Is it just me?

[Linda-Anne]

Sometimes when watching GP'S I really cant beleive my ears. Why is a drivers engineer telling him how to drive the car? The worst peprertrator is Rob Smedly and his instructions to Felipe Massa. Its so bizzare its almost laughable but
( it in my mind at least ) is making Massa look like he doesnt know what he is doing.
I just imagine what Ayrton Senna would have said to Georgio Ascineli if he had given him similar intstructions the radio airwaves would have been blue.

[R.?]

Well, the driver is always busy keeping the car between the white lines. The engineer has a huge amount of data avalible which the driver has not. Especially in these modern days with all the things they can see from the data it can really help the driver I think.

What did make me laugh were the instructions of Jock Clear to Takuma Sato in the BAR days. Right at the start going into turn one Clear was telling Sato were all the others were. Jaguar left, Jaguar left! Jenson right behind you! Turn in, turn in! It would make me crazy.

[Linda-Anne]

I take on board what you say about the data issues, but its no different to the last 20 years in essence as the cars have been able to send data back to the engineers even in those days. I just feel that some of the "encouraging" comments from the engineer to the driver just lately seem somewhat "over the top" . If a driver really cant realise that he has to pass the guy infront and that he has more straight line speed and at that a certain place on the track is best to exercise a passing maouvre after even following the guy for several laps than maybe he shouldnt be driving at all.
Yes its neccessary to know if you need to add a bit more wing, conseve tyres , turn down the richness of fuel, watch the brakes etc etc, but how to pass the guy ahead.......?

[Wolfie]

Keke was commentating a GP when Frank Williams told Nico 'you have to push, you have to push' and said that when he was driving for Williams he just detached the wire to the team radio since he didn't want to listen

[Linda-Anne]

Keke was commentating a GP when Frank Williams told Nico 'you have to push, you have to push' and said that when he was driving for Williams he just detached the wire to the team radio since he didn't want to listen

I think that probably was a wise move and a better alternative than replying with a few rude words

[sdutt]

I take on board what you say about the data issues, but its no different to the last 20 years in essence as the cars have been able to send data back to the engineers even in those days. I just feel that some of the "encouraging" comments from the engineer to the driver just lately seem somewhat "over the top" . If a driver really cant realise that he has to pass the guy infront and that he has more straight line speed and at that a certain place on the track is best to exercise a passing maouvre after even following the guy for several laps than maybe he shouldnt be driving at all.
Yes its neccessary to know if you need to add a bit more wing, conseve tyres , turn down the richness of fuel, watch the brakes etc etc, but how to pass the guy ahead.......?

i agree with that. Looks like drivers will become robots with engineers telling then each and everything to do. I find it really weird

[R.?]

But a driver cannot monitor everything. I remember Smedley telling Massa in Australia to approach the final corner slower and go on the power later, in order to be less vunerable on the straight. A driver does not know this, he goes as fast as he can. But the engineer can compare this to the opponent. So this piece of information was quite usefull I think. I agree with you that some of the comments are stupid. Like: 'push, to pass him on the straight!'

[corry]

I agree that telling someone to overtake the guy infront is obvious but saying where he might be able to gain time and improve lap times is something i would love as a driver

[lucian]

But a driver cannot monitor everything. I remember Smedley telling Massa in Australia to approach the final corner slower and go on the power later, in order to be less vunerable on the straight. A driver does not know this, he goes as fast as he can. But the engineer can compare this to the opponent. So this piece of information was quite usefull I think. I agree with you that some of the comments are stupid. Like: 'push, to pass him on the straight!'

Massa had a very bad line through the last corner lap after lap and then Smedley told him to correct that mistake and he did. What I don't understand is why Massa didn't realize this obvious thing before being told about it. I always thought he didn't have much talent, but what happened then disappointed me even more.

[R.?]

Maybe he was so hot headed that he dind't think of it. Sometimes he just loses his cool. At Singapore and Fuji 2008 for example. And at Malaysia last year when he was shouting for a white visor. "White visor, white visor! I need a white visor, I cannot see anything! And smedly saying: felipe baby, stay cool!

[Liffonmelsmork]

And at Malaysia last year when he was shouting for a white visor. "White visor, white visor! I need a white visor, I cannot see anything! And smedly saying: felipe baby, stay cool!

Somebody has to put that quote on a t-shirt. Maybe for the next range of official Felipe Massa merchandise.

[Ferrariman60]

Personally, if I were a driver, I would appreciate the information the engineer gave me to an extent. If he was on the radio every lap I'd get annoyed, but if I were the one to ask him about things, it would work much better. I think it's the driver's job to bug the engineer if he wants, not the engineer's job to bug the driver. After all, the engineer is sitting on the pitwall drinking a Red Bull, the driver's hurling 750BHP around the track at 300 km/h.