Force India Reveal February Launch Date For New Car

Force India have revealed the date for the launch of their new 2013 machine, the VJM06, ahead of the 2013 season and the start of pre-season testing at Jerez. Just like their preparations for the 2012 season, Force India will unveil their new car at their home circuit at Silverstone on February 1st.

After a relatively successful 2012 season, Force India is targeting fifth in the Constructors’ Championship next season, following on from their competitive end to the 2012 season after Sauber-bound Nico Hulkenberg led the majority of the season finale at Brazil. Despite this competitive end to the season, neither Paul di Resta or Nico Hulkenberg were able to finish on the podium all season, which saw the Silverstone-based outfit finish 7th in the Constructors’ Championship with 109 points scored.

Force India currently remains the only team with both seats still vacant, although it is strongly predicted throughout the F1 fraternity that Scotsman Paul di Resta will remain with the team for 2013. However, di Resta’s team-mate for next year remains a hot topic throughout the world of Formula 1, with many drivers including reserve driver Jules Bianchi, ex-Force India driver Adrian Sutil, Jaime Alguersuari and Bruno Senna all rumored to be linked to the second seat at the team.

The Silverstone-based outfit will be eager to get pre-season testing underway in early February at Jerez, after Force India struggled during the early stages of the 2012 season, therefore putting the team on the back foot for the remainder of the year. The first pre-season test is scheduled to begin on February 5th at Jerez, before testing moves swiftly to Barcelona on February 19th.

Picture Copyright © Getty Images

Monisha Kaltenborn Proud Of Sauber’s Achievements So Far

Monisha Kaltenborn has expressed great satisfaction at Sauber’s achievements so far this season, which has seen the Hinwil-based outfit pick up four podium finishes and 116 points in the Constructors’ Championship. As the F1 fraternity enters the final four races of the season, Sauber’s goal remains fixed on clinching fifth in the Championship.

Despite the intense competitiveness of the 2012 season, Sauber have remained close to the sharp end of the field, achieving many great results throughout the year. Although the Swiss outfit have yet to achieve a race victory this season, several highly competitive podiums have been scored by both Sergio Perez and Kamui Kobayashi. However, with Sauber only 20 points behind fifth placed Mercedes in the Constructors’ Championship, their season is far from over as F1 prepares for the Indian Grand Prix.

“With four podium places and now 116 World Championship points, we can certainly be proud of our achievements so far as a private team.” Explained Sauber’s new team principal, Monisha Kaltenborn. “Of course there have been races where things didn’t go to plan and we forfeited valuable points. Our car, the Sauber C31-Ferrari, is a great success and has proved competitive on virtually any kind of circuit. Some describe it as one of the best cars on the grid. Now it’s a matter of carrying the impetus forward into the remaining four races. Our ambitious goal remains to finish fifth in the Constructors’ World Championship. And I have the utmost confidence both in our team at Hinwil and in the crew at the track along with our two drivers, Kamui Kobayashi and Sergio Pérez.”

With Sergio Perez moving to McLaren next season and Kamui Kobayashi’s future with the team looking uncertain, both drivers have continued to strive for positive results. Kamui Kobayashi achieved his first ever podium in Formula 1 at his home race at Suzuka several weeks ago, and is unarguably aiming to impress in a bid to retain his drive with the team for 2013.

The next round of the Championship takes place around the still relatively new Buddh International Circuit near New Delhi, for the second running of the Indian Grand Prix. The track has many similarities to the Korean Grand Prix circuit, which failed to greatly benefit the Sauber C31. However, with the different temperatures expected for the race weekend, coupled with the different tyre compounds set to be provided by Pirelli, Monisha Kaltenborn is confident ahead of the race weekend.

“The track layout is very similar to that in Korea. There are slow and fast turns and quite a long straight.” Continued Monisha Kaltenborn, “However, it will be warmer there and Pirelli is providing different tyres – soft and hard rather than the super-soft and soft ones we had in Korea. That will mean different race strategies. For the C31, the circuit in India is likely to be neither ideal terrain nor particularly problematic. I’m confident that we will manage another decent points haul there.”

