Grand Prix Rejects

darkapprentice77 wrote:

takagi_for_the_win wrote:RESTOV RACING NEEDS YOU!!!

Do YOU want to be a test driver for a small but ambitious start up F1 team? Of course you do. Anyone, I repeat anyone, can apply, so do it!

Valentino Nicchi would like to offer his services to Restov.

Righty, Mr Nicchi it is then

darkapprentice77 wrote:

Valentino Nicchi wrote:Sono contento di essere in questa incredibile opportunità di essere parte di Restov Racing per la stagione 1980, e sono davvero entusiasta di essere in grado di estendere in un corretto rapporto di lavoro come collaudatore. Vorrei ringraziare il team, ancora una volta per questa opportunità.

Ah now, less of your fancy Italian. English or Russian will do just grand

pasta_maldonado wrote:

FMecha wrote:

Hiroshi Takagi, to Grand Prix Journal (predecessor of J.O.U.R.N.A.L) wrote:I declare war against McLaren, Merzario!! And with this, I too declare that Andretti is indeed, cursed!!

Also, in real life, Fuji hosted the 1976 and 1977 GPs, Pasta.

Fuji may have hosted 1979 and 1977, but now it's 1980... Anyway this is alternate F1 so I figured I can have a little creative liscence, and as Suzuka's the better track IMO (and no 70's Fuji exists for rFactor), F1s going to Suzuka

One does not look hard enough obviously.... VirturaFM's version of the circuit! It is one of the best circuits I have driven on rFactor!

Sorry for holding everything up, been away for a few weeks and it's taking a while to trawl through all the threads! Shadow Ford will continue to use the Turbo and wish to sign British driver Brian Henton to our second seat.

*Bump*


What's going on? When will there be an update next?

JJMonty wrote:*Bump*


What's going on? When will there be an update next?

It's not dead

I have just come back from a 4 day French trip to Paris, so that would explain the lack of posts from my behalf

And when I've not been away, I've been absorbed in getting the RTCC up and running. Also, I have a lot of engine files to write for the new engine manufacturers, creating and/or implementing new liveries for 1980 and generally checking that everything works in game, all of which are time consuming. And when I'm nort working on my rFactor projects, I have revision for my maths exams in a week or two, and other family-related stuff. I'm trying to get through it all as best and as quickly as I can.

I understand your impatience JJMonty, and I can ssure you the season will start before December 10th.

Ahhhh, didn't realise you had been so busy! Sorry :/

Before 10th December? Good to know!

JJMonty wrote:Ahhhh, didn't realise you had been so busy! Sorry :/

Before 10th December? Good to know!

It's OK, my series tend to get a bit like the Wild West with all the tumbleweed blowing through them

10th December is really the latest latest latest that I want to start running the series

The pre-season test will take place at Silverstone, over two days. You can nominate which drivers you'd like to drive on each day.

You can only have 2 drivers per day
You can use test-drivers or any other driver you are interested in trying out.

Please nominate your drivers, if you haven't nominated any drivers then I will assume both race drivers will drivem on both days.

Day 1:
Osella - Nurmester, Cheever
Ferrari - Rene Arnoux,
Renault - Jean-Pierre Jabouille, Carlos Reutemann
Alfa - Roberto Horford, Alain Prost
Audi - Jochen Mass, Marc Surer
RAM - Jan Lammers
Rebaque - Padraig O'Connell, Piercarlo Ghinzani
Restov - Elio de Angelis, Beppe Gabbiani
McLaren - Chico Serra, Derek Warwick
Williams - Jody Scheckter, Tommy Byrne
Shadow - Brian Henton, Stefan Bellof
Brabham - Larry Perkins
JLD - Rupert Keegan, Pierre Depault
Merzario - Mario Andretti, Michele Alboreto
Tyrrell - Hiroshi Takagi, Didier Pironi

