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  • Driver Announcement: Sutil to Sauber

    Driver Announcement: Sutil to Sauber

    The Sauber F1 Team has confirmed that Adrian Sutil will form part of its driver line-up for the 2014 season.

    The German driver has 109 grand prix starts in his F1 career and all of them has been with the Sahara Force India team. Force India have signed Nico Hulkenberg, from Sauber, and Sergio Perez from McLaren.

    “I am very happy that we found common ground,” said Sutil. “Although I have known for a while where I wanted to go, in the end the negotiations took a bit longer than planned. However, now I will have all the more reason to celebrate during the Christmas season.

    “After six good years driving for Force India, with a lot of highlights, it’s now time to embark on a new challenge. I am determined to do my part in order to have a successful future together with the Sauber F1 team.”

    The 2014 move to Sauber will be the first time that Sutil has raced for a different team in Formula 1. He joined the Midland team in 2007 which would later transform to its current guise of Force India.

    Sutil’s best result in Formula 1 remains a fourth place at the 2009 Italian grand prix.

  • FIA introduces new penalty points system for 2014

    FIA introduces new penalty points system for 2014

    The FIA today released an updated version of the 2014 Sporting Regulations which include a new penalty points system.
    According to Article 4.2 of the the new 2014 sporting regulations, any driver who earns 12 penalty points during a 12-month period will be given a one race ban. This means that penalties could be carried over to the next season.
    The new system is aimed at punishing drivers who regularly break rules, while cutting some slack to drivers who commit minor infringements as a result of circumstance.
    According to the new regulations, “In accordance with Article 16.3 [which covers driving standards], the stewards may impose penalty points on a driver’s Superlicence,” states Article 4.2 of the sporting regulations.”If a driver accrues 12 penalty points his licence will be suspended for the following event, following which 12 points will be removed from the licence.

    “Penalty points will remain on a driver’s Superlicence for a period of 12 months after which they will be respectively removed on the 12-month anniversary of their imposition.”

    The FIA also appear to be clamping down on unsafe releases. Drivers will now incur grid or time penalties if their car is released from the garage or a pitstop in a manner deemedto be unsafe. Unsafe releases during practice sessions could result in a grid penalty for that race.If the unsafe release occurs during a race, the driver will get a 10-place grid penalty for the next race. He could however also be penalised during the current race if he can continue racing after the incident. If this were to be the case, he could incur drive-throughs and 10-second penalties.

    There will also be engine penalties. Five out of six separate engine elements may be replaced. These are the internal combustion engine, the motor generator unit-kinetic, the motor generator unit-heat, the energy store, the turbocharger and the control electronics. Should any of these elements fail, they may be replaced up to a maximum of five times. A sixth replacement would result in a 10 place grid penalty. Thereafter, sixth elements would only incur a 5 place grid penalty.
    As for the power unit … should the power unit need replacing at any time, the driver will have to start from the pits.
    They’ve also upped the anti on gear box penalties. Gear boxes will now need to last for six subsequent races.
    As for drivers at the back of the grid incurring penalties … drivers who incur a grid-penalty and are unable to drop the necessary places, e.g. he qualifies 20th, awarded a five-place drop – he would start 22nd and have to drop the remaining three places at the next races.
    What do you think of these penalty rules changes? Let us know in the comments section below.
  • Sergio Perez to Join Hulkenberg at Force India

    Sergio Perez to Join Hulkenberg at Force India

    Sergio Perez was confirmed at Force India today on a multi-year deal.

    Perez joins Force India after just one season at McLaren after they decided to go with Kevin Magnussen for their 2014 campaign. Perez will race alongside Nico Hulkenberg who was confirmed at Force India a few weeks ago.

    “It’s great to announce my new team as Sahara Force India. Coming here was always my first choice and I’m really happy everything has now been confirmed,” said Perez.

    “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. My plan now is to visit the factory and get to know everyone in the team,” he added.

    Team Principal, Vijay Mallya had this to say about Checo: “It’s a pleasure to welcome Sergio to the team. He brings a healthy mix of youth and experience, and I’ve been very impressed with his recent performances.”

