For the record Edoardo Mortara (Signature) won the Formula 3 race ahead of Jean-Karl Vernay, Sam Bird, Marcus Ericsson and Valtteri Bottas. In WTCC Robert Huff (Chevrolet) won the first race and Augusto Farfus (BMW) the second one while Gabriele Tarquini (SEAT) clinched the 2009 title.

2009 Macau GP – Crash photos from the crash fest

Bits and pieces of the Lambo

The GT Cup race (part of 2009 Macau GP program) today produced a massive crash of Lamborghini Gallardo GT3 driven by Luis Artiles. The front and rear of the car was totally ripped off, debris all over the track… The driver walked away but it will take some serious repair job before that Lambo can race again … Here is a short video featuring that crash.

2009 Macau GP – Video – Massive Lambo crash in GT Cup

This formally concludes the 2009 edition of this little F1 prediction game . Join us next year, we will kick off about a month before the season starts with the usual champion predictions ! For now we can go back to enjoying the eventful off season …

The prize for the 2009 Prediction Game has been delivered

Jenson Button will take the nubmer 1 to McLaren

The speculations about Jenson Button’s move from Brawn GP to McLaren were confirmed today. The Vodafone McLaren Mercedes F1 team announced earlier today on Twitter their multiyear deal with 2009 F1 champion. This will be the first time in F1 history that a team has started the new season with a line-up featuring the most recent two successive World Champions. This will also be the first pairing of two British World Champions since Graham Hill (1962, 1968) partnered Jim Clark (1963, 1965) at Lotus in 1968.

Many will doubt Button’s motivation for this move especially after all the talk about the failure of Brawn GP (now Mercedes GP) to meet his financial expectations. Martin Whitmarsh was quick to stress that money was not the reason for this move:

“I want to make clear that Jenson’s decision to join us was in no way motivated by money. We’ll be paying him no more than he could be getting elsewhere, and that fact is a reflection of not only Jenson’s belief in Vodafone McLaren Mercedes but also his desire and ambition to build on the phenomenal results he achieved during the 2009 season.”

This is a risky move for Button and many prominent F1 figures believe he is making a big mistake. It will be very interesting to see how both the drivers and the team management handle the new situation. The last pairing of world champion with Lewis Hamilton (Alonso in 2007) was not exactly a long lasting success story … Both Hamilton and Button are however confident that all will be well:

“It’s always a difficult decision to leave a team when you’ve been there for so long. But life is all about challenges – and, most important of all, it’s about challenging yourself. So, although I won the World Championship with Brawn GP last year, and I’ll never forget that, I was always adamant that I wanted to continue to set myself fresh challenges. So that’s why I’ve decided to join Vodafone McLaren Mercedes.

From a personal point of view, it’s also a great pleasure to be joining a fellow British World Champion. Lewis has achieved an incredible level of success in a very short period of time, and he’s a wonderfully gifted driver who has earned the respect of every Formula 1 driver. I’m sure there’s plenty that we can learn from each other, and I’m really looking forward to using our combined knowledge to push the team forward.

Also, I think it’s fantastic that we’ll be forming an all-British line-up. I know that we both fly the flag with pride, and I sincerely hope we can make the whole of the United Kingdom, as well as Vodafone McLaren Mercedes fans across the world, proud. Nothing means more to me than to be able to represent my country, and I’m looking forward to both of us painting Formula 1’s circuits red, white and blue for many years to come.” – Jenson Button

“It’s fantastic news that Jenson has decided to join Vodafone McLaren Mercedes – and I’m looking forward to working with him and our engineers to make sure we kick off the 2010 season with a car that’s competitive enough to win the World Championship – but I want to send my best wishes for the future to my 2008-09 team-mate and now good friend Heikki Kovalainen, who is one of the nicest human beings I’ve ever met.

