The New Boys on the Block-YOU Make the Decision.

takagi_for_the_win · Post by **takagi_for_the_win** » 02 Jul 2013, 12:40

Option b. We've a nimble enough car, its just the straights where we're getting killed

AustralianStig · Post by **AustralianStig** » 02 Jul 2013, 12:47

Option A - let's take the advantage sooner rather than later.

roblo97 · Post by **roblo97** » 02 Jul 2013, 13:09

option b because detroit and montreal are handeling circuits

Post by **kevinbotz** » 02 Jul 2013, 16:36

Option A.

Salamander · Post by **Salamander** » 02 Jul 2013, 17:08

That hit to handling is more than I'd like, but still, it's worth giving it a shot at Detroit and Montreal. It may damage our prospects on handling circuits, but we can assess there whether or not that will be worth it, so I support Option A.

Julien · Post by **Julien** » 02 Jul 2013, 17:56

Option B.

the Masked Lapwing · Post by **the Masked Lapwing** » 02 Jul 2013, 22:34

Option B.

Aerospeed · Post by **Aerospeed** » 03 Jul 2013, 12:18

Option B for now, who knows what might happen in Detroit and Canada?

pycku · Post by **pycku** » 04 Jul 2013, 11:39

Option A. As far as I know in 1983 it was allowed to switch engines between sessions, so if this engine isn't good, we can replace it right away or at most after the first American race.

HawkAussie · Post by **HawkAussie** » 04 Jul 2013, 22:53

I would say option B for the team

WaffleCat · Post by **WaffleCat** » 05 Jul 2013, 11:17

VOTES TALLY:

ISSUE:What Option of Hart's Upgrade Package should Mr. Travers take?

6 Votes Option B,4 Votes Option A,1 Vote Option C

Thus,the engine upgrades will be fitted by the British Grand Prix
--------------------------------------

...have to fit if in after North America. It would be too confusing for my engineers to get used to the new engines,so might as well use what we've got and then get the new one in our home grand prix."

"I understand your decision. Again,sorry for my rude but important interruption. Besides,there's a tyre changer you should shout at,so go right ahead." Brian Hart left almost as quickly as he came,but not before leaving the upgrade parts to be kept at Empire's factory to be fixed on later. Right now,though,there was a flight to catch. And a pit crew to reprimand.
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1983 Detroit Grand Prix Qualifying

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1983 Detroit Grand Prix--Qualifying
 1 Nelson Piquet (Brabham-BMW)       1:42.604
 2 Alain Prost (Renault)             1:43.331
 3 John Watson (McLaren-Ford)        1:43.401
 4 Niki Lauda (McLaren-Ford)         1:43.442
 5 Patrick Tambay (Ferrari)          1:43.743
 6 Keke Rosberg (Williams-Ford)      1:43.753
 7 Geoff Lees (Lotus-Renault)        1:43.820
 8 Elio de Angelis (Ferrari)         1:43.926
 9 Jacques Laffite (Renault)         1:44.276
10 Nigel Mansell (Lotus-Renault)     1:44.640
11 Riccardo Patrese (Brabham-BMW)    1:44.879
12 Danny Sullivan (Tyrell-Ford)      1:44.985

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13 Marc Surer (Arrows-Ford)          1:45.541
14 Michele Alboreto (Tyrell-Ford)    1:45.664
15 Teo Fabi (Toleman-Hart)           1:46.324
16 Derek Warwick (Arrows-Ford)       1:46.359
17 Thierry Boutsen (Toleman-Hart)    1:46.984
18 Jean-Pierre Jarier (Ligier-Ford)  1:47.282
19 Mauro Baldi (Ligier-Ford)         1:47.537
20 Brian Henton (Theodore-Ford)      1:47.979
21 Martin Brundle (Empire-Hart)      1:48.045
22 Andrea de Cesaris (Alfa Romeo)    1:48.224
23 Rene Arnoux (Alfa Romeo)          1:48.608
24 Eddie Cheever (Williams-Ford)     1:49.018
25 Johnny Cecotto (Theodore-Ford)    1:49.095

