Heikki perkele !!!

[A.F.F.]

How many races are folks here willing to give Heikki to prove himself ? You recall that super driver who ridiculed Schumacher and Loeb in ROC couple of years ago ?

Geez...

I know Renault isn't the same team last year, especially after changing the tyre brand. But loosing constantly to Fisichella who to be honest, is very much in this world as a driver. At the same time, Lewis Hamilton who appears to be same level of driver than Sebastien Loeb in WRC keeps on rocking the F1 world.

I have nothing against Heikki but he just proves one thing in motorsports that many of the Finn rally drivers suffered over the years. Nice guys just can't handle the truth. Right COD ?

[janneppi]

Come now, not all nice guys are slow, look at Heidfeld. :p :
Kovalainen needs to perform better, but i'm not ready to write him off just yet.

[pino]

Another disappointing race from him, I won't be surprised if Flavio replaces him for the next race. Feel sorry for him though :(

[zoostation]

errr 3 races is not long enough for me to say if he is good or not.

ok, he hasnt had a great start, but not every rookie has such a good start hamilton.

patience people. and an improved car.

[A.F.F.]

errr 3 races is not long enough for me to say if he is good or not.

ok, he hasnt had a great start, but not every rookie has such a good start hamilton.

patience people. and an improved car.


I love your nick zoostation :up: Any relation to U2 ? :)

EDIT: I don't follow F1 in regular basis but somehow I have a feeling it's quite wretched world. More wretched than WRC these days. So, I don't think how much we feel for the guy is going to matter any bit to Sleazebag Flavio. Business is business.

[truefan72]

all I know is that he is costing me valuable points in the FGP fantasy.

but seriously, he really should be doing better. I refuse to beleibve that the renault is that bad. They couldn't have possibly taken such a giant leap backwards, So the biggest x-factor out there are the drivers. Stick Webber, Davidson, Wurz, DC, even speed, Sato, liuzzi and sutil in those cars and I gurantee you better results. They are simply not getting the job done.

Yes 3 races is early, but c'mon fellas!!

Heikki looks timid, Fisi uninspiring.
Piquet Junior is waitnig in the wings. I could see them letting fisi go mid season and going with a young lineup

[BeansBeansBeans]

Another disappointing race from him, I won't be surprised if Flavio replaces him for the next race.

I'd be incredibly surprised if Flavio replaces him after 3 races. Other than Melbourne, he hasn't driven badly. Jesus, give the guy a break.

[Ian McC]

Problem is he is being compared to Hamilton, he finished just behind his more experienced team mate so it is not as if he is way off.

[Roamy]

flavio is very impatient but I think we have 3 more races for HK

[Garry Walker]

HK needs to improve and quick. At this rate he will extend Fisichellas career for one more year.

[ottostreet]

leave heikki alone. jesus! people, stop slagging the rookies! he'll get there! he is close to fisichella, and thats all that i think is required for this part of the season. by mid-season, it would be preferable to see him beating him on occasion, and by the end, maybe have a little edge over him. he will be ok. same as kubica. not everyone can be like mr. hamilton immediately. flavio better not **** up his career the way he did trullis now. maybe mclaren should try getting heikki asap to replace alonso when he storms out!

[COD]

The car is s**t, even Flavio nor admits it (see crash.net for example). One good indication of that is also that RedBull is faster with "same" engines.

OK, Heikki has probably not been 100%, but again he finished just behind his teammate, who has been with the team for many years. So it's not really that bad. I can't see any gain in Renaults performace by replacing Heiki with an even more unexperienced driver like Pique Jr.

[Erki]

Any examples of Hekki's "niceness"?

[e2mtt]

You F1 forum people are harsh. Fire the rookie- he hasn't made the point in his first 2 races, fire the veteren- he is old and over 30 and his rookie teamate is almost as fast, Fire the designer & engineer - there car has had a failure already!

[OmarF1]

It is not Heikki's problem, is that Renault that SUCKS!!!! It sucks big time, wtf happened to the team?

