Monthly Archives: June 2012

Santander’s video concept for a London GP was unveiled in the city tonight, with Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button both present to support a project they have helped come to fruition.

Bernie Ecclestone has made it clear that he would love such an event to happen one day – although for the moment it remains just a very clever PR stunt by the McLaren sponsor.

“The idea of an F1 street race in London is something I have had for many years,” said Bernie. “It would be magnificent. A couple of years ago we came very close to an agreement with the City of Westminster and The Mayor’s office but we ran into the small problem of cost.

“A few years back over half a million people turned-up to watch F1 cars parading through the streets of the capital. The public’s appetite for a London Grand Prix is huge, as I am sure it is with the F1 teams and sponsors.”

In fact everyone in F1 accepts that the logistical problems of closing a large part of central London for several days would seem to be insurmountable, never mind any consideration of noise. A lot of thought has gone into the video, however.

The bank asked architects Populous – who have been involved in Silverstone and the O2 Arena – to come up with a realistic outline for what is intended to be a night race.

Santander says it commissioned Populous “to undertake an extensive and wide-ranging approach to its feasibility plan for a London Grand Prix, embracing all logistical considerations from pits and paddock, grandstands, run-off areas, to kerb profiling, access roads for safety and medical access, catch fencing design, noise attenuation strategies, a three megawatt night race lighting system with 1,200 projectors, bespoke garage pods to house the teams in lightweight, eco-friendly and modern temporary buildings such as the media centre. The integrated travel plan includes spectator entry and exit points which are all accessible via public transport.”

It adds that the “14 corner, 5.1km circuit which features a start grid on The Mall, a 192mph Santander straight in the run up to Buckingham Palace and with perhaps one of the most audacious corners anywhere on the sport’s 20 race global calendar, the London Grand Prix route circuit will steer 24 cars from Trafalgar Square into Admiralty Arch.

“The garages and hospitality suites are multi-purpose items which can easily be packed up and used elsewhere.”

John Rhodes of Populous said: “Delivering an event within an existing city is a lot more sophisticated than just sitting down with a copy of the A-Z. We mapped out some of London’s most recognised places and landmarks and then worked out how we would integrate them within the layout. The design process was driven by the twin requirements of creating an exciting circuit and giving the best view of the iconic places associated with it.

“We surveyed the site very carefully so that the plan would be achievable for real. To provide some notion of the level of forensic detail we have considered, we accounted for no less than 27,000 trees in our plan and I am glad to say the race would not impact a single one.”

Hamilton and Button are both keen for it to happen.

“Having been immersed in this project, having helped to shape this track, it feels as real to me as anywhere I’ve raced,” said Hamilton. “Jenson and I have worked in the simulator to provide some useful feedback to inform the circuit design, so this is far more than whimsical thinking out loud.

“The film that encapsulates all of this work is massively detailed as well as logistically achievable. And I have to say, this is an utterly epic track and would produce the most stunning and compelling Formula 1 race. If you add an event of this complexion to London’s staggering roster of world-class sporting events, it surely would have to own the title of the ultimate sporting metropolis?”

“Both Lewis and I are hugely conscious of how integral the UK is to Formula 1,” said  Button. “Right the way from our fan base that is highly knowledgeable and engaged to the technology culture and engineering enterprise that makes us the pre-eminent source of racing innovation anywhere on the planet.

“With all of this background, Silverstone is a natural celebration of the UK’s contribution to Formula 1. It is nice to add to this rich tapestry the notion of a London street race, and I agree with Lewis, it is a great hypothetical track to drive, and is as appealing as the reality of the Silverstone circuit.”

Lotus has logged strong podium finishes in 2012, but a first win continues to elude the Enstone team.

In Valencia Romain Grosjean was behind Fernando Alonso and potentially in a position to challenge the Ferrari when he retired with an alternator problem.

Meanwhile Kimi Raikkonen finished second having been overtaken by Lewis Hamilton at the safety car restart. He then spent much of the rest of the race behind the McLaren, before finally getting by in the closing laps. With a clear run, he too might have had a shot at Alonso.

Lotus team principal Eric Boullier insists that he’s not frustrated that a first 2012 win continue to elude his team, despite coming close so often.

“Not winning is not frustrating, it was more frustrating to have a DNF with Romain,” Boullier told this writer. “But at the same time we had a second place with Kimi.

“We are reasonably happy, obviously. If everything was normal, Vettel would have won, because he was too far from everybody. And Romain would have finished second and Kimi fourth, which would have been a very good result for the team. Obviously with the cars breaking down at the front it was good for the team to at least have a nice podium.”

