Who says you need Adrian Newey?

RichardsF1    Formula 1     Aldo Costa, Geoff Willis, Mercedes GP, Ross Brawn, Technical

Mercedes GP has been hard at work shoring up its resources, and as key technical figures either quit or get fired from other outfits, the Brackley-based squad has generally been their next port of call.

read more

Another Friday outing for Karthikeyan

RichardsF1    Formula 1     Hispania Racing, Narain Karthikeyan

The HRT F1 team has confirmed that Narain Karthikeyan will be given another Friday practice outing as he prepares for his race return at October’s inaugural Indian Grand Prix.

read more

V8s: Hamilton pulls the pin

RichardsF1    News, V8    

Hamilton City Council has negotiated an early termination of its agreement to host the annual ITM400 V8 Supercars street race.

Next year’s event – slated for April 2012 – will be the city’s swansong, and it leaves V8 Supercars officials scrambling to find a suitable venue in order for a New Zealand round to remain on the championship calendar after next year.

read more

WTCC: Venue switch for Race of China

RichardsF1    News, WTCC    

The inaugural World Touring Car Championship Race of China will switch venues from the Guandong circuit to Shanghai’s Tianma Circuit, with the race part of a double-bill with the final round of the domestic touring car championship’s final meeting of the season.

The 3.3-kilometre anticlockwise Tianma circuit was opened in 2004 – coincidentally, on the same day as the Shanghai International Circuit hosted its first Formula 1 Grand Prix – and has since hosted several rounds of the Chinese Touring Car and Superbike championships.

The event will be held on November 4-6.

DTM: Valencia Preview

RichardsF1    DTM    

The penultimate round of the 2011 DTM championship season gets underway this weekend, with the series heading to Spanish soil for the first time to race on Valencia’s Ricardo Tormo circuit.

Richard’s F1 previews this weekend’s action and takes a look at some of the talking points leading into this weekend, which could see runaway points’ leader Martin Tomczyk wrap up the title…

read more

Al Unser Jr dumped after drink driving charge

RichardsF1    IndyCar, News    

Two-time Indianapolis 500 winner Al Unser Jr has been suspended from further duties on the IndyCar Series’ Race Control panel after he was arrested and charge with drink-driving offences just outside Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Happy 50th birthday, Eric van de Poele!

RichardsF1    Birthdays, Former F1 Figures, Formula 1     Eric van de Poele

Former Grand Prix driver Eric van de Poele is the third of today’s Grand Prix birthday boys, with the Belgian driver celebrating his 50th birthday today.

Known by the most die-hard fans for his handful of Grand Prix starts between 1991-2 (indeed, every team he raced for ran out of money!), van de Poele remains one of the true untapped potentials to have graced the F1 grid, never given the equipment to properly showcase his skills.

read more

It’s Jochen Mass’ 65th birthday today!

RichardsF1    Birthdays, Former F1 Figures, Formula 1     Jochen Mass

One-time Grand Prix winner Jochen Mass is turning 65 years old today!

Mass’ unusual claim to fame is that he remains the only F1 driver whose sole race win earned half-points, after winning the red-flagged Spanish Grand Prix in 1975 when Rolf Stommelen’s Hill crashed and killed four spectators.

read more

It’s Reine Wisell’s 70th birthday today!

RichardsF1    Birthdays, Former F1 Figures, Formula 1    

Former F1 driver Reine Wisell is 70 years old today.

Wisell’s arrive on the F1 stage was similarly times to that of fellow Swede Ronnie Peterson, and while Ronnie would manage to carve out a lengthy and successful F1 career until his tragic death in 1978, Wisell’s was comparatively briefer and less successful.

More trouble on the horizon in Bahrain?

RichardsF1    Formula 1     Circuit News

Bahrain’s special security court has awarded a death sentence to an anti-government protestor who was found guilty of killing a policeman during the opposition protests that swept the country earlier this year, leading to the cancellation of the Bahrain Grand Prix.

The man was one of many people to have been issued sentences by this kangaroo court, with over a dozen doctors and nurses issued with 15-year sentences simply for treating injured protestors.

read more