1302 replies to this topic

[yonson]

now, I understand Kimi is asking for a good chunk of change... BUT...
why is McLaren being all "well he's making $10M anyways..." what does that have to do with anything?
just because I might be a trust fund baby doesn't mean my job can pay me minimum wage...

if they offered $10M I'd say that was at least reasonable, but piggy backing on what Ferrari is paying him and offering less... that's retarded...

I hate companies that pull that bullshit...

[vietlol]

now, I understand Kimi is asking for a good chunk of change... BUT...
why is McLaren being all "well he's making $10M anyways..." what does that have to do with anything?
just because I might be a trust fund baby doesn't mean my job can pay me minimum wage...

if they offered $10M I'd say that was at least reasonable, but piggy backing on what Ferrari is paying him and offering less... that's retarded...

They got him by the balls though, where else is he going to go? If he wants to race in F1 next year he better man up

also 10m euroes doesn't even sound like a huge sum, especially to Ferrari. When you consider numbers like 45m being thrown around...

[_R_]

They got him by the balls though, where else is he going to go? If he wants to race in F1 next year he better man up

also 10m euroes doesn't even sound like a huge sum, especially to Ferrari. When you consider numbers like 45m being thrown around...

if he races: Ferrari $10M + McLaren $5M = $15M
if he doesn't race: Ferrari pays him $17M

McLaren could at least offer more than Ferrari is paying him to sit out...

I'd probably sit out and race in another series, collect the $$$ Ferrari is paying me and enjoy the rest of my life...

[yonson]

if he races: Ferrari $10M + McLaren $5M = $15M
if he doesn't race: Ferrari pays him $17M

McLaren could at least offer more than Ferrari is paying him to sit out...

I'd probably sit out and race in another series, collect the $$ Ferrari is paying me and enjoy the rest of my life...

EGG ZACKRY

[DrDickAction]

if he races: Ferrari $10M + McLaren $5M = $15M
if he doesn't race: Ferrari pays him $17M

McLaren could at least offer more than Ferrari is paying him to sit out...

I'd probably sit out and race in another series, collect the $$$ Ferrari is paying me and enjoy the rest of my life...

I'd want to fuck Ferrari though. I'm pretty spiteful

[vietlol]

I'd want to fuck Ferrari though. I'm pretty spiteful

He's fucked them enough while driving for them

[vietlol]

[Redliner]

I'd want to fuck Ferrari though. I'm pretty spiteful

And I dunno if I could give up driving an F1 car

[vietlol]

Rob Tarlton, a 21-year old student of Aerospace Engineering from Chicago, Illinois, drove five laps at Silverstone on Wednesday in an AT&T Williams Formula One car, as the winner of the 2009 Philips Driving Academy.

Tarlton set one of the fastest lap times around the Philips Driving Academy’s online test track to ensure his place at the competition’s global final in the UK, beating over 15,000 entrants from around the world. During a grueling three-day assessment programme, Tarlton held off finalists from ten countries, including his twin brother, to land his dream prize of driving a Formula One car

Reaching 288kph down the pit straight, Tarlton said: “It was incredible. I knew it was going to be fast, but I didn’t expect it to be that fast!”

Rob’s day at Silverstone started with a number of practice laps of the national circuit in a Lotus Exige under the tutelage of AT&T Williams driver, Kazuki Nakajima. He then progressed to driving a Formula 3 car for 15 laps to get a feel for the extra power, speed and grip that he could expect from the Formula One car. After a series of briefings from the AT&T Williams team and a final one-to-one briefing from Nakajima, Tarlton took to the track for five unforgettable laps at the controls of a Williams FW29.

He went on to say: “By the time I got in the F1 car, I felt very comfortable with the track and available grip levels so began to work way my way up safely without having to worry about going over the limit or going off the track. I was focused on working my way up slowly and not trying to do too much too fast, and also to have a good time.”

