Melbourne GP Discussion Thread

[LUD02C]

UPDATE from Melbourne GP after practice one.
Just spoke to a mate of mine.

Jordan’s sounding really bad, that Indian fella picked the wrong tyre and it started to blister straight away and smoke was coming off them in the pits when he pulled in.

Toyota and Honda are sounding the best according to my mate

Webber went out in his T car

Weather today, overcast but not rain.
Rain tomorrow almost guaranteed

Schumacher’s car didn’t sound too flash either, he didn’t do a hot lap at all.
And went straight to the pits.

This is all from a mate of mine, he is calling me back after practice 2 and during it so I can hear them

Jason

[Hondavirgin]

[04/03/05 - 02:32]

Vitantonio Liuzzi sets the pace for Red Bull
Australian GP - First practice





A most impressive F1 debut for Liuzzi

The first practice session of the 2005 season saw Vitantonio Liuzzi top the timesheets for the new Red Bull Racing team. In his very first official Formula One session, the 2004 F3000 Champion set a best lap of 1:25.967, just 1.5 seconds shy of Michael Schumacher’s Pole Position time recorded last year.

Liuzzi, the third driver for the team this weekend in Australia, was comfortably faster than race drivers David Coulthard and Christian Klien who were fifth and tenth fastest respectively. The second and third fastest times in the session fell to Pedro de la Rosa and Ricardo Zonta.

It was a rather quiet start to the season. The 2005 rules dictate that engines must last for two Grand Prix and as a direct result of this, few teams wish to put miles on its power-plants this early in the weekend. Those teams that finished outside of the top four in the Constructors’ Championship last year are entitled to run a ‘third driver’ in Friday practice. As a result the third drivers dominated the 60-minute session.

Pedro de la Rosa set the second fastest time in the rapid new McLaren MP4-20 while Juan Pablo Montoya set the fourth best time. Kimi Raikkonen did not record a representative lap time.



Felipe Massa set the sixth best time in his Sauber Petronas ahead of Mark Webber in lead BMW Williams. Jarno Trulli set the ninth best time in his Toyota ahead of Jenson Button and Christian Klien.

Nick Heidfeld was 11th fastest in his first session for BMW Williams while Rubens Barrichello was 12th in his Bridgestone shod Ferrari. Michael Schumacher completed an installation lap but did not record a lap time.

Ralf Schumacher was 13th fastest in his Toyota ahead of Jacques Villeneuve in his Sauber, Robert Doornbos in the Jordan Toyota and Takuma Sato in his BAR Honda. Tiago Monteiro and Narain Karthikeyan brought up the tail of the timesheets for Jordan Toyota and Karthikeyan was forced to pit mid-session with a smoking engine. Renault racers Fernando Alonso and Giancarlo Fisichella joined Kimi Raikkonen and Michael Schumacher in just completing installation laps and no timed runs. Over at Minardi, the team did not run either Patrick Friesacher or Christijan Albers as the team failed to get unanimous agreement from its rivals to run the ageing PS04B chassis which does not conform to the current rules.

Practice continues at 04:00am CET.

Earl ALEXANDER
© CAPSIS International

You'd have to be worried if an engine supposed to last two races is smoking after a few laps!

btw, whats the thoughts on minardi not running yet. As far as i'm concerned they shouldn't be allowed to, an illegal car is an illegal car.

[LUD02C]

This is what I wrote on FastFours:

Quote:I mean - i get their point - the rule should apply to everyone.
But give Minardi a chance.


That makes no sense.
You get their point about the rule applying to everyone but you want to give Minardi a chance?

I agree with Ferrari, all the teams want them off the top spot and they have brought in all these new rules mainly to try and knock god off the number one spot which Ferrari HAS TO FOLLOW, WHY? BECAUSE its the RULES!

Minardi follow the same rules, if we give them a break, why not give Ferrari a break?

Schumacher = GOD!

-=--------------------

Sorry to say ladies, but F1 is a business now more then a sport, and Ferrari don't want Paul in it anymore because of this.

