F1 2011 Launch Catch Up – McLaren, Mercedes, Red Bull, Sauber, Toro Rosso, Renault…
Catching up on the launches in one mega post. Here in you’ll find quick interviews with senior members of the team and photos from the Red Bull, Sauber, Renault Lotus, Toro Rosso, Mercedes and McLaren launches.
Apologies for being somewhat late, the whole blog isn’t running at full power until the season starts again.
Red Bull RB7
The world champions launched their new car, named the RB7. A clear advancement on the hugely successful RB6, hopes are high that this machine can deliver once again.
“This year is no different to any other,” said Christian Horner, team principal of Red Bull.
“I think if we had not have won either championship last year there would have been that expectation and obviously the pressure that comes with that. We’ve achieved that and achieved that in a short space of time and I think it is like winning your first grand prix.
“Out of that comes confidence but not arrogance, but the team goes into this year very, very motivated and very committed but you have to remember we are still an independent team with a customer engine that achieved some remarkable things last year and that is our target again, again, obviously this year.”
Sauber C30
The independent Swiss team pulled the covers of their new car, the C30 marking the second incarnation of the team in its modern era. The new car is backed heavily by Mexican giants Telmex and will be raced by Kamui Kobayashi and Sergio Perez.
Former Force India but now Sauber technical director James Key said: “Our aim in the development of the Sauber C30-Ferrari has been to build on the strengths of the C29 and to eliminate its weak points.
“In addition, it is also important for us to go into winter testing with a car we understand, and we have worked hard on ensuring the characteristics of the car are heading in a direction we believe in. There will be much to learn about the new Pirelli tyres and in this respect we want to ensure there are no surprises with the way the car is handling.”
“My rookie season was a very challenging, very exciting period,” Kamui Kobayashi commented at the launch as he enters his second full season of racing.
“Now it’s still exciting but it’s a different role. It’s more the experienced driver in the team. I am thinking how I can bring a good level to the team.
“I have to be ready to lead the team. That’s why Peter Sauber and the team chose me for this year. This is definitely my challenge and let’s say I am ready to be the leader for the team.”
Renault Lotus R31
Newly backed by Group Lotus, Renault pulled the covers off their new car – the R31 – to a mass of media wondering what the final paint scheme would look like, and wondering how the Lotus name debate would go on. The debate on the name may still be rumbling, but there is no debate over how fabulous the car looks in classic JPS brown and gold.
Featuring front blown exhausts, it looks fast and could be a title contender. And with Bruno Senna as a spare driver, it harks back wonderful memories seeing the yellow helmet inside a JPS liveried Lotus.
“I’m happy that we had some creative designs on the car. We clearly back our team and definitely our technical team because we want to be fast, we want to be at the front.” said team principal Eric Boullier
“We know it takes time. You have to be creative. You have to find different ways of creating downforce or performance points. We have been taking this path because we believed, quite early in 2010, that we could find more gains going this way.
“In the wind tunnel, or on paper shall we say, the car already has more performance than 12 months ago. If it’s on the car it’s because we believe it works. But we will see on the track.”
Meanwhile Robert Kubica, the number 1 driver was somewhat cautious on their chances ”I think realistically speaking is far too early to say what will be possible to achieve this year,”
“Last season was quite disappointing and let’s hope this year will be different. I think definitely we are more prepared this year, because of the more stable situation in the team than last winter, when I joined the team.
“The winter of 2009 and 2010 was very difficult for Renault and I think this year the engineers and designers had a much easier time and much more time to design the car and I think they have done a really good job.”
Scuderia Toro Rosso STR6
Toro Rosso, always in their senior brothers shadow has brought a new design to the table and hopes it will deliver them more success this season in the capable hands of Jaime Alguersuari and Sebastien Buemi.
The pairing are aiming for 6th place in the Ferrari powered beast.
“My expectations are to do a decent year and we have to have the target to be eighth and as I said, we are good to be ninth but we have to do better. And at the end of the year we have to bring back an eighth place,” said Giorgio Ascanelli.
“Last year we didn’t have a wind-tunnel, the CFD was not mature in order to define the car,” he added. “Therefore, we did not change very much apart from those elements linked to the change of regulation between 2009 and 2010.
“This year the tools which design the car in its performance aspect, which are again the wind tunnel and CFD, are more mature, which means that although we are still learning how to make the best of them I think we have started using them properly.
“For this year, we have to aim for eighth place, because that is our target and I didn’t think that was possible if we had gone with some sort of conventional car.”
Mercedes Benz WO2
Mercedes Benz will be hoping that their second modern F1 car can deliver them some more success than last season. With Michael Schumacher and Nico Rosberg behind the wheel they have plenty of potential. A well sponsor backed car now features the light green of Petronas merging into the brushes silver paintwork. Ross Brawn, the technical mastertmind behind multiple drivers world championship wins will be eager to deliver the German squad some success.
“It is always a thrill to see a new car ready to take the track for the first time and this year is no exception,” said Brawn. “After our first year as the Mercedes-Benz works team, we are now seeing the benefits of our chassis and engine groups working well together.
“With a good technical structure and a strengthened race engineering organisation, both at the factory and the race track, I am confident that we have done and will continue to do a better job this year in all key areas.
“We want to be setting the standard right from the start but if we are not, we will respond very strongly to get ourselves into the game. Everyone is excitedly waiting to see what the new season will reveal.”
Meanwhile top driver Michael Schumacher was upbeat on the chances of the car delivering him a record breaking 8th world championship.
“I very much look forward to the new season. We have said it several times already but again, we are really to building up something big together. I am very confident that this season we will be standing on the podium much more regularly; ideally in the middle!”
McLaren MP4-26
McLaren launched their radical new car in Berlin in a ceremony hosted by lead sponsors Vodafone. The car will be raced by two former world champions, Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton.
The new car features L-Shaped sidepods, and a two tier floor amongst other technical advancements. The squad are already looking at incorporating a front blown exhaust similar to the Renault Lotus’ design.
Lewis Hamilton was very happy with the machine on launch day.
“I hope the car proves just as innovative once we take to the track next week,” said Hamilton. “I head into 2011 in a relaxed but determined frame of mind.
