What did you think of today’s race? Share your verdict on the Spanish Grand Prix.
F1 Fanatic holds polls on each race to find out which fans thought of every race during the season.
Please vote based on how entertaining and exciting you thought the race was, not on how your preferred driver or team performed.
What were the best and worst moments of the race? What was the main thing you’ll remember about it? Rate the race out of ten and leave a comment below:
Rate the 2015 Spanish Grand Prix out of ten
- 10 (0%)
- 9 (1%)
- 8 (3%)
- 7 (15%)
- 6 (25%)
- 5 (25%)
- 4 (16%)
- 3 (8%)
- 2 (3%)
- 1 (3%)
Total Voters: 667
Loading ...1 = ‘Terrible’, 10 = ‘Perfect’
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See the results for past seasons here:
- Rate the race results 2014
- Rate the race results 2013
- Rate the race results 2012
- Rate the race results 2011
- Rate the race results 2010
- Rate the race results 2009
- Rate the race results 2008
2015 Spanish Grand Prix
- Solid Spain win earns Rosberg Driver of the Weekend
- Catalunya serves up another Spanish GP to forget
- 2015 Spanish Grand Prix team radio transcript
- Top ten pictures from the 2015 Spanish Grand Prix
- Vote for your 2015 Spanish GP Driver of the Weekend
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- Do late-race standing restarts belong in F1?
Ben Needham (@ben-n)
10th May 2015, 14:43
In my opinion a thoroughly uninspiring race which has become somewhat representative of what F1 is nowadays. I just cannot get excited any more by a sport which I have followed to the point of obsession in the past.
It’s not the dominance by one team which is putting me off, as I still loved the sport during the Schumacher/Ferrari years. To be honest, I think it’s DRS which is the route of the issue.
In the past there was certainly less overtaking, but what a thrill when the move was finally made. It’s sickening to see aggressive, exciting drivers such as Raikkonen, Ricciardo and others left entirely defenceless by a system which makes overtaking a formality rather than an art.
I’m disappointed to think that I may be splitting up with my first love…
favomodo (@favomodo)
10th May 2015, 14:45
Utterly boring race, yeah. Hated the DRS passes, especially at the beginning.
Michal (@michal2009b)
10th May 2015, 14:47
Yeah, but I don’t think DRS is the main issue because that system was in 2012 and it was labelled as an epic. The problem is the V6s which made F1 much less spectacular, much slower and the reliability is perfect. Mercedes streamroller and established pecking order repeating itself race by race is also contributing.
RogerA
10th May 2015, 14:50
There was plenty of complaints back in 2012 about DRS & the poll’s done on here at the time suggested back then that most fans don’t like it.
The V6’s are fine, Watching the cars is much better than it was in 2012 where they were all glued to the track & looked far easier to drive than they should.
I love these new cars, I love these new power units which have made watching the cars so much more spectacular & made them look far more of a handful than they did with those rubbish V8’s…
The problem is 1000% DRS & to a lesser extent the tyres.
RogerA
10th May 2015, 14:52
@michal2009b Also the ‘much slower’ part has nothing to do with the V6’s which are actually faster than the previous V8’s.
The cars are slower than they were because of the harder tyre compounds that are no longer designed purely for performance & the fact the cars have less downforce.
@HoHum (@hohum)
11th May 2015, 0:10
Michal (@michal2009b)
10th May 2015, 14:54
The poll made on Polish largest F1 website is saying completely the opposite thing. You are complaining about DRS which had no affect whatsoever on the top six, just to complain about the system which is popular on this website :)
DRS is a problem but not as much as it is emphasisted there, ignoring the fact how races are looking. Anyway, boring F1.
RogerA
10th May 2015, 14:57
I’m not looking at a poll on a polish website I’m looking at all the poll’s that have been done here, Comments on twitter through a race & poll’s done on other fan forums i am a member of.
I have also seen people say that poll’s done by the 2 German broadcasters (RTL & Sky) showed that over 80% of German F1 fans voted against DRS.
Piotr Koteryl (@stigrennfahrer)
10th May 2015, 15:14
Whether due to DRS, V6s or whatever, F1 is quickly becoming uninspiring and dull. In fact, I switched off towards the end, as the SkyF1 commentary did nothing to improve my feeling on this.
For me, I think the dominance of Mercedes, and the ease with which they win, are both making this sport less than it could be. The racing further down the field has been a small glimmer of hope, but the broadcasters’ stubborn insistence upon staying with, and talking up the leaders snuffs this light out for me.
kpcart
10th May 2015, 16:17
the cars do not look as much less grounded as you think. this extra torque of the v6 is overated, as engine maps make the drivers drive nearly the same as with the v8s. engine mapping is akin to traction control a lot of times, especially for the race starts. i would rather see cars drive on rails and look exciting to watch. other you can go watch a nascar road course race if you want to see wheel spin.
