Kovalainen to replace Alonso in 2007

[DQuaN]

Linky

So we are pretty certain that Renault won't be fighting for any championships next season then.

 

[IMTDS]

Linky

So we are pretty certain that Renault won't be fighting for any championships next season then.

Oh I don't know about that, I think now they're becoming clear favo... oh hang on, that'd be someone with a good driver.


Anyway, it's been on the cards for the last 3 months so are we really surprised?

 

[Blake]

So, assuming Michael retires, that just about gifts Kimi the championship.

 

[MagpieRacer]

Maybe Renault will carry on the success maybe they wont, i think Fisichella still has a lot in him and i think he can provide the good and possibly several wins next season. Kovalainnen isnt a newcomer to f1 really (28'000kms to his name in the renault) but obviously lacks in race experiance..i think he is gonna have a good season and possibly some good battles with Rosberg.

 

[<_Spike_>]

Course if Micheal doesn't retire, it means Kimi is practically stuck with McLaren unless Ferrari drop Massa...and they'd be foolish to do so unless they traded him with McLaren (I'd rate Massa above Hamilton or Paffet)

 

[Dougboy]

Course if Micheal doesn't retire, it means Kimi is practically stuck with McLaren unless Ferrari drop Massa...

Why would kimi be stuck with mclaren? Im pretty sure ferrari would rather have kimi than massa.

 

[ExigeEvan]

Why would kimi be stuck with mclaren? Im pretty sure ferrari would rather have kimi than massa.

But can Ferrari really handle 2 'first' drivers?

 

[Lee]

Yeah I agree with Evan, I think a MS/Kimi line up could potentially implode within the team, I'd be looking at McLaren as favourites for next season.

Nice to see Kovalainen's testing milage paying off though.

 

[<_Spike_>]

And I'm sure even Kimi would guess "Hang on...if I go to Ferrari with Micheal still there, I'm just going to end up like Massa, Barrichello and Irvine, second drivers under a shadow".

 

[Drift260Z]

Linky

So we are pretty certain that Renault won't be fighting for any championships next season then.

and why not!? Heikki is f-ing quick! for all that everybody knows, he could be a contender right out of the box. like someone said earlier, he has a lot of km's of testing under his belt, and racing is racing. he's done it in the lower feeder series, and he will be able to do it again in F1. remember, he won the Race of Champions over Michael Schumacher in 2004. and they were racing in equal machinery! I knew right there he would be world champion one day, and he will.


Joseph.

 

[Pink_the_Floyd]

Well, Kovalainen has already proven himself to set some seriously fast times, it'll just be waiting how he does it in a full weekend 👍

For Fisichella, this will be quite a relief as he now can be the leading driver in the team...well, maybe.


For Alonso, it'll be getting used to Ferrari so I expect to see the staying drivers do better in the first races of the season.

And Kimi, well, he's got quite a situation now since he's letten known that he wants to leave Mclaren, that what I heard...

 

[Pink_the_Floyd]

I knew right there he would be world champion one day, and he will.


Joseph.

Are you sure?

There are more drivers out there of who people thought to become champions but they never were it...

 

[Scaff]

and why not!? Heikki is f-ing quick! for all that everybody knows, he could be a contender right out of the box. like someone said earlier, he has a lot of km's of testing under his belt, and racing is racing. he's done it in the lower feeder series, and he will be able to do it again in F1. remember, he won the Race of Champions over Michael Schumacher in 2004. and they were racing in equal machinery! I knew right there he would be world champion one day, and he will.


Joseph.

Plenty of people have been quick in testing and plenty of people have dominated in open-wheel feeder series, that does not automatically make them the next big thing.

Too many drivers over the years have filled both of those criteria and when it came to the actual championship were just not able to make the grade.

The RoC while a great event (watch it every year) is not representative of a drivers true ability, many of the higher level drivers admit to treating it as a big of fun at the end of the season (or almost a mid-season distraction for the WRC drivers), while the younger drivers are deadly serious and have a big point to prove.

Personally I'm not a big fan of the penalty system the RoC uses as well, as touching a barrier incurs such a huge time penalty that it effectively ends your race. The short number of laps give you no chance to try and catch up.

Regards

Scaff


BTW @Pink - Can you please not double post, those last two were two minutes apart, use the edit button to add additional info. Thanks Scaff.