I apologise for my recent absence but after the last couple of rants you can appreciate that I was questioning whether this Blog was becoming overly political or whether I could focus exclusively on the sport that I love. Having looked around the more prominent F1 sites and bloggers I've noted that they too have since come out with their expressed opinions that Bahrain should be abandoned, though in somewhat more measured tones. I shall restrict myself at this point to saying that I await the decision of the sport in this matter.
On a proper F1 note I'm delighted to see Jenson jumping into early negotiations with McLaren for his future career. He's said he wants to finish his career with the team and sees himself retiring when their partnership ends. Way to go Jense! I don't think there's any question as to who's got the upper hand in your new contract negotiations. Seriously though, I do think he's taken the right option here. McLaren are one of the Big 3 and as such cementing your relationship with them at the peak of your earning potential is the right way to go. Just remember Damon and Williams in 1996!
F1 Fanatic has a story where Heidfeld has said he's not a fan of DRS. If you remember, Rosberg was extolling the virtues of the system last month (BIG FAN, best innovation ever!!). I'm with Nick (not Nico) on this one who simply said "I don’t particularly like things which artificially aim to improve racing”.
While you're on their site they've also put a story out that Patrick Head is going to spend more time at the factory and less at races in order to try to improve the reliability of the Williams - even going so far as to say that they may take out the KERS in order to improve their racing. I'm a fan of Patrick and Williams and I hope they pull it together. Question - Did they ever install the Flywheel KERS that they had developed into this years car or are they running with the standard system?
And finally for today, it would seem that the 2013 engine issue is back on the table with a number of sites covering the story from a number of angles. BBC have gone at it from a Bernie/Todt/FOTA/Ferrari angle while Autosport have done a piece with Renault Boss, Eric Boullier. Personally I think that my piece from April 15th is far superior (just kidding guys!).
OK there is one other piece which is a little bit of fun and put F1 back in my good books today. F1B's Negative Camber (or NC if you like) made me want to link you into this.
Friday, April 29, 2011
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
F1 Politics
I apologise in advance for the fact that this Blog would appear to be getting more and more political in tone. I began this for no other reason than I wanted the opportunity to have a bit of fun with the 2011 season and give my thoughts on the simple things in F1 life like aerodynamics, tyres, who might go where in 2012, what's going on with the teams, etc.
You know the nice, simple, straightforward matter of going racing.
Now I'm getting dragged into matters with which I used to have little interest (the funding of racetracks, the cost to the tracks of going racing, and the possibility of track closures) and into middle eastern national politics of which I was totally ignorant (pardon that ignorance please).
The Bahrain debate just won't go away -witness the following story on F1 Fanatic Deadline day approaches for Bahrain decision by Keith Collantine which expresses my feelings towards this matter very succinctly.
He makes the point that Bernie's stance on the matter is that "Formula 1 must never be political - full stop", but goes on to say that "there is no apolitical stance on this matter. Either you are happy for the Bahraini government to suppress its people so F1 can hold a race, or you aren’t".
His story quotes an Amnesty International report on conditions in the country which can be read here. I'm not 100% behind Amnesty in that I think sometimes they jump into a cause without the full facts however this report would appear to be remarkable by the fact that the delegation have mainly reported their findings on the ground and its conclusion is very restrained:
Human rights conditions in Bahrain have undergone a marked deterioration in recent weeks. This was clear and palpable during Amnesty International’s most recent fact-finding visit, following an earlier visit in February. The government’s resort to renewed excessive force to suppress the protests, its declaration of the State of National Safety and the extraordinary powers that contains, and the application of those powers to arrest and detain incommunicado hundreds of mainly Shi’a protestors and political activists has exacerbated tension between the Sunni and Shi’a Muslim communities and cast Bahrain on a very worrying downward trajectory.
As the F1 Fanatic story says - There is no apolitical stance on this matter.
If Bernie reschedules this race then it will become a matter for the FIA and Jean Todt and if they confirm it it will become a poilitical matter for the teams and finally the drivers.
I trust that, regardless of any decision of Bernie or the FIA, the teams and drivers will not let down the expectations of the fans - who I'm sure could not lend their support to a race which would be taking place in Bahrain at a time when the country and its people are in turmoil.
