2014 Silly Season Thread

[James1978]

Got completely mixed feelings re Maldonado to Lotus.

On one hand I think he's driven and acted a complete tool this year and it's a tragedy that other drivers who are infinitely more suitable for the seat have been overlooked (mainly Hulkenberg, but also the likes of Checo, Kobayashi, even the Glass Of Milk for heavens sake).

However this has the potential for complete chaos towards the front end of the field which has the potential to be really entertaining (and give us some classic reject moments next year) which has been sadly lacking this year which has been rather dull. So in that sense I say bring it on!

[good_Ralf]

On the back of his last few races this season, Maldonado doesn't deserve to stay in F1, let alone at a team like Lotus. Pastor has to put GPs such as Austin behind him and he needs to show a brilliant turn of speed and consistency, which could well happen. But I have a hunch that Lotus, being in such financial trouble may produce an appalling 2014 car anyway, which will be as execrable as the 2009 car, the R29.

[Pointrox]

I, for one, hope McDonaldo will show what he's really made of.

No, I really do.

[S951]

sorry to go OT guys and girls saw this and thought of you all

Romain Grosjean "My Team mate is WHO?"

[Cynon]

I was overjoyed at the news Maldolan finally sealed the deal at Lotus.



grsjn pls

[Alextrax52]

I was overjoyed at the news Maldolan finally sealed the deal at Lotus.



grsjn pls

To be honest I think Donald Duck could do better

[Aerospeed]

Sky Sports article confirming Maldonado's switch to Lotus.

To be honest, had this come about a month ago, I'd have been rather disappointed. Instead, I'm more looking forward to/hoping for a Hulkenberg/Perez lineup at Force India.

Hulkenberg's better off at Force India. Lotus seems to be lacking money having hired Maldonado...

With Perez likely to go to Force India, where does Sutil and Di Resta go?

[Londoner]

Sky Sports article confirming Maldonado's switch to Lotus.

To be honest, had this come about a month ago, I'd have been rather disappointed. Instead, I'm more looking forward to/hoping for a Hulkenberg/Perez lineup at Force India.

Hulkenberg's better off at Force India. Lotus seems to be lacking money having hired Maldonado...

With Perez likely to go to Force India, where does Sutil and Di Resta go?

Di Resta is likely to go over the pond to IndyCar, perhaps to replace Franchitti at Ganassi.

Sutil on the other hand, is rumoured to be joining Sauber. Bleh.

[Aerospeed]

Well, with the drivers all locked up, which engine supplier will Lotus go with for 2014? Renault isn't an option, given that Renault said that they were going to supply 3 teams in 2014. We already have Red Bull, Toro Rosso and Caterham being supplied by Renault. Ferrari makes the most since out of them and Mercedes, Ferrari supplies to three (Ferrari, Sauber and Marussia) and Mercedes supplies four (Mercedes, McLaren, Williams and Force India). I wouldn't be too surprised if they signed for Mercedes either, given that McLaren is moving to Honda in 2015, and Merc will probably want to find a replacement for them.

[Sublime_FA11C]

I've been concerned about Lotus' next year chances. There is a very real chance that this years challenger will be replaced by a midfield machine. In a way Lotus really punched above their weight this year and several other teams really struggled. If McLaren wasnt a dog, if Ferrari was just a little more competitive and a bit less of a handfull to drive, if Merc didn't chew it's tyres and if Williams hadn't gone down the coanda exhaust route, where exactly would Lotus be?

Yes that's a lot of "ifs" and we can probably dismiss Williams, but even with the Iceman's ability and RoGro's improvement i don't think Lotus would have contested as many podiums as they did. Given that the team is financially insecure and lacks technical personnel to sustain development pace, it doesn't look too good for them next season. If the car is a hit right out of the box they might do well for a while and then who knows, but if the car dissapoints? Maybe their 2013 season can be compared to Perez' 2012, where good results came from unrealistic oportunites.

Perez/Bulk at Force India - Love it! Both drivers will be very motivated and will likely push each other. FI tends to deliver a car that has it's basics rights even if it's not spectacularly good, so both the team and it's drivers will have an opportunity for some giant killing. The more the merrier. Force India managed to be quite a threat early 2013 so let's hope for more of that.

Maldonado at Lotus - A thought occured to me. If Maldonado has blinding speed but lacks consistency and has a passion for calamity, wouldn't Eric Boullier's Lotus team be the right enviroment for him? After all they managed to "dial" Grosjean into the right performance zone. His racecraft was much improved and after the 1st half of the season his natural speed came back for the 2nd half. So much so that RoGro was the unlikely man chasing Vettel and vying for wins. He had a lot less to lose since he was out of the championship completely, but it was still a remarkable season for him.