I already know Jenson, and we get on very well together. We both really want our team to succeed. Although we’ll be pushing each other hard, I’m sure we’ll very quickly establish a great working relationship. He’s an exceptional driver: very controlled and very smooth, and he has a real depth of knowledge and experience. I think we’ll complement each other very well, and our collaboration will make the team stronger as a result. Also, I’m delighted to be racing alongside a fellow British World Champion, and I believe we can pull together to make Vodafone McLaren Mercedes the best team on the grid.” – Lewis Hamilton

Let’s wait and see what will they have to say 12 months later …

Button’s move to McLaren means that McLaren will again display the number number one on one of their cars. It also means that Heikki Kovalainen is at the moment without a drive for 2010. We can now expect Mercedes GP (formerly Brawn GP) to announce their 2010 drivers soon with Nico Rosberg and Nick Heidfeld widely expected to get the nod.

Photo: Bridgestone Motorsports

2010 F1 Drivers – Jenson Button moves to McLaren

“The options in F1 were with McLaren next season or not at all. Kimi and McLaren were unable to reach an agreement, so he will not drive at the F1 level – at least not next year.

A gap year means nothing for Kimi. He is more interested in fighting for wins and the world championship. F1 will miss Kimi. He worked hard over the summer – doing things in a Ferrari that only the best drivers are capable of.”

Kimi Raikkonen entered F1 in 2001 with Sauber only to move to McLaren in 2002. He went on to win 9 races with the Woking  team. His best championship result in McLaren was 2nd place in 2005. In 2007 Raikkonen moved to Ferrari. He won his debut race in the red car in Australia and went on to win the title in his debut season with the team. In total he has won 9 races with Ferrari, the last one in Belgium this year. Here are few images from Raikkonen’s 3 years with Ferrari.

Unless Mercedes and McLaren have some shocking scenario hidden in their sleeves it now leaves three drivers – Button, Rosberg and Heidfeld to divide the 3 Mercedes powered seats (1 in McLaren and 2 in Brawn) between them (with Rosberg expected to race for Mercedes Grand Prix).

Here are 2 interesting facts:

1) When Raikkonen joined McLaren in 2002 he replaced his compatriot Mika Hakkinen who also went on a sabbatical. That sabbatical never ended, Hakkinenen never raced in F1 again.

2) When Raikkonen joined McLaren in 2002 he was selected ahead of Nick Heidfeld. Heidfeld is likely to be the driver who may benefit the most from Raikkonen’s failure to reach an agreement with McLaren for 2010 …

Photos: Shell Motorsports

2010 F1 Drivers – Kimi Raikkonen will not race in F1 in 2010

Timo Glock will race for Manor in 2010

The announcement season continues today. Manor have signed up Timo Glock for next season. Glock was left without a drive following Toyota’s pull out from F1. There were rumours connecting him with Renault drive but at the end he will be joining the newcomers Manor GP.

“It might seem like a brave step. But there are many good reasons to join this team. For me as a driver, for example, it was important that I was assured I would be involved in the development of the team and the car.”

“With a year left on the Toyota contract, we originally had other plans and were aiming to really compete for the world championship with the team. Now, for obvious reasons, that is not going to happen. Ahead of me now is a great challenge. And I’m really looking forward to it!” – Timo Glock

More on Glock’s move to Manor GP – click here

There has been no word yet on the second driver nor on the rumoured/expected Manor-Virgin deal.

Visit the 2010 Season page for more on 2010 F1 drivers line up.

Photo: Bridgestone Motorsports

2010 F1 Drivers – Timo Glock to Manor GP

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Liveries – 15 years of McLaren Mercedes F1 partnership

Video – Interview with Norbert Haug on Mercedes GP

Mercedes confirmed purchase of Brawn GP F1 team

Mercedes today made an announcement about their future F1 plans. Here is the quick summary:

- Daimler AG (Mercedes) is to buy a majority stake in the Brawn GP Formula One team. According to not exactly clear press release from Daimler AG the team is to be known as Silver Arrow Formula 1 team or Mercedes Grand Prix (read the press release at the end of this post)
- McLaren Group is to purchase Daimler AG’s 40 per cent shareholding
- Mercedes-Benz is to power McLaren’s Formula 1 cars until 2015

Here is what the head of Mercedes cars, Dr Dieter Zetsche had to say on the Brawn GP – Mercedes deal:

“Mercedes will compete in the F1 world championship next year starting with its own factory team. This is possible by the agreed acquisition of 75.1 per cent of Brawn GP, 45.1 per cent from Daimler and 30 per cent from our partner Aabar Investments. The rest will be with the current share – Ross Brawn, Nick Fry and other members. The interests of Daimler are aligned therefore it will be a true Mercedes-Benz team.

