Russian GP 2021 - Practices and Qualifying

[jgonzalesm6]

Bout time.....Leclerc is sitting out the rest of Q2.

[Tifoso Svedese]

Wonder who's going to gamble for slicks in Q3?

[patrese86]

Sainz is fortunate there.

[elnano14]

Our car is **** at wet track

[elnano14]

Lmao Lewis

[elnano14]

Lewis's time is over

[patrese86]

What a finish!!!

[Tifoso Svedese]

Hell yes Carlos!

Hopefully he nails the start and can control the podium place very well.

[jgonzalesm6]

Way to go Norris....P1.

Lewis spins on his lap....ends up P4.

[Rishu]

Fantastic Carlos, Vamos!!

Again, a proof of how Hamilton fairs when under pressure

[jgonzalesm6]

Good to see Sainz P2. Now let's see how he does in race pace tomorrow.

[tifosi1993]

[Tifoso Svedese]

Holding position at the start, in effect being the first guy either tucked in behind Norris or leading one of the lines will be crucial. If he's ahead of Russell I believe he'll score a podium on merit since the Williams along with Ricciardo and Alonso will hold Bottas up for long enough in a DRS train.

Maybe a 20 % chance of a win but everything has to go perfectly right to first beat Norris and second hold of Hammy here.

[tifosi1993]

Well ******* done Carlos! P2 is the ideal start position, with the track being damp, there will not be any clean or dirty side tomorrow.

But he mustn't allow Russell to get ahead of him.

Waiting to see what Charles can do with the new upgraded PU.

[elnano14]

Sainz had a bit oversteer in final sector. He HAD the pace to beat Lando despite setting the time earlier. Still happy with P2 tho

[tpe]

Kind reminder:
The best position to start at Sochi is 3rd.
I don't believe that CS will be able to hold LH behind him. I don't see a podium to be honest (under normal conditions, dry race and incident free start)

[Tifoso Svedese]

If Sainz has a good start I've no reason to see why he wouldn't be able to stay ahead of Bottas. He's bad at overtaking and S3 suits Ferrari down to the T, so I think a repeat of the Hungary position definitely looks promising. To have any chance at the win he has to have stronger race pace than Norris and hope that Hammy gets delayed badly early on. Neither is likely but 15 points definitely seem to be. Considering Leclerc's speed in terms of adaptive situations it's a great shame he's not there because I think a pole would've been very possible for him today. Any early SC and I hope they take hards and try and run the whole race after the restart on them. That worked well for Alonso in Monaco after all back in the day.

[tifosi1993]

If Russell gets ahead and Norris keeps his lead, it will heavily jeopardize our race. Carlos must protect his start position.

The ideal situation will be: Russell leading the pack after lap 1 or Sainz in the lead and able defend his position for the first few laps.

[330 p4]

Has it been announced that the pit entry wall will get a 3 place penalty yet?

[FerrariF60]

Has it been announced that the pit entry wall will get a 3 place penalty yet?

What are you talking about

[stefa]

What are you talking about

Because it hits LH!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=otm-4GKz0KQ

[FerrariF60]

Because it hits LH!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=otm-4GKz0KQ

Stewards won’t do anything....it’s luise after all...they usually turn a blind eye

[patrese86]

It's still going to be really difficult to get a podium tomorrow. I think we need to temper expectations despite a good Q3 and Mercs screwing up. Hamilton will breeze right past and Bottas in a few more laps the same. Then you've got Perez and I'd still expect Max to finish high. Hope I'm wrong but it's going to be alot tougher than it looks.

[jgonzalesm6]

It's still going to be really difficult to get a podium tomorrow. I think we need to temper expectations despite a good Q3 and Mercs screwing up. Hamilton will breeze right past and Bottas in a few more laps the same. Then you've got Perez and I'd still expect Max to finish high. Hope I'm wrong but it's going to be alot tougher than it looks.

Agreed.

I just hope Lewis's PU gives out on him. Mercedes are putting off a new PU for Lewis. It's possible Lewis's PU will be "detuned" or run on conservative mode to go the distance. He will eventually have to take another PU and grid spot penalties.

Gotta love the rain or a wet track....it is the great equalizer no matter how fast your car is or how good the pit wall is.....or how good the driver is.

[wisepie]

It's still going to be really difficult to get a podium tomorrow. I think we need to temper expectations despite a good Q3 and Mercs screwing up. Hamilton will breeze right past and Bottas in a few more laps the same. Then you've got Perez and I'd still expect Max to finish high. Hope I'm wrong but it's going to be alot tougher than it looks.

Agreed +1, the Mclaren is quicker than us and Lando is aggressive, followed by quicker cars behind Carlos, it will be difficult to defend even though it's not easy to pass. All the same, a good showing from Carlos, just wish Charles didn't have that grid penalty as the Mclarens are in a prime position to extend their P3 advantage in the constructors' championship.

[ntukza]

I'm really worried about Lando. He's driving really well. He might just be in Leclerc's league after all.

[Cavallino]

I'm really worried about Lando. He's driving really well. He might just be in Leclerc's league after all.

Sainz beat him. And Leclerc beat him regularly last season in a slower car. He's average at best.

[jgonzalesm6]

Sainz beat him. And Leclerc beat him regularly last season in a slower car. He's average at best.

Ummm, Mclaren last year had a Renault PU......not the best PU when compared to Honda or Mercedes regarding horsepower. The MCL35 is also aero efficient on almost all tracks.

"Average at best"--->????. He's only 21yo and is both good in a wet and dry track while also making a veteran driver, Daniel Ricciardo, look "average at best" which shows that Lando is adaptable from a Renault PU software to a Mercedes PU software in less than a year. Lando is currently 4th place in the WDC standings pre-Sochi 2021---> Max, Lewis, and Bottas are the only 3 in front of Lando. He's also beating Checo Perez whom is also a veteran driver.

In Leclerc's league??? Remains to be seen IMO. Leclerc, to include Sainz, are suffering from a car that is horsepower difficent and aero difficent given the track....to include "wet track" difficent as well.

Leclerc needs a strong car in both horsepower and aero in all tracks to include a wet track to show his driving proweress or race-craft skills.

[Alonsomaniac]

This is going to be very interesting tomorrow. Carlos did very well today and I really hope he can keep up with Lando tomorrow. Lewis will be very eager to take the win as Verstappen has to come all the way from 20th.
But my eyes will be focussing most on Charles. What he can do tomorrow can be a good indication of what we can expect from the Ferrari in the future. Him starting alongside of Max in the very fast Red Bull will be the first test. If they finish right behind eachother I will be very satisfied.

[Tifoso Svedese]

Lando is good, especially in the wet, but I've yet to see any evidence he could pull off a dry pole in a car with a donkey engine so to speak. Either way I don't think McLaren are going anywhere if we're talking being title threats. The moment Mercedes are under pressure from them, they'd kick them out and force them to go with the weak Renault engine again. I also believe the budget cap will be raised rather shortly now that fans are back at races not to mention the top teams can exceed the cap without sporting penalties.