Formula 1 - We recreate reality! 1950 season

simonracer · Post by **simonracer** » 28 Dec 2011, 05:10

Just wondering, would Andre Simon get at least a license for the first race in 1951?

Post by **tommykl** » 28 Dec 2011, 09:42

simonracer wrote:Just wondering, would Andre Simon get at least a license for the first race in 1951?

It took a bit of digging, but I found enough racing pedigree to get him the license. He only started racing in 1948, but he's won multiple sports car races, has been successful last year in F2, has driven Le Mans for the past two years, has competed in various non-championship races and is recommended by Amédée Gordini himself.

Post by **tommykl** » 06 Jan 2012, 15:13

September 2nd 1950, Italian Grand Prix qualifying

Two months after the last race at Reims, Formula 1 is back in Italy, and the championship is very tense with just one race to go. Only the best four results count for the championship, so the tables have changed since then, but not the positions. Indeed, Serafini loses two points, Fangio one and de Graffenried one as well. The top three drivers are now within three points of each other, and the top four within five points. This same top four, consisting of Serafini, Fangio, de Graffenried and Farina are still mathematically capable of winning the championship, and they are equally split between Alfa Romeo and Ferrari.

Entry list
2. Luigi Villoresi (Entrant - Kurtis Kraft America)
4. Joie Chitwood (Entrant - Kurtis Kraft America)
6. Hans Von Stuck (Entrant - Kurtis Kraft America)
8. David Hampshire (Entrant - EXTRAS)
10. Juan Manuel Fangio (Entrant - Alfa Romeo SpA)
12. Giuseppe Farina (Entrant - Alfa Romeo SpA)
14. Maurice Trintignant (Entrant - Alfa Romeo SpA)
16. Paul Pietsch (Entrant - Alfa Romeo SpA)
18. Bill Holland (Entrant - Scuderia Maremmana)
20. Bruno Sterzi (Entrant - Scuderia Maremmana)
22. Francesco Godia (Entrant - Scuderia Maremmana)
24. Franco Comotti (Entrant - Scuderia Platé-Varzi)
26. B. Bira (Entrant - Motorsport Bleu)
28. Louis Rosier (Entrant - Motorsport Bleu)
30. Robert Manzon (Entrant - Alexander Racing Team)
32. Yves Giraud-Cabantous (Entrant - Alexander Racing Team)
34. Consalvo Sanesi (Entrant - Alexander Racing Team)
36. Charles van Acker (Entrant - Ecurie Nationale Belge)
38. Bill Vukovich (Entrant - Ecurie Nationale Belge)
40. Eugène Chaboud (Entrant - Ecurie Nationale Belge)
42. Nello Pagani (Entrant - Privateer)
44. Raymond Sommer (Entrant - Aston Martin)
46. Jean-Louis Rosier (Entrant - Aston Martin)
48. Dorino Serafini (Entrant - Scuderia Ferrari)
50. Toulo de Graffenried (Entrant - Scuderia Ferrari)
52. Peter Whitehead (Entrant - Scuderia Ferrari)
54. Reg Parnell (Entrant - Scuderia Ferrari)
56. Bob Gerard (Entrant - Jaguar Racing)
58. Philippe Etancelin (Entrant - Jaguar Racing)
60. Wilbur Shaw (Entrant - Jaguar Racing)
62. Franco Rol (Entrant - Redman Racing Team)
64. Johnny Claes (Entrant - Claes Racing Developments)
66. Louis Chiron (Entrant - Claes Racing Developments)
68. Troy Ruttman (Entrant - All American Racers)
70. Alberto Ascari (Entrant - Phoenix Racing Organisation)
72. José Froilan Gonzalez (Entrant - Phoenix Racing Organisation)
74. Luigi Fagioli (Entrant - Officine Alfieri Maserati)
76. Piero Taruffi (Entrant - Officine Alfieri Maserati)
78. Felice Bonetto (Entrant - Officine Alfieri Maserati)
80. Johnny Mauro (Entrant - Privateer)
82. David Murray (Entrant - Privateer)
84. Tazio Nuvolari (Entrant - Lancia)

For this race, the last of the season, the organizers have allowed a record 42 entrants to take part. The main 11 are of course the three big Italian manufacturers. Maserati and Ferrari have left their lineups unchanged, Maserati still failing to find a fourth driver after Jimmy Davies disappointing performance and failure to get a license extension. However, Alfa Romeo found themselves in the fourth driver dilemma for the second time, as Myron Fohr's horrendous performance in Switzerland only allowed him one more race, which he did in France. They followed Scuderia Maremmana in hiring a pre-war German ace, Paul Pietsch, whose performance is an unknow, as he hasn't raced since the 1930s. It will be interesting to see how his weekend turns out.

Kurtis Kraft are undoubtedly the disappointment of the season. Their initial promise of results on the sole basis of their stateside success turned horribly wrong, and they are regularly struggling to qualify, let alone finishing races. Their recent experiment of sticking a Ferrari powerplant in the blocky chassis is still in its early phases, but it won't be a threat in the near-future in the hands of experienced Italian Luigi Villoresi, the main cars of Von Stuck and Chitwood still the main cars for the American constructor.

EXTRAS are another case of undelivered promise. They definitely have the potential to come up with some good results, and David Hampshire has proven to be a decent driver, but the ERA is a very unreliable car, and the repair costs are digging into Berkinson's pockets. They'll need good results if they want to survive.

Scuderia Maremmana's season has been decent, considering their car's on-paper performance. A Ferrari-Jaguar hybrid wassupposed to fail, but Biondetti and Holland's consistent driving have put the team as best of the non-pointscorers, with Roger Loyer's surprising drive at Monaco being a season-high. The team's home race should have been a breather, a chance to score their first points, but Clemente Biondetti's horrific shunt at Reims cut their hopes short, and the team have had to find a suitable replacement, which they found in the form of Francesco Godia, the first Spaniard to compete in Formula 1.

Scuderia Platé-Varzi's recent arrival in Formula 1 didn't exactly cause a great shock. What did, though, was Brian Shawe-Taylor's terrible performance on the long straights of Reims. The lack of prize money did not deter team boss Enrico Platé, who simply switched drivers and hired local driver Franco Comotti to drive the Maserati at Monza.

Motorsport Bleu are ususally seen as one of the three best private teams, along with CRD and ART, but since Bira' two podiums, the French team have been pretty anonymous. However, no one suspected their financial problems, which prevented them from developing their Talbot-Lagos, and damage done to one of the cars has forced the team to only enter the two regular drivers at Monza.

Speaking of ART, their recent results at Reims for Cabantous and Sanesi, of whom nothing was expected, are encouraging, and the team are confident that they will score more points at Monza to permanently put them ahead of rivals Motorsport Bleu.

Ecurie Nationale Belge have had a bit of a rollercoaster season. Their constant change of manufacturer early on in the year put them quite far back from the start, and their settlement on the unproven Bugatti-Gordini proved to be a bad choice. Jacques Swaters' decision to put his own Ferraris in the mix paid off handsomely, and he only failed to score a top ten at Spa due to an unfortunate mistake under the rain. He consequently finished 12th at Reims before handing the Ferrari to Charles Van Acker, making his European début despite his Belgian nationality. Chaboud and guest driver Vukovich will soldier on in the Bugatti-Gordinis in order to further the car's development.

