First of all, great race by Kimi! Heidfeld 2nd!! He sure gave Webber a lesson on how to overtake cleanly. (hey Pete ) Webber vs Alonso Manouver? Webber penalised? (he was on the kerbs with both wheels each time) Alonso penalised? (for cutting chicanes and not letting Webber pass) Renault throw away a sure double podium trying to win the race when they filled both Renaults with more than 100 kg. JV vs FM.. Jacques was being much faster than his teammate. He saw the opportunity and took it..... Massa didn't play also for the team because he didn't easy the move. (his tyres were done) I feel sorry for both. If JV had been patient he would have snuck into the point as well. But he wanted to beat Massa so bad. Its JV fault and Peter Sauber is not happy at all. Damn Jacques, just when everything was going good for him. Jarno's move on Fisi....shocking He broke his car. Did MS crossed or touched the pitlane exit line? I guess it doesn't matter anymore. Last lap MS overtook Rubens on the exit of the tunnel and almost got in front of his brother at the finish line. Very agressive driving by Schumi the whole race. Fastest lap of the race for Michael on lap 40. Ferrari didn't look that bad...The tyres looked okay, You know MS set the fastest lap when he still had a lot of fuel in the car. Looking forward for next race. I have a feeling it will be a 1-2 McLaren. BAR are going to be strong. Nurburg should be a good race track for Ferrari.
Did we watch the same race? Villeneuve did not "see an opportunity and took it", he made one of the stupidest mistakes I have ever seen. He is an idiot! He had NO chance to even make the turn at that speed, forget about passing Massa. Even with Massa moving WAY over and not even attempting to make the turn (and collide with the idiotic Jacques), Villeneuve STILL went off the track and punted himself into the tire barrier. It was a clear case of Villeneuve being a noob. He is supposed to be an experienced and mature driver. He make a huge rookie mistake. He knows his teammate is driving better than him, and he felt he wanted to pass him - at any cost - to "prove" he can be the better driver. But he just showed his foolishness, IMO. He should either retire with (a little) dignity or Peter Sauber ought to fire him. He has done nothing in several years and its sad to see him floundering in F1 and embarassing himself.
On to Nurburgring for a Ferrari 1 - 2! Michael is beginning the come back. He is giving it a 105%. The small details regarding qualifying will be ironed out by Nurburgring.
F1Racer, I was unable to watch the race ... moved to new house and not set up properly yet !!!. I have read a quote from Patrick Head (ww.f1-live.com ... somewhere) that Webber was faster than NH all weekend and it was only the pitstop (due to a safety car) timing that gave the upper hand to NH ... but Webber is definitely pissed NH drove a great race ... Webber drove a good race too. Williams need to sort out their clutches/starts still. Pete ps: I am amazed that they both were able to pass Alonso ... MS couldn't at Imola and last time I looked Imola was heaps easier to pass on (?).
MS is surely going to get more points and decent results, but his poorly qualifying performance is hurting him greatly. Kimi will take the championship easily at this rate.
Well I know you're not a fan of him (I'v seen some of your JV post) and I'm a fan. Montoya passed Massa (I think at the same place where JV tried). Massa said his rear tyres were done. Thats what Massa said after the race: "He tried at the wrong moment. I think if he had waited a bit he could have passed me after." He let Montoya overtake him (didn't see the move) and to me it looks like he made harder to JV. But I have to admit its wasn't a good move. "He knows his teammate is driving better than him" JV was faster than him this week-end....Massa was slowing Villeneuve at the end. FM could have tought for the team and let JV pass him. Calling JV an "idiot" was not necessary. You make it sound like JV had no opportunity at ALL. You are not the one driving...I'm sure he saw something and tried.. Now lets end this JV vs FM discussion..
Alonso's rear tires were slick like towards the end - a combination of heavy fuel load and soft composition. That made him an easy target for the Williams boys. Nick Heidfeld's move was classy, efficient and economical - no multiple attempts to jink this way and that ... he waited to the right moment and pounced - one attempt was all that he needed. Alonso had no answer for this move. Contrast this to Webber who was trying for several laps to achieve the same result. There must be some sort of bad blood between these two drivers because Alonso made an extra special effort to keep Webber behind.
Also had bad rear tires this time around and not enough grip. In Imola Alonso's rear tires were fine.
Man I wish I had seen this race ... ... but full credit to NH, but that I imagine woke Alonso up and thus he went in to full bloking mode. Always easier being the first to pounce. I'm amazed that Webber and Alonso did not end up in the barriers ... a credit to them both, I guess. Pete
In my opinion Montoya should be handed a two race ban and points taken away for the incedent he caused on Saturday. Thant would give more points to Ferrari.
Well it is very clear that Mark is a good number 2 racer for the Williams team. He is no where in the same league as Nick Heidfeld. Nick is a potetial World Champion if he gets the right car in the future. Mark will probably never win a Grand Prix. He is a decent racer but nothing special.
