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2015: Vettel To Ferrari & Alonso To McLaren

Panther_99FS

Retired SOH Administrator
Looks like Ricciardo really did rattle Vettel's cage.
More to follow as things become "official"...
 
The most significant point is HONDA employing Alonso Ed.
If they decided to move their engines exclusively to say, Sauber (Highly unlikely but 'What If') then I'd expect Alonso to drive a Sauber ........ :biggrin-new:
 
I believe Jensen will just retire, he has stated that he has had a good career, and (reading between the lines) he has had enough of F1, which would make sense.
McLaren are not going to dump Kevin Magnussen, although stranger decisions have come from Ron Dennis, and I doubt Button is prepared to settle for a team that fields a pair of mobile chicanes.
Again, the death of his Father might well play a big part in his decision, I (just me, myself) think he knows that there is more to life than Formula I.
It takes a real man to know when it's time to go, and I think Button is cut from the same cloth as Mark Weber, both are about the same age and both seem to be comfortable in their own skins.

  • :encouragement:
 
If they decided to move their engines exclusively to say, Sauber (Highly unlikely but 'What If') then I'd expect Alonso to drive a Sauber ........ :biggrin-new:

For a rumored 50 million a year he should strap the engine to his back and walk a lap around the track if they ask him too..

I do wonder what will happen to Ron Dennis, as he and Alonso didn't exactly part in a friendly manner the first time! Button may still be of value as he is the last Honda world champion, but Magnussen is a young driver for the long run.

Vettel to Ferrari, but I doubt he can do miracles there, the drivers aren't exactly the problem this year.. And what will Kimi do? Maybe time for Bianchi to step up?
Toro Rosso have a problem now, having served off both Vergne and Sainz jr when they hired Verstappen!

Mercedes is looking more likely to retain both Lewis and Nico now, if I listened to Toto Wolff talking to the BBC.
 
I do wonder what will happen to Ron Dennis, as he and Alonso didn't exactly part in a friendly manner the first time! Button may still be of value as he is the last Honda world champion, but Magnussen is a young driver for the long run.
And what will Kimi do? Maybe time for Bianchi to step up?
Toro Rosso have a problem now, having served off both Vergne and Sainz jr when they hired Verstappen!

Ferry, 'Mr Dennis' will just have to suck it up, he has a choice, Alonso and HONDA or nothing.
The key point is that HONDA have signed Fernando, not McLaren, so it's a package deal. And really, Alonso is more than a match for 'Mr. Dennis'.:173go1:
I'd like to see Jensen stay on but as you say, Magnussen is the future, however, there's always Mercedes if Lewis chucks all of his toys out of the pram and goes off to Sauber or Force India ......... Jensen does have history with the embryonic 'Mercedes' team.

Kimi is staying put, be great if he can pin Vettel's ears back!
Bianchi?
Who??
I don't think so.

STR should retain Vergne as I've mentioned, he's driving really well and (I believe) would be a good #1, Verstappen is just too green.
And Sainz Jr. would have been a better 'genetic' choice!

Rather late in the year for the 'Silly Season' but what an entertaining one it is so far.
 
A certain kimi Raikkonen entered F1 after just 23 races in Formula Renault 2.0, Max will have done 6 in Formula Abarth and 33 F3 races this year. So far he has made very few mistakes and shown great pace and maturity on every occasion. I sure he will do fine next season.

And Sainz Jr. would have been a better 'genetic' choice!

Max isn't just the son of Jos, his mother is Sophie Kumpen, once a karting champion herself until she got married to Jos and had a few kids. ;)


Vergne was told he was too old for the RB junior team, and Sainz and his management threw a hissy fit when they picked Max of Carlos. I guess keeping Vergne on for at least one more year would be the best thing to do, he did a great job in both Singapore and Japan, and he doesn't have a lot of other options.

Now let's hope Bianchi is OK, but it doesn't look good....
 
