F1 Fanatic round-up: 12/8/2010

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Stuck for something to do in the F1 summer break? Head on over to the F1 books section and find some interesting reading material. You can find some of my top recommendations here:

Share more of your great F1 book recommendations in the comments. Here’s today’s round-up:

Links

No changes to Red Bull wing – Newey (ITV-F1)

“Asked if Red Bull would need to make revisions to the wing to ensure it passes scrutineering at Spa, he replied: ‘No, we don’t believe so. What the FIA are actually doing [is], it was 50 kilos for 10mm [deflection] and now they are going to make sure that if you go to 100 kilos it’s not more than 20mm. In other words [to ensure] the wing is not non linear in any way.'”

Mercedes SLS powers into a third dimension on the Isle of White (Metro)

David Coulthard drives a Mercedes SLS AMG for a 3D film. Thanks to TommyB89 for the tip.

Whitmarsh: F1 teams could top 20 races (Austin-American Statesman)

"I think teams would be willing to go above 20 [races] if it’s for the right reasons. It’s achievable."

Piquet Jr. Interview for "isto?â?®!"

Apparently a translation of an interview Nelson Piquet Jnr gave in which he made some interesting comments about Felipe Massa.

Comment of the day

Some spirited discussion over the merits of ex-Virgin test driver Andy Soucek. Miguel refutes some criticism of the Spanish driver – here’s an extract from the original comment:

Andy has won Spanish F3 in 2005, and almost won the World Series by Renault in his debut season in 2006, if not for some bad luck in the last couple of races, as well as some decisions taken "in the offices" regarding points stripped off other drivers and later re-instated. By the way, the 2006 World Series was won by a swede called Alx Danielsson. Do you know where he went after that, cause I do not!

Later, Andy has scored podium finishes in two consecutive seasons in the GP2 and GP2 Asia Series, with teams as DPR and Super Nova, which have rarely seen better results than Andy’s before or after he competed for them! So I think there is at least *some* talent there that you will have to acknowledge, like it or not.

The story between FMSI and Soucek is too long to be summarized in just two sentences. Soucek won the case in front of court in Coloni’s hometown, and as no money refund was in sight, he impounded the Teams cars. It was his right, and he wanted to make his position clear. If other drivers had the guts to do this, many things that happen in the series below the glitter world of F1 would not happen, as basically contracts and rights of young drivers are of very little value. The only thing that counts is their money and the influence of their contacts!
Miguel

From the forum

What’s your dream road car? Tell us in the car fanatic thread.

Happy birthday!

No F1 Fanatic birthdays today. If you want a birthday shout-out tell us when yours is by emailling me, using Twitter or adding to the list here.

On this day in F1

Manfred Winkelhock lost his life on this day 25 years ago.

The German driver spent the 1985 season driving for RAM in Formula 1 and Porsche in the World Endurance Championship. He died after crashing in his Porsche 962C in a race at Mosport Park.

Winhelhock’s brother Joachim entered F1 in 1989 but failed to pre-qualify for AGS in seven attempts.

Markus Winkelhock, son of Manfred, started a single F1 race for Spyker at the Nurburgring three years ago, and managed to lead six laps after a downpour early on in the race.

Author information

Keith Collantine
Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...

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52 comments on “F1 Fanatic round-up: 12/8/2010”

  1. No probs Keith, I actually read it in the Metro this morning. Looks like an awesome film, I’d love to see it in 3D but I’m not going to go to the pub for a football match just to see it in the break.

    1. i quite like this add, i put the best part up on youtube.

      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ohZMn3jnUyw

      1. well Youtube want let me show a short version of Mercedes SLS Roll so here is the full add you might like to enjoy it.
        its probably old news in England but new here in NZ.

        http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zUdoXcDp_P0

  2. Reading what Piquet Jr says about team orders don’t you think it would be better to get rid of the farcical rules that allegedly govern such activities and have a state of open honesty rather than the current state of denial and ignorance, do you prefer to be lied to or would you rather know the truth?

    1. Reading that page with Google Translate is pure comedy.

      1. I put between a dictator (Flavio Briatore) and Fernando
        Alonso (pictured), who try to paint like Dick Dastardly

        Indeed!

        1. Has Piquet just owned up to being Muttley?

  3. on that promo vid, it says …one car…

    but if you look in the background you can see the second car turning up.

