F1 Voice

Forumula1.net Feature articles

2007-10-03T10:27:00.002Z

2008 SeasonWilliams poised to bounce back in 2008Analysis: The day F1 went tabloidHow much can fans read into Raikkonen's testing pace?". Can Red Bull deliver on their ambitious 2008 target? Honda recovery will take time2007 SeasonDon't despair RonRaikkonen well poised for title battleVictory by 0.070 seconds?Alonso favourite for championship

Thank You

2007-09-15T09:14:00.001Z

Dear readers,I have some good and bad news. The bad news is that F1 voice has come to an end. Due to the demands of work I have been unable to update the blog as much as I would have liked. The good news – depending on whether you like my opinions – is that I will continue to write about Formula One. The webmaster of Forumula1.net has very kindly offered me the chance to write for his site and I

Fautless Alonso Grabs Pole

2007-09-08T21:09:00.001Z

Alonso well and truly silenced the Hamfosi today. Whatever Mclaren’s problems off the track, on it at least, the team performed faultlessly; the silver cars looked absolutely beautiful. Alonso was on blinding form and if his fist punching was anything to go by after grabbing pole, he knew it too. I don’t for a minute pretend to understand the underlying dynamics of an F1 car but you could

Ferrari can still challenge

2007-09-01T14:47:00.001Z

I apologise for the lack of entries recently; I have been pretty snowed under at work. Some thoughts on Turkey. Ferrari quashed Mclaren with a 1-2 finish but I think there will be some dissatisfaction – or at least a sense of missed opportunity – with the result. Why? Because just as in 2006 when a safety car situation allowed Massa to get the jump on Michael Schumacher, so again this year, the

Schumacher to Mclaren - 1996

2007-08-18T14:32:00.000Z

I stumbled across this a while ago but forgot to put it on the site. An interesting chat between Ron Dennis and Michael Schumacher at a Fashion Event in 1995. Dennis tried to schmooz the world champion into a Mclaren seat for 1996. I wonder how Schumacher would have fitted into Dennis' equalities agenda.

Sillyseason: 2008 Line-Up

2007-08-18T11:58:00.000Z

There is a definite lull in the F1 world at the moment as the paddock takes it’s annual respite. If anyone needs a break it’s going to be Ron Dennis. He really did look dreadful at Hungary and it was clear the Hamilton-Alonso row was taking its toll.While Mclaren are recovering from the events of Hungary, or at least preparing themselves for their appeal hearing - now confirmed for the 19th

Pitlanegate

2007-08-16T18:44:00.000Z

ITV-F1's Mark Hughes has written a very interesting and balanced analysis of Hungary's "pitlanegate" (see HERE. Well worth a read. After essentially concluding that it was six of one half a dozen of the other he goes on to argue that the Ron Dennis' overpowering desire for control was partly to blame for the shenanigans. “Of Dennis’ current drivers, neither Alonso nor Hamilton share Raikkonen’s

A two-horse race?

2007-08-11T13:19:00.001Z

There is an awful lot of wishful thinking optimism coming out of the Ferrari camp at the moment following Luca di Montezemolo’s visit to the team. The very public outcome of these “discussions” between the president of Ferrari and the team’s senior management was a series of motivational statements along the lines of “we’ve screwed up but we are still in with a shout”.“We can win all the

The two Sebastiens

2007-08-10T20:24:00.000Z

I notice today that Torro Rosso have signed three-time Champ Car champion Sebastien Bourdais at the expense of poor Tonio Liuzzi. This is a big coup for the sister Red Bull team and makes for quite a strong line-up for next year what with young Vettel also at the helm.“It has been a long time coming, but here we are!” said Bourdais. “I would like to thank everyone at Red Bull for believing in me

Hamilton wins overshadowed race.

2007-08-05T19:38:00.001Z

We had a strange race today that somehow allowed itself to be overshadowed by the off track politics. Not surprising you might say given the scale of the Ferrari-Mclaren row and the shenanigans – from both Mclaren drivers – in yesterday’s qualifying. But in the past the grid lights have always had a way of silencing and making irrelevant such events as the drivers storm down to the first corner

Alonso penalised

2007-08-05T10:02:00.001Z

Alonso has been given a five place grid penalty for impeding Lewis Hamilton during yesterday's qualifying session. Mclaren have also been docked in advance of any constructors points that they might pick up. Full FIA Statement:During the final minutes of Qualifying, the car driven by Fernando Alonso remained in its pit stop position at the completion of his pit stop notwithstanding the fact that

Qualifying Highlights

2007-08-04T21:13:00.001Z

Session Winners:Toyota seem to be on the up. For the third time in a row the team have got both their cars in the top ten with Ralf Schumacher a solid sixth fastest and Jarno Trulli lining up ninth. "It was our best qualifying so far this season so we can only be happy with how it went. For the first time one of our cars went into Q3 with only one flying lap in Q2 so clearly we are in good shape

