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FIA is asking for your opinion on choosing next year's qualifying format. There are 2 possible choices. I chose the simpler of the 2, so hopefully next year there will be 2 timed sessions in which you must set a fast lap, and then the aggregate time is your qualifying time.

I also chose proposal 1, the second seemed a bit odd, in that you would have to run 60 minutes straight to qualify first.

They don't seem to offer many details.

i go for #2. that way the slower cars won't clutter the track and mess up a fast lap by one of the top 10 runners. its kinda like an elimination format. i like it. although proposal #1 is not bad either.

just like the old days, i bet DC will like it, he hates single lap qualifying. but this is going to make cost for the teams go up as they will be constantly changing things and developing more. just the thing they were trying to steer clear of when they changed to the single lap qualifying the last two seasons.

I chose proposal #2. I thnink its kinda cool, like a knockout or elimination mode from a video game. I think it would fun to watch as the cars keep getting knocked off of the track. The only question is what about tires, there was no mention of being able to replace tires during or after the qualifying session. If they dont let them change tires it would really suck as eveyone would be trying to conserve their tires.

i go for #2. that way the slower cars won't clutter the track and mess up a fast lap by one of the top 10 runners. its kinda like an elimination format. i like it. although proposal #1 is not bad either.

just like the old days, i bet DC will like it, he hates single lap qualifying. but this is going to make cost for the teams go up as they will be constantly changing things and developing more. just the thing they were trying to steer clear of when they changed to the single lap qualifying the last two seasons.
To your first statement, this is what I was thinking as well. Also, it'll make it more exciting to watch qualifying now...it's like the pre-race before the actual race. Plus it puts the teams on their toes and allows little room for error.

Your second comment regarding keeping costs down is valid, but think about it this way...F1 is already very polarized in terms of teams that can and cannot compete, it will always be this way. IRL tried to keep costs down, but yet you still saw the emergence of the dominant teams due to better personel, not money. And IIRC, there is no salary cap of any kind for personel and staff for a team....so many loopholes really...

Regardless of how much money is spent though, time and time again, the big boys will always be ahead with their big toys, while the pretenders will always be at the back of the pack. There really isn't a way to level the playing field. Automotive racing hasn't been able to fix that aspect, and I don't think they ever will. Automotive engineers are clever and innovative...

And my tangent has gone on too far [/tangent] :stickoutt

They need a write-in ballot.

They need a write-in ballot.
...cause then, they'd get a lot of hate mail though....

So?

Actually I can come up with an interesting format.

Run as many laps as you like. If you want to keep your lap time you report to Parc Ferme (sp?). You can leave Parc Ferme anytime you like, but you lose your time. With the Parc Ferme conditions in force, you start the race on the fuel and tires you qualified with. Qualifying would become a cool chess game.

Alternatively, you could remove the Parc Ferme conditions but still only take the last completed lap. Leave your pit box and you forfeit your official lap.

quote-preppy. Regardless of how much money is spent though, time and time again, the big boys will always be ahead with their big toys, while the pretenders will always be at the back of the pack. There really isn't a way to level the playing field. Automotive racing hasn't been able to fix that aspect, and I don't think they ever will. Automotive engineers are clever and innovative...


you are correct, but there are teams that have been at the top and are now not ie. the red folks, and teams that have won races in the past and are now happy to finish in front of the minardis' ie. jordan. jordan was winning races only 4 seasons ago. and what about williams? them, ferarri, and mclaren have been the top three for years, now look at them. and where did renualt and b.a.r. com from? and toyota for that matter. it is all about developement and cycles. as of right now the only team to be consistantly fast is mclaren. i thank god that montoya switched when he did. he must have seen something that i didn't a couple years ago.

moreover it is interesting to see that williams (although on a downward spiral for a couple seasons) is now battleing to get into the top ten without juan and ralph.

btw-preppy, nice technospeeds, have only seen two sets on a bimmer, some guy in l.a. and yours. your car looks nice. i like the mirrors, very original on an e36 :cool

Thanks for the kind words man. Sadly, I wish I could trade them for a set of Volks like yours (I think they're Volks, either that or they're SSR Comps, and either way, I'd like those too :stickoutt).

Yeah, I guess there are so many factors that make a team 'competitive' that it is hard to analyze one aspect of racing.


Geo31, I like that too, reminds me a lot of Indy500 qualifying somewhat, not exactly obviously, but the whole, giving up your time to go try again. You should try to contact Danica...I think she's got Bernie's number on her phone somewhere...you could get a hold of him that way ;)

I chose format #1.
It is hard for me to beleive that a organization like Formula One can not even figure out a good qualification format, but here we are.
Web sites are voting, threads are speculating, and everyone is contributing their opinion.