Drivers’ market…how many unknown things!

/in /by

On Sunday the curtain was brought down over the F.1 World Championship, so drivers and teams are thinking about the 2014 season. A lot of work is being done not only inside factories to set cars for the next season but also inside meeting rooms, where people are discussing how to complete the grid’s puzzle, but there are still too many missed pieces to complete it.

Hulkenberg, Maldonado, Perez, Grosjean, Di Resta are only some of the drivers that haven’t signed any contract yet and Lotus, Sauber, Force India are the most important second-tier teams to still have free positions. That is an uncommon thing for the modern Formula 1. Normally, small teams got left behind. Lotus and Sauber are still longing for a financial support to come from Russia and Arabic countries.

The main cause to that, it has to be found in the difficult financial situation the whole world is undergoing now and also in the rise of costs all teams will have to deal with next season: “The regulations changes will cause a rise in costs that is still hard to evaluate, since next season will be rich in unexpected things”, says Gian Carlo Minardi “ It is really difficult to anticipate costs arising from the introduction of the turbo engine, as there are many unexpected things we still don’t know about. I know something about that, as, when I joined F.1 in 1985, the turbo engine was at its apex. Some teams have troubles even before starting using the turbo engine, never mind late in the racing season.” The Renault engine’s failure on Grosjean’s car in Brazil could sound like an alarm bell for next season, during which only 5 engine units per driver will be available, “If with 8 super tested engine units available, teams had some problems, I cannot imagine what will happen next year. These failures have a rise in costs and relegation as a consequence.”

A good mix between technical and economic values is one of the leading reasons which drive teams to choose a driver. “It won’t be easy to foresee the next steps, as many parameters have to be taken into consideration. The main reason which leads the team to choose a driver instead of another is the amount of money he can bring to the team. Maldonado and Perez, two drivers who could rely on great financial support, are now on the market. We’ll see if they will enjoy that support even in the future. For example Maldonado, who is supposed to be very close to Lotus, said that the PDVSA could probably leave the circus. Perez, who was relieved by McLaren despite he overshadowed Button many times, won’t probably enjoy that support any more, otherwise it would be difficult for me to understand the Woking-based team’s decision. Nico Hulkenberg’s situation is different: he finished in the points many times, so he really earned his salary. The German driver represents an example of a good investment whose return is paid off by a good position in the constructors championship. Sauber’s seventh place is entirely thanks to him; thanks to that position, the Swiss team earned quite a great amount of money coming from TV rights. So, it is important to choose a driver who can score points and a driver who can ensure a good financial coverage.”

The 2014 season will be the season of engine “revolution” “Marussia will be equipped with Ferrari engine, thanks to which the team will make some steps forward. So, new drivers are probably expected to join the team. Bianchi will be reconfirmed, for sure, but we don’t have to forget that Chilton, who can enjoy a great financial support, can probably get the ball rolling. Someone can even risk to be left out. Perez pointed out that he doesn’t want to be a bit player”, ends the manager from Faenza.

A red-hot winter is expected.

Rigon to take part in the FIA WEC Championship’s 6H of Bahrein

/in /by

After the good results achieved at the 6H of Shanghai, Davide Rigon will be behind the wheel of the 8Star Motorsport’s Ferrari 458 GTE, to contest the last round of the FIA World Endurance Championship, to take place this week end at the Sakhir circuit, in Bahrein.

The Vicenza-born driver, who is at the Scuderia Ferrari’s disposal, will take part in the World Endurance  Championship for the fourth time, after taking the second place on his debut race at Interlagos, the fourth place at Fuji and sealing a win in China. His aim is to take part in the whole 2014 FIA WEC Championship season Mark Webber will also take part in. In the 6H of Bahrein, Davide will make his talent available to the Scuderia to aim for winning the GTE AM title. Thanks to the success he scored in Shanghai, there is only a 5-point-gap between the team and standing’s peak. Everything will be played throughout the race’s 6 hours “It was great to win in Shanghai. It was my first win in this championship; in 2008 I won the FIA GT Championship’s 24H of Spa at the wheel of the F430. I feel very comfortable with the car and the team. I’ll do my best even in Sakhir, to help the team win the title, as it happened with Andrea in the GT Open.”

