F1 | Gp Bahrain – Preview

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We can expect a strategic Grand Prix with tires in a leading role. Pirelli will take the Medium, Soft, and Super Soft tires. Teams will have a variegated assortment. Someone has already shown us his possible strategy. In fact, Mercedes will take just a set of Medium tires per driver, and six sets of Soft and Super Soft ones, proving their intention not to use the Medium tires. Instead, at Ferrari, Raikkonen and Vettel will have four sets of Soft (that they will use in qualifying and in the first part of the race) and six sets of Super Soft. Last year, Soft tires had a leading role in this GP, with a two stops strategy. They used Medium tires because so required by the rules.

We are approaching a “real” circuit after the city circuit in Melbourne. Heat will have a key role, even if the race will be at the end of the day, with less torrid temperatures. The brakes will be stressed due to the long straights. It will be interesting to see, beyond the chase of Mercedes, the role of Haas and Toro Rosso that last year achieved the top ten.Today, they can count on a greater reliability and on a Ferrari engine.

Twelve months ago, Sebastian Vettel gave us the first raw, few tenths of seconds from the poleman Hamilton, whereas Raikkonen had his best race, ending in second.

There are a lot of cues to expect an amazing race weekend, starting from Friday with the two rounds of free practice scheduled at 13.00 and 17.00 (Italian time), and Saturday at 14.00 in view of qualifying (17.00). After a lot of  criticisms, in Bahrain we’ll have again qualifying with eliminations every 90 seconds.

Friday 1 April

Free practice 1       13:00-14:30

Free practice 2      17:00-18,30

Saturday  2 April

Free practice        14:00-15:00

Qualifying             17:00

Sunday 3 April

Race 17:00  ̶  57 laps

Save the date: Formula 1 back in Imola

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Easter is coming, and taking the occasion to send their best Wishes, Gian Carlo Minardi and the whole Minardi Team have arranged a unique surprise.

During the “Historic Minardi Day” June 25, 2016 Formula 1 will be back at the Enzo and Dino Ferrari circuit of Imola. Alongside the single-seaters having characterized the Team from Faenza for 21 years in the Formula 1 World Championship, cars from F1, Formula 2, and Formula 3 that wrote the most important pages of the circuit in 35 years, will hurtle again along the famous chicanes at “Acque Minerali”, Rivazza” “Tosa” “Tamburello” “Villeneuve”. A unique event to see again on the track the colors of the Minardi Team and some “unique pieces” of the Circus.

“I am really glad to announce the birth of this first Historic Minardi Day, and to bring back Formula 1 in Imola. We will have the occasion to see again on track some single-seaters coming from F1, F2 and F3 that struggled along the track named after Enzo and Dino Ferrari. These ten years out from the Circus have passed quickly, but the fondness of collectors and enthusiasts and their interest in the Minardi Team are really strong and warm. The Historic Minardi Day will be the occasion to meet up again on the track”, an enthusiastic Gian Carlo Minardi explains.

 

F1 | Gian Carlo Minardi “Gap on track increased”

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Gian Carlo Minardi on the Australian GP that launched the new season of the F1 World Championship: as we expected Mercedes signed the first double win Rosberg-Hamilton ahead the Ferrari of Sebastian Vettel who ended in third with a time little less than 10”. Fourth place for Daniel Ricciardo and Felipe Massa, respectively at 24”and 58”.

F1, Australian GP – SCORECARDS

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We watched a funny grand prix that hasn’t still displayed us the real forces in the field.Rosenberg won ahead of Hamilton, signing the first Mercedes double-win, ahead of Vettel’s Ferrari.

Nico Rosberg – 9 despite a mistake on Saturday and an early weekend dominated by Hamilton, he didn’t succumb but managed to make a better start than that of the English driver. His race was exemplary even if the strategy and the safety car “helped” him.

Sebastian Vettel – 8 he could have been discouraged by his gap in qualifying, but during the race he optimized every resource of his Ferrari with a flash start. The Weather and temperatures dictated the strategy based on Soft and Super Soft tires.

Romain Grosjean – 7,5 bringing a rookie car to the sixth place is a feat. I congratulate the whole team.

Daniel Ricciardo -7 he never gives up. His Red Bull has an excellent frame even if it pays a penalty for its Power-Unit.

Carlos Sainz -7 I watched Toro Rosso carefully. A family fight is beginning. I hope they can handle this in the better way. The Spanish driver made a good race and in Q2 was faster than his team-mate. I don’t get why Verstappen would had to pass ahead.

Max Verstappen -6,5 surely he proved to keep up with the situation, but he looked too nervous and at the limit of fair play with his statements on the Radio.

Felipe Massa – 6,5 in both qualifying and race, he handled the weekend to his advantage bringing to Williams a lot of points and winning the comparison with his young team mate who has to prove to be a first guide.

WSK, Sarno – Basz “After pole position, another weekend ruined by accidents"

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At the International circuit in Sarno, stage of the second event of the WSK Super Master Series, Karol Basz, at the wheel of his Kosmic Racing material, had started with a peremptory pole position in the OK category, going on with an excellent third place in Qualifying Heats.

These results, besides proving the great technical value of the Polish driver that is also a great sprinter, made us hope for an exciting weekend after the regret for the final at “7 laghi” fifteen days ago when he happened to be in the middle of a carom between Sergeant and Van Leeuwen. However, once again all the preparation work and the fine-tuning were frustrated by the impetuosity of young drivers.

In Sarno, Karol had the chance to work as a supervisor and coach for the very young Andrea Antonelli, protagonist of Mini.

“Another unlucky weekend, after an excellent qualifying with a pole position and the third place in Heats. Unfortunately, Pre-final and Final went bad, not as we expected. I can only wait the next event at La Conca”, Karol Basz regretfully comments.

“There is not much to say, unfortunately. On one hand, I am very glad to see how this guy is strong. He is always ahead, ready to fight for an important result. After pole position, he has also gained the third place in Qualifying Heats. Unluckily, the whole work made by Karol and by the Kosmic Racing was frustrated by a too impetuous young driver”, Alberto Tonti comments from the Minardi Management.

Photo: Alexandros Vernardis/The Racebox

F1 | Australian GP: The POINT

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This season started with a bang, literally. The accident of Fernando Alonso with Gutierrez changed the circumstances in the Grand Prix, frustrating the amazing start made by Ferrari, which has optimized the new system. Then, the red flag changed the strategies in the game.

Surely, Mercedes made the best choice with Medium Tires, whereas Ferrari chose the Soft tires because in Barcelona the SF16-H had turned out more comfortable with tires Soft and Supersoft. A guided choice with the aim to cause problems for rivals. A glass half full for Maranello, especially after qualifying.They have a lot of work to do, but now their race solutions are better. Compared with a year ago there is an improvement. We had some mistakes, with an aggressive strategy not fully rewarding on the track. Vettel had a problem at the pit stop, and the withdrawal of Raikkonen from the race.

We experienced a nice Sunday morning with several family struggles. After a weekend lived in the shadow of Hamilton, Rosberg prevailed, and we watched an amazing challenge between Verstappen and Sainz at Toro Rosso. In my opinion, the Dutch driver has been too harsh, also verbally toward both the team and his team-mate. We have to applaud the starting of Haas. A debut with the sixth place equals a victory. Daniel Ricciardo had an excellent strategy and managed to recover up to the fourth place, signing the fastest lap of the race.

F1 will get to a “real” circuit in 15 days, where hot temperatures will rule the roost, and Ferrari could cause trouble for Mercedes. In qualifying, we will make a step back: the format of last year.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                   

Video, F1 | Australian GP: THE POINT on qualifying

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Nothing seems changed. Everything looks like in November 2015, with the two Mercedes ahead of everyone. I get the impression that they haven’t even revealed all their cards. Once again, Hamilton has been great managing to run just 3 seconds below the absolute record on the track. FIA and the Working Group should meditate on this fact in view of new regulations in 2017 that will require more performing single-seaters.

As we anticipated, Scuderia Toro Rosso has made us a surprise. We had two single-seaters in Q3 with Verstappen in fifth and Sainz in seventh, ahead Ricciardo’s Red Bull. They proved to keep up with the situation in spite of an engine 2015. Ferrari should meditate, because it can count on a power unit that is definitely more advanced. In post qualifying, Vettel seemed very regretful and argumentative on performances.

At Mercedes, Aldo Costa has dusted off the hydraulic suspension that he already used along with Gabriele Tredozi on the Minardi in ’93-’94. I am glad they are talking about it. Half standings is for McLaren that managed to exploit at best the features of this track. If the reliability supports them, they will be able to aim to the points, their primary goal in this starting of season.

The show we watched in Q3 is shameful. None fought on the track for pole position in the last minutes: this is unacceptable. When teams realized that they couldn’t get close to their competitors, they saved tires, like Ferrari. I don’t agree with this kind of Format, and it is completely to be revised. In Q1, we watched two incredible mistakes at Sauber and at Red Bull with the elimination of Kvyat. Nothing more exciting.

Tomorrow it will be interesting watching the first race of the season, starting from 6.00 am.

F1 | Single-seaters still at the pits, but the first threats appear. New arrivals on the grid?

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The season of Formula 1 hasn’t started yet, but the first threats of desertion have already appeared. The heart of the matter is always the same: the Power-unit. After last year’s soap opera regarding the engine supply at Red Bull Racing solved through a renewal with Renault signed by Tag-Heuer (after the refusal received by Mercedes and Ferrari and the first breach in the agreement with the French manufacturer), Dietrich Mateschitz has returned to the fray “Without a competitive power-unit we will leave F1”.