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26 Corrado Fabi (Osella-Ford)        1:49.278
---------------------DNQ--------------------------
27 Kenny Acheson (RAM-Ford)          1:50.006
28 Piercarlo Ghinzani (Osella-Ford)  1:50.995
29 Manfred Winklehock (ATS-BMW)      1:51.684

Really,with the tight confines of the Motor City,one should,could and must have expected the Naturally Aspirated cars to thrive within these concrete walls and for a few surprises to be thrown up. But really, apart from the McLarens qualifying third and fourth,there was no real...surprise. Nelson Piquet on pole-again-,Alain Prost second,Watson leading the aforementioned McLarens,Tambay edging out Rosberg,Lees,in his final scheduled qualifying session, again humiliating his interim team mate in 10th,with a cushion of championship battlers Elio de Angelis and Patrick Tambay in the middle. The only real and true surprises were that Eddie Cheever almost failed to qualify thanks to an almost failing engine,cue the slight embarrassment of Ford on their home turf,Manfred Winklehocks BMW engine completely giving up the ghosts,the Alfas were again slow on the streets being outpaced by the Empire,and Danny Sullivan doing nicely in his second of three home races. Well played.
-----------------------------------------

go_Rubens · Post by **go_Rubens** » 08 Jul 2013, 00:15

Hoping for a top 10 with attrition. It's about time we get a good result.

WaffleCat · Post by **WaffleCat** » 08 Jul 2013, 06:30

1983 Detroit Grand Prix

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1983 Detroit Grand Prix--61 Laps
 1 Niki Lauda (McLaren-Ford)           1:56:47.902
 2 Michele Alboreto (Tyrell-Ford)      1:57:26.944
 3 Patrick Tambay (Ferrari)            1:57:33.723
 4 Alain Prost (Renault)               1:57:37.453
 5 Jacques Laffite (Renault)           1:58:03.118
 6 Danny Sullivan (Tyrell-Ford)        1:58:08.580
 7 Derek Warwick (Arrows-Ford)         1:58:12.961
 8 Riccardo Patrese (Brabham-BMW)      1:58:27.878
 9 Elio de Angelis (Ferrari)           1:58:37.073
10 Teo Fabi (Toleman-Hart)             1:58:43.322
11 Brian Henton (Theodore-Ford)        1:58:45.215

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12 Jean-Pierre Jarier (Ligier-Ford)         -1 lap
13 Martin Brundle (Empire-Hart)             -1 lap
14 Corrado Fabi (Osella-Ford)               -1 lap
15 Keke Rosberg (Williams-Ford)             -1 lap
16 Johnny Cecotto (Theodore-Ford)           -1 lap

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 - Geoff Lees (Lotus-Renault)           DNF lap 54
   John Watson (McLaren-Ford)           DNF lap 50
   Marc Surer (Arrows-Ford)             DNF lap 36
   Eddie Cheever (Williams-Ford)        DNF lap 21
   Nelson Piquet (Brabham-BMW)          DNF lap 14
   Thierry Boutsen (Toleman-Hart)       DNF lap 14
   Andrea de Cesaris (Alfa Romeo)        DNF lap 9
   Mauro Baldi (Ligier-Ford)             DNF lap 7
   Nigel Mansell (Lotus-Renault)         DNF lap 1
   Rene Arnoux (Alfa Romeo)              DNF lap 1

This year,it has been a rarity to see the once fantastic DFV engine get any good results among the turbos. But this time,on tight roads,the DFV engined Niki Lauda prevailed among all the others.

The start of the race,however,was chaotic to say the least. Nigel Mansell had an almighty leap from the line, promoting him up to sixth before turn 1. Then,he tried going around the outside of Keke Rosberg,but since this track can barely contain one-wide,let alone two,Nigel collected the unfortunate Finn and spun around on the exit,thus facing approximately 20 cars trying to find a way past the duo.All made it....bar one. Rene Arnoux was directly behind the Empire of Brundle,and when Brundle jerked right to fly past Mansell,Arnoux was caught out completely,thus ending both the Frenchman's and the Englishman's race there and then.Rosberg soldiered on,but had constant difficulty steering the car on right hand turns.