“I felt really safe in the car and ready for the experience. The AT&T Williams team did a great job of preparing me. The previous day we had done a lot of simulator work (at Grove) where the guys there were able to keep a really close eye on you and give a lot of instruction. They really helped instruct on the racing line and turned down the grip levels so I could experience realistic track conditions as we knew Silverstone would be cold and damp.”

“The Philips Driving Academy was an outstanding opportunity to take part in something that I would not have normally been able to; it has been a fantastic experience” he concluded.

Patrick Overwijk, Global Sponsorship Manager, Philips Consumer Lifestyle, commented: “The Philips Driving Academy has again unearthed some fantastic driving talent. The competition was very tough and all of our finalists showed great driving skill. It was very close up until the final assessment where Rob’s ability and calmness under pressure shone through. He did exceptionally well and literally demonstrated that he has what it takes to drive a Formula One car.”

lucky bugger

[yonson]

[TimzSI]

Lucky mofo. I wonder what he DD's? Someone should facebook him.

[Redliner]

Lucky mofo. I wonder what he DD's? Someone should facebook him.

I'll do it...

[Skyliner]

If Trulli doesn't get a job, I don't know who to pull for next year.

[_R_]

If Trulli doesn't get a job, I don't know who to pull for next year.

kimi crew!

oh wait

[Nacho]

Brawn: Team can be even stronger

By Jonathan Noble and Jamie O'Leary Monday, November 9th 2009, 13:31 GMT

Ross Brawn believes that his team can be even stronger next season, thanks to beginning work on its definitive 2010 car far earlier than a year ago.

Brawn's first Formula 1 car, the BGP 001, was originally designed around a Honda powerplant, and adapted for a Mercedes engine only weeks before the start of the season.

Despite this, the team still took the constructors' world title in its maiden season with Jenson Button winning six grands prix on his way to the drivers' crown.

Brawn believes that heading into a second season with Mercedes - this time with a rear end designed around the German manufacturer's engine – will help strengthen the team's bid to retain its titles.

"The main thing for us is that it’s the second year of working with Mercedes," said Brawn.

"It should be a much better installation because we've had an opportunity to begin early and have the sort of exhaust system that we need, design the gearbox properly for the engine, design the chassis properly for the engine, put the right coolers on... all of those things.

"Obviously we've had a good run into installing this engine in the car, so things like the cooling system and the airbox have been developed a bit more thoroughly in the new car.

"Fuel consumption's going to be critical, so efficiency in those areas and also in keeping the startline weight to a minimum is going to be critical."

Brawn said that the Brackley-based team's determination to retain its front-running status next year was the primary cause of it losing ground to chief rival Red Bull during the second half of the 2009 season.

"We have been trying to balance what we do this year with next year," he added. "With the aerodynamicists going through their programme regularly, we decided at mid-season only to take a week to work on this year's programme, while keeping the rest of the windtunnel time focused on next year.

"If I’m honest, we didn’t throw enough at it, but on balance we got away with it.

"But we needed to get on with next year’s car. Next year we've got no refuelling, a different chassis shape, different tyres and there's a lot of work. And because we don't want to be a one-season wonder, we've had to make sure we can balance this year's and next year’s cars."

Didn't think about the fact that they would put so many resources into next year's car, but it makes sense given the hack job this year's car was to make that engine work



I hope this mindset takes some hold

Michael: Blame tracks for lack of passing

By Jamie O'Leary Monday, November 9th 2009, 16:27 GMT

lWilliams technical director Sam Michael believes that circuit design is currently the biggest reason for the lack of on-track overtaking in Formula 1.

Wholesale aerodynamic rule changes brought in for this season in order to allow cars to pass each other more easily, but Michael still thinks that more can be done at the tracks to improve the spectacle for fans.

"I think that clearly the changes made the cars easier to follow, however, there's a lot of work that still needs to be done," said Michael.

"One of the things that wasn't addressed in the 2009 rule changes was circuit design. If you look at tracks like Barcelona where nobody overtakes, and take exactly the same cars to tracks like Monza, Hockenheim etc, there's plenty of overtaking. The difference is circuit layout.

