Formula 1 Discussion - And favourite driver?

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Coccxys said:
Get Hulk in the car, finally get that podium.

As for haas I understand why they signed Mazapin ($$$) but should be Schumacher and Ilot in the car.
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Just read something interesting today. According to F2 rules the Driver who gets the chamionship is not allowed to compete in the following Season. So if Schumacher really wins the Championship he is basically forced to try the switch to Formula 1. Makes you wonder if Ilot really wants to get the Championship or if he just wants to finish as close to P 1 as possible
 
Yeah, its been the case for a long time. It stops people turning F2 into a career. I assume that's why we haven't heard the 2nd driver for Hass, ferrari are keeping it for whoever wins since if they stick one of them in now and the other one wins the championship they're going to be scrambling to find a drive for a junior driver which doesn't usually result in them coming back to F1.
 
Here is a story with comments from Grosjean about the crash. Scary shit!

Grosjean recalls Bahrain F1 fire escape: "I saw death coming"​

By Basile Davoine, Luke Smith​

Romain Grosjean has recalled his escape from his fiery crash at the Formula 1 Bahrain Grand Prix, revealing he told himself to get out of the wreckage for his children.

Grosjean crashed out on the opening lap of Sunday's race in Bahrain, hitting the barrier at the exit of Turn 3 at 137 mph, recording a force of more than 50g.

The Haas F1 car tore apart on impact and burst into flames, leaving Grosjean to escape from his cockpit that had become embedded in the barrier.

The Frenchman escaped quickly, suffering only burns to his hands and avoiding any broken bones.

Grosjean will remain in hospital until at least Wednesday and will miss this weekend's Sakhir Grand Prix, but is hopeful of returning for the season finale in Abu Dhabi.

Speaking in his first extended interview since the accident, Grosjean joked that he had "Mickey Mouse's hands" due to his bandages, but was otherwise fine and had no issue moving.

Grosjean recalled his immediate thoughts in the accident, conceding that it felt longer than the 28-second period from impact to him getting out of the car.

"I don't know if the word miracle exists or if it can be used, but in any case I would say it wasn't my time [to die]," Grosjean told TF1.

"It felt much longer than 28 seconds. I see my visor turning all orange, I see the flames on the left side of the car.

"I thought about a lot of things, including Niki Lauda, and I thought that it wasn't possible to end up like that, not now. I couldn't finish my story in Formula 1 like that.

"And then, for my children, I told myself that I had to get out. I put my hands in the fire, so I clearly felt it burning on the chassis.

"I got out, then I felt someone pulling on the suit, so I knew I was out."

Grosjean revealed that his five-year-old son, Simon, believes he has "magical powers" and that he has a "magical love shield" that protected him.

"These are very strong words from the children," Grosjean said.

"My eldest, Sacha, who is seven years old, is more rational, he tries to understand.

"And my little one has drawn a picture, 'for daddy's sores on his hands'."
Grosjean acknowledged he would likely need to discuss the trauma of such a dramatic accident as he feared he would be killed.

"I was more afraid for my family and friends, obviously my children who are my greatest source of pride and energy, than for myself in the end," Grosjean said.

"I think there's going to be some psychological work to be done, because I really saw death coming.

"Even in Hollywood, we're not able to do images like that. It's the biggest crash I've ever seen in my life.

"The car catching fire, exploding, and the battery that burst into flames too, so it added a lot of energy to the impact."
Grosjean gave thanks for the messages he had received, but said again that he was eager to be back in the car in time for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

"I would say that there is a feeling of being happy to be alive, of seeing things differently," Grosjean said.

"But also there is the need to get back in the car, if possible in Abu Dhabi, to finish my story with Formula One in a different way.

"It was almost like a second birth. To come out of the flames that day is something that will mark my life forever.
"I have a lot of people who have shown me love and it has touched me a lot, and at times I get a bit teary-eyed."
SOURCE: https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/153877/grosjean-saw-death-coming-in-horror-bahrain-crash

New three-race F2 and F3 weekend formats announced for 2021​

As part of cost-cutting measures that include three-race weekends for Formula 2 and Formula 3, there will be major changes to each championship’s weekend formats – with an extra reverse-grid race on Saturday for both categories.

