2005 Italian Grand Prix

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2005 Italian Grand Prix

 

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2004 Italian Grand Prix Results

 

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Current Standings

2005 Drivers Championship.

[b]Pos	Driver			Nationality	Team			Points [/b]
1	Fernando Alonso		Spanish		Renault			95 
2	Kimi Räikkönen		Finnish		McLaren-Mercedes	71 
3	Michael Schumacher	German		Ferrari			55 
4	Juan Pablo Montoya	Colombian	McLaren-Mercedes	40 
5	Jarno Trulli		Italian		Toyota			39 
6	Giancarlo Fisichella	Italian		Renault			35 
7	Ralf Schumacher		German		Toyota			32 
8	Rubens Barrichello	Brazilian	Ferrari			31 
9	Nick Heidfeld		German		Williams-BMW		28 
10	Mark Webber		Australian	Williams-BMW		24 
11	Jenson Button		British		BAR-Honda		23 
12	David Coulthard		British		Red Bull Racing		21 
13	Felipe Massa		Brazilian	Sauber-Petronas		8 
=16	Tiago Monteiro		Portuguese	Jordan-Toyota		6 
=16	Alexander Wurz		Austrian	McLaren-Mercedes	6 
=16	Jacques Villeneuve	Canadian	Sauber-Petronas		6 
=18	Narain Karthikeyan	Indian		Jordan-Toyota		5 
=18	Christian Klien		Austrian	Red Bull Racing		5 
=20	Christijan Albers	Dutch		Minardi-Cosworth	4 
=20	Pedro de la Rosa	Spanish		McLaren-Mercedes	4 
21	Patrick Friesacher	Austrian	Minardi-Cosworth	3 
=23	Takuma Sato		Japanese	BAR-Honda		1 
=23	Vitantonio Liuzzi	Italian		Red Bull Racing		1

2005 Constructors Championship.

[b]Pos	Constructor 		Points[/b]
1	 Renault		130
2	 McLaren-Mercedes	121
3	 Ferrari		86
4	 Toyota			71
5	 Williams-BMW		52
6	 Red Bull Racing	27
7	 BAR-Honda		24
8	 Sauber-Petronas	14
9	 Jordan-Toyota		11
10	 Minardi-Cosworth	7

 

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A now the news...

A bizarre statement from FOM

There was a strange press release this evening sent out by Formula One Management and signed by Bernie Ecclestone. The message, however, was not one that seemed to ring true with Ecclestone's views in recent months.

"It has been reported that approaches have been made in relationship to the sale by the controlling shareholders of SLEC," it said. "Although the approach has been made, the answer has been that the company shares are not for sale. The shareholders are long term investors and have the interest and stability of Formula One foremost in their mind."

One can make of this what you will but given Ecclestone's distaste for publicity in such matters and the odd wording of the statement, one must conclude that there has been some pushing and shoving in the background in recent days.

 

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Michelin Better - Massa

Pierre Dupasquier; Hisao Suganuma? Uniquely, there might actually be a man even better placed to muse F1's 'Michelin v. Bridgestone' tyre war ahead of the grand prix at Monza.

Felipe Massa, to the chagrin of Michelin's Dupasquier, tried both brands on the high speed Italian circuit last week.

First, he got a sneak preview of his 2006 Ferrari-Bridgestone package when he piloted a scarlet car. Later, the 24-year-old Brazilian reverted back to his regular Sauber-Michelin combo.

Massa said Bridgestone can keep up with the leading Michelin rubber in quick bends like the Parabolica or Lesmos.

"(But) under braking," he reported, "or in the slow curves and when accelerating - if you need traction - Michelin is better."

If that's bad news for the Japanese camp for the weekend, it got even worse on one day at the test when Ferrari's Luca Badoer experienced a high speed left-rear tyre failure. The specification he was testing, it is reported, was set to be introduced at the Italian grand prix.

Instead, technical manager Hisao Suganuma says the marque will again use the dismally slow Turkey-spec tyre.

"(It) seemed to work well in the test," the Japanese shrugged.

 

[Flibster]

Now...

If a passing Underboss or Donnypoos could kindly get someone to kick these 2 threads into the archive with the rest if they would be so kind.

http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=17447465 - Hungarian GP

http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=17456558 - Turkish GP



Also...

Right - as A1GP starts soon...does anyone want me to do an introduction to that and possibly try something like this for it as well?

Simon/~Flibster

 

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[n00b]Whats A1GP?[/n00b]

Try looking at www.a1gp.com

Single make race series - runs in winter - looks pretty good...

Simon/~Flibster

 

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am looking forward to this race. I want to see Ferrari suffer again

Lets hope they (bridgestone) do take those carp Turkey tyres

After a severe failure of one of tyres *for no apparent reason* they were planning to use at Monza - they are having to use the same tyres that were used in Turkey...