“I’ve spared nothing during my winter fitness preparations and, in many ways, I feel as fit, focused and refreshed as I did ahead of my first season in Formula 1 in 2007.
“Having spent the past few weeks talking with our designers and engineers, I feel extremely happy that we’ve created a car that will once again allow us to fight at the front.”
Red Bull Racing Share Out Staff Bonuses For Winning Title
Red Bull Racing owner Dietrich Mateschitz has handed out all of the staff bonuses to his team following their double world championship victory this season, according to German newspaper Bild.
It has been estimated that the majority of the 500 staff in Milton Keynes were given £10,000 for their troubles over the season, while more senior staff earnt themselves a bonus of about £42,000 for their part in the victories.
World Champion Sebastian Vettel earnt himself around £2.6million for winning the world championship, on top of the extra sponsorship money and revenue he will now command following the championship victory. Proctor & Gamble have already signed a new sponsorship deal with the young German.
It is merely a drop in the ocean for owner Mateschitz, himself a millionaire, who is expected to receive about £62million in prize money for the championship wins. He has always maintained however that his wallet is not a bottomless pit when it comes to the budget for the team, they are estimated to have a middle ground budget of between €300million and €500million. Toyota were the top budget spenders in F1, but it is likely that Ferrari have regained the crown of the largest spenders in F1.
Toro Rosso Sale Denied – Many Interested In Purchasing Team
Dietrich Mateschitz has been forced to deny that one of his Formula One teams, Scuderia Toro Rosso is up for sale.
It had been reported online earlier this week that the team, based in Faenza, was up for sale at a paltry €30million. The team was formerly known as Minardi until the end of 2005 when Mateschitz took control of the outfit and rebranded it to fit in with his Red Bull portfolio. Designed as a feeder team to the main Red Bull squad, it had been using repaints of the senior teams cars until this year when the rules on customer cars was finally sorted.
The team are most famous for producing the 2010 title challenger Sebastian Vettel who joined at the end of 2007, winning their first and only Grand Prix at Monza in 2008. He was then promoted to the senior Red Bull Racing team.
“There are constant rumors about it, but now we have no plans to sell Toro Rosso,” Mateschitz’s PA told 422race.com.
Despite the denial of sale there are reported to already be a number of people interested in purchasing the team, should Mateschitz decide to sell. These include Carlos Slim, the Mexican entrepreneur who has always been interested in buying in to the F1 dream. Another interested party is Jacques Villeneuve along with the Duragno group who failed to succeed in becoming the 13th team for 2011. Stefan GP have also been linked with purchasing the team now they have severed all links with the former Toyota outfit.
Raikkonen Backs Away From 2011 F1 Return But Considers 2012 Date
Kimi Raikkonen has backed away from claims he was about to make a shock return to Formula One next season with the Renault team.
Raikkonen, who won the F1 world championship in 2007, left the sport at the end of last season. He now races in World Rally with the Citroen Junior Team in partnership with Red Bull.
Reports from within the Renault team camp suggested that they had made an offer for Kimi to join Robert Kubica at the team for next season replacing Vitaly Petrov. However today Raikkonen suggested he was happy with rallying, for the time being at least.
“I don’t miss Formula 1 and I am enjoying what I am doing now,” Raikkonen told reporters
“I have still not decided what I am doing next year yet. Soon I have to decide, maybe it will be just after Rally Finland.”
Meanwhile Oliver Quesnel of Citroen Motorsport was confident the Finn would sign for another season.
“I’m sure this will happen,” he said. “For myself, he is really involved in rallying and he wants to succeed. I will be pleased if he will stay. he has done one year and he needs to do one more year to make sure.”
Red Bull are said to be very happy with their partnership with Raikkonen, and there is still a possibility he could return to F1 in 2012 but with the high flying Red Bull team in place of Mark Webber. He would theoretically be racing alongside Sebastian Vettel.
Red Bull Gives You Wings…..Unless Your Name Is Mark Webber
Red Bull’s slogan gave me that terrific title you read above, okay perhaps its no better than something you might read in a tabliod newspaper like The Sun but this weekend’s controversy surrounding the Red Bull Racing team once again highlights the problems with in-team politics and the effect it can have on the drivers.
Mark Webber was denied the use of the new Red Bull front wing, after his was given to team mate Sebastian Vettel for qualifying whose new wing had been damaged in Saturday morning practice. The Australian was duly annoyed when Vettel took pole position. It was another item of favouritsm toward the young German from this season, Webber is even using one of Sebastian’s old chassis.
Despite all of this, Webber managed to win the Grand Prix – barging Vettel off the road into turn 1 – but no amount of nice press photos with Christian Horner and Adrian Newey could put the lid on the problems within the team. Mark claimed down the radio on victory “not bad for a second driver”, a clear point towards his status within the team – or at least his percieved status. Red Bull had defended themselves by claiming they were giving the championship leader the advantage, but we will see if that is true in Germany as Webber now leads the standings ahead of Red Bull favourite Vettel.
“Whether the gap between us in qualifying was the difference between the two front wings, I don’t know,” said Webber after last weekend’s British Grand Prix. “But it was a far from ideal situation and it definitely made my win taste even sweeter.”
Christian Horner came out in the Monday newspapers claiming he regretted not speaking with Webber before the decision was made, and he categorically denied that it had anything to do with Helmut Marko or Dietrich Mateschitz the owners of the Red Bull Energy Drink brand.
“There has never been any pressure from Red Bull to favour one driver over the other.” Horner told The Daily Telegraph in England
“I didn’t have a conversation with Helmut or anyone from Red Bull regarding the decision to give Sebastian the wing. It was purely a technical decision, which I discussed with Adrian [Newey].
“My one regret is that I didn’t have time to discuss the issue with Mark personally prior to qualifying as I’m sure that would have given him a more balanced understanding.”
We have seen many instances of team bias and favouritsm over the years, most recently with the arguments between Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso at McLaren, a row which has never really been cleared up and forced the Spaniard to leave the team and then earlier between Michael Schumacher and Rubens Barrichello during their time at Ferrari.