Ross Brawn will continue to be the team principal and thereby we are maintaining his strength. Just like the engine team at Mercedes Benz High Performance Engines, the new Mercedes Benz grand prix team will be co-ordinated by Mercedes Benz Motorsport which is as everybody knows headed by Norbert Haug.”

Ilustration of Mercedes GP Silver Arrow as provided by Daimler Media

McLaren has already issued press release on the new realigned long-term strategic alliance – click here. Here are the parts concerning the F1 future of McLaren:

Mercedes-Benz: to power McLaren’s Formula 1 cars until 2015

Having begun in 1995, the McLaren/Mercedes-Benz partnership is already one of the longest engine-supply associations in Formula 1 history; 2009 was its 15th consecutive year and 2015 will be its 21st consecutive year, by which time it will have become by some margin the longest such association in Formula 1 history. Both the McLaren Group and Daimler AG were therefore committed to securing its continuation as part of a realigned long-term strategic alliance, and to have provided mechanisms whereby the partnership may continue beyond 2015. The team will continue to be known as Vodafone McLaren Mercedes, its distinctive silver-with-red livery will remain unchanged, and Mercedes-Benz will continue as both an engine supplier and a partner.

McLaren Group: to purchase Daimler AG’s 40 per cent shareholding

In a transaction structured so as to be completed by 2011, the McLaren Group will undertake a phased purchase of the 40 per cent shareholding currently owned by Daimler AG. As a result, the McLaren Group will become a fully independent stand-alone corporate entity.

No decision on drivers have been announced yet. Nico Rosberg is expected to race for the re-branded Brawn GP while Nick Heidfeld and Jenson Button are connected with the seats at both McLaren and Brawn GP. And then there is also Kimi Raikkonen without a drive …

Here is the press release from Daimler AG on the purchase of Brawn GP:

Daimler AG together with Aabar Investments PJSC will take over 75.1 per cent of the Brawn GP team, with Daimler taking 45.1 per cent and Aabar 30 per cent. The rest of the 24.9 per cent will remain with the current stakeholders. With 9.1 per cent, Aabar is the biggest single shareholder of Daimler AG. This transaction is subject to the approval of the EU and the Swiss cartel authorities.

The background to this decision are the new terms and conditions for Formula 1. The “Resource Restrictions” set by FOTA and FIA effectively limit expenditure for the design, construction and running of the racing cars. In addition, there will be a significantly higher income available for a Formula 1 team generated by the commercial rights of the racing series following the signing of the new Concorde Agreement.

The partnership between McLaren Mercedes has been in place since 1995 and ended its 15th joint Formula 1 season in 2009. The change to the form of cooperation is taking place by mutual agreement. Mercedes-Benz and McLaren will continue to co-operate with each other and the supply of engines could continue until 2015.

The McLaren Group have set themselves new targets, especially in the automotive sector, and Daimler understands and respects these new strategic objectives. For this reason, it has been agreed that the buy-back by the McLaren Group of the 40 per cent McLaren share owned by Daimler AG will be completed by 2011.

By taking this decision, Mercedes-Benz resumes its marvellous motor racing history on the 75th anniversary of the Silver Arrows, the world’s most unique racing cars. Mercedes wants to continue the tradition in the style of these flawless Silver Arrows, which put their stamp on each era by winning the majority of the races they competed in.