In the meantime,Nelson Piquet had sturng out a decent advantage over the rest of the field,with Alain Prost holding up the two McLarens behind him.Patrick Tambay was relaxing in fifth,while in sixth was super sub Geoff Lees,having avoided the Rosberg-Mansell incident by a hair. In seventh and eigth were,incredibly,the Tyrells of Danny Sullivan and Michele Alboreto,who slithered through the lap 1 mess on full throttle,thus blasting by everyone to end up in those positions. Alboreto soon got past Sullivan and started to chase the field,while Sullivan set about holding the rest of the field up,although he was not going to slowly and giving the American fans something to cheer about. Not cheering,however,were Mauro Baldi and Andrea de Cesaris,who both had electrical issues taking them out. Then,drama.

Thierry Boutsen came into the pits early to check on his car,reporting something was wrong as he headed into the last sector. Turns out he had been driving the last sector while spraying oil all over the shop. No surprise,then,that there was going to be carnage. Within a lap,leader Piquet,Prost,Lees,de Angelis,Patrese,Jarier and Corrado Fabi all ended up spinning somewhere between turns 11-15,with Piquet being the only unfortunate soul whose race ended,while Lees stalled the car before continuing on. Marshals did everything to try and clear oil off the track,and drivers got plenty of warnings about the oil,but there was still carnage to come. Danny Sullivan what was then sixth when he ran wide at turn 15 and half-spun the car into the side of Jacques Laffite's Renault,which bounced in the air for a while before coming down on all fours and both continued driving as per normal. Eddie Cheever became the next causalty of the newfound oil well when his car stalled after spinning out at turn 12.In all this mayhem,Niki Lauda and John Watson ended up leading the field with Patrick Tambay in third and Michele Alboreto hounding the back of the Ferarri in fourth. Fifth was Alain Prost with a massive gap over Jacques Laffite and Danny Sullivan. The Arrows were running a comfortable eigth and ninth,until that became a comfortable eighth and DNF when Marc Surer sailed straight on at the chicane before the front stretch.

This race took a turn for the boring,with Michele Alboreto overtaking Patrick Tambay at turn 7 being the only thing happening on track.Then,John Watson retired from second with a gearbox failure when he snatched third instead of first for the turn 15 hairpin,causing the gearbox to fry like an egg.4 laps later,Geoff Lees ended his brief,but no doubt impressive,stint with Lotus when his tyre gave way after slapping a wall.But really,those were the only incidents in the second half of the race,leaving Niki Lauda to take McLaren's first win of the season.There was a gorge to second place man Michele Alboreto,who put on a show in the lack-of-power Tyrell.Third was Patrick Tambay,fourth being a charging Alain Prost,hoping to make up for his spin in the oil spill.Fifth was Jacques Laffite while the fans had someone to cheer for across the line with Danny Sullivan in sixth.
---------------------------------------
Driver's Championship (Round 7/16)

1.Jacques Laffite--27
2.Elio de Angelis--24
3.Niki Lauda--19 (1 win,1 2nd)
4.Patrick Tambay--19 (1 win,2 3rds)
5.Alain Prost--19 (1 2nd)
6.Eddie Cheever--15
7.Michele Alboreto--14
8.Keke Rosberg--13
9.Marc Surer--7
10.Danny Sullivan--5
11.Nelson Piquet--4
12.Nigel Mansell--3
13.Derek Warwick--2 (1 5th,2 7ths)
13.Rene Arnoux--2 (1 5th,6 DNFs)
14.Riccardo Patrese--1 (1 6th,1 7th,2 8ths,2 9ths)
15.John Watson--1 (1 6th,1 7th,2 8ths,1 11th)

Constructor's Standings

1.Renault--46
2.Ferrari--43
3.Williams-Ford--28
4.McLaren-Ford--20
5.Tyrell-Ford--19
6.Arrows-Ford--9
7.Brabham-BMW--5
8.Lotus-Renault--3
9.Alfa Romeo--2
-----------------------------------------------
You won't believe how exhausting it was to countback Watson's and Patrese's results

Aerospeed · Post by **Aerospeed** » 08 Jul 2013, 12:43

Brundle seemed to have an uneventful race, considering one half of the grid DNFed. I think we can stop worrying about reliability now. We need more powerrrr

EDIT: "one half of the grid placed 13th" :lol:

Julien · Post by **Julien** » 08 Jul 2013, 16:03

I agree. Focusing on speed seems like the next logical step in our development.

go_Rubens · Post by **go_Rubens** » 08 Jul 2013, 16:06

Pwwwrrr. We need PWWWRRR.

