2006 Monaco Grand Prix - Monaco (discussion)

[^^v]

Monaco at last!
we (honda) missed out last year due to ... some things...
anywayz qualifying should be interesting... sucha tight circuit... theres bound to be a few complaints bout traffic...
im predicting a schumi victory..................... wif jenson commin 2nd...

[LUD02C]

I predict qualifying to be a nightmare!

[aaronng]

I predict that the winning order will be almost the same as the qualifying order. Hahaha.

[LUD02C]

Gentlemen Tips have been updated, congrats to ^^V & TwEigh both scored 5 points at Spain.

With Renault, Ferrari, McLaren maybe Honda, BMW and Williams towards the front (all running light for qualifying due to you can't pass) I think the first few laps might be fantastic.

[Omotesando]

I predict only 10 cars will finish the race !

[TYPE-ONE]

whats with button. so shit in the last few races. usually hes qualifying very good.

[DreadAngel]

I hope Buttons can shrine in Monaco! Disappointment after Disappointment in the previous races, GO BUTTONS GO!!!

[^^v]

I hope Buttons can shrine in Monaco! Disappointment after Disappointment in the previous races, GO BUTTONS GO!!!
i sumhow doubt that... he'll start from 14th

[LUD02C]

I"m guessing this thread is going to be a large one after qualifying.
I have only seen a quick clip of it, can't say much yet.

This track just shows how good Webber is, just with out right pace.
Tight track, no errors he'll do good again!

[LUD02C]

......


MONACO (Reuters) - Ferrari's Michael Schumacher was banished to the back of the Monaco Grand Prix starting grid on Saturday after stewards found him guilty of a driving infringement and stripped him of pole position. The stewards said in a statement that the seven times Formula One champion had deliberately stopped his car on the track at the penultimate Rascasse corner in the closing seconds of qualifying, preventing rivals from setting a faster time.

Renault's Spanish world champion Fernando Alonso will now start on pole with Australian Mark Webber alongside in a Williams.

Schumacher's pole had triggered an immediate cheating controversy in the grand prix paddock, with rivals slamming the behaviour of the most successful Formula One driver the sport has ever seen in the season's glamour race.

Schumacher protested his innocence, claiming he had made a simple mistake, while stewards spent nearly eight hours reviewing the evidence before reaching a decision.
They said they found "no justifiable reason for the driver to have braked with such undue, excessive and unusual pressure at this part of the circuit and (we) are therefore left with no alternative but to conclude that the driver deliberately stopped his car on the circuit.
"The driver will start the race from the back of the grid," they added.

The German's excuses cut no ice with angry rivals.

"I hope it was deliberate, because if that was a mistake he should not even have an F1 superlicence," 1997 world champion Jacques Villeneuve told reporters.
"If you can make a mistake like that, you shouldn't drive a race car. There's no way you could make a mistake like that," added the Canadian, who won his title after a notorious clash with Schumacher.
Webber said: "I just feel you don't have to do this stuff. Why does it always have to happen? It's like Mike Tyson biting someone's ear off, isn't it?"

Alonso, who leads Schumacher in the title standings by 15 points, had said after qualifying that he would have been on pole had Schumacher not steered left at the slow Rascasse corner and then stalled.
That forced the champion to slow as marshals waved yellow danger flags, costing him vital tenths of a second.
Alonso, who has yet to step on the podium in Monaco, bit his tongue about what had happened but his team boss Flavio Briatore, who steered Schumacher to his first two titles at Benetton, had no such inhibitions.
"I think he is taking everyone for a ride," he told reporters. "Someone who was seven times a world champion wants us to believe that he didn't do it on purpose, it's fairyland.
"And given that we are not Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, I think that what he did was unsporting and against everything...It's really astonishing what he did. Incredible."

Pole position is particularly important in Monaco with the tight, twisting streets making overtaking almost impossible.
McLaren's Kimi Raikkonen, last year's winner, will move up to third place on the grid with Colombian team mate Juan Pablo Montoya alongside after Renault's Giancarlo Fisichella was demoted for impeding Red Bull's David Coulthard.
SCHUMACHER DEFENSIVE
Schumacher, facing yet another controversy in a colourful career spanning 15 years, explained that he had simply locked up and run out of road.

