US GP 2021 - Practice and Qualifying

[Greig]

Hope we can continue to show progress here :-)

[Redfive]

Forza Ferrari!!
I feel Charles is going to be good here, no idea why. it's just a feeling I have. Maybe a podium?

also Bottas 3rd engine change in 4 races, another penalty lol. I think they do it to keep him away from Hammy.

[patrese86]

Not much to talk about that session. Mercedes continue to exploit the regs, taking engine changes because they'll only get a 5 place penalty now. Also something very dodgy with there speed but still a refusal from the FIA to look into it. It'll only be there downfall as people don't tune in to watch processions as we've seen over the last 8 years.

[Greig]

Looks like Red Bull are falling away badly against Mercedes.

[FerrariF60]

Looks like Red Bull are falling away badly against Mercedes.

It was good while it lasted

[SilverSpeed]

Sure that taxi speed is legal...

maFIA sees nothing wrong.

[FerrariF60]

Sure that taxi speed is legal...

maFIA sees nothing wrong.

Of course, they wanna hand him the 8th at any cost….

[hakanabi]

I have been saying this over and over, they have been toying with everyone for years, they have so much reserve that they only up the engine enough to win these championships. This year only 6 races left so they don't want to take this any further so they up the engine again. Probably it will be over 1.5 seconds faster than rest of the field at full power.

[tifosi1993]

I think the Merc ran with higher mode than usual. Bottas now on his 6th PU, so something's not right with the PU. Probably pushing the engine a bit harder in Friday practice to check and verify some data.

[Gilles]

Not much to talk about that session. Mercedes continue to exploit the regs, taking engine changes because they'll only get a 5 place penalty now. Also something very dodgy with there speed but still a refusal from the FIA to look into it. It'll only be there downfall as people don't tune in to watch processions as we've seen over the last 8 years.
I'm asking to myself : aren't they working their next ICE in this reworked 2021 one ?

[tifosi1993]

https://i.imgur.com/XOE1s8v.jpg

[Redfive]

Something VERY dodgy about that Merc engine. if it was a Ferrari or Honda, they would be checking it out but as always Merc gets a free pass because the FIA want goldenboy to have more titles. Makes me want to puke, the sheer unfairness of it all. I swear the FIA are now as corrupt as FIFA.

[Tifoso Svedese]

I can guarantee we're not 1.5 seconds off pole. Surely running the old engine and not pushing so hard for laptimes either.

[SilverSpeed]

https://streamable.com/j0vhsx

This is why taxi's where so fast in Turkey. Look at how much the car drops ha no moveable aero part sure.

So they are going to exploit every race the 5 grid place penalty and get a new ICE + partry mode again pffff.

[paolo lalli]

The butler bottas has been given engine change to protect 3 chains when he is leading,and to fend of any attack,just doing the job of the butler for 3 chains.Ferrari will surprise.

[Gilles]

I can guarantee we're not 1.5 seconds off pole. Surely running the old engine and not pushing so hard for laptimes either.
Agree, but how that fast is already Merc! I tried to see their load and found no answer yet

[Gilles]

https://streamable.com/j0vhsx

This is why taxi's where so fast in Turkey. Look at how much the car drops ha no moveable aero part sure.

So they are going to exploit every race the 5 grid place penalty and get a new ICE + partry mode again pffff.

Saw that, have they reversed their deficit of rake?
Could explain their top speed without having to push the PU more than they usually do on friday

[PURE PASSION]

A little odd performance on those FPs !!!! I cant think that we are behind Stroll and a bit ahead of Gio!!!!!And almost 0.5s behind McL's !!!!!!

[PURE PASSION]

On race pace we are somewhere there. We look to be a bit in front of McL. About 0.1-0.2 s / lap

[patrese86]

Haven't seen any proper data but we look slower than anticipated. Maybe we are holding something back but I doubt it..

[458 Italia]

I think WEC and GT cars look better at COTA ;-)

[alfaromeo]

Ferrari using in this 1 in 2 new engine or old one ? If they used old one I think they can be good in is new one than they have problems with Mclaren …

[PURE PASSION]

Ferrari using in this 1 in 2 new engine or old one ? If they used old one I think they can be good in is new one than they have problems with Mclaren …

Regularly we use order engines in FPs (like most of the teams) . I think today we also run older ones. We will see tomorrow.
On race pace we where not bad .We where faster then McLs

[alfaromeo]

Yes i think that in the race Ferrari can fight for podiums..

