Doubts over Alonso’s willingness to accept Raikkonen

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In the round-up: Would Fernando Alonso be prepared to have Kimi Raikkonen as a team mate?

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Ferrari’s recruitment of Kimi Raikkonen has upset Fernando Alonso (The Guardian)

“Alonso is angry about the situation. One prominent team principal said in Monza last week: ‘Have you seen Fernando? He is very unhappy at the prospect of Kimi joining the team.'”

‘Raikkonen would destabilise Alonso’ (BBC)

Jackie Stewart: “It would be a very confusing element within that team for them to have Kimi and Alonso, who I doubt would really like to have Kimi there.”

Lotus ready with 2014 plan B (Autosport)

“Lotus team principal Eric Boullier has confirmed [Nico] Hulkenberg is on the team’s shortlist, but expects there to be competition from rival teams.”

Lewis Hamilton sees no end soon to Red Bull’s dominance of F1 (The Guardian)

“For the next four years coming, unless Renault do a poor engine, I think they’ll be quick. Adrian Newey does a really good job.”

Montezemolo’s Monza (FT, registration required)

“It would also be very good to see some of the other automotive marques return to the race, as in the past – Japanese, American, why not?”

Ward hopes to call upon previous Mosley experience to lead FIA presidency race (Daily Mail)

“‘I am not Max [Mosley’s] man; I am not Bernie [Ecclestone’s] man,’ he said, stating that neither is bankrolling his campaign.”

Ferrari’s Massa Gets Speeding Ticket on Way to GP (ABC News)

“Massa was given a $214 speeding ticket by Italian police this weekend on his way to the Italian Grand Prix race for exceeding the speed limit in his silver-colored Ferrari 458.”

The STiGR F1 Display Preview (STiGR via YouTube)

Via WTF1

James Hunt’s American adventures (MotorSport)

“I remember James wandering the paddock wearing washed-out bell bottom jeans and an undersized pink T-shirt exposing his midriff and belly button. He was unimpressed with the Shadow. ‘I was hoping to enjoy some real horsepower,’ he grinned.”

Tweets

Comment of the day

@Colossal-Squid on Felipe Massa’s Ferrari departure:

I’m conflicted right now. It’s sad, because I’ve liked Massa since his crash happy Sauber days, through his brilliant first three years at Ferrari – who could forget his two wins on home soil – and the drama of 2008. People have forgotten that at the end of the 2008 season Massa was very highly regarded as a driver, talked of in the same breath as Hamilton and Raikkonen.

Then that crash happened and he never really has captured his ’08 form. So I’m sad that his career hasn’t panned out the way many expected, but I’m relieved that he is out of Ferrari from a pure performance standpoint, as he has been too frequently woeful in his performance since 2010. Now I’m excited for the future of Ferrari! Alonso and Raikkonen, two of the greats of this generation of drivers, together? It’ll either be the making or ruination of the Domenicali era at Ferrari.

As a Ferrari fan, after all that he’s done for the team, and despite his performance issues over the past four seasons, I say thank you Felipe.
@Colossal-Squid

Snapshot

This is the new Formula E racer, launched yesterday, which will appear in the all-electric series next year. McLaren and Williams are among the F1 teams who’ve contributed to the technology.

More pictures and details in the new Formula E group:

From the forum

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Happy birthday to Sweetooth and Dimitris 1395!

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On this day in F1

Ronnie Peterson lost his life 35 years ago today. He succumbed to injuries sustained in a first-lap crash in the Italian Grand Prix the day before.

Image © Ferrari/Ercole Colombo

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155 comments on “Doubts over Alonso’s willingness to accept Raikkonen”

  1. BBC are reporting Kimi has signed a one year contract!

    http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/formula1/24042352

    1. I love that Andrew Benson’s only source (the link) is… Andrew Benson.

      Journalism!

      1. I heard a one year contract with another year as option, I don’t know the source …

    2. Vettel it is in 2015!

      1. Vettel has RBR contract for 2015

      2. Bar any serious dip in form of Kimi or Fernando’s sudden exit it will be 2016 in my opinion.

    3. This means Ferrari will have the oldest pairing in F1 next year, or more experienced if that’s how you want to look at it.
      All I know is who I’m putting my money for the 2014 WCC.

      1. @mantresx Indeed. And their third driver is Pedro de la Rosa who’s like 55 years old…

        Ferrari should go for Hulk. BBC’s Gary Anderson makes a good point about it.

        1. Never rule out Pedro looking for a race seat the coming 10 years, too. ;)

    4. Awesome! That’s a funny little foto at the bottom of the article too. Honestly, some of these drivers need to humble up and take a look at where they are. It’s a small world. Fernando you think you’re even too good for ferrari now? Where you gonna go?
      Generally I think fernando is a great driver but I’m tempted to say his performance this year has been underwhelming and off the track he’s basically Machiavelli.
      When Kimi mumbles stuff like “I only care about winning” you know he means it right down to the core of his being. Fernando better get his racing booties back on next year.

      Re Massa, I don’t want to dis him, but I hope Lotus take the Hulk. Filipe should take a look at how Ruebens left and just exit gracefully now.

      1. Exactly Lotus should go for the HUlk . If they do want Massa badly , how about Massa instead of Grosjean ?

        No , Grosjean has been slowly improving . So Maybe Sauber . Enjoy your days Massa .

        1. Grosjean hasn’t been improving. He as far more impressive last year. Ok he did crash out more often.. but he at least looked like a match for Kimi. This year he hasn’t shown any pace or consistency

        2. Ferrari should go for the Hulk

      2. Are you seriously saying alonso performances have been lacking??? have you watched the races?

        And if i keep hearing about Q performances i think im going to laugh. Kimis Qualy has not been great and in his last 2 years at ferrari it wasnt very good either.

        I think everyone including them are forgetting why ferrari got rid of him.

