OT: Racing 2010 (Spoiler Alert)

[Rodster]

Alonso doesn't have any competition this year, though, does he?

I say he does. Massa is no Piquet jr. and also the idea that driving for Ferrari will somehow catapult his status even more. I say he has already achieved that, once a prick always a prick.

I do think Alonso's screw ups are in large part tied to internal pressure whether it's him, the Italian or Spanish press that may have thought he would be crowned WDC before the season even began, just because he's been crowned twice and is now driving for Ferrari.

I still think those Germany points will be erased come Sept 8th.

[toonarmy]

Hamilton did a great job today of dealing with the weather (and the gravel). Button really got screwed out of points by Sebastian that affected his place in the standings, as well as the constructor's standings, which Red Bull lead by a mere one point. My main question of the day is: what in the hell are the Ferraris made of? How does a car take that kind of shot and stay in the race, lol.

[GB_Simo]

Alonso doesn't have any competition this year, though, does he?

I say he does. Massa is no Piquet jr. and also the idea that driving for Ferrari will somehow catapult his status even more. I say he has already achieved that, once a prick always a prick.

Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to find me a single on-track incident or general statistic that suggests Massa has been anywhere near Alonso this season...

He's making more mistakes than usual, though we saw during that ill-fated spell at McLaren that his judgement goes to pot whenever he feels anger or frustration. He's felt an awful lot of that this season, and it's tempting to wonder whether he's taking a bit too much of that frustration into the car on a Sunday afternoon. The thing that must presumably smart most about this afternoon's effort is that it ended up being completely self-inflicted, with the car having somehow survived the long-range Williams bombardment - much like Toon, I've no idea how he drove away from that intact.

We do however fully agree, you and I, on the question of whether or not Fernando's a prick. If there was a Bell-End Of The Year award, he'd be right up there in the running.

[Rodster]

Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to find me a single on-track incident or general statistic that suggests Massa has been anywhere near Alonso this season...

G-E-R-M-A-N-Y too easy.

Warning, this post self-destructs in 5 seconds.

edit: I forgot to add Melbourne and Bahrain (Smedley told Felipe in Bahrain to back off so as not to overheat the engine) where Massa was very competitive against Fred.

[GB_Simo]

Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to find me a single on-track incident or general statistic that suggests Massa has been anywhere near Alonso this season...

G-E-R-M-A-N-Y too easy.

Warning, this post self-destructs in 5 seconds.

Worst. Mission. Ever. Let me have another go...

Even allowing for Fernando's various mishaps (the penalty at Silverstone, the safety car snaggle in Valencia, getting caught behind Trulli at an unfortunate moment in Canada, the huuuuuuge Chinese jump start, the first turn crash in Australia, the engine problem in Malaysia, starting last in Monaco, that thoroughly half-arsed qualifying session in Turkey - I trust 8 is enough for illustrative purposes), Alonso is clearly ahead of Massa in the championship and in terms of general on-track pace. Clearly enough ahead that Ferrari put all their eggs in the Alonso basket with 9 races of the season still to run.

Alonso has been there for the taking, through mistakes and some rotten bad fortune rather than through being slow, and Massa hasn't done so. The thrust of my question, which I'll sheepishly admit was quite dreadfully worded, was to try to get you going through the season to establish exactly how, over the course of the year, Massa could be construed as any kind of threat to Alonso. Whatever's eating at the Spaniard this year, it sure isn't the guy in the other red car.

Edit: It wasn't a question either, was it? More of a statement, really, with an invitation to go through some stats and race reports. My, I think it's bedtime...

[Rodster]

Um sorry mate I can't hear you past the Smedley "Alonso is faster than you do you understand?" radio broadcast. And if I were the only one who thought the whole thing was BS and Alonso was truly faster and better than his teammate he would have passed him. If he was really faster than his teammate there would be no reason for the press to ask the following questions which i'll repost:

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/85561

Excerpts:
Q. (Byron Young – The Daily Mirror) The reality is, though, that you couldn't beat him on the track, so you had to get the team to do it for you.

FA: If that's your opinion.

Q. (Byron Young – The Daily Mirror) I'm asking you, is that not your opinion?

FA: No.

Q. (Byron Young – The Daily Mirror) He had to give you this win, didn't he, Fernando?

FA: No.

