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Some interesting news on the whole Webber drive situation:

"Ralf Schumacher got a shock yesterday when he visited the clinic at Bad Nauheim and discovered that he had two fractures in his spine. He will be out of action for at least eight weeks and probably 12 and that means that the Williams team is looking at not seeing him again until the end of September or the beginning of October. If that is the case and with Ralf on his way to Toyota next year, there is no point in the team taking Schumacher back as his replacement will be settled into the team by that point.

Williams is expected to announce that Marc Gene will drive the car at the French Grand Prix but there is now a big opportunity for the team to pick a new driver and there is no doubt that the first thing that will happen is that Williams will be going to Jaguar Racing and trying to sign up Mark Webber. The Australian is expected to go to Williams next year and Jaguar no longer has a hold on him after the end of the current season. Renault is going to announce Jarno Trulli and Fernando Alonso for 2005 at the French GP and so there is no longer any reason why Webber cannot join Williams and letting him go early may be a good way for Jaguar to raise some money and try out a new driver for the remaining races this year.

The big question is likely to be who will be chosen for this role with the test and reserve driver Bjorn Wirdheim obviously one possibility but also Anthony Davidson, the BAR test driver, a favourite of team boss Tony Purnell. It is also possible that Red Bull might push to get Formula 3000 racer Vitantonio Liuzzi into the second Jaguar although it probably makes more sense for him to complete his Formula 3000 programme and worry about F1 after that.

One way or another there are likely to be big moves in the next few days."

Sourced from Grandprix.com

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Well in the paper this morning it says sources at Williams have said that Jaguar won't give up Mark Webber until the end of the season (which is fair enough as they will benifit if they can get past Jordon and Toyota in the championship and they'll need Webber to do that) So now Williams are thinking of giving the drive to JV for the rest of the season. This is probably a smarter move if they already know they want Webber for next year but are still unsure of the second driver.

Its a shame that this off-field soap opera is more interesting than the racing at the moment.

wouldn't it suck to be an f1 test driver

here you are doing all the work, hoping for a shot at the big time....the lead driver gets hurt and can't race.....and the team get a git out of retirement instead ;)

I don't reckon that JV is a git. Maybe he is tempremental and not good at playing the games that the F1 paddock is so famous for but he makes for interesting racing and speaks his mind honestly. Thus i find him to be more entertaining than a lot of drivers that are currently in F1.

Seeing as F1 is kinda in the entertainment business i would like to see him back on the grid in a good car...

Yeah I totally agree that he was always interesting, kinda similar to Irvine in that. There's way too many boring drivers these days.

But for whatever reason he was really dragging down BAR, morale in that team last year must have been a shocker....and I'm pretty sure he was playing his own games, especially with his team mates. If I was a team boss paying that sort of money for a professional driver I'd be pretty pissed off at how the last few years of JV went....

I totally agree with you on that he was a major diruption to BAR during the last 2 years of his tenure. I think that he was annoyed that he went to a team that was really not up to what it promised him. Thus he wasted what should have been his prime driving a car that was sub standard. When the car started to come good he was such a bitter man that he gave half efforts that tarnished his name and brought down his team morale.

Or so i beleive (not that i have any expertise at all :cheers: )

Gene is in for Magny Cours.

JV is too much a negative nancy. Ralf is one already so why replace one with another?

I've always thought test drivers should get a crack at drives. Guys like JV and Hakkinen have had their time in the limelight. These guys bust their backs behind the scene doing all the dirty work. I don't think JV or Hakkinen can pull off a Prost. Come out of retirement and still be competative or take a title. Prost is one of the immortals of F1. Even Mansell couldn't do it.

If anyone should get a crack besides Gene I reckon BAR test driver Anthony Davidson is a good pick.

Well its official - Ralf to Toyota for next year.

Jaguar are now saying they are confident that Mark Webber will stay with the team for next year. Funniest thing I've heard in ages.

