Archive for March, 2009
Jenson Button has taken the flag to win his second Grand Prix, with the Brawn GP team in their first ever race.
Brawn had a 1-2 in their first ever GP, with Rubens Barrichello coming second and initially Jarno Trulli was 3rd, HOWEVER it has been ruled Trulli must serve a 25 second penatly for overtaking under yellow flags and subequently he falls to 11th leaving Lewis Hamilton in 3rd.
RACE REVIEW
The drivers lined up to start the season, and Jenson Button got a fantastic getaway from the line. The same cannot be said for Rubens Barrichello whose anti-stall kicked in and he was swallowed up by the field in the charge for the first corner. The Scuderia Ferrari’s looked very good off the line with the soft slicks and KERS systems, leaving Felipe Massa in 3rd and Kimi Raikkonen in 4th.
Behind them, Rubens Barrichello got nudged from nehind, putting him into a spin and he hit Mark Webber who hit Nick Heidfeld in the BMW Sauber. Both suffered big damage and had to pit, pretty much ruining their race chances.
During the same incident, Fernando Alonso ended up grass-cutting in avoidance, throwing the Renault R29 through the gravel in hsi avoidance of Heikki Kovalainen who bent all of his front suspension in, and had to retire. Barrichello’s only damage, a loss of the front wing endplate, which would be worsened with a tag onto Kimi Raikkonen a few laps later.
Jenson Button began to extend his lead, which in truth never looked in danger. The Brawn BGP001 car was clearly far superior to any other car on the circuit. The Ferrari’s and Vettel kept with them in the beginning, but the Italian marques slick tyre graining forced them to pit on just lap 10.
Nico Rosberg took advantage and put the Williams into third, but all the time he gained catching Vettel was lost in the pits with a tyre change problem. His team mate, Kazuki Nakajima smashed his car into the wall at turn 4, unloading the rear end on the raised kerb of the exit and totalled the front end. The proximity to the circuit, and the debris meant the safety car was called out.
Button has just left the pits when the Safety Car was released to initially it has Vettel leading behind it. This led to an almost DTM-Esq safety car debacle as the driver put his window down and waved the drivers passed. Almost humourous, but wasted vital laps. While all this was going on, the debris took a long while to clear and all drivers were suffering with the slick tyres cooling dramatically.
Giancarlo Fisichella took the topportunity to pit, but his brakes were poor and he ended up missing his pitbox altogether, nearly mowing down his left side tyre change crews. This cost the Italian majorly vital time when they were looking good for point scoring potential.
On the restart Brazilian Nelson Piquet Jr lost it on cold brakes and tyres and ended up submerged in the gravel trap at turn 1, nearly taking out Kimi Raikkonen from behind.
Not long after this Ferrari’s Felipe Massa slowed and ended up retiring from the race with an as yet unknown problem, possibly the KERS system broke. Kimi Raikkonen would later stuff the Ferrari into the wall leaving this a non-scorer for the Italian team, just like in 2008.
The cars continued around with Jenson Button building an unassailable lead. Sebastian Vettel in second was fighting with Robert Kubica, who tried a daring manoeuvre around the outside into turn 3, where David Coulthard smashed over Alexander Wurz in 2007. A big crash ensued today with the BMW driver puting across the front of the Red Bull car, smashing the wings off, the damage worsened when Kubica spun straight across the front of the young German.
Both had massive front end damage, leading to them both hitting the wall at turn 5, Kubica in massive fashion like Rubens Barrichello did with Ferrari some years back. Vettel lost his front left wheel but continued racing around the circuit, with the safety car out theoretically no-one could pass him and he could keep his position. We thought Vettel was a complete idiot because he would be disqualified but it turned out Red Bull bosses had told him to do this! They have now been fined and dealt with [see below].
The safety car caused a second debacle with Jarno Trulli overtaking Lewis Hamilton under a yellow flag for 3rd position. The Italian has now lost that position in a ruling by the FIA.
Kubica and Vettel’s incident left Rubens Barrichello 2nd to complete a 1-2 for Brawn in what has been frankly carnage. I am yet to be convinced by the new cars and rules.
Time-Sheet
The 2009 ING Australian Grand Prix;
Albert Park, Melbourne, Australia;
58 Laps;
Sunny/Sunset, Temp Av: 25oC.
Classified
| Pos |
Driver |
Team |
Time |
| 1 |
J. Button |
Brawn-Mercedes |
1.34.15.784 |
| 2 |
R. Barrichello |
Brawn-Mercedes |
+0.807 |
| 3 |
L. Hamilton* |
McLaren-Mercedes |
+2.914 |
| 4 |
T. Glock |
Toyota |
+4.435 |
| 5 |
F. Alonso |
Renault |
+4.879 |
| 6 |
N. Rosberg |
Williams-Toyota |
+5.722 |
| 7 |
S. Buemi |
Toro Rosso-Ferrari |
+6.004 |
| 8 |
S. Bourdais |
Toro Rosso-Ferrari |
+6.289 |
| 9 |
A. Sutil |
Force India-Merc |
+6.355 |
| 10 |
N. Heidfeld |
BMW Sauber |
+7.085 |
| 11 |
J. Trulli* |
Toyota |
Penalty |
| 12 |
G. Fisichella |
Force India-Merc |
+7.354 |
| 13 |
M. Webber |
RBR-Renault |
+1 lap |
| 14 |
S. Vettel |
RBR-Renault |
+2 laps |
| 15 |
R. Kubica |
BMW Sauber |
+3 laps |
| 16 |
K. Raikkonen |
Scuderia Ferrari |
+3 laps |
* – See penalties below
Fastest Lap: 1.27.706 – N. Rosberg, Williams
Retirements
| Driver |
Team |
Lap |
Reason |
| F. Massa |
Scuderia Ferrari |
46 |
Engine/KERS |
| N. Piquet |
Renault |
25 |
Spin |
| K. Nakajima |
Williams-Toyota |
18 |
Accident |
| H. Kovalainen |
McLaren-Mercedes |
1 |
Suspension |
Penalties
- Jarno Trulli given a 25 second penalty for overtaking Lewis Hamilton under yellow flags/safety car. Subsequently dropped to 11th place.
