Is Spyker doomed?

Petroltorque

The reason I ask is with STR anD SA ahead of them on pace, they look like taking last place. To pay TOIT an extrtionate amount of money for that lump and then end up with no money at season's end. Surely thats a disaster!

Clown

There's always Aguri....

Jello_Biafra

Aguri will be last year's Honda made to comply with the new crash regs..

The Spyker still looks a lot like an EJ15..

viges

There's only FOM money for the top ten teams, as I'm sure Stoddie has told his mate Gascoyne ...

Jello_Biafra

I'm curious to know if the Dutch guys were played or if they actually knew what they were getting into. Both options are scary.

Biker

Let's wait for Australia. First whether SA ans STR will run their cars in competition and secondly how fast/slow everyone is.
But. to be honest, I'm not very confident about Spyker.

Petroltorque

I don't think that there's any doubt about STR and SA running their cars. Simply because chassis sharing is covered by the Concorde agreement. Even if Spyker seeks injunctive relief the affected teams will run under appeal.
Spyker will get TV money from finishing tenth last year. But come season's end Sa will be entitled to TV monies and travel expenses for 2008.
Things must be dire, we have not heard a peek out of our Dutch members!

silverghost

They still own an entry in an oversubscribed series which is about to open up to customer chassis teams, and which has a raft of other running cost reduction plans on stream for supporting players like Spyker. They can go customer themselves, or sell the entry on at a profit. As long as they aren't losing money this year, they're OK.

Biker

At least they have found two main sponsors just before the start of the season. Spyker has announced a three-year title sponsorship deal with Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, and property development company Aldar (also from the UAE). According to the Dutch newspaper AD the money involved is 8 million dollars a year.

Not a lot, I think, but better than nothing…...
:D

minardirule

How the hell did they manage to pull that off?

Could it be on the back of Ferrari's links to the middle east?

forzaminardi

just goes to show that it's not the time to write off Spyker just yet. Yes, they will suck in the first year but they have two wind tunnels and Mike Gascoyne, they will improve eventually

Clown

Originally posted by Jello_Biafra
Aguri will be last year's Honda made to comply with the new crash regs..

But the time made up on the track will be lost in the pits.
I swear the pit crew must be listening to the Benny Hill music inside there helmets...



[Edited on 15-3-07 by Clown]

Biker

Mike Gascoyne claims the aerodynamic update for Sepamg is so good, that Spyker won't finish last in the race.
Strong words. I would find that pretty amazing.

Stan

Well, it's easier to turn something that's terrible into something good. Than it is to turn something that's good into something perfect.

Neil_s

We'll have to wait, I thought Spyker would be better than Aguri this season but with what we have all seen in the opening race, I am not sure. Also there is the legal problem, so let's wait.

Petroltorque

They're not doomed if they win their arbitration case. Some people seem to think that the 2008 Concorde agreement will allow customer cars. According to frank Williams the 08 agreement is largely the 07 agreement. If Customer cars are not allowed in 07 they can't be allowed in 08 without express consent of all the competitors.
As for Spyker making a sudden improvement. I think not. Their car is based on the Shitbox EJ14, which finished off Pantano's F1 career and might do the same to Mr Mol and company!

silverghost

Without customer cars, in one shape or another, F1's entire current business plan is sunk, because there is no other realistic way to replace manufacturers when they leave (no new entrant with enough money to set up as a constructor could get the results to justify spending that amount). Think Max and Bernie will put up with any disruption to their future? Think any entrant can survive long at the back without their goodwill?

Kolles and his newcomer bosses have made a spectacular misjudgement if they believe any court victory will prove anything but pyrrhic. The best they can hope for is getting F1 redesigned so that customers don't get constructor points - so they can run around at the back week in week out, but get more money for it, until the rules eventually got redrafted. They'd still be a laughing stock. Frankly, they'd be better off going customer themselves, or selling up to someone who will. The current future might be a travesty, a total betrayal of the spirit of F1, and ultimately doomed itself, like all cynical plans, but that doesn't mean it can be resisted.

Now Williams, their position is more interesting...can you still be a constructor without a direct manufacturer link?

Petroltorque

I have no problem with a new team running a 1 year old chassis, but what STR are doing is cheating.
Spyker inherited a sorry mess ftom Jordan. EJ to the last was more interested in how much money he could siphon off rather than running a good technical dept.

silverghost

Oh, yes, STR's cheating in every credible sense of the word, but using a year old car is just the same - cheating, only less effectively. But if you're going to have non-constructors, I'd rather have them using the best machinery available, and keeping their A teams honest. Slightly less rubbish than having the back half of the grid full of out of date also rans, with their ambitions neutered.

Selespeed

Spyker should have invested in a good legal departement. Every claim they make is either too late, or thrown over. With this much evidence, for everyone to see, weeks before the opening race, STR and Aguri shouldn't have made it to the grid in Australia the first place. I say: Cheaters 10, Spyker 0. Try to narrow this gap!

Biker

Rumours are that a certain JV will be testing for Spyker at Spa. That is what I call desperate.......

MinardiP1

Will we then see the return of Fox Mulder and co?

Biker

:P:P could be, but the forzaspyker-site is more likely.....

Selespeed

It seems the sponsers finally realise they have jumped on the wrong bandwagon.

forzaminardi

Mind you, Albers is having a rough time with Sutil

MinardiP1

..... as I suggested he would after the first race. ;)