really rather enjoyed the f1 so far this year, it has got so much better since they got rid of all the driver aides of previous years. thought hamilton was superb yesterday as he was at silverstone. now mclaren seem to have sorted out a few of the problems that dogged them at the start of the season i think hamilton will make a very strong push for the title.
The F1 Thread 2008 Season
- Thread starter RedNome
- Start date
I'm fairly sure that for most of Schumacher's era driver aids were banned anyway. They were banned for a long time, only reintroduced a few years back (maybe three or four) because they were so hard to police that it was far too much effort doing so. Now, however, they have the technology to monitor it a lot more efficiently and they're banned again. For all of his faults, I don't think Schumacher was winning when there were a lot of driver aids.
Having said that, perhaps my earlier statement about Alonso's talent was wrong. His brilliant three years (two championships and a second place) actually seem to have occured at exactly the same juncture as the driver aids. Suddenly they've been taken away and he's not doing so well, which is very interesting indeed, although that could also be because the Renault is totally non-competetive this season.
That's true, also, but I'd say only for this year. Clearly Hamilton is the better driver, and Kovaleinen would have been appointed knowing he was really the number two. The thing is, McLaren have always been very preachy about how they don't have team orders and there are no number one and two drivers in their garage. It just smacks of hypocrisy when there clearly are. Nothing wrong with having a favourite; all the teams do it. It's just a bit much to claim that it's wrong to do so and be very public in your opposition, all whilst doing it at the same time.
Also, whilst this season it makes sense to favour Hamilton, last season it wasn't the case and yet they still did. Alonso came to the team a back-to-back world champion, so there was no way that they could guess he wouldn't perform as well as Hamilton. Whatsmore, I'd argue he did perform as well as Hamilton -- once he got used to the car he won and won and won and eventually finished equal on points with Lewis. People forget that; Hamilton might have only been one point away from first place, but so was Alonso.
So that they favoured Hamilton last year despite Alonso being the more obvious choice as the seasoned champion, if indeed they had to favour anyone at all, means there's more to it than simply who is the better driver with the greater chance of winning. I think they just really like Hamilton, and with good reason. Also, I suspect, by the end they really, really hated Alonso.
Schumacher takes another Englishman off the road...
Schumacher crash stuns car dealer
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/kent/7534890.stm
A Kent car dealer who was sent flying when a van struck a barrier was shocked to discover the driver was the German ex-Formula 1 ace, Michael Schumacher.
Martin Kingham, 39, said he was closing the security gate at his premises in Lydd on Sunday afternoon when a Fiat van struck the end of it.
The barrier hit his leg "sending him spinning" on to the bonnet of a car.
Police called to the incident said they helped both men to swap details and no further action was needed.
Mr Kingham was unhurt, while only minor damage was caused to Schumacher's van in the collision outside Millfield Motors, just before 1600 BST.
'Penny dropped'
He recalled how the police officer called to the scene said: "That chap is claiming to be Michael Schumacher, and I said, 'You know what, he doesn't half look like him'.
"Then the penny suddenly dropped. When I phoned my business partner later and told him that you'll never guess who I've been run over by, he wouldn't believe me.
"Obviously being a car salesman we do like a wind up but the difference with this story is that it is actually true.
"Michael's entourage turned up and he left."
A spokesman for the seven-time Formula 1 world champion confirmed the incident had taken place and that Schumacher had co-operated with police.
Schumacher crash stuns car dealer
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/kent/7534890.stm
A Kent car dealer who was sent flying when a van struck a barrier was shocked to discover the driver was the German ex-Formula 1 ace, Michael Schumacher.
Martin Kingham, 39, said he was closing the security gate at his premises in Lydd on Sunday afternoon when a Fiat van struck the end of it.
The barrier hit his leg "sending him spinning" on to the bonnet of a car.
Police called to the incident said they helped both men to swap details and no further action was needed.
Mr Kingham was unhurt, while only minor damage was caused to Schumacher's van in the collision outside Millfield Motors, just before 1600 BST.
'Penny dropped'
He recalled how the police officer called to the scene said: "That chap is claiming to be Michael Schumacher, and I said, 'You know what, he doesn't half look like him'.
"Then the penny suddenly dropped. When I phoned my business partner later and told him that you'll never guess who I've been run over by, he wouldn't believe me.
"Obviously being a car salesman we do like a wind up but the difference with this story is that it is actually true.
"Michael's entourage turned up and he left."
A spokesman for the seven-time Formula 1 world champion confirmed the incident had taken place and that Schumacher had co-operated with police.
Hamilton on pole for Hungarian Grand Prix and a McLaren 1-2.
That was to be expected. Hungaroring and Mclaren have always been a good match.
Aggressive start from Massa to take the lead 
Hamilton's got a puncture, drops back into 11th position.
