Has Raikkonen Already Pipped Montoya?

[Danica 0]

Jeje, i didn

[Monty 0]

Jeje, i didn

[kiko01 0]

I would not rule out Red Bull giving her a test drive for merketing purposes within a few years. Perhaps she could buy her way into Jordan/Minardi? Surely there would be a lineup of willing sponsors 

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I do agree and sure that Ecclestone would be delight...

[Danica 0]

I do agree and sure that Ecclestone would be delight...

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Speak of the devil:

Is this Bernie Ecclestone's dream woman?

Some years ago, the Atlas F1 website ran a story called "The Woman of Bernie's Dreams", about a little known 17-year-old girl called Danica Patrick, who had given up the comforts of home in Illinois and was living in Birmingham, England, competing in the British Formula Ford Zetec Championship and doing well. Five years on Patrick is taking the Indianapolis Motor Speedway by storm with Rahal Letterman Racing.

The thing that makes Patrick unusual is that at 16 she went off to Europe, to try to be successful in the tough world of Formula Ford, where the champions of the future are so often seen. She was racing with Haywood Racing, as team mate to Anthony Davidson, and she was pretty impressive. It certainly impressed Bobby Rahal, who was in Britain at the time, running Jaguar Racing.

"It really impressed me that at such a young age she would leave home and go to live in England," Rahal said. "That spoke volumes about her commitment. A lot of young people say they want to be race car drivers, but not many are willing to do the things you have to do."

Rahal, in particular, understood what Patrick was doing. As a youngster he too had lived in Britain when he wanted to be an F1 star.

"It's not easy for an American to live in that society," he says. "Let's face it, motor racing has not been the most open for the female gender and particularly in England," he said. "So all of those things just, in my mind, spoke volumes about her commitment and dedication to what she wanted to achieve."

Patrick's moment of glory came in 2000 when she finished second to Davidson in the Formula Ford Festival, matching the best ever performance by an American in the event. The 2001 and 2002 seasons were less successful but Rahal was keen and planned to put her into Jaguar Racing's Formula 3 programme. Before that could happen, however, Rahal was ousted and the programme was axed. Bobby went back to the United States but later agreed to put Patrick into a Toyota Atlantic car.

"I've seen Danica race and she has the potential to be a big star in motor racing," he said. "I wouldn't be spending this amount of time and money if I didn't think she could make it big. She has the drive and determination to be competitive in the future. We have to give her the equipment and effort to showcase her skills. She knows what is in front of her and I think she is ready for the challenge."

And so it has proved.

She may be back in America but the time in England and visits to the F1 circus in Indianapolis underline that Danica has the ambition to make it in the big time, not just in the United States but also in Formula 1. To achieve that she is going to have to do exceptionally well in the Indy Racing League but she has made a good start and already F1 people are looking across The Pond and wondering if she is good enough to run with the F1 boys. If she is, Danica Patrick could be F1's ticket to success in the United States of America because after years of trying F1 is only just beginning to make an impression in the US. It is well understood that what is needed is an American driver and Scott Speed may be the man who is in line to step up but perhaps Patrick might one day come to F1 by the route used in the past by Jacques Villeneuve, Alez Zanardi, Juan Pablo Montoya and Cristiano da Matta. Success in America does not indicate whether or not you will make it in F1. The machinery is vital but when you are an American woman and can run with the boys in the USA, there are going to be a lot of doors open in F1 circles. And the most important door of all is Bernie Ecclestone's office because if he can, he will fix it for Patrick in F1.

That may be a year or two away but an impressive performance at Indianapolis this year will certainly help that process.

[kiko01 0]

I think i have allready heard something about this girl... Now she

[Danica 0]

I think i have allready heard something about this girl... Now she

[Senna 0]

I would not rule out Red Bull giving her a test drive for merketing purposes within a few years. Perhaps she could buy her way into Jordan/Minardi? Surely there would be a lineup of willing sponsors 

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I

[Senna 0]

After the two test drivers has gained more points than Montoya in their 2 races stint, after his struggling return at Barcellona...what do you think about him?Has Raikkonen already the edge over his teammate at McLaren after just 5 races?

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I think Kimi had the edge over JPM long before Melbourne 05.

[Danica 0]

I

[Senna 0]

Come on Senna, if she was black you would be all over her!

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What? I

[bajo39 0]

What?

[Senna 0]

   

Relative to models and celebrities, she is nothing special but in absolute terms she is impressive... You could say the same of her racing abilities: mediocre amongst professional open-wheel drivers but impressive in absolute terms. The combination of the two is unique and rather special in my mind.

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[bajo39 0]

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If you like women and you also like racing then surely these two together is a package with added value?

[Senna 0]

If you like women and you also like racing then surely these two together is a package with added value?

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I do indeed like women but I don

[nojvnof1 0]

"I

[Shadow 0]

yeah she clearly has got good sense of who to keep as her heroes

but as a driver i am skeptical but she could be good in promotional events now could'nt she but for races i ain't so sure

[Ash 0]

Back to the point: It's too early to judge JPM against KR. And I disagree that Alonso is better that JPM. He has had his fair share of misfortunes, and so has KR. I hope that's all in the past now. I am predicting a Mclaren 1st & 2nd in Monaco.

GO MCLAREN!!!

[Senna 0]

Back to the point: It's too early to judge JPM against KR. And I disagree that Alonso is better that JPM. He has had his fair share of misfortunes, and so has KR. I hope that's all in the past now. I am predicting a Mclaren 1st & 2nd in Monaco.

GO MCLAREN!!!

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JPM is incredibly talented and can make some amazing overtaking manoeuvres but he also makes too many silly mistakes which cost him badly in the races

[Ash 0]

JPM is incredibly talented and can make some amazing overtaking manoeuvres but he also makes too many silly mistakes which cost him badly in the races

[Senna 0]

Let's hope he stops making silly mistakes

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Indeed, if he did he would be mega. He set a faster lap at Barcelona than Kimi by 0.2 sec but he wasn

[bajo39 0]

Indeed, if he did he would be mega.  He set a faster lap at Barcelona than Kimi by 0.2 sec but he wasn

[Senna 0]

Allowing for his understandable lack of concentration in Barcelona, he has performed nearly as well as his teammate over the course of the season.

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JPM

[bajo39 0]

JPM

[Senna 0]

I appreciate the comparison but it is necessary to make it very clear whenever one compares Sato to a legitimate driver that, firstly, he is not a legitimate driver because his continued presence at BAR is surely the result of Honda's desire to have a Japanese driver in the team to further their domestic marketing interests (much the way that Karthikeyan is at Jordan), and secondly, he has always been consistently outperformed by his teammates by a wide margin, destroyed his equipment at a rapid rate and posed a serious safety risk (often overlooked on this forum) to himself and the other drivers, marshalls and spectators attending the various Grand Prix (and support events) over his carreer... Aside from him being leagues below Montoya in every measure of performance.

I am confident that you are well aware of all of this but for the benefit of the forum I must reiterate that your comparison was strictly limitedto their respective driving styles.

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Indeed. Anyone who has been on this site for a considerable period of time will know my opinion of Takuma Sato!

[Shadow 0]

well i would personally rank JPM along with Kimi and FA as WDCs of the next few years. he is a racer's racer, that guy not afraid give MS a taste of his own medicine