[FAQ] Frequently asked questions to rec.autos.sport.f1.moderated - Part 2 of 2 The FAQ is divided into several sections. Introduction (Part 1) 1. Rules, regulations and governing body (Part 1) 2. The teams and cars (Part 1) 3. The drivers (Part 2) 4. The races (Part 2) 5. The circuits (Part 2) 6. Television (Part 2) 7. Sponsors (Part 2) 8. Manufacturers (Part 2) 9. Technical stuff (Part 2) 10. Miscellaneous (Part 2) Corrections and additions to mjackson@alumni.caltech.edu. 3. The drivers ============== Q: Who is driving for whom in 2012? A: Red Bull Racing 1. Sebastian Vettel (D) 2. Mark Webber (AUS) T. Sébastien Buemi (CH) Vodafone McLaren Mercedes 3. Jenson Button (GB) 4. Lewis Hamilton (GB) T. Gary Paffett (GB) T. Oliver Turvey (GB) Scuderia Ferrari 5. Fernando Alonso (E) 6. Felipe Massa (BR) Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team 7. Michael Schumacher (D) 8. Nico Rosberg (D) Lotus F1 Team [1] 9. Kimi Räikkönen (FIN) 10. Romain Grosjean (F) T. Jérôme D'Ambrosio (B) Sahara Force India F1 Team 11. Paul di Resta (GB) 12. Nico Hülkenberg (D) T. Jules Bianchi (F) T. Gary Paffett (GB) [AUS] Sauber F1 Team 14. Kamui Kobayashi (J) 15. Sergio Pérez (MEX) T. Esteban Gutičrrez (MEX) Scuderia Toro Rosso 16. Daniel Ricciardo (AUS) 17. Jean-Eric Vergne (F) Williams 18. Pastor Maldonado (YV) 19. Bruno Senna (BR) T. Valtteri Bottas (FIN) Caterham F1 Team [2] 20. Heikki Kovalainen (FIN) 21. Vitaly Petrov (RUS) T. Giedo van der Garde (NL) T. Alexander Rossi (USA) HRT F1 Team 22. Pedro de la Rosa (E) 23. Narain Karthikeyan (IND) T. Dani Clos (E) Marussia F1 Racing [3] 24. Timo Glock (D) 25. Charles Pic (F) T. Maria de Villota (E) T - test / reserve driver 1 - formerly Renault 2 - formerly Lotus 3 - formerly Virgin Q: How much are the drivers paid? A: 2010 figures from /Business Book GP/ (credibility unknown), not including personal sponsorship or advertising deals: Fernando Alonso (Ferrari) 30 million Euros Lewis Hamilton (McLaren) 16 million Euros Felipe Massa (Ferrari) 14 million Euros Jenson Button (McLaren) 9 million Euros Michael Schumacher (Mercedes GP) 8 million Euros Nico Rosberg (Mercedes GP) 8 million Euros Robert Kubica (Renault) 7.5 million Euros Rubens Barrichello (Williams) 5.5 million Euros Mark Webber (Red Bull) 4.2 million Euros Jarno Trulli (Lotus) 3 million Euros Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull) 2 million Euros Heikki Kovalainen (Lotus) 2 million Euros Timo Glock (Virgin) 1 million Euros Nico Hülkenberg (Williams) 700.000 Euros Pedro Martínez (Sauber) 500.000 Euros Kamui Kobayashi (Sauber) 500.000 Euros Vitaly Petrov (Renault) 400.000 Euros Sebastien Buemi (Toro Rosso) 400.000 Euros Jaime Alguersuari (Toro Rosso) 400.000 Euros Aadrian Sutil (Force India) 200.000 Euros Vitantonio Liuzzi (Force India) 200.000 Euros Lucas Di Grassi (Virgin) 200.000 Euros Bruno Senna (Hispania Racing) 150.000 Euros Karun Chandhok (Hispania Racing) 100.000 Euros Q: Who won the drivers championship in the year ....? A: 2011 Sebastian Vettel (D) 2010 Sebastian Vettel (D) 2009 Jenson Button (GB) 2008 Lewis Hamilton (GB) 2007 Kimi Räikkönen (FIN) 2006 Fernando Alonso (E) 2005 Fernando Alonso (E) 2004 Michael Schumacher (D) 2003 Michael Schumacher (D) 2002 Michael Schumacher (D) 2001 Michael Schumacher (D) 2000 Michael Schumacher (D) 1999 Mika Häkkinen (FIN) 1998 Mika Häkkinen (FIN) 1997 Jacques Villeneuve (CDN) 1996 Damon Hill (GB) 1995 Michael Schumacher (D) 1994 Michael Schumacher (D) 1993 Alain Prost (F) 1992 Nigel Mansell (GB) 1991 Ayrton Senna (BR) 1990 Ayrton Senna (BR) 1989 Alain Prost (F) 1988 Ayrton Senna (BR) 1987 Nelson Piquet (BR) 1986 Alain Prost (F) 1985 Alain Prost (F) 1984 Niki Lauda (A) 1983 Nelson Piquet (BR) 1982 Keke Rosberg (FIN) 1981 Nelson Piquet (BR) 1980 Alan Jones (AUS) 1979 Jody Scheckter (ZA) 1978 Mario Andretti (USA) 1977 Niki Lauda (A) 1976 James Hunt (GB) 1975 Niki Lauda (A) 1974 Emerson Fittipaldi (BR) 1973 Jackie Stewart (GB) 1972 Emerson Fittipaldi BR 1971 Jackie Stewart (GB) 1970 Jochen Rindt (A) 1969 Jackie Stewart (GB) 1968 Graham Hill (GB) 1967 Denny Hulme (NZ) 1966 Jack Brabham (AUS) 1965 Jim Clark (GB) 1964 John Surtees (GB) 1963 Jim Clark (GB) 1962 Graham Hill (GB) 1961 Phil Hill (USA) 1960 Jack Brabham (AUS) 1959 Jack Brabham (AUS) 1958 Mike Hawthorn (GB) 1957 Juan Manuel Fangio (RA) 1956 Juan Manuel Fangio (RA) 1955 Juan Manuel Fangio (RA) 1954 Juan Manuel Fangio (RA) 1953 Alberto Ascari (I) 1952 Alberto Ascari (I) 1951 Juan Manuel Fangio (RA) 1950 Giuseppe Farina (I) Q: How many races has y won? A: See the next answer. 