In the round-up: Sebastian Vettel says 1970 world champion Jochen Rindt was more than just a great racer.
Links
Top F1 links from the past 24 hours:
Q&A with Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel (F1)
“Everyone in Formula One is a quick driver, but then there have been guys who had that special something, who connected exceptionally well with the fans. Maybe they had a good sense of humour or could mock themselves. These things make these men linger in our memories even though their number of wins doesn’t match up to others… Jochen Rindt […] won one championship but he was someone that went far beyond that title.”
“Williams caught the eye on Friday at the young guns test by running tubing from a hole in the FW34’s nose down to the front wing. Is a double DRS afoot?”
Webber declares he’s got plenty in the tank (Sydney Morning Herald)
“It doesn’t get much better than what happened on Sunday – how we won and who we beat. How do you replace that when you’re not racing any more? Hopefully, I won’t have to find an answer to that question for a while.”
Mercedes results too up and down says Ross Brawn (BBC)
“The Hockenheim layout should be more suited to the F1 W03 than the high-speed Silverstone layout. We are bringing some further improvements to the car which should help our performance.”
Caterham sure it is closing the gap (Autosport)
Technical director Mark Smith: “We are fairly confident that we are closing the gap, and that is statistically a fact. I think we have quite a lot of momentum behind us now, so we feel that Toro Rosso are right within our sights.”
“Emilio de Villota motorsport’s F3 cars at Brands Hatch have “Por ti Maria” messages on their flanks. Other cars carrying similar messages.”
Formula One Betting: Winning Webber Joins Championship Contenders (Unibet)
My latest article for Unibet.
F1 race Stars – “Over the Top” announcement video – UK (YouTube)
Comment of the day
As yet another driver is docked places on the grid for a gearbox change, is it time for a better alternative?
I don’t like the way these cost-cutting-inspired rules interfere with the sporting side of things, and I wish they would do away with these gearbox penalties.
The engine rules work pretty well because a) you only get a penalty once you use more than eight engines, and b) because it seems to me that engine failures are more closely related to mileage, thus being more predictable.
Gearboxes, on the other hand, still look more susceptible to random failures. I would hate for the championship decider (let’s hope we get one this season) to be influenced by a cost-cutting measure on a part that is hardly a significant portion of a team’s budget.
AdrianMorse
From the forum
- I’m commentating live on Euro F3 Open and GT Open today – you can watch the races online, see this forum thread for details
- More progress in the COTA construction thread
British Grand Prix polls
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On this day in F1
The non-championship Reims Grand Prix of 1957 was won by Luigi Musso in a Lancia-Ferrari D50.
Image courtesy of Red Bulletin
schooner (@schooner)
14th July 2012, 1:05
Re: COTD I also have to wonder why, penalty-wise, gearboxes are treated differently than engines. Why doesn’t the FIA specify a certain number of new units per year (like they do engines), then start accessing penalties when a car exceeds that limit The rule makers obviously have their reasons, but I don’t get it.
Enigma (@enigma)
14th July 2012, 12:58
Yeah, it’d make sense to have 3 or 4 gearboxes per season.
xeroxpt (@)
14th July 2012, 16:21
Yep that’s the big problem with the gearbox restrictions they can’t keep exchanging them, perhaps to spare the workload to the mechanics, plus gearboxes are far harder to work with than engines, it’s a nightmare to work with gearboxes!
BasCB (@bascb)
16th July 2012, 19:35
Indeed, it would be far more logical to have 4 gearboxes (so they have to last 2x an engine) per season, does anyone know a reason why that would not be possible?
@HoHum (@hohum)
14th July 2012, 1:13
Let’s get the ball rolling.
COTD. Couldn’t agree more. Aren’t Lotus buying the gearbox , rather than building it ?
Sebastien Vettel once more shows himself to be a very likeable young man, seemingly unspoilt by his celebrity status.
Rindt was brilliant, I saw him at Warwick Farm in the sixties and one year he was out in front (or alone on the track) in a monsoonal downpour with a rooster tail all of 4 meters high, no wings, no downforce, and he swept around turn 1 without any apparent reduction in speed, it was spellbinding. However, he may have been the first F1 superstar in the german speaking world but there were others who preceded him from other parts.
I find it interesting that when asked who the other form drivers at the moment are, one name seems to have escaped him, hint; someone to old to wear jeans all the time.
PaulT (@pault)
14th July 2012, 2:22
Yes, I noticed Vettel’s inability to say the “W” word as well.
BTW, these young fellas have a funny view of fashion – In my opinion, you’re never too old to wear jeans all the time. I’m closing in on 61 and I’ll wear jeans at every opportunity!
@HoHum (@hohum)
14th July 2012, 2:51
agreed.
celeste (@celeste)
14th July 2012, 4:23
Well considering that Webber said, literally, that he wasn`t worring about Vettel but only on Alonso, I wouldn`t read more in to it… beside in previous interviews he said that he consider all the man that have won a race as title contenders.
He didn`t even mention Button, Schumacher…
I really like Vettel interviews, they are almost everytime funny and random… The bits about Kimi and Rindt are two of the highlight in this one.
