ThePitcrewOnline

14th February 201810th March 2018

IndyCar Season Preview (Part 2)

Indycar, Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, Dixon, Kimball, Jones, Rahal, Chilton, Aleshin, , Action, Drivers

Following on from part one, here’s a continued look at what’s to be expected of the 2018 IndyCar season.

Schmidt Peterson Motorsports

Schmidt enjoyed a relatively good season in 2017 but it was all a bit odd when Mikhail Aleshin was first benched for Toronto and then removed from the team altogether before Pocono.

On the other side of the garage, James Hinchcliffe successfully completed another season without nearly killing himself (see Indy 500, 2015, if that is lost on you). He finally scored his first win since his Indy accident at Long Beach – for someone who was told he’d never walk -let alone race – again, he’s come an awful long way.

Joining the Canadian is fellow compatriot Robert Wickens who has made the jump back over the pond after competing in GP3, Formula Renault 3.5 and more recently DTM. He’ll be looking to learn all he can from Hinchcliffe in his rookie season, although ovals are going to be a new experience for him entirely.

Dale Coyne Racing

Having started so well, 2017 was clearly a disappointment for Dale Coyne – one qualifying run wrecked their season, just like that. Credit where credit is due to Jones for holding the team together in Bourdais’ absence, the youngster didn’t win rookie of the year for nothing.

It was all going so well, Bourdais won the first race, was second in the next and was leading the championship for the first three races before two bad races dropped him down the order. However, all that became insignificant during Q1 at the Indy 500 when Bourdais lost control of his car at 227 mph, he broke his pelvis on impact and unsurprisingly, didn’t return until the third to last race. Clearly, the Indy 500 is going to be a hard one for Bourdais to return to but, like Hinchcliffe did in 2016, he’ll just get on with it and try to not think about the previous year.

Coyne have lost a number of sponsors over the off-season so they ended up splitting the #19 drive to allow for more driver money to come in. Pietro Fittipaldi, grandson of Emerson, and Zachary Claman De Melo will share that drive with Fittipaldi doing seven races, including the Indy 500, and De Melo the other ten. Both drivers will need to learn fast, given they haven’t got as much track time as other rookies but, with Bourdais in the other car, they’ve got a decent driver to learn from.

Ed Carpenter Racing (ECR)

ECR were about as anonymous as they always seem to be these days in 2017. JR Hildebrand had a very hit and miss season with two podiums but only one other top 10 finish while Carpenter and Spencer Pigot shared the other car, with neither finding much success.

For 2017, Hildebrand’s out and Pigot has been moved up to the full-time #21 car while ex-F2 driver Jordan King will fill Pigot’s space in the #20 alongside Carpenter. It’s, other than Carpenter, a fairly inexperienced line up and the drive share in the #20 car never seems to do much good for anyone but that’s the way it’s been for the last few years.

A.J. Foyt Enterprises

Foyt really struggled in 2017 with neither Carlos Munoz nor Conor Daly able to get anything resembling a decent result out of the car. With that in mind, Foyt are attempting to tackle 2018 from a different angle and with a completely new driver line up.

After his fall-out with Chip Ganassi, Kannan has joined Foyt; the IndyCar veteran takes a clear number one status with the team as he is partnered alongside rookie Matheus Leist. 2018 will be a true test of Foyt’s worth as a team with a driver of TK’s calibre on board – we all know what TK can do and soon, we’ll know if Foyt can live up to that.

Carlin

The first of the new teams for 2018 is Carlin; a well-known name in whatever European single-seaters series you look at, Carlin have made the jump over to America to put a top rung on their career ladder. F1 was never going to be a viable option for the British team so they’ve turned to IndyCar to provide their drivers with somewhere to go if they can’t get into F1.

Chilton will be reunited with Carlin after spending a sizeable amount of his pre-F1 career with the team. The Brit is yet to have his breakthrough season in IndyCar so, with a team of Carlin’s competence, 2018 might be just that.

Alongside Chilton will be his old Ganassi teammate Kimball. If there was trouble last year, Kimball always seemed to be in it – whether he found it or it found him, he got into a few too many incidents. Like Chilton, the American is yet to have his breakthrough season, if Carlin can pull it off, both drivers could get their wish.

Harding Racing

It’s been a long time coming but Harding have finally made the upgrade from being a come-and-go Indy 500 and a few others kind of team to a full-time IndyCar team. After running three races, including Indy, last year, Harding are doing the full season with Gabby Chaves who himself makes his return to full-time IndyCar.

They are a small team but, having had a few seasons on the edge of IndyCar, Harding know their way around the paddock and Chaves has been in and around the series since 2015. The playing field has been somewhat levelled with the universal aero kit so it’s a lot easier for new teams to come in however, that doesn’t mean it isn’t still going to be a struggle for all three new teams.

Juncos Racing

The third and final new team to IndyCar is Juncos who will field a shared car, driven by Rene Binder and their Indy Lights champion Kyle Kaiser. Juncos themselves make the jump up to IndyCar after multiple successful seasons in Indy Lights but, unlike Harding, they don’t have any experience of one-off races to help them.

Binder will participate in four of the street races dotted throughout the season while Kaiser will do the rest, including the Indy 500. Both are young drivers with amazing potential so this will be a good opportunity for them to show what they’re worth.

That concludes our team-by-team look at the season ahead. With the new universal aero kits coming in, the field should be closer than ever with more drivers and teams able to fight for wins and the championship. This should be a good one!

2018 IndyCar Calendar:

(O) – Oval, (R) – Road/Circuit

March 11 – St. Petersburg (R)

April 7 – Phoenix (O)

April 15 – Long Beach (R)

April 22 – Birmingham (R)

May 12 – Indianapolis (R)

May 27 – Indianapolis 500 (O)

June 2 – Detroit-Belle Isle (R)

June 3 – Detroit-Belle Isle (R)

June 9 – Texas (O)

June 24 – Road America (R)

July 8 – Iowa (O)

July 15 – Toronto (R)

July 29 – Mid-Ohio (R)

August 19 – Pocono (O)

August 25 – Gateway (O)

September 2 – Portland (R)

September 16 – Sonoma (R)

By Emily Inganni 20/02/18

Imagine courtesy of Honda Media Europe

14th February 201814th February 2018

Haas F1 Team Reveals its 2018 Car, the Haas VF-18

Haas VF-18 First Out the Gate

Haas F1 Team Unveils Racecar for 2018 FIA Formula One World Championship

KANNAPOLIS, North Carolina (Feb. 14, 2018) – Haas F1 Team’s 2018 challenger in the FIA Formula One World Championship, the VF-18, made its official debut today via the organization’s social media platforms and website.