Impossible to tell how Bianchi is, anything from concussion or worse, he'll have had a scan and we'll know soon enough.
At first it seemed as if one of clean up crew had been backed over by the JCB (or whatever) as they tend to do that in Japan, again, we'll know in time.
I remain (for the present) unconvinced about Verstappen, maybe he has his mother's Genes, let's be honest, Jos Verstappen was never more than a journeyman #2 at best.

And a young Kimi Raikkonen would have to be good, he's a Finn.

:finland:
 
Heckuva pass for the lead by Lewis on the outside & in the rain! :applause:
Nico drove his usual strong, controlled race (reminds me much of a cross between Hill & Prost).

I thought the Williams drivers would have faired better...
 
Current news.

Formula One racing's governing body, the FIA, has said that Marussia’s Jules Bianchi has suffered a severe head injury and is undergoing surgery following his serious accident in Sunday's 2014 Formula 1 Japanese Grand Prix.

Bianchi collided with a recovery vehicle which was removing the damaged Sauber car of Adrian Sutil in the latter stages of the race, which was then red-flagged and not re-started. The Frenchman was quickly taken to hospital.

"The CT scan shows that he has suffered a severe head injury and is currently undergoing surgery,” read a statement. “Following this he will be moved to intensive care where he will be monitored."

Further information will be issued by the hospital when it becomes available.

The FIA statement in full:
"On lap 42, Adrian Sutil lost control of his car, spun and hit the tyre barrier on the outside of Turn 7. The marshals displayed double waved yellow flags before the corner to warn drivers of the incident. A recovery vehicle was dispatched in order to lift the car and take it to a place of safety behind the guard rail. While this was being done the driver of car 17, Jules Bianchi, lost control of his car, travelled across the run-off area and hit the back of the tractor.

"Once the marshals reported that the driver was injured, medical teams were dispatched and the safety car was deployed. These were followed by an extrication team and an ambulance. The driver was removed from the car, taken to the circuit medical centre and then by ambulance to Mie General Hospital.

"The CT scan shows that he has suffered a severe head injury and he is currently undergoing surgery. Following this he will be moved to intensive care where he will be monitored.

"Mie General Hospital will issue an update as soon as further information becomes available."
 
Hey All,

I hope Bianchi recovers well - maybe never drive an F1 car again though just depends on the severity of the head injuries.

Running at near race speed - I can't believe a converted front end loader was anywhere a car could hit it especially given what happened a lap earlier? Needed a safety car not double yellow flags. We already know the propensity of F1 drivers for hitting track equipment - the only driver to ever hit a propane track dryer while the race was under caution in NASCAR history was from F1. That aside what on earth were they thinking?

-Ed-
 
Hey All,

I hope Bianchi recovers well - maybe never drive an F1 car again though just depends on the severity of the head injuries.

Running at near race speed - I can't believe a converted front end loader was anywhere a car could hit it especially given what happened a lap earlier? Needed a safety car not double yellow flags. We already know the propensity of F1 drivers for hitting track equipment - the only driver to ever hit a propane track dryer while the race was under caution in NASCAR history was from F1. That aside what on earth were they thinking?

-Ed-

EasyEd,
Bad, bad, bad, bad, joke (your Montoya/NASCAR reference) considering the seriousness of the situation which Bianchi is in...
 
Hey All,

I'm not joking about Bianchi at all. I think maybe F1 needs to actually clean up their act in a lot of ways - start with safety then move on to what racing is about. Maybe just maybe it is a bad idea to have construction equipment where a racing car can hit it unless the cars are all slowed.

-Ed-
 
Bloody Muppet!
Obviously can't tell the difference between yellow flags and a safety car.
Hard to miss a thundering Mercedes covered in flashing yellow lights, then again, 'Blinkered Vision and Prejudice' will do that.
NbATbv.png


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Hey All,

Wombat you have no reason to be cross with me.

From: http://www.autoblog.com/2014/10/05/j...1-motorsports/

...Safety in Formula One racing has come a long way over the past few decades, but accidents still do occur. And when they do, we're reminded of the inherent dangers involved in such a fast-paced form of motorsport.

