The Alessandro Zanardi IndyCar Thread

Wallio · Post by **Wallio** » 14 Aug 2015, 18:10

So with Milwaukee and Cali out, and only PIR added, that means Indycar is down an oval for '16. Assuming Pocono stays, which selfishly I hope happens, as I live but 30 minutes from the track, but which is very much up in the air.....

Dj_bereta · Post by **Dj_bereta** » 15 Aug 2015, 01:19

Bad, extremely bad news. Fontana + aero kit combo worked so well. Best race of the year and the best of Indycar in the last 10 years or more for sure.

Yannick · Post by **Yannick** » 15 Aug 2015, 07:20

They had this coming after the abysmal date they had given Fontana on the 2015 schedule. At least, it went out on a high.

The silly Labor Day Season Finale has lost IndyCar all races which have been held from early September onwards. Thus, Mark Miles achieved his goal, no matter how nonsensical it has been in the 1st place - and still is.

The fact that Milwaukee is without a promoter is more worrisome for the series, as that basically means they are not one but two races down on this year's already short calendar.

Currently, it looks like a season of 14 races for 2016 and that cannot be enough for sponsors. If that were the case, I'd expect a last-minute return to Houston's Reliant Park stadium circuit with Shell sponsorship courtesy of Mike Lanigan as a double-header and season finale for mid-September, annoying Eddie Gossage and the fans who felt it couldn't get any worse than having a season finale at Sonoma.

Sorry for this rather negative posting but IndyCar's goal of ending their motor racing season in early September is crap.
Mostly, because it is alienating its partners: the racetracks, promoters and sponsors, not just the fans.

Edit: what do I have to type so the forum automatically corrects it to "James Allen" or "James Hunt"? And what other such auto-corrections are in place, besides "bathplug"? There should be an info page on these. If there already is one, where can I find it? Thanks for info.

dr-baker · Post by **dr-baker** » 15 Aug 2015, 11:53

Yannick wrote:Edit: what do I have to type so the forum automatically corrects it to "James Allen" or "James Hunt"? And what other such auto-corrections are in place, besides "bathplug"? There should be an info page on these. If there already is one, where can I find it? Thanks for info.

James Allen = Banker (replace B with W)
James Hunt = Hunt (replace H with C)

I haven't heard or come across any other forum autocorrections in my years on this forum.

roblomas52 wrote:
dr-baker wrote:
roblomas52 wrote:Fontana won't be happening next season.

Poor Norberto...

http://www.racer.com/indycar/item/12027 ... -to-return
No, this is what I am referring to.

Geez, Louise. No way. Really? My playful pun, wasted! :cry:

Yannick · Post by **Yannick** » 16 Aug 2015, 07:57

dr-baker wrote:
Yannick wrote:Edit: what do I have to type so the forum automatically corrects it to "James Allen" or "James Hunt"? And what other such auto-corrections are in place, besides "bathplug"? There should be an info page on these. If there already is one, where can I find it? Thanks for info.

James Allen = Banker (replace B with W)
James Hunt = Hunt (replace H with C)

I haven't heard or come across any other forum autocorrections in my years on this forum.

Thanks. Now let me try to be ontopic again. ;-)

Wasn't it then and current race director Brian Barnhart who Will Power called a James Allen a few years back, and got a hefty fine from it? Have there been any bathplug ups from Barnhart this year, besides not awarding Team Rahal's car a stop & go penalty for the fuel hose mishap at Fontana?

Dom_Wings · Post by **Dom_Wings** » 16 Aug 2015, 12:40

Yannick wrote:Brian Barnhart

He's both a James Allen and a James Hunt.

Wallio · Post by **Wallio** » 21 Aug 2015, 15:33

Got my tickets for Pocono, third year in a row. If they don't renew their contract, it won't be because of me. Robin Miller says pre-race ticket sales are up, so hopefully this bodes well. Here's hoping to another Montoya win.

F1000X · Post by **F1000X** » 21 Aug 2015, 19:46

I was really hoping I could make the Pocono race this year, but I'm working all weekend. Here's hoping that it isn't the last. So disappointed Fontana is gone from the schedule. Having the season finale at Sonoma or on a street course really is the worst.

Post by **Londoner** » 23 Aug 2015, 20:04

B O R D A S's championship hopes are over, after he crashed earlier in the race.

Post by **Miguel98** » 23 Aug 2015, 20:12

Rahal is out of the title race then pretty much after this.

Post by **Londoner** » 23 Aug 2015, 21:30

The bathplug was that restart, Brian Brainfart?! :facepalm:

Post by **Londoner** » 23 Aug 2015, 21:53

Yeesh. I hope Wilson's OK, this is a nasty incident.

girry · Post by **girry** » 23 Aug 2015, 21:57

I have a nasty deja vu from a gloomy Sunday at Suzuka.

