Good bye F1, hello NASCAR...

[mantoy]

Nascar for me is the most stupid race event, and of course it is like and invented by stupid americans also . Going oval what's the thrill in that?

does f1 score high on the 'thrill' aspect if i may ask? it's been boring in the past few yrs imho. it has become a battle of engineers rather than drivers.

[Eismann]

WRC is more exciting to watch than NASCAR because cars there are not true stock cars unlike in WRC and WTCC. The commercial appeal though of NASCAR teams are now ranging wider than ever like in F1. Part of the reason maybe why JPM wants to return is money.

[coiter]

does f1 score high on the 'thrill' aspect if i may ask? it's been boring in the past few yrs imho. it has become a battle of engineers rather than drivers.

yup. medyo naging boring yung f1--result wise. medyo predictable na kasi kung sino mananalo e. but watching it is definitely more fun than nascar. mas feel mo yung bilis ng car because of the twists and turns they make and the way they make overtaking maneuvers. even the pit strategy is something to anticipate. unlike in nascar na magkakumpol sila at paikot ikot lang. parang ang bagal at nakakaantok. pero masaya pag pit time. lahat sila sabay sabay. riot. hehe

si jpm naman tingin ko di mananalo sa f1 kaya balik sya sa US races.

[leoric11]

Ano nga ba meron sa NASCAR at pati si danica patrick ay mukhang susunod kay jpm?

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/200...x.html?cnn=yes

[number001]

Going to NASCAR, must be a big downgrade for Montoya. Going from CART champions to nothing in F1 and now in NASCAR. It could have been better if he had the chance to join INDY instead. I'm surely glad Montoya's out of F1 because I'd liked his driving style nor his poor gamesmanship and attitude.

[Monseratto]

I'll miss Connie...




Juan Pablo Montoya steps down at McLaren effective immediately
Pedro de la Rosa joins Raikkonen in France


Following the news at the weekend that Juan Pablo Montoya had signed a contract with Ganassi Racing to compete in NASCAR next year, McLaren Mercedes confirmed this morning that the Colombian and the team have parted ways, effective immediately, with Pedro de la Rosa taking the race seat this weekend at the French Grand Prix.

The following is a press release from McLaren Mercedes.

Team McLaren Mercedes and Juan Pablo Montoya have mutually agreed for him to step down in the forthcoming races of this year's Formula 1 World Championship. The team has decided that Pedro de la Rosa will join Kimi Raikkonen in the race driver line-up.

Juan Pablo has been an energetic member of the team since 2005, but will now spend the next few months based in Miami with his family and wife Connie who is expecting their second child in September. Following his agreement with Chip Ganassi Racing for next year, Juan Pablo will also be making initial preparations for his debut in a Chrysler Dodge NASCAR.

Pedro will make his second race appearance for the team following a thrilling points scoring debut in the 2005 Bahrain Grand Prix.

Ron Dennis, CEO and Chairman of the McLaren Group
"Juan Pablo is an exciting driver and immensely likeable character who will undoubtedly make a successful transition to the NASCAR scene.
We have agreed that with so many things happening in Juan Pablo's life right now, he should take some time out of the car and prepare professionally and personally for the future."

Norbert Haug, Vice President, Mercedes-Benz Motorsport
"We believe that Juan Pablo's decision to move to NASCAR is very important for him professionally and we will give him every support to ensure that it is a successful transition."

Juan Pablo Montoya
"I know that it will be a tough transition but I'm really excited about the opportunity to move into the NASCAR championship. I have enjoyed most of my time in Formula 1 and I'm grateful for this opportunity to settle my personal life and concentrate on my future career."

Pedro de la Rosa
"I'm of course extremely thrilled to have this opportunity to race the MP4-21 – a car in which I'm really comfortable. I know the MP4-21 better than anyone else and I'm confident that I can achieve important World Championship points for the team."

E.A.
Source McLaren Mercedes

[CVT]

JPM really did not do well in F1. Good move for him to go to NASCAR.

[number001]

^^
Nice P.R. statements from Mclaren which I'm very sure really belies some deep problems/tensions between Montoya and the team. I mean why would either the team or Montoya would agree to an immediate termination of the contract in the middle of the season if things did not pan out well for the parties involved.

