| ATLAS F1 Volume 6, Issue 24 | |
| The Grapevine Rumours and speculation in the world of F1 |
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| by The F1 Rumors Team | |
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This week's Grapevine brings you
Safety on the Table Again
Following Ricardo Zonta's second serious accident in testing, only a fortnight after Giancarlo Fisichella made his Benetton turn somersaults over a Jordan, there is mounting concern that driver safety, whilst catered to strongly under the public eye, is being neglected at the test tracks. That it has always been this way is no excuse. New components need to be tested; once the aerodynamicists accepted the models, and the computers have crunched the numbers, the parts have to be manufacturered, fitted, then tested properly on a real car. The cars do travel upwards of 300km/h, and the components occasionally fail - this has always been so. Changes to car designs have improved driver safety, and fatal injuries are considered remotely possible: both BAR drivers made impressive scrap heaps of their cars at Eau Rouge in Spa '99, and both walked away unharmed. Those crashes were due to a driver error, but could as easily have been the result of a failed component, which would have been no excuse for a more serious result. However, life is not so simple. The safety tests do ensure the driver has a "safety capsule," but in the quest for performance, teams have to take every component to the edge of its capacity. For example, brakes are run as thin as possible - to last over 300 kms, and little more, right at the top of their operating temperature. Accordingly, it's little surprise that in testing, some detritus in the brake cooling duct soon has them overheating, and failing. In Zonta's case, failing at 300 km/h as he went into the Parabolica. Some believe the modern car is too safe, and from the evidence on their screens, most TV viewers just can't understand it when commentators say the sport is never going to be completely safe. They see massive crashes, and drivers walking away. They rarely realise that drivers are risking life and limb at the races, and certainly, they are not aware that testing, rather than racing, is the biggest danger to the modern F1 driver.
Webber Struggles On
For the last three seasons, Australians have been looking to talented youngster Marc Webber for a return to proper representation in Formula One. Webber has competed strongly in a number of series, earned the backing of Mercedes, and worked hard to establish his credentials as a top of the line driver. However, things are certainly not all going his way. Last year, Webber eschewed open seaters to concentrate on Le Mans: his goal was to drive the winning Mercedes over the line. As it transpired, the Mercedes was unstable at speed, and after two cars literally took off, they withdrew on safety grounds. Until that point, Webber was adamant that he would only driver - test or otherwise - for a front line Formula One team. He had seen how often talented drivers struggled with back-markers, leading to an early departure from the sport, so it was imperative to gain a test seat with a team who would permit him to show just how good he really is. However, the big boys are not simple slaves to money, so politics is a major obstacle. Despite working with Bernie Ecclestone in an attempt to open doors, nothing came together, though it was close a few times with Jordan, had he been willing to part with serious capital. Finally, Webber approached Arrows, whose new car was supposed to be a thing of beauty. They arranged a test drive, and Webber was finally able to demonstrate not only that he is quick - running close to the pace of regular driver Pedro de la Rosa - but has technical acumen to boot. His feedback was instrumental in developing the car in the off season, whilst the "driver situation" was being sorted out. As it turns out, it also helped to seal a competitive drive in Formula 3000 for the season. As rumours continue to spread of de la Rosa's defection from Arrows, the team are casting their eyes out for potential replacements to keep them harrying at least into the mid-field in 2001. However, at the same time, Webber's form is starting to look suspect, as he mixes less than perfect qualifying sessions with race mistakes. The Australian is still very fast - and certainly capable of making the top grade, but being pressured into falling off the Monaco circuit at the F3000 race last week, when running fourth, has done him no service. Tom Walkinshaw at Arrows has an eye on Webber: he is quick, and he brings money from sponsors; however, with little room for mistakes on the glaring stage of Formula One, Webber now knows he is under serious scrutiny. Although the silly season has started, Arrows do not normally announce their drivers until near the new season. It's going to be a long haul, but the Arrows staff think he's got the stuff to make it in Formula One. If that's the case, being under the Walkinshaw spotlight will be as nothing, and his seat is assured in 2001.
Silly Season Update
Every year, particularly around this time of the season, speculation about the future of all the key players in the sport takes off. For the most part, the rumours are contradictory, unlikely, or just plain untrue, but all too often there are gems hidden amongst the dross that bear consideration. Over the remainder of the year, the Grapevine will be keeping tabs on the latest hot gossip from the Silly Season, to keep you up to date on who is going where, and why, in 2001:
Picked from the Bunch
A few grapes collected by RaceFax:
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