Day 2:
Osella - Siegfried Stohr, Fabi
Ferrari- Gilles Villeneuve,
Renault - Jean-Pierre Jabouille, Carlos Reutemann
Alfa - Andrea de Cesaris, Alain Prost
Audi - Niki Lauda
RAM - Nigel Mansell
Rebaque - Padraig O'Connell, Hector Rebaque
Restov - Elio de Angelis and Valentino Nicchi
Williams - Callum McAllister, Tommy Byrne
Shadow - Brian Henton, Stefan Bellof
Brabham - Nelson Piquet
JLD - Rupert Keegan, Michael Bleekemolen
Merzario - Emerson Fittipaldi, Simone Guidetti
Tyrrell - Hiroshi Takagi, Thomas Nurmester

Day 1: Thomas Nurmester, Eddie Cheever
Day 2: Siegfried Stohr, Teo Fabi

Actually, unless I'm mistaken, Siegfried Stohr is not signed to any team. We'd like to test him alongside Fabi on Day 2.

Nuppiz wrote:Actually, unless I'm mistaken, Siegfried Stohr is not signed to any team. We'd like to test him alongside Fabi on Day 2.

An outside choice Acknowledged and updated. The entry list for both days of the test is two posts above this one

Ferrari will use the following schedule:

Day 1
Rene Arnoux, TBD

Day 2
Gilles Villeneuve, TBD

Since we don't have a test driver, we are accepting applications to become such a test driver. (Anyone is welcome to apply, but only serious offers will be considered.)

Well, on the second day of testing Roberto Horford will be replaced by Andrea de Cesaris at Alfa Romeo.

Renault will run Jean-Pierre Jabouille and Carlos Reutemann on both days.

Audi would like use Jochen Mass to shakedown the new car in the morning of Day 1, for Marc Surer to take over duties in the afternoon.

Day 2 will have Niki Lauda in the car for the whole day!

RAM Racing March Lotus Hart Ferrari
Day 1:
Lammers
Day 2:
Mansell

Day 1 will be O'Connell and Ghinzani
Day 2 will be O'Connell and Rebaque

EDIT: Somehow I confused O'Connell with McAllister. Not an easy feat.

Restov Racing
Day 1- Elio de Angelis and Beppe Gabbiadini
Day 2- Elio de Angelis and Valentino Nicchi

Chico Serra and Derek Warwick will run the car on day one,while the two race drivers,Gauthier and Daly,are driving the car on day 2.

tristan1117 wrote:Day 1 will be McAllister and Ghinzani
Day 2 will be McAllister and Rebaque

The heck are you talking about? McAllister drives for Williams!

As for Williams, Tommy Byrne will share duties with Jody Scheckter the first day, and with Callum McAllister the second day.

Shadow will have both Henton and Bellof driving both days. We will know the basic performance of car and driver from the beginning.

Brabham will run Perkins on day 1 and Piquet on day 2.

JLD will run Keegan on both days with Depault and Bleekemolen sharing the second car across the test.

MERZARIO TEST SCHEDULE

Day One
Mario Andretti
Michele Alboreto

Day Two
Emerson Fittipaldi
Simone Guidetti

Day 1: Takagi, Pironi
Day 2: Takagi, Nurmester

Test day list updated

Also, would Restov like to re badge their Renault engines as Ladas? Any other team is willing to rebadge their engines.

This, will RAM be starting the season with Ferrari engines, or Hart ones?

pasta_maldonado wrote:This, will RAM be starting the season with Ferrari engines, or Hart ones?

If RAM uses Ferraris, they need to be rebadged, and they will be '79 engines as well. Can't give away vital secrets to other teams!

Also, the test driver role still stands.

pasta_maldonado wrote:Also, would Restov like to re badge their Renault engines as Ladas? Any other team is willing to rebadge their engines.

I suppose we'll rebadge them as Ladas please

Wolf will be contesting both days of the test, with both regular drivers.

Also, can Wolf rebrand their engines as Datsuns?

RAM would like to re-badge their customer Ferrari V12 as FIAT, i think that sounds realistic.

We will be starting with the Ferrari/Fiat, the Hart will make its debut in the British GP!

East Londoner wrote:Wolf will be contesting both days of the test, with both regular drivers.

Also, can Wolf rebrand their engines as Datsuns?

