RBR is using Renault again. it was a multi-year deal....
To me, the interesting thing is who will be the #2 driver at McLaren - Jenson Button? Or will it be Pedro De La Rosa because of the Satander sponsorship?
My guess is F are hedging their bets with whomever will be the best winning combo for '09. If KR and FM do well for '08 then they could continue for '09 but if changes need to be made that's where FA comes in. So not unless FA has things locked up for '09 he needs to make things count right now as time is a wasting.
Kimi. Do you have proof that he is selfish? Peter Nope - none at all. But as Ayrton Senna once told Mansell - after he won his first Championship - once you win the Championship, you don't want anyone else to have it. You don't want to share that feeling with anyone else.....
I think Alonso is still the best wheel to wheel racer today but his off track antics and inability to form a cohesive bond with his team are significant negatives. Mario Thyssen said that he wouldnt consider Alonso for his "poisonous" behavior. Jean Todt feels the same. McLaren will never take him again. That's three top teams that are turning him down. The only way Luca will get him is to get rid of Jean Todt who likes the current combo of drivers. I think Ferrari has the perfect driving combo today with Raikkonen and Massa. The two work fine together, they are non-controversial and with a decent car can easily win both championships. The only way it makes sense is to keep the top drivers (Alonso, Hamilton and Raikkonen) in different teams. If these guys are part of the same team, there is very good chance that the team would fracture into two inward looking halves and they would lose focus on the other teams.
Rumour has it that Kimi could well retire at the end of next season, if he wins the championship again. He has been saying that he doesn't intend to be in F1 for long as there are other things he wants to do and that matching Mika's two WDC would be fine for him. So is that how Alonso factors into Ferraris plans ???
LONDON, England (CNN) -- Spain's Fernando Alonso has torn up his contract at McLaren and quit the Formula One team after a stormy year which has seen him deposed as world champion. Alonso, who finished third in the 2007 standings behind teammate Lewis Hamilton and new champion Kimi Raikkonen, is now free to join another team A source with knowledge of the Alonso-McLaren talks told CNN that it is not yet known where Alonso will go next. The 26-year-old has been linked with a return to his former team Renault or may sit out 2008 awaiting a possible spot at Italian giants Ferrari. Alonso, who had two years left on his contract with British-based McLaren, courted controversy for his strained relationship with Hamilton and team boss Ron Dennis and his departure appeared almost inevitable. "Since I was a boy I had always wanted to drive for McLaren, but sometimes in life things do not work out," said Alonso in a statement released by the team. "I continue to believe that McLaren is a great team. Yes, we have had our ups and downs during the season, which has made it extra-challenging for all of us, and it is not a secret that I never really felt at home. "I know there have been suggestions of favoritism within the team and people say a lot of things in the heat of battle, but in the end I was always provided with an equal opportunity to win." Dennis added: "Everybody at Vodafone McLaren Mercedes, especially McLaren's Spanish partners Banco Santander and Mutua Madrilena and the team's title partner Vodafone, want to wish Fernando all the best for the future." Alonso has been in intense negotiations over his early exit with McLaren, who said on their Web site that he had left "in the best interests of both parties." The 2007 season had started promisingly for McLaren, but rookie Hamilton's early successes appeared to unsettle Alonso as the title race boiled down to a four-way race between the McLaren drivers and Ferrari's Raikkonen and Felipe Massa. The first clear sign of friction occurred at the Hungarian Grand Prix in August when Alonso was accused of preventing Hamilton from completing a final qualifying lap. He was demoted from pole position to sixth on the grid by race stewards. More serious was the Formula One 'spy scandal' which saw McLaren fined over $100 million by the sports governing body, the FIA. During the FIA investigation it was alleged Alonso had threatened to go the FIA with sensitive information and Dennis revealed that he had not spoken to Alonso in several weeks. A fragile peace was established for the championship decider at the Brazil GP, but it proved a disastrous finale for McLaren as neither Hamilton or Alonso could secure the points they needed to win the title and Raikkonen prevailed.
...damn...this guy is getting closer...will he wait over at redbull to join Ferrari?...is starting to make sense now...AND I DONT LIKE IT...I dont want him in Ferrari...ever.
I disagree. Alonso won the second WDC because Schumacher had an engine failure at Suzuka in 2006. I would call that accident / luck for Alonso. I firmly believe Schumacher would have been WDC last year had this not happened, and Alonso would only be a 1x WDC. And I hope we do not see Alonso in a Ferrari, ever. Based on my observations of his behaviour at McLaren this year, putting him in a Ferrari would be highly beneficial for Alonso, but highly detrimental for the team's image. He is the same person who intended to get out of his car on the grid at Monaco last year and sit on the track in front of Schumacher's car in protest, is he not? Do you think he is so much more mature now, after his actions this year with McLaren, and his dealings with Massa in front of the TV camera? I simply wouldn't want him around. He won't score that many more points than Massa, and he will conflict too much with Kimi. And his heart would not be in the team, unlike Massa who has always said it's his dream to be a part of SF.
Fred is a great driver. but his character and personality won't fit with Ferrari. if he joins, he'd leave within 1 year. he whines and blames every1 but himself. in every retirement Kimi and Massa had this year, have anyone here heard if they were pointing fingers to anybody? if the Ferrari fails Fred on track, he'd say something like he feels like he's alone in the team, no one is supporting him, etc.
I think that I would be willing to watch FA (at Red Bull or wherever) next year before making up my mind. We could also be watching both Kimi and Massa at the same time. I personally don't see that much difference of ability between the three of them. Hamilton, ability yes, experience not quite yet. We will of course be watching him next year as well, but chances of LH jumping to Ferrari -ever - seem nil to me. For those who want Massa gone, remember that Kimi and Ferrari owe both their titles to him in a large part. Wonder if FA would have done such a selfless thing as Massa did in Brazil? I also wonder if Hamilton will do as well without a first rate counterpart on his team to spur him on?
...no no no no wait...the press sais he´s free to join any other team...if Ferrari were thinking on him why wait until 2009?...if Ferrari was thinking on moving Massa to make Alonso room it will happen soon...I dont think is gonna happen...he´s going over to Renault for a lot more money than renault wants to pay and a number 1 contract...or well, RedBull might have the money to pay him and build a respectable team around him a-la-schumi on 97...
http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/63748 MS quote on FA moving to Ferrari: "I have to disappoint all of Fernando's fans - I don't think anything will happen in that direction in the next three years," Ferrari's former champion Michael Schumacher said last week.
i hope Michael will come back into racing should Fernando join Ferrari. he might quit the team after 3 races.
+1...and I dont want him in Ferrari ever.I dont like the guy.He´s a 2WDC...yes...we have them in Ferrari already...it just hasnt happend yet.but it will...and I´ll prefer them over Alonso any day of the week double champions or not.
Good for Fernando. Fisichella is not yet confirmed at Renault for next season so I think he will sort out his retainer with Flav and be back at Renault next year. But he'd better do it soon in order to start testing cars without traction control and get used to a new chassis on the Bridgestone tires.
