Belgian GP Qualifying Thread

[m schumy]

Looking quite good for Qualy I`d say :-) Red Bull and McLaren might be strong this weekend, but Ferrari are not off the pace either so I expect an interesting qualifying :-)

[vcs316]

:pray Let us grab pole position today :pray

[scuderia_nano]

Any Links?

[epiclyaddicted]

:pray Let us grab pole position today :pray

Amen to that!

I think the pole position shoot out will be a very close fight between Webber, Vettel, Hamilton, Alonso and may be a surprise package (Kubica?).

But it's been too long since Interlagos '08! ;-)

Forza Ferrari! :ferrarifl

[vcs316]

Amen to that!

I think the pole position shoot out will be a very close fight between Webber, Vettel, Hamilton, Alonso and may be a surprise package (Kubica?).

But it's been too long since Interlagos '08! ;-)

Forza Ferrari! :ferrarifl

Been wayyy too long mate; hope we are quicker today in terms of pace as well as strategy!

[scuderia_nano]

So much so that its a great thought and a silent prayer. I dont think We would get pole. Its going to be Redbull yet again.

Fernando has said that the car is doing better when its wet and slight off pace its dry. However, Massa is struggling in both :-|

[gvsnraju85]

any english links??????

[Naeem]

We have the best mechanical grip of all the cars on the grid hence the superior pace in the wet. The sector times in Q3 are a little baffling. We're slower than McLaren in sector 2 which i think is highly unlikely to be a true reflection of our pace. The McLaren has made it clear this season that it doesn't do corners. I suspect we were carrying a lot of fuel or who knows, even sandbagging a little. I think we will be in the shoot-out for pole. We've been treating our engine lightly also as we're on engine 7 of 8

[Mitra]

http://www.firstrow.net/watch/25073/3/watch--formula-1---grand-prix-belgium-(-qualification-).html
has anyone been able to find an english stream?

[Kingdom Hearts]

Not looking good without rain according to Gene.

[Mitra]

http://eplsite.com/stream1.html
english stream

[gvsnraju85]

English Link: http://www.firstrow.net/watch/25073/1/watch--formula-1---grand-prix-belgium-%28-qualification-%29.html

[m schumy]

Mercedes driver Michael Schumacher on BBC One: "At the end of the day there are physics. How can a 41-year-old be as good as a top level 23 or 24-year-old? But I have experience and a high level of speed. If it is exactly the same as at my high periods in Ferrari I don't think we will ever know. Because when I had that with Ferrari I had been working for 10 years to make that level. This time I have been with a whole new team just for one year."

[m schumy]

Lotus technical chief Mike Gascoyne on Twitter: "Rain coming from the west, should arrive at the end of Q1. Track not totally dry yet but drying quickly."

[m schumy]

Eddie Jordan believes McLaren and team boss Martin Whitmarsh should put the controversy over bodywork that is allegedly flexing illegally on the Red Bull cars behind them. Red Bull have, apparently, passed the more stringent tests imposed by the FIA and Jordan believes Whitmarsh's complaints are distracting for his drivers and the other teams.

[m schumy]

Petrov out

[Katu]

Petrov already bangs

[Mitra]

red flag

[Naeem]

looks like we're gonna get rain in the business end of qualifying

[m schumy]

BBC pit-lane reporter Ted Kravitz reports that Jenson Button is the only one of the championship contending drivers on the softer compound tyres.

[m schumy]

1302: Red flag - session suspended. The clock has stopped. Petrov runs over onto the slippery white line coming out of Turn Nine, spins and smacks into the barrier on the other side. The front wing has taken a knock. Big blow for Renault.

[m schumy]

1305: That incident shows how treacherous this qualifying is going to be. The clouds look absolutely awful and the drivers will be wanting to get out there as quickly as possible. Petrov's car is being lifted up and over the barriers to safety. Another setback for Mercedes, they have had to change Nico Rosberg's gearbox and he will be demoted five places on the grid.

[Katu]

and it rains

[m schumy]

1308: The session resumes. The softer compound slick tyres are on. Rain is expected between 1310 and 1315. This is going to be tight because if it comes sooner, the drivers could be in trouble.

[m schumy]

Rain!

[m schumy]

Yellow flag

[m schumy]

1310: It is now raining in certain parts. It's very busy out there and a lot of drivers are being caught up in traffic. Schumacher is desperately trying to get around the Lotus of Jarno Trulli but the Italian is not yielding.

[Katu]

i'm sure there will be more than plenty of yellow flags today

[Naeem]

Vettel is safe as are our drivers.

[scuderia_nano]

Alonso had a moment?

[m schumy]

1313: Bedlam. Five cars have trouble at Curve Paul Frere (Turn 15). It's wet there, the rain is pouring down there but not in the pit lane. This is bonkers. Hamilton sets the fastest time of 1:56.706. Vettel just manages to clamber up to 17th. He's out of the drop zone for now.

[m schumy]

BBC F1 analyst Martin Brundle: "The intermediates go from standing water to a dry track but they do wear out."

1316: Loads of cars now come in. Vettel is out on the intermediates. He's got around nine and a half minutes. He is told that if he is not improving his time, he must not destroy those tyres. The teams only have four sets of inters for the whole weekend.

[scuderia_nano]

ferrarif1world TWEET

Track is pretty dry now. Inters faster and everyone should be coming out to defend positions.

Kubica out on Soft Compound Slicks

[m schumy]

Kobayashi off, yellow flags

[scuderia_nano]

Fernando goes 4th fastest

[m schumy]

De la Rosa out

[Katu]

de la rosa can't keep his car also on track

[scuderia_nano]

TOP 10: Kubica, Hamilton, Alonso, Hulkenberg, Button, Vettel, Massa, Sutil, Barrichello and Rosberg

[scuderia_nano]

Eliminated: Trulli, Kobayashi, Senna, Yamamoto, de la Rosa, Di Grassi and Petrov.

[m schumy]

Qualy 1 Results

http://i33.tinypic.com/dqgnk9.jpg

[m schumy]

1328: Crikey that was an eventful Q1. The boys dropping out are Trulli, Kobayashi, Bruno Senna, Yamamoto, Pedro de la Rosa, Lucas di Grassi and Petrov. The Lotus of Heikki Kovalainen and Virgin Racing's Timo Glock are in Q2!!

[scuderia_nano]

Ferrari finished Q1 in 7th and 10th position, respectively with Fernando and Felipe

No Rain expected in Q2 (Force India on radio to Luizzi)

[m schumy]

BBC F1 pundit David Coulthard: "It was a schoolboy error from Petrov to run out there. To put himself in that situation before even posting a timed lap shows his inexperience. He will start from the back of the grid and he is one man who will be praying for wet weather tomorrow."

