Red Bull, Sauber and Toro Rosso car launches today

F1 Fanatic round-up

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Red Bull RB7, 2011

Three more F1 cars will be launched today by Red Bull, Sauber and Toro Rosso.

Sauber are up first and will reveal the C31 at 10am. World champions Red Bull will show off the RB8 at 1pm and their young driver team Toro Rosso will follow at 4:30pm (all times UK time).

Links

Alonso glad Ferrari went radical (Autosport)

“I like the innovative ideas that the car has. I think all Ferraris are beautiful cars. I don’t remember any Ferrari that is ugly or any Ferrari that you don’t like. The red colour and the passion of each car that Ferrari does make the car beautiful anyway.”

Follow F1 news as it breaks using the F1 Fanatic live Twitter app.

Comment of the day

Steph on the new Lotus E20.

Lotus was prettier last year only it was a Renault as the Lotus last year was ugly but not as bad as the Lotus this year which is Caterham wait, I’ve confused myself-what car is this?
Steph

Site updates

A change of priorities at F1 Fanatic

For the past two years F1 Fanatic has been my sole line of work. It’s been terrifically rewarding to see how much the site has grown and I am very grateful to everyone who has contributed to it in that time.

However declining revenues from the site mean this year I will have to take on other projects and income streams. Naturally, this is going to require some changes in how the site is run and how much time I am able to put into it.

This does not mean the site is going to be closed or parts of it are going to be taken down. But it will means a change in priorities.

I intend to focus more on publishing original content and continuing to develop and expand the wonderful community of motor racing fans we have on the site. However the day-to-day news agenda will account for less of the new material on the site, and nor will I be able to spend money and time covering events in person, at least not those outside the UK.

Polls, quizzes, the daily round-up, statistics, comment of the day, the Predictions Championship, opinions pieces, picture galleries, reviews, caption competitions, race weekend analysis – all these and more F1 Fanatic favourites will continue to appear here.

And of course the site will continue to grow and be developed – indeed, the next version of the site’s layout already in development, which contains some useful new features. I intend to deploy it before the start of the new season, and I hope we can all enjoy it and another exciting season of Formula 1 together.

From the forum

Happy birthday!

Happy birthday to Chris Gordon-Smith, charlieshan and Motor_mad!

If you want a birthday shout-out tell us when yours is by emailling me, using Twitter or adding to the list here.

On this day in F1

The F1 world was stunned one year ago today by the news Robert Kubica had been seriously injured following a crash in a rally in Italy. It remains to be seen if and when he will be able to return to the sport:

Author information

Keith Collantine
Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...

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60 comments on “Red Bull, Sauber and Toro Rosso car launches today”

  1. Of course Sauber launch their car when I’m out and can’t watch! :(

    1. they’re not doing a live stream anyway. are they?

    2. Of course three teams launch their car when I have no internet access for 24-ish hours (I’m coming to you live from the local library!).

      1. Of course 3 teams launch their car when I’m moving across a continent. Luckily I have enough patience to wait until I get to my destination. I’m think these launches are substantially less interesting than the pre-season practices. Which in turn are less interesting than FP1 at the first GP. And so forth. But it’s all we’ve got in these loooong winter months.

        1. Of course three teams launch their cars when I’m dead.

          I got better.

          1. I bet someone launches their car after the heat death of the universe

          2. Of course three teams launch their cars when all of reality has dissolved and time has stopped.

            Dammit

    3. Of course three teams launch their car when I’m home for the whole day!

      1. of course 3 teams launch when i’m……….*wait for it*………….*almost there*…………at home all day long, so I won’t have to miss thing! :P

  2. Sad to hear about your situation with the site, Keith.

    Wish the next updates make it for you, and you can spend as much time as in the past two years.

    I guess we will notice the difference because you put so much effort into F1F every day. But this is still the best site out there for me, so I’ll still stick with you!

    Best wishes in your new (parallel?) projects!

    1. Indeed, sad to hear. Difficult times. The site has been (and I suspect it still will be) great. Good luck to you though :)

      1. This sounds a little bit like a farewell, which it wasn’t meant to!

    2. Dusty in California
      6th February 2012, 4:27

      Is it possible to support the site as a patron? I understand that advertising will likely be the bulk of the income, but I’d still like to contribute.

        1. I respect the fact that Keith is not asking for donations, but this link really should be featured in today’s round-up. Especially if the site has some troubles.

          Also, I think that the site should feature a prominent “donate button” and something like “this website is made possible by your contributions”. Some forms of encouragement would also be nice (like a minor monthly award for a random contributor).

    3. Keith, you’re doing a marvellous job! It’s a shame you can’t continue fulltime, but not entirely unexpected. Because these are hard times indeed.

      A long time ago, I was part of the voluntary crew of a dutch F1 site. Now, I can’t commit myself to regular writing, but maybe others can. Using volunteers will mean that the quality suffers à bit, but it might be the way to offer news and make people return à few times per day to the site. Just an idea.

