*** Offical F1 Thread ***

**xjsynx** · 05-01-2008, 02:12 PM

Four races in the 2008 season, but better late then never...

**xjsynx** · 05-01-2008, 02:47 PM

Pos	No	Driver	Team	Laps	Time/Retired	Grid	Pts
2008 FORMULA 1 ING AUSTRALIAN GRAND PRIX
1	22	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren-Mercedes	58	1:34:50.616	1	10
2	3	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	58	+5.4 secs	5	8
3	7	Nico Rosberg	Williams-Toyota	58	+8.1 secs	7	6
4	5	Fernando Alonso	Renault	58	+17.1 secs	11	5
5	23	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren-Mercedes	58	+18.0 secs	3	4
6	8	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams-Toyota	57	+1 Lap	13	3
7	14	Sebastien Bourdais	STR-Ferrari	55	Engine	17	2
8	1	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	53	Engine	15	1

**xjsynx** · 05-01-2008, 02:51 PM

Danica Patrick, who made history when she claimed her first IndyCar race win two weeks ago, has confessed to wanting a F1 test.

Patrick made her IndyCar debut in 2005, however, it wasn't until three years later, driving for Andretti Green Racing, that she claimed her first victory, winning the Indy Japan 300 and thereby becoming the first woman to win an IndyCar race.

The American is now hoping to test her skills in Formula One, admitting that she would relish a "proper" test with one of the teams.

"Every driver would love to drive a Formula One car at some point in their life, so yeah," she told Autosport. "I don't think there's anything wrong with a real, proper test.

"I was asked to do a demonstration lap at Indy in 2005, and I said, 'No way. You're making me a show. That's embarrassing.' But I would say that a real test is absolutely something I would do."

And one team who would welcome her testing with them is Honda. "We haven't instigated anything, but if Danica wanted to be test driver then we'd be more than happy to talk about it," Honda CEO Nick Fry said.

usf97j4x4 · 05-01-2008, 02:53 PM

Danica's win was a joke bro... that wasn't even a real race. She is all hype, that being said i'd still do her.

**xjsynx** · 05-02-2008, 10:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by usf97j4x4

Danica's win was a joke bro... that wasn't even a real race. She is all hype, that being said i'd still do her.

I don't watch IndyCar, so yeah I think she is a joke. Funny how Honda only said they would use her as test driver....Heck they can do no worse then what they are doing in F1 anyhow...

ItalianGuns · 05-04-2008, 07:04 PM

Ok, you need an Italian in this. Massa and Rik all the way. Watched a couple this season, inclusing the 1st and 2nd place finishes of Ferrari. I think Hamilton has no chance in hell, but raiko does.

Forza Ferrari!

**xjsynx** · 05-05-2008, 11:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ItalianGuns

Ok, you need an Italian in this. Massa and Rik all the way. Watched a couple this season, inclusing the 1st and 2nd place finishes of Ferrari. I think Hamilton has no chance in hell, but raiko does.

Forza Ferrari!

Ferrari looks tough as usual, and I am not a big fan of Hamilton; furthermore, Hamilton and McLaren is obviously suffering the feedback Alonso had provided them.

I am not a big Renault guy, but I am an Alonso supporter.

**xjsynx** · 05-05-2008, 11:03 AM

BTW Massa has the car, but not the intestinal fortitude it takes to become world champ...

**xjsynx** · 05-08-2008, 10:59 AM

Not sue if you guys saw the Heikki's crash during the Spanish Grand Prix, but it was massive that actually had Heikki buried under the tire wall.

Quote:

McLaren have revealed the use of the wrong lacquer coating, ie paint job, is to blame for Heikki Kovalainen's horrific Spanish GP shunt.

The Finn suffered a concussion when the front left tyre of his MP4-23 disintegrated on lap 22 of the grand prix, sending him hurtling into the tyre wall head-on.

McLaren, together with Japanese supplier Enkei, who produce their wheels, investigated the crash, ruling that it has been caused by the wheel being incorrectly coated with a clear lacquer.

"During the recent Spanish Grand Prix a new front wheel on Heikki car failed on Lap 22," the team statement said.

"Vodafone McLaren Mercedes and its Official Supplier of wheels have now conducted a thorough technical investigation to determine the exact cause of the failure.

"It has been established that, owing to a process fault during manufacture, the outer clamp surface of the wheel was given a clear lacquer coating. As a consequence of this fault, the clamp load that attached the wheel was not to specification.

"In running, the consequent loss of load caused the wheel to fret and distort, leading to its eventual failure.

"Vodafone McLaren Mercedes and the wheel supplier have now established new procedures designed to prevent a re-occurrence of this issue."

**xjsynx** · 05-08-2008, 04:00 PM

Thursday 8th May 2008

The FIA governing body has said that F1's qualifying procedure will change after Super Aguri's withdrawal from the Championship.

Race stewards at this weekend's Turkish Grand Prix said that, with only 20 cars now participating, five rather than six cars would be excluded after each of the first two parts of Saturday qualifying.

That will still leave 10 cars fighting for pole position in the final 10-minute phase.

Super Aguri, who had been the 11th team on the starting grid, announced on Tuesday that they were pulling out due to financial difficulties.