"Organisers need to look closer at creating slower speed corners which feed onto straights, and at removing chicanes.

"If you look at somewhere like Abu Dhabi, there are some good aspects to the circuit, but there are fundamental mistakes. There wasn't good enough racing there and the organisers need to rectify that before next year. You can't keep blaming car design."

F1's aerodynamic rules will be tweaked for 2010, with wheel fairings banned and narrower front tyres permitted. These changes will, in Michael's opinion, go some way towards creating more overtaking opportunities for drivers.

"Narrower front tyres will shift weight distribution rearwards slightly, which will affect the aerodynamics and set-up of the car because of where the tyres position the wake," he added.

"A ban on wheel fairings should also improve the wake behind the car, so drivers can get closer to each other. That should help to improve overtaking opportunities."

[Redliner]

Why not remove the double diffusers...seems like cars had no problem following each other at the beginning of the season before the double diffuser scandal.

Also, i'm not sure if I agree with Micheal - I don't like watching tracks with slow corners long straights. It's boring, and it is fundamentally against what an F1 car should be doing. I'd rather watch cars around Spa & Suzuka fighting for 1 or 2 passes around a high-speed sweepers vs having cars all passing each other all day long because of power to drag ratios down a long straightaway.

[Nacho]

Why not remove the double diffusers...seems like cars had no problem following each other at the beginning of the season before the double diffuser scandal.

I still think the double diffuser blame game is garbage, personally.

Like he said, we saw decent overtaking and whatnot with the DD cars in the later part of the season at Interlagos and Suzuka.

Also, i'm not sure if I agree with Micheal - I don't like watching tracks with slow corners long straights. It's boring, and it is fundamentally against what an F1 car should be doing. I'd rather watch cars around Spa & Suzuka fighting for 1 or 2 passes around a high-speed sweepers vs having cars all passing each other all day long because of power to drag ratios down a long straightaway.

I took his point was that the new tracks, like Valencia, Abu Dhabi, etc. are all shit for racing where as Spa, Suzuka, Monza, Interlagos, etc. are all much better. The 'modern' tracks, 'designed' to have overtaking, don't.

[Dr. Jimmmah!]

I still think the double diffuser blame game is garbage, personally.

Like he said, we saw decent overtaking and whatnot with the DD cars in the later part of the season at Interlagos and Suzuka.

But then he goes about talking about wheel farings. Personally I'd think the DD has more effect than wheel farings for the following car.

[Redliner]

But then he goes about talking about wheel farings. Personally I'd think the DD has more effect than wheel farings for the following car.

Agreed.

It's all about how the air exits the car for the car behind, and I feel that the DD has a lot to do with how the air comes off the back of the car. More so than wheel fairings.

[DrDickAction]

Agreed.

It's all about how the air exits the car for the car behind, and I feel that the DD has a lot to do with how the air comes off the back of the car. More so than wheel fairings.

Yeah, I thought it was commonly accepted that the DDs completely undo the whole point of the '09 rule changes...lots of dirty air for trailing cars.

[Nacho]

Yeah, I thought it was commonly accepted that the DDs completely undo the whole point of the '09 rule changes...lots of dirty air for trailing cars.

I heard alot more bitching from teams without the DDs, and before the hearings, which made me sort of dismiss it all as more whining about losing an advantage but citing other reasons that the bigger diffusers should be illegal. Even now, the Ferrari camp still whines about that issue.

Either way, the DDs are pretty centralized as far as the air they're going to disrupt, and with the huge wide front wings, the front end aero should be able to outweigh it.

I just don't think the cars are the real issue. They added adjustable front wings, that no one reportedly actually uses, got rid of all the body winglets, etc. etc. and it didn't do much. To put all the blame on the DDs as undoing the rest of the hugely radical car changes that took place and making all the overtaking group's work have little to no effect seems more an excuse than anything else.