[m schumy]

InsideFerrari

Q2 just started. Ferando is out on soft, Felipe on hard tyres

[m schumy]

1333: Q2 is go. Vitantonio Liuzzi is told that there is not going to be any more rain for the "immediate future". BBC pit-lane reporter Ted Kravitz: "There was a big sigh of relief from the McLaren garage after they chose to keep their drivers in the pits when everyone else went out on slicks. They have now gone out on a used set of soft tyres to see where their car is." Split in Ferrari - Massa is on the harder compound, Alonso on the softer one.

[m schumy]

Massa had an off track moment :-E

[SanderV]

Lucky escape for Massa.

[m schumy]

Virgin Racing's Lucas di Grassi: "The session started mixed up, half dry and half wet. I got hit by Jarno [Trulli] on an early lap and the damage meant we had to stop and aim for tomorrow."

Renault's Vitaly Petrov: "I just tried to check out the curb and it was just too wet. But we have a good car and plenty of straight speed with the 'F-duct' so we will stay positive for the weekend. I would prefer to qualify top 10 though. It is better to fight from a front position."

[Lithium]

gosh, what a quali... the times are falling so quick...
:pray

[m schumy]

InsideFerrari

Fernando went out on soft, Felipe is doing the same now

[m schumy]

gosh, what a quali... the times are falling so quick...
:pray

I think this is the most exciting Qualy session we`ve seen so far this season :-)

[Lithium]

FA P3... phew... the god damn mclarens are leading so far... I hope FA & FM have something up their sleeves for Q3...
:pray

edit: lol, I see now it all changed... times falling even more...

[Lithium]

P7 & P8... I REALLY hope this does not reflect our real pace...
:pray

[m schumy]

Qualy 2 Results

http://i34.tinypic.com/2e5mcux.jpg

[m schumy]

InsideFerrari

Difficult to get a place in the top two rows

[m schumy]

InsideFerrari

Q2 finished. FM 7th, FA 8th

[FerrariF60]

i too hope we're somehow sandbagging, but i somehow doubt it....i think the Mccheaters are WAY faster then us...so much for hoping to get pole position with Alonso
whatever happened to the BIG updates we're supposed to have for SPA, as well as the new and improved shell fuel that's supposed to give us 5% more HP??

or maybe our cars are more set up for wet weather, as it's supposed to be 40% chance of rain tomorrow.

i really hope we can pull something out of the had in Q3

[m schumy]

1349: Mercedes boss Ross Brawn looks blankly at his TV screens. I wonder what is going through his mind? Both Schumacher and Rosberg fail to make Q3. "Sorry about the traffic," Schumacher is told as he coasts around on his in-lap.

[Lithium]

i too hope we're somehow sandbagging, but i somehow doubt it....i think the Mccheaters are WAY faster then us...so much for hoping to get pole position with Alonso
whatever happened to the BIG updates we're supposed to have for SPA, as well as the new and improved shell fuel that's supposed to give us 5% more HP??

or maybe our cars are more set up for wet weather, as it's supposed to be 40% chance of rain tomorrow.

i really hope we can pull something out of the had in Q3

I'm afraid you're right... :-s
:pray

[FerrariF60]

alonso's way off pace...that kind of sucks

[Lithium]

alonso's way off pace...that kind of sucks

what the hell is happening... wet setup? gosh...

[gvsnraju85]

the links stopped streaming all of a sudden :-(.....
any new link anyone plzzzzzzzzzzzzz???

[FerrariF60]

i think we're DONE!!!!

[maho]

Light rain, bad news for alonso! Massa also off track.

[SanderV]

Indeed, forget it.

[FerrariF60]

our pace REALLY sucks...
hope for a MIRACLE tomorrow in the race, as it's gonna be a long and POSSIBLY wet one

[maho]

Alonso P10
Massa p6

Terrible, just terrible.

[wacko]

oh my, what happened...

[FerrariF60]

oh my, what happened...

our performance is deffenetly POOR, and if we dont' smarten up soon, WE ARE DONE for the season

[SanderV]

Why do we always lose out in changing conditions?! Hope that Fernando is on a wet setup and it will be a wet race tomorrow.

[Axelsson]

Alonso on full rain setup.

[Mitra]

lets hope it rains during the race and we jump them all
and i hope we get to see Shumi come alive working his way through the pack from the back

[Hornet]

Oh boy, oh boy.
At least we're top 10 I guess


Alonso on full rain setup.
What the hell did they do that for? :-E

[FerrariF60]

maybe we still can't get heat into the tires, as it's always been our handicap

[SilverSpeed]

My thoughts also Axelsson,

I don't know what kinda weather where gonna get tomorrow but i hope it's wet as hell :-D

[m schumy]

Qualy 3 Results

http://i36.tinypic.com/6fpgdz.jpg

[SilverSpeed]

Oh boy, oh boy.
At least we're top 10 I guess


What the hell did they do that for? :-E

No points are given on saterdays so ;-)

[FerrariF60]

What the hell did they do that for? :-E

in case it's gonna rain all through the race tomorrow...talk about REAL GAMBLING

[FerrariF60]

No points are given on saterdays so ;-)

This is deffenately true, however when we classify so poorly is pretty hard to get over it...
now hoping for a really WET race tomorrow...as this may be our only chace

[crewskas]

How do you know, that Alonso is on a wet setup? :Hmm
And what about Felipe's setup?

[m schumy]

BBC F1 analyst Anthony Davidson: "Amazing, amazing lap from Lewis Hamilton. I thought the track had been ruined by the rainfall and he lost some time early on but made it up over the next two sectors. I'm sure he will be thinking about what might have been. I think they were robbed of pole position today."

[epiclyaddicted]

There's no way we've suddenly gone a second and a half slower than Red Bull and McLaren. It has to be that we've chosen the full wet setup while Macca and Bull are on dry setups. Otherwise, it just doesn't make sense!

[Tech_Skill]

Right, so now its clear to me that Mclaren have the advantage on this track, anyhow Ferrari deliver tomorrow, remember this fact, because the websites and forums will be quick to rewrite history.

I can see it now.....

"Alonso had the fastest car all weekend by a mile, only driving errors stopped him getting pole, Hamilton was in a dog of car, and he was da bessssss!"

[crewskas]

Until it's confirmed somehow, I strongly believe our drivers just didn't get the maximum of the car...
Sounds too risky to have a full wet setup in a whole race, even if 50% of it, to be wet...

[Effone]

Given the variable conditions it could have been worse.

I'm sure Massa can easily grab a podium from P6 and Alonso will be strong coming through the pack, dont worry :)

[m schumy]

Ferrari on Twitter: "Not a good session, it will be a tough race tomorrow."

[Kingdom Hearts]

Gene said it on TV, Alonso too and you can see the difference between Felipe and Alonso's rear wing. There is no point to argue about it, he is on wet set-up.

I think is too risky, they are going for everything or nothing, this should be a damage limitation race on my mind. Tomorrow he could be the hero or the villain.

[Hornet]

No points are given on saterdays so ;-)
True ;-)


in case it's gonna rain all through the race tomorrow...talk about REAL GAMBLING
Certainly hope it'll rain tomorrow. :pray

[Tech_Skill]

Until it's confirmed somehow, I strongly believe our drivers just didn't get the maximum of the car...
Sounds too risky to have a full wet setup in a whole race, even if 50% of it, to be wet...

