GP2: What's wrong with DPR?

[chunterer]

As highlighted in race thread, DPR continues to have an absolute shocker results wise.

But what's going on. As commentators regularly summise, there's good engineering people, it's an established operation with a fine reputation.

But since Olivier Pla's couple of wins in 2005, the team has gone backwards.

They've got 2 reasonable drivers on board who've shown promise and i'm pretty sure Soucek at least knows how to pedal a racing car quickly...

So what's going on?

[Adri_tifosi]

I think the Carlin out in the pre-season could be the problem

[dave not neil]

Bakkerud has had a few injuries this year, but still, I dont rate him as a driver, he barely won during 2 years of Brit F3. But still, to be outperformed by Roldan Rodriguez must be worrying fr him.

[runshaw]

Why have you brought Roldan Rodriguez into this discussion? He has nothing to do with it.

[El_Gibleto]

This may or may not be relevent, but it's been reported that they team appeared disinterested and not very motivated when they were running the Team USA A1GP project. One of the drivers had the impression the team were just in it for the money. DPR weren't asked to continue with Team USA after the first season.

[Alex K]

I think it's a good point El-Gibleto. Christian Bakerud isn't a ******, never was, and is very good backed. Don't care what you think of him, he had respected results in BF3, although was favourite in his second season, and BSed it.

I think them both need a shot in new teams. Even if you say CB can't drive, what's wrong with Soucek?

Just think this should be their (DPR) last season, as well as BCN's last one. If you can't compete, can't match the midlefield, you shouldn't be there.

[Russfeld]

DPR haven't had any drivers to get excited about in three seasons, which will be a big part of it.

[Jackman]

True, but there's clearly a reason the good drivers don't go there.

[Russfeld]

Racing drivers are notorious for following the herd, just look at todays 'action'. Campos will be considered a team worth taking a punt on in 08 based on Pantano's season, and if he was at DPR next year you'd probably see a similar result.

[Adri_tifosi]

Soucek is a good driver , the last year Timo Glock with BCN not impressed me and later when he race with iSport did a very good final of the year

[Kidzer]

Originally Posted by Russfeld

DPR haven't had any drivers to get excited about in three seasons, which will be a big part of it.

now obviously I disagree

But regardless, even if they hadn't had 7 Hamilton/Heikki/Rosberg-esque drivers, they haven't had slow drivers either.

If memory serves, Pla's wins always came on the Sprint race after finished 7th/8th in the first race.

My opinion is that for whatever reason, be it the Engineers or otherwise, they can't seem to get a reliable car for a start, and so can't really spend time making it quick enough. In the first season there was plenty problems of the car for the whole field (mainly gearbox/cluth related IIRC), Ryan for example was going to finish 3rd/4th in the Feature Race in Barcelona until the car broke, the gearbox broke in Monaco etc (there have been more failures im sure, my memory is terrible though) - having said that, someone with a better knowledge of the 3 years of GP2 may be able to help with this, have they actually been any less reliable than the other teams?

Perhaps some people in DPR are complacent with their reputations for being top engineers, and despite their undoubted racing knowledge, aren't quite engaging their brain fully/putting in the required effort to run at the front.

Please Note:The above opinion is mine and mine only, nothing to do with anyone else!

[runshaw]

Originally Posted by Kidzer

Perhaps some people in DPR are complacent with their reputations for being top engineers, and despite their undoubted racing knowledge, aren't quite engaging their brain fully/putting in the required effort to run at the front.

Please Note:The above opinion is mine and mine only, nothing to do with anyone else!

That's a complete contradiction which I very much doubt is the case. If they are top engineers why on earth would they become complacent and make themselves look pathetic by always being at the back? I don't think thats a fair assumption.

[Kidzer]

What I mean to say is they're perhaps in a 'comfort zone', as one tends to see sometimes in individiuals/teams (in all sports, not just motorsport) who have been very successful in the past, I just perhaps wasn't good at wording it!

[Jackman]

Originally Posted by runshaw

That's a complete contradiction which I very much doubt is the case. If they are top engineers why on earth would they become complacent and make themselves look pathetic by always being at the back? I don't think thats a fair assumption.

There was a certain "name" engineer working with DPR until recently who only seemed to be there for the paycheck - he made a lot of comments about "back in F1" and was talking about modifying this and that, but you can't do that in GP2 so what's the point of thinking about it? The time he spent in GP2 didn't exactly cover him in glory...

[chunterer]

What i've noticed is their cars, particularly Soucek's, quite often starts very strongly and then goes backwards very early on at a rate of knots more akin to a car with aero damage or something, or tyres going off way before schedule.

That's got to be down to incorrect set up surely?

Then you have drivers overdriving in frustration to make up for it?

So is it the driver's lack of experience at setting something up combined with race engineering that isn't cutting it. Or just one of those things?

[bradrive]

Originally Posted by Jackman

There was a certain "name" engineer working with DPR until recently who only seemed to be there for the paycheck - he made a lot of comments about "back in F1" and was talking about modifying this and that, but you can't do that in GP2 so what's the point of thinking about it? The time he spent in GP2 didn't exactly cover him in glory...

GP2 is not really about "name engineers" anymore as it happened to be in F3000. Its about having a very good driver racing your car and having a team of 4 or 5 engineers working together to use the car at its highest level.
It is mainly very hard work on the track and at home and paying a lot of attention to detail.
Nowadays there are things like virtual 4post testing and simulating performance around 3d tracks involved in setting up the car for the race weekend. Things developed in a exponential way since 2004...