Formula One Discussion (that's F1 for you retards)

[The Dude]

http://www.f1fanatic.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2008/01/mclaren2008_hami_kova_1024_2.jpg

[}{arlequin]

fuckin' flavio got pwnd

http://formula-one.speedtv.com/article/f1-briatore-break-hits-sandy-snag-in-sardinia/

Briatore Break Hits Sandy Snag in Sardinia

Flavio Briatore's August break hit a snag when the Renault formula one boss tried to power ashore from his luxury yacht.

The Italian newspaper La Stampa reports that the 58-year-old, his new wife and a celebrity entourage were pelted with water and sand by unhappy bathers when they tried to land on the crowded Capriccioli beach in Sardinia.

"The rebellion against those who show off their money and power is growing," the publication said.

Briatore was in town not only to enjoy the current three-week break between grands prix and testing, but to inaugurate a new restaurant and check on his 'Billionaire' nightclub.

But the manner in which they sped ashore enraged beachgoers and parents, while "terrorized children wailed between the waves", La Stampa claimed.

The irate swimmers yelled "Shame!", "Louts!" and "Go home!", and a mob even tried to push one of the Briatore dinghies back out to sea.

Mothers, meanwhile, hurled seawater from their children's buckets, and piles of wet sand were thrown, the newspaper also said.

Briatore reacted in Corriere della Sera: "We are nice people and we get rewarded like this.

"I will close down everything," he threatened. "I pay taxes, this is my right."

[TylerDurden]

it's not his right, however, to be a public nuisance. there are plenty of pricks on this planet who pay taxes and think it's their owned right to be fucks. apparently briatore, in between being an asshole and sucking alonso's cock, thinks respect is given before it's earned.

it's not.

[}{arlequin]

i know it's outdated but it's funny, and as long as there's some relevance to f1, it'll be in here....


http://i37.tinypic.com/2ym80g6.jpg

[TylerDurden]

lulz... jpm is a fucking tool shed. he should feel lucky he's even taken seriously in competitive motor sport after his erratic driving (he's got some talent, don't get me wrong) in f1 and then his jump to nascrap.

[dick_darlington]

i know it's outdated but it's funny, and as long as there's some relevance to f1, it'll be in here....


http://i37.tinypic.com/2ym80g6.jpg
OMG! healthy food!

[}{arlequin]

more jpm goodness. what's he think of kimmy?


EQeZ4hSVGN8

[dick_darlington]

sorry to one up you but i found an 'unreleased' version of that!

sQGl-q36sVk

[Mulder]

What you guys think of KERS?

[}{arlequin]

who kers?




(i'll be here all week. thanks)

[Mulder]

This is KERS :)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regenerative_brake

[wlack]

waste of time - large spread of greenwash - if they have to bow to ecofascist agenda issue teams with a maximum amount of fuel for a race and reduce it by 5% a year

[chaos2015]

i hope hamilton doesnt win

[TylerDurden]

waste of time - large spread of greenwash - if they have to bow to ecofascist agenda issue teams with a maximum amount of fuel for a race and reduce it by 5% a year

i disagree. formula 1 is supposed to be the forefront of automotive technology. new discoveries here are supposed to trickle down into the mass-produced road-going vehicles we drive next to every day. advancing technologies which reduce reliance on oil-based fuels is a very worthy cause. the part that is most troubling is why formula 1 hadn't mandated this already. they're just now waking up to the fact that they're not as relevant as they used to be. at least they're taking steps to correct it.

[A-Money]

i disagree. formula 1 is supposed to be the forefront of automotive technology. new discoveries here are supposed to trickle down into the mass-produced road-going vehicles we drive next to every day. advancing technologies which reduce reliance on oil-based fuels is a very worthy cause. the part that is most troubling is why formula 1 hadn't mandated this already. they're just now waking up to the fact that they're not as relevant as they used to be. at least they're taking steps to correct it.

Totally agree. F1 should be at the forefront of technology and is. Unfortunately, crap like NASCAR has distracted the masses from real racing and the inovations that come with it.

[dick_darlington]

i hope hamilton doesnt win
ditto

[Jurassic Pork]

can't wait for Valencia, street racing shud create some big mistakes

[TylerDurden]

i'm starting to get the feeling that raikkonnen could probably care less anymore. very sad. it was nice to see hamilton not pull out his usual bullshit last-second fastlaps. massa drove a brilliant quali, and while he's hot this year he'll never achieve the impact of raikkonnen or hamilton because he can't stay consistent throughout a race... he's a one-lap pony.

[storm]

anyone know more about KERS in F1 - e.g. are teams using different types? Are there reg's.

Hard to find info even on the official website.

[Creepnation]

F1 has been a mystery to me this season since losing Speedvision. Sucks.

[TylerDurden]

anyone know more about KERS in F1 - e.g. are teams using different types? Are there reg's.

Hard to find info even on the official website.

before i touch on the kers regulations i need to point out that you have one post thus far, sir, and it ain't where it's supposed to be nor the correct topic. in short, get your ass back across eight mile, b-rabbit... you have an intro thread to do.

that said it's always been formula 1's policy to invite innovation. there is a standing rule that says that teams may introduce whatever technology they wish. if it works then it's adopted by the other teams for the following year. if it doesn't, it's banned and never allowed again (a perfect point here would be the rear fin extensions that all the teams are sporting at the moment). with that in mind, kers doesn't have any etched-in-stone regulations yet... at least not the kind that you're looking for. wait until the next season is over, then we'll know what they WON'T be using.

[three50zoom]

F1 Rocks!

[}{arlequin]

i disagree. formula 1 is supposed to be the forefront of automotive technology. new discoveries here are supposed to trickle down into the mass-produced road-going vehicles we drive next to every day. advancing technologies which reduce reliance on oil-based fuels is a very worthy cause. the part that is most troubling is why formula 1 hadn't mandated this already. they're just now waking up to the fact that they're not as relevant as they used to be. at least they're taking steps to correct it.
+1

it shouldn't be thought of as a way to impede the cars but rather as throwing an additional challenge at the engineers. the cars will still work like cars normally do, but now they will have an additional component. a puzzle of sorts in how, and what, should be integrated to improve, or at least NOT impede, the current performance levels.

regenerative brakes, which may feed additional electric(?) boost to the cars' power would be trully impressive. can a car's wheel be made into an electric motor of sorts? mount a magnet on the wheel as well as caliper and see if you can generate electricity? who knows

don't forget the vtec that's been in every honda for the last 15+ years has come from f1, yet by now it's very common technology. senna/honda/mclaren developed this championship winning formula and now it's in almost every civic! let's hope the same thing happens w/ kers.

[}{arlequin]

i love the round patch on his suit. try wearing that in today's racing world. you'd either gain some crazy sponsors or lose your current ones, and your contract, very quickly


http://i36.tinypic.com/2hgcn5i.jpg

[}{arlequin]

looking for a pic of kimi recently, it just hit me... spanky looks a bit like him, especially in the drunk pics

[galfibeg]

Kimi actually entered a snowmobile race as James Hunt. They have lived very similar lifestyles

[Archangel]

Wow, could the FIA officials be any more on Ferrari's dick? Yeah, let's have a red car win at all costs. 2 penalties for McLaren in one race, one of them costing us eight fucking points in the championship race: If anybody says that the cunts aren't totally biased towards red, they should fucking kill themselves. Lewis didn't use a short cut; he avoided a collision, and got BEHIND Kimi's car after cutting, denying his own advantage. He didn't get an unfair advantage because Kimi fucking crashed his car.

Typical fucking Italians. If they can't win honestly, they turn to shady-ass dealings. Same as when they had Frings suspended for the '06 semis.

This is fucking bullshit. I'm waiting for them to find a way to award 2nd place to Kimi at this point. Mosley and Ecclestone can go suck a dick. Or choke on the $150 million they stole from us. Biased corrupt fucking faggots.

[Archangel]

So let me get this right, Kimi can crash for no reason into a guy that's ahead of him, killing Sutil's hopes for 4th place, and NOBODY SAYS A FUCKING THING, but when Lewis AVOIDS Kimi's car in that chicane, and gets behind him to AVOID gaining an unfair advantage, that is something worthy of a penalty that might cost him the title?

You know, I don't mind being lied to. I don't want to know that the Red Car Rule is true.

But don't make it blatant enough to insult my fucking intelligence.

[Evil]

This sport is basically just a farce.

I like to know who has won straight after an event has finished, hot 2 hours afterwards. Because some faceless nobodies who have most likely never participated decide to change the result due to pressure.

This is one of the reasons I do not want video replay in football.

[Duncndisorderly]

I am not pleased with ferrari, they are cunts

[Fuh Q]

It's easy to blame things other then the driver but this time I'm totally in Lewis' corner. F1 is a joke right now, I'm sick of this shit, why can't they just race, collect the points in the order they finish and move on? Massa will win the championship this year, not because of his race day performances (though he is a good driver), but because of crap like this.

[}{arlequin]

hahaha i was waiting for this to come up... to add a little more to the fire, an argument could made that few laps earlier kimi passed under yellow too (when rossberg went off), but that's a bit of a stretch

truth be told, it's been a bit of a dirty little secret that formula 1 racing IS ALL ABOUT FERRARI. like them or not, if they aren't now, they certainly have been a pillar of f1. even back when they sucked. this is not to say that what is happening is right, but if you ever remember a season wrapping up WITHOUT some kind of controversy, you let me know.

ferrari has been in this sport since day one. and they are the only manufacturer still doing it, continuously, since the 50's. or even earlier but i'm too lazy to check. and in the past, teams (read: manufacturers) have always entered competition to compete against ferrari. they didn't enter to beat honda. nor williams. nor anyone else. they wanted to claim that they.beat.ferrari. never mind the fact that they sucked for a large part of the 80'-90's. they still are viewed as the centerpiece of the sport. same way the monaco race is viewed.

i'm not saying it is fair that they are given the advantage, but if there is something like that going on behind the scenes, this is most likely the reason why. and also b/c bernie and co. are all idiots. (though not from a financial standpoint).

i remember reading at one point someone's opinion that if ferrari pulled out of the sport, it would collapse. maybe in the late 80's early 90's that was the case, but i don't think it would happen now. either way, they are considered 'special' and that's that.

back to the current times...

i am not a ferrari fan. at all. love the street cars, could care less about the team. in general, i cheer for drivers so i don't care what car they're in. i enjoy kimi's career, but i'm also glad hamilton is around to challenge him.

what i really wished we got to see is the last 3-4 laps extended into the entire race. that was some really exciting driving going on, not to mention pushing the limits (as could be seen by their off's) by both drivers.

if the season continues in a manner in which it ended at spa, it's gonna be a lot of fun for the specatators. here's to hoping no more bullshit comes up, but that's doubtful

[}{arlequin]

btw,
in case you want to contribute, there is an online petition to the FIA(t) to fix the results of the race. it's over 20k sigs so far:
http://www.petitiononline.com/belgp08/petition.html

[TylerDurden]

the penalty was imposed like this... i'm not saying that i necessarily agree with it, but here's essentially what happened:

- lewis attempts a corner along side kimi.
- kimi squeezes him a bit too much.
- lewis cuts the corner.
- kimi passes because lewis lets off for a split second.
- lewis passes kimi almost immediately after.

the argument of the stewards is that it should not have been possible for lewis to immediately re-pass kimi had he actually truly given the position back after cutting the corner. they ruled that lewis gained an unfair advantage. so yes, while lewis did give the position back, no it (the penalty) was not unwarranted because he technically did gain an advantage in that he still had the momentum gained from cutting the corner which allowed him to immediately pass kimi.

they deemed that the infraction wasn't bad enough to a) take away a set number of places from the current race, b) penalize him on the starting grid at the next race, or c) a combo of both. instead, they gave him a drive-through penalty. since the race was over, however, they had to assign a time value to it which turned out to be 25 seconds.

is it strange? sure. is it showing favoritism to ferrari? no. technically, mc-merc should be expecting this shit after their scandalous behavior of last year (in which i argued that the drivers could have been stripped of their points and mc-merc could have been DQ'd this entire season but weren't). actually, i'll go ahead and say that it's definitely within the rules that this happened.

what's bullshit is ron dennis conferring with charlie whiting, and then with his verbal confidence in hand they take it to the stewards to appeal it.

if you want to see favoritism we'll see if the fia allows the appeal to be heard, though i expect ferrari will argue against the appeal: the current regulations state that drive-through penalties cannot be appealed.

