Spanish Grand Prix - April 27, 2008

darkmarlin16 said:Now we're finally seeing who the true Fernando fans really are.

Look, I’m claiming that title myself. I’ve been riding for him since his days over at Renault, and I know exactly what he’s accomplished out there.

Here’s a little hint—just two titles under his belt.

No offense intended, but you still haven't earned the right to call yourself a real fan.

?why on earth

darkmarlin16 said:Why exactly?

Well, it's mostly because you're still young, and honestly, you won't truly figure out if you're a die-hard fan of his until some time passes; it's way too early to tell right now, unless you want to end up like our little girl Hakkinen Sumi, drifting from one idol to the next just like Alonso did🙂. 👍But hey, just stick around here for now.

hollowhawk412 said:only a die-hard McLaren fan would try to compare the CD gate to the floppy disk gate...

The gap between what the media claimed and what actually got proven
is enough grounds for a defamation lawsuit over fabricated evidence...

In the end, it turned out to be nothing more than four drawings seen by three engineers...

Not to mention there wasn't even a leak; those drawings were just taken while Piquet was an engineer at McLaren before moving over to Renault...

While he was part of the Renault crew, he had zero contact with McLaren...

But hey, that's all in the past now...

Here's some more news regarding Renault

http://www.itv-f1.com/News_Article.aspx?id=42288

Renault is set to introduce a number of upgrades for Alonso's home race at Catalunya later this month, but Bell said this would just be an initial step.

"To say we need to improve is an understatement - it will take a tidal wave of change, but that's what we're here to do," he said,

"We need to take the first step in Barcelona: we need to clearly demonstrate there that we've made a step forward as we start to move ourselves back towards the leading three teams and edge ourselves away from that gaggle of teams sitting just behind them.

"That's objective number one, and then by mid-season we really need to have shown that we have consolidated and we are back there on the tails of the top teams.

It’s a real shame they didn't roll out that suspension for the first race, because those first three races
would have been perfect practice sessions... and there's no better way to learn than through actual racing...

As it stands, they'll always be playing catch-up...

Comparing a floppy disk to a CD has nothing to do with what I wrote; you're the one making that comparison, so I could easily say that only a Renault fan would do that.

Besides, it's illegal for engineers to take anything from one team to another, unless you count what they carry in their heads.

The whole circus last year basically spiraled from proving information theft into Max Mosley's personal vendetta against Ron Dennis, and honestly, whether you believe that or not is just a matter of opinion.

All this stuff being written about Renault is still just talk on paper; until they show it on the track, it's all just theory.

You don't need to drop a link about Renault's upgrades and theories on how their new suspension will work in every single post.

Jason Campbell70 said:Last season, Renault basically got screwed by their switch to Bridgestone, and honestly, they were tripping over themselves too—Fisichella just wasn't cutting it, while Kovalainen needed forever to actually find his rhythm.
In my opinion, the real culprit this year has to be that standardized ECU, because Renault seems completely unable to get their head around it.

Plus, one of the big reasons McLaren had such an edge last season was thanks to Stepney’s data regarding car balance and tire setups.

Well, you see how even the main players in this whole mess admitted the data was leaking on both sides; I bet the ECU system was a massive headache for Ferrari, and if those leaks were truly happening everywhere,🤷 who knows, maybe they managed to get their hands on some blueprints.

Raymond Ortiz89 said:hollowhawk412, look, I can see you're a die-hard Renault fan, but let's be honest, Renault has absolutely nothing to show for themselves this year. Their engines seem to be lacking just a bit of punch, which might not sound like much on paper, but you can clearly see the deficit when they exit a corner; they're bleeding seconds at every single turn. If you saw how much Glock was pulling away from Alonso—I think it was about seven seconds if I recall correctly—that tells you everything you need to know about Renault's current state. They've got nothing this season, and if Ferrari manages to pull off a win in Barcelona, I truly don't think anyone will be able to touch them, at least not the way we all expected the competition to shake out.

This whole engine situation feels incredibly strange to me... back in 2007, engine development was extremely restricted, so it’s quite baffling to everyone why one of the most consistently top-tier engines would suddenly start struggling with power output...
but then again, as Pilatus suggests, perhaps there are other underlying factors at play here...
I honestly fail to see how the rest of the field could have managed to secure any kind of significant advantage throughout 2007...

And when you talk about exiting corners, that's really where the suspension setup and how well the car handles its tires comes into play...

Engine power is obviously vital for straight-line speed...

hollowhawk412 said:Following in the footsteps of BMW Sauber... Renault is gearing up to integrate a massive new supercomputer—a move that could fundamentally shift their technical edge. It’s an ambitious step toward mastering the computational side of the sport.
Following in the footsteps of BMW Sauber—it’s an interesting direction to take.
10/04/08 10:24

Zoom
Following in the footsteps of BMW Sauber... Renault is making a serious play for the future.

Renault is preparing to be the next Formula One outfit to tap into the sheer processing power of a supercomputer—all in an effort to climb the grid.