Could there be a glimmer of hope for Maldonado as well? 2013 Williams was the sort of car that would highlight his mistakes and rarely reward him for pushing hard. Bottas, for example was moslty nowhere and was called out as the most dissapointing rookie of the year. There was qualifying in Canada, but until Austin happened, Bottas was theoretically the worst rookie, or at least the most underperforming one. In Austin he showed it wasn't him, it was the car. Few people doubt Bottas now and most wish him a decent car for next year. So was Maldonado's talent and place in F1 brought into question by that same car?

With a car he can actually drive, and an enviroment that could help him improve his skills, curb his enthusiasm enough to make him much safer but keep his speed, could this guy be a surprise of 2014? I think a lot of us are ready to write him off and label him maybe not a pay-driver, but certainly a fortunate son. Whatever the case may be, his performances at Lotus next year will define his career and pass final judgement on his place in F1. And it could be a higher place than many of us think.

If Lotus next year would be as competitive as this years, then i would say it's a shame for Hulk. But i belive the car will be bad and am glad Hulkenberg's career wont sink with it. And it's just about the perfect team for Maldonado and his career, so .... have things kinda worked themselves out in the end?

[Collieafc]

A classic case of money taking precidence over talent. I know pay drivers is in F1 is nothing new and can offer a good laugh (this place wouldnt be so vibrant if pay drivers never existed) but what worries\annoys me is how its enabled a bumbling brat with a wealthy backer to nab a (probably) close to front seat at the expense of more deserving drivers, none of whom accuse their team of sabotaging their chances.

What makes it worse that at times Pastor does seem to display genuine talent, but being able to throw a strop like he did, then get arguably one of the best open seats available this silly season doesnt exactly set a good example to the world.

[RonDenisDeletraz]

Lotus must need the cash, because there is no way he would be selected on talent and attitude. Nobody can say that he is a better driver than Hulkenberg.

[dr-baker]

sorry to go OT guys and girls saw this and thought of you all

Romain Grosjean "My Team mate is WHO?"

OT to me means Occupational Therapy which makes no sense in this context. In the same way IRL to me means Indy Racing League, not In Real Life...And Doctor Who is Grosjean's teammate? Who knew!

But seriously, being a fan of Williams, I will always have a bit of residual support for any driver who raced for them, and particularly won a race for them, so I hope he does well.

[Jocke1]

[rachel1990]

that image will haunt my dreams now.

STILL ANGRY WITH LOTUS

[pi314159]

that image will haunt my dreams now.

STILL ANGRY WITH LOTUS

The financal situatiuon at Lotus seems to be quite desperate. Really, they've said that several times, that Hülkenberg was their first choice. So I think they simply need the money. The only thing you could blame them for is that it took them half a year to realise that the Quantum Motorsports investor wasn't legit.

[Salamander]

that image will haunt my dreams now.

STILL ANGRY WITH LOTUS

Yes, I know, how dare they not have enough money to afford Hulkenberg.

[Jocke1]

that image will haunt my dreams now.

[Alextrax52]

that image will haunt my dreams now.

Give Pastor a chance. We can not see into the Future. Who knows he might excel

[Nuppiz]

that image will haunt my dreams now.

I turned it into an avatar, just in case someone wants to scare people off.

[Aerospeed]

No thanks, I'll keep my sanity any day!!

[Backmarker]

I turned it into an avatar, just in case someone wants to scare people off.

Prepare your diffuser.

The sad thing is that Lotus have been working on the 2014 car since 2011(if Alan Permane is to be believed) so the chassis has the potential to be quite good, and wasted on Pastor Maldonado. Oh well, time for him to show what he is capable of, should he have a decent chassis.

[kevinbotz]

Quantum purportedly not reincarnation of Qadbak.

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/111668

[pasta_maldonado]

To be honest I think that anyone complaining about Maldonado to Lotus is a bit over the top, and making themselves look a bit silly really. This is a great opportunity for Maldonado to prove that he should be regarded as more than simply a pay driver. Yes, he brings a shite ton of cash, but then again, Lotus aren't exactly in a wonderful financial state, as we know. They need the money. I'd rather they hire Pastor then go for Hulk and go bankrupt. And to be honest, it's not as if Maldonado is of Deletraz levels of talent, if he can sort his attitude out, he has the pace, as he proved in Spain 2012.

