F1 Fans Unite! - Celebrating Michael Shumacher's Final Race

[matthew baird]

Is there anyone else here in PF that follows F1? I am completely obsessed with it, it is my dream to race in F1. I can't believe that Michael Shumacher is retiring!??!??!
I watched his final race two sundays ago and wow, he is simply amazing.
On the first lap one of his tires blew out causing him to pit, by the time he made it back out, the guy in first(Massa his teammate), was right behind him.
Not only did he set the best lap of the day, he ended up finishing in 5th. That is simply miraculous among those drivers. Why would he retire when he is faster than ever?

 

[Kurdt]

I follow F1 and admire all that Schumacher has achieved but I'm an avid Renault fan and was glad they could hold on to the title despite the setbacks they faced this season. Alonso moving to McLaren seems like a pretty bad move when he could easily stay with the renault team.

 

[wolram]

Well i am glad Michael Shumacher has gone, as for his fantastic performance, twadle i say, everyone was moving over for him and
falling of the track to get out of his way, i think he was more tactician
than sportsman and full of dirty tricks, the american gp was mostly his/teams fault, Monaco etc, etc.

 

[big man]

how was the american gp Ferrari's fault?? It was an issue with Michelin vs Bridgestone and Michelin (nearly every team uses Michelin) couldn't handle a particular section of the track. They couldn't penalise the teams that used Bridgestone since they chose to use tyres that could handle the track.

 

[ray b]

Renault was thinking about droping F-1 do to the high costs and a new CEO THAT WAS A DIRECT RESULT OF Alonso moving to McLaren
also Renault does not pay very well so Alonso followed the money

tyre wars are over ONLY Bridgestone WILL BE USED NEXT YEAR

 

[wolram]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2005_United_States_Grand_Prix

Paul Stoddart, owner of Team Minardi-Cosworth, a team that runs Bridgestone tyres, published an account on Wednesday, June 22, of the events leading up to the race. While the previous developments were reported by various sources, the last-minute negotiations had theretofore been largely unknown to the public. Stoddart recorded a meeting around 10:00am on the day of the race, to which Speedway president Tony George, "the two most senior Michelin representatives present at the circuit" (assumed to be Dupasquier and Shorrock), commercial-rights impresario Bernie Ecclestone, the team principals, and the teams' Michelin technical representatives were summoned. All invited were present except Jean Todt, Team Principal of Scuderia Ferrari.[2]

 

[matthew baird]

Alonso moving to McLaren seems like a pretty bad move when he could easily stay with the renault team.

YA! Bad move I say. Why would Fernando move to Mclaren? They have had crap luck. Wonder how the ferrari and renault will fare next year...

 

[Kurdt]

YA! Bad move I say. Why would Fernando move to Mclaren? They have had crap luck. Wonder how the ferrari and renault will fare next year...

Well i think it was previously mentioned that he's following the money as Renault don't put very much money into their F1 team which makes their achievements since they returned all the more fantastic.

 

[wolram]

Jenson Button will be the next champ.

 

[abhishek]

YA! Bad move I say. Why would Fernando move to Mclaren? They have had crap luck.

Good question. I think he has ambition and confidence like Schumacher had when moving from Benetton to Ferrari (who were not just low on luck but also lacked the capacity for winning). Such a move can work out.

Of course, the circumstances were slightly different for Schumacher, as he took half the crew with him, which helped to rebuild the team. I think in Alonso's case that's offset by the fact that McLaren already has a capable team and car.

I suspect it'd take consistent and spectacular technical failures by McLaren throughout the season to seriously hinder Alonso. Driver error accounted for probably half of McLaren's retirements in 2006, and they did end up a clear third in the constructor's table anyway.

So I figure it's not such a crazy decision after all. Anything could happen, of course -- a lot changes between seasons. But that's what makes it exciting.