In the round-up: Delaying the first race on the 2016 F1 calendar in Australia until April will cause a date clash with a popular local sports series.
Links
Your daily digest of F1 news, views, features and more.
Australian Grand Prix to clash with start of AFL season (The Guardian)
"Melbourne is set for a bumper first week of April next year after Formula One’s governing body moved the Australian Grand Prix back three weeks, putting it in competition with the AFL season."
Juan Manuel Fangio’s body to be exhumed, rules Argentinian judge (Motorsport)
"The reason is the lawsuit started in 2013 by Oscar Cesar Espinoza, who claims to be Fangio’s descendant."
Tasse non pagate e yacht confiscato: Briatore condannato (La Gazzetta dello Sport - Italian)
Former Renault and Benetton team principal Flavio Briatore has been convicted over tax evasion relating to the use of his yacht Force Blue between 2006 and 2010.
New F1 team boss: F1 'in a muddle' as to what being a 'constructor' means (James Allen on F1)
"As soon as you buy your first bolt you’re no longer 100 per cent a constructor. Apart from two teams that I know of, everybody else buys engines and transmissions from other suppliers."
Sauber needs upgrade to target points - Nasr (F1i)
"We’ll see what happens in Spa as well, maybe in Spa and Monza we can have a chance there, but if it’s a normal race situation I don’t see it happening."
Tweets
🇬🇧P2 in Q2 thinks are getting better here with @ponsracingwsr tomorrow we will try our best! pic.twitter.com/uMgfRH0j8T
— Roberto Merhi (@robertomerhi) July 11, 2015
Commentating on two FR3.5 races in one day tomorrow! 9am on @BTSport 1 (with @johnnymowlem) and 4pm on @ESPNuk (with @oliverjameswebb) #WSR
— Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine) July 11, 2015
We are ready for KZ #EuropeanGrandFinale in Genk, but before… Q&A with @danielricciardo #RicciardoKart #BirelART https://t.co/Nb6pr6acZp
— Ricciardo Kart (@Ricciardokart) July 10, 2015
#IndyLights Great to see @maxchilton back in the car here in Milwaukee pic.twitter.com/YCfXfoPwQu
— Carlin (@CarlinRacing) July 11, 2015
- Find more official F1 accounts to follow in the F1 Twitter Directory
Comment of the day
Australia isn’t the only surprising date change on the 2016 F1 calendar:
I’m surprised they have Sepang so late in the year as the reason it was moved to the start of the season for 2001 was because in the later slot in had in 1999/2000 the heat/humidity was pretty much unbearable.
While its still hot/humid in March/April its significantly more bearable than it was in 99/00.
If the heat is the same as it was in the later season slot in 99/00 I’d expect to see the race moved back to the cooler temperatures of March/April for 2017 because you won’t find anyone who attended those two races who really enjoyed the conditions.
@GT-racer
You’ve still got 24 hours to join in this week’s Caption Competition:
From the forum
Happy birthday!
Happy birthday to Abishek, Sohan and Speeder_76!
If you want a birthday shout-out tell us when yours is via the contact form or adding to the list here.
On this day in F1
And happy birthday to former F1 team principal Guy Ligier who is 85 today.
jason101
12th July 2015, 0:13
Living in Melbourne I was sorted to see the move, it’s generally cooler by then and louder years out is more cold and damp than hot and sunny, this year was a pleasant change not to be totally rained out.
Maybe they hope to capitalise by having the gp and afl crowds in town at the same time, especially if v8s get point scoring faces which was all tired up with the tv rights.
I’ll be taking a umbrella and warm coat in 2016, just in case.
@HoHum (@hohum)
12th July 2015, 0:14
COTD: Another case of Ferrari International Assistance, but courtesy of Bernie ?
richochet
12th July 2015, 0:24
Where did you put you tin foil?