[}{arlequin]

in car footage from the incident(s), from both cars

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x6ovii_wwwformulamagcom-hamiltonkimi_sport

[Archangel]

they deemed that the infraction wasn't bad enough to a) take away a set number of places from the current race, b) penalize him on the starting grid at the next race, or c) a combo of both. instead, they gave him a drive-through penalty. since the race was over, however, they had to assign a time value to it which turned out to be 25 seconds.

And therein lies the bullshit. After Kimi crashed, Lewis basically idled his car to the finish line, allowing Massa, Heidfeld and them to get far closer, since he didn't need to drive quickly to win, and preferred to risk nothing. I don't know how far he was ahead when he and Kimi duelled, but I'm pretty sure that if he hadn't been sure of victory and pressed ahead despite the weather, he would have been more than 25 seconds ahead of at least Heidfeld.

[Angry Ass Messican Dude]

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y262/evilguinness/Picture5.png

[Archangel]

Uncanny.

[Angry Ass Messican Dude]

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y262/evilguinness/Picture3.png

[Archangel]

Spy Kids?

[TylerDurden]

And therein lies the bullshit. After Kimi crashed, Lewis basically idled his car to the finish line, allowing Massa, Heidfeld and them to get far closer, since he didn't need to drive quickly to win, and preferred to risk nothing. I don't know how far he was ahead when he and Kimi duelled, but I'm pretty sure that if he hadn't been sure of victory and pressed ahead despite the weather, he would have been more than 25 seconds ahead of at least Heidfeld.

i would tend to agree with you, although i think lewis idled home more for the sake of his tires than anything else. lewis is still learning which fights to pick and which ones to leave well enough alone. typically, raikkonen baits him and sets him up for rookie failure. this time, however, it appears the rook stuck it to the veteran. lewis is brilliant in the rain, but a duel between drivers of that caliber had to have put a little wear into that rubber. i would stop short, however, in turning from some of the truth of the matter: both massa and heidfeld drove brilliantly in the rain. neither of them are particularly noteworthy in the wet, although heidfeld usually shines whereas massa usually fails... epically.

i can't say i disagree with a penalty. i'm trying to think of a pitstop that's lasted 25 seconds... and i can't. they gave lewis a drive-through... i can see 15 - 20 seconds, but 25?

[syd2o2]

25 seconds is a standard penalty. As with any administrative penalty, stewards are going to assign a maximum potential loss, not some average time.

[}{arlequin]

speaking of good rain duels, here's a recent one of massa v. kubica

Z5WsM8MRvHk

[Nosebuckle]

Just finished watching the race on Speed, good fucking stuff. Nice to see Kimi pay the fiddler...right into the wall.

[TylerDurden]

speaking of good rain duels, here's a recent one of massa v. kubica

i lulz'd watching this. good battle, a lot of tit for tat, especially considering how badly massa sucks in the rain

[}{arlequin]

riccardo patrese takes his wife around jerez. wonder if she makes that much noise in bed as well...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oIhGJyLR6TI


oIhGJyLR6TI

[fuldstændigamok]

OK, I only have 1 question. WTF?????

[dick_darlington]

i already know the race results, but is qualifying worth downloading? i havent seen it yet, and this motorsports torrent site that i frequent has a dvd of it with 2 camera angles and 5 audio tracks for it.

[TylerDurden]

if you already know the race results, don't bother. it was exciting to witness history, though. nice to see someone other than ferrari or mclaren stand at the top of the podium. i think vettel's a smart, solid kid with a great future ahead of him. look for the engine roles to switch next year along with vettel (str's ferrari engines into red bull's, and red bull's renault engines into the strs).

i'd like to raise the bullshit flag on the fia even giving consideration to hearing the appeal from mclaren over hamilton's fuckup. it's a penalty in lieu of a drive-through which can't be contested! who's playing the fucking favorites now? initially, i had only seen the in-car view from kimi's ferrari, but after they showed clips of the incident during the race at monza from an aerial view i have to say... hamilton fucked up. he did not correctly return his position to kimi.

pre-monza charlie whiting told the drivers at the driver's meeting that in order for a proper return of position when gained unfairly it should last through an entire corner. example: at corner one kubica cuts inside too much and passes heidfeld unfairly. he has to stay behind heidfeld until after corner two. then he's free to pass. whether this was outlined prior to lewis's incident i dunno. the fact remains: hamilton did not concede his position correctly.

with four races remaining kimi has finally said that it's possible massa may become the #1 driver in the coming races. after having just signed a two-year extension with ferrari (stick that in your pipe and smoke it, failonso), i have no doubt the finn will play nice and support the team should he be called upon to do so.

[Archangel]

Nice, now even Italian newspapers are writing that the FIA has become a fucking joke. Way to go.

[}{arlequin]

The technicalities in putting on F1 's first night race , runs deep as explained by F1 technical :

Full throttle under floodlights

The first ever night Grand Prix will be held at the all-new street circuit of Singapore. In order to organise such a special event, a state-of-the-art lighting system is an absolute necessity.

The system will feature a total of 1600 lighting projectors attached to aluminium trusses, which will be suspended 10 metres above the track on vertical steel pylons which will be mounted on prefabricated concrete blocks, placed behind the barriers at intervals of 32m.

This will involve a total of 240 steel pylons and a mind boggling 108,423m of cables. The system will be powered by 12 twin-power generators, each located in a sound-proof container. Should one of the generators fail, the other generators will provide a back-up power by default. Each generator will also have its own engineer on standby whenever they are in operation. The resulting light will be four times brighter than the lighting in a normal sports arena.

The lights will be situated on only one side of the street circuit. Colin Syn, the deputy chairman of the Singapore GP explained: “This is to prevent the drivers from being disorientated in cases of spinning." Mr. Syn also declared that the run-off areas will be brighter than the actual track.

http://i36.tinypic.com/2vv88rp.jpg

http://i33.tinypic.com/rco560.jpg

http://i35.tinypic.com/a9n3p3.jpg

http://i36.tinypic.com/flijo0.jpg


prognosis states that it'll be a wet race, so ferrari are gonna suck... unless they qualify up front. no telling how much passing can be done, esp since it's a street circuit

[dick_darlington]

ahhh another abortion of a race track made by hermann tilke

[Jurassic Pork]

ferrari fucked that one up big time, tho shame Lewis cudnt get the win

on a slight off topic, Visually that race was awesome, the cars look so much better at night under light

[Archangel]

You know what I'd like to call this race?


"Karma Is a Bitch, Ain't It, Felipe."

[Archangel]

Kimi crashing was the icing on the cake, though.

[dick_darlington]

this is the only time massa screwed up, and it wasn't his fault!!!

rule 16.3 is a piece of shit. it should be stricken for the record. nico could have won the damn thing if it wasn't for that!

[Archangel]

When Massa started pulling away after the start, I told the missus, "only a miracle can save us now, or we'll have to count on the Ferrari mechanics, Italians being Italians".


I'm a fucking prophet, me. I was laughing my arse off when Massa pulled away with the hose attached.

It could have been far less funny, though. Did you see the stream of fuel that went splashing over everything? With all those cars in the pit lane, all those incandescent engines and brake pads...
Shit could've gotten ugly, flame-retardant overalls notwithstanding.

[dick_darlington]

yeah. my dad saw that too, he was laughing his ass off. he was thinking, are these ferrari mechanics retarded?

[Archangel]

Remember the time they forgot a tyre at a pit stop?


Hilarity all around.

[}{arlequin]

2009 aero package (minus the dorsal fin on the air intake)

i like the cleaner, protrusion-free look of the chassis but the rear wing looks like an abortion


http://img233.imageshack.us/img233/2024/f2009visualxh4.jpg

http://images.itv-f1.com/ImageLibrary/50105_2.jpg
http://images.itv-f1.com/ImageLibrary/50107_2.jpg

[}{arlequin]

I was laughing my arse off when Massa pulled away with the hose attached.
for posterity. and hilarity.


http://i34.tinypic.com/312jzpj.jpg

[Archangel]

Av'd.

[dick_darlington]

i got a gif of albers running away with a hose at magny cours a few years back, ill try to find that.

[}{arlequin]

thanks. good pics

[dick_darlington]

i got a gif of albers running away with a hose at magny cours a few years back, ill try to find that.
http://i37.tinypic.com/2gvmnnk.jpg

http://i33.tinypic.com/2i2smc.gif

[TylerDurden]

i enjoyed watching the race. to be honest i feel a bit bad for felipe, but in all honesty shit happens. it is what it is. it's time for kimi to step up and become massa's jock strap for this wdc, because felipe is going to need some support. hopefully the iceman can provide better support than he can winning performance, else felipe's in this by himself.

i'm becoming less a fan of lewis as time goes on, so i can't really remark on his points take-home. i am rather thrilled, however, that a) lewis didn't win and alonso did, and b) that bmw have signed nick/robert for 2009 instead of giving it to that spanish dickalope.

[wacker]

F1 took Montreal off the calender for this year, someone car to explain to me why?

[Archangel]

They didn't suck Bernie's dick enough.



Probably wasn't profitable enough anymore.

[}{arlequin]

w/o a u.s. gp on the calendar it isn't worth it anymore for them to go to north america? but i agree w/ the dick sucking theory more. after all, there used to be a canadian gp long before the (new) u.s. gp made the schedule.

[wacker]

Maybe a Nazi themed sex party would change someones mind?

[dick_darlington]

w/o a u.s. gp on the calendar it isn't worth it anymore for them to go to north america? but i agree w/ the dick sucking theory more. after all, there used to be a canadian gp long before the (new) u.s. gp made the schedule.
i thought all drivers and teams love canada. i'd kill to go to the canadian gp. i hear its party city in montreal that whole week!

tony george was sucking too much cock in the irl, and didn't focus on bernie enough.

[TylerDurden]

the fact of the matter for the usgp is that tony didn't throw enough money at bernie.

for the canadian gp, there are a few possible reasons:
- cost of renovating the aging track (since bernie has to have the newest and best of everything; this happened to another track recently and bernie was threatning to do it to silverstone late last year)
- they added abu dhabi (would have been 19 races; now its 18) for next year
- bernie's still working on a 20-race calendar
- canada and its people fucking blow
- bernie fucking blows

i would have liked to have gone. i don't see this sticking, though. bernie could no longer claim to have a race on every continent, which is part of f1's world appeal.

[}{arlequin]

FUCK YEAH KUBICA!!!!!!

from p6 at quali, to p1 in t1!


live, 7 laps in...

[Archangel]

So Lewis swerves to avoid a collision and gets a penalty that costs him a shitload of points, while Massa RAMS his direct competitor and profits.

