2012 Silly Season

Captain Hammer · Post by **Captain Hammer** » 30 Oct 2011, 01:10

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/95779

Vijay Mallya will make a decision on his driver line-up before Abu Dhabi, at Adrian Sutil's request. He was originally going to wait until the middle of December to make a decision, but Sutil asked if he could do it sooner in case the team decide not to renew his contract, giving him time to talk to other teams. He's no doubt wary of doing what Nick Heidfeld did in 2009, and setting his heart on driving for one team, only to have the carpet pulled out from under him and unable to start negotiations with other teams until the new year. Mallya did the respectable thing, and agreed.

Ed24 · Post by **Ed24** » 30 Oct 2011, 05:31

Well it depends what happens with Hugo Chavez, if he gets more sick, Maldonado and PDVSA might not have a place at Williams at all.

Post by **tommykl** » 30 Oct 2011, 07:56

Sutil - Räikkönen at Williams. Why do I feel we'll get the highest recorded amount of collisions between team mates in a single season?

RealRacingRoots · Post by **RealRacingRoots** » 30 Oct 2011, 08:33

tommykl wrote:Sutil - Räikkönen at Williams. Why do I feel we'll get the highest recorded amount of collisions between team mates in a single season?

WAIT. Why didn't one of us raise the red flag on this already. They say Williams is having a bad season this year. But next year with that lineup, hah, it will be like Burnout Revenge between those 2. The bill for the damages will be longer then the Monaco, Nurburgring, and Monza tracks combined.

TomWazzleshaw · Post by **TomWazzleshaw** » 30 Oct 2011, 08:34

Someone please explain to me why Raikkonen driving for Williams will work? I've been trying to figure this out myself and something just doesn't add up.

Post by **mario** » 30 Oct 2011, 08:44

Wizzie wrote:Someone please explain to me why Raikkonen driving for Williams will work? I've been trying to figure this out myself and something just doesn't add up.

It looks more like there are those who want to see Kimi return to the sport first, and working out how it'd actually work later.

OK, given that Williams have been short of sponsors recently it's unlikely that Kimi would have to worry too much about sponsor commitments (something he has hated in the past), but even so I have my doubt that, if (and it is a big if) Kimi really is sincere about returning to F1, that Williams would be the best place for him to go.
After all, even if the FW34 is a big improvement on the FW33 - and it'll have to be - Williams can only really hope to be towards the front end of the midfield in 2012, and Kimi could all too easily become disillusioned by his return to F1. He admitted in 2008 that he soon lost interest in the title battle, and now he has become a rally driver he seems to be losing interest in that too, so a team manager might well be worried that the same thing will happen again.

Captain Hammer · Post by **Captain Hammer** » 30 Oct 2011, 11:48

Wizzie wrote:Someone please explain to me why Raikkonen driving for Williams will work?

Because if Raikkonen wants back into Formula 1, there aren't many choices. He's been out of the sport for two years, and has no knowledge of the Pirelli tyres, fuel-heavy cars or the DRS. Williams is probably the furthest car up the grid that a) has a seat available, and b) is willing to take him despite his hiatus.

Pedestrian · Post by **Pedestrian** » 31 Oct 2011, 21:13

Wizzie wrote:Someone please explain to me why Raikkonen driving for Williams will work? I've been trying to figure this out myself and something just doesn't add up.

Because Raikkonen is one of the few top drivers that isn't pretentious about the relationship with his team, and could perform at 100% in a Williams (who are notoriusly impersonal compared to the other teams).
Now giving 100% in a Williams may not amount to very much, but I do think the car, as bad as it is currently is allso being driven slightly below maximum potential, and the deam does need a good driver.

Salamander · Post by **Salamander** » 31 Oct 2011, 21:39

Pedestrian wrote:
Wizzie wrote:Someone please explain to me why Raikkonen driving for Williams will work? I've been trying to figure this out myself and something just doesn't add up.

Because Raikkonen is one of the few top drivers that isn't pretentious about the relationship with his team, and could perform at 100% in a Williams (who are notoriusly impersonal compared to the other teams).
Now giving 100% in a Williams may not amount to very much, but I do think the car, as bad as it is currently is allso being driven slightly below maximum potential, and the deam does need a good driver.

