WHO TO REPLACE ROSBERG AT MERCEDES IN 2017?

+100, That is why I love MS and wish him all the best.

 

Me tooo...... I pray that one day we will see him walking and talking again and recovered. It must be the most awful thing for someone such as he to be 'locked in' to such injuries

Forza Michael

 

To be fair - there really isn't an opportunity to really test anymore. Definitely one of the glaring issues in F1; particularly now that they have removed the token system IMHO.

Yah there is sim work - but nothing is quite like rubber to the road.

 

Because MB is left with few options thanks to the little ****head Rosberg.
Because they need a #2 driver
Because he is their official spare driver

That said if Massa is dumb enough to come back they might get their wish with Bottas who would be the better option

 

That's not a very nice way to describe the current world champion. Mercedes are reaping what they sowed with him, they treat him like dirt, he drops them in the ****. Karma

 

+1.

 

Devils advocate here but one could perhaps argue the opposite is true.

When testing was involved Michael had to work harder to obtain his titles but in some views that may have made it even easier. For starters, you gain an even bigger advantage over teams with small budgets. Even over the bigger teams - Ferrari have their own track which afforded them Unlimited running which other teams didn't get. Secondly, you get far more practice to be familiar with the car. Today's drivers get very limited running. If you get your set up wrong your weekend is badly compromised so you need to be much more intune with the car. Limited running in qualifying means a lot more pressure to get it right. . It is in this way that the current formula allows pure driving talent to shine through. In the testing days the winning drivers weren't necessarily the most talented but the hardest working (no doubt Schumacher was both).

In terms of the development freeze solidifying the pecking order then maybe but even then you still need to know how to improve your car. Renault and Honda have both gone backwards after token spends which suggests to me otherwise.

I think the era doesn't really matter - dominant runs will exist under almost any formula and championships are always hard to win.

 

Yes, this 2016 WDC may end up like a pyrrhic victory for Mercedes.

Rosberg's sudden departure has shaken down the whole team structure.

 

You read things in my post that were never written. I never said anything about how anyone got into any car, just that once they are in the car they have little to nothing input to make the car a championship contender, it either is or it is not...

Sorry to say it a little bit harsh but this is complete biased nonsense...
You do not have to be a Schumacher fan to come to the conclusion that the crash with Villeneuve was not intentionally as you imply but a reflex after being surprised by the pass of Jacque. If Michael really intended to end the WDC by crashing out the fast approaching Williams he just needed to change lane earlier having Villeneuve rear-ending him...
Schumacher was not penalized for his move but for the drivel he said afterwards instead of admitting his fault. The FIA made an example that they will not accept a crash deciding the WDC anymore and actually he was sanctioned for something Prost and Senna did earlier. He accepted the point stripping as he did not care whether he is listed as second or not at all...
And to take away the credit of 7 WDC because of this (that was not even one of these 7 WDC) is laughable when someone complains at the same time that this forum does not appreciate the achievements of a three times WDC!!!

 

Sure, this is completely different today...we see it every weekend when the Sauber and Manor dominate the field
Look at the last three years: all the Mercedes drivers had to do is beating their team mate. Little to nothing did they need to bother about developing the car.
In Wimbledon until 1922 the previous champion only had to play the final against the challenger, would you rate this more or less than one who has to go all the way to win the title?
And back in the Schumacher days diligence did not replace talent, it was only an addition as everyone was free to do the same he did.

 

It will throw multiple teams in a tizzy with the trickle down effect.

 

We should be happy. We have had utter predictability to the sport of late. Nice to see the Nico departure engender further change and add spice to the next season of F1!

 

It's rather interesting all this at the moment:

Mercedes appears to only sign Wehrlein as an absolute last resort. They clearly want Bottas. Williams are then left without a driver, they really don't want Wehrlein (no doubt Mercedes tries to force him down their throats), so Williams is trying to get poor old Massa out of retirement, a man who hasn't exactly been driving like a god for the last 1.5 seasons.

All this leads me to a question: just how bad is Wehrlein? How much did ignoring the team radio cost him? It seems obvious to me if he doesn't even listen to a simple radio instruction, getting him to move over is going to be impossible.

 

Though testing is largely disallowed, I think a mention should go out to Vettel as to dedicating himself to the team as much as he can.

When F1 switched to the Pirelli tires, Vettel, a fresh champion, went to the Pirelli factory multiple times in the off-season to try and understand every single aspect of the tires, he wanted to know everything there was to know from construction to compound, temperature ranges and more. He was the only driver to go there. No one else bothered. Whenever a test day IS allowed, Vettel finds himself in the seat and hammers in the laps.

