Michael Schumacher Gearing Up For 300th Grand Prix
Undeniably one of Formula 1’s most successful drivers, Michael Schumacher, is gearing up for his 300th Grand Prix next weekend at Spa-Francorchamps. The 7-time World Champion has enjoyed unparalleled success in the sport, and has seen many of his most iconic moments occur at the legendary track in the Ardennes Forest.
Whether it was making his F1 debut back in 1991, winning his first race in 1992 or winning his final World Championship to date in 2004, Michael Schumacher has enjoyed many great races around Spa-Francorchamps. However, this season will once again see Michael Schumacher make Formula 1 history at Spa, as he becomes only the second driver to reach the milestone of 300 races or more.
Ironically Michael Schumacher’s former team-mate, Rubens Barrichello, is the other driver to have partaken in 300 races or more. The two drivers were team-mates at Ferrari for numerous years, with Michael Schumacher storming to five back-to-back Championship titles, whereas Rubens Barrichello was forced to adhere to team orders on several occasions and failed to win a Championship of his own.
As Michael Schumacher prepares to head to the Spa-Francorchamps circuit once again, his aim is to undoubtedly celebrate his milestone in style. The 43-year-old German has enjoyed limited success during his return to the sport with Mercedes, only just managing to return to the podium with 3rd at this season’s European Grand Prix. However, Schumacher is positive that a decent result is possible once the Formula 1 fraternity reconvenes after the summer break.
“Spa is like my living room; for me, it’s clearly the number one race track in the world.” Explained Michael Schumacher ahead of the Belgian Grand Prix. “It’s uncanny how I always seem to have special moments there – my debut, my first win, a World Championship victory and many great races. The fact that I will also take part in my 300th Grand Prix at Spa was somehow almost inevitable and we will have to celebrate it in the right way. We delivered a good performance in Spa last year; I’ll be doing everything possible to drive a strong race.”
Like with many races on the calendar, Michael Schumacher holds the record for the most amount of victories at the Belgian Grand Prix with six. The German’s last victory around Spa-Francorchamps was in 2002, a year when Schumacher was almost unstoppable and was already crowned World Champion by the French Grand Prix with six races to go in the season. Admittedly those dominant days are long gone for Michael Schumacher, however a decent result at this year’s Belgian Grand Prix would be the ideal way to celebrate his milestone of 300 Grands Prix.
Picture Copyright © Mercedes AMG Petronas
Sauber Hoping For Step Forward With New Upgrades
After a relatively disappointing Bahrain Grand Prix, Sauber are hoping their new upgrades will help propel the team forward at next weekends Spanish Grand Prix. The Swiss outfit tested their new upgrades, which consist of a new front wing, new bodywork and a new diffuser, at the Mugello test last week.
Last season, then F1 rookie Sergio Perez scored his first World Championship points after finishing 9th for Sauber. Heading into this seasons Spanish Grand Prix, and the Mexican has already had a highly competitive season, finishing a career best 2nd at the Malaysian Grand Prix. Coupled with Sauber’s new aero package, Perez is eager to get some more points in 2012.
“To me the race at the Circuit de Catalunya is one of the most special ones on the calendar.” Explained Sergio Perez, “I obviously know the circuit very well from GP2, from last year’s Formula One race and, of course, from testing. It was there where I scored my first ever F1 points last year when I finished ninth. I hope to get some points again this year. Our recent race in Bahrain was very disappointing, so I really hope our new aero package will work well in Barcelona.”
With some teams questioning the wisdom of the Mugello test, with the opening day a complete washout after torrential rain struck the circuit, Sauber have taken many positives from the three days of testing and are hopeful their upgrades have a positive affect in Spain.
“The Barcelona track is very complete. It has all kinds of features – low speed, medium speed and high speed corners as well as changes of direction.” Said Giampaolo Dall’Ara, Sauber’s Head of Track Engineering. “We tested a major upgrade to the car in Mugello, consisting of a new front wing and new bodywork, including a different exhaust exit and a new diffuser. The results of the test were encouraging. However, all the teams had some upgrades, and only the next race weekend will give us confirmation whether we are able to strengthen our position compared to our competitors. Nevertheless I’m confident that we can have a strong performance in Barcelona.”
Sauber’s highest ever finishing position at the Spanish Grand Prix was 4th at both the 1996 and 2002 Spanish Grands Prix, when Heinz-Harald Frentzen and Nick Heidfeld raced for the Swiss team respectively. Sauber have already finished higher than that in 2012, and in such an unpredictable season will undoubtably be gunning for another podium finish.
Rubens Barrichello Would Consider F1 Return With Ferrari
After racing in Formula 1 since 1993, Rubens Barrichello has switched to the IndyCar Series for 2012, racing alongside fellow countryman Tony Kanaan for KV Racing Technology. However, as happy as the likable Brazilian is with his new IndyCar role, rumors have begun to circulate of a possible return to F1 with Ferrari.
In 2006, Barrichello moved from Ferrari to Honda in a move which saw him partner British star Jenson Button. This partnership continued until 2009, albeit under a new name of Brawn GP, which saw the pair win races and eventually the Constructors’ Championship as Button romped away with the drivers’ crown.
After a switch to Williams for 2010, Barrichello’s career came to an abrupt end after the 2011 season when fellow countryman Bruno Senna replaced Barrichello. Only two races into his first IndyCar season and he is already finding his feet in a series which offers different challenges including oval racing and rolling starts. However, could Rubens return to F1 and replace Felipe Massa at Ferrari?
With Felipe Massa suffering a literally disastrous start to his 2012 campaign, many drivers’ including Adrian Sutil, Jarno Trulli and Sergio Perez have been linked with a move to the Italian outfit. However, the latest driver to be linked with replacing the faltering Brazilian is fellow countryman Rubens Barrichello, even though he was forced to play rear-gunner to Michael Schumacher throughout the German’s dominant era in the sport.
“If they [Ferrari] call me today to go drive for them I would go.” Said Rubens Barrichello, who won 9 races for Ferrari during his spell with the team, “It was the best team I’ve ever driven for in terms of support, of creativity. But there were definitely some spicy episodes.”
Those spicy episodes in question most certainly occurred in 2002 during the Austrian Grand Prix, when Rubens was forced to allow Schumacher through, only for the pass to occur on the last lap on the pit-straight. This caused outcry amongst the F1 world, with fans at the circuit dismayed at such a false result. Even though this was the case, the result stayed and Ferrari’s only penalty was a fine because Barrichello stood on the top step of the podium whereas Schumacher remained in 2nd, the two obviously highly embarrassed with the proceedings.
Whether this is simply rumors, or whether Rubens really does return to F1 in replace of Massa, the obvious fact is that Felipe Massa simply must up his performance. With his team-mate Fernando Alonso already leading the World Championship after winning in Malaysia, the Brazilian has a large shadow that seems to be suffocating his ability to perform in undeniably the most famous team in the history of F1.
Picture(s) Copyright © Getty Images
Ben Edwards Becomes BBC F1 Lead Commentator
Ben Edwards today announced on the social networking site Twitter that he will become the new BBC F1 Commentator, replacing Martin Brundle to commentate alongside David Coulthard in 2012. This comes after Martin Brundle switched to Sky for next season to front their commentary team alongside fellow ex-BBC commentators Anthony Davidson and David Croft.
Ben Edwards has recently been the British Touring Car Championship commentator for ITV and has also previously fronted EuroSport’s Formula 1 coverage alongside former F1 driver John Watson throughout the 1990s. Once EuroSport lost the rights to broadcast F1 at the end of 1996 he began commentating on ChampCar (CART) for EuroSport and ESPN International and had undeniably his finest moment during the final laps for the 2000 Michigan 500 where Juan Pablo Montoya and Michael Andretti crossed the line side-by-side with Ben Edwards literally screaming in both delight and shock at such an exciting and close finish.
In 2002 Ben became the Lead Commentator for Bernie Ecclestone’s F1 Digital+ channel which was pay-per-view through Sky TV and was partnered by former colleague from EuroSport John Watson. However due to an unsuccessful 2002 season, F1 Digital+ ceased to exist and three years later Ben Edwards became the Lead Commentator for the new A1 Grand Prix Series launched in 2005.
