Be Excellent To Each Other

Whoo! The new season starts in just over a week!

Schuemy is coming back, Hamilton is back in the game, Red Bull are just as strong, Hell, even Button may have learnt some tricks during his time at the top and be in the title race.

My money (quite literally) is on Schumacher to take the world title, though.

As you can see, the cars haven't changed that much.


I love the art on the RB6.


Note the lack of refuelling bits.

Alonso looked good in testing and Ferrari have a jump start on everyone else having pretty much written off last year after the big crash mid season. It's gonna be a doozy.

And finally, they've dumped fuel stops. About time!

And let's not forget about Lotus, back after sixteen years with Kovalainen and Trulli.

Wait. No refuelling?! Wowzers! That's a major change.

Thus blowing the chance of any real excitement.



Still at least the drive line-up this year is interesting and they'll be lots of back markers to cause chaos.

I might watch it this season... it has sparked an interest..

They still have to change for tyres, so there should be some excitement with pit stops. It'll be interesting to see which cars handle better with full and empty loads and vice versa.

Plus Schumacher! Admittedly, F1 became incredibly dull towards the end of his reign, but I think there are more world-class drivers now than there were in the early to mid noughties.

Plus Schumey's been out of it for a while now. I have doubts he'll be up to his previous form right from the off. I reckon this'll be an interesting season alright.

Recap of the changes and new rules from F1 Fanatic

F1 race winners gets a bumper haul of points in 2010

The changes to the F1 rules are not as sweeping as they were last season. But there are several significant alterations such as the ban on refuelling during races and winners getting 25 points instead of ten.

And there are some other small-but-significant changes for 2010 to keep an eye on too, all of which are covered below.

Qualifying

Q1 and Q2

With 24 cars on the grid this year we’ll see seven drivers knocked out in Q1 and another seven in Q2, instead of five in each as last year.

Q3

The top ten drivers in Q3 will no longer have to qualify with the fuel loads they’ll start the race with, thanks to the banning of in-race refuelling (see below).

They will, however, have to start the race using the tyres they set their fastest lap in Q3 with, which could influence their decision on which compound to use in qualifying.

Races

No refuelling during races

The effect the in-race refuelling ban will have on races has been hotly debated between fans.

Certainly, drivers will have to take it easier in the opening stages of a Grand Prix or risk destroying their tyres. But as the race goes on we should see some interesting scenarios and strategies develop.

For example, if two drivers are running closely together and one pits to change tyres, that driver will enjoy the advantage of fresher tyres and be able to lap more quickly than the other for a few laps. Several F1 strategists have talked about how this will make strategy more reactive this year – teams will keep an eye on what their rivals do and respond. We could even see teams bluffing their rivals by sending their crews onto pit lane when their car isn’t coming in.

Some have doubts about the wisdom of the refuelling ban but I’m fully in favour. Here’s why: 14 reasons to love the F1 refuelling ban

Q3 tyre rule

The rule requiring drivers who reach the top ten in qualifying to start the race on the tyres they set their best time on will have an obvious effect on the race.

A driver who starts on softer tyres can expect a fast start and some quick opening laps but they will have to pit earlier to change tyres. A driver who starts on harder tyres will not be able to make as quick start but will have more suitable tyres for the opening stint when the fuel load is at its heaviest.

Fewer tyres

Drivers will also have to manage their tyre use more carefully over a Grand Prix weekend. The number of four-tyre sets available of them has been cut from 14 to 11 – six of the harder ‘prime’ compound and five of the softer ‘option’ tyre.

To encourage drivers to do more running during practice sessions they will have to return one set of ‘prime’ tyres before FP2 and one set of each type of tyre before FP3.

Championship

Points

Since the last race of 2009 the F1 points system has been changed not once, but twice. Here’s the system they eventually settled on and how it compares with the last points system:

Finishing position 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
2003-2009 Points System 10 8 6 5 4 3 2 1
2010 Points System 25 18 15 12 10 8 6 4 2 1
On the face of it that’s a significant change: a winner now gets two-and-a-half times more points than last year, and ninth and tenth place finishers score poitns for the first time.

