Indian GP cut from 2014 Calendar

So, it was announced earlier today that the Indian GP will not make a return until 2015, due to scheduling conflicts. Although it is set to return in 2015, it will not be at the end of the F1 season, but instead in the beginning, shoved somewhere around Malaysia and Bahrain. 

The Indian GP will still run later this year, in October. Bernie Ecclestone wants the GP to be moved to the beginning of the season but due to the fact it's already running at the end of this year, running it at the beginning of next year would set the same GP too close together.

So, instead of 22 races next year, we will be at 21, which is 1 more than the usual 20. We only have 19 this year due to New Jersey not being a ready circuit and no one was able to fill in for the extra European slot.

More info to come soon.

Article Written By: Amy Hawk.

Q & A with Marcey Fehser - Hungary GP!

Today we did a Q & A with Marcey Fehser. She is a artist/painter and loves Formula1. Her artwork is abstract/provocative. The photo above is one she did and is called "Pole Position" - Available for purchase in her etsy store: www.etsy.com/shop/justmarcey

Here is the final result of our session!


Me: Alright, so first question. What do you think of the temperatures for this weekend at the Hungaroring?

Marcey: Hottttttt. But, besides "Hotttt" - It'll be uncomfortable for the spectators and it'll be boiling for the drivers down on the track. Boilinggg.

Me: Do you think it could affect the tyres?

Marcey: Ooo. I think if they're using the softs, there will be quicker tyre degradation. Hopefully none will explode.

Me: Which teams do you think have the upper-hand in the hot conditions?

Marcey: Hmm. -Giggles- I think Lotus and I think Ferarri have a better chance in heat.

Me: What about teams that might have some issues?

Marcey: For some reason I think Redbull's gonna' have a problem with the heat... And probably McLaren.

Me: What about some of the middle field teams? How do you feel the heat would affect them?

Marcey: I think Force India will do okay, and I think Sauber has a good chance. I think they may benefit from it, but I think the rest of the teams will do standard. Not much of a difference.

Me: Sebastian Vettel does hold fastest lap here. You sure the heat will trouble Redbull?

Marcey: Yeah, I think it will affect the Gearbox. It seems to have issues in the heat.. Both him and Webber.

Me: Do you know who won the first Hungarian Grand Prix? Haha.

Marcey: I don't.

Me: Nelson Piquet.

Marcey: If I would've grabbed my Formula 1 book, I would've known that. Ooo! I forgot about Mercedes.. Maybe they have a fairly good chance.

Me: What are your guesses on the starting grid? Top 3?

Marcey: Hmm... In no particular order. Hamilton, Alonso and Vettel.

Me: What about someone no one's expecting?

Marcey: Front of the grid? Maybe... Sutil, Di Resta or Perez. I think any one of them could get it.

Me: Okay, last question. What do you think of the circuit? Any particular part of if that is your favourite?

Marcey: That last turn between 12, 13 and 14 looks pretty hairy. And turn 1 looks like there could be some problems there. People are going to be flying down that straightaway. Yikes.

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If you'd like to check out Marcey's artwork you can go to: www.etsy.com/shop/justmarcey 


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Article Written By: Amy Hawk.
NCRI.

2014 To See Austrian GP

News this morning announced the come back of the Austrian GP, held in Spielburg at the Red Bull Ring. So far it was said the race will be held July 6th 2014. The last race was held in 2003, when the circuit was still called the A1 Ring. It's currently holding races for DTM. 

With 22 races now planned (So far.) on the 2014 schedule, racers and teams are unsure about it. Most agree there should be no more than 20 races during the racing season. But what's 2 more? We could possibly be seeing 21 if Korea's GP is to fall from the schedule. If not we will see 22, the new races being Austria, Russia and of course the highley talked about New Jersey GP. 

So far, there is no official draft calendar from the FIA. Things will be more clear towards the end of this race season.

Article Written By: Amy Hawk.

Kobayashi crashes Ferarri at Moscow Event.

The Moscow City Racing event took place on Sunday, and Kamui Kobayashi crashed the Ferarri F60 into a barrier, when he lost control on the slippery grounds. Kamui was unhurt, but probably pretty embarrassed. The Ex-F1 driver is currently driving for Ferarri GT. He made this statement after the accident.

