Adrian Newey: “We Didn’t Properly Understand The Car”

Red Bull’s Chief Technical Officer Adrian Newey has explained how he and the team struggled to understand the RB8 throughout the early stages of the 2012 season, which saw an amazing seven different winners in the first seven races. Both Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber won a race in the first seven, but struggled to dominate.

After a season in which Red Bull utterly annihilated the opposition, with Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber taking a combined eighteen pole positions and twelve victories in 2011, the first seven races of 2012 was somewhat refreshing as seven different drivers took victory, including two new winners in Nico Rosberg and Pastor Maldonado. During this early stage of the year, Red Bull’s results were rather erratic with both Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber struggling to return to their former dominance of the previous season.

“We didn’t have the level of consistency we wanted [at the start of the season] and as an engineer that was very frustrating because the truth is we didn’t properly understand the car and what was happening so it’s not just we weren’t fully competitive, it’s that lack of understanding which personally I found very frustrating.” Explained Adrian Newey, Red Bull’s Chief Technical Officer. “So it’s been tough to understand the car, understand what we should do, how to get it to work consistently.”

Despite the tough start to the season for Red Bull, the team struck gold towards the end of the year as Sebastian Vettel and the team enjoyed a resurgence of competitiveness which saw the German driver storm to four race victories at Singapore, Japan, Korea and India. This enabled him to return to the top of the Championship, and eventually secure his third Drivers’ Crown at the Brazilian Grand Prix. However, Sebastian Vettel also found the start of the season exceedingly tough.

“It was an incredible amount of work and a tough year.” Added Sebastian Vettel, “Especially the first few races, I think we always had a car that was good enough to come in first, but that last bit was missing, I didn’t feel quite as comfortable as I did two years ago, maybe I was missing that last bit of trust, that I couldn’t play with the car and drive it like I did before. But finally I made that first step, first in Valencia and later in Singapore where I began to feel more and more that I could manipulate the car again in a way that made me feel more comfortable with it and I think the results began to come together, at that point we were really really fast, and the last few races were definitely the turning point for us when things really started moving forward and we were able to consistently score points.”

One of the major factors for Red Bull’s loss in performance from 2011 to 2012 was the ban on the exhaust blow diffuser, which the Austrian outfit had been perfecting for the last two seasons. This not only included their exhaust layout, but also their engine mapping and design of the car. Once the new regulations were implemented, the ace up Red Bull’s sleeve was removed as the team was forced to revise their exhaust system.

“The big change for us over the winter was the exhaust system.” Continued Adrian Newey, “For two years we developed side exhausts that helped to blow the diffuser, gave us lots of down force, then we developed the engine mapping to maximise that effect. That was taken away over the winter. I think that really set us back because as I said we have been on it for two years, we developed a long way down that route, and we designed that 2011 car completely around that philosophy so everything on the car was designed around that system. When it was taken away from us, it was a big step backwards, not only in terms of simply removing it, but the understanding that we generated over the last couple of years had suddenly been thrown away and we had to start again.”

Although Red Bull suffered a tough start to the season, normality was certainly resumed towards the end of the season as Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull were able to retain their respective Championship crowns after a thrilling season finale at Sao Paulo’s Interlagos circuit. After the unpredictable start to the season back in March, Red Bull will be hoping to start the 2013 season next year in dominant fashion once again. However, McLaren, Ferrari, Mercedes and even Lotus could well prove to be tough competition.

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FIA Promise Two DRS Zones At The Majority Of Races In 2013

Formula 1’s governing body, the FIA, have promised to provide two DRS zones at the majority of the next year’s races, after it was confirmed last weekend that the DRS device would only be available to the drivers through the designated zones on the track. During the race, the device can only be activated if a driver is within a second another competitor.

However, during the three practice sessions and qualifying throughout a Grand Prix weekend, the DRS device can be deployed on any part of the track. This particular rule has been in place since the device’s introduction to the sport last season, however the use of the DRS will be limited from 2013 onwards. It’s unquestionable that the device has seen a huge increase in overtaking during a race, and to make sure the amount of overtaking is not affected by this rule change, the FIA have promised to make sure two DRS zones are provided for each of next year’s 19 races.

Some races on the calendar already provide two DRS zones, such as Abu Dhabi’s Yas Marina circuit and India’s Buddh International Circuit. However the majority of the races on the calendar only consist of one DRS overtaking zone, either down the main start/finish straight or the back straight. The Monaco Grand Prix for example features no true straights, therefore making the only viable location for the DRS zone down the start/finish straight, with the use of the device through the tunnel still prohibited.

