Most liked posts in thread: F1 - 2010

Steve · Nov 6, 2010

Lotus naming mystery deepens as Proton cosies up with Renault (crash.net)

It seems Tony Fernandes might be left with no choice but to back down in his efforts to rebaptise Lotus Racing 'Team Lotus' in 2011 - as there may already be another 'Lotus-Renault' outfit on the grand prix grid...

The uncertainty regarding just what the team presently known as Lotus Racing will be called next year has taken yet another twist, with speculation that Proton is seriously interested in buying into Renault's F1 outfit â€“ and renaming it Lotus-Renault.

On the eve of this weekend's Brazilian Grand Prix at Interlagos, it was finally officially announced that Lotus Racing will be powered by Renault engines in 2011 and 2012 [see separate story â€“ click here] â€“ combined with the Red Bull Technology gearboxes and hydraulic systems that had already been confirmed some time before, likely to vault the best of the F1 2010 newcomers some way up the starting grid next season.

However, in both the Lotus Racing and Renault releases on the matter, the name Lotus is conspicuously absent for the first time, with the former alluding only to 'the team' and the latter referring to '1Malaysia Racing Team (UK) Ltd', the original name of the Anglo/Malaysian outfit prior to its rebaptism.

The reason for that is team principal Tony Fernandes' ongoing row with Proton, with the Malaysian car maker disputing the AirAsia founder's claim to have purchased the rights to the iconic 'Team Lotus' moniker for 2011 from David Hunt, brother of the late 1976 F1 World Champion James Hunt.

As the owners of Group Lotus, Proton maintain that the 'Team Lotus' rights are theirs and theirs alone to sell, and in response to Fernandes' perceived brazen audacity, the company has revoked the entrepreneur's licence to operate under the Lotus name as of the end of this season â€“ ostensibly, because Group Lotus wishes to enter into F1 itself.

The word within the paddock is that Group Lotus is evaluating the prospect of going into partnership with Renault, with the French manufacturer thereby reducing its involvement in the top flight and returning to being simply an engine-supplier to its works operation, Lotus Racing and Red Bull Racing in what would represent a wholesale revision of its motorsport strategy.

The collaboration makes sense from the point-of-view that Renault and Proton have already been having discussions about working together on an automotive level, with an agreement reputedly in-place for the Proton Savvy to share the 1.2-litre engine used in Renault's Clio and Twingo.

According to former ITV-F1 commentator James Allen writing on his internet blog, the key figure in negotiations is young businessman Tarek Obaid, a long-time associate of Renault F1 majority owner GÃ©rard Lopez and CEO of Saudi-based private oil and gas firm PetroSaudi International.

Obaid came on-board at Enstone back in May, and crucially is understood to have strong and influential connections in Malaysia â€“ with PetroSaudi having orchestrated a joint $2.5 billion project with the country's government last year to invest in renewable energy initiatives there. The picture is blurred by Lopez's Luxembourg-based company Genii Capital stating that Obaid is no longer a Renault F1 partner â€“ but a rival team principal told Allen that 'next year that will be a very different-looking team'.

If the Group Lotus/Renault relationship does indeed materialise in 2011, it would make it very difficult for Fernandes to press ahead with his own plans to resurrect the legendary Team Lotus name â€“ and Allen suggests that should the canny businessman have successfully used the whole political situation to engineer some kind of benefit for another area of his enterprise, he may now be willing to back down and agree to relinquish the Lotus brand â€“ possibly in favour of AirAsia...

Fernandes has already had to enter his new GP2 Series operation under the name of his airline business after Group Lotus decided to get involved in the feeder category with ART Grand Prix. Team AirAsia, a possible precursor to any required name change in the top flight, joined Carlin in replacing Durango and DPR in GP2 for 2011.
Click to expand...

Steve · Nov 10, 2010

I don't usually post links elsewhere but this one is worth an exception IMO.

There's a great set of Lotus open wheeler pics over at Speed.

Check it out.

Lotus Livery Retrospective

farkus · Nov 11, 2010

And while we're on the subject...Lotus to race in the iconic black and gold livery in 2011

Lotus Racing will race in a black and gold livery next season as a throwback to the John Player Special Lotuses of the 1970s and 1980s.

The team has sported green and yellow cars this season, but in an attempt to strengthen its links with the original Colin Chapman-owned Team Lotus - for which it has purchased the naming rights - it will change for 2011.