This. Rubens is past is sell-by date and has been for a while, and Pastor Maldonado is the poor man's Jarno Trulli. Raikkonen, if he's interested, should still have plenty of speed left in him and should be able to do something with whatever Williams can give him. The question is, can Williams regain their 2010 form? Because this could very well be their last chance to claw their way back to the front.

Klon · Post by **Klon** » 31 Oct 2011, 22:13

BlindCaveSalamander wrote:
Pedestrian wrote:
Wizzie wrote:Someone please explain to me why Raikkonen driving for Williams will work? I've been trying to figure this out myself and something just doesn't add up.

Because Raikkonen is one of the few top drivers that isn't pretentious about the relationship with his team, and could perform at 100% in a Williams (who are notoriusly impersonal compared to the other teams).
Now giving 100% in a Williams may not amount to very much, but I do think the car, as bad as it is currently is allso being driven slightly below maximum potential, and the deam does need a good driver.

This. Rubens is past is sell-by date and has been for a while, and Pastor Maldonado is the poor man's Jarno Trulli. Raikkonen, if he's interested, should still have plenty of speed left in him and should be able to do something with whatever Williams can give him. The question is, can Williams regain their 2010 form? Because this could very well be their last chance to claw their way back to the front.

Rubens is past sell-by date but Kimi, known both for his outrageous wages and lack of motivation when not everything goes his way who has been out of Formula 1 for two seasons now is not? Excuse me while I go ahead and laugh loudly about this silly statement. Hohohoho. The Räikkönen-To-Williams rumours are as silly as the Räikkönen-To-Renault rumours after Kubica's incident or the Räikkönen-To-Red Bull rumours after Webber lost the title last year or the Räikkönen-To-McLaren rumours at the end of 2009 and the only reason Williams have not denied negotiating with Räikkönen is because his name sadly still holds some value and could attract sponsors. To make it simple: we will never see Räikkönen in F1 again and that is a good thing.

IdeFan · Post by **IdeFan** » 31 Oct 2011, 22:45

Assuming Kimi's wage demands are reasonable, then I think its a fair gamble for Williams. Maldonado has shown decent speed reletive to Rubens this year, frequently out qualifying him and generally out racing him in the second half of the season, with his sponsorship he's pretty much locked in for 2012, so who do you put in the other car?

- Barrichello, who hasn't done much this year and should probably retire.
- Sutil, who probably wants to stay at Force India, has a reasonable but unspectacular record of midfield running.
- Someone from the backmarker teams like Glock or Liuzzi, both of whom are similar to Sutil, but probably cheaper.
- A rookie.
- Raikkonen, who could be brilliant or could be rubbish and disinterested.

Personally I think with Maldonado generally doing a good job in the one car, you can afford to gamble in the other seat. Williams have little to lose, if they put out a decent car then they should back Maldonado to make good use of it, and if the car is crap again they're nowhere anyway. It hinges on what Raikkonen wants as a wage, its not worth breaking the bank to get him, but if he is a similar price to Sutil, I'd go with Kimi.

Captain Hammer · Post by **Captain Hammer** » 01 Nov 2011, 13:47

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/95840

Virgin have formally applied for a name change. I guess that, unlike Renault and Fernandes, they don’t really stand to lose anything since they’re 12th and last in the WCC standings.

Funnily enough, it’s the one team change Joe Saward hasn’t reported on – and the only one that has come true.

AndreaModa · Post by **AndreaModa** » 01 Nov 2011, 14:00

Ol' Joe has reported though that apparently Charles Pic is in the running for the Virg...I mean wait Marussia seat alongside Glock.

Shadaza · Post by **Shadaza** » 01 Nov 2011, 15:45

I heard from "Yalla F1" that Rosberg and Massa are going to do a straight swap for next year, Rosberg in Ferrari, Massa in Mercedes

Ed24 · Post by **Ed24** » 01 Nov 2011, 16:45

Shadaza wrote:I heard from "Yalla F1" that Rosberg and Massa are going to do a straight swap for next year, Rosberg in Ferrari, Massa in Mercedes

That does make some sense. Massa probably needs a new environment, and he worked well with Schumacher previously, both as a team-mate and in a friendship role. Rosberg's career seems to be stuck in 2nd gear and still needs to prove himself against a known quantity such as Alonso (personally, I think he'd get smashed, but that's irrelevant).