The Vicenza-born driver will return to Bahrein four years after finishing third at the wheel of the GP2 Dallara “I took the third place in the GP2 Championship in 2009. I hope to achieve better results. I would like to take part in the Championship next season. It’s a pleasure to drive a GT2 car” says the Minardi Management’s driver.

Brazilian GP – Drivers’ Scorecard

/in /by

The Brazilian GP marked the end of the 2013 F.1 season.

Sebastian Vettel 9.5 – No doubt he deserves a good mark, as he and Red Bull were always the most performing on track, come rain or shine. Once again they did what they wanted. They were a “war machine”, as they took 9 consecutive wins. They were unbeatable.

 Mark Webber 9 – He deserves this mark because he finished second on Sunday (thanks to his second place he took the third place in the championship) and also because he’s a true gentleman. He was “stolen” a title he had already won and he had to race as a “second driver”; he never complained. All Red Bull’s problems occurred on his car.
Fernando Alonso 9 – He proved himself to be the number one. He led his Ferrari onto the podium again, despite the race was dominated by Red Bull.

Jenson Button and Sergio Perez 7 – Thanks to them McLaren flourished again. The English team laid around in the races. Button’s fourth place was unexpected, just like the Mexican’s sixth place, as, if he hadn’t changed the gearbox, he could have finished ahead his team mate, who was reconfirmed.

Nico Rosberg 7 – Good race. He was very aggressive as compared to the previous races. He fought tooth and nail to defend his position.

Felipe Massa 9 – He was “stolen” a podium, because Fernando would have let him pass and finish his adventure alongside the Italian team, on the podium, in front of his supporters.

Nico Hulkenberg 7 – Once again he scored points for the team. His contribution to save Sauber’s season was decisive. Thanks to the points he scored he brought certain advantages to the team. This is a clear proof of how important it is for a second-tier team to have an experienced driver whose salary is paid off with results.

Lewis Hamilton 6.5 – Even if I think that he was imposed an over-the-top penalty (it’s a consequence of a penalty imposed on Massa with the sole purpose to balance the forces), a world champion shouldn’t create certain situations; he could have used another way to overtake Bottas. The Finn, however, had enough room to avoid the collision, like it is required by regulations.

Daniel Ricciardo 7 – Both him and his team mate kept a good pace in the wet in Q3. In the dry, they weren’t as performing as they were before; anyway he scored the last point of the season for Toro Rosso.

FIA 0 –  This mark is due to the Federation’s disorganization. I think it’s time to rejuvenate the board and establish a unique commission to judge drivers. That is to ensure judgment’s uniformity.

Brazilian GP – THE POINT

/in /by

The end of the 2013 F.1 season is marked by FIA’s poor figure. I think the decision taken by FIA with regards to Felipe Massa is simply stupid and I also think that it’s time even for the Federation to take some measures to rejuvenate its board. An exciting and hard-fought GP, during which exciting passes were made, was ruined by some decisions taken by external people who change their way of judging each time, so they don’t ensure a homogeneous judge. Furthermore, I think that Hamilton was imposed a penalty to try to rebalance the forces deployed. It was a bad double mistake.

Congratulations to Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull who won everything. Seb set a new record, as he took 9 consecutive wins and 13 wins overall. He took as many wins as Michael Schumacher, even if the German driver reached this goal in a 16-event-Championship, not in a 19-event-Championship. Mercedes finished second in the constructors’ championship, ahead of Ferrari. It was a great result for the German team; this result make Alonso’s second place in the drivers’ championship even more important, if we consider the technical disparities between the two teams. The Spaniard confirmed to be the best driver ever. If Felipe hadn’t been imposed a penalty, the second place would have been within the Scuderia’s reach, however the Brazilian driver’s missed points throughout the season, weighted on the final result. Now it’s time to analyze problems and find a solution quickly, as time is really short, especially if we consider all the changes that will be introduced next year.

