2810 replies to this topic

[Insider]

mikathegreat2, on 27 July 2009 - 12:05 PM, said:

My thoughts, Brawn are now on the backfoot & all the struggling teams are moving up!

That's what we have been discussing, isn't it?

[Argento Reloaded]

http://www.worldcarf...alencia--report

Nando replacing Felipe?

[Argento Reloaded]

For good Felipe�s life is not in danger but his driving career yes. is impossible for him to drive in the rest of the year and I doubt he can drive in 2010. What a bad luck! I feel fine if I�m making a mistake!

[Quiet One]

Insider, on 27 July 2009 - 09:36 AM, said:

I have been discussing the 'BGP tyre' issue with some former colleagues from Renault and Michelin.  The Brawns were massively quick in pre-season at Barca on a 'cold' track.  Was their diffuser really worth two seconds over the rest of the field?  JB and Rubens both said the car was 'on rails'.  In China, tyres were definitely not an issue for Brawn - the weather held the key. My man from Michelin says he smells a conspiracy between Bridgestone, the FIA and FOM.  Brawn's run of wins was getting boring.   Unfortunately, as I know only too well, conspiracy theories are a common trait among the French. Compounds can indeed be changed, though the tyres look identical to the rest of the stock.  It did happen in the old days with Michelin favouring Renault and Goodyear using Ferrari spec as their template. In fact, it has long been common knowledge in the pit lane that Max was instrumental in convincing Bridgestone, after Goodyear's departure in 1999 that they should be making a tyre to Ferrari spec and everyone else would have to make do as a result. To add fuel to the fire, my friend pointed out that James Gresham, Bridgestone's Logistics Supremo since 1997, formerly worked for Max at March. That no one could even sniff Schui's tailpipe for the next five years adds some substance to the story. It could be that Michelin man may be on to something but it's a fair bit to swallow. Personally, though I know that former calibration problems with wind tunnels have apparently been resolved, it's certainly an area that I would be looking at if I were BGP.  The updates haven't worked and they came from the same design team who helped build the car.  That would be my critical area of focus, for sure.

Oh, free tinfoil hats! Can I have one?

[Jean Todt]

Quiet One, on 27 July 2009 - 07:07 PM, said:

Oh, free tinfoil hats! Can I have one?

[Rainmaster]

Quiet One, on 27 July 2009 - 07:07 PM, said:

Oh, free tinfoil hats! Can I have one?

Naughty

I think the conspiracy is bollocks too, like most conspiracy theories are. A more rational explanation for me is that 2 things have happened, 1) The big manufacturers have caught up and developed very quickly like we suspected they would, 2) As JB suggests, Brawn have gone backwards due to some faulty update on the car (which we have seen so many times with top teams before).

Brawn seem to have lost about 7-8 tenths somewhere and that's what Macca have gained over the last few races, hence the shift of power at the front.

Edited by El Maestro, 27 July 2009 - 09:54 PM.

[Insider]

El Maestro, on 27 July 2009 - 09:54 PM, said:

Naughty

I think the conspiracy is bollocks too, like most conspiracy theories are. A more rational explanation for me is that 2 things have happened, 1) The big manufacturers have caught up and developed very quickly like we suspected they would, 2) As JB suggests, Brawn have gone backwards due to some faulty update on the car (which we have seen so many times with top teams before).

Brawn seem to have lost about 7-8 tenths somewhere and that's what Macca have gained over the last few races, hence the shift of power at the front.

I don't believe I said anything different to that. Of course, the conspiracy angle doesn't digest very well - they never do. It's only one man's opinion. He worked for Michelin for twenty years.

[Insider]

abbas_gear, on 27 July 2009 - 09:41 PM, said:

You can laugh.  Wait until your wheels fall off!

[mikathegreat2]

Argento, on 27 July 2009 - 03:42 PM, said:

http://www.worldcarf...alencia--report

Nando replacing Felipe?

Vettel replacing Kimi?

[Argento Reloaded]

mikathegreat2, on 27 July 2009 - 11:07 PM, said:

Vettel replacing Kimi?

Piquet replacing Vettel?                                       (Senior of course)

[Rainmaster]

Insider, on 27 July 2009 - 10:21 PM, said:

I don't believe I said anything different to that. Of course, the conspiracy angle doesn't digest very well - they never do. It's only one man's opinion. He worked for Michelin for twenty years.

I don't believe I ever said you said anything different to that, I was just using it as a platform for my post

In other news, today in F1...

Quote

Kubica eyes WRC debut

By David Evans Tuesday, July 28th 2009, 08:15 GMT
In the week when Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen will make his World Rally Championship debut on Rally Finland, BMW Formula 1 driver Robert Kubica says he expects to follow the Finn into rallying.