... no. You will be Wolf-Renault and you will like it!

Also, the Renault-Nissan partnership thing didn't occur until 1999.

Ensign line-up to pre-season test
Day 1
Martin Rossler,Deyan Rangelov
Day 2
Martin Rossler,Deyan Rangelov

This wrote:RAM would like to re-badge their customer Ferrari V12 as FIAT, i think that sounds realistic.

Sounds reasonable

This year's season preview:

Ligier (Equipe Ligier Gitanes Talbot)
The defending champions are back and hoping to build on their double title success last year. The driver line-up remains the same, with the promising Ed Kevin alongside champion Laffite, but the Ford Cosworth engines have been escorted to the tip in favour of brand spanking new turbocharged Peugeots, to be branded as Talbots. Wins are possible, but with only minor modifications carried out to the JS11 they may be harder to achieve than last year

Tyrrell (Team Tyrrell)
Tyrrell’s fall from grace continued last year, the only trip to the podium came courtesy of attrition at the season opening Argentine Grand Prix. The team mainly benefitted from the new points system, and despite finishing 11th overall, the team will wish to forget many of the more disappointing occurrences, including an alarming slump in reliability. With things remaining unchanged for 1980, except for Geoff Lees’ replacement in the form of Pironi, the British squad may struggle to even make the grid.

Brabham (Parmalat Racing Team)
Despite having only one podium finish, a superb drive from Piquet at Belgium, the BT49 fundamentally wasn’t a bad car, but it was let down by breaking down in the most inconvenient of moments and by Niki Lauda’s awful driving. Niki Lauda is gone for 1980, and with the arrival of both Australian Larry Perkins and powerful Renault engines, wins are definitely on the cards, if the troublesome Renault doesn’t break down.

Lotus (Essex Team Lotus)
With two 4th place finishes the best result on the scoresheet by the time the lights went out at Silverstone, who’d have guessed that Lotus would walk away from 1979 with 2 wins and 3rd in the Constructor’s championship? The tale of two Joneses is set to continue this year, both drivers putting in soem convinving performances throughout 1979, and a lack of commitment to an engine manufacturer during the off-season actually played into their hands when Renault agreed to supply engines to the team. Although now being two years old, the 79 isn’t a bad chassis, and that coupled with the powerful Renault makes consistent podiums a real possibility.

RAM Racing (RAM March Racing Lotus FIAT Hart)
RAM Racing provided the world with the biggest shock of 1979 – a stunning race win for Jan Lammers at the Spanish Grand Prix, followed by an unlikely pole for Brancatelli at Spa where turbo cars should have ruled the time sheets. A failure to reach the podium again will be concerning for RAM, with the team attempting to rectify the problem by bringing in British rookie Nigel Mansell and the entrance of Hart engines in Formula One. Jan Lammers remains however, as does the reliable Ferrari engines (re badged as FIATs), until the British GP at least when turbocharged Hart engines will take over, and until then points on a regular basis may only come with attrition.

Ferrari (Scuderia Ferrari SpA SEFAC)
Gilles Villeneuve and Rene Arnoux was arguably the most conservative pairing of all the top teams, but the un proven duo perfomed beyond anyone’s expectations. Gilles was steady in his first full season of F1, if not as fast as Arnoux. Both drivers return for this year, but the 5th incarnation of the venerable 312T chassis may prove to be the Italian team’s downfall this year.

Renault (Equipe Renault Elf)
Horrendous reliability is the one factor that defined last season for Renault, but the car kept on getting better. Reliability squandered Renault’s chances in the first half of the season, but a win for Reutemann around Monaco transformed the team, with several podiums attained at the end of the year. The chassis has been redesigned to accommodate ground effects, and the reliable pairing of Reutemann and Jabouille continues for this year, along with a more reliable version of last year’s engine. The performance of the car will entirely depend on how well the car is suited for grounds effects, however.

