[F1] Nieuwtjes topic deel #78

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Op dinsdag 9 november 2010 11:15 schreef vosss het volgende:

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Val toch finaal kapot achterlijke jankbal. Juist door teamorders sta je nu 8 punten voor godverdommese kutzak !

Ik hoop van harte dat Red Bull teamorders gaat gebruiken om zo de titel binnen te slepen mocht de mogelijkheid zich voor doen.

Daarna kunnen we pas echt gaan lachen als we zien hoe Alonso als een klein kind in een hoekje gaat zitten janken dat het allemaal niet eerlijk is

Tyfuszak

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Op dinsdag 9 november 2010 11:38 schreef vosss het volgende:

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Natuurlijk niet. De FIA kan bij overduidelijke teamorders geen andere straf uitdelen dan die 100k boete lijkt me.

En als ze dat wel doen kunnen ze gewoon in beroep gaan en dan winnen ze op zeker.

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Op dinsdag 9 november 2010 11:50 schreef vosss het volgende:
Het is totaal ongeloofwaardig om bv Webber de titel af te nemen bij gebruik van teamorders waar Alonso voor hetzelfde feit geen straf kreeg en alleen zijn team een boete van 100k kreeg.

Dat kunnen ze gewoon niet doen en dat gaan ze ook niet doen want dan verliest de sport het laatste beetje geloofwaardigheid wat ze nog hebben en graven ze hun eigen graf.

Ik zou het gewoon doen als Red Bull zijnde.
Flikker maar op, dikke vinger naar de FIA en naar Ferrari en dan laat het volgend jaar maar fatsoenlijk in de regels staan zodat het niet meer kan voorkomen.

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Windsor: First there was the press conference in Singapore, confirming that Team Lotus are finally back in F1. Then, the day after the race, Group Lotus Proton, actually declared (and I quote) that they are the owners of this (the Team Lotus) brand and will take all necessary steps to protect it. I think they also said that, until 1994, Group Lotus and Team Lotus were under common ownership, with common directors, and that Team Lotus, under your ownership, has never raced, adding that your ownership is ineffective. What was that all about?

Hunt: I was infuriated by that because I view it as libel. Theyre basically saying that I have been lying for the past 16 years. All these claims are complete nonsense. If Team Lotus was under common ownership and control, how come the Chapman family sold it to Peter Collins in 1991? Why were Group Lotus a third-party sponsor of the Lotus F1 cars during Collinss tenure? And why did they stand by while the Administrators then sold it to me and my partner in a sale that was completely under the jurisdiction of the British High Court?

...

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Op dinsdag 9 november 2010 12:40 schreef vosss het volgende:

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Slappe zak

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Total takes you to the moon in 3d

On 1 December a new 3D movie will run in the cinemas: "The Total Moon Race'. The movie is made by Total, the French petroleum company, in order to promote its partnership with the Renault Formula One Team. The Total Moon Race will see a Renault car take to the low gravity atmosphere of the moon in an extreme F1 race.

More news can be found on the following website:
http://www.total-moon-race.com/moon-base/

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Op dinsdag 9 november 2010 12:40 schreef vosss het volgende:

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Slappe zak

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Hamilton: I'd like to see Mark win it
Lewis Hamilton has admitted he would love to see Mark Webber emerge victorious in this year's Formula One World title race if he cannot claim the championship for himself.

Hamilton needs a win in Abu Dhabi on Sunday and at the same time must hope Ferrari star Fernando Alonso fails to score and Red Bull duo Mark Webber and Sebastian Vettel do not secure the few points they would need.

It is no wonder Hamilton is a 100/1 outsider with most bookmakers as only a remarkable final day will see him crowned Champion again.

Naturally, Hamilton is refusing to give up, but given the circumstances, he is rooting for Webber given the struggles he has faced at Red Bull this season, and despite their collision in the Singapore Grand Prix that cost the 25-year-old valuable points.

"I'd like to see Mark win it. He's done a great job this year," said Hamilton, when asked for his personal preference.

"He has been told by his team what position he is, and against adversity he has kept at it.

"I think he has done an awesome job. I'm quite impressed with what he has done.

"Vettel has obviously been incredibly quick and Fernando has done a good, solid job towards the end of the year, so it could go to any of them.

"But Mark's done pretty much everything right this year - apart from our little tangle."

Hamilton, though, will give it all he has in Abu Dhabi, warning his trio of rivals he has no intention of stepping aside and letting them fight it out amongst themselves.

"I don't really give a damn about any of those three," added Hamilton.

"At the end of the day I've still a shot at it, so I will try to win.

"They've lots more to lose than I have, so I won't be looking out for them, letting them past or anything like that.

"I'm going to Abu Dhabi to try to win, even though we don't have the fastest car at the moment, so it's going to be very difficult.

"But I could be riding in fourth and all three of them might not finish. Anything could happen."

With that in mind Hamilton is refusing to yet look back with any regrets at the accidents in Monza and Singapore that have cost him points.

"Maybe at the end of the year I'll reflect, but it doesn't matter because although you can dwell on the past, what good does it do? None at all," added Hamilton.

"At the end of the day if we had a faster car and we were at the front, like the Red Bulls have been all year, it's much easier to stay out of trouble, cruise to the finish line and score points.

"When you are having to make up ground and try to pass cars that are also faster than you, that's when you are prone to sometimes getting taken out of the race."

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Op dinsdag 9 november 2010 14:38 schreef Tarado het volgende:
Hamilton: I'd like to see Mark win it
Tuesday 9th November 2010

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http://www.planetf1.com/n(...)e-to-see-Mark-win-it

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Button attack an 'embarrassment' for Brazil, says Barrichello

Brazil is under pressure to clean up its act prior to hosting other major sporting events such as the Football World Cup and Olympic Games, after the attempted carjacking on Jenson Button in São Paulo at the weekend was labelled an 'embarrassment'

As the Briton's former team-mate Rubens Barrichello described the incident as an 'embarrassment' for his country, it seems the attempted armed ambush on McLaren-Mercedes star Jenson Button after qualifying at Interlagos last weekend has kicked Brazil into action to improve its safety ahead of other upcoming major sporting events.

As Button returned from the circuit back to his São Paulo hotel in company with his father John, manager Richard Goddard and trainer Mike Collier, the bulletproof Mercedes B-Class in which the four men were travelling was stuck in stationary traffic as it passed through a favela (shanty town), when they were approached by a group of up to six gun-wielding assailants.

The quartet were saved by the quick-thinking reactions of their specially-trained police driver Daniel Toni, who Button praised as 'an absolute legend' for rescuing him and his entourage from potentially 'some big problems' [see separate story click here] as was evinced by similarly unsavoury incidents involving a trio of Sauber engineers and some Formula One Management (FOM) officials who had stopped at the roadside in order to change a blown tyre but who reflected simply that he was 'only doing my job, that's all'.

Extra security was provided to Button and McLaren team-mate Lewis Hamilton the following day, but with police assuring that the failed carjacking was more likely a characteristic example of the violent street crime that is all-too prevalent in what is one of São Paulo's most deprived neighbourhoods rather than a more sinister kidnap plot, as has been mused [see separate story click here], city mayor Gilberto Kassab has insisted that state and federal police are 'committed' to tracking the gunmen down and bringing them to justice.

Public authorities are doing everything possible to reach a level of excellence in events like this, Kassab is quoted as having said by the globoesporte website.

On that matter, with the 2014 Football World Cup and 2016 Olympic Games both on the radar for Brazil in the not-too-distant future, pressure is rising upon the country's authorities to solve its crime issues and reduce the risk of danger for foreign visitors, with Williams ace Barrichello who partnered the reigning F1 World Champion at Brawn GP last year and is a Paulista himself writing on his Twitter account that the attack was an 'embarrassment' and globoesporte columnist José Ilan conceding that 'it's an horrendous postcard Button is taking back home'.

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Alonso will be champion if
He wins on Sunday.
He finishes 2nd on Sunday.
He finishes 3rd and Webber doesnt win.
He comes 4th and Webber is 2nd or less.
He comes in 5th neither Vettel or Webber win.
He finishes 6th, Vettel is 2nd and Webber 3rd.
Hes 7th or 8th, Vettel is second or worse, Webber 4th or worse.
Hes 9th, Vettel is 3rd or worse, Webber 5th or worse.
He doesnt finish, Hamilton is 2nd or worse, Vettel is 3rd or worse, Webber 5th or worse.

Webber will be champion if
He wins and Alonso is 3rd or worse
He comes 2nd, Vettel 3rd or worse and Alonso 6th or worse
He comes 3rd, Vettel 2nd or worse, Alonso 7th or worse
He comes fourth, Vettel 2nd or worse, Alonso 9th or worse
He finishes 5th, Vettels 3rd or worse, Alonso is 10th or worse

Vettel will be champion if
He wins and Alonso is 5th or worse
He comes 2nd, Webber is 5th or worse and Alonso is 9th or worse

Hamilton will be champion if
He wins, Vettel is 3rd or worse, Webber is 6th or worse and Alonso doesnt come in the top 10

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Op dinsdag 9 november 2010 15:43 schreef Googolplexian het volgende:

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bron

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Op dinsdag 9 november 2010 16:20 schreef Atreidez het volgende:
Vervanger van Petrov volgend jaar?

http://www.dumpert.nl/med(...)r_tijd_voorrrrr.html

_{zal wel weer eerder gepost zijn, maar door nieuwe layout ben ik het een beetje kwijt allemaal}

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Op dinsdag 9 november 2010 11:43 schreef Slein83 het volgende:

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Een Vetteltje op Alonso zou wel leuk zijn

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Op dinsdag 9 november 2010 18:13 schreef franklop het volgende:
Wat nou als Webber eerste ligt, daar stukje achter Alonso met vettel in zijn kielzog, zou vettel dan alles op alles zetten om alo te passeren?

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MCLAREN AND FORCE INDIA CONFIRM ROOKIE TEST HOPEFULS

McLaren and Force India have become the latest teams to announce the young hopefuls who will drive for them in next weeks F1 rookie test in Abu Dhabi.
Teams will be running drivers who have contested three or fewer Grand Prix at the Yas Marina circuit following this weekends title decider, with some racers getting acquainted with their new employers and many hunting for an F1 berth for 2011.

McLaren will run GP2 rookie Oliver Turvey, alongside veteran test driver Gary Paffett. 23-year-old Turvey has enjoyed a solid first season in F1s support series, taking three podiums and sitting seventh in the championship ahead of this weekends final round of racing. It will be the Cumbrian racers second run for McLaren, having tested for them at last years young driver test.

Vijay Mallyas team will be running Dutchman Yelmer Buurman and Portuguese teenager Antonio Felix da Costa in Abu Dhabi, whilst current tester Paul di Resta is also expected to get track time. With Tonio Liuzzi supposedly on his way out of the Silverstone-based outfit and di Resta set to take his race seat this could be seen as an audition for Force Indias 2011 test driver.
23-year-old Burman has spent the last three seasons in the football-themed Superleague Formula championship, finishing as runner-up in 2008. The rapid Dutchman has also raced in GP2, where he was team-mate to Sebastien Buemi in 2008.
I am unbelievably happy with this chance, said Buurman. F1 remains my ultimate goal and testing for such a good team like Force India F1 Team is a dream come true.
I am well prepared and I will do my very best to show that I am more than quick enough.

Da Costa meanwhile will become the youngest Portuguese driver to sample F1 machinery when he takes part in the test. The 19-year-old raced in the F3 Euro Series in 2010, scoring three race wins on his way to seventh overall. Former Jordan peddler Tiago Monteiro is part of the teenagers management team.
It will be a memorable day in my career and I hope the first of many more at the wheel of a Formula 1 car, said da Costa.
Force India is a fierce and very consistent team, with lots of ambition that has been evolving throughout the last few years, so I expect to have a good performance and be able to show my potential.
Force India: a fierce team. Wonderfully described, Antonio.
Other drivers set to take part in the test include well-funded GP2 champ Pastor Maldonado, Saubers new signing Sergio Perez and Ferrari protégée Jules Bianchi. Renault have Jerome dAmbrosio and Mikhail Aleshin on board, whilst Formula 2 title winner Dean Stoneman will drive for Williams. Dean had a chat with Badger over the weekend about his maiden run in an F1 car, and well bring you that, along with all the other goings on at F1s young driver test, next week.
That is if you can handle anymore Formula One after Sundays title decider.

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Op woensdag 10 november 2010 13:05 schreef Ermanon het volgende:
Ecclesone: Sao Paolo is volstrekg veilig
Tuurlijk ...
En je doet het niet om het geld maar uit liefde voor de sport met je hoge toegangsprijzen ....

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Klien retains Hispania seat for Abu Dhabi

Christian Klien will stay on in the Hispania race seat for this weekend's final grand prix in Abu Dhabi.

The Austrian was called up to replace Sakon Yamamoto in both Singapore and Brazil, and will drive alongside Bruno Senna again this weekend.

"It's my third chance to compete for the team this season and I'm getting more and more used to the car and the crew," said Klien, who was initially signed as a test and reserve driver earlier this year before Hispania began rotating its race line-up.

"I hope we can achieve some great results and have a clean weekend. We should have a similar pace to the one in Brazil, so I think we can be a challenge for the [other] new teams."

Former Jaguar and Red Bull driver Klien's return with Hispania in Singapore was his first Formula 1 start since he split with RBR in late-2006.

He impressed by outqualifying team-mate Senna at both events he has contested this year, and took his first finish at Interlagos, albeit six laps down after mechanical problems before the start.

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Abu Dhabi Grand Prix: Wet weather forecast could leave dramatic season finale wide open
^{By Tom Cary 6:57PM GMT 10 Nov 2010, Tom's Twitter}

Arriving directly from the penultimate race of the year in Sao Paulo, or after the briefest of stopovers in Europe, Formula One's battered foot soldiers were met by an invigorating sight in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday night: rain.

Not much of it, but enough to refresh ailing bodies. Abu Dhabi has an average rainfall of just 0.2mm for the month of November.
But with the BBC predicting more light showers today and tomorrow, and heavy rainfall on Saturday, it was a first indication that we may be in for the exciting an unpredictable finale we are all hoping for.
Lord knows Lewis Hamilton needs that. Both he and Fernando Alonso remarked on Wednesday that they were seeking perfection in Sundays season finale at Yas Marinas opulent circuit. Beyond that basic ambition, their rhetoric could not have been more different.

Where Hamilton conceded that even a pole-to-flag win would probably not be enough for him to claim his second world title, Ferraris championship leader knows that it would be more than sufficient.

Alonso has an eight-point lead over Red Bulls Mark Webber and 15 and 24 over Sebastian Vettel and Hamilton respectively. And although there are various permutations that would allow Alonso to follow his rivals home and still become champion, the Spaniard would prefer to leave nothing to chance.

"The Interlagos result allows us to be in charge of our own destiny: with a win or a second place we won't need any more calculations," Alonso said. "We know that if we get everything perfectly right, then we will have the chance to reach the target that we set ourselves at the beginning of the season.

Hamilton, too, is looking for the perfect weekend, although his would see all his opponents choking on the pressure.

"I've been in the hunt for the world championship at the final race of the season on two previous occasions, so I know all about the pressure you feel when the title is almost within touching distance," the 25-year-old said.

"This year, it feels a little different - although I'm still mathematically in with a shout, I'm fully aware that, being 24 points behind, I'll not only need to win the race on Sunday but see the championship leader finish outside the points.

"And, even then, that might not be enough. So I'm not feeling the pressure in quite the same way as I did in 2007 or 2008. But we've seen before that this championship can be unpredictable and volatile - and I think this race could be even more unpredictable than normal.

One thing the former team mates did agree on was the fact that Red Bull are likely to be the pace-setters once again.

The Milton Keynes-based team wrapped up the constructors title in Brazil and McLarens managing director Jonathan Neale admitted yesterday that his team had lost the development race this year. "There will be time for reflection, but it's not exactly as though the season has been calamitous, he said.

It could yet end on a high. A freak rainstorm, or perhaps a sandstorm of Biblical proportions, would certainly help.

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Virgin Racing has secured its long-term future after selling a major shareholding to Russian sportscar manufacturer Marussia Motors.

The team will become known as Marussia Virgin Racing, with the company already having been a partner of the team since its launch in 2009.

Virgin says the deal will not result in any significant changes to the its organisational structure.

"Our first year in Formula 1 was always going to be tough - even more so as we were launching in the midst of a worldwide recession," said Virgin chief Richard Branson.

"Virgin is delighted to have secured a partner which shares our vision and spirit for challenging the establishment and we look forward to working together to move the team up the F1 grid."

Graeme Lowdon, CEO of Virgin Racing, said: "This announcement cements our place on the F1 grid and is testimony to the hard work and dedication of every single member of our team."

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Op donderdag 11 november 2010 12:41 schreef Burnie88 het volgende:
Damn, heb echt enorm zin in het komende raceweekend!

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Op donderdag 11 november 2010 12:41 schreef Burnie88 het volgende:
Damn, heb echt enorm zin in het komende raceweekend!

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Op donderdag 11 november 2010 13:49 schreef Sinister-D- het volgende:

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Spijtig dat 't daarna weer wachten is tot maart '11

Maar we hebben in de winter waarschijnlijk wel weer geluk omdat een of ander GTST-schandaal aan het licht gaat komen Webber ofzo die naar een ander team gaat, en dan alle familie drama's van Red Bull op straat flikkert

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Op donderdag 11 november 2010 14:35 schreef sasquatsch het volgende:

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Daarna krijgen we eerst nog de young driver test in Abu Dhabi.

Voorlopige line-up
[ code verwijderd ]

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Op donderdag 11 november 2010 16:18 schreef Walter_Sobchak het volgende:
Seb, Mark is quicker than you. Can you confirm you understood that message?

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Op donderdag 11 november 2010 17:32 schreef Burnie88 het volgende:

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Haha, ik zou ze bij Red Bull wel zulke flapdrollen vinden als ze dat niet doen in het geval Vettel 1, Webber 2 en Alonso 4 staat in de race op een gegeven moment...

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Alonso heeft verse motor bewaard voor finale in Abu Dhabi

De motorsituatie van Ferrari-coureur Fernando Alonso is minder nijpend dan tot nu toe werd verondersteld. Dat meldt Auto Motor und Sport. De Spanjaard zou in Abu Dhabi een vrijwel verse krachtbron in kunnen zetten.

Alonso rijdt al sinds de Grand Prix van Italië met zijn achtste motor en een negende V8 in gebruik nemen betekent een grid penalty van tien plekken. Auto Motor und Sport stelt dat de Spanjaard nog een verse krachtbron achter de hand heeft. Ferrari wisselde in Bahrein namelijk de eerste motor al meteen uit voorzorg om oververhitting te voorkomen. Ook de motor die Alonso in België gebruikte is alleen in dat weekend in actie gekomen.

http://www.f1today.nl/201(...)le-in-abu-dhabi.html

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Op donderdag 11 november 2010 16:18 schreef Walter_Sobchak het volgende:
Seb, Mark is quicker than you. Can you confirm you understood that message?

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F1 track wet in Abu Dhabi desert!

Shortly before the initial Friday practice session in warm and humid Abu Dhabi, it rained quite heavily.

To the surprise of many in the paddock, within sight of the huge and sandy Abu Dhabi desert, spray was streaming from the rear of the cars during the Porsche support race at Yas Marina.

"Is it my sleepy eyes or is it raining?" quipped Karun Chandhok on Twitter.

The shower, which began with light rain, eventually passed but the track is likely to still be damp for the beginning of the 90-minute practice session at 1pm local.

Local reports say more scattered showers are possible over the next 48 hours, and the National Centre of Meteorology and Seismology confirmed the cloudy forecast for Saturday and Sunday.

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Red Bull's F1 campaign a masterpiece of marketing

By 7 o'clock tonight one driver will be the 2010 King of Formula One. If it is Fernando Alonso, then it is a good day for both Abu Dhabi and Italy. Ferrari World could have no better launch. If it is Mark Webber or Sebastian Vettel, then Red Bull has done the double with both F1 2010 Constructors and Driver World Championships. If it is Lewis Hamilton and McLaren, then the other drivers will have had a bad day at the office.

For Ferrari, losing today would mean a disappointing season and cost millions of euros in bonuses and future sponsorship. It will have an impact on its brand gloss and corporate morale. Cars are its business, and F1 is the core of its marketing. For Red Bull, losing will be demoralising, but the partying around F1 will not stop and its main revenue streams are only rising. Red Bull may lose the battle but it is winning the war. Particularly the brand sponsorship war.

Look at it this way: Ferrari has more than 80 years of heritage as a company, while Red Bull has fewer than 25. Both understand passion and sponsorship better than their peers. Ferrari is the establishment in terms of an F1 brand and rights-holder. Red Bull is the young, upstart challenger breaking all the rules.

Red Bull is an incredible story. Its marketing and ingredient origins are a Thai energy drink called Krating Daeng. Dietrich Mateschitz, the Austrian entrepreneur behind Red Bull, developed the energy drink brand when, as the international marketing director for a toothpaste company, he visited Thailand in 1982 and discovered a cure for his jet lag.

Between 1984 and 1987, Mr Mateschitz worked on adapting the recipe, then invested US$500,000 (Dh1.8 million) in a joint venture with Chaleo Yoovidhya, his Thai business partner, and his son, Chalerm. The Red Bull product and brand was launched in 1987. Today it is one of the world's best-selling soft drinks. Forbes estimated in 2008 that both men are worth $4 billion.

Red Bull's journey in terms of sponsorship is equally remarkable. Mr Mateschitz and his team understood that to align yourself to fans, content and passion through sponsorship was key. If you launch a business with a brand today, follow this approach. Place your brand in the heart of the right sponsorship content, and if your business has the right core product and fundamentals, you can grow very quickly.

Perhaps the key to Red Bull's success is that it has done everything its own way. It sponsored individuals and events - particularly in extreme youth sports. If the right opportunities did not exist, then it invented them. Today when you look at Red Bull's website - a YouTube-style channel in its own right and no doubt a future media channel modelled on Virgin's brand diversification model - the most impressive part is that Red Bull owns most of what you watch.

In a rare interview with The Times of London in 2006, Mr Mateschitz commented on his ¤400m (Dh2 billion) marketing strategy of the time: "It's quite normal that you spend millions of dollars on marketing on TV, but here it's marketing investment in assets." Best of all, he owns the assets. From its impressive F1 team to its New York soccer franchise, from the Red Bull Air Race to Flugtage, Red Bull owns, markets and delivers its own content. It is also now generating major revenue streams from these assets, which considerably reduce its sponsorship outlay.

