1381 replies to this topic

[vietlol]

`

[Nacho]

Test bans already effective!


Wait, no.

According to rumours Ferrari may have teamed up with Peugeot to accelerate the development of the Italian F1 team's KERS system for the 2009 season.

The unconfirmed reports, citing unnamed 'F1 sources', say part of the marques' new relationship will involve Peugeot running Ferrari's F1 KERS system on a test version of its 908 prototype.

Ferrari is developing its KERS system with its electronics partner Magneti-Marelli, but the Maranello based team has admitted it is struggling with development of the technology and is yet to actually track-test a functioning unit.

It is suggested that the Ferrari-Peugeot tie-in could be one way for the Italian team to handle its lagging KERS track programme in the face of the looming in-season test ban, to take effect from the Australian Grand Prix in March.

However, it is also suggested that Ferrari may be exploring making its KERS available to teams in other categories of racing.

In 2008, Peugeot said it would campaign a hybrid electric variant of its diesel 908, complete with a KERS system, in this year's Le Mans Series.

Ex-Honda F1 will be Ferrari powered, as per Brawn and Ferrari. Unfortunately, it seems that the lack of winter development has put the hopes for a good season back another year.

Honda team boss Ross Brawn has confirmed he is in talks with his former employer Ferrari about securing a customer engine supply for 2009.

The Briton told La Gazzetta dello Sport that he and colleague Nick Fry are also speaking with multiple potential buyers of the Brackley-based team.

"Honda has already said it will not supply us with engines, so that's why I contacted Ferrari," said Brawn, who was the Maranello team's technical director until 2006.

"We haven't signed anything yet but I really appreciated the support from President Luca di Montezemolo and Stefano Domenicali. It's like being among former schoolmates: they still see me as one of their own."

Brawn said his priority is to safeguard the jobs of Honda Racing F1's staff, rather than protecting his own position or selling to the highest bidder.

When asked how many parties the team is speaking to, he answered: "I can only say it's more than one. The objective is to save the jobs (...) my presence is certainly not a priority."

He said the team was unlikely to return to the test tracks prior to the start of the season, but that he is "really optimistic" about the chances of survival.

"There's no hurry because modifying the car to install a different engine requires at least six weeks of work anyway. It's unlikely we'll manage to be on track during the winter."

"That's why we are studying a package of evolutions for 2010, when we aim to step up the ladder. Next year will remain for us a transitional one," Brawn said.

Ferrari has confirmed that it will be able to offer engines to the Formula One team based at Brackley.

Following Honda's withdrawal from the sport, team boss Ross Brawn said he contacted his former colleagues at Ferrari about procuring the famous Italian outfit's 2.4 litre V8 power plant in 2009, should Honda Racing F1 be rescued by a buyer.

A Ferrari spokesman confirmed Brawn's account, and said no deal has been reached yet.

"They have asked us whether we would be able to provide them with engines, and we said yes," he is quoted as saying by the German news agency SID.

"That's all, nothing more," the spokesman added.

Including Toro Rosso, Ferrari supplied two customer teams with engines in 2008, but Force India will switch to Mercedes-Benz power ahead of the forthcoming season.

McMerc the most popular team?!

McLaren has overtaken its top rival Ferrari in the popularity stakes, according to the results of a global fan survey.

A year after the Fernando Alonso turmoil and the 'Stepneygate' spy scandal, the Mercedes-powered team has emerged as the sport's most popular outfit in the results of the survey, carried out by Renault's title sponsor ING and published in the British magazine F1 Racing.

The survey, spanning 160 countries and involving 70,000 people, showed 29 percent selecting McLaren as their favourite team.

The result is a dramatic turnaround compared with the survey two years ago, when McLaren attracted only 21 percent of the vote, and the arrival of the new world champion Lewis Hamilton must be credited.

It means Ferrari, previously F1's standout favourite among fans, dipped in popularity from its previous 30 percent two years ago to 28 percent in 2008.

The next two favourite teams were Williams and Renault, each polling six percent.

"While Lewis deserves every accolade he has received since becoming the youngest world champion the sport has ever seen, in reality, for this to be achieved requires the same level of dedication and hard work from every member of the team in Woking, Brixworth and Stuttgart," McLaren Chief Executive Martin Whitmarsh said.

68 percent of those who completed the online survey said they have followed F1 for ten years or more, and a third said they attend at least one race per season.

Williams!