Shadow (Shadow Ford Racing)
Shadow’s turbocharged Ford engines really transformed the car’s performance last year, and the decision to bring in German rookie Stefan Bellof was a fruitful one, the German consistently scored points. Reliability was a problem, and with the team now having Ford works team status, that should improve. Qustion marks still linger over the decision to replace Watson with rookie Brian Henton, but a decent chassis-engine combo mean that points are again possible.

Walter Wolf Racing (Olympus Cameras Walter Wolf Racing)
1979 was a troubled year for the only Canadian squad, and if it wasn’t for the new points system or attrition, Wolf would have walked away from 1979 with no points on the board. The line-up of American Davey Clarke and the improving Bruno Giacomelli is reliable, and with Renault engines now fitted to the Wolfs, things are looking much brighter for 1980.

Ensign (Team Ensign)
Ensign were one of the worst teams of 1979, and the fact the DNQ’s increased as the year wore on shows their level of improvement as teams around them made quantum leaps in performances. The chassis is not bad but not great, the loss of Sedlak due to injury will hurt them, and the decision to hire F1’s first Eastern European driver may prove to be ill judged. But the team can look forward to a brighter 1980, as somehow Honda agreed to supply the small team with engines...

Merzario (Saras Team Merzario SpA)
The shrewd business skills of the team management pushed Merzario from strength to strength last year, and Italy’s third team will be looking to improve further this year. Gone is everything except the two Lotus 80s that made their debut at the US Grand Prix, and the arrival of turbocharged Lamborghini engines and Mario Andretti alongside Emerson Fittipaldi can only propel the team to new heights. However, rumours are circulating that management hasn't appeared in days and are unable to be contacted, and if these rumours are to be believed, things may not be so rosy for the squad

McLaren (Marlboro McLaren)
The British squad hope to improve this year, after a slow yet steady 1979 which saw them claim 8th place in the Constructor’s championship, a great result for the team. Talented Frenchman Guilliame Gauthier dragged the M29 and its cumbersome predecessor, the M28d, to consistent points finishes, and will drive for the team again this year alongside Ulsterman Derek Daly. The decision to ditch the Cosworth engines and strike a new alliance with Ford was a good one, and although consistent points may be unachievable, points are definitely on the cards.

Williams (Albilad Williams Racing)
The FW07 proved to be extremely quick around a single lap, claiming 6 pole positions from it’s first 10 races, and the seemingly disastrous decision to switch to Honda engines mid way through the year made the car even quicker, claiming a further 5 pole positions from the last 7 races. Reliability issues with both Cosworth and Honda engines denied Jody Scheckter and the extremely fast Spaniard Callum McAllister from wins, but the team hope that in effect sacrificing the latter half of 1979 to work on engine reliability will help them in this year’s title race. However, if the rumours are to be believed about the thirstiness of the engine, running out of fuel may become a problem. The impressive chassis returns with only a few minor modifications, as does the strong driver line-up, making Williams the early favourites for the title.

Arrows (Warsteiner Arrows)
Some say that the radical A2 chassis hindered them, some say that Riccardo Patrese’s accident damaged the team spirit, but the decision to stick with the normally aspirated Cosworth engine may ruin their chances this year. While Sutherland, de Cesaris and Patrese were not entirely convincing, the low drag chassis came into it’s own around faster, less downforce reliant tracks, allowing de Cesaris to almost win the 1979 South African Grand Prix and cause the biggest upset in the history of the sport. With the team deciding to further hone the A10 for this year, expect both Arrows to be fast around low-downforce tracks.


Rebaque (Penske Team Rebaque)
They say that every cloud has a silver lining, and this saying can’t be more true for Rebaque. Marc Surer’s horrific accident at the German Grand Prix transformed the team, with an unfathomably slow Hector Rebaque giving up driving duties, allowing Padraig O’Connell and Piercarlo Ghinzani to make their race debuts. An alliance with Penske slotted nicely into place, with the new PR01 chassis capable of points. This year, Piercarlo and Padraig remain, however the decision to stick with Cosworth engines and with the new PR02 bearing an almost identical resemblance to the PR01, the plucky Mexican outfit may find themselves missing the cut again this year.

