Alpine F1

I think Mark Webber said it best when he explained that the grid for tomorrow’s inaugural Abu Dhabi Grand Prix represents the second half of the season in performance.

There is no doubt that McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton has been the man of 2009 for me, and his team has the been the most improved. KERS has played a large part in their performance but that is also a testament to how well McLaren have done with the kinetic recovery and deployment system.

To see the Red Bulls slot into second and third for the race is indicative of their late-season form as well, and, as the Brawn’s of Jenson Button and Rubens Barrichello are behind them, it does represent the latter part of the 2009 season as far as competitive edge.

Sadly, Ferrari may lose third in the constructors' title chase as Kimi Raikkonen qualified 11th, but then they were expecting a lot from a man they just sacked a year early and a car they sacked in late July.

Honorable mentions to BMW for showing up and Kamui Kobayashi for another good performance sitting in for injured Timo Glock. We’ll be looking for the fuel strategy to see who is gambling and who isn’t kidding.

Pos -  Driver - Team - Q1 - Q2 - Q3
1. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes (B) 1:39.873 1:39.695 1:40.948
2. Vettel Red Bull-Renault (B) 1:40.666 1:39.984 1:41.615
3. Webber Red Bull-Renault (B) 1:40.667 1:40.272 1:41.726
4. Barrichello Brawn-Mercedes (B) 1:40.574 1:40.421 1:41.786
5. Button Brawn-Mercedes (B) 1:40.378 1:40.148 1:41.892
6. Trulli Toyota (B) 1:40.517 1:40.373 1:41.897
7. Kubica BMW-Sauber (B) 1:40.520 1:40.545 1:41.992
8. Heidfeld BMW-Sauber (B) 1:40.558 1:40.635 1:42.343
9. Rosberg Williams-Toyota (B) 1:40.842 1:40.661 1:42.583
10. Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari (B) 1:40.908 1:40.430 1:42.713
11. Raikkonen Ferrari (B) 1:41.100 1:40.726
12. Kobayashi Toyota (B) 1:41.035 1:40.777
13. Kovalainen McLaren-Mercedes (B) 1:40.808 1:40.983
14. Nakajima Williams-Toyota (B) 1:41.096 1:41.148
15. Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari (B) 1:41.503 1:41.689
16. Alonso Renault (B) 1:41.667
17. Liuzzi Force India-Mercedes (B) 1:41.701
18. Sutil Force India-Mercedes (B) 1:41.863
19. Grosjean Renault (B) 1:41.950
20. Fisichella Ferrari (B) 1:42.184

The telefax machines at the new teams’ HQs are on overdrive this Friday.

In no particular order (except to put USF1 last)…

The Lotus F1 team—or as it is known on its official site, “1Malaysia F1 Team (1MF1T)”—today named its CEO, Riad Asmat. Asmat, according to the release, “was attached to the Managing Director’s Office of Proton Holdings Berhad as General Manager.” OK ...

To clean up the name confusion, if there is any, 1Malaysia will be “debuting” in F1 “through Lotus F1 Racing.”

In addition to Asmat, the team also named Keith Saunt as its COO. Saunt has a solid F1 background: “Keith has over 20 years worth of experience in Formula 1 including senior roles with Team Lotus International, Benetton, Renault and most recently Red Bull Racing, where he held the role of Chief Operating Officer and Director of Red Bull Technology.”

Second up, and while it isn’t a telefax release [quick digression, if this joke isn't resonating, the telefax is basically a pre-fax machine that used to be, years back, how media outlets received releases ... so I'm keeping alive the joke about the new teams' lack of state-of-the-art equipment], it is some keen news:

Timo Glock is admitting he’s likely to abandon Toyota, despite the team giving him an offer. And according to Autosport , while Renault is the front-runner, Manor—I’m sorry, Virgin Manor—is also in the running. Here’s Timo’s quote to get the Timo-to-Manor fire going:

“Everybody says that the new teams are not interesting, but next year everything is possible,” he said. “With the new rules, 150-160kg on board, it will be different. When you see the rule changes this year, and the ups and downs during the season, even a smaller team like Force India had the chance to come up to the top five.

“Brawn GP won the championship and Red Bull—there is no real constructor at the moment fighting for the championship. Sure, McLaren-Mercedes-Benz is really, really strong again at the moment, but the point is that it is more equal.

“I think you have to look in every direction because nobody knows what is going on next year. That makes it interesting and you can make the right decision, or you can make the wrong decision.

“It doesn’t matter where you go, you never know what is going on next year. Sure the strong teams like McLaren and Ferrari, they will be on the top and fighting at the top, but you have to be open for everything.”

And, finally, USF1, aka Todd’s team . It announced its European base would be at Spain’s Motorland Aragon facilities. It’s a fairly large technical center with Herman Tilke track.

 
Renault today announced a three-year sponsorship deal with watchmaker TW Steel—its first new package since the Singapore scandal and the early pull-out of backers such as ING.

Autosport had the time to get us some details:

Although the fall-out from the Singapore Grand Prix crash affair resulted in title sponsor ING quitting the team with immediate effect, the matter has actually resulted in an increased commitment from parent company Renault to make a success of its Formula 1 plans.

The team was able to announce a three-year deal with TW Steel, which will become its official timing partner, ahead of the final race of the season. The logos of the watch brand will appear on the nose cone, front wing flags, and sidepods of the Renault cars from this weekend’s race in Abu Dhabi.

“The partnership brings great value for both the Renault F1 Team and TW Steel and confirms the team’s positive outlook for the years ahead,” said Jean-Francois Caubet, Renault's managing director.

Combined with the signing of Robert Kubica, this sounds like a pretty strong commitment from Renault and the team, despite some lingering rumors about how long it would be in the sport.

Can we officially put Toyota back at the top of the "iffy" teams?

Share on Facebook

Fernando Alonso is looking at Abu Dhabi this weekend in a positive light. His desire? To finish strong for a team who has delivered him two world titles. Understandable then that this will be an emotional farewell for the Spaniard as Renault has been a team and group of friends that have supported his efforts and delivered him the product to reach the highest level of motorsport success.

“Absolutely, I would love to finish the season and my Renault career with a great result,” said Alonso. “It will be an emotional race because I have enjoyed so many special memories with this team and I am leaving behind a lot of friends.

“Renault is one of the great teams in Formula One and I look forward to fighting with them on the track in the years ahead.”

Team boss Bob Bell also feels Alonso’s will be sorely missed as the team contemplates their future without Flavio Briatore or their champion Fernando Alonso.

“He’s made a huge contribution to the team, especially winning two world championships in 2005 and 2006 so he will be missed enormously,” said Bell.

“It’s often said that he is the best driver on the grid and I wouldn’t disagree with that so we’re understandably sad to see the end of our very successful relationship.

“But we’re also looking forward and we’re all delighted to be welcoming Robert Kubica to the team as I believe he will quickly show that he is of the same calibre as Fernando.

“He’s a strong team player, a great motivator and incredibly quick so we have plenty to look forward to as we enter a new era for the team.”

While the departure may be bittersweet, there are bright spots on both parties future. Ferrari will no doubt be a vehicle to excel with for Alonso. It would not surprise me to see Alonso with another world championship within three years if he can be successful in developing the team around him and his efforts. Much has been made about Alonso being difficult and the 2007 debacle at McLaren but I think that’s been overstated to be honest. Alonso will stand a very good chance and being the heir apparent for Schumacher at Ferrari and I expect him to give 100 percent.

As for Renault, they have a bright future with their new driver Robert Kubica. While 2009 has not shown it; Kubica is often considered to be int he top five driver in F1 and I would concur. While covered effectively by his teammate Nick Heidfeld this year, Kubica has left me disappointed slightly as I expected him to be on par with Heidfeld or beating him even though the car is a pig. Weight has been an issue for the BMW but I suspect we will see a renewed Kubica for 2010. A driver that Renault can build with and this will hopefully see a resurgent Renault and Kubica for the future.

Ultimately Renault should be proud of what they have achieved with Fernando Alonso. They are poised for a new era for the team following the much maligned scandal of Singapore 2008 involving Nelson Piquet Jr, Flavio Briatore and Pat Symonds. In Kubica, they just may have another shot at the world title.

Part three of the top-five races of the decade, and it goes to the Japanese Grand Prix of 2005, held at Suzuka. A topsy-turvy grid where Ralf Schumacher managed to claim pole position was the basis for one of the most memorable races in recent history, as the top drivers found themselves languishing on the back few rows at the start.

If you would like to read the other two reviews completed so far, here are the links:
Nurburgring 2007
Silverstone 2003

A wet qualifying session resulted in a Toyota at the front for its home race, with decent positions for unlikely drivers Christian Klien and Takuma Sato.

In contrast, Michael Schumacher found himself 14th, Fernando Alonso 16th, Kimi Raikkonen 17th and Juan Pablo Montoya 18th. The eventual top four in the championship were unable to better the seventh row of the grid.

At the start of the race, Giancarlo Fisichella moved past Jenson Button into second, whilst Rubens Barrichello and Sato collided and headed into the gravel trap. Raikkonen made a mistake on the first lap, but Alonso had already made his way into eighth place.

Coming onto the pit straight, Montoya was forced off the track and into the barriers by Jacques Villeneuve, bringing out the safety car for a few laps.

Alonso then cut the chicane overtaking Klien, and in a move similar to the Lewis Hamilton/Kimi Raikkonen incident at the 2008 Belgian GP, retook the place immediately after letting the Austrian back through.

Despite pulling out a noticeable gap over Klien, Alonso had to slow to give back the position, before overtaking him for the third time. Raikkonen also took the opportunity to overtake Klien, who was gradually slipping back as the faster cars moved forward.

The first round of pit-stops came and went, and pole-sitter Ralf Schumacher found himself back in 8th place, with Fisichella moving to the front. Alonso and Raikkonen were closing in on Michael Schumacher, and so came one of the best overtaking moves in Formula 1 history.

Coming up to the 130R corner, the much quicker Alonso simply drove round the outside of the multiple world champion. This is a corner that is taken completely flat, and really should not present an overtaking opportunity.

Despite this, both Raikkonen and Schumacher emerge from their second stops ahead of Alonso, but both eventually overtake the German and close the gap to Mark Webber.

As drivers in front make their pit-stops, Raikkonen finds himself lying in second place, and Fisichella, the man who had been unchallenged up until this point, was suddenly in danger of losing the lead to a driver who qualified fourteen places behind him.

Meanwhile, Alonso has managed to clear both Webber and Jenson Button, and eventually claims the final podium position.

Two laps to go, and Fisichella takes a defensive line at the final chicane, allowing Raikkonen the faster exit and a potential overtake into the first corner. However, the Italian holds him off, and is safe for another lap.

One lap to go, and Fisichella does the same thing again. This time, however, Raikkonen is much closer and coming onto the pit straight to start the final lap. They almost touch, and Fisichella is forced to the inside of the track.

Yet Raikkonen pulls off the second incredible overtake of the day to snatch the lead, and goes on to win one of the most exciting races in history. Alonso claims third, followed by Webber, Button, Coulthard and both Schumachers.

Here's a Youtbe video of Raikkonen overtaking Fisichella on the final lap, with James Allen his excitable annoying self: Raikkonen Overtake

Formula One race-fixer Nelson Piquet Jr. is now planning to race in NASCAR's pickup truck series after being snubbed by a number of F1 teams for a future drive.

Piquet Jr's website reports that he and fellow Brazilian Vitor Meira would test a NASCAR Camping World truck series Toyota Tundra for Red Horse Racing at Rockingham Speedway in North Carolina next Monday, with Piquet looking to "evaluate a future career among the NASCAR ranks."

Piquet Jr. was at the heart of one of F1's biggest scandals this year when it was revealed, after he had been sacked by Renault, that he had been told to crash deliberately at last year's Singapore Grand Prix to aid team mate Fernando Alonso.

A serious of fortunate events in favour of the Spaniard saw him win the race in what was otherwise a poor season for Renault.

Piquet Jr—who went unpunished for his role in "Crashgate" by testifying against co-conspirators Flavio Briatore and Pat Symonds—still believed he had a future in F1 after a hearing of the World Motor Sport Council last month, however several team principals moved to distance themselves at the last race at Suzuka.

Former team Renault, Red Bull, and Toyota have already moved to say they would not entertain Piquet Jr. driving for them, while F1 newcomers Manor who were interested, have now backtracked after pressure from title sponsor Virgin.

Wherever Piquet Jr. goes in motorsport, he will always have the race-fixing hanging over his head. He cannot hide from what he did, and while he tries to justify to the world why he committed the offence, it doesn't make it any better. It was a shocking act.

It will be a tough move for him into stock car racing from GP2 and F1, but maybe he'll grow up somewhat while he's there.

And as for a return to F1, his only likely return will be racing for his father.

At the FIA hearing into the alleged race-fixing incident at the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix, where it was found that—on the orders of his Team Principal, Flavio Briatore, and Chief Engineer, Pat Symonds—Nelson Piquet, Jr. deliberately crashed in order to generate a Safety Car period that benefited his teammate Fernando Alonso, who went on to win the race.

The result of the hearing was that Briatore and Symonds were banned from appearing at FIA-sanctioned events indefinitely and for five years respectively, and the Renault F1 Team was given a ban from Formula 1, suspended for two years.

