F1 2016 Season: Lineup's - Rumours - News

Yes Maldonado has always been hit and miss. That's why they set up that website

 

I know what you mean, he's only a GP2 champ.............

I'd say Max shows what's wrong with the path to F1. Too little experience, bypasses all the normal learning routes and gets dropped in a the big time. Okay he made a good account of himself, but many who have done similar were way out of their depth.

Palmer has at least racked up enough experience such that his racecraft shouldn't be a liability to others.

 

I don't actually think he's had the chance to prove himself yet tbh. In 2011 Monaco alone he was going to outscore what Barrichello did in the whole season before the retarded Hamilton at the time crashed into him.
2013 he outraced Bottas 9-5 when they both finished, but the one time the Williams was good enough for points, he got damage on the first lap and that's the only reason Bottas "beat" him that season.
2014/2015 he didn't really have a car suitable for points, sure he got beaten by Grosjean, but Grosjean has proved to be a very fast driver, and he only caused two incidents in them two seasons, while consistently being between 10th and 15th and higher when his car allowed him to be.

2012, despite the win was by far his worst season in F1, and he should have done a lot more with the car than he did, but he's improved massively since then.
I think he's a lot better than people make him out to be, and although he's not champion material (I'm not claiming he is) he's good enough to be in the midfield by his pace. I agree that Magnussen is the better option, but Maldonado isn't really that bad.

 

The erraticness that you have highlighted shows why his place on the grid probably isn't deserved and that even when he finished it's normally just average at best, his Spain victory aside, but you can only live on past glories for so long. Best he makes way for some new guys to see what they can do.

 

Its how he became GP2 champ that's the issue - 15 million and 4 years - nothing like talent over money!

 

McLaren Facing Reliability Issues with Upgraded PU?

For McLaren-Honda, the rumours are running as thick and fast as the expectations of a much better campaign for the famous Anglo-Japanese collaboration.

2015 was a horror reunion for the old partners, but recent speculation suggested Honda has found a staggering 200 horse power over the winter.

Another rumour, however, is that the step forward has come at a cost.

Auto Hebdo, a specialist French outlet, claims Honda's 2016 power unit has proved unreliable on the test benches so far.

"According to our information, Honda is already preparing a fleet of replacement engines, as four per driver will not be enough," it said.

Marca, a Spanish sports newspaper that closely follows the career of Fernando Alonso, revealed that McLaren's 2016 car will be launched online at about midday on February 21.

The following day, it will hit the track at Barcelona.

Hopes will be high, but team boss Eric Boullier is confident the exactly two years he has spent at McLaren is now ready to show its results.

"It (the racing team) was oversized and difficult to manage," the Frenchman is quoted as saying by Marca.

Also difficult to manage, Boullier admits, are Alonso and fellow champion teammate Jenson Button.

"They, like all other champions, think only about winning," he said. "Until they have what they want they will not stop pressuring the team.

"But if you know how to manage expectations and calmly explain how things are moving, then you earn their trust," said Boullier.

He said although the results in 2015 were bad, he is happy that the new McLaren structure is at least now working efficiently.

"Momentum leads to success," said Boullier.

"You have to remember that when Red Bull bought Jaguar, it took five years to structure everything and become efficient.

"We are also in an ultra-competitive environment, fighting with Mercedes and Ferrari, and their level and quality is very high," the Frenchman said.

http://www.grandprix.com/ns/ns32976.html

 

Doesn't bode well.

 

I don't think Jesus Christ works for Mclaren, therefore I don't expect wonders.

 

I would be very surprised if Honda hadn't fixed most of their issues. The MGH/Turbo was their biggest issue and they couldn't change them in 2015 at a guess due to lack of tokens and installation issues. They knew this very early on last season, so I would assume that was the first thing they worked on. I would have thought testing the turbo/mgh would be simple on a bench rig.
Honda have lots of experience making engines so I do really hope they can produce an engine to challenge merc.

 

tbh this reincarnation of turbo's have been disappointingly reliable, I was looking forward to smokescreens, moving bonfires and the surprise podium visits it could produce. I miss cars falling apart, shame no one other than Honda and McLaren have gone retro.

 

Am I wrong in thinking that reliability fixes come outside of the token allowance for engine development? Or am I just remembering that from the old regs? Because if so, I guess it makes sense for Honda to make the most powerful piece of crap they can then make it reliable, than fix the reliability and struggle to add power.

Last season they were slow and unreliable, if they can reduce that to just unreliable that'd still be a step forwards, and as Ern says, I've missed the sight of a car charging through the field then blowing up. With the engine penalties it'd be nice to have a season of them scything through from the back of the grid, then turn into a cloud of smoke 40 laps in each race.

 

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http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/122654?source=mostpopular
Magnussen is a Renault driver,

 

reports confirm maldonado out!! not on the grid at all. Im surprised he cant wiggle his way into a manor seat

 

Would you risk Maldonado? His money might not arrive and he might cause you to spend lots on rebuilds!

 

He wasn't fit for F1, GP3 yes. But not F1.

 

Justice prevails for once. Hope Magnussen can make the most of this chance. As for Maldonado, well he wasn't boring, that's about all the positives to his driving.

 

You won't get this unless the weight limit is reduced, or a mandatory amount of ballast introduced. With the advances in materials science since the 80s, the weight/reliability/performance trade off doesn't exist in F1 anymore.

 

It's amazing how angsty we get about the best drivers getting/deserving a particular seat, despite the fact that F1 continually reminds us that the driver is largely irrelevant in the performance equation!