Aston Martin and Jaguar are unseparable when talking about this year. Both are British, both expected results from their experienced drivers, Sommer for Aston Martin, who was hired after Johnnie Parsons' failure to adapt to European racing, and Etancelin for Jaguar, who also hired Bob Gerard. Both recently hired proved yet unsafe prospects: Jean-Louis Rosier, 24h of Le Mans winner, who only drove for a couple of laps, and Wilbur Shaw, 3-time winner at Indianapolis who has never raced in Europe. Both run the risk of watching the race from the grandstands every weekend, and that is why both will be eagerly waiting for next season.

Franco Rol burst onto the Formula 1 scene at Spa when he emerged from the pouring rain just outside the points, and staying in the top 10 until the end of the race. rol himself is a known quantity, but his team is not. Virtually sod all is known about Simon Redman, owner and principal of Redman Racing Team. all we know is, he was moderately successful at Spa, and will try to do the same at Monza.

Claes Racing Developments, it has to be said, have been disappointing since Chiron's outstanding victory at Silverstone, and they haven't scored a point since then apart from Chiron's fastest lap at Monaco. The Monegasque has come close these last two races, and Claes is inching closer and closer as time goes by, but there is still a long way to go if they want to win again.

All American Racers have been very discreet this year. Harry Schell's early performances were somewhat decent, but unimpressive and ultimately inconsistent. His firing from the team coincided with the hiring of Troy Ruttman, whose performance at Reims was quite embarassing. His future in Formula 1 will depend on his driving at Monza.

Phoenix Racing Organisation have been nothing short of a failure this season. On paper, they should have at least scored regular top tens thank to their exceptional driver pairing. As it turns out, their chassis did not go well with the Maserati engine, but their attempt at making their own powerplant was even worse and they were left mired at the back of the field, sometimes struggling to qualify, altough they were sometimes able to pull out a surprise in qualifying, like Gonzalez lining up 14th in France, followed by 11th place in the race. Sadly, this will remain a high point, and they will be hoping for a better 1951.

Tazio Nuvolari's career has been sensational, and everyone knows it. However, his comeback at 57 years old has not lived up to old expectations. To be fair, the Lancia has not been quite as quick as the Flying Mantuan would have wanted, and it has prevented him from finishing inside the top 10. His bad results and worsening health have led him to announce his retirement after his final race at Monza.

Finally, we should always mention the privateers: 1949 125cc Motorcycle World Champion Nello Pagani, this year's Indianapolis 500 winner Johnny Mauro and David Murray, all driving Maseratis.

Qualifying
1. Louis Chiron (Maserati) 1:57.9
Chiron’s lap was quite simply astonishing. Apart from a slight touch of oversteer at the first Lesmo, he was spot on everywhere and blitzed the field in a way never seen before, scoring his first ever pole position by over 1.5 seconds.

2. Piero Taruffi (Maserati) 1:59.7
Taruffi is a driver who was having quite a bit of trouble early on in the season. It seems like his points in France gave him a confidence boost. He was silky smooth around the corners, but lacked ultimate pace at the halfway point of the circuit. Not the most impressive, he was expected to be at the front, but second place is the best he’s ever managed.

3. Gisueppe Farina (Alfa Romeo) 1:59.9
Farina’s ultimate pace was very good, and he should have edged Taruffi out for second, but he lost a bit of time during the second part of the lap. Nevertheless, a very good lap

4. Luigi Fagioli (Maserati) 1:59.9
Confirming Maserati’s domination of the weekend, Fagioli could have taken the pole, but made a small mistake at Vialone, which cost him a good deal of time. He could challenge for the outright win on Sunday.

5. Tazio Nuvolari (Lancia) 2:00.0
Tazio couldn’t have picked a better time to pull such a wonderful lap. In his ill-handling Lancia, he found the perfect line through each and every corner, but lacked Chiron’s sheer aggression to take second place.

6. Yves Giraud-Cabantous (Gordini) 2:00.5
This has to be one of the feel-good stories of the year. Yves’ woeful performances at ENB did not foresee such a well-driven lap. The veteran found pace where his teammates didn’t and the result showed, the closeness of the field doing the rest.

7. Dorino Serafini (Ferrari) 2:00.6
This is the furthest back Ferrari have ever been, but it’s not Dorino’s fault. Nobody could have expected such good drives from Nuvolari, Chiron or Cabantous, and Serafini’s lap was still very decent, but you can feel he’s holding something back for the race.

8. Reg Parnell (Ferrari) 2:00.8
Ditto as for Serafini. Parnell’s lap was even a little better than Serafini’s, but he ran wide at the Parabolica, losing a few tenths on the way. If he keeps up the performance on race day, points are a much-needed possibility.

9. Paul Pietsch (Alfa Romeo) 2:01.1
As Alfa’s fourth driver, big things were expected from Paul, and his qualifying performance was very good indeed for a driver who’d been away for ten years. Despite taking a wider line than necessary through Curva Grande, he more than made up for it by outqualifying two of his teammates.

10. Robert Manzon (Gordini) 2:01.2
Manzon’s lap was decidedly average, but he made up a good deal of time at Vialone, which he took flat out. Had he continued that way, he may have matched Cabantous, but tenth place is still a good place to start from.

11. Felice Bonetto (Maserati) 2:01.3
On a day when Maserati dominated, Felice disappointed. Only 11th when a private version of the same car beat him by almost four seconds. However, Bonetto’s lap was simply average, while all his teammates all gave that extra push for their home race, dwarfing Felice’s performance.

12. Consalvo Sanesi (Gordini) 2:01.6
Pretty much the same as Bonetto, Sanesi’s good performance being dwarfed by his teammate’s excellent laps. This fact is menacing for the established order of the top 3 teams: if ART can get all cars in the top 12 without even pushing hard, a dark horse for 1951 may be born.

13. Peter Whitehead (Ferrari) 2:01.6
Whitehead was on course for a good result, but made a big mistake at Vialone and it cost him bigtime on the long back straight. It’s only a small mistake, but it may hamper it on Sunday and hurt his confidence.

14. Maurice Trintignant (Alfa Romeo) 2:01.7
His time may have been similar to Whitehead, but Trintignant’s frankly bad time was simply due to losing time throughout the entire lap, including a couple of mistakes. Seriously disappointing stuff from the Frenchman.

15. B. Bira (Talbot-Lago-Talbot) 2:01.8
The closeness of the field could have seen him start from the top 10. Then again, the same can be said for most drivers. A little slide at Lesmo and all his momentum was lost and he lost some time throughout the lap. It shouldn’t have been too bad a few races ago, but his car’s lack of development left him in the bottom half of the 26-car grid.

16. Franco Rol (Maserati) 2:01.8
A quiet lap from the Italian. Lost time at the start, but regained some pace towards the end, although not quite enough for a decent spot on the grid. He can do better.

17. David Murray (Maserati) 2:01.8
Sure, he’s driving a Maserati, the dominant car, but who expected Murray to be this high? An average start to the lap, but his lines through the final corners were picture perfect, and he thoroughly deserves his qualification.

18. Juan Manuel Fangio (Alfa Romeo) 2:01.9
The bad surprise of qualifying. As you could say for most drivers, he’s only a few tenths away from a top-ten start, but his pace throughout the session was not enough to deserve it. An unspectacular and disappointing lap for the man who should be going for the title.

19. Toulo de Graffenried (Ferrari) 2:01.9
The exact same things can be said as for Fangio. Both are fighting for the championship, both are in a good car that should be fighting for pole, yet both are mired deep into the midfield through their momentary lack of ultimate pace.

20. Alberto Ascari (Phoenix-Maserati) 2:02.0
A few years ago, 20th on the grid would have been extremely disappointing for Alberto Ascari. However, he’s driving one of the slowest cars on the grid, and he’ll be very pleased to qualify after a very beautiful lap.

