Official: Liuzzi to replace Klien at Imola

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Vitantonio Liuzzi will make his Formula 1 race debut with the Red Bull Racing team at the San Marino Grand Prix. Liuzzi has been part of the Red Bull Junior Team since 2001 and is the reigning FIA F3000 champion. Liuzzi will be replacing Christian Klien at the Austrian team.

The 24-year-old Italian has been the team's Friday test and reserve driver at the first three Grand Prix of the season and will now partner David Coulthard in Imola, Barcelona and Monte Carlo. The team has been extremely pleased with Christian's performance during the first three races, particularly his points scoring finishes in Australia and Malaysia. The 22-year-old Austrian will continue to play an important role within the team during Tonio's three race trial being stood down so that Tonio also can experience Formula 1 in a racing environment.

An announcement regarding who will fill the role of Friday test driver at the San Marino GP will be made in due course.

Vitantonio Liuzzi "I am very happy to get this chance to race in Formula 1, which has always been my target since I started racing. It is particularly exciting for me to have my first race at my home Grand Prix in Imola. This is a great opportunity for me and of course, I hope to make the best of it. Christian has done a great job in the first three races and it is clear that our car has good potential. It will be great having to get up early on a Saturday and have something to do!"
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Dang.

Blake
 
I feel a bit sad for Klien although I knew he was on a 3 race deal. It's going to be a risk though. While Luizzi may be a better driver as he has shown in free practice and testing Klien does have a bit more experience and well he has been doing quite well and holding his own. Infact doing well better than expected.

Again technically speaking Klien only got 2 races. He didn't even start Bahrain due to an electronics glitch. If I was Klien I'd be pissed.

For us fans it will be quite exciting to watch because Luizzi knowing this will drive this Red Bull like theres no tomorrow, which may provide some exciting racing.
 
its supposedly only a 3 race deal for Liuzzi but im sure if he does better than Klien he will be retained for the rest of the season...other teams have shown interest in him so im sure red bull is keen to keep him happy and firmly in their grasp...on the other hand if i were Klien i would be pissed too...he has been steadily improving and has much more actual racing experience (in F1) so i dunno i guess we will see...
 
Klien was doing a decent job, I'm not sure how Luizzi will do in the race, I doubt he'll be doing too much passing but he may pull out all the stops.

What's the bet neither of the Jordan drivers finish Monaco :lol:

blake
 
Talk about taking the wind out of Klien's sails. Honestly his pace the past 2 races has shocked me, the kid is doing a great job. But...Liuzzi is supposed to be the real deal. The next Schumi so get his some seat time.

I expect this to be a one time thing. If Liuzzi does well in the race weekend I expect him or Klien to replace Mr. 'Moving chicane" JV at Sauber.

The more I think about this the more it makes sense. Why waste a race seat on a driver who has absolutely no future in F1, nor one who can stay on pace (JV). Put a young guy in there who has a future and lets see what happens.
 
Crud! I have Klien as one of my drivers in Fantasy F1! Agh, now I've gotta make a choice... either wait 3 races and see what happens (and lose points), or permanently substitute a different driver for Klien... decisions decisions.
 
well peter sauber says JV will stay but stranger things have happened...JV seems to really not have it together this season (as opposed to what right?) but sauber probably want some more publicity for sponsors and what better way than to hire a former world champion...bernie himself wants JV in F1 to spice things up a bit...i believe he means JV should cause trouble therefore generating more interest in the sport...
 
I definitely agree that Klien is getting hosed in this deal. He has been pretty good this season, especially compared to last season. It seems to be kind of risky to bring out a guy who has not competed in an entire weekend for another guy who has been pretty good so far. I guess his performance at Imola will give us some more insight into this guys abilities.
 