During last season’s inaugural Indian Grand Prix, Sauber were only able to achieve one World Championship point at the hands of Sergio Perez. The Hinwil-based outfit will naturally be hopeful of more points at this seasons event, as they continue to strive to catch Mercedes for fifth place in the Constructors’ Championship.

Picture Copyright © Sauber Motorsport AG

Heikki Kovalainen Blames Safety Car For Poor Result At Singapore

Heikki Kovalainen firmly believes that the safety car ruined his ability to secure a decent result at the Singapore Grand Prix, a race which saw the Caterham duo of Kovalainen and Petrov finished 16th and 19th respectively. With the Marussia of Glock finishing 12th, Caterham have now dropped to 11th in the Constructors’ Championship.

After the two safety car periods, Heikki Kovalainen had elected to remain out on track whereas the majority of the field pitted under safety car conditions. This tactic saw Kovalainen rise steadily up the field, however once the race was resumed after the second safety car intervention, the 30-year-old Finn was forced to pit for new tyres, which therefore saw him drop back through the order.

“For me that was a good race until the safety cars.” Explained Heikki Kovalainen, after what was a tough 61-lap race. “We decided to stay out but when we restarted for the second time I’d probably been out too long and the tyres were starting to give up. I had to stop again and there wasn’t enough time to recover from there so that was the end of the race. If it hadn’t been for the safety car I’m sure we’d have finished much higher.”

Due to the topsy-turvy nature of the Singapore Grand Prix, both the Caterham and Marussia duo were able to fight with the likes of Kamui Kobayashi and Nico Hulkenberg in the closing stages of the race. With Vitaly Petrov and Heikki Kovalainen suffering an unlucky end to the race, Timo Glock was able to secure Marussia’s most competitive result in 12th. This result for the Banbury-based outfit knocked Caterham down to 11th in the Constructors’ Championship, which might not sound like much, yet could cost the Leafield-based outfit millions if the Championship order remains unchanged.

Picture Copyright © Caterham F1 Team

Mark Webber Confident Of Another Successful Singapore Grand Prix

After a highly disappointing Italian Grand Prix, where Red Bull failed to score a single World Championship point for the first time since 2010, the Red Bull duo of Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber will unquestionably be out to redeem themselves when the F1 paddock reconvenes in Asia for the Singapore Grand Prix.

Last season, the race [like the majority of the 2011 season] was dominated by Red Bull, as Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber locked-out the front-row after qualifying and went on to finish the race in 1st and 3rd respectively. However, this season has seen Red Bull’s dominance wane slightly, with the Milton Keynes-based outfit having only won three races so far this season. One of those race victories occurred at the Monaco Grand Prix, a circuit with characteristics similar to the Marina Bay street circuit which hosts the next round the World Championship.

With Red Bull only 29 points clear of McLaren atop the Constructors’ Championship, along with Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber down in 4th and 5th positions respectively in the Drivers’ Championship, Red Bull are in desperate need of a decent result next week at the Singapore Grand Prix. Luckily for Red Bull, both drivers are confident ahead of the race weekend, with the 5.073km Marina Bay street circuit set to possibly favor the Renault-powered Red Bull RB8.

“We’ve had some good results in Singapore.” Explained Mark Webber, who has won two races for Red Bull already this year. “It’s a very, very challenging circuit and one that the car should work well on. We’ve been solid on street circuits this year, so that gives us some confidence that the car will be towards the sharp end again.”

Regarding the mechanical gremlins that plagued the team in Italy fail to materialize, Red Bull are clearly striving for a second consecutive victory at Singapore. However, with both McLaren, Ferrari and even Lotus a force to be reckoned with in both the Drivers’ and Constructors’ Championships, it’s clear Red Bull have the bit between their teeth as the season draws to a conclusion.

Picture Copyright © Getty Images