- S. Vettel given 10 place grid penalty for the Malaysian GP for continuing with race ending damage
- Red Bull Racing fined $50,000 for telling S. Vettel to continue with race ending damage
INTERVIEWS/COMMENT
Jenson Button (Brawn) 1st - “This is a fairy tale ending to the first race of our career together and I hope that we can continue this way and I know we are going to fight every moment we can to keep this car competitive.”
Rubens Barrichello (Brawn) 2nd – “I never thought I could finish on the podium after the start, I hit anti-stall and recovered quickly, then I was hit from behind by a McLaren and that put me sideways and I hit someone really hard. I had a lot of mixed emotions and it was fantastic, I’m delighted”
Fernando Alonso (Renault) 5th - “In terms of the overall results and looking at our competitors, we have to be happy with the result,”
Sebastien Buemi (Toro Rosso-Ferrari) 7th - “First race first point, so I’m very happy,” said Buemi. “Maybe we had a bit of luck with the accidents, but even without that we were not too bad and our strategy worked well and I am very happy with the way my race went.”
Kimi Raikkonen (Ferrari) Ret [16th] - “It was my mistake to hit the wall, it was just sudden but I spun. Looking afterwards we would probably have finished second, and it is a shame.”
PHOTOS
Start of the 2009 Season!
Turn 1 Mayhem
Turn 1 Mayhem continued...
As predicted, many cars ended up breaking those massive front wings
Kimi Raikkonen and Mark Webber both had bad days
Hamilton and Trulli fought it out
The safety car was used a few times!
Piquet crashed
Massa broke down, completing a crap day for Ferrari
Vettel and Kubica had a coming together with a handful of laps to go, runing both their podium chances
Moments after hitting Vettel, Kubica had a nasty shunt into the wall
The incident left Vettel with the questions to answer, leading to a penalty
However Button took the flag on only his second GP win!
Brawn boys 1 and 2!
VIDEO
Race Review – Courtesy of BBC, UK ONLY
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/motorsport/formula_one/7970518.stm
Full Press Conference – Courtesy of BBC, UK ONLY
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/motorsport/formula_one/7970529.stm
March 29, 2009 | Categories: 2009 Race Weekends, BMW Sauber, Brawn GP, F1 News, Ferrari, Force India, McLaren, Red Bull Racing, Renault, Scuderia Toro Rosso, Toyota, Williams | Tags: 2009 Australian Grand Prix, 2009 ING Australian Grand Prix, Australian Grand Prix, F1 BBC, Felipe Massa, Jarno Trulli, Jenson Button, Kimi Raikkonen, Lewis Hamilton, Michael Schumacher, Robert Kubica, Ross Brawn, Rubens Barrichello, Sebastian Vettel, Sir Richard Branson, Trulli Penalty | 3 Comments »
The FIA have disqualified both Toyota drivers from today’s qualifying session at the Australian Grand Prix because of illegal rear wings.
Toyota, one of the teams involvedin the running dispute over diffusers and their designs, will see both cars start the race from the back of the grid instead of the 6th and 7th places Timo Glock and Jarno Trulli had achieved.
The TF109 allegedly has a rear wing wihich flexes, illegal in the new rules and regulations.
A statement issued by the FIA said: “The Stewards have received a report from the Technical Delegate that the upper rear wing elements of cars No. 9 and 10 are showing extreme flexibility in contravention of Article 3.15 of the 2009 Formula One Technical Regulations.
“The Stewards have heard the explanation from a representative of Panasonic Toyota Racing and have examined the cars in question.
“The Stewards concur with the opinion of the Technical Delegate and find the cars contravene the requirements of Article 3.15 of the 2009 Formula One Technical Regulations.
“It is the Stewards decision that cars number 9 and 10 be excluded from the Qualifying Session Official Classification.”
Toyota are sure they can sort the problem however,
“From our point of view it is very simple,” John Howett, Toyota F1 President said. “But we need their agreement to release our car from parc ferme. We don’t expect any performance change at all, so it is quite a simple job for us.
“It is a wing we’ve had throughout testing, and I think it is a wing to which we had a similar design last year. Hopefully we will be racing tomorrow and we can demonstrate the race car at race pace tomorrow.”
Williams put in a protest saying Ferrari and Red Bull also had similar designs, but this has now been dropped. many in the media cited this as sour grapes from Williams over the running diffuser dispute.
March 28, 2009 | Categories: F1 News, F1 Technical, Toyota | Tags: Australian Grand Prix 2009, Jarno Trulli, John Howett, Timo Glock, Toyota Disqualified | Leave A Comment »
Jenson Button has slotted the brawn new Brawn BGP001 onto the pole position slot of the albert Park circuit for the 2009 Grand Prix, marking the first time a new team has gained a pole position since Jackie Stewart with Tyrrell.
Button, 29, was largely written off at the end of last season and only a month ago it looked like he would not have a drive for this season. He will be joined by Rubens Barrichello on the front row of the grid, marking a very special first race for the Brawn team born from the ashes of Honda Racing F1.
In the first session, both Force India’s were out, as were both Toro Rosso’s. Despite big gains for Force India, they still couldn;t make it into Q2, the 2005 Aussie GP winner Giancarlo Fisichella declared himself bitterly disappointed with the result.
Nelson Piquet Jr. was also out in this first session of qualifying, the Brazilian entering his second season of F1 in a poorly similar way to his first.
The big suprise was that World Champion Lewis Hamilton scraped into the Q2 session in last position, but before he could even put a lap on the board he had to retire as his gearbox was broken. The Brit’s good form of luck looks like its run out, and with the 5 place grid drop for the gearbox change he will start tomorrow’s race from last position.
Heikki Kovalainen fared no better than his team mate and ended up 14th, going out with Nakajima, Heidfeld, Alonso and Webber all of whom put in stellar laps. At one point there was just 2 tenths covering the top 9 cars.
The final session proved the Brawn cars’ dominance, they were easily fastest and with the printouts of vehicle weights we can see they were running fuel.
Vettel and Kubica did a great job in breaking the possibly illegal diffuser cars dominance of the top spots with 3rd & 4th place, followed by Rosberg, Glock and Trulli. Kubica also declined to run KERS at this event.