Im going with this, today we were a bag of sh--

But hey, lets see what happens tomorrow ;-)

[vcs316]

I hope we can salvage some points tomoro.. Not optimistic at all about the race :-(

[crewskas]

Ferrari on Twitter: "Not a good session, it will be a tough race tomorrow."

Doesn't sound, as they had chosen a different setup to me... :-??
I really wonder though, why Alonso is so far behind...
They changed the wing angle perhaps to have more top speed, but they don't have the speed in the middle sector they had in Friday...

[Tech_Skill]

Gene said it on TV, Alonso too and you can see the difference between Felipe and Alonso's rear wing. There is no point to argue about it, he is on wet set-up.

I think is too risky, they are going for everything or nothing, this should be a damage limitation race on my mind. Tomorrow he could be the hero or the villain.

If my boy King Nando is on that wet setup, then im very very much looking forward to tomorrow, I dont wanna jinx things, but if anyone can provide some quotes or extra proof Nando is on wet setup, then let me know.....cos if he is, tomorrow could get REAL interesting.

[scuderia_nano]

Row 1 1. Mark Webber 1′45.778
Red Bull-Renault
2. Lewis Hamilton 1′45.863
McLaren-Mercedes
Row 2 3. Robert Kubica 1′46.100
Renault
4. Sebastian Vettel 1′46.127
Red Bull-Renault
Row 3 5. Jenson Button 1′46.206
McLaren-Mercedes
6. Felipe Massa 1′46.314
Ferrari
Row 4 7. Rubens Barrichello 1′46.602
Williams-Cosworth
8. Adrian Sutil 1′46.659
Force India-Mercedes
Row 5 9. Nico Hülkenberg 1′47.053
Williams-Cosworth
10. Fernando Alonso 1′47.441
Ferrari
Row 6 11. Jaime Alguersuari 1′48.267
Toro Rosso-Ferrari
12. Vitantonio Liuzzi 1′48.680
Force India-Mercedes
Row 7 13. Sebastien Buemi 1′49.209
Toro Rosso-Ferrari
14. Heikki Kovalainen 1′50.980
Lotus-Cosworth
Row 8 15. Timo Glock 1′52.049
Virgin-Cosworth
16. Nico Rosberg* 1′47.885
Mercedes
Row 9 17. Jarno Trulli 2′01.491
Lotus-Cosworth
18. Kamui Kobayashi 2′02.284
Sauber-Ferrari
Row 10 19. Bruno Senna 2′03.612
HRT-Cosworth
20. Sakon Yamamoto 2′03.941
HRT-Cosworth
Row 11 21. Michael Schumacher** 1′47.874
Mercedes
22. Pedro de la Rosa 2′05.294
Sauber-Ferrari
Row 12 23. Lucas di Grassi 2′18.154
Virgin-Cosworth
24. Vitaly Petrov
Renault

[scuderia_nano]

FERNANDO also lost out because he came out on a drizzling track.

[Red Rocket]

How do you know, that Alonso is on a wet setup? :Hmm
And what about Felipe's setup?

No one does it is a guess.

What annoys the heck out of me is with all the yapping between Martin and Jonathan of BBC rarely do they apply any substantial insight. The main focus seems to be Lewis.

[crewskas]

FERNANDO also lost out because he came out on a drizzling track.

You mean the same track, Hamster and Webber had better runs than before?

Either way, I have to hope it's a wet setup the cause and not the speed of the car in this track...
But come on, let's find something about it...
Gets me really worried if it's not somehow confirmed that the cause was the setup...

[Tech_Skill]

Lets pretend Alonso is on a wet setup for a sec, what is the gamble here?

Would he be gambling there is gonna be a torrential downpour long enough to soak the track so that his wets can be effective from the downpour to the finish of the race. Rain is forecast for the afternoon I hear, is Nando thinking its gonna pour near the end of the race or summin?

[Jessica]

Fernando has said the whole weekend will be a gamble of the title competition, that's why he is full wet setup i think.
We're waiting for the wet start and the miracle. Oh my!

[FerrariF60]

Not optimistic at all about the race :-(

you're not the only one mate, if indeed we opted for a full wet set up in hope for a wet sunday then i hope whoever made that decision was right
so we're going into the race, ALL ON NOTHING

[gvsnraju85]

All there is to say is it was abig let down after a month of waiting is this what we get???

[Ferrari Man]

It has to be a wet weather set up..:pray What is the weather given for tomo???

[FerrariF60]

FERNANDO also lost out because he came out on a drizzling track.

yeah, but so was Leweserton...he was way behind alonso and did an awesome time

[crewskas]

Come on guys...
Don't guess the setup, until it's proven...
I'm really worried it's not the setup... :roll

[SilverSpeed]

Yeah I'm waiting for some interviews first, did someone heard something that fernando made a couple of huge mistakes in S2? If thats not the case then it's clearly due to wet setup but they might not admit it.

Just looked at the weather and before noon it's dry but in the afternoon the rain is coming and even heavy thunderstorms are expected in the late evening.

[goferrarigo]

It has to be a wet weather set up..:pray What is the weather given for tomo???
Its meant to be heavy rain tomorrow the only thing is is that it could be heavy rain for about 10minutes and then the sun could come out and dry the circuit out for the rest of the gp.

[Red Rocket]

Lets pretend Alonso is on a wet setup for a sec, what is the gamble here?

Would he be gambling there is gonna be a torrential downpour long enough to soak the track so that his wets can be effective from the downpour to the finish of the race. Rain is forecast for the afternoon I hear, is Nando thinking its gonna pour near the end of the race or summin?

That's the point of strategy. I have always said if a strategy works you look like a genius if not you look like a fool. But every strategy no matter how well composed or studied really does have a 50/50 chance.

Let's keep our fingers crossed and hope for the best.

[Tech_Skill]

Yeah I'm waiting for some interviews first, did someone heard something that fernando made a couple of huge mistakes in S2? If thats not the case then it's clearly due to wet setup but they might not admit it.

Just looked at the weather and before noon it's dry but in the afternoon the rain is coming and even heavy thunderstorms are expected in the late evening.

Im reading the 'Lewis Hamilton ball sack appreciation forum' aka Planet F1, some of the techies on there are saying its obvious Alonso is on for wet weather setup, cos his car has more wing than massa's.

Of course there are the usual suspects saying Alonso messed up his laps, he is garbage, the usual stuff you'd expect from a bunch of no marks just beginning to hit puberty.

[Meiga]

That's the point of strategy. I have always said if a strategy works you look like a genius if not you look like a fool. But every strategy no matter how well composed or studied really does have a 50/50 chance.

Let's keep our fingers crossed and hope for the best.

Amen.

[scuderia_nano]

You mean the same track, Hamster and Webber had better runs than before?

