There is no question that Ferrari was rather keen to sign Mark Webber to be Fernando Alonso’s team-mate in 2013. It was a move that made sense. Alonso is the team leader and what is needed is someone who pushes him, works with him, scores points and could step up if Alonso was sidelined, but not someone who would be a threat to the Spaniard and destabilise the team. Massa has struggled to work with the new tyres and has not scored enough, although he has shown in the past that he is capable of winning and being a championship challenger.
In the end Webber decided to stay at Red Bull Racing. It was a logical step given that he is still in the running for the World Championship and to have signed for another team would have been a good reason for the Milton Keynes crew to concentrate more on Sebastian Vettel. Webber continues to lead Vettel in the World Championship and while Mark might liked to have moved to Ferrari with his pal Alonso, it made more sense to stay where he is, at least at the moment. Massa has been getting closer to Alonso in terms of lap time (no mean achievement) but he is still lagging miles behind in points. Alonso has 164, Massa 25. Felipe had a brief revival at Silverstone, but needs a lot more to keep the drive. Having said that, there really is no need for a quick decision as there is always demand for a Ferrari drive and so others are not committing while they wait to see what happens with Massa. One key point is that the 2013 season will be the last year of the current regulations and, following the disasters in 2009 when Massa was injured and Luca Badoer and then Giancarlo Fisichella failed spectacularly as his replacements. This suggested that it is clearly not that easy to get up to speed quickly, particularly as there is so little testing. That favours a status quo.
The team has considered Sergio Perez, but the signs are that Mexican still needs more time to develop. Other names have been thrown into the pot – such as Heikki Kovalainen and Kimi Raikkonen – but these cannot be taken too seriously. Kovalainen is keen to guarantee his future in F1, so wants to be talked about. Raikkonen has been at Ferrari as they know his strengths – and his weaknesses. Adrian Sutil has been to Ferrari, but he is going to struggle to find a drive because despite being quick, no-one is very keen on a driver who can get himself into that kind of trouble.
It could be that Massa will stay on for another year.
any thoughts on the Timo Glock speculation to Ferrari?
If you were Ferrari and looked at the results this year at Marussia, you would take Charles Pic, wouldn’t you? Why would you take a veteran who is being beaten rather too often by a new boy?
To be fair to Timo, Marussia are very much in an early learning curve part of development of their car, having brought all design in house. Timo’s finding the car barely driveable and Charles clearly can cope better (nearly lapping Timo at Hungaroring).
I’d like to see them race a well balanced car before jumping to conclusions about their relative pace. Timo’s never been considered slow during his career to date.
I was being fair to Timo. In his possition you cannot afford to be beaten by a rookie
Would it be fair to say that Pic has done the best of the 3 team mates to Glock at Marussia? I have found his recent results impressive
Me too
On previous rumours of Perez to Ferrari you indicated that the Italians weren’t so fond of inexperienced drivers, which would seemingly rule out Pic.
Glock hasn’t really had a decent shot at the pointy end of F1 (though his results amongst the midfield and back markers don’t inspire confidence).
I don’t think anyone is seriously (or even jokingly) suggesting Pic might be headed to Ferrari. And Glock at the pointy end of F1? You don’t remember his drives for Toyota in 2008 & 2009 then? 2nd in Hungary ’08 and Singapore ’09..? What should have been second in Malaysia ’09?
Pointy enough?
On Pic, I was more making the point that there is logic to taking Glock instead of him, despite what recent results might say.
As for Glock himself, he got some good results, but it would be a cruel insult to the man to imply that said Toyota in 08 or 09 was a championship level car.
In much the same way that Maldonado and Perez have both had good results this year but wouldn’t be generally described as “front runners”.
D’Ambrosio had his moments. Pic is the best of the three so far though.
I don’t really understand why Timo is still being kept at Marussia. He’s usually been outperformed by 1st year rookies, and at best he equals their pace. Timo’s spell at Toyota was ok, considering the car he had, but he didn’t really shine there.
If I were John Booth, I would have kept D’Ambrosio and Pic: young drivers who may climb up the ranks with enough experience. Timo’s career is already downward so he has nothing else to prove, unless he brings in a big cheque or sponsors, but I don’t think that’s the case. And if it’s technical knowledge and experience whatever Timo brings, I haven’t seen it translated in the car so far. Caterham has clearly progressed in the last 3 seasons, and even HRT is evolving faster than Marussia in this season.
Caterham progressed…… from an ordinary Cosworth and shitty transmission to better gear but despite this they haven’t moved forward to the sharp end which is how progress is measured…
Having an experienced driver who has been with the team a while gives the engineers a base line to compare testing results.
Indeed, Massa can stay for another year, is there any chance that Fisi can return back to real racing? Promote a total youngster like Jules Bianchi?
No and no.
Real racing..?
I would have thought that Fisi is content doing very well in what is an effective works ferrari in the WEC. What italian wouldn’t be chuffed at winning your class at le mans in a ferrari ?
I had the chance to ask Fisichella that exact same question just prior to the Abu Dhabi GP in 2010 and he was quite clear that a return to F1 was no longer an option
Would it make sense to keep Massa for one more year (2013) and then go all out for Vettel for the 2014 drive alongside Alonso? It would mean Ferrari almost conceding the constructor’s, Massa just doesn’t look like he’s ever going to get on it or its going to take a long time. Every time he takes a couple of steps forwards, he gets pushed back a little.
I do not see Vettel and Alonso together.
A team will create this problem for itself if they insist on the second driver being a domestique. “Let’s see…who’s available and is good but not that good?”
Having seen the effort RBR went to keep Webber (whom they treat in a hot and cold way), how hard do you think they would try to keep their golden boy Vettel? Money would be no option.
I’d be surprised to see Kovalainen move to Ferrari. He knows from his time at McLaren how reputation-damaging it is to be a second driver in a one-driver team. He’ll have also seen how badly Fisichella- who was no slouch in the Force India- did. He doesn’t strike me as the stupid sort, over-achieveing in a shed of a car is probably better for his career at the minute.
Personally I would go for Sutil, I think he’d be a great fit in terms of personality and, as Joe says, he’s quick. In my opinion he’s the one driver who’s all too often over looked in terms of raw talent. The nightclub incident needs to be put in the past I’m my opinion, everyone, especially young people make mistakes. He deserves a chance.
The other driver i think who’d slot in nicely is Rosberg. Although he’d probably get too close to Alonso for comfort.s
I doubt that Ferrari see Rosberg as any kind of threat to Alonso
Joe how do you rate rosberg, he hasn’t really been able to be compared to a known quantity, or would you rate the post retirement Michael a known quantity ?
Had’t thought of it before but Rosberg might be a good fit as No.2 at Ferrari – would leave MB in the clag though – unless of course Hamilton/Raikkonen move there for megabucks
Wouldn’t that be a great reason to hire him? And, isn’t he just about ready to give up on Mercedes? When does his contract expire?
