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Monday, November 28, 2005

toyota first to reveal 2006 car


[2006 preview]

toyota f1 team surprised everyone with a sudden launching of their 2006 car today. take a look at the picture:

toyota tf106 [www.f1-live.com]

according to mike gascoyne, the car started developing at the end of year 2004. but how is that possible? they don't even know the rules for 2006 yet. i am not sure why they started that early. shouldn't they look at their 2005 car and improve on that? i'm baffled.

toyota tf106 [www.f1-live.com]

the car is definitely evolutionary, improving from the previous models. the biggest difference is the v8 engine and a brand new rear end to fit that v8 specification. the back suspensions look pretty intricate too, but i'm no expert on that. noticeably the new car has made the switch from michelin and is on the bridgestone tyres. all in all, the car looked pretty much the same as last season's car.

toyota tf106 [www.f1-live.com]

in terms of the look, i am somewhat disappointed. it looks conservative and not quite outstanding. of course, if it can do its job properly then look isn't everything. we shall witness its performance tomorrow when all the drivers take it for a spin.

i am a little surprised the mclaren horn didn't got picked up by toyota yet, since they are quite a copycat. but with mike gascoyne there, i'm sure he knows what's best for his team.



previous posts:
2005 posts

[tagged: , ]




2005 season review (3)


[season review]

decided not to get lazy and just finish off the season review. so here's the final part of my 2005 season review.

best overtaking: alonso on michael
this happened during the japanese gp at the 130r corner. alonso, after being held up by a defending michael schumacher, finally overtook michael around the outside of 130r at 200mph. according to the commentators and many observers, that was an amazing overtaking maneuver because that corner is so fast and flat out, it was very dangerous to overtake from the outside line.

for me, this showed alonso has balls. however unlike montoya, who also has huge balls, alonso is more calculative, more analytical, more effective, and probably just plain smarter. plus, he made that overtaking over michael looked so easy and effortless (although michael wasn't competitive, but i'm sure he made it hell for alonso to pass). that move was very impressive.

worst overtaking: montoya on monteiro
in a sport where overtakings are so sought after, no overtaking can be considered the 'worst'. for example, that crazy overtaking by trulli on fisichella at monte carlo was amazing. although it resulted in trulli's car being damaged, but nobody can fault his effort and that sort of overtaking magic.

however, if disaster happens while overtaking a lapped car, that's when the move becomes totally pathetic. that's what happened to montoya at turkey. after he took monteiro, there was almost no more road for montoya before the sharp corner. he had to slam on the brake to make his turn. he misjudged the move totally, and he deserved that bump that made it all so terrible for mclaren. you may argue monteiro should also be blamed, but hey, one's a mclaren superstar driver, the other a rookie. that move made montoya an official idiot.

best rookie: christian albers
nothing much to say about the rookies actually, because all of them were paid driver. that's how formula 1 works though, and there's nothing wrong with that. of all the new paid drivers, albers seemed to perform pretty consistently. some of his qualifying drive was pretty amazing too. and if i remember correctly, he usually came out ahead of his teammate. plus, he secured a drive with midland next year.

how about monteiro? he had a podium, a point in belgium, and a consistent finish. why isn't he the best rookie? well, statistics aren't everything. but overall, i'm just not too keen with monteiro. he wasn't really exciting, and he had no presence and impression (unlike karthikeyan). he was just 'there', filling up the grid.

worst driver: mark webber
actually, it's hard to say who's the worst driver. i mean, who can be worse than the jordan and minardi drivers? to be fair though, they are in considerably worse cars. furthermore, who can be worse than sato and the jungle boy? i say, they were even worse than the jordan and minardi boys.

however, we can say badly of the above drivers because they are somewhat of an expectation. but the king of them all goes to mark because he was the most overrated driver on the grid. and if he cannot live up to his hype, although he has fairly good car, fairly good engine, and good tyres, then there's seriously something wrong with him. he was consistently beaten by heidfeld, he couldn't start a race properly, he could only qualify but not race, and he was as hot headed as montoya during a race.

even the other overrated driver, jensen button, was way better.