The end of the 2013 season marks also the end of the 8-cylinder-aspired engine and many drivers are about to move to other teams or to change their lives, just like Felipe Massa and Mark Webber. The Australian driver ended the season with the second place and the third overall, after making his debut in the F.1 Championship in 2002 alongside the Minardi Team. He scored two points on his debut race. Few drivers can boast this record. Mark leaves the World Championship as a protagonist. It’s really a pleasure for me to see that three drivers who started their F.1 career in Faenza, finished in the top 3, two of them, Fernando and Mark, made their debut in the Championship alongside the Minardi Team.

Mind is set on the 2014 season, during which some changes will be made with regards to regulations. Those changes could make some teams come up again and bring some new things relating to engine, we still don’t know about. The Renault engine failure with regards to Lotus has to make us think: if a team ends its season with an engine failure, having eight tested engines per driver at its disposal, I can’t imagine what will happen next season, when each team will have only five brand-new engine units per driver at its disposal.  I think that too rash steps were taken. Furthermore, if we consider that these changes will increase costs, we can say that the picture is complete. This is one of the reasons why some second-tier teams haven’t completed their line-up yet. Most of them are looking for the best technical and economic solution. It is true that FIA has to “live” side by side with car companies and the future of car racing will consist in the turbo engine, the kers and the hybrid, but we have also to consider that many teams are now undergoing a critical economic situation.

Mark Webber, a gentleman, an excellent driver and sportsman

/in /by

The Brazilian GP, to be held on Sunday, is an event rich in symbols and history for the Minardi Team. As the Brazilian GP was the F.1 event where the Italian team made his debut in 1985, so it will be the last event Mark Webber will take part in at the wheel of a F.1 car. The Australian driver made his debut in F.1 in 2002 alongside the Minardi Team. The Australian finished 5th in his debut race in Australia; his 5th place excited the Faenza-based squad’s fans.

“I’ve lived so many Brazilian GP throughout my career in F.1, but the Brazilian racing week ends were so different if compared with today, both because the circuit they took place in, was based in Rio and because they were held at the beginning of the F.1 season, so temperatures were higher than they are now. At that moment, free practice took place one week before the racing week end, so the staff had the opportunity to go to the seaside and relax. Whilst Sao Paulo is mainly an industrial city, Rio is an entertainment city”, says Gian Carlo Minardi.

“The Brazilian GP will mark the end of the 8-cylindres-aspired engine to be replaced with the turbo engine and it will also be the last race Mark Webber will contest as a F.1 driver. The Australian driver will leave a good memory of himself, both as a person and as a driver and sportsman. Among the 37 drivers who began their career into F.1 alongside the Minardi Team, Mark was the one who left his mark the most, not only because he scored two points in his debut race in Australia, but also because he established a very good relationship with the whole team. Still now, whenever I get into paddocks during a F.1 event, he runs to say hello to me”, remembers with pleasure the manager from Faenza.

“He leaves F.1 at the age of 37, still aware to be at the top of his career. He will fight to win even on Sunday, even if he will have to race side by side with Vettel, who is determined not to give anything to anybody. Besides the team “stole” him a season, he had also several technical issues and had to abandon the race many times. During a GP , he lost the tires after a pit-stop; a driver cannot do anything when these things happen”. Webber will join the LMP1 Porsche project “ I’m sure he will be talked about in the future. The Championship he will take part in is very interesting and it’s becoming attractive for many important constructors.”

The Individual Races Series, a great success

/in /by

The Individual Race Series, a competition which follows the regulations of an uphill time trial, had a very successful opening round. This initiative aroused with the aim of making uphill race drivers have a cheap on-track racing experience. The race is contested at the end of the official uphill racing season and offers all those racers who don’t want to garage their car, the opportunity to keep on racing.