The VF-18 is an evolution of the team’s second car, the VF-17, which carried Haas F1 Team to an eighth-place finish in the 2017 constructors standings. Forty-seven points were scored by the VF-17 during Haas F1 Team’s sophomore season, 18 points more than the total earned in the organization’s debut season in 2016.

Incorporating “VF” into the name of the car is a nod to the history of Haas Automation, the team’s title sponsor. The first CNC machine manufactured by Haas Automation was the VF-1 in 1988. The “V” stands for vertical, which is an industry standard designation for a vertical mill. Gene Haas, founder of Haas Automation, added “F1” to the name to unofficially designate it as the company’s “Very First One”.

As chairman of Haas F1 Team, the “F1” moniker of that first machine has taken on added significance as Haas utilizes Formula One to build Haas Automation into a premium, global brand.

“People see what we can do in Formula One and people believe Haas Automation can build world-class machine tools,” said Haas, whose entry in 2016 became the first American Formula One team since 1986. “Being a Formula One participant brings a level of credibility that you just won’t get through traditional advertising.”

Haas has built Haas Automation into the largest machine tool manufacturer in North America by focusing on the details amid constant refinement. He has applied those same attributes to Haas F1 Team.

“We eliminated a lot of the variables where we knew we were weak,” Haas said. “We’ve focused on what it’s going to take to get our car to be consistent and close that gap to the top teams.”

Beyond refinement, the VF-18 carries the significant addition of the halo and a drastic reduction in the sharkfin.

“The biggest part of the car’s evolution was the addition of the halo,” said Guenther Steiner, team principal, Haas F1 Team. “It took quite a bit of study by the aerodynamicists, but the designers had to work hard to modify the chassis so the halo could survive the mandated loads. The total minimum weight of the car increased because of the halo, and there’s a higher center of gravity simply because of the halo’s position. But, everyone is in the same boat.

“The regulations stayed pretty stable between 2017 and 2018, so the VF-18 is an evolution of our car from last year. It’s less about reinvention and more about refinement. You see elements we had from last year on the car this year.

“Our 2017 car was actually pretty good, but we didn’t always get the best out of it, and that’s what we aimed to change in 2018. We got the car as light as possible to carry more ballast. We were able to do a better job of putting the weight where we wanted it.”

The corporate colors of Haas Automation were carried over to the VF-18. Gray makes up the majority of the livery, augmented with tones of red and black that incorporates the look of Haas Automation’s complete line of vertical and horizontal machining centers, turning centers and rotary tables and indexers. Approximately 1,300 employees encompass Haas Automation, with the Oxnard, California-based company exporting its machines to more than 60 countries. The VF-18 showcases Haas Automation’s commitment to technology and innovation to a passionate, global audience.

“The livery is a little bit of a return to what we had on our first car, the VF-16,” Steiner added. “Its look is clean and precise, just like the machine tools made by Haas Automation.”

The VF-18 tests at Circuit de Barcelona – Catalunya Feb. 26-March 1 and again March 6-9 before the season-opening Australian Grand Prix March 25 in Melbourne.

-HaasF1Team-

Haas F1 Team debuted in the FIA Formula One World Championship in 2016, becoming the first American Formula One team since 1986. Founded by industrialist Gene Haas, Haas F1 Team is based in the United States on the same Kannapolis, North Carolina, campus as his championship-winning NASCAR team, Stewart-Haas Racing. Haas is the founder of Haas Automation, the largest CNC machine tool builder in North America, and he is chairman of Haas F1 Team.

Haas Automation, Inc., is America’s leading builder of CNC machine tools. Founded by Gene Haas in 1983, Haas Automation manufactures a complete line of vertical and horizontal machining centers, turning centers and rotary tables and indexers. All Haas products are built in the company’s 102,000 square-meter (1.1 million square-foot) manufacturing facility in Oxnard, California, and distributed through a worldwide network of Haas Factory Outlets that provides the industry’s best sales, service and support while offering unparalleled cost-to-performance value. For more information, please visit us on the Web at www.HaasCNC.com, on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/HaasAutomationInc, on Twitter @Haas_Automation and on Instagram @Haas_Automation.

14th February 201813th February 2018

Would reviving the ToCA Computer Game series be a success?

Do you ever get the feeling of instant nostalgia? You hear a certain song or visit a certain place, and all these fond memories flood your brain. Well how about nostalgia for a video game?

Cast your minds back to 1997, and now renowned video game creators Codemasters release ToCA Touring Car Championship, a game based on the official 1997 season of the British Touring Car Championship. I get instant nostalgia whenever I play this game, the sound of the Super Touring era engines, the somewhat reassuring voice of Tiff Needell, and pure high octane racing.

The question being posed here is; would a reboot of this once iconic franchise bear any fruit?

The original game sold 600,000 copies in the UK and Europe, and helped propel Codemasters to huge success, with a huge stable of critically acclaimed racing games in its catalogue. These include the Colin McRae/DiRT series, the ToCA series, and of course the Formula One games.

The ToCA series was great, the first two games focused completely on the BTCC, offering you arcade modes, hilarious cheat modes, and an enthralling championship mode. While later additions to the series would expand and offer players the chance to test various racing series’.

The pitfalls of the first ToCA games were of course the limitations of software at the time. The PlayStation, god bless it, was revolutionary in the 90’s, but the graphics look a tad dated 20 years later. However with the new generation of gaming allowing for 4K resolution graphics, there’s so much scope for a hugely immersive BTCC themed game.

There are many junior categories under the ToCA name, such as British F4 and the Ginetta Junior Championship. Imagine a career mode where you start at the bottom, in F4, fighting for the championship while being in the same paddock as the likes of Matt Neal, Jason Plato and Colin Turkington?

Having to work up through the junior categories, impressing the big teams and working your way to the BTCC? The Formula One games are proof that Codemasters can do an immersive and rewarding career mode. Should they be able to obtain the licence to the ToCA series again, it could prove to be a hugely successful game.

That all sounds great right? But the counter argument of this is; is there any need or demand for it?

People who have fond memories of the original ToCA games are crying out for a revival of the beloved series, myself included. But with PC games such as iRacing and rFactor facilitating ‘mods’ to create any racing series they want to, does it render the need for a standalone BTCC game pointless?

There are various ‘modifications’ to these games available, even one which replicates the 1998 season perfectly, with faithfully restored cars and updated graphics. Check out this video of the ‘mod’ in action by ‘sim racing’ YouTuber Jimmy Broadbent.

Another possible issue is the global draw. Codemasters’ Formula One games are so successful because F1 is a globally watched sport, while Touring Cars are watched all over the world, thanks in part to the World Touring Car Championship, it is nowhere near as watched as the ‘pinnacle of motorsport’ that is F1.

In spite of these possible drawbacks, the British crowd would lap up a game where they can throw these souped-up road cars round Donington, round Thruxton, round Rockingham with the hope of being BTCC champion.

With the aforementioned career mode, and the ability to play online with friends, two things which the old ToCA games didn’t have, Codemasters could really resurrect the vintage franchise in a brilliant way!

13th February 2018

Pirelli’s Rainbow – Karun Chandhok’s Guide To F1 Tyres In 2018 | Mobil 1 The Grid

Check out the newest video from Mobil 1 The Grid in which Karun Chandhok provides an insight into the enduring importance of tyres in F1, and why this year’s Pirelli range is a step in the right direction for the sport.

Make sure that you follow Mobil 1 The Grid:
Website: mobil1thegrid.com
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12th February 201812th February 2018

IndyCar Season Preview (Part 1)

The new IndyCar season is just a matter of weeks away and, with testing in full swing, here’s a look at what to expect in the season ahead.

Before we get onto 2018, let’s take a quick look back at 2017.

Four drivers dominated while Penske reigned supreme once more on the team’s front. Those four drivers were Josef Newgarden, Simon Pagenaud, Helio Castroneves (all Penske) and Scott Dixon (Chip Ganassi) with the former being crowned champion after an edgy duel at the season finale at Sonoma.

The other Penske, Will Power, had horrendous bad luck all season long with bad result after bad result ruling him out of any chance of a performance to resemble 2016.

Elsewhere, IndyCar veteran Sebastien Bourdais started with a season that was almost too good to be true and, unfortunately for both the Frenchman and team Dale Coyne, it was. A monster crash at the Indy 500 left Bourdais with a fractured pelvis, all but ending his season.

Speaking of the Indy 500, a certain Fernando Alonso made a headline appearance only for his Honda machinery to let him down once more while it was ex-F1 driver Takuma Sato who took the victory.

Let’s have a look ahead at what the season has in store…

Team Penske

Penske come into 2018 as the team to beat after an incredibly successful past couple of years. Back-to-back titles with first Pagenaud in 2016 and then Newgarden in 2017 means that Penske have some living up to if they’re to top that.

For Newgarden, the golden boy of IndyCar, anything short of a title challenge will be considered a disappointment, following his remarkable 2017 season. Few would ever doubt Newgarden’s talents, he’s a driver who’s been looked at by multiple F1 teams and is widely considered to be one of the best on the IndyCar grid. However, very few people expected him to triumph in his first year at Penske; sure, he’d won a race at Ed Carpenter Racing the year previous but even so, a year of learning was expected from Newgarden. No one seemed to tell him that though as the young American gave his much more experienced teammates a proper wake-up call.

2016 champion Pagenaud will be looking to act upon that wake-up from Newgarden in 2018. Many expected the Frenchman to put a very strong fight for his title and maybe even retain it however, we expected him to be fighting against Power, Dixon, Castroneves and Graham Rahal – in other words, the old guard. Yet no, Pagenaud had to attempt to fend off attack after attack from his new teammate as well as all the older drivers. This accumulated to a blow out at Gateway where Newgarden infuriated Pagenaud by passing in very close quarters through Turn 3. Keeping his head wasn’t one of Pagenaud’s strong points in 2017 so that’ll defiantly be something he’ll want to change for the upcoming season if he’s to put Penske’s youngster back in his place.

Will Power was often forgotten during 2017; after a matter of races he became irrelevant to the championship following a streak of incidents and failures. After taking Pagenaud right down to the wire in 2016, this came as a massive disappointment to both Power and Penske but, given his clear talent, it’s a season that everyone expects him to come back stronger from. They call those tough seasons “character building” and they are needed every once in a while, to keep a driver in check – Power will be hoping that all that is consigned to the history books as he bids for his second title.

Penske is just three-man team in 2018 after Castroneves, as they did with Juan Pablo Montoya last year, was transferred to Penske’s sports car campaign. It was felt that Castroneves’ time in IndyCar was up and, unfortunately, the Brazilian leaves the series having never won a championship.

Chip Ganassi Racing

Ganassi has a fresh look to it for 2018 after Max Chilton, Tony Kannan and Charlie Kimball all parted ways with owner Chip following multiple high-profile fall outs. Their star driver, Dixon, however, is staying on for another year with Chip and his team. The title is very much on their agenda while the full support of the team is expected to be but behind Dixon, rather than Ed Jones.

Dixon comes off the back of a mixed but mostly successful season; his huge, aerial crash at the Indy 500 and subsequent ankle injury hampered his outings at Detroit and Texas – damaging his titles hopes as a result. Despite this, he found himself leading the championship for six races during the mid-season before being eventually passed by Newgarden. He’ll be hoping to keep his feet, well car, firmly on the ground this season while putting in a strong challenge for the title. The 37-year old is still looking for his record-breaking fifth title.

Alongside the vastly experienced Dixon will be 2017’s rookie of the year, Jones. 2017 should’ve been the year that Jones learnt his craft in IndyCar alongside Bourdais at Daye Coyne however, that all went a bit wrong, what with the Frenchman’s Indy 500 crash. Suddenly, Jones found himself having to lead a team with the merry-go-round of drivers in the #18 car; a hard ask for anyone, let alone a rookie. Nonetheless, Jones showed immense maturity and skill, delivering some very impressive results and landing himself a seat at Ganassi. 2018 should be a continuation of the learning with Dixon clearly the teams number 1 driver.

Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing (RLL)

The once solo affair of RLL is expanding to two full-time cars for 2018 with long-time driver Rahal (his father Bobby Rahal co-owns the team, if you were wondering) being partnered by the 2017 Indy 500 winner Takuma Sato.

Rahal is a very respected figure in the paddock and it’s a wonder how he still doesn’t have a title to his name. He put in a relatively strong showing for 2017 with his only two wins coming at Detroit, a track that he’s dominated at for as long as anyone can remember. The car was just never quite there and Rahal got into a few incidents that he need of not. With another car to draw data from, the hope is that RLL will be much more competitive in 2018.

Alongside Rahal will be Sato who jumped ship from Andretti after the owners dithered around as to whether they were going to stay with Honda or not. Sato’s highlight of 2017 was by far and away his unexpected win at the Indy 500 over Castroneves. He’s expected to back up and maybe challenge Rahal for 2018, providing valuable data and track time for the team in the meantime.

Andretti Autosport

Andretti, if I’m being honest, were a bit of a disappointment last year; yes, they won the Indy 500 and yes, they ran Alonso but their highest placed driver in the championship was only seventh. Clearly, improvement is needed at Andretti if they’re to restore their place as title challengers, if not winners.

Alexander Rossi finally secured his second win in IndyCar in 2017 at Watkins Glen to go along with his rather fluky 2016 Indy 500 win. This was an important milestone for Rossi because it proved the doubters wrong, he showed that he could win a race purely on ability, rather than clever strategy and luck. This and more is expected of the ex-F1 driver as he looks to spearhead Andretti’s title challenge.

Ryan Hunter-Reay and Marco Andretti will line up alongside Rossi again with both drivers hoping to keep Rossi in order, reminding the world that Andretti isn’t just a one-man band.

The RLL bound Sato has been replaced by IndyCar rookie Zach Veach who makes the step up after three seasons in Indy Lights. It’s expected to be a learning year for the young American and, with three experienced teammates alongside him, that should be easier for him than some.

Keep an eye out for part two with the second half of the teams…

9th February 2018

Rally Sweden 2018 Preview!

Its time for Round Two! The WRC heads for the amazing snow-covered roads of Sweden, one of the fastest rallies of the year! Helping the drivers keep a grip will be the special tyres that Michelin bring.

Two centimetres narrower that their gravel equivalent, and a full five centimetres narrower than the tarmac version, Michelin’s “Sweden” tyre mainly stands out due to the 384 studs glued into drilled holes on the tyre tread. The studs provide such a high level of grip that at equivalent speeds, the braking distances are the same as on dry tarmac! The challenge in Sweden therefore consists of taking great care of these twenty-millimetre-long spikes, which protrude around seven millimetres from the tread blocks. The Scandinavian rally is also one of the few events where taking two spare wheels, especially on the second pass when gravel begins to appear and lines form, actually helps performance. The challenge is to switch tyres at the right moment, so that the studs wear out evenly, and avoid having an uneven tyre set-up.

This year there are 19 stages and a total of 314,25 competitive km’s.

FIA WORLD RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP 2017 -WRC Sweden (SWE) – WRC 09/02/2017 to 12/02/2017 – PHOTO : @World

Here’s the full details of the stages!

THURSDAY 15 FEBRUARY

8.00am: shakedown (Skalla)

8.04pm: Start day 1 (Karlstad)

8.08pm: SS 1 – Karlstad (1,90 km)

9.54pm: End of day 1

FRIDAY 16 FEBRUARY

6.00am: Start day 2 and Service A (Torsby – 15 mins)

7.55am: SS 2 – Hof-Finnskog 1 (21,26 km)

9.07am: SS 3 – Svullrya 1 (24,88 km)

9.54am: SS 4 – Röjden 1 (19,13 km)

11.31am: Service B (Torsby – 30 mins)

1.41pm: SS 5 – Hof-Finnskog 2 (21,26 km)

3.03pm: SS 6 – Svullrya 2 (24,88 km)

3.50pm: SS 7 – Röjden 2 (19,13 km)

4.56pm: SS 8 – Torsby 1 (9,56 km)

5.31pm: Flexi Service C (Torsby – 45 mins)

SATURDAY 17 FEBRUARY

7.05am: Start day 3 and Service D (Torsby – 15 mins)

7.54am: SS 9 – Torntorp 1 (19,88 km)

9.12am: SS 10 – Hagfors 1 (23,40 km)

10.08am: SS 11 – Vargasen 1 (14,21 km)

11.40am: Service E (Torsby – 30 mins)

12.44pm: SS 12 – Torntorp 2 (19,88 km)

2.12pm: SS 13 – Hagfors 2 (23,40 km)

3.08pm: SS 14 – Vargasen 2 (14,21 km)

5.45pm: SS 15 – Karlstad 2 (1,90 km)

7.26pm: SS 16 – Torsby Sprint (3,43 km)

7.56pm: Flexi Service F (Torsby – 45 mins)

SUNDAY 18 FEBRUARY

6.30am: Start day 4 and Service G (Torsby – 15 mins)

7.50am: SS 17 – Likenäs 1 (21,19 km)

9.51am: SS 18 – Likenäs 2 (21,19 km)

12.18pm: SS 19 – Torsby 2 (9,56 km)

1.00pm: Podium (Torsby)

Here’s the views of all the teams then!

M-Sport Ford

Sébastien Ogier

“It looks as though we are in for a true winter rally next week with everything needed for a classic Rally Sweden. Reports from the region suggest that there’s a good ice base and high snow banks which is everything a driver wants to hear ahead of this event.

“In those conditions, we can reach incredible speeds and lean the cars on the snow banks to help guide us through the corners. It’s an amazing feeling, but it’s not without its challenges.

