American team planning to enter Formula 1 (Edit: Is it over?)

[Phantasm]

There is a reason he lost his seat at Toro Rosso: he wasn't that good in F1, either. Funny, a guy at work was telling me the other day how good Ms. Patrick was supposedly doing in testing so far. :whoknows:

Yeah, but who has been good at STR, other than Vettel that is? Buemi has had a few moments, but nothing really to hang his hat on, and Alguersuari even less. Vettel was amazing in that car, which became more evident in looking at their results after he left for RBR.

[Bubble Screen]

There is a reason he lost his seat at Toro Rosso: he wasn't that good in F1, either. Funny, a guy at work was telling me the other day how good Ms. Patrick was supposedly doing in testing so far. :whoknows:

Dude, she was testing in the "ARCA" series. Its not even affiliated with Nascar. There's not that much talent in that division. And it was on a superspeedway, iirc. Not really that big a deal. Seriously, its not that hard to go fast when you're the only car out there. She's gonna be way in over her head, taking this part-time approach to Nascar. The only positive thing with her making the jump is of course all the money she will bring in. She's definitely marketable.

[HighOnHendrix]

Yeah, but who has been good at STR, other than Vettel that is? Buemi has had a few moments, but nothing really to hang his hat on, and Alguersuari even less. Vettel was amazing in that car, which became more evident in looking at their results after he left for RBR.

That's a good point. It's even more apparent how amazing Vettel is in comparison when you consider that Speed scored no points in 10 races in 07, while Vettel scored 6 points in 7 races in the same car after replacing speed. Regardless, STR changes drivers too often. They've dropped at least three guys in the middle of the season that I can recall off the top of my head.

Dude, she was testing in the "ARCA" series. Its not even affiliated with Nascar. There's not that much talent in that division. And it was on a superspeedway, iirc. Not really that big a deal. Seriously, its not that hard to go fast when you're the only car out there. She's gonna be way in over her head, taking this part-time approach to Nascar. The only positive thing with her making the jump is of course all the money she will bring in. She's definitely marketable.

Yeah, I'm not saying she was doing good, just that someone told me that. I don't know for myself and haven't cared enough to check on her. Once she denied the rumors that she would move to F1, I stopped paying attention to her. I do think that an awful lot of people are counting her out before she even gets a chance. There will be crow all around if she bucks the trend. I'm just saying...

[Bubble Screen]

Yeah, I'm not saying she was doing good, just that someone told me that. I don't know for myself and haven't cared enough to check on her. Once she denied the rumors that she would move to F1, I stopped paying attention to her. I do think that an awful lot of people are counting her out before she even gets a chance. There will be crow all around if she bucks the trend. I'm just saying...

No one is going to be eating crow. If she really wanted to be successful in Nascar she would have went at it full steam ahead. Not running some races in Nascar here and there. She's taking the wrong approach. Look at Juan Montoya. He's arguably one of the best all-around drivers ever in racing. And look how long it took him to have success (3 years). And he made a full committment to the sport. Needless to say Danica is not in his league. And never will be.

[HighOnHendrix]

http://formula-one.speedtv.com/article/f1-is-windsors-usf1-finally-dream-over/

Is Windsor’s USF1 Dream Finally Over?

The media in Argentina is reporting that the US F1 team has ground to a halt – and that Jose Maria Lopez is now trying desperately to find an alternative seat for this season.

It’s said that ‘with tears in his eyes’ USF1 guiding light Peter Windsor told Lopez, his father and his close associate – F1 TV producer Felipe McGough – that the team will miss the first three races of the season and probably thus the whole championship.

The Argentine government was among Lopez’s backers, and had reportedly already paid nearly $900,000 of a promised $2 million.

Lopez has reportedly already headed for Europe to try to find another seat. The only one still vacant is that at Campos Meta, but the team’s own future remains under question, despite ongoing negotiations with several potential saviors.