driver of the season: fernando alonso
well yeah, give it to the champion of course. but seriously, i don't want to get controversial, or try to say the first loser (or second place if that sounds better) is the driver of the season. both were fantastic, especially for the former champion. despite a despicable car, he managed to come in third, beating the other mclaren and the other renault. the effort was almost heroic.

but you can't take anything away from the youngest champion ever. his drive throughout the season had a champion feel to it. at his age, his driving was actually more mature than kimi, than montoya, than fisichella, etc. he drove smart, drove with patience, and most importantly drove fast. except for his blunder in canada, he was flawless throughout the season. definitely worthy of the title 'driver of the season'.

finally, alonso is just much easier for the eyes and the ears, if you get my drift. :)



previous posts:
season review 2: 2005 season review (2)
season review 1: 2005 season review (1)
post-season: f1 car to become ugly
post-season: ted answers back
shanghai: renault takes it all
shanghai: pit strategy to determine all
shanghai: windsor's wisdom
japan: japanese gp is the bomb
japan: rain creates havoc in japan
brazil: championship alonso's to take
spa: go back to driving school!
spa: kimi will win spa
mid-season: eddie's words of wisdom
monza: where will the pay drivers go?
monza: kimi will win monza
monza: coulthard speaks his mind
turkey: excellent new turkey experience
mid-season: greatest f1 driver
hungaro-ring: one more pole to go
hockenheim: the rain that never came
hockenheim: pessimism says it all for germany
mid-season: 2006 qualifying hopefuls
silverstone: renault vs mclaren
magny-cours: absolute beauty
indianapolis: michelin farce
indianapolis: indianapolis motor speedway
montreal: post-montreal notes
montreal: canadian gp preview
montreal: lopsided mirrors?
nurburgring: ferrari to make or break
monaco: f1 and star wars don't mix
barcelona: the era is all over
imola: from zero to hero
imola: f1 aero upgrades
bahrain: what a joke
sepang: bring out the new car!!
sepang: toyota f1 rev party
sepang: klcc sauber f1 street demo
melbourne: the wait is over!
pre-season: the viking
pre-season: nose job
pre-season: b.a.r. unveiled a goose
pre-season: sweet sauber
pre-season: evolution not revolution
pre-season: sauber ain't coming


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Sunday, November 13, 2005

2005 season review (2)


[season review]

before i start my second review, check out what other people think of the 2005 season, using my 'template' of the first review.

tiuniasing's review
peekaboooh's review

i quite like what they have writen up. they have interesting points and there's no right or wrong, and it is always nice to read what other people think.

ok, here's part 2 of my 2005 season review.

most likable circuit: turkey
of course, we can't be talking about the classic circuits because they are just that - classics. so it is always exciting when a new comer comes along. sepang, bahrain, and shanghai are few of the more recent additions. when they were introduced, they boasted about their great facilities and the awesome huge grandstands with the wide tracks. however, none of them was as exciting and as likable as the new turkey circuit. instantaneously, the turkey circuit became a classic.

the awesome fast corners are just fun to watch. yet the corners aren't easy, and we can expect years after years for people to make mistakes there. the corners provide that element of uncertainties or hope that someone will make a major mistake and subsequently make the championship wide open. this circuit should become one of the final ones, because it definitely is a make-or-break circuit.

best race: imola
no, i haven't forgotten the japanese grandprix. in fact, most people would have forgotten about the imola grandprix because it had been such a long season. no doubt the japanese gp was a fun race, but let me remind you of imola and why it was the best race of the season.

first off, will the japanese gp be as exciting if the weather didn't interfere? i seriously doubt it. when you throw in the unpredictability of weather, it is bound to be interesting and, well, unpredictable. imola, on the other hand, was supposed to be a straightforward race judging from the grid position. however when the lights went off, straightforward went out the window and it was pure excitement.

the most exciting part was when michael schumacher stormed from 14th position to 3rd after one pitstop, driving an under-par vehicle. plus, he overtook so many cars, including a cheating jensen button, on a track that is nearly impossible to overtake what more with all those aerodynamic turbulence crap. we got a sense and realization of how good michael actually is. other than michael, we also got to see how good fernando is. his defence was admirable and the fights till the checkered flag was the best of the whole season.

