Kimi joins Ferrari F1
Discussion
Read in one of the papers this morning that it is now offical and public that Kimi has signed with Ferrari for $25m a year with level pegging with Michael.
Have looked on other websites but cannot find anything on it.
Can anyone shed any light on this or is it just another re-hash of the pitlane rumour from before.
Have looked on other websites but cannot find anything on it.
Can anyone shed any light on this or is it just another re-hash of the pitlane rumour from before.
wainy said:
Read in one of the papers this morning that it is now offical and public that Kimi has signed with Ferrari for $25m a year with level pegging with Michael.
Have looked on other websites but cannot find anything on it.
Have looked on other websites but cannot find anything on it.
News of the World exclusive?
Edited by FourWheelDrift on Sunday 20th August 22:04
FourWheelDrift said:
wainy said:
Read in one of the papers this morning that it is now offical and public that Kimi has signed with Ferrari for $25m a year with level pegging with Michael.
Have looked on other websites but cannot find anything on it.
Have looked on other websites but cannot find anything on it.
News of the World exclusive?
Edited by FourWheelDrift on Sunday 20th August 22:04
Yes the
weekly but there was another paper in the pub which mentioned it (cant remember which one though) is there any truth in it?wainy said:
Read in one of the papers this morning that it is now offical and public that Kimi has signed with Ferrari for $25m a year with level pegging with Michael.
Have looked on other websites but cannot find anything on it.
Can anyone shed any light on this or is it just another re-hash of the pitlane rumour from before.
Have looked on other websites but cannot find anything on it.
Can anyone shed any light on this or is it just another re-hash of the pitlane rumour from before.
Yes it is true but it won't be announced before the Italian GP. But will Schumacher stay on for another year and pit himself aganst Kimi?...yes he will - he wants 100 GP victories and he also wants to be remembered for (finally) having the balls to face a teammate with equal status....well, that's what I read in "Pigeon Fancier Weekly"
rubystone said:
Yes it is true but it won't be announced before the Italian GP. But will Schumacher stay on for another year and pit himself aganst Kimi?...yes he will - he wants 100 GP victories and he also wants to be remembered for (finally) having the balls to face a teammate with equal status....well, that's what I read in "Pigeon Fancier Weekly"
If Raikkonen's in the same car, and there are truly no team orders or favouritism (and of course if there were none formally, the boys at Ferrari would never lean Michael's way, would they?
), it will take Mikey a lot more than another 24 races to get to 100 victories.flemke said:
rubystone said:
Yes it is true but it won't be announced before the Italian GP. But will Schumacher stay on for another year and pit himself aganst Kimi?...yes he will - he wants 100 GP victories and he also wants to be remembered for (finally) having the balls to face a teammate with equal status....well, that's what I read in "Pigeon Fancier Weekly"
If Raikkonen's in the same car, and there are truly no team orders or favouritism (and of course if there were none formally, the boys at Ferrari would never lean Michael's way, would they?), it will take Mikey a lot more than another 24 races to get to 100 victories.If all of this is true, where does that leave Renault??? They have the best car in the field, and won't have a good enough peddler...
I still think KR will end up at Renault. They will mould the tem around him from Day 1, that wouldn't happen at Ferrari until TGF has retired. Like I've said before, KR already has the dosh, now he wants the title(s), and with Brawn, Todt and the rest of the brains behind Ferrari leaving, the only reason KR would go would be for the money. But he's already got that, so we're back to Renault...
GarrettMacD said:
flemke said:
rubystone said:
Yes it is true but it won't be announced before the Italian GP. But will Schumacher stay on for another year and pit himself aganst Kimi?...yes he will - he wants 100 GP victories and he also wants to be remembered for (finally) having the balls to face a teammate with equal status....well, that's what I read in "Pigeon Fancier Weekly"
If Raikkonen's in the same car, and there are truly no team orders or favouritism (and of course if there were none formally, the boys at Ferrari would never lean Michael's way, would they?), it will take Mikey a lot more than another 24 races to get to 100 victories.If all of this is true, where does that leave Renault??? They have the best car in the field, and won't have a good enough peddler...
I still think KR will end up at Renault. They will mould the tem around him from Day 1, that wouldn't happen at Ferrari until TGF has retired. Like I've said before, KR already has the dosh, now he wants the title(s), and with Brawn, Todt and the rest of the brains behind Ferrari leaving, the only reason KR would go would be for the money. But he's already got that, so we're back to Renault...
