Mario Theissen stated there simply wasn’t enough time for a complex deal to be put together, although it is known that Peter Sauber – the man who started the team sixteen years ago – was involved in trying to save the squad.

Since the announcement on 29 July of our strategic realignment, we have done everything in our power to reach a rapid agreement on the sale of the team based at Hinwil.

Regrettably, despite every effort, this has proved unsuccessful. The tight timeframe we faced simply did not allow us and the interested parties and investors enough time to find a solution for such a complex transaction. This means the team cannot sign the Concorde Agreement at present. Mario Theissen.

When Peter Sauber sold his team to BMW in 2005, he retained a 20% stake and was often seen in the paddock and grands prix, complete with BMW uniform and ear defenders. Although his trademark cigar hasn’t been seen since smoking was banned from the paddock and pitlane areas. However, Peter kept an interest in the squad and when it was put in jeopardy, the Swiss entrepreneur attempted to purchase back his old team. Needless to say, it hasn’t happened yet.

Sauber blames BMW for asking for too much money, and he called the collapse of the deal he was working on as the “bitterest” in his 40-year motorsport career. Had Sauber been able to complete the deal, he could have signed the Concorde Agreement and the team would have been entitled to its share of the sport’s revenue for the next three years. This would have helped to ensure the survival of the company Sauber worked for so long on and with much dedication.

Following the announcement by BMW that it will be pulling out of Formula One at the end of the 2009 season, I tried to launch a takeover and rescue of the team. However, the negotiations with BMW have failed because the demands were simply far too high for me. Consequently, I have been unable to sign the Concorde Agreement, which guarantees payments worth millions and would have secured the future of the team.

I am incredibly disappointed and disconsolate. For me this is the bitterest day in my 40-year career in motor sport. It is also a devastating setback for the team. Peter Sauber.

With the failure of BMW to sign the Concorde Agreement, the FIA have once again re-opened the application process for the final spot on the 2010 grid. At a time when the association is under fire for its possible insistence that new teams are to use Cosworth engines, the FIA have written to the reserve seven – those teams that did not gain entry last time around – and invited them to reapply. It is understood that BMW were also invited to submit an entry, albeit alongside all others.

Peter Sauber is apparently still trying to save his old team, the outfit dating back to 1993 when Peter moved from sports cars to Formula One, but any application would now be reviewed along with all others.

Image © BMW AG.

Original article by BlogF1.

BMW Fail To Find Buyer In Time: Concorde Not Signed

BMW had proven to be a successful manufacturer in Formula One, returning to the sport in 2000 as an engine supplier to Williams. When the relationship with the Grove-based team soured after ten wins and numerous podium finishes, the manufacturer bought the Sauber outfit and pursued the sport as a team. The Swiss-German operation had followed a plan and with each passing year since 2006, the squad improved and found increasing success.

In their first year as a team, BMW finished in fifth place in the constructors and claimed a podium in Hungary with Nick Heidfeld, and again in Italy thanks to newcomer Robert Kubica. The following season only saw two podiums, but their points tally almost tripled and after McLaren were disqualified, the team improved to second place in the constructors. Last year, BMW once again scored more points than previously accrued, but the reintroduction of McLaren to the championship meant the squad finished in third. A maiden victory in Canada for Kubica and the team was the highlight of the year.

Due to various rule changes for 2009, some teams have done very well this year while others have failed to keep their momentum going. McLaren, Ferrari and BMW have all been usurped by Brawn and Red Bull Racing, and while Ferrari and McLaren have slowly regained their form, BMW have continued to fall backwards.

So far this year, BMW have scored only eight points, most of which came from the rain-interrupted Malaysian Grand Prix. Much criticism has been thrown BMW’s way and while the squad have been trying to sort out the F1.09, it simply hasn’t improved in proportion to their rivals. Along with continued troubles in the economy, BMW have decided to pull the plug.

Of course, we, the employees in Hinwil and Munich, would all have liked to continue this ambitious campaign and show that this season was just a hiccup following three successful years. But I can understand why this decision was made from a corporate perspective. We will now focus sharply on the remaining races and demonstrate our fighting spirit and put in a good result as we bid farewell to Formula 1 racing. Mario Theissen.

It is not yet known if the squad will be put up for sale or if BMW will simply shut the factory down. Epsilon Euskadi have expressed interest in taking over the squad, but little more is known. Of course, as with Honda, it would be preferable for another company to take over the team, ensuring the continuation of the team and the employment of all the staff at Hinwil.

We are still working on the project, at a much slower rate obviously because we don’t have the security [2010 entry].

