2010 European Grand Prix - The Conclusions

In this piece, I will be assessing ten key features from each Grand Prix weekend from the 2010 FIA Formula 1 World Championship.  The halfway stage of F1 2010 has now been reached, with an unusually dramatic race around the tedious streets of Valencia, home of the European Grand Prix.  So, this is the round-up of Round 9, as Red Bull really does give you wings!

APOLOGISES FOR ANYONE WHO WAS WAITING FOR THE CONCLUSIONS FOR CANADA, I WAS TOO BUSY TO PUBLISH A PIECE ON THAT WEEKEND. 

Miraculous Outcome At 190mph – How Mark Webber Cheated Death?

It is Lap nine of the European Grand Prix and Mark Webber is languishing in 18^th position, after a shocking start and an early pitstop, which was delayed by a sticky wheel nut.  He is approaching the Lotus of Heikki Kovalainen, who is minding his own business, circulating five seconds off the pace.  Cue one of Formula One’s miraculous outcomes.  Webber slipstreams Kovalainen, who breaks for the corner, 80 metres before the Aussie intended him to do so, largely because of the incapability of the Lotus, rather than the Finn’s nervousness.  In an instant, the Red Bull was launched into the air, missed a DHL advertising hoarding by millimetres, barrel rolled once and then careered off the road at almost unabated speed into the tyre barriers.  Despite initial concerns about his legs, Webber was shaken, but suffered no serious injuries and is ready to go for Silverstone next week.  It was a racing incident that can happen at the heat of battle, though some are questioning why Kovalainen was even defending a position he was never going to hold onto for long.  There is no doubt that Mark Webber cheated death last Sunday.

Sebastian Vettel – Championship Aspirations Back On Track

It has been a rocky road for Sebastian Vettel in recent weeks, following the crash with his team-mate Webber in Turkey, then an uncharacteristically quiet weekend in Canada.  He was under pressure to deliver in Europe and he managed to answer all the critics, with a measured and dominant performance.  He beat Webber in qualifying for the first time since China, and on Sunday, despite constant pressure from Lewis Hamilton, was untroubled from start-to-finish.  This was an almost perfect weekend, which puts his championship aspirations firmly back on track. 

Fernando Alonso – Sour Grapes!

Sunday was a very frustrating day for Fernando Alonso, and that is becoming a very familiar tone in 2010.  After starting fourth on the grid, Alonso was a strong third in the early exchanges and hassling Hamilton, who was nursing damage from a first lap skirmish with Vettel.  The Safety Car changed it completely and Fernando was forced to do a full lap behind the pace car, before pitting, whereas Hamilton did a lap at racing speed before entering the pits.  He was furious at Lewis’s driving, though he must be questioned about his own performance.  He basically allowed Kamur Kobayashi to overtake him in the closing stages, which confirmed Alonso had an off-day and his mind was not on the job in hand.  He will need a win very soon to stay firmly in the title battle.

Mercedes GP – Moving Backwards, Not Forwards!

When Ross Brawn shook his head, after realising that Mercedes GP had cocked up once again on strategy, and ruined Michael Schumacher’s afternoon in the process, it summed up the German’s team and their diabolical weekend.  A new upgrade took the team backwards, not forwards.  Two races ago, they were ahead of Ferrari, but now, they have been overtaken by Renault and are coming under pressure from Force India on a regular basis.  Schumacher was nearly eliminated in Q1, and hobbled by brake issues, could only manage 15^th on the grid.  Birthday boy Nico Rosberg only did marginally better, starting 12^th.  He earned one point in the stewards’ room, when Pedro de la Rosa was penalised five seconds for going too fast under Safety Car regulations, but it was a miserable weekend to forget.  Knowing Ross, it won’t be long before he abandons development on 2010 and switches focus to 2011.

