Vasanth Dharmaraj’s Blog

Image from f1fanatic.co.uk

Bahrain GP started of the much anticipated Formula 1 2010 season. The return of Schumacher, banning of refueling, four world champions competing, Alonso’s first race for the most famous team in F1 and a lot of new teams made this the most anticipated start of a season. Vettel got pole, the Ferraris were close behind in 2-3. Schumacher was a few tenths off Rosberg. Will the Ferraris leap ahead of Vettel? Will Schumi’s race pace be way better than Rosberg? …

Well Ferraris did pass the Red Bull of Vettel but only because Vettel had a problem. Schumi was slower than Rosberg. Hamilton got the first blood in the battle of the British in a British car.

In short the race was on of the more boring ones in recent history. With no refueling there was no changes in the running order due to strategy. Everyone were on a single stop strategy. The stop is kind of mandatory as each driver has to use both tires. Most of the top 10 qualified on soft tires and changed to hard ones when it wore out. Only significant change in order took place when Hamilton regained his starting position from Rosberg with a new set of tires.

Well with no refueling there should be more on track racing and overtaking. Right? Wrong! The only on track overtaking was Alonso taking on Massa in the first lap.

Why so dull? Well the fast cars are in the front after qualifying. Nobody seems to make mistakes and the pitstops are mere formality as there is nothing setting the teams apart. Hopefully the teams think of some innovative strategy to get past in the short pitstops and liven things up. Otherwise we are in for some more dull races.

At least Ferrari are fast and finished 1-2.

Looks like a couple of rule changes have been made to the 2010 F1 season. The points system has changed to:

1st – 25 points
2nd – 18 points
3rd – 15 points
4th – 12 points
5th – 10 points
6th – 8 points
7th – 6 points
8th – 4 points
9th – 2 points
10th – 1 point

The second is that the top ten qualifiers would have to start the race with the same tires as Q3 qualifying!?! Why on earth would they create a rule like that? How does it help racing?

The final change is that the teams get only 11 sets of tires compared to 14 last year.

Another F1 car launch, McLaren launch their 2010 contender: MP4-25. Check out the pictures here.

Ferrari have unveiled their 2010 contender. Check out the side by side comparison with the last years model over at F1 Fanatics. Can not wait for the new season to start…

Well just the colors! The actual car will be launched later. Here is what the car will look like and who will drive them:

[f1fanatics]

Mad Max completely backed off giving the teams all that they wanted. No budget caps, Max wont look to get re-elected, same rules for 2010 as this season plus Max wont interfere with F1 till he retires in October. Wow! Great win for FOTA!

Thank god F1 is same and sane. Press report continues…

All currently competing teams have committed to the FIA Formula One World Championship.

There will be no alternative series or championship and the rules for 2010 onwards will be the 2009 regulations as well as further regulations agreed prior to 29 April 2009.

As part of this agreement, the teams will, within two years, reduce the costs of competing in the championship to the level of the early 1990s. The manufacturer teams have agreed to assist the new entries for 2010 by providing technical assistance.

The manufacturer teams have further agreed to the permanent and continuing role of the FIA as the sport’s governing body. They have also committed to the commercial arrangements for the FIA Formula One World Championship until 2012 and have agreed to renegotiate and extend this contract before the end of that period.

All teams will adhere to an upgraded version of the governance provisions of the 1998 Concorde Agreement.

The following teams have been accepted for the 2010 FIA Formula One World Championship.

TEAM

SCUDERIA FERRARI MARLBORO
VODAFONE McLAREN MERCEDES
BMW SAUBER F1 TEAM
RENAULT F1 TEAM
PANASONIC TOYOTA RACING
SCUDERIA TORO ROSSO
RED BULL RACING
AT&T WILLIAMS
FORCE INDIA F1 TEAM
BRAWN GP FORMULA ONE TEAM
CAMPOS META TEAM
MANOR GRAND PRIX
TEAM US F1

In view of this new agreement and with the prospect of a stable future for Formula One, FIA President Max Mosley has confirmed his decision not to stand for re-election in October this year.