"When we first unveiled our 2010 car there was unanimous praise for our decision to bring the historic green and yellow livery back to the modern F1â„¢ grid," said chief executive Riad Asmat. "I know the return to the track of the legendary black and gold will be met with even more universal support as it strikes such an emotional chord with fans around the world. Giving those fans the chance to help us bring it back to the contemporary grid is true to our core belief of putting our supporters right at the heart of Lotus Racing - we can't wait to show the world what we come up with!"

The design of the livery will be open to input from the team's fans.

Head of Marketing Silvi Schaumloeffel added: "We have worked all year to make sure our fans are given unprecedented access to our team. We are all very excited about the move to a black and gold paint scheme for next season, and we want our fans to help us design the livery that will be racing around the world next year. We will shortly be announcing exactly how the fans can take part in our design process, so keep an eye on our website Home for more details. The person who designs the livery we finally choose will be joining us at our first test next year to see the car out on track for the very first time, so for Lotus and F1â„¢ fans it is the chance of a lifetime to help us take the next step forward in our amazing story in 2011."

Lotus Racing's battle with Group Lotus over its name is still rumbling through the courts.
Click to expand...

Schweet!

minimark · Nov 11, 2010

Double ditto!!!

farkus · Nov 11, 2010

Here is the idiot's guide to the 2010 world championship finale on Sunday...

Alonso (246 points) will be champion if:
- he finishes first or second
- he finishes third, fourth or fifth, and neither Webber nor Vettel win
- he finishes sixth, with Webber no higher than third and Vettel failing to win
- he finishes seventh or eighth, with Webber no higher than fourth and Vettel failing to win
- he finishes ninth, with Webber no higher than fifth and Vettel no higher than third
- he finishes 10th, with Webber no higher than sixth and Vettel no higher than third
- he fails to score, with Webber no higher than sixth, Vettel no higher than third and Hamilton failing to win
If no rivals score? Alonso is champion

Webber (238) will be champion if:
- he wins, with Alonso no higher than third
- he finishes second, with Alonso no higher than sixth and Vettel failing to win
- he finishes third, with Alonso no higher than seventh and Vettel failing to win
- he finishes fourth, with Alonso no higher than ninth and Vettel failing to win
- he finishes fifth, with Alonso no higher than tenth and Vettel failing to win
If no rivals score? Webber must finish fifth or higher to become champion

Vettel (231) will be champion if:
- he wins, with Alonso no higher than fifth
- he finishes second with Alonso no higher than ninth and Webber no higher than fifth
If no rivals score? Vettel must finish second or higher to become champion

Hamilton (222) will be champion if:
- he wins, with Alonso failing to score, Webber no higher than sixth and Vettel no higher than third.
If no rivals score? Hamilton must win to become champion

Deadlock: in theory, Alonso, Webber and Vettel could finish level on points at the top - a result of Vettel winning, Webber second and Alonso fifth in Abu Dhabi would give them 256 points apiece. Vettel and Alonso would have five wins each, two second places each and three third places each. Vettel would then be champion based on his three fourth places to Alonsoâ€™s two.
Click to expand...

Should be good! opcorn:

Steve · Nov 11, 2010

I really like the idea of throw-back color schemes -- and asking for fan input -- though to me the green and yellow feels like the throw-back. In fact though I'd love to watch an original John Player Special doing hot laps I'd rather see the current cars stay green and yellow. Or they could do what some NFL teams do and use the throw-back livery only occasionally as something special/unusual instead of running the same scheme at every race. Seems like they'd get more exposure in the press that way as well.

On the contrarian side, here's a snip from another article ...

Colin Chapmanâ€™s original 'Team Lotus' squad ran in the black and gold livery, as part of a sponsorship deal with Imperial Tobacco to promote its John Player Special brand during the 1970s and 1980s.
Click to expand...

... and a couple negative comments posted on crash.net:

black and gold was just an old sponsors colour scheme, nothing else. it wont bestow and credibility of a link to lotus of old.
Click to expand...

Although I found the black and gold livery stunning, I felt that Lotus sold their corporate soul to a tobacco company.
Click to expand...

Nathan · Nov 11, 2010

Wasn't it Lotus bringing in the JPS sponsorship that heralded in the whole painting the cars to match the sponsor era in F1? If memory serves me well before the JPS livery all the cars were in their national country colors.

goaljnky · Nov 11, 2010

Nathan said: ↑

Wasn't it Lotus bringing in the JPS sponsorship that heralded in the whole painting the cars to match the sponsor era in F1? If memory serves me well before the JPS livery all the cars were in their national country colors.
Click to expand...

