gonna be a hell of a season...
Posted on 08/05/2009 7:57:45 PM PDT by Chode
This will be a general purpose thread for F1 news and pings that really don't require a thread of their own.
We still joke about “Fernando is faster than you. Do you understand?”
Also, I think Ferrari itself is going to have to improve their chassis. Someone has got to make something that can compete with the Red Bull team.
But still, someone must step up or Vettel/Red Bull will run away with title after title and F1 will get as boring as the Schumacher years when there was practically no one who could challenge him (Mika Hakkinen, of course).
gonna be a hell of a season...
like i said, only time will tell...
yup, we've seen it over and over through the years and it still amazes me how a team will dominate for years and then seem like they can't do anything right for years, go figure...
team orders during the race should be interesting
indeed...
Kimi, Alonso is behind you 5 secs - Just leave me alone, I know what I'm doing!
Love the rabbit tweet from Lotus!
good to see Kimi back at Ferrari just as the James Hunt film comes out
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LOLOL!!! tooo damn funny...
i had to google it, i missed it 8^)
i can hardly wait to see it! wonder if it will it be on IMAX?
Ron Howard is a pretty good film maker ... he has Frankenhimer to out pace on the subject and he has more bells and whistles
I heard that usually a filmaker has to embellish a story for film ... in this case the reality made it necessary to tamp it down a bit to be believable
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I heard that usually a filmaker has to embellish a story for film ... in this case the reality made it necessary to tamp it down a bit to be believable no doubt...
Massa to partner Bottas at Williams for 2014Williams have announced that Felipe Massa will drive for the team alongside Valtteri Bottas in 2014. Massa, who lost his Ferrari seat to Kimi Raikkonen for next season, will replace Pastor Maldonado.
“Williams is one of the most successful and important teams of all time in Formula One,” said Massa. “When I was a kid, I always dreamed about racing for Williams, Ferrari or McLaren and I’m glad to be signing with another icon of the sport following my time at Ferrari.”
Massa made his F1 debut with Sauber in 2002 and first started a race for Ferrari in 2006. Since then the Brazilian has accumulated 11 Grand Prix wins and 36 podiums, and narrowly missed out on the drivers’ title in 2008.
“With such a major change of regulations in 2014, I hope my experience will be useful in helping the team in its effort to move on from a difficult period,” added Massa of Williams, who have scored just one point this season.
“Since my early days in motor racing, I don’t remember seeing so many new rules in a single season and I’m fully prepared to work with everyone at Grove to make sure we find the right direction. I’m highly motivated to start working hard from the very beginning in what is an exciting new challenge in my career.”
Williams founder and team principal, Sir Frank Williams, commented: “We are delighted to be able to confirm our 2014 driver line-up and welcome Felipe into the Williams family. He is an exceptional talent and a real fighter on the race track; he also brings a wealth of experience as we begin a new chapter in our story.”
Bottas, meanwhile, will start his second season of competition with Williams next year, having joined as the team’s test driver in 2010 before being promoted to a race seat in 2013. Mature performances - not least qualifying third on the grid in difficult conditions in Canada - this year have contributed to the Finn being retained for 2014.
“I’m very happy to be staying with the team as I embark on my second season in Formula One,” said Bottas. “I have known everyone here for many years, firstly as a test driver and now as a race driver, so it feels like home. I have faith in Williams and I know we can do so much better in the future than our current performance shows.
“I am looking forward to having Felipe as my team mate. He is a quick and experienced driver and together we will be pushing to the maximum to improve the car and get as many points as we can next season. We will be working throughout the winter to ensure we are ready for the challenge of 2014. I would also like to thank everyone at Williams, especially Frank, (deputy team principal) Claire (Williams) and the senior management for their on-going trust in me.”
“Valtteri is a valued member of the team and I’m pleased he was able to demonstrate his talent in tricky conditions in Montreal - there is much more to come from him,” added Frank Williams, whose team also used their 2014 driver announcement to thank Maldonado for his contribution over the past three seasons, in particular his Spanish Grand Prix victory last year.
The Venezuelan driver is yet to make an official announcement on his 2014 plans.
Williams dumping Maldonado was addition by subtraction.
pretty much...
Perez is rumored to be gone from McLaren for Kevin Magnussen (son famed sports car driver, Jan Magnussen). I hope he finds a drive, him and Hulkenberg are both quite good drivers.
http://sports.yahoo.com/news/rookie-magnussen-set-replace-perez-mclaren-215333704—f1.html
Could Maldonado be bringing his $$$ to Lotus?
Magnussen (the elder) is on our F1 Pole Position Nintendo 64 game. My sons still play it when they get together. Kevin has a good pedigree.
On the other hand, I’d like to see Lotus have Maldonado’s money but give the seat to Hulkenberg. Ride buying by unqualified drivers is a fact of motorsports, but it still sucks.
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