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Haas hints at driver options for 2016 Formula 1 season

Panther_99FS

Panther_99FS

Retired SOH Administrator
Esteban Gutierrez, who is a reserve driver for Ferrari - Haas F1 Team's technical partner - appears to be in pole position for one seat. But Californian GP2 driver Alexander Rossi might also be a contender, while team owner Gene Haas has not ruled out a spectacular switch from NASCAR for Danica Patrick.
The list of possible drivers, however, is much longer than that, Haas indicated in a recent interview with USA Today.
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http://www.foxsports.com/motor/stor...io-perez-2016-driver-options-gene-haas-060115

Interesting list worth following - I hope Newgarden makes the list of contenders too!
 
I'm sure he will have a long list to choose from! Guttierez hasn't really made an impression in his time at Sauber to be honest, and Rossi might not have accumulated enough points for his superlicence, unless he does very well in GP2 this year. Patrick is too old I think, plus the team will need at least one experienced driver.

I wouldn't rule out a switch from Hulkenberg or Bottas to Ferrari, and Raikkonen to Haas....
 
Hey All,

If he is smart he will put a young NASCAR driver in one of his cars with say Kimi as a teammate. Yeah I favor Finns as I am by heritage over half. But all that said Montoya is right.

-Ed-
 
Ferry_vO said:
Patrick is too old I think
Click to expand...

EasyEd said:
If he is smart he will put a young NASCAR driver in one of his cars
Click to expand...
With the new licence system, a driver has to get a great open-wheel experience with good results before getting his (or her) Formula One licence.

That's why a NASCAR driver will not be able to switch to Formula One. And it has been too long for Danica since the last time she competed a full open-wheel season.
 
Roxane-21 said:
With the new licence system, a driver has to get a great open-wheel experience with good results before getting his (or her) Formula One licence.

That's why a NASCAR driver will not be able to switch to Formula One. And it has been too long for Danica since the last time she competed a full open-wheel season.
Click to expand...

Also true, which is why Rossi will need to do well in GP2 this year to even get a chance. Sergio Perez might open up the Mexican market for Haas; both Force India drivers are quite displeased with the team's progress this year.
 
Well thus far this season,
Rossi is in 2nd place with one P2 and a couple of P3s with about 6-7 races to go.

Time will tell though! :wavey:
 
'Roundy - Roundy Taxi drivers' in Formula 1??????
:biggrin-new::biggrin-new::biggrin-new:
Even with F1 in the present shambles it will never ever happen.
Ridiculous.
:173go1:
 
Hey All,

You are right - prejudice and bias rule - block em - a guy coordinated enuff to actually work a clutch and shift gears - can't have that. I think there is no way on earth to justify an F1 driver superior in any way shape or form to a NASCAR driver. I don't buy it - at all. In fact the evidence is all the other way. See Juan Pablo Montoya's record. See Kurt Busch record. At least NASCAR lets open wheelers drive and prove themselves - if they can - see Raikkonen - see Tracy.

-Ed-
 
EasyEd said:
I think there is no way on earth to justify an F1 driver superior in any way shape or form to a NASCAR driver. I don't buy it - at all. In fact the evidence is all the other way. See Juan Pablo Montoya's record. See Kurt Busch record. At least NASCAR lets open wheelers drive and prove themselves - if they can - see Raikkonen - see Tracy.-Ed-
Click to expand...
This is not against NASCAR drivers, and I agree to say NASCAR drivers are not inferior to F1 drivers. NASCAR and F1 (or more generally open-wheel) are too much different to make a fair comparison. A good open-wheel driver will not necessarily make a good NASCAR driver, nor a good NASCAR driver will necessarily make a good open-wheel driver.

FIA and Formula 1 officials just don't want to see too young drivers coming directly to F1 anymore without having enough open-wheel experience.

Open-wheel drivers usually don't come directly to Sprint Cup. They often enter some ARCA, Xfinity or Truck Series events before that.

Formula 1 is considered to be the top of international open-wheel series. But before coming to the top, you have to gain experience enough at lower levels. This is what F1 officials are aiming to.