21. Troy Ruttman (AAR-Weslake) 2:02.1
Not a brilliant lap from the very young American, but you can’t discredit him at all. His lap was a bit ragged, and he could have done a bit better if he was calmer, but not a bad performance at all, and he and his car will be the only American representation on the grid.

22. Bruno Sterzi (Ferrari-Jaguar) 2:02.4
Sterzi was expected to perform, having won the 1000km of Monza in 1949, but his teammates’ times were not encouraging. Yet, Bruno left in his wake a stonking lap in a car that wasn’t working at all on the long straights of Monza, and qualified where most people didn’t give him a chance.

23. Charles Van Acker (Ferrari) 2:02.4
ENB gave a complete rookie the Ferrari, and were left wondering why they didn’t hand it over to the team’s experienced driver Chaboud. The car worked very well throughout the lap, and the end result was qualification for a race where little spots on the grid were up for grabs thanks to Charles’ smooth driving style.

24. Johnny Claes (Maserati) 2:02.4
Undoubtedly the greatest disappointment coming from the top teams. Despite a promising first part of the lap, Claes made a mistake at the first Lesmo and it all went downhill from there. His experience and car meant that even such a bad performance allowed him to qualify, but his hopes for the race are all but over.

25. Nello Pagani (Maserati) 2:02.5
Despite a slow start to the lap, Pagani managed to save his place on the grid thanks to a kamikaze move, literally throwing his car into the Parabolica, gaining at least a few tenths and a spot on the grid for his début. His actual worth is yet to be proven.

26. Philippe Etancelin (Jaguar) 2:02.5
Rubbished for the sole fact that he was driving a Jaguar, the Frenchman proved them wrong. He was driving a consistent lap for the first part, then exploded into action for the final part of the lap. The car’s lack of power and handling let him down, but his impressive lap gained him the final spot on the grid, something Jaguar obviously celebrated.

27. Louis Rosier (Talbot-Lago-Talbot) 2:02.6
This performance summarized Motorsport Bleu’s decline. Rosier was shadowed by Bira’s good time, but apart from two small mistakes at Curva Grande and Vialone, he didn’t even appear out of his depth, which isn’t very encouraging for next year, and this failure to qualify will not be taken very well.

28. Bob Gerard (Jaguar) 2:02.7
Bob’s lap was far from shameful. He was on fire for the first part of the lap, but lost a bit of pace towards the end, his car being the main factor in his failure to qualify.

29. Johnny Mauro (Maserati) 2:02.7
Not a bad drive from the Indianapolis winner, seeing as this is his first event in Europe. Like Gerard, he could have qualified, but chronic understeer at Lesmo put his chances on hold.

30. Bill Holland (Ferrari-Jaguar) 2:03.0
Holland’s lap was a bit disappointing. It was just average for most of the lap, but wheelspin at Lesmo, a decidedly difficult corner for most drivers, cost him a lot of straight line speed going down to Vialone. Consistent driving, but far from impressive.

31. Raymond Sommer (Aston Martin) 2:03.1
Sommer’s lap was turning out quite well and his qualification looked certain until a large slide at Vialone. No great damage, but it meant that the Frenchman failed to qualify.

32. Jean-Louis Rosier (Aston Martin) 2 :03.8
He may have been outqualified by his teammate, and have failed to qualify, but his lap was quite good considering his lack of experience and his car. He may have made a hash of Lesmo, but made up for it by throwing his car into Vialone, showing his aggression.

33. Francesco Godia (Ferrari-Jaguar) 2:03.9
The Spaniard’s début did not go as planned, and he consistently lost time throughout the lap. A slight resurgence in the final few corners was not enough, and he was far from impressive.

34. Eugène Chaboud (Bugatti-Gordini) 2:03.9
Chaboud’s lap was up-and-down when it came to pace. The downs may have been longer, but the ups were more marked, and it didn’t come out as bad as the team may have expected, with 8 cars still behind them.

35. José Froilan Gonzalez (Phoenix-Maserati) 2:03.9
Ascari’s staggering lap may have led people to believe that Gonzalez was simply having a normal day, but if he was, he would have been much closer to his teammate. Gonzalez was off the pace the whole session, and despite all his attempts, he was unable to get to grips with the car.

36. David Hampshire (ERA) 2:04.1
On a day where many drivers outperformed their machinery, the inexperienced Hampshire could have done better, but he shouldn’t be ashamed of his performance. He wasn’t dazzling, but he was probably one of the more consistent and calm drivers on the track, and he is a man to watch in the coming years.

37. Luigi Villoresi (Kurtis Kraft-Ferrari) 2:04.3
The Kurtis Kraft team have failed to adapt the Ferrari engine to their outdated chassis, and only Villoresi’s frankly exceptional performance allowed the combination to beat five cars in the ranking. The Italian proved today that he is the right man to take the Americans to the top.

38. Hans Von Stuck (Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser) 2:04.3
Von Stuck was all over the place for the first part of the lap, and staggering for the second part. He pretty much turned 41st place to 38th with a brief glimpse of his pre-war form.

39. Bill Vukovich (Ferrari) 2:04.3
Vukovich was expected to struggle to qualify due to his inexperience, but even after practice he was simply too slow. He lost huge amounts of time at Curva Grande, Lesmo and the Parabolica. It may have taken all of Van Acker’s skill to qualify, but even Vukovich should not have ended up so far back.

40. Wilbur Shaw (Jaguar) 2:04.3
His performance was consistent and he didn’t embarrass himself at all, but many feel he could have given more at the start of the lap. Sadly, you have to give more in a car like the Jag, and this attempt at a comeback won’t be very good publicity over in the US of A.

41. Franco Comotti (Maserati) 2:04.9
This being Comotti’s début, his actual level was a bit of an unknown, but Franco was quite simply way too slow for such a competitive field. He may have looked half decent through the first Lesmo, but the rest was too underwhelming, and his failure to qualify is well-deserved. Reject of qualifying for sure.

42. Joie Chitwood (Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser) 2:05.9
Chitwood’s bad qualifying in Belgium turned out to not be down to bad luck at all. He seemed to be coasting for the final part of the lap after a decent start, and simply made the already hopeless Kurtis Kraft look even worse.

Thoughts on the new format?

Aerospeed · Post by **Aerospeed** » 06 Jan 2012, 18:04

To clear things up:
Is the following drivers free agents?
Arthur Legat
André Pilette
Paul Frere

Nessafox · Post by **Nessafox** » 06 Jan 2012, 18:33

JeremyMcClean wrote:To clear things up:
Is the following drivers free agents?
Arthur Legat
André Pilette
Paul Frere

Legat: yes, he retired for my team, other 2: defenitely not!

And Vukovic is driving a Ferrari, not a Gordini, you know, i fielded 2 ferrari's in the Belgian GP, the one Legat brought to the finish and the one wrecked by Swaters, which is repaired. The gordini is the one wrecked by Moss in the Swiss GP, repaired too (but it was a crapbox to begin with)which is now driven for Chaboud, who is retained for his courage to drive the thing whole year. yes i know it is a little complicated

certainly with the works alfa-deal i have for 1951

Aerospeed · Post by **Aerospeed** » 06 Jan 2012, 20:51

This wrote:
JeremyMcClean wrote:To clear things up:
Is the following drivers free agents?
Arthur Legat
André Pilette
Paul Frere

Legat: yes, he retired for my team, other 2: defenitely not!