Sensord4notbeingafanboi (@peartree)
12th July 2015, 4:22
@hohum I’m sure you’ll regret this comment. I think you’ll give strength to the fans claiming FIA does not favour Ferrari.
@HoHum (@hohum)
12th July 2015, 5:10
@peartree, My defense is the question-mark, but don’t for one minute think that Bernie hasn’t in the past or wouldn’t in the future manipulate the championship to make it appear less one-sided.
anon
12th July 2015, 9:20
Well, at least it makes a change from the recent paranoid claims that the FIA has been favouring Mercedes to go back to that routine instead.
Nase (@)
12th July 2015, 12:03
@hohum
What on earth does anything in the CotD have anything to do with favouring anyone who has anything to do with anythingrelated to Ferrari? Because right now, I’m not seing it.
@HoHum (@hohum)
12th July 2015, 23:07
@nase, track temperature and tyre temp. OK?
Nase (@)
13th July 2015, 8:06
@hohum
I take it that you were being sarcastic?
Please?
Fer no.65 (@fer-no65)
12th July 2015, 0:53
Again with the “what does ‘contructor’ REALLY mean?” ?!?! this is a feature every year !
BasCB (@bascb)
12th July 2015, 10:35
Hm, I see this as (once again) an “opening shot” by Haas/Ferrari, possibly with support from Bernie, to re-start the push for allowing customer cars @fer-no65. As far as I know its pretty clear to everyone what a constructors is, what you can an cannot get from someone else. Just ask STR why they went from buying a RBTech chassis to building its own.
grat
14th July 2015, 18:26
I’m not sure it would destroy the sport of F1 to strike “survival cell” and “monocoque” from Appendix 6.
Travis Humphery (@)
12th July 2015, 1:24
Melbourne GP will have no locals if the AFL is on.
Toxic (@)
12th July 2015, 5:17
I’d more worried about the weather… even mid March date was already on the edge… three weeks makes quite a difference for Melbourne. It can become very chilly but bigger chance of a rainfall may add to the excitement.
Madi Murphy (@ladym)
12th July 2015, 1:32
I’ve been to the Australian GP three times: 2009, 2010 and 2011.
In 2009, when we only had tickets for race day, my friends and I went to the MCG on the Friday night to watch an AFL game. In 2010, when I was at Albert Park for the full 4 days, I missed the last 20 minutes or so of FP2 to ensure I’d be at the MCG in time for the AFL game. In 2011, we stayed until after all the on-track action on the Friday, then headed into the city and watched the AFL game on TV in a bar.
In short, contrary to the media doom and gloom, I think F1 will survive clashing with AFL, as it has many times before.
David-A (@david-a)
12th July 2015, 1:38
Even over here, the GP last week “clashed” with Wimbledon.
David-A (@david-a)
12th July 2015, 1:40
And the Spanish GP held in Barcelona “clashes” with important La Liga fixtures near the end of the season.
Fer no.65 (@fer-no65)
12th July 2015, 2:21
@david-a yeah, but it only clashed with the quarter finals, or the 4th Round. In 2013, it clashed with the Wimbledon’s men final, and it happened to be the first british man to win a singles grand slam, and the first british man to win at Wimbledon since the 30’s.
It was a huge event, and it clashed with the Grand Prix. They could’ve gone to Germany first and then Silverstone that year, but no, they chose THAT date, the Wimbledon’s finals day.
Sometimes they really mess it up. It’d be like F1 going to america the same day NASCAR races in Talladega or Daytona.
Corey
12th July 2015, 4:14
November 2, 2015
F1 raced in Austin, TX
NASCAR raced in Fort Worth, TX
David Not Coulthard (@davidnotcoulthard)
12th July 2015, 10:24
@fer-no65
The La Liga is a points-system championship season. The cup-style competition there is the Copa del Rey.
Fer no.65 (@fer-no65)
12th July 2015, 16:36
@davidnotcoulthard Wimbledon, mate.
