In the round-up: Haas team principal Guenther Steiner admits the team hasn’t made enough of its potential so far this year.
What they say
Steiner said the team needs a clean weekend to capitalise on its points-scoring potential:
The potential is there that we will get some more [opportunities] because the car is constantly at a good level. Even [though] the other ones are bringing upgrades, the car is still in a good place.
We were fast on five race tracks, because we were [tested] in Barcelona, which is a quarter of the season. We can have one or two race tracks where we’re a little bit lagging behind but otherwise we’re always between fourth and fifth fastest car on the weekend, we just have the second-least points* at the moment which doesn’t do credit to what we’ve got.
We just need to get a good weekend and we will have forgotten pretty soon about the bad ones.
*Haas is eighth in the points standings, one point ahead of Sauber who are second to last.
Quotes: Dieter Rencken
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Social media
Notable posts from Twitter, Instagram and more:
🚨 ANNOUNCEMENT 🚨
Our Barcelona Test driver line-up is confirmed!Day 1 – Carlos Sainz
Day 2 – Jack AitkenWhat say you @JaitkenRacer?
#RSspirit #BarcelonaTest pic.twitter.com/IkojzWG1fF— Renault Sport F1 (@RenaultSportF1) May 7, 2018
Properly delighted to see @JaitkenRacer get an @F1 test chance with @RenaultSportF1 next week (even if this sort of thing means we're likely to see less of him in the @BTSport commentary box!)
— Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine) May 7, 2018
Every podium position at Mid-Ohio in GTD was taken by a pro-pro lineup. None of the traditional, long-term series pro-am lineups were even able to finish on the lead lap! I don’t think that’s a sustainable place for a category that presents itself as a pro-am choice.
— DHH Racing (@dhhracing) May 7, 2018
- Find more official F1 accounts to follow in the F1 Twitter Directory
Links
More motor racing links of interest:
Formula E set to return to UK with Birmingham leading the way to host street race (Metro)
"Over the last year, we have been in negotiations with the organisers of the FIA Formula E Championship about bringing a road race to Birmingham, effectively reviving the Superprix."
NASCAR's majority owners explore sale - sources (Reuters)
"The move comes as NASCAR grapples with an aging fan base, stricter safety rules and a competitive media landscape that have weighed on its popularity and made it less attractive to advertisers and sponsors."
Q&A with Nico Hulkenberg (Renault)
"We all have bad days. What happened was unfortunate, but that’s racing as the saying goes. It’s time to reset and refocus and look forward to Spain, where I want to make amends."
Stephane Sarrazin joins Andretti for the remainder of Season 4 (Formula E)
"Sarrazin will pilot the No. 27 Andretti, replacing rookie Tom Blomqvist who scored a season-best finish of eighth in six rounds with Andretti Formula E. Blomqvist, a BMW works driver, will depart Formula E to focus on driving in the BMW GTE Program in the World Endurance Championship."
Driving my 1955 Mercedes 300SL in Monaco (Nico Rosberg via YouTube)
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Comment of the day
Nase checked out the DTM last weekend and was (mostly) impressed:
I’m not a DTM fan, but I happened to watch roughly the second half of the second race (the one with the expletives), and I was pleasantly surprised by the wheel-to-wheel racing and unpredictability of the eventual outcome in the fight for the lead. Plenty of nudging and rubbing as well as creative use of lines for attack and defense. Very watchable.
DRS looked mightily overpowered, though. But that effect was somewhat mitigated by the limited number of DRS laps per car.
Nase
From the forum
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On this day in F1
- On this day in 1993 Alain Prost took pole position for the Spanish Grand Prix in his Williams-Renault FW15C
ruliemaulana (@ruliemaulana)
8th May 2018, 2:36
Talking about points-scoring, can you please add point standing widget in right side column, @keithcollantine ?
Matteo (@m-bagattini)
8th May 2018, 8:51
I second this, @ruliemaulana @keithcollantine
Mach1 (@mach1)
8th May 2018, 15:01
I third this. For what is very simple yet important info, it is petty hard to find on the site. I have often gone to the BBC site to get the info as I always forget where it is buried.
Oni (@oni)
8th May 2018, 16:16
I fourth this :)
Jere (@jerejj)
8th May 2018, 3:19
Both, Haas’ points-tally and WCC-position would, of course, look quite a bit different to what they are had it not been for the pit stop-blunders in Australia.
