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The track appears to be in place, but is that the final surface?

The FIA’s Charlie Whiting is to conduct a final inspection of Korea when he stops off on his way to the Singapore GP.

September 21 is exactly 30 days before the start of the event – which the FIA decrees to be the Thursday of the actual race meeting – rather than the 90 that the rules officially specify (see earlier story).

Meanwhile a photo passed to me by a reader shows an interesting overview of the track. While the outline appears to be complete it’s not clear which parts already have the definitive top surface, and certainly the section on the right appears to need some work.

More worrying is the mess that the surroundings are in, and while he is pushing for it to happen it remains to be seen how Bernie Ecclestone will feel about TV viewers watching a race through a building site.

If the race is cancelled after Whiting’s inspection it will be at considerable inconvenience to everyone in F1 since both freight and team personnel will already have started on a round trip that takes in Singapore, Suzuka and Korea. It leaves very little time to re-route everything.

We also wait to see if the World Motor Sport Council has anything to say about Korea next week. As previously noted if this year’s race is cancelled then it can’t appear on next year’s calendar. At least that’s what the rules say…

We may know a little more after Karun Chandhok drives the Red Bull demo car there tomorrow.

Malaysian Jeffri has driven an F1 car at age 16. Lucky lad...

Formula BMW contender Nabil Jeffri made a little bit of history today by driving a Lotus T127 at the age of 16, as these pics from the team show.

It was only a straightline test at Duxford aerodrome, but nevertheless it represents a pretty impressive effort by the Malaysian, who doesn’t turn 17 until October 24.

And if you are trying to put that into perspective, he was born on the very day of the 1993 Japanese GP, when Ayrton Senna launched his infamous assault on Eddie Irvine, and a certain Rubens Barrichello scored his first points.

So if you can remember that, then you are older than he is…

Jeffri talks to 'old man' Heikki Kovalainen

The Austin track features an elevation change of 40 metres

Further to my earlier story on Austin, here for the very first time is a computer generated 3-D image that gives a clearer idea of how the track will look.

An obvious key characteristic is the uphill run into Turn One, which is somewhat reminscent of the A1-Ring. The long back straight, which appears somewhat truncated in this picture, undulates like the old pit straight at Kyalami.

Incidentally it seems that race pomoter Tavo Hellmund did not after all officially release the basic track map to Austin’s Statesman newspaper. Apparently the determined local media outlet obtained it from City Hall within hours of it being received by the permits office, and then presented to a surprised Tavo for comments yesterday evening.

The above picture did however come via the right channels…

PS: In an official release this afternoon Hellmund said:  “In the modern era of Grand Prix racing, I think this track layout and topography will be very special. It will have many of the elements of previous ‘classic’ circuits combined with the benefits of FIA-mandated safety for the competitors and spectators alike. Add in the amenities fans have come to expect, like rare, multiple-turn viewing opportunities for added value, and you have an ideal, world-class venue.

“For the competitors, we’ll have all the ingredients necessary. You’ll see fast turns that require commitment from the drivers and technical turns that will test the engineers from a set-up point of view. We have a good deal of elevation to make it not only scenic but challenging also, and the view of downtown Austin is wonderful as well.”

The Austin layout has features borrowed from other tracks

Austin F1 promoter Tavo Hellmund has revealed a plan of the Tilke-designed track, and as previously reported, it has corners ‘borrowed’ from other circuits.

Hellmund showed the plans to the city’s Statesman newspaper, which has generally taken a somewhat sceptical line about the race.

Hellmund said that Turns 3-6 are a nod to Maggotts/Becketts at Silverstone, Turns 12-15 are a reflection of Hockenheim’s stadium, and Turns 16-18 are intended to mirror Turn 8 at Istanbul.

However he says that Turn 1, which is an uphill hairpin, will be the track’s own ‘signature’ corner. The anti-clockwise track is 3.4 miles long and features an elevation change of 133 feet, or 40 metres. Hellmund told the paper: “It should be nice, I think drivers and fans should like it.”

If you can’t read the numbers, Turn 1 is at the bottom right, Turn 11 is the hairpin at the top, and the last corner is Turn 20.

The buildings are up but they forgot to build the track

The FIA is being forced to break its own rules to allow the Korean GP to take place – and is thus setting a precedent that other venues might take advantage of in the future.

In addition the FIA’s rules clearly state that if this year’s race is cancelled at the last minute, it won’t be allowed back on to the 2011 calendar, as a form of penalty.