The Ferrari’s propped up the table, but they looked fast and potentially could have good levels of fuel. Kimi Raikkonen did some scorching laps in the F60.
Pos Driver Team Q1 Q2 Q3 Laps
1. Button Brawn-Mercedes (B) 1:25.211 1:24.855 1:26.202 19
2. Barrichello Brawn-Mercedes (B) 1:25.006 1:24.783 1:26.505 21
3. Vettel Red Bull-Renault (B) 1:25.938 1:25.121 1:26.830 21
4. Kubica BMW-Sauber (B) 1:25.922 1:25.152 1:26.914 19
5. Rosberg Williams-Toyota (B) 1:25.846 1:25.123 1:26.973 21
6. Glock Toyota (B) 1:25.499 1:25.281 1:26.975 19
7. Massa Ferrari (B) 1:25.844 1:25.319 1:27.033 21
8. Trulli Toyota (B) 1:26.194 1:25.265 1:27.127 20
9. Raikkonen Ferrari (B) 1:25.899 1:25.380 1:27.163 21
10. Webber Red Bull-Renault (B) 1:25.427 1:25.241 1:27.246 20
11. Heidfeld BMW-Sauber (B) 1:25.827 1:25.504 14
12. Alonso Renault (B) 1:26.026 1:25.605 12
13. Nakajima Williams-Toyota (B) 1:26.074 1:25.607 16
14. Kovalainen McLaren-Mercedes (B) 1:26.184 1:25.726 15
15. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes (B) 1:26.454 no time 5
16. Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari (B) 1:26.503 10
17. Piquet Renault (B) 1:26.598 12
18. Fisichella Force India-Mercedes (B) 1:26.677 10
19. Sutil Force India-Mercedes (B) 1:26.742 9
20. Bourdais Toro Rosso-Ferrari (B) 1:26.964 10
March 28, 2009 | Categories: 2009 Race Weekends, BMW Sauber, Brawn GP, F1 News, Ferrari, Force India, McLaren, Red Bull Racing, Renault, Scuderia Toro Rosso, Toyota, Williams | Tags: 2009 Australian Grand Prix, Australian Grand Prix, Australian Grand Prix Qualifying, Brawn GP, Jenson Button, Kimi Raikkonen, Lewis Hamilton, Rubens Barrichello, Sebastian Vettel | Leave A Comment »
Nico Rosberg continued his run of form from the morning session to top the timesheets in the second free practice of the day in Australia.
Pos Driver Team Time Laps
1. Rosberg Williams-Toyota (B) 1:26.053 36
2. Barrichello Brawn-Mercedes (B) 1:26.157 + 0.104 38
3. Trulli Toyota (B) 1:26.350 + 0.297 42
4. Webber Red Bull-Renault (B) 1:26.370 + 0.317 30
5. Button Brawn-Mercedes (B) 1:26.374 + 0.321 38
6. Glock Toyota (B) 1:26.443 + 0.390 42
7. Nakajima Williams-Toyota (B) 1:26.560 + 0.507 33
8. Vettel Red Bull-Renault (B) 1:26.740 + 0.687 19
9. Sutil Force India-Mercedes (B) 1:27.040 + 0.987 29
10. Massa Ferrari (B) 1:27.064 + 1.011 35
11. Raikkonen Ferrari (B) 1:27.204 + 1.151 32
12. Alonso Renault (B) 1:27.232 + 1.179 28
13. Fisichella Force India-Mercedes (B) 1:27.282 + 1.229 32
14. Heidfeld BMW-Sauber (B) 1:27.317 + 1.264 34
15. Kubica BMW-Sauber (B) 1:27.398 + 1.345 36
16. Bourdais Toro Rosso-Ferrari (B) 1:27.479 + 1.426 36
17. Kovalainen McLaren-Mercedes (B) 1:27.802 + 1.749 35
18. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes (B) 1:27.813 + 1.760 31
19. Piquet Renault (B) 1:27.828 + 1.775 35
20. Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari (B) 1:28.076 + 2.023 33
March 27, 2009 | Categories: 2009 Race Weekends, BMW Sauber, Brawn GP, F1 News, Ferrari, Force India, McLaren, Red Bull Racing, Renault, Scuderia Toro Rosso, Toyota, Williams | Tags: 2009 Australian Grand Prix, Australian Grand Prix, Nico Rosberg | Leave A Comment »
Nico Rosberg took top spot in a highly contested free practice session, the first of 2009.
Pos Driver Team Time Laps
1. Rosberg Williams-Toyota (B) 1:26.687 19
2. Nakajima Williams-Toyota (B) 1:26.736 + 0.049 21
3. Raikkonen Ferrari (B) 1:26.750 + 0.063 24
4. Barrichello Brawn-Mercedes (B) 1:27.226 + 0.539 21
5. Kovalainen McLaren-Mercedes (B) 1:27.453 + 0.766 15
6. Button Brawn-Mercedes (B) 1:27.467 + 0.780 12
7. Massa Ferrari (B) 1:27.642 + 0.955 24
8. Glock Toyota (B) 1:27.710 + 1.023 24
9. Sutil Force India-Mercedes (B) 1:27.993 + 1.306 20
10. Alonso Renault (B) 1:28.123 + 1.436 16
11. Heidfeld BMW Sauber (B) 1:28.137 + 1.450 20
12. Trulli Toyota (B) 1:28.142 + 1.455 21
13. Kubica BMW Sauber (B) 1:28.511 + 1.824 22
14. Fisichella Force India-Mercedes (B) 1:28.603 + 1.916 16
15. Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari (B) 1:28.785 + 2.098 27
16. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes (B) 1:29.042 + 2.355 18
17. Webber Red Bull-Renault (B) 1:29.081 + 2.394 7
18. Piquet Renault (B) 1:29.461 + 2.774 25
19. Bourdais Toro Rosso-Ferrari (B) 1:29.499 + 2.812 21
20. Vettel Red Bull-Renault (B) 1:32.784 + 6.097 4
March 27, 2009 | Categories: 2009 Race Weekends, BMW Sauber, Brawn GP, F1 News, Ferrari, Force India, McLaren, Red Bull Racing, Renault, Scuderia Toro Rosso, Toyota, Williams | Tags: 2009 Australian Grand Prix, Australian Grand Prix, Nico Rosberg | Leave A Comment »
Ross Brawn has launched a scathing attack on Scuderia Ferrari over the current diffuser row that is surrounding his new team, Brawn GP.
The Brit was the technical director of Ferrari for many years, guiding Michael Schumacher to many of his titles with one of the world’s most famous marques.
Brawn accussed Ferrari of only being concerned because someone was driving faster than them, and also continued stating that there was nothing wrong with their design. Adding, if they were clever enough they could have come up with it too.
“Ferrari have only woken up because someone has driven faster than them,” Brawn is quoted as saying by the Mirror.
“The accusations are coming from teams who did not come up with the idea and now they are getting angry.”
“For anyone who has read the rules it was quite obvious,” Brawn concluded.
March 26, 2009 | Categories: Brawn GP, F1 News, Ferrari | Tags: Ross Brawn | 4 Comments »
What would Formula One be without a good old protest? This is likely to be the case once again now the FIA stewards have given Brawn GP, Toyota and Williams the go ahead for their two tier diffuser systems.
Rivals are mounting protests claming they breach the rules, while Ross Brawn has said they just interpreted the words differently.
The diffuser is believed to be one of the main reasons the BRawn GP car – the BGP001 – is so fast and has been so convincing in testing.
Red Bull Racing have threatened to pull their cars out of the Australian Grand Prix, while they along with Scuderia Ferrari and others are readying protest appeals which will be heard on April 5th.
The diffusers being scrutinised
March 26, 2009 | Categories: Brawn GP, F1 News, F1 Technical, Toyota, Williams | Tags: F1 Diffuser Row, F1 Diffusers, FIA, Red Bull Racing Protest, Scuderia Ferrari Protest | Leave A Comment »
The start of the new season is upon us, the weeks of testing, early morning starts and all down to those few seconds as the 20 cars line up on the grid, pulses racing, the heat exhuding from the Bridgestone slick tyres, seconds feel like hours, the V8′s groan as they fire up to the top of their rev ranges…..BANG…..the lights go out and its a complete free for all as the cars race down to the first corner.
With all the new technical regulations this season, who knows what will happen but I for one cannot wait for the garage doors to open and the cars to start putting in laps. You can throw the form book out of the window, no-one knows what will happen.
The Track
The circuit is a street based one, around Albert Park and lake area not far from central Melbourne. It never really feels like a street track, but every year it takes weeks of preparations to get the place ready for racing. It has been flattened out in 2006, and with fast lines it is regarded as an easy circuit by the drivers. It is a notoriously difficult place to overtake, but creates a good spectacle as the first race of the season.
The future of the track as the host of the Australian Grand Prix was in doubt, but the circuit is now confirmed to be hosting the race until 2015, but the owners do not want it turned into a night race event like Singapore.
A lap of the track
Flat out down the main straight, one of the few places to really get the throttle down. Brake hard into the first corner, a hard right, tap the apex on the inside before throwing the car back over to the left. Grip that apex for a little longer before the car pulls onto the outside, maybe even touching the grass a little as you put the power down before turn 3. Hard on the brakes here, flipping the paddles down the gears, before a tiny speed burst and again hard on the brakes for turn 4, power out of the corner hard hitting the apex on the outside, watch not to unbalance the car as it is a little raised. Pull the car back to the left, feather the throttle through turn 5. Turns 6 and 7 require a little brakes and then a throttle feather before unleshing the V8 again before hard braking into turns 9, which is similar to turn 4. Curved exit on 10 makes it easier to put the power down – watch the wall on the outside the scene of many tyre scuffs over the seasons. Flat through 11 and 12, this is harder now the car has less downforce on it than previously. As you head to turn 13, get the car as far left as possible, dab the brakes and throw the car on to just tap the apex. Same for 14. As you exit 14, look for the tiny apex on the left and then push the car back over to the right for turn 15, hard on the brakes about 60mph through here, watch the pitlane entrance, swing the car into the straight and flat out over the line.
Enjoy a lap with Michael Schumacher in the Ferrari F2004
Pre-Event Thoughts
Giancarlo Fisichella [ITA], Force India: “I was quite optimistic for the season after the first test, but I am not so excited now because unfortunately the car came late and we haven’t tested enough. Mechanically the car looks alright, with the engine and gearbox running very well, but we need downforce.
We are struggling with the grip, so for the first four races away from Europe I think we are going to struggle like last year. But hopefully when we come back in Barcelona we will have KERS and a new package, I hope it is a good step forward. The midfield may be a little bit difficult, but we will see.
Fernando Alonso [ESP], Renault: “We finished last year strongly and we want to start the new season fighting for podiums and race wins. We will go to Melbourne aiming to win but knowing that we will have a real fight on our hands.”
Timo Glock [DEU], Toyota: “It would be great to be on the podium or even win the first race – it would be a dream. I just try and do 100 per cent. I want to come out of this weekend with the same feeling that we had over the tests – that we are in a strong position and that we have a good potential to develop the car over the year.”
Felipe Massa [BRA], Ferrari: “We are ready to start the championship and I hope we will be as competitive as in the previous years.”
Pre-Event Photos
March 25, 2009 | Categories: F1 News, Race Previews | Tags: 2009 Australian Grand Prix, 2009 ING Australian Grand Prix, Australian Grand Prix, BBC TV, F1 2009, Felipe Massa, Fernando Alonso, Kimi Raikkonen, Lewis Hamilton | Leave A Comment »
Christian Klien, Paul Stoddart and former F1 driver Zsolt Baumgartner have done their bit to help lift the spirits of those affected by the major Australian bushfires ahead of the first Grand Prix of the season.
Many people died in the blazes, some natural and some started by heartless arsonists. Thousands have been left homeless.
Christian Klien demonstrated a BMW Sauber through the packed streets of Kinglake before Paul Stoddart allowed some of those affected the opportunity to have a passenger ride in his two seat Minardi F1 car, driven by Hungarian Zsolt Baumgartner.
Speaking about his experience afterwards, Klien said: “We saw on the news back in Europe what happened with the fires, and I flew there this morning by helicopter and you could see what happened to the land there.
“It was nice to bring the people up there a bit of happiness and to run our Formula 1 car there. You really could see the smiles on the faces of the kids, and it was a really nice thing to do.”
Damon Hill with the Minardi 2 Seater at a former demonstration in the UK
March 24, 2009 | Categories: BMW Sauber, F1 Gossip, Former F1 Teams | Tags: Australian Bush Fires, Bush Fires, Christian Klien, Kinglake, Minardi, Paul Stoddart, Zsolt Baumgartner | Leave A Comment »
The FIA have published the final entry list for the 2009 F1 season today.
It includes 2 teams changing driver numbers, with Felipe Massa becoming ‘#3 and Raikkonen #4, and Toro Rosso changing Bourdais and Buemi over.
It is the first time Brawn GP have appeared on a list, and their numbers are confirmed as 20 and 21, as they are being treated as a new team with the final garage in the pitlane despite taking over Honda.
1 Lewis HAMILTON (GB) VODAFONE McLAREN MERCEDES McLAREN MERCEDES
2 Heikki KOVALAINEN (FIN) VODAFONE McLAREN MERCEDES McLAREN MERCEDES
3 Felipe MASSA (BRA) * SCUDERIA FERRARI MARLBORO FERRARI
4 Kimi RÄIKKÖNEN (FIN) * SCUDERIA FERRARI MARLBORO FERRARI
5 Robert KUBICA (PL) BMW SAUBER F1 TEAM BMW SAUBER
6 Nick HEIDFELD (D) BMW SAUBER F1 TEAM BMW SAUBER
7 Fernando ALONSO (E) ING RENAULT F1 TEAM RENAULT
8 Nelson PIQUET (BR) ING RENAULT F1 TEAM RENAULT
9 Jarno TRULLI (I) PANASONIC TOYOTA RACING TOYOTA
10 Timo GLOCK (D) PANASONIC TOYOTA RACING TOYOTA
11 Sébastien BOURDAIS (F) * SCUDERIA TORO ROSSO STR FERRARI
12 Sébastien BUEMI (CH) * SCUDERIA TORO ROSSO STR FERRARI
14 Mark WEBBER (AUS) RED BULL RACING RBR RENAULT
15 Sebastian VETTEL (D) RED BULL RACING RBR RENAULT
16 Nico ROSBERG (D) AT&T WILLIAMS WILLIAMS TOYOTA
17 Kazuki NAKAJIMA (J) AT&T WILLIAMS WILLIAMS TOYOTA
18 Adrian SUTIL (D) FORCE INDIA F1 TEAM FORCE INDIA MERCEDES
19 Giancarlo FISICHELLA (I) FORCE INDIA F1 TEAM FORCE INDIA MERCEDES
20 Jenson BUTTON (GB) BRAWN GP FORMULA ONE TEAM BRAWN MERCEDES
21 Rubens BARRICHELLO (BR) BRAWN GP FORMULA ONE TEAM BRAWN MERCEDES
* Driver number change requested by the team and approved by the FIA.
March 23, 2009 | Categories: BMW Sauber, Brawn GP, F1 News, Ferrari, Force India, McLaren, Red Bull Racing, Renault, Scuderia Toro Rosso, Toyota, Williams | Tags: F1 Drivers 2009, FIA | Leave A Comment »
Stefano Domenicali, team principal of Scuderia Ferrari has told an Italian newspaper of how he found the debacle surrounding the new point system in F1 a complete embarrassment to the sport.
The FIA decided to change the point system at the last moment, to one which the FOTA and drivers did not want. Still, the FIA ploughed ahead. Only after FOTA found a rule which claimed all teams had to be in agreement (which they of course wree not) and also many protests from drivers past and present including Michael Schumacher, Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton led to the FIA backing down and changing their minds.
The result in the end was a good one, but Domenicali reckons the way in which it all happened was a complete joke.
“It seems embarrassing to me what has happened in the last few days,” Domenicali told the Gazzetta dello Sport newspaper on Monday.
“We wanted a bigger difference between the winner and the others, instead it stays like 2008. Oh well.”
March 23, 2009 | Categories: F1 News, Ferrari | Tags: FIA, FOTA, Max Mosley, Point System F1, Stefano Domenicali | Leave A Comment »
Pat Symonds, the technical director of the Renault F1 team has admitted he is confident that the teams 2009 car, thew R29, can win races at the hand of former World Champion Fernando Alonso.
After double title successes in 2005 and 2006, the team endured a terrible 2007 season. The start of 2008 was not much better, but returning Alonso turned their fortunes around and put in some great races culminating in a terrific victory in the first ever night F1 GP at Singapore.
Of course, all team bossess should imagine they would win, but Symonds reckons that the imagination is turning to reality and that their car could win races, despite not being the best looking.
“The target I set at the beginning of the season is always the same: to be winning races and challenging for the championship – it would be wrong to have any other intention,” said Symonds.
“However, when you start tempering your expectations with reality, you may moderate that target a little bit.
“Nonetheless, I do believe that we’ve got a car that is good enough to challenge for wins and when you combine that with our drivers and the team’s ability to go racing, I’m fairly confident we can deliver a strong start to the season.”
March 23, 2009 | Categories: F1 News, Renault | Tags: Fernando Alonso, Flavio Briatore, Pat Symonds, Renault R29 | Leave A Comment »
Motorsport officials in Rome have suggested a “One-Off” street race in the city to be held in 2010, rather than a full time position on the F1 calendar after fans and team bosses were cool to the idea of Rome holding a full time Grand Prix.
Bernie Ecclestone was very pro the idea of a race being held around the historical Capital city of Italy, but Max Mosley and Luca di Montezemolo were concerned – prefering the race to be held at Monza, one of the spiritual homes of racing.
However with FIA officials making frequent visits, the rumour mill is spinning to the prospect of the one off race which could possibly be the European Grand Prix of 2010 if Valencia’s street track is not better than in 2008 this season.
“The possibility of running a Grand Prix in Rome in 2012 is ever more feasible,” Aleesandro Cochi, Rome’s sport minister is quoted as saying by the news agency ANSA.
Some private investors are prepared to cover the costs of the event, and this is warming Di Montezemolo to the idea.
“I’ve spoken to Bernie and if, as it appears, the costs can be totally borne by private investors, I think it would be interesting to make an in-depth assessment of its feasibility,” Montezemolo said.
Roman driver Giancarlo Fisichella demonstrated F1 to the city a couple of years ago
March 21, 2009 | Categories: F1 News, Tracks | Tags: 2010 European Grand Prix, 2010 Italian Grand Prix, Bernie Ecclestone, Italy, Luca Di Montezemolo, Max Mosley, Monza, Roma, Rome, Rome F1, Rome GP | 2 Comments »
F1′s governing body the FIA have started to backtrack over their decision to make changes to the points system regarding victories over point score.
The new rules have prompted wide criticsm from drivers past and present including Michael Schumacher and Fernando Alonso.
The Formula One Teams Association (FOTA) gave the FIA a statement saying that changes as large as these could not be implemented without unanimous support of all the teams.
The FIA have responded with this statement:
“On 17 March, the FIA World Motor Sport Council unanimously rejected FOTA’s proposed amendment to the points system for the Formula One Drivers’ Championship. The ‘winner takes all’ proposal made by the commercial rights holder (who had been told that the teams were in favour) was then approved.
“If, for any reason, the Formula One teams do not now agree with the new system, its implementation will be deferred until 2010.”
The FIA...in disarray
March 20, 2009 | Categories: F1 News, FOTA | Tags: FIA, New Point System F1 | Leave A Comment »
McLaren’s new team principal Martin Whitmarsh has seriously played down McLaren’s chances of getting on the podium of the Australian Grand Prix, let alone winning it.
Over the 2007 and 2008 seasons McLaren have experienced a resurgence to form under the helm of Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton, the latter now the reigning world champion.
However, the teams new car, the MP4-24 which is highly different due to the new rules, is causing them problems and has been seriously off the pace. At times McLaren have been 3-4 seconds slower than the faster cars, Ferrari, Brawn, BMW and Toyota all have dialled down packages.
Despite some good form int eh last 2 days of testing, Whitmarsh still holds the opinion that his team is going nowhere fast.
“We go into the start of the 2009 season fully aware that we do not yet have the technical package that will allow our drivers to fight at the front,” said Whitmarsh in a team preview.
“In Formula 1, there is nowhere to hide: that’s what makes our sport so demanding and yet so endlessly fascinating.
“And as a team that goes grand prix racing with the expectation of winning races and challenging for world championships, we therefore go to Melbourne with realistic expectations.
“Nonetheless, we begin our season with huge determination to re-assert ourselves at the front and we will not rest for a moment until we have done that. Most importantly, we haven’t forgotten how to win.”
Hamilton himself admitted that things aren’t going well.
“[I don't think] McLaren comes to Melbourne with the same prospects to challenge at the front that we experienced in both 2007 and ’08, but the whole team will be working tirelessly to help us move back to the front.”
March 20, 2009 | Categories: F1 News, McLaren | Tags: Lewis Hamilton, Martin Whitmarsh | Leave A Comment »
Former 7 Time World Champion Michael Schumacher, and one of his former rivals, 2 time champion Fernando Alonso have both publically slammed the FIA over their rule changes relating to the budget caps, a two tier aerodynamic rule system and the new point/win idea for world champions.
Schumacher made an open post on his official website, saying that KERS is a very debatable idea, but at least everyone is facing the same issues, which makes it exciting. With the teams under a budget cap being able to change aero, and those with all the money can’t, Schuey reckons this is just blatently stupid.
“During the tests we had to fight with several topics as well but this is more than normal at this stage prior to the season,” Schumacher wrote on his personal website.
“But you also have to say that KERS is a risk for all the teams using it, with this restricted testing possibilities. So there are, as always, certain question marks before the first races. But this is what makes the whole thing so attractive, isn’t it?
“I doubt the same goes for the new rules given out on such a late moment prior to the season – something which to me is really, well, astonishing, as in all the years, when the majority wanted to have a rule change for a good reason, they always said that would not be possible in a short term or so late before a season.
“I cannot imagine those changes to help F1, especially regarding the new system to find the champion. I cannot see how it makes sense to eventually have a world champion who has less points than the driver coming in second, even if I also think it is a good move to try to strengthen the winner’s position.
“In general we should also make sure that F1 remains the top series of motorsport, displaying its competition also on the highest technology level.”
Fernando Alonso was not too impressed either on a post on his own webpage,
“I don’t understand the need to change the rules of the sport constantly. I think this kind of decisions can only confuse the fans,”
“Formula 1 has existed for over 50 years thanks to the teams, the sponsors, the drivers and, above all, the fans from all over the world, and none of them have been able to express their views in front of the FIA.
“I worry, not so much about the decisions that affect the season that’s about to start, but, above all, those that affect the future of the competition in the coming years.
“I hope somehow these measures can be reconsidered in the short-term.”
March 20, 2009 | Categories: F1 News, F1 Rules, Michael Schumacher | Tags: Fernando Alonso, Michael Schumacher, New F1 Rules | Leave A Comment »
The governing body of Formula One, the FIA have today announced big changes to the point system and also the option of a budget cap from next season.
As the points system changes are so big, I shall mention the budget cap which sees teams have an optional £30m budget, in exchange for spending around 90% less they get more aerodynamic freedom which theoretically should lead to faster cars. Teams that don’t will be subjected still to tough regulations.
The points system change means that now the driver who wins the most races is world champion, the 10-8-6…. point system remains but it is only used to determine the order of finishes in the table behind the leading race winner, and for the constructors championship which remains unchanged after the new proposals.
The FIA have rejected the FOTA proposal of a new point system of 12-9… to allow a greater gap. The FIA also said returning to the previous 10-6-4-3-2-1 system would not happen.
“The WMSC accepted the proposal from Formula One Management to award the drivers’ championship to the driver who has won the most races during the season,” said the FIA in a statement.
“If two or more drivers finish the season with the same number of wins, the title will be awarded to the driver with the most points, the allocation of points being based on the current 10, 8, 6 etc. system.
“The rest of the standings, from second to last place, will be decided by the current points system. There is no provision to award medals for first, second or third place. The Constructors’ Championship is unaffected.