So to those who have been belittling Lotus like they've ruined the sport, they haven't, so stop.

[roblo97]

that image will haunt my dreams now.

I turned it into an avatar, just in case someone wants to scare people off.

May I use it for avatar challenges if I win?

[mario]

To be honest I think that anyone complaining about Maldonado to Lotus is a bit over the top, and making themselves look a bit silly really. This is a great opportunity for Maldonado to prove that he should be regarded as more than simply a pay driver. Yes, he brings a shite ton of cash, but then again, Lotus aren't exactly in a wonderful financial state, as we know. They need the money. I'd rather they hire Pastor then go for Hulk and go bankrupt. And to be honest, it's not as if Maldonado is of Deletraz levels of talent, if he can sort his attitude out, he has the pace, as he proved in Spain 2012.

So to those who have been belittling Lotus like they've ruined the sport, they haven't, so stop.

I guess for those who work for the team, having cash coming in to keep the team afloat is certainly preferable to the prospect of going bankrupt and having no job. Mind you, it does raise some questions about the way in which Genii have been managing the team - whilst it is true that Renault passed on some debts to Genii when they sold the company to them, Lotus have been overspending since 2010 and the losses have been accelerating, rather than diminishing, ever since they took over.

As for Maldonado, it does seem to be the case that Lotus are gambling that, if they were able to change Grosjean from a quick but accident prone driver into one who was able to string together such a strong run of points in the final part of the season, that it should be possible to repeat that trick again with Maldonado. Mind you, there was one key difference between Grosjean and Maldonado - I believe the former was more willing to accept the need to change his attitude than Maldonado is, especially due to changes in his personal life.
Whilst financial support from Total has helped Grosjean to some extent, Boullier did indicate that Grosjean would be out of a seat if he didn't improve his performances, making it imperative for him to reform himself and to improve his performances. My concern is that Maldonado seems to be developing an attitude of entitlement as a result of his financial backing and therefore won't believe that he needs to change - rather, he seems to be taking the attitude that the teams have to accept him as he is instead.

[Yannick]

The Reverend was in a race-winning car in his F1 career just once, and he took this chance to win his only GP victory thus far. Driving for GenII Capital Partners F1 Team, which historically has been a regular in the Top 4 of the Constructors Championship, he will have this chance more often. Here's looking forward to seeing him win again (disregarding whether I like the guy as a person or not). The teammate comparison with the Man Without Vowels will be interesting. To be honest, at this point, I must say I rate the Reverend more highly as a driver.

The most interesting aspect of this is the fact the Reverend has signed for a new team does effectively rule him out from still being a suspect in the Venezolan Sports Money Laundering Affair, the one for which a term with the suffix -gate is still pending, the one which other popular motor racing names such as former Midland MF-1 test driver Ernesto J. Viso, the world's first female "Gentleman Driver" Milka Duno, and sportscar team principal Enrico Portolicchio have also been suspected of.
So who done it?

[Yannick]

... but also the likes of Checo, Kobayashi, even the Glass Of Milk for heavens sake ...

Please excuse this noob-esque question from a former forum regular: which driver now gets referred to as the Glass Of Milk?
I know who the Loaf Of Bread might be but the Glass Of Milk? It sure cannot be Custard, can it?

[roblo97]

... but also the likes of Checo, Kobayashi, even the Glass Of Milk for heavens sake ...

Please excuse this noob-esque question from a former forum regular: which driver now gets referred to as the Glass Of Milk?
I know who the Loaf Of Bread might be but the Glass Of Milk? It sure cannot be Custard, can it?

Paul Di Resta.

[tommykl]

... but also the likes of Checo, Kobayashi, even the Glass Of Milk for heavens sake ...

Please excuse this noob-esque question from a former forum regular: which driver now gets referred to as the Glass Of Milk?
I know who the Loaf Of Bread might be but the Glass Of Milk? It sure cannot be Custard, can it?

Paul Di Resta.

To which I add that it came from (I believe it was) Pasta's avatar, which contained a photo of a glass of milk with the caption: "More charisma than Paul di Resta".

[roblo97]

Please excuse this noob-esque question from a former forum regular: which driver now gets referred to as the Glass Of Milk?
I know who the Loaf Of Bread might be but the Glass Of Milk? It sure cannot be Custard, can it?

Paul Di Resta.

To which I add that it came from (I believe it was) Pasta's avatar, which contained a photo of a glass of milk with the caption: "More charisma than Paul di Resta".