Todfod (@todfod)
8th May 2018, 6:34
True. That is the biggest reason why they’re not 4th is the pit stop errors in Australia. The 2nd biggest reason is probably Grosjean.
Honestly, I think they missed the boat to finish the best of the midfield already. As the season goes on Renault and McLaren are going to out develop Haas, and by the midpoint of the season I think Haas will have be the 6th fastest team on the grid. I think P6 is the best they can target now in the WCC.
Nitzo (@webtel)
8th May 2018, 7:13
@todfod
+1
I believe its a little too early to make these claims. These guys are reliant on Ferrari who have their own developmental goals. If anything, their power unit is going to be certainly better than Renault. These four races have shown us that Haas’ performance is track based which means you could have boom (Aus) or bust (like the way Romain crashed in Baku) races.
Their place in the WCC relies more on the way Romain performs and not just the car itself. Such is their current status.
Roper
9th May 2018, 23:14
I don’t think Grosjean will ever make an F1 driver. I hope they finally figure that out.
Sundar Srinivas Harish (@sundark)
8th May 2018, 7:16
I think they’ve already been outshone by Renault. In the last 2 races, they haven’t looked as impressive on pace as in Australia and Bahrain, while Ferrari has been super quick since the first race. McLaren has capitalized well on the failures of others, but I think Renault already has the fourth quickest car. Now if only Hulkenberg can stop getting brain farts in street circuits…
Jere (@jerejj)
8th May 2018, 11:45
@todfod @webtel @sundark Agreed to all of your points.
”Now if only Hulkenberg can stop getting brain farts in street circuits” – LOL. You’ve got me there.
Jimmi Cynic (@jimmi-cynic)
8th May 2018, 7:26
Nico is bored in his early retirement. Takes his priceless Merc Gullwing out on the tedious roads of Monaco to make a tedious, self-satisfied YT video.
Many videos make life in Monaco appear glamorous, he makes it look like some sort of self-absorbed prison for the rich with no chance of parole.
ColdFly (@)
8th May 2018, 8:01
Thank you for the review, @jimmi-cynic.
I skipped it first but now decided to watch it :p
Matteo (@m-bagattini)
8th May 2018, 8:58
@jimmi-cynic @coldfly he’s posting on YouTube quite regularly and I don’t want to say it’s not entertaining (the video with Hakkinen is pretty cool) but he absolutely lives on another planet. It’s not his fault, I think he’s being genuine and candid but there’s this detachment you can perceive, from cars you’ll never drive to pass swipes you’ll never do to enter places you’ll never be. He’s a nice guy, I wish him all the best and I’m fairly sure we’ll hear from him soon since he’s very fond to Formula E and the future of competition. But he unwittingly humble-bragging on YouTube it’s not going to work.
Joao (@johnmilk)
8th May 2018, 9:48
@m-bagattini sounds like every YT channel around. I think it is interesting that he shows some cars that most people won’t be able to get to know, the 300SL is a rarity, I’m glad he did a video with it.
I’ve had the chance to be close and personal to some vehicles that are very special, either due to their history or their sheer beauty, and maybe the person showing them to me was bragging a bit, but I didn’t care at all
Matteo (@m-bagattini)
8th May 2018, 10:49
@johnmilk not every channel, IMHO: often you see people who don’t drive 500 HP every day giving supercars a try being genuinely enthusiast about the experience and sharing with you – the viewer – their enthusiasm and passion: I like when someone is saying “have you seen this beast? how cool is that! I’m so fortunate being here but I want to share with you my emotions”. Nico doesn’t convey this kind of emotions, to me at least; but again, not his fault at all if he drives a McLaren P1 like a Fiat 500.
Or you can have three kinds of people entering the F1 paddock: the one I hate the most swipes the badge, looks at the camera and says, implicitly or explicitly, “I’m here because I’m better than you”. One other, the one I follow, says “OMG where am I, I don’t deserve this, come with me and we’ll share the experience”. Nico after arriving aboard his private jet swipes the badge like I do when I come in the office, like he did a million times. He’s simply not aware of the golden cage he’s in.