What we can say is that the people who were interested in helping us are still interested, which is something incredible. And if the opportunity arises, we are going to attack it, there’s no doubts about it. Joan Villadelprat, Epsilon Boss.

FOTA have stated that they will do there best to ensure the team continues in some shape or form, and the association were very helpful to Ross Brawn and Nick Fry when they decided to buy-out Honda.

This news came as a shock to both BMW pilots, and Nick Heidfeld and Robert Kubica will now have to find alternative drives for next season if they wish to remain in Formula One. Both drivers are talented and are highly rated. Heidfeld has outscored Kubica in one of the two full season they have been partners at BMW, and this year he is leading the Polish pilot in the championship. However, Kubica is a recognised talent and one to watch in the future. Robert has been linked with Ferrari in the past, and recent circumstances at the Maranello team have brought these rumours to the surface again.

Speaking to Gazzetta dello Sport, Kubica’s manager Daniele Morelli had the following to say:

Robert was under contract until the end of 2010, but now he’s officially on the market. Daniele Morelli, Kubica’s Manager.

One can only presume Nick Heidfeld will make a similar decision, but where the two will end up is anyone’s guess.

Image © BMW AG.

Original article by BlogF1.

BMW Withdraw From Formula One From 2010 Onwards

Of course, what was legal seven days ago will also be legal now, and the FIA stewards rejected the protest. BMW have appealed the decision which now means that both sets of results – Australia and Malaysia – may change should the court deem the double-decker diffuser illegal next week when they meet.

It was just a formal issue in order to make sure that this race is taken into consideration at the appeal, like Melbourne. There is nothing more than that. It is in order to make it clear it is a formal thing and has nothing to do with what goes on on the weekend here. We just want to make sure that at the court of appeal they will decide on both events. Mario Theissen.

Theissen was keen to point out that he is not asking for results to be changed and stated that only the Court of Appeal can decide on that. The BMW boss also pointed out that changing the final result of the Australian Grand Prix wouldn’t help his team in the slightest.

We are not requesting certain decisions or results, we are stating our opinion and putting documentation behind it, and in terms of Melbourne it would not help us anyway. Mario Theissen.

For Kubica, the disqualification of Brawn, Toyota and Williams would have no imapct as the Polish driver failed to finish the race after coming together with Sebastian Vettel.

However, looking at the amended race result from Melbourne, should Jenson Button, Rubens Barrichello, Jarno Trulli, Timo Glock, Nico Rosberg and Kazuki Nakajima be demoted down the order or disqualified completely, the victory and associated points would be handed to Fernando Alonso, and Nick Heidfeld would be promoted to fifth. Considering BMW are yet to score any points, the four gained from P5 might prove useful later in the year.

And just as a bit of fun, here’s what the finishing order of the Australian Grand Prix would look like should the trio of teams receive penalties that put them outside of the points.

Australia 2009 Potential Race Results		Original Result	Points Earned
1.	Fernando Alonso Renault	5th	10pts
2.	Sebastien Buemi Scuderia Toro Rosso	7th	8pts
3.	Sebastien Bourdais Scuderia Toro Rosso	8th	6pts
4.	Adrian Sutil Force India	9th	5pts
5.	Nick Heidfeld BMW	10th	4pts
6.	Giancarlo Fisichella Force India	11th	3pts
7.	Mark Webber Red Bull Racing	12th	2pts
8.	Sebastian Vettel Red Bull Racing	13th DNF	1pt

Robert Kubica would therefore be classified as ninth, having retired just before Sebastian Vettel.

Original article by BlogF1.

Malaysia 2009: BMW Lodge Diffuser Protest As Formality

The F1.09 sports the new narrow rear wing mounted higher than previous, and an adjustable front wing that sits lower and is much wider. The bodywork features no winglets or flick-ups, although the yellow warning sticker for the KERS sticks out like a sore thumb.

Last year BMW did well and won their first race, courtesy of Robert Kubica. Nick Heidfeld had a more troubled season but still managed to haul in a bounty of points which ultimately left the team just behind Ferrari and McLaren. Kubica was in the title hunt right up to the final few races and the Hinwil-based team will want to improve on this for 2009.

Last year we saw that working together we can achieve good result. For the first half of the season, we were title contenders. We were leading the drivers’ and Constructors’ Championships at certain points of the season.

Everyone remembers how it finished, and we will try to repeat the first half of the season and finish better than last year. Robert Kubica.

One of the problems the team faced during the last campaign was keeping up with the development. BMW started the season strongly, but gradually slipped off the pace. This caused some heavy criticism from Kubica, who was very outspoken about the direction the team was taking. However, with a ban on in-season testing now in place, the rate of development from the top teams will slow a little, and this could play right into the hands of BMW.