        Alonso has every right to be upset if kimi is on a similar contract to him, yet still has his ‘i wont do this, i wont do that’ stuff in it like he had last time and has now at lotus. If they give him that then Alonso is right to be annyoed(if he is at all anyway)

        1. I agree that Kimi’s qualifying skills are not what they used to be, however, his racecraft and consistency are second to none, maybe even improved since his Mclaren days, BUT Ferrari has to give him what he wants and if that’s what makes him drive faster why not?

          1. how can anyone fault kimi’s qualifying?? Unlike Alonso, he actually qualified on the front row once. And manage to outqualified alonso on the start when ferrari was dominating on races.

      3. My money is on Nando.

    5. That’s a mistake. Ferrari are a team that thrive on long-term stability. Taking on a brand-new driver who has the potential to lock horns with Alonso on a short-term contract whilst the sport is undergoing a major overhaul of the technical and engine regulations isn’t just flirting with disaster, it’s taking disaster out for dinner and a movie.

    6. As its only the BBC, and in the article itself they say its “almost” there, not quite yet, I would say that is jumping the gun a bit. Actually sad to see the BBC goes for that kind of headline jumping you would expect from 2nd rate media really.

  2. OmarR-Pepper (@)
    11th September 2013, 0:08

    Not everybody has the luck to be the employee who decides who will work with you next year.
    It’s time Fernando shows if he has really matured since his 2007 experience, or if he will keep unveiling secrets from his employers.And with this I don’t say Ferrari is hiding something bad, just I hope Alonso don’t start twitting telemetry or Kimi’s race strategy, ala Hamilton.

    1. @omarr-pepper drivers are selfish anyway… at some point, one of those will have to yield to the other one and neither will like it.

      It’s in their genes. It’s not a team sport in the end. It is to some extent, but you don’t score points because of the position of your team mate…

    2. That’s what I’m hoping for… I think Alonso is a much more mature driver since 2007, and kimi is a very laid back guy, so I think they will take it easier between the two… But who knows, alonso in the other hand is hungry for a championship, so who knows when the pressure is up…

      I still think Alonso is a better than Raikkonen…. Both were team mates of Massa, Alonso is clearly superior, Raikkonen were not… but then, different times before and after massa’s accident

      Looking forward to the battle…

      1. That’s what I’m hoping for… I think Alonso is a much more mature driver since 2007

        Is this the same Alonso that abused his team on the radio on Saturday because his teammate didn’t sacrifice his entire race just so Alonso could gain an extra 10th of a second in qualifying.

      2. Trulli got the upperhand on Alonso and got beaten by heikki. Therefore i think heikki is better

      3. @oliveiraz33 I don’t think you can compare Massa v’s teamate pre accident to post accident at all, so we have no real comparison between Alonso and Kimi.

        I would expect Alonso to be better at the start of the season as Kimi settles in but I can see Kimi beating him and of course Kimi will not accept a No2 position so I predict Alonso will not be a happy bunny.

    3. @omarr-pepper

      No one has the privilege to say “i like or i don’t like” that driver as a teammate as Sebastian Vettel has.
      http://www.formula1fancast.com/2013/07/formula-1-news/vettel-i-dont-want-alonso-as-team-mate
      A Vettel interview on the BBC…

      Unless you find me an interview of Alonso saying i dont like X or Y driver as a team mate…

      As for Raikkonen kudos to him for facing the best driver on the grid with the same car, independently if he win or lose he has my respect, Vettel has not my respect in that area

      1. At least Vettel is being honest, unlike Alonso who is reportedly being “unhappy” behind the scenes. Besides, I doubt Vettel is afraid of Alonso – the latter is simply disliked by many for his politicking, “mind games” and involvement in most of the F1’s dirtiest recent scandals.

        I wouldn’t want a team-mate who would block my way in qualifying, and cost my team the WCC because I’m faster than him. I wouldn’t want a team-mate who needs me to tow him along the Monza straights just because he wants that extra tenth at my expense. I wouldn’t want a team-mate who goes bonkers if i don’t let him by; and then claims he’s “overtaken” me when I do.

        I wouldn’t want a team-mate who would even consider conspiring with team boss to put me in the wall so he could win (yes, it isn’t proved, but who really believes that Alonso was an unwitting party to that race; having pitted so unexplicably early and not questioned it).

      2. You’re taking this out of context. Yes, he said that he wouldn’t like Alonso for teammate but he just expressed his view, it’s not his decision who RB will get.

  3. I’m an Alonso fan, but if he doesn’t want competition from Raikkonen at Ferrari, I want the move to happen all the more. Someone as fast and talented as Alonso is shouldn’t have to worry about another driver stealing his spotlight. I REALLY want Raikkonen at Ferrari, the two 2005 title rivals battling it out! Hulkenberg will get his chance at Lotus anyway.

    1. I think the media are simply clinging onto any bit of news they can generate. I think Alonso is probably relishing this, because its a chance to prove his critics wrong and show everyone that he can work alongside a strong driver.

      I hate how everyone judges him for a single, very complex year at Mclaren.

    2. Lets not forget when Alonso joined Ferrari, Massa was considered one of the best drivers at the time who had got the better of Raikkonnen in 08 and 09. Alonso had no problems joining what potentially could have been a really tough team-mate.
      Think now the season is effectively over and the last couple of races have been as dull as dishwater, the journalists will turn to the old classic ‘star driver unhappy at big team’. It will get the Guardian more hits from the back of Kimi’s return.

      1. @brum55
        Nicely said. +1

      2. @brum55 well said. Anyhow Kimi ” is not going to care the least bit about these things ” ;-)

        I might even become a part Ferrari fan in the future if Kimi goes there . Whoa !

        Imagine all the clean fights we can have at the top . Honestly I hope Merc and Ferrari strike big next year in terms of the car . Somehow they have to , a lot of peoples’ interests at stake .

      3. funny, those that didn;t watch 2009 keep claiming massa got the better of kimi. Fact was however, he didn;t.

