So the 2004 Formula One season is over, but things are certainly heating up for the 2005 season which promises to be the most tightly contested for sometime. There has been a lot of movement within the teams and with the new regulations coming into place this should make for a an exciting competition.
Among the major recent events Jaguar (owned by Ford) has been sold to Red Bull (and here's hoping that David Coulthard can score a drive with them) who have yet to announce their two drivers. They have retained their existing staff structure and engine supplier Cosworth (who Ford have also recently sold) which will provide some much needed stability for the upcoming season.
Williams have yet to announce their second driver to partner Aussie Mark Webber, who will look to deliver on his much vaunted reputation now that he should have a car capable of winning races. It's looking likely that test driver Antonio Pizzonia will be the man to partner Webber, however, it will be interesting to see if Williams will put these two together after their less than amicable relationship when racing together for Jaguar last year.
McLaren are probably the team to watch in 2005 after their lack lustre season in 2004. They have potentially the most exciting driver duo of Finn Kimi Raikonnen and Columbian Juan Pablo Montoya to mount a challenge to Ferarri's formidable paring of Michael Schumacher and Rubens Baricello who return in 2005 to try for a fifth successive title bid.
BAR with the same 2004 driver combination of Jensen Button and Takuma Sato, will look to continue their blistering rise in F1 which saw them claim the number two spot in the 2004 Contructors championship. Honda have recently bought a 45% stake in BAR which can only help improve their results.
It was a solid but inconsistent 2004 season for the Renault team who will again have the services of exciting youngster Ferdinand Alonso who will pair up with Giancarlo Fisichella who drove for the team when they were Benetton a couple of seasons back.
Former World Champion Jacques Villeneuve returns to Formula One full time with the Sauber team who finished sixth in 2004. He will surely be looking to impress and must be filthy about being fired at the end of 2003 from BAR considering their results in 2004. Hopefully he can channel this positively into some good performances. He will be paired up with Felipe Massa who returns for another season at Sauber.
The Toyota team could be one to watch with the combination of Ralf Schumacher and Jarno Trulli (who was one of only five race winners in 2004). The team with supposedly the biggest budget in F1 should move up the ranks with a couple of drivers capable of winning races.
Jordan will now be sourcing their engines from Toyota since Ford have decided to pull out of Formula 1, thereby ending their association with Cosworth. It will be a tough season for the Jordan team who were not looking confident in actually starting the 2005 season and are yet to announce their two drivers. One positive for them is the return of former chief designer Mark Smith who comes back from Renault as technical director - Smith work with Jordan for 10 years during their most successful period in F1.
F1 minnows Minardi are also still to announce their two drivers, like Jordan there was much speculation over whether Minardi would be on the starting grid when the 2005 season kicks of in Melbourne on March 6. Minardi like the Red Bull (Jaguar) team will also be running Cosworth engines in 2005.
Tuesday, December 07, 2004
Christmas functions
Well it's that time of year I suppose, when there are Christmas functions a plenty and it's just a matter of choosing the right one to go to i.e. the ones with free or subsidised alcohol and food. I had a couple of interesting experiences on the weekend just gone and it's always amusing to see your fellow workmates let their hair down in a social setting.
I must admit that I am relatively slow to learn and should probably know by now that wine and beer do not mix well, but it seems rude to refuse what someone has gone to the trouble of pouring into a glass and offering you. This indeed happened to me and I ended up fertislising my hosts' garden, however, it says a lot that I had a number of people always checking up on me to make sure that I was ok. Yes the Christmas spirit is alive and well, just a word of advise - go easy on the Christmas spirits
I must admit that I am relatively slow to learn and should probably know by now that wine and beer do not mix well, but it seems rude to refuse what someone has gone to the trouble of pouring into a glass and offering you. This indeed happened to me and I ended up fertislising my hosts' garden, however, it says a lot that I had a number of people always checking up on me to make sure that I was ok. Yes the Christmas spirit is alive and well, just a word of advise - go easy on the Christmas spirits
I've got a Grudge
So myself, the flattie, the brother and his fiance check out the new movie "The Grudge" the other night. Now this movie is definitely made for the big screen or a great home theatre package as the sound effects are really what make this movie the scary beast that it is. It's really a typical horror/thriller flick which does owe a lot to the likes of The Ring but you just can't help but get sucked into it's vortex and find yourself gripping the cinema seat at the vital (I originally spelt this "vial" by mistake but realised that this is also an appropriate phrase) moments. I'd also recommend seeing it on the big screen as you simply can't escape when it's all in front of you.
The shame for me is that it leaves itself open for a sequel which, like so many sequels, would just be a money making exercise, however, this remains to be seen.
The shame for me is that it leaves itself open for a sequel which, like so many sequels, would just be a money making exercise, however, this remains to be seen.
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