After months of evaluations and negotiations in which diverse options have been assessed, Spanish team HRT has finally opted for the facilities of the Complejo Deportivo Madrid Caja Mágica to locate its permanent headquarters.

The team will occupy part of the Caja Mágica facilities and will coexist with the Masters 1000 Madrid Open. HRT F1 Team will be specifically situated in the Indoor Sur and Indoor Central buildings, occupying a total surface of 11,000m2.

In only seven months, the new directors have carried out a restructuring process with the objective of providing the team with stability and viability, besides having a new identity. To reach these targets, a lot of hard work has been focused on three fronts in these last three months: the new car, the renewed operational and technical team and a permanent headquarters which, besides from uniting the whole team in a workspace with F1 standards, will contribute an added value to the team.

With the signing of Pedro de la Rosa this past October a long desired objective was accomplished, which was none other than to incorporate a Spanish driver. The recent addition of Narain Karthikeyan completes a driver line-up packed with experience, which is of great value in this new chapter for the team.

The renewal of the technical team started once the 2011 season was over and the new team members have been working ever since at the temporary logistical base in Paterna, Valencia, until the definitive relocation to the permanent headquarters is carried out. The chosen venue had to meet very specific and ambitious requirements.

And the Complejo Deportivo Madrid Caja Mágica meets the requirements that HRT Formula 1 Team considers indispensable for this new chapter. It is a versatile and sustainable space that will take in the different departments that make up the team besides being an area open to fans, sponsors, suppliers and collaborators.

Remodeling and adaptation of the space will begin immediately and it is calculated that in under a month the first workers will be able to move in. The technical and operational sectors of the team won’t do so until Formula 1 returns to Europe but the headquarters is expected to be fully operational for May. The Technical Design Office is anticipated to move in progressively as of early June, thus completing a programme which is calculated to generate more than a hundred jobs with different degrees of specialization.

The headquarters won’t only be a technological and R&D centre, but also a way of getting closer to the public, sponsors, suppliers and collaborators with accessible areas such as a future museum, guided tours or a conference area, whilst also becoming a formation centre.

Electric mobility and sustainability are fundamental aspects for HRT and something it shares with the Complejo Deportivo Caja Mágica. The team is a pioneer in the Formula 1 world after integrating alternative energies to petrol in its mobility plan and using electric bicycles to move around both at Grands Prix and away from them.

The Complejo Deportivo Madrid Caja Mágica is a multifunctional centre designed by the architect Dominique Perrault. It is located in the Parque Lineal del Manzanares, in a space of 17 hectares which includes large garden areas. The design and distribution of this space enables the celebration of all kinds of events, not only sporting ones, such as presentations, spectacles and conventions.

Saúl Ruiz de Marcos, HRT F1 Team CEO: “For us it is fundamental to have a headquarters that, apart from uniting the team and ending with the dispersion, is beneficial from a logistical and industrial point of view. But that also enables us to maintain a closer relationship with our fans, suppliers and sponsors. Madrid and the Caja Mágica facilities fit perfectly with the standards we were looking for. In the last few months we have assessed different options, looked at their pros and cons, and we feel that the decision to establish our permanent headquarters in Madrid was the best one. I want to thank Madrid Espacios y Congresos for the interest they have shown in this going ahead and I’m sure that this relationship will be very beneficial for everyone”.

Luis Pérez-Sala, Team Principal of HRT F1 Team: “We’ve been working hard for months and establishing our permanent headquarters was very important. Finding a space in which we could all work together was vital, in order to optimize work and generate a good team feeling, a sense of belonging. When the adaptation of the facilities is completed and every department starts working under the same roof in a few months, we will only have one step left to take, which is to have the design department in Madrid too. All this implies not only becoming a place to feel identified with and carry out activities for the team, its sponsors, suppliers and fans, but also an important reference in technology and R&D in the centre of Madrid”.

Marussia will sit out the forthcoming first test of the 2012 pre-season.
And it has also emerged that the former Virgin team’s new single seater will not make an appearance until the third and final test of the winter in Barcelona.

Kevin Eason, the London newspaper The Times’ veteran F1 correspondent, said the news is “worrying”.

After finishing its first two seasons dead last, however, the team has gone back to the drawing board with what boss John Booth describes as an “almost entirely new (car), with very little carry over”.

