BlogF1

It doesn’t come as much surprise that BMW boss Mario Theissen wants changes to be made to the qualifying procedure as soon as possible. BMW driver Nick Heidfeld was unnecessarily held up while attempting to qualify in Malaysia. The incident can only really be described as ridiculous and dangerous. The videos and article can be viewed via this link, but needless to say Thiessen is backed by an awful lot of people. Continue Reading

Both Lewis Hamilton and Heikki Kovalainen have been penalised on the Malaysian grid following the baulking of Nick Heidfeld at the end of qualifying. Both drivers remained on the racing line while the slowed considerably after completing their fast laps. Heidfeld, who was just starting his quick lap, was forced to weave in and out of other cars, compromising his line and ruining his lap time (videos here). The penalty for both drivers is five grid slots, demoting Hamilton to ninth and Kovalainen to eighth. Continue Reading

Nick Heidfeld has had his final fast lap compromised by other drivers on the track during the third phase of qualifying for tomorrow’s Malaysian Grand Prix. As the rest of the field had set their hot laps earlier in the session, Nick Heidfeld started his final run just as the others went into fuel-save mode. The result meant Heidfeld was forced to dangerously weave around the other competitors who remained on the racing line. Continue Reading

Over the following four days; today, Friday, Monday and Tuesday, BlogF1 is being handed over to four excellent writers from the field of Formula One blogging. Each writer has submitted a post comparing the team mates from the top four squads, and having read through them, you are all in for a real treat. First up is Clive Allen from F1 Insight. Clive’s blog has become a real treasure to read with well-thought out and explanatory pieces. I’m not ashamed to say I get excited when I see F1 Insight updates in my feed reader.

Today though, Clive is talking about one of his favourite teams, BMW. Take it away my good man… Continue Reading

BMW have to be one of the fastest growing teams on the grid at the moment in terms of overall performance. In 2006 they finished in 5th, improved to 2nd (3rd inc. McLaren) in 2007 and now enter 2008 with a lot of expectations on their shoulders. While BMW finished third in reality last year, can we really expect the squad to improve on this in 2008? With McLaren and Ferrari keeping a firm grip on the top of the grid, it is going to be difficult for the Swiss-German team to break through. They will need a good combination of drivers, car and team to split the front row. It’s not impossible, but I fear BMW will struggle to improve on their current form in the short term. Continue Reading

When BMW unveiled their F1.08 earlier in the month I actually thought it was one of the prettier cars to have been launched thus far, surprising myself as I’ve never been particularly drawn to the Swiss-German cars in the past. But the tight and unspoiled lines combined with the no-nonsense approach to simply developing what previously worked was refreshing among the new-fangled McLarens and Ferraris. However, this morning at Valencia Nick Heidfeld rolled out of his garage with a newly designed nose on the front of his car, and boy does it take the shine of the machine. Continue Reading

BMW impressively launched their 2008 challenger this afternoon at the Welt building in Munich, allowing visiting press to speak with the team and drivers about their aspirations for the upcoming season. Team boss Mario Thiessen believes the F1.08 is a large step forward over its predecessor, the F1.07. Meanwhile, Nick Heidfeld is hoping for the teams maiden victory this year and breaking the stranglehold McLaren and Ferrari have over the front of the grid. Continue Reading

Swiss-German team BMW today unveiled their third car to compete in Formula One, named the F1.08 and launched in Munich to the waiting media. The car appears to be a substantial development over last years F1.07 which performed well at the hands of Nick Heidfeld and Robert Kubica. Both drivers remain at the helm while test driver Timo Glock (now racing for Toyota) will be replaced, although no name has yet been given. Having finished 2007 in second place behind Ferrari, the team were essentially the third fastest as McLaren were disqualified. However, the squad have been buoyant all winter and expect to be fighting for more podiums and possibly a maiden victory in 2008. Continue Reading

The final test session of 2007 got underway today, this time the teams heading to Spain’s other test circuit, Jerez. The test will continue through Wednesday and Thursday before everybody breaks up for Christmas and heads home. However, despite the gloomy weather this session is important for many teams as they make final assessments on their 2008 driver line up. A lot of squads need to find a new test driver and Force India need to work out who to put in their cars for next year’s campaign. Continue Reading

Nick Heidfeld, who is currently in Germany for the European Grand Prix, became a father again as partner Patricia gave birth to baby Joda in the early hours of Saturday morning. Patricia, who is at the family home in Switzerland, called Nick at 02:30 this morning to let him know, and by 05:25 daughter Juni had a little brother. Continue Reading