Team GB - Who should drive? - Page 6

Kebab · 3 Jan 2007, 05:50 (Ref:1804478)

Didn't Robbie drive a prototype once?

strider · 3 Jan 2007, 18:55 (Ref:1805420)

Yes, a Zytek at Silverstone in 2004. Pole position, led the race for a while, set fastest lap, but then either retired or finished way down the order. Even I was slightly impressed at the time. Amazing that after such a brilliant performance he wasn't snapped up by Zytek, but no doubt either nev or Sid the Manager will be able to provide a totally objective explanation.

nev · 4 Jan 2007, 00:12 (Ref:1805705)

Quote:

Originally Posted by strider

Yes, a Zytek at Silverstone in 2004. Pole position, led the race for a while, set fastest lap, but then either retired or finished way down the order. Even I was slightly impressed at the time. Amazing that after such a brilliant performance he wasn't snapped up by Zytek, but no doubt either nev or Sid the Manager will be able to provide a totally objective explanation.

he qualified over a second faster than the rest of the field which i think was either herbert or Mcnish. He had an 8 second lead before justin keen turned in on him when he was being overtaken. Robbie was ordered to enter the pits to check the car out and that was that, i think they ended up 4th.
oh and what engine is in the A1 car - is it a Zytek by any chance !!

I think Zytek were pleased with his achievments but i rekon they were struggling for budget as they missed some rounds after that.

Kebab · 4 Jan 2007, 08:07 (Ref:1805851)

I guess it would also depend on who was driving with him!

andy97 · 4 Jan 2007, 12:44 (Ref:1806081)

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sid The Manager

Something else people seem to either be blind to or forget is that some drivers are comfortable in one sort of car and not another, I'm thinking of the Priaulx comments in here, Andy is brilliant in a touring car, possibly the worlds best, but he never looked as comfortable in a single seater. How many single seat carers have ground to a halt with drivers seeming to run out of talent, later to be stars in sportscars (even good prototypes which nowadays aren't that far removed from single seaters)

He seems to have been VERY comfortable in a hillclimb single seater; won races in F3 and is reported to have performed creditably in a Williams BMW, despite not having driven a single seater for a while - how "comfortable" do you need to be? Fo me, I still think that it would be worth giving him a shout in the GBR car.

Mystery · 5 Jan 2007, 12:53 (Ref:1807405)

Whilst team GBR think they have a chance of winning the whole series then I would be amazed if they would consider deviating from their current plan so Robbie with Oli as back up, and Darren where needed.

However, if they come to the conclusion its a lost cause then whey not get someone new in to experiment and develop the team and/or car set ups. My fellow Channel Islander would be a good a choice as any although I suspect his TC contract might well make it difficult if not impossible.

Dr Venom · 6 Jan 2007, 00:23 (Ref:1807875)

What team GB need is pasion, pride and young aggresive drivers that want to prove a point, get rid of the "4th is fine" " or he did the "best he could have" as a englishman it makes my blood boil that we as englishman tend to think that being 2nd is OK, it bloody well is'nt. and when we wake up and smell the coffee, and the penny drops we might start thinking outside the box and start winning. english motorsport is going where the rugby, football and cricket have fallen too.

Sid The Manager · 6 Jan 2007, 00:40 (Ref:1807888)

whether you like Robbie or not, the one thing you can't accuse him of is ever thinking second is good enough

dave not neil · 6 Jan 2007, 15:45 (Ref:1808244)

Can we pretend Hulkenburgs got a long lost english granny?!

ybee02 · 10 Jan 2007, 15:34 (Ref:1811512)

I think these are drivers missing out

Alex Lloyd
Gary Paffett
Justin Wilson
James Rossiter

cos · 10 Jan 2007, 15:44 (Ref:1811528)

Lloyd seems to have split from A1 GBR now and Justin would probably have a hard time fitting in the car. Gary and James' F1 testing commitments may mean that they are precluded from taking part, but I'm not sure. Would be good to see how the latter three go in an A1 car though.

nev · 11 Jan 2007, 21:54 (Ref:1812737)

Quote:

Originally Posted by ybee02

I think these are drivers missing out

James Rossiter

you do know there only allowed one car per team - joke

strider · 14 Jan 2007, 00:15 (Ref:1814611)

Robbie Kerr's fans will ecstatic to read this. Others may be less excited.

outflat · 14 Jan 2007, 01:08 (Ref:1814621)

'Twas in Autosport.com a few days ago

ISPL · 16 Jan 2007, 13:25 (Ref:1816512)

Quote:

Originally Posted by strider

Robbie Kerr's fans will ecstatic to read this. Others may be less excited.

You are completely missing the point.

I suspect that most real GBR fans (whether Kerr fans or Jarvis fans) will be dissapointed by the news that Jarvis can't test in Newzealand & Australia. The combination of Kerr & Jarvis was paying real dividends for the team and is reflected in the championship table. I think that most fans of Kerr & Jarvis understand the benefits the other driver brings to the team in terms of data, whether or not they agree on who should be the first choice driver.

Two drivers that know the car well is a real bonus for any team and something that GBR lacked last season. It has served to improve the team performance no end. There have been very few races (if any) where the team has not been competitive and I for one think that it is only a matter of time before we see the first GBR win. In the meantime a solid performance in Newzealand & Austrailia will help secure second spot and close the gap on Germany.

