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HRT has gone for a dramatic livery for the F111

At the recent Valencia test Colin Kolles showed me some pics of HRT’s new livery on his Blackberry, and a week later the team has issued them to the world.

The new F111 has been designed in the UK by a team under Geoff Willis and Paul White, and uses a tub built by CarboTech, the Austrian company that has made chassis for Toro Rosso in the recent past, and is also involved with the McLaren road car. HRT hopes to have it ready to run by the Bahrain test.

The car features a dramatic livery designed by Daniel Simon, who has worked for some leading manufacturers and is now working on Hollywood movies. The pics are also the first formal confirmation that Narain Karthikeyan’s personal backer Tata will also be seen on the car.

Kolles says: “The F111 represents a significant step forward for Hispania Racing. We have made a big improvement for starting our second season in Formula 1 and what you see in our new car confirms Hispania Racing´s commitment to F1.

“Daniel has created a wonderfully confident look for our new car which really captures the effort the whole team has put into developing the F111. The car design and the graphic design perfectly complement one another and mark the real beginnings of our ambitions.”

In case you were wondering, the team says the new livery “brings together racing spirit and commercial reality, blending the dual requirements in a seamless, but attractive manner, which reflects the motivated vibe of the Hispania Racing team.”

Simon himself added: “I miss fearless visual statements and large beautiful numbers on today´s racing cars. Playing with the restrictions of what you can do to a complex F1 body is fun. There are many don’ts, but I found a way to lay courageous racing essence on the car.”

A prize to the first person to spot the courageous racing essence! Seriously though, it’s a good effort by HRT. At least it will get noticed…

The new Virgin certainly looks like a step forward

Marussia Virgin’s new MVR02 was unveiled at the BBC Studios in London this morning, in front of an audience that included fans of the team.

Not surprisingly the team hopes that it will be a major step forward compared to its predecessor, which suffered from the limited time available for its design.

This year the team has a revised identity, thanks the high profile presence of new shareholders Marussia.

“We had a tough but incredibly rewarding baptism into Formula One last season and I am extremely proud that we proved ourselves to be more than equal to the challenge,” said team boss John Booth. “We are also very proud to be competing as Marussia Virgin Racing in 2011 and we look forward to rewarding the faith that Marussia demonstrated in the team when it made such a significant investment at the end of last year.

“2011 is all about moving forward and starting to achieve solid results. We have a very exciting driver line-up in Timo Glock and Jérôme d’Ambrosio.  Timo did an exceptional job in difficult circumstances last season and contributed a great deal to the car’s development and that of our racing team. We will certainly benefit from the continuity that Timo brings. He has been working very hard over the winter and is in top physical and mental shape for our second season together.

“We are also delighted to welcome Jerome in his debut season of Formula One competition. He did an excellent job during his evaluation period towards the end of last season and he demonstrated in testing last week that he clearly has the bit between his teeth. He is a very exciting young talent and we are enjoying seeing his clear potential unfold with each outing in the car.”

“The MVR-02 is a clear step forward in every area and a credit to all the hard work that has gone into our car development programme over the past 12 months. We are delighted to be working with our engine supplier Cosworth for a second season of collaboration. Despite the freeze on engine development they have been working hard on reliability and performance optimisation over the winter and we fully expect a continuation of the success they enjoyed in their return to the sport in 2010. The sport has the added challenge of a new tyre supplier in Pirelli but we have made good progress with tailoring our mechanical package to suit the new PZero tyres in the group tests in Abu Dhabi at the end of 2010 and in Valencia last week.

“Generally, we have every reason to believe that 2011 will be a very exciting and positive experience for our team.”

Technical director Nick Wirth said: “We were extremely pleased to have proved our digital design process in Formula One last season and to have demonstrated that it is possible to compete at the highest level of motor sport with a car designed wholly in computer simulation. Having said that, we faced a very steep learning curve and experienced some tough lessons, which we have applied to our design programme for 2011.

“We have addressed every single issue that troubled us last year, but in our own unique digital way.  For example, the hydraulics and gearbox oil problems of last year have resulted in us doing more CFD in these areas alone than we used in the entire aero design program our first digital race-winning sportscar in 2008. In Abu Dhabi we took the opportunity to prove out these digital improvements by successfully track-testing a number of systems for the MVR-02. So we start 2011 as we mean to go on – rather more ahead of the game – by going testing in Jerez this week with many parts already proven on the race track, or by an upgraded and more comprehensive rig-test program.

“In terms of sheer CFD throughput, the number of configurations that our new processes have allowed us to test for the MVR-02 is a giant step forward from the VR-01, and we are looking forward to further improvements here as we finally begin to benefit from the new Supercomputer that our partners CSC have provided for 2011.

“I am confident that we have made real progress with the MVR-02, producing a car with considerably more aerodynamic efficiency than the VR-01 despite the regulation changes, and having made significant gains in terms of overall quality. It provides a good basis for development over the course of the season, and I’m very sure we’ll be able to keep up the impressive rate of aero development that we’ve had since the beginning of the MVR-02 project.

