Formula One 2005 season thread

[Ignatius]

Jarmo, Skeletor..I see what you are saying, but I still think Montoya looked way too relaxed and calmed when he had to retire while he was leading the race. Yes, McLaren would've added 8 more points had Montoya finished this race, but at this point, I think we all know McLaren will win the constructors title anyway. So, one may think McLaren forced Montoya to retire so people wouldn't speculate (I'm doing that right now...) had Kimi passed Montoya.

On a side note.- Gypsy...are you happy that you are leading now??

[jarmo]

Jarmo, Skeletor..I see what you are saying, but I still think Montoya looked way too relaxed and calmed when he had to retire while he was leading the race. Yes, McLaren would've added 8 more points had Montoya finished this race, but at this point, I think we all know McLaren will win the constructors title anyway. So, one may think McLaren forced Montoya to retire so people wouldn't speculate (I'm doing that right now...) had Kimi passed Montoya.

On a side note.- Gypsy...are you happy that you are leading now??

I think you're reading into it too much, typical GN'R fan. 

 


Kimi was "interviewed" by Finnish tv after he retired in Germany:

Interviewer: You're probably not feeling too happy right now?
Kimi: No


End of interview.


Not all drivers show emotions when they retire. They know it happens. Montoya should know about McLaren's reliability problems by now having watched Kimi's problems....



/jarmo

[GypsySoul]

So, one may think McLaren forced Montoya to retire so people wouldn't speculate (I'm doing that right now...) had Kimi passed Montoya.

If Montoya was able to finish the race, I don't think he would've had a problem admitting that he blocked Schumacher so Kimi could get the top driver points and the team would get those other points.? That's what teamwork is all about.

On a side note.- Gypsy...are you happy that you are leading now??

I'm only tied for the lead.? ? ?But maybe we can have the guy who's tied with me killed off so I can be #1!?

[Ignatius]

I'm only tied for the lead.? ? ?But maybe we can have the guy who's tied with me killed off so I can be #1!?

 

Yeah, maybe a few gypsies would do the job ...

[John Daniels]

So, one may think McLaren forced Montoya to retire so people wouldn't speculate (I'm doing that right now...) had Kimi passed Montoya.

I don't believe that. Montoya has a temper and he would have been furious if that would have been the case and what's the point to get 2 points more to Kimi and loose 8 points. team championchip isn't that sure for Maclaren that they could go "hey..let's give 2 points more to Kimi and make Montoya retire..it's only 8 points loose" I highly doubt that was the case. 

[Pinball Wizard]

MASSA CONFIRMED AS BARRICHELLO'S REPLACEMENT

Last Updated: Tuesday, 02, August, 2005, 16:46
Click to enlarge

Ferrari has confirmed that Sauber driver Felipe Massa will join Michael Schumacher in its 2006 line-up and has announced that Rubens Barrichello will leave the team at the end of the year.

Following intense speculation over the weekend, Ferrari has taken up an option on Massa that dates back to 2001.

"I am very happy and proud to be racing with Ferrari in 2006," Massa told his official website.

"I feel ready for this new challenge, which is the best opportunity of my career.

"I am aware of the responsibility it places on me and I cannot wait to be part of a team like Ferrari, alongside the best driver in the world, Michael Schumacher."

The Brazilian driver, currently in his third season with Sauber, took a year out from racing in 2003 to fulfil the role of test and reserve driver for Ferrari.

He has long been linked with a return to the Scuderia and is managed by sporting director Jean Todt's son, Nicolas.

"I wish to thank Peter Sauber for having had faith in me over these past three years. I will do my very best in the final six races of the season to get the best possible results for his team.

"Maranello has believed in me since 2001, when I had yet to make my Formula 1 debut.

