vall wrote:It may not be the best article in the world but says many true things.
Complaining about less testing makes no sense to me, especially in his case. A F1 driver should be able to adapt to the car after half a day testing. This is what happens when the first test in Dec after a long break. Piguet did lots of testing 2007, then raced full time in 2008 and 2009. He's got enough experience. As I said, he has not shown any improvement. Ok, he may not get the same cat as FA for some races, but even when he had the same, he miserably failed to match FA. Just look at his results, even only at the races they have the same equipment if you wish....
No buddy, it doesn't. It's a poorly written article and it underestimates many things.
You cannot even think of being competitive in a normal race when your car is 0.5s off your teammate's. Forget about it. You'll qualify like ---, get backed up in traffic, get saddled with a car that's overweight and a bus to drive. You spend your race chipping away hoping for yellow flags and a good gamble on changing weather. That's not spending your time racing. That's spending your time waiting to take part in a freak spectacle.
Half day's testing after the break my ass. No F1 driver adapts to a car that quickly. Particularly in 2009 where rules changed, and performance markers would have too regards what the cars were supposed to stop, go and handle like. Performance markers then probably changed very rapidly as teams sorted their cars out. Renault looks like it had a lot of sorting to do. Limiting testing for young drivers hurt a lot. Half day's testing, ha ha. The first half day's testing after the break is a shakedown. The first week of testing is the team sorting out the car. Then data goes back to the team about how their new car performs and where performance needs to be developed. When your first update parts come back, you're going somewhere. This is the same in any racing category with a new vehicle. If you're not the driver handed responsibility at the start, the car isn't developed to your preferences. If you're not there when the first update parts arrive, you've no feel for where the handling qualities and development potential's headed. Given there's no testing in season, from there on in you're basically pissing in the wind and hoping for the best. Ever seen any news bites about Renault having something to match McLaren's simulator for drivers to develop the car pre-season or in-season with? Me neither (anyone's welcome to post up a link here proving me wrong).
What's more if you're right, why did FA need the vast majority of testing? He's got even more experience. Your logic is flawed.
So far as I can tell this season, FA has had an updated car the majority of the time. The - what - two races he's had the same car, the Renault was so phenomenally quick that FA didn't make points either.
There's no doubt relations between Piquet and his team have been a bit sour. Doesn't help, sure.
There's also no doubt that he didn't enter F1 as a rich millionaire playboy looking for a hobby or as an engine manufacturer's condition of sale - he is a legitimately quick, young driver as proven in feeder classes. No legitimately quick driver entering F1 - given a good chance in a decent car - has ever failed. None ever will. Piquet wasn't given a fair shot, simple.
And I'm not saying he's a Schumacher or Alonso either. He might have had a respectable end to the season last year, but as to greatness, that's yet to be proven. But neither is Hamilton, and he won a championship. If they'd gone to each other's teams, we'd be saying 'Lewis who'.
Give Piquet a legitimate chance and he should likely do well.
heh
