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Do you think Ferrari are making a BIG MISTAKE if they don't sign Raikkonen?


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#1 Eff One 2002

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 04:04

I do personally. Sure, they have Di Resta and Hulkenberg as options to replace Massa but the two of them are still unknown quaitities in so far as how they will go in a top car. Obviously the Hulk seems a more appealing choice given recent form but when you throw a driver who was impressing in midfield teams into a top team history shows that it doesn't always work out.

 

With Raikkonen though, you have a proven race winner and former WDC that when he can be arsed, is arguably one of the top 4 drivers in the current field in the company of Alonso, Hamilton and Vettel. Not only this, but Raikkonen wa won as recently as this year so it's not like we're drawing too much on past glory here. Ferrari have supposedly stated they want TWO strong drivers that can deliver the results for their team. It's a known fact that with Raikkonen, they will have this.

 

I'm no Kimi fanboy but it seems to be that it would be foolish to pass over a former WDC who is still on top of his game in favour of a driver who is still relatively an unproven quantity in so far as they results they can deliver. If I were Ferrari I'd forget the past and the whole "this is the guy we paid off NOT to race for us in 2010" thing and concentrate on right now and to me, right now it seems he is the best option available for them.

 

This, by the way is all PROVIDED Raikkonen is motivated and willing to give his best which, I realise can't be necessarily guaranteed either. 

 

Thoughts?



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#2 eronrules

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 04:10

we already have a thread for 'kimi to ferrari??' why do you need to make another one?? it'll only give opportunity to those who'll like to undermine kimi and make false and baseless accusation of him based on the distant past. 



#3 discover23

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 04:11

I dont see any other driver out there who can perform at the same level or better who happens to be available.
Button could have been a good choice also but Kimi is better. If the rumors are true about Shell paying his salary, is a no brainer really.

#4 Eff One 2002

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 04:51


 

we already have a thread for 'kimi to ferrari??' why do you need to make another one?? it'll only give opportunity to those who'll like to undermine kimi and make false and baseless accusation of him based on the distant past. 

 

I'm well aware of this thread, thank you. This thread, however isn't just "another one". The thread you refer to is a general discussion of whether Raikkonen might return to Ferrari. This one, however is specifically discussing if it will be a mistake if Ferrari don't sign Kimi, and the forumers' opinions on this. There's a difference.


Edited by Eff One 2002, 10 September 2013 - 04:52.


#5 eronrules

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 04:53

I'm well aware of this thread, thank you. This thread, however isn't just "another one". The thread you refer to is a general discussion of whether Raikkonen might return to Ferrari. This one, however is specifically discussing if it will be a mistake if Ferrari don't sign Kimi, and the forumers' opinions on this. There's a difference.

ok then.  :wave:



#6 Eff One 2002

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 04:54

ok then.  :wave:

 

There's a good lad... :cool:



#7 eronrules

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 06:09

ok, let me take my 'kimi fanboy' glasses off and assess the situation,

 

firstly, no matter how one justifies, Felipe is past his 'best before' date 2 years ago. he had to go. 

 

secondly, the race between 2nd ferrari seat is between Kimi and Hulkenberg. Paul IMO never was an option, they already have one Egocentric driver, they don't need an Egomaniac.  :lol:

 

the way ferrari is approaching the situation IMO is like this

 

1. Nico Hulkenberg : possibly the best young talent without a seat next year. i rate him 'very very very' highly, above perez, Kamui and Paul. infact  after kubica, i thought renault (back then) would go for him, before kimi came, also last year, my opinion was Nico would do a heck of a lot better job than Romain . 

 

he is young, good qualifier, good racer and has certain determination that we see in Vettel and schumi of the past. he's a no brainer for 2nd Ferrari seat from the outside.

 

however, he's yet to prove himself in a bigger team, weather he'll be able to hold on to his own against a force like Alonso?? he didn't do himself good by crashing out of Brazil 2012. can he play the long term development and dedication game like Schumi/alonso??? will he be able to 'concede' to team orders if the time comes for the greater good of the team??? all this factors are unknown. also bear in mind his constant changing of teams. he didn't work for any team long enough to show any continuity. i believe all this factors weighed against him getting a good drive. he's good, everybody knows he's good, but not many are certain just 'how good' he really is.

 

2. Kimi Raikkonen : his form and continuity after his return to the sport has overshadowed all his past deed. no one talks about his motivation, commitment, expertise. i'd be naive to contribute all his success on the car and not his ability to consistently scoring points and his clean race craft. 