But there been little change to the relative worth of each finishing position:

Finishing position 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
2003-2009 Points System (% of winners’ points) 100 80 60 50 40 30 20 10
2010 Points System (% of winners’ points) 100 72 60 48 40 32 24 16 8 4
This shows us that:

Second place is worth less compared to a win than it was last year (but still much more than it was before 2003)
Third to fifth places are worth more or less the same as last year
Sixth to tenth places are worth more than last year
In short, the FIA seems to have tried to reduce the appearance of drivers ’settling for second’ by making it worth slightly less. But the increasingly generous awards for lower place finishes should help keep the title fight going until the later stages of the championship as well as giving the new teams something achievable to shoot for.



No refuelling during races

The most talked-about change for this year sees in-race refuelling banned for the first time since 1993.

This has had an obvious effect on car design – they now need much larger fuel tanks. It will also put brakes under greater strain.

Narrower front tyres

F1 cars will have narrower front tyres this year. The change is partly to correct an unintended consequence of last year’s switch from grooved to slick tyres.

Removing the grooves meant the front and rear tyre contact patches (the area where tyre meets road) increased in size. Because the front tyres were narrower to begin, the increase in contact patch size meant they gained more grip relative to the rear tyres. The new reduction in front tyre width will correct that.

There are fears that this reduction in ‘mechanical’ grip combined with further gains in ‘aerodynamic’ grip will make it harder for F1 cars to follow each other closely in 2010, which will make it harder for drivers to overtake.

The reduction in width applies to rain tyres as well as dry weather slicks and in testing several drivers found the intermediate tyre wear was much higher than last year.

Other changes

Among the other significant changes to the rules is a provision made for teams who want to bring in an untested driver during the season.

When Toro Rosso did this with Jaime Alguersuari last year he was unable to test before his debut. In the same circumstances this year the rules allow for a new driver to have a test before racing.

More on the other minor changes to the rules in these articles:


Tyre compounds

Drivers still have to use each tyre compound at least once per race, unless they use wet weather tyres during it.

There were rumours about a new rule that would force drivers to make at least two pits tops per race, but no such rule was passed.

KERS

The Kinetic Energy Recovery Systems introduced last year remain legal in 2010 but the teams have agreed not to use them to save money.

Tyre warmers

A ban on tyre warmers has been proposed more than once in the past few years but not put in the rule books yet. They remain legal in 2010 but a new clause has been added which says the heating element may only act on the outer surface of the tyre.

Double-diffusers

Double-diffusers will be banned for the 2011 F1 season.

Stewards

A shake-up in the stewards’ office follows criticism over how race penalties have been handled in recent seasons. Most significantly the role of non-voting Chairman previously held by Alan Donnelly has been abolished (Donnelly has since left the FIA).

The FIA said in December the stewards “should aim to reach decisions very efficiently” which hopefully means an ends to the days of waiting half a race or longer for stewards to render important decisions.

Read more: F1 stewarding gets another overhaul

Some positive changes but too much fiddling

The package of changes for 2010 is, on the whole, fairly good with a few highlights but still too much needless fiddling.

Reintroducing refuelling in 1994 was the wrong decision made for the wrong decision. Happily they’ve finally corrected it.

The change in the points system is an attempt to acknowledge the increased number of participants in 2010 and this second version is certainly an improvement over the earlier version they produced. I just wishes they’d done more to increase the gap in reward between winning and finishing second, which still feels under-rewarded.

The rest of the regulations include some tidying up of problematic areas from last year’s swingeing changes. The biggest sticking point for me remains the Q3 tyre rule which intends to compromise the top ten qualifiers. I don’t like rules which arbitrarily penalise a group of drivers because they’ve performed well, and I can’t imagine it having a particularly beneficial effect on the quality of racing.

What I’d most like to see from next year’s rules is fewer changes and more stability.

Indeed- how bonkers expensive is it that even F1 teams think it's too pricey?!

Not much at all, really. The FIA think the insane cost of F1 is a barrier to new teams (even though there are more cars this season than for a long time). They were talking about putting a cap on spending (I forget the exact amount, but something insane like £40,000,000) but all the big teams said they'd fuck off and start their own championship so they gave up on that idea.

Well, considering the US F1 team can'r even afford to put two cars on the grid, money does seem to be problem for the smaller teams.

How the hell have they got rid of fuel stops? Massive tanks?

They've just gone back to normal tanks. Fuel stops were only re-introduced in 1994 (sub, please check)

That'd be one way to enforce it, a bit over the top when they could just use bollards though.

Pretty much. Bear in mind that refilling during the race on came along in the mid-90's (I think).

Aww, man. I know we didn't talk much in Manchester, but putting me on ignore is just mean, man.