4. The races ============ Q: Who won x race? Who raced car y in z? A: Jacques Deschenaux's annual reference is now on the web at http://www.gpguide.com/; it's quite comprehensive for World Championship events. A more complete source is Forix at http://www.forix.com - it has more detail on things like car type designations, and results for championship and non-championship races extending back before 1950. Unfortunately in early 2003 they converted to a subscription service. Q: What is the calendar for 2012? A: 20-race calendar confirmed by the WMSC on 7 December 2011: 18 Mar Australia (Melbourne) 25 Mar Malaysia (Sepang) 15 Apr China (Shanghai) 22 Apr Bahrain (Sakhir) 13 May Spain (Barcelona) 27 May Monaco (Monte Carlo) 10 Jun Canada (Montréal) 24 Jun Europe (Valencia) 07 Jul Britain (Silverstone) 22 Jul Germany (Hockenheim) 29 Jul Hungary (Budapest) 02 Sep Belgium (Spa Francorchamps) 09 Sep Italy (Monza) 23 Sep Singapore (Marina Bay) 07 Oct Japan (Suzuka) 14 Oct Korea (Yeongam) 28 Oct India (Delhi) 04 Nov Abu Dhabi (Yas Marina) 18 Nov United States (Austin TX) 25 Nov Brazil (Săo Paulo) Q: Why does the Monaco Grand Prix move around in the calendar? A: These days Bernie moves many of them around as commercial considerations dictate. Back in the days of calendar stability, however, Monaco was a special case in that the Thursday of the meeting had traditionally been Ascension Day - so the GP moved with Easter. This tradition was violated in 1957, 2002, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2011, and 2012. Q: What time is practice, qualifying, and the race? A: The official weekend schedule in 2012 (all times local) is practice from 1000 to 1130 and 1400 to 1530 on Friday, and 1100 to 1200 on Saturday, with qualifying 1400 to 1500 on Saturday. The nominal race time is 1400 on Sunday, but there are exceptions. Remember that at Monaco the "Friday" program takes place on Thursday. permitting the streets to be reopened on Friday for normal (i.e. expensive) commerce. Q: Where can I get lap charts for races on the web? A: Graphical depictions and tables of running order lap-by-lap are fairly common (e.g. through www.fia.com). All lap times for each driver for any race can be found on Forix (http://www.forix.com), and complete charts through the F1 yearly overview pages at Autosport (e.g. http://www.autosport.com/f1/2006.html) - both however available only to subscribers. The F1 Media Centre on the FIA's website has complete data for the current GP, but as the next event approaches this is moved into their password-protected archive! 5. The circuits =============== Q: What circuits are known or rumoured to be getting races? A: A deal has been announced to run, from 2013, a Grand Prix of America on a street circuit in Weehawken and West New York, across from the Manhattan skyline in New Jersey. A contract has been signed to run a Russian GP at a track to be built near Sochi for 5 years beginning in 2014, although in addition to the claimed synergies with the Winter Olympics there are possible conflicts that could lead to a one-year postponement. The French government is near agreement with Bernie to restore the French GP, which would be run at Paul Ricard every other year (alternating with another GP, probably - but not certainly - Belgium) from 2013. An Argentine group with F1 ambitions has begun building a new track in Zarate, 100km from Buenos Aires; however the country's president has