So whilst Schumacher really went all out dedication wise, I think Vettel would just as much if testing was still allowed. Vettel imitates many things Schumacher did, such as genuinely getting to know people he works with, he knows who everyone is, who their wives are, how their kids are. IMO Vettel is truly dedicated to the team and sport. He is often the first to arrive and last to leave.

Hamilton OTOH tries to find every excuse not to drive, rather spending time with his homies and the kardashians. He's said it multiple times that he doesn't want to test. Lol.

 

If Massa lands the drive again will he get to keep the car , a kind of golden hello?

 

Mercedes wouldn't want to have 2 drivers that ignore orders. lol I don't know how bad Wehrlein is, but he is driving in F1. However, in comparison to the other drivers on the grid, he seems like a back marker.

 

Correct.
Now according to Channel 4 interview too;

And Hamilton has warned Mercedes to be careful who they choose as his new team-mate for 2017 and beyond.
"Basically, once they've dwindled it down to five drivers, or whatever it is, the shortlist, contractually they have to discuss with me," the Englishman told Channel 4 television.

 

from brazilian news: É verdade: as chances de Massa ficar na Williams para 2017 são grandes

Main information:
- Faster cars and fatter tires will demand experienced drivers to develop the car, and Massa can do this. Furthermore he has a very good relationship w/ the team;

- Even Bernie Ecclestone is gettin involved in order to block Pascal;

-FW-39 will be a better developed car, due to budget being better than previous years;

- Engines supplied free by Mercedes (EUR 16mi economy) (mercedes would pay this+bonuses to Rosberg in 2017, from what I've understood, so no harm to MB finances).

- Stroll arriving w/ 24mi EUR to the team (good for FW39 development);

- Massa to be offered Bottas contract (EUR 6 mi + bonus);

- Possible Paddy Lowe move to Williams (the author says he is not feeling accordingly valued at MB) makes a stronger team;

Massa is arriving in Brazil today, but possible annoucements will be made only after Mercedes annoucements.


Regards

Victor

 

Hahaha...I can´t stop laughing!!!
How many times did we hear from the Hamilton fans that their master would challenge every single driver and therefore does not need any clause in his contract giving him a voice when it comes to his team mate??? That only Vettel and Alonso need that and do not allow anyone next to them they do not approve...and now this!!! Hahaha, another argument often heard why Hamilton is the better champion down the toilet....

 

so much for ''the great one''.

 

Guess Nico actually worked him over as he appears to be less interested in an honest challenge. Lets not forget he negotiated his own contract. He may not even understand that LOL!

Toto was quite clear that he actually is an employee and his consultation will be after they have picked the new driver if the press is true!

The statement here - Mercedes boss Toto Wolff claims Lewis Hamilton won't be involved in the decision-making process for Nico Rosberg's replacement.

The Silver Arrows hope to make an announcement on their 2017 driver line-up in December, with Pascal Wehrlein and Valtteri Bottas the current favourites.

"It is like many other employees," Wolff told Sky Sports when asked if Hamilton could choose who is next team-mate is. "We will give Lewis the information once we’ve come to a point where we think it’s a sensible decision and then inform him."

The Austrian's comments follow Hamilton's claims that he doesn't care who he is partnered with next season, as long as he has equal rights.

 

All good points. Personally, even if Wehrlein had killed it at Manor, I would still be terrified if I'm Williams. He has zero experience developing an F1 car and has a wild driver coming in as a teammate (Stroll).

 

Is that a confirmed quote? That's pretty crazy if so after he went out of the way to criticize Vettel and Alonso for having a say in their teammate.

 

He also said in that same conversation that he doesn't get to pick the driver or even have a say in it. He just gets to give his input. I'm pretty sure the top tier drivers all have that stipulation. I know it's fun just rail against Lewis for everything, but this was taken a bit out of context.

I do think it'll be interesting if Bottas does move over to Merc as highly speculated. He's fast... but we don't know if he's a "top tier" driver... a WDC caliber driver. if he goes to Merc and doesn't win races... I think that shows that Lewis and Nico were certainly two of the best drivers in the two best cars on the grid. If he does win races, it'll be interesting to see how that plays out. Will that prove that these days it's really all about the car... that you can pretty much plug in any capable driver and win? Personally I do feel that when it comes to actually racing and not just cruising out front, that Lewis had an edge on Nico, but I'll be interested to see if they split the wins between them if Bottas moves over.

 

LH also refers to it as "the second car", rather than "the other car" It's a subtle difference but shows he's already manoeuvring himself into being defacto No 1 driver, whereas with Rosberg they had seemingly equal status.