Julien · Post by **Julien** » 10 Jul 2013, 15:33

We should employ that guy

good_Ralf · Post by **good_Ralf** » 10 Jul 2013, 15:35

Julien wrote:
We should employ that guy

Or Jeremy Clarkson, even if if he hasn't got that POWER. :lol:

WaffleCat · Post by **WaffleCat** » 11 Jul 2013, 11:26

F1 Headlines

Driver Changes

Heading into the Canadian Grand Prix,at least two cars will see different drivers in them. Derek Daly makes his return from injury at the French Grand Prix tommorrow,taking over from subsitute Geoff Lees. Despite this,Lees' performances may mean that those drives will not be the last of his Formula One Career. Another change sees Kenny Acheson momentarily booted from the RAM seat,though only for this grand prix. Instead,Canadian driver and brother of Gilles,Jacques Villeneuve will take part in the race,although it will be for a one-time only sponsorship deal,according to some reports. Acheson will be back in the seat from the British Grand Prix onwards.

Upgrades Everywhere

Well,let's just say the mechanics all around the pitlane have been busy. Really,really busy. Alfa Romeo have developed more reliable electrical systems-slightly-,Renault-engined cars now have a minor turbo upgrade, and even backmarkers Theodore are in on the show,starting to develop a marginally more aerodynamic front wing. Also,Hart have announced a new upgrade to be debuted at the British Grand Prix by both of their teams.

Turbo Charges?

Well,it seems that the Naturally Aspirated era may be dying a quick,horrible death. Earlier this week, there were two announcements that may mean that N/A cars are N/A. First, McLaren have announced a relationship with Techniques d'Avant Garde,or TAG, being headed by Mansour Ojjeh. After sponsoring Williams,Ojjeh has joined McLaren,and with good timing too. He had been financing a Porsche turbo engine project,and in an announcement earlier today,the engine will be ready for both cars by the time the Dutch Grand Prix comes around.

The second piece of news regarding turbocharged engines is that the Spirit Formula One team,which made its sole outing at the Race of Champions,will be starting a full-fledged attempt at Formula One,starting from the German Grand Prix. This also means a debut for the new turbocharged Honda engines,who are actually rumoured to join Williams. This could really mean the end of Naturally Aspirated.
---------------------------------------

pycku · Post by **pycku** » 11 Jul 2013, 12:14

Maybe it is about time we start negotiations with engine, tyre, etc suppliers for next year, so our mechanics know the parameters and dimensions? :roll:

WaffleCat · Post by **WaffleCat** » 12 Jul 2013, 11:08

1983 Canadian Grand Prix--Qualifying

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1983 Canadian Grand Prix--Qualifying
 1 Patrick Tambay (Ferrari)          1:32.441
 2 Nigel Mansell (Lotus-Renault)     1:32.822
 3 Nelson Piquet (Brabham-BMW)       1:33.098
 4 Keke Rosberg (Williams-Ford)      1:33.125
 5 Elio de Angelis (Ferrari)         1:33.228
 6 Michele Alboreto (Tyrell-Ford)    1:33.350
 7 Niki Lauda (McLaren-Ford)         1:33.372
 8 Eddie Cheever (Williams-Ford)     1:33.551
 9 Derek Daly (Lotus-Renault)        1:34.849
10 Teo Fabi (Toleman-Hart)           1:35.143
11 Manfred Winklehock (ATS-BMW)      1:35.154
12 Alain Prost (Renault)             1:35.283

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13 Derek Warwick (Arrows-Ford)       1:35.484
14 Riccardo Patrese (Brabham-BMW)    1:35.646
15 Danny Sullivan (Tyrell-Ford)      1:35.907
16 Thierry Boutsen (Toleman-Hart)    1:36.342
17 Marc Surer (Arrows-Ford)          1:36.565
18 Mauro Baldi (Ligier-Ford)         1:36.805
19 Rene Arnoux (Alfa Romeo)          1:37.123
20 Andrea de Cesaris (Alfa Romeo)    1:37.289
21 Brian Henton (Theodore-Ford)      1:38.352
22 Johnny Cecotto (Theodore-Ford)    1:38.373
23 Corrado Fabi (Osella-Ford)        1:38.730
24 Jacques Villeneuve (RAM-Ford)     1:38.900
25 John Watson (McLaren-Ford)        1:38.965