"I tried to engage reverse but it didn't engage and I didn't really want to back up just by myself without knowing what was coming around the corner and finally it stalled," he said.
He suggested that those who doubted him should try to drive the car themselves.
"Whatever you do in certain moments, your enemies believe one thing and the people who support you believe another," he added. "Some people may not believe it, but unfortunately that's the world we live in."

[LUD02C]

Revised starting grid:

Front row:
1. Fernando Alonso (Spa) Renault 1min 13.962sec, 2. Mark Webber (Aus) Williams-BMW 1:14.082

Second row:
3. Kimi Raikkonen (Fin) McLaren-Mercedes 1:14.140, 4. Juan Pablo Montoya (Col) McLaren-Mercedes 1:14.664

Third row:
5. Rubens Barrichello (Bra) Honda 1:15.804, 6. Jarno Trulli (Ita) Toyota 1:15.857

Fourth row:
7. David Coulthard (GB) Red Bull 1:16.426, 8. Nico Rosberg (Ger) Williams-BMW 1:16.636

Fifth row:
9. Giancarlo Fisichella (Ita) Renault 1:14.396, 10. Ralf Schumacher (Ger) Toyota 1:14.412

Sixth row:
11. Christian Klien (Aut) Red Bull 1:14.398, 12. Vitantonio Liuzzi (Ita) Toro Rosso 1:14.969

Seventh row:
13. Jenson Button (GB) Honda 1:14.982, 14. Jacques Villeneuve (Can) BMW Sauber 1:15.052

Eighth row:
15. Nick Heidfeld (Ger) BMW Sauber 1:15.137, 16. Christijan Albers (Ned) Midland 1:15.598

Ninth row:
17. Tiago Monteiro (Por) Midland 1:15.993, 18. Scott Speed (US) Toro Rosso 1:16.236

Tenth row:
19. Takuma Sato (Jpn) Super Aguri F1 Team 1:17.276, 20. Franck Montagny (Fra) Super Aguri F1 Team 1:17.502

11th row:
21. Felipe Massa (Bra) Ferrari, 22. Michael Schumacher (Ger) Ferrari.

[^^v]

tsk tsk tsk.... schumi schumi schumi

[CRXer]

The video shows overwhelmingly that schumi didnt do it on purpose!!!!!!!!
Anyone might try & use "undue ,excessive force" at that point to try & pick up a couple of tenths,when u prob got bombarded with reports of a couple of hot laps going on behind u.
He locked,corrected & then had to take another bite to clear his rear wheel of the corner & quite simply ran out of room.
It looks sus if u dont see him correct for the rear wheel,but there was still no need to spoil what couldve been a half interesting race.
Anyway,after Weber breaks down,Fernando romps off in the distance for another boring Monaco.Lets hope for a few good 'incidents'.......
:honda: :thumbsup:

[civ_sik]

that was focking bullshiet i cant believe they put him at the back ***ing mofos... pitlane start, fuel it up and go mike!!! go!!!

[JDM.Power]

the race will be lame now, no fun!
schumi an alonso puts a good race for everyone, i just like the pitstop parts!!
every little second counts in laps an pitstops.

[dc2typ35r]

they ruined his bid for the championship id say...

at maximum they should have only deducted his 3 best lapped times like fisi's penalty and move him down the grid

wot a rort :thumbdwn:

[ngupil]

poor webber and kimi got their engine blown while on the 2nd position
and kimi caught in the camera went straight to his yacht after he got engine problem and not to the garage LOL
overall, good battle between schumi and barichello in the last 5 laps

[chicken8]

wow schumacher

with all that talent y do little scummy things like slow down ppl in qualifying?

fisichella i think was born asian and learnt how to drive in hong kong. cutting people off left right and center. he didnt even use his indicators!

mark webber what can i say? unluckiest person alive? if i see him at the casino i'd bet all my money on whatever he doesnt bet

[Omotesando]

Far out can't believe that could happen to Kimi and Webber. Funny thing is Webber was so crossed when he got out he chucked his gloves (?) into the car with force.

