What If?

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shinji
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What If?

Post by shinji »

What if Wolfgang von Trips hadn't slid up the side of the road at Monza '61?
What if Jim Clark hadn't decided to race in an F2 race at Hockenheim in '68?
What if Colin Chapman hadn't got sponsorship for his Lotus?
What if aerofoils hadn't been developed?
What if Jackie Stewart hadn't had his life-changing crash?
What if Roger Williamson had held that slide at Zandvoort?
What if the rear wing of Rolf Stommelen's Hill had held off until a slow corner in Spain 1975?
What if Niki Lauda hadn't recovered after the Nurburgring crash?
What if Renault hadn't developed a turbo engine?
What if Lotus had never created ground effect?
What if Nigel Mansell hadn't taken pain killers in a test for Lotus?
What if Martin Brundle had beaten Ayrton Senna in F3 in 1983?
What if Tommy Byrne hadn't been had a personality clash with Ron Dennis?
What if the '84 Monaco GP hadn't been stopped?
What if Stefan Bellof hadn't tried to overtake Ickx at Eau Rouge?
What if Nigel Mansell's wheel hadn't burst at Australia '86?
What if the McLaren MP4/4 hadn't been as well developed?
What if Bertrand Gachot hadn't attacked a taxi driver?
What if Alain Prost hadn't gone Williams for 1993?
What if the wheel had bounced half a metre to the right after Senna's crash?
What if Benetton's illegal devices hadn't been found?
What if Schumacher hadn't gone to Ferrari?
What if Jacques Villeneuve had stayed in America?
What if Damon Hill had stayed at Williams for 1997?
What if Michael Schumacher hadn't crashed at Silverstone 1999?
What if Luciano Burti hadn't been as lucky at Spa 2001?
What if Barrichello hadn't let Schumacher past at Austria 2002?
What if Verstappen hadn't spun off at Brazil 2003?
What if Red Bull hadn't bought Jaguar?
What if Ralf hadn't crashed in practice for US 2005?
What if Nigel Stepney hadn't been a scheming c***?
What if Alonso hadn't felt McLaren were favoriting Hamilton?
What if Timo Glock had 'accidentally' slid in to Hamilton as he passed him at Brazil last year?

AND FINALLY What if Honda hadn't been bought, and Button and Barrichello's careers were effectively over?
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Re: What If?

Post by dr-baker »

As Murray Walker said, "F1 is IF spelt backwards."

But take this to its extreme, and then it reminds me of Dory in Finding Nemo : "Well, you can't never let anything happen to him. Then nothing would ever happen to him. Not much fun for little Harpo."

...Not that I wish to take some of the questions lightly, mind you, but a lot of these events is why we all took an interest in F1 isn't it?
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Re: What If?

Post by rffp »

shinji wrote:What if Martin Brundle had beaten Ayrton Senna in F3 in 1983?

Both debuted in 1984 in F-1, so things wouldn't be changed.

shinji wrote:What if Nigel Mansell's wheel hadn't burst at Australia '86?

He would find a way to screw up and lose that title!

shinji wrote:What if Bertrand Gachot hadn't attacked a taxi driver?

Moreno would still get the boot and Flav would have put Schummy in Benetton.

shinji wrote:What if Benetton's illegal devices hadn't been found?

Absolutely nothing different. Those devices were found and nothing was done against Benetton

shinji wrote:What if Jacques Villeneuve had stayed in America?
What if Damon Hill had stayed at Williams for 1997?

My eyes would be irreversibly blinded by the sight of a second title for Damon Hill.

shinji wrote:What if Barrichello hadn't let Schumacher past at Austria 2002?

He would get the boot at the end of the year, but before his car wouldn be stuck dead in the grid for at least two more races!

shinji wrote:What if Ralf hadn't crashed in practice for US 2005?

Probably, a tyre would blow off on Saturday. Possibly, we wouldn't have to see the farce of farces.

shinji wrote:What if Timo Glock had 'accidentally' slid in to Hamilton as he passed him at Brazil last year?

I would be happy! :mrgreen:
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Re: What If?

Post by midgrid »

shinji wrote:What if Wolfgang von Trips hadn't slid up the side of the road at Monza '61?

He probably would have finished the race and won the championship as a result. Colin Chapman and Jim Clark would have fonder memories of Italy and the country's legal system.

What if Jim Clark hadn't decided to race in an F2 race at Hockenheim in '68?