William Stuart (@williamstuart)
10th May 2015, 18:09
How can a car drive on rails and look exciting to watch? Sounds a bit contradictory to me. Also I don’t think engine maps play nearly as big a role as you think they do in reducing wheel spin, wheel spin is very detrimental to lap time, so the drivers will naturally drive to avoid wheel spin. Also, Brundle said these cars are much harder to drive than the V8 era cars, indicating that engine maps are not negating the massive increase in torque. I think if the tyres are more durable we would see more on the edge driving and the cars would look exciting to watch, no one complains about the cars looking boring in qualifying, for example.
Polo (@polo)
10th May 2015, 20:02
Where did you get the idea that “extra torque of the v6 is overrated, as engine maps make the drivers drive nearly the same as with the v8s” from? With the V8s, drivers would instantly go to 100% throttle as soon as they hit the apex with no troubles. Now drivers can’t really use full throttle out of corners, sometimes not full throttle until about 3rd gear, as they would otherwise light up the rears or spin out.
As William Stuart pointed out, Martin Brundle drove one of the Force India cars for a Sky feature. Brundle said that the cars are certainly less “physical” to drive due to the lower downforce (nothing to do with the V6s), but they are undoubtedly much more difficult to drive than the V8 cars in terms of technique. He said he was initially was disappointed in himself to be feathering the throttle through some corners, only to find that Hulkenberg was doing the exactly the same thing, because you can’t just smash your foot to the floor and hope to stay planted anymore. Plus all the switch changes make it overall much more complex in the cockpit than ever before. The 2000 era (high downforce + traction control etc.) cars weren’t actually that difficult in terms of technique to drive, they were just insanely physical and so you needed to be a real athlete to perform throughout a race under the g-force levels. When using the phrase “difficult to drive” people need to separate it into technique and physicality, as they are two very different things.
anon
10th May 2015, 20:15
@kpcart, I mean no offence here, but your understanding of the regulations is out of date and completely wrong. It was the V8 engines that had custom engine maps for the start line procedure and that, allegedly, mimicked traction control – both of which were removed from the regulations when the V6’s came in.
If you read the technical regulations, you will find that the FIA explicitly states that the teams can only use one engine map in dry conditions and one map in wet conditions. To quote:
“The accelerator pedal shaping map in the ECU may only be linked to the type of the tyres fitted to the car : one map for use with dry-weather tyres and one map for use with intermediate or wet-weather tyres.”
There are also additional regulations on the shape of the torque curve that make it pretty clear that the teams cannot alter the engine maps in the way that you think – if anything, the situation is actually much more favourable for the V8 engines, where the teams could use engine maps to alter the shape of the torque curve far more than they can now.
As for the question of the torque curve, it’s worth noting that Cosworth actually did simulate that when they developed a prototype V6 powertrain package back in 2013.
The simulations they prepared show that not only is the peak torque of the current engines far higher than anything the V8’s could produce, and considerably broader to boot – similarly, Brundle complained that the V8 engines were completely gutless as the peak in torque was so high up the rev range, and Coulthard has also commented about how the power delivery of the V6 engines is completely different to the V8’s after he had the chance to drive the 2014 spec Williams.
Iestyn Davies (@fastiesty)
10th May 2015, 14:51
On that note, Renault and Honda are lacking in top speed, hence appearing to be sitting ducks, when combined with DRS. Note Hamilton couldn’t pass Vettel with DRS and the same top speed.
Iestyn Davies (@fastiesty)
10th May 2015, 14:51
Same for Raikkonen on Bottas
The Skeptic
10th May 2015, 15:12
There were two factors that helped Bottas:
1) He had better grip from his old prime tyres than Kimi did from his equally old options.
2) He was able to use DRS himself as a result of traffic.
Iestyn Davies (@fastiesty)
10th May 2015, 16:28
OK, sure, but what about earlier in the race? First stint?
RogerA
10th May 2015, 14:48
@ben-n Completely agree with you on that.
Every time I see a DRS pass, especially the easier one’s I just lose that bit more interest in the race because I simply do not find those passes fun to watch.
Its seriously time for a rethink on DRS.
Michal (@michal2009b)
10th May 2015, 14:51
It was DRS in 2011-2012 and many of those races were rated highly. The problem is the amount of action in the top six, like China, they are finishing in more or the same order as in P1 with no (with or without DRS) overtaking. That’s why the races are boring.
