GMILBP

CarlosFerreira · Post by **CarlosFerreira** » 17 Aug 2009, 08:56

Yes, the European Grand Prix is still a week away, but let's not let the facts get in the way of a good story. Everyone's got an opinion on Luca Badoer's chances for next week, and no doubt you'd like to share them. So, here's your Great Moments in Luca Badoer Punditry thread!

The rules are simple: stay on topic. Some possible questions

How's Luca gonna do?
Will he go past Q1?
Will he go past Q2?
What strategy should he employ if he's on the top-10 after Qualy?
Will he score a point?
Will he manage to abandon rejectdom?
FTW?

I suppose he'll do poorly. Old, without competitive rhythm, he'll struggle to match everyone else's pace. Remember when Jacques came back to drive for Renault and complained everyone was going too quick at the beginning, of the races? Same thing.
Ferrari should probably fill his car to the brim unless he proves he's really, really fast and let him run among the BMW's.

thehemogoblin · Post by **thehemogoblin** » 17 Aug 2009, 09:07

How's Luca gonna do? He's not going to set the world alight, but he'll probably be within .2 of Kimi.
Will he go past Q1? Yes. The only times that the Ferraris have not made it past Q1 was because of tactical errors, and I cannot see that mistake happening again.
Will he go past Q2? Now this, this is a better question... I think that he'll end up starting 12th.
What strategy should he employ if he's on the top-10 after Qualy? He should go for the heaviest fuel load possible, do as few pit stops as possible, and then hope that he leapfrogs enough people to sneak into the back half of the points.
Will he score a point? I think so/hope so.
Will he manage to abandon rejectdom? I don't think so. I cannot see the second Ferrari in front of both Brawns, both Red Bulls, the first Ferrari, or Lewis Hamilton.
FTW? It would make my frickin' year.

CarlosFerreira · Post by **CarlosFerreira** » 17 Aug 2009, 09:20

thehemogoblin wrote:Will he go past Q2? Now this, this is a better question... I think that he'll end up starting 12th.

I would imagine he'll end up on the 13th place.

jackanderton · Post by **jackanderton** » 17 Aug 2009, 09:26

What strategy should he employ if he's on the top-10 after Qualy?

WeirdKerr · Post by **WeirdKerr** » 17 Aug 2009, 18:25

its gonna actually be weird to see him back in formula 1.... would be funny if he ends up getting in Q3 would he go for a lightish fuel load to get say a top 6 grid spot, pole would be funny too....

thehemogoblin · Post by **thehemogoblin** » 17 Aug 2009, 18:28

If Luca Badoer got pole... hell would freeze over.

Post by **DemocalypseNow** » 17 Aug 2009, 18:29

My prediction for Badoer is 8th at Valencia, 3rd at Spa and 1st at Monza

In a Parallel Universe anyway.

Henrique · Post by **Henrique** » 17 Aug 2009, 19:13

I predict Badoer will achieve a top place at Q2 and then finish 5th or 4th. The evil side of my conscience strongly desires that he finishes at least in front of Raikkonen.

Barbazza · Post by **Barbazza** » 17 Aug 2009, 19:24

Since no-one else seems to be sticking their neck out I'm going for a lucky 3rd place after an average qualifying and a steady race with Luca lucking in after whoever's 3rd breaks down right near the end!

Henrique · Post by **Henrique** » 17 Aug 2009, 19:30

Barbazza wrote:Since no-one else seems to be sticking their neck out I'm going for a lucky 3rd place after an average qualifying and a steady race with Luca lucking in after whoever's 3rd breaks down right near the end!

Everyone would like to see him get a podium finish, but sadly, we're not in the 2008 season. But it would be great, of course. For me, even better than Tiago Monteiro's 3rd place

Btw, I just added Badoer to my Fantasy Racers team. He better score! :mrgreen:

howardmb · Post by **howardmb** » 17 Aug 2009, 19:57

CarlosFerreira wrote:How's Luca gonna do?
Will he go past Q1?
Will he go past Q2?
What strategy should he employ if he's on the top-10 after Qualy?
Will he score a point?
Will he manage to abandon rejectdom?
FTW?

I'll go on record even though in other postings I think he's a lost cause.

He will go past Q1
He will go past Q2
He should be fueled massively to minimize pit stops (he's not used to them and is bound to bugger it up)
He will not score a point
He will remain a reject
(I still wish him the bery best...)

CarlosFerreira · Post by **CarlosFerreira** » 17 Aug 2009, 20:06

I can only put it like this: he'll be rejectworthy anyway. Won't have the pace to score points in such a tightly-packed, competitive grid. But that's OK, it's to be expected. I won't feel bad if he's a reject.

I'll only feel bad if he's rubbish and shamefully out of place.

Irisado · Post by **Irisado** » 17 Aug 2009, 21:47

CarlosFerreira wrote:Will he go past Q1?

Yes, providing it's a 'normal' session.

Will he go past Q2?

Tricky, but I reckon he will make it, simply because I think the Ferrari will suit Valencia reasonably well.

What strategy should he employ if he's on the top-10 after Qualy?

