2015 Australian GP Discussion Thread

Waris · Post by **Waris** » 03 Mar 2015, 20:19

Now I wonder - when was the last time a temporary driver replacement happened before the first race of the season? (from memory, I think it was Steve South for Alain Prost in 1980, but I'm not sure if that was the first race?)

Post by **Bobby Doorknobs** » 03 Mar 2015, 20:23

Waris wrote:Now I wonder - when was the last time a temporary driver replacement happened before the first race of the season? (from memory, I think it was Steve South for Alain Prost in 1980, but I'm not sure if that was the first race?)

Mark Blundell replaced Mansell for the opening races of 1995 because Nige was too tall for the car, and South replaced Prost for round 4, in Long Beach

Post by **Miguel98** » 03 Mar 2015, 20:47

Too tall for the car? Wasn't it too fat for the car?

Post by **Bobby Doorknobs** » 03 Mar 2015, 20:49

Miguel98 wrote:Too tall for the car? Wasn't it too fat for the car?

We'll leave it as "the car was too small for him".

VirtuaMcPolygon · Post by **VirtuaMcPolygon** » 03 Mar 2015, 23:04

rachel1990 wrote:So Can Kevin Match last year's exploits in possibly his only race of the year... no.

I wonder if Honda and mclaren will do what lotus did last year and use the race as a test to get some much needed mileage out of the car. I don't think either car will finish but like Force India it will be good for testing!

Probably. All depends how slow they run thou. It's apparent they haven't been able to run the engine at full wick. I found it amusing Sky were saying on one of the notebooks that the McLaren looked really good in the corners breaking later. Or was it the autosport blog? But they were running way slower so you would expect them to be braking later??? They were notably the slowest over the entire test on the main straight speed trap. :-/

I digress. If they spend the race running around being a mobile chicane they will be black flagged surely?

VirtuaMcPolygon · Post by **VirtuaMcPolygon** » 03 Mar 2015, 23:17

Actually it's not as horrific as i thought it was.

Bottas - 288.0km/h
Nasr - 287.2km/h
Maldonado - 285.7km/h
Rosberg - 282.7km/h
Verstappen - 281.9km/h
Kvyat - 279.7km/h
Hulkenberg - 279.0km/h
Vettel - 278.3km/h
Button - 274.8km/h

Post by **Bobby Doorknobs** » 03 Mar 2015, 23:44

VirtuaMcPolygon wrote:
rachel1990 wrote:So Can Kevin Match last year's exploits in possibly his only race of the year... no.

I wonder if Honda and mclaren will do what lotus did last year and use the race as a test to get some much needed mileage out of the car. I don't think either car will finish but like Force India it will be good for testing!

Probably. All depends how slow they run thou. It's apparent they haven't been able to run the engine at full wick. I found it amusing Sky were saying on one of the notebooks that the McLaren looked really good in the corners breaking later. Or was it the autosport blog? But they were running way slower so you would expect them to be braking later???

I digress. If they spend the race running around being a mobile chicane they will be black flagged surely?

No, they will more likely be blue-flagged.

That's assuming the car is really slow, which it doesn't appear to be.

Post by **DemocalypseNow** » 04 Mar 2015, 01:53

Let's face it - if the McLaren really is horridly slow, they'd rather cover it up as a very early mechanical DNF than plodding around at the back at the same pace as Manor. They could then at least put it down to the "teething troubles of a new car and engine" rather than being horrendously slow on top of being unreliable.

But I don't see that happening - McLaren have the resources to churn out at the very least a midfield chassis every single year without fail - I imagine they can run a decent enough pace if they turn all the settings up to max, just not for a particularly long duration!

AxelP800 · Post by **AxelP800** » 04 Mar 2015, 05:41

Last year RedBull looks very bad in test and ended up in what-should-have-be a podium. So I'm still hoping McLaren could actually win the race..... Thanks to Kevin Magnussen!

Yannick · Post by **Yannick** » 04 Mar 2015, 16:46

It is very likely that the Manor is going to be very reliable because it's basically last year's car. And with neither McLaren nor Force 1ndia fully there yet, Manor might surprise positively in a race of attrition. Nobody knows really how good the new cars of the other cash-strapped teams are, either. I doubt they would be slower than last year's Manor with the current aero regulations but they might not be as reliable.

