If someone had told me that this year’s Formula One World Championship would see seven winners from as many races, then calling them crazy probably wouldn’t have been enough.
It’s been a breath of fresh air following one of the most one-sided championships since Schumacher’s Ferrari days, where Sebastian Vettel romped home to the title with several rounds to spare.
Regulations on exhaust placement to cut down on aerodynamic advantages has arguably had the biggest influence on leveling out this year’s competition.
It’s helped Williams find their first victory in eight years, in partnership with engine supplier Renault once more just like their glory days in 90’s.
It’s brought Lotus F1 into the fight for the minor placings in the constructors championship and almost brought Sauber their first victory as an independent team.
The lack of off-throttle blown diffusers has cut back Red Bull’s distinct edge over the rest of the field, and as viewers we must be better off for it. Or are we?
While innovations in bodywork and aerodynamics come to the fore every season, tyre quality has taken a step in the opposite direction.
Pirelli took over the helm of tyre supplier from Bridgestone at the beginning of the 2011 season, and all the pre-season talk last year was about the rapid degradation of the new rubber. Rightfully so.
Last year’s blistering debacle at Spa was a testament to how unprepared the supplier was to cope with Formula One standards of wear and tear.
Now into their second season, Pirelli have improved the longevity of their prime tyre considerably. There has been much less talk about the rubber this year than 2011, but the issue is still there for people to see.
They feel like a shadow of the giant Bridgestone that preceded them, in terms of consistency and quality.
Now, for sure, this hasn’t impeded on the quality of the racing this year. In fact, it has given it a unique flavour.
Just look at Mark Webber’s prime tyre move on the outside of Fernando Alonso at Silverstone to win the race, as the Spaniard’s soft compound gave up on him. The gap between compound durability has never been larger.
It does raise the question though of whether we should be celebrating more exciting racing as a result of poorer standards of parts – in this case the tyres.
It seems to conflict with the ethos of Formula One, that is it being the pinnacle of engineering and mechanical innovation.
F1 Chief Executive Bernie Ecclestone has employed little tricks like the Drag Reduction System to mask the issues Pirelli have had.
It’s been creating tacky, fake overtaking scenarios and not allowing the racing to be the direct result of the drivers’ abilities.
At the halfway point in this season I can say this is easily the most thrilling season I’ve witnessed since 2008, where the championship came down to the final corner at Brazil to give Lewis Hamilton his title. But I may end up looking back on 2012’s season wondering why I enjoyed it.
Should a sport forget its roots in new ideas and forward thinking for the sake of a bit of entertainment?
I’ve never felt so split down the middle looking at this fine sport.
Alexander Grant
Roar Pro
Thank you very much. The jump between now and pre-DRS/pre-Pirelli is glaringly obvious.
Mat Coch
Roar Guru
The Ferrari scenario is a complex one. Domenicali is ultimately responsible, but there has been technical changes to the team with Pat Fry joining, so I'd expect things to improve over time. Massa... To paraphrase a friend of mine; He's done extremely well to acheive the results he has in his career given the modest talent he possesses. There is a lot of speculation about what is going on at Ferrari, but I am not going to add fuel to that - I much rather work with fact than fiction and since we know nothing it's best to say nothing.
Mat Coch
Roar Guru
Not sure of this is breaking the rules, but I do it in good faith none the les; http://cliptheapex.com/community/overtaking/ There are holes in the data and I'm not convinced it's entirely true (lap charts do not tell the full story of a race, but give an extremely good outline) but it's a good start.
Alexander Grant
Roar Pro
Would you happen to have those statistics on hand? That would be an interesting read.
Mat Coch
Roar Guru
I read some interesting statistics over the weekend looking at overtaking statistics in Formula One going back to the early 1980's. What was abundantly clear was that during the refuelling era overtaking was significantly less than at any other point during the last 30 years. Races with fewer than ten overtaking moves were common. Refuelling on paper adds another variable for teams to contend with however all it really does is force them all on to the same strategy, creating stagnant races; why risk a collision on track when you can just short fuel to jump the car ahead at the stops? The important thing to remember about Bernie is that what you see is what you get. His only focus is making sure you and I watch Formula One on television (he doesn't give a damn who goes to races) so he can sell the rights to TV networks for ever inflated figures. It also means he can charge more for trackside advertising and the rights for hosting a Grand Prix, though TV contracts are easily the biggest earner. Bernie is a fan of anything that's going to keep us watching, and the simple fact is the racing this season is better than it's been for many years, so for the moment it's mission accomplished.
