Jumpy Bob - 08 November 2009 01:12 PM

I agree, GreyWolf74.

However, if he tested all that is Ferrari on the racetrack in particular, why did he, (not so much Mr. Fisichella), have problems keeping up with the rest of the field?

Is it a Ferrari conspiracy to have Mr. Massa look good?

I do not believe in conspiracy theories... I'm just throwing it out there.

Why didn't Luca do well in the races? Because testing and racing are two different things. Testing calls for a driver who is calm, clear-headed and able to run consistant lap times -- doing exactly the same things at the same place on the track, every time. In effect, he almost has to be a driving machine, rather than a driver. He also has to be able to "read" the car and tell the engineers exactly what he's feeling, clearly and concisely, in terms they understand. Combine that with lap times and they can match his impressions with the telemetry to get a better idea of how the car is working. Without a good test driver, attempts at developing a car become hit-or-miss; maybe your improvements worked and maybe they didn't. If the driver is quick one lap and bog-slow the next, you'll never know.

Racing is different. Racing is war. It's all about courage, going as fast as you can and battling with a couple of dozen other cars. Some drivers, like Gilles Villeneuve, are pure racers; they go flat-out all the time but they're not so great at testing. Others, like Luca, are great test drivers but lack experience and/or the "kill or be killed" mentality to race. It is rare that you find a driver like Mario Andretti or possibly Michael Schumacher who excells at both disciplines.

As I said, Luca Badoer is a test driver who hasn't raced in years. He may have forgotten a few things in that time. Ferrari didn't exactly do him any favours when they tossed him into the deep end of the shark tank with no preparation after Filppy Massa's accident.

Dr_Zab - 06 November 2009 05:59 PM

Has Badoer driven the car since they introduced the standard ECU and banned TC and all the other driver aids?

Prior to Valencia, Badoer had last driven an F1 car at Barcelona in November 2008.

It was a 2008 spec car on slicks & with an early test design of the Ferrari KERS system.

My fear is how Alonso will do next year.

Don't you mean how the design, manufacturing, pit wall and pit crew will do ?

Brawnista - 09 November 2009 03:21 PM

Don't you mean how the design, manufacturing, pit wall and pit crew will do ?

No just Alonso.