[Ian McC]

You F1 forum people are harsh. Fire the rookie- he hasn't made the point in his first 2 races, fire the veteren- he is old and over 30 and his rookie teamate is almost as fast, Fire the designer & engineer - there car has had a failure already!

:laugh:

Fair point that :D

[jens]

Some of you guys are really harsh. OK, he did badly in Australia, but in Malaysia and Bahrain he finished quite close to Fisichella.

I intuit, what the problem is. Many expected Heikki to be better than Lewis this season due to having more experience with F1 cars, but so far he hasn't been as outstanding as the Brit and he looks poor compared to him. But it's quite rare to see a rookie competing so magnificently as Lewis has done so far, but compared to other rookies, who have recently joined F1, then I'd say that Kovalainen hasn't done worse in his first three races.

[F1boat]

And Kovalainen's car is significantly weaker than Lewis'one.

[slinkster]

To really compare, you'd have to put each driver in exactly the same car... but yes Heikki hasn't achieved what he could so far. It's early days still, and I have faith in his driving, but he's lacking something.. maybe confidence I don't know.. or wether it's all a learning curve still and he's making rookie mistakes highlighted more by Hamiltons superb debut. I don't know... but I like him and I know he can race, so I'm willing to wait it out a bit yet. :)

[BeansBeansBeans]

In Melbourne Heikki had a dog of a debut, but other than that he's driven reasonably well. I think people expect too much of rookies nowadays, and Lewis Hamilton's performances won't help.

[jso1985]

c'mon he's just a rookie!
Hamilton is really doing an amazing job but comparing Kovalainen with him as bit unfair.
Maybe Kovalainen ain't gonna be championship material but for a rookie he's doing just fine IMO, he's quite on Fisi's pace

[Valve Bounce]

How many races are folks here willing to give Heikki to prove himself ? You recall that super driver who ridiculed Schumacher and Loeb in ROC couple of years ago ?

Geez...

I know Renault isn't the same team last year, especially after changing the tyre brand. But loosing constantly to Fisichella who to be honest, is very much in this world as a driver. At the same time, Lewis Hamilton who appears to be same level of driver than Sebastien Loeb in WRC keeps on rocking the F1 world.

I have nothing against Heikki but he just proves one thing in motorsports that many of the Finn rally drivers suffered over the years. Nice guys just can't handle the truth. Right COD ?

Give ant a few more weeks to develop the Super Aguri and we'll see ant knock this guy off in the second hand last year's model Honda (sorry Aguri).
Heiki is very much overated, and in the same vein, those who thought Lewis was overated are now eating crow.

[Ranger]

Of course he's a rookie, but when Briatore says "Heikki is the anti-Alonso" during last year, it makes this investment look rather fruitless.

[Shalafi]

Heikki is doing ok job, I think. He is very close to Fisis speed who has always been a fast (except compared to Alonso)...at this rate, Heikki should be able to beat Fisi now when they go to Europe. And that is all you can ask for him in a first season. Problems are with car. Like yesterday, tires lost all grip after just 8 laps. So there is the biggest problem at the moment, according to Heikki.

[Timber]

Flavio only hire the drivers that he manage , he got lucky with Alonso but the rest of them are not world class drivers and i am afraid that Piquet is just the same caliber .He did not want to sign Bourdais because Bourdais refused to be manage by him and that is not right , Bourdais is twice as good then both of is drivers . Flavio has to many interests outside of managing the team
He sould leave at the end of the year and take care of his restaurant and clothing line ....

[A.F.F.]

"give him a break, he's just a rookie"

"he's very near to Fisichella's speed"

:rolleyes:

I'm sorry but I expected him to be way faster than fisichella. Can't help but being disappointed.

[janneppi]

It may very well be that this year "soft compound" ;) has gotten a car that suits him better than last years Alonsowagen, it is Fisis last chance to prove he can lead a team and he's at least now faster than his team mate. Heikki may not be as quick straight from the box as we wanted but it's not an easy place to be either.

[ShiftingGears]

I think you expected too much.