announced that a deal is close to run a GP in Mar del Plata, which currently has no track. A project is afoot to build an F1 track outside Zagreb (Croatia). There is a new proposal to run a South African GP on a street circuit in Cape Town. The A1-Ring, which hosted the Austrian GP from 1996 to 2004, has been rebuilt to F1 specifications as the Red Bull Ring. There's been activity around a possible revamping of the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez near Mexico City for a future Mexican GP. In recent years there have also been proposals for races in or near Staten Island, Palm Springs, or Las Vegas (USA); Rome; Sarcelles or Flins-Les Mureaux (France); Dobroslavtsi (Bulgaria); Mallorca; Kiev (Ukraine); Nha Trang (Vietnam); Thailand; Mauritius; Qatar's Losail circuit; Prague; Panama; Niagara Falls or Toronto (Canada); Algarve and Portimao (Portugal); Greece; Iran; Libya; Egypt; Rio de Janeiro (a bid to get the Brazilian race back from Săo Paulo); and Cancun (where a contract for a 2006 Mexican GP was actually announced before insurmountable environmental and legal problems arose). Clearly a Grand Prix is widely viewed as a very desirable property - at least where there's a government willing to cover the near-certain financial loss. The current sporting regulations permit up to 20 events per season, although the teams are believed to be entitled to more revenue from Bernie if the calendar has more than 17 events. Q: What circuits are known or rumoured to be losing races? A: Istanbul, facing a reported doubling of fees (to $26M), was dropped from the 2012 calendar. The unsettled political situation in Bahrain is a continuing threat (the event was cancelled in 2011 and there was considerable opposition in 2012 before it was held). The first two events in Korea weren't very successful and the organizers are reportedly looking to move away from Yeongam. Economic changes in Spain and political changes in Valencia have caused race organizers to seek renegotiation of their contract (which runs through 2014); Barcelona is making similar noises. A dispute between the organizer and those building the track, plus some financial issues, delayed track construction at Austin and raised questions about the USGP before the first event has been run. Spa is reported to be looking at whether continuing losses on the Belgian GP are sustainable, and Bernie once even said that Monaco was at risk, since the ability and willingness to pay sanctioning fees is paramount. In general tracks without the robust financial support of a government entity have faced, and continue to face, a rough time. Pressure on all circuits is likely to increase due to the miserable economic climate and the year-to-year fee escalation built into FOM contracts. Q: Where can I find maps of the circuits used in F1 racing? A: Most of the big F1 sites have current track maps. Current and historic maps of all circuits used in World Championship events can be found at http://www.gpguide.com/. And http://www.etracksonline.co.uk/ has such maps for many other circuits - although it hasn't been updated since February 2007, and some functions don't seem to be working. In 2012 Bahrain returned to the configuration used through 2009, the additional segment used in 2010 not having been a success for F1. Monaco has reprofiled the track surface at the exit from the tunnel, and further pushed back the wall at the chicane, in order to improve safety in that area. The exit from the Monaco pits has also been straightened somewhat. 