Felipe Massa – Must Improve His Form

Though Alonso had an off-day, Felipe Massa is having too many of these in 2010.  He produced another lacklustre display in Valencia, on a track where he dominated in 2008, his only previous visit here.  A clumsy spin on Friday lost him critical track time, so to qualify only 0.1 behind Alonso in 5^th showed slow signs of progress on Saturday.  Sunday was a different story however.  He may have been unlucky in having to queue behind Alonso under the Safety Car, which relegated him to 17^th.  However, he got stuck behind Vitantonio Liuzzi and didn’t even look like he wanted to pass him.  It was another dismal showing and that strong opening 2^nd place in Bahrain, must seem like an age ago.  Many in the paddock are wondering why he just got a two-year deal at Maranello for consistently dismal showings.  Perhaps his Hungary crash last year has psychologically damaged him more than he wants us to know about.

Lotus, Virgin & Hispania – Another Tough Day at the Office for Them

Another race, another tough day for the three new teams or as BBC pundit David Coulthard refers them to as: Class B!  Having made slow steps towards the midfield in Montreal, Lotus dropped off again in Valencia, though they were a full second clear of the other new teams.  We know what happened to Kovalainen, with the Webber crash and Jarno Trulli had a gear selection problem early on, and trundled around to the chequered flag.  At least both Virgins finished again, showing the reliability is gradually improving.  Timo Glock has an unnecessary clash with Bruno Senna, on a weekend where Lucas di Grassi hung him out to shame.  The most impressive of the new boys so far, is Karun Chandok.  The Indian is a nice guy, and keeps plucking away at the back, consistently finishing the races, which is a positive sign for his future career.  However, their chances of scoring points in 2010 look further away than ever.

Kamur Kobayashi – Finally Showing Signs Of Promise

It has been a tough season for Kamur Kobayashi, as he has had to deal with an uncompetitive Sauber, plus he hasn’t helped his cause with several careless first lap incidents.  Despite a poor qualifying, which saw knocked out in Q1 for the second successive race, he took full advantage of the Safety Car, to not pit and stay out on the track, in third place for 53 laps.  The Japanese made full use of the prime tyre, rarely looked under threat from Jenson Button’s McLaren and then, when he had to pit to use the softer option, drove past Fernando Alonso as if he was an amateur, then outfoxed Sebastian Buemi on the final corner for 7^th place.  Nice driving from Kamur, if he strings more consistency together rather than shunts, he may well turn out to be Japan’s best-ever Grand Prix driver.

Williams – A Radical Improvement

Williams made a big step forward in Valencia, which is a real positive sign for the rest of this season.  Although Sam Michael has recently confirmed that focus is moving towards 2011, this development step worked, with more in the pipeline for Silverstone.  Last year’s winner, Rubens Barrichello qualified 9^th and finished an outstanding 4^th.  Nico Hulkenberg produced his strongest weekend of his rookie season so far, winding up 8^th on the grid and looked set for a point, but for a tyre failure with six laps to go.  His disappointment was clear to see, but this was a radical improvement for a team that has underachieved badly in recent seasons.

Pirelli Wins the Tyre Battle – Can It Match Bridgestone?

Last Wednesday, the FIA announced that Pirelli had won the contract to supply tyres to all Grand Prix teams from the 2011 season onwards.  Although Michelin are keen on a tyre war, it looks like we set for another period of monopoly from one tyre manufacturer.  Pirelli was last in the sport in 1991, recording a lucky victory for Benetton’s Nelson Piquet in the Canadian Grand Prix.  Whether it can match Bridgestone will be interesting to see at the start of next season.  Bridgestone have been fantastic for sport, having entered in 1997 and will be profoundly missed by everyone in the paddock, when the Japanese manufacturer quits at the end of this season.

New Rules Agreed For 2011 – Back To The Old Days Of Grand Prix Racing?

New regulations for 2011 see the return of the 107% regulation, which means the new teams, must buck up their ideas, or face exclusion from the race.  The last time this was in place was back in 2002, when Alex Yoong failed to make the cut for Minardi, on three separate occasions that season.  KERS will make its expected return to the grid next season, with Ferrari, Mercedes and Renault all set to offer systems to teams.  Though it isn’t compulsory, it is believed most teams will use the system that failed so spectacularly in 2009.  Also being brought in is a new Safety Car rule, which forbids any overtaking on the final lap of races, after the Alonso/Schumacher incident in Monaco this year.  Plus, the introduction of a near rear-wing aerodynamic flap device, which will allow the driver behind to operate and eliminate drag.  Theoretically, it should make overtaking easier, but after the events of last Sunday and what happened to Mark Webber, I think that regulation may be tweaked before the cars line up next season.  It seems like that for 2011, we are heading back towards the old days of Grand Prix Racing.

