The San Marino Grand Prix may have been Fernando Alonso’s third win but it was also a warning he may not have an easy run to the title.
Keith Collantine's articles on RaceFans
Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring journalist, Keith began running the site full-time in 2010, achieving a long-held ambition to dedicate his full attention to his passion for motor racing.
Montoya still out, Wurz now in
Posted onJuan Pablo Montoya is out of action again, with Alex Wurz promoted in his place this time. McLaren have apparently modified an MP4-20 chassis to his accommodate his above-average (for an F1 driver) height. This is a blow for Pedro de la Rosa, who drove a patchy but impressive race in Bahrain, setting fastest lap … Continue reading Montoya still out, Wurz now in
Live Champ Car on the Internet
Posted onThe first round of the US Champ Car series was held at Long Beach, California last weekend. Race fans from across the world were able to watch via a live Internet stream. F1Fanatic took a look at the service and considered whether we might see the same for F1 anytime soon. For many Formula One … Continue reading Live Champ Car on the Internet
GP2 Season Preview
Posted onFormula 3000 is dead. Long live GP2! After 20 years F3000 as the ‘last rung on the ladder before F1?�?�?����?�?�?? has been replaced with an all-new category: GP2. And the new series has captured the interest of many upcoming drivers, with over a dozen notable names filling the entry list. In much the same vein … Continue reading GP2 Season Preview
Editorial: Formula Ferrari
Posted onSuspended in a three-week limbo between races, the political machinations in F1 again become the focus of attention. This time, two significant individuals have broken ranks with the group-of-nine and joined Bernie Ecclestone, Max Mosley and Jean Todt at the negotiating table. Before we get to the heart of what this means for the attempts … Continue reading Editorial: Formula Ferrari
San Marino Grand Prix 2005 Preview
Posted onRenault have made a dominant start to the 2005 season – but Toyota, Ferrari and McLaren are chasing them hard. They need to be, because if they’re not on terms with the regie at this, the first race of the ‘European season’, they can kiss their title dreams goodbye. With the first three ‘flyaway’ races … Continue reading San Marino Grand Prix 2005 Preview
Bahrain Grand Prix 2005 Media Review
Posted onBahrain gave us a cracking race – but what did the wider world make of it? We take a look at the coverage of the Bahrain Grand Prix in the major British papers, in this week’s media review. Most of the Bahrain reactio focussed on the Fernando Alonso-Michael Schumacher battle, surely the first of many … Continue reading Bahrain Grand Prix 2005 Media Review
Editorial: Passion Killer
Posted onIt’s been a fixture for 25 years but the San Marino Grand Prix, the next stop on the F1 calendar, isn’t what it was. 2005 hasn’t been a bad season so far and now, at Bahrain, we have had our first real corker of a race. There was plenty of passing up and down the … Continue reading Editorial: Passion Killer
When they were young
Posted onFour rookie drivers made their debut in last month’s Australian Grand Prix, and acquitted themselves with varying degrees of success. But how well did the rest of the grid fare on their debut races – did they show glimpses of greatness or opening night nerves? 1991 Belgian Grand Prix, Spa-Francorchamps Michael Schumacher, Jordan Ford – … Continue reading When they were young
Alonso cruises to victory as Schumacher drops out
2005 Bahrain Grand Prix review
Posted onFernando Alonso again swept all before him to take a second consecutive win – including the new Ferrari F2005s which failed even to score points.
Montoya’s injury
Posted onJuan Pablo Montoya’s indifferent start to 2005 is not calculated to improve with the news that he will not race in Bahrain, still nursuing a shoulder fracture incurred while playing tennis. Frustratingly for McLaren they have still not modified an MP4-20 to fit their taller and preferred third driver, Alex Wurz. Instead, their second test … Continue reading Montoya’s injury
Editorial: Come get some
Posted onPremiership footballers are latest thing corrupting the nation’s youth. Apparently the sight of angry, impassioned sportsmen raging at referees over decisions that have gone against them is warping the fragile little minds of Britain’s junk food-stuffed sprogs. Some teachers and parents are even going so far as to suggest that football be screened after the … Continue reading Editorial: Come get some
Bookshelf Essentials: Formula One Fanatic
Posted onThe majority of books on Formula One are biographies of driver and histories of famous teams. Koen Vergeer’s Formula One Fanatic is something quite different, and an essential book for fellow F1 fans. Koen Vergeer’s Formula One Fanatic is a rare piece in the world of F1 literature – it’s not yet another cash-in biography … Continue reading Bookshelf Essentials: Formula One Fanatic
Bookshelf Essentials: F1 – The Autobiography
Posted onThere are no shortage of coffee-table F1 books, resplendent with exquisite photography and teeming with statistics. But Formula 1: The Autobiography, though huge, offers something more: The history of F1 in the words of the drivers themselves. Walk into any second-hand bookshop and in the motorsport section you’ll probably find a few dozen different ‘encyclopedias’ … Continue reading Bookshelf Essentials: F1 – The Autobiography
Bookshel Essentials: Villeneuve
Posted onGerald Donaldson’s memorable biography of Gilles Villeneuve is tipped to become a film to hit cinema screens in 2007. It is a classic book on one of the sport’s most beloved drivers, that every F1 fan should read. There have been many Formula One drivers who have impressed, astounded even, and tragically died, leaving behind … Continue reading Bookshel Essentials: Villeneuve
“The Life of Ayrton Senna” reviewed
Posted onYes, it’s just what Formula One literature needs – yet another biography of Ayrton Senna. But Tom Rubython’s biography can make a worthy claim to being the definitive work on one of F1’s greatest figures. The Life of Ayrton Senna is a substantial 600-plus page work, meticulously researched and thoroughly detailed. Rubython is the author … Continue reading “The Life of Ayrton Senna” reviewed
Bahrain Grand Prix 2005 Preview
Posted onAfter a dismal (by their standards) start to 2005, Ferrari have pressed their new car into action two weeks ahead of schedule. Can they close the gap to Renault, or will the technical Bahrain circuit reveal that their true weakness is their Bridgestone tyres? The 2004 Bahrain Grand Prix won the FIA’s award for best … Continue reading Bahrain Grand Prix 2005 Preview
Ferrari offer testing truce?
Posted onAccording to Autosport-Atlas Ferrari have decided to cancel their testing session at Silverstone in June. It is a response to the near-universal criticism of their refusal to pursue cost-cutting reductions in testing. However there is still no sign that they will back down from their two somewhat contradictory stances on testing: that their reduction in … Continue reading Ferrari offer testing truce?
Schumacher drives F2005
Posted onMichael Schumacher has finally gotten behind the wheel of the F2005 and immediately after getting out of the car told the journos from Autosport-Atlas and that this was the super-fact, razor-sharp machine that would allow him to renew his crushing domination of F1: “This car has been driven quite a lot, it’s not as if … Continue reading Schumacher drives F2005
Editorial: So what’s it gonna be this time?
Posted onFerrari are in trouble – there is no doubt about it. They never looked like running with the leaders all weekend long, and by the end of second qualifying Michael Schumacher was four seconds behind, languishing in 13th. After 56 laps he was 1m 20s behind Alonso, and had been lapped at one stage. A … Continue reading Editorial: So what’s it gonna be this time?