“Unfortunately our programme has slipped and there seems little point in fielding the new car before we can optimise the run plan for it.

“So the plan is to run the 2011 (car) in Barcelona from 21 February and the new (2012 car) MR01 from 1 March at the second Barcelona test,” the team explained on Twitter.

“We will hopefully gain more constructive track time than we might otherwise have achieved had we rushed the new car out for the second test,” added Booth.

Previously, Marussia planned to be at the forthcoming Jerez test with the 2011 car to give rookie Charles Pic some mileage.

Ferrari has changed the name of its 2011 formula one car.
It emerged on Thursday that Ford is suing the famous Italian marque after Ferrari called this year’s single seater F150.

The name was a tribute to the 150th anniversay of Italian unification, but Ford owns the trademark to F-150 for its famous pickup truck model.

Subsequent to the reports of legal action, Ferrari has twice on Thursday already referred to its 2011 car as the “Ferrari F150th Italia”, as testing resumes at Jerez.

“Before the lunch break, Fernando Alonso completed just over two hundred kilometres at the wheel of the Ferrari F150th Italia,” said the team in one bulletin.

And in a separate official report, Ferrari said there had been “two million hits from 149 countries for the Ferrari F150th Italia on the Ferrari (web)site”.

Referring to the recent launch of the car, the team also reminded readers that “web surfers were able to follow the presentation of the Ferrari F150th Italia” live.

Bernie Ecclestone is not happy that the formula one circus departed Turkey last weekend without resolving the issue of tyre supply for 2011.

The sport touched down at Istanbul Park amid strong speculation that Pirelli had been selected and would be confirmed as F1′s new supplier by the time the event was over.

But according to Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport, it was FOTA’s powerful teams McLaren, Ferrari and Renault who invited Michelin’s Nick Shorrock to make a presentation to all the teams on Sunday.

Indeed, Shorrock indicated to Auto Hebdo in an interview that Michelin’s proposal had not substantially changed.

“We realised that it could be helpful to come and explain in more detail to all the teams the detail of our proposal,” he said.

“The goal of the meeting was simply to go into more detail,” added Shorrock.

Williams’ Adam Parr emerged from the 90 minute meeting and said: “It is taking a bit longer than we would have liked but it should be done in the next few days.”

F1 chief executive Ecclestone is unhappy it is taking this long.

“Why keep talking about it; everything has been discussed,” said the 79-year-old Briton.  “We should sign a contract now.”

It is believed Pirelli remains in pole position for the deal, given Michelin’s insistence that the rules be changed to allow the possibility of more than one tyre supplier entering the sport.

“This is more of a philosophical question for Michelin,” FOTA chairman and McLaren boss Martin Whitmarsh said.

“They would be happy to be alone for five years, but on paper they need for there to be the chance of having a competitor.”

(GMM)

Michelin is close to seeing the green light to return to formula one in 2011.

Even though Avon and Pirelli have also expressed interest in replacing the sport’s departing supplier Bridgestone, Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport said Michelin is the favourite after diluting some of its earlier demands.

The publication said a three-year deal through 2013 is likely, with every team paying the French marque 3 million euros per season.

The deal will also see Michelin branding on the cars, driver overalls and around the grand prix circuits, but the wheel diameter width will not immediately be changed from the current 13 to lower-profile 18-inch tyres.

Michelin will reportedly provide less tyres per car per weekend than is currently the case, and three different compounds — hard, medium and soft, with the teams able to select which compounds are used.

Auto Motor und Sport said Michelin branding will be on the drivers’ shoulders next year, and a logo on the nose of the cars and the rearward-facing rear wing.

Representatives of the Italian marque Pirelli, however, will make a presentation to the teams in Spain this weekend, and are touted to supply the GP2 field beginning next year.

Apr.29 (GMM)  Pirelli has definitely joined the race to supply tyres to formula one teams next year.

We reported last week that, after a shareholder’s meeting of the Italian company, chairman Marco Tronchetti Provera said Pirelli might be interested in entering F1 if certain conditions are met.

He said that if the permitted diameter of F1 tyres is increased, and providing the arrangement makes financial sense, Pirelli would “look into this (F1) world with greater attention”.

But in the wake of his comments, the F1 teams alliance FOTA met on Wednesday of this week, and Williams’ Sam Michael emerged confirming that the bulk of the conversation centred on a choice between Michelin and Avon.

