07-Jul-08: Honda and Ferrari Reactions to the British GP
Welcome to F1 Minute, it’s the 7th July 2008.
After their unexpected podium finish at Silverstone this weekend, you’d imagine Honda might want to rethink their plans to abandon development this year. However, CEO Nick Fry says they won’t be doing that. He says: “The plan is really designing the car Ross wants for next year, and this year is about getting everything as Ross wants it in the way the team operates.” Fry does concede that the podium finish has boosted everyone’s morale (except perhaps Jenson’s) but they have to remember it was mostly down to luck.
More reaction to the weekend, and of a less positive kind, comes from Luca di Montezemolo. “I hope we’ll manage to win our eighth title in ten years. We will if we don’t carry on doing stupid things. Obviously I wasn’t pleased with what I saw yesterday, but I hope it’s a useful lesson. Knowing my men, I’m certain it is.”
Finally, Max Mosley’s court case against the News of the World has begun, and the FIA president has been on the stand today denying the Nazi side of the allegations.
That’s all for now, I’ll be back tomorrow with another F1 Minute.
06-Jul-08: Hamilton Wins a Wet British Grand Prix
Today is the 6th July 2008, and you’re listening to F1 Minute.
It’s always hard to get a full picture of what’s happening in a race from the side of the track, but I will do my best for you, and give you a rundown of what happened at Silverstone today.
Hamilton had an amazing start, overtaking a couple of cars to sit behind team mate Heikki who was in the lead. It was only a matter of laps though, before the spirit of the crowd cheered Lewis on to overtake. From then on, despite a few rain showers, and some close calls with spinning cars, Hamilton was cool, calm and collected and took a win at his home Grand Prix.
The spins I was talking about? That would be Webber, Nakajima, Massa, Coulthard, Vettel, Massa again, Sutil, Button, Kubica, Piquet, and probably Massa once more. Essentially, it was a wet race and only those who kept clear heads and more importantly, their cars on track, were successful. The final podium was Hamilton, Heidfeld and Barrichello. The championship now has three leaders all on 48 points, although Hamilton is actually in first place.
That’s all for today, I’ll be back tomorrow with another F1 Minute.
05-Jul-08: British GP Qualifying Update Plus It’s Future
This is F1 Minute for the 5th July 2008, and I’m in the vicinity of Silverstone having watched qualifying first hand. So, let me fill you in on all that happened.
Kovalainen took his first ever pole position just ahead of Webber who for a brief moment looked like he’d secured the top spot. I know what you’re thinking, the world’s gone crazy - no Hamilton, Raikkonen, or Massa at the top. In fact, Massa finished in 9th.
The constant threat of rain became a reality first thing and although most of FP3 was dry, drivers still had to negotiate the spray. For qualifying, there was a brief shower or two but nothing to cause any major problems. Teams who were facing adversity though include Honda, who couldn’t get either driver out of the bottom five, and BMW who had to pull Kubica in for emergency repairs similar to those they had on Friday.
In other news, and in very bad and obviously orchestrated timing, Bernie has announced that the British Grand Prix will move to Donington Park from 2010. This decision is of particular interest as Bernie has interests in Donington Park, and has been threatening to ditch Silverstone for a very long time.
That’s all for today, please join me again tomorrow for another F1 Minute.
04-Jul-08: A Free Practice Update From the Track Itself
Welcome to F1 Minute for the 4th July 2008, coming at you from the grounds of the Silverstone Circuit. We’re here for all three days so let me fill you in on what happened today.
In Free Practice 1, the two notable events were interconnected. Alonso’s Renault engine blew up, leaving oil all over the track. Moments later, Massa’s Ferrari hit the slippery surface and spun 180 degrees before smashing into the barrier. It was a heavy crash but he climbed from the car unscathed. Because of the excess oil on the track, and the limited running that took place after the red flag, Massa managed to hold on to the fastest time, despite not taking any further part in the session.
In FP2, Glock broke down, pulling his Toyota to the side of the track. Just as soon as his car was recovered, Trulli sent his Toyota into the barriers as well. If that wasn’t enough excitement Nakajima also had an incident that saw him return to the pits minus a front wing. Both Hondas and Toro Rosso were notably high up the timesheets in FP2, whilst Kovalainen reigned supreme.
That’s all for today, join me again tomorrow for another F1 Minute.
26-Jun-08: Hamilton Heads Up Final Test Day at Silverstone
Hi everyone, this is F1 Minute and today is the 26th June 2008.
Lewis Hamilton topped the timesheets on the last day of testing at Silverstone, ahead of Glock for Toyota, and then Raikkonen in the Ferrari. Glock actually had an incident with Coulthard with the pair colliding at the end of Hangar Straight. Glock apologised for the contact, and thanked his mechanics for working hard and getting the car out again. Alonso caused a red flag with apparent engine trouble, as did Coulthard later in the day for the same reason.
Elsewhere today, BMW have announced they will be restructuring their technical department and reducing the workload of current Technical Director Willy Rampf. He will become Technical Coordinator from November this year, meaning he will still lead the overall concept of the car.
Finally, organisers of the Abu Dhabi GP are said to be super happy with their provisional placement on the calendar, not just because they will host the potential championship decider, but also because it means the weather will be good.