Manor's return makes the F1 season opener that much more interesting. Yet, I will not get up that early on Sunday morning because whenever I tried, somebody won who I did not root for. Hence, statistics say that getting up early for a flyaway race is just not worth it.

Salamander · Post by **Salamander** » 05 Mar 2015, 09:08

So, Giedo van der Garde apparently thinks that the authorities can just give him an F1 seat now. Because that seems like a totally reasonable thing that can happen and is enforceable.

Post by **tommykl** » 05 Mar 2015, 12:40

Salamander wrote:So, Giedo van der Garde apparently thinks that the authorities can just give him an F1 seat now. Because that seems like a totally reasonable thing that can happen and is enforceable.

Doesn't he do this every year?

watka · Post by **watka** » 05 Mar 2015, 13:45

tommykl wrote:
Salamander wrote:So, Giedo van der Garde apparently thinks that the authorities can just give him an F1 seat now. Because that seems like a totally reasonable thing that can happen and is enforceable.

Doesn't he do this every year?

F1 contracts aren't worth the paper they are written on. The teams can pretty much dump any driver whenever they want, not least a test driver.

shinji wrote:With regards to Alonso, I'm glad they're taking every care with his injury. Given the atrocious approach to concussion in my other sporting love, rugby, it's good to see a sport not taking any unnecessary risks. Already one driver too many with a brain injury, no point risking a second concussion to Alonso which is when you get trouble.

I'd agree with this, especially in light of so many other recent head injuries not just in Formula 1 but also in other sports. It's admirable that Alonso and McLaren are being so careful about it.

Shizuka · Post by **Shizuka** » 05 Mar 2015, 14:35

According to Spanish newspaper El País, Alonso thought he was in 1995 after his accident... I can't believe a word of that. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/motors ... crash.html

Backmarker · Post by **Backmarker** » 05 Mar 2015, 14:42

Shizuka wrote:According to Spanish newspaper El País, Alonso thought he was in 1995 after his accident... I can't believe a word of that. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/motors ... crash.html

It's just asking for a Life on Mars/Ashes to Ashes-type series to be made.

"My name is Fernando Alonso. I had an accident and woke up in 1995. Am I mad, in a coma, or back in time? Whatever's happened, it's like I've landed on a different planet. Now, maybe if I can work out the reason, I can get home."

dr-baker · Post by **dr-baker** » 05 Mar 2015, 14:43

Shizuka wrote:According to Spanish newspaper El País, Alonso thought he was in 1995 after his accident... I can't believe a word of that. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/motors ... crash.html

I do not know how reliable a source El Pais is, but sadly, I do actually find the story believable. This would also explain why the doctors are being particularly cautious about allowing Fernando back behind the wheel.

Waris · Post by **Waris** » 05 Mar 2015, 17:20

I guess Alonso must be an F1 Rejects fan then, since 1995 seems to be where we are (were) stuck.

Ahhhh, dat nostalgia.

Post by **mario** » 05 Mar 2015, 18:17

watka wrote:
tommykl wrote:
Salamander wrote:So, Giedo van der Garde apparently thinks that the authorities can just give him an F1 seat now. Because that seems like a totally reasonable thing that can happen and is enforceable.

Doesn't he do this every year?

F1 contracts aren't worth the paper they are written on. The teams can pretty much dump any driver whenever they want, not least a test driver.

Nick Heidfeld certainly would know a thing or two about that, given that he tried the exact same procedure that van der Garde is trying now, before settling out of court.

It is also worth asking whether it really is worthwhile for van der Garde anyway - launching legal action against the team is going to leave them resenting you, so even if he did succeed in making the team enforce their side of the contract and to give him a seat, I would expect the team to then look for every single legal avenue possible to drive him out of the team again (either by exploiting any clause in the contract they can find, or by simply making it so uncomfortable for him within the team that he chooses to leave of his own accord).

dr-baker wrote:
Shizuka wrote:According to Spanish newspaper El País, Alonso thought he was in 1995 after his accident... I can't believe a word of that. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/motors ... crash.html

I do not know how reliable a source El Pais is, but sadly, I do actually find the story believable. This would also explain why the doctors are being particularly cautious about allowing Fernando back behind the wheel.