Stable car regulations and a provisional calendar, which will see Formula 2 racing on separate weekends from Formula 3 have already been announced, as has the measure to make each F2 and F3 event comprise three races each rather than two. To accommodate the new three-race schedules, the weekend format has been revised for both series.

From 2021, the single 45-minute Free Practice session and 30-minute qualifying session are retained for F2. However, there will be two F2 Sprint Races (of 120 kilometres or 45 minutes each) on Saturday while the one-hour/170 kilometre F2 Feature Race will now take place on Sunday, ahead of the F1 Grand Prix.

In Formula 3, there will still be a Friday Free Practice Session and 30-minute qualifying session, but Race 1 and Race 2 will take place on Saturday, while Race 3 takes place on Sunday morning ahead of the F1 Grand Prix.

As a result of having two reverse-grid contests per F2 and F3 weekend, the starting grids will also be determined differently in 2021.

The grid for Sunday’s F2 Feature Race will be set by the Friday qualifying session, while the starting grid of the first Saturday Sprint Race will be set by reversing the top 10 finishers in qualifying. The second Sprint Race grid will be determined by reversing the top 10 finishers of the first Sprint Race.

Similarly, in F3, Friday qualifying decides the grid for Sunday’s Race 3. Race 1’s grid is set by reversing the top 12 finishers from Friday qualifying; Race 2’s grid is set by reversing the top 12 finishers from Race 1.

The F2 pole-sitter still receives four points but Sprint Race 1 and Sprint Race 2’s Top 8 finishers will be awarded points (12, 10, 8, 6, 4, 2, 1) while the Top 10 finishers of the Feature Race will score (25, 18, 15, 12, 10, 8, 6, 4, 2, 1).

Points allocations differ for F3 as well, with the top 10 finishers in Race 1 and Race 2 now gaining fewer points (15, 12, 10, 8, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1). The top 10 finishers in Race 3 will be awarded more points (25, 18, 15, 12, 10, 8, 6, 4, 2, 1).

For both series, two points will be awarded to the driver who sets fastest lap and finishes in the top 10 in both series. As a result, 65 points will now be up for grabs in F2 and F3 over a weekend, increasing from 48 this season.

Pirelli tyre allocations will also be modified, with each F2 driver given six sets of dry tyres (four prime sets and two option sets) per weekend with three wet-weather tyre sets. F3 drivers will have five sets of dry-weather tyres and two sets of wet-weather tyres available for each event. That's one more set of dry-weather tyres for each driver in F2 and F3.

FIA Formula 2 and Formula 3 CEO Bruno Michel said: “I am pleased to reveal the changes to our sporting regulations which have been approved by the World Motor Sport Council.

“It’s fantastic to be able to move the [F2] Feature Race to Sunday which is the day of the Formula 1 Grand Prix. It will enhance the show for the fans and will make it even more special.

“Having two reverse grids on Saturday will spice up the championship even further. We have seen already how entertaining these races are. It should also allow more drivers to showcase their skills in front of the Formula 1 paddock and the rest of the world.”

As for the F3 changes, which include more points for Race 3, he added: “Race 3 will take place on Sunday which is the day of the Formula 1 Grand Prix. As its starting grid will be determined by the final classification of qualifying, we decided as in the past to award more points to the top 10 finishers.”
 
So, Hamilton will miss out at least one race. This might be pretty interesting, cause it'll show us how well someone else will perform in that car. I expect that driver to act as backup for Bottas, so I don't expect that person to win, whatever happens, but this could be very informative nonetheless. Imagine some literal nobody scoring an easy second place, it would completely deflate Hamilton's legacy. If that person does average and ends up amongst the top 10, it would still be pretty significant, considering that said driver won't have any experience racing in that car, driving on a track that no F1 race has ever happened on (so no setups to try out that did well in the past).
Fuck... if whoever is taking over the wheel for Hamilton does both remaining races and scores second place in both, he'd be 13th in the ranking. If it's Hülkenberg, he'd be 12th, given that he already has 10 points. How surreal would that be?

Vandoorne seems to be very likely, but Hülkenberg hasn't been ruled out either, it seems. Hülkenberg did pretty well with RP, all things considered, so maybe that'll be a deciding factor.
Though, for what it's worth: Hamilton is 171cm tall, Vandoorne is 180cm and Hülkenberg (quite fittingly) is 185cm... so maybe they'll pick the driver that is closer to Hamilton's physique.

