lets have it right folks - renault/ lotus obtained the services of kimi raikkonen because of there belief that petrov and senna never have and never will be able to cut the mustard at the very highest level as team leader kubica was capable of doing , and i have seen nothing to argue with there view , before his accident i allways believed kubica along with alonso were the most complete drivers on the grid and could get a little more from uncompetitive machinery than other drivers , however ----- there is a 50/50 chance that kubica will start the season which means he will partner raikkonen if this happens , raikkonen never trully gelled with the understeer nature of the aldo costa chassis"s at ferrari and in this respect he is flawed , but make no mistake he can be electrifying quick in a chassis that he feels comfortable with , in fact he was generally regarded as quicker than schumacher before he left mclaren - i personally think if the renault/ lotus chassis is good and kubica does come back the driver he was the combination of kubica and raikkonen will be the stand out combination for 2012 when you weigh up there individual talents , as good as the other driver combinations are and all the drivers in the top teams are all wonderful drivers , when you weigh up the pro"s , con"s, and flaws of all the drivers i just feel the combination of kubica and raikkonen historically have a little more in there locker than any other combination for 2012 - look forward to your disagreements or agreements or different opinions on my thoughts --
the best partneship? 1 driver who has been out of the sport for a few years because he got bored and another who suffered a serious injury and I will be suprised if he retains any form he had.
only time will tell -- obviously raikkonen is now fired up otherwise he would not have returned in the first place , kubica is the unknown quantity , if he returns to full fitness with the dexterity in his hands i can see no logical reason why he will not return the driver he was --
No. Not at all. Firstly there is a 98% chance we will not see Kubica in the lotus next year, but being hypothetical Raikkonen has two years out of the sport. Age may not be a factor like Schumacher, but people who expect him to instantly show top form will be disapointed. Kubica is a mystery at the moment. Who knows how good he will be on return (not that i think he will) and if you look at Massa since he's come back. That man was beating Raikkonen and i know he is a number 2 now, but he's getting terrible results. Then you consider the time out he's had without driving anything at all and i cant see them besting the McLaren duo. I actually think if either Petrov or Senna get the seat they will match Kimi at first. Two great drivers, but it'd be a miricle if we see them at their peak in 2012.
if i was boullier i would put Senna in alongside Kimi - Bruno is a very quick driver and has been matching Vitaly every step of the way since coming in. Remember Vitaly has been there two years now so has had a very good chance but Bruno has had what six or seven races! Everyone thought he would be comprehensively beaten by Vitaly. Yes Bruno has been unlcuky and has made a few mistakes but theres no doubting he has huge potential. So I personally would drop Vitaly
who knows what is going on with kubica , in one report we hear he is nearing peak fitness with the dexterity in his hands returning , the next report tells a different tale , so who really knows on that score , i think renault have offered him time in the 09 renault to regain his sharpness , we can only presume that if he is driving that sometime in the near future he will have the movement back in his hands to return for 2012 - as for kimi rakk - we all know he never got to grips with the understeer nature of the costa chassis"s at ferrari hence many of his mediochre performances , but his previous blistering performances at mclaren in a chassis he was at ease with were there for all to see , i dont personally think his time away will be a factor as no driver will have had a talent bypass in two yrs , he will no doubt spend alot of time in the renault simulator and as lead driver will probally do the bulk of the pre season testing in the new car , to be honest if he is motivated which by definition he is as he returned in the first place there is no logical reason to believe his speed has diminished ---
i personally think bruno at 28 yrs of age is as good now as he is ever likely to be, 28 is not a young age for a driver so i dont honestly see how bruno is going to get any quicker , i think the bottom line is he lost alot of his developement yrs after 1994 when his uncle died as his family insisted he stopped racing and i dont ever believe he can ever make up for those developement yrs he lost enough to be anything else but a journeyman in formula 1 --
After his father died in 96, two years after Ayrton died, he quit racing. He then resumed in 2004 so he has lost 8 years. I see this as he is at the same stage of driving development and experience as a 20 year old driver. This is why i think he has a lot of potential. He has been getting better and better and as soon as he eliminates the 'rookie' mistakes he will be extremely good. He is not at the same stage as any other 28 year old driver!
World champion material? No. Better than Petrov? Yes. Look how much difference there was between the 2010 and 2011 editions of Vitaly. Experience makes a big difference and just a proper pre season would do a world of good for Bruno. It saddens me we might have seen the last of him.
Not a chance. Neither of them will be anywhere near their peak. Besides, Button-Hamilton takes some beating. (And, if the latter shapes up like he did in 2008, so does Alonso-Massa)
I dont see kubica back for Lotus. After the strange thing of Kubica denying reports from the team that he couldn't drive in 2012. With the mixed reports and such sever injuries he needs to convince me he can come back at all, i have heard rumorsof lotus giving him friday drives to ready him for a proper return in 2013. As for them not needing time to re-adjust to F1. Im not so sure, especially with Kubica. I think Raikkonen will get there, but all im saying is dont hype them too much. They will need time.
you might be right -- i just dont see anything in either petrov or senna that would make me think that in competitive machinery they could take the fight to vettel , alonso , button , hamilton , whoever , hence why i believe renault signed raikkonen , any team that does not have a serious ace in that team is never going to win anything , i just dont honestly see either petrov or senna as serious aces and as renault signed raikkonen i suspect neither did they --
what actually makes you think that neither kubica or raikk will not be at there peak by march , kubica has kept himself fit in recent months and if the dexterity in his hands has returned what is there to stop him from driving the 09 car that renault have offered him - however i will admit that nobody knows at what stage his hands are at the present so that one is a bit of an unknown - as for kimi raikk --- what is there to stop him from being at his peak in 4 months time - he is obviously very fit , he will get time in an old renault F1 car , he will have access to the simulator and will do alot of the pre season testing for renault -- what logical explanation is there for him not to be tip top at the first race --
we should probably stop calling the team Renault now. Its Lotus GP. Red Bull is the works renault team
If you had seen the line-up of Kimi and Kubica say three years ago then it would be a really, really top one. Now, neither of them have driven an F1 car for at least a year. Kimi's missed the big rule changes and Kubica may never drive one again. You have to say that Button and Hamilton are (in theory) the best partnership.
