Formula One 2012

[N1GTR]

Mercedes adamant test plan will pay off

Mercedes GP remains confident that it has made the right decision in opting to delay running of its new car until the second pre-season Formula 1 test, even though it is the only frontrunning outfit to adopt such a tactic.

The Brackley-based team announced last year that its 2012 contender would only hit the track at the second test in Barcelona. At the time, it was widely expected other outfits would follow suit because of the extra development time made available by skipping the first test.

However, even though its main rivals in the end stuck to their original plans to get cars out for the opening test in Jerez, Mercedes-Benz vice president of motorsport Norbert Haug is sanguine about his team’s plan.

“If you have half-a-year’s timeframe to develop a car, then 10 days can be crucial,” Haug told AUTOSPORT in an exclusive interview. “That was our decision. We want to test the proper car, finalised in each and every detail. That’s why we need development time.

“It’s important to point out that it was a conscious decision. I know that all of the other teams will be there with their car [at Jerez] but this is not unusual. Other teams that have been in a catch-up process have decided to go run first at the second test, so this is not a new event.

“We fully appreciate that the other teams have different plans and are ready at the first test. But we are not delayed, we are just following our process, and then we will see what the outcome will be.”

Pre-season testing is limited to only 12 days, meaning that Mercedes will have just eight days to get on top of its new car before the season-opening Australian Grand Prix.

Haug added that the team has big ambitions for the first test as well, with its hoping to put mileage on new parts and also get valuable data on Pirelli’s new 2012 tyres.

“We will have a couple of parts to learn from at the first test,” he said. “We can use the new generation of tyres, which is a good way to draw a baseline because you have the data with the old tyres to compare it to.

“We need to learn more about the behaviour of the tyres on our car.”

Autosport

http://www.formula1fanpage.com/mercedes-adamant-test-plan-will-pay-off/

[sh@un]

actual data acquisition at the track would have far more value than more CFD work, or whatever

[chef_stagea]

Who do we think will win the champ? Vettel... Who can stop. Ferraris bounch back will show late 2012-2013 i think... Hamilton well we wont know until his gf sorts him out. Button... too old? Like alonso, fast very fast but not quite hard enough?

[tweety bird]

Edited January 29, 2012 by tweety bird

[N1GTR]

That's awesome!

Another;

[tweety bird]

i thought it was awesome that they copied that bloke, he must think it's awesome too.

awesome.

[sh@un]

Who do we think will win the champ? Vettel... Who can stop. Ferraris bounch back will show late 2012-2013 i think... Hamilton well we wont know until his gf sorts him out. Button... too old? Like alonso, fast very fast but not quite hard enough?

Vettel will likely be the one to beat again, but obviously we can't really know until the first race what sort of performance each car will have after the tech reg changes

Redbull may well lose their previous quali advantage this year

It's gunna be a very interesting title race

[Roy]

I cant help but think that with the money and people Mercedes have been recruiting that this year will see Rosberg with a few wins

[mad082]

anyone else thinking/hoping that vettel will slit his wrists if the RBR cars are off the pace at the first few rounds?

[Roy]

How often do teams have the best, top 2 car for 4 years in a row? You would have to think this year could be the start of period where Mercedes, Fezz or Macs come back and the RBR is fighting for a top 4 starting spot.

The reasonably static rules and regs may mean RBR hang in there but with no blown diffuser the field is leveled a little

[mad082]

yeah i don't think that RBR will have lost much pace, but if the others have found some pace then i think they better get him some happy pills. if by some chance he was out qualified by the mclarens and ferraris in melbourne then i bet we will see objects being thrown, and if webber beats him as well then they better keep him away from sharp objects, lol. i'd then put money on webber suffering another poor start in the race.

[sh@un]

anyone else thinking/hoping that vettel will slit his wrists if the RBR cars are off the pace at the first few rounds?

we could expect tears at least

which would be totes hilair

[tweety bird]

Michael Schumacher fans had best say farewell during this season because Gerhard Berger reckons it will be his last in F1. Schumacher, arguably the most successful driver to have ever raced in Formula One with his seven World titles, first quit the sport at the end of 2006.

After three years out, he returned in 2010, brought back by Ross Brawn's Mercedes GP outfit.

And although Schumacher stated at the time that winning an eighth World title was the ultimate goal, the German has yet to put up a challenge.

With Mercedes GP struggling to match the leading three teams, the 43-year-old and his team-mate Nico Rosberg have battled to even reach the podium. In fact, Rosberg is the only one who has during their partnership.

