As I posted a few pages back Lauda comes in and things start coming apart. Look at Brawn's success at Benetton, Ferrari, and Brawn GP. That tells you what up at Mercedes.
Looks like Sutil got the last seat on the grid, back with Force India. It'll be interesting to see how he fares next to Di Resta.
In totally unrelated news, Eric Lux has increased Kimi Raikkonen's salary and asked him to "stick close by" whenever he's not driving. Additionally, the FIA ruled all champagne flutes must be plastic from now on.
Damn! (gonna post this one twice) [ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lM9veTjC48Q]The Start - YouTube[/ame]
The final test days are underway in Barcelona. Teams plan carefully for the progression of their test regime and at this point they figure they should be either catching up with things that didn't go well in previous sessions or on to the business of pushing for ultimate performance. Unfortunately, they're mostly getting a lot of opportunity to test wet weather tires and setups. I suppose there's a silver lining there. By the time they got to a wet race last season they were lamenting the lack of pre-season testing in the wet. Some of them may be still wondering what their cars can do by the time they start practice in Melbourne, but if it rains they'll have no excuses this year.
America will have a regular presence on Formula One weekends this season as Alexander Rossi has been guaranteed some Friday practice-session appearances with Caterham. Rossi, who drove in the Friday F1 practice session in Barcelona and Abu Dhabi last year, was confirmed Friday as a reserve driver for the team, alongside Ma Qing Hua. The Chinese driver was with HRT in 2012, taking part in four of the Friday sessions, and he will be in action again at his home race in Shanghai. He will also race for the Caterham GP2 team. “After many discussions this winter with Caterham F1 Team regarding my 2013 program, today’s announcement brings me even closer to my goal of racing in F1,” Rossi said. “2013 will be my third season with the Caterham family and I’ve built solid relationships within the whole team. My goals from the Friday practice sessions that I will drive this season is to fulfill the team’s run plan for each session, work closely with everyone and learn as much as possible, always being ready for the next opportunity. “I will attend all F1 events, allowing me to integrate fully within in the team technically, commercially and from a sporting perspective in F1, best preparing me for the next step.” Caterham team principal Cyril Abiteboul said that both Rossi and Hua will be visible throughout the season in the F1 team’s compound. “As reserve drivers, both Alexander and Ma will attend every race with us and will be driving in a number of FP1 sessions to continue their development,” Abiteboul said. “One of the main challenges facing young drivers moving up to F1 is the sheer number of people they have to interact with compared to any other level of their motorsport career. “They go from a small number in Formula Renault 3.5 to more than 15 in F1, across engineering, performance, reliability, engine, KERS, strategy, communications and marketing. The program we have devised for Alexander and Ma will allow them to immerse themselves completely in the F1 environment throughout 2013, preparing them for the day when they take the next step up to the ultimate level.” Meanwhile, Hua added, “I know the fans at home will be really excited to see me race in GP2, and with the F1 work I also have ahead of me, China can be proud that it continues to have a driver involved in motor racing at the very highest level.” Source: American Alexander Rossi lands Friday F1 test role with Caterham - Autoweek
Wait.................it RAINS in Europe?!!?!??! So Barcelona is "in the plains" (Obscure song reference #434890403u)
Massa had a little trouble in Barcelona today. [ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AGP2wV5k8qg]F1 Test 2 at Barcelona Day 3 2013 - Felipe Massa Loses a Wheel - YouTube[/ame]
True, and I'm sure they're still analyzing it. And here's Ferrari's special high tech tool -- i.e., a wet towel -- which it appears they're using to cool the bodywork wrapped tightly around their latest exhaust solution. This may be the largest test rig of this type yet.
So, are we all collectively freaking out on the coverage and commentary NBC will be providing in two weeks? At least it looks like they will be providing more live coverage than Speed was able to. At least according to Wiki all practice sessions, quali and race will be covered live.
I'll be happy with that. I still generally intend to watch the British live-streams, but now that I have a non-cable option to watch US coverage, I'm sure I'll tune in.
Did Will Buxton get carried over to NBC as well? I know David Hobbs and Steve Matchett did. I know I'm in the minority here but I enjoyed their commentary. I will miss Bob Varsha but he is a Fox/Speed guy through and through. I actually met Bob Varsha and Mike Joy at Cars and Coffee in Irvine, CA in 2010. Two genuinely nice car guys. We chatted about cars and racing for 10 minutes. Just like any other enthusiasts.