Lotus’s technical director James Allison believes this new change of the rules pertaining to the DRS will still see many overtaking maneuvers during the race, as the teams up and down the grid will gear their cars accordingly so as to benefit from deploying the device throughout the various zones during both qualifying and the race. Currently the DRS device is deployed during the vast majority of the lap throughout practice and qualifying, as the drivers strive to squeeze as much pace as possible out of their cars. This has led to some hairy moments for the drivers, as activating the device too soon through a corner can lead to the drivers loosing rear downforce almost instantly.

“Rather than it being free in qualifying and practice, you’re not only allowed to use it on the DRS straight itself, but in order to make sure there’s still a high incentive to optimize the car in qualifying, there’ll be more than one DRS straight at each track,” explained James Allison to Sky Sports. “So it’s more of the lap. If you can imagine a qualifying lap being pretty much the whole lap that the DRS was on, it moves away from that – but it doesn’t move to just one DRS straight. So there’s still a fair chunk of the lap where DRS is still useable. But it’s useable on the straights, so it’s not stressful for the drivers. And there’s still sufficient of the DRS being used in qualifying to give a good incentive to gear the car for it, which means there’ll still be a reasonable overtaking power when it comes to the race.”

The DRS device was the main instigator in Lewis Hamilton’s race-winning maneuver on Sebastian Vettel during last weekend’s United States Grand Prix, after the Briton managed to get within one second of the reigning World Champion. Some overtaking maneuvers with the assistance of the device have, however, been criticized as too easy, with Jacques Villeneuve in particular unhappy with the introduction of the device. Either way, it has produced some superlative overtaking maneuvers, despite some of them admittedly being way too easy.

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Lotus To Retain Raikkonen And Grosjean For 2013

Although Romain Grosjean has endured a frustrating and incident-filled 2012 season, Lotus team principal Eric Boullier confirmed after the Korean Grand Prix last Sunday that the Frenchman would remain at Lotus next season. The Frenchman will once again race alongside Finland’s Kimi Raikkonen, after his superb comeback season.

Whereas Kimi Raikkonen has so far completed every racing lap of the current season, a feat achieved by no other driver on the grid, Romain Grosjean has struggled greatly throughout certain race weekends. From colliding with the likes of Michael Schumacher at Malaysia and Lewis Hamilton at Belgium, to finishing 2nd at the Canadian Grand Prix, Grosjean’s 2012 season has been one of incredibly mixed emotions.

However, with Lotus confirming that the likable Frenchman will remain a Lotus driver next season, it seems the hangdog expression on his face seen throughout the Korean Grand Prix weekend can finally lift. With Grosjean avoiding all types of contact during the race, especially during the melee that was the opening three corners, the former GP2 Champion stormed to a competitive 7th position which included a lengthy battle with the Force India of Nico Hulkenberg.

After the race last Sunday, Lotus team principal Eric Boullier confirmed that Romain Grosjean would remain a Lotus driver alongside Kimi Raikkonen for the 2013 season, dispelling rumors that the Frenchman could be dropped by the Enstone-based outfit after his numerous on-track skirmishes. Boullier has explained that the contract is ready and waiting for him, and has been approved by the relevant board within the team.

“He has been reassured about his future and that he is going to stay with us, but I cannot commit today.” Explained Eric Boullier to the BBC, after the Korean Grand Prix. “There is a situation with the FIA and the race-ban suspension so I have to do it at the right time. We have [had] internal discussions. Everything is ready, the contract is ready and has been approved by the board. It is just a question of finding the possibility to do it.”

At the start of the Belgian Grand Prix last month, Romain Grosjean was the catalyst in the multi-car incident which took out Championship contenders Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso, including the Sauber of Sergio Perez. This extremely violent incident, which so nearly saw Alonso’s head make contact with Grosjean’s out-of-control Lotus, saw the Frenchman issued with a one-race ban. Eric Boullier firmly believes that this ban has had a positive effect on him, and that he has learned from it despite his collision with Mark Webber at the start of the Japanese Grand Prix.

“In the end it had a positive effect on him,” continued Eric Boullier. “He understood it, he came to Monza on his own and he clearly wanted to rebuild himself. He deserves to be in Formula 1, we brought him back because we believe he has a future in Formula 1. I would be a bit foolish to bring him back and then get rid of him. There are many different reasons why he has had problems in the first corner. The first thing is to step back a bit and keep your line and just get through the first corner. Then you can race.”