Top teams have trouble keeping their drivers together and motivated, especially when they are fighting for the championship – Barrichello even had trouble with Brawn GP last year with their dominance. However this is the first time we have seen the management of a team really getting involved and openly favouring one driver over another, even during the Schumacher days at Ferrari they did not willingly pass equipment or new parts over Barrichello – definitely not during a race weekend in any case.
The path Red Bull now tread with Webber is a difficult one, but they really have the Australian cornered to an extent. He has signed a new contract, and there aren’t really any race seats with top teams on offer for next season. He could potentially leave the team, who are looking likely to win the world championship, and head to Renault alongside Robert Kubica. That would leave the door wide open for Red Bull sponsored rally driver Kimi Raikkonen to come back to F1. Or Webber can just live with the favouritism toward Vettel and get on in trying to win the World Championship.
Nick Fry, the CEO of Mercedes Benz has seen these problems before, having dealt with the Button/Barrichello problems last year and advises Red Bull to sort the issues out quickly otherwise they have the potential of shooting themselves in the foot.
“I do sympathise on the one hand with them,” said Fry
“But one of the main points is to stop shooting yourself in the foot. Just looking at it from the outside, there seems to be a case of Red Bull causing more problems than they need to.
“They have clearly got the fastest car by quite a margin, and they should be way ahead of the rest of us, and they are not. So they do need to look at themselves and try and work out what they are doing wrong.
“They are beating themselves – which is very satisfying for the rest of us but it should not be what they are up to.”
All I know is, I am glad I am not in Christian Horner’s shoes this week!!
Happy families?
2010 British Grand Prix Preview
Back in 2009 at the British Grand Prix we all believed it would be the last time we would see Formula One cars racing around Silverstone as the race was set to move to Donington Park. However, Donny messed it right up and with a lot of bartering with the master Bernie Ecclestone, the British Grand Prix was saved and it is back at the home of British motorsport, Silverstone.
However it is doubtful if you are heading to Silverstone this weekend, or just watching it on television, that you will recognise the circuit. The layout has been changed, the new “arena” complex will be used for the race. Originally designed for motorbike racing (Silverstone now hosts the British MotoGP round). The circuit retains the fast Copse and Magotts corners before hitting the Hangar Straight down to Stowe. Vale and Club also remain. However the big changes are up at Abbey. You will now see the cars turning right at Abbey, not left then under Bridge. Farm is as good as abandoned, and there is a small straight which bears slightly to the left before a sharp right, left right combination known as Village, The Loop and Aintree before drivers hit the Wellington Straight. This straight then merges back onto the old circuit at Brooklands before the cars loop around the final Luffield hairpin before hitting the Grand Prix straight.
Silverstone Data File:
Dates: 9th-11th July
Location: Silverstone Circuit, Northamptonshire – England
Laps: 52
2009 Winner: Sebastian Vettel
One’s to watch…
- Sebastian Vettel – The 2009 race winner is looking to get back on to top form
- Fernando Alonso – The Ferrari star admits they need a win, looking to get some points after the Valencia debacle
- Lewis Hamilton – He loves nothing more than a home win, and can smell the 2010 title
- Michael Schumacher – His form has to pick up soon….right?
From the Twitter waves….
From @TheFifthDriver – Jenson Button driving the Vodafone camper to Silverstone this morning
From @LucasdiGrassi the Virgin driver – the new pit complex being constructed
Horner Dismisses Raikkonen F1 Return Rumours
Christian Horner has openly dismissed the rumours circulating that his red Bull Racing team was about to hand the 2007 World Champion Kimi Raikkonen a race contract for the 2011 season.
Raikkonen quit Ferrari at the end of last season so the team could take on Fernando Alonso. After failing to agree terms with McLaren, the former champion Raikkonen went off to race in the World Rally Championship for the Citroen Junior Team. At the time there was speculation he had a return to F1 contract signed with Red Bull, following the drink manufacturer becoming the Finn’s title sponsor with Citroen.
When asked about Kimi returning was a possibility Horner said ”No. Kimi has committed himself to rallying, and he seems to be enjoying that environment.
“We have been happy with the job that Mark is doing, so why would you change?”
Mark Webber now looks set to recieve a big contract to stay with the team for another year, as the 2011 silly season’s big movers are set to stay in their current environments. Felipe Massa is set to be offered another contract by Ferrari and Robert Kubica will commit himself to another season with Renault.
“When we sit down and talk about it, it will be very straightforward,” said Horner. “Mark is an important member of the team, he enjoys driving for the team and we have a great balance between our two drivers. So, it is the usual thing – if it is not broken, don’t fix it.
“I think that it is clear where our intent is, it is clear where his intent is. It is just a matter of sorting out the paperwork with his management, but in the coming weeks I am sure that will be sorted.”
Force India and Red Bull Racing To Run F-Ducts In Turkey
Force India and Red Bull Racing have confirmed that they will be running F-Ducts in the practice sessions for the Turkish Grand Prix this weekend as they evaluate whether the air flow control mechanism is a worthy new technical advancement to their cars.
Vitantonio Liuzzi told reporters that the Force India team were very confident of their system, a system which is operated by the drivers wrist.
“We are really optimistic about it,” Liuzzi said. “You can never know. It might change tomorrow, but the team has done a big work in the wind tunnel for the last two weeks to test it and it seemed to work pretty well.
“Tomorrow we’ll get the confirmation because on track you never know, but we are pretty optimistic that it should be spot on.”
“We made a simple system with the wrist so we don’t have to take the hand off the steering wheel,” he added.
Meanwhile Red Bull Racing’s man of the moment Mark Webber told reporters in the pre-race press conference that Red Bull were to evaluate their own F-Duct system as they try and maintain their recent dominance.
“Yes, we will give the F-duct a go tomorrow,” Webber said during a pre-event press conference in Turkey. “We will give it a chance.”
Ferrari, who were one of the first teams to use the system are going to try a variation on the position of the hole that needs to be covered in order to stall the air during practice.
F-Duct air vent
Australian GP 2010: Button Wins First Race For McLaren
Jenson Button turned a race of the highest quality today in Australia to win his first race for the McLaren team, on a circuit where he dominated with Brawn last season.