Car Release Dates, as of now

Ferrari[/b[ has announced it will run its new car on January 12th at the Fiorano track in Italy
Toyota has penned down the 15th for its internet-only presentation.
McLaren will be lifting the veil at Woking a day later, on the 16th.
Renault and Williams will debut their 2009 contenders on January 19th in Portugal at the Algarve Motor Park during a test session
BMW Sauber doing the same on the 20th in Valencia, Spain.
Red Bull Racing team has announced that the RB5 will be making its debut during testing at the Jerez de la Frontera circuit in Spain on Monday, February 9th.
No word yet on the launch of the Toro Rosso sister car, although it has been said that official presentations might wait until March.
Force India should be doing the same.
[b]"Ex-Honda": TBD

[MrHahn]

Got my '09 GP tickets in the mail

[Dr. Jimmmah!]

Got my '09 GP tickets in the mail

fucking bernie...

[MrHahn]

fucking bernie...

[DrDickAction]

Got my '09 GP tickets in the mail

so

god

damned

jealous

[Redliner]

I wanna see new cars. NOW.

If Ferrari can't make a good looking car next year...we have no hope

[vietlol]

I wanna see new cars. NOW.

If Ferrari can't make a good looking car next year...we have no hope

whatchutalking about? Ferrari's have looked boring and samey since late 90s

macca should be the yardstick

[Polish]

FIA ready to allow moveable wings

By Jonathan Noble Thursday, January 8th 2009, 10:08 GMT

The FIA says it is ready to accept the wholesale use of moveable aerodynamic devices in Formula One in a bid to help improve the show.

Although there has been a revamp of the technical regulations for this year to a bid to help make overtaking easier, FIA president Max Mosley believes that more radical steps may be needed to sort the situation out fully.

He suggests that rather than opting for sporting tweaks like reverse grids or a medal system to make the spectacle better, that it may be wiser to go for a more major tweaking of the technical regulations.

In a letter sent to the Formula One Teams' Association (FOTA), Mosley said: "The main complaint from race fans is the lack of overtaking and wheel-to-wheel racing. Changes to the aerodynamics rules have been proposed by a group of top experts from the teams and will take effect in 2009. It remains to be seen whether these plus an extra 80 bhp from KERS will help overtaking.

"There are also proposals for changes to the sporting regulations such as wholly or partially reversed grids, allocating leading grid places by lot, giving the World Championship to the driver with most wins and so on.

"Arguably, however, none of these deals with the problem that once the faster car gets past, it tends to drive away. So none of these proposals is conducive to close, wheel-to-wheel racing.

"We intend to seek FOTA's help to investigate the use of moveable aerodynamic devices. If sufficiently radical, these could give a car following another car a performance advantage by virtue of being behind. In a primitive way, this was the case in the 1960s, when a car would get a "tow" and lose lift and thus be faster in the wake of another car.

"The result was wheel-to-wheel racing at the so-called slip-streaming circuits, for example pre-chicane Monza. Using modern technology, moveable aero devices could be used to give a car more downforce and less drag whenever it was in turbulent air.
"This would produce wheel-to-wheel racing on all types of circuit. It would, however, require significant (possibly automatic) moveable aero devices."

Moveable aerodynamic devices have been banned in F1 for many years, but the interpretation of the rules has led to frequent controversy amid claims from some teams that their rivals have been using 'flexi-wings'.

The freeing up of moveable aerodynamic devices would also end the FIA's need for labour-intensive scrutineering checks to ensure that teams are complying with the regulations.

http://www.autosport...rt.php/id/72649

This could be pretty cool. I am all for F1 cars turning in to transformers. Can you imagine the cars having all sorts of movable aero controlled by the driver? In for huge wings to pop out of the sidepods so a car can overtake by flying over the car in front of it

[Dr. Jimmmah!]

Richards rules out Honda buyout

By Jonathan Noble Thursday, January 8th 2009, 16:03 GMT

Prodrive boss David Richards has ruled himself out for now as a contender to buy the Honda Racing team, autosport.com has learned.

Richards had been linked with a potential bid to buy the Brackley-based outfit following December's announcement that Honda were to quit F1 with immediate effect.

However, sources have told autosport.com that despite Richards talking about a takeover with potential backers from Kuwait, plus the outfit's chiefs Nick Fry and Ross Brawn, he has now officially pulled himself out of the discussions.

It is believed that the high costs of becoming successful in F1, despite a raft of budget cutting measures being introduced, was one of the key factors in convincing him to put his plans on hold unless circumstances change dramatically.

