What If?

[Alextrax52]

What if Fernando Alonso joined Minardi in 2000 where they had a decent car considering what Gene was able to do with it?

[good_Ralf]

What if Fernando Alonso joined Minardi in 2000 where they had a decent car considering what Gene was able to do with it?

Firstly, Alonso would be on debut the youngest driver ever to start a Grand Prix, aged just 18. He might have scored points in some chaotic races, but I think even Alonso wouldn't be able to manage that feat. For 2001, either Minardi kept Alonso or he signed for a team such as Benetton (an obvious choice) or maybe Williams.

[ibsey]

What if Prost stayed with Mclaren after 1980 instead of moving to Renault. I'm thinking WDC in 1982?

[good_Ralf]

What if Prost stayed with Mclaren after 1980 instead of moving to Renault. I'm thinking WDC in 1982?

Prost would have been a winner in 1981 as in reality but barring a good relaibility rate, I don't think he would win the title until 1984. He would do a unimaginably better job than de Crasheris, anyway.

[dr-baker]

What if Fernando Alonso joined Minardi in 2000 where they had a decent car considering what Gene was able to do with it?

Firstly, Alonso would be on debut the youngest driver ever to start a Grand Prix, aged just 18. He might have scored points in some chaotic races, but I think even Alonso wouldn't be able to manage that feat. For 2001, either Minardi kept Alonso or he signed for a team such as Benetton (an obvious choice) or maybe Williams.

And how would that impact on Jenson Button's career (if FA goes to Enstone)?

[Dj_bereta]

What If Jason Plato got into NASCAR in 2003?

Things like this:
http://youtu.be/btWYvCUlr4E

This:
http://youtu.be/Grop3wOwx_U

This:
http://youtu.be/GQjk1KPDFAE

And this:
http://youtu.be/NmgZesE8XKg

In all races. Plato getting black flags and various probations. Become one of most hated and most loved Nascar drivers of modern era.

[Walsh_e]

What if Prost stayed with Mclaren after 1980 instead of moving to Renault. I'm thinking WDC in 1982?

Prost would have been a winner in 1981 as in reality but barring a good relaibility rate, I don't think he would win the title until 1984. He would do a unimaginably better job than de Crasheris, anyway.

I think he might of got the title in 82, Watson was very close & with decent reliability I feel Prost would have done it, if you mixed it with a fair F1 scoring system he'd have won in 88 too, so 6 time world champion!

[Bleu]

What if Fernando Alonso joined Minardi in 2000 where they had a decent car considering what Gene was able to do with it?

Firstly, Alonso would be on debut the youngest driver ever to start a Grand Prix, aged just 18. He might have scored points in some chaotic races, but I think even Alonso wouldn't be able to manage that feat. For 2001, either Minardi kept Alonso or he signed for a team such as Benetton (an obvious choice) or maybe Williams.

And how would that impact on Jenson Button's career (if FA goes to Enstone)?

Probably Sauber (instead of Räikkönen). Button and Räikkönen were both managed by the Robertsons at the time, Sauber contacted them in intention to sign Button. However, he was already signed by Benetton (not published yet) and the Robertsons offered Räikkönen to Sauber who then impressed in Mugello testing in September.

[Londoner]

What if Grosjean's Lotus hadn't broken down in Valencia last year, and he managed to win the race? Would the confidence boost from his first victory mean he'd make less mistakes at race starts for the rest of the season?

[good_Ralf]

What if Grosjean's Lotus hadn't broken down in Valencia last year, and he managed to win the race? Would the confidence boost from his first victory mean he'd make less mistakes at race starts for the rest of the season?

Nope.

[DemocalypseNow]

What If Jason Plato got into NASCAR in 2003?

Things like this:
http://youtu.be/btWYvCUlr4E

This:
http://youtu.be/Grop3wOwx_U

This:
http://youtu.be/GQjk1KPDFAE

And this:
http://youtu.be/NmgZesE8XKg

In all races. Plato getting black flags and various probations. Become one of most hated and most loved Nascar drivers of modern era.

