Martin Brundle has described Red Bull’s lack of pace as the biggest surprise of the 2012 season so far.

After consecutive world championships with Sebastian Vettel, the energy drink-owned team was universally tipped as the pre-season favourite for yet another F1 title.

But McLaren dominated in Australia before Ferrari and Sauber surprisingly set the pace recently in Malaysia.

Former F1 driver Brundle admitted the struggling RB8 was the surprise of the opening salvo in 2012, but he also acknowledged that the turnaround might have been predicted.

“When you look at how the regulations have changed, it’s almost like they were designed to slow the Red Bulls down,” the Sky television commentator told the website of the BBC programme Top Gear.

“Doubling the torsional stiffness of the front wings, the way Red Bull were ‘flying’ their car down the track with lots of rake, nose close to the ground, exhausts helping to sort the high rear ride height out, it’s all been taken away from them,” added Brundle.

An unnamed engineer at Red Bull has admitted the team was caught on the hop in the winter pre-season, when it became clear McLaren was better prepared for the new rules.

“McLaren came with a (exhaust) system on the edge of legality,” the engineer told Germany’s Auto Bild, “and it was declared legal by the FIA.

“So (Adrian) Newey had to adapt,” he added, referring to Red Bull’s last-minute decision to change tack at the very end of the pre-season test period.

The message coming from the Milton Keynes based team, therefore, is that Red Bull is playing catch-up.

“We need to understand the car better,” admits team advisor Dr Helmut Marko, “which is why for the next race (in China) we will have hardly any new parts.”

So until he’s back at the front, F1′s formerly-dominant Vettel – who lashed out at backmarker Narain Karthikeyan recently in Malaysia – needs to adapt.

Asked if the German was justified in calling his Indian rival an “idiot”, Brundle insisted: “No.

“That’s just an angry man who hasn’t got a front-running car at the moment. He’s just frustrated.”

The FIA has reacted swiftly to drivers’ concerns about the pit entry in Korea.

Numerous drivers on Friday warned that the fact the entry to the new Yeongam circuit’s pitlane is on the racing line in a fast corner is a safety issue.

“Someone coming into the pits will be slower than the guy behind who is staying on the track,” said Sebastian Vettel.

Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport reports that, after meeting with the drivers late on Friday, race director Charlie Whiting has agreed to a quick fix.

The white line on the pit entry is being removed overnight, meaning drivers coming into the pits can remain on the power through the fast corner and then sweep into the pits at the last moment.

“So the difference in pace between those coming into the pits and those staying out is not so great,” confirmed Mark Webber.

It is also believed that a kerb at another fast corner is being slightly relocated, while the height difference between the kerbs and the track at turns 16 and 10 will also be attended to in the future.

“I am sure it’s just teething problems and people will look at that and see what they can do,” said McLaren and FOTA boss Martin Whitmarsh.

More generally, following the media’s horror stories of the past months, the F1 paddock seemed surprisingly happy with the venue on Friday, and the drivers gave the actual layout a big thumbs-up.

Nico Rosberg said Yeongam is “very interesting” with “some great combinations of corners”, and Fernando Alonso agreed the layout has “a bit of everything”.

And the venue itself was also being praised on Friday, despite some minor earlier complaints about electricity and gas supply issues, and internet dropouts in the media centre on Friday.

“With the government and organisers spending this kind of money we need to be thankful as it is something amazing, no doubt about it,” said Ferrari’s Stefano Domenicali.

The most genuine complaint is about the accommodation, even though the well-heeled drivers and management are enjoying the five-star Hyundai Hotel.

Buzzing around the paddock are stories told by journalists and mechanics about sex toys in vending machines and rooms that are obviously frequented by prostitutes.

“Maybe they (the organisers) can work on that for the future,” said Vettel.

Two thousands of a second on Saturday separated Fernando Alonso from pole position at Hockenheim.

The Spaniard’s Ferrari car has taken a concrete step forward in Germany, and at the end of the dry Q3 session his best time was almost indistinguishable from Sebastian Vettel’s in the dominant Red Bull.

