2008 F1 Season

[Roy]

See DC has started making noise that Webbers recetn comments regarding wanting an extended RBR contract are not...because he wants to stay at RBR. But because he wants to announce/remind the F1 circus that he is on the market at the end of the year.

He also notes that he isnt talking publicly about wanting to stay at RBR as he knows his negotiations are fine and doesnt see a need to drum up interest in the fact that he intends to stay with RBR.

LOL, DC is on the outer, a shame as i have always liked him. But his time has come and no point firing shots accross the bow of Webber. Taking Webbers quote, which was a favbourable comment about the good things RBR and him are achieving, and contorting it to be Mark trying to drum up interest in his 2009 contract is sad. Fact is Webber doesnt realy have anywhere to go anyway. The only seat he woudl be offered woudl be a result of a Alonso, Kubica Massa dance around the yard

[Beer Baron]

DC is a hack brisby. if it weren't for his massive jaw allowing him some racey-ness he would be scoring points finishes at a tractor pull somewhere.

haha, but yeah I like him too.

[sh@un]

The only seat he woudl be offered woudl be a result of a Alonso, Kubica Massa dance around the yard

lulz

sif Webber will ever be offered a drive at Ferrari

[knore]

Cant agree on that front. Alonso was statistically a chance coming into the last few GPs. He had to race and win and get points, ie punch hard and get points in the last few GPs. He fell short.

Now what Lewis did in China is unforgivable, he should have let Alonso and Kimi run off in the distance and race for a round win while he sewed up the championship. Gambling on tyre strategy in those conditions to try and get a win when the WDC was there to take is FARKING STUPID. A reall rookie error. He can drive the wheels off the car, but there is the problem. At that race, that point in the career he hadnt been kicked in the teeth and appreciative of how hard results are to come by, let alone a WDC.

The mistake is excusable as he was a rookie and the team didnt oull rank on him over the radio. Point is if Alonso was in that situation he woudl haev won the WDC. The politics of the mid season had put him at too big of a deficit to the consistant Lewis. Alonso and Kimi had to win...they closed the gap. Kimi got the job done and Alonso fell just short.

So if China wasnt bad enough, what did he go and do in Brazil? A rookie learning the ropes in that car is a crying shame. One of their drivers should have bagged the WDC. The fact that Lewis had it to lose...well. I think i have harped on enough

And to me its not arrogance. Out of race interviews he seems nice enough, even if he isnt my preferred style/cut of a guy. The thing that annoys me is the fact that he plays the victim, and oh so skillfully played defenseless last year when he played perhaps more then an equal roll in the dramas that unfolded. Mongoose and Cobra stuff. Talking to a McLaren employee during Aus GP, well the team refused to paint a bad picture publically of either driver. It was the drivers throwing stones. For aguy that says he respects RD and is thankful of all the support he has been given, its funny how that goes out the window when he put his helmet on, ignoring instructions from the team on more then one occassion

Yeah well said.

I really think lewis' head got way too big for his maturity and ability.

And to be honest im sick of the nice PR friendly drivers like hamilton who are always reciprocating what the team wants to be said. It sounds so hollow and uninformative to me, and i absolutely admire alonso for coming out and saying what he thought, because thats exacly what all the greatest drivers in formula one have done, and that is exacly what i would have done aswell. Its a big part of why nando and webber are good friends.

I have to say that even with the in team issues last year, mclaren without a doubt had the strongest lineup, and i think its a massive stuffup from ron to not just get in there and make it work.

Kimi and massa together is too strong for lewis and the young fin this year. All mclaren had to do was make it work, because even if each of the mclaren drivers thought of their team mate as the competition.. Aslong as one of them beat their team mate, they would beat everyone else.

I dont think there is any doubt of how badly alonso was treated, you dont come into a top team being a then consecutive world champion that beat the strongest team in the game, with reputedly the best driver ever.. without expecting to be listenened to, prioritised and respected.

I think its a sign of his ability that alonso managed to have the championship all the way upto the last round of pit stops in the last race of the season.. With majority of the season spent in a team that distanced and resented him.

In such a competetive and agressive business like formula one, not having a strong and outspoken opinion takes away from specticle of of it all.

I think people are too quick to change bandwagon, everyone changes what driver and team they like over all kinds of issues that often arent a direct result of the racing itself.

Im sick of the lewis fever, F1 racing mag australia is absolutely obsessed with him and its turning off alot of long time readers like me. I want spectrum! there is 20+ other drivers in F1.