That’s all for today, please join me again tomorrow for another F1 Minute.
25-Jun-08: Kovalainen Heads Up Silverstone Test, Day 2
Welcome to F1 Minute, it’s the 25th June.
Kovalainen was fastest on Day 2 of the test in Silverstone, with Trulli and Rosberg behind him, and Massa all the way down in 7th. There were several red flags today, one of which caused by Fisichella, who crashed after being caught in a gust of wind. He was taken to the medical centre and then a nearby hospital for checks on his wrist. He is okay, though.
Elsewhere, the FIA have been busy, with the World Council meeting in France. Firstly, they released a statement officially announcing they would review how F1 is governed. They also promoted their new feeder series for F1 called Formula 2, and they decided that they’d only raise the entry fee costs to F1 for teams by the rate of inflation.
Finally, they released a provision calendar for 2009, which sees the races starting and ending much later in the year, France is included, whilst the US is not, and the season closer will be in Abu Dhabi, the only new addition. Notably Turkey has been returned to its slot further down the calendar.
That’s all for today, I’ll be back tomorrow with another F1 Minute.
31-Mar-08: Max Mosley Hits the Headlines for All the Wrong Reasons
Welcome to F1 Minute for the 31st March 2008.
The main news of the weekend was the story about Max Mosley and some of the things he may or may not get up to in his personal life. Pictures surfaced on the News of the World website and a video was posted onto YouTube that appeared to show Max in some compromising positions. At the moment, there has been no comment from Max or the FIA regarding the scandal and it is assumed that he is consulting with some lawyers.
In actual F1 news, McLaren have been pushed to the back of the pit lane in Bahrain, to their proper garage if last year’s championship result is anything to go by. The reason for this decision compared to the fifth place they enjoyed in Australia and Malaysia is still unknown.
Other stories today include Singapore testing out their lighting system on a stretch of road as a demonstration for the upcoming night race, Silverstone building a new grandstand to house over 2,000 more spectators, and Massa deciding he may keep his Malaysia engine for the Bahrain race.
That’s all for today, join me again tomorrow for another F1 Minute.
27-Feb-08: Trulli Tops Final Pre-Season Test Day
Welcome to F1 Minute, today is the 27th February, and these are your top headlines.
Toyota were the fastest team on the final day of testing in Barcelona, with Trulli taking the top spot. He was ahead of Coulthard, who returned to the track after resting his neck injury yesterday, and Rosberg in the Williams was third. Renault had a better day in 6th and 7th, whilst Raikkonen was just ahead of Hamilton in 9th and 10th respectively. There were seven red flags throughout the day.
In other headlines:
The backing that Silverstone received from their local authority is being reviewed. A committee is looking into the upgrade plans due to complaints from residents that their concerns weren’t heard.
Bernie Ecclestone has defended Kimi Raikkonen’s party reputation, saying that any time the pair have spent together has always been very sensible, but Kimi is fun when he’s drunk.
Alonso has said he doesn’t regret moving to Renault, although he’s sure they won’t be fighting for podiums this year, whist Flavio says the Hamilton/Alonso feud will disappear even though they are working for rival teams.
That’s all for today, please join me tomorrow for another F1 Minute.
06-Feb-08: Force India Team Speaks Ahead of Launch
It’s the 6th February 2008. Welcome to F1 Minute.
The new Force India car doesn’t launch until tomorrow, but several members of the team have been talking to the press in Mumbai. Giancarlo Fisichella says he is pushing for several points finishes this year, and then expects the team to be competing for podiums in 2009. Technical boss Mike Gascoyne supports this theory, although he thinks it will take a few years. He says the team have the budget to get to the top now, although they are not just throwing money around and hoping it works. Adrian Sutil has his feet firmly on the ground though, saying that he hopes for change but people should not expect too much from this first year.
With the future of the Australian Grand Prix in question at the moment, Bernie Ecclestone has brought up the old Silverstone debate as well. The track has had it’s revamp approved but Ecclestone says there are still hurdles to overcome and if the facilities were not up to scratch, he would not be sentimental about kicking it off the calendar. There is also suggestion that the revamp approval is reliant on a guaranteed future for the track, whilst the future depends on the revamp.
That’s all for today, please join me tomorrow for another F1 Minute.
21-Nov-07: Jerez Testing to Feature Slicks Tyres
Today is the 21st November 2007, I’m Christine and this is F1 Minute.
The upcoming test in Jerez in December will be the first in almost ten years to feature slick tyres. The teams are all in agreement that they need to gather data for a possible return to slicks in 2009, but that the laps they complete this year should not count against their testing mileage limit.
Also in the news, Bernie Ecclestone continues his love/hate relationship with the Silverstone circuit. Today he is loving the circuit and urging the British government to fork out some cash for the necessary upgrades. He says: “With a tiny percentage of what the government are wasting on the Olympics, they could support Silverstone.” A few weeks ago the Sports Minister for the UK said he supported the Grand Prix at Silverstone, but no money would be forthcoming.
And finally, a quick update on yesterday. I mentioned that BMW would be launching their new car, the F1.08 on 14th January, and we now know it will be in Munich.
That’s all for today, thanks for listening, and join me tomorrow for another F1 Minute.