F1 2008 Opener

[CAL]

the results tell the story, what a wild race.

1. Hamlton

2. Heidfeld

3. Rosberg

4. Alonso

5. Kovalainen

6. Nakajima

7. Bourdais DNF

8. Raikkonen DNF

9. Kubica DNF

10. Glock DNF

11. Sato DNF

12. Piquet DNF

13. Massa DNF

14. Coulthard DNF

15. Trulli DNF

16. Sutil DNF

17. Weber DNF

18. Button DNF

19. Davidson DNF

20. Vettel DNF

21. Fisichella DNF

22. Barrichello DQ

Edited March 16, 2008 by CAL

[Mal.au]

Hi Guys

I live in Melbourne about a 45 minute drive from the track I have been to practice once, the results of todays race are normal for the first race of the season, the cars aren't sorted so of course they are going to breakdown, it costs way more to put the race on than Melbourne makes from it, Bernie keeps saying Melbourne needs to make it a night race or we are going to lose it , I say if Bernie wants to take it let him go ahead, I may be bias to this being an Aussie but we have the best car racing series in the world already here, I know a lot of people that go to the F1 race just to see the V8 supercars race, so my evil plan is for Bernie to take his race to Russia or wherever else in the world he wants and Melbourne can use the track to put on a V8 supercar race for a 1/4 of the cost and have twice the amount of people go to see it.

There I feel better I have told the world what I want

Bernie if you are out there PM me and let me know what you think LOL

Regards Mal

[MonoPed]

Hi Guys

I live in Melbourne about a 45 minute drive from the track I have been to practice once, the results of todays race are normal for the first race of the season, the cars aren't sorted so of course they are going to breakdown, it costs way more to put the race on than Melbourne makes from it, Bernie keeps saying Melbourne needs to make it a night race or we are going to lose it , I say if Bernie wants to take it let him go ahead, I may be bias to this being an Aussie but we have the best car racing series in the world already here, I know a lot of people that go to the F1 race just to see the V8 supercars race, so my evil plan is for Bernie to take his race to Russia or wherever else in the world he wants and Melbourne can use the track to put on a V8 supercar race for a 1/4 of the cost and have twice the amount of people go to see it.

There I feel better I have told the world what I want

Bernie if you are out there PM me and let me know what you think LOL

Regards Mal

Don't hold back, Mal! Tell us what ya really think...LOL!!

[crispy]

It was a really interesting race. It appeared that Kimi was just learning to drive.

The new rules or lack of common things they had last year look like it will make the racing more interesting.

I enjoyed it and look forward to Malaysia.

Chris

[CAL]

It was a really interesting race. It appeared that Kimi was just learning to drive.

The new rules or lack of common things they had last year look like it will make the racing more interesting.

I enjoyed it and look forward to Malaysia.

Chris

Yeah, Kimi did make some typical Kimi moves but lost it a few times. However, I don't think any of the Ferraris crashed out. They just quit running, which is abnormal for Ferrari. It seems to be a FPR problem... Some teams said their cars never even fired when they installed the new Microsoft/Mclaren ECU.

Edited March 16, 2008 by CAL

[robertw]

I'm sure that things will settle down but this was certainly an exciting way to start the season with only 7 of 22 cars finishing.

I don't really feel that bad for Kimi. He's made his career being an aggressive driver and this time it turned and bit him Did you hear DC, picture of an angry man!!

I'd hate to see Australia lose its GP. Bernie E. seems far more interested in making millions then putting races into areas that have a passion for auto racing. He's been threating to dump the Canadian GP and the British GP but is willing to put one in China, Malaysia, Bahrain, and now Singapore & Turkey and probably Russia. What do these places have in common other then piles of money and governments and industries that don't have to account to anyone for how they spend it. The common denominator for these countries has certainly not been a racing history, previous track facilities or a large and interested fan market. These newly built tracks also seem to produce the dullest races.

My 2 cents worth.

Rob W

[CAL]

I don't really feel that bad for Kimi. He's made his career being an aggressive driver and this time it turned and bit him Did you hear DC, picture of an angry man!!

My 2 cents worth.

