Latest F1 news in brief – Tuesday

• Horner helped Hamilton land Mercedes job

  Horner told Mercedes to sign Hamilton

• Aston Martin deal possible in future – Force India
• New Williams is 'biggest evolution' – Smedley
• Sauber plays down 2016 car test debut 'delay'
• McLaren worked throughout Xmas on 2016 car
• Engine rule changes limited to cost reduction – report
• Sainz: Sochi crash 'worst seconds of my life'
• The selection of volunteers for the 2016 Russian GP begins

Horner told Mercedes to sign Hamilton
(GMM) Christian Horner claims he encouraged Mercedes to sign Lewis Hamilton when the now triple world champion was on the market back in 2012.

Horner told the British magazine F1 Racing that Hamilton, who has dominated F1 with Mercedes for the past two seasons, was actually more keen to move to Red Bull.

"He was desperate to drive for the team," said the Red Bull team boss. "But there was no way we could accommodate him while Sebastian (Vettel) was with us."

So Horner says he encouraged Mercedes to sign Hamilton instead, to replace Michael Schumacher as the great seven time world champion returned to retirement.

"McLaren had been very competitive in 2011 and 2012 and I thought it would probably be better for us for him (Hamilton) to be at Mercedes rather than McLaren.

"So I encouraged Niki Lauda to sign him to weaken McLaren — not envisaging that Mercedes would become the absolute powerhouse they are today," added Horner.

Aston Martin deal still possible for Force India

Aston Martin deal possible in future – Force India
(GMM) Force India has confirmed reports that a touted deal with the British luxury carmaker Aston Martin has fallen through for now.

Talks with the Silverstone based team about a naming sponsorship deal obviously took place, but Aston Martin CEO Andy Palmer said just before Christmas: "We do not have the means to invest in F1."

Force India is now confirming that news, although chief operating officer Otmar Szafnauer is not ruling out a future deal with Aston Martin.

"It probably won't happen for 2016," he said, "but we're still talking.

"It's flattering for a company like Aston Martin to be talking to Force India – to want to partner with us and come into formula one – but the story isn't final there yet.

"So for 2016 I don't think that will happen, but for the future there are still possibilities," Szafnauer added.

Rob Smedley ( L) with Felipe Massa back in 2008

New Williams is 'biggest evolution' – Smedley
(GMM) Rob Smedley has promised Williams' drivers a vastly evolved car for the 2016 season.

The British team has finished the past two seasons in a solid third place, but last year was arguably a step backwards for Williams as Ferrari raced past.

Finn Valtteri Bottas, however, is talking about the possibility of winning races in 2016.

"I believe it is quite possible this year, as long as the car is better," he said recently.

His Brazilian teammate Felipe Massa agrees: "I think so. That is what we are working for," he told Sky. "I really hope it can be possible."

Smedley, a senior engineer at Williams, said the new FW38 will be an "evolution" of its 2015 predecessor.

But he explained: "You are going to see some quite interesting developments around the front wing area and underneath the chassis. There is some really interesting development around the back end of the car — the guys in the wind tunnel have done a stellar job.

"It is an evolution," added Smedley, a former Ferrari engineer, "but with stable regulations, in my years in formula one, it is one of the biggest evolutions I have seen."

New Sauber introduction and testing to be delayed

Sauber plays down 2016 car test debut 'delay'
(GMM) Sauber has played down news that its 2016 car, the C35, will miss the opening test of the winter test period.

The Swiss team confirmed on Monday that it will only take last year's Ferrari-powered single seater to Barcelona late next month.

It is reported that the C35 will then make its bow at the second and final Barcelona test in March, but a team spokesman said: "It is not excluded that we will drive between the first test and the roll-out on a filming day.

"But the reports are right that we will have the 2015 car, with 2016 livery, at the first test from February 22," he confirmed.

The spokesman told Speed Week that reports suggesting Sauber has simply fallen behind schedule, perhaps due to financial and supplier problems, are not quite right.

"I would not really describe it as a delay," he said.

"The situation is more due to the fact that Australia was brought forward by two weeks. When that became clear we said we would just stay with the original schedule of production.

"To accelerate the production would have cost us resources, and it's no secret that we are not a top team like that. We also didn't want to rush things. So we are sticking with the first plan," the Sauber official added.

He admitted: "We know that it is not optimal — for sure we would have loved to have had the new car at both tests. But we have seen with the example of Force India last year that you can still have a good season even when debuting at the first test is not possible."

McLaren worked through Christmas on new car

McLaren worked throughout Xmas on 2016 car
(GMM) McLaren staff worked throughout the Christmas break in order to keep its Honda-powered 2016 car on schedule.

Sauber, a smaller Swiss outfit, has admitted that it will not take a new car to the opening Barcelona test next month.

A team spokesman said the late change to the 2016 race calendar – with the Melbourne season opener brought forward by two weeks – affected Sauber's plans.

"To accelerate the production would have cost us resources," said the Sauber official, "and it's no secret that we are not a top team like that.

"We also didn't want to rush things. So we are sticking with the first plan."

For the beleaguered grandee McLaren-Honda, however, it is a different story, as the Anglo-Japanese collaboration is desperate to improve after a woeful performance in 2015.

But Simon Roberts, operations director, admitted the fast-forwarded Australia race date was a problem for the original McLaren schedule.

"Our entire build program wasn't lined up for that!" he smiled. "So we knew we had a problem to solve.

"The build schedule is on a critical path — it (the car) needs to pass all the FIA safety tests and be ready for the first test, which was also brought forward."

Roberts revealed that, even though Christmas was looming, McLaren had to look into speeding up the process.

