Silly Season 2011 Thread

[multisync]

FI
Luizzi
Chandhok

[andrew]

Is that confirmed or a wish?

[ESPImperium]

Have a feeling that Force India will be either Hulkenberg or Sutil in Car 14 and either Liuzzi or Di Resta in Car 15 next year. What they could do is give each driver 3 GPs, but the drivers inactive will take part in FP1 at each of the events he will not race in. Then after that they will have the 2 drivers for the rest of the season.

There is a new rumor tho that who ever gets car 14 will see the other guy i mentioned above installed as the Reserve at Mercedes, with him doing FP1 at roughly 14 of the races next year.

As for Virgin, i can see that being Glock with either Aleshin or D'Ambrosio, posibly rotating both as well so to get the $5 that D'Ambrosio brings with the rumored $20 that Aleshin will bring. Id recon with that D'Ambrosio would see every 4th GP on that ratio.

As for Hispania, who is left on the pay market is who they will carry, i dont think they will take Yammamotto as he just isnt quick enough for them, with that i see Davide Valsecchi and Josef Král sharing a seat as both of them have the alloted money (rumored to be $9m for that seat) to get a full race seat between them, as for their #1 seat, i think its down to either Senna or Chandhok here, if they can get the $15m together for that seat, but anyone that has the money for that seat will get it. If Valsecchi and Kral sharing a seat that will also mean that the inactive driver here will also do reserve duities as well.

As for reserve drives, id put them down to this:

Red Bull = Vergne (Riccardo to STR FP1 seat)
McLaren = Turvey (Paffett to DTM Full time)
Ferrari = Fisichella/Bianchi (Badoer and Gene have been thanked and paid off)
Mercedes = Hulkenberg or Sutil
Renault = Grosjean or any DAMS GP2 driver
Williams = Bottas/Stoneman
Force India = Felix da Costa
Sauber = Guiterez (Confirmed)
Torro Rosso = Riccardo (Confirmed)
Team Lotus = Senna/Jeffri
Hispania = Won on EBay for $200k a session
Virgin = Razia/Haryanto

[multisync]

Is that confirmed or a wish?

Neither: merely a rumour..

[raymondu999]

Hamilton is now in car number 3. Schumie stays in 7 though

[andrew]

Where did you see that? Hamilton is still car no. 4 from what I have read.

[ESPImperium]

Where did you see that? Hamilton is still car no. 4 from what I have read.

http://www.fia.com/en-GB/mediacentre/pr ... entry.aspx

Hamilton is now car 3. McLaren always put the driver that scored highest in the previous season int their odd number car if they are P1 to P5 in the constructors table, and their even cars if the team is P6 and below.

Toro Rosso are reportedly to confirm their duo for the start of the season soon, probably Alguersauri and Buemi, but both will be monitored thu the season, with the most under-performing driver getting dumped at arround half way for Riccardo to take over that seat.

Hispania are going to reveal the plans for 2011 soon, id recon they will announce next week. Not gonna guess, but think it will be pay drivers with posibly Klien as the Test & Reserve driver.

I recon that Virgin will announce soon as well, probably Glock and Aleshin for them.

I think Force India will do the usual wait untill the day or two before launch for their driver line up.

As for the seat at Renault, thats gonna be a long wait till thats resolved i feel.

I also think that Reserve Drivers will be announced before some race seats are.

[raymondu999]

Hamilton is now car 3. McLaren always put the driver that scored highest in the previous season int their odd number car if they are P1 to P5 in the constructors table, and their even cars if the team is P6 and below.

You mean "higher/lower" numbered cars, right?

[ringo]

Hulkenberg should be a test driver.
There's no good reason for him to displace anybody in a midfield team next year.

He's not bad, but he had the whole year to impress and he failed to make himself look special. I don't see him taking di resta's FI drive next year. He's an unknown quantity and it would be risky to seat him at FI then having to pay him to drive.

I have a feeling maldonado will do a better job than the hulk as well. He has a whole country riding on his back and he seems like a more serious driver than the Hulk.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kLEqOf9X ... r_embedded[/youtube]

[Intego]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kLEqOf9X ... r_embedded[/youtube]

Frank Williams' last quote must be a punch in Hulk's stomach:"I think we want someone with a lot of capability and a good future."
Nonetheless I think Hülkenberg was good for Williams and they sholdn't have let him go (and least of all the way they did).

[ringo]

Well they should have let him in my opinion.
Let's be realistic about these new drivers; the post rosberg,kubica, sutil, Hamilton drivers.
They all seem to be about the same level in terms of skill. The only thing that sets them apart is the $$$$.

I don't blame frank for letting the Hulk go. Hulk simply wasn't that good that his skills out shone millions of euros in sponsorship money.
Hulk wasn't worth it, Rubens showed that. No sense in paying Hulk to finish behind Rubens when you can be swimming in dough with a just as capable driver in Maldonado.

Hulk think he's good enough to be paid, but it's simply no the case nowadays. You have to be a prodigy. Hulk should go to Merceds as a test driver and bide his time till shumacher leaves at the end of 2011.

[mangesh]

Hulk should go to Merceds as a test driver and bide his time till shumacher leaves at the end of 2011.

I read somewhere, Mercedes will have Sutil as Test driver and will loan it to FI as racing driver. So in that case the remaining seat will be for Paul or Hulk. And considering the fact that Hulk had one decent season under his belt, FI should go for Hulk. He is good driver and will be better in 2011.

On the other side DiResta will be rookie and you never know how it will turn out. I always felt he should have been in GP2 rather than DTM which would have given some confidence in his abilities.

[segedunum]

Pay no attention to Frank Williams. He has to use some PR soundbites to justify that Williams have now sold out, but I wish he wouldn't justify it by trying to make Maldonado sound like a better driver. There's no way he's better than Hulkenberg. He's there for one reason only.

[andrew]

Glock has been confirmed as driving for Virgin next year.

[ringo]

Pay no attention to Frank Williams. He has to use some PR soundbites to justify that Williams have now sold out, but I wish he wouldn't justify it by trying to make Maldonado sound like a better driver. There's no way he's better than Hulkenberg. He's there for one reason only.

Why would you say that?
Look on kobayashi, who'd of thought he would be this good based on his gp history?

Maldonado looks like he is on a mission; you can see the fire in his eyes. I never saw that with Hulkenberg. Pastor has a whole country depending on him, while the Hulk seemed too complacent this year, as if he was the shiznit.
His temper tantrums never helped either.

Mark this post. Maldonado will do a better job than the Hulk.
Hulk is overated, not one moment last year was he spectacular bar the brasil pole.

Drivers are like F1 teams, the more money the more the potential.

Frank did the right thing. Let Hulk go, get money to make the car better and to develope it throughout the year.
Keep Barichello to help development, and also go with Pastor, a proven talent just as the Hulk.
So we have $$$ and a better potential for the 2011 car. The money also assists with the 2012 car as well. The $$$ will put the fw33 nearer the front.

On the other hand, keep Hulk, lose $$$ paying him. He's good but can't beat Barichello, and because there is no big bucks, the car cannot develope to challenge at the front. Keeping hulk is a lose lose situation.
He simply cannot over drive a car that is short of developement funds; he's not great enough.

If Hulk is smart, he should be a mercedes test driver, or an HRT full time driver.
He's not getting that renault seat or FI seat. I don't think he was on the TP radar for their empty seats.