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26 Martin Brundle (Empire-Hart)      1:39.108
---------------------DNQ------------------------
27 Piercarlo Ghinzani (Osella-Ford)  1:39.479
28 Jean-Pierre Jarier (Ligier-Ford)  1:40.040
29 Jacques Laffite (Renault)         1:41.925

We have a completely honest,simple,precise and blunt one-word reason for the shambles of a leaderboard above: It rained.Hard. It was not too bad of a rain within the first three minutes,in which Manfred Winklehock set an impressive time in the ATS to go eleventh and Teo Fabi redeemed himself from some ghastly qualifying performances in recent races. And then came a large thunderstorm that lasted all of thirty minutes. These thirty minutes were the most chaotic. John Watson suffered serious issues in his McLaren,and thus suffered trememdous slowness,for lack thereof a better word. Jacques Laffite,however,was the real shock of the day. His first lap saw the thunderstorm arrive as soon as he reached Turn 5,and then his car became almost undrivable. He tried his best to get back into the pits,but aquaplaned on an extremely damp patch that caught out Mauro Baldi earlier. Laffite span wildly across the track,into the wall at the finish line and promtply became the first ever championship leader to fail to qualify.With rival de Angelis qualifying fifth,this is possibly the worst weekend possible for him.

The final 20 minutes saw the thunderstorm pass and replaced with only a light drizzle. Most cars,polesitter Patrick Tambay included,set their fastest laps in these conditions and almost saw John Watson,whose car had developed hydraulic issues while in the pits,almost joining Laffite in the improbable DNQ range. The weather forecasts for the race are not looking too great as well,though time will tell....
---------------------------------------------------------
June 12,1983

Race day. It was unusual for a summer in Montreal. Thomas Travers stood on the grid with a hideous tartan umbrella that Jackie Stewart will no doubt be proud of. He was at the back of the grid,but didn't mind that,as it was raining in Montreal.Or so he thought...

..suddenly,sunlight. Glorious sunlight. The precipitation eased off,and soon conditions were almost back to completely dry. Well,those were the conditions in the air. On the ground,it was the worlds largest puddle at Ile Notre-Dame. Suddenly,Mr. Travers had a brainwave. He was on the grid. Cars were due to set off in 15 minutes. He had this chance. Stick the car on dry tyres,and go for glory. Or keep the car out on wets and play it safe for the first few laps,running with a reduced risk of a crash,but an extra pitsop and lost time will be looming over. Quick check of the watch. 14 minutes and 30 seconds left. He quickly gathered his engineers. They needed to make a decision...fast.

ISSUE:What tyres will Empire Racing start the Canadian Grand Prix with?

a) Dry Tyres (More speed when track drys out,save time of extra pitstop,run higher risk of crashing out in wet conditions)
b) Wet Tyres(Extra pistop and less speed on drying track,but less risk of crashing)

You have 18-20-22 hours to vote. Vote away!

Salamander · Post by **Salamander** » 12 Jul 2013, 11:35

Hmmm. My gut says go for the dry tyres, but Martin is a rookie, it's entirely possible he can't handle it. Does Martin have an opinion on the conditions?

Is there a way to find out what the other teams are doing? Going on the opposite strategy to the majority is a great opportunity to bag a good finish.

AustralianStig · Post by **AustralianStig** » 12 Jul 2013, 12:16

No guts no glory - Dry Tyres.

shinji · Post by **shinji** » 12 Jul 2013, 12:32

For every Winkelhock at the Nurburgring, there's 10 Verstappens at Monaco 96, but what the hell - roll the dice, dry tires.

Post by **Londoner** » 12 Jul 2013, 12:50

It's time for heroes to be made. Stick Brundle on the dry tyres and let's go for glory.

UncreativeUsername37 · Post by **UncreativeUsername37** » 12 Jul 2013, 13:05

Dry tyres! We have no points, only our best result counts, so we take the risk.