Now everybody knows that there's a Ferrari bias in F1, but this is fucking ridiculous. McLaren should leave F1 and open their own series, because others would follow. Let Mosley watch his beloved Ferraris go around the track by themselves. It's a fucking farce.


I am fucking disgusted at this shit, and actually ashamed of Italy.

[Archangel]

Seriously, Ferrari fans, go fuck yourselves. Rooting for those faggots is like rooting for the house in Vegas - WHEN THE HOUSE IS CHEATING.

[fuldstændigamok]

Who cares? Renault won. Again.

[Evil]

The cocky Asturiano (who maybe a dickhead, but still the best driver) In a piece of trash Frog car won again.

[TylerDurden]

So Lewis swerves to avoid a collision and gets a penalty that costs him a shitload of points, while Massa RAMS his direct competitor and profits.

Now everybody knows that there's a Ferrari bias in F1, but this is fucking ridiculous. McLaren should leave F1 and open their own series, because others would follow. Let Mosley watch his beloved Ferraris go around the track by themselves. It's a fucking farce.


I am fucking disgusted at this shit, and actually ashamed of Italy.

as much as we normally agree (or in some cases agree to disagree) i'm going to have to raise the flag on this one. enough penalties were handed out all around (lewis, massa, and bourdais) that this argument shouldn't even be an issue in japan.

if mclaren left, no one would follow. i'll agree that ferrari draws crowds and it would be stupid for the fia to pretend that they didn't, but that's one of the very reasons why no one, not even mclaren, would dare leave. but i can see where it would be easy for bernie to slip in some favoritism.

Speaking to reporters, Hamilton admitted he had been at fault at the start. Coupled with retirement for Kovalainen after suspected engine problems, it meant McLaren failed to score for only the second time this season, handing the constructors’ championship lead back to Ferrari - who saw Raikkonen recover to come home third - and allowing third-placed BMW Sauber to close to within eight points.

for those keeping score kimi needed a second-place or better finish at japan to still have a chance at the championship (and that's assuming lewis didn't finish in the points, which he didn't). his third-place finish means that he's mathematically eliminated from winning the 2008 wdc. with lewis's current 84-point haul kimi would only achieve 83 by winning the last two and lewis failing out. so kimi is eliminated.

kubica and massa are currently the only two that can challenge hamilton. it's now up to heidfeld and raikkonen, respectively, to become their personal jock straps and step-up the teamwork. the final two races are going to be very exciting as it's getting a little crowded at the top.

in the constructors...
- ferrari in first
- mclaren 7 points behind
- bmw 7 points behind mclaren, 14 points behind ferrari

in the drivers...
- lewis in first
- massa 5 points behind
- kubica 7 points behind massa, 12 points behind lewis

i'd like to see bmw win 2nd in the constructors on merit alone this year (instead of being handed it after mclaren's failocaust). i don't think kubica has it in him yet... i think he needs another year of seasoning before he's ready to take that mantle, but i think he's good enough to be a major pain in lewis/felipe's ass.

these last two races are going to be exciting indeed.

[Archangel]

Lewis messed up a start. Massa rammed his direct competitor. Both got the same penalty. You're honestly telling me that's fair?

There were days when people got disqualified for ramming someone in direct competition for the championship in the final races. And if McLaren left, Williams and BMW would probably leave, as well.

[}{arlequin]

they're not short of attachments
-David Hobbs commentating on kimi and kubica going wheel to wheel

beautiful start by kubica, and masterful defense


massa should be given a severe penalty for punting hamilton like that. lewis clearly had the corner and there wasn't anything to be accomplished diving into a nonexistent gap



...boy are renault's uniforms ugly

[}{arlequin]

There were days when people got disqualified for ramming someone in direct competition for the championship in the final races.
shumacher's first championship was clenched as a result of crashing into damon and taking himself out as well. whatever the penalty that was (or was not) administered, it didn't change the result.

seems the only way to remedy this would be to take away points

[Archangel]

What pisses me off is how blatant this is. I mean, one would think that they would have learned after the outcry folowing those ridiculous 25 seconds Lewis got. Hell, even the Italian press, usually firmly attached to Ferrari's cock, called that a farce. This would have been the FIA's shot at redemption, and they threw it in our faces.

Can Ferrari fans even rejoice at their wins anymore, knowing that they're bought and paid for?

Seriously, Italians should be barred from sports. The worst of the people comes out - arrogance, corruption, and general womanishness.

[TylerDurden]

fuckin' alonso... he's starting to turn my frown upside down. seems like everywhere i look these days is a confident yet humble fernando racing like a goddamn champ and being a good sport. my guess is that this year's renault team really humbled him, and he now sees what it's like to be back at familiar territory, but also unfamiliar in that he's no longer on top. he actually has to win races on merit as opposed to being in a top-rated car. if he keeps this selflessness up i may have to scratch him off my death wishlist and admit that i might enjoy him behind the wheel of a bmw, though i don't want to get too ahead of myself.

the latest from fernando alonso, with regards to this weekend's chinese gp and the possibility of hamilton clinching the championship there.

First of all we need to have a competitive, hard car here in Shanghai and Brazil to be fighting with McLaren and Ferrari. If we do that and Felipe wins the race and I can be second or third I will be happy to help Felipe to take as many points as possible and this is the only approach.

fernando on friend and bmw-sauber driver robert kubica:
My best relationship for example is with Robert. I would like to see him winning the championship but I know this is quite difficult because I think the performance etc it will be difficult to recover 12 points. I will do my own race but after all, when you finish the race and see the results, you prefer some drivers to win or some teams to win compared to others.

a fernando bullshit-to-truth conversion:
I'm not gonna lie: [Lewis] Hamilton's a fucking dickalope grazing at the hardening cock of Formula One. In lieu of him having a pre-race cock-gobbling accident I'll do what I can to ensure that Felipe [Massa] or, better yet, Robert [Kubica] take the checkered. I'm not saying I'm going to cheat or anything, but if it means I have to t-bone that wannabe Tiger in the pits with some gangsta' below-the-belt shit... believe that shit'll be happenin'. I hate to flex on the little bitch, but check it: fuck McLaren and fuck that Webster-lookin' motherfucker Lewis Hamilton.

asked to comment on fernando's open support of his rival, lewis had this to say:
Honestly, I don’t have an opinion on it. I focus on my job and that’s the most important thing. I think we can be competitive this weekend and challenge for points and try to win. What the others do is none of my business.

translated:
I'm a bitch and I would gladly take Fernando's kielbasa to the fuckin' base.

with two races remaining, lewis can clinch at china in one of three ways...
- lewis wins with felipe 5th or lower
- lewis 2nd with felipe 7th or lower
- lewis 3rd with felipe out of the points

all i know is that lewis better win, because massa's been pretty fucking consistent lately and if you're lewis you don't want this shit going to brazil. you may as well hand that victory straight to massa. he fucking dominates his home grand prix like no other.

[Archangel]

We'll see who laughs last in a few days.

[}{arlequin]

it may all be over in t1. you can never predict what will happen at the start. even drivers that aren't in the running may affect things, whether they like it or not.

[TylerDurden]

it may all be over in t1. you can never predict what will happen at the start. even drivers that aren't in the running may affect things, whether they like it or not.

quoted for truth.

it's pretty much a guarantee that there's going to be nothing simple about this race. coulthard may have a proper mid-life crisis and actually try, but take out both hamilton and massa in the process. heidfeld, in his attempt to be robert's jock strap, could just toss the salads of both massa/hammy's cars and then where would we be? or hamilton could put on his captain choke costume and pull a hamilt... heh... i mean he could put in a repeat performance. or we could see some more horseshit from last weekend and they take each other out of the race, fist fight on the track before ultimately taking it back to the trailers for some... uh... tech inspection. with a lot on the line, anything's possible.

i personally could give a fuck whether hammy wins or not. i almost wish he would just so all the conspiracy theorists would shut the fuck up about the fia favoring ferrari (i still love you, tho, arch <3) because if massa wins everyone's going to say it was rigged when honestly massa deserves it. or better yet... kubica slaps both them bitches up.

[}{arlequin]

as long as the real race doesn't actually happen in qualifying, it'll be a good one

[TylerDurden]

as long as the real race doesn't actually happen in qualifying, it'll be a good one

prediction: hamilton takes pole, chokes mid-race and places out of the points. kubica lands a podium finish, while massa gets caught up in traffic (or on the wet, where his chances of failocausting increase) but still finishes 5th. thus we go into brazil with a ridiculously close points race.

[Archangel]

Or, Hamilton wins.

[TylerDurden]

Or, Hamilton wins.

at this point, kubica has become my favorite.

why?

if you want to be technical about it neither massa or hamilton deserve to win this championship, if you're judging sportsman-like conduct. kubica is the only one of the three that hasn't pulled some sort of controversial dick move. the other two have pulled them in ridiculous numbers.

and with the argument of ferrari-favoritism or mclaren being a whiny bunch of bitches, i say fuck 'em both and bmw pulls the trump card at the end of the day. it will, after all, be a taste of what's to come next year.

[Archangel]

Yeah, but look who's on pole.


Not the Pole.

[Fuh Q]

I dont think Lewis will make it past the first corner. Raikonnen will probably be in his ass again (no homo), and instead of just letting him pass, he's gonna do something stupid, and get himself penalised, or take himself out of the race. I think he's a brilliant driver, with lots of talent, but he lacks common sense. Its gonna go to the wire, and my money is on Massa to rape at his home gp and take the title.

[Evil]

Brazil have 5 world cups, I would be happy never to see that nation win anything again in any sport.

[dick_darlington]

anyone know why bob varsha isn't doing the race this weekend?

[Archangel]

Haug said that they wouldn't even protest the fact that Kimi let Massa pass, which, as far as I know, is forbidden.

It's a sad fucking thing that one team is so blatantly allowed to be above the rules that the others don't even bother to lodge a protest when they break them.


Seriously, at this point, it's not even about Lewis winning anymore: I just want to see those arrogant cheating Guido slimeball fucks humiliated.

[fuldstændigamok]

Haug said that they wouldn't even protest the fact that Kimi let Massa pass, which, as far as I know, is forbidden.

It's a sad fucking thing that one team is so blatantly allowed to be above the rules that the others don't even bother to lodge a protest when they break them.


Seriously, at this point, it's not even about Lewis winning anymore: I just want to see those arrogant cheating Guido slimeball fucks humiliated.

I really would have like listenning to you while schumi was at the scuderia. But I guess that at the time you found something else to whine about. You're so good at it after all.

[Evil]

Schumacher is a fat German idiot. I hope he dies a painful death.

[Archangel]

I have ALWAYS hated Ferrari. Schumacher didn't change anything about that fact; hell, I never liked the guy, either. Excellent driver, obviously, but so what?

It's the same problem with all the Romance countries: the inability to be men. To fight fair. With the Italians especially, it's always womanish intrigue and back-stabbing. Same reason why all those people suck at warfare.

[TylerDurden]

Haug said that they wouldn't even protest the fact that Kimi let Massa pass, which, as far as I know, is forbidden.