For Mercedes, they can afford to give Massa a one year contract, as it would be too early to expose Di Resta or Hulkenberg against Schumacher, I think. He's still a very fast driver, as shown by him starting to match Alonso more often recently, and still is fairly young.

I'd love Massa to stay at Ferrari, but if he were go to Mercedes, I'd say that would be the next best thing for me.

Waris · Post by **Waris** » 01 Nov 2011, 19:34

Captain Hammer wrote:http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/95840

Virgin have formally applied for a name change. I guess that, unlike Renault and Fernandes, they don’t really stand to lose anything since they’re 12th and last in the WCC standings.

Funnily enough, it’s the one team change Joe Saward hasn’t reported on – and the only one that has come true.

Wow, I hadn't expected that this soon. I imagined it would happen at some point, but rather in 2014 or beyond. It makes perfect sense though, when you think of it.

Shizuka · Post by **Shizuka** » 01 Nov 2011, 19:54

Shadaza wrote:I heard from "Yalla F1" that Rosberg and Massa are going to do a straight swap for next year, Rosberg in Ferrari, Massa in Mercedes

This would be a VERY good thing if it happens!
Rosberg would have a fast teammate and (probably) a decent car and if he can hold the candle to Alonso, he might even break Fernando (remember how his mindset became fragile at McLaren!), if things go well for him and meanwhile Nico can see how he can fare in a different team.
Massa would be much happier in Mercedes environment, especially that he would have Ross Brawn and Schumacher around. This would help him to settle in easily and Michael would be a team-mate who nowadays CAN be beaten.

shinji · Post by **shinji** » 01 Nov 2011, 20:05

Shadaza wrote:I heard from "Yalla F1" that Rosberg and Massa are going to do a straight swap for next year, Rosberg in Ferrari, Massa in Mercedes

But... Massa isn't even kind of German!

Post by **mario** » 01 Nov 2011, 20:30

Ed24 wrote:
Shadaza wrote:I heard from "Yalla F1" that Rosberg and Massa are going to do a straight swap for next year, Rosberg in Ferrari, Massa in Mercedes

That does make some sense. Massa probably needs a new environment, and he worked well with Schumacher previously, both as a team-mate and in a friendship role. Rosberg's career seems to be stuck in 2nd gear and still needs to prove himself against a known quantity such as Alonso (personally, I think he'd get smashed, but that's irrelevant).

For Mercedes, they can afford to give Massa a one year contract, as it would be too early to expose Di Resta or Hulkenberg against Schumacher, I think. He's still a very fast driver, as shown by him starting to match Alonso more often recently, and still is fairly young.

I'd love Massa to stay at Ferrari, but if he were go to Mercedes, I'd say that would be the next best thing for me.

I guess that as far as Ferrari are concerned Rosberg is potentially worth going for, given that he is normally pretty level headed on the track and has a knack for opportunistic passes (remember the way he worked his way into the lead in Spa). Alonso has imposed himself upon Ferrari in exactly the way Domenicali wanted him to, and whilst he is enjoying things Massa has effectively gone from being the darling of the team to being hung out to dry, and that must hurt a lot. Given how close he was to Schumacher when they were together at Ferrari, it might well help him recover some of his form, and potentially take some of the pressure off him too, so from his point of view it'd probably work (and coupled to that I imagine that Mercedes would also welcome somebody like Smedley coming along with Massa, as I imagine that Massa might want to see if he could bring a few familiar faces along with him).

Mind you, were Ferrari to do that it wouldn't be cheap, given that they'd have to buy Massa out of his contract and also buy Rosberg out of his Mercedes contract, and Ferrari's budget for next year is rumoured to have dwindled rapidly, as even they are not immune to an economic downturn and pressure from within Fiat to cut costs.
Moreover, there are a couple of complicating factors on both sides - for a start, there is Di Resta, who already has strong links to Mercedes and is widely expected to slot into that team fairly soon, whilst over at Ferrari there is always the question of Kubica moving there (Ferrari did try to get him in 2009 and were thought to have been looking through the terms of his contract with Renault before his rallying accident).