Robert Kubica grabbed a heroic second place for Renault, and Felipe Massa hung on to third mostly thanks to his team mate Fernando Alonso.
Race Review
There was always an outside chance of rain at the Melbourne circuit, and it came just before the race leaving everyone to start on intermediates on a damp, cold circuit. The race was always going to deliver the excitement that we didn’t get in Bahrain and it came thick from the first corner.
Fernando Alonso got a poor start, in contrast to team mate Felipe Massa. Alonso came into turn 1 and was punted from the inside by Jenson Button, pushing the Spaniard into Michael Schumacher. The two former World Champions got damage and were forced to the back of the field, Schumacher by a pit stop and Alonso by the virtue that he was spun 180.
Further down the first lap, Kamui Kobayashi’s Sauber lost its front wing on the straight for no reason, sending him in an out of control slide into Sebastien Buemi and Nico Hulkenberg knocking all 3 out of the race and bringing the safety car out for the first time.
This allowed Alonso and Schumacher to bunch up the back of the field, and Alonso cut through the field brilliantly, while Schumacher got held back and only ended up finishing in 10th place, his overtaking less competent than Alonso’s and certainly less competent than we are used to from the former master. Is it the car or is it Schumacher?
Massa had got in front of Webber before the safety car, but lost position when it went into the pits, leaving the Brazilian scrapping with Kubica and Rosberg for 3rd, 4th and 5th. Jenson Button pitted early for some slick tyres, a move which seemed crazy but eventually led him to win the race. He was setting hot lap times and the rest of the field pitted, but it was poor timing for Massa who ended up well behind the pack of McLaren’s, Red Bull’s, Kubica and Rosberg, while at this point he was being caught by Alonso and Hamilton both of whom had worked their way through the field.
Only the Red Bull’s did not pit, leaving it a bit late. Vettel got away unscathed, but Webber on cold tyres made a mistake into turn 1, and cars zipped passed him with ease. However only a handful of laps later, and Massa looked poor once again, with Webber slotting passed and Hamilton following. Later on a similar move would cause Massa to force team mate Fernando Alonso off the track and to lose positions that he ultimately would not recover.
A scorching Hamilton now hassled Rosberg, whom he passed with ease around the outside into 13. His charge only cooled by waved yellows from Sebastian Vettel’s stranded Red Bull, the young cocky German had stuffed it into the gravel trap with suspected brake failure.
The crash handed Button the lead, and allowed Kubica second place which would ultimately be the final positions for the two who decided not to pit for fresh slicks. The optional second pit stop was instigated by Michael Schumacher, who down in 12th decided on some fresh soft Bridgestones and was lapping nearly 2s per lap quicker. Hamilton and Webber were notable names to pit, but both Ferrari’s did not pit.
Felipe Massa appeared to be holding up Fernando Alonso but it was lucky for the Brazilian his resilient team mate was behind as Alonso began a heroic drive to the finish. With Hamilton gaining 2seconds or more per lap on the Ferrari’s, Alonso managed to hold off the charge from the British former World Champion and his McLaren nemesis for over 10 laps to the finish a brilliant piece of driving skill which should have been rewarded with a trophy.
But with 2 laps remaining, a hot headed Mark Webber once again clashed with Lewis Hamilton leading them both to finish much further down the points than they should have done, but Alonso’s work was not done as Nico Rosberg charged to the back of the Ferrari but couldn’t make a move stick.
Liuzzi and Barrichello were 7th and 8th, having a quiet race amidst all the action. Schumacher took the final points position, with Alguersuari just behind the young Spaniard giving the old German a hard time and no doubt learning more than ever before. De La Rosa was 12th, but the best mentions have to go to Heiki Kovalainen who finished another race for Lotus and Karun Chadhok who managed to FINISH the race for Hispania, unbeliveable! Congratulations to both teams.
Race Results
| Pos | Driver | Team | Time |
| 1 | J. Button | McLaren Mercedes | 1.33.36.531 |
| 2 | R. Kubica | Renault | +12.034 |
| 3 | F. Massa | Ferrari | +14.488 |
| 4 | F. Alonso | Ferrari | +16.304 |
| 5 | N. Rosberg | Mercedes Benz | +16.683 |
| 6 | L. Hamilton | McLaren Mercedes | +29.898 |
| 7 | V. Liuzzi | Force India Mercedes | +59.847 |
| 8 | R. Barrichello | Williams Cosworth | +1.00.536 |
| 9 | M. Webber | Red Bull Renault | +1.07.319 |
| 10 | M. Schumacher | Mercedes Benz | +1.09.391 |
| 11 | J. Alguersuari | Toro Rosso Ferrari | +1.11.301 |
| 12 | P. De La Rosa | Sauber Ferrari | +1.14.084 |
| 13 | H. Kovalainen | Lotus Cosworth | +2 laps |
| 14 | K. Chandhok | Hispania HRT | +4 laps |
Retirements:
| Driver | Team | Lap | Reason |
| T. Glock | Virgin | 41 | Fuel |
| S. Vettel | Red Bull Renault | 26 | Brake Failure |
| L. Di Grassi | Virgin | 25 | Hydraulic |
| A. Sutil | Force India | 12 | Unknown |
| V. Petrov | Renault | 10 | Accident |
| B. Senna | Hispania HRT | 5 | Unknown |
| S. Buemi | Toro Rosso Ferrari | 1 | Accident |
| N. Hulkenberg | Williams | 1 | Accident |
| K. Kobayashi | Sauber Ferrari | 1 | Accident |
| J. Trulli | Lotus Cosworth | 1 | Fuel Pressure |
Post Race Interviews
Jenson Button – McLaren Mercedes (1st): “It is very special. It has taken me a little while to get to grips inside the car, but the team has been fantastic and welcomed me in. It is difficult to put it into words, it is a very special feeling and we will take a lot from this. I feel I am building in confidence, and I hope in the next rate we can do something similar as this feels too good.”
Robert Kubica – Renault (2nd): “To be honest we were not expecting to finish on the podium, for Renault and myself it is a special result. We were pushing hard during the winter and this was the best result we could get for the beginning of the season. This is big thanks to all the guys. We have to stay realistic, we are not up to pace to finish on the podium normally. We need to keep pushing and I am sure we will manage sooner or later to be on the pace.”
Felipe Massa – Ferrari (3rd): “I had a fantastic start, without wheelspin, and I saw many cars, especially Fernando and [Mark] Webber having some wheelspin. I did a very smooth start and passed them in a very good way. I was happy with the start and whole race was very difficult, very slippery and low grip everywhere. My best result in Australia before was sixth, and in 2007 I had problems in qualifying and started last. It’s not the best race for me in terms of pace, and we lost some positions at the pitstop and a bit on track because of mistakes, so it is fantastic to have one second and one third.”
Fernando Alonso – Ferrari (4th): “It was a fantastic result in the end for the team, and for myself as well. So, I was ready to sign before the race for this result – if you win the race you take seven points to your main competitor. Now, I took 12 points to Vettel, to Michael and to some of the main rivals for the championship. So it has been a much better race in terms of points than Bahrain, if you compare with your main competitor. I was not convinced that I could recover the positions to get into the points, [but] the car was perfect, and now even thinking through the race and all the analysis – there is the possibility that you can win the race even starting last because the car was so much quicker today than all the others.”
Vitantonio Liuzzi – Force India (7th): “Another great race and another great result for the team,” said Liuzzi, who charged back from 13th place to score points for the second race in succession. It’s a confirmation of the pace we showed in Bahrain and the work the team did over the winter. We worked hard all weekend for this seventh place and it’s a brilliant result at the end of what was a crazy race.”
Michael Schumacher – Mercedes Benz (10th): “I could have had a good race today so it was a pity that I was hit right after the start,” Schumacher said. “That incident decided my race obviously. But things like that happen and you have to just say ‘that’s racing’. I had to take the remainder of the race from last position but I have to say that I was still having fun as our pace today was promising and for part of the race, we were going quicker than the top group. It was nice to pick up a point and we can take that good feeling into the next race where we will look forward to another challenge.”
Heikki Kovalainen – Lotus Cosworth (13th): “I enjoyed it today and had good fun out there. Our target was to finish the race and from the start we were quite comfortably ahead of the new teams. When [Virgin’s Timo] Glock dropped out I just focused on keeping up a decent rhythm, not making any mistakes and bringing the car home. Now we go to Malaysia with a good feeling and we’re all looking forward to that.”
Karun Chandhok – Hispania HRT (14th): “To finish was very difficult today, and all the more satisfying because of that. I dedicate this race result to all the mechanics and engineers who worked so hard since Bahrain, without any pre-season testing. This is a fantastic day for the team and a great step forward. I am proud to have ended our first race. We achieved the best result we could do today. We have to keep pushing and working and we will manage to finish even higher.”
Christian Horner – Red Bull Renault Team Boss: “Ultimately an extremely disappointing day. Having been in control of the race, the second in succession, Sebastian unfortunately retired with what looks like a wheel related issue (front left), which certainly cost him a comfortable race win today. It was cruel luck for him for the second year in a row here in Australia.”
Tony Fernandes – Lotus Racing Team Owner: “I’m disappointed for Jarno, but Heikki did us proud – three places away from a point, and he was keeping pace with most of the other cars throughout the race. Maybe it would have been nice if three other cars had gone out so we could get a point, but, joking aside, it is good that at this stage of the season we’re already thinking about points. We’re in a nice position for Malaysia.”
CONFIRMED: Raikkonen WRC Deal Done!
A deal taking 2007 F1 World Champion Kimi Raikkonen into the World Rally Championship has been confirmed this morning after large speculation the Finn had signed on the dotted line last night.
Raikkonen vacated his race seat at Ferrari at the end of last season to allow Fernando Alonso a shot with the Scuderia for 2010 onwards.
He has joined the Citroen Junior World Rally team, with Red Bull backing alongside Sebastian Ogier.
However rumours that it will lead to an F1 drive with Red Bull Racing for 2011 for Raikkonen have been quashed somewhat in an interview with a Red Bull spokesperson.
“This has no prejudice at all for Kimi’s further F1 career if he intends one” He said
“It does not mean at all that he will replace a current Red Bull F1 driver in our team from 2011.”
Raikkonen admitted he is delighted to reach a life time goal and compete professionally in rallying.
“I always wanted to compete in rally, especially in the World Rally Championship at some point in my career,” said Raikkonen.
“Thanks to Red Bull, I have the opportunity to drive the best car of the series with the Citroen C4. This is a new but very exciting challenge.”
Raikkonen On The Verge Of Signing World Rally Deal
Kimi Raikkonen is said to be on the verge of signing a lucrative deal for a season of racing in the World Rally Championship.
The Finnish driver parted company with Ferrari at the end of the season to make way for Fernando Alonso. Taking a £10million pay out across 2010 for not contuing in F1 for a season, Raikkonen’s sabbatical year seems to be taking him to gravel and sand as opposed to another circuit racing series.
The 2007 champion has tried his hand at rally driving before.
The deal is understood to be backed by Red Bull sponsorship, and would see Raikkonen driving the latest Citroen C4 machinery, which has propelled Sebastian Loeb to another World Championship in the sport last season. The Red Bull backing really does seem to cement the theory that in 2011 Raikkonen will make a shock move to the Red Bull Racing F1 team to partner Sebastian Vettel in place of Mark Webber.
It was published on a website tonight that Raikkonen “is understood to be ready to sign a deal”.
Former WRC champion Petter Solberg told WRC.com this evening; “With the proper practice, planning, and testing I think he will adapt quickly,”
“He’s a very, very good driver, and once he’s learned the basics, like how to work with pace notes, I think he will surprise many people.
“If he’s in a decent World Rally Car next season I think he could finish between third and fifth on some rallies,” Solberg predicted for the Finn’s maiden season. “The fact is, if you can drive, you can drive.
“You have to be on the case and you need some balls,” he added.
Buemi Confirms Toro Rosso Launch Next Monday
Sebastien Buemi has confirmed that the Scuderia Toro Rosso car for the 2009 season will be launched on Monday.
The car, named the STR4 will share a lot of similarities with the Red Bull Racing RB5. The similarity is hardly suprising given two things; firstly the link between the Red Bull team and Toro Rosso and secondly the fact that all of the Toro Rosso’s have been Red Bull’s so far:
- 2006 STR1 was a 2005 Red Bull RB1, indeed it still had the Cosworth V10′s even though everyone else had V8′s
- 2007 STR2 was 2006 RB2, but had a few parts from the 2007 car later in the season.
2008 STR3 was a 2008 Red Bull RB4, park them next to each other and they’re the same.
Indeed the only difference between the RB5 and the STR4 will be the engines, Red Bull run Renault units but Toro Rosso continue their partnership with Ferrari which last season was to their advnatage finishing higher than Red Bull and also scoring a victory with Sebastian Vettel at the Italian Grand Prix.
“It’s like the Red Bull, only in our colours!” Buemi told Swiss newspaper Blick
Sato Gets Another Toro Rosso Test
Takuma Sato has been handed another test with the Scuderia Toro Rosso team.
The popular Japanese driver, who has shown serious speed in the past but conjoined with multiple accidents, has been out of a drive since Super Aguri went bankrupt last season.
Toro Rosso have been looking for an experienced driver to go alongside a young-gun. It is thought that Sato will be fighting it out with Rubens Barrichello, Sebastien Buemi, Bruno Senna and Sebastien Bourdais to get one of 2 seats up for grabs.
Taking on Sato would be useful for the Red Bull Energy Drink brand in Japan where it has struggled to establish a good position.
A statement on Sato’s website said: “We are extremely happy to announce that Takuma will be testing again for Toro Rosso in Barcelona on 17-18 November.
“Toro Rosso have yet to decide on their driver line up for the 2009 season. We would like to thank all the fans, as ever, for their fantastic support for Takuma and look forward to more good news soon.”
Senna and Loeb Get F1 Tests
Bruno Senna and Sebastian Loeb have been handed F1 tests.
Senna’s is an evaluation for the 2009 season with the Honda team, to take the place of veteran Rubens Barrichello who is not confirmed for the new season. Senna has had much motorsport success through lower ranks, and Honda are confident he can perform at F1 level already.
It has too been widely reported that Honda’s title sponsor for 2009, BR Petrobras, want a young Brazilian to be driving for them.
“I am obviously very excited about being given my first Formula One test and to have that opportunity with Honda is a dream come true.” Senna told presses yesterday,
“Although I am still only in my fourth year of motor racing, I have wanted to test an F1 car for a very long time and I feel that I am ready for that challenge. I have already spent some time at the factory in Brackley and have enjoyed meeting the team and working with the engineers to prepare for this test. Everyone has been very supportive and it is particularly special for me to have the chance to work with Ross Brawn.
“This is a big opportunity so I want to learn as much as I can before I get to Barcelona. I hope to show the team what I can do, so it’s up to me now to do a good job.”
Bruno Senna
Sebastian Loeb has also got a test with the Red Bull racing team. The frenchman, who won his fifth WRC Title last week is getting the test as part of Red Bull’s on-going sponsorship of the Citroen WRC Team.
It is not the first time he has taken the wheel of an F1 car, after a demonstration with Renault. However, this is his first proper test alongside other drivers. Loeb says however, that F1 is not his future, rallying is.
“I’m absolutely delighted by this present from Red Bull to celebrate my fifth title,” he said. “I already got the chance to test a Formula One car last year, but this time the circumstances will be a little different.
“I’m now going to find myself in the midst of all the regular F1 drivers during an official test. I just hope that I don’t make a fool of myself!
“I’d like to clear up any speculation about me possibly switching to F1 next year, I’m definitely going to be driving a Citroen C4 WRC in the World Rally Championship.”
Sebastian Loeb testing Renault
Mateschitz Backing Out Of Selling STR
Dietrich Mateschitz would appear to be backing out of his decision to sell his half share in the Scuderia Toro Rosso team.
In an interview with a popular Austrian newspaper, the businessman reckoned that he may have been too hasty in his decision to sell up. Indeed, if an offer that he couldn’t refuse came he’d sell but otherwise he is looking likely to be onboard for 2009.
He admitted concerns over customer cars and parts for 2009 though.
“It might happen that we leave everything as it is,” he told Austrian newspaper Salzburger Nachrichten this weekend. “We haven’t been informed about the new rules yet and it depends on what is written down there – which parts each team must design and produce individually.
“We will see if an interested buyer shows up, but it might happen that we do not want to sell at all any more. Right now, I would say nothing is fixed yet.”
Mateschitz also confirmed that Frenchman and multi ChampCar title winner Sebastien Bourdais is in contention for a seat at the team. “We will check all the possibilities,” he said.
“Bourdais remains one of them, but overall, there are not that many possibilities.”
The possibilities so far we believe are: Sebastien Bourdais, Sebastien Buemi, Takuma Sato, Bruno Senna and Nelson Piquet.
A1 Ring To Be Re-Built
The A1 Ring in Austria is set to be reconstructed after Red Bull boss Dietrich Mateschitz was given the green light by local government of the area to build a new motorsport facility.
The track will be called Spielberg New and is set to be completed by 2010. It will follow the layout of the former A1 Ring track which held races between 1997 and 2003, although the Osterreich Ring held races through the 1970′s and 1980′s.
Mateschitz bought the track in 2005 not long after the purchase of Jaguar F1 team. He wanted to turn the track into a private testing facility for his team, but as testing restricitons were being imposed.
It was hoped the track could host a round of the DTM next year but environmentalists protesting have caused the work problems.
Mateschitz is investing 70 million euros alongside a 10 million grant from the Styrian Government.
Vettel Takes Maiden Victory At Monza
Sebastian Vettel has taken his first ever win at Monza this afternoon. The 21 year old from Germany takes the record as the youngest ever grand prix winner (previously Alonso), and also makes Toro Rosso’s first ever win.
Race Review
The race started under the safety car as conditions were very wet, and the FIA wanted the drivers to have a “taster” of the circuit before they went racing. Sebastien Bourdais luck was out before he started, the Toro Rosso wouldn’t go anywhere, and being under safety car there is no formation lap and he had to be wheeled to the pits to try and get him started.
