http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/formula_one/15825993.stm That's a weird move. I thought that they would take drivers on loan again, e.g. Ricciardo, and i thought that RBR would probably pay them to take Vergne for next year. No offence to Pedro, but he's not the most talented driver in the world.
Are you overlooking that he is one of the most respected test drivers in the world? For the purposes of HRT, de la Rosa is far more attractive than someone like Massa. PDLR is intelligent and accurate; his feedback is very highly regarded. Surely this is precisely what HRT need? There are very few others who could be so thorough, Alex Wurz is one of the few. Damon Hill is another. Schumacher is another. Bruno Senna is not. Neither is Ricciardo. Alonso and Button would be superb but Hamilton would struggle. I could go on until this computer gives up. Pedro de la Rosa is a very good catch for HRT; in fact, with their budget, probably the best they could ever dream of!
At first I laughed and thought it was a joke, then came to roughly the same conclusion as Cosi, they aren't going to get a superstar driver, and even if they did how much further up the table could even a partnership of Prost and Senna get HRT atm? An extra place or 2 isn't going to get them close to the points, what they need more than a driver is development. What better way to develop than to use one of the best test drivers as one of their entrants, they can't test so why not use one seat to test drive and the other to see if it's working, what does it matter if PDLR comes last, an HRT come last anyway, an extra lap down isn't going to make much difference, the only forseeable problem is the 107% rule.
A nice little sly dig at Senna their cosicave, you never pass up an opportunity do you? And just so you are a little more informed in the future; when Senna had his Honda test part of that was a technical feedback test in which he matched Lucas de Grassi who is meant to have very good technical feedback, hence why he is the Pirelli tester like PDLR was.
But he's really slow. Surely a team with forward aspirations would gamble on one of these fast young hotshots, rather than a guy who never really deserved an F1 seat in the first place.
Really slow? He's an F1 driver! Sure, he may be a couple of tenths away in raw pace, which has been exacerbated by his lack of time in a car recently, but that'll come back. And yes, gamble on a young hotshot, thats the role Ricciardo or Vergne, etc, will fulfil, but when they come in after a practice session, they'll know the car is slow - but have no idea why. De La Rosa will be able to make the constructive criticism which improves the car overall, so your younger driver (and Pedro himself) are more competitive.
I made sure I included a good cross section Mifune. And I tell you in all honesty that it was off the top of my head and virtually random. It was bound to upset someone I suppose, but I assure you my interest in Senna B is minimal at the moment. As I said, I could go on; so for a moment, I will. Just as with Senna B, what follows is nothing to do with their respective abilities as a race driver: Brundle would be good. Hakkinen would be good. Alonso would be good. Raikkonen would be hopeless. Coulthard would not be good. Vettel would be good. Webber would be better than Coulthard (marginally). Mario Andretti would be better than Gilles Villeneuve if he was fortunate enough to be alive. Grosjean would be better than D'Ambrosio and Rosberg would be better than Scott Speed (what an unfortunate name). And because you have clearly labelled me as showing bias, which I assure you is not the case, I want you to scrutinize the following words: In my opinion, the greatest ever F1 driver was Jim Clark; but Graham Hill was a far better driver in terms of feedback and development. So was Jackie Stewart for that matter, as was Alain Prost; but Mansell and Cevert were average. J. Villeneuve was vague - poor even. Berger was good but sometimes didn't listen; nonetheless he was generally better than Alesi. Irvine was urine. Unlike his brother, Ralf Schumacher was well out of his depth. You know me well enough to know I do not care for M. Schumacher, but I praise him in this regard. As I said before, I could go on. I do not have any allegiance to any driver. I teach them. It is my job to assess these things unemotionally. I state my opinion based upon what I know and what I see and personal preferences have no place, even if I could give time to consider them. It is natural that my opinion will be at odds with some spectators who contribute to a forum, just as my opinion may occasionally be at odds with Martin Brundle, in spite of my respect for him. And my opinion is that B. Senna is not the right choice for a team who need to consolidate their machinery, along with a host of others I've mentioned without so much as a second thought. Please don't take my disagreement with your opinion about B. Senna as a personal thing or a dig. It is not. Had I remembered your support for him, I may well have avoided mentioning him altogether; but this is just the way I see it. No digs. Nothing personal. No personal agenda. No axe to grind. Take it or leave it.
Hmm yes I am sure it was just random that the first driver you thought of to use as the 'driver with crap technical skills' (which Senna does not even fit) was Senna B (as you are fond of calling him.)
Senna A wasn't brilliant in this regard either. But it is natural to think of current drivers first. There are literally hundreds of drivers I could have mentioned. For instance: Why don't you use your selective vision to notice that I have included my version of the best driver ever to live on this planet as a relatively poor test driver? It's nothing personal Mifune, and I think it's a bit of a shame you seem to be taking it like this. I have said time and again that I have nothing against Senna B and I wish him every success. But I will not delude myself into believing that my wishes will always come true. I am fundamentally a realist; not a dreamer. It is only my opinion; but since, from the selections I offered, you have focussed on Bruno (and yes, his name came to mind quickly with virtually no thought because he is haphazard and untidy), I can only tell you that I do not think he would do as good a job as Pedro de la Rosa; the subject of this debate. If Bruno Senna is a favourite of yours, I'm sorry. As a person, I like him too. However, I offer an opinion on his driving as objectively as I can. Take it or leave it: it is nothing personal against you or him or his uncle or his sponsors or his girlfriend or his little doggie if he has one.
Hmm yes I am sure it was just random that the first driver you thought of to use as the 'driver with crap technical skills' (which Senna does not even fit) was Senna B (as you are fond of calling him.)
Getting back to De la Rosa.... I'm not sure that this is going to work out for them. Yes he is one of the best test drivers, but they've signed him as a race driver and last time he was signed as a race driver he didn't finish the season. I've got a feeling that this will hapen again, I think they'll put a young hot shot in the car that will blow away De la Rosa, and he'll end up getting sacked. Of course I could well be wrong, and HRT know what they are getting and be happy with De la Rosa and the great talents he brings to the team.
He is one of the best test drivers, he is very good at devoloping a car but that doesn't make him a good race driver as he has proved many times.
HRT aren't going to lose places because of PDLR, but they may gain in the long run, this signing actually says to me that they are looking to advance much further up the grid in the long run by taking a hit now, they effectively get 20 test drives more than everyone else.
didnt they try and sign him in 2010 but couldnt afford to and PDLR saying he didnt feel secure racing for them? This must signal HRT are more healthy in the sport now
They got sold mid-season, so I'm guessing the owners have a bit of finance, plus all the teams have more cash, as greedy as BE is, he has given new teams more of a chance of surviving longer, if they can afford the £25m hit for the intial first season entry deposit, in this at least he has helped the sport. With the added funds the backfield teams should be able to progress further with their upgrades. Should, not will.