Although the cars due to head out for first practice on October 22, the track surface has not been completed. Despite that Karun Chandhok is still scheduled to do a demonstration for Red Bull on September 4-5. One FIA source said this week there appeared to be “no way” that run could actually happen.

The FIA’s Appendix O to the International Sporting Code, which governs circuits, clearly states that the final inspection should have taken place 90 days beforehand. If Thursday is deemed the start of the event, that deadline was July 22.

The rules also specify a deadline of 60 days for international events, but even on that more generous measure – one that the governing body is (or was) prepared to use for a Grand Prix in this instance – this inspection should have been completed by August 21.

The relevant regulation reads as follows: “On site inspections will be performed by the Commission’s delegates as necessary, with at least one preliminary inspection and one final inspection. For permanent circuits, the final inspection should be made not later than 60 days (or 90 days for FIA Formula One World Championship events) before the first international event to be held, at which inspection all work relating to the track surface, permanent features and safety installations should be completed to the FIA’s satisfaction.”

It’s accepted that there is bound to be a job list for new circuits after a final inspection, but that usually involves details such positioning of gravel traps and barriers, pit lane arrangements, and so on. An incomplete track surface would seem to be an extreme case…

Clearly there are sound reasons why the FIA specifies these deadlines, since the governing body has a lot of experience, specifically with regard to readiness of the actual track surface.  There is obviously now a risk that the surface will be finished in such a hurry that it won’t be fit enough to receive a pounding from 24 F1 cars come October. There is also a danger that, if it is not up to scratch after being completed in a hurry, it could be damaged over its first winter.

Meanwhile one leading team told this blog at Spa that the kitchens of the team hospitality units – which they usually expect to come fully equipped, especially at a new Tilke circuit – have a pipe for cold water, and another for hot. It really is a case of bringing everything, including the kitchen sink…

Bernie Ecclestone continues to insist that all will be well. He’s understandably keen for the race to go ahead, given the commercial implications of a late cancellation, although the accepted wisdom is that in such circumstances the promoters would have to pay their sanctioning fee with or without a race (although that may or may not be affected by who makes the call). It’s hard not to imagine that Bernie is forcing the FIA’s hand here to ensure the race happens.

The rules do not specify what might happen if inspection deadlines are not met, but while vague, they put the decision process into the hands of the World Motor Sport Council, rather than Ecclestone: “It is understood that the organisation of an international event may not be allowed if the required work has not been fully carried out according to the schedule established by the inspector. The FIA (or its World Motor Sport Council) is entitled to allow any international events on a circuit or, if the directions of the Commission have not been complied with, to prohibit them.”

One presumes that Korea could be on the agenda at next week’s WMSC meeting in Italy, after Chandhok’ s scheduled run, so the success or otherwise of that could be key to the discussions.

The World Council might also like to consider the following extract from the FIA’s F1 Sporting Regulations: “An Event which is cancelled with less than three months written notice to the FIA will not be considered for inclusion in the following year’s Championship unless the FIA judges the cancellation to have been due to force majeure.”

In other words there will be no race in 2011 either. It might be hard for Korea to come up with a suitable excuse,  so there’s clearly a lot at stake here. Over to you, M Todt…

Felipe Massa was lucky to escape a jump or false start penalty in Spa after lining his car up significantly ahead of its grid position.

The transgression wasn’t obvious on TV and was not picked up electronically via the FIA transponder, although it was spotted by the BBC’s Martin Brundle from his commentary position.

A video taken by a fan in the grandstand clearly shows that the Ferrari was out of position. The front wheels are supposed to be behind the yellow line that is just behind the more prominent white line that marks the front of the grid box (see Sutil’s car on the video).

Massa passed the troubled Mark Webber off the start and just managed to stay ahead at La Source, so it could be argued that he gained an advantage. The video can be found here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NlxHOcWMM5c

Another transgression that did not get a penalty was Nico Hulkenberg’s pass of Adrian Sutil in the chaos at the end of the first lap. Sutil was one of the few to stay on the track while the Williams man cut the chicane, but in contrast to others who gained, he did not cede the place. Sutil passed him at the restart.

The Belgian GP weekend turned into a major disappointment for Scuderia Ferrari as Felipe Massa finished fourth and Fernando crashed out after a frustrating afternoon.

It had all started so well when the Spaniard was fastest in both sessions on Friday, but things began to go wrong from qualifying onwards. 

“For sure it’s not really a positive weekend for us, for many reasons,” said team boss Stefano Domenicali. “From the points’ point of view, for sure we lost ground, no doubt about it. It is more difficult, but it’s not impossible – I remember in 2007 we were 17 points behind with two races to go.

