As per usual, the Formula One circuit will run a pair of pre-season tests at the Circuit de Catalunya near Barcelona, Spain. While it’s not the first test of the year, it’s the first one that teams and driver will use to properly gauge how they stand heading into the season. That’s because the teams will spend two weeks in February and March here but also a weekend in May for the Spanish Grand Prix.
Formula One
Formula One: 2013 Jerez Test Recap
Formula One is back in action for another year with the start of pre-season testing. The first of 2013’s tests was at Spain’s Jerez Circuit which doesn’t host a race on the Grand Prix calendar so the teams and drivers weren’t putting much stock in the results. In fact, Fernando Alonso couldn’t even be bothered to show up to this test. That didn’t mean that Ferrari wasn’t fast last week, though. Continue reading
Could F1 Be Down to 18 Races This Year?
No sooner did my monthly F1 news recap go live than news broke that the German Grand Prix could be off the calendar. Bernie Ecclestone told the German newspaper Spiegel that he and the bosses at the Nurburgring could not come to an agreement that was “financially acceptable” so negotiations had been terminated.
The Nurburgring went into administration (the European equivalent of bankruptcy) last year. However, being tight on funds looks to have resulted in the circuit being unable to pay Bernie’s more than likely exorbitant sanctioning fee to host the race this year. Continue reading
F1 January News Roundup: Teams Already Gearing Up For 2014
The covers haven’t been taken off the cars for the 2013 Formula One World Championship and teams are already working on their engines and cars for 2014. With a big rules change coming in 2014 with the turbocharged V6 engines and increased emphasis on KERS, there is an opportunity for all teams to capitalize and vault to the front of the grid. Continue reading
F1 December News Roundup: Prepping For 2013
During the off-season, we’ll be doing periodic updates of the goings on in Formula One. With the recent announcement of F1’s rules for 2013 and 2014 and the ongoing discussion as to what, if anything, will replace the postponed New Jersey Grand Prix, there hasn’t been a shortage of news. Bernie has also been talking about the current team lineup and decided that F1 doesn’t need 13 teams. He thinks ten is enough.
First, though, I’ve been giving some thought to the McLaren driver situation. At first, I thought signing Sergio Perez was swapping Hamilton with someone aggressive and fast enough to be Hamilton-esque. After some thought, I think Perez’s driving style could mesh enough with Jenson Button that he could be a bigger threat to win the title than his more experienced teammate. Continue reading
Who Is Canada’s Next Racing Hero?
Now that the Formula One season is over, it’s time for us to look ahead to the future of motorsport. In Canada, we have an amazing motorsport history. Formula One’s best and most exciting driver, Gilles Villeneuve, hailed from Quebec. His son, Jacques, won the Indy 500 and IndyCar championship before becoming the Formula One World Drivers’ Champion. The most exciting F1 is consistently the Canadian Grand Prix at Montreal. West Hill’s Paul Tracy is one of the winningest drivers in Champ Car (formerly CART) history.
But who is left for Canada to cheer for now. No one is at the top echelon of the sport right. But that isn’t to say we don’t have some potential racing heroes waiting in the wings. So here’s a look at the future of Canadian motorsports. Continue reading
F1 Race Stars Review (or Bursting Your Bubble)
I have to admit that I was excited about the prospect of a Formula One inspired karting game. It was so un-F1 that how could it not be cool? You’d be powersliding cars around turns, firing weaponry straight out of Q Branch at competitors and racing on suped-up versions of real race tracks. That would be spectacular and would be on my must-buy list ahead of F1 2012.
Then I played the game. While Codemasters tried to balance between staying true to F1 and true to the karting genre, it didn’t quite work when it was all put together. What could have been a spectacular entry in the pantheon of Formula One racing games and karting games unfortunately turned out to be a bit of a dud. Continue reading
F1 Brazilian Grand Prix: Once, Twice, Three Times a Champion
We all went into the Brazilian Grand Prix thinking that Vettel’s faster car and higher qualifying spot than Alonso meant that he’d cruise to his third-straight World Drivers’ Championship. That lasted until Turn Four and we were treated to the best race of the season as Vettel came from the back of the field to barely win his third Championship. Continue reading
F1 Power Rankings: Brazilian Grand Prix
After eight months and nineteen races, the 2012 Formula One World Championship comes down to the 20th and final race. Red Bull may have clinched the World Constructors’ Championship in the United States but the World Drivers’ Championship is still up for grabs. Sebastian Vettel leads Fernando Alonso by 13 points heading into the Brazilian Grand Prix but history shows that the battle for the title isn’t over. In 2010, Vettel won his first championship by overcoming 15 point gap to Alonso in the final race of the season. When race wins were only worth 10 points, Kimi Raikkonen came from 7 points back to win the 2007 World Championship.
Can Alonso come from behind to win the title and how does Vettel rate his chances of becoming a three-time World Champion? I examine this and more in this week’s Formula One Power Rankings. Continue reading
F1 United States Grand Prix: Texas Two-Step
The last time Formula One was racing in America, the race was won by Lewis Hamilton, his second win in a row, and a young driver named Sebastian Vettel made his F1 debut driving for BMW-Sauber and became the youngest driver to score a point. Five years later, Formula One returned to America and it was once again Lewis Hamilton who scored the win and Sebastian Vettel, this time driving for Red Bull, once again scored points but finished 2nd instead of 8th. Continue reading
The Lowdown 