[pino]

Of course he's a rookie, but when Briatore says "Heikki is the anti-Alonso" during last year, it makes this investment look rather fruitless.

I agree, Flavio told everyone he's the new Alonso, so many are disappointed now, and I am one of them. It will be interesting to hear Flavio in the next few days...

[A.F.F.]

I think you expected too much.

Well, like Gordon Gekko said; greed is good.

[truefan72]

Flavio only hire the drivers that he manage , he got lucky with Alonso but the rest of them are not world class drivers and i am afraid that Piquet is just the same caliber .He did not want to sign Bourdais because Bourdais refused to be manage by him and that is not right , Bourdais is twice as good then both of is drivers . Flavio has to many interests outside of managing the team
He sould leave at the end of the year and take care of his restaurant and clothing line ....

very good points. i agree. Bourdais would have done well in F1. It is the classic example of conflict of interest.

[janneppi]

I'm guessing Flavio has come to grips that he isn't going to be a regular visitor to the podium this season. :)

[CarlMetro]

Australia - Qualified 13th, finished 10th
Malaysia - Qualified 11th, finished 8th
Bahrain - Qualified 12th, finished 9th

He has already out-qualified his vastly more experienced teammate in Malaysia, has so far finished all three races, and one of those in the points, and is putting together the kind of display I would expect a normal rockie to show.

There is no point in comparing him to Hamilton, Lewis is in a different league and was when they were in GP2 together, no to mention the small factor that Lewis is in the second best car on the grid where as Renault seem to be really struggling to adapt to Bridgestone tyres.

The only true comparison of Heiki is his teammate. Even if Fisi was destroying him race after race, I 'd still say that I would expect it to a certain extent. Fisi has been with the team a lot longer, has been in F1 a lot longer and has already won races, although not as many as he should have by now.

I don't see that he's performing that badly, the team he's driving for on the other hand.........

[millencolin]

give him 3 more races... then we'll see

[OmarF1]

Give Kovalainen a McLaren and he'll mop the floor with Lewis.

[OmarF1]

Give Kovalainen a McLaren and he'll be super rookie too, give Hamilton a Renault and watch him doing the same as Heikki, nothing.

[e2mtt]

Give Kovalainen a McLaren and he'll mop the floor with Lewis.

You honestly believe that if Kovalainen was driving a McLaren he would be beating 2-time WDC Alonso handily?

Give Lewis a Renault and I am quite positive he would be at least even with his teammate.

[BeansBeansBeans]

There is no point in comparing him to Hamilton, Lewis is in a different league and was when they were in GP2 together.

They were never in GP2 together.

Lewis was competing in the F3 Euroseries when Kovalainen was in GP2, so he was quite literally in a different league!

[Ian McC]

Give Kovalainen a McLaren and he'll be super rookie too, give Hamilton a Renault and watch him doing the same as Heikki, nothing.

Wrong, Kovalainen is some way behind Lewis, doesn't look like that year testing has helped much.

[CarlMetro]

They were never in GP2 together.

Lewis was competing in the F3 Euroseries when Kovalainen was in GP2, so he was quite literally in a different league!

Just goes to show what I know then :\

[Nikki Katz]

I didn't think he was that bad last race. He was only 7 seconds off his teammate at the end. He's just a bit inconsistent. I hope he doesn't get dropped until he's been given a fair chance.

[Big Ben]

what does perkele mean?

[janneppi]

eu:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perkele
or
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perkunas

[BeansBeansBeans]

what does perkele mean?

Is it Finnish for 'Unfairly criticised'?

[ioan]

eu:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perkele
or
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perkunas

Well than what are our mods doing?! :D ;)

[janneppi]

What's wrong with calling heikki a god of thunder, or the supreme god?
While a wee bit premature, it's hardly a cause for deletion. :p :

[ioan]

What's wrong with calling heikki a god of thunder, or the supreme god?
While a wee bit premature, it's hardly a cause for deletion. :p :

We're not living in year 100 BC anymore! :D

[Eki]

A.F.F. was just doing some management by perkele:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Management_by_perkele

He's going to replace Flavio as Heikki's manager.