 

now like it or not, he's the last wDC for Ferrari. what happened in 2008 and 2009, we don't really know, do we??? we can bitch and moan all we like, but does he or Ferrari really care??? Ferrari knows his qualities, his strengths and weaknesses, and after his lotusF1 stint, they surely have got some idea on how to manage him and extract the max out of him. as DC pointed out in a video that Kimi isn't a team player, he doesn't have many strengths like drivers like Webber or button has (i.e rally the team behind), he only gas one strength and that's -  HE's FAST. that's it. and he's very good at it, as we saw it in the last race.

 

now. had alonso not made the fuss and made certain fraction within the team uneasy (they are Italians, they have diff mindset than most Europeans), then Nico Hulkenberg would've been the perfect choice, even most sane minded kimi fan will admit it. i want to see young driver's get their chances, on merit, not on money. here's what Gary Anderson said on that matter

 

 

He is quick. Give him an opportunity and he will take it with open arms. Drop him in a position in a race where he shouldn't be and he'll stay there - like he did on Sunday; like he did in Brazil last year in the Force India.

 

I just think Hulkenberg is a great talent. He is the future, whereas Kimi Raikkonen is good for today but maybe not tomorrow.

 

however, kimi is a Proven WDC material, no one driving a F1 car ATM (other than FA and SV) can even comes close to his consistency. since 2010, Ferrari is due a championship, either WCC or WDC. they needed to replace massa in 2011 and go for Hulkenberg/Webber/Button/Sutil then. no.1/no.2 system used to work when the points were given to 8 places and the gaps were huge for the podium finishes, it's not anymore. if any team has 2 strong finishers (i.e redbull) they'll more often than not occupy top steps and help each other by controlling the points tally. this notion of 'taking point off of each other is pure Bollocks'.

 

in kimi they have a good benchmark, it'll keep Alonso Straight, he won't make fuss and drive his own race. in that regard, alonso or LDM has nothing to complain about kimi. 

 

first of all, i think kimi to ferrari is a done deal, the amount of info leaking in since august makes it even more inevitable. but in the unlikely case they do opt for Hulkenberg and not kimi, then being an unbiased observer, i'd say it's not a bad choice at all. it'll make sense. kimi will go back to LotusF1. the only catch here is, will hulkenberg play the massa role??? hulk is a heck of a lot better qualifier than massa. he's good with race craft and who knows, may cause further disruption within the team. people forget what happened when Senna came to Mclaren, or history between lewis and alonso. in F1, you just never know. 

 

that said, ferrari will make a mistake if for some reason Alonso does decide to jump ship (it's in his past, he can't erase it) in 2015. kimi is good for another 3 years and possible 4. he is hungry, his trip to the wilderness of WRC has shown him what he's good at. he wants a winning car and Ferrari can give it to him. it's a win win for both ferrari and kImi. kimi doesn't give a **** about LDM or Alonso's mind game. he wants to race and then go home. ferrari will look stupid (like RBR i must say) if they let this opportunity slip by.



#8 sopa

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 07:11

Ferrari's Hulkenberg v Raikkonen reminds the Red Bull Ricciardo v Raikkonen dilemma. On paper Raikkonen looks better, but what about long-term? Red Bull may fear that both Vettel and Raikkonen leave after 2014/5 and they need two new drivers. Now next year Alonso will be 33 and Raikkonen 34, so both drivers could also leave in a couple of years time and Ferrari would need a long-term solution anyway.

 

Then again Ferrari traditionally hasn't really cared about age, they care about experience. They have liked to hire experienced proven drivers with an odd exception (Massa). In 2005 Schumacher was 36 and Barrichello 33, but it wasn't a problem for Ferrari - they could still have a completely new AND competitive line-up in 2 years time.

 

So maybe Ferrari thinks like that now too. It doesn't matter if both Alonso and Raikkonen could be gone in 2016, we know right now they are good and will deliver the results for the next couple of years. Hulkenberg, as it seems, has nowhere to go anyway, will keep driving around in money-problem teams and is available at any time anyway if they need him, when Alo/Rai partnership becomes past its prime. Not to mention Vettel will be available in 2016.



#9 Lights

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 07:13

Why think long term? What's wrong with signing Kimi for 2 years and then looking for someone else afterwards?

#10 topical

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 07:16

There was absolutely no need to open this thread, especially now that Kimi-Ferrari is being broadcast everywhere as a done deal. But some people just can't resist pointless new threads, it seems...



#11 sopa

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 07:19

Why think long term? What's wrong with signing Kimi for 2 years and then looking for someone else afterwards?

 

Yeah this is what Ferrari probably thinks too. But teams often think long-term too, that's why they have young driver programmes. And I think Red Bull thought long-term by hiring 24-y-o Ricciardo on an alleged 3-year-deal (most probably with performance clauses though).



#12 trogggy

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 07:49

No.  If not hiring Kimi is a BIG MISTAKE then hiring a promising young driver is always a BIG MISTAKE.

Kimi or Hulkenburg - both have positives and negatives. 

 

Big mistakes are only seen in hindsight.



#13 Eff One 2002

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 09:56

There was absolutely no need to open this thread, especially now that Kimi-Ferrari is being broadcast everywhere as a done deal. But some people just can't resist pointless new threads, it seems...

 

And some people can't resist unwarranted criticism that contibutes absolutely nothing to threads, it seems. :rolleyes: There's nothing anywhere as of now saying the deal is done, just that all signs are pointing that way and there are "reports" that the deal is done.



#14 travbrad

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 10:16

Kimi or Hulkenburg - both have positives and negatives. 

 

 

Yep.  Kimi is the more reliable choice and you know he would score lots of points, but he may not be in it for the long term.  Hulkenberg isn't as proven, but he is obviously talented and could potentially take over from Alonso once he leaves Ferrari/F1.  Of course Ferrari could always wait a couple more years to hire Hulkenberg, but there is a chance another top team could scoop him up by then.



#15 Spillage

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 11:18

No. In my opinion if they sign Hulkenberg, seven years younger, an awful lot cheaper and arguably nearly as fast, I think they'll have made the better decision. Kimi is going to be 34 next season; he can only slow down from here. Perhaps they're lining up Vettel, but a Raikkonen-Alonso combination doesn't smack of great future planning to me, however good it may be next year.



#16 wj_gibson

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 11:22

Personally I'd go with Hulkenberg but I'm not running their team for them.

 

Having 2 WDCs in the team is only a mistake if it isn't managed properly, but I'm strugling to think of a time when this sort of arrangement at a leading team hasn't resulted in one driver going off in a sulk or worse (maybe as far back as Clark and Hill - but then Graham Hill was quite happy to accept that Clark was the golden boy at Lotus anyway). You can guarantee that at least one of them is going to end up unhappy and that's never a good thing for a team to have to manage.

 

It also raises the interesting thought that come 2016 Ferrari could be running a 37- and a 35-year old, and will almost certainly have lost Hulkenberg elsewhere. I hope Bianchi turns out well for them in that case.


Edited by wj_gibson, 10 September 2013 - 11:25.


#17 Seanspeed

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 11:28

No. In my opinion if they sign Hulkenberg, seven years younger, an awful lot cheaper and arguably nearly as fast, I think they'll have made the better decision. Kimi is going to be 34 next season; he can only slow down from here. Perhaps they're lining up Vettel, but a Raikkonen-Alonso combination doesn't smack of great future planning to me, however good it may be next year.

I'm kinda along this line of thinking, too. 

 

Great short-term decision, but what about 2-3 years from now? 

 

And I really don't think Hulkenberg is that risky of a move.  He's highlighted in everything he's driven in one way or another, going all the way back in his career.  He's not inexperienced anymore.  He seems like a really nice, mature guy.  I think he's the most obvious 'future star' in F1 right now, if only somebody would give him a chance.  And I'd rather that be Ferrari than a rival team!


Edited by Seanspeed, 10 September 2013 - 11:29.


#18 GAZF1nut

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 11:32

I'm kinda along this line of thinking, too. 

 

Great short-term decision, but what about 2-3 years from now? 

 

And I really don't think Hulkenberg is that risky of a move.  He's highlighted in everything he's driven in one way or another, going all the way back in his career.  He's not inexperienced anymore.  He seems like a really nice, mature guy.  I think he's the most obvious 'future star' in F1 right now, if only somebody would give him a chance.  And I'd rather that be Ferrari than a rival team!

That makes me believe that Ferrari is thinking Kimi is more of a short term option, i.e. only there for 2 years.



