12-Nov-08: Singapore Grand Prix Wins Motorsport Award
Welcome to F1 Minute, it’s the 12th November 2008.
Singapore has picked up an award for it’s spectacular hosting of the first ever F1 night race. The Professional Motorsport World awards were held in Cologne on Tuesday, and Singapore was given the title: Motorsport Facility of the Year for the circuit around Marina Bay. They beat the new Valencia street circuit as well, plus two non-F1 calendar tracks. Franz Tost won the award for Team Principal of the year, whilst Adrian Newey for Red Bull was nominated for the Design Engineer of the Year. I found it interesting that the R28 was nominated for the Vehicle Development award, although they didn’t win.
Talking of Renault, they’ve confirmed that Giedo van der Garde will be testing with them in Barcelona next week, as a prize for winning the World Series by Renault. Van der Garde says he is extremely excited about the chance to get back into an F1 car, as he was previously a test driver for Spyker in 2007.
That’s it for today, I’ll be back tomorrow with another F1 Minute.
03-Nov-08: Contract Extensions, Launch Dates, and Testing News
You’re listening to F1 Minute and it’s the 3rd November 2008.
Here are some of the news stories we might have missed this weekend.
Firstly, after such an amazing race, the good news is Interlagos has had it’s F1 contract extended, and will now feature on the calendar until 2014.
Toyota have confirmed that they intend to launch their KERS package in the middle of 2009, and not from the outset. Team President John Howett said they are working flat out on the device, but people “underestimate some of the major challenges.” Toyota announced the launch of their car a while ago, and now BMW have become the second team to confirm a launch date. Their 2009 car will be unveiled in Valencia on January 20th.
And finally, in testing news, Bruno Senna will have a go in the Honda in the hopes of a race seat for next year at the Barcelona test this month. Also, Red Bull will be testing with five-times world rally champ Sebastien Loeb, proving that the Red Bull empire really does have a thing for drivers called Sebastien.
That’s it for today, I’ll be back tomorrow with another F1 Minute.
21-Sep-08: Ferrari Boss Discusses Raikkonen and Singapore
Welcome to F1 Minute for the 21st September 2008.
Ferrari boss Luca di Montezemolo has been talking about the ever increasing number of street circuits on the calendar, which he thinks is a problem. He believes that street circuits don’t allow many opportunities for overtaking, and regarding the upcoming Singapore Grand Prix, he said: “I have the impression it will be one of those letdowns where you cannot overtake, like Valencia.” He added that to keep on encouraging street circuits on the calendar would be a bad thing for Formula 1.
Montezemolo has also been discussing the team’s decision to extend Raikkonen’s contract after he has failed to live up to expectations this year: “I know some disagreed when we lengthened his contract, but we are talking about the world champion, who won the title in his first year at Ferrari.” He said that Kimi will soon be back on form and getting results once more.
Finally, Lewis Hamilton is preparing for a busy week, as not only does he have to prepare for the race next Sunday, he is also planning to attend the Court of Appeal hearing in Paris tomorrow. Let me know how you think the result will pan out at F1Minute.com.
24-Aug-08: European Grand Prix Update
Welcome to an F1 Minute update for the 24th August 2008.
Earlier today, I talked of the European Grand Prix at Valencia, and we were left wondering how the mechanic was that Kimi Raikkonen knocked down in a pit stop incident, and whether Massa was going to receive a penalty for his own pit lane misdemeanour. We know have the answer to both.
The mechanic, Pietro Timpini, has suffered from a fracture to the left foot and is also apparently complaining of back pain, but it does not appear to be too serious. It seems his first words were an apology, as though the incident was his fault, which just shows you how dedicated the Ferrari guys are. Raikkonen has admitted the mistake was his and apologised to the mechanic, so all is well.
Regarding Massa, the stewards released a statement about an hour after the race came to it’s conclusion. They decided that his release from the pit stop was unsafe but that no sporting advantage was obtained, thus the team have been reprimanded and Ferrari fined 10,000 Euros. Massa’s victory is secure.
That’s it for today, I’ll be back tomorrow with another F1 Minute.
24-Aug-08: Massa Takes a Controversial and Unconfirmed Europe Win
This is F1 Minute for the 24th August 2008.
The European Grand Prix at Valencia got underway relatively calmly, with Massa holding his lead over Hamilton and the pair streaking away from the rest of the pack. There was a wide field spread and overtaking seemed almost impossible. The expected safety car situation never happened.
That doesn’t mean there weren’t incidents though. Nakajima crashed into the back of Alonso on the first lap, with the Renault having to stop. Sutil spun and hit the wall, and Raikkonen was the other retiree. He had a botched pit stop that saw him pull away with the fuel rig attached, injuring the mechanic on duty. He was stretchered away and we don’t yet have an update on how he is. A lap or so later, and the Ferrari pulled to the side of the track spewing smoke from the engine.
Massa’s Ferrari held together though and he took the win from Hamilton and Kubica. He is under investigation from the stewards, for being released in the pit lane directly into the path of a Force India. We are still waiting for their findings.