Rob W

actually not so much. Yes, he did spin, but I am sure he could have finished higher, his car had a problem and fell off pace for a couple laps before quiting all together.

Very unusual for Ferrari to have these kind of relablity issues.

Basically the same thing for Massa, it wasn't his off track excursions that put him out, his car just quit running.

[Nick F40]

That race was pretty good. Ferrari had no luck along with the other 21 teams.

I personally love V8 Supercars, kind of like Australian Trans Am.

[CAL]

That race was pretty good. Ferrari had no luck along with the other 21 teams.

I personally love V8 Supercars, kind of like Australian Trans Am.

Yeah, I like the V8 Supercars, too. I wish we got more coverage of them here.

Now some are calling for Hamilton's head. Technically he should be DQed for violating after race weight-in rules, which states the driver is not to come in contact with anyone before weight-in on the way to the podium. I guess we will have to wait and see how much squawking is rasied and by who before the stewards make a call on that one.

Not a good day for Ferrari. Not all was lost though, It was a great day for Porsche at Sebring.

Now it's coming down to only 4 of 22 with a clean finish.

Nakajima will be serving a penalty next race

Barrichello was DQed

Hamilton DQ pending ???

Edited March 16, 2008 by CAL

[Peter Lombardo]

I used to love F1…I watched all the races, read the magazines and built the models. But after Senna died (1994), and many of the regulations changed, and not for the better, I lost total interest. Speed channel is re-broadcasting the race tonight at 9 pm, Eastern, so I may watch, or maybe not. My feeling is that the sport is way too over regulated. The cars are too technological to really showcase the drivers talent. The only real passing gets done in the pits, so it is more like a video game then real life racing. Old Bernie runs the show only for his personal amusement and personal gain. Run afoul of Bernie and you are doomed. I remember a few years ago, I was all set to watch the first race of the season….It was to be broadcast on ESPN, but at the last minute, Bernie felt that he was not getting paid enough for the racing feed, so he cut them off. I figured, if he didn’t want me to watch, I would not watch and not contribute any more money into the F1 coffers. I’m sick and tired of how politics is ruining our lives every day….I don’t need the F1 politics too. F1 is just not enjoyable to watch any more, the rules are too weird, tires, fuel loads, etc.... and the drivers just don't race like the old days.

[Nick F40]

Yeah, I like the V8 Supercars, too. I wish we got more coverage of them here.

Now some are calling for Hamilton's head. Technically he should be DQed for violating after race weight-in rules, which states the driver is not to come in contact with anyone before weight-in on the way to the podium. I guess we will have to wait and see how much squawking is rasied and by who before the stewards make a call on that one.

Not a good day for Ferrari. Not all was lost though, It was a great day for Porsche at Sebring.

Now it's coming down to only 4 of 22 with a clean finish.

Nakajima will be serving a penalty next race

Barrichello was DQed

Hamilton DQ pending ???

ahh so Hamilton should be DQed. Yeah, Porsche had a great race at Sebring. All these people being DQed, and only 6 finishing, technically 4?

I used to love F1…I watched all the races, read the magazines and built the models. But after Senna died (1994), and many of the regulations changed, and not for the better, I lost total interest. Speed channel is re-broadcasting the race tonight at 9 pm, Eastern, so I may watch, or maybe not. My feeling is that the sport is way too over regulated. The cars are too technological to really showcase the drivers talent. The only real passing gets done in the pits, so it is more like a video game then real life racing. Old Bernie runs the show only for his personal amusement and personal gain. Run afoul of Bernie and you are doomed. I remember a few years ago, I was all set to watch the first race of the season….It was to be broadcast on ESPN, but at the last minute, Bernie felt that he was not getting paid enough for the racing feed, so he cut them off. I figured, if he didn’t want me to watch, I would not watch and not contribute any more money into the F1 coffers. I’m sick and tired of how politics is ruining our lives every day….I don’t need the F1 politics too. F1 is just not enjoyable to watch any more, the rules are too weird, tires, fuel loads, etc.... and the drivers just don't race like the old days.

As I kind of stated above, but I totally agree with ya.

[fordsixty]

.....and the cars are down right hideous. look at the bmw. winglet things springing out all over the place. UGH!

