Selection box - Medium rare - Drivers get in on the blogging act
Published by Christine
The concept of this Selection Box collection was always to feature the best blogs, links, videos and photo collections about Formula One, and while we've had some team articles, and things written by existing or former drivers, I never thought I'd be linking to a driver that blogs. Alexander Rossi, having missed out on an F1 seat for the time being, has found time to sit down and write using Medium - a really good looking and easy to use blogging site.
So far, the posts cover Rossi's travels around the US, and focus in on cars, technology and all the things you might imagine from a young driver in the big city.
Enter Lyft. The pink mustache on the dash that signifies this is not just your normal car service. This is a company with soul. For them, it isn’t enough to simply provide someone with a ride or a driver with a bit of extra cash. It is, if you want it to be, about the experience. Being able to relate to the people who travel the same route as you and to use technology as a way to fill the social gap that technology created in the first place.
With the F1 teams bursting into life and getting back into action in Jerez, there's been a lot of attention on the size, shape and colour of the brand new vehicles. The new liveries have gathered plenty of headlines, particularly the boring ones versus the bright ones, so here are a couple of posts on that subject.
The sheer lack of imagination from Formula 1’s artistic brain trusts is as bewildering as it is frustrating. With a blank canvas and the ability to go anywhere most have gone down the most unimaginative paths. Others have strayed from the norm, but in such a sterile fashion as to have made the majority of us wish they’d just left well alone.
They could have just had a blank, boring space here on the rear wing but they made sure everyone knew about the cool spot. Along with this comes with the front wing stating 'YOUR LOGO HERE' as if it were the 'Hello World!' of F1 liveries, plus the added extension of the This Could Be You sidepods too. If only the National Lottery wanted to sponsor a car.
In case ‘dazzle’ camouflage is new to you, it began during the First World War, in an attempt to confuse German submarines by breaking up their silhouettes when viewed from distance, and there are various theories about whether Cubism influenced ‘dazzle’, or dazzle then influenced Futurism, and all that.
Beneath the varying shades of paintwork, the new cars had revised designs from last year that also required plenty of scrutiny. From the technical details, to the general shape of the new noses, and everything in between, we got to see the cars in action finally at the first pre-season test in Jerez. Here's a handful of great posts about the first four days of testing.
This year the engines are still the same but for some reason they’re louder, most of the cars were going round the track like eternally wound up mechanical dogs they were that reliable, and some of the cars themselves, thanks to a tweak of the nose regulations, look absolutely wonderful.
Ferrari surprised everyone, testing or not. Vettel was anxious to put his stamp on the new Ferrari and lulled everyone into trying to go for at least one solid flyer each day. Raikkonen disappointed no one, ultimately posting the fastest time of the four days. What does that really mean? Ferrari has a stable car that Kimi can drive and he has no intention of playing second fiddle to Vettel’s orchestra. Is it a winner? No one yet knows, but the Tifosi are all having heart palpitations. F1 captures interest when Ferrari is on form.
Gains have mainly been made within the car to keep them at arm’s length although there are a number of aerodynamic tweaks that have been beneficial. Both drivers have confirmed that there is more downforce on the new W06 than last year’s dominant car, although Jerez is not really the ideal place to be making comparisons given its unique track surface and cool temperatures.
Talking of Mercedes, Chris Harris from the Goodwood website got the chance to sit down with Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton and wrote up his experiences, particularly with regards to the difference between the two drivers. Turns out Hamilton's monosyllabic responses are as cringeworthy to read as they are to hear!
Nico walks in first – tanned, lean, flanked as they all are these days by his personal trainer. He’s despicably engaging and bright. Really, he is. It’s only when you watch Nico command an interview, balance his responses with technical knowledge, humour and humility that you realise what one of the core frictions within the Mercedes team must be – Nico is a public relations dream. Lewis is not.
One of the big stories from Jerez was the early struggles of McLaren and Honda. It's not a surprise they failed to live up to expectations, as the hype was supreme from the moment the comeback partnership deal was announced. Read on for an analysis of where the anticipation comes from, and why it should be toned down if possible.
Of course, this is hardly the first time that McLaren have experienced lingering difficulties. Following their split with Honda, the team went through several barren years with Ford and Peugeot power, before signing up with Mercedes in the mid-90s and even then, it was not until 1997 – after over four seasons without success – that they finally saw the top step of the podium again. Yet times have changed significantly since the mid-90s.
Finally to brighter topics of the future, the introduction of the new Haas F1 team. With so much focus on the disappearance of Caterham and Marussia, it's easy to forget we have a potential fresh contender arriving soon. Boss Gene Haas is confident, anyway.
Unlike what I’ve read here and there, we have not bought out Marussia F1 Team, nor acquired the intellectual property of their 2015 chassis. We’ve only purchased the Banbury factory close to Oxford, and renamed it “the Haas building” in order to avoid any confusion. Since early January, we’ve had around 50 people working over there. They’re currently transforming and renovating the building so that it can meet our specific demands.
