The Alonso needs to go thread

Oh my! "scusi" to both Peter(s) for my confusion...if I ever manage to go to Australia (very much on my wish list but my wife says "no way", the flight is much too long for her) I should present my apologies in person to both of you.

Yesterday I was trying to compare, if there could be any sense in this, the time it took for Michael Schumacher to get his first title at the wheel of a Ferrari: that came for his fifth season at the wheel (1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, and then 2000) but the cars were fully competitive from 1997 onwards.
Other comparison would be between successive titles: the widest interval is Lauda, seven years between 1977 and 1984, but with a two year stop. Or your own Jack Brabham with 6 between 1960 and 1966.
Alonso's would be seven between 2006 and 2013, should this occur at the end of the year. That would be the longest interval in the championship history...

The only truly competitive Ferrari he has driven during his stay at the team was the 2010 car. From this, it seems to have been going downhill (well, slower would be more right).
I still believe the last, last chance for the Alonso/Ferrari partnership would be 2014; if they do not deliver in 2013 or 2014, well the partnership will have lost its steam and will to go...

Rgds

 

I might be wrong but I think the main problem for Alonso at McLaren was Ron Dennis. He said a few times he didn't have a problem with LH.

 

I'd buy tickets to see that.

 

He has nice helmets from other teams.
https://twitter.com/alo_oficial/status/362916386244292608/photo/1

Seb wrote: "To Fernando, A great competitor on track. I love racing against you!"

 

Sorry, private test with black helmets...

 

Face facts people - Alonso is going nowhere!

(From: Flavio Briatore says Ferrari's Fernando Alonso is not angling for a 2014 Red Bull seat | Fernando Alonso Profile | Formula 1 | Sky Sports) :

Fernando Alonso has "no temptation whatsoever" to try and engineer a shock move away from Ferrari to rivals Red Bull, Flavio Briatore, who heads the Spaniard's management team, has insisted........

.........When the speculation was put to him directly, Alonso insisted he was "very happy" at Ferrari, where he has a deal that runs to the end of 2016, with the team themselves also making clear the 32-time grand prix winner is under contract.

Now Briatore, Alonso's former boss at Renault but who still heads the management company that represents the double World Champion, has told the Italian media that the Spaniard isn't angling for a move away from Maranello.

"Fernando has a contract and contracts must be respected," Briatore told Gazzetta dello Sport. "Alonso has never said he wants to leave. Ferrari-Alonso remains a winning pairing."

And asked whether the Spaniard was tempted to join Red Bull, Briatore replied: "No. No temptation whatsoever."

 

I'll take it as he is off to RB then...

Take Flavio's word at your own risk..

 

When did Flav ever play less than straight?

 

Just the insinuation drives me into the wall.

Make that; up the wall.

 

No one who plays fast and loose has ever made it in F1.

 

Normally I'd wouldn't trust Briatore to water My house plants while I go away on holiday, and I have to say that the: "Fernando has a contract and contracts must be respected"! comment made Me chuckle in light of the whole McLaren/Alonso fiasco, but in the current situation it makes no sense to Me for Alonso to jump ship to RB.

As I've previously posted elsewhere, next year is a complete unknown for all of the teams due to the V6 Turbo's coming in and all the other new regulations. Even with Adrian Newey at RB, there's still no guarantee that their car is going to be the class of then field or a guarantee that they'll have perfect reliability, especially as it will no longer be an evolution of the previous years successful car.

A new team, with a completely unknown quantity car, and personnel with whom you have no relationship with at all, whilst your team-mate is very intimate with the whole teams set up? To Me that's a double Whammy "On the backfoot" set up straight away!

As for RB, lets be honest here, that's Vettel's team, just as Ferrari is Alonso's. Look at all the support Vettel gets from the RB hierarchy when there's any controversy and compare it to the relative lack of support for Webber.

Why is it almost always Webber's car that seems to get problems during qualifying/in races? - coincidence? - He's just an unlucky guy?, or do the team make sure that Vettel's car is spot on and if there are any parts that may have a question mark hanging over them then the team ensure they go on Webber's car and not Vettel's?

Think back to the British Grand Prix in 2010. Vettel smashed his new front wing beyond repair in Saturday practice and there were no spare wings available so the team simply nicked Webber's new wing rather than saying: "Bad luck Seb! - Marks keeping his new front wing because he didn't break it!".

Whilst I'm sure the RB team are very professional about their racing, I'm just as sure that if it came down to Vettel or Alonso winning the WDC for them, they'd prefer Vettel to win.

As it stands, next year Ferrari stand as much chance of coming up with a great car as any of the others due to the cars being completely fresh rather than an evolution of the previous years car.

For all anybody knows, the 2014 Ferrari could dominate the races and the Red Bull (and all of the Renault engine users), could be blowing up at every other race! (By the same token, it could happen the other way round too! - but that's the point, next year is going to be a gamble for everyone! - there's no safe ground based on what the teams had before).