Post by **tommykl** » 01 Nov 2011, 21:13

Come to think of it, I believe this could work.

Rosberg isn't known for being mentally tough. To be fair, he's quickly turning into the next Nick Heidfeld. However, he hasn't shown any sign of bowing down to Michael Schumacher's statistical superiority. Schumi probably has the team wrapped around him already, but Nico doesn't seem to let that fact get to him, unlike Massa. It remains to be seen whether he can do the same alongside Fernando.

Meanwhile, Massa has already worked with Brawn and Schumacher before, and returning to the partnership of 2003 and 2006 shouldn't have a negative impact on his performance. Mercedes have a reputation of shifting car development towards one driver in particular, usually Schumacher, without giving preferential treatment on a sporting level, ie. Michael and Nico are considered equal on the track.

Both drivers could fit in to each other's team quite well, and, should this happen, I wouldn't be surprised if both got better results than before.

Post by **Londoner** » 01 Nov 2011, 22:40

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/95844

Not good news. I really hope Rob will be on the grid for 2012, but the lack of anything positive coming out is worrying.

DanielPT · Post by **DanielPT** » 02 Nov 2011, 10:57

Shadaza wrote:I heard from "Yalla F1" that Rosberg and Massa are going to do a straight swap for next year, Rosberg in Ferrari, Massa in Mercedes

Can't see that happen. There is still the small matter of Mercedes and Alonso... Besides, It would be cheaper and probably better for everyone to put Perez in that racing seat (direct swap with Sauber).

Dj_bereta · Post by **Dj_bereta** » 02 Nov 2011, 19:09

according with a brazilian site, there are reports ( :roll:

) which GRRRSSJJJJNNNN is close to sign with Renault and Raikkonen will be announced as Williams driver during Abu Dhabi weekend.

Post by **mario** » 02 Nov 2011, 20:36

Dj_bereta wrote:according with a brazilian site, there are reports ( ) which GRRRSSJJJJNNNN is close to sign with Renault and Raikkonen will be announced as Williams driver during Abu Dhabi weekend.

If, and it is a big if, Grosjean were to be signed for Renault, I doubt few would be surprised, given his tight links with Boullier coupled to the possibility of a discounted Renault engine supply deal. Mind you, there is still the big question of Kubica's recovery - he has recovered quite well, to the extent that he only needs a temporary brace around his arm (as against a full plaster cast), but nobody has any idea how he can perform in a car.

Mind you, even after Bruno Senna's signing for the team, and the sponsorship cash he brought, the Renault team are still bleeding staff - Autosport is reporting that the new team manager, John Wickham (who had signed for Renault back at the European GP this year), left the team just before the Indian GP in order to take up a career in sportscar racing instead. http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/95707
And to make matters worse, Joe Saward (in one of his less contentious reports) is reporting that there have been more resignations recently at Renault too, with Chief Mechanic Gavin Hudson and Strategy Engineer Mathieu du Bois having also handed in their notices and departing the team in the past few weeks. http://joesaward.wordpress.com/2011/11/ ... -f1-world/

Overall, whilst it would be good to see Kubica come back into the sport, or, as some might argue for, a second shot for Grosjean, the fact that Renault seem to be slowly disintegrating makes you wonder whether they can really offer either driver a stable long term position in the sport...

Ed24 · Post by **Ed24** » 02 Nov 2011, 22:00

Dj_bereta wrote:according with a brazilian site, there are reports ( ) which GRRRSSJJJJNNNN is close to sign with Renault and Raikkonen will be announced as Williams driver during Abu Dhabi weekend.

An Abu Dhabi announcement is quite logical, as the deal is predicated on Qatari sponsors, and Qatar has previously had an influence at the Abu Dhabi GP, such as through sponsoring Williams and Brawn in 2009.

Captain Hammer · Post by **Captain Hammer** » 05 Nov 2011, 06:35

Robert Wickens is driving for Virgin on Friday morning in Abu Dhabi, in d'Ambrosio's place. Although Rantin' Joe Saward reckons that Charles Pic is close to signing with Virgin, Wickens has backing from Marussia and they're taking naming rights to the team next year. Wickens is the reigning Formula Renault 3.5 champion, and did well in both GP3 and Formula Two, so I don't think GP2 is really an option because it won't do him any good. I think he's ready for Formula 1.