He probably would have won the 1968 championship, and perhaps more.

What if Colin Chapman hadn't got sponsorship for his Lotus?

Another team would have done soon enough.

What if aerofoils hadn't been developed?

The cars would probably have huge tyres, 4WD, active suspension etc. to increase mechanical grip. The cars would be more difficult to control and easier to overtake.

What if Jackie Stewart hadn't had his life-changing crash?

I imagine others would have campaigned for improved safety, although without the prestige of Stewart everything would probably have developed more slowly.

What if Roger Williamson had held that slide at Zandvoort?

He would have retired from that race anyway as his accident was caused by a puncture, but could have won the championship in the future had he survived.

What if the rear wing of Rolf Stommelen's Hill had held off until a slow corner in Spain 1975?

He might have won the race (although Carlos Pace was challenging for the lead when Stommelen crashed), and F1 races would have been held at Monjuic Park for longer.

What if Niki Lauda hadn't recovered after the Nurburgring crash?

If he died, there would have been a stronger campaign for improved safety than just scrapping the old Nurburgring. Either way, Reutemann, Scheckter, Andretti or the other Ferrari driver (Regazzoni still?) would have won the 1977 championship, and Prost would probably have won the 1984 championship (against John Watson or Andrea de Cesaris?).

What if Renault hadn't developed a turbo engine?

I believe another manufacturer would have introduced it eventually.

What if Lotus had never created ground effect?

Again, another team probably would have come up with the concept.

What if Nigel Mansell hadn't taken pain killers in a test for Lotus?

Was this the test that started his F1 career? If yes, F1 would have been more boring in the 1980s and early 1990s, but the 1992 championship would have been closer.

What if Martin Brundle had beaten Ayrton Senna in F3 in 1983?

They both made it into F1 the next year anyway, so nothing much. Perhaps Brundle would have got a seat with a bigger team?

What if Tommy Byrne hadn't been had a personality clash with Ron Dennis?

He could have been a world champion, but perhaps his temperament would have got him into trouble anyway.

What if the '84 Monaco GP hadn't been stopped?

Senna's suspension would have failed after he took the lead due to him whacking the kerb at the chicane prior to the actual red flag. Bellof would have taken the lead, only to be retroactively disqualifed later in the season, handing the win and championship to Prost.

What if Stefan Bellof hadn't tried to overtake Ickx at Eau Rouge?

Another potential world championship, given the right breaks, although I suspect he could have turned into another nearly-man like Tyrrell team-mate Brundle.

What if Nigel Mansell's wheel hadn't burst at Australia '86?

Piquet would have suffered a tyre failure, resulting in a precautionary stop for Mansell and the championship win despite finishing behind Prost.

What if the McLaren MP4/4 hadn't been as well developed?

It would have won both championships by a smaller margin. Prost's greater consistency would likely win him the drivers' championship in such a situation.

What if Bertrand Gachot hadn't attacked a taxi driver?

He would have won the Belgian GP, possibly! Schumacher would have made his debut slightly later, possibly for Sauber in 1993, and may well have remained affiliated to Mercedes throughout his career.

What if Alain Prost hadn't gone Williams for 1993?

Senna would have taken the drive and dominated the season.

What if the wheel had bounced half a metre to the right after Senna's crash?

Nothing different, as Senna was killed by a piece from the suspension.

What if Benetton's illegal devices hadn't been found?

Schumacher and Benetton probably would have been treated more leniently by the FIA, and would have won the 1994 championship by a slightly larger margin as a result.

What if Schumacher hadn't gone to Ferrari?

He probably would have won more championships in the short term, as he had the pick of any of the top teams to go to or to stay with Benetton. No Ferrari superteam.

What if Jacques Villeneuve had stayed in America?

No British American Racing, Coulthard would have stayed with Williams and might have won a championship or two given that he was generally faster than Damon Hill by the end of 1995.

What if Damon Hill had stayed at Williams for 1997?

He would have been beaten by Villeneuve.

What if Michael Schumacher hadn't crashed at Silverstone 1999?

He would have won the championship.

What if Luciano Burti hadn't been as lucky at Spa 2001?

Irvine would have been castigated, Spa would have been revamped, other safety measures.

What if Barrichello hadn't let Schumacher past at Austria 2002?

He would likely have been dropped at the end of the season.

What if Verstappen hadn't spun off at Brazil 2003?