In the beginning everyone was ambling around, but when the safety car came in it all kicked off. Vettel was tenths of a second faster on every lap than anyone else, he showed great courage and probably luck in the fact he had no spray to deal with!
Further back drivers were trading places, but everyone was paranoid about driving over chicanes after “Chicane gate”. Massa had to give a place back, as did many others.
Lewis Hamilton pushed his way through the field, passing Raikkonen like he was stood still despite having much more fuel than the Finn.
Both he and Raikkonen had previously dispatched Giancarlo Fisichella, but when the Italian tried to defend against David Coulthard he knocked his nosecone. coming down to the parabolica, Fisichella’s nose completely disintegrated and he went straight into the barriers.
Hamilton was going fast still while most of the other drivers were struggling to make overtakes stick. The track was growing drier and drier, and while most made a stop and put Extreme wets on, Hamilton continued and stopped on lap 27, a clear 1 stop strategy. Intellegence was coming frmo the radars that rain was coming so Hamilton put extreme wets on his car, it would prove to be a mistake.
No rain was coming, and the track was getting drier all the time. David Coulthard then Fernando Alonso came in and gambled on the wets. It worked for Alonso who was lapping well faster than everyone else. Felipe Massa changed too at his scheduled stop, as did most of the rest of the field. Robert Kubica’s stop was perfectly timed to take the intermediate tyres, and this paid dividends turning a quite race into a podium finish.
This meant that Hamilton was losing time on the wrong tyres, and his strategy of 1 stop was thrown out of the window as McLaren acknowledged his need to change to inermediates. He did so, but ruined his chances of winning. Webber was catching Hamilton very easily as the Brit wasn’t getting them up to temperature. Webber tried to outbrake Hamilton round the outside into the first chicane, but Hamilton bumped wheels with the Australian forcing him across the grass.
From there, Massa kept Hamilton behind easily, it never really looked like the McLaren would gain enough advantage to pass.
Towards the end there was more incident. Jenson Button crossed the chicane into turn 1 and clean scraped the side of Nelson Piquet, not really sure what was going on but there was carbon fibre all over the place. A lap later Piquet would powerslide his Renault across the grass, just a couple of incidents the driver had there.
Kimi Raikkonen came right through, passing laods of people and getting the fastest lap time, bringing it down 4 times in a row, this will anger many Ferrari fans who will be left feeling “why didn’t he do it sooner?” once again, 3 races in a row without points for the Finn.
Rubens Barrichello pitted late to put extreme wets on, but it was a stupid gamble as no rain ever came. Late stops for Intermediates from Toyota and Williams drivers left them nowhere near any points.
RACE RESULTS
Classified Results:
The Santander Italian Grand Prix;
Autodromo D’Monza, Italia;
53 Laps;
Weather: Heavy Rain, turning light then damp track.
| Pos | Driver | Team | Time |
| 1 | S. Vettel | Toro Rosso | 1.26.47.000 |
| 2 | H. Kovalainen | McLaren | +12.512 |
| 3 | R. Kubica | BMW Sauber | +20.471 |
| 4 | F. Alonso | Renault | +23.903 |
| 5 | N. Heidfeld | BMW Sauber | +27.748 |
| 6 | F. Massa | Ferrari | +28.816 |
| 7 | L. Hamilton | McLaren | +29.012 |
| 8 | M. Webber | Red Bull | +32.048 |
| 9 | K. Raikkonen | Ferrari | +39.468 |
| 10 | N. Piquet | Renault | +54.445 |
| 11 | T. Glock | Toyota | +58.888 |
| 12 | K. Nakajima | Williams | +1.02.015 |
| 13 | J. Trulli | Toyota | +1.05.954 |
| 14 | N. Rosberg | Williams | +1.08.635 |
| 15 | J. Button | Honda | +1.13.370 |
| 16 | D. Coulthard | Red Bull | +1 lap |
| 17 | R. Barrichello | Honda | +1 lap |
| 18 | S. Bourdais | Toro Rosso | +1 lap |
| 19 | A. Sutil | Force India | +2 laps |
Fastest Lap: K. Raikkonen, Ferrari: 1.28.047
Retirements:
| Driver | Team | Lap | Reason |
| G. Fisichella | Force India | 12 | Crash |
Interview with the race winner:
“It’s Unbelievable,” said Vettel.
“The whole race we had no problems, the car was working really fine. I had a fantastic race, a really good strategy but all that was gone when I crossed the chequered flag, and the lap back to the pits all the podium ceremony was unbelievable.
“For sure this is the best day of my life, these emotions I will never forget, it is so much better than you might think it is.
“I can just say a big big thank you to the guys in the team, they did a fantastic job, who would have thought it at the start of the season, in these conditions we can do a bit more. It is fantastic, I am speechless.”
“Looking back, being first and having no visibility problems was the key,” he added. “I could make a good, solid gap to Heikki straight away and then I was pushing very hard, sometimes I went over the limit and it got hard.
“I think it got more tricky in the middle of the race as there was no standing water any more. People were going left and right to cool down the tyres, it was very, very slippery, in the last stint.
“A perfect weekend, pole position, race win. I don’t know what to say.”
“All the people might be used to hearing the Italian national anthem but for Scuderia Ferrari. It is a special day and for all the team they won’t forget this day as long as I won’t.”
“I have seen every angle of the grid now. It is difficult when you start from the back. Now we can be proud of ourselves. Celebrating our victory is great, putting these words together sounds unbelievable.
“The mentality has changed, the atmosphere is fantastic. When I jumped into the car before the race they said: ‘Now destroy them’.
“I was pushing like hell, they were looking forward, in that sense you could say we had the balls to do it today.
“Compared to BMW or McLaren or Ferrari, we have not that amount of manpower at the factory, we have about 160 people working at Faenza and they can feel very special. I am one of them we are one team and I feel extremely happy.”
DC Not Hanging Up Helmet, DTM Link
David Coulthard has told reporters that even though he is leaving F1 at the end of this season, he has no intention of just hanging up his helmet.
The veteran Scot has decided to bow out of F1 at the end of 2008, after a long and illustrious career.
