[PAVAN KADAM]

Originally Posted by good.car-ma

Sorry that we are going off topic but one last response.


Ferrari were having a bad few years until 96 just as they did in 2009. Let me remind everyone that Ferrari is not Micheal Schumacher. That is an insult to the proud history of the team and the many great champions who represented them since the 50s. MS is just one of them.

Not off-topic, since this topic covers the forthcoming race in Spain, we better clear the doubts we have.


Ferrari is not Michael Schumacher agreed. But Ferrari wove a lot to Michael Schumacher for taking them where they are today. And thats a FACT.

9 days to the Spain F1, every team is upto something, This year might prove to be totally different, Extremely unpredictable.

[lifeonwheels]

@good.car-ma - Undoubtedly Ferrari is not MS but no sane person can deny the fact that what MS did for Ferrari was more than what Ferrari did in return for him. The following facts should clear any doubts but won't be able to clear any opinion.

Motor sport author Christopher Hilton observed in 2003 that "A measure of a driver's capabilities is his performance in wet races, because the most delicate car control and sensitivity are needed," and noted that like other great drivers, Schumacher's record in wet conditions shows very few mistakes: up to the end of the 2003 season, Schumacher won 17 of the 30 races in wet conditions he contested

In 1995 the collision that you refer to was not the only one that took place. MS and HIll had quite a few collisions so would you blame MS for all of them? If you do then please refer to the follwing link and use the "search" functionality. www.youtube.com

Before Schumacher joined Ferrari the last Championship the team won was in 1979. So did Ferrari come to know about the birth of MS through some divine power and then intentionally waited for 17 years til MS joined them and then till 2000 when he won? I seriusly doubt so

If you think it was the car only then he wouldn't have won the championships in 2000, 2002 and 2003.

In 2005 MS did nto contest for the title but that was due to the change in tyre regulations and even then he did contest Alonso in one race where he started from 13th place and finished only 0.2 seconds behind Alonso.

In 2006 in Monaco MS was required to start from back of the grid due to a penalty placed on him because of his mistake. Even then he managed to climb his way upto 5th place. Now if someone thinks that on Monaco circuit someone can do that much being an vaerage driver with just a good car then I don't need to say much.

There are so many instances which clearly prove his skill despite the machine's inability but I don't need to do that much since the world knows about him and even if someone on a public forum keeps going on about his incapability it will change nothing. If I stand up today and start shouting that the earth is flat because I think so and see so would that change anything? No, but it woudl certainly do something to people's perception about me, won't it?

P.S. I'm a huge Ferrari fan and will always be but not an illogical fanboy. I weigh things before putting them across. The above info can however only prove facts and not change opinions (I don't think they should because if everybody wisened up then how would we discuss great personalities for long)

Regarding the upcoming race i personally think the change at Mercedes should do something good for MS and he would find Europe a lot more comfortable as well. My strongest bet though for the race would be Vettel or one of the Mc larens.

[mechanik]

@lifeonwheels - That was a good one.

I'm a die hard Schumi fan and I am sure that he will up his game at Barcelona, but I do not expect him to start winning already.

Brazilian GP 2006 - Drive of his life!

[kraft.wagen]

bad news for Schumi fans, I hope he gets to the podium atleast :(

Michael Schumacher has warned fans that he is unlikely to be fighting for victory in next weekend’s Spanish Grand Prix, despite the much-talked-about improvements to his Mercedes GP car.

Schumacher is confident the revised MGP W01, featuring a longer wheelbase and improved weight distribution, should bring a significant step forward at the Circuit de Catalunya, but believes it is still unlikely to match the likes of McLaren and Red Bull.

“Every team will come to Barcelona with a revised car and so of course do we,” said the seven-time world champion. “We have worked on general improvements to the car, as well as specific developments in downforce and efficiency, and I am confident that we have room to make further progress in the future.

“Our step forward in Barcelona will be bigger than you can make at each race during the flyaways but it would not be realistic to expect us to suddenly be competing right at the front.”

Schumacher, who has scored just 10 points to team mate Nico Rosberg’s 50 so far this season, openly admits he has struggled to get to grips with his 2010-spec machine after three years away from the sport.

Particularly problematic has been the narrower front tyres and the tendency towards understeer that comes with them. The German prefers a pointier front end to his car’s handling balance and Mercedes team principal Ross Brawn believes the changes to the MGP W01 should help address this.

"The start of the European season is the first opportunity to make significant changes to the car and the Spanish Grand Prix will see the first step in our development programme,” said Brawn. “In addition to a major aerodynamic and bodywork package, we have made changes to the wheelbase of the car which will help the overall handling and weight distribution.”

