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No 3rd car in Aus?

jk
in ForzaMinardi.com Forum
No third car for battlers

James Stanford
402 words
2 March 2005
Herald-Sun
1 - FIRST
85
English
Copyright 2005 News Ltd. All Rights Reserved

TWO battling Formula One teams will face an even tougher test at the Australian Grand Prix on Sunday.

Sauber and Minardi won't run a third car for the valuable Friday testing session, limiting their race preparation.

Rule changes mean that all F1 teams except the top four of 2004 -- Ferrari, BAR-Honda, Renault and Williams -- will use a third car and test driver to do as many laps as possible, while the lead drivers look after their engines.

With race engines now having to last two race meetings, teams will try not to overuse them.

That means the test drivers will have a more important role, because it will be their responsibility to find the right settings and best tyre compound.

But Sauber and Minardi will miss out because they don't have the budget to run a third car.

Minardi had planned to run a third car for practice at Albert Park, but test driver Nicolas Kiesa is yet to finalise a sponsorship deal needed to put the car on the track.

Minardi owner Paul Stoddart said the team planned to run a third car, with Kiesa in the cockpit, at the next round in Malaysia.

The most high-profile team allowed to run a third car this season is McLaren and Spaniard Pedro de la Rosa has been given the job of collecting data for teammates Kimi Raikkonen and Juan Pablo Montoya.

Brazilian Ricardo Zonta will be the third driver for Toyota, while Italian Vitantonio Liuzzi will test for Red Bull Racing.

Thanks to a cash injection from Jordan's new owners, the team will be able to run a third car with Dutchman Robert Doornboss at the wheel.

The new rules on the third driver were designed to give the rest of the field an advantage.

BAR-Honda, which was able to run a third driver last season, will not be able to this year. That is something that could make a difference, if only slight, BAR driver Takuma Sato says.

"In the Friday tyre testing situation the third guy is very helpful. He can run and run and run to see the tyre degradation," Sato said.

"And he can do the performance run to see how much faster we can go, because on Friday Jenson (Button) and I have to save the engine."

Comments

  • Minardus
    I hope (for cost saving) that the team knew Kiesa's financial problem before flying the 3rd car to OZ !!!! (This year the spare car is not allowed, right?!?!)

    Thank god we didn't sign Kiesa as race driver. He can't even pay for the 3rd driver/test driver role !!!!!!:rolleyes:
  • JuniorMin
    If the third car has been transported, then surely it would be able to find a local company to pay a local driver to skop around. I know Will Power will be there, but not driving... Stoddy should be on the blower to Fosters or someone saying I can give Fridays attendance a boost, but it'll cost you $50,000. I'm sure there would be many drivers who would knock back 2 hours in an F1 car, in front of your home crowd.
  • MCSF
    Its criminal not to have a 3rd shoe by now - however no super license no drive.

    Somebody inside the team has some splainin' to do re the third driver.
  • salvo
    ridicolous
  • FlyingPanda
    Junior - How would you suggest Will gets a Superlicense between now and Friday morning?


    You'd think that there'd be someone out there with a superlicense that would pay for a Friday run - Kiesa, Verstappen, Lienders, Glock, Enge, Toccacelo, Etc.
  • MinardiP1
    Well spotted panda. Musta been hard copying quig's post. ;)

    [Edited on 2/3/2005 by MinardiP1]
  • JuniorMin
    Wouldn't the test in Vallelunga make up the kilometres? 300 wasn't it? Being a local boy, it might be likely that they agree to let him run, since it is a given that there will be few cars on track for the day.
  • Jello_Biafra
    Junior - How would you suggest Will gets a Superlicense between now and Friday morning?


    You'd think that there'd be someone out there with a superlicense that would pay for a Friday run - Kiesa, Verstappen, Lienders, Glock, Enge, Toccacelo, Etc.
    Of that list, only Kiesa and Enrico have one. To my knowledge. AFAIK Jos, Bas and Timo's are expired and Enge's results last year were lacking if I recall correctly. :(
  • Minardus
    Did Enge drive an F1 car last year ???
  • Jello_Biafra
    Not that I know of. I don't think he's even tested in a couple of years. He had mid-field results in F3000, though I don't know that they were enough to earn him the automatic superlicense.
  • StoddieBasher
    He screwed his own career by that drugs scandal remember?
  • Jello_Biafra
    He's still racing.
  • StoddieBasher
    Not in F1 he is'nt. He has been no slouch in F3000 but I don't think that after that drugs scandal he has even been suggested as a test driver for a F1 team. Plus the fact that he, if I remember rightly has a good amount of sponsorship from CZ.
  • Jello_Biafra
    His F1 career was over before he smoked pot, dude.
  • FlyingPanda
    Not that I know of. I don't think he's even tested in a couple of years. He had mid-field results in F3000, though I don't know that they were enough to earn him the automatic superlicense.
    I thought he got an automatic one for coming 4th in last years F3000 championship... ?
  • Jello_Biafra
    He didn't finish further back? Maybe I'm confusing him with van der Merwe or Doornbos or someone.
  • Biker
    Did you smoke some pot yourself, dude?? ;)
  • Stan
    [quote]Junior - How would you suggest Will gets a Superlicense between now and Friday morning?


    You'd think that there'd be someone out there with a superlicense that would pay for a Friday run - Kiesa, Verstappen, Lienders, Glock, Enge, Toccacelo, Etc.
    Of that list, only Kiesa and Enrico have one. To my knowledge. AFAIK Jos, Bas and Timo's are expired and Enge's results last year were lacking if I recall correctly. :( [/quote]

    I don't know what are the standards for these superlicenses. But I imagine they last longer than a year. I mean, Jos has been out plenty of years and I never read about him having to take a new test. And I read quite a lot about him ;)
  • Jello_Biafra
    Test? There's no DMV for this kind of shit. It's all done by vote.
  • Stan
    Test? There's no DMV for this kind of shit. It's all done by vote.
    Oh I actually thought the 300km they have to drive was a test they had to get through. Stupid me. I could have known.... the FIA and their dumb rules.

    Do you think it matters that their super licenses are expired? I think that if they once drove, they'll be likely to get a new one (provided that they aren't too old, and have driven once the past let's say four years.)

    I say try and get someone who's crazy enough to pay for this. Alex Yoong? ;-)

    [Edited on 2/3/2005 by Stan]
  • Jello_Biafra
    Jos hasn't driven any kilometers since 2003, let alone 300. Considering that even Badoer needed to get his approved this year, I don't think Jos has one still.
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