[Driver] 2018 F1 silly season.

[peebee2]

Whoa mate, don't come in here with actual paddock opinion. The armchair experts will soon be correcting you and telling what the 'real' opinion is! Waste of your time I'm afraid.

[F1Guy]

Originally Posted by chillibowl

in other news Mclaren have announced that Vandoorne has been retained for 2018.

Great news indeed. A new contract. His home GP. A new spec Honda engine. Fantastic news for SV.

Except for the fact he'll be starting from the very back of the grid. Again!

[BSchneiderFan]

If Stoffel can get into the points again this weekend, he'll have done very well.

[chillibowl]

Originally Posted by F1Guy

Maybe. But just speaking the truth.

And I'm not alone on this opinion. Most everyone in the F1 paddock feels/saying the same. Just have look around on social media and you will see some well known/respected paddock personalities saying the same.

Originally Posted by peebee2

Whoa mate, don't come in here with actual paddock opinion. The armchair experts will soon be correcting you and telling what the 'real' opinion is! Waste of your time I'm afraid.

off topic...but thats what we call 'insider baseball' on this side of the pond.

granted Kimi's retention may be an uninspiring choice but surely it has merit...one of the most popular drivers on the grid driving for one of the most popular sports teams in the world and as long as the former champ is not completely off the pace, Ferrari have a reason to hold on to him whether it be for team harmony or out right loyalty....which is something that many fans (tifosi) can and do appreciate a lot more then what the 'insiders' give us credit for.

personally, i like the loyalty Ferrari typically shows its drivers and as such i respect their choice. i am for sure an 'armchair expert' but i do know sports and a team that respects it's athletes like this is the difference between a club that people want to support and one that no one cares about.

anyways, the off topic part is that one of the problems, imo, that F1 has is connecting with the fans and that in part stems from the 'paddock experts' thinking their points of views matter more then the fan base's opinions do. the divide between what the insiders think is the right way forward is generally the complete opposite of what the fans want to see happen.

anyways paddock insiders have their mediums (promoted social media feeds, blogs, articles, gossip pages) to express their opinions and fans like us have settings like this forum...so with all due respect leave us our illusions and our spaces to discuss these things as we see fit!

[F1Guy]

Apparently, Williams have made an offer to Alonso for a 2018 drive.

Interesting move if true. Lowe and Alonso would make a great combination.

[chunterer]

Originally Posted by F1Guy

Apparently, Williams have made an offer to Alonso for a 2018 drive.

Interesting move if true.

What sort of offer? Please can you come and sort out our strategy? 😁

[S griffin]

Hmm, that would be cosmic to see Fred in a Williams, especially with Stroll alongside. Should be exciting

[GTRMagic]

Originally Posted by F1Guy

Apparently, Williams have made an offer to Alonso for a 2018 drive.

Interesting move if true. Lowe and Alonso would make a great combination.

Story Here

If Mr Stroll Sr is paying, would Williams refuse?

[F1Guy]

Nothing much on the net regarding my post above from yesterday regarding the Alonso/Williams rumour, but I did come across this from French publication F1i.

http://en.f1i.com/news/277539-alonso...-not-fast.html


Alonso said in June that he would not "gamble" on his 2018 seat. So isn't going to Williams not a gamble then??

Sure, the 2018 Williams will be a car with Paddy Lowe's input, and Alonso does like Lowe (one of the major reasons he signed with McLaren in 2007), and it also has a Mercedes engine at the back of it, but it's still a gamble isn't it?

A few more notes taken in the last few hours suggest Martini and Santander are keen for this to happen. Stroll Snr is also keen to make this happen. It would be a big pay cut for Alonso, but I don't know if that matters at this point. He just wants to race a competitive car and be up front fighting for podiums. Can the 2018 Williams deliver??

edit:

Originally Posted by GTRMagic

Story Here

If Mr Stroll Sr is paying, would Williams refuse?

Thanks GTR. Didn't come across that article in my search. But WTF1.com is not a site I would take too seriously anyway.

[F1Guy]

Here we go. This just popped up on Motorsport.com a few minutes ago.

https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/a...-massa-944977/

[F1Guy]

Originally Posted by F1Guy

Great news indeed. A new contract. His home GP. A new spec Honda engine. Fantastic news for SV.

