+1 2013 Marussia with different nose, me thinks. Note the beam wing which they weren't allowed to run last year.
The interview on "F1 Extra" on Team Haas, with Guenther Steiner was interesting. Stated 60-70% of the car will be Ferrari and the rest Haas. No on Danica as a driver, she is to old and no to a younger driver, don't want to ruin their young careers. Can you say JB?!
Geeze, already I'm tired of any mention of Danica. I'm keeping it simple and hoping "Team America" or whatever you want to call Haas F1 will do a reasonable job. With all the other complaining and problems of F1, everything from cars/engines/rules/helmets/ etc, its REFRESHING to have anyone really trying to start a new team without already being a member of the F1 inner circle.
There seems to be a lot of people getting their knickers in a twist one way or another about Danica, which is especially strange as she's made no mention whatsoever about being interested in competing in F1. If she did drive in F1 though (unlikely as she currently doesn't qualify for the required super-licence), I'd give her the benefit of the doubt until I'd seen how she gets on, on track. For all anyone knows, F1 cars might suit her perfectly! (And there again they might not!). Unless she actually drives in F1 we'll never know. As for Danica's personality annoying them - Pah! Lewis Hamilton annoys Me but I don't go around saying he shouldn't be in F1! As the car's going to be 60~70% Ferrari they should do okay. If they do struggle and start to fail in F1 though then they'll quickly become known as "Haas-beens" What difference is that going to make? Haas F1 are not going to be the rebels of F1. They're not going to do things in a completely different way to every other team in F1. They'll tow the corporate line and procedures just as every other F1 team does.
Another +1 to all! I don't follow what she's up to, but IIRC, she's won in Indycar - On a wet track. Where she had to turn right as well as left. Sure, she may have "lucked in to it", but there's an awful lot of guys out there that would like to have "winner" on their resume. Power steering may help (banned in Indycar?). She's small & light - Something they all like these days. She may fail miserably, but so have many, many others. But, I'm also certain she'd give a (supposedly ) much needed "boost" in popularity - at least here in the States. I'm also sure the "superlicense issue" could be overcome pretty easily if needed - Doesn't a season or so in Indy/the taxicabs get her that? [If young Max can get one, it can't be that hard, surely!?.....] Cheers, Ian
Totally agree with all of that! As I say, Danica has made no mention of wanting to do F1, and Haas have said that they have not spoken to her or her management about the idea, and nor do they intend to any time soon. A Haas spokesman told the BBC last weekend that as far as they're aware, Danica is totally happy where she is right now and probably wouldn't want all of the hassle that goes with being an F1 driver, such as travelling all over the World. He did add though that whilst it would be highly unlikely that they would have Danica in the team, they wouldn't rule it out totally if she were interested and they were offered a deal that they couldn't refuse. As I have already posted, people do seem to be getting their knickers in a major twist over something that seems highly unlikely to happen!
danica is to old, if she leaves nascar and fails at F1 she might not be able to get back into nascar. I think Gutierrez is a better option, he has F1 experience, and is very familiar with the Ferrari. as for Rossi, he is having a good year in GP2, and I am sure if he had more sponsor money behind him, there might be a few more F1 teams looking at him.
Old or not, she would still generate a lot of interest in the USA for F1, even if it was only people tuning in to see her hopefully fail so they could shout: "HA! - TOLD YOU SO! USELESS!" As I say though, it's a fuss over nothing as she's made no mention of even being interested in the idea of doing F1.
does Danica still generate interest? 10 years ago sure, but how many people are tuning into nascar to watch Danica?
Fans picked Danica Patrick to be the final driver in the 2015 NASCAR All-Star Race so it would seem there are more than you think there are.
"...without already being a member of the F1 inner circle." "What difference is that going to make?" To me the difference is that Haas or any outsider, especially not coming from Europe is a huge underdog (even with Ferrari as technical partners), and that gives me something to look forward to rather than 2016 being another Mercedes year, or at best finding out how close everyone else can get to Mercedes. Add on that it's a NASCAR guy, an American guy, partly basing the team in the US, that's what difference it makes. If some other new F1 team comes on the scene, and it's headed up by familiar names and familiar sponsors (Stewart, Jaguar, Prost, etc), then it just seems that they'd have just a bit of an easier time being accepted and either finding sponsors or getting funding or getting along with Bernie, but the Haas story seems to be a horse of a different color, so just more interesting. That's what difference it makes to me. Your mileage may vary.
in fairness, we do not know that the fans actually picked her...but nascar told us so. it should have been truex but you know how things work out. danica remains a no account in nascar and has literally done nothing with the equipment she has been bought. alas, the experiment is nearly over!
I agree. I agree. I am just hoping/praying HAAS F1 can make a decent showing, stay out of trouble and finish thus collecting any and all possible points.
I think you are giving her too much credit man. She is obviously a competent driver, but 7 podiums in 7 years in Indy does not exactly suggest she can cut it in F1. Especially given that far more talented drivers from Indy have failed to make the transition. I would hope Haas still wants to win and not just try to acquire fans.
Interesting in that he said The engine is Ferrari The suspension is Ferrari The chassis is Ferrari and the only difference is the aero which I would not be surprised if was also being helped by Ferrari. So, what is Haas building? The body? And Danica is too old for the sport. He said it and he meant it. They don't need her GoDaddy money. I think Ferrari wants a US F1 team in the US and it's better if it's Ferrari-lite. Then they can stick on Chrysler / Jeep logos in addition to Alfa and Fiat.
