Formula 1 General Chat & Discussion

Result of the 2nd day of winter testing at Jerez :

Sebastian Vettel leads for Ferrari again on day two

1 : Sebastian Vettel - Ferrari - 1m20.984s - laps 89
2 : Felipe Nasr Sauber/ Ferrari - 1m21.867s 0.883s laps 88
3 : Valtteri Bottas - Williams/Mercedes - 1m22.319s 1.335s laps 61
4 : Lewis Hamilton - Mercedes - 1m22.490s 1.506s laps 91
5 : Max Verstappen - Toro Rosso/Renault - 1m24.167s 3.183s laps 73
6 : Pastor Maldonado - Lotus/Mercedes - 1m25.802s 4.818s laps 41
7 : Jenson Button - McLaren/Honda - 1m54.655s 33.671s laps 6
8 : Daniil Kvyat - Red Bull/Renault - - laps 18

Sebastian Vettel topped Formula 1 pre-season testing at Jerez for the second day running in the Ferrari SF15-T. The four-time world champion set several laps faster than anyone else during two medium-tyre runs in the morning, and his position at the top of the times was safe once a rain shower hit the track with an hour of running remaining. "There is a lot of change going on and new things," said Vettel, who now hands the car over to team-mate Kimi Raikkonen. "In that regard it was good to run. It was important to keep running the learn the car and understand all of the numbers, and make sure we're good for the next test." Sauber used soft Pirelli tyres to take the runner-up spot for the second day running, with Felipe Nasr edging out Williams's Valtteri Bottas when both were lapping on the yellow-sidewalled tyres at the same time in the afternoon . Mercedes topped the lap count again, but 2014 world champion Lewis Hamilton fell some way short of team-mate Nico Rosberg's day one total of 157 laps. Although Hamilton clocked 91 laps, his day was cut short when a water leak forced him to stop the F1 W06 in the pit entry. McLaren and Red Bull also endured troublesome days, with Jenson Button only completing six laps for the former and Daniil Kvyat failing to post a time for the latter. Button's only laptime in the MP4-30 was 33 seconds off the pace, while Kvyat's programme was limited to single-lap runs after he damaged Red Bull's only front wing - forcing him to run without one for the rest of the day. The second day of the test also marked the debut of the Lotus E23, which joined the action for the first time mid-morning and completed 41 laps with Pastor Maldonado. The Lotus was responsible for the only red flag of the day though, as a drivetrain issue forced Maldonado to stop on the approach to the final corner in the afternoon. Very few teams went back out after the rain hit, with Vettel, Nasr, Max Verstappen and Button the only drivers to take to the circuit in the wet.

Kind Regards
Shaky - Schumi

Result of the 1st day of winter testing at Jerez :

Sebastian Vettel fastest for Ferrari on first day :

1 : Sebastian Vettel - Ferrari -1m22.620s - laps 60
2 : Marcus Ericsson - Sauber/Ferrari - 1m22.777s 0.157slaps 73
3 : Nico Rosberg - Mercedes - 1m23.106s 0.486s laps 157
4 : Daniel Ricciardo - Red Bull/Renault - 1m23.338s 0.718s laps 35
5 : Valtteri Bottas - Williams/Mercedes - 1m23.906s 1.286s laps 73
6 : Carlos Sainz Jr. -Toro Rosso/Renault - 1m25.327s 2.707slaps 46
7 : Fernando Alonso * McLaren/Honda - 1m40.738s 18.118s laps 6

New Ferrari signing Sebastian Vettel topped the first day of 2015 Formula 1 testing at Jerez on Sunday. The four-time F1 world champion first moved to the top of the times in the afternoon with a short run, returning to the track after a long delay caused by telemetry problem on the SF15-T. Sauber's Marcus Ericsson closed to within less than a tenth of a second of that benchmark on a soft-tyre run later in the afternoon, but Vettel went quicker still on a set of mediums in the final 20 minutes of the day. Nico Rosberg had led the way for double 2014 world champion Mercedes for much of the day before Vettel's quick laps were set, and the F1 W06 comfortably completed the most laps on the first day. By the end of the day Rosberg had notched up 157 laps - including several long runs - while the next highest total came from Ericsson and Williams's Valtteri Bottas with 73 laps each. Daniel Ricciardo's Red Bull spent the morning as Rosberg's closest challenger, but his morning running was brought to a smoky halt. The Red Bull did return to action later in the day, but by the chequered flag the RB11 had only completed 35 laps - with his running curtailed by a battery problem that overheated the rear brakes. That was not the lowest total on the day though, as the McLaren-Honda completed just six laps in the hands of Fernando Alonso. Those were broken up into three installation laps, followed by a three-lap run that included the only timed lap set by the MP4-30 all day. While Williams recovered from a late start to log 73 laps with Bottas, the Lotus E23 failed to appear on track at all as it spent the day in transit from the team's Enstone factory. The day was only affected by two red flags - the first when Ericsson spun in the morning, and the second late in the afternoon when Carlos Sainz Jr stopped on the backstraight in the Toro Rosso.

Kind Regards
Shaky - Schumi

Glad to say this year's F1 cars look much better, no more strange noses, and smoother lines.