This is the most exciting thing that has happened with Mercedes since the opening race.

edit: If the replacement has a really good result, like ending up among the top 5, that might also have some really messed up implications for Hamilton's negotiations with Mercedes over his future contract. If some random replacement ends up doing good in his first race with barely any training or experience in that car beforehand... well. All Mercedes has to do is go into negotiations and point out the obvious: Hamilton is very easily replacable and he needs them more than they need him.

Have to disagree hard with Ricciardo. It's a spectator sport and the audience wants to see what is going on and see what has happened - especially after such a crash that against all odds went as well as one could hope for. I think they did a great job. They waited for confirmation that Grosjean is ok before they showed his crash or the aftermath. No one sane wants to watch a person die on television. Much like with Huberst death, where they (to my knowledge) did not broadcast any replays of the incident.
I do understand that seeing the crash happen multiple times before you're expected to hop back into the car and continue onwards is kinda bad for the other drivers, but ... you know... no one's forcing the drivers to watch it and the audience does want to see it (and besides, what else is there to show for an hour when the race didn't move past the third corner?) The commentators are going to talk about it, might as well show it.

The line of thought seems to be that F1 is not a spectacle that you watch for cheap thrills... but with this argumentation, we might as well just watch still images of cars going through slow corners... but only if there is no lock-up or understeering visible - that might be already too spectacular. Audio is also forbidden for the same reason, you know... until the race is over and then we are allowed to watch the celebration after the race and maybe some parts of it (if nothing bad has happened throughout the race).
Yeah, that's kind of the sarcasto-ball version of Formula 1.

As for Verstappen's comment about kicking out a driver for refusing to drive... I dunno.
The second ballsiest thing* Nicki Lauda ever did in his F1 career was refusing to race on a track that he deemed unsafe in 1976 after his big accident. This resulted in him being overtaken by James Hunt, who won that year's WDC by merely one point. Lauda would have only needed a fifth place to win that year, but he dared saying no and I respect him immensely for that.
(*The ballsiest thing, of course, being that Lauda returned to F1 after missing out on merely 2 races, despite being so close to death, a priest actually performed the last rites on him. The third ballsiest thing might be him insisting on only receiving medically necessary surgeries on his wounds and refusing any purely aesthetic ones...)
The Grognard said:
Eh, the divebomb he did on Stroll was quite dumb. He's lucky that his car didn't suffer more damage in it.
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Yeah... I guess a penalty would have been in place, but 10 seconds? That's way too harsh and pretty obviously the Grosjean crash (even though it wasn't in any way Kvyat's fault) played into it.

LiveFromNS said:
Here is a story with comments from Grosjean about the crash. Scary shit!

Grosjean recalls Bahrain F1 fire escape: "I saw death coming"​

By Basile Davoine, Luke Smith​

Romain Grosjean has recalled his escape from his fiery crash at the Formula 1 Bahrain Grand Prix, revealing he told himself to get out of the wreckage for his children.

Grosjean crashed out on the opening lap of Sunday's race in Bahrain, hitting the barrier at the exit of Turn 3 at 137 mph, recording a force of more than 50g.

The Haas F1 car tore apart on impact and burst into flames, leaving Grosjean to escape from his cockpit that had become embedded in the barrier.

The Frenchman escaped quickly, suffering only burns to his hands and avoiding any broken bones.

Grosjean will remain in hospital until at least Wednesday and will miss this weekend's Sakhir Grand Prix, but is hopeful of returning for the season finale in Abu Dhabi.

Speaking in his first extended interview since the accident, Grosjean joked that he had "Mickey Mouse's hands" due to his bandages, but was otherwise fine and had no issue moving.

Grosjean recalled his immediate thoughts in the accident, conceding that it felt longer than the 28-second period from impact to him getting out of the car.

"I don't know if the word miracle exists or if it can be used, but in any case I would say it wasn't my time [to die]," Grosjean told TF1.

"It felt much longer than 28 seconds. I see my visor turning all orange, I see the flames on the left side of the car.

"I thought about a lot of things, including Niki Lauda, and I thought that it wasn't possible to end up like that, not now. I couldn't finish my story in Formula 1 like that.

"And then, for my children, I told myself that I had to get out. I put my hands in the fire, so I clearly felt it burning on the chassis.

