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View Poll Results: Who will win?
Sebastian Vettel
42.53%
Mark Webber
6.90%
Jenson Button
14.94%
Lewis Hamilton
14.94%
Fernando Alonso
3.45%
Felipe Massa
0
0%
Michael Schumacher
5.75%
Nico Rosberg
0
0%
Kimi Raikkonen
10.34%
Romain Grosjean
0
0%
Paul di Resta
0
0%
Nico Hulkenberg
0
0%
Kamui Kobayashi
0
0%
Sergio Perez
0
0%
Daniel Ricciardo
0
0%
Jean-Eric Vergne
0
0%
Pastor Maldonado
0
0%
Bruno Senna
1.15%
Heikki Kovalainen
0
0%
Vitali Petrov
0
0%
Voters: 87. You may not vote on this poll

2012 Australian Grand Prix

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Old 03-08-2012, 01:01 PM
  #16  
ltc
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Default And Luca hits the button early ...

Code Blue, Code Blue ...



Would Doctors Sir A.Wayne, 968TurboS and Luis dePrat please report to Maranello STAT

How could Ferrari possibly go from winning championships with Schumacher and Raikkonen to this?
How could the best driver in F1 be unable to put a team on his shoulders and will them to victory?

Clearly this is merely Luca's Jedi mind trick on the entire F1 grid.
Ferrari will win the race by 30 seconds.
Old 03-08-2012, 01:57 PM
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Originally Posted by paradisenb
RK was not around to provide last year.
And apparently there are reports saying Kubica can't even raise a glass with that hand to drink.
Old 03-08-2012, 02:16 PM
  #18  
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I voted Kimi...looks like I'm not the only one.
Old 03-08-2012, 02:19 PM
  #19  
Serge944
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Originally Posted by Pete
I don't know how anyone could pick Alonso to win when it's pretty clear that Ferrari is in a sad state of affairs. Last week Domenicali said they wouldn't even make the podium in the first few races of the year let alone win....



Ferrari holds top level discussion

8 March 2012

Luca di Montezemolo, President of Ferrari, held a significant meeting with Team Principal Stefano Domenicali and the outfit's 'top engineers' on Wednesday, focused on developing the new F2012. After a tough pre-season, the marque looks set to have a tough task on its hands to fight at the top of F1's pecking order.

“I found a team that is very concentrated and determined,” Montezemolo told the official Ferrari website. “I saw in Domenicali and our engineers a great desire to show what they’re worth and to react to a winter programme that didn’t live up to our targets.

“I must underline these are our words because we will only discover the truth about where we stand compared to the others after Saturday qualifying in Melbourne: today we can only make assumptions.

Despite Ferrari's struggles in Jerez and Barcelona, di Montezemolo went on to explain that the planned 20-race calendar offers the squad plenty of scope for improvement.

“No matter how it goes in Melbourne, I would like to remind everyone that this will be the longest championship in the history of Formula 1,” he began to sum up. “We certainly won’t be able to draw conclusions after just one race.”
If you had a winning car, would you go around telling everyone you're going to win? Come on...

This is on the level of judging car performance from pre-season testing lap times.
Old 03-08-2012, 02:28 PM
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Right. Like a race team would sandbag.

Vettel for the win.
Old 03-08-2012, 04:06 PM
  #21  
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Voted Button.

Hope Sky's coverage will be good this year!
Old 03-09-2012, 04:42 PM
  #22  
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Vettel - another season of maturity in a stable team with the best designer. Expect Red Bull and McLaren to remain at the pointy end of the stick. Looking (hoping) for improved showings by Lotus and Williams in 2012. Can't wait for the season to start.
Old 03-09-2012, 06:52 PM
  #23  
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Originally Posted by Serge944
If you had a winning car, would you go around telling everyone you're going to win? Come on...

This is on the level of judging car performance from pre-season testing lap times.
Historically, it is not in Ferrari's past and certainly not in their DNA to downplay their competitiveness before a season has ever started. In fact, this is downright bleak for the Tifosi (I include myself in there) as there is literally no hope going into this championship season.

Perhaps they are trying to ease the pain for the fans to "under promise and over deliver" because the Italian press is so brutal.

Regardless, all the teams look at each other like hawks during testing and even though the total lap times do not mean anything, there is a small army of engineers on the pitwalls studying everything every other team is doing and they break it down into sector times, low fuel, heavy fuel loads, tire compounds etc.

If there is anything to be read from pre-season testing is that McLaren has narrowed the gap to Red Bull, Ferrari has slipped down and Mercedes has taken a small step forward, but not enough to win a race unless something goofy safety car period happens.

It has been announced that two DRS zones will be in play in Melbourne, so that should spice things up for the opening round.
Old 03-09-2012, 07:42 PM
  #24  
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Red Bull and McLaren maybe in a class of their own at the start of this season. The spectacle I'm looking forward to is the fight between Alonso, Massa (if the the F cars are indeed off pace), and the ascending M-B and Loti----Rosberg, MS and hopefully Kimi.

Rooting for the Toro Rosso rookies also.
Old 03-09-2012, 08:12 PM
  #25  
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I would love to see Kobayashi win, but it won't happen.
Old 03-10-2012, 06:09 PM
  #26  
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2012 is going to be a great year for Formula One I believe that this is the first time there will be six (6) world champions competing in a season. I am a die hard Fernando Alonso fan; however, most of the recent articles have indicated that the F cars are not up to par but improving Is this psychological warefare or are they really struggling? With so many great drivers together, it is going to the the machine that will make the difference. I like Perez in his sophmore season to finish much improved from last year and Kimi will definately be a strong factor. I also suspect that MS will drive his *** off since I believe his contract will expire at the end of the season and maybe he will retire from the driver's seat and take an office position with MBZ. No matter, the fans are all winners this season
Old 03-10-2012, 06:50 PM
  #27  
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Originally Posted by Pete
If there is anything to be read from pre-season testing is that McLaren has narrowed the gap to Red Bull, Ferrari has slipped down and Mercedes has taken a small step forward, but not enough to win a race unless something goofy safety car period happens.
This is the impression that I've gotten too from everything that I've read. The other thing that I would be interested in seeing is whether Lotus has something to offer. They were fast in testing but that doesn't necessarily translate to being fast during GP weekends.

Glad to see Kimi back too.
Old 03-10-2012, 06:56 PM
  #28  
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Wouldn't it be great if Ferrari are just putting on a master class in sandbagging

When it comes to RK, no news is bad news.
Old 03-10-2012, 09:06 PM
  #29  
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Originally Posted by D.Keshler
Wouldn't it be great if Ferrari are just putting on a master class in sandbagging
Yup. I've already picked Alonso for the 2012 WDC. Luca is a genius.
Adrian Newey will leave RBR before the end of the season and pay fr the privilege of working for Ferrari.

Ferrari and Alonso. If it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck ....
Old 03-10-2012, 09:39 PM
  #30  
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Voted for Vettel because that is where my money would be - and I think he is a class guy and a great double world champion. That being said I would love to see Lotus, Mercedes, and Force India on the podium - with my favorite driver JB in 4th with some good points. What a season we would have with a start like that.

Sounds like Ferrari is in disarray, no reason this should not be so, look at Williams. Dynasties have a beginning and an ending. If any team has the ability to resurrect itself it has to be Ferrari - but I don't think too many of the brains behind the brilliance of the Shumacher years are there anymore - Ferrari are on their way down. Alonso is a brilliant driver that has overachieved each of the last two years. Massa is an average (for F1) driver that has performed to par the last two years. The new car seems to not be an improvement yet, but (as they say) it is a long season.


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