[Driver] 2018 F1 silly season.

[S griffin]

I just want to see that livery

[ScotsBrutesFan]

I take it this is fan art or a concept artwork?

[F1Guy]

Alfa Romeo Sauber F1 drivers for 2018 are Marcus Ericssson and Charles Leclerc. Antonio Giovinazzi as reserve.




New Sauber logo for 2018.

[F1Guy]

Originally Posted by ScotsBrutesFan

I take it this is fan art or a concept artwork?

Concept. That picture above, plus the one below from the launch - are both concepts. The image below would be closer to the 2018 livery I would say.

[F1Guy]

A few things I don't get from the Sauber launch. Why was Sergio Marchionne making all the announcements on the changes? Why wasn't it Fred Vasseur? It's Sauber F1 after all.

Why did Jean Todt and Chase Carey feel they had to be at the launch? Will they be present for the launch of the other teams? Alfa Romeo is just the title sponsor. Similar to Aston Martin being the title sponsor at Red Bull.

Why on earth did they keep Marcus Ericcsson? Vasseur said he will make the driver choice based on the best drivers who will perform the best for the team. If so then Wehrlein should've been the better choice surely.

[djinvicta]

Wonder if they realised it reads as

AR S F1T

[S griffin]

Bad move to keep Ericsson, he hasn't performed as well as he should. Glad to see Leclerc in though, first GP2 champion to go straight to F1 since Grosjean. Feel sorry for Wehrlein though

[peebee2]

Maybe they will give Ericsson a few races and if he is underperforming swap Gio in for him? Unless Haas do make a change first of course. Or even Ferrari.

[Formulahistory]

ugly livery, bad driver (Ericsson)...

[crmalcolm]

Originally Posted by F1Guy

Concept. That picture above, plus the one below from the launch - are both concepts. The image below would be closer to the 2018 livery I would say.

Two major things wrong with that livery (if it is final). No quadrofoglia and the wrong colours on the Milano Cross.

[Adam43]

Originally Posted by F1Guy

Concept. That picture above, plus the one below from the launch - are both concepts. The image below would be closer to the 2018 livery I would say.

Well, as the first was made up, sorry a concept, by a magazine and the other a concept by the actual team maybe you are on to something there.

[wnut]

Originally Posted by F1Guy

2018 Sauber?

Great looking car!

The halo is hardly noticeable here, huge fuss about very little imo.

[RWill2073]

Originally Posted by djinvicta

Wonder if they realised it reads as

AR S F1T

[Mekola]

Originally Posted by S griffin

Checo deserves a second chance in a top team, but whether he'll be a number two, an occasional beater or a potential champion remains to be seen

Checo could be in the footsteps of Reutemann, somehow.

[Mekola]

Originally Posted by GTRMagic

Kelemata Olives branding, with Agip and a whole host of small Italian company stickers aboard. Is Piercarlo Ghinzani free?

It was a Team Ghinzani in Italian F3000 since 1999, they were in there for many years, although didn't step up to International F3000 then.
Mainly were in the scheme in 2001 with Thomas Biagi as contender, on the days Felipe Massa won his Italian F3000 title for Draco, just before his F1 debut with Sauber.

Don't know if that could count as an answer.

[F1Guy]

Originally Posted by S griffin

Bad move to keep Ericsson, he hasn't performed as well as he should. Glad to see Leclerc in though, first GP2 champion to go straight to F1 since Grosjean. Feel sorry for Wehrlein though

Wehrlein scored all of Saubers points. Ericsson scored none, and is the only driver to do the entire 2017 season and not score a single point.

[Greem]

Originally Posted by F1Guy

Wehrlein scored all of Saubers points. Ericsson scored none, and is the only driver to do the entire 2017 season and not score a single point.

Correct.

But Ericsson's performance out of the car in financial terms means Sauber still exist and can go racing in 2018. When they said "perform the best for the team", they didn't mean on the track. Completely correct statement, whether we agree with the choice or not.

[S griffin]

The proposed livery on the Alfa Sauber looks alright so far, although the artist's impression looks like a mid 70s Brabham

[GTRMagic]

Originally Posted by S griffin

The proposed livery on the Alfa Sauber looks alright so far, although the artist's impression looks like a mid 70s Brabham

A commercial brand on the car besides Silanna would be great to see too

[Mekola]

Well, it could turn into the Aston Martin - Red Bull thing... sort of...

[bella]

Originally Posted by GTRMagic

A commercial brand on the car besides Silanna would be great to see too

ericsson’s sponsors have never been keen on splashing their brands all over his cars, iirc. i think leclerc has a few monegasque backers though?

[BertMk2]

Originally Posted by bella

ericsson’s sponsors have never been keen on splashing their brands all over his cars, iirc. i

Weird that isn't it? Spend all that cash keeping a mediocre driver in F1 and don't cover every available surface with your logos. Makes you wonder exactly what they're getting from their F1 involvement.

[Mike Harte]

Originally Posted by BertMk2

Weird that isn't it? Spend all that cash keeping a mediocre driver in F1 and don't cover every available surface with your logos. Makes you wonder exactly what they're getting from their F1 involvement.

As somebody will respond, in a similar fashion to my wonder at Philip Morris' huge "sponsorship" of Ferrari, they do it so as to provide insider hospitality to their corporate clients.

I really wonder, though, whether they truly get a decent ROI, if they get one at all!

[broadrun96]

Originally Posted by Mike Harte

As somebody will respond, in a similar fashion to my wonder at Philip Morris' huge "sponsorship" of Ferrari, they do it so as to provide insider hospitality to their corporate clients.

I really wonder, though, whether they truly get a decent ROI, if they get one at all!

Yes, yes, and again YES. Most of these things are meeting places, the background to discuss business mergers and strategies. Similar thing is happening to most all US sporting events, the box seats aren't for the peons and the cost is more than most houses for the single year's events. But they sell every one with a waiting list often times.

[bella]

Originally Posted by broadrun96

Yes, yes, and again YES. Most of these things are meeting places, the background to discuss business mergers and strategies. Similar thing is happening to most all US sporting events, the box seats aren't for the peons and the cost is more than most houses for the single year's events. But they sell every one with a waiting list often times.

yup. also handy for a company that has a supply chain, suppliers and customers. treat a supplier to a prawn butty and a glass of bubbly at the football and establish a good rapport with him and maybe he'll take 1% per unit of the price off whatever he's supplying. that alone pays for the box for the year for decent size companies...