I repeat: I have the greatest admiration for him, he did the best thing ever retiring after winning the championship and he surely is a good guy. Simply, I think that putting that videos on YT is not the greatest thing for his image.
eljueta (@eljueta)
8th May 2018, 7:27
Watch me parade this box made of money around these golden streets. Did I mention I’m rich?
ruliemaulana (@ruliemaulana)
8th May 2018, 9:10
@eljueta I respect Rosberg for not painting his 300L purple metallic and for not putting some wheels spinners.
eljueta (@eljueta)
8th May 2018, 9:15
@ruliemaulana lowered expectations eh?
MrBoerns (@mrboerns)
8th May 2018, 9:53
@ruliemaulana lewis is wiping a tear with his massive gold bracelet right now
DB-C90 (@dbradock)
8th May 2018, 10:57
Interesting comments from Haas.
The difference between 4th and 7th is probably not car related at all but is all about making the least number of mistakes in the pits and on the pit wall.
Have a close look at FI – they probably haven’t had the best car for the past few seasons but haven’t made any stupid errors in the pits or from the Pit wall (or at least haven’t made as many as the others). Coming 4th is all about maximising your opportunities and that’s something Haas, Williams & to a certain extent Renault have yet to do consistently.
Robbie (@robbie)
8th May 2018, 12:35
I must say I’m pretty surprised at the petty comments made above about Nico driving a classic Mercedes. Pretty sad.
FlatSix (@)
8th May 2018, 14:21
@robbie Especially in the world of so called ‘influencers’ today who do nothing else but make crappy videos about stuff they got for free. At least Nico worked hard to be where he is right now.
anon
8th May 2018, 18:24
@flatsix, this would be the son of a man (Keke Rosberg) who was already a multi-millionaire ex-F1 driver with ample connections to the world of motorsport and had enough money to be able to found his own racing team (Team Rosberg) that he was able to use to help Nico progress through junior series? Whilst Nico might have worked hard, surely you have to admit that he started from a considerably more advantageous position than the vast bulk of his contemporaries did.
Robbie (@robbie)
8th May 2018, 19:37
@anon And therefore he is fair game for insult from posting a video of a cool driving experience in a classic Mercedes?
anon
8th May 2018, 22:48
@robbie, There is a difference between simply saying he is “fair game” and some of the more nuanced comments that have been written in this thread.
It was more to give context to comments such as those by Matteo, which I think is more of an exploration of Rosberg’s character and is not intended to insult, but notes that Rosberg did come from a fairly privileged upbringing and was afforded a number of luxuries during his junior career that a number of other drivers would not have been able to enjoy (both on a personal level and a professional level). In the context of that lifestyle, it is not unreasonable to ask if sometimes that may affect the way that he interacts with other people or possessions in a way that may unintentionally come across in a negative light.
StefMeister (@stefmeister)
8th May 2018, 13:15
In reference to COTD.
I happened to turn on the DTM Youtube stream just in time to see a replay showing a stupidly easy DRS pass which kind of put me off, I kept watching for a bit more but saw a few other equally stupidly easy DRS passes so decided to watch something else instead.
FlatSix (@)
8th May 2018, 14:25
@stefmeister The race was enjoying but I do feel like the commentators made it more than it actually was. They literally changed position for the second time and they were already using the term ‘lap after lap’ and ‘constant wheel to wheel’.
However the race did show something I’m quite fond of. The possibility to fight back the next lap. When was the last time you saw an overtake in F1 only to have it reversed a lap later on track?
ajpennypacker (@ajpennypacker)
8th May 2018, 15:59
It’s incredible that Haas is so low in both constructor’s and driver’s standings. Grosjean has 0 points. Haas have managed to sabotage themselves in incomprehensible ways. They have been the opposite of McLaren, who with an inferior car have managed to score in every race and be on top of the midfield.
Mark in Florida
10th May 2018, 1:38
I watched the vid that Nico made and didn’t see anything wrong with it. He didn’t come across as a self absorbed pompous a$$. I guess that people see what they want to see if you look for a villain you will find one. Much like many find some of Lewises behavior abominable off track. Nico to me just looks like a car enthusiast that loves cars. I laughed when he drove the car through the tunnel and he was enjoying the sound of the car. I have done the same thing myself when I’m driving my Mustang GT convertible. The only thing that was offensive was the horrible electro pop music playing in the background. If Lewis makes a video of one of his super cars I’ll watch it too and not worry or feel bad that I can never have it. That’s would be nothing but petty jealousy.