Elsewhere, a rumour that is gaining traction suggests Massa is out at Ferrari and Rosberg will be drafted to replace him. If that's the case, there will almost certainly be a vacancy on the grid next year; Ferrari have a habit of 'encouraging' (read: paying off) their drivers and team personnel to take a sabbatical year when they leave. If Massa were to leave Ferrari and Rosberg replaced him, that would create an opening at Mercedes. And that will be very difficult to predict. Paul di Resta is the obvious choice, for the seat, and if he goes, that creates a vacancy at Force India. Adrian Sutil might stay there, but that won't sit well with Hulkenberg, who turned down a drive at Virgin because he was concerned that being beaten by a fellow German would damage his career. But if Vijay Mallya does not take Sutil and di Resta goes to Mercedes, there is still a vacancy at Force India. In that case, I suspect whoever is dropped by Toro Rosso would fill the gap. The grid would probably look like this:

Red Bull: #1 - Vettel / #2 - Webber
McLaren: #3 - Button / #4 - Hamilton
Ferrari: #5 - Alonso / #6 - Rosberg
Mercedes: #7 - Schumacher / #8 - di Resta
Lotus Renault: #9 - Petrov / #10 - Kubica (Grosjean)*
Force India: #11 - Buemi / #12 - Hulkenberg
Toro Rosso: #14 - Alguersuari / #15 - Ricciardo
Sauber: #16 - Kobayashi / #17 - Perez
Williams: #18 - Raikkonen / #19 - Maldonado
Caterham: #20 - Kovalainen / #21 - Trulli (d'Ambrosio)**
Hispania: #22 - Tung / #23 - Vergne
Marussia: #24 - Glock / #25 - Wickens

* - If Kubica is not fit to race, then I expect Grosjean would get promoted in his place.
** - I think putting Trulli in the car is a complete waste of a perfectly-good seat.

TomWazzleshaw · Post by **TomWazzleshaw** » 05 Nov 2011, 07:22

Captain Hammer wrote:** - I think putting Trulli in the car is a complete waste of a perfectly-good seat.

So do most of us infact :lol:

dr-baker · Post by **dr-baker** » 05 Nov 2011, 10:58

Captain Hammer wrote:Red Bull: #1 - Vettel / #2 - Webber
McLaren: #3 - Button / #4 - Hamilton
Ferrari: #5 - Alonso / #6 - Rosberg
Mercedes: #7 - Schumacher / #8 - di Resta
Lotus Renault: #9 - Petrov / #10 - Kubica (Grosjean)*
Force India: #11 - Buemi / #12 - Hulkenberg
Toro Rosso: #14 - Alguersuari / #15 - Ricciardo
Sauber: #16 - Kobayashi / #17 - Perez
Williams: #18 - Raikkonen / #19 - Maldonado
Caterham: #20 - Kovalainen / #21 - Trulli (d'Ambrosio)**
Hispania: #22 - Tung / #23 - Vergne
Marussia: #24 - Glock / #25 - Wickens

* - If Kubica is not fit to race, then I expect Grosjean would get promoted in his place.
** - I think putting Trulli in the car is a complete waste of a perfectly-good seat.

So you really don't see a place for Senna anywhere? If I were the-team-formerly-known as-Toleman-and-Benetton, I would rather continue with Senna than take another chance on FatJohn if Kubica sadly continues to be incapacitated...

Post by **Londoner** » 05 Nov 2011, 11:48

The Sun newspaper are reporting that Massa may be sacked at the end of the season and replaced by Rosberg. As it's the Sun, don't expect it to happen...

AndreaModa · Post by **AndreaModa** » 05 Nov 2011, 12:26

East Londoner wrote:The Sun newspaper are reporting that Massa may be sacked at the end of the season and replaced by Rosberg. As it's the Sun, don't expect it to happen...

