Category Archives: Uncategorized

Renault has unveiled its 2014 F1 power unit

Renault has unveiled its 2014 power unit, dubbed the Energy F1-2014.

It will be used next year by Red Bull, Toro Rosso, Caterham and Lotus, although the latter two deals have yet to be formally confirmed.

Renault Sport boss Jean-Michel Jalinier said: “From next year, one of greatest challenges in F1 will be to maximize energy efficiency and fuel economy while maintaining the power output and performance expected of F1 cars.

“Renault has pioneered this technology in its road car engine range with the Energy series. Naming the Power Unit Energy F1 creates an unbroken range, from the Clio through to our competition department.”

The FIA says that it will announce its verdict on the Mercedes tyre testing case “by tomorrow,” following some heated debate in today’s hearing in Paris.

The case is the first to be held under the auspices of the International Tribunal, the new judicial system instigated by Jean Todt.

As expected, Mercedes insisted it had permission to conduct the controversial test, having spoken to the FIA about it. The FIA claimed that while race director Charlie Whiting had indicated that a tyre test with a current car might be possible, it was adamant that any discussions he had with the team did not constitute formal permission – and in any case the Sporting Regulations could only be overridden by the World Motor Sport Council, or by the Tribunal itself.

In addition to outlining the breach of Article 22, related to in-season testing with a current car, FIA lawyer Mark Howard also mentioned Article 151c, which involves bringing the sport into disrepute, or more specifically bans “fraudulent conduct or any act prejudicial to the interests of any competition or to the interests of motorsport generally.”

Howard argued that: “Without the knowledge, consent and participation of other competitors, Mercedes and Pirelli may have engaged in activity that was prejudicial to the competition.”

Meanwhile Pirelli was insistent that it could not be sanctioned by the FIA and expressed doubts about why it had been called into proceedings.

Among the surprise revelations today was that Ferrari had conducted not just this year’s Barcelona Pirelli test with Pedro de la Rosa and an old car, but had also run a test with Felipe Massa last year.

This was yet another indication that Pirelli has been colluding with teams to run “private” tests without the knowledge of all its contracted customers, and in stark contrast to the open way it promised to run its test programme with the 2010 Renault.

It remains to be seen what punishment could be inflicted should Mercedes be found guilty. Intriguingly as part of his summing up Mercedes lawyer Paul Harris said that his client had tried to act in good faith in checking with the FIA, and thus something like a reprimand – or exclusion from the upcoming Young Driver test, where the current cars are used by all teams – would be an appropriate punishment.

The latter idea certainly has some merit as a possible sanction, and sounds like something that may have already been discussed with the FIA. However it would still not put the other teams on a par with Mercedes given that they won’t be using race drivers, and thus missing that tests hardly equates to a punishment.

In perhaps the most bizarre pronouncement of the day Harris also apologised for the fact that Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg had completed the test in plain, unmarked helmets, claiming – somewhat unbelievably – that it was to lessen interest from fans due to a lack of security and bodyguards.

As outlined here three weeks ago did in fact involve strict security to the extent that a lone photographer/blogger standing outside the venue was invited to leave…

Ross Brawn says that Mercedes learned little about its current form on Pirelli tyres in Canada, given the unusual nature of the track.

Although Lewis Hamilton ultimately lost second place to Fernando Alonso, the Brit nevertheless had a strong race to third, with a solid opening stint. Nico Rosberg in contrast had a less happy run to fifth.

“It is difficult to judge,” Brawn told this blog. “Montreal is a track where you can easily moderate the stress on the tyre, because it’s down to wheelspin, it’s down to how you use the throttle, there aren’t any massive loadings in corners. So it’s a little bit too early to judge.”

Nevertheless Brawn says that Canada was a good weekend for Mercedes.

“I think it was a pretty reasonable race to be honest from where we were. If we look at our performance on Friday, it didn’t look great, so it was a pretty reasonable race from there.

“Clearly we have to find a bit more pace if we want to be a real contender, but it’s somewhat of a step from where we were last year. Overall it was a pretty good job by the team during quite a challenging weekend.”

Regarding Hamilton’s apparent resurgence he said: “They go up and down, it’s inevitable. It was a Lewis up weekend and maybe a Nico down weekend. We can’t complain about third and fifth.”

Money from the USA, Abu Dhabi and Brunei is behind Infinity Racing Partners, the consortium which has acquired 35% of the Lotus F1 team.