39 cars took part in the race, which started with a one-by-one-start. There was a one-minute-break between each start. The race’s winner was Mauro Rampini, who was at the wheel of a very performing Osella-BMW 3.0 car. Rampini is a regular uphill race driver “It’s a very good initiative. You have fun in a safe context and costs are very low. Other races like that will be more than welcome.”

Gian Carlo Minardi was in Magione, too, as the President of the C.S.A.I. Speed sub-committee: “I’m really satisfied with the race. It was an amazing show, which got consent from everywhere. Both teams and drivers were very satisfied with that and they all hope that it will turn into a reality. I want to thank the Magione racetrack’s director Mr. Ezio Sisti for supporting this initiative and arranging the event only within a three weeks’ time”, says Minardi, the event creator, “My intention is to establish a Trofeo for the winter season, during which teams and drivers’ racing activity is usually off. Getting round the “Mario Umberto Borzacchini” circuit, I could observe the participants’ behavior during the race. They made progressions throughout the laps they ran. The mountain’s hidden dangers usually don’t allow drivers neither to express all their potential nor to get the most of their cars’ potential; these two aspects can be well developed on a racetrack. Some problems came up and we have to solve them for the future, however, since it’s a brand new initiative, it is quite normal for it to be like that. The Individual Races Series could be a great opportunity also for those young drivers who have limited financial resources”, ends Minardi.  

Brazil ’85 – The beginning of a dream

/in /by

The final round of the F.1 World Championship will take place at Interlagos this week end. Red Bull and Sebastian Vettel are the Championship’s leaders, followed by a very performing Lotus which is the Championship’s second force, even if it’s fourth in the constructors’ championship.

The Brazilian GP has always had a special tone for Gian Carlo Minardi, as it represents the beginning of an adventure which last 340 GP: “April 5 1985, 9.30 a.m., Jacarepagua Circuit, the first free practice session starts. We entered into F.1. Besides all the work done to assemble the car and arrange the first trip overseas, we truly realized what we had been able to do only when we powered up the car’s engine to run the first lap”, says Gian Carlo Minardi.

Before telling this story, we have to make an effort and get back to the ‘80s, to 1980, to be more precise. That is the year Minardi established his Team and took part in the Formula 2 Championship as a constructor, but he already had F.1 in his mind. The team got good results with Michele Alboreto, Alessandro Nannini, Paolo Barilla and Pier Luigi Martini, but the main goal was to compete in the top series. The great opportunity came in 1984, when the Faenza-born entrepreneur met the Alfa Romeo’s President Mr. Massacesi. At the end of a long negotiation, the President of Alfa Romeo agreed to provide Minardi with an 8-cylinder turbo engine. According to this agreement, the Faenza-born manager began to build the first Minardi F.1 car which was launched in July 1984. Everything was ready when Alfa did an about face on its promise. But by then it was too late to turn back the clock. The Minardi F.1 had already joined the World Championship, so it was decided to equip the car with a Ford-Cosworth/Mader aspired engine for the first rounds, whilst awaiting a new-born company “Motori Moderni” owned by Piero Mancini and Carlo Chiti to provide the team with a 6-cylinder 1500 turbo engine.

“It was an all-round debut in Rio. We were new as chassis manufacturers and we had a last-hour engine assembly. After the deal with Alfa was off, we decided to equip the car with an aspired engine to run the first two rounds, at a later stage the car would have been equipped with a turbo engine. We had to compete against some of the legends of motorsport such as Ferrari, BMW, Ford, Renault, as a private team. We had a proven experience as constructors in the F.2 Championship, but the adventure we were about to undertake was completely new to all of us. It was a small team and our car had run only few miles – the car’s body was made of honecomb steel and carbon and Kevlar inserted fiber – we had to learn everything, from track procedures to the car’s behavior. I remember with pleasure that at that time pits were casually assigned, their assignment was not based on the Championship’s standing. So it could happened that your pit was between Ferrari and McLaren or Williams, Lotus and Renault and you had the opportunity to see how they worked and gain experience”, says the manager from Faenza.  