Except for the fact he'll be starting from the very back of the grid. Again!

65, yes, 65 place grid penalty for Vandoorne! At this rate, he'll be starting from pole position from the last race at the Hungarian GP!

[F1Guy]

Vettel is happy that Raikkonen is his team mate next year.


http://formula1.ferrari.com/en/exten...astian-vettel/

[Mike Harte]

Vettel has signed a three year deal with the Scuderia, BBC is reporting.

[VIVA GT]

Originally Posted by F1Guy

Nothing much on the net regarding my post above from yesterday regarding the Alonso/Williams rumour, but I did come across this from French publication F1i.

http://en.f1i.com/news/277539-alonso...-not-fast.html


Alonso said in June that he would not "gamble" on his 2018 seat. So isn't going to Williams not a gamble then??

Sure, the 2018 Williams will be a car with Paddy Lowe's input, and Alonso does like Lowe (one of the major reasons he signed with McLaren in 2007), and it also has a Mercedes engine at the back of it, but it's still a gamble isn't it?

A few more notes taken in the last few hours suggest Martini and Santander are keen for this to happen. Stroll Snr is also keen to make this happen. It would be a big pay cut for Alonso, but I don't know if that matters at this point. He just wants to race a competitive car and be up front fighting for podiums. Can the 2018 Williams deliver??

edit:


Thanks GTR. Didn't come across that article in my search. But WTF1.com is not a site I would take too seriously anyway.

Having just watched Q1 from Spa, I can't see the Williams performance there convincing Alonso to jump ship!

[chillibowl]

end of Q2, Honda's performance isnt giving him much reason to stay either.

stuck between a rock and a slow pace.

[VIVA GT]

Seeing what's happened (again) to Palmer should put the team off Renault engines too!

[BSchneiderFan]

Originally Posted by F1Guy

65, yes, 65 place grid penalty for Vandoorne! At this rate, he'll be starting from pole position from the last race at the Hungarian GP!

Or from somewhere in Luxembourg.

[djinvicta]

So..If Fred goes to Williams, Massa will be gone at last.
This year has gone downhill for them. Perhaps it needs Paddy Lowe and Alonso to "spark the fire" again.
Watching Alonso's walk through the pit garage during quali today, it wouldn't surprise me if he jumps ship at last.

[Alfaholic]

Originally Posted by F1Guy

65, yes, 65 place grid penalty for Vandoorne! At this rate, he'll be starting from pole position from the last race at the Hungarian GP!

He'll be starting at the back of the grid for the Austrian GP this weekend with a 65 plaace grid drop

[chunterer]

Originally Posted by djinvicta

So..If Fred goes to Williams, Massa will be gone at last.
This year has gone downhill for them. Perhaps it needs Paddy Lowe and Alonso to "spark the fire" again.
Watching Alonso's walk through the pit garage during quali today, it wouldn't surprise me if he jumps ship at last.

Not sure Lowe is the man to take them forward performance wise. I think he's happy enough being part of da senior management. They need a James Key or Prodromou (who has done a tremendous Mclaren chassis)

[F1Guy]

Fernando Alonso: "I received several offers. To 60 percent of those offers I say no right away, the other 40 percent are still on the table. I will wait as long as possible."

Paddy Lowe: "You need great drivers and great cars to win races and there’s a bit of a chicken and egg thing. The better the car you have, the better the drivers you can attract. With a great driver in the team everybody is motivated to work that bit harder.

"There are lots of great drivers out there and we’ll always try and get the best ones we can."

https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-mo...-idUKKCN1B60KS

[F1Guy]

Toro Rosso and Honda partnership not quite over yet. Discussions ongoing, apparently.

[ScotsBrutesFan]

Originally Posted by F1Guy

Toro Rosso and Honda partnership not quite over yet. Discussions ongoing, apparently.

And your evidence or source of this for this is?

[peebee2]

Originally Posted by ScotsBrutesFan

And your evidence or source of this for this is?

He's doing you a favour and telling you what is happening in Belgium. Red Bull want more $.

[S griffin]

I just think that the fact that the Ferrari team is pulling everything in place for Vettel is a great more reason for the German to sign the contract