ZitatDaily F1 News and comment: Wednesday 8th May 2013
This page will be updated throughout the day
Allison to leave Lotus?
I had a coded conversation with someone yesterday, who suggested there may be some ‘exciting’ Lotus news this weekend, however they were not prepared to reveal exactly what this news was.
So tonight when a secondary source suggested Lotus technical director James Allison was on the move, that was enough for this to be considered above the one of many rumours that prevail in F1 each week – though this is still unconfirmed.
James Allison has real F1 pedigree. He graduated from Cambridge and went to work for Benetton in 1991. He left in 1993 and went to Larrousse as head of aero dynamics only to rejoin the Enstone team in the same role a few years later.
He joined Ferrari in 2000 and was their trackside aero guru during the most successful period in the team’s history. In 2005 he again returned to the Enstone Renault team and as deputy technical director ensured they won back to back world titles.
In 2009 James was appointed the ‘Lotus’ team’s technical director and has plotted their rise from mediocrity to a team who are winning races and at present considered a serious title challenger for 2013.
To lose James would be a serious blow to the Lotus team, but is it surprising his talent is being sought by others after he has delivered a car that is challenging the establishment? On the other side of the coin, McLaren appear to be losing a technical director who has overseen the design and build of one of McLaren’s worst early season F1 cars for some time.
Two options appear to be available to Allison, McLaren or Ferrari. McLaren appears the obvious choice having lost Paddy Lowe, though Tim Goss has been appointed as Paddy’s full time successor.
A return to Ferrari would see James resume his relationship with Rory Byrne, but then is Pat Fry for the high jump or can a way be found where the two work together? With a split programme for the current car and the 2014 programme this may be easier to accommodate than would be usual.
This is still an unconfirmed rumour, but one that has some substance. TJ13 noted last week that James was unusually bullish about the Lotus team’s chances in 2013 – in that the car needed ‘little development’ to compete for titles this year.
These could be the words of a man about to jump ship but wishing no harm toward; and attempting to instill confidence in - his current employers. So watch this space.
Yeah, I did find it a bit strange that Allision said on the F1 show couple weeks ago that E21 needed ‘little development’ to compete for titles this year... then Kimi said something completely opposite.. " title="hmm" />
ZitatDaily F1 News and comment: Wednesday 8th May 2013
This page will be updated throughout the day
Allison to leave Lotus?
I had a coded conversation with someone yesterday, who suggested there may be some ‘exciting’ Lotus news this weekend, however they were not prepared to reveal exactly what this news was.
So tonight when a secondary source suggested Lotus technical director James Allison was on the move, that was enough for this to be considered above the one of many rumours that prevail in F1 each week – though this is still unconfirmed.
James Allison has real F1 pedigree. He graduated from Cambridge and went to work for Benetton in 1991. He left in 1993 and went to Larrousse as head of aero dynamics only to rejoin the Enstone team in the same role a few years later.
He joined Ferrari in 2000 and was their trackside aero guru during the most successful period in the team’s history. In 2005 he again returned to the Enstone Renault team and as deputy technical director ensured they won back to back world titles.
In 2009 James was appointed the ‘Lotus’ team’s technical director and has plotted their rise from mediocrity to a team who are winning races and at present considered a serious title challenger for 2013.
To lose James would be a serious blow to the Lotus team, but is it surprising his talent is being sought by others after he has delivered a car that is challenging the establishment? On the other side of the coin, McLaren appear to be losing a technical director who has overseen the design and build of one of McLaren’s worst early season F1 cars for some time.
Two options appear to be available to Allison, McLaren or Ferrari. McLaren appears the obvious choice having lost Paddy Lowe, though Tim Goss has been appointed as Paddy’s full time successor.
A return to Ferrari would see James resume his relationship with Rory Byrne, but then is Pat Fry for the high jump or can a way be found where the two work together? With a split programme for the current car and the 2014 programme this may be easier to accommodate than would be usual.
This is still an unconfirmed rumour, but one that has some substance. TJ13 noted last week that James was unusually bullish about the Lotus team’s chances in 2013 – in that the car needed ‘little development’ to compete for titles this year.
These could be the words of a man about to jump ship but wishing no harm toward; and attempting to instill confidence in - his current employers. So watch this space.
Zitat von icemaidOlga, do you think James leaving will influence Kimi's decision to stay in Lotus?
It could definitely play a role in Kimi's decisions.
Whether he stays or moves, I hope he continues with F1 racing. Maybe he would go to RedBull?
I think for now Kimi will stay in F1. But then again this is Kimi we are talking about who knows what he will do. The news might just play a role if Kimi really wants to stay with Lotus. Red Bull seems to be the big public option right now, but there might be more options later in the season. For some reason I just have a feeling that Red Bull is properly not such a big option for Kimi. But who knows, the season is long and things can change quickly.
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Tue May 07, 2013 11:08 pm
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