Ferrari does have one advantage in this regard. Red Bull is so good at what it does that other brands drown or fade in comparison. Destinations, alcoholic drinks, individuals and content can benefit from a Red Bull sponsorship asset association. But consumer brands will often have issues.

At present, Ferrari sponsorship gloss is far wider in terms of commercial impact. The Red Bull-du partnership announced last week has great potential because of the content that du will get. Expect downloads, ticket promotions, special access to drivers, F1 races and even Red Bull parties to come through your du subscriptions.

Two years before Red Bull's launch, a new airline called Emirates launched in Dubai. Initially a challenger brand, it has also used sponsorship as a core commercial tool to grow its business. Today Emirates Airline is the Gulf's largest sponsor. It is safe to say that it is the only one spending more than $100m on its global sponsorship programme annually.

Like Red Bull, Emirates looks to dominate most of its sponsorships. It also has an iconic slogan ("Fly Emirates") and sponsored assets including the Emirates Dubai Rugby Sevens, based at the "Sevens stadium", where the food and beverages are provided by an Emirates Group subsidiary. It is not beyond the realms of the possible that Emirates follows this model even further and buys into a sports franchise such as Red Bull in F1.

This trend of the "brand-cum-rights owner" will continue in boardrooms worldwide. This year Audi, probably the world's leading car brand outside of F1, took a 9 per cent stake in Bayern Munich in a deal worth ¤90m. Audi has been a partner of Bayern since 2002. The equity stake, while a good business proposition in its own right, allows Audi the potential to increase its commercial and community returns from the partnership by shaping the marketing strategy. The same is true for Mubadala Development, a strategic investment company owned by the Abu Dhabi Government, with Ferrari, and Aabar with Mercedes.

Regardless of the result, there will be two other winners of the sponsorship race at Yas Marina Circuit. First, Abu Dhabi. The F1 Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix showcases Abu Dhabi as a leisure and business destination, while also creating strong commercial platforms for its major corporations: Aabar, Aldar, Etihad Airways, Mubadala and National Bank of Abu Dhabi.

Last year Etihad had more hits on its website on the Sunday of F1 than on any other day in its brief history. A recent survey by IFM sports marketing suggested that 94.4 million viewers watched the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix last year. This year it is likely to exceed 100 million viewers, given that the championship will be decided today.

The second winner is Red Bull. Sponsorship is multi-dimensional. If you place your sponsorship strategy at the heart of your business, you can shape a brand, win consumers, create a corporate culture, generate sales, motivate staff and much more.

It is part advertising, part PR, part sales tool, part brand gloss and very community based. Red Bull is perhaps the best modern example of why sponsorship works. The industry owes it a lot. It has shown how sponsorship can give you wings and make a product fly.

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Op zondag 14 november 2010 02:39 schreef rycemasta het volgende:

Worlds fastest Roller Coaster destroys Fernando Alonso's face

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Op maandag 15 november 2010 14:11 schreef Tarado het volgende:
Het is sowieso leuk een nieuwe kampioen te begroeten en uiteindelijk had Vettel er bij RBR het meeste recht op, mede omdat Webber toen hij toe kon slaan faalde, ik vind wel dat hij meer rendement uit zijn poles had moeten halen, als je 10 keer op pole staat en je wint er maar 3 is dat wel voor verbetering vatbaar, 2 keer was het door mechanische pech maar die andere 5 keer heeft hij dus plekken verloren

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Op maandag 15 november 2010 14:32 schreef sasquatsch het volgende:
@sanger: Dat heeft te maken met de circuits. Er zijn circuits (zoals Abu Dhabi) waar het dicht bij elkaar lag, maar er zijn ook circuits waar Red Bull veruit de beste was (zoals Hongarije).

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Alonso: Waking up was hard today

Fernando Alonso has described his Monday morning feelings after narrowly missing out on a third world title in Abu Dhabi on Sunday night. Writing his latest blog on the Ferrari website, the Spaniard now looks forward to his return to the cockpit in testing.

Waking up was hard after yesterdays disappointment, I cant deny it. It hurts to come so close to the goal and see it slip away like that, but thats the way sport goes and we have to accept it.

The closing chapter of the season must not erase all the positive things that weve done this year. And I repeat for me its been a top year. There have been wonderful moments, such as the Monza podium, that will stay in my memory and the bitter end will never be able to cancel them out.

Now its pointless to try and work out who got things wrong: a World Championship that slips away by four points after 19 races can be lost on so many occasions, not just at the end. We are a team: we win and we lose all together.

Im happy to be at Ferrari to feel, together with all the men and women who work here the pride of being a part of this family and this extraordinary history. We are a great group and we will show that especially in this hardest of moments where this bitter taste will be felt inside every one of us.

I know that at Maranello everyone will be working hard on the new car to try to be even more competitive at the start of next year. I know that here at Yas Marina the mechanics are again on-track preparing for a week of testing.

I cant wait to get back involved on Friday when Ill return to Abu Dhabi to try out the new Pirelli tyres on Saturday.

This is the spirit of our people: they want to react straightaway, to work even harder to chase victory. That has made me fall in love with Ferrari even more today than ever.

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Statements by the Ferrari Chairman and Vice Chairman

Luca di Montezemolo: "When the statesman Calderoli will achieve in his life 1% of what Ferrari has done for this country in terms of industry and sports, then he'll deserve an answer."

Piero Ferrari: "Im astonished and saddened by certain statements some politicians and a minister of the Italian Republic made after yesterdays race. It has never happened in my entire life at Ferrari that politicians intervened during good and bad moments in our life in motorsport, and I want it to stay like this. But if we want to have a look at how much Ferrari has done for Italys image around the world, then I can only say that it is definitely much more than certain politics have done."

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Lotus F1 team boss torn over name change

Malaysian-owned Lotus Racing could have a completely new identity in Formula One next season although team principal Tony Fernandes says he wants to keep the Lotus name if he can.
What is certain is that the team, best of the three newcomers this year, will not be called Lotus Racing after a falling out with Malaysian carmaker Proton and their Lotus Group who had allowed them to use the name.

Fernandes had planned to switch to Team Lotus, the name used under founder Colin Chapman to win multiple titles in the 1960s and 1970s, but his rights are disputed by sportscar makers Lotus Group.

The matter is due to go to the London High Court some time next year and has been further complicated by reports that Lotus Group are likely to join the Renault team as title sponsors and investors.

Gerard Lopez, the Renault team chairman and major shareholder, said his Genii Capital had long-standing links outside Formula One with Lotus Group but would not comment on future plans.
"We are interested in Lotus as a car company. Is there something with the team to be done? We'll see," he told Reuters.

Fernandes' outfit is also due to use Renault engines, which would lead to the messy situation of two rival Lotus Renault teams on the grid unless a deal is done between the sides.
Fernandes told Reuters after the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix at the weekend that he was torn about how to proceed.

"I've received 2,800 emails in the last two hours from people all over the world saying please keep the Lotus name with you. It means nothing if it goes somewhere else," said Fernandes.
"Let's see. But what we don't want to be involved in is destroying the Lotus name.

"If we go to court, yes, we will win," he added. "But the brand will suffer, and I don't want to be part of that brand being destroyed, I don't want to drag it through the gutter.

"We feel that we've done justice to the Lotus name. We want to keep it. We feel it's ours. But we are also pragmatic human beings."

AirAsia airline entrepreneur Fernandes is expected to sell the Team Lotus name to Lotus Group but he said an alternative, albeit less likely, would be for him to acquire Lotus cars from Proton.
"If it was an option that was available to us, that's feasible," he said.

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Op maandag 15 november 2010 16:30 schreef Googolplexian het volgende:

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Op maandag 15 november 2010 19:18 schreef Walter_Sobchak het volgende:
[ afbeelding ]

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Toyota aborts HRT collaboration

HRT's plans to link up in a technical partnership with Toyota have been aborted after the Japanese manufacturer announced it had terminated its deal with the new team.

It is understood that HRT was looking at a deal that would see it use the Toyota's team's planned 2010 car as the basis for next year's challenger - as well as having use of certain facilities at the Cologne factory.

However, in a statement issued on Monday, Toyota Motorsport announced that the plans had been killed off because payments had not been made.

"Toyota Motorsport GmbH (TMG) confirms that all cooperation with Hispania Racing F1 Team (HRT) has been terminated and will not resume," said the statement.

"TMG retains all intellectual property rights to its current F1 car and is completely free to pursue other projects and support new customers for its high-performance engineering services.

"TMG regrets that HRT has not met its contractual payment obligations and will pursue all available options to reach a satisfactory conclusion to this matter."

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Op maandag 15 november 2010 20:59 schreef ElmarO het volgende:

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Op maandag 15 november 2010 21:08 schreef Big-Ern het volgende:

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Met wat voor zeepkist gaan die volgend jaar op de grid komen? Misschien staat er in de BOSS Series nog wel wat te koop!

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Op maandag 15 november 2010 19:39 schreef ElmarO het volgende:

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Geweldig. Ben benieuwd wie die foto er op heeft geplakt.

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Op maandag 15 november 2010 22:18 schreef sanger het volgende:
http://www.f1today.nl/201(...)st-met-williams.html

McGregor is persoonlijke sponsor van vd Garde en de CEO van McGregor is de manager van Giedo. McGregor wilde de samenwerking beeindigen maar nu niet meer? Toevallig of?

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Red Bull could lose Vettel

Owner of the Red Bull Formula One Team, Dieter Mateschitz, says that his team will have to keep providing world champion Sebastian Vettel with a competitive car, or lose him.

Mateschitz realises that Vettel, who became the youngest world champion ever, could easily be lured away to other teams when his contract expires at the end of next year, if Red Bull fails to maintain the dominance in the sport that it enjoyed this year.

"He will be a world champion a few times more, provided he is sitting in the right car," said the Austrian billionaire on Austrian television ORG. "We will do our best to give that car to him. If we are not able to, we will have to let him go somewhere where he can be champion again."

Red Bull has an option on Vettel for 2012 and has already indicated it wants to extend his contract to 2015.

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Op maandag 15 november 2010 23:17 schreef Schunckelstar het volgende:

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hoop niet dat ie testrijder word eigenlijk...

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Op dinsdag 16 november 2010 08:53 schreef sanger het volgende:
Hulkenberg verwacht ik eigenlijk bij Renault

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Op dinsdag 16 november 2010 09:30 schreef Googolplexian het volgende:
Force India for Hulkenberg?

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Op dinsdag 16 november 2010 09:42 schreef sanger het volgende:

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Naast Sutil zou dat wel een erg goede line up zijn Zou voor Hulkenberg wel een stap terug zijn imo.

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Op dinsdag 16 november 2010 09:58 schreef Big-Ern het volgende:

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Dat valt ook wel weer mee. De naam 'Williams' mag dan legendarisch zijn maar de praktijk is dat ze weinig voor elkaar onder doen. Al is het verlies van die TD die nu bij Sauber zit er bij FI wel behoorlijk ingeklapt, toegegeven.

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Op dinsdag 16 november 2010 10:11 schreef sanger het volgende:

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Williams heeft dit seizoen anders een zeer behoorlijke ontwikkeling doorgemaakt. Ze hebben zich sneller ontwikkeld dan welk team dan ook schat ik zo in.