Yes Mark is getting a good old fashioned hiding from NH ... now we watch to see if he can turn the tables or consign himself to one of the many also rans that made it to F1. NH has been around way too long to ever be WC ... he would have been snapped up by those in the know ages ago if he had the goods. Heck even Williams were not sure. Thus if NH smacks Webber this year ... Webber is over and out for a F1 future, and ALL Australians will know this, and push/wait for the next Aussie F1 hopeful. Pete
But the mark of a good driver would be knowing when to do something and when not to do it. He made a rookie mistake, something you may see from a guy who is on his first time out, not a guy who has many races under his belt. First, FM has consistently outperformed JV the whole season. JV had *ONE* race where he had a good qualifying session, however his teammate was running in front of him later in the race. There is absolutely zero blame for FM in this. Its not like JV had been on his butt for 10 laps and tried several overtaking maneuvers. He came on him, was not patient (the mark of a rookie) and tried a move that could never have possibly worked. This put both of them off the track and cost the whole team all thier points for the weekend. It was one mans fault - JV's, and had no part of fault from FM. JV has not shown himself to be a driver who is good at making rational choices. I don't think he saw anything at all. I think he thought if he put enough of his car inside FM, that FM would back off and he would force the pass. But he overcooked it into the turn, so even considering FM gave him MORE than the entire racetrack, it STILL was not enough because JV was going too fast for the turn. He didnt make the turn and ran into the barrier. It was not a good try, and it was not anything to do with FM. JV tried the impossible, and paid the price (and forced FM and his whole team to pay the price too). Total rookie mistake and IMO it makes him an idiot. I am not saying that just to insult him, I really do think he is an idiot and should not be anywhere in F1.
Also hadn't been in pit lane since lap 25. I think the Renault cars were told to choke back the mill and stretch fuel -- if either had come into the pits with those bald tires, the marshalls probably wouldn't have let them go back out. It's one thing to finish with no grooves, quite another to be worn flat in pit lane. They should have slammed Alonso for that chicane-ery with Webber -- you can't retake the position by straight-lining the corner ... presuming FIA still has rules instead of arbitrary regulatory hazards. And you could have been certain that Williams would have been waving pix of those bald tires had the boys not gotten around Alonso, so what was the point? But give the (other) devil his due: Ferrari had several dominant years helped by a tire advantage. (They're paying for it now.) But McLunken -- on the same tires as most of the field -- has found a big steaming bucket of damfast, extra crispy. One-stop fuel, hard compound, and still smokin the doors off to the tune of a sec a lap. Whereinheck did that come from? They've got something a bit special going on. A lot of people would like to know what. (Catch the part about them using encrypted digital voice links?) Pity they don't make street cars they can apply the innovation to. (The McL "F1" isn't a car -- it's a corporate lobby sculpture.) But somebody please PLEASE tell Kimi that English is an inflected language. It looks like we're going to have to suffer many more monotone interviews. Grundholm in WRC manages to sound human. Is Kimi just emulating Mika?
I couldn't agree more. I did express my view about it all (for what it was worth to several important sources and did get a responding email!). Kinda sorta off the topic but along the same comparison with Montoya was an interview with the supposed upstart for Indy - Dancia Patrick. She can't even carry on an intelligent conversation without the assistance of "you know" and boy was she pissed about not getting pole - she ought to be glad and happy where she qualified - my take is she's just another whinner. The REAL woman in motor sports is Milka Duno driving the Citgo DP with Andy Pilgrim. The woman they interviewed who has been in the 500 before didn't have a very nice comment about Ms. Patrick's advertising. Oh well....... it's just a stupid roundy-round race. More important things take place next weekend like Ferrari's return!!! The Starwars get-up with the pit guys was pretty neat. Carol
How about the move where Webber passed Alonso, only to have Alonso straight line the chicane and gain the position back, and then not give it up as he should have? This made Webber have to follow him an entire lap, only to successfully pass him the second time, and then making it stick. How much time did that cost Webber, not to mention the danger of having to pass the man a second time, with Alonso knowing exactly where it was coming?
Carol it is important to let the officials decide on these sort of things. Sometimes putting pressure on them does not work in our favor. They though penalizing Montoya in Qualifying was enough punishment but I think that a two race ban is called for and possibly a 5 race probation period when he returns to insure that he des not repeat such behavior.
Like I said it wasn't a good move by JV. FM is not for blame. I'm telling you I was so pissed at Jacques when I saw the incident. I wanted to hit someone. ''Opportunity and tried''...Maybe you're right it was impossible but you didn't see what JV saw and me either. It could had been a hero if it worked out but that was not the case. Don't go say I didn't see the same race as you did because I did see the same race.
The tide is definitely turning to Kimi from Alonso this year. It is, IMHO, Kimi's year to win the championship. He makes very few mistakes, and is probably the most mentally strong driver in the field (next to MS). Alonso seemed to be playing it safe this weekend, the pass from Webber was so obvious and he did basically nothing to prevent it. It appears as though he let him by, rather than Webber taking a chance and taking both cars out. Once Kimi catches him in points, Alonso will have to drive more aggressively and will probably taste gravel more often than not. Great drive from both of the Williams drivers. Heidfeld got the better of his teamate this weekend, but I have no doubt Webber will be back. He is one of the more entertaining drivers to watch, and a great personality for the sport. It really wasn't much of a race, however. Passing opportunities are nil, the course is dangerous and too narrow. Although it would be very difficult, widening the track in a few key areas for passing would make the race much more exciting for the fans without losing the mystique of the place.
It really wasn't much of a race, however. Passing opportunities are nil, the course is dangerous and too narrow. Although it would be very difficult, widening the track in a few key areas for passing would make the race much more exciting for the fans without losing the mystique of the place.[/QUOTE] The lack of passing makes the race too boring to watch on TV.
Talkng about JPM dangerous moves. Is there any truth behind this blurb on planet-f1? Don't shoot the messanger just curious. I'll watch the race again
From what I could see, MS couldn't move because his front wing was caught up underneath his car. When the corner workers came out, they pulled it out from under his car, and he got under way.