"I got out, then I felt someone pulling on the suit, so I knew I was out."

Grosjean revealed that his five-year-old son, Simon, believes he has "magical powers" and that he has a "magical love shield" that protected him.

"These are very strong words from the children," Grosjean said.

"My eldest, Sacha, who is seven years old, is more rational, he tries to understand.

"And my little one has drawn a picture, 'for daddy's sores on his hands'."
Grosjean acknowledged he would likely need to discuss the trauma of such a dramatic accident as he feared he would be killed.

"I was more afraid for my family and friends, obviously my children who are my greatest source of pride and energy, than for myself in the end," Grosjean said.

"I think there's going to be some psychological work to be done, because I really saw death coming.

"Even in Hollywood, we're not able to do images like that. It's the biggest crash I've ever seen in my life.

"The car catching fire, exploding, and the battery that burst into flames too, so it added a lot of energy to the impact."
Grosjean gave thanks for the messages he had received, but said again that he was eager to be back in the car in time for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

"I would say that there is a feeling of being happy to be alive, of seeing things differently," Grosjean said.

"But also there is the need to get back in the car, if possible in Abu Dhabi, to finish my story with Formula One in a different way.

"It was almost like a second birth. To come out of the flames that day is something that will mark my life forever.
"I have a lot of people who have shown me love and it has touched me a lot, and at times I get a bit teary-eyed."
SOURCE: https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/153877/grosjean-saw-death-coming-in-horror-bahrain-crash
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Can't pretend I'm a huge fan of Grosjean, but my respect for him has significantly increased.
 
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I definitely understand Ricciardo's point of view, but I get why the network kept replaying the crash. With not much other footage to use since the race just began, and with people maybe just tuning in and not knowing what happened, it had to be played at least a few more times. I guess it's more of a question of taste vs necessity, and Ricciardo thought it was in poor taste to keep playing it.
 
I disagree with Ricciardo on that too. If Grosjean had been injured in a major way then yes it would have been in poor taste but as it is it quickly turned into a feel good story about him not only surviving that but walking away from it. It was also a story about the actions of the medical car team and stewards rushing in to help. If we said that was too much then where would we draw the line? There have been plenty of spectacular crashed that *could* have been a lot worse but weren't in recent years, when do we decide it is or isn't ok? How many replays of the debris striking Massa were there? That was nasty but the replays were necessary to work out what happened. The F2 coach as Socci this year that was pretty nasty and could have been a lot worse same thing.

I also agree about drivers refusing to race, saying "I'm not comfortable doing so" is definitely the ballsier move. There have been occasions that is has happened like Perez in Monaco the year he had the nasty qualifying accident saying he didn't feel up to the race even though he was cleared to race. I guarantee if they had try to run F2 race 2 in Spa last season quite few drivers would have told them to naff off. Top drivers like Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill have both given interviews saying that if they knew what happened at Imola '94 they wouldn't have restartes that race. Hell there is even examples of teams doing it such as *that* Indianapolis GP. I was half expecting Haas to not have Magnussen restart the GP because who in that team's heads were in the GP?

I am certainly intrigued as to how the merc driver (whoever that is) ends up doing. Merc picking the Hulk would certainly be good for Lewis as if he does well he's the Hulk and if not well that proves how good Lewis is. If they pick one of their reserve drivers who's previous F1 showings can charitably be described as mediocre and they get an easy podium it shows its entirely the car, if they do poorly well Lewis beating them isn't a surprise now is it. I'd like to see them send one of their reserves down to Williams and get Russell in the seat, show what he really can do and it comes with the advantage of him not being rusty.
 
My stoned/high/baked ramblings before bed.

Jackie Stewart did not race at WG in what was to be the final race of his career after Cevert died. Ultimately it is the individual driver who should make the call. It is their life that could end and I'd say that should be up to the person who is living that life whether he wants to risk ending it, or is traumatized from what he just witnessed and doesn't have the mental fortitude to get back in the car right away. I get where Max is coming from, but you can't say what kind of an effect a fatality would have on any one person.

As for the Lewis thing. With it being Clown World 2020, it makes you wonder if this is real or not. I take it on faith its true, but we all know that anything is possible at anytime with all the weird shit going on and the dynamics at play.