A further five and sixth tenths behind are the sister Ferrari driven by Felipe Massa and then Silverstone winner Mark Webber, who abandoned his final effort after running wide in turn 1.

“My fault,” said the Australian.

The other major story from qualifying was the pace of the championship leading McLarens, who went into the session fitted with the blown exhausts.

But points leader Lewis Hamilton was outqualified by his teammate Jenson Button, in just fifth place.

“It is clear now we are the third fastest team,” rued Hamilton.

Added Button: “7 tenths behind? Surprising. We’ve definitely made a step forward with the car here but we don’t have the pace, which is quite a worry, really.”

Jun.17 (GMM)  Gerhard Berger has dismissed claims that Pirelli is a questionable choice as formula one’s new tyre supplier.

Although the news is not yet official, it is now expected that the Italian company will succeed the departing Bridgestone — with confirmation coming possibly at next week’s meeting of the World Motor Sport Council.

The other serious contender has been Michelin, Bridgestone’s most recent tyre competitor between 2001 and 2006 with 43 grand prix wins in this period, and utterly dominant in 2005.

The fact that Pirelli’s proposal is the one that has gained the majority of support has therefore been surprising to some; not only because it has absent from F1 since 1991, but also because the development time for 2011 is now so short.

Moreover, there has been some criticism in the past during Pirelli’s forays in world superbike racing as well as world rallying.  The Milan based brand is currently also the GP3 supplier and tipped for a deal with GP2 for 2011 and beyond.

“This (criticism) is absolute nonsense,” Berger, who won the 1986 Mexican grand prix with Pirelli tyres and Benetton in 1986, told Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport.

“Pirelli equips the fastest sports cars in the world.  There are also people in formula one who have been successful with Pirelli,” added the Austrian.

Pirelli’s last grand prix win was with Nelson Piquet and Benetton in Montreal in 1991.

On his visit to last weekend’s Canadian grand prix, director of motor sport Paul Hembery declined to comment.

Renault has fought valiantly in the previous eight races. Robert Kubica climbed on the podium twice and Vitaly Petrov has also shown fighting benefits. With six points from China, the Russian is so far even the best rookie. The black and yellow currently see no reason to replace the 25-year-olds.

Team boss Eric Boullier thinks about his discovery: “It meets our expectations and achievements are not surprising. We have chosen for him because he has brought in GP2 good performance. On the basis of which he brings exactly what we by him be expected. It shows that we have made the right choice. ”
As is set Felipe Massa at Ferrari in 2012, the speculation has broken about a change of Kubica. Since the other top teams are also occupied the long term, the former BMW driver will have to stay at Renault. His current chief says of the talks: “We speak today. But if you want to set for several years, then you have to overcome the obstacles, so that both parties are happy.”

An important issue is currently the tire question from next year. Pirelli is in pole position, but still nothing is decided. Boullier can announce as a member of FOTA is no news: “The decision must fall as soon as possible. But we have started based on the current tire course already with our plans for 2011.”

Jun.16 (GMM)  After a dismal Montreal weekend for the Swiss team, boss Peter Sauber admitted the C29 car is not a good one.

But the 66-year-old has also been quoted indicating that he is not happy with the ongoing poor reliability of the customer Ferrari engine.

“Five problems with the Ferrari engine in eight races is unacceptable.  At this rate we will need more than eight engines per driver for the season.

“We need better reliability,” he is quoted by the Swiss newspaper Blick.

In Canada, Pedro de la Rosa’s race ended with an unspecified engine failure.

Earlier in 2010, both Sauber and the works team were struggling with poor reliability, but Maranello based Ferrari were given FIA clearance to implement a fix.

“Ferrari has solved its problems with the engines but Sauber has again had a failure,” Ferrari test driver Marc Gene wrote in his post-Canada column for the Spanish newspaper El Mundo.

“It is an issue that will be analysed thoroughly by the team,” he added.