Were all of the above groups to agree to race in Bahrain then I must call on all fans of the sport to boycott the race - by not travelling to see it live and by refusing to watch it on television. A TAM rating of Zero/Nought would leave Bernie, the FIA, and any other supporters of racing in Bahrain in no doubt where the real power in F1 lies.
This blog has a relatively small readership but I would hope that all of you who tweet or facebook or whatever - would put out the call to resist running any GP in Bahrain this season and to boycott any race which takes place there this year.
You know the nice, simple, straightforward matter of going racing.
Now I'm getting dragged into matters with which I used to have little interest (the funding of racetracks, the cost to the tracks of going racing, and the possibility of track closures) and into middle eastern national politics of which I was totally ignorant (pardon that ignorance please).
The Bahrain debate just won't go away -witness the following story on F1 Fanatic Deadline day approaches for Bahrain decision by Keith Collantine which expresses my feelings towards this matter very succinctly.
He makes the point that Bernie's stance on the matter is that "Formula 1 must never be political - full stop", but goes on to say that "there is no apolitical stance on this matter. Either you are happy for the Bahraini government to suppress its people so F1 can hold a race, or you aren’t".
His story quotes an Amnesty International report on conditions in the country which can be read here. I'm not 100% behind Amnesty in that I think sometimes they jump into a cause without the full facts however this report would appear to be remarkable by the fact that the delegation have mainly reported their findings on the ground and its conclusion is very restrained:
Human rights conditions in Bahrain have undergone a marked deterioration in recent weeks. This was clear and palpable during Amnesty International’s most recent fact-finding visit, following an earlier visit in February. The government’s resort to renewed excessive force to suppress the protests, its declaration of the State of National Safety and the extraordinary powers that contains, and the application of those powers to arrest and detain incommunicado hundreds of mainly Shi’a protestors and political activists has exacerbated tension between the Sunni and Shi’a Muslim communities and cast Bahrain on a very worrying downward trajectory.
There is an urgent need now, therefore, for the Bahraini government to reverse this trend and give renewed and greater priority to its obligations under international law. It must not fail that test.
At the same time, much more and more determined action is needed from governments in North America and Europe that have long maintained close diplomatic, trade and other ties with the Kingdom and which have been much more vocal in espousing the cause of human rights during the current turmoil in Libya and during the recent protests in Tunisia and Egypt than they have in relation to Bahrain. For many in the Arab world, this appears as another example of political selectivity when it comes to the advancement of human rights by such
states; they must act, and act quickly, to disperse this perception but principally to remind the Bahraini authorities of their obligations to uphold and respect human rights, including the right to peaceful protest, and to ensure accountability for unlawful killings, torture and other human rights violations committed by their forces or the forces of the other states currently assisting them.
As the F1 Fanatic story says - There is no apolitical stance on this matter.
If Bernie reschedules this race then it will become a matter for the FIA and Jean Todt and if they confirm it it will become a poilitical matter for the teams and finally the drivers.
I trust that, regardless of any decision of Bernie or the FIA, the teams and drivers will not let down the expectations of the fans - who I'm sure could not lend their support to a race which would be taking place in Bahrain at a time when the country and its people are in turmoil.
Were all of the above groups to agree to race in Bahrain then I must call on all fans of the sport to boycott the race - by not travelling to see it live and by refusing to watch it on television. A TAM rating of Zero/Nought would leave Bernie, the FIA, and any other supporters of racing in Bahrain in no doubt where the real power in F1 lies.
This blog has a relatively small readership but I would hope that all of you who tweet or facebook or whatever - would put out the call to resist running any GP in Bahrain this season and to boycott any race which takes place there this year.
No to Rescheduled Bahrain GP
I think this story as reported on Autosport is too important to dilute and I would like to say that while this blogger doesn't tend to like mixing his sport with politics I support this position completely:
You're entitled to disagree but I've made my position clear preseason and on hearing that Bernie was trying to reschedule. What I have noticed is that Bahrain has slipped off the news radar over here around the time that Saudi and UAE sent troops in to "restore order!!!"
In an open letter to Bernie Ecclestone, published as part of a Facebook campaign, the 'Youth of the 14 February Revolution' wrote:
"We are addressing to you this open letter publicly regarding the organization of Bahrain Grand Prix, and we, citizen of Bahrain, and human rights supporters of the world, are asking you to consider the challenges to organize what should be a happy sporting event in the middle of a country under siege and martial law, surrounded by tanks and military forces, while the population is being reduce to silence, killed, tortured, etc...