“There’s certainly an art to driving on snow and you need to be precise. You have to judge the strength of the snow banks perfectly and – with more snow than previous years – there could be a lot of work to do on the Pacenotes.

“As the first car on the road, we’ll also have to wait and see what the conditions are like and we’re certainly not hoping to see any fresh snow on Friday.

“We got the season off to a great start last month, but we all know how strong the competition is and we’re expecting it to be even stronger next week. The Scandinavians are always strong here, but we plan to give them a hard time and secure another strong haul of points for our championship defence.”

Elfyn Evans

“Rally Sweden is an event that everyone looks forward to. On a classic Rally Sweden – like what we’re expecting this year – we can reach incredible speeds and if you get it right it’s easily one of the most enjoyable rallies on the calendar.

“The feeling on snow isn’t a million miles away from driving on gravel, but there are certain techniques that we’ll need to adapt and it can take a bit of getting used to at first.

“Vision can often be a challenge – particularly if there is a lot of fresh snow making it difficult to read the road ahead. Our Pacenotes and recce are going to have to be spot on, but we’re ready for it and really looking forward to it.

“There’s something of a score to settle after Monte where we were capable of achieving more than we did, so let’s see what we can do in Sweden.”

Teemu Suninen

“We’ve just completed some good test kilometres in Northern Sweden which went really well. I’ve not driven the Fiesta WRC since last year’s Rally Finland, so that gave us a chance to get familiar with the car and we’re now feeling well prepared for the start of the rally.

“It would be amazing to challenge for a podium again. Perhaps that is a realistic goal, but we would have to deliver the perfect rally to achieve it. With eight events this year, we also have to consider a slightly different approach. In 2017, we were solely focused on our future and showing what we could do, but this time we also have to think about the team and scoring points for the manufacturers’ championship.

“In terms of the weather, there have been talks of freezing temperatures and high snow banks but we’ll have to wait for the recce before we can see for ourselves. Whatever the conditions, the speed is always high. On a rally as fast as this the seconds are harder to gain, and we will have to be on the pace from the very first stage.”

Citroen Abu Dhabi WRT

Kris Meeke

“It looks like we going to get perfect winter conditions this year and like all the WRC drivers, I can’t wait to get started! In the last few seasons, with a limited amount of snow, you had to be very cautious or risk getting stuck in a snow bank after the slightest impact. The snow banks seem to be bigger and more compact this time around, so we’ll undoubtedly be able to drive more aggressively and use the banks more, although we may need a bit of time to get used to that. In any event, it’s an exciting challenge that I’m going to try and tackle with the same sensible approach as in Monte-Carlo.”

Craig Breen

“Between the start and end of last season, the C3 WRC made a lot of progress on gravel, so I hope it’ll be the same on snow and ice. Especially as Sweden is one of my favourite rallies, and one where I feel really confident. In fact, I had my very first race in a WRC here in 2014 and also made my maiden appearance in Sweden with Citroën Racing in 2016. After a difficult Monte, I’d love to get decent points on the board. And it looks like the road conditions will be perfect for this year’s rally, with really solid snow banks that are forgiving if you make a relatively minor mistake.”

Mads Ostberg

“Rally Sweden is a special event for me and I have always been quick here, so I’m very happy to have this opportunity to rejoin the team. I’m hoping to make the most of the shakedown at Satory and then the day of pre-event testing to adapt quickly to the C3 WRC. In any case, I’m already up to speed in these conditions, having contested two winter rallies in Norway, the second of which I won. With the bigger snow banks this year, the roads are likely to be narrower and more technically demanding, so perhaps we Scandinavians may be able to take advantage of our greater experience in conditions like these.”

Toyota Gazoo WRT

Jari-Matti Latvala

“Sweden is one of my favourite rallies and actually the place where I took my first WRC victory 10 years ago – although it really doesn’t feel like so long ago! Compared to last year I think we have a better car: we concentrated on improving it on the slower and more technical sections during our test, and we definitely made a step forward in this area. Having said that, the competition is even tougher this year: within our own team as well. It’s going to be a really nice challenge in proper winter conditions and that of course helps me raise my own game; I’m confident we can fight for the win again. This weekend I’m also taking part in a local rally on snow in Finland with Juho Hänninen in my historic Toyota Celica, so this will be a lot of fun and the perfect way to prepare.”

Ott Tänak

“I’m still learning about the Yaris WRC, but after driving it on snow during the test I’m beginning to understand why Jari-Matti won in Sweden last year. For the first part of the rally we’ll just have to see how everything goes, but of course I’m hoping that we can fight for the podium and even the win. If the snow is heavy on the stages, which seems to be the case, our start position of second on the road won’t be ideal, but of course the weather can change. I’m just going to enjoy the weekend and do my best. There’s a lot more still to come.”

Esapekka Lappi

“It took me a few days to get over the disappointment of losing fourth place in Monte-Carlo on the last stage, but in the end, there were more positives than negatives. Up to that point, we had driven a very consistent rally, and my aim is to do the same in Sweden. We had a good test and did around 400 kilometres in two days, which was enough for me to get a good feel. Our car should be well-suited to Sweden but it’s a very different type of rally to Monte-Carlo: in Monte, sometimes you have to be brave by going slow enough, whereas in Sweden you need a different type of commitment. I didn’t compete on the rally last year, so I am missing a bit of experience, but snow is a surface I always feel comfortable on.”

Hyundai Motorsport

Andreas Mikkelsen

“Rally Sweden is a very special event for me because of the opportunity we have to go rallying across the border into my home country of Norway. We have a lot of support from fans, family and friends. It’s a beautiful event and the only one we get to tackle completely on snow and ice with proper studded tyres. They give amazing grip and the feeling is unbelievable. We expect a good number of snow banks this year, so we will be able to explore the limits.”

Thierry Neuville

“We had good speed on the Swedish and Norwegian stages last year but unfortunately things didn’t end well when we were forced to retire on the penultimate day. This year, I am aiming to challenge once again for the win but with a far better outcome. Sweden is truly a unique event; the only one where we can compete with fully studded tyres for the complete rally. As one of the fastest rallies of the season, it’s an exhilarating one from inside the cockpit and for the fans lining the stages. We want to put on a good show and, most importantly, deliver a good result.”

