2005/2006 F1 News and Testing.

Steve Ryder heads new-look F1 on ITV

Steve Rider will make his first appearance on ITV screens since rejoining the network when he presents this Saturday’s Formula 1 Preview from 12.40 to 1.10pm on ITV1.

Steve will present ITV’s award-winning coverage of Formula 1, which begins on March 11-12 at Bahrain and continues with live coverage of every race.

Former McLaren driver Mark Blundell will join Steve Rider at every round as ITV’s analyst.

Martin Brundle, who drove for the likes of Benetton and McLaren during his time as an F1 driver, will resume his acclaimed grid walk in the build-up to the races, as well as co-commentating with James Allen.

Louise Goodman and Ted Kravitz will provide reports from around each circuit and there will be guest appearances from experts including David Coulthard, Johnny Herbert and Eddie Jordan.

There are also new graphics and a new title sequence featuring drivers including Britain’s Jenson Button and David Coulthard. This will be accompanied by a re-working of Moby’s track ‘Lift Me Up’.

Looking ahead to the start of the championship in Bahrain, the preview programme will look at the new rules and qualifying changes, which have replaced the single-lap qualifying system used in recent years with a three-part, hour-long knockout session.

Also to be shown within the F1 Preview and ahead of the first race: Steve Rider interviews 2005 world champion Fernando Alonso and British ace Jenson Button.

ITV has also announced that it is finalising a deal with North One for the exclusive production of its Formula 1 coverage.


F1 Preview 2006
Saturday 4 March 1240-1310 ITV1


Bahrain Grand Prix coverage
Saturday 11 March 1030-1215 ITV1 Qualifying LIVE *YAY!!!!*
Sunday 12 March 1030-1339 ITV1 Race LIVE *YAY!!!!*
Monday 13 March 0010-0110 ITV1 Highlights
Tuesday 14 March 0245-0345 ITV1 Highlights
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FIA Orders Safety Revisions for Malaysian Grand Prix

The FIA's Charlie Whiting has ordered safety revisions to the Malaysian grand prix venue.

The permanent Race Director and Safety Delegate inspected Sepang this week, and asked organisers to replace overgrown grass at the track's verge with interlocking bricks, according to the local 'Star' newspaper.

''(Otherwise) Charlie said there were no problems with the track,'' said general manager Datuk Ahmad Mustafa.

Reportedly, Whiting was concerned that the grass bulges could have posed a danger to drivers.

Malaysia will stage the second round of the 2006 championship, a week after next Sunday's Bahrain opener.
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Williams to run seamless shift in Bahrain

Williams have given the green light to running their seamless shift gearbox from the start of the season, autosport.com has learned.

The team originally designed their new Cosworth-powered FW28 with the system, which allows gear changes to take place with minimal power loss, but were unsure about whether it would be reliable enough to start the season with.

Technical director Sam Michael made it clear at the launch of the team's new car in January that the team would only race the seamless shift gearbox if it was sure it would last a full Grand Prix distance.

Following extensive testing, the team have been convinced about the gearbox's durability and sources have revealed that they have opted to use the system fromthe season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix.

"We are comfortable with its progression," said a Williams insider.

As a back-up, the team had the option of reverting to a standard gearbox if the seamless system was not reliable enough.

Team co-founder Patrick Head said at the car launch: "It is new technology for us and we are debugging it.

"We have got a backstop which is the same gearbox but in a slightly different configuration, but because the seamless is faster that is what we are planning to be racing."
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F1 teams close to testing agreement

Formula One teams are on the verge of reaching a compromise testing agreement for 2006, autosport.com has learned, with Ferrari finally agreeing to fall in line with their rival teams.

Ferrari stood alone last season in refusing to sign-up to the 30-day in-season limit that was agreed between the other nine teams. The Maranello outfit believed that it was more cost efficient to restrict testing through a mileage limit rather than a day limit.

Although Ferrari's insistence on the matter appeared to have scuppered any chance of a deal being struck for this year, with some team's arguing they would not agree to a limit for 2006 unless every team signed up, moves have since taken place to find a compromise solution.

Autosport.com understands that a provisional deal has now been struck between teams and that a document is being circulated in a bid to get every outfit's signature of approval before a deadline of next Monday. The deal will only stand if all of F1's 11 teams approve the limitation.

It is understood that Ferrari, Renault, Honda and Williams have all so far put their signature to the deal, with other teams expected to do so imminently.

Toyota's Richard Cregan dismissed suggestions that his team were set to block the deal.

"That is not correct," he told autosport.com. "We are fully supportive of a testing agreement, as we were last year. We are really pushing for a deal to be struck and we support the concessions that have been made."

Although the exact details of the testing agreement have not been confirmed, it is understood to revolve around the basic premise of a 36-day in-season limit, that will run from next week's Bahrain Grand Prix until the season-closing Brazilian Grand Prix, and includes a summer testing ban.

The compromise solution that has won over Ferrari's support is believed to relate to exactly how the 36-days are counted as well as a way for teams to run at two tracks occasionally.

It is believed that teams can nominate circuits in their home country that will be exempt from the agreement under certain circumstances, as well as the possibility that aerodynamic straight-line testing will not count either.

These clauses in the deal mean, for example, that Ferrari will continue to be allowed to use their Fiorano and Mugello facilities without compromising their chance to test at other circuits.

There were fears that if a testing deal was not struck this year then testing costs would escalate dramatically, as a time when teams are trying to bring down the amount they spend.

Teams would also likely have tested at Grand Prix tracks shortly before the race in a bid to improve their knowledge. Honda Racing, Ferrari and Scuderia Toro Rosso have already tested at Bahrain recently because a previous agreement outlawing testing outside of Europe no longer stood.

Williams technical director Sam Michael said earlier this year that teams would change where they tested if there was no agreement.

"If there is no testing agreement then we will try and test on Grand Prix tracks," he said. "So you will test at Imola, Nurburgring and Magny-Cours for example, the tracks we cannot test on now, just weeks before the race."
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So....you can test freely at a local circuit - but can only do 36 days at other circuits...

Hows that restricting?
 
Speed says V10 a disadvantage

Scott Speed has hit back at those teams who have criticised Scuderia Toro Rosso for running V10 engines this year - by insisting they are going to have no advantage.

Some rival outfits are upset that Toro Rosso's decision to run the restricted V10 power-units could hand them the edge over some of the V8-powered teams.

But Speed has rubbished those claims, and instead believes that Toro Rosso are going to face a handicap this year because of their engine choice.

"Certainly, it's a big disadvantage for us because the V8 is the future of Formula One," he told reporters. "In the meantime, we're missing out of a year of development. It's at this point, not a performance advantage for us.

"Perhaps at the beginning of the year we could have a slight reliability advantage. But really by the end of the year, and certainly even now, the V8s are adapting and they're evolving, and they're already breaking track records in testing that they had from the V10 era.

"So we're really crossing our fingers that they don't develop the V8s to where we're completely uncompetitive. But as it stands now, I think it's a pretty equal playing ground."

The FIA have introduced an air intake restriction and rev-limit in a bid to ensure that the V10s perform at the same level as V8s this year, although these parameters will be changed if the equivalency aim does not work.
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Rain thwarts Ferrari once more at Mugello

The Ferrari team continued to be thwarted by poor weather at the Mugello circuit, where a constant rain meant the Italian squad were unable to carry out their planned programme.

Michael Schumacher took to the track in the 248 F1, but only managed 36 laps with a best time of 1:30.389 as conditions were very poor at the Italian circuit.

Meanwhile at Fiorano, test driver Luca Badoer carried out the shakedown of two of the three cars the team will use in the Bahrain Grand Prix.