786
well peter sauber says JV will stay but stranger things have happened...JV seems to really not have it together this season (as opposed to what right?) but sauber probably want some more publicity for sponsors and what better way than to hire a former world champion...bernie himself wants JV in F1 to spice things up a bit...i believe he means JV should cause trouble therefore generating more interest in the sport...
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No matter your name if you aren't performing in F1 you are out, no matter what politics you may have behind you. JV's time is well over, at best he is a moving chicane who doesn't deserve a Minardi race seat.

Sauber isn't stupid. Results matter. If Liuzzi or Klien can provide them, plus Red Bull money helps...then they will jump. With the possibility of getting BMW power and support next season the future is looking up for Sauber.

Why Peter Sauber even bothered with JV I will never know. The only reason I can fathom is Bernie greased the wheels some.
 
I feel sorry for Klien, because there was no obvious reason to sideline him.
So far he made a decent job, and he was able to prove his real value with a decent car.
 
Ev0
Crud! I have Klien as one of my drivers in Fantasy F1! Agh, now I've gotta make a choice... either wait 3 races and see what happens (and lose points), or permanently substitute a different driver for Klien... decisions decisions.
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Same here. He drove last year a little like Jean Alesi....good enough to be on my team.

This was part of the deal, way back when the season began; although two points-paying races in 3 tries (no fault of his own last week) was even more than I expected.

Alas, this is F1 for you. At least Scott Speed may get a chance...
 
Ya, It's good for Scott Speed only if Sauber cans JV and Liuzzi or Klein take over the seat. Otherwise Liuzzi and Klien jsut will swap the race seat and testing seat, over and over.
 
Keep in mind Scott Speed is also in the Red Bull driver development program, so if he ever gets an F1 seat, it would most likely be with RBR, unless they were dumb enough not to hold on to him. So RBR has 2, possibly 3 great young drivers lined up (Klien, Liuzzi, and Speed if his F1 testing goes well). It will be interesting to see their driver lineups in the coming years.

That being said, I wonder how much longer Coulthard is going to be around for. He's been doing well at RBR so far, 3 consecutive points finishes is very solid.
 
Ev0
Keep in mind Scott Speed is also in the Red Bull driver development program, so if he ever gets an F1 seat, it would most likely be with RBR, unless they were dumb enough not to hold on to him. So RBR has 2, possibly 3 great young drivers lined up (Klien, Liuzzi, and Speed if his F1 testing goes well). It will be interesting to see their driver lineups in the coming years.

That being said, I wonder how much longer Coulthard is going to be around for. He's been doing well at RBR so far, 3 consecutive points finishes is very solid.
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Doesn't Ferrari own Liuzzi in the long term and are just loaning him out to RBR for the next few seasons so he can get experience? I remember reading this last fall, but haven't seen anything since.
 
Either way this is great. Red Bull is nurturing young talent. Furthermore they are doing better than Sauber (who they were partnered with) for oh so long.
 
i have heard that Ferrari own Liuzzi as well but im not sure if thats true or not...Speed is currently in GP2 and i believe he just secured the #1 designation as he was quickest in pre-season "qualifying"...Red Bull boss Mateschitz was quoted as saying Klien and Liuzzi will be his drivers next year not Coulthard so who knows...all in all i think RBR have some major issues with their drivers...it doesnt bode well for a drivers confidence level if his seat is threatened every race...they need to pick a pair and stick with them throughout the season...this constant switching may be entertaining to some but the reality is that RBR will have a bunch of nervous bitter drivers and it just seems childish to swap a driver every 3 races...anyway i think its ridiculous that Mateschitz is picking drivers in the first place...remember when Klien was his golden boy and he forced Jaguar to race him and now Liuzzi has caught his eye...having a fickle billionaire pick drivers is retarded...this is the same guy that thought more about buying a football team than when he bought Jaguar...ridiculous...

some links...

