The 2018 F1 driver transfer discussion/speculation threadFormula 1 

twitcher
Has anyone heard what Newey’s plans for the next couple of years are? Not suggesting the rumours of Renault trying to snatch him are remotely true....but is he still trying to “semi retire”? He tried to scale back his involvement, only to be called back to rescue the team.

Will the 2019 RB be a Newey car, or a RB car that Newey has to rescue midway through the ‘19 season.

I wonder if Dan has any insight into the scale of Newey’s continued involvement which may have influenced his decision.
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I don't think Newey would go to Renault for a few reasons.

First of all, he isn't getting younger, and will be looking into retirement in a few years. Building a team like he has at RBR will take realistically 3-5 years. I don't think he really feels like doing it all over again. He has a few challenges ahead (Honda, 2019, 2021) with which he will have his hands full, no need to throw in extra headache of changing teams, especially for a team in growing phase.

Secondly, signing both Dan and Newey would be a huge dent in a budget, even with their budget getting bigger, it would be big expense for them.
 
adb
Secondly, signing both Dan and Newey would be a huge dent in a budget, even with their budget getting bigger, it would be big expense for them.
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I agree that it's unlikely they'll sign Newey the parent company could find the money if they wanted to make such a strategic mood. I reckon they've got a few loose francs down the back of the sofa at the very least.
 
I wasn’t wondering if you guys think he’ll go to Renault, which is why I said, “NOT suggesting the rumours to Renault are true.”

I’m asking if anyone has heard whether or not Newey will be 100% involved in next year’s RB car, or will he continue to try to scale back his involvement like he did in either ‘15 or ‘16 (only to be called back to rescue the project).
 
twitcher
I wasn’t wondering if you guys think he’ll go to Renault, which is why I said, “NOT suggesting the rumours to Renault are true.”

I’m asking if anyone has heard whether or not Newey will be 100% involved in next year’s RB car, or will he continue to try to scale back his involvement like he did in either ‘15 or ‘16 (only to be called back to rescue the project).
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There hasn't been anything to suggest he's going to be working full time, I think people need to move on. The guy is great, but I would argue he is the best and I imagine there was plans down the line to move of James Key which is why RBR weren't happy to lose him.
 
Today I read more then usual (fake news?) messages about Kimi's last year in F1?
Is it true that Ferrari resigned him for next season.
Or did he sign a new contract which is 180 degrees different then other 'news'

in short: re-sign or resign?

And what about the Fernando Alonso message with a countdown to 14 Aug?

Sources are Twitter. so how reliable is that with about 99% garbage ;) We'll see next days
 
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BrainsBush
Today I read more then usual (fake news?) messages about Kimi's last year in F1?
Is it true that Ferrari resigned him for next season.
Or did he sign a new contract which is 180 degrees different then other 'news'

in short: re-sign or resign?

And what about the Fernando Alonso message with a countdown to 14 Aug?

Sources are Twitter. so how reliable is that with about 99% garbage ;) We'll see next days
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The only thing I've seen is they want to keep the drivers as is due to the change of leadership at the very top.

EDIT:

Hungarian media reporting Stroll to FI, Ocon to McLaren, and Kubica to Williams for Spa. The salt mines are in full operating order.
 
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LMSCorvetteGT2
The only thing I've seen is they want to keep the drivers as is due to the change of leadership at the very top.
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It makes sense, but since reportedly it was Marchionne himself pushing for Leclerc, wouldn’t it be better to go ahead with his plans?
Anyways, one more year in improving Sauber won’t do him any harm, but I really wanted to see him in red asap
 
adb
It makes sense, but since reportedly it was Marchionne himself pushing for Leclerc, wouldn’t it be better to go ahead with his plans?
Anyways, one more year in improving Sauber won’t do him any harm, but I really wanted to see him in red asap
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Depends the man that took over has seen plenty of how Ferrari operates and may be of the more frequent philosophy. "Only men drive our race cars"
 
Messages circling around that Alonso will join McLaren Indy. It was send from a 'fake' account. Well the account is real but it is not an official McLaren account.

Which will not say Alonso will or will not join the Indy cars.

Funny to read all the impatient info.:lol:

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english version:

 
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It is a pity that things haven't worked out for Alonso at McLaren, but this decision was inevitable and arguably long overdue.
 
Fernando will be surely missed... In my opinion, the best driver since Senna and Prost. Best of luck to him in the future. I hope history recognises him as one of the all time greats.
 
You knew from the moment he won Le Mans that he wasn't going to stick around much longer. It's quite a shame someone as talented as him is often struggling to finish in the middle of the pack.
 
