There is no downtime here at the Paddock. Car launches and winter testing are on the horizon and we know that all you dedicated motor heads want your F1 information delivered to you in a concise and easily digestible package. That said, we are starting a new feature to keep you updated on all of the F1 car launch information. We will regularly update this with the latest info on launch dates and links to pictures from all the launches. Enjoy! Team – Launch Date – First Test McLaren –…
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Episode 21 – Open Paddock Podcast
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Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadJoin Mike and I this week as we travel to South America for Dakar….ok not really…but we cover it and have a Robbie Gordon revelation. We cover Ken Block to WRC, RHR to Andretti and hit a couple F1 high points. All in all it is a great show and it is signed, sealed, and delivered as it is nearly every week.
Read MoreF1 – Flavio Wins! Appeal to Follow…
One of the biggest news stories of 2009 revolved around the “crash gate” episode. We are all familiar with the story of Nelson Piquet Jr. intentionally crashing so that teammate Fernando Alonso could take victory. Flavio Briatore and Pat Symonds were both blamed for the incident and received a lifetime ban and 5 year ban from FiA competition. The verdict on the appeal filed by Flavio and Pat was released today and the fiery Italian boss may be back a lot sooner than Max Mosley had hoped at the time…
Read MoreF1 – USF1 and the Driver Carousel
The most recent reports out of Corsa in Argentina continue to link Jose Maria Lopez with a race seat at USF1. Lopez has raced in several different formula feeder series since 2001 including Formula Renault Eurocup, Italian Formula Renault, Formula Renault V6 Eurocup, Formula 3000 and GP2. But his last formula race experience was in 2005 and 2006 in GP2 where he finished 9th and 10th in the points respectively. Since then he has raced in ALMS GT2, Argentina’s touring car championship TC2000 (where he won the driver’s title in…
Read MoreEpisode 20 – Open Paddock Podcast
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Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadJoin Mike and I this week as we usher in a new year and discuss the return of Schumacher. We also bring up some other interesting F1 points and how they have a lot in common with the drug bums. We also preview the first race of the 2010 season as our offseason is over it is time to talk Dakar 2010!
Read MoreF1 – Schumacher Interview
F1 – Mercedes Trumps Media
The last couple weeks have been interesting for Mercedes GP. The potential return of seven time champion Michael Schumacher, and a possible sponsorship issue. Many in the media thought that the Henkel-gate situation would really hurt the Brawn/Mercedes and their aspirations to defend their title. Ross Brawn has proved to be one step ahead with the announcement that Petronas will join the team for a long time sponsorship. This is really out of left field in my opinion. The Malaysian oil giant was originally thought to be connected with the…
Read MoreEpisode 19 – Open Paddock Podcast
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Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadJoin us this week as we give out the first annual openpaddock.net awards. Car of the year, driver of the year, and the first annual OP lifetime of suck achievement award. We also go over all of this weeks hot news and keep you in the loop.
Read MoreF1 – Kobayashi Joins 2010 Grid!!
What a difference two races can make for a kid out of Japan. In what has to be classified as a feel good story for the sport, Kamui Kobayashi has EARNED a spot on the 2010 grid with the Sauber F1 Team. The Japanese pilot was Toyota’s reserve driver for 2009 and was put into active duty for the team during the last two races for the injured Timo Glock. His performance was magical and a real joy to watch on the circuit, and his personality was equally good. All…
Read MoreF1 – Brawn Suckered by Fraudulent Sponsorship Deal, Sound Familiar?
In a story all too familiar to IndyCar fans, Henkel says the person who signed the sponsorship deal with Brawn GP did not have the authority to do so, and thus Henkel has no financial obligation to the team. Doesn’t this sound exactly like what happened to Sarah Fisher Racing last May? This story, however, gets even better. This is F1 afterall, even fraud scandals have to have some level of political intrigue. As it turns out, Brawn GP new of this deficiency in the paperwork back in late September,…
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