It's a sad fucking thing that one team is so blatantly allowed to be above the rules that the others don't even bother to lodge a protest when they break them.

because no rules were broken. the sporting regulations state: team orders that affect the race outcome of the competitors are forbidden. (not exactly, but it's pretty concise and very close)

if those orders existed it would have been near impossible to prove unless stefano would have issued them via the radio; which he didn't.

if kimi chose to let felipe pass then that's his business. in fact, kimi said during the post-race interviews... "I know what the team expects and I know what we want which are results." teamwork is expected at ferrari. judging from last year's mc-merc driver debacle and this year's hiring of a docile sheep as replacement for alonso, it appears that mc-merc got to where they were this year by learning a bit about teamwork. i'm fairly certain you could put every ferrari crew member on a lie-detector and not one of them would lie and say they had discussed team orders... i doubt it happened. that's why no one called them out on it.

if you couldn't have predicted that kimi would be felipe's jock strap before this race you haven't been paying enough attention. not only did i predict that but i also predicted that the mc-merc fanbase would ultimately call for some kind of penalty... despite the fact that felipe paved raikkonen's win at interlagos last year, heidfeld stepped aside for kubica's montreal win this year, and now raikkonen has returned the favor for felipe to be as close as he is for interlagos this year. it appears that the only one not really doing his job as a teammate is heikki the sheep.

regardless, mc-merc has no grounds for contention on this matter. another 7 point lead about to be squandered? all he needs to do is finish with 4 points in brazil to land this turkey, but the max he can possibly get is going to be those of 2nd place. felipe is notoriously dominant in brazil.

[}{arlequin]

teammates maximizing their points by swapping spots is nothing new. it will always continue, except like tyler said, w/o team's overt involvement

4K5xFap4N5s



came across this by chance... how the post race conference has changed over the years
SkVPPgrvMW0

[TylerDurden]

honestly i like watching the underdog... and right now massa is the underdog.

lewis just seems like an unstoppable force of nature, and a part of me can't stand that. it's potential domination and i could have sworn we just got rid of a dominating driver not but two years ago.

that said i'm tired of this being drawn out. let's get this season closed, vote bernie ecclestone out of the fia and f1, and get this carriage rolling in the right direction. bernie's comments regarding a usgp (did anyone see that?) last weekend pissed me off.

"if someone brings me an agreement that's mutually beneficial i'd love to see another usgp..." jesus fucking christ, bernie, tony george pulled together some of the top investors in the country to hook you up with your millions of fucking dollars. horseshit. as of right now f1 isn't a world-wide sport as it doesn't touch down at all in north america. he nixed the usgp and now he's nixed the canadian grand prix. he needs to stop smoking rolled-up benjamins and do what's right.

[}{arlequin]

next year will be new cars and new (lesser) aero. it's gonna be fun

[TylerDurden]

this is the kind of shit that i like to see (http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2008/10/8581.html)

Clearly, we can afford to be more conservative than normal in our approach to Lewis’s race, but we are still pushing to win the constructors’ championship and it would be wrong of us as a team to overlook this fact.

good on ya', martin. take this shit all the way down to the line for lewis, then bet the farm on it in hopes of grabbing both championships. between lewis's potential button-pressing failocausts (brazil '07), ferrari's horseshit pit system, etc. it appears the only team suitable for wrapping this thing up is bmw (lulz).

honestly this type of shit just makes for good racing.

this just in: the loss of both championships at brazil for mc-merc is already being blamed on ferrari.

[TylerDurden]

so with the fia meeting to discuss cost-cutting measures and demanding responses from the individual teams ferrari has taken it upon themselves to respond first, and it's rather to-the-point...

The Board of Directors of Ferrari SpA met today under the chairmanship of Luca di Montezemolo, to examine the third quarter results. Ferrari recorded 450 million in revenues (up 22.3 percent year-over-year), and a trading profit of 79 million (17.6 percent of revenues), up 41.1 percent from the 56 million figure (15.2 percent of revenues) for Q3 2007.

The Board of Directors also examined the proposed changes to the Formula One regulations, in the light of the current global economic crisis.

Whilst reiterating its wholehearted commitment to a substantial and needed reduction in costs in Formula One, starting with propulsion, the Ferrari Board of Directors expressed strong concerns regarding plans to standardise engines as it felt that such a move would detract from the entire raison of a sport with which Ferrari has been involved continuously since 1950, a raison d'etre based principally on competition and technological development.

The Board of Directors expressed the opinion that should these key elements be diminished, it would have to re-evaluate, with its partners the viability of continuing its presence in the sport.

source (http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2008/10/8595.html)

i applaud the whole idea of standardizing certain areas of the car that rarely undergo any development work, or that are largely pre-defined by the formula (the cockpit area for example), but using a standardized engine is a bit against the point of it all. i concur with ferrari on this one: use standardized engines and it's no longer about what formula one is about.

[Archangel]

this is the kind of shit that i like to see (http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2008/10/8581.html)



good on ya', martin. take this shit all the way down to the line for lewis, then bet the farm on it in hopes of grabbing both championships. between lewis's potential button-pressing failocausts (brazil '07), ferrari's horseshit pit system, etc. it appears the only team suitable for wrapping this thing up is bmw (lulz).

honestly this type of shit just makes for good racing.

this just in: the loss of both championships at brazil for mc-merc is already being blamed on ferrari.


Please. Ferrari paid good money to Max and Bernie in March to ensure that that could never happen. The FIA's gonna dock Lewis 25 seconds for, dunno, wearing the wrong colour helmet, and if that doesn't help, a stop and go for having a father whose first name begins with "A".

[}{arlequin]

i applaud the whole idea of standardizing certain areas of the car that rarely undergo any development work, or that are largely pre-defined by the formula (the cockpit area for example), but using a standardized engine is a bit against the point of it all. i concur with ferrari on this one: use standardized engines and it's no longer about what formula one is about.
i agree. what's next, give them all specc'd and sealed camry engines just to see who can design an uglier car??

[Archangel]

Now that's an idea.

[TylerDurden]

Please. Ferrari paid good money to Max and Bernie in March to ensure that that could never happen. The FIA's gonna dock Lewis 25 seconds for, dunno, wearing the wrong colour helmet, and if that doesn't help, a stop and go for having a father whose first name begins with "A".

not buying it. the fia/f1 is too concerned about image. if they got caught showing favoritism f1 is done for. i don't think ferrari paid anything for the lucky calls they've gotten this year.

don't forget, also, that during the chinese gp coverage they were doing a point-by-point analysis on the points that lewis and felipe have missed out on due to being complete toolboxes (and by extension which team has made the most mistakes). the team with the most was massa/ferrari by one point, and that included faulting kimi for lewis's illegal pass (i don't give a fuck what anyone says; i watched the playback and they were right in penalizing lewis), but that was also speed channel's lopsided mclaren-cock-chugging report.

at this point i've completely dismissed this horseshit about favoritism. lewis has done some really stupid things this year, as has felipe/kimi.

i agree. what's next, give them all specc'd and sealed camry engines just to see who can design an uglier car??

i don't tune in to watch spec-racing. i tune in to watch the world's best manufacturers throw their absolute best at each other. a war of the best of the best of the best of the best fighting each other. tying their hands behind their back with inferior spec technology is going to ruin f1.

[}{arlequin]

don't forget, also, that during the chinese gp coverage they were doing a point-by-point analysis on the points that lewis and felipe have missed out on due to being complete toolboxes (and by extension which team has made the most mistakes). the team with the most was massa/ferrari by one point, and that included faulting kimi for lewis's illegal pass (i don't give a fuck what anyone says; i watched the playback and they were right in penalizing lewis), but that was also speed channel's lopsided mclaren-cock-chugging report.

i wonder if they did that on the euro broadcast or was it just speedvision's in-house creation

[TylerDurden]

i wonder if they did that on the euro broadcast or was it just speedvision's in-house creation

more than likely speed's coverage only. we all know how much david hobbs likes to rub his sausage link to lewis hamilton. if you watch the coverage you can also see his ears perk up like a fucking doberman if he even catches the slightest hint of a word that might start with an L. it's disgusting really. hobbs was already fucking old when lewis was born.

[TylerDurden]

kubica... fail. i mean, really, wtf.

kovy is fuckin' zippin' right now... but it's time for q3, so let's get ready for hammy's horseshit last-second flying laps.

[TylerDurden]

fuck... this shit wasn't even close. ferrari handily took this shit just like they took it last year. no trickery or fia-cock-sucking here... just plain ol' superior driving and superior cars.

[TylerDurden]

FUCK TIMO GLOCK.

massa drove brilliantly, vettel drove brilliantly, hamilton got lucky.

[Evil]

I laughed so hard when I saw Massa's family celebrating thinking he had won, then the joy turned to agony after they were told. Priceless!

BWAHAHAHAHA FUCK BRAZIL.

[Jurassic Pork]

I laughed so hard when I saw Massa's family celebrating thinking he had won, then the joy turned to agony after they were told. Priceless!


so so true

that last 20 seconds were sheer ecstasy!!

[fuldstændigamok]

Glock is a knob. Jesus fucking christ, the kid had the luck with him today.

[Archangel]

FUCK YEAH!!!*












*Thank you, Timo.

[Archangel]

Looks like you can't buy every title, Reds.

[TylerDurden]

regardless i found it hilariously funny that hammy couldn't even match the pace of a scuderia toro rosso in the rain. vettel's the guy to watch. he's actually always been the guy to watch, but lewis came into f1 driving a better car, whereas vettel gave up his test drive at bmw (where he should return) to sit first string in an str. vettel has shown how much can be done with so little... lewis has shown how little can be done with so much: all hamilton has done is what was expected of him. he and raikkonen were the favorites from the start. of the two (hammy and felipe) who made it, felipe was the better driver this year. period.

congrats to ferrari for their eighth constructors in ten years, and congrats to lewis for not choking again.

[Archangel]

Oh, and kudos to Alonso and Renault. I still hate their fucking guts, but the last few races, they were nothing short of bleeding phenomenal. They're gonna be a force to be reckoned with - again - next season.

[Archangel]

http://www.craigsfirearms.com/img/glock/enterprise_logo.jpg

[Pfunky]

Hindsight is always tricky when Championships are this close. What if the Ferrari pit crew hadn't screwed up a couple times in the pits, with their "digital" lollipop? What if Hamilton would have given Raikkonen one more corner before passing him in Spa? What about the "team orders" moves that both teams obviously did?

One thing for sure, those last 4 laps were crazy!!! I thought last year was nutty....but this!!

[TylerDurden]

http://blog.gp2series.caradisiac.com/images/07%20valencia/timo%20glock.jpghttp://www.cumrus.com/images/California%20Exotic/Valcanite%20Anal%20Douche.JPG

un-fucking-canny.

[Fuh Q]

Jesus! That last lap I was thinking, "not again, surely not again, he can't have thrown it all away again", and then my new best friend Timo Glock let Hamilton through, in the last few corners no less! Well done Hamilton. A fully deserved title. People will talk shit about his car being good, where did kovalinen (sp?) end up overall in the same car? People will talk shit about Hamilton being lucky, how many penalties did he get this year? How many retirements did he have? How much luck did Ferrari have? He should have won it last year, he was a worthy champion then, and he is now. Hats off to Massa, it just wasn't his time, right now he's feeling the heartache Lewis felt last year, but his time will come. Soon.

[TylerDurden]

Jesus! That last lap I was thinking, "not again, surely not again, he can't have thrown it all away again", and then my new best friend Timo Glock let Hamilton through, in the last few corners no less! Well done Hamilton. A fully deserved title. People will talk shit about his car being good, where did kovalinen (sp?) end up overall in the same car? People will talk shit about Hamilton being lucky, how many penalties did he get this year? How many retirements did he have? How much luck did Ferrari have? He should have won it last year, he was a worthy champion then, and he is now. Hats off to Massa, it just wasn't his time, right now he's feeling the heartache Lewis felt last year, but his time will come. Soon.

you reek of being the kind of guy to change your favorite based on whatever's hot at the moment. you have less than fifty posts and your rep is in the red by no small amount. in short: hush, now. men are talking.