Answering readers' questions in this month's F1 Racing magazine, Kubica talks about his enjoyment of the sport and his admiration of the drivers in the WRC.

Earlier this year, there was speculation that Kubica would be making his own WRC debut at Rally Poland in his own Skoda Fabia WRC. There was no truth in those rumours and he kept a low profile during his nation's return to WRC. But Kubica is confident he will be on the stages at some point in his career.

"I'm a big fan of rallying," he said. "I really enjoy watching it and I would like to do some rallying just for fun. As for the future, whether I'll have the opportunity to do some rallying really depends on which stage of my career I'm at.

"I'd say there is a high possibility that I'll be in some rallies. I've had a rally car for five or six years and used to drive it quite a lot."

Having tested his own rally cars, Kubica says he can appreciate the skills required to keep the car between the trees.

"There are many [rally] drivers I really respect and, when I've tried a bit of rallying in the past, I know what big balls these guys have. Big balls," he added. "To be on the limit, to fight for tenths of a second on roads lined with trees - in racing, we know every corner and every kerb. But rallying is different.

I like Tommi Makinen, Colin McRae, Richard Burns, Carlos Sainz and now, of course, Sebastien Loeb. I also like the way Mikko Hirvonen is driving at the moment."

Source

Another F1 ace with a passion for rallying, good to see.

[HandyNZL]

What would be good to see would be the drivers being allowed to race something else, now and again.

[Insider]

I understand that though Felipe is making rapid progress now, talking to his family, walking a bit, there is doubt that he would be able to drive an F1 car again. If it is true, it's a heartbreaker.

[Jean Todt]

Insider, on 27 July 2009 - 10:23 PM, said:

You can laugh.  Wait until your wheels fall off!

its better than worn out wheels...

[Insider]

abbas_gear, on 28 July 2009 - 08:39 AM, said:

its better than worn out wheels...

I will treat the remark with the disdain it deserves - go an boil your head in oil!

[Rainmaster]

Looks like Piquet is well on his way.

Quote

Piquet and Briatore in war of words

By Michele Lostia and Pablo Elizalde Tuesday, July 28th 2009, 11:35 GMT
A war of words between Renault boss Flavio Briatore and Nelson Piquet has increased speculation that the Brazilian driver is unlikely to finish the season with the team.

Piquet admitted ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix that his place at the team was in doubt, with rumours having already suggested he could have been absent from the Hungaroring race, where the Brazilian qualified in 15th and finished in 12th.

Speaking to Autosprint magazine, Briatore said he expected more from Piquet and was critical of the driver for "opening the book of excuses" for his lack of results.

"I've always been fair with my drivers," Briatore was quoted as saying by Autosprint. "I expected more from Piquet because this is his second year with a full-time drive. He's done less testing compared to Alonso, but Webber as well tested less than Vettel because of his broken leg, but look where he is now.

"When a driver lacks results, he opens the book of excuses and begins: the fault is the weather's, a spectator's sunglasses, a spin on the straight, this and that...

"It's not true that there's a technical difference of seven tenths between Alonso's and Piquet's car. If that was true, we'd have a car capable of winning the title, and that unfortunately isn't the case. The technical difference has always been minimal and never longer than one race."

Piquet, who is yet to score a point this season, was critical of his team boss, saying he only thinks about money.

The Brazilian driver claimed Briatore, who left Sunday's race before it was over after Fernando Alonso had retired, has no respect for him.

"Flavio is a business man, but he doesn't understand s*** about F1," Piquet was quoted as saying by the Italian magazine. "He's my manager, but in his role of team boss he doesn't respect me.

"He only thinks about money, at how much money he can pocket in everything he's involved, he's a man with no friends. Every day everyone asks me what's going on, so why should I always keep quiet?

"Webber has been in F1 since 2001, he started in a different era, when testing wasn't limited. He's probably done more than 20,000 kms in testing, so it's not a fair comparison. Now the situation is more difficult for a driver with little experience.

"And besides that, I have to fight against Briatore and Alonso himself, who is a fantastic driver. When I wasn't competitive in qualifying, I was the first owing up to it. But if Briatore doesn't understand that, what can I do?"

Source

Certainly the words of a man who knows he has nothing more to lose.

[Insider]

El Maestro, on 28 July 2009 - 12:05 PM, said:

Looks like Piquet is well on his way.



Certainly the words of a man who knows he has nothing more to lose.

The words of a man in the wrong profession and a classic case of a father trying to relive his life through that of his son.

[mikathegreat2]

Argento, on 28 July 2009 - 03:46 AM, said:

Piquet replacing Vettel?                                       (Senior of course)

Does he have his driving license back??

