Formula 1 2005

[italcarguy]

So we are just a few days away until one of the greatest days of the year....the start of the 2005 Formula 1 series. Who will win it this year? Ferrari is back with the same ol' crew while other teams switched drivers around hoping to come up with the right car/driver formula. Let's hear it folks. I say Ferrari does it all over again.

[GV27]

Well of course Ferrari does it again. Bernie wouldn't have it any other way! (Sorry - I'm bitter)

[GTV4EVR]

Too bad Ferrari seems to be afraid of Minardi! It really sucks that they appear to be playing the big bully role>

[skidmarks]

If Minardi can't afford F1 they should go elsewhere, I hear the IRL will need field fillers for the "500".

Ferrari all over again. - I hope McLaren can get off to a decent start this year.

[DaveH]

It's all become a bit of a farce IMO. FIA/Bernie/Max/Ferrari vs The Others. Fixed, if you will.

Sniff.....sniff - I think I smell Don King!

[RtbRacer]

Its not fixed.

Ferrari spends more!

Money wins, in all sports.

[GTV4EVR]

But one of the reasons they have more to spend is Bernie pays them a lot more than he pays any of the other teams.

[Mr. C.]

Those of you who are bitter about Ferrari winning as often as they do should examine why Ferrari wins and why Ferrari keeps so many really top people.
Ferrari people are the reason Ferrari wins.

Di Montezemolo who empowered the team to operate as a team and utilize each team member to his or her fullest.

Todt who is not only a great organizer and systems creator but is the real key behind the team environment at Maranello. Everyone who works on the Ferrari team inside the factory or at the track will readily tell you that they would not consider working else where because the see the discontent in the other teams. Todt works hard to insure that each person is happy at his or her job.

Martinelli the engine man who believes that if it is the best way, we must do it that way. Outstanding reliability and maximum power are the the only acceptable outcomes of engine design and build. The present V10 is built like 5 Vtwins and has 5 sumps becuase that is the best way to insure regidity. It means that it must have 10 oil pumps to scavenge and circulate oil (plus two others for other parts of the engine) but there can be no compromise where lubrication is concerned. Martinelli and his people have olved some long time engine puzzles in the last 10 years.

Brawn part engineer, part strategy genius, seer of the future whether the future is the next 5 laps or the next decade of technology. A simply amazing person who despite his massive responsibilties is considered by the factory workers to be a fantastic boss.

Byrne quietly goes about his job of working next years car starting the day after this years car hits the track. This man understands all aspects of race cars and racing and winning. He works 24/7 and has had more success than anyone in the business right now.

Barrichello the "Perfect team mate" the best man in the sport at doing the job that he has. There is simply no one better.

Schumacher, among the greatest drivers ever! He never lets go of the goal of winning. He is intelligent tireless, physically more than up to the task, dedicated to the team and a master of the high technology of todays cars. Mechanics who work close to Michael's car tell of how he has learned to figur out the best brake bias (front to rear) for each corner and he will adjust his for each corner when he needs to record a few good laps. His performance under the gun has always been exceptional. Does he have his faults yes probably so but one of them is not a lack of drive to win.

If you are not a Ferrari fan, pick your team and cheer for it and weep for it and above all respect the people who can put so much technical and emotional power together that they win. Isn't that what they are all trying to do?

[DaveH]

Well, it could be worse I suppose.

We could have Williams domination. Yawn.

[GV27]

I understand that Ferrari is a heck of a racing organization that spends a mint on the sport, but I don't think that excuses the fix. Bernie shows obvious favoritism to Ferrari and so does the FIA. All the new rules play to Ferrari's strengths. Then there are the constant rules changes in Ferrari's favor. For example the "quick-shift" gearboxes that Renault and BAR (IIRC) spent millions to develop this off season. These gearboxes could have given them a real advantage. They showed the concept to the FIA and the FIA said OK. So they spent a considerable amount of resources to develop it. But when it comes time to start racing it, Ferrari complains to the FIA. So the FIA arbitrarily says "anything that shifts faster than 50ms (in other words, faster than Ferrari) will be considered a CVT". That sucks. McLaren was similarly victimized two years ago on their torque-biasing diff. Again. totally within the rules at the time, got initial OK, spent millions to develop it, then shot down by Ferrari.

Similarly, it's pretty obvious where Ferrari is going excluding Minardi. It's hard for small teams to survive missing GPs. If the grid gets small enough, the teams will be forced to run 3 cars. That soaks up resources. Since Ferrari has the most resources, that hurts them the least.

So yeah, if you want to see it as a business contest, then you gotta hand it to Ferrari and their dominance should run until someone can outspend them and utilize that spending as good or better. But I like car racing as a sport, and outspending your rivals, buying influence and leveraging your brand awareness to win is just simply not sport.

Plus the sport has gotten just dead boring. As I said on another thread, I used to be a huge F1 fan. I doubt I'll watch a single race this season.

Chris

[Mr. C.]

I remember when McLaren was the constant winner and it seemed that no one would catch them. A lot of people were starting to claim that they cheated and they had all that Honda money behind them. Now Ferrari is king and that must mean they cheat.
Auto racing has always been a sport of spending as in Penske. Part of the "sport" is finding the deep pockets to fund you. Outspending your rivals is almost a must in sport and the more technical the sport, the more important money is. Toyota have more money than Ferrari, McLaren spent a kings ransom on their tech center, Renault spends plenty of money and who do you think Michelin would like to see win the whole deal ??
What counts is who puts the fastest most reliable car on the track and drives the H out of it to win.

[boggissimo]

Quote:

Originally Posted by italcarguy So we are just a few days away until one of the greatest days of the year....the start of the 2005 Formula 1 series. Who will win it this year? Ferrari is back with the same ol' crew while other teams switched drivers around hoping to come up with the right car/driver formula. Let's hear it folks. I say Ferrari does it all over again.

[Alfa_Tiv]

Quote:

Originally Posted by RtbRacer Its not fixed. Ferrari spends more! Money wins, in all sports.

[84_SPIDER]

I'm still cheering on Williams. Been doing it since the Mansell/Prost/Senna days. But Ferrari will probably win a lot this year. I want to see how the new tire & engine rules come into play, and if it will actually change anything.

[scorpion1]

Looks like mercedes is very strong. I say Montoya in melbourne. Reneult looks good as well. Would like to see fish do well. Ferrari should make the top 5 in the race.

--Dave