ben_watkins wrote:What about Alonso/Massa swap? Sounds like he's got that break clause and is doing what everyone thought, sitting at Renault for a year before he goes to Ferrari in 2009
Well, Fernando has been
busy dropping hints in Ferrari's direction. Perhaps he foresees the Maranello team going from strength to strength no matter what, perhaps he thinks occasional talk about leaving spurs his current team on to compete for his services. I wonder though, what conceivable value does the "break clause" serve with all the technical changes that are due in 2009? Renault's (
nor any other teams') current form won't matter all too much then, and the resources are pretty much matched between the teams that have won during the last decade or so. In times of change, I think offering a measure of stability in taking one's team through the challenges will provide the best motivation. Staying put might be worth more than a thought.
Had it not been for BMW announcing Kubica and Heidfeld very early on, I would've thought that was the way to go for Alonso - even at the cost of a possible pay cut. That team decided otherwise, making a clear statement about team culture of promoting people from within the team. Both Toyota and Honda are on the upswing - Dernie and Brawn, among others, are having a positive effect and both teams sport senior drivers that need replacing at some point (
though I'd hate to see any of them go). Williams is an unlikely fit for Fernando (
I can't imagine him making the compromises to fit in) and Red Bull just didn't seem to interest him (
again as a precedent, for all the talk to the contrary).
Given the events of 2007, I'd raise more than an eyebrow if he ended up at Ferrari of all places. I can think of a number of journalists who would have a field day in investigating and questioning what
actually took place during the crises if it came to that. It's also pretty hard to imagine the team entertaining someone who actively sought and made use of their (
alledgedly Stepney originating) data as a competitor. Spilling the beans in the end did result in an easy WCC for Ferrari (
and almost to a removal of a longstanding competitor) - in a victory that appeared less than wholesome and/or meaningful to all but very few. Machiavellian service enough to pay sufficient penance to Maranello?
Perhaps, but even in that case, it'd likely be the final F1 contract Alonso could sign. Given the latitude of action he's come to require of previous contracts and his vision of a driver's relationship with his team, it will go against his nature to acquiesce to a cage, however gilded. The temptation to rattle the bars, just to make a point, is ever present. If Fernando and Ferrari were to "tango", they sure have the widest of dancefloors to cross on their way to each others' arms.
.