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Op dinsdag 16 november 2010 10:11 schreef sanger het volgende:

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Williams heeft dit seizoen anders een zeer behoorlijke ontwikkeling doorgemaakt. Ze hebben zich sneller ontwikkeld dan welk team dan ook schat ik zo in.

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Op dinsdag 16 november 2010 10:19 schreef Big-Ern het volgende:

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Dit seizoen wel ja. Normaal gesproken beginnen ze sterk en gaat het seizoen uit als een nachtkaars. Het hangt natuurlijk ook samen met de financiele stand van zaken. Afgelopen hadden ze blijkbaar het e.e..a. te spenderen, want ontwikkelen kost nu eenmaal geld. Maar als de voortekenen niet bedriegen kan dit volgend jaar weleens anders worden.

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Op dinsdag 16 november 2010 10:22 schreef Tarado het volgende:

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Gewaagde uitspraak maar wel interessant, zou ik wel willen weten welk team zich het snelst ontwikkeld heeft

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Op dinsdag 16 november 2010 10:11 schreef sanger het volgende:

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Williams heeft dit seizoen anders een zeer behoorlijke ontwikkeling doorgemaakt. Ze hebben zich sneller ontwikkeld dan welk team dan ook schat ik zo in.

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Op dinsdag 16 november 2010 10:28 schreef Peterselieman het volgende:

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Mja, Sauber heeft het ook niet slecht gedaan. Van onbetrouwbare bolide tot eentje die regelmatig punten pakt.

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Op dinsdag 16 november 2010 10:29 schreef sanger het volgende:

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Ook een goede inderdaad. Die hebben vooral in de kwali een flinke stap gezet, in de race viel de pace toch wel iets tegen denk ik.

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Op dinsdag 16 november 2010 10:25 schreef sanger het volgende:

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Moeilijk te meten denk ik. Je kunt denk ik alleen kijken naar de rangorde tijdens de eerste en laatste GP's

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Op dinsdag 16 november 2010 10:24 schreef sanger het volgende:

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Door het vertrek van sponsoren inderdaad. Maar daar stat tegenover dat Adam Parr heeft geroepen dat Williams er de laatste 10 jaar financieel niet zo goed voor heeft gestaan als momenteel. Vorige week heeft hij dat ergens geroepen.

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Op maandag 15 november 2010 20:59 schreef ElmarO het volgende:

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Op dinsdag 16 november 2010 11:14 schreef sasquatsch het volgende:

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Ik las al ergens (Joe Saward?) dat HRT ervan af wilde omdat Toyota te duur (30 miljoen) zou zijn. Voor ca. een derde van dat bedrag kunnen ze zelf een chassis bouwen dat beter is dan het prutswerk van Dallara, zeker met Geoff Willis als technisch directeur.

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Chandhok praat met Force India over racerol

Karun Chandhok is met het team van Force India in gesprek over een racestoeltje voor volgend seizoen. Zo heeft de 26-jarige Indiër laten weten. Chandhok reed dit jaar zijn eerste races in de Formule 1, bij het team van Hispania.

"Ik ben met vier teams in gesprek over volgend jaar", zei Chandhok, die het team van HRT aan de elfde plek in het constructeurskampioenschap hielp door veertiende te worden in Australië en Monaco, tegen de Hindustan Times. "Force India is één van die teams. Ik heb regelmatig contact met Vijay Mallya. Ook ben ik nog in gesprek met het team van Hispania. Ik hoop voor december ergens een contract te hebben.

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Op dinsdag 16 november 2010 16:11 schreef Automatic_Rock het volgende:
Ik zou Chandhok wel bij FI willen zien rijden. Die races die hij mocht rijden viel hij niet tegen. De auto was klote uiteraard, maar hij deed niet onder voor Senna.

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Op dinsdag 16 november 2010 15:05 schreef Trystar het volgende:

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gpupdate.net

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McLaren boss Martin Whitmarsh has urged Abu Dhabi track chiefs to make changes to its 'flawed' track design following the lack of overtaking at last weekend's season finale.

The Yas Marina circuit was supposedly designed to try and encouraging exciting racing, but despite a long straight and heavy braking zones drivers struggled to find any opportunities to get past their rivals.

That lack of passing ultimately foiled Fernando Alonso's title challenge as he was unable to overtake Vitaly Petrov and begin a push up the order that he needed to win the world championship.

Whitmarsh believes that although the facilities in Abu Dhabi are among the best in the world, the layout needs some attention.

"This circuit is regrettably a great facility and everything else, but as we saw in GP2 and as we saw in F1 it is almost impossible to overtake here - and it is flawed in that way," he said.

"I personally would like to see it changed. If you look at GP2, it was not inspiring. I think it is a fantastic facility that we come to, but the end of the straight they need a wide challenging corner, not a chicane that has got one line through it - because it is impossible to overtake.

"You could see that when we first saw the plans. It did not look like this was going to be a circuit you could overtake on, and it has been proven. There is a massive commitment here to making this a great venue, so in the scheme of things priority should be given to looking at the circuit."

Whitmarsh's comments have been backed by Petrov himself - who successfully held off Alonso through the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

"Overtaking is not possible here," Petrov said when asked by AUTOSPORT. "The Ferrari was behind and he could not overtake here. But I don't know what they can change because they have already built the place.

"To help overtaking, I think you need a faster corner, maybe third or fourth gear and then you have an opportunity to overtake. If at Turn 7, the hairpin onto the back straight, if that corner was like Turn 1 then I am sure it would be better."

Yas Marina circuit boss Richard Cregan said over the Abu Dhabi weekend that the track was always looking at ways to make itself better.

"We extended the run off at Turn 8 this year as we felt there was space to do it, and we reconfigured the barriers in that area as they were not ideal," he said.

"We are always looking at various different elements that we can improve. If you stop doing that you should stop running the circuit. So we are looking at different circuits, the way others run races, and we will pick the best bits and improve the circuit."

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Op dinsdag 16 november 2010 18:36 schreef ElmarO het volgende:
Dag 1 van de rookie test:

[ code verwijderd ]

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Op dinsdag 16 november 2010 18:43 schreef Googolplexian het volgende:

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thanks ... toch wel veelzeggend ondanks dat het niet veel zegt

Ben echt benieuwd naar Pirelli volgend jaar!

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Op dinsdag 16 november 2010 18:47 schreef ElmarO het volgende:

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De Pirelli-banden worden vrijdag getest. Dus misschien krijgen we dan al een lichte indicatie.

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Op dinsdag 16 november 2010 20:18 schreef M.Melandri het volgende:

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Ik hoop dat de banden volgend jaar een stuk minder duurzaam zijn, de harde band ging vaak een hele raceafstand mee en dat heeft een hoop races vermoord.

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Op dinsdag 16 november 2010 20:18 schreef M.Melandri het volgende:

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Ik hoop dat de banden volgend jaar een stuk minder duurzaam zijn, de harde band ging vaak een hele raceafstand mee en dat heeft een hoop races vermoord.

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Op dinsdag 16 november 2010 22:49 schreef sasquatsch het volgende:

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Ik vind dat maar kunstmatige spanning. Ik heb liever dat coureurs keuze hebben tussen harde of zachte banden (waarbij de harde banden best een race mee mogen gaan) en geen verplichte pitsstops. Dan kunnen ze kiezen of ze zachte banden willen met een pitsstop, of harde banden zonder pitsstop.

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Op dinsdag 16 november 2010 22:49 schreef sasquatsch het volgende:

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Ik vind dat maar kunstmatige spanning. Ik heb liever dat coureurs keuze hebben tussen harde of zachte banden (waarbij de harde banden best een race mee mogen gaan) en geen verplichte pitsstops. Dan kunnen ze kiezen of ze zachte banden willen met een pitsstop, of harde banden zonder pitsstop.

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Op dinsdag 16 november 2010 23:22 schreef M.Melandri het volgende:

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Dan kun je alles wel onder het kopje kunstmatige spanning scharen, uiteindelijk blijft het toch een sport voor de kijker. Meestal is de 1e stint van de race nog wel leuk, maar daarna gaan de races vaak als een nachtkaars uit.

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Italian rumors hint at Massa departure

Nov.17 (GMM) According to a rumour in the Italian media, Nico Hulkenberg is a candidate to replace Felipe Massa at Ferrari in 2011.

La Stampa newspaper said the rumour came from "a voice" within the famous Maranello based team, where Brazilian Massa - who already has an ongoing contract with Ferrari - struggled alongside Fernando Alonso this season.

German Hulkenberg, 23, has not been retained by Williams for 2011, and his manager Willi Weber has strong links within Ferrari due to his former charge Michael Schumacher's decade-long tenure there.

But another voice at Ferrari insisted: "Felipe is untouchable."

La Stampa acknowledged that the rumour might have been generated by Weber to keep Hulkenberg's name circulating while he is on the market.

Italy's Autosprint reported the same rumour linking Hulkenberg with Ferrari.

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Ferrari set for changes after 'big mistake'

There will be changes at Ferrari next year, but Fernando Alonso, Luca di Montezemolo and team boss Stefano Domenicali are "safe", according to a report.

The Ferrari bosses are under pressure after their decision to pit Fernando Alonso early in Abu Dhabi backfired spectacularly and ultimately cost the Spaniard the Drivers' Championship.

Italian politicians were criticial of the team's "demented strategy" in the UAE and have called on Ferrari president di Montezemolo to step down.

Di Montezemolo has rejected calls for his resignation while Domenicali has apologised to Alonso and said "a mistake was made, which may yet result in changes within the Ferrari hierarchy and which may yet take a while to forget".

The Guardian reports that a source close to Ferrari said: "There will be changes at Ferrari for sure. What happened on Sunday was a big, heavy mistake.

"But they won't be changing the car, Alonso, the president or Domenicali. Instead there will be changes to the inefficient pit area. It may not even be a sacking. But next season some important people will no longer hold the positions they do today."

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Op woensdag 17 november 2010 11:28 schreef Googolplexian het volgende:

"But they won't be changing the car,

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'Tragic ex-hero' Schumacher should retire again - Hakkinen

Michael Schumacher is a "tragic ex-hero" who should return immediately to retirement.

That is the view of Mika Hakkinen, who was once named as the only rival the seven time world champion truly feared.

The Finn has issued a harsh critique of Schumacher in a column for the Munich newspaper TZ, despite the pair always referring to each other with the greatest of respect.

"Michael is for me now a tragic ex-hero," 42-year-old Hakkinen wrote after the final race of Schumacher's comeback year; the only full season in the German's entire career that did not net even a single podium.

"I ask myself why on earth he got back into the cockpit. There is the most successful man in motor sport driving down in the pack and making a ridiculous mistake in Abu Dhabi that almost cost him his life," he added.

Hakkinen is referring to his spin on the first lap that resulted in Tonio Liuzzi's Force India riding over Schumacher's Mercedes and almost striking his head.

Afterwards, Schumacher admitted the incident gave him a fright and a trip to the medical centre, but has pledged to return in 2011.

But "What a tragedy this would have been for the Germans -- and on the day of Vettel's triumph," said Hakkinen.

"What has the man who has won more than anyone else still to prove?" Hakkinen wondered. "In my view, he is dismantling his own legacy bit by bit.

"And I see it making no difference whether it is for technical reasons or because he can no longer keep up with the boys."