[A.F.F.]

Is it Finnish for 'Unfairly criticised'?

No it's not.

[Mihai]

I don't feel like Heikki underperformed badly in these three races. Experienced Fisichella struggled to score a singleton in Bahrain. Aren't you asking too much too soon from Kovalainen? He's a good driver, definitely better that his unlikely replacement, Nelson Piquet Jr.

I'd say to Heikki: "OK, pekka !" ;)

[Speedworx]

Heikki doesn't have the performance Lewis has. He is doing a great job. Keeping Fisi honest.

[LeonBrooke]

We know Heikki is quick from testing, but it's not translating into race finishes. Remember the start Juan Pablo Montoya got in F1? Forget the ignominious end to his F1 career and focus on the miserable start which developed into a title bid.

[Ian McC]

Keeping Fisi honest.

Ugh, another F1 commentator expression, along with 'on the ragged edge' :rolleyes:

[Valve Bounce]

Flavio only hire the drivers that he manage , he got lucky with Alonso but the rest of them are not world class drivers and i am afraid that Piquet is just the same caliber .He did not want to sign Bourdais because Bourdais refused to be manage by him and that is not right , Bourdais is twice as good then both of is drivers . Flavio has to many interests outside of managing the team
He sould leave at the end of the year and take care of his restaurant and clothing line ....

Yeah!! he sure as heck wasn't happy when Jarno didn't want to remain his charge and he did the dirty on Jarno.

By hte way, does Flav own a restuarant in Monaco? I was having lunch there last month when this guy walked in, and he sure as heck looked like Flav, and everyone jumped and fawned all over him. Yeah!! the guy spoke Italian too!

[ioan]

By hte way, does Flav own a restuarant in Monaco? I was having lunch there last month when this guy walked in, and he sure as heck looked like Flav, and everyone jumped and fawned all over him. Yeah!! the guy spoke Italian too!

Was he sweating and accompanied by a photo model? If yes it was him, if not than it's highly unlikely! :D

[Valve Bounce]

Was he sweating and accompanied by a photo model? If yes it was him, if not than it's highly unlikely! :D
Oh YeaH!! real good looker - much younger too.

[Big Ben]

hevonpaska.....! he may be callled god of thunder if thunder is some sort of metaphor for that gas produced by the human body. He was a big disappointment so far... I thought he would be faster than Fisi.... too.

[Big Ben]

eu:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perkele
or
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perkunas

interesting... though i would tend to think that this would explain more: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Finnish_profanity

[Erki]

interesting... though i would tend to think that this would explain more: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Finnish_profanity

Yeah, it explained quite well why I shouldn't say "Pillu paska" to a stranger in Finland. :)

[jens]

Unlike some others here, I didn't expect Kovalainen to be faster than Fisichella at least at the start of the season, therefore he hasn't disappointed me yet. Let's see, what the situation is after mid-season.

And Fisi is not that "crap" that almost everyone should be immediately faster than him and if he isn't, then he can be called "hopeless". In fact, Fisi used to beat all drivers (although most of them were rookies) before joining Renault and among those, who got beaten by the Italian, were some drivers, who are quite highly rated now - like Button and Massa. So everything is not lost yet for Heikki.

[sills]

WILL PEOPLE STOP COMPAREING HIM TO HAMILTON

lewis is in a different team with a far better car than Heikki, its easley proven that the new mclaren is alot better than the old one cause last year they were barley with renault and ferrari the difference this year is that ferrari and mclaren have made a bug leap forward and renaul have stayed were they were
this can be proven by the fact that Kimi in the ferrari is up there this year and was not last year and alonso is still up there this year nad he has switched to mclaren which says mclaren has improved big time

put Heikki in the same car put most drivers in the same car as lewis and they'll be up there to

[Garry Walker]

WILL PEOPLE STOP COMPAREING HIM TO HAMILTON

Hamilton has shown himself to be equal to Alonso already, Alonso easily beat Fisi, and so far Fisi has clearly beaten Heikki. Thats how it is. You also have to take into account that Kovalainen has tested at Renault for years and is probably the best prepared rookie driver to take part in a race. HK has been a dissapointment, I personally expected him to be a bit better than Fisi.