        Kimi barely got the chance to finish the race in 2009 before massa got injured. however, he was the one that got ferrari first point, first podium and first front row qualifying position.

        And unlike Alonso, kimi never really care about car development stuff. To me, Kimi seems more impressive than Alonso. And i never understood the notion that kimi couldn’t adapt to car.

        1. @Mandice
          I watched 2009. Massa outperformed Kimi. Kimi had 10pts plus a 3 DNFs, Massa 22 with 2 DNFs, before Massa’s injury. So one more DNF. If Kimi won one of those three races (which wouldn’t have been likely as the Ferrari was only good in about 3 races that whole season, all of which Massa missed) he still would fallen short.

          Also there is nothing impressive about not caring about car development and I’m sure Kimi does care. His style is just different to Alonso’s.

          @vasschu Ferrari had two choices. Throw everything behind Alonso and try and win the WDC or forget about it and see Massa win. They chose Alonso and Alonso from then on started driving superbly and nearly won the WDC in an inferior car to Vettel’s Red Bull. It was a gamble that very nearly paid off and one they had to do in order to try and win the WDC.

      4. @brum55

        Alonso had no problems joining what potentially could have been a really tough team-mate.

        Well i don’t think this is the case because we all remember Germany 2010. Massa had pretty decent season until then, he was going for his first win after the crash and he was instructed to give up the place to Alonso. It’s hard to believe that it was decided in the heat of the moment that Alonso should be the number 1 driver (and lets remember those orders were illegal back then) , far more likely is that this was the case right from the start of the season.

    3. Until we meet Alonso and he mentions being unhappy with a strong team mate its all speculation really (Massa could have been a strong contender, nobody knew how it would go at the time Alonso signed with Ferrari).
      For all we know the threat from the Iceman will probably drip off Teflonso more easily than a hot Katana cuts through ice-cream. Also he usually thrives when he can make himself believe everything goes against him, so maybe it’ll help.

      By the way, the drivers I know who returned to Ferrari until now were Gerhard Berger, Clay Regazzoni and José Froilán González (and Pedro Rodríguez?! not sure about that, he had some races with NART once in a while) and Piero Taruffi (who also had a year outside F1 between his two stints at Ferrari), so it has happened before (maybe @andae23 will help correct me here). But we’ll see, might still be Hülkenberg :P

    4. IMO, if Alonso doesn’t want competition, he should simply move to Sauber, Caterham, Marussia, etc.

    5. I’m looking forward to this as well – but I suspect this might be the last season we see Alonso if Kimi can actually challenge him or Ferrari doesn’t manage to deliver a winning car in 2014.

      Hiring Kimi is a clear sign from Ferrari to ALO that he has lost his pull within the team and ALO doesn’t like being upstaged. Also I don’t think that he has learned that much from the Trulli, Hamilton incidents.

      1. last season we see Alonso in red.

      2. @tmf42
        What Trulli incidents? Trulli was sacked by Flavio after what happened at France 2004, it had nothing to do with Alonso.

        1. @kingshark 2004 when Trulli was leading Alonso in the championship and being the better Renault driver that season – Flavio had to jump in, manufacture a fall-out and fire Trulli for a ridiculous reason (being overtaken by BAR in the last lap of the French GP).
          From then on out ALO made sure to have “weaker” teammates (with the help of Flavio) – only thing he couldn’t foresee was an extremely talented rookie in 2007.

          1. @tmf42
            I don’t think you remember much about 2004. There are many points which are flawed.

            1. To argue that Trulli is a better driver than Alonso because he was leading him midway the 2004 season, is like to argue that Webber is a better driver than Vettel, because he was leading him midway the 2009, 2010, and 2012 seasons.

            You’re ignoring Alonso’s bad luck in Monaco and Spa, which cost him 18 points all together.

            2. You claim that Briatore was looking for a weak teammate for Alonso? Since when was Fisichella a weak teammate? Do you even have the slightest clue of how highly Fisichella was rated before he joined Renault in 2005? Experts like Jean Alesi and Damon Hill were rating Fisichella higher than Schumacher.

            Fisi had beaten Ralf Schumi, Jenson Button, and Felipe Massa before he joined Renault in 2005. Of course, because Alonso easily beat him, it doesn’t count.

            3. Alonso signed with Ferrari during July of 2008. At this time, he knew that his teammate would be either Raikkonen or the highly rated Felipe Massa (who was beating Kimi).

            Alonso certainly didn’t have a problem taking on a top driver even after 2007.

          2. @kingshark I never said Trulli was better just that he was ahead in the championship that year.
            My point was a different one – I said ALO keeps a political option in the backhand if he can’t beat them on track and doesn’t hesitate to use them – aka blackmailing his own team.
            However the fact that Ferrari considers RAI shows that he has lost the political leverage in Maranello and that might force ALO to a different team where he has greater influence. That is if RAI can actually beat him – if ALO has no troubles handling him on track my point is void.

          3. 1. To argue that Trulli is a better driver than Alonso because he was leading him midway the 2004 season, is like to argue that Webber is a better driver than Vettel, because he was leading him midway the 2009, 2010, and 2012 seasons.

            Trulli was ahead of Alonso in the championship when he was fired by Briatore. Also, his results became significantly worse after the clash with Briatore.

      3. trulli? what? stop making stuff up if you dont know what your talking about.

        Those 2 were and still are great mates.

  4. The Formula E sort of looks like the Indycar with an F1 high nose stuck on it. I find it less repulsive than the Indycar, but it still makes me similarly nauseous. I’m excited for that series, but it’ll be tough to stomach that car running round and round and round… Anyone got some Pepto Bismol?

    1. Looks like Michelin got their 18″ low-pro tire they wanted…

    2. I like the idea of an electric formula, but the way they are doing it IMO is terrible

      Pit stop will involve a change of car: when the battery runs out, the driver will make a pit stop, then will run 100 metres to climb into a recharged car

      Also sounds dangerous.

