Fantastic Formula 1 - 2003

[oedo]

wow Zylka. nice thread opener. did you ever consider creating a motorsports fanpage? if so, don´t forget this link: http://www.very.de/

I think Schumacher will do it again this season and will win most of the coming races.

[Alex]

Very well.

Schumi will have a hard time this year. The F12003-GA apparently is not so powerful as the incredible F12002 was. After all, he finished the race in Spain only 5 seconds ahead of Alonso, and he only managed to put 9 seconds between him and the Spanish (on lap 58, IIRC). That means that this car is not so incredibly fast as the last one, but... Schumi is a magnificent pilot, he's able to squeeze out all he can from the car, contrary to Barrichello, whom always seems to have a hard time, no matter the car.

Raikkonen is good, but he is not that good. Mika Hakkinen was better than him. David is destined to be always in the supporting cast. I don't think he'll ever be world champion.

Montoya and Ralf are clearly in trouble this year, especially because the huge boost in Williams' performance last season has not been confirmed so far in this season.

And the new rules seem to be somehow arbitrary... It's almost as if they wanted to create a set of rules meant to complicate things for Ferrari. Yes, the last two or three seasons have been tedious, but this season is artificially highlighting teams and drivers that would never be in any top spot anyway.

But I like how things are going, and the qualifyings and races have been much more interesting to watch than before.

[Imran Siddiqui]

Originally posted by reds4ever
F1...probally the most boring alleged 'sport' ever created!

You forgot cricket.

[Dauphin]

I wish that Brands Hatch was still the UK GP location. I could easy go and watch it then.

[reds4ever]

Originally posted by Big Crunch
I wish that Brands Hatch was still the UK GP location. I could easy go and watch it then.

problems with insomnia? you could always go watch cricket!

[Sava]

Formula 1 is better than NASCAR. At least F1 drivers can do more than turn left.

[Zylka]

Originally posted by Buck Birdseed
Zylka: There are rumours that British-American Tobacco are dropping out of the BAR team next season, creating a new pure Honda team. Which might not be a bad thing- apparently their new chief executive is a huge F1 fan and will ramp up the investment.

Problem for the Canadian fan is whether or not they'll keep Jacques on for this opportunity. Jenson has basically been treated as the little British darling of the team this season, although he's a terrible driver who only looks as good as a light fuel qualifying lap. Far as I know, Jacques is popular in Japan... and that is a big thing for coporate clientele. Maybe they'll bring back Takuma Sato or Shinji Nakano to fill the seat at his side?

That would be for the best I believe, as the laughable BAR history has already tried constant "change" to promise results. A full blown Honda team would *undoubtedly* make for a C-Champ car, and probably the biggest budget ahead of direct rivals Toyota. It also seems the path of the future now, with the Jaguar, Renault, Toyota, and Ferrari teams building both engines and chassis. 10 years down the road, I imagine McLaren to be a Mercedes team and/or Williams the only "club" team left on the pack

Speaking of which, I've already mentioned my picks for chassis:

1- McLaren (+2003 launch at Silverstone)
2- Renault~Ferrari
3- Williams
4- ???Sauber~BAR~Jordan???

Anyone agree or disagree? Here are my engine picks as per apparent performance and rumour:

1- BMW
2- Ferrari
3- ???Mercedes~Renault???
4- Honda

I'd like to hear yours... and for Zop and the others, Kimi is 23 and after learning to go-kart participated in only 26 minor formula races. If you've raced even a go-kart competitively and looked into racing school, this is an unthinkable path into Formula 1 - and if you don't think he's already developing stronger a driver than Mika by landing a seat at McLaren and challenging for the crown in his third year, well....