It was mission accomplished for HRT Formula 1 Team in Malaysia a couple of weeks ago after both cars qualified and completed their first race of the season after a hard start. The F112 accumulated many kilometres and data on the track and the engineers had a lot of information to work on during the two week period between the race in Sepang and China. Having met the team’s targets last time out, HRT now aims to progress from where it left things in Malaysia and continue improving.

The Shanghai International Circuit is made up of sixteen turns, with nine being right-handers and seven left-handers. Cars reach maximum speeds on the 1.2km straight between corners 13 and 14, where they try and take advantage of the length of the straight to overtake. In China, the team will have a new member on board, Ma Qing Hua, who will be joining the outfit for the first time as a member of the driver development programme at his local Grand Prix.

Pirelli have elected their soft and medium tyres for this grand prix.

Pedro de la Rosa, #22: “After these first two Grands Prix we arrive in China much better prepared, with more mileage and having learned a lot, especially after the Malaysian GP. All the data gathered in the last race is very important for us, as we mustn’t forget that we didn’t have a preseason. Now we have a better insight on the areas where we must improve, but the most important thing in this initial stage is to finish races. That is the prime objective in order to learn and improve race by race. The hardest part comes now but we are better prepared. China is a circuit where I have always done well and a place I know well, both in dry and wet conditions. It’s not a particularly hard track for the car or the driver, but aerodynamics are fundamental”.

Narain Karthikeyan, #23: “We took a step forward in Malaysia and our aim is definitely to carry the momentum into China and rest of the season. Although we managed to finish the race, cooling was still an issue at Sepang and once we have it sorted out completely we’ll be able to unlock some more performance from the car. The back straight at the Shanghai circuit is of course one of the longest on the calendar and the tightening first corner is uniquely challenging since the corner entry is in top gear and by the time you exit you’re in second. Plus there are a fair amount of technical slow-speed corners as well, and the high-speed direction change of turns 7/8. Given these mixed characteristics, it is a demanding circuit for traction, aero and braking stability in equal measures”.

Luis Pérez-Sala, Team Principal: “The start to the season was very complicated because we were behind schedule with regards to the other teams. We had to put in a colossal effort to be able to get on track in Australia and improve our performance just one week later in Malaysia. There’s still plenty to do and many areas to improve on to be where we should be but at least in these two weeks we’ve had a bit more time to analyse data, prepare and recharge batteries, therefore I’m confident that we’re arriving in China in a much better situation. We mustn’t forget that the F112 is only taking its first steps and, as of today, what we must do is progress without stopping. In Shanghai we’ll have some small updates to optimize cooling and aerodynamics, and the target for this weekend is to check that these adjustments work. To sum up, we have to get more out of the car but must also improve on teamwork and coordination”.

Amid his performance slump and rumours Sergio Perez will soon replace him, Ferrari’s struggling Felipe Massa has been summoned to Maranello.

A report on the Italian team’s official website said there is “sorrow” within the team at witnessing the “particularly difficult time” being suffered by Ferrari’s Brazilian driver.

While Fernando Alonso leads the drivers’ world championship at present, 30-year-old Massa is yet to record a race finish better than his fifteenth at Sepang.

But amid the calls for Massa’s head, team boss Stefano Domenicali – recalling a similar situation after Malaysia in 2008 – said his driver has the ability to react now.

“The papers (in 2008) were demanding his immediate replacement and he managed to react in the best way possible, thanks to support from the team, which saw him win two of the next three races,” said the Italian.

“Felipe has changed his plans and, instead of heading home to see his family in Brazil, he will be in Maranello tomorrow to work alongside the engineers to calmly analyse everything that happened in these past two races, trying to identify why he was not able to deliver what he is capable of,” added Domenicali.

“That’s the right spirit and we are here, ready to help him.”

 F1′s governing body has cleared Red Bull and Renault following accusations they are deploying an ‘illegal engine trick’.
Reports suggested Mercedes, having analysed sound recordings of the Red Bull RB8 in Melbourne, suspected the ‘trick’ of cutting more than the allowed four cylinders in corners was not legal.