Hakkinen said he can understand Schumacher's urge to return to action after three years of retirement.

"After three years I returned to the cockpit myself -- for Mercedes in the DTM," he recalled. "And I also had to recognise that even as a Formula One world champion, there are no gifts for the older ones.

"I won only three times more," said Hakkinen.

"You can neither stop the wheel of time, nor turn it back," he insisted.

"Personally, we were never close friends because he always came across, to me anyway, a little bit too arrogant."

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Op woensdag 17 november 2010 09:40 schreef sasquatsch het volgende:

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Maak er dan maar meteen een merkenklasse van waarin elke auto, motor en band gelijk is. Meer spanning is er dan niet te krijgen. Ideaal voor de kijker, maar geen Formule 1.

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Alonsos role in Ferrari strategy revealed in pit messages

The discussions on the Ferrari pit wall that led to crucial decision that cost Fernando Alonso the world championship have been revealed.

The exchange of messages between Alonso and his race engineer Andrea Stella, which was not broadcast during the race, shows the teams preoccupation with Alonsos position compared to Webber.

It also shows how Alonso urged the team to use Felipe Massa to hold Webber up.

The radio transcript, published by Corriere della Sera, shows how Ferrari made the mistake of reacting to Webbers pit stop instead of keeping Alonso out.

Lap 9

Alonso is 1.7 seconds behind Jenson Button and 1.4s ahead of Webber, who is 0.8s ahead of Massa.

Andrea Stella: You gained three tenths on Webber. Felipe is closing in too.

Lap 12

Webber pits.

AS: Webber has stopped and Vettel is also losing ground on Hamilton.
Fernando Alonso: If you see that Felipe can overtake him in a lap call him in.
AS: We are thinking about it, concentrate on Button.

Lap 14

Massa pits.

FA: How did it work with Felipe?
AS: He came out behind Webber

Lap 15

Ferrari tell Alonso to pit on lap 16.

AS: OK, come in [to the pits] now.
FA: OK
AS: You will come out close to Webber. You are in front.

Lap 17

Alonso is 1.1s ahead of Webber and 1.5s behind Vitaly Petrov.

FA: Whats the situation?
AS: We have to overtake the Renault in front, he wont stop any more. After that its Rosberg.

Lap 22

Alonso is 0.5s behind Petrov. None of the cars that were in front of him before he pitted have come in yet.

AS: I know you are giving everything but its critical to overtake Petrov.

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Op woensdag 17 november 2010 18:31 schreef kepler het volgende:
Huh, waar zegt Alonso dan dat Massa Webber moet ophouden?

Weinig speciaals aan die conversaties verder

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Op woensdag 17 november 2010 18:36 schreef Googolplexian het volgende:

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AS: Webber has stopped and Vettel is also losing ground on Hamilton.
Fernando Alonso: If you see that Felipe can overtake him in a lap call him in.

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Op woensdag 17 november 2010 18:41 schreef kepler het volgende:

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Hij bedoelt toch gewoon dat ze Felipe voor Webber willen krijgen? Wat me logisch lijkt, want dat was positief voor Alonso

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Op woensdag 17 november 2010 18:41 schreef kepler het volgende:

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Hij bedoelt toch gewoon dat ze Felipe voor Webber willen krijgen? Wat me logisch lijkt, want dat was positief voor Alonso

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Op woensdag 17 november 2010 18:50 schreef Googolplexian het volgende:

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Zeker als ze Massa kunnen gebruiken om de grootste concurrent in het kampioenschap op te houden. Ik zie de Ferrari-logica en Alonso-mindset wel, hoor.

Ik denk alleen dat Alonso zich meer bezig had moeten houden met de race. Vettel werd juist niets verteld zodat hij zich 100% kon richten op zo snel mogelijk rijden. Alonso was dit hele seizoen al bezig met strategie ... iets waar andere mensen voor betaald worden.

Wellicht is Ferrari nog teveel gewend aan Schumacher die zijn status en het voorrecht om zich te bemoeien met beslissingen in de loop der jaren verdiend had.

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Op woensdag 17 november 2010 19:11 schreef kepler het volgende:

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Ophouden of niet, Massa voor Webber was altijd beter. Dat ze beter op Vettel hadden moeten mikken is achteraf logisch

Zover ik weet bemoeit Alonso zich vaak met de strategie, hij weet iig altijd wat er op de baan gebeurt, of hij wil dat graag horen via de radio. Altijd zo geweescht

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Op woensdag 17 november 2010 19:31 schreef Googolplexian het volgende:
1.3 sec van Vettel's pole tijd af (er onder dus (toch?)) toch wel respectabel!

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Op woensdag 17 november 2010 19:31 schreef Googolplexian het volgende:
1.3 sec van Vettel's pole tijd af (er onder dus (toch?)) toch wel respectabel!

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Op woensdag 17 november 2010 19:31 schreef Googolplexian het volgende:
1.3 sec van Vettel's pole tijd af (er onder dus (toch?)) toch wel respectabel!

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In the last 48 hours there have been some interesting moves in Formula 1, in addition to the Young Drivers test at the Yas Island circuit. I will probably have a wrap-up of the testing at the end of the week. In basic terms it looks pretty much as it should do with a Red Bull fastest.

The Williams team announced that Rubens Barrichello will stay on for 2011, which was not a surprise. The team has a contract with Pastor Maldonado for the second seat and an option on Nico Hulkenberg and while keeping the German is the logical thing to do, the team must be certain that it has the money to do the job properly. Signing Maldonado guaranteed that. If the contract was 100% solid then it would have been announced by now so it is logical to suggest that there are clauses in the deal that would allow Hulkenberg to stay if the team finds the funding from somewhere else. Maldonado would not perhaps have signed the deal if there were no guarantees and one can imagine a situation in which he would be farmed out to HRT (or whatever it is called by the start of next season) with his funding if Williams finds the money to keep Hulkenberg. HRT could use the cash and would benefit from Williams technology, which would make the team much more competitive so Maldonado would have a better place to learn about F1 than in the frontline, under the spotlight.

Two questions come to mind, therefore: can Williams find the money? And can HRT keep itself alive?

Williams has been working hard at raising money in a couple of places for some time and it has played a very clever hand. The team has made an investment in Qatar with the opening of the Williams Technology Centre in the Qatar Science & Technology Park. This has led to a number of deals with Qatar-linked companies, the most recent of which is a deal with the J Sainsburys supermarket chain. If Qatar is going to get involved in Formula 1 and the signs are that this will probably happen then the Williams team is an obvious route in. The team has heritage and while not able to compete with the big teams because of its lack of manufacturer support (or a billionaire backer, such as Red Bull Racing) it is still in the hunt. There are also rumours from Germany that the team is also close to doing a deal with the Volkswagen-Porsche company. This merger is coming together slowly and the signs are that the company will be wanting to get involved in F1 with one brand or another. Ultimately it is hard to see the firm being anything more than an engine supplier, as running teams has proved to be rather expensive and not a very good return on investment for the likes of BMW, Honda and Toyota. Renault, Mercedes and Ferrari have fared rather better. It helps that the government of Qatar is an important shareholder in VW-Porsche and obviously having a German like Hulkenberg would be a good idea. The question is really whether or not the German firm will commit to F1 and build an engine for the 2013 rules; and whether if that decision is taken whether it will decide to get up to speed by doing an engine-badging deal with Cosworth for the next couple of years, so that its engineers can get up to speed.

The question of the survival of HRT is another issue. Yesterday Toyota announced that all dealings with HRT had been terminated and would not be restarted. This was a most bizarre press release. Normally these things are designed to tell the world something positive, but an announcement that something is NOT happening is therefore rather suspicious. My feeling is that Toyota has had enough with the Spaniards who currently own the team and are trying to force the situation. The Carabantes have been singularly unsuccessful at raising money and their decision to take on Juan Villalonga to help came too late to make a difference. If the team is to survive next year, it needs to be building a car NOW. The culture of mañana may work in Spain, but it does not work in Formula 1 and the feeling is that the Carabantes have now blown their chance and must be convinced to sell and recoup some money, or watch as the team goes to the wall. In fact, they own very little beyond the entry as the team seems to be rented (complete with all people and equipment) from Colin Kolles. He may not have the money to buy the entry from the Spanish, but he will be happy to work with others if they show up with more idea of what F1 is all about.

In fact, it could be that a smart investor will pump money into Kolless operation now so that he has the ability to build a 2011 car and then negotiate with the Carabantes over the question of ownership. It would be a risk, but the outcome would likely be a capitulation by the Spanish because they would get something from a sale, but nothing if the team shuts down.

One way or the other, the Carabantes now face the choice of failure or complete failure. The only hope was Villalonga, but they did not give him enough to find money.

The other fascinating point in recent days has been the announcement that Mubadala Development Company, Abu Dhabis state-backed investment fund, has sold its five percent stake in Ferrari back to Fiat, five years after taking a share in the luxury carmaker. The deal was valued at $167 million. This was decided not by the Emiratis but because Fiat had an option to buy back the shares, that were acquired in 2005. Mubadala has lost a lot of money in recent months because many of its investments that suffered in the economic downturn although share prices will in most cases come up again as confidence returns. It reported a loss (announced in September) of about $1 billion, but some of this is simply accounting for the loss of share value rather than actual cash. The Government of Abu Dhabi is not in any trouble. According to The Economist the sovereign wealth fund ADIA is currently estimated to have US$ 875 billion in terms of total asset value. And the economy has not been much affected by the global financial crisis. Oil keeps coming out of the ground and there is no reason to suggest that is going to stop. Mubadala still has over $20 billion in assets under management. This move is interesting in the light of rumours that Bernie Ecclestone is working on a deal to have Abu Dhabi take over the Formula One group from CVC Capital Partners

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Op woensdag 17 november 2010 19:17 schreef Googolplexian het volgende:

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Imo is het je kunnen bemoeien met de strategie als coureur een voorrecht dat Alonso onmogelijk in z'n eerste jaar bij de Scuderia verdiend heeft. En imo heeft 't 'm dit jaar het kampioenschap gekost.

Het kan een voordeel zijn maar het kan de mensen aan de muur ook mindfucken. Zijn taak was om zo snel mogelijk rondjes te rijden... niet om mee te denken met mensen die ervoor betaald worden om de strategie te bepalen.

Ach .. allemaal achteraf geleuter Ik hoop voor Stefano dat hij Alonso volgend jaar het zwijgen oplegt (wordt iedereen vrolijker van, lijkt me)

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Op donderdag 18 november 2010 00:56 schreef Waffle het volgende:

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Dit slaat echt werkelijk nergens op Hoezo moet je het eerst verdienen om over de strategie na te denken. Ik neem aan dat strategie altijd in overleg met de coureur gaat. Waar ben je anders mee bezig..Een coureur heeft invloed op alles binnen een team.

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Op donderdag 18 november 2010 00:56 schreef Waffle het volgende:

Dit slaat echt werkelijk nergens op Hoezo moet je het eerst verdienen om over de strategie na te denken. Ik neem aan dat strategie altijd in overleg met de coureur gaat. Waar ben je anders mee bezig..Een coureur heeft invloed op alles binnen een team.

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Op donderdag 18 november 2010 12:16 schreef Big-Ern het volgende:
Ferrari is en blijft een onsympathiek en onsportief team. Moet er niks van hebben.

