15-Jun-09: Le Mans Recap and Silverstone Memories

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Welcome to F1 Minute for the 15th June 2009.

We took an unexpected hiatus over the weekend, because there was little in the way of Formula 1 news and a lot in the way of Le Mans racing to enjoy. It made a nice change to watch some simple action rather than questions and politics at every stage.

Former Williams driver Alex Wurz and his team won the overall event for Peugeot Sport with current Toro Rosso driver Sebastien Bourdais standing on the second step of the podium in the sister car. Driver turned commentator Anthony Davidson finished up 13th in the Aston Martin.

In F1 news, Red Bull are looking forward to the British Grand Prix, and sharing their favourite memories of Silverstone. Adrian Newey remember the first race he attended with his parents in 1973, Christian Horner looks back at a time when he drove to the track after passing his test, snuck under the fence and started up a conversation with Ayrton Senna. You can read more about these memories on F1Minute.com.

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

29-Aug-08: American Racer Phil Hill Has Died Aged 81

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This is F1 Minute and it’s the 29th August 2008.

Sad news to begin with, ex-F1 champion Phil Hill has died aged 81. Hill is the only native-born American to have won the title, and did so in 1961 driving for Ferrari. He won three Le Mans races, and started 48 F1 races, winning just three of them. He retired in 1967. Hill died yesterday due to complications from Parkinson’s Disease.

Ferrari boss Luca di Montezemolo issued a statement after hearing the news, saying: “I, as well as all employees of Ferrari, am extremely saddened by the news of the passing of Phil Hill, a man and a champion who gave so much to Ferrari and who has always greatly represented the company’s values inside and outside the racing track.”

Finally, a quick update on the test at Monza, Hamilton has finished the final day with the fastest time, followed by Raikkonen and then surprisingly, Fisichella in the Force India.

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

13-Jun-08: Ferrari Fastest for the Second Day at Barcelona

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This is F1 Minute and today is Friday, 13^th June.

Luca Badoer topped the timesheets for the second day of the test in Barcelona, making that two in a row for Ferrari. He finished ahead of de la Rosa in the McLaren and Glock in the Toyota. There were three red flags, caused by Piquet, Badoer and Glock throughout the day, and the session only saw about 20 minutes of rain. Toro Rosso joined the other teams, meaning Force India are the only ones not to have tested so far.

As it’s Friday, here are two very tenuously F1 related stories. Jenson Button will be taking part in his second triathlon this weekend. His first attempt at the non-motorsport event was in April where he came 16^th out of 250 entrants, and this week he’ll be competing against over 2,500 other triathletes. Good luck Jenson.

Good luck also needs to go out to the many ex-F1 drivers taking part in the Le Mans 24 Hour race this weekend. Notably Alex Wurz, Christian Klien, Marc Gene, Pedro Lamy, Stephane Sarrazin, Franck Montagny, and Ricardo Zonta are all lining up at the front of the grid for the Peugeot team.

That’s all for this week, I’ll be back on Monday with another F1 Minute.

04-Jun-08: FIA Announce Bridge Wing Clarifications

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This is F1 Minute and today is the 4^th June 2008.

No talk of Max today, except to say that all the news about him yesterday buried an FIA announcement. Teams running the bridge wing on their nose, Honda, BMW and Toyota, for example, will need to strengthen it to stop it wobbling about as they circle the track. It’s unknown whether there was a complaint about the bridge wings or if the FIA are just adapting to the changing components.

Autosport.com is reporting that Bridgestone are set to reject a delay request from the teams, that would see the banning of tyre warmers pushed back to 2010. Bridgestone are saying they do not share the concerns of F1 teams, and in fact have said that the teams are really more concerned about not being able to run the tyres at the optimum pressure anymore, without running a significantly greater risk.

Finally, today, Ferrari test driver Marc Gene has announced that he won’t be at the Canadian GP as scheduled, after his huge crash in testing for Le Mans on Sunday. He’s broken a toe, making it difficult to walk, let alone drive.

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