[truefan72]

I don't necessarily expect him to be better than fisi. but he should be better than what he has shown so far

[A.F.F.]

Ok.... another three races are about to come by. Any progress? I don't think so.

[jens]

Truth be told, I have started to worry about Heikki's performances too. I didn't expect him to match Fisi at Monaco or Montreal, but the problem is that he is losing too much. European season should be the moment of truth for him - this is where he has to start matching GF.

The current situation makes even more interesting, how would the 2008 Renault's driver line-up look like. Maybe Flavio allows Heikki and Nelsinho to race alternately to see, which one of them is better.

[pino]

Feel sorry for him, but I don't think Flavio will wait much longer to put Nelsinho in...

[ShiftingGears]

Yeah, I don't think Heikki has the confidence to really succeed. Or he isn't good enough. Although I don't think starting off struggling in Flavio's team will do you any favours. He doesn't seem to instill confidence in drivers who are off the mark (such as in Australia this year)

[Garry Walker]

He doesn't seem to instill confidence in drivers who are off the mark (such as in Australia this year)

Why should he? this isnt kindergarden, and these are grownup egocentrical men. If you need your teamboss to hold your hand and to wipe your bum, you are in a wrong sport.

[LeonBrooke]

I think he should be given some slack here. Let's not be expecting Lewis Hamilton-like performance from him. Renault are struggling this year. The team hasn't lived up to expectations - let's not blame Heikki for it all.

[jas123f1]

I don't necessarily expect him to be better than fisi. but he should be better than what he has shown so far

I'm sure he will be better than what he has shown so far.. :) and so is Flavio ;)

[wmcot]

I think we are seeing Heikki going through the normal learning curve of a rookie F1 driver. Unfortunately for him, we have an anything-but-typical rookie this year in LH. HK would not seem so bad in any other year. Ignore LH and compare the rookie drivers and you will see that HK isn't so bad!

[CarlMetro]

From 22nd on the grid, with a nightmare of a weekend, to finish 4th, albeit with a rather strange and action-packed race, was a very good achievement for any driver let alone a rookie with no experience of the track. I hope he takes something away from this weekend and starts to build on it from now on.

[COD]

From 22nd on the grid, with a nightmare of a weekend, to finish 4th, albeit with a rather strange and action-packed race, was a very good achievement for any driver let alone a rookie with no experience of the track. I hope he takes something away from this weekend and starts to build on it from now on.


Exactly. And all of it was not only down to SC or pit strategy. Heikki made many nice overtakings that showed his potential. Hope he has gained some confidence now for qualifying as well. Saturday has been the day so far that has been a nightmare for him.

[slinkster]

From 22nd on the grid, with a nightmare of a weekend, to finish 4th, albeit with a rather strange and action-packed race, was a very good achievement for any driver let alone a rookie with no experience of the track. I hope he takes something away from this weekend and starts to build on it from now on.

:up:

[Ranger]

Good acheivement and good work mostly on the behalf Renault with his stops. Kovalainen was very solid and VERY fortunate today, so good work. :up:

[jens]

Heikki's 4th place at Montreal was a fluke one, but he performed really well in today's qualifying, beating Fisichella. And remember, Fisi managed to beat Alonso last year on the same circuit, so that's a really good sign. :up:

[pino]

Fisi has a different strategy, but Bravo to Heikki anyway :up:

[janneppi]

Fisi has a different strategy, but Bravo to Heikki anyway :up:

Was it to drive slowly? ;)

[DonJippo]

Fisi has a different strategy, but Bravo to Heikki anyway :up:

Slowly but surely...hmmm need to start thinking about the menu for the dinner you are going to pay :D

[Ian McC]

Seems he is continuing to settle in, hope he has a good race tomorrow.