And before you whine, note that I wrote "is considered", because I think IndyCar Series is at the same competition level as F1, just not as technological as F1. :friendly_wink:
 
Aside from Mario Andretti (who could drive anything) and Jacques Villeneuve I can't recall any CART/CHAMP CAR/ INDY CAR drivers who managed to make even a brief ripple in Formula 1, and that goes back to 1950.
Rick Mears tested a Brabham and impressed, however he was unimpressed by the amount of money HE was expected to bring, that was a shame.
Michael Andretti actually put in a few decent drives but screwed up by attempting to commute between the US and the UK, while his 'unfortunate' wife at the time made life uncomfortable for him within McLaren.
Paul Tracey and Al Unser Jr. both tested for Benetton and failed to impress. IIRC Geoff Gordon ran a brief test and did make quite an impression but decided the NASCAR money and the lifestyle appealed more than F1.
Taking a leap back in time and despite being genuine 'Racers', Jim Hall, Dan Gurney, Masten Gregory, Hap Sharp, Bobby Unser, Chuck Daigh, Mark O'Donohue and several other names that escape me failed to make the cut, despite all being stick and pedal drivers as well as including several outstanding engineers.
While Phil Hill won a World Drivers Championship I can't remember him driving the NASCAR circuits at all, he was however and outstanding World Sportscar driver and quite the 'Ace' in the SCCA and CanAm series.

At the present it is impossible to compare NASCAR and Formula 1 without laughing at the stupidity of the way both are conducted, along with the 'Celebrity' promotion status of far too many 'drivers'.

Both need the management to be removed, better still, terminated with extreme prejudice ........:173go1:
 
As of Suzuka, Nico Hulkenberg and Sergio Perez remain Force India drivers, Alonso and Jensen (finally!) confirmed at McLaren, Vettel and Kimi to stay with Ferrari, Bottas and Massa with Williams, if Lotus survive Maldonado will be with them, and depending on engines of course, Daniel Ricciardo and Daniil Kvyat remain at RBR, along with Carlos Sainz and Max Verstappen with STR.
Aside from Romain Grosjean the talent pool is rather shallow, unless they take on a new face.
Felipe Nasr and Marcus Ericsson have not been confirmed at Sauber and nether Will Stevens or Alexander Rossi (Marussia) would be worth considering.
Esteban Gutierrez might get a seat via the Ferrari association, his test driver role gives him the edge.

Danica Patrick!!!!!! Not a bloody chance.
She was a mobile chicane in Indy Cars/ Champcars/ CART or whatever the series became after the IRL fiasco.
:biggrin-new::biggrin-new::biggrin-new:
 
wombat666 said:
Alonso and Jensen (finally!) confirmed at McLaren
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Confirmed by McLaren, not by the drivers themselves. Both seem really unhappy with the current situation, and GP2 championship leader and McLaren Junior Stoffel Vandoorne is knocking at the door. They also have Kevin Magnussen as a back-up. Should save them a lot of money in salaries!

As for Haas: Gutierrez, Vergne (Both Ferrari testdrivers), Rossi in that order unless RBR (And STR) throw in the towel.

Sauber already confirmed both drivers some time ago, but as shown earlier this year, they might still sell the seats to even higher bidders.

Lotus signed an agreement with Renault this week, which should result in Lotus becoming the official Renault works team again. Current GP2 champion Jolyon Palmer (Son of..) might take the other seat, though Renault could insist on a French driver, wihch then could be Jean_Eric Vergne.

At Manor Stevens, Rossi, Mehri are looking to retain a seat, while Indonesian GP2 driver Haryanto is trying to buy his way into the team.
 
I think that if you look at Alonso and Jensen's history, they're both not the best at developing a car but are extremely fast if the car is fast. Not the best mix for McLaren right now.
 
I imagine that if either Alonso or Button end up not being retained the BT Sport interview with Ron Dennis will be shown again!
Interesting question, as I understand it, Honda is Alonso's 'Employer', his salary being split 50% between Honda and McLaren, so would Honda insist he remain or would he find himself on 'Gardening Leave'?
Button must have some development skills, World Champion with the 'Brawn' out of the box would still require him to be capable of keeping the engineering team up to speed.
While the reserve/test drivers are good, I doubt they should replace either frontline driver.
:encouragement:
 
wombat666 said:
Button must have some development skills,
:encouragement:
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I'm still not convinced. There were some technicalities that the teams couldn't overcome until the following season. On the other fronts, look what happened to Mercedes and Ferrari when Hamilton and Vettel arrived...and subsequently McLaren and Red Bull when they left.
 
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