Lewis wins championship, still no contract signing, just competed in a race that almost saw a good person who is a father of 3 almost roast to death and now he gets sick and has to miss next race? And Lewis is apparently someone who is supposedly a super-freak when it comes to health. Maybe he should have only fucked 3 different women last week instead of 5? I don't know, timing just seems quite interesting when you view it taking other things into account. Is he getting tired of the risk, is the reason he hasn't signed because he is wondering if he should go off and do something else and spread his word somewhere else? I'd be the first one to raise a toast if he calls it a day and leaves F1, I hope I am on to something but of course very much doubt it! Nice to wishfully think about the above scenario at least, but would be great if that is what is really going on.

Now, let's suppose Lewis has been hemming and hawing about the contract signing because he was considering retiring. I think if it was me and I was debating whether I wanted to do another year, especially after having the laurels that Lewis has, then I saw Grosjean almost becoming a french fry, that might be a pretty good weight to land on the side of me that is saying I'm done. Like Jackie. Fuck the last race, I am leaving now. Will be interesting to see if he returns for Abu.

With that silliness out of the way, the replacement. It will be either Russell or Waffle. They have knowledge of the entire Merc operation. Hulk doesn't. More importantly, George and Stoff both have seat fittings for the Merc. I don't know how long it would take to do one of those, but that would need to be done. And with Hulk so big, its entirely possible he might not fit in the car at all, or at least comfortably enough to do a full race at peak performance.

It will be George, unless the new Williams' owners try to use it to their advantage a bit too much when Toto inevitably comes asking for George. And, if you believe my conspiracy/crazy rambling about Ham retiring, what better plan to put George in for last 2 races and see how he does against Bottas as it would serve to inform Merc, if Lewis is leaving, that George is ready for 2021 full drive. Checo and Hulk would still be options for 2021 if George was shit so it'd be a great way to compare him against VB before giving GR the '21 seat. We shall see, but my $ on GR for this weekend.

If indeed GR, then Jack Aitken should get the Williams drive. How would this be for more Clown World 2020: GR gets the Merc drive and gets taken out first lap and can't show his skills in top car. Aitken, who got the Williams drive, gets a point on debut! LOL
 
I like verstappens style. Both on the track and off. I think he’s gonna be the next repeat world champion and then he’ll give Lewis a run for his money for most hated driver. But I like that he gives no fucks, not only about that stupid mongol drama a few weeks ago but his most recent comments. In my opinion it shows how dedicated he is, and how emotionally involved he gets. And I like his driving style too. He goes for more moves and risks than the other top guys even though he crashes more. I’ve always found his wins to be more exciting, liek the 70th anniversary. He’s young and feisty and I can relate to that.
 
Full Race Replay said:
I like verstappens style. Both on the track and off. I think he’s gonna be the next repeat world champion and then he’ll give Lewis a run for his money for most hated driver. But I like that he gives no fucks, not only about that stupid mongol drama a few weeks ago but his most recent comments. In my opinion it shows how dedicated he is, and how emotionally involved he gets. And I like his driving style too. He goes for more moves and risks than the other top guys even though he crashes more. I’ve always found his wins to be more exciting, liek the 70th anniversary. He’s young and feisty and I can relate to that.
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Agreed. He has mega talent and backs up his attitude with his performance on the track. I thought he was well within his rights to give Ocon a shove in Brazil. If Ferrari get their act together and give Leclerc a better car and Russell gets in the Merc, and 2022 rules gets those 3 teams closer together, we will have fantastic races between those 3 guys. I hope it comes to fruition soon. The last decade has pretty much sucked when it comes to tight championships and unpredictable results. Start of decade we had Seb's finger for 4 straight years, although 2010 and 2012 were good. The fight between Lewis and Nico in 2014 was reminiscent of McLaren 88 and Ric bursting on the scene was entertaining, but Merc/Ham didn't need to dominate for the next 6 years. That made things too stale. So, the shakeup better happen in '22!
 
My views on sport and safety are quite "bad" by modern standards. I always look from the designer's point of view first and driver second, it's always how the designer builds the car and everything else second. I think it's quite close to how Colin Chapman used to think when he built his cars, there was only one goal: To win.

Here are some quotes from his journal, dated 1975
1. A racing car has only ONE objective: to WIN motor races. If it does not do this it is nothing but a waste of time, money, and effort.