I'm not so sure, they and their former Sunday equivalent had a habit of finding things out long before everyone else might have suspected it

Salamander · Post by **Salamander** » 05 Nov 2011, 12:27

dr-baker wrote:
Captain Hammer wrote:Red Bull: #1 - Vettel / #2 - Webber
McLaren: #3 - Button / #4 - Hamilton
Ferrari: #5 - Alonso / #6 - Rosberg
Mercedes: #7 - Schumacher / #8 - di Resta
Lotus Renault: #9 - Petrov / #10 - Kubica (Grosjean)*
Force India: #11 - Buemi / #12 - Hulkenberg
Toro Rosso: #14 - Alguersuari / #15 - Ricciardo
Sauber: #16 - Kobayashi / #17 - Perez
Williams: #18 - Raikkonen / #19 - Maldonado
Caterham: #20 - Kovalainen / #21 - Trulli (d'Ambrosio)**
Hispania: #22 - Tung / #23 - Vergne
Marussia: #24 - Glock / #25 - Wickens

* - If Kubica is not fit to race, then I expect Grosjean would get promoted in his place.
** - I think putting Trulli in the car is a complete waste of a perfectly-good seat.

So you really don't see a place for Senna anywhere? If I were the-team-formerly-known as-Toleman-and-Benetton, I would rather continue with Senna than take another chance on FatJohn if Kubica sadly continues to be incapacitated...

I disagree - Grosjean has been consistently one of the best drivers in GP2, his poor performance in 2009 was largely down to the big shunt he had at Monaco. Senna hasn't been atrocious, but he has been generally underwhelming. If Liuzzi hadn't gone kamikaze in Monza, I doubt he'd have any points. He's been consistently outperformed by Petrov - even taking into account his lack of experience. Petrov finished in front of him in India despite a penalty and having been stuck behind Perez the whole race. Bad strategy or no, that just does not look good on Senna.

Of course, all that is assuming Renault's finances improve to the point where they can go without Senna's money, which I believe is the main reason why they put him in the car in the first place.

Post by **mario** » 05 Nov 2011, 14:14

BlindCaveSalamander wrote:
dr-baker wrote:
Captain Hammer wrote:Red Bull: #1 - Vettel / #2 - Webber
McLaren: #3 - Button / #4 - Hamilton
Ferrari: #5 - Alonso / #6 - Rosberg
Mercedes: #7 - Schumacher / #8 - di Resta
Lotus Renault: #9 - Petrov / #10 - Kubica (Grosjean)*
Force India: #11 - Buemi / #12 - Hulkenberg
Toro Rosso: #14 - Alguersuari / #15 - Ricciardo
Sauber: #16 - Kobayashi / #17 - Perez
Williams: #18 - Raikkonen / #19 - Maldonado
Caterham: #20 - Kovalainen / #21 - Trulli (d'Ambrosio)**
Hispania: #22 - Tung / #23 - Vergne
Marussia: #24 - Glock / #25 - Wickens

* - If Kubica is not fit to race, then I expect Grosjean would get promoted in his place.
** - I think putting Trulli in the car is a complete waste of a perfectly-good seat.

So you really don't see a place for Senna anywhere? If I were the-team-formerly-known as-Toleman-and-Benetton, I would rather continue with Senna than take another chance on FatJohn if Kubica sadly continues to be incapacitated...

I disagree - Grosjean has been consistently one of the best drivers in GP2, his poor performance in 2009 was largely down to the big shunt he had at Monaco. Senna hasn't been atrocious, but he has been generally underwhelming. If Liuzzi hadn't gone kamikaze in Monza, I doubt he'd have any points. He's been consistently outperformed by Petrov - even taking into account his lack of experience. Petrov finished in front of him in India despite a penalty and having been stuck behind Perez the whole race. Bad strategy or no, that just does not look good on Senna.

Of course, all that is assuming Renault's finances improve to the point where they can go without Senna's money, which I believe is the main reason why they put him in the car in the first place.

Given that Renault are not exactly flush with cash or sponsors without Bruno, it's possible that he might remain in the car next year (whether he'll stay in the car for the full season is another matter, as I don't rule out the possibility that Boullier might switch Bruno for Grosjean given his connections with Boullier). Either way, Renault have been very cautious about Kubica's chances of returning (I believe that Kubica is due to have further surgery on his right wrist), so it's quite likely that either Grosjean or Senna will remain in place for 2012 (Renault have hinted that Kubica might be given time in the car later in the season).

