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Well there are 22 cars confirmed for next year, with ProDrive that'd be 24...
Though Pro Drive look about as likely to compete for F1 next year as I do.
Alonso leaves McLaren
- Thread starter under18carbon
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Well there are 22 cars confirmed for next year, with ProDrive that'd be 24...
Though Pro Drive look about as likely to compete for F1 next year as I do.
- 1,637
Well, Williams have said they won't let Rosberg leave. Heikki seems to be the lead option now, with Sutil also on the short list. Patrick Head of Williams made the rather silly "suggestion" of bringing Schumi out of retirement and sticking him in a McLaren...no thanks Patrick...we'll stick with the future not the past.
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- Orange County C
- GTP_Im_Sorry
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- m7ammed84
Well super Aguri Joined in recored time so I guess its doable
- 10,837
- Belgium
- bramturismo
Hungary 2006 was pure luck for Honda, they never had a single chance on the win of it wasn't for all the messed up weather conditions and driver mistakes...
Button's not really an option, he's had his days, especially now he's determined not to leave Honda...
However, it'll be very interesting to see what Alonso will do next, my bet goes to Renault, with Fisi probably going to Toyota since they need a 2nd driver as well. Sutil would be an option for Toyota as well but I'm wondering who'll take Alonso's spot...Aren't Heidfeld and Kubica under contract at BMW already for the next season? Isn't Rosberg as well? I can't really see Heikki going to Mclaren after his first year, and mind you; he "only" beat Fisi, Fisi hasn't really shown great things the last season...
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Maybe he only beat Fisichella, but he also finished 16 of the 17 races and had to retire from the last one because the left tyre blew up. He also took the second place at Fuji, having had to fight his way up in the spray of other cars unlike Hamilton who cruised on a clear track. Hell, he even managed to hold Kimi back on the final laps!
Then again, I wouldn't really like to see him driving the McLaren with Dennis undoubtedly trying to make sure his fellow countryman gets everything he needs. He's done it before, look at Häkkinen and Coulthard. It was the other way round then though, Häkkinen mystically overtook Coulthard on straights without any effort and so on. Still it was said that they both got equal chances, no. Häkkinen was very much of a #1 driver.
I'd say stay at Renault, have Alonso as a team mate, wait for one more season and then check the situation again.
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If I was Jenson, I'd be in a hurry to leave Honda. The car in 07 was a right piece of crap.
And I pity whoever gets Alonso as a teammate, especially if they upstage him...
Blake
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- haswell00
I have to argue; after just having watched the 1999 season there was only one race where Coulthard played the team game (the final round in Suzuka). Mika was simply much faster for the measure of the season.
On the occasions where DC was faster he won the races (much to Mikas annoyance in the latter part of the season). Unlike at Ferrari where the team game was played many times (to the pain of Irvine, Salo, and even, the forever-number-one, Schumacher) as the season played out.
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- bramturismo
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I notice you're in no hurry to see him in a more competitive car. The B-Spec edition of the RA107 was supposed to form the basis of the RA108 (though apaprently their wind tunnel was miscalibtaed), but given its lacklustre performance, I'm not holding my breath over Honda having something resembling compwtitive like last year's model.
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I noticed Jensen isn't, either - because he's tied to them in golden handcuffs.
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I feel sorry for any Championship contending rookie if they get stuck in the same team as Alonso...especially if he out-does the ex-Champ. He'll just whine again, lie about how he's being mistreated and then cause trouble...especially if he's being beaten.
Well Blake already stated the reasons why that's not exactly accurate, and as for last season Alonso himself also said after he'd left "It was all just heat of the moment" comments and McLaren never favoured Lewis. So I see no reason as to why Heikki or any other driver would receive "Driver #2" treatment.
Well Blake already stated the reasons why that's not exactly accurate, and as for last season Alonso himself also said after he'd left "It was all just heat of the moment" comments and McLaren never favoured Lewis. So I see no reason as to why Heikki or any other driver would receive "Driver #2" treatment.
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- It/It
- GTP_TheCracker
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- m7ammed84
I don't think thats legal , it is then it shouldn't be
- 23,998
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- 5,994
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Guess you didn't watch, for example, season 1998 opening race then. It was more suspicious than most of the ones we're discussing nowadays. I give up, I just don't understand why people want to see Ferrari as the only team that resort to team orders and refuse to believe that others do it too.
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Indeed. There was no other possible explanation for that maneuver. ...no real reason either, letting off in the first race of the season to allow a teammate to pass for position. Walker and Brundle were quite perplexed by it, (Walker moreso because he suspected Coultard had some mechanical failure, if I remember the associated commentary accurately). But whatever - that particular can of worms has seen its fair share of discussion over the past 9 years.
