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Zip said:If you lot from the UK want to watch the formula 1 tomorrow i sugest going to bed now so u can wake up for it![]()
Live by australian time![]()
![Frown :( :(](/styles/default/xenforo/vbSmilies/Normal/frown.gif)
I only got up about an hour ago.
Zip said:If you lot from the UK want to watch the formula 1 tomorrow i sugest going to bed now so u can wake up for it![]()
Live by australian time![]()
Prodrive confirms 2008 entry submission
David Richard's Prodive company has confirmed it has submitted an entry to enter the Formula One World Championship in 2008.
As revealed earlier this month, Prodrive, which currently competes in the World Rally Championship as well as in other series, had already announced plans to build a state-of-the-art factory for their Formula One team.
"Formula One is still regarded as the pinnacle of motorsport and therefore a natural next step for Prodrive," said Richards.
"While we may be a very large company in motorsport terms, we are very much a minnow in comparison to the vehicle manufacturers who currently dominate the sport.
"However, on the basis of the new regulations being proposed by the FIA, we believe the time is now right for us to take this next step."
Applications for the 2008 championship close today and will then be considered by the FIA before a final list of entries is confirmed on 28 April.
The 11 teams currently competing in F1, as well as former Minardi boss Paul Stoddart, have already submitted their entries. Under the terms of Concorde Agreement, there are only 12 spots available.
If Prodrive's entry is accepted, it would be the first time the company competes in Formula One. Richards, however, had been BAR's and Benetton's team boss before.
Prodrive's facility is still subject to planning permission, but should it be granted, construction would begin at the end of this year. Prior to this, Prodrive would run the programme from its existing facilities.
"The next few months will see the clarification of the rules for 2008," added Richards.
"Should our entry be accepted, we would aim to play a constructive part in determining the new rules with the objective of creating an environment where private teams, without access to the massive resources of the vehicle manufacturers, can once again be competitive - a situation we believe will be far healthier for the long term future of F1."
Flibster said:Why bother sleeping?
Anyway...
Stoddy is out from 2008 it seems...![]()
Flibster said:Why bother sleeping?
Anyway...
Stoddy is out from 2008 it seems...![]()
Pollock cagey on 2008 entry.
Craig Pollock refused to confirm or deny suggestions that he has placed an entry for the 2008 world championship when questioned in the Australian Grand Prix paddock.
Bernie Ecclestone has reportedly said that the British American Racing founder had joined Paul Stoddart and David Richards on the list of hopefuls chasing the twelfth and last spot in the entry. Stoddart has made it very clear that he is serious about his intention to return to the sport but, as ever, Pollock prefers to keep the media guessing.
One logical reason for a Pollock project would be to ensure continued employment for Jacques Villeneuve, although it remains to be seen whether the Canadian would be tempted by another start-up project. Villeneuve will turn 37 early in the 2008 season and joined BAR in its first year, after a successful period with Williams. He subsequently found himself ousted when Richards took over at the Brackley team, ended up taking a sabbatical before returning, full-time, with Sauber in 2005. He currently drives for the BMW team.
FIA Receives 22 entry applications for 2008
Twenty two teams have applied for 12 available slots in the 2008 Formula One championship, the sport's governing body FIA said on Friday.
"The FIA has received applications from 22 teams wishing to compete in the 2008 FIA Formula One World Championship," a statement said.
"All applicants have been invited to a meeting in London on April 10, 2006."
lineaR said:Why is it limited to a 12 team grid, why not 13 or 14, other race series race with more than 28 cars.
rpstewart said:22??? Yikes, I was expecting maybe 15-16 tops, where the heck have the others come from?
Now, do you get preferential treatment if you already have an entry for 2006/7? Could you imagine Ron's face if McLaren get punted for being "toublemakers"![]()
rpstewart said:We used to have 36 entrants with Saturday pre-qualifying dropping 6 and Saturday afternoon saying goodbye to another 4.
The choice to limit to 24 was taken alongside the introduction of the entry bond to ensure that all the entrants were financially sound and virtually guaranteed to make it to the end of the season.
There's no real reason not to have 26 or 28 car girds, the tracks have enough space (well maybe Monaco might be a bit tight) the only problem might be engine supply unless the major manufacturers supplying multiple teams.
Curiosity surrounds identity of applicants
Despite high interest in the 2008 world championship, with 22 teams applying to enter, Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone says there will only be slots for 12 teams.
The current 11 teams have submitted applications and can expect to be on the 2008 starting grid.
Other applicants are known to include former Minardi owner and aviation entrepreneur Paul Stoddart, and ex-BAR and Benetton team principal David Richards' Prodrive company, which confirmed it had applied earlier on Friday.
Craig Pollock, a BAR founder who is also the manager of Canada's 1997 world champion Jacques Villeneuve, could be another would-be entrant.
"Anybody who puts an entry in is making a huge personal commitment," Pollock told Speedtv.com without confirming or denying his interest.
"It's not a long way away - they'd have a very short time to build up anything. And I wish everybody a lot of luck. It'll be tough for everybody."