Regarding Kimi’s drive, he added: “It was good, better. He took all the opportunities that he could. If you don’t have clear laps, it’s a problem. You have to deal with the traffic.”

Boullier is hopeful that the E20 will be suited to Silverstone.

“It should be good for us normally. The car likes fast corners. The only issue is maybe the weather or the track temperature, so we will see.”

A month ago McLaren sponsor Santander invited the media to an event in London today with the premise “Ever imagined what a London Grand Prix might look like? Jenson and Lewis have.”

The company followed up with the promise of a CGI video, with the explanation: “This summer, London is undeniably the focus of the world’s attention. During the preamble to July’s British Grand Prix, Santander, the title sponsor of the UK’s legendary race at Silverstone, has prompted consideration of how this season of international events in London might be augmented by a Formula 1 race – and how a spectacular metropolitan street race past London’s iconic landmarks, might look.”

It seemed like a clever PR stunt – hook up F1 with a bit of Olympic 2012 fervour and some harmless speculation about how a race in London might look like – but on the very day of the event Bernie Ecclestone is claiming that there are serious plans in place.

Bernie’s desire for a GP in the city is no secret, and he was hugely encouraged by the interest in  the Regent Street demonstration of 2004. The successful London Olympic bid and the long term deal with Silverstone appeared to put a stop to any plans, with the likelihood of the UK ever getting a second race receding as more and more countries applied for races.

However with economic problems making some current events less than viable it seems that Bernie has revived the idea of London as a second UK event, and reportedly he is prepared to promote it himself, to the tune of £35m.

He told The Times: “With the way things are, maybe we would front it and put the money up for it. If we got the OK and everything was fine, I think we could do that. Think what it would do for tourism. It would be fantastic, good for London, good for England – a lot better than the Olympics.”

The logistical problems of closing a large part of central London for several days would seem to be insurmountable, never mind any consideration of noise. Anyone who has been woken up in Melbourne by the early morning activities of the Minardi two-seater will know just how far it can travel across a city…

Bernie claims no connection with proposals for a race at the Olympic site, although that would seem to be a rather more realistic option that a route involving The Mall, Piccadilly Circus, et al. Perhaps that is Ecclestone’s end game, having drummed up some initial interest.

A similar thing happened with Valencia, where Bernie backed the street demo for the 2007 McLaren launch (backed by Santander), and we ended up with a track around the rundown old dock area.

It remains to be seen how serious he really is and whether this is really just a clever bit of PR kite flying drummed up by Bernie and Santander, a regular F1 race sponsor and thus in effect a partner of FOM.

We shall know more later today…

Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo has reminded his team not to get too excited after Fernando Alonso’s Valencia win, pointing out that Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull had a clear advantage.

Montezemolo, who was in Valencia for Ferrari’s disappointing qualifying session but went home for the race, was addressing the team at the regular post-race Maranello debrief. He urged everyone in the camp to work even harder.

“I am worried and all of us should be,” he said. “Yes, I am worried, because I expect three very tough races at Silverstone, Hockenheim and Budapest, and because we have seen that Red Bull is very strong, having had four tenths in hand over everyone in qualifying and in the race it was flying away, at least until the Safety Car. If we want to achieve our goals then we must make a step forward.

“It’s thanks to your work, to an extraordinary driver who, not by chance, drives for Ferrari, to the strategy, the pit stops and the efforts of everyone at the track and back home, that we find ourselves leading the championship, even if we don’t have the best car.

“Now we must ensure we do everything as well as possible because winning depends solely and exclusively on us. It would be a big mistake to think the win in Valencia means we have done enough. Today we have a competitive car, but to win, we must do even more.

“I don’t want outsiders to think that one win is enough for us to put on a fireworks display. I know how much you are working, how many sacrifices have been made, but I am the first to know that that all of us, without exception, must still give something more.

“Let’s remember for a few more minutes that we are leading the world championship, then let’s get back to work.”

Montezemolo went on to praise Alonso, Felipe Massa, the pit stop crew and the Ferrari team principal.

“Stefano Domenicali has never shirked his responsibilities, even acting as a lightning conductor for all the criticism, protecting his people, while at the same time knowing how to demand the maximum effort, how to build a team and look to the future in a positive way and with the right sense of realism. He deserves it.”

Vitaly Petrov and Heikki Kovalainen may have given Caterham a useful boost in the team’s battle with Marussia for 10^th in the championship by finishing 13^th and 14^th in Valencia, but both men had clashes with Toro Rossos that cost them a shot at a better result – and possibly even a spot in the top 10.