Amid one of the most intriguing “silly seasons’ which Formula 1 has witnessed in its long and vibrant history, with the likes of Lewis Hamilton on the move, it seems the Lotus driver line-up will remain the same for next season. However, many other midfield teams such as Sauber, Force India and Williams have yet to confirm their line-up and continue to play host to ongoing rumors and speculations as this highly unique season draws to a thrilling conclusion.

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Webber Vents Anger And Disbelief At Grosjean

Mark Webber has become the latest driver to fall foul of Romain Grosjean’s knack of colliding with other competitors at the start of a race, after the Frenchman drove into the side of the Red Bull of Webber at the start of the Japanese Grand Prix. The Aussie was understandably furious, dubbing Grosjean a “nutcase” after the race.

Once Mark Webber had finished the Japanese Grand Prix a distant 9th after initially starting 2nd alongside team-mate Sebastian Vettel, the Red Bull driver was quick to vent his anger and disbelief at such poor driving from the Lotus of Grosjean. Throughout the season, Grosjean has been involved in seven first lap incidents at Malaysia, Spain, Monaco, Britain, Germany, Belgium and now Japan.

“I haven’t obviously seen what happened at the start but the guys confirmed that it was the first-lap nutcase again Grosjean,” explained Mark Webber to Sky Sport F1’s Natalie Pinkham. “The rest of us are trying to fight for some decent results each weekend but he is trying to get to the third corner as fast as he can at every race. It makes it frustrating because a few big guys probably suffered from that and maybe he needs another holiday. He needs to have a look at himself, it was completely his fault. How many mistakes can you make, how many times can you make the same error? First-lap incidents… yeah… it’s quite embarrassing at this level for him.”

Romain Grosjean was the catalyst in the almighty first-lap incident at the Belgian Grand Prix.

Romain Grosjean was issued with a one-race ban after his almighty incident with Lewis Hamilton, Fernando Alonso and Sergio Perez at the start of the Belgian Grand Prix. Upon making his return to the sport at the Singapore Grand Prix, the Frenchman has explained how he has been very cautious at the starts, however Mark Webber believes another ban should be issued if these first-lap incidents continue.

“Ever since I came back in Singapore my priority has been to be very cautious at the start, and I was watching Sergio on my left to make sure there was no contact with him.” Explained a downcast Romain Grosjean after the race, “There was quite a big speed difference between me and Mark as I came into the first corner which caught me by surprise and we collided. It was a stupid mistake. Mark came to see me after the race and was obviously not happy, but I apologized and we have to move on.”

After the first-lap incident at Japan, the race stewards decided to impose a 10-second stop-and-go penalty upon the Frenchman, which dropped him right to the back of the order. Eventually Grosjean retired from the race in the closing laps, with the team deciding to call it a day after a disastrous race and the fact that that tyres come to the end of their life. The Frenchman will be hoping for an incident-free Korean Grand Prix this weekend, as question marks begin to surface over his future in Formula 1.

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Jerome D’Ambrosio Positive After Being Plagued By KERs Failure

Jerome D’Ambrosio has ended his return to Formula 1 on a positive note, after suffering a majority of the Italian Grand Prix with a KERs failure on his Renault-powered Lotus E20. The Belgian driver, standing in for the banned Romain Grosjean, was able to finish 13th after a tough race long battle in the midfield.

The 26-year-old Belgian driver, who had not raced in the sport since the 2011 Brazilian Grand Prix, started the race around the historic Autodromo Nazionale di Monza from 15th on the grid. After several laps into the race, D’Ambrosio was informed that his car had suffered a KERs failure, thus leaving him at a large disadvantage over the majority of the opposition. However, D’Ambrosio was able to battle his way through the 53-lap race to eventually finish only three places away from a point scoring position.

“It was a pretty long and difficult race for me today.” Explained Jerome D’Ambrosio, “After losing my KERs on lap 6 it was always going to be tough as that’s worth about half a second per lap around here. Once I lost that extra boost it was impossible to keep up and I dropped back. My main aim was to finish the race and I’ve achieved that so it’s not so bad overall. It was great to be back in the car and especially with such a fantastic team; I’ve learnt a lot this weekend.”

Jerome D’Ambrosio will now return to his reserve driver duties for the Lotus outfit, as Romain Grosjean prepares to return next time out for the Singapore Grand Prix after serving his one-race ban. The Frenchman will be eager to prove he has learned his lesson, after causing the first lap incident at the Belgian Grand Prix, amongst others. With the FIA proving a point by banning Grosjean at Spa-Francorchamps, it’s unquestionable that dangerous driving will not be tolerated in Formula 1.

