# More Williams 05 driver news...



## Clarke (Oct 21, 2002)

racerdave said:


> Hard to argue with stats!
> 
> Williams wants race winners, not mere points finishers. Gene would be competent, nothing more.
> 
> ...


Pretty good summation.:stupid:


----------



## WILLIA///M (Apr 15, 2002)

Webber - definitely
Villeneuve - 2nd best and possibly even the best option if he has the desire to race again
Coulthard - good marketing for a British based team I guess
Fisichella - huh?


----------



## Elwood (Dec 20, 2002)

Topaz330xi said:


> Webber - definitely
> Villeneuve - 2nd best and possibly even the best option if he has the desire to race again
> Coulthard - good marketing for a British based team I guess
> Fisichella - huh?


Would Fisi give up driving the 3rd Ferrari? Cause you know he's dying for at least the #2 Ferrari  Course there's always the appeal of a competative car.

How much do they have to fork over for Webber? I know this year's contract was ironclad with Jag but next season's?

Coulthard seems ready for retirement. Solid #2 tho a bit long in the tooth.

Jungle Jack sounds like an interesting option. He _used_ to be quick, but it's been ~5 years of driving a slow car.

Gene? eh. Pizzonia? Wasn't Pizzonia laughed out of Jag? Dixon? Does he know how to turn right yet?

Hell, I'd take Jeff Gordon...he has been at an awfull lot of F1 races/test lately


----------



## The Roadstergal (Sep 7, 2002)

Elwood said:


> Hell, I'd take Jeff Gordon...he has been at an awfull lot of F1 races/test lately


:stupid:

But I do think there's too much money in NASCAR and too much travel in F1 for it to be worth it to him. Besides, he's already a big fish in NASCAR; would he settle for being an F1 minnow (the #2)?


----------



## racerdave (Sep 15, 2003)

Gordon also doesn't strike me as someone who uses "creative truth," and all he's been saying lately is that if it had been 10 years ago, he'd have been all over it. But it's too late now and he's not considering it.


----------



## GregD (Feb 5, 2003)

Williams is going to want at least one very experienced driver, either Coulthard or JV probably paired with a young lion (Webber). They'll want someone that they get a reasonable baseline out of.

Who's better at getting a good setup, DC or JV? Haven't been following F1 enough the last few years to have a good idea about this.


----------



## racerdave (Sep 15, 2003)

GregD said:


> Who's better at getting a good setup, DC or JV? Haven't been following F1 enough the last few years to have a good idea about this.


Hmm... tough call. I would probably say DC, but the BAR was not great last year (duh) and JV's race pace often wasn't bad... just the car blew up.

I'd like to see JV get one more shot at a good ride. DC had good rides with McLaren -- and Hakkinen won the championships, not DC.

Give JV a very incentive-laden, one-year deal and see what happens. It won't cost a lot of money unless he produces... to which it's a win-win scenario.


----------



## The Roadstergal (Sep 7, 2002)

Alex Baumann said:


> You mean Trulli , no ?


 :eeps:


----------



## Alex Baumann (Dec 19, 2001)

The Roadstergal said:


> :eeps:


LOL! :rofl:

WTF ??


----------



## Pinecone (Apr 3, 2002)

My take:

Webber - good choice, up and coming, lots of fire, goes fast for the car

DC - maybe, long in the tooth, but might be good for set up

JV- NO, no fire, expects too much, both money and catering to him as numero uno. Strange that as soon as he leaves, BAR has podiums. Not just other "fixes" but the team seems to work together better.

Fisi - not bad, he seems hungry.

How about Scott Dixon as the second to Webber? could make for a great up and coming pair.