The third car will be shaken down on Monday by Badoer.
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The circus is unpacking in Bahrain

Manama, 3rd February 2006; The magnificent facility of the Bahrain International Circuit is becoming increasingly busy as the Formula One circus continues to arrive and heavy duty flight containers disgorge the machinery and equipment that will set the world's pulse racing for the 2006 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix. In less than one week the event will be underway, and the preparations are now a round-the-clock operation to ensure that the 2006 FIA Formula One World Championship gets underway in fine style.

The Formula One paddock itself is a hive of activity, with the team hospitality areas being branded and kitted out and the Paddock Club suites above the pit lane being fettled in sumptuous style. The elegance of the VIP areas is in sharp contrast to the armada of freight containers bringing in the team hardware ready for the race.

Each of the 11 teams travelling to the Kingdom of Bahrain for the Grand Prix brings 50-80 shipping cases, up to 40 tons of equipment. Of that over 30 tons is made up by the mechanical needs of cars themselves - three chassis, the engines, spare parts, tools, wheels and pit equipment. The remainder is made up of pit garage branding and extraneous equipment - even the utensils for the team chefs! Then finally comes the telemetry and computer equipment.

Formula One has an information superhighway all of its own: there will be approximately 180 large computers and 300 laptops in use between the 11 teams, supplied by over 3.5km of power cable and sending information through 5.5km of data cable. The team members themselves - approximately 1,200 - will be equipped with 1,100 walkie-talkie radios and headsets.

For a hot country such as Bahrain, the teams also need to keep their staff members cool and hydrated. Almost 37,000 litres of mineral water and soft drinks will therefore be consumed up and down the pit lane.

Approximately 15,000 litres of fuel will be delivered to the Bahrain International Circuit by the various fuel suppliers in order to meet their teams' needs. A Formula One car running for the full course of the Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix weekend will consume in the region of 500 litres from the first laps of practice to receiving the chequered flag. Nonetheless a Formula One engine is over 20 per cent more efficient at turning fuel into power than even the most economical small car.

A further 17,500 litres of fuel will be available for the Support Races: the Porsche Michelin SuperCup and Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix Pro Celebrity Race.

The Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix will mark the debut of all eleven of the 2006 season challengers. From the moment that design began on these cars to their arrival in Bahrain, almost four million man-hours will have been spent by the teams and engine builders to deliver their new 2.4-litre V8 charges. Such mind-bending dedication to extracting the last shred of performance, the seismic change in moving from 3.0-litre V10 engines to 2.4-litre V8s, the evolution of the designs through the season, the scale of technology required to develop the cars and the salaries of the team staff place the total cost of each lap at each Grand Prix event at well over $3,000 per car.
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Mateschitz: Toro Rosso may have early edge

Red Bull boss Dietrich Mateschitz has admitted that his Scuderia Toro Rosso team may be more likely to score points at the beginning of the year than Red Bull Racing.

On the back of the cooling issues and reliability problems that have marred the RB2's build-up to the season, Mateschitz is under no illusions that the beginning of the campaign could be a struggle for his main outfit.

And with Toro Rosso's restricted V10-engine expected to be bulletproof in terms of reliability, Mateschitz thinks it is possible that Red Bull's junior team will be their main points-scorers early on.

"There will be, at the beginning, a small advantage (for the V10) because they will have no problems with the durability," he said in an interview with Salzburger Nachrichten.

"But as time goes by the V8s will become stronger and more stable and then they will have the advantage. However, the chance to come into the points is larger perhaps at the beginning (of the year) for Toro Rosso than for Red Bull Racing."

Although Mateschitz has admitted that Red Bull Racing are behind schedule with their preparations for the year, he is not unduly concerned about the situation.

"With the overheating problems from the beginning of testing with the RB2 we lost time and the testing programme was put a little bit back," he added. "But the best lap of Christian (Klien, at Barcelona last week) was very good.

"We know it is safe to say that the new is good and that Mark Smith delivered some tidy work as chief designer. The influence of Adrian Newey coming now will begin to show.