Our latest reminder has unfortunately come at the expense of one Jules Bianchi, driver for the Marussia team. On lap 42 of the Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka today, Bianchi crashed into a recovery vehicle that was evacuating Adrian Sutil's Sauber. Sutil's crash had prompted the race marshals to deploy double yellow flags to warn of the danger, but the warning evidently didn't prevent Bianchi from losing control of his car at the same Turn 7 where Sutil had gone off-course....




Or better yet.

From: http://www.theguardian.com/sport/blo...anchi-crash-f1

...In the statement on Sunday evening confirming that Bianchi was undergoing surgery, the FIA pointed out that marshals in the area around Dunlop had been waving double yellow flags, warning of great danger ahead and that drivers must slow down and be prepared to stop. But the safety car had not at that point been deployed for Sutil’s accident. Bianchi may have lifted off but coming out of the high-speed turns would still have been travelling at great speed and flags in those conditions may not have been enough. “You are going into the barrier if you go off there,” said the former driver and television analyst Martin Brundle. “There’s no way of recovering, you are going too fast. Some will say there are yellow or double yellows flags but that doesn’t stop you spinning off.” ...




Or even better yet. The video from the previous article in case you didn't look at it.

http://www.theguardian.com/sport/vid...and-prix-video

I don't know what a bloody muppet is but I'm sure it means I'm right. :mixed-smiley-010:

Maybe you can explain why they are trying to race with an imminent typhoon? I can't just stupidity I guess or greed. Jules Bianchi gets to pay for this I guess.

Who was the driver that actually refused to race in japan when heavy rains were forecast back "in the day"? I know I remember reading that somewhere. Pretty smart I'd say.

And talk about bad karma!!! From the Guardian article above...

...Twelve months ago, while the Japanese Grand Prix weekend was proceeding, the former Marussia test driver María de Villota was found dead at a hotel in Seville....

Tragic all the way around.

-Ed-

PS Nice pics of a safety car laps too late.
 
The picture of the car is horrific, having seen the video of the car going in to the recovery vehicle I am really not sure how he was not killed instantly. Not sure how fast he was going but I guess if you are aquaplaning you are just a passenger.


Hope he makes a full recovery.
 
Marussia have thanked the Formula One community and fans for the huge outpouring of support for Jules Bianchi, and called for patience with regards to updates about his medical condition following his accident at Suzuka.

The Frenchman suffered severe head injuries and underwent surgery after crashing into a recovery vehicle during the 2014 Formula 1 Japanese Grand Prix.

Marussia said updates about Bianchi's condition would be communicated in conjunction with the Mie General Hospital, and in accordance with the wishes of Bianchi's family.

"Following the accident involving Jules Bianchi during yesterday's 2014 Formula One Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka Circuit, the Marussia F1 Team would like to acknowledge the huge outpouring of support and affection for Jules and the Team at this very difficult time," the team said in a statement.

"With regard to the communication of information concerning Jules' medical condition, we will respect, and be guided by, the wishes of the Bianchi family. Together with Jules' care, they will remain our highest priority.

"Therefore, we would ask for patience and understanding with regard to further medical updates, which will be communicated in conjunction with the Mie General Medical Center in Yokkaichi, where Jules is being treated, when they feel it is appropriate."

Representatives of the Marussia and Ferrari teams - Bianchi is a member of Ferrari's Driver Academy - will remain at the hospital to support him and his family.
 
Diffuse axonal injury, which is just f******* bad news..: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diffuse_axonal_injury

Former F1 doctor Gary Hartstein's explanation: http://formerf1doc.wordpress.com/2014/10/07/diffuse-axonal-injury/

All around I see people trying to point fingers, but this really was a freak accident.. If that forklift hadn't been there, there would have been Marshalls killed for sure.
Maybe Bianchi missed the double yellow waved flags, which indicate danger on track and the driver should reduce his speed so he can stop in time. Apparently Bianchi was (According to the telemetry) doing 200 kph in 6th gear when he lost control..
Maybe the safety car should have been deployed earlier, but by that time Bianchi was already on his last lap as he was driving just in front of Sutil when he went off.
 
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