"Not mentioning the difficult climatic conditions, and the fact that organizing a motor sport festival in the middle of a despotic crackdown on the population, wouldn't be well understood and accepted worldwide.
"Also, in support of the population of Bahrain, we're asking you reconsider hosting Grand Prix of Bahrain until basic human rights and freedom are restored, and, if you wish, to issue a letter stating that the Grand Prix cannot, and will not, be organized in Bahrain until basic human rights and freedom are restored, and the repression is over. With your permission, we will display this letter of support on Facebook and other networks to show the solidarity of the Formula 1 sporting industry with the democratic and freedom aspirations of the Bahraini people!
"We thank you very much for your support and wish to see the Grand Prix in Bahrain soon, in a free and democratic atmosphere to which you would have contributed."
Listen to them Bernie.
You're entitled to disagree but I've made my position clear preseason and on hearing that Bernie was trying to reschedule. What I have noticed is that Bahrain has slipped off the news radar over here around the time that Saudi and UAE sent troops in to "restore order!!!"
In an open letter to Bernie Ecclestone, published as part of a Facebook campaign, the 'Youth of the 14 February Revolution' wrote:
"We are addressing to you this open letter publicly regarding the organization of Bahrain Grand Prix, and we, citizen of Bahrain, and human rights supporters of the world, are asking you to consider the challenges to organize what should be a happy sporting event in the middle of a country under siege and martial law, surrounded by tanks and military forces, while the population is being reduce to silence, killed, tortured, etc...
"Not mentioning the difficult climatic conditions, and the fact that organizing a motor sport festival in the middle of a despotic crackdown on the population, wouldn't be well understood and accepted worldwide.
"Also, in support of the population of Bahrain, we're asking you reconsider hosting Grand Prix of Bahrain until basic human rights and freedom are restored, and, if you wish, to issue a letter stating that the Grand Prix cannot, and will not, be organized in Bahrain until basic human rights and freedom are restored, and the repression is over. With your permission, we will display this letter of support on Facebook and other networks to show the solidarity of the Formula 1 sporting industry with the democratic and freedom aspirations of the Bahraini people!
"We thank you very much for your support and wish to see the Grand Prix in Bahrain soon, in a free and democratic atmosphere to which you would have contributed."
Listen to them Bernie.
Sunday, April 24, 2011
Mercedes Fastest in the Pits
Much Kudos to Will Buxton on breaking the whole Mercedes Wheel Nut saga which I posted just before the Shanghai GP last week.
Now it appears that Mercedes has got the fastest pit stop in F1 so far this year!
Germany's Auto Motor und Sport analysed all of the track data and found that Mercedes' average race pitstop time in 2011 is 22.301 secs, 0.08secs faster than McLaren, while Red Bull's time is 22.589 seconds, slower by nearly three tenths.
Ferrari and Williams are way down the list in 7th and 8th at their stops with an average time of 23.739 & 23.810 respectively. Hispania really suck at pitstops - shaving time off here may help get them ahead of Virgin and Lotus in the races.
Now it appears that Mercedes has got the fastest pit stop in F1 so far this year!
Germany's Auto Motor und Sport analysed all of the track data and found that Mercedes' average race pitstop time in 2011 is 22.301 secs, 0.08secs faster than McLaren, while Red Bull's time is 22.589 seconds, slower by nearly three tenths.
Ferrari and Williams are way down the list in 7th and 8th at their stops with an average time of 23.739 & 23.810 respectively. Hispania really suck at pitstops - shaving time off here may help get them ahead of Virgin and Lotus in the races.
| Team | Stops | Av.Pit Time | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mercedes | 14 | 22,301 s | |
| McLaren | 17 | 22,383 s | |
| Red Bull | 17 | 22,589 s | |
| Sauber | 10 | 23,067 s | |
| Force India | 14 | 23,340 s | |
| Renault | 14 | 23,615 s | |
| Ferrari | 17 | 23,739 s | |
| Williams | 8 | 23,810 s | |
| Toro Rosso | 12 | 23,960 s | |
| Lotus | 10 | 24,220 s | |
| Virgin | 12 | 24,944 s | |
| Hispania | 5 | 25,676 s |
Friday, April 22, 2011
Istanbul Park F1 race under Threat
Further to my recent rant about the continuing escalation of costs associated with hosting F1 and the threat to a number of state sponsored F1 races directly arising from the inability of the circuits to cover their costs I see that the Turkish GP is likely to bite the dust after 2011, if the F1 Fanatic story is to be believed.