Developing a new Formula One car is always exciting, but this time there was something even more special about it. We really were starting from scratch.

First and foremost, the switch from grooved tyres to slicks means more grip, of course, but it also moves the balance of forces further forward: removing the grooves gives the front tyres proportionally a greater contact area and more grip than the rear tyres.

Because the car differs so significantly from its predecessor, we already started work on the first concept studies in February – two months earlier than normal and before the F1.08 had even started its first race. Willy Rampf.

BMW were also one of the first teams to test a KERS system, and just prior to Christmas, it was said that the squad were at such an advanced stage with the technology, they were even testing out differing strategies with it.

At BMW we have always used the Formula One project as a technology laboratory for series production. With KERS this approach takes on a whole new dimension. Formula One will reposition itself and undergo a change of image, allowing the sport to take significant strides forward in terms of public acceptance. Mario Theissen.

However, at the launch of the F1.09, team boss Mario Theissen did admit that the system may not be ready in time for Australia. And if BMW are now saying they may not have KERS ready in time, where does that leave Ferrari who have been saying the same for a while now!?

Looking back to when we started more than a year ago on KERS, that time was pure research. Then we went through a stage I would call pre-development. Now we are in the development stage.

We are still not ready to race, but if I look at what progress we have made in last 12 months, it’s amazing. We have learned so much.

We are still pushing hard. We are not ready yet. I am sure we will be ready at some point, I don’t know whether we will be ready for Melbourne. Mario Theissen.

And finally, just a quick note to say that Nick Heidfeld has dramatically changed his helmet design. Although Alonso has also altered his, the difference wasn’t enough to warrant a note in yesterday’s post. But as Heidfeld’s is substantially different (green), I added a photo below.

Photos © BMW AG.

Original article by BlogF1.

Launches 2009: BMW Take The Wraps Off The F1.09

BMW are improving at a very steady rate and earlier this year, Polish-driver Robert Kubica took his and the team’s maiden victory. However, while Kubica has enjoyed a relatively good year, Heidfeld has endured troubles, mainly centered around qualifying and generating heat in the Bridgestone tyres. During the races though, Heidfeld’s race-craft and experience have shone through on many occasions and the team have done well yet again in retaining their pair of drivers.

Robert Kubica and Nick Heidfeld ave quite different styles when it comes to driving, and this may attribute to the incinsistencies in the results this season. Heidfeld has suffered the brunt of disappointment, but it should be noted that Kubica has also experienced troubles with the F1.08. Despite this though, both are very talented and combining experience with youth is a good way to go, in my opinion.

We see Nick and Robert as a strong driver pairing and Christian as an experienced test driver. We are in no doubt that we will again achieve our ambitious aims with them in the team’s fourth year. Mario Theissen.

The former Sauber and Williams driver was pleased with the announcement, and spoke of achieving everything he and the team set out to do this season. Of course, team mate Kubica has gone one better, but providing the F1.09 is a continuation of the squad’s improvement, then there is little reason why Heidfeld cannot take his maiden victory next year.

I’ve always said that I was happy to stay with BMW Sauber because we’ve managed to achieve what we set out to do at this stage and I really hope that we will be battling it out for the title itself next year.

There have been times this season when neither I nor the team could honestly say that we were satisfied with the way things were going, but we have always pulled together and come through. Nick Heidfeld.

This news almost wraps up the silly-season for this year. Ferrari, McLaren, BMW, Williams, Toyota, Red Bull Racing and Force India are sorted for pilots. The only seats yet to be confirmed are the two at Renault, the two at STR and one at Honda.

Original article by BlogF1.

BMW Retain Nick Heidfeld, Robert Kubica & Christian Klien For 2009

So does the four-point difference between the drivers mean that Heidfeld may be given the boot at the end of the year? Well, we are just five rounds into the 2008 season, and Heidfeld has shown consistency, intelligence and determination in his career to date. It is also worth mentioning that Heidfeld is the only German driver on the team, the next closest being Austria’s Christian Klien. As BMW are a manufacturer though, perhaps it makes less of a difference to the team where the drivers come from, but it certainly isn’t a bad thing for Nick that he hails from the same country as BMW.

It is also worth mentioning, that if Kubica does indeed go on to beat Heidfeld in the championship this year, that is in no way a bad thing. Okay, it is for Heidfeld, but for the team, does it really matter who is on top? Providing Heidfeld can continue to score podiums and points, and maybe wins in the future, BMW would do very well in keeping him around as well. In fact Heidfeld’s boss, Mario Theissen, went on record today defending the situation his driver is in.