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Jerome D’Ambrosio Setting No Targets Ahead Of F1 Return

Jerome D’Ambrosio has set himself no major targets ahead of this weekend’s Italian Grand Prix, in which the Belgian driver is set to make his return to the sport in place of the banned Romain Grosjean at Lotus. This will be D’Ambrosio’s first race since Brazil last year, after he was replaced at Virgin Racing (now Marussia) by Charles Pic.

Speaking ahead of his return this weekend, Jerome D’Ambrosio explained how he has not set himself any major targets. After being informed by the team he would be racing on Monday, the 26-year-old Belgian driver has had little time to prepare for his return to the sport. Unlike other teams up and down the grid, Lotus have not run Jerome D’Ambrosio during Friday practice this season. This means D’Ambrosio’s last taste of F1 machinery came at the Mugello mid-season test, on a treacherously wet track.

However, Jerome D’Ambrosio is net deterred by his lack of running in the Lotus E20, and is hopeful he can achieve a competitive result for his team this weekend. Lotus have finished on the podium in the last three races this season, and both Kimi Raikkonen and Jerome D’Ambrosio will undoubtedly be striving to continue this competitive streak as the Enstone-based outfit remain confident they can clinch the Drivers’ Championship this season.

“I don’t have much information to set myself a position target – or anything.” Explained Jerome D’Ambrosio, “I really want to stay focussed on what I’ve got to do, with the job, with the engineers, in the car. Stay focussed on that. Once that is done correctly we can hope for something good on Sunday – but only if I stay focussed on my job, so this is what I will try to do.”

Jerome D’Ambrosio’s maiden F1 season last year yielded no truly competitive results, however it is unquestionable that the Belgian driver has been offered a second chance to prove his worth this weekend in a car which is more than capable of finishing on the podium or better. With the possibility of vacancies at teams such as Sauber, Force India and Caterham next season, there is definitely a chance Jerome D’Ambrosio could find himself back in a full-time drive next season, especially if this weekend proves highly successful.

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Jerome D’Ambrosio Confirmed For Monza

Jerome D’Ambrosio has been officially confirmed as the replacement driver for the banned Romain Grosjean for this weekend’s Italian Grand Prix, after the Frenchman was issued a one race ban for causing the huge first corner pile-up at last weekend’s Belgian Grand Prix. This will be D’Ambrosio’s first F1 appearance since last season.

The Belgian driver became the Lotus reserve driver after being dropped by Virgin Racing (later rebranded as Marussia) shortly after the end of the 2011 season. D’Ambrosio partook in several days of pre-season testing for the outfit, and this weekend has the opportunity to impress in a highly competitive car alongside a former World Champion.

Romain Grosjean will return for the Singapore Grand Prix later this month, as the Lotus outfit search for their elusive first victory of the season. The team have finished on the podium on numerous occasions this season, and will unquestionably be expecting Jerome D’Ambrosio to at least finish in the points around a circuit that should suit the Renault powered Lotus E20.

More to follow as this story unfolds…

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Rubens Barrichello Would Drive For Lotus At Monza

Current IZOD IndyCar Series driver and former-F1 veteran Rubens Barrichello has stated that he would drive for Lotus at this weekend’s Italian Grand Prix in place of the banned Romain Grosjean, after a comment posted on the social networking site Twitter. The Brazilian driver started 322 races throughout his 18 seasons in F1.

Lotus are currently weighing up their opportunities after Romain Grosjean was issued a one race ban after causing the horrific opening lap incident during last weekend’s Belgian Grand Prix, in which the Frenchman was the catalyst in an incident which took out Lewis Hamilton, Fernando Alonso and Sergio Perez.

With the Italian Grand Prix only several days away, Lotus are currently deciding who to select to fill in for the Frenchman. The team’s reserve driver Jerome D’Ambrosio is the likely candidate, however Formula 1 veteran Rubens Barrichello has stated he’ll happily accept an offer from the Enstone-based outfit to race at Monza. The Brazilian driver currently has a free weekend before the all-important season finale of the IZOD IndyCar Series at Fontana.

“People are asking [me] in the case the Lotus F1 team called me to race in Monza if I would go? The answer is yes!” Exclaimed the current KV Racing Technology driver, via the hugely popular social networking site Twitter.

Rubens Barrichello has won the Italian Grand Prix three times throughout his career (’02, ’04 and ’09), and could well be an enticing prospect for Lotus who will unquestionably prefer to have a former race winner in their highly competitive Lotus E20 instead of D’Ambrosio. Lotus have been widely predicted for victory many times this season, and with the high speed nature of the Monza circuit, they are most certainly contenders for victory this coming weekend.