He would probably have won the race!

What if Red Bull hadn't bought Jaguar?

Three car entries from the larger teams in 2005?

What if Ralf hadn't crashed in practice for US 2005?

There might still be a tyre war in F1.

What if Nigel Stepney hadn't been a scheming c***?
What if Alonso hadn't felt McLaren were favoriting Hamilton?

McLaren would have won both championships, with Alonso probably taking the drivers' championship.

What if Timo Glock had 'accidentally' slid in to Hamilton as he passed him at Brazil last year?

An even bigger conspiracy theory.

AND FINALLY What if Honda hadn't been bought, and Button and Barrichello's careers were effectively over?

A very close, unpredictable F1 championship this year!
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Re: What If?

Post by DonTirri »

midgrid wrote:
shinji wrote:
What if Michael Schumacher hadn't crashed at Silverstone 1999?

He would have won the championship.

No he wouldnt've. Häkkinen would've taken it regardless, but it woulda been even closer with Irvine kissing goodbye to wins and Salo never getting a taste of a really competetive car.
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Re: What If?

Post by Python »

shinji wrote:What if Jacques Villeneuve had stayed in America?


Villeneuve would probably went with CART after the split and probably would have won the National Championship a few more times, and probably would have did one offs at Indy in the 2000's, potentially winning another 1 or 2 more times. Also he most likely would not have attempted NASCAR if he felt he was still competitive in American open wheel racing, but he may still have tried his hand at it.
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Re: What If?

Post by midgrid »

After the French Grand Prix, Schumacher had 32 points to Irvine's 26. Irvine only lost the championship by two points, and I think Schumacher would have beaten Irvine's points tally in the second half of the season had he still been competing.
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Re: What If?

Post by DonTirri »

midgrid wrote:After the French Grand Prix, Schumacher had 32 points to Irvine's 26. Irvine only lost the championship by two points, and I think Schumacher would have beaten Irvine's points tally in the second half of the season had he still been competing.


Remember that Mika was at his absolute best when fighting Schumi. Personally i think he took Irvine a tad too lightly, thus allowing the ulsterman to sneak close.

I still stand by my words that Mika woulda taken the title.
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Re: What If?

Post by midgrid »

DonTirri wrote:
midgrid wrote:After the French Grand Prix, Schumacher had 32 points to Irvine's 26. Irvine only lost the championship by two points, and I think Schumacher would have beaten Irvine's points tally in the second half of the season had he still been competing.


Remember that Mika was at his absolute best when fighting Schumi. Personally i think he took Irvine a tad too lightly, thus allowing the ulsterman to sneak close.

I still stand by my words that Mika woulda taken the title.


OK then, we'll have to agree to disagree. ;)
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Re: What If?

Post by Nuppiz »

I have a couple of "What if?"s here as well:

What if Räikkönen wouldn't have been drafted by Sauber in 2001?
Räikkönen would have driven a couple more of seasons more in single seaters, Formula 3 in 2001 and Formula 3000 in 2002, before he would have been hired by Sauber to replace HHF. He would drive a solid season with a good points tally, albeit without any podium finishes, before being signed for McLaren to replace Alex Wurz, who had had only moderate seasons in 2002 and 2003. From there on, the story would most likely be quite the same that in real life.

What if McLaren would have got those Lamborghini V12s for 1994?
It would have been an awful disaster. The car would have been even more unreliable than the Peugeots, which, in the end, would have meant that the Mercedes deal would have been much more difficult to get and the poor performance would have affected the whole teams' morale.
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Re: What If?

Post by midgrid »

Nuppiz wrote:What if Räikkönen wouldn't have been drafted by Sauber in 2001?
Räikkönen would have driven a couple more of seasons more in single seaters, Formula 3 in 2001 and Formula 3000 in 2002, before he would have been hired by Sauber to replace HHF. He would drive a solid season with a good points tally, albeit without any podium finishes, before being signed for McLaren to replace Alex Wurz, who had had only moderate seasons in 2002 and 2003. From there on, the story would most likely be quite the same that in real life.


I think that McLaren would have replaced Hakkinen with Heidfeld for 2002 if Raikkonen hadn't been on the grid. ;)
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Re: What If?