This may sound obvious but remember it does not matter how clever it is, or how inexpensive, or how easy to maintain, or even how safe, if it does not consistantly win it is NOTHING!
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2. Having established this what do we have to do to make it win:

(i) Simply stated it must firstly be capable of lapping a racing circuit quicker than any other car, with the least possible skill from the driver, and doing it long enough to finish the race.

(ii) After this, and only after this, and with absolutely no compromising of objective (2)(i) one has to consider how expensive it is, how simple, how safe, & how easy to maintain, etc. NONE of these aspects must detract one iota from (2)(i). “Good enough” is just NOT good enough to win and keep winning.
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Everything else, including driver safety, came later, this resulted in cars that could give his drivers the WDC, but it could also end in the driver dying while trying. That's how we got the only posthumous world champion in 1970.
This is where my view comes in, F1 should be about the lightest, the fastest, and the most advanced circuit race cars on the planet. That means pushing everything to the limit, even if it means there's a 99.9% chance of a driver dying in a crash. There are some that say we are paying drivers to risk their lives and we have to try to keep them safe, but I say build a fast car and there always be someone that is willing to drive it if it's fast and you got a bit of cash.

On a side note:
Reddit already has a thread going on why Mazepin shouldn't be in F1. Because god forbid someone isn't the stereotypically friendly and morally upstanding human that "Fans" expect.
 
Great stuff, he'll likely get that point now.

Screenshot_20201202-090359_Brave.jpg

On the topic of building performing cars and not worrying too much about safety, good luck finding enough engineers willing to do that this day and age. If anyone values their professional registration they wouldn't go anywhere near a project like that. Not to PL too much but I work on a huge complex engineering challenge that would be guaranteed death for 100+ people if things go wrong, we have so many safety systems, redundancies etc because of that. Even with the extra work and challenges I don't think many of us would still be involved if it was slap dash for many reasons.
 
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Just saw that Mick got the second Haas car for 2021. So Haas goes from experienced but crash prone drivers to young and inexperienced Drivers. Looks like Haas has become the second Ferrari junior Team.

And Russell in the Merc? that sounds good he deserves it. Though I hope he gets better starts then what he has shown in the Williams he did threw Points way in Mugello due to his bad starting.
And if we want Clown world 2020 to come to a nice ending highlight Williams should hire our Lord and savior Mahaveer Ragunathan
 
Balr0g said:
Just saw that Mick got the second Haas car for 2021. So Haas goes from experienced but crash prone drivers to young and inexperienced Drivers. Looks like Haas has become the second Ferrari junior Team.

And Russell in the Merc? that sounds good he deserves it. Though I hope he gets better starts then what he has shown in the Williams he did threw Points way in Mugello due to his bad starting.
And if we want Clown world 2020 to come to a nice ending highlight Williams should hire our Lord and savior Mahaveer Ragunathan
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Oh man, Santa is giving me presents, but I am pretty sure I was naughty this year.
Russel is a good and experienced driver that was outperforming his Williams quite significantly, he has a decent shot at doing good in the next race and it is the most direct comparison that anyone could hope for. Hulkenberg is good, but he has been out of the loop for most of the time, Vandoorne is even worse off. Russel is a great choice for the team and will hopefully give us something to talk about, however he performs.

Now, as for Mick Schumacher and Haas... I'm happy to see a Schumacher return to the grid, but Haas is throwing away their experienced drivers both at a time, that can't be good for their developement process in the coming years. Hope that russian money and those german sponsors are going to be worth it.
 
Hopefully that 2021 Ferrari engine comes through for them. I doubt they'll be chasing championships but at least fighting for Q3 appearances and points is possible if they have a decent engine to build around.
 
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Coccxys said:
Hopefully that 2021 Ferrari engine comes through for them. I doubt they'll be chasing championships but at least fighting for Q3 appearances and points is possible if they have a decent engine to build around.
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Yeah, would be a shame if Leclerc and Sainz are stuck in that team with a shitty engine for their car... I mean, with how they treated Kimi and now Vettel, I'd really wish the worst of luck on Ferrari, but not on the expense of Leclerc or Sainz.
 