    “By pairing Sergio alongside Nico, we enter the new season with an extremely competitive line-up, which will go toward helping us achieve our goals for the new season,” Mallya added.

    According to AUTOSPORT, Perez brings a cool 15 million Euros to the team.

    With Perez now confirmed, the two Force India drivers for 2013 will be searching for new teams. It is very likely that Adrian Sutil will get the nod at Sauber. As for Paul Di Resta, it looks like his time in F1 has come to an end and will look to Indy Car racing

  • Lotus F1 Team has a laugh with 18 new rules for 2014

    Lotus F1 Team has a laugh with 18 new rules for 2014

    The Lotus F1 Team is taking the FIA’s announcement detailing new regulations for next season in their stride.

    A good few teams and drivers have voiced their disapproval of the changes, specifically the controversial double points rule which Sebastian Vettel slammed as being “absurd”.

    The Lotus team however, posted a link on their website, Twitter account and Facebook pages detailing 18 new rules for the 2014 season which are bound to give F1 fans a good laugh.

    The rules range from “anyone with a dog named Roscoe” starting at the back of the grid to championship points deciders being determined by Rock, Paper, Scissors or Cage Fight.

    We particularly love the rule that any team with more than four members who’ve been Technical Directors, will have to design their cars using nothing but LEGO.

    Below is the full set of 18 rules, as published by the Lotus F1 Team.

    Lotus rule changes

     

     

     

  • FIA accepting applications for a 12th F1 team

    FIA accepting applications for a 12th F1 team

    The FIA has called for potential new teams to express their interest in participating in Formula 1 “at a competitive level” in 2015 or 2016.

    The sport’s governing body has opened up a selection process for a new team to join the grid, potentially as early as the start of the 2015 F1 season.Interested applicants have until Friday 3 January 2014 to register a formal expression of interest.

    Following the demise of HRT at the end of the 2012 season, we saw only 11 teams take part in this year’s championship.

    Super Aguri, 2007We’ve not seen a new team in the sport since the start of 2010, when Lotus Racing (Caterham), Virgin (Marussia) and Hispania (HRT) joined the F1 grid. Aside from them, only two other teams – Toyota and Super Aguri – have joined the sport since 2002.

    A statement on the FIA’s official website read:

    “The FIA has decided to open a new selection process to identify a candidate team to participate at a competitive level in the FIA Formula One World Championship from the start of the 2015 or the 2016 season up to 2020 inclusive. The overall long-term interests of the Championship will determine which candidates are selected.”

    The FIA also published the requirements for applying as well as the applicable application selection criteria.

    Applicants will be judged on:

    (a) the technical ability and resources of the team;
    (b) the ability of the team to raise and maintain sufficient funding to allow participation in the Championship at a competitive level;
    (c) the team’s experience and human resources;
    (d) the FIA’s assessment of the value that the candidate may bring to the Champions
    Information on the candidate’s relevant experience, including technical and racing experience as well as facilities, equipment and engineering resources are also be required. Full Curriculum Vitae of directors and shareholders also need to be submitted and there is a total application fee of $130,000.

    While the FIA plans to announce any new team on 28th February 2014, they have stated that in the event that “no candidate is deemed suitable by the FIA and the commercial rights holder, no additional team will be selected”.
    Photo Credit: By Alan from Doncaster, UK (P1060288) [CC-BY-SA-2.0], via Wikimedia Commons

  • Pirelli confirm four teams for Bahrain tyre test

    Pirelli confirm four teams for Bahrain tyre test

    Pirelli have confirmed that four teams will take part in the Bahrain tyre test next week.

    Following confirmation that both McLaren and Force India have withdrawn from the test because of the short timeframe between the test and the FIA’s confirmation that it may go ahead.

    The FIA gave the tyre test the go ahead on Monday night, when they also announced major rule changes for 2014 and 2015.

    A McLaren spokesperson said simply, “We are not testing in Bahrain next week.”

    A Force India spokesperson added, “Given the short notice of this test taking place and the time frames involved, the team will not be attending the test.”

