The F1 Thread…

Ferrari have confirmed Alonso is going, hardly a surprise but at least everyone knows for sure one way or another.

Sauce?

Sauce?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/formula1/29638594

Yes, I’ve read that but as De Montezemolo no longer works for Ferrari I think I’d prefer a press release from the team.

I think he’ll go to Sauber, just for shits and giggles. 😛

De Montezemolo has said that he personally released Alonso from his contract and he’s only been out the door a few days, so I’m taking it.

Button considering the world endurance series apparently

Good for him. At least He’ll actually be able to race rather than just managing tyres.

Joe Saward (who knows a bit) sums up the current situation quite well

http://joesaward.wordpress.com/

Despite the Ferrari team not yet confirming the signing of Sebastian Vettel, or the departure of Fernando Alonso, there has never been any doubt since Vettel put pen to paper three weeks ago, following Alonso’s ill-advised signature of a release document, which wrote off $60 million in future salary. Fernando said “Open Sesame”, expecting that other opportunities would magically appear and duly knocked his nose out of joint by walking into a door… By signing Daniil Kvyat, Red Bull’s Helmut Marko did the F1 teams a big favour, as he gutted the driver market. Instantly, salary demands. Alonso had no real bargaining position with McLaren, his only realistic choice, and that meant that Lewis Hamilton’s ideas of mega-bucks from Mercedes post-2015 took a debt as well. If there’s a cheap Alonso on the market, Hamilton has to become cheap as well. Jenson Button too. Vettel will be the highest paid driver in F1 for the next few years but even he is going to be working the bonuses. The days of mega retainers are gone… The salaries are still massive by everyday standards but its a case of supply and demand. Red Bull went for two cheap young drivers and crashed the exchange.
McLaren and Alonso is not a match made in heaven. They’ve been there before and there are some impressive scars. Some might wonder if taking Alonso is really the best idea because he can get a bit lippy if the car and the engine are not up to scratch, but the fact remains that he is an awesome driver (in the real sense of the word and not the “I mean, like, totally” ersatz version). McLaren will pay the market rate but as the market has collapsed that will be a welcome saving. Jenson is now saying that he’s talking to sports car teams. It would be a shame to lose him in F1, because he is a proper star, but one can argue that after 14 years he’s had a decent run in F1 and now is a good time to follow Mark Webber into cars with lids on them. Life is easier there and the prizes worth having – victory at Le Mans and/or a world title – are there to be plucked, if he ends up with one of the factory teams. Good combinations of success give one a place in history just as much as five World Championships will do. Robert Kubica would have driven a Ferrari had he not smashed himself up in rallying. His original goal was to win one World title in F1 and then do the same in the WRC. Sadly, his passion for rallying and his impatience ruined the plan.
The key question now is whether Fernando will be able to talk himself into a Mercedes in 2016. I doubt it. He is deemed to be the best racer out there but Lewis is no slouch and he would be silly to give up a winning car, by the same token McLaren don’t want a one night stand with Fernando, they want a proper marriage…

The Hulk to stay at Force India.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/formula1/29688104

And now Caterham have gone into administration.

As takeovers go, it’s not the best thought out.

Not that straight forward a situation.

Caterham Sports Limited have gone into administration but they only produce the cars under license for 1MRT.

1MRT are still solvent and for the time being, employees of Caterham Sports Limited have been transferred to 1MRT…although they may not remain in Leafield.

It’s going to take a while to sort out I think.

About the end of the season was my bet (with pessimist hat on).

Unless it’s part of the standard phoenix restructuring plan by whomever splashed some cash on them recently? Bankrupt one company, other company buys all the assets in the auction, and realistically, there’ll be no other bidders. Debts vanish and is the administrators job to sort out.

BBC states the Caterham group has gone into administration.

Other sources are less final, but more messy and confusing.

Click

Not getting any better for Caterham – staff locked out now…

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-oxfordshire-29738116

the-muffin-man – Member

Not getting any better for Caterham – staff locked out now…

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-oxfordshire-29738116

Sounds like they’re done. They’d need the cars released in the next day or so to get them to the next race I would think. 🙁 Feel sorry for the staff. Poor old Koboyashi too. Doesn’t deserve such a bad year.

My mate joined them this year from Force India, for a while we took the piss as Force India improved as soon as he left (as did Redbull when he left them). Nothing much to laugh about now though. Good luck to all the staff who need to find jobs.

seems marussia needs money to make it to Austin
http://www.f1today.net/en/news/cash-injection-required-for-marussia-to-travel-to-austin?

and that sweet nice guy Rubens isnt the weasley whiny guy who thinks he is better than he is, that i thought, oh no wait….
http://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/f1-comeback-bid-ended-barrichello-commentary-report/?

Might yet be 3 car merc, mclaren and ferrari next year
gives Button options for when Alonso replaces him

The potential for three car teams next year means that many teams are hedging their bets on a driver lineup, it explains why McLaren are being so cagey.

Caterham / 1MRT looks even more terminal now.

Thought one or more of the big teams was saying it was now virtually too late to commit to 3 cars/drivers next season.

Also thought there were 2 or 3 new teams lined up to take part (or was that for 2016?), but as before, I expect one or more or all not to make it.

The mid pack teams won’t agree to 3 cars as all it’ll do is take points and money off them as the big 4 will use the 3rd car as a blocker

Looks like the administrator is now running the team!!!

