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 mjack…@alumni.caltech.edu.
3. The drivers
==============
Q: Who is driving for whom in 2010?
A:
Vodafone McLaren Mercedes
1. Jenson Button (GB)
2. Lewis Hamilton (GB)
T. Gary Paffett (GB)
Mercedes GP Petronas Formula One Team [1]
3. Michael Schumacher (D)
4. Nico Rosberg (D)
T. Nick Heidfeld (D)
Red Bull Racing
5. Sebastian Vettel (D)
6. Mark Webber (AUS)
T. Daniel Ricciardo (AUS)
T. Brendon Hartley (NZ)
Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro
7. Felipe Massa (BR)
8. Fernando Alonso (E)
T. Giancarlo Fisichella (I)
T. Luca Badoer (I)
T. Marc Gené (E)
AT&T Williams
9. Rubens Barrichello (BR)
10. Nico Hülkenberg (D)
T. Valtteri Bottas (FIN)
Renault F1 Team
11. Robert Kubica(PL)
12. Vitaly Petrov (RUS)
T. Ho-Pin Tung (RC)
T. Jérôme D’Ambrosio (B)
Force India F1 Team
14. Adrian Sutil (D)
15. Vitantonio Liuzzi (I)
T. Paul di Resta (GB)
Scuderia Toro Rosso
16. Sébastien Buemi (CH)
17. Jaime Alguersuari (E)
T. Daniel Ricciardo (AUS)
T. Brendon Hartley (NZ)
Lotus Racing
18. Jarno Trulli (I)
19. Heikki Kovalainen (FIN)
T. Fairuz Fauzy (MAL)
HRT F1 Team [2]
20. Karun Chandhok (IND)
21. Bruno Senna (BR)
T. Sakon Yamamoto (J)
T. Christian Klien (A)
BMW Sauber F1 Team
26. Pedro de la Rosa (E)
27. Kamui Kobayashi (J)
Virgin Racing [3]
24. Timo Glock (D)
25. Lucas di Grassi (BR)
T. Luiz Razia (BR)
T – test / reserve driver
1 – formerly Brawn
2 – chassis by Dallara; originally entered as "Campos Meta 1"
3 – originally entered as "Manor Grand Prix"
US F1, granted an entry for 2010, were unable find funding to
complete their car in time to compete.
Q: Who will be driving for whom in 2011?
A: At the moment it looks like there will be little change at the
top teams, with Button and Hamilton (McLaren), Vettel and
Webber (Red Bull), and Alonso and Massa (Ferrari) all under
contract, and Kubica seemingly happy as Renault becomes
increasingly competitive. But it’s early days yet.
Q: Who won the drivers championship in the year ….?
A:
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 2010?
A: As voted by the WMSC 11 December 2009:
14 Mar Bahrain (Sakhir)
28 Mar Australia (Melbourne)
04 Apr Malaysia (Sepang)
18 Apr China (Shanghai)
09 May Spain (Barcelona)
16 May Monaco (Monte Carlo)
30 May Turkey (Istanbul)
13 Jun Canada (Montréal)
27 Jun Europe (Valencia)
11 Jul Britain (Silverstone)
25 Jul Germany (Hockenheim)
01 Aug Hungary (Budapest)
29 Aug Belgium (Spa Francorchamps)
12 Sep Italy (Monza)
26 Sep Singapore (Marina Bay)
10 Oct Japan (Suzuka)
24 Oct Korea (Yeongam)*
07 Nov Brazil (São Paulo)
14 Nov Abu Dhabi (Yas Marina)
*Subject to the homologation of the circuit.
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, and
2008, then returned for 2009 and 2010.
Q: What time is practice, qualifying, and the race?
A: The official weekend schedule in 2010 (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 many exceptions:
the race in Australia will start at 1700, in Malaysia at 1600, in
Canada at 1200, in Singapore at 2000, in Japan at 1500, and in Abu
Dhabi at 1700. Some Friday and Saturday schedules vary as well.
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: The 2010 calendar includes a South Korean GP at the new track
being built in Yeongam. Montréal will return after a one-year break
(thanks to government financial support) and the British GP remains
at Silverstone after Donington Park defaulted on a 17-year
contract.
