The "Freeola Customer Forum" forum, which includes Retro Game Reviews, has been archived and is now read-only. You cannot post here or create a new thread or review on this forum.
This is a place where I basically say what I want about the Formula 1 season.
My (ultra long) preview to the new season has been posted.
Formula 1.com Launches Page
Click Here
Ferrari
New Car
McLaren
New Car
Toyota
New Car
BMW
New Car
Red Bull
New Car
Williams
New Car
Renault
New Car
Honda
New Car
Force India
New Car
Toro Rosso are only releasing a revision of their 2007 car with the new chassis coming after a few races.
My (ultra long) preview to the new season has been posted.
Formula 1.com Launches Page
Click Here
Ferrari
New Car
McLaren
New Car
Toyota
New Car
BMW
New Car
Red Bull
New Car
Williams
New Car
Renault
New Car
Honda
New Car
Force India
New Car
Toro Rosso are only releasing a revision of their 2007 car with the new chassis coming after a few races.
Page:
I only saw the highlights (Whilst the race was going on, I think I was watching The Damned!), but by the looks of things, Nick Heidfeld also had a bloody good race, some impressive overtaking moves and a well-deserved second place.
Awesome job by Hamilton this afternoon,very impressive.Great to see Barrichello on the podium as well.But what happened to the Ferrari's ?,apart from a small stint by Raikkonen just before the first round of pit stops they were rubbish (particularly Massa who was super rubbish !).Great race,just what the championship needed.
The FIA have release a provisional 2009 F1 calendar:
29 March Australia
5 April Malaysia
19 April Bahrain
10 May Spain
24 May Monaco
7 June Canada
21 June Great Britain
28 June France
12 July Germany
26 July Hungary
9 August Turkey
23 August Europe (Valencia)
6 September Italy
13 September Belgium
27 September Singapore
11 October Japan
18 October China
1 November Brazil
15 November Abu Dhabi
Australia still there despite locals not happy about the race being there and Ecclestone wanting it to be a night race with that idea rejected.
Britain changes places with France, the French Grand Prix still on the calendar. Still no US GP and Abu Dhabi being the season finale instead of Brazil.
29 March Australia
5 April Malaysia
19 April Bahrain
10 May Spain
24 May Monaco
7 June Canada
21 June Great Britain
28 June France
12 July Germany
26 July Hungary
9 August Turkey
23 August Europe (Valencia)
6 September Italy
13 September Belgium
27 September Singapore
11 October Japan
18 October China
1 November Brazil
15 November Abu Dhabi
Australia still there despite locals not happy about the race being there and Ecclestone wanting it to be a night race with that idea rejected.
Britain changes places with France, the French Grand Prix still on the calendar. Still no US GP and Abu Dhabi being the season finale instead of Brazil.
From the angle we were shown, Hamilton was at least level or past so Vettel would have had to have given way because Hamilton was on the line. You would think if Hamilton had tried to take the corner, he would have collected Vettel and both would have been out. It's too tight there for 2 cars and as Kovalainen showed, if they both stubbornly refuse to give way, running off the track is inevitable.
On the debate as to whether he gained an advantage, there may well be a case but I just can't see how 2 cars make it through that corner side by side and the 2 drivers in question are young and not going to lift. McLaren were obviously not convinced there was any wrong or they would have asked Hamilton to let Vettel back through.
On the debate as to whether he gained an advantage, there may well be a case but I just can't see how 2 cars make it through that corner side by side and the 2 drivers in question are young and not going to lift. McLaren were obviously not convinced there was any wrong or they would have asked Hamilton to let Vettel back through.
I won't be able to watch it myself on TV, in all likelihood. Oh well...
The stewards were quite harsh, but the point is that he didn't seem to make any effort to brake, and to let one car through at that point could have resulted in even more ground being lost, I reckon. I guess the best proof of anything would be looking at telemetry, but nothing can be done now, really.
The stewards were quite harsh, but the point is that he didn't seem to make any effort to brake, and to let one car through at that point could have resulted in even more ground being lost, I reckon. I guess the best proof of anything would be looking at telemetry, but nothing can be done now, really.
Ferrari were always going to win that one. Good battle between Trulli and Kovalainen for 3rd. The BMW's were poor all weekend and Alonso's mistake cost him a point to Piquet.
The Hamilton penalty incident. I think the stewards were harsh and Hamilton was on the racing line and past or at worst level. They didn't show an angle but there is no way that 2 cars are getting through that chicane so he could have been avoiding an accident. That probably cost him points.
