The Official 2013 F1 Thread. Spoilers possible!

[wxwax]

I just don't get the feeling that Mercedes is a well-run operation. Somewhere in that org chart you need to fit Lauda, who has also been invited to poke his nose into things.

Lewis may emerge from his contract a wealthy but sorrowful man.

[wxwax]

I thought Bernie was a sharp businessman?

F1's entire global TV rights income is about the same as that of the Turkish football Premier League - in the region of $490m.

That's crazy.

[g®eg]

new Lotus being revealed at 19:15 GMT live on YouTube today

http://www.youtube.com/lotusf1team

[g®eg]

and the prancing horse will be along soon as well...

[g®eg]

E-21 breaks cover...

[wxwax]

No cosmetic panel, to save weight. I wonder if that means no-one will have one?

They didn't let the camera wander around the rear.

[g®eg]

New North American team?

"Scorpion Racing" tries for HRT revival bid

January 29, 2013




A group of Canadian and American investors are pushing to try and secure HRT's entry slot in Formula 1, but they may have to wait until 2014 before being allowed to join the grid.
Sources have revealed that negotiations to purchase the HRT company and secure an entry are at an advanced stage, and the plan for a team known as Scorpion Racing appears to have the blessing of F1 commercial boss Bernie Ecclestone.
However, the FIA believes the 12th entry slot for 2013 was closed off when it was informed at the end of last season that HRT had been liquidated. Although the governing body is aware of the plans for Scorpion Racing, it does not appear to have any intention of making a special case to allow another team in for 2013 because the entry deadline closed last November.
The investors behind Scorpion Racing are hoping to complete due diligence of the buy-out plans in the next few days. That means the viability of their plans should become clearer by the end of the week.



Scorpion is hoping to run its effort from a facility at Silverstone, using updated HRT F112 cars that will be powered by Cosworth engines and use a Williams gearbox. AUTOSPORT reports that discussions have taken place with Ecclestone about the idea, and he indicated to the investors in a letter last weekend that if its takeover of the HRT assets was complete, then it should get an entry to F1.
"Have you bought the HRT company? Because if you have, they [the FIA] would be accepting you," Ecclestone purportedly wrote.
It is not clear if there is any mechanism for Scorpion to secure a place on the grid if it can convince the FIA that it has the funding and technical capability to compete in 2013.



This article originally appeared in Autosport.com

[g®eg]

in typically Aussie fashion Webber shrugs off Marko's comments

good on ya mate!

Webber shrugs off Marko criticism

January 29 2013

Mark Webber has shrugged off Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko's criticism of his driving and mental strength, saying he is well aware of the Austrian's opinion of him.
Marko recently told Red Bull's in-house Red Bulletin magazine that Webber "falls into a downward spiral" when confronted with teammate Sebastian Vettel's pace or mechanical problems and cannot cope with the pressure of being a Formula 1 title contender.
In an interview posted on his personal website, Webber said Marko's disparaging view came as little surprise.
"Look, everyone at this level has their own agendas and it's been evident for a long time now that I've never been a part of Marko's," he said.
Webber's longtime race engineer Ciaron Pilbeam left Red Bull over the winter to take up a new role with Lotus. Simon Rennie moves in the other direction to replace him having previously worked with Kimi Raikkonen. Asked about his 2013 expectations, Webber said getting up to speed with Rennie would be a critical part of preseason testing.
"I'm certainly looking forward to getting my hands on the RB9 and I also have a new race engineer in Simon Rennie," he said. "It's going to be important to have a solid preseason with him after spending some six years with Ciaron Pilbeam who I had a long and enjoyable relationship with, but he's no longer with the team."

[g®eg]

Originally Posted by wxwax

No cosmetic panel, to save weight. I wonder if that means no-one will have one?

They didn't let the camera wander around the rear.

loads of pics now






quite a change to coanda plumbing too

[doyle]

Originally Posted by wxwax

I just don't get the feeling that Mercedes is a well-run operation. Somewhere in that org chart you need to fit Lauda, who has also been invited to poke his nose into things.

Lewis may emerge from his contract a wealthy but sorrowful man.

Agree completely. I don't see Lewis as a strong enough driver to be able to lift the lackluster performance of Mercedes. The whole outfit comes across as little more than a business decision and while Ross Brawn was able to strike the initial marketing coup by luring Schumacher out of retirement, there has been no progress on getting back to the front as they were before Mercedes took them over.

Perhaps it's Mercedes management that is the drag on the team? Lewis will struggle and I can't see how Lauda's overly critical scrutiny is going to help the team at all. If anything, I expect his "insight" to upset the team balance rather than do anything to help stabilize it.

[doyle]

Originally Posted by g®eg

in typically Aussie fashion Webber shrugs off Marko's comments

good on ya mate!

Webber shrugs off Marko criticism

January 29 2013

Mark Webber has shrugged off Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko's criticism of his driving and mental strength, saying he is well aware of the Austrian's opinion of him.
Marko recently told Red Bull's in-house Red Bulletin magazine that Webber "falls into a downward spiral" when confronted with teammate Sebastian Vettel's pace or mechanical problems and cannot cope with the pressure of being a Formula 1 title contender.
In an interview posted on his personal website, Webber said Marko's disparaging view came as little surprise.
"Look, everyone at this level has their own agendas and it's been evident for a long time now that I've never been a part of Marko's," he said.
Webber's longtime race engineer Ciaron Pilbeam left Red Bull over the winter to take up a new role with Lotus. Simon Rennie moves in the other direction to replace him having previously worked with Kimi Raikkonen. Asked about his 2013 expectations, Webber said getting up to speed with Rennie would be a critical part of preseason testing.
"I'm certainly looking forward to getting my hands on the RB9 and I also have a new race engineer in Simon Rennie," he said. "It's going to be important to have a solid preseason with him after spending some six years with Ciaron Pilbeam who I had a long and enjoyable relationship with, but he's no longer with the team."

Marko is a class act. While on one hand, I do appreciate candor, there are right ways and wrong ways for bosses to paint an accurate picture, this is not the right way.

[wxwax]

Originally Posted by g®eg

quite a change to coanda plumbing too

What's the foam-looking thing forward of the monkey seat?

[g®eg]

Originally Posted by wxwax

What's the foam-looking thing forward of the monkey seat?

good question... looks like a foam plug almost...

and from those who know: just a foam plug to hide the sidepod innards. common on show\launch cars

[MF1A]

anyone knows about the "flexi nose" on the RB?.... will they use it this season?... it is banned?

[g®eg]

Originally Posted by MF1A

anyone knows about the "flexi nose" on the RB?.... will they use it this season?... it is banned?

well they will try and regulate it better:

Front wing tests
For 2013 front wing deflection tests will be more stringent to lessen the possibility of flexible bodywork being used to enhance aerodynamic performance.