Whereas for Kimi's - you could see the way he was walking, it was as though he'd expected this BS from McLaren. His move to his own yacht rather than the team garage confirms his disappointment with the team I think. I think he'll probably go Ferrari or even Renault next year!


And to me - Schuey didn't do that on purpose. Come on, Schuey makes mistakes all the time. Look at how he understeered off the track in Melbourne and other times, say Shanghai when he spins during the Safety Car period? No one can have 100% concentration. Those stewards are just stupid.

[chicken8]

i agree with u that schumi NOW isnt that kinda guy

hes world champ. hes proven himself enough times to not have to do stupid things like this to just remain on pole

but he has done things worse than this in the past and many times

so im undecided on this 1. either way i think him being penalised is right because cars were slowed and the qualifying positions were different to if it was a incident free qualifying period

but i think moving him to P22 was not necessary. thats a harsh punishment.

[j3z3z]

All i say is bravo for schuey sticking up all the critics asses he showed em he would have won on a 1 stop from the front if he was up there. Imagine how fast his time would have been on a 2 stop from pole.
Also to me it looked like he was loosing his back end in qual then he hit the brakes i saw nothing wrong with it except the greatest made a mistake, he is only human after all. And stewards are only ****wits afterall.

I would also like to point out the fact that had there not been a safety car and the failures that occoured did happen as such, micheal with his pace would have been 3rd at the end of the race.

[Omotesando]

Tha'ts right he was losing the rear end as well, corrected it, etc,.

Thing is Schuey has locked up his brakes a couple of times his year - I think in the first 2-3 races it was obvious.

Yes he has done some dubious things in the past but this time - look at the footage - it looked like it was a misjudgment. Just like Nicos Rosberg went off track somehow. These guys are on the 100% limit on qualifying... and on a tight track when u step slightly over, it means its over

The other Ferrari driver Massa crashed out on this first timed lap - did he do that deliberately? Sometimes I hate the BS that goes on in F1... Like Webber was being held up by Fisichella and someone else for laps.... before his engine blew. It probably wouldn't have, if he was allowed to pass and it had proper cooling :( UNFAIR.

[dc2typ35r]

exactly webber didnt get any blue flags he was held up for at least 3 maybe even 4 laps...while the other two were flying away
fisi should have been penalised with a drive through
his engine probably was heating up all that time even though it was an exhaust problem
always disappointment for webber!

oh well until next race webber will win in silverstone

[dc2dc2dc2]

webber and kimi feel sorry for them...unbelievable !!

[j3z3z]

i just hate seeing that cocky no neck bastard win anyone but him...... even sato could win and i would be happy but not no neck alonso

[^^v]

poor webber lolz... n kimi.. ahahah wuta sick kient...

anywayz... wuz a pretty eventful race... lolz @ dc... who woulda guessed...
looks lik Alonso will run away with the title this year.... hes juz too consistant...

n another dissapointment from Honda.... herez hoping their season picks up soon...

[shinji112]

yeah i was pissed off wen webber didnt get blue flags for like 2+laps..he lost heaps of time behind fisi.. but that didnt matter after his engine gave out.. i really feel for the poor guy.. wonder wen he'll finally get some luck on his side.. and as for alonso.. damn does the renault ever break down??

[LUD02C]

Good news for Webber!


RENAULT team boss Flavio Briatore sang Australian Mark Webber's praises today after the Williams driver had a podium finish snatched from his grasp in the Monaco Grand Prix.