The younger German has also had the measure of his compatriot in the standings, beating him soundly in 2010 while he was again the victor in the intra-team battle last season.

And it's Schumacher's inability to match Rosberg that has Berger predicting that this season - the last in his Mercedes GP contract - will also be his last in F1.

"I do not think he will extend his contract. At this point I think it will be enough," Berger told Auto Moto und Sport.

"He has no chance against Rosberg. He will have to admit that at more than 40 years old he cannot beat a young driver at his level."

http://www.planetf1.com/news/3213/7462995/-This-Will-Be-Schumacher-s-Final-Season-

waits for shumi's response.

[sh@un]

Schumacher

I should have stayed my West German arse retired

[ctjet]

his response will be, that if the car is competitive he'll stay, soley because he is obsessed with glory

and if can pull it off, more power to him

[hrd-hr30]

he did get Mercedes best result for the season with a blinder at Canada in the wet where only DRS robbed him of 2nd. Not to mention the many lols he provided for us at Monza mugging the young superstar Hamilton at a restart and screwing with him for the next 20 odd laps... Its not like he's a complete dud or anything. well, except in qualifying!

Hope Mercedes is a bit more competitive this year...

Edited January 30, 2012 by hrd-hr30

[N1GTR]

Pirelli launched its 2012 Formula One tyres at the Yas circuit in Abu Dhabi last week.

Bizarrely, Pirelli describes the new tyres as being much 'squarer' than the 2011 tyres. This relates to the side profile of the tyres and has been done because Pirelli is expecting a drop in downforce due to the ban on ‘blown diffusers’. Being squarer in profile keeps the contact patch more stable as speed increases and will improve wear rates (so less blistering), particularly on the shoulder of the tyre.

As in 2011, there will still be six different tyres available to the F1 teams. Four are slicks – branded as P Zero Red, Yellow, White and Silver) – and two are wets, marking the return of another historic Pirelli name – Cinturato Blue and Green. Pirelli are saying compounds are softer throughout the range (except for the ‘supersoft’ P Zero Red) as the company wants the speed of degradation to return to the levels seen at the beginning of the 2011 season.

Paul Hembery, Pirelli’s Motorsport Director, hinted that the company wants to make three pitstops per race its ‘target’.

Source

[tweety bird]

the plot thickens.

Rumours of Robert Kubica's potential move to Ferrari - should he return to F1 - refuse to die down with the latest reports claiming Ferrari will aid his comeback. Kubica has been sidelined since his a rally accident last February when he suffered broken bones on the right side of his body and an almost severed right hand.

And despite a minor setback, the result of a slip and fall on ice earlier this month, the Pole's recovery is reportedly progressing well.

According to Italian publication Omnicorse, Kubica is back driving using a Renault Megane with an automatic transmission.

He has a good range of movement is his right arm - 'flexing and extending of the right arm are already back to normal' - but there are still problems with rotation movements.

But, with his 'five hours a day' in physiotherapy, the 27-year-old is on the road to recovery and aiming to climb into a simulator in the not-too-distant future.

After that, the goal is a Formula One car, which is where Ferrari are believed to be entering the picture.

The Pole, who has reportedly signed a letter of intent with the Italian stable for the 2013 season, will, according to Omnicorse, get behind the wheel of a Ferrari F10 in June if everything goes according to plan.

The car, which will be fitted with the new turbocharged 1.6-liter V6 engine that will be introduced in 2014, will be outside the test ban regulations, allowing Kubica to put in the miles.

This will give the Pole the opportunity to evaluate his progress without too much pressure. And it could pave the way towards a comeback with Ferrari.

http://www.planetf1.com/news/3213/7465308/-Ferrari-To-Assist-Kubica-s-Comeback-

[tweety bird]

it's the FIA's fault.

http://www.formula1.com/news/technical/2012/0/929.html

[warps]

he did get Mercedes best result for the season with a blinder at Canada in the wet where only DRS robbed him of 2nd. Not to mention the many lols he provided for us at Monza mugging the young superstar Hamilton at a restart and screwing with him for the next 20 odd laps... Its not like he's a complete dud or anything. well, except in qualifying!

Hope Mercedes is a bit more competitive this year...

Hey Harry - Remember Ruaraidh from the Daihard days? He's working for the Mercedes engine team and travels to most of the races with them. He's heavily involved in the KERS development AFAIK. Been following them a bit through his exploits, although I haven't talked properly to him for ages.