The Stig is the super driver in BBC’s Top Gear show. The identity was always kept a secret. But in the new season opener it the identity was revealed as Michael Schumacher. Interesting but probably just a publicity stunt…

The fight in Formula 1 is still not over. FOTA is pressing ahead with its alternate series. Max has backed down a bit by calling off the legal fight against the FOTA teams. The World Motor Sport Council is set to meet tomorrow to finalize the F1 2010 entry list. Max is all set to run from re-election… In summary everything is still a mess in F1. Anyway here is the provisional FOTA series race schedule:

March 3 – Buenos Aires, Argentina – Last hosted F1 in 1998

March21 – Mexico City, Mexico – Last hosted F1 in 1992

April 11 - Jerez, Spain – Last hosted F1 in 1997

April 25 – Portimao, Portugal – Never hosted F1

May 2 – Imola, San Marino – Last hosted F1 in 2006

May23 – Monte Carlo, Monaco – Current F1 host

June 6 - Montreal, Canada – Last hosted F1 in 2008

June 13 – Indianapolis, United States – Last hosted F1 in 2007

July 1 – Silverstone, United Kingdom – Current F1 host

July 25 – Magny-Cours, France – Last hosted F1 in 2008

August 15 – Laustizring, Germany – Never hosted F1

August 29 - Helsinki, Finland – Never hosted F1

September 12 – Monza, Italy – Current F1 host

September 26 - Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates – Current F1 host

October 10 - Marina Bay, Singapore – Current F1 host

October 24 - Suzuka, Japan – Last hosted F1 in 2006

November 8 – Adelaide or Surfers’ Paradise, Australia – Last hosted F1 in 1995/Never hosted F1

[eurosport]

Press Release | Formula One Teams Association

Silverstone, 18 June 2009 – Since the formation of FOTA last September the teams have worked together and sought to engage the FIA and commercial rights holder, to develop and improve the sport.

Unprecedented worldwide financial turmoil has inevitably placed great challenges before the F1 community. FOTA is proud that it has achieved the most substantial measures to reduce costs in the history of our sport.

In particular the manufacturer teams have provided assistance to the independent teams, a number of which would probably not be in the sport today without the FOTA initiatives. The FOTA teams have further agreed upon a substantial voluntary cost reduction that provides a sustainable model for the future.

Following these efforts all the teams have confirmed to the FIA and the commercial rights holder that they are willing to commit until the end of 2012.

The FIA and the commercial rights holder have campaigned to divide FOTA.

The wishes of the majority of the teams are ignored. Furthermore, tens of millions of dollars have been withheld from many teams by the commercial rights holder, going back as far as 2006. Despite this and the uncompromising environment, FOTA has genuinely sought compromise.

It has become clear however, that the teams cannot continue to compromise on the fundamental values of the sport and have declined to alter their original conditional entries to the 2010 World Championship.

These teams therefore have no alternative other than to commence the preparation for a new Championship which reflects the values of its participants and partners. This series will have transparent governance, one set of regulations, encourage more entrants and listen to the wishes of the fans, including offering lower prices for spectators worldwide, partners and other important stakeholders.

The major drivers, stars, brands, sponsors, promoters and companies historically associated with the highest level of motorsport will all feature in this new series.

Note to Eds: Statement issued by FOTA on behalf of BMW-Sauber, BrawnGP, Scuderia Ferrari, McLaren-Mercedes, Red Bull Racing, Renault, Scuderia Toro Rosso, Toyota.

Looks like FOTA is not going to give in to Max’s way without a fight. I am not sure how serious the FOTA are about forming a new series but they sure are putting Max in a tough position. It should be interesting to see the F1 2010 entry list published over the weekend. Without these eight teams will F1 be still F1? Like I said before I will not be following F1 anymore if Ferrari are not in it…