Hmmm, but it doesn't mean that F1 Teams favorite the driver just by having one shared pit box. All drivers are equal in F1 they both have their own strategies.....
With only one pit box, teams can only service one car at a time (unless they start stacking cars which seriously hinders the car being stacked)
This being the case, all other things being equal, team-mates cannot stop on the same lap. Therefore, one must stop at least one lap before. Stopping one lap before your team-mate means you will be on fresher tyres on a lower fuel load for at least one lap. That's a definite advantage
And it doesn't end there. Back when drivers qualified on the fuel they started the race with, teams had to choose which driver would be stopping first. Whichever driver would be stopping first would have less fuel on board for qualifying. That's a definite advantage
And even further back when drivers could start with whatever fuel load they wished, that same choice had to be made. One driver was always going to start the race with at least one lap's worth less of fuel. That's a definite advantage
And even when refuelling was banned but tyre stops allowed; one driver would have to drive one less lap on a set of worn tyres. That's a definite advantage
It's true to say drivers in F1 have their own strategies but these strategies are decided in a big pre-race meeting involving the team principal, technical director, drivers, race engineers and various other team members. Generally, teams do not split strategies unless circumstances dictate otherwise during a race. Therefore, a team will generally decide that their drivers will follow a similar strategy. But with only one pit box to service their cars those strategies have built in advantages towards one driver over the other
Indycar is essentially a national racing series. It's profile is higher than most other national racing series but it's still pretty much an American rather than a 'worldwide' series. The vast majority of races take place in North America with a race in Japan - thanks to engine supplier Honda and a race in Brazil - thanks to the massive Brazilian presence in the series. There have been races in the past in England, Germany, Holland and Belgium but these are currently not taking place
Indycar races on permanent road courses, street courses, airport courses, short ovals and superspeedways. A driver has to be much more versatile in Indycar than he does in F1. Some oval racing can be boring but superspeedways such as Indianapolis and Fontana in California often give fantastic racing. Oval racing is something of an acquired taste. Given that I've been watching American racing since 1993 I think I've probably gained that taste!
I would respectfully suggest that there is more overtaking in a season of Indycar than there is in a season of F1. But overtaking isn't everything. Some of the very best battles I've witnessed in racing haven't resulted in an overtaking move - two examples that come to mind are Mansell/Senna at Monaco 1992 and Alonso/Schumacher at Imola 2005. Sometimes, constant overtaking can be tiresome but it's not often you can say that
And as for NASCAR, how seriously can one take a series in which cast-iron engine blocks are still used along with carburettors and leaf-spring suspension? Still, it's a fun way to spend a few hours on a Sunday evening
.....and I sadly remember Imola in 94, especially watching it as a 7 year old, it's not something you'll ever forget....
That weekend has never left me. I'd been watching F1 full-time for two years at that point and I'd seen some pretty horrific shunts but the drivers were always OK. But then there was Barrichello's shunt on the Friday and he got quite hurt. And then Ratzenberger was killed in qualifying and Ayrton during the race. I was in a complete state of shock - the realisation that my favourite sport could be a killer had become all too apparent. I remember breaking down in tears when it was confirmed that Ayrton had died and my dad has later said that it was hard seeing me go through what he had back in the 1960s. Of course, back then, death in motorsport was, sadly, a common occurence and he had become somewhat desensitised to it so when Imola 1994 came around it was a case of 'seen it before' even though it had been many years since a driver had died in an F1 car
Cristiano da Matta deserved a better shot than he actually got. A lot of the guys that came over from America didn't get the chance to actually crack F1. Back in 1995 when Jacques Villeneuve came over from Indycar he spent much of the autumn of 1995 testing for Williams in between racing in Indycar. He then spent the winter of 1995/1996 testing solidly. Consequently, he turned up for his first F1 race in Melbourne and was so well-prepared he stuck the Williams on pole for his first race! And if not for an oil problem he would have won his first race as well. It helped getting into the best car but his preparation was a massive boost. No other driver coming from America had that preparation
I'm a big Franchitti fan and would have loved to see him in F1 in about 2001. He did have a test with Jaguar but circumstances conspired against him and he didn't get a repeat test. F1 for him is now a closed door but he can't really complain. He's a two-time Indycar champion - hopefully by the end of the weekend he'll be a three-time champion - and he's also a two-time Indy 500 winner. He's had a fantastic career and doesn't need to look back with sadness that he didn't make F1
I actually don't like the current Dallaras Indycar race. They do look dated and look pretty ugly as well. There is a new car in the pipeline for 2011. It can't look any worse than the current one!