"Webber was more surprising than anybody. He did an incredible job," the Italian, who manages Webber and is looking for a replacement for Renault's current world champion Fernando Alonso next year, said.
"Today, the shares in Mark go up. It's like the stock market. It was down and now it is up again," he sad.
"Frank (Williams) has the option but I'm pretty much sure that Webber is a good driver. If he has the right car. Today he was very good."
Webber is coming to the end of his second year at Cosworth-powered Williams, who has yet to exercise its option to keep him.
The Australian was on course to repeat his third place in Monaco last year after lining up on the front row of the starting grid and racing at the same pace as Alonso and McLaren's Kimi Raikkonen.
His race ended after 48 laps when hot gases from an exhaust failure burnt through wiring.
With Raikkonen retiring shortly after, Webber would have been on course for second place had his car proved more reliable.
"Obviously I'm bitterly disappointed," Webber, who feared it could be a while before he had another chance to shine in such a fashion, said.
"It's a one-off. This track is unique," he said.
"In Barcelona we finished a lap behind and in this race we were strong.
"We've got to fill in the holes on the golf course that we're weak at and there are still plenty of them out there . . . we've got to get to the flag, that's the biggest thing that we've got to work on.
"There is no rewind button and all the hard work we did over the last few days is invisible now."

[tRipitaka]

Far out can't believe that could happen to Kimi and Webber. Funny thing is Webber was so crossed when he got out he chucked his gloves (?) into the car with force.

he threw the steering wheel

[typsy]

What was wrong with Button?

Did he have some kind of a problem with his car?

Or he just isn't adapted to the Monaco track?

[j3z3z]

What was wrong with Button?

Did he have some kind of a problem with his car?

Or he just isn't adapted to the Monaco track?

niether, his just button

[Q_ball]

so wat were the final standings??
can someone be bothered to post them up?
:p

[shinji112]

1. 1 ALONSO Renault M 1h43'43"116 150.708 Km/h
2. 4 MONTOYA McLaren Mercedes M + 0'14"567 150.356 Km/h
3. 14 COULTHARD RedBull Ferrari M + 0'52"298 149.452 Km/h
4. 11 BARRICHELLO Honda M + 0'53"337 149.427 Km/h
5. 5 M.SCHUMACHER Ferrari B + 0'53"830 149.415 Km/h
6. 2 FISICHELLA Renault M + 1'02"072 149.219 Km/h
7. 16 HEIDFELD BMW Sauber M 1 lap(s)
8. 7 R.SCHUMACHER Toyota B 1 lap(s)
9. 6 MASSA Ferrari B 1 lap(s)
10. 20 LIUZZI Toro Rosso Cosw. M 1 lap(s)
11. 12 BUTTON Honda M 1 lap(s)
12. 19 ALBERS Midland Toyota B 1 lap(s)
13. 21 SPEED Toro Rosso Cosw. M 1 lap(s)
14. 17 VILLENEUVE BMW Sauber M 1 lap(s)
15. 18 MONTEIRO Midland Toyota B 2 lap(s)
16. 23 MONTAGNY S. Aguri F1 Honda B 3 lap(s)
17. 8 TRULLI Toyota B 6 lap(s)
18. 15 KLIEN RedBull Ferrari M 22 lap(s)
19. 10 ROSBERG Williams Cosworth B 27 lap(s)
20. 3 RAIKKONEN McLaren Mercedes M 28 lap(s)
21. 9 WEBBER Williams Cosworth B 30 lap(s)
22. 22 SATO S. Aguri F1 Honda B 32 lap(s)

[Q_ball]

Thanks heaps shinji112!
Wow!!
Schuey made it to 5th from the pit lane start!!
Wata champ! :D
Shame about webber - really feel he deserves a better team!

[CRXer]

Anyway,after Weber breaks down,Fernando romps off in the distance for another boring Monaco.Lets hope for a few good 'incidents'.......
:honda: :thumbsup:

Man.....i shoula put some money down.....:(

[shinji112]

Man.....i shoula put some money down.....:(

lol thats so true! but even if i knew it was gonna happen i wouldnt do it! coz u gotta have faith....riiiiight up until the engine lets go

[LUD02C]

What an eventful race.
Monaco always puts a suprise on the podium, but Red Bull Racing was a massive spannerin the works!

Webber, Kimi and Michael were fast, but as Alonso said in the press conference he was able to control the race, he had a new engine which has to last next week aswell so why not run it at say 89%?

I wish Michael started at the front, to see him Webber, Kimi and Alonso at it would of been fantastic.
The blue flag incident with Webber was a joke, Fisichella should of been given a Drive thru for it.

I just thought, they introduced 1 steward to go to all the races for "consistency" but it hasn't been shown yet.

