Writing elsewhere

Folks who read my F1 scribbles,

I've started writing at linksheaven, a fan based F1 site. Do check out my posts there too!

Four articles till date on Links:

Save Monza!

Another twist to the engine tale...

An ode to Suzuka

Stoddart back in action?


I'll continue spewing F1 reviews race after race here too!

The season is young.. tra.. la .. la..

Rules galore!

The rules for Formula 1 from 2008 onwards have been decided and approved by the World Motorsport Council.

Here's the crux of the story: (my comment in red)

• Teams would have to 'submit' engine designs for the 2008 season before June 1 2006. No further changes to the engine can be made after this date, without approval from the FIA.

Nice, what if the Ronster or Mario get stuck with an unreliable engine? I'd like to see Ron's face when
he discovers that his engine is defunct, and he knows how to repair it but he actually isn't allowed to.

• Not only can't teams change their engines every race, but now gear-boxes cannot be changed too. A gear box would have to survive four races straight.

Some way to do cost cutting. I wonder how many dollars it costs to put a gear-box together.

• Change of engine/gearbox would invite penalty, although not in the form of grid penalty but in the form of a 15kg weight penalty.

Some solace, atleast the stupid grid penalty rule is being removed.

• A single tyre supplier will be chosen for the three season 2008,2009 and 2010. They would supply standard material to all teams - two dry weather , one wet and one extreme weather compounds.

Michelin leaves F1 this year. Max doesn't have a choice, rather.

• Teams cannot test for more than 30000 km a year.

Ferrari could lease out their Fiorano/Mugello tracks to host F1 parties then.

• Parc Ferme conditions would start on friday evening, at 18:30. Currently, parc ferme starts after qualifying is over.

No last minute changes, eh!

• Major engine manufacturers cannot supply engines to more than two teams without approval from the FIA.

Not only their development, but their earnings are restricted as well.

• To join the series, teams would have to pay just 300 thousand euros. Currently the fee is a staggering $ 48 million USD.

Dummy. I don't think anybody would be interested in F1 anymore.

Verdict: F1 is one step closer to becoming a factory-manufactured sports car event.

Fissi sizzles at Sepang

"Fantastico! Bravo!" cackled Flavio Briatore when Fissi crossed the chequered flag ahead of his team mate Fernando to win the Malaysian GP. A perfect Renault 1-2, followed by Button who must be dissapointed, considering that his battle cries were the loudest before the race. Montoya had an anonymous race, and the two Ferrari's came in next, albiet in reverse order. Villeneuve had a fantastic race, coming in seventh. The Toyota's were next, and they clearly don't do justice to the wads or rather truck loads of cash that they are pouring into this game. Overall, a great race which only could have been better had the two stars of the previous race, Raikkonen and Rosberg not been struck by bad luck and bad driving.

Qualifying started with a bang. I mean, a bang of engines. Schumacher, Massa & David Coulthard would all have to change engines before the session. This would add to the "confusion" that's called qualifying. In the end, one would have to wait for the FIA to "sort" the grid positions after all those engine busts and whatever else.

Without much ado, here's the qualifying result.

Fissichella, Button, Rosberg, Webber, Montoya, Raikkonen,Alonso, Klein, Toms, Dick's Schumacher and Harries. There was talk of rain and hurricane Schumi hitting the track, but then, in the end, neither event happened.
The Renault's, known for their acceleration, got off to a good start. Rosberg forced his team-mate off track for reasons totally unknown to himself. First lap was eventful with Kimi losing control after being scratched by Klein, who then went into the pits for a "missing" left front suspension. Patrick head must'nt have been amused to see "Rookie Rosberg" nailed Nick Heidfeld after a poor start. Seventh lap saw a spectacular blow-up of Rosberg's engine. Did the youngster rev it up a bit too much? A few laps later, Webber too had to go with yet another Cosworth failure.

Fissi was told after his pit-stop that he had to be "blinding quick" but then, could it be possible that the radio's were switched? Alonso responded with a blistering 1:35:980, about half a second faster than Fisi, who was loitering around the kerbs. Alonso then made a pitstop on lap 26, making the onlooker wonder if it was a one-stop strategy. However, 7.3 seconds later, those thoughts were put to rest. Way too fast, if that had to be a one-off stop.

The rest of the race was two blue blur's and Button trying to stay as close to them as possible. At one point, Alonso showed his class by lapping almost a second and a half quicker than his team mate. Renault look all set to repeat 2005's performance with a string of brilliant performances.

The Woking team would have to start working, for Montoya did not show the pace, and Raikkonen exited even before his race had begun. Would Ron Dennis be interested in playing 'catch-me-if-you-can' with Briatore again?! I hope not.

