Grand Prix Rejects

Hey everybody,

After an extended break for reasons that I won't go into here, I'm back! And since it's race day and this thread hasn't been created yet (seriously, I go away and everything goes pear-shaped), you know what that means - it's time to pick Your Reject of the Race for Canada.

So far, I have to say the clear Reject is the 107% rule. One year after Ferrari demanded that it be reintroduced (when Chandhok inadvertently held Alonso up and Butotn was able to pass him because of it), and the stewards let Jerome d'Ambrosio onto the grid because he was forced to get used to the team's spare chassis, having written his own off in Friday practice. However, d'Ambrosio's Q1 time was his fastest time of the weekend. So that means the 107% rule is like the microphone at a Britney Spears concert - it just doesn't matter.

Your turn.

It has to be Sauber for me so far, everything's going wrong for them. Ill driver, crashes, poor speed etc.

Although Alguersuari is hot on their heels after that dismal qualifying performance.

Ed24 wrote:It has to be Sauber for me so far, everything's going wrong for them. Ill driver, crashes, poor speed etc.

Although Alguersuari is hot on their heels after that dismal qualifying performance.

True, Alguersuari was driving very erratically - how many times did we see him ploughing through a corner with the wheels locked up? He was driving far too hard in qualifying - but, as Brundle hinted at, it looks like Alguersuari is being threatened with replacement by Ricciardo, and perhaps trying too hard to save his seat (which may ironically cost him his seat).

For me Alguersuari is fast heading to ROTY contention. He did a fantastic job last season and he should have scored more than the 5 or so points he eventually ended up with and alot of people predicted big things from him this season but in recent races he's seemed to have forgotten how to drive quickly and keep out of trouble at the same time.

The race stewards take it for now, but Sauber and Alguersuari certainly are in contention.

I'm tempted to nominate the official website, formula1.com, for predicting rain in Saturday and Sunday, again. It could very well be that today's race sees no rain at all.

mario wrote:

Ed24 wrote:It has to be Sauber for me so far, everything's going wrong for them. Ill driver, crashes, poor speed etc.

Although Alguersuari is hot on their heels after that dismal qualifying performance.

True, Alguersuari was driving very erratically - how many times did we see him ploughing through a corner with the wheels locked up? He was driving far too hard in qualifying - but, as Brundle hinted at, it looks like Alguersuari is being threatened with replacement by Ricciardo, and perhaps trying too hard to save his seat (which may ironically cost him his seat).

Agree with both of you.

BEFORE the race, the 107% rule.
What is the point of this if someone who finishes outside the 7% can still start the race? Okay, sometimes exceptions happen (not counting the weather like Spa 2001!), like Diniz in Melbourne 1997, but this just renders the rule pointless.

AFTER the race, we'll see.

Wizzie wrote:For me Alguersuari is fast heading to ROTY contention. He did a fantastic job last season and he should have scored more than the 5 or so points he eventually ended up with and alot of people predicted big things from him this season but in recent races he's seemed to have forgotten how to drive quickly and keep out of trouble at the same time.

With Maldonado showing some form, the RotY field is definitely wide open!

The stewards, got to be, how they can excuse D'ambrosio racing when failing to qualify but not HRT at Australia is total nonsense. Algersuari is my pick for actual drivers, he's almost been as erratic as Yuji Ide

Ferrim wrote:The race stewards take it for now, but Sauber and Alguersuari certainly are in contention.

I'm tempted to nominate the official website, formula1.com, for predicting rain in Saturday and Sunday, again. It could very well be that today's race sees no rain at all.

Well at least one of the support races has been wet today, & Heidfeld has just tweeted that it is raining.

sswishbone wrote:how they can excuse D'ambrosio racing when failing to qualify but not HRT at Australia is total nonsense.

The 107% rule is intended more for blocking unworthy teams from the grid than drivers. D'Ambrosio had qualified for every race this season, and he was using the spare chassis rather than his own.

Don't care, if you don't hit 107% you don't qualify, the rules state stewards can provide discretion based on practice in the event of a problem, as he never did it in practice he shouldn't race

The stewards can give a big F in that rule, for whatever reason they like. That must not be practice results. And with Glock saying Virgin is on a full-wet setup. That can very well have been the reason. I think the stewards made a great decision there!

Agreed on D'Ambrosio, he shouldn't have been allowed to race - for all he had the disadvantage of the brand new chassis, it's not like he'd gone faster in the old one in practice either.

And the rule is there to stop slow cars being on the track during the race - and it's not like he's going to be back in the faster chassis for the race either, so that defeats the point of the rule. The 'extenuating circumstance' clause is really there for people who are quick enough, and are likely to be quick enough during the race, but have had problems that prevented them setting a quick enough time in the qualifying session - like Hispania in Monaco, Diniz back in Australia '97 or Spa when it rained. 'Not being used to the car' isn't an extenuating circumstance.

How about the Safety Car - a start at Montreal with the safety car is pointless, it's like straightening out Eau Rouge, it negates the best part of the race

First time for someone to get the award 2 races in a row me thinks.

So far it's Hamilton for me.

The guy doesn't learn anything. Needs to be disqualified for several races. And taking out your teammate? For shame.

Yes Senna did the same thing. That doesn't make it right.

Race isnt over but hamilton are a strong candidate

Hamilton, no matter what else happens in the race. Taking out yourself while trying to take out your teammate makes for double reject status...he couldn't even do that right.

Safety Car, enough said...

Safety car start or Hamilton so far.

Hahahahamilton.

Safety cars or Hamilton again.

Personally, I'd say that Button is also in the running for getting himself penalised for speeding whilst catching up with the safety car train. As for the Button-Hamilton accident, I think that perhaps I'd like to review the video footage again to assess the respective positions of Hamilton and Button on the track.

Ham so far. And the weather. But mainly Ham.

The truck that delivers Hamilton's car

the marshal pushing the water up hill......

The drains, they are backing up and water isn't clearing

De La Rosa was told only 15 minutes left until the rain stops. We could be racing within the hour if that is true.

Klon wrote:De La Rosa was told only 15 minutes left until the rain stops. We could be racing within the hour if that is true.

Nevermind that. But I have time, I will wait.

New nomination.

Eddie Jordan, for being within arms reach of George Lucas and not punching him.

Race control for not getting the race restarted NOW!!

Enforcer wrote:New nomination.

Eddie Jordan, for being within arms reach of George Lucas and not punching him.

New nomination - Tonio Liuzzi's new boots.

New nomination Fivelive for giving updates on the baseball!

Stewards for being too trigger-happy with their investigations.

Well I was going to nominate Button, but then he won, so I'm going back to Lewis Hamilton.

Easy. Race Control. First for starting the race behind the safetyh car and keeping it out for four laps when one would have been more than enough. Then there's no point telling the drivers to start on full wets then running them behind the safety car for so many laps that the track is ready for inters by the time the race actually gets under way. Plus the punishment for Di Resta made no sense since Di Resta had already been punished by losing his wing and Heidfeld did not lose any places.

1) Lewis - You ****ing idiot. Again. I wonder who's fault it is this week? Rihanna, for distracting him with her hair?
2) Di Resta - Ruined a race that had been great up to that point by a really half-hearted attempt to pass Nick. Not sure why he retired - did he hit someone else?