Category: Formula 1

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Formula 1

Sergio Perez joins Force India for 2014 and beyond

Sergio Perez and Vijay Mallya

Force India has confirmed the signing of former McLaren driver Sergio Perez on the now seemingly ubiquitous “multi-year deal”. Checo will join Force India’s other new signing Nico Hulkenberg.

Today’s news leaves both of Force India’s drivers from 2013, Paul di Resta and Adrian Sutil, looking for work.

Perez has already worked out it’s nice to play up to his new boss Vijay Mallya. “It’s great to announce my new team as Sahara Force India,” he said. “Coming here was always my first choice and I’m really happy everything has now been confirmed.

“I want to say thank you to Vijay and the whole team for giving me the opportunity. This is a young team with a lot of determination and they’ve produced competitive cars for the last few years. It’s all change for next season with the new regulations, but I already have a good feeling about 2014.”

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Formula 1

Vettel slams F1’s double points decision

2013 Brazilian Grand Prix

Four-time Formula 1 world champion Sebastian Vettel has spoken out against the sport’s decision to award double points for the last race of the season. This is one occasion were Vettel will have majority support from F1 fans, as a poll conducted by F1 Fanatic shows.

Speaking to Germany’s Sport Bild newspaper, the 26-year-old father-in-waiting said: “This is absurd and punishes those who have worked hard for a whole season. Drivers, fans and experts are horrified.

“I value the old traditions in Formula 1 and do not understand this new rule. Imagine, in the last Bundesliga match of the season there was suddenly double points.”

Sadly, we don’t have to imagine it Sebastian, it’s happening!

For the record, if the double points rule had been in place in recent years then Fernando Alonso would have become a triple world champion last year, Felipe Massa would have enjoyed his 2008 championship for a lifetime—rather than a few seconds—and Kimi Raikkonen would be a dual world champ at the expense of Michael Schumacher’s 2003 crown.

[Source: BBC | Pic: Red Bull/Getty Images]

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Formula 1 Red Bull Racing

Red Bull tries to humanise Sebastian Vettel

Sebastian Vettel

Here in Australia it’s accepted that four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel plays the pantomime villain to Mark Webber’s hero. As a result Vettel has been harshly judged by most Aussie F1 fans to the point that many find it hard to enjoy any success the young star achieves.

Worse, it’s expected that villain role will continue next season when Vettel pits his wits against the younger Australian F1 hope, Daniel Ricciardo.

In truth, as far as anyone on the outer can tell, Vettel has fast matured from the precocious twerp he was when he first arrived at what has become the sport’s premier team into a sage old man accepting his success with as much grace and humility as one can realistically expect in a sport that is all about massive egos.

And it’s the latter assessment of Vettel’s personality which Red Bull is promoting with this somewhat camp video of him riding a vintage bike through the alps.

Is there anything Red Bull won’t do for Sebastian?

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Formula 1

Double points on offer for last F1 race of season

2013 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix

Are you sitting down? Go on, sit down, right now…

The FIA has just announced a rule that will see the final race of the 2014 Formula 1 season, and beyond, be awarded double championship points in a bid to keep the title race alive to the last possible moment.

It might seem like first-class comedy, but this is real and it is going to happen next year. The rule change means the winner of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix will get 50 points, instead of the usual 25. More pertinently, the driver who finishes third in the final race will get 30 points, more than of any other race winner during the year.

Also agreed at the meeting of the F1 Strategy Group was the introduction of permanent driver numbers. Each driver can pick a number between 2 and 99, with the number 1 reserved for the world champion if he chooses to use it.

A seemingly impromptu tyre test will take place in Bahrain next week (17–19 December) to give teams an opportunity to test Pirelli’s 2014 rubber. While all teams were invited only six of the 11 teams have accepted: Red Bull Racing, Mercedes, Ferrari, McLaren, Force India and Toro Rosso.

Five second penalties for minor infringements could also be introduced in 2014 after an in principle agreement was reached. We suspect arguments over how such a penalty would be added might scupper this for next year, at least.

And, finally, in what is possibly the most far reaching of the agenda items, agreement has been reached, in principle, to introduce a cost cap to Formula 1 starting from the 2015 season.

Back to the double points decision for a moment. We wonder if race organisers will now fight for the right to host the final grand prix of the season; in effect the status of the event has increased twofold. And will this gimmick be accepted by F1 fans? We’ve become used to DRS for artificial overtaking, so in time we expect the double points race will be embraced too. As dumb as that seems right now.

One last question: How long until Bernie’s sprinklers get switched on at random intervals to help spice up the racing?

[Pic: Red Bull/Getty Images]

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Formula 1 Video

Are you missing Formula 1?

F1 the queen of motorsports

It’s Sunday night and there’s no Formula 1 race waiting to close the week out. If you’re having high-octane withdrawal symptoms here’s a short video from F1 fan Patrick Krutyj that brings you some of the highs and lows we’ve witnessed from circuits around the globe in recent years.

