Formula 1 thread 2012

[acooling08]

I really really hope the top teams are close this year. Thought the years where a German dominated in a far superior car ended with Schumacher's original retirement

[Amin]

So now that winter testing has ended, what order do we think the teams and drivers are going to be in come Melbourne?

My predictions:

Teams

1) Red Bull*

2) Mclaren*

3) Mercedes

4) Lotus*

5) Ferrari*

6) Force India

7) Sauber

8) Toro Rosso

9) Williams

10) Caterham

11) Marussia

12) HRT

I personally feel that Red Bull and Mclaren will be out on their own and that Ferrari will overtake Lotus by the end of the season.

Drivers

1) Sebastien Vettel

2) Lewis Hamilton

3) Jenson Button

4) Mark Webber

5) Nico Rosberg

6) Fernando Alonso

7) Michael Schumacher

8) Kimi Raikkonen

9) Felipe Massa

10) Romain Grosjean

Any of the top 3 could win the championship (imo) and depending on how good Ferrari is at the start of the season and how quickly they develop thier car, Alonso and Massa could also be higher.

Let's here your predictions.

[Asha]

Ferrari 5th?

Your list is that ridiculous you may as well have listed Charles Pic as your favourite for the title.

[Amin]

Ferrari 5th?

Your list is that ridiculous you may as well have listed Charles Pic as your favourite for the title.

I take it you haven't been keeping up with testing.

And bear in mind that I said Ferrari will overtake Lotus by the end of the season.

[Asha]

I take it you haven't been keeping up with testing.

And bear in mind that I said Ferrari will overtake Lotus by the end of the season.

Yeah, because testing is always the accurate portrayal of things to come.

So there's a couple of problems. Doesn't mean we're going to be scrapping with the Force Indias for minor points

[Amin]

Yeah, because testing is always the accurate portrayal of things to come.

So there's a couple of problems. Doesn't mean we're going to be scrapping with the Force Indias for minor points

Did I say Ferrai would be scrapping with Force India? No. They will probably be competing with Merc and Lotus.

Ferrari have also stated that it is unlikely they will be challenging for podiums at the first race.

[Asha]

And what were they saying about McLaren following last seasons' testing?

[Amin]

And what were they saying about McLaren following last seasons' testing?

Don't get me wrong, Ferrari could catch up with the front two in time for the first race. The whole point of predictions is that we don't really know what's going to happen.

[Finnegan]

And what were they saying about McLaren following last seasons' testing?

There's PR and then there's just flat honesty. Ferrari playing down their chances doesn't strike me as some sort of hustle or spin, fourth or even fifth wouldn't be surprising in the first few races.

Especially if Felipe continues his woeful form.

[isaidno]

1. Vettel
   
2. Hamilton
   
3. Button
   
4. Alonso
   
5. Webber
   
6. Raikkonen
   

Really hard to make predictions this season, pre-season testing has been impossible to read this year. 9 of the 12 teams have been fastest at some point.

[Trav Le Bleu]

http://sport.uk.msn.com/exclusives/female-drivers-are-coming-to-formula-1-says-red-bull-boss

Female drivers are coming to Formula 1, says Red Bull boss

Formula One will have its first female driver within a decade, Red Bull boss Christian Horner has predicted.

The manager of the sport's dominant team said that increasing numbers of women were making a name for themselves in racing, although he hadn't seen any yet who were likely to make the jump to the very highest level.

"I think [a female F1 driver is] anywhere between three and 10 seasons away but there's nobody obvious that's knocking on the door at the moment," he told MSN Sport. "There are some very talented young female racers about and it's only a question of time really before one makes it to Formula 1."

Horner believes the sheer strength and endurance required by hours in the cockpit will be a challenge but that the sport cannot remain the preserve of men for much longer.

"Physically it's a hugely demanding sport, the drivers are absolute athletes but that's not to say it's impossible tooperate at that level for a female driver," he added, noting that women have already enjoyed success in rally.

Approximately a quarter of the Red Bull team's 500 employees are women and Horner is leading a push to make career in racing open to a wider range of people from all backgrounds. Today the team announced five summer internships across their aerodynamics, electronics, marketing, IT, and procurement operations.

But Horner warns that it's going to be hard work for his team to emulate the successes of the past two seasons against the challenges of teams like McLaren and Ferrari.

"Success only adds pressure because there's only one way you can go from the top," he said. "We've had a phenomenal couple of years and to have back to back championships is a real achievement - we'd love to make it a triple but it's going to be tight this year"

This could be all very well until they have to pull into the pits and spend 5 mins reversing in.

Note at the bottom of the article, RBR are looking to fill 5 internships with no experience necessary!

[Yojoe36]

Sky > BBC

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aAsNkW8WmMs

[Trav Le Bleu]

Sky will suck. I'm guessing their "uninterrupted coverage" of F1 will mean adverts flashed up in the corner of the screen every few mins.

[Jimmy]

OR they'll do it like football, adverts before and after, also they do give the best coverage of sport, they become obsessed with it, which filters down to presenters to they become very knowledgeable very quickly, I'm looking forward to their coverage

[StanSP]

That title sequence doesn't excite me any more than I already am for the F1 season.