Silverstone in 2 weeks and I'm (hopefully) going to be there. If I don't make it, I'll be posting here that weekend...
The Hamilton penalty incident. I think the stewards were harsh and Hamilton was on the racing line and past or at worst level. They didn't show an angle but there is no way that 2 cars are getting through that chicane so he could have been avoiding an accident. That probably cost him points.
Silverstone in 2 weeks and I'm (hopefully) going to be there. If I don't make it, I'll be posting here that weekend...
Ferrari's pretty comfortable then. Hamilton 13th with overtaking to do. Possibility of thunderstorms for the race. Should be good but the French Grand Prix tends to be a bit of a dull race most of the time.
So, practice has Ferrari with the fastest time of the day and Alonso fastest in the 2nd session. If no one can get near that Ferrari time (no one was within 4 tenths of it), it could be a Ferrari walk with Hamilton at least in the middle of the pack.
I still think the lights should be more visible. The fact that Fisichella and Montoya both got disqualified for not stopping at a red light suggests that there may be an issue.
The thing about Rosberg is, all he did was tap the back of Hamilton's stricken car. We see that sort of thing at racing speeds, front wings being knocked and broken. There are no penalties when that happens. He kept going and needed to pit to change his wing, ending any hopes of points. If he had ploughed into the back of Hamilton and was out, then he should get a penalty.
I think the Raikkonen incident would have been worse if Raikkonen had gone on to score points. The fact he didn't just leads me to believe that they let it slide. I still think Ferrari should compensate Force India, but I guess that's just me.
I'm not a Raikkonen or a Hamilton fan. In fact, I'm pretty fed up of the ITV's Lewis Hamilton show that their coverage has become. I don't need to know exactly what's going on in his life. I just want to watch F1. I guess that isn't enough for some people.
I don't mind Raikkonen. I just don't like the fact that when something goes against him, he starts talking but the rest of the season or when he makes a mistake, he says very little. Do one or the other.
I will say that Kubica deserved his win. He has driving really well this season.
Also, on a side note about Raikkonen and Kubica side by side. Ferrari should never have released him so close to the other car. Sure, we see cars side by side in the pitlane all the time but the longer that is allowed, the more chance of an incident there is. Something should be done to stop cars going side by side down the pitlane, especially when there is a possibility that they'll have to stop. It doesn't matter in Indy Car or Nascar because they don't have lights at the end of the pitlane.
The thing about Rosberg is, all he did was tap the back of Hamilton's stricken car. We see that sort of thing at racing speeds, front wings being knocked and broken. There are no penalties when that happens. He kept going and needed to pit to change his wing, ending any hopes of points. If he had ploughed into the back of Hamilton and was out, then he should get a penalty.
I think the Raikkonen incident would have been worse if Raikkonen had gone on to score points. The fact he didn't just leads me to believe that they let it slide. I still think Ferrari should compensate Force India, but I guess that's just me.
I'm not a Raikkonen or a Hamilton fan. In fact, I'm pretty fed up of the ITV's Lewis Hamilton show that their coverage has become. I don't need to know exactly what's going on in his life. I just want to watch F1. I guess that isn't enough for some people.
I don't mind Raikkonen. I just don't like the fact that when something goes against him, he starts talking but the rest of the season or when he makes a mistake, he says very little. Do one or the other.
I will say that Kubica deserved his win. He has driving really well this season.
Also, on a side note about Raikkonen and Kubica side by side. Ferrari should never have released him so close to the other car. Sure, we see cars side by side in the pitlane all the time but the longer that is allowed, the more chance of an incident there is. Something should be done to stop cars going side by side down the pitlane, especially when there is a possibility that they'll have to stop. It doesn't matter in Indy Car or Nascar because they don't have lights at the end of the pitlane.
Grandprix wrote:
> It just shows up the inconsistency of the stewards. Raikkonen
> takes Sutil out of the race in Monaco and gets no punishment. You
> may well argue that Raikkonen lost control but he was careless.
In Monaco, if Kimi hadn't held onto his slide and had smashed into the barrier in the braking zone, the car behind could well have ploughed into him and ended his race as well. Would Kimi have been held responsible for that? No, probably not. So just because Kimi's accident took out some ahead of him rather than someone behind, it shouldn't make any difference. Kimi had an accident in unknown conditions - it was the first time through there after the safety car had come in.
> There are lots of things about this incident that leads me to
> believe that punishment was harsh. Hamilton was easily the
> quickest driver so his elimination was the race is harsh
> punishment enough.
