In the round-up: New Jersey race organisers expect to be on the definitive 2014 schedule despite being left off the draft calendar.
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New Jersey expect 2014 slot (Sporting Life)
“The calendar decision will be made later this month, and although I can’t guarantee anything, we fully expect to be on it.”
F1 Owner Courts Gulf Funds For $2bn IMG Bid (Sky)
“CVC would be a logical buyer of IMG. Since gaining control of F1’s shares in 2005, it has grown the sport’s profits significantly, to the extent that it has been planning a stock market listing in Singapore that could value F1 at $12bn (£7.9bn).”
Sauber backs FIA cost cutting stance (Autosport)
Monisha Kaltenborn: “We just need to have, and we’ve always said it, a federation that is very actively involved in this [Resource Restriction Agreement], because that gives the whole system credibility.”
Getting the ‘exclusive’ (The F1 Broadcasting Blog)
“I know that I have been critical of [Sky] in the past, but unfortunately this past week, it is evident that they have been shouting from the rooftops about their own team bringing viewers ‘exclusives’ that were broken by another paddock journalist beforehand.”
Tweets
New chicane profile #MarinaBayCircuit @F1NightRace #SingaporeGrandPrix #F1 pic.twitter.com/6mxUtIrQlb
— sutton-images.com (@suttonimages) September 17, 2013
The pain trying to stay awake…. It's almost midnight and I have 5hrs to stay busy.
— Paul Di Resta (@PaulDiResta) September 17, 2013
Another confidential Enstone document leaked; we should really learn to close the door to that vault… #F1 pic.twitter.com/fsY8Jtj6V9
— Lotus F1 Team (@Lotus_F1Team) September 17, 2013
An alternative version of Lotus's latest Raikkonen infographic: #F1 pic.twitter.com/kyZ3r2iaaL
— F1 Fanatic (@f1fanatic_co_uk) September 17, 2013
- Find more official F1 accounts to follow in the F1 Twitter Directory
Comment of the day
@Andae23 on Felipe Massa saying he won’t give Fernando Alonso any more help:
Having one of your drivers saying "I will not race for Alonso from now on" on television and then saying "He will definitely [help Alonso]" is not very convincing to say the least?óÔé¼?ª
Good on Massa for stepping up for himself. Ferrari have really treated him as garbage since Hockenheim 2010. Normally I don’t like drivers ignoring their teams’ instructions, but in this case I can’t but think "Go Felipe".
@Andae23
From the forum
Happy birthday!
Happy birthday to Ukk and Texagf1!
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
Happy birthday to Marc Surer who is 62 today. The Swiss drivers’ F1 career was dogged by injuries: he broke his ankles shortly after his debut in 1980 and injured his legs again two years later.
Following a reasonably successful 1985 with Brabham, including three points finishes, he returned to his former team Arrows in 1986. But a serious crash in a rally left him with severe burns and claimed the life of his co-driver.
It also meant the end of Surer’s F1 career. He later oversaw BMW’s motorsport activities and now commentates on F1 for Germany’s Sky Sport channel.
Image © Red Bull/Getty
Zantkiller (@)
18th September 2013, 0:07
Wow that Singapore corner looks a lot faster then the drawing they released.
Should be fun.
Atticus (@atticus-2)
18th September 2013, 0:28
I agree, it looks very cool. A proper high-speed left-hander, only the last corner comes close on this track.
It seems to me that the drivers will apex extremely late in the new configuration, way past the mid-point of the corner, to set-up well for the next chicane – at least for qualifying.
In the race, I expect them to take an earlier apex if followed closely to prevent any lunges on their right before the next turn, which is a right-hander.
All in all, the Singapore Sling could still retain a very distinctive character – very different to the previous one, but still very distinctive.
Hamish
18th September 2013, 1:11
I doubt there will be passing on this corner, nor do I it has been set up to encourage this.
Its more we no longer have the Singapore Sling – the worse corner of them all.
Now that this is gone, what is the worst corner in F1? For me its either the last chicane at Cataunya, or, wait for it, Swimming Pool 2 at Monaco.