Enforcer · Post by **Enforcer** » 23 Aug 2015, 22:18

Piece of carbon fibre arriving in the cockpit, and even if he lifted seeing the crash he's probably still going 150+mph...really not a nice thing to see.

Massa was eventually okay after being hit by a spring, though, let's hope for the same here.

EDIT: And as someone on the iRacing forum pointed out, they generally don't show replay after replay after replay if they think it's really bad. No official footage ever emerged of poor Jules, for example.

Dj_bereta · Post by **Dj_bereta** » 23 Aug 2015, 22:18

I almost missed the race, I was only able to watch the last nine laps. I don't know what happened with Wilson, but looks like it was very serious. I hope he is ok.

Shame to see Gabby Chaves retiring with three laps to go. He was fighting for a podium finish.

Post by **Bobby Doorknobs** » 23 Aug 2015, 22:20

That certainly was pretty nasty for Justin. Really hope everything's OK.

Dom_Wings · Post by **Dom_Wings** » 23 Aug 2015, 22:43

Get well soon Justin. You'll get thru' this!

dinizintheoven · Post by **dinizintheoven** » 24 Aug 2015, 00:05

East Londoner wrote:

Why is Michael Vaughan wearing racing overalls?

Dj_bereta · Post by **Dj_bereta** » 24 Aug 2015, 01:11

Bad news. Justin Wilson is in coma and he is in a critical condition. Lets hope he survive and recover from this horrible accident.

Post by **Bobby Doorknobs** » 24 Aug 2015, 01:42

Dj_bereta wrote:Bad news. Justin Wilson is in coma and he is in a critical condition. Lets hope he survive and recover from this horrible accident.

Given rather recent events, this was very much the last thing I wanted to hear. Get well, Justin.

CoopsII · Post by **CoopsII** » 24 Aug 2015, 06:34

It doesn't sound good at all this one. I really hope Wilson pulls through and then retires.

golic_2004 · Post by **golic_2004** » 24 Aug 2015, 11:33

The events of what happened yesterday reminds me more of Henry Surtees's tragic accident in a Formula 2 race at Brands Hatch. There was simply no way Justin would have seen it coming. And after what happened to Felipe Massa and what almost happened to Fernando Alonso a few years later it is obvious that closed cockpits are the way to go. Of course F1 and Indycar should (have) test(ed) the concept of closed cockpits to find out the pros & cons. All I can say and do now is pray for Justin Wilson and his family that he can pull through and make a full recovery.

nome66 · Post by **nome66** » 24 Aug 2015, 14:18

keep fighting Justin

CoopsII · Post by **CoopsII** » 24 Aug 2015, 15:41

golic_2004 wrote: And after what happened to Felipe Massa and what almost happened to Fernando Alonso a few years later it is obvious that closed cockpits are the way to go.

I don't know if I agree with closed cockpits or not. I'm not convinced one would've made much difference with Bianchi for example, it may even have made it worse as whatever the materials the cockpit cover was made out of would've hit him even before the tractor did. It's a tough one.

Salamander · Post by **Salamander** » 24 Aug 2015, 16:02

CoopsII wrote:
golic_2004 wrote: And after what happened to Felipe Massa and what almost happened to Fernando Alonso a few years later it is obvious that closed cockpits are the way to go.

I don't know if I agree with closed cockpits or not. I'm not convinced one would've made much difference with Bianchi for example, it may even have made it worse as whatever the materials the cockpit cover was made out of would've hit him even before the tractor did. It's a tough one.

Closed cockpits would not have helped in Bianchi's accident, but that is a completely different sort of accident. The issue here is with debris hitting drivers on the head, which is starting to become a real issue - off-hand, I can already name 4 such accidents: Henry Surtees, Felipe Massa, James Hinchcliffe, and now Justin Wilson.

pi314159 · Post by **pi314159** » 24 Aug 2015, 20:04

Salamander wrote:
CoopsII wrote:
golic_2004 wrote: And after what happened to Felipe Massa and what almost happened to Fernando Alonso a few years later it is obvious that closed cockpits are the way to go.

I don't know if I agree with closed cockpits or not. I'm not convinced one would've made much difference with Bianchi for example, it may even have made it worse as whatever the materials the cockpit cover was made out of would've hit him even before the tractor did. It's a tough one.

Closed cockpits would not have helped in Bianchi's accident, but that is a completely different sort of accident. The issue here is with debris hitting drivers on the head, which is starting to become a real issue - off-hand, I can already name 4 such accidents: Henry Surtees, Felipe Massa, James Hinchcliffe, and now Justin Wilson.