> The light is probably not that clearly visible when others cars
> are stopped. Circuits should look at putting the light high up so
> it's easier to see. Also, Kubica was out of his pit box first and
> beat Raikkonen out of the pits. Raikkonen should not have parked
> side by side to Kubica because the pit lane is single file. It
> left nowhere for Hamilton to go to avoid an accident.
In Canada the conditions were ideal - dry and clear. This whole thing about lights is a load of tosh. For a start the blue light means that faster cars are coming along the main straight - reminding LH that the snake was still going past. Secondly, and more importantly, there were two cars STATIONARY in front of him. Even if the light was green, he would have had to have stopped as he had no other option - no room to do anything else!
As for Kimi & Kubica being side by side - Ferrari's pit is right at the end of the pitlane - at most of the tracks they never rejoing the proper pitlane as such before they've left the pit. Plus in other races we've seen cars side by side down the pitlane.
Lewis made a mistake. It's as simple as that. He is a bloody good driver, but no matter how good you are, at some point a mistake will be made. It's nothing to be ashamed of - just accept it. When interviewed he should have said "I've been a plank and cocked up. Sorry everyone." But he didn't.
> The crazy thing about the punishments is Rosberg tapped
> Hamilton, who was already out of the race and then he had to pit
> for a new nose cone so his race was ruined. How did that justify
> the same punishment as Hamilton?
He got a penalty for the same reason - having an avoidable accident. If either of them had been paying attention when they were drving down the pitlane none of this would have happened. The pitlane is a dangerous part of the track with all the people and equipment in such close proximity. Extra care should be taken and neither of these drivers did that.
> I found it funny that Raikkonen managed to call Hamilton stupid
> for his accident and said Monaco was a different story. You keep
> telling yourself that Raikkonen if it helps you sleep at night.
In my view it's a completely different set of circumstances. Heh, guess who out of us is the Kimi fan & who the Lewis :-)
> It just shows up the inconsistency of the stewards. Raikkonen
> takes Sutil out of the race in Monaco and gets no punishment. You
> may well argue that Raikkonen lost control but he was careless.
In Monaco, if Kimi hadn't held onto his slide and had smashed into the barrier in the braking zone, the car behind could well have ploughed into him and ended his race as well. Would Kimi have been held responsible for that? No, probably not. So just because Kimi's accident took out some ahead of him rather than someone behind, it shouldn't make any difference. Kimi had an accident in unknown conditions - it was the first time through there after the safety car had come in.
> There are lots of things about this incident that leads me to
> believe that punishment was harsh. Hamilton was easily the
> quickest driver so his elimination was the race is harsh
> punishment enough.
> The light is probably not that clearly visible when others cars
> are stopped. Circuits should look at putting the light high up so
> it's easier to see. Also, Kubica was out of his pit box first and
> beat Raikkonen out of the pits. Raikkonen should not have parked
> side by side to Kubica because the pit lane is single file. It
> left nowhere for Hamilton to go to avoid an accident.
In Canada the conditions were ideal - dry and clear. This whole thing about lights is a load of tosh. For a start the blue light means that faster cars are coming along the main straight - reminding LH that the snake was still going past. Secondly, and more importantly, there were two cars STATIONARY in front of him. Even if the light was green, he would have had to have stopped as he had no other option - no room to do anything else!
As for Kimi & Kubica being side by side - Ferrari's pit is right at the end of the pitlane - at most of the tracks they never rejoing the proper pitlane as such before they've left the pit. Plus in other races we've seen cars side by side down the pitlane.
Lewis made a mistake. It's as simple as that. He is a bloody good driver, but no matter how good you are, at some point a mistake will be made. It's nothing to be ashamed of - just accept it. When interviewed he should have said "I've been a plank and cocked up. Sorry everyone." But he didn't.
> The crazy thing about the punishments is Rosberg tapped
> Hamilton, who was already out of the race and then he had to pit
> for a new nose cone so his race was ruined. How did that justify
> the same punishment as Hamilton?
He got a penalty for the same reason - having an avoidable accident. If either of them had been paying attention when they were drving down the pitlane none of this would have happened. The pitlane is a dangerous part of the track with all the people and equipment in such close proximity. Extra care should be taken and neither of these drivers did that.
> I found it funny that Raikkonen managed to call Hamilton stupid
> for his accident and said Monaco was a different story. You keep
> telling yourself that Raikkonen if it helps you sleep at night.
In my view it's a completely different set of circumstances. Heh, guess who out of us is the Kimi fan & who the Lewis :-)
Page: