Belgium Spa-Francorchamps GP Qualifying Thread

[Kyss4k]

:ferrarifl
And it rains...

[ARUN M KARUNAN]

even though rivals are stronger,i am happy kimi in fire

[LivingHitokiri]

Lets go!
Forza :ferrarifl

[tifosi1993]

:ferrarifl

[Ed Harley]

Let the games begin!

[Alesi1]

Hi guys anyone with sector time link?

[vasveras]

:ferrarifl:ferrarifl:ferrarifl:ferrarifl:ferrarifl Let's go Boys and Girls :)

[stefa]

wet :-)

[Katu]

so how many red flags we would get today...

[stefa]

http://f1.tfeed.net/#

[Ed Harley]

I've been on pole position spot at Spa - it was about 12 years ago or so and I was driving a rental Opel Meriva diesel - track was partly on open roads back then. The Eau Rouge is s-t-e-e-p when you look uphill.

[stefa]

KR needs to do something and to do it fast

[Kyss4k]

I've been on pole position spot at Spa - it was about 15 years ago and I was driving a rental Opel Meriva diesel - track was partly on open roads back then. The Eau Rouge is s-t-e-e-p when you look uphill.

Late congratulations! :thumb

[stefa]

once again Mercedes alone in their world....

[Alesi1]

once again Mercedes alone in their world....

All too predictable.

[stefa]

Hope that FA is on track for safety reason

[Ed Harley]

Late congratulations! :thumb
Well, the starting lights did not work and it was lonely in the grid. :-D

[stefa]

Hope that FA is on track for safety reason

OK. He just did decent lap

[Katu]

Jules is impressive

[Ed Harley]

Appalling conditions.

[Kyss4k]

Ericsson ruined Alonso's last lap... luckily Alonso didn't need it.

Jules did it again! :clap

[tifosi1993]

Well done Bianchi.

[Kyss4k]

Well, the starting lights did not work and it was lonely in the grid. :-D

:haha:

[stefa]

Appalling conditions.

Why?! Normal wet session.

[Alesi1]

http://f1.tfeed.net/#

Thanks Stefa

[stefa]

Thanks Stefa

you are welcome :-)

[tifosi1993]

Lotterer outqualified Ericsson by 1 second.

[Red is Best]

I really hope we'll see Jules in a Ferrari car next year. This guy is world champion material.

[stefa]

such an amazing track SPA is! F1 needs more of this old school tracks instead of street races and HT all the same tracks!

[Ed Harley]

Why?! Normal wet session.
When it is wet at Spa it is also cold and conditions really differ a lot in different parts of the track. Very difficult if not even possible to get enough heat in the tyres. Does not seem to bother Mercedes, though.

[stefa]

When it is wet at Spa it is also cold and conditions really differ a lot in different parts of the track. Very difficult if not even possible to get enough heat in the tyres. Does not seem to bother Mercedes, though.

It does not bother good cars ever! Whatever conditions are.

[stefa]

damn. LH is flying in these wet conditions

[elnano98]

We can get 2nd row today

[stefa]

We can get 2nd row today

could be....

[killer]

Glad with how much running we are doing. I like our intent to do well.

[stefa]

2 sec faster than the rest?! Wow!

[tifosi1993]

2 sec faster than the rest?! Wow!

Scary isn't it?

[stefa]

SV squized it in...

[stefa]

Scary isn't it?

Yes. Big time!

[Kyss4k]

I'm quite happy with where we are, but those Mercs are showing something incredible. Even for their standards.

[killer]

Feel like Hamilton has just enough of an edge on Rosberg to take pole.

Good seeing we are at least, as of now, able to stay at par with RB and maybe even slightly better than Williams

[elnano98]

Longer track, bigger gap

[RM-Ferrari]

Both cars in top six would be great. Let's do this!

[Rishu]

Q3 coming up, I hope Lewis' car holds up. Let's have both scarlet cars in top 5 :)

[FerrariF60]

I'm quite happy with where we are, but those Mercs are showing something incredible. Even for their standards.


yeah, they MUST have something special or EXTRA with their power units, compared to teh other Merc powered unit cars...i mean their AERO cannot be that efficient compared to Mclaren or williams who are using the same engine

hopefully Ferrari have something "cooking" in the oven for 2015 in regards to their power unit...otherwise we'll be just as DOOMED next year like we've been this year...not to mention HONDA coming onboard with Mclaren next year who could be the DARK horse in 2015

[stefa]

and now the Sun is showing up in the pits

[FerrariF60]

Longer track, bigger gap

indeed, that's where the extra HP from the power unit makes the difference and where we are NOT doing so good

[killer]

Driver experience crucial now. Trust Fernando and Kimi to make right calls...

[stefa]

Wow! 3 sec faster!

[stefa]

Wow! 3 sec faster!

OK. 2,5 :-)

[killer]

Q3 coming up, I hope Lewis' car holds up. Let's have both scarlet cars in top 5 :)

Not a long shot, I think...

[killer]

Come on, boys...

[elnano98]

Vettel's also fast

[killer]

We can get Vettel. We just need to make sure we get them one last lap in.