Coulthard 2006?
http://www.f1racing.net/en/news.php?newsID=82424

Mateschitz buys football team
http://www.f1racing.net/en/news.php?newsID=82435
 
Personally I could see advantages of resting a driver and having certain drivers focus on certain tracks. For example if I was in F1 I'd hate to do Monte Carlo GP. I want to be there. It's a beautiful place but it's so tight and leaves no room for overtaking.
 
the aim isnt to rest a driver it is to see if another driver is better...thats makes for a very bad environment within the team...anyway you wouldnt be in F1 if you didnt want to do certain tracks...an F1 driver enjoys the challenge posed by a track such as Monaco...
 
786
the aim isnt to rest a driver it is to see if another driver is better...thats makes for a very bad environment within the team...anyway you wouldnt be in F1 if you didnt want to do certain tracks...an F1 driver enjoys the challenge posed by a track such as Monaco...
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I know that. But there are some advantages to resting a driver. I disagree with the bad enviroment crap as well. I don't mean having 19 drivers for every track. Every driver brings a certain thing to the table and a certain thing to the team. Whether it be consistency, speed, technique or even funds Minardi/Jordan.

I like challenges but I'd still hate to drive at Monaco. Like I said it's very tight. Passing is near impossible so basically it all goes down to how people qualify and pit/team strategies.

You seem to have picked the bone against me eh?
 
uh, i have no problem with you but judging from your posts you dont seem to grasp the reality of the situation...if you were sitting at your desk at work and your boss came up and told you that for the next 3 months you would be replaced to test another employee and that if he proved better he would have your job...how would you feel?...im sure you may find this situation entertaining but from a drivers point of view it is maddening...a big part of driving is mental focus and stability...if you are constantly thinking about losing your seat if you dont do well you may very well make mistakes...RBR has made driver selection a farce...
 
786
uh, i have no problem with you but judging from your posts you dont seem to grasp the reality of the situation...if you were sitting at your desk at work and your boss came up and told you that for the next 3 months you would be replaced to test another employee and that if he proved better he would have your job...how would you feel?...im sure you may find this situation entertaining but from a drivers point of view it is maddening...a big part of driving is mental focus and stability...if you are constantly thinking about losing your seat if you dont do well you may very well make mistakes...RBR has made driver selection a farce...
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Oh I can grasp reality. You seem to have a head full of steam but it's cool with me. Personally if someone was offered a test job and selected over me I would be pissed. But seeing it in their eyes wouldn't they want the best man for the job?

At the end of the day the team does what they do. Klien is a good driver. Luizzi is a talent from what I can gather. Either way 1 person has to lose dude. It's a cut-throat business. But from a RBR team perspective they have 3 good drivers ready to drive. Isn't that a good thing for them?, And us as fans since we get to watch them try to 1-up each other.

I feel for Klien, I really do. The 3 race deal was talked about for some time I think. If I was Klien I'd be very disheartened, but also angry since the Bahrain race, wasn't much of a race for him.
 
:rolleyes:

you have your opinion and i have mine...

and please dont try to tell me about the "business"...i understand it all to well...
 
786
:rolleyes:

you have your opinion and i have mine...

and please dont try to tell me about the "business"...i understand it all to well...
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Oh you know it all to well? You are in it? You didn't seem to understand there point of view.

:rolleyes:
 
liam2maps
Oh you know it all to well? You are in it? You didn't seem to understand there point of view.

:rolleyes:
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thats none of your concern...

you have a fans point of view, i do not...
 
786
thats none of your concern...

you have a fans point of view, i do not...
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Oh oh so mysterious, maybe you work in the industry, or maybe you just want to seem cool, or maybe you picked the wrong person to rub up the wrong way.
 
i dont believe you understood my point...

you are inconsequential and i could care less what you think...
 
786
i dont believe you understood my point...

you are inconsequential and i could care less what you think...
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Haha you yourself are quite the illogical one. Look you got beat. Take it on the chin and either move on or keep your trap shut. You failed to not only understand some of my points but you want to keep this going. It ends here. Don't drag this on because I don't want to have to keep picking you off like a bug.
 

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