[demonrail666]

Yeah? You're right about Webber. Not a driver I particularly like but he's going at it like a real race winner at the moment.

[demonrail666]

Hamilton fucked up big style there. Penalized ten places for the next race, too. I suppose he's just secretly pleased he took out Kimi.

Great to see Kubica get an overdue win (and DC on the podium again).

Failing Hamilton taking the championship I'd love to see it go to Kubica.

My only regret about seeing their rise is that they're competing against a fairly unspectacular field. (I know Kimi and Alonso are former world champions but neither have overly impressed me when getting there.) It's a shame for us that Hamilton and Kubica aren't facing talents of the pedigree of figures like Schumacher or Senna at their height, who I'm sure would've tested them far more than the current crop. Impossible to really say, but just a thought.

[PAULYBEE2656]

man, i have to disagree.. i think the field is amazingly strong this year, stronger than ever.....

first up.. robert kubica.... so happy to see him finally win. 2008 world champion elect... i say this cuz he is 4 points clear and if he continues to drive like he is, he will take the title... as for lewis..... what a dumb ass thing to do, he feels the pressure big time, he always said his biggest fear is kubica..... and they are best mates too! but if you hit someone up the back at a red light on the road you would be in serious trouble too.. elementary brain fade, rosberg penalised too......

as for the team

ferrari.. kimi and massa... kimi is a star, he isnt gonna hang around for too much longer tho.. massa... jury still out, fast but cant handle being raced for the lead of a race, leave him alone and he will win anywhere...

mclaren... lewis, hot property but signs of immaturity still show.. kovalienen, possibly the best all round driver on the grid... very prost like

bmw.... heidfeld, great but is visibly shaken by roberts pace.. robert... absolute star... reminds me of senna in the way he attacks everything with ease.. and a damn nice bloke!

renault- alonso, no denying his ability, great racer, piquet.. time will tell.. talent yes, needs to get a break and stop panicing

red bull... webber and coultard.. the finest pairing on the grid, both experienced and fast....

torro rossa.. vettel, a superstar in a few years, great skill..... bourdais, needs to find his f1 feet, you cant win 4 champ car titles in a row and be shite!

toyota- glock... well, midfielder... no more no less.. capable of scoring points.. trulli, ultra fast and ultra experienced.. should have won more races...

honda- barrichello, twilight iof his career, still trying in a truck of a machine.. button, yeah, wonderboy is no longer the favourite amongst armchair fans but still capable but hasnt really cut it to be honest

williams- rosberg... very fast, very same as his father, ruthless... nakajima... driver of the seasson for me.... ultra quick and he hasnt really made too many rookie mistakes... most exciting driver pairing on the grid

force india- fisichella... sadenned by seeing him at the back and struggling with reality, sad sad way to fall off the back of the grid..... sutil.. monaco aside, put him in a good car and he is as good as hamilton, he proved that in gp2 and the world series for renault numerous times


super aguri... shame none of these drivers are still here at the moment both sato and davidson deserve to be on an f1 grid right now.....

as for robert and lewis not having to compete with true legends, i take your point but remember... senna only had prost and one year with lauda to compete.. schumacher had senna yes but he also only had hakkinen and hill who you cant really count, remenber too, alonso beat him fair and square twice.....

its all relative.. today we have hamilton, kubica, sutil, raikkonen, rosberg, heiki, nakajima and vettel........ they are call young and we will be talking about these for years to come and also there is a fine selection of drivers waiting to take the eldermens places too...

its just an opinion again but i reckon its the strongest f1 grid in years... that will be proved when we may have a 4 car, 3 manufacturer battle for the championship............

 

[demonrail666]

looked at in that detail I can't disagree with what you're saying. There really is quality throughout the grid. Kubica is impressing me more and more everytime I watch him. Hamilton is a real talent but is still a way away from realising his true potential. You clearly have far more background knowledge of the drivers than I have, but just from watching F1, it's evident that the following seasons show a lot of promise.

[PAULYBEE2656]

yeah, im a bit sad. ive followed kubica and hamilton and most of the grid through various formula from formula renalut up to today. actually lewis ex teammate at fortec during his 2003 formula renault campaign in britain is a friend of mine, a mr james murphy from wexford, he did ok but had to give up the sport due to lack of funding, shame cause he could have made it through to maybe not f1 but certainly some form of international series.....

adam carroll and niall breen may well be the next irishmen to make it into f1, carroll certainly is looking good as a frontrunner in gp2... anyway... i am admittedly an anorak!

