Karun Chandhok will become the second Indian driver to compete in Formula One when he joins up with the new Hispania Racing team this season.
As expected, 26-year-old Chandhok has been signed by the new outfit, formerly known as Campos Meta, and will reportedly provide a significant amount of the much-needed sponsorship funds.
Chennai-born Chandhok will partner Brazilian rookie Bruno Senna, nephew of the late triple world champion Ayrton Senna, at the Spanish-based team.
Chandhok formerly competed in A1GP before spending the last three years driving in GP2, finishing an unremarkable 15th, 10th and 18th in the drivers' standings.
But despite his uninspiring record, team principal Colin Kolles believes Chandhok will be a worthy addition to the outfit when the season gets underway in Bahrain next weekend.
Impressed
"We have been very impressed with Karun's performance in GP2," said Kolles.
"India is a great country. It will be great for the sport to have an Indian driver on the grid for the first Indian Grand Prix (yet to be officially confirmed)."
The team has been plagued by problems over the last few months, leading to an internal takeover a few weeks ago, but Kolles insists Hispania Racing has a future in F1.
"Everything is now in place, after an impossible race against time, to register the team's name," added Kolles.
"I truly believe we have an excellent platform to build on and move forward for a strong 2010 performance.
"Now, we need to work together. We need to learn together and keep developing as a team."
India's only other F1 driver was Narain Karthikeyan, who drove with Jordan for one season in 2005.
Showing posts with label Formula 1. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Formula 1. Show all posts
Friday, March 5, 2010
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Webber Hits Out at New Teams
Mark Webber has blasted the current state of Formula One, stating that it is 'embarrassing' that teams who haven't yet tried out their cars may race in the season-opening grand prix.
Four new teams were granted entry into Formula One for the 2010 season, but of the four, only two teams have engaged in pre-season testing, one is reportedly out of business and the other looks set to undergo a name change.
Considered the pinnacle of motorsport, Red Bull driver Webber believes that the sport is now being made to look amateurish.
"It's embarrassing," Webber said of the situation. "It's incredible that people who haven't yet turned a wheel take part in grands prix.
"It's the sort of stuff from Mickey Mouse or Tom and Jerry," he added.
While Virgin Racing and Lotus look set to make it to the first race in Bahrain, USF1 are in a financial quagmire and will reportedly ask the FIA to defer their entry to the 2011 season.
Campos Meta seem to have weathered the financial storm that looked set to derail their attempts this year, and according to reports in the Spanish media, the team will now be known as Hispania Racing after securing new sponsors. Whether new sponsors will be enough to get the team on the grid remains to be seen.
Four new teams were granted entry into Formula One for the 2010 season, but of the four, only two teams have engaged in pre-season testing, one is reportedly out of business and the other looks set to undergo a name change.
Considered the pinnacle of motorsport, Red Bull driver Webber believes that the sport is now being made to look amateurish.
"It's embarrassing," Webber said of the situation. "It's incredible that people who haven't yet turned a wheel take part in grands prix.
"It's the sort of stuff from Mickey Mouse or Tom and Jerry," he added.
While Virgin Racing and Lotus look set to make it to the first race in Bahrain, USF1 are in a financial quagmire and will reportedly ask the FIA to defer their entry to the 2011 season.
Campos Meta seem to have weathered the financial storm that looked set to derail their attempts this year, and according to reports in the Spanish media, the team will now be known as Hispania Racing after securing new sponsors. Whether new sponsors will be enough to get the team on the grid remains to be seen.
Lada to Sponsor Renault
Russian car manufacturer Lada are set to take on a sponsorship role with Formula One outfit Renault this season.
Lada has had little sporting reputation in the past, but the manufacturer has gone some way to change that in recent years by competing in the World Touring Car Championship.
The marque is part-owned by Renault, while Russian Vitaly Petrov will make his F1 debut for the outfit this season alongside Robert Kubica of Poland.
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has announced Lada branding will feature on the Renault cars this year, with expansion of the sponsorship role a future possibility.