[Archangel]

He does have a point, though.

[TylerDurden]

Jesus! That last lap I was thinking, "not again, surely not again, he can't have thrown it all away again", and then my new best friend Timo Glock let Hamilton through, in the last few corners no less!

glock did not let hamilton through. glock didn't pit for inters and did an amazing job up to the last few corners. if glock wanted to let something happen he'd have pitted to get inters. he had every intention of finishing in front of hammy, but just couldn't hold it once the rain got a little more intense on non-wet tires.

Well done Hamilton.

in what? this race or this season? he did nothing spectacular in this race and nearly wasn't even able to do what was expected of him. in the end he had to rely on someone else's misfortune to get him the rest of the way. it appeared that after vettel passed him he just kinda gave up, or vettel's str was just that much quicker which seems a little unlikely. perhaps you might blame his lack of pace on traffic, but then vettel was able to out-maneuver him quite easily.

this season? looking at how everything panned out i'd honestly have to say he was pretty good. i'm more of a bmw fan personally, but between felipe and lewis felipe seemed much more solid this year.

A fully deserved title.

that's definitely debatable. if sheer number of wins is your determining factor then lewis is definitely not your guy. then too... if consistency is key, you should take a look at kubica. with the ferrari-bashing, mclaren conspiracy theorists and the rhetoric from both sides i'd say that bmw/kubica deserved it. but in the end, points and drama being what they are lewis wound up on top.

People will talk shit about his car being good, where did kovalinen (sp?) end up overall in the same car? People will talk shit about Hamilton being lucky, how many penalties did he get this year? How many retirements did he have? How much luck did Ferrari have? He should have won it last year, he was a worthy champion then, and he is now.

some people will talk shit because they're butthurt. others will talk shit because they find certain comments to be far-reaching and inflammatory. to be honest i dislike mercedes and i dislike lewis hamilton, though for entirely separate reasons. i'm certainly no tifosi as i've had more than a few critical things to say of felipe this year as well. i'm simply saying that suggesting that lewis actually had more to do with his winning than luck is a little overstepping of the facts. admit it: the guy got fucking lucky. hugely.

Hats off to Massa, it just wasn't his time, right now he's feeling the heartache Lewis felt last year, but his time will come. Soon.

i doubt it. this was massa's year. and i feel it was also lewis's year. there's too many young guns coming up the ranks. vettel, kubica, alonso (only 26) and company are all in vastly-improving cars... moreso than either ferrari or mclaren. who would have predicted last year that this year a backmarker (str) would put someone on the top step of the pedestal? on the flipside who would have told bmw they were wrong when they made high goals annually and hit every fucking one of them? and what of renault's late-season pace? coincidence that when the prodigal son returns they finally find a groove they can dance to? i think not. ferrari and mclaren are in trouble.

[Archangel]

Lewis got lucky twice in one season, tonight and in Singapore. That's hardly undeserved serendipity. It's not like he never dominated a race, overtook anyone, or had any bad luck.

Yes, he got extremely lucky getting those 4 points TODAY. What about the other 94 he accumulated? Blind undeserved luck, too?

Also, BMW is indeed getting better, and Renault obviously has made huge progress. But do you honestly think that Silver and Red are going to be idle in the off-season? Did all their know how just evaporate? I remember people talking at the end of last season about how McMerc's window was closing, how Ferrari would dominate them this year, and how they'd probably be behind BMW. Guess what, none of it happened.
As for Vettel, he's an amazing driver (although I did want to strangle him for a minute there), but is the jump to Red Bull really going to be an improvement over STR? I doubt it. Put him in a McMerc, Ferrari, or BMW, and you're looking at a candidate for world champion: In a Red Bull, he'll be hard pressed to duplicate what he did in the sister car.

[TylerDurden]

you seem to misunderstand how i'm approaching this: luck isn't a bad thing, not at all. kimi had luck on his side last year at sao paulo (and massa), thus taking the championship. i'm saying that despite everything that's happened this year lewis wound up at the top prior to today. i'm not saying he didn't earn those 94 points i'm saying that in spite of everything out to stop him he still wound up with those 94 without having the most wins (that honor belongs to felipe massa) or most consistent finishes in the points (sir kubica takes that one). that despite the out-of-control mc-merc fanboys crying foul, a couple of self-induced failures, etc. that he still came out ahead. prior seasons have shown that you can make but one mistake in formula one and still become champion. lewis made several, as did felipe, whoever walked out of brazil today as champion got so on a very shaky and uneven path... i.e. they had quite a bit of luck on their side.

as for next year... it's pretty plain to see that fernando behind the wheel (and testing) of any car is going to make it quite competitive. he's masterful when it comes to that (does no one else see that he's getting more humble by the race?). bmw have been working on their '09 car for many months. most of the mid-pack have as well. mc-merc and ferrari have, but not quite as much. it's the quintessential equalizer: stop current-year development when you know you're beat, start next year's, have months over the lead guys still focusing on the current-year champ shit. it's how it's supposed to work. with the '09 rules everyone's back to the drawing board for the most part.

vettel behind the wheel of anything becomes dangerous. next year str and the mother team are swapping engine manufacturers... ferrari will power mother, renault will power str. i don't think vettel will challenge for a championship by any means, but i suspect he'll be a major thorn in the sides of the would-bes.

[Fuh Q]

you reek of being the kind of guy to change your favorite based on whatever's hot at the moment. you have less than fifty posts and your rep is in the red by no small amount. in short: hush, now. men are talking.

in short: no.

[Fuh Q]

why are ppl pos repping me?? is my sig that hard to interpret?

And for the record, i've always liked Hamilton, I dont like the way he's become rather arrogant, and his "I am an angel who can do no wrong" always smiling interviews, but when he gets in the car he's my favorite driver.

[Archangel]

Ron Dennis promised Lewis his McLaren F1 GTR LM road car if and when he wins his third championship.

I think there are only two of those, with Gordon Murray unsurprisingly owning the other...

[TylerDurden]

so...
ferrari's 2009 lineup is set: no change; kimi and felipe
bmw's 2009 lineup is set: no change; nick and robert
renault's 2009 lineup is set: no change; nelson and fernando (who signed until the end of '10, which is consequently the same year kimi/felipe's contract at ferrari ends)
mclaren's 2009 lineup is (i think) set: lewis (until '12) and heikki
red bull's 2009 lineup is set: webber and vettel

[Archangel]

McLaren is not set. Di Resta might take over for Heikki.

[}{arlequin]

Ron Dennis promised Lewis his McLaren F1 GTR LM road car if and when he wins his third championship.
i'm not sure he will get his 3. not b/c i want him to lose, or have something against his driving, i just think the way things seem to be panning out (strong bmw, strong toro rosso, strengthening renault) it will not get any easier to win a wc in the immediate future. same reason i think this was massa's chance and he won't have another one like this.

btw:
i've been avoiding this thread b/c i missed the live broadcast due to my own track stuff so i had to wait until the rebroadcast which just ended minutes ago. (helluva lunch break, i know)

damn that was some vettel magic. along w/ kubica (no comment), consider me his fan. he's here to stay.

and timo... wtf??? buy your namesake, insert in ear, pull trigger.

[}{arlequin]

http://s1.subirimagenes.com/imagen/1386821hamilton-f1.gif

[Evil]

If either of those Ferrari drivers win the WC next year Alonso can kiss any small hope he had of joining Ferrari goodbye.

Although his attitude in public has been a bit better over the recent months.

[}{arlequin]

nothing like a shit car to bring a bit of humility. as much as i don't care for his bitching, he did work very hard at renault this year, and as tyler mentioned, it shows

[TylerDurden]

If either of those Ferrari drivers win the WC next year Alonso can kiss any small hope he had of joining Ferrari goodbye.

who says kimi even wants to stay? he's only going to stay as long as it's still exciting and fun for him. the odds are that he won't win next year, which guarantees he won't re-sign with ferrari no matter how much they might want him. i predict kimi leaving at the end of this contract. and i think fernando's signing with renault shows that. kimi's very easy to boredom, and if he can't consistently win in formula 1, he'll go join his friends on a yacht in the harbor at monaco and call it a day.

nothing like a shit car to bring a bit of humility. as much as i don't care for his bitching, he did work very hard at renault this year, and as tyler mentioned, it shows

fernando's been humbled this year. luca isn't fucking around at ferrari. he sent a very loud, clear message when he re-signed both felipe and kimi. that message: i like team players. 2008 season starts fernando is silent damn near. he keeps his chin down and busts his ass. renault begins to show improvement. he gets back-to-back victories then immediately follows it up with "i'm going to help felipe win". everyone thought it was because he had something against lewis/mclaren, but it's quite obvious what's really going on. he may as well wore red coveralls in that yellow renault at brazil.

fernando's manager is none other than flavio (also the manager of f1 renault). alonso didn't like mclaren... who else is there with the prestige, heritage and downright machines to deliver him a third wdc? ferrari. i'm sure i don't need to spell out why a seat on the red car is so desirable. after the failure at mclaren fernando needs a seat, looks to ferrari thinking he might have a shot as a former two-time world champ. de montezemolo, fresh from watching his two drivers exhibit amazing teamwork in clinching both championships, isn't keen on fernando's publicly-exhibited brand of teamwork. he praises alonso's ability but essentially tells him to fuck off; he's not interested.

alonso goes to flavio briatore, and i'm sure the convo goes something like this...
alonso: flav, i need a seat.
flav: just so happens i have one, my son.
alonso: but flav, i want to wear red.
flav: let's see what happens after this next season.
alonso: thanks.

mid-season... kimi signs a fresh extension.

flav: i have it on good authority that this is kimi's final contract at ferrari.
alonso: how long?
flav: he'll be there until 2010.
alonso: keep me on until then?
flav: of course, my son. as your manager i'd love to see you move to ferrari, but as your team boss i need a few things from you.
alonso: anything...
flav: for starters... piquet... genuinely take him under your wing. i need this kid placing well for me. he's your replacement, and while i'm not asking you to train your next opponent per se i need something of quality.
alonso: okay...

nelson piquet begins throwing down better qualis, consistent race finishes, etc. he shows solid improvement. fernando calms him a bit, tames the fire. goes back to flav...

alonso: you see the results. the kid is on his way.
flav: number two... i want the alonso 2.0... i want the old fernando's skill with a new fernando's attitude. i want you to work with the engineers to improve this car to become a contender. remember your back-to-back wdc's? i want the knowledge that tested and tuned those cars back. make it happen...
alonso: okay...

alonso blazes back-to-back victories. the results speak for themselves...

alonso: again, results...
flav: alright. finally... i need you to be a class act. no public outcries of unfairness... no whining, no bitching, no moaning to the press in this or any country. be polite, be sociable.
alonso: done.

2011 ferrari lineup confirmed: felipe massa and fernando alonso

[}{arlequin]

wonder whether there won't be a conflict of interest if flavio remains at renault while still being fernando's manager when he is at ferrari. but i guess he could be done w/ one or the other by that point

[TylerDurden]

wonder whether there won't be a conflict of interest if flavio remains at renault while still being fernando's manager when he is at ferrari. but i guess he could be done w/ one or the other by that point

hasn't been an issue thus far. he's been alonso's manager since... shit... the beginning of his career if i'm not mistaken.

