Showing posts with label SCHUMACHER. Show all posts
Showing posts with label SCHUMACHER. Show all posts
Sunday, 7 October 2012
Vettel wins as Alonso retires at Suzuka
Sebastian Vettel has taken one of the most crucial victories of his
Formula 1 career, winning the Japanese Grand Prix as championship leader
Fernando Alonso retired at the first corner. Felipe Massa finished
second for Ferrari as Kamui Kobayashi picked up a very popular maiden
podium finish at his home event.
Saturday, 29 September 2012
Hamilton replaces Schumacher at Mercedes in 2013
Mercedes team principal has actively pursued
Lewis Hamilton to sign with the team, and today the deal was sealed. The
2008 FIA Formula One world champion will leave McLaren in at the end of
this season. His new teammate starting in 2013 will be Nico Rosberg,
who remains with the Silver Arrows team.
"It is now time for me to take on a fresh challenge and I am very excited to begin a new chapter," said the Briton in this morning’s announcement.
Hamilton, now 27, joined the McLaren organization when he was 13 years
old, and has been a front runner with the British-based team. Now he
will take on a new challenge with a three year contract with Mercedes.
Team principal Ross Brawn commented, "I believe that the combination of Lewis and Nico will be the most dynamic and exciting pairing on the grid next year and I am looking forward to what we can achieve together.”
Hamilton has not had one of his best years, and obvious has been disappointed in the mistakes made by his current team, which cost him podium finishes and more importantly victories. Not all were errors by the team; some were mechanical issues but still he pushed to the limits at each event, and will continue to do so for the remaining races.
Added Hamilton, "Together, we can grow and rise to this new challenge. I believe that I can help steer the Silver Arrows to the top and achieve our joint ambitions of winning the world championships."
No word on the exact contract details, but current reports claim the Hamilton took a cut in pay; however the sponsor package is very sweet; along with incentives.
Norbert Haug, Vice President - Mercedes-Benz Motorsport commented, "Mercedes-Benz has supported Lewis throughout his career, from karting, to Formula 3, to our successful partnership with McLaren, and it will be a very nice moment for all of us in the team to see him at the wheel of a works Silver Arrow next season, following in the tradition of British Mercedes-Benz Grand Prix drivers Sir Stirling Moss and Richard Seaman.”
The future for Michael Schumacher was not mentioned. Yesterday, Brawn claimed that "Michael has been a huge asset to the team; he's really taken us forward. I do think Michael contributes an awful lot, so I think the decision for Michael to stay or not continue is a difficult one."
The German who has seven Formula One world championships may end up with Mercedes as a brand ambassador or he may search for another ride. Since his return to the premier motor sports series in 2010, Schumacher has just one podium finish since his return, and that was on the Valencia street circuit this year. Prior to his return, Schumacher won 91 races from 1991 to 2006.
Schumacher apparently in his talks, and Sauber now has a empty cockpit with the departure of Sergio Perez to the McLaren team. The champion said, "I have had three nice years with the team which unfortunately did not go as well as we all would have wanted on the sporting side. I will now concentrate on the next races."
"On behalf of MERCEDES AMG PETRONAS, I would first of all like to thank Michael Schumacher for the important contribution he has made to the growth of our team over the past three seasons. His energy and commitment have never wavered, even when results have not matched our own expectations, and we are determined to finish the 2012 season together on a high. As always, it has been a pleasure to work with Michael,” said Brawn.
"It is now time for me to take on a fresh challenge and I am very excited to begin a new chapter," said the Briton in this morning’s announcement.
Together, we can grow and rise to this new challenge.
Team principal Ross Brawn commented, "I believe that the combination of Lewis and Nico will be the most dynamic and exciting pairing on the grid next year and I am looking forward to what we can achieve together.”
Hamilton has not had one of his best years, and obvious has been disappointed in the mistakes made by his current team, which cost him podium finishes and more importantly victories. Not all were errors by the team; some were mechanical issues but still he pushed to the limits at each event, and will continue to do so for the remaining races.
Added Hamilton, "Together, we can grow and rise to this new challenge. I believe that I can help steer the Silver Arrows to the top and achieve our joint ambitions of winning the world championships."
No word on the exact contract details, but current reports claim the Hamilton took a cut in pay; however the sponsor package is very sweet; along with incentives.
Norbert Haug, Vice President - Mercedes-Benz Motorsport commented, "Mercedes-Benz has supported Lewis throughout his career, from karting, to Formula 3, to our successful partnership with McLaren, and it will be a very nice moment for all of us in the team to see him at the wheel of a works Silver Arrow next season, following in the tradition of British Mercedes-Benz Grand Prix drivers Sir Stirling Moss and Richard Seaman.”
The future for Michael Schumacher was not mentioned. Yesterday, Brawn claimed that "Michael has been a huge asset to the team; he's really taken us forward. I do think Michael contributes an awful lot, so I think the decision for Michael to stay or not continue is a difficult one."
The German who has seven Formula One world championships may end up with Mercedes as a brand ambassador or he may search for another ride. Since his return to the premier motor sports series in 2010, Schumacher has just one podium finish since his return, and that was on the Valencia street circuit this year. Prior to his return, Schumacher won 91 races from 1991 to 2006.
Schumacher apparently in his talks, and Sauber now has a empty cockpit with the departure of Sergio Perez to the McLaren team. The champion said, "I have had three nice years with the team which unfortunately did not go as well as we all would have wanted on the sporting side. I will now concentrate on the next races."
"On behalf of MERCEDES AMG PETRONAS, I would first of all like to thank Michael Schumacher for the important contribution he has made to the growth of our team over the past three seasons. His energy and commitment have never wavered, even when results have not matched our own expectations, and we are determined to finish the 2012 season together on a high. As always, it has been a pleasure to work with Michael,” said Brawn.
Who is the real winner of the recent driver shakeup in Formula One?
The recent shakeups in the status quo of Formula drivers were expected,
and yet still a surprise. Lewis Hamilton has expressed his feelings in
many ways so his jumping ship makes sense. However, leaving a team he
has been connected with for 14 years does make one wonder why the Briton
walked away from the Vodafone McLaren Mercedes team.
Imagine being a team owner / principal and having a brash youngster of 10 walk up to you and claim “one day I want to race your cars!” That is how the story goes on how Hamilton met Ron Dennis. Perhaps the head of McLaren might have thought ‘can you imagine the guts this kid has?’
Hamilton left an impression and in 1998, Dennis called him, and signed
the young kart champion to the McLaren driver development program. In
2003, Hamilton landed his first single-seater title: Formula Renault
2.0 UK title. In 2005, he became the Formula 3 Euro Series champion, and
the earned the Masters of F3 title. The next year, he was the GP2
Series champion.
The Briton proved his worth in 2007, finishing second I the FIA Formula
One Championship as a rookie! The next year, Hamilton earned his only
World Championship. But his glory days were short; even though he was a
front runner.
This year has been very difficult as the Briton has had mechanical failures and errors in pit lane that either cost him a race win, a podium finish or even point paying positions. Thus far in 2012, the British racer has notched five poles -- the most of any other Formula One driver. However, he has retired twice, and when in the lead of the grand prix event. Still he has three wins this season.
One can see why Hamilton wanted the change, and perhaps his brashness is one reason Ross Brawn was keen to steal him away from McLaren.
In order to snag Hamilton, Mercedes factory team had to shove the seven times Formula One world champion aside. Yet they were the ones who convinced Michael Schumacher to come out of retirement and lead their Silver Arrows team.
Truthfully one can understand not resigning the German racer. He has
earned just one podium finish since his return in 2010. Placing third
in Valencia saw Schumacher smile brightly. Still it seems that Mercedes
believes their team is championship contenders, and yes they should be.