6. Television ============= Q: I've heard about digital or pay-per-view F1. How did that work? A: From a commercial point of view, not well enough. Bernie Ecclestone's Formula One Management, which had sent crew and equipment to each GP to provide seven channels of custom programming to pay-per-view subscribers in several European countries, pulled the plug after 2002 due to lower than expected subscriptions. It was then promised that the digital resouces would be focussed "on providing the best live feed to our free-to-air broadcasters." This apparently proved unworkable, and the operation was mostly mothballed - until 2009, when the BBC announced it would include some interactive and web-based features in its coverage. Almost all broadcasts are now produced by FOM, Monaco and Japan being the only exceptions in 2009 and 2010. Broadcasts in HD began in 2011. Q: I'm visiting the United States. Is there TV coverage of F1 events there? A: US broadcast rights continue to be held for 2010-12 by the Speed Channel (http://www.speedtv.com), a cable and satellite service that is widely available - but often not found on, for example, hotel systems. Speed's package includes live coverage of second Friday practice, Saturday qualifying, and all but 4 races. Those four are carried on Fox, a broadcast network of the same ownership with near-universal availability. In 2011 these were again Canada, Europe (Valencia), Great Britain, and Germany - the last three tape delayed. The usual Speed broadcast team (Bob Varsha, ex-driver David Hobbs, ex-mechanic and author Steve Matchett, and grid reporter Will Buxton) work the Fox events as well. 7. Sponsors =========== Q: When did the FIA first allow outside sponsorship for F1 cars? A: For the 1968 season. Q: Which team first had a sponsor, the first race with sponsor, and the sponsor's name? A: At the 1968 Spanish GP Lotus appeared in the red and gold livery of Gold Leaf Cigarettes. If privateers are considered then one must credit John Love and Sam Tingle, whose "Team Gunston" Brabham-Repco and LDS-Repco ran in the colors of that cigarette brand at the season-opening South African event. Q: What team brought Marlboro into F1 and when? A: Marlboro came into F1 as teams sponsor in 1972 with the BRM team. They 'eased' their way in with a low-key personal contract for Jo Siffert in 1970. Seppi carried logos on helmet and overalls for two seasons, as did his STP March in '70 and his Yardley BRM in '71. This may well have been the genesis of Marlboro's 'World Championship Team' concept, the umbrella name for individual driver sponsorships which were additional to team contracts. Q: What is the longest running team/sponsor connection (current and all-time)? A: In 2011 the Marlboro/Ferrari partnership marked its 28th season (sponsor since 1984, title sponsor since 1997). (Philip Morris International continues as a major sponsor in 2012, although "Marlbobo" no longer appears as part of the team name.) This leads the 23 seasons of Marlboro and McLaren (1974-1996) for the all-time title. Due to a 2001 marketing agreement among tobacco companies (and to EU and other anti-tobacco legislation) it was indicated that Marlboro branding would not appear on the cars themselves from 2007. This was not fully implemented until 2008, and their paint scheme remains evocative. The use of a "bar code" graphic where "Marlboro" used to appear was criticized in 2010 by doctors' groups charging subliminal advertisint; while firmly maintaining that no such thing was intended the team quickly dropped the practice the week before the Spanish GP. 8. Manufacturers ================ Q: Had Jaguar ever been in F1 before buying Stewart? A: Clemente Biondetti drove a Jaguar-engined Ferrari 166 in the 1950 Italian GP. He qualified it 32 seconds (27%) behind Fangio, and retired from the race on lap 17 with a blown engine. When Moss, Dean Delamont and John "Autocar, not Cooper" Cooper were casting about for bits for a new F2 car for him (the project that eventually became the first of the two Cooper-Altas) there was apparently an attempt to secure an experimental 2.0l 4-cyl Jaguar engine for that. Paul Emery fitted a 2.4 Jag engine with fuel injection to his Emeryson special, and did one F1 clubbie in '57. (The car had started life with a linered-down Aston Martin engine for 2.0l F2, then acquired a bored-out Alta for 2.5l F1...) Q: Who owns Ilmor? A: DaimlerChrysler completed its buyout of the original