[PURE PASSION]

Yes i think that in the race Ferrari can fight for podiums..

Unfortunately not quite there. We where a lot slower them Merc-RBR .From 0 5 to 1 d / lap. Even Perez seems to be on the top so unless something happens to the top 4 where are clearly looking foe 3d best !!

[jgonzalesm6]

It's too soon to make assumptions. Wait till qualifying and more so, wait till the race to see Ferrari's race pace on a full tank of gas....like everyone else.

Then we'll see if this "upgraded" PU has been "upgraded."

[Riccardog]

just my opinion... but What a ******** story by mercs on... we lost some ground to red bull in fp2....
they have just simply detuned after all the hype on their extra speed so as to hide what a bunch of cheats they actually are........

[FerrariF60]

just my opinion... but What a ******** story by mercs on... we lost some ground to red bull in fp2....
they have just simply detuned after all the hype on their extra speed so as to hide what a bunch of cheats they actually are........


^this i totally agree

[Tifoso Svedese]

You're a sitting duck at Austin without tyre durabilty and it's also a track where the differences between the old and new engine should be among the greatest all season so it would make sense to focus exclusively on durability and general set-up. FP3 will say a lot more.

[hakanabi]

just my opinion... but What a ******** story by mercs on... we lost some ground to red bull in fp2....
they have just simply detuned after all the hype on their extra speed so as to hide what a bunch of cheats they actually are........

Absolutely spot on :thumb

[jgonzalesm6]

This track sucks from a tarmac perspective. It needs a complete resurface.

I saw Estebon Ocon's helmet cam on YouTube, Give credit to these drivers for driving on this circuit.....and that's because MotoGP riders complained last week and the bumps were "supposedly" grinded away.

[Gilles]

You're a sitting duck at Austin without tyre durabilty and it's also a track where the differences between the old and new engine should be among the greatest all season so it would make sense to focus exclusively on durability and general set-up. FP3 will say a lot more.
Waiting for today's PU and settings to see more. If the reds improve the tires management, they must be the third team. But I fear they could suffer if the temperatures vary

[PURE PASSION]

For yesterday and every Friday till the end of the season !!!!!

GiulyDuchessa reports that Ferrari were already using PU4 in practice yesterday. The new system doesn’t allow a return to the older specs. So Ferrari will run their engines more conservative on Friday in the remaining race weekends this year.
A good test for reliability too.

[Riccardog]

so, according to f... croft, all the fans have gone to see if mercs have overcome their setup issues from yesterday??????
more and more f1 is beginning to feel like a british formula....... sadly

[patrese86]

Really good from Carlos. Karun said they didn't change anything in the garage and he was happy with the setup then puts in a really strong lap. Leclerc seems to be struggling with the rears more

[Tifoso Svedese]

Carlos looks bang on the money for a P4 start. Hopefully Charles can study the data and get to that level in time for Q3. I suspect Mercedes will struggle with tyre wear tomorrow considering where on track they're fast.

[Gilles]

Really good from Carlos. Karun said they didn't change anything in the garage and he was happy with the setup then puts in a really strong lap. Leclerc seems to be struggling with the rears more
Yesterday he said the track was gangrenous and it seems he's still struggling to find his way

[jgonzalesm6]

C'mon Ferrari.....show us what ya got.

[Redfive]

Forza Ferrari! Lets go guys.

[stefa]

First CL run nothing spectacular...

[stefa]

CS on the other hand... :-D

[patrese86]

This bloody SF21 is so unpredictable!

[stefa]

CL!!!!

[jgonzalesm6]

Good Q1 by both Ferrari drivers.

[patrese86]

Yes a much better lap from Charles! Maybe the circuit ramped up a bit but it didn't help everyone

[PURE PASSION]

END IT NOW!!!!!

[tifosi1993]

Let's see what Q2 brings. Would be great if we can qualify on the mediums.

[tifosi1993]

Good news. Both Ric and Per have their times deleted.

