Quiet One 15 Report post Posted November 21, 2009 I don't think we'll see Schumacher, either. But if we do see Team US F1, we will be seeing Jos Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mikathegreat2 2 Report post Posted November 21, 2009 Just realised Eric posted about José Maria Lopez! Not too sure he'll do well if he races next year! Yes he's a double touring car champion but looked @ his single-seater racing career & not so impressive! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jem of the Shire 0 Report post Posted November 21, 2009 Updated grid: Mercedes GP | Rosberg/Heidfeld Vodafone McLaren Mercedes | Button/Hamilton Williams Cosworth | Barrichello/Hulkenberg Scuderia Ferrari | Massa/Alonso/ Megafon Renault | Kubica/Petrov Red Bull Renault | Vettel/Webber STR Ferrari | Buemi/Alguersuera Lotus Cosworth | Trulli/Davidson Qadbak Sauber Ferrari | Kovalainen/Kobayashi Force India Mercedes | Sutil/Luizzi Virgin Cosworth | Glock/Carroll Campos Meta | Senna/De La Rosa Davidson's going to Lotus? Pedro to Campos? Manor renamed Virgin? Doesn't Petrov play for Manchester City?? Is that your estimated grid or are these actual stories that I've missed along the way? Any good driver could win six or seven races if they had the kind of car that Jenson had in the start of this season Er, Rubens didn't. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Schumikonen 2 Report post Posted November 21, 2009 I was wondering whether or not start a thread about this. After all, he will be the first Argentinian behind an F1 wheel in 11 years or so. Obviously your a forgeting about Gaston Mazzacane he was in F1 until 2001, he was impossible to go unnoticed as the broadcast we had in DR at taht time was from Argentina and I remember the commentators say things like "as result of this crash now Massacane is in 15th position". Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Schumikonen 2 Report post Posted November 21, 2009 With Nando at Ferrari and Renault in a coma, these are hard times for a fanboy like me. These are hard times for me too, I am thinking about using the Adam's excel worksheet to calculate my favorite driver for 2010 if Kimi finally decide to take that sabbatical. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Argento Reloaded 1 Report post Posted November 23, 2009 Nico finaly sign with mercedesGP. Does this amerite a new topic? The second driver is between MSC, Kimi and Nick. Ohh those german they must learn from macca and their british drivers... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Insider 0 Report post Posted November 23, 2009 Davidson's going to Lotus? Pedro to Campos? Manor renamed Virgin? Doesn't Petrov play for Manchester City?? Is that your estimated grid or are these actual stories that I've missed along the way? Er, Rubens didn't. No, they're just my picks. Manor is likely to be renamed Virgin if the latter does get involved. Where you bin, guy? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Insider 0 Report post Posted November 23, 2009 Apparently, there is a story circulating at Ilmor, that Davidson may get the MCP second seat and Kobayashi the test role. Nonsense, I say but stranger things.......... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Schumikonen 2 Report post Posted November 23, 2009 Apparently, there is a story circulating at Ilmor, that Davidson may get the MCP second seat and Kobayashi the test role. Nonsense, I say but stranger things.......... Force India should hire Kobayashi, he is a great talent and can do what other FI drivers haven't done so far. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
lewisthegreat2 0 Report post Posted November 23, 2009 Force India should hire Kobayashi, he is a great talent and can do what other FI drivers haven't done so far. You win. I'd love to see Koba at FI. By the way, we may see Koba, but we probably won't see Kova. Heikki was at the NASCAR race yesterday as a guest of Team Penske (Vettel was there, too, with the Red Bull team and stated he'd like to a test and perhaps race in a few years once he's done with F1). I think he's in the same situation as Jarno, who tested with Michael Waltrip Racing (as did Mika Salo)...no offers in F1, so he's turning to stock cars. Who knew roundabout racing was so popular in Finland? Kovalianen, Salo, even Häkkinen has stated he's a big fan and would have done it if he was younger. Heikki wouldn't be a bad choice for Force India, actually. You know what you're getting with him and he's not a bad driver (he's by no means better than Lewis, but he's not a different Heikki than the one who beat Schumcher at the RoC and had some spirited drives in a Sh#t Renault and even won a GP at McLaren...his McLarens were undoubtedly worse than the ones Lewis got). You could easily pair him with Kobayashi who is more of a gamble and have a solid team. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Schumikonen 2 Report post Posted November 23, 2009 You win. I'd love to see Koba at FI. By the way, we may see Koba, but we probably won't see Kova. Heikki was at the NASCAR race yesterday as a guest of Team Penske (Vettel was there, too, with the Red Bull team and stated he'd like to a test and perhaps race in a few years once he's done with F1). I think he's in the same situation as Jarno, who tested with Michael Waltrip Racing (as did Mika Salo)...no offers in F1, so he's turning to stock cars. Who knew roundabout racing was so popular in Finland? Kovalianen, Salo, even H Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Argento Reloaded 1 Report post Posted November 23, 2009 You win. I'd love to see Koba at FI. By the way, we may see Koba, but we probably won't see Kova. Heikki was at the NASCAR race yesterday as a guest of Team Penske (Vettel was there, too, with the Red Bull team and stated he'd like to a test and perhaps race in a few years once he's done with F1). I think he's in the same situation as Jarno, who tested with Michael Waltrip Racing (as did Mika Salo)...no offers in F1, so he's turning to stock cars. Who knew roundabout racing was so popular in Finland? Kovalianen, Salo, even H Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Quiet One 15 Report post Posted November 23, 2009 You win. I'd love to see Koba at FI. By the way, we may see Koba, but we probably won't see Kova. Heikki was at the NASCAR race yesterday as a guest of Team Penske (Vettel was there, too, with the Red Bull team and stated he'd like to a test and perhaps race in a few years once he's done with F1). I think he's in the same situation as Jarno, who tested with Michael Waltrip Racing (as did Mika Salo)...no offers in F1, so he's turning to stock cars. Who knew roundabout racing was so popular in Finland? Kovalianen, Salo, even H Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
yurp 0 Report post Posted November 24, 2009 Heikki was at the NASCAR race yesterday as a guest of Team Penske (Vettel was there, too, with the Red Bull team and stated he'd like to a test and perhaps race in a few years once he's done with F1). I think he's in the same situation as Jarno, who tested with Michael Waltrip Racing (as did Mika Salo)...no offers in F1, so he's turning to stock cars. Who knew roundabout racing was so popular in Finland? Kovalianen, Salo, even H Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
lewisthegreat2 0 Report post Posted November 24, 2009 It's not that American stock car racing is becoming more popular outside US (the total number of NASCAR fans outside US is still firmly around the 0 mark), it's more a case of US stock car racing becoming a sort of Miami Beach for former F1 drivers. Get ready for a 70 years old Barrichello driving there Rubes at 70? Wouldn't he have had to have gone two years ago? For the record, on a boring note, NASCAR's popularity in the US is going down, while it's making huge gains in Canada, Latin America, and Australia, as well as the UK and Sweden. I can see Latin America because of JPM and Australia because of Ambrose and even Canada because they have a race and all, but I can't figure out the UK and Sweden. I had hoped they'd have more sense than to get involved, especially when both have their own touring car championships that are much better! For Vettel... I think this is more the kind of non-commital and non-offensive answer a guy makes when asked 'Would you like to come and race in stock car?'. It doesn't actually mean anything. Stock car might be the best place for Heikki though. Well, Vettel seems to be a big fan of stock cars. He even said F1 should take some things from NASCAR, which makes him the biggest idiot to ever race in F1. So who knows what he'll do when he's 89 and retired. Especially with rumors Volkswagen might join NASCAR... I hate Schumacher, but I much prefer his answer "no, that presents no challenge to me, it's a big risk for no enjoyment" in reference to doing the Indy 500 and "no, closed fenders do not work for me" in reference to NASCAR. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Insider 0 Report post Posted November 24, 2009 With the current rumours flying around the teams and elsewhere, a revision: Mercedes GP | Rosberg/Kubica Vodafone McLaren Mercedes | Button/Hamilton Williams Cosworth | Barrichello/Hulkenberg Scuderia Ferrari | Massa/Alonso/ Red Bull Renault | Vettel/Webber STR Ferrari | Buemi/Luizzi Lotus Cosworth | Trulli/Kobayashi Force India Mercedes | Sutil/di Resta Virgin Cosworth | Glock/Davidson Campos Meta | Senna/Alguersuera Its a 20-car grid. Sauber are having all sorts of problems and clouds are gathering in Paris. I expect Renault to jump ship, to be honest with Kubica making the vacant seat at MGP. USF1 haven't put forward a single iota of hard evidence that they will race. I can see Bernie and the FIA with egg on their faces over this. Lola and Prodrive are probably laughing their socks off! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jem of the Shire 0 Report post Posted November 24, 2009 One good thing about nascar is that there's more access to the drivers and teams than in F1. Plus, at silverstone you don't get someone walking around the grandstand selling hot dogs like you do with Nascar. As for the racing, I've watched Nascar several times on telly and always get bored very quickly. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cristiano84 0 Report post Posted November 24, 2009 ------ Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cristiano84 0 Report post Posted November 25, 2009 VODAFONE MCLAREN (Button - Hamilton) MERCEDES BENZ GRAND PRIX (Rosberg - Heidfeld) RED BULL RACING (Vettel - Webber) SCUDERIA FERRARI MARLBORO (Alonso - Massa) MEGAFON NOKIA SAUBER F1 (Kovalainen - Petrov) AT&T WILLIAMS F1 (Barrichello - Hulkenberg) PANASONIC RENAULT F1 TEAM (Kubica - Kobayashi) KINGFISHER FORCE INDIA F1 (Sutil - Hildebrand) SCUDERIA TORO ROSSO (Buemi - Alguersuari) PDSVA CAMPOS META 1 (Senna - Maldonado) VIRGIN GRAND PRIX (Glock - Di Grassi) PETRONAS LOTUS F1 RACING (Trulli - Klien) USF1??? NO WAY!!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Schumikonen 2 Report post Posted November 25, 2009 One good thing about nascar is that there's more access to the drivers and teams than in F1. Plus, at silverstone you don't get someone walking around the grandstand selling hot dogs like you do with Nascar. As for the racing, I've watched Nascar several times on telly and always get bored very quickly. What I don't like about Nascar are the yellow flags, there are way to many of them and sometimes it takes too much time to go from green to green. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
lewisthegreat2 0 Report post Posted November 25, 2009 What I don't like about Nascar are the yellow flags, there are way to many of them and sometimes it takes too much time to go from green to green. That's why I stopped watching. Most of the yellows are just "EXCITEMENT CAUTIONS" which are actually the total opposite of excitement. They want to bunch the field up to "keep the racing close" (when their close racing is actually quite horrible as the cars just run side-by-side and never lift) and, in doing so, create massive wrecks. It's just the total opposite of what motor racing should be; it's all about "entertainment," and their version of entertainment just doesn't appeal to me. I do watch a few races per year (the road courses, which aren't bad when officiated properly, the finish of the Daytona 500 just because, as unfortunate as it is, it's the biggest motor race in North America in terms of TV viewership, and the Pennsylvania 500 because we go to it; it's actually fun when you're there, honestly, and Pocono isn't a standard oval; three entirely different corners with three entirely different straightaways and usually a low number of safety car periods), but I'd much rather see BTCC. I always laugh about the finish to the Brands Hatch race...you have a stock Ford racing against a stock Chevrolet with a last corner, last lap pass for the win and it's in the UK! I think it's funny that Europeans can do stock car racing better than the US only because the US fans make it seem like NASCAR is the greatest form of motor racing in the world and it's not even the best stock car racing in the world, or the USA, for that matter (local short track racing's fun