FIA hate Zonta haters?

[Run Free]

Totally agree with Roy 2 and Jay!

Liz, I'm really dismayed: your opinion on JV is based on what his uncle (that notoriously is not in good terms with him) said in '97 about him as a child... Frankly, that seems just a little bit superficial to me. Anyway Jacques' father died racing, and his mother did her best to keep him far from racing and maybe Jacques, when he was a child, had other priority in life...But he tried racing, enjoyed it, choose to do it, and then is a man and a Cart and F1 Champion, and a Indy 500 winner. Everyone can SEE that he loves racing.

I'm also REALLY curious, Liz, to read your fonts from the Honda people about Zonta being "picked on" by the "BAR gang". Because I've sometimes a very different feeling....I wonder why Jacques' car had problems in last friday's practice, for example, and Zonta's car had not. And is not certainly the first time this happens. Zonta is also doing a lot of testing. Those are FACTS, not words, and for sure this is not "preferential treatment" for Jacques! You Liz seem to see Zonta like a baby that needs a lot of care and encouragement, but remember that Jacques, when he was as young as Zonta is today, was at Williams, and that team was less that supportive with him even when he was battling for the title. In my opinion to be strong inside is as important for a driver as to be quick on the track. And racing is not crashing in team mates and other drivers nor continuously complaining! See the difference between Zonta and Button for example...But Zonta shouldn't have problems with his career, as he is a Mercedes driver, and a Brazilian one...

Finally, Liz, you didn't say why you believe that there is a "love affair" between Jacques and Pollock. Personally I think that trying to support Zonta using such arguments is not worth of any respect.

PS for all of you: Sorry if I didn't present myself before responding to Liz, as I'm new to this forum; but I just couldn't!





regarding your opinion on CP, i think it's offensive,

Sorry I was rude about Craig Pollock but it's my opinion. [/B][/QUOTE]

[Jay]

Welcome to Ten-Tenths Run Free

Jacques wasn't very interested in racing when his father raced. I forget the exact reasons, but I will take Liz's word on it. However, if my memory serves me correct he did ask for his mother's permission to race the first time, which would indicate he wanted to do it.

Plus, I doubt that any of these drivers are doing it just for the money. Jacques has said several times that if he ever stopped enjoying it he would quit.

It is undeniable that Jacques and Craig have a very special relationship. They have known each other since Jacques was 12 and have always been good friends. When Craig Pollock decided to build an F1 team, he only ever had one driver in mind. The other one would just be there to fill the required second seat. So, in that respect, yes Craig probably does give Jacques special treatment.

However, having said that, I doubt that there is a lot of difference between the equipment they get. Ricardo gets a lot more testing time, and they both get equal time in the race. They both have their seperate engineers and in the end one usually does better than the other. And this probably just helps to demoralize Ricardo. Every race where his teammate does much better than Ricardo, he becomes more demoralized.

[Roy2]

It probably is false that Jacques "always wanted to race." But I said that he always knew he was going to race. He said this himself in a TV interview I saw. I think it was the extended interview that he gave the CBC when he came to Montreal for the celebration of his WC (at least it was aired then). Your source is the uncle, mine is Jacques himself.

Of course it's not literally true that as a fetus, or at two years, six, or eleven he made the decision to race. Perhaps for as long as he can remember, or ever since he was old enough to do anything about it, racing seemed to be in the cards for him. Given who his father was, given that at a Swiss school, seemingly as far from motor racing as one could be, he met a teacher with motor racing connections, this is not surprising. His uncle takes credit for turning him on to racing?. Jacques had been as exposed to it as any child ever gets long before the uncle anecdotes took place. When he got old enough to think, his life choice would be, do I commit myself to racing, or don't I. How close was he to the uncle, how much did he confide in him, how much did the uncle know about him, how much did he influence him? Perhaps a lot less than he thought.

I've heard a few of those JV stories. Scheckter met him at an F3 race in Monaco. He formed an unfavorable opinion of his chances when Jacques said, "racing is more work than I thought" of something like that. Someone asked him when he was in CART what he did for fitness, and JV made a beer drinking gesture with his arm. It's the same old story. People who should know better see a young man with a big name, and they judge him as if he should be a finished product, as if he had no right or capacity to learn and develop. The F3 team owner thought young JV was an absolute zero because driving in F3 he took no interest in, or was not distracted by, the F1 cars? He doesn't know it, but the butt of this story is himself.

[Liz]

Well I don't know Jacques any better than the rest of you, so I guess we are all entitled to our opinions. And as far as why I think Zonta is being destabilized, besides the story that was in Autosport that says so, I have my own reasons for believing it that are not imagination.

Perhaps I was a bit too vehement about Craig Pollock. Nevertheless I think Craig Pollock is slimy and that's my opinion too, based on a gut feeling and nothing else.

[Jay]

Jacques Villeneuve - "I need a real team-mate and I don't think Ricardo has done his chances of staying in BAR next year any good."

OK, no he is just being an arse. He has been knocked out by others before, so why should he care so much about his teammate.

Is he becoming like Schumacher, where a "real teammate" is one that can work for Jacques?

[Valve Bounce]

I think this guy has been positioned behind the black ball, and there is not much he can do about it. He was obviously brought in to BAR to be no. 2 to Jacques. BAR wanted Jacques badly, and God knows what conditions are in his new contract; perhaps "a real team mate"??
Jay, if there is a ride in Arrows, I think that Ricardo could do a lot worse, because I saw the Arrows doing very well last weekend. Who is leaving Arrows?? This just shows how lucky Trulli is in getting the ride with Eddie Jordan.
It becomes even worse when you think that there will be two spare drivers next season when Montoya comes to Williams - one is Jason, and the other guy is Panis. Perhaps, the best way is to have Rubens and Ricardo in the same team, as they both seem to be decent guys.
Ed-f1, No!! I would push for direct telecast. I would be satisfied with qualifications, and the entire race on delayed telecast, not with the tape running during the ads.

[Run Free]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Jay :

<OK, no he is just being an arse. He has been knocked out by others before, so why should he care so much about his teammate.>

When Jacques was knocked out by other drivers before, he was as angry with them as he was with Zonta this time. Anyway, I think that being knocked out by your team mate is worse than by any other driver. Do you think, Jay, that this means "being an arse?". So is "an arse" also Alesi, for example?

[Liz]

Well, as to Alesi, yes I think he was, particularly since it was obviously Alesi's fault and he said that Heidfeld was at fault and "only in his dreams is he faster than me." In that race, it was also on the telemetry he was faster. Or did Heidfeld rig that somehow?

Zonta was brought in by BAT because of the Brazilians being their biggest market. If Pollock wants any more money for toilet seats, he'd better shut up about Zonta.

I'd like to see Rubens and Ricardo at McLaren together some day.