The driver announcement will surely come within the next few days, as the selected candidate will be required to head straight to Monza to prepare for the weekend’s events. Whoever gets the one-off drive, Lotus will without a doubt expect at least a points finish as they battle for 2nd in the Constructors’ Championship.

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Jerome D’Ambrosio Likely To Replace Romain Grosjean At Monza

With Romain Grosjean set to miss this weekend’s Italian Grand Prix after incurring a one race ban for causing the horrific incident at the start of last weekend’s Belgian Grand Prix, it has been widely rumored that Lotus reserve driver Jerome D’Ambrosio will fill his vacant seat at Monza.

Jerome D’Ambrosio hasn’t started a Formula 1 race since last season’s finale at Sao Paulo, when the Belgian driver was racing for Virgin Racing (later rebranded as Marussia). However, after being replaced at the team by Frenchman Charles Pic, D’Ambrosio found himself in the reserve driver role at Lotus. The team allowed the Belgian driver to test during pre-season testing, however he has yet to reappear behind the wheel of the Lotus E20 all season.

Many teams up and down the paddock have allowed their reserve drivers to partake in the opening practice session of the weekend on a Friday morning, with the likes of Valtteri Bottas (Williams), Jules Bianchi (Force India) and Dani Clos (HRT) making regular appearances throughout the season. At the Belgian Grand Prix, many expected to see D’Ambrosio partake in the opening practice session, seeing as it would be his home Grand Prix. However, this failed to materialize, although the team did hint at a possible practice drive for D’Ambrosio later in the season.

After the frenetic and controversial opening lap at Sunday’s Belgian Grand Prix, and with Romain Grosjean banned for one race for causing the melee, Jerome D’Ambrosio is now unquestionably the likely candidate to replace the Frenchman at Monza. Although nothing official has yet been confirmed by the team, this would provide D’Ambrosio with a superlative opportunity to show his worth to any potential future team on the grid, with the Belgian driver racing in a car which has so far finished on the podium nine times this season and is undoubtedly a race winning car in the right hands.

Jerome D’Ambrosio’s personal best finish in Formula 1 was 14th on two occasions last season for Virgin, something the Belgian star will be striving to emulate if he is chosen to stand in for Romain Grosjean. With Lotus strongly predicted for victory at both Spa-Francorchamps and Monza, due largely to the high speed nature of the tracks, a lot of weight could be on D’Ambrosio’s shoulders if he makes his F1 comeback.

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Romain Grosjean Struck With One Race Ban And Hefty Fine For Causing Crash

Romain Grosjean has been struck with a one race ban for causing the multi-car crash on the opening lap of this afternoon’s Belgian Grand Prix, in which the Frenchman collided with Lewis Hamilton and then violently collected the unsuspecting Fernando Alonso in the process. Grosjean has also picked up a hefty €50,000 fine.

Once the five red lights went out signaling the start of the Belgian Grand Prix, chaos and carnage ensued as Romain Grosjean left Lewis Hamilton no room on the inside heading down to turn 1, resulting in the two touching with each other and slamming into the slow moving Fernando Alonso who was cautiously negotiating the low-speed La Source hairpin. The Ferrari driver was violently collided with, and resulted in a lengthy safety car period as the marshals cleared up the mess.

As a result of this dangerous and horrific incident, the race stewards have imposed a one-race ban upon Romain Grosjean, which will see him miss next weekend’s Italian Grand Prix. The Frenchman has become renowned for his hit and miss mentality, with Grosjean either finishing the race competitively or not finishing the race at all. Grosjean caused a similar incident at Monaco, in which he and Michael Schumacher tangled on the run down to turn 1. This, coupled with the seriousness of today’s incident, assisted the stewards in imposing the one-race band.

“The stewards regard this incident as an extremely serious breach of the regulations which had the potential to cause injury to others.” Read a statement from the stewards with regards to the penalty. “It eliminated leading Championship contenders from the race. The stewards note the team conceded the action of the driver was an extremely serious mistake and an error of judgement. Neither the team nor the driver made any submission in mitigation of penalty.”

Immediately after the incident, Romain Grosjean explained how he was unsure who caused the calamitous incident, however the race stewards saw otherwise and have dealt the Frenchman an almighty blow. This penalty will send out an unmistakable message to the other drivers on the grid, with dangerous driving simply not being tolerated in the top echelon of motor sport.

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