[}{arlequin]

hmm, i didn't know that. i'm not sure of the exact timeline, but was he running renault when alonso was at mac? i'd think the big teams (or any, in fact) may have a problem w/ the mere existence of possibility of discussing things w/ another team's manager

[dick_darlington]

hasn't been an issue thus far. he's been alonso's manager since... shit... the beginning of his career if i'm not mistaken.
actually, his first manager was paul stoddart, before he bought minardi. that's why he brought him there.. but he 'sold' him to flavio to help fund minardi in 2001.

[Evil]

Alonso had been moaning like a bitch up until like august. He didn't start the season quiet. He's has even taken some digs against Piquet.

The only reason he has been quiet is because the car has been running fine recently. The second something goes wrong with the car or someone pisses him off again, he will open his big mouth.

He would be no different at Ferrari, its his way.

[TylerDurden]

Alonso had been moaning like a bitch up until like august. He didn't start the season quiet. He's has even taken some digs against Piquet.

The only reason he has been quiet is because the car has been running fine recently. The second something goes wrong with the car or someone pisses him off again, he will open his big mouth.

He would be no different at Ferrari, its his way.

no, there's definitely a little extra hitch in his giddyup. guaranteed he's a) humbled by the renault's lack of pace, and b) making a bid to get to ferrari. the timing of this shit isn't coincidence.

and honestly he can't bitch too much about the pace of the renault: he's proven that when he wants something improved he knows how to get it. he didn't sign with renault until late into the winter break. by then the 2008 renault car was already developed and being tested. it wasn't until the mid-season break when they got to do lots of testing and make a big development push that he got to put in the testing he wanted... the results speak for themselves.

[The Dude]

Really Bernie? Really?

"I don't think we should even be talking about racism," Ecclestone told The Associated Press at the time. "I really think that they are against Hamilton for his ability, not because he is black. I always thought it was a bit of a prank -- they're probably not racist at all."

[}{arlequin]

he's trying to get an invite to the next nazi orgy party

[Archangel]

Yeah, and Patrick Ewing would have been called a monkey at Georgetown if he had been white, too.


Some people...

[Archangel]

Lewis tells Bernie to get stuffed. (http://sports.espn.go.com/rpm/racing/f1/news/story?id=3685948)
LONDON -- Lewis Hamilton rejected F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone's assertion on Thursday that racist abuse directed at the driver probably started as a joke.

F1's first black champion was the target of racist abuse on a Spanish Web site and endured other insults in the buildup to last Sunday's Brazilian Grand Prix. Hamilton's father Anthony said he had often considered withdrawing the 23-year-old driver from the sport because of the abuse.

"[It was] probably beginning as a joke rather than anything abusive," Ecclestone said Thursday in a radio interview, pointing to poor sportsmanship rather than racism by Spanish and Brazilian fans. "I don't see why people should have been [insulted by it]. These things are people expressing themselves."

Hamilton disagreed and said he "didn't see it as a joke."

"It's something that happened, but it is in the past, you've got to look forward," said the McLaren driver, who clinched the F1 title by a single point over Ferrari's Brazilian driver Felipe Massa at the Interlagos circuit.

In the week leading up to the Brazilian race, Hamilton was the target of racist abuse on a Spanish Web site, was insulted by two Brazilian comedians and was handed a black cat -- a symbol of bad luck in Brazil -- at a sponsor's function.

Last February, a group of people at testing near Barcelona wore dark face paint with T-shirts displaying the slogan "Hamilton's Family." Hamilton has become a target for many Spaniards who believe the British driver derailed Fernando Alonso's championship hopes at McLaren last year.

"I don't think we should even be talking about racism," Ecclestone told The Associated Press at the time. "I really think that they are against Hamilton for his ability, not because he is black. I always thought it was a bit of a prank -- they're probably not racist at all."

[TylerDurden]

Really Bernie? Really?

ahahahahahaha... fuck bernie ecclestone. the guy's a fucking golden-girl-looking dickalope. this guy can do nothing right in my book. he's taken the usgp, he's taken the canadian gp (for those keeping score that means there is absolutely NO north american representation in formula 1 now), and he's severely trying to limit the innovation that comes out of formula 1 by stifling it with new proposed rules in the formula every fucking year.

regarding that comment...

ol' politically correct bernie... trying to suck just a few more million out of spain and brazil. if the 2009 schedule was concrete bernie would be out there right now, high and mighty, "you fuckin' spanish pricks keep running your filthy cock-suckers i'll pull your gp so fucking quick... blah blah blah... ghey ghey ghey...". but since the next season isn't on our doorstep bernie's treading lightly JUST IN CASE it is THEM who wants to tell BERNIE to fuck off.

on the one hand i disagree highly with the bigoted ravings of some people who still feel that it's okay to be a racist fuck. but it's a freedom of speech, and it's there to protect the shit you don't want to hear.

on the other hand i disagree with bernie trying to smooth it over. it's called standing up for what's right, bern... so long as you make excuses for these cock-suckers you're spreading the message that it's okay to make statements... just call it a joke and it's all good.

it's quite obvious to me that bernie's husband doesn't beat him enough.

[Archangel]

Bernie is making David Stern look good.

[TylerDurden]

takuma sato is set to retest with str for a potential 2009 seat. he would vacate the one left by vettel who's set to move to red bull next year.

i'd like to see sato back on the grid. i always liked him.

[}{arlequin]

+1

^5 for sato! maybe it's b/c of the language, maybe his personality, but he's one of the few out there that right away you can tell that he's genuinely happy to be racing, not matter what car he has. may his wc points reach double digits this year!

[TylerDurden]

as much as i tend to bash on hamilton i have to say it's fairly cool that he was as approachable as he was in this clip for vodafone.

i found it when i was researching my next blackberry... and yes, i will be getting the storm (iphone-killer). the phone looks fucking amazing.

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/tech/2008/11/06/boulden.uk.blackberry.storm.cnn

[Archangel]

He's also rather approachable to Ms Scherzinger.

[Evil]

He's also a midget. I saw him in pacha last summer, the dude is tiny.

[Archangel]

Good for him. Saves weight.

[dick_darlington]

takuma sato is set to retest with str for a potential 2009 seat. he would vacate the one left by vettel who's set to move to red bull next year.

i'd like to see sato back on the grid. i always liked him.
i always thought sato was a good guy. but, he isn't that great of a driver. he is the tamest of all japanese drivers when doing boneheaded banzai moves.

str would probably keep it in the family, if they do, i hope neel jani will get the drive.

also, i still want bourdais to keep the other seat at str.

[TylerDurden]

force india announces they're mercedes-powered from next year. source (http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2008/11/8667.html)

not a shock. vijay has been openly caressing their sack from the onset. all this means is that they're going to be the backmarker with a different engine and kers next year.

[dick_darlington]

and gascoigne and kolles leave. so next year they will be last again.

[TylerDurden]

f1 fans, welcome to the off-season. being a gmf regular and f1-fanatic i've taken it upon myself to occasionally post (in the past) unbiased race reviews and predictions, rumor reports, etc. now that it's the off-season i feel the need to deliver this service again, so... without further fanfare.

mclaren putting more than their powertrain in force india's butt
we already knew that mclaren was providing vijay and company with engine, transmission, and kers technology starting in 2009. but it seems that there's more to this deal as it's come to light that mclaren will also be whispering their recommendations for next year's drivers as well. force india is one of the teams who still haven't released a driver lineup for 2009. mclaren, of course, claims they won't be imposing their will upon force india.

montoya to drive an str?!
word on the street is that juan pablo montoya is being sought out to sit at the helm of a 2009 str (though for how long scuderia toro rosso remains just that in light of a powertrain switch with red bull racing has yet to be seen). thus far the colombian has rooted himself firmly at the base of nascar's cock and has no intention of returning. the guy's a fuck, but i'm kinda hoping he can push himself away from the fried-chicken-and-beer-guts of nascar.

"you'll have to buy a seat at a backmarker team, rubens."
ahead of next week's first winter testing scuderia toro rosso has announced they're looking at a few drivers to fill their seats for 2009. thus far not even the "other" sebastien is safe, as bourdais is also in contention for a seat along with former super aguri star takuma sato. ahead of possibly retiring from f1 (though not by choice) honda's rubens barrichello was also taking a look at str, though str told him he didn't stand a chance unless he brought some sponsorship money with him. greedy fucks. though to be honest rubens hasn't been relevant in years. he wrecks out of more grands prix than he finishes, much like the now-retired coulthard.

time for a vacation...
it's been revealed that renault's fernando alonso will not be testing with renault until 2009, as the spaniard intends on taking a solid vacation prior to next year's season run-up. ol' alonso probably got used to a good bit of vacation time after he sat for three months without a contract last year following his departure from mc-merc.

lewis reassured that all eyes and attention is on him
following the contract-signing that will install mercedes engine, transmission, and kers into force india cars next year lewis hamilton demanded reassurance that the new contract will in no way impede the manufacturer from devoting their fullest attentions to defending the driver's championship in 2009. it's all a dog-and-pony show, lewis. a dog-and-pony show.

more news as it develops...

[Evil]

Montoya is not Spanish.

[TylerDurden]

Montoya is not Spanish.

fixed.

[fuldstændigamok]

lewis reassured that all eyes and attention is on him
following the contract-signing that will install mercedes engine, transmission, and kers into force india cars next year lewis hamilton demanded reassurance that the new contract will in no way impede the manufacturer from devoting their fullest attentions to defending the driver's championship in 2009. it's all a dog-and-pony show, lewis. a dog-and-pony show.

more news as it develops...

This guy is such a fucking tool, and when I see people talking of him in the same breath as Schumi, Fangio, Senna or Prost, I just want to kick them really, really hard in the balls. Twice.

[TylerDurden]

This guy is such a fucking tool, and when I see people talking of him in the same breath as Schumi, Fangio, Senna or Prost, I just want to kick them really, really hard in the balls. Twice.

the kid's good, but he doesn't dominate. he's no more a legend than kimi, and he's only here because life in general bores him. he's just like everyone else: give him pole and most of the time he'll give you a victory.

[dick_darlington]

all i know is that im glad that im not the only one that hates lewis in this forum.

if montoya is back in a str, i would love to see that!!! he would bring back some excitement, and he would put some people in their place!

[Archangel]

People who hate Lewis have small penises and bad breath, or so I keep hearing.

[dick_darlington]

f1 might axe the chinese GP!! (http://f1.gpupdate.net/en/news/2008/11/14/shanghai-could-axe-chinese-grand-prix/)

Shanghai could axe Chinese Grand Prix

Formula 1 might enjoy its last race at the Shanghai International Circuit in 2010. According to a senior official Shanghai is considering axing the loss-making Formula One Grand Prix after its contract runs out in 2010.

Deputy director of the Shanghai Administration of Sports, Qiu Weichang, told AFP: "We're doing the assessment. By next year we should be able to give you an answer."

China's Formula 1 circuit was being build back in 2003 for an estimated amount of 240 million dollars but there are hardly any fans attending the race. "We want to create a win-win situation, for our side and for Ecclestone and the F1 organisers as well," said Qiu. "If this is something we can do, and our cooperation is very happy and smooth, we will consider it. Of course we would like at least to break even. But there are two factors, one is the assessment the other part is the win-win situation that we can create." hopefully this is the case, and they will bring back a gp in north america. but, im not holding my breath.

[TylerDurden]

People who hate Lewis have small penises and bad breath, or so I keep hearing.

tsk, tsk... that has nothing to do with hatred for lewis. i already had those prior to lewis joining f1.

f1 might axe the chinese GP!! (http://f1.gpupdate.net/en/news/2008/11/14/shanghai-could-axe-chinese-grand-prix/)

hopefully this is the case, and they will bring back a gp in north america. but, im not holding my breath.

what this really says: earth to bernie: wake up, bernie. you charge too much to hold a fucking grand prix. it'd be great to see a gp return to the us, but it's almost to the point that i don't want it anymore... it's too crushing to a local economy to have to host the shenanigans. no one can afford it anymore.

i also heard that bernie's getting a divorce... and that he has no intention of retiring until the day he dies... fuck.