Matthijs (@matthijs)
18th September 2013, 8:09
Those two will certainly be nominated!
Jack (@jackisthestig)
18th September 2013, 11:48
Definitely the last chicane at Catalunya. It’s been used for 7 years now and has added absolutely nothing. The worst thing is that old proper corner is still sat there with a couple of cones in front of it, it’s not as if it’s been dug up and we are stuck with the chicane… what a waste!
Deej92 (@deej92)
18th September 2013, 11:57
I honestly don’t know why the original corner isn’t used now. We’ve known the chicane to be rubbish since 2007, so what’s keeping it being used? Has it benefited anyone?
BarnstableD (@barnstabled)
19th September 2013, 16:29
I think I read somewhere a while ago that it was only ever introduced as a safety measure as the two consecutive fast right-handers would put too much stress on the tyres or something dumb like that.
I agree: they should definitely bring it back.
Tomsk (@tomsk)
18th September 2013, 8:34
Even better, they’ve put a barrier on the outside. I was expecting a white line and a load of complaints to the stewards…
Zantkiller (@)
18th September 2013, 11:56
@tomsk
That orange and white barrier is just to allow the general public to use the road while they put up the tech pro behind. There really wouldn’t be an advantage to going out that wide anyway.
There will probably be a barrier put up on the left side entry to the corner like with the old singapore sling to stop people from coming to the inside of the apex.
Deej92 (@deej92)
18th September 2013, 15:57
https://twitter.com/jwrracing/status/380255599771910144/photo/1
It looks from that photo like there will be a barrier to stop people cutting the corner, like last year.
Atticus (@atticus-2)
18th September 2013, 16:08
Oh, it’s not that…
It looks like the kerbs on the inside are going to be placed right in the middle of the newly-paved (darker) area of asphalt… At first, I thought the track will hug the inside of the newly-paved area, but it doesn’t seem like to be the case.
Ahh, it’s just another boring medium-to-low speed left-hander than, nothing exciting about it.
I’m disappointed.
Jarnooo (@jarnooo)
18th September 2013, 12:17
Looks a lot like Monaco’s Tabac corner to me!
William (@william)
18th September 2013, 1:01
There are a lot of positive noises coming through from New Jersey and now I reckon we will have 22 races. Instead of 21. More races the better so that Vettel can’t win
Mike Dee (@mike-dee)
18th September 2013, 1:11
You may also end up with more races being won by Vettel!
William (@william)
18th September 2013, 9:06
True but in a way I hope it’s like last year or even 2010 where it was down to just one race
Sean Doyle (@spdoyle17)
18th September 2013, 2:16
Looking at that Jersey track, we’ll all be wishing for Valencia again.
Part of me just wishes Bernie would go the perfect amount of senile and buy Watkins Glen outright from ISC. F1 doesn’t need more street races. We get enough processional racing as it is.
David-A (@david-a)
18th September 2013, 2:41
@william
Tell me how this comment is supposed to make sense?
TMF (@)
18th September 2013, 7:50
good question :)
William (@william)
18th September 2013, 9:09
@david-a – it really just means more races the less of a chance that Sebastian has a chance of winning on these revived/new tracks. Formula 1 gets boring if he just keeps on winning and no body really takes an interest for the rest of the season and just wants the next year to happen
TMF (@)
18th September 2013, 9:50
@william – then you need to ask the other drivers and teams why they let Vettel win.
foleyger (@foleyger)
18th September 2013, 18:24
+1
Deej92 (@deej92)
18th September 2013, 11:52
Come on now William. New Jersey was a nice thought, and I would’ve liked to have seen what it could’ve offered, but it isn’t going to happen in the foreseeable future. The teams are looking to cut the number of races, not extend it, so I highly doubt it will be on the final calendar.
GT Racer (@gt-racer)
18th September 2013, 15:34
True but consider that as Eddie Jordan has said many times on the BBC for years the teams have been after a race in or close to New York because that would have big commercial benefits for them.
If the teams were given a choice of picking either New Jersey or Austin I’d bet a lot on them picking New Jersey.
