Now that we have all of that out of the way, I’d like to think that Ferrari and Kimi are going to have another Championship Winning performing season.  Having said that, I really think that Louis Hamilton will be there at the top giving everyone a run for their money and a potential spoiler for the Driver’s Title.  However, with the way that McLaren have their driver lineup, I don’t see them taking the Constructors’ Title.   Alonso’s results will deeply depend on who he picks for a drive.  Most of the top teams already have a good lineup and have already signed their drivers for 2008.   My surprise of the season though will have to come from Honda.  With Ross Brawn now on the payroll the team will start to get it right.  However, they will greatly improve, they will not be as high as I would like for the teams to be competitive; not yet anyway.  My other surprise of the season will have to come from Red Bull and Toro Rosso.  I bring up these two teams because of the driver lineup and how they will be able to drive with the lack of traction control.  I think the hunt for third through sixth place will be tight.  I also think that Force India will have to go through some major teething issues before they can step up to the ranks of the higher teams.  I will give them props for being out there.  They are the predicted worse of the best teams in F1.  I also feel that Toyota has yet to improve on the car and the driver lineup.  The removal of Ralf Schumacher is an improvement for the team, but the available replacements are getting to be limited on choices.

2008 will be revolutionary year with the removal of traction control; the implementation of a new ECU and potentially slick tires (this may be delayed a year).  Driving styles will improve but I also think that there will be more accidents.  Mistake recovery will be more dramatic but with everyone will be driving to the limits or higher, gaps will open and close at incredible rates.  I’m not sure pure passing will be as often as opponent mistakes causing the passing, will be as often and as spectacular as they have in the past (Kimi Raikkonen passing everyone in the field at Suzuka in 2005).  I think we will see the purest of drivers show their true abilities and those who have entrusted the lifestyle of traction control will falter down the ranks.  2008 will be a great year, good or bad, it will be great.

Well it looks like thing are really getting shaken up for 2008.  New rules and regulations are getting underway and testing has begun.  However, there are some other issues that need to be addressed.  But before we go there, let’s get up to speed on what we know so far. 

Right now it looks as though slick tires are back on the grid over a several year hiatus.  This has been controversial ever since the newer “grooved” tires have been introduced.  The reason for the initial tire change had to do with slowing the cars down because they were going to fast.  It was also questionable that slicks where not as safe in the event of wet/damp conditions.  On the other hand though, slicks have always been faster… or have they?  Mechanical grip is for sure improved with tire grip however, I don’t know if aerodynamics had had a better part in that with using the grooves as air stabilizers.  I’m not an expert so… I’ll leave it at that.

Another key feature is one that is actually going away; traction control.  This is the big one that most of the drivers are concerned with.  Kim Raikkonen was quoted on Autosport,  “If I had to drive the same Ferrari I had in Brazil, then I would probably have stayed on vacation,” Raikkonen told Gazzetta dello Sport. “  With with all the new electronics, you have to be here. I can’t deny I’m happy to be back behind the wheel.”  In an effort to slow the cars down more and to make for more passing along with driver errors, traction control is being removed to make the sport more exciting.  It’s also a concern that it will make the sport more dangerous.  The loss of traction control will allow for more accidents according to some drivers.

ECU changes are also being mandated by the FIA.  Team McLaren and Microsoft are working with the FIA to have a standardized ECU to be used throughout the teams.  This is something that needs to be looked farther into because the tuning software must not be favored to the McLaren team.  Again, I’m sure the FIA is going to keep a close eye on this.

No.  There, I said it.  I’m not disputing that he doesn’t deserve it at all.  He seems to be a class act in the interview room.  It looks like he makes all of his countrymen happy and he’s the presses dream.  He’s a minority, which often is a good thing for any sport, but it’s sad that we even have to go there to begin with… I blame the press for that one.  His sponsorers are pushing and shoving to be a part of him.  His crew seems to be happy with him, well, with the exception of Fernando Alonzo, the Two-Time Formula One defending World Champion.  And for me, that’s where the hiccup lies.  It’s amazing to see a rookie, A ROOKIE, be on the top step time after time, race after race.  In my mind though, I’m saying to myself, “I really don’t that guy, he’s too perfect!

So who should be Formula One’s World Champion?  I’m a huge fan of Kimi Räikkönen.  I would love to see him up there.  I’ve been fortunate enough to have met him at the 2005 SEMA convention under the sponsorship of Michelin tires.  I stood in line just like the hundreds of other fans and got my picture with him, just like other fans and I got his autograph, just like other fans.  He seemed down to Earth and outside of racing… he’s not perfect.  I like to hear that the guy goes out with his friends to strip clubs.  I like to hear that he dresses up in an ape suit and goes out with his friends.  I like to hear that Kimi is a normal guy.  On the race track he’s perfect, usually setting the fastest track time, even if he’s not in first place.  However, he still manages to remain “normal” off the track and I think that’s what a champion should derive from.  Something tangible for the everyday wannabe driver.

Fernando Alonzo is also worthy of being a champion.  He’s bested the Seven-Time World Champion, Michael Schumacher.  Prior to him being a champion, he worked with the team Renault to get him to there.  He helped setup the car, helped engineers troubleshoot problem areas; he’s paid his dues.  Throughout this 2007 year, we’ve seen a very frustrated Fernando.  We’ve seen the emails that the press has released; we’ve seen the famous pitstop where he held Hamilton; we’ve seen how the McLaren team have been split, forced to chose a side; we’ve seen Fernando have to adjust his strategy because Hamilton wouldn’t follow orders.  We are seeing a defending world champion crumble because other events are forcing mistakes.

The thing that makes Kimi and Alonzo championship worthy is that they are seasoned.  They’ve been “in” Formula One for a good couple of years now.  They are “experienced”.  They’ve seen all the ups and downs of Formula One or at least most of them.  Louis is talented, no doubt about it.  He would not be where he is today if he wasn’t.  He knows how to drive a car, a car that is already fast and solid.  His experience on the other hand has been short.  He is not what you call “seasoned”. 

Louis Hamilton has been silver-spoon fed from Ron Dennis over the years.  Sometimes he’s revered as being Dennis’s prodigy driver.  That’s fine, but it also takes away the makings of what a champion should be.  He’s borderline, a robot.  Next we won’t have drivers out there in F1 cars, instead we will see a ten year old, control the car from the pits with his Playstation controller while Dennis spoon feeds him apple sauce with that silver spoon of his.

Formula One is the motorsport.  Period.  That is even a hard pill for me to swallow because I’m a huge WRC (World Rally Championship) fan.  The one every driver wants to be a part of whether they know it or not.  This is a sport where grams count for everything.  This is a sport where aerodynamics and mechanics, push the envelope so far, that they start to work against each other.  This is a sport where winners are decided by thousandths of a second.  This is a sport where perfection just doesn’t cut it, you have to do better.  So, I guess the next level is grooming a driver early on so you can get your prize and glory.

To me, part of being a champion is seeing someone how fights to get to the top.  Someone how gets up after falling.  I’m not saying the Hamilton hasn’t done that but I have not really seen him do it in Formula One.