F1 drivers will be keeping an eye on the repaired track surface at Ste-Devote when they tackle the first corner at Monaco early on Thursday.
A major truck fire earlier this week burned the asphalt in the braking and turn-in zone for the famous corner, and circuit organisers have laid a new patch of track in record time.

“I walked the circuit and it looked ok. It looked like they did a good job,” said Nick Heidfeld.

Nico Rosberg thinks the only issue will be the seeping of oil because the asphalt is not fully cured.

“We have to see if it rains,” added Rubens Barrichello, “but I don’t think there’s any prediction of that.”

Paul di Resta, who witnessed the fire as he recorded a circuit guide with British broadcasters BBC, also admitted he is slightly concerned.

“With the heat we have now, with temperatures not going much below 20 degrees and with track temperature at 45 during the day, you have to wonder at how that’s going to cure,” said the Force India driver.

Subsidence of the track surface is the main reason for the improvement works taking place at China’s grand prix venue in Shanghai, it has emerged.

The April event has only a provisional date on the 2011 calendar, with re-approval of the 7-year-old circuit to only be possible after an FIA inspection in March.

It was previously believed that the necessary improvements at the $240 million facility were in the area of the track surface and rain drainage.

The local race organisers have now confirmed that the main problem is subsidence – damage to the track surface due to downwards movement of the ground – at three corners.

“There should be no problem,” Yang Yibin, manager of race promoter Juss Event, is quoted by the Shanghai Daily.

“We’ve communicated well with the FIA, our plan has been approved and the grand prix will be on time.”

The report said the serious subsidence is present at turns 1, 8 and 14.

The Shanghai International Circuit was built in 2003 on former swampland.

“Subsidence is normal because of the soft soil in Shanghai, which the circuit was built above,” Yang said.

And circuit engineering manager Sun Liang told the Oriental Morning Post that artificial elevation changes were built into the layout by using “complex materials”.

“Because some parts of the circuit are on the ground while some parts are not, as time goes by it’s normal for some subsidence,” he said.

China’s date on the 2011 world championship calendar will remain provisional until mere weeks before the scheduled race in mid April.
The Reuters news agency said the FIA will not inspect mandatory changes to the Shanghai circuit until March.

It emerged late last year that the 7-year-old $240 million venue has been told to improve its track surface and rain drainage before it is re-homologated.

“The Shanghai International Circuit has confirmed that all work as requested by the FIA will be carried out and should be completed by the end of February,” a spokeswoman for F1′s governing FIA confirmed on Tuesday.

“Before a new licence can be issued, the FIA will carry out a final inspection in March,” she added.

Four hours before the inaugural Korean grand prix, the brand new Yeongam venue is awash with rain.

It started raining just before 10pm on Saturday night, and was heavy at times throughout the night and did not completely stop at any point.

Some forecasts had predicted the weather would ease on Sunday morning, but at 11am the precipitation is still light and the skies still completely grey.

The sheer amount of water that has fallen on the new track surface will ensure that the rubber laid by the F1 cars on Friday and Saturday has now been washed off.

And the ‘weeping’ of asphalt oils from beneath the newly-laid top layer, mixed with the rain that is still falling at Yeongam, will ensure a very slippery surface for the race at 3pm.

Expert forecasts at the circuit think the rain could stop completely and sunshine emerge at about midday, which would mean a damp surface for the race start is still a possibility.

“I hope it stays wet and slippery!” enthused Lotus driver Heikki Kovalainen.

There were no signs of the newly-laid track surface breaking up as the formula one cars christened the Yeongam venue on Friday morning.

But the circuit was as slippery as most paddock observers have ever seen, with drivers’ tyres white with dust in the pitlane, and reporters coughing amid the haze.

Eyebrows were also raised when at least two snakes were photographed slithering across the layout on Thursday, and Sebastian Vettel expressed concern after finding a huge rusty nail as the walked the circuit.

“If you drive over that, you have a puncture,” the Red Bull driver told Bild newspaper.

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.”

Hermann Tilke on Wednesday sounded confident the newly laid track surface at Yeongam will survive this weekend’s inaugural Korean grand prix.

With the top layer so recently laid and oils still seeping to the surface, it is feared this event could be a repeat of Spa in 1985, when the F1 cars had to go home because the track broke up.

But Tilke, the architect who designed the 5.6km layout, said he is not worried about the strength of the surface.

Instead, he predicted it will be a challenge for the drivers.

“It will probably have little grip in the beginning.  But they are the best drivers in the world and must cope with it,” the German, whose company provided machinery and expertise for the laying of the asphalt, told DPA news agency.

“It will be very slippery in the beginning.  But the track will become faster by the seconds until Sunday,” he added.

Also sounding bullish on Wednesday was McLaren’s chief engineer Phil Prew, who had worried about the state of the brand new asphalt before arriving in Korea.

“I walked the circuit this morning and the track surface didn’t look too bad,” he told reporters during a teleconference.

“It wasn’t particularly greasy underfoot and it looked – from what you can tell – smooth, well-laid and consistent all the way around,” added Prew.

According to the International Sporting Code, F1′s governing body should already have approved or rejected the new South Korea circuit ahead of its inaugural grand prix.

Instead, the venue has been given until September 21 to prepare for Charlie Whiting’s final inspection, with a FIA spokesman admitting “a lot of work remains to be completed” at the Yeongam site, according to the Telegraph.

Appendix O of the Code says the final inspection for a permanent venue should take place “not later than 90 days before the first international event to be held” there.

If adhered to, Korea’s final inspection should have taken place at the end of July, given its late October race date.

And if a circuit fails its final inspection, the sporting regulations state that the event “will not be considered for inclusion in the following year’s championship unless the FIA judges the cancellation to have been due to force majeure”.

Countering ongoing speculation about the state of the site, race organisers have released some photos showing completed buildings and an apparently freshly-laid track surface.

But other, unofficial photos recently did the rounds showing that aspects of the venue are far from complete.

However, the Telegraph’s Tom Cary said the FIA is “satisfied” with progress.

Indian driver Karun Chandhok is currently on his way to the east Asian state, where on Saturday he is scheduled to drive Red Bull’s demo car around the circuit.

Event organisers KAVO insist the venue is “90 per cent” complete.

Formula one drivers remain unimpressed with the design of Bridgestone’s 2010 tyre.

Up and down pitlane, ‘getting these tyres to work’ is the enigmatic and universal question, which for some teams and drivers is more of a problem than elsewhere.

Ferrari’s Felipe Massa, for example, needs warm weather, a soft tyre compound and an abrasive track surface to be as quick as his teammate Fernando Alonso.

“It has little to do with racing when you are so dependent on the tyres,” the Brazilian is quoted by Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport.

He is frustrated that some of his rivals, like McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton, have the Bridgestone’s working “on the first flying lap”.

Nico Rosberg said in Canada that his problem was getting the car to work with the tyres, and even teammate Michael Schumacher’s vast experience of 256 grands prix is not providing the answer.

“These tires are a puzzle that is very difficult to work out,” said the Mercedes driver.

Schumacher added: “Often it changes from day to day, due to one or two factors.”

It is believed the issue is the design of the tyre carcass, much stiffer than in the past in order to prevent the type of problem experienced by Michelin at Indianapolis in 2005.

But it means some drivers have trouble getting the tyre up to temperature.

“You can see quite clearly that Hamilton’s aggressive driving style means he can get the tyres working more easily than Button can,” said Mercedes team boss Ross Brawn.
(GMM)

Jun.12 (GMM)  The formula one world has awoken to a wet morning in Montreal.

With two and a half hours until the third and final practice session, the rain so far at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve has been light and drizzly.

The weather, which has surprised many experts who expected a mostly fine day, should now remain the same and cool throughout Saturday.

It is bad news for those who on Friday struggled the most with tyre graining and degradation on the overly ‘green’ track surface.

“If it rains, the track will remain green and it will probably be difficult to hold the tyres together again, even the harder compound,” said Michael Schumacher.

Some paddock pundits are predicting a dry qualifying session.

But amid the current drizzle, it is believed that Sunday’s weather could be almost identical in the Canadian city.

Jun.10 (GMM)  Nico Rosberg has admitted he is cautious about the news that Montreal’s Circuit Gilles Villeneuve has fixed its track surface problems.

On F1′s most recent visits to Canada, in 2007 and 2008, the asphalt broke up on the racing line in several sections.

The FIA announced on Wednesday that “the track has been resurfaced in the areas affected by degradation” in 2008.

“We must be cautious,” the Mercedes driver said, “because there have been improvements every year, and every year was a disaster.

“But I’m still confident, as I have spoken with FIA officials.

“The FIA has said it has paid close attention, so it should be fine,” German Rosberg said in fluent French at a pre-race event in downtown Montreal, according to La Presse newspaper.

Formula One Racing is, quite simply, the paramount of karting. It is the professional form of the sport in its entirety. Formula One is an international phenomenon, a media conglomerate that rakes in millions and millions of dollars a year from advertising, sponsorship, and broadcast revenues. Professional drivers with millionaire bank accounts race these majestic kart marvels that are unprecedented, flush with technological luxuries – everything from hard to produce lightweight frames that glide the machine to tires with unsurpassed grooving style that exemplify powerful movement on the circuit.