David Not Coulthard (@davidnotcoulthard)
12th July 2015, 17:42
@fer-no65 Ah now I seewhich of @david-a‘s posts you were replying to!
smiggs (@smiggs)
13th July 2015, 0:09
In 2014 they managed to clash the British Grand Prix with Tour de France with the largest free sporting event in the world passing through Yorkshire, it probably didn’t affect attendance much but tv viewing figures were down.
ColdFly F1 (@)
12th July 2015, 14:58
And this year it clashed with my birthday!!!!!!!
Ibrahim (@ibrahim)
12th July 2015, 1:57
Cotd, sorry, but you’ve got it backwards. Simple check of any yearly temp graph, march april is hottest time of year in s.e. Asia. I lived there for two years and can speak from experience, April is question your sanity hot.
David Not Coulthard (@davidnotcoulthard)
12th July 2015, 10:19
@ibrahim Having lived (t)here my whole life I can tell you schools here teach students that the (cooler) rainy season is from October to April (although nowadays teachers add the footnote of how that’s not really true anymore in real life).
GT Racer (@gt-racer)
12th July 2015, 14:36
@ibrahim @davidnotcoulthard I can only speak to my experiences of attending the Malaysian Gp for FOM from 1999-2007.
When we went there in October/November in 99/00 it was unbearable & most the people in the paddock were miserable because of the heat & humidity & Bernie got together with the even organizers who recommended a March/April date saying things would be better.
When we went in the earlier date from 2001 onwards things were much more tolerable whihc is why the date has remained in that slot since then.
Maybe it was just unusually hot for the time of year in 99/00, I just know that most people in the paddock felt conditions those 2 years were unbearable & that it was better in proceeding years with the March/April slot.
Ibrahim (@ibrahim)
12th July 2015, 22:04
Could be, I was in Cambodia. Bit farther north, April is peak hot season there. I just checked a yearly malay weather chart again, and they all say march is hottest month. but I’ll trust ye
Funkyf1 (@funkyf1)
12th July 2015, 3:55
The date for the Australian GP has not been thought through very well at all. Forget clashes with other sports, forget about the weather, It’s the end of daylight savings! Absolutely ridiculous! The race will need to be run an hour earlier. Only last year were there talks of making Melbourne a night race for international appeal. It makes no sense to push it back. Meanwhile we are enjoying another 3 weeks with nothing? FIA – experts in poor planning :)
Toxic (@)
12th July 2015, 5:21
V8S should start earlier… At least it’s more exciting than F1 these days.
ben (@djdapimp)
12th July 2015, 5:25
COTD, growing up in Malaysia the weather temperature is pretty much the same most of the year. I would be more concerned about monsoon season rain (cant remember which months) rather than temperature.
David Not Coulthard (@davidnotcoulthard)
12th July 2015, 10:21
@djdapimp In neighbouring Indonesia it’s taught to supposed to be October-April.
It’s also taught that it’s not quite as clear as it’s supposed to be……..I mean, nowadays it’ll rain mid-June!
Ohm
12th July 2015, 12:16
Agreed, I live in Thailand and had the same thought. It’s not the heat that they should be worried about, it’s the rainy season. In fact, March/April is probably hotter. But I guess if Singapore manage to avoid a tropical downpour for all these years then perhaps Malaysia might be lucky too :P
johanness
12th July 2015, 6:59
i bet that Argentinian judge is a popular fellow. Poor Fangio
pSynrg (@psynrg)
12th July 2015, 9:02
He’s dead, it makes absolutely no difference to the corpse. Meanwhile a judge has to follow through with the legal system to ascertain the validity of claims made by living people. If the claimant is indeed the offspring of Fangio, then the claimant has rights. Equally, if he has no claim then the judge will have irrefutable evidence to silence the claim and Fangio, as you so wish, can finally RIP.
johanness
12th July 2015, 22:27
Really @psynrg? The dead don’t have feelings? Thanks for clarifying that. My point was more toward the digging up and moving of the body (of a legend – who should be RIP’ing). Esp when grabbing a hair follicle would probably suffice. Argentinians love a good show. Good luck getting a judge here to allow a body to be exhumed for a paternity test based on the ravings of a sensationalist. If that were the case, there’d be no dead famous people left in the dirt.