Neither of their two German drivers, Schumacher and Nico Rosberg, has
produced consistent top results.
Rosberg did score the pole and the victory in China earlier this year but his best finish since then was second at Monaco.
Is Hamilton making the correct move for his future? Viewing the stats says no; but knowing that he has not been happy at McLaren, it would seem that it is a good move. Perhaps with a new car and a new team will be the best of all worlds for Hamilton.
Schumacher did not retire as many expected. He still might as he has made a fortune over the years and can return to his “castle”. His public appearances will enhance his lifestyle, along with special events. Still he was bitten again by contesting Formula One grand prix events and there are a few possible seats available.
The German still holds records in Formula One, along with the most championships. Yet the recent criticism of his driving style has made more news than the winner of the recent Singapore Grand Prix. His fans are angry with the negative comments of their favorite driver, and now with the Mercedes team. They would be delighted to see Schumacher continue to race.
Peter Sauber’s team is now down to one driver due to the fact that their young hot-shoe from Mexico signed with McLaren. Sergio Perez has shown the skills, and the desire to challenge for podiums, and a potential victory. The current Sauber driver has three podiums to his credit. Next year, he will be racing for one of the top teams!
When one views the changes to the status quo, Perez truly is the winner in the recent changes for the 2013 season, and beyond.
Imagine being a team owner / principal and having a brash youngster of 10 walk up to you and claim “one day I want to race your cars!” That is how the story goes on how Hamilton met Ron Dennis. Perhaps the head of McLaren might have thought ‘can you imagine the guts this kid has?’
Podium: race winner Lewis Hamilton, McLaren, second place place Sergio Perez, Sauber F1 Team
This year has been very difficult as the Briton has had mechanical failures and errors in pit lane that either cost him a race win, a podium finish or even point paying positions. Thus far in 2012, the British racer has notched five poles -- the most of any other Formula One driver. However, he has retired twice, and when in the lead of the grand prix event. Still he has three wins this season.
One can see why Hamilton wanted the change, and perhaps his brashness is one reason Ross Brawn was keen to steal him away from McLaren.
In order to snag Hamilton, Mercedes factory team had to shove the seven times Formula One world champion aside. Yet they were the ones who convinced Michael Schumacher to come out of retirement and lead their Silver Arrows team.
Third placed Michael Schumacher, Mercedes AMG F1 in the FIA Press Conference
Is Hamilton making the correct move for his future? Viewing the stats says no; but knowing that he has not been happy at McLaren, it would seem that it is a good move. Perhaps with a new car and a new team will be the best of all worlds for Hamilton.
Schumacher did not retire as many expected. He still might as he has made a fortune over the years and can return to his “castle”. His public appearances will enhance his lifestyle, along with special events. Still he was bitten again by contesting Formula One grand prix events and there are a few possible seats available.
The German still holds records in Formula One, along with the most championships. Yet the recent criticism of his driving style has made more news than the winner of the recent Singapore Grand Prix. His fans are angry with the negative comments of their favorite driver, and now with the Mercedes team. They would be delighted to see Schumacher continue to race.
Peter Sauber’s team is now down to one driver due to the fact that their young hot-shoe from Mexico signed with McLaren. Sergio Perez has shown the skills, and the desire to challenge for podiums, and a potential victory. The current Sauber driver has three podiums to his credit. Next year, he will be racing for one of the top teams!
When one views the changes to the status quo, Perez truly is the winner in the recent changes for the 2013 season, and beyond.
Sunday, 22 July 2012
Mercedes admits that car is too slow
Mercedes leave Hockenheim braced for another tough weekend in
Hungary, hoping to gain more speed for when Formula 1 regroups at Spa in
September. Attempting a different strategy in Germany, Michael
Schumacher managed only seventh position.
Schumacher’s race was a strong one, not least as he pulled a pass on Nico Hülkenberg in front of thousands of Mercedes employees, but the seven-time World Champion was unable to make any significant impression after running third in the early stages. Team-mate Nico Rosberg scored the final point from 21st on the starting grid.
“We
ran the race as well as we could today, in the knowledge that we would
have to make three pit-stops,” explained Team Principal Ross Brawn.
“Some of our rivals on two-stop strategies faded towards the end but the
drop-off was not sufficient for our drivers to be able to take
advantage on fresher tyres.
“Michael and Nico put in consistent performances, pulled off good overtaking moves and we delivered six clean pit-stops. Our strategy enabled Nico to climb 11 positions from his starting place, while Michael finished in seventh place for the second time in two weeks.
“We made the right decisions this afternoon but, after 67 laps, Michael found himself 29 seconds behind the winner. That shows we need to find more pace from the car.”
At the halfway point of the 2012 Formula 1 season, the Mercedes factory squad sits fifth in the Constructors’ Championship and is trailing Red Bull by 125 points
Schumacher’s race was a strong one, not least as he pulled a pass on Nico Hülkenberg in front of thousands of Mercedes employees, but the seven-time World Champion was unable to make any significant impression after running third in the early stages. Team-mate Nico Rosberg scored the final point from 21st on the starting grid.
“Michael and Nico put in consistent performances, pulled off good overtaking moves and we delivered six clean pit-stops. Our strategy enabled Nico to climb 11 positions from his starting place, while Michael finished in seventh place for the second time in two weeks.
“We made the right decisions this afternoon but, after 67 laps, Michael found himself 29 seconds behind the winner. That shows we need to find more pace from the car.”
At the halfway point of the 2012 Formula 1 season, the Mercedes factory squad sits fifth in the Constructors’ Championship and is trailing Red Bull by 125 points
Thursday, 12 July 2012
Schumacher rejects six-week deadline for 2013 decision
Michael Schumacher appears to have rejected the new six-week deadline over his plans for 2013.
Earlier this week, Mercedes team boss Ross Brawn indicated that the issue of Nico Rosberg's teammate next year will be decided "this summer".
But it was then reported that, in fact, it is seven time world champion Schumacher who possesses a unilateral option to extend his three-year deal beyond the end of this season.
And at Silverstone on Thursday, he scoffed at the reports all will be known within six weeks.
"There can certainly be no decision from my side before October," the 43-year-old is quoted by DPA news agency.
So is Brawn not backtracking?
"Our focus is on Michael," he is quoted by Germany's Auto Motor und Sport.
"There is no deadline for when we need to make the decision, it just has to be the right decision."
Brawn speculated that Schumacher will be weighing up his chances of success in 2013.
"A good driver always looks first to see if the technical basis is correct," the Briton said. "The commercial side comes after that.
"Any sensible driver knows that he needs a good car to win."
Rosberg, Schumacher's teammate throughout the great German's three-year comeback since 2010, repeated his desire to see the 43-year-old go on.
"Yes, that would be very good," he is quoted by Die Welt newspaper.
Earlier this week, Mercedes team boss Ross Brawn indicated that the issue of Nico Rosberg's teammate next year will be decided "this summer".
But it was then reported that, in fact, it is seven time world champion Schumacher who possesses a unilateral option to extend his three-year deal beyond the end of this season.
There is no deadline for when we need to make the decision, it just has to be the right decision.
"There can certainly be no decision from my side before October," the 43-year-old is quoted by DPA news agency.
So is Brawn not backtracking?
"Our focus is on Michael," he is quoted by Germany's Auto Motor und Sport.
"There is no deadline for when we need to make the decision, it just has to be the right decision."
Brawn speculated that Schumacher will be weighing up his chances of success in 2013.
"A good driver always looks first to see if the technical basis is correct," the Briton said. "The commercial side comes after that.
"Any sensible driver knows that he needs a good car to win."