Shame...

Simon/~Flibster

 

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yesh Simon

Will do then...well..will try...

We don't know who all the teams are yet.

Coverage for A1GP as well would be awesome Flibster

What channel is it gonna start airing on cause i have no idea.

Believe it's going to be on Sky Sports...Other than that - no idea...

Simon/~Flibster

 

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More news you say???

Hilton to sponsor WilliamsF1?

There are reports that Hilton International, the global hotel group, is on the verge of announcing a significant sponsorship deal with WilliamsF1 for 2006.

At a time when there is talk, much of it groundless, of sponsors abandoning the Grove team and opting to stick with BMW, the Hilton deal will be mighty encouraging.

According to reports, new chief executive at Hilton International, Ian Carter, has inked the deal with the nine-time Constructors' Championship winners, the company's first global sponsorship deal.

The thought that Paris Hilton, heiress to the company, and well-known socialite, might be on-board, could well convince Jenson Button that his future lies with the Grove team after all.

 

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Heidfeld is BMW's top choice
German ace Nick Heidfeld is at the top of BMW's list to drive for the new works team next year.

Motorsport director, and probable 2006 team principal Mario Theissen, admitted that 'very constructive discussions' are taking place between Williams' 28-year-old and the Munich based manufacturer.

''We are talking with several drivers,'' the German admitted to Sport1.de, ''and Nick is one of them.

''He is someone who we would love to have in the team.''

A crucial piece of the puzzle, though, is whether Sir Frank Williams takes up an option on the driver's service. If so, he'll be committed to the Grove based squad.

Theissen also said BMW feel under no pressure to immediately decide the 2006 lineup.

 

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Mansell to Compete in the GP Masters series

1992 World Champion Nigel Mansell will contest the new Grand Prix Masters series, which gets underway in South Africa (Kyalami) in November.

The one-make series has already attracted a number of former F1 World Champions, including Alain Prost, Emerson Fittipaldi and Alan Jones. Other Grand Prix greats such as Riccardo Patrese and Rene Arnoux have also signed up.

Speaking to Pitpass on Wednesday, a spokesman for the series revealed that getting Mansell on board for the series was a major coup, as in addition to having signed a three-year deal to drive in the series, Mansell will also act as an ambassador for the championship.

The cars, being built by Delta Motorsport, in Northamptonshire, England, will be powered by the Nicholson McLaren Cosworth engine, based on the highly successful Cosworth XB Indycar unit, and will produce in excess of 600bhp and reach speeds of around 200mph.

Former WilliamsF1 and Jaguar media manager, Nav Sidhu, now working with Grand Prix Masters told Pitpass that the series was looking to provide "NASCAR style entertainment" for fans of single-seaters, promising "real racing" and "allowing fans total access".

All drivers who contest the series must be over 45 and have competed in F1 for two complete seasons. Furthermore, they must have retired from F1 for at least 2 years.

For his many fans, Mansell's decision to return to the sport will be warmly welcomed, as he is still regarded as one of the great racers.

In recent times the Birmingham born racer has concentrated on his true love, golf, though he has been linked with a number of F1 projects including a consortium that was thought to be seeking to purchase Silverstone and the rights to the British Grand Prix.

 

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Teams meet with Mosley

Little is being said about yesterday's meeting, in Milan, between the team bosses of the teams contesting the World Championship and FIA President, Max Mosley.

The talks, all part of the process to re-shape Formula One after the current Concorde Agreement runs out, at the end of 2007, are said to have been "positive", "tranquil" and "constructive", depend on who you listen to.

Meanwhile, behind the scenes the struggle continues, with Formula One, as we know it, only assured of three teams at present in 2008, Ferrari, Red Bull and Midland (Jordan).

The teams are also involved in talks with the Grand Prix Manufacturers Association, set up by BMW, DaimlerChrysler, Honda, Renault and Toyota.

At present we appear to be watching the long drawn out opening gambit in a very high powered game, and though the stakes are high, and the risks enormous, those involved are doing all that they can to persuade the rest of us that it is business as usual and that there is nothing to worry about when it comes to the future of our sport.

Elsewhere, Bernie Ecclestone rejects claims that SLEC, or even a slice of it, is up for sale, dismissing talks of consortiums and buy outs. Yet one has to wonder who gains most from 'leaking' such stories in the first place.

Max Mosley will be at Monza this weekend, and is scheduled to host a press conference on Friday. He will also, no doubt, hold further talks with the teams.

 

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And finally....

The TV Schedule...

