Just don’t make him angry. I don’t think you would like him when he’s angry…

Images © Williams F1 and via @LiamWF1.

Original article by BlogF1.

Whatever You Do, Don’t Make Him Angry

Tony Fernandes of Lotus also owns AirAsia, a Malaysian no frills airline that has proven to be successful. Next door in the Bahrain pitlane sits Richard Branson who has pumped money into the Virgin Racing team and also famously owns Virgin Atlantic, a more upmarket airline that flies all over the world. However, despite being rivals in the air and on the race track, the entrepreneurs of Formula One have taken the competition that little bit further.

Apparently the bet between the pair centres on the competitive edge of each team. According to David Croft who commentated for the BBC during this morning’s Free Practice sessions at Bahrain, whichever team finishes the 2010 season behind will have spend a day on the winner’s airline, acting as a steward and serving tea and biscuits to their customers.

Who says Formula One is just about the ruthless competition on the tarmac…?

Original article by BlogF1.

Tony Fernandes & Richard Branson Engage In A Little Wager

The pomp and circumstance surrounding KERS came primarily from the president of the FIA, the forever embattled Max Mosley. His dream, along with the FIA’s it should be noted, was to make Formula One more environmentally friendly. Or at least, to make it look more environmentally friendly.

It shouldn’t come as any surprise that Formula One cars aren’t particularly fuel efficient, although in the same breath, it should also be noted that they aren’t as bad as you think as this advantage can prove to be the difference between winning and not finishing. And that is a good enough incentive to the engineers to ensure their cars are making full use of the fuel.

Other areas where Formula One falls into the clutches of the green-brigade is the travel and transportation of all the materials around the world. The teams move several hundred tonnes of equipment each time they go to a race, and most of the time that involves an aeroplane and several trucks.

So the idea behind KERS was help the sport become more friendly to the environment by using energy that would have previously been lost. When a car is braking, it is still using the engine and therefore the fuel and other electrical systems. However, with KERS this otherwise lost energy is stored in the form of electrical energy in a battery, and used at the drivers command to give him an extra ~80bhp boost.

However, the system isn’t simple and has been in development since last year for most of the teams. Williams even attempted to try a potentially-safer flywheel solution that negates the use of batteries (as there were some electric shock incidents in testing, notably with BMW). Ferrari’s system has plagued them with troubles since they first tested it, and on more than one occasion a Ferrari driver has ultimately retired from a race this year due the system’s unreliability. Although it must be said, their device has improved significantly in recent events.

And BMW, who haven’t used KERS since the Bahrain Grand Prix, have now decided to completely shelve it in favour of spending more time, energy and resources in improving the aerodynamic efficiency of their car. This is in despite of the fact that BMW were originally all for KERS and were one of the first teams to use the technology in pre-season testing.

We evaluated different alleys, proceeding with KERS or proceeding on the aero side and what could we do with no KERS on board.

We had made some significant progress on the aero side which does not allow to fit KERS, and we have taken a decision just a few days ago to no more run KERS this year because we see a more promising alley in developing the aero. Mario Theissen.

Of course, the other side of the issue is the fact that many drivers felt the need to shed some weight over the winter in order to accommodate the huge weight of the system, something I feel is wrong for the sport to be indirectly encouraging. With the minimum weight set at 605kg, taller and therefore heavier drivers felt they were being penalised. In the BMW garage, Nick Heidfeld was able to use KERS for the first four races, whereas team mate Robert Kubica (who is one of the grid’s tallest pilots) was forced to only test system later in the year.

With all the money that has gone into developing the technology, it would appear to have been a complete failure. Mario Theissen insists that it is not a flop, and that BMW have made good use of the information collected by the Formula One branch of the company. However, within the circles of the racing teams, only Ferrari and McLaren still use the technology.

Considering there are ten teams, and that McLaren Mercedes supply Brawn and Force India with engines and technical support, and Ferrari supply Scuderia Toro Rosso with similar, one could rightly expect these teams to be running the same system as the suppliers. Alas not, and it is perhaps because the technology really isn’t all that useful in the grand scheme of things.

It would appear that KERS will not make into next year’s championship, whichever way the current issues surrounding the breakaway series are resolved. FOTA have called for it to be shelved, and with teams like BMW ceasing development work on it, it does seem unlikely that the planned mandatory introduction of the system next year will now happen.

And while running the risk of alerting the green activists, I say that is a good thing. In my own personal view, Formula One shouldn’t be green. Simply because it isn’t, and it never will be. I therefore feel that all the faffing around trying to change something that is inherently un-green a total waste of money. Formula One is a bit like a vice – it’s naughty, we know it shouldn’t be allowed, but it is. The well-paid playboy drivers thrash their cars around with little regard for their own safety and well-being, and we watch because it is fun, entertaining and most of the time, a darn good spectacle.

And at the very end of the day, it is only 20 or so cars every other weekend. Instead of thinking up of hare-brained ideas, wouldn’t it be better to develop better fuels, reduce unnecessary transportation miles/weight and insist the factories that house the teams make better use of alternative energy sources and are more environmentally sound? Honestly…

Original article by BlogF1.

BMW Abandon KERS For Good: Isn’t It Now Formula One’s Turn?

Despite racing drivers essentially sitting down and only really moving their arms and legs while competing, they are actually incredibly fit athletes who train all year. Formula One drivers need to have strong muscles around the neck and back and their arms and legs take a beating as well from the constant application of the controls under forces of up to 4G.

Last year at Silverstone when the three participating British drivers were answering questions in a press conference, Lewis Hamilton remarked about Jenson’s fitness after learning that his rival had just completed the Windsor Triathlon, finishing in 117th of the 1700 entrants. This led to Button suggesting that both Hamilton and himself should compete in same triathlon to see who is fitter, and the then-Honda driver even promised a sizable donation to charity.

With David Coulthard egging him on, Lewis agreed to the man challenge. However, a couple of hours later Lewis’s father pulled his son from the challenge saying that they had a championship to focus on. Needless to say, it didn’t go down too well with the press.

Fast forward to 2009, and it is Jenson Button who finds himself in a potential championship winning season with a title to focus on. However, with experience comes wisdom, and Jenson being his own man, he has decided that there is little reason why he should not participate in a grueling triathlon. After all, Button is fit and healthy and competing in another discipline could serve to help him.

Of course, it could go terribly wrong, as Mark Webber realised in November when the Australian, while competing in his own Mark Webber challenge in Tasmania, collided with a car while riding his bike. Webber broke a leg and needed surgery to have some metal inserted.

The thing is though, racing drivers are sports people, and competing is in their nature. Button will want to take part in the London Triathlon to push himself further – it is undoubtedly about his own desire to do well rather than the positive media it will generate. Button is also raising money for the ‘Make a Wish Foundation’, and you can sponsor Jenson on his page at the JustGiving.com website.

As you probably know I’ve been taking part in triathlons over the past couple of years as a way of keeping fit for my racing. As we are so busy this year, I won’t be able to do as many triathlons as I would like but thought that I would give the London Triathlon a go.

It’s the biggest triathlon in the world so I thought it would be a fantastic opportunity to raise money for a charity that is very close to my heart. Jenson Button.

BlogF1 wishes the best of luck to Jenson, and also to his two engineers who are taking part in the half distance triathlon.

Original article by BlogF1.

Jenson Button To Compete In London Triathlon

It’s one of the sport’s ultimate what ifs, and it is very hard to judge a driver who hasn’t actually proven themselves one way or the other, but to speculate is interesting, and that is exactly what this post is about. Of the drivers competing in 2009, do any deserve a better car, a greater chance of proving themselves…

Nico Rosberg

Being the son of a former world champion will always bring with it a great expectation. Keke was a fine driver who showed consistency like few others. Nico though has had a harder time of it. Like his father, Nico was given his break by Williams, but unfortunately the timing was quite different. In 1982, Keke joined the team on the back of their two consecutive constructors titles. It wasn’t all smiles and praise as the team started to endure mixed results, but Keke won his world title in his first campaign with Williams, and showed tenacity while the squad slipped down the rankings.

For Nico, he joined Williams when they were already quite firmly in a slump, which may have been his saving grace as with it comes understanding. In a clearly uncompetitive car, Rosberg Jr has shown he has talent, and a strong run of points finishes towards the tail end of 2007 were impressive. Even more impressive were his two podiums in 2008. Finishing second in the inaugural Singapore Grand Prix is surely both actually and emotionally Rosberg’s greatest result thus far, completing a race where all about him others were falling off the road and retiring.

2009 has once again proving to be a bit of a let down so far. The car is okay, as is the engine, but through a combination of errors from both team and driver, Nico has so far failed to stand on the podium, despite the FW31 looking very competitive in free practices. The experience of Williams should be guiding Nico to greatness, but alas it looks to be the other way around at the moment, with Rosberg guiding the team.

Does Nico have the talent to compete with the best? Lewis Hamilton seems to think so, and Rosberg’s championship winning GP2 season was impressive. The German pilot out-scored Heikki Kovalainen to take the title, and although both pilots equalled each other on wins in 2005, Nico managed 4 poles and 5 fastest laps to Heikki’s 2 poles and 1 fastest lap. Kovalainen is currently sitting in a McLaren and not enjoying his 2009 Formula One campaign, nor did the Finn do spectacularly well last time around. Would Rosberg do any better though?

Heikki Kovalainen

Speaking of Heikki, does he deserve a better car than he is currently driving? The McLaren MP4-24 is far from an all-conquering machine, and team mate Lewis Hamilton has been getting increasingly frustrated with it this year, telling the media that the team have not given him a machine which he can defend his title with. The Briton has scored some points though and looked, on occasion, quite competitive.

Conversely, Heikki has barely finished a race this season, failing to even get around the opening lap in the first two races. He has scored with the 2009 McLaren, but currently sits on half the points of his team mate. Previously, Kovalainen couldn’t match Hamilton in 2008 and while the Briton took the world championship, Heikki finished in seventh on just over half the points of his team mate. It wasn’t a great performance, but there were glimmers of hope. In 2007, Kovalainen’s debut year, the Finn got off to a slow start, but by the time the drivers had completed the final race, Heikki had comprehensively beaten his much more experienced team mate Giancarlo Fisichella.

Previous to Formula One and as mentioned in relation to Nico Rosberg, Heikki did well in GP2 and missed out on the 2005 title by just 15 points. Finishing second is still a good performance, but one has to wonder why this hasn’t translated into Formula One. Would Kovalainen blitz the field if he was given a decent car? Does he have enough talent, or was 2005, [2006 spent testing] and 2007 the peak of his motor racing career?

Sebastien Buemi

Swiss driver Sebastien Buemi has proven to be a bit of a surprise this year. Being the only rookie in the field, Buemi has already shown up his multiple ChampCar champion team mate Sebastien Bourdais, and brought the Scuderia Toro Rosso home in points-paying positions twice already. In the opening round Bourdais scored, but unfortunately for him, Buemi scored better. At the third round in China, Buemi scored again, and currently sits on three points. It is, by all measures, a good start to his debut campaign.

Prior to Formula One, Buemi didn’t look particularly special, finishing in sixth in his first full GP2 season. Over the winter the Swiss driver competed in the GP2 Asia series and managed to finish second after one win and a string of second places. Compared to Rosberg and Kovalainen in 2005 though, Buemi looks vaguely average.

However, to finish in the points in a Scuderia Toro Rosso is not bad. Although the car is often said to be similar to the race-winning Red Bull, it is actually quite a different motor, being powered by a different engine and managed by a different team of people. Thus far, and while eating humble pie, I have to say that Buemi doesn’t look too bad of a driver and in a couple of years will deserve a shot in a better car. But what say you? Is Buemi any good, or are his results so far completely fluke?

Adrian Sutil

Having competed in Formula One since 2007, Adrian Sutil has endured the worse of all the cars currently mentioned. The Spyker wasn’t up to much and although the Force India he now drives is an improvement, it is still hogging the back row of the grid. However, on occasion Sutil has driven the wheels of the car and positioned himself in places that really he shouldn’t be in.

