2016 GP2 silly season thread

[Juntos]

Lazarus sold. Hilmer for sale. Rapax next in line.

Sometimes it’s best not to call, in order to avoid being called out later.

[Formulahistory]

Rapax is for sale? Any details about that?

[chunterer]

Originally Posted by Formulahistory

Rapax is for sale? Any details about that?

I suspect a lot of the teams would be 'for sale' at the right price!

Other than Rowland can we expect to see any more of the 3.5 drivers move onto GP2 next year?

[Mekola]

Originally Posted by chunterer

Other than Rowland can we expect to see any more of the 3.5 drivers move onto GP2 next year?

I hope to see Ellinas in GP2 next year, and (hope so) Regalia back.

[Biscuits In A Red Bull]

We've had Regalia back enough times to realise he's astonishingly impatient. I think his GP3 season was a one-off given by his pace elsewhere and don't think much is lost without him on the grid.

I'd like Vaxiviere also to take the move, he's proven himself to be a very handy driver and the only man in FR3.5 who could stick it to Rowland. Other than that I can't really think of who would be week served to step across to GP2, but I think a couple will.

[Rf1 Fan]

Originally Posted by Biscuits In A Red Bull

We've had Regalia back enough times to realise he's astonishingly impatient. I think his GP3 season was a one-off given by his pace elsewhere and don't think much is lost without him on the grid.

I'd like Vaxiviere also to take the move, he's proven himself to be a very handy driver and the only man in FR3.5 who could stick it to Rowland. Other than that I can't really think of who would be week served to step across to GP2, but I think a couple will.

Well it will depends on how much cash people will be able to raise.

1.5 million € for a backmarker seat.

I guess that Stroll will fund a seat at Prema and that Russian Time will have cheaper seat. Carlin will probably have seat paid by KFC indonesia in order to help Gelael.

So it means that we have probably 21 seats at full rates.

[Formulahistory]

Stroll is going to drive another F3 season. I think Prema Power will prepare the GP2 squad for 2017 when Stroll will join them. So I think there will be at least one experienced guy at Prema Power, perhaps Marciello, Lynn or another former Prema driver.

[Rf1 Fan]

Originally Posted by Formulahistory

Stroll is going to drive another F3 season. I think Prema Power will prepare the GP2 squad for 2017 when Stroll will join them. So I think there will be at least one experienced guy at Prema Power, perhaps Marciello, Lynn or another former Prema driver.

Lance Stroll is going to stay in F3 but i'm sure that his father will fund a seat in order to get a driver with some experience.

[Formulahistory]

ART: Nobuharu Matsushita, Nyck de Vries
Racing Engineering: Jordan King, Jazeman Jaafar
Campos: Arthur Pic, Brandon Maïsano
DAMS: Alex Lynn, Pierre Gasly
Rapax: Robert Vişoiu, Kevin Ceccon
Russian Time: Artem Markelov, Sergey Sirotkin
Trident: Luca Ghiotto, Gustav Malja
Status: Oliver Rowland, Matthieu Vaxivière
Carlin: Sean Gelael, Antonio Giovinazzi
MP: Daniël de Jong, Meindert van Buuren
Arden: Norman Nato, Nicholas Latifi
Hilmer: Nick Yelloly, Patric Niederhauser
Prema Power: Esteban Ocon, Felix Rosenqvist

[Formulahistory]

Eriksson is going to test for Trident and Arden:

http://www.italiaracing.net/newsint.aspx?id=56360&cat=4

[Juntos]

Who will follow Sean Geleal if Giovinazzi moves DTM?

[Mekola]

Originally Posted by Juntos

Who will follow Sean Geleal if Giovinazzi moves DTM?

Why not the likes of Ellinas or Regalia then?

[Rf1 Fan]

Ollie Rowland will test at least with Dams , Prema and ART.

[Formulahistory]

where do you have this from?

[Rf1 Fan]

Originally Posted by Formulahistory

where do you have this from?

From BT sport.

RSF boss went on the programm explaining what comes next for Barnicoat,Rowland and Dennis.

[peebee2]

Originally Posted by Juntos

Who will follow Sean Geleal if Giovinazzi moves DTM?

Galeal perhaps wont be at carlin?

[Mekola]

Originally Posted by Biscuits In A Red Bull

We've had Regalia back enough times to realise he's astonishingly impatient. I think his GP3 season was a one-off given by his pace elsewhere and don't think much is lost without him on the grid.

Problem is, Argentina has almost no representants in F1 / GP2 / F35 / GP3 scheme, bar Siebert who is a test driver for Jenzer GP3 next year. Regalia, with all his odds, is one of our best representante today. If not, what we could do? Bring back Guerrieri, after his long career in lower formula racing? How to convince sponsors to bring to Europe the younger generation of Argentine formula racers (Augusto Scalbi, Bruno Etman, Nicolás Dapero, Julián Santero, Camilo EchevarrÃ*a, Carlos Javier Merlo, Federico Cavagnero, Wilson Borgnino...) who are trapped by our "four tyrants" of Argentine Touring Cars? We need help from outside to promote our drivers...

[kotkot]

Originally Posted by Mekola

Problem is, Argentina has almost no representants in F1 / GP2 / F35 / GP3 scheme, bar Siebert who is a test driver for Jenzer GP3 next year. Regalia, with all his odds, is one of our best representante today. If not, what we could do? Bring back Guerrieri, after his long career in lower formula racing? How to convince sponsors to bring to Europe the younger generation of Argentine formula racers (Augusto Scalbi, Bruno Etman, Nicolás Dapero, Julián Santero, Camilo EchevarrÃ*a, Carlos Javier Merlo, Federico Cavagnero, Wilson Borgnino...) who are trapped by our "four tyrants" of Argentine Touring Cars? We need help from outside to promote our drivers...