Hayden Paddon

“I can’t wait to get my 2018 season underway finally. It feels like a long time since we were competing in Australia. Sweden will be a fresh start for us. I have good memories from finishing on the podium two years ago, and I will be trying to repeat some of that performance. It was great to get re-acquainted with the car in testing recently. We were able to enjoy some outstanding winter driving conditions. More of that in the rally, as well as a decent result, would be the perfect start to my season.”

Now, there are lots of spectacular stages in this event, none more so than Vargasen, which features Colins Crest! Lots of fans base themselves there, just to see these amazing cars fly through the air and last year, Mads got the biggest jump of the event.

This year looks to be just as amazing! There has been a lot of snow, which means the snow banks are of very good quality!

We’ve got the returning Hayden and Mads, plus a good battle between Ott and Seb. What chance we have seeing a different driver leading the championship on Sunday afternoon?

Enjoy!

6th February 2018

F1 Season Preview: The Contenders

2017 saw the long-awaited dogfight between Hamilton and Vettel but it petered out towards the end, missing that tense showdown that everyone wanted. 2018 promises to be even better. Hamilton and Vettel will be going at it again but they could be joined by Alonso, Verstappen, Ricciardo and maybe even Bottas—some of the best drivers on the grid going all out for glory, what’s not to love?

Here we’ll take a look at the potential contenders and their hopes for 2018.

Lewis Hamilton

The reigning champion has lofty ambitions for 2018 with the Brit claiming that he’ll be “stronger than ever” and “unbeatable”. It’ll be hard for him to live up to the latter but nevertheless, he is an exceptional driver in what is still the car the beat.

A fifth world title could be looming for Hamilton which would put him ahead of Vettel, equal with Juan Manuel Fangio and behind only the great Michael Schumacher. But he won’t, by any means, have it all his own way—Mercedes dominance has been dwindling and with the Renault power units almost level with Mercedes and Ferrari, there are more drivers than ever to race him to the title.

Sebastian Vettel

2017 was, undoubtedly, a disappointment for both Vettel and Ferrari, to be leading the title for the whole first half of the season and then not win it was a huge blow for them. As such, Vettel is looking for redemption in the shape for his fifth world title—he wants to beat Hamilton to five, show that he can win titles outside Red Bull and take Ferrari back to the top.

It won’t be easy. He needs to prevent the ‘red mist’ from descending on him like it did in Baku and Singapore. But more than that, he needs Ferrari to up their game and be there for all the races, without any of the petty failures that cost him so dear in 2017. The determination on Vettel’s side will be stronger than ever, that fifth title is his sole objective for 2018.

Fernando Alonso

After three miserable years with McLaren-Honda, 2018 could be the year that Alonso is a championship contender once more. The two-time champion has been left disappointed with woeful reliability and an almost comical lack of power but now, McLaren-Honda is no more with the team instead being powered by Renault.

Over the years, the Spaniard has become renowned for being at wrong team at the wrong time but in 2018, he might actually be in a good place—a third world title for Alonso is no longer a laughable prospect.

Max Verstappen

Verstappen is one of the brightest young talents on the grid, showing his class in every race that he didn’t break down in during 2017—and even in the ones that he did. If Red Bull can start the season strong and Renault can provide a reliable power unit, few would doubt Verstappen’s ability to take a title over the likes of Hamilton, Vettel and Alonso.

The Dutchman is not one to be underestimated for 2018 and he could just give the old guard a run for their money.

Daniel Ricciardo

After spending the majority of both 2016 and 2017 in Verstappen’s shadow, Ricciardo will be desperate to show his worth and put up a proper title challenge. Few doubt Ricciardo’s talent but most think that he’ll be eclipsed by Verstappen in a straight, season-long fight.

One of the worst kept secrets of the paddock is that Ricciardo is looking around for 2019. If Red Bull don’t provide him a championship winning car for 2018, he’ll likely jump ship to either Mercedes or Ferrari so this really is Red Bull’s last chance to keep Ricciardo.

Valtteri Bottas

This season is crucial for Bottas. If he doesn’t deliver he’ll be out of a Mercedes drive. Being in the Mercedes, arguably the best car on the grid, means a sustained title challenge is expected of Bottas—whether he has the ability to deliver that or not remains to be seen.

In 2017, Bottas seemed to do best at low-grip tracks like Austria but that won’t be good enough with the added competition in 2018. He needs to deliver at all tracks to convince the F1 paddock of his worth. He can’t be counted out for a title challenge but he’s not one to put money on.

This is how the drivers stand according to SkyBet:

Lewis Hamilton – 6/5

Sebastian Vettel – 10/3

Max Verstappen – 4/1

Daniel Ricciardo – 15/2

Fernando Alonso – 11/1

Valtteri Bottas – 14/1

Kimi Raikkonen – 33/1

Carlos Sainz – 50/1

Nico Hulkenberg – 50/1

Stoffel Vandoorne – 80/1

Esteban Ocon – 150/1

Sergio Perez – 200/1

Lance Stroll – 250/1

Romain Grosjean – 250/1

Kevin Magnussen – 400/1

Brendon Hartley – 500/1

Pierre Gasly – 500/1

6th February 2018

F1 Season Preview: 5 things to watch

With the start of the F1 season nearly upon us, here are 5 things to watch out for in 2018.

McLaren-Renault

After a dismal three-year marriage, McLaren-Honda finally divorced at the end of 2017 with McLaren going to Renault and Honda going to Toro Rosso.

Throughout the troubled times, McLaren claimed, time and time again, that they have one of the best chassis on the grid. So, with the Renault engine of the rise, McLaren’s word will be put to the test—can they challenge for podiums, wins or even the championship or will Alonso be left disappointed once more?

Alfa Romeo Sauber

Following the fallout over the short-lived Sauber-Honda deal, the Swiss team strengthened their partnership with Ferrari by becoming their effective ‘B-team’.

