Dani Clos To Drive For HRT On Friday

Dani Clos will make Formula 1 history on Friday as completes the first all-Spanish driving line-up for a Spanish team at the Spanish Grand Prix on Friday morning. The GP2 driver will replace Narain Karthikeyan at HRT for FP1, getting his first taste of the F112 during a Grand Prix weekend.

The Spaniard has had a relatively successful career in GP2, winning one race in 2010 and also partaking in the Young Drivers’ Test at Abu Dhabi last November, clocking up 377.67 kilometers for the team. However, this weekend will see the Spaniard make his first appearance at a Grand Prix weekend for the team, as HRT continue to improve after a dodgy start to the season.

“I’m delighted to have this opportunity.” Explained a delighted Dani Clos, “It’s something I’ve fought for all my life; to make my debut in Formula 1 and, above all, to be able to do it at the Circuit de Catalunya which is something very special for me. Besides, I’m extremely lucky to be able to do it with a Spanish team, alongside another Spanish driver who I admire and at home. I can’t ask for more! I hope to extract a lot of data from this practice session, contribute with positive things to the team and do my job in the best way I can. I feel 100% ready and I can’t wait for the moment I step into the car and hit the track.”

“I’m very proud and happy that this moment has arrived and that we’ve given Dani the chance to get in the car on Friday’s first free practice session at such a special and important Grand Prix as is a home Grand Prix.” Said HRT’s team principal, Luis Perez-Sala. “It’s an important session given the short amount of time on track that we have and more so when you take into account the various aerodynamic upgrades which we have brought. Dani is a great driver and I have no doubt that he will do a good job.”

HRT will run upgrades on their cars this weekend, although they skipped the Mugello test which saw many teams test new updates. The Spanish outfit will be hoping these updates improve their pace, as they continue to reel in their nearest competitors Marussia.

Picture Copyright © HRT F1 Team

HRT Confirms Permanent HQ In Madrid

HRT today confirmed they had established a permanent headquarters in Madrid. The exact location is the Complejo Deportivo Madrid Caja Mágica, where HRT will now begin adapting the location ready for the team to begin its transfer.

HRT, who have recently undergone a massive revamp since the end of the 2011 season, have admitted they have found goings tough in the winter period. However with the signings of two highly experienced drivers’ in Pedro De La Rosa and Narain Karthikeyan, they are confident 2012 can be the beginning of a new a prosperous chapter in their relatively short F1 career.

After 2011, Madrid-based investment company, Thesan Capital, bought a controlling stake in the team. Their intentions were to make the team “more Spanish”, a major factor which saw the team move to a temporary headquarters in Valencia. One of the long-time aims has been to add a Spanish driver to their team, and that was achieved in November when Pedro De La Rosa was signed by HRT.

HRT’s 2012 car has yet to be unveiled, with no official date yet announced for their launch. They aim to have all team members working in the facility by May as F1 enters the European season.

“For us it is fundamental to have a headquarters that, apart from uniting the team and ending with the dispersion, is beneficial from a logistical and industrial point of view.” Said team CEO Saúl Ruiz de Marcos, “But that also enables us to maintain a closer relationship with our fans, suppliers and sponsors. Madrid and the Caja Mágica facilities fit perfectly with the standards we were looking for.”

“We’ve been working hard for months and establishing our permanent headquarters was very important.” Added new team principal, Luis Pérez-Sala, “Finding a space in which we could all work together was vital, in order to optimize work and generate a good team feeling, a sense of belonging. When the adaptation of the facilities is completed and every department starts working under the same roof in a few months, we will only have one step left to take, which is to have the design department in Madrid too.”

HRT completed a total of a 108 laps in the last two days of testing with Pedro De La Rosa, with the team now packing up before re-appearing at Barcelona.

FIA Make U-Turn With Ride Height System

Only a week after the FIA initially gave the Formula 1 teams the green light to develop their own ride height systems, the FIA have completed a full U-Turn on the subject, stating that the system is now illegal and will not be permitted on any cars for 2012.

The system was originally devised by Lotus, and had been tested on their cars as far back as the Abu Dhabi Young Drivers’ test back in November. Initially the FIA gave Lotus and the other 11 teams on the grid the green light to begin further developing their own devices, with Ferrari immediately submitting their own device to the FIA to guarantee its legality.