“We also have the added challenge of a new tyre supplier in Pirelli and this helps level the playing field as the teams’ experience of the PZero tyres will be limited to only two days of testing in Abu Dhabi and 2011 pre-season testing in Spain and Bahrain.  Wirth Research has nearly four years of real-time driver simulator development experience now, and our ability to produce very realistic thermal tyre models in-house has been of great benefit. We were very encouraged by the positive feedback both drivers have given our simulator group on their recent developments in this crucial area.

“As ever, the competitive level of this first iteration of the MVR-02 will only be revealed in qualifying for the Bahrain Grand Prix next month, but in the meantime we look forward to what we hope will be a positive track debut for the MVR-02 in Jerez this week.”

Robert Kubica’s manager Daniele Morelli has been able to talk to the Pole this morning, following his lengthy operation last night.

Kubica was kept in an articially induced coma overnight.

“I finally talked and Robert has been shown to understand everything perfectly,” he was quoted as saying in the Italian media. “His mental capacities are intact and we are extremely relieved. This really leaves us hope. Obviously he feels a lot of pain in his leg and hand. It will take time. “

YouTube continues to throw more light on the Robert Kubica accident, and today a video emerged from the car that was running behind the Pole on the stage yesterday.

Although it shows the crashed car – shortly after 3mins in – it does not  show any uncomfortable detail, so I feel it’s appropriate to use here on the basis that it indicates just how committed Robert is to rallying in wanting to tackle a stage that looks, to say the least, like a major challenge.

Full marks too for the drivers concerned for stopping to help, as is the way in rallying.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ALbxMiwf4nw

With the Lotus Renault GP team now effectively acknowledging that Robert Kubica could be out for the season, attention inevitably moves to the identity of who could replace him.

The fact that the seat is potentially available for the whole year – and that any driver signed in the next few days will still get six days of testing at Jerez, Barcelona and Bahrain – puts a whole new complexion on things. Assuming that Vitaly Petrov drives on the first two days, then there will be a car waiting for the new driver in Jerez on Saturday February 12.

Bruno Senna was revealed exactly a week ago today as the team’s main reserve driver, on the basis that he raced last year and would thus be relatively fresh, should he be called upon. However even the Brazilian would accept that given its ambitions to win races sooner rather than later – and the R31 was fastest in Valencia after all – for a full season the team has to take a proven driver who can get the job done.

Given the changes over the winter, the number of free agents who raced last year is surprisingly small. Of those who raced in 2010 and are without a current contract with a team, Kubica’s former team mate Nick Heidfeld has to be top of the list, while it’s unlikely that Tonio Liuzzi or Pedro de la Rosa would tick all the boxes for Genii and Group Lotus.

Of those already committed elsewhere, the only third driver with obvious qualifications is Nico Hulkenberg, but it remains to be seen whether his contractual situation with Force India would make it easy for him to take up a chance elsewhere.

While there are probably a few contracted race drivers up and down the pitlane who might envy the Renault seat, it would take a lot of shuffling around for anyone to jump ship.

The one name that keeps springing to mind is Kimi Raikkonen. He’s committed to a part WRC season with Citroen, and has been pretty ambivalent about a possible return to F1. He even had a bit of a war of words in the media with Renault last year after his name came up as a possible 2011 driver.

The difference is that the team didn’t need him then, and he would have been joining a team that already had Robert Kubica. Indeed Petrov was pretty much confirmed anyway, and the fact that the Russian always looked likely to stay means that any discussion of Kimi’s prospects was academic.

This time it’s different. He has the chance of a full season, with six days of testing, in a car that could turn out to be competitive. Group Lotus will certainly be keen to have a big name, and his presence will suit Dany Bahar, who was still at Ferrari when Kimi was there. He wants to be like Ferrari, so hiring the Italian team’s last World Champion is not a bad plan…

Bernie Ecclestone, who likes to get involved in these things, will also be keen to see Kimi back. The Finn still has a huge following, and it would mean yet another World Champion on the grid.

It’s probably not widely known that Kubica and Raikkonen are good friends off track – they share a dislike of the BS that floats around the sport, as well as a passion for rallying – and I am sure that Robert would be the first to tell Eric Boullier and Gerard Lopez that Kimi is the man for the job.

And Lotus Renault would have obvious appeal for Kimi, in that he won’t have the sort of PR commitments that he faced at McLaren and Ferrari. A one-year deal would at least get him back in the game – he could either walk off in 2012, or put himself in a position to go elsewhere.

It might seem a long shot, but then everyone laughed on Sunday morning in Hungary in 2009 when I suggested that Schumacher could stand-in for Massa, including Willi Weber…

There are complications in terms of his arrangements with Red Bull and Citroen, and the winter ‘misunderstanding’ would have to be cleared up. But in the end it’s likely to come down to one thing. Will Kimi want to do it?