      1. Yeah it seems like they could’ve engineered a big replaceable battery and they could’ve just made a pit stop with some sort of quick battery swap that wouldn’t take much longer than an old F1 refueling era stop. I suppose that might have safety implications of its own, but a whole new fresh car for the second half of the race? Seems a bit farcical.

        1. I guess its easier this way because they already have to find a good way to get the batteries in US_Peter. Its in the place of the engine, which is a structural part of most current cars.

          Having it replaceable would be either through the bottom – giving a risk of it dropping during racing, or with a crane out of the top, or to the side like its done on most modern lift trucks (using either a crane or a special rail/rack on wheels). But then you would still have the risk of the whole thing dropping, resulting in very unhealthy chemicals being spilled all over a hot pitlane.

          Its far easier to just change the cars for now, and maybe work on replaceable batteries in the future.

          1. sorry, forgot the @ in that @US_Peter

          2. @bascb that’s true, I hadn’t thought of the battery being used as a structural member in place of the combustion engine.

          3. The best teams will fight to get Usain Bolt as a driver, running 100m can make big difference.

  5. Excellent COTD there by @Colossal-Squid. Massa was one of the rare cases who’s growth curve was really steep. From fast and erratic in 2002 he became fast and consistent by Hungary 09. I still remember the simply outstanding maneuver he pulled on Hamilton on turn 1 in Hungary 08, which triggered sheer delight in the Ferrari camp. His engine let him down that day sadly. Another memorable day was Fuji 07 when he had a balls out battle with Kubica on the last lap on a washed out track. How both of them managed to keep it on the track, while pushing crazily remains beyond my understanding.

    1. @sankalp88 Thank you. Very honoured to be picked for COTD, especially today. You’ve highlighted to great pieces of driving from Felipe’s career, and up until 2009 there was plenty of outstanding passes, defences, poles and wins to choose from. It’s a pity that since 2010 days like those have been so few, but I’m still a fan of his.

      1. Its a big shame that the last 3 years of have taken the memories of some of those great moments away.

        Maybe we should add to it the first parts of the Hockenheim 2010 race. Until he got magnanimous by team order. I think he had been showing a growing form, it would have been a lovely moment to say: enough is enough!

    2. @sankalp88 @colossal-squid Great job well done on the COTD, and thanks for reminding me of that wicked move Massa put on Hamilton in Hungary’08; I ended up dropping my drink in shock at the time! Massa is one of the very few guys to mix ferocious, brilliant and mesmurising on track performances with being a lovely guy off track; it’s certainly something that Fernando and Kimi have never managed! If you see him in the paddock he always, always signs autographs and poses for pictures, and that really is rare for a driver that has been at the very top flight of motorsport for as long as he has. But on track, as we could almost mistakenly forget admist his brow-beaten whipping boy status, he was truly world class. So Felipe Massa, this is your career…

      2002 – Arrives in F1 as a junior category megastar, having crowned himself champion in junior series four times in just a few short years.

      2003 – Gains experience, and impresses, with Ferrari in a test role driving the legendary F2003-GA.

      2004-5 – Returns to Sauber to gain race experience, and links with Barrichello’s seat are already rife at this point.

      2006 – In his first year at Ferrari he sneaks two wins past teammate Schumacher, who is battling Alonso in the championship, and finishes a hugely impressive third in the championship, just behind Schumacher.

      2007 – Despite adding to his win and pole tally, arguably is further from Kimi in terms of speed than Schumi. However after a solid year establishes his name amongst the top four drivers in the world.

      2008 – Massa’s career really takes off. He wins more races than eventual champion Hamilton, takes Raikkonen’s spot as Ferrari’s lead driver and, via some stunning pole positions, arguably becomes F1’s qualy man of the moment. He ends the year as the best driver in the world, for 20 seconds, but nonetheless his status remains very much as one of the best drivers in the world.

      2009 – Scrapes the barrel in the F60 and produces some decent performances but a season that could have ended positively with the every strengthening F60 was brought to a premature conclusion with the crash at the Hungarian GP.

      2010 – Returns as Alonso’s teammate to find that the team dynamics have changed. Has an initial advantage over Alonso, but is soon lagging behind an increasingly comfortable Fernando. Fernando was indeed “…faster than you, Felipe.”

      2011-3 – Struggles with poorly balanced cars and an ever strengthening teammate. Becomes brow beaten by the annually pressure over his position at Ferrari until, in 2013, Ferrari replace him with former teammate and champion, Kimi Raikkonen…probably.

      …I say “This is your career, Felipe” because I would imagine that he’ll retire at the end of season. There could be a seat at Lotus if they want to get rid of Grosjean, but that’s the only scenario in which I can envisage Massa ending up in F1 next year. Like Webber, his time has come. He’s had a great and long lived run right at the front of field fighting for wins, poles and podiums in arguably the most prestigious seat in motorsport, so I highly doubt a few seasons in a horribly oversteering Caterham just to delay the inevitable retirement from F1 would appear to him all that greatly. Also, although Massa is genuinely one of the nicest guys in the paddock, his exit would free up another seat to be filled by the great young talents of Magnussen, Vandoorne, Bird, Frijns and inevitably Antonio Felix Da Costa.

  6. Chilton got a bit too close to Bianchi at Monza so the drug squad must have suspected something!

    1. We all know steroids are said to give you a quarter of a second advantage.

  7. Regarding the “Montezemolo’s Monza” article, BMW were again recently linked with an F1 return in 2016.

  8. Kimi Raikkonen. Rory Byrne. James Allison. Pat Fry. Fernando Alonso.

    That is a dream team. If Fernando doesn’t like it maybe he can try Lotus/Renault again, like he did in 08 ;( or take Jenson’s seat :)

    1. +100 =) Good one!