Richards hinted at the Autosport International Show on Thursday that he was unconvinced that now was the right time for him to return to F1.

"All I can say is that I have made it very clear that the only terms (under which) I would ever consider a return or an involvement was if I felt we could be competitive - and nobody expects to win in their first year of Formula One," he said on the main Autosport stage.

"It has also got to be financially viable. You expect to (have to) invest but you also expect it to work. I just personally feel that the current environment is too unsettled.

"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. The teams have still got a burden of overhead that is unsustainable. So consequently, with the window of time for entry, I just question whether it is right at the moment."

Richards believes that the raft of cost-cutting measures agreed between the FIA and the Formula One Teams' Association (FOTA) in December, although hailed as a big success at the time, do not go far enough in helping the sport.

"I would regard those as modest inroads if I am honest with you," he said. "When you make changes to thing, and you have to make a radical shift to get back to a sustainable level, you make that one-hit, one cut very quickly to get it done and then move forward from that point.

"You don't do it by a series of 1000 cuts. If I was involved I would be pushed hard for a lot deeper cuts a lot quicker."

He added: "I think there are still many people in F1 (for whom) reality has not yet sunk in about just how bad the situation is out there in the world - in business, commerce and everyone's way of life at the moment.

"If Formula One does not reconnect itself with its fan base and with the man in the street, and bring itself down to earth, I fear for its future. I know some people at the top end of the sport are addressing that and are well aware of that...It is a bitter medicine that is required at the moment but it has to be done."

Richards said any plan for him to return to F1 would be decided on purely business grounds, and would not be influenced by any personal desire to potentially become champion after enjoying success with BAR back in 2004.

"We were runner up that year behind Ferrari, and everyone assumes I would be motivated to go back for the last push. That is not what motivates me at all.

"It will be a business decision. It will be a hard-headed business decision, not an emotive one when I make it."

Honda Racing CEO Nick Fry has claimed that more than a dozen parties are being looked at as potential buyers for the team. Sources suggest that the leading contender is Greek shipping tycoon Achilleas Kallakis.

no prodrive bid for honda.

for carlos slim to buy and give bruno a seat.

[Redliner]

no prodrive bid for honda.

for carlos slim to buy and give bruno a seat.

I was really hoping for Prodrive b/c it'd be like the next Williams...an independent team racing b/c that's their primary goal: racing Any other million/billionaire will only treat it as one of their toys...

[DrDickAction]

whatchutalking about? Ferrari's have looked boring and samey since late 90s

macca should be the yardstick

Last years ferrari was god damned orgasmic looking...by far the best looking car on the grid.

Macca just came up with a cool paint color, which is going to look completely ridiculous on the new retro chassis. I bet they change it this year.

[DrDickAction]

I was really hoping for Prodrive b/c it'd be like the next Williams...an independent team racing b/c that's their primary goal: racing Any other million/billionaire will only treat it as one of their toys...

Formula Uno Mexicano would still be pretty though

[Dr. Jimmmah!]

Formula Uno Mexicano would still be pretty though

for some reason that statement made me think of tacos al pastor... now im hungry.

[Shi]

per request

F1 team principals' top 10 drivers
Who did the team chiefs rank as the best F1 drivers in 2008? Jonathan Noble asked them, and then totted up the scores.

By Jonathan Noble
autosport.com grand prix editor


There are numerous top 10 driver surveys conducted at the end of every season, but Autosport thought it would do something totally different this year – by getting the verdict of those whose opinions really matter: the Formula 1 team principals.

So, the moment the 10 chiefs touched down back at base following the Brazilian Grand Prix, they had waiting for them a request from Autosport for their own top drivers of the year.

The deal was simple: each individual team boss's ranking would be kept secret, and only the final collated results would be published here. Points were awarded on a 10-8-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis and anonymity was crucial if the team principals were to give their own honest appraisal, not only of the men they employ but the men they compete against every other weekend.

Only one team principal (Renault's Flavio Briatore) was unable to take part in the top 10, but his engineering chief, Pat Symonds, was only too willing to help out. Another team principal could only come up with his top three drivers after being unable to decide on the rankings further down, but all the rest were delighted to take part in the spirit in which it was intended.

So here, in what we hope will be the first of our annual F1 team principals' top 10 drivers, is a fascinating insight into who stood out as the best for the men running the show.