Button did well, but Barrichello had problems. And if HONDA hopes to win, they can put their money on Barrichello rather than on Button who can be quick and get to the podium but can never win a race. Race 102 for Button, without a single win.

Ferrari's must be lauded, for the ugly-game of team orders did not happen at Malaysia. And ofcourse, they could do without the engine changes too. They finished sixth and seventh, and Michael said he was 'delighted'. Is he actually getting old?! And hope the Ferrari front-wing legality issue gets solved, or the Maranello outfit might find itself stripped off race results.

Red Bull and Williams were on the backfoot, all four cars retiring. Since Melbourne would be a "first-race" for many engines, I hope to see these teams do much better there. This way, they could do well in 'one half of the season'. Very encouraging outlook, I must say.

Villeneuve had some good timein his BMW-Sauber, showing us that he still could, if he wanted. It would have been a double-points finish for the German team had it not been for Heidfeld's demise just seven laps before the chequered flag.

Toyota's game seems to have gone horribly wrong. Perhaps they are spending too much money on 'Corporate Hospitality' and tracks in Fuji rather than on their car and engines?

Monteiro drove his taxi home, and so did his team mate Albers. But so did Super Aguri who have to be lauded for the finish! The Japanese team is indeed impressing.

Over to Melbourne!

Alonso ambushes Schumacher

Before I begin the race review, I've got to talk about one man, Patrick Faure, without whose contribution, Renault would not have garnered the two championship trophies last year. Renault and Faure officially made the announcement this afternoon. In the twenty-seven years that he has been with Renault, Faure has served at Renault Austria , and Renault UK and Renault France. In 2001, he was named as Executive Vice President of Renault and President of the Renault F1 team. Since January 2005, Faure has devoted himself exclusively to his duties as President of the Renault F1 team. Patrick Faure would be replaced by another Renault veteran, Alain Dassas, currently Senior Vice President of Financial Operations and member of the management committee. Thanks Pat, for the wonderful years!

First things first, and it was Alonso, who drove as if Suzuka had happened last weekend. Schumacher, then, was second, and he drove as if last year had not happened, and he was back from a wonderful 2004 season in which he won thirteen of the eighteen races. And then, there was Raikkonen, whose race bore semblance to his season last year, wrought with traumatic qualifying sessions, followed by brilliant performances, leaving the audience enthralled and wondering as to what would have happened if the Finn had started from the front line. Would he have almost lapped the entire field like Senna did at Donnington, 1993? And a very special mention to Nico Rosberg, who came in seventh, in a debut that's probably comparable to the mercurial Schumacher's blitz at Belgium, 1991.

A qualifying session that was probably as interesting as all qualifying sessions of last season put together set up a brilliant and totally unexpected grid, with two Scuderia's on the front row. Messrs Alonso and Button were third and fourth, counting on their horse-power's to get them ahead of the rejuvenated prancing horse. But that was not to be, and Massa confirmed that the Ferrari pecking order still worked by fending off Alonso at turn one. Michael gained, but Alonso pipped Massa soon. Button, who lost ground during the first round bickered with his team mate Barrichello for fourth position. After a couple of laps, he gained it for good. Rosberg spun on lap one and there was in-fighting at Toyota for positions I wouldn't care to remember.

In the meanwhile, Raikkonen, who started at the back of the grid was behaving as if the track was empty, and raced to thirteenth before I could say 'abracadabra'. Todt must be happy, I would say. Michael and Alonso parried with brilliant laps, even as Liuzzi raised eye-brows, going quickest through the speed-trap at a crazy 190 mph. Rosberg went in for a nose change and returned, and promptly raced past most old pro's. By lap five, the mobile-chicane a.k.a Trulli had gathered enough F1 cars behind him for the crowd to click at gleefully. On the other side of the track, Massa tried to take out Alonso and nearly did. He went into the pits a little later, and stayed there for a whole minute. Is this Todt's way of saying 'Welcome to Michael's team' ?

In other regular and expected developments, Raikkonen had past four other cars in as many laps, and was upto ninth.

At the end of lap 11, Button pulled off a brilliant move on an unsuspecting Montoya, perhaps the Briton is finally beggining to show his 'class', something that the British media had prophecized, only a hundred races earlier. What followed were pitstops, with all cars going in, and Raikkonen racing as if he were in the early 90's when no pit-stops existed. Sources close to the Ferrari pits said that several house-flies had entered Jean Todt's mouth during the time he kept it open - the thirty laps Raikkonen went without a pitstop. On the other side of the track, Rosberg had passed his team mate, making up for lost time.