There could also be a possibility at Stefan GP alongside Kazuki Nakajima. The team does not have an entry for its Toyota-built cars, but there remains the possibility that Bernie Ecclestone could negotiate a deal that sees the Serbian team in effect take over the USF1 entry and associated paperwork.

It was widely reported today that Youtube founder Chad Hurley had backed out of US F1 due to its lack of progress. He has been already linked with Campos but sources suggest to SPEEDtv.com that he may be more likely to take his funding to an established team.

It's not looking good for our countrymen, gentlemen. Lopez was signed to be one of their two drivers a month or two ago. It is now being reported that he is planning to sign on with Campos instead. They are also a new team, and also rumored to be in jeopardy of missing the season.

Another article about this:

http://en.espnf1.com/teamus/motorsport/story/9004.html

US F1 may be nearing end of the line

US F1 has cancelled its crash testing and a number of press interviews, as it looks more and more likely that it won't make the grid for the season opener in Bahrain.

There is still no sign of a completed chassis and no testing has been confirmed by the team, which last month said it was hoping to run the car on US soil at some point in late February. A report in the New York Times claims the team is plagued by financial trouble after a major sponsor deal fell through.

An anonymous insider said: "The bottom line is really simple: sponsor money didn't come through the way it was supposed to and it has grinded down the company to a halt. They're having trouble making payroll, they're having trouble paying suppliers and that's the situation they find themselves in,"

Officially the team has remained quiet, with boss Peter Windsor refusing to comment. YouTube entrepreneur Chad Hurley is its main financial backer, but there are now rumours that he is taking his money to the beleaguered Campos squad that at least has a near-ready Dallara chassis.

There also rumours that US F1's only confirmed driver Jose Maria Lopez has also started looking elsewhere. A source close to Lopez admitted to the Argentine press: "Maybe this is for the best and 'Pechito' [Lopez] ends in a car running better than the USF1."

[Phantasm]

This sucks, but I guess it doesn't surprise me, motorsports all over the world are hurting.

[Veretax]

I'm still not convinced that he was as bad as his results indicated, I think he was just on a team that wasn't very good (at the time).

As for possible drivers, I wouldn't count out Jeff Gordon. Other than the fact that he has a young child, a lot of things make sense here to me. Number one, he is no longer the top dog at Hendrick. Number two, he did a swap at Indy with JPM's F1 car at Indy a few years ago and seemed to pick it up pretty good. And, Number three, that team appears to be looking for publicity first, and Gordon would really put that team on the map.

Other possibilities that come to mind:

-Robby Gordon - Why not? He drives anything with wheels, and F1 is one of the only series he hasn't been in.

-Marco Andretti - Could be a good story if he can perform and make people forget his father's single disastrous F1 season with MacLaren

-AJ Allmendinger - Not a bad choice, but he could stay in Sprint Cup if his performance continues to improve

Both Gordons are far too old to make the transition to F-1 now. Marco Andretti may be young enough, but he shows too much propensity to crack up or make stupid moves. I've not seen enough of Allmendinger to comment.

As much as I like Scott Pruett, he's too old for the F-1 Transition now too. Same for Buddy Rice. Jimmy Johnson aint leaving hendrick so no dice there. Stewart is also too old, and he's trying to run his own team now so no way that happens, Rahall Hornish and Mears are interesting names, but Casey Mears hasn't done jack that I've seen in recent years. If I had to pick one guy I like the way Graham Rahall drives a lot more than Andretti or Patrick.

Its a shame this effort is likely killed for the near future, but what can you do?

[Teller]

No one is going to be eating crow. If she really wanted to be successful in Nascar she would have went at it full steam ahead. Not running some races in Nascar here and there. She's taking the wrong approach. Look at Juan Montoya. He's arguably one of the best all-around drivers ever in racing. And look how long it took him to have success (3 years). And he made a full committment to the sport. Needless to say Danica is not in his league. And never will be.

You're crazy. You write off Arca completely (where I watched Parker Kligermann nearly beat Joey Logana last year at Pocono until he cut a tire.....left the race and went to his PROM afterwards) not to mention all the experienced talent in that division. (Which IS affiliated with NASCAR, and frequently runs races at Cup tracks where there aren't truck/Nationwide races.)

