Lauda out !

[El_Gibleto]

The BBC are reporting that following a meeting today Nicki Lauda has been sacked by Jaguar

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/moto...ne/2513141.stm

Link to BBC News site

[mac]

I find that hard to believe after he has just got in place his "vision" for the future. Why sack him before he has a chance to make it work?

[Wrex]

Originally posted by mac
Why sack him before he has a chance to make it work?

Ask Rahal

The last piece of the puzzle comes into play. This is inevitable. When something fails to perform and people start losing jobs, you know the buck has to stop with the person leading the failing team.

Niki, you are the weakest link - Goodbye!

[Uncle Sam]

This is a disappointment. I hope it's not so.

Niki is THE MAN. No gutsier racer exists in my book. Schumacher can't hold Niki's boot laces in that department. But that doesn't necessarily make for a good manager.

[Onlooker]

Originally posted by mac
I find that hard to believe after he has just got in place his "vision" for the future. Why sack him before he has a chance to make it work?

Maybe they didn't like his vision. I wonder if Webber knew that this was going to be the situation before he signed??

[MiniMe]

this is not surprising - Jag seem to change their team boss and designers every pit stop.

Jaguar (& the other teams) would do well to learn the lesson exampled by Ferarri in the mid-90s = pick your players and let them work towards a championship in 3-4 years time.

[RaceFreak]

Bobby Rahal gets the last laugh.

[JonesF1]

Jesus would get sacked if he worked for Jag. These guys are never going to get the solid base they need. I give them less then 4 years before Ford pulls the plug.

[The Other Chris]

if i was ford id cut my loses now. the people making decisions at Jag obviously dont know what the hell theyre doing. as someone said earlier a key to success is stability and you dont get stability by having a new team principal/designer every season.

[Valve Bounce]

It was strange when Ford took over the team from Stewart and called it Jaguar. This team, considering the resources, is the most underachieved team in F1, bar none. One wonders why Niki was hired when the team had Rahal, and internal politics saw Niki take over the team. They had a reasonably good drivr line up, and they were supposed to have their own wind tunnel. I even tipped them to achieve great things in 2000.
Now, with the sacking of Niki, plus 40 to 60 staff, Jaguar will become a secondary team with a potential of just above Minardi because they have Mark Webber. I thought it was strange when Jaguar announced they were going to consider the cost cutting path of limited testing and parctice morning testing instead. Will Ford pull the plug after next year?
Is it possible that by the start of 2004, we will just have Ferrari, McLaren, Williams, Renault, Toyota, and perhaps Baronda also, left in F1? with the other teams reduced to folklore!

[tanalised]

What I can't understand is how they turned a team like Stewart which was doing mildly okay, with a seemingly okay chassis into a complete pile of cr@p in the space of an off season

[Valve Bounce]

Originally posted by tanalised
What I can't understand is how they turned a team like Stewart which was doing mildly okay, with a seemingly okay chassis into a complete pile of cr@p in the space of an off season

EXACTLY

[MiniMe]

I stand by my statements all year that Webber could have done a LOT better than Jaguar - even staying with Stoddart for another year. I would have liked to see Webber in a Renault but I guess Flavio couldn't pull those strings.

Methinks Webber loves that 'serious wedge' as he calls it ($$$) and that's why he moved to Jag. Anyone hear how serious the wedge is in Webber's pay pack? How long is Webber's contract?

And the big question for Jaguar - who is the new team boss?

[Adam43]

Webber's contract is two years, I think. And I doubt it is for much 'wedge'.

On the main topic: It seems this could be the case. Lauda out. I think Uncle Sam is right. A great driver, but a good manager?

Great quotes and a no bull attitude is OK, but does it get the best out of your team?

[Mr V]

Originally posted by MiniMe
Anyone hear how serious the wedge is in Webber's pay pack?

I may be wrong, but i think i read somewhere that Webber is to be paid £1.5mill and Pizzonia £1/2mill

[av8rirl]

EJ must be laffin his socks off.

Prediction: Ford to pull the plug on Jag at end of 2003 and Jordan Ford to have a bigger budget in 2004.

[Mr V]

I don't know why people would show such surprise if this news is true, Niki may have been a good driver but that doesn't always make for a good team boss (Prost) and to be honest, when he was at Ferrari (in the early '90's) he didn't do the job and he hasn't done anything since being at Jag, i'll bet that Bobby Rahal will be laughing his socks off!

[Sato san]

Originally posted by mr v
i'll bet that Bobby Rahal will be laughing his socks off!

i hope he is....He must at least have a wry smile on his face when he see's whats happened since LAuda pushed him out.

[Super Tourer]

Rumours say that Sir Jackie Stewart will assume the role of team boss. So Ford will have spent all that cash to end up where they started, with a JYS run team.

Ford allegedly lose £1,500 on every new car they sell, with these type of managment skills, its hardly surprising.

[Airhead]

Niki is the man. So true - as Uncle said above he is the true embodiment of the sport. Just having him there to slap Irvine around before a qualifying session, should have made Idiot Eddie 2 secs a lap faster than Schumacher. Just to live in the guys slip stream, to wait for a chance to empty the bin he throws his spent paper towels into.

How could true drivers not be inspired to the highest level of competition, in an age of mediocrity, the drivers for Niki's team excelled at performing under the lower control arm of the process control chart.

Niki needed better raw material, not spoilt boys worried about the next pit babe to stagger their way on shonky high heels. Guys who spent less money on hair cuts and more time at the knee of the master.

[Airhead]

I mean for Christopher's sake, Eddies an Idiot and Pedro is nothing short of a fool.

OK, I'm gone...

[Stephen Green]

This mornings press reports still say Lauda is leaving and that as part of the restructuring between 46 and 60 other jobs are to be axed. Like other teams, the global turndown has meant it has been harder to acquire sponsorship and belts have to be tightened.

[R]

It's been all downhill ever since Jaguar took over the Stewart team, hasn't it? Stewart were doing extremely well for a new team, but when Ford decided to take over, it all went wrong.

I agree with Uncle Sam and Adam. I've always had (and still have) enormous respect for Lauda the man and the driver, but what about Lauda the team principal? Being a great driver doesn't necessarily make you a great team boss, and - as someone else said - Prost can testify to that. One thing's for sure, when your team doesn't perform, the ultimate responsibility lies with the management, no matter what.

[Stephen Green]

Exactly! Ford seems to have gone the way of Ferrari all those years ago, all politics and no one person having overall responsibility for the program. They need to appoint one person who has overal control, let that person develop the team and staff and give the team say 5 years to get it sorted. After that it would need to be re-appraised.

[Rennen]

Stephen seems to have it pretty well summed up.

But it comes a little late from my point of view...if you follow my drift!