Quote of the day
“I think Lotus is our sponsor. At least from what I know it is a sponsor. So I could also say it is my dream to drive for Total.” Robert Kubica on a hack’s question, what it meant to him to drive for Lotus now…
Another Lotus Renault shown in public
The former Renault works team, now called Lotus Renault, gave the public a first look at their new R31 today in Valencia
After the new black and gold livery had already been shown on a R30 in December, Lotus Renault have today been the third team to unveil their 2011 challenger. As expected, Robert Kubica and Vitaly Petrov were confirmed as team-mates for a second season. The surprise is to be found more on the reserve and test drivers’ bench with Romain Grosjean, Bruno Senna,Jan Charouz and Ho-Pin Tung joining the already anounced Fairuz Fauzy in a role that, if look at it, is actually almost obsolete. However, a full report on the car’s tech details can be found in P1Mag’s first issue of the year, out on Tuesday evening.
First new Lotus-Renault presented
Team Lotus beat their unloved counter part Lotus Renault GP by launching their brand new T128 – not TL11 as it had been suggested – before the Enstone based outfit.
Insisting on the Lotus “Type” numbering system is clearly a statement and aimed to provoke the Lotus Group. Tony Fernandez’ team is putting quite some faith in the new car, expecting it to take them from the best of the new teams to mid-field contenders and points finishes.
Sauber’s Swiss made C30
Sauber Motorsport today presented the first car the Swiss team designed and build on their own after the departure of BMW – the C30.
The C30 has been designed and build under the guidance of highly rated technical director James Key, implementing Ferrari’s engine, drivertrain and KERS.
Harvick’s Nationwide winning streak
We are counting down the days to the season-opening Daytona 500 and for the amount of days left to the 2011 Sprint Cup’s opening race we’ll reveal a magic number in NASCAR stats and what it means. 20 days left, so today’s number is: 20
20 consecutive top-10 finishes for Kevin Harvick in Nationwide Series races from June 30, 2006, to Feb. 24, 2007. It is the second-longest streak in series history behind Sam Ard’s 42 (July 1983 to September 1984). Harvick, a two-time series champion, won seven times in that stretch and had a 3.3 average finish. He did not compete full time in 2007, finishing in the top 10 three times before his streak ended with an 11th at Texas in April 2007.
Ganassi 1-2 in Daytona
In a frantic finish Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates sealed a 1-2 in the Daytona 24 hours race with Joey Hand / Scott Pruett / Graham Rahal / Memo Rojas taking the win just 2.070 seconds after 720 laps ahead of the / BMW Riley sister car of Scott Dixon / Dario Franchitti / Jamie McMurray / Juan Pablo Montoya. Joao Barbosa / Terry Borcheller / Christian Fittipaldi / J.C. France / Max Papis finished third just 0.256 behind in the Action Express Racing Porsche Riley on the same lap ahead of former F1 stars Mark Blundell and Martin Brundle, already a lap down in P4. Steven Bertheau / Brendan Gaughan / Wolf Henzler / Andy Lally / Spencer Pumpelly took the GT class win with the TRG Porsche GT3. A full report on the 24h Daytona will follow in P1Mag’s first issue of the year on Tuesday evening
Sprint Cup at Auto Club Speedway
We are counting down the days to the season-opening Daytona 500 and for the amount of days left to the 2011 Sprint Cup’s opening race we’ll reveal a magic number in NASCAR stats and what it means. 21 days left, so today’s number is: 21
21 Sprint Cup races that have been run at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif. Jeff Gordon won the inaugural Cup race at the 2-mile track in June 1997. Jimmie Johnson has the most wins with five, followed by Gordon and Matt Kenseth with three each. No other driver has more than one win. The lone Sprint Cup race at Fontana in 2011 is scheduled for March 27, the fifth race of the season.
30/11
23/2/2008, Paul Frère dies.
Despite being born in France, Paul Frère held Belgian citizenship and raced on a semiprofessional basis for 15 years under Belgian license, including 10 Formula 1 races with a an astonishing 2nd place in the 1965 Belgian GP as his best result and a brief appearance in the 1966 Grand Prix movie. He also won the 1960 24 Hours of Le Mans, driving for Ferrari with fellow Belgian Olivier Gendebien. His greatest talent, however, lay in his ability to relate his experiences to others through the written word. Frère has contributed to many magazines, and has written several highly acclaimed books on his experiences in the automotive world. He never fully recovered from severe road accident in Germany in September of 2006 suffering a shattered pelvis, several broken ribs and punctures to both lungs. Paul Frère passed away in February 2008 and prior to the Belgian Grand Prix that year, the Stavelot Bend at the Spa-Francorchamps circuit was renamed into Curve Paul Frère in his honor.
Born: 30rd of January 1917 in Le Havre, France;
Died: 23rd of February 2008 in Saint-Paul-de-Vence, France.
30/01
30/1/1917, Paul Frère is born in Le Havre, France.
Despite being born in France, Paul Frère held Belgian citizenship and raced on a semiprofessional basis for 15 years under Belgian license, including 10 Formula 1 races with a an astonishing 2nd place in the 1965 Belgian GP as his best result and a brief appearance in the 1966 Grand Prix movie. He also won the 1960 24 Hours of Le Mans, driving for Ferrari with fellow Belgian Olivier Gendebien. His greatest talent, however, lay in his ability to relate his experiences to others through the written word. Frère has contributed to many magazines, and has written several highly acclaimed books on his experiences in the automotive world. He never fully recovered from severe road accident in Germany in September of 2006 suffering a shattered pelvis, several broken ribs and punctures to both lungs. Paul Frère passed away in February 2008 and prior to the Belgian Grand Prix that year, the Stavelot Bend at the Spa-Francorchamps circuit was renamed into Curve Paul Frère in his honor.
Born: 30rd of January 1917 in Le Havre, France;
Died: 23rd of February 2008 in Saint-Paul-de-Vence, France.
Kurt Busch – a winner since 2002
We are counting down the days to the season-opening Daytona 500 and for the amount of days left to the 2011 Sprint Cup’s opening race we’ll reveal a magic number in NASCAR stats and what it means. 22 days left, so today’s number is: 22
22 Career Cup wins for 2004 Sprint Cup champion Kurt Busch. Busch has won at least one race every season since 2002. Busch won twice in 2010—at Atlanta and Charlotte—to tie Terry Labonte for 27th on the career wins list. Just ahead of Busch and Labonte is Ricky Rudd with 23 wins.
Junior’s wins
We are counting down the days to the season-opening Daytona 500 and for the amount of days left to the 2011 Sprint Cup’s opening race we’ll reveal a magic number in NASCAR stats and what it means. 23 days left, so today’s number is: 23
23 Career Nationwide Series victories for Dale Earnhardt Jr., ranking him ninth all time. Junior, who won the 1998 and 1999 championships in his only full-time Nationwide seasons, picked up his last win in July at Daytona. Earnhardt has six Nationwide wins at Daytona, his most successful track in the series.
Coming up this Weekend
Here’s the agenda for the Weekend:
29-30/01 Daytona (USA) Grand-Am – Rolex 24 At Daytona
29/01 Monster Energy AMA Supercross Oakland, USA
29/01 Clermont Ferrand (FRA) FFSA Trophée Andros – Superbesse
29/01-02/02 Monte Carlo (MCO) 14e Rallye Monte-Carlo Historique
Ferrari unveils the new F150
Ferrari unveiled this morning in Maranello their 2011 challenger, the brand new F150. In the presence of FIAT president John Elkann and the CEO of the Scuderia’s main sponsor, Emilio Botin. Fernando Alonso will be at the wheel of the F150 for its first roll-out at the Fiorano test track. Felipe Massa will have his first taste of the new Ferrari on Saturday. Alonso will begin the test programme in Valencia on the 1st of February and will hand over to his team-mate after two days.
Further launch dates:
31/01 Valencia (ESP) Sauber C30 and Renault R31 launch
01/02 Valencia (ESP) Williams FW33, Red Bull RB7, Toro Rosso STR6 and Mercedes W02 launch
04/02 Berlin (DEU) McLaren MP4-26 launch
07/02 London (GBR) Virgin MVR-02 launch
10/02 Jerez (ESP) Force India VJM04 launch
03/02 Sakhir (BHR) HRT F111 launch
Remembering Oswald Karch
6/3/1917, Oswald Karch is born in Ludwigshafen, Germany
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Oswald Karch raced a BMW Eigenbau Formula 2 race car in both the East German championship as well in the west. In 1952 he switched to a Veritas RS, which he raced in the 1953 German Grand Prix. Left without a qualifying time he found on the last spot of a massive, 34 cars strong grid, the largest ever grid to line up for a World Championship round. After 10 laps his single appearance in the World Championship was over due to engine problems. However, he had a good season in the German F2 championship retiring at the end of the year. Karch now lives in a retirement home in Steinklingen in the Baden-Würtemberg region and unfortunately not in very good state of health.