We all remember the 2008 Monaco Grand Prix where Sutil managed to haul himself up to fourth and was defending his position to the reigning world champion Kimi Raikkonen. Unfortunately, Raikkonen crashed into Sutil and his race was over. It wasn’t the only time a Ferrari came into contact with Sutil’s Force India that year as the Scuderia’s pitstop technique often resulted one of their drivers pulling out in front of Sutil. It became almost comical due to the amount of times it happened.

Again this season Sutil has put in a couple of fine performances, finishing in ninth from sixteenth in the season’s opening round, and running in sixth in China before losing the tail of his car and clouting the barrier. However, the fact that the German is able to get his car into these positions shows maturity and skill on his part. Is it enough though. What would happen if Adrian found himself in a Brawn or Red Bull? Would he be winning, or would it be too much for him?

Original article by BlogF1.

Who Deserves A Better Shot At The Big Time?

Now I will be the first to admit that finding a pair of shades that look half decent on my face is an arduous task at minimum, but I do tend to stay away from the 1980s throwbacks, a time when some of the drivers were barely even born. The retro look may work for some people, and it may even be a requirement of some of the sponsors, but there is a limit. Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you the full extent of Formula One eye-wear fashion.

Heikki Kovalainen – To be honest, not that bad.

Fernando Alonso – Can get away with the aviator look, just.

Felipe Massa – Cannot get away with the aviator look. But you do have to respect his authoritah!

Robert Kubica – A slightly updated Terminator look?

Timo Glock – A funky version of the ’slightly updated Terminator look’?

Nick Heidfeld – Nick chose to ignore Glock Wan’s advice and instead consulted with Sebastien Bourdais’s daughter.

Sebastian Vettel – By the way Seb, Don Johnson wants his shades back.

Mark Webber – Takes his UV protection seriously.

Maybe I don’t understand fashion, maybe I am the absurd one. But even so, I think most of the drivers look pretty humorous wearing what they’re wearing.

All images © xpb.cc/Motorsport.com.

Original article by BlogF1.

Who Called Glock Wan For Fashion Advice?

I think it would be unfair on Hamilton to say that ever since he was promoted into Formula One by the McLaren team, controversy has followed him around, as much of what has happened to his team is by no means entirely his fault. The issues facing the team in 2007 when McLaren were found to have confidential Ferrari data in their possession had very little to do with Hamilton and more to do with those running the Woking-based team. Again in 2009, the FIA have made it clear that they feel Hamilton was put in “an impossible situation” in Melbourne.

However, while Lewis isn’t to blame for all the headlines that seem to only do damage to McLaren and the sport, I feel that the current world champion is being overshadowed in the efforts of appearing friendly and engaging with those people who keep the sport alive; the fans. As a world champion, extra pressure is placed on you by the sport and race promoters to speak highly of Formula One, involve yourself in more interviews and generally become a puppet at the end of the strings being clutched by Bernie Ecclestone. And it isn’t just Hamilton who struggles with this.

Kimi Raikkonen is another driver who is often seen to be stand-offish. When interviewed in the post-race press conferences, Raikkonen almost refuses to show emotion, he will rarely acknowledge those sitting with him and will fail to add that extra 10% that would make the difference between merely answering the questions and coming across as enthusiastic.

In Shanghai last week, BBC commentator Martin Brundle described Raikkonen as rude and inconsiderate of his team after the Finn appeared to not want anything more to do with the race following the early stoppage. Raikkonen was shown changed out of his overalls and wandering around the garage eating an ice cream while his team were on the grid getting wet. The image and associated words that were broadcast around the world are perhaps not what the image of the sport needs. Humorous it certainly was, but for a respected commentator and former racer to describe another driver as essentially not bothering to continue, well…

However, now that the front of the grid has been shaken up and some new faces are gracing the podium and post-race press conferences, it almost feels as though Formula One has been given some fresh air and the breeze has blown all the corporate cobwebs away. Gone are the standard script-read and monotonous phrases and in are the jovial and engaging comments from the new order. Jenson Button, now enjoying greater success, appears relaxed and actually speaks to the cameras and to the audience behind them, all over the world. Mark Webber is comfortable in teasing his team mate and even Timo Glock was all-smiles after his podium finish in Malaysia.

The interviews FOM and FIA insist upon are so much more welcoming thanks to those now being interviewed. To see a driver actually smiling after winning a race is pleasant, and hear him voice that emotion is even better. As Lou mentioned to me last night on Identi.ca, it’s like they actually want to be there. And that makes all the difference.

So while I understand that it is far from easy for the Hamiltons and the Raikkonens to always appear joyous and enthused, I am pleased that Brawn, Red Bull and Toyota have managed to change the scenery. How long it lasts is anyone’s guess, but for now, I might just have to start watching the press conferences again.

Original article by BlogF1.

Blowing Away The Corporate Cobwebs

To the tune of Santa Baby (yes, you’ve guessed it already) the host of Sidepodcast and F1Minute has added her own lyrics, and in a seductively lavish tone, Christine has sung her heart out in a hope that the lovable 2008 runner-up might get his championship off to a start in Bahrain. I strongly urge you to take a listen, I promise you will not be disappointed. The lyrics work wonderfully, and you know you’re in for treat when the whole premise of the song works around a radio communication between Massa and his engineer Rob Smedley.

And in case you missed it, here’s that link again: Sidepodcast – A Song For Felipe.

Original article by BlogF1.

Christine Sings A Song For Felipe Baby

At the start of the season, both McLarens, both Ferraris, both Renaults and Nick Heidfeld used KERS and we saw in the opening race in Melbourne that it produced some interesting overtaking moves, particularly from the Spanish Renault pilot.

However, Ferrari suffered some problems with the device over the winter and after Kimi Raikkonen retired from the Malaysian Grand Prix due to another KERS failure (the device overheated and caused the cockpit extinguisher to fire while Raikkonen was driving), Ferrari removed the device from both cars. In China Felipe Massa said the removal of KERS is a step backwards for the team, and Stefano Domenicali stated that perhaps taking the device off the cars wasn’t the wisest of moves as the F60 is essentially designed with KERS in mind.

In Bahrain this weekend, Felipe Massa is using the device while Kimi Raikkonen isn’t, the Finn probably fed up with it and wanting nothing to do with energy recovery.

However, while FOTA may want the technology banned, the FIA are very keen on its widespread use. The reason is down to Max Mosley’s insistence that Formula One be green and environmentally friendly. In a world where people are measuring their carbon footprint and trying to reduce it, and in a world where companies are developing clean fuels and reducing emissions, Formula One motor racing looks like the sore thumb of antiquated ventures that should be banned in some people’s eyes. Obviously, the FIA are trying their best to ensure this doesn’t happen.

With energy recovery, the FIA can tout out lines that describe how the sport has been carbon neutral for a long time and that the energy lost while a Formula One car brakes (but its engine is still running) is recovered and reused via batteries storing the energy in the form of electricity (although Williams are developing a fly-wheel system). The technology though is complicated and expensive to develop, going against the FIA’s other trend of wanting to reduce costs in the sport to ensure its financial future.

We understood immediately that KERS was a money-sucking genius, and the FIA should have taken note of that. It should have been discussed before the start of the season, and the same goes for the diffusers. Having failed to do that has forced on us expenses that are crazy as much as useless. Flavio Briatore.

Of course, Briatore is already furious because his Renault team, that already runs a very tight budget, is now forced to develop a ‘double-diffuser’ which is another major part of a Formula One car that costs an awful lot to redesign. By changing the diffuser, the whole of the rear of the car has to be looked into and potentially redesigned. Briatore is not happy about this and has been mouthing off at Brawn since the FIA ruling earlier in the month.

Officially, we are yet to hear from FOTA as it would appear that Briatore is representing himself with his current comments. In his capacity of Commercial Development leader at FOTA, there is surely little Briatore can do other than bring the discussion to the table and add opinion. Unfortunately for Flavio, his new arch nemesis Ross Brawn is the leader of the Technical Working Group within the organisation, but thankfully for Briatore, Brawn are also yet to introduce KERS to their car.

My own opinion on the matter of KERS is that it is a waste of money. With only some cars running the device it is interesting and it was great to see Mark Webber dice with Fernando Alonso during the saturated Malaysian Grand Prix. The Red Bull pilot was able to pass the Renault through the corners thanks to its great chassis that works beautifully. However, as soon as the pair exited the corner Alonso was able to press the magic button on this steering wheel and power past the RB5 as the throttle was opened and KERS applied.

However, I still believe the technology is a colossal waste of money and when/should each team have KERS fitted to their cars, I fear that the effect of it will be negated. Every driver will press the button at the same points around the lap and essentially we will be back to square-one. New technology is certainly interesting and is what makes Formula One so fascinating, especially when that technology is passed onto road cars. But to be tooting the green agenda when, to be perfectly honest, Formula One will never be truly green, is just nonsense. And that blame lies squarely on the doorstep of the FIA.

Formula One can and should improve its impact on the environment. Perhaps limiting the shipping of the tyres from Japan to the UK and then onto the race venues would be a good idea. Further limiting the amount of staff that travel to the grands prix would help. Developing clean fuels as Richard Branson recently mentioned when he became a sponsor of Brawn would be good. And funnily enough, most of those off the top of my head suggestions would actually save the sport money. In fact all them would if Branson sold his clean fuel to Formula One at a cheaper cost to the teams than their current suppliers.

The juggling act of Formula One’s survival is difficult and is enduring a tough time at the moment. However, the sport will survive and so far this season, the racing has been fantastic. What I believe will help the sport immeasurably is to have a leader that isn’t solely interested in one idea that appears to be his and his alone. The sport needs careful management from, dare I say it, a committee. A group of people who understand motor racing, who understand its limits but also its possibilities. Who understand what can and what cannot be done, and a group of people who understand the financial impact of implementing ideas.

The sport needs to unite and be run by itself, or at minimum in close collaboration with an outside organisation (to be fair and impartial). By constantly battling with the FIA the act of racing cars around a multitude of circuits the world over is almost doomed to disaster. By working together for the benefit of the teams and the fans, Formula One can have a prosperous future amid dark times elsewhere in the financial industries. KERS is just one example of how this won’t happen; the FIA will press ahead with its mandatory introduction for 2010 while the teams will voice their opinion of wanting it shelved. The argument will simply go on, and on, and on…

Original article by BlogF1.

KERS Hits The Headlines Again: FOTA Want It Banned

According to a rather embarrassed Sebastian on the Shanghai grid, the young German likes to name his cars. Vettel said to Martin Brundle and David Coulthard that he treats ladies well and looks after them, therefore he names his cars after ladies because he likes to treat his cars in the same way.

Vettel said that the car he used in Australia was named Kate, but after his incident with Kubica, the chassis was trashed and he was given a new one. Due to updates being made to the RB5, his Malaysian and Chinese chassis was faster and more aggressive, so he and the team decided to call it Kate’s Dirty Sister.

Like a ship, a car should be named after a girl as it’s sexy.

My original car was called Kate. But then it got smashed at the opening race in Australia. So we called this one Kate’s Dirty Sister because it is more aggressive and faster. Sebastian Vettel.

And boy did Kate’s Dirty Sister do well! Driver’s often have silly little superstitions; Alex Wurz wore a different coloured boot on each foot and Felipe Massa apparently has his lucky boxer shorts which he won with in Brazil 2007. It is almost certain that Sebastian will not want to give up Kate’s Dirty Sister now he has managed to go all the way to victory with her. I’m sure Vettel will be treating this particular chassis very well from now on.

Via Sidepodcast and The Red Bullog.

Image © Getty Images.

Original article by BlogF1.

Vettel: I Name Thee Kate’s Dirty Sister

You could say I’m testing some things live, so to speak, and I’m currently pulling my hair out because of weird conflicts with some of the code. This is the primary reason why I would like to quietly test a few bits out here rather than the development site – having ~1500 posts and many more comments to play with makes testing a lot easier, and being perfectly honest, I couldn’t be bothered to copy the database over to devBF1.