Many commentators have derided the penalty imposed on Renault as being a mere slap on the wrist and compared it with the sanctions that McLaren had imposed on them following a hearing into industrial espionage that included a fine of $100 million. 

They suggested that a similar penalty should have been imposed on Renault, as the severity of the infringement was much worse, and included compromising the safety of Piquet, other drivers, and track workers by deliberately causing an accident.  Among them is Damon Hill, who described the outcome as “a crying shame for the sport” and implied that there were political motivations for lenient treatment of Renault.

Yet, imposing a severe penalty on Renault would have been wrong for several reasons.

Firstly, there was no evidence that the wider team were aware of the plan hatched between Briatore, Symonds and Piquet.  One other person, known as “Witness X” according to the BBC Sport website, was present when the possibility and details were mooted.

Radio communications between team members during the race (as published in Autosport, 10th Sept.) show that the call to bring Alonso in early was a surprise to the pit crew, and Alonso’s chief mechanic questioned Symonds on the strategy.  After the verdict was announced, and in response to the apparent leniency afforded Renault, Max Mosley noted that “because Renault have demonstrated that they had absolutely no moral responsibility for what took place it would be wrong in the circumstances to impose an immediate penalty."

Secondly, even though the FIA hearing found that Renault were not specifically responsible for the incident, and that it was limited to a very small group of employees, the suspended ban sends a very clear and legal message to the team that no matter whether a link to the wider team can be found, should something similar happen in future the ban would take immediate effect.  This links Renault’s liability into ensuring there is no recurrence.

Renault themselves issued a statement saying that "Renault F1 had no reason to believe that the conspirators were capable of this kind of behaviour. Clearly the conspirators acted against the interests of Renault F1 and the sport generally.

"If they had applied their minds to their actions, they could not have thought that their actions benefited Renault F1. The acts of the conspirators were so outside what they were employed to do and so contrary to Renault F1's interests, they ought not to be attributed to Renault F1. This is truly a case where the conspirators were on a frolic of their own."

There are therefore clear legal grounds to ensure that any penalty can be proven to be proportionate to the people on whom that penalty is imposed, and the FIA’s decision meets that criterion.

There are also pragmatic reasons for not immediately implementing a ban on Renault—given the negative publicity, there are already rumours that the team would be withdrawing from the sport, and with doubts hanging over Toyota’s long-term involvement and BMW pulling out maintaining such a high profile manufacturer is key to the development of the sport, especially since it is a company that supplies engines to other teams.

Similarly, reviewing the result of the race would be detrimental to other teams as well—how would you account for Felipe Massa’s pit mishap that cost him a points finish? 

If you annulled the result of the race that would change the World Championship picture, handing the title to Massa—given the already mounting perception issues with F1 that have emerged in recent years, would the FIA really want to overturn the result of last year’s World Championship?  Indeed, there is a precedent to set there, with Michael Schumacher’s points being annulled in 1997 after his deliberate collision with Jacques Villeneuve at Jerez, but no other changes to points awarded as a result (and Schumacher kept his wins that season).

So, why should Renault be penalised any further?  Clearly the evidence shows no link between Renault and culpability in the conspiracy.  No.  The FIA have provided an appropriate level of sanction for the offense, and hit hardest those—Briatore and Symonds—who are primarily the culprits.

That is justice.

The FIA is barking mad.

There is no logic whatsoever to the decisions that they make and don’t think for a minute that you might get some kind of consistency in how they apply sanctions to Formula One rule breakers.

According to the FIA’s official finding into the Renault race-fixing allegation, they found Renault guilty as charged and referred to it as being of “unparalleled severity." They went on to further to say, “Renault F1's breaches not only compromised the integrity of the sport, but also endangered the lives of spectators, officials, other competitors, and Nelson Piquet Jr. himself."

This statement seems to imply that the FIA thought that it was pretty bad, so you would expect a pretty tough punishment—wouldn’t you? But what did the FIA deliver? A mild slap on the wrist with a piece of floppy asparagus.

Flavio Braitore received a life ban from the sport—after he had already walked away stating that he wouldn’t come back. Engineer Pat Symonds received a five-year ban and Nelsinho Piquet, the man who actually committed the deed, got immunity because he helped in the investigation.

The team received a suspended permanent ban—only enforceable in the event of a further breach of equal severity. No fine, no points, nothing!

Compare that with the decision against Michael Schumacher in 1997 for deliberately hitting Jaques Villeneuve’s car at Jerez. Schumi had his points for the season wiped after what the FIA had called an instinctive move, not something that was pre-planned.

