McLaren became the first front-running team to reveal their 2012 challenger as the wraps came off the new MP4-27 at the team’s UK factory in Woking. With it, Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton hope to land McLaren their first constructors’ crown since 1998.

Unlike the 2012 Caterham launched last week, McLaren has avoided a stepped-nose design by making the whole front end of the chassis lower. “This is a beautiful car,” commented Button. “Many of them that you will see will not be!”

While the car closely resembles last year’s MP4-26, its chassis has been substantially revised from the ground-up, with all major systems updated or re-designed for the new season. The most evident visual differences include more tightly-waisted rear bodywork, developed to improve flow to the rear of the car, and a revised cooling system, which re-directs the gearbox oil-cooler.

Last year’s U-shaped sidepods have also been redesigned – a legacy of the FIA’s new exhaust regulations that redefine the shape of the rear bodywork – while among the more minor details, the rear view mirrors are also new, something which Hamilton joked should be helpful following his much-talked-about run-ins with Ferrari’s Felipe Massa last season.

“I’ve been keenly following the development of MP4-27 over the winter and I’ve been really encouraged by the results and the data that the engineers have been showing me,” said Hamilton.

“I think we already had a very strong base to build upon: Jenson and I won six races with MP4-26 last year and I think we’ve been able to retain all the strengths and the reliability of that design while also incorporating lots of improvements and new ideas into the new car.

“Of course, the biggest changes for 2012 are the modifications to the exhaust regulations – that will reduce the downforce and grip that we had last year, but it just puts the emphasis on the designers to try and claw some of that back in other areas. I get the feeling the MP4-27 is going to feel very new and exciting when we get to drive it for the first time.”

Following a one-day private shakedown, it is Button who will get the first taste of the new car when he begins track testing of the MP4-27 at Spain’s Circuito de Jerez next Tuesday, February 7.

“I know that the whole team is extremely proud of the MP4-27,” said Button. “It may look like a direct evolution of last year’s car, but we’ve analysed every area of performance over the winter and the whole car has benefited from lots of fresh thinking and new ideas in every area. I’m really looking forward to getting behind the wheel in Spain next week.

“With the regulations remaining relatively stable, we’ve really been able to focus on the detail with this year’s car. I still think we had a very fast package last year – it was very strong in certain areas – and our race pace was almost always fantastic, but we’re hoping for a further step forwards in 2012. With Mercedes-Benz, I think we also had the best overall engine and KERS Hybrid package in the pit lane.

“We were also able to continuously develop throughout the year to match Red Bull – and that shows that we have the knowledge, effort and resources to sustain our efforts across the course of a whole season, which can be crucial. I know that everyone will be watching us very closely to see what progress we make during the pre-season tests, but I genuinely believe we have every reason to feel optimistic about the progress we’ve made and our competitiveness this year.”

On McLaren’s and the MP4-27’s prospects for the coming championship campaign, team principal Martin Whitmarsh commented: “The 2012 season will be an important one for Vodafone McLaren Mercedes: having finished second in the constructors’ championship for the past two seasons, we’re determined to mount a sustained, hard challenge for both world titles.

“We have a fantastically committed team of individuals, and MP4-27 is the fruit of their labours – it’s a beautiful car, and one we feel is the perfect platform from which to launch our assault on the world championship. While there are clear visual changes to this year’s car, there’s greater change beneath the skin, with lots of fresh thinking applied to every major system. The car is pleasingly complete.

“For 2012, we are well aware that Red Bull remains a very powerful and capable operation, and that both Ferrari and Mercedes AMG are ramping up their operational capacity. We have no room to be complacent – what you see today only scratches the surface of what we’re planning to deliver to the track both from an engineering and operational point of view throughout 2012.

“I’m pleased and confident that we’ve left no stone unturned in our quest for performance. Now, our focus invariably turns to the track as we evaluate MP4-27 ahead of the start of the 2012 season in Melbourne on March 18. These will be a fascinating three weeks.”