Construction proceeds on a new Hermann Tilke-designed circuit near
Delhi for an Indian GP in 2011. After announced negotiations with
officials in New Jersey (across from the Manhattan skyline) and
rural Monticello, New York, Bernie has signed a deal to run a
US Grand Prix in 2012 – 2021 at a new track to be built in Austin,
Texas. He’s also been talking again about GPs on the streets of
Rome and in Russia. Australian officials are considering moving
the Melbourne GP from Albert Park to a purpose-built track in the
suburb of Avalon in 2015.
Plans were announced for a track at Flins-Les Mureaux, northwest of
Paris, in hopes of a return of the French GP in 2012; these have
fallen through, but a track may yet be built at Sarcelles, north of
Paris, by 2013. In recent years there have also been proposals for
races in or near Qatar (where the Losail circuit is being upgraded
to F1 standards), Prague, Panama, Bulgaria, Niagara Falls (Canada),
Kyalami (South Africa), Palm Springs or Las Vegas (USA),
Volokolamskoe (near Moscow) or St. Petersburg in Russia, Algarve and
Portimao (Portugal), Greece, Iran, Libya, Egypt, Toronto (Canada),
Rio de Janeiro (a bid to get the Brazilian race back from São
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: Shanghai is reportedly considering whether to continue after 2010
because of large financial losses. Istanbul looks rocky as well
(poor attendance again); and pressure on other circuits is likely
to increase due to the miserable economic climate and the
year-to-year fee escalation built into FOM contracts.
In general tracks without the robust financial support of a
government entity have faced, and continue to face, a rough time.
Hockenheim’s debt was such that organizers agreed to alternate their
German GP with the Nürburgring; poor attendance in 2008 and the loss
of a local government subsidy left the race in doubt until Bernie
stepped in and agreed to share in the promotion. Montréal was
dropped in 2009 over a financial dispute, but came back with a
5-year deal in 2010 thanks to government subsidies. The French GP
was briefly off the calendar for 2008 because of poor attendance at
Magny-Cours, and was then cancelled in 2009 due to almost certain
financial losses; the GP seems unlikely to return there. Fuji,
which hosted the Japanese GP in 2007 and 2008, had planned to
alternate with Suzuka but abandoned F1 after owner Toyota pulled its
subsidy.
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 2010 the Bahrain International Circuit added a half-mile,
7-corner segment of track between current corners 4 and 5.
Silverstone has announced that the Arena GP layout, which
incorporates a segment between Abbey and Brooklands looping
through the infield to near Becketts, will be used in 2010;
a new pit complex between Club and Abbey is planned for 2011.
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. There’s a push from
the various national TV systems that contract to broadcast F1
to get HD-quality feeds, but Bernie continues to assert that
the demand – by which he means what the holders of national
broadcast rights are willing to pay him – does not justify the
additional expense.
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 will
be carried on Fox, a broadcast network of the same ownership with
near-universal availability. In 2010 these are Canada, Europe
(Valencia), Great Britain, and Germany – the last three (at least)
tape delayed. The usual Speed broadcast team (Bob Varsha, ex-driver
David Hobbs, ex-mechanic and author Steve Matchett, and new 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 2010 the Marlboro/Ferrari partnership marks its 27th season
(sponsor since 1984, title sponsor since 1997). 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 actually 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.
Q. Who are the major sponsors for each F1 team in 2010?
A.
BMW Sauber: nothing major yet
Ferrari: Marlboro (cigarettes) [1]
Force India: Kingfisher (airline and beer)
HRT: Grupo Hispania (commercial real estate)
Lotus: Tune Group (lifestyle holding company)
McLaren: Vodafone (telecommunications)
Mercedes: Petronas (petroleum)
Red Bull: Red Bull (energy drink)
Renault: Total (energy), TW Steel (watches), Lada (autos)
STR: Red Bull (energy drink)
Virgin: Virgin (lifestyle holding company)
Williams: AT&T (telecommunications)
[1] See "longest running team/sponsor connection" above
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.
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 for 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