Rosberg, Schumacher's teammate throughout the great German's three-year comeback since 2010, repeated his desire to see the 43-year-old go on.
"Yes, that would be very good," he is quoted by Die Welt newspaper.
Sunday, 8 July 2012
Red Bull Hunts down Ferrari
Mark Webber chose the perfect strategy and paced his race to
perfection to catch and pass Fernando Alonso in the closing stages and
clinch his second British Grand Prix victory.
It was the ninth win of Webber’s career and his second of 2012. It was also his second British Grand Prix win to go with his second Monaco victory earlier this year. Webber’s Red Bull team mate Sebastian Vettel completed the podium.
The result moved Webber to just 13 points behind Alonso in the drivers’ world championship and confirmed him as Alonso’s closest championship rival. The double podium finish extended Red Bull’s advantage at the top of the Constructors’ Championship.
After a weekend of heavy rain, Silverstone surprisingly remained dry throughout the race, which was run entirely on slick tyres. With track temperatures fluctuating between 34 degrees and 29 degrees,
There was a further surprise in the race as the hard compound tyre proved to be faster than the soft and ultimately it was the final stint that proves decisive as Webber, who had started the race on the softs, ended on the hards, while Alonso was the other way around.
The greater structural strength of the hard tyre was important through the lateral loads in the high speed corners of sector 2 in particular, while drivers found that the soft tyre understeered more in the race. Pre-race expectations that it was up to a second faster than the hard proved inaccurate.
Ferrari had started Massa on softs and had data from his runs which indicated that the softs would perform reasonably well at the end, but Webber’s pace on hards was too much for Alonso, who had not been able to build enough of a lead over Webber in the early part of the race to maintain his position at the end. Webber stayed in touch with Alonso throughout the first two stints of the race, never allowing him to get too far ahead and then was able to catch and pass him with one decisive move around the outside of Brooklands corner with there laps to go.
“I have a few wins now, but this one is taking a little bit to sink in,” Webber said. “I think it didn’t look like a spectacular race with Fernando initially but it was on. There was a little bit of strategy involved, particularly pacing stints on tyres.
“I knew he was running a different way, and I thought after first stint he was in very good shape to close the win out, but it came our way in the last stint and I am absolutely over the moon.”
Alonso had controlled the race throughout as he kept a steady gap ahead of the Red Bull duo. However, the superior speed and durability of the prime tyre turned the race in Mark Webber’s favour as he took the lead with just four laps remaining. Vettel came close to making it a Red Bull 1-2 after an early pit stop put the double World Champion in contention for the race win. He had earlier been in a train of cars stuck behind Michael Schumacher but opted for the early stop after seeing the performance of the prime tyres. In the clear air he was able to jump from fifth to third.
Lewis Hamilton was the only other driver in the top ten to start on the prime tyre. But he was not able to exploit the advantage of the tyres; being caught in a queue of traffic behind Schumacher. When the traffic did clear during the first phase of pit stops he was 18 seconds off Alonso. He shortly held the lead but Alonso quickly regained first on fresher tyres. Hamilton eventually finished the race in 8th position.
Felipe Massa put in arguably his best drive of the season and his highest finishing position since Korea in 2012 to hold off a fast-charging Kim Raikkonen and take fourth place. Massa looked racey throughout as he hassled Schumacher in the early stages, taking third place but losing that position to Vettel after the pit stops.
Raikkonen headed home Lotus team mate Romain Grosjean as the pair gained another good haul of points for the team after swapping fastest laps in the closing stages of the Grand prix. Grosjean in particular produced yet another very good performance to overcome an early front-wing change and pass Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton.
Schumacher and Hamilton both had difficult races, starting from third and eighth and finishing seventh and eighth respectively, lacking pace throughout. Schumacher’s main struggles were on the prime tyre relative to other teams as he slipped down the field during the second half of the Grand Prix. Hamilton did a very short middle stint on the soft tyres, after running a long first stint on the hards which looked like it might have got him into contention for a strong points finish.
Bruno Senna and Jenson Button completed the top 10 of a lively race. Button made up four positions on the opening lap to make up for his poor qualifying but did not have the pace to progress in to the major points scoring positions.
In the early stages of the Grand Prix Pastor Maldonado and Sergio Perez were in amongst the points scoring positions. But a overtaking manoeuvre around the outside by Perez quickly ruined their days as Maldonado lost control and continued his run of assisting other drivers in early retirements. Maldonado managed to finish the race but in a lowly 16th. Perez described the Venezuelan as “stupid” and said that he and other drivers felt that he shouldn’t be in F1, with such driving.
Kamui Kobayashi compounded a bad day for Sauber when he locked up on the way into the pits and struck a member of his team. Kobayashi continued to 11th place, while the mechanic went to the medical centre for attention.
The three podium finishers all got trophies, but the fans deserved a medal for putting up with difficult conditions, muddy car parks and traffic problems all weekend. In the end the race provided a great end to the weekend, which had started off in such trying circumstances due to heavy rain.
[Additional reporting: Matt Meadows]
BRITISH GRAND PRIX, Silverstone, 52 Laps
1. Webber Red Bull 1h25:11.288
2. Alonso Ferrari + 3.060
3. Vettel Red Bull + 4.836
4. Massa Ferrari + 9.519
5. Raikkonen Lotus + 10.314
6. Grosjean Lotus + 17.101
7. Schumacher Mercedes + 29.153
8. Hamilton McLaren + 36.400
9. Senna Williams + 43.300
10. Button McLaren + 44.400
11. Kobayashi Sauber + 45.300
12. Hulkenberg Force India + 47.800
13. Vergne Toro Rosso + 51.200
14. Ricciardo Toro Rosso + 53.300
15. Rosberg Mercedes + 57.300
16. Maldonado Williams + 1 lap
17. Kovalainen Caterham + 1 lap
18. Glock Marussia + 1 lap
19. Pic Marussia + 1 lap
20. De la Rosa HRT + 2 laps
21. Karthikeyan HRT + 2 laps
It was the ninth win of Webber’s career and his second of 2012. It was also his second British Grand Prix win to go with his second Monaco victory earlier this year. Webber’s Red Bull team mate Sebastian Vettel completed the podium.
The result moved Webber to just 13 points behind Alonso in the drivers’ world championship and confirmed him as Alonso’s closest championship rival. The double podium finish extended Red Bull’s advantage at the top of the Constructors’ Championship.
After a weekend of heavy rain, Silverstone surprisingly remained dry throughout the race, which was run entirely on slick tyres. With track temperatures fluctuating between 34 degrees and 29 degrees,
There was a further surprise in the race as the hard compound tyre proved to be faster than the soft and ultimately it was the final stint that proves decisive as Webber, who had started the race on the softs, ended on the hards, while Alonso was the other way around.
The greater structural strength of the hard tyre was important through the lateral loads in the high speed corners of sector 2 in particular, while drivers found that the soft tyre understeered more in the race. Pre-race expectations that it was up to a second faster than the hard proved inaccurate.
Ferrari had started Massa on softs and had data from his runs which indicated that the softs would perform reasonably well at the end, but Webber’s pace on hards was too much for Alonso, who had not been able to build enough of a lead over Webber in the early part of the race to maintain his position at the end. Webber stayed in touch with Alonso throughout the first two stints of the race, never allowing him to get too far ahead and then was able to catch and pass him with one decisive move around the outside of Brooklands corner with there laps to go.
“I have a few wins now, but this one is taking a little bit to sink in,” Webber said. “I think it didn’t look like a spectacular race with Fernando initially but it was on. There was a little bit of strategy involved, particularly pacing stints on tyres.
“I knew he was running a different way, and I thought after first stint he was in very good shape to close the win out, but it came our way in the last stint and I am absolutely over the moon.”