There is no sport that bests epitomizes the term “global sport” like Formula One racing. Many countries serve as active participants in shaping the professional karting scene – for example, Malaysia is a hot spot for racing (Fernando Alonso, a Spanish-born driver under Team Renault recently won a race there) and Italy plays a vital role in designing and manufacturing first class, top-of-the-line karts. Drivers and racing personalities hail from all parts of the word – you have the charismatic and popular Italian Renault boss Flavio Briatore, the handsome young 23 year old racing prodigy in Fernando Alonso who stars in a Renault Megane commercial with his pet pig, and one of the highest earning sports figures in world history in Michael Schumacher. Rivalries are common in Formula One – adding the edge of excitement with every zip of the curve and nitrous boost of the machine.

In order to better become acquainted with Formula One racing, we must understand its organization. Karting goes way beyond pitting 3 2-cycle engine machines against each other on an oval circuit. Formula One is divided into drivers & their respective teams. Under such trademark car companies like Renault, Ferrari, and Toyota – each driver has an assembling cast of staffers consisting of mechanics, engineers, and designers all working towards one goal: to make that speedster faster using all the resources at their disposal. Headed by team bosses that are adept at creating sponsorship opportunities and assembling the best cast for each team, Formula One employs the finest specialists in the business with backgrounds in computer and automobile – even specialists with aerospace experience! High end, (rare technology reserved for space projects) in some instances, create the fastest and most efficient car possible. According to FI rules, racing teams must design, construct, and built their own karts from scratch. The staff is the pride of each individual team – capable and able to win every 57 lap enduro race from Malaysia to Great Britain.

Formula One cars can be summed up in two words: technological marvels. These sleek, low riding gems ripping through laps at speeds topping 200 mph. consist of more than just a chassis, an engine, and four wheels. For starters, the engine is located behind the cockpit as opposed to standard automobiles. They consist of 10 cylinder engines that produce heat which propel the kart forward. Team engineers are always looking into ways to make their engines more powerful. Currently, 1000 bhp (a scale for horsepower) has not been topped – it is up to the teams to produce an engine which would fare well supporting speed as well as support the chassis. And as we know, there is a snug open cockpit for Jarno Trulli to maneuver his machine in.

Construction of Formula One race cars is unprecedented. The first rule of thumb in designing a bonafide piece of framework is to make it weigh as least as possible. Less kart weight correlates to faster speeds. For this reason, team brains use lightweight material that is hard to construct. The minimum weight of a kart must be 600 kg including the driver. This ensures a level playing field, although teams are allowed to keep their money making construction methods a secret from other teams. Team staff is very highly regarded in the Formula One business. Their technological and dynamical know-how of the machines they build is a valuable asset to any team. And like free agents, they are lured and signed by the likes of companies creating a recruiting war for their services. Of course, there are restrictions for creating karts. You cannot add nitro boosts to your machine or use technology that resembles life in the year 3000. Teams are always looking to bend the rules slightly and coming up ways to beat the competition legally.

Professional kart tires have to have optimum characteristics to ensure smooth driving. For one, tires have to have grooving technology built into them. For the novices, grooves are indented lines in tires that allow for it to slow down considerably on turns and to adapt to the track surface. No matter what the technology, kart tires are simply not adept at withstanding the rigors of asphalt, concrete, and dirt. For this reason, Formula One racers are allotted two pit stops during the course of a 57 lap race to change tires. If you’ve ever watched a Formula One race, team staffers with lightning quick hands have an extremely limited time for which to remove and replace tires in the pit stop – often times not exceeding over 7 seconds! Regulations are placed on tire grooves (a minimum of four) to allow for an even playing field for all racers. Remember enthusiasts, grooves serve more to slow down the kart than to speed it up.

Chassis construction with its illustrious carbon fiber material, tires with indented grooves, team specialists with a knack for speed, and engines which burn heat like calories is the epitome of a Formula One race car. All of these attributes contribute to the performance of the vehicle in racing lap after lap. As a result of all this technology, Formula One cars leave people breathless reaching consistent speeds of 200 mph. on the race track. More impressive is the time needed to go from 0 mph to 100 mph – 5 seconds! Formula One is only moving forward with the advent of new features – like improved horsepower engines, more lightweight materials, new ballasts to add weight to the car, and more. Behind that stylish, mind blowing chassis that pique our interest is that top-class technology that makes Formula One racing so great.