Wow, it's Thursday again, British GP time

[Slick Rick]

stupid truli holding kimi and MS up.

Trulli is starting to piss me off these last few races. But kensei will still love him no matter what...

I like Truli and think hes a good driver.
Put him in a Mclaren or Renault and he could do very well and then you would all be like oh Truli's so good, ive always liked him etc....

Remember hes in a Toyota.

 

[[FPV]Rusty]

except for the fact Toyota is all the bad that season, he seems to allways do pretty good in qualifying but i can hardly remember a race this season where he hasnt held anyone up with slow race pace

 

[Solid Lifters]

I like Truli and think hes a good driver.
Put him in a Mclaren or Renault and he could do very well and then you would all be like oh Truli's so good, ive always liked him etc....

Remember hes in a Toyota.

Yeah, well, he was in a Renault last year, and he did jack. He did win Monaco for Renault, but that was about it. He didn't do well, so out he went.

Speaking of the truth, so should Fisi, that stupid bastard. How the F could he stall twice in a row, now. He lost a podium finish. He gave drivers points to Kimi. He gave constructor points to MC/Merc. I'm done with him, and I hope so is Renualt. He's just ridiculous.

Wow, what a job from Montoya. He was grinning ear to ear, and he should be. He won it at the first turn which was done in true risky Montoya form. He held the lead until pitting, but soon got it back with just a few car lengths ahead of Alonso. Fantastic job.

Sato. He's gone.

And what a fantastic race. Great battles. Great passes. Great weather. Let's hope they all end like this for the remainder of the year.

 

[Slick Rick]

Yeah, well, he was in a Renault last year, and he did jack. He did win Monaco for Renault, but that was about it. He didn't do well, so out he went.

I think his lack of pace with last years Renault had something to do with his relationship with Flavio Briatore.
If your not a happy driver and your team's not making an effort with you and your car then what can you expect?

 

[MagpieRacer]

good race by montoya, maybe thatll shut the critics up for a bit

 

[Appie]

Montoya = Brilliant, calm and took the race in his pocket

 

[kensei]

I consider JPM my 3rd driver, after Trulli and Kimi, I love the guy but I didn't think he could do it. That start of his was friggin' amazing. The way he drove was smooth, ragged when needed and all together impressive. Congrats JPM, you earned it!

Fisi's career are Renault is over. He is dead to Flavio. His stalling in the pits when it REALLY counted it as bad as Trulli letting Rubens past in the final corner. Bye-bye Fisi...even if you won ever race left this season (which ain't going to happen) you'll be driving a Midland or Minardi again if you even drive next year. Sucks to be you.

Trulli and Toyota...ok so I admit it, Toyota's race pace is sad right now. Trulli came out saying th team needs to develop the car DURING the season. I hope the powers to be at Toyota realize that now. Trulli is a moving chicane now, a damn fast qualifier, but a moving chicane at best. Kinda worst too because the Toyota is only around 1 to 1.5 seconds per lap off the pace which makes it even harder to pass than a 3-5 second off per lap Jordon or Minardi.

Toyota, develop the car...you'll win if you do!

Kimi...must be kicking himself about his engines. he looked none-to-pleased in the press room after the race...Ilmor...figure out how to build a damn engine.

Button had a decent drive...good on you.

Oh Kimi's pass on Alonso was AMAZING! One of the past I've seen. Alonso didn't even know what was happeneing. if only Kimi started up front!!!!

Good race...I'm looking forward to a break next weekend. Back to back races are hard on you, hahaha.

Off to watch the MotoGP race at Laguna...Let's see what Rossi can do against Nicky! I wish I was there!

 

[livemusic]

I wish the MotoGP race was being broadcasted here too. Well, it probably is in some cable TV channel.

Go Barros!

 

[westwood]

i told you guys this was JPM's to lose. the mclaren is just too good right now. another impressive run for kimi, but yet again he loses points.

overall good race, anytime 2 podium spots for mclaren 👍 .

 

[Brett]

Great drive by JPM! His start was absolutely blistering! Its not like the Renault or BAR had a bad start either, the McLaren's start was just that much better. JPM also did well to hold Alonso for the slight second he needed to after his first pit stop.

Alonso also had a very good drive, it was just overshadowed by JPMs race.