Besides, if they are going to continuing filling the magazine with articles, how about one on how he made the biggest rookie mistake almost ever in F1 twice in a row in that special zone and time of the season where true champions shine, and the rest buckle under the pressure.

I really believe that lewis will never win a championship, simply because of the adversity that he will face over his career. He already had, and threw away his greatest chance.

And the teams all seem quite comfortable how they are at the moment, with great changes next year i think the teams will be focusing on getting settled with the new cars and rules rather than their driver lineup.

Alonso will stay at renault unless bmw manage to really convince him otherwise and take heidfeld's seat.

One thing you have to remember is the viewing public think we know alot about what is happening, but the truth is we are shielded and often fed fabrications for alterior motives.

The drivers themselves know everything that is going on, internally in their team and externally in the other teams because they have such a fast faced and tightly concentrated community.

In the same way that fernando currectly put two and two together about the future in switching to mclaren at exacly the right time, i think he also knows full well that with all the aero, reliability and tyre changes next year, a repeat of the success renault had in 05-06 may be repeatable. People like Kimi, Schumi, Senna, Alonso etc Can, and have pulled teams from nowhere to world champions.

Oh and i think kimi will retire end of 2010, possibly 2009 if he wins the championship again this year..

Wonder who would be mclarens greatest threat in a ferrari, who would have the greatest desire to beat and punish mclaren.. And who ferrari is most likely to choose if mclaren become too strong in the coming years?

Edited May 20, 2008 by knore

[Beer Baron]

I think its a sign of his ability that alonso managed to have the championship all the way upto the last round of pit stops in the last race of the season..

I don't agree with a lot of what you wrote but above is one good point that a lot of people forget. and that is that from half way through the last race of the season till the end it was between kimi and alonso as to who would be WDC. louise was out of the running for most of that race yet all the attention was still on him.

[Roy]

lulz

sif Webber will ever be offered a drive at Ferrari

I dont think Webber will get a seat at Ferrari. But then again who would have thought that Honda would create a satellite team for Sato. That JV woudl be recruited by Renault mid season, then get signed by Sauber? Strange things happen in F1.

So whilst i dont see Webber going to Ferrari or any other team really, its possible that Kubica or Heidfeld could jump ship, Alonso could be on the move. Rosberg coudl be fed up with Williams etc etc. Hell if there is any substance to the Kimi retiring thing, then who knows what could happen if Kimi nags the season with a few races to go?!?!?!

It is F1 and Rosberg wanting a move and Alonso is running around at what is on offer (Hell even Brawn said that Ferrari's press release re-Alonso was grey) then things can happen, seats open up and the solid guys like Webber, Heidfeld, Button etc can bag a seat once the ripples from Alonso, Kimi, Rosberg, Kubica have all settled

PS, i really hope Rosberg stays at Williams, i would love to see them back at the pointy end and they need him for that. They also need a decent co-drover for him. The way he is talking about Monaco he sounds like he is expecting to bin the car He isnt shaping up to be a Williams driver

[lingeringsoul]

WOOHOO!! monaco GP in a few days.....as uninteresting as the race is going to be, I like watching the sceenary.

[dezz]

I like seeing places on TV that I've been too, so will be even more interesting for me this year

[ctjet]

no TC at monaco will be 10 times the show it usually turns out to be

i think it'll be a good one

[Roy]

Especially if its damp. Cant wait to fire up the live footage of Thursdays practice session.

[dezz]

Counting down to 6pm tomorrow.

[lingeringsoul]

is there a reason why its thursday practice and not friday practiceE??? I iz confewzed

[dezz]

I'm not sure why exactly but I read its tradition to have practice on Thursday in Monaco

[sh@un]

WOOHOO!! monaco GP in a few days.....as uninteresting as the race is going to be, I like watching the sceenary.

sure, there isn't usually much passing done on the track (apart from when blue flags are waved), but, dude- it's Monte! name a better street circuit...

definately will be interesting to see if no-TC causes a few hairy moments

[ctjet]

massa to end up in the ocean by lap 4

... fisi too for that matter

[lingeringsoul]

I wanna see oversteers and spin outs and dangerous passing maneuvers.....f**k safety.

[wolverine]

is there a reason why its thursday practice and not friday practiceE??? I iz confewzed

the reason is so Raikonnen can spend more time on his boat with the ladies.

[Kaido_RR]

link to live practice?

[lingeringsoul]

link to live practice?

http://www.itv-f1.com/VideoLive.aspx

[Kaido_RR]

http://www.itv-f1.com/VideoLive.aspx

THANKS!