Formula 1 - 2009 Season

[V3]

Is the new spec car faster or slower compare to last year one ?

 

[Bludd]

Is the new spec car faster or slower compare to last year one ?

Should be considerably slower, they have lost downforce, gained mechanical grip and the engines are now rev-limited to 18000 RPM.

 

[Bludd]

Mark Hughes on the recently revealed cars

http://www.itv-f1.com/Feature.aspx?Type=Mark_Hughes&id=44948

 

[Dave Baumann]

I think the Renault gets the award for the ugliest of the bunch so far.

 

[infinity4]

Winning is the only thing that matters.

 

[tongue_of_colicab]

And im sure it will because every other car that gets close to it will get sick from the insane livery. Seriously, how hard can it be not to just toss all the colors together?

 

[DJ12]

I have to say the Williams is the best looking car, but I think that's down to it's dark colour hiding the uglyness of the new regulations better.

 

[Bludd]

I think the Renault gets the award for the ugliest of the bunch so far.

If you mean the colours, then I agree. I miss the old Mild Seven blue-and-yellow.

 

[tongue_of_colicab]

Yeah they should bring tabbacco sponsering back anyway (would save the money problem at the same time). Like any person with half a braincell is going to smoke because some commercial says it. People now know smoking is bad and they still do it so might as well bring sponsering back than. Made the livery's look alot better too.

 

[Gerry]

I have to say the Williams is the best looking car, but I think that's down to it's dark colour hiding the uglyness of the new regulations better.

That's what I thought as well. I think the colour is only a winter livery though - so I expect them to return to their traditional colour scheme by the time the season starts.

 

[Bludd]

It's their interim livery. They ran the same colour last year in pre-season testing.

 

[dizietsma]

Somebody has already tried to improve the colours on the Renault

http://img413.imageshack.us/img413/5028/r28wi7.jpg

Looks a lot better in my view. I agree with the comments above, the colour can help the looks or not depending.

The Ferrari looks the best up to now by a short (long?) nose from the McLaren. The Renault looks horrible and the BMW boring. The Williams and Toyota are OK, but not Athena poster material.

 

[Bludd]

That actually looks kinda cool.

 

[Unknown Soldier]

Ecclestone: Only team we would miss is Ferrari

F1 ringmaster Bernie Ecclestone has given more ammunition to those who suggest that whilst all teams are equal, Ferrari is rather more equal than the others - whilst suggesting that Honda made a rod for their own back...

Bernie Ecclestone has added further fuel to the fire to those who contend that Ferrari get preferential treatment in Formula 1 compared to their rivals, by claiming that the Scuderia is the only team that would be missed from the top flight were it to disappear.

It has often been whispered within the grand prix paddock that if you are driving a scarlet machine, you are more likely to be let off an indiscretion than if you are behind the wheel of a different car, and Ecclestone's comment does nothing to dispel those suggestions. FIA President Max Mosley has previously stated that Ferrari is the most important team in the sport [see separate story - click here].

"It's bad for me to say this," F1's commercial rights-holder told the Financial Times, "but the only team we would really say we would miss is Ferrari. I wouldn't want to lose McLaren for sure. I wouldn't want to lose Williams."

Ecclestone went on to add that Honda - which announced last month that it was withdrawing from competition with immediate effect - would not be missed, criticising the Japanese manufacturer for firstly over-spending to an inordinate degree, and then suddenly pulling the plug when the on-track results failed to come.

"They didn't even look for sponsors," underlined the 78-year-old, who conversely confirmed in an interview with German publication Sport Bild that he is 'helping with the rescue of the team [in] the role of mediator'. "They stopped because they were ninth. [They were] pouring money in like there was no tomorrow."

Honda has a deadline of the end of January for a sale to be completed or else risk seeing the doors close for good at its Brackley-based operation. The likelihood of a deal materialising was recently plunged into further doubt, when the squad's CEO Nick Fry was forced to deny that he was running the risk of a conflict of interest in having made his own offer whilst at the same time continuing to vet the general bidding process [see separate story - click here].

A spokesman for the British Government's Department for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR), however, has clarified that no investigation has been either undertaken or requested.

Meanwhile, Ecclestone has insisted that his Formula One Management (FOM) company has no binding obligation to put 20 cars on the starting grid for the Australian Grand Prix in just over two months' time. It is rumoured that FOM's contracts with race promoters and TV broadcasters guarantee a grid of at least 20 cars. Should Honda not be bought, there will be just 18 in Melbourne.