[patrese86]

Softs look like they fade away too much..we should of saved a set of mediums for Q3

[PURE PASSION]

Aaaaaaahhhhh
Those McLs are fast too!!!!!!!

[stefa]

CS on SOFT slower than CL on MEDIUM

[tifosi1993]

I don't understand why would Ferrari want to split the strategy. Both have more than enough pace to start inside the top 10 on mediums.

[drax]

I don't understand Sainz with softs

[tifosi1993]

Sainz is now out on mediums.

[stefa]

I don't understand Sainz with softs

Back on track on MEDIUM

[tifosi1993]

Sainz will start on softs, didn't improve his best time on mediums. :-??

[PURE PASSION]

It's like the track become shower on mediums!!!
Even Perez-Ric where too slow on mediums!!!

[PURE PASSION]

Just qualify in front of McLs .It's all I want!!

[tifosi1993]

WOW PEREZ

[stefa]

At least in front of McLaren.

[stefa]

One row per team :lol

[tifosi1993]

I think the Merc ran with higher mode than usual. Bottas now on his 6th PU, so something's not right with the PU. Probably pushing the engine a bit harder in Friday practice to check and verify some data.

Guess I will quote myself here.

As always, people were again overhyping and blaming the FIA for Mercedes's performance. But they were simply running on higher engine mode.

[tifosi1993]

Well done Charles, P5. Will start on P4 because of the Bottas penalty.

Both are ahead of the Mclaren. :clap

[patrese86]

Best we could of done, plus Bottas 5 place penalty, will take that!!!

[stefa]

Not bad

[ferrari1.8t]

Sky soooooo depressed that Verstappen took that pole lmao :rotfl

Great job ferrari, seems like we are comfortably the 3rd fastest team. On our way up!!!

[PURE PASSION]

Good job !!!!!! Well done from both our drivers !!!!!
4-5 on the grid tomorrow!!!!!

[alfaromeo]

Good results in the race will be good with tires for Ferrari.

[tifosi1993]

Pretty safe to assume that, without the upgrade, Ferrari would've been behind the Mclaren here. And we're not even running the full power yet.

[tifosi1993]

https://i.imgur.com/ikNBfgB.jpg

[darkchild]

Engine looking really, really good now.

[SS454]

Thanks for posting that so quickly @Tifosi1993

Shocked that RBR was faster and it wasn't just the Max's Magic, Perez was also very very fast. Nearly on pole. The Mercs were hitting 320ish kph, but I noticed Ham hit 323 and set the fastest S2 by quite a margin. I think the Merc's definitely still have a sizeable power advantage when in full power. Hopefully the Red Bull's can stay ahead on the straights in the race.

Ferrari, best of the rest and another fine job by Sainz. The Ferrari - Mclaren battle is extremely tight and it's nice to see Ricciardo in the fight as well, even though it isn't in Ferrari's best interest. It's also bad news for Gasly, as his usual P6 will be in jeopardy for the rest of the season.

[alfaromeo]

I’m very optimistic for 2022 for Ferrari… They do very good in this season. In the race they can fight for podium independence how good will do with the tires.

[tifosi1993]

Thanks for posting that so quickly @Tifosi1993

Shocked that RBR was faster and it wasn't just the Max's Magic, Perez was also very very fast. Nearly on pole. The Mercs were hitting 320ish kph, but I noticed Ham hit 323 and set the fastest S2 by quite a margin. I think the Merc's definitely still have a sizeable power advantage when in full power. Hopefully the Red Bull's can stay ahead on the straights in the race.

Ferrari, best of the rest and another fine job by Sainz. The Ferrari - Mclaren battle is extremely tight and it's nice to see Ricciardo in the fight as well, even though it isn't in Ferrari's best interest. It's also bad news for Gasly, as his usual P6 will be in jeopardy for the rest of the season.

No problem.

Yup, the Merc had quite a big advantage in the sector 2 throughout the qualifying. I can see another spicy battle between Max-Ham at the start here.

With our new upgraded PU, I don't expect Mclaren to pull up that big of a fight here. Our race pace has been better than our qualifying pace since France, after we made some changes with the setup. But I can see Sainz getting the jump ahead of Charles due to being on softs. So IMO, Ferrari needs to play the team game here. Our main job should be keeping the Mclaren behind at the start.