And frankly, I think this is the perfect approach for Danica. Don't get her in over her head too early, and give her a chance to get used to a couple hundred pounds of downforce, as opposed to a thousand-plus.

Bury her now, if you will, but you're making a mistake if you do.

[HighOnHendrix]

This sucks, but I guess it doesn't surprise me, motorsports all over the world are hurting.

Obviously, I'm disappointed in how things are going for them right now. It would be great to have a US team on the grid in general and also because it would increase the chances of getting back a Stateside event if more Americans were interested due to being able to follow an American team. I was also pulling for Peter Windsor, he seems like such a likable guy. There may be hope yet:

http://en.espnf1.com/f1/motorsport/story/9094.html

A glimmer of hope from US F1

US F1 made an encouraging public announcement via Twitter on Thursday night, amid rumours that it might be about to pull the plug on its F1 project.

After the team's website became inaccessible it posted: "The web server is down and is being repaired as this is written. We are not gone, as many have reported. More news soon"

It is the second reassurance the team has made that everything is OK since rumours started circulating that it was in financial trouble and its Charlotte base was up for sale. On Thursday an insider said that a sponsor's payment hadn't come through and it emerged the team had cancelled plans to crash test in England. There were also reports that its main backer, YouTube's Chad Hurley, was looking to take his money elsewhere and driver Jose Maria Lopez was also exploring other options.

A statement released by Lopez's management clarified the Argentine driver had been in talks with US F1 and Bernie Ecclestone over the last few days.

"We would like to inform that yesterday, Jose Maria Lopez Sr, together with [managers] Felipe McGough and Victor Rosso, visited USF1 headquarters in Charlotte to be in contact with the team's directors," read the statement.

It added that Lopez and his entourage then left the US "with a clear understanding of the team's current situation" en route to London.

"Arrangements were [then] made to have different meetings; one of them with the managers of the FOM [Formula One Management] whose president is Bernie Ecclestone. The result of the meeting has been positive."

Representatives of the Argentine government, one of Lopez's main backers, said it had not made any payments to the team as yet. US F1 now has just over three weeks to sort out its problems and fire up its car ahead of the season opener in Bahrain.

It's just a Tweet, so who knows?

http://formula-one.speedtv.com/article/fi-usf1-mulls-options/

USF1 Mulls Options

Three weeks before the Formula 1 season kicks off, it's clear that the two North Carolina-based USF1 cars will not be on the grid for the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix.

But that doesn't meant the team won't race in 2010.

SPEEDtv.com has learned that the struggling start-up squad is busy working on a range of possible solutions, which could include:

• Acquiring an available car, such as the Dallara chassis built for the financially troubled Campos Meta team in Spain;

• Merging with another team;

• Pressing on with their own car and accepting penalties for missing races;

• As a last resort, withdrawing their entry and reapplying next year.

A New York Times article published Friday stated that USFI had asked the FIA for permission to miss the first four races of the year.

But SPEED's Bob Varsha spoke Sunday with Nick Craw, chairman of the American delegation to the FIA and President of the FIA Senate. Craw told Varsha that USF1 merely asked for clarification of the rule, which is in conflict with the terms of the new Concorde Agreement signed by the teams. The new Concorde Agreement allows teams to miss up to three races per season.

Craw also told Varsha that the FIA will try to work with USF1 as it attempts to make the grid. Craw stressed that the United States is an important market for F1.

Calls to USF1 seeking comment were not returned.

Of the four "options" above, the last one seems the most likely. The one before that about accepting penalties amounts to the same thing. The way I understand the rules, you may miss three races, but if you miss a fourth one you are done for the year. I hate to say it, but it would probably be in the best interests of the sport if they would step aside and allow their entry to be given to Stefan GP. Stefan bought the rights to the design Toyota was working on when their execs pulled the plug on their F1 team. Reports are that they are currently testing said ex-Toyota car and that it's pretty good; meanwhile, USF1 has not completed their car yet and is openly talking about missing races.