Post by Nuppiz »

midgrid wrote:I think that McLaren would have replaced Hakkinen with Heidfeld for 2002 if Raikkonen hadn't been on the grid. ;)
Ah yes, forgot about him completely! After all, he tested for McLaren in 1999. :)
Eurosport broadcast for the 1990 Mexican GP prequalifying:
"The Life, it looked very lifeless yet again... in fact Bruno did one, slow lap"
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Re: What If?

Post by WeirdKerr »

shinji wrote:What if the McLaren MP4/4 hadn't been as well developed??

Ferrari and Benneton may have won races.....
couple more for '88

What If Williams had decided not to go with active suspension?

What if Mansell didn't get chicken-pox?
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Re: What If?

Post by Life w12 »

What if Jean Alesi had gone to Williams instead of Ferrari?
In the FW14, I think he would of been damn near unstoppable
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Re: What If?

Post by noisebox »

Schumacher didn't cook his clutch at the start of Spa 91?
Hill won Hungary 97 for Arrows?
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Re: What If?

Post by TomWazzleshaw »

Life w12 wrote:What if Jean Alesi had gone to Williams instead of Ferrari?

No championships for Hill or Velleneuve.
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Re: What If?

Post by thehemogoblin »

What if Pacific Grand Prix had enough money to make it through 1996?
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Re: What If?

Post by Nuppiz »

thehemogoblin wrote:What if Pacific Grand Prix had enough money to make it through 1996?

More rejects from '96 on this site :mrgreen:
Eurosport broadcast for the 1990 Mexican GP prequalifying:
"The Life, it looked very lifeless yet again... in fact Bruno did one, slow lap"
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Re: What If?

Post by thehemogoblin »

Nuppiz wrote:
thehemogoblin wrote:What if Pacific Grand Prix had enough money to make it through 1996?

More rejects from '96 on this site :mrgreen:


Their car was starting to get faster, if I recall.
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Re: What If?

Post by Life w12 »

What if Jean-Louis Schlesser and Ayrton Senna hadn't collided at Monza?
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Re: What If?

Post by rffp »

What if Derek Warwick signed for Williams in 1984?
What if Arrows didn't screw up Derk Warwick's pit stop in the 1989 Brazilian GP?
What if Emerson Fittipaldi signed for the 1989 Japanese GP to drive for Minardi in response to Bernie's challenge to CART drivers?
What if Senna didn't crash out of the 1989 Australian GP?
What if Senna signed for Penske for the 1993 CART season?
What if Gil de Ferran didn't slam his head while walking around the paddock in the Footwork try-out with Jos Verstappen in 1993?
What if Cyril de Rouvre managed to stay ahead of Ligier after 1993?
What if Irvine didn't take Herbert out of the 1994 Italian GP?
What if Prost decided to stick with the Mugen-Hondas for 1998?
What if Frentzen managed to win the 1999 European GP?
What if rain didn't plague the 2003 US GP?
What if Michael Schumacher changed his tyres in the 2006 Hungarian GP?
What if McLaren received a ban for the 2008 season?
What if Prodrive's customer car attempt was declared legal?
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Re: What If?

Post by WeirdKerr »

rffp wrote:What if Frentzen managed to win the 1999 European GP?


he would of still finished 3rd in the championship
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Re: What If?

Post by deCrasheris »

What if Karl Wendlinger never had his accident in Monoco.
What if Jan Magnussen decided to stop smoking and didn't have his accident in 97 preseason testing. (remebered hearing someone talking about the smoking thing during one of the sportscar broadcasts in the US)
What if Minardi kept the Mugen Honda engines in 95?
What if Prost did not buy Ligier out?
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Re: What If?

Post by Python »

rffp wrote:What if Senna signed for Penske for the 1993 CART season?
What if Gil de Ferran didn't slam his head while walking around the paddock in the Footwork with Jos Verstappen try-out in 1993?


CART would have taken over F1 in terms of fans then. Senna would most likely still be alive today.

Gil de Ferran would probably have a reject page on this site, never broke the closed track world record, never would have won Indy and most like not start his own ALMS team.
Last edited by Python on 27 May 2009, 16:23, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: What If?

Post by Bleu »

In those times many Brazilians who failed in F1 went to America, so even if de Ferran would have gone to F1 and didn't succeed, he may have done something of those he did in America.
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Re: What If?

Post by midgrid »

deCrasheris wrote:What if Jan Magnussen decided to stop smoking and didn't have his accident in 97 preseason testing. (remebered hearing someone talking about the smoking thing during one of the sportscar broadcasts in the US)


I thought he had quit once he started driving for Stewart. :?
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Re: What If?