----------



## SteveT (Dec 22, 2001)

I think Williams has to evaluate Jacques. His commitment will need to be evaluated and maybe the 1 year contract with incentives is in order. He is a former WDC after all. If he wants too much money though, he could eliminate himself. The general consensus for the last few years, even in a bad BAR, was that he was still good. I was very disappointed when he left Williams for BAR, but he was chasing a personal goal and sometimes that doesn't work. Mark Webber is a good solution and the Jaguar is going to leave him in the position to make the move. I think Pizzonia is good choice. What happened at Jaguar was just that, Jaguar. Even when Jaguar let him go, Patrick Head was ready to support him. I think Dixon will need to test for a year. It would be nice to see Gene do well, but I don't think he's seen as good enough. I was at Monza last September and he did a good job there. He was the fastest car on the track at the end. Giving Mark Gene a chance would be a really special thing for Williams to do.


----------



## The Roadstergal (Sep 7, 2002)

RS, are you going to be able to provide us with pictures this year?


----------



## The Roadstergal (Sep 7, 2002)

That I completely understand.


----------



## Geo31 (Aug 2, 2003)

How about a letter writing campaign to the folks at Budweiser and HP pressure Williams to get an American in the second seat? Townsend Bell has been doing alright in F3000.


----------



## racerdave (Sep 15, 2003)

That was last year. He lobbied to be the "third" driver at Jaguar, but the teammate who kicked his butt all year, Bjorn Wirdheim, took the job away from him. I don't even know what Bell is doing now... out of a ride for all I know.

I don't see any US driver on the horizon that could succeed in F1... except AJ Allmendinger. That kid is good. Give him 2 years in champ cars, then send him to Europe. He could be the one.


----------



## berford (Sep 10, 2002)

If Webber is a lock, which I hope he is, then I like Coulthard because I think they may make a good TEAM, if for no other reason than they're both English (sort of--by birth and by adoption). The team thing has been absent at Williams for such a long time that I would welcome it back with open arms. Just my


----------



## racerdave (Sep 15, 2003)

Hmm... I've read stuff from Webber over the last year or so to the effect that while he may not be adversarial with his teammates, he really doesn't pay them much mind, either. He's got his own thing to do, and isn't worried about them. 

Which, I suppose, is the right way to do it. F1 can be pretty ruthless, so look out for #1. 

The interesting part about Webber is that he's not had any really top-flight experienced teammates. So it will be interesting to see how he reacts should he get hired on at Williams with JV, DC or even Fisi.

Here's hoping Williams get's Webber and JV for 05. 

Edit...

Funny, I wrote that, then visited F1-Live:

14/05/04 - 11:39]

Webber out to 'destroy' F1 team-mate
Klien better watch out

The placid Mark Webber lets rip when asked about his Formula One team- mate.

Since hitting the sport, for the struggling Minardi crew and now Jaguar, Australia's star has 'destroyed' the fellow occupant of his team's 900bhp racer.

Justin Wilson is ''very nice,'' he once said, ''but I've got to kick his ass.''

''It's my job to destroy my team-mate,'' Mark continued the theme in Barcelona.

Webber's four occasional team-mates from 2002 and 2003 - Alex Yoong, Anthony Davidson, Antonio Pizzonia and Justin Wilson - are no longer on the F1 grid.

''If I'm blown away by my team-mate,'' he adds, ''I'm doing something wrong.

''It's a driver's nightmare to get beaten with exactly the same equipment.''


----------



## berford (Sep 10, 2002)

racerdave said:


> ...
> Funny, I wrote that, then visited F1-Live:
> 
> 14/05/04 - 11:39]
> ...


If that's the case, RB must have a humongous inferiority complex by now.


----------



## racerdave (Sep 15, 2003)

No, RB sold his soul when he went to Ferrari. He doesn't feel that anymore.


----------



## Motown328 (Jun 4, 2003)

The Roadstergal said:


> I think they should bump up Marc Gene.


WERD! :thumbup:

(and did you see the way he drove that Budweiser course?!?!? Hahaha...)

And I don't think Davidson would leave BAR unless he was lined-up nicely at Williams. He's sniffing around for Sato to be dumped... A one-two of Button/Davidson would be almighty! I would be surprised if they don't give him a shot towards the end of the season...


----------