Whilst I am inclined to have some doubts over the veracity of the story, I do think that it is credible to believe that Alonso would have suffered from at least some disorientation after the accident that would have made the medical teams more cautious about potential secondary concussion incidents.

For what it is worth, Hartstein has chipped in by saying that Alonso's stays in hospital and withdrawing from the Australian GP, whilst tending towards the upper end of the spectrum, are still within the sort of period for which you would expect an individual who had been concussed to be treated for. Given that there has been increased pressure on the sporting world as a whole to treat concussion injuries more seriously, plus the fact that Alonso would be aware of the impact that Perez's concussion incident had on his performance, I can see why Alonso would be prepared to take a cautious approach - which is quite understandable in the circumstances.

Yannick · Post by **Yannick** » 05 Mar 2015, 22:09

Fernando's answers to the questions he was asked due to medical protocol when he awoke in hospital after the accident do not belong in the press.

At least not without explaining the medical condition of concussion and what causes the weird answer in detail. The above linked article did not even try that.

I can only shudder at this sensationalism in the place of journalism.

CoopsII · Post by **CoopsII** » 06 Mar 2015, 08:09

Backmarker wrote:
Shizuka wrote:According to Spanish newspaper El País, Alonso thought he was in 1995 after his accident... I can't believe a word of that. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/motors ... crash.html

It's just asking for a Life on Mars/Ashes to Ashes-type series to be made.

"My name is Fernando Alonso. I had an accident and woke up in 1995. Am I mad, in a coma, or back in time? Whatever's happened, it's like I've landed on a different planet. Now, maybe if I can work out the reason, I can get home."

What made it worse was Ron Dennis marching up to him twatting him and saying "A word in your shell-like, pal!"

DanielPT · Post by **DanielPT** » 06 Mar 2015, 10:23

CoopsII wrote:
Backmarker wrote:
It's just asking for a Life on Mars/Ashes to Ashes-type series to be made.

"My name is Fernando Alonso. I had an accident and woke up in 1995. Am I mad, in a coma, or back in time? Whatever's happened, it's like I've landed on a different planet. Now, maybe if I can work out the reason, I can get home."

What made it worse was Ron Dennis marching up to him twatting him and saying "A word in your shell-like, pal!"

History says that Ron Dennis marching up on someone always makes things worse.

dr-baker · Post by **dr-baker** » 06 Mar 2015, 13:17

DanielPT wrote:
CoopsII wrote:
Backmarker wrote:
It's just asking for a Life on Mars/Ashes to Ashes-type series to be made.

"My name is Fernando Alonso. I had an accident and woke up in 1995. Am I mad, in a coma, or back in time? Whatever's happened, it's like I've landed on a different planet. Now, maybe if I can work out the reason, I can get home."

What made it worse was Ron Dennis marching up to him twatting him and saying "A word in your shell-like, pal!"

History says that Ron Dennis marching up on someone always makes things worse.

I'm now imagining Fernando being sent even further back in time by Ron, to 1885, and joining Doc Brown in the Old West...

Post by **Bobby Doorknobs** » 06 Mar 2015, 17:01

OK, seriously, what?

dr-baker · Post by **dr-baker** » 06 Mar 2015, 18:01

Simtek wrote:OK, seriously, what?

Will Stevens FTW?!?!?!?

Jan Magnussen · Post by **Rob Dylan** » 07 Mar 2015, 10:53

dr-baker wrote:I'm now imagining Fernando being sent even further back in time by Ron, to 1885, and joining Doc Brown in the Old West...

Did you not see that video? Fernando himself built a time machine out of a McLaren

and because this video deserves more views:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xDV2bYj1EkI

dr-baker · Post by **dr-baker** » 07 Mar 2015, 11:44

Rob Dylan wrote:
dr-baker wrote:I'm now imagining Fernando being sent even further back in time by Ron, to 1885, and joining Doc Brown in the Old West...

Did you not see that video? Fernando himself built a time machine out of a McLaren

Proves the point, doesn't it!

