Williams-F1 blocking Schumacher from testing the F60.

Talk like that will get the tin hat/grassy knoll brigade going

 

But but I don't wear a tin hat..told you before stick to drinking whiskey..

 

Red Bull also now saying no.

Understandable really given that they can test his fitness in the 2007 car he drove a few days ago plus the fact that the new Torro Rosso guy managed to jump in an F1 car at Hungary & ran OK. If he can do it the Red Baron hardly needs any help!

 

MS skirts the rules simple as that .just like before ...I'll get my coat..

 

Isn't this Ferrari we're talking about? The team that MAKES the rules? Where's the problem?

 

They could just use their "veto".

 

Funny how TR and Redbull only disagreed with the test when Williams said no to it. They probably went along with the FOTA.

 

F2008K...the Kers test car

 

I can understand why some teams are against MS testing the F60; afterall rules are rules and the testing ban applies to everyone. There are no exceptions - every team signed off on that. MS can bring his fitness up to speed driving the F2007 whilst not receiving any competitive advantage by testing the current F1 car.

That being said I think there are stark differences between Jaime & MS, the first being that Jaime's selection was a pre-meditated mid-season driver change by STR, whilst MS was forced upon Ferrari due to FM's crash. Of course Ferrari had the choice of choosing one of their test drivers instead of MS, but even they have had limited time in the F60 this year. Baring that in mind, if I was a current F1 driver I'd be happier seeing an untested MS on the grid than a 19y.o kid who closest F1 experience involved PS3.

Either way, with or without an F60 test; I'd expect MS to be competitive .. at least as far as the F60 can be.

 

I agree with Williams because there really is no excuse to bend the rule for anyone including MS. F1 is an incredibly competitive environment and it is essential that everyone be forced to play by exactly the same rules. Teams spend all of their days ripping appart the rulebook trying to find loopholes and creative interpretations that will give them a competitive advantage. Of course this is F-Chat and Ferrari and MS fans will come up with all kinds of justifications of how this scenerio is special and they should cut the guy a break, etc. As both a Ferrari and MS supporter I say tough nuts. Either change the rule for everyone or stick by them there is no room for an in between because it opens the floodgates to rule bender chaos. Heck if one speaks of the spirit of the testing ban Ferrari is already skirting the rules by having MS test an 'non 09 spec' car and if he gets to drive a new car and it helps him by even 1 position in Spain then there is a team out there that will get screwed out of a result (even if it is 19th place) because of the unequal application of the rules.

That said, life is not always fair and neither are the FIA. Expect MS to drive an 09 car before practice at Valencia.

 

Very good rationale. Seems that common sense is in short supply at the FIA.

 

Simply pathetic this whole debacle is imho.

 

Ferrari should have promoted one of their test drivers, then no need for extra tests.

The only reason MS is there is SOLEY because Bernie wants to increase his ticket sales; LH has failed to maintain the English interest and Alonso will not be a the Spainish GP and to be quite frank this season, while different, has hardly been interesting on a racing front ... a few boring wins when a particular car works well is all that has happened. We have not had a RACE yet.

If I was a Ferrari test driver I would be thoroughly pissed off with Ferrari (and Bernie) ...
Pete
ps: I wonder if we will see an engineered win for MS ...

 

As has been said a million times here, they all agreed to this rule, and Ferrari does have other drivers, they just choose not to use them.
Let's ask this: what would be happening if MS did not offer to finish the year?

I'm a Ferrari fan, but they signed the rules, and they DO have other drivers.

 

How many 'RACES' have we had in the last 7 years? 5? maybe?

Ferrari + Italy + MS = your engineered win.

 

Before the last race of the season, MS will have tested 20 times. Practice, quali and race x 7. Mark my words. He will win by Abu Dhabi, if not sooner.

 

ya know what? my dad has a saying "there's no harm in asking"

 

I agree. They were right to ask, but they have no right to be angry if the answer is no. Unfortunately it looks like they are:

http://www.ferrari.com/English/News/Pages/090804_F1_Indiscretion.aspx

 

Too bad the two week vacation doesn't include press releases.

 

So true. I wish Ferrari would hold themselves to a higher standard and be a better example. This is why I wouldn't even have asked. But for asking, I can forgive - even understand. To comment on consenting to the request on behalf of Alguersuari, I can understand. But the gutter talk about Williams is just so beneath what I would expect and serves no positive purpose on any level. Sad really.

 

If that press release actually came from Ferrari it would be just one more demonstration of how badly managed and excessively large the team is. Williams took a position to support a rule and now Ferrari is castigating them for it? I'm an owner and a Ferrari F1 supporter for the last 40 years but I don't support them unconditionally, their response is just plain unprofessional and stupid.

 

+1

 

And so is in keeping with the rest of the F1 world today.
One would hope for better from Ferrari.

 

Ok now, I can understand other teams that wouldn't want an experimented driver to test his futur ride.
no problem.

But who the hell blocked the poor kid in the toro rosso?? that is plain stupid.

(i don't like the biter comment from ferrari though)

 

The issue for Williams and Toro Rosso isn't that they don't want Schumacher to familiarise himself with the car, normally that wouldn't be a problem. What is a problem is that if MS had time in the car Ferrari would have an opportunity to test and develop it, an opportunity denied to other teams.