Jay Menon (@jaymenon10)
18th September 2013, 1:01
“Good on Massa for stepping up for himself. Ferrari have really treated him as garbage since Hockenheim 2010”
Yeah sure…people who get treated like garbage generally like to fight for more treatment like garbage.
Maybe Felipe lacks pride. If he really is treated like garbage, why stay for so long? ********.
Patrick (@paeschli)
18th September 2013, 10:12
Well, racing for Ferrari and having the possibility to do podium finishes are great, even if you’re n°2.
I really hope he’s in F1 next year, maybe at Sauber so that he can ridicule Sirotkin ^^
Retired (@jeff1s)
18th September 2013, 10:53
@paeschli, You’re unfair with Sirotkin, I bet you never saw him race once!
I did all season in Formula Renault 3.5 and the young russian is upping his game this year, he’s consistent and mature on track with all the pressure that this kid has above his shoulders, he’s been doing good.
Sirotkin lies 8th in the championship and has scored 61 of the 86 points for ISR, and unlike other since he’s been kinked with Sauber, he is better.
I always liked new guns in F1 as I watch/follow loads of feeder series, Sirotkin is far from the best and much further from the worst, but let’s give him a chance.
Patrick (@paeschli)
18th September 2013, 12:09
” I bet you never saw him race once! ”
True but it’s just so bizarre to see a 18 old kid joining F1 but don’t misunderstand me: it’d be great if he proves me wrong :)
Rybo (@rybo)
18th September 2013, 1:03
Great tweet from Lotus!! Everyone knew Kimi did not want to stay at Lotus. Why not have some fun on the way out?
BasCB (@bascb)
18th September 2013, 7:15
Actually I understood that Kimi really had wanted to stay at the team, and only failing financial guarantees made him take up the Ferrari option @rybo
Rybo (@rybo)
18th September 2013, 13:06
Not according to Martin Whitmarsh Whitmarsh.
BasCB (@bascb)
18th September 2013, 13:34
who was possibly working on getting Kimi to join his team!
@HoHum (@hohum)
18th September 2013, 1:13
Reading the roundup everyday I wondered how I had missed the news that Ross Brawn would be going to Williams next year, when I found that Google had also not heard this stunning bit of news I felt better. Thank your deity that Keith has a good sense of what’s real news and what’s total ********, however perhaps he is missing a trick and should have feature called ” the speculation” or alternately “the hogwash” in which every person in F1 is linked to every team and every track is said to be dropped or re-instated, that way whenever something happens we can claim to have read it first on F1fanatic.com
BJ (@beejis60)
18th September 2013, 1:54
I think it was just rumored that Ross was buying some shares of Williams he owns. It may be part of the long-term deal they struck with Williams for the Merc-supply to them.
TMF (@)
18th September 2013, 8:06
The rumor started because Brawn bought the shares Wolff sold due to a conflict of interest. So some assumed that the same conflict of interest would apply to Brawn unless he moves to Williams – which I think isn’t the case.
In big corporations rules for what you can / can’t do and the definition of conflict of interest varies very much depending on your position. Without knowing the details of Wolff’s / Brawn’s contracts and the shareholder deal Wolff had with Williams it’s impossible to say what consequences this deal has.
Chris (@tophercheese21)
18th September 2013, 2:30
Bernie’s handling of future season calendars seems to be very similar to the way a Sizzler restraunt operates.
The restraunt (Calendar) can only accommodate so many people (circuits) at one time (21-22). So, people (countries) will cue at the entrance and wait for a table (calendar slot) to free itself up when someone decides to leave the restraunt.
This way of cueing enables the restraunt to have a steady stream of people and constant business without having to deal with bookings.
New Jersey seems to be the one waiting in cue to get a table. The 2014 calendar is full. Wait your turn.
Mike Gibbins (@torort)
18th September 2013, 3:30
Other people (countries) walk past the restraunt (calendar) and see the cue and think to them selves, “This must be good, everybody wants to eat here!” without actually looking at the menu or reading the prices.