I'll see what BBC come up with, though as something to compare. They usually come up with the goods!

[kingfox]

Vettel or Hamilton for me this year, nobody else is strong enough to put up a fight. Button and Webber will play second fiddle, Ferrari won't get anywhere, will be nice to see Raikonnen back but doubt he will peform anyway near, Championship driving quality.

Champion - Vettel

Drivers Champions - Red Bull

One To Watch - Grosjean

Babe Watch - Georgie Thompson(Don't get women presenting Formula 1 on bbc now do ya )

[Amin]

Sky > BBC

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aAsNkW8WmMs

So they've just gone and used the song BBC used for the 2010 ending titles?

[acooling08]

Unfortunately I can see Vettel and Red Bull being too strong again. I just hope Hamilton has a much better season this year.

[isaidno]

Formula 1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone says he is close to finalising a contract for the Valencia and Barcelona races to alternate on the calendar from next year - meaning Spain will have just one race from 2013.

After months of speculation about the future of the Valencia Grand Prix, Ecclestone revealed that that event and Spanish GP organisers have agreed to share the race from next year.

In an interview with Spanish radio station Cadena Ser, Ecclestone said that he was now working on sorting out dates going forward.

"Both Valencia and Barcelona have agreed that the best way is to alternate, and now we are trying to choose the dates," explained Ecclestone. "We wanted to see how we could help Valencia, and alternating with Barcelona is a good solution. Sharing the race will be a good idea, providing they are all fine with it."

Ecclestone dismissed recent suggestions that this year's race in Valencia could be in doubt, and added that he would have been happy to stay there beyond its current 2014 contract.

"We really want to be in Valencia. Everyone is happy there; both the teams and the sponsors, and it would be a shame to miss an event like that.

"I would like to continue after 2014 having F1 in Valencia. I've always been very happy with the way they have organised the races, I have never complained and the people have always been very friendly and hospitable to me."

Won't loose any sleep race if Valencia goes, boring race

[anotherharboroughfox]

Sky Sports F1 launches tonight!

[Stinkenzo]

Yeah that intro is quite pants. Nice music but doesnt strike me as the sort of thing thats gonna get you excited watching it before every race. How the song skips at the start is terrible.

[Amin]

[Legend_in_blue]

Watched a couple of the shows on SkySports F1. The return of familiar faces such as Brundle and Kravitz has softened the blow a little but it still leaves a sour taste in the mouth.

Still, they can't mess it up as badly as the ITV coverage a few years back surely?

[anotherharboroughfox]

Watched a couple of the shows on SkySports F1. The return of familiar faces such as Brundle and Kravitz has softened the blow a little but it still leaves a sour taste in the mouth.

Still, they can't mess it up as badly as the ITV coverage a few years back surely?

If I'm honest I think they'll exceed the BBC's coverage with the cash available.

ITV was fvcking awful.

[Amin]

Formula 1 teams predict 'freaky' start to 2012 season and plenty of surprises

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/97996

Formula 1 fans have been told to brace themselves for an unpredictable start to the season - with the competitiveness of the grid likely to throw up some big surprises in the early part of the campaign.

With pre-season testing suggesting little separates the teams this year – with some outfits appearing quicker in single-lap trim while others excel over race distances – plus Pirelli's aggressive tyres making strategy difficult, leading figures reckon the start of the year will be thrilling.

Lotus team principal Eric Boullier told AUTOSPORT: "Yes, it is going to be a freaky one! Qualifying in Melbourne and the first races are going to be unpredictable.

"The tyres are going to make things very interesting. If you push too hard in qualifying then you are going to be screwed for the first part of the race – and if you pit too early it may mean you need to make an extra stop.

"It is going to be interesting, but we like the challenge. We would always love to have a car that is two seconds faster than the other ones, which would be very comfortable for us, but in the end we like the fight as well."

Mercedes team principal Ross Brawn said that as well as the field looking so competitive, the prospect of six world champions on the grid was something to get excited about.

"It is great for Formula 1 to have so many world champions," he said. "It is the quality of the field and the fact that the cars look like they are going to be close this year, it is going to be a really exciting season and it could be one of the best seasons we have seen for a number of years, so I am quite looking forward to a very challenging season. I am expecting the tightest start to a season that we have seen for a number of years."

Lotus trackside operations director Alan Permane reckoned the competitive picture in F1 was much less clear than it had been for several years.

"I would say it is very difficult to predict," he said. "Normally by this stage we have got kind of an idea, but I don't think we know where we are."

Pirelli's motorsport director Paul Hembery predicts that engineers will get on top of understanding the tyres pretty quickly – but thinks the first few races could throw up some shocks.

"Martin Whitmarsh said we needed to give the teams a challenge, and if that happens then we will get some excitement – at least in the early season," he told AUTOSPORT.

"I think you have to remember the engineers in these teams are the best in the world and, while at the start of the year that may create, like we had at the start of the year, some challenges, as the year progresses they will work out the best way to manage the situation and it will equalise a little bit."