Ralph who? :D
Ferrari/Schumaker domination, new rules, etc, etc, I still reckon they need to change some of the tracks (it's not like they're short of a bob or two!). In the pre-race analysis (the boring bit :lol: ) they keep saying things like "Well on this track there's only one place where they can pass, so it'll be down to the pit crews..." What's the point of racing on a track where they can't overtake each other? If I want to see a procession I can go & watch the changing of the guard!
Damon Hill. Pity he didn't race for McLaren :yesnod: A bit of info on him: he did a write up on a BMW(?) a while back & said that he really liked the car as it reminded him of a Corvette & he really liked the old muscle cars. What a guy! Both he & Kimi made a big impression on F1 very quickly, so I've got high hopes for Kimi.
What's really needed for F1 is something like Minardi getting a 1,2! That'd be a shock :)
:cheers:

 

:D A Minardi 1,2, now everone would like to see that :thumbs: Last years driver Mark Webber certainly helped them and he aint doing badly for Jaguar this year either. Another man to watch :cheers: :cheers:

 

actually, Jos Verstappen was in front of Fischichella the whole race, untill he made the same mistake on the puddle that the others did (if you watch it again you'll notice all of them made the mistake while being close to another car in front, the spray made it so they couldn't see it and they aquaplaned on the puddle of standing water there) So, he could have won the race since Jos Verstappen was on a no stop strategy. Damn :(
I also agree some of the tracks are extremely boring, like Kuala Lumpur, Magny Cours, Spielberg (austria).The Indy track is one of my favorites and I hope Spa returns next year.

 

:iagree: Bring Back Spa! :cheers: :cheers: :cheers:

 

Absolutly better. Though the race in Brazil didn't go very well for some who came in second, thanks to the Red Flag, two lap rule.

 

Only 2 posts from the States and 1 from Canada. I sure wish F1 would become more popular in the States instead of the redneck roundabout.

I'm and Ex pat Brit so that explains my interest in F1

Dave

 

I love Ferraris but it's great to see the other manufacturers giving Big Red a run for its money. :thumbs:

 

I'm from the States and I have been to the last 2 US Grand Prix's so I feel that I can safely say - Formula One - BORING

Great Cars but single file racing just does not do anything for me. Same as CART just a bit faster.

Call me a Redneck if you want, but, I would much rather watch them go round and round and beat the crap out of each other and still have some suspense at the end of the race instead of the race having been decided by the second lap or whomever has the most $$ dictating the outcome.

 

I used to go to the races at Mosport and watch Jackie Stewart and Emerson Fittipaldi battle it out, that was good racing, no fences you were right there.

I have not followed it much since Nigel Mansell won the championship in '92 and said a "trained monkey could win in this car" referring to all the gadgets and automatic everthing that was in the car at the time. :D

 

It is definitely more interesting this year. There are a lot more passes and lead changes but many are just because backmarkers that don't have a prayer of winning are sacrificing their race result in order to qualify well. I don't agree with a lot of the rule changes, particularly the qualifying rules. Keep in mind that rain usually mixes thing up quite a bit as it is and we've had two races where it rained. Although Mclaren is fairly quick, they have won by luck and no serious challenges from the other competitive teams. It is an outright crime that Fisichella didn't win the Brazilian GP. A truly insane rule allows a car to crash so spectacularly that they are assured to finish in the same spot they were in before the crash. All the cars have telemetry, the FIA knows what position they were in immediately after the accident. There is no excuse for basing the finishing position on the order from 2 laps prior.

Back to the original point, I actually think that it is more frustrating to watch the races now because the rules allow cars that shouldn't be up on the grid to start there. The FIA has artificially stacked the starting order so there will be more overtaking but the slow cars are still slow and the fast ones now have to worry about hitting the slow ones. The rules have only made it more dangerous and difficult for the good teams to do well while giving the backmarkers their 15 minutes of fame.

 

I used to watch 'em all, but it got to the point that it was like watching paint dry. You want action? Lose the aero package (wings, spoilers, tunnels, etc..), give 'em monster rubber with steel brakes, and all the naturally asperated power they want with no electronics (that might be the tough part). I would bet the skillful drivers and set-up men would rise to the top.

Another problem right now? Local cable company doesn't have the Speed Channel :mad

Hans

 

79 Midnight Blue are you really a redneck? LOL. We like good ole heavy metal bashing also, but it's Trans Am for us. Some of the NASCAR road races are fun also!

dave

 

And so many great Rally drivers!!! :hurray: I guess that we are just so crazy about cars... :D I have no idea why there is so many great drivers from finland even though our population is pretty small.

 

Exactly what the point of this post is. It looks like there's a very real danger of F1 getting to be like it used to be ie. real racing & even overtaking. Shock horror!
I can't help feeling that it'll be like the last couple of years in that, after a promising start to the season, it'll end up as the normal procession of cars with the same team in the lead.
:cheers:

 

this season has been awesome so far... i can't wait the 2 weeks between events!

looks like there will be 4 teams at the top instead of one: McLaren, Renault, Ferrari and Williams. but with the new points and one-lap qualifying, almost any team has a chance for a podium, which is great for the sport. just wait until next year when driver aids and TC are banned, and they switch back to slicks (i hope)!

any bets on JV driving for Ferrari next year? :D





[Modified by Turbo-Jet, 3:16 AM 4/9/2003]

 

One major drawback of the new points system is that if one driver gets a serious lead it'll take quite a bit to gain on him with only a 2pnt difference between 1st and 2nd place.

As for JV driving for Ferrari, I think he kind of blew his chances with all the stuff he pulled at BAR. Who would want a driver that single handedly destroys the teams tactical plan (not coming in pits untill Button had to and therefore making Button stand in the pits too long, eliminating his chance for points)

Marck

 

Lets hope so :D Should make it much more interesting, although I think there's been far more excitement in the 1st 3 races this season than there was in the entire season last year! I'm hoping that Jordan also get competative again. They were starting to do OK then 3 years ago it all started going wrong for them :( And did anybody else notice how well the Jag was doing? Spectacular crash though: none of that wimpy damaging the front wing & pulling out the race stuff, no, do a proper job of it & knock the entire front off! Give the people what they want :lol:
There's usually far more active racing between the mid-runners than there is out at the front, so if some of them can catch up with the top teams it could get really exciting. A couple more aggressive drivers, like Montoya, in cars that have the ***** to win should really stir it up :)

 

:iagree: Does anybody remember the battles between Senna and Prost... Those were the days... Well, Schumi and Häkkinen had something similar. Maybe these "new" guys can araange something like that in future also! :D

I'm really waiting for the next season when all the electronic devised are prohibited. Should make some good races at least when raining... Then you can reaqlly see who is good driver! :thumbs:

 

I remember Rene Arnoux and Gilles Villeneuve banging wheels as they went side by side for most of the lap, ah happy days :thumbs: :cheers:

 

UPDATE!!!!!

FIA just announced that that car number 11 (Fisichella) was already on lap number 56 when the race was stopped, this means he will win the race and Raikkonen is 2. :sad: