Tag: Formula One

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Formula 1 Renault

Renault unveils 2010 F1 car

Renault R30 - 2010 F1 car

The wraps came off Renault’s new R30 at Valenica overnight. It looks pretty much as expected, and this car marks the start of a new era for Renault. In 2010 the team starts under a radically revised ownership regime and with two new drivers the team can now go forward and forge a new identity far removed from the shadow of the 2008 ‘crashgate‘ scandal.

We already knew that Robert Kubica was on board with Renault for the 2010 season and now the strong rumours of being joined by the first Russian in Formula One have been confirmed with the announcement of 25-year-old Vitaly Petrov as Renault’s second driver.

Reminiscent of previous Jordan paint schemes, the new R30 looks great, although Renault will be hoping it can fill the sponsorship void sooner, rather than later. There’s plenty of images of the R30 available after the jump, although so far all manufacturers have remained coy about showing the rear of their cars. I guess we’ll get a look at the rear diffusers later today during testing.

In addition to the pics there’s press statements from the major players and a YouTube clip showing off the new R30. When you’re done looking at all this why not take a peak at the new Renault F1 website.

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Ferrari Formula 1

Ferrari unveils 2010 F1 car

Ferrari F10 - 2010 F1 car

Ferrari have just released these images of their 2010 Formula One car, codenamed F10. They are the first team to show their 2010 racecar to the public, with a raft of reveals to follow ahead of next week’s testing at Valencia.

There’s no surprise in the livery and prominence of Santander sponsorship, that was pretty much confirmed last week. Rumours of Ferrari taking design cues from the 2009 Red Bull RB5 have proved correct, too, with this new Ferrari. Especially on the nose cone. Generally speaking, the 2010 car is a lot more rounded than last year’s F60.

Team principal Stefano Domenicali spoke at the launch, and here’s a bit of what he had to say, “This championship will be very important for us. We have two new drivers; Fernando Alonso, is a twice world champion.

“Felipe, we are talking of a new version of Felipe, but after such a dramatic championship like last year with the accident in Hungary and such a fantastic season, Felipe has all the assets to prove that he is a very successful one, he can prove that he wants to restart his pathway that destiny interrupted it in Hungary. Good luck to both of them.”

Ferrari were planning for Felipe Massa to give the F10 a brief shakedown at the company’s Fiorano circuit today, but that has been called off due to poor weather.

UPDATE: Video from today’s launch is now available below (thanks to Axis of Oversteer).

UPDATE 29 January: New images added, along with statements from Fernando Alonso, Felipe Massa and Luca di Montezemolo.

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Formula 1 Red Bull Racing

Australia’s Daniel Ricciardo one step closer to F1

Daniel Ricciardo

Twenty-year-old Australian and current British Formula 3 champ, Daniel Ricciardo, has been signed for Formula One reserve driver duties with both Red Bull Racing and Scuderia Toro Rosso. Joining Daniel, in what will be a shared role, is 20-year-old New Zealand driver Brendon Hartley.

Both men took part in the F1 end of season testing at Jerez in December 2009. Ricciardo made a name for himself by topping the time sheets driving the Red Bull RB5, while Hartley also impressed at the wheel of the Torro Rosso TR4.

Even though in-season testing for Formula One has been drastically reduced in recent years Ricciardo and Hartley will get a great opportunity at learning the ropes through marketing roles and participation in team meetings.

It’s a great step for both guys who are also members of the Red Bull Junior Team. The shared role will see the drivers alternate their appearances on a race-by-race basis.

[Source: MarkWebber.com]

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Formula 1 News

USF1 bosses introduced on Speed TV

If you’re a fan of F1 you’ll have heard a bit about the impending USF1 outfit, which will be based in North Carolina. USF1 is aiming to take the grid in 2010. Speed TV recently introduced the two team principals, Ken Anderson and Peter Windsor.

Not too much is given away during this 5 minute interview, however, more details will be revealed on the USF1 website later today.

To keep up to date with all the latest, keep an eye on USF1.com.

Source: autoblog

UPDATE 26 Feb: More on the above interview can be seen at SPEEDtv.com.

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Formula 1 Honda News

Will Honda be saved by F1 virgin?

Will Honda still be f**ked if saved by Virgin?

With just six weeks to go until the 2009 F1 season begins in Melbourne time is fast running out for the former Honda Racing team to find a buyer. The BBC reports that there is hope with several buyers sniffing around the back of the Honda garage. One of those has been confirmed today as being Richard Branson. “We are negotiating with several buyers and one of these parties is the Virgin Group,” a Honda spokesman said.

While the team could be sold for as little as £1, the new buyer would have to stump tens of millions each year just to get to the grid each weekend. It is understood that Honda is willing to offer some cash if a buyer can be found, as this will be cheaper than paying out contracts of the 700-strong workforce.

The F1-Team-formerly-known-as-Honda has negotiated a deal to use Mercedes-Benz engines for the 2009 season, but the German giant has put a deadline in place for the deal to be finalised. According to the BBC report it is expected that deadline could end within a week.

Since Honda announced their withdrawal from Formula One speculation has been fairly constant that buyers are on the lookout for a deal. There was a strong rumour in late December that Mexican telco billionaire Carlos Slim Helú was prepared to be Honda’s saviour, but that proved false.

Also in BBC’s report is speculation that three Honda Racing executives could partner with current team bosses Nick Fry and Ross Brawn to form a consortium prepared to bail out the team.

With the season approaching fast, and the F1-Team-formerly-known-as-Honda still needing to undertake much needed track and crash testing before they get to Melbourne, I guess we will find the answer to this story sooner rather than later.

Source: BBC

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Ferrari Formula 1

Felipe Massa debuts Ferrari 2009 F1 car

Felipe Massa debuts Ferrari F60 Formula One car

Most F1 fans will be up on the news that Ferrari launched their new 2009 F1 car, the F60, a few days ago. Video footage has recently surfaced showing Felipe Massa driving the F60 around Mugello. TheYouTube clip, along with a few photos, are shown below.

The cars looks will quite different in season 2009, with the return of slick tyres and radical changes to the aerodynamic regulations. Just check how narrow the rear wing looks on the F60 for an example. And, with the introduction of the KERS regenerative braking system all F1 teams are working their backsides off to make it to the starting grid for the Australian Grand Prix in late March.

Massa undertook a relatively light practice session of around 100km, and explained the steep learning curve ahead, “The car is completely different to what we were used to up to last year.

“Today was not the day to do 100 laps and post times because when the rules change so greatly from one year to another, like KERS, for example, you have a completely different feeling for driving the car. In the end, we used it a little to start with and gradually increased the power and this is very positive.

“At the moment, we are at the start of a different cycle in Formula One and it won’t be an easy experience,” he said.

Don’t forget the video footage can be viewed after the jump.

Source: FerrariWorld and GrandPrix.com.au

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Formula 1

Donington Park revival gets the rubber stamp

Donington Park

You may remember news from last July that Silverstone is to be stripped of its Formula One rights after the 2009 British Grand Prix. From 2010 the race is set to be held at Donington Park, after a new 10-year deal was struck with Bernie Ecclestone. However, the North West Leicestershire complex needs a radical revamp to bring it up to modern day requirements. The last Grand Prix held at the circuit was in 1993, won on a rain soaked afternoon by Brazilian legend Ayrton Senna in a McLaren.

The rubber stamp for the new works has just been granted and the £100M (AU$215M) project is about to begin. There are just 17 months to go until the 2010 British Grand Prix.

Owner of Donington Park, Simon Gillett, is raring to go, “It starts in earnest now, and time to start focusing on 2010 and delivering the best grand prix in the world. That is what I’ve always said we would deliver, and that is what we are going to do.”

Interestingly, part of the deal with Gillett and his local district council is to create a sucessful traffic management plan to allow for easy access for fans. The current site is not well served by public transport and this is something that will need to be resolved. If Gillett fails to appease the council they have the power to impose an injunction thereby stopping the race.

Gillett plans to implement various park’n’ride initiatives in the Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire areas to bring racegoers to Donington Park. He will also limit the amount of on site parking available.

As with most decisions made in F1 these days there seems to be a fair amount of backroom politics going on, so it will be interesting to see how smoothly this development runs over the next 17 months.

Source: TimesOnline

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Carmageddon Formula 1 Honda

Honda Racing F1 Team still for sale

Honda Racing F1 Team still for sale

Despite earlier reports that Mexican tycoon Carlos Slim Helú had saved Honda’s Formula One outfit, the British based team is still looking for a buyer.

Speaking to the Telegraph in the UK, Team Principal Ross Brawn said “We would love it if it were true, but it’s pure speculation from various members of the media. It’s just been one of those rumours which has developed a life of its own.”

However, Brawn remains hopeful a buyer is not far away, “There has been a huge amount of interest,” he said. “It’s now got to the stage where we need to filter out the serious from the not so serious. We’re all hopeful that something will happen.” It is believed two interested parties could be Indian industrialist Vijay Mallya and Prodrive’s Dave Richards, who now has more time on his hands after Subaru’s withdrawal from the WRC.

Brawn says the team is ready to start the season in late March, “We have enough funding to get us through to Melbourne and we still have a competitive package.”

Source: Telegraph.co.uk (Thanks to Lee for the tip.)