Alonso takes controversial pole

2007-08-04T14:22:00.000Z

I thought I’d post a quick reflection on the Alonso incident while my blood is up before making a more measured response on the rest of qualifying later on.A career in politics beckons for Alonso after he retires I think. No one spins events quite like him.“The team was holding me back in the pit stops and we tried to have a bit of space on the track, especially to the Ferrari ahead of us," he

Damon Hill to commentate at Hungary

2007-07-30T20:00:00.001Z

Big big huge news: Damon Hill, easily the greatest driver ever to grace a Formula One cockpit in the entire history of motorsport, is to stand in for Martin Brundle at the Hungarian Grand Prix this weekend.This is a huge coup for the Hillites – that ever diminishing breed of F1 loyalists who, if you’re very very lucky, can occasionally be spotted lingering around the grandstands at Silverstone

Anti-doping in F1

2007-07-29T11:33:00.000Z

I have really got into the Tour de France this year thanks to access to digital television. I absolutely love it, especially the team strategy element. There is something quite admirable about the way the ‘domestiques’ sacrifice their entire races for their team leader.The whole doping scandal surrounding this year’s tour – which I think is more to do with tougher regulations than increasing drug

Comment: European Grand Prix

2007-07-25T19:59:00.000Z

TTS looks back at the European Grand Prix and responds to my “Alonso Storms to Chaotic Nurburgring Win” post.After reading Chris Hayes recent blog entry, “Alonso Storms to Chaotic Nurburgring Win”, and after a brilliant European Grand Prix, I felt the need to respond. An opinion is like a head, everybody’s got one. I have to admit that I’m not a fan of Murray Walker. I met him at the Hungarian

The Japanese Connection

2007-07-24T20:57:00.000Z

There is a lot that doesn’t smell right about the Stepneygate-Coughlan affair but the Honda connection is something I find particularly fishy.The mysterious three-way job interview between Nick Fry and the troublesome duo seems to have been put on the backburner amidst the legal proceedings but it remains deeply suspicious in my view.True, Honda are currently headhunting just about anything that

Alonso storms to chaotic Nurburgring win

2007-07-22T18:05:00.000Z

If ever there was an indication of just how dramatic today’s race was going to be it was BBC Five Live’s decision to bring Murray Walker back to the helm. What a race to have the old boy back.I was a bit unsure at first as to whether to put ITV on mute but it was worth it if only for the start. Without any disrespect to James Allen – and I think he has taken a lot of unfair stick from fans,

Hamilton gets the green light

2007-07-21T17:22:00.000Z

Lewis Hamilton has been provisionally cleared to take part in Sunday’s European Grand Prix pending a final medical check before the race. Precautionary scans revealed that he had sustained no injuries from his crash. [UPDATE: Hamilton has been given the final clearance from the FIA]In a statement Mclaren Mercedes said: “Vodafone McLaren Mercedes are very happy to confirm that Lewis Hamilton is

Mika

2007-07-21T15:30:00.000Z

Just saw this on the TV and had to post a copy. Looks like Hamilton's legs had already taken a battering before his crash if that fall in the corridor is anything to go by.

Shaken but (not) stirred?

2007-07-21T14:57:00.001Z

Lewis Hamilton is a lucky boy. It was a pretty big impact and the car even looked to be slightly airborne when it dived into the middle of the tyre wall. He was lucky the bump or whatever it was that caused the elevation didn’t lift him any higher.I have to say I am slightly sceptical about the news being fed to the public. There seems to be a general feeling that he will be ok to start tomorrow’

The Championship: where we're at.

2007-07-15T18:38:00.000Z

It’s Sunday evening and I thought it would be good to spend half an hour or so taking stock of the last fortnight. Stepneygate aside, the last couple of races have been good for the sport and good for the championship fight.Firstly we have the resurgence of Ferrari and Kimi Raikkonen in particular. The Scuderia have bought radical new aerodynamic packages to both the French and British Grand Prix

Espionage

2007-07-14T19:16:00.000Z

It’s amazing how much we rely on the internet for our news and information. I’ve been out of the loop for about a fortnight for various reasons and one of the biggest stories of the F1 season breaks. According to my RSS reader I have some 215 F1 blog entries and 1027 news stories to wade through. A large number of these seem to be dedicated to the Stepney-Coughlan espionage saga. F1 journalists

Silverstone 2007

2007-07-09T21:14:00.000Z

I apologise for the lack of activity on this blog lately. A broken monitor on my laptop (which still isn't sorted out) and a new job among other things have prevented me from updating as much as I would like. In addition, this weekend I made my first visit to Silverstone, a trip that I didn't know that I was making untill a rude awakening at 6.16am on Saturday morning. I hope to do a write up of

Raikkonen leads Ferrari 1-2

2007-07-02T19:00:00.000Z

Kimi Raikkonen led a reinvigorated Ferrari squad to dominant 1-2 at the French Grand Prix this afternoon after coming out on top of a race long battle with team-mate Felipe Massa.It was a disappointing day for Mclaren. Lewis Hamilton was unable to make any inroads on the leaders after switching to a three-stop strategy and Fernando Alonso – who was forced to start tenth after a gearbox problem in