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29 Nov 2013, 18:32 (Ref:3338249) | #1 | |
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The Maldonado thing...
If someone could justify how anyone in F1 could sign him - yet alone a top team - on anything other than money, I'd like to hear it.
Personally I'd now love to see the entire Qauntum deal to break down completely and Lotus to return to the mid-pack, because this is sums up exactly what is wrong with the current business model of F1, and I think that Bernie needs a wake-up call. Now Nico Hulkenberg, a driver with arguably the best junior racing CV on the F1 grid, who basically dragged his Sauber to ridiculous positions, outfinishing Fernando Alonso (famous for outperforming his car) and even both Mercs on occasion despite having a car that was slower on race pace, will be left to look for a decent drive... ...for the 4th consecutive season. ...compare that to Maldonado, who somehow didn't get a drive-through penalty for speeding in the pit lane this season, but was still caught up in 3 incidents, 2 that were 700% avoidable and 1300% his fault. After having 3 seasons of complete idiocy and somehow a surprising (but deserved) win, despite the credit going as much to the stewards and the fact the race wasn't 1 lap longer than him. Despite my faulty maths and the fact I am slightly angry, am I not correct? |
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29 Nov 2013, 19:27 (Ref:3338275) | #2 | ||
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He's been in F1 for three seasons, one in a very quick car, and scored a career total of 47 points. Hulkenberg scored more than that this season.
It's a travesty that its Pastor and not Nico in a potentially frontrunning Lotus drive. |
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29 Nov 2013, 20:25 (Ref:3338299) | #3 | |
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The Williams car was hardly quick this year or in 2011. More like, worst of the rest, among mid-pack teams.
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29 Nov 2013, 20:25 (Ref:3338300) | #4 | |||
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30 Nov 2013, 09:29 (Ref:3338510) | #5 | ||
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29 Nov 2013, 20:28 (Ref:3338303) | #6 | ||
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Well, at least Beryl will be pleased.
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29 Nov 2013, 22:13 (Ref:3338347) | #7 | |
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29 Nov 2013, 22:45 (Ref:3338357) | #8 | ||
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Sorry Beryl, just assumed he was one of your faves by the way you seemed to have been four square behind him in another thread, no offense intended.
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29 Nov 2013, 23:12 (Ref:3338372) | #9 | ||
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That said, while Maldonado is a good driver when he stays out of trouble, I think Sergio and Nico are considerably better and would have made better use of that Lotus seat, so I'm a bit disappointed and not exactly pleased. |
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30 Nov 2013, 00:14 (Ref:3338387) | #10 | ||
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Maldonado is a driver with a very worthy turn of speed but he needs people in the team to give him a good whipping and to discipline him and I'm not sure he's had that at Williams as he's the guy bringing gold to a team in a fragile situation. He's also rubbing everyone the wrong way because he's a lout on the track and the way he's been brazenly disparaging his team - particularly recently.
Think of it as Hector Rebaque type of appointment, the guy who joined Brabham as teammate to Piquet back in the day. Maldonado's appointment is not desirable for me - I'd far prefer Nico - but I can be philosophical about it as well. A guy who brings gold to even a team up the grid is just part of this business. |
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30 Nov 2013, 00:40 (Ref:3338398) | #11 | ||
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30 Nov 2013, 00:59 (Ref:3338402) | #12 | ||
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I think both Grosjean and Maldonado, whilst not the optimum combo talent wise, will both have something to say in the races in 2014. They might wind up in the gravel trap or with a record that would make Ronnie Biggs blush but they'll be up there.
Or to put it another way, this won't a one car team as it was with Senna and Nakajima nor with Senna and Dumfries, but it will be a two car team. Whilst Maldonado is as obnoxious as Nico has potential, I wouldn't overstate the injustice of this situation either. It's injustice sure but at least injustice within the time honoured traditions of the sport. |
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30 Nov 2013, 02:16 (Ref:3338418) | #13 | |
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Maldonado is like the extreme version of Grosjean. Lots of pace but with a weird headspace that prevents him from using it in an effective way. He's a great villain and makes F1 more exciting by being in it.
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30 Nov 2013, 02:19 (Ref:3338419) | #14 | ||
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How long will it take him to accuse the Lotus team of fiddling with his car?
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30 Nov 2013, 03:03 (Ref:3338432) | #15 | ||
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30 Nov 2013, 13:26 (Ref:3338593) | #16 | |||
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Not that he deserves his own thread. Or indeed an F1 drive. |
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30 Nov 2013, 15:59 (Ref:3338646) | #17 | |
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30 Nov 2013, 04:02 (Ref:3338446) | #18 | ||
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All settled everyone. Pastor is going to replace Kimi at Lotus. Ought to solve a few of Lotus's cash issues anyway.
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30 Nov 2013, 18:20 (Ref:3338697) | #19 | ||
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280 days...... |
30 Nov 2013, 10:01 (Ref:3338516) | #20 | ||
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He shouldn't be 'blamed' for being in F1, nor should Lotus be cast as morons for signing him. He is a symptom of the debacle F1 has engineered itself into. It is no longer a 'sport' where the world's fastest drivers compete in the world's fastest cars. Despite many attempts to curtail costs, budgets have mushroomed even larger. What I find most bizarre is that so called 'low budget' teams like Williams, Sauber and Force India have been instrumental in dismissing some of the cost cutting measures and placing themselves in peril and at the mercy of the Maldonados and Sirotkins in a quest to maintain the intrinsic value of their constructor status. It's all rather bizarre. |
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30 Nov 2013, 10:19 (Ref:3338523) | #21 | |
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What F1 needs is someone in charge who is logical and puts the survival of F1 ahead of their own pockets...
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30 Nov 2013, 16:33 (Ref:3338663) | #22 | ||
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Well they did and that's that.
People say (including some journalists) that he's seriously fast and maybe can shine in 2014. Sure he is, he has to be or even the biggest sum of money wouldn't secure a seat for him. He's a professional driver and that bit must be included in the requirements package. The whole point is the balance between a driver who has enough money to buy his seat in a team like Lotus and a driver who has enough talent to bring the team to a top level. At the moment, Lotus current situation is to fight to stay alive in F1. After that comes all the other "priorities". Will they be able to grab points with regularity like Kimi did ? Will they be able to have podiums like Kimi had ? Will they be able to finish most of the races ? I'm sure those questions were all left behind somewhere through the failure of the Quantum deal. Everything will change next season and that's the big bet for most of the teams, but right now, Lotus has left the group of teams that have a strong package to be a title contender. I might be wrong, I really can be and I'll be glad if they prove I'm wrong, but only time will tell. |
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30 Nov 2013, 17:05 (Ref:3338668) | #23 | |
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They managed to achieve that this year and it took them to the brink of bankruptcy. If the rewards of success can not overcome the basic costs of operating in F1 then the model is flawed and needs to be changed.
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30 Nov 2013, 20:38 (Ref:3338733) | #24 | ||
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I believe, so just guessing, that this situation has been happening before this season, so it's more like a downhill route.
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30 Nov 2013, 21:28 (Ref:3338743) | #25 | |
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