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Jerez test day three in pictures | F1 pictures

Keith Collantine — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 16:09:29 +0000

Pictures from the third day of testing at Jerez on Thursday.

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Images © Ferrari spa/Ercole Colombo, Williams/LAT, Getty Images/Red Bull, Force India/Sutton, Sauber F1 Team, Lotus F1 Team, Motioncompany

Jerez test day two in 100 pictures | F1 pictures

Keith Collantine — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 15:26:16 +0000

Pictures from the second day of testing at Jerez in Spain.

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Image © Ferrari spa/Ercole Colombo, Lotus F1 Team, Williams/LAT, McLaren, Getty Images/Red Bull, Force India/Sutton, Sauber F1 Team, Caterham, Motioncompany, Pirelli

Red Bull RB8 seen for first time as Jerez test begins | F1 pictures

Keith Collantine — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 11:49:26 +0000

The Red Bull RB8 has been seen ‘in the flesh’ for the first time on the first day of testing at Jerez.

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Images © Ferrari spa/Ercole Colombo, Renault/LATLotus F1 Team, Williams/LAT, Getty Images/Red Bull, Force India/Sutton, Sauber F1 Team, Caterham, Motioncompany

Williams FW34 launch: First pictures of their 2012 F1 car | 2012 F1 cars

Keith Collantine — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 07:41:49 +0000

The Williams-Renault FW34 has been revealed for the first time at the Jerez circuit in Spain.

After a very poor 2011, in which the team scored just five points and finished ninth in the world championship, Williams are hoping for a changes in fortunes in 2012.

The team have switched engine suppliers from Cosworth to Renault and Bruno Senna joins the team in place of Rubens Barrichello. Pastor Maldonado remains at Williams for a second season.

Team principal Frank Williams said: “One could say that looking at the Williams F1 Team today we are off to a truly fresh start. We have a new car, new driver line up, new engine and new senior personnel.

“We also have a number of new partners who have joined the team in the past few months. I’d like to take this opportunity to welcome them formally and sincerely wish that they have an enjoyable and, most importantly, a valuable experience with us. The team has had a good winter at the factory and we feel ready and strong for the fight.”

Williams FW34 pictures

See more pictures of the Williams FW34 in today’s test.

2012 F1 cars

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Image © Williams/LAT

Toro Rosso STR7 – first pictures and video of Toro Rosso’s 2012 F1 car | 2012 F1 cars

Keith Collantine — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 16:48:59 +0000

Toro Rosso revealed their 2012 F1 car, the STR7, in Jerez today.

Toro Rosso have an all-new driver line-up for 2012, with Daniel Ricciardo and Jean-Eric Vergne taking over from Jaime Alguersuari and Sebastien Buemi.

Toro Rosso STR7 pictures

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Image © Red Bull/Getty images

Red Bull RB8 launch – first pictures and video of Red Bull’s 2012 F1 car | 2012 F1 cars

Keith Collantine — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 13:09:04 +0000

The Red Bull RB8, the car the team aim to defend their championship titles with, was revealed today in Jerez.

Its predecessors the RB7 and RB6 won two constructors’ championships and took Sebastian Vettel to a pair of drivers’ titles. Red Bull will be hoping the RB8 can make it three in a row.

There is little change at the team which has been the dominant force in F1 for the last two-and-a-half years. Vettel and Mark Webber form the driving line-up, and Adrian Newey remains at the head of the technical team.

Red Bull RB8 pictures

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Red Bull RB8 launch video

2012 F1 cars

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Image © Red Bull/Getty images

Sauber C31 launch – first pictures and video of Sauber’s 2012 F1 car | 2012 F1 cars

Keith Collantine — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 10:02:59 +0000

Sauber have unveiled their contender for the 2012 F1 championship.

The C31 was revealed today in Jerez and will be driven by Kamui Kobayashi and Sergio Perez this season.

Sauber finished seventh in the championship last year. However just days before the launch of their new car the team announce technical director James Key, who had been with them since 2010, was leaving the squad.

Sauber C31, 2012

Chief designer Matt Morris says the team’s 2012 F1 car is a combination of new ideas and concepts developed from its predecessor.

Following the launch of the Sauber C31 in Jerez, Morris said: “The C31 is revolutionary where we had fresh ideas, particularly at the rear of the car, and it is an evolution where we knew we could carry over certain approaches. We had to improve on the weaknesses we identified on the C30, but at the same time we wanted to maintain its strengths.

“We had established some good directions to go in towards the end of last year with the C30 which we wanted to continue with, particularly some of our DRS developments, and some of the ways we were opting for with the car’s set up in order to improve our qualifying performance without compromising our race pace.”

