Ron And Norbert Cried Wee, Wee, Wee, All The Way Home!
Written by George Katinger · September 29, 2005
Peter Gillespie and I have discussed in our F1 Forum the Team McLaren tendancy to be poor losers and even poorer winners. They once again are running true to form!
grandprix.com: Backmarkers cost McLaren the title? Rubbish
planet-f1.com: McLaren boss blames backmarkers for Kimi’s title defeat
motorsport.com: Backmarker controversy again
formula-1updatesport.com: McLaren question rival tactic
planet-f1.com: Alonso set to attack at Suzuka
news.bbc.co.uk: Renault eye constructors’ crown
No, it’s not enough that McLaren have repeatedly shot themselves in the foot this year. In spite of their own inadequacies if it wasn’t for those damned back markers who have no business being on the track at all, McLaren could have won everything in sight!
It’s not enough that McLaren are now two points ahead of Renault in the Constructor’s Championship. Ron Dennis and Norbert Haug are both lamenting the fact that they would be miles ahead of the competition if only Monteiro and Pizzonia hadn’t done the unthinkable. Attempt to race against their mighty cars!
Yes we all know the issues, why should a guy who is a lap down (Pizzonia) attempt a pass on the car who is in second place? Shame shame Antonio, what nerve! The bigger question the two bloviating behemoths ignore is why didn’t the McLaren squad advise Juan to safeguard his position and allow the Williams of Pizzonia to go his merry way? That is team leadership.
It obviously is easier to criticize all around you as opposed to focusing internally to make sure you don’t repeat these kinds of mistakes. After getting ass bumped by Montiero, how could McLaren allow Juan to put himself in harms way with Pizzonia without any kind of advice.
I have often expressed my admiration of McLaren, and I would have loved to see Kimi or Juan take the driver’s title this year. All for naught. How could Renault in an obviously inferior package win the driver’s title? Better team management, superior car reliability, and a smarter, more mature driver. Pay attention to the team leadership part Ron, that means you!
As I’ve expressed elsewhere, my fondest wish is that Renault and Fernando stomp McLaren’s Constructor’s title ambitions into the tarmac of Japan and China, and Renault win that title by a point or two. It will make for interesting reading in the off season of Ron, Martin’s and Norbert’s creative excuse making and blame laying for their failures.
Rock on Fernando, Fisi and Flavio. As in the children’s poem, make McLaren cry wee, wee, wee, all the way home!
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8 Responses to “Ron And Norbert Cried Wee, Wee, Wee, All The Way Home!”
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George
Why do you continue to address non-issues when there are many important racing issues out there to talk about?
Your anti IRL- pro Champ car stance will not allow you to discuss this topic http://sports.yahoo.com/cart/news?slug=ap-champ-korea&prov=ap&type=lgns
And your pro Renault/Michelin stance will also not allow you to touch this triple bad news story for Michelin. http://formula-1.updatesport.com/news/article/1127775511/formula_one/F1weekender/Ralf-Toyota-slam-Michelin/view.html http://formula-1.updatesport.com/news/article/1127841129/formula_one/F1tech.talk/DC-also-had-Michelin-hitch/view.html http://formula-1.updatesport.com/news/article/1127959255/formula_one/F1weekender/Button-rues-tyre-problem/view.html
It is a shame that you have let your personal feelings destroy any hope of a honest take on the issues of motor sport. In one paragraph you tell of your “admiration of McLaren” then the next two paragraphs are spent destroying all things McLaren. I would take Mr. Dennis over Flavio any day of the week, and ill bet 99% of the F1 fans would as well. So maybe you should stop kicking a horse while its down and start finding real news to discuss.
Just Another Fan:
I’m confused, maybe you can help me out here.
1. This is the F1 page, please address your IRL-Champ Car issues to our appropriate pages or Forums.
2. The links you have posted all are concerning Michelin tire concerns by BAR, Toyota, and Red Bull. Where were the McLaren, Renault, and Williams tire concerns? It has been amply demonstrated that poor tire wear is most often caused by the chassis set up, compound selection, camber, and tire presures selected by the teams. Why you choose to buy into laying blame at Michelin’s feet is your business, but it didn’t slow down the front runners, did it?
3. If you read the posting carefully I have not torn into “all things McLaren”, just the flatulence of Ron and Norbert. I have been, and will continue to be a fan of McLaren, but it doesn’t mean I have to like everything that spews from HQ, does it?
3. This is not, repeat not, a news organization. We put forth highly opionated and personal viewpoints on the issues of motorsport. The fact that you take it as “news” is either a huge compliment for us or a large mistake on your part.