worst race: shanghai
it was the worst race because it was so boring. even the american gp, which featured only six cars, was more exciting. was it because the drivers didn't make the effort since it was the last race? i wouldn't think so. i don't remember last year's shanghai gp to be exciting as well. the characteristic of the circuit is probably the reason why it was, and will continue to be, so boring. there aren't many fast corners, and the long straights are perfect for creating f1 trains.

worst of all, the faulty drain cover that ruined montoya's race shouldn't have happened as it could have killed someone. and what can we say about the marshalls who took quite a while to do their jobs? the race just wasn't worthwhile at all.

best qualifying: michael schumacher
his only pole position of the season came durinf the end of the mid-season, at hungary, where the performance of the ferrari was utter crap. because it was his only pole position, it brought into perspective how hard it actually was to achieve. surprisingly, he qualified a clear one second ahead of montoya, the fastest time of the whole weekend. michael couldn't even believe it himself, and you could see how happy he was.

and it wasn't one of those qualifying gimmicks that toyota loves to do, running extremely low fuel just to be on the headline. michael schumacher had legitimate fuel level in his car. during the race, he came in for fuel unexpectedly late - in fact four laps later than kimi raikkonen (qualify fourth) and two laps later than jarno trulli (qualifying third). how did he do that??

best crash: kimi raikkonen
it was a close one between klien's flip and kimi's nurgburging crash. although an overturning f1 car is hard to come by these days, it wasn't as spectacular or dramatic as kimi's front suspension damage. when it was replayed several times in slow motion, it was an adrenaline rush to see the suspension totally desintegrated. the wheel almost hit kimi's head, but it was fortunate the safety wire held on to the wheel like it was supposed to.

no crash is good, because a serious injury or even death could happen. but this was a very memorable damage because it was inflicted by kimi himself when he flat spotted the tyre. furthermore, it happened at the ultimate lap. that was pretty bizarre.



by the way, do you think 2005 was a great season? well, i don't. stay tuned for the reason and the final part of the 2005 season review, coming soon.



previous posts:
season review 1:2005 season review (1)
post-season: f1 car to become ugly
post-season: ted answers back
shanghai: renault takes it all
shanghai: pit strategy to determine all
shanghai: windsor's wisdom
japan: japanese gp is the bomb
japan: rain creates havoc in japan
brazil: championship alonso's to take
spa: go back to driving school!
spa: kimi will win spa
mid-season: eddie's words of wisdom
monza: where will the pay drivers go?
monza: kimi will win monza
monza: coulthard speaks his mind
turkey: excellent new turkey experience
mid-season: greatest f1 driver
hungaro-ring: one more pole to go
hockenheim: the rain that never came
hockenheim: pessimism says it all for germany
mid-season: 2006 qualifying hopefuls
silverstone: renault vs mclaren
magny-cours: absolute beauty
indianapolis: michelin farce
indianapolis: indianapolis motor speedway
montreal: post-montreal notes
montreal: canadian gp preview
montreal: lopsided mirrors?
nurburgring: ferrari to make or break
monaco: f1 and star wars don't mix
barcelona: the era is all over
imola: from zero to hero
imola: f1 aero upgrades
bahrain: what a joke
sepang: bring out the new car!!
sepang: toyota f1 rev party
sepang: klcc sauber f1 street demo
melbourne: the wait is over!
pre-season: the viking
pre-season: nose job
pre-season: b.a.r. unveiled a goose
pre-season: sweet sauber
pre-season: evolution not revolution
pre-season: sauber ain't coming


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Tuesday, November 01, 2005

2005 season review (1)


[season review]

here's the first part of my 2005 season review.

most improved team: red bull
think about it, one year ago this team was jaguar. they barely managed to get the car transformed from the infamous green to the red bull livery. not forgetting that their purchase deal was a bit of a rush too. therefore it was very surprising to see how well they performed. it wasn't just one or two races that they were spectacular, it was actually a pretty consistent performance. they also had a fantastic, if not the best, engine realiability this season, with only one failure.

