Part 4 - 2008 Formula One Season Preview

BMW Sauber

2007 Points:  101

Current Driver Lineup:  Nick Heidfeld & Robert Kubica

Chassis: F1.08

Engine: BMW

Not the fastest on the grid, but definitely not just the best of the rest, BMW Sauber were in their own  category in 2007.  If they can maintain that momentum into 2008, they should be able to stay at the pointy end all season long.  Unfortunately, that may be just a dream for them.  They have struggled all winter with suspension and aero problems.  The later of which being their biggest issue.  They may not be able to fix those issues in time.

A little stability is a good thing and BMW Sauber have chosen to do that by retaining Nick Heidfeld and Robert Kubica.  In 2007 Heidfeld did an absolutely brilliant job taking it to McLaren and Ferrari on many occasions.  He has continued to impress year after year while keeping a relatively low profile in Formula One.  Kubica on the other hand was pretty mediocre for most of the season.  He did have the occasional splash, but he is definitely going to have to up his game if he's going to compete with Heidfeld.  Lets hope the team can solve their aero problems so these guys can go at it and solidify BMW Sauber's position at the front of the grid. 

 

 

Ferrari

2007 Points:  204

Current Driver Lineup:  Kimi Raikkonen & Felipe Massa

Chassis: F2008

Engine: Ferrari Type 056

Coming back to defend their titles, Ferrari have a beautiful new car and a very confident team.  With all of the drama that came about from catching McLaren cheating and the distractions that came with it, I'm sure that Ferrari are very ready to just put it all on the track again.  Throughout the winter they looked like the team to beat, but in the final test they were definitely not blowing everybody off.  It looks like we may have another very close fight for the championship this year.  A far cry from the Schumi era.

Ferrari have both of their drivers from 2007 coming back for this year to drive the new prancing horse.  Kimi Raikkonen won the championship last year and is very keen to add another one to it.  He could be even more dangerous to the competition this year simply because he doesn't have anything to prove.  On the other side of the coin we have Felipe Massa who has loads to prove.  No question about it, he is ridiculously quick, but he hasn't had the luck and patience to go along with it.  If he continues to absorb everything that he can from Michael Schumacher he could very well become the next Ferrari champion.  If they can have some reliability from their equipment, Raikkonen and Massa could be battling neck and neck throughout the season.  Either way that you look at it, the 2008 season should provide for some very exciting racing.