"The engine is of course a concern in terms of reliability and we have not yet driven a full race distance. But at the beginning, all will have this problem more or less."
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And for those that thought that Red Bull had gone all commercial - they still have a sence of humour. :D

What a difference a year makes

How things change. Only a year ago, Red Bull Racing was making its debut on the Formula One stage and here they are, twelve months on, with two teams running under the Red Bull banner, courtesy of Scuderia Toro Rosso. Now that they represent 18.18% percent of the grid (maybe they should buy 1.82% of another team, just to get it back to the nice round 20% they had before that new eleventh crew arrived,) there have been suggestions they should clean up their act.

But don’t worry, they’re still cool and crazy and true to the Red Bull creed. In fact, finding out if someone is cool and crazy has been the top priority during any job interviews they conducted this winter. Adrian Newey? Did they care that his cars had won loads of races and titles? No, they were impressed that he was cool and crazy enough to desperately want to work in Milton Keynes. Gerhard Berger? Is his vast experience as a driver, a team boss and a businessman important? No, what matters is that he’s a walking A to Z of cool (leave out the crazy, he wants you to leave out the crazy, Ed.)

Therefore, this season they plan to share with you the impressive depth of experience in their two teams, which is now simply astounding, as can be seen from the following incident…..

One of their hire cars broke down on the way to a test session recently and their engineering specialist suggested the problem was no doubt related to the valves or the crank sensor. However, the electrical engineer disagreed and insisted they have a look at the wiring loom. Finally, the team’s computer software specialist came up with a solution:

“Let’s close all the Windows, get out of the car, get back in, then open the Windows again and I bet it will start!” What a cool, crazy guy!

Also, don’t forget that both teams, red Bull Racing and Scuderia Toro Rosso, will launch their respective new liveries next Thursday night prior to the opening day of practice here at the Bahrain circuit.
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30 mins to explain the new qualifying, new rules and regulations, engines, new teams and driver switches - no way near enough

You can spend 30mins just on the explaining the new qualifying...

Simon/~Flibster
 
First impressions....

They've got a Bad Bond Style Intro...

Steve Ryder is a hell of a lot more competent that Count Von Count Rosenthal. ;)

It seems extremely rushed.

The new McLaren looks FABULOUS on the move.

They're very biased towards Renault already - the Honda has been the best car over winter testing. Renault has been consistantly behind it.

But anyway....back on now.
 
Spot the difference...

Jim Rosenthal
Rosenthal.jpg



Count Von Count
TheCount.jpg


I knew he reminded me of someone. ;)

Simon/~Flibster
 
fuz said:
Why can't a team let Brundle in a 2006 F1 car to describe the tracks instead, would make the whole "meet the track" thing a lot more informative... Jackie Stewart did a similar thing in the late 70s in a Tyrrell
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Very few teams will let the cars go. What happens if you damage it?

He managed it with Jordan 4 years ago iirc... showed understeer and oversteer - but that was only round Silverstone in a private test session.

He'd probably have the most success with McLaren - but there's also the safety factor to include. The fact that driving a F1 car required your upmost concentration doesn't help either - whereas that V8 Car doesn't.

Simon/~Flibster
 
A deserted race track in Austria

The future of the A1 Ring, the home of the Austrian Grand Prix, has been unclear for more than a year, following a decision by the Austrian authorities not to allow the development of the circuit by Red Bull boss Dietrich Mateschitz.

When the decision was made Mateschitz was already beginning work on the project and had demolished all the buildings at the site, including the pit garages and grandstands.

Since then the track has been abandoned and the Steiermark region, one of the poorest in Austria, has gained no benefit from the site.

There are various plans for reviving the facility with money from other companies but Mateschitz seems to have largely lost interst, having already lost a great deal of money on the project. In a recent interview he made it clear that small European countries such as Austria have little place in the modern Formula 1 which aims to expand into new countries in the developing world with the major targets at the moment being Russia and India.
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The BMW Sauber PR machine rolls on

BMW have warned against unrealistic expectations as they prepare for their Formula One debut in Bahrain next week.

