Selection box - Not Lewis again - Mercedes driver changes and training for F1's future
Published by Christine
There's been plenty of news this week, with Mercedes finally confirming what everyone had already come to suspect - Bottas taking the spare seat next to Hamilton, and Massa coming back out of retirement to shore up the driver lineup at Williams. There are a handful of posts about that in the links that follow but other topics have come to the fore as well.
Let's begin with an incredible video chronicling the evolution of F1's technical regulations.
Real Engineering takes a look at some of the greatest innovations in F1 racing, including those that have made their way into passenger cars, like disc brakes, carbon fiber construction, and aerodynamics. The part about how the teams of engineers started competing with each other to increase the aerodynamics was really interesting.
Now, yes, let's tackle that subject. Rosberg, Bottas, Hamilton, Massa. Go.
Zetsche acknowledged it would have been easier for the team if Rosberg had stayed, given that it would have meant having two world champions behind the wheel: “Of course, it would have been easier and more pleasant for us to have two world champions in our team for the season to come."
With Bottas's move to Mercedes, we will get some answers as part of an intriguing new set of circumstances that poses even more questions. Bottas's career appeared to flat-line last year. Was that due to the car? Or was it the level of settlement that unconsciously comes with a team-mate having passed his former brilliant best and no longer providing the spur a driver needs?
The garage dynamic begins afresh as Hamilton and Bottas find their places as team-mates and rivals. Here Hamilton has all the advantages before the season begins. He has enjoyed a longer time in F1, with Mercedes and in winning titles. Bottas has yet to win a grand prix.
We know that ‘the free to race policy’ is likely to remain; this will create some tension between the two. Bottas doesn’t have that experience yet of being in a race winning and championship winning car, the question is how can he respond to the new challenges?
Felipe Massa’s F1 career was supposed to have come to an end at last year’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, but when Williams lost Valtteri Bottas to Mercedes and needed an experienced replacement, the Brazilian was quick to reverse his retirement call and return to his former team. The 11-time Grand Prix winner’s decision to come back is certainly a bold one, but, as we explain, it’s not without precedent.
Two links follow that relate to those trying to break into F1 - whether it is engineering students getting a helping hand with design, or drivers working their way through the single seater junior categories.
The purpose of this project is to allow students to learn how to solve business, engineering and technology challenges through creativity, collaboration and competition. The Waterloo F1 vehicle will be judged with a heavy emphasis on innovation and efficiency that will help prepare the students for real-world engineering demands.
I suspect that it’s unfortunately a little known fact that Birmingham City University once had a future F1 driver on one of their engineering courses. The piece above comes from the Autumn 2005 edition of the engineering faculty’s student newsletter, featuring student Ricardo Teixeira in his first season racing in British Formula 3.
Finally, two works of art, you might say. A post about the car behind a new photographic F1 book, and a video of Romain Grosjean driving on ice.
The evolution of race cars is a fascinating subject for many. Sometimes a specific car comes along that changes the entire sport for decades. One such Formula 1 race car is the Colin Chapman-designed Lotus 49B which first hit the track in April 1968. Enjoy this close-up look at a legendary groundbreaker and the story behind it from the new book The Art of the Formula 1 Race Car.
Haas Formula One driver Romain Grosjean has launched a free ice driving experience in the French Alps. The star piloted an all-wheel drive Jaguar F-Type SVR on a special ice circuit to show onlookers at the La Plagne resort how it’s done.