Q. (Ian Parkes – The Press Association) Fernando, you've said that you're happy with this win but to be honest, I've never seen a driver look less happy in the middle of a podium there today, and in the middle of this press conference here. Why can't you just be honest with us for once, and just admit that this win was handed to you on a plate today?

[GB_Simo]

When I said 9 races in, I meant 11, since there were 10 races before Germany. I never could count.

I'm not saying, and have never said, that Massa wasn't deserving of the victory in Germany (he wasn't clearly faster, at all, but then neither was the Spaniard behind him, and he'd built a little cushion early on which had given him the lead late in the day, so it was his race to defend at the very least). Sadly - and it does make me a little miserable, because I like Felipe a lot and have very little love for Fernando - one race is not illustrative of a season, a season in which - by and large, without looking into the specifics of every single race weekend or picking the one that suits our point the best - Massa has failed to pose any kind of sustained threat. That applies just as much here as it would at a more dramatic example such as Renault, where clearly nobody would suggest that Petrov's got Kubica bricking himself after that race in Hungary...

Perhaps it's me and perhaps I'm mental, but Alonso has Massa in his pocket. It's not exaggerated in the way that a comparison between Sutil and Liuzzi might be, but I would find it an absolute nonsense if anyone was to review the season to date and suggest that Fernando has anything to fear from the guy in the other Ferrari.

[Rodster]

When I said 9 races in, I meant 11, since there were 10 races before Germany. I never could count.

I'm not saying, and have never said, that Massa wasn't deserving of the victory in Germany (he wasn't clearly faster, at all, but then neither was the Spaniard behind him, and he'd built a little cushion early on which had given him the lead late in the day, so it was his race to defend at the very least). Sadly - and it does make me a little miserable, because I like Felipe a lot and have very little love for Fernando - one race is not illustrative of a season, a season in which - by and large, without looking into the specifics of every single race weekend or picking the one that suits our point the best - Massa has failed to pose any kind of sustained threat. That applies just as much here as it would at a more dramatic example such as Renault, where clearly nobody would suggest that Petrov's got Kubica bricking himself after that race in Hungary...

Perhaps it's me and perhaps I'm mental, but Alonso has Massa in his pocket. It's not exaggerated in the way that a comparison between Sutil and Liuzzi might be, but I would find it an absolute nonsense if anyone was to review the season to date and suggest that Fernando has anything to fear from the guy in the other Ferrari.

In this post and maybe it was worded or conveyed differently I wholeheartedly agree. Massa is Alonso's puppet no question and while Felipe may have not been clearly faster than Mr. Prick he was in the lead and it was Alonso's job to mount an attack and find a way past him. If the race played out it could have gone to Alonso but we never saw that. Instead Felipe was told to move over.

The moment I saw Alonso barge his way past Felipe going into the pits and it's pretty earlier for me this morning so I don't recall the race. At that point I knew Felipe was playing second fiddle to Alonso within the team.

On a pure talent/aggression level Alonso is the better driver. And that's what makes the really good drivers standout. Lewis is another one that comes to mind. Kimi and I still don't know how to classify him but when he was in the zone no one could catch the guy.

[Rodster]

Austin Texas Layout http://en.espnf1.com/f1/motorsport/story/27181.html

The layout of Austin's Formula One circuit has been finalised by race promoters Full Throttle productions.

Featuring 133 feet of elevation changes, it was revealed by head promoter Tavo Hellmund to the local American Statesman newspaper. The 3.4 mile Hermann Tilke-designed track will reportedly have a 200mph maximum speed, a long back straight and some corners that resemble famous F1 tracks.

According to the Associated Press, Hellmund said F1 chief executive Bernie Ecclestone also "likes it".

He said the layout includes three ideal overtaking places, and sections that resemble Silverstone's Backetts, the Stadium section at Hockenheim, and Turn 8 in Turkey.

"It will be similar to one gigantic turn," Hellmund said of the Istanbul-style section.

[toonarmy]

The Austin track is brilliant. Even Tilke detractors will have to admit this is a great course overall. The downhill descent into turn two out of turn one looks like it will be a lot of fun. There are nice corners and straights for speed, as well as some highly technical areas that will let the better drivers shine. I also like the elevation changes. Some of the more recent tracks are way too flat IMO. Here is a very nice detailed draft of the Austin track in 2D:

http://joesaward.files.wordpress.com/20 ... ircuit.pdf

It gives an idea of the best racing line and a good look at how fast or slow the corners will be. It sure looks like it will be much better than the course at Indy. I cannot wait to see this thing progress.