RogerA
10th May 2015, 14:55
Read the comments, Most people are turned off by the DRS, Its clear that most fans don’t like the stupid gimmick.
It was the same in 2011/2012, Go back & read the comments from back then & you will see that even back then most fans didn’t like DRS & over the years more & more have turned against it.
Michal (@michal2009b)
10th May 2015, 14:57
No, I think while DRS is a problem and it doubled since introducing double zones in 2013 (…) but the thing people turned off is because of Vettel dominance and Pirelli tyres not DRS. 2011 and 2012 were highest rated seasons.
RogerA
10th May 2015, 14:58
I know plenty of people who turned off because of DRS.
Pretty much everyone I know no longer watched F1 purely because of DRS.
Stop putting your head in the sand, DRS is killing this sport & the constant stream of comments on here & elsewhere talking about disliking DRS is proof of that.
RogerA
10th May 2015, 14:59
BTW even during todays race you had the Sky commentary team talking about how DRS is making passes too easy & both Croft & Brundle have in the past been defending it, Yet they are now turning against it.
Michal (@michal2009b)
10th May 2015, 15:04
Yes, you are absolutely spot on. The DRS was tolerate till 2013 when they introduced two zones. But it’s far from being only F1 problem. Boredom is still exaggerated DRS issue.
Jonny Edwards (@racectrl)
10th May 2015, 15:05
Bit of an overreaction there Ben. The main issue is that this season is not competitive and that leads to a boring race like today. Also it has become clear that the cars are even more aero-sensitive this season so if anything DRS is needed more than ever. That’s not to say that i like DRS because i don’t. I despise it and it is ruining one of the core elements of a motorsport but it’s not the reason this year is a bit dull. If you want to blame anyone than blame Redbull, Ferrari, Williams and Mclaren for simply not being good enough.
Michal (@michal2009b)
10th May 2015, 15:17
+1. DRS is not the main and only issue what @RogerA is trying to say that scratching DRS would make F1 amazing. It’s no true. It is one a lot of issues and I don’t think it is in the top three even.
Jonny Edwards (@racectrl)
10th May 2015, 16:30
I would agree with that.
First they need to fix the aerodynamics issue once and for all (DRS is not the solution). Then they need to make good tyres again and remove the rule that states you must use both types during the race (seriously, what is the point?) Also what tyre you start the race on should not be decided in Q2 (Again, seriously, what is the point?) Lastly, they need to stop restricting teams from testing and upgrading the engines. It is making it even more difficult for other teams/engine manufacturers to catch up with Mercedes.
Once those issues are resolved then DRS can be looked at.
Eric Morman (@lethalnz)
11th May 2015, 6:37
makes me wounder why any of the posters above even watch F1,
why not just enjoy what you have, we have battles going on up and down between teams,
this track has always been a pain to pass so DRS at least lets the odd few able to make some head way, otherwise it would be follow the leader from start to finish.
ahw3ll (@ahw3ll)
10th May 2015, 15:08
Completely agree. There’s just no excitement to a DRS overtake, which has occurred simply because one driver was allowed to press a button and another wasn’t. It’s not exactly gladiatorial, is it?
Ilham Shaq (@hahailham1)
10th May 2015, 18:31
how about both of them are able to use DRS, but with slightly different activation point?
or making drs zone shorter?
Eric Morman (@lethalnz)
11th May 2015, 6:44
Monaco is the most boring race on the Calender as far as i am concerned,
and this is obvious what everyone likes, NO DRS, NO PASSING START TO FINISH FOLLOW THE LEADER.
JCost (@jcost)
10th May 2015, 15:25
I think we cannot ask much from Circuit de Catalunya…
Mr win or lose
10th May 2015, 16:39
The track is alright. With a little help from the tyres the race can be great, with a lot of overtakes (probably even without DRS).
reg (@reg)
10th May 2015, 20:27
The track is not “alright”. I hate DRS mostly because they make the activation zones too long(therefore creating freeway passes instead of chances to pass), but Barcelona has always been a parade. Unless is raining at Barcelona, the track is the ultimate poster child as a track “needing” DRS.
For example, the 2008 race:
Apart from the start of the race, only two passing manoeuvres were recorded: Heidfeld’s lap 55 pass on Fisichella and Coulthard’s lap 61 pass on Sato. That’s right, two passes in the entire race — a fresh tires Red Bull pass on a final race Super Aguri and BMW (at it’s peak pace in F1) on a first year Force India.
