Red Bull lose Ricciardo disqualification appeal

Red Bull have lost their appeal against Daniel Ricciardo’s exclusion from last month’s Australian Grand Prix results. Ricciardo was disqualified from second place after his car was found to have exceeded the maximum permitted fuel flow rate.

Following Monday’s sitting in Paris in which it heard evidence from all parties, the International Court of Appeal decided to uphold the decision of the Melbourne stewards. Red Bull have accepted the Court's verdict, full details of which will be published by the FIA later this week.

Red Bull chose to rely on their own fuel calculations at Albert Park, after experiencing what they termed ‘inconsistencies’ with the FIA-approved flow meter, but insisted they could prove they never exceeded the 100kg per hour limit.

The FIA - Formula One racing’s governing body - countered that allowances had been made for any such ‘inconsistencies’ and that using alternative calculation methods without its express permission was in itself also a breach of the regulations.

Accepting the Court’s ruling, Red Bull said: “We are of course disappointed by the outcome and would not have appealed if we didn’t think we had a very strong case.

"We always believed we adhered to the technical regulations throughout the 2014 Australian Grand Prix. We are sorry for Daniel that he will not be awarded the 18 points from the event, which we think he deserved. We will continue to work very hard to amass as many points as possible for the team, Daniel and Sebastian (Vettel) throughout the season. 

“We will now move on from this and concentrate on this weekend’s Chinese Grand Prix.”

Below is the Court’s official statement, as released by the FIA on Tuesday.

Decision of the International Court of Appeal

The Court, after having heard the parties and examined their submissions, decided to uphold the Decision N°56 of the Stewards by which they decided to exclude Infiniti Red Bull Racing’s car N°3 from the results of the 2014 Australian Grand Prix.

The International Court of Appeal was presided over by Mr Harry DUIJM (Netherlands), and included Mr Rui BOTICA SANTOS (Portugal), Mr Philippe NARMINO (Monaco), Mr Antonio RIGOZZI (Switzerland) and Mr Jan STOVICEK (Czech Republic).

(source: f1.com)

Domenicali steps down as Ferrari team principal

Stefano Domenicali has resigned from his position as team principal of the Ferrari Formula One team with immediate effect. 

He will be replaced by Marco Mattiacci, currently president and CEO of Ferrari North America.

Ferrari have made a disappointing start to the 2014 season, with neither Fernando Alonso nor Kimi Raikkonen scoring a podium over the first three races. In a statement, Domenicali said he "takes responsibility" for the "situation Ferrari are experiencing".

Domenicali joined Ferrari in 1991 and after a series of promotions was appointed sporting director in 2003, when Michael Schumacher took the fourth of his five straight world championship crowns with the team. He then took over from Jean Todt as team principal ahead of the 2008 season.

The team secured the constructors’ championship in Domenicali’s first year in charge, but have since failed to clinch the drivers’ crown despite several near misses.

Felipe Massa famously lost the 2008 championship to Lewis Hamilton on the final corner of the final round, while Alonso was beaten by Sebastian Vettel in final-race title showdowns in both 2010 and 2012.

The advent of Formula One’s new 2014 rules had offered Ferrari a chance to return to the very top of the sport, but a lacklustre start to the season was compounded by Alonso and Raikkonen fighting at the lower fringes of the top ten in Bahrain, with Ferrari’s power unit struggling to match that of Mercedes.

Mattiacci joined Ferrari in 1999 and was president and CEO of Ferrari Asia Pacific for four years before his move to the corresponding position for the North American market. 

(source: f1.com)

Pit stops from 1950 compared to 2013

The difference is huge!

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Jump aboard on a Mercedes Formula One car and grab the screen, flip it around and check out Silverstone from every angle!

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http://www.mercedesamgf1.com/en/car/f1-w05-360-video/

Pirelli reveal tyre choices for Spain, Monaco and Canada

Pirelli have confirmed the tyre compounds that will be available for Spain, Monaco and Canada.

Formula One racing’s official tyre suppliers will bring their hardest two compounds for the fifth round of 2014, held on the high-energy Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya on May 9-11.

Pirelli will then provide their red-marked supersoft compound for the first time in Monaco, alongside the yellow-marked soft compound. The same allocation will also be provided two weeks later in Canada.

The Italian tyre company said the allocations reflected the respective track characteristics, with much lighter tyre wear expected in Monaco and Canada - both of which rely heavily on mechanical grip - compared to the abrasive surface in Spain.

At a glance - tyre compounds for 2014:
Australia - medium, soft
Malaysia - hard, medium
Bahrain - medium, soft
China - medium, soft
Spain - medium, hard
Monaco - supersoft, soft
Canada - supersoft, soft

(source: f1.com)

FIA grants Formula One entry to Haas

Formula One racing’s governing body, the FIA, confirmed on Friday that it has accepted an application from Gene Haas to enter a new team in the F1 world championship.

The American NASCAR team owner’s entry was granted after a lengthy evaluation process and the new squad now hopes to be on the grid for the 2015 season. 

“Obviously, we’re extremely pleased to have been granted a Formula One license by the FIA,” commented Haas. “It’s an exciting time for me, Haas Automation and anyone who wanted to see an American team return to Formula One.

“Now, the really hard work begins. It’s a challenge we embrace as we work to put cars on the grid. I want to thank the FIA for this opportunity and the diligence everyone put forth to see our license application come to fruition.”

Stewart-Haas Racing won the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship in 2011, whilst Haas Automation, founded in 1983 and based in California, is the largest CNC machine tool builder in the western world. 

Haas also founded Windshear, a 180-mph rolling-road wind tunnel in North Carolina, that is the first of its kind in North America. It is only the third rolling-road wind tunnel of its scale in existence and the world’s first commercially available, full-scale, rolling-road wind tunnel.

The FIA said that other applications “of a high standard” had been received to join the F1 grid and that it is in the process of conducting further investigations for another potential new team, Forza Rossa.

Following Friday’s meeting of its World Motor Sport Council in Marrakech, the FIA also announced that a study on the noise produced by 2014’s new turbo V6 engines is underway, with preliminary results expected shortly, and that the relevant stakeholders will be meeting next month to clarify how to achieve a substantial cost reduction for F1 teams.

(source: f1.com)

Transforming Formula One: 2014 Rules Explained (Full Version)

If you havent seen this yet.