It's a done deal. Briatore will step down from Renault at the end of this season too and Kovalainen has already been given the second seat at Renault. Blame Ghosn for the departure of Alonso and the fact that Renault have no chance of challenging for the drivers' title next year.
Kimi signed for Ferrari way back when Ghosn was open about not committing to F1 beyond the end of 2006. He wants a team that can deliver him everything he needs to win the title - which he does indeed rate higher than the money...but he does know what he's worth in the market. AFAIK, Brawn still hasn't confirmed the sabbatical, Costa's getting on very nicely with the car design and Todt hasn't announced any plans to retire yet.
I really hope that Kimi's in the car alongside Schumacher and not Massa - it will be an absolutely fascinating last season for Schumacher.
rubystone said:
It's a done deal.
rubystone said:
I really hope that Kimi's in the car alongside Schumacher and not Massa
Bloody hell, make your mind up!!!
You're right though, it would be great to see TGF and KR gang up on Alonso...
I still think Mikey will have the upper hand over KR in the early part of the 2007 season, Renault won't have a good enough driver, and the McLaren isn't consistently quick enough (or reliable enough) to challenge for the title.
So, 2007 will be between Schuey and Kimi. I'll put a tenner on Shuey retiring as 2007 WDC...
GarrettMacD said:
Bloody hell, make your mind up!!!
Maybe you misunderstood me - Kimi signing is a done deal - he just wanted guaranteed equal treatment with Schumacher in the event that he stayed on - which Ferrari acceded to...what isn't "public" yet is whether or not Schumacher retires this year. The rest of my post was conjecture really - but I do think Schumacher will stay on. Ferrari have extended Massa's contract but I don't think they have guaranteed him a race seat for 2007 - I'm betting that the contract guves him a year as 3rd driver with a guaranteed race seat in 2008 when Schu finally retires.
rubystone said:
GarrettMacD said:
Bloody hell, make your mind up!!!
Maybe you misunderstood me - Kimi signing is a done deal - he just wanted guaranteed equal treatment with Schumacher in the event that he stayed on - which Ferrari acceded to...what isn't "public" yet is whether or not Schumacher retires this year. The rest of my post was conjecture really - but I do think Schumacher will stay on. Ferrari have extended Massa's contract but I don't think they have guaranteed him a race seat for 2007 - I'm betting that the contract guves him a year as 3rd driver with a guaranteed race seat in 2008 when Schu finally retires.
I see what you mean. I guess that Renault are now putting all of their eggs in the Kovalainen basket, which is a bit of a gamble...
Will be interesting to see if Raikkonen genuinely DOES get equal treatment!
GarrettMacD said:
If all of this is true, where does that leave Renault??? They have the best car in the field, and won't have a good enough peddler...
Things change fairly quickly. During the central 80% of last year, the McL. was clearly the quickest, yet one could argue that Renault had caught up by the last race.
Similarly, last year was Ferrari's (welcome) uncompetitiveness the result of a poor car or of a tyremaker's methodology that was ineffective in the single-tyre format?
As of this moment, I think you could say that Renault have lost their early season edge, to both F. and McL. Whether legalisation of the mass damper would put things back to where they were, who knows?
Surely at the beginning of next year, at least, the present Bridgestone runners will be at an advangtage to current Mich. runners.
Then there are some people (not me, who knows nothing anyhow) who would say that the intersection of A. Newey and the Red Bull budget will beget a great car.
Honda didn't look bad at all in Hungary, did they?
I don't think that it's clear that they'll have the best car next year, although perhaps they have the best team.
rubystone said:
It's a done deal. Briatore will step down from Renault at the end of this season too and Kovalainen has already been given the second seat at Renault. Blame Ghosn for the departure of Alonso and the fact that Renault have no chance of challenging for the drivers' title next year.
Kimi signed for Ferrari way back when Ghosn was open about not committing to F1 beyond the end of 2006. He wants a team that can deliver him everything he needs to win the title - which he does indeed rate higher than the money...but he does know what he's worth in the market.
Are you sure about that? Kimi signed for Ferrari way back when Ghosn was open about not committing to F1 beyond the end of 2006. He wants a team that can deliver him everything he needs to win the title - which he does indeed rate higher than the money...but he does know what he's worth in the market.