Post by domi-kun »

deCrasheris wrote:What if Minardi kept the Mugen Honda engines in 95?


Maybe they could have beaten teams like Footwork and Tyrrell on 1995, after that they could have signed some Japanese pay driver for 1996, like Taki Inoue, or Hideki Noda for the second car, and someone little better driver for first car, like Jos Verstappen, Mika Salo. On 1996 their first driver could have been competing maybe with Saubers and Ligiers, and the second driver with Arrows and Tyrrell Cars.


What If Minardi got those Mugen - Honda engines, what engines Ligier could have. Renault, Peugeot, Ford ? And what would their performance be like.
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Re: What If?

Post by Python »

Bleu wrote:In those times many Brazilians who failed in F1 went to America, so even if de Ferran would have gone to F1 and didn't succeed, he may have done something of those he did in America.


Potentially but he would have all depended on where he ended up. If we would have went to the IRL instead of CART he most likely would have won Indy at least once, and MAYBE have his ALMS team, but he would not have broke the closed track speed record.
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Re: What If?

Post by watka »

What if Graham Hill's heli never crashed?
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Re: What If?

Post by WeirdKerr »

watka wrote:What if Graham Hill's heli never crashed?


it wasnt a helicopter it was a plane
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Re: What If?

Post by Popi_Larrauri »

deCrasheris wrote:What if Karl Wendlinger never had his accident in Monoco.
What if Jan Magnussen decided to stop smoking and didn't have his accident in 97 preseason testing. (remebered hearing someone talking about the smoking thing during one of the sportscar broadcasts in the US)
What if Minardi kept the Mugen Honda engines in 95?
What if Prost did not buy Ligier out?


1) I guess nothing would have changed too much, since Stewart was always focused on Barrichello's car, and Magnussen never made an impression on anybody else. Smoking or not. Stewart left him without a seat in mid-season, and I remember Jan complained that, by the time, Steart GP only had a budget to work seriously on one car. He, obviously, was left smoking anyway.

2) I, can't explain why, still firmly believe that nothing at all would have changed. For instance, Minardi had had already good engines at his disposal, in 1991 not less than works Ferraris V12s and Lamborghini V12s in aprox. 1992 onwards (which have been demoted here, but they were still better than DFZs or HBs), and really nothing near to miraculous had happen to them in those years. Getting an engine is half the way trough to squezze the full potential of it.

3) Mhhh, they should go broke earlier. Who was previous owner? Tom Wilkinshow? Well, if so, they would have changed engines every year, would have associated with some prince of a muslim country with a T-minus brand (quiet a reject brand, I may add), and would have gone the same way Arrows did.
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Re: What If?

Post by TomWazzleshaw »

What if Nannini wasn't in that helicopter crash after the 1990 Spanish GP?
What if Senna and Prost didn't get together in Japan 89 and 90?
What if pole was on the racing line of the 1990 Japanese GP?
What if Ratzenberger didn't go for another hot lap after he damaged his front wing the lap before at Imola 94?
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Re: What If?

Post by watka »

WeirdKerr wrote:
watka wrote:What if Graham Hill's heli never crashed?


it wasnt a helicopter it was a plane


Woops, of course it was.

What I'm really asking about is the prospects of Tony Brise.
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Re: What If?

Post by RejectSteve »

watka wrote:
WeirdKerr wrote:
watka wrote:What if Graham Hill's heli never crashed?


it wasnt a helicopter it was a plane


Woops, of course it was.

What I'm really asking about is the prospects of Tony Brise.

David Tremayne's book The Lost Generation is worth a read to you then. It also mentions the unfortuante Roger Williamson and Tom Pryce. I haven't read it, but I'll get around to obtaining the book eventually.

As for Senna/Prost in 1989 and 1990, in 1989 Senna would have won in Suzuka but Prost would have secured the title in Adelaide. In 1990, Prost's Ferrari gives up the ghost on lap 41.
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pattav2
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Re: What If?

Post by pattav2 »

Wizzie wrote:What if Ratzenberger didn't go for another hot lap after he damaged his front wing the lap before at Imola 94?

Seeing as he was at a late starting age of 34, he would have not made much of an impact, he would have gone on the usual trail of other rejects. As for safety it self even if ratzenberger didnt die safety would still have changed with sennas accident.