[demonrail666]

Not in the same league, but I used to work with a really old bloke who it turned out was best friends with Bernie Ecclestone. He was a lovely fellah and wouldn't have a word said against 'young bernard'. Apparantly he started out in some kind of motorbike parts thing that this guy helped him at. His name was Brian but I can't for the life of me remember his surname.

I saw him with 'young bernard' on the grid a few years ago on TV. I heard he died last year but he was such a smashing bloke who thought F1 stopped after Stirling Moss retired. He thought 'Mossy' was the last of the 'real' racing drivers. I was into Senna at the time, who he shrugged off as a 'pop star'. He was ancient but still drove to work in a red E Type and wore driving gloves. God, I hadn't thought of him since hearing that he'd died. A really great bloke just to sit back and listen to, even if half the time I thought he was just an old nostalgist. He was into model railways too. How brilliant is that.

[PAULYBEE2656]

sounds like something the journalist dennis jenkinson would say "mossy was the last true gentleman racers". man that era was different tho. i mean you had to respect each other or you would certainly be dead....... tin bombs were all they were....

 

monza 1961

[demonrail666]

Great footage. This clip of Jim Clarke's fatal crash in 68 also shows how different the sport is now. Graham Hill shown picking up broken car parts is something you'd not see the like of today. And the women with their stop watches. Wonderful.

[PAULYBEE2656]

sad day indeed, clark was one of the greatest..
trees and cars do not mix... fast forward to 1999 and peter dumbrek walked away unhurt from this monster forestry excursion

and of course it happened his team mate mark webber in the warm up session..... (live coverage)

it is a much faster and safer sport now and we have people like max mosely to thank for that!

[PAULYBEE2656]

 

now time for the french grand prix at mangy cours near nevers in the middle of france.. a dull, twisty track with no real character or interest... i never liked this place, like a go kart track inside a matchbox.....this could be the last race here.. mind yyou that has been said on the last previous 5 years here too... the oldest running grand prix should be on the calender for historys sake at least, but not here... anywhere but here... the bugatti circuit at le mans is an obvious choice and possibly the only one.. anyhoo...

dont know who will get this, ferrari have the key here but i reckon kubica could easily back up his win with another here and remember lewis has a ten place penalty to battle with... i still reckon he will be in with a shout because you loose less time in the pits here than anywhere else so a 3 stopper is the way to go to make up time.

1. kubica
2. kimi
3. heiki
4. heidfeld
5. lewis
6. bourdais (strong showing on home soil)
7. nakajima
8. trulli

i could be well out here tho!

[demonrail666]

Agree that ol' Mangy Core is a bit of a meh. So long as neither of the Ferarris win it, I don't really mind. Kubica or Hamilton would be the two I'd prefer (ideally Kubica - am going right off Hamilton after seeing him hanging with P. Diddy at Monaco) although I'd also weirdly like to see Nakajima do the highly unlikely. Don't ask me why. I just would.

And I wanna know why my Gran Turismo games won't let me do what Dumbrek managed at Le Mans?

Which has me thinking: I wonder how difficult it is to get tickets for next year's Le Mans? I imagine it would be pretty insane to go and watch the whole 24 hours.

Just checked: weekend tickets for the one just gone seemed to sell from the ticket office for between 40-100 euros. Well up for it next year. Will have to see when they go on sale.

[PAULYBEE2656]

i didnt even bother replying to the french gp.. it was a snorefest...but now

 

the british gp..at silverstone for the penultimate time

its moving to donington in 2010 in a very strange move by the fia.. i mean they are gonna have to rebuild the entire thing in time.. lets hope they dont emasculate an amazing circuit for the benefit of one year or so there.....

as for the race.. after watching qualifying.. i fance webber and the mclarens for a good run... vettel is flying so an odd result maybe on the cards as the weather seemingly is fucking stormy and wet!

ferraris for some reason are struggling even after massas scary 180mph shunt in friday practice... this race could close up the champuionship again...

my prediction..
1. lewis
2. heiki (if he keeps his head)
3. webber (if the planets are aligned)
4. alonso
5. vettel (if there is any justice)
6. kubica
7. nakajima
8. a ferrari

[demonrail666]

Loved that. Sometimes makes me think they should hose the track for every race. Shame that Kubica went off. Massa was a disaster (what is it about him? He's joint-leading the championship at the half-way stage and yet I struggle to really be convinced by him.) Can't deny that Hamilton was immense today.

[PAULYBEE2656]

lewis was immense... amazing race... shame about the red bulls and kubica but yknow.. you cant blame them, the conditions were terrible... as for massa.... well you know my thinking on him!

i agree, they should install a sprinkler system at every race track! great race!!!

heidfeld was the star today tho. his driving was sublime to say the least! and lets not forget rubens... another star in a race to remember..