Kimi's pass on Alonso was just plain awesome. It really does not get much than that with a pass. There was very little room and Kimi managed to put the car in there. If only Mercedes would get their act together and make a consistently reliable engine. I just don't know if I see Kimi being able to stay any closer to Alonso with the Merc's engine crappy reliability. Kimi can continue to drive the heck out of the car, but it won't matter as long as Alonso continues starting near the front. It really is a shame that Kimi does not have a Drivers Championship yet because of Mercedes and their reliability problems.

And the last person for my comments is Jarno Trulli. I don't have a problem with the guy and I would like to see him do well, mainly to help Toyota, but he was nothing but a moving chicane today. He held up both Schumacher and Kimi for a good portion of the first of the race and that was rather disappointing.

 

[mkay]

Yeah, Trulli kinda sucked this race. I don't care about his car, but man, if you're slower, let the faster drivers pass you, damn.

The race was kinda good. JPM and Kimi had an awesome ride. Hope they'll have the same success in Mercedes' home @ Hockenheim. We want them in 1st-2nd and we want a DNF for Alonso, to spice things up.

The race was good, but still lack of action (passing). In one NASCAR lap, there's more passing than in a entire F1 race. Is it because of the tyre rule that the drivers are very protective? If yes, then remove this stupide rule, or at least let them change the tyre once per race.

 

[Blake]

mkay, it is the aerodynamics of the cars that makes it hard to pass, when you follow a car it disrupts the air passing over your car and really reduces the effect that the aerodynamics have on the car, so it makes it all but impossible to follow a car through a corner at the same speed it is going. This has been really exagerated this year as the front wings have been raised, and that makes it even harder than it would normally be.

Back to the race. JPM had an awesome start, he did it in true Montoya style. I was a bit concerned in the first few laps ater the safety car came in as JPM seemed to have just a little oversteer. But he seemed to get it under control and he put in a solid performance to take his first win for McLaren-Mercedes. 👍

Alonso was always there but he never really showed anything too special and he was often caught in traffic. To me he just never seemed like he had a chance to win after the first corner.

Kimi was very fast alot of the time but he lost way too much time in the first stint. He wasn't as heavy as I expected him to be and that disadvantaged him alot. He always seemed to be stuck in traffic. It was a good move on Alonso, pointless almost but good. I loved the way he set the fastest lap on his last lap just to say to everyone that the weekend would have been his if it asn't for the engine change.

Trulli is starting to annoy me now, he shouldn't but he is. He is brilliant at one lap qualifying, but the Toyota's race pace is just not there. He's been holding up people at almost every race this season. Trulli should start one stopping it, not only would he hold up fewer people in the first stint (because of qualifying on a heavy fuel load), he would probably finish in a better position. Maybe I just want him out of the way though, I dunno.

Williams was just disappointing, neither of their aero packages seemed too much better than the other and they're still battling for menial positions.

Ferrari will probably be scratching their heads now, they're no faster than they were before.

1. F. Alonso (Renault) - 77
2. K. Raikkonen (McLaren) - 51
3. M. Schumacher (Ferrari) - 43
4. J. Trulli (Toyota) - 31
5. R. Barrichello (Ferrari) - 31

The championship isn't looking much better for Kimi, he really needs to start winning races and hope for a few mistakes from Alonso or the gap will just stay as it is.

Blake

 

[Mclaren_Man]

Kimi, in theory should still be able to win the championship, because now he has his teammate up there to back him up, whereas Alonso is all by himself. Even though Fisi showed some good pace during the race, he doesnt seem to be able to help his team mate at the moment. Mclaren had better win the Constructors championship this year, if they dont they need to seriously stand back and take a look at themselves. At the moment Mclaren are only 15 points behind renault, which is quite gettable.

 

[kensei]

I still think Kimi will win the title and McLaren will win the constructors, even with Kimi's engine fighting him all the way. The McLaren is in another league over the Renault and like Mclaren_Man said Kimi has JPM to support him where-as Alonso has himself.

Reliability got Alonso this far but Renault always fall off pace at the end of the season, always....

 

[Omnis]

Flavio firing Trulli was the idiot move of the century. Way to be hastey.

Anyway, I totally missed the race. is there going to be a rerun?

 

[Blake]

I'm wondering whether he'll be that idiotic and fire Fisi and cost himself the constructors again? Though I think McLaren will win it anyway.