“Two months ago there was a basic reason, but now … it is very strange,” wrote Gene.  “They will need to work to analyse it with Ferrari.”

The Spaniard seemed to indicate that Sauber’s ongoing engine problems are probably related to the C29 car.

“It is surprising that (Ferrari powered) Toro Rosso have never had a problem,” said Gene.

May 4 (GMM)  Barcelona could be a turning point in Renault’s 2010 season.

Despite the tumult of the crashgate scandal and the pre-season period, the Enstone based team – and particularly Robert Kubica – has had a surprisingly strong start, trailing Mercedes by just 14 points after four races.

But some teams – notably Mercedes – will use vastly upgraded cars at the Circuit de Catalunya this weekend.

Pole Kubica admits Spain could be a “big test for us” because the R30 will not be fundamentally different to the car raced in China two weeks ago.

“We are not planning to bring any huge updates, but we will keep gradually improving the car, just like we did during the first four races,” he said.

“We have to wait and see how we compare with the others; maybe the order of the teams will be quite different compared to the start of the year,” added Kubica.

Moreover, the last winter test at Barcelona was not a good one for the yellow and red car, and chief engineer Alan Permane admits that Mercedes might make a step away from Renault this weekend.

“Mercedes may move away from us a little bit but we’ve got a new front wing and some other new aerodynamic parts that should help us make another step forward,” he said.

“It’s not the biggest update we’ve had this year, but it continues our approach of adding new parts at each race,” added Permane.

Force India’s Adrian Sutil on Tuesday told spox.com that Renault “are within striking distance”.

But the German is not expecting the pecking-order to change radically in Spain, despite some reports predicting a huge step forward for Mercedes.

“If that happened, then I would cease to understand a few things about formula one,” said Sutil.

Steve McCormick, in About.com Guide commented regarding Greg Biffle, “Even the fastest car can’t drive itself.  Greg Biffle brings an impressive resume to Daytona: 1998 Truck Series Rookie of the Year, 2000 Truck Series Champion, 2001 BGN Rookie of the Year, 2002 Busch Series Champion and the winner of last July’s Daytona race.”

“Take a guy who is a proven restrictor plate winner and put him behind arguably the best engine in the sport and you’ve got a potential pole sitter. Can anyone tell me why sports writers are calling his pole winning run “shocking” and “surprising?”

“His name may not be on the tip of your tongue when you think of NASCAR NEXTEL Cup stars but this pole run shouldn’t have been a surprise to anyone.”

Greg Biffle who was born in December 23rd, 1969, started 7 races in 2002.  His official rookie season was 2003 and he featured a win at the Pepsi 400 in Daytona.  Jamie McMurray beat him for Rookie of the Year honors.

His more outstanding performances have been:

2000 – Craftsman Truck Series Champion.

2002 – Busch Grand National Series Champion.

2003 – Won first NEXTEL Cup Race (July Daytona)

2005 – Finished second in NEXTEL Cup points

Jack Roush picked up Greg Biffle back in the mid 90′s with the idea that with some seasoning he could be great.

Just a few years later Greg rewarded Roush Racing with it’s first NASCAR championship as Greg pushed and shoved his way to the Craftsman Truck Series title. A couple of years after that Greg again came through, this time delivering a Busch Grand National series championship.

Early in his NEXTEL Cup career Greg has proven that he can get the job done. His first victory in NASCAR’s premier division came under the lights in Daytona as Greg won the Pepsi 400 during his 2003 rookie campaign.

There are surely more championships in Greg’s future.  Those stories are still to be written but clearly he knows what it takes to win titles and he is with a top-notch team in the form of Jack Roush.

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.

Subsequent to the first two testing days where the single-seaters were seen, there are aerodynamic solutions for all tastes.  During these days, it has been surprising how the engineers have hurried to cover the diffusers when the single-seaters enter the boxes.  Funny, because some moments later they’re back in the racetrack and it would be difficult to run after the car to cover the diffuser, wouldn’t it?

