Mercedes. I wouldnt be suprised if Ferrari is having a better aero efficiency in medium-high speed corners with that car than Mercedes. This was a big weak factor by Ferrari last year.

With than new evolution of a car, the car should only get better from race to race. It wasnt just setup changes that brought Ferrari much closer to Mercedes in Bahrain, but they slightly changed many things in the car, front wing, floor, and that did the difference. The car looked glued to the track and with better stability in the corners as Red Bull or Mercedes. Of course we will need some time to really find the right setup for every track, high-downforce,low-downforce, but when they do, they could be very fast.

We will see, I as a Ferrari fan will stay humble. I think its gonna be interesting season until the end. I could be of course wrong, everything I did say its just a speculation and my own opinion.

We had only a very slight change to the diffuser, no other changes. Even Seb said it, car was the same as Australia, and that they did a lot of set up work with all the data they gathered in Australia. There was no new floor, the front wing was the launch spec with a very minor addition.
So, the China floor and diffuser should help us, I really hope. If we can get 2 to 3 tenths, it would be amazing.

**killer** · 12th April 2018, 00:51

Originally Posted by ss-89

Yes it was a precautionary move following the electronics issue he had in FP3. The 1st CE unit may still be salvageable and put back into rotation but nothing has been said.

Cheers, mate.

**paolo lalli** · 12th April 2018, 04:05

WHY THE DOUBT WITH OUR STRAIT LINE SPEED FERRARI WILL SURPRISE THE PRESSURE IS MOUNTING ON MERCEDES I WOULD LIKE TO SEE THERE A GAME THEY HAVE NO CHOICE THEN FERRARI CAN PLAN THE ATTACK LONG TERM .

**mwk360** · 12th April 2018, 04:44

Is CE penalty 10 place grid penalty??? i seen few people mention that on twitter some said 5.

Seb has the funny hairstyle back lol, feel it's going to be tough at this GP,track plays to every merc strength (engine speed, front tyres, cold weather, harder tyres, rain). Hoping seb can get another podium.

**Kristof_F40** · 12th April 2018, 06:31

Originally Posted by mwk360

Is CE penalty 10 place grid penalty??? i seen few people mention that on twitter some said 5.

Seb has the funny hairstyle back lol, feel it's going to be tough at this GP,track plays to every merc strength (engine speed, front tyres, cold weather, harder tyres, rain). Hoping seb can get another podium.

RBR was also good at this track last year, even though it has the longest straight. This year they are stronger than last year...

**mwk360** · 12th April 2018, 06:55

Originally Posted by Kristof_F40

RBR was also good at this track last year, even though it has the longest straight. This year they are stronger than last year...

you right if i remember Dani and Max breezed passed kimi?or maybe that was canada..? RB are very good with braking and with drs (weve seen they could pass mercs on a straight line too at bahrain with drs) they will definitely be a threat or party pooper for ferrari and mercs

Some good insight and speculation about messed up pitstops of Haas and Ferrari from good reliable source.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pKu9xOJ_vqQ

5:10

speculative(most likely) Haas had cross thread issues, same as kimi at FP, but at the race Kimi's gun man couldnt get the nut off and in the panic hit the switch to tell the system that the tyre was sorted. green light, mechanic injured. the wheel nuts and guns are the same for Ferrari and Haas so there's an issue that still remains.

**Vettel165** · 12th April 2018, 07:07

Which factor should play into Ferraris hands and which to Mercedes this weekend.
Cool weather: Mercedes
Q3 tyres (US): Ferrari
Tyre pressures: dont know them /
High tyre wear: Ferrari
Front-limited circuit: Mercedes
Power of the engine (main straight): both are likely equal

FP1 should be at least dry tomorrow, the entire rain has moved to the night to saturday, maybe a shower is possible for FP2, but nothing big.

**mwk360** · 12th April 2018, 07:22

Originally Posted by Vettel165

Which factor should play into Ferraris hands and which to Mercedes this weekend.
Cool weather: Mercedes
Q3 tyres (US): Ferrari
Tyre pressures: dont know them /
High tyre wear: Ferrari
Front-limited circuit: Mercedes
Power of the engine (main straight): both are likely equal

FP1 should be at least dry tomorrow, the entire rain has moved to the night to saturday, maybe a shower is possible for FP2, but nothing big.

Nice

I would put high tyre wear as equal - mercs take longer to get onto the pace(hamilton stint 1 bahrain, bottas on mediums)but they lasted longer and both had pace at the end of the stint, ferrari fall off much quicker end of stint(Seb melbourne first stint and bahrain end of both stints)

Hoping it stays dry, crofty reading poems about how beautiful hamilton and max look in the rain will be sickening

**Vettel165** · 12th April 2018, 07:29

Originally Posted by mwk360

Nice

+

Hoping it stays dry, crofty reading poems about how beautiful hamilton and max look in the rain will be sickening

Seb is very strong usually in rainy and damp China GP. Remember 2007?
Kimi is also very good there.