  4. as a filmmaker, I’m still unconvinced as to the merits of 3D. It was a gimmick 60 years ago, 40 years ago, 20 years ago and it’s still a gimmick today. I don’t see it contributing anything to a film that is ABSOLUTELY necessary to tell the story.

    1. As a person who occasionally enjoys a good movie, I agree.

    2. I think you are completely right, no film will be epic just because it has 3D (Novel, yes, in the 70-80ties).
      It makes more sense fore Videogames where you need to interact.
      But it is quite nice to see Coulthard evidently enjoying himself in that car.

      1. I agree, I enjoy a one off 3D experience but only when it is really good. Some films just look a bit naff in 3D, I watched Toy Story 3 the other day and it was pointless being in 3D.

        It’s now the new novelty thing to do but is there any point watching things like football in 3D? Not everything has to be an “experience” sometime’s you just want to lie on the sofa and just casual watch a show.

    3. I agree. I cant see how 3d could do better than had been made in the 60s on films such as “Grand Prix” and “Le Mans”.
      by the way, is it possible that in 50 years hollywood couldnt give us something even close to the quality of “grand prix” and “le mans”. And please, dont even mention “days of thunder” or “days of scattered showers” as it should be called.

  5. Its the isle of mann, not white.

    1. I was just about to point this out too (it’s Isle of Man though) :-)

      1. And Wight, not White – although that’s now irrelevant.

        1. Haha, serves me right for making a point at half 2 in the morning.

    2. I was deeply offended by that gaffe Keith :p

      and just in case people were wondering the Mountain Road really is that awesome, just a shame shame they don’t close it for me to drive on

  6. Some interesting comments in that Piquet article. Apparently Massa blamed him for losing the championship. I’m sure there are a few people thinking that, but I reckon that more people believe that Massa was gifted 6 points in Belgium and potentially others elsewhere due to dubious stewarding decisions.

    1. I found it a pretty interesting interview as well. It seems Neslinho grew up after getting thrown out of F1.
      Good choice to focus on something completely different and go out and show his skill (he did get beaten by Hamilton in GP2, but that does not mean he is no good at all).

      Massa needs to get over that incident. He got so many points (Spa, the Bourdais incident) that year and they threw so many points away by their own mistakes. Singapore was NOT what lost him the WDC. Maybe he is still recovering from the shock of Interlagos 2008, just like Alonso has never got completely over 2007.

      1. why do you say alonso “never got over” 2007? could you provide me with some direct quotes or videos or something to that effect?

        1. I think his (Alonso’s) comments on Hamilton, McLaren and Ron Dennis over the past years do indeed support my view here.

          Not saying Alonso lost out, but it did give his self confidence and way of looking at the world of F1 another twist.

          1. what comments? please give me a link to anything alonso has said about mclaren.

    2. Felipe could equally look to his spinning away an easy second place in Mayalsia or the blown Ferrari engine that cost him a win in Hungary as “losing him the title”.

      Championship points are a fungible commodity (by the end of the year it doesn’t matter where or when they were scored, or not scored) and Piquet Jr could only be truly to blame if Massa and Ferrari had maximised their points score at every other race – and the fact is they hadn’t.

      Piquet Jr’s antics may have triggered Felipe’s disastrous pitstop in Singapore but Ferrari were quite capable of botching it on their own. Had the race proceeded to unfold without the safety car there’s no guarantee whatsoever that Ferrari would have done a better job.

      1. They proved your point with the botched pitstop themselves at 2 occasions that year. As you say, Felipe can hardly blame Nelson for that.

    3. “Massa needs to get over that incident. He got so many points (Spa, the Bourdais incident) that year and they threw so many points away by their own mistakes”

      With all due respect, it’s probably impossible for him to just brush it under the carpet.

      Hamilton made mistakes too and some things went his way; Bahrain was a mess, Monaco his team saved him, Hungary Massa’s engine blew up. At the end of the day it’s just swings and roundabouts.

      I wish everyone would get over Spa. The stewards were daft for messing about for so long but that doesn’t mean they were neccessairily wrong. Hamilton won the title, he won in the end. You can say Massa was gifted points there but Hamilton was gifted some by Ferrari’s poor reliability. Again, swings and roundabouts. You have to make the bets of the hand you’re dealt which is why I’ve never said the standings from Singapore should be changed or Lewis didn’t deserve the title.