JLD Racing (JLD ATS TAG Racing)
The team that was once farciful no hopers has morphed into the team sporting the most acronyms, and they find themselves with a serious chance of bagging their first ever points. The consistent Pierre Depault returns, and the arrival of ex-Jenkins man Rupert Keegan relegates Michael Bleekemolen to a testing role, but the new Porsche engines based on the Audi block and developed by TAG are the most important of the changes to the team.

Alfa Romeo (Marlboro Alfa Romeo)
Alfa Romeo were one of the few teams to finish the year almost exactly where they started, and that may prove to hinder the team this year. The Alfa engine proved to be one of the most reliable engines on the grid, and two DNQs hide the fact the chassis was capable of regularly qualifying. The driver stability continues into 1980, as does the chassis and a mildly improved engine, but the decision to stay with Normally Aspirated engines may hurt the team’s chances in the long run.

Restov (Gazprom Restov Racing)
Along with Formula One’s first Eastern European driver, Formula One also sees the arrival of it’s first Eastern European team in the form of Anglo-Russian squad Restov Racing. Some may argue that business man Edward Restov is about as suited to F1 as a cat is to water, but the man from the USSR has already proved his aptitude by securing a deal to run last year’s Renault chassis and engines (to be rebadged as Ladas). Merzario refugees Elio de Angelis and Beppe Gabbiani have found shelter under Restov’s wing, and the combination of two steady drivers and a decent chassis and engine mean Restov can be confident of making the grid and challenging the midfield.

Audi Sport (Audi Sport)
Audi look to be the better of the three new teams, with the chassis self-admittedly ‘copied from BT48 blueprints found in a skip’ and the engine both turbocharged and quite powerful. A promising line-up of Brabham refugee Niki Lauda and the now fully recovered Marc Surer allows the German crack squad to have that extra little bit of faith in their ability. Points are certainly achievable for the newcomers.

Osella (Osella Squadra Corse)
Initially, the combination of proven FW06 chassis from Jenkins and dependable, reliable Alfa chassis seemed decent. But, with Renault flogging their engines like copies of the Metro, several teams around them acquiring turbos and better chassis, and the depature of the hatefully slow Fittipaldi, Osella’s position has worsened. Drivers Thomas Nurmester, who has proven his talent, and American rookie Eddie Cheever may have their work cut out qualifying, but when they do, the car will kost likely make it to the finish.

Also....

Top 5 drivers without a drive
1. John Watson – Ex Shadow man scored points consistently and matched his team mate Stefan Bellof.
2. Keke Rosberg - Although slow in the first part of the year for Shadow, his 4th place replacing the injured Watson was great for a rookie.
3. Andre de Cesaris – Lest we forget this man challenged for the lead at Kyalami in an Arrows, on his debut.
4. Geoff Lees – Despite two solid points finishes, and some strong drives to be denied by reliability, he has been left out in the cold by Tyrrell
5. Danny Ongais - Dragged the Fittipaldi onto the grid 4 times, and was often faster than team mate Emerson Fittipaldi.

Shadow would like to offer Andrea De Cesaris a test-driving role. He will be promoted to the first team if Brian Henton fails to finish in the top 10 by the fourth race.

If Keke Rosberg does not obtain a drive he will become Ferrari's test driver.

Merzario is still well and truly active! We will improve as the season goes on.
I think with the Lotus chassis, the Lambo engine and two world champions at the wheel, we will do very well this year!

Pre-Season Test - Silverstone- Day 1



Well, put your hands up if you honestly didn't see that one coming. Honestly. Jody Scheckter and Williams continue where they left off last year, setting the fastest time by 0.3 seconds, and Tommy Byrne also put in a respectable time. The test highlighted some of the changes in the order caused by the crazy off-season, with Brabham now emerging as William's main rival, Ferrari and Renault struggling for pace, as well as huge improvements for Merzario. Audi come straight into the midfield, along with Restov, and JLD showed improved pace. Harvey Jones suffered engine failure after only completing a few laps, Hiroshi Takagi crashed to cause Tyrrell even more misery, and Rebaque and Osella really were that slow.