Or do you or Ferrari think he’s not an advance on Massa?
If Raikkonen does move (or Grosjean) away from Lotus, can you see Hamilton going for that seat? He seemed to say that he thought the Lotus will be the quickest after the break.
Surely Hamilton talking up Lotus is a negotiating tactic. Unless there is a viable alternative to McLaren, they can pay him whatever they feel like. RB and Ferrari are out and Mercedes have not looked impressive for a while.
I saw Sutil and his manager in Flanigan’s in Puerto Portals, Majorca a week ago and he said ’2-3 months’ in finding out about a drive. I was thinking Ferrari is his best/only chance, but would they really sign a driver who has a suspended jail sentence for the first half of the year?
The personality of Sutil!? Not sure Ferrari want the type of guy who would glass someone else in the neck. Sutil will never be in F1 again and I won’t miss him, never did anything of note. I’d like to see Heidfeld back, he was on level terms (or better than) every one of his team mates over the season and would be exactly where either of the two Lotus drivers are this year in that car.
The rumours of a Button to Ferrari move also seem strange, how long is Button’s current deal with McLaren?
There are no rumours of Button to Ferrari, not from any credible source.
Too bad, that would be one great team.
How about Jacques Villeneuve i heard he’s doing special training just in case he’s needed, or maybe Mansell or Prost? Time to wheel the old fellas out for one last hurrah
I would have thought that Michael Schumacher is evidence enough of why this would not be a great idea. I guess it depends on whether the goal is to win motor races or sell silver Mercedes. One can achieve the other, but if you cannot do one it is good to have a driver who will do the other
I think the “Tinchy Spider” is joking here.
Disagree with the Heikki comment Joe. After starting with a mega team then being punted to the back in Caterham he won’t be counting his chickens. If he’s offered the Ferrari drive he’ll take it like a shot. Think back to Irvine. Won a few, earned megabucks. Heikki isn’t no.1 material but he is a good finisher and with the Ferrari’s reliability they could win constructors champs much easier than with Massa
You are entitled to your opinion.
How many constructors championships did McLaren win with Heikki? Let’s not forget, Hamilton won the Drivers title in 2008, but McLaren were a way off Ferrari in the constructors…
today’s heikki is a very different driver to 2008′s heikki….
In pretty much the only season where Massa has looked like one of the big dogs.
Heikki won a race and picked up some podiums in his first season at McLaren and then was nowhere in “the blown diffuser season”. I’ve always suspected that the team very quickly threw all their resources behind Hamilton in an attempt to save face given a very poor car starting the year.
I think Sutil would be a good move, he’s a good “Button” type number 2, big point scorer and wont upset Alonso.
He has made a rather bad mistake when it comes to PR.
“Button type”, this is World Champion you’re talking about and a guy who finished 2nd in last year’s Championship ahead of Fernando Alonso and Tantrum Hamilton.
Maybe he is a world champion in your moms basement, but other than that, your on crack.
You’re not?
A world champion in a car ridiculously so much faster than every other car on the grid (for the first half of the season anyways) is very different to an Alonso / Lewis / Kimi world champion in most fans opinion.
Tantrum Hamilton finished behind Button on points last year but not due to performance, it was the penalties. Have you been watching 2012 for a true comparison? And this is a year when it’s been all about tyre conservation and smooth driving – which Button fans used to tell everyone those were his strong points. What are his strong points now?
Maybe I’m being harsh, but then so was “Tantrum”, he’s much more calm than I am during F1 – and I’m only driving from a sofa!
Button is no Number 2. I can’t think of a time he ever was, at least not in recent memory.
2009 perhaps?
Yes, he was a number 2 driver for Brawn in his championship-winning year.
*sigh*
They could always get Rubens back
Plus1
Any chance of a US based open wheel driver like Ryan Hunter-Reay or Will Power?
Power has a strong road racing track record over there.
Three things counting against him would be 1) his temperament 2) his age 3) whilst being US based, he is Australian so might not be a draw for US.
Hunter-Reay is driving strongly on road courses, which is endearing him to the US audiences slowly coming back to open wheel racing. His temperament is good too. His age may also count against him.
None at all
Remember Bourdais? He ran circles around all his opposition in the US for quite a while. Never did much in F1. I wouldn’t for anyone racing US open-wheelers to be added to F1.
B.
You’ve got more chance of Massa winning this year’s world driver’s championship than Ferrari employing a US-based driver!
It has been obvious through the years that Ferrari philosophy to not have two strong drivers and so Massa plays his part well in having two cars on the grid. However, looking at your point regarding the new regs maybe it would be a good idea to bring in some younger driver to learn the ropes in time for that switch. An Italian would go down well and Davide Valsecchi is doing well in GP2. He’s 25 and so should be mature enough to cope.
That will never happen.
Re Valsecchi, do you think he will just end up being the next luca badoer, getting a nice cushy testing job at ferrari but never actually getting in the car ?
No he looks like a man bound for America to me
Just out of interest which of the GP2 drivers do you think have a realistic chance of making F1?
Those with money.
Razia has done a Friday for Caterham back when they were Team Lotus, but he’d only land a drive with them if Kovalainen moved on and someone worth taking wasn’t available. I think this year’s GP2 series hasn’t really brought up any amazing drivers yet, like Hamilton, Hulkenberg, Perez, Grosjean etc. in years before.
@ Joe – ask a silly question… Maybe I should have asked who has money?
Brian I think for a rookie Calado is doing well plus Razia is racing well.
I’m surprised they haven’t tried him out in a test driver role if they haven’t, but they do have Davide Rigon there currently. Along with their young driver program, which already includes Perez and Bianchi, they’re already full of talent and like to have the proven best anyway. There are merits to putting in Perez next year, in that he may do better than Massa, but with only one year to go before the new regs they may deem it too risky to possibly hamper his progress if next year didn’t go well before 2014′s level playing field.
Will Buxton wrote a very interesting article regarding current italian drivers and F1. The post in his blog is a couple of months old but it’s worth reading.
Joe, I hope I’m not stepping on any toes by posting this comment.
No, not another year of a good seat being taken by someone who is only there because he’s being managed by Ferrari’s former boss. Please get in someone who does proved to have the speed in 2012 and 2011…. The comment ‘Fernando is faster than you’, has never been more true.
This.
There are too many better drivers than Massa out there for him to squander a clearly race-winning car in the wrong end of the points on a good day. The way people are celebrating his 9th place in Hungary is a joke. He should have won a race or at least had a podium in that car by now if Alonso is leading the championship in it.
In my opinion Webber has done a mistake staying in RB, nobody in a million years can think that RB will help him to win the title, the moment Vettel gets ahead of him in the WDC, Webber is done.
I’m pretty sure that he could have a blast in Ferrari if he goes with the right mind but maybe Ferrari only wanted him for a year and Webber wanted more.
