Latest F1 news in brief – Wednesday (Update)
01/28/15
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2015 Red Bull Newey's last Newey was still 'designer' of 2015 Red Bull – Horner
- Berger tips Dennis to keep top McLaren job
- Pirelli expecting 'significant' speed boost in 2015
- Vettel pondered F1 exit amid career crisis – Horner
- Todt backs Ferrari to bounce back
- New Ferrari 'better looking' than 2014 car – Allison
- Lotus to test 2015 Mercedes engine at Jerez
- Renault says 2015 engine 'very different'
- Raikkonen becomes father
- Haas updates F1 team's progress
- Force India to sit out Jerez test New
- Horner has revealed Red Bull are yet to complete their 2015 car New
Newey was still 'designer' of 2015 Red Bull – Horner
(GMM) This year's Red Bull is probably the last 100 per cent Adrian Newey car, team boss Christian Horner has admitted.
After Horner and his 2015 drivers met with the media on Tuesday, Germany's Auto Motor und Sport said Horner put an actual percentage on the time Newey will spend on formula one from now on — 50.
The other 50 per cent will be spent on projects like the America's Cup, but Horner said of the 2015-specification RB11: "He (Newey) is the designer of this car."
Horner revealed that Newey will also be at Jerez on Sunday to oversee the Renault-powered car's track debut, which will be driven around the Spanish circuit by Daniel Ricciardo.
But before then, Horner said, the team is still working hard.
When asked if the Jerez-spec RB11 is ready to run now, he admitted: "Not yet.
"We are flat out into car build at the moment, this is probably the shortest production and assembly time in our ten seasons."
Red Bull's late development of the 2014 car, and now pushing the time barriers with its successor, is undoubtedly because of the extent of Mercedes' dominance last year, with similar regulations still in play for 2015.
"Hopefully we will have made significant inroads into that advantage," said Horner.
Given the way Mercedes dominated last year, Horner's optimism was telling, and it was echoed by the team's new number 1 driver, Ricciardo.
"You'd like to think that Mercedes' room for improvement is smaller than everyone else's," the Australian said.
Another of Mercedes' challengers in 2015 will be the independent British team Williams, and Ricciardo said he expects them to be strong again this year.
"The big question mark is McLaren-Honda," he added. "Everyone will be watching to see what kind of step they can do.
"With Ferrari, there is no real sign they can gain a second a lap. McLaren, they could gain a second if it all gels with Honda," said Ricciardo.
Berger tips Dennis to keep top McLaren job
(GMM) Gerhard Berger, once linked with the top job, has now backed Ron Dennis to keep running McLaren.
For some months, rumors and reports have been doing the rounds suggesting a shareholder wrangling is taking place behind the scenes at Woking.
It was said Dennis, the group CEO and chairman, had only until the end of January to find investors or else Mansour Ojjeh and the Bahrainis could replace him.
Some of the wilder speculation was that former McLaren driver and ex Toro Rosso co-owner Gerhard Berger might be in the running, but the Austrian is now tipping Dennis to retain the backing of his fellow shareholders.
"Who else would they take?" Berger is quoted by Auto Motor und Sport.
"They may no longer be best friends with Ron, but he knows his way around like no one else.
"And that he managed to lure (Fernando) Alonso back to McLaren is another strong point," Berger added.
Pirelli expecting 'significant' speed boost in 2015
(GMM) Pirelli boss Paul Hembery is expecting a much faster field of 2015.
Last year, among the criticisms of F1's all-new turbo V6 format was that laptimes took a slide in comparison to the popular and screaming V8s of the past.
And Pirelli, F1's official tire supplier, took some of the blame.
"Some teams thought we were too cautious in 2014," Hembery is quoted by Spain's El Mundo Deportivo.
"But it's easy to say that in hindsight. We had no real data, and now we have a lot."
The Briton, however, said Pirelli is not needing to make many changes to the tires for 2015.
That is because every indication so far is that the field of 2015 will be considerably quicker in 2015, a year into the radical new rules.
"We expect a significant leap in terms of performance," said Hembery, "because the engines have developed and will be more powerful.
"But above all the teams now have a year of experience with the new technologies," he added.
The Spanish report mentioned a laptime leap from 2014 to 2015 in the order of two or three seconds, but Hembery was not willing to make a more detailed prediction.