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Test schedule first winter test 2015 at the Jerez Circuit in Spain :

Sunday, February 1:
Ferrari - Vettel
Lotus - TBC.
McLaren - Alonso
Mercedes - Rosberg
Red Bull Racing - TBC.
Sauber - Ericsson
Toro Rosso - Sainz
Williams - Bottas

Monday 2 February:
Ferrari - Vettel
Lotus - TBC
McLaren - Button
Mercedes - Hamilton
Red Bull Racing - TBC
Sauber - Nasr
Toro Rosso - Verstappen
Williams - Bottas

Tuesday, February 3:
Ferrari - Raikkonen
Lotus - TBC
McLaren - Alonso
Mercedes - Rosberg
Red Bull Racing - TBC
Sauber - Nasr
Toro Rosso - Sainz
Williams - Massa

Wednesday, February 4:
Ferrari - Raikkonen
Lotus - TBC
McLaren - Button
Mercedes - Hamilton
Red Bull Racing - TBC
Sauber - Nasr
Toro Rosso - Verstappen
Williams - Massa

Kind Regards
Shaky - Schumi

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Ferrari announced the name of the 2015 car : SF (Scuderia Ferrari)15 (year)-T (Turbo).
The official presentation will be next Friday at 12 CET.

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After Jules Bianchi' s crash in Japan last October, FIA decided that in next season Australian, Malaysian, China, Japan and Russian GPs
will have to anticipate 1 hour the starts of the races, due to visibility and for security reasons

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> > Ferrari has confirmed that his next year's car passed the FIA crash tests.

In addition, as disclosed by the new head of the stable of Maranello - Maurizio Arrivabene, tentatively called the 666 car will be presented on the Internet at the end of January. "It will be shown [car] at the end of January on the website.

Official news : Ferrari announced on Twitter that Mexican Esteban Gutierrez will be the 3rd driver and test-driver for the 2015 season.
In the last two seasons Gutierrez drove a Sauber, with a Ferrari engine.
"It' s an honour to be part of a team with such an extraordinary history" said Gutierrez "I' m impatient to begin the new season
with passion and dedication".

Official news : McLaren announced today the drivers for the 2015 season : Fernando Alonso (what a surprise ) and the confirmed
Jenson Button, with Kevin Magnussen as test driver.
Alonso returns in McLaren after 8 years with a two years contract (32 mil. € each year), with an option for the third.

The Official Calendar for the 2015 season as it is published today !!!

The F1 calendar in 2015 :
March 15 - Australian GP
March 29 - GP of Malaysia
April 12 - GP of China
April 19 - GP of Bahrain
May 3 - GP of Korea (to be confirmed)
May 10 - Grand Prix of Spain
May 24 - Monaco GP
June 7 - Canadian Grand Prix
June 21 - GP of Austria
July 5 - Grand Prix of Great Britain
July 19 - GP of Germany (Nürburgring)
July 26 - Hungarian GP
August 23 - GP of Belgium
September 6 - Italian GP
September 20 - GP Singapore
September 27 - Japanese GP
October 11 - Grand Prix of Russia
October 25 - Grand Prix of the United States
November 1 - GP of Mexico
November 15 - GP of Brazil
November 29 - GP Abu Dhabi

Kind Regards
Shaky - Schumi

Jean Eric Vergne announced today with a tweet that he' s going to leave Toro Rosso after three years : "Despite a good season with 22
points scored, I won' t drive anymore for Toro Rosso in 2015. Thanks for these years, now I' m going to another challenge".
He will be replaced by the 17 y.o. Dutch driver Max Verstappen.

Short News :

Maurizio Arrivabene replaces Mattiacci as Ferrari F1 team boss :
Ferrari boss Marco Mattiacci has left the Formula 1 team only eight months after joining and will be replaced by Maurizio Arrivabene. Just hours after Mattiacci said he was fully focused on helping the Italian outfit move forward with its plans for 2014, a statement from the Maranello team announced his departure in favour of Arrivabene, a senior Phillip Morris executive and F1 Commission member. Arrivabene, who has known Ferrari for a long time via his work at sponsor Philip Morris, joins with immediate effect in a move that has been put together by new Ferrari chairman Sergio Marchionne. "We decided to appoint Maurizio Arrivabene because, at this historic moment in time for the Scuderia and for Formula 1, we need a person with a thorough understanding not just of Ferrari but also of the governance mechanisms and requirements of the sport," said Marchionne. "Maurizio has a unique wealth of knowledge: he has been extremely close to the Scuderia for years and, as a member of the F1 Commission, is also keenly aware of the challenges we are facing. He has been a constant source of innovative ideas focused on revitalisation of Formula 1. "His managerial experience on a highly complex and closely regulated market is also of great importance, and will help him manage and motivate the team. "We would also like to thank Marco Mattiacci for his service to Ferrari in the last 15 years and we wish him well in his future endeavours." Speculation about Mattiacci's future surfaced at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, as the Italian drew short of confirming he would be at the team for the start of 2015. When asked whether he expected to remain as team principal next season, Mattiacci replied: "I'm very focused at working very hard, as the first day I arrived at the Scuderia. "I'm working extremely hard and I will keep working extremely hard." Mattiacci said Ferrari's final race of the 2014 season in Abu Dhabi, where it finished ninth and 10th with Fernando Alonso and Kimi Raikkonen and secured fourth place in the constructors' championship, was "nothing to celebrate". "It was a very difficult race as always in Abu Dhabi," he said.
"The overall package was not at the level to be at the usual fourth/fifth/sixth place. "We have been able to maintain fourth place [in constructors'] but we have nothing to celebrate." Despite frustration at Ferrari's failure to win a race in F1 for the first time since 1993, Mattiacci - who will now leave the company completely - said the restructuring he began would leave the team in better shape to bounce back in 2015. "Absolutely it's frustrating and a difficult season, but I always look at the positive side," he added.
"We learned a lot. I'm happy that in some way I contributed to putting this altogether. "Our goal is to create as soon as possible a very effective organisation that produces a very competitive car. "The sign we are seeing for next year's car is promising. James Allison and his people are doing a tremendous job."

Regards
Shaky - Schumi