Mike Gibbins (@torort)
18th September 2013, 3:35
*que
I copied your mistake somehow :)
Neiana (@neiana)
18th September 2013, 9:15
*queue, actually. Right?
Mike Dee (@mike-dee)
18th September 2013, 9:51
Yes, and restaurant
GeorgeTuk (@georgetuk)
18th September 2013, 12:46
Ha ha, brilliant!
US_Peter (@us_peter)
18th September 2013, 4:35
Wow! There’s a Sizzler somewhere that’s filled its seats to capacity?! I don’t believe it.
Chris (@tophercheese21)
18th September 2013, 4:37
haha.
I never said Sizzler’s method was effective.
But it does seem similar to the way the calendar is becoming more and more crammed.
OmarR-Pepper (@)
18th September 2013, 3:40
Is Paul Di Resta talking about jet lag? Or how painful is for him to be at Sahara Force India?
Bleu (@bleu)
18th September 2013, 7:37
As Singapore Grand Prix is night race, the drivers will live by a European clock. So if in European race weekend they go to bed at 11pm and wake up at 8 am, that means in Singapore they go to bed at 5 am and wake up at 2 pm.
Prisoner Monkeys (@prisoner-monkeys)
18th September 2013, 9:58
Or how he’s got to go and talk himself up.
BasCB (@bascb)
18th September 2013, 7:22
Hm, not sure I agree with the COTD there.
Yes, its great to see that Massa admits that Hockenheim 2010 was a big downer for him. And after that Ferrari have clearly had him in the 2nd driver role. So then its great if he gets fighting for himself again and show how stupid a 1st driver, 2nd driver policy like that is. I hope he does.
On the other hand, have Ferrari really treated him that bad in the last years? He was in the iconic Ferrari team, he earned a double figure million USD salary and he was in F1. And all the time he was seriously underperforming and most people would have seen him off a long time ago. But hey, maybe Ferrari knew how much they were keeping him back to have Fernando happy, and felt guilty about it? I don’t believe it, but if Massa now goes out with a strong run of races beating Alonso regularly, then I might.
andae23 (@andae23)
18th September 2013, 7:52
@bascb Yes, Ferrari have been very kind to retain Massa for so long and give him an mindbogglingly high salary, but it’s much more than that. As far as I can tell, the atmosphere within Ferrari has not been stimulating for Massa at all. Driving to victory at Hockenheim, being told to let Alonso by and then being forced to deny the team favours someone else over you, that must have been a heartbreaking moment for him.
For the last three years, Massa has been driving in a team where he knows that if he does well, the success will be taken from him immediately. On top of that, there were the endless media questions “Felipe, you suck, when are you leaving?”. I can’t imagine he has enjoyed working at Ferrari with Alonso as his teammate.
BasCB (@bascb)
18th September 2013, 7:56
Me neither.
alexx_88 (@alexx_88)
18th September 2013, 9:19
So his solution to people telling him “Felipe, you suck” was just to suck some more? :-) Sorry, but I think that in every job, Formula 1 being the top of this scale, when you are performing worse than your colleagues, you need to acknowledge the rightful critics and then fight your way to their level or beyond, not wait patiently for something to happen (like what?).
In his way, I think that Felipe realized that he is simply slower than Fernando on pace and consistency, he liked the conditions, why not stay? What I don’t understand is all the people putting all the blame on Ferrari and not realize that if Massa got more points at the beginning of the season that Fernando, than he would have had number 1 status and Alonso would have had to give him a victory when needed or take up a gearbox penalty.
andae23 (@andae23)
18th September 2013, 10:52
@alexx_88 As I recall, he was actually in front of Alonso in Australia, before Ferrari called Alonso in early, so he would jump Massa.
I think most people would agree that Fernando Alonso is one of the best, maybe even thé best driver in F1 today. So to say that Felipe should just go faster and match Alonso every weekend, especially taking into account he was returning from a massive accident when they first raced as teammates, is definitely easier said than done.