“As far as we are concerned, it’s legal,” said the FIA’s Charlie Whiting in Malaysia.

There was some good news for Mercedes at Sepang, however, as its W03 passed pre-race scrutineering despite Red Bull and Lotus continuing to argue that its ‘W-duct’ system is not legal.

“The car got the green light again,” competition boss Norbert Haug told Kleine Zeitung newspaper.

Some suspect that the innovation could give Mercedes such a top-speed advantage on Sepang’s long straights this weekend that pole position is already in the bag.

“I think some get a little bit too excited,” smiled Michael Schumacher

Fernando Alonso kept up a positive outlook on Sunday despite some Italian newspapers describing Ferrari’s situation as a “crisis”.
Melbourne qualifying confirmed the famous team’s winter woes, but Spaniard Alonso fared better in the race.

“After the way qualifying went, ending up with ten points behind the top two teams is good news,” he is quoted by La Gazzetta dello Sport.

The sports daily Marca described the attitude as Alonso “seeing the glass half-full”.

“For the Ferrari fans I say ‘wait a few races’,” former F1 driver Jarno Trulli told Italy’s Rai Uno television.

“Alonso managed to do something good but Ferrari needs to react, immediately,” the Italian, who was Alonso’s Renault teammate in 2004, added.

Team boss Stefano Domenicali, however, told Finnish MTV3 television that the F2012 will not be in better shape for ‘a few races’ at least.

Alonso agreed that, with one week between Australia and Malaysia, “We will have almost exactly the same car” at the Sepang circuit this weekend.

Added Domenicali: “We know what needs to be improved, but it can’t be done overnight.”

Former F1 driver Jaime Alguersuari remarked that the improvement in Alonso’s pace between Saturday and Sunday was significant.

“The opposite of Mercedes,” he told AS newspaper. “I think Alonso once again showed his quality, although clearly they have much work ahead.

“A driver can only win with the best car, but what he can do is demonstrate his quality with a good or a bad car,” he added.

It is on that final point that the pressure on Felipe Massa merely increased in Australia, as the Brazilian had a disastrously poor weekend from start to finish.

“We need to get behind him now as it’s clear he’s under pressure,” Domenicali told Gazzetta dello Sport.

“When people find themselves under pressure you have to find a way to relieve that pressure so they are free to express themselves in the way they can.

“I’ve asked his engineers to work closely with him and analyse the data so they can offer their support,” he added.

 Charlie Whiting has given the 2012 cars at the Jerez test this week an early clean bill of health.
It was reported the FIA’s technical delegate decided to attend the opening test of the 2012 pre-season amid speculation the teams may have overstepped the mark with their new exhaust layouts.

Exhaust-blown diffusers have been banned for this season, but the early signs were that teams had been clever in their interpretation of the new rules to maintain an aerodynamic benefit.

“At the moment they’re all legal,” Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport, following Whiting’s inspection of all the team garages on Wednesday, quoted the Briton as saying.

Red Bull’s Adrian Newey also played down all the speculation about 2012 exhaust interpretations, insisting there is unlikely to be a “bright idea” from this year’s restrictive rules similar to the double diffuser or blown exhaust innovations.

“We do not see any big differences between all the possible solutions,” he said. “The rules are very specific and very restrictive.”

That could, of course, be great news for Red Bull’s rivals, particularly with the FIA having also clamped down on flexing front wings — another area perfected recently by Newey.

“That rule change,” said Newey, referring to the halving of the allowable wing flex for 2012, “came very late.

“The result is that the wing has gained a lot of weight, making it harder to achieve the optimum weight distribution.”

Newey said the FIA’s new stance on wings was “probably” powered by the violently fluttering components on Ferrari’s car late last season.

Indeed, between Ferrari and Red Bull, there already appears some tension.

Spain’s Marca newspaper claims Newey suspected Ferrari’s initial exhaust solution on the F2012 was not legal.

Then on Wednesday – the day of Whiting’s pit visits – the Maranello based team hastily cut into its exhausts and fairings, ostensibly to meet the new rule about top visibility.