He's now a certainty for Willaims - just a matter of who will be his team mate - and now who will be the team mate of Ralf at Toyota - and who'll be at Jaguar. I wouldnt be suprised to see DC there next year.

Whats the deal with Piquet Jr? Anyone know how his season's been going this year? If good I could possibly see him with a seat at Williams given the backing he would bring. He's done some testing for them in the past I know that much.

For all the positive hype over Gene he really messed up in the Magny Cours GP. Finishing behind JPM, who had a nice spin, is a poor effort in my opinion. Yes he had problems with the clutch on launc but come on...

As for Webber staying at Jag? I have heard of people being dreamers but that has to be one of the most outlandish things i have heard. Still you never know with F1.

Yep Gene was shocking. He's got the seat again at Silverstone but I reckon he needs a podium to be even considered.

Did some checking up on Piquet Jr - he's leading the F3 championship. Given Williams history of given young guns from other championships a shot, and the history with Piquet, my $$$ is on him getting the second seat.

We've seen them do it sucessfully too I must say with JV and Damon Hill in the past with recruiting young drivers of past champions blood.

We've seen them do it sucessfully too I must say with JV and Damon Hill in the past with recruiting young drivers of past champions blood.

Yeh considering Weber has a few years experience now, i think thye are more likely take a punt on an F1 rookie as long as they have Weber who at least has a few runs on the board...

You mention JV and Hill, what about Button that was out of the blue...

I would think that Ryan Brisco would be a better choice considering that he beat Piquet last year and has way more F1 kms under his belt.

Patrick Head made it clear that he wants an expreienced driver in the Williams. My bet is someone expereinced and someone still wet behind the ears.

Coulthard for Williams...though they have already said they dont want him...

http://f1.racing-live.com/en/index.html?ht...630090551.shtml

and according to that site, Trulli is considering an offer from Toyota, in light of recenr Rernault comments, there may be a seat at Renault for Weber...or Coulthard, YAY! :)

The Webber-Williams link refuses to go away

Mark Webber's '05 BMW-Williams deal is done.

The Formula One paddock already knows that - but what it might not know is that the Australian is likely to drive his Jaguar for the final time at Hockenheim.

Australian sources said Webber will start his new career in Budapest (Aug. 15).

The sources said Frank Williams will owe the cash-limited Ford-owned Leaping Cat 'as much as $700,000 a race' for snatching Mark's '04 and '05 contract early.

Meanwhile, BMW boss Mario Theissen, said he spoke to injured driver Ralf Schumacher on Saturday and "he thinks he can be back in the car at Hungary.

"I don't know if the doctors support that," said the German.

Ralf is due to have a medical check next week.

Frank agrees the Grove team is 'slipping down' without the young Schu, admitting the difference in one place in the carmakers' title is several million dollars.

Yeah - seriously we won't know til after Hockenhiem but this was the reply from the Webber FIA press conference on Thursay before the race.

Q: What about your future. When can we expect…

MW: I know everything and you guys know nothing. That is how it will be today.

Q: But, if things changed…

MW: Things are not going to change. I mean, everything, erm, yeah, it’s quite interesting at the moment. But, erm, yeah, some decisions have been, er, made, I suppose, so now we are just going to see how it all pans out in the next two races.

But who knows. If I was Frank Williams says its going to be worth several million pounds to get up one place in the constructors but its going to cost him $4.2million pounds (6 races by $700K) to get Webber for the rest of the season - is it cost effective? They are now 26 points behind BAR - but I guess even more worrying is that they are now only 9 points infront of McLaren who seem to have got it right finally.

  • 2 weeks later...

Latest gossip, Coulthard to Jaguar (sux), Weber to Williams (Doh), Heidfiled to Williams, Fisichalla to Renault, Trulli to Toyota, Davidson to Sauber...

Oh well i thought Fisichella was a chance for Williams but it appears that Briatore wants him back....and Jordan cashing in on selling Heidfeld

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