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Formula 1

2014 F1 calendar confirmed

2013 Australian Grand Prix

The FIA’s World Motor Sport Council met overnight to sign off on a whole bunch of agenda items. Chief among them was the 2014 F1 calendar, which has now been locked away at 19 races.

Last time we updated you on the 2014 calendar we were facing the prospect of a 22-race season. We already knew the New York race had been scuppered and now we learn that the Korean and Mexican Grands Prix have also been cast aside for at least one more year.

That means we’ll be getting our first Russian Grand Prix, now on 12 October. The F1 teams will stay in the Americas for back to back races with the Brazilian Grand Prix to be run straight after the Unites States Grand Prix. Abu Dhabi will host the final race of the year on 23 November.

The full calendar is available below and will kick off in Melbourne on 16 March.

[Pic: Red Bull/Getty Images]

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Formula 1

GP of America plans up in smoke once again

Red Bull Racing visits New York City

We suspected this was going to happen, so it’s no surprise to read a report suggesting the Grand Prix of America, aka the New York GP, will be postponed until 2015.

In a telephone interview Bernie Eccelstone said of the race: “We are not satisfied it’s going to happen in time. What we’re aiming for is 2015.”

The future of the race has been in question right from its initial announcement back in 2o11. Everyone seems to think it’s a great idea to race on the streets of New Jersey with the Manhattan skyline forming a million dollar backdrop, but for whatever reason race promoter Leo Hindery Jr can’t get the event across the line.

One positive for the withdrawal of the GP of America, expected to be confirmed by the World Motor Sport Council later this week, is that the jam-packed 22-race 2014 F1 calendar will get some much needed relief.

[Source: WSJ | Pic: Red Bull/Getty Images]

UPDATE 5 December: An official statement from Grand Prix of America organisers has been added below.

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Formula 1

Nico Hulkenberg returns to Force India for 2014

Vijay Mallya and Nico Hulkenberg

It looks like 2014 is the year of the return. Kimi Raikkonen is returning to the scene of his 2007 world championship at Ferrari, while Nico Hulkenberg is returning to the scene of his, erm, fourth place with Force India.

Of coruse, the arrival of Hulkenberg to Force India means at least one of Paul di Resta and Adrian Sutil will be looking for work next year. Force India says their full driver line up will be announced in the fullness of time, or something.

Hulkenberg spent a year as a test driver with Force India in 2011 after his debut season with Williams. He managed to land full driver status with the team in 2012 before switching to Sauber this year.

Being described as a “multi-year deal” Hulkenberg will be hoping his second stint with Force India will bear fruit.

“The team is aiming high for next year and I believe that the experience I have gained over the years will help us achieve those goals,” he said. “I genuinely believe we can have a competitive package in 2014. I’ve heard a lot of positive things about the Mercedes engine as well, so I think there is a lot to be excited about for next year.”

Full statements and video from Force India can be found below. You know it’s funny, Formula 1 is all about massive budgets, innovation and total precision, so you’d think they’d be able to turn a mobile phone around…

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Formula 1 Video

Is this the coolest intro to a Grand Prix ever?

Brazilian GP TV opening

We’re to believe this animation was used as the opening sequence for the Brazilian Grand Prix by the home TV network. Whoever made it and wherever it was shown it is very bloody cool! Check it out after the break and watch one of the most fun histories of F1 you’re likely to see.

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Formula 1 Red Bull Racing Video

Mark Webber draws his own helmet

Mark Webber draws the RB9

For a bit of light hearted fun Mark Webber was asked by PolePositionP1 to draw his Formula 1 car. As you’ll see in the video after the break Adrian Newey’s future and legacy is pretty safe as Mark decides his skills are inspired by the 1970s.

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Formula 1 Renault

Renault pats itself on the back

Renault F1 technology

Renault has been making Formula 1 engines since 1977. It turns out le chaps from the Viry-ChaÌ‚tillon factory are bloody good at it too. The latest title for Red Bull Racing means Renault engines have now powered teams to a total of 12 constructors’ championships.

Naturally, then, Renault wants to make good on its promise of incorporating “motorsport into its global marketing and technical development strategy”.

In this brief TVC we get to see how marketing and F1 go hand in hand. It’s a slick ad, that’s for sure, as to how believable it is that every road car in the Renault range has “world champion technology as standard”, well, we’ll let you be the judge of that.

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Formula 1 Red Bull Racing Renault

VIDEO: Revving the tits off a Red Bull

Renault Sport F1 RS27 V8 engine

As you know last weekend’s Brazilian Grand Prix was the last Formula 1 race for Mark Webber. But it was also the last grand prix for the 2.4 litre naturally aspirated V8 engines we’ve become used to in recent years.

In the Red Bull garage the team decided to send off their Renault RS27 engines with a bang. With its limiter removed the team tried their very best to blow the engine in Mark’s car to pieces. Even at 22,000rpm the engine wouldn’t give up.

It was a spectacularly ear splitting performance from the V8 and the glowing exhausts were equally as impressive. It goes to show how reliable Formula 1 has become as well. Something we’re not so sure we’ll see in Melbourne when the grid first lines up with 1.6 litre turbocharged V6 “power units”.

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