Cooperation
"Mr Petrov is here, and I wish him success. I am sure he will set a fine example of what cooperation between Renault and Russian car manufacturers can achieve," said Putin.
"As far as I know, the Lada logo will be on the race car and the uniforms of the driver and pit crew. This is appropriate, seeing as we intend to launch a new series of cars together with Renault's direct participation under the traditional Lada brand."
"We will take the first steps in sponsoring the project, and it's possible that we will increase our sponsorship role in the future."
Renault president Carlos Ghosn added: "Lada, together with Renault and Nissan, has wonderful prospects. Lada is our main brand in Russia. It is the most popular brand and we will continue to improve it with the support of Nissan and Renault.
"These three brands account for 35% of the global auto market. In Russia, Lada accounts for one-third of the market. We hope that by promoting Lada with the support of Nissan and Renault, we will be able to increase this share."
Lada has had little sporting reputation in the past, but the manufacturer has gone some way to change that in recent years by competing in the World Touring Car Championship.
The marque is part-owned by Renault, while Russian Vitaly Petrov will make his F1 debut for the outfit this season alongside Robert Kubica of Poland.
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has announced Lada branding will feature on the Renault cars this year, with expansion of the sponsorship role a future possibility.
Cooperation
"Mr Petrov is here, and I wish him success. I am sure he will set a fine example of what cooperation between Renault and Russian car manufacturers can achieve," said Putin.
"As far as I know, the Lada logo will be on the race car and the uniforms of the driver and pit crew. This is appropriate, seeing as we intend to launch a new series of cars together with Renault's direct participation under the traditional Lada brand."
"We will take the first steps in sponsoring the project, and it's possible that we will increase our sponsorship role in the future."
Renault president Carlos Ghosn added: "Lada, together with Renault and Nissan, has wonderful prospects. Lada is our main brand in Russia. It is the most popular brand and we will continue to improve it with the support of Nissan and Renault.
"These three brands account for 35% of the global auto market. In Russia, Lada accounts for one-third of the market. We hope that by promoting Lada with the support of Nissan and Renault, we will be able to increase this share."
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Webber - Challenge Will Fade
Red Bull driver Mark Webber is confident that not all pre-season title favourites will be in contention as the 2010 Formula One season unfolds.
The battle for this year's Championship promises to be fierce, with as many as eight drivers named as real contenders for the driver's crown.
Pre-season testing suggests Ferrari and McLaren are in top form, while Mercedes GP and Red Bull are also tipped for success.
Intra-team battles have also emerged, with Jenson Button up against Lewis Hamilton at McLaren, Michael Schumacher going head to head with compatriot Nico Rosberg at Mercedes, Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa vying to be Ferrari's top dog and Webber out to prove himself the better Red Bull driver against Sebastian Vettel.
Rivalry
But Webber believes this rivalry between team-mates will see some title contenders fall by the wayside as the season progresses.
"I don't think that it will be eight. It will become a bit less than that quite quickly," Webber told the official F1 website.
"Sure there are some very strong teams this year, but by halfway through the season I don't think that you will have eight people in contention for the Championship. There will be less."
Australian Webber insists both he and Vettel have a serious chance of claiming maiden championship titles.
"Of course both of us are in it - that's my personal opinion," he added.
"We all have it in our heads that Michael Schumacher is with the Championship-winning team, and they are of course looking to win the Championship again.
"McLaren have two World Champions, Red Bull was very strong last year and got a lot of points, Fernando (Alonso) is with Ferrari and Felipe Massa is also doing very well.
"That's what everybody is thinking - that you've got these four teams who will decide the Championship amongst them, but as always we will have some dark horses who will pop up here and there."
The battle for this year's Championship promises to be fierce, with as many as eight drivers named as real contenders for the driver's crown.
Pre-season testing suggests Ferrari and McLaren are in top form, while Mercedes GP and Red Bull are also tipped for success.
Intra-team battles have also emerged, with Jenson Button up against Lewis Hamilton at McLaren, Michael Schumacher going head to head with compatriot Nico Rosberg at Mercedes, Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa vying to be Ferrari's top dog and Webber out to prove himself the better Red Bull driver against Sebastian Vettel.