Ferrari should stick with Massa one more year, if they have a plan for 2014, who is going to go to Ferrari for only one year to get his career destroyed by Alonso, specially if they have a bad car in 2013?.
Eh I disagree with this. It made sense for Red Bull to back Vettel last season because he was clearly so dominant, and has a longer future in the sport (and thus with the team). But Mark has not wanted for support this year at all.
Yeah, but the front wing farce at the British GP in 2010 was just crackers.
This is a tricky one, despite the Champions in the field there are no G Berger or E Irvine types for the role and who had thought the 2nd Ferrari seat so tough to fill. I’d try Paul Di Resta on a 2 year deal.
I think he may consider himself a winner
Good point this is worse than trying to decide what to get the misses for Christmas! One guy i’d love to see in a F1 car is Kyle Busch, his car control is amazing.
Kyle Busch’s thick head wouldn’t fit in an F1 car.
Isn’t Di Resta lined up long term for Mercedes too?
That’s always been the theory. The shoe maker might have to make way for him sooner or later.
@Dolly… Why stick with someone who has proven in recent times not to be able to deliver? I think there’s plenty of young guys out there who will do a better job than Massa.
The Kimi rumours also rather overlook the fact that he is under contract to Lotus for next season (http://www.itv.com/formula1/news/2011/11/kimi-raikkonen-returns-to-f1-with-two-year-lotus-renault-deal-5478/). Yes, I know, this is F1 andc ontracts mean little, but still a relevant point.
Alonso is clearly capable of delivering the WDC; Massa appears equally incapable of helping him deliver a constructors title. Look at the tables after 11 races: Alonso is 40 points clear in the drivers; Ferrari are 57 points off the top of the constructors. Conclusion: Ferrari need a driver who can deliver 5-6 points more per race than Massa (or, to put it another way, Massa shoud really be up around the 80 point mark). This is Rosberg/Button/Grosjean territory. If I were Ferrari I would be concentrating my efforts in that region.
He also had a year left on his Ferrari contract when he was put on gardening/rallying leave.
Also, hoist by my own logical petard, Button and Roserg are both under contract for 2013
What about Grosjean who is almost on the same level as Raikkonen or Nico Hulkenberg?
Grosjean has the same experience as Perez, and they’re calling Perez inexperienced. I can’t see that they’d go for Grosjean when Perez is already in their fold.
What Ferrari needs is a second Patrick Tambay (remember 1982). Why not Kamui Kobayashi?
Purely it terms of what would make the races more exciting, tHis is my favourite option by far. I’d love to see Krashi take some scalps in the scarlet cars.
From my armchair viewer’s perspective, that’s not such a bad idea actually… I have a feeling Kobayashi will be moved on out of Sauber next season, given that he’s been there for 3 years and is being out-paced by Perez (they also have Gutierrez waiting in the wings). Kamui isn’t the quickest of racers so unlikely to rock the boat, but is still pretty soild, seems non-confrontational and is good from a PR/merchandise point of view. Hey, I could almost see the Tifosi taking to him in a Jean Alesi kind of way!
I’m a big Kamui fan so of course I’m going to see the logic in this, but hand on heart I sadly just don’t think he’s fast enough for Ferrari
Would love to be proved wrong though…
Doesn’t Kamui bring in Mitsubishi Electric and NEC sponsorships? Unless Uncle Carlos simply writes a bigger cheque…
Actually, the NEC in Sauber is NEC de México SA de CV.
Why so dismissive of Raikkonen? strengths/weaknesses applies to every driver, not just RAI. Puzzled by the low opinion of experts like Joe. Why not be totally objective about the Finn?
You may have to be writing on his historic second wdc title in just a few months from now, or if not that, how he narrowly lost out!!
The whole point is we are being objective. Kimi lost interest in F1 at Ferrari. If they take him back again then they risk the same thing happening. Kimi Had his chance and after winning the title he then failed to consolidate himself as a top F1 driver. Now he is back and perhaps he will be champion again, but that does not mean that he could convince Ferrari to try him again.
All right, then, even if both Ferrari and Kimi were happy for each other (which I doubt, Kimi is shining, as much as he can smile, at Lotus), is there a sponsor that can afford both ALO and RAI?
So, looking at the comments, not much options left for Ferrari besides signing to Massa for another season and then maybe get Perez.
Joe, you are convinced that Kimi alone is to blame for failing to defend his title in 2008. At least you might concede that there is an argument for saying that Ferrari failed to give their champion the support he needed. I accept Kimi’s personality was counter in some respects to the team image.
“Kimi had his chance and failed” you say. Are you certain that Ferrari are totally blameless? If you were running that team, would you have done all you can to accommodate a driver who won 3 titles for you straight off?
My guess is you would
“Kimi lost interest”.
Would you consider the possibility that this theory could be reviewed, at least, and corrected? Did he not outscore every other driver in the second half of 2009?
[except Hamilton, I believe, who got 2 points more]
Don’t put words into my mouth.
What about nice words like “chocolate” and “wine”?
and why would Kimi want to be No. 2 to Alonso – he surely hasnt come back for that
‘Kimi lost interest in F1 at Ferrari’. ‘Kimi Had his chance and after winning the title he then failed to consolidate himself as a top F1 driver’. I don’t see a problem with these statements. They’re not negative towards KR for the sake of being negative; They are statements of fact. As I recall, that’s precisely what happened; he lost interest and failed to build on his success at the Scuderia. Simple.
Ferrari paid Kimi an absolute barrowfull of cash NOT to drive a Ferrari alongside Fernando in 2010. I don’t see how they’ll have changed their mind in a year?
I think people are reading too much into this. The Alonso move was in my opinion part of a wider game change. Ferrari have long been tied to Malboro money. With the changes in rules, they had to secure a long term sponsor with deep pockets. That usually leaves telecoms and banks as your source of funds. By securing Alonso’s services, they also secured their own funding by tapping into Santander. Kimi was the sacrificial lamb as whilst his driving was up there, he didn’t have the same sponsorship pull as Alsonso.
they sacked Kimi because massa had the accident and they felt morally obligated to give him a second chance.. thats it…
What a silly season starter!… Depressing as it is, I believe that Massa may retain the seat.. I see Perez as the only real alternative if the Scuderia (reluctantly) decides to take a chance. The Kimi-thing is somewhat compelling but slotting him in as a designated no 2 driver would be very costly. He’s never going to be allowed to race Alonso which leaves only dollars as a motivating factor..
I think there is not a single sign that Kovalainen would do better than Massa, he was not good in Mclaren and his performance was worse in Renault. Driving for a team at the back of the field may mislead ppl over his performance as in such a team what ever one does good seems a plus while what ever one does not enough always has an excuse as being in a weak team.
Kimi is a good point collector, a great racer who has qualification problems. He does not suit to Ferrari as he is not better than Alonso and too good to be 2nd driver.