However, Pirelli said in a statement on Thursday that it will now “present … an offer for the supply of tyres to all the teams in the F1 championship”.

The marque said the presentation will take place in Barcelona ahead of next weekend’s Spanish grand prix.

To speak of a duel between Fernando Alonso (Ferrari) and Michael Schumacher (Mercedes GP) may sound exaggerated, but the truth is that again they will be the center of attention during the four pre-season test days in Jerez de la Frontera Circuit.

It was only a few days ago that we saw them rolling with almost a difference of a second in favor of the pilot from Asturias, but none of them mentioned the other, making it more than evident that there is rivalry between them.  To stress this point, it would be sufficient to ask the child to whom Schumacher denied an autograph… and all because he was wearing a Ferrari cap.

Even though the “Kaiser” tried to clarify this incident, it is apparent that “it is not the right moment.”  Schumacher’s appetite has returned and according to a statement by Ross Brawn, they are showing up at the circuit with some changes to improve their presentations and performance in the racetrack.

The two pilots will only concur in the circuit of Cadiz on Thursday, because Alonso will roll tomorrow and day-after-tomorrow, while the ‘Kaiser’ on Thursday and Saturday, according to the provisional plan submitted by the circuit’s press department.

For these second unveiling events, ten teams will roll the first week: McLaren, Ferrari, Sauber, Renault, Red Bull, Toro Rosso, Williams, Force India, Mercedes GP and Virgin GP -.

Together with them, the news at Jerez during these days will be the presentation of the new Red Bull and Force India single-seaters, as well as the first car presented by the new Virgin GP ‘scuderia.’

The ticket prices for these events are five Euros general admission and 10 Euros in VIP grandstand –exactly in front of the boxes-.  The audience will be able to access the circuit from 10.00 AM onwards.  Tests finish at 5:00 PM.

The first official tests of MotoGP started together with the presentation of the motorcycles for the 2010 World Championship.  The Yamaha, Honda, Suzuki and Ducati test pilots have started the first session of the pre-season testing without official times.

The stars were the Japanese, Norihiko Fujiwara and Wataru Yoshikawa (Yamaha Factory), Kosuke Akiyoshi (Repsol Honda Team), Nobuatsu Aoki (Rizla Suzuki MotoGP) and Vittoriano Guareschi (Ducati Marlboro Team).  Their activity in the tracks was followed with much attention by many official riders who already where in ‘boxes’, among them: Valentino Rossi, Jorge Lorenzo, Casey Stoner, Dani Pedrosa, Loris Capirossi, Nicky Hayden, as well as the debutants, Héctor Barberá, Álvaro Bautista and Hiroshi Aoyama.

During this first day, no official times have been announced.  Some said that in the Yamaha ‘box’ they assured their two pilots marked a better time of 2:07.34.

The Honda test rider, Kosuke Akiyoshi, rode both, Andrea Dovizioso’s motorcycle and Dani Pedrosa’s to be sure of the good operation of the basic standards and that the new evolutions that the official riders will try out tomorrow are also ready.

Ducati was the team with less attendance in the track.  Vittoriano Guareschi, Sport Director of the official team, but also test rider of the Italian motorcycle, only rolled half of the day.  In the afternoon, he met with the people who are responsible for the satellite ‘scuderias.

Virgin Racing, is the first team -of the four that participate this year-, that reveals details of its first single-seater, the ‘VR-01′ that will be presented tomorrow in the racetrack driven by the German, Timo Glock and the Brazilian, Lucas di Grassi.

The ‘scuderia’ that had problems with the presentation of its car ‘online,’ but that shows details of it, tomorrow will test the single-seater in the British circuit of Silverstone.

The Technical Director of Virgin Racing, Nick Wirth, underlined that to join an F1 team, mount an engineering group and design a new car from scratch is “an epic pursuit after having such a short time.”

The new single-seater’s design has been entirely done with assisted systems (CFD), instead of a wind tunnel, and for Wirth “it is not surprising to see the skepticism created by the system we have used.”.

“We’re competing in sport that is experimenting a significant change to be able to face today’s tough economic reality.  I have absolute faith in the digital design’s process and in the opportunity to test a total CFD design at the highest level.  It means to show that this could well be the path for the Formula One future.  That’s very, very exciting,” he expressed.