I think that Vettel admiration for Rindt comes with his relanshionship with Marko, who was Rindt childhood friend, and Bernie who was Rindt`s manager. Bernie has even mention how Sebastina reminds him a lot to Rindt-
@HoHum (@hohum)
14th July 2012, 7:22
Hi Celeste, not making a big thing out of it, I just find it slightly amusing that given the perfect opportunity to mention how well Red Bull racing are doing, as in ” my teammate at Red Bull racing, Mark Webber is also doing very well this year” he reverts to the standard reply of Alonso and Hamilton, maybe it is just a habitual standard reply to a standard question.
Mallesh Magdum (@malleshmagdum)
14th July 2012, 10:03
@pault @hohum I am amazed at the number of older people here! Most ppl of ur age have difficulty using computers
@HoHum (@hohum)
14th July 2012, 23:18
@malleshmagdum, lucky for me I have a pet monkey and he works the computer for me.
BasCB (@bascb)
16th July 2012, 19:40
Now that’s a neat trick @hohum :-)
I would think that the recent article about visiting 37 consecutive UK gp’s (and that still being pipped in the comments!) proved that having seen more race is no hindrance to enjoying on-line conversations!
HK (@me4me)
14th July 2012, 10:14
That bit about rival drivers is from before the British Grand Prix. Seen it in an article before, not sure where…
davidnotcoulthard
14th July 2012, 3:22
@hohum
“However, he may have been the first F1 superstar in the german speaking world”
Wolfgang von Trips?
@HoHum (@hohum)
14th July 2012, 23:20
Was Von Trips F1 or Formula Libre, even I don’t go back that far ?
ivz (@ivz)
14th July 2012, 1:18
That F1 Race Stars cracks me up! :)
Prisoner Monkeys (@prisoner-monkeys)
14th July 2012, 3:34
It looks like Formula 1 meets Mario Kart. I found this screengrab which shows a little more of the world of the game.
Personally, I think it’s a great idea myself. It really does cover up a gap in the market.
verstappen (@verstappen)
14th July 2012, 16:09
I just hope Bernie doesn’t get a glimpse of it…
BasCB (@bascb)
16th July 2012, 19:41
I am pretty sure Bernie has been briefed about it well up front and signed it off @verstappen, what with Codemasters working with the official FOM licence
verstappen (@verstappen)
16th July 2012, 20:50
@BasCB I’m just afraid he takes ideas from the game to ‘improve the show
topdowntoedown (@topdowntoedown)
17th July 2012, 13:44
They’ll have trouble getting the diffuser to work with that ground clearance though. ;)
dragoll (@dragoll)
14th July 2012, 1:31
Re COTD, I agree to a certain point, but the situation prior to the rule being in place was becoming quite ridiculous, Ferrari for instance were changing their gearboxes during race weekends and the feeling was that they could gain an advantage on flimsy (light) parts that barely lasted a race distance. The fear was that lesser teams would be further behind because they didn’t have the money to do that.
So unless there is another way of tackling that issue, I agree with the FIA stance on the penalty. Besides, it only takes effect on start position, nothing stupid like docking points or adding time etc…
AndrewTanner (@andrewtanner)
14th July 2012, 9:28
@dragoll Yeah that’s a good point regarding Ferrari and from that you can see how the penalty system has been directly devised with that in mind. The rule probably should be more dynamic because of the unpredictable way in which they fail as @adrianmorse put. There seems to be little strategy in it.
@HoHum (@hohum)
14th July 2012, 2:19
@keithcollantine, re your unibet summary, at the end of the season I am expecting that the freakish improvement of the track for the last laps of Q2 in the SpanishGP may be seen to be as significant to the championship as the alternator failure suffered by Vettel in the European GP. In a year with so many ups and downs I am not surprised that the significance of this error has gone mainly unnoticed but for a Webber-watcher this is just 1 of several similar avoidable incidents that have cost Webber points, whether the error was Webbers or the team tacticians I do not know, but a lesson must be learned from it.
Prisoner Monkeys (@prisoner-monkeys)
14th July 2012, 4:20
I’m hearing more and more rumours that suggest Vodafone will be ending their sponsorship of McLaren a year early. I have to stress that these are just rumours, and while I personally find them to be questionable, they do make for interesting reading. The story goes that the Powers That Be at Vodafone HQ were unhappy about the McLaren cars carrying Vodafone branding at the Bahrain Grand Prix, and even went so far as to try and remove their logos from the cars before the race – but because of the nature of their contract with the team, they could not do it, and so were forced to watch their name appear on the cars in the middle of the controversy. I have heard that Vodafone are not confident that the 2013 Bahrain Grand Prix will go ahead without a repeat of this year’s problems, and so may terminate their contract with McLaren if the race is included on the 2013 calendar. They have clearly relaxed their sponsorship of the team this year, with Lucozade getting a prime position for themselves on the rear wing of the MP4-27, though whether that has anything to do with Bahrain remains to be seen, given that Lucozade had their branding on that space in Australia, Malaysia and China.
