Paul Hembery: We are close to a solution

Under fire tyre supplier Pirelli boss Paul Hembery who have been under constant criticism from F1 fans around the world have gone out with a public apology from the entire organisation. The fact that the season so far have been postponed by a whole month and with no cars running it is a huge failure for the Italian tyre manufacturers come back to the sport.

Paul Hembery

We are deeply humbled by this experience, we have a strong understanding of what happened but to rectify it have been a difficult process. But our technicians have been doing some great work lately and I sincerely hope we have a finished product very soon. I also need to apologize to all fans and people involved in this great sport. We are working around the clock to finish what we have started and hopefully with our tyres we can create a truly classic F1 season.

Published 2012-04-16 by Kris Locksey | Edit

2012 strike unheard of in F1 history

When new tyre constructor Pirelli announced that the 2012 tyres was not up to par to the FIA technical assemblys demands for security, the governing body decided to postpone the 2012 season on the request of the FOTA (Formula Ones Teams Association). With the debacle of Indianapolis 2005 on everyones minds the decision was difficult to make but in the end it had to be made according to Red Bull team principal Christian Horner.

Christian Horner

Of course we would all want to go racing right now, we have spent so much effort in the factory to have a car ready for the season, so of course it is a huge disappointment, not just for the fans, but also for everyone working in the industry. Obviously Pirelli have not done their work properly and now we all have to suffer. But we can't put dangerous tyres on our cars and risk our drivers health and also the audience and marshals. I think the decision made by FOTA and FIA is the right one.

On the other end of the scale we have Bernie Ecclestone and FOM. Ecclestone has gone far in his plans to actually sue Pirelli for revenue damages. And he also accuses the FOTA to deliberately undermine FOM in their refusal to race at the start of the season, something he claims is a clear breach of the Concorde Agreement.

Bernie Ecclestone

This is nothing else than a huge disaster, we have Grand Prix hosts who have prepared for a year and then suddenly no one shows up, we have contracts with hundreds of major TV broadcasters and we find ourselves in a position not to live up to those contracts. I believe the fault to in the end be Pirellis but the teams have for sure decided to take a very rocky road with their refusal. I strongly believe it is a breach in the Concorde Agreement and we have to look into the possibilities to take legal action.

With millions of fans left hanging, the world of motorsports desperately misses its crown jewel Formula 1 back on the circuits of the world.

Published 2012-04-16 by Kris Locksey | Edit

2012 Season Postponed

Due to the situation where the current rFactor 2 Beta version is not ready enough to be used for racing, and the fact that very few of our members are interested in running yet another season in rFactor 1, we have come to an interim decision to postpone the 2012 season until there is a game we believe will be the platform for future seasons. This means that the 2012 schedule will be reduced to an unknown extent. In essence it all depends on how quickly there will be a ready enough game available, and also a mod and good enough tracks to use.

We will continue to evaluate rFactor 2 during the beta test period, and we may also start working on a mod when there are tools available to do the job properly. As of now however, all physics work is purely for educational purposes. All allocated driver seats are still valid, and any available seats can still be claimed by existing or new members. We encourage all members to be active on the forums, and to keep in touch as much as possible. If you plan on skipping the 2012 season, please let us know as soon as possible by posting on the forum.

Regards,
The f1-simracing.com management

Published 2012-02-07 by Jörgen Ekroth | Edit

Pirelli tyres show dramatic flaws

With the planned start to the season less than 2 months ahead, it now has become evidently clear that the new sole tyre supplier, Pirelli, might have some dramatic flaws in the designs of their new Formula 1 tyres. With some heavy testing during the winter months inside sources claim the tyres are weak in longer stints and show some very big wear and sometimes even explode on heavier loads. The sources also claim that FIA have given Pirelli a big warning and some even claim Bridgestone might be the supplier for the first half of the season while Pirelli get their equipment back together. Nothing has been confirmed though but the F1 world wait in anticipation of the FIA decision in this question.

Paul Hembery took the time to answer some of the questions, and according to the Brit no one needs to worry, but a slight nervousness could be heard in his voice.

Paul Hembery, Pirelli chief designer

We have a good understanding of the tyres and are working towards the goals set by the governing body for this years F1 tyres. We have been working very hard to have the tyres get the performance and characteristics it has to have. We are well on the way to deliver the tyres so that the teams might get their first feel of them, we are not worried about the season start, but for sure a design path always meets some bumps and right now we need to correct some of them.