Late last night Lotus Renault GP issued a statement explaining Robert Kubica’s condition. It confirmed previously published details of the operation, but added that he was in an induced coma overnight.

The team also formally acknowledged that there were questions marks over whether he would regain mobility of his right arm.

The statement reads: “Robert Kubica underwent a seven-hour operation at the Santa Corona Hospital in Pietra Ligure this afternoon. The Lotus Renault GP driver had been diagnosed with multiple fractures to his right arm and leg following a high-speed accident at the Ronda de Andora rally this morning. He also suffered severe cuts to his forearm, which could have an impact on his right hand mobility. Doctors are reasonably satisfied with the way the operation went. Tonight, Robert’s condition remains stable but serious. He has been placed into an induced coma and could be woken up in the morning.”

Meanwhile the team quoted Prof Mario Igor Rossello as saying: “It has been a very important and difficult operation. Robert Kubica’s right forearm was cut in two places, with significant lesions to the bones and the tendons. We did our best to rebuild the functions of the forearm. It took seven doctors, split into two teams and a total of seven hours to complete the operation.

“One team was the emergency task force from the hospital of San Paolo (Savona) that is normally appointed to treat this sort of injury, while the other team came from the orthopaedic department of the Santa Corona Hospital (Pietra Ligure). At the end of the operation, Robert’s hand was well vascularised and warm, which is encouraging. Following the surgery, Robert Kubica will remain under permanent monitoring overnight because his condition remains serious.”

Team principal Eric Boullier says he is visiting Robert on Monday:”The news of Robert’s accident came as a real shock to the whole team. All of us, at Lotus Renault GP, wish him a quick recovery. We have been really impressed with the way the doctors looked after him today and we would like to thank the whole team of the Santa Corona Hospital for their professional approach and dedication. I will be travelling to Italy tomorrow, along with Vitaly Petrov, in order to see Robert and tell him that we are impatiently waiting for his return.”

A video has shown up on YouTube of Prof Igor Rossello explaining – in English – the details of Robert Kubica’s operation.

As mentioned here earlier, Rossello makes it clear that it will be a year before Kubica can hope to have proper use of his right arm again, explaining that the first job was to “reconstruct the whole anatomy of the forearm.”

The video, which begins with shots of Fernando Alonso visiting the hospital, originates from Il Vostro Giornale.

Robert Kubica has completed a seven hour operation under Italian hand surgery specialist Prof Igor Rossello, but it will be some time before his true condition becomes clear.

“We have to wait at least a week to see if his hand survives,” Rossello told Italian media, referring to the likelihood of a return to full functionality. He added that it could take a year for the Pole to be able to use his right arm again.

Rossello, a specialist from the nearly San Paulo Hospital in Savona, was joined by Renault’s own doctor, Riccardo Ceccarelli.

Kubica underwent bone reconstruction before the doctors attended to tissue and nerve damage, while a separate team worked on his injured leg.

Robert Kubica is still undergoing surgery in Italy, and while his right hand has been saved, it is not clear what lasting damage the Pole might have.

Kubica is in the Santa Corona hospital in Pietra Ligure, where his treatment is being overseen by Dr Riccardo Ceccarelli, the doctor of the Lotus Renault GP team. Also involved is Professor Igor Rossello, a locally based specialist.

In fact it seems that Kubica may have had some good fortune, because Rossello, the Director of the Regional Centre of Hand Surgery at the Hospital Sao Paolo in Savona, is apparently a world renowned expert in the field.

Kubica’s manager Daniele Morelli says it’s too soon to speculate upon the process of recovery.

“Unfortunately the impact with the guardrail caused serious harm,” Morelli told the Italian media outside the hospital. “He has been diagnosed with multiple fractures to his leg and right arm, especially complications related to his right hand. We shall see later if the operation was successful. The clinical picture is not easy. We expect to make the necessary assessments tonight.”

“The surgeons are trying to restore the functionality of his right hand. We must now think about the muscle function, but Robert has a very strong temper and will succeed.

“The important thing is that Robert recoveries, as it has already proven to do with the incident in Canada. On that occasion it took him three months to get back on track.”

Kubica’s co-driver Jakub Gerber, who escaped unharmed, has been quoted as saying: “(He) was conscious, then fainted and woke up a couple of times, without having full knowledge of what has happened.”

Reports suggest that the road surface was damp at the time of the accident, and it’s now clear that Kubica’s injuries were caused by the Skoda hitting the end of a barrier, which penetrated the footwell of the car.

Lotus Renault GP has issued the following statement on Robert Kubica’s condition:

“After undergoing extensive medical checks this morning, Robert Kubica has been diagnosed with multiple fractures to his right arm, leg and hand. He is currently undergoing surgery at the Santa Corona Hospital in Pietra Ligure.

“Robert suffered a high-speed accident this morning while competing in the Ronde di Andora Rally.

“Daniel Morelli, Robert’s manager, will be available for the press in front of the hospital emergency entrance at 16h30 CET.”

It seems likely that his injuries were caused by the end of a barrier penetrating the cockpit.