“Honestly,” Ferrari designer Nikolas Tombazis said, “I haven’t seen anything out of the ordinary. We have analysed what everyone is doing and I do not see a great innovation that we have not studied already.”

The saga will continue to run.

“They will still be able to use the exhausts (aerodynamically) this year,” predicted Remi Taffin, engine supplier Renault’s track boss.

“So we will see changes in this area in the Barcelona testing and probably also in Melbourne,” he is quoted by France’s Auto Plus.

According to speculation in Korea on Thursday, definite changes on the personnel front are on the cards for Mercedes GP in 2011.

Michael Schumacher and Nico Rosberg are staying put as drivers, but a significant shake-up in other areas is expected, following the Brackley-based team’s difficult transition from the title-winning Brawn outfit.

When asked about the prospect of changes for 2011 on Thursday, Rosberg acknowledged the need for action.

“I wanted to be winning races and currently we are far away from that,” said the German.

Asked what the personnel changes could be, including whether Jock Clear will still be his race engineer in 2011, he answered: “Exactly what the changes will be, I cannot say.

“A lot will come from Ross Brawn. There are procedures he has analysed in order to get more from people in certain areas,” added Rosberg.

Help from Germany ensured that Korea’s new F1 circuit is able to host its inaugural grand prix this weekend.

That is the claim of Hermann Tilke, the architect of the circuit but retained only as an ‘advisor’ to the actual construction of the venue in Yeongam.

When it became clear that the Koreans were struggling to complete the facility, Tilke stepped in, reportedly providing workers and machinery, primarily to get the track surface in racing condition.

“In the end we sent workers over from Germany, otherwise it probably wouldn’t have worked,” he is quoted by Auto Bild Motorsport.

Tilke insists that fears the track surface will break up this weekend are unfounded.

“We have used a special formula — one that dries quickly and is ready immediately,” said the German, who said the only problem encountered by the drivers will be low levels of initial grip due to the bitumen sitting above the asphalt.

But Tilke admitted that, earlier, he did have “some doubts” that the circuit would be ready, according to France’s L’Equipe.

“It was necessary to analyse the problems and find solutions,” he said.  “We (Tilke GmbH) helped, but the construction companies in Korea worked hard.

“Overall, everything should be fine, but there might be some shortcomings here and there.”

Indeed, on Thursday as the F1 paddock filled up, many of the sport’s travellers moaned about plumbing and late media shuttles to the circuit, whilst highlighting the circuit’s imperfections.

“F1 has raced in a parking lot in Las Vegas, a desert in Bahrain and a swamp in Shanghai.

“But never on a building site in the middle of nowhere,” said Bild newspaper, as 1500 Korean soldiers hurriedly screwed in seats in the grandstands whilst workers painted dirt track verges green.

“We can hardly expect to be perfect from the outset,” said an event spokesman.

The good news is that organisers are expecting a healthy crowd – perhaps 90,000 on Sunday – for the track action, although it is understood this number of tickets has not yet been sold.

“We don’t expect too much on our first attempt at this event,” acknowledged the spokesman.  “We hope interest in F1 (in Korea) will increase after this.”

Virgin might introduce a so-called ‘blown diffuser’ to its 2010 car later this season.

Previously, the new British team ruled out diverting resources for the development of an F-duct.

But driver Timo Glock told Auto Motor und Sport: “The (blown) diffuser is a possibility.”

He explained that not working on the F-duct, which has been banned for 2011, is a “financial issue”.

“It is not worth doing it for just a few races,” Glock told the German publication.

Blown diffusers, the Red Bull-pioneered concept that was subsequently copied by other top teams, is now being seen even on the cars of smaller teams.

Williams debuted its version at Silverstone, Sauber at Hockenheim, and Force India’s version will be tested on Friday at the Hungaroring.

“We will analyse the findings and any data will be fed back into the programme for the second half of the year,” said team boss Vijay Mallya.

The diffuser is credited for Ferrari’s improved pace in Germany, while McLaren is still getting the most from its version.

Auto Motor und Sport reports that the team is waiting on a supply of special anti-heat material to arrive from France.

“Only at Spa can we use our diffuser’s full potential,” boss Martin Whitmarsh is quoted as saying.