London: Pirelli's decision to change the Formula One tyres after just six races penalises those who have done a better job than others in getting the existing ones to work, Lotus principal Eric Boullier said on Thursday.
"Just imagine for a moment that because a football team can't run as fast as its opponent, the dimensions of the pitch are changed at half time," the Frenchman said on the team website (www.lotusf1team.com).
"That there are changes to come can be seen as somewhat frustrating and I hope they are not too extreme."
Pirelli announced after Sunday's Spanish Grand Prix that they would change the tyres from next month's Canadian Grand Prix, round seven of 19, to make them last longer without producing so many pitstops....
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09:46 AM, May 17, 2013
London: Jenson Button, the last driver to win a grand prix for Honda, was thrilled to discover on Thursday that the Japanese carmaker was returning to Formula One as engine partner to his McLaren team from 2015. The British 2009 World champion, who won the Hungarian Grand Prix for Honda in 2006 and drove for them until they quit the sport two years later, said the announcement in Tokyo was...
02:49 PM, May 16, 2013
London: Formula One must have a permanent race steward attending all races if a licence penalty points system for drivers is to be introduced next season, according to triple world champion Jackie Stewart. Formula One teams approved the licence plan at last weekend's Spanish Grand Prix and it now has to be rubber-stamped by the International Automobile Federation (FIA) world motor sport council at a meeting next month. The system...
09:52 PM, May 15, 2013
Tokyo: Honda will return to Formula One in 2015 as McLaren engine partners, replacing Mercedes, sources close to the company said on Wednesday. Honda's Chief Executive Takanobu Ito is set to make an official announcement as early as Thursday, one of the sources added. The Japanese automaker quit the sport at the end of 2008, handing over their team to then-principal Ross Brawn who went on to win both titles...
07:00 PM, May 15, 2013
London: Formula One world champions Red Bull could benefit from changes to be introduced at next month's Canadian Grand Prix that will make tyres tougher and longer lasting, supplier Pirelli recognised on Tuesday. The Italian company's motorsport director Paul Hembery hoped that would not be the case, however. "There have been concerns from some of the teams that the changes will favour one team or another, but we don't think...
08:21 AM, May 15, 2013
London: Formula One must allow in-season testing to avoid the risk next year of tyres lasting only a handful of laps and races being cut short, according to Pirelli motorsport director Paul Hembery. Under fire for the quick-wearing 2013 compounds that led to a blizzard of pitstops in Spain on Sunday, Hembery warned that a current testing ban made it harder for the Italian company to meet significant technical challenges...
07:12 PM, May 14, 2013
London: The first European race of the Formula One season provided a boost for Ferrari and Fernando Alonso, with Lotus and Kimi Raikkonen also smiling, but left plenty of other former champions feeling the pain. While Red Bull retained their lead in both championships, they struggled with similar tyre problems to others in Barcelona on Sunday with triple champion Sebastian Vettel finishing off the podium with his lead over Raikkonen...
10:22 PM, May 13, 2013
Barcelona: Barcelona: Tyres shredded like paper, rubber flew everywhere and cars flitted in and out of the pit lane like supermarket shoppers in a car park. On a frustrating day for drivers and fans alike, nearly 80 pit stops were made during Sunday's Spanish Grand Prix, again highlighting what has become a major concerns for Formula One teams five races into the season - the vulnerability of Pirelli's tyres. And...
07:24 PM, May 13, 2013
Barcelona: Mercedes urged their many Formula One technical boffins to "think outside the box" and consider the unconsidered after a Spanish Grand Prix that left the team baffled by their cars' lack of race pace. Despite scorching to their third pole position in a row, with Germany's Nico Rosberg notching up his second in succession, Mercedes flopped when it mattered most at the Circuit de Catalunya. Lewis Hamilton went from...
05:20 PM, May 13, 2013
Barcelona: Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton were right to be cautious after their Saturday Spanish Grand Prix high turned into another Sunday slump for Mercedes. "It's got to go down as one of the worst races I've had for a long, long time," said 2008 Formula One world champion Hamilton after starting on the front row of the grid and struggling to 12th place and out of the points with...