[killer]

Dang. Tsk. 4 - 7. Solid 4th, banking on a good start from Kimi.

[stefa]

4th

[Rishu]

Well done Fernando, again

[Ed Harley]

Well, could be worse qualifying result. Hope for a good race tomorrow.

[FerrariF60]

not bad i guess....would havd been better if we had beaten vettel to 3rd....

[tifosi1993]

Second row, Well done Fernando.

[Katu]

i guess this shows why i would rather see Rosberg getting WDC this year, he doesn't crack when it matters

[elnano98]

Very close to Vettel, despite Alonso made mistake

[FerrariF60]

at least we BEAT the williams in quali....very important for WCC

[Kyss4k]

Close one with Vettel! :-) Kimi and Massa :-s

[Rishu]

Very close to Vettel, despite Alonso made mistake

7 hundreds off Vettel

[Alesi1]

How can the FIA be happy with merc 2s faster than the rest? It's not great for te sport. At least when Williams were dominating the others were developing everything to catch up. This is a joke. Merc have the easiest time in history. No one is allowed to catch up.

[zike]

7 hundreds off Vettel

I think we are faster than the bulls

[Kyss4k]

But the gaps being OVER 2 seconds are not even funny anymore...

[LivingHitokiri]

Im sure people are convinced that Rain is not a condition we should cheer for, i hope for a dry race tomorrow.

[elnano98]

I think we are faster than the bulls

Yes, of course if we didn't make mistake

[Rishu]

i guess this shows why i would rather see Rosberg getting WDC this year, he doesn't crack when it matters

Hamilton is the faster of the two but yes, Rosberg is mentally stronger. Lewis has been faster of the two all weekend like for past 6-7 races but when it matters the most, he fumbles.

[Hermann]

How can the FIA be happy with merc 2s faster than the rest? It's not great for te sport. At least when Williams were dominating the others were developing everything to catch up. This is a joke. Merc have the easiest time in history. No one is allowed to catch up.

They were quite happy with RB 4 years in a row.

[Alesi1]

Don't tell me they're going to say Alonso gained by going off the track it's a wet session jeez.

[Kyss4k]

How can the FIA be happy with merc 2s faster than the rest? It's not great for te sport. At least when Williams were dominating the others were developing everything to catch up. This is a joke. Merc have the easiest time in history. No one is allowed to catch up.

True. There is no way to even try to challenge them. Everyone's hands are tied.

[Kyss4k]

Don't tell me they're going to say Alonso gained by going off the track it's a wet session jeez.

They can't take it from him. So many drivers were going off the track and their times stayed.

[TonyRizza]

Did Alonso keep the low downforce set up or change it?

[FerrariF60]

How can the FIA be happy with merc 2s faster than the rest? It's not great for te sport. At least when Williams were dominating the others were developing everything to catch up. This is a joke. Merc have the easiest time in history. No one is allowed to catch up.


that is a huge difference....they must have something tricky going on there...to be that MUCH FASTER tehn everybody else...especially in teh wet...TRACTION CONTROL like system comes to my mind....or something clever they're doing with teh hybrid unit that gives traction control like results....

none the less, weather they're cheating or not....they are IMPRESSIVE this season....hopefully Ferrari will have somethig to say about it with their new and improved power unit or whatever they're changing on it for 2015

[Kyss4k]

Did Alonso keep the low downforce set up or change it?

On Sky they said, that both are running Kimi's front wing (the high downforce one).

[Hornet]

Im sure people are convinced that Rain is not a condition we should cheer for, i hope for a dry race tomorrow.

Actually I think we've done better than what we would have in the dry. This is a high speed circuit, the Merc powered teams were expected to walk all over the rest. The rain allowed teams like Red Bull and Ferrari, who have better chassis than Williams and Force India, to do better and that's what we've done today.

[Rishu]

Did Alonso keep the low downforce set up or change it?

I heard Ted say that both Ferraris ran high DF front wing, so yeah

[zike]

I heard Ted say that both Ferraris ran high DF front wing, so yeah

it will be tricky with high DF wing tomorrow, if to be sunny

[TonyRizza]

cant believe i dont know this being a massive fan, but can they both switch to the low downforce nose in the race if needed?

[Rishu]

it will be tricky with high DF wing tomorrow, if to be sunny

Mercs are also running high DF set up but they have a safety cushion. We may struggle if it remains dry tomorrow, Williams could eat us.

[AfterLife]

cant believe i dont know this being a massive fan, but can they both switch to the low downforce nose in the race if needed?

They can in their first pitstop for front wings only.

[Kingdom Hearts]

Great job by Fernando, almost 3rd, that was a dream a week ago, let's hope we have the pace to challenge RB and Williams are not too fast but I guess they will.

[zike]

Mercs are also running high DF set up but they have a safety cushion. We may struggle if it remains dry tomorrow, Williams could eat us.

My thoughts exactly, they will eat us alive

[tifosi1993]

Did Alonso keep the low downforce set up or change it?

Alonso ran spa spec low drag RW.

Both Ferrari's ran HDF FW.