2010 Monaco Grand Prix - The Conclusions

In this piece, I will be assessing ten key features from each Grand Prix weekend from the 2010 FIA Formula 1 World Championship.  Just seven short days from the return to Europe, F1 moved to its more glamorous venue, the style and class of the principality that is Monte Carlo.  This race provided the typical Monaco, drama full of thrills and spills, despite a frontline procession and many talking points afterwards.  So, this is race six of 2010, which drivers need to improve with 33% of the season complete, and who is on top of their game so far.

Mark Webber – What a Difference a Fortnight Makes

Two weeks ago, Mark Webber was languishing in 8^th place in the drivers’ championship, having produced some very erratic performances, and his position at Red Bull Racing was looking under severe scrutiny.  Two races later, he has an equal share for the lead in the world championship, with two absolute masterful performances in Spain and then again, in Monaco.  Red Bull would now be making a severe error of judgement if they allowed this experienced Aussie out of their grasp.  Not only has Webber been impressive, he has dismantled the highly-rated Sebastian Vettel in the past fortnight, not bad going against the young German, who many people’s tip to become world champion this season.  Mark has looked so in control with his car throughout these races, he never put a foot and didn’t look it either.  You can’t ask more for two dominant back-to-back successes can you?  Mark Webber is now a serious championship player and momentum in Formula One is a big imperative to have, something which he currently has in abundance. 

Damon & Michael Clash Again – Fair Or Foul!

When BRDC president Damon Hill was confirmed as the expert steward for the Monaco Grand Prix, I was concerned of his appointment, largely because of his possible bias towards the British drivers, and the hatred with the great Michael Schumacher.  Sure enough, with the latter, I was sadly proven right.  Schumacher was punished after the race with a ridiculous 20-second penalty for overtaking Fernando Alonso’s Ferrari on the last corner of the race, under a Safety Car.  Now, in 2009 regulations, that is totally illegal, but the rules have changed for 2010, which allow drivers to start overtaking after the final white line before the start-finish straight.  However, article 40.3 in the complex rules state that doesn’t happen on the last lap of the race.  With two differing viewpoints from Mercedes and Ferrari, plus two such fiery characters in Alonso and Schumacher, this one was always bound to cause controversy.  Ferrari believed the rulebook, Ross Brawn was convinced we were racing, as backed up by green flags, no Safety Car boards and messages from race control ‘Safety Car in this Lap.’  Mercedes have chosen not to appeal, probably best for the interests of the sport, but urgent clarification is required to stop this from happening again.  As for Damon, swapping back the positions would have been seen as a fairer viewing, but a penalty that drops Schumacher out of the points is incredibly harsh.  The bitter enemies from 1994 and 1995 have clashed again, and Hill has done no favours for his integrity on this one.  Mercedes and Michael Schumacher have a firm right to be aggrieved about this questionable steward and his decision-making.

Robert Kubica – Is A Drive With The Scuderia Beckoning?

Robert Kubica is one of the star drivers of 2010 so far, and his performance around the streets of Monte Carlo was absolutely sensational.  Renault is steadily improving, but are still no better than scraping their cars into Q3.  So, Kubica, normally starting around 7^th-9^th, produced an incredible qualifying performance to bang his car on the front row.  An aggressive thought on trying to pass Webber off the line failed, as he was gazumped by Vettel and almost by Felipe Massa, but Robert dug in and kept Vettel firmly honest all afternoon.  A 3^rd place finish was a brilliant result, and points to the fact how much the Pole has been getting the maximum out of this chassis.  Actually, he looked a bit disappointed on the rostrum, which suggests he felt he could have done even better.  Team-mate Vitaly Petrov had another accident this weekend, and is struggling to keep up with Kubica, despite his flashes of speed and talent.  With Massa still not in the groove at Maranello and performances like this from Robert, these constant rumours about him moving to Ferrari are only going to get stronger with each race.

