Nick Heidfeld Minichamps 2010 collection

Though Nick got a gig testing Pirelli tires for F1, his future as a racer in F1 is still iffy.  My favorite diecast carmaker, Minichamps, neglected to make a model of him this season.  But I've got to get my Heidfeld Minichamps fix so I fudged my rules a little and expanded my collection.

I first started by collecting his Sauber BMW cars.  I then upped the ante by acquiring his 1999 McLaren and 2005 Williams.

So now what?  Well.  He is, after all, testing the Pirelli tires with the 2009 Toyota TF109.  So I got this:

And no, I am not going to paint it white.

Then, I figured: He was the reserve/test driver for Mercedes GP this year.  So I am bidding on this:

Yes, I know that is Nico Rosberg in the car.  But I have been rooting for Nico all season.  And no, I am not going to paint his helmet black.

And there you have it, the complete Nick Heidfeld F1 Minichamps collection.*

*Less his cars from Jordan, Prost, etc.

Nick Heidfeld Pirelli Toyota test driver

Later this month, Heidfeld will be testing next season's Pirelli tires with Toyota's TF109 F1 car.  At various points this year, I thought he was going to McLaren, Mercedes, Renault, even Sauber BMW.  I never would have guessed that he would end up driving a 2009 Toyota.

Heidfeld, Renault F1, and Petrov

Heidfeld was spotted today at Renault's motorhome.  As Schumacher confirmed that he is committed to losing through the 2011 season, Quick Nick has to look elsewhere for a drive in F1.  Rumor has it that Petrov has until Hungary to prove that he should keep his seat.

All eyes on Petrov

Nick Heidfeld driving 2010 Mercedes GP car at Goodwood

Nick Heidfeld's next drive

The scene of the crime.  Quick Nick was robbed!

Well, F1 is back in Montreal.  At the last race there, Kubica and Heidfeld finished 1-2 for BMW Sauber.  As only one of two people in the world who follows Heidfeld gossip on the net (Heidfeld being the other person), here are the possibilities for his near future.

1. Continue with Mercedes as a reserve driver.
2. Continue with Mercedes but also test new Pirelli tires for F1.
3. Replace Pedro de la Rosa at BMW Sauber Ferrari this season.
4. Replace Pedro next season.

When can we declare Schumacher's return from retirement as a failure?

During this hiatus between Shanghai and Spain, I've read dozens of articles and blog posts about Schumacher.  It appears that pundits are in agreement that if Schumacher does not perform well by x, then his return from retirement can be deemed a failure.  Just exactly when is x?  Well, three deadlines have been given by current and former F1 drivers and journos:
1. The Spanish GP this weekend.
2. The Monaco GP next weekend.
3. The mid-point of the season, i.e. British GP (July 11).

Somebody promote Nick Heidfeld before his career sinks lower into the abyss.  This is Heidfeld today in Spain wearing a photog's smock!

Heidfeld to DTM?

DTM drivers Gary Paffet and Paul di Resta are also test drivers for F1 teams McLaren and Force India, respectively.  They were both in Shanghai last weekend.  With air travel being a mess, there was a strong chance that they weren't going to make it to Hockenheim for this weekend's DTM race.

Apparently, the backup plan was to have Heidfeld and Timo Glock, who returned to Europe early/on time, take Paffett and di Resta's spots.  That would have been quite a race.  Unfortunately, Paffett and di Resta made it back to Europe in time.  Oh well.

Heidfeld driving Mercedes C111

It must be tough to be a test driver in a sport where testing is virtually prohibited.  All Quick Nick has to do is drive rare cars for promotional events and collect his paycheck.  Beats being 7 seconds behind per lap driving for Lotus, HRT, and Virgin.  Source.

Nico Rosberg Michael Schumacher head-to-head stats

The stats speak for themselves.  Me thinks it's time for Nick to suit up.  Paging Herr Heidfeld...