Terronium-12
You knew from the moment he won Le Mans that he wasn't going to stick around much longer. It's quite a shame someone as talented as him is often struggling to finish in the middle of the pack.
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So much ability and talent, wasted due to his own inability to control and manage himself. Alonso should have been in a place to fight along side Vettel and Lewis for a 5th title, instead he's been pushing a back-marker to the mid field... I hope he wins the 500 and the Triple Crown, maybe an Indy title and a WEC title.
 
baldgye
So much ability and talent, wasted due to his own inability to control and manage himself. Alonso should have been in a place to fight along side Vettel and Lewis for a 5th title, instead he's been pushing a back-marker to the mid field... I hope he wins the 500 and the Triple Crown, maybe an Indy title and a WEC title.
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Had he behaved properly at Mclaren in 2007, he would've had 5 titles at the very least I would say.
 
Bram Turismo
Had he behaved properly at Mclaren in 2007, he would've had 5 titles at the very least I would say.
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Indeed, though I think the way he corralled Ferrari caused him the biggest problems. They almost had everything, but it only really came together after he left...
 
I like how this is being cited as a "non-retirement" from F1 by some, when you know full well he's not coming back.

Alonso's clearly got the taste for winning again, albeit now in a different flavour to the one he's been used to for the past 17 years.

Like him or not, his talent has been unquestionable. All the best to him for the future.
 
I’m both sad and happy to see this finally happen. Sad that he won’t be in F1 anymore, but happy to now follow him as he tries different disciplines. Prototypes, GTs, Indycars, Aussie Supercars (can you imagine him as a co-driver for the enduros??), FWD touring cars, I hope he gives any and all of them a go :D
 
baldgye
Indeed, though I think the way he corralled Ferrari caused him the biggest problems. They almost had everything, but it only really came together after he left...
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Came together since he left :lol:? How many titles has Ferrari won since Vettel joined?

If Ferrari hadn't screwed the pooch in 2010 and Grosjean hadn't wiped him out in Spa 2012, there would be 2 more titles right there.
 
Mike Rotch
Came together since he left :lol:? How many titles has Ferrari won since Vettel joined?

If Ferrari hadn't screwed the pooch in 2010 and Grosjean hadn't wiped him out in Spa 2012, there would be 2 more titles right there.
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The year after Alonso left they were finally able to stand on (almost) equal footing with Mercedes. Had he stayed in Ferrari his standings would've been much higher, and maybe even competing for the championship this year
 
LMSCorvetteGT2
The only thing I've seen is they want to keep the drivers as is due to the change of leadership at the very top.

EDIT:

Hungarian media reporting Stroll to FI, Ocon to McLaren, and Kubica to Williams for Spa. The salt mines are in full operating order.
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I assume they're simply parroting back an opinion/theory from a French paper... I don't think anything of the sort will happen because of current running contracts. At best, it could just be a straight up Stroll/Ocon swap, but even that I think is unlikely.
 
Alpha Cipher
The year after Alonso left they were finally able to stand on (almost) equal footing with Mercedes. Had he stayed in Ferrari his standings would've been much higher, and maybe even competing for the championship this year
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As he said when leaving Ferrari, coming second or coming last doesn't matter, it's not a title. After 4 years of useless Ferrari development, I don't think it was an unreasonable gamble to roll the dice on Honda given their history.

/derailing the thread

Who will be his replacement at Maccas?
 
How the time has flown...

I started watching F1 in 2005 with his first championship. I could possibly see him coming back if the car is competitive, but I don't think that will happen in the near enough future.
 
This is a disaster for F1 to lose its top talent, but amazing for worldwide motorsport as it means the greatest driver of this century is now free to compete in whatever race or series he wants
 
FutureF1
This is a disaster for F1 to lose its top talent
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Top talent? He's fast, that's for sure... but he's not the all-round driver that Red Bull would have snapped up like a shot. The best drivers get themselves into the best cars and he's provenly unable to do that. It's a shame to see him go from F1, definitely, but he's responsible in part for the fact that the statistics will never reflect what he could have been capable of.

FutureF1
the greatest driver of this century is now free to compete in whatever race or series he wants
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I'm sure there are no prizes for guessing where he's going? :D
 
Mike Rotch
Came together since he left :lol:? How many titles has Ferrari won since Vettel joined?
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Non, but they arguably had the best car for most of last year and this year clearly have the best car.

Ferrari is a better team than it has been for years and years, and while Alonso did get unlucky, he was attributed to part of what made Ferrari less than the best at that time.

TenEightyOne
Top talent? He's fast, that's for sure... but he's not the all-round driver that Red Bull would have snapped up like a shot.
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Based on what? Red Bull is pretty devoted to their young driver program. Also Alonso wouldn’t have been conducive to a good atmosphere with another young and talented driver (as he’s proven). The problem with Alonso is he can be distructive to a team. While he’s probably the best or second best driver on the grid and one of the best in the world, he needs a level of personal management, that probably doesn’t exist.
 
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