Alonso had controlled the race throughout as he kept a steady gap ahead of the Red Bull duo. However, the superior speed and durability of the prime tyre turned the race in Mark Webber’s favour as he took the lead with just four laps remaining. Vettel came close to making it a Red Bull 1-2 after an early pit stop put the double World Champion in contention for the race win. He had earlier been in a train of cars stuck behind Michael Schumacher but opted for the early stop after seeing the performance of the prime tyres. In the clear air he was able to jump from fifth to third.
Lewis Hamilton was the only other driver in the top ten to start on the prime tyre. But he was not able to exploit the advantage of the tyres; being caught in a queue of traffic behind Schumacher. When the traffic did clear during the first phase of pit stops he was 18 seconds off Alonso. He shortly held the lead but Alonso quickly regained first on fresher tyres. Hamilton eventually finished the race in 8th position.
Felipe Massa put in arguably his best drive of the season and his highest finishing position since Korea in 2012 to hold off a fast-charging Kim Raikkonen and take fourth place. Massa looked racey throughout as he hassled Schumacher in the early stages, taking third place but losing that position to Vettel after the pit stops.
Raikkonen headed home Lotus team mate Romain Grosjean as the pair gained another good haul of points for the team after swapping fastest laps in the closing stages of the Grand prix. Grosjean in particular produced yet another very good performance to overcome an early front-wing change and pass Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton.
Schumacher and Hamilton both had difficult races, starting from third and eighth and finishing seventh and eighth respectively, lacking pace throughout. Schumacher’s main struggles were on the prime tyre relative to other teams as he slipped down the field during the second half of the Grand Prix. Hamilton did a very short middle stint on the soft tyres, after running a long first stint on the hards which looked like it might have got him into contention for a strong points finish.
Bruno Senna and Jenson Button completed the top 10 of a lively race. Button made up four positions on the opening lap to make up for his poor qualifying but did not have the pace to progress in to the major points scoring positions.
In the early stages of the Grand Prix Pastor Maldonado and Sergio Perez were in amongst the points scoring positions. But a overtaking manoeuvre around the outside by Perez quickly ruined their days as Maldonado lost control and continued his run of assisting other drivers in early retirements. Maldonado managed to finish the race but in a lowly 16th. Perez described the Venezuelan as “stupid” and said that he and other drivers felt that he shouldn’t be in F1, with such driving.
Kamui Kobayashi compounded a bad day for Sauber when he locked up on the way into the pits and struck a member of his team. Kobayashi continued to 11th place, while the mechanic went to the medical centre for attention.
The three podium finishers all got trophies, but the fans deserved a medal for putting up with difficult conditions, muddy car parks and traffic problems all weekend. In the end the race provided a great end to the weekend, which had started off in such trying circumstances due to heavy rain.
[Additional reporting: Matt Meadows]
BRITISH GRAND PRIX, Silverstone, 52 Laps
1. Webber Red Bull 1h25:11.288
2. Alonso Ferrari + 3.060
3. Vettel Red Bull + 4.836
4. Massa Ferrari + 9.519
5. Raikkonen Lotus + 10.314
6. Grosjean Lotus + 17.101
7. Schumacher Mercedes + 29.153
8. Hamilton McLaren + 36.400
9. Senna Williams + 43.300
10. Button McLaren + 44.400
11. Kobayashi Sauber + 45.300
12. Hulkenberg Force India + 47.800
13. Vergne Toro Rosso + 51.200
14. Ricciardo Toro Rosso + 53.300
15. Rosberg Mercedes + 57.300
16. Maldonado Williams + 1 lap
17. Kovalainen Caterham + 1 lap
18. Glock Marussia + 1 lap
19. Pic Marussia + 1 lap
20. De la Rosa HRT + 2 laps
21. Karthikeyan HRT + 2 laps
Race results - 2012 British Formula 1 Grand Prix 08 July 2012
| Pos. | Driver | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. |  Mark Webber | Red Bull | 1:25:11.288 |
| 2. | Fernando Alonso | Ferrari | +3.060 |
| 3. | Sebastian Vettel | Red Bull | +4.836 |
| 4. | Felipe Massa | Ferrari | +9.519 |
| 5. | Kimi Räikkönen | Lotus | +10.314 |
| 6. | Romain Grosjean | Lotus | +17.101 |
| 7. | Michael Schumacher | Mercedes | +29.153 |
| 8. | Lewis Hamilton | McLaren | +36.463 |
| 9. | Bruno Senna | Williams | +43.347 |
| 10. | Jenson Button | McLaren | +44.444 |
| 11. | Kamui Kobayashi | Sauber | +45.370 |
| 12. | Nico Hülkenberg | Force India | +47.856 |
| 13. | Daniel Ricciardo | Toro Rosso | +51.241 |
| 14. | Jean-Eric Vergne | Toro Rosso | +53.313 |
| 15. | Nico Rosberg | Mercedes | +57.394 |
| 16. | Pastor Maldonado | Williams | +1 Lap |
| 17. | Heikki Kovalainen | Caterham | +1 Lap |
| 18. | Timo Glock | Marussia | +1 Lap |
| 19. | Charles Pic | Marussia | +1 Lap |
| 20. | Pedro de la Rosa | HRT | +2 Laps |
| 21. | Narain Karthikeyan | HRT | +2 Laps |
| Did not finish | |||
| 22. | Sergio Perez | Sauber | +41 Laps |
| 23. | Paul di Resta | Force India | +50 Laps |
| 24. | Vitaly Petrov | Caterham | +52 Laps |
Monday, 5 December 2011
Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula 1
Brackley-based Mercedes GP will race under a modified name next season, with performance brand AMG being added to the team’s official title. Now to be known as the Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula 1 Team, company Vice President Norbert Haug says the move further attaches the subsidiary to the Silver Arrows squad.
"Our new team name fuses the proud traditions of AMG and the Mercedes-Benz Silver Arrows at the pinnacle of motorsport," Haug said on Monday. "These three letters are synonymous with high technology, sporting performance and excitement and this step is a further strong sign of the strategic commitment Mercedes-Benz has made to Formula 1.
"16 of the 24 drivers on the grid at the season's final Grand Prix in Brazil have, or have had, a connection to Mercedes-Benz. In addition to the role of a works team, our commitment to Formula 1 comprises the customer engine programme and supply of the official Safety and Medical Cars."
Team Principal Ross Brawn joined forces with Mercedes in 2009, just a fortnight after the team completed its double title-winning campaign under the Brawn GP guise.
"16 of the 24 drivers on the grid at the season's final Grand Prix in Brazil have, or have had, a connection to Mercedes-Benz. In addition to the role of a works team, our commitment to Formula 1 comprises the customer engine programme and supply of the official Safety and Medical Cars."
Team Principal Ross Brawn joined forces with Mercedes in 2009, just a fortnight after the team completed its double title-winning campaign under the Brawn GP guise.
Tuesday, 25 October 2011
F1: Red Bull drivers tried brand new Indian GP track on simulator
Mark Webber:
"We have completed some good simulator work, but in terms of the kerbs and other subtle final details, these will obviously come into place right at the end, so I'd say we have an 85% understanding of what the track is going to be like.
Webber and Vettel had a taste the Buddh circuit on the simulator
Sebastian Vettel:
"By the time we race in India, I'll have done several laps of the track on the simulator. What Iknow so far is that the track is 5.14km and in the industrial town of Noida, about 50 minutes by car from New Delhi. The track is a combination of slow corners and high-speed straights which flow into each other.
The altitude difference is extreme, rather like in Spa or Turkey, which will give the driving an additional element. Incidentally, we're expecting the track to have the second highest average speed of the season after Monza. That means that we'll be completing a lap at an average speed of 235kph, so there should be plenty of good opportunities to overtake. I'm really looking forward to India; Ialways do when we drive on a new track."
