Formula 1 – Team Power Rankings Ahead of Chinese Grand Prix
It has been a long three week vacation, but Formula 1 is back this week as we visit Shanghai for the Chinese Grand Prix. Nico Rosberg put Mercedes AMG on the top step last season, but the team doubts they can follow up the performance (I agree). Here are how the teams look after the Malaysian Grand Prix. 1) Red Bull – Say what you want about the events that happened a few weeks ago in Malaysia, but the fact is Red Bull’s form is on par with their... [Read More...]
Formula 1 – Ferrari Gamble and Lose
In a brief span of a couple laps, Fernando Alonso committed more mistakes than he had all of the 2012 Formula 1 season. It started by shoving Sebastian Vettel which led to a severely damaged front wing. The wing was completely diagonal compared to its usual horizontal position. The wounded wing shot sparks out as it made contact with the quickly drying tarmac. Common sense would say pit and change the wing. This situation was not common sense at all.... [Read More...]
Formula 1 – Post Australia Team Power Rankings
Not a lot changed amongst the top three teams after the Australian Grand Prix. While Lotus struck first blood, Ferrari had a strong team showing with Alonso and a resurgent Felipe Massa. Red Bull also performed well during the course of the weekend with tire struggles hampering their ability to take advantage of their 1-2 start. Williams had a primarily disappointing weekend. While Valtteri Bottas finished his first ever Formula 1 race, Pastor Maldonado... [Read More...]
Formula 1 – FP2 Notes; Vettel Sweeps Practice
Sebastian Vettel stormed to P1 in both practice sessions from Albert Park as the 2013 Formula 1 season kicks off. Vettel’s Red Bull was the class of the field as he and the team picked up where they left off at the end of last season. There was a lot of interesting data collected as the super soft tire compound took center stage. The new Pirelli rubber was due to be faster by approximately a second, but suffered an extremely short life with times... [Read More...]
Formula 1 – Honda Rumor Shows V6 Promise
The big gossip over the last day or so is a BBC story linking Honda with McLaren for 2014 or 2015 at the latest. Honda whom used to run a team in the series (now the Mercedes AMG team) is strongly rumored to be making a comeback in the engine department as F1 moves to the turbo V6 for 2014. The Japanese manufacturer has made no official statement regarding their F1 plans, but the McLaren rumor isn’t going away. I think even the rumor shows there... [Read More...]
Formula 1 – Razia Out and Bianchi In at Marussia
One day after being ruled out of a seat at Force India, Jules Bianchi has landed a seat with Marussia with two testing days left until the 2013 season kicks off. Bianchi who had been reserve driver with Force India will take the race seat of Luiz Razia. A terrible and gut wrenching afternoon for Razia after his sponsor failed to deliver payment to the team. Bianchi will be set to test the Marussia over the final two days of the last preseason test.... [Read More...]
Formula 1 – Ferrari Downplay Pace
Ferrari has looked pretty good so far during pre-season testing. At a minimum they look a lot better than a year ago. I found it really funny that a lot of fans on the forums have been rather critical of Stefano Domenicali and Ferrari for playing down their pace heading into Australia. The Italian squad firmly believes they will not be the fastest car for 2013 season opener. While it is hard to judge pace during testing, Fernando Alonso and Ferrari... [Read More...]
Formula 1 – Preseason Team Power Rankings
Welcome to the 2013 Formula 1 season! Well…sorta I suppose. Cars are not on the grid in Australia, but we are through launches and only a few weeks from the opening round of the 2013 campaign. We have had two testing sessions occur with one left in Barcelona. Testing is never a really good way to tell anything, so we will launch the first power rankings of the season anyway. I will break them up into team and driver’s rankings separately as a... [Read More...]
F1 – Sauber Launch 2 February
Sauber has announced that its Ferrari powered C32 will be released to the public on the 2nd of February. The team’s new driver pairing will also be together in public for the first time. Nico Hulkenberg and Mexican rookie Esteban Gutierrez will be looking to put Sauber on the top step of the podium after a 2012 season that seen four podium finishes. I really look forward to this launch. I thought the Sauber was one of the sharpest looking cars... [Read More...]
Episode 163 – OpenPaddock.net Podcast
Podcast: Play in new window | Download Shaun makes his last appearence on OpenPaddock Live before being shipped out to Qatar to pound sand and watch MotoGP racing. Joining Shaun are Mike (as always), Doug, and the new Shaun, Kevin Neely. On the docket this week: Rally WRC – the future of M-Sport. Will Nasser Al-Attiyah’s Qatar money be the team’s saving grace? WRC – Sistemas Integrales de Telecomunicacion (SIT) slated to... [Read More...]