The advantages of staying at Ferrari?: Alonso knows the Ferrari team inside out and he knows exactly how all of their processes operate. There's no additional aggravation of getting used to a new way of dealing with everything outside the car as well as inside it for him. No additional distractions.

He knows that the team are 100% behind him and his WDC campaign, and that he's not going to get some sort of 50/50 deal with his team-mate, as would be the case (at best!), with RB and Vettel.

Still to this day, there is more prestige with winning for Ferrari than any other team.

And lets not forget, the company cars at RB are so rubbish that even Vettel chooses to drive a Ferrari! (And he has to pay for his! - whilst Alonso more than likely gets his for free! )

 

I'm not sure about that one!

Try reading about Eddie Jordan's F1 exploits! - Fast, loose, wild and often with more chancing of the arm than Me walking up to Jennifer Aniston and saying: "Alright Jen? - Any chance of a date?", and he did pretty well out of F1.

Even Bernie used to play it pretty fast and loose at times in the early days (before he learned that it was much easier and profitable to play with a stacked deck!).

 

Where do I put that ironicon?

 

This is an interesting article. Perhaps this rift is worse than we thought…? Are we about to see the Scuderia clean house?




'Drivers come and go, Ferrari remains' | Planet F1 | Formula One News




Tension rose at the Italian stable in the wake of the Hungarian Grand Prix when Fernando Alonso told reporters that he wanted a car that "the others have" as his 32nd birthday present.

His remark did not go down well at Ferrari with di Montezemolo reportedly phoning the Spaniard to let him know all about it.

This minor rift comes amidst speculation that Alonso could be seeking a move to Red Bull Racing as Mark Webber's replacement.

But rather than sooth any ruffled emotions, di Montezemolo has made it clear in an interview with Corriere della Sera's sports editor Daniele Dallera where his priorities rest.

"Our fans should never be forgotten, they deserve respect and therefore they are entitled to get satisfaction. We must work for Ferrari and for them," said the Italian.

"Let me make it clear that it's Ferrari I'm interested in.

"Drivers, we've had a lot, some very good, some great, but drivers come and go, while Ferrari remains."

Speaking specifically about the Alonso situation, he said: "Fernando is a great driver and I understand him, he is a bit like me: he wants to win.

"He must just remember that one wins and loses together and for its part, Ferrari must give him a car capable of starting from the front two rows... It doesn't sit well with me seeing our car is not competitive.

"That's why I intervened, even if I didn't want to abuse my authority over my men. However, it had to be done. But how? We started so well, we had begun the World Championship with a very competitive car, maybe even considered the best. But something happened and instead of moving forward we went backwards.

"Therefore the right attitude, the one I am taking from now on is as follows: understand the mistakes, fix them and after this careful analysis develop the car in the right direction.

"We must put our heads down in this return match, as I describe this second part of the season after the break, a break I don't like, but we have to adhere to it."

He added: "Fernando has given a lot in these last years and I repeat, his disappointment, which came about mainly after Silverstone, where all of us expected to be more competitive, is understandable. But I didn't like some attitudes, a few words, some outbursts. And I said so...

"I reminded everyone, including the drivers, that Ferrari comes before everything, the priority is the team. Rather like a family father pointing out the need to respect some family rules: I wish to underline the concept of family values...

"Felipe is a quick driver and a great guy. But in the past days, we were very clear with him: both he and us need results and points. Then, at some point, we will look one another in the eye and decide what to do."

However, it's not just his drivers who need to pull their weight, team boss Stefano Domenicali also needs to show results which di Montezemolo believes he has done even though the team is still lacking a Drivers' title under his reign.

"Stefano was born and raised with us from all managerial points of view. But as a sportsman, he knows he needs results.

"However, when one talks about Domenicali, one truth is king: under his management we have one one Constructors' title and come very close to three Drivers' titles. Two of those we could easily have won and then people's opinion of Domenicali would be very different.

"There's one thing I remind him of very often: he has to get the most out of every individual in his organisation, never be satisfied and if necessary, take some drastic and painful decisions."

 

Every time the racing takes a break this sort of speculation starts.
Once there is something real to discuss all this will be forgotten.

 

Ah yes, in the pursuit of truth false knowledge is more harmful than ignorance..

 

Well, you'd know.

 

LOL I know I know..

 

Someone should compile the best silly season rumors. It would make for a great thread.

 

It would be good for a bit of crow eating also..

 

That's the epic part.

 

Latest from LdM on the team etc-

Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo stands by F1 Alonso rebuke - F1 news - AUTOSPORT.com

 

they both speak from the heart, which is refreshing. the corporate speak is tiresome and boring.

 

+1, but remember, Alonzo is an employee. I mean, even Jensen Button has a WDC on the backs of a trick diffuser. If the car is superior, an above average driver can become WDC with some luck. Heck, Massa was one corner from a championship.

 

Red Bull confirms Hungaroring meeting was about Alonso | News | Motorsport.com