1381 replies to this topic

[Redliner]

Max and Bernie are making their move

WTFFFFFFFFF

One shocker after another. I'm becoming emotionally distraught...and might throw coffee at my cubicle neghibor out of total loss of control of my emotions

Is it possible to become emo b/c of F1?

[Nacho]

So i woke up today with a revelation.

Honda F1 is for sale.
Ross Brawn is going to technically align the team with Ferrari.
Someone with a few million at least needs to buy the team.
Someone who's interested in Formula 1 and has a clue of what's going on.







.................. Michael Schumacher.

[Redliner]

So i woke up today with a revelation.

Honda F1 is for sale.
Ross Brawn is going to technically align the team with Ferrari.
Someone with a few million at least needs to buy the team.
Someone who's interested in Formula 1 and has a clue of what's going on.







.................. Michael Schumacher.

Like whoa son...That'd be mega.

But seriously, with all these rule changes, who would want to enter the sport in the first place? Just put a damn price cap on spending. Done. Easier said than done, right? It's better than this silly non-sense. TBH, I'd rather have had a boring off season just making fun of the ugly new cars rather than this mess...

[Nacho]

Honestly, i now expect at least one more team to fold before the season starts.

[Redliner]

Audi just announced that it's dropping out of ALMS

PRESS RELEASE

Audi Adjusts U.S., European Motorsports Activities for 2009

The focus will be Europe's DTM series, the 24 Hours of Le Mans and customer sport programs?
No activities in the 2009 American Le Mans Series
INGOLSTADT, Germany, Dec 5, 2008 - Audi announced it will concentrate its motorsports efforts for 2009 on the new R15 TDI sport prototype for the 12 Hours of Sebring and 24 Hours of Le Mans races, the re-worked race touring car A4 for the DTM circuit, and the newly developed R8 LMS for racing customer use in the GT3 class.

Audi said it will not be represented by its factory team, Audi Sport North America, in the American Le Mans Series (ALMS) in 2009.

Audi entered the American Le Mans Series in the year 2000 and has been instrumental in building up this championship series ever since. The championship has become one of the most fascinating motorsport series with a growing fan base. The ALMS is recognized internationally and is regarded as the world's best sports car championship.?

"The decision to withdraw was a very difficult one for these reasons. Furthermore, with the Champion racing team we had a partner that operates at the highest level. The extraordinary dedication and precision of Team Champion was the key to Audi's victories over the last few years in America. " Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich, the head of Audi Motorsport, in relating the difficult decision by Audi AG to call off ALMS participation next year. "We achieved an unprecedented winning series together. Since the 2000 season Audi has won the LMP1 title nine-times in succession in this high-caliber sports car championship. Our brand dominated the circuit last season by taking seven wins in eleven races."

Dr. Ullrich also noted how technology developed for Audi's racing efforts in ALMS and elsewhere is turning into benefits for U.S. consumers. "TDI Technology in racing supported the market launch of Audi TDI Technology in the U.S. perfectly"; he said.

While Audi AG plans to concentrate its factory involvement at European venues throughout the 2009 season in these economically tough times, American fans of Audi motorsports will be treated to a premiere: The all-new Audi R15 TDI sports prototype will make its debut March 21, 2009 during the 12-hour race at Sebring, Fla. This international racing classic, which will be contested by Audi Sport Team Joest, is traditionally regarded as excellent preparation and a final test-race for the 24 Hours of Le Mans race in France. At the same time, the race at Sebring with its special demands made of man and machine guarantees excellent motorsports competition.

[kngrsll]

Audi just announced that it's dropping out of ALMS

i came here to post this!

Audi pulls out of ALMS as well

By Steven English Friday, December 5th 2008, 11:43 GMT

Audi R10Audi has today announced that it will not contest the American Le Mans Series next season with its new R15 TDi.

The German manufacturer had already confirmed that it would not defend its Le Mans Series title in Europe in 2009, citing money saving as the reason.

With no full ALMS campaign either, the R15's only confirmed outings next year will be in the Sebring 12 Hours in March and the Le Mans 24 Hours in June.

Audi motorsport boss Wolfgang Ullrich praised the ALMS - which the marque had competed in for nine seasons - and the Champion team that ran the R8 and R10 in America.

"The decision to withdraw was a very difficult one," he said. "The extraordinary dedication and precision of Team Champion was the key to Audi's victories over the last few years in America.

"We achieved an unprecedented winning series together - since the 2000 season Audi has won the LMP1 title nine times in succession."

The recent announcements mean that Audi's motorsport involvement next season is, at the moment, restricted to the DTM, Sebring and Le Mans, and the customer programme with the new R8 GT3 car.

[Nacho]

Wow. When the dominant team leaves that can't be good.

[yonson]

damn, this shit sux

[vietlol]

shit is getting real

[MrHahn]

Porsche still won't make a LMP1 car - even though they said they'd never make a diesel, which they did. I don't want to see the French succeed

[vietlol]

Porsche still won't make a LMP1 car - even though they said they'd never make a diesel, which they did. I don't want to see the French succeed

zee french laugh in your general direction

[DrDickAction]

Porsche still won't make a LMP1 car - even though they said they'd never make a diesel, which they did. I don't want to see the French succeed

after working with a bunch of frogs at my last job (fine dining restaurant company), I can vouch for the fact that their not as bad as their reputation. In fact, the ones that were chefs tended to be more pleasant than their american counterparts.