Blake

 

[kensei]

Flavio firing Trulli was the idiot move of the century. Way to be hastey.

Amen brother!

I'm wondering whether he'll be that idiotic and fire Fisi and cost himself the constructors again? Though I think McLaren will win it anyway.

Blake

After the sall in the pits today, Fisi is dead to Flavio...I don't se ehim finishing the year with Renault.

Hey they can always get JV again, yahhhhh!

 

[Blake]

Or maybe Chanock Nissany!

Blake

 

[Solid Lifters]

So, who do you think should, seriously, replace Fisichella?

De La Rosa, perhaps? Or is he too much of a Mc/Merc driver?

 

[Omnis]

Maybe Montiero. haha.

 

[Blake]

I doubt Fisi will be kicked out this season, but I seriously doubt he'll be there next year.

Blake

 

[mkay]

Blake, I know it is tough to pass somebuddy in F1, but why 5-6 years ago, they were plenty of passing, and in 05 there's none?

Maybe the aerodynamic is the answer, but the tracks are also a big factor. Like the half of the tracks have a spot to pass. That's not very good... cause it means action in half of the season.

Instead of ruining the aero for 06 (I don't want the F1s to look like the ChampCars), just improve the tracks, put more tyres for the races (1 set allowed) and fire Hermann Tilke... boring tracks dude.

 

[Blake]

The aero rules were changed in a big way this year and the raising of the front wing in particular has made it hard to follow cars closely. And if you can't get close to the guy in front how the hell are you supposed to pass him?

I think the cars should be completely stripped of all wings and winglets and be allowed to use full ground effects including skirts. Using the air underneath a car to gain downforce can give the cars a huge amount of grip, and it doesn't stop the guy behind from following. Of course I've read that when ground effects cars get airbourne (by hitting curbs heavily e.g. at San Marino) they tend to be very dangerous and hard to control until they are firmly back on the track. But again that could be a way to bring driver skill back in.

Tracks, yes they help but they were getting dangerous. I think now car safety is much better so maybe they could afford to be a bit more risky, or they could make the old layouts safe (sufficient run-off etc.). But aero has most to do with it IMO, I mean most tracks have some good passing opportunities that F1 cars just can't use, I mean watch support series, they pass alot more around the same tracks.

Blake

 

[[FPV]Rusty]

i dont think its got much to do with the tracks at all, the cars rely too much on downforce for cornering speed and dont have enough grip, get up behgind someone and you lose downforce, and then there is no way known you are gonig to get past anytime soon, if you a slower through the corners you are pretty much going to end up slower everywhere.

And yes ground effects are very dangerous when a car bounces off the ground, out of the tunnel at Monaco you could possibly flip over the part where the track decends quite quickly. Once te car gets too far to the ground, ground effects, have alomst no effect (thats why they call it ground effects ).

All in all, however its done, grip must be increased, and the draft created by the cars must be decreased before we see more passing, Silverstone is traditionally a palce where you see alot of passing, yet we saw Kimi get held up by cars that he could easily lap more than a second or so quicker than in clean air. That has to say something about F1. Safety is paramount, but i think they go just a bit too far with it, these cars are amazingly safe, and weve seen that they can hit concrete barriers at horrific sppeds, take alot of damage, and the driver is perfectly safe. You can never be too safe i guess, but you can definately get too bored.

 

[Blake]

Well the only way to stop the effect of draft on F1 cars is to get rid of all the parts of the car that use that air to gain grip (basically what they'll be doing in 2008). But then the cars will be horribly slow (relatively of course).

As to the cars flipping after the tunnel, it's unlikely, the cars are 'glued' to the ground to strongly to leave it just by going over the part where it decends quickly, at the speeds they travel through there you'd be very lucky to get the car off the ground at all if they used full ground effects. I can only see it being a problem when cars are bouncing over the curbs, and most of the time the cars aren't traveling all that fast over curbs like that. Anyway the cars are alot safer now, I don't see that being a serious safety issues to the drivers.

Blake

 

[DeuceOfClub]

Great race IMO, and nice to see 19 drivers finish.

Both Renault and McLaren gave us a showdown of their respective powers.

A little disappointed with MS: it almost look like he lost his passion for racing, it might be 100% the car fault but he but I was expecting him to be much more aggressive.

Only 2 more weeks till Hockenheim