Eric Morman (@lethalnz)
11th May 2015, 6:53
@reg i agree,
so many people complaining which have short memories about yesteryear it is getting beyond a joke,
they certainly dont remember the boring race’s we had to watch year after year, i would fall asleep more then, it was easier to just set the alarm to catch the end of the race just to make sure no one passed anyone.
heaven forbid i certainly dont want to go back to NO DRS.
FullSpe3d (@dryyoshi)
10th May 2015, 16:37
Agreed, this season has been a disappointment and I didn’t even bother to watch qualifying this weekend. Losing my passion for F1 fast which is a huge shame for me
Storm (@storm)
10th May 2015, 16:43
its not the drs as much as it is the fuel/tyre saving nonsense…. incredibly boring races this year.
neuralfraud
10th May 2015, 17:20
Race was a bit boring. Painful to watch hamilton and later on raikonnen get in the DRS zone and not be able to pass, yet see good action from midfielders.
DRS has been cut down and rightfully criticized since its inception. But because people from FOM and FIA love meddling with rules and implementing gimmicks to make races more interesting, maybe the IndyCar push to pass system could be implemented as an alternative.
First, DRS should be allowed freely (as in qualifying, once in the zone)
Second, it’s well known that drivers rarely operate their cars on full power settings-the fuel consumption and potential for reliability problems means they run more conservatively. Simply have a button that effectively allows maximum power for X seconds and give them all a fixed number of uses – to be used anywhere.
Everyone should just like that. Of course, whose to say they don’t have such a system for the drivers already? sure, they have to dial in the mode change.
It could theoretically be implemented by allocating a reserve of ERS power, then you’ll have variations between manufacturers on the effectiveness of their “PTP” and of course others will whine because they’re effectively removing power for the sake of reserving it for a gimmicky use, but ask yourselves this – is that better than the current DRS rules?
Or, remove it all – and then you go back to the pre-2011 complaints “The races are so processional”. So then you remove all the aero, have them go back to 90’s style bodywork and then hear everyone complain because the cars are 10 seconds slower — although it might be possible to get some of that back via fatter tires ..erm, I mean “tyres”.
DaveD (@daved)
10th May 2015, 18:57
DRS? To me, the HUGE problem in F1 is that we need less downforce and wider tyres so we can have legitimate passes. Smaller front wings with only 3 “elements” limit would stop all the dependence on clean air and the cars could get up behind each other. You could make up the difference in some of the downforce with more underbody tunnels, etc that are NOT so dependent on clean air.
Everyone is blaming DRS. But DRS is a symptom of them trying to find a way to make passing possible since they don’t have the stones to fix the real problem: too much front wing dependent aero!!!
I’m not a fan of DRS, but it’s not “THE” problem in F1. But you guys are complaining about the treatments instead of trying to solve the disease.
Bullfrog (@bullfrog)
10th May 2015, 19:03
It’s a shame you’re never watching another Grand Prix, as the very next one is Monaco where the DRS doesn’t make a blind bit of difference.
Bye then, don’t come back here moaning. And please let somebody more positive comment first, so everybody can agree with them instead.
@HoHum (@hohum)
11th May 2015, 4:51
“Breaking up is hard to do” no doubt he will be waiting for the right moment.
Ben Needham (@ben-n)
11th May 2015, 11:19
@bullfrog – disappointed with your comment. I just voiced my opinion. I never said I’m not going to be watching another Grand Prix, just that I’m finding that I’m enjoying it less and less.
I don’t think that my comment was “moaning” and as for letting somebody “more positive” post first, the article itself calls for a debate which I happened to start with an opinion that I’ve held to myself for some time. I’m not a “That was rubbish, 0/10” type of fan and I gave the race 4/10. It wasn’t awful; just representative of what the sport has become.
Polo (@polo)
10th May 2015, 21:02
Looking at the fall in F1 viewership over the past couple years, we can speculate on what may have caused the fall in viewing figures. Pay-TV will have undoubtedly contributed to this, but there are seemingly more factors than this. The introduction of the V6s did indeed result in a large fall in viewing figures, falling by approximately 22.7 million from 2013 to 2014. However, this certainly wasn’t the biggest annual fall in viewing figures over the past couple years: from 2012 to 2013, audiences fell by a huge 50 million. However, by far the biggest fall was from 2008 to 2009, will audiences falling by 81.8 million.
We can only speculate on the reasons, and the most obvious explanation would be domination of one team at points in 2009, 2013 and 2014. But due to the RB-dominated 2011 not really being a significant fall from the more competitive 2010 season, and with the competitive 2012 season not attracting additional viewers compared to 2011, I think there are deeper explanations.