[pk500]

It sure looks like it will be much better than the course at Indy.

That's not really difficult considering that the course at Indy was built inside the constricting confines of an existing oval. Tilke had a completely open area from which to build this circuit.

[Rodster]

I like the layout of the track especially T1. Too bad they couldn't replicate Eau Rouge on that track. I wonder if the drivers will have to deal with compression when coming out of the last corner T20 and leading into T1?

[DChaps]

Just like the USF1 Formula 1 team, I will believe this Austin GP thing when I am sitting in the stands about to watch the start of the race.

[pk500]

Just like the USF1 Formula 1 team, I will believe this Austin GP thing when I am sitting in the stands about to watch the start of the race.

Don:

I share your skepticism. But I know someone who has been in touch with Tavo about possible contract work, and a good friend of mine is a full-time F1 journalist based in the U.S., and both say this thing is real -- for now.

The circuit sure looks interesting. But they better break ground quickly if a race is going to take place in 2012!

[pk500]

The uphill Turn 1 at Austin reminds me of Turn 1 at one of my favorite extinct F1 tracks, the A-1 Ring in Austria. That turn was a right-hander, but it was the same concept: An uphill dash from the start-finish line into a tight turn that determines the king of the late-brakers and usually results in some sort of chaos!

[Rodster]

I'm with everyone here. I'll believe it when I see it but supposedly there are some fat cats behind this project who have deep pockets and who love Texas and F1. I believe McCombs who owns the Vikings and two NBA teams is a Billionaire who wants to make this happen. And there are other partners involved.

If it were Peter Windsor and Anderson behind the scenes I would say forget it but the guys with the money want to see an International staged in Austin, Texas and they appear to be serious. I've been to Austin a couple of teams, and it is a nice place to live with tons of college babes.

[pk500]

The circuit sure looks interesting, but I don't share Toon's effusive enthusiasm. This track still has all of the hallmarks of a Tilkedrome -- it's very point-and-shoot, with few fast, sweeping corners other than the Istanbul replica section of the track. Way too many straights ending in right angles, which is the scourge of nearly every Tilke track.

Tilke clearly took the "karaoke" design approach to this track, lifting cues from other circuits around the world. Sadly, many of those circuits were his wretched creations. Why didn't he copy from great tracks like Spa, Suzuka and Zandvoort?

[pk500]

RIP Shoya Tomizawa.

[Rodster]

Yeah tragic news indeed. Rossi chimed in with class saying no one should be to blame for what happened on the track. It was the worst possible scenario. Rider falls off at high speed and the inertia doesn't pull him away from the track but instead is lying in front of two approaching bikes. Damn only 19 years old and he was good too.

RIP

[pk500]

Yep. Tomizawa won the very first Moto2 race this April at Qatar. In a tragic irony, the last fatality at a World Championship race also involved a Japanese rider, MotoGP rising star Daijiro Katoh in 2003 at Suzuka.

I saw the accident: There was nothing De Angelis and Redding could have done. Horrible.

[GB_Simo]

I saw the accident: There was nothing De Angelis and Redding could have done. Horrible.

Very similar circumstances to the World Supersport accident that took Craig Jones at Brands a couple of years ago. Exactly like that crash, it was apparent from the very instant Shoya lost control that the outcome was going to be a bad one.

He was a rising star, an exciting rider to watch and, by all accounts, a very nice bloke too. His loss will, I'm sure, be keenly felt. RIP.

[Rodster]

I just saw the Youtube video O-M-G what a way to go. It looks like the first bike ran over his upper chest area and the second bike ran over his torso. The poor guy didn't have a chance.

Like Rossi said you would expect the inertia of the bike to carry both the bike and rider away from the track after coming too far over the rumble strip. His bike stood back up sideways right in front of him, what are the chances of that happening?

[Rodster]

Ferrari got off from any further sanctions so i'm sure girly man Luca Di Montezemolo must be happy.

[pk500]

FIA = Ferrari International Aid.

As David Byrne sang in "Once in a Lifetime," "Same as it ever was ... "

[Rodster]

Maybe that recent rumor that Ferrari wants to pull out of the FIA Championship and join the IRL over the proposed Turbo 4 cylinder engines in 2013 and Randy Bernards recent trip to Ferrari may have been picked up by FIA spies.

Btw this is what an FIA Spy looks like.