[MrHahn]

Loeb is a general exception for me. I have the most against Peugeot because they are the Toyota F1 team of the Sportscar Prototype world. Throw money and everything at it and still come up fail. Anyone remember Peugeot rallying the 306? They'd race in the tarmac rallies and then pull out of the rest because they sucked that bad at them.

[vietlol]

Loeb is a general exception for me. I have the most against Peugeot because they are the Toyota F1 team of the Sportscar Prototype world. Throw money and everything at it and still come up fail. Anyone remember Peugeot rallying the 306? They'd race in the tarmac rallies and then pull out of the rest because they sucked that bad at them.

Won championships with 206 though

[_R_]

Loeb is a general exception for me. I have the most against Peugeot because they are the Toyota F1 team of the Sportscar Prototype world. Throw money and everything at it and still come up fail. Anyone remember Peugeot rallying the 306? They'd race in the tarmac rallies and then pull out of the rest because they sucked that bad at them.

the 206 was
the 306 is when they basically went to shit... I felt bad for Markus driving that thing...

and geez... Audi out of LeMans... shit man, i don't even know what to say...

[MrHahn]

the 206 was
the 306 is when they basically went to shit... I felt bad for Markus driving that thing...

and geez... Audi out of LeMans... shit man, i don't even know what to say...

You're thinking of the 307 the ugly glob that they took from the CC. This is the 306, hot looking car:

[_R_]

You're thinking of the 307 the ugly glob that they took from the CC. This is the 306, hot looking car:

you're right, i was thinking of this fail of a car...
one of my friends in Brazil had a 206, not exactly the best car in the world but fun to drive...

[_R_]

Contracted Honda driver Jenson Button could flee the beleaguered team before the start of the 2009 season.

Although publicly committed to the Brackley-based outfit in the wake of Honda's Friday pullout, it is believed the 28-year-old driver is actually furious his loyalty to Honda has left him without a guaranteed race seat.

His management is understood to have demanded clarification as to the binding nature of his newly-penned contract, given the fact that the sole financier will no longer be involved.

Honda President Takeo Fukui on Friday apologised to Button, and admitted that talks will be instigated to "undo" the Briton's commitment to the F1 team.

Button may therefore be considering simply jumping ship rather than hanging around to see if the British-based team can find a buyer before the Australian Grand Prix in late March.

The Guardian newspaper reports that, amid the Honda news, Toro Rosso made an approach to Button as it seeks to finalise its driver lineup for next year.

Sources close to the Faenza-based team, run by Franz Tost who in 2000 worked with Button at BMW-powered Williams, said Button could be invited to test a Toro Rosso at Jerez next week.

I kinda don't want Button at STR

[_R_]

David Richards is believed to be perhaps the most serious of the prospective buyers of Honda's Formula One team.

As alluded to by Honda figures as well as F1 powerbrokers Bernie Ecclestone and Max Mosley, there is already interest in the team which on Friday was put on the market by the struggling Japanese carmaker Honda.

To boost the chances of a sale, Honda has offered to bear the team's outstanding debts, and offer for sale the excellent facilities of the Brackley-based squad for a nominal fee as low as $1.

The successful buyer would have to convince Honda that it could safeguard the future of the team, even if many of the 700 employees would be retrenched as the annual budget is slashed from its current $300 million to as little as $70m.

The British newspaper The Daily Telegraph said the most serious buyer, believed to be Prodrive chief David Richards, could be in a position to seal the deal by the end of this weekend.

56-year-old Richards is no stranger to the team, having been brought in to run its previous BAR incarnation in 2001.

Prodrive was slated to join the F1 grid in 2008, but Richards pulled out because his plans involved running a controversial McLaren-Mercedes customer package.

Honda driver Jenson Button, who has been very loyal to the team, is rumoured to be preparing for a test drive with Scuderia Toro Rosso next week - a team which parent company Red Bull has also put on the market.

However, due to Richards' known preference for Button during the BAR days, a quick purchase of the Honda team might convince Button to stay on.

Hopefully Prodrive gets it and Buttons stays there...

[AErrorist]

I've been sobbing uncontrollably for the past day.

[vietlol]

I've been sobbing uncontrollably for the past day.

Me too





























































with joy

[More&Faster]

oh fuck

[MrHahn]

JEN-SON BUT-TON!!

[AErrorist]

Me too

with joy

You root for Emoso....

[HighTachPres]

Found this just now on autoblog... but no mention on itv.com/f1?

Cosworth wins FIA standard engine tender for 2010

Honda's departure from Formula One came down to a singular factor: cost. The amount of cash required to campaign a team (or two) in the top tier of open-wheel motorsports has been on an upwards trajectory for as long as we can remember, and combined with the current economic downturn, it was just a matter of time before a manufacturer questioned whether or not it was worth the expense. That's a tough pill for enthusiasts to swallow considering all the knowledge gleaned from F1 -- not to mention WRC.

However, in an attempt to get costs in check, the FIA announced earlier this year that it would pursue a tender to supply an engine and transmission package to teams for the 2010 season and beyond. F1's governing body announced today that Cosworth has been tapped to provide the new "low-cost" drivetrain, that requires an up-front payment of 1.97 million Euros and then an additional 6.42 million Euros each season during the three-year contract. While 20+ million Euros might not seem like a bargain, it's a pittance compared to what automakers invest developing their own engine. If they opt out of the unbadged Cosworth engine, teams can use their own de-tuned version of the current 2.4-liter V8. Transmission choices are still up in the air, as Cosworth negotiates with Xtrac and Ricardo.

For all the details, you can read Bernie Eccelstone's letter to the teams after the jump.

http://www.autoblog....ender-for-2010/