Regardless of how we are percieved we (at least I) shall continue to pursue the issues that are uniquely interesting to us, and your viewpoint will always be welcome as well. The links you posted took time to find and colate, and I thank you for your concerns and interest.
In closing, rock on Fernando! What could be better for racing than Fernando, Giancarlo, Kimi and Juan going all out for wins at the last two races? And what will be more pathetic than MY team owner crying all winter long if they win or lose the Constructor’s Title?
George, I think being a successful team principle in today’s F1 requires a healthy measure of psychology for dealing with the mixture of personalities in the cockpits. I think the complaining we are hearing from Ron re: Pizzonia and Montiero is just an effort to take up JPM’s fight on his behalf to keep him focused on racing. If these dnf’s caused controversy within the team, a driver like Juan might get preoccupied and lose focus on maximizing his performance.
Sure, fans like us roll our eyes at comments like these and think “how borish,” but in the meantime JPM doesn’t waste a moment worrying/getting defensive about what the team is thinking about him.
I really think that all the sour grapes is just an effort to pump his guys up.
I am sure your points are also valid Kelly, but Ron has been a winning/losing whiner as long as I’ve followed the team. And for Norbert to complain about anything is beyond ridiculous. If they had reliable engines all of this would be academic as Kimi would be the champ. And Ron would STILL find something to complain about. I guess it’s just his nature!
Ron Dennis’s reputation for poor sportsmanship & complaining started long before “Bruce McLarens” team hooked up with Mercedes, when paired with Honda & Senna he managed to complain even when they were dominating. Don’t get me wrong he runs one hell of an operation, but somehow manages to come across as the wronged, persecuted victim in nearly every interview, a figure that would have won were it not for A, or if B had not done this or that. While in recent years he can be forgiven for a certain degree of paranoia & perceived inequality with the governing bodies attitude towards Ferrari, his statements regarding Renaults success this season have made him look not only foolish but also as some sort of history revisionist. How much simpler it would have been to have said ” we made a terrible start to the year & that was our mistake, we have clawed our way back to the front & we are really kicking ourselves now, the other guys beat us fair & square & we hope to get them next year”
When JPM was punted out of a certain victory in the closing laps of the 2001 Brazilian Grand Prix, Frank Williams only statement was that he was disappointed & that these things happen in motor sport, when a similar fate befell JPM at Belgium this season Ron’s complaining continued to the next race. His obsession with order & perfection has overflowed from the factory to the arena of sport, Ron unrealistically, if not naively, wants the same degree of perfection & order in a competitive environment, he does not seem to comprehend that the variables & unpredictability found on the track are what makes racing or any sport exciting. Drivers have been tripping over back markers for years, Senna did it at least once per season, multi million dollar cars have finished up parked on the side of the track, smoke & fire billowing because of the failure of a one dollar part, that’s motor sport, the unpredictable is what prevents it from being boring & make victory all the more valuable.
Ron famously a few seasons ago made the statement “Ferrari didn’t win the Championship McLaren lost it” & when you can say that publicly with a straight face you’re probably too far gone. Worst of all, his attitude seems to be infectious with his drivers, I noticed on the podium neither Kimi nor Juan seemed particularly gracious towards Fernando when it came to the champagne. In the immediate post race interview both drivers spoke of their race & failed to acknowledge Alonso or even congratulate him in their comments. This surprised me in that JPM is normally quite eloquent in both praise & criticism when it comes to the microphone, I can’t see Michael Schumacher, despite his many unsporting flaws, not even mentioning the new world champion. When Alonso failed to score points in Hungary, giving McLaren hope, Flavio Briatores response; “Its good for Formula one, its good for the championship” Ron Dennis lacks the strength of character to make such a pragmatic sporting statement.
George, why waste the time and space. The commentor obviously isn’t “just another fan,” but a McLaren partisan through and through and will disregard and and all logical points made.
For whatever reason McLaren has attracted the whines and complainers. Ron Dennis and Norbert Haug are only the most visiable.
Add to that list Juan Pablo and Mika before he quit and scurried over to the DTM series where the spotlight is less.
Four words for “just another fan” and other apoligists for McLaren:
cout
the
blown
engines
Peterg, very nice post. You make some compelling points.
mclaren is a strong team, no doubt. but for some reason, their constant finger-pointing and all-british-superiority are really big turn off for me. i have no passion for the team, because watching them race and win is like watching a formality. very boring. what more they have two really unlikeable drivers.