Born: 6th of March 1917 in Ludwigshafen, Germany;
Died: 28th of January 2009 in Steinklingen, Germany.
28/01
2/2/1909, Enrico Platè dies.
A decent, but not overwhelming driver in both pre- and post-war Grands Prix, Enrico Platè then became a significant and influential figure in post-war grand prix and early Formula One racing as a team owner running Maseratis for decent drivers in all respects, such as Prince “Bira”, Harry Schell, Toulo de Graffenried and notably Tazio Nuvolari, providing the car the Italian legend scored his final victory in the 1946 Albi Grand Prix. He was killed a few days after his 55th birthday in a tragic accident during the 1954 Argentine GP, when Jorge Daponte lost control of his A6GCM and ran into the signaling area where Platè was preparing the pit board for his driver Prince “Bira”.
Born: 28th of January 1909 in Milan, Italy;
Died: 2nd of February 1954 in Buenos Aires, Argentina, aged 45.
28/01
28/1/1949, Jean-Pierre Wimille dies.
A frequent Grands Prix winner in the pre-war racing scene, Wimille had become a Bugatti works driver when he won the 1936 ACF GP (with Sommer), the 1937 Le Mans 24 Hrs (with Benoist) and the 1939 Le Mans 24 Hrs (with Veyron) in a series of Type 57 derivatives. However, in August 1939 Jean Bugatti died, and the following month France was at war. Wimille joined the French Armée de l’Air and was part of the French Resistance. After the war he immediately won the Coupe des Prisonniers on the 9th September 1945, the first race in peace, driving a works-supported Bugatti. He kept on winning and had there been a World Drivers Championship in 1947 and 1948 he would have been champion in both those years. In practice for a race of the Argentine 1949 Temporada series in Buenos Aires he was apparently blinded by the sun and his Simca-Gordini left the road, hitting a tree. Jean-Pierre Wimille died shortly afterwards from the sustained injuries and was posthumously awarded the Legion d’Honneur at his funeral.
Born: 26th of February 1908 in Paris, France;
Died: 28th of January 1949 in Buenos Aires, Argentina, aged 40.
28/01
28/1/1909, Enrico Platè is born in Milan, Italy.
A decent, but not overwhelming driver in both pre- and post-war Grands Prix, Enrico Platè then became a significant and influential figure in post-war grand prix and early Formula One racing as a team owner running Maseratis for notable drivers such as Prince “Bira”, Harry Schell, Toulo de Graffenried and notably Tazio Nuvolari, providing the car the Italian legend scored his final victory in the 1946 Albi Grand Prix. He was killed in a tragic accident during the 1954 Argentine GP, when Jorge Daponte lost control of his A6GCM and ran into the signaling area where Platè was preparing the pit board for his driver Prince “Bira”.
Born: 28th of January 1909 in Milan, Italy;
Died: 2nd of February 1954 in Buenos Aires, Argentina, aged 45.
28/01
6/2/1908, Jean-Pierre Wimille is born in Paris, France
.
A frequent Grands Prix winner in the pre-war racing scene, Wimille had become a Bugatti works driver when he won the 1936 ACF GP (with Sommer), the 1937 Le Mans 24 Hrs (with Benoist) and the 1939 Le Mans 24 Hrs (with Veyron) in a series of Type 57 derivatives. However, in August 1939 Jean Bugatti died, and the following month France was at war. Wimille joined the French Armée de l’Air and was part of the French Resistance. After the war he immediately won the Coupe des Prisonniers on the 9th September 1945, the first race in peace, driving a works-supported Bugatti. He kept on winning and had there been a World Drivers Championship in 1947 and 1948 he would have been champion in both those years. In practice for a race of the Argentine 1949 Temporada series in Buenos Aires he was apparently blinded by the sun and his Simca-Gordini left the road, hitting a tree. Jean-Pierre Wimille died shortly afterwards from the sustained injuries and was posthumously awarded the Legion d’Honneur at his funeral.