[demonrail666]

Originally Posted by PAULYBEE2656

lewis was immense... amazing race... shame about the red bulls and kubica but yknow.. you cant blame them, the conditions were terrible... as for massa.... well you know my thinking on him!

i agree, they should install a sprinkler system at every race track! great race!!!

heidfeld was the star today tho. his driving was sublime to say the least! and lets not forget rubens... another star in a race to remember..

I didn't know you had your doubts about Massa. I thought it was only me. Rubens was great today. It's weird. He's a driver I've never liked, without ever having good reason to. He's meant to be a lovely guy, and came close to winning the Championship one year. Maybe it's the second Ferrari driver syndrome. I couldn't stand Eddie Irvine either, and of course there's Massa. I can't remember who their second driver was before Irvine, but I'll bet I didn't like him either. And it's not just an anti Ferrari thing either. I was always a big Schumacher fan, and don't mind Kimi.

[PAULYBEE2656]

my opinion of massa is that left alone at the front, he can drive away from anyone and win by a mile but the slihghtest bit of pressure put on him and he cracks.. how many times has he spun out of an easy win after someone challenges him or in fact races like a duck when things doesnt go his way. yes he had a bad shunt on friday but still he drove like a grandad today, albeit the ferrari was well off the pace.... he wont win the championship, he cant handle the pressure... he reminds me of a fast ralf schumacher in his prime....

but still.. halfway thru the season we got kimi, felipe and lewis on 48 points and robert only 2 points back and if we have another race like that and heidfeld gets his long overdue win....... 5 drivers in with a title shout... this season is turning into a classic!

i alwaays loiked kimi, rubens and eddie, i like drivers who maybe could beat michael schumacher at any time... it rarely happens but irvine was a character, i mean on his first gp, suzuka 1993, he unlapped himself by overtaking senna, senna went to visit him afterwards in the pits to demand respect and eddie told him to fuck off, he got thumped by the 3 time champ! classic! and then 3 races later in brazil in 94 he cauused an unmerciful 4 car pile up and got banned for 4 races

hats of to kosuki nakajima as well, that guy has impressed me so much this year! watch him go straight into a toyota next year to replace one of their drivers, probably trulli. he is a toyta man after all!

[demonrail666]

Wow. I'm guessing only Pauly probably watched that, but any doubts about Hamilton this season have to be be put to bed. Having the race in the bag before the safety car, i really couldn't see him winning it back after the odd pit stop decision. Admittedly, Massa was absolutely shit but Hamilton was just wonderful to watch in that final stint.

Hats off to Piquet too for making the very best of a bit of good fortune. Hamilton today was just in a different league though.

Surely Massa won't be driving with Ferarri next season. It actually makes me wonder what team would want him at all based on today.

[demonrail666]