With two unresolved items, it looks like I’ll be back later with another F1 Minute.
23-Aug-08: Massa Takes Pole for European GP
Welcome to F1 Minute for the 23rd August 2008.
It looked as though we might have had a strange couple of front rows as qualifying kicked off in Valencia today. Kubica led Free Practice 3 in the morning, adding to the list of drivers who are showing well around this new circuit. In qualifying, Vettel led two of the three sessions, and both Toro Rosso cars got into the final qualifying shoot out.
Unfortunately we lost both Honda and both Force India drivers plus Coulthard in the first session, and with the Toro Rosso’s scraping through to Q3 we also saw some big names knocked out in the second. Alonso finished the day in 12th.
However, it was business as usual for the Ferrari and McLaren boys. Hamilton posted a provisional pole, only to be knocked down by Massa. Kubica slipped into third and Raikkonen finished up fourth.
The pole position has actually been moved this morning from it’s orginal position on the left hand side of the grid to the right, after Charlie Whiting observed the practice sessions and decided that was the more favourable line to take.
That’s it for today, I’ll be back tomorrow with another F1 Minute.
22-Aug-08: Friday Free Practice in Valencia Provides Surprises
This is F1 Minute and today is the 22nd August 2008.
Free Practice kicked off today, with our first look at the new Valencia street circuit. Initial observations appeared to be that the circuit lacked some colour, and seemed to be a little industrial, whilst the track itself looked like it would provide a good race.
The drivers struggled only slightly with learning the huge number of new corners, and in Free Practice 1, we were left with the surprise leader of Sebastian Vettel. This seemed out of place, but team mate Bourdais finished the morning in third, with Massa in between, so the Toro Rosso boys must have been trying something the others weren’t. The track was pretty slippery and we saw plenty of run off areas put to good use, but no major incidents.
In Free Practice 2, Alonso was the surprise with a last ditch effort to grab the top of the timesheets. Unfortunately, Raikkonen pipped him to the top, but the strangeness continued with Button slipping into third. Alonso’s day wasn’t all good though, as he was fined 10,000 Euros for cutting the entrance to the pit lane.
That’s it for today, I’ll be back tomorrow with another F1 Minute.
19-Aug-08: Renault Aiming High for the Championship
Today is the 19th August 2008, and you’re listening to F1 Minute.
We’ve heard from Red Bull recently that they are aiming to finish fourth in the constructor’s championship this year, but now it appears they’re not the only ones with such an ambition. After a couple of strong race finishes, Renault have said that fourth is the position they have their eye on as well. Director of Engineering Pat Symonds said: “So the performance in Hungary reinforces the belief that we are moving in the right direction and gives me confidence that we can finish fourth in the championship and end the season with the third fastest car.” Not quite sure of his maths there, but it sounds good to me.
Still with Renault, Piquet is looking to qualify well in Valencia and finish with a good points haul. He reckons that he’s had to learn a lot of new tracks this year, but as everyone else is in the same boat at this circuit, it will level the playing field somewhat.
And away from Renault, just a note that Glock says he is still smiling after his second place finish in Hungary. Three weeks later.
That’s it for today, I’ll be back tomorrow with another F1 Minute.
18-Aug-08: Teams Expect Safety Car This Weekend
This is F1 Minute and it’s the 18th August 2008.
The build up to Valencia continues, with teams apparently expecting a safety car to enter into proceedings, and they are planning their strategies around such an eventuality.
With a new track, some close walls and the general unknowns of the street circuit, it’s not far fetched to assume that an incident might occur. Mike Gascoyne of Force India says they are hoping to make the best of any luck that is thrown their way, as it’s all the team can hope for at the moment. An interesting quote from him is: “”We may look at strategies that will put us out of sync with the others so we can take advantage of it.” What happens if there is no safety car, then they are just out of sync. Let me know your thoughts about the chances of a safety car during this weekend’s race at F1Minute.com.
To finish, I just wanted to update the Mecachrome story we covered a few days ago. It’s rumoured the engine manufacturer’s are now ending their involvement with Formula 1, after recording severe losses due to the homologation regulations.
That’s it for today, I’ll be back tomorrow with another F1 Minute.
17-Aug-08: Honda Prepare for Valencian Street Circuit
Welcome to F1 Minute for the 17th August 2008.
It’s a very slow news day today, but we have a few thoughts ahead of Valencia. Jenson Button has been preparing for the new circuit, and says the simulator at the factory has been a real help in this matter, although it doesn’t give you a total feeling of what the car will be like. It is useful for getting the braking distances and learning the corners.
Ross Brawn has also been taking a look at the new track, and says they have been getting some information from some of the previous races that have already taken place. He says that whilst the circuit is compared to Monaco, it will not require as much downforce as that street circuit because it is not quite as twisty.
Finally, BMW have released their preview quotes and are looking forward to the weekend because the team has some close ties with Valencia. They roll out their new F1 car there usually, and Heidfeld says: “The first few metres in a brand-new car are always a very special experience.”
That’s it for today, let’s hope there’s more news for tomorrow’s F1 Minute.