Aerospeed · Post by **Aerospeed** » 12 Jul 2013, 13:26

Martin can keep the car on the road, correct? Hope that everyone else has the same idea and crashes with each other, negating the usage of the very extreme strategy. I say wet tyres all the way.

roblo97 · Post by **roblo97** » 12 Jul 2013, 13:32

Dry tyres because this will separate the men from the boys

go_Rubens · Post by **go_Rubens** » 12 Jul 2013, 13:59

Dry Tyres because a big gamble could see us high up the finishing order.

Post by **kevinbotz** » 12 Jul 2013, 16:16

Dry tyres.

Julien · Post by **Julien** » 12 Jul 2013, 16:59

Wet tyres. We're dead last anyway, we can only profit if the others are crashing out.

Peteroli34 · Post by **Peteroli34** » 12 Jul 2013, 23:20

Ill jin in with this if its alright, by saying start on dry tyres what have you got to loose

Salamander · Post by **Salamander** » 13 Jul 2013, 00:27

peteroli34 wrote:Ill jin in with this if its alright, by saying start on dry tyres what have you got to loose

Time and money from rebuilding the car after it crashes due to aquaplaning. Not that it's guaranteed to happen...

WaffleCat · Post by **WaffleCat** » 14 Jul 2013, 09:35

VOTES TALLY:

ISSUE:What Tyres will Empire start the Canadian Grand Prix with?--9 Dry,2 Wet

Empire will start the race on dry tyres.
---------------------------------------------

1983 Canadian Grand Prix

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1983 Canadian Grand Prix (70 Laps)
 1 Alain Prost (Renault)             2:00:37.073
 2 Nelson Piquet (Brabham-BMW)       2:01:15.817
 3 Michele Alboreto (Tyrell-Ford)    2:01:28.558
 4 Danny Sullivan (Tyrell-Ford)      2:01:32.695
 5 John Watson (McLaren-Ford)        2:01:35.531
 6 Patrick Tambay (Ferrari)          2:01:39.243
 7 Mauro Baldi (Ligier-Ford)         2:02:09.088
 8 Manfred Winklehock (ATS-BMW)      2:02:09.136
 9 Marc Surer (Arrows-Ford)          2:02:18.608
10 Martin Brundle (Empire-Hart)      2:02:20.313

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11 Derek Daly (Lotus-Renault)             -1 lap
12 Thierry Boutsen (Toleman-Hart)         -1 lap
13 Eddie Cheever (Williams-Ford)          -1 lap
14 Brian Henton (Theodore-Ford)           -1 lap
15 Jacques Villeneuve (RAM-Ford)          -1 lap

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 - Elio de Angelis (Ferrari)          DNF lap 62
   Derek Warwick (Arrows-Ford)        DNF lap 57
   Keke Rosberg (Williams-Ford)       DNF lap 53
   Teo Fabi (Toleman-Hart)            DNF lap 48
   Johnny Cecotto (Theodore-Ford)     DNF lap 42
   Nigel Mansell (Lotus-Renault)      DNF lap 41
   Rene Arnoux (Alfa Romeo)           DNF lap 41
   Niki Lauda (McLaren-Ford)          DNF lap 17
   Corrado Fabi (Osella-Ford)         DNF lap 13
   Andrea de Cesaris (Alfa Romeo)     DNF lap 12
   Riccardo Patrese (Brabham-BMW)     DNF lap 10

Boy,were the conditions in this race tricky to predict. As the cars waited on the grid before the start,the track was pouring with rain from all places,but with a few minutes to the actual start,the rain eased off. Some cars,like Manfred Winklehock,Mauro Baldi and Martin Brundle opted to stick dry tyres on,and boy did that decision paid off.Sure,Brundle had some very lairy moments when he came close to stuffing it into the wall,but they had a good enough overall pace to jump way beyond where their imaginations could lead them. In Winklehock's case,since he qualified eighth,his gamble led him to where anyone would doubt an ATS will ever reach:battling for the lead. Yes,by lap 10,people were stopping for dry tyres,though in Riccardo Patrese's case,dry pants after a scary spin at Pont de la Concorde that eliminated him from the race. These pitstops elevated Winklehock to actually lead a few laps with Elio de Angelis' Ferrari hot on his heels,though a pass at Epingle de L'ile did short work of the German,who started to fall back a little through the field.However,saying that the racing line is dry doesn't mean other parts of the track weren't. Andrea de Cesaris found that out when trying to overtake Corrado Fabi,who changed to dry tyres a lap earlier and had miraclously got past his compatriot in the pits. de Cesaris tried to overtake at the final hairpin,but found a cruelly placed puddle and aquaplaned right into the side of Fabi,eliminating the Alfa on the spot and the Osella's race did not last long afterwards. Niki Lauda found a similar puddle at the kink before the chicane preceding Pont de la Concorde,and smashed heavily to the barriers.Despite the reasonably hefty whack,Lauda escaped from the wreck conscious and unhurt,excepting a little boo-boo on his finger,showing how safe Formula One cars have come to be over the past few years.