      And think of this; Ferrari/probably Montezemolo and the very top management of the company have done a great deal of changes to prepare for 2014 and beyond. I see championships looming.

      1. OmarR-Pepper (@)
        11th September 2013, 1:55

        @il-ferrarista I can see a Constructors’ Championship for Ferrari (unless Ricciardo starts delivering immediately) but Vettel will certainly have a harder time next year

        1. you bet ! There is another team also to look out for !

    2. Mclaren would NOT take him back. They don’t want a blackmailer.

      1. Martin has nothing but praise for him. Remember his interview on the grid in brazil?

        Ron might not allow it but martin would have him. Better than 2 he has now by quite a margin

        1. Ron is the Big Boss and has a very long memory

          1. Ron does have a long memory, but probably forgets he was in the wrong, and lied on tv at silverstone.

            also Ron managed to annoy Prost, Senna, DC, Montoya, Kimi, Fernando and lewis. All enough to make them leave. Good way to **** off some of the greatest drivers of all time.

      2. @scunnyman stranger things have happened. Remember that Button officially still doesn’t have a contract for next year, so maybe that’s McLaren keeping their options open? If they don’t take Alonso, McLaren will be the only top team (I’ll just assume they’ll have a good car for next year) without a top driver. Don’t get me wrong, I think Button is a great driver. But I don’t feel he’s on that level of Alonso, Vettel, Raikkonen or Hamilton. Those four just seem to have that little bit extra. I think that if there’s an option for McLaren to get a driver such as Alonso, they should go for it. Maybe that’s sad for either Button or Perez, but Formula 1 is a harsh environment. But we’ll see what happens after Ferrari makes the announcement of who’s going to fill Massa’s seat, perhaps Alonso will stay, Raikkonen, reportedly, only signed a year.

        1. Yeah, but you know Jenson and contracts … whether or not he’s got one doesn’t make much difference as to what will actually happen.

          That said, I expect he will remain at McLaren for next season, and likely for the rest of his F1 career.

        2. Button May not not be one of the top 4, But Ron would rather have Eddie Jordan racing in the team than Alonso i’m sure.

    3. I agree. Alonso may not ever get a better chance than WDC no 3. Let hope he doesn’t blow it by being, well, Alonso.

  9. Well that’s that then, Alonso is just going to have to face facts and learn to grow up. He needs to understand that a F1 team can’t put its Constructor’s Championship ambitions on hold for the sake of one stroppy driver, no matter how good he is.

    Time for Alonso to put that samurai mantra rubbish to good use and face up to the realities of a healthy bit of inter-team competition. Eye of the tiger etc etc; if you think you deserve to be world champion, prove it by first beating a teammate capable of giving you a run for your money. And try not to run away this time…

    1. You are jumping the gun a bit. Why would you think he has not already grown up?

      1. Well mainly because the last time he had a competent teammate he jumped ship and moved to Ferrari and has spent a fair bit of time since then underlining how much he enjoys being the only rooster in the henhouse. There’s already rumours flying around at how unhappy Alonso is.

        Only time will tell how well he deals with this but I’m already willing to bet that this partnership won’t last any longer than a season at best

        1. @kibblesworth Okay so you’re just speculating that he hasn’t grown up then…

          1. Of course this is speculation; there’s nothing wrong with that. I’m not psychic, but past behaviour is the best predictor for future behaviour and there is little to suggest that something has happened in the past few years which will mean that Alonso is now suddenly ok with having to give up his number 1 status within a team. The last time he had to deal with that he quit after 1 season. What has changed?

          2. @kibblesworth And there’s little to suggest he hasnt changed in six years.

          3. @kibblesworth Isn’t this whole story of Kimi to Ferrari also speculation? Why the hypocrisy?

  10. “Ferrari have upset the best Formula One driver in the world, Fernando Alonso, in order to ensure that Kimi Raikkonen will be driving for them next year.”

    Does this sentence from the Guardian article make any sense? So in order to ensure that Kimi drives for them next year, Ferrari had to upset Alonso.
    Also, ‘the best Formula One driver in the world’ introduction is quite bombastic. There’s no such thing.

    1. Its a troll piece. They throw in anything they think will get a reaction from their readers in order to sell more. Expect a lot more of it in the coming weeks.

  11. I’m taking this Alonso-is-upset-at-Raikkonen-appointment story with a pinch of salt. We don’t really know how he feels about the situation.

    1. Yeah, me too. It’s really just a story written about a suspicion held by a team boss who the author won’t even name. Seems awfully vague.

    2. My rule of thumb for F1 “journalism” is that if the journalist doesn’t even have the conviction to name their sources, don’t believe it. You have to dismiss about 80% of all F1-related column inches, but that’s not actually a bad thing.

      1. I agree that there’s a lot of rubbish F1 journalism on the web but F1 websites would be incredibly dull if journalists referred only to official sources. They often don’t reveal their sources because the sources don’t want to get revealed and, if they disclosed their identity, then soon no one would tell anything to any journo and we could enjoy ourselves, reading the official press releases and dry reports.

        I personally have a small list of F1 writers that I trust although that doesn’t mean that I think they’re infallible. Then there are some journos, whose columns I take with a pinch of salt. And there are many websites and writers, who have proved their incompetence more than once in the past and should be ignored.

        Anonymous sources are not necessarily useless but one has to use common sense to evaluate their trustworthiness.

  12. If Ferrari fail to make a really convincing championship contender next year, it will be the biggest waste of driver talent I can remember. Alonso – Raikkonen lineup seems so precious that I’m finding it impossible to believe that the universe will allow Ferrari to be anything less than a regular race winner.
    For a fact, I don’t even think Bernie would accept having two big starts like that, in a head-to-head duel, fighting for anything less than a title. He wants to see two teammates going head-to-head for the title, since we had that only 3 times in the last 30 years. Let’s face it, Vettel-Webber never really felt like that, even at the height of their 2010 rivalry.