“We have come up with a car that has a first class design and that will benefit from a high degree of aerodynamic efficiency and stability.  Reliability has been an important element in its design and together with all the key areas to comply with FIA’s safety rules and the crash test requirements,” assured Wirth.

Virgin’s Team Principal, John Booth, commented on all the difficulties involved in the process, being a “a counter clock race to design and develop a racing car, and simultaneously, putting together a new team of people and the installations.”

“I’ve always had absolute trust in Nick’s ability to design a good car, and I’m hopeful that the team will make a good job when they roll it out.  After working closely with technical team during the last 10 months, I know that the VR-01 is the result of a very intense and deep design, and I feel excited to think of its debut in the racetrack,” he added.

Tomorrow, it will be possible to see the VR-01 in the British Silverstone racetrack, even though there will be no other references of other single-seaters running through the British circuit.

The Malayan ‘scuderia’, Force India has announced that the presentation of its new single-seater for the 2010 Formula One World Championship will take place next Tuesday through the Internet.  A day before the second period of collective testing at the Jerez de la Frontera circuit.

The new single-seater called ‘VJM03′ will be launched at 10.00 AM.  It seems that this year’s trend is to make presentations online; Virgin Racing will also launch its single-seater through Internet.

The car for the 2010 season has been created by a team led by the technical director, James Key and the design director, Mark Smith, and it will be the first one that is presented with Otmar Szafnauer as new operations chief.

Yesterday, Force India introduced its new test pilot, the DTM star, Paul di Resta, also assuming the position of reserve pilot for the 2010 season.

In its striking silver and black, the new nose of the single-seater does remind us of Brawn’s BGP01, but if we look closely it’s very different.  The middle part of the nose is much higher, reaching above the front wing, together with the typical V shape of the Red Bull RB5 V.  The car has its nose edge higher at both sides right up to the cockpit opening. (look at the detailed picture below.)

The underside of the nose is rounded off, also as the RB5, but with less height in the front suspension mounts which are joined to the chassis by a small keel.

Around the driver, the sidepod entries have changed less, maintaining the air inlets that are now bulky in comparison to what McLaren and Ferrari have presented in 2010. The wing mirrors have been kept very simple.

Front detail of the Mercedes W01

This racing car may be one of the most innovative, not having anything to do with the adjustments made for his official presentation in Germany.  The airbox, apart from being an air inlet, its main objective is to be a roll hoop for the pilot in case of a crash.  Due to this, the teams usually reinforce the airbox walls with carbon fiber so that it matches the required strength.  Up to here there’s nothing we don’t know, but Mercedes has gone a little farther applying a completely different concept.

W01 Airbox

Here, the team has chosen to build the roll hoop as a vertical column providing a thick support on the centerline of the car.  So an air inlet must also be provided.  If you watch closely, the airbox is divided in two, with an air opening much larger than we are used to.

A little more to the back, there is a small opening on each side of the airbox, providing cooling air for some components that sit more rearward in the car.  It is understood that Mercedes and several other teams have chosen to move some components to sit in the low rear to make place for the larger fuel tank.

Despite the fairly bulky shape of the sidepods with a remarkable lack of undercut, the rear end of the car is extremely mince, leaving most of the suspension components open to free airflow. The team have made the bodywork so narrow that many of the components protrude.

Specifications

• Chassis: Construction Molded carbon fiber and honeycomb composite structure
• Suspension: Wishbone
• Dampers: Sachs
• Wheels: BBS forged magnesium
• Tyres: Bridgestone Potenza
• Brakes: Brembo calipers, discs/pads Carbon/Carbon
• Steering: Power assisted rack and pinion
• Electronics: FIA standard ECU and FIA homologated electronic and electrical system
• Gearbox: Seven speed unit with carbon composite maincase
• Gear selection: Sequential, semi-automatic, hydraulic activation
• Clutch: carbon plate

Dimensions

• Overall length: 4800mm
• Overall height: 950mm
• Overall width: 1800 mm

Motor

• Type: Mercedes-Benz FO108X
• Capacity: 2,4 liters
• Cylinders: 8
• Maximum rpm: 18.000 (maximum FIA regulation)
• Bank angle: 90 °
• Piston bore: 98 mm (maximum FIA regulation)
• No. of valves: 32
• Weight: 95kg (minimum FIA regulation weight)

Today will be the presentation of the Formula One BMW Sauber team, with its two official pilots: the Spaniard, Pedro Martinez de la Rosa and the Japanese, Kamui Kobayashi, who will drive the single-seaters.