"From our point of view," he said, "it will not be until China for the third race before we can get a real feel for what has improved."
Vettel pondered F1 exit amid career crisis – Horner
(GMM) Before making the radical switch to Ferrari, Sebastian Vettel contemplated simply quitting formula one.
That is the claim of Christian Horner, who as Red Bull team boss witnessed first-hand the German driver's slide from four consecutive world titles to the struggles of 2014.
Last year, Vettel notably struggled to adapt to the sport's new V6-powered format, and failed to stand even once at the top of the podium while teammate Daniel Ricciardo won three grands prix.
"You could tell he (Vettel) wasn't happy," Horner told reporters on Tuesday as he presented to the media Red Bull's new lineup of Ricciardo alongside Russian youngster Daniil Kvyat.
"There was that feeling 'am I (Vettel) enjoying this as much as I thought I was?'" Horner explained.
"It was like someone had taken his toy away. He went through a period of disillusionment about the direction formula one was going in.
"There was a stage last year when he thought about whether he wanted to stop or not, whether he was getting the same level of enjoyment or not and whether or not he wanted to continue," he added.
Horner said Vettel, 27, ultimately got to grips with the 'new' F1, but also true is that the German had been in the process of deciding to switch to Ferrari for 2015.
"I think Sebastian felt the timing was right in his career," he said. "He needed that stimulus of a new challenge."
However, not everyone in the paddock is convinced Ferrari is the forum for Vettel to rekindle his passion, especially given the turmoil that has taken place at Maranello in the past months.
Niki Lauda, the team chairman at Mercedes, said Mercedes' current dominance was not born overnight, and "even for Ferrari it will take four years".
And if there are signs that Ferrari's revival might even take longer, "then Sebastian will start to feel the pressure, the politics, the media, which at Ferrari is twice as bad as it is at Red Bull," the F1 legend told Auto Motor und Sport.
Todt backs Ferrari to bounce back
(GMM) FIA president Jean Todt has backed his former team, Ferrari, to bounce back in formula one.
Now in charge of the sport's governing body, 68-year-old Frenchman Todt oversaw Ferrari's revival from the slump of the mid-90s to the dizzying heights of the Michael Schumacher era.
Today, Ferrari is in another period of turmoil and slump, but as he attended this week the 110-year anniversary of Italy's automobile club Aci, Todt backed the Maranello marque to bounce back.
Quoted by Corriere dello Sport, he said Ferrari is a "mythical brand, prestigious (and) part of the history of motor racing in Italy and the world".
So when asked if Ferrari will win again soon, Todt answered: "I hope so and I'm cheering for it."
He said Sergio Marchionne, having replaced Ferrari's long-time president Luca di Montezemolo, is "a great leader and has proved it" by reviving Fiat and Chrysler.
Fiat chairman John Elkann, meanwhile, singled out Todt as a reference for Ferrari, as the Maranello team is "working hard to bring Ferrari back to where Jean Todt left us".
New Ferrari 'better looking' than 2014 car – Allison
(GMM) If aesthetics mean anything, Ferrari will have a better year in 2015.
Last year, the F14-T – resembling a 'vacuum cleaner' according to some critics – was among the many cars of 2014 that sported an awkward look in deference to the sport's new rules.
Many of the responsible faces at Ferrari, having finished 2014 a distant fourth in the championship, have now departed amid the Maranello team's radical shakeup.
A survivor, however, is technical boss James Allison, the former Lotus designer and Briton whose newly-named SF15-T is his first full scarlet creation.
Ferrari insider Leo Turrini revealed this week that the vacuum-cleaner style nose of the 2014 is now gone ahead of the new season.
But Allison said the FIA's nose rule tweaks, made primarily for aesthetic reasons, is "not really so big a deal".
Overall, however, he revealed: "This year's car is certainly an awful lot better looking than last year's car — prettier round the front, tighter round the back, and that makes for a nice car."
The 2015 Ferrari will be launched on Friday.
On the very same day, Ferrari customer Sauber will also unveil its 2015 car, the C34, on its official website.
The Swiss team also contradicted rumors the car may not be ready for the Jerez test on Sunday by announcing that Marcus Ericsson will be at the wheel in southern Spain for the opening day of the first winter test.