Some manufacturers may be planning 'B' teams. Mercedes-powered McLaren are known to be interested in such a step, while others competing in junior series such as GP2 might also want to move up to the top level.
The FIA said applications will be accepted or rejected in the governing body's absolute discretion.
"The FIA will publish the list of cars and drivers accepted together with their race numbers on 28 April, 2006, having first notifed unsuccessful applicants," the FIA said.
All applicants have agreed to pay a 300,000 euro ($363,500 USD) entry fee to the FIA by November 1, 2007, if successful.
Expected rain makes qualifying a challenge
Formula One drivers and teams are bracing themselves for a more fraught than usual qualifying session in Melbourne this afternoon, with rain hitting the Albert Park circuit.
Overnight showers look set to continue all day, and this almost certainly means a more difficult challenge in the new knockout qualifying format.
"I think the showers are in for afternoon, so the track is certainly going to go through different stages," said Williams driver Mark Webber.
"It is going to be difficult to judge when to get your time in, but at least qualifying is not like with the old system, when you had an allocated slot. You are still going to be in the lap of the Gods though."
Honda Racing technical director Geoff Willis believed that the limited time in each knockout session in qualifying would put more onus on the drivers to perform and get their tyre choice right.
"The weather is going to make things quite difficult," said Willis. "If it is a fully wet session, then there is the risk of someone throwing it off, especially in the first session, so drivers are going to need to get out there and do the laps.
"But you are going to need to balance out getting the lap in and not using up too much engine mileage.
"There is definitely a bigger risk of making a mistake than there will be in the dry, and I think the drivers are going to have a bigger say on things.
"They are going to have to put the laps in and choose the right moment to go on to dry tyres. It is going to be quite busy."
BMW set the pace in practice 3 - Australia
Nick Heidfeld and Jacques Villeneuve demonstrated the potential of the BMW-Sauber team on Saturday morning when they topped the times in final practice for the Australian Grand Prix.
Heidfeld recorded a fastest lap of 1:35.335 in the final stages of a wet-and-dry session run in changing, windy and unpredictable conditions at Albert Park.
His teammate Villeneuve was second fastest, with a time of 1:36.281.
This left the two BMW drivers ahead of Tonio Liuzzi, who was third fastest for the Toro Rosso Cosworth team, ahead of Italian compatriot Giancarlo Fisichella in the leading Renault.
Ralf Schumacher, in a Toyota, was fifth ahead of the two Ferraris - Felipe Massa taking sixth place ahead of teammate Michael Schumacher.
Defending champion Fernando Alonso was 17th, a full four seconds slower than the two BMWs who made the best of a drying circuit in the final minutes.
The hour-long session was run on a wet circuit, and oil was cleared from four of the opening corners as the cars began lapping.
It was little wonder that there was a long sequence of incidents with virtually everyone spinning off and regaining control all over the track.
In the opening 20 minutes, the off-track drivers included Massa, Yuji Ide in his Super Aguri Honda, Jarno Trulli in his Toyota, Juan Pablo Montoya in a McLaren, and Nico Rosberg in a Williams Cosworth.
Alonso, testing tyres and the circuit's conditions, went off twice at the opening turn in the first half hour as well, before the track began to dry, but even then as conditions improved, there were plenty more drivers taking a route across the grass.
Remarkably, the only driver to lose his car in the gravel trap and abandon it was Christijan Albers in his Midland Toyota, soon after the halfway mark in the session.
In all of this chaos, which included an off-track excursion for local hero Mark Webber in his Williams, the Renaults were the fastest cars in the early stages, with Fisichella and Alonso trading times.
On the half hour mark, Jenson Button took over at the top in his Honda before Villeneuve, then Fisichella and Villeneuve again clocked quickest laps.
As the sun flickered through, and a drying wind took grip, the track began to dry, but there were still wet areas under the trees, the leading men began to try running on dry-weather tyres.
The Renaults led the way, but both found life difficult and Fisichella ran off and on at turn 15 before the BMWs delivered the fastest laps of the day.
Notably, McLaren chose to run very lightly, conserving their cars for qualifying.