  13. Chris (@tophercheese21)
    11th September 2013, 0:35

    I think Fernando doesn’t care who his team mate is, as long as they’re a complete pushover. Lol grow up Fernando.

    Bring it on! This is going to be great! I really hope Kimi sticks it to him.

    1. Again no evidence that he is upset.

      But he is right to be upset if kimi is lazy and does no PR, sims, factory visits, gets bored at testing. All things alonso does massive amounts of.

      I hope ferrari havent given him the same contract he had before.

  14. Couldn’t agree more with the COTD. Felipe should not have been kept beyond the 2011 season, but now that he is going it is a sad moment.

    We haven’t seen much of his old magic, but after his crash we couldn’t have really expected more, a head injury like that is life changing. Stirling Moss stopped racing after his crash because he could see that the damage done made him lose something, he would never be as good as he once was.

    I wonder now if Massa had a similar experience, if he knew that he had lost a bit of his edge after his injury? He must have done, even just by looking at the championship tables. If he did then it was his love and passion for racing that kept him on the grid, and that Ferrari clearly love him and kept him for so long is a massive compliment also.

    Felipe can leave Ferrari with his head held high. He was a proper championship contender in his prime. That he could continue racing at all after his crash is impressive enough, but that we could see glimpses of his great form and the occasional (if rare) beating of Alonso is just incredible. Forza Felipe!

    1. I don’t think that’s the case. The Massa of early 2010 was battling for podiums and wins. His crash didn’t affect him nearly as much as did Hockenheim 2010. That was a clear turning point in his results in my opinion and understandably so for a driver as emotional as Felipe. Ferrari themselves destroyed his confidence and he’s never been able to regain it since.

  15. I’m reading a lot of Alonso-bashing recently .I don’t think he needs to grow up or anything like that, surely he’s one of the the most mature drivers on the grid?

    Anyway If Kimi is confirmed (looking inevitable) Then this is surely the second strongest line-up you could possibly dream up from the current crop of drivers (Vettel-Alonso being the strongest in my opinion) I mean this is a seriously formidable line-up not only in terms of outright speed, but consistency. All of a sudden the Hamilton-Rosberg/Vettel-Ricciardo line-ups dont seem that great!

    Bring on 2014!

  16. At times like this it’s the worst to live in Australia. You wake up on Wednesday and expect the announcement, yet you have to wait whole day for it.

  17. I think media are running out ideas. This absolutely poor and unprofessional. Just a few weeks ago, these very same media establishments were spewing stories about Alonso’s imminent departure to Red Bull, where he would have been paired with Vettel, the undoubted prodigal son of the team. If they believed that, it suggests that Alonso was fine with being pitted against a competitive team mate…but now, they taken a full 180. I am surprised George Benson still has a job. He is one of the worst journalists I have come across, and he is nowhere close to the high standards one expects from the BBC. He needs to understand that he is a sports news writer, not fictional fantasy. He always seems to quote unamed “senior figures”, “reliable sources” and “insiders”…and it most cases, they read like fragments of his lively imagination. God I hate Benson!! The British tax payer shouldnt need to pay for drivel like that!

    Enough with the Benson rant, I feel better already. Kimi joining Ferrari is great news. I dont think Alonso will have any issues, as he keeps saying, they drive for Ferrari to deliver the best possible results. There will be little or no performance difference between Kimi and Fernando, hence they will push each other hard, that can only be good for the team. We argue all we want about Fer and his so called number 1 status, the fact is, there is only one number 1 in all of Ferrari, and that is Luca Di Montezemolo. If you dont play by his rules, you’re out.

    End the of the day, its all speculation. We dont know what agreements teams have with drivers. Whatever the case..cant wait for 2014…the Ferrari line up alone will produce fire works!

    1. c*ck!…I even got Benson’s first name wrong!!

    2. Is there a George Benson at BBC Sports? George Benson the singer or Andrew Benson of BBC F1 Sports? :)

      1. George Benson would probably write a better F1 column.

  18. What is the matter with Lewis recently? He’s so downbeat, watching an interview with him is like listening to an R.E.M record.

    It’s only been two races since he won convincingly and the upcoming races should suit his car much more. As for next season, the new regs make form impossible to predict and besides, his team have recruited like mad.

    Cheer up mate! Just think, you could have stayed at McLaren.

    1. I think Lewis is a very emotional person. I think he’s still adjusting to his new team emotionally and his saga with Nicole can’t be good for his mental health either. We all know ‘that guy’ or girl who seems to be wandering off in thoughts and being downbeat in schools or at work; it seems he is ‘that guy’ in F1.

      It isn’t as bad as 2011, but considering that year, it would not surprise me if his mental state also influences his current doomsday moods.

    2. OmarR-Pepper (@)
      11th September 2013, 2:31

      @jackisthestig him at McLaren this year would have ended with him hanging a billboard on his neck saying “AVAILABLE, ON SALE, FOR FREE, BUT GET ME OUT OF HERE!!!” :P
      And if you want to hear depressed lyrics, check out Seether

    3. @jackisthestig If you out in all your effort in the race overtake upto 6 ,7 people and still end up 9th you’d be angry with yourself . Then ofcourse , the girlfriend saga . We can offer him a lot of counselling by saying this , that etc. Ultimately he is the one who knows about what that relationship was like . I know he should move on . I sincerely hope he comes back like a monster in singapore . Besides , it’s one of his favorite tracks.

      Excerpt from the archives of @andae23 .

      The singapore GP has only been won by three drivers : Fernando Alonso , Lewis Hamilton and Seb Vettel .

      Will it continue this year ?

    4. watching an interview with him is like listening to an R.E.M record

      I’me sure you were thinking of Shiny Happy People.

  19. Am I the only one who thinks those 18″ wheels look horrible on the Formula E car? 15 would’ve been a more sensible choice.