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Ferrari Formula 1 Renault

Alonso could have finished Kimi’s Ferrari career

Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa - teammates in waiting?

According to a report from Diario AS, a Spanish newspaper, Fernando Alonso was offered Kimi Raikonnen’s seat at Ferrari for the 2009 Formula One season. However, Alonso’s loyalty to Renault saw him turn down the opportunity to drive alongside Felipe Massa, the report claims.

The Spanish newspaper says Ferrari’s interest came too late and Alonso did not want to leave Renault without a lead driver just three months from the start of a new season. It is believed Alonso wanted an offer from Ferrari by mid-November last year. Rumours have suggested for some time that a contract already exists for Alonso to join Ferrari for the 2010 season, after his Renault contract has expired.

The article goes on to claim that Ferrari are worried Renault will finish above them in 2009 and Ferrari’s tifosi will start asking why Alonso wasn’t secured sooner.

Source AS.com via autoblog (Picture via FernandoAlonso.com)

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Formula 1 Honda News

Honda F1 team saved by Slim’s picking?

Honda F1 saved by Carlos Slim Helu

The dreams of the Honda F1 team appear to have come true with news Mexican telecommunications billionaire Carlos Slim Helú (inset pic) has bought the team, according to a report in Italian newspaper La Stampa. Slim is reported to be the world’s second richest man and has proven experience in motorsport with his Telmex company being a long time supporter of the US based Chip Ganassi Racing.

The news is yet to be confirmed in an official capacity, and autosport.com is reporting that Slim is just one of four parties in negotiations with Honda F1 Racing.

However, according to the La Stampa article it is believed Slim paid the £1 asking price announced by Honda when confirming plans to quit Formula One. If this news comes to fruition it is likely the revitalised team will keep Britain’s Jenson Button for one of the driving positions, while the other drive will go to Brazilian Bruno Senna (pictured above during testing in November). Bruno is the nephew of F1 legend and triple world champion Ayrton Senna. This means the former Honda driver, Brazilian veteran Rubens Barichello, could be forced into retirement.

Importantly, master tactician Ross Brawn will also be kept on staff and assuming Slim throws the full weight of his finances behind the team, the F1 circus will see the welcome the addition of new privateer player on the starting grid.

Source: autoblog, AFP & autosport.com. (Thanks to Nick and Dylan for the tips.)

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Formula 1

F1 2008 – Season highlights

Formula One seasons usually have everything. Excitement, high drama, controversy, and tears. Lots of tears. On that front, 2008 delivered one of the most dramatic seasons in recent times. There was pit lane mayhem, wet weather mayhem and post race results mayhem. It was also the first season to see a race held at night under artifical light. And, of course, the last race seemed to fit almost all of these things into one single event.

If Al Gore used to be the next President of the United States, then Felipe Massa used to be Formula One’s next World Champion. A title he held, provisionally, for less than one minute. That was all the time Lewis Hamilton needed to claim the extra point he needed to secure his first F1 title. It truly was an amazing climax to an amazing season.

This clip does a pretty good job of capturing the action, the drama and, ultimately, that final lap euphoria.

UPDATE 16 December: Looks like Bernie pulled the plug on this compilation.
UPDATE 19 December: Thanks to Matt for the YouTube find (while it lasts).

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Formula 1 News

Cosworth wins exclusive F1 tender deal

Hot on the heels of Honda’s F1 exit due to financial concerns comes news of Cosworth’s exclusive tender deal to supply Formula One engines from 2010. Cosworth, of course, has a rich F1 heritage (YouTube clip above showing an old Williams engine revving to 20,000rpm is just a small example).

With this new tender deal the potential exists for all F1 teams to run Cosworth engines. However, if they choose, teams can still run their own engines, albeit with restrictions.

From 2010 any team, let’s say Ferrari, for example, can choose one of three options. The first is to simply run a supplied Cosworth engine—unlikely. Second, Ferrari could build their own new engine to Cosworth’s specification, with technical information supplied—unlikely. The third, and most likely scenario, would be that Ferrari continues to use their current engine with the freeze on technical development in place. Such moves may be necessary to bring costs down, but in 2010 a little piece of F1 will die.

Regardless of the engine choice each team makes, all teams must use a standard gearbox—a joint effort built by Xtrac and Ricardo transmissions.

The FIA is hoping to sign a minimum of four teams to run Cosworth engines by as soon as Thursday next week (11 December).

The FIA itself has described current Formula One spending as “unsustainable” and these moves are clearly designed to lower running costs, from P1 right through to the back of the field. And while the Cosworth deal may be a boost to the Northampton job market, the question must be asked: will F1 continue to be the world’s premier series for technical development and innovation?

Max Mosley’s letter to F1 teams explaining the engine and transmission deal is shown below.

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