"The track was very slippery and there was a marked bump at that point, which is why I hit the barrier. A shame, but I am pleased the team let me out again after a few minutes. It was great to be able to represent Scuderia Ferarri at such an important event. For this I would once again like to thank the team and its sponser Kaspersky Lab. It is important to be able to bring Formula 1 close to the public with promotional events like this: a shame about the rain as otherwise the crowd might have been even bigger."

Article Written By: Amy Hawk.

Realistic Ambitions for Sergio Perez.

McLaren has been unfortunate this year, not finishing inside the points much, recently until the German GP. Button finished in 6th, while Perez finished 8th. But Perez wants to be realistic about how things will be going down in Hungary, and had this to say:

"I'm going to Hungary with realistic ambitions and after a positive weekend at the Nurburgring, we're focused on further improving and understanding the MP4-28. I think the race in Germany showed that, when things come together, we're able to be a force in the race, even if we can't quite set the pace at the front. That is extemely motivating during a difficult year. Hungary is the last race of the first 'Half' of 2013; it's the final event before the official Summer break, so there's usually a good feeling in the paddock. For everybody on the race team, or working back at the MTC, it would be great to send everybody off on their Summer holidays with another strong points finish. I haven't had the best results in my two previous outings at the Hungaroring, which is a shame [But] I enjoy the circuit, have usually qualified well there, and think the race is a great event for F1."

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Article Written By: Amy Hawk

Young Drivers Testing Re-Cap

Day 1 was a good day for Kevin Magnussen who set fasest time in the McLaren, topping Force India's Paul Di Resta, who was just barely slower than him! A lot of people are asking if any of these youngsters are fighting for a real drive in F1, and the answer is never easy. Mark Webber's Red Bull seat will likely be given to Daniel Ricciardo from Toro Rosso. And if that happens, it's then the question "Well, who gets Daniel's old seat?"

Formula 1 is unpredictable, and there's a lot more drivers than just Ricciardo who are interested in replacing Webber. Lotus indeed wants to keep Raikkonen, who most people thought would instantly be 2014's new Red Bull driver, partnering Sebastian Vettel. But it looks more likely we could have an underdog or rookie replacing the Australian Driver.

Day 1 Times:

1. Kevin Magnussen - 1:33.602 / McLaren
2. Paul Di Resta - 1:33.774 / Force India
3. Antonio Felix Da Costa - 1:33.821 / Red Bull
4. James Calado - 1:33.986 / Force India
5. Daniel Juncadella - 1:34.098 / Williams
6. Johnny Cecotto - 1:34.193 / Toro Rosso
7. Robin Frijns - 1:34.236 / Sauber
8. Nicolas Prost - 1:34.810 / Lotus
9. Davide Rigon - 1:34.874 / Ferrari
10. Alexander Rossi - 1:35.651 / Caterham
11. Tio Ellinas - 1:36.676 / Marussia
12. Max Chilton - 1:38.347 / Marussia


Day 2 Times: 

1. Daniel Ricciardo - 1:32.972 / Toro Rosso
2. Carlos Sainz Jr. - 1:33.016 / Toro Rosso
3. Daniel Ricciardo - 1:33.187 / Redbull
4. Davide Valsecchi - 1:33.554 / Lotus
5. Oliver Turvey - 1:33.864 / McLaren
6. James Calado - 1:33.957 / Force India
7. Antonio Felix Da Costa - 1:33.958 / Red Bull
8. Davide Rigon - 1:34.053 / Ferarri
9. Pastor Maldonado - 1:34.116 / Williams
10. Nico Hulkenberg - 1:34.224 / Sauber
11. Daniel Juncadella - 1:34.631 / Williams
12. Robin Frijns - 1:34.731 / Sauber
13. Will Stevens - 1:36.082 / Caterham
14. Paul Di Resta - 1:36.356 / Force India
15. Rodolfo Gonzalez - 1:37.949 / Marussia


Day 3 Times:

1. Sebastian Vettel - 1:32.894 / Red Bull
2. Adrian Sutil - 1:33.242 / Force India
3. Nicolas Prost - 1:33.256 / Lotus
4. Carlos Sainz Jr. - 1:33.546 / Red Bull
5. Davide Rigon - 1:33.592 / Ferrari
6. Felipe Massa - 1:33.624 / Ferrari 
7. Jean-Eric Vergne - 1:33.647 / Toro Rosso
8. Gary Paffett - 1:34.924 / McLaren
9. Susie Wolff - 1:35.093 / Williams
10. Giedo Van Der Garde - 1:35.155 / Caterham
11. Daniil Kvyat - 1:35.281 - Toro Rosso
12. Charles Pic - 1:35.576 / Caterham
13. Kimiya Sato - 1:35.642 / Sauber
14. Rodolfo Gonzalez - 1:36.339 / Marussia
15. James Calado - 1:36.451 / Force India
16. Jules Bianchi - 1:36.744 / Marussia


Article Written By: Amy Hawk.