We know that the biggest falls were, in ascending order, 2014, 2013, and 2009.
It’s worth noting that, in 2013, lap times were significantly slower (sometimes around 4s slower) than in 2012, and lap times were again slower in 2014. Could slowing down the cars be impacting audience figures?
If they are, then there must be another explanation for the the huge fall in audiences in 2009. This wasn’t due to slower cars, as lap times were fairly similar (if not faster) in 2009 than in 2008. However, there were major regulation changes which drastically affected the appearance of the cars.
My personal opinion is that one of the biggest draws about F1 for the mass audience (aside from good racing) is having beautiful or extreme-looking cars that are much faster than anything else out there.
I know some people didn’t like all the aerodynamic appendages used before 2009, but in my opinion they made the cars look really extreme and were clearly distinguishable from any other single-seater. I personally found the 2007 and 2008 cars to be my favourite F1 cars appearance-wise (favourite being the McLarens of those years). The 2009 and onwards cars really don’t look as exciting or beautifully sculpted as, say, an LMP1 car (IMO), they just look sort of plain now. Currently they F1 cars essentially just look like GP2 cars with some custom parts. The cars in WEC make you look at their sleek, futuristic bodywork with awe, while F1 cars don’t really look beautiful these days IMO (for reference, here is the difference between the 2008 McLaren and 2009 McLaren).
These are just my opinions, maybe you prefer the post-2009 look. I would appreciate anyone else giving their opinions on what you think caused audiences to fall significantly in certain years on the graph.
Asanator (@asanator)
11th May 2015, 11:04
2014 – Mercedes Dominance
2013 – Redbull Dominance
2009 – Brawn Dominance
Done!
Ciaran (@ciaran)
10th May 2015, 14:43
Not the best race, but that’s just how it goes sometimes. Not that that’ll stop the “0/10 F1 is dead” comments.
Scalextric (@scalextric)
10th May 2015, 14:52
Agree. One dominant team, passes achieved by tactics or tricks. Fairly typical F1. No major points of drama except for a couple of front jack men. 5/10
Aditya (@adityafakhri)
10th May 2015, 14:53
5/10 for me…
DRS was overkilling the race. and strangely enough, I’m starting to not complain anymore. I’m getting used by it. I’m scared :(
Michal (@michal2009b)
10th May 2015, 15:05
If not for DRS would you rate that top six procession higher?
Illusive (@illusive)
10th May 2015, 15:13
Exactly, its the same in all sports, you cant always expect a nail biting finish every time, yet i always see f1 fans wanting more drama in every race.
GeeMac (@geemac)
10th May 2015, 15:16
Couldn’t agree more @ciaran.
People would have moaned even if Mehri had managed to pass Rosberg on the last lap to win the race while cartwheeling through the air on fire while balancing chainsaws on his fingertips.
Aqib (@aqibqadeer)
10th May 2015, 15:41
+1
William Stuart (@williamstuart)
10th May 2015, 18:19
Very good point.
Mashiat (@mashiat)
10th May 2015, 14:43
6/10. It was a very boring very indeed. So much expectations, didn’t deliver. Great job from Rosberg. Driver of the Weekend is without a doubt him.
He seemed to learn a lot from Hamilton; too much for Hamilton, I suspect. He just controlled the race. He looked merely bored throughout the entire race, similar to Hamilton in the last few races. Ferrari have paled into insignificance in the battle for the championship it seems. Rosberg pulled around 40 seconds in the last 36 laps while controlling his pace. Wow.
And McHonda? I just wanna sit in a corner and cry. Honda was quicker than Renault in the speed traps, yet McLaren were slower.
rick bradner (@3304hl)
10th May 2015, 19:01
Mashiat, this remark is not directed at you personally, it’s just that you post contains the exact issue that bothers me about these polls.
“6/10. It was a very boring very indeed”
I see this sort of thing every race. On a scale of 10, 6 isn’t bad, it’s just O.K.
What does it take to get a 2 or 3 from people? Every car falls apart on the track?
IMHO, the people voting here are FAR too accepting of the pathetic display we saw today…
@HoHum (@hohum)
11th May 2015, 4:58
True, and of course there are always the fans that vote a 10 whenever their fav driver wins.
Simon (@weeniebeenie)
10th May 2015, 14:43
Very poor. You just had some easy DRS passes in the first few laps, the rest was strategy and off track incidents. Dull.
Strontium (@strontium)
10th May 2015, 14:44
I gave it 6. A shame as it could have been more, but there were just so many DRS passes..
