2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bull!!

[solovsfett]

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

I was not a fan of Will Power, but after his excuse of blocking really put a bad taste in my mouth. Getting out of Castroneves' way? Are you joking?!

Great drive by Montoya for sure, and confusing strategy from Target by taking Kannan off the lead strategy- not as if he didn't have the speed to run head to head with Montoya. Oh well.

Fun F1 race, with Alonso showing his real hard driving colors, that was really great to see him hold off vettel. Too bad for Rosberg, but great win for Hamilton!

Botas shows, again, that he is a great driver.

Agreed on all fronts here. Will Power has really become a *******. Even Cindric told him to "wake up". He's just gotten too vindictive out there and he doesn't have the talent of a Senna (nor the charisma or off track contributions) for this fan to overlook his zealous nature.

I'm very happy for JPM, glad he's BACK!

Kanaan...I love TK but I'm wondering if he's going to be questioning his decision to move to Target. He might have been better off at Schmidt-Hamilton or staying w/Vasser

Silverstone: what a fantastic race IMO. Great to see Hamilton make up for his qualifying blunder and great to see Bottas finish 2nd (and I never in one million years thought I'd cheer for a Williams driver ever again)...Not sure how long McLaren will be down but they definitely appear to be heading toward the front quicker than Ferrari.

ha ha ha Vettel at the start, I think that was my favorite part of the race! 2nd to 5th in 1 lap, eat it!

 

[alfablue]

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

Watching the replay of the F1 race. Vettel is just a jerk. Why do you think someone should not try everything that they can to prevent you to pass? Alonso did it really well, and forced Vettel to really work hard to make it stick- to the point where bad attempts were going to fail- and all he did was whine about the fact that Alonso took a line he didn't like.

Put your head down and drive, for crying out loud. Not sure what Fernando whined about after the pass.... Still, Sebastian acted like a pretty big baby in that encounter.

 

[solovsfett]

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

Watching the replay of the F1 race. Vettel is just a jerk. Why do you think someone should not try everything that they can to prevent you to pass? Alonso did it really well, and forced Vettel to really work hard to make it stick- to the point where bad attempts were going to fail- and all he did was whine about the fact that Alonso took a line he didn't like.

Put your head down and drive, for crying out loud. Not sure what Fernando whined about after the pass.... Still, Sebastian acted like a pretty big baby in that encounter.

he is a big baby really. And the post race comments from Alonso confirm he tried everything he could to maintain position and was proud to have held his position against a superior red bull for 13 laps

This is the kind of thing that separates the men from the boys really. If it were Senna or Schumacher behind Alonso they'd have found a way past much much quicker...heh, or they'd have both been shunted off

 

[joecct]

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

he is a big baby really. And the post race comments from Alonso confirm he tried everything he could to maintain position and was proud to have held his position against a superior red bull for 13 laps

This is the kind of thing that separates the men from the boys really. If it were Senna or Schumacher behind Alonso they'd have found a way past much much quicker...heh, or they'd have both been shunted off

Maybe SV is driving for Red Steer?

 

[MattS]

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

I thought outside of the Mercedes driving away from everyone, which has been the norm this season, it was a good race. I don't particularly like Silverstone but this one was good.

The absolute best part of the Alonso - Vettel fight was David Hobbs making fun of Vettel's whining on the air. That was great! Once again Alonso is killing it in a bad Ferrari. I don't know if anyone else heard but the expectation is that there are going to be some pretty hefty firings at Maranello over the state of the F1 program.

Bottas has really shown he can drive. I think he is getting everything out of a decent Williams car. Well done.

Good to hear Kimi is OK other than a bruised ankle. That was a pretty good lick he took.

I feel bad for Massa. He had a horrible start which I believe was his own fault but dang I still feel bad for him getting caught in the Kimi wreck. Tough way to have your 200th GP end.

And good for Button. Nice to see him have a good drive in the British GP. Too bad he couldn't get that elusive podium. Ah, well, maybe next year if he's still driving.

Oh, and I am sick of the made up by the press BS of the "ill will" between Hamilton and Rosberg. I thought that the NBC crew was above it but they get sucked right in like most of the press. Ugh.

 

[solovsfett]

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

Maybe SV is driving for Red Steer?

he's getting beaten by a teammate w/less experience and he's whining all of the time (well, actually that bit is not new at all). He's got a top 4 car still as evidenced by Ricciardo but he's lost, combine that with how terrible he is in traffic and it tells me he's not nearly as good as the SV fans make him out to be

 

[manurespreader]

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

I don't see alonso staying around after this year. Too many other good cars out there with less drama.

 

[MattS]

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

I don't see alonso staying around after this year. Too many other good cars out there with less drama.