To sum up; Kyle Busch would be made totally obsolete!

I'm not worried when Plato decides to hang up his helmet however. I'm sure Johnny Cecotto Jr can fill his place like Plato had never left.

[dinizintheoven]

What if we found out Thierry Boutsen's hair was actually a rug all along?

Worse still, what if Fabrizio Barbazza's hair was equally false?

[CoopsII]

Worse still, what if Fabrizio Barbazza's hair was equally false?

If you ever suggest that to my face I will kill you where you stand! Dont ever blaspheme the Holy Hair Of Barbazza.

[dinizintheoven]

En garde! Bring forth the sword made from a piece of Dallara once crashed by Andrea de Cesaris!

[CoopsII]

[TomWazzleshaw]

Woah, stop right there guys! If we're gonna have a fight, we need to do this the proper F1 Rejects way:

Best of three jousting competition, with Life L190s as the horses, and the front wings from the stillborn USF1 project as the lances.

[roblo97]

Woah, stop right there guys! If we're gonna have a fight, we need to do this the proper F1 Rejects way:

Best of three jousting competition, with Life L190s as the horses, and the front wings from the stillborn USF1 project as the lances.

With HWNSMBN as the adjudicator

[Onxy Wrecked]

Woah, stop right there guys! If we're gonna have a fight, we need to do this the proper F1 Rejects way:

Best of three jousting competition, with Life L190s as the horses, and the front wings from the stillborn USF1 project as the lances.

With HWNSMBN as the adjudicator

Least Paul di Resta announces it.

[UncreativeUsername37]

Woah, stop right there guys! If we're gonna have a fight, we need to do this the proper F1 Rejects way:

Best of three jousting competition, with Life L190s as the horses, and the front wings from the stillborn USF1 project as the lances.

They would break down before all three rounds could be completed....

[good_Ralf]

Woah, stop right there guys! If we're gonna have a fight, we need to do this the proper F1 Rejects way:

Best of three jousting competition, with Life L190s as the horses, and the front wings from the stillborn USF1 project as the lances.

They would break down before all three rounds could be completed....

And would have an average speed of about 2mph.

[TomWazzleshaw]

What if Super Aguri were allowed to use the BAR RA105 as the basis for the 2006 car as originally planned?

[good_Ralf]

What if Super Aguri were allowed to use the BAR RA105 as the basis for the 2006 car as originally planned?

Many things...

Actually, I think Super Aguri would have a season similar to that of 2007, where whenever they were competitive or the race was chaotic e.g. Australia, Monaco, USA, Hungary, Turkey or Brazil, they would score points. Sato might have made Q3 in a couple of races but of his three teammates, I think only Montagny would have been able to do the same. Then again, the car might not have been good enough to score points anyway. But they would probably have beaten Toro Rosso or Midland on pace alone.
The BAR 007 is a much more beautiful car than the 2006 Super Aguri especially with that biplane-style front wing used after Italy.

[Shizuka]

What if Super Aguri were allowed to use the BAR RA105 as the basis for the 2006 car as originally planned?

If the RA105(/007) has had all the upgrades on it and then transferred to Super Aguri, it could have been a regular Q2 appearance for Sato. The Midland/Spyker and Toro Rosso would have been a tiny bit slower than them. Points would have come in Indy with at least a 7th position, just barely ahead of Liuzzi, whose limited V10 would have allowed him to stay in touch with Sato on the straight.
I'd say about 5 to 10 points would have been scored, another chunk of it coming from the chaotic HWNSNBM-land GP. By end season, they could have been able to snap at the heels of the Q3 cars.

[good_Ralf]

What if Rosberg had managed to win for Mercedes in 2010 e.g. China?

[Alextrax52]

What if Rosberg had managed to win for Mercedes in 2010 e.g. China?

He would have needed a fair amount of luck to do so. It's very possible that had he not gone off the road before the safety car came out he would have won that race. Similarly in 2011 he led in the dry and only a mis-calculated fuel setting cost him there. The only other time the Merc looked like getting a sniff of the win was Great Britain where Rosberg qualified 5th and managed to hold Alonso off. only Vettel's opening lap puncture assisted him to the podium that day.