If the season start needs to be postponed or even an old tyre supplier re-entering it is unprecedented and something which has never before happened in the sports history. But seeing as safety is the key word in F1 we should not be surprised if this season turns into something quite else than we are used to.

Published 2012-01-26 by Kris Locksey | Edit

2011 Formula One Season Review, Part 3

With the bulk of the European Tour part of the championship over, Kristoffer Holm was still in the lead of the driver's championship, this time with main rival Locksey seven points adrift. Locksey had continued to mix brilliant performances with zero points races, and the same was true for Holm. Behind the top duo, Adrian Holm, Bohlin and Andersson still had a fight going, and even further down, Ekroth held on to sixth place ahead of Lill. The constructor's championship was also wide open with Red Bull only 25 points ahead of Ferrari. Renault had lost out a little to Red Bull and Ferrari but was still within a reasonable distance. The rest of the teams were fairly tightly packed, but none of them had passed the 100 points mark.

With only the Italian GP at Monza left of the European Tour, it was soon time to return to Asia for a night race in Singapore and the inaugural Korean Grand Prix as two of the highlights. A visit to Brazil and the season finale at the spectacular Yas Marina Circuit were also upcoming attractions, and along the line, a new world champion would be crowned. If it was Holm, Locksey, or someone else was still written in the stars though.

Part 3, Italy to Abu Dhabi

Italy

A little over a week into the month of September it was time to visit the classic Monza Circuit for the Italian Grand Prix. FP1 saw Holkedahl top the time sheets ahead of Teeorg in the Sauber. The Virgin car looked exceptionally strong in low downforce spec, and Holkedahl kept the grip in FP2 where he once again went quickest. This time considerably slower than during FP1 though. Sadly for Holkedahl, he injured himself after FP2 and was not able to take part in the rest of the weekend. Instead, qualifying once again became a fight between the two giant teams. Holm took pole ahead of his brother Adrian, with Bohlin in P3 ahead of Locksey. Best of the rest in Q3 was Ekroth, ahead of Walter, Andersson, Grönqvist, Teeorg and Kaseväli.

The race became another battle between Holm and Locksey, after an excellent start from the Brit. Red Bull and Ferrari were in a league of their own this day, and would have locked out the first four places if it wasn't for an unfortunate incident between Adrian Holm and Ekroth. Going into the Ascari chicane, a place which had jinxed Ekroth on several occasions in the past, Adrian attempted to pass the Renault on the inside but there was not enough room and the two collided with damage as a result. Particularly the Renault took a hit, resulting in a catch-up game for Ekroth during the rest of the race. Adrian also dropped a few positions during his pit visit. Instead, Bohlin inherited third place, which he kept to the finish line. Holm won the race with a mere 0,2 second marging to Locksey, an epic battle where the Brit never found a way past the Red Bull despite some frantic efforts. Vilis in the Lotus was best of the rest, ahead of Adrian Holm, Andersson and Walter.

Singapore

Two weeks after Italy, Formula One had moved out of Europe and into Singapore in time for the Singapore GP, a calendar highlight with its city scape background and the intense night lighting. FP1 was a huge disappointment for the crowds though, as only six cars were officially timed. Brevitz in the Sauber was quickest, followed by Locksey and Ekroth. FP2 was topped by Reiko Lill, who had become somewhat of a city circuit specialist. He took his McLaren around the dusty circuit almost 1,4 seconds quicker than anyone else. Renault were seen hard at work on Ekroth's car all the way through FP2 but finally fixed the electical issue in time for Q1. Waltgård in his Mercedes was the only car knocked out before Q3, the other cars proceeded to Q3 where it became a three way battle for pole. Holm grabbed pole position after a brilliant lap, ahead of his main rival Locksey, who pipped Lill to the front row by four thousands of a second. After the top three, there was a 1,7 second gap down to Teeorg in P4.

The race saw a pile of incidents, the first ones as early as on the first lap. Karlsson in the Toro Rosso did a great start and was running P4 when he lost the car and hit the wall at turn 19. Ekroth could not avoid the STR which bounced out into the racing line and the two collided. On the next lap, Teeorg hit the curbs too hard in turn 12, right before the Anderson bridge, crashed hard into the barriers, and was out of the race. Race leader Kristoffer Holm fell victim of the severe curbs at turn 10 as he was airborne for a short moment and hit the concrete wall with severe damage as a result. Holm was able to continue, but it took two visits to the pits before his car was drivable. Brevitz and Karlsson also took fatal hits from the barriers as they had to abort their races after crashes.

In the end, Locksey came out victorious after a pretty much spotless race, ahead of Lill in the McLaren. Andersson drove a great race from the back of the grid and finished P3, ahead of Bohlin, who had to resort to making a very late pit stop due to a heavier tyre degradation than the team had anticipated. Holm eventually finished P5 after a good comeback.

Japan

The legendary Suzuka circuit in Japan was once again host to the Japanese Grand Prix, a circuit hailed by the drivers as one of the best in the sport. FP1 saw Holkedahl back in action as he crushed the competition in FP1, going over a second quicker than anyone else. FP2 however, was a bit upside down with Holkedahl focusing on longer runs. Instead, Andersson topped the time sheets with Kaseväli and Ekroth following close behind. Technical issues for Laanela and Lill prevented them from making more than the installation laps. Qualifying became a tighter story than usual as no less than six cars were separated by less than half a second. Bohlin took pole ahead of Holkedahl, with Holm and Lill in second row. The two Ferraris were in third row with Adrian Holm ahead of Locksey.

The race saw Locksey charge furiously from his P6 grid position, and it took only twelve laps before the Brit had taken the lead. After that, he never looked back and left the competitors dead in the water. However, with only two laps to go, disaster struck when the Ferrari engine failed massively with a plume of fire and smoke. Instead, Bohlin inherited first place and won the race ahead of Adrian Holm, followed by Kristoffer Holm in third. Holkedahl drove a good race until he aborted after 33 laps, seemingly for no reason other than losing places to Lill and Holm due to some minor driver mistakes. Andersson, who finished P4, complained after the race about being on a tight margin for the tyres. He did however succeed at keeping a heavily charging Lill at bay, finishing less than a second ahead of the Estonian.

Korea

Yeongam in South Korea welcomed Formula One to the first ever Korean Grand Prix. The new Tilke-designed circuit was received with mixed emotions, with some drivers complaining loudly about the layout. FP1 was topped by Kristoffer Holm, an unusual sight, as the Red Bull team up to that point had usually concentrated on long stints during FP1. The session also saw the return of old time ace Hans Mörtsjö, who had taken a long timeout from the sport due to personal reasons. FP2 was topped by Ekroth in the Renault, just ahead of Holm and Andersson.

Qualifying saw Kristoffer Holm being quickest in all three sessions, grabbing pole position by a clear margin ahead of Locksey. Andersson was the man of the day as he defeated both Adrian Holm and Bohlin, making it to the second row on the grid, the Brazilian's best qualifying for a long time. The surprise of the day was Sten Teeorg, who went to extreme lengths and aborted his whole F1 career after an outburst once Q1 was over, not so much due to the circuit as out of frustration with the Sauber car and its lack of handling.

The race saw several accidents, the earliest one involving Ekroth, who spun and hit the concrete wall already during the formation lap. Walter was the second victim as he lost his car after being in contact with Karlsson's Toro Rosso and putting his rear wheel onto the grass. Holkedahl also lost his car and spun into a concrete wall after riding a curb too aggressively in turn 8. Adrian Holm was the last victim after driving a good race up to the point where he put two wheels onto the grass and hit hit the same wall as Ekroth faced on the formation lap. He made it back into racing after extensive repairs but had to abort after crashing a second time. Locksey was able to take the lead early and did not let go of it even though he faced heavy pressure from Holm in the final part of the race. Bohlin finished P3, ahead of Andersson.