[}{arlequin]

next year's abu dhabi track.



http://img227.imagevenue.com/loc371/th_06926_DSC_4013_122_371lo.JPG (http://img227.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=06926_DSC_4013_122_371lo.JPG) http://img196.imagevenue.com/loc40/th_06931_DSC_4014_122_40lo.JPG (http://img196.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=06931_DSC_4014_122_40lo.JPG)


pretty damn sexy facilities if you ask me, plus lots of good spectating spots

[dick_darlington]

i found video of loeb's test in a redbull car.. it's uber high quality, if you want the site, just tell me.

[galfibeg]

i found video of loeb's test in a redbull car.. it's uber high quality, if you want the site, just tell me.

Would appreciate it.:)

[galfibeg]

[quote=TylerDurden;221544]

also, i still want bourdais to keep the other seat at str.

Agreed. The car changed on him to better suit Vettel and he did not adapt in time. He will perform next year on the slicks.

[dick_darlington]

Honda to quit F1?? (http://f1.gpupdate.net/en/news/2008/12/04/honda-to-announce-retirement-on-friday/)

Honda to announce retirement on Friday?

04 December 2008 (http://f1.gpupdate.net/en/news/2008/12/04/)

According to the latest reports in British media the Honda Formula 1 team will announce its retirement from Formula One on Friday morning. The Brackley based team will close down its factory if no buyer is found with a few weeks.

Reuters quoted a senior source at a rival team: "They have a month to find a buyer, otherwise they are closing the team."

If the Honda team would retire from Formula One there would be just 18 cars left on the grid next season.WTF??? why hire ross brawn in the first place??

as a fan of jenson button (yes, laugh it up), im uber pissed.

[galfibeg]

It is frightening for the state of F1. Toyota will probably follow soon and we could be back to privateers. Privateers can't afford to maintain the current F1 standard in this environment.

Let's hope someone serious buys Honda.

[TylerDurden]

it's official (http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2008/12/8755.html)

[galfibeg]

Apparently David Richards (former principal of BAR) is very interested. He is not ideal, but at least he has a passion for the sport and was on the verge of entering last year using McLaren cars.

[Pfunky]

this sucks, I was so looking forward to seeing Ross show his talent in running Honda with a more level playing field due to the new technical regulations

[TylerDurden]

i keep reading reports of how ecclestone and mosley are pressing for such huge cost-cuts (they want team operation costs to be half of what they are now), but what i'm not hearing is how the fia or f1m are taking their own steps to cut costs. everyone is freaking the fuck out now that honda has dropped from the grid, but no one said shit when canada was pulled from the calendar due to bernie's exorbitant costs to hold a single fucking f1 race weekend.

[}{arlequin]

it's official (http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2008/12/8755.html)
audi has pulled out of alms as well

[Archangel]

Well, at least they can leave with their heads held high, McLaren Honda having been one of the most dominant teams ever.

Toyota, on the other hand... lol @ "One Aim".

[TylerDurden]

Well, at least they can leave with their heads held high, McLaren Honda having been one of the most dominant teams ever.

Toyota, on the other hand... lol @ "One Aim".

i've heard varying reports that toyota is claiming f1 to be dead weight to them and are looking at putting cars in both european and american le mans series by the end of 2010... so even if toyota doesn't pull out now i think they intend to soon.

[dick_darlington]

i've heard varying reports that toyota is claiming f1 to be dead weight to them and are looking at putting cars in both european and american le mans series by the end of 2010... so even if toyota doesn't pull out now i think they intend to soon.
do you have a link?

it seems like toyota just has money to burn....

[Archangel]

Not anymore, they don't. Good riddance, too.

[TylerDurden]

do you have a link?

it seems like toyota just has money to burn....

indeed i do: http://en.f1-live.com/f1/en/headlines/news/detail/081027090835.shtml

[Pfunky]

I want to see brains and "Brawn" win races next year.....not the biggest bank account.

[Hoser]

Audi has also dropped out of LMS and ALMS. Racing is going to take a bit of a hit for a while I think.

[Pfunky]

Audi has also dropped out of LMS and ALMS. Racing is going to take a bit of a hit for a while I think.

I thought just ALMS.....

[TylerDurden]

so bernie couldn't shove the trophy system by himself. the fia is forcing a vote, which is where all of you come in.

http://www.formula1.com/news/interviews/2008/12/8775.html

scroll to the bottom and vote. open a different browser (if you're using ff, switch to ie or chrome) and vote again.

i fucking hate the idea of trophies, so vote no.

also, subaru has just announced their withdrawal from the wrc.

[Hoser]

I thought just ALMS.....

Nope it is both

http://www.motorsport100.co.uk/news/05-12-08_4

[galfibeg]

so bernie couldn't shove the trophy system by himself. the fia is forcing a vote, which is where all of you come in.

http://www.formula1.com/news/interviews/2008/12/8775.html

scroll to the bottom and vote. open a different browser (if you're using ff, switch to ie or chrome) and vote again.

i fucking hate the idea of trophies, so vote no.

also, subaru has just announced their withdrawal from the wrc.

I voted no too. Did not see the current poll results, hope they are not rigged. WRC is screwed. Citroen and Ford are not enough to attract enough support.

[TylerDurden]

so they've stopped the whole standardized-engine thing from hitting, thank god. if this shit continues we won't have a sport to lord over nascar anymore. it's time for bernie and company to step down. the guy runs f1... why is it that he's worth so much fucking money? that should be the first sign of bullshit.

[TylerDurden]

i understand that reinvention and innovation are necessary in a sport like formula 1, but it's getting to the point where i'm wondering if the sport can survive the financial mess that bernie has helped create.

di montezemolo is apparently now saying that the reign of ecclestone and mosley is over, as the teams are so united on everything that if one left they'd all leave. luca, i like you, but you're grabbin' the bull by the horns a little prematurely.

and what the fuck is going on over at str? they're the only team to have not decided on a driver lineup yet. i'm putting money on the two sebastiens (bourdais and buemi), but i'd really like to see either of the sebastiens with sato.

[galfibeg]

i understand that reinvention and innovation are necessary in a sport like formula 1, but it's getting to the point where i'm wondering if the sport can survive the financial mess that bernie has helped create.

di montezemolo is apparently now saying that the reign of ecclestone and mosley is over, as the teams are so united on everything that if one left they'd all leave. luca, i like you, but you're grabbin' the bull by the horns a little prematurely.

and what the fuck is going on over at str? they're the only team to have not decided on a driver lineup yet. i'm putting money on the two sebastiens (bourdais and buemi), but i'd really like to see either of the sebastiens with sato.

Luca/Ferrari is obviously trying to emerge the leader of the new pack and new F1, but I suspect he will be more palatable than Max or Bernie.

STR has the luxury to pick and choose. I would like to see both Sebastians but Sato has some $$$ behind him. Buemi speaks as if it is a done deal and Bourdais is sounding less than confident. We will see.

[dick_darlington]

honda bought by a mexican? (http://f1.gpupdate.net/en/news/2008/12/28/mexican-buyer-for-honda/)

Mexican buyer for Honda?

28 December 2008 (http://f1.gpupdate.net/en/news/2008/12/28/)

According to the latest rumours the Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim is currently negotiating with Honda to buy the team. Earlier this month Honda announced it would pull out of Formula 1 with immediate effect and is now on the look out for a possible buyer.
According to Italian newspaper La Stampa, Honda and Slim have already reached an agreement to save the team, with Jenson Button and Bruno Senna as the team's 2009 drivers.

Carlos Slim is one of the richest men on the planet. His biggest business is the Telmex phone business in Mexico. Bruno Senna's personal sponsor, Embratel, is part of the Telmex group.

The possible buy out of Honda isn't the first motorsport deal for Telmex as they bought Nascar to Mexico City back in 2005. It became the first official Nascar race outside the US.



i guess ill be happy with it if brawn stays as principal. if this is true, i would be mad if senna is the 2nd driver. i don't think he has what it takes to be a f1 driver yet. i'd rather have di grassi. he was one of the few drivers who impressed me in the lower formulas this year.

[AlanSmithee]

ugly ass new Ferrari

http://img119.imageshack.us/img119/7346/f160lrsk0.jpg
http://img522.imageshack.us/img522/8971/f160lr2wv5.jpg

[TylerDurden]

ugly ass new Ferrari
ugly-ass yellow frogs. fail.

the new ferrari doesn't look nearly as bad as i expected. having looked at the bmw sauber "hybrid" cars all winter, my expectations matched that.

it's the same car as last year, in terms of width and length, but the front and rear are no longer proportioned correctly with the front and rear wings being over and under-sized, respectively. it looks fast, and i'm looking forward to a year of mechanical grip rather than aerodynamic.

the car does look slightly naked without all the winglets and such, but i figure i'll get used to this and appreciate it over time, just like every new car every year.

the fia better know what the fuck they're doing.

[}{arlequin]

more front and less rear aero is certainly gonna make for some oversteering cars. this, combined w/ no traction ctrl should provide even more tail-out attitude at trackout. let's hope it really does make it more exciting to watch. (as long as they don't spec the engines *fingers crossed*)

[TylerDurden]

more front and less rear aero is certainly gonna make for some oversteering cars. this, combined w/ no traction ctrl should provide even more tail-out attitude at trackout. let's hope it really does make it more exciting to watch. (as long as they don't spec the engines *fingers crossed*)

i'm also vibing that all but the backmarkers will be going without kers this year. ferrari is behind development schedule, kubica is whining about the weight negating any possible benefits it might give, and the backmarkers have outsourced their development elsewhere.

[}{arlequin]

ferrari is behind development schedule,
interesting that they rolled out the car first then...

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/motorsport/formula_one/7812490.stm

[TylerDurden]

yeah, i saw the unveiling. everyone's adhering to a strict schedule. even renault, who has now failed two of the three crash safety inspections (http://en.f1-live.com/f1/en/headlines/news/detail/090110093555.shtml) necessary to compete.

[dick_darlington]

didn't renault say that they found the problem?

ferrari's car is pretty good looking imo. if you take a side view of the car, it looks the same, sans the winglets. the only things that will take used to in viewing is the width of the rear wing, and the lack of layers on the front wing.

personally, i don't know why the FIA trusts tony purnell to introduce these rules, he was useless as the boss of jag, and he is still probably useless now.

here's the sideview of the ferrari f60

http://images.gpupdate.net/large/116943.jpg

[TylerDurden]

ron dennis stepping down from mclaren f1 (http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2009/1/8849.html) announced as woking unwraps mp24 challenger (http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/72814).

[Archangel]

Farewell Ron, you'll be sorely missed.

[TylerDurden]

Farewell Ron, you'll be sorely missed.

and please, for the love of the sport, take max and bernie with you. fucking d-bags...

[}{arlequin]

so... there's a 50/50 chance eddie irvine will be arriving for the inauguration tomorrow.

if he does i'm going to party w/ 'irv the swerve'

[TylerDurden]

bmw-sauber unveils 2009 challenger...
http://i44.tinypic.com/vdcnn.jpg

fucking. sexy.

