3530 replies to this topic

[chiuey]

http://www.autosport...rt.php/id/68624

ah fucking frogs!

I hate Magny-cours...

[Redliner]

ah fucking frogs!

I hate Magny-cours...

I wonder how much they're payiing to keep Magny Cours on there. It must be pretty amount for BE to say "okay!"

[Dr. Jimmmah!]

I wonder how much they're payiing to keep Magny Cours on there. It must be pretty amount for BE to say "okay!"

they are renovating the facilities.

[Redliner]

they are renovating the facilities.

I thought BE didn't like it b/c of its lack of "bling" for the lack of a better term...and that it's very difficult to access unlike other, more popular tracks. Wasn't that the reason for Paris holding the race?

[_R_]

what in the fuck

The FIA has announced a shock decision to resurrect the Formula Two name from 2009 as an 'inexpensive' platform for aspiring driver talent as a stepping stone for Formula One.

In a statement following Wednesday's FIA World Council meeting in Paris, the sport's governing body has invited tenders for the new low-cost feeder series.

The statement read: "The FIA will invite tenders for a new feeder series for Formula One. This championship, called Formula Two, would be launched in 2009 and used as an inexpensive platform to develop emerging driver talent for Formula One. It is hoped this can be achieved within a budget of around €200,000 a car per season."

How the FIA hopes to achieve running costs of around €200,000 per car per season remains to be seen. The target figure is significantly lower than it costs to compete in the current traditional ladder series - GP2 Series and F3.

It is not clear if the intention is to run the series as a support race for F1, or even if it is being introduced as a replacement on the bill for GP2, which costs around €1.5m per season to run a car. Or indeed, whether it would co-exist alongside the second-string category that replaced F3000 in 2004.

One current GP2 team boss told autosport.com: "Our cars actually cost €190,000, and that's without the engines. If it's a junior formula, like Formula Ford or something, then fine, but you cannot run anything substantial for that kind of money. For example, a Formula BMW costs just under €300,000 to run per car in Europe, and that's with zero margin.

"I can't think what cars they expect to run for €200,000, because there are people spending that kind of money in karting in Europe."

The use of the name F2 could be seen as a clear provocation against Bernie Ecclestone, showing that the FIA is willing to set-up their own championships and are ready to go up against a series that is backed by the commercial rights holder, and is partly financed by CVC.

[Dr. Jimmmah!]

http://en.f1-live.co...625163715.shtml

BMW Sauber is in 'intensive talks' with GP2 driver Bruno Senna about a Formula One role for the Brazilian in 2009, according to reports.

The German magazine Sport Bild claims that Senna, the 24-year-old nephew of the late triple world champion, could become a test or even a full race driver for the Hinwil-based squad next year.

Senna, second overall in the 2008 GP2 standings, won a race at the prestigious Monaco venue last month.

His quest to go all the way to Formula One is backed by his uncle's friend and former McLaren team-mate Gerhard Berger, who today co-owns the Toro Rosso team.

"I will help Bruno, and his family who looks out for his career, to do it. His development is obvious, and there is no doubt he has talent," the Austrian said.

Sport Bild claims that Berger discussed Senna at Magny Cours with BMW Sauber boss Mario Theissen, his former colleague as joint BMW Motorsport Director.


An insider confirmed: "Senna is determined to get a test and then BMW will decide."

The magazine also said Red Bull, Toro Rosso and Williams may be interested in Senna.

Bruno Senna, meanwhile, is personally backed by Santander, the Spanish bank that also sponsors McLaren.

For now, he is staying focused on his current task.

"I must continue to push and win races and podiums. Then I can dream a little bit more," Senna said.

bruno in, slow nick out.

[Redliner]

what in the fuck

Shit. F1-crew could actually bank-roll an F2 ride we'll decide who drives with a paper/rock/scissor face-off.

[Dr. Jimmmah!]

After losing out in their epic battle in last weekend’s French Grand Prix, it was McLaren’s Heikki Kovalainen who headed Toyota’s Jarno Trulli in the timesheets on Wednesday, as this week’s three-day test session continued. In windy conditions, Kovalainen’s best lap of 1m 20.015s put him almost four-tenths clear of the Italian.

Full report to follow.

Unofficial Wednesday times from Silverstone:
1. Heikki Kovalainen, McLaren, 1:20.015
2. Jarno Trulli, Toyota, 1:20.391
3. Nico Rosberg, Williams, 1:20.624
4. Nelson Piquet, Renault, 1:20.787
5. Sebastian Vettel, Toro Rosso, 1:20.795
6. Robert Kubica, BMW Sauber, 1:20.982
7. Felipe Massa, Ferrari, 1:21.069
8. Mark Webber, Red Bull, 1:21.170
9. Jenson Button, Honda, 1:21.445
10. Giancarlo Fisichella, Force India, 1:21.583

[yonson]

Shit. F1-crew could actually bank-roll an F2 ride we'll decide who drives with a paper/rock/scissor face-off.

