US GP

[rapstagangsta]

F1 time again, top 10 results after qualifying:

1) Jarno Trulli 1:10.625
2) Kimi Räikkönen 1:10.694
3) Jenson Button 1:11.277
4) Giancarlo Fisichella 1:11.290
5) Michael Schumacher 1:11.369
6) Fernando Alonso 1:11.380
7) Rubens Barrichello 1:11.431 8) Takuma Sato 1:11.497
9) Mark Webber 1:11.527
10) Felipe Massa 1:11.555

As for the race, I'm picking
1st Kimi Räikkönen
2nd Michael Schumacher
3rd Jenson Button

What are everyone else's picks?

[RallyRaider]

Guess it depends on how many Michelins blow or what the teams have to do to make them last the distance. Or maybe it is all just a storm in a teacup? If the problem is as bad as some seem to be saying, and the Ferrari's strike trouble, we could be looking at Jordan/Minardi podium.

[ales]

Great job Michelin. Hypocrites. Now waiting for some anti-Ferrari spin on this. Stop this farce.

Michelin have single handedly killed F1 as far as the US is concerned, and that's at least.

[RallyRaider]

How are Michelin hypocrites? They simply stuffed up and are admitting it. Man I love it when stuff like this happens. You can almost hear the money disappearing from Bernie's pocket. Good on Michelin for sticking to their guns and not racing. Now if only Ferrari can find some way to screw up it'll be perfect.

[Iron]

That was some weird stuff

[RallyRaider]

Although it is a great shame for all those spectators who paid to attend the race.

[ales]

They're hypocrites because they'd enjoyed a big advantage with the new regulations while Bridgestone had to suffer the consequences of their approach and perhaps mistakes. Once Michelin stuff up big time, they present an ultimatum - change the rules or we won't race. That's hypocricy.

I'm just as sorry for myself as I am for the fans at the track.

And very classy of you to wish good luck to Ferrari.

[lamehonda]

Sucks for the fans. Michelin should have been ready for the race. Good job on the teams part sitting the race out.

[RallyRaider]

Did you see the Ralf accident that started this whole charade? That is what Michelin are afraid of, it is a safety issue baby. Cars in crowds would be a much quicker way to kill F1 in the US, literally. Michelin would have been hypocrites if the DID race today. By following through on their concerns they are most definitely not being hypocritical. At least on the face of it, perhaps there is some other political/conspiracy theory behind it all.

I don't see it as an ultimatum, it was an attempt to find a solution, that quite reasonably the FIA rejected. Why should they change the track or rules at the last moment to advantage the Michelin teams?

Classy to wish Ferrari luck, how so? I'd rather save that for Minardi. Ferrari don't need any more luck to achieve a 1-2 today. A Minardi podium or win would be quite an entry in the record books you have to admit.

[Mpowered]

It's odd how you blame Michelin when actually Max and Bernie are the true bullets that put the hole in F1. If they had allowed some last minute changes the race could have proceeded as planned, but Max and Bernie showed how classless they are. The liabilities on both the owners and suppliers are great if a driver died while racing in unsafe conditions. The legal problems could be astronomical and I don't blame Michelin for their stance. Maybe this will finally put a bullet in Formula 1 and allow teams to control more of what goes on in racing instead of leaving it to two a$$holes who are wagged by Ferrari constantly. Some day they'll realize where they went wrong (I doubt it), but they will not have to worry about it because their billion$ have already been made. I have a special message for Bernie and Max .

Hey, Bernie and Max here's another for the both of you .

[fwdfreak]

This is hidiously funny :>, but what the hell 9 of 10 teams agreed to build the curve (don't know the word in english) on the track but when ferrari said no there was no curve? wtf? ferrari=monopol?

[BullShifter]

This is ridiculous! I guess it worked out good, sold my tickets yesterday due to health problems in my family. The drivers on the track do not deserve the crap being thrown on the track, but FIA, Michelin, Bernie, Max, etc. they need a good beating.

Michelin acts like this is the first time they been to Indy, if I understand it right this is the 6th time. Tire problems on the first time ok, but after a bunch of times with MULTI MILLION $$$$$$ machines, this is so pathetic I'm almost ready to watch NASCAR.

[RallyRaider]

On the TV they're saying that 9 of the 10 teams actually voted to put a chicane between turns 12 and 13. Wonder who absented? It wasn't Minardi according to Stodart, so it must have been Jordan or Ferrari.

[fwdfreak]

it was ferrari

[RallyRaider]

Originally Posted by jackasssi

Michelin acts like this is the first time they been to Indy, if I understand it right this is the 6th time. Tire problems on the first time ok, but after a bunch of times with MULTI MILLION $$$$$$ machines, this is so pathetic I'm almost ready to watch NASCAR.

It ain't that simple, Michelin are saying they don't know the cause. It could be due to many reasons, a simple fuck up at the factory, unexpected conditions due to resurfacing or a difference in the construction of this years tyres, which are essentially a fresh start due to the change in rules. Remember F1 does not race on a banking anywhere else, nor are the teams allowed to test at Indy before the race. Bridgestone may have more info due to their involvement in IRL but the two series are so different that it's probably not that helpful.

No it is a mistake plain and simple, no way to cover it up so the inevitable has happened. No point getting upset about it. Unless you forked out your hard earned for a ticket to the circus.