Morris added he expects the ban on exhaust-blown diffusers to help the team: “Because of the new definition in the rules we know that the disadvantages we had last year with a lack of the strong exhaust effect will be less of an issue for us now. As a result we evolved further our directions from C30 regarding the overall aero development of the car.”

He added the car “will look quite different in Melbourne” once further upgrades are added to it.

Sauber C31 pictures

Kamui Kobayashi driving the Sauber C31

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Image © Sauber F1 Team

Ferrari F2012 launch – first pictures and video of Ferrari’s 2012 F1 car | 2012 F1 cars

Keith Collantine — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 09:20:16 +0000

Ferrari F2012

Ferrari have revealed their 2012 F1 car in Maranello. The team’s latest challenger has been named the F2012.

After Fernando Alonso narrowly missed out on the championship in 2010, Ferrari endured a poor season by their standards last year. Alonso won just once and Felipe Massa never finished higher than fifth.

The team vowed to take a less conservative approach with their new car.

“The main changes when compared to 2011 concern the height of the front section of the chassis, the position of the exhaust pipes and the mapping for the electronic engine management,” said a statement released by the team.

“Practically every area of the car has been fundamentally revised, starting with the suspension layout: both the front and rear feature pull-rods, aimed at favouring aerodynamic performance and lowering the centre of gravity.

“The front wing is derived from the one introduced on the 150° Italia in the final part of its racing life and has been evolved from there. Further evolutions are planned in this area for the opening races of the season.

Ferrari F2012

“The nose has a step in it that is not aesthetically pleasing: with the requirement from the regulations to lower the front part, this was a way of raising the bottom part of the chassis as much as possible for aerodynamic reasons. The sides have been redesigned, through modifications to the side impact structures, the repositioning of the radiators and revisions to all aerodynamic elements.

“The lower part of the rear of the car is much narrower and more tapered, a feature achieved partly through a new gearbox casing and a relocation of some mechanical components. In recent years, the area of exhausts has been crucial in terms of car performance and much effort was expended on this front, based on changes to the regulations introduced this year. The rear wing is conceptually similar to the one used in 2011, but every detail of it has been revised and it is now more efficient.

“Naturally, it is still fitted with DRS (a drag reduction system,) which is operated hydraulically. The front and rear air intakes for the brakes have been redesigned and work was carried out in collaboration with Brembo to optimise the braking system.”

Heavy snow in Maranello forced the team to cancel their launch ceremony and scrap plans for a shakedown run on their Fiorano circuit.

Here are the first pictures of Ferrari’s new F1 car:

More images will be added here.

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McLaren MP4-27 launch – first pictures of McLaren’s 2012 F1 car | 2012 F1 cars

Keith Collantine — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 11:05:46 +0000

McLaren MP4-27, 2012

McLaren have revealed their latest F1 contender.

The MP4-27 is the car the team hope will allow Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton to compete for the championship in 2012.

Button said: “As you can see, this is a beautiful car. Many you see will not be.”

Team principal Martin Whitmarsh added: “Cars really do look beautiful if they win races. But beauty is more than skin deep and there’s some beautiful engineering under the skin.”

Hamilton described the new car as a “strong base”. The 2008 world champion said: “I’ve been keenly following the development of MP4-27 over the winter and I’ve been really encouraged by the results and the data that the engineers have been showing me.

“I think we already had a very strong base to build upon: Jenson and I won six races with MP4-26 last year and I think we’ve been able to retain all the strengths and the reliability of that design while also incorporating lots of improvements and new ideas into the new car.

“Of course, the biggest changes for 2012 are the modifications to the exhaust regulations – that will reduce the downforce and grip that we had last year, but it just puts the emphasis on the designers to try and claw some of that back in other areas.”

According to McLaren, the new car features narrower rear bodywork, to improve airflow at the rear of the car. The revised cooling system re-directs air to the gearbox oil-cooler. The distinctive U-shaped sidepods of the 2011 car are gone, which McLaren say is a consequence of the FIA’s new exhaust regulations.

McLaren finished second in the championship for the last two years, and so have the numbers three and four on their cars once again. Whitmarsh said: “Having finished second in the constructors’ championship for the past two seasons, we’re determined to mount a sustained, hard challenge for both world titles.

“Our engineering team continues to develop and grow: while the key names who head the department are well known – Tim Goss, Paddy Lowe and Neil Oatley – it’s the strength in depth within the department that continually impresses. I’m extremely proud of our efforts to invest in and recruit young graduate engineers and to develop and school them in the ways of Formula 1.”

Test driver Oliver Turvey will be first to drive the car at Jerez next week.

More information on the 2012 F1 season.

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Kimi Raikkonen continues his F1 familiarisation in Valencia | F1 pictures

Keith Collantine — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 16:14:54 +0000

Kimi Raikkonen continued testing for Lotus in Valencia today.

Here are pictures from his second day at the track:

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