“The WMSC rejected the alternative proposal from the Formula One Teams’ Association to change the points awarded to drivers finishing in first, second and third place to 12, 9 and 7 points respectively. “
The news has angered fans globally, and once again shows how out of souch the FIA are with what we want. The budget cap is ludicrous and I can see that been banished.
The new point system has thrown into debate the idea that 13 Drivers Titles should have been awarded to other drivers had the new system been in place back in the day. For example, Alain Prost would have won his championships much earlier, but lost 2 of them to Ayrton Senna and Nigel Mansell. Rosberg would never have won one, instead Didier Pironi would have it and more recently Felipe Massa would have beaten Lewis Hamilton.
March 17, 2009 | Categories: F1 News, FOTA | Tags: Alain Prost, Bernie Ecclestone, Denny Hulme, Felipe Massa, FIA, FOTA, Jim Clark, Lewis Hamilton, New F1 Points, New Point System Formula One | Leave A Comment »
Jean Todt, the former CEO of Ferrari and team principal of the F1 team has resigned from all positions within the Italian marque and has officially left all of his positions it was announced today.
The Frenchman, who joined Ferrari in 1993 and was instrumental in bringing German Michael Schumacher to the team, who later won 5 World Championships and with team mates numerous construcotrs titles decided last year to quit his role on the F1 team.
Todt was awarded with the post of CEO of Ferrari’s road car division in 2006, as Luca di Montezemolo became the managing director of the Ferrari company. Todt has overseen car launches including the 599 GTB Fiorano, F430 Scuderia and recently the critically acclaimed California.
“Jean Todt has been one of the leading protagonists of the Ferrari story of the last 15 years,” declared Montezemolo.
“Skill and passion have always characterised his work and have won him my persona respect and affection, the one of the Company as a whole and of the Prancing Horse enthusiasts everywhere.
“I would like to wish him the very best for the future which I hope will prove extremely satisfying both personally and professionally.
“All of these years we’ve spent together – victories and tough times included – have forged a link between Jean Todt and Ferrari that will never be broken.”
March 17, 2009 | Categories: F1 News, Ferrari | Tags: Jean Todt | Leave A Comment »
Fernando Alonso was fastest during the final test before the start of the F1 season in Jerez.
The Spaniard put in over 100 laps to power ahead of the Brawn GP cars who have been incredibly impressive since their birth just a couple of weeks ago.
“I’m happy with the day as we did more than a 100 laps which was our target for my final day of winter testing,” said Alonso.
“This has been the first time we have run on a really hot track and the information we have from today will be very useful for the first few races, which are usually very hot.”
Rubens Barrichello was punted down to second place after topping the sheets on day 1. It was the first time Barrichello’s name had been atop of a timesheet for a significant time, most likely since he left Ferrari.
Jenson Button took over duties in the afternoon for Brawn but only managed 12 laps when his car stopped out on track. He was still third.
Lewis Hamilton managed 4th place, the McLaren looking a little faster but still lagging behind its rivals.
Nico Rosberg was 5th and last for Williams on the day they announced that the skate fins project had been abaondoned amid safety concerns.
Pos Driver Team Time Laps
1. Alonso Renault (B) 1:18.343 103
2. Barrichello Brawn-Mercedes (B) 1:18.398 62
3. Button Brawn-Mercedes (B) 1:18.892 12
4. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes (B) 1:19.513 85
5. Rosberg Williams-Toyota (B) 1:19.783 123
Fernando Alonso was fastest
Rubens continues his good form
Hamilton and McLaren still struggling
Williams drop the "Skate-Fins" from the FW31
Device on the McLaren MP4-24 diffuser
Rear detail of the BGP001. Featuring new BrawnGP logo, no sponsors as yet...
March 16, 2009 | Categories: Brawn GP, F1 News, F1 Testing, McLaren, Renault, Williams | Tags: Brawn GP, Fernando Alonso, Hamilton, Jenson Button, Lewis Hamilton, Nico Rosberg, Rubens Barrichello | 3 Comments »
Dr Mario Theissen has admitted in an interview with Autosport that BMW Motorsport are fully committed to Formula One for the long term.
When the Honda Motor Company pulled out of F1 at the end of last season, BMW along with Toyota and Renault were alleged to be considering a similar exit leaving F1 with only Ferrari as a big manufacturer.
However, no more teams have left, and Brawn GP who have risen from the ashes of Honda seem a convincing replacement, perhaps even a better team.
Toyota have slashed their budgets, and here BMW are saying that F1 is right at the core of their company. The greatest world motorsport is pivotally vital to them and their brand development, alongside their World Formula BMW series’ and the WTCC entries.
“Today, BMW is spending 40 percent less on its involvement in Formula 1 than in 2005,” he said.
“Back then we were an engine supplier, but now have our own team, of course. Significant savings have been achieved through increases in the mileage required of each engine.
“When BMW returned to Formula 1 in 2000, we were using one engine for free practice, replacing it for qualifying and then fitting another new one for the race. This outlay has since been gradually reigned in and today each driver has to make do with eight engines for the full duration of the season.
“The heavily reduced testing schedule has brought further substantial budget savings. Testing on race circuits is banned outside of race weekends until 31 December 2009. The only exception will be tests for junior drivers with no GP experience after the season has finished. So we have put together a whole package of measures to reduce costs.”
March 16, 2009 | Categories: BMW Sauber, F1 Business, F1 News | Tags: BMW in F1, Mario Theissen, Nick Heidfeld, Robert Kubica, Williams BMW | Leave A Comment »
A museum cataloguing former F1 driver David Coulthard’s career is set to close.
The Scottish driver who retired at the end of last season had a fruitful racing career eventually leading him to be in F1 for over 10 years and gain race wins with the McLaren team.
Four years ago Coulthard’s sister abandoned running the museum after she moved away from their birthplace of Twynholm. Afterwards, a Coulthard-Superfan – Wendy McKenzie – took over running the museum.
McKenzie told F1Live: “Short of a miracle, it will not be opening to the general public again.”
It is believed that diminishing interest in Coulthard, who is now an advisor to Red Bull Racing and a pundit of the BBC Sport F1 coverage is the reason for close.