Michael the magnificient posted some of the most brilliant laps of the race, and when on lap 32, he skidded because of the mobile-chicane, the Renault radio of Alonso cackled 'We need to be closer'. But frankly, was that a personal comment from Flavio that he did not like Alonso moving over to McLaren for 2007?

Lap 41 deserves special mention, for Nico, son of Keke Rosberg, proved that he had inherited his father's racing genius by posting a best lap of 1:32:408. A couple of laps later, he made a superb move on Red Buller Klein, taking seventh spot from the bewildered Austrian. Meanwhile, Raikkonen was all over the back of Button for third slot, the final place on the podium. The other HONDA, the one that Barrichello literally ushered, was having gear-box problems, and it was evident that the Brazilian would not bother the score-keeper. Alonso kept his cool after the second set of pitstops and emerged the leader, thanks to a slow Ferrari pit-stop. Surely, this is all Michael could do, given that Alonso has a machine thats superior to Michael's 248 F1.

In the end, it was Alonso, Michael, Raikkonen and Button followed by Montoya, Webber, Nico and Klein. Massa put up a good fight to come in ninth. The other's did what they consider their duty, which is to fill up empty slots on the number card.

I was dissapointed though, with the Super Aguri, for I expected Sato to do some lawn-mowing for the Sakhir folks. But clearly, I did not expect the BMW's or the Toyota's to perform the way they did this race. Perhaps, just perhaps, this would be a one-off, and the teams would bounce right back at Malaysia? Lets hope!

Schumacher, that old wily fox is right back in action, and frankly I don't think he's going to allow Alonso and Raikkonen to gallop ahead like they did last season. Talking of Raikkonen, I sincerely wish that he would be a little more careful during qualifying, or is it just that he prefers competition and challenges? Anyway, adios till the next race.

It's a blood bath at Bahrain!

Michael Schumacher, the seven time champion couldn't have started what many consider to be his last F1 season in a better manner. Breaking the jinx of the 2005 season, Michael took pole, equalling the late great Ayrton Senna's long standing records of sixty-five pole positions. Felipe Massa drew blood in his first outing on a prancing horse by coming in second to set up an all-red front row. British driver Button came in third ahead of Alonso the reigning champion, Montoya and former Ferrari door-mat Barrichello. Last year's runner-up Kimi Raikkonen season started his season with a bang, literally, losing his rear-tyre in the process. In as much, a brilliant first and second sessions and a farce of a third session helped set-up an entirely unexpected grid for the Bahrain Grand Prix.

Old viewers would have been reminded of the 1-hour or 12-lap flat out qualifying rule while they watched the pit-lane exit with bated breadth and waited for their favorite driver's to appear. Yuji Ide emerged, followed by Trulli, David Coulthard, Monteiro, Liuzzi and Sato. The laziest of the pack sauntered around the track with none of the big wolves venturing outside the paddocks. With under seven minutes remaining and pressure mounting, the Ferrari's, Williams' and the McLaren's were out on track. Raikkonen showed promise by setting the fastest timing for first sector, only to go out seconds later, losing control at turn 10. His session was over, a rather customary start to the season for the Finn.

With under five minutes remaining, the Honda's and the Renault's appeared for the first time amidst a dozen other cars, the pit-lane filled with multi-colored, multi-million dollar automobile marvels. The game was on! Expected performances fromt the big wigs would mean that Raikkonen, Sato, Ide, Monteiro, Albers and Ralf would fill in positions seventeen through twenty-two.

With the tail-grid decided, the pilot's were now ready for the second leg of qualifying. Teams settled for a 'one hot lap' strategy here too with Villeneuve, Trulli, Coulthard, Rosberg, Liuzzi and Speed missing the cut. The battle was now set between the two Renault's, Honda's and Ferrari's along with the McLaren of Montoya and the Williams of Webber.

The final twenty-minute qualifying leg was for pole position, and teams had to run with race fuel loads, unlike in the first and second sessions. A procession of beautifully sculpted Formula One cars cruised the tracks for an agonozing eight minutes, as if posing for shutters to click and fans to take a clearer look at the whites of their eye-balls. All totally legal exploitation, with teams trying to burn off as much fuel in as little time as possible.

Eight minutes later, Alonso broke the cavalcade, and soon all cars were at top-speed, Michael setting a blistering 1:31:595, only to better himself with a fresh set of hooves four minutes later. He returned to the pits, having posted a solid 1:31:431, confident that pole had been secured. A bolting Button could not catch up with the Scuderia's as they went on to secure Row #1 for the Bahrain Grand Prix.

