Round 15: Singapore Grand Prix

fadedpanther4 said:Easy now... Kimi still has time to pull off three MASTERFUL wins at the end. 😬

Hamilton is trailing Kimi by just 3 points.😉
Massin Place has 10
while Kubik is sitting on 23.

That’s assuming Kimi actually pulls off all three wins.☕

But let's be real—this time around, Kimi doesn't stand a chance.

fadedpanther4 said:If the guy you're talking about was driving the Moss car... I mean, if he were actually in Moss's seat today... how far do you think he'd get?

Give me a break. It’s not like everyone out there is driving like an absolute idiot. 😉

He probably wouldn't have run into the same mess Moss did. He wouldn't let a pit crew gamble with such a brainless system. It’s like how Schumacher wouldn't have stood for that kind of signaling in the pits if he were behind the wheel. If I remember correctly, Schumacher was basically the reason everything at Ferrari actually worked, like their engine reliability.
Look at Sato. He was a subpar, clueless driver because his Honda engines kept blowing up constantly back when he was driving for BAR-Honda.

stormybadger8 said:🙄 Smart people actually know how to use their rearview mirrors😉 If you already realize your crew is incompetent, you check, then you stop like Colter instead of just idling at the pit exit waiting for someone to come running after you.🙄

I suppose all the mechanics are going to be focusing on high-intensity interval training now. You know, all that sprinting and agility work... 😁

stormybadger8 said:no matter how you look at it, Kimi doesn't stand a chance this time

Forget Kimi... let's go Alonso for the championship! 😬

hollowhawk412 said:Objectively speaking... Hamilton was the real winner there. He finally stayed cool and didn't just charge at Rosberg.

BTW, what's the deal with Ferrari? If I were in Mason's shoes, I would've taken a hammer to them.

They basically handed him 20 points on a silver platter... Valencia and Singapore...

But hey, they still control their own destiny...

If the weather holds up (and you guys clearly read that part), Massa is the favorite for the last three races

even after losing those points.
because if it stays hot, Ferrari might actually pull it off.
Everything's in God's hands now.

Kimi just can't get those tires up to temp for qualifying, and then he just makes mistake after mistake during the race. Dammit, grit doesn't help when the car isn't working.

🤣Come on, hollowhawk412, what's your problem? Just admit you'd already finished a six-pack before typing this.😂

stormybadger8 said:I am genuinely happy that Alonso won, and I’m offering you my congratulations too👍, and please don't take this the wrong way, but if it weren't for those idiotic penalties, Alonso would have finished 2nd, 3rd, or even 4th; damn it, the BMW was fast, but first they hit Heidfeld with that three-place grid penalty, and then there was that whole absolute stupidity regarding the pit entry penalties🙄 if we are being realistic, Rosberg would have left him forty seconds behind without that penalty😉 and if anyone drove a masterclass today, it was Nico🙏🙏🙏 and even Kubica would have ended up ahead of Alonso, even if he had been called into the pits immediately, but unfortunately, he spent two or three agonizingly slow laps circling the track behind Fisico, which inevitably earned him yet another penalty, whereas if he had moved just like Rosberg did, he could have found his rhythm and built enough of a gap to nullify that penalty entirely.

Alonso always drives right on the edge, and honestly, if he didn't, he'd be sitting there with zero points; that isn't anything new, the only thing that's new is that he actually caught a lucky break this time and that Renault wasn't a complete dumpster fire like they usually are, because they actually showed some decent pace for once.👍

look, I truly believe Alonso was faster than Rosberg, who was also absolutely stellar today... just look at the lap times they were putting up when they actually had clear air...

Fisico helped both Rosberg and True build that gap after the first SCA...

I'm telling you, if Alonso hadn't run into bad luck during qualifying, he would have been at least 4th... trailing Massa, Kimi, and Hamilton... though perhaps he might have even climbed a bit higher than that.

wearyraven41 said:It probably wouldn't have happened to him the way it did to Moss, since he wouldn't allow anyone to gamble with such a clumsy pit crew system—just as Schumacher wouldn't have allowed him to drive like that.

Do you really think any driver after Schumacher actually has that kind of say at Ferrari? I guess I'm not so sure about that myself.

Morgan Murphy7 said:Alright, fadedpanther4, why are you spilling all the hot water? 😁

Let’s be real: everyone knows the car is 90% of the equation, while the driver only brings about 10%.

Look, Alonso snatched the win today because he’s sitting on an 11% advantage. Simple as that.

