Silly season 2016

[iotar__]

So:
- on one side - I guess Wolff said no
- on the other - F1 is a place where you fail upwards and awful performance guarantees an extension. Ferrari has zero chance vs Merc for constructors title in equal machinery. The only upside is it will make Vettel look good providing they remain in competitive no-man's land. The only hope is McLaren getting it right which won't happen .

What about the second Williams seat, Symonds has been praising Massa and yet there's no decision? I think he's staying along with Brazilian sponsorship. For that reason Wolff squeezing Vehrlein there seems unlikely.

[jericho]

So as the "silly" season goes, are the stories right then that Max will go to Ferrari in 2017???? They said Red Bull wouldn't let him go for 2016, en that he will get the Ferrari seat in 2017 instead.

Just let us see how he cope with F1 this season on, and how he will get on in his second season.

[zeph]

Or Ricciardo...

Vettel would prolly veto that, though.

[Schuttelberg]

Well, to be honest, I'm quite heart broken. I like Kimi, and I really hope he comes good (although my personal feeling is that a champion driver is over the hill), but my heart goes out to Hulkenberg. This not only means that the prospects of a Ferrari seat have vanished, but also a Williams.

Fight on young man! Who knows? Personally, I hope Renault buy Lotus out and pair Grosjean with Hulkenberg.

Now Kimi, let's see you push that German a little. Let's see a damn fight!

Pretty much the end of silly season I guess. No change at Ferrari, Mercedes, RBR, Williams, Sauber & FI. (at least)

[Sevach]

I guess everybody stays where they are now, maybe Button goes to WEC and Vandoorne gets the seat.

Everything held on for 2017.

[wickedz50]

I am happy that Kimi got an extension. It sounds good logic to stick to existing drivers for 2016 because of the developments taking place. Its a question of suitability for engineers to able to build a car to the drivers liking. Ferrari needs to keep their marketing strategy out of the window till they can win something next year. I can bet of Kimi putting lot more pressure on Vettel next year with a little bit of luck on his side. But the team will look towards Kimi to put pressure on both the Merc in the remaining season of 2015 and full of 2016. Ferrari is fighting the Merc and Kimi is not fighting Vettel..
Bothas is no F1 winner... ordinary very ordinary. Toto should rather put him in as Nico's replacement. Mightly Hulk will get his chances sooner than later. This guy has a long way to go and probably will shine soon in a good car.

[ChrisF1]

Hulk is done.

Passed over by Mclaren for Perez, and now no room there.
Passed over by Ferrari in favour of Raikkonen in 2016 and Bottas/Verstappen in 2017
No room at Mercedes
No room at Red Bull
No room at Williams.

F1 Career over with nothing to show for it.

[Phil]

I occasionally read CNN, and stumbled across this little article of Fernando Alonso. I'm posting it here, since it doesn't really belong in any team threads. There's not all that much information, but perhaps interesting to some none-the-less.

http://edition.cnn.com/2015/08/19/motor ... index.html

Asked if he should have left the Italian team sooner, Alonso told CNN's The Circuit: "Probably, yes. The car was not competitive at all and things were getting more and more sad.

"So probably one or two years less was the best thing, but you know we tried to do our best and we fought until the end of every single race," he added.

"After five years in Ferrari, being second all the time, I think it was enough for me."

DISCLAIMER: This isn't to dish Ferrari. More to give a bit more insight in perhaps some of the reasoning why Alonso decided to move on.

Reading this however, one feels that if McLaren-Honda don't turn around things to the point one could call them competitive until perhaps mid next year, I feel he may indeed move on for good.

[CBeck113]

The move did change something for Alonso - he's not second anymore...

On topic, Ferrari's move will freeze the driver market, with only the older drivers (Button, Massa) possible leaving any desirable seats, if you can imagine the McLaren seat as being such. We'll see two familiar faces at Haas (my guess Gutierrez and either Button or Hulkenberg), and little movement at the other teams - maybe Lotus/Renault.

[wickedz50]

I occasionally read CNN, and stumbled across this little article of Fernando Alonso. I'm posting it here, since it doesn't really belong in any team threads. There's not all that much information, but perhaps interesting to some none-the-less.

http://edition.cnn.com/2015/08/19/motor ... index.html

Asked if he should have left the Italian team sooner, Alonso told CNN's The Circuit: "Probably, yes. The car was not competitive at all and things were getting more and more sad.

"So probably one or two years less was the best thing, but you know we tried to do our best and we fought until the end of every single race," he added.

"After five years in Ferrari, being second all the time, I think it was enough for me."

DISCLAIMER: This isn't to dish Ferrari. More to give a bit more insight in perhaps some of the reasoning why Alonso decided to move on.

Reading this however, one feels that if McLaren-Honda don't turn around things to the point one could call them competitive until perhaps mid next year, I feel he may indeed move on for good.

A move back to Ferrari in 2017 can happen too. When Kimi left did anyone even imagine that he will return ... most people did not. So I can see a distant possibility that it can happen.

[Phil]

The move did change something for Alonso - he's not second anymore...

True, but being 2nd 5 times in a row is hardly an achievement most will be happy with. I actually think "progress" is more important than stagnation. 2 -> 2 -> 2 -> 2 -> 2 is worse than coming from 17 -> 14 -> 10 -> 5 -> 4 for example. Thanks to that, I think he may find himself being more motivated this year with a struggling McLaren because at least there, you have a sense of progress that in turn also means you have something quantifiable, measurable. Even if he never gets back to being even 2nd with McLaren, I still feel his time now further back could be more rewarding as a driver.

As much as Vettel enjoyed winning 4 consecutive championship, I think as a driver he is very happy to be at Ferrari and to be facing a new challenge as a driver. For him too, that progress will be important. Of course, the thought that RedBull isn't competing for championships (currently) is helping him too except that he himself isn't at his new home without having to think "what if I had stayed". To be moving on to Ferrari, for him, is progress. Just like it was for Lewis to move on from McLaren, despite being in a winning car at the time - a car that should have won that years championship.

[PlatinumZealot]

Not anyone could have won the championship in that 2012 Mclaren. Button certainly couldn't. I highly regard Button as a driver, but that MP4-27 was too much on the edge for driver who prefers understeer. The car was one of those cars that was a dangerous weapon in the right hands and ticking time bomb in the wrong ones. I certainly don't think Vettel could have won in that car either. He likes car that is balanced prefers a stable rear end but just enough that he can pivot the car into the corners. (regressive oversteer).

[Silent Storm]

If Kimi performs the same way next year and Mclaren don't improve Alonso won't wait another year and jump in that Ferrari for 2017. That would be more interesting than Ricciardo in Ferrari as this would prove who is better of the two and if Alonso beats Vettel he would be ranked amongst the all time great even if he can't win another title and Vettel would have a chance to prove himself against one of the best driver in current F1.

[PlatinumZealot]

That's mouth watering. Hope Alonso is still at his peak by then.

[Phil]

Alonso ain't going back to Ferrari. I'm fairly certain that won't ever happen. If Ferrari have a WDC competitive car in 2016 and nick it with Vettel, they won't need/want Alonso anyway. He'd be the greatest laughing stock if he goes back to Ferrari only to then come 2nd again or something. He'll either get there with another team, or more likely, he'll just leave the sport. He's already thinking back to the 'good ol' times of V10s and is one of the more vocal drivers on how the sport has changed, become less demanding. It won't be long until he'll be in WEC or something.