What this means is, as I myself have just discovered, the previous caption contest photo this week utilises the lightbox fanciness I used many years ago, but because the image is linked, it is underlined with the regular dotted line now found on other links …scratch that, it doesn’t anymore – conflicts with this version’s code. I could fiddle the old CSS to prevent this, but I would rather concentrate on finalising v6.5 than spend time on something that is already dilapidated (in my mind, anyway). So in advance, I offer my apologies. Although it should not effect the functionality of the site, nor will BlogF1 fall over (hopefully). The worse that will happen is that you might notice a few odd details that look different to what you are used to.

And no, do not panic, the make-over due is just a refresh; unlike the FIA I know when something isn’t necessarily broken. BlogF1 is not being redesigned, just refreshed. You’ll like it, I promise. It should be a bit faster as well, which will be a comfort to most, I’m sure.

And yes, you may consider this the missed Caption Contest from last week. At the time, I was snowed under with real-life work and the preparation for the Australian Grand Prix. So, erm, feel free to caption away…

Original article by BlogF1.

Caption Contest: #84 – It’s All Gone Pete Tong!

Whilst I don’t know the full details behind Red Bull’s issue with The Red Bullog, they decided to write to Dan and give him an option to either sign an agreement with Red Bull or close the site. The agreement would have restricted Dan’s ability to use images and other such material, and because his content would have been under scrutiny, one cannot blame Dan for the decision he has made.

It is with regret that this will be the last ever post on The Red Bullog. Having pondered over the contents of this letter for the past few hours, it has severely knocked any enthusiasm I had. What began just six months ago as a labour of love, quickly developed into a time consuming obsession to provide Red Bull Racing fans with something worth reading and I hope I that I have been successful in my quest to do so. Dan Cross, The Red Bullog.

I find it a great shame that Red Bull have taken this decision. While they are probably well within their right to do what they have done, I feel the spirit in which this happened deplorable. Red Bull have had, in the past, an attitude towards their ventures that is refreshing and upbeat. With Dan and The Red Bullog, Red Bull had a fan who wrote well and praised the team on numerous occasions. Dan’s unofficial site was full of useful information and clearly the creation of someone who was passionate about the team’s continued presence in Formula One. Red Bull should be embracing people like this, not pushing them away.

Dan has promised not to disappear, but losing a site that was so attentively cherished by its author and visitors is not a pleasant way to start a season of blogging. I just hope that one day, Red Bull realise that errors in judgment like what has happened here will only push people away from them and away from their products.

Original article by BlogF1.

Red Bull Give Popular Blogger Ultimatum

Bernie Ecclestone believes Formula One is an entertainment business, and this concept, named F1 Rocks, therefore falls into line with this. To be organising concerts for the fans of the sport as well as locals who get invaded by the sport each year is great news. It will add to the weekend for those present and will provide further entertainment away from the track.

I’m very much looking forward to working with Bernie. He had the imagination to see the potential in F1 Rocks from the very beginning, and we want to make it a huge success on a global scale. Lucien Grainge, Universal.

However, the cynic in me also says that this is a further way of Ecclestone to gain control of everything that happens at a grand prix. Currently there are many things that happen around a Formula One race and concerts already take place, perhaps the most famous in recent times is at the British Grand Prix where the likes of Damon Hill and Eddie Jordan have played for the crowds. But by having the deal in place with Universal to stage these shows, FOM now has a little bit more control. Perhaps even, a little more cash.

I just hope Ecclestone doesn’t stick his nose in and insist on artists from his generation. While some of the greatest popular music was written in the sixties and seventies, I think the youngsters these days are more in to those artists who are somewhat younger themselves.

Original article by BlogF1.

F1 Rocks With Universal Deal

To explain my perhaps very bizarre opening paragraph: Ecclestone has pushed back the start time of the Australian Grand Prix (time and date). For a start, I disagree with this. I have fond memories of waking up at some ungodly hour of the morning (something like 4am), dragging my duvet downstairs and curling up with the dog to watch Formula One while the rest of the family slept. At the time, I was of course much younger.

My father would leave me some doughnuts to munch on and the dog was just excited to be woken up at some silly hour only to find it being wrapped in it’s favourite bedding – my duvet. Needless to say, staying awake or arising early holds special memories for me, and it is something I cherish from my youth. I will admit, now being at a grand age of nearly 28 I find the process a little more arduous, mostly thanks to a demanding career and the fact that I can no longer fall asleep after the race. Quite the contrary, I have to stay awake and write. This though, is just as much a pleasure. Although I hope you will forgive me if I seem grumpy on Monday morning!

However, to get back to the point, Bernie has been pressuring races in Asia and Australia to start later in order to capture as many Europeans as possible. With scant regard to the races themselves, Melbourne will be pushing on dusk by the time the winner crosses the line. What Bernie didn’t realise though, one can only presume, is that this weekend is when the clocks change in the UK. We lose an hour’s sleep as time magically moves forward by sixty minutes. I will admit to having my own grievances about changing the clocks, but here is not the place – I’ll leave that to the personal site on Monday morning.

So Ecclestone feels he has achieved something by pushing Australia back this year. I hope he feels just as satisfied when he realises that many Britons will oversleep and miss the first hour of the race. Not that we are stupid and will forget (mostly) but because we value sleep, just as everyone else does. And teenagers, a market Formula One should be clammering after, will have a hard enough time waking up for the pre-clock change time.

The time changes are worked out years in advance, and this season is the latest starting that I can remember in many years. I will be up, confusion aside of course, but I cannot help but feel Pike Bernie has been, well, a bit of a stupid boy.

Original article by BlogF1.

Bernie, You Stupid Boy

For each grand prix (and I really do hope I can write about each and every race this year) several posts will go up to explain the events of the race weekend. Initially, it all starts on Friday, with Free Practice One and Two. These will be presented with a short description followed by the results table. Given that I usually work on Fridays the posts may not be as promptly published as others during the weekend, and therefore they may not get to the site before the evening. However, Friday is a good indication of where the teams are prior to qualifying. Although the sessions are often treated like tests, the drivers will be honing their set ups and often you can spot a driver who is about to have a terrible weekend.

Saturday is qualifying day, and just before the action commences an empty post will go up on the site. Usually titled [Race country] 2009: Qualifying Result, the results table will be populated as the session continues. It is my hope that unlike 2008, I will be able to complete all the lap times set in each of the three qualifying sessions. This is yet to be done by myself, but the challenge should be interesting. After qualifying has been completed, a longer and more descriptive report will be posted, noting any events worthy of discussing.

On Saturday evening (or afternoon for the flyaway races) a grid will be posted. The reason for the grid is that sometimes drivers receive penalties after qualifying has been completed. These penalties are often grid slot demotions, and therefore while the lap time set in qualifying is accurate, the final grid position changes. This post has in the past and undoubtedly will in the future get updated during the course of the time between qualifying and the race.

On Sunday, and again just prior to the race starting, the results post will be published and filled out as the grand prix progresses. Once complete, a longer report will be posted detailing the race from my own notes scribbled during the event. The race reports tended to be quite long last year, and at the moment I am toying with splitting these into three. This will mean that information will be posted slightly earlier as I can write, publish, write, publish etc… However, a decision on this is yet to be taken.

After writing up the race I will also publish the strategy table, which proved quite popular when I introduced it late in 2008. The strategy table encompasses the tyre compound each driver started on and then went on to change to during the race. The table also notes on which lap the pitstop happened. This particular post is tricky because it relies on my own observation skills. Not all drivers get a lot of air time and often pitstops are missed on the television feed. And likewise, not all tyre choices are noted by the commentators. However, the posts enjoyed a ~95% accuracy rate in 2008, so hopefully this will continue into 2009.

Currently, the proposed weekend schedule of posts on BlogF1 will look something like this, using Australia as the example race:

• Australia 2009: Free Practice One
• Australia 2009: Free Practice Two
• Australia 2009: Qualifying Results
• Australia 2009: Qualifying Report
• Australia 2009: Grid
• Australia 2009: Race Result
• Australia 2009: Race Report
• Maybe Australia 2009: Race Report II
• Maybe Australia 2009: Race Report III
• Australia 2009: Pitstop & Tyre Strategies

All the results tables are able to be printed without comments and the other bells and whistles on the site. When the new design goes up (more on that later) the results posts will be separately linked to from the homepage for your convenience. A few examples can be seen here. Practice | Qualifying | Grid | Race | Strategies.

Of course, any breaking news between the sessions will be reported in much the same way as they were before. These go up as separate posts and are treated just like regular blog posts. In between the races, BlogF1 will continue reporting the big stories as well as the small but equally interesting stories. When there is a lull in racing, I’m sure I will find the time to write the longer articles delving into the sport’s past, which have proven quite popular recently.

Away from the content itself, I am still beavering away on the subtle redesign of the site. It isn’t a major overhaul, but it is an improvement over the current feel and function. Initially this was hoped to have been completed prior to the Australian Grand Prix, but now, with just a week to go, this isn’t going to happen. I’m not going to put a timeframe on it, but the rejiggle of the site will go live just as soon as it is ready.

With the season fast approaching, I’ve noticed RSS subscribers start to increase. I have written a page describing to visitors how to subscribe to the site’s feeds, but for those who are looking for the shortest of the short answers, just click the orange (or blue in Firefox 3.0+) RSS icon in the browsers address bar. You can either subscribe to the feed in a reader, or save the RSS as a live bookmark in some browsers. This way, you’ll know when the site has been updated without having to load the site each and every time.

A new feature for 2009 is the ability to subscribe to comments without the use of the RSS. Instead, under the comment box is a check box, that if checked (and submitted with comment), the email address used to comment with will be added to the list of subscribers to that particular post. Each time a new comment is added to the post an email is sent to you. This service can be unsubscribed very easily by visiting the post, clicking the Subscription Management link that appears in the same place. If comments do suddenly increase to the point where I would find the levels of emails annoying, I will deactivate the feature, but put up a notice informing those of the action. And as always, your email address is kept secure and will never be shared.

As always, comments are cherished on BlogF1, and last year there were many great conversations and debates. All are welcome to comment on BlogF1 but first timers should quickly read the Comment Policy page to understand what is acceptable and what is not. Again, to cut a long story short, be respectful to one another. I should also point out that all first time comments go to the moderation queue. This means they are not immediately published. This is just a quick verification to ensure you aren’t trying to sell medication or any other dubious product. After your comment has been deemed good, most other comments get through fine after that. A couple of exceptions are if a comment has a few links in it, or you use harsh language. I check the moderation queue regularly during the day and am fairly quick at sorting this out.

Caption Contests will of course continue, every Tuesday evening or Wednesday morning. And when the redesign eventually goes live, there will be a couple of other regular postings, like the Daily Debate (CC and DD, geddit?) and some better utilisation of the voting thingy that you all seem to like. Unfortunately, the way I have the site set up currently, and the way the next version works in my mind, I am unwilling to start these until the new design goes live. It’ll all be great fun though and worth the wait.

That just leaves me to ask readers if there is anything you would like to see added, content-wise. Is there anything else I can add to the race weekend family of posts, or is there any kind of series you would like to see on the site? Would you like me to cover any particular driver, team or event in the longer posts? Let me know and I’ll see what I can do…

Original article by BlogF1.

F12009: What To Expect From BlogF1 This Year

I should quickly add that this post does contain a couple of naughty words. This is because it is largely unedited Ollie-mind.

So it’s Grand Prix Month. The F1-blogosphere has awoken from its winter hibernation and everywhere is abuzz, as if charged with electricity, occasionally sparking but always on edge. It’s an exciting time for Formula One fans, bloggers and readers, and as we count down to Friday Free Practice, it would seem as though time has slowed and these two weeks are taking forever to pass.