[b]Pos No Driver Team Time[/b]
1 16 Nick Heidfeld Sauber-BMW 1:35.335
2 17 Jacques Villeneuve Sauber-BMW 1:36.281
3 20 Vitantonio Liuzzi STR-Cosworth 1:36.373
4 2 Giancarlo Fisichella Renault 1:36.414
5 7 Ralf Schumacher Toyota 1:36.445
6 6 Felipe Massa Ferrari 1:36.506
7 5 Michael Schumacher Ferrari 1:37.332
8 11 Rubens Barrichello Honda 1:37.481
9 8 Jarno Trulli Toyota 1:37.492
10 21 Scott Speed STR-Cosworth 1:37.852
11 15 Christian Klien RBR-Ferrari 1:37.947
12 9 Mark Webber Williams-Cosworth 1:38.036
13 12 Jenson Button Honda 1:38.505
14 14 David Coulthard RBR-Ferrari 1:38.683
15 10 Nico Rosberg Williams-Cosworth 1:39.401
16 18 Tiago Monteiro MF1-Toyota 1:39.515
17 1 Fernando Alonso Renault 1:39.654
18 23 Yuji Ide Super Aguri-Honda 1:40.261
19 22 Takuma Sato Super Aguri-Honda 1:41.448
20 4 Juan Pablo Montoya McLaren-Mercedes 1:44.350
21 3 Kimi Räikkönen McLaren-Mercedes 1:48.284
22 19 Christijan Albers MF1-Toyota
[b]Sector 1[/b]
[b]Pos No Driver Time[/b]
1 7 Ralf Schumacher 32.413
2 16 Nick Heidfeld 32.661
3 8 Jarno Trulli 32.687
4 5 Michael Schumacher 32.831
5 20 Vitantonio Liuzzi 32.854
6 21 Scott Speed 33.193
7 11 Rubens Barrichello 33.262
8 17 Jacques Villeneuve 33.262
9 6 Felipe Massa 33.481
10 14 David Coulthard 33.516
11 15 Christian Klien 33.696
12 9 Mark Webber 33.707
13 10 Nico Rosberg 33.775
14 2 Giancarlo Fisichella 33.844
15 23 Yuji Ide 34.009
16 22 Takuma Sato 34.379
17 12 Jenson Button 34.420
18 18 Tiago Monteiro 34.453
19 1 Fernando Alonso 34.886
20 3 Kimi Räikkönen 35.046
21 4 Juan Pablo Montoya 35.481
22 19 Christijan Albers 37.044
[b]Sector 2 [/b]
[b]Pos No Driver Time[/b]
1 16 Nick Heidfeld 24.990
2 2 Giancarlo Fisichella 25.346
3 20 Vitantonio Liuzzi 25.403
4 17 Jacques Villeneuve 25.434
5 11 Rubens Barrichello 25.499
6 12 Jenson Button 25.614
7 7 Ralf Schumacher 25.717
8 5 Michael Schumacher 25.724
9 6 Felipe Massa 25.750
10 21 Scott Speed 25.756
11 15 Christian Klien 25.792
12 23 Yuji Ide 25.864
13 10 Nico Rosberg 25.869
14 8 Jarno Trulli 25.939
15 9 Mark Webber 25.971
16 14 David Coulthard 26.002
17 1 Fernando Alonso 26.095
18 18 Tiago Monteiro 26.378
19 22 Takuma Sato 26.525
20 3 Kimi Räikkönen 27.359
21 4 Juan Pablo Montoya 27.672
22 19 Christijan Albers 30.568
[b]Sector 3 [/b]
[b]Pos No Driver Time[/b]
1 2 Giancarlo Fisichella 37.215
2 5 Michael Schumacher 37.253
3 6 Felipe Massa 37.275
4 17 Jacques Villeneuve 37.585
5 16 Nick Heidfeld 37.589
6 20 Vitantonio Liuzzi 38.041
7 9 Mark Webber 38.090
8 11 Rubens Barrichello 38.154
9 10 Nico Rosberg 38.158
10 12 Jenson Button 38.266
11 15 Christian Klien 38.281
12 1 Fernando Alonso 38.293
13 7 Ralf Schumacher 38.315
14 18 Tiago Monteiro 38.630
15 21 Scott Speed 38.637
16 8 Jarno Trulli 38.866
17 14 David Coulthard 38.932
18 23 Yuji Ide 40.334
19 22 Takuma Sato 40.459
20 4 Juan Pablo Montoya 41.197
21 3 Kimi Räikkönen 41.403
22 19 Christijan Albers 41.488
[b]Pos No Driver Time Speed[/b]
1 5 Michael Schumacher 11:59:23 298.5
2 21 Scott Speed 11:54:55 294.5
3 16 Nick Heidfeld 11:56:42 294.4
4 17 Jacques Villeneuve 11:48:50 293.1
5 14 David Coulthard 11:48:23 293.0
6 15 Christian Klien 11:45:41 291.0
7 1 Fernando Alonso 11:49:48 290.6
8 6 Felipe Massa 11:42:58 290.1
9 7 Ralf Schumacher 11:53:52 287.4
10 9 Mark Webber 11:45:17 287.3
11 8 Jarno Trulli 11:53:38 287.2
12 18 Tiago Monteiro 11:45:09 286.7
13 11 Rubens Barrichello 12:00:54 286.5
14 10 Nico Rosberg 11:43:03 285.3
15 20 Vitantonio Liuzzi 11:57:59 284.6
16 23 Yuji Ide 11:59:05 283.6
17 2 Giancarlo Fisichella 11:31:45 283.0
18 4 Juan Pablo Montoya 11:11:48 273.9
19 22 Takuma Sato 11:59:21 266.6
20 19 Christijan Albers 11:34:29 262.8
21 12 Jenson Button 11:34:18 253.7
22 3 Kimi Räikkönen 11:13:04 250.4