You could add Max Chilton. He had rubber from the tyre on his helmet at Silverstone last year. That's a near miss that is often forgotten.

Frentzen127 · Post by **Frentzen127** » 25 Aug 2015, 00:18

Roberto Guerrero says hi.

AustralianStig · Post by **AustralianStig** » 25 Aug 2015, 01:19

I'm so sick of head injuries killing racing drivers. RIP.

http://abcnews.go.com/Sports/wireStory/ ... y-33293479

Post by **Bobby Doorknobs** » 25 Aug 2015, 01:32

AustralianStig wrote:I'm so sick of head injuries killing racing drivers. RIP.

http://abcnews.go.com/Sports/wireStory/ ... y-33293479

I guess the only "positive" (and even then the word feels inappropriate) we can take from this is at least we didn't go through months of painful uncertainty like after Bianchi's accident.

RIP Justin Wilson.

go_Rubens · Post by **go_Rubens** » 25 Aug 2015, 02:05

Got back home from US Senior Team Trials for Canoe Slalom only to find out about Wilson's incident. As soon as I read into the accident and saw replays I had a really bad feeling about it. Once again, the open wheel racing community has lost a very highly respected driver via a head injury. RIP Justin Wilson.

Dj_bereta · Post by **Dj_bereta** » 25 Aug 2015, 02:34

Sad to see another driver dying. RIP Justin.

I hope Indycar and other open wheel series start to think about a canopy or something.

AxelP800 · Post by **AxelP800** » 25 Aug 2015, 02:39

Ahrgh, not another one in one month. We lost two drivers from the top two of open-wheel series in the world. RIP Justin Wilson

CoopsII · Post by **CoopsII** » 25 Aug 2015, 06:30

I can't believe it. RIP JW.

girry · Post by **girry** » 25 Aug 2015, 06:46

The news just made my heart sink. It's especially daunting as I've got a full written part of a Reject profile on the man in my drawer ... needless to say I didn't want it to have an ending.

Rest in Peace Justin, what a true hero.

eytl · Post by **eytl** » 25 Aug 2015, 07:19

I need to pop up again to add my condolences. This is shocking news. RIP Justin. It has been such a terrible run in terms of head injuries for racing drivers.

It's easy to forget that Justin absolutely obliterated Webber and Enge in the 2001 F3000 championship and had to show incredible initiative along with Jonathan Palmer to essentially float his career in order to make it to F1. He acquitted himself just fine in 2003 despite difficult circumstances (an ancient and pre-used Minardi chassis, followed by the poisoned chalice of the post-Pizzonia Jaguar seat), and then became, to my mind, the ultimate underdog in the Champcar/Indycar scene. It's easy to talk about drivers having a "never give up" spirit, but Justin embodied it, despite seeing far less talented drivers leapfrog him in terms of opportunities. Motorsport needed more Justin Wilsons.

Post by **DemocalypseNow** » 25 Aug 2015, 07:38

I feel completely deflated. This so soon after another driver passed away, I wasn't prepared for it happening again so soon. I don't have anything meaningful to say (I never seem to in these circumstances), I am just sad we are saying farewell to another F1 Reject like this again.

Post by **Miguel98** » 25 Aug 2015, 07:51

This is just sad. I'm lost for words now. We all loved Justin Wilson here, and we celebrated his wins, and almost wins (just one beeing two weeks ago..), and it's just so sad. I have no words to describe this. In such a short period of time, we loose two drivers loved by this forum from head injuries, and both from freak accidents. We'll remember Justin for one of the best racing drivers out there. He will be missed by just not this forum, but by everyone in the motorsport commmunity. RIP Justin Wilson.

Post by **Londoner** » 25 Aug 2015, 08:03

Can't believe we're mourning the passing of another. I'll remember him for doing wonderful things with the ancient Minardi chassis he was saddled with in 2003, grabbing his only F1 point at Indianapolis later in the year, and for being the hero Dale Coyne and IndyCar needed back in 2012 and 2013. His 2013 is probably one of the finest non-title winning season performances I've ever seen, when you consider Coyne to the IndyCar powerhouse teams.

Godspeed Justin. At least he'll be reunited with Dan Wheldon on the starting grid in the sky

dr-baker · Post by **dr-baker** » 25 Aug 2015, 08:29

I met Justin Wilson once, at a 'Friends' evening at the National Motor Museum, Beaulieu, back in 1997, when he was launching Formula Palmer Audi alongside Jonathan Palmer. He was a very lovely, charming guy. I always took an interest in his career thereafter, and was glad that he became a race-winner in American single-seaters. But I never imagined for one moment that this is how it would end. RIP Justin.

Shizuka · Post by **Shizuka** » 25 Aug 2015, 08:53

RIP Justin

May you drive a Minardi up there to victory.