Post by **Londoner** » 09 Mar 2015, 13:32

In a more light-hearted state of affairs, there are two new Honda Twitter accounts, HondaPU14 and HondaPU22.

Yes, you're quite right. Honda have set up Twitter accounts for their power units. This cannot possibly go well. :lol:

GwilymJJames · Post by **GwilymJJames** » 09 Mar 2015, 14:30

Verdict in Sauber v Van Der Garde will be announced 10am Wednesday Oz Time - that'd be 11pm Tuesday in The Queen's Right And Proper Time Zone.

Sauber's main arguments are that it'd take two weeks to get a seat made, that putting GVDG in the car would increase the risk of DEATH!!!! and that he doesn't have a superlicence anyway.

Van der Garde's main argument is "That's complete bollocks and you know it."

I think Van der Garde will win. Certainly I can foresee Sauber having a difficult time getting drivers and sponsors to trust them in future.

DanielPT · Post by **DanielPT** » 09 Mar 2015, 14:48

East Londoner wrote:In a more light-hearted state of affairs, there are two new Honda Twitter accounts, HondaPU14 and HondaPU22.

Yes, you're quite right. Honda have set up Twitter accounts for their power units. This cannot possibly go well.

Honda probably needs for its engines when they are about to break down.

Breaking news! I'm about to brea...

Following by weeks of days of inactivity. Not to mention that those accounts will comment on stories some weeks later after they were news.

The Dutch Bear · Post by **The Dutch Bear** » 09 Mar 2015, 14:53

GwilymJJames wrote:Verdict in Sauber v Van Der Garde will be announced 10am Wednesday Oz Time - that'd be 11pm Tuesday in The Queen's Right And Proper Time Zone.

Sauber's main arguments are that it'd take two weeks to get a seat made, that putting GVDG in the car would increase the risk of DEATH!!!! and that he doesn't have a superlicence anyway.

Van der Garde's main argument is "That's complete bollocks and you know it."

I think Van der Garde will win. Certainly I can foresee Sauber having a difficult time getting drivers and sponsors to trust them in future.

Sauber has made the mistake of having more drivers than cars. Van der Garde already got his way when a Swiss judge declared his contract legal. Since Sauber is a Swiss company their contracts with the employees will be according to Swiss law. This case in Australia is all about enforcing this Swiss judgement. He will either get the seat or more likely with a settlement that will probably cost Sauber millions as van der Garde's sponsorship money will have at least for a part depended on him getting a race seat in 2015. It really depends on what the bigger pain will be to Sauber as what the outcome will be.

Klon · Post by **Klon** » 09 Mar 2015, 15:33

Although I do not see what van der Garde is hoping for. If I were a team boss and had a driver I do not want to drive my cars forced on me, I would send the mechanics home/on an extended holiday in the Australian countryside and just tell the driver that he has to build his car himself and take care of everything, because we ain't doing crap for you, son.

Post by **mario** » 09 Mar 2015, 18:36

The Dutch Bear wrote:
GwilymJJames wrote:Verdict in Sauber v Van Der Garde will be announced 10am Wednesday Oz Time - that'd be 11pm Tuesday in The Queen's Right And Proper Time Zone.

Sauber's main arguments are that it'd take two weeks to get a seat made, that putting GVDG in the car would increase the risk of DEATH!!!! and that he doesn't have a superlicence anyway.

Van der Garde's main argument is "That's complete bollocks and you know it."

I think Van der Garde will win. Certainly I can foresee Sauber having a difficult time getting drivers and sponsors to trust them in future.

Sauber has made the mistake of having more drivers than cars. Van der Garde already got his way when a Swiss judge declared his contract legal. Since Sauber is a Swiss company their contracts with the employees will be according to Swiss law. This case in Australia is all about enforcing this Swiss judgement. He will either get the seat or more likely with a settlement that will probably cost Sauber millions as van der Garde's sponsorship money will have at least for a part depended on him getting a race seat in 2015. It really depends on what the bigger pain will be to Sauber as what the outcome will be.

Both outcomes are pretty painful for Sauber.