In other news,Elio de Angelis and Alain Prost formed a temporary allaince to blast the rest of the field into the distance,with Nigel Mansell doing a fine effort to keep up. The Tyrell's showed off supreme slickery and strategy in their pitwork,and their efforts paid dividends,Alboreto running fifth behind Piquet and Sullivan eighth behind Daly and Rosberg.Watson had a good jump up to ninth while Winklehock was holding his own in tenth after being sliced through by the frontrunners,though he was holding his own in a battle against Baldi and Marc Surer. Eddie Cheever had suffered a comical,catastrophic calamity in the pits that saw him running,well,last. Apart from the three-way between Surer,Baldi and Winklehock,there was not much overtaking,though there was close running-in groups,of course. The sun had come out and everyone took out their planned sunscreen to enjoy the Montreal summer sun....until lap 41.

Lap 41,that was when a thunderstorm that hit Montreal for the second consecutive day arrived at Ile Notre Dame. Rene Arnoux instinctively pulled into the pits for wet tyres,hoping for a miracle run,pulled out of the pits....and straight into Nigel Mansell,running third at the time.Johnny Cecotto had a water leak-ironic,isn't it- that took him out a lap later. Baldi and Winklehock gained some valuable seconds over Surer when they pitted and the Arrows stayed out. The thunderstorm continued to rage until.....lap 46. Wow. It still continued to pitter-patter here and there,keeping the track nicely soaked and still necessitating wet tyres as the norm. Teo Fabi tried to be a hero,changed onto slicks,and probably might have worked if his gearbox refused to get out of 1st. The series of pitstops closed the gap right up between Derek Daly and Keke Rosberg,and the two began to battle,with Danny Sullivan enjoying the battle with a primetime seat. Come lap 53,those two were still going at each other's throats,when Sullivan decided that he wanted in.So,as Daly and Rosbergran each other wide at Epingle de L'ile,Sullivan saw a gap and went for it. Problem was,Rosberg saw a gap between the closing in Sullivan and Daly,and went for it.Three wide rarely works out,and it didn't here,as Sullivan mysteriously pulled up into Rosberg,launching the defending champion into a series of rolls. End result:A dead Williams,a limping Lotus-Renault and a miraclously unscathed Tyrell. Daly spent over a minute in the pits to repair the damage. Derek Warwick blew his engine up,and then came the last,but biggest,retirement of the day.

Elio de Angelis had been holding the lead throughout the race with Alain Prost casually laying back in second,5 seconds behind the Ferrari.Come lap 62,the gap somehow shrinked to one second. By the time the fifth turn came,there was no more de Angelis to compare with for a gap. The Ferrari had developed an oil leak that was thankfully contained within the car itself,but the leak eliminated de Angelis from the race almost immediately with eight laps to go. This left Alain Prost to cruise to his first victory of the season and the championship lead.Nelson Piquet id not have the Brabham break down on him and finished second while the Tyrells came in third and a very controversial fourth. Fifth was John Watson,putting in a fantastic drive from second-last on the grid, as Patrick Tambay finished a mildly disappointing sixth.The real miracle stories,however,came outside the points. Mauro Baldi had a dice with Manfred Winklehock in the final ten laps that had the crowd on the edge of their seats,and in the end the sidepod-less Ligier edged the ATS by 0.05 of a second. Once the battle ended,the two were given applause worthy of a hero for the show they had put on,and special praise went to Winklehock for leading a few laps in the torrential early condtions.However,there was praised reserved for Martin Brundle,who dragged the Empire to a top ten finish.Not bad for a new team.

