At slowoldman I’ve worked for Williams for 15 years so been aware of the gentle decline since BMW so nice to be performing again race strategy aside

So, is Ron right that only a works team can win the World Championships?

Have we done Pastor crashing into things?

they’ve been about in various guises since 1997, when do they stop being “johnny come lately”?

Not until I say so.

I’ve worked for Williams for 15 years so been aware of the gentle decline since BMW so nice to be performing again race strategy aside

It’s great to see too.

Pastor crashing into things is a given…

they’ve been about in various guises since 1997, when do they stop being “johnny come lately”?
[/quote]

If you’re using that argument, why don’t you go back to 1985?

I’m not sure a huge amount of Stewart/Jaguar DNA remained by 2006.

I think we did this one before, but it’s worth repeating

http://hasmaldonadocrashedtoday.com/

aracer, cos Stewart racing wasn’t an F1 team till then…Maybe a bit arbitrary I suppose?

love the hasmaldanadocrashedtoday countdown 😆

Minardi was though

Er, Eddie Irvine fourth?!?!

Top ten richest F1 drivers

Er, Eddie Irvine fourth?!?!

He’s a canny business man and never apologised for being in F1 just for the money. He even stayed racing in Japan because they paid better than F1 teams!

The German Grand Prix not looking likely then

I think we did this one before, but it’s worth repeating

http://hasmaldonadocrashedtoday.com/

Brilliant!

Looks like Giedo van der Garde got his money back and compensation. They reckon that Esteban Gutiérrez is next up for his money. It’s a little mental that they signed race contracts for 2015 with FIVE drivers and took money from at least 4 of them without ever imagining they’d have to pay back the money.

the-muffin-man – Member
Er, Eddie Irvine fourth?!?!
He’s a canny business man and never apologised for being in F1 just for the money. He even stayed racing in Japan because they paid better than F1 teams!

He also invested his money and built a multi national property empire.

I like this one though 😀 Bob Fernley of Force India welcomes Horner “to the real world”

It is pretty funny that Red Bull are whinging that they’re basically not dominant any more. Yes, they weren’t AS dominant as Mercedes are currently but if they want parity they should do something else.

He also invested his money and built a multi national property empire.

I believe he also owns (or owned) a Bangor taxi company. Many fingers in many and varied pies… 🙂

It’s a little mental that they signed race contracts for 2015 with FIVE drivers and took money from at least 4 of them without ever imagining they’d have to pay back the money.

Cashflow – I reckon they did what they needed to to stay afloat last year…

FIVE?

I thought it was worrying that they’d signed three for two seats and took money from all three. Shows they really are grasping/grabbing for cashflow with no thought to mid-term comeback.

I thought it was worrying that they’d signed three for two seats

Supposedly, they signed van der Garde, Sutil, Gutiérrez, Ericsson and Nasr for the seats. I’d guess given Sutil is quiet that he’d not paid for the seat yet.

Cashflow – I reckon they did what they needed to to stay afloat last year…

That’s understandable. The stupidity to expect it wouldn’t come back on them is inexcusable though. If I was a Sauber shareholder, Monisha Kaltenborn would be on her way out for such a spectacular lack of awareness. I can only suppose that in the past teams have ridden roughshod over drivers and that van der Garde took everyone by surprise. It’d explain why he’s saying his F1 career is now over.

I rewatched the race last night on some beeb channel.

It was just like almost every race over the past 5+years.

The only difference is the engines are starting to sound like they are powered by rubberbands.

I guessed then- they are going to keep going until they have a 1.0 petrol engine aren’t they. Thats the ‘pinnacle’ of F1/engineering.

A 1.0 petrol engine with a huge hybrid I bet by 2025.

Whoopie-doo.

Bring back V12’s – its racing not a race to mpg.

Perhaps they did expect it to come back on them, and just accepted the cost implications (as in get 8million now, pay 10-12million back in the spring) in order to keep the team afloat for the last 6/9/whatever months? Poor form if they did.

Nice looking car though- like the colours 🙂

Very easy to recreate in Lego.

I guessed then- they are going to keep going until they have a 1.0 petrol engine aren’t they. Thats the ‘pinnacle’ of F1/engineering.

This is the way all cars are going though.