Unlike rival Michael Schumacher who has all but finished racing, except for a few alias races on motorbikes, he wants to continue in a series maybe 6-12 months from now.
“I have had no conversations with anyone about racing anything next year.
“The only reason I said I haven’t hung up my helmet is because in six months or one year, if there is an opportunity to race something that I think could be interesting, then everybody will say he is coming out of retirement,” Coulthard told reporters.
This news came as popular German magazine, Focus claimed that Coulthard would be following a string of other ex-F1 drivers into the German Touring Car series (DTM) racing a Red Bull sponsored Audi A4, alongside current world champion Matthias Ekstrom likely replacing Martin Tomczyk if Red Bull Audi decide not to run a 3rd car.
Mika Hakkinen, Jean Alesi, Heinz Harald Frentzen, Chrstijan Albers and Ralf Schumacher have all left F1 and entered in the series.
Major Recruitment Drive At Toro Rosso
Scuderia Toro Rosso have begun a major recruitment drive, with a target of adding 50 more workers by 2010.
The small Faenza based outfit which was born from Minardi, a former fans favourite, is owned partly by Red Bull and partly by Gerhard Berger.
With Red Bull’s half up for sale, and the possibility that customer cars will be no longer allowed, Toro Rosso who use a variant of Red Bull Racing’s car and have done so since inception in 2006, will have to create their own cars which will take staff and money.
The first major recruitment of note is Fabio Segalini who designed the original GP2 car.
“We are trying to grow, and if we want to improve our performance we have to grow,” Berger is quoted as confirming to GPWeek.
“I would say about 50 people, we definitely want to strengthen ourselves for the future,” he added.
Ultimate Motorsport Close To Deal With Toro’s
Ultimate Motorsport, the F3 team have claimed today they are close to agreement with Scuderia Toro Rosso’s owner Dietrich Mateschitz and Red Bull about buying his 50% sharehold within the team.
Toro Rosso is for sale if an offer that is right comes along according to Dietrich Mateschitz whose half is actually for sale. Gerhard Berger who owns the other half has declared he will not sell, yet.
Many have expressed interests, but Ultimate Motorsport are in the advanced stages of discussions into buying the sharehold.
The team, which took its first F3 win at Snetterton last weekend, is going to crate an academy where drivers start in Karting, move to F3 and World Series before hitting the big time.
“We are in negotiations so I can’t reveal too much about it until everything is final,” Barry Walsh of Ultimate Motorsport said today.
“We always set out with Formula One as the target. I would only have got involved in the project in the first place if I was confident we could take it all the way to F1, that is the aim.
“If our plans go the right way, I’d like to think we could be on the grid for 2009. The aim is to have the whole structure, with the academy from karting, through Formula Three and the World Series, and Formula One at the top.”
Vettel Unconcerned About Toro’s Future
Sebastian Vettel has admitted he is totally unconcerned about the future of Scuderia Toro Rosso, and is concentrating on the races at the moment – not the future.
The Italian based team who are heavily funded by Red Bull are up for sale, after Dietrich Mateschitz decided he wanted out. It is unclear whether the decision was shared with co-owner Gerhard Berger who seems to want to stay with the team.
Tony Teixra of A1GP looks set to become the new owner.
Vettel is unconcerned, and said that he only found out in the press that the team was for sale!
“Very surprised,” Vettel told Formula1.com when asked about the sale of STR.
“As a driver you are usually one of the last people to come across in-house developments. Fact is I read it in the press – like everybody.
“What does it mean for me? I want to race this season as well as possible – there is no reason now to be worried.
“When you saw the people preparing the car for the race (in Malaysia) there was not one who was thinking about what will happen in one or two years – everybody was totally focusing on the moment.”
Vettel is clearly doesn’t care because he could be racing with Ferrari next year!
STR3 To Arrive At Turkish GP
Scudeira Toro Rosso’s 2008 car, the STR3 will be ready for the Turkish Grand Prix, Toro Rosso’s technical man said in a press conference today.
The new car will replace the STR2B which is the car the team are using for the first few races of the season.
The minor Italian team did not have the resources to get the new car ready for the first event of the season in Melbourne, but they insist that the familiarity wih the car will bring benefits which outweigh potential losses.
“We are planning to take one to the test at Barcelona in the beginning of April, and then to make our debut in Turkey – god pleasing,”Giorgio Ascanelli said in Melbourne on Wednesday.
Commeting on the new season, and testing he added;
“I really think now the level of reliability which the big guns reach guarantees that they finish. I think we have done what we could in respect of reliability, but it is true that we have been progressively faster at each test.
“I think that our maximum was around Barcelona in January. Then we were faster than most people’s new cars. But when you have a team that is 500, 600 or 1000 people strong, from the middle of January to the middle of March, they do so many things that we couldn’t possibly do. I think we are around 14th or 15th position on the grid, and I hope we can do that with honours.”
Mateschitz Rules Out Alonso’s Chances With Red Bull Racing
Red Bull supremo Dietrich MAteschitz, has admitted that Fernando Alonso will almost certainly not race for the team in 2008.
Mateschitz admits this is not because they do not want Alonso, that it is more a case that they have their 4 drivers sorted already and it would be near impossible to have a reshuffle across their 2 teams (Red Bull Racing and Scuderia Toro Rosso).
“If there is speculation in the Italian media that Alonso is about to sign for Red Bull, I can only say – I know nothing about that,” said Mateschitz in an interview with Motorsport Aktuell.
“Red Bull Racing and Scuderia Toro Rosso have four drivers under contract.
“From what I hear, Alonso is speaking to other teams about a one-year only deal. Such a deal is out of question for us. We would prefer to wait a year and prove that we can build a car which is capable of attracting one of the best Grand Prix drivers for 2009.”
Mateschitz did admit that having Alonso for 2009 would be a big, long term opportunity and one he would much like to see.
“Of all teams which Alonso would have to chose, we for sure would be an alternative with big potential,” he said about the future.
“From his point of view, it is logical that he is looking for a contract that leaves him as much flexibility as possible.
“But that leads us into a conflict in interest between driver and team. We are looking for a two-year deal with an option for a third. We are looking for a common period of solid build-up.”