If they have to reinstate van der Garde, then one of their current drivers is out. If they lose Nasr - which is possible given that his contract, being the last to be signed, would probably be the first to be ruled invalid - then they also lose the Banco do Brasil sponsorship, which is effectively keeping the team alive. Of course, you can wager that neither Nasr nor Ericsson would take being forced out lightly, so you could have a very messy - and financially crippling - legal situation between all of the drivers and Sauber.

Furthermore, that could also set a precedent for Sutil - he is also suing Sauber for breach of contract on the same grounds, so you can bet that he would be using van der Garde's case as a precedent for his case too.

If it were just monetary compensation, that is still very troublesome for Sauber - there are already reports that Sauber has major cash flow issues and a prospective budget shortfall for this season. If Sauber have to pay compensation to the sponsors, plus the associated legal costs, that is going to have a pretty ruinous effect on their already fragile finances, to the point where this case could end up sinking the team.

All in all, either way Sauber appear to be in a lose-lose situation...

AndreaModa · Post by **AndreaModa** » 09 Mar 2015, 18:45

They've really ballsed it up big time haven't they? How desperate were they to render both Sutil's and VDG's contracts null and void (at least so they thought) to take Nasr's and Ericsson's money? I get that Adrian wouldn't have brought much to the table, but VDGs McGregor money was pretty substantial I believe.

To be honest, its piss poor team management from Sauber to find themselves in the situation they're now in. They only have themselves to blame. And I'm sorry to say this but key strategic errors have been made across the board since Peter Sauber stepped back. There was a team that was scoring podiums a few seasons ago, with decent drivers on its books. Now they'll do well to even see out the season - GJJ is right - what sponsor in their right mind would trust millions of dollars to an F1 team notorious for not keeping its promises? It's ludicrous.

Waris · Post by **Waris** » 10 Mar 2015, 03:35

East Londoner wrote:In a more light-hearted state of affairs, there are two new Honda Twitter accounts, HondaPU14 and HondaPU22.

Yes, you're quite right. Honda have set up Twitter accounts for their power units. This cannot possibly go well.

Ahh, I missed the Japanese.
Now, it would be really impressive if they could get those engines to tweet all by themselves, from the car, during the race.

AdrianBelmonte_ · Post by **AdrianBelmonte_** » 10 Mar 2015, 04:24

Waris wrote:
East Londoner wrote:In a more light-hearted state of affairs, there are two new Honda Twitter accounts, HondaPU14 and HondaPU22.

Yes, you're quite right. Honda have set up Twitter accounts for their power units. This cannot possibly go well.

Ahh, I missed the Japanese.
Now, it would be really impressive if they could get those engines to tweet all by themselves, from the car, during the race.

Tweet from PU14/PU22 after the expected DNF "I started to feel bad so i stopped, now i'm on the bathroom"

novitopoli · Post by **novitopoli** » 11 Mar 2015, 01:34

After this I could quite frankly say I've now seen just about everything on Twitter.

Still can't understand how the van der Garde situation will be sorted out...

AustralianStig · Post by **AustralianStig** » 11 Mar 2015, 01:49

Aaand Sauber are appealing:

https://twitter.com/adamcooperF1/status ... 8451618817

Post by **DemocalypseNow** » 11 Mar 2015, 02:05

AustralianStig wrote:Aaand Sauber are appealing:

https://twitter.com/adamcooperF1/status ... 8451618817

Unsurprising. Trying to drag the issue through the courts long enough that by the time the court ultimately throws out their ridiculous appeal, qualifying has come and gone, leaving van der Garde unable to take up his contractually rightful place in the team.

Given it took an entire week between GvdG lodging his appeal and it being judged successful, perhaps this time-wasting tactic from Sauber might just work for them...

Waris · Post by **Waris** » 11 Mar 2015, 02:21

Now I really wish Enoch were around, so he could give an educated opinion on this mess.

sswishbone · Post by **sswishbone** » 11 Mar 2015, 06:39

The judgement applies to the whole season, now what Sauber may be planning, with this delaying tactic, is to get Nasr in, so he has 'raced' for the team, and then his contract shuffled to the bottom of the deck in the hopes that Nasr does not have the same contract for a full season.

Personally I think 'up the creek with no paddle' applies here. Sauber have lost my support on this one, Forza Manor!