Or McLaren’s $100 million fine and stripping of the season’s constructor’s points for espionage. Or Lewis Hamilton being stripped of a race victory for cutting a corner. Of course, deliberately endangering lives isn’t anywhere near as bad as these heinous infractions.

For years, Ferrari has been labelled the protected species of F1, but they may just have handed that mantle to Renault. Admittedly, Renault had put on one the great all-time a**-kissing performances, promising to pay for the investigation and fund some safety research.

Interestingly, there is no need to delve too far back into the history books to see that this isn’t the first time that Renault have got away with something. In 2007 they were let off espionage charges—ostensibly identical to those levelled at McLaren—after being caught with confidential McLaren documents.

Who knows how they do it.

A year or so ago, you could argue that maybe the Renault bosses had some compromising pictures of Max Mosley that they were using as a blackmail device, but everyone has those pictures now. Maybe they’ve got proof that Bernie Ecclestone isn’t human after all.

Perhaps there is a simpler explanation. The hearing was held in Paris—isn’t that in France?

Though the FIA World Council has decided to grant immunity to Piquet for his participation in the 'Crash-gate' events of the 2008 Singapore GP; he is now shamed in the eyes of his fans, colleagues, and the sport.

A few weeks ago Piquet was told he would no longer be needed on the team by Renault F1. Piquet has struggled to succeed or surprise anyone during his Formula 1 career. His shoulders bear a heavy weight as he tries to live up to his father's name.

The ruling to indefinitely ban Flavio Briatore from any participation or association with the sport and the suspended ban, of two years, in the World Championship of the entire team Renault F1 has hit Formula 1 hard. Renault F1 has been a major participant of the sport but the only sadness I feel is that which stems from my disappointment for Nelson Piquet Jr. 

I can see how this travesty occurred. I see Piquet as a player that has been played but not as a key conspirator. I see him as Briatore sees him; acceptable collateral damage. He was a nice guy, he was someone pushed into the background of the sport only to aid, in any effect, Fernando Alonso. As Piquet struggled with less than ideal aerodynamics and support from the team his confidence dwindled. Being cast aside and regularly harassed made Piquet wary of his place in Formula 1. I can understand that Briatore would conjure and conspire, and who better to take the fall than Piquet. This notion upsets me like it upsets me to hear of up-and-coming actresses having to undress for Hollywood studio execs to get a 'leg-up' in the biz. I assume that Piquet expected that yielding to the instruction of a team principle would only gain favorable admiration by helping the team in a 'time of need'.

I can empathize with Piquet. He thought that being a 'team player' would allot him a greater position on the team. Despite his sacrifice he continued to be harassed and threatened, constantly being warned of the thin ice in which he stood. Finally, Piquet was dismissed from the team being told 'he was no longer needed'. What a humiliated spectacle he has become.

He was a moderate driver in an extremely competitive sport; he was nothing spectacular. Despite my empathetic position, there exists a code of conduct and Piquet breached these rules. He was forced into a corner; he was bullied but Formula 1 drivers are known for their composure under stressful situations. Maybe this proves Piquet does not belong in the sport after all. Regardless, I don't expect to see him back on the grid.

The World Motorsport Council, in Paris, has reached a verdict regarding the future of the Renault F1 team.

The team had already chosen not to contest the charges of fixing a race, effectively admitting their guilt. They had also sacked Flavio Briatore and Pat Symmonds.

The FIA's choice of punishment is a two-year ban, suspended until the end of the 2011 season.

Former team boss Flavio Briatore has been banned from any FIA sanctioned events and anything to do with motorsport, including managing drivers, for an unlimited period.

Ex-engineering director Pat Symmonds has also been banned from FIA events for a period of five years.

The hearing was about the team fixing the 2008 Singapore GP, allowing Brazilian Nelson Piquet to crash his car so  the safety car would be deployed and that Spaniard Fernando Alonso could take advantage of his stratergy and win the race.

This eventually changed the outcome of the championship, as Felipe Massa effectively lost the championship at that race due to a pit stop error while the safety car was deployed.

This may force Renault to leave the sport after 2011, leaving Fernando Alonso without a race seat at the same time that Kimi Raikkonen's contract run's out.

If the team choose to leave the sport, however, then I believe that it will be bad for the sport, the company and its employee's, as many hundreds of people will be left un-employed.

I think that the punishment is just, and that F1 will not suffer too much from the aftermath of the, now infamous, inaugural Singapore night race, in 2008.