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**itaspCatCriny** · 09-30-2011, 09:41 PM

Doesn't 2009 prove that the team has (or had) sufficiently smart people, given enough resources? I know Honda spent unprecedented amounts of money, but Toyota proved that huge budgets alone can't make you a championship contender. You still need the right people.

I think the key sentence there is 'had'. How many of the designers of the 2009 car are still there? How many were poached by other teams?

Even with the effects of the double diffuser taken out the 2009 was excellent, outpacing both the Williams and Toyota that were similarly designed around that feature completely.

I know its unfashionable to give manufacturers credit but one of Ross Brawn's achievements was to get Honda's considerable R/D resources to work efficiently with the team and a lot of work that went onto the 2009 car wasn't even carried out in Brackley but in Japan.

Went Honda left Brackley lost financial support but also this huge R/D resource. Mercedes hasn't done the same as Honda and has merely taken over financial control, leaving the team separate from its own engineering pool. In effect Mercedes F1 is competing with less backing than Honda F1 did and its slipping back as a result.

09-30-2011, 09:41 PM	#6
itaspCatCriny Join Date Oct 2005 Posts 463 Senior Member	Doesn't 2009 prove that the team has (or had) sufficiently smart people, given enough resources? I know Honda spent unprecedented amounts of money, but Toyota proved that huge budgets alone can't make you a championship contender. You still need the right people. I think the key sentence there is 'had'. How many of the designers of the 2009 car are still there? How many were poached by other teams? Even with the effects of the double diffuser taken out the 2009 was excellent, outpacing both the Williams and Toyota that were similarly designed around that feature completely. I know its unfashionable to give manufacturers credit but one of Ross Brawn's achievements was to get Honda's considerable R/D resources to work efficiently with the team and a lot of work that went onto the 2009 car wasn't even carried out in Brackley but in Japan. Went Honda left Brackley lost financial support but also this huge R/D resource. Mercedes hasn't done the same as Honda and has merely taken over financial control, leaving the team separate from its own engineering pool. In effect Mercedes F1 is competing with less backing than Honda F1 did and its slipping back as a result.
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