Fernando Alonso – A Costly Error

He admitted it on Saturday morning; Fernando Alonso made a costly error that could have severe implications for his world championship bid.  Having dominated Thursday practice, the Spaniard was early favourite to take the top step of the podium, until he locked up, ran wide and found the magnetic attraction of the Monaco barriers at Massenet.  It looked a slow crash, but the damage was very bad, so much so that he had to sit out qualifying with a cracked chassis.  Once again on Sunday, as in Australia and China, Fernando showed his class to fight through from a pitlane start to an eventual 6^th place finish, despite the final lap controversy with Michael Schumacher.  He was aided by the Safety Car and clever tactics more than demon overtaking for this result, but it is more essential points.  However, if Alonso loses the title by less than ten points, he will look back on this grave error on Saturday morning as the death knell in his championship charge.

Mercedes GP - Too Many Mistakes Are Hurting Them

Once again, it was a hard luck story for Mercedes GP in Monaco, with traffic errors in qualifying ruining their race prospects.  Nico Rosberg was quickest by some margin in Q2, but inadvertently blocked his team-mate Michael Schumacher on his best lap, and then lost the tyre temperature on his final run to launch a significant challenge.  Instead of giving Red Bull headaches for the front row, the German challenge wound up back in 6^th and 7^th.  Schumacher was highly critical of Rosberg, and Rosberg looked incredibly frustrated by another missed opportunity.  On raceday, Rubens Barrichello jumped them both off the line, finishing off any outside hopes of a podium challenge.  A meagre 7^th placed finish for Rosberg must be seen to the team as really disappointing.  Too many mistakes are hurting Mercedes and I now can’t see them launching any significant championship bid in either title battle.  Monaco could have been a turning point in their season, but instead it was just another backwards step from last year’s champions, in their Brawn GP guise.

Rubens Barrichello - How Not To Lose Your Cool!

In an F1 career, spanning nearly 300 races, Rubens Barrichello has been a lucky boy down the years, as apart from his horror shunt on the nightmare Imola weekend of 1994, he hasn’t had many brutal smashes down the years.  Sunday’s shunt in Monaco therefore must be seen as one of his biggest.  Barrichello was in top-form this weekend, doing well to make Q3 in the underperforming Williams, then rising up to 6^th with a great start.  Though he dropped behind the Mercedes pair after the pitstops, solid points were up for grabs until Lap 29, when a sudden failure of his right-rear tyre, saw the disintegrating wheel buckle underneath his car, and send him into two hard smashes with the guardrail on the run up to Massenet.  It was lucky that no cameramen, photographers or the closing cars, Vitantonio Liuzzi or Sebastian Buemi were struck by any debris from the Brazilian’s out-of-control Williams.  However, his next action was petulant and unnecessary.  Rubens tossed out his steering wheel, which was later run over by both Hispania F1 entries, which could have had worse consequences.  The stewards didn’t penalise Barrichello for this, which shows what a rubbish day they had, as he had no regard for anyone else’s safety.  A fine and slap on the wrist should have been fully merited.  This was the perfect way not to lose your cool.

Jarno Trulli - Retirement Beckons?

The two Lotus drivers are a total different breed at the moment, and for Jarno Trulli, he looks like he doesn’t want to be driving such a slow machine anymore.  Heikki Kovalainen is driving out of his skin at the moment, always with a smile on his face and very optimistic with the future, totally understanding that the Lotus plan is a long-term venture.  Quite clearly, Trulli wants instant progress and that doesn’t happen overnight.  An absolutely daft attempt to pass Karun Chandok’s Hispania into Rascasse with four laps to go showed he might have been thinking about growing more wine in his vineyard over in Italy.  It could have had terrible outcomes for Chandok, with Trulli’s errant chassis nearly striking the poor Indian on the head.  This incident sums up Jarno’s season, and if he doesn’t want to be in the circus anymore, he should walk before he takes Lotus’s promising morale with him.  I can’t see him lining up on the grid much sooner if he continues to put in these clumsy overtaking attempts and sleepy performances.