[SS454]

No problem.

Yup, the Merc had quite a big advantage in the sector 2 throughout the qualifying. I can see another spicy battle between Max-Ham at the start here.

With our new upgraded PU, I don't expect Mclaren to pull up that big of a fight here. Our race pace has been better than our qualifying pace since France, after we made some changes with the setup. But I can see Sainz getting the jump ahead of Charles due to being on softs. So IMO, Ferrari needs to play the team game here. Our main job should be keeping the Mclaren behind at the start.

I missed that Sainz is starting on softs. I agree about the team game and fortunate Sainz and Leclerc are both trusting in doing what is best for the team. They will have some strategy options for sure. It will be a fascinating battle that I hope the TV director shows during the race.

[jgonzalesm6]

Great job on the Ferrari upgrade and Nice job on Sainz and Leclerc.

Now race-pace tomorrow.

[ferrari1.8t]

Loving how different things are in the states, none of the drivers and interviewers wearing masks! Such a refreshing change to see our drivers faces!

[Tifoso Svedese]

Yeah the covid lunacy didn't hit Texas for long, they cancelled the restrictions crap a long time ago.

I'm a bit disappointed with the time gap to pole position, but the positions are very good. Considering Bottler didn't look so fast today I think there's a chance both cars could finish where they qualified and have another good points day. With there being no fast turns and at high elevation in Mexico, hopefully at the very least one of our cars could beat Hammy there and maybe go for the win.

I believe both Charles and Carlos will drive away effortlessly from McLaren tomorrow, I think they've trimmed off to be as fast as possible over one lap in a bid to outqualify us.

[patrese86]

Edit: cba

[gump1480]

For yesterday and every Friday till the end of the season !!!!!

I have been telling the same thing since last race that Ferrari's hybrid system cannot be used in the old PU. Finally we got the confirmation.

[20000rpm]

Sky soooooo depressed that Verstappen took that pole lmao :rotfl



You should have listened to Brundie saying Perez topping for a brief moment was outside of his paycheck. So disgusting!!
Just because Sky F1 is on Merc payroll doesn't mean everyone should be!!

[Gilles]

Yeah the covid lunacy didn't hit Texas for long, they cancelled the restrictions crap a long time ago.

I'm a bit disappointed with the time gap to pole position, but the positions are very good. Considering Bottler didn't look so fast today I think there's a chance both cars could finish where they qualified and have another good points day. With there being no fast turns and at high elevation in Mexico, hopefully at the very least one of our cars could beat Hammy there and maybe go for the win.

I believe both Charles and Carlos will drive away effortlessly from McLaren tomorrow, I think they've trimmed off to be as fast as possible over one lap in a bid to outqualify us.

Not sure the elevation could change anything due to the use of a tubocharger
Like you, I'm happy with today's result, knowing the track is less favorable than in Turkey, but it's a little bit frustrating.
I hope that today they will well manage the tires, hot temps are expected and it could be a weakness one more time
Also, CS is on softs (why?), not great, team mistake ?
On the clean side with such rubbers he may pass CL at the start, how the pitwall will manage that, knowing the softs will lost in performance before the mediums?

[Brembo]

The biggest winner is F-1 not having Merc on pole! Fans are back to watching and not knowing who's to be on the podium! And.. Ferrari back to being with the top contenders. We have two great drivers for sure.

[Tifoso Svedese]

Not sure the elevation could change anything due to the use of a tubocharger
Like you, I'm happy with today's result, knowing the track is less favorable than in Turkey, but it's a little bit frustrating.
I hope that today they will well manage the tires, hot temps are expected and it could be a weakness one more time
Also, CS is on softs (why?), not great, team mistake ?
On the clean side with such rubbers he may pass CL at the start, how the pitwall will manage that, knowing the softs will lost in performance before the mediums?

Simple. Team orders and a more aggressive two-stopper. I expect Carlos in at laps 10-12 and then go for mediums in a bid to make up track position for his eventual second stop for hards to the end.

As for the elevation, Mexico is infamous for having Red Bull processions back in the era where the Mercedes engine really lit it up. It makes a ton of difference up on 2,300 metres.