Either way, I have to hope it's a wet setup the cause and not the speed of the car in this track...
But come on, let's find something about it...
Gets me really worried if it's not somehow confirmed that the cause was the setup...


Alonso: I have more wing than the others, the QLF is not so important here"

He is under wet setup

[Ferrari Man]

My heart will be in my mouth tomo for the start. Here s hoping to Ramilton making a dive for Webber at the first corner and taking each other out.
Starting 10 th its easy to get tangled up in a mess at the start...

[vcs316]

you're not the only one mate, if indeed we opted for a full wet set up in hope for a wet sunday then i hope whoever made that decision was right
so we're going into the race, ALL ON NOTHING

I just hope if its a setup gamble - IT PAYS OFF

if its not the setup - BYE BYE championships

[Tech_Skill]

Alonso: I have more wing than the others, the QLF is not so important here"

He is under wet setup

:lol

Right so Alonso confims he has this setup? lets have a look a autosport shall we?

QUOTE (VicR @ Aug 28 2010, 14:33) *
The truth hurts, doesn't it? Don't give me any crap about wet-weather setups. That would mean everyone except for Alonso are morons.

[goferrarigo]

Alonso: I have more wing than the others, the QLF is not so important here"

He is under wet setup
I am happy that aleast he is on a completly different strategy then the other 9 guys in front of him.:thumb If he had made a few mistakes on that lap and ended up 10th then it would be a difficult race for him to get any further because the other 9 guys have the same sort of stratgey. I just hope it is a flooded race tomorrow.

[Tech_Skill]

I am happy that aleast he is on a completly different strategy then the other 9 guys in front of him.:thumb If he had made a few mistakes on that lap and ended up 10th then it would be a difficult race for him to get any further because the other 9 guys have the same sort of stratgey. I just hope it is a flooded race tomorrow.

I saw a post on planet f1 that said something like possibility of rain starting from 13.30 tomorrow and possibly lasting the whole race also. who knows?

[SilverSpeed]

*going to practise my rain dance skills again*

[Ferrari Man]

I am happy that aleast he is on a completly different strategy then the other 9 guys in front of him.:thumb If he had made a few mistakes on that lap and ended up 10th then it would be a difficult race for him to get any further because the other 9 guys have the same sort of stratgey. I just hope it is a flooded race tomorrow.

I m with you.. bring on the rain..:pray If its a dry race we havent a chance at even a podium with alonso

[goferrarigo]

I saw a post on planet f1 that said something like possibility of rain starting from 13.30 tomorrow and possibly lasting the whole race also. who knows?
With spa no body knows, not even the weather.

[NJB13]

Weather sites are predicting rain all day tomorrow and getting progressively heavier.
http://www.weatheronline.co.uk/Belgium/Spa.htm
No problems passing at Spa, and it will be even easier in the wet if you have a better setup. The cold and wet seem to accentuate our problem in getting temp into our tyres - been a problem pretty much all year for us. Could be a very good call from the team.

[Jack]

Alonso: I have more wing than the others, the QLF is not so important here"

He is under wet setup

I can confirm this. He is under wet setup and he said too that he will fight for a podium or even P1.

[FerrariF60]

Weather sites are predicting rain all day tomorrow and getting progressively heavier.
http://www.weatheronline.co.uk/Belgium/Spa.htm
No problems passing at Spa, and it will be even easier in the wet if you have a better setup. The cold and wet seem to accentuate our problem in getting temp into our tyres - been a problem pretty much all year for us. Could be a very good call from the team.

i really hope so, as from what it looks, the only way we can do GOOD in the race tomorrow is if it rains all THROUGH the race.
i really hope Lewser goes aggressive into turn 1 and takes Webber and a few other out of the race, or at least makes them loose grid positions and Alonso and Massa come out strong on TOP....i'm really hoping here and hopefully our GAMBLE to opt for a WET set up (hope that is the case) really pays off

[goferrarigo]

I can confirm this. He is under wet setup and he said too that he will fight for a podium or even P1.
If it is raining and wet for the whole of the race, there is only one position where Alonso should finish and thats 1st. Lets just :pray.

[Tech_Skill]

I can confirm this. He is under wet setup and he said too that he will fight for a podium or even P1.

Lets see what happens, dont forget Massa needs to move the hell over as soon as Alonso gets in range, and he needs to do it nicely, not make it blatant either, Alonso being in 10th means he needs to be tidy at the start otherwise it could be night night, bad start or worse from Alonso and things aint looking good.

[Katu]

Lets see what happens, dont forget Massa needs to move the hell over as soon as Alonso gets in range, and he needs to do it nicely, not make it blatant either, Alonso being in 10th means he needs to be tidy at the start otherwise it could be night night, bad start or worse from Alonso and things aint looking good.

thsi time massa just needs to run a bit wide, he has practiced doing that all weekend, didn't even stop in qualifying. but a sneaky feeling inside of me tells me that he won't move over this time, if they should ask him that

[Suzie]

It's great that people are behind both our drivers and don't see Massa's sole purpose as being to make way for Fernando. How rude that he outqualified him!

[goferrarigo]

thsi time massa just needs to run a bit wide, he has practiced doing that all weekend, didn't even stop in qualifying. but a sneaky feeling inside of me tells me that he won't move over this time, if they should ask him that
If he does they will just delay the pitstop.

[Tech_Skill]

It's great that people are behind both our drivers and don't see Massa's sole purpose as being to make way for Fernando. How rude that he outqualified him!

Seriously, Massa isnt in the same league as Alonso, thats the bottom line here, Massa needs to get the hell out of the way as soon as Fernando gets near, Im interested in WDC's and Massa doesnt have what it takes to be a WDC right now.

[goferrarigo]

Seriously, Massa isnt in the same league as Alonso, thats the bottom line here, Massa needs to get the hell out of the way as soon as Fernando gets near, Im interested in WDC's and Massa doesnt have what it takes to be a WDC right now.
I am with you there.

[Ferrari Man]

Quick question.. Anyone know if the race is being repeated tomorow evening on BBC 3.. Have a christening to got to so will miss it live..:-(

[goferrarigo]

Quick question.. Anyone know if the race is being repeated tomorow evening on BBC 3.. Have a christening to got to so will miss it live..:-(
Unlucky... Yeah highlights will be on bbc 3 at 7-7.45 pm tomorrow. Why don't you watch it on bbc i player.

[Tech_Skill]

thsi time massa just needs to run a bit wide, he has practiced doing that all weekend, didn't even stop in qualifying. but a sneaky feeling inside of me tells me that he won't move over this time, if they should ask him that

He better move over, or he can race for Sauber next year, seriously, hopefully its being planned out behind the scenes, I would tell Massa straight up ''Fernando gets near, let him slipstream you or run wide or whatever, and dont make it blatant''. If Ferrari brief Massa correctly before the race, there is no need for another batch of ridiculous radio transmissions with Smedley apologising over the radio and such like.