In the races, however, Nick makes us happy with his spectacular overtaking manoeuvres.

Now we are going to analyse the entire package together with Nick to get to the bottom of the [qualifying] problem. Mario Theissen.

I’m not so sure Nick’s passes are “spectacular”, but the German driver does overtake. In fact, Nick made one of the few overtaking moves (if not the only move) in Spain a fortnight ago.

There is a spanner though, and it could very easily become lodged in the workings of the BMW squad. The spanner comes in the form of Fernando Alonso, and he is by no means a spanner, but instead a double world champion who must be seen as a tremendous asset to any team.

Fernando is rumoured to have a ‘get-out’ clause in his current Renault contract, and although he has denied this, I can’t believe he doesn’t. When the Spaniard re-joined Renault at the end of 2007, he was well aware the car wouldn’t be as great as the last one he drove in 2006. Any driver with any sense would have negotiated a ‘get-out’ clause into the contract, performance-related, perhaps.

Also, Alonso is a racing driver in every sense of the word. He wants to be in the best car at the best time to extract the best from everything, himself included. Clearly the R28 is not the best car at the moment, but the world champion had few choices available last year. But for 2009? Don’t tell me Alonso isn’t looking around at what’s available at the moment? He may not move, but you can’t tell me he isn’t looking!

And thus, we come back to BMW. If Mario Theissen saw the opportunity to put Alonso in one of his cars, would he be able to resist the temptation and stick with the ever-faithful Heidfeld and/or the ever-improving Kubica? I’m not so sure. BMW are one of Formula One’s next top teams – the drivers can see that as can the fans. I’m positive if a berth was available last year, Alonso would have been banging on the doors at Hinwil. Alas there wasn’t, but things change.

BMW have said they will make an announcement on their 2009 driver line-up in the Summer, the deadline for Kubica’s extension expiring in September. I wouldn’t be surprised if Alonso and BMW held talks, just as I wouldn’t be surprised if Alonso joined BMW next year.

Original article by BlogF1.

Theissen Defends Heidfeld As Kubica Negotiates Extension

It is nice to give the workforce something back. Nick Heidfeld.

Heidfeld eventually damaged his front wing with his driving antics, but more than 5,000 people attended to watch the F1.08 in action.

We’re well aware that a lot of people in the various departments are keenly following our fortunes and have bets on our results. However, it is not possible to involve the workforce properly at the circuits, so we had to come up with something special instead.

It is wonderful to see the BMW employees getting behind the sport. Support from within the company really helps us and gives us extra incentives. Mario Theissen.

BMW currently lead the constructors title by a point, while Heidfeld sits in second in the driver’s race with team mate Robert Kubica in joint-third (officially fourth when results a back-counted). BMW will be hoping they can continue their pace in to the European season which begins in Barcelona this weekend.

Original article by BlogF1.

Nick Heidfeld Praises Munich Factory Employees

I talked to Charlie Whiting on Saturday night, not about the specific case but about the issue of having cars with a differential speed of 200km/h on the same lap. It is something that must not happen. Mario Teissen.

I don’t think you’ll find many people disagreeing with Mario’s statement; 200km/h impacts can kill. In fact, they have. I don’t know at what speed Gilles Villeneuve was doing when he came across Jochen Mass in the ‘82 Belgian Grand Prix qualifying session, but it was sufficient enough to make me wince when I saw the video. For younger readers who may not know, Villeneuve and his seat were thrown clear of the car, his helmet came off and a fence stopped the Canadian at the side of the track. Villeneuve died from his injuries later that evening.

When Theissen was later asked if the FIA (whom Whiting works for as race director) would change the rules, the BMW boss gave a confident “absolutely” in reply. I for one hope it was a genuine approval from the FIA. While the tragic circumstances in which Villeneuve died are unlikely to reoccur, violent accidents still happen when fast cars meet slow cars. Robert Kubica’s accident at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve was less than twelve months ago. I don’t believe in luck, but I think I’m allowed to contradict myself and suggest the Pole had some that day.

There has been many suggestions put forward across the F1-blogosphere regarding a solution, but it seems that a maximum lap time is the one currently being discussed by the FIA. We shall wait and see what idea, if any, Formula One’s governing body come up with. Although I’m already confident it will be unnecessarily convoluted, complex, hard-to-police and down-right stupid. But then, I just want to see cars driving at their fastest without penalty of fuel or tyres. That, in my mind, is what qualifying is.

Image courtesy of BMW.

Original article by BlogF1.

Theissen Wants Changes Made To Qualifying