I agree with you that Alonso would much rather have a better car. He is under contract with Ferrari through the 2016 season but we all know contracts don't mean too much in F1. Sure there are good cars out there but realistically where is Alonso going to go? Certainly not Mercedes or RB as their driver lineups are set. I can't see Williams or Force India having that cash to pay Alonso what he would require. Lotus and Sauber would be steps back even if they could afford him. STR is out also. And Caterham and Marussia are laughable.

That leaves McLaren. I don't think Magnussen is going anywhere as he looks impressive for a rookie. So that leaves Button's seat. I can see Button leaving as I think his contract is up after this season. So that certainly is a viable seat up for grabs. I can't help but wonder if Alonso would go back to McLaren and work with Ron Dennis again. Last time wasn't too pleasant. And then there is the whole Honda engine thing. Are they going to be behind or does the "extra" year make them instantly competitive? It's certainly not an easy decision for him. So while I agree that Alonso would like and deserves a better car, his options at other teams are very limited.

I don't agree with you about your drama comment as I think Ferrari has been drama free by F1 standards this season.

 

[alfablue]

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

I don't agree with you about your drama comment as I think Ferrari has been drama free by F1 standards this season.

You mean besides the firing of the team priniciple, and then the new one telling the world that there's going to be a house cleaning. Which should start very soon. And the drivers mentioning that the car isn't very good.

No, no drama at all.

i guess in comparison to the drama at Mercedes that has now passed, but the press is holding onto that, well...

Back when Fernando was hired, my wife was really worried that an emotional Spaniard was joining and emotional Italian team, which is an interesting mix. Thankfully, she did get to witness him winning a race at Monza in person.

 

[MattS]

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

You mean besides the firing of the team priniciple, and then the new one telling the world that there's going to be a house cleaning. Which should start very soon. And the drivers mentioning that the car isn't very good.

No, no drama at all.

i guess in comparison to the drama at Mercedes that has now passed, but the press is holding onto that, well...

Ok, I guess I see that could be considered "drama". I consider it part of everyday business life.

 

[Timothy A]

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

I was not a fan of Will Power, but after his excuse of blocking really put a bad taste in my mouth. Getting out of Castroneves' way? Are you joking?!

Great drive by Montoya for sure, and confusing strategy from Target by taking Kannan off the lead strategy- not as if he didn't have the speed to run head to head with Montoya. Oh well.

Fun F1 race, with Alonso showing his real hard driving colors, that was really great to see him hold off vettel. Too bad for Rosberg, but great win for Hamilton!

Botas shows, again, that he is a great driver.

Power has totally lost his composure. Choking away the last 4 championships has destroyed him. As a Penske fan, I say it's time to move on irregardless of how the season finishes.

Great F1 race. Vettel...LOL...Too bad Alonso didn't keep him at bay for the rest of the race, I would have loved to heard what he had to say then! It juts goes further to prove Vettel is the most over-rated driver in the series. I love Ricardo is showing him up. Too bad Webber didn't get that chance this yr.

I can't really see Alonso going anywhere. The Honda engine in the McL could be awesome, or it could suck, that's a big risk for him to take. Williams seems to be on the come, but it's impossible to see if this is a one year wonder or a long term move back to glory. I think Kimi needs to go. They need Hulkenburg or Sutil, 2 guys who many have said that in the right car they will do great things. I think both would be able to stick closer to Alonso than Kimi is.

As a prancing stallion fan who is getting desperate, how about bringing Braun back? If they ****can all the technical guys, who are they going to lure into the fold whose worth a crap? I was hoping Newey would get recruited, but that's off the board.

 

[Timothy A]

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

Bianchi tested well in place of Kimi......18" tyres in the future? Just make them hard enough to eliminate klag......I saw some scuttlebutt about front to rear suspensions being outlawed......

 

[alfablue]

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

Bianchi tested well in place of Kimi......18" tyres in the future? Just make them hard enough to eliminate klag......I saw some scuttlebutt about front to rear suspensions being outlawed......

FRIC- which is a way that the car is self leveling. Banned from hence forth, even though it's been in place for at least a season and a half. Mercedes has already annouced that they will not have it in Germany.

 

[Timothy A]

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

FRIC- which is a way that the car is self leveling. Banned from hence forth, even though it's been in place for at least a season and a half. Mercedes has already announced that they will not have it in Germany.

I thought I had read some teams had been using FRIC for years. Could this be a game changer?

 

[alfablue]

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

I thought I had read some teams had been using FRIC for years. Could this be a game changer?

The way that Mercedes has quickly announced that they will comply with the ban for Germany makes me think that it will not. We'll see next week, though.

 

[solovsfett]

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

So re: how to fix Indycar people keep yelling "More Americans" "More ovals we're an oval country"

really? No-one showed up at Pocono, 20,000 at Milwaukee 2 consecutive years (we'll see what happens in August, though it's after the fair so the handy walk-up crowd from that won't happen) and since the inception at Texas and Iowa dwindling attendance is the norm. Ryan Hunter-Reay wins the 2012 championship, the 2014 Indy 500 and there's really no awareness of him with the average sports fan...and the papers never talk him up.