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Op donderdag 18 november 2010 12:20 schreef Big-Ern het volgende:
Hispania Racing vraagt De la Rosa miljoenen voor zitje
Het team van Hispania Racing heeft een prijskaartje van acht tot tien miljoen euro aan een racestoeltje voor 2011 voor Pedro de la Rosa gehangen. Dat onthulde teameigenaar Jose Ramon Carabante op radiozender Cadena Ser.

Pedro wil voor ons rijden, maar het hangt af van hoeveel steun hij meebrengt. Zonder geld is er geen plek voor hem. Die luxe kunnen we ons niet veroorloven. Hij dient acht tot tien miljoen bij te dragen. We hebben met bedrijven gesproken in een poging om sponsors aan te trekken en twee Spaanse coureurs zou goed zijn voor onze identiteit. En met Pedro zouden we een rijder hebben die ons richting kan geven voor 2012.

Het zijn cruciale weken voor het team, doorslaggevend voor de toekomst. Het budget moet uiteindelijk groeien naar 120, 130 miljoen, daarmee kom je wel in de top tien. Dit jaar hadden we 45 miljoen euro te besteden, volgend jaar is dat 55 miljoen euro en we hopen op 65 miljoen euro. Ferrari besteedt op jaarbasis bijvoorbeeld 400 miljoen euro, aldus de Hispania Racing-eigenaar.

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Op donderdag 18 november 2010 09:46 schreef Googolplexian het volgende:

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Dit meen je serieus?

Dus jij zou een coureur 10 miljoen per jaar betalen en ook een team stratego-pionnen aan de muur een dik salaris geven?

De coureur is er om zo hard mogelijk te rijden met alle concentratie die daarbij hoort. De coureur is niets meer dan een essentieel onderdeel van de auto. Het zijn vaak niet de slimste mensen, uitzonderingen daargelaten.

Als de race begint heeft iedereen z'n eigen taak. De coureur kan feedback geven en suggesties geven maar op het moment dat hij dat doet is hij niet meer 100% met racen bezig. Het is niet voor niets dat Vettel niet wist wat zijn situatie was tot hij over de streep kwam.

Als je daaraan twijfelt, lees dan nog eens alle uitspraken van coureurs na van voor de finale-race.

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Op donderdag 18 november 2010 13:07 schreef Waffle het volgende:

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Dat vettel zich tijdens een race alleen maar bezig kan houden met het rijden dat is zijn probleem. Alonso zijn kracht is dat hij naast snel racen ook nog kan na denken over zijn strategie. Verder is een coureur niet alleen om zo snel mogelijk te rijden, hij heeft ook invloed op de ontwikkeling van de auto, etc.

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Op donderdag 18 november 2010 13:46 schreef Waffle het volgende:
Wie heeft het over tijdens een race? Jij zegt dat een coureur alleen een onderdeel van een auto is en er alleen maar is om hard te rijden.

Tijdens een race bedoel ik alleen dat Alonso ook nog in staat is om na te denken dat is zijn kracht.

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Buurman still aiming at F1 future
^{By Edd Straw and Matt Beer Thursday, November 18th 2010, 13:38 GMT}

Yelmer Buurman hopes that his Force India test this week will help bring him back on course for a Formula 1 future after spending the 2010 season in Superleague Formula.

The former GP2 driver has been one of the stars of the football-themed single-seater series, having won six times during Superleague's first three seasons. In 2008 and '09 he was able to dovetail his Superleague campaigns with GP2 programmes, but this year he did not race in any of the traditional F1 feeder series.

"It was a bit difficult this year and I struggled for budget to do GP2, so I did Superleague - which is quite a good alternative," Buurman told AUTOSPORT. "They're good cars with a lot of power.

"We've got to see [about 2011]. So far we've just been focusing on this test. Obviously it's my first test and we have to see what happens after this, but I think this is going to be a real positive for whatever I do after this."

The 23-year-old Dutchman felt that a mechanical problem had stopped him showing what he could really do during his Force India run.

"I think the team was pretty pleased. We had a problem where I stopped on-track, and it was the run before my last run, which was a shame because obviously the last run is when the track's at its best, you put new tyres on and you really push for a time," said Buurman, who ended up 10th on the timesheets.

"I think it would have been easily top six, even if I only did a lap like I had in the afternoon - considering that the temperature dropped, the tyres and a couple of other factors. But that's racing."

He said his first taste of F1 performance had been everything that he hoped it would be.

"I always knew that I wanted to be a racing driver and once you know what F1 means that you always want to be in F1," said Buurman. "So to finally drive the car is awesome, of course. It was a really awesome day.

"It didn't go completely to plan, which was a shame. But still the first day in the car was amazing.

"Everyone tells you it's so much better than GP2 and everything else, but you don't know it until you've done it and it's really a lot better than anything else and a lot more than you expect."

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Hakkinen did not call Schumacher 'tragic ex-hero'

Mika Hakkinen has denied calling Michael Schumacher a 'tragic ex-hero' after the newspaper attributing the comments to him apologised.

This week, the Finn was quoted by Munich newspaper TZ as saying Michael Schumacher had made "a ridiculous mistake" at the start of the recent Abu Dhabi Grand Prix and should retire immediately.

TZ has now issued an apology and correction, admitting that the column had not been authorised by double world champion Hakkinen.

"The statements attributed to Mr Hakkinen, particularly in relation to Michael Schumacher, were not true and were not authorised. We regret this and apologise to our readers, to Mika Hakkinen and Michael Schumacher, and as a consequence we are no longer working with the staff member concerned."

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F1: Team Orders To Be Regulated Not Banned - Todt
The FIA will not completely abolish the rule prohibiting team orders in Formula One...
^{SPEED Staff / GMM | Posted November 19, 2010 GMM Newswire}

Team orders will be "regulated" rather than allowed in Formula One, FIA president Jean Todt has revealed.

The issue came back onto the agenda in 2010, when Felipe Massa was ordered aside for Fernando Alonso at Hockenheim by a Ferrari engineer telling the Brazilian: "Fernando is faster than you."

"Personally, I'm not against team orders, but I am against lying," the Frenchman is quoted as saying in interviews this week.

He said covert team orders "deceive the audience and the media" and subsequently require teams and drivers to lie afterwards.

"Team orders have been banned since 2002, but I ask myself how many have been issued in a 'soft' way. The difference with that and what Ferrari did (at Hockenheim) is that it was anything but soft.

"It was a provocation against the regulations," Todt told Italy's La Stampa.

But when asked if the FIA will react to the latest affair by simply abolishing the rule, he answered: "It will be regulated.

"F1 is a team sport and each team will have responsibility for their behavior. We will not tolerate lies or coded messages like 'Save fuel.'"

Fascinatingly, former Ferrari team boss Todt blamed Rubens Barrichello for the original team orders controversy of 2002, when the Brazilian was explicitly ordered on the radio to 'Let Michael (Schumacher) pass for the championship.'

"I shouldn't have had to say anything," Todt said this week.

"We had agreed beforehand that if he (Barrichello) is in front after the pit stop, he was to let Schumacher pass without making a fuss.

"It was agreed, and drivers are paid to accept certain decisions.

"But he made me call him 50 times and he moved at the last corner - the audience booed, Schumacher gave him first place on the podium and Ferrari was fined $500,000 for violating protocol," he explained.

Asked if he regrets the affair, he admitted: "Yes, because with hindsight it could have been avoided. Schumacher would have won the championship anyway.

"But I would have regretted even more if we had lost the title by a couple of points," added Todt.

And in an interview with France's L'Equipe, Todt said he thought the works Renault drivers "helped" Renault-powered Red Bull to win the 2010 championship by holding up key rivals in Abu Dhabi.

"They (Robert Kubica and Vitaly Petrov) helped Red Bull, even though this team often complain about the lack of competitiveness of the Renault engine," he said.

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Porsche Ready To Return To F1 In 2013?

The new chairman of Porsche, Matthias Mueller, made the shock announcement at the 2010 Paris Motor show that Porsche were considering re-entering F1. He stated that it was no longer desirable for Porsche to be competing with sister company Audi at Le Mans. However, many people were still sceptical with memories still fresh of the recent withdrawals of Honda, BMW, Toyota and Ford. Indeed, Toyota became famous for failing to win a single race on an annual budget of $400 million. This was a statistic that literally reduced the Toyota chairman to tears when announcing the car manufacturers withdrawal from the sport. BMW meanwhile, now focus their attention on the German Touring car championship, citing a closer link to road car developments as the reason. However, in F1s favour is the fact that it is hugely popular, and manages to pull in 600 million viewers worldwide every year. It has even managed to make Nigel Mansell attractive to companies looking for advertising opportunities, with the 1992 world champion appearing in the latest Moneysupermarket car insurance advertisements 15 years after his retirement. So how likely is it that Porsche will return?

The new formula

New FIA president Jean Todt has realised the need to improve the sports image, which has been damaged by repeated scandals over the past ten years. On top of this, critics claim the sport is out of touch with the real world, as it is simply wasting valuable fossil fuels. Todt has aimed to rectifying this problem by improving the sports green credentials with the following 3 steps:

Banning on in race refuelling- For 2010, the teams are no longer allowed to refuel their cars during the races and must start with enough fuel to get them to the end. This has made it more important for the teams to be fuel efficient in order to benefit from reduced weight at the start (through having to carry less fuel) and reduced tyre wear (through having a lighter car).
The return of Kinetic Energy Recovery Systems (KERS)- Todt has persuaded the teams to bring KERS back for 2011. This was previously withdrawn for cost reasons, but the relevance of the technology to road car developments of the future was reason enough for Todt and the teams to agree to re-introduce it for the start of 2011.
Smaller engines- The sport will reduced engine sizes from 2.4 litre V8s to 1.6 litre turbos for 2013.
The aim of this is to make sure that the sport is more relevant to road car developments, as car manufacturers strive to improve their fuel efficiencies. Although the sport is only at step one of Todts process, it has still increased the importance of fuel efficiency with the championship winning Red Bull Renault thought to be the most fuel efficient car on the grid in 2010. The KERS system is perhaps the most important element of this plan, with Ferrari having already implemented a KERS device on their 599 hybrid road car model. Therefore, the reason why BMW left the sport appears to have been addressed.

Money

The Formula One Teams Association (FOTA) has made huge strides in its attempts to reduce spending in the sport by drawing up a resource restriction agreement which all the teams have agreed to. This reduces the amount all teams spend on their F1 programmes, thus allowing smaller teams to be competitive on a smaller budget. It was this agreement which led to Brawn GP being able to win the championship last year, and has allowed Virgin Racing to close the gap by over a second to the leading teams in six months despite operating on a $40 million budget, which is 10% of what Toyota were spending as they failed to win a race.

It is therefore now possible to be competitive in F1 with a very small budget. Richard Branson actually believes that it is possible for a team to be profitable and competitive in the sport, which would make his F1 team one of the most cost effective marketing platforms available. F1 has therefore changed significantly, and the reason why Honda, Toyota and Ford left appears to no longer be a problem.

Will Porsche enter F1?