“The transition from F.2 to F.1 was the consequence of a corporate strategy which envisaged building a car conceived only for competition purposes, not for commercial purposes. We had quite a large staff to build and manage a F.2 car, but we weren’t well organized to compete in a F.1 Championship. However it was necessary to take a step forward and join the top series. We had already given proof of our skills as chassis manufacturers; however our Achille’s heel was the change in engine supply late in the season. We and Tyrrel were the only two teams whose cars were equipped with an aspired engine and despite Tyrrel’s great experience, we undertook an on par fight against them. I would like to point out that if the point’s assignment system had worked like it works today, we would have scored our first points during the first season, thanks to Martini’s eight place in Australia. “

Gian Carlo Minardi chose a very young Pierluigi Martini as his driver. The Italian driver, who is Giancarlo Martini’s nephew, ran about 103 GP alongside the Faenza-based squad “Many years have passed since that first experience; it was a very exciting day for everyone. There was a great atmosphere. We all had a strong will to do our best. We had some troubles throughout the Brazilian race week end, but it was the beginning of a new adventure”, says Pierluigi Martini.

Bhai Tech “A wonderful season between the GP2 and the GT Open”

/in /by

With the event which took place at the Barcelona circuit, Bhai Tech Racing, the racing division of the Mestrino-based Advanced Vehicle Science Centre, which was inaugurated more than one year ago by Pastor Maldonado, won the first International GT Open Championship’s title with the two McLaren MP4-12C. Along with the teams’ title, the squad’s driver Giorgio Pantano also won the drivers title. The Padua-born driver who made his debut in a GT Championship, kept all his rivals behind: “It’s not bad to win the teams and drivers title the first time you take part in a GT Championship. It was a new experience for us and for our engineers”, comments Bhai Tech’s President Mr. Ferdinando Bada “we made some mistakes, but we were good at improving race by race. The overall win we took in Monza was the peak of our racing season, along with the last few laps at Montmelò. We really deserved to win.”

It was a big success also for the “virtual simulation”. You have a state of the art driving simulator and software inside your headquarter. How much does virtual simulation get close to reality?

Around 95%.This percentage comes from a comparison between all the data we gathered from the GP2 Dallara.

The Driving Simulator allows you to make indoor tests, without having to move to the track, so you save money and time and give drivers the opportunity to practice those tracks they will race on and the staff has the opportunity to undertake some development tests. How much money does a team save?

 We save up to one quarter if we compare an on-track test and a test using the driving simulator. Another advantage is that you can practice whenever you want, refine details such as braking and undertake set-up tests. All that is done on track can be also done using the driving simulator and the modeling software. Some drivers told us that, after a three-four days training session using our simulator, their on-track performances in a very demanding Championship such as GP2, improved significantly.

Talking about GP2, this year you’ve been engaged in this Championship alongside the Racing Engineering Team

 As Bhai Tech, we’ve offered a technical support to the Race Engineering Team. We’ve provided the team with simulation training and on-track assistance by employing our engineers. We’ve been very satisfied with the results, as the team won the GP2 title. That is another big success to be added to the two GT Open titles.

What are your plans for the 2014 racing season?

We have two options at the moment: GT Open and FIA GT. We should have our plan defined in about one month, as we’re waiting for a confirmation from one of our most important sponsors. The FIA GT Championship would be our main choice, as it’s a kind of technical championship, but obviously, we want to pay attention to our sponsors’ needs.

The world economic situation is not that good now. What’s the main problem a racing team or companies like yours have to deal with now?

The whole world is undergoing a serious financial crisis, so there is a lack of resources to support Sport in general, not only Motorsport. Nowadays even nonprofessional sport activities have trouble finding financial support  – small football teams who bring happiness to local communities, don’t even manage to find 10-15000 euros to support the season – let alone Motorsport, whose financial needs are much higher.

To be honest, you would expect institutions to pay more attention to a field which involves many employees; more than 150.000 people are employed in the motorsport field. Some legislative bills introduced by the government when Monti was the prime minister, have further reduced the possibility for companies to support Sport financially, and so the amount of financial resources to be devoted to sport has significantly decreased.