Great drive by Schumacher AGAIN, Button AGAIN proved he is just the great white hype, while Webber proved he owns Button.

Highlight was Webber's and Schumacher's drive, then seeing Kimi just relax on his 25 million dollar boat.

[StrawberryFace]

^^ Gotta love kimi. Schumacher has to be the greatest driver of all time. Alonso is just getting so cocky...i'd love to see Schumacher come back and snatch the title from him but seeing the consistency and reliability of the Renault car i don't know if this will happen.

[Omotesando]

Still can't believe so much problems for Kimi and Webber after so many years... I'm never ever going to get a Mclaren or a Merc I think...

In fact I'm tempted to buy a Renault now :)

Webber and Kimi should drive for Renault. Kick Fisichella away, he's not even that good (despite overtaking 3 cars). Schuey is a champ - pit to 5th and right behind Barrichello fighting for 4th.

[Hondavirgin]

Fisi, overtaking 3 cars at Monaco, nuff said.

He would have got the podium if he hadn't copped that 5 place penalty and then got stuck behind Barrichello....., probably would have got Coulthard too if there hadn't been the safety car, as it was he pulled caught coulthard by all but 10 seconds after the saftey car restart (so basically in 20 laps he pulled 1 minute on coulthard, thats an average of 3 seconds a lap).

not that good, he's not in Alonso or Schumey's league (Kimi isn't either i think!) but he is one of the best of the rest, if not THE best of the rest.

I can't imagine Webber having a shot at passing at Monaco, the only reason he does well here is that he has an excuse for not being able to pass cars, and other cars can't pass him.

[j3z3z]

webber can pass at monaco as proven by him last year.

[Dxs]

hardly proven..

if i recall correctly.. webber was behind a renault.. and heidfeild was behind him..
and for laps on end webber did nothing
and then heidfeild overtook webber
and then over took the renault

then webber tried a good few times to take over the renault at the exact same location heidfeild overtook it.. and eventually got it

no way i would say he is a good overtaker

[dc2typ35r]

you have to consider how heidfeld got in front of webber

his team brought him a lap earlier therefore he wasnt stuck behind and was able to push to get in front of webber

then he was following alonso around and considering last yr's tyre rules one race one set of tyres and the fact that alonso was only one stopping meant that alonso was super slow compared to williams

eventually of course they both would make a pass

webber didnt pass alonso earlier cause alonso's car at that point in time was slow but not so slow

why didnt heidfeld make a pass on webber? its a hard track to pass unless the car in front is struggling for grip

[Omotesando]

I think to pass at Monaco one has to be really brave..

Its funny how Alonso says he was surprised at the speed of Kimi.

Come on this is Kimi - the best driver in the whole line up no doubt, what did he expect? If Kimi had won 1 more race last year he wouldn't have bagged the championship.

[LUD02C]

Fact is, Kimi won more races then Alonso last year (in my mind he is WDC)

[Omotesando]

I think they won 7 each.... but thing is Kimi should have won at least 2 more where his car failed.

If I was Kimi though I'll be tempted to stay at McLaren, because when he drives next to Alonso he has a chance to show he is indeed the faster driver..


Anyway I was thinking of what Schuey did or have done in the past. In reality, Arton Senna was much more evil on the track than Schuey ever was.... especially when he was fighting with Prost during the McLaren/Honda days.

Why doesn't anyone talk about that, even when he's dead?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alain_Prost

[j3z3z]

nothing was evil when it was towards alain prost

[Omotesando]

Prost was a really sensible person and driver. He was also very quick too.

According to him, because Senna was the main lead to Honda engines for McLaren, Senna was given the most support in the McLaren/Honda team despite Prost asking the team to sign Senna in. He said Senna's side was always bigger and had more pit lane staff, and his car was also faster - that is why sometimes he couldn't lap as fast as Senna. Also Honda Japan admits they gave Senna more support.

So these days Schuey being no.1 all the time is very similar situation I guess. Although the lap times between him and Massa isn't massively different.

Of course, back then the cars were easier to overtake and more dependable than drivers skills than current.