      However, drivers love to be in control. Massa will have gone through his mistakes a thousand times but he can live with them because they are his mistakes. They cost him dearly at times but he can accept responsibility for it. He lost the title in one of the most cruel ways and some boy crashing into a wall while his team fell apart did have an impact and he had no control at all over it.

      Mosley once said that he wasn’t that great a fan of Senna at first but he met him in the early 90s and saw him get truly emotional and explained Japan 1990 simply as “he took a title from me” or something to that effect. Completely different circumstances I know but it highlights that drivers love to be in control of their own destiny and that this is their entire life.

      Massa’s had integrity by not saying that the results of Singapore should be thrown out. Ferrari even said last year they were thinking about their options and contesting it but Massa has mostly kept a lowish profile (except perhaps when it first came out) but God, he lost his dream and he’s still going to think about it a thousand times. I don’t really care if a part of him blames Piquet, I can understand it and I don’t expect him to be a saint. We debate what an impact Piquet had on the sport and its reputation but don’t forget that there were 4 other men that race who were fighting for the title.

      1. Steph, sorry if you take this personal.

        I was not saying it’s not understandable Massa is gutted about 2008 not working out.

        And i am sure Hamilton would react much alike if he would have lost out in Interlagos. He and his team did make a lot of mistakes that year as well and if Glock would have been just a few 100 meters more in front he would have rightly lost out.

        But i think Massa does have to go on from there and make a good fight for the next championship available instead of thinking about the past.
        Now he has the unenviable task of beating Alonso in a team that is fast becoming Alonsos.

        1. No, no. I didn’t mean it to be personal. I just like a debate and I usually agree with you so it makes a nice change :p
          Yes, Massa has to look forward but I think a part of him will always be hung up on 08 even if he wins a plethora of titles (although it’ll hurt more if he doesn’t have any at the end of his career). I don’t think it’s driving him crackers or anything as look at his driving in 09. I just think this interview has highlighted another side to Massa and I don’t really see what Nelson expects from him.

          1. I think drivers being gifted points due to an opponents unreliability is different to being gifted points due to a steward’s decision, and while I didn’t agree with what happened at Spa I think the decision by the stewards with regards to Bourdais at Japan was a lot more dubious.

            If teams weren’t trying so hard to find the extra tenths of a second to be the fastest they might not have any reliability problems.

            I agree that no matter what Massa achieves in the future he will probably always look back on 2008 and think what if, just as even though Hamilton won the title in 2008 he probably still looks back on 2007 and thinks if only he had done some things differently such as his China pit stop entry.

          2. “I think drivers being gifted points due to an opponents unreliability is different to being gifted points due to a steward’s decision”

            which I meant as one of my points. In the end it’s all points lost but saying Massa was gifted them at Spa through stewards is different to having lost points through Piquet’s crash and Ferrari’s mistake. It’s all very different but at the end Hamilton got the crown.

          3. Sorry I licked the wrong button – also meant to say that Lewis probably will reflect on 07 but he can’t really blame anyone for that but himself. I don’t mean that to sound cold or harsh but my point is, he can’t blame anyone else. He can accept responsibility. Massa will always have that sense that someone took something from him whether it’s rational or not. He didn’t have full control over it.

          4. Ah, love the debate!

            I agree with you, that Massa is not totally downstruck by 2008, but it will hurt for a long time.

            Nelson probably doesn’t really understand why Massa takes it personally (he is very “understanding” for bowing to team pressures, that figures).

            But in a way Massa has a point, as he asked him fair and square after the race and got a denial. So Nelson lied to Felipe and that is personal.

          5. Steph, you want to be carefull with those keys :-D

            Sorry I licked the wrong button

      2. I think the reason I still get annoyed by spa and can’t really get over it is that despite Hamilton still winning the title it is the only race I’ve ever been to see, and I felt cheated by the change to what I saw as a legitimate result. Especially seeing as I was at the infamous chicane. I still love F1, but I think that spa gave me a near-permanent scepticism towards the FIA and their stewarding decisions and had Hamilton lost the title by less than 6 points I probably would have lost a lot more faith in F1.

  7. Markus Winkelhock where is this guy lost?

    Thanks Keith for highlighting the thread I started,on your blog

  8. As Keith recommends, I’d also like to throw in my love for Sir Jackie Stewart’s autobiography.

    Another one I cannot recommend enough is Mark Hughes’ ‘Lewis Hamilton – The Full Story’ which contains (amongst other gems) the best analysis of the drama of Qualifying for the 2007 Hungarian Grand Prix I’ve read yet. Hopefully Hughes will update the series periodically.