“Mercedes-Benz is the most valued and best-known premium automotive brand in the world. This brand looks for competition of the utmost quality in all relevant fields in order to continually improve its performance in the face of such new challenges”, explains Dr. Dieter Zetsche, CEO of Daimler AG and Head of Mercedes-Benz Cars.
“Due to the new Formula 1 environment, we will face the competition in future on the most important motor sports stage with our own Silver Arrow works team.

“Our new Silver Arrow Formula 1 team is a great sporting and technical challenge and we will tackle this with sporting spirit and full of enthusiasm.”

Mercedes-Benz will restructure their Formula 1 programme and work hard to achieve further savings, going beyond the already completed steps for significant cost reductions and improved efficiency.

Since 1995, the beginning of the partnership, McLaren and Mercedes-Benz have competed in 256 Grand Prix events and have achieved 60 victories. In 1998, 1999 and 2008, the British-German team won the drivers’ World Championships, as well as the World Constructors’ Championship in 1998. The McLaren Mercedes team became runner-up in the World Championships ten times, with five times in the drivers’ and constructors’ rankings respectively.

After winning the drivers’ title with Lewis Hamilton last year, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes finished third in the World Constructors’ Championships this year. The 2008 World Champion won two races with his current car, the MP4-24, achieving a first historic victory with the brake energy-recovery system, KERS Hybrid. No other driver scored more points in the last eight races from the season’s total of 17 races than Lewis Hamilton.

“I want to thank McLaren for a successful collaboration over the last decade and a half”, says Dr. Dieter Zetsche, CEO of Daimler AG and Head of Mercedes-Benz Cars. “For the benefit of both Mercedes and McLaren, we will continue our partnership cooperation in future. We will be rivals on-track but, off-track, we will cooperate with McLaren and the other teams in order to create the best possible product for spectators worldwide.”

“We look back on 15 successful years of great collaboration with McLaren; in that time, we won four world-championship titles and finished ten times as runner-up in the drivers’ and constructors’ rankings,” states Norbert Haug, Vice-President Mercedes-Benz Motorsport. “Since the first victory in the 1997 Australian Grand Prix, the modern Silver Arrows have achieved a total of 60 victories in 223 races to ensure that our brand symbol, the star, stands for the greatest successes in Formula 1. We thank our partner and will continue to work with McLaren based on an excellent partnership.”

Mercedes Grand Prix, the management team of the former Brawn GP team, will continue to work under the leadership of Ross Brawn, who will continue in his well-known role. The Formula 1 team, as well as the engine team of Mercedes-Benz High Performance Engines, will be co-ordinated by Mercedes-Benz Motorsport, headed by their Vice-President, Norbert Haug.

“Brawn GP has been through an incredible journey over the last 12 months. From fighting for our survival to forging a strong relationship with Mercedes-Benz High Performance Engines, winning both the Constructors’ and Drivers’ World Championships, and now accepting Daimler and Aabar’s offer to buy our team, which will secure its future”, Team Principal Ross Brawn looks back on a difficult beginning of the year which eventually turned into an extremely successful season.

“Both I and my fellow Directors at Brawn GP are incredibly proud of our staff, drivers and everyone associated with our team and thank them for their commitment, outstanding teamwork and their focus on achieving results in sometimes difficult circumstances. The senior management group will remain in place to lead our team and on behalf of everyone at Brawn GP, we are honoured to be representing such a prestigious brand as Mercedes-Benz in Formula One next year and will be working together to do our best to reward their faith in our team.”

The new Silver Arrow team, Mercedes Grand Prix, will compete in Formula 1 as a works team in its own right. Synergies between the 100 per cent Daimler-owned subsidiary Mercedes-Benz High Performance Engines in Brixworth, UK, and the Mercedes Grand Prix team based about 28 miles from there in Brackley in the UK, will create even greater efficiency.

It is our target to develop a model for our Formula 1 activities which will initially be run with significantly reduced budgets by Mercedes-Benz and which, in the foreseeable future, will be self-financing”, comments Norbert Haug. “Furthermore, we naturally want to inspire our faithful spectators and TV viewers worldwide and maximize media coverage for our brand. With Formula 1, Mercedes-Benz can continue to clearly demonstrate its willingness to compete and win on the most important motor sports competition stage in the world.”