[FerrariF60]

they were saying that it will most likely be dry tomorrow..so we'll be under MAJOR treat from teh merc powered cars like williams and force india...tehy have much, much higher top end speed; they'll be able to pass us without even using DRS....that will be very SAD to see...

[Kyss4k]

Well... theoretically, can't we somehow say that the wings are broken and change them on the grid? Or we can break it by an "accident" :D

[PURE PASSION]

I have a feeling that we will have a good race tomorrow even if its dry.A podium is very possible with Alo!!!

[ARUN M KARUNAN]

rain made the coin to turn towards us

[Catalan]

Not too optimistic despite ALO P4 in Qualy. Looks like no rain is expected at race time tomorrow, so, I wouldn't be surprised if RIC, BOT and MAS finish ahead. Under dry conditions today, ALO should have started in the fourth row.

I'm keeping my expectations low, so, to me, the podium tomorrow would be GREAT, and finishing 4th to 6th better than expected. Anyway, I know that we are talking about the best racer out there, so, if there's someone who can surprise is Fernando, and he has never won in Spa in his F1 career, so, this circuit owes him one ... ( remember all those DNF's, second places, the GRO crash back in 2012 ... )

[F1NAC]

Marciello won his first race today. Good job by him

[Kyss4k]

Marciello won his first race today. Good job by him

Yeah, our future (Bianchi and Marciello) did very well today.

[FFFerrari]

Williams told in interview that they had low downforce setup expecting dry race for tomorrow, especially Massa was hurt by this. Expecting a really tough race for us tomorrow.

[AfterLife]

We are faster than RedBull in dry condition and in wet we are equal.

[Alessandra]

I’m a bit confused by all the talk of low and high downforce, who was running what and is it of any advantage/ disadvatage tomorrow?

I understood from the BBC commentators that Fernando wanted and was running lower down force, which would be a problem in the wet of quali (“…how much can he take off and still keep it on the road?”)….but it will be much better for the race so long as it’s dry.

So, 4th was pretty good today under the circumstances and we can look forward to an interesting race tomorrow with a potentially good result for Fer so long as it’s dry ( which seems to be the forecast at present), and given that “One thing RBR does not have is straight-line speed” (McNish, I think).

Of course, if the Merc guys make a mess of things we could win!
It’s a pity but we have to rely on luck with the Merc domination as it is. I’m guessing a Ferrari 1-2.:-D

[wisepie]

Couldn't watch quali but great to see both cars in the top 10, weather looks as if it could interfere with showers predicted so we're in a far better position compared to earlier in the season. Felipe's there too and well done Jules. Fingers crossed for tomorrow, ragazzi.:thumb:pray

[Kristof_F40]

In FP3 Fernando ran low DF, Kimi high. According to BBC and Sky both Fernando and Kimi ran high DF in qualy. The question is ofcourse how high.. High DF would be better during wet qualy but, since chances of rain tomorrow are less, would not be good for the race. On a track like Spa, where qualy isn't super important, that decision would be strange. So we'll see.. RBR had good race pace in dry, in wet they will be quick as well. If it's wet, Williams will be disadvantaged, if it's dry they are real competitors. Start will be important, clean getaway and hopefully clear Seb, do are own pace so we keep a gap to Williams. I think Kimi will have a difficult race, since he needs to pass RBR and Williams..

[fastfreddy]

Both ferraris run the "high" downforce configuration (front and rear wing) that kimi was running in FP3.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eMn0dUBOZTc

Commitment in eau rouge :) I've watched hundreds of qualy laps from alonso and always when he crosses the line he pushes the car to get an extra thousand of a second (you can see it by his helmet going forward; also shown in this video).

Alonso = fighter till the end!!

Avanti fer!!!

[radosav]

Both ferraris run the "high" downforce configuration (front and rear wing) that kimi was running in FP3.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eMn0dUBOZTc

Commitment in eau rouge :) I've watched hundreds of qualy laps from alonso and always when he crosses the line he pushes the car to get an extra thousand of a second (you can see it by his helmet going forward; also shown in this video).

Alonso = fighter till the end!!

Avanti fer!!!

Didn't notice that before!

[gjoko-mkd]

Alonso with all four wheels out of the track. I hope he we will escape punishment


https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5563/15009311561_c36ee3ca42_o.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/oSjDpP)

[stefa]

Alonso with all four wheels out of the track. I hope he we will escape punishment


https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5563/15009311561_c36ee3ca42_o.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/oSjDpP)

There were plenty of cars going off the track with all four wheels today, and neither got any kind of penalty.

[Rishu]

Yup, many drivers including Rosberg were running wide purposely at Blanchimont to get extra top speed through Eau Rouge on to the Kemmel straight.

[Alessandra]

re.my question at *99 above - OK, thanks for the replies above. So both our drivers are on high down force for the race. That's not good news , is it? Although I guess most of the others are also on high down force. Hmm.
Podium maybe - if one or two ahead on the start grid have problems. That would be hopeful for the up-dates apparently down the road at Singapore.:Hmm

[Black Adder]

what would be a good stream?

[TonyRizza]

BBC iPlayer