Did Brawn team get the call?
Until just a few weeks ago the team now known as Brawn was still Honda. And while they officially pulled the plug on the team, Honda continued to finance and support the effort. Let's not forget that this was one of the wealthiest teams on pit road.
Just over a year ago Ross Brawn came into the team, bringing his incredible skills and history of winning everything he has ever entered. This guys has done it all. F1, IMSA, Le Mans, and succeeded at every endeavor. So now we have one of the most heavily funded teams being run by the most highly regarded race engineer on the planet!
But here is the big one. While the rest of the field were racing in 2008, Brawn and Co. were working on their 2009 car. Fully 15 months before the start of the season. McLaren and Ferrari on the other hand worked on their 2008 cars until the final race.
So did they get the call. I really don't think so. If they did, it was more likely to tell them to slow down a bit. Remember in testing they were at least 1 second a lap faster.
Did the other teams catch up that quickly or did the ever wily Brawn decide to hold his boys back a bit?
Did he fear that a runaway victory would put even more pressure on the FIA to outlaw the diffusers?
Maybe so but my money still says the difference in pace is more than just the diffuser.
"We had 15 months to look at the regulations, and the diffuser regulations were obvious to anyone who bothered to read them," remarked Brawn at Melbourne. For me, that's the comment that says it all. Ray Masters
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| F1 genius, Ross Brawn |
03/30/09 A reader asks, Dear AR1.com, We always hear about NASCAR giving the call to a certain team/driver in very unique situations, but Brawn GP's 1-2 in Australia this weekend has to exemplify 'The Call' to a T…Under Honda Rule, the team was mid-pack at best with flashes of above par over the years. Honda exits, Brawn & Co. take over with a handful of weeks until the Green Flag falls and they dominate the entire weekend while courting and trying to impress one of few Multinational Corporations and Billionaires looking to get into F1…Would Honda have left cold turkey if they knew they had any chance of winning the opening round of the 2009 season? – Please withhold my name
Dear Anonymous, Don't underestimate the genius of Ross Brawn. He engineered cars that brought Michael Schumacher a record 7 World F1 Titles and over 90 F1 wins, also a record by a wide margin. Yes, he is that good. Mark C.