By the time Massa was back to his old self, say midway through 2010, Ferrari had decided Alonso was the man they were supporting for the championship. The only thing you could blame Massa for is that he never managed to move on after that, which I imagine to be an enormous mental challenge.
Ferrari never showed any signs of helping Massa with that, for instance by giving him the feeling that he and Alonso were equals (the ‘two roosters in one hen house’ thing from late last year being a prime example – that must have been extremely demotivating), yet they still kept giving him contract extensions.
The only thing I can imagine that would justify that, is that Ferrari were somehow happy with Massa not being able to match Alonso. And you’re expecting Massa to just go back to being his old self?
andae23 (@andae23)
18th September 2013, 10:56
Whoops, I wrote an essay again…
andae23 (@andae23)
18th September 2013, 10:56
Whoops, I wrote an essay again…
alexx_88 (@alexx_88)
18th September 2013, 13:41
@andae23: I think it’s hard to know what exactly happens there, but Ferrari have a number 1 – number 2 driver policy and they’ve always been open about that. So Massa always knew that the number 1 driver will be given priority when time comes. All he had to do was to make sure that he’s in that position.
Yes, his teammate is one of the best in F1, yes Ferrari may seem like they favor only their number 1 driver, but think that there are hundreds of people working in the background, people that are fighting for the WDC and the WCC, not for Massa or Alonso. The sole purpose of the team is to do anything in its power to win one or both of these trophies. They realized that, given RB’s strengths, they must put everyone behind the driver that has the best chance and, at all times, that driver was FA. Not because Massa was sabotaged, but because his results on track put him there. F1 is a very tough business and the drivers are just part of a big team.
verstappen (@verstappen)
18th September 2013, 7:29
Can’t wait till Maldonado joins Lotus:
‘Are you happy with the balance in your car?’
‘Is the money in our account?’
‘No – Sod off’
‘Yes – we’ll have a look’
Tiananmen
18th September 2013, 7:48
The Singapore sling was a rubbish corner. Also who will join lotus
Jay Menon (@jaymenon10)
18th September 2013, 8:54
Hey @keithcollantine…how come you didnt post news of Montoya heading back to Indycar? Or did I miss it?
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
18th September 2013, 8:56
@jaymenon10 It was in the round-up yesterday:
https://www.racefans.net/2013/09/17/f1-fanatic-round-up-1709/
JCost (@jcost)
18th September 2013, 8:54
22 races? That’s a big challenge isn’t it? The year has some 52 weekends and F1 starts in March! Wow, that’s going to be a great year for viewers.
I hope NJ makes the calendar. North/Central America will host 4 GPs out of 22, that’s impressive and the only spot missing is now Africa.
William (@william)
18th September 2013, 9:15
@jcost – indeed. I know right we will be looking forward to a race every 2 weeks. So do I as I just want to see what the track looks like next year hopefully. I hope Africa gets a slot but I am sure I red that Cape Town can’t afford it
JCost (@jcost)
18th September 2013, 16:01
@william It’s a shame. Zuma wouldn’t risk an F1 race with so many demands from the social side, maybe privates would step in.
TMF (@)
18th September 2013, 9:58
Saw the simulated lap – it looks nice, a street circuit, but looks similar to Montreal or Melbourne and doesn’t seem to be another Valencia.
But first they need to complete the construction, find money for the fee and still convince Bernie and Co.
Right now I’ve more confidence that Sotschi will make it on the 2014 calendar.
GT Racer (@gt-racer)
18th September 2013, 15:45
With Putin running the country there is zero chance of the Russian Gp not happening. Only things he cares about is making Russia (And himself) look as powerful as possible.
If the race comes into doubt he’ll just throw more money at whoever he needs to to ensure it takes place.
When WSBR ran at the new Moscow raceway last year it wasn’t fully complete & the facilities suffered from a dozen power failures over the weekend, Yet WSBR were paid to be there & overlook the many problems that place had at the time.
JCost (@jcost)
18th September 2013, 16:18
@gt-racer indeed. Vlad will not risk a fail. Russia will have everything ready just before the due time but they will, both for Olympics and F1.