"Now, I am in my third season as a Sauber driver and I can also count on a year's experience as a Ferrari test driver, an experience which helped me to grow a great deal."

http://www.itv-f1.com

[jarmo]

McLaren go for broke after bad breaks

Nicole Hogan
Sunday August 14, 2005
The Observer

Newsletters from the McLaren and Renault teams arrived simultaneously during this three-week break in the grand-prix schedule. The variation in style and content summarised the differing cultures of the championship contenders; McLaren's publication being perfectly bound and immaculate in its adventurous presentation; Renault eschewing the gloss for a simpler, more pragmatic approach. It also summed up the philosophies both teams must adopt in the final third of the season.

Renault's Fernando Alonso leads Kimi Raikkonen by 26 points, which means the McLaren-Mercedes driver must take an average of 4.5 points away from Alonso in each of the remaining six races. It is a tall order, yet not an impossible one given that Raikkonen claimed a brilliantly executed win against the odds in Hungary on a day when Alonso failed to score a single point. Before that Alonso had a mathematical chance of taking the title at the next race in Turkey on Sunday. Given the see-saw battle, it seems likely that the championship could run until the final round in China.

Renault's early momentum with three successive wins for Alonso has been slowed by McLaren getting their act together, a turn of events that has not surprised Pat Symonds, Renault's director of engineering.
"During pre-season testing, we believed that our biggest threat would finally be McLaren and that's effectively how it's turned out," says Symonds. "They had an unlucky run early on but they picked up speed when the championship returned to Europe. They are clearly very quick at the moment. The important thing for Renault is to maintain the advantage we have carved out so far. We need to finish the remaining races in a strong position if possible. At the same time, we mustn't allow chances to slip through our hands by being over-cautious.

"I think there's certainly a case for questioning our tyre choice in Hungary, for example. We never really got the car dialled in and I think that was partly a function of concentrating most of our practice running on the harder tyre."

Alonso ran wide at the last corner of his qualifying lap, a momentary error for which he suffered throughout the entire race. Starting from sixth on the grid, the Spaniard became involved in a first-corner skirmish that removed the Renault's front wing and forced a pit stop. Alonso finished eleventh and was never remotely in contention.

One of Renault's main hopes centres on a continuation of McLaren's appalling reliability and a questionable tactical record that cost at least three wins. A very clever strategy in Hungary may have given Raikkonen a much needed victory and made amends for a management error in Canada but the team from Woking must be concerned about the mechanical failure that robbed them of a one-two finish when Juan Pablo Montoya retired while leading in Hungary. Montoya limped into the pits with a broken driveshaft, a similar but unrelated failure to the one that cost Raikkonen the lead of the San Marino Grand Prix in April. On this occasion, however, Montoya may have contributed to the cause through a display of unforgivable negligence that typifies the fiery Colombian.

While making his way to the front of the grid, with the engine shut off but coasting at 35mph, Montoya rode over a portable generator parked safely within Jenson Button's grid slot. The impact sent the right-front corner of the McLaren MP4-20 into the air before crashing back onto the track and damaging the nose wings and various aerodynamic appendages. Those were the visible signs of such carelessness.

It cannot be proven but there are questions being asked about the effect the unexpected stress placed on the opposite corner of the airborne car, and in particular the one-piece £4,500 driveshaft forged from titanium. If a weakness was created then Montoya continually bashing the left-rear wheel across the high-mounted kerb at Turn 7 will have exacerbated it. "There is absolutely no purpose served in reflecting on what might have been," says McLaren chairman Ron Dennis in his company magazine. "The facts of the matter are that in the MP4-20 we have fielded the most consistently competitive car this season. Our percentage of victories so far, however, reflects the reality that we have failed to maximise its potential, although it doesn't matter whether this state of affairs has been brought about by technical failure (Imola and Hungaroring), driver error (Nurburgring) or other reasons (human error causing the hydraulics failure that cost Raikkonen an easy win at Hockenheim)."

The type of track remaining would tend to favour the competitiveness of the McLaren, but it is too close to call. "It has been reassuring to note," says Symonds, "that we are still strong, even at circuits that aren't necessarily suited to us. Such as Silverstone, for example. I think we will see our two teams playing something of a cat and mouse game all the way through to the end of the season. As a function of the latest developments introduced by each team, and the type of circuit, I believe the edge will switch from one camp to the other."