You are correct. From Wiki:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_international_auto_racing_colors

Green was a color assigned to Britain. Hence the British Racing Green.

farkus · Nov 11, 2010

In 1968 Lotus ran the Gold Leaf red, white and gold livery...same tobacco company, different colors.

The JPS livery didn't appear until 1972.

Steve · Nov 12, 2010

Hmmm, perhaps a new home for Petrov if he loses the Renault seat?

Russian supercar firm Marussia takes over Virgin Racing (news.bbc.co.uk)

By Sarah Holt
BBC Sport in Abu Dhabi

Virgin Racing have secured their place on the Formula 1 grid until 2014 after Russian carmaker Marussia Motors bought a controlling interest in the team.

The team will be rebranded as Marussia Virgin Racing in 2011 and their new car is set to be launched in Moscow.

Virgin team boss John Booth said: "It's massive. The future was solid but this makes us secure for four years."

The team will continue its relationship with Richard Branson's Virgin brand, who joined as title sponsors in 2009.

The British tycoon signed a three-year title sponsor deal with the rookie team last December, which saw Sheffield-based Manor Motorsport rebranded as Virgin Racing.

Branson said of the new deal inked in Abu Dhabi: "Virgin is delighted to have secured a partner which shares our vision and spirit for challenging the establishment."

The team's new partnership is headed by Russian Top Gear presenter and racing driver Nikolay Fomenko.

His company Marussia Motors has acquired an undisclosed shareholding in the team with a view to furthering Russian involvement in F1 ahead of the Russian Grand Prix, which is due to make its bow on the calendar in 2014.

"We are looking forward to this cooperation as there will be a grand prix in Sochi," Fomenko said in Abu Dhabi.

"We will [also] demonstrate to the world that a new manufacturer has arrived from Russia with truly international ambitions."

He added in an interview with the BBC Russian Service: "Last year we came together as technical partners, working on the engines for Virgin. From summer 2010 we started acquiring a significant part of the company.

"Step by step we'll make it a fully Russian F1 team flying the Russian flag - it means that today one of the twelve teams is Russian. We now have the controlling share of the company - no doubt about it."

Virgin have yet to finalise their 2011 driver line-up and the Russian cash injection has prompted speculation the team could employ a Russian driver.

Vitaly Petrov became the first Russian driver to compete in F1 this season but his future at Renault is still in doubt.

Timo Glock signed a two-year contract with Virgin in 2009 but the German has been linked to other teams, including Renault, while Brazilian Lucas di Grassi's future with Virgin remains uncertain after he lost his main sponsor mid-season.

"We're not in a hurry," said Booth. "The sooner it happens the better to settle everybody down but we're in no particular hurry.

"Certainly I'd think [we would announce it] before Christmas.

"There is nothing on the horizon for a Russian driver at the moment. They have come on in leaps and bounds over the last five years and I'm sure we'll see more in F1 in the future."

Fomenko added: "We're continuing to train Russian drivers - they are not quite there yet, but we're hoping that by next year Ivan Lukashevich will be ready for F1. But at the moment we have Brazilian driver Lucas di Grassi and German driver Timo Glock, and we're perfectly happy with that.

Virgin had an ignominious F1 baptism, first discovering their fuel tank was too small to get to the end of races before subsequently suffering a variety of reliability problems.

Former Benetton chief designer and Simtek team owner Nick Wirth has been leading the team's technical division and he says the new investment will help advance the development of the car for 2011 and beyond.

"We've had a challenging season trying to get reliability sorted but we've had a stronger second half," Wirth said.

"This [investment] will give us a solid financial platform for the future.

"We've got a five-year programme to take this team to the top and I'm excited about what we can achieve next year.

"The 2011 car is already looking very, very good."

Fellow rookies Hispania and Lotus Racing have also taken steps to push on from their debut 2010 seasons after making announcements at last week's Brazilian Grand Prix.

Hispania unveiled a new financial backer in the shape of Spanish businessman Juan Villalonga, who will work with team owner Jose Ramon Carabante to stabilise the team and attract new sponsors.

Lotus beefed up their 2011 ambitions by confirming they will be powered by Renault engines next season and will also use Red Bull's gearbox and hydraulics.
Click to expand...

goaljnky · Nov 14, 2010

Season is over. Congrats to the winner.