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Driver's Standings (Round 8/16)

1.Alain Prost--28
2.Jacques Laffite--27
3.Elio de Angelis--24
4.Patrick Tambay--20
5.Niki Lauda--19
6.Michele Alboreto--18
7.Eddie Cheever--15
8.Keke Rosberg--13
9.Nelson Piquet--10
10.Danny Sullivan--8
11.Marc Surer--7
12.Nigel Mansell--3 (1 4th)
13.John Watson--3 (1 5th)
14.Derek Warwick--2 (1 5th,2 7ths)
15. Rene Arnoux--2 (1 5th,7 DNFs)
16.Riccardo Patrese--1

Constructor's Standings (Round 8/16)

1.Renault--55
2.Ferrari--44
3.Williams-Ford--28
4.Tyrell-Ford--26
5.McLaren-Ford--22
6.Brabham-BMW--11
7.Arrows-Ford--9
8.Lotus-Renault--3
9.Alfa-Romeo--2
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Aerospeed · Post by **Aerospeed** » 14 Jul 2013, 11:59

10th? Wasn't expecting that today, looks like the gamble paid off!

UncreativeUsername37 · Post by **UncreativeUsername37** » 14 Jul 2013, 13:22

TENTH! Yes! We're awesome!

WaffleCat · Post by **WaffleCat** » 20 Jul 2013, 07:59

July 14,1983

Mr. Travers slept well. Normally,in the day before a race,he would sleep in a hotel,maybe two star,possibly three,five if he was lucky.Very lucky. Anyway,having a track that's a reasonable distance away from the factory meant that Mr. Travers could check on his brand,spanking new engine upgrade and development on the second chassis,both of which were looking quite nicely indeed. After all,Mr. Travers was still overjoyed with his top 10 and his gamble had paid off immensely. Despite Mauro Baldi and Manfred Winklehock stealing the spotlight,becoming almost cult heroes in Canada for that battle,Brundle was still delivering the goods,and more sponsors came knocking on the door. In fact,three sponsors had already come knocking on his door for main sponsorship on the Empire,each with a two-year deal at hand.

The first offer was from Unipart,who have already sponsored Ensign and are now currently with McLaren. However,their deal with McLaren ends this year,and are looking for another team to sponsor. They bring in £325k to the team for each year of the two-year deal,less than other offers,but are guaranteed not to leave the team for the two year deal. Next is Guiness,who are planning to enter into Formula One sponsorship next year. Being a well-known and internationally recognized brand,they are planning to bring in £550k a year,but will terminate their contract within the first year if the team does not get any points. Finally, Ford have announced that they will also plan to sponsor Empire. Ford come with yet another £550k per year deal,however this means that Empire will have to use Ford's naturally-aspirated engine as they have no plans for a turbo to come,thus reducing performance. Each three have their own perks,but have massive drawbacks. Mr. Travers looked at the list of offers before dozing off to sleep,reminding himself to call the one sponsor he had chosen first thing in the morning.

ISSUE:Who will be the main sponsor for Empire racing in 1984/1985?

a)Unipart--(£325k/year,no risk of termination)
b)Guiness--(£550k/year,will terminate contract without points in year 1 of contract)
c)Ford--(£550k/year,switch to N/A engines for next two years)

You have time to vote.How much time,though,I dunno.
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OOC: Forgive me for some lack of updates,as something called real life is making me stay away from my computer and this project for a while as exams and lessons and other stuff are keeping me away. I plan/hope to have the British Grand Prix up this week,but I figured you will be bored with a lack of updates,so I quickly thought up an issue for you to vote on.Once again,apologies for the delays.

Post by **kevinbotz** » 20 Jul 2013, 08:27

I'm going to put my faith in the Empire engineers and endorse Guinness.

Let's get that point.

AustralianStig · Post by **AustralianStig** » 20 Jul 2013, 08:45

I vote Unipart - we'll need some incredible luck to score any points this season and going to a Ford engine sounds like a big step back.

RonDenisDeletraz · Post by **RonDenisDeletraz** » 20 Jul 2013, 08:51

I go for everyones favourite Irish alcohol that has a ball bearing at the bottom of the can