Why would the Renault be inferior? It had piss-poor drivers in them this past season. Lewis wouldn't have been able to use Fernando's car setup and would have had to devise his own. It can make quite a difference. Btw, next year should be pretty interesting. We will have 3 to 4 drivers at separate teams competing for a championship. Kimi - Ferrari Lewis - McLaren Fernando - Renault Nick - BMW Sauber in that order
America Movil and Carlos Slim Jr. have dismissed any involvement with Renault. There is no Embratel (America Movil) sponsorship backing Piquet.
LOL! He has confidence in their depth! He didn't have this confidence after winning his 1st WC with them so he dumped them without even talking to Flavio about it. But now he has confidence after seeing them struggle all season. Why can't these press releases just tell the truth? It should have read: "I wasn't as quick as my rookie teammate in equal cars so I threw a massive tantrum and made the team so mad they fired me. Now my only decent option is Renault, even though I'd much rather be driving a Ferrari. Maybe next year..."
It will be interesting to see Alonso race Hamilton in differente teams. I'd not be suprised if there were some clashes between these two.
Piss poor? considering the fact that Fisi was designated no. 2 at the team and was working toward helping Alonso win those titles he consistently was on pace with Alonso and even pulled out a win or two when Alonso couldn't. Take it to heart that Fisi, and Kovi are out because Alonso wanted to eliminate any possibility of having someone as quick as him. I'm not saying Fisi is as fast as Alonso, he's not, but he's certainly at the sharper end of the grid most. And yes last years Renault was a piss poor car and Alonso has stated as much in today's question and answer.
Yes they do Ted, they (Renault and Flavio) know better than to have two #1 drivers. That's why as long as Kimi is at Ferrari, Alonso will live in Spain. And as long as Fred is #1, and has no teammate that threatens that #1, Fred is an excellent driver and teammate. Otherwise, speaking the truth is not slander, Alonso will destroy any team that does not allow him his way (or the highway). Give it up. Renault will be very competitive in 2008, Alonso THANKFULLY will stay there for the term of his contract. I predict he will win his third WDC by 2010. After Massa and Kimi get theirs. :}
Nope, it will be Kimi or Massa #1 Nick third Lewis OR Alonso a lucky fourth. But s I ay that, I have a funny feeling that the Renault will quite competitive, and it could be in that thrid spot. Maybe second after Massa.
I think it will be Kimi, Massa and Hamilton fighting for 1st all season. Alonsohole is gonna suck $^!t in his new go cart, and I bet his new teammate will end up with more points then him when the season is over.
I meant the positioning of #1 drivers between teams. Not that Felipe would finish 5th or worse. Sorta like comparing where Michael and JPM finished to one another several years back. I know Rubens was between the two several times, but it was interesting to see where those two finished with respect to one another.
but...one could argue that he drove a Ferrari last year for McL and presumably will drive a Ferrari next year for Renault, although the powers that be didn't punish Renault for their spying activities.
Ummmm...Alonso lives in England. When Alonso signed for McLaren, he expected to be partnered with Kimi and said as much in interviews at the time. If not, then he would have been partnered with JPM, a driver he absolutely knew was far more of a challenge than Fisi. Alonso's problems at McLaren arose from the fact that he felt as a veteran and 2X WDC he should have recieved favorable treatment over a rookie driver. With Kimi or JPM as a teammate, he absolutely expected to be co-#1 and said so in numerous interviews at the time of his signing. It is NOT that Alonso demands to be #1 anywhere he goes, it is that he felt the team should have been putting their support behind the driver with a better chance for the title, namely a 2-time WDC rather than a rookie driver. That is the source of his discontent at McLaren, not that he was not a contractual #1. Everyone in the paddock knows McLaren does not designate #1 drivers, including Alonso. This is all discussed in the current issue of Autosport. I have three words for you: no traction control. There is NO WAY IN HELL Massa wins a WDC in 2008 or in any year. None whatsoever. In fact, I would not be the least bit surprised if he goes winless in 2008, now that Kimi is accustomed to Ferrari and the Bridgestones and Massa no longer has his electronic leash. My guess for 2008 is: 1. Kimi 2. Hamilton 3. Alonso 4. Button 5. Heidfeld 6. Massa
As you know, I really dislike Alonso, as a person and as a sportsman. But he is a very very good driver, certainly in the top 2-3 on the grid and any one of those three could have a solid argument why they are #1, including Alonso. Having said that, I doubt that all three teams (Renault/McLaren/Ferrari) will be fighting for the WDC/WCC next year. Usually there is one team who is clearly superior, a 2nd team that has a shot to catch them, then "everyone else". Most are probably thinking the #1 and #2 teams will be Ferrari and McLaren and rightly so - Renault has a lot of ground to make up. As much of a better driver that Alonso is over Massa, I just don't think he is going to have a car good enough to make up the difference. I think car is 80% of it and driver 20%... but a Renault a few tenths a lap slower than Ferrari is something Alonso can't make up for no matter how well he drives. Usually it's the drivers for the top 2 teams taking up spots 1-4, so personally the chances of having 5 different teams taking the top 6 spots just wont happen. I think it will more likely be 1) Kimi 2) Hamilton 3) Massa 4) Hamilton's Teammate 5) Heidfeld or Alonso (depending on how good the Renault is) 6) Heidfeld or Alonso's teammate
The media is split over the uncertain length of Fernando Alonso's new Renault contract. The French team on Monday did not reveal the crucial detail in its announcement of the Spaniard's 2008 return, following weeks of speculation that Alonso was desperate to commit himself only for one season. The German news agency DPA, however, cites the information of a Renault spokesman in claiming that Alonso will stay at the Enstone based through to the end of 2009. The Spanish sports daily Marca reported a similar finding. But Auto Motor und Sport does not agree, saying the contract is for three years and a record $147 million retainer. The British newspapers The Times and The Independent also said Alonso's deal is for three years. The Daily Mail, another English newspaper, said Alonso has signed a multi-year contract, but with exit clauses that will make it possible for the former McLaren driver to leave for Ferrari after just one season. Spain's El Mundo Deportivo says the deal is for one year only, while Diario AS reports that Alonso and Renault will have the option to automatically renew for 2009. Meanwhile, following initial reports that Nico Rosberg has penned a new contract with Williams through to 2010, it is now clear that the German's more lucrative deal is actually only valid for 2008 and 2009. END OF F1 LIVE ARTICLE
I just read at a F1 site that FA is now the highest paid driver at $50 mil/year. WTF? where did renault get that kind of jack? They'll have to have a much cheaper #2 driver and very cheap test drivers and crew.
