|
|
||||
|
Formula 1 Store |
The Forum |
Events of the past week! |
|
|
 |
||||
|
||||
Download the NewsOnF1.com | ||||||||||||||
|
The past week has been full of new developments in the Formula 1 arena. It started with strong rumours that Jaguar will be branded Ford next season, Renault giving Jacques Villeneuve at test at Silverstone, Renault releasing Trulli from his contract, Trulli signing with Toyota, Villeneuve signing with Sauber, Trulli testing for Toyota, Renault confirming Villeneuve to race till the end of the season and Ford pulling the plug on Jaguar Racing at the end of the season and offering the business for sale. It was clear that Trulli wasn't performing for whatever reason so a change
there was needed if Renault was serious about reclaiming second place in the
Championship. Choosing Villeneuve could be a brilliant move as he is motivated
to beat the team that dumped him but it may not be as he's been out of action
for nearly a year and could struggle to get up to speed learning the car. Villeneuve locking himself with Sauber for two years though seems a bit odd particularly given that he'll be given a chance to prove himself in a competitive car and the Button saga means that a seat at Williams or BAR will still be available ? On the other hand a Sauber seat could lead to a Ferrari seat particularly if a third car is introduced! Jaguar pulling out of Formula 1 wasn't anticipated as the rumours where that Ford will be re-branding the name but any car manufacture that is running a Formula 1 team with a very limited budget (compared to the rest) must be fooling themselves that they'll succeed. Jaguar never finished higher than 7th in any of the seasons they have contested in and so I can't see how this investment would help market the Jaguar brand, in fact it may have damaged it! Jaguar's exit may have serious consequences for Formula 1. It is still
unclear some entity will indeed buy Jaguar and how Jordan and Minardi will be
affected. They rely on Cosworth for their engine supply and Cosworth is to be
sold as well. A worst case scenario could see all three teams out of Formula 1
next season. Of course with the regulations for 2005 and 2006 still not finalised, the next few months will be even more interesting! Your thoughts ? Have Your Say (What others are saying) Join 8 'n' Pole and see how your predictions stack up against the others. Register NOW!
I think it’s about time that FIA make a radical move to save independent
team like Jordan, Minardi and Sauber. And its about time that they get more
teams to compete. One of the best solutions I can think of is the profit
sharing. They make the race alive. We still remember Arrows and Prost, and
next year we will remember Jaguar as part of F1 history. We used to have Lotus
and etc. There is a possibility that later we only going to have Ferrari,
McLaren and Williams competing each other. Then what??? Save the sports before
its too late... I am not so amazed at Jarno Trulli's exit, as at the degree of silence concerning his increasingly erratic behavior in the past few weeks. His performance has been beyond bizarre, so I can't help but wonder if there are health (or psychological?) problems involved. Remember the strange laryngitis? Then the charges that his team was sabatoging his machine (!); And lately his claim that he "lost all confidence" in the rear suspension! My cynical self, on hearing the news that J.V. is replacing him immediately, wondered if he'd been dating one of Flavio's girlfriends, but I know that Flavio would rather score GP points than score any day. I believe that this is a sad, sad story and that it is best for all concerned that Jarno get some rest. I hope to see him again, as he is a gifted driver. I applaud Renault for taking J.V. back and I applaud the former world champion for taking up the challenge. The "heat" will definitely be on the Canadian, since the car he's inheriting is a more than capable one. It will be good for the sport to see him up there dicing with J.P.M., Kimi, Rubens, Michael, Fernando, and Jenson. As to the departure of Jag after Brazil --what a sad moment it is for the Brits to lose the car carrying their old racing green. Of course they still have BAR Mac & Williams, which, when you look at the record books, is better than Italy who only have the red cars and the minardis. I for one, as an American, am NOT sorry to see Ford pull out. Now maybe they'll make space for an F1 racing team. Like the U.S. in general, Ford suffers from a case of acute gigantism, a pathological over-development in organisms. The notion, in short, is that you can buy anything with enough money and public relations. Shifting from Bobby Rahal, to the Lauda, to a corporate soap salesman, all the while spouting nonsensical "spin" and press releases, and spending more money on the paint scheme for the car than on the suspension design --no surprise that the results are rotton, even when there's a pretty decent engine pushing the thing. I doubt if Jag would have been able to win had they bought Ferraris and painted them green; it was the entire organization that was at fault. It's just jolly good fortune that the Webbo is out of there! that's my rant for the day! - Jim W - USA Join 8 'n' Pole and see how your predictions stack up against the others. Register NOW! Loading
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||