[Redliner]

I heard alot more bitching from teams without the DDs, and before the hearings, which made me sort of dismiss it all as more whining about losing an advantage but citing other reasons that the bigger diffusers should be illegal. Even now, the Ferrari camp still whines about that issue.

Either way, the DDs are pretty centralized as far as the air they're going to disrupt, and with the huge wide front wings, the front end aero should be able to outweigh it.

I just don't think the cars are the real issue. They added adjustable front wings, that no one reportedly actually uses, got rid of all the body winglets, etc. etc. and it didn't do much. To put all the blame on the DDs as undoing the rest of the hugely radical car changes that took place and making all the overtaking group's work have little to no effect seems more an excuse than anything else.

Hang on - it basically sounds like you just said that aerodynamics isnot the leading factor to why overtaking has been unsuccessful. If so, I will quickly point you to motorcycle racing...

In fact, Ross Brawn had specifically stated that there were loopholes in the rules that would nullify the purpose of the Overtaking Group's work, but that they weren't about to just hand it over on a silver-platter and said that the rules need to be tightned down. Sounds to me that the DD is a huge difference in terms of performance. How else did you explain the drop in lap times from last year? They were supposedly to have dropped aerodynamic grip by 60%, but that obviously didn't seem like the case this year...

Sure the tracks play a part of the problem, but IMO, it's still the aerodynamics of a car, and more specifically, the DD.

[chiuey]

If Trulli doesn't get a job, I don't know who to pull for next year.

If trulli doesn't get a drive next yr, I'll send you some hair.

[chiuey]

Hang on - it basically sounds like you just said that aerodynamics isnot the leading factor to why overtaking has been unsuccessful. If so, I will quickly point you to motorcycle racing...

In fact, Ross Brawn had specifically stated that there were loopholes in the rules that would nullify the purpose of the Overtaking Group's work, but that they weren't about to just hand it over on a silver-platter and said that the rules need to be tightned down. Sounds to me that the DD is a huge difference in terms of performance. How else did you explain the drop in lap times from last year? They were supposedly to have dropped aerodynamic grip by 60%, but that obviously didn't seem like the case this year...

Sure the tracks play a part of the problem, but IMO, it's still the aerodynamics of a car, and more specifically, the DD.

I agree. I seems the DDs made a significant difference, but Michaels has a point. Tracks were just not that well designed, though I completely disagree that overtaking needs to be long straights and sharp corners. I do however think these new tracks need to be upgraded to have a combination of factors, long straights, sweeping straights, sharp corners, chicanes and stuff like turn 8 in Istanbul. They need to separate the men from the boys, give tracks technical difficulty make these drivers work for it. I think Shanghai as a track processes quite a few of those qualities.

[Nacho]

Hang on - it basically sounds like you just said that aerodynamics isnot the leading factor to why overtaking has been unsuccessful. If so, I will quickly point you to motorcycle racing...

In fact, Ross Brawn had specifically stated that there were loopholes in the rules that would nullify the purpose of the Overtaking Group's work, but that they weren't about to just hand it over on a silver-platter and said that the rules need to be tightned down. Sounds to me that the DD is a huge difference in terms of performance. How else did you explain the drop in lap times from last year? They were supposedly to have dropped aerodynamic grip by 60%, but that obviously didn't seem like the case this year...

Sure the tracks play a part of the problem, but IMO, it's still the aerodynamics of a car, and more specifically, the DD.

Aero is a part of it, but I honestly don't think that literally every part of the OWG's work could be undone with JUST the DDs. It's not like the DDs are some sort of massive upgrade from the older style diffusers. So given that, how can a similar diffuser (that from my understanding is still smaller than the older style diffusers), combined with all the other changes, do essentially nothing? If it was really ALL the DDs, they would have likely moved to close the loophole for this upcoming year as they're still tweaking the rules on aero to improve passing.

It literally doesn't add up to me that there's one singular, known, issue that's not having steps taken to rectify the issue. It has to be deeper than that.