It may be true, but I've yet to see anyone with credibilty (which obviously would exclude the entire Italian media) explain what happened. The most plausible and common story has been that KR received a sum from Ferrari for committing not to sign with anyone else before a certain date (Late May, was it?)
Surely Renault were angling for him until fairly recently, and since Hungary McL. were saying that they're still trying to hold onto him.
Maybe, like so much else in the "sport", it's all bullshit and he did indeed sign with F. ages ago.
In light, however, of the reports that Schumey the Big Man
would not (at least until recently) accept a teammate with equal status to his own, I don't think that it's at all clear that a genuine, long-term commitment was made at the time that the reports of a "done deal" first began to come out of the Garlic Belt.[quote=flemke
Are you sure about that?
It may be true, but I've yet to see anyone with credibilty (which obviously would exclude the entire Italian media) explain what happened. The most plausible and common story has been that KR received a sum from Ferrari for committing not to sign with anyone else before a certain date (Late May, was it?)
Surely Renault were angling for him until fairly recently, and since Hungary McL. were saying that they're still trying to hold onto him.
Maybe, like so much else in the "sport", it's all bullshit and he did indeed sign with F. ages ago.
In light, however, of the reports that Schumey the Big Man would not (at least until recently) accept a teammate with equal status to his own, I don't think that it's at all clear that a genuine, long-term commitment was made at the time that the reports of a "done deal" first began to come out of the Garlic Belt.[/quote]
Sadly I'm not privvy to what Ferrari say. A respected media source told me this some months ago and I've seen nothing to suggest that it isn't true. Ferrari paid Raikkonen (a suspected) US$5m as an option on his services last year and he signed for them some months later. I still don't think that anyone other than those close to Schumacher really knows what he's going to do in 2007.
Yu could argue that Flav's statement that he's given up on Raikkonen is the strongest indicator that "The Iceman" is off the market...but we know how well he plays his political games...
Are you sure about that?
It may be true, but I've yet to see anyone with credibilty (which obviously would exclude the entire Italian media) explain what happened. The most plausible and common story has been that KR received a sum from Ferrari for committing not to sign with anyone else before a certain date (Late May, was it?)
Surely Renault were angling for him until fairly recently, and since Hungary McL. were saying that they're still trying to hold onto him.
Maybe, like so much else in the "sport", it's all bullshit and he did indeed sign with F. ages ago.
In light, however, of the reports that Schumey the Big Man
would not (at least until recently) accept a teammate with equal status to his own, I don't think that it's at all clear that a genuine, long-term commitment was made at the time that the reports of a "done deal" first began to come out of the Garlic Belt.[/quote] Sadly I'm not privvy to what Ferrari say. A respected media source told me this some months ago and I've seen nothing to suggest that it isn't true. Ferrari paid Raikkonen (a suspected) US$5m as an option on his services last year and he signed for them some months later. I still don't think that anyone other than those close to Schumacher really knows what he's going to do in 2007.
Yu could argue that Flav's statement that he's given up on Raikkonen is the strongest indicator that "The Iceman" is off the market...but we know how well he plays his political games...
rubystone said:
Sadly I'm not privvy to what Ferrari say. A respected media source told me this some months ago and I've seen nothing to suggest that it isn't true. Ferrari paid Raikkonen (a suspected) US$5m as an option on his services last year and he signed for them some months later. I still don't think that anyone other than those close to Schumacher really knows what he's going to do in 2007.
Yu could argue that Flav's statement that he's given up on Raikkonen is the strongest indicator that "The Iceman" is off the market...but we know how well he plays his political games...
Alan Henry, at least, has been sticking his neck out for some time by asserting without qualification that the Ferrari deal was consummated. Yu could argue that Flav's statement that he's given up on Raikkonen is the strongest indicator that "The Iceman" is off the market...but we know how well he plays his political games...
I'm not sure why McL. would continue to make noises that they're still trying to retain him. Perhaps it's just for public appearances and to keep the team motivated to fight for victories.
But why might Ferrari be motivated to refrain from announcing? Was it simply because Michael wanted them to wait until he'd made his own decision? Maybe.
I'm also not sure why it would have been in Raikkonen's interest to sign a long time ago. Why not keep one's options open? If he's really focused on the package and the likelihood of the best car, why would he have commmitted a year ago when one didn't even know for sure whether the GPMA thing would happen, what the basic formula for the next few years would be, which company would make the spec tyre, etc.? Can't see what KR would have had to lose by playing the waiting game - certainly he doesn't lack for self-confidence.
