Fernandez/Sharp-Championship Contenders?

[GP Racer]

Good article about how Fernandez and Sharp are feeling about there chances this season from the Speed web-site.

“I am expecting to be much more competitive than the last couple of seasons,” says Sharp, the 1996 IndyCar co-champion. “I want to shoot to be in the top five or six cars in every race and, if we can do that often enough, the race wins are going to come and we will be in a fight for the championship.”

The moods are indeed high at the squad, with Mexico’s most popular driver - he will run next month’s NASCAR debut at Mexico City - showing similar confidence levels: “The team is at a strong level, and it is ready to deliver like we were doing last year. We don’t have to train Scott; he has all the experience. He just has to blend in to the team and learn the way we work.”

Sharp seems eager to accomplish such blending ASAP. He’s so excited about his new opportunity, he’s undertaken a new fitness program that has put him in the “best” shape of his career. “I kind of ramped everything up,” reveals the leaner, meaner driver. “Part of it is the enthusiasm I have – I haven’t even slept well for three months. I’m just so jacked up about being with these guys and having the chance to compete again. I think we’re going to go to each track and be contenders. I think we’re going to get better and better as the year goes on."

Sounds good, but do you think they have a realistic chance at pulling off some big upsets this year, and even challenging for the championship?

[pink69]

I think like Fernandez himself did last year, he might be able to pull off some upsets and win a few races, but I don't think he'll be there all year to challenge for the title come the end of the season

[BootsOntheSide]

If Honda remain dominant, Scott will have as good a chance as anyone. He'll probably be the lead driver at Fernandez, and only Rahal and AGR are likely to be stronger. Personally I'm not convinced that he's good enough to win the title, but I'm sure he'll be competitive on occasion.

[Hazza]

Oops, Got Scott confused with Alex Baron for a second :P

He did manage to keep the car on track to win at Motegi in '03 though...

[climb]

Up to now he's always proven very fast but not a consistent winner; I'd be hnestly surprised if things changed.

[BootsOntheSide]

Scott's yet to prove himself to be abe to compete with guys like Kanaan and Rice - in 2003 he only beat Takagi and Foyt IV out of the fulltime Toyota runners. He's been promising in testing, but individual laptimes mean very little, and we don't really know who will be competitive on the long runs.

[Teretonga]

If he takes thechampionship it would only be by consistency, and I don't know if that'll
be enough in '05.

[N I Tram]

If he makes the overall top 10 and beats Matsuura he should be satisfied. I'm not convinced he serves another go in a top team, as mentioned he has never really performed against the best drivers around, either in mid-90s CART or recent years IRL.

[GP Racer]

Originally Posted by N I Tram

If he makes the overall top 10 and beats Matsuura he should be satisfied. I'm not convinced he serves another go in a top team, as mentioned he has never really performed against the best drivers around, either in mid-90s CART or recent years IRL.

No way should he be satisfied to make the top 10, and while Matsurra has the makings of a good IndyCar driver, I believe that Scott will beat him consistently.

He is on a contending team, with a Honda engine, that should be able to put out a consistently good car every race, unlike Kelley Racing, where they pretty much admitted that they were putting out a lousy car last year. I think Scott will pick-up where Adrian left off last year, winning.

[mcurtis26]

Personally, i'd rather have seen Fernandez on the grid than Sharp, but thats budgets!

[BootsOntheSide]

True, although I suppose the fact that it's saved an American who's loved by the fans is some consolation. Matsuura really didn't impress me last year, especially when you compare him to Yasukawa's 2003 displays, so ideally he'd've been the one to step down, but Honda clearly want a pukka Japanese driver on the grid for them - maybe he's someone who'll benefit from the road/street races.