Sunday, 17 July 2011
Schumacher upbeat ahead of home race
Michael Schumacher is hopeful that the promise shown by his Mercedes GP squad at Silverstone can be translated into a better performance next weekend, with the German preparing for his home event at the Nürburgring. The seven-time Champion says he has 'a good feeling' ahead of the race, admitting that a strong result here is vital.
"With two home races in a row, we are fortunate to be given an extra boost as we head to the Nürburgring next week for the German Grand Prix, just two weeks after Silverstone," Schumacher explained.
"This season has been a difficult one for performance predictions so far; however I can predict one thing for sure: the extra boost we are receiving will be transformed into extra motivation.
"We saw some improvements over the Silverstone weekend with our new exhaust system, along with improvements to how we work with the tyres, so we go to the next race weekend with a good feeling added to our fighting spirit. We definitely want to show our home crowds our best level of performance possible.
"It will be the first time that I race through the corner which is named after me (Turns 8 and 9), and obviously I would like to believe that this is not only making me proud, but also even faster."
Schumacher finished ninth at Silverstone after colliding with Kamui Kobayashi
"This season has been a difficult one for performance predictions so far; however I can predict one thing for sure: the extra boost we are receiving will be transformed into extra motivation.
"We saw some improvements over the Silverstone weekend with our new exhaust system, along with improvements to how we work with the tyres, so we go to the next race weekend with a good feeling added to our fighting spirit. We definitely want to show our home crowds our best level of performance possible.
"It will be the first time that I race through the corner which is named after me (Turns 8 and 9), and obviously I would like to believe that this is not only making me proud, but also even faster."
Monday, 28 March 2011
A closer look at the pace of the F1 cars post Melbourne
Over the winter we were told by teams and drivers that it was very hard to guess what the pecking order was simply from looking at testing.
With so many variables like the DRS wing, KERS and fuel loads, establishing a clear picture was difficult during the four official tests.
On top of that the McLaren car which turned up in Melbourne at the weekend was so utterly transformed, performance wise, from the one which stuttered through testing that it was unrecognisable.
This shows that the scope for rapid development with these new rules is significant, at least in the early stages of the season. So the gaps will change a lot in the next few races.
Most of the downforce on an F1 car is generated by the diffuser and with these being cut back from single to double diffusers this year, the pressure is on to get the exhaust gases blowing across them and to find every possible way to maximise the downforce of the car, efficiently, with not to much drag. Hence the exhaust arms race going on at the moment, which was started by Renault.
Red Bull has clearly got the most advanced car; Vettel was 17km/h faster through the high speed chicane at Turn 11 than Hamilton’s McLaren and more like 25km/h faster than the midfield teams.
The time sheets from the first Grand Prix of the season tell a partial picture, as not everyone was able to unlock the pace in their car; Ferrari and Mercedes in particular were not as fast as they expected to be in qualifying and at the other end of the grid, Lotus did not show the step closer to the established teams on Saturday they believed they had achieved.
Vettel was on pole by 8/10ths from Hamilton, with Alonso six tenths slower than the McLaren, Petrov three tenths behind. To me that indicates that the Renault is probably as fast as the Ferrari. Rosberg was a couple of tenths behind, with the Sauber there too. Williams didn’t show what they can do in qualifying or the race, really. It was a messy weekend for them.
However looking through the fastest laps from the race points out a few more important indicators about performance. Jarno Trulli’s fastest lap was a 1m 32.550, one second slower than the Force India of Adrian Sutil. This is still not as close as Lotus thought they were, but still a big improvement on their qualifying pace and on where they were last year.
Meanwhile Virgin’s pace in the race highlights just how far off they are, D’Ambrosio’s fastest lap was two seconds slower than Trulli’s. They are adrift at the back of the field, and judging from a comparison of the lap times that Liuzzi turned in his brief spell on the track, there is a danger that Hispania might actually be faster than Virgin, once it gets a chance to do some set up work, in Sepang.
Meanwhile at the front, Vettel and Hamilton were cruising on Sunday, Hamilton had a damaged floor and Vettel just maintained his pace to manage his tyres. He could have gone a lot faster if he needed to.
So the fastest race lap was the Ferrari of Felipe Massa, pushing very hard in the closing stages after a late pit stop for new tyres, Alonso was also quick after his third stop. Although these laps on fresher tyres do not tell the whole story, they do show that there is pace in this Ferrari. Its problem is high tyre wear.
Sergio Perez amazingly set the 7th fastest lap – fourth fastest team – on tyres that had done 16 laps and when the car was still heavy on fuel. The Sauber is quite a car it seems, capable of qualifying in the top ten and easy on its tyres, with plenty of raw pace. That’s a points scoring combination.
Toro Rosso were consistent; they qualified 10th and 12th and in the race set the 10th and 11th fastest laps.
However we must be careful, Melbourne often shows a picture which isn’t born out by the races that follow. KERS will be more important in Sepang and Shanghai and whatever system Red Bull has, it’s going to need some help from it at those two circuits. Tyre wise Sepang is smooth, like Melbourne, although with some higher speed corners, so the tyre wear will be slightly higher, but not back to Barcelona levels.
With so many variables like the DRS wing, KERS and fuel loads, establishing a clear picture was difficult during the four official tests.
On top of that the McLaren car which turned up in Melbourne at the weekend was so utterly transformed, performance wise, from the one which stuttered through testing that it was unrecognisable.
This shows that the scope for rapid development with these new rules is significant, at least in the early stages of the season. So the gaps will change a lot in the next few races.
Most of the downforce on an F1 car is generated by the diffuser and with these being cut back from single to double diffusers this year, the pressure is on to get the exhaust gases blowing across them and to find every possible way to maximise the downforce of the car, efficiently, with not to much drag. Hence the exhaust arms race going on at the moment, which was started by Renault.
Red Bull has clearly got the most advanced car; Vettel was 17km/h faster through the high speed chicane at Turn 11 than Hamilton’s McLaren and more like 25km/h faster than the midfield teams.
The time sheets from the first Grand Prix of the season tell a partial picture, as not everyone was able to unlock the pace in their car; Ferrari and Mercedes in particular were not as fast as they expected to be in qualifying and at the other end of the grid, Lotus did not show the step closer to the established teams on Saturday they believed they had achieved.
Vettel was on pole by 8/10ths from Hamilton, with Alonso six tenths slower than the McLaren, Petrov three tenths behind. To me that indicates that the Renault is probably as fast as the Ferrari. Rosberg was a couple of tenths behind, with the Sauber there too. Williams didn’t show what they can do in qualifying or the race, really. It was a messy weekend for them.
However looking through the fastest laps from the race points out a few more important indicators about performance. Jarno Trulli’s fastest lap was a 1m 32.550, one second slower than the Force India of Adrian Sutil. This is still not as close as Lotus thought they were, but still a big improvement on their qualifying pace and on where they were last year.
Meanwhile Virgin’s pace in the race highlights just how far off they are, D’Ambrosio’s fastest lap was two seconds slower than Trulli’s. They are adrift at the back of the field, and judging from a comparison of the lap times that Liuzzi turned in his brief spell on the track, there is a danger that Hispania might actually be faster than Virgin, once it gets a chance to do some set up work, in Sepang.
Meanwhile at the front, Vettel and Hamilton were cruising on Sunday, Hamilton had a damaged floor and Vettel just maintained his pace to manage his tyres. He could have gone a lot faster if he needed to.