I don't wanna drive, I just wanna toon and work on them And maybe test occasionally

[_R_]

I don't wanna drive, I just wanna toon and work on them And maybe test occasionally

i'll take your chance then at being a driver...

[chiuey]

I don't wanna drive, I just wanna toon and work on them And maybe test occasionally

I don't want to race, but I don't mind being a test driver. and I would love to handle PR and graphic design

[mads]

f2 team photographer.

F2-crew.com?

[cafcwest]

Sounds like we've got a team coming together already :-)

[draobpi]

F2 team vodka tester?

[F1]

F2 team vodka tester?

Shinigami

[Redliner]

I'll be the James Hunt/Kimi driver that drinks, bangs and drives fast and mmmbles.

[vietlol]

hey guys Im here for the team

[vietlol]

[kngrsll]

I'll be the James Hunt/Kimi driver that drinks, bangs and drives fast and mmmbles.

in for this as well

[Dr. Jimmmah!]

no way they'll achieve 200k/yr operational cost of each car IMO.

[_R_]

as much as i like Sato, this is also fucking retarded...
fuck Honda...

Force India may be considering a change of customer engine supplier for the 2009 season, according to reports.

The Silverstone-based team, having changed ownership prior to the start of this season, is currently powered by Ferrari's 2.4 litre V8s.

But according to the Swiss publication Motorsport Aktuell, meetings may already have taken place - in the Montreal paddock earlier this month - between Force India and Honda chiefs.

Force India is contractually bound to the Ferrari deal, but it is suggested that the Vijay Mallya-owned squad is interested in Honda's offer of engines plus its KERS system at a lower price.

Rumours have abounded since the collapse of the Honda satellite Super Aguri this year that Honda is still keen to expand its F1 presence beyond the Brackley based works team.

Motorsport Aktuell claims that Honda is offering its engine-KERS package to Force India for a price 10 million Euros per season lower than the Ferrari deal, as long as Takuma Sato is accommodated for a race seat.

Force India has reportedly not yet taken a decision.

[mads]

alonso's engine died again today..

[_R_]

Tyre warmers will remain in Formula One next year, autosport.com can reveal, after the FIA agreed to scrap plans to impose a ban in 2009.

The governing body had been scheduled to scrap the use of tyre blankets to coincide with the return of slicks at the start of next season in a bid to improve the racing and cut costs.

But that move led to concern from drivers about safety implications, after they tried out slick rubber without warmers in winter testing.

With a big difference in laptimes between cars on cold tyres and those with warmed up rubber, drivers feared about the increased chance of accidents.

Bridgestone was adamant though that the rubber it planned to use would not cause any safety problems - and it told the FIA that it saw no reason to scrap the tyre warmer ban for this reason.

However, one way of guaranteeing tyre safety was for Bridgestone to impose a minimum tyre pressure limit – and this was something the teams could not find a satisfactory way of imposing or policing.

Honda Racing team principal Ross Brawn told autosport.com recently: "You can run tyres for sure without blankets, lot of formulae do, but we are a particularly competitive formula and if you don't run blankets with tyres you need to have a minimum pressure control.

"We haven't worked out how to do that and that was the big concern – how to introduce it fairly and effectively for all the teams? And how do you avoid the massive overhead of policing it?

"The TWG (Technical Working Group) said it wanted to keep tyre blankets because it could not see a solution to controlling minimum tyre pressure, and that was a big worry. So the option of having blankets was the easiest.

"And interestingly tyre blankets are not prohibited in testing, so for efficiency of testing we will almost certainly be using tyre blankets in testing. So we will have had them in testing and not racing."

The FIA agreed that the tyre pressure problem was insurmountable in the short term and, allied to the fact that there would be little reduction in costs because tyre blankets would still be used in testing, the governing body's World Council this week agreed to scrap the ban.

[More&Faster]

now i'm not saying drivers are pussies


getting rid of tire warmers will only make the racing better with more passing and sliding around. the whole sport revolves around risk management and getting the maximum out of the car no matter what the circumstances are, so i think they should be able to manage cold tires for a couple laps coming out of the pits. Champ Car didn't use tire warmers.

so ya, basically they're pussies

[Redliner]

now i'm not saying drivers are pussies


getting rid of tire warmers will only make the racing better with more passing and sliding around. the whole sport revolves around risk management and getting the maximum out of the car no matter what the circumstances are, so i think they should be able to manage cold tires for a couple laps coming out of the pits. Champ Car didn't use tire warmers.

so ya, basically they're pussies

I agree. Following drivers don't know how to pass the slower car?