But with this newly charged sense of excitement comes extra work, extra news to opine on and generally speaking, us bloggers spend March making sure we all have our shit in one sock. To explain that perhaps odd phrase, it means to make sure we are on-song, on the ball and ready for what is about to happen. Of course, while this is hard work, especially yesterday with all the new regulations and proposals to make sense of, it is fun. When the pace quickens and posts are fired off with the kind of rush that would make even Schumacher blush, the sense of achievement, excitement and satisfaction increases. It is nice to spend a few hours gushing about Elio de Angelis or Tazio Nuvolari, but when it comes down to it, the real crunch comes from the racing that we are all about to see.

But wait. Hang on a minute Ollie, you’re talking as if Formula One blogging is all you do. It sounds like you sit in front of a computer from 9am to 5pm, hacking away at a keyboard and publishing whatever nonsense comes to your mind.

It would be nice to say that BlogF1 pays my mortgage, my electricity and water bills as well as affording me the occasional drink in the Blogger’s Dog. Alas, it doesn’t. Approximately fifty-five to sixty hours of my week is spent away from a computer, in the real world doing my job. Sure, some real jobs do entail sitting at a computer, but mine does not. BlogF1 certainly contributes to my mortgage, I will not lie about that. The links on the homepage providing the bulk of the site’s income. But sometimes, the real world of work takes precedent. As does the real world of my mind.

When I wrote and published that post on Monday morning, I was not aware it would make me feel like crap later on. I was very much aware who I was including, and who I was not, when writing. To not put a link to F1Fanatic.co.uk was a conscious decision. It wasn’t because I don’t ever read Keith’s site, nor was it because I dislike Keith or his site. For none of those statements are true. I chose not to link out to Keith in the list of sites I read because, simply put, I do not read F1Fanatic as much as I used to, and over the winter I noticed my visits decreasing even further from that.

The whys, wheres and reasons don’t really matter to be honest, although in this hungry world of gossip and rumour, I will state if only to quell any speculation in any wondering and wandering minds. F1Fanatic is a child of Keith’s, much like BlogF1 is my little baby. Keith created, wrote, nurtured, developed and honed F1Fanatic from nothing to the successful, well written and well visited site that it is today. There is little doubt in my mind that all of these things will continue as well. However, I found myself visiting less and less as I noticed that my feed reader was showing more news stories. As much as I value Keith’s opinion on news items, being a blog author myself, I tend to stick to the source for these types of stories because there is a chance I myself will write about them.

To add a little more clarity to that, a year or so ago Keith and I were doubling up on a fair amount of content. Mostly occurring over the winter, when news is at a premium and F1-bloggers have to put their thinking caps on to come up with decent content, both sites were publishing very similar content at very similar times. There is nothing wrong with that, but I was well aware of what people might say. “There goes Ollie again, ripping off Keith” or “Keith, I just read that on Ollie’s site, WTF?”. Because of this, I wanted to ensure that my mind and conscious was clear. I don’t think anybody noted the similarity in posts at the time, but that wasn’t the point to me. I wanted to ensure that what I published was of little inspiration from someone else unless explicitly meant to be. Thus, I stopped reading F1Fanatic in the morning. In fact, at the time, I made F1Fanatic the last port of call in my evening routine of browsing, reading and writing.

After a while, F1Fanatic fell off my radar a little unless something with an interesting title (that I had little intention of writing about myself) popped up in my feed reader. And then this winter, there was a small backlash to F1Fanatic incorporating news items written by another company. Keith created a separate feed for those who wished to ignore the news items, but as someone who likes and enjoys actually visiting sites created by others, it made little difference. And it wasn’t the source that lead me to read F1Fanatic less (as it was made known by others), because as I said previously, I didn’t read them anyway. Instead, it was the apparent detraction from Keith’s other, original and usually excellent writing that turned me away. Perhaps it was all in my head, I don’t know – I do admit to being ever so slightly strange, as my followers on Identi.ca will attest to!

I am however, just one of a few thousand visitors to F1Fanatic each and every day; Keith does not write F1Fanatic for me. He writes it for you, just as I do here at BlogF1.

So why does all this lead to an unexpected day off? C’mon Ollie, get to the point, I’ve got the dinner in the oven and EastEnders is about to begin.

The day off occurred because I felt bad at not including one of the F1-blogosphere’s most read sites. Not because I felt I had to, but because my initial reaction was that of offending someone who I absolutely had no intention of. Behind each and every website is a person. You all are looking at a monitor right now, just as I am writing this. But on the other side of that monitor sits a person who spent hundreds, if not thousands of hours developing the sites you look at and enjoy. I know what goes into creating a website. I know what goes into creating original, well written and enjoyable content. It is, with not a word of a lie, thousands of hours. Would you believe me if I told you that the current design of BlogF1 site took several months to construct (and it wasn’t all done by myself either)? The next version of BlogF1’s design was started in December ‘08, I think. I can’t remember now, but all this, like all others, takes thousands of hours.

As it turned out, I didn’t offend Keith and once I had responded, Mr Collantine was thankful for the feedback, as I hope he will be this post. This isn’t meant for Keith though, it is meant for myself, to remind myself that I cannot spend every waking minute on BlogF1 and other F1 sites, no matter how much I want to. You see, later on that evening, and after feeling better for understanding I had caused no offense, I managed to haul myself into a debate on Clive’s F1Insight, while simultaneously discussing various points on Identi.ca with “me” from Sidepodcast.

By the time I decided my bed was feeling neglected, I was worn out. I was genuinely exhausted. Not that it was a particularly busy day, nor was it overly strenuous. But for some reason, I felt shattered. An early night to make up for the 23 hour day previously was in order. And when I arose on Tuesday and readied myself for work, I actually felt pretty good. The weather here on the South Coast of England has been rather delightful these past few days and with sunlight blaring into just about every room of my abode, I felt energised once again.

I was meant to write the second F12009 Preview post that day. I was also meant to write something similar to this post. I chose not to, despite making a promise on Identi.ca. Although I was made to feel very special by Saltire (Pitlane Fanatic) because of said promise. Anyway, I digress… I took a day off because I felt I wanted one, I felt that I deserved one, and that I needed to remind myself that BlogF1 is not my job.

BlogF1 is what I enjoy. It keeps me off the streets at night and enables me to talk openly to many like-minded people about something I love. Sometimes it stresses me a little, other times it makes me laugh until I cry. Generally it is all good, and that is primarily because of all those people who take the time to comment and email me. Those who own sites themselves and support through good and bad. Those who bounce ideas off one another, sometimes even just bouncing off one another. Contributing, taking part, joining in and laughing with. Sometimes even laughing at.

I have now completely forgotten the point of my post. What was I trying to say here? Nope, it’s gone. Oh yes! Insights into writing a Formula One blog…
…this wasn’t the post I was going write when I decided to write on Monday evening. In fact, it is quite different. I may publish that in the future, I may not. But in what turned out to be a rather grand day off, this little ditty formulated and conveyed quite nicely what I think I’m wanting to say. And for those waiting for the preview posts, I will catch up tomorrow and run through the weekend. Originally I wasn’t planning to use the weekend, but I likely will now to avoid having several go up on the same day.

Anyway, I’ll let you get back to dinner, EastEnders, breakfast, Big Brother or lunch or whatever.

Here’s to 2009, and the fucked up points system.

PS. There are intentionally no links in this post, and I was meant to mention that I once had a links page, but I took it down a couple of years ago after I read something Tyme White once wrote either on her own site or in 9rules. Tyme said that she (at the time) disliked or disagreed with links pages and/or blogrolls because she didn’t like playing favourites. I realised this good point, and through my own decision, took mine down. I will of course link out in the future in my posts, just as I always have done. And once again, I’m now having difficulty ending a paragraph. So I’ll just end it.

PPS. As I think I’ve written all that can reasonably be expected to be read today, I’ll post today’s testing post tomorrow afternoon, along with the resumption of the preview posts. I have 531 unread items in Google Reader to get through at some point as well. This is what happens when you take a day off! It’s all good though.

PPPS. I chose the picture because it was nice. No other reason. If I could have been bothered, I would of hunted for an atmospheric Schumacher shot. But this post isn’t describing anything of any importance to any part of Formula One, and I didn’t feel like taking another funny shot of myself. So Lewis it is.

PPPPS. And for the final dilemma/PS.: comments on or comments off? Ah, who am I kidding, comments on…

PPPPPS. Ah shit, in all this I forgot the Caption Contest. I’ll put one up before the weekend. And this really is the final post script. G’night all.

Original article by BlogF1.

The Unnecessary Post About Making Michael Schumacher Blush

Very few people have the kind of impact on motor sport that Alessandro Zanardi has achieved. The charm of the Italian exudes from the pores as much as the sweat that tells the story of a hard fought race does. But Zanardi’s impact runs deeper than the usual tale of a gritty driver whose determination ultimately led to a near-death accident. Instead, it was the recovery and return to all that Alex loved that touched the souls of those who know of the moment Zanardi climbed inside a BMW Sauber C24-B and pointed to the sky.

That fateful day back in 2001 at the EuroSpeedway in Lausitz is far from the beginning of this man’s voyage into the hearts of motor sport fans, for Zanardi has previous with wooing the crowds, enjoying the time spent racing cars and passing this satisfaction on to all around with a smile and a wave. Alex’s story begins, for the sake of this article, in 1991; the commencement of his Formula One career.

Following a nigh-on perfect debut season in Formula 3000, where Zanardi won his first race and one other en route to second in the championship, Alex was invited to race in Formula One for the newly promoted Jordan team. Taking over Roberto Moreno’s seat at the Irish squad, Zanardi performed moderately well, finishing two of the three races he competed in, although failing to score any points.

For his second season at the top of the motor sporting ladder though, Zanardi had to settle for occasional drives at Minardi. The Italian combination of driver and car failed to qualify for two races, and for the one grand prix that Alex did manage to get into, only one lap was completed before the gear box gave up. As frustrating at it was, Zanardi persevered and hounded the team bosses up and down the pitlane for a chance to really prove himself. After such a fantastic debut in the feeder series to Formula One, it seemed as though Alex’s chances of progressing were being met with immovable obstacles.

A chance to test for Benetton in the winter of 1992 – 1993 did not generate a drive, and Zanardi’s only hope for the ‘93 campaign was with the struggling Lotus team. Partnered with Johnny Herbert, a driver who himself had overcome a serious leg injury, Zanardi would score just one point at the second round of the championship in Brazil. It was meant to be Zanardi’s first full season in Formula One, and a chance to show others what he could do with a car over the course of a year. Alex worked tirelessly at developing the team’s active suspension system and quickly became the life and soul of a team that was in financial trouble.

However, a full years racing it wasn’t. Zanardi crashed at the Belgian Grand Prix partway through the season and was withdrawn from the race. Heading through the Eau Rouge corner, Zanardi’s hydraulic shock absorbers leaked and sent the car into the barriers at high speed. The following Ayrton Senna followed Zanardi over to the right-hand barrier, although the Brazilian had more time to slow his McLaren and avoid impact. Zanardi spent the rest of the year recuperating from his accident.

Alex hoped for a return in 1994, but Pedro Lamy was sitting in Zanardi’s car, still substituting for the Italian. After the fourth round of the championship at Monaco, Lotus headed to Silverstone to test, and Lamy suffered a high speed accident and broke both his legs. Zanardi was called upon to reclaim his position at the squad.

Unfortunately, the Lotus team’s finances were getting worse and little money could be spent on developing the car. It was hopelessly unreliable and of the ten races Alex participated in, he could only get to the chequered flag on five occasions. By the end of the year, the team had gone into administration.

Being left high and dry, Alex took part in a few sports car races in 1995. But with little attention from Formula One, Alex looked to America to further his motor sport career, and although the move would prove to be very successful, it would also be in the CART series that Zanardi would come very close to dying. Right now though, we are still at the beginning of Alex’s career, and there was much success to be enjoyed first.

For 1996, Zanardi had managed to secure a drive with Chip Ganassi Racing. The team’s race engineer, Mo Nunn, had advised against signing an Italian driver, and although Zanardi was sometimes a little wild in the cockpit, the team had been convinced of the calming nature of Daniela, Alex’s wife and former boss from his Formula 3 days.