Although there has been no official statement from the BBC pertaining to Ben Edwards joining the team, he did say this on Twitter: “So, it looks as though it’s really happening. I will be the BBC F1 commentator in 2012 and I can’t wait! It took a while for things to be sorted, and thanks to ITV for being so understanding. Really looking forward to working with the crew.”
With both Sky and the BBC signing two superb commentators it’s going to be difficult to decide which channel to watch next seasons races on.
Kimi Raikkonen Signs Two-Year Lotus Renault Deal
It has been officially confirmed that 2007 World Champion, Kimi Raikkonen, has signed a two-year deal with the Lotus Renault GP team which will next year be re-branded as the Lotus F1 Team. This comes only days after talks between Kimi Raikkonen and Williams fell through after reports he’d replace Rubens Barrichello.
The ‘Iceman’ left the sport in 2009 to race in the World Rally Championship full time, but lately he has disclosed that his hunger to return to F1 has become overwhelming. Raikkonen will be replacing the still injured Robert Kubica after he announced last week that he would not be ready to race in next seasons opener, the Australian Grand Prix in March. Raikkonen is the next driver in a long list of drivers who have stood in for Kubica as he replaces Bruno Senna, who had beforehand replaced Nick Heidfeld who before him had been the initial replacement for Kubica after his horrendous rally crash in February.
Renault will pair Raikkonen with Vitaly Petrov next season, the Russian driver is set to start his third season in the sport with the team, his highest finishing position in his career so far 3rd at this seasons Australian Grand Prix.
Kimi Raikkonen made his debut in 2001 with the Sauber team and scored a point in his first ever race in Australia. This was followed by two stunning 4th place finishes at the Austrian and Canadian Grands Prix as well as 5th at the British Grand Prix. With such a brilliant display of racing in his first season, he was signed by McLaren in 2002 after fellow Finn Mika Hakkinen retired from the sport. This season produced no win for Raikkonen, however it did produce his first ever podium finishes with 3rd at the Australian, European and Japanese Grands Prix. It was in the 2003 season that Raikkonen won his first ever race at the 2003 Malaysian Grand Prix, his only win of the season which was followed by no less than seven podiums throughout the remainder of the season.
Raikkonen has since gone on to win 17 more races as well as one World Championship in 2007, winning by only a point from the McLaren’s of then rookie Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso. His other statistics thus far include 62 podiums, 16 pole-positions and 35 fastest laps.
Kimi Raikkonen will be hoping to add to all of those totals in what will become Part 2 of the ‘Iceman’s” Formula 1 career.
Sky Set To Launch Sky Sports F1 HD Channel
It has been announced today that Sky will launch a Formula 1 standalone channel in March in preparation for the 2012 season in which Sky will broadcast all the Races, Qualifying sessions and Practice sessions as well as a weekly magazine show. The BBC will also continue their broadcasting of F1 throughout 2012 with delayed highlights of all the races as well as half of the seasons races live and in full.
Sky have also announced that there will be a huge amount of extra live content for each race weekend which will feature an on-board channel, behind the scenes with the pit reporters and the ability to follow race data.
This is all very reminiscent of the old Formula 1 Pay-Per-View channel, F1 Digital+, that was set up in 1996 and broadcast in the UK on Sky in 2002 before the channel closed after the 2002 season. The channel featured many of the extra ad-ons that Sky Sports F1 HD will feature next year including the ability to follow the pit lane reporters throughout the race and also view the on-board channel throughout the weekend.
These new additions to Sky will undoubtedly boost their Sky Sports subscriptions heading into the new F1 season as well as cementing Sky as the leading F1 broadcaster in the UK!
Pedro De La Rosa Signs For HRT
Ex-McLaren Test Driver, Pedro De La Rosa, has secured himself a full time drive in Formula 1 for the next two years after signing for the HRT team, a contract that begins next season.
The Spanish driver is now 40 years old, and has expressed his determination to return to the sport after last racing in F1 earlier in the year at the Canadian Grand Prix for Sauber in place for the injured Sergio Perez.
