Ferrari will not run all of its planned car improvements at the Mugello test this week.

“My information is that the new single seater is not ready,” reported Livio Oricchio, the correspondent for O Estado de S.Paulo newspaper.

There has been speculation that, following Ferrari’s troubled start to the new championship with its F2012 car, the changes for the forthcoming Barcelona race will be so sweeping that it might be called a “B” version.

But technical director Pat Fry reportedly told Oricchio that Ferrari designers are “staying with the (current) front suspension”; a reference to the Maranello based team’s innovative use of pullrod technology this year.

And the well-informed journalist Dimitris Papadopoulos adds that, even though the Mugello-spec Ferrari will have a new nose, sidepods and wings, “there will be no new chassis”.

 The Italian press is reporting that Ferrari could abandon the innovative pull-rod suspension layout of its disappointing F2012 car.
The Spanish sports daily AS concurs, adding that the revised car could be ready as soon as next month, and certainly in time for Barcelona in May.

“Ferrari may even give up its revolutionary front suspension,” wrote correspondent Manuel Franco.

Until the F2012, the pull-rod layout has not been seen at the front of a formula one car since designer Gabriele Tredozi’s 2001 Minardi.

Interestingly, Spaniard Fernando Alonso raced both cars.

According to O Estado de S.Paulo correspondent Livio Oricchio, Ferrari spokesman Luca Colajanni played down the reports.

“But I am not so sure the information is unfounded,” Oricchio insisted.

At Sepang, La Gaceta reporter Carlos Miguel Gomez asked Alonso about the ‘big step’ for the F2012 that is being imminently planned by Ferrari.

“It is up to you to write that there will be a new car coming,” the Spanish driver answered.

“It won’t be just us: I think everyone will make updates at every race. We just need to make ours work a little bit more,” said Alonso.

“New parts will slowly come at every race and hopefully they work, but there’s not one magic race or one magic moment when we think things can change.”

 Romain Grosjean is hoping for a long stay with the Lotus team.
Then known as Renault, the Frenchman made his troubled F1 debut with the Enstone based team in 2009 but has returned on much better form this year as the reigning GP2 champion.

The E20 car was a standout of the winter season but Grosjean, 25, told Auto Motor und Sport that Lotus’ target for 2012 is “fourth place” in the constructors’ championship.

“We want to go for the world title in 2015,” he added. “I hope I’m still on board.”

Grosjean’s promising return to F1 last weekend in Australia was left in the gravel when he clashed with Pastor Maldonado.

He says he has not met to discuss the incident with the Williams driver.

“Talking doesn’t make the result come back,” said Grosjean.

Venezuelan Maldonado insists it wasn’t his fault.

“The suspension on the Lotus doesn’t seem to be very strong,” he said. “The contact was not intentional. I’m sorry for Romain, but that’s racing.”

HRT has survived a close call in Melbourne, after crucial parts of Pedro de la Rosa’s chassis did not arrive in time for scrutineering.
The back-of-the-grid Spanish team had to apply to the FIA for an exemption to Thursday’s scrutineering deadline, because pieces of the suspension for the second car had yet to arrive from Europe.

And even when de la Rosa’s car was ultimately cleared to enter the Albert Park circuit shortly before first practice, the mechanics were still hard at work ‘dressing’ it for action.

Ultimately the late start was of little consequence, when the sporadic rain around the Victorian capital made a wet deposit just before practice, ensuring that early action was scarce.

But de la Rosa did not even appear later in the session.

More showers are possible later in the day and also on Saturday, but Sunday’s season-opening race should be dry.

Lotus has overcome a serious chassis flaw to lead the field as the final pre-season test began at Barcelona.
The former Renault team had to sit out last week’s running at the Circuit de Catalunya as designers grappled to fix a problem with the front suspension mounting.

“The mounting of the suspension is now the strongest part of the car,” an unnamed team member is quoted by SID news agency.

At the end of his return to action on Thursday, Romain Grosjean was quoted by France’s Auto Plus: “It (the E20) feels the same, there’s not much difference really.”

Indeed, the revised car is 1 kilogram heavier, but the biggest issue is the four lost days of testing, which after an FIA clarification cannot now be made up.

“To miss four days is not ideal as suddenly we have to try to work twice as hard to catch up,” continued Grosjean.

“It’s true that it’s not great, but it’s not as problematic as it might have been.”

He is referring to the fact that, so far, the Lotus appears intrinsically fast.

Asked if the E20 felt as good around Barcelona’s demanding layout as it had at Jerez last month, the reigning GP champion enthused: “Yes, exactly the same.

“You can trust the car, push it, play with it.

“You can attack, and if you attack too much, you know what will happen — if you have understeer, you know that by attacking less, you’ll have less understeer.

“On this aspect, the car is very good.”