Lotus to test 2015 Mercedes engine at Jerez
(GMM) Lotus has hit back at reports it will not benefit from the 2015 specification of Mercedes' turbo V6 engine starting from the Jerez test this weekend.
Auto Motor und Sport correspondent Tobias Gruner had claimed that only the works team and Williams would have the latest Mercedes at their disposal, with customers Lotus and Force India to make do with the title-winning 2014 unit.
"Contrary to what you may read," Lotus hit back on Twitter, "we are using the latest Mercedes engine in the E23, not something from the archives".
Gruner also apologized for the mistake.
"I tweeted yesterday about Lotus and Force India (testing) with 2014 spec Merc engine. Not true," he admitted. "Lotus will get the 2015 parts.
"Sorry," the German correspondent added.
It seems the same may also be true for Force India, as the team's technical boss Andrew Green exclaimed that Mercedes' 2015 specification is "more powerful than last year's".
"I expect great things from this engine," he is quoted by Italy's Tuttosport, "but I hope at the same time that it will be further improved mid-season."
Lotus, too, is excited about the 2015 season with Mercedes, having struggled throughout last year with Renault power.
"We don't know how Honda or Ferrari will go," said team CEO Matthew Carter, "but I think that in this first part of the season we will have an advantage."
Renault says 2015 engine 'very different'
(GMM) Red Bull's engine supplier Renault says it has made big changes to its turbo V6 engine for the 2015 season.
The French marque struggled as the new rules dawned last year, winning only three races compared to dominant Mercedes' sixteen.
It prompted big organizational changes at Viry-Chatillon and also major upgrades for the 2015 engine, despite the fact the 32 performance 'tokens' could actually have been deployed throughout the forthcoming season.
"We have used the majority of the tokens for the first race," said technical boss Rob White, "and our use of tokens during the course of the season will be relatively modest."
He said it is not clear how much better the 2015 engine will be, but managing director Cyril Abiteboul is targeting an improvement on Red Bull's three wins last year.
The marque's F1 present Jerome Stoll said the 2014 season was a "lesson" for Renault that it needed to restructure and fundamentally change its V6 design.
Along with Red Bull, Renault's only other remaining customer is Toro Rosso, after Lotus switched to Mercedes and with Caterham looking unlikely to survive.
"The Renault you see this year is consequentially very different to 2014," Stoll revealed.
Abiteboul added: "We believe we have made a very big step in performance and will be more reliable.
"We may not have erased all the gaps, but we are confident that we have gone a long way to making up the deficit of last season."
White agreed that the 2015 engine is "very different" to last year's, having "upgraded every system and subsystem".
"In short," he explained, "there are very few carry over pieces between the 2014 and 2015 power units."
Raikkonen becomes father
(GMM) Kimi Raikkonen has this week become a father.
The Ferrari driver's fiancee, Minttu, is quoted by Finnish newspapers including Lansi Savo and Iltalehti as saying on Wednesday: "The little one saw light of day in Switzerland yesterday.
"He is healthy, measuring 51cm and weighing 3.7kg.
"The parents are also well, happy and proud!" she added.
Haas updates F1 team's progress
While much of the focus around Stewart-Haas Racing's media availability (OK, the primary focus) centered on the team's four NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers, team co-owner Gene Haas also took the time to answer questions from assembled media about the Haas F1 Team's updates as it's a little more than a year out until the team's scheduled debut.
Official news in recent weeks has been limited surrounding Haas F1 Team, although a report emerged a little more than a week ago that Haas is expected to use the former Marussia headquarters in Banbury as its UK base.
Haas told reporters, including NBC's Dustin Long, things are about where they should be given the timeline.
"We have a little under 50 people right now," Haas told reporters. "There's about 50 in Kannapolis, and roughly the same amount in the UK and same in Italy right now."
The driver lineup is of course going to be something to monitor. American Alexander Rossi has spoken publicly of his desire to race for the team, while Ferrari – Haas' engine technical partner – has newly signed Esteban Gutierrez and Jean-Eric Vergne as the team's reserve and test/development drivers in Maranello.
"The driver selection will be at the end of summer," Haas said. "We'll need to look around, see who's available. There could be a new crop of young drivers. Big teams want guys in their 20s. Some are getting concerned about bringing up someone else too fast."
Haas expects F1 to be a learning process, but he's hoping some of the team efficiencies and protocols from the Cup side can transfer over to the new F1 team.
