[forzaferrari]

Tyre deltas:
Pirelli estimates a performance step of 0.8 seconds to the new soft tyre from the medium, which is the only compound that is not a new specification for this year - as it is identical to the 2017-spec soft.

From the new soft tyre to the new supersoft, Pirelli reported a more modest 0.4s difference, while the gap from the supersoft to the ultrasoft was “roughly 0.6s”.

Pirelli’s new tyre for 2018, the hypersoft, has been “0.7s to 0.8s” faster than the ultrasoft, according sporting director Mario Isola.

He said Pirelli has not made an estimate for the hard tyre, which is effectively an emergency compound for 2018, because “we don’t have a lot of data because it was used just yesterday [Thursday] by Mercedes and Sauber”.

[Jody Barton]

Probably not much better Papa. lol.

Been looking at the old spreadsheets today. It is looking really close for the best of the rest. My pick remains Renault, for Melbourne at least, mainly because their long runs with the new front wing I think it was, looked really good. No noticeable drop off on the soft for 20 laps. Still about a second or so down on the big boys on the long stints... but actually a bit ahead of everyone else. Has Bell finally got them back on track? I hope do.

Still Haas were not too far off. How much of that is running 'below' weight I don't know. Some people suggesting the week 2 pace from Haas was an attempt to get sponsorship deals done. Who knows, certainly not me. Part of me really wants Toro Rosso to be in the mix, but given the horrid three seasons Honda have just endured I'm still very wary of their performance until I see it for real.

McLaren? Who knows, could be a little way off of the top 3, or fighting to keep ahead of Sauber and Williams. I have a feeling the midfield is looking really tight, I know Force India have struggled, and some think they've had the hardest time with the halo, apparently having to go back to the drawing board to pass the FIA tests, but given how consistent they've been on one of the smallest budgets it'd be sad to see them slip back.

Top 3? Hard to tell, because I still don't think any of them showed their 'real' pace. That sequence of laps Vettel did on the Hypersofts was impressive though, and amounted to an 11 lap stint in the 1:17's and 1:18's. Fuel loads? Who knows. Long stints tell a much different story though. Here Mercedes look a good step ahead (but how much were the others hiding) and Ferrari look to be behind RBR as I said yesterday, but not by much.

Just want to see some racing now, bikes, cars, trucks, forklifts... don't care. Need some Motorsport.

[Monster Hesh]

Super Stadium Trucks Jody, you're welcome!

[Foghorn Leghorn]

Just want to see some racing now, bikes, cars, trucks, forklifts... don't care. Need some Motorsport.

This might satisfy you for a bit, still just testing, but it does have a V8 in it, cornering seems tricky, but good on the straights, lol

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qzVBpddpK2k

[Jody Barton]

PMSL

Still probably handles better than the Sauber, and is more reliable than the McLaren.

[Monster Hesh]

Well, it is only one week till MotoGP starts in Qatar. Cant recommend it enough.

Forza posted a YouTube video in the MotoGP section, about Marquez year, it's a good watch. Perfect if you have an hour to kill.

What ever happened to those F1 season revivews that lasted hours? I miss those, re watched 2007 one the other week.

[Jody Barton]

I like MotoGP, not the biggest bikehead, but I do watch it. Definitely looking forward to next weekend though.

[morini]

Love the bikes myself, but BT sport poaching MotoGP away from BBC finished it for me. You have to draw a line on TV subscriptions somewhere. Sky fleece me for more than enough cash, I won't pay more as the value for money factor is pretty low already.

What I want is a single "Motorsport" channel which does everything (in UHD) for a reasonable price. I wouldn't whinge at that.

[forzaferrari]

Love the bikes myself, but BT sport poaching MotoGP away from BBC finished it for me. You have to draw a line on TV subscriptions somewhere. Sky fleece me for more than enough cash, I won't pay more as the value for money factor is pretty low already.

What I want is a single "Motorsport" channel which does everything (in UHD) for a reasonable price. I wouldn't whinge at that.

Let us know when you find that special channel buddy 

[Jody Barton]

So watched the opening IndyCar race of the year... good God is the quality of driving poor. Bourdais won because the two out front couldn't work out how to race. Also reminded me why more street circuits in F1 would be a terrible idea.