[Ferrari Man]

Unlucky... Yeah highlights will be on bbc 3 at 7-7.45 pm tomorrow. Why don't you watch it on bbc i player.
thanks for dat:thumb

The bbc i player will only play in the uk so the highlights may do me. Missed last years belgian GP which was ferrari s only win of the year so maybe missing this one is a sign of another win:pray

[goferrarigo]

thanks for dat:thumb

The bbc i player will only play in the uk so the highlights may do me. Missed last years belgian GP which was ferrari s only win of the year so maybe missing this one is a sign of another win:pray
what about this website:
http://f1.f-e-n.net/index.php/url1952
i am sure you can watch the race even outside the uk.

[Ferrari Man]

what about this website:
http://f1.f-e-n.net/index.php/url1952
i am sure you can watch the race even outside the uk.


Perfect....:thumb
Yea it plays fine on dat site. Wont play on the bbc site. Will be praying for rain in the church tomo...:-)

[512 TR]

The last two pages in this thread made my day. :lol

LdM prior to tomorrow --> :Hmm

No one said the team order business is easy.

[goferrarigo]

Perfect....:thumb
Yea it plays fine on dat site. Wont play on the bbc site. Will be praying for rain in the church tomo...:-)
I hope tonight and tomorrow it will ***** it down in belguim.

[Ferrari Man]

See Rosberg has implied that they have a wet weather set up for tomorrow as well..

[hogo]

If it is raining and wet for the whole of the race, there is only one position where Alonso should finish and thats 1st. Lets just :pray.
FIA may decide to stop the race if there will be too much water on track. So yeah...

[Katu]

He better move over, or he can race for Sauber next year, seriously, hopefully its being planned out behind the scenes, I would tell Massa straight up ''Fernando gets near, let him slipstream you or run wide or whatever, and dont make it blatant''. If Ferrari brief Massa correctly before the race, there is no need for another batch of ridiculous radio transmissions with Smedley apologising over the radio and such like.

fire him if he doesn't follow teamoders and he'll run quicker to fia than piquet jr did

[goferrarigo]

See Rosberg has implied that they have a wet weather set up for tomorrow as well..
He probably won't be a threat to Alonso tomorrow because he will start 16th tomorrow, right. Hopefully rosberg can beat the 4 other main rivals.

[Hermann]

fire him if he doesn't follow teamoders and he'll run quicker to fia than piquet jr did

My thoughts exactly.

[Rob]

lets hope it rains, found this weather report for tomorrow...

Sunday, 29 August 14°C
Showers Wind From West South West at 26 kmph
Maximum Humidity 90%
UV Index 5
Chance of Precip. 60%
Avg. High. N/A
Record High N/A
Sunrise 06:47

if it do rain, i feel we are in good shape, Fernando and Felipe showing that got good wet pace, especially Fernando.

[Ferrari Man]

He probably won't be a threat to Alonso tomorrow because he will start 16th tomorrow, right. Hopefully rosberg can beat the 4 other main rivals.
Yeah its good to know its not only ferrari gambling with alonso's set up. Ross Brawn must be expecting the weather that we are hoping for too.

[Tech_Skill]

fire him if he doesn't follow teamoders and he'll run quicker to fia than piquet jr did

You dont fire him for not following team orders, you say 'Felipe, Alonso whooped your @ss most of this season, you aint got what it takes to be WDC, we are letting you go, thanks and goodbye'

[Lithium]

The quali is disappointing, but if Alonso (unlike most of the top 9?) is truly on wet setup, not all is lost...
Tonight I'm going to be doing a raindance all night non stop...
http://www.portlandground.com/woodlawn/2007-04-21earthdayRainDance.jpg

[Tech_Skill]

Apparently McLaren are expecting wet patches tomorrow and they have already provided hamilton with a customised wet setup.

http://img.alibaba.com/photo/51265582/Baby_Nappy_Pad.jpg

[Hermann]

:rotfl

[Katu]

You dont fire him for not following team orders, you say 'Felipe, Alonso whooped your @ss most of this season, you aint got what it takes to be WDC, we are letting you go, thanks and goodbye'

and you think he'll see it like that. don't think so. especially now that he has renewed his contract

[Ferrari Man]

:rotfl:rotfl

[Effone]

Lets see what happens, dont forget Massa needs to move the hell over as soon as Alonso gets in range, and he needs to do it nicely, not make it blatant either, Alonso being in 10th means he needs to be tidy at the start otherwise it could be night night, bad start or worse from Alonso and things aint looking good.

Why not just pull Felipe out of the race if he's not allowed to race.

Dont see why he should risk his life for Alonso..or anyone else.

Let them race.. Alonso is good, we all know that, so let him fight his way past.

[racingbradley]

Some very interesting comments here. ;-)
How unearth then did the so called useless Massa manage to out qualify Super Nando then??????????????:-)
And is Massa on a dry set-up then????????????????:-)

[Tech_Skill]

Why not just pull Felipe out of the race if he's not allowed to race.

Dont see why he should risk his life for Alonso..or anyone else.

Let them race.. Alonso is good, we all know that, so let him fight his way past.

In an ideal world, you would be right, but the reality is, the chances are tomorrow that we are gonna get a hiding, now we have to do whatever it takes to get something decent out of tomorrow, Massa is no WDC, if Alonso gets close.He needs to move over real nice so that Alonso has a shot at some decent points.

Im not about supporting our two drivers racing each other, im about Ferrari winning WDC's and we have to back Alonso 100% to give him every chance to win the WDC, same way we backed Schumacher, simple as that.

[Tech_Skill]

Some very interesting comments here. ;-)
How unearth then did the so called useless Massa manage to out qualify Super Nando then??????????????:-)
And is Massa on a dry set-up then????????????????:-)

Lets put it this way, no way is Massa faster than Alonso, let alone 1 second faster.

I got no problems with Massa, I love him to bits, but im not deluded, regardless of tomorrows result. Alonso on another level to him and even Kimi 'overrated' raikonnen, If it rains tomorrow you wont see Alonso chilling in the Paddock with coke and a Magnum, he is a proper championship driver.

[Greig]

Seriously, Massa isnt in the same league as Alonso, thats the bottom line here, Massa needs to get the hell out of the way as soon as Fernando gets near, Im interested in WDC's and Massa doesnt have what it takes to be a WDC right now.

Sorry, seems like you meant to post this on PF1......

[Tech_Skill]

Sorry, seems like you meant to post this on PF1......

Straight Question.

Do you really think Felipe Massa has what it takes to beat Lewis Hamilton or Seb Vettel in a championship shootout? (I know people are gonna say, he was one point away in 2008, but really a few things went for him, as well as a few things going against him)

I say no, and I believe Luca Di Montezemelo himself believes the answer is no, which is why he did whatever it took to get Alonso here in the first place.

[Greig]

Straight Question.

Do you really think Felipe Massa has what it takes to beat Lewis Hamilton or Seb Vettel in a championship shootout?