I guess my sudden interest in this issue arose first of all when Spa-Francochamp declared last year, I think just after the GP (which I had attended), that it was no longer viable to host the racing series due to the costs.
Then just the other day it was the Nurburgring - a story which I noted with significant sadness.
To tell the truth I could live without Turkey, a Tilke design, many of which rely on the performance of the car over that of the driver (a Jarno Trulli observation with which I'd agree). It's not that it's a bad circuit it's not historic - from an F1 perspective.
It is however symptomatic of the current economic climate in which we find ourselves that a circuit which only opened its doors to F1 in 2005 does not find itself able to justify the expense of extending its F1 contract beyond the initial 7 years.
It appears the race fee has doubled to $26 million for 2012 and the Government will not make the payment.
The story which came out on Reuters points out that in 2009 only 36,000 three day passes were sold "a smaller turnout than at some of the pre-season tests in Spain -- and last year some of the stands were entirely empty".
Further to my earlier article this would mean that 7 of the current crop of 20 circuits are now under threat - with Interlagos under threat because of its recent safety record. So we can expect a 13 race series in 2013.
A 13 race series wouldn't be so bad were it not for the fact that all of these circuits will be vital to F1's future and so will begin to cut costs, which will lead to poorer track and safety conditions and poorer facilities: this on the basis that they're future is not under threat. 1970's safety at 21st century installations.
On a lighter note it would seem that even when Turkey's fee is doubled to $26 million (€18 million) it's still far less than Bahrain which was quoted preseason at €30 million. It looks as though not everyone is on the same rate - food for thought...
I guess my sudden interest in this issue arose first of all when Spa-Francochamp declared last year, I think just after the GP (which I had attended), that it was no longer viable to host the racing series due to the costs.
Then just the other day it was the Nurburgring - a story which I noted with significant sadness.
To tell the truth I could live without Turkey, a Tilke design, many of which rely on the performance of the car over that of the driver (a Jarno Trulli observation with which I'd agree). It's not that it's a bad circuit it's not historic - from an F1 perspective.
It is however symptomatic of the current economic climate in which we find ourselves that a circuit which only opened its doors to F1 in 2005 does not find itself able to justify the expense of extending its F1 contract beyond the initial 7 years.
It appears the race fee has doubled to $26 million for 2012 and the Government will not make the payment.
The story which came out on Reuters points out that in 2009 only 36,000 three day passes were sold "a smaller turnout than at some of the pre-season tests in Spain -- and last year some of the stands were entirely empty".
Further to my earlier article this would mean that 7 of the current crop of 20 circuits are now under threat - with Interlagos under threat because of its recent safety record. So we can expect a 13 race series in 2013.
A 13 race series wouldn't be so bad were it not for the fact that all of these circuits will be vital to F1's future and so will begin to cut costs, which will lead to poorer track and safety conditions and poorer facilities: this on the basis that they're future is not under threat. 1970's safety at 21st century installations.
On a lighter note it would seem that even when Turkey's fee is doubled to $26 million (€18 million) it's still far less than Bahrain which was quoted preseason at €30 million. It looks as though not everyone is on the same rate - food for thought...
Thursday, April 21, 2011
Kubica Ready to Go!
Robert Kubica is to leave hospital in the next few days. F1 Fanatic has the story with quotes from the Renault Website.
All I can say is best of luck with the rehab and training Robert and we all wish you a speedy recovery and return to the sport. I'm sure we may see him at one of the European Races if his recuperation allows and if his employers can wrangle it.
Try to keep away from the rallying for a while eh?
UPDATE
The story is expanded upon in Adam Cooper's Blog which sets out a Q & A session with Kubica from the Lotus Renault Website.
All I can say is best of luck with the rehab and training Robert and we all wish you a speedy recovery and return to the sport. I'm sure we may see him at one of the European Races if his recuperation allows and if his employers can wrangle it.
Try to keep away from the rallying for a while eh?
UPDATE
The story is expanded upon in Adam Cooper's Blog which sets out a Q & A session with Kubica from the Lotus Renault Website.
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