1982 world champion Keke Rosberg told the Finnish broadcaster MTV3 that while the Lotus looks as good in Barcelona as it had at Jerez, it is still not clear if it will be able to compete against F1′s regular top teams.

Auto Motor und Sport quotes Grosjean as saying: “I think there are a couple of teams ahead of us — Red Bull and McLaren look very strong.

“Behind them, it’s a lot closer than it was before.”

However, amid F1′s now extremely limited track testing regime, there is no ignoring the four lost days of running.

Asked if he is ready for 2012, Grosjean said according to Finland’s Turun Sanomat: “I have to be.

“Of course, the more time you have with your car, the better you feel. However, it is what it is.

“We have this four days prior to Melbourne and that’s better than nothing,” he added.

* Caterham had to replace Heikki Kovalainen with his teammate Vitaly Petrov on Thursday, as the Finn recovered at his nearby hotel with food poisoning.

The problem with Lotus’ 2012 chassis is the front suspension mountings, Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport has revealed.
The former Renault team pulled out of this week’s Barcelona test when the flaw with its E20 design was discovered, but officials have kept quiet about the details.

Kimi Raikkonen, who was never able to drive the car at the demanding Circuit de Catalunya this week, reportedly suspected there was an issue recently at Jerez, when he reported to engineers an odd feeling relating to the steering.

“It transpires that the problem area is where the front suspension is attached,” said the German report.

Auto Motor und Sport said Lotus last year recruited a carbon fibre specialist from Red Bull, who perhaps set a too-ambitious target with the aim of reducing the new car’s weight.

Lotus did not confirm the report.

“The good news,” said journalist Michael Schmidt, “is that the E20 will be operational to re-start testing next week on time.”

Martin Whitmarsh has played down fears McLaren has made a crucial mistake by overlooking the ‘step nose’ trend that will dominate the 2012 grid.
With the new Mercedes having now broken cover, and Pedro de la Rosa revealing that HRT’s 2012 car also has a step nose, famous British team McLaren is all alone in keeping a smooth aerodynamic line from the end of the monocoque to the tip of the nose.

Every other team has decided that the best solution to the new rules forcing a lower nose is to plough ahead with having as high a chassis as possible, in order to maximise the flow of air underneath the car.

“I’ve asked our technical guys if they are sure that we have done the right thing and they have told me not to worry,” team boss Whitmarsh is quoted by Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport.

He admitted there is an obvious aerodynamic benefit to the ‘step nose’ solution.

“But we have a lower centre of gravity, more freedom in the suspension geometry, and a more comfortable seating position and a better view for the driver,” added Whitmarsh.

The main reason for McLaren’s decision is that, having already gone a different route to Red Bull at the front of the car last year, a ‘step’ nose would have required a wholesale design philosophy change.

“This car is an evolution,” confirmed Whitmarsh.

“In terms of radical innovations that are visibly obvious, I’ll have to disappoint — these rules just don’t leave that sort of room any more.”

 A feature of the 2012 Ferrari car has not been seen in formula one for more than a decade, test driver Marc Gene has confirmed.
While the ‘stepped’ noses have been grabbing all the media’s attention, arguably more noteworthy is Ferrari’s decision to design its F2012 around ‘pullrod’ front suspension.

While some F1 teams have been using pullrod suspension at the rear of their cars, it has been essentially absent from the front since the 80s and 90s.

“The system seeks to lower the centre of gravity and improve the entry and operation of the air from the front to the rear to improve downforce,” Spaniard Gene wrote in the El Mundo newspaper.

“It was last seen at the front of Fernando Alonso’s Minardi in 2011,” he added.

After the first day of official testing on Tuesday, Ferrari designer Nikolas Tombazis said: “No one will be able to accuse us of having been timid in the design of this car.”

David Coulthard thinks it is possible Ferrari will soon oust Felipe Massa.
Despite Brazilian Massa having a contract for 2012, recent speculation has linked the race seat alongside Fernando Alonso next year with Mercedes’ Nico Rosberg.

“In formula one, anything’s possible,” said former grand prix winner and now British pundit Coulthard, appearing on Austrian television Servus TV.

“I’ve learned that in my 17 years (in F1),” he added.

Coulthard said that when it comes to one of the most coveted seats in the sport, only performance matters.

“He’s a very nice, likeable guy who drives with his heart,” said the Scot. “But he no longer shows the sort of performance he did before his accident in Hungary (2009).

“Ferrari probably have no choice but to look for another driver.”

Coulthard agreed that, in India last weekend where Massa clashed again with Lewis Hamilton and twice broke his suspension over kerbs, the 30-year-old seemed to be buckling under the pressure of his situation.

“In formula one you’re always under pressure,” he insisted.

“Even Sebastian Vettel is under pressure, just a different sort. Massa may know that his formula one career is slowly coming to an end. With these results, he will not be at Ferrari for many more years.

“Ferrari will be looking seriously at the two drivers it has and deciding what is the strongest possible package they can have for 2012,” added Coulthard.

Ferrari will finally follow Red Bull’s lead with the suspension layout of its 2012 car.
That is the claim of the Italian daily Corriere dello Sport, revealing that a scale model of the Maranello based team’s new car is already clocking up the miles in the wind tunnel.

With its 2011 design, the 150 Italia, Ferrari raised some eyebrows by sticking with its usual push-road suspension philosophy rather than opting for Red Bull’s pull-rod layout.

“At Maranello, everything has been called into question in light of the unsatisfactory results of this season,” said the Italian newspaper report.

“The (pull-rod) system will allow for a lower and smaller rear end but it will appear only next season,” added Corriere dello Sport.

“In the last six races of this year, even in the races, mechanical and aerodynamic parts (for 2012) will be tested.”

At night race in Singapore Formula 1 is in the spotlight. 1,500 lighting ensure that the track also appears as bright as day in the late evening, the cars in bright colors seem almost unreal. “Visibility is surprisingly good. There is absolutely no problems with shadows, you will never blinded by the floodlights.”

“Before we first have driven there, there were some reservations,” reports the Lotus-pilot, who took in recent years as a McLaren driver in the Asian metropolis. “In the flood, the cars just look cool. You are almost in the spotlight again and look a lot better than usual”

“I fly at the last minute of the race, so my body can not enforce the will to get used to the time zone,” said the Finn. “Because it is a night race, then you have to maintain the European rhythm. I am not even at my clock. The hotel must be able to darken the window well. We see almost only artificial light.”

“The track is nice, aside times of the bumps,” said Kovalainen. “So far they have not be able to get a grip. No light waves, but really heavy blows. Are the real jump hill. Some drivers were already there back injuries because of it. We are deep in the car, have little suspension – comfort is not the .

“Let’s see how it will be this year. If they have smoothed out the bumps better, it’s just a great road course – a track where I really have a lot of fun,” expressed the 28-year-old from his anticipation. Specifically for the Lotus Event in Singapore is obviously important. It has been “spectacular news,” announced the driver election 2011, change of name of the team and switch to Renault engines.

F1′s harsh spotlight of the international media is shining on Ferrari and Fernando Alonso, but also the regulation prohibiting team orders.

In a frosty post-race press conference at Hockenheim, some reporters warned Spaniard Alonso he now risks winning a “dirty” championship, comparing his win at the hands of an illegal team order to his victory at Singapore in 2008.

“That’s your opinion,” the Ferrari driver told them.

Team orders, of course – dating back to the gentleman racer’s days when number two drivers would pull into the pits to hand over their cars – are nothing new.

“This was just handled very badly,” said Lotus’ Mike Gascoyne.

And Ferrari’s handling in Germany, with Felipe Massa ordered aside by way of a coded message from apologetic engineer Rob Smedley, fuelled the media’s fire.

“I am glad that the media in the paddock are kind of like our police,” remarked Alex Wurz.

But according to Spain’s Marca sports daily, “the English press showed no mercy” for a driver who clashed so memorably with Lewis Hamilton back in 2007.

The Sunday Express called Alonso and Ferrari “dirty, thieving cheats”, while even the milder Daily Telegraph admitted that the World Motor Sport Council could in theory disqualify the famous team from formula one at an August meeting.

“A suspension for a number of races is another possibility,” said the Daily Mail.

Triple world champion Niki Lauda scolded Alonso for blatantly denying he had won the race thanks to a team order.  The Independent newspaper said “nobody was fooled” by Alonso’s argument that he wasn’t aware of the fix.

“I’ve never heard a driver talk such bullshit.  He has no character,” said Austrian great Lauda.

Dr Helmut Marko, under fire for some recent decisions at Red Bull, revelled in the change of fortune.

“It is unbelievable how awkwardly they demonstrated who is their number one.  The FIA must react with a drastic punishment,” he is quoted by Blick.

The Swiss newspaper’s correspondent agreed: “There are different ways for Alonso to return to the throne.  Lying and cheating should not be one of them.”

Even the usually partisan AS newspaper remarked: “Alonso deserved to win the German grand prix, but not like this.  Domenicali has confirmed his true ineptitude by giving Massa obvious team orders that are prohibited by the rules.”

Said Brazil’s Folha de S.Paulo: “It was an insult to the sport.”

Rio de Janeiro’s Lance added: “We regret writing it, but from Massa it was a lack of courage.”

Rubens Barrichello, whose move for Michael Schumacher in 2002 motivated the team order ban, said: “I will speak to Felipe myself.  Nothing has changed at Ferrari.

“I think you can read my opinion better from my face,” he stormily told Brazilian radio Jovem Pan.