#19 wj_gibson

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 11:35

I'm kinda along this line of thinking, too. 

 

Great short-term decision, but what about 2-3 years from now? 

 

And I really don't think Hulkenberg is that risky of a move.  He's highlighted in everything he's driven in one way or another, going all the way back in his career.  He's not inexperienced anymore.  He seems like a really nice, mature guy.  I think he's the most obvious 'future star' in F1 right now, if only somebody would give him a chance.  And I'd rather that be Ferrari than a rival team!

 

I think that if Ferrari passes Hulkenberg over then McLaren will sign him - maybe not for 2014, but certainly for 2015 and beyond. They'd be stupid not to (indeed, were daft to sign Perez over Hulkenberg in the first place). I'm surprised Red Bull didn't consider him, quite frankly, though I understand their need to make out that their young driver scheme is worth the money by having to promote from within...


Edited by wj_gibson, 10 September 2013 - 11:36.


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#20 Seanspeed

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 11:39

That makes me believe that Ferrari is thinking Kimi is more of a short term option, i.e. only there for 2 years.

With regards to Hulkenberg, I think its now or never for Ferrari.  They cant expect him to be available in 2 years.  I agree with wj gibson that McLaren could well pick him up, although I think Lotus is more likely for 2014.

 

And if Kimi is a short-term solution, then they best hope that Alonso retains his top form for the foreseeable future, because the next-generation of up and coming drivers don't look all that promising. 


Edited by Seanspeed, 10 September 2013 - 11:40.


#21 Lights

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 11:42

And if Kimi is a short-term solution, then they best hope that Alonso retains his top form for the foreseeable future, because the next-generation of up and coming drivers don't look all that promising. 

 

I honestly believe that in 2 years from now the situation of the drivers market will have changed far beyond what we can realistically predict.



#22 wj_gibson

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 11:44

I think Ferrari assume that Vettel will be coming in 2016/17. Whether they've got good reason to assume that is hard to say. Maybe Vettel will "pull a Casey Stoner" in 2 years, who knows?

 

But they've got an absolutely dreadful young driver strategy, quite frankly. This was ruthlessly exposed after Hungary in 2009 and doesn't look to have improved much. What happens if something happens to one of their drivers? Is there anyone around to take over the seat? We know that Red Bull would just stick one of the STR drivers in the car.



#23 Seanspeed

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 11:47

I honestly believe that in 2 years from now the situation of the drivers market will have changed far beyond what we can realistically predict.

Sure, but that also means that Ferrari would be silly to just expect some younger, top-line driver to be available in 2 years. 

 

Maybe I shouldn't have said now or never, but definitely now or possibly regret it.



#24 DaddyCool

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 12:06

Friendly reminder:

 

Alonso       1981 July 29 (32)

Raikkonen 1979 October 17 (33)

 

Majority of posters:

 

Alonso is at the peak of his career, has some good 4-5 years at least in him

Raikkonen will become the eldest driver on the grid, going downhill, has maybe 2-3 years at best

 

The age argument doesn't hold water sorry.



#25 bub

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 12:17

No I don't think it would be a big mistake. They have Alonso and history has shown that you don't need two elite drivers to be successful and that having two guys who want to be no.1 can cause trouble. On top of that there are other decent drivers Ferrari could get so I don't think it would be a big mistake. I do however want them to pair Kimi with Alonso.


Edited by bub, 10 September 2013 - 19:03.


#26 travbrad

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 18:48

Having 2 WDCs in the team is only a mistake if it isn't managed properly, but I'm strugling to think of a time when this sort of arrangement at a leading team hasn't resulted in one driver going off in a sulk or worse 

 

 

You have to go all the way back to 2012 with Button and Hamilton at Mclaren.  They had a few little issues here and there, but overall they got along as well as any two F1 drivers can.  I agree having 2 WDCs in the same team usually doesn't end well though, and we've already seen Alonso's reaction to having a competitive teammate at Mclaren.  It was the one time he had a truly competitive teammate and he was so distraught that he left the team early and arguably hurt his entire career by going back to a slower team.



#27 spacekid

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 19:01

In very specific answer to the question - no, I do not think that not hiring Kimi would be a big mistake.

 

Is Kimi driving very well at the moment? Absolutely. But he is not young, and I believe Ferrari would be better served with a younger driver. I'm not sure Ferrari could handle two superstars at the moment, and I'm not sure where an Alonso/Kimi pairing would leave them in 2/3 years time.