    4. Agreed. Really a shame to hear this. Especially since there really is no other F1 news site as good as this.

      1. kenneth Ntulume
        6th February 2012, 9:51

        Just want to say Keith that we appreciate your time and effort in ensuring a steady supply of great f1 content, I wish u success in your other projects, that you will embark on as well, We continue to pray for you, and we pledge to support in whichever way we can, the survival and growth of this great site

  3. I hope Sauber can bring a more defined identity to the grid this year, the livery has been pretty uninspiring and the sponsors seem a little bit ‘slapped on’. I also can’t wait to see the RBR as there will be some interesting interpretaions of the rules from Newey!

    Toro Rosso will also be interesting, as they had the double floor last year and have been looking for additional sponsorship to help cut expenditure, and this may influence the livery slightly. I liked the addition of red from Cespa later on in the season, and hope to see more changes away from the RBR livery

    1. Well, there’s a sneak pic that shows the car with more blue parts, I think they’re having a nice livery this year, let’s se how’s the stepped-nose is like.
      However, I’ll always mantain that I loved last year’s Sauber.

  4. It’s very unfortunate that as the site has really cemented itself as just about the best free F1 news site it’s become unsustainable. Good luck in whatever else you do @Keith-collantine!

      1. I wonder if an edit button will be part of the new version? ;)

  5. looking forward to the launches. Really excited about the new season now, I have just re-watched this years Canadian GP which I had recorded and it still makes my hairs stand on end at the end.

    Really sad to hear about the site situation Keith, but the site is so good that I’m sure it will remain my main F1 site of choice.

    1. oh and loved the COTD, knew it would be the second I saw it

  6. Thank you very much for the effort you put in the site Keith!
    It`s clear to all, and that`s why we all love it.
    No many places you can find as many news per day, beside the newspapers!
    Best sports site in the web wether F1 related or not!

    Plenty of success with your other commitment!
    We owe you part of our passion.

    1. Well said. This site has re-kindled my enjoyment of F1.

  7. Fernando Alonso glad Ferrari went for a radical 2012 Formula 1 car

    I’m just glad a team who said they were going to produce a radical/aggressive car finally did produce a radical/aggressive car.

  8. Dunno if I am on my own here but dropping the day to day news to concentrate more on original content seems an excellent idea even if the income stream didn’t require it. Good luck with the new direction Keith.

  9. cant you just put more publicity ? do you earn more for visits or clicks or both ?

  10. :( I admire your work ethic Keith. Keep up the good work as much as you can, and I’ll always be reading. Also got a few mates onto your website, and they’re just as hooked as me.

  11. @keithcollantine – Sorry to hear about site revenue. I never got so hooked onto F1 until I began frequenting this site, and now a day rarely goes by without a visit.

    Just to let you know yours is one of the few sites where I turn all my ad-blockers off. Anytime I have to buy stuff on Amazon – I do it via f1fanatic, and I do not do that for any other purchases I make. Great Site, hope your plans work out.

  12. I intend to focus more on publishing original content and continuing to develop and expand the wonderful community of motor racing fans we have on the site. However the day-to-day news agenda will account for less of the new material on the site

    Fine by me! The former is the reason I visit this site. To be honest I rarely bother reading straight news stories and driver quotes on here, I go to Autosport for that

    1. my thoughts exactly!

    2. yes me too, but this also means that Keith wont be able to give us that special insight that im sure he enjoys alot.

      1. Sounds like a great idea! I’ve long thought you’re far to generous in aiding amoeba brained tabloid journalists generate hits. Can’t wait to see what you come up with.

    3. Agree Ned, I’m just sorry that Keith’s having to look for other projects but I believe the site will stay as good as ever.

  13. It’s unfortunate to hear that you’re in this position Keith, but I firmly believe this won’t affect the site’s popularity in the slightest. The opinion pieces and statistics articles are the most popular features on this site, and you only have to look at the number of comments to see that. Of course, some of the major breaking news articles (Sky’s takeover from the BBC springs to mind) get an amazing response in the comments section, but I assume you’ll continue to publish the major events, but focus less on the smaller articles; such as team reviews after each weekend. Would I be correct?

    1. I understand your problems @keithcollantine . This site is really amazing but you don’t have the resources to concentrate uniquely on this, and I know that although you will have less time to spend on improving the site and its content you will continue with the same passion as before, which is the reason why you created this website. You have given a home to all Formula 1 fans for years and the content on here is amazing both in quality and in quantity.
      I wish you all the best luck in your new activity/job!

  14. Michael Horwitz
    6th February 2012, 3:24

    I’m sure I don’t speak only for myself, but I would gladly Subscribe to your site for $20 per year; the math is easy from there. Thanks for offering the best home for F1 fans like me.

  15. i’m sorry this isn’t quite working out for you. a man’s gotta do what a man’s got to do. this remains the best, and my favorite, motorsports website by a mile.