Sticky Airguns and a Near Fatal Outcome - A Weekend to Forget For The New Boys

For the new boys, Monaco just showed how far they are off the pace in what is turning out to be a trying season.  Having shown some improvements in the early flyaway races, Hispania have gone miles off the pace.  In fact, some GP2 cars were lapping faster around the streets than Karun Chandok and Bruno Senna, which must question the wisdom why, are they in the sport?  Virgin’s ridiculous season continued, with both Timo Glock and Lucas di Grassi drowning at sea, in a car that is handling ugly and quite frankly, a tortoise has more chance of finishing a race at the moment.  Lotus has shown gradual improvement, especially with Heikki Kovalainen at the wheel, but they haven’t made the steps they were hoping for, both in reliability and speed.  None of the six drivers in the new teams finished, due to a catalogue of problems, including wonky suspensions, sticky airguns and outrageous overtaking passes.  Although I feel sorry for some of these drivers, namely Chandok and di Grassi for the equipment they have, these teams must buck up their ideas now; otherwise the 107% regulation needs to make an urgent return.  Only Kovalainen is giving them any valuable credit so far this season, which is disappointing to say.

Force India - Quiet, But Staying Out Of Trouble

Force India haven’t made a dramatic impact on the 2010 Formula One season so far, but they are staying out of trouble and consequently, are regular points scorers.  Only in China they haven’t registered a point so far this season and their first double points finish of the campaign will give the Silverstone-based team some more confidence of greater improvements.  Adrian Sutil is a changed man from last season.  Sutil has always been fast, but had a massive tendency to get involved in stupid accidents/collisions.  This year, he has calmed down, matured more and the results are starting to deliver.  Had it not been for a poor qualifying session, Adrian might have well been fighting for the top six in the race.  By contrast, Vitantonio Liuzzi has been coming under stern pressure from the Scot test driver Paul di Resta for his drive.  Following two excellent points showings early on, Liuzzi’s form has taken a major nosedive, with forgettable weekends in Shanghai and Barcelona.  However, the Italian reminded us what he could do in Monte Carlo, by outqualifying Sutil, making the top ten and finishing 9^th, having matched Sutil all weekend.  This was a very quiet, but encouraging weekend for Force India.  Watch them fly on the lower-downforce circuits such as Montreal, Spa and Monza later in the season; they could be serious podium contenders very soon. 

Six Races In - What Have We Learned So Far & What's To Come!

So, with one-third of the season complete, what have we learned so far?  Well, Red Bull are miles infront of the rest of the competition and have set some worryingly alarm bells off at many of their rival factories.  After a brilliant start in Bahrain, Ferrari has gone steadily backwards, and only luck is keeping them right in the thick of the title battle.  McLaren had a weekend to forget in Monte Carlo, and still need better qualifying pace.  However, their race pace is still a strong note, and they could well turn into McLaren’s closest challengers.  Renault, Force India and Toro Rosso have been surprises, whilst Williams and particularly Sauber need serious improvements fast, otherwise they will be cut off completely from the midfield group.  Webber, Vettel, Kubica, Rosberg and Kovalainen are the star drivers so far in 2010, whilst the likes of Schumacher, Hulkenberg, Massa, Kobayashi and Buemi need to up their game.  Istanbul is next, one of Tilke’s best tracks, and then comes a welcome return to Montreal, which always provides classic events.  There is a load more to come in F1 2010, it has been a encouraging start to the new formula.

Formula 1 2010 Season Preview Part 1

In the first of a three-part series, I will be counting down the start of the 2010 FIA Formula 1 World Championship.  It promises to be one of the most competitive and intriguing season’s ever in history, with at least four teams and eight, possibly more drivers with a decent shot of being World Champion.  There will be nineteen races over eight months, across five continents – which team and driver will end up on top.  These are my verdicts on all twenty-four drivers.

