ItaliaRacing is reporting that the Virgin team is looking to buy into a technical alliance with McLaren next season, similar to that of Force India. This would involve switching to Mercedes engines. With Williams hoping to switch to Renault power next year it would leave Cosworth supplying only Hispania (that's if the Lotus/Renault team doesn't end up not being able to afford Renault engines), assuming HRT makes it to the end of the 2011 season. Would that make the involvement in F1 of both Cosworth and HRT fairly meaningless? Would there be any effect on wider issues, such as concorde agreement negotiations or the 2013 engine regulations? Does anyone care enough to reply to this thread?
I hope Cosworth can stay, but if they're just supplying HRT then thats not a particularly good advert for them. The engine is the worst of the field so they really need to get it improved if they want a major team on board.
so: Merc Mercedes GP - Works Mclaren - 2016(?) Force India - 2014(?) Virgin/Marussia - TBA Renault Lotus Renault - Works Red Bull - 2012 Team Lotus - (?) Williams - TBA Ferrari Ferrari - Works Sauber - 2012(?) STR - 2012(?) Cosworth HRT - 2012 ...So HRT Ferrari?
After the Monaco GP I thought it was evident that most of Williams' problems were the engine, their aero package seemed ok. I don't think it's coincidence that the cossie powered cars are at the back, as much as I wish it wasn't so. HRT is a dead-end street, however as the engines are changing in a year or 2 who knows what they may come up with.
Sad times indeed if its the end of Cossie again. Hopefully come 2013 they'll have a world beater of a unit again like the old DFV days. Not that Im old enough to know anything about those, I just like the independant nature of the company
Just to follow up on the Virgin situation, Pat Symonds's review of systems at Virgin racing has apparently concluded that the Nick Wirth process is no longer required, Autospout reports.
As a slight aside, Virgin mention their aim is to be in a position "to be able challenge for a podium finish at the inaugural Russian Grand Prix in Sochi 2014", anyone else feel thats highly, highly ambitious?!? Judging by how competitive they currently are, I think they'll still be struggling to score points in 2014, never mind pushing for podiums. I do wonder how many seasons it'll take before the new teams become simply members of the midfield, rather than their own separate competition at the back. I think Team Lotus might be capable of bridging the gap to a greater extent next season, and maybe Virgin by 2013. HRT? I think finishing the last race of the 2011 season before the 2012 season kicks off should probably be their first objective.
please log in to view this image On the occasion of Williams having achieved its hopes of switching to Renault engines for 2012, ex-champion and world-renowned F1 guru Trevor Horn sat down to smoke a fatty with Autospout and totally diss F1 ("boring"), a movie, I think, Vettel ("he has had it easy... has not evolved from last year"), the interviewer's opinions, and of course the stewards. Carnival post.
actually I do see where he's coming from in regard to the DRS, blasting past some one who is totally defenceless isn't really racing, although he's wrong that the only overtaking is on the straights, but the fact is the aerodynamicists have done such a fantastic job that slipstream is no longer the advantage it once was so something HAD to be done. I feel giving someone an aerodynamic 'turbo-boost' was a good step, but not letting it be used at the real disgression of the driver they are obliged to use it whenever possible in the same place everytime and the 'victim' has to just let them through without putting up a fight that is, to be frank, bollocks. I also agree with him about the stewards sanitisation, every accident is an avoidable one so there's scope for every driver in an accident getting a stop-go, I think there have probably been only 2 or 3 worthy of a penalty, and one of them wasn't even looked at (Dirty Massa pushing Button off track in Aus, that's a penalty even in Karts). I don't want to see a race when people are too scared to go for it.
He only won the title thanks to newey, and he's criticising newey and rbr for a dull season. The man is a moron.
But we need to accept that will happen occasionally this season while the FIA work out how best to use it on a race by race basis. They can't set the zones accurately by metres because of the effect of tyre freshness on the exit of the preceding corner. It made passing a bit too easy Turkey and Canada but for the most part I think it's worked as intended or not well enough.
