Sidepodcast

Only 12 Teams Named on Official FIA Entry List

The official FIA Formula 1 entry list was released on Wednesday and it featured only 12 teams. Team US F1 did not appear on the list, neither has Stefan GP been added.

The FIA also confirmed that it was not possible to replace USF1 so close to the start of the new season, but they will be looking into what can be done in 2011.

The USF1 Team have indicated that they will not be in a position to participate in the 2010 FIA Formula One World Championship. Having considered the various options, the FIA confirms that it is not possible for a replacement team to be entered for the Championship at this late stage.

In the coming days the FIA will announce details of a new selection process to identify candidates to fill any vacancies existing at the start of the 2011 season.

The recently renamed Campos Meta outfit, HRT F1 Team (or Hispania Racing) do appear on the list, but with only one named driver, Bruno Senna. The constructor is named HRT Cosworth.

Note: The USF1 Team have indicated that they will not be in a position to participate in 2010.

F1 Debrief - There Must Be Disco

• Length: 42:59 
• Size: 49.4 MB 
• File: debrief125.mp3 
• Transcript: Coming soon 
• Torrent: debrief125.torrent 

This week we catch up on all the news from the past fortnight, including the brand new entry list and the Jerez testing, plus we run through some feedback and get a little bit musical.

Intro

Our fortnightly podcasting seems to be working as the last show was all doom and gloom but this week it has all changed!

Good Week / Bad Week

A good week for McLaren who extend a partnership, and a great week for Massa who wins behind the wheel of a kart. A bad week for the French Grand Prix and for questionable tweeting.

News and Views

The big news came from the FIA Entry List, where they revealed all kinds of things the teams weren't ready for yet, and caused plenty of confusion when it came to engine suppliers. The return of Sauber is wonderful news, and we also run through the drivers and cars at the recent Jerez test.

Feedback

We discuss the contact form, talk about Barrichello's non-refuelling experience and the Valencia track, plus there's some help with phonics!

Housekeeping

We've been very busy over the past two weeks with new podcasts, guest podcasts, guest writers and departing writers. There will be lots of links below!

Linkage

• Joe on Toyota
• Jonathon Summerton on Twitter
• About Page Contact Form
• F1 Advent Calendar 2009
• Steven Roy's guest podcast
• Sidepodscience - Your Questions Answered
• Send us your season reviews
• Stuart Codling's site
• Motorsport Business Forum
• Christmas Party on the wiki
• 12 Days of F1 Christmas
• Jingle Bells lyrics
• Julie Mahendran
• Daily Post Guest Writers
• Sidepodcast's Drop
• Fantasy Racers
• Sidepodcast Wiki

Sauber Secure 13th Grid Slot for 2010

The FIA have confirmed that Sauber will be on the grid in 2010, taking over the slot left vacant by the departing Toyota. A statement from the governing body said:

The FIA has written to inform BMW Sauber AG that their application for an entry in the 2010 FIA Formula One World Championship has been successful. Subject to their signing the Concorde Agreement, BMW Sauber will be awarded the 13th entry in the Championship, taking the place of the departing Toyota team.

The FIA has worked closely with the Commercial Rights Holder and the teams involved over recent weeks and is grateful for their support in achieving the best outcome for the sport.

The Concorde Agreement is the final hurdle for the team, then, but at least the FIA can relax knowing they still have their 13 garages filled for next year. A revised entry list will be published by the FIA.

FIA Announce Official 2010 Entry List

The FIA released the official 2010 Formula One World Championship entry list this evening. Predictably there are still plenty of drivers to be confirmed, but the release has cleared up a number of question marks regarding next season.

Blick Magazine pointed out yesterday that this was expected, although they managed to cause mass confusion during the weekend by claiming that Peter Sauber's team would be assigned the final slot. Neither the man nor the ex-BMW team are mentioned in the list.

Toyota are also notable by their absence, and the FIA reiterates that the manufacturer remains bound by the Concorde Agreement to put forward a team for participation.

Interestingly the Manor GP team are formally listed as Virgin Racing, with the constructor being named Virgin Cosworth. Although the renaming was expected, there has yet to be an official announcement from either party confirming such.

The Brawn GP name remains for the moment, but a change request is noted. Oddly the full company name of Mercedes-Benz is used in the constructors column, whereas Force India and McLaren only mention Mercedes.

The 2010 entry list in full:

* This team has indicated its intention to change its team name to Mercedes Grand Prix prior to the start of the 2010 season.

- Toyota Motorsport GmbH remains formally bound by the Concorde Agreement to put forward a team for participation, though it has indicated that it will not be in a position to do so. An announcement will be made regarding this entry in due course.

Updated: As noted in the comments below, Massa and Alonso appear to be numbered incorrectly. A similar situation occurred last year in the official entry list, where Kimi was erroneously mentioned ahead of Felipe. This was corrected before the first race of the season.

The document also confirms Red Bull will be running Renault engines again next season. Another given, that was waiting to be officially confirmed.

Briefly Branching Out

You may have heard by now that Franck Montagny has been given a drive in the upcoming IRL race at Sonoma. Equally, you might not have heard that and you'd be forgiven because hey, isn't this a Formula 1 site?