[Veretax]

penalties for not being at a race? Aren't they penalized enough by not having gained any points from the race?

[HighOnHendrix]

penalties for not being at a race? Aren't they penalized enough by not having gained any points from the race?

As far as the championship goes, yes. The penalties are in place for a different reason: to prevent teams from piddling around and racing this race but not that one; to encourage an all-out commitment to F1. Another reason is so that there is a full grid for every race. F1 is so expensive that there is not a huge logjam of teams trying to get on the grid.

http://en.espnf1.com/f1/motorsport/story/9481.html

US F1 staff member reveals team's problems

The severity of US F1's problems has become slightly clearer after an anonymous source revealed details of the outfit's inner workings to Autosport.com.

The "senior staff" member said he and many of his colleagues had been employed at the team on the understanding it had funding in place for three years. It is well known that US F1's chassis development is behind schedule, and last week team principal Ken Anderson asked the FIA about the possibility of skipping the first four races of the season.

"There has been precious little in the way of formal planning and documentation," the source said. "No production schedules, simply very little in the way of planning. Our January 15 pay cheque was late. It was paid by the 20th or so, but it certainly caused commotion and people started asking questions. That's when all the company's issues came to a head, and the conclusion was ... yes, we had been lied to about the long-term budget, and indeed the company had a cash-flow issue. But as mentioned, that really was a secondary issue.

"Think of it this way. If you don't have a car or can't show serious progress in that direction, potential sponsors aren't going to have a tendency to give you money. At the moment there are still 60 people working in Charlotte, but 10 have already left."

Anderson insisted his staff had not been employed under false pretences. "The story that the employee tells is certainly twisted and one-sided," he told the website. "There are also contradictions. Everybody that signed up here knew exactly what they were getting into, i.e. to have two cars on the track in Bahrain."

To add to the problems, there has been ongoing speculation that US F1 backer Chad Hurley is looking to throw his support behind Campos instead. Some reports suggest he is looking to forge a link-up deal between the two teams involving driver Jose Maria Lopez, after it emerged Lopez's management had been in talks with Campos and Hurley.

And in regards to what I wrote before about Stefan GP testing their Toyota-sourced car:

http://formula-one.speedtv.com/article/f1-testing-attempts-for-stefan-gp-fall-flat/

Testing Attempts For Stefan GP Fall Flat

Stefan GP’s efforts at trying to test their F1 car keep going flat, literally.

Stefan GP wanted to test this week but the lack of available tires has prevented them from getting on track.

After begin denied when they tried to obtain Bridgestone's Formula One tires, Stefan GP looked into making its test track debut with GP2 rubber.

"The (GP2) circuit is also under contract with the FIA, so we can't get their tires either," team boss Zoran Stefanovic said in an interview with Balkan Insight.

The Serbian outfit is pushing hard for clearance to race in the 2010 season, after preparing the withdrawn Toyota's 2010 package.

Stefan GP wanted to test this week in Portugal but had to call it off due to the tire issue.

"We could get tires from other manufacturers similar to those used in the formula one circuit but these are not approved for Formula One and we're not going to take any chances because we could have an accident in testing," Stefanovic said.

[Phantasm]

Obviously, I'm disappointed in how things are going for them right now. It would be great to have a US team on the grid in general and also because it would increase the chances of getting back a Stateside event if more Americans were interested due to being able to follow an American team. I was also pulling for Peter Windsor, he seems like such a likable guy.

I agree on both counts, I really want a race Stateside (mainly because I really want to go to a race, can't afford to go overseas, and Montreal wouldn't be as cool as the Glen or Indy), and Windsor seems like a guy I'd like to work for with a real passion for his sport.

[HighOnHendrix]

http://formula-one.speedtv.com/article/f1-usf1-asks-for-delay-until-2011/

VIDEO: USF1 Asks For Delay Until 2011

SPEEDtv.com has learned that the struggling start-up USF1 Formula 1 team has formally petitioned the FIA to defer the team's entry into the sport until 2011.