He began his Formula 1 career way back in 1999 for Arrows, securing himself a point at his first ever race in Australia by finishing 6th, a feat which he replicated a year later in the 2000 European and German Grands Prix, once again for Arrows. In 2001 he started the season without a drive, however after only four rounds he replaced Luciano Burti at Jaguar, alongside Eddie Irvine and again finished only two races in the points with 6th at the 2001 Canadian Grand Prix and 5th at the 2001 Italian Grand Prix. In 2002 he had his worst ever season in the sport as he failed to score a single point for Jaguar, which left him heading into 2003 without a drive.
Without a full time drive for 2003, he joined McLaren as a test driver, and that’s where he stayed until 2010 when he signed for Sauber. In that time, he raced numerous races for McLaren, one in the 2005 Bahrain Grand Prix where he replaced the injured Juan Pablo Montoya and finished 5th. He replaced Montoya again in 2006 when it was announced Montoya was headed to America to join the Nascar scene, and De La Rosa achieved his first ever podium in the 2006 Hungarian Grand Prix finishing 2nd behind Jenson Button in his Honda as he secured his first ever race win. After that season, Kimi Raikkonen left McLaren as Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton joined the team whilst Pedro De La Rosa was demoted once again back to his test driver role.
Pedro De La Rosa failed to get a drive for McLaren again and henceforth signed for Sauber in 2010 alongside Japanese rookie Kamui Kobayashi who amazingly out raced the more experienced De La Rosa as he was replaced mid-season by Nick Heidfeld. In 2011, he once again found himself without a drive and was only able to get behind the wheel once this season when Sergio Perez injured himself during Qualifying for the Monaco Grand Prix and he was loaned out by McLaren.
For the first time since 1999 and 2000 it looks like De La Rosa finally has the resources to race for two seasons back-to-back, albeit with HRT who are at the moment still floundering around at the back of the grid. Pedro De La Rosa has, however, mentioned this and has already admitted it will be a tough challenge taking the team further.
Whether or not this fact will affect his racing, it will undoubtedly be a step forward for the team who have so far only raced with less experienced drivers, the most experienced being that of Vitantonio Liuzzi this season who has proven less than an asset for the team after suffering many poor results.
Drivers Decide On DRS Rethink For 2012
It was a controversial decision, introducing the DRS (Drag Reduction System) into Formula 1 to aid overtaking, some said at the time it was a detraction from the purity of racing. However, after the first few races of the season, it was undeniable that is was doing its job and creating more passing in the race. Unfortunately, passing has now gone from one end of the spectrum to the other as drivers with the aid of the DRS can deploy it within a certain zone without the fear of the driver under attack deploying his. This has ultimately made passing a mere formality, whereas before it was a hard fought battle of wit and driver skill.
However throughout the other four sessions of the weekend (Practice 1-3 and Qualifying) drivers have been permitted to use to device at their own free will on any part of the track they feel they can get away with. This has ultimately led to drivers opening to flap too early, like Sutil at Melbourne, and either having violent spins or crashes.
Due to the design of the device, opening the flap (a letter box like device on the back wing that reduces downforce) on a corner is almost impossible, with the only exceptions being 130R at Suzuka, and even then Kamui Kobayashi got it all sideways heading into the turn, using fantastic skill to stop the car from connecting with the wall and preventing what could’ve been a crash reminiscent of Allan McNish in 2002 when he flew over the barriers during a Practice session.
So therefore the drivers of Formula 1 wish to prevent anymore DRS-made incidents by restricting its use to the DRS Zones only throughout the entire weekend, with maybe some added zones along key straights.
Some tracks are now being allowed two DRS Zones, and during the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix most recently, the two zones had a nulling affect as a driver would pass heading into Turn 8 during the DRS Zone 1 and then get pounced upon by the other driver heading down into Turn 11 during the DRS Zone 2. Yes, this affect created more passing than has ever been seen at an Abu Dhabi Grand Prix before, yet for the purist of racing fans it is making a mockery of F1 and quickly turning it into a sport reminiscent of Nascar where drivers pass each other every second, even then due to the weight and the characteristics of the ovals it’s a hard fought battle to pass in Nascar!