    1. In those studio pictures they look really weird, but I think they look alright in some of the photo’s I’ve seen from the floor in Frankfurt. It’s just a matter of getting used to. I recently got slammed on YouTube for saying Grooved Tyres look silly now, comparing them to earlier 90s and recent slick tyres, but there wasn’t a good word of them when we had them.

    2. OmarR-Pepper (@)
      11th September 2013, 2:36

      @mantresx Michelin could finally fulfill their whim. It was one of the things they wanted to install in F1, remember?

    3. The entire car looks ugly.

  20. Alonso would rather go to Lotus and keep his reputation intact against Grosjean than get matched by Kimi. Kimi’s coming into Alonso’s team, it’s built completely around, he should beat Kimi in qualifying and in the races no trouble.

    Alonso had a car good enough to win the championship with in 2010 and 2012. In 2012, Ferrari didn’t have the outright speed of the McLaren (which was the fastest car), but it was by far the most reliable car and was strong from Barcelona onwards. I guess Ferrari have woken up. If Vettel had been driving a Ferrari during this period he would have definitely won 2010 and likely won 2012.

    1. Ahhh.. anon. Was wondering why those comments made no sense

    2. + 1
      Yes, is the driver not just the car!

  21. With the departure of Filipe and the probable arrival of Kimi, where does that leave Rob Smedley, we have all heard how he coaches Filipe and how Kimi doesn’t like being told what to do.

    1. Good point. Rob always said if Fillipe goes, he goes. So I guess if massa stays in F1, Smedley goes to a different team too. As a race engineer, Smedley is very high-profile, so I bet there’d be a few teams after him.
      Here’s a good question: if you had to pair Rob up with another current driver, who would it be? I’d say Perez or Grosjean.

      1. I think that Rob’s comment was on the assumption that Filipe was staying in F1 but another team. I don’t think that Filipe will get another F1 seat. So as Rob is AFAIK a dedicated Ferrari man I think he will stay there, it could be he is senior enough now to be considered for promotion.

      2. As far as drivers go, I’ve noted Nico Rosberg gets a lot of coaching as well, maybe that’d be a nice pair?

  22. Come Australia 2014 :

    Domenicali to Kimi: Alonso is faster than you. Can you confirm you understood that message?
    Kimi: Leave me alone, I know what I am doing.

    Kimi and Alonso both will tear apart.
    RIP Ferrari

    1. OmarR-Pepper (@)
      11th September 2013, 2:32

      @alokin hahaha, and let’s not forget Kimi won Australia this year

    2. OmarR-Pepper (@)
      11th September 2013, 2:34

      I guess one of the main points on Kimi’s contract is “no team orders, veiled or unveiled, at any time.”
      That can be the origin of the “Upset-Gate”

      1. In this case I think this is going to repeat of 2007 for Alonso.
        It will hurt his ego. It will be interesting to see how Ferrari to going to manage both drivers.
        Make or break the situation.

        1. I think Ferrari have learnt from watching McLaren and RBR. Letting team-mates race, for 75% of the year at least, makes the team stronger.

    3. @alokin and @omarr-pepper

      Kimi is no stranger to team orders, he benefited in 2007 and helped Massa at the end of 2008.. and in Lotus we have seen Grosjean being asked to let Kimi by a few times… I think the team orders are going to be inevitable in Ferrari if one of their drivers are in contention for WDC at the end of the year and Kimi will try hard to make sure that he is the guy leading on points..

    4. I don’t think there is a driver out there who sees a problem with team orders at the end of the season, if his teammate is ahead on points. The main problem is how you treat the duels that happen at the beginning of the season, do you let them race hard?

      From Ferrari’s point of view, I don’t think that things are too dark. Both race very tough, but incredibly fair. Given their usual starting positions (>5) and where they end up (usually podium), both Kimi and Fernando they have a surprisingly low number of incidents, so I don’t see why this situation should change. Ferrari will let them race knowing that things will most likely be ok and, when the championship contender is clear, they’ll consider him their number 1 driver for that year.

  23. 2014 is shaping up to be a most interesting season indeed. New regs with new engine packages and no clue yet which engines or chassis will have the best balance of strengths and weaknesses. Some of the more interesting driver changes than we have had in a while will make for some great inter-team match ups, especially at Ferrari. Only Alonso will have the answer to how he will react to having an equal driver racing alongside him. With Byrne, Fry, Allison, Alonso, Raikkonen, a decent chassis and a strong engine package Ferrari have an excellent chance to challenge the dominance of Red Bull. They are making the right moves for a team that wants to win the WDC and the WCC. Kimi is already one of my favorite drivers, Ferrari may have me for a fan in 2014.

    The other driver match ups could be interesting too. Vettel and Ricciardo, the Sirotkin gamble and whomever he is paired with, the likely duo of Hulkenberg and Grosjean, the continued development at Merc with Hamilton and Rosberg, just to mention a few. Will Checo mature, will Maldonado have a seat (have cash, will drive, so likely yes), will someone promote Bianchi? Lots to look forward to.

    1. 2014 will be interesting from technical point of view. I am looking forward to seeing the new cars. I think the winter will be a really exciting period :)
      But I doubt there will be much good racing. If we look back to most recent big rule overhaul one team won 6 out of the first 7 races. Racecar engineering tweet from yesterday:

      RCE on 2014 engines – rumours say – Renault sorted, McLaren lots of grunt but not reliable, Ferrari – not good, Honda – who knows

      Of course it’s “Mercedes” instead of “McLaren”

      1. I think the 2014 Honda engine will have trouble starting.

        1. @mike-dee I think read somewhere that Honda intend to use it in WEC next year as rules permit.

  24. i hope kimi doesn’t go to ferrari…just cause

  25. Massa will go to Lotus, he brings more money than Hulkenberg…

  26. Someone tell Alonso to man up and stop whining. If he’s as good as he is, he wont need a no. 2 drive to aid him.

  27. Two of the big four are ganging up to face Vettel . Now that should be interesting.

    Surprisingly , my guess is that it will work . For all we know , Ferrari have gone for some refreshing change . It will push Fernando to high levels . I hope Fernando does not end up doing something sneaky to gain an advantage.