Kovalainen was hit by Jean-Eric Vergne on lap 27, forcing Heikki to drive half a lap with a front puncture. Meanwhile the debris dropped by the STR subsequently triggered the safety car.

Vergne was later given a 10-place grid drop for Silverstone, plus a €25,000 fine, as the stewards felt that the collision was totally unnecessary.

“I don’t know what he was thinking,” Kovalainen told this blog. “I thought he was going to get past me quite easily there. He obviously caught me, but he just ran into me. Luckily nothing else happened.

“He never had a go up to that point – it was the first time he got the DRS, and he had a go. It totally surprised me. I made him go around the outside at least, but I wasn’t going to give him a hard time. Under braking he just turned in to me.

“I’ve never come together with him anywhere, I don’t know him at all, and we never had any issues. After that I had a vibration from the front upright, so there was probably something not quite right.”

Kovalainen lost a lap as he drove slowly to the pits, and while he got it back after the lapped cars were waved by, he and others were stuck behind Pedro de la Rosa’s slow HRT as the group attempted to catch up. Heikki was thus 23s off the back of the pack at the restart.

“It was looking quite good, because I was on a two-stop strategy, and I was trying to stretch the middle stint. I was taking it a bit easier with my tyres to make them last a few more laps, and I was feeling quite comfortable. I was hopeful that by the time we got the last stint I’d be able to jump a few cars. Maybe next time.”

Petrov meanwhile ran an unusual three-stop strategy which meant he was able to go flat out throughout, until a clash with Daniel Ricciardo meant a fourth stop for a new nose.

Bruno Senna says he was surprised to be given a drive through penalty in Valencia after contact with Kamui Kobayashi.

The FIA stewards deemed that Senna had moved across on the Japanese driver after Kimi Raikkonen had passed him on the inside, and the Sauber tried to take the same route. Senna had a spectacular half spin, and suffered a rear puncture, which led to a slow run back to the pits.

“It was a little bit surprising, but we’ve seen that happening before and hopefully it won’t happen again,” Senna told this blog. “It was one of those days.

“Kimi had a run on me, which was fair enough. After he overtook me, I ducked behind him. Kobayashi was obviously desperate to overtake me, he was on KERS as well, because he was really coming out of the corner.

“When I was sideways in the middle of the track I was a bit scared because I thought that people could really hit me hard. Fortunately none of that happened. I managed to recover fast.

“There was no way he was going to overtake me there. If he had waited another five seconds he could have overtaken me out of Turn 10, which is where he should have tried really. Considering the difference in tyres, it was a no-brainer, really. Disappointing in many ways, but especially for the penalty we got. That’s racing, hopefully I’ll have better luck next time.”

Senna eventually finished 11^th, and was gifted a point for 10^th after team mate Pastor Maldonado’s penalty.

Not counting the drive through, his only stop was the one on lap 20 when he came in with his puncture.

“We were going to make a one-stop work. I did one stop effectively, I just had about a minute penalty in the middle, which didn’t help. But we made it work. It looked good for us. We were racing Schumacher and Webber, and could have finished where they finished.”

Martin Whitmarsh admits that McLaren was surprised by how early Lewis Hamilton found himself in tyre problems in Valencia.

Hamilton was the first of the leaders to pit after the start, and also hit more severe trouble in the closing laps than anyone else who had changed to primes at the same time as he had, under the safety car.

“I think these days everything is a surprise in motor racing, isn’t it?,” Whitmarsh told this writer. “I think it was tough on the option tyre, which was probably overheating, so we decided to stop early. It was a little bit stronger on the prime tyre, frankly, but it would was obviously going to be a tough old race.”

Hamilton dropped behind Fernando Alonso after his disastrous pit stop under the safety car.

“We had an equipment failure at the stop which made it even tougher. It was the front jack that failed and dropped the car, and unfortunately with a pit lane like that he had to come in at a steep angle, so it wasn’t great anyway. As it turned out it did not materially have an effect on the outcome of the race, which was very disappointing.

“At the end he was clearly and obviously struggling on the tyres. Twenty nine laps on either tyre was going to be a challenge, and it proved very difficult to do. If you stopped early you were taking a big risk, so it was difficult to come through that one.

“The Maldonado incident finished his day off pleasantly! Obviously Maldonado was off the track and back on again – I’m sure both drivers have different views. It was pretty frustrating.”

Whitmarsh was pleased that Jenson Button at least managed to recover some points after losing ground at the start.