Friend of Alex and former Formula One driver Massimiliano Papis once said of the relationship:

He believed in racing with a lot of passion. Daniela believed in racing with a lot of rationality. She added reason to his passion. Massimiliano Papis.

Nunn’s fear of volatile Italian drivers was soon quelled. Zanardi had been reborn in the CART series. Alex took pole position in only his second race, the maiden win came at the ninth in Portland. This would be repeated in Ohio and at the final round in California, held at the Laguna Seca circuit.

It was while racing at Laguna Seca that year that Zanardi would go down in CART history. The Italian was running second behind Brian Herta as the pair climbed the hill towards the infamous Corkscrew corner. Very few people have attempted a pass at the Corkscrew; the track closes up and the corner is already tricky enough to get through on a regular racing line.

The word ‘never’ doesn’t seem to feature in Alex’s vocabulary though, and the Chip Ganassi pilot went for it. Ducking under Herta, Zanardi was going far too fast to make the sequence of corners. Instead, Alex straightened the wheel as best he could and braced himself. The car bumped over the grass and kerbs, narrowly missed the barrier and landed on the tarmac on the other side of the corner. Still in the lead, Alex continued to the chequered that was being waved that lap.

Perhaps unlike modern Formula One, Alex’s move was applauded. The win remained and to this day, it is simply called The Pass. Although in future seasons, such a move would be outlawed; the grass not being considered a part of the race track.

The following two years would bring Zanardi two CART titles from twelve individual victories. Alex’s popularity among the fans grew and the smile that always seemed to adorn Zanardi’s face almost became a trademark. Towards the end of 1998, Frank Williams got in contact with Alex and offered the Italian a drive in one his Formula One cars. Williams had recently had much success with Jacques Villeneuve, a former CART Indycar champion who had gone on to take 1997 Formula One title with Williams.

The chance to return to the sport he adored was too much, and Zanardi promptly signed a three year deal with Williams. Unfortunately, with the Williams team starting to decline in performance and a few errors on Alex’s own behalf led to difficult year. The FW21 was unreliable, and when it did work, Alex was often outpaced by his team mate, Ralf Schumacher. The relationship with the team started to sour and at the end of the year, Frank Williams signed Jenson Button as a replacement for Zanardi.

Alex took a year out of motor racing, choosing instead to spend time with his new family in Monaco. However, like many racing drivers, time spent out of the cockpit only made Zanardi restless, and soon enough he was plotting a return to CART. By this time, Mo Nunn had formed his own team, and the Briton signed Alex based on his previous form in ‘96, ‘97 and ‘98.

It wasn’t a great comeback though. Alex retired more times than he finished, and the best result he could achieve was fourth. Then, just as the performance of the car and driver started to gel, everything became very quickly unraveled.

On 15th September, 2001, Alex was competing in the hastily renamed American Memorial 500 race at the very fast EuroSpeedway in Lausitz, Germany. The race was retitled in honour of those who perished just four days earlier in Lower Manhattan, New York City. Little did anyone know at the time that motor sport was about to see it’s own horrific event. If the clocks were wound back just a few years, it is almost certain that Zanardi would have lost his life.

While leading the race from Patrick Carpentier and Alex Tagliani, Zanardi left the pitlane to rejoin the track. Leaning his Reynard car around to the left, hugging the inside line and preparing to rejoin the circuit closing in on his right, Alex was aware that second place driver Carpentier was closing in fast. Ever determined to improve himself though, Alex increasingly applied the throttle with his right foot. The car released its grip of the inside line and slipped over to the right. With increasing release, the car bumped over the shallow grass divider, designating what is pitlane, and what is full blown racing territory.

Alex’s Reynard joined the race track not under complete control. The car turned broad side on and Carpentier swerved violently to the top of the corner to avoid the much slower Zanardi. As Patrick darted out of the way, the ensuing accident suddenly became very, very clear to those watching. The movement of Carpentier’s Reynard allowed Alex Tagliani to be sighted. Tagliani was closely following Patrick, and his view of what was in front of him suddenly, violently, changed.

Instead of focusing on the rear wing a Forsythe car, Tagliani was now looking at a Mo Nunn liveried Reynard, broad side on, driver in cockpit and closing at a speed of around 200mph.

There was no time. There was little reaction. There was no point in even trying. Not even the quickest of the quick could have avoided it. Tagliani snapped the wheel to the left, and it undoubtedly helped experts would later say. But what happened was going to happen and would have always happened, no matter how many times you try and rewind time and replay the accident. There was nothing anybody could do.

Tagliani’s car struck Zanardi’s car between the front wheel and the mid-section. Tagliani continued forward. Alex’s Reynard was torn in two. His legs went one way, his upper body the other. The right leg was severed at the knee, the left at the thigh. Shrapnel flew around everywhere, the front of the car had disintegrated and spread over a wide area on the track.

The quick response of the marshals and medics, Terry Trammel included, saved Alex’s life. They stabalised him as best they could and rushed him to hospital. It took about 60 minutes from impact to arriving at Berlin, at which point doctors worked tirelessly to stem the bleeding and transfuse blood into Alex. The violence of the accident meant there was nothing that could have been done to rectify the damage. The initial surgery lasted for three hours. Zanardi lost both his legs and 75% of his blood.

One thing Zanardi never lost though, the most important thing, was his spirit. After coming out of the induced coma following his surgery, some say the first thing Alex did before anything else, was smile at his wife. Lying in a bed and suffering the kind of trauma that itself alone would kill the souls of most others, Alex smiled.

Determination, they say, is what keeps the world spinning. Perhaps it is love, perhaps it is money. But to some, it is determination that help one to achieve these two other things, so perhaps it is perseverance that keeps us all on terra-firma. If that is the case, I think it is safe to say that Zanardi could probably keep the world spinning all by himself.

• Just six weeks after his accident, Alex left the hospital that cared for him after the accident.
• Just eight weeks after his accident, Alex was driving a BMW with hand controls.

Zanardi was released from the hospital on 31st October, only six weeks after the crash, and within a fortnight he had learnt how to drive his BMW with hand controls. He was tooling along an Italian motorway when Max Papis called him on his mobile. ‘What are you doing?’ Papis asked. ‘About 240 kilometres an hour,’ Zanardi said. Zanardi The Brave, by William Nack – The Observer.

• Less than twelve months after his accident, Alex was walking on prosthetic limbs and joking with interviewers.
• Just twenty months after his accident, Alex returned to Germany and the EuroSpeedway to complete the lost laps of the race. Zanardi topped out at 195mph.
• Just twenty-four months after his accident, Zanardi was racing – yes, racing – in the European Touring Car Championship, piloting a modified BMW 320i.
• Just four years after his accident, Alex was invited to attend a test session with the Williams-BMW Formula One team, and to drive their car. Unfortunately, Alex forgot to confirm the appointment and the test didn’t happen.
• Just five years after his accident, Alex remembered to check his diary in the morning, and Formula One beckoned once again, this time with the BMW Sauber team.
• Just six years after his accident, and following a witty remark meant as a joke, Alex found himself competing in the New York marathon on a handbike. Zanardi finished in a more than respectable fourth in his category.

On that day in 2006, while sitting patiently inside the cockpit of a BMW C24-B, Alex pointed towards the sky, indicating to the engineers to start tapping away on their laptops. The engine was turned over and roared into life. As the Italian driver and Swiss car were beckoned forward from the confines of the garage into the open dangers of the pitlane, it was clear what was happening.

It wasn’t about the fact that a man with no legs was controlling one of the world’s most complex cars. It wasn’t about the fact that it was probably the greatest Formula One car Alex has ever driven. It wasn’t about results, or even performance.

It was about the smile that everyone knew was being spread from cheek to cheek inside the helmet that hid Alex’s face from view. Nobody saw it, but we all know it was there. Just as it was before, and just as it always will be.

Keep on smiling, Alex.

Recommended Reading

• The Observer Sport: Zanardi The Brave
• The Telegraph: Zanardi Puts Horror Behind Him With Win
• IHT Formula One: Zanardi Back On Track

Image © Allsport (Williams) and BMW AG.

Original article by BlogF1.

Keep On Smiling, Alex

Takuma Sato, who has come and gone from Formula One more times than most care to remember, actually impressed in testing late last year, often running ahead or very close to his rivals during the test sessions. However, not managing to get the drive, Sato continued negotiating with the squad over a possible role as the reserve driver, on standby should either of the main drivers be unable to race. Unfortunately for Sato, discussions have been fruitless.

I am no longer in negotiation with the Toro Rosso or Red Bull teams about their third driver positions. I am very disappointed that we were not able to come to an agreement with them, but you never know what is around the corner.

As everyone knows, I never give up, so we are still looking for the best options for the future. Takuma Sato.

Where that leaves Sato now is anybody’s guess. The Japanese driver has been out of work since the Super Aguri team folded early last year, and Scuderia Toro Rosso was clearly the drivers best chance of a return since. Looking at Sato’s comeback record though, I’m sure it won’t be too long before he is reported to be talking to Formula One teams again.

Original article by BlogF1.

Takuma Sato Rules Himself Out Of Red Bull Role

Being a gentleman, full of charisma and politeness one can only find in a young Roman, Elio de Angelis didn’t hesitate to entertain his fans, his team and even his rivals. The Italian’s popularity proved unmatched at a time when tensions in Formula One were running close to boiling point. He shook people’s hands, he smiled and joked. Always managing to light up a room, de Angelis will be remembered for his personality more than for his race craft. But even then, his place in the record books is as deserved as any other.

After only a couple of years in single seaters, Elio waved goodbye to Italian Formula Three and joined the Shadow team at the sharp end of international motor sport for the 1979 season. Elio’s first race set hearts beating faster than normal, with a great drive to seventh from sixteenth on the grid. In an uncompetitive car, Elio managed to capture the imagination of many fans.

The fine result of seventh, albeit only tantalisingly close to the points, would be repeated a few races later at Long Beach. This time from twentieth on the grid, de Angelis showed determination in his hauling of the Shadow up through the field. However, the biggest result of 1979 for Elio was yet to come.

Once again on American soil, although this time on the other side of the country at Watkins Glen, de Angelis closed his first season in Formula One in style, collecting his first points, and the first for the team in the whole campaign. Again, from twentieth on the grid, Elio proved he had the ability to make his car work at one with himself, despite how slow in comparison to others it was.

At the United States Grand Prix East, Elio cheered with his mechanics as he collected three points and raised himself from the bottom of the championship. An achievement that not even his equally inexperienced team mate could match.

It would prove to be too much for Colin Chapman to resist, and Elio’s Formula One career was moved up a notch for the second showing. Joining the Lotus team for 1980, de Angelis was starting to move up the field. Elio had a contract with Shadow, but the chance to move to a more competitive team was surely the right thing to do, even if it did mean getting sued in the process.

Although perhaps not as competitive as they were in previous seasons, Lotus was still a marked improvement for de Angelis, and the Roman’s career was surely about to take off. Lotus were world champions and knew how to race. Elio had landed.

Partnered with the much more experienced Mario Andretti, the start of the 1980 season went reasonably well for the Italian. In fact, de Angelis led his American team mate all year and proved that while Andretti may have been champion in multiple disciplines, the youth and vigour of Elio shone through.

In only his second race for Lotus, the Roman finished a superb second to René Arnoux, almost clinching the youngest ever win in the process. Unfortunately, de Angelis would have to wait, and that particular title failed to fall his way, but impressive Elio was certainly proving to be. Mario only managed one solitary point from 1980, Elio captured thirteen.

In 1981, Elio was partnered with up-and-coming British hopeful Nigel Mansell. It was Nigel’s first full season in Formula One, having entered just three races the year previous with Lotus. Therefore it can only be expected for Elio to dominate, having gained crucial experience and knowledge of the sport and team in the previous seasons.