As for Schumacher the knives would probably have been out calling for him to give up at the end of 2010

[TomWazzleshaw]

What if Rosberg had managed to win for Mercedes in 2010 e.g. China?

He would have needed a fair amount of luck to do so. It's very possible that had he not gone off the road before the safety car came out he would have won that race. Similarly in 2011 he led in the dry and only a mis-calculated fuel setting cost him there. The only other time the Merc looked like getting a sniff of the win was Great Britain where Rosberg qualified 5th and managed to hold Alonso off. only Vettel's opening lap puncture assisted him to the podium that day.

As for Schumacher the knives would probably have been out calling for him to give up at the end of 2010

If anything, Korea was the one that got away from him as he was easily the fastest car on track when Webber backed it into the wall and took him out of the race.

[Alextrax52]

What if Rosberg had managed to win for Mercedes in 2010 e.g. China?

He would have needed a fair amount of luck to do so. It's very possible that had he not gone off the road before the safety car came out he would have won that race. Similarly in 2011 he led in the dry and only a mis-calculated fuel setting cost him there. The only other time the Merc looked like getting a sniff of the win was Great Britain where Rosberg qualified 5th and managed to hold Alonso off. only Vettel's opening lap puncture assisted him to the podium that day.

As for Schumacher the knives would probably have been out calling for him to give up at the end of 2010

If anything, Korea was the one that got away from him as he was easily the fastest car on track when Webber backed it into the wall and took him out of the race.

I forgot about Korea. I feel and he felt he could have won that race. Considering he passed Hamilton supposedly a wet weather genius then it's no wonder he said that

[good_Ralf]

If anything, Korea was the one that got away from him as he was easily the fastest car on track when Webber backed it into the wall and took him out of the race.

Oh yeah! But I've heard about how Mercedes had awful tyre with Schumacher in the closing stages so Nico's pace might have dropped off in the fight against Alonso (unless he got collected by Webber instead and therefore handed Vettel the title on a plate) and Hamilton and again luck would need to be on Rosberg's side.

[mario]

If anything, Korea was the one that got away from him as he was easily the fastest car on track when Webber backed it into the wall and took him out of the race.

Oh yeah! But I've heard about how Mercedes had awful tyre with Schumacher in the closing stages so Nico's pace might have dropped off in the fight against Alonso (unless he got collected by Webber instead and therefore handed Vettel the title on a plate) and Hamilton and again luck would need to be on Rosberg's side.

As Brawn later admitted, though the team had been swift enough to modify the suspension settings for a wet race during the red flag period, when the track started drying out towards the end of the race the modifications they'd made to the suspension lead to increased tyre wear. Mind you, that happened for a number of drivers (Hamilton's tyres were fairly worn by the end as well) - Alonso, though, had no real problems with tyre wear (some remarked that his tyres looked like they were almost new).

I would agree that, had Rosberg managed to get through and into the lead earlier in the race, he'd have probably been swallowed up pretty rapidly when the conditions dried and Alonso's better tyre management came to the fore. He might have also been beaten by Hamilton on those slightly drier conditions too, depending on how much of a lead he had, but he might have been able to salvage at least 3rd place given that Massa was about another 15 seconds down the road.

[Gerudo Dragon]

What If James Hinchcliffe made it to F1?

[Shizuka]

Here's an interesting What if? question:

What if Piquet Jr.'s debut never happened?

[Jocke1]

Here's an interesting What if? question:

What if Piquet Jr.'s debut never happened?

Someone else would have won the 2008 Singapore GP.

[good_Ralf]

Here's an interesting What if? question:

What if Piquet Jr.'s debut never happened?

Someone else would have won the 2008 Singapore GP.

Rosberg FTW!!!!!!!

In reality though, Felipe Baby would have won given where he was before the first SC.