The Bhai Tech Advanced Vehicle Science Centre has celebrated its first anniversary this year. What are your goals for the upcoming years?

Our main goal is to cooperate side by side with car companies. It’s clear that you have to prove who you are and what you’re able to do. We’re still very young, but we’re progressing so much. We’re successfully cooperating with the F.1 McLaren. It’s our most important partner from a technological point of view. Probably next year our “F.1 Family” will further expand. I am confident in that.

In the past you took part in the F.3000 and in the GP2 Championships with your own team.  You scored wins and won titles. Is there a chance that you compete in a Formula Championship again?

We don’t rule out any possibility. We should have our program defined in about one month, and then we’ll be ready to make our announcements. The Formula “chapter” isn’t closed, for sure.

….What drove you to leave Formula and focus on GT Competition?

Nothing in particular, just the will to meet new challenges. After dealing with Formula cars for such a long time, I decided to focus on covered-wheels, as I find them so exciting. Even if we’re not involved in Formula competitions as a team, we continue to work on single-seaters through our driving simulator, which is a very useful device, as it gives a driver the opportunity to progress. In a demanding championship such as the GP2, the time gap is within few thousands of a second. This is the reason why details can really make a difference. Through driving simulation we can analyze a driver’s behavior, understand his mistakes and help him progress.

 

Rigon scored a success in Shanghai

/in /by

After taking the second place at Interlagos and the fourth in a rainy Fuji, Davide Rigon sealed his first win in the FIA World Endurance Championship. The talented driver from Vicenza, who is at the Scuderia Ferrari’s disposal, crossed the line first at the wheel of the 8Star Motorsport’s Ferrari 458 GTE he shared with Enzo Potolicchio and Rui Aguas.

It was a strongly desired win, taken at the end of a very successful race week end. During free practice the Ferrari #81 set the best time and set the third best time in qualifying, arriving just a few thousands behind the pole. Rigon set the pace, handling a perfect race. He set the best laptime and scored a great success for the Scuderia.

“It was a perfect week end. We demonstrated our good condition since free practice and we missed the pole just for a few thousands. We did our best during the race and, after taking control of the car in the last stint, I pushed hard and set the best laptime. I closed the gap and won the race”, says Davde Rigon “Even if the Astons hadn’t abandoned, I’m sure we would have won the race all the same. We set excellent times all through the race and I always kept a very good pace. It’s an all team’s success. I established a very good connection with Enzo, Rui and all the team’s staff, so this helped to score important success such the one we scored in Shanghai”, says the Minardi Management’s driver.  Thanks to this success, 8Star Motorsport Team’s gap with the GTE AM-class leader drops down to only 5 points. The last Bahrein round will be the decisive one.

The Far East keeps on winking at Davide, who can add this victory to his career. In 2008 he brought the Beijing Guoan Team to success in the Superleague Formula Championship.

USA GP – THE POINT

/in /by

In the USA Grand Prix, which is the last but one F.1 event of the 2013 season, we saw a great fight between Webber, Hamilton and Alonso and, above all, we saw Lotus and Grosjean delivering an excellent race.

Except the two Red Bull, or, at least RB#1, which demonstrated to be very competitive, as usual, Romain also delivered a great race, demonstrating to be a very skilled driver, finishing only 6’’ behind the World Champion. He finished between the Championship’s two most competitive cars. He definitely deserves a score of 9/10 for taking an excellent start and handling a good race. He tried to “bother” Sebastian Vettel by setting the fastest lap during the race, but he was beaten by the German driver in the following lap. The French driver can be a guarantee for his team, which demonstrated to recover in this end to the season, despite the unlucky decision to replace Kimi with Kovalainen. Probably Valsecchi would have deserved an opportunity for the job he did inside the team. Worse than that…even if the Finnish driver was excused in the post-race because of some technical issues.

