Do you think Sebastien Bourdais deserves a shot in F1?

First of all not every driver makes it in ever series. Second two out of the three driver you mentioned were successful, one was a champ and the other won several races in a few years. The third Zanardi is still a great driver even though F1 wasn't a match.

How do you rate success?

 

But the star of Div II is MORE LIKELY to do well in Div I-A than some joe from the street.

 

Well he did though, he was the formula 3000 champion (now called GP2) and signed as a test driver for Arrows before they fell out. He didn't have any other options in F1 at the time so he went to Champcar. Being a formula 3000 champ and a three time champ in CC, he probably thinks he's earned the right to be looked upon as a better option than some new young gun who just won the F3000/GP2 title, (or came 2nd in Nelson's case) and gets a top drive or top testing role with a stong likelyhood at becoming at a race seat, like Nico, Speed, Nelson and Louis. If Nico gets a race seat at Williams, Nelson a testing role at Renault and a very strong chance of racing next year, and Hamilton gets the same thing at Mclaren, and Scott gets a drive, why should Bourdais be looked at as 2nd rate? If I were him though, I would just take whatever testing role is offered. You never know where it will lead or what can happen, and it's a better idea then just staying at Champcar. I think he can always go back to Champcar, so he might as well go off to Super Best Friends or Spyker or whatever backmarker team and hope for the best.

 

nope, just another jacques Villenueve or Montoya. Waste of time. Stay in Champ car

 

Well I think most people would rather have "another Jacques Villenueve or Montoya" than the current Ralph, DC, Jarno, Sato, Rubens, Fisi and De la Rosa who have been around for just as long and haven't achieved as much.

 

Ralf Schumacher wears glasses and JV does too - though he is no longer in F1 (hallelujah!).

There are a couple of other drivers who are rumored to be wearing contacts - Rubens being one of them.

 

He's plainly good enough to do a respectable job in F1, but wrong place, wrong time, plenty of people like that. Maybe he enjoys his job more than Davidson? (and more likely will in 2007!!!)

My hope is the new format Champcars of 2007 will bring in more entries and better depth of talent, which will reflect better on him if he continues his winning ways. I have a funny idea that this Will Power is going to wake a few up though.

 

He needs to stay with the CHAMP cars and prototypes.

Carol

 

So........ you are saying he doesn't deserve a shot at F1 ?
If not, why not ?

 

Age is not exactly in his favor and to me it seems a more stable future where he is now and if he can drive the new Peugeot at LeMans that would be great. There's much promise with that ride. I guess a question to answer would be if he was meant to be in F1, why hasn't he been testing by now?

Carol

 

Of course he deserves a chance. He's more adept than some of the current F1 drivers. But good luck getting anyone to remember him.

 

He was close to get a seat in the Prost team but the team went bankrupt.
He had contacts with Renault but is in bad terms with at least two heads of Renault including Briatore. Briatore wanted to sign a exclusivity contract with Bourdais (sort of contract when you sign you'll have to ask Mr Briatore first each time you want to pee if you know what I mean).

Sure Bourdais has money and sponsors. But you need - tons - of money to get a seat. And some sponsors like Mc Donalds are not willing to pay such an amount of money because in USA, their primary market, Champ Car or NASCAR are way more popular than the "european" F1. They want a coverage to target their customers and they want their money back. They just can't be interested in philantropic behavior or just "fame for fame".

To me he should stay in USA. He has lots of friends, can race a few years more and then become a team manager or a pilots manager. I wouldn't jeopardize all this for maybe one or two years in an average F1 team to be pushed out by pilots like Ide or Sato who came with a few more millions than you.

Did he deserves a shot in F1 ? Sure. He won't be ridiculous but I agree, it is probably too late now for him. And to my opinion, it's better for him.

 

If he deserved a shot at F1, I would think he would have gotten one by now. There is no way that the top teams would completely ignore any driver that showed a reasonable degree of talent. Given that none of the teams have shown any interest in him, then it appears to me none of the team principals see any value in him.

Who is he beating in Champ Cars, anyway? Justin Wilson? A bunch of has-beens and never-will-be. I think his talent is over-inflated. He is at absolute best a mid-pack runner and that is being generous.

 

+1, I agree, Lewis Hamilton just got a race seat at McLaren, a top team, and if SB can't get a race seat anywhere, he must not deserve one. Plus since there has not been a straight road between F1 and Champ Car, SB should try and create one.

 

Uh guys...getting a drive in Formula One isn't about talent alone. You have to have a ****load of sponsorship and investor backing to bring to the team, and also have some some marketability, not to mention whatever connections you need to have/make. Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Bourdais are two COMPLETELY different cases. Many drivers have said that there have been deserving drivers in the past, but don't make it. You think Takuma Sato or Ralph Shumacher deserve their seats? Results wise? Hell no, but can you guess why they still have their drives?

 

Ralf doesn't bring sponsorship to the team. On the contrary, he is one of the highest paid drivers in F1 and a GP winner.

Why do you think he still has a drive?

 

Looks like Bourdais is still trying to get his F1 break. He'll be testing with Toro Rosso before Christmas at Jerez.
Don't really know what to make of it but Even if the test goes will I'm not sure Toro Rosso is the team he'd like to partner with...

http://www.itv-f1.com/News_Article.aspx?PO_ID=38087

 

Ralph has a drive, and gets paid so much because he's the brother of the 7 time world champion, period. If guys like Montoya and Villenueve who have accomplished more, get sacked, then there is no reason why Ralph shouldn't be either. He seems like a nice guy, but for him to be paid 16-20 million a year, isn't a reflection on his performance.

 

I say give him a shot. He seems ruthless and balsy enough to make it in F1. He could drive the Spyker . . . or would the MacDonald's paint scheme look better on the Super Aguri?

 

It seems like these teams are throwing tests at anyone with skill. In the last month, Alex Zanardi, Marco Andretti, Sebastien B., Mika, and the drivers from China have all recieved tests. As I type away right now, I am on the phone with Ferrari arranging my race seat for next year. It seems a little ridicolous.

 

Yeah, they sound like publicity stunts to me. People were going nuts over news that Hakkinen and Zanardi were testing, and it was creating alot of buzz, which probably pleases the sponsors. Other teams are following, and I think this new test with Seabass, could be a counter to the news of Marco testing haha.