Ferrari normally fuel quite heavily, so I see no reason for that to change.

Will he score a point?

Providing Raikkonen doesn't sabotage his gearbox, or drive him off the road at the start, or force him to collide with Adrian Sutil, or get the Ferrari management to lose his right rear tyre during a pitstop, I think he will

.

Will he manage to abandon rejectdom?

Tough one. Probably not at this one race, but if given more than one event, then yes, I think he will.

FTW?

If that were to happen, it would be my best F1 moment since Baumgartner scoring Minardi's last proper F1 point at Indianapolis 2004, although Schumacher's engine failure at Suzuka to effectively give Alonso the title in 2006 was good too, Badoer winning would top that.

watka · Post by **watka** » 17 Aug 2009, 22:37

How's Luca gonna do? - Compared to Raikonnen? He'll be slower, but not by much, Kimi's pretty much out at the end of the season so he's got nothing to drive for.
Will he go past Q1? - Yes, but with his luck...
Will he go past Q2? - I don't think his one-lap pace will be quite quick enough.
What strategy should he employ if he's on the top-10 after Qualy? - Heavy fuel load, standard Ferrari strategy this year. He's never going to overtake anyone on track, but hopefully he can put in some solid laps and leapfrog some people at the pit stops.
Will he score a point? - Yes, I think 8th is realistic.
Will he manage to abandon rejectdom? - No, not if he's only in for this race.
FTW? - The very best he'll manage is squabbling with the Brawns for 5th and 6th places.

Salamander · Post by **Salamander** » 17 Aug 2009, 23:13

How's Luca gonna do?

He'll probably start off a bit behind Raikkonen, but I think as the weekend goes on, he'll get better.

Will he go past Q1?

Barring a strategical fault from Ferrari, yes.

Will he go past Q2?

If the Ferrari goes well around Valencia, then it's certainly a possibility.

What strategy should he employ if he's on the top-10 after Qualy?

Take a heavy fuel load and leapfrog a bunch of guys at the first stops. It's worked quite well for Ferrari so far.

Will he score a point?

If he gets to the end of the race, then probably

Will he manage to abandon rejectdom?

Probably not at Valencia, though, of course, it'd be great if he did.

FTW?

I hope so, as someone said before, it'd be a fairytale to put Brawn and Button in the shade. It's a possibility if something like Monaco 1996 comes to pass, but apart from those sorts of circumstances, I can't really see it realistically happening.

Bort · Post by **Bort** » 18 Aug 2009, 02:44

He will start from the pits and crash into the safety car bringing up the rear of the field.

dragonsteincole · Post by **dragonsteincole** » 18 Aug 2009, 03:21

Bort wrote:He will start from the pits and crash into the safety car bringing up the rear of the field.

the key word here is "optimism"

I think it'd be rather poetic justice if he finished 4th. You'd see the spectre of 1999 fly out of the cockpit and he will step out the car a free man.

Yannick · Post by **Yannick** » 18 Aug 2009, 05:08

Just like the "would-have-been-Lotus-or-March-or-Arrows lead drivers" of the decade, Wurz and De La Rosa, Luca Badoer will at least score a podium if he gets to run the Ferrari the rest of the season's races.

I have no idea how he will be doing in Valencia, which is a new track to him, but I hope he'll make it to Q3.

Henrique · Post by **Henrique** » 18 Aug 2009, 10:52

Bort wrote:He will start from the pits and crash into the safety car bringing up the rear of the field.

Worst case scenario for me would be him getting rammed from behind on the first corner by newcomer Grosjean :evil:

Or this.

WeirdKerr · Post by **WeirdKerr** » 18 Aug 2009, 17:41

or gets mistaken for kimi by a german named adrian

Warren Hughes · Post by **Warren Hughes** » 23 Aug 2009, 14:36

CarlosFerreira wrote:I'll only feel bad if he's rubbish and shamefully out of place.

Oh dear. Poor Luca.

CarlosFerreira · Post by **CarlosFerreira** » 23 Aug 2009, 16:41

Warren Hughes wrote:
CarlosFerreira wrote:I'll only feel bad if he's rubbish and shamefully out of place.

Oh dear. Poor Luca.

Yes, I feel bad.

Barbazza · Post by **Barbazza** » 23 Aug 2009, 18:11

I got the 'steady race' bit right. A bit too steady in the pits when letting Grosjean through it has to be said.

Irisado · Post by **Irisado** » 23 Aug 2009, 19:54

Henrique wrote:Worst case scenario for me would be him getting rammed from behind on the first corner by newcomer Grosjean

Which is exactly what happened, only not at the first corner.

As I said in the Valencia race thread, I think he was better in the race, and could have finished higher up had it not been for the incident with Grosjean and crossing the white line. He deserves another chance at Spa in my view.

