thought they were faster!!!

[armchair racer]

hi ,i think the fastest lap by montoya this year at sepang was 1.36 secs( race speed not pole) and the pole for a1 was 1.56 ish .....if that is accurate its 20 seconds a lap slower ... thought thay would be closer than that !!! ............just a thought

[safc_fan89]

I was surprised when I heard that the pole time was 1:56, that's about 25 seconds slower than an F1 car at full speed on low fuel. But it's not the speed that counts, it's the entertainment and good racing.

[fordlover]

they have big enough crashes as it is, dont wanna make it worse

[armchair racer]

unfortunatly for me thats the problem ...i really want to like it ( nascar included ) but i just cant get into it

[Kicking-back]

It's a very long circuit - so the difference to F1 will be higher.

I for one don't mind - it's close and competitive racing.

[Gil Abobeleira]

This is the time set by Ralph Firman in Super-Pole in SuperGT at Sepang
Honda NSX - 1'57.824 BS

[armchair racer]

as a matter of interest , does anybody know how the times of a1gp compared to last years time of cart at brands hatch???cheers

[Ian Sowman]

They raced on different circuits, so it would be meaningless...

[Go-Pakistan]

Was the F1 circuit configuration the same as the one used for A1GP?

[Stephen Green]

Cart raced on the Indy circuit while A1 were on the Grand Prix circuit so as Ian has said, to compare the two would be meaningless.

[armchair racer]

aahhh , thought it would be the gp circuit blimey i bet that was congested!!!

[Stephen Green]

It was quite a small field for Cart so not too bad really.

[Hazard]

Also, CART/Champcar wasn't at Brands last year, it was the year before

It was fairly eventless, the A1GP at Brands was far more entertaining.

[ScotsBrutesFan]

Oops

[ScotsBrutesFan]

20 seconds might sound a lot, but F1 would reach top speeds and stay their for longer on the twin straights of Sepang, since they have the benefit of traction control and computerised gear changes. Infact the F1's would probably pick up at least a second or two out of every "slow" corner with this traction advantage.

[Hepatic]

Top speed of A1 cars is about 165mph, whereas the F1s were getting around 210-215, so theres a whole chunk of time. No comparison in entertainment tho, A1gp wins everytime!

[Kicking-back]

The overtaking and close racing we saw at that circuit yesterday made me realise it's a far better track than I'd ever thought from watching F1 there.

[Kiwi3]

I was at Sepang over the weekend, and also went to two F1 GP this year (not Malaysia though). As a comparison I would say that A1 the A1 cars still looked very quick down the straights, noticeably slower around slow corners but well and truely acceptable as a top level series. I would much rather have cars that are driveable by drivers from non-traditional nations than something that is really quick but harder to drive. The close racing more than makes up for it. I had a thoroughly enjoyable weekend and I think that A1 have got the formula right.

They are really, really loud by the way. They certainly sound the part.

[Quartermiler]

Love A1, think the racing is very entertaining. Like the looks of the cars. Think the size of the field is great and I support the series fully and think it's a fantastic success etc.

But...being a speed freak, I am one whom would like to see quicker cars.

And being a Drag Racer, I like raw speed, aswell as high cornering speeds in circuit racing. Motorsport should frighten you in my opinion, although I wouldn't be daft enough to say these cars are slow and some of the shunts have been disturbing.

It would be good to see the cars with another 150bhp and more grip, a little like the Grand Prix Masters Reynards or similar.

After all, this is the World Cup of motorsport.

Can't wait for the next race ....

[karting legend]

nippon 2004 sepang qual 1.49021 race 1.5294

[Bruno_Lamy]

TASK:
Try to compare the number of overtaking per race instead of comparing times.

Every child knows F1 cars are the fastest in an non-oval circuit, full stop.

[Paddockman]

20 seconds slower who cares!!

The racing was good, the cars were sliding around and able to overtake!

[armchair racer]

Originally Posted by Bruno_Lamy

TASK:
Try to compare the number of overtaking per race instead of comparing times.

Every child knows F1 cars are the fastest in an non-oval circuit, full stop.

oh dear!!! you sound a little peeved , firstly f1 isnt all about overtaking , it never has been , its f1 not touring cars .... the problem to my mind is the fia , since mansell went to indycar they have been obsessed with THE SHOW , needless fuel stratagies stops the f1 drivers from a risky overtaking manouver , safety cars to bunch up drivers etc and since sennas crash all they want to do is slow down the cars and put them on unsuitable tracks ( monaco ) and change the best tracks ( hockenhiem) and put the senna s in ......

[Chucky]

If F1 isn't all about overtaking then I'll just stop watching right now and save myself the pain of waiting for it to happen.

A1 has benn a refreshing revelation in motorsport. I didn't even notice nor care that they were that much slower (although so they should be, they give away about 300HP and a lot of grip) I only noticed people (a lot of whose names I recognised) out there racing.

[Quartermiler]

Yep...The show is great at A1GP.

But I just can't help wanting to see these cars doing 180mph + and still moving around a lot and overtaking.

The racing is good without doubt and it certainly does not need spoiling, but with a label like World Cup Of Motorsport, should it feel like a bit of a junior series, I would like to see it more of a game for big boys and girls.

But if it stays as it is, it will get my support, the racing has been refreshing and very very entertaining.