James Allen on F1[/url]

The mid pack teams won’t agree to 3 cars as all it’ll do is take points and money off them as the big 4 will use the 3rd car as a blocker

I’m pretty sure the nominated 3rd car would only be eligible for Driver’s points and not Constructors. It was also mooted that a 3rd car could only be driven by an inexperienced driver.

If Caterham, Marussia and Sauber go bust then we will see 3 car teams in 2015.

I’m pretty sure the nominated 3rd car would only be eligible for Driver’s points and not Constructors. It was also mooted that a 3rd car could only be driven by an inexperienced driver.

That was certainly the way I understood it but the points that any car would have won will be lost rather than given to the next eligible finisher.
So – for example – where Force India may well expect to finish around 8th and score points steadily through the season, they’ll end up scoring nothing and finishing 12th ish.
Imagine how a non scoring 3rd car could be used to manufacture a pit stop window at somewhere like Monaco.

the administrator finbarr looks totally incompetent … the whole debacle of shutting the factory down and now claiming he wants to go racing as he has realised a load of cars locked in a warehouse are worthless.
I like the interview where he ” reaches out” to sort it out an agreement with the closing comment of “call me”!

Where do they dig out these people from? Its a real shame for the staff who seem to be the pawns in this as they are shuffled from one company to another. Good luck Caterham, it was fun whilst it lasted especially brazil 2012. I hope marussia make it on the grid 2015.

Where do they dig out these people from?

Accountancy school?

3rd car teams has already been discussed on this thread – there is basically a list of Teams (the big ones) and 3rd cars are generated from them until the grid reaches the point thats in the minimum contract between Bernie (22 i think), the circuit owners, the tv rights and everyone else involved with a stake in F1 that he has a contract with – the 3rd car wont accrue championship points but will drivers points

and its my understanding the current “concorde like” agreement they ALL signed up to is 60days notice to run the 3rd car!!!

anyone can drive the car, there is no experience limit on it.

somewhere in the last few months Bernie said “it will be 3rd car teams in f1 because its better to have 3 ferrari’s rather than a caterham”

from the teams POV it can be good and bad, good if they can block out the front rows – sell more sponsorship logos – more potential for tactics to win the titles, and of course, they DO NOT have to supply CUSTOMER ENGINES to a team, instead they run 1 more engine in their 3rd own car.
of course it means a 3rd set of team engineers etc etc
and if the car is a duff (aka ferrari 2014) then they are effectivley running 3 duff cars!

Marussia to miss USGP as well which probably means they will miss Brazil as well due them being back to back races and team kit going direct there from the US. Bad times for teams that don’t have either a multi-million/billionaire investor or factory support.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/formula1/29770496

Marussia look like they have hit the buffers. Bit of a shame after gaining their first points this year.

Article on Autoexpress that Audi will be entering F1 for 2016. Is that where Alonso is headed?

Sauce

All the new designs and costs have just shafted those teams without massive budget. It’ll be all works teams before long, which is what – apparently – the new engines regs were for.
It’ll be a shame to see the last remnants of the garagistas go to the wall or get picked up by a multi-national car maker (only to drop on a whim) but that’s the way it’s going now.

It’ll be a shame to see the last remnants of the garagistas go to the wall

To call the likes of Caterham and Marussia garagistas is doing a disservice to the teams of the 70s and 80s who really did do F1 for the sheer hell of it!

Caterham, Marussia and the like were set up by millionaires so they could cream money from sponsors and drivers – they were in it for the money, not for a love of the sport.

The garagista days of F1 are well and truly over.

Garagistas exist in sportscars nowadays, funded and run by wealthy gentleman drivers.

To call the likes of Caterham and Marussia garagistas is doing a disservice to the teams of the 70s and 80s who really did do F1 for the sheer hell of it!

I didn’t, I said the “remnants of the garagistas”, the DNA if you will

Sorry – probably came across as bit aggressive!

I don’t think there’s been a new F1 team in recent years that was just born for the love of it.

I think the last one was probably Jordan. I know Eddie Jordan can be a bit of a berk, but his love for motorsport and F1 can’t really be questioned. He built the team from scratch, wheeled and dealed and made it into a race winning team.

The new Haas F1 team may be the nearest we get to the old style teams in this modern era (if it gets of the ground!).

I’m actually excited about Audi joining the fray, if that is what’s happening. I agree with above, the garagista days are over and some of the romance has gone with them, so F1 is a very different beast these days but still a very enjoyable one. Just as long as there is a good turnover of dominance and a British driver in with a chance, I’m in!

And if Audi and Merc are in F1, that other German brand tends to follow!

I’ve had a reread of the Audi article and it would appear that Audi could be entering as an technical/engine partner. Red Bull Audi? Very big news in DTM

i do wonder if the Audi stuff is all smoke and mirrors from Bernie in his panic to stop the slide and attention of the lower teams and to make it look like F1 is attracting the big manufacturers
audi (VAG) have been so adamant about not being in F1

perhaps as stated above it will be in a toe-in-the-water type event with RBR who are sick to the teeth of Renault engine (despite the love they gave them when they were winning with the car)

the longer ron keeps his drivers careers dangling the more i remember why i disliked him so much in the past.

Audi have outright denied an entry to F1. Oh well.

Ron and McLaren have one of the best records of loyalty and longevity of driver relationships.

Williams were always worst. Happy to dump drivers who won Championships for them. Frank W always referred to them as ‘lightbulbs’ as they were so easy to change.

Err the only good “Ron” relationship i remember was with the driver who was winning in his car, any other time, it always went south and he had no loyalties with anyone.

nico will win, i gotta feelin…..