Grosjean is still a question mark, and I think Lotus willing to sign with him sooner than later so he may not be avaliable when Ferrari decide about the 2nd driver seat.
Any British driver do not suit Ferrari as a 2nd driver as there will always be some media whine about his position in the team.
Sutil, Perez, Alguersuari, Hulkenberg etc. may replace Massa but I think Koboyashi suits best to Ferrari as;
- he is a good racer who can gain places during a race
- still in a period that he can develop his skills
- has an average scoring close to 50% in mid field teams (starts 52, finish in point 23 times, 45%)
- Japanese are traditionally more incline to team play.
Read McLaren press releases from 2008-09, each categorically stated “Fuel corrected Heiki was faster that Lewis in qualification. Qualifying mid field meant driving in traffic, which compromised Heikki’s race strategy”
Those statements which were released after every race in 2008 and first half of 2009 season were admission of McLaren management that they were splitting their strategies between the two drivers right from qualification and never giving their #2 driver to fight for pole, run race in front (in clean air) and fight for poles and wins with their #1 driver.
Unfortunately fans rely on second hand opinions spouted by media pundits (who have their own conflict of interests) rather than looking at the data.
Not to mention McLaren team’s cockup in Heikki’s pit stops including reversing front and back tyres in Chinese GP 2008. In 2009 the team was not even coy to acknowledge that they were giving newer parts to their #1 driver.
So much for humbug driver equality and letting their drivers race for poles and wins.
As far as being bad driver at Renault goes he scored 30 points (including a second place finish) as compared to team mate Fisichella’s 21, given that Fisi was driving for Renault since 2005, I wonder since when did beating experienced (and incumbent) team mate became parameter of bad performance? And a passing mention that 2007 give just 10 points for race winner and only top 8 finishers were scoring championship points.
All this is fine, but ancient history. The only thing that matters is the last race
I agree, I was just setting the records straight, since the poster’s point of Heikki being bad at Renault and McLaren was not based on facts.
Really Joe? From who’s perspective are you talking?
The problem is, that many posters seem to have a problem remembering even the last race.
Is Kimi motivated by money? He, more than most is not at all political & says that he just wants to win – I believe that & don’t think he would want a repeat of the sh*t he had at Maranello, especially with Signor del Monte.
I suppose the reputed 20m paid to go gardening, or rallying, would have created a nice buffer-zone to make him not so motivated by money.
I think there is no need to re-discover America. Most ppl who fallows F1 close enough, know that in Mclaren years Kova usually if not always qualifed with more fuel than Hamilton but his performance was still not good to convice ppl that he is a good driver for a top team.
2008, in 9 of 18 races Kova finished worse than he started, only 4 times he finished better than his starting position in a Mclaren which was the best car of the year with Ferrari. He only got 3 podiums all season long, a single win thanks to the engine failure of Massa in Hungary. In the single race he started from pole he finished distance 5th. Actually thanks to Kova Ferrari won the WCC that year.
2008 he ranked 7th while his team ranked 2nd (-3).
2009 he ranked 12th his team ranked 3rd (-6).
Put all these a side, why a mid field team did not sign with Kova after he left Mclaren, that he is still driving for a team which is from the back pack.
In no mean I see a sign that can convince me, Kova is a better driver than Massa. There is something clumsy in his driving which was alaways with him from the day one.
That is my opinion according to what I see, not according to what a heard or read from some media pundits. Kova is not a top team metarial even as a solid 2nd driver. They may only offer him a temporary seat until the real owner of that seat comes.
Heikki won for McLaren and scored podiums for Renault. There’s precious little sign of Felipe managing that at Ferrari these days.
Heikki’s time at McLaren may not have been as fruitful as he had hoped for, but at Renault he certainly was first class (after somewhat of a rough start). After all, he scored podiums and beat his much more experienced team mate (Fisi) in his rookie year.
Joe is right – there is no sense comparing stats from years ago. To me, what is more important a sign of his talent is that he has whipped Petrov (who was semi-decent last season) and has been able to qualify the Caterham quite well.
To me, he has been on a similar career projectory as Grosjean – perhaps promoted too early to a major team. However when given more experience and a competitive car, can deliver solidly.
Joe, I have long struggled to understand the fall of Massa who almost won the title and faired very well against two other champions. Yes I know he struggles with the current tyres but that can’t explain the massive deficit to Alonso. To what extent do you think his problem is exacerbated by being up against a driver of Fernando’s calibre? And do you think other well regarded drivers like Rosberg and Di Resta would encounter the same problem?
Dear Sig. Montezemelo,
I know you read and respect Joe’s blog, and I’d like to congratulate you on ditching KImi after he spaced out.
Please do not pay any attention to cries to have him back at Ferrari, not even as a Pay-Driver, with him refunding the millions he made from his contract severance pay.
He’s proven his motivation is fickle, and he’s totally undeserving to be given another chance at Ferrari.
We recall with great fondness the spirit at Minardi, who’s drivers have been known to get out and push their broken-down car over the finishing line.
Kimi doesn’t have that kind of spirit, and never will.
Sincerely,
Dear Mr Colin
I am already regretting my wrong decision to keep Massa in 2009. That is why I have a problem now. Also I’m very worried that we have won no titles at all with the great Alonso, although Kimi gave us 3 titles.
Even worse, Senor Colin, Kimi might end up this year kicking our mighty butt with his lowly Lotus. Excuse me I must speak with Mr Robinson in Helsinki
Arriverderci
L di Montezemolo
Luca is not in London. he is on holiday near Rome.
How do you know where we are Joe, what s/ware are you running?
Your IP address is part of the response I get.
SPR must have a proxy Server
Jon In Woking / Switzerland
Joe is there any way we can withhold that? I mean who else can get this IP address? I’m just thinking of my ex-wife that’s all ….
I have no idea. I did not ask to see these things.
OK… I’m near Rome. Holidaying.
Bloody Internet – always spying on us. I think I’ll go on Twitter………oh wait…….
Monty’s Italian and English are better than SPR’s too
Besides, he doesn’t need my advice, he’s already got his mind made up.
Aside: I wonder how long Joe’s bender is going to last? Pretty wild here today…
Surprised that no-one’s mentioned a certain former FI driver who’s available other than Sutil…?
I hope you’re not referring to the man who raced, rather then drove, only when it suited him and then the planets had to be absolutely aligned. Bit like Hiedfeld. Truly, the Italian is not missed.
Now Sutil, can’t recall him in a decent set of wheels, would love to see him and imagine the needle that’d ensue fair up the soap man’s nose.
I can see why Massa would retain his seat but surely if he does not score top 6 pretty consistently they have no choice? The are on course to end 4th in the constructors and that (lack) money alone is reason enough to change driver. I honestly can’t see Massa turning up second half. Ever since he lost the title, his accident and the arrival of Alonso he has looked a tired horse and it is now for the second season he is costing the team bags of points.
