F1 Season 2013!

[MattR]

Link? I'm not seeing anythign official?

n/m found it...awesome... Does this have anything to do with Lewis' move?


http://www.mclaren.com/formula1/insi...ula-1-history/

[Nick Koan]

From Whitmarsh's mouth:

http://adamcooperf1.com/2013/05/16/v...ment-in-tokyo/

[sperry]

Originally Posted by Bob Danger

It's official Honda / McLaren.

If we could just get Lotus and/or Caterham to be owned by the Brits, everything would be right in the world.

[Bob Danger]

An exciting Monaco GP. Although thanks to red flag the DVR didn't get the last 20 laps.

McLaren seems to have picked up the pace, It'll be an interesting Canadian GP. Although Checo is being a bit too aggressive. I didn't see the incident between him and Kimi, but looking at the pictures and how kamikaze he was into Nouvelle I'd say he was driving a disappearing line. He did the same thing with Alonso. I'm just happy the McLaren is able to fight for those positions.

Sutil drove a fantastic race, Force India keeps getting better. Rosberg had a flawless weekend, 30 years after his old man. Bravo.

And the Mercedes / Pirelli secret tire test? With Pirelli not having a contract for next year this doesn't bode well.

[MattR]

I am not impressed....I was really hoping Mark could win a title before retirement, but it was just not meant to be. He will shine in the new Porsche's though. So long Mark Webber

http://www.formula1.com/news/headlin...3/6/14703.html

[sperry]

Originally Posted by MattR

I am not impressed....I was really hoping Mark could win a title before retirement, but it was just not meant to be. He will shine in the new Porsche's though. So long Mark Webber

http://www.formula1.com/news/headlin...3/6/14703.html

Yeah, I always thought Webber would grab a title when Red Bull got good. But really, it's his own fault... he had a great chance and threw it away spinning in Korea in 2010 (if I remember right) after Vettel had already retired. Winning that round would have pretty much made it nearly impossible for anyone but Alonso to take the lead back, and as we know Ferrari fell off at the end of that season eventually handing the title to Vettel. I think since then, Webber's always sort of blamed himself and had a small confidence problem which opened the door psychologically for Vettel to dominate the team (and F1 in general for that matter).

I think going back to sports cars, especially in the new Porsche LMP1 will be great for Webber. He'll probably win a ton of races assuming the Porsche doesn't suck (it won't, they spent so much time working up to this car with the P2 cars, I can't see how it'd suck). And his experience will be priceless for the team. Endurance sports car racing is awesome... it's cool to see some big name drivers heading that way.

[MattR]

Yeah, agreed on all that, Webber had the opportunity, much like Massa a few years back. The fields are so close, you may only have that one chance to win the title.

Also, Mark Webber had a pretty good run in Sports cars prior to his F1 days, and with Porsche's commitment to winning, I bet the program excels early-on.

[sperry]

Originally Posted by MattR

Yeah, agreed on all that, Webber had the opportunity, much like Massa a few years back. The fields are so close, you may only have that one chance to win the title.

Also, Mark Webber had a pretty good run in Sports cars prior to his F1 days, and with Porsche's commitment to winning, I bet the program excels early-on.

Yeah, I'm *still* super bummed about Massa losing to Hamilton. It was an incredible storybook championship win... ruined by Hamilton's stupid last corner of the season pass for what, 6th place or something dumb?

Since his spring to the head, Massa just hasn't had the same pace as before. Not sure if it's directly related, but being out of the car for a bit and coming back to a less than competitive Ferrari leaving him to constantly have to drive for his job has just sorta taken the wind out of his sails. Especially with Alonso, who may be the best driver in the history of F1, as a teammate. How do you even compete with that?

[MattR]

Originally Posted by sperry

... Especially with Alonso, who may be the best driver in the history of F1, as a teammate. How do you even compete with that?

You know, that's a good point, being Alonso's teammate must be tough, (Think Trulli, Fisichella, Massa, etc..) I used to take for granted all the wins and multiple championships Alonso put together at Renault, but all the while, his teammates were no where near as successful. Now as I watch him in what is likely the 3rd or 4th best chassis in F1, he makes the car competitive beyond where it should be. I think the closest he had to an equal pairing was with Hamilton, and I can't say for sure that either one outperformed the other substantially.