[SilverSpeed]

Funny to see that after 1 race Ted Bull knows what the taxi's are doing and they have a fix for that, and it works.

Meanwhile clowns at Ferrari...

[wisepie]

Good to see Charles and Carlos starting P4/5 after BOT's penalty, tyres will determine what they can do and Pirelli think it's possibly a 2-stopper, so maybe Carlos on the softs isn't too silly. Hope to avoid any problems at the start, our upgrades are definitely in the right direction but those Mclarens are too close for comfort.

[PURE PASSION]

Funny to see that after 1 race Ted Bull knows what the taxi's are doing and they have a fix for that, and it works.

Meanwhile clowns at Ferrari...

???????????
Why do you compare this year's RedBull that they fighting for the championship with Ferrari who just learning things for next year ???
AND my common question to guys like you ??? If you consider that the team are a bunch of clowns , why do you support them ????
i cant undestand people that consider themselves fans of a team , only when the win , and all the other times are SO hard on them and speaking with the worst words !!!! You dont have a single difference from competitor teams fans,so why dont you join them ?????

[ferrari1.8t]

You should have listened to Brundie saying Perez topping for a brief moment was outside of his paycheck. So disgusting!!
Just because Sky F1 is on Merc payroll doesn't mean everyone should be!!

I definitely heard it, absolute trash. I keep saying it, the faster Merc and Hamilton stop winning, the better it is for all F1 fans. They are so toxic to the sport.

[KimiBot]

The biggest winner is F-1 not having Merc on pole! Fans are back to watching and not knowing who's to be on the podium! And.. Ferrari back to being with the top contenders. We have two great drivers for sure.

0.7-0.8 slower, so not there yet. Hopefully race pace is better, we`ll see.

[KimiBot]

....and because we have 2 great drivers, we can trust, that 0.7-0.8 is actual and real picture.

[Shadowfax84]

The biggest winner is F-1 not having Merc on pole! Fans are back to watching and not knowing who's to be on the podium! And.. Ferrari back to being with the top contenders. We have two great drivers for sure.

We are off by 0.7 seconds with this new engine. I will wait until the first qualifying in 2022 to see where we really are.

[Tifoso Svedese]

We are off by 0.7 seconds with this new engine. I will wait until the first qualifying in 2022 to see where we really are.

Austin is a peak Red Bull track. Even Checo is fast - which is a sign that the broken clock is right twice a day. What I prefer looking at is the distance to Bottas which is 0.1 seconds here. That's a consistent marker for how close we are to get podiums on merit.

Distance to second Mercedes this season for our best car:

Bahrain: 0.092
Imola: -0.158
Portugal: 0.686
Spain: 0.627
Monaco: -0.749* (red flag)
Baku: -1.441* (red flag)
France: 0.464
Styria: 0.405
Austria: 0.510 (no Ferrari in Q3)
Britain: 0.610
Hungary: 0.762
Belgium: 1.426 (Q2, wet)
Netherlands: 0.305
Italy: 0.809
Russia: 1.215 (Q2, wet, last session on equal tyres)
Turkey: 0.267
USA: 0.131

2020 versus second Mercedes:

Austria: 0.872
Styria: 0.980
Hungary: 1.220
Britain: 0.811
70-Britain: 1.393
Spain: 1.444
Belgium: 1.233
Italy: 1.317
Tuscany: 1.267
Russia: 1.383
Eifel: 0.510
Portugal 0.336
Imola: 0.910
Turkey: 1.402 (Q2)
Bahrain: 1.596
Sakhir: 0.210
Abu Dhabi: 0.733

So, a mile of difference there as well.

So, discounting the first two races where Mercedes hadn't figured the car out and the red-flag qualifyings on street courses, the difference is abundantly clear. The engine has made a sizeable leap forward and had this been August we'd been stuck behind the orange rockets on the grid today.

[jgonzalesm6]

Austin is a peak Red Bull track. .

It is this weekend but this was'nt the case in the turbo hybrid era. It's been Mercedes dominated since 2014......until yesterday regarding qualifying.

[Nick Singer]

We'll be lucky to get one car on the podium..

As third best chassis and with Ferrari race strategy (LOL), it will be tough..

