Marmorini: rules will hit reliabilty
Toyota's engine designer Luca Marmorini has warned that F1 teams will find it difficult to maintain the amazing reliability records of 2004, due to the new two-race engine regulation introduced for this season which requires units to run reliably for up to 1,500km
Marmorini, who claims that his new RVX-05 engine will start the new season with at least as much power as the team ended last year with, believes that although it is possible to make engines reliable over a similar distance on a dyno, nothing can prepare the teams for the rigours of a competitive race weekend.
"Making the engine last 1,000km in itself hasn't been a problem, said Marmorini, "but we know statistically when we enter the second race of the distance there will be a higher chance of small failures. I can't believe we will all get through 2005 with the same reliability record that we achieved in 2004."
The Italian engine specialist also reckons that certain events will provide more problems that others during 2005. "Malaysia is going to be mental!" he said. "When we get there it's going to be a whole new world for everybody.
"Every engine person [no matter what team they are from] will be a little bit worried. We know that the engines can last the two-race distance, but the simulations do not test the engine in the same way as racing.
"Testing and dyno-testing is very linear. Whereas over a race weekend you have drivers using engines in a much less predictable fashion. Multiple stop-starts for example and drivers pushing engines to the absolute extreme. There may be unforeseen cooling problems in any race which you cannot simulate."
The tough balancing act facing Schumacher’s Netflix film producers
Michael Schumacher is the latest sporting superstar to get the ‘Netflix treatment’, with a special documentary film airing on the US streaming giant’s platform this month. DAMIEN SMITH has the inside track on how the filmmakers gained access to tell the human story behind one of Formula 1’s most publicity-shy champions - while the man himself, for obvious reasons, is in absentia…
The times that suggest Verstappen should be confident of F1 Russian GP recovery
For the second race in a row, Mercedes has ended the first day of track action on top. It’s in a commanding position at the Russian Grand Prix once again – this time largely thanks to Max Verstappen’s upcoming engine-change grid penalty. But there’s plenty to suggest all hope is not lost for the championship leader at Sochi
The ‘backwards step’ that is the right move for Formula 1
OPINION: With its days apparently numbered, the MGU-H looks set to be dropped from Formula 1’s future engine rules in order to entice new manufacturers in. While it may appear a change of direction, the benefits for teams and fans could make the decision a worthwhile call
The floundering fortunes of F1’s many Lotus reboots
Team Lotus ceased to exist in 1994 - and yet various parties have been trying to resurrect the hallowed name, in increasingly unrecognisable forms, ever since. DAMIEN SMITH brings GP Racing’s history of the legendary team to an end with a look at those who sought to keep the flame alive in Formula 1
Why the 2021 title fight is far from F1's worst, despite its toxic background
OPINION: Formula 1 reconvenes for the Russian Grand Prix two weeks after the latest blow in ‘Max Verstappen vs Lewis Hamilton’. While the Silverstone and Monza incidents were controversial, they thankfully lacked one element that so far separates the 2021 title fight from the worst examples of ugly championship battles
How F1’s other champion to emerge from 1991 thrived at Lotus
Mika Hakkinen became Michael Schumacher’s biggest rival in Formula 1 in the late-90s and early 2000s, having also made his F1 debut in 1991. But as MARK GALLAGHER recalls, while Schumacher wowed the world with a car that was eminently capable, Hakkinen was fighting to make his mark with a famous team in terminal decline
The forgotten F1 comeback that began Jordan’s odyssey
Before Michael Schumacher – or anyone else – had driven the 191 (or 911 as it was initially called), Eddie Jordan turned to a fellow Irishman to test his new Formula 1 car. JOHN WATSON, a grand prix winner for Penske and McLaren, recalls his role in the birth of a legend…
The squandered potential of a 70s F1 underdog
A podium finisher in its first outing but then never again, the BRM P201 was a classic case of an opportunity squandered by disorganisation and complacency, says STUART CODLING