to watch if it's open competition and everyone brings a unique car; they actually brake and shift there, too). Anyway, this is the Teams and Drivers 2010 thread for F1, and not NASCAR, so... Cristiano, just wondering why you put Hildebrand in the second FI seat? He is testing with di Resta, but surely di Resta will go better, and Mercedes would probably give him a bit of backing while JR has no funding? I'd think it would be rather odd if JR Hildebrand, who has all of one race of European experience (A1GP at Brands Hatch where he was fairly quick) and spent all of last year in the oval-based Indy Lights. I do like JR (NOT because he's US American, but because he's a great personality and really committed to his education), but he'd be an utter embarrassment in Formula 1. He's destined for IndyCar unless he plans on moving to Europe and working his way up (which he could do, he's only 21). Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Insider 0 Report post Posted November 26, 2009 I worked at Renault long enough to know when something is brewing up. I can tell you it is. Former colleagues working at the Viry-Ch Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
lewisthegreat2 0 Report post Posted November 27, 2009 We may see the resurgence of Peter Sauber with some Russian/Finnish telecoms cash in there - we will have to wait. I had read from a few sources that there was a group of US investors preparing to help the team. One rumor was that it was Penske...Jay Penske, that is, Roger's son, much less of a b#####d than Roger, of course, only because he isn't old enough to have done enough b#####dly things in his life. Penske's involved with the very wealthy Stephen Luczo; they own an IndyCar team together, and Jay's been looking to get into F1 since July of last year apparently. They've always been good at getting funding through their many connections (IndyCar has a total of 140,000 viewers in the US, so you'd think no one would ever think to sponsor one of those teams, but the LDR cars are always well-dressed in logos). Luczo is the part-owner of an NBA team (Boston Celtics), and NBA, like all other US sports, has been looking to expand to Europe. One wonders if there could be some type of involvement with that. They could provide the funding to save the team, and the MegaFon deal could help fund the racing season in additon to any other sponsors. I don't doubt the US investors, though I do think the whole Penske talk is probably just wishful thinking (only one of the sources mentioned him and it didn't seem to be too fact-based), even if it is the "wrong" Penske. I do hope Sauber get saved and not by a Penske. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Insider 0 Report post Posted November 27, 2009 The problem with wealthy individuals is that with the World money markets in such a state of flux they may not be so wealthy tomorrow. The revelation that Dubai is close to $80 billion in debt is mind-warping. Qadbak were as thin as paper, asset-wise and BMW should have done their homework far sooner. It is incongruous that a German company were so lax in their diligence of a prospective buyer. I've heard the Penske rumours too and others that mention Chip Ganassi and Dario Franchitti getting involved. A reasonable rumour is about Microsoft, who are leaking money and were sniffing around Brawn at Monaco. Probably, the one closest to the mark is a merger with USF1, whose primary investor, Chad Hurley is getting seriously p**sed off with. And, on and on we go. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cristiano84 0 Report post Posted November 27, 2009 According to latest news; VODAFONE MCLAREN MERCEDES 1 Jenson Button 2 Lewis Hamilton MERCEDES GRAND PRIX 3 Nico Rosberg 4 Nick Heidfeld RED BULL RACING 5 Sebastian Vettel 6 Mark Webber SCUDERIA FERRARI 7 Fernando Alonso 8 Felipe Massa MEGAFON SAUBER FORMEL 1 9 Heikki Kovalainen 10 Vitaly Petrov AT&T WILLIAMS F1 11 Rubens Barrichello 12 Nico Hulkenberg PANASONIC RENAULT F1 TEAM 14 Robert Kubica 15 Kamui Kobayashi KINGFISHER FORCE INDIA F1 16 Adrian Sutil 17 Vitantonio Liuzzi SCUDERIA TORO ROSSO 18 Sebastien Buemi 19 Jaime Alguersuari PDSVA CAMPOS META 1 20 Bruno Senna 21 Pastor Maldonado VIRGIN GRAND PRIX 22 Timo Glock 23 Lucas Di Grassi PETRONAS LOTUS F1 RACING 24 Jarno Trulli 25 Christian Klien ZEPTER STEFAN GRAND PRIX 26 Nelsinho Piquet 27 Milos Pavlovic Share this post Link to post Share on other sites