[TylerDurden]

go take a look at scuderia toro rosso's official website (http://www.scuderiatororosso.com/Team/), and you might notice something rather interesting: the site has been updated to reflect both sebastien buemi and... sebastien bourdais as str's 2009 driver lineup.

source (http://en.f1-live.com/f1/en/headlines/news/detail/090122162902.shtml)

[galfibeg]

I really hop that Bourdais does get another chance. The slicks may suit his style too.

[TylerDurden]

I really hop that Bourdais does get another chance. The slicks may suit his style too.

were they allowed to use slicks in champcar? i can't remember.

[dick_darlington]

were they allowed to use slicks in champcar? i can't remember.

yes, and f1 copied the formula for the different tires for the race. so, bourdais should improve this season.

[TylerDurden]

yes, and f1 copied the formula for the different tires for the race. so, bourdais should improve this season.

his seat isn't officially confirmed, but he will be testing with scuderia toro rosso at the next testing session, so that that for what it is...

in other news... finally: an american team in formula 1. (http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/73121) called usf1, the north carolina-based team has already received approval from the other team managers.

[}{arlequin]

that is interesting but how will the engine deal affect the sport overall?

[}{arlequin]

lauda lulz:
The famously straight-talking Lauda told the German sports magazine Kicker: "They look like combine-harvesters, with the enormous front sections -- especially the Renault.
http://en.f1-live.com/f1/en/headlines/news/detail/090203131644.shtml

[TylerDurden]

that is interesting but how will the engine deal affect the sport overall?

with mc-merc, ferrari, and renault all supplying customer motors it'd be interesting to see bmw get into the spirit of sharing-is-caring.

there are currently no american drivers in formula 1, and while i don't think it's necessary for the drivers of usf1 to be american (a la force india), i do think they'll be trying to take a look at the local pool of drivers in this country based upon the unique situation that a remotely-based team is faced with. what i'm getting at is simple: with as many issues as startups have, they'd be doing themselves a huge favor by getting one of the most (if not the most) reliable powertrains in f1. srsly: how many times did mechanical failure lead to bmw's early retirements last year? how about over the course of three years?

theissen is god, though. if it's in the team's (bmw's) best interests he'll make it happen.

usf1 = american equivalent to force india... interesting thought.

lauda lulz:

http://en.f1-live.com/f1/en/headlines/news/detail/090203131644.shtml

lauda's the fucking truth. to be honest i always love hearing from those old heads, because a) they've paid their dues; they're like the true keepers of f1's legacy, and b) they give bernie fiery shit-laced hell at every turn.

not to mention, i'd love to see anyone withstand the same shit that lauda did at the nordschleife and come back to do them shits for the wdc. fucking christ. the guy's got sand.

[Archangel]

One good thing about German F1 coverage:


Niki Lauda on TV before and after each race/practice.

[dick_darlington]

usf1 is never gonna be like force india, unless if the team is funded by bill gates.

but peter windsor? score!!!

i could see this ending ugly though. they need some home base in europe.

[TylerDurden]

usf1 is never gonna be like force india, unless if the team is funded by bill gates.

i meant that usf1 is almost meant to represent a country as opposed to a company or manufacturer.

but peter windsor? score!!!

srsly, inorite?!

i could see this ending ugly though. they need some home base in europe.

no need:
- all of the teams do their testing at remote tracks (jerez, dubai, barcelona, paul ricard) anyways, so they're no closer either

- uk-based teams have to face the same difficulties for all but silverstone, and last i checked, most were based out of the uk simply for the local talent and familiarity with the sport

- how much would be saved by locating your hq in the carolinas, who have a significantly lower cost of living than just about anywhere in europe? probably tens of millions in recurring costs alone.

- imagine the cost of construction, regulations and red tape, and an absence of tax breaks for a foreign company to set up camp in europe. now imagine the complete absence of regulations and red tape PLUS local and state tax breaks and incentives for setting up shop as a local company in the u.s. imagine how many jobs that'll create and the press it'll receive.

- interesting that most f1 teams find it worthwhile to fly their happy asses over here to run their shits at windshear.

- think about the resources in and around north carolina; and i'm not just talking nascar. open-wheel, ALMS, grand-am, etc. are all located in the area due to the close proximity to the various motorsport companies. access to wind tunnels, 7-post shakers, etc. makes north carolina a great place for this team.

- road atlanta is an fia-approved track. vir, while not ideal for testing, is close and would nonetheless provide excellent analysis.

the only difference between usf1 and other f1 teams is that usf1 will have to fly a grand total of (around) three more times per season. how much would that cost? pennies in comparison to the alternative.

[TylerDurden]

bourdais confirmed. (http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2009/2/8908.html)

good to see he'll be getting a fair shake at it.

[}{arlequin]

that's awesome. i really like to see him get a fair chance, esp since we lost the last great opportunity (greg moore)

[dick_darlington]

yeah, greg moore is probably my favorite driver of all time. i remember that williams were tracking him in the late 90s as well.

[Hoser]

yeah, greg moore is probably my favorite driver of all time. i remember that williams were tracking him in the late 90s as well.

I am with you there. He was one of the best of all time in my books, and went far too soon.

[}{arlequin]

cool digital vid summary of changes for 09
http://multimedia.f1-live.com/f1/en/videos/

[TylerDurden]

cool digital vid summary of changes for 09
http://multimedia.f1-live.com/f1/en/videos/

-IJ-tcz1bME
cooler summary of changes for '09 and a sneaky-peek at the rb5

[Hoser]

Here is a nice pic to go with that video

http://cache.gawker.com/assets/images/jalopnik/2009/02/2009_Red_Bull_RB5.jpg

More pictures (http://jalopnik.com/5150879/red-bull-racing-2009-rb5-f1-car-debuts-at-circuito-de-jerez-gets-wings)

[Archangel]

I'd just like to take this moment to congratulate all of you on enjoying a type of motor racing in which people have to turn both directions, brake for something other than pit stops, experience actual g forces, drive cars which are far better, not worse, than any given road-legal Porsche, need to have actual skill, and don't piss themselves in fear and stop races because of rain.

Fuck NASCAR. Can I get an amen?

[Hoser]

Amen!!!!!


The only thing NASCAR is good for is big wrecks. That is their only saving grace.

[The Dude]

don't get yourself so worked up. it is actually possible to enjoy both.

[Hoser]

I liked CART, but I hated the Super Speedway races. Didn't even watch them.

ALMS is still my favorite form of racing.

[Pax Britannia]

Maybe we'll get some MotoGP chat going this year.

[}{arlequin]

they should hold a nascrap exhibition race in monaco.



lulz

[The Dude]

seriously arch, you are like a giant whiney blubbering vagina right now...let it go

[Archangel]

don't get yourself so worked up. it is actually possible to enjoy both.

Schizophrenia?

[Archangel]

seriously arch, you are like a giant whiney blubbering vagina right now...let it go

Because I laughed my nuts off at the Daytona 500 being called early because of rain?

You need to check your dictionary definition of "to whine" as opposed to "to gloat".

[dick_darlington]

I'd just like to take this moment to congratulate all of you on enjoying a type of motor racing in which people have to turn both directions, brake for something other than pit stops, experience actual g forces, drive cars which are far better, not worse, than any given road-legal Porsche, need to have actual skill, and don't piss themselves in fear and stop races because of rain.

Fuck NASCAR. Can I get an amen?
"to a certain extent amen".. if i do watch nascar, i watch the road courses.. but there is a some skill when it comes to nascar.. but you don't have to be physically fit for nascar.

[TylerDurden]

so... now that we've established formula one's superiority in the formula one thread (lulz, arch. lulz. but amen.), it's news time, chiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiildren (/three-dog).

- usf1 is announcing their official intent to compete in 2010 next week. despite the fact that the news broke of usf1 early last week, peter winsor intends on making it official tuesday, the 24th (http://f1.gpupdate.net/en/news/2009/02/13/usf1-team-to-reveal-plans-24-february/).

- and speaking of usf1... it's come across a few times that a usf1 team should naturally have a us driver. there are a few capable drivers, but let's not be too hasty. force india is a similar outfit in that they exist to represent a nation in motorsport, but no one sees vijay handing out free passes to indian drivers. with that said, i hear that usf1 is very interested in a young miss danica patrick (http://f1.gpupdate.net/en/news/2009/02/16/usf1-team-would-love-to-sign-up-danica-patrick/). and of course you know that scott speed is probably trying to toss winsor's asshole right fucking now. those two drivers have been listed as being on usf1's driver shortlist.

- ing is going to pull their support from f1 (entirely) after the 2009 season, citing (surprise) the economic climate. despite this, soon-to-be-retired-and-thus-not-giving-a-fuck team principal, flavio briatore, swears that renault will be just fine with financing and sponsors. really. eat a dick, flav

- despite bruno senna already having personal cockholsters (http://f1.gpupdate.net/en/news/2009/02/13/honda-saved-by-brazilian-investors/), honda is still having issues finding a conclusive deal to race this season (http://f1.gpupdate.net/en/news/2009/02/15/time-running-out-for-honda-but-confidence-remains/). additionally, they appear to be having issue with securing a powertrain from one of the suppliers. mc-merc has agreed but only with $10M and assurances that they won't muddle mercedes' good name by being back-markers.

that's it for now. stay tuned.

[dick_darlington]

if danica patrick drives for usf1, i might never watch f1 again.

[TylerDurden]

branson latest in bids to buy out honda (http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/73357)
http://images.askmen.com/specials/2007_top_49/men/richard_branson.jpg

my thoughts: honda's last shot at competing in formula one this year is now down to this guy's wallet. richard branson, head of corporate super empire virgin (virgin mobile, virgin airlines, etc.) has expressed a serious interest in purchasing honda's near-defunct f1 team. i've been hoping this guy would come forward. he's always impressed me with how down-to-earth yet eccentric he is, and figured he'd be interesting for the sport.

apparently ecclestone feels the same as he's pressed branson forward ahead of honda's apparently final decision next week. interesting item of note: takuma sato has been sponsored by virgin japan in recent years. goodbye, barrichello. hello, sato?

[Trident]

I agree, Branson would be a superb, public-facing and media savvy owner. F1 is perfect for his brand and having his own spirit of adventure he'll take this on with gusto.

[Archangel]

F1 was getting too stolid and staid, anyway, with all the pinstripe types running things. Having a bona fide eccentric shake things up a bit can be only good for the sport.

[}{arlequin]

i'd rather see sato over barichello. good news indeed

[Trident]

Unless Branson sees potential in Button (from a British interest pov, rather than talent).

[dick_darlington]

F1 was getting too stolid and staid, anyway, with all the pinstripe types running things. Having a bona fide eccentric shake things up a bit can be only good for the sport.
thats why eddie jordan was my favorite team owners in f1.

f1 is all about glitz, glamour and money. monaco is pure proof.

f1 needs people like him. unfortunately f1 is turning into a bunch of robots and yes men.

[dick_darlington]

someone from a f1 forum i frequent found a justin.tv site that plays old f1 races.. so here it is.

http://www.justin.tv/mc_kik#

[}{arlequin]

awesome link

[}{arlequin]

technical analysis of '09 aero changes

http://www.f1technical.net/features/11634?sid=b42c9b38bd0f349d981208b08ffbcf61

[TylerDurden]

speed's coverage of usf1's official announcement (http://www.speedtv.com/video/popup/14022977001)

[Gary_Busey]

So we're starting an F1 team, with American drivers, based in America, and with an American built car, all with a budget of only 60mil? Awesome.

[Pax Britannia]

Good luck man. You'll need it.

[Gary_Busey]

I'm not racing.


It also says a Nascar driver is one of the drivers they're looking at. How hilarious would it be if a Nascar driver was competitive in F1? Very hilarious.