The presentation event is scheduled at 14.30 PM in the Circuit de la Comunidad Valenciana ‘Ricardo Tormo‘, showing the 2010 single-seater with which they will race said season.

A very special occurrence for Pedro Martinez de la Rosa who again has an official wheel after being test and reserve pilot for the McLaren Mercedes team since 2003.

The 2010 Malaysia Grand Prix, at the Sepang raceway is scheduled at the FIA’s calendar for next April 4.  However, the GP will begin an hour earlier this year, because, if you recall, the test was interrupted due to a tropical storm that made the visibility of the pilots in the racetrack impossible.

Last year’s schedule became a problem after an intense rain that fell over the Sepang International Raceway, which, due to poor visibility, forced the stewards to consider the race as finished at lap 32 of 56, adding only half of the points to the first eight classified pilots.

To avoid a similar situation, this year the Grand Prix organization requested a “more adequate schedule” for the appointment, which will finally begin at 16.00 (local time), as announced by the raceway’s Executive Director, Razlan Razali, at the official presentation of the race.

The organization foresees an increase in the audience.  “We expect approximately 100.000 spectators on Sunday.  On the last edition, there were almost 60.000,″ said the race’s organizer, Mokhzani Mahathir to the ‘Bernama’ news agency.

The time has come for the presentation of one of the best, accompanied by two world champions: the McLaren team with Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton, who this morning, launched the new MP4-25.

The team principal, Martin Whitmarsh, specially emphasized the single-seater’s preparation as a key element to the season’s success, in an event that took place at the Vodafone telephone company’s headquarters, main sponsor of McLaren.

“This car has been prepared more than ever,” began by saying Whitmarsh, who will face the challenge of leading the last two world champions, in the same team.  This situation resembles the one between Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton, which was resolved with the withdrawal of the pilot from Asturias.

Both champions said a few words about their respective team-mate, making clear that there is cordiality and a good atmosphere in the team.  “I have always wanted to follow Jenson’s footsteps.  I hope to work with him for many years,” Lewis declared.

Whitmarsh, on his part, explained that there is an equal position between “both pilots because there is no doubt that they’re winners and they want to win again this season.”

“Let’s hope it’ll be an exciting year.  We aware that we have to be at our best level to beat our rivals,” the team principal stated.

The test pilot, Gary Paffett will be in charge of the first laps with the new’MP4-25′ this next Monday in Cheste, for the first official trainings that most of the ‘Scuderias’ will carry out.

Ferrari’s chairman, Luca Cordero di Montezemolo, left a door open to the future incursion of the motorcycle pilot, Valentino

Rossi in the Formula One.

The nine-times world champion has two days of training last week in a Ferrari at the Montmeló Circuit and the Italian ‘Scuderia’ was impressed with his presentations.  ”He’s a friend and an indisputable champion.  He’s a great Formula One fan and of the engines, and a potential champion,” he assured during the new single-seater’s presentation, the ‘F10′.

This way, the highest person in command of the ‘Cavallino Rampante’ made it clear that there’s a possibility that Rossi will be given the opportunity to drive in Ferrari in 2010.  ”If he can train and adapt to the F1, why not?” he added.

On the other hand, he declared that Mercedes is not a real manufacturer and that Michael Schumacher is back in the competition thanks to Ferrari.  ”Let’s not talk about Schumacher,” Montezemolo suggested in a press conference, before he was forced to point out the differences between Ferrari and the new Mercedes ‘Scuderia’ which bought Brawn GP, the world champion.

“I have great respect for Mercedes.  I have said and repeat that it’s good to see its total participation in the F1.  But it’s a different kind of participation from ours,” he said, at a building located in the “Piazza Michael Schumacher”, spiritual home of Ferrari, in northern Italy.  ”Its participation is based in Great Britain.  They bought Brawn,” he clarified.

Montezemolo is proud of the Ferrari’s Italian “heart,” of the fact that it’s one of the few car manufacturers left and the only team which has competed in the 60 Formula One seasons.

In addition, he does not believe that Mercedes will be able to reproduce that special atmosphere, even though Schumacher might have taken some information with him.  ”Honestly, I’m no longer worried about the secrets that filtered with Schumacher.  I was the one who planted in this head the idea of coming back to the Formula One,” he concluded.