The 2004 Season

Feel free to share all your updates regarding the upcoming season and any major team shake-ups here. The latest news is that Ferrari is bolstering its ranks by bringing on one of the top aerodynamics experts in the business; John Iley signed with them just this week after his time at Renault.

Read more here:
Ferrari has hired former Renault employee John Iley as its new head of aerodynamics.

Iley, who worked in a similar role with Renault under the direction of Mike Gascoyne, has joined Ferrari in what is a newly created role. He will report to Ferrari's chief designer, Rory Byrne.

I noticed nobody has weighed in on the latest news regarding Montoya, who stated he’s definitely seeing his contract through to the end—meaning one more season at BMW Williams. Since the most decorated driver ever might be moving on in 2005, it looks like Montoya will be the top target for the two heavyweights: Ferrari and McLaren.

Anđeo said:... Given how things look for 2005, since the most decorated driver ever might be moving on, it seems like Montoya will be targeted by the two heavyweights, which would obviously be Ferrari and McLaren.

No way. That ship has sailed. He's ours!👍

We finally have Montoya!!! Honestly, if they gave Wurz a shot next season instead of David, everything would be perfect.
I'm hearing rumors that Villeneuve is definitely leaving F1!

Anđeo said:I see nobody has commented on the latest news regarding Montoya. He basically stated he’s definitely seeing out his contract, which means one more season at BMW Williams. Since it's possible the most decorated driver ever could be leaving by 2005, I guess Montoya will likely be targeted by the two biggest rivals on the grid—which, obviously, are Ferrari and McLaren.

I guess Ferrari gave up on Montoya a long time ago. It looks like they’ve set their sights on Alonso instead, who, in my opinion, isn't any worse than Montoya.

Schumacher is under contract with Ferrari through the end of 2006. This implies he’ll stick around until then, if not longer; though, would it really be such a shock if he ends up like Piquet did? (For those keeping score, Piquet drove until '91, by which point he was little more than a shadow of his former self)...

darkscout46 said:Ferrari gave up on Montoya a long time ago. It looks like their sights are set on Alonso now, who, if you ask me, is just as talented a driver as Montoya was.

Unfortunately, that’s the reality of the situation, and it won't be much longer before we see Alonso move on from the blue and yellow car.😢

THE SEASON IS ALREADY RUINED WITHOUT VILLENEUVE!

I’ve pretty much stopped reading the news altogether. Now, my only weekly ritual is checking in just to see what kind of nonsense Villeneuve is saying...

😢

Honestly, after catching that live Rally broadcast on ESPN and seeing how much fun Solberg was having with the fans... I think I might actually switch over to following that instead. It's true, you don't see the same kind of overtaking in Rally, but then again, it's not like we see much of it in Formula 1 either...

2004 Formula 1 entry list

1. Michael Schumacher (Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro)
2. Rubens Barrichello (Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro)
3. Juan Pablo Montoya (BMW Williams F1 team)
4. Ralf Schumacher (BMW Williams F1 team)
5. David Coulthard (West McLaren Mercedes)
6. Kimi Raikkonen (West McLaren Mercedes)
7. Jarno Trulli (Mild Seven Renault F1 team)
8. Fernando Alonso (Mild Seven Renault F1 team)
9. Jenson Button (Lucky Strike B.A.R. Honda)
10. Takuma Sato (Lucky Strike B.A.R. Honda)
11. Giancarlo Fisichella (Sauber Petronas)
12. Felipe Massa (Sauber Petronas)
14. Mark Webber (Jaguar Racing)
15. TBD (Jaguar Racing)
16. Cristiano (Panasonic Toyota Racing)
17. Olivier Panis (Panasonic Toyota Racing)
18. TBD (Jordan Ford)
19. TBD (Jordan Ford)
20. TBD (Minardi Cosworth)
21. TBD (Minardi Cosworth)

Names of Drivers are subject to the granting of a super license and to the agreement of the Contract Recognition Board.

In accordance with Article 58 of the 2004 Formula One Sporting Regulations, driver nominations can be made or updated until 4:00 PM on March 4, 2004.

It just doesn't sit right with me, seeing David Coulthard assigned number 5 while Raikkonen takes number 6...

Elizabeth Hughes says Montezemolo is making calls:
So, David Coulthard isn't getting number 5, and Raikkonen isn't taking number 6... just because...

It feels like something totally slipped through the cracks between 12 and 14—or is everyone just being incredibly superstitious about this stuff??

Dennis Baker34 said:Did something get lost between numbers 12 and 14, or is everyone just too superstitious to touch it?

The number 13 hasn't really been a thing in Formula 1 for years now...

wearyraven41 said:THE SEASON IS TOTALLY WITHOUT VILLENEUVE!

yeah—villeneuve's missing from the season entirely 😁

Elizabeth Hughes via Montezemolo said:The number 13 hasn't been used in Formula 1 for years now...

Look at that! I’ve been following Formula 1 since 1989, and even now—all this time—I still haven't figured it out; I just end up giving way too much attention to the top-tier teams! 😢

The MP4-19 passed its crash test on the very first try! 😁

Hannah Sullivan3 said:The MP4-19 passed its crash test on the very first try!!!!!😁

Woooooooow... 🙄

Elizabeth Hughes says Montezemolo said:Wooow... 🙄

Woooooooow 🙂

B.A.R. Honda has officially locked in their partnership with Michelin for next season, and Toyota is set to unveil their new car on January 17, 2004. That’s all the news on the Asian team for now; let's shift our focus back to McLaren.🙂The MP4-19 managed to pull off three solid days of testing, completing 127 laps without any major hiccups during the sessions in Valencia. Kimi is still enjoying some downtime while Wurz and Coulthard take the wheel.

Anđeo said:Kimi is still out enjoying his vacation while they put Wurz and Coulthard through the paces.

If you aren't putting in the work during the season, you've got to grind now (which obviously means Coulthard is stepping up)... 🙄 😛

Elizabeth Hughes regarding Sergio Marchionne said:Anyone who isn't putting in the work during the season better get moving now (I'm looking at you, David Coulthard)... 🙄 😛

It’s quite an achievement to stay in the top eight by the end of a season, and David has been part of that elite group for years. Personally, I'm expecting him to hang up his helmet and move on from Formula 1 and McLaren after his run as a world champion.😁