    The teams who will now take place in the Bahrain tyre test for Pirelli are Red Bull Racing, Mercedes, Ferrari and Toro Rosso.

    The test will run from 17-19 December.

     

  • Vettel slams double points rule as “absurd”

    Vettel slams double points rule as “absurd”

    Four time Formula 1 world champion Sebastian Vettel has criticised FIA plans to award double points for the final race of the season from 2014.

    Under the new double points rule, the winning driver of the final race in Abu Dhabi next season, will score 50 points instead of 25 under the proposed rule change.

    The FIA has set out a number of rule changes for next season and beyond, including a global cost cap in 2015, changes to penalties for minor infringements and permanent driver numbers. The new double points rule however, is the one that will raise the most eyebrows.

    The decision to award double points, towards the drivers’ and constructors’ championships, at the final race of the season was made “to maximise focus on the championship until the end of the campaign”, according to a statement released by the FIA.

    Vettel would still have won this year’s title in India but would have lost the 2012 title to Fernando Alonso if the double points rule had been in place at the time and the German driver is far from happy.

    “This is absurd and punishes those who have worked hard for a whole season,” said the Vettel, who won the final nine races of the 2013 season.

    “Drivers, fans and experts are horrified,” he told German newspaper, Sports Bild.

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

    His new Red Bull team-mate, Daniel Ricciardo, also appeared to be against the proposed double points rule change.

    “Seems to be pretty bizarre. Not sure who came up with that one..,” Ricciardo posted on Twitter.

    Interestingly, Red Bull is one of the teams who sit on F1′s strategy group, which contributed to the new regulations being passed. The FIA and Formula One Management also vote on the changes.

    But Red Bull’s Helmut Marko said that the team was opposed to the changes and revealed that the original plan was for the final four races of the year to carry double points.

    “We were against it,” he said. “But our team boss Christian Horner was overruled.”

    “At first it was planned to be awarded double points for the last four races,” he continued. “Then the world championship up to that point would have been almost useless.”

     

  • FIA finalises 2014 calendar

    FIA finalises 2014 calendar

    The FIA World Motor Sport Council has confirmed that the 2014 Formula 1 season will be held over 19 races.

    The Korea, Mexico and New Jersey grand prix have dropped off the provisional 22 race calendar. The Korean GP has disappeared from the calendar after four years with financial problems while the future of the New Jersey race has become increasingly uncertain after being dropped from the calendar for a second time.

    Along with the streamlined calendar the running order of the races has undergone some changes. The Abu Dhabi grand prix will be held at the end of the season on November 23. While Brazil, the original season finale, will move to November 9.

  • F1 Personnel Wars: Williams Add Aero Staff

    F1 Personnel Wars: Williams Add Aero Staff

    The Williams Formula 1 team has announced the signing of two new employees from Red Bull Racing and the Lotus F1 team.

    Shaun Whitehead joins Williams from Red Bull as head of aerodynamic process while Dave Wheater joins the team from Lotus to become the head of aerodynamic performance.

    “These two appointments show our commitment to both improving the process of aerodynamic development while focusing on the application of that development to true on-track performance,” added the team’s chief technical officer Pat Symonds.

    “Dave and Shaun bring a wealth of experience to our team and I welcome them both to Grove and fully expect them to make significant contributions to the renewed competitiveness that we are all working so hard to achieve.

    “With Dave and Shaun on board, and under Jason’s stewardship, we will be well positioned to make gains in this important area and support the continuing task of developing the FW36 in what promises to be an exciting year for the sport in 2014.”

  • Formula 1 Budget Cap for 2015

    Formula 1 Budget Cap for 2015

    A budget cap is set to be introduced to Formula 1 in 2015.

    It has been announced that a working group will be established to finalise the regulations of the budget cap. This group will comprise of members from the FIA, the commercial rights holder in addition to members from the various F1 teams. This team has been set the task of finalising the regulations for the cap by then end of June 2014.

    It is not clear what the budget cap will apply to; however previous proposals have included exemptions for driver salaries and marketing campaigns. Previous attempts to institute budget caps in the sport have been opposed several teams in the past.