Lotus has not named Brunei, saying merely that Infinity was comprised of “an American hedge fund manager, an Abu Dhabi-based multinational business group and royal family interests of a major oil producing nation.”

A little research reveals that the three companies in the consortium are Crescent Investment Management (New Jersey), Al Manhal International Group (Abu Dhabi), and Universal Sports Group (Brunei), with their shareholding split 20-20-60.

The individuals behind the project are Mansoor Ijaz, the boss of Crescent, and Suhail Al Dhaheri, CEO of Al Manhal.

Aged 51, Ijaz is of Pakistani origin but was born in Florida and studied in Virginia. In addition to his own investments he is well known as a journalist and media commentator on political and business affairs, and has been seen frequently on Fox News programmes.

Al Dhaheri, 52, is a former pilot. The Al Manhal company website describes itself as “a multi-faceted group with diverse interests including Investment, Structure financing, Project Management, Event Managements, Telecommunications and Renewable Energy, Digital Hospital, Motor Sports, Oil & Gas, Refinery Projects, Construction and Real Estate.”

Not much is known at this stage about the Brunei connection, although the country formerly had close links to Ferrari, when the team carried Asprey’s branding in the early Schumacher days.

After months of rumours Lotus F1 has finally revealed a new investor in the form of a consortium called Infinity Racing, which has acquired a 35% stake in the team.

Lotus has consistently posted major losses since the team was offloaded by Renault and was clearly in need of some extra funding.

Lotus says that Infinity Racing is “an investment consortium whose special purpose vehicle is comprised of private investors that include an American hedge fund manager, an Abu Dhabi-based multinational business group and royal family interests of a major oil producing nation.”

Genii Capital retains the remaining 65%, and Gerard Lopez continues as chairman.

Lopez said: “Infinity Racing’s principals have exceptional expertise and a proven strong track record in developing and delivering high quality technologies. This partnership will enable us to increase Lotus F1 Team’s competitive advantage related to KERS technology as it becomes more central to Formula 1’s push for environmentally sound racing, while also making Lotus F1 Team more marketable as a brand, opening up additional major sponsorship opportunities.”

Genii CEO Eric Lux said: “Since Genii Capital took over control in December 2009, we have been focused on growing the value of the organisation and developing the infrastructure at its Enstone headquarters. As Lotus F1 Team results have continued to improve every year, we have been waiting for the right investor who will help make the jump to the top spot in the Constructors’ Championship.

“In Infinity Racing, we have found a partner with the right connections in addition to technological expertise and a global reach in major markets with key sponsors to achieve this goal.”

Jose Froilan Gonzalez, the man who earned his place in the history books by scoring Ferrari’s first Grand Prix win at Silverstone in 1951, has died at the grand age of 90.

Famously known as the ‘Pampas Bull,’ he started 26 World Championship races, adding a second British GP win with Ferrari in 1954 to his earlier success. He also won the Le Mans 24 Hours in 1954, sharing with Maurice Trintignant. His CV also includes three World Championship poles and six fastest laps.

Born in Arrecifes, Argentina on October 10 1922 – some 11 years after friend and countryman Juan Manuel Fangio – Gonzalez was known for his bulky physique. However before he took up motor racing he had been a keen participant in other sports.

He began his career in Argentina in 1946 with a Chevrolet, later racing various Fords and eventually a Maserati 4CL in major Formula Libre events.

He first came to Europe in 1950, racing a Maserati in the Monaco and French GPs, as well as a number of non-championship races. He also drove a Ferrari in a few F2 events.

In 1951 he joined Ferrari as a fulltime works driver, winning at Silverstone and taking podiums in France, Germany, Italy and Spain to earn himself third place in the World Championship.

He only started one World Championship race in 1952, finishing second for Maserati at Monza, but he competed many non-championship races, winning at Goodwood both with the Ferrari Thin Wall Special, and later the BRM V16.

He raced for Maserati for most of the 1953 season although he was sidelined after July following a sportscar crash.

Returning to Ferrari in 1954 he won at Silverstone for a second time, while four other podiums helped him to second place in the World Championship, behind only Fangio. He also won three non-championship races, and in sportscars triumphed at Le Mans.

Although at the top of his game, he then returned to Argentina. After that he never raced regularly again at the top level, starting only his home GP in 1955, 1956 and 1957, apart from a one-off F1 outing with Vanwall in the middle of those seasons. However he continued to race, and win, in domestic events.