It's not exactly a secret that I heart Franck, and that being the case, Mr C thought it could be a good idea to live comment the race. It is the same weekend as Valencia, but being in another timezone, it will be later in the evening. Post-European Grand Prix, post-Debrief, we'll be here, tapping away on the keyboard, pondering what's going on.

That is where we get a bit stuck. We really have no idea what's going on. F1 fans through and through, Mr C and myself have branched out a little into following Le Mans and it's various counterparts. IRL is a whole new ballgame though - is there a motorsport version of that phrase?

We know a couple of commenters enjoy series' outside of F1, particularly Pat who writes about plenty of other categories, and has already given us some insight into what's coming up - a potential entry list, plus some useful links:

• The Official Site
• Curt Cavin’s daily Q&A
• My Name Is IRL
• Pressdog.com

Given how clueless we are, we're expecting commenting to be a complete mess of chaotic questions and nonsense, with the emphasis being on shouting for your preferred driver. We've started a list of who is supporting who, and we're expecting to see lots of 'FRANCK' and 'SCOTT' comments. We're encouraging it, actually.

Anyway, I hope you can join us, but I'm sure you won't be missing out on too much if you can't. If you've got any advice for IRL n00bs, as well, we're all ears. The race is on Sunday, 23rd August and it starts at 14:45 local time (which should be 10:45 BST), a full schedule is also available.

Here We Go Again

This summer break has yet to be the peaceful few weeks off we desired, and now the FIA have thrown another interesting piece of news into the melting pot.

Following BMWs failure to meet the deadline to sign the Concorde Agreement, the FIA have opened up the selection process for new teams to fill the empty space in the paddock. AUTOSPORT reports that Max Mosley wrote to the seven reserve teams to let them know a place had become available.

I understand the need to do this, although it seems really close to the deadline, and quite harsh on BMW. They only just missed it, and are working really hard to try and find a solution to their withdrawal. Well, it seems as though Peter Sauber is, anyway. He is the only one making noises from the Hinwil camp, and it's not looking good for them. If the entry goes to one of the reserve teams, which it is likely to do, they may already have an infrastructure in place for producing their F1 car, leaving one massive factory in the middle of Switzerland with very little purpose.

Meanwhile, who would take up this final place for 2010? I wonder if the seven teams in reserve are still happy about joining the sport, what with the legal concerns over Mosley allegedly stipulating Cosworth as a partner. That being the case, it seems odd that the FIA would want to open this can of worms again, as they haven't sorted out the complaints from the last selection process yet. Perhaps they intend to choose a team without a Cosworth engine at the helm, which would essentially exonerate them from these claims. Except, manufacturers are only supposed to supply a couple of teams, and Cosworth have three signed up already. Which other manufacturers are ready to supply an engine?

This opens up many questions, and yet another deadline (not yet known). Will the team formerly known as BMW be ready in time to submit an application? Would they be selected above the others? Who else is still realistically in the running and what engine will they use?

Daily: 24th March 2009

Time is ticking onwards, and I have spotted a lot of people starting to get restless and impatient for the season to start. It's so close now, though, and we have waited so long, a few more days isn't going to do any harm.

• The FIA have published the final entry list for the 2009 season, and there's just a couple of tweaks. Brawn have moved down and the Ferrari boys seem to have swapped over. Do you think Massa had a bit of a moan?
• Raikkonen reckons that he is ten times more comfortable in the new than he was in last year's machine. He doesn't want to make any predictions about the upcoming season but is feeling more confident than this time in 2008. That's a good start to the season for the Finn, because we know a lot of last year's problems were an unsuitable car.
• Martin Brundle is not afraid of making predictions, though, and the BBC commentator has his money on Renault, and specifically Alonso, for success this year. Pat Symonds is also determined to win a couple of races this year, so if all this talk translates to success out on track, we're looking at a Renault resurgance!

That's about it for now, please feel free to veer off topic if you've got something to say. That's what the Daily threads are for. As ever, I'll see you in the comments.

Daily: 13th January 2009

We are well and truly into the 2009 season now, with launches and an official entry list to kick start the year. From a drought of F1 news, January has become a flood of teams and drivers talking up their chances for the coming season. We are pretty much recovered from Autosport now, and can start concentrating on what 2009 has to bring.

• Of course, the first thing it has to offer is ugly cars. We all knew it was coming, and still there was the anticipation of what the first launched chassis would look like. Ferrari did the honours, and there you have it. That's what we're going to be looking at for the next 12 months. Share your thoughts, if you haven't already.
• We also got the entry list from the FIA, which raised a few questions. There are two empty slots for the team formerly known as Honda. They haven't withdrawn their entry yet, which can only be a positive sign. There's also some wonderment over the numbering system, particularly at Ferrari. Who should be ahead, Kimi or Felipe?
• Although we are recovered from the trade show, we're still sorting through the media we came home with. Pictures are beginning to filter through to the Sidepodcast Flickr account. Personally, I can't stay on there too long without fainting, but perhaps you will have more luck.

That's by no means an exhaustive list, there's always plenty going on in the comments. Dive right in with whatever is on your mind, and I'll see you in there.