I say no, and I believe Luca Di Montezemelo himself believes the answer is no, which is why he did whatever it took to get Alonso here in the first place.

Yes and he has proven so, next question.......

You are welcome to believe that though, just no need to try and antagonise fellow fans on a Ferrari forum is there.....

[Tech_Skill]

Yes and he has proven so, next question.......

You are welcome to believe that though, just no need to try and antagonise fellow fans on a Ferrari forum is there.....

I have seen Nothing from Massa this season to ever make me think he has what it takes to beat Lewis Hamilton or Vettel. Massa had his one chance in 2008, same way webber is having his one chance right now, Massa missed his chance, luck was deffo a factor in that, right now Alonso is the only chance Ferrari have of winning a WDC, Alonso earnt that chance by outclassing Massa throughout the season, if Ferrari want to win the WDC they have to do whatever it takes, and if it means Massa moves out the way again then so be it.

I know the top dogs at Ferrari would agree with me on this, because this is why Massa was ''asked'' to move over for Alonso in Germany, he hasnt got what it takes to be a WDC this year at least, so they picked Alonso.

[Tifosi]

Straight Question.

Do you really think Felipe Massa has what it takes to beat Lewis Hamilton or Seb Vettel in a championship shootout? (I know people are gonna say, he was one point away in 2008, but really a few things went for him, as well as a few things going against him)

I say no, and I believe Luca Di Montezemelo himself believes the answer is no, which is why he did whatever it took to get Alonso here in the first place.

:lol

[voiko]

why the hell didnt we wuali on soft tyres even if we were in wet setup
/! ... WTTTTTTTF

[shostak]

McLaren in trouble to pass the checks. Apparently they have problems to give the fuel sample to the FIA.

In spanish:

http://twitter.com/alobatof1

[SilverSpeed]

Mmz reading the drivers interview they are not happy,

is this hiding the wet weather setup or really due to the weather during Q3...

Still not 100% sure of what I should think.

Gues we find out tomorrow.

[crewskas]

In spanish:

http://twitter.com/alobatof1

Any news on that?

[Ferrari Man]

In spanish:

http://twitter.com/alobatof1
What s this about McLaren in trouble?????

[Ferrari_Fanatic]

apparently failed to give a fuel sample trying to pull another stunt in canada i guess they should be DQ

[Katu]

things just got more interesting:-P

[vcs316]

In an ideal world, you would be right, but the reality is, the chances are tomorrow that we are gonna get a hiding, now we have to do whatever it takes to get something decent out of tomorrow, Massa is no WDC, if Alonso gets close.He needs to move over real nice so that Alonso has a shot at some decent points.

Im not about supporting our two drivers racing each other, im about Ferrari winning WDC's and we have to back Alonso 100% to give him every chance to win the WDC, same way we backed Schumacher, simple as that.

Ummm, the driver wins the WDC and the team(in this case Ferrari) wins the WCC...

[Ferrari Man]

apparently failed to give a fuel sample trying to pull another stunt in canada i guess they should be DQ

Surely now they l have to get some kind of penalty. If that was ferrari that failed to give a fuel sample every team would be whinging for our heads on a plate...

[crewskas]

Haven't seen anything on sites about that though...
Let's hope McCheaters get a good penalty...

[Meiga]

Surely now they l have to get some kind of penalty. If that was ferrari that failed to give a fuel sample every team would be whinging for our heads on a plate...

The latest comment in Lobato's twitter is that apparently Mclaren has managed to finally give the sample after squeezing the car, but he was waiting for a confirmation of this.

[scuderia_nano]

Its really upsetting to see Massa going all over the place in the gravel and off the track like those backmarkers. I hope his troubles are sorted out And SOON.

[Ferrari_Fanatic]

Haven't seen anything on sites about that though...
Let's hope McCheaters get a good penalty...

or me....how credible is this info?

[Ferrari_Fanatic]

The latest comment in Lobato's twitter is that apparently Mclaren has managed to finally give the sample after squeezing the car, but he was waiting for a confirmation of this.

they should get a penalty for pushing it right to the limit again

[Katu]

Its really upsetting to see Massa going all over the place in the gravel and off the track like those backmarkers. I hope his troubles are sorted out And SOON.

i guess only one who can sort his troubles out is he himself, as the person who drives that car

[Ferrari Man]

The latest comment in Lobato's twitter is that apparently Mclaren has managed to finally give the sample after squeezing the car, but he was waiting for a confirmation of this.
Damn I thought there might be a chance of de McCheaters getting thrown back down the grid.. Ah well...

[Tech_Skill]

Ummm, the driver wins the WDC and the team(in this case Ferrari) wins the WCC...

I believe Ferrari would prefer to win the WDC then the WCC, maybe im wrong, but to me the WDC holds more prestige.

What this about Mcheaters cheating again, pointless telling the FIA anything, it will be another reprimand.

[Ferrari Man]

why the hell didnt we wuali on soft tyres even if we were in wet setup
/! ... WTTTTTTTF
I agree 100%. Whats was the thinking behind using the hard???

[Katu]

I believe Ferrari would prefer to win the WDC then the WCC, maybe im wrong, but to me the WDC holds more prestige.

What this about Mcheaters cheating again, pointless telling the FIA anything, it will be another reprimand.

buisiness as usual

[Meiga]

they should get a penalty for pushing it right to the limit again

In all fairness no, they shouldn't - they brought the car to boxes and provided the sample. They pushed it to the limit, but this time they stayed on the right side of the line.

[Meiga]

I believe Ferrari would prefer to win the WDC then the WCC, maybe im wrong, but to me the WDC holds more prestige.

What this about Mcheaters cheating again, pointless telling the FIA anything, it will be another reprimand.
I don't think that is the case, but I do think that they feel the WDC is more achievable than the WCC.

[FFFerrari]

Well, Spa is a drivers track (as witnessed last year), so no wonder the results are as they are. With a dash of bad luck the starting positions don't look good for us. Praying that Felipe gets a podium and with the changing conditions even a win is in the realm of possibility. Hoping that McLiers get a penalty or crash on each other in turn 1.

[Grillo]

As I said in the other thread I missed qualy but I don't really understand why Alonso is on a full wet weather set-up, if he is. Is the car not good enough in Spa? Massa got 6th and he is usually a few tenths slower than Alonso in Q3, even more when it's so cold as Massa's main problem is heating the tyres. I think 3rd for Alonso would have been a possible result with a normal set-up and a good lap. Why is Alonso or Ferrari so obsessed with the weather, why not a conservative approach to avoid a ZERO as much as possible. I think they didn't learn a lesson from qualy in Malaysia.

This is really annoying, we're not going to win WDC tomorrow but we've got a good chance of losing it.

[vcs316]

I believe Ferrari would prefer to win the WDC then the WCC, maybe im wrong, but to me the WDC holds more prestige.

What this about Mcheaters cheating again, pointless telling the FIA anything, it will be another reprimand.