James-GPR
10th May 2015, 14:45
every race i feel myself falling more & more out of love with F1 & everytime I see a race like today where DRS was too effective & we see a bunch of easy highway passes just speeds up that process.
I want to love F1, Its been my favorite category since the 1970s but i just really don’t like the gimmicks of the past few years & i find myself been drawn to things like the WEC, Indycar & the GT categories like Blanchpain Endurance/Sprint series.
Those series with no silly gimmicks like Pirelli tyres or DRS where there is a lot of real racing & real exciting hard fought for overtaking are far more appealing now.
Tyler (@tdog)
10th May 2015, 14:45
5/10. Sadly, while this circuit might be a great test of an F1 car’s qualities, it produces very processional races.
Tyler (@tdog)
10th May 2015, 14:51
Also, I’ve just moved from Australia to the U.S. and had the misfortune to watch my first full weekend on NBCSN. Just horrible coverage. Pumped full of ads, cross promotions and anything else they can think of to avoid showing live coverage. Plus a poor commentary team led by the horrendous Leigh Diffey. Only Will Buxton knows what he’s talking about and he only does infrequent pit coverage. I’ve noticed that people like to criticise Sky’s F1 coverage, but it’s light years ahead of what you get in the States.
Scalextric (@scalextric)
10th May 2015, 14:56
And yet it’s way better than it was a couple of years ago. Can you imagine that? Top tip: Have a live stream going to fill the commercial gaps.
Corey (@dragon86)
10th May 2015, 15:01
“Pumped full of ads, cross promotions and anything else they can think of to avoid showing live coverage.”
This is typical of all racing coverage on any major network over here. It’s the same for both NASCAR and Indycar.
brentrockwood (@brentrockwood)
10th May 2015, 15:10
Yup. Can’t stand the North American coverage. You have to watch the Sky stream. It’s so bad, in fact, I’m surprised Bernie doesn’t step in and do something.
trublu (@trublu)
10th May 2015, 19:19
The supposed educational crap in the middle of the race is infuriating! I don’t need a lecture during the race about the technology behind s-duct or rear wing DURING a race!
trublu (@trublu)
10th May 2015, 19:20
five more “during” needed eh?
DaveD (@daved)
10th May 2015, 20:54
Oh, you have no idea how much better this is than what we used to have! That’s the sad part…the US coverage has been so bad that we’re grateful to get what little bit we do get now. I’d gladly pay for the Sky coverage if they had the right to sell it to me in the US.
I’m not a fan of Leigh, and much preferred Bob Varsha. But regardless of who it is, they are forced to dumb the coverage down for the US audiences….or at least their directors THINK they do. It’s frankly insulting to talk to us like we’re quite slow 8 year olds. And as @trublu says, the most infuriating part is they do it DURING the race while I’m trying to watch the competition. And they come back from each overblown commercial and spend 5-15 seconds showing stupid “local places of interest” shots. Really guys??? You think I want to see the 92 Olympic stadium while the race is going on? Jeez, I’ll buy a ticket and fly over myself if I want to see all of that. I don’t need it in my face while the race is going on!
@HoHum (@hohum)
11th May 2015, 5:08
My top peeve was always the adverts saying ” you can watch all the excitement from every F1 race here” during the racing.
@HoHum (@hohum)
11th May 2015, 5:04
But you pretty much described what we had here in Oz before Rupert-the-destroyer got his greedy hands on it. When I was in the states I always enjoyed the commentary from Hobbs and Matchet.
DaveD (@daved)
11th May 2015, 22:47
@hohum
completely agree on David and Steve….but I sure do miss Bob Varsha.
And I don’t blame them for the short comings of the coverage. American TV is built around a ridiculous number of commercials.
Sadly, that is just expected. BUT spending a whole segment to explain there are two tires used every race just so they can get Pirelli money as a paid commercial during the show and talk to us like we’re retarded? No thanks.
F1 is about the drivers and their personalities. It’s like a good movie and they need to spend time doing “character development ” of the key players and race strategy…not showing us scenes of Barcelona. I can look at a map or pictures on the Internet myself…get back to the stupid race!!!!!
Rhys Milford (@starstrike)
10th May 2015, 14:45
In the words of F1 Rejects, “stultifying dross from start to finish.”
Droid Damudi (@droiddamudi)
10th May 2015, 14:46
typical race at barcelona, you can’t do anything in this race. Its always car dependent race.