[veeten]

the young man is coming on by leaps & bounds. :)

If I'm Fisi I'd be looking to see if Flavio isn't angling him into taking a lesser asignment. :uhoh:

[veeten]

Fisi has a different strategy...

like early retirement, maybe?... ;) :p

[pino]

Was it to drive slowly? ;)

You'll find out tomorrow ;)


Slowly but surely...hmmm need to start thinking about the menu for the dinner you are going to pay :D

The menu is going to be italian...but You're going to pay :p :

[COD]

Like I said after Montreal, Heikki will improve once he gets a good confidence and that's exactly what has happened. Me so happy. Hope he will use the good starting position to get a good result in the race as well

[slinkster]

Heikki seems to be on much better form the last two races. I'm happy for him and glad to see him getting a chance to prove himself :)

[jens]

That was a truly magnificent performance. Surely his best performance so far this season! :up: I guess Piquet family was quite disappointed seeing that. :p :

[Ian McC]

Good race for Heikki, his confidence should be building quite nicely.

[COD]

Well done Heikki. Hope he continues like that in future races as well. Hopefully all the speculations about his future in Renault are forgotten... at least until after the next race :D

[stevie_gerrard]

another good performance for Heikki, and a first of renault leading a race! It's been a while since we've seen that :p :

He is getting better, i dont see him getting as good as hamilton or where he's constantly finishing, but he has the talent to challenge the ferraris and maybe even the mclarens in the second half of the season.

[pino]

Bravo Heikke, another good performance :up:

[Ranger]

Fisi 13-12 on Heikki. This was a solid race as opposed to largley luck in Canada, so hopefully he can keep it up.

[A.F.F.]

I missed the whole North American tour but based on results, I have to admit Heikki did good :up:

[MAX_THRUST]

I think the only thing he's done wrong was sign with Renault!!!!

[A.F.F.]

I think the only thing he's done wrong was sign with Renault!!!!

Without Flavio the Sleazebag Heikki wouldn't be driving F1 right now.

[slinkster]

Without Flavio the Sleazebag Heikki wouldn't be driving F1 right now.

Is that meant to read... Without Flavio, the Sleazebag Heikki wouldn't..

or, Without Flavio the Sleazebag, Heikki wouldn't...

I'm hoping it's the latter! :p

[A.F.F.]

Is that meant to read... Without Flavio, the Sleazebag Heikki wouldn't..

or, Without Flavio the Sleazebag, Heikki wouldn't...

I'm hoping it's the latter! :p


Flavio the Sleazebag

Definately.

:p :

[LeonBrooke]

I think Lewis Hamilton will make life hell for newcomers to the sport, including Heikki. No matter how skilled they are, they'll be called talentless and undeserving if they're unable to score a podium at debut.

People need to be given a chance to prove themselves, and I think Lewis Hamilton has given people cause to believe that if you can't win by your sixth race, you never will.

[Valve Bounce]

I think Lewis Hamilton will make life hell for newcomers to the sport, including Heikki. No matter how skilled they are, they'll be called talentless and undeserving if they're unable to score a podium at debut.

People need to be given a chance to prove themselves, and I think Lewis Hamilton has given people cause to believe that if you can't win by your sixth race, you never will.

I don't think Sutil feels that way, nor ant. Difficult to score a podium with a Spyker or a second hand Honda. :(
............let alone win. :rolleyes:

[Valve Bounce]

Without Flavio the Sleazebag Heikki wouldn't be driving F1 right now.

Oh No!! you didn't say that :eek:

[LeonBrooke]

I don't think Sutil feels that way, nor ant. Difficult to score a podium with a Spyker or a second hand Honda. :(
............let alone win. :rolleyes:

Well that's true... but I predict that any driver who starts in a good car will be ousted if she doesn't manage to score like Lewis, and if she starts in a less competitive car she'll never get noticed. Either way, I think the new driver will have a very hard time in the future.

[CarlMetro]

I think any driver, not just rookies, should only be compared with something in which there is a direct comparison and the only thing that is constant is the performance of their respective teammates.

To compare the performance of a rookie in a Spyker to a rookie in a MacLaren or Ferrari would be silly, the only people whom they should be judged on is the driver dring the same car as themselves.