I'm amazed that fiscally conservative Renault would be willing to pay that kind of money for any driver. He better deliver...
I'm interested in your ranking of Button. Most people feel that Brawn will take until at least 2009 to significantly improve Honda's performance. Do you instead see that happening as early as next year? Or is your ranking more an indication of Button being a much better driver than Heidfeld?
He´s moved to Switzerland recently. Well, I think that he started having problems when he realized that he wouldn´t beat the rookie driver as easily as he expected. Remember Alonso even had problems with that poor Fisichella when he didn´t let Alonso pass, for example in Canada 05 and China 06. It´s a shame, as I think that Alonso would have beat Hamilton if he just had shut the **** up and drive as he can do.
I still feel there is more to the whole story than we may ever know. I have this contempt I never knew before for the whole sport, I no longer trust any of it, to much back door, and back room politics. To much theft and spying and not enough responsibility being laid at the feet of those responsible. The sport seems diseased and corrupt, far beyond anything I could ever imagine, and needs a gigantic overhaul. But that is unlikely to ever happen. Did Alonso go to McLaren on behalf of Renault, with the sole and primary purpose to extract engineering and strategy data from McLaren? Were Renault behind McLaren, via Alonso, in recieving the Ferrari documents? With that in mind, was Alonso a "plant", perpetrated by Renault to extract as much available data from both McLaren AND Ferrari? I personally feel Renault was just as guilty as McLaren in regards to espionage, and likewise feel they should have been punished equally. The fact they were not, fairly well discredits any semblence of integrity within the FIA governing body. Alonso was just as guilty as anyone at McLaren, perhaps more so as he possibly had the most to gain financially, and he should have been stripped of all his points. The flippant way he talked about using Ferrari data in testing vis a vis text messages was absolutely appaling. And there the whole while was Flavio flapping his lips about McLaren, when he was aware Renault was doing the very same thing. Now he welcomes his golden boy home with open arms (checkbook)?? While I was quite disapointed with McLaren when I became apprised of the espionage scandal, when I learned Renault had data from McLaren even before the Ferrari debacle, data equal to or exceeding the volume taken from Ferrari, I immediately became suspicious of Alonso and stated so at the time in another thread. I also made comments before regarding Alonso's involvement, and that it would not surprise me to see him go right back to Renault. I have since became somewhat sympathetic to McLaren. Perhaps they were judged to harshly, to quickly, and maybe thier undoing wasnt ever within thier control, but was infact, a setup. Its been said for ages to "follow the money". That saying may find more truth than ever as this situation continues to unfold. I dont believe we have heard the end of the espionage scandal, or Renault or Alonso's involvement in it. I pray, that Alonso and Renault fail miserably, and that Alonso NEVER drives for the Scuderia.
Lame..if true. Not a true competitor. Yes the MS situation comes to mind of course ala Rubens. So is it time for all of them to just drive. How about two teams in one? Tells me Fernando is not fearless and only drives if its easy to win, ie.. no competition in the team. So maybe hes just not that great? Of course again MS and his situations come to mind. Time for all that to stop??? Maybe..... From Planet F1 'Kovalainen dropped because he was too fast' Wednesday 12th December 2007 Heikki Kovalainen was reportedly jettisoned by Renault in favour of Nelson Piquet junior because Fernando Alonso was wary of the Finn's pace. While confirmation of Alonso's return to Renault this week was not a surprise, the ousting of Kovalainen was unexpected. The youngster excelled during the second half of his debut season, comfortably eclipsing the lacklustre Giancarlo Fisichella. Pointedly, team boss Flavio Briatore was unable to provide a satisfactory explanation for Kovalainen's dismissal in his farewell to both drivers, instead praising the Finn as "a fast, intelligent and engaging driver, who is definitely capable of winning races in the future." That capability may have proved his undoing, however, with Autosport disclosing: 'It is understood that his speed ultimately cost him the chance of staying on board at Renault, because the returning Fernando Alonso did not want a team-mate to pose the kind of challenge that he faced with Lewis Hamilton at McLaren this year.' Hamilton, by contrast, is reported to be pressing McLaren to appoint Kovalainen as his team-mate next season rather than the undistinguished Pedro de la Rosa. Rather than be cautious of being paired with a fast team-mate, Hamilton evidently believes that such a challenge will bring out the best of his own talents - as Alonso found out to his cost last season. Toyota are also believed to have made a bid for Kovalainen's services. Remarking to Finnish television that his ousting at Renault was "something we could expect", the driver confirmed: "Luckily there are two other options with interesting offers."