Before anyone gets their knickers in a twist - no I'm not happy to settle for second place and desperately want GBR to win as many races as possible - but there is a bigger picture here which is the Championship. If GBR won the Championship without winning a single race I would be happier than if we won races and lost the Championship due to inconsistency.

Sid The Manager · 16 Jan 2007, 13:29 (Ref:1816517)

I saw Robbie at Autosport on Thursday and he is desperate to get the first win under his belt

strider · 17 Jan 2007, 16:52 (Ref:1817715)

Quote:

Originally Posted by ISPL

You are completely missing the point.

You may be right, but I think not in the context of the thread. My post was slightly tongue in cheek and maybe I should have added a smilie. It's just that there are a few people on here who seem to think that Robbie Kerr is the best British driver ever, when that's obviously not the case.

I know all the advantages of using two drivers, but it only applies for a certain number of meetings, six I think. You can't expect a young up-and-coming driver like Oli Jarvis to stand around and act as a test driver for a couple of half hour sessions for too long. Bedding in new brake pads and/or a new engine and sorting out the set-up so that the other guy can go faster later in the day isn't too exciting for a driver who's at the start of his career.

I think Robbie may well win a race this season, but possibly not until Brands Hatch. He's quick around there. I'm a bit bored with all this palaver, to be honest. For me it's more interesting that Narain Karthikeyan whill be racing at the weekend.

Knowlesy · 17 Jan 2007, 18:38 (Ref:1817808)

Get Narain in the GBR car!

ISPL · 18 Jan 2007, 19:10 (Ref:1818690)

Quote:

Originally Posted by strider

You can't expect a young up-and-coming driver like Oli Jarvis to stand around and act as a test driver for a couple of half hour sessions for too long. .

I think for someone like Jarvis to get onto the world stage in an A1GP car in any role is a step up. For my money his move to Japanese F3 is a backward step (sideways at best).

When he came a credible runner up with Carlin (who lets not forget are the most succesful team in F3 History and were the reigining champions the year before) in 2006 he showed that he can do a job with a good team. I am not sure what he will prove by joining the reigning Japanese F3 championship winning TOMS team. If he wins peple will put it down to the team and if he doesn't they will put it down to the driver.

In A1GP he had a chance to show that he could bring something to a team and make a difference.

strider · 18 Jan 2007, 23:14 (Ref:1818905)

As mentioned before,

cos · 19 Jan 2007, 01:42 (Ref:1818993)

I see Jarvis has been connected to a DTM drive this year as well; is his move to JapF3 definite yet?

Kebab · 19 Jan 2007, 09:36 (Ref:1819162)

TeamGB have announced a couple of sponsors (finally) - "Visit London" / "Visit Britain" and "Quintessentially"

Not sure if they will have or be allowed to have influence over drivers, etc. but I thought it might be slightly interesting.

strider · 25 Jan 2007, 00:29 (Ref:1825304)

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mr Jinxx

Hard to know what to say really. Robbie is a good racer, maybe verging on the "dirty" side in my view, but whether or not he's just not basically quick enough or whether he's Jinxx'd, is a tricky one. I do wish they'd give some youngsters a go now - we're into the last half of the 2nd year and Robbie's had all the running ... why not try one of the young up-and-comers who are fresh from FRenault or F3 or something. Much as I like Robbie - and I love Sid the Manager as a sister, of course - I would like to see some youngsters in our team now, see how they get on woth the team and if they can develop or adapt to the car. Robbie has had his stint - look at France ... I'm sorry, but I'm bored with this same old story. Yes, of course if we keep going, we'll eventually win (or Robbie will die of old age) but this isn't TeamGBR it's Team Robbie Kerr. If Jarvis can't do the fixtures, get some other young ones in who can. Not Alex Lloyd, in case you're tempted to ask - he's committed elsewhere ... get some young hopefuls in and give them a chance.

I cut and pasted this from the Taupo thread, because Mr Jinxx has with his usual eloquence put his finger on the whole problem of why TeamGBR has become boring. Other countries bring in different drivers from last year - Germany, France, Switzerland, Netherlands, Canada, even New Zealand, because I think Matt Halliday was their lead driver last year - and they're getting the attention and the results. Meanwhile TeamGBR struggles on with the same old, same old. It's just not interesting anymore. Okay, Oli Jarvis wasn't available, but there are other young drivers they could have tried. Mike Conway for one. You don't win British F3 and Macau by being a muppet, and he worked with James Robinson all last year, so they would have gelled straightaway.

It's too late now, because Mike will be into GP2 testing soon, but he could have done Taupo and Eastern Creek and that would have been fresh and interesting. Bet he'd have been quick, too. Another opportunity lost.

Mystery · 25 Jan 2007, 10:55 (Ref:1825534)

Completely agree. I think last weekend was a perfect opportunity to give someone else a shot. Not that Robbie has done a bad job - he's done an adequate job but no more. The excuse being spouted about not having the feedback from the rookie session is a very poor one - there's plenty of young talent around if anyone can be bothered asking.

Even if you're not going to let the rookie do both races at least let someone come and do the Friday sessions.

Knowlesy · 25 Jan 2007, 17:52 (Ref:1825843)

It's a big ask for Team GBR to make an imaginative choice though, is it not?

Why take risks when you can settle for the lower steps on the podium occasionally, combined with a sprinkling of fourth, fifth and sixth?

They will just go backwards, but never mind. Nobody cares anymore.

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