Saw this in yesterday's Timesonline. Thought it might be of interest

Martin Brundle

Despite German drivers populating a quarter of the grid, it looks like being a British, Finnish or Brazilian victory in the German Grand Prix at Hockenheim.
Lewis Hamilton has made himself firm favourite for the chequered flag with what looked like a comfortable high-precision run to pole position in a McLaren that both drivers say has significantly improved in the past few weeks. Hamilton says he has increased his performance by “tidying up several small areas” of his driving, while his teammate, Heikki Kovalainen, is third.
Felipe Massa sits menacingly alongside him in a Ferrari that could well be faster over a longer run, but the biggest question mark surrounds Kimi Raikkonen, who could manage only sixth behind Jarno Trulli's Toyota and Fernando Alonso’s Renault in the other Ferrari, although he is probably fuelled very heavily.
July has traditionally been the trigger point for the Formula One driver musical chairs. The global slump clearly has not affected this market. The best of the speculation surrounds the plans of Raikkonen and Alonso.
With Raikkonen refusing to confirm or deny that he is considering retirement – maybe even at the end of this year – the expectation is that Alonso would replace him should he do so, and that the Spaniard will be at Ferrari regardless in 2010. After he shoved a photographer on the grid at Silverstone a fortnight ago, and watching him behind the wheel here at Hockenheim, there is a part of Kimi that is unhappy and frustrated at the moment. I would still be more than surprised if he retired this year, but if he wants to sign off as world champion, he needs more speed and balance in his car.
What would Raikkonen do if he stopped? I cannot easily imagine him as a businessman, a media person or a home-loving family man. I find it hard to think of him as anything other than a one-dimensional, totally focused born racer. So he would go snowmobile racing for fun, and occasional form suggests he might drink too much. You would actually worry more for him if he retired than if he was still racing.
There are rumours that the Spanish banking group Santander will at some point be leaving McLaren for Ferrari, taking Alonso with them. They sponsored McLaren originally in order to be with Alonso, not expecting him to be out after just one year of a three-year contract. Although they are an international organisation the lure for them of Alonso and Ferrari is understandable.
So if Kimi does continue into 2009, where would that leave Alonso? He can't go back to McLaren, so the only realistic place for him to move would be Ferrari or BMW. The latter team is surely interested but I’m absolutely certain they would want to contract him longer term and wouldn’t be up for providing a nice cosy stepping stone for a year while he waits to slot into Ferrari with all BMW’s systems and data. So he will stay put at Renault and dream of scarlet cars.
We can discount the wild rumours of Hamilton going to Ferrari. He is staying put at McLaren, probably for many years to come.
But there are stories linking Williams driver Nico Rosberg with the seat alongside him in place of Kovalainen. I’m a big fan of Heikki as a driver and a person but regardless of the reasons for his poor form this year he really needs a couple of very good results, starting today. I can imagine Rosberg’s German nationality being attractive to McLaren’s partner Mercedes-Benz.
Elsewhere, Germany’s brightest new star Sebastian Vettel has been confirmed as the retiring David Coulthard’s replacement at Red Bull next year, and there is fevered speculation about which other drivers might end up in which cockpits for 2009.
I would expect that the space created at Toro Rosso by Vettel’s departure would be filled by GP2 star Bruno Senna, the nephew of the late Ayrton. This would please Bernie Ecclestone, whose influence in driver selection should not be underestimated.
He is not particularly proactive on the subject but he is the circus ringmaster who always seeks new high-wire acts. He needs wheelsmiths who will get TV sets turned on and who will attract new sponsors and exotic grands prix locations.
For example if he has second-generation Brazilian stars like Senna and a Piquet on the grid he will be content if a long-running star like Rubens Barrichello doesn’t get a berth.
However, on the back of his great podium result at Silverstone, it seems more than likely that Rubens will remain at Honda alongside Jenson Button for another year. This emphasises just what a strange business the driver market is. You can easily go from hero to zero and, thankfully for many of us, it can quickly reverse.
You really are only as good as your last race. It is ridiculously fickle because it is such a subjective decision, the toughest decision a team principal has to make. The driver is the final link in the chain and inevitably the biggest because once team members all step back from the grid, it’s largely down to him, at which point the $400 million budget is resting on the shoulders of him and his crazy young teammate.
The teams have copious amounts of data on all of the drivers, analysed in great detail, but it’s still a subjective call ultimately in that they don’t know how he’s going to gel with the team, with his race engineers, and the design philosophy of the car.
So it ends up being a fashion business. Better the devil you know than the one you don’t, but the data and gut feeling helps take some of the gamble out of hiring a new charger behind the wheel.
Nationality can figure in driver choice too, but it’s interesting to explore why Germans currently dominate in numbers when we’ll be down to just two Brits next year. Is it the flywheel effect of all those dominant years from Michael Schu-macher? Are we going to see five Alonso-inspired Spanish drivers on the grid in future? Is it about the two German car manufacturers in F1?
When I came to F1 in the 1980s there were around 30 cars and 13 of them were driven by Italians, although that was more about sponsorship and convenient tax provisions.
Maybe it’s all just a coincidence, but hopefully Hamilton and the new UK ‘Go Motorsport’ initiative will keep Britain at the centre of global motorsport.

[PAULYBEE2656]

ok..sorry i had p.c. issues all last week so i coulnt comment...

germany...great race... only kicked off with timos crash, good job he is ok, that was a heavy one.. piquet did a damn fine job on a one stopper and fair play to him but the jury is still out but he has saved his job i reckon...

as for hamilton, classy fucking drive, sheer class......
as for massa... "ok, im going to make this hard, ok, its lewis, ok stay...stay...stay.. OH SHIT NOOO I CANT HANDLE THE PRESSURE...I GOTTA PULL OVER.... after you mr superior driver..." the bloke is ralf schumacher, further proof to my point that massa is nothing special.... man he should be sacked for that one poor example of poor defensive driving..i mean, he wasnt even dissapointed with the result.....

as for alonso, man id say he is still fuming, his car was all over the shop, angry driving was obvious.... good news that timo is ok and roll on the hungboring....

did you see the laguna seca moto gp race.. rossi and stoner banging it out for 30 minutes... a second and a half a lap faster than anyone else. incredible race............

[demonrail666]

No, i never saw that. I only watch F1, which is silly really, because I'm always hearing good things about the other divisions.