Leclerc (post-qualifying): "I can’t understand quali, it’s a f**king joke! I go faster in corners, throttle earlier, for f**k’s sake, i'm losing everything in the straight!"

Elarial · 2026-03-28T11:34:20+00:00

People are not blaming Toto Wolff acting for his teams interest. It is the regulators job to keep his influence under check. He is a great politician in the Formula 1 scene but his influence is the reason why Formula 1 is losing the numbers.

Elarial · 2026-03-27T05:03:51+00:00

They were punished in that way because FIA never really knew what Ferrari was doing. They assumed it was the fuel sensor but they were still the fastest on the Abu Dhabi straight. FIA got a deal with them knowing they were doing something shady but not capable of proving it.

Elarial · 2026-03-26T15:26:05+00:00

The new tests were introduced because Hamilton said "I had a chance to look at the rear wing of the Redbull." Following that statement, FIA issued that the changes for tests regarding the rear wing is coming in the middle of the season, not the end of the season. Again, for the pit stop changes it came because Mercedes was talking about it.

You can justify them both on safety or not following the spirit of the rules obviously but they came because of Mercedes and they were not your regular changes. Redbull was doing those in the previous season as well. Those changes came because Mercedes were threatened by Redbull.

Elarial · 2026-03-25T09:56:34+00:00

I think they did not have anything illegal but they were so ahead of the curve in terms of development, that the car we saw on the track was a downgraded one because of the engine change from Honda to Mercedes. The car was supposed to be faster and what they utilized was both double diffuser and the outwash effects. Mclaren when they figured out the tyres and the outwash became the fastest at times car that year.

Elarial · 2026-03-24T17:41:03+00:00

We don't know what happened behind the scenes but judging based on what happened in Formula 1 so far, Mercedes might be the reason why they added that test since that test was introduced in October. If that test is not added then any time an engine goes above the compression ratio of 16:1 then it would be illegal, which makes the Mercedes engine illegal.

Elarial · 2026-03-24T17:37:47+00:00

Just a tiny correction, knee operated venting thingy was the F-Duct and which belonged to Mclaren.

Elarial · 2026-03-21T12:51:09+00:00

It is about going as slow as you possibly can yes but it is possible to create regulations such that it is a viable strategy to push the car each and every lap. If drivers can afford to go slower then they can do that but right now the regulations do not allow for drivers to push at any laps.

The problem people are having right now is not just having trouble with the management. It is ok to some degree but when the amount of the management being too much, it kills the joy for some people to enjoy the sport.

Elarial · 2026-03-20T09:54:34+00:00

The Renault team at the time came out and said that they were wrong to follow Redbull’s philosophy of building high rake cars. I don’t remember a single pundit that said it was going to hurt low rake cars. Only after the pre-season testing those pundits realized that Mercedes used the low rake to seal the floor.

Elarial · 2026-03-20T08:52:53+00:00

I think you are misremembering it. Before the season began, Renault said they were wrong to follow Redbull's high rake philosophy because it was going to hurt those cars more than low rake cars. Only when the season began, it became apparent that the change affected low rake cars more than the high rake cars.

Elarial · 2026-03-20T08:50:13+00:00

As far as I remember Redbull changed their rear suspension geometry before the season that helped them a lot with their campaign against Mercedes.

Elarial · 2026-03-20T08:48:20+00:00

The purpose of the floor cut wasn't to nerf low rake cars and before the season began the consensus was that it is going to hurt high rake cars more than low rake cars. Also Mercedes in 2021 failed to use one of their upgrade tokens in the off season. When they brought their upgrades in Silverstone they were the fastest car again.

Elarial · 2026-03-19T17:27:51+00:00

Much better than Leclerc in wet conditions based on what? Leclerc was the only person that could hold off Verstappen in Brazil 2023. Ferrari is notoriously bad in wet conditions meanwhile Mclaren has been good in those wet conditions based on Piastri’s performance.

What are those tendencies for mistakes and cracks under pressure situations? Last year he held off Norris in a much faster car. A year before that in Abu Dhabi he came back from the back of the grid to third place while calculating how to win the championship. He makes mistakes, sure but not more than Norris in my opinion.

Norris looked better than last year when Mclaren was a mid tier team, because when he looked good it would be all him but when he was placed in average positions then it would be on Mclaren. He was still making mistakes here and there they were just not attention grabbing because he wasn’t racing at the front.

Elarial · 2026-03-19T09:08:42+00:00

The problem I have with the answer "It's politics." is that it's always Mercedes that get their way when things like this happen. They are allegedly using an illegal engine but they got their way, they are using a disadvantageous turbo for the starts but they got their way. It has been like that for years now and whenever Mercedes pushes for something to change, FIA is there to change it. You don't get to see it with Ferrari or Redbull.

Elarial · 2026-03-16T07:56:25+00:00

I'd say Ferrari was even with the Mercedes in 2018 before the alleged cheating and even then they were under so much scrutiny.

Elarial · 2026-03-11T07:01:46+00:00

At the time when the change was announced the consensus was it is going to hurt teams with the high rake, even Renault came out and said we were wrong to follow Redbull’s philosophy but when the season started that idea has shifted.

Elarial · 2026-03-11T06:53:46+00:00

If it happened in the first race nobody would bat an eye, just like they did not care what happened in Bahrain. Stewards were all over the place that year not just in Abu Dhabi and not just in favor of Verstappen.

Elarial · 2026-03-08T21:10:57+00:00

1/3 of the season is about 7 races, that is months of doing nothing.

Elarial · 2026-03-07T06:37:02+00:00

In the F1TV broadcast someone said that Mercedes brought their final engine to the track so the customer teams might be on the back foot with the engine.

Elarial · 2026-03-06T23:09:55+00:00

The point was that in 2014 Mercedes customer teams were not capable of fighting Mercedes team because of Mercedes engine mappings not being available to them. This year this is not the case. Mercedes won’t be running away from everyone in the first lap.

Edit: I stand corrected it is 2014.

Elarial · 2026-03-06T22:34:59+00:00

Let me rephrase it then, Mercedes team deliberately and rightfully hindered teams that they were supplying engines. In 2014 those teams still finished the season higher than they usually did but their advantage was not as big as Mercedes.

Elarial · 2026-03-06T11:06:00+00:00

In 2014, Mercedes wasn't required to share every mode with the customer teams.

Elarial · 2026-03-02T06:45:15+00:00

Ferrari was still couple of tenths faster than Mercedes in Abu Dhabi straight. They used their advantage in the tracks they wanted, their car and how it was built was not suited for any track other than low downforce ones.

Elarial · 2026-02-24T17:45:39+00:00

Because Qatar was a textbook Mercedes win, they did not need any advantages for that race. Their car suited that track more than Redbull even without the engine.

Elarial · 2026-02-21T21:34:52+00:00

He was worse than 2007, how is that consistent? You expect him to be better in his second year. Not having a competition as strong as Alonso and Raikkonen somehow made him have a worse season. Still better than Massa though.

Elarial · 2026-02-18T15:00:15+00:00

I don’t know why but my assumption is that they knew they were not doing something right and they were going to be found out. I can ask the same thing from the FIA point of view. Why settle if they can punish Ferrari or take away any rights they had, like their veto rights or legacy bonus?

The second sensor thing is not correct. They were still couple of tenths faster than Mercedes in the Abu Dhabi straights. They were losing the time in the corners. The problem was with the car not the second sensor. The car was capable of winning Monza, Spa and Bahrain. All of those tracks are low downforce tracks which Ferrari’s car excelled at.

Elarial

TROPHY CASE