Said French newspaper Liberation: “Ferrari is a team unlike another; when not undermined by political intrigue, they shoot themselves in the foot.”

La Libre wondered how the FIA is going to react at the World Motor Sport Council: “Would Jean Todt dare punish his old team for a practice he applied himself?  We honestly doubt it.”

Another side of the story is what Renault’s customer engine boss Fabric Lom described on Europe 1 radio as the “hypocrisy” of the current regulations.

Agreed Italy’s Corriere dello Sport: “It is fair to recognise that the problem is in the regulations.”

Rome daily Il Tempo said Ferrari “did the right thing in the wrong way”, and Spain’s El Mundo said the team order ban is “a regulation that penalises team interests”.

Italy’s Autosprint marvelled that Ferrari was “fined for teamwork!”

Said Britain’s Telegraph: “Ferrari were caught and they must pay.  But the rule is unenforceable.  To pretend otherwise is deluded.”

Mercedes’ Norbert Haug does not quite agree: “We need to think of the spectators.  They want to see fights on the track, not these actions.

“The different teams have different attitudes about team orders.”

To the Spanish press, Alonso argued: “The ones who pay us are the team, not the newspapers or anyone else, and now Ferrari is taking 43 points back to Italy.

“And that is what we have to do — what is best for the team.  On Friday I was faster, I was second in qualifying and faster than Felipe in the race.  I don’t think the slower driver won this race,” he added.

Ferrari will only get its real blown rear diffuser up and running at a forthcoming grand prix.

It was believed that the Italian team began running the Red Bull-style low exhaust layout at Valencia.

But Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport reveals that, in fact, the European GP was only the first phase in a multiple-step development for the F10 car.

The first step was a new gearbox, debuted only by Felipe Massa because Fernando Alonso was in the middle of the four-race mandatory period for his existing transmission.

The Spaniard will get the new gearbox at Silverstone, as well as a new rear suspension layout.

The real benefit of the new gearbox/suspension layout, however, is yet to come.

It is reported that the new layout allows a steeper shape of the diffuser, but the downforce advantage will only come when the exhaust fumes are directed through the diffuser.

Currently, Ferrari is working on ensuring that the blown exhaust does not actually compromise grip due to a sporadic airflow.

It is only at a later date that the entire concept will be up and running.

At Silverstone, the F10 will feature the new gearbox and new housing for the suspension.  Ferrari is introducing the update in stages, so that when the final concept is ready, the team does not have to wait for Alonso and Massa to reach the end of their four-race gearbox phases to debut it.

“In Valencia, we introduced significant updates on the F10 and there will be more in Silverstone and the races after that,” Alonso confirmed.

Christian Horner has warned Red Bull’s rivals that the exhaust system of the RB6 car is not a silver bullet.

At Valencia nearly two weeks ago, Ferrari, Mercedes and Renault got so-called ‘blown rear diffusers’ up and running on their cars.

And this weekend at Silverstone, the concept is part of McLaren’s latest upgrade, with some estimating the laptime benefit at half a second or more.

But Red Bull team boss Horner has moved to play down those predictions.

“Our rivals overestimate the benefits of the blown diffuser,” he is quoted as saying by Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport.

“It’s only about two or three tenths,” added the Briton.

The team’s German driver Sebastian Vettel agrees.

“It gives us a bit, but only together with the whole package, and that includes our rear suspension.  That can’t be copied during the season,” he said.

The Auto Plus column of French commentator Jean-Louis Moncet reports that, as well as the blown diffuser, McLaren’s Silverstone upgrade includes new cooling, suspension and dampers.

Ferrari, on the other hand, is not expecting the fast Silverstone layout to suit the F10, even though the new Arena section features some new slow corners.

“The track seems reasonably similar to the way it was, with a lot of very fast corners, which will not suit us that much,” said Fernando Alonso.

(GMM)

McLaren on Wednesday confirmed reports a Red Bull-style exhaust layout will debut on the MP4-25 at Silverstone.

Several teams are embarking upon a similar approach, with designers working to install low-mounted exhausts that allow air to flow more efficiently into the double diffuser.

The benefit, with also the fast-moving exhaust fumes channelled through the diffuser, is believed to be up to half a second per lap.

“We’ll be doing trials at an aerodynamic test before Silverstone and hope to have it working on the practice sessions and race it on the Sunday,” engineering director Paddy Lowe told reporters during a teleconference.

He admitted that the biggest challenge is equipping the suspension and bodywork to withstand being “blasted” by hot engine fumes, and rued that Ferrari has managed to have its version ready for this weekend’s Valencia race.

“That is a concern,” answered Lowe when told Ferrari’s step forward could be half a second per lap.

“We’ll have to see how they get on with it.  It’s a shame that some others have been slightly quicker than we were getting it, but we are where we are,” he added.

(GMM)