I think that is one of the things I love about F1, there is no guarantee that one chassis or driver will be dominant, but the right combination at the right time.

[Nick Koan]

New Jersey not on the provisional calendar for 2014

http://adamcooperf1.com/2013/09/05/n...2014-calendar/

[sperry]

Originally Posted by Nick Koan

New Jersey not on the provisional calendar for 2014

http://adamcooperf1.com/2013/09/05/n...2014-calendar/

I'm not surprised. The general lack of any good news for more than a year kinda indicated it wasn't happening.

Austria on the other hand is a surprise to me... I hadn't heard anything about that! What track is it? Osterreichring? Is that track even open anymore?

[Nick Koan]

According to Wikipedia, Austria will be run at the Red Bull Ring (formerly the A1 Ring, formerly the Osterreichring).

[MattR]

Yeah, Red bull has funded (big surprise) some big improvements to the circuit, it looks beautiful, should be a good venue for F1.

[sperry]

Oh, I totally forgot about the F1 races at the A-1 ring (that was right as I was getting into watching F1 regularly)... and I had no idea that used to be Osterreichring.

[Nick Koan]

I actually didn't either. It was pretty massively reconfigured, apparently to become the A1 Ring. The Red Bull Ring looks pretty much the same as the A1 Ring, at least track wise.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Bull_Ring

[Bob Danger]

I'm more interested in Mexico.

Also, I predict a McLaren podium this weekend.

[Nick Koan]

And sad news from Felipe Massa

(And yes, he officially released news on Instagram)

http://instagram.com/p/eFyM4QHLf1/

From 2014 i will no longer be driving for Ferrari. I would like to thank the team for all the victories and incredible moments experienced together. Thank you also to my wife and all of my family, to my fans and all my Sponsors. From each one of you I have always received a great support! Right now I want to push as hard as possible with Ferrari for the remaining 7 races. For next year, I want to find a team that can give me a competitive car to win many more races and challenge for the Championship which remains my greatest objective! Thank you all. Felipe

[sperry]

Can't say I'm surprised.

Who's in at Ferrari then? Hulkenberg? Where's Massa end up? Sauber? Lotus?

[Nick Koan]

Maybe Kimi Raikonnen. Seriously.

http://adamcooperf1.com/2013/09/10/a...n-and-ferrari/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/formula1/24042352

[Bob Danger]

I hope its Hulkenberg.

[Bob Danger]

Maybe Kobayashi? He's been driving for Ferrari in a exhibitions hasn't he? Unlikely but I'd like to see him back in F1.

[sperry]

Raikkonen and Alonso on the same team could be pretty messy. Plus, I'd be surprised to see Montezemolo eat crow and hire Kimi back after paying him to go away for a year.

Ferrari is best served by finding Alonso a solid #2, at least that worked great for them with Schumacher/Barrichello. I would think Hulkenberg would be a fantastic teammate at Ferrari... he's good enough to consistently earn team points, but not as good as Alonso to ensure they can focus effort on winning drivers' championships for Alonso.

[MPREZIV]

Crosses fingers that Lotus somehow comes up with the money to keep Kimi...

[Bob Danger]

Originally Posted by sperry

Raikkonen and Alonso on the same team could be pretty messy. Plus, I'd be surprised to see Montezemolo eat crow and hire Kimi back after paying him to go away for a year.

Ferrari is best served by finding Alonso a solid #2, at least that worked great for them with Schumacher/Barrichello. I would think Hulkenberg would be a fantastic teammate at Ferrari... he's good enough to consistently earn team points, but not as good as Alonso to ensure they can focus effort on winning drivers' championships for Alonso.

If that's the case then I can't comprehend why they wouldn't keep Massa. He is well aware of his position as number two, and has out qualified Alonso a number of times this season. Do they really think they'll get number 1 in the constructors championship with someone who isn't really a team player, like Raikkonen.

[Bob Danger]

The BBC is now confirming Raikkonen at Ferrari.