The Repsol Honda Team kicked off their defence of the MotoGP World Championship by having 2011 MotoGP World Champion Casey Stoner and team-mate Dani Pedrosa take the wraps off their all-new Honda RC213Vs at a news conference on the eve of the start of the official testing season in Sepang, Malaysia. Joining the riders was HRC Executive Vice President Shuhei Nakamoto, who gave a brief and light-hearted technical presentation while making certain not to reveal too many secrets.

The 2011 Repsol Honda three-rider team dominated last year’s championship, winning 13 of 17 races and finishing first, third, and fourth overall. Stoner led the way, winning ten times and clinching his second MotoGP World Championship on a emotional day in his home grand prix at Phillip Island, Australia. Stoner had a nearly flawless season, with podium appearances in every race but one, when he was knocked to the ground early in the Spanish Grand Prix. That turned out to be a minor setback, with Stoner winning the title by 90 points. Then Repsol Honda rider Andrea Dovizioso finished third, with Pedrosa finishing a close fourth, despite missing four races after being knocked out of the French Grand Prix. Pedrosa won three times and added six other podiums.

The Honda RC213V replaces the championship-winning 800cc RC212V as the MotoGP World Championship begins a new1000cc era. The machine was developed over the course of the last season, with Stoner testing it three times and Pedrosa twice, with continuous development and testing being done in Japan. Pedrosa finished the 2011 season by topping Stoner in the end-of-season test in Valencia, Spain.

The riders begin their three-day test yesterday, at the Sepang International Circuit (SIC). Following this test, the riders will return in 26 days for a second test before finishing the testing season in Spain at Jerez de la Frontera in late March.

The return to Sepang was bittersweet for the Repsol Honda Team. It was here that Honda’s rising star Marco Simoncelli lost his life in a racing accident on the second lap of the 2011 Malaysian Grand Prix. The entire Repsol Honda team visited the corner where “Super Sic” lost his life, laid a wreath of flowers, and held a minute’s silence.

Casey Stoner finished on the podium in nearly every round last season on his way to winning the championship

Casey Stoner, Repsol Honda RC213V:
“We haven’t started this year, and going from 800s to 1000s I think it’s going to be a little bit more interesting during the pre-season, trying to understand where everybody’s level is, as well as what everybody’s machine level is. We know we have a lot of work to do now before the first race and that’s what we’re focused on doing. But how we can envision this championship going, we have no idea.

“We’re just going to do the best job we can at these tests, try and put ourselves in the best position we can for race one and start the championship well. But we don’t really know everybody else’s level or where we’re going to have to improve. I think Honda have done a fantastic job to give us this bike that we’re going to start with and hopefully we can improve it over these next tests. Hopefully, we’re going to do a little bit better job than the other manufacturers.”

After suffering from injury in 2011, Dani Pedrosa will return to Honda fully fit and in his best physical shape in years

Dani Pedrosa, Repsol Honda RC213V:
“Yes, it’s clear I’ve been good all this time. I could enjoy the holidays and think of other things than being in the hospital or things in recovery. So I could be with family and friends and enjoy the time.

“About the season, as Casey (Stoner) said, there are lots of things to feel in the pre-season, a lot of tests and we have to figure out how we are for the first race. How the rivals are also. And just work, because it’s going to be for sure a long season and the battles are going to be strong, as always. It can be similar to last season or it can be different. Nobody knows at the moment, but actually the thing is to work hard and keep the head until the end.”

Shuhei Nakamoto, HRC Executive Vice President:
“The engine and chassis were developed last year because of the regulation change. We kept the same concept from the last year’s 800 machine. We expect this machine to be competitive enough to win the championship again this year. Even with the 800 machine you must reduce the power from first through fourth gear. With the 800, fifth gear, sixth gear, we could use the full power, then in a straight line.

