Official F1 Fantasy Recap - Malaysian GP [SPOILERS]
#1
04-07-2009, 08:29 PM
Official F1 Fantasy Recap - Malaysian GP [SPOILERS]
Introduction
For the 20+ members that stayed up, logged in and watched the race in the wee hours of the morning (except for you folks in the proper time zones) the Malaysian GP turned from total exhiliaration to a real nightmare. The race started out so well! Jenson Button blew the start and had to play catch-up to Nico Rosberg, everyone watching the weather and their tires, and the continued surge of Toyota made the start unforgettable! Even when the rain initially started coming down things were still exciting. But when the deluge came, things got ugly and never recovered. The race was called at less than 3/4 done and the grid only collected half-points for the effort. But Jenson Button did come out on top again and the Toyota boys showed up big time.
Some big fantasy names really disappointed, however, as Ferrari made a premature dive into the pits and got on the wet tires too soon - this cost Kimi at least a 4th place finish - and Robert Kubica never completed a single lap with engine trouble. Lewis Hamilton struggled through the pack once again and should have finished in the top 5 had it not been for the black flag that stopped the race. Nick Heidfeld was gifted a second place finish and undeservedly pushed Timo Glock to third and Barrichello to fourth.
I think I speak for everyone when I say that if F1 never returns to Malaysia it will be too soon.
STATS
Here are the fantasy stats updated after the Malaysian GP.
As you can see, we have a new overall leader! Congrats to Formula MD2009 (The Doctor) for ascending to the top of the league. When I interviewed him about his rise to the top, he told me that it was "just all dumb luck." Well, I'll take some of that dumb luck any day! Note that Formula MD2009 snagged an impressive 599 points in Malaysia with the following 6-man lineup:
The week's winner was Bologna GP (TS Username Unknown) with an amazing score of 647 points. Bologna GP snagged that score with the following lineup:
Great work. To score that many points with only a 5-driver lineup is a real feat.
TEAM SPEED STILL IN THE TOP 25 LEAGUES!
Team Speed is the #20 private league with an average top 5 score of 1288.10! Way to make us proud guys!!
Fantasy Strategy
One of the key strategies in the league is knowing when to switch out your drivers. I have found that switching your drivers out during a race can be the best way to maximize value. For example, I had the following lineup at the start of the Malaysian GP:
Soon after the race started I realized that Kubica and Kimi were really bad choices. So during the race itself I made changes to my lineup for the next week. By the time the race was called, my lineup looked like this:
I was able to pick up Barrichello and Rosberg for their pre-race prices and avoided the increase that came the next morning when everyone started to add them. This is a big reason to get up and watch the races live - you get a jump start on the next race before the driver values move substantially.
BOLD PREDICTION
I predict a major shake up in the grid in China. I strongly believe that both Ferrari and McLaren will make huge comebacks and will get right back to their winning ways. This 2-week break could not have come at a better time for them. You can be sure that these teams will make the most of it and come out swinging. By the time we reach Europe - and the whole diffuser thing is sorted out - I think we will have a grid that looks much like it has for the past few years. Brawn GP is for real and will stay among the leaders - much like BMW did last year - but teams like Williams and Toyota that have had early season success will get pushed out and fade down the points. Looking at the driver values right now, great drivers such as Massa, Kimi, Lewis and Alonso can be bought for a song. At the start of the season you could have never afforded Kimi and Massa on the same team. Now you could easily pick up Kimi, Massa, Lewis and Alonso with a 5th driver tossed in as a finisher. Just something to think about.
WEEKLY RACE BANTER DISCUSSION THREADS
For China I am going to break the Banter and Discussion thread up into 2 separate threads. One will be a Pre-Race thread that will take us through the lead up to the race and the practice sessions. The other will be a Race thread that will go through qualifying and the race itself.
Please join us in the Pre-Race Banter and Discussion thread up now: https://teamspeed.com/forums/pit-sto...-spoilers.html
And be sure to look for the Race Banter and Discussion thread that will be posted just as soon as the practice sessions are over. Hopefully this will allow more people to join the Banter and Discussion threads and jump into the action. Last week we had over 20 members in the Banter and Discussion during the race - it was a great time.
Be sure to set your lineups by Friday April 17 at 10:00 am PST!
Good luck to everyone and thanks for playing!!
Dana
Last edited by Barrister; 04-07-2009 at 10:41 PM.
#4
04-07-2009, 10:00 PM
I am glad I moved to steps from last week, I am now 15th, not bad.. And still beating Like.No.Other
#6
04-07-2009, 10:28 PM
I'm torn about what to do with Trulli. I could pretty much trade him straight up for Kimi or I could get Lewis instead. Both drivers have a chance of really exploding in China and I can't quite make it up to a 6 person team that will still be competitive. So, what should I do? Kimi or Lewis???