Lewis Hamilton did a great job. The Englishman put up a fight against Alonso, who, maybe, overexploited his tyres. Ferrari had a hard week end, but the Italian team got a good position thanks to the Spaniard’s 5th place finish.  Massa’s American week end was not so good. I hope that something didn’t work, even if the Brazilian driver suffered a lot throughout the week end. Despite Nando’s excellent race, during which he fought teeth and nail, a 29s gap from the race winner is too much. Fernando tried to “limit the damage” to Mercedes, which finished in the points zone with both is cars. The final challenge for the second place in the constructors championship will move to Brazil, to Felipe’s homeland, where the GP will be raced in one week. Given Lotus’s great condition, the Italian team cannot be quiet.

The dismissed Sergio Perez delivered a great race. His excellent performances demonstrated once again that he didn’t deserve to be dismissed. He’s only 22 and he’s developing. Maybe different choices would have been taken with a view to the 2015 season (McLaren-Honda). It seems to me that Jenson Button has passed his peak (he scored one point with difficulty).

Nico Hulkenberg and Sauber finished in the points zone again. Gutierrez would have deserved to finish in the points zone, too, but unfortunately he was imposed a penalty in qualifying. I was surprised by Bottas. Williams took some choices which date back to the 2012 season. Those choices paid off. Valtteri is proving to deserve to be a F.1 driver.

GP USA – Preview

/in /by

Among the new generation’s circuit, the Austin raceway is the most interesting one from a technical point of view. Temperatures are expected to be lower than usual, so Pirelli’s choice to bring hard and medium tires to the USA, could cause some problems to some teams, Ferrari included. Some constructors are challenging each other to get the title, just like the Maranello-based Scuderia, which wants to close the gap with Mercedes and Lotus will try to go over the Italian squad’s head. Kimi’s abandon before the end of the Championship – I do agree with his choice to undertake surgery for not jeopardizing next season – and, above all, Lotus’s choice could make it difficult for the English team to get the third place.

The struggle between McLaren and Force India to get the fifth place is also remarkable. Everything seemed to be said and done until some race ago, however, Di Resta and Sutil’s performances over the last few GP made the team score 15 points. Now the point-gap with its main rival is only 18 points, so everything can still happen. The change Perez-Magnussen could break up the team’s calm and work to the advantage of the squad owned by Vijay Mallya.

The Austin race week end will be very important also for the unrest which rings around the drivers market not only for what concerning next season, but also for the 2015 season. It’s a long time since the market was so dynamic and we can say that it’s a kind of crazy. But, let’s do things in an orderly fashion:

– After seeing how the land lies about Maldonado, Hulkenberg and Schumacher, Lotus relied on Kovalainen, leaving “empty-handed” its third driver Valsecchi. The team’s choice has to make everyone think, especially those guys who are all set to sign a contract as a third driver, without having any guarantee. The Lotus management has preferred to rely on an experienced driver, even if he hasn’t raced for some time, rather than relying on a young driver who has worked with the team for one season and has demonstrated to be able to be very performing. I think that the blame has to be placed on regulations. I find regulations really stupid, as they don’t allow young drivers to show their skills and gain experience. I don’t agree with this choice and I’m so disappointed with that.

– Magnussen will join McLaren. The Danish driver will replace Perez. The Mexican has been criticized many times, even if he has demonstrated to be a skilled driver and, in some cases, to be even more performing than Jenson Button. I think that the team’s choice has to be interpreted as a strategy for the 2015 season (cooperation with Honda), rather than as Perez’s rejection.

At this point, many negotiations will be driven behind the scenes. There are two drivers such as Perez and Maldonado who are “unemployed”, despite they can rely on a millionaire support. Pastor is aiming at becoming a Lotus driver, while Perez could wink at Force India or Sauber, to the “Hulk” detriment. The German driver can remain at Sauber thanks to Ferrari’s support.

Two very important GP are yet to be raced to complete the 2014 season’s puzzle.

Bhai Tech and Pantano on the roof of Europe

/in /by

The International GT Open Championship’s finale couldn’t be better for the Bhai Tech Racing Team, who got the better over rivals at the Barcelona circuit by winning the GTS title, bringing home the first cup.

