2006 Formula 1 season - place your bets!

[AlexRuiz]

For all those who like formula 1, the season starts in less than 96 hours. Place your bets, and as the starter of the thread I lead by example:

Drivers championship winner: Kimi Raikkönnen
Constructors championship winner: Honda


You heard it here first. The new BAR (Button - Anthony - Rubens) will take the team honors.

What do you foresee for the new season? Keep in mind tire changes are allowed again, engines are smaller (V8, 740hp, 2.4 lt as opposed to the former V10, 950hp, 3.0 lt) and there is a new qualification system. In addition, a circuit described by many as the most enjoyable (Spa - Francochamps, GP of Belgium) in not part of the 2006 calendar.


Alex

[Hondaph00l]

Phew, today was the Bahrain gp and it was pretty intense. Alex Im going to agree with both of your predictions but Kimi has competition. Today he definitely showed off his skills as he made his way from last place to an eventual 3rd on the pole. Honda is definitely in it to win this year too but their transmissions hurt both barrichelo and button but hopefully the kinks will be worked out. On another note the remaining BMW driver(cant remember his name) was pretty impressive. And alas Ferrari was back in the winning 3 again after last years lackluster performance(you cant say they werent trying tho). Im definitely pumped for this season not to mention going to indy for the usgp this year.

Alex

[chml17l]

Well, it's nice to see that there are at least 2 other F1 fans still left in North America.

The new qualifying format, that was heavily criticized after being proposed at the end of last season, has brought some excitement back into "quali" as Alonso calls it. I for one thought that any format change would be a big improvement over the old single lap format. Unfortunately for Raikkönnen (again), his McLaren's suspension failure provided for all the excitement that made this season's first grid interesting.

Eventhough Alonso and Schummi finished 1-2, you know they are going to be sweating the entire season given the fact that Raikkönnen carved up the field from dead last to 3rd. I only hope that Kimi doesn't see another rollercoaster ride this season of DNF/podium finishes due to his often unreliable (at least last year) McLaren. He has proven again that he can definitely be fast. Whether Ron Dennis and the team give him a car that can match the reliability of Renault and Ferrari so he can actually fight for a championship, remains to be seen.

[Mike-in-Orange]

Originally Posted by chml17l

Well, it's nice to see that there are at least 2 other F1 fans still left in North America.

Count me in!!! I've been following F1 for the last 30 years or so and am so glad the new season is upon us. Qualifying was great and the race was terrific! If McLaren can overcome their reliability issues - and I don't mean the rear suspension failure in quali for Kimi; they've had lots of engine issues during the winter - then we ought to have a great McLaren/Honda/Renault/Ferrari and maybe even Williams battle all year long. I'm betting on Fernando to repeat though, but I'd love to see Button finally get his due (I'm just not a Kimi fan at all).

A couple of "uh-oh" observations from the race:

1. Juan Pable Montoya - how do you start 5th and finish 5th while your team mate starts 22nd and finishes 3rd in the same car? Man, if that doesn't make you look bad I don't know what does.

2. Does it really cost Toyota $400 million per year to put Formula 1 bodies on Camry's? I mean, that's what they're doing, right? Their cars don't seem to be much faster than a Camry compared to the rest of the field. I'm sorry, but I've got more respect for Super Agouri than I do for Toyota in F1 - what a joke.

3. Nico Rosberg....uh-oh, everybody else better watch out for this kid in the future. Talk about a stunning F1 debut!!

Yep, we're in for a cracking good season! Don't forget, Malaysia this weekend!!

[Hondaph00l]

Lol I forgot to mention the silly dance Alonso did. Im also very unimpressed by super aguiri, maybe I was just expecting too much out them. The commentators mentioned that super aguiri didnt have the budget that others did and what not but that doesnt explain the pit stop where ide or w/e his name is nearly ran over his pit crew. Im beginning to think that there arent any good japanese drivers but then again Im 17 and just got into the sport 3 years ago when I went to the USGP.

Does anyone subscribe to F1 magazine? I just picked one up at B&N and they definitely packed the issue full of info but for nearly 9 bucks a piece or 72 a year Im not too sure its worth it.

Alex

[AlexRuiz]

Glad to see I am not alone. A great race, no doubt. Strategy matters a lot, and while Juan Pablo got 5th starting 5th and Kimi got 3rd starting 22 driving the same car, Kimi had only one stop, and don't forget the fact that by the end of the first lap he was already in midfield....

I think the cars are very comparable, and driver consistency, reliability and pits crew will make the difference. I still remember Shangai 2004, the season that had Ferrari winning almost everything. Button started first, and he had a great duel with Barrichello. BAR in 2 stops, Ferrari 3 stops. However, the BAR crew overfilled his tank twice (almost 2 seconds each time, which meant additional weight and additional time in the pits) Eventually, he couldn't chanllenge Rubens in the final laps.

The Renault has been very solid and reliable, and that is the area that the rivals must match. As far as drivers skills, Kimi did a fantastic job, almost as impressive as his Suzuka win last year (from last). Now, for strategy. Do you qualify in pole, or qualify 11 and get full tank?

Prediction for Malasya:

1) Jenson
2) Kimi
3) Fernando