Elio was progressing well in his career, and although the second place in Brazil was bitter sweet, the Italian looked upon his own presence in the sport with nothing short of a smile. With the knowledge of the car slowly losing competitiveness to its rivals, Elio would be forgiven for getting down, frustrated maybe or even showing signs of anger. Alas, it wasn’t his nature. And instead of kicking up a fuss, blowing his fuse or yelling at the sky, Elio just got on with the races.

1981 would yield no podiums for the Italian, but scoring an extra point than previously managed showed determination, especially as the car was proving harder to drive. From fourteenth on the grid though, Elio managed a fine fifth in Belgium, only shadowed by Nigel Mansell’s maiden podium, third place from tenth. The race though would be remembered for the fatality of one mechanic, and serious injuries to another.

Elio and Nigel remained at Lotus for 1982, and while the world watched in awe – and subsequent horror – of the battle between Gilles Villeneuve and Didier Pironi, Elio was busy working hard with the team in attempts to improve the car. A podium came early for the Lotus squad, although it would once again be at the hands of Mansell. However, the fighting spirit of de Angelis would finally pay off later in the year.

A relatively strong run of points finishes saw Elio on thirteen as he entered the Austrian Grand Prix that year. Team mate Mansell was behind on seven. Once again it looked to be a season where de Angelis would shine above his team mate, and after leaving the Österreichring on Sunday evening, the dominance for that year was almost guaranteed.

From seventh on the grid, Elio drove a superb race and doggedly resisted the advances of Keke Rosberg in the chasing Williams. As each driver crossed the line on the final lap, the distance between the cars was almost immeasurable. Elio had won. By 0.050s. It was Lotus’s first win since 1978, and of course, Elio’s first in Formula One.

De Angelis netted 24 points that year, but the smile was soon to be wiped from the faces of the team members as 1983 brought more retirements than Elio had ever suffered in any previous season. Of the fifteen rounds that year, de Angelis retired from twelve, was disqualified from one, finished in ninth in Belgium and collected a measly two points from a fifth place in Italy. Mansell fared better, but on nine points himself it wasn’t exactly worth writing home about.

Perhaps it was the move to Pirelli tyres, perhaps it was the loss of team boss Colin Chapman in the December prior to the racing season. Either way, Lotus struggled from the offset in 1983, and halfway through the year they realised something had to change. The team hired a new designer in the shape of Frenchman Gérard Ducarouge. Within weeks a new car had been designed, and although it was too late for 1983, spirits were buoyed for ‘84.

Returning to Goodyear tyres and with a Renault power plant nestled behind the drivers head, Elio returned to his usual charming self; the swagger was back in his step and once again, the racing circuit was his domain. De Angelis reasserted his authority over Nigel Mansell and claimed three podiums. Although a win didn’t happen, a healthy dose of championship points led Elio to a third place in the championship.

1985 would see almost as many points scored again, although Elio’s position in the championship slipped to fifth. Three more podiums were achieved though, including a second win, this time on Elio’s home soil. At the San Marino Grand Prix, race fuel allowances caused a hectic race as many drivers fell by the wayside in the final few laps. After crossing the chequered flag in first, Alain Prost spluttered to a halt, and after his McLaren was weighed, it was found to be a little on the light side. The Frenchman was disqualified and the Italian promoted.

The ‘85 campaign would also be remembered for one other change in the Lotus team. Nigel Mansell had finally left to further his career, choosing Williams as a new home. In Nigel’s place came a driver with only one season of experience, but would eventually go on to become one of the greatest pilots to have ever graced a racing circuit.

Ayrton Senna proved to be a real match for Elio, and from the word go, the Brazilian was quick. In only his second race for Lotus, Ayrton converted his maiden pole into his maiden race victory. De Angelis was no longer the dominant force of the team. A string of five podiums towards the end of the year, including one more win, would put Senna in the spotlight, and de Angelis in his shadow. The team scored 71 points that year, Elio contributing just 33 of them. A healthy tally, but also the minority.

With the team showing a preference towards Ayrton Senna, Elio de Angelis decided to leave Lotus after the 1985 campaign, and instead moved to Brabham to replace Nelson Piquet. It would be a move that perhaps was made in a rare moment of frustration. It would also prove to a be a move that would ultimately lead to de Angelis testing on a day when he shouldn’t have been.

Brabham were on a downward spiral, and the BT55, designed by the legendary Gordan Murray, was said to be radical. Ultimately, it wasn’t all that great. Quickly realising this, de Angelis insisted on testing the car more regularly, and after a disastrous Monaco Grand Prix that year, Elio persuaded the team to allow him to test the car following the race. Making team mate Riccardo Patrese stand aside, Elio travelled to the Paul Ricard circuit in Le Castellet.

Some reports say that no one witnessed the accident. Others say that two Benetton mechanics saw what happened. All we do know is that at approximately 180mph, the rear wing on Elio’s Brabham gave way while the Italian was thundering though the Verrerie curves – the high speed left-right kink at the end of the main straight.

The BT55 cartwheeled over the barrier, landing upside down and trapping Elio inside. Unable to free himself, Elio sat there as his back began to burn from the smoldering wreck. Drivers and team personnel rushed to the scene and attempted to rectify the car, only to be forced back due to the heat.

After close to ten minutes, and with little help from the marshals who were in very short supply, Elio was freed from the wreckage, but was forced to wait a further thirty before a helicopter could transport the Roman to hospital.

Elio passed away the following day. His main injury? Smoke inhalation, which would have likely caused brain damage. Aside from this, a broken collar bone and burns to his back. Had Elio not been made to wait for a helicopter, it is likely he would have survived. Had Elio been freed from the car sooner, it is likely he would have made a good recovery.

Instead, Formula One lost one of it’s greatest characters. A competitive spirit who did his best to return a smile, to look on the bright side and to show courtesy and respect when all around him there was bitter rivalry and political shenanigans. A man who wouldn’t hesitate to entertain those around him, to play the piano he loved so much or to simply offer advice to a team mate. Elio was a gentleman, perhaps the last the sport has ever seen.

He lived with passion. He raced with passion. Elio.

Original article by BlogF1.

Elio

Following his accident, Mark Webber was well looked after, of course. As soon as he came off his bike pre-planned procedures were put in place and the Australian was rushed to hospital without question or hesitation. And being a sportsperson who needs his legs, the only real option for Mark was to have a pin inserted. This speeds up the recovery process as the bone is forced together; waiting for the bone to heal naturally would take too long and would have likely put Webber out of action for the start of the 2009 season.

Undoubtedly, Mark relaxed over the Christmas period but it wouldn’t have been long before he was in the swimming pool, in the gym and being tortured by a physiotherapist. Clearly though, the hard work has paid off and Webber drove the new RB5 car earlier in the week at a test session in Spain. The lap times set by the no-nonsense racer were competitive from the off.

Webber’s break is the first in a few years for a competing Formula One driver, the last time it happened being in 1999. Back then, the driver being carted off to hospital was none other than world champion Michael Schumacher. A rear brake failure on the first lap of the British Grand Prix resulted in the Ferrari pilot charging into the tyre barrier at Stowe. I believe the quote from Schumacher went something like: “As soon as I impacted the tyres, I knew there was something seriously wrong. It didn’t hurt very much though.”

Schumacher’s recovery process for a broken leg took about the same as Webber’s, and like his fellow-sportsman, Michael too had metal placed in him. The German driver missed six races but returned with a point to prove; Michael took pole position in both the remaining races of the season, and finished second in each. Arguably, Schumacher could have won in Malaysia, but the team player dutifully allowed his team mate Eddie Irvine to finish ahead knowing he was still in the hunt for the world championship.

Two years before Schumacher’s accident, Olivier Panis had a fairly horrific crash at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Canada. On the back part of the track where the armco-lined tarmac gently weaves between the over hanging trees, Panis suffered a double impact in his Prost. A hard whack on the right side of the track sent his car over to the left for second blow. The result of this incident left the French driver receiving medical attention at the side of the track for quite some time. In fact, it is the only race I have actually witnessed being stopped early (I believe).

Olivier’s accident resulted in both his legs being broken, but intense physio meant the Prost driver only missed seven races of the year, the recovery time being about 14 weeks. Upon his return at the Luxembourg Grand Prix, Panis (like many others) had a point to prove. And in fact, it was a point he won, finishing in sixth which at the time earned one point in the championship. The French driver was only 0.5s shy of fifth and drove a pretty competitive race.

These drivers are lucky to an extent though – they all raced (and still do) at a time when safety is considered paramount in such a dangerous sport. Although some things cannot be made safer for a driver hitting 180mph, the advances in medical knowledge have helped them all. The pins inserted in Panis, Schumacher and Webber have sped up their recoveries and the tailored physio they all went through improved the strength of their broken limb more than at any time previously…

In 1969, world champion Graham Hill was competing in the United States Grand Prix in a Lotus 49B. Considered a fragile, but ultimately quick car, Hill had used it to his advantage in 1968 to take the title. But a year later, when the car was dated and less competitive, Hill’s career would be dealt a bitter blow. It was during the Watkins Glen event that Hill spun his Lotus. This meant the double world champion had to get out of the car and push-start it. Not being able to refasten his own belts, the Briton decided to just get on with the race.

However, Hill’s Lotus had a puncture – likely to have been caused by the spin – and Hill signalled his wish to come into the pits to have the tyre replaced. Graham never made it back around that lap, as the tyre let go at the end of the straight and sent the Lotus somersaulting into the embankment. Hill was thrown from the car and suffered broken legs as a result.

Thankfully for Hill, the accident happened at the penultimate race of the year and thus only one race was missed. Upon his return to testing prior to the 1970 season, Hill struggled to get in and out of the car on his own and was said to be in pain as he drove around the circuits. However, with grit and determination, Graham competed in the first race of the year in South Africa and scored a point. Unfortunately though, Hill was never truly the same after his accident. The Briton failed to win again, perhaps due to his injuries and perhaps also due to the cars he piloted not being as competitive.

When thinking about racing drivers who have suffered broken limbs though, one name stands out above all others. In fact, it was this driver that prompted me to write about the accidents and recoveries of Formula One drivers today because the stories behind this name are quite simply astonishing. The driver is Tazio Nuvolari, and the Italian raced before Formula One became the organised sport that is today.

Nuvolari raced in the pre-War era, a time when an accident often meant a fatality as well. Safety was almost unheard of and the bravery and courage (or perhaps stupidity) of the drivers back then was legendary. And if any one man deserves to be catergorised as a legend, Nuvolari is at the top of the list. Coming off his motorcycle and crashing his car more times than people care to remember, Tazio went down in history for two things; his injuries, but most importantly, his outright skill despite the injuries.

The Tales Of Tazio

In 1925 and enjoying success as a motorcycle racer, Nuvolari was invited by Alfa Romeo for a trial in one of their Grand Prix cars at Monza. Ever impressed with all things fast, Nuvolari agreed. However, after just a few laps of driving the P2 car, Tazio crashed and was taken to hospital. The doctors ordered Nuvolari to take a month off to allow the lacerations on his back to heal. This didn’t wash with the Italian though, and heavily bandaged up, Nuvolari competed in the Nations Grand Prix at Monza less than a week later on his motorcycle. It is reported he had to be tied to the bike as his legs were also injured in the car accident.

He won the race.

The following year reports of Nuvolari’s death reportedly hit a German evening newspaper following a sizable accident on his Bianchi 350 motorcycle at the Solitude Circuit near Stuttgart. A concerned telegram had also been sent to Rome and it wasn’t until people saw the Italian traveling home the day after the race that they finally believed he had survived and was relatively unhurt.

By the early ’30s, Nuvolari had made the switch to race cars and was setting the world alight with his skill and bravery. At the Le Mans 24 Hour he and Raymond Sommer competed in an Alfa Romeo. The pair had been doing well until the fuel tank developed a leak. The drivers were forced to continually pit to have chewing gum reapplied to cover the hole. Despite this though, they won and Tazio broke the lap record nine times.

