Formula 1 2007 Season
I'm not a huge racing fan, but I have been following F1 for the last few seasons, so I thought I would start a thread for the season. This year should be interesting with so much movement between the top teams, and the retirement of Michael Schumacher.
I'm not the most knowledgable fan, but I'll try to put together a season preview for conversation. Anyways, here's a bit of an (incomplete) rundown, and some predictions:
Drivers
Fernando Alonso-Won the drivers championship with Renault, then moved to Mclaren for this season. Mclarens have a reputation of being very fast, but unreliable cars, which will be a big change from the dependable Renaults that he is used to. Could also be a big factor as Formula 1 moves to 3 race engines this season.
Kimi Raikkonen-Had a disappointing season in 2006, where he failed to win a single race. Moved from Mclaren to Ferrari, where he will take Michael Schumachers seat. He will be driving a more reliable car, and he is supposed to be the fastest driver on the circuit, which could make for an extremely successful year for Kimi. Along with Alonso, Kimi should be a favourite for the drivers championship.
Felipe Massa-Finished 2006 with some very strong performances, including a victory in Brazil. Was possibly pushing for the top seat at Ferrari with Michael retiring. Will be the best number two driver on the circuit, and could push for the number one seat if Kimi struggles with his new car. Massa will give Ferrari an excellent shot at the constructors championship.
Giancarlo Fisichella-Has been the number two driver with Renault behind Alonso, this year he will take the number one seat. Although Fisichella had a successful season last year, time will tell if he can compete with the top drivers. With new drivers getting settled in with the other top teams, look for Fisi to have a strong start to the season.
Jenson Button-With all the movement amongst the big three, Jenson could have a strong season at Honda. However, I don't believe that him or Honda will be able to supplant any of the powerhouse drivers/teams.
Teams
Red Bull-With experienced drivers, and new Renault engines, this team could move up in the pack, and should compete with the usual middle-crowd teams (Honda, Toyota, BMW).
Williams-They had extremely fast cars, but a ton of reliability problems and inexperienced drivers that held them back. Rosberg showed flashes of being a great driver last season, and could compete with some of the middle-pack drivers if he continues to get better.
BMW-Sauber-No more Jacques, but Kubica came up with some excellent performances after his promotion. BMW had a strong finish in 2006, and look to improve on that in the upcoming season.
My Predictions
Drivers Championship:
Raikkonen
Alonso
Massa
Fishichella
Button
Constructors Championship:
Ferrari
Mclaren
Renault
Honda
Red Bull
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