“Of course this machine is a little bit faster. But time was gained only in fifth and sixth gear in the acceleration area. At the same time, the top speed is higher, meaning sometimes you must brake a little bit earlier. Then the cornering performance, if the chassis or tyres are virtually the same, it means that the cornering performance is exactly the same. So the new engine couldn’t make such a big difference. Then if you want gain the time, therefore you need more braking stability. And also we are having our chattering problems that we have to fix. Then I expect, of course, the lap time is better than 800, but not such a big difference, I expect.”

German car manufacturer, Volkswagen, may well be the next car company to join Formula 1, following the likes of Mercedes, Ferrari, Renault and Lotus in either supplying a team with their engines or even attempting at launching their own team in the sport.

This comes after Volkswagen representative, Wolfgang Durheimer, told prominent business magazine, Wirtschaftswoche, that he has devised a preliminary plan for the future that includes F1.

“Later this year I will put forward proposals to the executive group for (involvement in) not only the racing series that we do already. It is true — in America, Asia and the Middle East, we are not sufficiently represented in motor sport,” said Wolfgang Durheimer, hinting that Volkswagen could well partake in not only Formula 1, but other forms of Motor Sport as well.

The business magazine which Wolfgang Durheimer spoke to also stated that Volkswagen could well already have links with Toro Rosso, who are currently a breeding ground for new talent in F1 for Red Bull Racing.

It’s that time of year, ladies and gents, when Formula One teams begin unveiling their new cars for the upcoming season. But while the top teams like Ferrari and McLaren usually compete for the first slot, this time it’s Caterham (the team formerly known as Team Lotus), that has beat them all to the punch by revealing its new CT01.

Bearing a similar green and yellow livery and much of the same design as last year’s Lotus, the CT01 represents some of the changes you can expect to see across the board as the rest of the field fills out. That includes a rather odd-looking stepped nose design and reshaped rear quarters (due largely to the ban on exhaust-blown diffusers).

Underneath the bodywork – shaped in the Williams wind tunnel – sits the same Renault RS27 V8 engine that will be used this season by Red Bull, Lotus and Williams, coupled for the first time (for this team) to a Kinetic Energy Recovery System on the brakes and a Red Bull-sourced seven-speed sequential gearbox.

Heikki Kovalainen and Jarno Trulli will return for driving duties once the season kicks off in March. Before then, McLaren is expected to unveil its new MP4-27 on February 1, Scuderia Ferrari and Force India on February 3, Lotus on the fifth, Sauber and Red Bull on the sixth, and Mercedes-Benz on the February 21, with the remaining teams yet to announce the dates for their unveilings. So, stay tuned!

Proton’s PG Andersson piled on the pressure and stepped up his game in the Monte Carlo Rally to stretch his lead in the 2012 FIA Super World Rally Championship (S-WRC) category.

Combing the icy roads through snow, rain and fog, Andersson’s Satria Neo S2000 held on to 9th overall and extended his overnight lead from 23 seconds to some 1 minute 40 second over his nearest S-WRC rival Kevin Abbring in the Skoda Fabia S2000.

Abbring dropped two places to 12th overall with Irishman Craig Breen in the Ford Fiesta S2000 3rd in the S-WRC class and 15th overall, a further five minutes behind. Frenchman Bryan Bouffier in the Peugeot 207 S2000 retains 4th place in the S-WRC class but moved up to 18th overall.

Reigning world champion Sebastien Loeb continued to dominate the Monte Carlo Rally to lead by more than two minutes ahead of Spain’s Dani Sordo in the Mini. Sordo however, took advantage of third placeman Petter Solberg’s misfortunes to build a gap of more than a minute. Solberg had damaged the wheel of his Ford Fiesta and subsequently suffered a puncture.

The third day of rallying was contested over three special stages in the mountainous region of Southern France which included tackling what is reputed to be one of the most difficult stages of the Monte Carlo Rally, the 24.13km Cimetiere de Vassieux – Col de Gaudissart.

