The F1 season 2004

"Alan Whitmarsh greater authority over both the chassis and the motor teams." Markus

Martin Whitmarsh. Who has been in charge of a company that failed to get last years car to the race track in 2003 and is ultimately responsible for this years car underperforming.

So he is promoted?? Obviously the buck doesn't stop with him and a lot of people are responsible for the debacle at McLaren.

Ian

 

Ian, surely you know the Dilbert Principle?

The Principle simply states that in a modern corporation: "The best use of resources is to promote the dumbest employee to where he can do the least damage. That is in management."

Michael.

 

Hi Michael,

"Ian, surely you know the Dilbert Principle?"

Sadly, yes.

That is why I have been moved into management!!

Ian

 

Dilbert, I mean Ian, sorry for the name mix-up.

Can we expect anything new from BAR at Imola (besides the brand new car, of course)?

 

Hi Markus,

"Can we expect anything new from BAR at Imola (besides the brand new car, of course)?"

I think everyone will turn up with aero kits and possibly engine upgrades so that would suggest a similar race. If it is cold then it will suit Ferrari. If is is hotter, especially in the race, then it might not be so good for them!

Watch the first session to see MSC do some very fast laps to destroy competitors morale, just like he has done at all events so far this year.

Ian

 

My god, Ian, you're psychic! Do you think Ferrari ran him very light, or is there a legitimate reason why he was so much faster than Barrichello and the rest?

 

Hi Markus,

"My god, Ian, you're psychic! Do you think Ferrari ran him very light, or is there a legitimate reason why he was so much faster than Barrichello and the rest?"

The best driver, with little fuel on board , in the best car, on the best tyres for the conditions (very dirty track). Bound to get a very fast laptime!

Second session was a bit different. Possibly suggesting that Ferrari have a few problems. Certainly the Mi tyres are the best to have for the rest of the event.

Looking forwards to Qualifying and the race.

Ian

 

Hi Markus,

Did you watch Qualifying?

To see our first ploe, Jenson's first pole, Michelin's first pole of the year.

We have worked very hard for a long time for this.

Ian

 

Yes congratulations Ian

It's looking very competitive at the sharp end this weekend and I'd love to see BAR become a winner - about time we had a new one. Oh and it's great to see an Englishman on pole for the first time in 8 years!

It's a sad day though. I can clearly remember where I was and what I was doing 10 years ago. Let's hope that the teams remember that day when their drivers and the FIA are suggesting it's all getting a bit quick.

 

Hi Ian,

3 ... 2 ... ? Congratulations on a superb allround performance this week-end. Too bad about Sato.

I must say this was a pretty good race. Quite a lot of overtaking (respect, Mr. Räikkönen), a bit of off-roading to make the race even more visually entertaining, and something to talk about in the coming days with the RSC/ALO incident.

What I don't understand is why Michael S. was so much faster than Barrichello. Barrichello has been much closer to Schumacher, both this season and the last, than in this race.

 

Because MSC is a better driver.

 

Modern day Formula 1 is the nadir of motor sport. It's a boring procession of boring cars driven by boring people and has nothing to do with true racing.

And yet it is popular. Why? Can someone explain it's appeal?

If you want to watch proper racing then it's all happening in Moto GP, this season is shaping up to be the best for years!

 

I regularly have this discussion with my brother. He rides a Kawasaki, watches Moto GP on Eurosport and finds watching car racing a big bore. I find watching bike races totally boring and prefer to watch F1. Neither of us can understand the other on this point.

I mean really - those bikes all look totally alike, the fairings won't let you see anything of the bike proper or the motor, the commentary is boring and the riders themselves are interesting only in their off-track shenanigans.

And as so many people seem to think that all that overtaking is a plus point - in my opinion, it just means those guys can't do consistent driving. If they could, we'd get more or less the same result as in F1. There, you see the true worth of a car/driver combination lap after lap in lap times which remain pretty constant.

And don't give me that no overtaking argument anyway. This season sees a lot more overtaking than the last two or three (not least through the efforts of that very kind and generous man, Ron Dennis, who graciously lets his cars start from the last line so they have to cut through some traffic and make good viewing for us). Just because Schumacher's usually out in front doesn't mean there is no overtaking going on.

