It’s the second half of our first back-to-back race weekend of this still young 2011 Formula One World Championship season. In the first two races, we’ve seen Red Bull and Sebastian Vettel dominate by scoring two wins and two poles. In fact, Vettel has been so dominant that a win at the Chinese GP would give him five straight dating back to last season. With that level of dominance, can anyone match Vettel’s pace this weekend? Continue reading
Formula One
F1 Power Rankings: Malaysian Grand Prix
One race into the nineteen race 2011 Formula One World Championship and I don’t think that the picture is any clearer. Some of the expect frontrunners were slow off the mark in Australia. Some of the midpack teams, like Sauber and Toro Rosso, had surprising runs which could have them thinking points in every race. So who looks good heading into this weekend’s Malaysian Grand Prix? This week’s Power Rankings takes a stab at it. Continue reading
Formula One: 2011 Bahrain Grand Prix Cancelled
With a month to go before the May 1st deadline for rescheduling the race, the Bahrain Motor Federation will officially cancel the 2011 Bahrain Grand Prix. The race was initially postponed due to political unrest in the country with the possibility of rescheduling but cancelled outright today. Continue reading
F1 Power Rankings: Australian Grand Prix Edition
Regular visitors to The Lowdown Blog know what my Power Rankings are all about. New visitors may be slightly confused. Well, it’s only going to get worse from here. Every Wednesday, I’ll post my rankings of the drivers in Formula One. The rankings will be based on their how they’re running this season (or in testing for this first race), past performance at the upcoming track, the performance of the car and other intangibles that affect their performance (see Favre, Brett). It’s more of a prospective list than a restrospective list. Anyway, here is your first round of Formula One power rankings. Continue reading
F1 2011 Season Preview: Predictions
It’s time for the third and final part of our Formula One season preview. With the examination of the teams, drivers, and new rules out of the way, it’s time to put all of the information we have together for predictions for the 2011 season. Of course, the combination of the new rules and testing times is not necessarily an accurate portrayal of who’s fast which makes predicting the season a difficult proposition. However, as we like to say around here: We’re ambitious but rubbish. Continue reading
F1 2011 Season Preview: The Rules
Welcome to part two of our 2011 Formula One World Championship season preview. Today, we look at the new rules that have been implemented this season. In the continuous search to lower costs, level the playing field and increase the quality of races, the FIA have put into place several new rules for this season. Last year’s rules seemed to shakes things up enough to keep the whole season interesting. Will this year’s new rules make the racing better still? Continue reading
F1 2011 Season Preview: The Drivers and Teams
It’s that time of year again race fans. We’re days away from the V8 engines of the Formula One World Championship firing up in anger for the first time in 2011. Last season was a whole new game. Three new teams took to the track which brought the car count increase to 24 for the first time since 1997. All twelve teams return for 2011 which is an improvement over 1997 when there were 24 cars for only the opening race of the season. So to start our look at the 2011 F1 season, we look at the 12 teams that will be in the field and the drivers piloting the cars. Continue reading
Formula One: 2011 Barcelona Test 2 Recap
With the Bahrain Grand Prix cancelled because of political unrest, pre-season testing was extended for Formula One. All 12 teams were in attendance for the final test which was once again held at the Circuit de Catalunya, host to the Spanish Grand Prix. Not surprisingly, Red Bull and Ferrari were the fastest looking cars once again. However, a few more teams laid down some times to show that they wouldn’t be pushovers either. Continue reading
Formula One: 2011 Barcelona Test Recap
For the second straight test, the teams were overshadowed by off-track F1 news. This week’s testing played second fiddle to debate over the postponement of the Bahrain Grand Prix because of protests in the country. On-track, however, testing was a battle between Red Bull and Ferrari as last season’s two top teams look set to cement their place at the top of the standings. Continue reading
Formula One: 2011 Jerez Test Recap
The second week of F1 testing ahead of the 2011 season started on a somber note after Robert Kubica’s accident the weekend prior in a rally in Italy. All the teams carried get well soon messages on their cars. Three different drivers ran the Lotus Renault GP R31 in testing and one even topped the time sheet during the third day’s running. This week’s testing saw many more names atop the daily time sheets than last week’s. Continue reading
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