So the fastest race lap was the Ferrari of Felipe Massa, pushing very hard in the closing stages after a late pit stop for new tyres, Alonso was also quick after his third stop. Although these laps on fresher tyres do not tell the whole story, they do show that there is pace in this Ferrari. Its problem is high tyre wear.
Sergio Perez amazingly set the 7th fastest lap – fourth fastest team – on tyres that had done 16 laps and when the car was still heavy on fuel. The Sauber is quite a car it seems, capable of qualifying in the top ten and easy on its tyres, with plenty of raw pace. That’s a points scoring combination.
Toro Rosso were consistent; they qualified 10th and 12th and in the race set the 10th and 11th fastest laps.
However we must be careful, Melbourne often shows a picture which isn’t born out by the races that follow. KERS will be more important in Sepang and Shanghai and whatever system Red Bull has, it’s going to need some help from it at those two circuits. Tyre wise Sepang is smooth, like Melbourne, although with some higher speed corners, so the tyre wear will be slightly higher, but not back to Barcelona levels.
Monday, 7 March 2011
Massa samples new Saudi Arabian circuit
Last Thursday saw Ferrari’s Felipe Massa travel to Saudi Arabia in order to try out a brand-new race track, the Reem International Circuit close to capital city Riyadh.
The event, organised by Ferrari sponsor and Marlboro parent company Phillip Morris International, involved the Brazilian driving around 40 guests at the track in a Ferrari F430 challenge. Also present was Team Principal Stefano Domenicali, watching the action from the pit wall.
“It’s always nice to visit somewhere new and I’m just sorry I can’t spend more time here,” said Massa, who replaced team-mate Fernando Alonso, with the Spaniard having been described as ‘under the weather’ by the Italian team.
“The track is very interesting and fun, so I hope I get a further opportunity to drive here. At the moment, our work in the build up to the start of the World Championship is intense and so we have to get back to base soon.”
“Events and venues like these are important to boost motorsport in countries which have only recently embraced it,” Domenicali added. “For Ferrari, the Middle East is a very important market which we watch very carefully.”
The event, organised by Ferrari sponsor and Marlboro parent company Phillip Morris International, involved the Brazilian driving around 40 guests at the track in a Ferrari F430 challenge. Also present was Team Principal Stefano Domenicali, watching the action from the pit wall.
Team Principal Stefano Domenicali also attended
“The track is very interesting and fun, so I hope I get a further opportunity to drive here. At the moment, our work in the build up to the start of the World Championship is intense and so we have to get back to base soon.”
“Events and venues like these are important to boost motorsport in countries which have only recently embraced it,” Domenicali added. “For Ferrari, the Middle East is a very important market which we watch very carefully.”
Friday, 18 February 2011
F1 Barcelona Day 1 Testing: The line-up
Formula 1 testing resumes on Friday, with the fraternity all present at the Circuit de Catalunya on the outskirts of Barcelona. Following heavy rain for the area on Thursday morning, more showers threaten to affect proceedings on-track today.
The Friday line-up for Barcelona looks like this:
Red Bull Sebastian Vettel
McLaren Jenson Button
Ferrari Fernando Alonso
Mercedes Michael Schumacher
Renault Heidfeld and Petrov (morning, pit-stop practice), Vitaly Petrov (afternoon)
Williams Rubens Barrichello & Pastor Maldonado
Force India Paul di Resta
Sauber Kamui Kobayashi
Toro Rosso Jaime Alguersuari
Team Lotus Heikki Kovalainen
Hispania Narain Karthikeyan
Virgin Jérôme d’Ambrosio
Running time
9am – 2pm, 3pm – 5pm (local time, GMT +1)
The Friday line-up for Barcelona looks like this:
Red Bull Sebastian Vettel
McLaren Jenson Button
Ferrari Fernando Alonso
Mercedes Michael Schumacher
Renault Heidfeld and Petrov (morning, pit-stop practice), Vitaly Petrov (afternoon)
Williams Rubens Barrichello & Pastor Maldonado
Force India Paul di Resta
Sauber Kamui Kobayashi
Toro Rosso Jaime Alguersuari
Team Lotus Heikki Kovalainen
Hispania Narain Karthikeyan
Virgin Jérôme d’Ambrosio
Running time
9am – 2pm, 3pm – 5pm (local time, GMT +1)
Wednesday, 2 February 2011
Brawn cautious on speed of new Mercedes
Mercedes GP team principal Ross Brawn is quietly confident his team have improved sufficiently on their below-par 2010 Formula One car but refrained from making any early predictions on the pace of the new MPG W02.
"With this car we've moved a good step forward with the construction, the weight, centre of gravity," he told the Press Association. "We've recovered a lot of the aerodynamic performance that was lost from the regulations. There are other things like the unity of the design groups, we've a second season with both drivers, and that helps."
Despite everyone having to acclimatise to changes in the new FIA regulations for this year's Formula 1 season, Brawn is content the 2011 challenger will power both Michael Shumacher and Nico Rosberg to better results than last year.
"It's about lots of things all coming together and moving in the right direction," he confirmed. "But you never know if it's enough. You never know if someone is going to make a strong breakthrough. But I'm comfortable we've made real progress over the last six months, and that this car is the culmination of that."
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Despite everyone having to acclimatise to changes in the new FIA regulations for this year's Formula 1 season, Brawn is content the 2011 challenger will power both Michael Shumacher and Nico Rosberg to better results than last year.
"It's about lots of things all coming together and moving in the right direction," he confirmed. "But you never know if it's enough. You never know if someone is going to make a strong breakthrough. But I'm comfortable we've made real progress over the last six months, and that this car is the culmination of that."
Afternoon test update: Vettel still clear
Sebastian Vettel continued to occupy the position at the top of the times in Valencia as the second day of pre-season testing hit its half-way mark on Wednesday.
Renault’s Robert Kubica and Force India’s Paul di Resta had both had spells at the top of the times on an initially very chilly morning in eastern Spain, before Vettel – spending his second day in the new Red Bull RB7 – went fastest in the day’s second hour on his eighth hot lap.
His best time of 1m13.614s was already just over a tenth of a second faster than his benchmark time from the first day, and by 1pm the world champion had chalked up 40 laps to add to the 93 trouble-free ones he completed on Tuesday.
Fernando Alonso was up in second in the new Ferrari, five tenths of a second back after 38 laps, with di Resta third in the 2010 Force India and Kubica ending his first morning in the innovative Renault R31 fourth, with 40 laps.
Lewis Hamilton is making his sole appearance of the week on Wednesday to get his first taste of the Pirelli tyres to be used this year, after McLaren decided not to use its race drivers in the post-season Abu Dhabi tyre test last November.
After a lengthy gap after a early installation lap, the 2008 champion eased himself back into driving duties and by lunchtime had completed 26 laps and occupied fifth place.
Mercedes’s opening day programme for the W02 had been restricted by a hydraulics problem during Nico Rosberg’s morning run on Tuesday so the German team and driver would have been pleased to have racked up 34 laps by 1pm on day two.
The team was also trying out the German manufacturer's renowned KERS system for the first time, having not used it on the opening day while it carried out other checks.
Team Lotus, meanwhile, was debuting its new T128 and, while Heikki Kovalainen had failed to post a lap time by lunchtime, the team’s Twitter updates suggested early work was going well, the Finn having done five exploratory laps during a programme of system checks and car alterations.
There had been two red flags by 1pm, the first of which was caused after half an hour by Rubens Barrichello, whose new Williams FW33 stopped out on track with an electrical problem.
13.30 update: Alonso has since jumped ahead of Vettel at the head of the times, the Spaniard’s new benchmark standing at 1m13.469s.