I have a few what if's also

What if Mark Webber stayed on as a Renault test driver instead of getting a seat at Minardi?
What if Phoenix Finance was to compete in 02?
What if Montrevidi was to race in 91?
What if Craig Lowndes did have a successful year in F3000?
What if Ryan Briscoe got a race seat at Toyota or Jordan?
What if Minardi/Jordan/Sauber were to compete still in 06?
What if Gary Brabham stayed on as a test driver for Bennetton?
What if Mastercard lola was to compete for the whole of 97?
What if Kubica was killed in that accident he had in Canada 07?
What if Lifes v12 engines turned out to be the best in the field?
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Cynon
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Re: What If?

Post by Cynon »

What if Jacques Villeneuve stayed in America?

We'd all be thinking much more highly of his racing career and much less of Michael Andretti and Alex Zanardi. Zanardi would not have gone back to F1, Villeneuve and Montoya would be close rivals, but JPM would have still gone to F1. Zanardi would not lose his legs in Germany.
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Re: What If?

Post by Python »

Cynon wrote:What if Jacques Villeneuve stayed in America?

We'd all be thinking much more highly of his racing career and much less of Michael Andretti and Alex Zanardi. Zanardi would not have gone back to F1, Villeneuve and Montoya would be close rivals, but JPM would have still gone to F1. Zanardi would not lose his legs in Germany.


He would have lost his legs regardless if he went back to F1 or not. Now if Zanardi would have jumped over to IRL before that race he would have still had his legs.
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Re: What If?

Post by Python »

pattav2 wrote:[

What if Ryan Briscoe got a race seat at Toyota or Jordan?

What if Kubica was killed in that accident he had in Canada 07?


Briscoe most like would have ended up as another F1 reject driver, and still end up in driving in IRL he most likely would have not been driving for Penske.

Vettel would most likely not have won any races and would be another mid-fielder.
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shinji
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Re: What If?

Post by shinji »

What if Mark Webber stayed on as a Renault test driver instead of getting a seat at Minardi?
What if Phoenix Finance was to compete in 02?
What if Montrevidi was to race in 91?
What if Craig Lowndes did have a successful year in F3000?
What if Ryan Briscoe got a race seat at Toyota or Jordan?
What if Minardi/Jordan/Sauber were to compete still in 06?
What if Gary Brabham stayed on as a test driver for Bennetton?
What if Mastercard lola was to compete for the whole of 97?
What if Kubica was killed in that accident he had in Canada 07?
What if Lifes v12 engines turned out to be the best in the field?


1. He might still have ended up at Jaguar in '03 or '04, and his career would pretty much be the same.
2. They would have been embarrassingly bad. Mazzacane and Marquez? Are you serious?
3. Not too much. Yet more thoughts of what could have been if they had stayed as Onyx.
4. I'd never heard of him, but having looked him up on Wikipedia I'd say not too much.
5. Sebastien Vettel would not be heralded as the next F1 great, and what are Force India and BMW would simply have different names with pretty much the same fortunes, with Sauber a little worse. Remember these teams had been phased out for a few years.
6. He might have gotten a race seat for '92 over Brundle or '93 over Patrese. I repeat, he might.
7. Mastercard are too big a company to finance such a horrifically bad team, so no finance would have led to no delvelopment and a real competitor for Life as slowest ever F1 car.
8. He never would have been, he was only slightly injured, but anyway Trulli would have been berated, and Canada would have lost it's race a year early. All concrete walls would have been replaced by styrofoam or some overreaction like that, and F1 would have lost a lot of sponsorship appeal as it was properly dangerous now. No company wants to see a dead person associated with their brand.
9. The W12? If it was that good it would have gone like the rest of the early '90s innovations - it would have been banned.


And yes, I did just reply to my own thread. I'm a sad person, OK?
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Re: What If?

Post by RejectSteve »

shinji wrote:
What if Lifes v12 engines turned out to be the best in the field?


9. The W12? If it was that good it would have gone like the rest of the early '90s innovations - it would have been banned.

I doubt it. The car itself was so pathetic that the entry would have been a midfield runner at best, thus the engine would never have been at the front of the grid and therefore not banned. What I think could have happened is that the team would have locked up a supply contract with a mid-field team for 1991, say, Ligier, and propelled Les Bleus to championship glory, the L190 having served its purpose of garnering attention to make an engine deal.
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