ZsoltForever · Post by **ZsoltForever** » 23 Aug 2009, 20:32

The hits just keep on coming. According to a Twitter from Autosport's Jon Noble, Badoer ended his weekend by rear-ending Adrian Sutil in parc ferme.

http://twitter.com/noblef1

CarlosFerreira · Post by **CarlosFerreira** » 23 Aug 2009, 21:04

ZsoltForever wrote:The hits just keep on coming. According to a Twitter from Autosport's Jon Noble, Badoer ended his weekend by rear-ending Adrian Sutil in parc ferme.

http://twitter.com/noblef1

That guy just needs to get away from red cars. Jeez!

WeirdKerr · Post by **WeirdKerr** » 24 Aug 2009, 18:49

this just goes to show that the force indias are magnetic .... but only to ferraris

thehemogoblin · Post by **thehemogoblin** » 25 Aug 2009, 01:30

WeirdKerr wrote:this just goes to show that the force indias are magnetic .... but only to ferraris

It's revenge for the aborted engine deal.

razta · Post by **razta** » 25 Aug 2009, 03:53

WeirdKerr wrote:this just goes to show that the force indias are magnetic .... but only to ferraris

Henrique · Post by **Henrique** » 31 Aug 2009, 00:51

What now for Luca Badoer? Stefano Domenicali said the team will discuss his future in the next few days. Luca said he really wants to race at Monza, because it's one of the tracks he knows best, along with Fiorano and Mugello. Some rumours say that Ferrari is considering Fisichella to replace Badoer.
GPUpdate showed a picture of an angry fan with a sign saying "My grandmother is faster than Luca with a Ferrari. Shameful".

To be honest, I'm seriously afraid of what may happen if Badoer finishes last, at Monza, in front of all those tifosi. The rage! :evil:

Henrique · Post by **Henrique** » 31 Aug 2009, 10:28

http://f1.gpupdate.net/en/news/2009/08/31/force-india-expecting-fisichella-ferrari-move/

Oh shiiiii...

CarlosFerreira · Post by **CarlosFerreira** » 31 Aug 2009, 11:04

Henrique wrote:http://f1.gpupdate.net/en/news/2009/08/31/force-india-expecting-fisichella-ferrari-move/

Oh shiiiii...

Shiiiii indeed. Poor Giancarlo, going to a team with a worse car.
VJ Mallya, however, says there's nothing on the table yet:

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/78224

We'll see. I predict it'll be the end of Fisico's career, should it happen.

Irisado · Post by **Irisado** » 31 Aug 2009, 11:58

The Fisichella to Ferrari story is starting to look more credible in my view, so I wouldn't be surprised if it did happen, especially if it allows Force India to clear their debts with Ferrari.

If this were to pass, however, who would replace Fisichella at Force India? Liuzzi I would presume, as he is their reserve driver I believe.

CarlosFerreira · Post by **CarlosFerreira** » 31 Aug 2009, 12:06

Irisado wrote:The Fisichella to Ferrari story is starting to look more credible in my view, so I wouldn't be surprised if it did happen, especially if it allows Force India to clear their debts with Ferrari.

If this were to pass, however, who would replace Fisichella at Force India? Liuzzi I would presume, as he is their reserve driver I believe.

I suppose Liuzzi would fill in the gap. He is supposed to have a contract signed to race next season. Personally, I would love to see him having a go.

Many Blue Flags · Post by **Many Blue Flags** » 31 Aug 2009, 12:17

However, Badoer's claiming that Ferrari should give him one last chance at his home circuit. not sure exactly where it says, but he's reported he could drive Monza 'With his eyes closed.'

http://en.f1-live.com/f1/en/headlines/n ... 4921.shtml

SuperAguri · Post by **SuperAguri** » 31 Aug 2009, 12:39

Many Blue Flags wrote:However, Badoer's claiming that Ferrari should give him one last chance at his home circuit. not sure exactly where it says, but he's reported he could drive Monza 'With his eyes closed.'

That maybe so, but he'll still struggle. I am sure he's wanting make sure his record of most races without a point stays with him. :lol:

Henrique · Post by **Henrique** » 31 Aug 2009, 15:08

http://f1.gpupdate.net/en/news/2009/08/31/replacing-me-now-would-be-absurd-badoer/

Yeah, fight the power!

CarlosFerreira · Post by **CarlosFerreira** » 31 Aug 2009, 15:33

Henrique wrote:http://f1.gpupdate.net/en/news/2009/08/31/replacing-me-now-would-be-absurd-badoer/

Yeah, fight the power!

Well, the facto of the matter is he has been improving. He was closer in Spa than in Valencia, and with a bit more time he might surprise.

Irisado · Post by **Irisado** » 31 Aug 2009, 18:09

Ferrari could gamble, after all he was more on the pace at Spa. It's a circuit he should know well from testing, although he's probably done more miles at Mugello and Fiorano.

Many Blue Flags · Post by **Many Blue Flags** » 31 Aug 2009, 19:23

CarlosFerreira wrote:
Henrique wrote:http://f1.gpupdate.net/en/news/2009/08/31/replacing-me-now-would-be-absurd-badoer/

Yeah, fight the power!

Well, the facto of the matter is he has been improving. He was closer in Spa than in Valencia, and with a bit more time he might surprise.

Yeah, but closer for Badoer is still 48 seconds behind NAKAJIMA.