Ferrari will always go for experience and even more so (as you point out with the rule changes). This rules out the Perezes, Hulks etc. and then who have you got left that is not at a top team under long term contract? Kimi (on only a one year deal I believe) and Heiki. So Heiki might be fuelling the speculation but it is not such a daft idea for Ferarri, he is quick and not a trouble maker.
There seems to be a a lack of a genuine contender that is experienced for Ferrari to warrant replacing Massa with. It seems that Ferrari are reluctant on a newish boy like Perez or Di Resta therefore Massa may well get the nod for one last season. Kovalainen may be a bit of a gamble as he was rather beaten by Hamilton at McLaren. I’d be very surprised if Ferrari went for a Buemi, Sutil or Alguersuari as they all fell of the merry go round at the end of 2011 for specific reasons. And I feel that the Button rumours that were aired on Sky and the Beeb are just one of those rumours that one hears this time of year, and not really to be taken seriously.
I have heard that Ferrari are working hard on the Mini Me concept……………
Narain Karthikeyan, for the simple reason that he is about the only driver who hasn’t been suggested so far!
Speaking of rumours, what about a Kimi-Lewis swap?
Daft
I have pretty much same logic of why I think Massa is Ferrari’s best bet for another season, but get slammed from all quarters, by the fans who get high from the second-hand smoke coming from English media pundits.
I have always maintained the root cause of problems for both Massa, and his mentor Schumacher have been their inability to adapt to the Pirelli tyres and their marginal design, and the ban on refueling which has added the variable of running heavier car in first two race stints.
But then the Media pundits and their fans are experts in human psychology, and they go on harping about Hungary’09 (aka the spring in the head), while conveniently overlooking the 2010 season when Massa was matching Alonso in qualification and in race pace ( remember Hockenheim’10).
Having said that lots of names were reviewed in the main post and why they won’t be driving the second Ferrari.
One name that was not discussed was Jaime Alguersueri. The young Spaniard gave a good account of himself during his stay with STR. If not for the unprofessional driver management in that team, Jaime would have definitely given STR better results than their current line-up.
Assuming the various jobs offered by F1 teams are merely for PR mileage ( unless you are driver mentor for Williams driver like Wurz, or driver consultant cum media pundit, cum DTM driver like Coulthard), Isn’t Jaime currently test driver for Pirelli, if the role indeed involves more than being part of press releases, he must be getting lots of insights on current tyre specs and 2013 Pirelli compounds as well. Romain Grosjean did a Pirelli driver stint last year (as well as Pedro De La Rosa), and both have far better understanding of the tyres than their team mates as is evident from their qualifications and race management on the Pirellis.
The most likely thing is that Massa will stay put as the safe option. Ferrari’s priority is to keep Alonso feeling top dog, rather than to hire a strong contender who might help win the constructors.
But here’s a silly thought. Any chance of Ferrari getting all sentimental and giving Schumacher a seat for a year? I mean, it’s not like he’ll challenge Alonso, is it?
How about Maldonado to Ferrari and Bottas then with Senna to Williams ?? Or di Resta to Ferrari ??
Williams needs Maldonado’s money.
I really don’t understand why they don’t risk it with Perez. Yes he might need some more time but he could learn from Alonso.
I really don’t see much difference between “Oh god, why did we retain Massa” and “Mmmm Perez isn’t our man”.
With proper coaching and PR they can limit the damage of a failed season by Perez.
Yet another failed season by Massa is much more dangerous.
I agree total. With all these scenarios, I think the safest would be Alonso-Perez. And maybe Massa should do like Heikki and go to a smaller team in order to find his self-confidence and speed again. He is still (relativ) young.
If I was Perez, why would I take my big sponsors and go to Ferrari as domestique to Alonso?
Ferrari is clearly Alonso’s team, no driver who has any aspirations of fighting on equal footing will want to go Ferrari with Alonso in the team.
Ferrari has got itself into the current situation due to their driver management policy, and Massa is their best bet (un)fortunately.
Joe,
This is an interesting development, albeit a rare one since Ferrari change pilot “à chaque mort de pape” as they say in southern Italy. After noticing that Ferrari has not commented on their supposed missed deadline on their option to continue with Felipe and that Monty has clearly stated that he prefers an experienced driver (if Perez’ talent is not enough) the candidates for Felipe’s seat as of now appear to become scarce. Sutil visited the factory not the GES, if he really were at Gestione Sportiva it would have happened secretly and anyway hiring a pilot who was on gardening leave is always a bad idea. I am still not sure if Ferrari has shown too much patience with Felipe. If they wait until late October to see if he can make it consistently in the top 5 and the result is negative what would happen so late in the year? Pay to buy the contract of Paul Di Resta? Is he experienced enough? Is he better than Sergio? So now, why not cosider Kimi? I mean seriously! He has proved he still is very quick. When he drove that donkey called F2008 he always remained very calm and never criticized anyone or anything. I hear now that he is on bad terms with Luca. What are your thoughts about this? Who else do you think might still be a candidate? Kovalainen certainly never was on the radar, rightly so. He is not the sort of pilot Ferrari needs. And could it be that they have to keep Massa simply because there is no viable alternative?
Ooops, sorry! The donkey was a year later : F60 of 2009.
Massa performed much better in the second half of 2008.
hi joe your quote ;’but not someone who would be a threat to the Spaniard and destabilise the team’.
should have read :but not someone who would be a threat to the Spaniard and destabilise alonso
ferrari is its own worst enemy. what’s the point in having alonso if that precludes ferrari from having another top driver who can help deliver the constructors championship.
it speaks volumes about ferrari’s inability to manage 2 top drivers. it’s not part of its dna.
When your driver is leading the WDC despite a poor car design at the beginning of the season, I would be doing everything possible to keep him happy. He kept them competitive until the engineering team could get on top of their issues. Seems like good management to me.
Amen. Let us hope that Luca/Ferrari will be man enough to take responsibility for their choice and then hush for a change. “We want strong driver, but oh, not TOO strong, oops, too weak… how dare they not perform!” The problem is always with someone else, never management.
Correct me if I’m wrong, but Ferrari drivers seem to finish their careers at that team.
There are some caveats I should add:
1. Schumacher. Well, he sort of did end his career with Ferrari.
2. Barrichello. I can’t be the only one thinking that Honda really signed him for his experience in development and not because they thought he would be a genuine title contender.
3. Raikkonen, like Schumacher, left the sport after leaving Ferrari, with many not expecting to see him back in an F1 car. (Raikkonen did say in an interview back in, I think, 2007 that he wouldn’t drive for another team after Ferrari.)
4. Massa is now saying that he won’t race for an uncompetitive team after Ferrari – probably because none will have him, and this also depends upon one’s definition of ‘uncompetitive’.