[Hondavirgin]

Kimi has off days, regardless of the wins, whereas Alonso is quick day in day out, to me, THAT is the mark of a really great driver.

[j3z3z]

kimi has off days cause he has an off car

[Omotesando]

If Kimi has a reliable car (rather than a super fast one) I believe he will be the one who can take it to the limit.

I guess Alonso is very good. But then again, how many times has the Renaults failed this year? Only once... for Fisichella.

How many times did McLaren fail? Too many freaking times... especially last year...

[j3z3z]

to put the matter to an end we will never know who is faster unless they are driving the same car

[kenshin]

alsono might suffer adjustment problems like rubens did going from ferrari->honda... (might)

so if kimi sticks with mclaren he will have a slight edge as he knows how the car has been designned to opperate at full tilt...

anyway both are in the top 3 drivers no doubt...

i hope kimi sticks by mclaren and challenges the dirty spaniard...

[LUD02C]

Strong rumors suggest

Renault: H Kovalainen & K Räikkönen & M Webber (I think Webber will stay at Williams)

McLaren: F Alonso & L Hamilton

Ferrari: M Schumacher & F Massa

Toyota: Montoya & Ralf (again, just like BMW-Williams days)

Renault having Kimi number 1 driver and bringing in there test driver as a perminant driver.

My only concern is, if Anthony Davidson doesn't get a drive next year (being Honda, Red Bull etc) he won't ever race in F1 in his prime.

[Omotesando]

They were saying possibly McLaren = F Alonso + Hamilton AND De Pedrosa splitting drives (current test driver) for continuity within the team..

Don't know if its good though.

I think Webber should consider Renault.

Kovalainen and Hamilton - who do u think is better? Hard to say..

[LUD02C]

Its fair to say that Hamilton has the best GP2 car without doubt.
Nelson Piquet Jnr is much better then Hamilton.

[Omotesando]

Its fair to say that Hamilton has the best GP2 car without doubt.
Nelson Piquet Jnr is much better then Hamilton.


Nevertheless, whereas Formula One teams create their own car and engine, all GP2 cars have identical Renault engines and Italian-made Dallara chassis.

GP2 also has strict cost limits. Rather than using a different engine every two races or more, as in Formula One, GP2 engines must last a season, doing 4,500 kilometers without overhaul. The engine department of the Renault Formula One team has 250 people, including 60 engineers, compared to 20 to 30 people making engines for the whole GP2 series.

The series was rushed together over the winter, and early in the season the cars suffered technical problems that made the races look almost as bizarre as the U.S. Grand Prix, with cars failing to get off the grid or finish practice sessions. But at the German Grand Prix in May - before Formula One's North American tour and GP2's one-month break - the competition was fierce and exciting, as the identical engines and chassis showcase driver talent. "



Hamilton was the 2005 Euro F3 Champion, Piquet was a 2004 British F3 Champion.

And Piquet has been in GP2 since 2005 (1 win, 4 podiums), Hamilton is in his debut season in GP2!

ART (Hamilton's team) might have a slightly better car, but the difference is nowhere near those in F1, since they all have the same Renault engine and the same Chassis.:p

[^^v]

found this...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o3-JoScvgfE&search=kimi%20raikkonen

lolz.. poor kimi...

[Slider]

I know this is a little after the event, but I just got back from europe. Here is a pick I took. I was sitting just after the last corner on the main straight.

[LUD02C]

Slider, what was it like?
Chances are I'll be there next year for it, maybe Spa (were not sure which one yet)

[Slider]

Slider, what was it like?
Chances are I'll be there next year for it, maybe Spa (were not sure which one yet)
It was loud.
I've been to a few races before, but none of them are as loud as monaco!
I didn't have a big screen, so i didnt see much of the race (i could see a smallish plasma in renaults pit garage, but was hard to tell what was happening).

the atmosphere is intense over there. I've been to the f1 in adelaide, melbourne, nurburgring, magny-cours, silverstone. but none of them compare to monaco for atmosphere.

nurburgring and magny-cours are much better value for money, as you can see big screens and heaps of the track.

It was still worth the money to see it at monaco, but once is enough.