For the casual fan it may seem that F1 testing is more interesting than the races. Seemingly every week there is some new controversy about testing. This week, David Coulthard has decided to share with the world his opinion that safety standards at F1 test days are not up to scratch. I do sympathise with … Continue reading Crash Testing
There is an air of expectation as the F1 circus heads to Monaco. Runaway championship leader Fernando Alonso is starting to look vulnerable against the might of McLaren, and he may face similarly strong opposition from Italian Monaco specialists Jarno Trulli and Giancarlo Fisichella. Kimi Raikkonen’s devastating pace sealed his Spanish Grand Prix win with … Continue reading Monaco Grand Prix 2005 Preview
David Coulthard’s recent remark on the issue of safety at test sessions has been given greater resonance by a massive accident Alex Wurz suffered in testing at the Paul Ricard facility today. A suspected suspension failure threw his McLaren into a barrier at around 280kph (180 mph). The car was reportedly broken into several pieces … Continue reading Wurz in the wars
There will be worried faces in Cologne tonight as the Toyota team await news from the FIA on how severely the team may be punished for racing for the past few seasons without a suitable licence. Although it appears to be only an administrative oversight that has allowed this to happen, the FIA do have … Continue reading Toyota next to feel FIA’s wrath?
BAR have revealed that they will not make any modifications to the fuel tank at the cetnre of the San Marino Grand Prix controversy when they return and their present two-race ban, but they will run with 6kg more ballast to ensure that they cannot possibly run underweight. They expect it to cost them around … Continue reading BAR 6kg heavier in Nurburgring
This is one of the more contemporary titles in Duke Video’s series of video biographies of notable champions. 1976 champion James Hunt was one of the sport’s most unusual characters, and his championship-winning season is just begging to be made into a feature film. There’s a lot of high quality footage and it’s been carefully … Continue reading “Champion: Hunt” (DVD)
An enticing prospect, but the title of this DVD is a little misleading. Yes, it features on-board footage of Formula One cars dating back around 50 years. But realistically, only since the mid-1980s have Formula One cars regularly been fitted with on-board cameras while racing. So this DVD features a mix of early flirtations with … Continue reading “50 Years of Formula One On-board” (DVD)
Another typical early ’90s Frontrunner tape as all the incidents from another cracking season are crammed together into an action packed hour. Although too short, this is more watchable than the 1989 video thanks to a good commentary and more thoughtful editing that shows slightly more of each race than the crashes. That said this … Continue reading “Showdown” (1990 season video)
The Front Runner videos use the same Formula One Constructor’s Association (FOCA) footage as the official reviews do, but the tapes are usually shorter. At a scant 60 mins for 16 races, the 1991 review is no exception. However it does pack a fairly thorough review of the season into this single hour. There’s no … Continue reading “Mansell v. Senna” (1991 season video)
1989 was a classic season, hinging on the rivalry of two of F1’s greatest drivers. This video gamely tries to compile all the relevant footage into one hour but it just doesn’t quite work. Instead the hour is a breathless rush through incidents and accidents of the year without ever really making sense. This is … Continue reading “Duel of the Champions” (1989 season video)
The Brunswick material stands out in terms of quality but is lacking in depth. Often entire races are missed and some have only fleeting moments of action. Such is the case with this DVD (also available on video, as the rest of the series are.) The South African, Spanish, German and Austrian rounds are all … Continue reading “Double First: Williams and Jones” (1980 season dvd)
Ferrari chief Luca Montezemolo has hit out at tyre supplier Bridgestone after Michael Schumacher’s double tyre failure at Barcelona. “We have a very competitive car, but we have a big problem with the tyres,” he told the press. A statement in response to his remarks read, “Bridgestone understands his frustrations and we are working closer … Continue reading Montezemolo blames Bridgestone, rules
Kimi Raikkonen’s won a race, and so the F1 journalists roll out the inevitable ‘Iceman’ puns. Meanwhile, ITV apologised for their almighty cock-up during the San Marino Grand Prix. Before we get stuck into the papers, a word on ITV. Justly chastised for cutting huge swathes of the Fernando Alonso-Michael Schumcher battle in favour of … Continue reading Spanish Grand Prix 2005 Media Review
Six years into the new millennium and so far the top levels of four- and two-wheeled motorsport, Formula One and Moto GP, have been dominated by two men: Michael Schumacher and Valentino Rossi. Both have been practically unbeatable, but comparing them reveals intriguing differences. The first, obvious, similarity is their astounding successes and shared desire … Continue reading The Master and the Doctor
The cameras follow the fight at the front: there’s nothing wrong with that. But at the other end of the grid Minardi and Jordan are battling each other with equal ferocity, and a fascinating duel is beginning to develop between the two minnows of Formula One. Jordan and Minardi are, in relative terms, the poor … Continue reading The Battle at the Back
Ferrari boss Jean Todt told Autosport this week, ?â?ó?óÔÇÜ?¼?àÔÇ£Our rivals are just bad losers.?â?ó?óÔÇÜ?¼?é?Ø McLaren head Ron Dennis admitted as much after Imola: ?â?ó?óÔÇÜ?¼?àÔÇ£I was in pain for days afterwards,?â?ó?óÔÇÜ?¼?é?Ø he said. But you can be worse things than just a bad loser?â?ó?óÔÇÜ?¼?é?ª Nick Fry and the BAR team must have seen the writing on … Continue reading Editorial: Bad Losers
Kimi Raikkonen delivered a performance worthy of his McLaren predecessor and compatriot Mika Hakkinen as he left the field standing in Spain.
BAR have dropped their counter-appeal against the FIA’s victory in the row over whether they ran Jenson Button’s car underweight in the San Marino Grand Prix. This is tantamount to acceptance by BAR of the claim that the car did contravene the rules, but means they do not suffer the potential greater embarassment of being … Continue reading BAR drop appeal
The FIA have thrown BAR out of the results for the San Marino Grand Prix and banned them from the next two rounds (Spain and Monaco) for running underweight in San Marino. A secondary fuel tank within the main fuel tain was used to retain fuel during post-race scrutineering. When this was emptied, the BAR … Continue reading BAR get two-race ban
Juan Pablo Montoya will return to the cockpit of his McLAren MP4-20 for his first race since injuring his shoulder after the Malaysian Grand Prix. He will suffer the disadvantage of running first in qualifying 1 on Saturday, but should beneift from the progress McLaren have made during his abence, and the new parts they … Continue reading Montoya back for Spain