This means that, along with up-to-date engines, Sauber will be responsible for looking after some of Ferrari’s junior drivers. For 2018, they’ll have reigning F2 champion Charles Leclerc as a full-time driver and 2016 GP2-runner up Antonio Giovinazzi as their third driver. Mercedes have already said that the alliance could be “dangerous for them” with the Germans hinting that they may follow suit in the coming years.

The ‘Halo’

Controversial as it is, we will see the halo raced for the first time in 2018. The FIA had to do something for this season as they had said a ‘frontal head protection device’ would be in place by 2018.

Some would say that it’s been rushed through the development process. Nevertheless, the FIA have allowed the teams some leeway with winglets and such like on the halo and the structure of it will be blended into the colour scheme of the car, so that it doesn’t stand out quite as much.

Softer tyres

Pirelli have admitted that they were too cautious with their tyre compounds in 2017, leading to widespread one-stop races and minimal degradation.

While they’re not going back to the days of super high-degradation tyres, the 2018 tyres will be softer. Along with the introduction of the Hyper-Soft, each compound will be a step softer; the Super-Soft will be like the old Ultra-Soft, the Soft will be like the old Super-Soft and so on. This should increase the variation in strategies, hopefully leading to more exciting and unpredictable racing.

The midfield

2017 involved an intense mid-field fight between Renault, Toro Rosso and Haas with the teams finishing within 10 points of each other.

A shake up is on the cards for 2018, however. The newly-powered McLaren and the works Renault team are both expected to rise above the rest of the midfield for fourth and fifth places in the championship which will make the midfield battle for sixth down to tenth. Force India should be as strong as ever and could give McLaren and Renault a run for their money while less is expected of Williams, given the standard of their drivers. The new Toro Rosso-Honda partnership has the potential to be very good, as does Alfa-Romeo Sauber, while Haas remains to be an unknown.

6th February 20186th February 2018

F1 Season Preview: Make or Break

After 2017, there are several drivers and teams facing a critical 2018—one which could have serious implications for their future in F1. Here we’ll look at those who are under the most pressure for 2018, why they have to perform and the potential consequences if they don’t.

Valtteri Bottas

Replacing the out-going world champion with just three months to go until the start of the season was always going to be a challenge. However, the majority of the F1 paddock expected more from Bottas in 2017. While he seemed able to be around the pace of Hamilton in the first half of the season, his form soon deteriorated with Bottas being cast adrift by both Hamilton and Vettel.

As such, Bottas needs to deliver a stunning performance in 2018 to keep his seat for 2019. We’re not just talking about one race though—he needs to consistently be on the pace of Hamilton throughout the season, which is a hard ask for anyone.

If he doesn’t perform as Mercedes expect, either Ricciardo or Ocon will be quick to snap up his seat—leaving Bottas out of a top drive and potentially out of F1 altogether.

Kimi Raikkonen

After years and years of the “will Raikkonen be retained” saga, it seems that Ferrari’s patience for the Finn is waning. Ferrari President Sergio Marchionne has stated that 2018 is Raikkonen’s last chance to rediscover his form—if he doesn’t, he will be replaced.

While he was once a world champion and still is a brilliant driver, Raikkonen’s consistency been missing since he returned to F1 in 2012, and even when he’s at the top of his game he’s still no match for Vettel. He’ll have to pull off a miracle to stand any chance at retaining his seat for 2019.

Should Raikkonen not miraculously rediscover his form, Ferrari have a long line of drivers knocking at their door. They’re unlikely to take Grosjean or Perez but instead either Ricciardo or their very promising youngster, Charles Leclerc. Whoever they chose, Ferrari aren’t short of talented replacements if Kimi isn’t up to scratch.

Sergio Perez

Perez is generally considered to be a midfield driver in a midfield team. He’s undoubtedly talented, but seems to be lacking that extra something that would put him up with the champions. This became more apparent in 2017 when Ocon started consistently beating him throughout the second half of the season.

If, like everyone is anticipating, Ocon takes the next step in 2018, Perez will likely be left far behind and that could seriously compromise his 2019 options. He’s been holding out for a Ferrari drive since who knows when, but with every year that passes, that seems more and more unlikely—if Ferrari wanted him, they’d have taken him by now.

He should be able to keep his seat at Force India for 2019 with his only other serious option being Renault if Sainz were to be called up to Red Bull. Any progression up the grid looks unlikely for the now 28-year-old Mexican.

Romain Grosjean

The successes of 2016 with Haas have long been forgotten for Grosjean, and that supposed Ferrari promotion looks further away than ever. Over 2017, the Frenchman gained a reputation for moaning and was often beaten, quite comprehensively, by teammate Magnussen.

With decent performances becoming distance memories, Grosjean hasn’t been having the best of times of it lately. He needs to rediscover his consistency of the later Lotus years to keep his seat at Haas and remain in F1.

Admittedly, Haas don’t have that many options to replace Grosjean. Ferrari may push them into taking one of their junior drivers but really, Haas need experience and that is one thing Grosjean has going for him. Regardless of that, improvement is needed from the Frenchman in 2018.

Nico Hulkenberg

Hulkenberg has been the nearly-man of F1 for years. He holds the record for the most F1 races without a podium but you’ll struggle to find anyone who doubts his talents. With Renault on the rise, that podium could come in the next year or two. However Hulkenberg has a more pressing issue: Carlos Sainz.

The highly-regarded Red Bull junior driver switched to Renault in the closing races of the 2017 season, with Hulkenberg seeming to have the measure of Sainz. The German has to beat or at least strongly challenge Sainz if he’s to maintain his perceived ranking in the F1 paddock.

His F1 career isn’t on the line in 2018 as he has a long-term Renault deal in place. But he still needs to show that he can go up against Sainz to ensure his fundamental place at Renault in years to come.

Marcus Ericsson

If anyone’s career is on the line in 2018, its Ericsson’s. He controversially kept his Sauber seat, despite Ferrari pushing for Antonio Giovinazzi to get the drive, by virtue of having lots of money from his backers that are mysteriously linked to the team’s owners…

The funds cannot hide the fact that Ericsson hasn’t scored a point in F1 since 2015 while all his teammates have. With F2 champion Leclerc in the other seat for 2018, Ericsson is going to have to massively up his game if he’s to avoid getting shown up by the promising youngster.

