Comments on: Button and Brawn: Now it’s getting bitter

By: Ads21

Ads21 — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 13:59:50 +0000

“Kubica and Rosberg is a more formidable sounding line up for Mercedes”

I really struggle to see why the myth that Kubica is better than Heidfeld is so prevelent in F1. Points scored by Heidfeld and Kubica in their time at BMW:

2006 (Hungary until the end of the season) Heidfeld 10 – 6 Kubica
2007 Heidfeld 61 – 39 Kubica
2008 Heidfeld 60 – 75 Kubica
2009 Heidfeld 19 – 17 Kubica
Total Heidfeld 150 – 137 Kubica

Oh what’s that I hear you cry? “but Kubica has won a race!” Yes, but only because Heidfeld let him past, otherwise Kubica’s race would have been ruined like Alonso’s was. Kubica would most likely have scored no points at all. Heidfeld sacrificed his chance of a win to give the team a 1-2.

Heidfeld has beaten Kubica, Alesi, Raikkonen, Massa and Webber while racing in the same car. That he is still so misunderestimated in F1 is baffling. Mercedes should sign him, then watch him outscore Nico Rosberg.

By: James Allen

James Allen — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 08:32:55 +0000

I think you can access everything outside race weekends. It’s just the stuff from track that is geo-locked

By: Jameson

Jameson — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 01:45:42 +0000

Pat,

Thanks for posting the link to this MP3. I’m in the States, so I can’t usually access 5Live. I feel like I miss out on a lot of interviews, and as a consequence I can only read news which doesn’t quite have the same impact. Communication via type tends to lose a lot in translation, so you miss inflections and tones that give much more clue to feelings.

Button sounded exceptionally happy, and eager for the challenge of a new car, new team, and new teammate. I wasn’t convinced that it wasn’t a financial move until I heard the interview, and now I’m ecstatic to know that it was not. I can’t wait to see Button next year!

I’ve always assumed that Button would be beaten by Hamilton hands down. I may be changing my tune, as they may be more evenly matched with the extra fuel load early in the race. If Button can build up enough of lead with his smooth driving, he may be able to fend of Hamilton later in the race.

By: The Limit

The Limit — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 01:02:10 +0000

It is interesting to hear Ross Brawn making these comments, considering he sold to Mercedes Benz in the first place. We must remember that Jenson spent six long years at the team, when it was BAR Honda and then Honda, before the team became Brawn Gp. Apart from 2004 and 2009, the other cars Button drove were not good enough to even challenge for championships.
Jenson has given more than enough to the team, and as you mentioned, stuck with the team when he had a perfectly good opportunity to drive for Frank Williams.
It would seem that alot of people out there are uncomfortable with drivers going to big teams and earning big money. These guys are not fools, they know their careers are not going to last forever, certainly when they start to push thirty years old when some of their rivals are a decade younger or more.
Take Alonso for instance. Much like Raikkonen he has had a long and successful career, and his move to Ferrari certainly will not hurt his bank account. Fernando surely, like Jenson, must realise that ‘big opportunities’ in F1 do not come around every day. No matter how good you are, there is always another potential champion waiting in the wings to take your place.

By: piotr

piotr — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 23:09:43 +0000

Glad to hear someone read my post I was provoked by Gavin here (November 19th, 2009 @ 8:52 pm), who compared Heidfeld to great Jean Alesi, which in all fairness is a bit too optimistic in my opinion.

By: Rudy Pyatt

Rudy Pyatt — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 23:03:40 +0000

James: A bit off-topic, but maybe one you can address for another day.

Jarno Trulli has spoken positively about his NASCAR test; JPM has become successful there, and has won the Indy 500; even Scott Speed, drummed out of F1, is competitive. And, of course, there’s the history of F1 greats (Brabham, Clark, Stewart, Hill, Mansell, Fitipaldi, even Alberto Ascari), taking on the ovals, both here and abroad (Moss and Fangio in the The Race of Two Worlds at Monza).

Given Button’s expressed desire for new challenges, and Kimi’s free-agent status, can you see either of them doing a one-off and racing in one of the American oval classics? For that matter, anyone currently, or recently, on the F1 grid?

Granting that there will be at least some schedule conflicts (Monaco usually clashes with Indy, but that didn’t stop Clark, Hill and Stewart…), the summer break and February, could perhaps provide the opportunity. If Trulli goes into it, I suspect that will get others interested.

What do you think? I’d love to see Kimi bombing around the Daytona banking, or JB and Lewis trying to master Indianapolis (if McLaren even remembers or cares about that part of its history), Fontana or Talladega. Given that F1 is unlikely to return to the States in anything like the near term, it may be the best way to build interest for an eventual return, especially if sponsors actually want to be here.

Who knows? If USF1 comes through, maybe they’ll pull a PR stunt like running their car on the oval at Charlotte!

By: Kevin

Kevin — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 22:55:06 +0000

I’m not surprised JB didn’t want his pay based on performance. The Brawn probably won’t be a dominate car like it was this year. Guess I should say Mercedes, it will certainly be good, but he won’t have the edge he had this year to win this championship

By: Brace

Brace — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 22:23:06 +0000

They have a logo but it’s a bit too sophisticated if you know what I mean.
Trust me, I’m a graphic designer by profession and that logo just doesn’t scream uniqueness or recognizability.
I think they need to develope their visual identity to the new level, now that they are going seriously into supercars market.

By: Brace

Brace — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 22:16:14 +0000

James, I demand you find out more about this and elaborate on this great piece of information!
Doug, thanks for this. It makes things quite interesting!

By: Wesley

Wesley — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 19:25:37 +0000

@ Alex D

2006 (Hungary until the end of the season) Heidfeld 10 – 6 Kubica
2007 Heidfeld 61 – 39 Kubica
2008 Heidfeld 60 – 75 Kubica
2009 (points scored after Singapore) Heidfeld 12 – 9 Kubica
Total Heidfeld 143 – 129 Kubica