[Monseratto]

^^
Nice P.R. statements from Mclaren which I'm very sure really belies some deep problems/tensions between Montoya and the team. I mean why would either the team or Montoya would agree to an immediate termination of the contract in the middle of the season if things did not pan out well for the parties involved.

I think Norbert Haug had enough of JPM antics after the first turn crash in US GP. Haug wanted JPM out and got what he wanted. JPM has this problem of blaming everyone else for his mistakes.

[redorange]

hehehe... instead of small bumps... those NASCAR guys will surely get big bumps courtesy of wildman JPM.

He will be the one that needs to worry since drivers in NASCAR will drive you into the wall * 200mph if you piss them off. Also, there are no such things as team orders in NASCAR unlike in F1 when Schumi would win because of team orders to let him win.

[redorange]

Nascar for me is the most stupid race event, and of course it is like and invented by stupid americans also . Going oval what's the thrill in that?

And watching a race series that has cars completely controlled by computers in design and function is better??? The driver doesn't even need to step on a clutch to shift, at least the cars in NASCAR use carbs, clutch, and other things you find in a regular car. Not saying NASCAR is better than F1 but don't put it down just because Americans started it. Heck, the Europeans are crazy about motorcycle speedway racing too and that's just racing a motorcycle on a dirt track for 4-8 laps in circles. If you think NASCAR is stupid because Americans invented it, I would suggest you not use the internet since the Americans came up with the concept in 1962 at MIT.

[FPJ]

And watching a race series that has cars completely controlled by computers in design and function is better??? The driver doesn't even need to step on a clutch to shift, at least the cars in NASCAR use carbs, clutch, and other things you find in a regular car. Not saying NASCAR is better than F1 but don't put it down just because Americans started it. Heck, the Europeans are crazy about motorcycle speedway racing too and that's just racing a motorcycle on a dirt track for 4-8 laps in circles. If you think NASCAR is stupid because Americans invented it, I would suggest you not use the internet since the Americans came up with the concept in 1962 at MIT.

Medyo leftist yata si sir Forza1...

[squala]

F1 is back to 300 km/h convoys.

[empy]

ayos yan. dun naman talaga bagay si JP sa bumper cars eh. btw subukan niyang gawin yung kalokohan niya with guys like Dale Earnhardt Jr and Robby Gordon...palagay ko mapupukulan siya ng helmet :bwahaha:

I think Norbert Haug had enough of JPM antics after the first turn crash in US GP. Haug wanted JPM out and got what he wanted. JPM has this problem of blaming everyone else for his mistakes.

tumpak!

[Monseratto]

but I will surely miss Connie...

[RedHorse]

wow!!!
ang ganda ng opening!

[mazdamazda]

I just saw the news this morning that JPM will immediately be replaced by dela Rosa. That goes to show that there is a deeper problem with JPM & Mercedes-Benz/McLaren.

Mercedes-Benz/McLaren should be itching by now for the 2007 season to begin (with defending champion Alonso driving for them next year).

[baludoy]

like eismann and horsepower, i too, prefer wrc. i guess watching it on tv w/ all the crashes, grime and mud makes it far more interesting when watched during my couch potato moments my question is, how come rallye racing disappeared in the local scene?

but watching nascar racing w/ all the glitz and its shiny and colorful cars is quite interesting too. although i just can't watch it for an extended period of time

and what's the difference between indy racing and f1 racing? pardon my ignorance mga katoto?

[BoyFerrari]

Also, there are no such things as team orders in NASCAR

Try to read this first:
http://www.fastmachines.com/archives/nascar/001502.php
http://www.frontstretch.com/tbowles/1026/

The fact of the matter is, while team orders are already banned in Formula 1, people still love using such excuses if they don't like the result of the race. Team orders happen because racing cars are controlled and funded by businessmen. So you can't claim that team orders do not happen in NASCAR.

[rab]

kung thrill lang naman, MotoGP na siyempre. hehehe.

thrilling din naman ang Nascar mas lalo na sa last 10 laps. from a spectators point maganda manood ng Nascar kasi upo ka kahit saan makikita mo buong action sa race track pwera na lang kapag nasa Watkins Glen at ibang street circuits.