In 1934 and while competing in a race in Northern Italy, Nuvolari crashed his car while taking avoidance action to dodge a stricken Carlo Felice Trossi. The accident resulted in a broken leg for Tazio, and the Italian was ordered to rest up in hospital. Fortunately for us, that wasn’t Nuvolari’s style. Four weeks after his accident, Tazio decided that he was done with being bored and entered himself in the AVUS-Rennen. With one of his legs still in plaster, Tazio’s Maserati was adapted to allow him to operate all three pedals with his other foot. Understandably, Nuvolari suffered from cramps during the high-speed race and he finished fifth. Unbelievably, the Italian took part in the race in the first place.

Tazio would race again that year, but although his leg was soon out of the plaster, it was still causing the Italian considerably amounts of pain. Of course, the show went on though, and Nuvolari continued racing.

Two years later in 1936, Nuvolari suffered one of his bigger accidents – yes, believe it or not his injuries thus far aren’t that bad in comparison – while practicing for the Tripoli Grand Prix. It is alleged that Tazio damaged some of his ribs and may have even damaged some vertebrae. Despite this though, Nuvolari was strapped up in bandages and went out to contest the race the following day. If the stories of his damaged vertebrae are true, then Nuvolari can be considered one of the luckiest drivers ever, for he appeared to suffer no further ill-effects after he healed from the accident.

During practice for the 1938 Pau Grand Prix, Nuvolari’s Alfa suffered a split fuel tank and the car caught on fire. The ensuing accident left Nuvolari with minor bruising and burns to his face, arms and legs. Finally, the Italian was shocked enough to take a break from racing. Annoyed at the shoddy workmanship of the car, Tazio walked away from the Alfa team and travelled to America. He returned to racing with Auto Union a few months later, but World War II soon interrupted motor sport.

After the Second World War had ended in 1945, Nuvolari was 53 years old. Still wanting to compete though, the Italian entered a few races. Towards the end of 1945 Tazio was hit in the face by fuel during an event and this, along with general exposure during his career, lead to severe asthma. It did not lead to Nuvolari’s retirement though, despite the doctors orders. In 1946, Nuvolari contested the Milan Grand Prix while driving one-handed. His other was holding a blood-stained handkerchief to his mouth.

The man was simply unstoppable.

Tazio Nuvolari would eventually survive motor racing, which in fairness is a somewhat incredibly achievement in itself. Furthermore, Nuvolari would go down in history is one of the greatest drivers to have ever graced the tarmac of a racing circuit. He won when he shouldn’t have, even upsetting the Third Reich at times, but continued despite injuries and the personal tragedies of losing both his sons when they were still very young. Tazio died in 1953 at the age of 60 following a deterioration in health and eventually, a stroke.

Drivers continue to injure themselves, either as a result of their passion or as a result of training or moving too quickly in an elevator. But what marks a racing driver out from many other sportspeople is their determination to return to competition as quickly as possible. Racing drivers rarely just quit. Many have died in competition, some reach an age when they feel they cannot keep up anymore and gracefully call it a day. Injury though is just a minor inconvenience in the relentless pursuit of going that little bit faster.

Original article by BlogF1.

You’ll Race Still Quicker On The Highways Of Heaven

In case it isn’t entirely obvious, The Red Bullog is a blog all about Red Bull Racing. The site is fairly new to the Internet, but the writer behind the site – Dan Cross (aka Dank) – has been an active contributor to the blogosphere for some time now. The Red Bullog started out life in October of last year and already the comments fill up fast with many of us blogging regulars voicing opinion on whatever Red Bull related story it is.

So what was it that attracted me to the site in the first place? Well, I first saw Dan in the comments on Sidepodcast, and after a few months a link started to appear with his name. Like many curious folk, I followed the link and found a site which was obviously young, but already full of useful information. As with all new sites I come across, I went hunting for an About Page. And quite honestly, unlike most fan sites I’ve come across, The Red Bullog had one…

The Red Bullog is a fan-based blog which aims to provide you with up-to-date news and views on the least po-faced Formula One team of recent times: Red Bull Racing.

As a fan of both the sport and the team, I hope to be able to provide you with the sort of articles I think you would like to read. From the rather serious world of F1 to the more satirical, irreverent news related stories. If it happens in Red Bull Racing land you can bet The Red Bullog will be covering it. The Red Bullog.

The site was already plentiful in information on the Red Bull team, and reading through some of the recent articles, it didn’t come across as an overly biased and fanatical type way as I was expecting. Instead, Dan writes with a little more care and attention. Red Bull Racing aren’t perhaps the easiest team to follow, and their 2008 season was pretty dreadful considering where the junior squad ended up. But instead of wrapping it up in cotton wool, Dan was respectful, but honest when he posted between the penultimate and ultimate races last year.

It’s been a tough ride for Red Bull Racing, especially in the second-half of 2008 (shortly after Webber spun at Silverstone in fact). From fourth in the constructors’ championship to a probable seventh behind sister team Toro Rosso, things haven’t gone quite according to plan. The Red Bullog.

It’s also worthy of mentioning that I read Dan’s post about Mark Webber using a cryogenic chamber to help heal his broken leg before the main sites picked up on it. While it certainly wasn’t news of the century, during the off season is where we have time to read about all the weird and wonderful things that happen in Formula One. I for one was pleased I read The Red Bullog’s article before the behemoths finally got around to putting their uninspiring drivel up.

The Red Bullog presents a new dawn for fan sites; it shows that writing born from “an unhealthy obsession” can also be centred and balanced. The Red Bullog is also nice place to visit and navigate around, with a polished feel that shows the site is cared for. The articles range from the serious to the humorous and invite the reader to add to in the comments. With thoughtful insights and on-the-pulse reporting, I can see myself becoming a regular for my Red Bull reading.

Welcome to the F1-blogosphere, Dan. I hope Red Bull Racing give you plenty of good news to write about this season.

Original article by BlogF1.

BlogF1 Welcomes The Red Bullog To The F1 Blogosphere

It isn’t a big overhaul and the basic design will remain untouched – why change something that still garners praise every now and then!? However, some things are being shifted about a little as the website evolves and hopefully the moving around will make things easier to find and just work and flow a bit better.

It was when I was tinkering about this evening (or early morning, if you insist) that I realised I was missing one vital ingredient. You see, BlogF1 is for you, the person reading this. So below I’m going to outline the things I’m doing to the site in the background (it’s in a top-secret underground lair) and then I would like for you to add to or remove things from the list. I want your input because often, as a one-man-band, I miss things that others see as obvious.

• Featured posts will rotate automatically through the most recent x-number.
• Number of other posts shown with picture and excerpt reduced from 8 to 6 (two rows of 3).
• Daily Debate feature added and displayed in a new right-hand sidebar (most recent 5 with just title, question and comment link).
• Caption Contest moved to a more prominent position.
• Pretty Colourful buttons added to link to things like Calendar, Teams, Standings etc…
• “Older posts/newer posts” links added to homepage (it’s actually numbered pages, like what you see on Flickr).
• Video and all the current stuff found below are likely to remain there aside from the Caption Contest which is being moved up.
• During the season, recent results posts will feature more prominently, making them easier to find straight from the homepage.
• Links in posts will become more obvious.
• The whole site should run a bit faster, I hope.

As you can see, the realign so far is mainly about the homepage. Is there anything you would want to add or take away from it. Also, is there anything about the single post pages that you would alter? Is there enough information in the sidebar, or too much? Is it even necessary to have that information there? I’ve also reignited my interest in bbPress – forum software written by the same people who develop WordPress (the CMS that runs BlogF1) – but would you folk be interested in a forum?

Let me know what you want or don’t want, and I’ll see if I can do it. Comments, as always, are welcome.

Original article by BlogF1.

It’s Not All About Formula One

You can argue the merits of each until the cows come home, and I’m sure you all will. But taking a leaf out of the FIA’s book, I thought I would take a look at the 2008 title and compare all three recent/proposed methods of scoring points/awards; pre-2003, current (or post-2003) and Ecclestone’s medal scheme.

2008 Driver’s Standings Comparing Pre-2003, Post-2003 and Medals
	Pre-2003	Post-2003	Medals
Lewis Hamilton	1st (80pts)	1st (98pts)	2nd (5xGold)
Felipe Massa	2nd (77pts)	2nd (97pts)	1st (6xGold)
Kimi Raikkonen	4th (56pts)	3rd (75pts)	3rd (2xGold/2xSilver)
Robert Kubica	5th (50pts)	4th (75pts)	5th (1xGold/3xSilver)
Fernando Alonso	3rd (66pts)	5th (61pts)	4th (2xGold/1xSilver)
Nick Heidfeld	6th (38pts)	6th (60pts)	8th (4xSilver)
Heikki Kovalainen	7th (34pts)	7th (53pts)	6th (1xGold/1xSilver)
Sebastian Vettel	8th (21pts)	8th (35pts)	7th (1xGold)
Jarno Trulli	10th (13pts)	9th (31pts)	12th (1xBronze/1×4th)
Timo Glock	9th (13pts)	10th (25pts)	10th (1xSilver/1×4th)
Mark Webber	13th (6pts)	11th (21pts)	15th (1×4th)
Nelson Piquet Jr.	12th (10pts)	12th (19pts)	11th (1xSilver)
Nico Rosberg	11th (10pts)	13th (17pts)	9th (1xSilver/1xBronze)
Rubens Barrichello	14th (5pts)	14th (11pts)	13th (1xBronze)
Kazuki Nakajima	16th (1pt)	15th (9pts)	16th (1×6th/2×7th)
David Coulthard	15th (4pts)	16th (8pts)	14th (1xBronze)
Sebastien Bourdais	18th (0pts)	17th (4pts)	18th (2×7th)
Jenson Button	17th (1pt)	18th (3pts)	17th (1×6th)
Giancarlo Fisichella	19th (0pts)	19th (0pts)	19th (1×10th)
Adrian Sutil	20th (0pts)	20th (0pts)	20th (1×13th/1×15th)
Takuma Sato	21st (0pts)	21st (0pts)	21st (1×13th)
Anthony Davidson	22nd (0pts)	22nd (0pts)	22nd (1×15th)

Some Key Points

• Lewis Hamilton still would have won with the old system, but not with the medals.
• Felipe Massa would have won the title had the system of choice been medals.
• Kimi Raikkonen would have lost out to Fernando Alonso with medals.
• Robert Kubica would have fared worse with any other scheme.
• Medals could have helped one-time winners Heikki Kovalainen and Sebastian Vettel.
• Jarno Trulli and Timo Glock would have swapped positions under the old system thanks to Glock’s second place.
• With a season best of fourth, Mark Webber still would have had an unlucky year.
• Medals could have helped podium finishers Nico Rosberg, Rubens Barrichello and David Coulthard.

This was of course done as a bit of fun, and there is no real way of telling how a previous championship would have gone or a future championship would go as the drivers attitudes may have changed with different points/awards available for different positions. Needless to say, some drivers remain quite consistent across the three scoring systems, whereas others – those with a one-off result usually – either win or lose depending on the system.

Having now seen how the drivers may have done with each score-sheet, which system do you you prefer and most importantly, why?

Original article by BlogF1.

Pre-2003 vs. Post-2003 vs. Medals

Ecclestone felt sure his idea would encourage overtaking as the world champion would be decided by the driver with the most gold medals (or in other words, the most wins). This, according to Bernie, means that drivers would be more willing to overtake as the difference between first and second place would be that little bit more crucial.

However, Mosley wasn’t so keen on the idea and after a little bit of debate where Ecclestone didn’t get his way, it was decided to defer any decision until after some market research had been completed. And this is where it does get a little confusing.

Almost immediately after Ecclestone failed to get his idea passed through the FIA’s approval process, the sport’s commercial rights holder put an article up on the official Formula One website (which Bernie controls) outlining the idea behind medals. Included at the bottom of the post was a voting poll, very similar to those you occasionally see here on BlogF1. It wasn’t labeled as official market research or anything similar, but at the time caused some furrowed brows while some us attempted to work out exactly where Bernie’s voting thingy fell in the grand scheme of things.