Team principals Ken Anderson and Chad Hurley have offered to post a “substantial, seven-figure” surety bond as proof of their intentions to race next year.

The request for a deferment follows a breakdown in merger discussions between USF1 and the Spanish Campos Meta team. The Serbian-based Stefan GP team also had made overtures about working with USF1, but those talks also failed to yield anything substantive.

It now appears that neither USF1 nor Campos will be on the grid for the season-opener at Bahrain.

Contrary to media speculation elsewhere, Hurley is still very much involved in the USF1 effort.

SPEEDtv.com will continue to follow this story as it develops.

[generaltso]

http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2010/5/10824.html

i'll be there.

and if you're still looking for an american driver...the cypher group has signed jonathan summerton, from florida.

he was sebastian buemi's teammate in formula 3...and would often out perform drivers who are in or have driven in F1...

buemi, kobiyashi, paul di resta, kazuki nakajima, vettel, romain grosjean, he competed and held his own against them all.

[HighOnHendrix]

http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2010/5/10824.html

i'll be there.

and if you're still looking for an american driver...the cypher group has signed jonathan summerton, from florida.

he was sebastian buemi's teammate in formula 3...and would often out perform drivers who are in or have driven in F1...

buemi, kobiyashi, paul di resta, kazuki nakajima, vettel, romain grosjean, he competed and held his own against them all.

Unfortunately, Cypher couldn't secure enough funding to follow through and has withdrawn their application.

http://www.crash.net/f1/news/162070/1/cypher_group_withdraws_bid.html

Rumor has it they were interested in pairing Summerton with Piquet, Jr.

As for the planned Austin Grand Prix, I sure do hope it turns out better than USF1 did. Money certainly won't be an issue since the main financial backer is Red McCombs. While I think it's great to have a purpose-built track on which to run a well-deserved United States Grand Prix, there are any number of tracks I would just as well like to see F1 on such as Watkins Glen, Laguna Seca (not sure if they could even negotiate the Corkscrew in those cars, though), VIR, Road America, Infineon (I still think of it as Sears Point), maybe even Mid-Ohio. Beggars can't be choosers; I'm just happy there will be a race over here again.

[thehogs]

Will it make the races more exciting?! F1 has a real problem these days as the aerodynamics of the cars means that they are actually making over taking harder! Combined with the fact that some tracks are designed in such a way that over taking is almost impossible as well, you end up with cars just touring around and around for 60/70 laps. F1 has a really bad habit of the race being decided in the first lap, even the first bend! put a top class F1 car clear at the first bend with no technical glitches and the game is done, even with another 60-odd laps to go.

Myself, I have come to prefer Moto GP bike racing. Now, that is pretty wild and very competitive with seat of the pants overtaking on bikes close to 200mph!

[Thanos]

I still think the USGP belongs at Indy. I've been to two races and the logistics are handled wonderfully there.

the hogs, I'm with you MotoGP is alot more fun to watch. F1 is basically the Red Bull pole show.But something tells me Fernando Alonso may pull it out in the drivers championship.

Also its sad how poorly Schumacher has been doing.

[generaltso]

there are any number of tracks I would just as well like to see F1 on such as Watkins Glen, Laguna Seca (not sure if they could even negotiate the Corkscrew in those cars, though), VIR, Road America, Infineon (I still think of it as Sears Point), maybe even Mid-Ohio. Beggars can't be choosers; I'm just happy there will be a race over here again.

- the glen is too short and lack of runoff areas

- laguna seca is too short and lack of runoff areas, plus people in the area already complain about the noise when the ALMS show comes to town.

- VIR is more or less a club circuit for HPDE's and the like. i mean, it's fine for jetta TDI cup and grand am races, but you think bernie wants to have an F1 race in the sticks of central VA?

