Super Aguri to test Yamamoto Japanese Formula Nippon driver Sakon Yamamoto will be tested by Super Aguri for a race drive the week before the French Grand Prix. Yamamoto tested for Jordan last year and was the team's Friday third driver at last year's Japanese GP, earning him a Formula One superlicence. The test will take place at Silverstone and will be run to evaluate Yamamoto's F1 potential, as team principal Aguri Suzuki wants to run a second Japanese driver alongside Takuma Sato. Sato has been partnered since the European GP by Franck Montagny, called up to replace Yuji Ide after he was stripped of his superlicence by the FIA. Although the team acknowledged Ide had failed to live up to performance expectations, and has praised Montagny's technical input, Suzuki has never hidden his desire to maintain the team's 'all-Japanese' identity. Montagny only has a race-by-race deal with the team. Should Yamamoto perform sufficiently well at Silverstone, he could replace Montagny as early as the July 13 French GP. Race promoters are certain to lobby against such a move, however, as Montagny is currently the only French driver in F1. Super Aguri will also test their updated chassis at Silverstone. The new SA06 car features extensive bodywork modifications. Sounds like a case of driver's musical chairs to me! Should the race promoters lobby for Magny Cours, I hope they win and Montagny stays in the game. I think that at this point in the F1 calendar with the point situation and challenges, that now's not the time to be sending last year's third driver for one GP to "see how he does". I suspect another Ide?? FYI, if you aren't following LeMans, Montagny set the fastest time at Test Day for Pescarolo - just edging out the Audi R10. Carol
Gone are the days of finding the fastest guy in the support (move-up) series it seems. Why race F3000 or F3 or F2 (or whatever the hell it is) when the only folks moving into F1 are 'test' drivers ? What does that tell us ?
Close. It's actually the prize in 5 Cracker Jacks boxes destined for Japan. Some FIA promotional thing in the wake of recent Japanese F1 driver bashings. 2 down 3 to go
To be honest Franck Montany hasnt really lit a fire under Takuma san in the last few races has he? I think Taku must be liking this season - he has not crashed out in a race (correct me if I am wrong), he has not been clipped on the head by an irate German for poor driving and he has made Franck and Ide look v. ordinary. I wish they could have tried out Anthony Davidson for a couple races instead of Admiral Yamamoto . Here are some qually times for comparison FWIW Sato Ide Gap Bahrain 97.411 100.27 2.9% Malaysia 99.011 100.72 1.7% Australia 92.279 96.164 4.2% Imola 87.609 89.282 1.9% Sato Franck Gap N'ring 95.239 106.505 11.8% Spain 78.92 80.63 2.2% Monaco 77.276 77.502 0.3% Franck is closer if you can ignore his first race where he got in w/o practice but thereafter is on average closer than Sato but not better. And Sato is no Kimi Raikkonen. I think it is a lot easier to do a great Friday drive and shine when you can use all the tires and all the revs without the pressure of qualifying and racing. Easy beans for the good guys at least. Wurz would perhaps be the best racer/tester of the lot today.
Totally agree. For the most part Franck was struggling to keep the car on the track pointing forward. Not a revelation and not a loss.
This may go a ways in proving it's not all driver, the car must not be so good ? Whatever happened to the second banana Lotus driver from the 80's, Satoryu Nakajima, or whatever his name was ? Was on the team because (or in large part) he brought EPSON money with him...
I thought you had to collect 10 UPC's from cereal boxes in Japan for the super license. I really hope so because I have been buying Japanese cereal online in hopes of getting a drive next season. Mark
I don't think that accepting a drive in the "Super" Aguri team has done any good to Montagny's career or prospect of a 'proper' F1 job. Some team are a time so bad, so desperate and pathetic that being linked with them in any way or form is a 'kiss of death'. People like de La Rosa, Wurz, etc... prefer to stay test drivers in top team than accepting an offer from an 'also-ran'. David Brabham, Perry McCarthy, Bruno Giacomelli are just a few examples of very talented drivers (Championship winners all of them) who had their careers slaughtered by association with underperforming teams.
Do you think Alonso was in exception? Took the drive at Minardi and then got a spot at Renault. I think talent will still show when driving a crappy car on race setup vs. test setup. Other teams can watch the driver who is actually racing the car and see talent in them. We might be blind to it, but I'm sure they can spot good and bad drivers from the other side of the fence when scouting..
No he wasn't. There was Senna in the Toleman before him. And MS in the Jordan. Talent always shines through. Of the drivers William mentions I only knew Bruno Giacomelli and IMHO he simply didn't have what it takes in F1; regardless of car.
I guess that Honda and Aguri want to keep it an all Japanese team. FM hasn't done much, but than again the car is pretty bad, I would have thought he would shine in Monaco, but that wasn't the case.
Me too!!! (too funny - when I first read the story, I was thinking more along the lines of Cracker Jack prizes). Carol
I love the hopeless backmarkers - good for entertainment. I wonder how long it will be before Ide stars on http://www.f1rejects.com
you should really go to frank's website, you will see he was having a terrible time. he was shut out from both F1 and from ChampCar when he was not able to secure a contract. his dream was to race in F1 and moving to ChampCar would definetely been the kiss of death. He says that this race seat is the best that has happened to him. I say let him stay, let him prove what he is worth.
Super Aguri should change their name to Super Aguri Brothers, get sponsored by Nintendo and get podiums bu dropping bannana peels on the track.
LOL Thanks for the link to looserville, that's so funny: Rahal, Sullivan (the hero of a friend of mine) and Posey (ex blabbermouth from Speed TV) from the US And a Jacques Villeneuve from Canada, who raced in the early eighties. Never heard of him. Amazing find, thanks! PS: They even list Luca Badoer: Longest drive without a single point. PPS: MS made their hall of shame list.