#28 03011969

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 19:17

You have to go all the way back to 2012 with Button and Hamilton at Mclaren. 

 

He said a *leading* team.



#29 HoldenRT

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 19:19

Ferrari's destiny lies in making a strong car for Alonso.  It doesn't really matter who the second driver is.  Because for sure, whoever they choose will do a good job.

 

Same with Redbull and Ricciardo.

 

The regs are changing and they need a strong competitive car, because they already have a good #1 driver who can deliver.  Without that, it doesn't matter who the other driver is.



#30 HoldenRT

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 19:23

Friendly reminder:

 

Alonso       1981 July 29 (32)

Raikkonen 1979 October 17 (33)

 

Majority of posters:

 

Alonso is at the peak of his career, has some good 4-5 years at least in him

Raikkonen will become the eldest driver on the grid, going downhill, has maybe 2-3 years at best

 

The age argument doesn't hold water sorry.

 

Look at how Kimi performed at Ferrari in 2007 and 2008.  He wasn't the same driver as he was with McLaren.

 

Alonso has never had this problem.  He has always been at the top of his game each season, and to see a season like 2008, you would die of shock.

 

It's less about age and more about the drivers and their personalities.

 

If I thought that this was the same driver as in 2005 McLaren, I would say sign Kimi in a heartbeat.  But now.. it's more complicated.  I have been impressed with Kimi's race performances in the last 2 seasons though, he's exceeded all expectations.  And it would be interesting to see him paired with Alonso.  But I don't feel it's as simple as saying they MUST sign him. 



#31 Vesuvius

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 19:30

Look at how Kimi performed at Ferrari in 2007 and 2008.  He wasn't the same driver as he was with McLaren.

 

Alonso has never had this problem.  He has always been at the top of his game each season, and to see a season like 2008, you would die of shock.

 

It's less about age and more about the drivers and their personalities.

 

If I thought that this was the same driver as in 2005 McLaren, I would say sign Kimi in a heartbeat.  But now.. it's more complicated.  I have been impressed with Kimi's race performances in the last 2 seasons though, he's exceeded all expectations.  And it would be interesting to see him paired with Alonso.  But I don't feel it's as simple as saying they MUST sign him. 

2007 Kimi was brilliant at melbouren and latter half of the season. Alonso despitate having good results 2007,2008,2009 made some horrible races/mistakes in those years...also his 2004 season wasn´t that good. Kimi isn´t maybe as fast as he used to be during McLaren time but he sure is making less mistakes and is more complete now than back then.



#32 VesaKaitera

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 20:46

HoldenRT wrote :"Look at how Kimi performed at Ferrari in 2007 and 2008.  He wasn't the same driver as he was with McLaren.

 

Alonso has never had this problem.  He has always been at the top of his game each season, and to see a season like 2008, you would die of shock."

 

 

KR srtill won the WDC title in 2007 with Ferrari, despite McLaren being a slightly better car than Ferrari. However, I partly agree with you. KR's time trials have gone down, when Michelin was not the tyre manifacturer for his team. Under Michelin-years KR was a stellar qualifier, but not so much later. I assume, that on those days he had no difficulties to get the front tyres heated enough.

 

KR was at McLaren a long time, and he had a very good communication with his engineers. Usually Kimi's car was pretty well adjusted. In Ferrari years the things were more complicated, especially in 2008, when the car was already originally understeering, and the further development, thanks to MS, went to an even more understeering direction. Kimi got the car well adjusted after Massa's accident in 2009, because then KR became automatically #! driver. He delivered some excellent races with that car, which was not one of the greatest Ferrari cars.

 

FA has been a solid performer, whose starts and race craft are awesome. If the 2014 Ferrari car will be understeering, he will roll over Kimi. However, the new rules and regulations might create several oversteering cars. If the Ferrari will belong among these, KR will have an awesome season. He is the king of oversteering cars. If the Ferrari car will be neutral, then KR might dominate slightly the time trials and FA could collect some points more than Kimi, but under that condition it will be tight.

 

 



#33 Mauseri

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 21:53

If Ferrari sign Kimi, it would be interesting to hear if they think Kimi's performance in 2007-2009 was good enough, or should have been better. If they think it has been better than that in 2012-2013, do they expect it to continue in 2014? Why would Kimi now be enough for them, if it wasn't when they dumped him? Or were the reasons for dumping him something other than performance based? And precisely what?