And Vukovic is driving a Ferrari, not a Gordini, you know, i fielded 2 ferrari's in the Belgian GP, the one Legat brought to the finish and the one wrecked by Swaters, which is repaired. The gordini is the one wrecked by Moss in the Swiss GP, repaired too (but it was a crapbox to begin with)which is now driven for Chaboud, who is retained for his courage to drive the thing whole year. yes i know it is a little complicated certainly with the works alfa-deal i have for 1951

Didn't you sack all the Bugatti drivers sometime ago?

Shadaza · Post by **Shadaza** » 06 Jan 2012, 21:42

Kurtis Kraft are undoubtedly the disappointment of the season.

We didn't even score any points at the Indy500, with the best chasis/engine combination. WHAT A SEASON!

Nessafox · Post by **Nessafox** » 07 Jan 2012, 00:28

JeremyMcClean wrote:Didn't you sack all the Bugatti drivers sometime ago?

only the french ones
it was actually decided by court that the Gordini works team has the right on my French drivers and 3 of my 4 Bugatti cars, if they want it or not, they have them :twisted:

it was also decided in court that ENB and Bugatti had to pay each other exact the same amount of money.
ENB and Bugatti were actually separate teams in a joined effort.

it is true that i still use Chaboud, as no-one else claimed him.
My Belgian drivers are not available (except for Legat, who retired) and my guest drivers Moss and Vukovic are only available if offered a good replacement
driver and works cars (in case of Moss, i'm in negotiations with a few works teams)

yes no-one understands how it works, but that's Belgian tradition.
actually, all my contracted drivers are listed on page 4 , up until 2011 (well it's more of a 'please don't use them! rather than actually contracted)

Aerospeed · Post by **Aerospeed** » 07 Jan 2012, 04:09

Shadaza wrote:
Aston Martin are undoubtedly the disappointment of the season.

Fixed

This wrote:
JeremyMcClean wrote:Didn't you sack all the Bugatti drivers sometime ago?

only the french ones
it was actually decided by court that the Gordini works team has the right on my French drivers and 3 of my 4 Bugatti cars, if they want it or not, they have them
it was also decided in court that ENB and Bugatti had to pay each other exact the same amount of money.
ENB and Bugatti were actually separate teams in a joined effort.

it is true that i still use Chaboud, as no-one else claimed him.
My Belgian drivers are not available (except for Legat, who retired) and my guest drivers Moss and Vukovic are only available if offered a good replacement
driver and works cars (in case of Moss, i'm in negotiations with a few works teams)

yes no-one understands how it works, but that's Belgian tradition.
actually, all my contracted drivers are listed on page 4 , up until 2011 (well it's more of a 'please don't use them! rather than actually contracted)

So that would mean that Yves Giraud-Cabantous and Eugene Martin are the free agents I'm looking for, if Gordini decides to dump them? (And who does "own" Gordini?) Just trying not to hire any drivers that someone else owns

Post by **tommykl** » 07 Jan 2012, 07:47

JeremyMcClean wrote:
Shadaza wrote:
Aston Martin are undoubtedly the disappointment of the season.

Fixed

This wrote:
JeremyMcClean wrote:Didn't you sack all the Bugatti drivers sometime ago?

only the french ones
it was actually decided by court that the Gordini works team has the right on my French drivers and 3 of my 4 Bugatti cars, if they want it or not, they have them
it was also decided in court that ENB and Bugatti had to pay each other exact the same amount of money.
ENB and Bugatti were actually separate teams in a joined effort.

it is true that i still use Chaboud, as no-one else claimed him.
My Belgian drivers are not available (except for Legat, who retired) and my guest drivers Moss and Vukovic are only available if offered a good replacement
driver and works cars (in case of Moss, i'm in negotiations with a few works teams)

yes no-one understands how it works, but that's Belgian tradition.
actually, all my contracted drivers are listed on page 4 , up until 2011 (well it's more of a 'please don't use them! rather than actually contracted)

So that would mean that Yves Giraud-Cabantous and Eugene Martin are the free agents I'm looking for, if Gordini decides to dump them? (And who does "own" Gordini?) Just trying not to hire any drivers that someone else owns

Giraud-Cabantous is under contract at ART, but Martin is a free agent. No one owns Gordini, technically speaking, bu AdrianSutil owns Alexander Racing Team, the main Gordini outfit, although not factory backed.

Aerospeed · Post by **Aerospeed** » 07 Jan 2012, 15:31

Thanks for clearing things up!

On that note,

EUGENE MARTIN SIGNED TO ASTON MARTIN FOR 1951

And that's all you need to know.

Phoenix · Post by **Phoenix** » 07 Jan 2012, 16:42

Yes, we've been disappointing so far, but when I come with Ascari for 1952...

FantometteBR · Post by **FantometteBR** » 07 Jan 2012, 16:53

Rejectdom within two races? YEAH!

1951 the rejectdom is ours!

Shadaza · Post by **Shadaza** » 07 Jan 2012, 17:12

I do like the qualifying format, however if it is all to much work then I wouldn't begrudge you for not doing it.

Can I confirm Villoresi for 1951?

Post by **tommykl** » 07 Jan 2012, 17:47

Phoenix wrote:Yes, we've been disappointing so far, but when I come with Ascari for 1952...

I'm not using the drivrs' actual performances in one year to determine their performance here

Shadaza wrote:I do like the qualifying format, however if it is all to much work then I wouldn't begrudge you for not doing it.

Can I confirm Villoresi for 1951?

The point of the qualifying format is to make my job easier later on, actually.

Also, I don't see any problem with driver changes. All of that gets determined by you lot, not me

Phoenix · Post by **Phoenix** » 07 Jan 2012, 21:55

tommykl wrote:
Phoenix wrote:Yes, we've been disappointing so far, but when I come with Ascari for 1952...

I'm not using the drivrs' actual performances in one year to determine their performance here

Nessafox · Post by **Nessafox** » 07 Jan 2012, 22:30

JeremyMcClean wrote:So that would mean that Yves Giraud-Cabantous and Eugene Martin are the free agents I'm looking for, if Gordini decides to dump them? (And who does "own" Gordini?) Just trying not to hire any drivers that someone else owns

Martin, Pozzi and Chaboud are free agents for 1951

tommykl wrote:Giraud-Cabantous is under contract at ART, but Martin is a free agent. No one owns Gordini, technically speaking, bu AdrianSutil owns Alexander Racing Team, the main Gordini outfit, although not factory backed.

If Gordini doesn't have a works team, that issue is solved, unless ART claims to be the works team, it's up to them.

Post by **tommykl** » 08 Jan 2012, 07:24

IIRC, ART have purchased all assets of Gordini's F1 division, but have cut all ties with the team.

AdrianSutil · Post by **AdrianSutil** » 08 Jan 2012, 07:52

ART-Gordini own a stake in the Gordini company and use the name in racing. ART doesn't technically own Gordini, but we are the only team allowed to run a factory-built Gordini chassis/engine combination. If anyone else wants to run the 'Gordini' name go ahead, but please use your own chassis/engine. That way, I have exclusive use of Gordini

And Cabantous is staying with ART for next year too.

Post by **tommykl** » 08 Jan 2012, 15:09

September 3rd 1950, Italian Grand Prix

Like for qualifying, I'll post this as a driver by driver review. I'll post performances as I go along, starting with the first retirements and ending with the race winner, to keep you all waiting

1. Giuseppe Farina (Alfa Romeo) 2:51:17.4
He did just what he had to do to win the race. Despite a slow start, he never let go of the leading pack and took the lead on lap 7. From then on, he never looked back, and although he lost the lead briefly to Serafini, he progressively pulled away, and while Serafini occasionally beidged the gap and fought for the lead, he never managed to get in front. At first an outside chance at winning the title, the consecutive retirements of Fangio and de Graffenried were a plus, but they were stuck in the midfield, and the championship leader was breathing down his neck. When Serafini retired with five laps to go, Farina simply had to finish in the top two to win his first championship. He resisted to Chiron's final charge and won his third race of the season in style, and the championship with it.