[CAL]

well the new rules and from what I seen in practice, qualifying and the race, it but it back very much into the drivers hands.

It may even be a three way fight for the title this year, as BMW is showing real strength.

nevertheless, Bernie is still kind of the devil on loose.

Well most crashed out more broke down. Only 1 DQ issued so far.

[Frank]

Bernie is still kind of the devil on loose.

I agree, this little p**ck having total control of F1 is ruining the sport.

He's that money hungry he doesn't give a stuff about the manufactures or drivers

as long as he gets his money for TV rights & sanction fees.

The motor sport controlling body should tell him to F**k off.

[Bernard Kron]

I thoroughly enjoyed the race. The inevitable instability and confusion of new rules and a new season brought out the best in the drivers who drove like the racers they truly are.

The race was full of many stories. Alonso was saddled with an evil handling car and showed the form that brought him two world championships. Raikonnen was as impressive as always, driving with great panache and never giving up despite making mistakes related to not keeping in mind the effects of losing traction control, until his car let him down at the end. Williams, having held on to the gifted Nico Rosberg, continued on their comeback trail, at last with a 3rd place podium finish as a just reward for it (and Nico showing tears of joy). BMW confirmed that they are a potential race winning team with a fine second from Heidfeld and a blistering pace from Kubica all weekend long. And what is there to say about Hamilton? He delivered a perfect drive from what he said was a perfect car, showing he will be a daunting threat all season long - and his new teammate Kovalainen is confident and happy in his new home and showed brilliant pace and driving before being caught out by a late race pace car.

But perhaps the most impressive drive was by Sebastien Bourdais. He was a definitive fourth place as a result of all the maturity and race craft that brought him his five ChampCar championships and thus demonstrated his determination to make the most of his desperate last chance to achieve his dream of being a winning F1 driver. His Ferrari engine appeared to blow up with two laps to go so we might surmise that Scuderia Torro Rosso may have some work to do to give the the Ferrari lump a fighting chance, but as Gerhard Berger pointed out in a post race interview, in Vettel and now Bourdais, they have the drivers to be a winning team.

So for me F1 continues to entertain. Yes, Ecclestone's meddling and greed has lead to a schedule littered with global nouveau-riche non-entities like Bahrain and soon Singapore, to cookie cutter tracks that look like video games, and senseless politics in the name of cost cutting (this in a sport where a winning team still must find 200,000,000 USD to achieve the final prize). Perhaps this will doom F1 in the end. But despite all these handicaps, the drivers always find a way to overcome them and demonstrate the passion that is really no different than it was in the days of Farina, Fangio, Moss, Clark, Andretti, Hill (father and son), Villeneuve, Piquet, Mansell, Prost, Senna, and Schumacher. Racers will always be racers.

Just my 2 cents worth.

[Mal.au]

Something you guys wouldn't be aware of the F1 supremos at the track (Bernie wasn't there) decided to cut the V8 supercar race 2 laps Short because the F1 race was getting close to a start, the F1 race started exactly an hour and a 1/2 later, not sure what the lack of time was all about.

I received an email form a disgruntled friend a little while after the Sebring and F1 race finished, there is no mistake on what he thought..

22 starters

5 don't get thru the first lap

8 finish

$300 a ticket

Sorry Mr Ecclestone...... explain to me again why it is such a great thing

12 hour sports car race at Sebring... winning margin is 12 seconds. I know which one I like watching

I sat here for hours watching the lap charts from Sebring.... but I'm a bit of a tragic aren't I?

F1 is getting better but it still has a way to go to match other forms of racing (IMHO)

Regards Mal

[58 Impala]

I love F1 racing, the engine techology is amazing. But in my opinion they should go back to turbo V12's or at least back to the 3.0 liter V10's. They need to get rid of all the stupid winglets, go back to decent size slicks and let the drivers have at it. The IRL/CART series seems to work with the car design, engine and tire combination. They race on road courses and high speed ovals and the racing is still exciting.

This weekends race wasn't much of a race with only 7 cars finishing, kind of like Indy a few years back. Except for Bourdais working his way up to four, and Alonso holding of the McClaren the race was kind of a dud.

Edited March 17, 2008 by 58 Impala