Roland Ratzenberger

A tribute to the man who died at Imola on Saturday 31st April 1994 when qualifying for the San Marino Grand Prix.

His death, so often overlooked because of Senna's death the next day, was just as tragic but hardly ever heard about.  Does being a better driver mean your death is more of a loss?

Senna - the other story

Whether people were trying to stop themselves crying or they were just in deep thinking mode, there wasn't a sound from the audience watching Senna as we left the cinema.  After this initial emotive experience, I began thinking about how Prost had been portrayed in the film.   Let's face it, he didn't come off well, kind of reminding me of  Jack Lemmon's character in The Great Race, but without the comedy.






Prost on the left.  Senna is the 'good' one in the middle, played by Tony Curtis.












Having previously read about, and seen photos of, Senna taking a swing at his new young rival Schumacher...

 ...I wondered if there was another side to the way Senna was protrayed in the film.

Reading Senna versus Prost by Malcolm Folley I have found there is.  It is ironic that the pictures above show Senna threatened by the new talent on the grid, when as a young driver, he came into a Mclaren team built around Prost and took over making it HIS team, ultimately making Prost leave.   Did Prost try to bash him up?  No.

Does the film show the incident in 1987 when marshalls failed to move his Lotus the way he wanted, he got out of the car and hit one of them?

Does the film talk about the lack of testing he did on the Mclaren? Following his winning on the championship in 1988 he went home to Brazil leaving Prost to do all the testing.  Prost got just

2 weeks holiday.

Does the film talk about his inability to give in depth feedback, and make changes to the car? 

Was he a selfish driver?  After all, when he saw Williams becoming better than Mclaren he jumped ship.  When we talk about the great champions, are they really the ones who just follow the best cars, turn up and drive on the day? Or are they the ones who help and support the development of the car even if it means not winning for 4 years?

Was Senna such a great driver, or is it a case of a rosy glow because he died so tragically?...

Happy Birthday Schumi!  43 today.

Raikkonen Renault bound?

So Lotus Renault GP are responsible for the return of Mr Monosyllable to F1.  It was music to my ears the day I found out he was leaving  F1 to join the World Rally Championship.  Now the music has been replaced by a dull, monotonous sound.

When Raikkonen joined Ferrari, they went from having a driver who involved himself completely in the team and the development of the car, to one who turned up, drove the car and went home again. 

His contract at McLaren was terminated a year early in favour of Jenson Button.  And why not?  Button is personable, marketable and as a good a driver. 
In these money driven times a driver has to be worth the money, they have to bring the cash in through sponsorship and endorsements.  Media hating Raikkonen just hasn't got the commitment needed for F1. I sincerely hope that he doesn't have the commitment needed to reach the required fitness level over the winter.

His own words: "I got the feeling from the start that the people involved in rallying are more interested in the sport and what is happening on the stages, rather than creating bullshit stories"  
So why are you coming back then? 

Season highlights

It's that time of year again.  The time when I have to be content with F1 magazines and season reviews to give me my fix.  March is a long way away...
2011 was a great season, despite Vettel's runaway success.  Here are my personal top 5 highlights.

5. Vettel's puncture in Abu Dhabi.  Was good to see a different winner for a change.

4.  Webber's overtake on Alonso at Eau Rouge.

3. Jenson's win in Canada.

2. Schumacher running 2nd in Canada.  Just missed out on a podium.

1. 20 years since his debut, Schumi fights his way from 24th to 5th at Spa, overtaking Rosberg on the way.  Fantastic!

Money versus talent

I know money is extremely important in F1, the amount it takes to run a successful team is outrageous. But is it not ludicrous when talent like Nico Hulkenberg ,who got pole position in Brazil 2010, is overlooked for a seat in favour of chinny chin chin Maldonado just because he can offer the reddies?

First pole position for Williams in 5 years and he gets dropped!?

What is with Williams?  Now they are keeping the chin meister over Barrichello, even though he has underperformed in comparison, because he brings the bolivar.  It seems that it is money versus talent and money is winning.
Williams are not the only team.  50 % of the teams on the grid had not announced driver line up for next year at the close of season.  What are they waiting for?  Are they working out who brings the biggest bucks?
Teams hire drivers who bring money but do they bring talent?  If you have talent in a team and you are gaining points finishes, the team will be rewarded financially.  Which approach do you take?  I know which is morally better and I know which provides higher quality racing.

Webber wins in Brazil!

Yay! Am really happy for Mark Webber, hopefully this is the win that will spur him on for next season.  Let's see some of his 2010 confidence resurface to topple Vettel from his perch.