Busy day today.

[mapguy]

Today the six week testing ban is lifted and some teams have wasted no time.

Jaguar is testing Townsend Bell and some other guy at Valencia. (http://www.autosport.com/newsitem.asp?id=25370&s=5) Also at Valencia McLaren is the first team to test their 2004 car. (http://www.autosport.com/newsitem.asp?id=25367&s=5)

Meanwhile, over in Barcelona, the Foyt Racing of F1, BAR, has turned their hybrid machine. (http://www.autosport.com/newsitem.asp?id=25368&s=5) They have also ditched Bridgestone in favor of Michelins. Like that is going to help.

[Dirty Sanchez]

Originally posted by mapguy
Meanwhile, over in Barcelona, the Foyt Racing of F1, BAR, has turned their hybrid machine. (http://www.autosport.com/newsitem.asp?id=25368&s=5) They have also ditched Bridgestone in favor of Michelins. Like that is going to help. F1 Racing magazine reckons it will help a lot... haven't read the entire article yet but they figure the BAR was seriously hamstrung by Bridgestone and may have even competed for race wins last year had they been on Michelin rubber. :eek: That bit surprised me a little... but they say the car itself is just that good. Beechler good! :gomer:

Looks like my Sato outscoring JV bet is looking pretty good for next year. :laugh:

[mapguy]

Originally posted by Crapus
Looks like my Sato outscoring JV bet is looking pretty good for next year. :laugh:

Just like the one you made earlier this year at cw taking the field against PT?

:D

[Dirty Sanchez]

Originally posted by mapguy
Just like the one you made earlier this year at cw taking the field against PT?

:D I'd take that bet again anyday... interested?

[RichK]

Of all the American racecar drivers, it's weird that T.Bell is the one doing all the F1 testing, isn't it? He didn't set the world on fire in CART.

You've got to give the guy credit for being persistent and working to get money.

[JoeBob]

He didn't set the world on fire, but he did hit an awful lot of things!

That said, he kinda got the shaft in that deal. Being a rookie in CART with no teammate, on a team that has had hit and miss results over the last few years isn't exactly a recipe for success. Fast and reckless is a lot easier to coach than just plain slow.

Besides, you have to give him style points for being on probation before the season even began - and still hitting everything in sight! (He was put on probation for doing his trademark "TB" burnout at the entry to turn 1 after finishing the last race of the season - before the entire field had crossed the finish line!)

[Dr. Corkski]

Bell and Christian Klein (Marlboro Masters F3 winner this year) are testing for Jaguar because Ford is desperate for the Red Bull money.

Say, tomorrow isn't some washed-up ex-champion going to follow his word and retire after getting beaten by Mr. Boyband this year? :D

[mapguy]

Originally posted by Crapus
I'd take that bet again anyday... interested?

Sure, what's the bet?

[Dirty Sanchez]

Um... I get the field vs. PT for any race... all races... the season. Its up to you. :)

[mapguy]

Originally posted by Crapus
Um... I get the field vs. PT for any race... all races... the season. Its up to you. :)

Hmm... It'll have to be cheap as I am still unemployed. Give me a few to think about it.

[Joe in LA]

Looks like Klein and Bell both did a good job. Bell is getting the tests because he is an American in F3000 and hasn't made a fool of himself. He's shown the committment to run in Europe at the highest level available. His showing in CART as a raw rookie with no teammate for a partial season really doesn't tell me much. If he runs F3000 again and wins races, I would certainly look past the partial year in CART. I doubt Jag is serious about him as next year's driver, but a test driver offer would be a good outcome.

[Ankf00]

mappy's about to get taken to the cleaners ;)

[chop456]

From f1live.com:

ven if Jaguar is still relying on Justin Wilson to carry out part of its testing programme alongside Mark Webber, the team also to took the time to test two other young drivers this week at Valencia: American Townsend Bell and Austrian Christian Klien.

Jaguar was particularly impressed with the young Austrian, who is without a doubt a talented driver, winning the F3 Masters at Zandvoort this year and taking a total of 4 wins in the F3 Euro Series this season, finishing in second place in the championship.

According to The Guardian, Klien really impressed Jaguar this week, dramatically increasing his chances of becoming a regular driver for the 'Big Cat' in 2004.

A Jaguar spokesperson said about Klien: "He did a very good job during the test at Valencia and never put a wheel on the grass or the gravel. He was as much in control of himself as the car. He was extremely composed and calm and his technical feedback was excellent."

With Energy drink giant Red Bull as his personal sponsor, Christian Klien would also bring additional sponsorship money to Jaguar if he his selected to become Mark Webber's teammate, which is an important element for the Milton Keynes-based team.

Now that Alexander Wurz has confirmed his intention to stay at McLaren, the battle for Jaguar's second seat is focusing on Klien, Wilson and Jos Verstappen. However, Klien appears to have the best combination of talent and financial arguments to meet Jaguar's requirements.

[mapguy]

Originally posted by Ankf00
mappy's about to get taken to the cleaners ;)

Yeah, by Sato. :gomer: :shakehead :rolleyes:

[Ziggy]

News I got was Bell was dusted. To be exact, the email was titled "Bell is toast"

Ziggy

[Cam]

Official.... It's Klien.

JAGUAR RACING ANNOUNCES 2004 DRIVER LINE UP



Tuesday 2nd December, 2003, MILTON KEYNES (UK)



Jaguar Racing today confirms Austrian Christian Klien (20) as Mark Webber's team
mate for the 2004 Formula One season. This
is with immediate effect with Christian today joining Mark for a three-day test
at the Circuit de Catalunya in Barcelona.


Having never previously driven a Formula One car before, Christian was invited
to test for Jaguar Racing last week at Valencia
(Spain) where he demonstrated clearly his capabilities and potential over two
days.


"Christian was in as much control of himself as he was the car," said David
Pitchforth, Managing Director, Jaguar Racing. "He was
extremely calm, composed and didn't seem remotely fazed by his first ever
experience with a Formula One car. His technical
feedback was excellent and there is no doubt in our minds about the potential of
this exciting new young talent. He worked very
well with the race engineers and demonstrated increasing speed as he became
familiar with the car. Christian's professionalism
and brain bandwidth are also very impressive and combined with his application,
our decision to employ him as a race driver was
based on merit, potential and speed," added Pitchforth.


A delighted Christian commented: "Knowing that I am a Jaguar F1 driver has made
me the happiest man on earth! I have worked
tirelessly over the years to get to this point but I appreciate also that the
real hard work for me starts now. I am indebted to Jaguar
Racing for giving me an opportunity to prove my worth and I intend repaying
Jaguar through hard work, commitment and
ultimately, results on the race track. Before that, however, I have a
responsibility alongside Mark Webber to support the
development of the 2004 challenger and that means countless hours of testing
over the winter period. This will also be a very
valuable familiarisation exercise for me too as I get to know the car, the team
and it's associated partners."


After contesting his contracted five races with the team, Justin Wilson (24)
makes way for Christian and his valuable contribution
to the development and growth of Jaguar Racing is summed up by Pitchforth: "I
cannot thank Justin enough for his hard work and
commitment since joining us after the British Grand Prix. Justin's speed, focus
and experience are exemplary and our decision to
put Christian in the race car in no way reflects upon Justin's clear ability as
a competitive racing driver. We are, however, in
discussions with Justin about how Jaguar Racing can help with his future
career."