- road america would be amazing though. i think they could really build it up. it's long enough, has great great overtaking possibilities @ canada corner (you see ole jack villneuve go three wide in the nationwide race there a few weeks ago?)

and on summertons website, he still is hopeful that cypher will find funding. i think he would be an amazing driver

Also its sad how poorly Schumacher has been doing.

i have no sympathy for him after he tried to murder reubens last week. barichello should have ripped his head off in the paddock afterwards for that stunt.

[HighOnHendrix]

Will it make the races more exciting?! F1 has a real problem these days as the aerodynamics of the cars means that they are actually making over taking harder!

Myself, I have come to prefer Moto GP bike racing. Now, that is pretty wild and very competitive with seat of the pants overtaking on bikes close to 200mph!

I think there's plenty of overtaking in F1. Don't forget that Hamilton won the Championship by one point by making a pass on the last corner of the last lap of the last race of the year in 08 and lost it by a single point in 07. I wouldn't mind more overtaking, but I'd never want it to be like Moto GP. Those guys seem to pass each other three or four times a lap, which is too far the other way; that's too much passing and I find it hard to keep track of who is in front of who.

I still think the USGP belongs at Indy. I've been to two races and the logistics are handled wonderfully there.

the hogs, I'm with you MotoGP is alot more fun to watch. F1 is basically the Red Bull pole show.But something tells me Fernando Alonso may pull it out in the drivers championship.

Also its sad how poorly Schumacher has been doing.

While Red Bull has had the fastest car by a healthy margin this year, they have not turned that technical dominance into race wins. This has left the door open for other teams to step in and add some excitement and unpredictable outcomes to the races. Plus, did you see those donkeys take each other out in Turkey?!

- the glen is too short and lack of runoff areas

- laguna seca is too short and lack of runoff areas, plus people in the area already complain about the noise when the ALMS show comes to town.

- VIR is more or less a club circuit for HPDE's and the like. i mean, it's fine for jetta TDI cup and grand am races, but you think bernie wants to have an F1 race in the sticks of central VA?

- road america would be amazing though. i think they could really build it up. it's long enough, has great great overtaking possibilities @ canada corner (you see ole jack villneuve go three wide in the nationwide race there a few weeks ago?)

and on summertons website, he still is hopeful that cypher will find funding. i think he would be an amazing driver

All good points. I only said I'd like to see them there, not that it was realistic. If I was in charge of finding drivers for a new team I would head over to IRL and try to poach Will Power, Ryan Hunter-Reay, or my favorite rookie Simona de Silvestro. All have shown good pace on road courses. Power has been phenomenal this year and de Silvestro qualified a strong seventh in a weak car at Edmonton.

i have no sympathy for him after he tried to murder reubens last week. barichello should have ripped his head off in the paddock afterwards for that stunt.

My lack of sympathy for him extends to the fact that he dominated F1 for so long that he made it boring. I have only been into it hardcore since 07 because that's when he retired and opened the door for someone besides him or Alonso to win the title.

[HighOnHendrix]

http://formula-one.speedtv.com/article/f1-austin-track-to-cost-180m/

The Austin F1 track will cost $180m to build, according to documents given to the Statesman newspaper.

The paper requested information on the project and despite them being marked ‘confidential,’ they were released by City Hall.

Aside from quoting the cost of building the track, the documents contend that the project will require 1500 construction workers, and that 1200 people will be employed over the Grand Prix weekend. There will also be 40 full time employees at the venue.

The documents also suggest that the race will have a $300m impact on the Austin area.

Other activities expected to keep the track busy for up to 250 days a year include testing, alternative fuel research (as previously outlined here), driving schools, police training, music concerts and “high-end auctions.” There is also mention of NASCAR and drag racing events.

[Thanos]

I'm shocked Bernie Eccolstone conned an American firm to custom built a track for him.

The only way a US F1 team can get off the ground funding-wise is to have Roger Penske involved in some way.You can't compete in F1 on the cheap. The days of Eddie Jordan are long gone and Virgin will soon join them.

[HighOnHendrix]

I'm shocked Bernie Eccolstone conned an American firm to custom built a track for him.