2. Louis Chiron (Maserati) +10.3
Honestly, people were wrong to rubbish him before the weekend. He took a dominant pole position and was at the front for the whole race, leading the first six laps before having to relinquish first place. He stayed closely behind the leading Farina and Serafini, occasionally mixing it with the Italians and sometimes joined by Robert Manzon. At the midway point of the race, he began losing pace, content with his third place, even if he could have decided the championship's outcome all by himself! Finally, just as he was maintaining a good gap of around 30 seconds to the leaders, his crew indicated that Serafini had retired and Farina had started to slow down. He instantly gained more pace and started pulling off near-qualifying laps, gaining 20 seconds in 5 laps, but it wasn't enough to pip Farina for the race win.

3. Consalvo Sanesi (Gordini) +2 laps
From his grid position, he was consistent and on the pace for the whole race. At first at the top of the midfield, the consecutive retirements of Taruffi, Bonetto, Parnell and Manzon, he found himself in fourth place, which became an incredible third thanks to Serafini's championship-deciding retirement. He won the battle against his hard charging teammate and took ART's second podium, a fantastic performance.

4. Yves Giraud-Cabantous (Gordini) +2 laps
Very much like in qualifying, Yves was consistently on the pace, and points became more and more likely as the frontrunners retired. His battle with his teammate Sanesi for fourth place turned into a fight for the podium with Serafini's retirement, and although Sanesi eventually won, this was Cabantous' best race this year, by far.

5. Tazio Nuvolari (Lancia) +3 laps
After his exceptional starting position and his questionable car, people wondered if Tazio would be able to finish in the top five for his final race. He answered all the critics with a fabulous drive, reminiscent of his success 20 years previously. After being a minor threat to the lead early on, he thought better of it and simply stayde comitted to finishing well, with points a possibility. Thanks to the attrition, points became a distinct objective, and the fight for fourth place between Nuvolari, Sanesi and Cabantous was thrilling. Nuvolari started to feel funny with a few laps to go and had to let go, settling on sixth position, then, Serafini retired from the race, leaving Nuvolari to take fifth position, with just one lap more than Serafini. He couldn't have dreamt for a better farewell.

6. Dorino Serafini (Ferrari) +4 laps/Spun off
He could have been the success story of the year. The man who won a championship on a provisional license. Serafini deserved the championship. Until the final five laps. He recovered nicely for his mediocre starting position, was fighting for the lead by lap 8, led six laps, was quick all race, reeled in Farina when it wasn't necessary and kept his head at the right moments. Until the final five laps. He was a solid second and on his way to the championship when he lost control of his car at the Parabolica with four laps to go. He brushed the wall with the left side of his car, which wrecked the suspension and caused his retirement, despite the team's best efforts to repair the car. Serafini would get the fastest lap, but the point would not count towards the championship.

7. Nello Pagani (Maserati) +4 laps
A solid performance by the motorcycle champion to come from the back of the grid. He steadily mad ehis way up the field, taking advantage of the attrition, keeping cool when others left the track and making precise passes. Give this man more single-seater experience and he could challenge for podiums in no time.

8. Charles Van Acker (Ferrari) +5 laps
Who would have thought Van Acker would be the man to give ENB their best finish of the season? He used the same racing nous the got him on the grid to make his Ferrari come alive in the second half of the race. With a few laps to go, he had passed Ruttman and was in a solid 8th place with a long way to 9th, and he understandably calmed down and took the finish in style, just behind Pagani and Farina, who was lapping him.

9. Troy Ruttman (AAR-Weslake) +6 laps
Ruttman's race was very similar to his qualifying. Very consistant, no big surprises or disappointments, just doing enough to get the job done. A commendable performance by the American rookie. At a few points in the race, he put his blocky AAR where it shouldn't have been, usually in the top 10 and in eighth position within 20 laps of the finish before being told to back down in order to finish well

10. David Murray (Maserati) +6 laps
Like Sterzi, he may have been impressive in qualifying, but it meant nothing come raceday. Sure, he wasn't as slow at Sterzi, and he did improve towards the end of the race, but for his second race at the track, you'd think he'd perform better, especially in the exact same car. Only attrition allowed him to do better than 1949's 19th position, but then again, anything would have been better that 19th.

11. Bruno Sterzi (Ferrari-Jaguar) +9 laps
Sterzi may have used all his talent to qualify, it seemed to all been used up, as he did nothing to show his worth during the race. He was diabolically slow throughout the race and never looked like improving, and despite his victory in sportscars in 1949, he was completely unable to sustain any sort of pace in the long run. Thouroughly disappointing.

DNF. Alberto Ascari (Phoenix-Maserati) +10 laps/Spun off
Everyone agreed to call Ascari's qualification a fluke, and that he would be a fail of epic proportions in the race. That he wasn't, and his performance and dexterity were exceptional. He hauled the car into the highly competitive midfield for the whole race and was even as high as sixth, just outside the points thanks to the attrition. His retirement, along with Manzon's was the heartbreak of the race, spinning off after an unintentional tap from Nello Pagani and getting stuck on the side of the track with the engine stalled.

DNF. Robert Manzon (Gordini) +12 laps/Accident
Manzon drove a race of two halves. For the first part, he was very slow, off the pace and quite bad, to be honest, pootling around just outside the top 10. Then, at about lap 30, he gave himself a kick up the backside and began making up a lot of ground. By lap 48, he was in the points and he was fighting for the podium on lap 60. Teaming up with Serafini and Chiron, they tracked down Farina, who was leading, and got into an almighty scrap. They had all come to lap Trintignant when the Frenchman's car failed. Manzon, at the back of the leading pack, couldn't avoid the oil patch in time and left the track just before Bira, with less dire consequences. Much like Rol, the car backed up into a tree, knocking the right rear wheel off the car, ending the Frenchman's race when it was at its best.

DNF. Maurice Trintignant (Alfa Romeo) +13 laps/Oil leak
Consistency is key in motor racing, but it's nothing withough pace. Trintignant wasn't having an off day, but he was just underwhelming. He was mired in the midfield all race, as if he was bored of his qualifying position and race. He responded appropriately when losing pace, but never had that extra edge for a good race, and was lapped a couple of times before an oil leak ended not only his day, but more spectacularly Bira and Manzon's as well.

DNF. B. Bira (Talbot-Lago-Talbot) +16 laps/Accident
Bira's race was truly atrocious. He lost time throughout the entire length of the race and was bringing up the rear, along with Bruno Sterzi. He would have deserved every mockery about his performance, if the paddock wasn't worried about his condition. Indeed, Bira span on oil left behind by Trintignant at Curva Grande. He left the track and his car dug into the ground, doing a barrell roll. Thankfully, the car avoided any obstacles and landed on all four wheels, and Bira was uninjured in the impressive accident, though the Talbot is a write-off.

DNF. Paul Pietsch (Alfa Romeo) +43 laps/Spun off
The race was full of ups and downs for Pietsch. He dropped back a bit in the first few laps before he finally got to grips with the car, reaching the top ten a bit after lap 15. However, he began losing time again almost immediately afterwards and dropping to the lower midfield. He was starting to gain time again before becoming the second victim of Fagioli's oil, spinning off the track and damaging the suspension, causing his retirement.