Karun Chandok (Hispania F1)

India has its 2^nd driver in Formula One, but I get the feeling that this season is going to be a real baptism of fire for Karun Chandok.  Five years after Narain Karthikeyan failed miserably in F1 with Jordan, Chandok has got a point to prove to his devoted country and his new team, Hispania Racing.  Karun did a solid job in GP2, but Grand Prix racing is a different kettle of fish.  He is going to see a load of blue flags this season and timing data, with his name on the bottom of the leaderboard.

Jaime Alguesuari (Toro Rosso)

Jaime Alguesuari made F1 history in Hungary last season by becoming the youngest driver ever to start in a Formula 1 race.  Considering his lack of testing mileage, he did a solid job at the back end of last season with Toro Rosso, particularly at the quicker circuits such as Spa and Suzuka.  However, the final stages of the season saw Jaime making basic mistakes, such as stopping at the wrong garage in Abu Dhabi, and consequently running out of fuel shortly afterwards.  He doubled up on championships last year, this year; his focus is firmly on F1.  He has been given a second chance and probably deserves it, but Alguesuari has got to give his team-mate Sebastian Buemi more of a run for his money this campaign.  He will do very well just to see the season out, in a team that has a reputation for firing driver’s mid-season.

Lucas di Grassi (Virgin Racing)

Four years in GP2 yielded a number of wins and consistent performances, but no championship for Brazilian Lucas di Grassi.  This season, he makes the jump up to the motorsport pinnacle, in new racing team, Virgin Racing.  Potentially, he has the capabilities to give his team-mate, Timo Glock some very sleepless nights.  Ultimately, a new team with a rookie driver is more than likely to be making up the numbers.  I think if di Grassi managed to notch a couple of points finishes between Bahrain and Abu Dhabi, then he can be very satisfied with a decent rookie season.

Bruno Senna (Hispania F1)

For the first time since that fateful day in May 1994, when his uncle lost his life in that horrific crash at the San Marino Grand Prix, the name Senna returns to Formula One.  Despite his family’s understandable reluctance, Bruno was determined to follow in Ayrton’s footsteps and has a solid track record in junior formulae, without setting alight the world.  What is clear is that he has strong belief and the potential talent to deliver.  Bruno Senna lacks race-craft, but he could turn out to be one of the biggest surprises of the season with Hispania Racing.

Heikki Kovalainen (Lotus)

He may have had a decent rookie season at Renault in 2007, but in two seasons at McLaren, Heikki Kovalainen was destroyed, both mentally and physically by Lewis Hamilton.  He never got a look in at the Woking based team, probably was happy to be fired actually, come the end of the 2009 season.  2010 is a make-or-break season for Finland’s finest, now that Kimi Raikkonen has moved onto pastures new.  Can Lotus bring the best out of Kovalainen, well if they can’t, then no-one can!

Vitaly Petrov (Renault)

Russia has its first driver on the F1 grid in its long and established history, in the form of Vitaly Petrov.  Runner-up to runaway GP2 champion Nico Hulkenberg last season, Petrov did well enough to win a few races, even though he wasn’t a serious title threat to the talented Hulkenberg.  He brings a massive amount of investment to the Renault team, and I can’t help thinking that Renault has given him a drive because of the much-needed cash rather than his individual talents.  I hope in this situation, I’m proven wrong.

Timo Glock (Virgin Racing)

German driver Timo Glock produced some starring performances for the underachieving Toyota team in the last two seasons, but he still may be one of the most under-rated drivers in F1.  On his day, Timo can give many drivers a real problem, but on others, he goes completely missing into oblivion.  Glock’s last race was 2^nd in the Singapore Grand Prix last, he has been ruled out since breaking his vertebrae in a major crash during qualifying for the race at Suzuka last October.  He is carrying the Virgin Racing team as No.1 driver and has to give the team some much-needed leadership if they are going to be a sustainable force in Grand Prix racing.  Glock could well be the pick of the drivers from the new teams.

Jarno Trulli (Lotus)

One win in over 200 races is a poor track-record for Jarno Trulli, but what Lotus needs is a load of experience and the ability to set-up a Grand Prix car perfectly and Trulli has got those qualities in abundance.  Still one of the best qualifiers on a Saturday, Jarno has a constant habit for going completely backwards on a Sunday.  So much so, some have factored the ‘Trulli Train’ into their race strategies.  Having worked closely with Mike Gascoigne at Renault and Toyota, Lotus is the perfect home for Jarno Trulli and it might finally bring the best out of this veteran Italian.  