"In simple terms, we put about eight shifts of work back into the program over a five day period — a fantastic effort," he said.

"In total, there were about 110 people involved and we looked after our Christmas workers with a competitive package. It was a bit weird, not having all the time off, but there was a good spirit in the place. Everyone knew why they were doing it, and it really cleared the decks," said Roberts.

"Most pleasingly, it meant that, once we came back in the New Year, we were back on schedule — and it felt like the program had always been phased that way. It was an incredible effort."

In the interest of money F1 will keep the engines all the fans hate

Engine rule changes limited to cost reduction – report
(GMM) Plans to dramatically shake up the engine regulations appear to now be off the table, following a key meeting in Geneva on Monday.

F1's engine manufacturers had been handed a January 15 deadline to address problems with the current 'power unit' rules, or risk Bernie Ecclestone and Jean Todt's plans for a parallel formula being revived.

"I am optimistic," said FIA president Todt days ago, "that common sense solutions will be found in the interests of everyone."

F1 supremo Ecclestone, however, wanted not only costs to come down, but also power, noise and competition to dramatically increase.

Stakeholders like Red Bull, meanwhile, were keen for rule changes so that manufacturers like Mercedes and Ferrari are no longer able to block the 'supply' of engines to competitors who require customer units.

But Auto Bild Motorsport, a specialist German publication, reports that the engine rule changes proposed by the manufacturers in Geneva this week are essentially limited to the topic of reducing costs.

The report said not only Mercedes and Ferrari, but also Renault and Honda have voted unanimously to reduce the cost of customer engines to EUR 12 million per team.

This will reportedly be achieved by standardizing certain parts.

The F1 Commission will move to ratify the proposal in Geneva on Tuesday, and Auto Bild claims that a majority vote is likely as Todt now backs the manufacturers.

It is a blow not only to Ecclestone but also Red Bull, who were pushing hard amid the prospect of an independent engine supplier entering F1 with different rules.

"We no longer expect a positive vote on that," a Red Bull source is quoted as saying. "The only advantage is that new manufacturers can potentially now plan to build an engine for formula one."

That is because the F1 Commission reportedly looks set to lock in F1's hybrid engine era for a further four years, taking the regulations through to 2024, Auto Bild explained.

Not only that, even the sport's earlier plans to dramatically alter the chassis rules now looks in doubt, with Williams' Pat Symonds admitting he is pushing for the changes to be delayed until 2018.

So when asked about the prospect of a vastly different F1 in the future, Russian grand prix chief Igor Ermilin is not quite sure what will happen.

"It's really hard to say," he told the Izvestia news agency. "Some say the innovations will be radical while others think it will be insignificant.

"What is certain is that everyone will be trying to protect his own interests," Ermilin added.

Carlos Sainz Jr.'s car after crash

Sainz: Sochi crash 'worst seconds of my life'
Toro Rosso driver Carlos Sainz Jr. says that his high-speed accident during practice for last year's Russian Grand Prix was the "worst seconds" of his life, as he feared he would suffer serious injury.

Sainz Jr. dramatically lost control of his STR10 on the approach to Turn 13 at Sochi Autodrom and clipped the inside wall, before careering straight into the barriers at the exit of the corner.

The Spaniard was buried beneath the Tecpro wall for over 15 minutes before being successfully removed from the stricken car and transported to a nearby hospital, where he was later released.

He subsequently gained clearance to participate in the Grand Prix, but has since recalled his fear during the moments after he first impacted the barriers during the third free practice session.

"It took 17-and-a-half minutes until I was taken out from the car," Sainz Jr. explained during an appearance on Spanish TV program El Hormiguero.

"On the longest straight of the circuit, I was asked to test an experimental braking map. I reached about 330km/h, lost the back of the car just after hitting the brakes and crashed into the first wall at 270km/h.

"But nothing happened there: the problem was that the suspension was broken, so the steering and the braking system did not work and I just hit the wall at 270km/h.

"Without braking, I managed to reduce the speed to 200km/h and then came the heavy crash.

"During the two-second period from the first to the second impact, when I was hitting the brakes and nothing happened, I said: "it is all over".

"You assume the worst and I think these were the two worst seconds in my life.

"After the impact, I got out of breath during some seconds, but I realized I was conscious. Then I touched myself, felt I was right and knew that nothing serious had happened.

"I was stuck behind the barriers because they hadn't worked properly, and told them [the marshals] to take their time to remove them.

"During those 17 minutes I was thinking about my dad, my sisters, my mum… everyone had watched the accident and they did not know if something had happened to me.

"Then I got a little bit overwhelmed."

The selection of volunteers for the 2016 Russian GP begins
Today, the selection of volunteers for the third Russian round of the FIA Formula 1 World Championship that will be held at Sochi Autodrom from 28 April to 01 May 2016 has started.

The organizers of the 2016 FORMULA 1 RUSSIAN GRAND PRIX will select the volunteers not only among the residents of Sochi, but among residents of different other Russian cities as well.

To take part in this international motorsport project please send your application to volunteer@sochiautodrom.ru with the subject “Formula 1 Volunteer".

Only applicants of 18 years of age or older are eligible to apply. Intermediate English language proficiency is required.

The application deadline is 18 April 2016. In April, practical trainings will be organized for the volunteers at Sochi Autodrom and in the Olympic Park.

In 2015, 1200 volunteers from Russia, China, Brazil, Canada, India and many other countries took part in the Russian Grand Prix.

Our mailing address is:
SOCHI AUTODROM
Triumphalniy proezd, 26
Sochi 354340
Russia