Agreed, top three teams will keep the same line-up as will McLaren probably. Lotus may be forced to because they need Crashtor's money. Williams have got themselves settled, unless the desire to put Susie Wolff in the car overcomes Toto and he forces the issue. Sauber's may change, neither have been spectacular this season so far. Force India may be the same, I expect the Hulk to go somewhere better at some point though. Toro Rosso should keep Kvyat, and probably JEV just for continuity as you say. Caterham and Marussia, well it doesn't really matter who they take as they'll still be at the back.
Really disappointing news, I'd been hoping Alonso or Vettel would go there. Hopefully Renault will get their act together next season and we won't have another cakewalk. I'd say Ferrari and McLaren too but I have no faith in Ferrari to take it to Mercedes and Red Bull, and I think the Honda's going to be a nightmare for McLaren next season.
I'd have loved to have seen Vettel and Hamilton paired at Mercedes next year. That would have been fantastic.
I genuinely believed before the season started that if Mercedes dominated, Vettel would be there in 2015. They've been after him for years, first Haug and then Lauda. Gutted we're getting the season of domination without those two as team mates. I'd started to think Alonso was a possibility too. The fans and media are to blame for this, they've been hyping Rosberg up to be a top tier driver all year to make the season appear more interesting than it is. There was always an incentive for Mercedes to take one of those two while Rosberg was considered a lesser driver, but now they're getting plaudits for having two top drivers and letting them race, there's no need for them to take a more explosive driver line up to make headlines.
I'm going to go with hmmmmmmmm [h=1]FIA grants entry to Romanian FRR F1 project[/h]The FIA is understood to have finally granted an entry to the Romanian-backed FRR F1 Team project, although no official announcement has been forthcoming. The FIA’s last public reference to the bid came on April 11, when the World Motor Sport Council granted an entry to Gene Haas but said it was “in the process of conducting further investigations for Forza Rossa,” using the name that forms part of the official FRR identity. For reasons unknown this extra vetting process dragged on for more than six weeks. However, the governing body appears to have finally acknowledged last week that the project is financially viable. While Haas has admitted that a 2015 start is highly unlikely FRR is believed to still be aiming for next year, despite the entry delay making life a lot tougher than it would be had it been granted alongside that of Haas on April 11. However, FRR has a lot more elements in place compared to Haas. It is planning to use a Renault power unit, while the car will be built and run by a team put together by former Force India and HRT boss Colin Kolles at his base near Munich. Front man for the project is Ion Bazac, a qualified doctor and former Romanian health minister. The 45-year-old has a number of business interests and is the country’s Ferrari importer, under the name Forza Rossa. Bazac is also the president a consortium of private and state funded investors whose motive is to promote the interests of Romania, and who have the support of the government. Indeed, the Romanian sports minister met with the FIA early in the bid process.
Perhaps Ferrari don't want to become the engine of choice to the back markers, might effect their image
Yeah, little bit odd! Perhaps it's because Renault engines are cheaper? or because Ferrari can "fire" mechanics who join FRR, work on the Renault engines for a bit, then suddenly find a job back in Ferrari's engine department?
[h=1]Formula 1 set for weekend overhaul in 2015[/h] Formula 1 is poised for a revised weekend format in 2015, with Friday's practice schedule set for an overhaul, AUTOSPORT can reveal. Teams have been debating various ideas to try to reduce costs in the future, and one proposal that has gained support is to revise the Friday timetable next year. Sources have revealed that teams have now provisionally agreed to scrap the current format of two 90-minute sessions that has been in place for years. Instead they want just a single 90-minute practice session on Fridays in 2015 - which is likely to take place late in the afternoon. It could even begin as late as 5pm. The idea behind this move is that it will allow teams and personnel to arrive at grands prix one day later than they currently do, which will save significant costs on hotel and other related travel expenses. Although there will be less official track action, teams believe the change will also be acceptable to race promoters because the later start gives local fans more opportunity to attend without having to miss a whole day's work or school. Although the proposal has been supported by teams, it still needs to go through the Formula 1 Commission and the FIA World Motor Sport Council for approval before it can be put into the 2015 regulations. Meetings of both these bodies are scheduled for later this month, and it is unlikely - although not impossible - that the idea gets rejected. F1's race promoters, who sit on the F1 Commission, may not support the teams' view that the new format will be good for Friday ticket sales. Other proposals that are understood to have been approved are a ban on in-season testing and a reduction in pre-season running, plus tighter parc ferme restrictions on grand prix weekends to stop teams flying in last-minute updates. While there has been a push to change sporting regulations to reduce costs, F1's smaller teams are still eager for a cost cap as well. However, the FIA has abandoned its push for this idea because of resistance from bigger outfits.
I suspect Sky won't be happy about this as it means you'll get less action for your money. I wonder if the subscription will go down... More to the point, will the costs for a weekend ticket go down if you'll be seeing less on track action?
Interesting. Seems strange that they are considering banning in season testing again and less pre season testing. I can't see the race promoters accepting less Friday on track time to attract fans. Almost sounds like top teams making it look like they are trying to reduce costs by suggesting things they know will not be accepted. So they can say we did suggest cost saving measures but you rejected them!
I would have assumed that in season testing after races would be pretty cost effective. Keeping part of the race team at the track for a few extra days means little to no more transport costs and only a few nights (cheaper) hotel costs and expenses etc. The other option is to purely use expensive CFD etc which has serious staff and IT costs.