10:13 AM, May 13, 2013
Barcelona: Paul di Resta added six more points to Sahara Force India's kitty with a seventh-place finish at the Spanish Grand Prix of the Formula One Championship, while team-mate Adrian Sutil finished 13th here on Sunday. Starting from 10th place on the grid, the Scot raced brilliantly as he had an exciting tussle with pole sitter Nico Roseberg for the sixth place but eventually settled for seventh. He had moved...
11:44 PM, May 12, 2013
Barcelona: Fernando Alonso won the Spanish Grand Prix by nearly 10 seconds in a dominant performance in front of his jubilant home fans on Sunday to close the gap on championship leader Sebastian Vettel and get right back in the Formula One title race. Finnish driver Kimi Raikkonen finished second for the third straight race, with Alonso's Ferrari teammate Felipe Massa in third spot as most drivers chose a four-stop...
07:20 PM, May 12, 2013
Barcelona: Barcelona are ready to deal a blow to fellow Spanish city Valencia's hopes of a return to the Formula One calendar next year, the head of their Circuit de Catalunya said on Saturday. The track's director general Salvador Servia played down suggestions that Barcelona, which has hosted an annual Grand Prix since 1991, would be forced to alternate with Valencia, which has been dropped from the schedule this season....
08:29 AM, May 12, 2013
Barcelona: Ferrari's Felipe Massa and Sauber's Mexican rookie Esteban Gutierrez were handed three-place grid penalties at the Spanish Grand Prix on Saturday for impeding rivals in qualifying. The sanction was the second for Gutierrez in five races. The 21-year-old took a five-place penalty to last month's Bahrain Grand Prix after crashing into the back of Adrian Sutil's Force India in China. Gutierrez, who has yet to score a point in...
10:44 PM, May 11, 2013
Barcelona: Force India's Paul di Resta qualified 10th for Spanish Grand Prix while his teammate Adrian Sutil will start the race at the 13th position, here Sunday. Di Resta clocked 1:22.233 to finish last in Q3 while Sutil came up with a timing of 1:22.346 in Q2. The top-10 grid position gives the British driver a chance to earn some points for the team at Circuit de Catalunya. Meanwhile, di...
08:43 PM, May 11, 2013
Barcelona: Pirelli are reviewing the construction of their Formula One tyres after a series of spectacular debris-related failures but have assured drivers they need not worry about safety. Concern was expressed at the Spanish Grand Prix when the tread came off the still-inflated left rear tyre of Paul Di Resta's Force India during Friday's second practice. Ferrari's Felipe Massa suffered two failures during the Bahrain Grand Prix last month and...
08:05 PM, May 11, 2013
Barcelona: Mercedes will start the Spanish Grand Prix from the front row after Nico Rosberg had the fastest qualifying time ahead of teammate Lewis Hamilton on Saturday. While Hamilton had the fastest times in the first two qualifying sessions, Rosberg edged him to win the pole position in 1 minute, 20.718 seconds. "The race is very long, and to win it's not good enough to start from pole - you...
06:56 PM, May 11, 2013
Barcelona: Felipe Massa gave Ferrari a boost ahead of qualifying later on Saturday by posting the fastest time in the third and final practice session for the Spanish Grand Prix. The Brazilian driver left it very late in his run to clock a best time of 1 minute, 21.901 seconds in mostly sunny conditions, enough to edge out Lotus' Kimi Raikkonen by .006. Mark Webber was third quickest in his...
04:22 PM, May 11, 2013
Barcelona<>: Pirelli expressed concern on Friday at an alarming tyre failure suffered by Force India's Paul Di Resta in Spanish Grand Prix practice. The tread came off the Scot's still inflated left rear tyre in second practice but Di Resta was able to bring the car safely to a halt. With drivers expressing safety concerns, Pirelli motorsport director Paul Hembery said the Italian company would investigate the issue. "It obviously...
11:57 PM, May 10, 2013