You are wrong, when a driver moves to another team he takes the WDC and the number 1 with him. Ferrari would like to win both the WCC and the WDC. For Ferrari, WCC holds more prestige :-)

ps - More WCC points = More money at the end of the season from Bernie :-D

[FFFerrari]

As I said in the other thread I missed qualy but I don't really understand why Alonso is on a full wet weather set-up, if he is. Is the car not good enough in Spa? Massa got 6th and he is usually a few tenths slower than Alonso in Q3, even more when it's so cold as Massa's main problem is heating the tyres.

He isn't on a total wet setup, it's just Alonso-fanboys dreaming. He claimed that they only had one good set of tyres for the Q3 and when they tried to use it at the end the patch of rain came and that try went sour from running a bit wide. Of course this didn't stop a few others doing better lap times at the very end (namely Lewis claiming P2).

[Ferrari Man]

As I said in the other thread I missed qualy but I don't really understand why Alonso is on a full wet weather set-up, if he is. Is the car not good enough in Spa? Massa got 6th and he is usually a few tenths slower than Alonso in Q3, even more when it's so cold as Massa's main problem is heating the tyres. I think 3rd for Alonso would have been a possible result with a normal set-up and a good lap. Why is Alonso or Ferrari so obsessed with the weather, why not a conservative approach to avoid a ZERO as much as possible. I think they didn't learn a lesson from qualy in Malaysia.

This is really annoying, we're not going to win WDC tomorrow but we've got a good chance of losing it.

Its a big gamble they are gone with but Rosberg is on a wet weather set up as well so hopefully ferrari and ross brawn know something that every body else dosent..:Hmm

[Jack]

I agree 100%. Whats was the thinking behind using the hard???

I heard something about having a set of used tyres. It seems that completely new tyres are not as good as if they have been used a bit. I might be wrong.

[Ferrari Man]

As far as I know a brand new set of softs are considerably faster on the first lap than the hards. After that then the performance was slowly falling away..

[Tech_Skill]

You are wrong, when a driver moves to another team he takes the WDC and the number 1 with him. Ferrari would like to win both the WCC and the WDC. For Ferrari, WCC holds more prestige :-)

ps - More WCC points = More money at the end of the season from Bernie :-D

I agree with you that WCC= more money.

More prestige, I disagree.

The F1 drivers championship is the main focus of the season, can lead doing very well in the drivers championship naturally leads to doing very well in the constructors.

Which would you prefer, Ferrari to win the WCC and no WDC, or Alonso to win the WDC and Ferrari to be top 3 in the constructors?

I go with the second option, of course I support Ferrari, I just feel that success in the sport is measured on which team helps its driver win the WDC.

[Grillo]

Hmmm... Interesting, Marc Gené said before the qualy they were expecting 5th or 6th on a dry track, even Renault had a good chance of doing better than Ferrari (thumbs up for Massa).

[Paulpg87]

who did say alonso has wet set up? Imo we just suck.

[flam147]

Quick question.. Anyone know if the race is being repeated tomorow evening on BBC 3.. Have a christening to got to so will miss it live..:-(

sometimes the full race is repeated on red button

[netlord]

who did say alonso has wet set up? Imo we just suck.

Alonso said.

[Hermann]

who did say alonso has wet set up? Imo we just suck.

I think its a wet setup but that doesn't really explain his P10. Ferrari said he had only one pair of new tyres left but that doesn't explain it as well. It started drizzling before his last try but still, no real explanation. Yeah maybe we just suck :lol

[DIEK]

http://img80.imageshack.us/img80/8703/d10bel917.jpg (http://img80.imageshack.us/img80/8703/d10bel917.jpg)

(Click to enlarge)

[Grillo]

Alonso said.
Any link?

As far as I know Alonso just said he had more rear wing down-force/drag than all the others but I didn't hear him talking about wet set-up. Both Button and Hamilton improved in their last attemp on soft tyres, there's a reason for that.

I think Alonso knew he would never finish on podium on a dry race so he's going for all or nothing.

[Alfettafan]

Love your video clip of Pinnochio....:clap

[RockyRaccoon]

Seems like Alonso did a poor job today and we aren't on the level of Ferrari or Mclaren. Even if Alonso was running more wing he was still nowhere in sector two, although he was better through there compared to sectors 1 and 3. Did he make a mistake on his first run or was he just slow? Fingers crossed for a bit of rain tomorrow, it's our only chance really.

[crewskas]

http://i37.tinypic.com/rcnek3.jpg

Major wing difference...
If wet setup is true, then it isn't only wings. It's also stiffness of the car, suspension etc...
I really hope this stands...
Don't want to see the car beneath our title rivals again...

[Agron]

Maybe as he didn't get all the updates for this GP Massa got, due to being unable to change the gearbox, and they saw the RB and McLaren cars were faster, his side of the garage decided that it was time for all or nothing and risk losing a 4th or 5th position for the chance of being on the podium if it rains.
Truth is he has quite a large margin of points to recover, and with the third fastest car in this particular track it doesn't look good for his chances, so it's a reasonable risk.

Maybe he ***** up and made a mistake too, as haters all over the web are saying :lol.
We'll see, here's praying for a good result from both cars, and some DNFs for the opposition to help both championships.

[RockyRaccoon]

Part of me hopes that Alonso's lack of speed was down to a wet setup but I think a bigger part hopes it was a simple mistake! The way I see it if he has a wet setup and it is dry he will be slaughtered down the straights, however if he has a normal setup and it rains he would still be a contender because he is great in the wet. I guess all will be known tomorrow, I'll just be hoping for a good race from Fernando and Felipe and I hope Fernando can finish in the top 5 to keep the championship hopes alive.

[RedRebel40]

Alonso's banker lap was too coutious, on the 2nd run he couldn't improve like everyone else except for Hamilton.

[Grillo]

Alonso's banker lap was too coutious, on the 2nd run he couldn't improve like everyone else except for Hamilton.
Yes, Hamilton did it but don't forget Button improved too.

[NJB13]

Weather sites such as here weather.msn.com (http://weather.msn.com/hourly.aspx?wealocations=wc:BEXX0031&q=Spa%2c+BEL+forecast:hourly&weap=0#day0) are predicting 95% chance of rain for the start of the race and for the rain to continue until after 5PM
Looking more and more like our team made a good call

[Hornet]

Ferrari should rent an aircraft to do some cloud seeding or something to encourage rain :lol

Seriously the title is slipping away from us, if we don't win, our chances will be as close to none, with so few races left. And IMO, under normal conditions, the red bulls and mclaren are too fast for us anyway, so its understandable why Ferrari would want to gamble on their luck which will either make us a hero or zero.

[Naeem]

Weather sites such as here weather.msn.com (http://weather.msn.com/hourly.aspx?wealocations=wc:BEXX0031&q=Spa%2c+BEL+forecast:hourly&weap=0#day0) are predicting 95% chance of rain for the start of the race and for the rain to continue until after 5PM
Looking more and more like our team made a good call


I pray you are right

[voiko]

Off F1.com

"Ferrari have brought a new lower-downforce rear wing to Belgium, which will be used by Felipe Massa during qualifying and in the race. The revised endplates feature Red Bull-inspired gills, while the wing's main profile has a smaller flap and no longer features a slot."

looks like alonso is on the old one still? unusual...