SOURCE: http://www.chipganassiracing.com/Ne...er-Zande-for-IMSA-Cadillac-DPiVR-Program.aspx

CGR Announces Drivers Kevin Magnussen and Renger van der Zande for IMSA Cadillac DPi-V.R Program​


Posted: December 03, 2020
IMSA%20ANNOUNCEMENT%20FB%20V2.jpg
Seven-time IMSA Champions and Eight-time Rolex 24 At Daytona Winners Chip Ganassi Racing (CGR) announced today their IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship driver lineup with Formula One driver Kevin Magnussen joining Two-time Rolex 24 At Daytona winner Renger van der Zande for the team’s Cadillac Daytona Prototype international (DPi) entry beginning with the 2021 season.

Endurance drivers and livery for the 2021 campaign will be announced at a later date.

NOTES OF INTEREST:

About Kevin Magnussen: 28-year-old Danish racing driver Kevin Magnussen is currently competing in the FIA Formula One World Championship with Haas F1 Team. Prior to Formula One, Magnussen competed in the Formula Renault 3.5 Series with DAMS and won the championship in 2016 with five wins and 13 podiums. The son of former Formula One driver Jan Magnussen, he came up through the McLaren Formula One team’s Young Driver Program and drove for McLaren in the 2014 FIA Formula One World Championship.

About Renger van der Zande: The 34-year-old Dutch racer recently claimed his second straight Rolex 24 At Daytona victory alongside CGR’s Six-time and reigning NTT INDYCAR SERIES Champion Scott Dixon. In 2016, van der Zande won the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship with four wins, eight podiums, one pole and four fastest-laps. Prior to making a professional career in GT and LMP classes with both private and factory teams, van der Zande quickly moved up the ladder in Formula cars with Formula Renault 2.0 Netherlands and Formula 3.

Cadillac IMSA Program: In 2020, Cadillac scored its fourth consecutive Rolex 24 At Daytona win, and followed with wins at Sebring and Petit Le Mans en route to a second-place finish in the Championship. In 2019, they scored wins at the Rolex 24 At Daytona, the 12 Hours of Sebring, Long Beach and Petit Le Mans. The 2018 season saw the program win the Rolex 24 At Daytona en route to the Prototype Driver, Team and Manufacturer Championships. The program began in 2017 when Cadillac teams won every title in the inaugural season of the IMSA DPi formula including a one-two-three sweep of the Driver Championship, along with the Team and Manufacturers titles. In all, Cadillac teams combined to win seven races in 2017.

Rolex 24 Run and More: CGR has the greatest stretch in Rolex 24 At Daytona history highlighted by eight wins and three second-place finishes from 2006-2018. The team also has seven Championships (2004, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2012, and 2013) and 64 race wins to their credit since their introduction to sports car racing in 2004. Chip Ganassi is the only team owner in history to win three-straight Rolex 24 At Daytonas (2006-2008). The team also has wins in both the 12 Hours of Sebring and the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

QUOTEBOARD:

Kevin Magnussen, Driver, Chip Ganassi Racing: “If you are in professional racing anywhere in the world, you know the name Chip Ganassi and what it represents in motorsports. Chip has built one of the best racing organization’s on and off the track, and you can look back in history and see the tremendous record of success, especially as it relates to sports car racing. It’s a great opportunity for myself to team up with CGR, Renger and Cadillac. I can’t wait to get started, meet the team and begin preparations for the 2021 season.”

Renger van der Zande, Driver, Chip Ganassi Racing: “I’ve been fortunate enough to have raced and won with Scott [Dixon] in sports cars and I think he really embodies what the whole Chip Ganassi Racing organization is all about. It’s a first-class operation and the team knows how to win the big races. One of the things that stood out to me was hearing that as a former driver, Chip always wanted to create and build a team that he would want to drive for. He has certainly done that, and those results speak for themselves across many series around the world. I think Kevin and I are both excited to say the least, and ready to get the 2021 season started at Daytona.”
 
Very happy for Magnussen that he found something new for next season. Everything is better than going for Formula E.
 
Decided to watch F2 practice, looks like a nice lap. Turn 8 might provide a bit of trouble with exceeding track limits, couple bumps on the 'new' part to catch someone out and there isn't much space available so Q1 and 2 might be a bit of a crapshoot for the bottom teams. Also I think where RG went off now has a tyre barrier infront of the armco.

and if my calculations are correct (doubt it) might see a F1 pole lap sub 50's and a time in practice of 52s.
 
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