DNF. Philippe Etancelin (Jaguar) +44 laps/Accident
For any outsider, Etancelin's race would have seemed very bad indeed, but that's discounting his car, which made a perfectly good performance look horrible. Indeed, Etancelin was outperforming his car all race and was able to rival the lower-midfield cars for the first third of the race until spinning on oil left behind by Luigi Fagioli while fighting over 14th place with Nello Pagani. The Jaguar was left in a ditch on the side of the track, with Etancelin's race over.

DNF. Luigi Fagioli (Maserati) +44 laps/Transmission
Fagioli proved to everyone that his qualifying performance was no fluke by fighting for the lead in the opening laps, dueling hard with Chiron. He even led the third lap, but his valiant fight didn't last as long as he would have hoped. Driving started becoming difficult just as Chiron, Serafini and Farina were starting to get quicker and quicker. Fagioli finally managed to wrestle some pace out of the car, but it was too little too late, and he was too far back to mount a challenge for the podium, though he was battling very hard for fourth place with Consalvo Sanesi before his transmission gave up the ghost just before the halfway point, spewing oil over the track and causing both Pietsch and Etancelin's retirements.

DNF. Juan Manuel Fangio (Alfa Romeo) +55 laps/Engine
This performance wrecked Fangio's championship hopes when he least needed it. His first few laps were terribly disappointing and he joined Claes and de Graffenried at the back of the field. After de Graffenried's retirement, he decided that enough was enough and launched a major attack, reeling off fast lap after fast lap and getting up to 14th position out of 19 before his engine called it quits, pretty much leaving the championship to Serafini, fighting for the lead once again and not even needing a good result anymore.

DNF. Toulo de Graffenried (Ferrari) +61 laps/Oil line
The championship contender had to get a good start to help him on his quest for points, and maybe the title had he finished in the top 2. As it turned out, his start was one of the worst on the grid, and it took him a few laps to regain the lost time. At least that's what he should have done, but he ended up not gaining any ground, and just lapping with no definite goal before his early retirement through a mechanical failure.

DNF. Johnny Claes (Maserati) +65 laps/Steering
His performance was frankly abysmal, but it's difficult to know if it was due to the driver underperforming or the cause of his retirement, a faulty steering. The only thing certain is that after starting in the bottom three, he quickly found himself in last position, and while his lap times started to improve after a few laps, his car gave up before he could claw back some time. A far cry from his dominance of the first few laps at Silverstone.

DNF. Reg Parnell (Ferrari) +65 laps/Engine
His short race was pretty consistent. Starting from 8th, he remained there and maintained a close gap to the race leaders, staying a short bit outside the points until engine woes kicked in around the tenth lap. He was able to keep the car in the top ten until the problems seemingly stopped. He quickly regained sixth position, and was even in fourth position for a short moment, as he overtook Tazio Nuvolari just when Bonetto retired from the lead. He then suffered a fate similar to the Italian's, his engine terminally expiring on the run down to Vialone.

DNF. Felice Bonetto (Maserati) +66 laps/Accident
His starting position meant nothing to him, as he was already fighting just outside the points within the first five laps. Thanks to a close field in the early laps, he was in the points by the twelfth lap, up to second a lap later before taking the lead on lap 14. Sadly, very reminiscent of the British Grand Prix, he got too eager to return to the racing line when lapping David Murray on the front straight, and got tagged, striking the outside wall side-on. He got out of his car by himself, but visibly in pain and was taken to hospital in Milan for checks. The accident indirectly caused Peter Whitehead's retirement from the race.

DNF. Peter Whitehead (Ferrari) +66 laps/Spun off
His first few laps were quite decent, and he was at the tail end of the top ten, but quickly started to drop back. He was beginning to make up the lost ground when he spun avoiding debris from Bonetto's accident. He stalled the Ferrari trying to return to the track and had to retire.

DNF. Piero Taruffi (Maserati) +68 laps/Gearbox
Taruffi got off to a good start. He was keeping up with the leaders, and even fighting for the lead for the first time this year. He never led, but was second for the first few laps, alterating behind Chiron and Farina. On lap 8, however, he lost second gear and began losing time. He was out of the top five before the gearbox packed up altogether. Too bad, as he was on course for a good result.

DNF. Franco Rol (Maserati) +74 laps/Accident
He made a good start and was fighting with Whitehead and Sanesi over tenth position, running consistently until he made a small error at Lesmo. Sanesi brushed his side, sending him further off the track. Rol braked as hard as he could, but he struck a tree at low speed with the back of the car. The right rear suspension was broken in the accident, and he couldn't continue.

Fastest lap: Dorino Serafini 1:58.4

Championship standings
1. Giuseppe Farina - 24
2. Dorino Serafini - 21 (24)
3. Juan Manuel Fangio - 20 (21)
4. Toulo de Graffenried - 18 (19)
5. Louis Chiron - 15
6. Johnny Mauro - 9
7. B. Bira - 8
8. Mauri Rose - 6
9. Tony Bettenhausen - 6
10. Myron Fohr - 6
11. Peter Whitehead - 4
12. Consalvo Sanesi - 4
13. Jim Rathmann - 4
14. Yves Giraud-Cabantous - 3
15. William Cantrell - 3
16. Maurice Trintignant - 2
17. Piero Taruffi - 2
18. Tazio Nuvolari - 2
19. Luigi Fagioli - 2
20. Robert Manzon - 2
21. Chuck Leighton - 2

License updates up tomorrow

Nessafox · Post by **Nessafox** » 08 Jan 2012, 23:22

J. Swaters, team principal of ENB wrote:Well, good result by Charles, but he already showed at indy that he could do it. Bill was dissapointing, and i don't mean his pace, but his mentality, and we would like to thank Eugène for all his patience and still being willing to actually drive that Bugatti. He gets a new contract for 1951! Also Nello -who was originally planned to drive for ENB/Bugatti - did a good job, and will certainly return in Monza next year! Bill will of course drive at indy, while we will be happy to see Charles, André, Paul and, well myself back next year! Though Stirling Moss is contracted, we hope too here soon for a confirmation of Alfa about the 2 free works cars/Trintignant-Moss change. If nothing happens, we'll struck a deal with maserati instead, and Alfa will not have Moss.
Also everybody sees where Yves (Giraud-Cabantous) learned to drive. If you can be fast in a Bugatti, you can be fast in anything , good job, and we wish you the very best. And good luck to Martin at Aston Martin. A driver who's never doing anything except for whinging in a car that's even more underpowered than a Bugatti...

Charles Van Acker wrote:When Jacques asked me to drive in monza, i was very enthousiastic, this is a high speed track, which i like. Yet it is difficult, because it is very different from racing in America. But i kept my cool and get a good result.

Bill Vukovic wrote:This is boring, this isn't racing, Indianapolis is so much better! And that car was totally underpowered! USA! USA!

Eugène Chaboud wrote:Well, what more could i do? Everybody said me that the team should give me the Ferrari instead, but yeah, they said they wanted to test Bill on European ground. I hope that next year, i can drive one of these beautiful Italian cars and prove what i'm worth. I'm very happy with all other drivers and teams saying i did a good job.

it is rumoured that Chaboud will be the best paid driver in 1951...