Also, the fact that all the reports of signing seem to have originated in Italy - well, that makes them utterly meaningless, does it not?
Surely Ferrari is the most likely constructor to employ Raikkonen, and one would be surprised if he were to go elsewhere, but that's different from the stories that he agreed a year ago to make that move.
flemke said:
Alan Henry, at least, has been sticking his neck out for some time by asserting without qualification that the Ferrari deal was consummated.
It's not just Alan that's made those statements. Mark Hughes, Matt Bishop, Peter Windsor have all gone into print about this. Timings are always strange - why did Williams & Toyota take so long to announce their deal for example?
If press reports are anything to go by then we'll have Fisichella/Kovaleinen at Renault, Raikkonen/Schumacher at Ferrari and Alonso/Hamilton/De la Rosa at Mclaren
However a number of things contradict/question this:
Renault:
They won the championship last year and will do it again (if not come close) this year. You can sort of understand keeping Fisi for continuity, let's face it it's definitely not for speed, but Kovaleinen?? Good as he may be, he surely won't challenge for the title?
Ferrari:
Massa seems very confident that he'll race in a top team and he looks very relaxed about his future. He's gone into print saying he won't test in 07, so he must be driving somewhere. You'd say that it'd be him and Raikkonen but Schumacher looks like carrying on aswell in my reckoning. He's having fun, enjoying the battle, has nothing to prove, etc.
McLaren:
They have Alonso as their future and would maybe put a rookie in the other car, even if this isn't really the Mclaren ethos when they're at the top of their game. Maybe Kimi's staying?
So, they'll definitely be a surprise along the way somewhere. So many clued-up people have said that Kimi's going to Ferrari, you can't really doubt them. However, someone must be left without a chair when the music stops....?
However a number of things contradict/question this:
Renault:
They won the championship last year and will do it again (if not come close) this year. You can sort of understand keeping Fisi for continuity, let's face it it's definitely not for speed, but Kovaleinen?? Good as he may be, he surely won't challenge for the title?
Ferrari:
Massa seems very confident that he'll race in a top team and he looks very relaxed about his future. He's gone into print saying he won't test in 07, so he must be driving somewhere. You'd say that it'd be him and Raikkonen but Schumacher looks like carrying on aswell in my reckoning. He's having fun, enjoying the battle, has nothing to prove, etc.
McLaren:
They have Alonso as their future and would maybe put a rookie in the other car, even if this isn't really the Mclaren ethos when they're at the top of their game. Maybe Kimi's staying?
So, they'll definitely be a surprise along the way somewhere. So many clued-up people have said that Kimi's going to Ferrari, you can't really doubt them. However, someone must be left without a chair when the music stops....?
rubystone said:
flemke said:
Alan Henry, at least, has been sticking his neck out for some time by asserting without qualification that the Ferrari deal was consummated.
It's not just Alan that's made those statements. Mark Hughes, Matt Bishop, Peter Windsor have all gone into print about this. Timings are always strange - why did Williams & Toyota take so long to announce their deal for example?
As we all know, Ferrari are most likely, and things by now may be formally agreed.
Regardless of what may have happened recently, I myself remain very sceptical that he actually did sign a binding contract a year ago, when the reports first began to emanate from the land of the vermicelli.
Interesting that Massa's gone public on having a drive next year - where?...an STR with the Fezza engine in the back?....or will Midland get Fezza engines in exchange for Massa driving for them....Newey wouldn't be drawn recently on whether he's designing the RB3 around a Renault engine, but let's say that Ferrari allow RBR to move the Ferrari engine to an STR in exchange for Massa getting a drive for one year whilst Schumacher undertakes his farewell tour?
Stranger things have happened!
Kovalainen has it written into his contract that he's guaranteed a race drive on 2007. Now if Flav had been confident of getting Raikkonen, or even had a sniff that he was still available, why place Webber with RBR when he could have met his contractual obligations to Kovalainen by placing him there and thus keeping the seat open for Raikkonen?
Stranger things have happened!
Kovalainen has it written into his contract that he's guaranteed a race drive on 2007. Now if Flav had been confident of getting Raikkonen, or even had a sniff that he was still available, why place Webber with RBR when he could have met his contractual obligations to Kovalainen by placing him there and thus keeping the seat open for Raikkonen?
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