Rivalry
But Webber believes this rivalry between team-mates will see some title contenders fall by the wayside as the season progresses.
"I don't think that it will be eight. It will become a bit less than that quite quickly," Webber told the official F1 website.
"Sure there are some very strong teams this year, but by halfway through the season I don't think that you will have eight people in contention for the Championship. There will be less."
Australian Webber insists both he and Vettel have a serious chance of claiming maiden championship titles.
"Of course both of us are in it - that's my personal opinion," he added.
"We all have it in our heads that Michael Schumacher is with the Championship-winning team, and they are of course looking to win the Championship again.
"McLaren have two World Champions, Red Bull was very strong last year and got a lot of points, Fernando (Alonso) is with Ferrari and Felipe Massa is also doing very well.
"That's what everybody is thinking - that you've got these four teams who will decide the Championship amongst them, but as always we will have some dark horses who will pop up here and there."
Massa Heidfeld Worth More
Felipe Massa is astonished that Nick Heidfeld has not been offered a race-seat for the 2010 Formula One season.
Heidfeld was left without a drive when BMW withdrew from F1 last season, with the team's ownership reverting back to Peter Sauber.
The German, who debuted with Prost in 2000, has run out of options for a race-seat ahead of the upcoming championship, which gets underway in Bahrain on March 14.
Settled
Heidfeld has instead settled for a test-driver role for Mercedes GP, completing their all-German line-up alongside Nico Rosberg and Michael Schumacher.
But Brazilian Ferrari driver Massa has expressed surprise that his former Sauber team-mate has been overlooked, particularly given some of the names on the grid this year.
"Why has no one offered my former team-mate Nick Heidfeld a good race-seat?" Massa told Swiss newspaper Blick.
"If I look at this year's field in such a way, then he belongs in Formula One - not as a test driver."
Heidfeld was left without a drive when BMW withdrew from F1 last season, with the team's ownership reverting back to Peter Sauber.
The German, who debuted with Prost in 2000, has run out of options for a race-seat ahead of the upcoming championship, which gets underway in Bahrain on March 14.
Settled
Heidfeld has instead settled for a test-driver role for Mercedes GP, completing their all-German line-up alongside Nico Rosberg and Michael Schumacher.
But Brazilian Ferrari driver Massa has expressed surprise that his former Sauber team-mate has been overlooked, particularly given some of the names on the grid this year.
"Why has no one offered my former team-mate Nick Heidfeld a good race-seat?" Massa told Swiss newspaper Blick.
"If I look at this year's field in such a way, then he belongs in Formula One - not as a test driver."
Friday, February 12, 2010
Kobayashi Goes Quickest
Sauber's Kamui Kobayashi was quickest on day two of the latest Formula One group test at the Jerez circuit in Spain.
With the 10 teams present able to enjoy plenty of running after the rain which fell on Wednesday, the Japanese driver topped the timesheets with a time of one minute 19.950 seconds around the 2.751-mile circuit.
Kobayashi was one of five drivers to rack up over 100 laps and set his time late in the day to beat long-time pacesetter Sebastien Buemi.
Buemi was less than a tenth off Kobayashi's pace after completing 121 laps in his Toro Rosso.
Jenson Button was third quickest as he continued to familiarise himself with his new McLaren, the World Champion half a second off the pace after spending the day working on aerodynamic mapping and variable fuel-load runs.
Button did slow to a halt on the circuit when a warning light came on towards the end of the session but the team later confirmed it had just been a precautionary measure.
Williams rookie Nico Hulkenberg suffered a hydraulic leak early on but the German ended the day fourth quickest ahead of Force India's Vitantonio Liuzzi.
"Today was quite a difficult day as we had some technical problems, but I'm still feeling positive about the car," said Hulkenberg.
"Of course, I would like to have had more running time, but that's sometimes the way it goes. Overall, it's been a good two days and the car feels good."