[LeonBrooke]

Personally I think they shouldn't be judged until they've had a while, say three quarters of a season, to prove themselves. Of course they should be compared only to their team mate, or even judged on their own without any comparison to anyone.

[Eki]

There was a rumour that Heikki would be replaced by Piquet jr after Silverstone. Do you think it will still happen?

[Tomi]

There was a rumour that Heikki would be replaced by Piquet jr after Silverstone. Do you think it will still happen?

:)

[pino]

There was a rumour that Heikki would be replaced by Piquet jr after Silverstone. Do you think it will still happen?

Knowing Flavio...it still can happen :p :

[Erki]

What's wrong with Heikki? :confused: I think he's decent. :confused:

[Tomi]

Knowing Flavio...it still can happen :p :
Yeah he is an typical Italian, talk too much :)

[Ranger]

I have to say he's improved a lot over the past few races. He was lucky in Canada, was faster than Fisi in Indy when his team-mate crashed and he was looking to beat Fisi again in France before Trulli intervened. And now he has qualified ahead of Fisi in Silverstone.

The dude is coming good. :up:

[COD]

As predicted, Heikki has improved race by race.

The fact that he was only testing last year affected his performance early on, but now he is doing a good job as a rookie, even beating teammate quite often. I think all the talks about him being fired can be finished now

[Valve Bounce]

As predicted, Heikki has improved race by race.

The fact that he was only testing last year affected his performance early on, but now he is doing a good job as a rookie, even beating teammate quite often. I think all the talks about him being fired can be finished now

I am not sure of Heiki's previous race experience, but I suppose he will improve with more F1 races under his belt.

[janneppi]

There was a story in a Finnish news site about Renaults problems in the early season, apparently part of the problem was wind tunnel data didn't coincide well enough with reality.
Some problems supposedly carried over from the car last year but this year a more uncompetitive car showed the problem better.

[leopard]

Heikki obviously drives more carefully now

[jens]

I think Heikki has recently been very impressive and has been beating Fisichella quite consistently and already by a similar margin as Alonso used to in previous years. And we can't forget that the Finn is still a rookie! Makes me think that Kovalainen might be as good as Alonso if not even better! :)

Flavio's "Anti-Alonso propaganda" before the season is really starting to have some evidence. Kovalainen hasn't got as much attention as other youngsters like Hamilton, Rosberg or Kubica this year, but I think he deserves as much credit and looks to have as much potential as the other mentioned trio. The only shame is that the car is average, which doesn't quite enable him to show his capability.

[aryan]

Heikki has beaten GF in the second half of this season fair and square. He had a rough start, but I like to watch him getting to grips with F1. This is what I expected from a GP2 champion. Hope to see his career flourish.

[Juppe]

Heikki has beaten GF in the second half of this season fair and square. He had a rough start, but I like to watch him getting to grips with F1. This is what I expected from a GP2 champion. Hope to see his career flourish.


He was not a champion, but a runner-up to Nico.

At the start of the season, Heikki suffered probably from the tire change to Bridgestos as much as Fernando and Kimi, because Heikki tested the last couple of years with Michelin tires more than any other driver by a significant margin.

Therefore he had fully adapted to Michelins, which, in the hindsight, was not entirely beneficial.

[pino]

Heikki is now doing a good job :up: better than Giancarlo in both qual and race, that means I am going to loose a bet, and will have to pay a dinner to a certain finn, friend of mine :hmph: ;)

[A.F.F.]

Yep.

I have to publicly eat my earlier words and admit that Heikki has done some pretty good job. :up: Not a single mark of the difficulties he had, full of selfconfidence.

[COD]

Yep.

I have to publicly eat my earlier words and admit that Heikki has done some pretty good job. :up: .

I so enjoy that :laugh:

Interesting rumour Keke Rosberg put out on Finnish TV saturday during qualifying. He said that he is 100% sure that heikki will be in F1 in 2008, but not necessarely in Renault! Maybe Alonso and Heikki are swiching seats after all???