“It’s looking good but with five more special stages and two days of rallying ahead, it will come down to a test of nerves. Andersson is on course for what has been a phenomenal debut for Proton on the World Rally Championship, and the team’s extending all the support to see him to the finish,” said Datuk Abdul Razak Dawood, the Head of Proton Motorsports.

Results as at SS13:

PROTON currently leads the 2012 FIA Super World Rally Championship (S-WRC) category and moved up one spot to ninth overall on the second day of the Monte Carlo Rally.

In what was yet another drama-filled second day of rallying, the Monte Carlo Rally continued to inflict heavy casualties and knocked out yet another front runner, this time Frenchman Sebastien Ogier who was running sixth overall and leading the S-WRC class in the Skoda Fabia S2000. Ogier was 5km shy of the finish when his Skoda was involved in a high-speed crash which put him into retirement.

With Ogier’s retirement, Andersson inherits the lead in the S-WRC class with Germany’s Kevin Abbring in the Skoda Fabia S2000 in second place and 10th overall, some 23 seconds behind. In third place and 15th overall is Craig Breen in the Ford Fiesta S2000 while fourth and 20th overall is Bryan Bouffier in the Peugeot 207 S2000.

Current world champion Sebastien Loeb extended his overall lead in Monte Carlo in dominant form, claiming victory in five of the day’s six special stages. The Frenchman overcame the icy conditions to currently hold a one minute 37 second lead ahead of Spaniard Dani Sordo in the Mini while in third place is Ford’s Petter Solberg a further three seconds adrift.

“The Monte Carlo Rally is all about pacing yourself to the finish. There is a very fine line between driving at your limit and being careful enough not to be caught out by the tricky and changing conditions of the terrain. We’ve had a good run so far, and with two more days of rallying remaining we are going to be extra cautious as the changing conditions on the special stages make it extremely difficult and tricky,” said Andersson.

“Our goal here is to get the Satria Neo S2000 to a strong overall finish and if all goes well, a podium finish in the S-WRC category on our debut.”

Only 59 cars of the 89-strong entries remain at the end of the second day of the Monte Carlo Rally which has already claimed some 30 retirements. The entries include 16 WRC cars and 11 S2000 cars.

“The performance of the Satria Neo S2000 and the results thus far has been nothing short of a phenomenal start to the season for us at PROTON,” said Datuk Abdul Razak Dawood, the Head of PROTON Motorsports. “

Positions after SS10:

Pos   Driver              Team/Car       Time/Gap
1.    Sebastien Loeb      Citroen        2h 45m 56s
2.    Dani Sordo          Mini           +   1m 37s
3.    Petter Solberg      Ford           +   1m 40s
4.    Mikko Hirvonen      Citroen        +   3m 40s
5.    Evgeny Novikov      M-Sport Ford   +   3m 51s
6.    Francois Delecour   M-Sport Ford   +   5m 19s
7.    Pierre Campana      Mini           +   6m 49s
8.    Ott Tanak M-Sport   Ford           +   7m 00s
9.    P-G Andersson       PROTON         +  10m 08s <-----
10.   Kevin Abbring       Skoda          +  10m 31s

Proton enjoyed an inspiring start to its 2012 FIA Super World Rally Championship (S-WRC) campaign by rallying into the top 10 at the end of the first four special stages at the Monte Carlo Rally.

Driver Per Gunnar Andersson paced the Satria Neo S2000 sensibly to finish the drama-riddled Day One of the Rally which saw several of the World Rally Championship frontrunners retiring or suffering major setbacks.

Citroen’s Sebastien Loeb inherited the lead at the Monte Carlo Rally after pace setter Jari-Matti Latvala rolled his Ford into retirement. Loeb holds more than a minute’s lead over Spaniard Dani Sordo who damaged the suspension of his Mini, followed by Petter Solberg in the Ford in third while Sebastien Ogier in the S2000 Skoda is fourth.