I wonder do you mean Alex Zanardi, who was an Indycar (or CART / Champcar as then was) champion and put in some fantastic drives over there - and then came to Williams and it didn't go to well....
Alex Zanardi - what an absolute legend! He's a fantastic bloke and a personal hero of mine. It didn't work out for him at Williams mainly because he ended up overshadowed by Ralf Schumacher and his demands but when Zanardi actually got what he wanted he was able to show what he could do. One example would be Monza in 1999 when he finally got the steel brakes on the car he was used to in CART; he put the Williams fourth on the grid
Guess Webber is the hardest guy to take out lool as from Turkey Vettel was in the inside of Webber tried to overtake him but hit his left side of the car, they both spun out Webber walked away again but Vettel out of the race...
I simply don't understand how anyone can place any blame on Webber for Turkey. He was driving in a straight line while Vettel tried to sneak down the inside. Vettel was never going to make the corner from the line he was on and simply turned into his team-mate expecting Webber to dive out of the way. I think Vettel got exactly what he deserved in Turkey
Forgot all about Zanardi!! I remember that season in the Williams too. It was terrible!! Think he may have had Ralf Schumacher as his team mate too, which obviously didn't help much!
Also, didn't he have that awful crash too up north in Indycar where he lost his legs?? That really was terrible!
It was the weekend after 9/11. Not sure if you remember but it was the weekend where Michael Schumacher tried to get the F1 guys to drive slowly into the first corner at Monza and it was the event where that Italian marshal (Ghislimberti?) lost his life. CART were racing at Lautsitzring in Germany that weekend and Alex was actually having a really good race - his CART comeback hadn't being going that well. Then he lost control coming out of the pits and was T-boned by Alex Tagliani. It's a massive credit to the German surgeons that Alex didn't lose his life that weekend. Some reports I read said that Alex had lost nearly 8 pints of blood which is pretty much all the blood in his body!
To come back from that and continue to compete in an FIA-sanctioned series (World Touring Car Championship) and even win races in that series (he was also Italian Touring Car Champion) says volumes about the man. The last I heard he was in training to compete at the 2012 Paralympics in the hand-cycling events. If I can, I would love to be there to cheer him on
So who are your guys gonna go for to win the Japanese Grand Prix?
I can't see beyond Red Bull with maybe a Ferrari cameo from Alonso. Sadly, I think the McLaren boys have slipped a bit too far back
ITV revolutionised the way F1 was covered in this country. They often don't get the credit they deserve for this. However, the BBC have taken this to another level since they started covering the sport again last year. Jake Humphrey has really grown into the role of presenter and I imagine he will be missed for Japan - still, it'll be interesting to see how Lee McKenzie does. EJ and DC have grown as pundits as well and its hilarious to see EJ going off on one. Martin Brundle is excellent as ever and I think there's even improvement in Jonathan Legard. That said, I wouldn't mind seeing James Allen back with Brundle
I've heard that F1 is making a new track in the us in texas, im guessing Indianapolis is not on the F1 calendar anymore...
I'm not really sure what happened with Indianapolis. It seemed the perfect home for F1. But whatever happened has happened and now, it seems, we're off to Austin. The new circuit actually looks really, really good and I'm quite looking forward to 2012 and seeing how it goes. Formula 1 really does need a strong presence in the States
, full details here 
) and also, let's not forget Montoya either. Actually, I'd love for an F1 team to take a chance and maybe get Dario Franchitti over. I think he's got a talent there that might just suit the F1 style of racing
? 17774 are you male or female??? Have you seen Lee McKenzie??? I could look at her all day Don't get me wrong I think Jake is a very good presenter but Lee is gorgeous... I'll stop there cos the wife is in the room!! ;D ;D