1. Lewis Hamilton (88 points)
What more is there to say about Lewis's fantastic, emotional, rollercoaster ride of a season? So here's what the man himself thinks about his latest accolade: "It's fantastic to know that I've earned the recognition and approval of the Formula 1 team principals. Apart from the fans themselves, they're probably the most influential people in the sport, so it's really rewarding to know that they've given me their vote of confidence.

"The end of the year is the perfect time to reflect on the season, and it's only then that you fully appreciate all the effort that went into our 2008 campaign – and let me stress that it was a team effort. But you can't look back for too long. I've already resumed my training and everybody at McLaren is fully focused on 2009, with the ambition of hopefully lifting both world titles at the end of next year."
Felipe Massa and Robert Kubica battle for position during the Grand Prix of Bahrain © XPB

2. Felipe Massa (86 points)
The Brazilian lost out to Lewis Hamilton at the final hurdle on track this season, and the same was true in this survey too. He was Hamilton's only real challenger for the top spot.

3= Fernando Alonso (50 points)
After escaping from McLaren, it took him until the closing stages of the season to return as a serious force in F1 and offer another glimpse of the form that made him a double champion with Renault.

3= Robert Kubica (50 points)
After emerging as BMW Sauber's team leader, he was gutted to miss out on third place in the drivers' championship. Never mind Robert – you've tied for that position with Fernando Alonso here.

5. Sebastian Vettel (37 points)
One of the surprises of the year, his strong form and unexpected victory at Monza for the Toro Rosso team have marked Vettel out as a potential future superstar.

6. Kimi Raikkonen (27 points)
A less-than-stellar season for the 2007 world champion, but he still did enough to make it into the top six in the opinion of the team principals.

7. Timo Glock (13 points)
The GP2 champ more than justified Toyota's faith in him with a strong second half to the season, which included a great podium finish in Hungary. His form got him easily inside the top 10.

8. Heikki Kovalainen (10 points)
The Finn took a maiden victory in Hungary this season, but admits himself that the year as a whole was a disappointment. He is looking for much more in 2009.

9. Nick Heidfield (4 points)
The veteran's season was almost derailed by qualifying troubles, but even so he took a healthy dose of points. Team bosses were not as willing to reward him.

10= Adrian Sutil (3 points)
A challenging season for the Force India man, but his performance in the wet in Monaco served as a reminder of what the young German was capable of.

10= Jarno Trulli (3 points)
Ever the strong qualifier, the Italian delivered some great performances in 2008, although team bosses clearly felt new teammate Timo Glock did a better job.

Gold for Lewis too
Bernie Ecclestone has already openly criticised the points system in Formula 1, claiming that it would be much better to introduce an Olympics-style medal system for the sport. Had he done so in F1 this season, it would have resulted in Felipe Massa taking the world title thanks to his six gold medals (victories) compared to Lewis Hamilton's five.

Had we adopted a similar system in our F1 Team Principals' Top 10 Drivers, the results would have been just as close as they were with the traditional points system. Lewis Hamilton would have just pipped Felipe Massa, with Robert Kubica coming in a clear third ahead of Fernando Alonso.

[DrDickAction]

for some reason that statement made me think of tacos al pastor... now im hungry.

damn good idea.

buche tacos

[kngrsll]

damn good idea.

buche tacos

im going to make southwest chicken... with black beans, onions and peppers... YUM

[Nacho]

no prodrive bid for honda.

for carlos slim to buy and give bruno a seat.

Didn't Carlos already say he wasn't buying.

IBnoOneBuys.

[vietlol]

Last years ferrari was god damned orgasmic looking...by far the best looking car on the grid.

Macca just came up with a cool paint color, which is going to look completely ridiculous on the new retro chassis. I bet they change it this year.

They might change the paint though, the scheme they ran before looks good too

[DrDickAction]

They might change the paint though, the scheme they ran before looks good too

you mean the kimi era west cigarette livery?

that was super meh.

[MrHahn]

you mean the kimi era west cigarette livery?

that was super meh.

The Mclaren front nose section from previous years reminded me of actresses with bad rhinoplasty making it thin and sharp edged

[vietlol]

I think mp4-18 onwards had a not so good roundish nose, before that that they had sharp pointy ones I thought were cool

[kngrsll]

so close to new car time

honestly, this is one of my favorite parts of the season... it helped when we got autosport and barnes and noble though, they articles were SHIBBY

[vietlol]

cant waaait

[kngrsll]

I wanna see new cars. NOW.

If Ferrari can't make a good looking car next year...we have no hope

im worried about this

i just wonder how far the cars will evolve before the beginning of the season... i bet alot considering the clean slate.