"We'll try to," Haas said. "I find the whole thing very intriguing. It's very technologically advanced. The way they deal with everything. It's all so impressive to begin with, it's all intriguing. We can learn a lot with Formula 1 and apply to our NASCAR team.
"In NASCAR, we run twice as many races. I'm hoping some of the efficiencies will gives us an advantage."
Haas said his F1 team will operate out of Ferrari's wind tunnel rather than his own one in Charlotte. F1's regulations stipulate only one wind tunnel can be utilized.
Lastly, Haas tempered expectations – but said the team will likely be better than some think it will.
"I won't say we'll do great. But we should be more competitive than people think," he said. "We're associating with Ferrari. We're putting our facilities in place. We're getting our trailers, haulers.
"It's one thing to have a car and driver but you need the support to make it work. We're gathering the spares and infrastructure.
"We're looking good, and we don't want to be putting things together at the last moment." NBC Sports
Force India to sit out Jerez test
(GMM) Force India has announced it will sit out the first winter test of 2015.
It was already known that, having recently 'launched' the 2015 livery with a show-car featuring a new-style nose, the Silverstone based team would not test the VJM08 at Jerez beginning on Sunday.
Initially, Force India planned to run the 2014 car instead, but the team announced on Twitter on Wednesday: "We have chosen not to run the old car in Jerez.
"The learning opportunities would have been limited so the focus is now on Barcelona."
But despite his and co-owner Subrata Roy's off-track legal troubles, team supremo Vijay Mallya insists all is well with Force India.
"The new car has been completely developed in Cologne," the Indian told Kolner Express newspaper, referring to the decision to use Toyota's state of the art wind tunnel.
"It is regarded as one of the best in the world and is a big step for us," Mallya added.
"We are proud that we were often better than McLaren last year. And once the European season begins, we want to be keeping up with the big teams," he said.
In other news on Wednesday, Williams announced that Alex Lynn, a 21-year-old British GP3 star who until now has been in the Red Bull stable, has been signed as a development driver.
The British team said Lynn will work in the simulator and test the new FW37 after the Spanish grand prix in May.
Mercedes, meanwhile, has agreed a new sponsorship deal with Epson, the Japanese printer company whose logos will appear on the title-defending W06.
Horner has revealed Red Bull are yet to complete their 2015 car
Christian Horner has revealed Red Bull are yet to complete their 2015 car, the RB11, and that "there is still plenty to do before Sunday" when the first pre-season test starts in Jerez.
The Milton Keynes-based team were the only team other than Mercedes to win a race last year, but are determined to close the gap to the Silver Arrows this season after seeing their four years of dominance come to an end.
The team have opted not to have a public unveiling of the RB11 prior to Jerez to allow them to maximise production time and, just five days before the first test, their team principal says they are still yet to complete their new challenger.
"No not yet," Horner said when asked if the car was ready.
"We are flat out into car build at the moment, this is probably the shortest production and assembly time in our 10 seasons – it is unbelievable what the factory have turned around so far. So there is still plenty to do before Sunday."
However, a Red Bull spokesperson has insisted the former world champions are confident that their 2015 charger will be ready in time for the start of the four-day event in Spain this weekend.
Horner says the RB11's chassis will be an evolution of that used on the RB10 and that understandably much of their development focus has been on narrowing their engine deficit.
"I think it is just an evolution in many respects," Horner added. "The chassis is very much an evolution, obviously there has been a lot of focus on the engine and I think with the new regulations and tokens being able to be spent through the year, you have to look strategically and what upgrades you are going to introduce into what engines.
"Mercedes for sure are the benchmark – they go in as the reigning champions and the favourites for this year and they have a significant advantage at the end of last year.
"Hopefully we will have made significant inroads into that advantage, but the question is what have they done over the winter and what have the other teams done? We know where we are, but until you get to Melbourne, or even the first three or four races you won't really see what the running order is."
Rather than having their engines homologated ahead of the first race in Australia, teams will be able to introduce an upgraded engine during the season with the amount of development based on a points system. Horner thinks picking the right moment to introduce those upgrades could be critical in beating Mercedes.
"You can upgrade strategically on your power units this year and Renault are taking an aggressive development approach to this year," he said. "Strategically we just need to decide when you use those tokens in the four engines that you have available to you." SkySports