You get what I'm saying? 🙏

It was way more than just an 11% contribution from Alonso. If he hadn't been there at Renault, they would've had some driver even worse than Nelson Piquet behind the wheel, and suddenly Nelson would look like a decent talent while the whole Renault tragedy would have looked even more pathetic.
Look, the reality is that Alonso is the one making Renault actually competitive, and his true ceiling is a step above what Nelson Piquet is bringing to the table.
If we actually judged Ferrari based on what Kimi was able to squeeze out of those cars, they’d be looking at a completely different set of results.

stormybadger8 said:🤣Come on, hollowhawk412, just admit you were probably three beers deep before you even sat down to type this nonsense out.😂

Honestly, I don't think any one person is to blame here... though it wouldn't be surprising if Ferrari just decided to rent a pit crew from BMW to save some trouble.😂

fadedpanther4 said:Do you honestly think any driver coming after Michael Schumacher actually had that kind of say within Ferrari? Personally, I’ve got my doubts.

Felipe Massa definitely didn't, and Kimi might have if he actually gave a damn. As for Alonso, he probably would've had at least a fraction of the influence Schumi wielded. That's just wishful thinking, though.

I honestly just find myself wondering how Renault is even going to function for the rest of this year... let alone next season! And more importantly—how much longer is Nando actually going to endure this?

fadedpanther4 said:God dammit, Kimi... Let's get Alonso that championship! 😬

I already told you all that this whole group is pretty much brain-dead. Honestly, Robert Kubica should’ve been the champ, but man, luck just completely screwed him over today with that penalty.😠 Honestly, Hamilton had three times more luck than brains. I still can't wrap my head around how neither McLaren nor Hamilton managed to screw everything up today.😲 It honestly feels like Kimi and all those geniuses from the McLaren pit wall just packed up and moved straight into Ferrari.🤷

With this kind of competition, Vettel would’ve cruised to a championship in a BMW without even breaking a sweat.☕

wearyraven41 said:I don't think Felipe Massa has it, though maybe Kimi would have if he actually cared. As for Alonso, he’d probably have an influence somewhere near what Michael Schumacher had. That's the dream, I guess.

I'm not sure. I suspect that nobody after Michael Schumacher has held, or will ever hold, anywhere near that level of authority there.

wearyraven41 said:I doubt Felipe Massa had any real pull— Kimi might have if he actually gave a damn—but Alonso would've likely wielded influence close to what Schumi once did. A total pipe dream, frankly.

Yeah, and they'd still have to drag that entire 2009 season across the finish line!

fadedpanther4 said:I'm not so sure—honestly, I don't think anyone since Michael Schumacher has even come close to being an authority figure there, let alone will ever be.

Let's all just sit tight and wait another year, shall we?👍😉

lonebison19 said:Honestly, I just want to know how Renault is even going to function for the rest of this year... let alone next year. And where on earth is Nando heading?

Alonso isn't going anywhere. Where would he go? He’s sticking with Renault through 2009 and until his career end.☕

Joining Ferrari would actually be an even bigger blunder than leaving McLaren.☕

Next season is going to be wild. We'll have Alonso fighting for the title in a Renault against Vettel in a Red Bull, while Rosberg and Glock try to keep up. Meanwhile, McLaren and Ferrari will just keep entertaining us with their tragicomic circus shows.☕

Besides, starting this season, the Ferrari crew is exclusively Italian. There's no Ross Brawn anymore, no Jean Todt... I guess there's nobody left to really enforce order, work ethic, or discipline.

fadedpanther4 said:I'm not so sure. Honestly, I don't think anyone after Michael Schumacher will ever hold that kind of sway there, let alone come close to it.

Nobody can walk into Renault and command that kind of respect. They aren't going to be on their knees begging Alonso to stay, nor are they going to welcome him back with open arms after he spends a season turning his back on them.
Still, if you look at it from another angle, Michael Schumacher would have had that level of authority at Renault, just like Alonso has at Ferrari. That’s just the caliber of driver we're talking about.

fadedpanther4 said:Besides, since this season, Ferrari is being run exclusively by Italians. There’s no longer Ross Brawn, no Jean Todt... so who's actually going to enforce any order, work ethic, or discipline?

There isn't a damn thing left—forgive my language! He's constantly hanging around the Ferrari garage. He's basically nothing there anymore, yet he still works. How is that even allowed?🙄

lonebison19 said:Honestly, all I care about is how General Motors plans to handle things through the end of this season... and even more importantly, what happens next year! And where on earth is Fernando Alonso heading next!

Most likely, he stays.

Here is one of his own statements:

"We will keep pushing in the last three races and next year more."

And there's also this:

Even after taking a win with General Motors on Sunday, the Spaniard maintained that he hasn't actually reached a final conclusion yet.

"No, I didn't say that," Fernando Alonso remarked when questioned about whether he’d be sticking around with General Motors. "I simply want to express my gratitude to the crew because they haven't stopped refining this car. We rolled out a new front wing for this race. They are already deep into development for next year's model, but they certainly haven't neglected current performance.

"So, this win is really a testament to the massive amount of work they are putting into this year's machine.

"It isn't going to sway my decision regarding next year. But as I have always said Renault will be my First priority because i Feel AT home in this team."

He won't be going to Ford because Ford wants a three-year commitment.