Christian Fittipaldi to Jenson?

jjspierx · 28 Apr 2005, 16:23 (Ref:1289537)

http://www.speedtv.com/articles/auto/champcar/16524/

GBoehm · 28 Apr 2005, 17:04 (Ref:1289554)

Not exactly the greatest driver, but a famous name back in the series can't hurt, now all we need is Emerson to start his team up again.

Hazard · 28 Apr 2005, 17:35 (Ref:1289573)

So that's where they all are? Look whoelse is in the 'Brazilian Stock Car' championship...

Luiz Garcia Jnr, Gualter Salles, Raul Boesel & Luciano Burti among others I don't know

Snrub · 28 Apr 2005, 21:21 (Ref:1289701)

Jensen probably would be best served by a vetern driver. They were REALLY out of their depth @ LB (not meaning that to be critical).

That said, I don't really have any desire to see Christian back in a car, particularly when there are so many other drivers out there looking for a shot.

icemachine · 28 Apr 2005, 22:30 (Ref:1289745)

Man I wish I had enough money to ante up for a ride. I could finish a race at the back of the pack too

Personally I hope we get to see Valiante or Macri at the wheel, before Christian

enemy-ace · 28 Apr 2005, 22:39 (Ref:1289750)

Whether or not Fittipaldi drives in the CCWS that Brazilian Stock Car looks pretty cool!

BootsOntheSide · 30 Apr 2005, 11:25 (Ref:1290568)

The whole reasoning behind runnign del Monte mnade very little sense originally, although I think it would take Christian a few races to adjust back to signle-seaters, adna few more races to help the team get anything out of the car. Even then he was nothing special for years.

Kicking-back · 30 Apr 2005, 11:29 (Ref:1290570)

del Monte is doing the season in Italian F3000 so it looks like he won't be back in ChampCar.

luke · 30 Apr 2005, 12:38 (Ref:1290591)

The rumor of Christian racing for Jensen at Monterrey has been round for a while, but he did state that if he had the opportunity he would love to race.
Although it looks much more likey that Lavin will race for Jensen and that Del Monte is history.
Although Valiante could well do the Canadian races.

trout · 1 May 2005, 12:49 (Ref:1291047)

Christian is a known name, but I agree he is nothing special. I also dispute whether he can bring sponsorship. If he could, he would be in a car by now - either in the IRL or CCWS. So how does this make him better than Valiante? Sure he is a veteran, but set up has never been his forte.

I'm trying to like Jensen, but his logic leaves me confused....

Flatspot · 1 May 2005, 14:04 (Ref:1291087)

While I am not Fittipaldi's biggest fan I would like to see him back in the series for a number of reasons and beleive he would be a front runner, especially in the current field. While he lacks in wins his average finish is pretty good. In 151 CART starts he has 2-wins, 18-2/3's plus an additional 50 top 10's. Being on the podium roughly 15% of the time. While not great it is certainly not horrible. Statistically that puts him right there with guys like Vasser, Moreno, Fernandez, Castroneves. Not superstars but great drivers nevertheless.

jock25 · 2 May 2005, 11:52 (Ref:1291448)

It would be good for the CCWS to get Fittipaldi back if only because he is a "name". Those occasional fans who watched Champ Car in the late 90s would have someone familiar to watch. The totally lack of familiar names (aside from Vasser, Tracy and perhaps da Matta) due to the influx of very talented but largely unknown drivers is a big problem.

There are probably other drivers out there who want to race CCWS more but Christian would get Jensen and the series greater exposure.

Snrub · 2 May 2005, 15:42 (Ref:1291522)

Christian also had top equipment for that run and Jensen is newer than any team I can ever recall. I'd argue that Vasser, Moreno, Fernandez and Castro Neves were all far better. The difference is that those drivers were all championship contenders in at least one season of competition. Chrisitan was never really a contender. Perhaps his best season was 2002, but look at how he fared.

Flatspot · 2 May 2005, 19:24 (Ref:1291614)

I hear what you're saying Snrub but the statistics don't bear it out, with the possible exception of Moreno who claimed a lot of his stats as a substitute driver. Maybe Fittipaldi should have done better with the goods he had but the field was much stronger at that point also.

IMO he is far better than at least half of the current field and I believe the experience factor would be an excellent move for Jensen. Rookie team + rookie driver is typically a recipe for failure. Not always but typically. I also beleive the name brings something to the table for Champ Car (for the right reasons or not).

macdaddy · 2 May 2005, 22:29 (Ref:1291702)

I gotta agree with Snrub. Christian never really impressed me at all. Regardless of the strength of the field at the time, he always (to me) seemed to perform sub-par given the equipment and team he was in.

Quote:

Flatspot:

He is far better than at least half of the current field

Time will tell. We've got some wonderful rookies this year who will need more than just one race to prove themselves. Perhaps I could cut some slack and agree to that statement, if not for the word "far". And you mention that "the name" brings something to the series, but IMO he's hanging on somebody else's coattails. It's the surname that carries recognition, and Christian has little to do with that.

Flatspot · 2 May 2005, 23:38 (Ref:1291716)

OK so my opinion is not the most popular one. I can live with that. LOL

I agree that he is hanging on to coattails, but when you put the word Fittipaldi in a race advertizement, except fot the few who truly know what's up, most people don't know or care if it's Emmo, Christian, or their long lost cousin Larry. That's the unfortunate part.