Ferrari want Sauber to become their effective ‘B-team’, so Ericsson will likely lose his seat to one of the Ferrari juniors in 2019—and it will be hard for Ericsson to find a seat at another team, even with all his money.

Williams

The season hasn’t even started and Williams are already facing a lot of criticism for hiring Sergey Sirotkin over Robert Kubica, Daniil Kvyat and Pascal Wehrlein with Sirotkin being brandished a ‘pay driver’. This means that for 2018 Williams will have a 19-year old in his second season of F1 and a rookie who’s failed to produce any convincing results in years.

That already sounds like a recipe for disaster—and when you consider the highly competitive nature of the midfield, the outcome doesn’t look good for Williams.

Fifth in the championship isn’t going to happen with McLaren and Renault on the rise and most expect Williams to sink further down the standings. This could put them in danger of losing sponsorship and without a star driver, it’s hard to see who’s going to bring the results in. Maybe basing driver decisions on bank accounts rather than talent wasn’t such a good idea.

McLaren

For McLaren, 2018 will be a test of all that they have said over the last three seasons while they were with Honda. Throughout those years, McLaren claimed to have the best chassis so, on equal footing with Red Bull and Renault, that will be put to the test.

Their last win came in 2012 and last podium in 2014, if there was ever a time that McLaren needed to deliver, for the sake of all involved, it’s in 2018. Alonso may have signed a multi-year deal but he won’t hang around forever, he wants that third title but has interests elsewhere if that fails to materialise in the coming years.

If they’re not winning, or at least on the podium, in 2018 they probably won’t be until the engine regulation change in 2020. It’s paramount that they get the Renault transition right as they need to be frontrunners again—four winless seasons is four too many for a team like McLaren, they better not make it five.

31st January 2018

Opinion: Why grid girls had to go

Grid girls have long been part of F1 and the wider motorsport scene –they’ve been a staple of grids for years with their driver boards and skimpy clothing. However, while acceptable in years gone by, their presence has come under criticism and now F1 has made the controversial, but not unprecedented, move to ban them altogether.

The move has been hinted at before but any suggestion of change hasn’t exactly been met with overwhelming support; when grid boys were used in Monaco in 2015, the reception was not positive with drivers and fans alike somewhat missing the point. It had gone too far the other way; girls can’t just be replaced with all boys – that’s just moving the issue onto something else entirely.

The change has come as part of Liberty Media’s project to drag F1, kicking and screaming albeit, into the 21^st century. Things that have previously been seen as tradition or trademark in F1 are being challenged – the world has changed and F1 is only just starting to. Besides F1, the move will also affect all support races at F1 weekends so F2, GP3 and Porsche Super Cup, amongst others.

It’s not just motorsport where this subject has been addressed; the UK Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) announced that walk-on girls would no longer be used at its events this week. That was met with widespread dismay from darts fans, an online petition was even formed to get the PDC to reserve the decision – but they’ve stood by their choice and reasons behind it.

So, why now?

Slowly but surely, women have started to shift the balance in what is still a male dominated sport with more than ever working as mechanics, engineers or even drivers. As such, having them adorn the grid was always going to become a contentious issue.

Female drivers are becoming more common by the year; last year GP3 racer Tatiana Calderon was often given a grid boy as a substitute but that was hardly a solution. With more and more female racing drivers on the rise, a change has been sitting on the horizon for some time.

Clearly, the days of F1 being all male are long gone yet many of the ideas from those times still remain – what was once acceptable is now not but F1 has been typically slow to respond.

Little change came about on this front during the days of Bernie Ecclestone however with Liberty Media here to stay, changes are slowly but surely being made – this doesn’t mean that they haven’t caused controversy though.

If you even dared look at Twitter today, you would’ve seen a barrage of opinions, some whole-heartedly agreeing with Liberty’s decision while others who couldn’t disagree more.

The case for Liberty’s decision pleads the out-dated and downright unnecessary nature of grid girls. This is 2018, having girls parading around with umbrellas is clearly a redundant practice and some would even go as far to say that their use is degrading. This crowd would say that today’s news was a necessary step in the right direction for women and equality in motorsport, across the board.

Another argument for the banning is that of role models. Boys growing up have the figures of male drivers and team members to look up to whereas girls have a lot less of them, instead they predominantly see the grid girls as the only women in motorsport – if that doesn’t seem wrong, I don’t what does. Coming from someone in that situation, I never understood the use of grid girls, it seemed senseless and it often angered me that the only women had a seemingly meaningless job.

But, of course, for all those agree, there are those who firmly don’t. One of the points that I’ve seen raised time and time again today is that these grid girls were just doing their job and that they weren’t forced to do it – it was completely their choice. If you speak to some of them, they’ll often say that they loved their experience as an F1 grid girl, that they were treated excellently by the teams and had an altogether amazing experience.

Whether you agree or not, the fact still stands that they are going. That then leaves the question of their replacement.

One of the main suggestions is fans; a competition would be run for each race for 20 fans to get the chance to go onto the grid and hold the driver boards. This could be accompanied by VIP tickets or a chance to spend the weekend with the team and to meet the driver allocated to them. This concept would likely appeal to Liberty as it would increase fan engagement and would add a whole other element to the show. Of course, the fans would have to be split 50/50 male/female to avoid any the previous debate and inequalities.

Another suggestion is the use of ‘grid kids’; much like the use of children walking on with players in football matches, this would give the children an unforgettable experience of F1. Again, they, and their families, could be treated as VIPs by their allocated team and driver.

The other main idea is that of mascots. The thinking behind this is that either the drivers or teams design a mascot to use for the season – this could be something to do with the driver, so the Hulk for Nico Hulkenberg, or the teams, so pink panthers for Force India. It’s a quirky idea that might just work.

There’s no going back from the decision made today by Liberty; along with F1, it’ll have effects on the wider motorsport scene with BTCC and MotoGP starting to come under fire for their grid girls.

For me, it feels like a real step forwards for women and equality in motorsport but I know not everyone shares my stance. Whatever your argument, for or against, the lack of grid girls is something that F1 fans will just have to get used to and soon the point of debate will move on, like it always does in F1, to something new.