Just one week to go until the next race.....

A new circuit and hopefully it will have some overtaking possibilities. We don't need more circuits like Monaco and Hungary where overtaking is almost impossible.




/jarmo

[jarmo]

Looks like Williams will be using Cosworth engines next year: http://www.itv-f1.com/News_Article.aspx?PO_ID=33757

They don't seem like good engines at the moment, but next year everybody will use V8s.



/jarmo

[jarmo]

From Thursday's press conference in Turkey:

Q: (Andrea Cremonesi ? La Gazzetta dello Sport) Felipe, you have the same contract as Rubens now? You will be there the second driver for a while?

FM: This is not written in my contract.

RB: In mine, too. (Laughter)


Massa says there's no mention of him being the second driver at Ferrari next year. Rubens had no mention of that in his contract either..... 



/jarmo

[GypsySoul]

My Turkey picks

1. Raikkonen
2. Montoya
3. R. Schumacher
4. Fisichella
5. Alonso
6. M. Schumacher
7. Trulli
8. Barrichello

[jarmo]

Turkish GP:


Graciela's picks:

1. Kimi R?ikk?nen? ? ? ? ?McLaren
2. Fernando Alonso? ? ? ? Renault
3. Juan Pablo Montoya? ? ?McLaren
4. Jarno Trulli? ? ? ? ? ?Toyota
5. Giancarlo Fisichella? ?Renault
6. Ralf Schumacher? ? ? ? Toyota
7. Nick Heidfeld? ? ? ? ? Williams
8. Rubens Barrichello? ? Ferrari


My picks:


1. Juan Pablo Montoya? ? ?McLaren
2. Kimi R?ikk?nen? ? ? ? ?McLaren
3. Fernando Alonso? ? ? ? Renault
4. Ralf Schumacher? ? ? ? Toyota
5. Giancarlo Fisichella? ?Renault
6. Jarno Trulli? ? ? ? ? ?Toyota
7. Nick Heidfeld? ? ? ? ? Williams
8. David Coulthard? ? ? ?Red Bull


What are the odds that two McLarens will finish a race??



/jarmo

[Kiki]

1? Giancarlo Fisichella Renault? ? ? ?
? ? ? ? ? ? ?
2? Fernando Alonso Renault? ? ? ?
? ? ? ? ? ? ?
3? Jarno Trulli Toyota? ?

4? Juan Pablo Montoya McLaren-Mercedes

5? Takuma Sato BAR-Honda

6 Michael Schumacher Ferrari?

7? Rubens Barrichello Ferrari ?
? ? ? ? ? ? ?
8? Nick Heidfeld Williams-BMW? ? ? ?

 

[Pinball Wizard]

2 minutes to go, I still can post my pics for the race!!

1.Kimi Raikkonen
2.alonso
3.montoya
4.Ralf Schumacher
5.Felipe Massa
6.Rubens Barrichello
7.Michael Schumacher
8.Trulli

[Pinball Wizard]

The HTGTH F-1 Fantasy Gran Prix (Turkish GP)

Pinball Wizard --- 3 points
Gypsy Soul --- 2 points
Jarmo --- 1 point
Kiki --- 1 point



The HTGTH F-1 Fantasy League Ranking

Pinball --- 8 points
Gypsy --- 8 points
Ignatius --- 6 points
Jarmo --- 6 points
John Daniels --- 4 points
Kiki --- 4 points
Graciela --- 3 points
Drew --- 0 points


Sorry if any errors were made.

[John Daniels]

fuck, I forgot to put my list on again!

great weekend for Maclaren. What was Montoy thinking when overtaking the Jordan driver? and then two laps to go and he loose the 2# place for Alonso.. well there went the assumptions that Montoy is being told to help Kimi  because I think Montoy is doing everything possible that Kimi wouldn't win the championchip. Alonso did a great job as well..

[jarmo]

great weekend for Maclaren. What was Montoy thinking when overtaking the Jordan driver? and then two laps to go and he loose the 2# place for Alonso.. well there went the assumptions that Montoy is being told to help Kimi  because I think Montoy is doing everything possible that Kimi wouldn't win the championchip. Alonso did a great job as well..

