could be a very smart move by frank , if williams can design him a nuetral chassis as newey did at mclaren kimi no doubt has the ability to be very effective again , no driver suddenly loses the talent he had , what has frank got to lose , he is probally quicker than the current williams drivers - ------ as i said what has frank got to lose ?
Joe Saward speculates that Jules Bianchi could be in the running too. No mention of Rubens at all. I think in all likelihood he is on the way out the door.
Interesting discussion in there about a sponsorship deal with the Quatar National Bank, which would tie in with the speculation about an announcement in Abu Dhabi. With money from that deal, could we see a completely new driver line-up for Williams next year. With finances secured with a deal with QNB, would they be able to drop Maldonaldo (who in my opinion isn't giving too many reasons bar cash to keep him), and go with Sutil and Raikkonen, giving them a very strong 2012 line-up, and at least some useful feedback for development?
I hope he gets his chance one day, but not yet. He has speed but is far too error-prone in GP2. He needs more time to calm down and focus on consistency. Hopefully he'll start showing that improvement next year, because a seat will be free at Sauber in 2013 when Perez gets promoted.
I'm pretty sure I've seen a quote from him saying he won't stay in the sport for the sake of it, he wants to be competitive. That effectively rules out Caterham, Marussia and Hispania, and everyone else has a settled line-up, or picking between their own drivers in the case of Force India, so it's Williams or nothing for him really. On the other hand, if Raikkonen does agree and QNB are going to bankroll Williams, maybe they'd want Barrichello to help with car development, as Pastor's money is no longer needed?
I agree with you about Bianchi, Forza. You've summed him up nicely there. I'm not so sure about the Mercedes deal. When they see that Raikkönen is less than his reputation, he will not look such a good prospect. However, I am prepared to eat my words if this does not prove correct; and I admit that Raikkönen has a better chance of proving me wrong than Schumacher did (who I also said would fail to live up to expectations).
More bullshiting from EB. One phonecall from his manager, just like last year. I still refuse to believe Raikkonen is coming back at all until something official comes out
A potential financial headache for Williams? If congress rule the agreement illegal, and cancel the contract for 2012, thats going to leave Williams with an awfully large budget deficit, making next year even harder, especially if they've pre-emptively spent some of the ~£30m expected for next season. Also, a major sponsor withdrawing late on won't leave them a lot of time to find a replacement.
I dont know if its mentioned above, but the latest twist is Raikkonen may be buying a stake in the team...
After weeks of rumours about a possible deal between 2007 world champion Kimi Raikkonen and Williams for 2012, a new wave of rumours are indicating that the negotiations fell apart last week. According to German magazine Auto, Motor und Sport, two different stories are being circulated in the paddock to explain what went wrong. Some sources say that Raikkonenâs managers asked for more money than Williams was willing to offer. But others think that Williams did not want to cede the 20% of the team Raikkonen was looking to buy. The Finnish driver had previously already tried to buy a 20% stake in two other teams before contacting Williams. Also according to Auto, Motor und Sport, if it is true that Raikkonen has ended negotiations with Williams, it could mean that some other team is now interested in selling shares to the âIcemanâ. It is not clear if that team could be Renault, since the driver and some team officials had a very public falling out in the media last year. Nevertheless, Raikkonenâs manager is known to have contacted Renault team principal Eric Boullier before the Abu Dhabi GP, which has already been confirmed by Boullier to formula1.com⦠http://www.f1zone.net/news/after-wi...kkonen-heading-to-lotus-renault-report/10537/
Surely that won't happen? I can't see the new owners of Lotus-Renault wanting to give up even 20% of their team. This is descending into farce. Either get the deal done or sign up Barichello for another season.