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I always thought that of the top teams, McLaren was the only team that wasn't very obvious in its use of team orders. Not saying it wasn't done, just not as obvious as other teams with a definite #1 and #2 driver.
Edit: I should note that I did not watch F1 much from the time of Senna's death until 2 years ago.
I wonder if not that Alonso is no longer the reigning world champion if he would demand preferencial treatment from a team? And what if he went to Ferrari (which I really doubt), would he gladly be #2 since Kimi is the current champion?
Roo
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The McLaren drivers agreed that weekend - whether management was involved I don't know - that the first driver out of the first corner would go on to win the race. Hakkinen was leading, until a miscommunication ment he entered the pits with no pitcrew ready - he had, in effect, a drive-through penalty. Coulthard took the lead, but stayed true to the pre-race agreement and let Mika past to win.
Disclaimer, because I know I'll need one: I'm not saying it's right or wrong. I'm just posting what happened.
Jerez '97 was one of those rare occasions where there was team orders between 2 teams - Williams and McLaren. Williams said they'd let McLaren have the race if they helped them in the championship battle against Ferrari. After Schumacher's retirement, Villeneuve let both McLarens through to record a 1-2, with JV third. That was Mika's first win.
Disclaimer, because I know I'll need one: I'm not saying it's right or wrong. I'm just posting what happened.
Jerez '97 was one of those rare occasions where there was team orders between 2 teams - Williams and McLaren. Williams said they'd let McLaren have the race if they helped them in the championship battle against Ferrari. After Schumacher's retirement, Villeneuve let both McLarens through to record a 1-2, with JV third. That was Mika's first win.
Blake
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I dont refuse to believe that other teams use team orders. That would be ignorant. But I know McLaren has made a point of the fact that they dont believe in team orders, and have had that stance for as long as I can remember.
Ron Dennis said that the Australia 1998 thing was because another team tapped into the teams radio system and called Mika in and the team felt they had to correct that by letting Mika back into the lead that he had lost through no fault of his own. Also DC and Mika had the pre-race agreement that Roo mentioned.
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Have McLaren ever denied using team orders? I thought they've always been very businesslike about how they approach the season. They'll give orders that help the team get the best result in the race. Things like no racing after the final stop... whatever driver is in front after the last stop finishes must not be challenged for position by the other. I'm not saying they'll do that every race, but that's the kind of decision they'll tend to make, and it more often favours the car in the most advantageous position in the race at that time, regardless of which driver is driving it. This is different to having a contracted #1 driver on which you pin your team's championship hopes, a.k.a. Ferrari.
That 1998 race, where Coulthard let Mika through, was to rectify a pitlane mixup which would have cost Mika the win, as has been mentioned. This had nothing to do with favouring Mika over David for the championship because a) it was the first race of the season, b) Mika was not clearly the better championship prospect at that time - his superiority was still to be established, and c) it was the first race after the sweeping rule changes which made the cars much narrower and introduced the grooved dry tyres, prompting McLaren (and most other teams) to discourage internal racing in an effort to be sure the cars finished the race - hence the first corner agreement. The swap manoeuvre was also simple to accomplish as both McLarens were at least 1 lap ahead of every other car on the track. Even in 1999 McLaren still let DC compete for race wins until the championship was impossible for him, and even then I'm not sure if he defered to Mika or if Mika was just faster regardless. Coulthard seems to be fast on some circuits - he's a bit of a Monaco specialist - but most of the time I doubt Mika needed team orders to help him win.
That 1998 race, where Coulthard let Mika through, was to rectify a pitlane mixup which would have cost Mika the win, as has been mentioned. This had nothing to do with favouring Mika over David for the championship because a) it was the first race of the season, b) Mika was not clearly the better championship prospect at that time - his superiority was still to be established, and c) it was the first race after the sweeping rule changes which made the cars much narrower and introduced the grooved dry tyres, prompting McLaren (and most other teams) to discourage internal racing in an effort to be sure the cars finished the race - hence the first corner agreement. The swap manoeuvre was also simple to accomplish as both McLarens were at least 1 lap ahead of every other car on the track. Even in 1999 McLaren still let DC compete for race wins until the championship was impossible for him, and even then I'm not sure if he defered to Mika or if Mika was just faster regardless. Coulthard seems to be fast on some circuits - he's a bit of a Monaco specialist - but most of the time I doubt Mika needed team orders to help him win.
Roo
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Or an intra-team agreement even
The radio hack I find kinda hilarious, I recall someone saying that at the Canadian Grand Prix they used to pick up orders for a local Chinese restaurant.
Coulthard got a request for a taxi somwhere during his pitstop in the 1995 British GP - he was leading, but the radio interference ment he lost concentration, and got a 10 second penalty for speeding in the pitlane, dropping him to third.