Not quite an answer to your question, but...
...Dapero is a Juncos test driver and will participate in Pro Mazda next year and Federico Iribarne will be in Italian F4 with Torino Squadra. There was another guy testing in Jenzer alongside Siebert, can't remember who.

Hopefully you'll get some enjoyment following these guys next year. Me, as a Hungarian, can absolutely sympathize.

[Rf1 Fan]

Luca Ghiotto will test with three different teams.

[Formulahistory]

for which teams?

[Razzzor]

So how about Rowlands performance at Bahrain? I was actually looking forward to seeing Rowland vs Stanaway, because I think Stanaway would have smashed him and maybe a few would realise the talent he's got.

But he took Stanaways drive, which I assume came down to money considering how Stanaway has done this year. For Status to keep Stockinger, who's been beaten by Stanaway in every qualifying and almost race this year... has to be money. In fact, just looking over the results, Stockinger has been 0.5s-1.5s off Stanaway's qualifying lap in every session this year. He hasn't gotten closer than half a second.

So first time out, Rowland gets outqualified by Stockinger. 18th, and that's the #23 cars worst grid position of the year and first time outqualified by the teammate.

Gets a good start in race 1 passing Stockinger but starts dropping like a fly, pits early, by the end of the race his tyres are done (again) and he finished 2nd to last with only still running Gelael behind him. No issues that I'm aware of, just not fast enough and killed the tyres in both stints. Basically slowest in the field.

Then we all saw race 2 as he drove over the top of another car. Commentators tried to say something about the car ahead being too slow, but that's just making excuses for the 3.5 champ. Honestly one of the most amateur moves of the year. The car in front wasn't even going that slow, it's up to the driver behind not to just ram him.

Considering Stockinger got his 2nd best result of the year (13th) to back up his 11th at this same track in round 1, the Status wasn't that bad around Bahrain so I would have expected Stanaway to easily be in the top 10.

But Stanaway didn't even need to be in the race I don't think, to show that Rowland's performance was pretty poor.

That Status isn't a fast team, they're a backmarker. Even in the other races Rowland has done this year with MP Motorsport, he qualified 2nd at Spa, suggesting even MP is faster than the Status.
What Stanaway has done in it, winning 2 races, has been pretty incredible. He's had some luck for sure. But at this point he may not have a drive next year and have to go Aston Martin racing in WEC.

Rowland will probably get a top drive next year despite this (replace Vandoorne perhaps?), as he is a great driver. You don't dominate WSR by being an average driver. And I wouldn't be surprised if he ends up with wins next year and eventually gets to F1. If Rowland does end up at Status in 2016, I'll eat my hat if he manages to win 2 races.

[Biscuits In A Red Bull]

Tbf give Rowland experience and he'd do about the job Stanaway has done this season (which tbf has been very, very good). Ritchie said he's eyeing Super Formula too, which could be good in tandem with WEC, as with Lotterer, etc.

But Rowland was uncharacteristically poor. Race 2 was just plain silly. Like I said though, he's the FR3.5 champ for crying out loud, give the lad experience and he'll be successful in GP2.

[Rf1 Fan]

I don't think it is quite relevant to compare a guy just doing an outing against a full time driver who had an history with Status.

Then for 2016 it will be difficulto predict what might happen even if Rowland gets a top drive.

If Lynn is staying with Dams, Gasly being around, Sirotkin, Matsushita staying with ART it will be very competitive

[chunterer]

I am not surprised a top talent fails to impress in GP2 anymore.

When will everyone wake up and realise there are MASSIVE variables at play in the category which the organisers seem at pains to ignore (or hide)

Teams, cars, set ups etc etc.

It is a lottery unless you are fortunate enough to get a drive in one of the top 3-4 teams.

And for that you need the money to do it (or get it paid for you)

To my mind the category is almost completely separate from the original concept of 2005 when the competition was fairly even amongst the top 6-8 teams.

I am fed up with seeing quality drivers struggling in the midfield or the back and getting 'beaten' by total journeymen.

[p-matt]

^ If GP2 is such a lottery, and the talent doesn't come through, how come Vandoorne bossed it this year? If it's random how come we don't see a driver like, say Negrao getting the odd podium?

The fact is that the massive variables you refer to are the same as in F1 - degrading tyres, reading strategy, race craft, the need to be able to overtake, etc. If you look at how someone like Magnussen came through to F1 he came through formulae where it was only important to qualify up front, get a good start and control the race from there. When he got to F1, his lack of having experience in car management and race craft really showed - he got involved in needless incidents and still struggled to manage his tyres by the end of the season.

The GP2 car is complex, the different disciplines in a race weekend - i.e. quali, the feature race and the sprint race all require different skills, and there's only 45 minutes of practice a weekend - so it is not surprising that it takes time to master all of these aspects. It doesn't mean to say that the experienced guys are journeymen. Are we so used to the Red Bull way of looking at drivers that we junk them if they don't perform instantly? If that was the case we wouldn't have Grosjean in F1 when there's no doubt he's worthy of a seat at a top team. Even Rossi's done more than a respectable job in an F1 car, and he's only done 8 more races in GP2 than Vandoorne!

I suppose my point is at what point do we decide who the real stars that should be in F1 are? It seems to be that people on here fixate on F3 and Eurocup when drivers aren't being tested on all of the skills they need to be a decent F1 driver. So someone like Marciello who looked mega in F3 is being found out in GP2 a bit IMO because it's clear that he lacks the racecraft of the front runners he's fighting with.