[Salamander]

Here's an interesting What if? question:

What if Piquet Jr.'s debut never happened?

Someone else would have won the 2008 Singapore GP.

Hmmm, I wonder if Massa's fuel rig mishap would've still happened? If so, Hamilton may have come out the winner... or possibly Kubica if he drove anything like he did in 2010.

[good_Ralf]

Here's an interesting What if? question:

What if Piquet Jr.'s debut never happened?

Someone else would have won the 2008 Singapore GP.

Hmmm, I wonder if Massa's fuel rig mishap would've still happened? If so, Hamilton may have come out the winner... or possibly Kubica if he drove anything like he did in 2010.

If Piquet wasn't there I thought there wouldn't be Crashgate either but then again it might have done. If not, there wouldn't have been a first SC and Massa wouldn't (shouldn't) have had the fuel hose fail. Then of course the second SC was caused by Sutil crashing after getting distracted by Massa's spin, having dropped to the back. So the second SC wouldn't (shouldn't) have happened either but given that it's Singapore there probably would have been at least one SC, but one that hopefully didn't affect Massa.

[Shizuka]

Here's my rundown:

- Kovalainen does not get picked up by McLaren, instead they go for Nico Rosberg. Given this article, it's not impossible.
- Kovalainen stays with Renault, as Briatore didn't want a completely new line-up.
- Would Fisichella have stayed instead? No, given he got beaten by his team mate by the end of 2007.
- Indeed, the Crashgate never happens
- The fuel hose problems for Massa doesn't happen either
- Hamilton still only finishes third behind Massa and Rosberg
- Because of this, Massa takes the lead 87-84 to Hamilton after this GP
- However, I think the Japanese GP mishaps for both drivers would have happened anyway - 89-84
- The Chinese GP goes as it would originally have - Lewis wins ahead of Felipe and Kimi - 97-94
- However, given Lewis' situation, he now does not go carefully into the Brazilian GP, as he is three points down...
- ...but, seeing his Silverstone performance, he wins ahead of Massa and Alonso...
- ...however, it's not enough for him: 105-104 is the final standing, and Felipe wins the title.

(Rosberg performs better than Kovalainen, but he's not a challenge for Hamilton yet)

[mario]

Here's an interesting What if? question:

What if Piquet Jr.'s debut never happened?

Someone else would have won the 2008 Singapore GP.

Hmmm, I wonder if Massa's fuel rig mishap would've still happened? If so, Hamilton may have come out the winner... or possibly Kubica if he drove anything like he did in 2010.

It is an interesting question because Ferrari reported at the time that Massa's fuel rig accident was down to human error - the person operating the traffic light system that Ferrari use mistakenly thought that the refuelling team had pressed the button on the fuel rig to show it had detached and mistakenly gave Massa the green light as a result. The odds of the refuelling team making that same mistake would have been lower in a normal pit stop, but I don't think that we could discount it entirely given that one or two other teams had similar problems when first introducing that same traffic light system (IIRC, McLaren had such a system in use in the Brazilian GP in 2009 when Heikki was accidentally sent on his way with the fuel hose attached).

[roblo97]

A bit hypothetical this but here goes…

What if the Michelin tyre were allowed to race at Indy 2005 and what means would have persuaded them to race

[good_Ralf]

A bit hypothetical this but here goes…

What if the Michelin tyre were allowed to race at Indy 2005 and what means would have persuaded them to race

The Michelin runners would have started because DC said so on the team radio or if that chicane was added to the final corner.

In the race, polesitter Trulli would have pitted exceptionally early because given the situation Toyota decided to try a win-or-bust strategy and probably would have scored minor points at best, given what happed to Ralf at Suzuka. In the end, having started alongside Trulli, Räikkönen with a heavier fuel load which was the norm with McLaren in 2005, would have won the race. Button's race pace would have been poor so he might have finished off the podium which I guess would be comprised of Räikkönen and the two Renaults. I don't know who would have finished first, Fisichella or Alonso.

[DOSBoot]

What if Gunnar Nilsson didn't get terminal cancer?