Massa's engine blows with 3 laps left
Massa's out with 3 laps to go 
Very harsh, was a great race by him, would have taken the championship lead as well.
Very harsh, was a great race by him, would have taken the championship lead as well.
at MassaWhat a shame for Massa
Kovalainen and Glock.... now that was expected
Fantastic race
Fantastic race
Kovalainen wins his first grand prix, Glock second and Raikkonen third.
Massa must be gutted.poor old Massa there, terrific start reminded me of the move on Senna by Piquet. Not half as good obviously, but still good.
The Italian influence is back at Ferrari. What a shame, great start, great race...
Hamilton has to learn how to work the tires. He had a similar problem in Turkey last year. F1 is not only about driving very hard, you also have to manage the tires.
Hamilton has to learn how to work the tires. He had a similar problem in Turkey last year. F1 is not only about driving very hard, you also have to manage the tires.
massa must be shattered. that was a chance for him to overtake hamilton in the championship and the engine blown up wth 3 laps to go.
Where's Count Duckula with his 'F1 is dull cos the McClaren is so far ahead' tosh now eh?! The beauty of Formula 1, it's ever changing. That's just about the best Hungarian grand prix since perhaps Damon Hill in the Arrows, and he suffered a similar fate to Massa back then. Nice hearing him on commentary, he isn't as good as Brundle, but he's my childhood racing hero!
Do you say Hamilton is lucky or unlucky there? He suffered a blow out, but he kept it on the road, and in the end he's only lost 2 points to Kimi, which is frankly a result. For all it matters to the championship, Kimi effectively won that race with Hamilton coming second. Game over for Massa now for me this season, you don't come back from that devastation with that championship deficit
Do you say Hamilton is lucky or unlucky there? He suffered a blow out, but he kept it on the road, and in the end he's only lost 2 points to Kimi, which is frankly a result. For all it matters to the championship, Kimi effectively won that race with Hamilton coming second. Game over for Massa now for me this season, you don't come back from that devastation with that championship deficit
With the way this season is going anything is possible. Massa is only 8 points behind Lewis and 3 behind Kimi but yeah it's a mental blow maybe.
Hamilton was lucky in an unlucky situation.
Hamilton was lucky in an unlucky situation.
Hamilton was lucky. His championship lead increased despite what was looking like a certain victory for Massa.
Quite a result in the end for Hamilton given the circumstances.
Bad luck for Massa!
Bad luck for Massa!
I watched it all up until just after Hamilton's puncture then I had to go do something. Will watch the rest on the highlights but its been a great twisty season this. Raikkonen is out of sorts but he is still somehow managing to bring the car home with a half decent result - its keeping him up there - it could be crucial come the end.
I cannot believe what happened to Massa. Unlucky. I'm not his biggest fan and don't think he is up to it consistently but I gotta' say it was a bloody good race from him and an amazing start.
Good race from Glock and Toyota as well.
I cannot believe what happened to Massa. Unlucky. I'm not his biggest fan and don't think he is up to it consistently but I gotta' say it was a bloody good race from him and an amazing start.
Good race from Glock and Toyota as well.
That massa incident reminded me of Barcelona a few years ago, when hakkinen was leading the race then on the last lap, last corner i think, engine blew.
Man was gutted, to say the least!
Man was gutted, to say the least!
And for Massa, the engine..
Correct. Ferrari reliability hasn't been great this year but some of Massa's problems are due to his driving style.
Ice cream in the fuel lines..
One race doesn't prove me wrong dearest Bradley
Wait until the next race rolls around and Hamilton marches to an easy win again. You'll see
Massa on pole for the Valencia's street circuit grand Prix later today.
1. Felipe Massa (Brz) Ferrari 1 min 38.989 secs
2. Lewis Hamilton (GB) McLaren-Mercedes 1:39.199
3. Robert Kubica (Pol) BMW Sauber 1:39.392
4. Kimi Raikkonen (Finn) Ferrari 1:39.488
5. Heikki Kovalainen (Finn) McLaren-Mercedes 1:39.937
1. Felipe Massa (Brz) Ferrari 1 min 38.989 secs
2. Lewis Hamilton (GB) McLaren-Mercedes 1:39.199
3. Robert Kubica (Pol) BMW Sauber 1:39.392
4. Kimi Raikkonen (Finn) Ferrari 1:39.488
5. Heikki Kovalainen (Finn) McLaren-Mercedes 1:39.937
Come on Hamilton
alonso out of the race.
