Trouble is there is no American with enough F1 experience to fill the seat. I too would love to see an American at the wheel of Haas' car, but I understand his decision. The team is going to have a tough time learning the ropes. Having to train a driver would just add to that. I think Rossi is good & given time may be a very good F1 driver. Watching his GP2 races he seems to fade at the end of the race where the really good guys are moving forward. Don't know why that is, maybe he is using the car up too early.
Okay, I just really like this picture. Autograph session in Singapore. A clearly ecstatic fan. But the best part is Alonso's reaction to all that joy.
Rossi had to choose his F1 number. Went with 53, then tweeted this explanation. "Many people are asking, "Why 53?" Well this is why...Herbie's back."
I figured..... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . It was going to be a red car after the job they did in quali. Was hoping for the blue car, but I'm happy for the red team.
Well, since the cat's out of the bag...... This was a classic Vettel race the likes of which we haven't seen in a couple of years. It was simply amazing that he could carve out a 4 second gap in one lap, and he adapted his strategy as the race progressed. Just a dominant effort in a whole new way compared to the way the Benzer boys usually do it - which is simply to run away and hide all race. Danny Ricky Bobby impressed too, which makes me wonder if the Renault engine is really as bad as they claim? Danny Kay was also right in the mix till he got caught out of sync with the safety car on his pit stop. All in all a fun race to watch from 2nd on back, and Vettel did a remarkable job in controlling this race all the way to the win. Of course, the big question is - how is it the fastest Mercedes which is usually 1.5 sec ahead of the closest competitor now 1.5 seconds slower? Gotta love Hammie's brave face when he said he thought they still had the pace to win this race! Ha......yeah, right.......:biggrin5:
So, this was fun. [ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kVQOJulBrYg"]F1 2015 Singapore GP Race The Man Walking On Track - YouTube[/ame]
Eddie Jordan doing his 'I know everything' segment on the BBC said the logic of Mercedes providing engines to Marussia next year (yes, really) was that they want a junior or feeder team, like Toro Rosso is to Red Bull, to bring on their next generation of drivers. First on their list would be 19-year-old German Pascal Wehrlein from German touring cars who is a rising star. But in this context Rossi is a dream as increasing their brand in the US is a bit part of Merecedes' marketing aims, so an American driver already in place suits them fine. What is odd is that Mercedes would supply Marussia but not Red Bull. The Irvine gossip is that Lauda thought they should but Toto Wolfe said not. As a manufacturer, having two good teams scrapping it out with your engines is desirable, but I guess it's not attractive if you happen to run the only top team with those engines right now.
I loved seeing Ferrari back on top and Vettel doing thing. Found it interesting that Merc was made to run the Pirelli mandated tire pressures and loose their pace. But being Merc they will find a way to turn it up for the next race. Lots of press that Audi is taking over Red Bull with Red Bull being the title sponsor. What will become of Toro Rosso?
Assuming all this is true, Marussia could be a feeder team while Red Bull with Merc engines would likely be serious competition. And I read the decision wasn't made by either Wolff or Lauda but the head of Daimler who didn't like the sound of gifting title contention status to another team. That wouldn't surprise me, esp. given the amount of money they've put into getting where they are. I'm sure they're hoping for a title run at least as long as Red Bull's.
I keep reading this stuff and I still can't figure out why Audi would want anything to do with F1 in its current state. Are they about to give up on sports car prototype racing? I'm having trouble believing F1 is so much more lucrative from a marketing standpoint that it's worth spending more money for the privilege of working within a much more restrictive development window in a series with less relevance to their road car business.
And with the current scandal at VW over the diesels and the cost of remediation/fines, I doubt they'll spend the money now anyway.
VW group owns both Audi and Porsche. The argument is about why VW group should spend money to have two of its brands beat each other up in WEC. So, some folks think Audi will move to F1 and Porsche will fight on in WEC.