The only way a US F1 team can get off the ground funding-wise is to have Roger Penske involved in some way.You can't compete in F1 on the cheap. The days of Eddie Jordan are long gone and Virgin will soon join them.

The way I'm reading it, they conned him into letting them build it! :pfft: Besides, he's been conning countries into building him tracks all over Asia and the Middle East for a decade or more.

And HRT is in way more trouble than Virgin. Then again, at least HRT designed a big enough gas tank into their car to finish the race. You know they say you get what you pay for. That's not always true, but it's a pretty good rule of thumb in motorsport - especially Formula 1. For example, Red Bull bought the struggling Jaguar team in 2004 and has turned it into a front-runner in five years. It took lots of money (probably upwards of $1B), a genius designer (Adrian Newey), and a very good team principal (Christian Horner) to do so, but they did it. Without the big money you can expect to run in the midfield like Williams and Sauber, but there is little chance of running up front with McLaren and Ferrari without it.

As for Penske, yeah the guy's a legend but he's not infallible. He tried to move over to Grand Am after dominating ALMS for several seasons and the team was clearly out of place and almost a comedy of errors. Had he stuck with it the results would almost certainly have come, but that program is dormant indefinitely. There are several other team owners that would be as good or better to partner with such as Chip Ganassi or AJ Foyt. It would be good to see an American manufacturer get involved, Ford seems to be in the best position to try such a thing. I doubt they would have the stones to foot the bill, though.

[generaltso]

Then again, at least HRT designed a big enough gas tank into their car to finish the race.

martin brundle has said that the cars arent even filled up with enough fuel to finish the race so they can be faster off the start, the drivers have to turn the wick down on the motor to conserve fuel at various points in the race when they can. and then crank up the RPM's when they need to put their foot down.

the BBC's coverage with martin brundle, legard and anthony davidson is WAY WAY WAY better than speeds. and recently for the free practice sessions, they have karun chandhok in there with them. i was shocked at how knowledgeable he is, not just about the mechanical aspects of the cars, but also about the history of F1

like you said, HRT has "bigger" problems than their fuel tank...most notably when their next paycheck from the drivers sponsors will come from.

He tried to move over to Grand Am after dominating ALMS for several seasons

god i miss those penske porsches. i was at petit lemans in 2008 when they were chasing down the factory audi's...what a thrilling race.

dont get me wrong, the guys a legend. but when you've got porsche factory money, support and drivers...it does help a bit.

[HighOnHendrix]

martin brundle has said that the cars arent even filled up with enough fuel to finish the race so they can be faster off the start, the drivers have to turn the wick down on the motor to conserve fuel at various points in the race when they can. and then crank up the RPM's when they need to put their foot down.

Initially Virgin's tank was not capacious enough to hold enough fuel to finish a race. http://formula-one.speedtv.com/article/f1-virgin-confirms-2010-car-fuel-tank-too-small/

the BBC's coverage with martin brundle, legard and anthony davidson is WAY WAY WAY better than speeds.

I bet it is. I'm really quite partial to David Hobbes, but Varsha is annoying and Matchett just doesn't come across well all the time even though he knows his stuff. Aren't the BBC guys actually at the race? SPEED's guys just watch it on a big monitor as far as I can tell. How do you watch it over here? Satellite or something?

like you said, HRT has "bigger" problems than their fuel tank...most notably when their next paycheck from the drivers sponsors will come from.

I will be surprised to see them finish the year. I can't see Virgin lasting past 2011. It's never positive when one of your drivers turns up in an article saying he "hopes not to be selling coconuts on the beach next year". http://en.espnf1.com/hrtf1/motorsport/story/25728.html

god i miss those penske porsches. i was at petit lemans in 2008 when they were chasing down the factory audi's...what a thrilling race.

I think someone is still racing at least one of them in ALMS this season as a hand-me-down.

[Thanos]

To even be mid-field in F1 requires at least a 100 million budget plus a wind tunnel. A US based team would have massive logistical costs ferrying equipment and team members across the globe. i just don't see a US outfit spending that kind of money for a prolonged period of time.