I remember when me and FMecha both had that as avatar at the same time

[mario]

The Reverend was in a race-winning car in his F1 career just once, and he took this chance to win his only GP victory thus far. Driving for GenII Capital Partners F1 Team, which historically has been a regular in the Top 4 of the Constructors Championship, he will have this chance more often. Here's looking forward to seeing him win again (disregarding whether I like the guy as a person or not). The teammate comparison with the Man Without Vowels will be interesting. To be honest, at this point, I must say I rate the Reverend more highly as a driver.

The most interesting aspect of this is the fact the Reverend has signed for a new team does effectively rule him out from still being a suspect in the Venezolan Sports Money Laundering Affair, the one for which a term with the suffix -gate is still pending, the one which other popular motor racing names such as former Midland MF-1 test driver Ernesto J. Viso, the world's first female "Gentleman Driver" Milka Duno, and sportscar team principal Enrico Portolicchio have also been suspected of.
So who done it?

I might be mistaken, but the suspicion was that it was a driver competing in the US, in part because the indication was that the issue related to purchasing US dollars through official channels and then selling those dollars on the black market to illegal currency traders. Maldonado, whose support comes from PDVSA rather than directly from the Venezuelan government, is probably less likely to have been directly involved in currency trading and was probably ruled out fairly quickly from the investigation.

There does not seem to have been any official confirmation of who might have been involved in this scandal though, even allowing for the direct impact it has had on the careers of some drivers (E J Viso being sidelined at Andretti Motorsport, for example). Just out of curiosity, what has happened to E J Viso since he was sidelined?

[aliefbielefeld]

well, Money talks, i mean hulkenberg really does deserve a top team seat and Maldonado just robbed him. Seriously, I hate that guy with his whining about Williams trying to "sabotage" him, What a ridicoulous opinion. But i do hope with Maldonado joining Lotus which is one of the top teams nowadays, he can deliver what he do best and that is
CRASHING
seriously, we need more first-lap carnage

[Cynon]

Before you continue to hate on Maldolan, just think for a minute; only one of Lotus's 2014 drivers has won a race so far.

[good_Ralf]

Before you continue to hate on Maldolan, just think for a minute; only one of Lotus's 2014 drivers has won a race so far.

Grosjean deserved to win in Japan in my view and he lost out in Canada and Valencia last year.

[WaffleCat]

Before you continue to hate on Maldolan, just think for a minute; only one of Lotus's 2014 drivers has won a race so far.

I knew it! Of course Lotus would sign a race winner than a person that hasn't stepped onto the podium before! Excellent choice!

Also,Maldonaldo to Lotus and Hulk to FI is a win-win. Lotus get their money to build the car to hopefully make Grosjean competitive like this year while Maldonaldo fumbly-bumblys near the back,scoring the occasional point,while Hulk teams with Perez,drivers with undoubted skill at a team where they have proven that they can build good cars,like early this year with Sutil. A win-win situation is all there is over here.

[TomWazzleshaw]

Paul Di Resta.

To which I add that it came from (I believe it was) Pasta's avatar, which contained a photo of a glass of milk with the caption: "More charisma than Paul di Resta".

I remember when me and FMecha both had that as avatar at the same time

Imma let you finish, but DanielPT and myself had the best twin-avatars of all time. Of all time!

[dr-baker]

Imma let you finish, but DanielPT and myself had the best twin-avatars of all time. Of all time!

That was the Heil Schumacher avatar, wasn't it?

[SgtPepper]

Before you continue to hate on Maldolan, just think for a minute; only one of Lotus's 2014 drivers has won a race so far.

To even mix with the Red Bulls this year was an absolutely incredible feat, when you consider the raw speed of that car, particularly post tyre-gate. I don't consider Maldolan 'terrible,' he clearly has some latent speed somewhere underneath that vile attitude, but I personally consider one fluke win a poor measure of driver worthiness. The best drive of 2013 was Hulk in Korea, and he didnt even get on the podium, but then again I don't measure talent in mere statistics.

Oh, and I envy wizzies jeep avatar! Easily the best moment of the season.

[girry]

What convinced me 2012 of Maldonado's undeniable talent were not the one win in Barcelona you, perhaps, could write off as fluke - but those many epic qualifying efforts on especially the start-stop style tracks, where he basically made Bruno Senna look simply bad and ripped his career apart.

(Bruno Senna is not that bad, btw.)

[cptn obvious]Maldonado, though, certainly has problems performing as his talent allows whenever something is wrong.[/cptn obvious]