Born: 26th of February 1908 in Paris, France;
Died: 28th of January 1949 in Buenos Aires, Argentina, aged 40.
Jeff Gordon IS #24
We are counting down the days to the season-opening Daytona 500 and for the amount of days left to the 2011 Sprint Cup’s opening race we’ll reveal a magic number in NASCAR stats and what it means. 24 days left, so today’s number is: 24
24 has been Jeff Gordon’s car number for his entire Cup career. Gordon made his first start in the final race of the 1992 season, the Hooters 500 at Atlanta, and has started every race since. Gordon has all 82 wins in the No. 24, and his 82 wins rank sixth all time, one behind Cale Yarborough, two behind Darrell Waltrip and three behind Bobby Allison. Gordon was winless in 2010; his last win was at Texas in April 2009.
Shelby inspired Le Mans TV drama
Great news: Internationally renowned film-maker Ridley Scott will be responsible for a new screen drama around the 24h race of Le Mans called ‘The Drivers’.
Interestingly it will be a series in television format based on the enduro classic as it used to be in the 1950s/1960s, telling the story of the legendary men who risked everything to win at Le Mans. It’s bound to be an epic story of courage and ambition. Ridley and Tony Scott will be co-producing the package drama series for the international market and the story will be based on the book, Shelby: The Man, The Cars, the Legend written by Wallace A. Wyss and optioned from Iconografix. It tells the true story of wild young drivers from the US, Germany, France, Italy and Britain, friends and rivals, amateurs risking everything for a shot on the tracks. Can’t wait to see it.
Force India confirm Sutil & DiResta + Hülkenberg
As P1Mag reported roughly two months ago, Paul di Resta had been in pole position for the race seat at Force India, courtesy of a deal struck between the team and its engine supplier Mercedes-Benz, on who’s salary list the Scotsman had been the last couple of seasons. Adrian Sutil, also a know quantity when his options Renault and Sauber had vanished, was also confirmed. To see Nico Hülkenberg as third driver is somewhat of a disappointment. The young German rising star was skipped by Williams F1 in a less than stylish fashion after the final round of the 2010 season in favour of Venezuelan petro-dollars and failed to find a – well deserved – race seat for 2011.
Jimmie Johnson’s pole tally
We are counting down the days to the season-opening Daytona 500 and for the amount of days left to the 2011 Sprint Cup’s opening race we’ll reveal a magic number in NASCAR stats and what it means. 25 days left, so today’s number is: 25
25 Career Cup poles won by Jimmie Johnson, which ranks fifth among active drivers and 26th on the all-time list. Johnson won two poles in 2010—Bristol and Dover—and has at least one pole in each of his nine full-time seasons. His first pole came in his fourth race—the 2002 Daytona 500. Johnson finished 15th.
Max Papis and the #13
We are counting down the days to the season-opening Daytona 500 and for the amount of days left to the 2011 Sprint Cup’s opening race we’ll reveal a magic number in NASCAR stats and what it means. 26 days left, so today’s number is: 26
26 Top-10 finishes in the Cup series for the No. 13 car in 290 starts. The last top 10 came at Watkins Glen in 2009, and it is the only top 10 in Max Papis’ Cup career. Papis finished eighth in the Heluva Good! Sour Cream Dips at The Glen, which was won by Tony Stewart. Papis has made 35 starts in his three-year Cup career.
25/01
25/1/1908, Frank Kurtis is born in Crested Butte, Colorado, USA.
Having built race cars in his backyard, Frank’s first entry to the 1948 Indy 500 with the Kurtis-Kraft Special ended with a 2nd place finish and won the championship that year. Frank’s dream came true when Johnny Parsons steers the Kurtis Wynn’s Oil Special to victory at the 1949 Indy 500. The following year Parsons and Kurtis repeated the feat, coincidentally the big race also counting for the first time as a round for the Formula 1 World Championship. Kurtis-Kraft created over 550 ready-to-run midget cars, 600 midgets in kit form and 120 Indianapolis 500 cars, winning the Indy 500 a total five times until 1963. Frank retired in 1968 handing the company over to his son Arlen and passed away in 1987.
Born: 25th of January 1908 in Crested Butte, Colorado, USA.
Died: 17th of February 1987 in Los Angeles, USA.
Monday – 26. Januar 2009 07:33
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