Italian GP on ITV1 and ITV2

Live qualifying: Saturday 3 September 1130-1310 (ITV1)

Live race: Sunday 4 September 1200-1500 (ITV1)
Highlights: Monday 5 September 0030-0125 (ITV1)
Highlights: Tuesday 6 September 0145-0235 (ITV2)
Race replay: Wednesday 7 September 0150-0430 (ITV1)

 

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Only one new EJ15B, entrusted to Monteiro

After three days of private testing last week where it did not encounter even the smallest problem, the Jordan Grand Prix team has headed to Italy for round fifteen on the 2005 agenda with fresh hopes as the first car to be developed at the Silverstone based factory, under the 2005 aero rules and regulations will finally make it’s race debut in this weekend’s Italian Grand Prix.

However, at this stage just one new EJ15B chassis is available and that has been entrusted to the rookie driver who has completed every race this season, Tiago Monteiro. The Portuguese driver is thrilled that he will have the new car for the ‘temple of speed’ as he is confident that the new version is definitely faster.

"It is always difficult to switch over from a version than you have controlled for a long time, but I think that we will be faster with the EJ15B. We will gain in the braking department - where the car has always been a little nervous – and also in the entry and exit of the corners, thanks to better stability. The laps carried out last week at Monza were held without the smallest issue and therefore our moral has been boosted!" he smiles.

At Monza, where 70% of the lap takes place with their foot to the floor, to have a reliable and powerful engine is an asset for any driver and Tiago knows he can count on Toyota in this department.

"My problems in Hungary means when I changed engines means that I can head into Monza with a fresh one, which is always a positive factor on such a fast layout," he explains. “Last week, we tested as many tyres that Bridgestone could give us and I think that they will be competitive in Italy"

 

[Flibster]

And Schumacher misses the point again....

Cost cutting is easy, for example, only test at one circuit at a time, only test for 30 days per year. You know the things everyone bar Ferrari is already doing.

Also - use the race and t-cars for testing - no seperate test team..

You missed another thing...

Don't pay drivers $50'000'000 a year...

Simon/~Flibster

 

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Just got another email from my matey...

Alledgedly it's McLaren not Williams who have struck a deal with Hilton Hotels...

Still - really don't want to see Paris Hilton at a F1 race...

Simon/~Flibster

 

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And...Scott Speed is a F1 driver...

Scott Speed to take test role with Red Bull

Red Bull Racing announced today that it has extended its current contract with Scott Speed, America's most promising Formula 1 hope. Under the new agreement, the 22-year-old Californian will become a test driver for the team for the 2006 season, with performance- related options for the future.

Currently lying third in the 2005 GP2 series, Scott has shown impressive pace this year, aboard both GP2 and Formula 1 racing cars. His strong performance as Red Bull Racing's third driver in the 2005 Montreal and Indianapolis Grands Prix, has been further reinforced by the natural speed he's shown when completing various testing duties for the team.

A product of the 2003 Red Bull American Formula 1 driver search, Scott began his career like many other motorsport drivers, behind the wheel of a kart. Taking his first national championship in 1995, he quickly rose through the ranks, winning a number of national titles before Red Bull selected him to contest a handful of British Formula 3 events in 2003. The following year, Scott won the Formula Renault Championships in both Germany and Europe, before moving to the GP2 series in 2005.

Speed ran the third RB1 in Montreal and Indy

Red Bull Racing Sporting Director, Christian Horner commented, "It was a natural decision to extend Scott's contract for 2006. We've been impressed with what he's achieved in GP2 this year, and the pace he has shown in tests and when driving the team's third car in Canada and Indianapolis is a strong indication of his potential.

"Scott's role will be very important as the team develops next year. He's one of the strongest drivers to come out of the USA for a long time and we're pleased to be able to give him the opportunity to demonstrate his potential within Formula 1.

"His progression from karting championships to Formula 1 demonstrates the benefit of the Red Bull American Formula 1 drivers search. Offering support and advice, the programme is geared towards helping talented USA drivers like Scott, into Formula 1 and opening up opportunities that might otherwise not have been available."

Scott Speed commented, "Obviously, I'm extremely pleased that Red Bull Racing has decided to extend my contract. This season has been very good for me and to take this step forward with Red Bull Racing for next year and hopefully beyond is a great opportunity. My aim has always been to race in Formula 1, it's my dream and this makes it much more of a reality. I've still got a hell of a lot to learn, but with the team around me and with David Coulthard as one of my team-mates, I'm in the best place to be able to do that."

Press Release
Red Bull Racing

So F1 in Spring, Summer and Autumn..A1GP in Autumn, Winter and Spring...

Busy boy...

 

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Friday Session 1 gets underway...

Track Temp - 32°C and climbing
Air Temp - 29°C and climbing
Dry track
Light Breeze blowing from left to right across the pit straight
Humidity - 59%

 

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20 mins to go.

De La Rosa way out in front - on a 1:22.122 - 1.426 ahead of Zonta in 2nd place

Track temp 36°C and climbing
Air Temp 30°C
Wind direction is now blowing right to left across the main straight.
Still only a light breeze though.