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

And that pass.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aK6dlPPdhS4

**jgonzalesm6** · 12th April 2018, 08:40

**jgonzalesm6** · 12th April 2018, 10:16

At the drivers signing autographs......they're good.

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Dakx4mwX4AIFHgw.jpg

**mardyrt** · 12th April 2018, 10:28

Originally Posted by jgonzalesm6

At the drivers signing autographs......they're good.

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Dakx4mwX4AIFHgw.jpg

From the picture, it looks like its cold!!!
Not good for us, we need it warmer, in the 20s at least.

**mwk360** · 12th April 2018, 10:33

Kimi Q3 2017 China
https://vk.com/video399766228_456239...62a4ef6eb1380b

The Seb Q3 2017 China
https://vk.com/video399766228_456239...393ef3767ddef0

Kimi looks quick on straights, Seb looks like a master on the braking and cornering, so planted i thought it was a video game first.

Predict that ferrari will have to sacrifice some straight line speed for Q1 and Q2. watching the bahrain onboards and compared to last year, still have some understeering, lazy looking entry to sharp corners but the straight line and acceleration ferrari had is impressive to make up for what they lack.

**mwk360** · 12th April 2018, 10:33

Originally Posted by mardyrt

From the picture, it looks like its cold!!!
Not good for us, we need it warmer, in the 20s at least.

YES! hope the team does a sun dance, let it shine!

The more it cools down and closer to rain it gets the worse it will become, lol hopefully a gust of wind blows the cold weather far away

**icedeepan** · 12th April 2018, 10:40

Originally Posted by mwk360

YES! hope the team does a sun dance, let it shine!

The more it cools down and closer to rain it gets the worse it will become, lol hopefully a gust of wind blows the cold weather far away

Why are we assuming that? We havent even seen what the new car can do in these conditions.

**Vettel165** · 12th April 2018, 10:43

Originally Posted by icedeepan

Why are we assuming that? We havent even seen what the new car can do in these conditions.

I agree only time will tell. I really hope for a dry FP1,FP2, so we can really test our brand new floor, that should bring us some further rear stability in the corners.

**mwk360** · 12th April 2018, 10:48

Originally Posted by icedeepan

Why are we assuming that? We havent even seen what the new car can do in these conditions.

i think its my fear from last year and the unknown, mercs love cold weather. Plus if ferrari do have anything to bring and it starts raining it will be hard to get setup right

**Vettel165** · 12th April 2018, 10:50

http://formula1.ferrari.com/en/2018-...ss-conference/

Seb and Kimi ahead of China: a demanding track, a different challenge

Shanghai, April 12 – Preliminaries to the third round of the 2018 championship took place under cloudy skies and lower temperatures than expected. Scuderia Ferrari drivers Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen reflect on the challenge ahead, before the action starts on Friday morning at the Shanghai International Circuit.

“I think we should be alright here in China” says Seb, “even if it is difficult to know. So far there have been only two races and both were very good in terms of results, but they were quite different and here, the track is quite different too. Conditions are not the same as in Bahrain and Australia either. So, we’ll see how it goes, but I am quite confident. I believe that if we have the right balance, then we should be competitive, I just don’t know how much yet. However, we’ll try to win. After this race I think we’ll be able to tell a little bit more, but overall the car is in good shape and it is working, so I know we can be competitive.

This track is quite demanding for tires, so in terms of strategy you try to make all of them work, to understand which one has the best chances. It will be an interesting challenge, so we’ll see. Temperatures are very important here too, because it is colder and it changes the balance of the car, and the limit of the tires. But it is difficult to predict and we need to be patient. We always try to do ourjob well and even if the first two races were ok, they are behind us now. We keep learning and look ahead”.

Kimi’s comments are on the same page as his teammate’s: “This track is completely different, and the layout and the surface of a circuit make a bigger difference than any other factor. Whether this is going to favour someone, or it is the same for everybody, we don’t know yet. We have had good speed at both tracks so far, so I don’t see why it shouldn’t be the same here. We’ll start tomorrow, see how it is and do our normal program. Let’s see how it is going to play out over the weekend, if it will be raining or not. The weather can be a bit tricky here, it’s a bit hard to predict what will happen. It will be interesting to see where we are”.

**mwk360** · 12th April 2018, 10:55

Originally Posted by Vettel165

http://formula1.ferrari.com/en/2018-...ss-conference/

Seb and Kimi ahead of China: a demanding track, a different challenge

Shanghai, April 12 – Preliminaries to the third round of the 2018 championship took place under cloudy skies and lower temperatures than expected. Scuderia Ferrari drivers Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen reflect on the challenge ahead, before the action starts on Friday morning at the Shanghai International Circuit.