with david coulthard's invaluable knowledge, his input to the team without a doubt made a difference. and with an impressive driving from klien, the team was able to finish above a more experienced sauber team. not bad effort at all.

least improved team: williams
at first i was going to say ferrari. but then i started thinking about it and realized that it wasn't that they didn't improve enough, but it was the new tyre rule that destroyed their season totally. in my opinion, there was nothing they could do about that because rules are rules, and their only significant input to bridgestone wasn't enough to compete with seven significant inputs to michelin.

with that in mind, i have to pick williams as the least improved team. the team used to be one of the strongest teams on the grid. with a bmw powerplant and numerous championship experience under their belt, this was a team which should have done more than it did. with michelin on their cars, ferrari was still able to beat them. how fucked was williams? other than monaco, in which heidfeld and webber were on the podium, this season was a disaster for them.

best looking car: mclaren
this was a tough one for me. mclaren has one of the best paint jobs on the grid. they have it mostly in black to hide minute details of the car from the rivals. from race to race, it seemed as though nothing has changed with the car other than the wing, but the fact is we couldn't see many of the details. for me, that made it boring to analyze their cars.

however, it is still the best looking car. it looked much better than mp4-19 after they made the nose fatter - the way it should be. other than the viking horns, which looked out of place, the car looked very nicely balanced. newey did a fantastic job with the design, not only did it perform superbly well as a package, it looked awesome.

biggest winner: renault
people who wish to debate on whether renault is the worthy champion are retarded. either that, or they are just biased mclaren fans.

last season they came in third after a fantastic fight to the wire with bar. this season, they won everything and where the hell is bar? it wasn't the demise of any other team that allowed renault to be on top. in fact, they won it by merit and it wasn't even close. alonso is 21 points clear, and renault nine points clear. renault won both championships, fair and square. period.

biggest loser: mclaren
who else? in 2003 they were only 1 point away from the driver's championship, even though kimi only had 1 race win as compared to michael's six race wins. that year they shouldn't even be a contender because they were shit. thus there's nothing sad about that year.

however this year they were awesome. they should have won. heck, they should have won everything! fastest laps, poles, race wins, and championships. instead, they didn't even come close enough to destroy everyone else. in fact, they lost big time. worst of all, ron dennis gave tons of bloody excuses (read fast machines for all the excuses george picked out). ron, take it like a man, accept defeat graciously, and congratulates your rival's victory. it's not all about you and your coorporate-induced team.



stay tuned for the second part of the 2005 season review, coming soon.



previous posts:
post-season: f1 car to become ugly
post-season: ted answers back
shanghai: renault takes it all
shanghai: pit strategy to determine all
shanghai: windsor's wisdom
japan: japanese gp is the bomb
japan: rain creates havoc in japan
brazil: championship alonso's to take
spa: go back to driving school!
spa: kimi will win spa
mid-season: eddie's words of wisdom
monza: where will the pay drivers go?
monza: kimi will win monza
monza: coulthard speaks his mind
turkey: excellent new turkey experience
mid-season: greatest f1 driver
hungaro-ring: one more pole to go
hockenheim: the rain that never came
hockenheim: pessimism says it all for germany
mid-season: 2006 qualifying hopefuls
silverstone: renault vs mclaren
magny-cours: absolute beauty
indianapolis: michelin farce
indianapolis: indianapolis motor speedway
montreal: post-montreal notes
montreal: canadian gp preview
montreal: lopsided mirrors?
nurburgring: ferrari to make or break
monaco: f1 and star wars don't mix
barcelona: the era is all over
imola: from zero to hero
imola: f1 aero upgrades
bahrain: what a joke
sepang: bring out the new car!!
sepang: toyota f1 rev party
sepang: klcc sauber f1 street demo
melbourne: the wait is over!
pre-season: the viking
pre-season: nose job
pre-season: b.a.r. unveiled a goose
pre-season: sweet sauber
pre-season: evolution not revolution
pre-season: sauber ain't coming


[tagged: , ]