Brazil

Almost a month after Korea, it was time to visit Brazil and Interlagos for the penultimate race of the season. Holm continued Red Bull's revised way to work in FP1 by going quickest, tightly followed by Andersson and surprise man of the day, Hans Mörtsjö, who made a late season comeback after his earlier FP1 shakedown in Korea. The Swede topped the time sheets for a while but was passed by Holm and Andersson late in the session. Still, the Mercedes looked surprisingly good. FP2 saw championship contender Locksey going quickest, followed by Ekroth and Mörtsjö, who again looked convincing in the Mercedes car. On the noteworthy side, Bohlin had to sit out both of the sessions due to car issues, which ultimately lead to the lack of his participation in the qualifying sessions. Holm made up for that by going fastest in Q1, and when Q3 came on, he crushed the competition by securing pole position with more than four tenths of a second to Locksey. Adrian Holm and Andersson made it to the second row, followed by Walter and Ekroth in third. Mörtsjö continued his great performance by finishing P7, his best Q3 qualifying since Japan 2009.

Come race day, the Swede had to abort the race after 32 laps however, complaining about numbness in one of his arms. Nonetheless, a solid comeback from the old time ace. The race became a tight story for second place, but no one could touch Kristoffer Holm that day. Runner-up Locksey was challenged heavily from behind by home hero Andersson, but to the crowd's disappointment, the Renault did not have the edge it took to make it past the Ferrari. Still a fantastic performance by Andersson though, finishing more than 25 seconds ahead of Bohlin. By the victory, Red Bull had secured the constructor's championship, but the driver's championship was still wide open, delaying the WDC crowning ceremony to the final race in Abu Dhabi.

Abu Dhabi

With two weeks since Brazil, Formula One had reached its final stop of 2011, the spectacular Yas Marina circuit in Abu Dhabi. The excitement had been gradually built up over the season, and now time had come to crown a driver's world champion. Kristoffer Holm had the upper hand on Locksey, as it was not enough for Locksey to win the race, he needed to have someone else ahead of Kristoffer to be victorious. That fate natually fell, somewhat ironically, on Adrian Holm, Kristoffer's younger brother and Locksey's team mate. FP1 saw Locksey go quickest around the tricky circuit, followed by Holm and Andersson. Returning hero Mörtsjö made his 2011 goodbye appearance in FP1 as he would not be able to participate in the rest of the weekend. Renault looked surprisingly strong, something that was confirmed when Ekroth was quickest during FP2, ahead of Locksey and Bohlin. Olofsson, another comeback driver, made a great show and lapped his Lotus quick enough to end fourth fastest.

Qualifying became another Red Bull vs. Ferrari battle, this time with Bohlin on pole, ahead of championship challenger Locksey, with Adrian Holm in P3, a crucial result for Ferrari and Locksey. Behind the top four, Walter qualified P5 followed by Andersson and Ekroth, turning the race into a potential Williams vs. Renault battle for fifth place. Olofsson performed well in the qualifying but crashed late in Q2. Despite advancing to Q3, Olofsson was not able to participate, locking him to 10th place on the grid. Holkedahl advanced to Q2 but decided to abort after Q1, complaining loudly about the layout of the circuit.

The race quickly became a one man show as Locksey grabbed the lead early and then simply vanished into the Arabian night. The Brit was driving on steroids, but was at the same time stuck with his fate in the hands of other drivers. Adrian Holm had made it into the ever so vital second place early in the race, only to see Kristoffer pass him again. The Norwegian fought hard but never managed to get past his brother again. Instead he was challenged by Bohlin late in the race, and with only a lap to go, the Ferrari engine gave up, a fate that seems to have put a spell on the Italian team in Abu Dhabi. Instead, Bohlin inherited third place, which he kept to the checkered flag. Locksey won the race in style, more than forty seconds ahead of the Red Bulls, but it still wasn't enough to win the championship. Instead, Kristoffer became the 2011 driver's champion, winning the title by a single point.

Behind Bohlin, Andersson drove another great race and was less than a second after the Red Bull. P5 was Walter, who had a great fight with Ekroth during the race, but the Renault had to make two stops to make the tyres last, thus losing the fight. All in all the race had been as dramatic as you could expect from a title decider, and Red Bull had come out on top in both of the championships, a fantastic comeback after a disappointing 2010 season. As the circuit floodlights went out, the party lights came on as the teams celebrated the end of a long and intense season.

With only four months to the 2012 premiere, the rest will not last for a long time though. Who will race for what team, who will be quick and who will not in 2012? Will Locksey finally grab the title he so much deserves? Do not miss next year when the excitement continues! Until then, have a good and relaxing holiday season, and see you all in 2012.

Published 2011-12-28 by Jörgen Ekroth | Edit