Phoenix · Post by **Phoenix** » 08 Jan 2012, 23:48

Nello Pagani, you stupid jerk!

dinizintheoven · Post by **dinizintheoven** » 09 Jan 2012, 00:20

tommykl wrote:5. Tazio Nuvolari (Lancia) +3 laps
After his exceptional starting position and his questionable car, people wondered if Tazio would be able to finish in the top five for his final race. He answered all the critics with a fabulous drive, reminiscent of his success 20 years previously. After being a minor threat to the lead early on, he thought better of it and simply stayde comitted to finishing well, with points a possibility. Thanks to the attrition, points became a distinct objective, and the fight for fourth place between Nuvolari, Sanesi and Cabantous was thrilling. Nuvolari started to feel funny with a few laps to go and had to let go, settling on sixth position, then, Serafini retired from the race, leaving Nuvolari to take fifth position, with just one lap more than Serafini. He couldn't have dreamt for a better farewell.

Turn up the volume on your speakers very loud for maximum effect...

...and imagine this could be sent back 40 years into the past...

...Arrivederci, Il Campeone!

wmetcalf68 · Post by **wmetcalf68** » 09 Jan 2012, 01:04

Can I enter Nino Farina with my own privateer team?

simonracer · Post by **simonracer** » 09 Jan 2012, 06:26

SIMON REDMAN'S REACTION TO ROL GETTING WRECKED:
Oh bathplug.

Bleu · Post by **Bleu** » 09 Jan 2012, 13:25

tommykl, can you post a complete list of the drivers confirmed for 1951?¨'

B.Bira will continue with Motorsport Bleu, still driving with Talbot-Lagos.

DanielPT · Post by **DanielPT** » 09 Jan 2012, 15:36

This wrote:
J. Swaters, team principal of ENB wrote:Well, good result by Charles, but he already showed at indy that he could do it. Bill was dissapointing, and i don't mean his pace, but his mentality, and we would like to thank Eugène for all his patience and still being willing to actually drive that Bugatti. He gets a new contract for 1951! Also Nello -who was originally planned to drive for ENB/Bugatti - did a good job, and will certainly return in Monza next year! Bill will of course drive at indy, while we will be happy to see Charles, André, Paul and, well myself back next year! Though Stirling Moss is contracted, we hope too here soon for a confirmation of Alfa about the 2 free works cars/Trintignant-Moss change. If nothing happens, we'll struck a deal with maserati instead, and Alfa will not have Moss.
Also everybody sees where Yves (Giraud-Cabantous) learned to drive. If you can be fast in a Bugatti, you can be fast in anything , good job, and we wish you the very best. And good luck to Martin at Aston Martin. A driver who's never doing anything except for whinging in a car that's even more underpowered than a Bugatti...

Gioacchino Colombo, team principal of Alfa Romeo SpA wrote: Yes, of course there is confirmation about the deal. Moss is a magnific prospect for the future in the sport and Alfa Romeo is counting on him to bring more victories to this fantastic team. We can assure ENB that we are working at full schedule to bring out 6 of the fastest cars on the grid, two of them to be delivered on time, key on hand, to Mr Swaters. We already placed an incredible team to help ENB understand the car and, at the same time, give full factory support during 1951. Even if ENB manages to beat the factory drivers the victory is in an Alfa and that is the most important thing for our staff back home. I sincerely hope that, as a costumer, Mr Swaters becomes fully satisfied with Alfa services and machinery which we hope that, in the end, it propels us to northern Europe market, which after USA, is one of the important goals Alfa Romeo wants to achieve. Having said this, I was disappointed for Juan as he missed the title on the final race. Despite Farina having a shot at it too, we encourage battle between our drivers and Juan is also part of the team. He is sad today but vows to keep fighting next year in an improved Alfa Romeo car. I can confirm also Farina will drive for Alfa next year. As for the fourth driver, let's wait as FIA decides the number of factory drivers we can register. Nevertheless, having signed Moss to drive together with Fangio and Farina, we are hopping for at least 3. As for Maurice, we are happy to have had him on the team as he performed within is best to help the team move forwards. We thank him for that, but in the end we were looking to assure the future of this team on the sport and bring in new blood. Unfortunately while Maurice wasn't part of our plans we wish him well for the future and that he manages to remain as many years as he can on the sport. Who knows if our paths cross again? I also wish to thank Paul for racing our fourth car. We were most pleased with him and in case of a fourth car is allowed, we have to consider him for the drive.

Post by **tommykl** » 09 Jan 2012, 19:43

Bleu wrote:tommykl, can you post a complete list of the drivers confirmed for 1951?¨'

B.Bira will continue with Motorsport Bleu, still driving with Talbot-Lagos.

I already stated that drivers would be your business, not mine. Anyway, to avoid confusion, I'd like to see your intentions to sign drivers. If the same driver is wanted by more than one team, I'll let you lot sort it out.

And with that, here is the provisional calendar for the 1951 season, as voted by you lot. I picked the dates, and you may ask me to switch some dates.

May 27th - Monaco Grand Prix (Monte Carlo)
May 30th - Indianapolis 500 (Indianapolis)
June 17th - Belgian Grand Prix (Spa-Francorchamps)
July 1st - French Grand Prix (Reims-Gueux)
July 15th - British Grand Prix (Silverstone)
July 29th - German Grand Prix (Nürburgring)
August 12th - Dutch Grand Prix (Zandvoort)
September 9th - Italian Grand Prix (Monza)

The calendar sees the notable omission of the Swiss Grand Prix, which received only one vote, the same amount as the other rejected bids of Pedralbes for a Spanish Grand Prix, Snetterton as second candidate for the British Grand Prix and the Manx TT for a grueling race. Once more, Monaco and Monza received the greatest amount of votes, and the Indianapolis 500 is notably kept on as the championship's second round, the Dutch and German Grands Prix making their appearance for the first time.

Shadaza · Post by **Shadaza** » 09 Jan 2012, 21:11

The team Formally known as Kurtis Kraft have Purchased 3 1950 spec Ferrari chassis and engines to be modified for the 1951 season (Unless the factory Ferrari team veto this) and Intend to enter Lugi Villoresi for every round of the season minus the Indy 500. The Italian will be partnered by an as of yet un-named American driver in an aim to boost sales of the Ferrari America series. The Kurtis Kraft 01 chassis used for the 1950 season will be in operation at the Indianapolis 500, where like last year we offer 4 customer cars, Ecurie Australia having priority thanks to their custom last year.

I have a few questions, first how exactly will the constructors championship work? Will it be the top driver in a race scoring points? or all drivers in a team that are in point scoring positions? and does running different engine configurations count as separate team entries?

With the calendar as it is it seems impossible to compete in both the Monaco Gp and the Indy 500, I am completely fine with this.

Ferrari America Release drivers!

Hans von Stuck has been released from the team, but we would like to thank him for his development work!
Joie Chitwood Will no longer be driving in Europe, However he will hopefully drive the Kurtis Kraft Offenhauser at the Indy 500 along with Test driver Jimmy Jackson.

Aerospeed · Post by **Aerospeed** » 09 Jan 2012, 21:12

Why is Monaco and Indianapolis four days apart?

the Masked Lapwing · Post by **the Masked Lapwing** » 09 Jan 2012, 21:58

Scuderia Ferrari press release wrote:Scuderia Ferrari would like to announce that we have resigned Dorino Serafini and Toulo de Graffenried for 1951. Both drivers have shown exceptional racing abilities in fighting for the championship, and we hope they can continue for next year. Further drivers will not be confirmed until the FIA decides how many drivers a team may enter for each race. However, if it is four, then we will likely resign both Peter Whitehead and Reg Parnell. If it is three, then they will share a car, alternating every round, with the exception of Britain, where we will find one of them a seat. We would also like to announce a new deal with Kurtis Kraft, where we have agreed to supply them with 1950-specification Ferraris for their efforts. Part of this deal is that Kurtis Kraft will supply us with chassis for the Indianapolis 500, and if the FIA says only three cars per race, then one of our British drivers shall race at the British GP with them.

simonracer · Post by **simonracer** » 09 Jan 2012, 23:36

SIMON REDMAN SAYS: "We would like to keep Franco if he gets a license. If not, we'll use Andre Simon. If not for that, I don't know what we'll do."