[steelstallions]

He better move over, or he can race for Sauber next year, seriously, hopefully its being planned out behind the scenes, I would tell Massa straight up ''Fernando gets near, let him slipstream you or run wide or whatever, and dont make it blatant''. If Ferrari brief Massa correctly before the race, there is no need for another batch of ridiculous radio transmissions with Smedley apologising over the radio and such like.

This seems one of a long line of posts saying how Massa should concede his place to Alonso, as I support both drivers is it not time you might question how the (in some posts described) 'inferior' driver is finding himself in front of Alonso?
Yes MS had help but it wasn't every other weekend as Mclaren fans and RB would make you believe. Maybe its time to cut Massa some slack regardless of how much any of you are a fan of Alonso.
We all want the WDC and WCC at Ferrari, but unlike Barrichello, Massa missed the WDC by the closet margin possible. In fact you could say he was the 2008 champion for all but a few seconds. He deserves more respect than many seem to be giving him on this Ferrari board and as he is racing NOW for Ferrari, this should not divide opinion like when we talk about an ex-driver.

[FFFerrari]

Off F1.com

"Ferrari have brought a new lower-downforce rear wing to Belgium, which will be used by Felipe Massa during qualifying and in the race. The revised endplates feature Red Bull-inspired gills, while the wing's main profile has a smaller flap and no longer features a slot."

looks like alonso is on the old one still? unusual...

Using new wings also carries a risk, so it's wise to atleast test run them on the no.2 driver of the team. Or they wanted to give an olive branch to Massa and try to make him feel better. This more or less confirms that Alonso isn't on full wet setup since he would have been way more back on such a setting (much more wing, different ride height, etc.). He just messed up the last try on the fresh tyres, try to live it and hope for a rainy race.

[goferrarigo]

Off F1.com

"Ferrari have brought a new lower-downforce rear wing to Belgium, which will be used by Felipe Massa during qualifying and in the race. The revised endplates feature Red Bull-inspired gills, while the wing's main profile has a smaller flap and no longer features a slot."

looks like alonso is on the old one still? unusual...
Yeah i have heard about that. It is so stupid because everybody knows that fernando is our only chance of winning the championship. Even ferrari admitted it during the German gp. :-??

[vcs316]

I agree with you that WCC= more money.

More prestige, I disagree.

The F1 drivers championship is the main focus of the season, can lead doing very well in the drivers championship naturally leads to doing very well in the constructors.

Which would you prefer, Ferrari to win the WCC and no WDC, or Alonso to win the WDC and Ferrari to be top 3 in the constructors?

I go with the second option, of course I support Ferrari, I just feel that success in the sport is measured on which team helps its driver win the WDC.

WCC means Ferrari as a constructor & TEAM has done better than everyone in a particular season. I would prefer us winning both the championships any given season.

[Lithium]

TWC are predicting 60% chance of rain, starting at noon and continuing into the evening. They're saying it is not going to be strong, but very constant. No strong showers. Anyways, I'm sure it is going to be a great race. If Alonso gets into the top 5, I'll consider this race to be a huge success. And besides, this is Formula 1, plus it's at Spa, NOTHING is lost yet. The most important would be for Alonso to keep out of trouble at the start and I'm sure he'll do fine afterwards. Although he'll probably take some risks, maybe even strategy wise, doing something different from the others. Maybe stopping earlier or much later? full wets or intermediates if the track is not flooding? Plenty of variables...
Hour by hour forecast:
http://fr.weather.com/weather/hourByHour-Spa/La-Sauvenière-BEXX0029

[Nathan]

Well, forecast says it will rain...but as they say...


Never trust the weatherman! (or weatherwoman)

[Rob]

http://i37.tinypic.com/rcnek3.jpg

Major wing difference...
If wet setup is true, then it isn't only wings. It's also stiffness of the car, suspension etc...
I really hope this stands...
Don't want to see the car beneath our title rivals again...

if Fernando is running wet weather, suspension will be slightly softer and ride hight couple MM higher than Felipe. If i remember rightly, that shape of wing creates more downforce and drag, but not having an aggressive wing angle. (maybe wrong, full of head cold so not very clear headed :-s:-??)

[DIEK]

http://www.skydivecenterspa.com/webcam/cam2/image.jpg

[Meiga]

This seems one of a long line of posts saying how Massa should concede his place to Alonso, as I support both drivers is it not time you might question how the (in some posts described) 'inferior' driver is finding himself in front of Alonso?
Yes MS had help but it wasn't every other weekend as Mclaren fans and RB would make you believe. Maybe its time to cut Massa some slack regardless of how much any of you are a fan of Alonso.
We all want the WDC and WCC at Ferrari, but unlike Barrichello, Massa missed the WDC by the closet margin possible. In fact you could say he was the 2008 champion for all but a few seconds. He deserves more respect than many seem to be giving him on this Ferrari board and as he is racing NOW for Ferrari, this should not divide opinion like when we talk about an ex-driver.

Massa is not the "inferior" driver, but he is the driver which has less WDC points. Precisely because he is far from being an "inferior" driver, Ferrari would expect him to play an important role in securing the team's WDC chances. I am convinced that Alonso would be asked to do the same if situations were reversed. And if either Massa or Alonso decide not to follow the team instrutions because they go against their own interests, the team has every right to remind them who is paying their very hefty salaries and whose interests (Ferrari's) they are there to defend.

[BigGar32]

I prefer Massa as a person but there's no doubt that he's inferior to Alonson in terms of driving ability. Can't really see how wnybody can dispute that!

Fingers crossed that both boys do a good job today.

[Tech_Skill]

I prefer Massa as a person but there's no doubt that he's inferior to Alonson in terms of driving ability. Can't really see how wnybody can dispute that!

Fingers crossed that both boys do a good job today.

Its really that simple.

[Greig]

I prefer Massa as a person but there's no doubt that he's inferior to Alonson in terms of driving ability. Can't really see how wnybody can dispute that!

Fingers crossed that both boys do a good job today.

So why the big fuss over Massa needing to move over as soon as possible, Alonso should breeze past him I assume :-)

[BigGar32]

Hello Greig,
I'm not talking about isolated incidents because, in sport, things like that are bound to happen on occasion. I'm just referring to the shape both of their careers have taken so far. One is a double world champion and comfortably ahead of his teammate this year. He's also new to the team while Massa is far more established there so that, to me, makes it even more impressive. Please don't think that I'm a BIG fan of Alonso. I don't have much time for to be honest but at the end of the day he's a fantastic racer / driver. Massa on on the other hand, appears to be a fantastic gent but to me is more of a driver than a natural racer. I think there is a difference. I'm just looking at the facts and wish that Massa was proving he's better but he's not!