 

Thanks everyone.

"Because MSC is a better driver."

Yes but there are technical reasons why this is the case. The current Ferrari is difficult to drive. It's base level of performance is very high (despiite tihe BS tyres) but it is verging on being unstable. Which means that MSC can get more out of it than BAR.

Ian

 

"And as so many people seem to think that all that overtaking is a plus point" Markus

Almost overtaking at will. Anything that is seen to be easy, perhaps through being repeated very often, can easily become boring.

Ian

 

I watch both, Markus, and I enjoy both. The attractive thing about the bikes is that these people are clearly stark staring mad. They go hurtling around a track at speeds not far short of a GP car, protected only by a leather suit and a skid lid, they defy all laws of gravity and friction and they miss each other by millimetres. Did you see the way Rossi's new Yamaha is just about controllable, how it squirms under heavy braking. I really can't understand why half of them aren't killed in every race. Which is probably why I watch them, to watch them defy death. GP drivers once did too, but not so much any more, so well protected are they in their monocoques. (Memories of Fangio racing in a T-shirt with no roll-over bar and definitely no seat belts).

 

A belated return to this thread.

Congratulations to BAR for another fine performance on Sunday. It was good to see Sato on the podium. When he was signed by BAR, I had expressed reservations over his abilities, as he had not really distinguished himself before IMO. But lately, he has outperformed Button consistently. But for his extraordinary streak of engine failures (and BAR claim those are not to do with his driving style), he could be quite a lot further up the driver ranking.

Ralf Schumacher is really having a bad season. He was outgunned by Montoya early in the season. Montreal seemed to mark a return to form, but then his team took away the much-needed points. In Indianapolis, a tire puncture cost him a good chance for the podium. I think he will go to Toyota, even though his chances of becoming world champion there must be a lot worse than at Williams, simply because the fun's gone out of it for him at his present team.

McLaren seem to improve steadily. I was kind of hoping they'd finish the season behind Sauber, but it wasMcLaren who profited most from the disqualifications of the Williams and Toyota cars in Montreal.

And I'm beginning to be slightly awed by Michael Schumacher's performance this year. Eight out of nine is awesome.

Although I must admit it would have been nice if he'd lost in Indianapolis. Just think of all the Seven of Nine jokes we're denied ...

 

Sorry Markus but I think they sadly showed their naivity yet again on Sunday. They are so far behind Ferrari in certain areas or organisation that frankly Honda must be pulling their hair out.

I do hope they can learn from their mistakes and challenge before the end of the year, but do remember Jordan were showing similar promise not that long ago.

 

"Sorry Markus but I think they sadly showed their naivity yet again on Sunday. They are so far behind Ferrari in certain areas or organisation that frankly Honda must be pulling their hair out."

Don't you think that statement is a bit over the top?

Did we actually get the strategy wrong? In the sense that we made it more difficult than we needed to yes. But Sato finished third which was the highest he was going to finish in the race. Then there is the real plus that Sato overtook so many people to get to the front. He started 30 secs behind MSC and finished 20 secs behind despite having so many people to pass.
The time to make a mistake withstrategy is to make it when it doesn't matter and learn from it!

Incidentally we got it right at Monaco. Pitted first for the second safety car and should have been ahead of TRU but somehow we weren't. MSC didn't and would have been very unlikely to win at Monaco as we and Renault didn't need to pit again and MSC did. Instead MSC brake tested MOY in the tunnel and his race was finished!

Why would you expect us to compete with Ferrari? We have the 5th largest budget on the grid and the 5th largest team. As a team we have been in F1 for 6 years, Ferrari have been in F1 forever!

Surely you should be asking why Renault, McLaren and Williams aren't competing with Ferrari? We are narrowing the gap all the time.

Ian

 

AFAICT Honda are getting pretty good vfm from BAR.

That may be so, Ian, but word has it that BAR has spent quite a bit over budget this year. Whether that means you're up to 4th in spending, I don't know. But it explains why BAR is trying to sell part of the team to Honda.