    1. With no car, there is no ganging up to face Vettel.

      1. Here’s hoping 2014 will change it at least for a few races before Newey brings back the exhaust blowing in some unexpected form .

  28. Thanks for the link to the Hunt motorsport article. Fantastic read. I had no idea Hunt ever dabbled in Can-Am or raced at Laguna Seca before. Can-Am 1000+ hp, at the original Laguna layout, wow!

  29. I’m going to go out on a limb here, and say Alonso might actually be a better boy then in 2007. I think mentally, Brazil 2012’s ‘cold stare’ may have been a changing moment. Although ‘stupid gate’ was a bit emotional, Alonso seems to have accepted he is not the one and only talented driver on the grid. If Räikkönen had been signed for Ferrar in 2012, I could see a 2007-type breakdown, but this time around, I think Alonso might play nice.

  30. How about bringing Senna back (Bruno) to Lotus

    1. Lol. How about Taki Inoue?

    2. Maybe Enstone could run Jacques Villeneuve?

  31. Various thoughts:

    1) I’m pretty sure no one driver likes to have an strong team mate. That said it does not means Alonso (or any other top driver) cannot handle that issue. In my personal opinion, the problems Alonso had in 2007 were not related to Hamilton but to Ron Dennis.

    2) I’m not sure, Ferrari could handle two top drivers in the team. They are not used to, and they have another problem with all those senior managers coming in and out due to (IMHO) the lack of leadership of Domenicali. Add more complexity to the situation is not going to help.

    3) Alonso could be the best current driver or not, but during this four years, he has given everything to Ferrari, being 200% committed to the team in all occasions, even when he has lost championships not because his performance. Hiring Kimi, according to the traditional way of manage of Ferrari (IMHO), is like telling him “I don’t trust you enough to lead this team”. Well, I think this will carry less success to the team, not because fights between Alo-Kimi but to the fact that Alo will not be as committed as he has been up to now. I would like to be wrong. Time will tell.

    4) In any case, see a good fight between ALO and RAI and for first time, using the same car, is going to be thrilling!

    1. 1) I’m pretty sure no one driver likes to have an strong team mate. That said it does not means Alonso (or any other top driver) cannot handle that issue. In my personal opinion, the problems Alonso had in 2007 were not related to Hamilton but to Ron Dennis.

      Alonso knew that about McLaren having the Ferrari data and went to Ron Dennis demanding to be made number one driver for the rest of the season otherwise he’d go to the FIA. It was blackmail, he was prepared to cheat his way to a world championship as Ron Dennis made him number one driver. Then you had the whole illegal mass damper in 2006 and the whole saga in Singapore 2008. Trouble seems to follow this guy.

  32. Just can’t wait, hope Kimi will sign :)

    PS just imagine:

    Fernando Alonso: – This is ridiculous!
    Stefano Domenicali: – Kimi, Fernando is faster than you. Can you confirm you understand that message?
    Kimi Raikkonen: I know what I’m doing!

    1. Fernando Alonso: – Quindi c’e da farlo passare..veramente siete dei scemi eh! Mamma mia, ragazzi!

    2. Like all good fan-fiction, are there tentacles involved?

  33. Of course Alonso doesn’t like the fact that Kimi is going to be his team mate next year. During the past four seasons he has been the #1 in the team. All the new upgrates go to him, the car is built around his driving style, he has always the best possible strategy, while Massa’s strategy sometimes makes him lose places, he has a team mate who is willing to do anything to help him.
    Alonso will not have many of these advantages with Kimi and of course he is not going to be happy about it. Besides there’s the fact that Alonso wanted Massa to stay, he said so multiple times when interviewed, so he won’t like that Ferrari didn’t listen to him this time.

  34. Does anyone find it odd that there doesn’t seem to have been an official announcement yet? Massa announced he was leaving yesterday, and normally one would expect a carefully choreographed PR announcement pretty soon after that so-andso was joining. But it’s now 1.30 CET and there’s nothing yet; I wonder if there’s anything wrong.
    I also wonder if Alonso’s critical attitude towards the team on Sunday had anything to do with his knowledge that they were going to let Massa go.

  35. Alonso could buy the remains of HRT and hire Felipe?

  36. This just in, Alonso voices his support for ‘talented rookie’ Max Chilton to take Massa’s seat. ;)

    Seriously though, would be great to have Alonso up against Raikkonen. After the disappointment of not getting to see Vettel vs Raikkonen this would be a suitable alternative in my book. Maybe even more interesting as i see them as having similar qualities as drivers.

  37. Hey, Massa could go to Formula E next year. It would be great to see him winning the first Formula E championship :D

  38. i think alonso will crush kimi next year, and im hamilton fan

  39. @q85 How was Ron Dennis wrong in what he did?

    And does that mean you have no problem with Blackmail?

  40. I’m very excited about Formula E (save for the silly exchange cars rule), but even I must admit that is a woefully boxy and uninspiring car design.

  41. Bold move from Ferrari taking Raikkonen but the right one. Alonso had three years to take the champinpionship and even with excellent performances did not deliver.
    Let’s see if Alonso has the balls to stay in the team because he certainly has bad memories from equal team-mates. From what I have read, as soon as Fernando learned about Kimi joining (June) he approached Red Bull who was not interested.
    If he stays, this will be a battle of two of the biggest names in F1 (both better than Hamilton or Vettel), and at the end of the year I see Raikkonen having the upper hand. Why? Imho, Kimi is still the fastest man there in terms of raw speed and racecraft, more reliable, and adapts his driving style better to saving tires and the upcoming turbo engines (Alonso is aggressive on the tires, the turbos will only make it worse).

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