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[EwanM]

To misquote Jane Austen: There is one thing I want to know: how much money Ferrari laid down to bring this about...

Aye.

Give Fisi his due, he is a decent driver. At the turn of the century many rated him second to only Schumacher in terms of pure talent.
However if his trackrecord is anything to go by then he'll not be as quick as Raikkonen at Ferrari, or race as well.

Fisichella appears to be able to play the perfect underdog job. He thrived in the Silverstone atmosphere, but when faced with a top team he seemed to cower a little bit.

I sincerely hope that this doesn't happen, but until mid-season nobody spoke of him, nor held him in such high regard.

Well, if they did they were quiet about it.

[juggles]

The way that Force India have acted is very decent and professional.

Apart from the bit where one of their guys said yeah Fisi's going to Ferrari, then the team boss said no, that's nonsense, he shouldn't have said that.

If he's planning on driving for another few years though, it seems a bit of a short term glory; he would've been leading the team at Force India, and they seem to be showing signs of improvement; at Ferrari he's going to get five races and in all probability never drive competitively for them again. But maybe he wants a blaze of glory to cap a relatively successful career.

Even if he is planning to drive for a couple more years, if he performs well in comparison to Raikkonen then team bosses will raise eyebrows. His future in the sport was never exclusive to Force India - their own insecurity meant they hadn't renewed his contract for 2010.

a) This seems unlikely in the first place. b) A driver of his age is seen as a stop-gap solution for Ferrari, no more than that; what makes you think that any other top team would see him as something more when the driver market is already extremely competitive and packed with quality all the way down the grid. c) What's the point in moving from Force India to a team like, say, Toro Rosso when he already has a relationship with his FI mechanics, and has been provided with a car that took him to second at one of the best racetracks in the world. The fact that Ferrari have signed him proves that he has already 'raised eyebrows.' By getting a few more results with one of the smallest teams on the grid, and showing even more loyalty to the team by staying, don't you think he would have raised just as many eyebrows?

He's not going to drive for a top team, he could find himself a middle of the road team like Toyota, BMW's replacements maybe, possiby back to Renault. The new rules shook the teams up this year, but you would expect the money men and the experienced to be moving right back up to the front for 2010.

There may be more risk involved, but the best results are always achieved by people that take them. F1 drivers only want to win and they'd chop limbs off for the chance. Fisi I think you've made a smart move.

That's a ridiculous statement which is rubbished every week. Grosjean took a risk last weekend at Spa...

[Denthúl]

£4m, Juliet...

[Amanda]

£4m, Juliet...

Is that a guess, how much Force India owe Ferrari or neither?

[Denthúl]

£4m, Juliet...

Is that a guess, how much Force India owe Ferrari or neither?

Approximately how much FI are supposed to have owed Ferrari for their engine deal.

[Nikkibikkie]

I am actually quite sad about this!!! I was ALWAYS a fan if Fisi especially in the Jordan days and end of an era in 2010!! Next to go will be barichello and Jarno

But good luck to him!!!!!!!

Nikki

[Amanda]

£4m, Juliet...

Is that a guess, how much Force India owe Ferrari or neither?

Approximately how much FI are supposed to have owed Ferrari for their engine deal.

I thought so. I didn't know the exact number but my guess would have been that they effectively wiped the debt.

[EwanM]

Mallya has said that it is nothing to do with the engines.



Liar! Liar!


Force India couldn't really do much else. Ferrari were full of flattery. I bet Force India were allowed to break the news first as part of the agreement etc etc.

So we have Luizzi back, final chance for him to make an impact. It'll be hard, but he has a chance.

I don't forget his strong F3000 year.

[Denthúl]

Has Liuzzi been confirmed?

[EwanM]

Has Liuzzi been confirmed?

It seems only a matter of time.

Before Giancarlo Fisichella started to hit form I remember Iain Phillips saying that FI would be aiming to resign Sutil and Luizzi - he didn't say in which capacity though, and he said that Fisi's contract had no option on it and they would have to think harder on his situation.

So I think Sutil and Luizzi were possible candidates to race for the team.

I mean I remember even at Silverstone 2008 on the live tv broadcast at the circuit, Alan Henry (absolute legend) and John "the Titanic" Watson said that they had heard Fisi would be leaving at the end of 08 - it didn't happen of course, but as you can see it's always been there.

[JamesD89]

The way that Force India have acted is very decent and professional.

Apart from the bit where one of their guys said yeah Fisi's going to Ferrari, then the team boss said no, that's nonsense, he shouldn't have said that.

If he's planning on driving for another few years though, it seems a bit of a short term glory; he would've been leading the team at Force India, and they seem to be showing signs of improvement; at Ferrari he's going to get five races and in all probability never drive competitively for them again. But maybe he wants a blaze of glory to cap a relatively successful career.

Even if he is planning to drive for a couple more years, if he performs well in comparison to Raikkonen then team bosses will raise eyebrows. His future in the sport was never exclusive to Force India - their own insecurity meant they hadn't renewed his contract for 2010.

a) This seems unlikely in the first place. b) A driver of his age is seen as a stop-gap solution for Ferrari, no more than that; what makes you think that any other top team would see him as something more when the driver market is already extremely competitive and packed with quality all the way down the grid. c) What's the point in moving from Force India to a team like, say, Toro Rosso when he already has a relationship with his FI mechanics, and has been provided with a car that took him to second at one of the best racetracks in the world. The fact that Ferrari have signed him proves that he has already 'raised eyebrows.' By getting a few more results with one of the smallest teams on the grid, and showing even more loyalty to the team by staying, don't you think he would have raised just as many eyebrows?

He's not going to drive for a top team, he could find himself a middle of the road team like Toyota, BMW's replacements maybe, possiby back to Renault. The new rules shook the teams up this year, but you would expect the money men and the experienced to be moving right back up to the front for 2010.

There may be more risk involved, but the best results are always achieved by people that take them. F1 drivers only want to win and they'd chop limbs off for the chance. Fisi I think you've made a smart move.

That's a ridiculous statement which is rubbished every week. Grosjean took a risk last weekend at Spa...

Are you for real? He finished last. So what? He wasn't going to be anywhere near the front if he didn't try to overtake when he had the chance. When it pays off, he picks up the points, podiums, whatever it is his car allows him to do.

[NateDawg80126]

I have gained massive respect for Vijay Mallya through the last two seasons, he seems to really have his head on his shoulders. His reaction to Ferrari's request has really impressed me, that along with the steady improvements to their performance over the last few years really makes me think he would be a great guy to work/drive for.

[Denthúl]

I have gained massive respect for Vijay Mallya through the last two seasons, he seems to really have his head on his shoulders. His reaction to Ferrari's request has really impressed me, that along with the steady improvements to their performance over the last few years really makes me think he would be a great guy to work/drive for.

I agree. The progress that he and his team have made over the past year and a half is massive, especially when you consider they had a few strong showings last year in a year-old car that had been modified. The VJM02 is a car that they built in a very short amount of time due to waiting for an engine deal to come through, using a tiny budget in comparison to teams like McLaren, Ferrari and Toyota, and yet here they are improving throughout the season and ending up with a well-earned podium and the pace to have actually won a race!

[EwanM]

Mallya is a good guy and now hopefully this bung has saved the team.

THE FORCE

[stonemonkey]

However if his trackrecord is anything to go by then he'll not be as quick as Raikkonen at Ferrari, or race as well.

He was as quick in a Force India as Kimi was in a Ferrari.