Adam Cooper's F1 Blog

Williams has released the first pictures of the real FW40 after showing computer generated renders last week.

The car features a spectacular shark fin that incorporates the Martini livery, but otherwise is largely similar to the earlier images.

Felipe Massa will give the car its first laps at Barcelona on Monday before Lance Stroll takes over.

Red Bull, Haas and Toro Rosso will be the last teams to show their 2017 contenders, all of which are due to be revealed on Sunday.

Ferrari revealed its 2017 contender at its Maranello base this morning, prior the car’s first shakedown and filming run at the Fiorano test track.

Known as project 668 internally, the car has been given the type number SF70H, in recognition of the 70^th anniversary of the Italian marque’s first car.

Following the departure of James Allison last year the new design team has been led by chief technical officer Mattia Binotto. The new model will thus be a test of the ability of the staff that Allison left behind, the team having chosen not to headhunt a major name from outside.

The car features a dramatic shark fin and a small ‘T-wing’, as seen on the Mercedes yesterday.

Lewis Hamilton gave the new Mercedes W08 its first exploratory laps at windy Silverstone today, before handing the car over to team newcomer Valtteri Bottas.

The Mercedes is the second car to run on track, after Marcus Ericsson gave the Sauber its first mileage at Barcelona on Wednesday.

“In all honesty, it is so exciting to see this thing come together,” said Hamilton if the new car. “These guys are working in the wind tunnel, then they have this jig which is obviously not the real carbon fibre, faster prototype parts, then you see it all come together, do the seat fit over the winter, and then in last couple of days seeing it bit by bit just appearing out of all the different departments, all finished. Somehow they all just slot in perfectly.”

Hamilton said he already had a positive impression from the bigger tyres.

“Driving today, naturally the car feels wider, which it is obviously, so the front tyres feel huge, there is quite a lot of grip already even in the cold conditions here. This is not a test, the laps I did today were behind a vehicle to get filming in, and then it’s really just a shakedown – so you do a couple of slow laps just to see if the car will run.

“So it is not actually a test. I got to go a little bit faster in some places, but it’s so gusty here, so it’s quite tricky, and it’s wet, so I was on slicks on a damp track. The car honestly just feels almost identical to last years car in terms of the ergonomics, the seat position and steering, but then you’ve got bigger and this more powerful beast around you.”

Hamilton stressed that there’s still a lot of work to do.

“Finding the limits of the car is the big question mark, where is the limit of the car where is the limit of tyres? At what point is the car going to roll over tyre and oversteer, understeer, or lock up. So that’s what we have to do. You basically have learn to walk as fast as you can before you run, and when we get to Barcelona that’s when where that comes into play.

“Then we have to understand how to switch these tyres on, if it’s a one lap or two warm-up laps or more, and then how long the tyres last, how you utilise the life of the tyres over a long run, so part through test we will get into race runs, which is gruelling, because you go in, you do your pit stops, and it’s practice for everyone. The tyres are bigger and heavier, so the mechanics are going to have to be bulking up a little bit to lift these tyres.”

Force India unveiled its new VJ10 at Silverstone today as a busy week of F1 car reveals continues.

Designed by a team led by technical director Andy Green, the Mercedes-powered car has the challenge of matching Force India’s impressive fourth place in last year’s World Championship. Esteban Ocon joins Sergio Perez in the driving line-up, with Alfonso Celis continuing as test driver.

“I can’t remember being more excited ahead of a new season,” said team boss Vijay Mallya. “The VJM10 looks aggressive and purposeful, and is the result of a huge effort behind the scenes over the last twelve months. We have big hopes for this car, which looks stunning in its new livery.”

Regarding hopes for 2017 he said: “Simply repeating our performance level of 2016 will be a big task in itself. I don’t want to set goals or targets other than to say that we intend to maintain the momentum we have built up in recent years and carry it into the new season. There are too many unknowns to say more than this.”

“It’s definitely a big overhaul; one that requires a change in mentality,” said Green. “It took a bit of time to adjust at first, but we are there now and I am confident we know where to look and where the performance is coming from with this car. The development slope is incredibly steep and we are going to see significant updates to the cars at regular intervals, right from the start; it’s going to be big updates and I don’t think development will start to taper off any time soon.”

Sauber has shown the first pictures of the new C36, which retains its basic blue livery but in a much revised design.

Technical director Jorg Zander said that the team had “put greater emphasis on aerodynamic stability as opposed to maximising downforce.”