Proton too was caught up in the day’s drama when Italian driver Giandomenico Basso’s charge into a sixth gear corner at the opening special stage was blinded by the sun sending him crashing into a wall and forced into an early retirement.

Andersson will start the second leg of the Monte Carlo Rally with a four-minute advantage over S-WRC rival Craig Breen in the Ford Fiesta.

“The car was fantastic throughout the day, definitely stronger and a lot quicker than the package we had last season, but the goal will be to drive sensibly to make sure that we finish in Monte Carlo,” said a delighted Andersson.

“In Monte Carlo it is crucial for the tyres to have a better grip in the icy weather and wet conditions. This means we have to be a bit more cautious on the throttle and acceleration not to mention that braking can also be very tricky. What is most important is you have to feel good and safe about the car you’re driving, and I must say that the Satria Neo S2000 has provided me precisely with that degree of confidence.”

Meanwhile, Datuk Abdul Razak Dawood, the Head of Proton Motorsports, said to have the Satria Neo S2000 finishing in the company of the top three WRC contenders the likes of Citroen, Ford and Mini, was a tremendous boost for the team and Malaysian car manufacturer.

“We have four more days of rallying in Monte Carlo, but the results of the first four special stages have nevertheless made it an impactful debut for Proton on the S-WRC circuit and above all, a strong indication that we are progressing in the right direction in terms of development of the Satria Neo S2000.”

Positions after SS4:

]]> http://www.wemotor.com/blog/2012/01/proton-drives-into-top-10-on-opening-day-in-monte-carlo-rally/feed/ 0 http://www.wemotor.com/blog/2012/01/red-bull-confirms-date-for-rb8-launch/ http://www.wemotor.com/blog/2012/01/red-bull-confirms-date-for-rb8-launch/#comments Thu, 19 Jan 2012 04:42:05 +0000 Nooralia Zaharin http://www.wemotor.com/blog/?p=63830

Double World Champions, Red Bull Racing will unveil its new RB8 on its own official website on February 6th, the day before the first pre-season test takes place.

The team announced that at 1pm on February 6th, images of the new car and comments from drivers and management will be available on www.redbullracing.com.

The RB8 car will be the machine that the Milton Keynes-based outfit is hoping will deliver its third consecutive drivers’ and constructors’ world championship following Sebastian Vettel’s back-to-back success in 2010 and 2011.

Meanwhile, F1′s sixth-ranked team in 2011, Force India, will unveil its 2012 challenger on February 3rd at the Silverstone track, located across the road from its Northamptonshire headquarters.

Technical director Andrew Green said the VJM05, whose monocoque has already passed the FIA’s mandatory crash tests, will be built and fired up next week.

“There’s always a buzz around when it’s happening,” he said.

2012 F1 Car Launch Dates

1 Feb – McLaren (Woking)
3 Feb – Force India (Silverstone)
3 Feb – Ferrari (Maranello)
6 Feb – Sauber F1 Team (Jerez)
6 Feb – Red Bull (Online)

Mercedes is the only team to announce that it will delay the launch of its new car until after the first test in order to maximise development time. With a two-week gap between tests the team will first run the new W03 at the second test in Barcelona.

Williams F1 today confirmed that Bruno Senna will contest the 2012 FIA Formula One World Championship for the Williams F1 Team. The appointment finalises the team’s line up for this year following confirmation in December that Pastor Maldonado will enter his second season in Formula One as a Williams race driver. Bruno will make his debut with the Williams F1 Team in Jerez on 9th February at the first of the winter tests.

Frank Williams, Team Principal, said, “Bruno only started racing when he was 20 years old but quickly proved his talent in F3 and GP2. In a tightly fought 2008 GP2 season, Bruno finished second in the Championship with notable victories in Monaco and Silverstone, the latter in the wet. The circumstances of Bruno’s two seasons in Formula One have not given him an ideal opportunity to deliver consistently so it was essential that we spent as much time with him as possible to understand and evaluate him as a driver. We have done this both on track and in our simulator and he has proven quick, technically insightful and above all capable of learning and applying his learning quickly and consistently. Now we are looking forward to seeing that talent in our race car.”