(For all stats below, Nico's numbers are listed first.)
Bahrain
Qualifying position: 5th, 7th
Q3 time: 1:55.241, 1:55.524
Finish: 5th, 6th
Seconds MSC was behind Nico at finish: 3.9
Fastest lap: 2:00.236, 2:00.204


Australia
Qualifying position: 6th, 7th

Q3 time: 1:24.884, 1:24.927

Finish: 5th, 10th

Seconds MSC was behind Nico at finish: 52.7

Fastest lap: 1:28.489, 1:29.185

Malaysia
Qualifying position: 2nd, 8th
Q3 time: 1:50.673, 1:51.717

Nick Heidfeld 2010 photos: Malaysia, driving a W196, helmet

A year ago, Nick Heidfeld placed second in the Malaysian GP.  Since then, he has been promoted to GPDA chairman and demoted to test driver for Mercedes GP.  Here are some recent pictures for you poor Heidfeld fans.

Heidfeld with some random people who may be famous or respected in the F1 world.

Heidfeld driving a W196 Mercedes

Heidfeld with a couple of German drivers, one of whom he'll replace during the middle of this season (it's not Nico).

Heidfeld's new helmet

Will Schumacher quit F1?

It may well be that if Schumacher consistently qualifies and finishes behind teammate Rosberg for the first third to half of the season, he may feign an exacerbation of his neck injury and gracefully bow out.  That means you-know-who will step in!

GPDA Chairman President Heidfeld?

I overslept and missed the 3am Bahrain practice.  But it looks like Heidfeld made the right decision (relatively speaking) by being a reserve driver for a competitive team rather than an active driver for one of the new molasses-slow teams.

Today, Herr Heidfeld should be elected as chair of the Grand Prix Drivers' Association.  He's qualified for the job, as he has an extensive selection of briefcases/oversized man purses for all that paperwork.

Nick Heidfeld At Mercedes GP Video Photo

Nick watching Michael. Poor chap.

Heidfeld Confirmed As Mercedes Test Reserve Driver

Bastards.

Schumacher's return has officially derailed Heidfeld's career. It has been reported today that Heidfeld has accepted the test/reserve driver's spot at Mercedes GP. He will race this season only if Nico or Michael can't for some reason. As one poster predicted in another F1 forum, Heidfeld will be dropping banana peels in front of Schumacher at every turn.

I still have not settled on a favorite driver this season. Maybe I will just root AGAINST Schumacher instead. Let's hope he finishes no better than 4th in every race. I dislike this guy for ruining Heidi more than I dislike Leno for ruining Conan. That's saying a lot.

If Heidfeld's racing career is indeed over, here are his records:

• Most points without a win (219). I think this will be a hard record to beat. Amongst the current drivers, Nico has 70 points and Timo has 37. Nico will almost certainly win at least once this season. Timo may never win, but will never rack up 219 points in his career.
• Most podium finishes without a win (12, tied with Stefan Johansson). This is the most painful for Heidfeld and his fans. I mean, you finish on the podium a dozen times, and not once are you on top? That is devastating for your psyche.
• Most consecutive classified finishes (90% of winner's distance) (41): This, in my opinion, is akin to Cal Ripken's Ironman-esque record streak. Unbreakable.
• Most consecutive race finishes (33).
• Most finishes in a season (18, tied with Tiago Monteiro).

Why was Nick my favorite driver? He is not pompous. He is above average, but not the best. He is consistent and has a cool head. I rooted for him to get out of Q1 and Q2 during qualifying. I rooted for him to beat Kubica, finish on the podium, or win his first race ever. Alas, he never won a race.

You will be missed Nick. I really hope you return, in a competitive car. You deserve it.

How to Choose A Favorite F1 Driver

Please indulge me.

It seems less and less likely that Nick Heidfeld is going to race in 2010. I am now burdened with the sad task of picking a new favorite driver. Right now, I'm thinking Adrian Sutil of Force India or Kamui Kobayashi of Sauber. But what I will do right now is a process of elimination.* I don't know what the result will be. Of course, my criteria are subjective and non-sensical.

I start with 21 confirmed drivers.

1. It would be too easy to just root for a past champion. So Hamilton, Button, Alonso, and Schumacher would be out. (17 drivers left.)

2. I can't pick Kubica because he took away Heidfeld's only real chance of winning a race in Montreal in 2008. (16 left.)

