Jarno Trulli develops his first Lotus race car

F1 Racing driver Jarno Trulli assists in the development of the Lotus Evora Cup race car during its first test session at Snetterton.

The Lotus Evora Cup race car is the latest addition to the Lotus Motorsport racing stable. Fresh from its debut at the Autosport International racing car show in Birmingham the Evora Cup race car was given its first shake-down test at a wintery Snetterton circuit in Norfolk, UK on the 10th and 11th of February 2010.

Lotus Motorsport is conducting an extensive development program for the Evora Cup race car, with Jarno Trulli and his Race Engineer, Gianluca Pisanello bringing their vast racing, development and engineering experience to fine tune the latest Lotus mid-engined race car.

Jarno Trulli and Gianluca Pisanello provided specific input into the aerodynamic balance for slow, medium and fast corners, guidance on the racing setup of the suspension geometry and direction on the engine’s calibration.

After driving the Lotus Evora Cup for the first time, Jarno Trulli said, “I have enjoyed driving the road going Lotus Evora very much and I believe that the Evora Cup will be a very competitive race car package. It was very rewarding to be the first to drive the Evora Cup race car even though the snowy conditions at Snetterton were fairly challenging at times!”

Jarno continued, “The car will continue to be developed with new updates coming soon, but even after the initial drive it is obvious that the car has huge potential. I look forward to working with Lotus Motorsport in developing the car further and I know that my years of motorsport experience will help make the Evora Cup race car even better.”

Claudio Berro, Director of Motorsport at Group Lotus plc stated, “It is a privilege to work on the development of the Evora Cup race car with such an experienced driver and engineering team as Jarno Trulli and Gianluca Pisanello and I believe that this collaboration will produce a great race car for a range of motorsport applications. It is a very exciting time for Lotus and I am honoured to be leading the motorsport programmes at Lotus, starting with the Lotus Evora Cup racing car and race series.

Gianluca Pisanello, Race Engineer for Jarno Trulli said, “I am impressed with the whole Evora Cup race car package, which demonstrates that the road going Lotus Evora is such a competent sports car in the first place and an excellent basis to develop a competitive race car.”

In the past a number of Lotus F1 drivers have successfully raced or assisted in the development of Lotus Cars including F1 World Champions Jim Clark and Nigel Mansell. Jim Clark was a great exponent of the three wheel drift in his Lotus Cortina, campaigning the Lotus to win the British Touring Car Championship in 1964. Whilst Nigel Mansell raced for Lotus he was involved in the development of the prototype Active Suspension Lotus Esprit.

The Evora Cup race car is an evocative sports car that will offer a great platform to race in high level motor sport. The GT4 race car will go on sale starting at £120,000 excluding taxes for the sprint racing version, with the endurance specification race car £150,000 excluding taxes.

The final design, aero’ package and techincal specifications will be presented at the Geneva Motorshow in March 2010.

For more information please check out  http://www.lotusevoracup.com

14-Jan-10: Four More Teams Reveal 2010 Launch Dates

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It is the 14th January 2010, and this is F1 Minute.

It’s the first day of Autosport International, and the headlines are pouring in from people talking about what they’re going to do, if not actually doing anything yet.

We’ve got several new launch dates confirmed – Mercedes are set to reveal their new car on the 28th January – the same day as Ferrari – but in Stuttgart. McLaren have chosen the 29th January and are unveiling it in London. Lotus F1 will be switching the Cosworth engine on for the first time on the 5th February, before launching the next week. Finally, Renault are launching on the 31st January, at the Valencia circuit, alongside Sauber.

Elsewhere, David Coulthard took to the stage at the racing car show to announce a new driver rankings project from Autosport. It’s… controversial, to say the least, mapping drivers from many motorsport series, and comparing them in an unspecified fashion. Button is number one.

That’s all for now, I’ll be back tomorrow with another F1 Minute.

Quotes Roundup – Week Ending 11th Jan

The very best from the mouths of those in the know.

Autosport International

Paddock faces and fans alike gather in Birmingham…

• “If there is a desire for people to still be involved with the fan club, then Alan will keep it going and I might have a bit more time now to spend time with it. But it’s inevitable that whilst you’re racing you have a certain level of support, and once you retire people naturally go onto the next driver.” David Coulthard
• “I don’t think you’re going to switch your TV on this year and know who is going to win each and every race, that’s for sure. It’s not back to the ‘Michael Schumacher dominates another grand prix’ season. Who is going to get the car right with the new aerodynamics, with the KERS system, who can make the new slick tyres work best…” Martin Brundle
• “First of all, most people go for the short sound bite – and ‘retirement’ is probably the word that would most cross peoples’ lips when they talk about it. For me, the concept of not being involved in McLaren is impossible. It is part of my life.” Ron Dennis

Donington Thoughts

With planning permission granted, it’s full steam ahead…

• “But I really do struggle to understand how the economics of Donington will work. They have had a 25% swing in the dollar and the contract will be a dollar-based contract. It has got a massive investment into infrastructure. I don’t understand how we are going to get in and out of the place, although I can tell you I will be in a helicopter!” Ron Dennis
• “They will see when buildings come out of the ground and cars come on the grid – if they want to sit at home and still not believe me then that is their prerogative, but the buildings will still come out of the ground and the cars will still be on the grid.” Simon Gillett
• “The proposed change here is at Donington racetrack, not East Midlands Airport, so Donington will need to find ways to satisfy airport safety requirements and to avoid any road congestion that their events may cause. We will remain open as an airport and intend to operate normally through any events in the local community.” Penny Coates, East Midlands Airport Managing Director

Ousted Drivers

Opportunities within Formula 1 are slim…

• “I am well aware that a second chance is often much harder to get than a first one, but I have something to offer that makes me confident that I can reach this goal. At 25, I have three years of F1 racing experience and I am now my third year of testing with a manufacturer F1 team. And the BMW Sauber F1 Team is really professional on all levels. They clearly see the benefit in a reserve driver actually going racing once in a while.” Christian Klien
• “There is a very slim chance that things can happen. The main thing is I am involved with the McLaren-Mercedes family and there are different options in there. We are just pushing on to see what we can get to drive, who knows what it will bring in 2009.” Paul di Resta
• “I think in terms of Formula One drives it is looking very, very slim at the moment. You should never give up, but I am a realist as well and I have learned that over the last year and the year before. Working with Super Aguri really put me in a good position for now, for these times , because it was always a kind of rocky road anyway.” Anthony Davidson

11-Jan-09: Autosport International Day 4 Special

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Welcome to the final F1 Minute special for Autosport International – Day 4.

Anthony Davidson was the guest of the Autosport stage today, and he spoke quite candidly about another failed deal for him with the now defunct Honda team. He says: “I was in serious talks of not only trying to get a race drive for this year with the team, but as the bare minimum as the reserve driver. Talks were progressing really well, and the deal was almost done just with a few weeks to spare before the announcement.”

Davidson is pragmatic about the future, suggesting that Formula 1 opportunities are few and far between at the moment, so he’s looking for other racing series – perhaps even attempting Le Mans again.

More from David Coulthard today, as well, he spoke about the fact the Red Bull team would be launching their car much later than most of the other teams. He assured us it was more of a benefit than a symptom of anything else, saying it will give them more time to fine tune the design.

That’s all from the Autosport stage this week. Stay tuned for your regular daily updates from F1 Minute.

10-Jan-09: Autosport International Day 3 Special

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Welcome to another special F1 Minute episode for Autosport International Day 3.

New BBC commentator Martin Brundle took to the trade show stage on Saturday, with his racing driver son by his side. Talking about the upcoming season, Brundle admitted that it’s very hard to predict who is going to do well. He said: “We’ve had a period of time where Formula 1 regulations have been very stable and the grid has closed up and up and up and is very competitive. So we are losing that, and I am a little bit concerned about that. In its place is uncertainty, and maybe that’s a good thing.”

Brundle also pointed out one of his main worries about the season is comparing the cars running KERS with those that aren’t, as you’ll never know whether an overtake comes down to driver skill or simply the mechanics.

David Coulthard was also in Birmingham, taking questions from the audience, and confirmed he didn’t think he’d miss being a driver as he’ll still attend all the race weekends, the routine will be the same, except for lining up on the grid.

That’s it for today, I’ll be back tomorrow with another F1 Minute.

08-Jan-09: Autosport International Day 1 Special

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Welcome to a special F1 Minute for the 8th January – Day 1 of Autosport International.

News from the stage today includes some small hints from Prodrive boss Dave Richards. He has been one of the names linked with the team formerly known as Honda since news of their sale first broke. However, today he told the crowds in Birmingham: “The cost-cutting process that has been put in place has not yet seen its full benefit, and I don’t think it will be until 2010 that you will see those issues roll out properly.” Autosport.com is reporting that sources say he is not interested in buying the team.

However, Nick Fry has buoyed hopes again by saying they are looking at offers from 12 parties, narrowed down from 30. That number just keeps going up and up!

Also at Autosport, the managing director of a new track in Spain – Motorland Aragon – has said they are hoping to secure F1 testing, despite knowing with two Grands Prix already, the chances of another Spanish race are pretty slim.

That’s it for today, I’ll be back tomorrow with more from the trade show.

10-Jan-08: Wurz Returns to F1 with Honda

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It’s the 10^th January 2008, and this is F1 Minute.

Alex Wurz has come out of retirement to sign for Honda as third driver this year. Wurz retired from racing at the end of last year, to be replaced at Williams by Nakajima. However, lured by working with Ross Brawn, Wurz has joined the team to help develop the car.

Force India held an event in India to officially confirm Fisichella as their number one driver, with Adrian Sutil as team mate, and Tonio Liuzzi as test driver. Fisichella was quick to point out that this was not his only opportunity, but the best one.

Toyota launched their 2008 contender this morning, in Cologne. The drivers and management were present, with everyone pretty much admitting the pressure is on to get some results after a disappointing 2007.

And very quickly, the Autosport International show has started today in Birmingham, and an interesting snippet comes from Dave Richards, who has said that customer cars are looking really unlikely, and therefore Prodrive’s plans are basically scuppered.

That’s all for today, please join me tomorrow for another F1 Minute.