Little more happened over the holiday period and to be honest, most of us had hoped that the idea had been forgotten about. Alas, we are not quite that lucky and today the FIA has published some analysis. What is fantastic about what the FIA have published is that we can clearly see who would have won a championship with medals in comparison to who did win it with points. We can also see if a new driver would have been world champion or even different multiples of world champion had they raced under the medal system.

What it isn’t though is market research. And that is what I really want to read. It is all well and good getting an intern to sit down at a computer and run through all the championships applying Bernie’s scheme, but that doesn’t tell us what you, I or indeed the FIA want. For the record though, the statistics tell us that:

• Stirling Moss would have taken Mike Hawthorn’s title in 1958
• Jim Clark would have taken the ‘64 and ‘67 titles from John Surtees and Denny Hulme respectively
• Mario Andretti would have won the 1977 championship instead of Niki Lauda
• Alan Jones would have beaten Jody Scheckter in 1979
• Nelson Piquet would have lost all three of his titles, once to Nigel Mansell and twice to Alain Prost
• Didier Pironi would have been the 1982 champion and not Keke Rosberg
• Nigel Mansell would have been a triple world champion, winning Alain Prost second title in 1986 (before taking Piquet’s and his own)
• Ayrton Senna would have also stolen a title from his nemesis, Alain Prost
• And of course, Felipe Massa would have won in 2008, beating Lewis Hamilton

• Michael Schumacher would still be on 7 titles
• Juan Manuel Fangio would still be on 5 titles
• Alain Prost would have equaled Fangio’s record though
• Jim Clark and Ayrton Senna would each win 4 titles, two and one more than in reality
• Jack Brabham, Jackie Stewart and Nigel Mansell would each have won 3 titles

Also of note, 14 championship battles would have been shorter with medals, the eventual world champion having wrapped up the title sooner than they actually did under the points. 8 championships would have been longer and we would have lost 5 final race showdowns had the medal system been in place since 1950.

The full results can be downloaded from the FIA website, and while they do make for interesting reading to someone who enjoys statistics, I’m still eagerly awaiting the market research to see what you all think. Or at least, those who were asked. Presuming of course, some of you were asked…

Further Reading…

• FIA Press Release: Formula One Medals
• F1.com Article & Vote On Medals
• BlogF1 Championship Almanac
• So About These Medals…
• Are The FIA Seeing Sense Over The Medals?
• Public To Decide On Bernie’s Medal Idea?

Original article by BlogF1.

Is This Market Research Into Bernie’s Medal Idea?

In 2008, the drivers were very unhappy about the sudden rise in costs, and although the team’s usually pay for their driver’s licenses, they still demanded to know why the increase had happened. Little reasoning was provided. At the British Grand Prix there was talk of a drivers strike, although nothing came of this and the race went ahead as usual. Now, the FIA have increased the price of the license in line with inflation, but the pilots are still infuriated with the costs and have refused to sign their licenses.

The GPDA have apparently spoken with the FIA have have asked drivers not to sign for their licenses at the moment while they try to reason with the governing body. It is understood that FIA president Max Mosley has agreed to discuss the matter, but wants to know details of the drivers salaries so he can judge what an appropriate fee should be.

In 2008, world champion Kimi Raikkonen saw his license fee increase from €31,365 to €230,000. Current world champion Lewis Hamilton will face a bill of €218,920 (Raikkonen scored more points than Hamilton in his title-winning year). Although the points in 2008 were more evenly shared and therefore most licenses among the top drivers won’t see an increase, if they do exceptional well in 2008, the 2009 license fee could be much larger. Add in likely increases for inflation again, and you can see why the drivers are perhaps feeling a bit angry.

It has been reported by Autosport that the license issue will be addressed at the next FOTA meeting on February 3rd. However, it is also understood that FOTA don’t want to concern themselves too much with the issue as they feel it could inhibit the progress made between themselves and the FIA.

With the FIA determined to reduce costs in the sport in order for it to continue and thrive as well as provide superb racing and a great spectacle, it seems almost contradictory to then charge exorbitant fees to drivers, and to almost discourage the earning of points as the license fee is based on them.

Would it not make better sense to issue a flat fee for the super license, with every driver having to pay the same amount? The funds raised from licenses helps to pay for safety features and marshals at races, which all drivers benefit from equally. Therefore, why should a driver who scores better in races pay more than a driver at the back of the grid; they both benefit from the safety measures, and the points scored doesn’t really come into it.

2009 Super License Costs Who’s paying what for their super license…
Driver	Points Fee €	Initial Charge €	Insurance €	Total €
Lewis Hamilton	205,800	10,400	2,720	218,920
Felipe Massa	203,700	10,400	2,720	216,820
Kimi Raikkonen	157,500	10,400	2,720	170,620
Robert Kubica	157,500	10,400	2,720	170,620
Fernando Alonso	128,100	10,400	2,720	141,220
Nick Heidfeld	126,000	10,400	2,720	139,120
Heikki Kovalainen	111,300	10,400	2,720	124,420
Sebastian Vettel	73,500	10,400	2,720	86,620
Jarno Trulli	65,100	10,400	2,720	78,220
Timo Glock	52,500	10,400	2,720	65,620
Mark Webber	44,100	10,400	2,720	57,220
Nelson Piquet Jr.	39,900	10,400	2,720	53,020
Nico Rosberg	35,700	10,400	2,720	48,820
Rubens Barrichello*	23,100	10,400	2,720	36,220
Kazuki Nakajima	18,900	10,400	2,720	32,020
David Coulthard**	16,800	10,400	2,720	29,920
Sebastien Bourdais*	8,400	10,400	2,720	21,520
Jenson Button*	6,300	10,400	2,720	19,420
Giancarlo Fisichella	0	10,400	2,720	13,120
Adrian Sutil	0	10,400	2,720	13,120
Sebastien Buemi	0	10,400	2,720	13,120
Total *assuming these drivers are on the 2009 grid and **minus Coulthard				1,719,800

Original article by BlogF1.

Super License Causes Further Controversy

In all honesty, I’m surprised the site is still going, having started BlogF1 as a bit of fun and a way to stop boring the regular readers at my personal site with Formula One; apparently not everyone is interested! Since then though, BlogF1 has become a hobby that is out of control. It’s all good though, right down to the typos and bugs.

Over the years, many new ideas have come and gone, but the core of the site remains – trying to make sense of, explain and understand Formula One. Along the way the site has made many friends, attracted readers from all ages and countries and continues to garner praise and attention. Something of which I’m still fathoming out!

So as the build up to the 2009 season relentlessly charges forward, I thought I would take a second to mark the day with a simple post and a few embarrassing screenshots…

…oh, and thanks for the cake, Nick.

Original article by BlogF1.

Happy Third Birthday, BlogF1

Once again, Formula One continues its policy of not running the number 13, Red Bull Racing instead using 14 for Mark Webber. Given the Australian’s luck this off season, this is perhaps a wise move. Lewis Hamilton will carry the number 1 on the front of his McLaren, and Force India will carry 20 and 21, the last two numbers.

The numbers are decided by the position of the team in the previous years constructors title, with the exception of the drivers champion who carries number 1, his team mate number 2. The numbers then run down the order, jumping from 12 to 14. There were a few exceptions in previous years, such as Ferrari being able to use 27 and 28. However, these exceptions are largely ignored by teams these days and drivers are generally happy with the numbers they get.

Number	Driver	Team	Engine
1.	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	Mercedes
2.	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren	Mercedes
3.	Kimi Raikkonen	Ferrari
4.	Felipe Massa	Ferrari
5.	Nick Heidfeld	BMW
6.	Robert Kubica	BMW
7.	Fernando Alonso	Renault
8.	Nelson Piquet Jr.	Renault
9.	Jarno Trulli	Toyota
10.	Timo Glock	Toyota
11.	Sebastien Buemi	Scuderia Toro Rosso	Ferrari
12.	TBA	Scuderia Toro Rosso	Ferrari
14.	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	Renault
15.	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	Renault
16.	Nico Rosberg	Williams	Toyota
17.	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams	Toyota
18.	TBA	Honda	TBA
19.	TBA	Honda	TBA
20.	Adrian Sutil	Force India	Mercedes
21.	Giancarlo Fisichella	Force India	Mercedes

Further Reading

• Official 2008 Entry List Published
• It’s A Numbers Game

Original article by BlogF1.

FIA Confirm 2009 Championship Entry List

Schumacher has had a keen eye for architecture for many years, the former racing driver having been very much involved in the building of his Switzerland home. However, big though his home is, it doesn’t even compare to the towers that are to be erected. At 59-storeys, the first tower is said to emerge from the sea with a luxury harbour circling its base. The so-called Michael Schumacher World Champion Tower will be striking, intricately designed and mainly used for private residences. Fins on the exterior will move with the sun to provide shade to the balconies, and the design is said to be inspired by the shapes of snowflakes.

The unique collaboration with Michael Schumacher gave us new insights. Technology, precision, speed, elegance, paired with human intuition and extraordinary performance were a great source of inspiration for the design. Similar to the formula one operation, construction is a team sport with a lot of highly skilled experts. In this sense the architects take the driver seat in the process, taking the project to the physical limits of possibility. Alexander Rieck.

LAVA have previously been involved with other branded architecture, namely the Mercedes-Benz museum and the Fraunhofer Institute, both in Stuttgart. The Michael Schumacher World Champion Tower is due for completion in June 2011.

More information can be found on Dezeen.com.

Original article by BlogF1.

Michael Schumacher To Have Seven Towers Built In His Honour

It is highly unlikely that BlogF1 will win. For a start, this humble little corner of the Internet is up against F1Fanatic, a widely read and well written site that I’m sure most of you know about. Also in the sports category are many other well read sites, ranging from Kissing Suzy Kolber (dedicated to general sports gossip) to Metsgrrl (a site dedicated to the Mets Baseball Team). Also in the running and running away with the votes already is Hugging Harold Reynolds, another site dedicated to sports in their entirety.

However, with two Formula One sites in the finals, it shows the sport has really grown in popularity around the world this past season, especially when you consider Sidepodcast are also up in the Best Podcast and Best Community categories. Never have I before seen Formula One sites gain such publicity.

So without further ado, this is where you need to go and vote for BlogF1 as the best sports blog of 2008.

Original article by BlogF1.

2008 Weblog Awards: BlogF1 Is Up For Best Sports Blog

The main issue wasn’t really to do with the lights themselves – on the face of it they are a very good idea and remove one person from the pitlane. However, the first problem came when the fuel nozzle-retraction from the car didn’t indicate the lights to change. The second issue centred around the human on the pit wall who was charged with giving the final confirmation that all was clear for the car to go. It seemed that sometimes it didn’t always go to plan.

In Valencia, Kimi Raikkonen left the garage early, replays suggesting the light was amber, indicating that this was driver error. But in Singapore, Massa was given the green light to go. Unfortunately for the Brazilian, the fuel hose was still attached and ended up being dragged down the pitlane. In both cases, team members were pulled to the ground and received minor injuries.

So for the final three races of 2008, Ferrari reverted to the traditional lollipop system, whereby a member of the team stands in front of the car and gives instructions to the driver via the lollipop. But all these embarrassments haven’t stopped Ferrari from pursuing the lighting system, and now it is expected to make a return in 2009.

We’ve analysed the mistakes made in 2008 and we’ve improved the system. An electronic program will prevent the car from leaving when the fuel hose is still attached. Luca Baldisserri.

Since the end of the 2008 season, Ferrari have researched what happened and why the accidents occurred. The team have made several changes to the system, notably the software, and are now confident that it should work as expected, with a very good fail-safe systems in place to prevent any more early releases. Perhaps Ross Brawn let a few documents slip through the net in exchange for a few Italian-built motors…?

Original article by BlogF1.

Lights, Camera, Action: Ferrari Haven’t Given Up On Pitlane Lights