F1 - Gearing up for 2005

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y_anjasrana
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F1 - Gearing up for 2005

Post by y_anjasrana »

The news that Juan Pablo Montoya will be moving to McLaren for 2005 was not exactly a big surprise. Snippets of information were leaking out of the paddock back in the summer that indicated such a move was afoot, although naturally the concerned parties played the denial game. The only slightly curious element in the whole scenario is that McLaren opted to make it public so early.

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Montoya was reportedly peeved that Williams would not agree to his salary expectations for the future -- especially since teammate Ralf Schumacher is speculated to earn twice as much -- and went off to flirt with McLaren. The Woking squad was keen, and it and Montoya's manager put some heavy legwork into trying to get Juan Pablo out of his contract with Williams for 2004. But it wasn't just that hurdle that needed to be overcome. There was the little matter of removing the already-confirmed David Coulthard from McLaren, and Williams had few options for filling a vacant seat so soon.

Eventually it became clear that getting Montoya into McLaren next season just wasn't going to happen. Coulthard would be too expensive to shunt out of his seat and McLaren would have the additional cost of getting Montoya out of his contract. Williams would not have made it easy, with no readily available replacement for the Colombian next season. Reportedly Williams tried hard to get Mark Webber but the Australian is too tied up with Jaguar and Renault for him to be an easy alternative.

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So, it's all been put on hold until 2005. Why would McLaren be a better option for Juan Pablo when Williams seemed the better team this season? For a start, presumably because McLaren met Montoya's salary requirements. But the team has won championships, both drivers' and constructors', and kept Kimi Raikkonen in the title fight all through 2003 with a year-old car -- albeit a reworked version. The MP4-17D held its own against the new models of Williams and Ferrari so if McLaren can put the same effort into future cars, it should be a serious challenger after next year.

But based on Williams' performance in 2003, surely Frank's squad will also be a contender in the future? It's impossible to predict what might happen, but whatever does, Montoya's challenge for the 2004 title with Williams won't be an easy one. The team won't want Juan Pablo too informed about developments when he's offing to another team so it's likely he will be left out of the loop to a certain degree.

Some have already suggested that Ralf Schumacher will benefit from Montoya's departure because Williams will back him more in 2004. However, Ralf's contract is up at the end of next season and there's no guarantee he will be warming his bum on a Williams race seat in 2005 either. But with McLaren tied up for 2005, and Ferrari hardly likely to take Ralf on to partner brother Michael, Williams seems the best option for Ralf in the foreseeable future.

So who does Williams find to replace Montoya? Although he has a contract with Jaguar until the end of 2005, if Webber moves it will probably be to Renault. The redundant Coulthard's best bet is a developing team like Jaguar or Toyota where his experience would be useful -- unless he does something spectacular next season. The Scot hasn't produced the necessary for McLaren to want to keep him so it's unlikely Williams would take him on. Of course, this is on the assumption that it is indeed Coulthard who is making way for Montoya -- but who out there would bet money on McLaren keeping DC and losing Raikkonen?

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Fernando Alonso is on a lot of people's wish lists for the future. The young Spaniard's star was only marginally less stratospheric than Raikkonen's in 2003, considering it was Fernando's first F1 season in a competitive car. Alonso is unobtainable in the near future but speculation has Ferrari homing in on him after 2004. Rubens Barrichello only has a contract until the end of next year and supposedly Ferrari wants a youngster alongside Michael Schumacher in 2005, ready to step into the champion's empty seat when he retires. Barrichello has done a good job at Ferrari but would he want to be partnered by another Schumacher if Williams opted for his services?

Alonso may have a challenger for any future at Ferrari in the form of Brazilian Felipe Massa. After Sauber sent him off to the Scuderia to calm down and test for a year, Massa returns to the Swiss team in 2004 to try and convince them of his potential. Peter Sauber admitted that taking Felipe back was a decision somewhat influenced by Ferrari so it stands to reason Ferrari believes Massa is a future prospect. Felipe's teammate for 2004, Giancarlo Fisichella, also has his sights set on Ferrari so the little battle between the two drivers next year should be an interesting one. Despite his unrewarding recent seasons, Fisichella is regarded as one of F1's best talents and Williams would be a good alternative if Ferrari goes for the younger option.

Former protégé Jenson Button is perhaps the only other viable option for Williams outside those already mentioned. Yes, Williams' previous champion Jacques Villeneuve is still lurking out there but Villeneuve is an unlikely prospect. The Canadian has a reputation for being too difficult and too expensive -- not to mention getting on a bit by F1 standards. Button is tied up with BAR but unless the team produces more than it did in 2003, Jenson may be looking for an escape route come 2005.

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Button had a good start with Williams in 2000 but has gone backwards and sideways ever since. Benetton in 2001 was a disaster and when it re-emerged as Renault in 2002, Button was relegated to merely ironing out the kinks in the car in preparation for Alonso. Shuffling across to BAR this year at least got Button some points; the team has improved but it's still got some way to go before it can hope to threaten the top four. But has Button himself spent too long in the midfield merry-go-round to be of interest to anyone else?

Long-time Williams tester Marc Gené is another possible for a race seat. He filled in admirably for Ralf at Monza this year and will be eager to remind the team of his presence. And outside F1 there are youngsters waiting for their chances. Williams is to test Nico Rosberg of Euro 3000 and Nelson Piquet Junior of British F3 this winter but whether either of them have the ability to step into a race seat in 2005 is yet to be seen. Jaguar is eyeing Christian Klien from German F3 and Townsend Bell from F3000, and there's talent to be had in German Touring Cars in the form of 2003 title challengers Christijan Albers and Marcel Fässler. Both Mercedes drivers are no strangers to F1 cars, Albers having tested for Minardi and Fässler for McLaren in recent years.

Renault, having already signed Formula Nissan champ Franck Montagny as test driver for next year, is to test another Nissan star in December: Montagny's teammate Heikki Kovalainen. With one race to go in the series, Kovalainen is a challenger for second in the standings and another promising talent. Any of these youngsters, and plenty who haven't been mentioned, could well appear in F1 in the future. With a year to prove their worth, there could be some interesting new names on the grid in 2005.

The early announcement of Montoya's move to McLaren has left plenty of scope for 2004 to be a real battle as drivers currently on the F1 grid fight to not only win the title, but also to make themselves an attractive prospect for the future. Come 2005 the more or less familiar faces currently in F1 will surely be looking somewhat different, or at least will be wearing different race suits.

Nikki Reynolds
http://www.motorsport.com
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Demonium

Post by Demonium »

gawat ga bisa inggris nih
translate 4 me plz mod
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DigitALL
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Post by DigitALL »

Berarti taon depan Juan Pablo Montoya pindah ke McLaren donk ! Sip dah. Jadi si Montoya n Ralf Schumaker ngga saling berebutan lagi di BMW Williams Team.
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y_anjasrana
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Post by y_anjasrana »

Demonium wrote:gawat ga bisa inggris nih
translate 4 me plz mod
Sammaan dunk.... :lol: :lol: :lol:
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