With this in mind shouldn’t we be looking at drivers who’ve been around for a few years rather than the likes of Algersuari, Di Resta, et al?
So who has 2 or 3 years left and is a solid, reliable driver without a clean driving license, no criminal record and isn’t called Mark Webber?
Kovalainen.
That’s about it. Kobayashi is still pretty young too, I’d take him, give him a shot at the big time. he proved his worth for Toyota and in his first year with Sauber.
Lest we forget, Di Resta is not some wet-behind-the-ears yoof, he’s run DTM for years and came away a champion. Admittedly, similar things were said about Sebastien Bourdais and IndyCar but we’ll try to forget that for his sake.
How likely is it that with no CA the FIA will declare Bernie in default (Or not) and extent the current rules for next year? The reason I ask is because it is mooted that Ferrari and Merc want a major change, to run 3 cars and to have customer cars again. (ok the Merc was a guess, but I have read about Ferrari’s aims) Obviously if the top teams run 3 cars the number of spaces on the grid will need to be amended or some teams will dissapear. The effect of this will be to have more “good” drives available.
Which will provide them with another car to put a mediocre driver in so that they can fully back Alonso for a championship, whilst their rivals try to form triple world champion teams.
It’s an odd strategy for Ferrari looked at from the driver politics perspective.
(I know it makes some business and PR sense, but I’d never really looked at the other side of the coin before now).
Sorry, I obviously meant “with a clean driving license”.
“WITH”
Does anyone think that the tyre issues that have been thrown into the mix this past few years has flattered some drivers while making others look plain? Michael Schumacher was once the undisputed master-driver, wet or dry, but he has fallen from grace when faced with a variable in the tyre performance. Button seems another one that is struggling.
Others have picked up on managing tyres really well, and the likes of Alonso, Hamilton, Grosjean and Kimi all have adapted well.
Given that scenario, does this make driver selection more of an issue than before?
Would Vettel (for example) be as good in another team than RB? I know that all teams weave a ‘comfort zone’ around their drivers to give them a more stable workplace, but changing teams is always going to be a major move for anyone, while staying with a team that has a good call on tyres and strategy has to be better for the driver.
Hope that makes sense!
I have highlighted the Tyre issue and both Schumi and his protege Massa not able to come to terms with new Pirelli tyres, and the ban of refueling ( resulting in the need to drive a heavy car for first two stints in race) in so many forums.
But Massa detractors are fixated with the Hungary’09 incident and all they claim is Massa is not the same driver after the accident.
Everybody conveniently forgets that Massa was right on pace on his comeback in 2010 and qualified around (or better than Alonso) and raced in and around Alonso.
For a change, I see a post that has connected the dot about both Schumi and Massa struggling due to same reasons.
Additional point Grosjean and De La Rosa were “Pirelli” Test drivers in 2011 season, that fact that is reflected in both their qualifying and race performance. Grosjean is hands down better than Kimi in qualification and Pedro has out qualified even the Marussia cars on occasions.
In race Grosjean, Sauber drivers and Pastor Maldanado, have always managed their tyres better than other drivers in the field and you just have to watch their lap times getting ominously faster in the last half of races this season.
I have posted elsewhere, given that he is working with Pirelli this season, Jaime can be good option for Ferrari. Given that he is Spanish driver, Santander would open up their purse a bit more.
Ferrari will also be save of awkward situation, where you want Perez and all his sponsors to join the team and then expect him to be #2 driver to Alonso.
Jaime will be more than happy to play second fiddle, as long as the car is competitive and doesn’t make him look bad, gets paid to drive and gets to drive in famous F1 marquee, next to compatriot F1 champion.
Santander might open their purse but there’s not a lot in it at the moment.
Peter, this depends on who you ask. Unless Schumi drives a title winning car, unlike what he received from Mercedes, we will never know. It’s plausible though, that he could have been champion again if he had driven last year’s Red Bull. Real good drivers are quick in any car, with any regulations and with any sort of tyres. As for these last ones, it’s of course especially true since we’ve had one single supplier. When there was tyre competition, the tyre brand could decide who wins. Maybe Senna is better than Prost. The drove the same car. But Prost has 4 titles, Senna 3. Most of the talk about “my driver is better than your driver” is almost always very very sterile.
Look at it this way:
Perez has almost twice as many points from driving his Sauber as Massa does from driving his Ferrari.
Currently, Massa’s low scoring is ruling Ferrari out of the constructor’s championship and hurting Alonso’s chances (because he’s not depriving Alonso’s rivals of points).
Worse case scenario result of using Perez: he does even worse than Massa. This wouldn’t change anything for Ferrari – they would still be nowhere in the constructor’s, Alonso would still be on his own, and it would still be embarrassing.
Best case scenario result of using Perez: Ferrari win championships again.
If I was Ferrari, I’d stick Perez in that car on a 1-year deal and see what happens.
Maybe Perez doesn’t want to go to Ferrari…?
Isn’t there a problem of Massa’s poor performance having financial implications for Ferrari?
Am I right in saying that the teams get money from F1 based on positions in the CONSTRUCTOR’S championship?
Ferrari are only just ahead of McLaren in the CC. It’s not impossible, given McLaren’s recent resurgance, that Ferrari could win the DC but come third in the CC and see McLaren and Red Bull take more money home.
Probably too late to do anything about this season though.
Pretty sure McLaren and Red Bull and frankly most of the other teams could beat Ferrari in the Constructors and the Italians will still take home more money.
Welcome to the wonderful world of F1 funding.
For me Massa is a more logical choice for 1 more year rather than another mid table runner with other teams i.e. Hekki, Sutil, etc. Webber would have been 1st choice, but that chance has gone. Rosberg would be a good choice as a high scoring number 2, but am not sure he has made the most of the Merc speed this year, although neither has Mercedes themselves or Schumacher.
I see:
Bottas In: Senna Out: Williams,
Razia In: Heikki Out: Caterham
Senna In: Glock Out: Marussia
Di Resta In: Schumacher Out: Mercedes
Bianchi In: Di Resta Out: Force India
Rich GP2 kid In: Karthekeyan out: HRT
Guttierez Friday driver for Lotus/Sauber
Would like to see Calado get a Friday drive but will prob do another year in GP2. That leaves Heikki without a drive – maybe he will get Sauber seat off Perez if he goes to Ferarri, although I reckon Massa would get it instead
Glock won’t be booted out of Marussia.
Think Schumacher will stay on too and Di Resta will bide his time.
I can’t understand, if we assume Perez is on Ferrari’s shortlist of future drivers, why they don’t just take him for 2013. What more can he do to prove his ability than bag podiums for Sauber? After two good season with the Swiss team, how much experience does he need? Making a change to a different team and car might well be difficult, especially with restricted testing, but plenty of other drivers manage it fine every year and if they want him, he’ll have to make the change at some point. And what if Suaber come up with a dog next year and suddenly Perez isn’t in the position to show his worth – will Ferrari forget about him?