The team will use the engine spec with which Ferrari the 2016 season. Zander noted that it was “a tried and tested system with higher durability to begin with,” adding that “being able to get started early and defining the engine environment was an advantage because the team was familiar with the engine and the transmission as well as the cooling requirements the engine entailed.”

Mercedes F1 bosses Toto Wolff and Niki Lauda have extended their contracts with the team until the end of 2020.

The significance of that date is that it is aligned with the end of the current commercial agreements with F1, made by Bernie Ecclestone. From 2021 onwards new owners Liberty will have to put new deals in place. Wolff and Lauda are also shareholders in the team, so the timing of the deal is logical

“In 2013, we restructured the management of the Team with the clear goal of improving our performance,” said Dr Dieter Zetsche, Chairman and CEO of Daimler AG. “Since then, however, the results have exceeded our expectations. A key factor in this success has been the combination of Toto’s entrepreneurial skills and Niki’s experience. Their renewed commitment gives our programme important continuity for the next four years.”

“The last few years have been some of the most enjoyable I have had in Formula One,” said Lauda. “Toto and I formed a perfect partnership at Mercedes and we have a great team on every level that has delivered results.”

Wolff added: “Winning is never down to single individuals – it is about the right group of people coming together, aligning themselves with a common objective and then combining their talents to achieve that target. Each day I come to the factory, I am humbled to have the privilege of representing this inspiring group of people.”

Mercedes has finally confirmed the long expected arrival of former Renault and Ferrari man James Allison as replacement for Paddy Lowe.

Allison has the new job title of technical director, but in essence he fills Lowe’s shoes and will report directly to Toto Wolff. He will start work officially on March 1^st.

His appointment is a big boost for Mercedes, with some observers believing that the loss of both Lowe and Nico Rosberg would cost the team some momentum.

“It’s a massive privilege to be given the trust of a position in a team that has done so spectacularly well in the past three seasons,” he said. “I am really looking forward to playing my part in helping Mercedes go from strength to strength in the coming years.”

Wolff added: “Our technical team is extremely skilled at every level and at the top of its game after delivering three world championships in a row. It wasn’t an easy task to find the right personality who can strengthen our experienced group of engineers, give our talented young team members the space to develop and also bring his own vision to this role. James is a sharp engineer; I think we have found the perfect guy and the right fit with our senior leaders.”

After weeks of speculation Mercedes has finally confirmed that Valtteri Bottas will replace the retired Nico Rosberg this season.

Williams had earlier said that Bottas is moving to Mercedes, and will be replaced by Felipe Massa.

The Finn made a speech to team members in the Brackley factory, accompanied by Toto Wolff.

Wolff noted: “I think Valtteri fits very well in our team, as a driver he’s very fast, and he has also the heart in the right place. He shares our values and passion, and he’s modest and humble and he’s hard working.”

Although Mercedes did initially explore all its options – and there was no shortage of enquiring phone calls – other big names were contractually tied elsewhere, and it soon became clear that Bottas was the

The deal was eased by the fact that Williams is a Mercedes customer, and Wolff’s role as part of the Finn’s management team. However Pascal Wehrlein was kept on standby as a back-up in case he was needed.

In addition to coming to a commercial arrangement with Mercedes Williams had to find a replacement, and persuading Massa to return from his brief retirement, which was forced on him by the lack of a top drive, was not too difficult.

“It’s very exciting times for me,” said Bottas. “I think it’s going to take a while to understand that this is really happening. It’s definitely another dream come true, to race in another team with such great history – especially in the recent years, which have been so impressive. I’m really proud to become a part of that and grateful to everyone at Mercedes for trusting my skills and giving me this opportunity.

“I’ve had a really warm welcome so far. Of course, I have a lot more people to meet and new faces to remember. But initially everything has felt very good. I’m really impressed with the facilities and I’m looking forward to getting to know everyone better. My first experience with Mercedes power was in F3 back in 2009 and, of course, I know the Power Unit well from the last three years with Williams. But there are a lot of new things to learn with the car and also with how the team operates at the factory, in testing and at the races.”

Bottas knows that he faces a tough challenge.

“I’m ready to work hard, to prove myself to the team and to prove my skills. It’s going to be a challenging season and joining a new team makes it more work than normal. But I’m 100% ready for that. I’m training hard to be at my physical best because it will be much tougher with these new cars. I always set the bar really high, so my target is to perform from the first race. I’m full of energy and ready to get to work for this year and hopefully many more to come with Mercedes.”