Hey, I guess he just wants to race...... He is 40 and Spanish after all. From Autosport; Don't exactly see it as a career enhancing move though....... He'll be as old as the Old Man when he's thru. Cheers, Ian http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/96383
I don't understand...I get why he wants to race but perhaps a better move would be Le Mans and the series that goes with it. HRT rarely finishes races, he'll have far more fun competing in LMS...
I pretty much agree, but I guess he sees it as; - He's still in F1 - albeit at the back. See Jarno & Heikki for further examples. Not bad work if you can find it..... - I assume he'll retire after the two years - May as well spend 'em racing rather than sitting on the pit wall. - "Hope springs eternal" if you're a racing driver - I'm sure they're optimistic about *maybe* scoring points next year...... Cheers, Ian
I thought this was a spoof and went to check at the source but it seems to be for real !!!!!!!! He was useless at McLaren and even worse at Sauber
I doubt there's a realistic chance of scoring a point for HRT next year. They simply don't have the budget or experience. Even if half the field retires, would they have it in them to make up 2 more places? RE Trulli and Kovalainen: Trulli is on his way out and knows it, but I see Kovalainen having another chance at a team which is on Force India levels, or even Torro Rosso. If he's paid handsomely I suppose it'll be fun regardless. But a racing driver ultimately wants to race and not hope if the car will fail to whatever simple mistake this time...wheel to wheel action in whatever series is much more exciting than hoping to reach the halfway point in a race! Can't blame him!
He did a good job replacing JPM. I didn't think Heidfield should have replaced him at Sauber, but I guess he gets the last laugh now. He should be good for HRT. Is he replacing Liuzzi or Ricciardo?
Totally agree..... I just noted that "hope springs eternal". Which, of course, it must otherwise there'd be no point in showing up and working as hard as everyone else. A "reserved" +1 I agree Jarno is probably done (after next season?) and just don't know about Heiki - He may "deserve" another go round but I'm not sure he'll get it - He's never consistently beaten his teammate...... I doubt he's getting paid very much, if at all. Expenses plus a nice per-diem would be my guess. But, OTOH, at least he's not pay-to-drive as most of the tail enders tend to be - That's a significant step for HRT. I haven't seen any news on that. I also tend to agree he's another that never got a fair shake. +1 He's been around a top team for a long time - Albeit mostly in the simulator, but he knows how Mclaren do it and is certainly more valuable than a rookie with $. Not if he wants to finish out his career *driving* in the World Championship. Even if he completely dusts his compadre he's not going to get another chance given his age. Good luck to him and the team! - I wish them well. Cheers, Ian
It's really quite simple: He's 40 years old and he's realised that a HRT is just about fast enough to have a bit of fun in but not fast enough to scare him!
Good for him and he can actually contribute something at HRT. Rather be a back marker than a simulator tester at Mclaren. Le Mans can wait.
Have you guys seen those live in car shots. The HRT's and other back marker cars seem like schizophrenic beasts. Driving one of those cars 6 seconds off the pace is likely far scarier than any of the top 5 cars. Another point,... if he is even 1 sec slower than his teammate, he risks being excluded based on the 107% rule. Kudo's for going for it,... but he should be careful what he wishes for... Remember Luca Badoer's return to F1 in the Ferrari after Massa's 2009 injury...
Is he replacing a driver or will he race selected races like NK? "HRT's current race drivers are Italian Vitantonio Liuzzi and Australian Daniel Ricciardo, with Indian Narain Karthikeyan also in the line-up at selected races."
My guess is he's going to replace one or the other, but they're remarkably quiet on the question at the moment. I can't see him wanting to do "just a few races" - He'll be their #1 assuming he can deliver. There's an interview with the new boss [Saul Ruiz] at Autosport which diligently ignores the issue; He wasn't asked and didn't tell..... http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/96406 Cheers, Ian