A far more interesting qualifying session than one in years, and this seems to have set the stage for a good race tomorrow. The title-challenge will be four way, with Renault, Honda, McLaren and Ferrari showing strength.

However, viewers would be advised to keep a close watch on a certain silvery-red Bazooka which I am certain would emerge from the back of the pack.

The race is going to be a rarity, one of those few races when not only we the fans, but the drivers, pit-tacticians and team-bosses would gear up for the show without a clue about race-strategy. And if Ferrari really weren't light on fuel (and I don't think they were), then one can expect Ross Brawn and Michael Schumacher to take honors at Sakhir, for they are the best when it comes to ad-hoc strategy!

Can't wait for the red lights to go-off tomorrow!!!

Let the games begin

My take on the pecking order for this year.

Renault

Renault would hold the psychological advantage, considering that they have won both driver's and constructor's championships with a budget that was far lower than that of some of the other high flying teams. Winter testing isn't as much a gauge for speed as it is for reliability. However, Renault engines have proven to be stable, with their RS26 V8 engine coming out smooth and clean with some very long outings. Heikki Kovalainen sizzled during winter testing, and will fill in for Fernando once the Spaniard moves over to Woking. Renault would be my pre-season favorites, but with engines, tyre rules and qualifying rules changing, its a wild wild guess, mind you!

McLaren

Brilliant new bodywork from Woking, but appears that the Mercedes-Benz FO 108S V8 engine might be as unreliable as any of its predecessors. If their V10's were unreliable, god knows how their V8's might fare. Kimi and Montoya might have impressed with brilliant times at Valencia, but it remains to be seen at Baharain as to how much of the challenge McLaren sans Adrian Newey can pose this season. Equipment apart, Ron Dennis has stepped up the pressure on both drivers Kimi and Juan Pablo, considering that one of them would have to be moved out to accomodate Alonso in 2007. 'Sane driving' should be the words on the lips of the two Woking drivers.

Toyota

Toyota's has shown that it has the eye and the intent by spending close to a thumping half a billion US dollars last season. A V8 program that started off long before any rival dusted the design boards and an impressive aero package might suggest that Toyota are serious title contenders this season. However, I fancy their chances, considering that Trulli is more than happy to finish where he starts, and Ralf isn't just talented enough to make winning a habit.

Ferrari

With Ferrari testing at Bahrain, it was difficult to gauge their competitiveness vis-a-vis the other big teams. However, considering that they were toying with their restricted V10's and ancient F2004 chasses, I'd say that things don't look rosy for the Maranello team. But on the other hand, I don't see Messrs Schumacher, Brawn and Todt leaving their F1 legacy in tatters before they hang up their helmets/head phones/boots. Schumacher isn't the type who would brood over one bad season. Given a competitive car, the German would still give the young turks a run for their money. Who knows, with the slate being wiped clean with fresh qualifying, engine and tyre rules, the master strategists might be back in the reckoning.

Honda

Honda might turn out to be the one dark horse of the season. With BAR out of the way and the annual Buttongate fiasco coming to a closure, it appears that the Brackley team is finally set for the big stage. They V8, their chassis and their run up to the 2006 season has been impressive. I'd like to see who takes the lead role at Honda. With the fetters being removed from Barrichello's hands, it would be interesting to see how the Brazilian fares. Button might land up on the podium, but unless things go very wrong for all the other big teams, I don't see him winning a race this season.

--
Those would be my five-pronged title contenders. The two Japanese teams might be young, but well, they have the money and the necessity to succeed. So I'd put them on par with the traditional European teams.
--

Red Bull (and Torro Rosso)

The team that's shown incredible commitment to F1 in terms of money and man power. Signing Adrian Newey was no mean feet, and the Ex-McLaren design guru's presence would be felt a bit into the season. I really don't see Klein winning races, but with David Coulthard, you never know. The old man fails to rest, and perhaps his travails would pay off. Scott Speed and Tonio Liuzzi who would race for Torro Rosso are promising drivers, and perhaps the junior team would keep the seniors on their toes.

Williams F1

The divorce means that Frank wouldn't get those free Bayerische Motoren Werke engines anymore, but with a change to V8, a Cosworth partnership doesn't sound that bad either. Cosworth, along with Toyota have the V8 advantage, in my reckoning. And Nico promises to deliver, with impressive testing times. However, racing is a whole different game, and it remains to be seen if Nico has it in him to achieve what his father did, twenty four years ago. Webber - its time he shakes off his 'one-lap wonder' tag and delivers more consistently.