The pinnacle of F1/engineering doesn’t have to be based on the internal combustion engine. 100+ years ago steam engines were the pinnacle but we don’t race those!

I watched the Formula E race at the weekend and there was more racing in that than the F1 race. And with the Formula E regs being opened up a bit more next season I do think F1 will have a serious rival in 4 or 5 years.

The only difference is the engines are starting to sound like they are powered by rubberbands.

They missed a trick with the turbo cars. They needed to sound like 1988 McLaren Hondas instead of these insipid creations.

Also, do a google search for engine noise of a 1995 Ferrari or 2001 Williams BMW and you’ll hear exactly what Hora means.

I’m all for fuel saving in F1, but the focus is wrong. Why are we saving 3mpg per lap when it takes 24 large lorries and a couple of 747s to transport each team around the world for twenty races?

But they have to entice engine manufactures to make the engines.

Who have to sell the idea to the shareholders and public.

That’s why they are hybrid and smaller and fuel efficient.

Why are we saving 3mpg per lap when it takes 24 large lorries and a couple of 747s to transport each team around the world for twenty races?

Because this is what the manufacturers want – there is a direct trickle down to road cars. Unfortunately V12s have no relevance in todays car market.

If we went back to 3 ltr engines the car makers would leave and teams would buy engines from people like Cosworth.

..and the big money would disappear!

I do get that…but we’ve massively complex – and expensive – power units that cost three times as much as they did in 2012.

Today, we have Ferrari, Renault, Honda and Mercedes supplying engines.

In the last twenty five years, we’ve had Peugeot, Subari, Yamaha, Ford, Porsche, BMW, Judd, Lamborghini, Toyota and even Subaru who’ve decided to turn away from F1.

The sport needs to find ways of getting more manufacturers involved.

I wouldnt expect new engine manufacturers to enter f1 after seeing honda and renault struggle. The longer we are in the regulations the less likely newcomers are going to enter especially seeing the others have more development and track time and tokens.

They may be customer chassis and engines or maybe both from mercedes and renault ( if rb pull out).

anyone watching goodwood racing on Motors TV

awesome classic RACING cars 😀

quite fancy a Mini 1275GT now… 😉

Here’s the story the conspiracy theorists have been waiting for 🙂

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/118164

McLaren has revealed that Fernando Alonso felt the steering of his Formula 1 car went ‘heavy’ in the moments before his testing crash at Barcelona last month…

…A McLaren statement said: “While there was nothing evident in the extensive car telemetry data, nor anything abnormal in the subsequent reconstructions and laboratory tests, Fernando recalls a sense of ‘heavy’ steering prior to the accident.

So it was Ron in the boardroom with the pressure seal for the power steering wot dunnit… 😆

Were you asleep for all of last year? Some great racing. Melbourne was a proper snooze fest, and I really hope it’s not going to be like that all year.

I bet they’ve been holding that one back until it looks like he’s going to be cleared to race, which would’ve shut up the conspiracy theorists but now they’ve got something else to bang on about.

I think the steering mechanism was deliberately electrocuted by Alonso when he realised what a bad car he had and so wanted a get out from driving the mclaren and thought that slamming it into a wall at high speed would be the perfect way to execute that strategy. Oh and I’ve heard the car was laced with high explosives and had lizard fingerprints on the engine cover, and that Ron Dennis was once seen shaking hands with a bloke who once saw a picture of Jimmy Saville. It’s all coming together now, but as always people… do your own research.

McLaren McLaren McLaren – so did Alonso suddenly remember this now? earlier? did they know at the time of the accident – was it radio comms – car data – its just a bull answer that doesnt blame the driver, the engine or the car – there is still to be truth had here…………..

and for those who complain about us “theorists” well you were all saying it was as simple as a driver mistake/wind/plain old accident and ron was even saying it was a “nothing” and alonso was fine…now theres an official reason where there was no need before…so…
again i say there is still to be truth had here….

PSA: Racing Legends, 19.00 BBC 2 tonight…

This one’s about Graham Hill 🙂

..now theres an official reason where there was no need before..

No there isn’t. No evidence from telemetry. Nothing found in tests. Just Alonso saying the steering was heavy.

No there isn’t. No evidence from telemetry. Nothing found in tests. Just Alonso saying the steering was heavy.[/quote]Hence the debate about whether it was the car, the conditions or the driver.