I’m sure they’ll end up taking the safe-but-boring (not to mention stupid in my opinion) option and take Massa for another year. Has any driver been so consistently useless for a top team for so long and still kept his seat? Credit to him, he had his moments (notably in 2008), but clearly those days are long gone.
Was Webber’s potential deal with Ferrari for just one year? If it was then that suggests they have somebody lined up for 2014 already. It also suggests that the 2013 seat is going to be a short term deal – making it less attractive to some of the up-and-coming drivers.
I’m not sure I see many drivers
1) Available for 2013
2) Likely to do better than Massa
3) Likely to be keen on a one year deal
Someone said it above, but Schumacher? All three criteria apply to him – and I expect he wants to carry on.
Part of Schumacher’s legacy is the legend that he built up the Ferrari team from dunce to winner. He is trying to repeat this effort with Mercedes. Alonso sees this and is trying to do the same.
I can see Heikki jumping at the chance to drive a Ferrari, even if he’s told upfront no matter how well he does he’ll be out at the end of the year. As things stand, scoring a point with Caterham in 2012 or 13 looks highly unlikely, so if he wants to get back in a competitive seat, he has to take whatever chances come along. For someone like di Resta or Hulkenberg, who might fancy their chances at other ‘top teams’ in the future, they might feel they can bide their time knowing they’ll have a half-way decent car in the meantime.
To me, if they don’t want Perez until 2014 (as I said before, where’s the logic in that?!?), taking Heikki for 2013 is a no-brainer – he’ll be cheap(ish), super keen to impress, bring a wealth of experience from the front and back of the grid and can be relied upon to do a professional job without upsetting anyone’s ego. What’s the worse that could happen – he proves pathetically incompetent and scores 25 points to 164?
Ferrari is waiting for Kubica. He will race for scuderia as soon as he recover. It will be a huge surprise for all.
You can believe that if you want to, but I think that is wildly wide of the mark.
Agree 100%. I think there’s more chance of a London GP than Kubica racing for Ferrari.
Now we’re talking, keep the faith. If he does get back into an F1 car we will know who is the mentally toughest driver in the sport. I’m sure the will is there let’s hope nature co-operates. Kubica replaces under performing Massa mid 2013. What a story that would be!
Would like to see Massa improve he deserves a better exit, I have a lot of respect for how graciously he handled defeat in WDC by 1 point on the last lap in Brazil, memorable and a Class act!
lovely sentiments in respect of both drivers and I agree with all of it but sadly I think if Robert was coming back we would have heard more
Tonio Liuzzi?
What about Liuzzi? He’s quite fast, and probably very keen!
Joe, hows Kubicas hand these days?
if capable of driving would Kubica be a better bet than Massa?
Money talks in F1.
I think Santander want a South American in the second seat at Ferrari (to help grow the brand, note B.Senna carries Santander branding on his cap)
Ferrari Automotive target South America as a growth market for company so would want to maintain a South American driver if possible
TNT Energy drink came on board this year, again South American company, probably paying Massa’s wages.
Coverage in South America outside of Brazil is very much focused on Perez and Pastor. If Massa is on his way out (which I doubt, for the reasons listed above) the only commercially logical choice is Perez. (Venezuela is not a big market for super cars or banks
) The comment on him being too inexperienced was a diversion. He will bring money from Carlos Slim, Ferrari currently hold no telecommunication partner deals, and generate great exposure for Ferrari in a burgeoning economy, Mexico.
Other Driver moves:
Hollywood me says Lewis to Lotus, logical me, says no change
Hollywood me says Kimi to Mclaren, logical me as above
Schumacher will continue at Mercedes, as Joe points out Mercedes are in F1 to sell cars, and create brand awareness. There is no better driver than Schmacher to do these things.
Sauber will go for an experienced driver, maybe Glock or Hekki depending on how strong or weak the development plans Marussia and Catterham can show to thier drivers in the coming weeks. (my money would be on Hekki moving) Kamui could well be out and Estaban in (to retain Slim money)
Force India – same line up
Toro Rosso – same line up – Sainz Jr 3rd driver
Marussia – same line up (Mclaren input will make a big impact next year) maybe Petrov if Glock moves on
Catterham – Rossi & Hekki or Petrov
HRT- Clos and De La Rosa
Any news of Robert Kubica’s recovery process? Could it be feasible? A quick driver with no expectations, getting back behind a wheel would be a win already. And a good story to tell too.
Jaime Alguersuari has experience with Ferrari engine, he is testing for Pirelli (even not so much) and he is quick enough. But two Spaniards are for Scuderia probably too much.
If you are only as good as your last race Bruno Senna would make some sense. Brazil is a very important market for Fiat, and he would be the only Brazilian in the field. A nice guy who would pose no threat to Alonso but would make a lot of good publicity for them.
But would he deliver? Ayrton Senna was my all time F1 hero and I’d be ecstatic if Bruno could win – in a Ferrari and get the Senna name back where it belongs! Unfortunately, I’m just not convinced by him performance wise – nice guy – yes, definitely (probably the most personable out there – a sponsor’s dream – especially in the Brasil marketplace); a GP winner?…..umm…possibly, given a particular set of circumstances; a consistent front runner in a top team? No, not at the moment, I just don’t see it.
I reckon Ferarri look at it like this.
1. Webber and Button signed up elsewhere.
2. Hamilton, Vettel and Kimi would only come as No 1 drivers, so either Hamilton or Vettel can replace Alonso when he calls it a day
3. So who is best of the rest with at least 2 years experience come 2013?
(a) Massa
(b) Rosberg
(c) Perez
(d) Di Resta
To me it would be between the above – I would opt for Rosberg but the questions is after 7 years in F1 and with a 1 in 20 race podium average is he better than Perez who will have completed 2 years with a 1 in 15 podium average? Perez is part of the family too.
Either way Massa has to go if Ferrari want to maintain an aura that only top drivers race for them. He hasnt been on podium since Korea 2010 from memory, and he is costing Ferarri money, performance and reputation.
I know that sounds harsh, cos he is a nice guy, but its a fact.
Ferrari didnt renew Massa’s contract that means they are seriously looking someone else insted of Massa.
Actually no one will know, who will replace Massa until the end of the season as it is clear Ferrari rightly dont want to demoralise Massa more in a hope he may do something good in the 2nd half.
The chance of Massa to stay for 2013 season is slim because even if he performs towards the end of season they know that Massa may as usual struggle next season start. It almost turned into a cronic habit, I mean Massa’s bad season starts.
Already having the best f1 driver in team is a big relief for Ferrari, coming with a better car for next year is more important than to choice who will be 2nd driver.