Bruno commented, “I feel very privileged that Williams has selected me as one of their race drivers. The team has a great heritage and I hope I can help write a good chapter in their history. The evaluation process has been intense and methodical but the time I have spent in the factory has demonstrated that the team has great people and all the resources needed to achieve better things this season.

“It will be very interesting to drive for a team that my uncle has driven for, particularly as quite a few of the people here actually worked with Ayrton. Hopefully we can bring back some memories and create some great new ones too. I also want to get some good results in return for the support my country has given me to help get me to this position today. I am very proud to be Brazilian and more motivated than ever to demonstrate what I can do. Ever since I first sat in a go-kart I never wanted to do anything else.”

Drivers Giandomenico Basso and Per Gunnar Andersson will lead Proton’s return to the World Rally Championship this Wednesday when the Malaysian manufacturer competes at the Monte Carlo Rally for the opening round of the 2012 FIA Super World Rally Championship (S-WRC).

Proton’s participation in the S-WRC comes 10 years after it first won the FIA Production Car World Rally Championship in 2002. Last year, the Malaysian manufacturer was crowned champion in the Asia Pacific Rally Championship (APRC). It will also be Proton’s second visit to the Monte Carlo Rally after making its debut last year on the Intercontinental Rally Challenge (IRC) which is run on a similar but shorter route.

The S-WRC is a companion series to the World Rally Championship and is driven on the same special stages. It is limited to production-based cars homologated under the Super 2000 rules and was first introduced in 2010. The S-WRC also splits the Production World Rally Championship (P-WRC), which was previously open to both Super 2000 and Group N4 cars, into two separate competitions.

“We’ve come a long way in our S2000 rally programme since it started in 2009, and to be part of the S-WRC and the 2012 World Rally Championship is incredibly rewarding for what has been both a challenging and successful journey for Proton on the international rally arena,” said Datuk Abdul Razak Dawood, Head of Proton Motorsports.

“We start the Monte Carlo Rally and the 2012 S-WRC season with what is a winning car, having clinched last year’s APRC title, and given the positive results we have achieved in testing throughout the winter break, we look forward to a strong and competitive season ahead.”

Proton will compete in five of the seven S-WRC rounds in 2012.

“At Proton, we are firmly committed to be better whether it is in the manufacturing of our vehicles, caring for our customers, or excelling in motorsports. Our participation in this year’s S-WRC is a manifestation of this commitment having competed in the APRC and IRC over the course of the last two years. Rally Motorsports offers a unique and dynamic showcase for Proton’s brand, products and technology which can also be leveraged by Proton for global branding, marketing purposes and the re-ignition of R3,” said John Chacko, Proton Director of Group Marketing, Branding and Motorsports.

The Monte Carlo Rally will be run over 18 special stages totalling 430km of competitive distance in temperatures as low as 5 degrees. This year’s rally also marks the return of the World Rally Championship to Monte Carlo after a three-year absence.

The 80th edition of the Monte-Carlo Rally kicks off in the French city of Valence with two stages to be run twice before heading to the mountainous Ardeche, Haut Loire and Drôme regions, and eventually finishing in Monaco.

“We have completed a lot of development to the 2012 Satria Neo S2000, particularly with the engine where we now have more torque. The most important is that I feel good driving the car and I believe it will be very good start to the season for us. I am pretty sure we have a winning car this year,” said Andersson who joins Proton’s S-WRC campaign after a full season with the Malaysian manufacturer in the 2011 IRC.

“At the Monte Carlo Rally, you can never be fully prepared for what can happen. It is always unpredictable and is common for drivers to rush into making mistakes. The crew also play an important role in ensuring we select the right tyres for the rally. If we have a rally without major problems, I think we will be in the running for a good finish,” he added.