While some have questioned the wisdom of Schumacher’s much-hyped comeback following his poor start to the season, Mercedes believe he will soon be back in contention, citing Rosberg’s two podium finishes as proof of the car’s potential.

“Nico is currently second in the championship which shows that he and our team have done a good job in the first fifth of the season getting the best results from the material available,” said Norbert Haug, Mercedes-Benz Motorsport's vice-president.

“Michael did not have such a good run, mostly without his fault, in the first four races. I am absolutely convinced that this will change sooner rather than later."

Source f1.com

[slicks]

With all the teams getting some upgrade or the other, Barcelona will be like Round 2 for the 2010 season, the scuderia have a new F-duct, the MGP a new chasis, and some aero mods, and all the others have some small updates to their package. How much will this change the pecking order is anyone's guess. But if one of the teams manage to eek out that little advantage they will be the ones to catch in the European leg of the championship.

As far as MS and Ferrari are concerned, i agree to some of the members that MS is not Ferrari but whatever Ferrari are today, is a lot because of him. Till he moved to the Scuderia in 96 they were languishing in the mid field and the last championship that they had won was in 1979, so 16 years without a championship is a looooong time.

He got them out of their 'Italian Siesta', and got that German precision going, the rest we all know is history.

MS likes a sharp car, and that's what MGP are trying to give him in the MGP001_V2, now the ball will be in his court, and what he can/cannot do with the improved car. Two victories this season and he should be up for the WDC in 2011.

[MCR]

Just to make the things interesting, its raining on the race weekend. Race should be amazing this weekend.

Weather courtesy : F1 website

[anachronix]

Originally Posted by MCR

Just to make the things interesting, its raining on the race weekend. Race should be amazing this weekend.

Weather courtesy : F1 website

Terrible, just too terrible weather!

Just one dry race so far. I am still waiting to see the fastest car on a dry track. The rain has been making it a gamble so far

[madhav]

I want a McLaren 1-2 again this weekend with Hammy taking the top step of the podium. Don't care who comes third!

Cannot resist commenting on the interesting MS conversation...

MS has proved himself as a legend. He has victories and records which are going to be difficult to break. He built a team in Ferrari and Ferrari built him a car that suited him the best.

Now all this is history and let us talk about 2010...

MS's return was supposed to be fantastic... his reputation was that he is a master of F1 racing and he would just walk in, sit in a car and blow everyone away. That didn't happen! So what does that mean? Is he bad? Has be lost it? Or is it just the car?

The top drivers (Button, Nico, Alonso) are all driving for new teams. Does this mean that they don't have a problem with the cars? They've had as much time as MS in testing with new teams and setup the car to their liking. In fact MS should have adapted much faster with all the experience he has had.
So this is what I think...It is just that there are other drivers at this point in F1 who are better than MS. This does not take away any of MS's achievements. But it is just that he is another driver in today's lot.

(And I like it that way... cos I never liked him )

[SchumiFan]

Originally Posted by madhav

The top drivers (Button, Nico, Alonso) are all driving for new teams. Does this mean that they don't have a problem with the cars? They've had as much time as MS in testing with new teams and setup the car to their liking. In fact MS should have adapted much faster with all the experience he has had.
So this is what I think...It is just that there are other drivers at this point in F1 who are better than MS. This does not take away any of MS's achievements. But it is just that he is another driver in today's lot.

(And I like it that way... cos I never liked him )

Alonso, Button, Rosberg were all driving the cars last year too whereas Schumi was sitting in the pit-lane as a consultant for the past three years. I would give him more time to see if he has really lost his touch and indeed is a mortal or if the GOD reincarnates himself to dominate the track again.

[anachronix]

autosport.com - F1 News: Klien to replace Chandhok in practice

[nitrous]

Klien's probably paid for his test driver role and is now demanding 'seat time'.

[raj.barcode]

Car updates spain


Mercedes are coming with longer wheel base car, with blown rear wing and New air box from the previous race



Ferraris F-duct

[good.car-ma]

The rain is making it a season for the brainy drivers - for example button outwitting everyone in Oz and China. certainly a change from his Brawn performance last year hehehe.

Its interesting about the weather. only once we have a dry European race will we know whether the rules are actually making F1 boring (as some ppl say, notme) or whether it was the Bahrain track.

[anachronix]

The Bahrain track is usually boring & this year's fuel rule made it booorrring!!

And the wet races have mixed up the field which made slower cars pick up couple of wins and also made racing a bit interesting so far. I am still waiting to see how the european races would unfold!

[liquidmetal99]

Originally Posted by raj.barcode

Car updates spain

Attachment 344254

If it was'nt for the silly subliminal tobacco advertising claims and the whole controversy about the topic ferrari would still have had that marlboro barcode design in there instead of the plain empty box. Not that i support tobacco advertising or anything but hey at least it used to look better.