As for potential replacement sponsors, the rumours of Coca-Cola seem to be growing stronger and stronger. The latest one that I have heard is that the company would use McLaren to promote its energy drink, Relentless (and “Relentless McLaren Mercedes” does have a nice ring to it), but also that it may not happen until 2014.
VoiseyS (@voisey)
16th July 2012, 12:50
This would really put Red Bull’s nose out of joint, another Energy drinks manufacturer in direct competition for not only advertising on TV but also revenue from the championship.
Perhaps we can persuade Monster to sponsor one of the teams too? Monster Lotus? Monster Williams? Monster Caterham?
BasCB (@bascb)
16th July 2012, 19:48
I think Will Buxton’s take on that (and rumours Coca Cola are replacing them) a good read @prisoner-monkeys
What makes me reluctant about the Coca Cola thing (and seeing posts about many of the world’s top brands being in F1) is that much of it is coming from the well despised “passpot” and mr. Sylt. I would think it might have a lot to do with upping the value of the F1 franchise
sandy (@sandy)
14th July 2012, 4:37
+1
sandy (@sandy)
14th July 2012, 7:31
meant for @dragoll
Nixon (@nixon)
14th July 2012, 8:29
I want that game.
Drop Valencia!
14th July 2012, 9:17
The best bit will be the “Power Ups”
Alonso’s “Power Up” makes the other Ferrari pull over for him, Vettel can steal parts off the Red Bull if it ever goes faster, and Maldonardo can crash thru anything!
Dave (@davea86)
15th July 2012, 4:31
Ha that’s awesome!
Kimi’s would be the ability to set the fastest lap on the last lap of the race, even if he’s had no pace all weekend, Perez could have the power to do one less pit stop than everyone else and Lewis has the power to pick which of his stops won’t be a disaster.
AndrewTanner (@andrewtanner)
14th July 2012, 9:36
Can’t see the link properly on my phone but the Williams thing sounds more like that Mercedes W-wing thing rather than the rear-wing fed solution at the moment.
Brawn is right about the inconsistency and it’s really disappointing. With all the appointments they made to their staff you would expect better though I guess Schumacher has had tremendous bad luck which doesn’t help. Haug usually leaves DTM events smiling and F1 races disappointed.
Mallesh Magdum (@malleshmagdum)
14th July 2012, 10:09
LOL!
Roald (@roald)
14th July 2012, 13:14
Are there any good documentaries on Jochen Rindt? Been wanting to order that Tremayne book about Rindt too…
midgrid (@midgrid)
14th July 2012, 15:12
I am not aware of any documentaries (in English at least!), but I would definitely recommend Tremayne’s biography, which is excellent. There are also biographies (which I have not read) by Heinz Pruller (an Austrian journalist and commentator who was a close friend of Rindt; there is an English edition of the book) and Alan Henry (part of the Autocourse series of driver biographies that was published in the 1980s and early 1990s).
Bullfrog (@bullfrog)
14th July 2012, 13:26
Could 2012 be Webber’s best chance yet? (F1 Rejects)
Here’s another good opinion on Webber’s challenge, which reckons he’s out-performing Vettel, and his second shot at the title could be much stronger than his first. Worth a look just for the brilliant picture.
RedBullaway!!!!
14th July 2012, 16:19
Still reckon Vettel is about to run off with it in next 10 races. The next race could be the beginning of the end of 2012 and back to 2011 and Webber has no answer for it for what comes.
This Vettel is a double world champion now and not 22-23 hotshot anymore, so Mark will have a tougher fight on his hands than last time round. All Vettel’s misfortunes have involved other people causing it, rather than him doing it all by himself and have already cost him 40 odd points.
If Webber doesn’t beat him this year he never will!
Kimi4WDC
16th July 2012, 1:37
Was absolutely nothing wrong with his 2010 attempt, he gave away the title in Korea him self.
I hope he doesn’t choke this year. Cause last years slump was unacceptable.
xeroxpt (@)
14th July 2012, 16:33
Vettels keeps showing us how much he thinks about life and life as an f1 driver, he is very loose about it, i dont think he is fake, on the other hand other drivers seem to be very artificial maybe because of the pressure.
MahavirShah (@mahavirshah)
14th July 2012, 21:02
The trouble for Mercedes has been the fact that apart from the double DRS feature, there wasn’t anything else on the car that really caught ones imagination. I think in that aspect teams like Lotus and Williams have had more in terms of pure aerodynamic optimization than Mercedes. I think they invested too much time and effort in a feature that I honestly felt was redundant in a) Race Situations and b) On many tracks where DRS had no real advantage.
That being said, their car seems to be evolving. Schumacher has found form at last and this bodes well for Mercedes now that both drivers seem capable of scoring. If they can keep up development in reliable areas such as front wing development etc etc, they will have a fair chance of beating McLaren, although it will be tough. The only thing that might help Mercedes overtake McLaren by the end of the year will be a struggling Jenson Button.
Kimi4WDC
16th July 2012, 1:38
Some very interesting updates for Lotus in Germany, can’t wait!!!