http://photos.gpupdate.net/large/161775.jpg

Ew.

Well, thanks to its logo, Ferrari is always the dark horse.

I thought someone from Mclaren said they have very good mechanical grip, hence why it is good in the damp, its just that red bull have much more traction with its EBD, not completely sure the difference though

I thought aero was more important than mechanical grip in the damp? Or is that just me being a technical noob?

im not sure, anyone know?

Mclaren, do they have good mechanical grip? yes or no

Redbull, Do they have better "traction" or "mechanical grip" ?... can someone explain these two, cheers.

Is aero more important in the damp than mechanical grip in the damp?

this is what i was under the impression of. Mechnical grip is fine, its just our traction from the EBD where RBR gains in this sense, though hopefully this has improved with the improvements to the car at spar and monza.

Traction is when you are exiting a corner trying to put the power on the track.

Mechanical grip is basicly cornering without aero, something like F1 from 60's.

Mechanical grip, traction, aero, these are in relation and cohesion to each other.

I couldn't say yes or no answers.

In Monza engine power and low drag play dividents.

McLaren couldn't have as much downforce as Red Bull, hence neither as much downforce generated traction, but mainly on higher downforce tracks, not for Monza.

The MP4-25 is highly efficient, it's among the bests if not the best in low drag, and not because and only for the F-Duct. It's about the shape and low type of the chassis.

Suspension and damping is an area where McLaren is traditionally very good and pioneering (J-Damper).


If they won't mess up their wing configuration, hit the sweet spot of Monza, they will be uncatchable this weekend.

Traction only refers to the driven (rear) wheels and is a product primarily of mechanical grip.
Mechanical grip is king in wet conditions.

It is a bit fuzzy now because of how advanced F1 components are but mechanical grip is essentially grip that comes from the suspension, weight distribution, etc. Mechanical grip dominates in slow speed corners while aerodynamic downforce dominates at higher speeds. On a wet track mechanical grip becomes relatively more important simply because the speeds are lower.

Red Bull's advantage is certainly due to more advanced aerodynamics.

So far as I understand drivers when they talk about "traction" they mean the grip they have under power when they come out of a corner onto the throttle. The RB6 has been all over the MP4-25 in that respect all season due to superior downforce at low speeds and their efficient blown diffuser which starts to generate d/f as soon as you floor the pedal. This was talked about as one of the big differences at Budapest, in that the RB6 got much better exits from those slow and medium speed corners IIRC.

Monza is basically a big old bent oval circuit with a few fast corners but mainly long flat-out sections punctuated (to the everlasting chagrin of purists) by chicanes. Whoever gets the best exit and traction from the chicanes must surely take a big advantage into the long straights, so if the RB6 is still a lot better in that area maybe they can offset some of the top speed deficit by getting a better start to each straight? Don't rule out yet another RBR pole. That's in qually, of course. In the race the car that can make up space on the track towards the end of the straights into the overtaking zones is always in a much better position so the RB6 might still get gobbled up into Rettifilo just like Raikkonen was in 07

Ferrari will chuck everything at this one and Alonso will be uber-pumped to win, so either they'll do just that in style or implode spectacularly IMO. Seems like there's little middle ground for Alonso at the moment ;)

I can't see Button reversing the recent trend at McLaren, but Vettel might hit back at Webber this weekend, so if not Alonso I'd plump for Hamilton, Webber, Vettel in that order. Sutil and Kubica right behind them.

I partly disagree. If you look at Spa, Mclaren and Ferrari just thrashed RBR in S1... Which looks a lot like Monza with a slow corner followed by a long straight... in a low-downforce track.

Same for Montreal S3...

What you have mentioned mostly occurred on high downforce tracks, which Monza is not.

Fair enough. Maybe I'm just having problems adjusting to a race where McLaren is favourite on paper and with a lot of bookies for pole and the win

I'm looking forward to this race like crazy. I love Monza and can't watch a race there without the music from "9 Days In Summer" running through my mind along with visions of classic 60's F1 cars slipstreaming up the main straight

I read that Ferrari did 700 Kilometers of straightline testing last week. 700..that's no typo.

They are desperate to win in their own realm. I doubt it will happen, but Ferrari is really motivated to show that they aren't as rubbish as they seem to be.

i thought stright line test are limted to speed and the number of KM you can do?

If that was with a Formula 1 car, they're in for another Paris hearing

FIA reg 22.1a

"Four one day aerodynamic tests carried out on FIA approved straight line or constant radius sites between 1 January 2010 and the end of the last Event of the Championship. Any of these days may be substituted for four hours of wind-on full scale wind tunnel testing to be carried out in a single twenty four hour period."

Here was my source:

http://formula-one.speedtv.com/article/f1-...mula-one-title/

As part of the last-ditch push for 2010, test driver Giancarlo Fisichella did an astonishing 700 kilometers of straight-line running with the new parts last week at Vairano.

How many km are it from Fiorano to Paris
straightline...?

Red Bull's traction advantage is mostly seen in low grip / cool conditions. In damp or hot conditions it really levels out.