Not taking up an option to renew a contract may be part of a financial game. Ron Dennis played this one with Kimi Raikkonen a few years ago. Kimi was already getting a large splodge of wonga, and if McLaren took up their option then they had to pay him more. Dennis declined the option when it came due, as he’d already got Fernando Alonso contracted for 2007. Then, with the option lapsed and Kimi effectively a free agent, he started negotiating again, playing hardball because he had the current world champ signed already.
Ferrari may be doing the same. They don’t take up their option on Massa. They wait a bit, then they offer him a seat for one year at a reduced salary.
They hold all the cards. I don’t think Massa’s going to get many offers from front-running or big-paying teams for 2013.
I am also curious whats happenning to robert kubica, he is gone missing since his lotus contract expired,he also dropped his long time physio R. Ceccarelli Joe, any ninfo on what hes been up to, where is he healing/ training, who is taking care of him? Does he even fight for a comeback with any team, or is he gone for good
Nobody will sign Kubica until he can give a good reason to believe that he can drive an F1 car at good pace for a race distance, 20 times a year. Which is going to be very hard for him to do.
Tend to agree here. Think they’ll keep Massa; it’ll be Just like the Senna/Nakajima partnership in 1987 in terms of class gap! Ok, slight exaggeration (but not much if current form is anything to go by). Sorry Massa but I’m not fooled by the Silverstone revival; you’re currently miles behind the best driver in F1 – and that’s the problem. Alonso is pure magic; the class of the field; one of the true all time greats; the ability to fashion wins out of an average car.
I agree about keeping Massa Nick and about Alonso so if Massa can qualify a car that isnt that good less than one tenth behind such a great he’s not a Nakajima
Personally, I’m thinking that we’ll see Massa back in the seat in 2013, possibly at a far lower salary than the € 10M he’s currently getting. With MS earning € 8M & Kimi earning € 5M, I could see Ferrari offering Massa € 5M.
I think Jaime Alguersuari might be a good replacement. He fills two needs for Ferrari. A warm body for the 2 slot, and the DJ for Alonso’s victory parties.
Does anyone else just skip all the comments till they see Joe reply to one, and then go back and read it????? I find it makes my day shorter, and makes me laugh more!!!
Usually!
yep
Yes, I do exactly that, although there IS one poster on here that I don’t read.
Still, Joe never replies to that one, either!
Actually, sometimes he does.
Joe I thought you mentioned Di Resta as a possible a while back… but noticed here you said he probably wouldn’t go there as a No.2?
Haven’t Team Fiat signed No.2 drivers before with a promise (probably not kept) that they’d be a No. 1 later – Irvine?
If I was Di Resta a deal saying No.2 for two years with an option as No.1 there after I’d probably take it. Especially if my family were originally from Italy etc.
I still think Massa is the man who will have the seat next year and despite all I hear and read in the last few races he hasn’t been that far off Alonso. In fact I think after 15 laps at Hungaroring he was 10 secs behind Alonso and on lap 67 he was 10 secs behind Alonso, not that bad.
I am surprised more have not mentioned Jaime Alguersuari….
@Joe Why do you think Kubica is not a serious option? Wouldn’t he be the most interesting option for Ferrari. Considering he gets fit in time for next year…
Kimi was ousted for alonso, as schumacher was ousted for kimi, so kimi wont work with luca and ferrari again, irespective of massas lack of performance, he would be a better bet for the team. With the new regs for 2014 maybe we have a different order of teams at the top. Maybe massa will come good and the regs favour him….
Joe, im curious where you rate Pastor Maldonaldo, do you think he could fit into the fold here somehow? He seems very quick.
Quick yes. Smart? No.
…and I think he cracks under pressure.
Alonso didn’t really pressure him in Spain, so he was able to stay in the lead. When trying to pass, catch up, or defend when being passed, he either dives in a bit too deep (Silverstone, Valencia, Australia), or pulls a bonehead move (Valencia, Monaco 2011 – he knew Hamilton was there, but turned in anyway).
Not smart, and gets overambitious when put in a situation that requires quick thinking.
Alguesuari should be considered in my opinion. Has experience and is still very young, seems very knowledgable and can convey feedback very astutely from what I’ve heard, and has (no doubt) a burning ambition to kick Helmut Marko to the kerb.
Why not him?
By the end of this year Perez will have competed in 37 World Championship Grands Prix. That’s only eight short of Mike Hawthorn, and more than half the number that Jochen Rindt ever took part in. Admittedly in the ’50s and ’60s the top guys were also driving F2, sports cars and the like, but then they did far less driving on their way to the top than the modern breed. Perez had over 150 race starts under his belt before he reached F1, and that doesn’t even include his karting days. If he needs more time to develop he’s either a surprisingly slow learner, or he’s in the wrong environment. I don’t for one instant think the former is likely, looking at the way he has taken to F1, so perhaps moving him to the parent team would be the Scuderia’s best move?
A number two must know their place, but if something happens to Number 1 then they have to be in with a chance of winning. Look at the best of the nailed-on Number 2 drivers in the last couple of decades: Patrese and Barrichello. Both were happy (or if not happy, then knew their duty) to sit behind the leader, play tail gunner and help out were they could, but if Noigel or Schumi ever slipped up then you could be sure that there would be an identically coloured car to take their position. Massa is failing hand over fist, so I don’t see what Ferrari have to lose in bringing over Perez sooner rather than later.
If Perez did as well in a Ferrari this year as he has in a Sauber, he would have 22 more points than Massa, putting Ferrari second in the WCC, rather than fourth.
Then again, maybe he wouldn’t fare so well in the Ferrari, and pull a Fisi (nearly won in a Force India, then barely qualifies in a Ferrari in the next race).
Regarding Ferrari and experience, Gilles didn’t have many F1 races under his belt when they signed him… he was a great number two to Jody in 1979. Perez could do much the same for Alonso, I bet.
I take it Anthony Davidson is long off of everybody’s radar now? Shame. Was it just money, or was he just not quick enough in the end? He seemed to be half-decent enough at the time…
Interesting, for some reason I’d forgotten him. He banged in the fastest Toyota qualifying time in this year’s Vingt Quat’, and his crew had taken the lead on merit just before he took the wheel and was then unceremoniously dumped into the barrier by a GT Ferrari. Peugeot did pretty well with him too, so the chap’s still got speed. Davidson to Ferrari?? We need someone to start that rumour…
We do indeed.
I just don’t understand how he went from “Next Great British Hope” to nowhere (excellent commentary aside) seemingly overnight.
Just reading his Wikipedia entry… he’s 33 already! I’d also forgotten that he would have been driving for Williams in 2005 had BAR not been evil over his contract. What a shame.
Why all the hype over PDR when he is being beaten by his team mate?
Has anyone considered what might happen with Robert Kubica, i haven’t heard anything about his recovery and potential to drive again
No news is not good news
Joe, have you tried asking Morelli or Kubica what’s going on? Any feedback from them?
Joe, have a great vacation and thanks for the comments. They make the blog really special.