Hopefully the FIA can improve on their calculations for next season and the use of the DRS won’t be so sporadic. This season some races in particular have been ruined by the device, China and Turkey are only a few, with passing being a formality before the cars have even began their braking for the next corner.
Ideally the device would be allowed a limited amount of times in a race, like IndyCars push-to-pass device, also allowing drivers who are being passed to use it. Therefore drivers skill can be reintroduced to passing as they try and outwit their fellow racers with conserving their DRS usage whereas the other driver might use it all up within 10 or so laps. Whether this would work or not, we may very well never know.
Michael Schumacher Extends Mercedes Contract
Seven time World Champion, Michael Schumacher, has extended his Mercedes contract until 2013, German weekly Sport Bild are reporting.
Schumacher, who has had a topsy-turvy return to the sport, seems unwilling to leave the sport he so dearly loves as he continues in his quest to win his 92nd Grand Prix and to climb onto the podium for the 155th time in his career. And what a career it has been, starting at the 1991 Belgian Grand Prix with Jordan, winning a record breaking seven World Championships, the 42 year old has made himself a household name through utter domination of the sport through the mid 2000s, winning at least once in every four races between 2001 and 2004 when he raced with Ferrari alongside faithful team-mate and “rear-gunner” Rubens Barrichello.
However when he left the sport in 2006, many believed Ferrari had ushered him away to make space for Kimi Raikkonen and that he did not want to leave F1. Maybe these speculations were true, when in 2009 he offered his services to Ferrari when Felipe Massa had his horrific accident at the 2009 Hungarian Grand Prix. Unfortunately an underlying injury ruined the potentially glorious return of Schumi in red, yet that didn’t stop his determination to return when in late 2009 it was announced he would team-mate Nico Rosberg with Mercedes under leadership from ex-Ferrari man, Ross Brawn.
Many believed the “second coming” was set to continue his brilliance and that he’d be at least on the podium before mid-season, yet we were unlucky to see such as thing as the Mercedes and Schumacher struggled to perform and he had to settle for 9th in the Championship, his lowest ever finish in F1 since his inaugural rookie season in 1991. Many believed Schumacher would be unhappy with such results, and that he would throw the towel in for 2011, and once again the masses were wrong as Schumacher came bouncing back in Melbourne this year looking as happy as ever, clearly pleased just to be doing what he loves best. Once again this season has yet to see Schumacher performing his victory leap atop the podium which we all became accustomed to with in his Benetton and Ferrari days, yet still he continues, and even though his contract was set to come to an end after next season, it seems the legend is still content with racking up the miles as it has been reported he will still be racing in 2013 as he has signed a new deal with Mercedes.
Whether he’ll gradually get bored over the next two seasons with the lack of success, or whether the Schumacher of old has been re-born with a sense that winning isn’t everything, we’ll find out and I’m sure many Schumi fans will rejoice at having him on the grid for an extra season!
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James Allen Becomes BBC Radio 5 Live Commentator
Ex-ITV commentator James Allen has been announced as the new BBC Radio 5 Live lead commentator, replacing David Croft who last year was announced as the commentator for the new dedicated F1 channel Sky Sports F1 HD alongside former BBC colleagues Martin Brundle and Anthony Davidson.
James Allen took over from Murray Walker as ITV commentator in 2002, alongside Martin Brundle and was immediately under the spotlight by critics, some believing he was trying to sound too much like Murray Walker and that his enthusiasm sometimes got the better of him, especially when Jenson Button won his first ever Grand Prix at the 2006 Hungarian Grand Prix.
However, regardless of what the critics have said about him, no-one can deny that James Allen’s enthusiasm for Formula 1 is unmatched by any of todays journalists and commentators. In 2009 he became the Formula One Management World Feed Interviewer when he was asked to do so for the 2009 British Grand Prix in place of Peter Windsor, and he asked questions for the post-qualifying and post-race TV interviews.
James Allen will continue writing for his website and will also continue his contributions to Australia’s Ten Sport F1 coverage. With the BBC loosing the majority of its major talent to Sky Sports for 2012, the BBC couldn’t have picked a more enthusiastic commentator to head their BBC Radio 5 Live coverage.