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Linksheaven 2006 F1 Preview: Super Aguri

February 26th, 2006

1st annual linksheaven.com

formula 1 preview - 2006

Super Aguri F1 Team

Team

Super Aguri Formula

Nationality

Japan

Engine

Honda V-8

Tires

Bridgestone

Team Principal

Aguri Suzuki

Team Website

www.saf1.jp/

Sponsors

TBA

2005 Results

Driver’s	N/A
Constructors	N/A

Drivers

Driver

Takuma Sato

Nationality

Japan

2005 Results

23rd

Website

www.takumasato.com

Driver

Yuji Ide

Nationality

Japan

2005 Results

Formula Nippon Series, 2nd

Website

www.yuji-ide.com

test

Driver

TBA

Nationality

2005 Results

Website

2006 Outlook

Super Aguri is a bit of wonder at this point in time, very little is available on the technical side of things, and no testing data, because they have just started thier first test with only a few weeks to go until the season starts. Think of the team as one of a few choices, 1. Hondas’ good will tour to keep Sato in F1, and more importantly have an all Japanese effort to keep thier half of Japan on thier side. 2. A B team for Honda, to eventually get a little side testing done with and this year learn a little bit about the Bridgestone tyres ahead of them becoming the spec rubber for the series. 3. A long time racer and team owner getting his shot to run a big team in a big league and made possible by Honda who he has been a long time supporter of. Take your pick really, but anyway you look at it, they are a mess coming into the season.
The SA05 which is the chassis the team will begin the year with, is honestly no more than a modified to fit the 2006 rules version of the 2002 Arrows A23 chassis. A lot of you probably only remember that car because A. It was orange, or B. because the team only completed 11 grand prix that year before running into trouble. Who knows what to expect from the package, hopefully it’s first half day of testing won’t be a bearing for it’s future, the car managed 3 laps before mechanical trouble and the best was 11 seconds off the pace. We do know the car will have the very impressive Honda RA806E 2.4 Liter V8 in the back of it, and the old A23 is only scheduled to run until the series gets back to Europe, this is to give the team time to finish thier all new SA06 chassis and get it rolling, and hopefully a more competitive showing will follow for them after that.
They are a new team using a modified 4 year old Arrows chassis - a chassis that wouldn’t have been a world beater back then. They have a driver in Sato who has to be shockingly low on confidence after a woeful 2005 at Honda, although by all accounts one of the nicest guys in the paddock. You have a guy in Yuji Ide who is 31, has never won a major series and has been racing since 1990. They do have Honda backing and they will have a modern chassis for the start of the ‘European’ season so they will no doubt make progress, but I think we can safely write them off this season as back of the grid men. The only thing that could stop them propping up the grid is if the FIA clamp down on the STR V10 and make it uncompetitive, or if by some stroke of genius they get it right with their SA06 chassis.

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Entry Filed under: Formula 1, Linksheaven

4 Comments Add your own

1. bluenose | February 27th, 2006 at 12:17 am

A nice digestion of where the team “comes from”. As likely as not, all 3 points come into play: keeping Sato’s PR stock in play for Honda and getting B’stone data, all the while letting Aguri take responsibility for the poor show..

Another possibility: I seem to recall a piece in Granprix.com (forgive me if this reference is incorrect) regarding the GPMA vs Mosley showdown, in which it was suggested that MM’s efforts to toss the manufacturers can easily be gotten round if the manufacturers are already heavily vested in the “independent” teams MM wants so much to have..
2. John E Thelin | February 27th, 2006 at 12:24 am

“thier”? Three times?
3. Administrator | February 27th, 2006 at 12:58 am

What does Ide bring to the table - has he been a Honda protoge?
4. cccp | February 27th, 2006 at 6:05 am

here’s what i have to say about super aguri team: f1’s biggest waste of time

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Linksheaven 2006 F1 Preview: Super Aguri

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