Tonight in a ****ing fantastic race in Iowa RHR wins and Josef Newgarden 2nd. Will the papers go nuts tomorrow about that? No.

so I think we can deep six the whole ovals and americans re: making Indycar successful.

but forget that negativity. What a race!!!

Montoya gets screwed by a terrible pit stop, gets back on the lead lap then gets pushed by Carpenter into the wall "I got inside of him, he was running high, all of a sudden he decided to run low," said JPM, who lost fourth in the standings after placing 16th at Iowa. "They all love preaching safe racing, but when you're gonna pass them, they're ****** bags."

I LOVE IT! And since Power and Helio didn't have the best finishes either I hope JPM can tighten the title chase in Toronto.

Too bad for TK, tonight and last week he dominated and lost. He's got a win or two coming this season and I can't wait to see it.

Newgarden, man if that kid could land a Penske, Ganassi or Andretti ride he'd kill. He'd quickly make us forget about Graham and Marco...at least that's my .02 However...I think Andretti would be the only one with a sympathetic ear and he has no available cars for the kid.

Briscoe was great tonight as well...

 

[Russell Jaslow]

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

FRIC- which is a way that the car is self leveling. Banned from hence forth, even though it's been in place for at least a season and a half. Mercedes has already annouced that they will not have it in Germany.

Technically, FRIC is not banned. Yet...

Charlie Whiting said he will entertain any protests against the system. Thus, teams are afraid if those protests go against them, they will have a lot of race results thrown out. Ergo, they are being proactive and getting rid of them. But for now, the FIA has not made a definitive ruling on them until those protests come in.

 

[Timothy A]

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

So re: how to fix Indycar people keep yelling "More Americans" "More ovals we're an oval country"

really? No-one showed up at Pocono, 20,000 at Milwaukee 2 consecutive years (we'll see what happens in August, though it's after the fair so the handy walk-up crowd from that won't happen) and since the inception at Texas and Iowa dwindling attendance is the norm. Ryan Hunter-Reay wins the 2012 championship, the 2014 Indy 500 and there's really no awareness of him with the average sports fan...and the papers never talk him up.

Tonight in a ****ing fantastic race in Iowa RHR wins and Josef Newgarden 2nd. Will the papers go nuts tomorrow about that? No.

so I think we can deep six the whole ovals and americans re: making Indycar successful.

but forget that negativity. What a race!!!

Montoya gets screwed by a terrible pit stop, gets back on the lead lap then gets pushed by Carpenter into the wall "I got inside of him, he was running high, all of a sudden he decided to run low," said JPM, who lost fourth in the standings after placing 16th at Iowa. "They all love preaching safe racing, but when you're gonna pass them, they're ****** bags."

I LOVE IT! And since Power and Helio didn't have the best finishes either I hope JPM can tighten the title chase in Toronto.

Too bad for TK, tonight and last week he dominated and lost. He's got a win or two coming this season and I can't wait to see it.

Newgarden, man if that kid could land a Penske, Ganassi or Andretti ride he'd kill. He'd quickly make us forget about Graham and Marco...at least that's my .02 However...I think Andretti would be the only one with a sympathetic ear and he has no available cars for the kid.

Briscoe was great tonight as well...

I agree that America has spoken and they really don't want indycars on ovals anymore just based on the attendance alone. It's ironic because an oval (IMHO) is a lot better to see in person than a roadcourse, comparing my experiences @ Milwaukee and Elkhart Lake on race days. Personally I like both.

I missed most of the race, my dvr failed and I only got to see Juan get hit and then the end, which was exciting overall but bitter for this Penske fan. I have yetto read why Power fell so far off the pace at the end. I saw him wash up the track and possibly touch the wall; no verification he bent anything on the car.

 

[RaceBoarder]

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

The one's who were crying for "American's and Ovals" are all guys who are in their 50s or older now for the most part...If you are under 30, odds are you have no idea what USAC is or what I'm referring to when I say I saw a "Non-winged 410".... Now on the other hand, I'm sure the under 30 crowd would know who Ken Block is or what RallyCross is... That's where your future race fans are coming from... Indycar needs to realize this...

 

[MattS]

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

Re: 2014 Open Wheel Racing - if it's white smoke, it's not a good sign & that's no bu

Even though I do not follow Indycar much anymore I do still read Miller's Mailbag. I do mostly for the entertainment of the whining. Anyway, I read last weeks bag and it in was a letter from three young fans in which they talk about their video blog and getting to attend races. Anyway, I though Miller's response was weak and wrote a response. Today I got a personal response from Robin. He's let me know that they young fans were treated better than what was in his Mailbag response. It's nice to know some media personalities do really care about the fans.