Today is the 31st December 2007 and this is F1 Minute.
There hasn’t been too much news over the Christmas period, it has mostly been teams and drivers talking about how confident they are for the new season.
Toro Rosso boss Franz Tost has said that he feels the biggest step forward for the team in 2007 was getting the right mix of personnel. With Vettel and Bourdais on board, he feels the team now gels and they can look forward to the future. Vettel, for his part, has said he doesn’t think starting this season with last year’s car will be too much of a hindrance for them.
Meanwhile, over at McLaren, Kovalainen has said he’s sure they can come up with a competitive and consistent car, despite the fact that the team now lack experienced drivers. Although McLaren said they would not be launching their 2008 car, they have now changed their mind and will be holding a launch on January 7th at the Mercedes-Benz museum in Stuttgart.
And finally, top sponsor Kingfisher have parted ways with Toyota, ending their contract early. This is not a big surprise, as the company are owned by new Force India boss Vijay Mallya.
That’s all for today, enjoy New Year’s Eve and join me tomorrow for another F1 Minute.
Today is the 21st December 2007, I’m Christine, and this is F1 Minute.
The qualifying format for 2008 has been tweaked slightly, with the three sessions lasting 20 minutes, 15 minutes and then 10 minutes respectively. As before, the slowest cars will be knocked out at the end of each session, leaving the fastest to go on to the next. The rules are written as if 24 cars are taking part, so the slowest seven retire after each session but if there are only 22 taking part, it reverts to this year’s practice of 6 cars being knocked out each time.
Red Bull have officially confirmed their launch date with a YouTube video teaser. The car will launch at Jerez on 16th January, and the video lasts only 29 seconds showing off the factory and the date. The message with the video is: “Red Bull Racing have been working day and night to bring you the RB4.”
F1 Minute will take a break next week, as everyone will be eating too much turkey and drinking too much wine to worry about the news. I’ll be back on the 31st December, so until then have a great Christmas, and join me on New Year’s Eve for another F1 Minute.
This is F1 Minute for the 20th December 2007, and these are your top headlines.
Bridgestone have signed a contract with the FIA that sees them as the sole tyre supplier within Formula 1 for the next three years. The deal was forged in the middle of 2006, but has only just been signed. It also includes some participation with the FIA’s road safety campaigning.
Ferrari are still expressing their displeasure over the espionage saga. In an interview with Italian media, Luca di Montezemolo has pinpointed his worst moment of 2007 as July, when McLaren went unpunished for the first hearing. He also went on to question whether Ron Dennis himself, let alone the 2008 car, should be banned from racing. And talking about McLaren’s promise not to borrow their ideas, di Montezemolo was quoted as saying: “Yes, I’m convinced that at least the colours will be different. I don’t expect a red McLaren. It’s better if we talk about something else.”
And finally, Ferrari have confirmed their launch date as January 6th at their Fiorano test track, and the new Honda car will make its appearance on January 29th at their Brackley site.
That’s all for today, please join me tomorrow for another F1 Minute.
Today is the 19th December 2007, I’m Christine and this is F1 Minute.
Red Bull have announced they will debut their new car, the RB4, at the Jerez test next month. Team boss Christian Horner said their main rival would be Renault, as their engine supplier, and that improved reliability was the main goal for 2008. Horner also put pay to the rumours about Alonso joining the team before the Spaniard joined Renault, saying the speculation was flattering but there was never any truth in it.
It’s been a constant source of interest to see how Raikkonen would get on within the Ferrari team, and now Luca di Montezemolo has said however Raikkonen wants to act is fine, as long as the wins keep coming. The president of Ferrari said Raikkonen’s reputation for being quiet was fine by him, in fact he likes him because he doesn’t whine.
And talking of Ferrari, they have apparently invited the British photocopy shop owner, who informed them of McLaren’s espionage, out to Italy for a visit to the track and the factory. Di Montezemolo wants to thank the mysterious, anonymous informant personally.
That’s all for today, please join me tomorrow for another F1 Minute.
I’m Christine and this is F1 Minute for the 18th December 2007.
The World Motorsport Council have cancelled the hearing into McLaren’s 2008 car that was due to take place in February. This brings the espionage troubles to a close, although Ferrari are still continuing with some personal court cases that surround the issue. Max Mosley had requested the hearing be called off after McLaren’s apology, and the team are now free to focus on their 2008 car without worrying about any prosecution from the FIA.
Alonso has spoken out about his time at McLaren, saying that only a tenth of the things written about him actually happened. The fact he was still in with a chance at the championship until the very end meant he was satisfied within the team. Alonso says he’s not thinking about winning the championship with Renault, after their poor season last year he is going to concentrate on improving the car.
And finally, Lewis Hamilton was caught speeding in France, doing over 120mph in his Mercedes. He was fined 600 Euros and banned from driving in the country for a month.
That’s all for today, please join me tomorrow for another F1 Minute.
Today is Monday the 17th December 2007, and this is F1 Minute.
Ron Dennis has repeatedly denied any talk of his quitting McLaren, despite pressure from outside forces. Since the official apology last week, several media folk have been lobbying for the team principal’s resignation. Dennis says this is not going to happen, as he doesn’t believe it would be in the best interests of the team.
The new McLaren line up for 2008 looks to be a lot more peaceful than this past season, with Heikki Kovalainen vowing to get along with his new team mate Lewis Hamilton. Kovalainen has said he is confident that he will be treated equally by the team and he’s positive that relationships within the organisation will remain good.
And Ferrari technical director Aldo Costa has been talking about the progress of the 2008 car, saying that he’s pushing hard through the winter to get on top at the start of next season. He also said the next car will be brand new, although there are no radical changes planned. Costa felt like their 2007 development rate was acceptable but next year they will need to focus on reliability.
That’s all for today, please join me tomorrow for another F1 Minute.
I’m Christine and this is F1 Minute for Friday the 14th December 2007.
McLaren have confirmed that Heikki Kovalainen will be joining them as Lewis Hamilton’s partner for 2008, with Pedro de la Rosa and Gary Paffett remaining as third driver and test driver respectively. It’s the second time Kovalainen has replaced Fernando Alonso in a team, after joining Renault in 2007 as the double champ left. Now he fills the Spaniards boots once more, and McLaren believe they have a formidable line up for the new season.
McLaren also announced that they have no plans for a 2008 launch at all, compared to the spectacular display in Valencia this past year. So far it looks like the car will just take to the track at Jerez, with no fanfare, and pictures will be circulated to the media at the same time.
It’s also worth mentioning that Williams have signed Nico Hulkenberg as test driver after he impressed them at Jerez. And it’s probably not worth mentioning, Honda have announced their intention to announce their test driver at some point before Christmas.
That’s all for today, have a great weekend, and join me on Monday for another F1 Minute.
Hello everyone, this is F1 Minute for the 13th December 2007.
McLaren have written a letter to the FIA apologising for the Ferrari information scandal, and offering to hold back any borrowed technologies from the rival team. The inspection of McLaren’s car found that some ideas, such as the gas in the tyres and the quickshift technology appeared to have come from Ferrari. McLaren say they will not develop these technologies, they have given a public apology to basically everyone, and offered to pay the inspection costs incurred by the FIA.
Also in the news, a lighting system by an Australian company has been submitted to the FIA after a secret night test by Mark Webber. He was joined by a former motorcycle champion last month for the test, and the results have shown the system is immune to blackouts and casts no shadows. If the FIA approve the lights, Australia could very well be hosting their own night race along with Singapore.
And your final bit of FIA news, Max Mosley has said that if the new aerodynamic rules in 2009 do not cut cornering speeds, then teams can forget about slick tyres returning to the track.
That’s all for today, please join me tomorrow for another F1 Minute.
Today is the 12th December 2007, I’m Christine and this is F1 Minute.
Giancarlo Fisichella has said that he definitely has his hopes on a drive for Force India, saying he wouldn’t have gone through the shoot-out at Jerez if he didn’t want the seat. He won’t have long to wait, as Force India are expected to announce who will be joining Adrian Sutil at the end of December.
Team boss Vijay Mallya has given an interview to the official Formula1.com website, with some notable insights. About the driver choice, he said: “In the past the team was looking for money, so money was the prime motivating factor for the driver line-up. Now that has changed. For me the prime factors are performance and the ability to give feedback to the engineers.” He also mentioned that Indian driver Karun Chandhok is like a son to him, but will need to prove himself in GP2 before he gets a seat in Force India.
Mallya is very focused on bringing the team up to scratch, saying they have no excuses now that the budget isn’t a problem. As encouragement, he tells the engineers that they will have to be on the podium for the Indian GP in 2010.
That’s all for today, please join me tomorrow for another F1 Minute.
This is F1 Minute, I’m Christine and these are your top headlines for the 11th December 2007.
Heikki Kovalainen has admitted he was not surprised about the Renault decision that has left him without a drive, saying he has two other options currently under consideration. Meanwhile, Briatore has been talking about how optimistic Renault are for the upcoming season, with Alonso back on board, more Euros in the bank, and an improved technical structure.
News keeps trickling out about the Singapore night race. We know that the contracted lighting company are hard at work to ensure every stretch of the track is illuminated, and now they have no chances to get it wrong. Organisers have confirmed the event will start at 8pm local time.
And finally, David Coulthard is expected to request the GPDA’s intervention in the upcoming rule change regarding tyre warmers. They are supposed to be banned from 2009 but Coulthard believes that the difference in tyre pressures and temperatures between cars in the pits and out on track will be much too dangerous.
That’s all for today, please join me tomorrow for another F1 Minute.