El Maestro, on 28 July 2009 - 12:05 PM, said:

Looks like Piquet is well on his way.



Certainly the words of a man who knows he has nothing more to lose.

YES!!!! My pubes are saved!!!!

[Argento Reloaded]

With all the thing happened in hungary we didn�t realise the most important thing: Hami win is the first win ever of a KERS-equiped F1! So the "good-for-nthing-KERS" gave Macca 14 km/h + in the straights and had no negative impact in car balance. Since Macca understood how i works with the rest of the car -an made a new car from the ground up- it proved effective mostly because the other teams didn�t use it!

[Jean Todt]

El Maestro, on 28 July 2009 - 12:05 PM, said:

Looks like Piquet is well on his way.



Certainly the words of a man who knows he has nothing more to lose.

...well. I want to see more of this...bring it on Piquet...

[Insider]

The wires are humming tonight with speculation that BMW will announce it's withdrawal from F1 tomorrow. An emergency press conference has been called at BMW's headquarters in Munich. It is suspected that the company has decided to end its involvement in F1.

The press conference will be hosted by Dr. Norbert Reithofer, chairman of the BMW board, Dr. Klaus Draeger, director for development, and Mario Theissen, BMW motorsport director. The presence of such senior management figures is considered ominous.

So, Kubica to Ferrari?

[Insider]

The wires are humming tonight with speculation that BMW will announce it's withdrawal from F1 tomorrow. An emergency press conference has been called at BMW's headquarters in Munich. It is suspected that the company has decided to end its involvement in F1.

The press conference will be hosted by Dr. Norbert Reithofer, chairman of the BMW board, Dr. Klaus Draeger, director for development, and Mario Theissen, BMW motorsport director. The presence of such senior management figures is considered ominous.

So, Kubica to Ferrari?

[Kati]

Pff, I'd most likely expect him at Renault when Fernando goes Ferrari

[Insider]

Kati, on 28 July 2009 - 10:14 PM, said:

Pff, I'd most likely expect him at Renault when Fernando goes Ferrari

Flabbio and Kubica? Nah, bad mix.  Anyway, I am expecting Renault and Toyota to come out too.  Briatore may buy the Renault F1 Team, as such if that happened and we'd be down to 22 cars.  BMW may still offer power trains but who'd want them? Mecachrome are in financial trouble and would need to keep supplying F1 engines to survive.  With Max gone, Prodrive and Epsilon could come in for 2011. My JB to Ferrari scheme is far too business-like and sensible and therefore will probably not happen.

[dribbler]

Good job Renault won't be in Valencia. They have no drivers.

[HandyNZL]

Go Piquet Jnr!  You get in there boy....a bit of a laff as they say

Robert Kubica to replace Barrichello at Brawn.




Damn...wrong thread....

...though how can I be blamed for that when no one has started the "Who's going to replace Rubens" thread.

[Insider]

HandyNZL, on 29 July 2009 - 08:35 AM, said:

Go Piquet Jnr!  You get in there boy....a bit of a laff as they say

Robert Kubica to replace Barrichello at Brawn.




Damn...wrong thread....

...though how can I be blamed for that when no one has started the "Who's going to replace Rubens" thread.

They don't have the cash, Kiwi.  Jaime is the man.  I've watched them all come and go.  He's 100% WDC material, to my mind and will prove a perfect catalyst and foil for JB - if the latter stays put.

[HandyNZL]

Insider, on 29 July 2009 - 08:42 AM, said:

They don't have the cash, Kiwi.  Jaime is the man.  I've watched them all come and go.  He's 100% WDC material, to my mind and will prove a perfect catalyst and foil for JB - if the latter stays put.

Or alternatively, toiling around in last place for the next five or six races may just kill Jaime's future career in F1.

[Insider]

HandyNZL, on 29 July 2009 - 08:50 AM, said:

Or alternatively, toiling around in last place for the next five or six races may just kill Jaime's future career in F1.

Those who know real potential when they see it won't let that happen.  Seems to me, we have another Prost in the making here.  He drives clean, thinks clearly, communicates well and seems well-versed technically. perfect for Brawn, I say. Certainly, a better bet than Senna, I think.

[HandyNZL]

Insider, on 29 July 2009 - 08:56 AM, said:

Those who know real potential when they see it won't let that happen.  Seems to me, we have another Prost in the making here.  He drives clean, thinks clearly, communicates well and seems well-versed technically. perfect for Brawn, I say. Certainly, a better bet than Senna, I think.

Another Prost??????

Other than both winning British F3, I think the comparisons may just end there.  I think it's way too early to tell.  Good luck to the guy 'n all, though.