After the team’s new car sat out the entire pre-season test period, owner Jose Ramon Carabante insists there is no risk that HRT will also miss the 2011 season opener in less than two weeks.

“It is certain that we will be in Australia and race there,” Carabante is quoted as saying by El Pais newspaper.

The F111 was finally launched in the Barcelona pitlane late last week but the team said it could not be tested due to components being held up in customs.

Carabante admits that Hispania’s preparation for its second formula one season was not ideal.

“Maybe we will not finish the first race, we’ll see, but the car will develop from here with the clear aim of fighting with and beating the other two teams that started last year,” he added, referring to Virgin and Lotus.

HRT has said the F111 is entirely new, but expert observers pointed out striking similarities with the back-of-the-grid Dallara car of 2010.

“We are relying on last year’s chassis,” admitted chief engineer Toni Cuquerella, “but 95 per cent of the car is new.

“We have a Cosworth engine with the latest specification and we have adapted the chassis for the new gearbox and hydraulics supplied to us by Williams.

“The collaboration with them (Williams) has allowed us to make a technological step of three years. It is clear that the car is much better than last year’s,” he added.

El Pais said HRT’s 2011 budget is EUR 45 million, to potentially be covered by some as yet unsigned sponsors.

“We are negotiating with several sponsors,” insists Carabante, who is reportedly willing to make up the shortfall if the budget is not finally completed.

Virgin has confirmed that its newly launched MVR-02 car is not designed to accommodate a KERS system.
Along with Lotus and HRT, the three teams are the only ones in formula one who will not benefit from the energy-recovery technology in 2011.

Car designer Nick Wirth defended the decision on the basis that Virgin has other priorities.

“The fact is it (KERS) is extremely expensive and extremely heavy and it is worth about three tenths of a second — we’re after three seconds,” he said at the car’s launch in London on Monday.

And continuing driver Timo Glock agreed that Virgin is not going to be pushing the frontrunners in 2011.

“Realistically you do not make up three or four seconds over the winter, but hopefully we can be closer to the midfield teams,” said the German.

Wirth said the design team’s biggest focus has been reliability, with hydraulics proving the achilles heel in 2010.

He confirmed that while Virgin tried a radical Renault-like forward-exiting exhaust in its computer simulators, the team ultimately opted for a more conservative solution.

“We understand why they (Renault) are doing it, but you need to be a team like Renault from the financial, human and technical resources standpoint to implement it.

“So we’re happy with our solution,” German reports quote Wirth as saying.

Glock told Auto Motor und Sport: “Compared to our competitors we can’t afford to have such radical solutions.”

And the 28-year-old smiled as he confirmed that the fuel tank will be big enough this season.

“That’s not going to happen to us again,” he said. “This time our tank is too big!”

Force India has extended its technical collaboration with McLaren.
Since 2009, McLaren has supplied the Silverstone based team with its gearbox and hydraulics, while Mercedes has supplied the engine.

The new deal extends to the end of 2012.

Force India also announced on Friday that Andy Green has stepped up from the role of director of engineering to be the new technical director.

“I am delighted to be able to give Andrew and his team the stability and opportunity to take us forward with the extension to the McLaren Applied Technologies contract,” said team boss Vijay Mallya.

Jarno Trulli has revealed that his only motivating factor in 2010 was that things should be better next season.

After spending the best part of a decade with the well-funded Renault and Toyota teams, the Italian veteran steered right to the back of the grid for 2010 by signing with Lotus.

Tony Fernandes’ new Malaysian team has re-signed him for 2011, as Trulli admitted how difficult this season was.

“At the first test it was obvious what the facts were,” the 36-year-old said in an interview with the Dutch magazine formule1.nl.

“I knew the year was over and the only way to keep motivation was to count down to next season,” added Trulli.

Although with a brand new team powered by a smaller than usual budget whose car was designed and built in record time, Trulli admits he did not expect 2010 to be quite so difficult.

“Of course I expected a difficult season in terms of performance, but not so much on the reliability side.

“By the end, I was used to it. What can you do? Getting angry doesn’t help.

“The worst thing was when you had to just finish the race. In Brazil for example the hydraulics failed and I still managed to finish, but it’s not how you like to drive.

“But by Brazil I had reached a point when I didn’t get angry. Not that I was indifferent, but I was doing it for the team.

“It was important to beat the other newcomers to finish tenth in the world championship, so it doesn’t matter if you’re not performing as you want or are tired of the hydraulics failing — the team comes first,” said Trulli.

“Anyway, the season is over now. I managed to motivate myself until the last race and I’m really looking forward to 2011,” he insisted.

The struggling HRT team has emerged as a likely customer for technical support by Williams in 2011.

Last month it was reported that famous British team Williams could be set to supply its hydraulic systems and gearboxes to one or more of the sport’s small new teams.

In 2010, the standard Xtrac systems have proved outdated and unreliable, and Lotus broke ranks to arrange of a supply of Red Bull’s technology for 2011.

“We’ve had enquiries for our hydraulics and gearbox, we’re open to supplying it, but nothing has been agreed at this point,” a Williams spokesman told us in September.

The Finnish newspaper Turun Sanomat believes Hispania Racing (HRT), the back-of-the-grid Spanish team, has been in talks with Williams about the systems.

Lotus will use Red Bull gearboxes and hydraulic systems from the 2011 season, the new Malaysian-backed team announced on Tuesday morning.

It is expected the team, to be called Team Lotus next season, will also shortly announce an agreement to use Renault’s customer engine in 2011.

The news will mean Lotus and Red Bull will use the same engine/gearbox/hydraulics package in formula one, which according to team boss Tony Fernandes is a “real statement of our intention”.

A media statement said the deal is for 2011 “and beyond”.

Lotus has expressed misgivings with its Xtrac gearbox and hydraulics during its debut season this year, and has already terminated its engine contract with Cosworth.

“This deal gives our design and aero teams a very exciting platform to work with,” said technical boss Mike Gascoyne.

It is the first time Red Bull has supplied a gearbox to a customer team.

“The fact that Red Bull Technology has been chosen to be a supplier to another team despite its short history demonstrates how much we have achieved since our first season,” said Red Bull team boss Christian Horner.

Renault is likely to supply not only the engine but also the gearbox to Lotus in 2011, according to reports.

Turun Sanomat, close to the team’s Finnish driver Heikki Kovalainen, also said that after using standard Xtrac hydraulics this season, Lotus is designing its own system for 2011.

The Lotus/Renault tie up, with the French marque also to supply the F1 team’s electronics next year, could be part of a bigger arrangement with Group Lotus, the separately Malaysian-owned sports car company.

Currently, Lotus road cars are powered by Toyota engines.

“Next year’s (F1) car is well under way,” technical boss Mike Gascoyne told F1′s official website. “The main focus now is on 2011 — to make sure we take a big step forward.”