The Mestrino-based Advanced Vehicle Science Centre’s racing team, who made his debut in the International GT Open Championship and in the GT competitions this year, has constantly improved his performances time after time, delivering excellent races, such as in Monza, where the team took his first win overall, at the Nuerburgring, where the team sealed two wins and at Silverstone, McLaren’s hometown, where Bhai Tech Racing delivered a successful race again. It was a seven months long season, competed through 16 races and hard fought until the last two corners in the Catalan challenge’s second round. It was a heart-taking finale, which made everyone hold his breath. Giorgio Pantano took the drivers’ title and completed a perfect week end for the Italian team. The Padua-born champion, who made his debut in the GT competition this year and paired off with the Portuguese driver Alvaro Parente, launched the crucial attack by making a spectacular manoeuvre in the last few laps, taking the third place overall. Luiz Razia and Chris Van Der Drift, who were at the wheel of the second McLaren MP4-12C, finished fifth, giving the English constructor the second place in the Championship.

“It’s a win to be shared with the staff and the drivers. A particular thanks to the owners who made all the needed resources available to us and McLaren. We’re proud to have paid them off with this important result”, says the Engineer Mr. Costa, “It was a very intense week end, rich in emotions. It was also a very intense season which ended only in the last corners. We’ve always been aware of our potential and we’ve never let misfortune get us down. Races and championships end only after the chequeredflag is deployed on Sunday. Even after Saturday’s race we continued to work only relying on our resources, we never looked to anyone else. We were constantly among the fastest on track. Giorgio did a good job; during his stint he bridged the gap to get the title, making excellent manoeuvres. Alvaro Parente completed the puzzle. He knows the car very well, so he gave his precious contribution. Luiz and Chris helped the team to reach this important goal”, says the technical director.

“I’m really happy. It was an excellent result achieved at the end of a very intense week end. Taking the title at the last two corners is something indescribable, especially because it was my first season in a GT competition. Congrats to the team on an excellent job!” comments Giorgio Pantano.

Bhai Tech’s victory means also a great success for the virtual race simulation. In addition to on-track testing, the team also worked hard inside the Bhai Tech headquarter’s simulation suite which hosts the driving simulator facility. It’s a full-motion 6-DOF facility, which is fully immersive with a 8 m 210° diameter curved screen, five off-board projectors, two rear view visuals and a modeling software. This is a clear proof of how much this technology is important not only for Formula 1. See you in the 2014!

The PS04B at the Casa Enzo Ferrari Museum in Modena

/in /by

At the Casa Enzo Ferrari museum in Modena, on the occasion of the exhibition called “Grand Prix: the F.1 Championship’s single-seaters”, even the Minardi PS04B was put on display. That is the car with which the Minardi Team took part in the 2005 F.1 World Championship’s first races, before the PS05 made its debut. The PS05 was the Faenza based team’s 21st car which was driven by Patrick Friersacher, Robert Doornbos and Christijan Albers during the last GP the Italian team took part in at the Bahrein International Circuit.

Designed by Gabriele Tredozi, a brilliant engineer, the PS04B can be seen inside the exhibition hall. The exhibition’s goal is to celebrate 40 years of passion and speed, through an innovative path which is meaningful from a cultural and sporting perspective. The exhibition hosts real masterpieces of the motorsport engineering and makes visitors experience an unordinary GP, where some of the F.1 history’s best cars and drivers seem to challenge each other again.

The Minardi PS04B, which is now owned by Mr. Tredozi, is surrounded by legendary cars which excited thousands of race enthusiasts, such as the Ferrari 312 T driven by Niki Lauda in the 1975 F.1 world Championship, the Williams driven by the unforgettable Ayrton Senna and the McLaren MP 4/4 with which Senna and Prost won 15 GP out of 16 in the 1988 F.1 championship. The exhibition, which takes place inside the futuristic yellow “hood” which surrounds Enzo Ferrari’s birthplace, will be open until January 28th 2014.