“For sure it’s more difficult, but we want to keep pushing. Today I would say the top five drivers, if I don’t recall wrongly, we were one of the three who did not score a point. Maybe in the next couple of races something will happen the other way round. So we just need to be there, and do not give up, let’s say from the points point of view.

“What we need to see is really that we didn’t go out from this weekend with the performance that we were expecting. And we need to understand why. We need to be very cautious, because two races ago one of our competitors, which was McLaren, seemed to be very suffering I would say.

“And now it seemed today that they were very strong. Race by race the scenario is changing so quickly that it’s difficult to predict something. It’s important to try to be there, because as I said, with these conditions, everything can happen.”

Domeicali admits that the team doesn’t know why it faded away: “It’s true, that’s why we need to understand exactly what has happened, in terms of the direction of the set-up that we were taking, or if the developments we brought here, in the conditions that we had, were right or wrong. Also because on Friday we were not really able to do the comparisons that we were supposed to do, considering the weather conditions.”

Alonso’s preference for a wet set-up clearly couldn’t have helped, although it probably seemed like a good idea at the time…

Not surprisingly Red Bull Racing boss Christian Horner has leaped to the defence of Sebastian Vettel after the German’s scrappy race at Spa.

Horner insists that Vettel’s controversial clash with Jenson Button at Spa was triggered when the McLaren driver braked earlier than Seb had expected for the chicane.

Vettel, who wasn’t actually trying to pass, lost control and slammed into the side of the McLaren. The damage put Button out of the race. The FIA later handed Vettel a drive through penalty for causing an avoidable collision, and the consensus in the paddock was that the German had screwed up in a major way. However Horner says he was caught out by Button’s braking point.

“Jenson’s in a difficult position at the head of the queue, knowing where to judge his braking point,” said Horner. “Obviously he braked what looked like earlier than Sebastian suspected, and in taking avoiding action he got the rears locked up over the bump, and it put him into a spin. He didn’t intentionally hit Jenson, it was one of those things.

“He was eager to get past Jenson because he was holding him up a lot and he could see that Lewis was getting away. The rain had just started, and I think the braking point that Jenson adopted, as it had just started to rain, took him by surprise. It’s as simple as that.”

Horner says that the team was happy to have salvaged a second place with Mark Webber.

“We know this circuit and Monza will be McLaren territory, we just have to limit the damage, as we managed to do with Mark today, and actually as  a team to come away with a second place is still a very good result for us.”

Nico Rosberg had a mixed day in Spa as he received a penalty only for it to turn out to be not as harsh as he had expected.

Rosberg got a five place penalty after a problem with his gearbox – which was new for this event – in the morning. However, on the reshuffled grid he has actually only dropped two spots and will start 14^th, because three other drivers also got penalties and slipped behind him.

Rosberg didn’t make it out of Q2 after getting stuck behind Sebastien Buemi while trying not to impedge his own team mate, Michael Schumacher. He’s committed to a full set set-up for the race.

“The main issue was someone slowed down unnecessarily in front of me, and that impeded me in my last lap,” said the German. “It was a generally difficult situation, because I had Michael behind and it was very tight to make another lap. So it was not ideal.

“Knowing that I was going to start between 13^th and 17^th or something I went for quite an aggressive rain set-up. So I’m hoping for rain tomorrow. That’s the only chance, or that’s going to be a good chance, to achieve something. Also in the wet conditions it felt quite good out there today with slicks, so I think we can do well if it rains.”

Lotus Racing drivers Heikki Kovalainen and Jarno Trulli are the biggest winners on the rearranged Belgian GP grid after all the penalties have been taken into account.

Michael Schumacher had his 10 place penalty after Hungary, while Nico Rosberg got five for a gearbox change, Timo Glock five for blocking, and Sebastien Buemi three for blocking.

However as in Suzuka last year the offences were considered in the order they were committed and that complicates things. Rosberg ends up losing only two places, Glock three, and Buemi just one.

Meanwhile, Kovalainen and Trulli both gain three. The top 10 remains unchanged, but the rest of the grid looks like this:

11^th: Alguersuari (+ 2 places gained)

12^th: Liuzzi (+2)

13^th: Kovalainen (+3)

14^th: Rosberg (-2)

15^th: Trulli (+ 3)

16^th: Buemi (-1)

17^th: Kobayashi (+2)

18^th: Senna (+2)

19^th: Yamamoto (+2)

20^th: Glock (-3)

21^st: Schumacher (- 10)

22^nd: de la Rosa (unchanged)

23^rd: Di Grassi (unchanged)

24th: Petrov (unchanged)