F1 2010 - Are The New Teams Ready?

In seven days time, the roaring sound of V8 engines will exit the garages; the adrenaline buzz for millions of fans will begin again as the 2010 FIA Formula 1 World Championship kicks into life in the Middle East.

The desert area of Bahrain will stage the first race of 19, equalling the 2005 season as the longest in the World Championship’s history.  The winter break has seen as many stories as a traditional Grand Prix season would, with Toyota pulling out of the sport, Renault electing to stay in F1 under new ownership and the sensational return of Michael Schumacher to Grand Prix racing.  However, quite a fair bit of attention in Sakhir, will be on the three new teams and whether they will be up to speed in time for the green light.

Last summer, F1 suffered bitter fallouts, which nearly led to a disastrous breakaway by the major manufacturers.  Former FIA president Max Mosley and the head of FOTA (Formula One Teams Association) Luca di Montzemolo clashed verbally on several occasions over budget caps, as the sport took desperate attempts to reduce costs in a global recession.  Eventually, peace was made, with Mosley departing the scene, but it was too late for BMW & Toyota, both electing to walkaway, due to the economic crisis.  Consequently, we have three new teams on the grid, boosting the number of cars up to 24.

Unfortunately, as widely anticipated, one team has failed to make it.  USF1, led by Ken Anderson and Peter Windsor, both very experienced, failed to stump up the materialised costs for their team to run.  This was largely down to a lack of sponsorship and staff.  Though, they claim they will be ready for 2011, the team’s base in Charlotte, USA is up for sale and its only driver, Jose Maria Lopez has been released from his contract.  The team looks like on the verge of collapse.  The FIA then rejected Serbian team Stefan GP’s entry, because it was too late.  Stefan GP had flown equipment out to Bahrain, bought Toyota’s cars which had been designed for 2010 before their pull-out and signed ex-Williams reject Kazuki Nakajima to drive.  It is disappointing that this entry has been rejected, but understandably so, with Bahrain just a week away and hopefully, they will be on the grid sooner rather than later.

This leaves Lotus, Virgin F1 and Hispania F1 to make their births into the sport next weekend.  Virgin F1 looks the quicker, from the winter testing, but have been plagued by reliability problems.  In promising Brazilian Lucas di Grassi and former Toyota pilot, Timo Glock, the team has got the strongest potential to surprise some of the established pack this season.  Especially Glock, who for many, is probably the most under-rated driver on the grid.  The team is strongly backed by Richard Branson, who after minimal support with last year’s Brawn GP car makes the big step into backing Formula 1 success.

Lotus will return to the Formula One circle in Bahrain, after an exile of sixteen years.  Past glories of Colin Chapman and champions in the form of Clark, Hill, Andretti and Fittipaldi may have been a long time ago, but everyone is urging the team to do a respectable and capable job.  In former Tyrrell, Jordan and Toyota chief designer Mike Gascoigne, they’ve got plenty of experience in backroom staff and a strong driver-line up consisting of Jarno Trulli and Heikki Kovalainen, both who have failed to deliver in their careers, but can steer the team out of trouble.  They may struggle initially, but an updated package for May’s Spanish Grand Prix will probably see the first sign of true competitiveness.

The final team making their bow is Hispania F1.  Taking over the initial Campos entry, the team are bringing in valuable money, through Indian Karun Chandok, the second driver only in India’s history to enter Formula One and Bruno Senna, nephew of the late great Brazilian, Ayrton.  Senna has been successful in most of the junior formulae and could be one of the surprise packages of the season.  However, considering the team’s perilous situation over the winter, plus no winter testing, they are more likely to be the whipping boys of 2010.

The record for new teams entering F1 is not great.  Simtek, Pacific, Forti, and Super Aguri all went bust within four years of existence, even Jaguar failed in their five year stint in Grand Prix racing.  The new teams are definitely ready for the challenge, but I’m predicting tough times ahead on the long road to F1 glory.