  9. Interesting turn of events and very significant that Withmarsh said that to the Austin-Statesman.

    A pretty clear Message to Bernie: don’t count on us doing more than 20 GPs just to fill your coffers. We’ll do more only if we have a say in where these GPs will be (USA makes sense, possibly a second GP in the US as well, Russia – depends on who you ask, SA – not really likely).

  10. Personally, I’m encouraged by the fact that the local Austin paper is already devoting a section of their site to covering F1! They’re clearly trying to explain the inner workings of their sport to their readership; glad to see it.

    1. Really? Wow, that sounds like a newspaper doing a good job to inform their readers about stuff going on. Indeed very promising.

  11. I think there are too many GPs as it is, adding more sounds like a terrible idea. The more there are, the less winning one will mean. I can’t watch all as is, which is just going to get worse when they keep adding them.

    Come on, keep some exclusivity for what supposedly is a very exclusive sport.

    1. Exclusivity for its own sake is meaningless.

      I haven’t got a problem with increasing the quantity of races on the calendar, my problem is the quality of them. Although Bahrain, Shanghai and they like may tick boxes for location and paddock facilities, their circuits add little to nothing to Formula 1.

  12. autosport.com reports, that Glock is committed to Virgin for next year (http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/85923). That’s another seat confirmed.

    It might mean, that Renault is not an option as they will stay with Petrov (makes sense).

    But from what Glock says, they seem to be confident that their all digital approach enables them to keep up a good rate of development without hurting next years car. That would be a very interesting perspective for the season and for the team.

    1. From the last few race-reports Virgin clearly comes through as confident – although they had the embarrassing fuel tank issue to set them back, they did now start to again gain on Lotus. If at the start of the year they lacked on-track data to compare, by now they gathered a lot of that to better tune their CFD work.

  13. Seems in Belgium fans are worried that after 2012 there is no Spa-Francorchamps anymore. Talks about a legendary circuit that have to make room for a circuit that pays more to Bernie then Spa-Francorchamps can pay.

    http://www.gva.be/nieuws/sport/motorsport/aid962512/toekomst-spa-francorchamps-onzeker-na-2012.aspx

    Sorry it’s not in english

    1. The tone of the article reads a bit as a plea for people to plead with the Belgian/local government to start working on a good bid …

  14. Markus Winkelhock is a legend in my eyes. Imagine leading your first race in a Spyker; I’m suprised he didn’t get a contract of some sort off the back of it.

    1. Argh why do they always film these the wrong way? All of that Film is footage of DC doing the course in the wrong direction, Top Gear did the same.

  15. Unfortunately to translate Piquet jr,’s interview would need a good translator since he was subtle and in depth in his responses.
    The headlines are just to create a polemic.
    He told about how team orders work, about being a Brazilian in F1, about Alonso and about his plans to succeed in Nascar and open it to the Brazilian fans the same way Fittipaldi did with F1.

  16. GMM article appearing on many auto racing sites:

    Aragon Said No To Replacing 2010 Korean GP – Report:

    …a potential replacement venue for the October 22-24 date on this year’s calendar. Korea’s similarly Tilke-designed track has been dogged by persistent speculation about its readiness to host an inaugural Grand Prix on that date. According to the El Peridico newspaper, actual talks between Aragon officials and Ecclestone have taken place. Officially, the circuit’s chief executive Antonio Gasion denied the report’s claims. But the report insisted that Ecclestone raised the possibility of a Grand Prix for Aragon in late October, demanding a EUR 22 million race promotion fee. A circuit source told the newspaper that Aragon turned down the offer “because the possibility of recovering that level of investment is zero. We have never ruled out being eligible for a Formula One Grand Prix in the future,” added the source. “For now, we are delighted with the motorcycle (MotoGP) race that fell to us from the sky.”

    incredible! bernie wants them to save his ass, and he wants to charge them 22 million euros for the privilege.

    1. What sites has it been on? Unless it’s here or aurosport I don’t believe it. I never trust GMM. I make more sense after a bottle of wine than it usually does :p There’s not been much to suggest Korea won’t be ready on time.

      1. http://formula-one.speedtv.com/article/f1-formula-one-grand-prix-news-briefs2/

        i’m sure the entire page is duplicated elsewhere (that doesn’t make it true). it is what it is.

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