[karthik247]

Another thing is, Renault have been very reliable and powerful. Full credits to them for that.

But Ferrari & McLaren have always struggled with reliability. So they can't drive flat out at some 19k revs all the time. They have to keep watch so that they don't blow it at the end by conserving their engine and keep the revs a wee bit low at times like Michael did in the last race. And by how it looks now, they should be sorting it out sooner rather than later.

F1 is more of a package of the driver n machine, in which the machine plays a much bigger role unlike MotoGP in which the rider holds the key.

[Deeps]

Originally Posted by vinod

Micheal was driving not really driving a perfect car like at the very start of the race ! he struggled with his tyres right after the first pit stop which allowed alonso to gain 1.2 sec every lap thus eating into his 10 sec lead. so schumi should be given credit for bringing his wounded car in first place.

Moreover, schumi was leading in front of alonso and hence thre was more pressure on him to drive perfectly which I think he did brilliantly added to this his "wounded car" situation AND the burden of home win for ferrari.... means that there was WAY MORE pressure on him than Alonso and despite all this he drove almost a faultless drive for 20+ laps !!!! While alonso even though trailing behind schumi DID MAKE TWO ERRORS.... NO such errors were made by schumi !
So it was way more than the pit stop strategy that won ferrari the race.

He was suffering from tyre problems ONLY on the 2nd stint. So its unreasonable to talk about the "wounded ferrari" crap!

[merve_extreme]

Originally Posted by Deeps

No, i am not a "Michael hater from the bottom of my heart". But I don't overlook his flaws and give him god like status. And i did say that it was a well-deserved victory for ferrari.

what flaw,tell me one flaw in michaels driving.being over aggressive and deffensive is not a flaw but an asset in a sport like f1.

as for the comment about "not being a great driver",if he was really that great he would have tried many more times to get past than just sit there like a mirror photo.

[Deeps]

Originally Posted by karthik247

Another thing is, Renault have been very reliable and powerful. Full credits to them for that.

I'd reconsider using the word "always" when associating reliability with ferrari like you have done. From 2000-2005 one can count on one hand the number of reliability issues ferrari have had over the course of the season.

Originally Posted by karthik247

But Ferrari & McLaren have always struggled with reliability. So they can't drive flat out at some 19k revs all the time. They have to keep watch so that they don't blow it at the end by conserving their engine and keep the revs a wee bit low at times like Michael did in the last race. And by how it looks now, they should be sorting it out sooner rather than later.

F1 is more of a package of the driver n machine, in which the machine plays a much bigger role unlike MotoGP in which the rider holds the key.

Yes, but even at Renault 100% reliability has never been a given. So its not like Alonso can race at full throttle lap after lap without having to give a damn about his engine blowing up. Remember not too long ago when renault took to the 72 deg. engine formula rather than the conventional 90 deg.?? They had numerous reliability issues and were down on power relative to the ferraris, BMW and Merc.

[Deeps]

Originally Posted by merve_extreme

if he was really that great he would have tried many more times to get past than just sit there like a mirror photo.

Well, its not like he doesn't know what Shoemaker is capable of in desperate situations. And besides, as i have already mentioned, he had the bigger picture in mind (the championship) rather than the race win. And it makes no sense to tax your machinery while knowing that there is next to no chance of getting past. So there was absolutely no need to be bravely foolish in that scenario. Besides, he was always on the ferrari's gearbox bar the last 2 laps.

[karthik247]

From 2000-2004, Ferrari were so dominant that they had to change the rules of F1 to make the sport more intresting. Thats when Ferrari n Bridgestone lost out. But thats just ONE season, which came after a LONG time.

Being a champ ain't enough, u gotta keep it which Michael did very well for a pretty long time. And in 04', Ferrari won so many races, that it seemed as if there was no competition at all. Lets just call 05' a bad season for Ferrari, but that doesn't mean they are weaker, or slower, or have lost it. After all that racing heritage, its a matter of time before they take Alonso n Renault down

That should get u started

[Aditya]

Being passionate about a marque is alright, but, it does not mean that you have to portray other men and marques in bad light.
This thread is closed.

[karthik247]

Next race of the season and things are really gettin better for Ferrari. Lets see what Schumacher and Massa can pull out of the bag this time..But Ferrari will be running on older engines while Renault will be one brand new ones i think. Anyways, should be a great race on the awesome track. The Friday Practice results should be able to prove whos faster...

[Mistakenguy]

But seriusly I don't think the Ferraris would be able to make it . Its gonna be either Kimi or Fernando . It will be an interesting race anyways .

[merve_extreme]

the ferrari and renault are both on the pace according to friday practice times were they were seperated by .05 of a second.wurz led the day for Williams.

but times of non race drivers is rarely a pointer to anything as they use a lot more tyres and engine revs.

[bruce]

The practice session proves that the tussle will be between Alonso's Renault and MS's Ferrari. Kimi is very unlucky here three times in a row on top of that he did not do well with his timing in Pratice.
I would love to see MS & Alonso battle again....
my prediction for the pole position is
1 . ALONSO
2 . MS
3 . FISICHELLA

[karthik247]

Alexander Wurz Williams-Cosworth 1:32.675

Fernando Alonso Renault 1:33.579

Michael Schumacher Ferrari 1:33.619

Robert Doornbos RBR-Ferrari 1:33.799

Anthony Davidson Honda 1:33.870

Ralf Schumacher Toyota 1:33.883

Jenson Button Honda 1:33.920

Robert Kubica Sauber-BMW 1:33.991

Giancarlo Fisichella Renault 1:34.030

Adrian Sutil MF1-Toyota 1:34.179

Nico Rosberg Williams-Cosworth 1:34.215

Christijan Albers MF1-Toyota 1:34.472

Kimi Räikkönen McLaren-Mercedes 1:34.536

Felipe Massa Ferrari 1:34.546

Rubens Barrichello Honda 1:34.631

Mark Webber Williams-Cosworth 1:34.825

Juan Pablo Montoya McLaren-Mercedes 1:34.968

Christian Klien RBR-Ferrari 1:35.066

David Coulthard RBR-Ferrari 1:35.241

Nick Heidfeld Sauber-BMW 1:35.308

Vitantonio Liuzzi STR-Cosworth 1:35.406

Neel Jani STR-Cosworth 1:35.479

Scott Speed STR-Cosworth 1:35.669

Jacques Villeneuve Sauber-BMW 1:35.688

Tiago Monteiro MF1-Toyota 1:35.902

Takuma Sato Super Aguri-Honda 1:36.255

Franck Montagny Super Aguri-Honda 1:36.665

[kpzen]

The momentum is with MS but Alonso n Renault look pretty strong....
I hope Schumi gets a podium postion...

[aZa]

Alonso has got a new engine... plus i'm sure he is still sulking with the imola outcome!!

1. Alonso
2. schmuck
3. ?!?!?!?

hope this race is as good as the last one or better

[karthik247]

Wondering how Wurz got up there!!?