Honda have officially announced their return to Formula 1 today, and I am sure it will be greeted by everyone back at Woking. Currently experiencing complete turmoil this season, the guys at McLaren urgently needed some positive news. Whilst today’s headline will do nothing for their on track results, it does give some hope that greener fields are just over the horizon – albeit 1 year away. Honda’s return to Formula 1 will not only benefit McLaren however, but also inject some much needed life back into engine rivalry within the sport. For too long have Ferrari, Renault and Mercedes
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Ferrari’s win in Spain has ignited one of the biggest debates in Formula 1, well, since Multi 21 actually. But whilst much of the focus from fans has turned towards the Pirelli compounds being inadequate (lunacy), Ferrari, and to a certain extent Lotus have become the forgotten heroes from Cataluyna, triumphant where others failed. From race simulations on Friday, Ferrari knew exactly what the fastest way to the Chequered flag was, a 4 stop strategy. They never faltered away from that the entire weekend, and invested all their energy into focussing on exactly the job in hand. During the Grand
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Issues Post Spain Over the course of the next two weeks, I am predicting this is all we will be hearing about within Formula 1. After yet another difficult weekend for Pirelli, which saw Paul Hembrey finally concede defeat and admit changes do need to be made to the current tyre compounds, it ignites yet another chapter in the whole tyre debacle of 2013. Pre race in Spain, Paul Hembrey was quoted as saying a 3 stop strategy would be quickest around Cataluyna, being 7 seconds quicker than a 4 stopper and therefore was set to be the acknowledged strategy
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Gearbox penalties, they are an awkward thorn in the side of drivers, and are a matter which has been widely discussed for the past couple of seasons, from analysts, fans and journalists alike. The point of view from many people is that, the current regulations place an unfair disadvantage on a driver through the failure of a component which has directly failed out of their control. The current regulations stipulate that a driver has to use the same gearbox unit for five race weekends in a row, before being entitled to change it. If a change outside of that regulation
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The month of May, in the case of remembrance within the Motorsport community is dominated normally by one man. The life of Ayrton Senna will always be celebrated by fans that far exceed our generation, a legacy that is intertwined within the history of the sport. Therefore, unfortunately, it is easy to forget that Formula 1 lost another great driver that May weekend in Austrian Roland Ratzenberger. But the month of May should also be remembered for another man. A driver that in terms of achievement is firmly rooted at the very back of the record books yet is whispered
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  Big News This Morning There were big shifts going on in the F1 world this morning and all the rumours were coming straight from Enstone. Since the start of the 2013 Formula 1 season, there has been much speculation regarding the future of Technical Director James Allison. Having been an instrumental piece in Lotus’s resurgence since 2009, it appears interest from other teams has gathered momentum, to the point where  James has been offered a contract elsewhere he simply could not refuse. Williams, McLaren, Ferrari and Mercedes have all joined the shortlist; however the destination for Allison has yet
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This morning we were greeted some rather interesting, yet disruptive news. A 3 week break in the Formula 1 world is always a tiresome affair, and news does like to become a bit sparse. But just in time, our dear old friend Bernie has been on hand to “spice” things up. Starting with this season, it has been announced that, unlike previous seasons, prize money will now not be given to all teams on the grid at the end of the year. At the end of 2013, the 11th place team in the Constructors Championship will be given zero, zilch,
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Oh the rumour mill has been in full cycle these past couple of weeks. “False” news was leaked regarding Mark Webber signing a 5 year contract with Porsche, to join their works outfit ahead of an assault on the WEC season and the 2014 Le Mans 24 hours. It has been promptly denied by both Porsche and Mark himself, who has defiantly stated he still has the hunger to race in Formula 1, and be successful for a few years yet. It is quite a fascinating subject, if he does indeed plan to carry on past his contract expiry at
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Porsche recently announced this week that the main reason behind their decision to enter LMP1 for the 2014 Le Mans 24 hours and WEC season, rather than Formula 1, was down solely to the available amount of research and technology regarding road relevance – that even taking into account the new regulation changes for the 2014 Formula 1 season. Now everyone remembers how successful the German manufacturer was when they last entered the sport with McLaren. During the highly volatile turbo era, the Porsche (TAG Branded) powered cars captured 3 drivers titles, and 2 constructors titles (finishing runner up twice)
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When Casey Stoner retired from Grand Prix racing at the end of 2012, no-one thought the premier class would ever see a rider who possessed such a natural raw, untame talent on a motorbike, a style which saw Casey manhandle bikes into doing things no-one else could simply manage – achieving angles mid corner which were nigh on impossible, and making a rear tyre skid across the surface like a pinball. For all his talent, Stoner did have his faults however, and it is probably the only thing which has robbed us fans of seeing an even greater legacy being
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Wow, what an incredible past week it has been for the old boy Sir Stirling, who has inadvertently opened up the biggest can of worms for some time – well since the RedBull team orders scandal anyway. Asked for his opinion on women drivers in Formula 1, he gave his honest, 83 year old opinion, and given free speech ,who is to say he is not entitled to that opinion? Whilst many people now want him burned on a stake, I do feel his words have been taken out of context. I have seen many people try to thwart his
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  Heikki Returns It is good news for all Kovalainen fans out there, of which there are a few, as it has been announced by the Caterham team that he will compete in FP1 sessions at both the Bahrain and Spanish Grand Prix’s. This comes as no surprise to many, and is surely the best decision Caterham can make. The CT-03 has been generously outpaced by the Marussia team over the first 3 races of the season and it appears they lack leadership amongst their ranks. Whilst many (including myself) disagreed with Caterham’s decision to drop Heikki at the start
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