StickShift · 3 May 2005, 01:27 (Ref:1291736)

*shrug* He is a driver of yesterday. Champ Car and Jensen should be focussing on the future, not dwelling on relics. It's time to move on.

The only drivers left in the series from the last generation are Tracy and Vasser, and even they aren't guaranteed beyond 2005.

Snrub · 3 May 2005, 02:58 (Ref:1291743)

Quote:

Originally Posted by Flatspot

I hear what you're saying Snrub but the statistics don't bear it out, with the possible exception of Moreno who claimed a lot of his stats as a substitute driver. Maybe Fittipaldi should have done better with the goods he had but the field was much stronger at that point also.

IMO he is far better than at least half of the current field and I believe the experience factor would be an excellent move for Jensen. Rookie team + rookie driver is typically a recipe for failure. Not always but typically. I also beleive the name brings something to the table for Champ Car (for the right reasons or not).

I'll be honest, I was surprised by how good those stats were. Statistics are a way to try to accurately represent a situation. One size fits all is not the best way to measure something in every situation. I really think the lack of championship contention is evidence of the problem with the 2nd/3rd numbers.

The current field is really strong, at least stronger than a lot of the CART years. Christian is not better than half of the field. Now factor in the closer parity of equipment.

I don't think we're that far apart on our opinions of Christian, I do think he'd probably be one of the best possible choices for Jensen. I disagree as to how well he compares to the field and his ability to acheive success in a backmarker car. As for the last point, look no further than CDM in the PKV car @ LB. If that's all CDM can achieve, imagine Christian in a car that's a further 2 seconds slower!

jock25 · 3 May 2005, 10:13 (Ref:1291872)

There are two seperate discussions here: 1) is Christian going to Jensen good for Jensen and 2) is it going to be good for CCWS.

On the first one, there are drivers out there who are more up for it and likely to drive with more desire than Fittipaldi. So on this one it is probably better that it is not Fittipaldi.

On the second arguement, it is better for the series that it is Fittipaldi. It is fine to say the series should be looking to the future but for several years it has been effectively a proving ground for drivers more interested in getting a leg-up to F1 when they lost out on that race/testing seat. That constant turnonver of (mostly European) unknown drivers does not help the championship connect with its core North American fanbase. This is especially the case when the IRL has all the names from the 90's that average joe will recognise.
Undoubtedly Christian's surname has helped him a lot but i think it would help CC out a lot at this time. Until the current crop of young stars become more widely known and recognised (which will take time), pushing on with a grid that is almost entirely unfamiliar is not in best interests of the series.

JohnSSC · 3 May 2005, 11:00 (Ref:1291906)

I think the underlying question here is what the heck is going on at Jensen?

First, a driver search is announced with great fanfare, and the "no need to bring $$" is emphasized.

Second, DelMonte is pulled out of a hat along with a rabbit, a dove and a Lola chassis.

Third, DelMonte turns out to be below pedestrian at Long Beach but already the CF rumors have started.

Fourth, DelMonte appears to have a full time ride in another series all along and yet no replacement has been named.

It is not a question as to whether CF is an improvement over DelMonte (or anyone else in the field) but does Jensen have a plan/clue?

BootsOntheSide · 3 May 2005, 11:08 (Ref:1291916)

Del Monte was probably a scapegoat all along, whcih is a sad way of doing business. Whoever comes in now (be it Fitipalidi, Lavin, Valiente or whoever) will probably find that the car is better than at Long Beach, and they will have a chance to not finish last. That makes them look better in the eyes of potential sponsors, who will not understand the details of how mcuh work it takes a small team to get ready for the championship (especially one that originally planned to do a partial season, mcuh to the mocking of several tenthers (including ymself) and confident predictions that they would never appear).

rustyfan · 3 May 2005, 11:58 (Ref:1291961)

Well... at least Del Monte was an extra car on the grid.

Snrub · 3 May 2005, 14:52 (Ref:1292065)

Quote:

Originally Posted by JohnSSC

I think the underlying question here is what the heck is going on at Jensen?

It is not a question as to whether CF is an improvement over DelMonte (or anyone else in the field) but does Jensen have a plan/clue?

I think they were just grossly unprepared for LB (I know that sounds obvious).

Consider that Forsythe, the #2 team in the series, had Dominguez meet the team a day before 1st practice. Now subtract $10M from the equation and you've got Jensen showing up to a race with a car they didn't even have time to paint. Actually, we're not sure if Dominguez's car was painted either! Jensen just isn't sorted out yet. Basically they're still in silly season even though there has been a race.

JohnSSC · 4 May 2005, 03:22 (Ref:1292537)

Fielding a car in a top-level open wheel series is no place for those who are not "sorted out" or worse, still in "silly season."

It does the team no good to appear unprepared if they are looking to gain positive attention from the potential sponsors - at best. At worst, it could get someone hurt.

marcus · 4 May 2005, 08:37 (Ref:1292641)

I would agree with that John.

it was a pretty porr effort by Jensen but at least there is only one place to go now , thats up

Hopefully they can improve (well they better or no one will pay the bills) and if Christian is the man to help them kick it along a bit then Im all for it

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