Valencia test day two times @ 13.00
* 2010 car
Renault’s Robert Kubica and Force India’s Paul di Resta had both had spells at the top of the times on an initially very chilly morning in eastern Spain, before Vettel – spending his second day in the new Red Bull RB7 – went fastest in the day’s second hour on his eighth hot lap.
His best time of 1m13.614s was already just over a tenth of a second faster than his benchmark time from the first day, and by 1pm the world champion had chalked up 40 laps to add to the 93 trouble-free ones he completed on Tuesday.
Fernando Alonso was up in second in the new Ferrari, five tenths of a second back after 38 laps, with di Resta third in the 2010 Force India and Kubica ending his first morning in the innovative Renault R31 fourth, with 40 laps.
Lewis Hamilton is making his sole appearance of the week on Wednesday to get his first taste of the Pirelli tyres to be used this year, after McLaren decided not to use its race drivers in the post-season Abu Dhabi tyre test last November.
After a lengthy gap after a early installation lap, the 2008 champion eased himself back into driving duties and by lunchtime had completed 26 laps and occupied fifth place.
Mercedes’s opening day programme for the W02 had been restricted by a hydraulics problem during Nico Rosberg’s morning run on Tuesday so the German team and driver would have been pleased to have racked up 34 laps by 1pm on day two.
The team was also trying out the German manufacturer's renowned KERS system for the first time, having not used it on the opening day while it carried out other checks.
Team Lotus, meanwhile, was debuting its new T128 and, while Heikki Kovalainen had failed to post a lap time by lunchtime, the team’s Twitter updates suggested early work was going well, the Finn having done five exploratory laps during a programme of system checks and car alterations.
There had been two red flags by 1pm, the first of which was caused after half an hour by Rubens Barrichello, whose new Williams FW33 stopped out on track with an electrical problem.
13.30 update: Alonso has since jumped ahead of Vettel at the head of the times, the Spaniard’s new benchmark standing at 1m13.469s.
Valencia test day two times @ 13.00
1 VETTEL Red Bull 1m13.614s (40)
2 ALONSO Ferrari 1m14.111s (38)
3 DI RESTA Force India* 1m14.199s (33)
4 KUBICA Renault 1m14.412s (40)
5 HAMILTON McLaren* 1m14.701s (26)
6 ROSBERG Mercedes 1m15.383s (34)
7 ALGUERSUARI Toro Rosso 1m16.474s (60)
8 PEREZ Sauber 1m17.019s (25)
9 GLOCK Virgin* 1m17.228s (15)
9 GLOCK Virgin* 1m17.228s (15)
10 BARRICHELLO Williams 1m17.344s (36)
11 KARTHIKEYAN HRT* 1m17.823s (29)
12 KOVALAINEN Lotus no times (5)
laps completed in brackets* 2010 car
Thursday, 27 January 2011
Ferrari names 2011 car F150
Ferrari has revealed that its new car will be called the F150, with it set to be revealed in Maranello live on Italian television this Friday. For 2011, Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa remain as race drivers although, with Luca Badoer now in retirement, Jules Bianchi joins Marc Gené and Giancarlo Fisichella on the reserves bench.
‘The choice of name stems from Ferrari’s desire to pay tribute to this year’s 150th anniversary of the Unification of Italy,’ reads an explanation on the Ferrari website. ‘The placement of the “Tricolore” Italian flag as part of the car livery will therefore have even more significance in 2011.’
The initiative has also received the appreciation of Italian Republic President Giorgio Napolitano, to which Ferrari Chairman Luca di Montezemolo replied: “Ferrari is an expression of Italian excellence, talent and creativity.
“All the men and women who put so much effort and passion into their work at Maranello share the pride and responsibility of representing our country around the world and it is in this spirit that we chose to dedicate this car to an event that is so important for the whole of Italy.”
‘The choice of name stems from Ferrari’s desire to pay tribute to this year’s 150th anniversary of the Unification of Italy,’ reads an explanation on the Ferrari website. ‘The placement of the “Tricolore” Italian flag as part of the car livery will therefore have even more significance in 2011.’
“All the men and women who put so much effort and passion into their work at Maranello share the pride and responsibility of representing our country around the world and it is in this spirit that we chose to dedicate this car to an event that is so important for the whole of Italy.”
Wednesday, 26 January 2011
Schumacher ‘susceptible to simulator sickness’
Michael Schumacher is prone to suffering from some simulator sickness although this does not affect his performance in comparison to Mercedes GP team-mate Nico Rosberg, according to his team.
The seven-time World Champion lost out in raw pace terms to his younger compatriot in 2010 although the Brackley-based team is confident that his simulator performances are not to blame.
“Throughout his career, Michael from time to time has been susceptible to simulator sickness,” the squad is quoted as saying by BBC Sport.
“It hasn't adversely affected Michael's race preparation or competitiveness with regard to his team-mate.
“It has affected the length of time that he can spend on a simulator; this is a relatively common occurrence for many people in all fields of simulator activity, including military, aircraft and racing cars.”
The seven-time World Champion lost out in raw pace terms to his younger compatriot in 2010 although the Brackley-based team is confident that his simulator performances are not to blame.
“It hasn't adversely affected Michael's race preparation or competitiveness with regard to his team-mate.
“It has affected the length of time that he can spend on a simulator; this is a relatively common occurrence for many people in all fields of simulator activity, including military, aircraft and racing cars.”
Tuesday, 4 January 2011
Domenicali: I considered quitting
Stefano Domenicali has confessed he considered resigning as Ferrari’s team boss in the wake of the strategy error that cost Fernando Alonso the world championship in the final race of last season in Abu Dhabi.
Alonso’s hopes of winning a third drivers’ title were wrecked by the timing of his pit stop in last November's race, Ferrari opting to pull him into the pits to cover Mark Webber's stop only to see him fall behind a series of runners who had already pitted – a mistake that allowed race winner Sebastian Vettel to pip him to the crown.
Domenicali acknowledged the team’s mistake in the immediate aftermath of the race but both he and Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo refused to point the finger of blame at any individual, insisting that they won and lost as a team.
The Maranello outfit was subjected to criticism from both media and Italian politicians in the days following the season finale and Domenicali has now revealed he considered his own position during that time.
However, the 45-year-old – who added that he could not sleep properly for two days after the race – reasoned that he would be wrong to simply walk away as he feels he is the right person to lead Ferrari's planned fightback this year.
“After Abu Dhabi I personally raised the issue, I thought about whether or not it was right for me to stay,” he said in a frank interview with Italy’s La Repubblica newspaper.
“Reflecting on [my position] seemed to me my duty, the responsible thing to do.
“I am not fixated on keeping my job. But I came to the conclusion that resigning would be a mistake.
“I know the team and I think I’m the right person to capitalise on all that we have sown in recent months.
“In terms of procedures at [the factory in] Maranello, we have changed almost everything and I am sure we will soon see the results of all our hard work.”
Although Domenicali accepts the Abu Dhabi error was a big one, he argues that the fact it was made in a tense championship decider was what had made it all the more damaging and that therefore Ferrari shouldn't look to change everything.
Nonetheless he accepts that alterations to the squad's race operations have been needed as a result and says that an annoucement regarding this area is imminent.
“The mistake was – let’s put it this way – huge in terms of magnitude; it produced devastating effects. But in a normal race it would have been a normal error,” Domenicali said.
“So you must not jettison everything, even the good things, because of that mistake.
“We will make some changes and officially announce things in the coming hours – and we will make sure that those who have to make these difficult decisions have all the tools they need to avoid making the same mistake again.
“Personally I will try to help the team from a psychological point of view as well, because the hardest penalty in a shoot-out is the one coming after you missed one.”
