Frijns in at Caterham, Van Der Garde Sauber test driver

I think the biggest part of news is that there even is a Caterham team this year...

 

So Sauber has now two test drivers. Yet there is no testing.

The new F1: Pay drivers finance the team for running laps on Friday morning.

 

I'm confused as hell...let's wait and see

 

It's time for them to score some points. I have no doubt Fernandes is growing weary of all the PR "we've made good progress" talk. He's invested mega $$ and the team even has some solid big name sponsors (General Electric, Airbus, Dell, CNN). Eventually a team has to make a step (like Force India) around the year 3-4 mark of being in F1 or be forever relegated to backmarker status. Force India was able to make a huge step forward in 2009 after a major rule change and that, coupled with the sort of attrition we may see this year, leads me to believe there is a good chance Caterham will put points on the board for the first time.

 

+1

However, as The Viz often notes, 'logic' & F1 very rarely make happy bedfellows......

Cheers,
Ian

 

I hope they will score some pts this year. I like them

 

Fernandez is guilty for some of the adverse performance in the last 3 years.
First, he got involved initially directly in the F1 on-track operations without having a clue.
Then, he removed Gascoigne, a seasoned F1 engineer, from the F1 team to get him working in some road car project.
Fernandez tries to do too many things at once: airline, F1, road cars, etc...
Also, there seems to be a high turn-over of personnel and drivers at Caterham, certainly not leading to stability.
Now, Fernandez starts to show impatience because he can't see any result.
The ultimatum will be felt in the team, and I expect some more leaving.

 

I dont disagree, but at the end of the day he's the guy cutting the checks and Caterham is still on the grid while others have gone poof so that deserves some respect. Hes done a lot of good for the team too, arranging sponsors and things like securing Renault power

 

OK, but it is to me incredible that Caterham has been outclassed by Marussia, which doesn't have the same budget.
Of the 3 teams that joined 3 years ago, Caterham (Team Lotus then) seemed the best organised, the most promising, etc... Gascoigne was on board, GP winner Kovalainen was on board also. The team sounded well funded.
There has been some structural problem in Fernandez organisation that have cost the team to stagnate somehow. The finances must be shaky for him to resort to pay-in drivers too.

Fernandez has in the media compared unfavourably his involvement in motor racing to his ownership of a certain football club. He may be disillusioned by the lack of success in F1 (well, what to expect after 3 years?) and now he is talking about pulling the plug at the end of 2014. I think that will affect the moral of the team

 

Well, they have had some bad breaks to get beaten by Marussia (getting passed on the last lap at Brazil a year or two ago that cost em a WCC position) but I can see your point

 

Thought it was Caterham that passed Marussia at the end of the Brazil race in 2012.

BBC report on line today was that Fernandez stated they need to score points this year or maybe close the team. Who knows, with the new regs and turbos we should have a few surprises this year.