Force India confirm Liuzzi as race driver in place of Fisi

[Giuseppe F1]

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/78401

But who will be Force India's new reserve driver? Anyone know??? I havent a clue

Arent Force India affiliated with a team in World Series by Renault 3.5 this season? Could it be one of those drivers perhaps??

[Saint Devote]

Liuzzi!

I hope I am wrong but - oh god here we go again, back of the grid time - stuck in Q3!

Sutil is really going to have to put his arse into gear - being beaten by a driver in his sunset year - Fisi - did not look good at Spa.

And it will be revealed at Monza whether the FI performance was down more to Fisichella than the FI.

Mallya must be approaching Monza with some trepidation - albeit $4million less debt than at Spa.

[truefan72]

yep just read it now. We'll see how he does.

Boy Italians seem to be the only one getting seats this year, right pino :)

seriously let's see how he does. this is as much a showcase for a future seat in F1 for 2010 as it is taking the reigns of a potential race winning car now. ( boy have FIndia come a long way)

Incidentally, this will also speak volumes about sutil in how he manages this situation. I hope he steps up. He cannot afford to be worse than liuzzi, and as I said this car is peaking right now so he better get a move on.

[pino]

Boy Italians seem to be the only one getting seats this year, right pino :)



Nothing to do with nationality, none deserved those seats more than Fisi and Liuzzi :p :

[UltimateDanGTR]

good news for liuzzi, this one was never really in doubt IMO, lets hope he does well.

[keysersoze]

Does a Sutil-Liuzzi driver line-up for the rest of '09 and all of 2010 seem strong?

[SGWilko]

Does a Sutil-Liuzzi driver line-up for the rest of '09 and all of 2010 seem strong?

I reckon it will do wonders for Sutil.

[Ari]

Does a Sutil-Liuzzi driver line-up for the rest of '09 and all of 2010 seem strong?

For a team like Force India it seems about right.

[Saint Devote]

Yes I agree it may do wonders for Sutil but he has to perform consistently at the car's capability which now may be no lower than around 12th on the grid.

Does Liuzzi deserve a drive in 2010 with FI - he will have to demonstrate that for the rest of the season.

When he was at Torro Rosso he had the reputation of playing around. This is his second chance in f1 and as one of my very favorite drivers, Jacky Ickx["the 'ringmeister"] likes to say "the only thing more difficult than getting into f1 is to get back in!".

[leopard]

Great news for Liuzzi, team would normally assign their test driver to perform in case any main drivers in absentia.

From his experience driving Redbull and STR let's see how this works, I am not doubtful on performance of the Italian.

[Giuseppe F1]

Any idea then on who the new Force India 3rd/reserve driver will be?

[Sonic]

The only logical choice, and I fully expected Liuzzi to get the seat next season anywayz, so this is just a bonus.

[DexDexter]

I don't think Liuzzi is bad at all. IMO both Speed and Liuzzi were badly treated by Tozt (or whatever) and Berger.

[V12]

Liuzzi wasn't hammered by Vettel in their short time together as teammates (admittedly he had extra knowledge of the car and team at that time), so he's not a bad driver (not a world beater but then only a select few are).

However, I do get the feeling he'll suffer, albeit not to the same extent as Badoer, from not having sat in a car for a while. Alguersuari and Grosjean were probably helped by the fact they've been doing FRenault 3.5 and GP2 this year.

I also see on Autosport that Bernie is moaning about Chandhok not getting the seat, but we can probably all guess why that i$. Maybe a good shout for the new third driver?

[keysersoze]

I also see on Autosport that Bernie is moaning about Chandhok not getting the seat, but we can probably all guess why that i$. Maybe a good shout for the new third driver?

You are correct: Bernie only cares about Bernie. With every breath he can muster, Bernie has one person in mind: Bernie.

Why on God's green earth would Mallya put someone in the car who probably doesn't even own a Force India t-shirt, much less a properly-fitted seat for his race car?

Has Chandok tested a Force India? No.

Has Liuzzi? Yes, many times

Is Liuzzi the OFFICIAL test driver? Yes

Does Liuzzi attend every GP with the team? Yes

Is Liuzzi contracted to the team through 2010? Yes

Why be surprised or indignant, Bernie? :confused:

[UltimateDanGTR]

You are correct: Bernie only cares about Bernie. With every breath he can muster, Bernie has one person in mind: Bernie.

Why on God's green earth would Mallya put someone in the car who probably doesn't even own a Force India t-shirt, much less a properly-fitted seat for his race car?

Has Chandok tested a Force India? No.

Has Liuzzi? Yes, many times

Is Liuzzi the OFFICIAL test driver? Yes

Does Liuzzi attend every GP with the team? Yes

Is Liuzzi contracted to the team through 2010? Yes

Why be surprised or indignant, Bernie? :confused:


here here! I can understand Bernie wanting a diverse racial mix of drivers, but at the end of the day: A. The driver has to be ready and B. He has to be a good F1 driver. and of course, chandok isnt ready (I cant comment on Point B obviously)

so err, Bernie, Patience is a virtue, even with your pockets ;)

[truefan72]

here here! I can understand Bernie wanting a diverse racial mix of drivers, but at the end of the day: A. The driver has to be ready and B. He has to be a good F1 driver. and of course, chandok isnt ready (I cant comment on Point B obviously)

so err, Bernie, Patience is a virtue, even with your pockets ;)

yep agreed, and VJM came out with the perfect statement today. Bernie needs to stick with ransoming venues for money and leave teams to make their own decisions.

[UltimateDanGTR]

yep agreed, and VJM came out with the perfect statement today. Bernie needs to stick with ransoming venues for money and leave teams to make their own decisions.

In that case well done Mr.Mallya-who is perfectly right. if bernie wants to dictate driver line ups, why doesnt he give the commercial rights to ssomeone else and start/restart his own team? until that glorious day, he should stay out of it! :)

[jens]

I'm glad for Liuzzi. Let's see if his third comeback (he drove mere 4 races in 2005 before a full-time racing in 2006) means that the best results of his career are still to come (P6 in China has been the height thus far).