I didn't actually know that!

/is 24...

Ah well, it's nice to see things mixed up a bit.

I believe refuelling was introduced in 1994.

*slips quietly away*

I think you're right, myp.

Did anyone hear something?

The slightly more full and potted history of refuelling:

It was legal between the beginning and 1983 (I believe), but no one did. In 1982 the Brabhams ran several races with half tanks and a scheduled refuelling during the race. A combination of accidents and reliability faults meant the cars rarely (if ever, I don't remember) reached the pit stop. In 1983, the car was designed to take advantage of the ability to refuel (as well as the effective banning of ground force) and not-so-comfortably won the drivers championship (3rd in the constructors)

In 1984 it became something of a fuel efficiency formula, with only a certain amount of fuel allowed, and refuelling banned.
In 1994, t'was allowed again, and Benetton demonstrated, quite quickly, why it wasn't that safe. By removing some filters and setting their driver on fire. Pit lane fires kept happening, the most recent being last year Kovalainen spraying Raikkonen with burning fuel. Beyond that it enforced the timing of race strategy (and potential pitfalls of not having low tanks when the rain dropped/safety car appeared etc) and made it a fairly staid character.

Glad to see the back of it.

That was awesome

I like to think it was deliberate.

Yeah! Sunday afternoons can now again be spent sitting on the sofa watching cars go nneeeeeeeeeeeeuuuuuuuuuuuuuuummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

Winter does seem to have lasted forever. Now seems odd that there's less than the usual gap between races to go until there's a race on.

Of course, typically, people are apparently (according to the media, but no direct quotes) complaining about the McLaren cars legality. Feh, I say.

Almost sounds like it might be worth watching again.

Raikkonen is the best value for money driver in the past decade with his "and...so?" attitude to most things. I like him a lot for that.

He's pretty interesting at the wheel of a rally car as well.

New Silverstone layout looks interesting, about 4 secs per lap longer they thinks.

I bet they won't have a calm GazChap turning to them just before Luffields saying "I do believe the brakes are cooked".

That is going to lead into some most awesome moves into luffield, hopefully.

Watching first practice. So far: Yes, it is going to be a bit tricky telling the McLaren from the Virgin. (Aside from that the Virgin is likely to be the one at the side of the road, having broken down)

Check that: The virgin is the one which looks particulary lairy and goes sideways rather than forwards.

Is today's practice on iPlayer?

I particularly enjoyed the race that had the massively delayed start - would it happen, will they call it all off, will it get too dark if it gets much later oooh drama? - where the drivers were waiting to find out if they could get back in the cars to start. As the commentators were talking about the issues and how the drivers must be frustrated at the wait and wanting to get going, the camera cut away to Raikkonen who was in shorts eating a choc ice and getting a can of drink out of the cooler, obviously having just thought 'fuck this'

Next one is at 1055, I think. On the iplayer.

Is it on the redbutton as well? Probably...

Oh, good oh, if it is, I needn't squint at the screen.

That's what you get with a Sheffield Team...bunch of ASBO Drivers. Hang on, did Timo Glock nick my car.

Bastard

No, the best one was watching Bruno Senna trying to guide his Hormone Replacement Treatment around the track. Good god that car looked a pig - it appeared to handle like it had a fifth wheel stuck up the driver's arse the amount of under and oversteer it seemed to have. Either that or his tyres were made of wood.

I felt really sorry for Senna on that final lap.

But I was quite worried when Glock was being followed by two cars (Vettel and someone else, I don't remember) and wasn't at all keen on being passed. His car was really all over the place, and it looked not a million miles away from a three car pile up.

That hormone replacement therapy car looks appalling, even when the wheels aren't trying their best to come off.

It's certainly going to be interesting on Sunday and tomorrow. I learned precisely fuckall from watching both practice sessions other than some of the newcomers to the fold could probably give their drivers routemaster buses and they'd get close in lap times to what they're posting now.

One of those corners on the infield section is so bumpy they could do with Grim...'s tonka to get around the cars are bottoming out so much. Tyre degradation is going to be the biggest single factor by some margin and I think Red Bull look like they're going to have problems as well as the likes of Hamilton and his tail out wahey style of driving.

I'm moderately excited.

I'm actually excited about F1 this year. I can't believe it!

Me too, except I'm having to go for a sodding meal with the in-laws at 12:30.

HAHAHAAHAHAAHAHA