A stinker of a race in truth, Ferrari's pitlane antics aside. A big suprise because in qualifying it looked a brilliant track, but after just a few laps it'd fanned them all out, and I can't remember an on track overtake at any point during the race
Nice to see its one rule for Ferrari and different for everyone else still. Others have been penalised with stop go penalties for releasing their cars into the path of other pit lane traffic before, so why are they only looking at the incident 'after the race' this time? F1 at its farcical norm
Nice to see its one rule for Ferrari and different for everyone else still. Others have been penalised with stop go penalties for releasing their cars into the path of other pit lane traffic before, so why are they only looking at the incident 'after the race' this time? F1 at its farcical norm
Kimi engine blown up. he is almost out of the drivers championships, 13 points behind Hamilton.
Will Massa keep his race win though?
Will Massa keep his race win though?
And Felipe wins...
Once again Brad has selective memory when it comes to Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari.
I wonder, where was your uproar after this incident?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Un41Y-82vvY
Cars have been released side by side all the time in formula 1 and nothing was ever done about it but now since it could have given Lewis a win the old FIA is biased towards Ferrari has surfaced again
Erm, Hamilton got out ahead of Alonso there?! It's Vettal at fault for coming out alongside. Need I remind you what engine powers the Torro Rosso incidently?
Fact is today, the stewards spotted the incident, and investigated it, questioning whether it was an 'unfair release' or not. And its quite blatantly obvious it was unsafe. The odd and unusual thing is that the decision was deferred until after the race, and eventually Massa has been fined 10,000Euro's. Which essentially now means any car can release whenever they like in the pit lane, irrespective of cars coming down, and they will not recieve racing sanction. Unless it's McClaren next time, where we can almost certainly guarentee they'll be treated differently...
Massa now the only serious challenger to hamilton.
All in all, a good day for Hamilton.
I've been doing my sums. I've never liked this current points system, I don't think it rewards the race winner enough. It favours reliable also rans instead, which isn't the point of racing. Here are the current standings:
Hamilton.......70
Massa..........64
Raikkonen.....57
Kubica..........55
Kovaleinen....43
Heidfeld........41
Trulli............26
Alonso.........18
Webber........18
Glock...........15
Piquet..........13
Barrichello.....11
Rosberg.........9
Vettal...........9
Nakajima.......8
Coulthard......6
Button..........3
Bourdais........2
I thought there was nothing wrong with the previous system, 10 points for victory, 6 for second, 4-1 for the positions down to 6th place. This is what this season would look like then:
Hamilton........60
Massa...........56
Raikkonen......44
Kubica...........38
Kovaleinen......28
Heidfeld.........27
Trulli.............11
Alonso ..........8
Glock.............9
Piquet........... 7
Webber..........6
Barrichello.......5
Rosberg..........4
Coulthard........4
Vettal............3
Nakajima........1
Button...........1
Not an awful lot of positional movement to be fair. But there's a large change to the championship situation. Under the current system, Massa could win the next 3 races, and still only be level with Hamilton. Raikkonen could win every race left this season, but if Hamilton always comes second, Hamilton becomes champions. And I don't like that, its rewarding the wrong thing for me. Under the old system, in one race time with Massa winning and Hamilton coming 2nd, the championship could be tied
The balance is weighted too far in favour of reliability over race winning
I can see the smaller teams want a crack at amassing points, so I'd propose a compramise for next season. 10 points for a win, then 7 down to 1 for the finishers down to 8th place. It'd only be a small adjustment to the scoring of the 2nd place runner, but it just corrects the balance in the right direction, and should keep all the teams happy
Hamilton.......70
Massa..........64
Raikkonen.....57
Kubica..........55
Kovaleinen....43
Heidfeld........41
Trulli............26
Alonso.........18
Webber........18
Glock...........15
Piquet..........13
Barrichello.....11
Rosberg.........9
Vettal...........9
Nakajima.......8
Coulthard......6
Button..........3
Bourdais........2
I thought there was nothing wrong with the previous system, 10 points for victory, 6 for second, 4-1 for the positions down to 6th place. This is what this season would look like then:
Hamilton........60
Massa...........56
Raikkonen......44
Kubica...........38
Kovaleinen......28
Heidfeld.........27
Trulli.............11
Alonso ..........8
Glock.............9
Piquet........... 7
Webber..........6
Barrichello.......5
Rosberg..........4
Coulthard........4
Vettal............3
Nakajima........1
Button...........1
Not an awful lot of positional movement to be fair. But there's a large change to the championship situation. Under the current system, Massa could win the next 3 races, and still only be level with Hamilton. Raikkonen could win every race left this season, but if Hamilton always comes second, Hamilton becomes champions. And I don't like that, its rewarding the wrong thing for me. Under the old system, in one race time with Massa winning and Hamilton coming 2nd, the championship could be tied
The balance is weighted too far in favour of reliability over race winning
I can see the smaller teams want a crack at amassing points, so I'd propose a compramise for next season. 10 points for a win, then 7 down to 1 for the finishers down to 8th place. It'd only be a small adjustment to the scoring of the 2nd place runner, but it just corrects the balance in the right direction, and should keep all the teams happy