TomWazzleshaw · Post by **TomWazzleshaw** » 09 Jan 2012, 23:37

Jaguar would like to confirm they're keeping their two drivers for 1951.

And the reason the two races are 4 days apart is to stop people doing both :lol:

FantometteBR · Post by **FantometteBR** » 10 Jan 2012, 00:04

I guess it wasn't posted here (dunno why and if it was removed by any reason, I am sorry), but Scuderia Platé-Varzi will keep it's privateer efforts at 1951 season, driving Maserati models, with intention of claiming Hans von Stuck to drive for the team in partial or full-time basis,depending on license critera

AdrianSutil · Post by **AdrianSutil** » 10 Jan 2012, 00:19

ART-Gordini enjoy successful debut season.

Amédee Gordini made a rare appearance at Monza, to watch his beloved Gordini compete in the final race of the 1950 Formula 1 season. After the race, he was seen to be quietly sipping champagne and smiling broadly with team mechanics and drivers, as the Gordini brand made a very impressive mark in World Championship racing. Mr.Lilly was delighted with his drivers contributions throughout the year, thanking American Tony Bettenhausen for getting the ball rolling. "Tony's superb 2nd place at Switzerland gave the team the belief to push the car as hard as possible. Points for Robert, Consalvo and Yves-Giraud later in the year have shown we are a serious outfit."

Robert Manzon:
It's been a wonderul experience driving for ART and Gordini this year. I'm disappointed to not score as many points as I think I could have, but I'm thrilled to have signed a deal to race again next year. Hopefully I can continue to improve as the year goes on a claim a podium.

Tony Bettenhausen:
I'm pleased to see ART-Gordini end the season strongly. I'm itching to get back into Grand Prix racing again next year for Gordini, as I know we will be more competitive.

Yves-Giraud Cabantous:
In my short time with Gordini, I can already see the potential to be as strong as the front-running Italian teams like Ferrari and Alfa Romeo. We have done France proud this year, and we will do so again in 1951.

Consalvo Sanesi:
To score a 3rd place finish at my home race is nothing short of wonderful. To be given the opportunity by Gordini to show my skills has worked wonders for my confidence. I hope I can secure a drive with Gordini again for next year, but talks are only beginning now. With Robert, Tony and Yves-Giraud already signed for 1951, it depends if the FIA allow 4-car teams. But I'm confident I can secure a drive with a team.

Nessafox · Post by **Nessafox** » 10 Jan 2012, 00:20

1951 ENB line up will be:

May 27th - Monaco Grand Prix (Monte Carlo)
car 1 - ENB/Scuderia Belgio- Alfa Romeo - Maurice Trintignant
car 2 - ENB/Scuderia Belgio - Alfa Romeo - André Pilette
car 3 - ENB/Équipe De France - Bugatti - Eugène Chaboud

May 30th - Indianapolis 500 (Indianapolis)
car 1 - ENB/Scuderia Belgio- Alfa Romeo - Bill Vukovic
car 2 - ENB/Scuderia Belgio - Alfa Romeo - Charles Van Acker
car 3 - ENB/To be confirmed

June 17th - Belgian Grand Prix (Spa-Francorchamps)
car 1 - ENB/Scuderia Belgio- Alfa Romeo - Maurice Trintignant
car 2 - ENB/Scuderia Belgio - Alfa Romeo - Charles Van Acker
car 3 - ENB/Garage Francorchamps - Ferrari - Jacques Swaters

July 1st - French Grand Prix (Reims-Gueux)
car 1 - ENB/Scuderia Belgio- Alfa Romeo - Maurice Trintignant
car 2 - ENB/Scuderia Belgio - Alfa Romeo - Charles Van Acker
car 3 - ENB/Équipe De France -Bugatti - Eugène Chaboud

July 15th - British Grand Prix (Silverstone)
car 1 - ENB/Scuderia Belgio- Alfa Romeo - Maurice Trintignant
car 2 - ENB/Scuderia Belgio - Alfa Romeo - Eugène Chaboud
car 3 - ENB/Garage Francorchamps - Ferrari - Jacques Swaters

July 29th - German Grand Prix (Nürburgring)
car 1 - ENB/Scuderia Belgio- Alfa Romeo - Maurice Trintignant
car 2 - ENB/Scuderia Belgio - Alfa Romeo - Eugène Chaboud
car 3 - ENB/Garage Francorchamps - Ferrari - Jacques Swaters

August 12th - Dutch Grand Prix (Zandvoort)
car 1 - ENB/Scuderia Belgio- Alfa Romeo - Maurice Trintignant
car 2 - ENB/Scuderia Belgio - Alfa Romeo - Eugène Chaboud
car 3 - ENB/Garage Francorchamps - Ferrari - Jacques Swaters

September 9th - Italian Grand Prix (Monza)
car 1 - ENB/Scuderia Belgio- Alfa Romeo - Maurice Trintignant
car 2 - ENB/Scuderia Belgio - Alfa Romeo - Charles Van Acker
car 3 - ENB/Nello Pagani - Maserati- Nello Pagani

Chaboud is a free agent at Indy, Belgium and Italy. Vukovic and Pagani are free agents, except for their home races.
i'm trying to get a license for at least: Swaters 4 races, Van Acker 4 races, Pilette 2 races and Frère 1 race.
They are not available for other teams. However if i get my licenses as i asked, Frère and Pilette are available for the Belgian GP (Alfa Romeo has of course a prefered treatment, considering the works deal)
of course on the condition that who-ever fields them will paint their cars yellow.

Bleu · Post by **Bleu** » 10 Jan 2012, 09:54

Louis Rosier is also intending to stay with Motorsport Bleu next year. The team has got some extra funding from tyre company and has now funds to compete with three cars in every race of the season. B.Bira will race all races, Rosier all except Indy 500.

TomWazzleshaw · Post by **TomWazzleshaw** » 10 Jan 2012, 10:01

The boss of Jaguar is interested in forming a sort of superteam with the boss of Aston Martin to secure the future of these two British sportscar manufacturers

Post by **Londoner** » 10 Jan 2012, 11:52

Ye Old Auto Reader wrote:EXTRAS closed down, Berkinson arrested
The saga of the Essex Xtreme Technical Race Automobile Society has come to an inglourious conclusion shortly after the team came home after failing to qualify for the Italian Grand Prix, with the society closed down after amassing mounting debts, and team manager and chairman Harold Clive Berkinson arrested by the authorities as a result of shady dealing, with culmanated in an ERA F-Type being stolen to provide parts for the team's own car. The closure of the team comes as David Hampshire has expressed interest at forming his own team for the 1951 season, having stormed out of EXTRAS after racking up the team's first, and now only DNQ.

Autosport wrote:Hampshire Racing Alliance to contest Formula One in 1951
Having left EXTRAS before it collapsed, David Hampshire has announced plans to run his own team in 1951. Autosport understands that Hampshire has bought a couple of Alta chassis and plans to run a one car entry, with himself driving, potentially expanding to two or three cars for the British Grand Prix. More on this news as it develops.

The Lukas · Post by **The Lukas** » 10 Jan 2012, 14:41

Claes Racing Developments Line Up to 1951 season
Johnny Claes
Toulo de Graffenried
Louis Chiron is Fired