There seems to be a curse. McLaren isn't supposed to win a race with two drivers taking the first two positions.... 



/jarmo

The HTGTH F-1 Fantasy Gran Prix (Turkish GP)

Pinball Wizard --- 3 points
Gypsy Soul --- 2 points
Jarmo --- 1 point
Kiki --- 1 point



The HTGTH F-1 Fantasy League Ranking

Pinball --- 8 points
Gypsy --- 8 points
Ignatius --- 6 points
Jarmo --- 6 points
John Daniels --- 4 points
Kiki --- 4 points
Graciela --- 3 points
Drew --- 0 points


Sorry if any errors were made.

Graciela got three points for picking the first three. I posted her list since she didn't have Internet access.....


The HTGTH F-1 Fantasy Gran Prix (Turkish GP)

Pinball Wizard --- 3 points
Graciela --- 3 points
Gypsy Soul --- 2 points
Jarmo --- 1 point
Kiki --- 1 point



The HTGTH F-1 Fantasy League Ranking [After Turkish GP]

Pinball --- 8 points
Gypsy --- 8 points
Ignatius --- 6 points
Jarmo --- 6 points
Graciela --- 6 points
John Daniels --- 4 points
Kiki --- 4 points
Drew --- 0 points


/jarmo

[Pinball Wizard]

great weekend for Maclaren. What was Montoy thinking when overtaking the Jordan driver? and then two laps to go and he loose the 2# place for Alonso.. well there went the assumptions that Montoy is being told to help Kimi  because I think Montoy is doing everything possible that Kimi wouldn't win the championchip. Alonso did a great job as well..

There seems to be a curse. McLaren isn't supposed to win a race with two drivers taking the first two positions.... 



/jarmo

The HTGTH F-1 Fantasy Gran Prix (Turkish GP)

Pinball Wizard --- 3 points
Gypsy Soul --- 2 points
Jarmo --- 1 point
Kiki --- 1 point



The HTGTH F-1 Fantasy League Ranking

Pinball --- 8 points
Gypsy --- 8 points
Ignatius --- 6 points
Jarmo --- 6 points
John Daniels --- 4 points
Kiki --- 4 points
Graciela --- 3 points
Drew --- 0 points


Sorry if any errors were made.

Graciela got three points for picking the first three. I posted her list since she didn't have Internet access.....


The HTGTH F-1 Fantasy Gran Prix (Turkish GP)

Pinball Wizard --- 3 points
Graciela --- 3 points
Gypsy Soul --- 2 points
Jarmo --- 1 point
Kiki --- 1 point



The HTGTH F-1 Fantasy League Ranking [After Turkish GP]

Pinball --- 8 points
Gypsy --- 8 points
Ignatius --- 6 points
Jarmo --- 6 points
Graciela --- 6 points
John Daniels --- 4 points
Kiki --- 4 points
Drew --- 0 points


/jarmo

Oops, sorry! I didn't saw her picks! My mistake!

[Ignatius]

Damn it! I was out of town this weekend, forgot to vote...oh well..

I see Graciela and Pinball collected 3 points!

I'll take the lead again soon though 

[jarmo]

Damn it! I was out of town this weekend, forgot to vote...oh well..

Your priorities aren't right. 


Did you see the race?




/jarmo

[Ignatius]

Your priorities aren't right.?

hahaha I know, I know..

Did you see the race?

I saw the highlights and read the papers this morning...it looks like kimi had another easy win. Built a lead from lap 1 and then pretty much controled the race from tham point onwards.

I didn't see the qualifying either, but even Alonso carrying lighter fuel loads than Kimi finished couldn't get the pole. Mclaren is way ahead of any team right now, even Reanult seems to be miles away.

Not taking anything away from my compatriot, but the general feeling I have is that Kimi has been more dominant than Alonso throughout the year. But then again, Alonso really took advantage of Reanult's edge over the other teams earlier in the season.