March 16, 2009 | Categories: F1 Gossip | Tags: David Coulthard, David Coulthard Museum | 2 Comments »
Brawn GP have maintained their good form into one of the last tests before the F1 circus packs up and heads for the first race in Australia.
Today it was Brazilian, Rubens Barrichello who topped the timesheet of just 3 cars with a highly respectable 1.19 lap time.
With Brawn’s fantastic performance over the past week, they have been grabbing headlines globally and it has been hinted at that the pace shown from the BGP001 is totally genuine. Ferrari’s Felipe Massa claimed that the biggest threat now came from the Brackley based team.
Fernando Alonso was second, but he had a heavy crash in the morning. Alonso admitted that this was driver error.
“Unfortunately I made a mistake this morning which was a shame as we lost a lot of track time, but sometimes this happens in testing when you are looking for the limits of the car,” he said.
Nico Hulkenberg stepped into the Williams after testing for his new GP2 team ART GP this week, but was 3rd and last lagging 2 tenths behind the Renault.
Pos Driver Team Time Laps
1. Barrichello Brawn-Mercedes (B) 1:19.236 102
2. Alonso Renault (B) 1:19.819 40
3. Hulkenberg Williams-Toyota (B) 1:20.013 69
March 15, 2009 | Categories: Brawn GP, F1 News, F1 Testing, Renault, Williams | Tags: Brawn GP, F1 Testing 2009, Fernando Alonso, Nico Hulkenberg, Rubens Barrichello | Leave A Comment »
Jenson Button sent a clear message out to the other teams in Barcelona today….that he and Brawn GP were here to fight for the wins, not to just make up the numbers.
The British driver built on earlier success yesterday from Rubens Barrichello who was third fastest (behind Raikkonen and Nakajima).
“It’s been another great day and a very positive test generally,” said Button.
“After the challenges we have faced, to come here and get off to such an encouraging start is just what we all needed and I can’t thank the team enough. All that effort has really paid off and everyone can feel very proud.”
In second place was Felipe Massa for Ferrari, who completed a full race weekend simulation, with a small hydraulic problem leaving him stranded out on track during the afternoon.
Kubica, Glock, Alonso and Vettel all put in respectable performances for their teams, proving that F1 is most certainly not going to be a two horse race this season – it is wide open.
The second horse over the past few years has been McLaren and once again they were clearly struggling. Over 2.5 seconds off Button’s fastest time and with Hamilton behind the wheel, it was disappointment for the British based team. Someone had clearly spent more time adjusting the MBE logo put on Hamilton’s car than actually sorting out the aerodynamics. Dennis says they’re sandbagging, everyone else is not so convinced especially consdering Hamilton stuffed it into the barriers – not exactly sandbagging…
Pos Driver Team Time Laps
1. Button Brawn-Mercedes (B) 1:19.127 124
2. Massa Ferrari (B) 1:20.168 109
3. Kubica BMW Sauber (B) 1:20.217 109
4. Glock Toyota TF109 (B) 1:20.410 99
5. Alonso Renault R29 (B) 1:20.863 107
6. Vettel Red Bull-Renault (B) 1:21.165 102
7. Rosberg Williams-Toyota (B) 1:21.324 89
8. Fisichella Force India-Mercedes (B) 1:21.545 97
9. Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari (B) 1:21.569 140
10. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes (B) 1:21.657 82
Jenson was fastest...
...making Mr. Brawn a happy man!
Felipe continues to show Ferrari consistency
Kubica, up there with a shout again
Vettel - Looking on the pace despite a small off
Hamilton & McLaren.......struggling
March 11, 2009 | Categories: BMW Sauber, Brawn GP, F1 News, F1 Testing, Ferrari, Force India, McLaren, Red Bull Racing, Renault, Scuderia Toro Rosso, Toyota, Williams | Tags: Barcelona Testing, Felipe Massa, Fernando Alonso, Jenson Button, Lewis Hamilton, McLaren Struggling, Ross Brawn | 3 Comments »
Kimi Raikkonen stormed to the top of the timesheets on day 2 of testing in Barcelona, just a couple of weeks before the season start.
The Finnish driver was easily faster than second place man Kazuki Nakajima, although Raikkonen could only complete 55 laps after a KERS system problem, one of Ferrari’s first reliability problems over the recent tests.
Rubens Barrichello got behind the wheel of the Brawn GP BGP001 for the first time and after putting in 111 laps, the Brazilian found himself in 3rd place. That car is showing real promise.
Trulli followed in 4th, with a much better day from Webber in 5th and then Heidfeld in 6th.
Kovalainen was 9th for McLaren, lagging slightly behind the Renault of Alonso.
The Toro Rosso’s dream start with the new STR4 is not going too well, major problems with the car which means they need parts to be sent from the Faenza factory hampered running and saw their drivers propping up the table just a day after launch.
Pos Driver Team Time Laps
1. Raikkonen Ferrari (B) 1:20.314 55
2. Nakajima Williams-Toyota (B) 1:20.907 66
3. Barrichello Brawn-Mercedes (B) 1:20.966 111
4. Trulli Toyota (B) 1:21.182 121
5. Webber Red Bull-Renault (B) 1:21.347 66
6. Heidfeld BMW-Sauber (B) 1:21.615 127
7. Sutil Force India-Mercedes (B) 1:21.834 82
8. Alonso Renault (B) 1:21.937 111
9. Kovalainen McLaren-Mercedes (B) 1:21.991 88
10. Bourdais Toro Rosso-Ferrari (B) 1:23.039 14
11. Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari (B) no time 6
Impressive display from Kimi
Rubens proves the BGP001 is a good car
Nakajima had a good day
McLaren still struggling and using the hi-viz paint
Michael keeping an eye on things at Ferrari
Trulli - consistent
Pitstop practice vital
March 10, 2009 | Categories: BMW Sauber, Brawn GP, F1 News, F1 Testing, Ferrari, Force India, McLaren, Red Bull Racing, Renault, Scuderia Toro Rosso, Toyota, Williams | Tags: Brawn GP 001, Jerez Testing, Kazuki Nakajima, Kimi Raikkonen, McLaren Green Paint, Michael Schumacher, Rubens Barrichello | Leave A Comment »