Just show how fast that merc is, easily 1 sec per lap faster than ferrari
deano444@gmx.com
10th May 2015, 14:46
It was a very poor rate. And Don’t you dare tell me Rosberg drive was a great drive as he had nothing to do once Hamilton missed the start.
kpcart
10th May 2015, 16:20
what is he meant to do, slow down and let hamilton catch up??
beneboy (@beneboy)
10th May 2015, 17:00
Change his own tyres :-)
Ricardo Ferreira (@yes-master)
10th May 2015, 14:46
6. Imo, would Seb go to the pit stop after Ham, this result would be the same. Sainz out qualified Max and finished in front of him. That maybe says something. The rest was boring.
PorscheF1 (@xtwl)
10th May 2015, 14:47
Just some thoughts I has during the race…
Steven Robertson (@emu55)
10th May 2015, 15:08
I’d rather have watched a Project Cars replay than this race
William Stuart (@williamstuart)
10th May 2015, 18:12
Isn’t this what the 2004 era races were like, maybe even more exciting than those? If those races were similar to this race then I don’t understand all the love for 2004 and all the hate for 2015.
DaveD (@daved)
10th May 2015, 20:57
This 2015 racing IS better than 2004. That is just people being nostalgic and remembering “the good old days” much better than they actually were.
@HoHum (@hohum)
11th May 2015, 5:15
Not sure of the exact years but when Brawn said “OK Michael we need 3 very fast laps now ” it was fascinating and tense to see Michael light the blue touch-paper and bang in 3 laps worthy of pole.
Supremacy (@supremacy)
10th May 2015, 14:47
4
Vettel spoilt a possible battle for 1st.
Force Maikel (@force-maikel)
10th May 2015, 15:05
@supremacy Perhaps Hamilton should have made a better start then? Or passed Vettel on track with a car that is clearly ahead in performance?
No, you’re right, Vettel is the source of all evil *rolls eyes*
iAltair (@)
10th May 2015, 15:37
Hamilton bad start = Vettel’s fault?
Dam, Vettel is really spoiling the sport.
PhilEReid (@philereid)
10th May 2015, 14:48
5. Not a great race at all, a below average race if you will. This here showed an issue with F1, DRS too powerful, tyres too difficult to follow behind on any circuit that is front tyre limited, without having a ridiculously advantage on tyres. We need more mechanical grip, and possibly less front downforce (or at least less complex wings) and then we’ll start to get to the point where we wont need DRS (or at least a significantly reduced in power version of DRS).
As for the race, some interesting strategies, a few interesting battles, a couple of good overtakes, but other than that, very little happened. I think it was still a touch better than Australia and a touch worse than China, with what was happening on track, and I think really it was only the differing strategies that pushed it above Australia.
Patrick (@paeschli)
10th May 2015, 15:23
At least Vettel was able to keep Hamilton behind during the first two stints.
Dim sim (@dimsim)
10th May 2015, 14:48
#0outof10 #totalrubbish #thisisnottwitter
Sensord4notbeingafanboi (@peartree)
10th May 2015, 14:49
I liked the updated head rest cameras, I still don’t like the overlay ads, especially if a Toro Rosso rim keeps glitching the ad. On the subject there was no overlay message, yay.
Good dynamic movement on the midfield otherwise, I don’t feel the need to comment the race “6”.
Mackeine Loveine (@cocaine-mackeine)
10th May 2015, 14:49
What’s wrong with F1? I know that somehow this track is restrictive in some ways but we’ve seen better races even last year.
2015 is turning out to be a boring year, how could 2014 was better? The same thing has happened in these 5 races. Mercedes pulling away, Ferrari trying to gain with strategy, and the midfield somehow tight but with little overtaking. Malaysia was more interesting by the fact Ferrari won, but now I doubt they catch Mercedes again, they need a lot more work.
I hope Monaco is better, just because is Monaco.
Corey (@dragon86)
10th May 2015, 14:49
5 out of 10
Really just an average race, nothing special
CeeVee (@)
10th May 2015, 14:50
Dull, dull, dull. Only just made a 3 for me.
Uzair Syed (@ultimateuzair)
10th May 2015, 14:51
1/10. I’m sorry, but it was awful.
Michael C
10th May 2015, 14:52
What else can we expect from this circuit?
Antonio Nartea (@tony031r)
10th May 2015, 14:52
Objectively, average race. Nothing out of the ordinary. A duly 5.
I think it’s about time I admit Formula One is not for me anymore. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining, I don’t have a better idea for the rulebook, and I’m not one of the guys saying that if I don’t like it, no one likes it and it should change. To each their own.
