BlogF1

Day three at Barcelona saw Renault improve to lead the teams as Fernando Alonso set the fastest lap of the day. His time was set while on slick tyres and was 0.9s faster than Ferrari’s head F1 car developer and former champion Michael Schumacher. Adrian Sutil placed his Ferrari-powered Force India in an impressive third, although like the two drivers ahead of him, he was also on slick tyres and also running the faster 2008 aero. setup. Continue Reading

With Formula One on a three week break at the moment, the teams have descended on Barcelona’s Circuit de Catalunya to rack up some miles in their cars. This test session is often considered to be the season’s most important, as teams that didn’t start well in the first few races now have some time to improve their motors before the European leg begins. But what would happen if testing wasn’t allowed? Would Formula One be more or less exciting? Continue Reading

What do Ayrton Senna, Alain Prost, Michael Schumacher, Damon Hill, Jacques Villeneuve and Fernando Alonso all have in common? You’d be right to say they’re all Formula One world champions, but for the sake of this post, they all have a connection with French car company Renault. Ayrton Senna debuted in the team that would eventually be transformed into Benetton and then in-turn Renault (and was tragically killed in a car powered by Renault), Alain Prost drove for Renault in the early ’80s, Schumacher, Hill and Villeneuve each won a championship with Viry-Chatillon power and of course, Alonso has won two titles to date with the recent incarnation of the French manufacturer. Continue Reading

Below is the video footage of Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton from the Bahrain Grand Prix. The footage shows the incident on lap two where Lewis collides with the rear of Alonso’s Renault. Many people, including Mark Blundell, have said that it looks as though Fernando backed off. However, Alonso has denied blame saying that the McLaren was simply faster than his Renault. Take a look and have your say in the comments. Continue Reading

Fernando Alonso appears to be getting a case of the Trullis this week. Like Toyota’s lead driver Jarno Trulli, Alonso appears to be shifting his mood each day, going from frustrated on Tuesday to understanding his car’s weaknesses and not being frustrated on Wednesday. Yesterday he was quoted as saying to Diario AS that “I [Alonso] feel a bit of frustration knowing that, more or less, I will be unable to do much else in Bahrain.” But today is a different day and therefore a different mood. The Spaniard either has a genuine short memory, or has decided to backtrack after his day in the media yesterday. Continue Reading

Fernando Alonso let a rather large cat out of his bag earlier today when he spoke about his contract with Renault and the competitiveness of Ferrari, as well as the mistakes made by current Scuderia pilot Felipe Massa. Speaking to the Spanish media, Alonso let slip that he has a clause in his current contract that allows him to leave, although it is unknown how this might come into effect if needed. Likely it is based on the performance of the car, which currently isn’t doing too well. Continue Reading

As the build up to the 2008 season continues, today we have the the second of BlogF1’s guest post series to enjoy. This time we welcome the thoughts of Sidepodcast writer and podcaster, Christine Blachford. Christine discusses the return of Fernando Alonso to Renault and the pairing of the Spaniard with young hotshot Nelson Piquet Jr. Continue Reading

From heroes to zeroes, the story of Renault’s 2007 campaign is one of disappointment and anguish. Following two sensational seasons in Formula One, the frugally budgeted Anglo-French squad fell on their backsides with the R27, not helped by the defection of their wonder-driver Fernando Alonso to rivals McLaren. Despite losing out to BMW and slipping out of the top three (McLaren inclusive), Renault do have a lot of talent working away in their Enstone factory, and with a little more effort and maybe some luck the flamboyant Flavio could raise the manufacturer squad back up to the top within a year. Whether or not Renault choose to wait that long though is another question entirely. Continue Reading

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This week I have been reminded of the 2005 United States Grand Prix; it’s something I try not to think about too often, but occasionally my mind is forced in that direction. Interestingly though, it wasn’t the usual trigger that sent me off towards the empty and puzzled feeling I get over the debacle. No, for once it wasn’t Max Mosley who reminded me of the race. Instead, and perhaps for the first time since the race, it was a beer can that made me recollect the farcical event. Continue Reading