3. No rookie drivers. (13 left.)

4. No old guys that are about to retire either, which means Jarno, Reubens, and de la Rosa are eliminated. (10 left.)

5. I refuse to root for the Yankees, and Ferrari. Ergo, tchau to Massa. (9 left-- Rosberg, Vettel, Webber, Sutil, Liuzzi, Buemi, Kovaleinen, Timo Glock, Kamui.)

6. I am an equal opportunity fan. Since Heidi was German, my next favorite driver has to be a non-German. (5 left-- Webber, Liuzzi, Buemi, Kovaleinen, Kamui.) I like where this is going.

7. No scrubs. (4 left-- Webber, Liuzzi, Kovaleinen, Kamui.)

8. No rookie teams. (3 left-- Webber, Liuzzi, Kamui.)

9. No square jawed Australians. (2 left-- Liuzzi and Kamui.)

10. Must have a decent shot of getting out of Q1. (1 left-- Kamui.)

Let's see how well this works out. I'm really not happy with the "winner". Gosh, I hope Renault hires Heidfeld.

*If this experiment works, it can be used for NASCAR as well.

Picture source.

Heidfeld As Mercedes GP Test Reserve Driver

In the last few months, I have talked about Nick Heidfeld quite a bit. Where was he going to go? To McLaren? Or Mercedes GP?

I've inarticulately shown how, head-to-head, he was better than Kimi, Massa, and Kubica. I even tried to explain (unsuccessfully) why he has never won a race.

Well, the rumor of the week now is that Heidfeld will be Mercedes GP's third driver. Kate Walker at Girlracer wrote a perfect and succinct piece on Heidfeld's accomplishments, weaknesses, and current dilemma. He has racked up so many karmic points, this (him going to Mercedes GP) is bound to happen.

Button to McLaren; Heidfeld to Mercedes GP?

Well, it's official. Jenson Button is going to McLaren. Watch for drama to ensue when Lewis and Button fight for the number one spot in Woking. This means of course that my hope of Heidfeld going to McLaren has been dashed. It seems like he is on the top of the list to go to Mercedes GP. Apparently, the new team will be announcing its driver line-up soon. This is less than ideal, as I think McLaren is more like to have a competitive car next year than Brawn/Mercedes.

As for Kimi, I think he's just going to sit out the 2010 season and make a comeback later.

Update: Yup, Kimi is taking a sabbatical in 2010.

Waiting...

German newspaper Bild reports today that Heidfeld is on the top of McLaren's list right now. His salary demand of 5 million Euros is less than half of what Button wants and a small fraction of what Kimi wants. We'll see.

And for you SoCal people, don't forget The Best of France and Italy tomorrow.

Update: 2009 car show photos here.

Minichamps Heidfeld 1/43 Collection (Williams and McLaren)

After collecting all of Nick Heidfeld's BMWs, the discriminating collector should move on to these two bad boys. First, we have the 2005 Williams BMW FW27. Nick's only pole position of his career was in this car at the Nurburgring for the European GP.

Then, we have the 1998 McLaren MP4/13. As the test driver, Heidfeld set the record at Goodwood in 1999. Mika Hakkinen and McLaren won the driver's and constructor's title in this car.

Nick Heidfeld's Steering Wheel

The F1.09 has failed Nick Heidfeld. Aside from a lucky second in Sepang, the car has let Nick down. With one race left for the season and his future still uncertain, let's look at his steering wheel. The car is in serious need of an iDrive knob.

1. Race control information display

2. Shift lights

3. Multi-purpose display, e.g. gear indicator

4. Neutral

5. Activate front wing

6. Multi-purpose button

7. KERS boost button

8. Pre-settings down

9. Pre-settings up

10. Acknowledge

11. Pit lane limiter

12. Brake balance

13. Radio

14. Pit stop

15. Safety car

16. Drink

17. Problem marker button

18. Differential

19. Differential

20. Differential

21. Info to pit crew

22. Selector

23. Tire adaption

24. Wing

25. Pedal

26. Fuel

27. Upshift

28. Downshift

29. Clutch

Credit: BMW F1 Blog