Alonso Hankering for Massa’s Spot at Ferrari F1?
The ink may not be completely dry on a contract that will make Renault’s Fernando Alonso the highest paid driver in Formula One starting with the 2009 season, but already rumors are starting to circulate that the former world champion might be looking elsewhere for employment.
Pressure seems to be building over at the Ferrari paddock, where number-two driver Felipe Massa made yet another race-ending mistake in Malaysia last weekend. Meanwhile Alonso is having troubles of his own after being reunited with Renault, struggling to an eighth-place finish, and a lone championship point, in the same event. That set of circumstances had the Malaysian press asking Alonso about a possible move to the Italian team, which he didn’t exactly strike down unequivocally.
"It is too early to talk about team transfers," said Alonso to Diario AS, "but Massa has had two bad races with errors and it is logical that people are talking about Vettel and me."
While Alonso did say that he would like to continue the winning way he found at Renault in 2005 and 2006, he also mentioned pointedly, "I always want to be in the best car in the field.
Comments
Russ Bellinis
Alonso demonstrated last year, that he doesn't drive well when he is paired with another world championship contender on the same team. If he is paired with Kimi, he will probably do the same sort of melt down that he did with Lewis Hamilton last year if Kimi is faster either in qualifying or the race.
The Stig
^ I agree with Russ. These rumors were circulating well before the season even started. Personally I see it as a disaster. But Luca has made no secret that he admires Alonshole (for SOME reason) and it's widely thought that Massa landed his ride because of connections with Jean Todt - who as you may recall recently stepped down. Now that protection for Massa is gone. If you listen to all the conspiracy theories, there are even some circulating that this kind of back-door deal was in place early into last year, and was the catalyst to the exposure of last years spy scandal.
Alonshole would be pure poison to Ferrari IMO. It would actually give me pause to rooting for them next year if this clown lands a seat. I won't deny his driving talent, but his personality leaves MUCH to be desired.
Greg
Does not matter because Kubica and Bimmer will rip up the competition anyway!!!
Steve
Gosh... This brings up so many feelings!
On the one hand, I'd love to see:
- A real, bona-fide clash of titans with Kimi and Alonso on the same team.
- Ferrari landing two drivers on the podium at almost every race.
However...
- I absolutely agree with every word Russ and The Stig have said... But... If they could hold it together and keep it from falling to pieces (something that Dennis was unable to do)... Wow.
While I know that Todt didn't want Alonso with Ferrari... That doesn't carry weight any longer. I wonder what Schumi says?
Iain
As a MclAren fan, I would love to see Alonso at Ferrari :)
With Todt gone and Italian politics firmly back in place plus Alonso and Kimi fighting like crazy, Mclaren, BMW and maybe Williams, Red Bull will be fighting for the championship.
Seriously, it is amazing how Alonso's public image has dropped so much after last year - he used to be the golden boy and now he looks like a whining 4-year old. Why would Ferrari want him????
Clint
Kimi drives fast and keeps his mouth shut. What more would you want than that?
Massa was a great second driver because he would podium regularly, but generally not complain that Schumi was getting all the attention from the team. I'm sure Massa was expecting that his loyalty would result in a Lead Driver position once Schumi left, but now that Kimi is obviously the proven winner, Massa can't gain anything at Ferrari. He'll probably want to leave to "prove himself", and end up a sad also-ran like Rubens.
Ferrari hiring Alonso would make no sense at all. I don't think Ferrari would want to hire another expensive driver who will just cause friction in the team when they already have Kimi. Vettel makes more sense - a young guy who will feel greatful and not complain when Kimi gets all the wins. Maybe once Kimi steps off, Vettel will be able to take the reigns.
Andrés Menacho
First of, Massa just signed in to a 2010 contract prior to the start of the season. Second of all, pairing the two best drivers on the grid on a team would be disastrous as Russ said. it would more than split the team. I would rather have Vettel join ferrai. he is a driver which has demonstrated true potential and i belief he could be a better play for the future. Alonso can just stay in renault.
Brad
There's no way in the world I would want Alonso at Ferrari. He's already proven he doesn't like to have someone with equal or more talent than he has on his team.
I don't know what Massa's problem is. He has to start completing races in the points or those low voices calling for his ouster will turn into shouts and screams.
Vettel would make a good choice but he needs to be a test driver for at least a full year before handing over second driver duties to him.
Another great choice would be Robert Kubica especially if BMW does not win any races this year. His frustration at not winning might just be enough to pull him over to Ferrari. I don't know how long his current contract is but the boy sure is fast.
Ferrari might have another problem on their hands with Kimi. I thought earlier this year he hinted that his Formula 1 career might be coming to a close. If he does win another World Championship this year he might just get to feeling that he has done all he can do in F1 and call it quits.
The Stig
Well, for the contract issue - if the whole McLaren spy debacle proved anything last year, it proved that F1 contracts are worth the paper they're printed on.
Pedro
If we forget about the cry-baby situation from McLaren last season and look at Alonso's pure talents as a driver, it may have some merit. One of the areas where Alonso has always been strong is in his feedback that helps his teams develop, much like Schumi. Alonso brought Benotton/Renault from a mid- or back-marker team (sure Renault had a little something to do with that) to championship form in a very short amount of time. That's of course a testament to his talents as a driver, but perhaps even more importantly to his role in development of the car. Let's not forget he helped turn around a struggling McLaren as well. I know I may get hung at sundown for this, but I would argue that if not for him, Lewis wouldn't be the driver he is today; he certainly wouldn't have the car he does as he hasn't spent a single lap of testing in his life. Kimi's a pure driver (probably the best on the track for some time), but he doesn't offer much in the way of development. Massa has many years of test experience that helps the team, but has not been a consistently good driver. Shumi's current role with the team speaks to their need to have someone that can develop a winning car from the cockpit. If there's any substance at all to the Alonso rumour, that may be the basis. It will be interesting to see how he can help Renault regain form in the meantime
Tom
As a Ferrari fan, I think having Alonso is a terrible idea. He showed this last year.
Maybe Alonso is not even that fast. Do you think so? The FIN @ McLaren is doing as well, instantly.
As for Massa, he needs to do a better job of being a #2, or even (a way better job) of being a #1. He must finish the race. I believe he has the skills to do it, but I think he has performance anxiety.
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Russ Bellinis
I think Massa just needs to learn to drive without the driver aids. He has thrown it off in 2 races, but I think he'll get the hang of it and go back to being the driver he was. He started slowly last year as well, but was fine as the season progressed. Even Kimi threw the car away at Melbourne.
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