I’m just a long-time viewer and I admit I personally don’t like it anymore. It has become way too clinical, too artificial and too restrictive (both on and off track). It’s too dramatic and the whole lifestyle and opulence around it is slowly starting to swallow the sport itself. The whole of Formula One has become a synonym for questionable decisions and an example of how the poweful ultimately prevail over the powerless.
Formula One has become one of those always-tense reality shows where you simply watch ultra-rich folks pretending to have a go at life. And it’s on pay-per-view too!
I don’t care about that. I’m just one of those guys who wants to turn the television on every other Sunday and watch a proper race. I want to see diverse, interestingly built, good looking, fast cars performing to their mechanical limit irrelevant of their tyres performance, DRS or fuel usage. I want to see drivers performing at the limit, battling it out on the track with every chance they get, not sports megastars and pay drivers hitting beeps, pushing buttons and driving at a given target. I want them to become heroes through their personalities, grit and performances, not through their PR agency and Instagram account. I want to see risky strategy calls fully dependent on the driver’s skills. I want accesible quality coverage and commentary. I want to hear interviews that provide relevant information from relevant people, not just the usual “it will be difficult but we’ll see if trying to beat another team for 7th place is possible this weekend, because that’s our target”, or check if Rihanna likes it or how Hamilton’s brother is doing or whatever. I want proper informative team radio, not pieces of constant complaints cut in a particular way to enhance the drama.
I want to watch a race, not have an audio-visual, multi-dimensional entertainment experience. I want what the WEC has to offer. Not the premium, overpriced, corporate product that is F1.
Watching the Spanish GP a week after what was a brilliant sportscar race at Spa Francorchamps made it clear for me. That’s it. Sorry, F1, but it’s been too many disappointing years.
andae23 (@andae23)
10th May 2015, 15:03
@tony031r Very well put, completely agree.
@HoHum (@hohum)
11th May 2015, 5:25
too right, I don’t want to complain or tell F1 how it should be, but if I did I would not tell them just like you didn’t tell them Tony.
COTD for Tony.
spoutnik (@spoutnik)
10th May 2015, 15:19
Sensible comment.
SteveR
10th May 2015, 15:43
Yes, good comment. The race starts at 5:00 am where I am in the States. I decided to stay in bed for this one; saw the last 10 laps and knew I’d made the right decision. I think I’ll just do a torrent download of the race(s) from now on and enjoy my time in bed.
James Devon (@tata)
10th May 2015, 17:08
Interesting you mention Hamilton’s brother, for whatever reasons, and clearly overlook Raikonen’s baby mama, Vesterpen’s family and others who has been given TV coverage for how many races now.
Stop all the negativity and condemnation of F1. If you don’t like it, GO.
People r saying DRS is bad, but their complaints of processional races led to DRS. Now, they don’t want DRS, “allow them to race with tyres that last from start to finish,” etc. End result, processional races again. And more complaints.
Somehow, I think ur comment would have been different had Vettel beaten Hamilton today. It would have been a ‘great race ‘.
Antonio Nartea (@tony031r)
10th May 2015, 17:27
@tata First example that came to my mind as the cameras kept insisting on him this weekend. Replace “Hamilton’s brother” with “any public person that is not involved in the sport and whose presence and opinion should be irrelevant to the wider public”. I was just trying to prove a point. If you took the time to read my earlier race reviews you’d realise I’m not one of those guys who considers a race “great” just because a specific team or driver won.
Nothing personal with Hamilton so your jumping to defend him has nothing to do with the original post as there was no attack whatsoever. I’m not a fan of Lewis, I’m not a fan of Seb. Or Raikkonen. Or Alonso. For what it’s worth I haven’t shown my support towards a single driver since the Schumacher era.
No need to show me the door since I’m already out. :)
James Devon (@tata)
10th May 2015, 18:41
I don’t care who you are a fan of or not. It does not matter one bit but to sretch the diregard or dislike of Lewis Hamilton to include bringing the name of his brother with all his physical struggles, subtle as your attempt may be, is very unnecessary.
If you don’t like F1 or Hamilton, get on with other sports. There are actually so many other races that F1fanatic has been recently bringing to out attention here. There is a reason for that.
I am a fan of F1, with a likeness for Vettel, Alonso and Hamilton. I don’t bash neither of them nor any other drivers or the sports because I recognise greatness when I see one.
You may notice I tend to defend these drivers more often, Hamilton because he is picked on by all and sundry. But to extend one’s disagreement with F1 by mentioning the name of his brother with paralysis problem, is hitting below the belt. It doesn’t matter what ur reasons are. As I said b4 Kimi’s baby mama – as they are called th