 

I would like to hear the answers before Kimi starts racing in red again.

 

(Maybe this question would be better be asked in thread "Are Ferrari making a big mistake if they sign Kimi again".)


Edited by Mauseri, 10 September 2013 - 21:57.


#34 schuey100

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 22:04

I think they're mad if they sign up Kimi alongside Alonso. It's going to end in tears. Unless of course the plan is to get rid of Alonso in the near future. Then it's probably the best move they could make. 



#35 discover23

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 22:08

If Ferrari sign Kimi, it would be interesting to hear if they think Kimi's performance in 2007-2009 was good enough, or should have been better. If they think it has been better than that in 2012-2013, do they expect it to continue in 2014? Why would Kimi now be enough for them, if it wasn't when they dumped him? Or were the reasons for dumping something other than performance based? And precisely what?

2007 was good.. he was WDC.. what else can you ask there..

2008 was not good. Everyone knows this.. why even bring it up.? - car excuses, whatever. ... is was the same car for both drivers and it was a very fast cars in massa's hands.

2009 was on par with Massa and was great in the second half of the season..

if you add these three it was mixed results.. 65-75%.

2012 Kimi at the beginning was being outperformed by Grosjean, many still believe that Lewis or Alonso would have won more races in that Lotus..

2013 has been very good.

 

They know he will be good enough because he won the 2007 WDC and they know him very well, his consistency is key.

They dump him because they wanted Alonso and an opportunity opened to bring him in one year earlier.. Kimi was not the leader that they were looking for.. now they have that leader so Kimi would not have to take on that responsibility this time. In F1 it is known that the salary is what determines the ranking of drivers within a team.. Alonso will continue making way more $$$ than his teammate.

in 07-09.. Kimi's salary was disproportionally to Massa's and the results were not justifying this huge disparity, and this is mainly because Massa's could have easily, if not for one overtake move on the last lap, be the 2008 WDC, and Ferrari knows this and they know they let him down on Hungary and in Singapore with the attached fuel rig, which ultimately cost him the title.


Edited by discover23, 10 September 2013 - 22:11.


#36 Winter98

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 22:57

IMO there is way too much chance of it ending in fireworks if KR joins the team.

 

Historically two top drivers teaming up hasn't worked out, not with other drivers, not with FA.

 

I'm still convinced Ferrari will go for the safe #2 who may develop into a #1 down the road, such as Hulkenberg.  I just don't see Ferrari being mad enough at FA to hire KR and risk a season where they may emerge with the best car.


Edited by Winter98, 10 September 2013 - 22:59.


#37 surbjits

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 23:14

I see Ferrari thinking of this in a similar fashion to that of Merc: Alonso will be lead driver with Kimi not too far off.



#38 KingTiger

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 23:31

I think Hulkenberg is the best choice, he's young, he's fast, he's had a lot of years driving for average teams now, he definitely deserves a top drive.

 

With Raikkonen there's a very real chance he stops caring or he gets Alonso in another 2007 type of situation, plus his qualifying is seriously bad. 

 

I think if Ferrari had managed to beat Red Bull at least once over the past 4 years they'd go with the safer option - Hulk, but they are getting very desperate and that's why they're going with Raikkonen. For all we know, they might get the same dud that drove their cars in 2008 and 2009. 



#39 BenettonB192

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 23:51

I would have signed Hulk. He's proven that he can adapt quickly to a new team and car and deliver good results. He seems a better long term solution to me.

But maybe Ferrari wasn't looking for a long term solution. Suppose Hulk would have turned out to be a hit then Ferrari would be in a dilemma a few years down the line when Vettel might be available.



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#40 Mauseri

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Posted 10 September 2013 - 23:57

I would have signed Hulk. He's proven that he can adapt quickly to a new team and car and deliver good results. He seems a better long term solution to me.

But maybe Ferrari wasn't looking for a long term solution. Suppose Hulk would have turned out to be a hit then Ferrari would be in a dilemma a few years down the line when Vettel might be available.

Hulkenberg could be problematic because he seems to be good in qualifying. That might give trouble for Alonso, like Trulli in 2004. It would be funny to regularly give room to Alonso. Even Massa has done that quite often this year. Kimi should have a good race pace at least. And overtaking slower cars doesn't seem to be a problem if you drive Ferrari these days.


Edited by Mauseri, 10 September 2013 - 23:57.