ScottinBend · Nov 14, 2010

What a fantastic finish to a fantastic season on one of the worst tracks ever.....

Great to see those world champs all on the podium.

Steve · Nov 14, 2010

The near decapitation on the first lap was a pretty comprehensive mash-up.

I have to say I love to see guys in competition for the title actually racing to win the last race. I hate to watch a season ending race where the title leader is just puttering along conservatively in whatever position he needs to get title winning points. What a letdown that is. I get it, the title is more important than the win, but I still don't like it.

Not this time though! Four drivers technically in contention and all of them driving at the limit. That's the way the season should end.

am0eba · Nov 14, 2010

Happy for the winner... Disappointed for my boy and his combo of bad strategy and meek performance today...

Good thing Gran Turismo 5 is coming this month!

_Dave_

Crashton · Nov 14, 2010

Yes it was nice seeing the 3 years worth of champions on the podium. Congrats to Seb & Red Bull.

I'm very happy Micheal was so very lucky today! Yikes that was too close.

RllyDrvrIX · Nov 14, 2010

2010 is over, any early predictions for 2011?

am0eba · Nov 14, 2010

I predict I'll be complaining about the new rules, but still addicted to the series again next year, just like this year...

_Dave_

minimark · Nov 15, 2010

Yep with all my criticisms on the rule changes the final race with the drivers championship actually being contested, was one of the best finishes in recent years!!!

Vettel proved himself a champion today with a dominating win with many a great driver reduced to getting nothing but distant glimpses of him.

Thank goodness Micheal wasn't hurt or killed, that was a bad wreck.....

Still think Bernie brain dead; many of the new tracks stink and that the soap opera that F1 can be will continue...and I'll predict that I watch every lap again next year!!!

Steve · Nov 16, 2010

Hulkenberg has been officially dropped by Williams. Sad to see but hopefully he'll be picked up by another team.

Redbeard · Nov 16, 2010

I enjoyed the race. Abu Dahbi is an interesting track. Good run-off spots but not a great deal of passing space. Still there was some good racing and I am exstatic that Vettel won both the race and championship. I'm excited for next year. I admit there are frustraiting aspects to the constant rule changes (no f-duct next year for example) but its still good fun to watch.

Prediction for 2011: Keep on the look-out for Vettel, Hamilton, Kubica, and Alonso again next year.

Forums

Most liked posts in thread: F1 - 2010

Steve Administrator
Staff Member Articles Moderator

Steve Administrator
Staff Member Articles Moderator

farkus Active Member

minimark Well-Known Member

farkus Active Member

Steve Administrator
Staff Member Articles Moderator

Nathan Founder

goaljnky New Member

farkus Active Member

Steve Administrator
Staff Member Articles Moderator

goaljnky New Member

ScottinBend Space Cowboy
Supporting Member

Steve Administrator
Staff Member Articles Moderator

am0eba New Member

Crashton Club Coordinator

RllyDrvrIX New Member

am0eba New Member

minimark Well-Known Member

Steve Administrator
Staff Member Articles Moderator

Redbeard JCW: because fast is fun!
Supporting Member

Useful Searches

Most liked posts in thread: F1 - 2010

Steve Administrator Staff Member Articles Moderator

Steve Administrator Staff Member Articles Moderator

farkus Active Member

minimark Well-Known Member

farkus Active Member

Steve Administrator Staff Member Articles Moderator

Nathan Founder

goaljnky New Member

farkus Active Member

Steve Administrator Staff Member Articles Moderator

goaljnky New Member

ScottinBend Space Cowboy Supporting Member

Steve Administrator Staff Member Articles Moderator

am0eba New Member

Crashton Club Coordinator

RllyDrvrIX New Member

am0eba New Member

minimark Well-Known Member

Steve Administrator Staff Member Articles Moderator

Redbeard JCW: because fast is fun! Supporting Member

Steve Administrator
Staff Member Articles Moderator

Steve Administrator
Staff Member Articles Moderator

Steve Administrator
Staff Member Articles Moderator

Steve Administrator
Staff Member Articles Moderator

ScottinBend Space Cowboy
Supporting Member

Steve Administrator
Staff Member Articles Moderator

Steve Administrator
Staff Member Articles Moderator

Redbeard JCW: because fast is fun!
Supporting Member