Young driver Test Line-Up.

The three days of the Young Drivers Test are among us, and of course we have the new "Tyre testing" going on during it. This was not meant to happen, until of course all the tyre explosions happened. So, it was agreed Pirelli could hold testing during the 3 days of YDT.

Each team picked at least 2-3 people who would be driving for the tests. Most teams opted not to use their own current drivers, while some did. 

LINE-UP:

EDIT: Kimi Raikkonen and Mark Webber will no longer be driving due to test rules and regulations. Red Bull EDIT: Da Costa drove all day yesterday instead, and will drive again this morning (Thursday.) Ricciardo will drive in the afternoon. Friday will see Sainz Jr. In the morning and Vettel in the afternoon.

Redbull:

Wednesday: Antonio Felix da Costa = All Day
Thursday: Antonio Felix da Costa = Morning / Daniel Ricciardo = Afternoon.
Friday: Carlos Sainz Jr. = Morning. / Sebastian Vettel = Afternoon.

Ferarri:

Wednesday: Davide Rigon = All Day.
Thursday: Davide Rigon = All Day.
Friday: Felipe Massa = Morning / Davide Rigon = Afternoon.

Lotus:

Wednesday: Nicolas Prost = All Day.
Thursday: Davide Valsecchi = All Day.
Friday: TBA.

McLaren:

Wednesday: Kevin Magnussen = All Day.
Thursday: Oliver Turvey = All Day.
Friday: Gary Paffett = All Day.

Force India:

Wednesday: TBA.
Thursday: TBA.
Friday: TBA.

Torro Rosso:

Wednesday: Johnny Cecotto = All Day.
Thursday: Carlos Sainz Jr. = Morning / Daniel Ricciardo = Afternoon.
Friday: Jean-Eric Vergne = Morning / Daniil Kvyat = Afternoon.

Sauber:

Wednesday: Robin Frijns = All Day.
Thursday: Robin Frijns = Morning / Nico Hulkenberg = Afternoon.
Friday: Kimiya Sato = All Day.

Williams:

Wednesday: Daniel Juncadella = All Day.
Thursday: Pastor Maldonado = All Day.
Friday: Susie Wolff = All Day.

Marussia: 

Wednesday: Tio Ellinas = Morning. / Max Chilton = Afternoon.
Thursday: Rodolfo Gonzalez = All Day.
Friday: Rodolfo Gonzalez = Morning / Jules Bianchi = Afternoon.

Caterham:

Wednesday: Alexander Rossi = All Day.
Thursday: Will Stevens = All Day.
Friday: Giedo Van Der Garde = TBA / Charles Pic = TBA.

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Article Written By: Amy Hawk

Sauber gets new partnerships & New driver for 2014.

Sauber announced last night that they have a new partnership with three Russian companies.This is good news since the team had been low on funding lately, and has had a big financial issue this year. The partnership is with the Investment Cooperation International Fund, The National Institute Of Aviation Technologies and The State Fund Of Development of North-West Russian Federation.

Sauber also announced that they have signed 17 year old Sergey Sirotkin for the 2014 season. No word on which driver will not be sticking around. Sergey is still in his first season with Formula Renault 3.5, and his best result so far has been Second place. 

The partnerships apparently have a lot to do with next year's Russian GP in Sochi.


Article Written By: Amy Hawk.

Cameraman Paul Allen in hospital from tyre accident.

During Sunday's German GP, Mark Webber had an unsafe release in the pit lane. Basically what happened is that his right rear tyre was not completely fastened to his car. Unkowningly, the crew in the front lowered his car for release and Mark quickly began to leave the pit lane. The wheel detached from the car and flew through the Mercedes pit crew, before hitting Paul Allen who is a FOM Cameraman.

He is currently being held in a hospital in Koblens and is conscious, but pretty badly injured. Allen has suffered 2 broken ribs, a broken collar bone and cuncussion.

We hope he recovers soon and that he is feeling better. Thoughts are with him and his family.

As for Mark Webber - He was not given a penalty, although Redbull Racing was for "Unsafe Release in the pit lane".


Article Written By: Amy Hawk.