All the problems that the car manufacturers previously had with the sport have now disappeared. Even the domineering Max Mosley no long has any involvement in the teams affairs. It therefore makes perfect sense for Porsche to take the opportunity presented by the new 1.6 litre turbo engine formula in 2013 and enter the sport. The fashion at the moment is to create your own team and aim for a profit, as Virgin, Air Asia (Lotus), Kingfisher (Force India) and Mercedes have done. However, dont forget that Porsche have collaborated with Williams in the past, with Williams supplying Porsches GT programme with KERS technology. Williams shareholder Toto Wolff has also driven for Porsche in the same GT series. This would help the team avoid a painful building process as they at first struggle to get all the ingredients in place for success, as Toyota did. Buying a former championship winning team would surely allow them to hit the ground running in 2013.

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Van der Garde wins $1.9m in Force India ruling

Giedo van der Garde has won a long legal battle with Force India.

The Dutch driver had pressed for a $2 million refund because, when the team was known as Spyker in 2007, he did only 2270 of the 6000 kilometres of testing that he was contractually promised.

Media reports reveal that a court has agreed that Force India must pay van der Garde $1.865 million.

Fascinatingly, van der Garde's manager Jeroen Schothorst said the ruling could help in his talks with Force India about a race seat in 2011.

"A few years ago this topic was a disadvantage, now it could be beneficial to us," he said.

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Op vrijdag 19 november 2010 19:18 schreef kepler het volgende:
En nu besluit Massa snel te rijden

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Op vrijdag 19 november 2010 19:18 schreef kepler het volgende:
En nu besluit Massa snel te rijden

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Pirelli exceeds drivers' expectations

[...]

Pacesetter Felipe Massa also complained of the degradation, and suspects that changes will be made to the compound before Pirelli finalises its tyres for next year.

He added that the performance of the soft tyre possibly surpassed that of the Bridgestone super soft, which was allocated as the option tyre for last weekend's Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

"The harder compound has a lot of degradation and it's not as quick as I expected," Massa said.

"As for the softer tyre, I was very happy with it. It's quick, degradation is very good. I did long runs with both and the one I did with the softer tyre was very good, possibly better than what I had last Sunday in the race.

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Op vrijdag 19 november 2010 19:22 schreef nils7 het volgende:

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wellicht passen de banden beter bij de ferrari

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Op vrijdag 19 november 2010 19:23 schreef ElmarO het volgende:

Italianen onder elkaar hé.

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The Red Bull driver (Vettel) completed 28 laps this morning, and caused a brief red flag when he suffered a second tyre failure. This followed a similar failure yesterday that Pirelli confirmed was caused by the tyre being cut.

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Rosberg also described the degradation rate as "quite heavy", but added that despite his comments about tyre wear and pace, he felt the Pirellis could still be very good for the racing.

"If that's what they want and it's the same for everybody, then okay," he said. "Tyres like that always give more exciting racing as well. So it's not necessarily a bad thing."

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Op zaterdag 20 november 2010 11:54 schreef SjaakVilleneuve het volgende:
BBC, 14:00.. seizoens overzicht!

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Op zaterdag 20 november 2010 17:09 schreef LWD-Godius het volgende:
Had Kubica trouwens nog een penalty gekregen voor die actie van hem bij het uitkomen van de pit-straat (4 wielen over de witte lijn - abu dhabi)?

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Op zondag 21 november 2010 12:58 schreef Googolplexian het volgende:
[ afbeelding ]

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Op zondag 21 november 2010 12:58 schreef Googolplexian het volgende:
[ afbeelding ]

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Op zondag 21 november 2010 12:58 schreef Googolplexian het volgende:
[ afbeelding ]

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Op zondag 21 november 2010 12:58 schreef Googolplexian het volgende:
[ afbeelding ]

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Op zaterdag 20 november 2010 22:29 schreef Peterselieman het volgende:
Het zal mij benieuwen wanneer de namenkwestie van de Lotus-teams opgelost wordt.

Ikzelf denk dat dit pas het geval is wanneer het 1Malaysia Team afgekocht is, want door de naamsverandering lopen ze waarschijnlijk ook geld van het Formula One Management mis. Pas bij een bod van dit bedrag plus nog wat extra voor bijkomende kosten zal Tony Fernandes er over na gaan denken, lijkt me.

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Gascoyne and Tony Fernandes' team could well have to run under a different name in 2011 as the Lotus car company withdrew the squad's licence to use the Lotus Racing name and is disputing its right to use Team Lotus instead. Group Lotus also looks set to start its own F1 partnership with the Renault team.

With the situation still unresolved, Gascoyne argued that his Lotus team had proved that it could successfully represent the brand in F1.

"At the end of the day, we brought the Lotus name back into Formula 1, we've done a great job," Gascoyne told BBC Radio Norfolk.

"We don't really understand why Group Lotus don't want to support us in doing that job for them. We've brought great value to the brand and the shareholders invested something like £80 million into the brand and the development of the team, and we're a little bit failing to understand why Group Lotus seem to want to try to kick us out.

"That's not in my hands - my job doesn't change with the name and it's the same for all the engineering staff. But I think it's a great shame that there is this thing for everyone in Norfolk, because we're a Norfolk-based team, we brought the Lotus name back into Formula 1 and did it proud and we don't quite understand why we don't have the support of Group Lotus in that."

Gascoyne also declared himself 'perplexed' by Group Lotus' wider motorsport strategy, which will see it join IndyCar from 2012, partner with ART in GP2 and GP3, and plan a substantial expansion of its sportscar racing programme including creating an LMP2 car.

"They seem to have announced that they're going to join every racing series around the world, and the only question is who's going to pay for it?" said Gascoyne.

"Because they seem to want to do every racing series that there is, and for a loss-making car company, that seems to be slightly perplexing. But if that's what they want to do, good luck to them."

He added that despite the naming row, the current Lotus F1 team was very much on schedule with its 2011 preparations.

"We'll be firing the car up on 25 January in readiness for the first test in February," said Gascoyne.

"We've had lots of exciting announcements with Renault supplying us with engines, Red Bull Technologies supplying us with gearboxes and our own windtunnel developing, so it wasn't just about 10th in the championship this year, it was about building the team up so that we move solidly into the midfield next year. Those announcements are all very much part of that and we're bang on schedule."

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Op zondag 21 november 2010 23:47 schreef Tarado het volgende:
Gascoyne perplexed by Group Lotus

By Matt Beer Sunday, November 21st 2010, 17:06 GMT

Lotus Racing technical boss Mike Gascoyne says he remains confused by Group Lotus' unwillingness to work with his team in Formula 1.

[..]

autosport.com

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The purpose of this site? Team Lotus's future, perhaps its very survival, is under serious threat. Not due to financial woes or lack of public support or any 'legitimate' reason. No, it's apparently down to the jealousy, greed and egos of certain individuals, no better reason than that.

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Op zaterdag 20 november 2010 15:20 schreef ElmarO het volgende:
Dag 2 van de Pirelli-test:

[ code verwijderd ]

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Organisers of the European Grand Prix at Valencia are desperately trying to offload the race contract to an alternate host.

That is the claim of the Spanish newspaper El Periodico, reporting that regional president Francisco Camps has determined that the port city cannot afford the annual fee and organisation costs.

On the sidelines of the city race in June, he reportedly asked Bernie Ecclestone if Valencia's contract - with two years left to run - can be broken, to which the F1 chief executive "flatly refused".

The report said the organisers are spending EUR 30 million on the race annually, including an 18m fee to Ecclestone's group and the cost of building and de-constructing the street circuit.

Only 10m is covered by the sale of tickets, having diminished from a race-day crowd of 112,000 in 2008 to just 75,000 this year.

Ecclestone reportedly told Camps that an alternative promoter and venue would have to be found, with the newspaper claiming negotiations with the circuit in Alcaniz as well as Portimao in Portugal have been held.

At the same time, it has been reported that Camps and Valencia mayoress Rita Barbera have held meetings with Ferrari about hosting the site of an Abu Dhabi-style theme park in the city.

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Francisco Camps, the President of the Generalitat Valenciana, the government of the autonomous community of Valencia, has denied that the region is trying to get rid of the European Grand Prix, because it is costing them too much money. The claims were published at the end of last week. The opposition has claimed that the Grand Prix has cost the region $200 million since it began in 2008. This is possible when one considers that the costs include not only the race fees, which could be as high as $40 million a year, but also the necessary preparation work, the annual construction costs for the temporary facilities and the losses that may have been made in the three events to date.

The opposition has not, however, taken into account the benefits that the race has generated. This is also interesting given that rumours in F1 circles have long suggested that Valencia has not been paying its fees on time. The race has been slow to take off, but there seemed to be a decent crowd this year.

The government has dismissed the claims, saying that they are not true and simply designed to damage the reputation of the ruling Partido Popular.

The claims are odd in that a couple of weeks ago Camps and Valencia Mayor Rita Barberá travelled to Italy to discuss the possibility of the construction of a second Ferrari theme park in the city. Without a Grand Prix this would be a fairly pointless exercise

Valencia has recently been named European capital of sport for the year 2011.

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Op dinsdag 23 november 2010 15:41 schreef sasquatsch het volgende:
Valencia wil van contract af
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Op dinsdag 23 november 2010 15:47 schreef Tarado het volgende:
Formula 1 and Valencia
November 23, 2010 by joesaward

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http://joesaward.wordpress.com/2010/11/23/formula-1-and-valencia/

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Monza concerned by Rome F1 rumours
^{Tue, 23 Nov 14:10:57 2010}

Italian Grand Prix organisers have expressed concern that a proposed F1 race on the streets of Rome could see the sport elect to leave Monza.
Bernie Ecclestone has made no secret of his wish to have a race on the streets of the Italian capital although no deal has yet been signed to allow an event to take place.
While both Ecclestone and Rome chiefs insist that there is room for two Italian races on the calendar, in much the same way as Spain holds events at both Catalunya and Valencia, Monza boss Enrico Ferrari has revealed he is worried that a street race could mark the end for a circuit that has been on the schedule since 1950 aside from the 1980 event which was held at Imola.
"Amid a globalisation of grands prix, each country will inevitably be allowed to stage only one," he told Bloomberg. "Since Rome is the capital, I'm afraid we'd lose the grand prix forever."
The Rome City Council is due to meet this month to consider how to move forwards with its bid to host an F1 race, despite mayor Gianni Alemanno insisting that the plans dont have the overwhelming support of local residents

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Petrov's Facebook page defaced

Vitaly Petrov has revealed that his Facebook page has been defaced by fans accusing him of "blocking" Fernando Alonso during the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

Ferrari's Alonso missed out on the 2010 World title by four points after he finished behind Petrov in seventh place in the season-ending race in Abu Dhabi.

In an interview with Germany's Bild, Petrov revealed nasty things have been written on his social networking page.

"On my Facebook page many fans insulted me, saying I blocked Alonso. That is nonsense as I didn't do anything wrong. Ferrari made a tactical error."

Petrov, who accused Alonso of having "bad manners" after the Ferrari driver made a gesture in his direction during the slow-down lap in Abu Dhabi, says he wasn't aware that by keeping the Spaniard behind him, he was helping Sebastian Vettel to win the World Championship.

"I kept Alonso behind me for 39 laps," he said. "Nobody told me on the radio that by doing so I would help Sebastian to become World Champion. Even if he overtook me, he would've had to pass [Nico] Rosberg. I drove my own race against Alonso."

Although new World Champion Vettel hasn't congratulated him personally, the Red Bull driver has said he is grateful on his website.

"He doesn't have my telephone number," Petrov said. "However, I saw that he wrote on his website telling his fans that it he is very grateful to me. That's very nice of him. Before the race he wished me good luck.