Khadem Al Qubaisi, Chairman, Aabar Investment PJSC comments: “Aabar is delighted to join forces with Daimler AG and its world leading brand Mercedes-Benz in order to create a new Formula One Team which follows in the footsteps of the longstanding and successful tradition of the famous ‘Silver Arrows’.

“Ever since Aabar became the largest shareholder in Daimler AG, the cooperation between our two organisations has been exemplary, and we have already co-invested in Tesla. Aabar is confident that further successes will follow in this arena.

“Bearing in mind the recent outstanding success of the Abu Dhabi GP, which brought Formula One to the United Arab Emirates for the first time, it is especially exciting to realise that next year, our own cars will be in the field, with the genius of Ross Brawn, who is still deeply involved with the team, now backed by the unrivalled excellence of Mercedes-Benz across the entire spectrum of automotive technology. It is a fantastic prospect, which makes me both pleased and proud for my country.”

Photo: Bridgestone Motorports, Daimler Media

Mercedes buys Brawn GP, launching Silver Arrow Formula 1 team

Prague - the object of F1 rumours

It is amazing to see how quickly the F1 media picked up the story that Czech Republic is targeting F1 street race in Prague. Well it is not Czech Republic, it is not Prague, it is Mr. Antonin Charouz. And he is not exactly planning F1 race in Prague. He is talking about building a race race track somewhere in Prague that perhaps one day (in his dreams) may host F1 race. But news about someone planning to build a semi street race track at the outskirts of Prague would hardly attract as much attention as news about Czech Republic or Prague targeting F1 race…

What I found interesting on this story was that while many serious F1 sites had the “Czech Republic targets grand prix” or similar articles in prominent places on their websites, there was not a word on that topic in Czech news. Yes, it made it to Czech portals eventually, few days later. But unlike the international journalists the local ones took much different view of the things. One of the major Czech news portals opted for a title that might have looked in English like this “Formula 1 in Prague, attempt number 2. Charouz full of … again ?” . The F1 portal F1Sports.cz has also an article on this “media tornado” that starts:

In this internet times all you need is a spark and next minute there is an avalanche spreading the bombshell of a news that Czech republic is targeting organizing an F1. Exactly this is happening at this hour.

The news quoting the father of the idea, Antonin Charouz was first published by British Autosport magazine this week. Few hours later it was all over the internet.

The article goes on stressing the same I mentioned above – It is not Czech Republic nor is it Prague targeting F1 race. It is Mr. Antonin Charouz who needs a PR storm from time. And to have himself mentioned all around the F1 media in connection with possible F1 race in rather well known tourist city can’t do him too much harm. With so many serious sites picking up his story in no time he must have had it well planned (and well executed).

He floated the F1 Prague idea for the first time in 2006. The track was to be designed by Hermann Tilke, financed by mysterious investors and ready by 2009. All that is ready by end of 2009 is another F1 in Prague story…

For those who may not have heard about Mr. Charouz before. He is indeed a motorsport person. Former racing driver himself he runs several companies, racing teams and manages several drivers. The best known probably is Tomas Enge whom he pushed all the way to F1 for three races with Prost in 2001. Charouz also ran the Czech A1GP team. His company BPA also runs several racing teams Aston Martin Racing, Sauto.cz Racing Team, Charouz Racing System, CNG Seznam.cz Rally Team, Lamborghini Racing Eastern Europe and ISR. The ISR team competes in Formula Masters and Formula 3 Euroseries. One of their drivers is Alex Rossi, now trying to make his mark in GP2. Antonin Charouz’s son Jan made his GP2 debut last week during the tests in France.

Erik Janis and Alex Rossi - Formula Masters

Charouz definitely has a serious racing pedigree. But to organize and pay for an F1 race is very different cup of tea, ask Damon Hill. Things may change one day in distant future, but at this moment the whole F1 in Prague story is just that, a story …

The Czech F1 GP media storm