Jere Jyrala
12th July 2015, 10:00
Finally a more sensible race calendar.
Jere Jyrala
12th July 2015, 10:02
Bahrain and Abu Dhabi should be back-to-back races as well as Singapore and Malaysia.
ColdFly F1 (@)
12th July 2015, 15:04
That’s actually a great idea. Bahrain, Abu Dhabi, +Qatar, +4th/5th regional race all in 2-3 weeks (3 racing days + 1 moving day). Rake in the Cash.
And maybe later in the year a similar cash bonanza between Sochi, Azerbejan, +other local dictatorship sponsored events. Rake in the Cash 2.
Then we have enough time during the rest of the year to go to historic venues with proper attendance, and F1 gets enough cash to pay both Bernie and all the teams!
beneboy (@beneboy)
12th July 2015, 11:31
Are there many fans that think in such a nationalistic way ?
I’m British, my favourite team is Italian and my favourite drivers are an Austrian, a Brazilian and a German. I literally couldn’t care less where a team, driver, designer etc comes from.
Maybe it has something to do with coming from Liverpool where we have a very tribal attitude to our football teams, but something I’ve always liked about motorsports is that you don’t really get the type of nationalism associated with other international sports. You can go to le Mans, F1 & motoGP and find yourself camping with people from all over the world and enjoy making new friends who support the same team/driver as you, or enjoy arguing over who is the best without the sort of divisiveness you get with sports like rugby & football.
I appreciate that the casual fans may tune in if their local team/driver is doing well, but are there many fans out there who care about nationalities in motorsport ?
The only country I can think of where this happens is Italy.
Nase (@)
12th July 2015, 12:41
@beneboy
I personally loathe any kind of nationalistic tendencies, and I really appreciate your stance. But the sad truth is probably that virtually all the casual F1 watchers, as well as a great deal of informed followers, tend to almost exclusively favour their countries’ drivers or teams (if there are any).
Why only Italy? I’m under the impression that this cliché (i.e. every Italian supporting Ferrari fanatically) is a bit of a British myth that stems from the bewilderment at the unusual fact that the Italians, unlike almost every other nation on earth, do have a team based in their country (not counting Toro Rosso). As the rest of the teams are more or less based in GB, the default impression for the British is that British teams have a large following wherever F1 sets up its tents, but that there is one race where Ferrari is omnipresent.
Let me just say that the same (in my impression) holds true for the British GP. While I generally appreciate the British F1 coverage, because it is one of the most balanced coverages that focuses on sporting aspects (just like in France, where there is a very old motorsports tradition that seems to have kept the interest in the sport alive) instead of driver rivalries (which are most of the time very thinly-veiled expressions of inciting hatred against a driver of the “wrong” nationality, who has or might have done something that didn’t help the driver with the “right” nationality) – the Silverstone weekend was a tad too much for me. The Sky F1 UK broadcast, for example, became so suffocatingly pro-Hamilton (with quite a few nasty side remarks about Rosberg) that I switched off and only tuned back in for the actual qualy and race sessions. I can easily live with the British being the commentators’ favourites, but the British GP is generally a bad time of the year for non-British viewers to watch the British broadcast.
But hey, German TV is pretty horrible in its own right. You wouldn’t believe the lenghts they would go to prove that Vettel was actually the poor victim of evil Mark Webber’s antics in Istanbul 2010 or Sepang 2013.
To sum it up: I’ve yet to meet a crowd that isn’t massively, sickeningly biased in favour of their local heroes. I don’t like that, which is one of the reasons why I prefer F1 to be a hobby that I prefer not to share with my fellow countrymen.