“I think we should be alright here in China” says Seb, “even if it is difficult to know. So far there have been only two races and both were very good in terms of results, but they were quite different and here, the track is quite different too. Conditions are not the same as in Bahrain and Australia either. So, we’ll see how it goes, but I am quite confident. I believe that if we have the right balance, then we should be competitive, I just don’t know how much yet. However, we’ll try to win. After this race I think we’ll be able to tell a little bit more, but overall the car is in good shape and it is working, so I know we can be competitive.

This track is quite demanding for tires, so in terms of strategy you try to make all of them work, to understand which one has the best chances. It will be an interesting challenge, so we’ll see. Temperatures are very important here too, because it is colder and it changes the balance of the car, and the limit of the tires. But it is difficult to predict and we need to be patient. We always try to do ourjob well and even if the first two races were ok, they are behind us now. We keep learning and look ahead”.

Kimi’s comments are on the same page as his teammate’s: “This track is completely different, and the layout and the surface of a circuit make a bigger difference than any other factor. Whether this is going to favour someone, or it is the same for everybody, we don’t know yet. We have had good speed at both tracks so far, so I don’t see why it shouldn’t be the same here. We’ll start tomorrow, see how it is and do our normal program. Let’s see how it is going to play out over the weekend, if it will be raining or not. The weather can be a bit tricky here, it’s a bit hard to predict what will happen. It will be interesting to see where we are”.

Love that humble attitude from seb. Kimi just needs to be feisty against mercs in races as he is very good this year in quali, praying for a good setup for them

**jgonzalesm6** · 12th April 2018, 11:43

something new on Kimi's car?????

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DalB2J8WkAEfBky.jpg

Good to see Lewis and Max are friends again.

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DalDp81W4AAtjQo.jpg

Ferrari Shanghai 2018 poster

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DaklEfMWkAAJ73E.jpg

Vettel and Kimi signing auto's

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DakmSMVWAAEGPL4.jpg

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Dakl0WkXkAUlD7h.jpg

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DaklO7LX4AAa2ue.jpg (Vettel and Arami)

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DakQwHwX0AA5vvw.jpg (Vettel in the pits)

**PURE PASSION** · 12th April 2018, 11:52

Originally Posted by jgonzalesm6

something new on Kimi's car?????

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DalB2J8WkAEfBky.jpg

We had it in Bahrain!!

**tifosi1993** · 12th April 2018, 11:58

**nani_s23** · 12th April 2018, 11:59

https://youtu.be/_PPhfA5XNaE
Out of context.... seb’s nailing it off the track.

**Vettel165** · 12th April 2018, 14:29

Teams again playing with oil.

https://www.auto-motor-und-sport.de/...-wird-haerter/

"Fuel consumption has risen significantly in all this year. Because the drive units deliver the same amount of power despite the longer running times . And the cars have up to five percent more downforce. As a rule, this also means more air resistance. The top speeds have dropped compared to last year. This means more time on the straights, more time under full load and thus a higher consumption.

The engine technicians have calculated that on the critical routes would need 109 instead of 105 kilograms to get through carefree.

So far it is not clear who is affected. Renault seems to hit hardest. The Renault drivers had in Melbourne even after seven laps under safety-car conditions to take the foot off the gas. In Bahrain even Honda made a better figure. Ferrari operated in Bahrain more lift and coast than Mercedes. However, an engineer from the silver camp warns: "We drove there most of the time in the slipstream. This helps."

Mercedes has another problem, you can hear under the hand. The cars with Mercedes engines are not as fast on the straights as they should be. This has supposedly to do with the oil specification. We hear that Petronas dug up a 2016 oil grade to be on the safe side with oil consumption. Until the beginning of the season, the oil consumption of Mercedes and Ferrari was only 0.01 liters below the permitted limit of 0.6 liters per 100 kilometers.

After the oil correction, Mercedes should be on the safe side when it comes to oil consumption. But that also costs power . Ferrari is obviously still full risk just below the pain threshold. And it benefits relative to the competition. No wonder that Mercedes engine chief Andy Cowell says: "In qualifying Ferrari and we are on par." So far, this was the domain of the Mercedes engine.

The oil theme could boil up soon. The opponents of Ferrari are trying to find out why the Ferrari engine in the factory car smokes so much when starting. And even when driving smokes more than the other Ferrari teams. Should not all engines of a manufacturer be the same this year ?

Some suspect some trick behind that will allow Ferrari to add oil to the combustion process. Meanwhile, it is also known how the oil tricksters have practiced in the past. A gasket in the compressor of the turbocharger was carefully constructed "leaking" so that a pre-calculated amount of oil could enter the combustion chamber."

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