Schumacher sixth
Michael Schumacher is more than 18 years older than his countryman but the seven-times World Champion had no problems putting in a total of 124 laps, setting the sixth quickest time.
"I managed to complete a lot of laps which is very precious to me," the 41-year-old said.
"A new car, a new team and new conditions, therefore our first goal has to be to make the car reliable.
"Days like today help massively in that respect."
Ferrari's Fernando Alonso was down in seventh after concentrating on longer runs, while Robert Kubica's Renault was eighth and Red Bull Racing's Mark Webber ninth.
Meanwhile, Virgin Racing's Timo Glock brought up the rear for the second day running after the team were forced to halt their participation after just 11 laps owing to a lack of spare parts.
The front wing of the new VR-01 failed while Glock was putting the car through its paces and, with no replacement to hand, the team could not continue.
With the replacement parts expected to arrive in southwest Spain on Thursday evening, Brazilian rookie Lucas di Grassi will take over from Glock on Friday.
Times:
1 Kamui Kobayashi BMW Sauber 1m19.950 103 laps
2 Sebastien Buemi Scuderia Toro Rosso 1m20.026 121
3 Jenson Button McLaren Mercedes 1m20.618 83
4 Nico Hulkenberg Williams 1m20.629 67
5 Vitantonio Liuzzi Force India F1 1m20.754 80
6 Michael Schumacher Mercedes GP 1m21.083 124
7 Fernando Alonso Ferrari 1m21.424 129
8 Robert Kubica Renault 1m22.003 103
9 Mark Webber Red Bull Racing 1m22.043 99
10 Timo Glock Virgin Racing 1m29.964 11
With the 10 teams present able to enjoy plenty of running after the rain which fell on Wednesday, the Japanese driver topped the timesheets with a time of one minute 19.950 seconds around the 2.751-mile circuit.
Kobayashi was one of five drivers to rack up over 100 laps and set his time late in the day to beat long-time pacesetter Sebastien Buemi.
Buemi was less than a tenth off Kobayashi's pace after completing 121 laps in his Toro Rosso.
Jenson Button was third quickest as he continued to familiarise himself with his new McLaren, the World Champion half a second off the pace after spending the day working on aerodynamic mapping and variable fuel-load runs.
Button did slow to a halt on the circuit when a warning light came on towards the end of the session but the team later confirmed it had just been a precautionary measure.
Williams rookie Nico Hulkenberg suffered a hydraulic leak early on but the German ended the day fourth quickest ahead of Force India's Vitantonio Liuzzi.
"Today was quite a difficult day as we had some technical problems, but I'm still feeling positive about the car," said Hulkenberg.
"Of course, I would like to have had more running time, but that's sometimes the way it goes. Overall, it's been a good two days and the car feels good."
Schumacher sixth
Michael Schumacher is more than 18 years older than his countryman but the seven-times World Champion had no problems putting in a total of 124 laps, setting the sixth quickest time.
"I managed to complete a lot of laps which is very precious to me," the 41-year-old said.
"A new car, a new team and new conditions, therefore our first goal has to be to make the car reliable.
"Days like today help massively in that respect."
Ferrari's Fernando Alonso was down in seventh after concentrating on longer runs, while Robert Kubica's Renault was eighth and Red Bull Racing's Mark Webber ninth.
Meanwhile, Virgin Racing's Timo Glock brought up the rear for the second day running after the team were forced to halt their participation after just 11 laps owing to a lack of spare parts.
The front wing of the new VR-01 failed while Glock was putting the car through its paces and, with no replacement to hand, the team could not continue.
With the replacement parts expected to arrive in southwest Spain on Thursday evening, Brazilian rookie Lucas di Grassi will take over from Glock on Friday.