“Jenson lost some positions during the first lap, which was deeply frustrating on a circuit where it’s difficult to overtake, and in traffic of course you’re damaging your tyres. Ultimately he was had over by the safety car. Thereafter it was going to be pretty difficult. He snuck in and got some points at the end by just a controlled, disciplined drive.”

When he met the media after the European GP didn’t want to talk about his incident with Pastor Maldonado, insisting that he didn’t know what really happened when he was pitched into the wall.

The stewards decided that the Venezuelan was at fault, giving him a 20s penalty that ultimately only cost him a 10th place. That did nothing to help the McLaren driver, who was trying to hang on to third place when the collision occurred.

“I don’t really know what happened if I’m honest,” said Lewis. “I went in the corner and I didn’t come out. To be honest it happened so fast I really don’t remember what happened. All I remember is sitting in the wall with only a lap to go.

“My tyres were gone. I don’t know where I would have finished, but the last lap all of a sudden the tyres just went. It was almost like I had flat tyres at the back. We’ve got a lot of work to do to try and pick up the pace, because we were really struggling today.”

Asked if it might have been more prudent in the circumstances to let Maldonado past, he said: “You never let people past. You’ve got to race for every position you can get.”

Lewis, who was keen to congratulate Fernando Alonso, adoped a philosophical approach.

“As always you put your heart and soul into it, but you have these ups and downs.

“It’s life. Of course it’s really tough not to finish races, especially when there are a couple of laps to go, but that is life, and you have to suck it up.”

Not surprisingly Stefano Domenicali was full of praise for Fernando Alonso after the European GP, but as ever the Ferrari boss cautioned that the team should keep its feet on the ground.

Domenicali said was delighted with the way Alonso fought for the victory.

“We know that he’s a number one driver, and that’s the reason why he’s here with us,” said Domenicali. “I’m very happy for him today, because he had such a pressure. Certain things you have it or you feel it just watching the eyes of a man that you know. So I was really so happy from my heart to see him in this fighting mode, and I’m also happy because the team was supporting him also in terms of the right strategy, in terms of the right calls, and this is the strength of our team.”

“We need to stay cool and calm. Today was a victory which was very important, because our main competitors in the drivers’ championship had some problems. And this is part of the thing that we said, reliability was a key factor this year, you need to score points every time. And so, it’s a very heavy Sunday.

“But we saw a Red Bull that improved a lot in terms of pure performance, and we need to not forget that. That has to be a target for our people at home who have worked a lot, but it’s not enough – we need to keep pushing. We know that things can change very quickly, and that’s very important to stay focussed, and push as hard as we can.”

Domenicali reiterated that pole position is the true barometer of performance.

“We will never be happy until we get back to a pole position, because unfortunately this is a very important element of the race. We are fighting, we are fighting to improve the car. Up that moment we cannot be happy because the qualifying means that for the pure performance point of view we have reached the highest level, and at the moment we need to be fair, we are not yet there.

“So we need to keep working with the feet on the ground. Knowing the fact that this is for sure a totally different car from where we were at the beginning of the season, so I’m happy because the guys have reacted in the right direction. I keep all the pressure on my shoulders, listen to everything, that’s part of the game, but keep everyone focussed on the right job to do at home.”

Michael Schumacher was investigated for speeding through a yellow flag zone in the closing laps of the European GP after Mark Webber – who was behind him – saw that his DRS flap was open.

Webber reported back to his team and the FIA duly took a look at the situation after the race.

The DRS/yellow flag saga goes back to Suzuka last year, when an incident occurred and several drivers were seen to have used DRS and in some cases KERS.

After that drivers were told that a repeat would be frowned upon by the stewards, and in Barcelona this year both Sebastian Vettel and Felipe Massa received penalties after they drove through a yellow zone with their DRS open and without backing off.

In Schumacher’s case he was received a DRS activation in the tow of Narain Karthikeyan. At the same time he was told by his engineer, who knew a yellow had just some out, ‘don’t use DRS.’

However, Michael apparently didn’t see a yellow flag initially and there was no light on his steering wheel – the incident was far around the corner at the end of the straight after the bridge – so at the start of the zone he opened the DRS.

He then passed by a stationary yellow flag which the stewards subsequently accepted was hard to see.

When he reached a more obvious double yellow, which was immediately followed by a yellow light panel, he switched off his DRS and backed off.

Webber meanwhile had seen the open DRS and having been told by his team not to use his he was understandably miffed.

However it was deemed by the stewards that by backing off Michael had slowed down sufficiently, and intriguingly it was determined that Webber was actually 0.3s quicker through the same sector…