  16. Really sorry to hear about the site. This is by far my favourite site and I ride sports bikes. Maybe throw up a paypal donate button, you never know.

  17. Sorry to hear that the site alone isn’t keeping you going these days Keith. Regardless of how much time you’re able to put into it, I’m certain it will remain the best F1 fan site on the web. Your tireless efforts don’t go unnoticed.

  18. Sad to hear about the necessity of changing the way the site is run due to financial issues. For sure, concentrating on the original stuff is the best option as it’s the most important part of the site.

    I will continue supporting the site financially as much as I can. I believe that it will only get harder to get independent and competent F1 analysis for free, that’s the reality.

    To cheer everyone up, here’s a small funny conversation between Heikki Kovalainen, Mike Gascoyne and some fan on Twitter:

    H_Kovalainen Has anyone else had troubles with Suunto heartrate monitors? I got my 3rd one in a year and same problem, shows heart logo but no number…

    MikeGascoyne @H_Kovalainen I think it means you are dead….. Joking

    agakadabra @H_Kovalainen why would you need heartrate monitor, Heikki?

    H_Kovalainen “@agakadabra: @H_Kovalainen why would you need heartrate monitor, Heikki?” To monitor my heart rate

    1. If I had Heikki’s girlfriend I’d need a HRM too.

  19. i hope that the 3 new cars that are launched today are not as ugly as the ferrari, please god!

  20. Thanks for all your kinds words so far everyone.

    We have had a donation scheme on the site for some time and that has made a very worthwhile contribution to the site.

    In terms of its prominence on the site, the ‘contribute’ menu option previously said ‘donate’ and changing the labelling has made little difference to the amount of traffic going through onto that page. Indeed, the new ‘contribute’ structure has encouraged several people to support the site in other ways and that has already proved valuable for these two articles published recently.

    F1 General Admission ticket prices rise nearly 10% in two years
    Find the 2012 F1 drivers and teams on Twitter and Facebook

    There is also a button promoting the ‘donate’ option which is visible on virtually every page, so I think at present there is plenty of opportunity for people to notice it.

    1. I have actually only just noticed the green donate button at the right hand side there now you mentioned it Keith. Being completely constructive here I have never noticed that button before and I read this site several times a day!

      Maybe it is because it is next to an advert or several similar looking buttons, I feel it really needs to stand out and be bigger and a colour that brings it out of the page and it needs to explain why the donations are needed?

      Just my two penneth on the issue. I’d hate for you to have to scale back your involvement with this site which you clearly love and have ounces of passion for!

  21. Are (any of) the launches on live stream today? There’s not a word about it on Sauber’s site.

  22. I agree with the earlier comment about making the donate button more prominent and making your readers more aware that the site is supported by their donations. Maybe it should feature somewhere in the banner at the top.

    Your work here is great Keith!

  23. Obviously disappointed to hear this site will be scaling back. I always wondered how anyone could keep this site running to the level it is without the weight of a large organisation behind it?

    Whatever Red Bull arrive with as their nose design today will convince me as to what the right path is… Ferrari ugly stepped nonsense or McLaren smoothness.

  24. Hey Keith, sad to hear you’re losing revenue from the site. Though, tbh, what are you doing to actually make revenue? If you’re depending on ad click thru’s, well people don’t like doing that on a site, the mobile site I assume dosn’t show ads? How are you appealing to the mobile market? You could consider an iPhone/Android app, with in app purchases, what about pushing other peripheral goods? F1F merchandise? I think with a good chat to someone in the field, you could find a few short hops to venture adding some revenue streams.

    All in all, I wish you the best.

  25. kenneth Ntulume
    6th February 2012, 10:01

    Red Bull look, guess work!!!!
    Nose or NO nose….
    me thinks prominent nose
    What do u think?

    1. Thanks for bringing that to my attention.

      Williams previously said the launch would be on the 7th – I’ve just double-checked the email from them.

      I’ve sent them an email to check but I’d be surprised if they have suddenly brought the launch forward 24 hours and made no formal announcement other than a direct reply to someone on Twitter. It seems more likely whoever was manning the Twitter account got it right the first time.

      The launch time is supposed to be 8:30am local, which if it were today has already been and gone and there’s no sign of the car.

  26. i have a sneaky suspicion that Red Bull will go the same route as Ferrari. Those exhausts on the Ferrari look suspiciously like they are pointing at the floor!

  27. Predictably, the redbullracing site is not responding as of 2:05 CET.

  28. If you go to the new Lotus website and then to Kimi Raikonnen and then finally photos you will be in for a shock, I was scrolling through the photos and there were some which actually showed him smiling!! The Iceman smiling, never thought I would see the day, my shock of the day for definite.

  29. I’m starting to share F1 Fanatic articles more and I will continue to do so, hopefully resulting in an upturn in revenue for you Keith. Proud to be a part of this.

    Give it a rest, Alonso, leave the car-love to LdM!

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