Times:
1 Kamui Kobayashi BMW Sauber 1m19.950 103 laps
2 Sebastien Buemi Scuderia Toro Rosso 1m20.026 121
3 Jenson Button McLaren Mercedes 1m20.618 83
4 Nico Hulkenberg Williams 1m20.629 67
5 Vitantonio Liuzzi Force India F1 1m20.754 80
6 Michael Schumacher Mercedes GP 1m21.083 124
7 Fernando Alonso Ferrari 1m21.424 129
8 Robert Kubica Renault 1m22.003 103
9 Mark Webber Red Bull Racing 1m22.043 99
10 Timo Glock Virgin Racing 1m29.964 11
Silverstone Gets Green Light
Bernie Ecclestone has given the go-ahead for Silverstone to stage the British Grand Prix on a new layout.
The Northamptonshire track, which won back the right to host the race late last year after plans to move it to Donington Park fell through, will use its new £5 million Arena circuit.
With Silverstone having prised the British MotoGP away from Donington following the loss of the Formula One Grand Prix, the new layout was originally designed with bikes in mind.
However, now that Ecclestone, who controls Formula One's commercial rights, has given his blessing, the Arena circuit will also be used by F1 cars.
The new section, which is 760 metres in length and expected to add four seconds to the current lap time, could help create three new overtaking opportunities.
Richard Phillips, managing director of Silverstone Circuits Limited, said: "The new sections of circuit were initially brought in to comply with MotoGP safety regulations, but the 'Arena Complex' was always designed with both two-and four-wheeled racing in mind.
"We have been very careful, working closely with drivers and riders, to make sure we are improving and enhancing what Silverstone already has to offer."
Infield
The track will deviate from its existing layout at Abbey corner, where instead of heading into Farm, Bridge and Priory, competitors will now tackle a new infield complex.
The circuit then joins the National Straight before returning to the original Grand Prix circuit at Brooklands.
"Some will miss not seeing modern day F1 cars accelerating through Bridge, but we have to move with the times and continue looking at ways to improve the overall experience," Phillips continued.
"The new layout will bring an extra dimension to Silverstone, a new challenge for the drivers, and will enable fans to get closer to the action."
The abortive deal between Donington and Ecclestone came about after the latter had long criticised Silverstone's facilities.
However, the circuit's owners have sought to undertake improvements, with new elevated viewing banks under construction and existing grandstands set to be moved to bring fans closer to the action.
A new pit and paddock complex is also scheduled to be completed by summer 2011, which will feature new garages, a race control building, media centre, hospitality and VIP spectator zones.
The Northamptonshire track, which won back the right to host the race late last year after plans to move it to Donington Park fell through, will use its new £5 million Arena circuit.
With Silverstone having prised the British MotoGP away from Donington following the loss of the Formula One Grand Prix, the new layout was originally designed with bikes in mind.
However, now that Ecclestone, who controls Formula One's commercial rights, has given his blessing, the Arena circuit will also be used by F1 cars.
The new section, which is 760 metres in length and expected to add four seconds to the current lap time, could help create three new overtaking opportunities.
Richard Phillips, managing director of Silverstone Circuits Limited, said: "The new sections of circuit were initially brought in to comply with MotoGP safety regulations, but the 'Arena Complex' was always designed with both two-and four-wheeled racing in mind.
"We have been very careful, working closely with drivers and riders, to make sure we are improving and enhancing what Silverstone already has to offer."
Infield
The track will deviate from its existing layout at Abbey corner, where instead of heading into Farm, Bridge and Priory, competitors will now tackle a new infield complex.
The circuit then joins the National Straight before returning to the original Grand Prix circuit at Brooklands.
"Some will miss not seeing modern day F1 cars accelerating through Bridge, but we have to move with the times and continue looking at ways to improve the overall experience," Phillips continued.
"The new layout will bring an extra dimension to Silverstone, a new challenge for the drivers, and will enable fans to get closer to the action."
The abortive deal between Donington and Ecclestone came about after the latter had long criticised Silverstone's facilities.
However, the circuit's owners have sought to undertake improvements, with new elevated viewing banks under construction and existing grandstands set to be moved to bring fans closer to the action.
A new pit and paddock complex is also scheduled to be completed by summer 2011, which will feature new garages, a race control building, media centre, hospitality and VIP spectator zones.
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