Leaving the “funny” note aside, let’s take a look at how the aerodynamics of the seven scuderias that have been presented in these official tests at the Valencian circuit have evolved.  I must say that it’s not an analysis of the aerodynamics, but of some visible changes.

FERRARI

The engineers of the Italian ‘scuderia’ chose to change the nose and wing in a significant way.

The nose seems to be lower than last year’s increasing its descending curve, with a softened V form (below, in the photo gallery you can enlarge the picture to see in more detail.)

For 2010, Ferrari has initially chosen to include a sharp fin, similar to the one that became fashionable with Red Bull, last year.

MERCEDES

No doubt, one of the cars with more changes, if we take the Brawn GP as reference.  The nose is even lower than Ferrari’s, with less tip and more rounded.  Very similar to last year’s well-known Red Bull design.

Contrary to the rest of the scuderias, they have selected a short tail behind the air inlet over the pilot (engine’s lid).

RENAULT

Renault does not contribute with any extraordinary changes in its front, following its aerodynamic philosophy of a robust appearance, “rough” nose. It has a descending angle, but lacks the famous V shape that can be seen in other single-seaters.

Just as it finished last season, Renault uses a great sharp fin as engine lid.

MCLAREN

The MP-4 follows an evolution from its previous model, without the V shape used by Ferrari or Mercedes.  Its nose is rounded and seems higher than others,’ even though, the front double wing is wider and have joined the “sharp fin” fashion.

Peculiar interpretation of the sharp fin, since it almost finishes in the rear aileron.  However, we’re still investigating the camera options on the single-seaters.  Note that Ferrari, McLaren and Williams “have an integrated periscope.”

WILLIAMS

Aside from the periscope, its possible the single-seater with less changes of all that we have seen (a priori).  The characteristics that stand out the most are a very flat and high nose, together with a front double aileron.

Hopefully, tomorrow we’ll go to another place where we can see the rear of the car, because we’ve heard that’s the part of the single-seater with more changes.

BMW SAUBER

As you can appreciate in this photograph, aerodynamically it seems like a completely new single-seater.  A nose with little drop, and a long but mostly high “sharp fin.”

When I say ‘high’, I mean that it does not fall as other scuderias’, but it’s rather a great extension of the air intake.

TORO ROSSO

The new Toro Rosso’s nose follows the trend of its previous model with only some slight touches.  However, the rear section is the one that has had the most evolution in 2010.

The sharp fin is an innovation joining with the rear aileron of the racing car.  The idea is to transfer the most quantity of air possible to the rear aileron.  Is that a solution to get extra grip?

Awaiting to see “the revolutionary USF1″ that according to the North Americans breaks with anything ever seen, this year the scuderias have changed a great deal the exterior of the racing cars.  Enjoy the gallery.

The first Formula One pre-season tests are being challenged, since Monday in the Ricardo Tormo de Cheste Circuit in Valencia.

The Brazilian pilot, Felipe Massa started leading the time table at the wheel of the Ferrari ‘F10′ and in the middle of the morning marked a best time of 1:13.088, in a stint of 32 laps at the Valencian racetrack.

Massa, was the only one who lowered the times as he rolled through the Valencian Circuit to less than 1:14, giving evidence of good results with the new F10.  These were surprising times if we take into account the huge fuel tank that the car has installed in it.

In the last moments of the morning session, the Spaniard, Pedro Martinez de la Rosa (BMW Sauber) with a best lap of 1:13.247 -in spite of being the second pilot who ran less during the morning, with a total of 27-, placed himself in the second chrono time position.

Finally, Nico Rosberg with the Mercedes GP was third fastest in Cheste with 1:13.543, followed by the McLaren test pilot, Gary Paffet who stopped the chronometer in 1:14.018.

Rubens Barrichello (Williams) made it fifth with 1:14.449, while the two last places of the morning were for Kubica (Renault) with 1:15.298 and Sebastien Buemi (Toro Rosso) with a better time of 1:19.279, and who only ran 10 laps in the Valencian Circuit.