"He deserves the title. The newspapers talk about a miracle, but it was hard work."

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Op donderdag 25 november 2010 10:17 schreef Googolplexian het volgende:

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http://www.facebook.com/pages/Vitaly-Petrov/282572284893

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Did you always have confidence in the RB6? Did you think it had Championship potential from the first day it rolled out of the garage in Jerez?
Adrian Newey: Occasionally you can still spot a winning car from day one, but its getting increasingly difficult to judge. You will have a reasonable idea of whether or not the car is performing as its expected to but you have no idea whether thats going to be good enough. You simply dont know what the competition are doing with their fuel loads. Its difficult to know where you are pace-wise until you start doing race simulations.

"The other thing to consider is the development race. Having the fastest car at the beginning of the year doesnt guarantee you a championship by any means. If you get out-developed by your competitors, then you could be well down the grid by the end of the season."

The Red Bulls seemed to really pull away from the field once the season got back to Europe. Was that a case of gaining a development advantage, or were the circuits being better suited to the car?
AN: Its always a little bit difficult to judge. Actually the race in China was very disappointing to us and when we go to Barcelona for the first race of the European season we had a raft of new part on the car but so did everybody else. The power circuits with long straights Spa and Monza havent suited us and I was disappointed in Turkey; although we were leading the race when the drivers had their coming together, I didnt feel we were pulling away as we had hoped. I think, generally speaking, the pace of development if you dont take it race by race but every few races then the pace of development has been similar between the top three teams.

How do you react when a rival introduces something like the F-Duct. Is there a sense of remorse at not having thought of it yourself?
AN: Not really. Theres no point in beating yourself up about it. If you take the F-Duct, fine, hats off to the young lad at McLaren who spotted that loophole and applied it. But once you understand what theyve done, its just a matter of getting on and doing your own version.

Was it tough to shoehorn the ducting into a homologated chassis?
AN: Its not ideal because of course the chassis wasnt designed for it; you have to be opportunistic in the way its plumbed. If we were to have another go at an F-Duct with a brand-new chassis we could refine it a bit more. But we managed to get it in and get it done and have it working to a satisfactory level.

The speed of change in F1 at the moment is remarkable. Has the constant demand for new parts changed how you do your work?
AN: I like it; I enjoy that sort of challenge though the speed at which new parts need to be generated and put on the car very much depend upon the part because its all related to lead-time. Something like a monocoque or a gearbox maincase; realistically those have to wait until the start of the next season, whereas trim on a front wing is something that can be ready the next day and theres every level in between those two.

The commotion mid-season about the degree of flex in Red Bulls front wing must have been distracting how did the team deal with that?
AN: It wasnt a distraction, but it was an annoyance. Ive got to say Ive never known a season quite like this one for the petty finger pointing thats gone on in the paddock. Its a shame, but the bottom line is that what weve done with the front wing has been endlessly investigated by the press and the FIA. The FIA quite rightly have to look at it, as they have to take these things seriously and what weve done is completely legal.

The other potentially controversial issue with the RB6 has been its pace in Q3. Even now, at the end of the season, other teams still mutter about not understanding how it improves by around three-tenths in that session. Anything to say about that?
AN: Its a myth! Im not sure our Q3 performance has been particularly different to our Q1 and Q2 performance, to be honest. I havent bothered looking through statistics, but I think its one of these stories that starts when once on twice the drivers have improved in Q3 and suddenly everybody writes it and it becomes accepted without any real basis. Sometimes it might be the case that well only do one run on the harder tyres to get through the sessions, so it looks different in Q3 with the softer tyres but the basic idea is a myth.

Looking forward to next year, we know you like regulations changes, but isnt it the last thing a winning team wants to see?
AN: Not necessarily. The unfortunate thing about the changes coming in next year is that they are all restrictions. So, the double diffuser is banned, which once weve all got it, banning it removes an area of freedom. Then theres the change to Pirelli tyres we dont know anything about them yet. Its impossible to predict them so its impossible to design a car around them.

Will you learn a great deal from this weeks first Pirelli tyre test?
AN: I hope we learn things next week, but in terms of the fundamental architecture of the car, thats done. The lead times are such that you cant now change the layouts.

So, is everybody designing for 2011 with an element of caution? Will the fixed weight distribution of the cars compensate for the unknown characteristics of the tyres?
AN: The restriction in weight distribution, which I think is 45:55 ± one per cent is, I suppose, helpful in so much as it should be possible to design a car within that range and then if the Pirelli tyres demand one extreme or the other , we can got to that but not beyond it which was the point of the regulation. But we dont know which end of the spectrum that will be.

How motivated are you to very literally go back to the drawing board. Is there anything left to prove?
AN: The motivations are there because I enjoy my job. The ambition when I joined Red Bull was initially to get the team to a point where it could take race wins; the dream was winning the Constructors Championship. Achieving that goal is very special but it doesnt change my day-to-day outlook. I enjoy working for Red Bull, its a good team to work for, we have a good atmosphere and I enjoy the design aspect of being involved. So, so long as Im enjoying it, Ill keep doing it.

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Ecclestone robbed in London again

Bernie Ecclestone was mugged in London on Wednesday night and had to go to hospital after getting a bump on the head. However he was reportedly back at work the following day.

Bernie and his girlfriend Fabiana Flosi were returning to his apartment when they were attacked by four men. They were forced to hand over watches and jewellery that are said to be worth £200,000.

Bernie was involved in a similar attack four years ago, when thieves attempted to steal his Mercedes.

A police spokesman told the Daily Mail: We were called to reports of a man and woman who had been robbed in south west London at approximately 10.30pm on Wednesday night. The man, aged 80 years old, was taken to a west London hospital for treatment to a minor head injury. The woman was not injured.

At this early stage it is believed a quantity of jewellery was stolen but we cannot disclose details of what was stolen as yet. No arrests have been made at this time and inquiries are continuing.

Ironically Ecclestone was sceptical about reports of the seriousness of the attempted attack on Jenson Button in Brazil two weeks ago. Given that he has now twice been attacked on home ground he probably finds Sao Paulo relaxing

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Op vrijdag 26 november 2010 08:32 schreef Googolplexian het volgende:

[..]

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Op vrijdag 26 november 2010 08:22 schreef Googolplexian het volgende:
Ik denk dat we Korea wel van de 2011 kalender kunnen schrappen al.

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Op vrijdag 26 november 2010 08:22 schreef Googolplexian het volgende:
Ik denk dat we Korea wel van de 2011 kalender kunnen schrappen al.

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Op vrijdag 26 november 2010 09:36 schreef Pleasureman_Gunther het volgende:

[..]

Waarom?

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Op vrijdag 26 november 2010 10:14 schreef Googolplexian het volgende:

[..]

Omdat ik denk dat de FIA geen race wil houden in instabiel oorlogsgebied en de huidige situatie gaat zeker een staartje krijgen aldaar ... denk ik.

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Op vrijdag 26 november 2010 14:03 schreef Atreidez het volgende:
Die Ecclestone ook weer he.. "Only simple people get robbed" ... tuurlijk

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Op vrijdag 26 november 2010 08:32 schreef Googolplexian het volgende:

[..]

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Ricciardo gets STR Friday practice role

Daniel Ricciardo will drive for Toro Rosso in Friday practice sessions at all grands prix in 2011, the team has announced.

The Australian, a product of Red Bull's driver development system, was already a reserve for both Red Bull Racing and Toro Rosso, and dominated the recent Abu Dhabi rookie test for the former team.

Ricciardo will replace one of Toro Rosso's race drivers, Sebastien Buemi and Jaime Alguersuari, in practice at each event, with the two drivers alternating in stepping aside for the 21-year-old.

Team boss Franz Tost welcomed Ricciardo's promotion and joked that it would keep Buemi and Alguersuari on their toes.

"When our team was created, its stated aim was to bring on young drivers from the Red Bull Junior Programme, so Daniel's appointment as our third driver is an obvious one," he said.

"Although Daniel has done some F1 testing already, running on Fridays at the grands prix will give him a valuable insight into the additional pressures of doing it for real during a race weekend.

"I am also sure that having a hungry youngster on the books will keep our current driver pairing nice and sharp!"

Ricciardo will also contest the Formula Renault 3.5 series again next season. He finished second in the championship at the first attempt this year.

"I am really excited at the prospect of driving for Scuderia Toro Rosso in the free practice one sessions at the grands prix next year, so I have to say thanks to Red Bull for this great opportunity," he said.

"My main priority for 2011 is to win the Formula Renault 3.5 championship, but my ultimate aim is to be a full-time Formula 1 driver and this new role has to be the best step towards achieving that ambition."

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Op zaterdag 27 november 2010 17:19 schreef Peterselieman het volgende:
Dat is een serieuze dreun geweest ja

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Op zaterdag 27 november 2010 21:45 schreef vosss het volgende:

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Ik denk dat het wel meevalt hoor. Ok het is een flink dik oog, maar die oudjes hebben ook niet bepaald veel nodig zegmaar qua geweld om er zo uit te zien volgens mij

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: What is your secret for overtaking?
KK: Because I am Japanese I have small eyes - so I can’t see the others guys.

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Op maandag 29 november 2010 18:31 schreef kepler het volgende:
Kobayashi:

[..]

Wat een held

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Eoin Yong pays tribute to his friend and fellow author Chris Hilton

Sad to hear that prolific motorsport author Chris Hilton died in a Berlin hotel at the end of November. In addition to motor racing books he was also fascinated with Hitler and the Berlin Olympics in 1936. His book "Hitler's Olympics" is on display in the Berlin museum! He told me he was there researching a new book "How Hitler Hijacked World Sport".

Chris arrived in Formula 1 at the 1981 Canadian GP, commissioned to report the race for a Fleet Street daily paper…and he'd never been to a race in his life! Since then he devoted himself to his new sport, totally researched all aspects of it, and wrote a series of books on drivers from Nuvolari to Senna and Schumacher. Along the way there were books on Le Mans '55, Jacques Villeneuve, Ken Tyrrell, Mika Hakkinen, Murray Walker and many others.

Earlier in November we had discussed Tom Rubython's book on James Hunt and he explained his reason for not wanting to read it. "I took a decision when Senna died that I would not read any of the outpouring of others because I felt it might influence me, and I didn't want to be influenced. It was not arrogance, I assure you, but simply that a lot of people would be going through it all again and again and I didn't want that cluttering what passes for my mind. I wanted to be able to go and find what I wanted to find."

A talented wordsmith and a good mate has gone.

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Red Bull Racing

1. Sebastian Vettel
2. Mark Webber

Vodafone McLaren Mercedes

3. Jenson Button
4. Lewis Hamilton

Scuderia Ferrari Marboloro (sic)

5. Fernando Alonso
6. Felipe Massa

Mercedes GP Petronas F1 Team

7. Michael Schumacher
8. Nico Rosberg

Renault F1 Team

9. Robert Kubica
10. TBA

AT&T Williams

11. Rubens Barrichello
12. TBA

Force India F1 Team

14. TBA
15. TBA

Sauber F1 Team

16. Kamui Kobayashi
17. Sergio Perez

Scuderia Toro Rosso

18. TBA
19. TBA

Team Lotus

20. Jarno Trulli
21. Heikki Kovalainen

HRT F1 Team

22. TBA
23. TBA

Marussia Virgin Racing

24. TBA
25. TBA