BMW Sauber

The marriage by convenience. Reliable, they might be, but I doubt the punch that BMW engines have. Sauber would, no doubt, have one of the best aero packages in the pitlane, thanks to Peter Sauber's legacy, but their speed would be a matter of concern. Also, it remains to be seen if the BMW folks gel well with their Hinwil counterparts. Robert Kubica, by the way, impressed in winter testing.

Midland F1

The first all Russian entrant in F1. They've got a new car and new engines, thanks to Toyota. However, they winning races or even landing in the points is a distant dream, considering that Monteiro likes to complete races rather than compete in them and Albers lacks the perseverance required to be an F1 driver.

Super Aguri

Aguri's enthusiasm is infectious. The Honda 'B' team as it is referred to would be an interesting watch, and it's a great thing that the SA05 is ready for the Bahrain Grand Prix. Mark Preston guarantees a new machine for the European leg of the season starting at Imola, so it remains to be seen if Aguri is to be taken seriously. Takuma Sato, for one, should concentrate on driving on the tarmac, rather than cutting grass with the world's most expensive lawn mower. Yuji Ide - I wouldn't be able to differentiate him from a Nepali, so no comment.

Michelin and Bridgestone

Last year the French swept the Japanese off the floor, but with tyre rules changing, the balance might be a bit better. Not an interesting battle to watch, considering that Michelin bids adieu to F1 for the god knows howmanyeth time forever.

Five

An inspiration from a fellow blogger.

Five things I can't live without

1. Formula One
2. Google
3. My bike
4. Caffiene
5. Playing basketball in the weekends ;-)

Five movies I'd see as many times

1. La Vita è Bella
2. The Godfather
3. Anbe Sivam
4. Hum Tum
5. A Streetcar Named Desire.

Five places I've loved

1. The dunes at Kheri,Jaisalmer.
2. Besant Nagar beach, Chennai.
3. An unnamed Dhaba enroute from Pilani to Kulu.
A tea I'd call 'Elixir' at 4 in the morning in January..
4. Karur..it's a place called home.
5. The Ganges.. the sheer power of water.

Five placed I'd love to visit

1. Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
2. Monaco, on a race weekend.
3. The Louvre.
4. Periyakulam (and buy a farmland there).
5. Tibet.

Five websites I visit day in and day out.

1. Collabsuite.oracle.com (not my love, its my work)
2. www.google.com
3. www.pitpass.com
4. uk.sports.yahoo.com
5. kihsuok.blogspot.com (to see if there are any additional hits :-D)

Five things I love doing during work time.

1. Chat on yahoo/google.
2. Listen to Illayaraja.
3. Read F1 news.
4. Blog F1 on monday mornings, after a race weekend.
5. Bask in the hot sun at Cyber Gateway.

Five books I've loved.

1. Papillon.
2. The Godfather.
3. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.
4. The Fountainhead.
5. Straight from the gut (Jack Welch).

Five songs I'd listen to anyday.

1. Oru Kadhal Devadhai (Idhaya Thamarai)
2. Idhu oru pon malai pozhudhu (Nizhalgal)
3. Kadalin Dheepam Ondru (Thambikku entha ooru?)
4. Mandram Vandha Thendralluku (Mouna Raagam)
5. Yen Iniya Pon Nilave (Moodu Pani)

$

Fiji,Mongolia, Bhutan, Barbados, Antigua, San Marino, Rwanda and Laos. So what do these countries have in common? That you wouldn't be able to put your finger on the map if asked to locate these places? Probably yes, but there's something else thats common to these countries. They are all 'cheaper' than F1. To put it simpler, the GDP of these countries is lower that $2.6 billion, the amount of money that F1 teams spend in their quest to win the Driver's and Constructor's trophies.

'F1 racing', the magazine, has come up with some mobile phone like numbers which are claimed to be the costs involved in organizing F1. Spendings range from salaries for drivers to buying umbrellas for the pitbabes in hot Baharain. Ok, now a closer look at the pie.

So who spends most of this money? That answer is simple. 'Toyota'. Spending close to a thumping half a billion US dollars, Toyota takes pole position ahead of Ferrari which comes in with a $ 437 million budget. Renault, which happened to win both the Driver's and Constructor's trophies sauntered along with a mere 200 million dollars. Some efficiency, isn't it? Oh, not only that, perhaps its drivers came a bit 'cheaper'. Michael Schumacher, who happens to be 'unemployed' according to Swiss records takes home an amount thats greater than the GDP of a country named "São Tomé and Príncipe".

For the sake of statistics....

1. It takes close to a million dollars to put one Minardi on track per race.
2. It costs $12 per second in wear and tear just on the wheels, brakes and engines.
3. Redbull and Toyota spent close to fifteen and a half million dollars on 'Corporate Hospitality'.

It's a smoke free world, isn't it?