I do wish Paul all the best being an aussie and all, but if you can't afford it don't be in it. F1 is the pinnacle (sp) of motorsport no time for whingeing people because of money.

He should join the A1GP or superfund GP.
But, I do know what your saying but I just don't agree with you!

Edit: Just with the business thing, the more Paul changes F1 and doesn't woant Ferrari at the top, the less sponsor(s) they get which is less money etc

Ferrari = number 1 everyone talks about them and they are on TV the whole time and show VODAFONE all the time the more money they get!-----------


I agree with Ferrari
Also, I got a Webber pit shirt, polo shirt, hat
Renault pit shirt and polo shirt
Man, i'm cool lol

[LUD02C]

[LUD02C]

update again

Minardi have packed up there garage

Updating the last update

Minardi are fighting to be in and changed there mind about packing up.
Rumor has it that they will put 2005 wings on them to race, if the FIA lets them ofcourse!

[Hondavirgin]

now those pics are what i call and update!!!!


if they can put 2005 wings on them now why didn't they do that before?!

[jackosimm]

how much did that rain serve a kick in the balls to the middle/last pack in qualifying, unlucky...still brilliant stuff

[VTEC16]

sato sucks balls.....jenson isnt it such a bad spot tho...

[LUD02C]

FIA threaten Australian GP future
Ramifications of the Minardi fiasco




Paul Stoddart has few friends at the FIA
The FIA has threatened to pull future Grand Prix events out of Australia after legal intervention in the Minardi team saga. Minardi's attempts to participate in this week's Australian GP without modifying their cars to new team regulations have dominated the headlines and led to team principal Paul Stoddart seeking a court injunction to overturn a stewards' ruling.

A judge in the Victorian Supreme Court on Friday ruled that the F1 minnows could participate in Saturday qualifying, even though it was in contravention of participation rules set down by the FIA before the start of the season.

Minardi's cars competed in Saturday's first qualifying session after team mechanics modified them overnight to 2005 specifications and were cleared by FIA stewards before morning practice. But FIA have taken a dim view of Stoddart's much-publicised actions and on Saturday issued a press release slamming the interference in their sport by Australia's legal system.

The FIA said that as a consequence if Australian laws and procedures allowed a judge to act in this manner then the future of world championship motorsport events in Australia were under threat.
FIA said they and their stewards were given no notice of Stoddart's legal proceedings and were given no opportunity to be in court when the judge ruled on the case.

"Apparently, the judge thought it right to interfere with the running of a major sporting event, overrule the duly appointed international officials and compel the governing body to allow cars to participate in breach of the international regulations, all this without first hearing both sides of the case," FIA's statement said.

"If Australian laws and procedures do indeed allow a judge to act in this way, it will be for the World Motor Sport Council to decide is a world championship motor sport event of any kind can ever again be held in Australia."

Stoddart criticised the FIA release as "an ill- judged, ill-timed document which I believe was created to disrupt and discredit the Minardi F1 team, the Australian Grand Prix and me. The Australian judicial system is similar in many ways to those of the world's other major democracies and it cannot give comfort to the relevant motorsport bodies in those countries when the FIA President issues statements such as this," Stoddart's statement said.

Australian Grand Prix Corporation chief Ron Walker said late Saturday the issue would be raised by the Australian representative and FIA vice-president John Large at the next meeting of the WMSC later this month. Walker said the issue raised by FIA in its statement "clearly have implications for many other countries which host rounds of the FIA Formula One World Championship."

Stoddart's actions are known to have upset the sport's commercial powerbroker Bernie Ecclestone, who is said to have spoken to the Australian aviation millionaire team owner late Friday.

Source AFP

[jackosimm]

set for a decent race this arvo i reckon

[LUD02C]

If it starts dry, I'm sure at least 3-4 cars will go in the first corner!
Hope it gets wet half way through it,as Schumacher said, then he can make up lost ground.

[muli]

nice to see anthony galea not really synching his lips with music, bit of backing tape in the background