Alonso’s hopes of winning a third drivers’ title were wrecked by the timing of his pit stop in last November's race, Ferrari opting to pull him into the pits to cover Mark Webber's stop only to see him fall behind a series of runners who had already pitted – a mistake that allowed race winner Sebastian Vettel to pip him to the crown.
Domenicali acknowledged the team’s mistake in the immediate aftermath of the race but both he and Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo refused to point the finger of blame at any individual, insisting that they won and lost as a team.
The Maranello outfit was subjected to criticism from both media and Italian politicians in the days following the season finale and Domenicali has now revealed he considered his own position during that time.
However, the 45-year-old – who added that he could not sleep properly for two days after the race – reasoned that he would be wrong to simply walk away as he feels he is the right person to lead Ferrari's planned fightback this year.
“After Abu Dhabi I personally raised the issue, I thought about whether or not it was right for me to stay,” he said in a frank interview with Italy’s La Repubblica newspaper.
“Reflecting on [my position] seemed to me my duty, the responsible thing to do.
“I am not fixated on keeping my job. But I came to the conclusion that resigning would be a mistake.
“I know the team and I think I’m the right person to capitalise on all that we have sown in recent months.
“In terms of procedures at [the factory in] Maranello, we have changed almost everything and I am sure we will soon see the results of all our hard work.”
Although Domenicali accepts the Abu Dhabi error was a big one, he argues that the fact it was made in a tense championship decider was what had made it all the more damaging and that therefore Ferrari shouldn't look to change everything.
Nonetheless he accepts that alterations to the squad's race operations have been needed as a result and says that an annoucement regarding this area is imminent.
“The mistake was – let’s put it this way – huge in terms of magnitude; it produced devastating effects. But in a normal race it would have been a normal error,” Domenicali said.
“So you must not jettison everything, even the good things, because of that mistake.
“We will make some changes and officially announce things in the coming hours – and we will make sure that those who have to make these difficult decisions have all the tools they need to avoid making the same mistake again.
“Personally I will try to help the team from a psychological point of view as well, because the hardest penalty in a shoot-out is the one coming after you missed one.”
Friday, 10 December 2010
F1 chiefs drop the ban on team orders in new rules
The controversial ban on team orders has been deleted from the Formula 1 rulebook in the latest set of changes.
The adoption of moveable rear wings to aid overtaking were also confirmed in the new FIA rules for 2011 while the Kers power-boost system also returns.
The governing body also confirmed a new 'green' engine for the 2013 season.
Many team bosses predicted the ban on team orders would be dropped from the new sporting regulations after Ferrari caused an outcry by appearing to give Felipe Massa a coded message to allow Fernando Alonso through to win the German Grand Prix.
They argued the rule, which was introduced in 2002 after Rubens Barrichello gifted a win to then Ferrari team-mate Michael Schumacher, was difficult to enforce.
Now the rule has been removed, the teams may tacitly agree not to use team orders as much as possible while article 151.c, which refers to bringing the sport into disrepute, remains intact.
That article warns against "any fraudulent conduct or any act prejudicial to the interests of any competition, or to the interests of motorsport generally".
In its new regulations, the FIA aims to improve sustainability by using 'green' engines in two seasons' time.
These powerunits will be four-cylinder, 1.6 litre turbos with energy recovery systems and fuel restrictions, with the aim of increasing efficiency by 35%
The agreement to switch from the current 2.4-litre V8s after months of tough negotiations - exclusively revealed by BBC Sport last weekend - is an attempt to mirror the trend towards fuel-efficiency in road cars and to popularise it, increasing public demand for such engines.
The movable wings, which will be used from the start of next season, are an attempt to improve one of F1's perennial problems - the difficulties of overtaking.
The wings will be operated by the drivers, who will be able to use them when they are within a second of a car in front which they are trying to overtake.
The gaps between the cars will be monitored electronically by the FIA and the wings will be switched on when the driver behind is within the requisite distance.
Rule makers will monitor the way the wings work through the 2011 season and adjust them so they fit the purpose for which they were designed.
While F1 bosses want to make overtaking easier, they want it to remain a challenge.
The calculations as to when drivers should be able to employ the wings are made more complicated by the return of Kers in 2011.
Although Kers remained in the 2010 regulations the teams voluntarily agreed not to use it last season, in particular to help with cost-cutting and the arrival of the three new teams.
These systems - which store energy that would have been wasted during braking and reapply it during acceleration to give a power boost of about 80bhp for seven seconds - were first used in 2009.
The teams have decided to use them again in 2011 as a first step towards 2013, when F1 is trying to embrace sustainability.
Mercedes and Ferrari had been reluctant to agree to the 2013 engine rules as recently as a month ago, believing that it was an unnecessary expense at a time when F1 was trying to reduce costs.
And F1 commercial boss Bernie Ecclestone has been consistent in his view that they were a bad idea.
But, as BBC Sport revealed, the rules were agreed in a series of recent meetings between F1's current engine manufacturers - which also include Renault and private company Cosworth - and the final touches were put to the regulations by a steering group of F1 engineers a week ago.
The aim is for the new rules to improve the efficiency of F1 engines by as much as 35%.
Care has been taken to ensure the performance of cars will not be affected and total power outputs will remain at current levels - approximately 750bhp. The new engines will not do more than 12,000 revs per minute - current F1 engines spin at 18,000rpm.
By adopting the regulations, F1 hopes to widen its appeal to sponsors - commercial insiders say some companies are reluctant to get involved in F1 because of its image of being wasteful with resources.
In subsequent years, complex new turbocharging technology called compounding will be introduced to further enhance efficiency.
The regulations have been framed to encourage the pursuit of efficiency in engine design, dramatically increasing the amount of power that can be produced per litre of fuel burnt.
Those lessons in efficiency can then be transferred to road cars so that considerably less fuel is used for a given amount of performance.
Sunday, 5 December 2010
Lotus to start 2011 season without KERS
Lotus has not changed its mind about running a KERS system in 2011.
In May this year, team boss Tony Fernandes said the Norfolk-based team had "good reasons" to build the 2010 car's successor without the energy recovery technology.
Another new feature of the technical rules for 2011 is an adjustable rear wing to help boost overtaking.
"We will have the adjustable rear wing but not KERS for the start of the season - it's in development - really because of engineering resource," technical boss Mike Gascoyne told edp24.co.uk.
"Over one lap, it's still not a big plus for its effort, involvement and negatives. Strategically off the start and in races, then yes," he said.
"But at the start of the year, KERS is not going to be the thing that gives us the step up.
"It's all the other things, and we've taken the choice to concentrate on all those because if we don't get them right, KERS isn't going to make a difference."
Lotus' new engine supplier for 2011 is Renault, so Gascoyne confirmed that when the team is ready to run with KERS, it will be the French marque's unit.
"Renault are very keen on green technologies and KERS, so it's something we will be pushing," he said.
Source: Motorsport.com
In May this year, team boss Tony Fernandes said the Norfolk-based team had "good reasons" to build the 2010 car's successor without the energy recovery technology.
Another new feature of the technical rules for 2011 is an adjustable rear wing to help boost overtaking.
"We will have the adjustable rear wing but not KERS for the start of the season - it's in development - really because of engineering resource," technical boss Mike Gascoyne told edp24.co.uk.
"Over one lap, it's still not a big plus for its effort, involvement and negatives. Strategically off the start and in races, then yes," he said.
"But at the start of the year, KERS is not going to be the thing that gives us the step up.
"It's all the other things, and we've taken the choice to concentrate on all those because if we don't get them right, KERS isn't going to make a difference."
Lotus' new engine supplier for 2011 is Renault, so Gascoyne confirmed that when the team is ready to run with KERS, it will be the French marque's unit.
"Renault are very keen on green technologies and KERS, so it's something we will be pushing," he said.
Source: Motorsport.com
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