Alexander Grant
Roar Pro
Surely Stefano Domenicali has to take hte brunt of criticism for this poor car? It's gotten better, that's certainly the case. An upgrade from Sloth to Pig is pretty good. I feel sorry for Massa, who is almost certainly looking at his last year of racing in F1. He's never been the same since taking Barrichello's spring to the head, despite not having the best of cars on the grid. Fernando Alonso is a driver I'll remember for a long time. Him and Vettel may have the same amount of championships, but the difference is that one of those men has a tactically sound mind and an ability to keep a cool head under pressure (most of the time - treat these as blanket statements). I find Button and Hamilton the most exciting pairing considering their completely different driving styles. I shudder to think of what Fernando Alonso could achieve in a Red Bull.
Alexander Grant
Roar Pro
I certainly agree that Pirelli have improved their compund in leaps and bounds this year. I remember their claim at the start of this year that they had done significant work with their prime tyre, which shows. I certainly don't want a return of a Birdgestone/Michellin or two-tyre supplier system. It brought unbalanced racing and results and naturally had its share of disasters (US '05). You say Bernie can't be involved with technical decisions, but I don't doubt that he has a hand in every facet of the sport - which concerns me. For all I know, you could be right and didn't get involved one bit. Who would I be to know? In a perfect world, I'd like to say no. KERS I can live with, as it's made available to everyone at all times during the racing - hence equal opportunity for everyone and different driving tactics are promoted. DRS, to be blunt, is a joke. Perhaps refulling should come back? It'd be interesting to see how different fuel loads at the beginning of the race affect pit stretegy, on top of these tyres.
Mat Coch
Roar Guru
The Ferrari is still a pig of a car. Massa has not been having that bad a season, and is getting a good deal of its potential a good deal of the time. The problem is Fernando is in the other car. The man is head and shoulders above everyone else in the paddock. Dragging that thing to the finish yesterday ahead of his main championship rival, who had a faster car, was masterful. His drive in Hockenheim was simply fantastic, and probably his best in Formula One. For an entire race he managed his tyres and the gap perfectly, while having the spare mental capacity to survey the situation enough to understand how important it was stopping Hamilton from unlapping himself. A phenomenal talent, which prompts the question: what if he was in a Red Bull? It'd be 2011 all over again.
Mat Coch
Roar Guru
You raise a particularly interesting point, though I must disagree on your perspective. I was the most vocal critic of Pirelli in the build up to the 2011 season, writing a string of articles questioning the companies ability to deliver a product, and I have since been forced to eat my hat because I wholeheartedly feel that they've overachieved. The tyres have most certainly spiced up the racing, they are far more difficult to get working. The tyres in their current state force drivers and teams to work. Those that do the best job reap the biggest rewards. The blown diffuser, as you correctly mentioned, has been a huge part - Williams has effectively 12 months development on its rivals since it never got the exhaust-blowing working last season. The teams asked for a challenge, and that's what they've been given. The situation is significantly better than the tyre war era where a team could struggle all year despite having the best car simply because it had the wrong stickers on its wheels. Back then the two tyre companies were spending $100m on development - in the current economy that money simply doesn't exist, and more we should hope it never does. However, in fairness to Pirelli a couple of points to clarify; "Last year’s blistering debacle at Spa was a testament to how unprepared the supplier was to cope with Formula One standards of wear and tear." Red Bull ran with camber in excess of the recommendations made by Pirelli. It was not a fault with the tyre quality or constructional and entirely a product of the way the team set its car up. "They feel like a shadow of the giant Bridgestone that preceded them, in terms of consistency and quality." PIrelli was given a task by the teams themselves, while many of the tyre regulations now in force (the mandatory use of two tyre compounds per race, for example) were a result of Bridgestone being overwhelmingly conservative. Bridgestone was also very quiet in the media where Paul Hembery treats it like a game. "F1 Chief Executive Bernie Ecclestone has employed little tricks like the Drag Reduction System to mask the issues Pirelli have had." The DRS came about through the Technical Working Group (a board which includes the teams and the FIA) and was a response to the lack of overtaking the sport had seen prior to 2011. Bernie cannot get involved with the technical regulations of the sport, although his opinion is listened to. DRS and KERS is window dressing, and neither are needed but remain as a legacy of Bridgestone's legacy in the sport.
Alexander Grant
Roar Pro
Fernando Alonso looks great in that Ferrari. At times the car still struggles for qualifying pace, but the man is such a talent off the start line and a capable driver that I can't see him giving up his lead. Not a bad first half of the season for a man that claimed his team had to work 25 hours a day to get his machine up to scratch!
Andrew Hawkins
Expert
Great article GrantOz!!! If you had to pick a winner of the driver's championship now, who would it be?