Illien-Morgan engine business in 2005; it's now known as Mercedes-Benz High Performance Engines. The company currently known as Ilmor Engineering is a subsequent startup by Mario Illien, involved in the American IRL and NASCAR series (and an apparently abortive foray into MotoGP); it has nothing to do with F1. Q: Who owns Cosworth? A: Kevin Kalkhoven and Gerald Forsythe, former co-owners of the US-based Champ Car series. In 2010 Cosworth returned to F1 after a 3-year absence, powering the three new entrants plus Williams. This dropped in 2011 when Lotus (now Caterham) switched to Renault power, and with Williams following suit in 2012 Cosworth is down to two customers - Marussia and HRT. 9. Technical Stuff ================== Q: What is a desmodromic valve? A: Conventional poppet valves are opened by the direct or indirect mechanical action of a cam and are closed by the action of a spring, the latter being a coil or hairpin of metal or (in recent F1 engines) a chamber of compressed gas. Desmodromic valves are both opened and closed by mechanical action, for example by an additional cam lobe on the camshaft acting through fingers or other structures. Although desmodromic valves were used in Grand Prix racing as early as 1914 and sporadically thereafter, significant success was not achieved before the Mercedes Benz W196 of 1954-55. Q: What is the fuel made of? A: Essentially the fuel must be made from the same components as pump fuels and with limits on the proportions of individual components which are currently more stringent than those applied to pump fuels in Europe. Within those strict parameters, the fuel companies can - and do - tailor the fuels to specific engines, engine maps and circuit configurations. There is constant research and as many as three or four different blends may used throughout a season, in line with engine developments and circuit requirements. A sample of each new batch of fuel is sent to the FIA to be tested to ensure that it complies with the rules and is then 'fingerprinted'. Samples are taken at the circuits to ensure that the fuel being used in the cars matches this 'fingerprint'. 10. Miscellaneous ================= Q: What colour is British Racing Green? A: There isn't just one colour. See David Betts' photos at http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=8hdb40f.p96dman&x=1&y=y0tki9 for many examples (free registration required). Q: What are the national racing colours? A: Country; car colour; number colour: Egypt; light-lilac; red on white Argentina; car:blue/bonnet: black; red on white Belgium; yellow; black Brazil; light-yellow/green; black Bulgaria; car: green/bonnet: white; red on white Chile; car: red/bonnet: blue/rear end: white; half blue and half red on white or entirely red Germany; white (yes, white was indeed Germany's official colour); red Finland; black; blue on white France; blue; white Great Britain; green; white Ireland; green (horizontal orange stripe); white Italy; red; white Luxemburg; grey; white on red Monaco; white (horizontal red stripe); black on white Netherlands; orange; white Poland; white/rear end: white; red Romania; navy blue/rear end: red; yellow Sweden; lower part: blue/upper part: yellow/3 yellow stripes on the bonnet; white Switzerland; car: red/bonnet: white; black Spain; car: red/bonnet: yellow; black on yellow/white on red Thailand; car: light-blue/wheels: light-yellow/horizontal yellow stripe; white on blue Czechoslovakia; car: white/bonnet: blue and white/rear end: red; blue Hungary; car: white/bonnet: red/ rear end: green; black USA; car: white/rear end: blue; blue on white Q: What about drug testing in F1? A: From an FIA statement on 1/10/99 "For several years, the FIA and the FIM have strictly applied the regulations of the International Olympic Committee, with numerous and repeated controls. Both federations are fully prepared to intensify checks should the need arise." Q: What are those strips sticking out of the ground in the pit lane? A: They are there