With the FIA stating that they are no longer satisfied with legality of the device, there is no other indication as to why the FIA have changed their minds without warning. With Lotus and Ferrari the only two teams that had officially mastered the running of the device on their cars, rival teams could well have made an extra effort the prove to the FIA that the system is in fact illegal.

The news first emerged Friday night when Williams Chief Operations Engineer, Mark Gillan, appeared on The Flying Lap webcast online, stating that he’d just received a note from the FIA stating to him that the ride height system is no longer legal. When asked about Williams’ efforts on the device, he said: 

“We have been investigating that type of system for a while. It obviously has an impact on the aero platform of the car, anything that gets the front ride height lower is beneficial from an aerodynamic perspective.”

The system was initially given the green light when it was discovered it was activated by brake torque and that it included no moveable aerodynamic devices, making it supposedly legal at the time. With the system now illegal, teams like Ferrari and Lotus will be back tracking making sure their car is legal for the 2012 season.

2011 Abu Dhabi Young Driver Test – A Preview

Between the 15th – 17th of November, the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi plays host to the one and only official in-season test session of the 2011 Formula 1 season as the F1 Paddock stays on in Abu Dhabi for the 2011 Young Driver Test.

To makes sure the teams don’t field any drivers with extensive F1 experience in preparation for 2012 (like Hulkenberg or Raikkonen), the rules for this week stipulate that the teams can only run drivers who have had no more than two Grands Prix worth of experience. This naturally means many of these drivers you’ll see and hear about this week are going to be GP3/GP2, Formula 2 and World Series by Renault drivers who are striving to graduate further up the Motor Sport ladder.

Here is a run down of the drivers that are expected to run throughout the three days:

Red Bull Racing:

Jean Eric-Verge (FRA) – Runner-Up of 2011 World Series by Renault Championship

McLaren:

Gary Paffett (GBR) – Official McLaren Test Driver and 2011 DTM Driver

Oliver Turvey (GBR) – 2011 GP2 and GT3 Driver

 

Ferrari:

Jules Bianchi (FRA) – Official Ferrari Test Driver and 2011 GP2 Driver

 

Mercedes:

Sam Bird (GBR) – 2011 GP2 Driver

 

Renault:

Robert Wickens (CAN) – 2011 World Series by Renault Champion

Kevin Korjus (EST) – 2011 World Series by Renault Driver

Jan Charouz (CZE) – Official Renault Test Driver, Auto GP and World Series by Renault Driver

 

Force India:

Max Chilton (GBR) – 2011 GP2 Driver

Johnny Cecotto Jr. (VEN) – 2011 GP2 Asia & GP2 Driver

 

Sauber:

Fabio Leimer (SUI) – 2011 GP2 Asia & GP2 Driver

Esteban Gutierrez (MEX) – 2011 GP2 Driver

 

Toro Rosso:

Stefano Coletti (MON) – GP2 Asia & GP2 Driver

Kevin Ceccon (ITA) – Auto GP Champion and GP2 Driver

 

Williams:

Valtteri Bottas (FIN) – 2011 GP3 Champion

Mirko Bortolotti (ITA) – 2011 Formula 2 World Champion

Team Lotus:

Rodolfo Gonzalez (VEN) – 2011 GP2 Driver

Luiz Razia (BRA) – 2011 GP2 Driver

Alexander Rossi (USA) – 2011 World Series by Renault Driver

 

HRT:

Dani Clos (ESP) – 2011 GP2 Driver

Virgin Racing:

Adrian Quaife-Hobbs (GBR) – 2011 GP3 Driver

Charles Pic (FRA) – 2011 GP2 Driver

Robert Wickens (CAN) – 2011 World Series by Renault Champion

 

Many of these drivers have never driven an F1 car before, and it will be an interesting few days as the next generation of F1 drivers get to grips with the next stage in their long, hard fought career to reach the top of the Motor Racing ladder. 

With many seats in Formula 1 for 2012 still vacant, the pressure will be on as these drivers will all be out to show they have what it takes to be the new Lewis Hamilton or Sebastian Vettel.