BMW bought out the under-performing Sauber team last year and pin their hopes on drivers Nick Heidfeld and 1997 world champion Jacques Villeneuve.

But team boss Mario Theissen insisted: "We are not expecting miracles.

"What our achievements will look like we just don't know. We are aiming to make the most of our possibilities and advance step-by-step."

Theissen did admit that the F1.06 car was expected to be significantly better than last year's Sauber.

"We can say that things are looking good at this stage of development," he said. "After an intensive winter testing programme, our drivers have given the car the thumbs-up.

"The engineers are also convinced that a major leap has been made compared to the previous year."

My guess is that Renault and Honda will be in the lead to start with, possibly followed by McLaren and Ferrari

BMW driver Nick Heidfeld

The season-opener in Bahrain on 12 March will be German Heidfeld's first race since the Turkish Grand Prix last August.

He missed the last five races of 2005 due to a testing accident and a subsequent injury while out cycling.

Heidfeld also warned that BMW will probably be outside of the championship-chasing pack.

"My guess is that Renault and Honda will be in the lead to start with, possibly followed by McLaren and Ferrari and then a group of closely bunched teams," he said.

"We will probably be in with that group."

But he added: "I still feel pretty confident. I am desperately looking forward to my first race after a long gap and I can't wait to see what the competition is like."
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Former Formula One Technical Director Moves to NASCAR Red Bull Toyota Team

The first prominent figure joining the Red Bull team set to the NASCAR series in 2007 is Günther Steiner.

Having worked as technical director for Red Bull Racing in the Formula One, he is now moving from Great Britain to the US – from Milton Keynes to Mooresville, North Carolina.

The forty-year-old South Tyrolean will also assume the function of technical director for the Red Bull Toyota NASCAR team, acting on a level with General Manager Marty Gaunt. Marty Gaunt is happy about this high-calibre reinforcement.

“In his many years of Rally activities with Ford, as head of sports at Opel and more recently at Red Bull Racing in the Formula One, Günther has not just had a lot of success but also gathered enormous know-how. He was one of the men who was decisive for the perfect launch of Red Bull Racing – and we are convinced that with his experience he will help our young team make a fast start.”

Günther Steiner sees NASCAR as a “new, fascinating challenge. If as a European you are asked to help set up such an ambitious project you simply cannot say no. I’m really looking forward to working on my new task.” Günther Steiner will begin his job with the Red Bull Toyota NASCAR-Team on April 1 of this year.
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Hollywood to film Hailwood movie

The life of former Grand Prix driver Mike Hailwood, who is regarded as one of the best motorbike racers of all time, is to be turned into a Hollywood film.

American company Infinity Media have obtained the rights to Hailwood's life story from his widow Pauline. No release schedule has been announced, but the film will be produced by Michael Ohoven and written by Paul Pender.

Hailwood won nine World Championships on bikes, but failed to achieve the same success on four wheels.

After dabbling in car racing in the early 1960's, he returned to four wheels full-time at the end of the decade and went on to win the 1972 European Formula Two championship for fellow bike racer John Surtees' team.

That same season he came close to grabbing a maiden Grand Prix win, after pressuring Jackie Stewart for the lead in South Africa before his suspension broke and then appearing well on his way at Monza before the airbox blew off his car.

Hailwood suffered a more difficult 1973 campaign, with his only memorable moment being when he rescued Clay Regazzoni from his burning car in South Africa to earn the George Medal.

He switched to McLaren in 1974 and ran competitively before he suffered leg injuries in a crash at the German Grand Prix. It ended his F1 career, although he returned briefly to bikes before being killed in a car crash near his home in 1981.
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Could be an interesting thing...if they don't screw it up typical American style..
 
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