It looks like Appro—that California-based company—just landed a major contract. They’ll be supplying their high-performance 'Xtreme-X2' supercomputer to power up the French team's new CFD facility over in Enstone, UK.

According to Appro, the new supercomputer—which should boost the team's processing power by about five times—is scheduled to arrive and be fully installed at the factory by the end of June.

BMW used similar systems back when they were working with the first Albert—and even more recently with the Albert2.

What’s the deal with this copy-paste job—do you honestly think we haven't heard of f1live before? Are you trying to be helpful, or is there some kind of catch here?

Have you perhaps noticed:

1996-2008 ©Copyright RACING-LIVE. All reproduction and distribution rights are strictly reserved to RACING-LIVE.
Rights strictly reserved for the private user who acknowledges the Agreement of Use.

hollowhawk412 said:That whole engine situation feels incredibly sketchy... back in 2007, engine development was strictly handcuffed by the regs, so it strikes me as bizarre that one of the most dominant power units we've seen in years would suddenly start choking on horsepower...
but like Pilatus mentioned, maybe there are other variables at play here...
I honestly can't see how the rest of the pack could have pulled off any kind of meaningful advantage throughout 2007...

And when you talk about getting out of the corners, that’s really where the suspension setup and how the car dances with the tires comes into play...

Raw engine grunt matters for top speed on the straights, sure...

Look, I get it—engine power is what drives you down the straightaways
but right now, they don't have the straight-line speed, which makes sense enough
except they're also totally gutless coming out of the turns
I just don't get what they were thinking with their direction, because nothing is working for them. If you look back at 2005 or even the year before that, nobody had the kind of exit speed they used to have, so I have no clue why they're struggling so hard to find it now. 🤷
I hope you catch my drift.

Raymond Ortiz89 said:I mean, is anyone actually expecting anything more from Renault?🤣 🤣 🤣 🤣

Personally, I’m expecting way more...

Just look at how much aero work they've cooked up for Spain. With this car, I honestly think they're going to be fighting for some serious points.

http://www.geocities.com/richardirl/85.htm

I mean, I’m expecting way more than this, too
especially when you consider who Fernando Alonso is
and maybe Nelson can actually scrape together a couple of points if he plays his cards right

darkmarlin16 said:I'm honestly expecting way more too,
especially from Fernando.
And maybe Nelson pulls in a point or two.

Alonso is already leaving it all out there on the track, so if people think Pike is gonna snag a point, they're dreaming.😕 he can 🙂

Fernando Alonso basically dropped a truth bomb saying McLaren decided to bail because they just aren't a winning outfit anymore. "McLaren looks like a winner on paper, but let's be real, they aren't," Alonso said, according to F1Today.

"Some teams can churn out decent cars and act like they're at the top of the food chain, but they aren't actually winners—just look at McLaren."

"They haven't touched a championship title in years, so honestly, I’d much rather jump ship to Renault, since I managed to snag two driver titles and two constructor titles with them during that same stretch."

Alonso is convinced that making the move to Renault is the right play for his future, even if the performance from the French squad isn't exactly looking legendary right this second.

"I had plenty of options to join some other mid-tier teams, but Renault felt like the smart move. We're talking about a crew that actually knows how to build a fast car and actually cross the finish line first."

So, what's the deal with the 2009 plans?

"Next year, I want to be behind the wheel of a team that can actually win. Right now, I'm betting on Renault because we're going to close those gaps by the end of the season and then we'll be perfectly positioned to make massive strides for next year," he wrapped things up.

Pique isn't even going to crack 15 points this season.
Or am I just being way too optimistic here?

Honestly, there are plenty of drivers way better than Piquet, take Sutil for example, he's got way more potential than people give him credit for

darkmarlin16 said:Fernando Alonso stated that McLaren decided to leave because they aren't actually a winning team. "McLaren looks like a winning team, but they just aren't," Alonso said, according to F1Today.

"Some teams are capable of producing decent cars. They might look like winners, but they really aren't, much like McLaren."

"They haven't won a single title in years, so I'd much rather be with Renault, where I managed to snag two driver's and two constructors' titles in that same timeframe."

Alonso believes moving to Renault is the right call for his future, even if the French team's current form isn't exactly convincing.

"I could have gone to several other solid teams, but Renault felt like the right move. They're a crew that knows how to build great cars and actually win races."

So, what's the game plan for 2009?

"Next year, I want to be with a team that can actually take the checkered flag. Right now, I think that will be Renault, because we're going to close those gaps by the end of the season and then we'll be in a position to make some real strides for next year." he concluded.

Even when you're hoping for the best, you know Alonso isn't going to play nice. 🤣

and even Fisichella was better than him

Honestly, everything Alonso said was spot on.

Honestly, what MCM pulled off last year, even Aguri couldn't have dreamed of pulling together if he had all the time in the world.

darkmarlin16 said:Piqué isn't going to score more than 15 points.
Or am I just being way too optimistic here?

Way too optimistic...