As for the Rosberg to Ferrari rumours, as I've said before that is likely to depend on how eager Ferrari are to buy Massa out of his contract and whether or not Mercedes choose to take up any existing contract options they have on Rosberg. It could well be that Rosberg is negotiating with Ferrari over a 2012 contract, given that Massa's contract expires in 2012, and Rosberg could conceivably sign a one year deal for Mercedes along the lines of Webber's contract with Red Bull.

And on a side note:

Captain Hammer wrote:[...] If Massa were to leave Ferrari and Rosberg replaced him, that would create an opening at Mercedes. And that will be very difficult to predict. Paul di Resta is the obvious choice, for the seat, and if he goes, that creates a vacancy at Force India. Adrian Sutil might stay there, but that won't sit well with Hulkenberg, who turned down a drive at Virgin because he was concerned that being beaten by a fellow German would damage his career.

Just out of curiosity, do you happen to have a source for the rumour that Hulkenberg refused that seat because he feared being beaten by Glock would damage his career? I think that Hulkenberg might be more worried about driving for MVR because the team as a whole would have damaged his career - Glock went from being in the running for a seat at Renault back in 2009 to vanishing off the radar a year later, and when did you last hear any of the midfield teams interested in him back in 2009 talking about him now?

Aerospeed · Post by **Aerospeed** » 05 Nov 2011, 14:18

As much as I'd like another Canadian being in Formula One (finally), if Wickens goes to Virgin I fear that's gonna be the end of his career. Anyone remember Lucas di Grassi? Wickens had better get a better seat... (No HRT does not count... leave those seats for Pay-drivers

)

Post by **DemocalypseNow** » 05 Nov 2011, 20:53

Saw this ad in the recruitment section of the newspaper today...

FullMetalJack · Post by **FullMetalJack** » 05 Nov 2011, 21:43

kostas22 wrote:Saw this ad in the recruitment section of the newspaper today...

AdrianSutil · Post by **AdrianSutil** » 05 Nov 2011, 22:07

kostas22 wrote:Saw this ad in the recruitment section of the newspaper today...

The Virgin 2nd seat explained in one picture...

Cynon · Post by **Cynon** » 05 Nov 2011, 22:56

kostas22 wrote:Saw this ad in the recruitment section of the newspaper today...

You win the thread.

Captain Hammer · Post by **Captain Hammer** » 06 Nov 2011, 01:31

mario wrote:Just out of curiosity, do you happen to have a source for the rumour that Hulkenberg refused that seat because he feared being beaten by Glock would damage his career?

Not a rumour - it was an actual thing. I don't have a link on me because it was about a year ago, but Willi Weber (who was managing Hulkenberg at the time) said that Hulkenberg decided to play it safe. Virgin approached them, but Hulkenberg felt that he was at a critical point in his career. They were concerned that if Glock bested him, Hulkenberg would be condemened to the back of the grid for years.

Hulkenberg's problem is that there is already a fast, young German superstar in the sport - Sebastian Vettel. It's hard for him to find a niche of his own in the public consciousness because Vettel has already got it covered. My theory is that Weber wanted Hulkenberg to be Michael Schumacher's "apprentice". He was trying to get into a Mercedes seat alongside Schumacher, or at least have Schumacher as a tutor out of the car if he retired before Hulkenberg could get there. And when Schumacher finally did retire, Nico Hulkenberg would replace him in the public view. Schumacher was very popular when he was at the height of his powers; when he retired and there was no immediately-obvious German replacement, crowd figures at Hockenheim started to decline. The intention appears to have been to create a place for Hulkenberg in the sport by having him "learn" from Schumacher and ultimately take over from him. There are two problems with this - for one, Paul di Resta appears to be in the box seat for the Mercedes drive; and two, nobody seems to know what Schumacher thinks in all of this. It's all well and good to set Hulkenberg up as Schumacher's successor, but what if Schumacher does not want to be used that way, or does not think much of Hulkenberg?

AndreaModa · Post by **AndreaModa** » 06 Nov 2011, 11:24

kostas22 wrote:Saw this ad in the recruitment section of the newspaper today...

New avatar time! :lol:

FullMetalJack · Post by **FullMetalJack** » 06 Nov 2011, 12:15

Is that job still available, although i've got no money or driver's license.