"That's typical Formula 1," he told German magazine Auto Motor und Sport. "There is no such rule. People talk about things even when they do not understand.

"There will be 20 cars because you can expect Honda to be sold. Even if that is not the case, it would not be a problem. If we can reduce the costs enough, there will be plenty of teams who want to participate in the world championship."

Renault F1 managing director Flavio Briatore has also waded into the row, suggesting that Honda should have heeded his warnings about slashing expenditure long before they let their team fall prey to the current global credit crunch.

"If Honda had listened to me five years ago, maybe they'd still be in business," the Italian stated.

News Source: http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/22012009/23/ecclestone-only-team-miss-ferrari.html

 

[Unknown Soldier]

Ecclestone renews attack on Mosley

Bernie Ecclestone has renewed his attack on FIA President Max Mosley and his governance of the sport's ruling body.

Presumably riled that Mosley became involved in the debate over commercial revenue, as well as sporting issues such as the 'medals' proposal, the Formula One Management CEO also slammed the FIA's new Formula 2 series as misguided.

"It was all done for the wrong reasons. He did this when he had a problem with his private life," Ecclestone, referring to Mosley and last year's sex scandal, told the Daily Express.

The FIA recently also intervened over the formation of cost-cutting rules, including regulating a test ban - an area not usually involving Mosley's Paris body.

Additionally, in seeking FIA approval for a change in the scoring system, Ecclestone's 'medals' idea was referred by Mosley to 'market research' rather than simply adopted.

"We don't want to ask the public what they think because, if we do we would have to ask the public about almost every little thing that is decided on," the 78-year-old billionaire said.

"The sporting regulations basically are what generate the income and we run the commercial business," he continued.

"The FIA should just be the police looking at the rules. The teams and us should be writing the technical and sporting regulations."

Ecclestone also hit back at Mosley's claim that the FIA could exist in the wake of a Formula One collapse, insisting that "without us there wouldn't be a FIA."

News Source: http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/22012009/13/ecclestone-renews-attack-mosley.html

 

[Unknown Soldier]

Ecclestone: Vettel will go to Ferrari

Bernie Ecclestone has confessed his surprise that Ferrari has not prised Sebastian Vettel away from Red Bull, but believes that Formula One's youngest-ever race-winner will 'absolutely' end up at the Scuderia one day.
2009 Test Montmelo Red Bull Vettel - 0

Vettel, who in 2007 became F1's youngest-ever debutant and points-scorer after finishing eighth in the US Grand Prix, last year became its youngest pole position holder and race-winner as well. Aged just 19 years and 349 days he first stormed to top spot in qualifying and then victory in the Italian Grand Prix at Monza last year.

On the back of that sublime performance - as well as his other strong showings during the course of his first full campaign - the German has been widely tipped to go on to clinch multiple world championships, and has even earned the nickname ''Baby Schumi' in his homeland, a reference to his seven-time title-winning compatriot Michael Schumacher.

Though Vettel will compete for Red Bull Racing in 2009, Ecclestone contends that the 21-year-old will wind up at Maranello sooner or later.

"I see Sebastian with Ferrari," the sport's commercial rights-holder told German newspaper Bild am Sonntag. "I am actually a little surprised that he is not already under contract, but I am absolutely sure that it will be so."

Asked about the possibility of Vettel going on to match or even surpass Schumacher's achievements, meanwhile, the Formula One Management chief executive simply replied: "Ask me again in eight, nine, ten years."

News Source: http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/21012009/58/ecclestone-vettel-ferrari.html

 

[catisfit]

Wow, it's almost like I'm on the Eurosport page right now

 

[Bludd]

I don't understand why Unknown Soldier is copy-pasting news stories like that. Old news stories, also.

 

[Bludd]

The drivers are being childish with the whole superlicense thing. Okay, the huge increase last year was a bit much, they should have increased it less in one go and spread the increases out over a few years.

Still, the drivers are loaded. They can afford it.

 

[tongue_of_colicab]

They should shut up. They make such insane amounts of money that it really is pathetic to complain about it. Where are they days of drivers getting in the car because they wanted to race, even if they had to pay it out of their own pockets? Now we've got drivers complaining about missing out on a couple of thousend less on their 7 zero bankaccount.