(PS Lord, please let Max and Shamilton take each other out!)

[PURE PASSION]

Another confirmation of the great work the engineers at Maranello did with the new hybrid system (now on both cars): Leclerc and Ricciardo have the same straight line speed on the back straight and LEC gains more than 0.2s in Sector 2!

#Leclerc #Ricciardo

[PURE PASSION]

We'll be lucky to get one car on the podium..

As third best chassis and with Ferrari race strategy (LOL), it will be tough..

(PS Lord, please let Max and Shamilton take each other out!)
If nothing happens to the top 3 ,there's NO WAY we could fight for podium. To be in a good form to be ahaid of McLs is one thing BUT to fight for podiums on pure performance is a totally different thing ,impossible this year!!!
And even Bottas is pretty possible to pass us as he starts only 4-5 places behind, and he had so much stronger pace yesterday!!!!
We have to see things as they are and not get ahaid of ourselves and asking to much of the team !!!

[Brembo]

Such optimism !!! I'm hoping nether Charles or Carlos frequents this forum! :rotfl

[ferrari1.8t]

I am sensing more lies from Toto and co. Looks like Horner may have been right about mercs floor running too low. Perhaps Merc changing it now to avoid a protest from RedBull after the race. Either way, always special treatment for Merc from the FIA.

https://www.planetf1.com/news/mercedes-forced-to-change-floors-usgp/

[SS454]

I am sensing more lies from Toto and co. Looks like Horner may have been right about mercs floor running too low. Perhaps Merc changing it now to avoid a protest from RedBull after the race. Either way, always special treatment for Merc from the FIA.

https://www.planetf1.com/news/mercedes-forced-to-change-floors-usgp/

Horner also said there is nothing illegal about what Mercedes is doing. Apparently Mercedes have just found a better what of compressing the suspension at very high speeds (300 kph or so). Teams have been doing this for decades in some fashion or another.

What sucks is Red Bull found a way to flex their wing that passed all tests, and the FIA change the rules mid season as per Mercedes' complaints.

[Gilles]

Simple. Team orders and a more aggressive two-stopper. I expect Carlos in at laps 10-12 and then go for mediums in a bid to make up track position for his eventual second stop for hards to the end.

As for the elevation, Mexico is infamous for having Red Bull processions back in the era where the Mercedes engine really lit it up. It makes a ton of difference up on 2,300 metres.


Correct, because they cannot increase the pressure of the turbocharger. So, good news for the next race

[ferrari1.8t]

Horner also said there is nothing illegal about what Mercedes is doing. Apparently Mercedes have just found a better what of compressing the suspension at very high speeds (300 kph or so). Teams have been doing this for decades in some fashion or another.

What sucks is Red Bull found a way to flex their wing that passed all tests, and the FIA change the rules mid season as per Mercedes' complaints.

Still not buying it, Merc was on the pace to take pole before Horner complained. Then they magically decided to change their floors and they lost pace. IMO Merc are dirty cheats, plain and simple.

https://www.planetf1.com/news/red-bull-fia-inspect-mercedes-suspension/

Mercedes did change the floor of their cars after Friday’s practices but that, it is said, was more to do with the height than a reaction to Red Bull’s request.

Wolff conceded at the time that it cost Mercedes pace, with Max Verstappen taking both pole position and the United States GP win.

[Greig]

Merc went quicker on Saturday than they did on Friday though? :-D

[SS454]

Still not buying it, Merc was on the pace to take pole before Horner complained. Then they magically decided to change their floors and they lost pace. IMO Merc are dirty cheats, plain and simple.

https://www.planetf1.com/news/red-bull-fia-inspect-mercedes-suspension/

Mercedes did change the floor of their cars after Friday’s practices but that, it is said, was more to do with the height than a reaction to Red Bull’s request.

Wolff conceded at the time that it cost Mercedes pace, with Max Verstappen taking both pole position and the United States GP win.

Sounds like it was a ride height adjustment was needed because the desired ride height was damaging the floor.

[Brembo]

The FIAs special treatment with Merc keeping them out of the wins is causing millions $$$ of fans to come back to our favorite sport F-1 Now if only Ferrari will give our drivers a little more push and a better pit stop the podium needs Ferrari!!!