He returned to the GP scene for a final outing in Buenos Aires in 1960, with Ferrari, before quitting the sport completely in May that year. He won his final race at El Pinar, Uruguay.

Spanish musician and producer Carlos Jean, also known as Mr Miracle, was given access to Ferrari’s factory and the Fiorano test track to record the sounds of the Italian F1 team in action. He’s now managed to incorporate what he heard into a dance track – with Rob Smedley (who else!) starring on vocals.

Here’s a taster of it…

Pirelli has finally admitted defeat in its attempts to change to Kevlar-belted rear tyres from the British GP, due to ongoing opposition from some teams.

The intention was to use the switch to last year’s construction in an attempt to address the delamination issue, but instead Pirelli has changed its production process – in other words the method of bonding.

The revised tyres were tested on Friday in Canada, although wet conditions for much of the day limited mileage.

They were also tested by Mercedes at its infamous Barcelona session, although Pirelli says that 2013 race compounds were not used on that occasion.

Pirelli had been suggesting that its planned change would go ahead, but it was always relying on full support from the teams, as outlined here in previous stories.

A Pirelli statement said: “The tyre construction will remain unchanged, contrary to Pirelli’s initial plans. This decision is due to the fact that the new tyres, which were brought to the Friday free practice sessions in Canada, could not be tested sufficiently due to rain – and that the teams failed to agree unanimously about introducing the changes. Instead a change in the tyre production process should now ensure that the delamination issue has been addressed.”

Meanwhile tyre choices for upcoming races are hard/medium for Silverstone, medium/soft for Nurburgring, and hard/medium for Hungary.

Bernie Ecclestone has made it clear that he believes that Mercedes rather than Pirelli is to blame for the testing controversy.

Although initially reluctant to express an opinion, Bernie emphasised that Mercedes could have turned down the chance to risk breaking the FIA’s Sporting Regulations.

Ecclestone is known to have an uneasy relationship with Mercedes team principal Ross Brawn after a commercial disagreement during the Brawn GP days, and some have suggested that he wouldn’t mind seeing the former Benetton and Ferrari man carry the can for what happened.

“Wait until the tribunal, they’ve got all the facts,” Ecclestone told this writer. “If you offer me stolen goods, it’s up to me to decide whether I want to accept them or not. It’s not up to anyone to tell me what I should do. I should know what I should do.

“Pirelli were doing the right thing, obviously. They couldn’t get out of a tyre problem, if there had been proper testing, which there should be, they wouldn’t be in this problem. It’s only because there’s no proper testing that they’re in this problem. As people have been complaining, the obvious thing to do was to get out of it by testing. And they asked.”

Asked if he felt Pirelli had done anything wrong, he added: “Not at all.”

Ecclestone and the F1 organisation have a significant commercial deal with Pirelli for signage and so on, but he denies that has impacted his opinion.

“I don’t care. It makes no difference to me. What is right, is right, you know. The one thing an unmarried girl has got is the right to say ‘no.’ You would have to reckon that Mercedes were in that position…”

Meanwhile Ecclestone played down suggestions that Michelin – a company known to be friendly with Jean Todt – is waiting in the wings to replace Pirelli.

“No idea. I haven’t got a clue. I haven’t spoken to anyone. We have a long-term contract with Pirelli, as the FIA do. And I think most of the teams have – I think they’ve done a deal with all the teams they want to do a deal with.”

Jean-Eric Vergne followed up his eighth place in Monaco with a strong sixth in Montreal, which represented Toro Rosso’s best finish since the Sebastian Vettel days in 2008.

Vergne has thus begun to stake his claim for a possible graduation to Red Bull Racing – should favourite Kimi Raikkonen ultimately not land a seat alongside Sebastian Vettel as replacement for Mark Webber.

Vergne started seventh in Canada and a strong opening stint took him away from the midfield pack.

“It was a good race, my best race in F1,” said the Frenchman. “I had a good start, better than everybody in front, but I got blocked by various cars. I didn’t lose any positions, and then I passed Bottas quite quickly in the race, and I made a gap. I just pushed 100% until the end of the race. Sixth is great, a great result for the team, it builds our confidence. We need to keep pushing and bring a better car in Silverstone again, and bring some more good results like this.”

After a difficult rookie season last year Vergne believes that he can continue to gain momentum.

“I think the team first of all is getting better, my confidence is building up as well, and I just feel good now. It’s just a question of putting everything together, and that’s what I’m trying to do.”