to ground the static electricity that builds up in the car during a race, and try and prevent a pit lane fire. Q: Who is Nazir Hoosein? A: An (in)famous movie theater owner from Mumbai, India, who currently represents China on the WMSC. Hoosein was Chief Steward in Brazil in 1998, when the decision was taken to disallow McLaren's braking system. Hoosein was also Chief Steward in Brazil in 1997, when the drivers had problems with a white line on the pit entry (they were told at first to not cross it, but they managed to convince the stewards that it was more dangerous to avoid it). You might have noticed that the pit entry since 98 was much longer and the reason is probably to avoid that "problem," which seemed to exist only on Hoosein's head. After the administrative mistake at the British GP in 98, he voluntarilty gave up his Steward licence. He has since had it given back. He resurfaced as Chief Steward at the 2002 Malaysian GP, where Juan Pablo Montoya was given a controversial "drive-through" penalty, and was also one of the Stewards at the 2003 German GP, where Ralf Schumacher was penalized for causing a first-corner accident. It must be sheer coincidence that he was also Chief Steward for the USGP of 2005. Hoosein heads the Motorsports Association of India, which displaced, under somewhat murky circumstances, the older Federation of Motor Sport Clubs of India as India's National Sporting Authority (ASN) as recognized by the FIA. Q: What was the music the BBC used for the Grand Prix? A: "The Chain", by Fleetwood Mac, on the album "Rumo(u)rs." They brought it back when they regained the F1 broadcast rights in 2009. Q: Are there any novels based on Formula 1? A: Alistair Maclean's "The Way to Dusty Death" is one of the better known ones. Bob Judd wrote a series of "throbbing groin and motor racing" novels called "Formula 1", "Phoenix", "Indy", "Monza", "Silverstone" and "Juice" in the UK, but they have slightly different names in the US (Silverstone is known as Spin in the states, and "Phoenix" as "Burn" for example). Sally Armstrong wrote a novel called "Racers" which it claims was researched with help of Williams Grand Prix Engineering. It is very much a throbbing groins novel, and does beg the question exactly what was going on at Williams in the early 90s... Another few are "Eye of the Cobra" by Christopher Sherlock and "White Death" by Andrew Neilsen, "The Last Open Road" by B.S. Levy, and "Oversteer" & "Dead Pedal" by Ken Vose, plus "Fine Tune" by Gerald Hammond. Douglas Rutherford wrote a whole series of books in the 1950s, including "Grand Prix Murder", "The Gilt-Edged Cockpit" and "The Chequered Flag". S. Thomas' "Miracle at Monaco" is a vanity press product, but worth mention for the sheer weirdness of the concept: a 50-year-old monk races a one-off Morgan F1 car at Monaco with the help of God. Q: What is a "Jordan Stopwatch" and a "Ferrari Ruler"? A: The first of these terms refers to the old practice of Jordan having stunning testing times, only to falter during the season. It is sometimes used as a ruse to increase sponsorship in a team, as a fast car is easier to sell to corporate bods. A Ferrari Ruler, on the other hand, is the idea that if you measure something in a specific way then it is legal. It comes about from the 1999 Malaysian Grand Prix, where if you measured the bargeboards in a specific way, then they were legal. Q: What is "Remus?" A: Remus is an ERA (English Racing Automobiles) - specifically, ERA R6B. One of the three raced by Prince Bira before the war, the others being Romulus and Hanuman. Raced as a GP car post-war, being driven by John Bolster amongst others. It was then owned and raced by Bill Moss for many years in UK club motorsport and then historic events before passing to Patrick Lindsay and, after his death, his son Ludovic. Probably the most raced car ever. For more information, see http://www.brooklandstrack.co.uk/Carslist/biraera.htm -- Mark Jackson - http://www.alumni.caltech.edu/~mjackson