In 2017, we expect radical changes regarding every manufacturer who will have to supply from a minimum of two to a maximum of three teams. So far, there are four suppliers in F1, but the situation for someone of them is far from being serene. “At Honda, even if they show calmness, the mood is everything but relaxed. Extraordinary scenarios could manifest. Alonso himself doesn’t seem really relaxed, even if Ron Dennis strives to stress that Fernando has an agreement also for the next two seasons”, Gian Carlo Minardi comments. “Moreover, Audi declared that it won’t enter the Circus until it has stable rules”.They are not the only ones to think that way.

The announcements of number 1 of the Austrian group could open new scenarios. “They could seem presumptuous, but they are the measure of the sponsorship in F1. Nowadays, we have colorful cars, but they have not many adhesives. Red Bull goes on thanks to the coming back of its image. Without some winnings, all this goes missing because the initial investment is too high”.
Paolo Barilla, in the exclusive interview released to Minardi.it, has claimed: “Right now F1 is not a good investment for a company. Formula 1 is an outdated model because it has not been able to renew itself by keeping up with the times“.

“According to my knowledge, Red Bull would have renewed his agreement with Renault for one year “. A year is short time, especially when there are great changes in regulations that require a great development. “We are experiencing a major domain signed by Mercedes, but in Germany there are other manufacturers. Mateschitz, perhaps, with his threats wants to attract the attention of someone like BMW that can’t stand idly by”, the manager from Faenza concludes… Maybe some negotiations have already begun...

Video, F1 | Gian Carlo Minardi presents the new season

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After an almost bottomless silence three months long, Formula 1 is ready to make the news in Melbourne, first stage of 21 world events. We are in suspense to verify Barcelona’s results that have showed us a competitive Ferrari. We have to study the real potential of Mercedes. Behind them, I wish I could watch an amazing row. 

The season starts uphill due to some situation like that at Sauber and Force India heavily penalized by a difficult economic situation. The Swiss group, even if late, managed to pay wages to its employees, while tycoon Vijay Mallya is facing Indian justice. There are still many unknowns on the front of rules because they have still not reached an agreement. These kind of delays prevents other car manufacturers to approach.

Mercedes and Ferrari

In few days, we’ll know if Niki Lauda’s announcements are just pre-tactical or not. The President of Mercedes speaks about a powerful Ferrari, only 2-3 tenths of seconds from the German “battleship”. The SF16-H proved to be very performing on race pace, but i think that Mercedes has hidden itself.

A possible surprise

Behind Mercedes and Ferrari, I expect a fight between Williams and Red Bull for the third place in the throne of the world championship. Behind them, there are several stables that will fight till the end in the first races with the aim to collect as much points as possible and build their final standings. Scuderia Toro Rosso could be a surprise. I liked it a lot during the eight testing days and I trust both the team and its two young drivers, Max Verstappen and Carlos Sainz Jr. Already last year they had proved to have a good car slowed by some problems in their trans-alpine power unit. With the Ferrari unit (2015 edition) they have made a lot of km.

The new qualifying

They are the only change (along with the Violet Ultra Soft tires of Pirelli) after much talk and meetings. As a passionate of this sport, I do not see it as a positive change even if it can be a different way to approach pole position and a way to attract young people. Anyway, drivers’ abilities and the qualities of the cars will not be the only ingredients for excelling. Fortunately, also weather conditions, the possible mistakes in strategy and traffic will enter in play. Surely, we have to watch this novelty from Saturday at 6:00.

 

Minardi.it meets Giovanni Lavaggi

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He was 26 years old when debuted in Motor Sports and 35 years old when  raced his first Formula 1 Grand Prix, then joined the court of Gian Carlo Minardi. In his prize record there is also a victory in the 24 hours of Daytona and the fact of having designed and built a LMP1 as a private.

A week before the new F1 World Championship starts, Minardi.it met Giovanni Lavaggi. “Honestly, I don’t really follow the World Cup. In my opinion, races are not interesting or attractive. Unfortunately, you count overtakings with the dropper. The duels that have made great this sport are extinct and the cars seem too complicated to me”.


Let us step back to 1996, the German GP, when you debuted at the wheel of the M196 pushed by Ford. It has been an amazing experience. In spite of the economic difficulties faced by the team at that time, I find great professionals. The frame of the car was really outstanding, and this is not a joke. The engine was the Achilles heel. In addition to paying penalty on the power front, reliability was really lacking. I broke seven engines during six weekends. The Motor-show in Bologna where we risked winning against Benetton and Ligier proves how much the car frame was good.

What did you lack to stay longer in the World Championship? Certainly an economic support. Since the beginning, I had to make ends meet through my own efforts. In those years, Sicily Region would had the means to support me because I was the only Sicilian driver in Formula 1, unfortunately this cooperation did not materialize.

Once as today, there was a dominating team. Yesterday Williams, today Mercedes. Cycles that repeat forever. With a difference, today smaller teams can count on engines that are equals to the official ones. At that time, we used to pay also 180 HP minus than the official ones, almost 25%. Hence it was impossible to fight on equal terms with the others, in spite of a very good frame as the result in Budapest proves. In a circuit where the engine was less crucial, I managed to end in the top ten.

In 1995, you won the 24 Hours of Daytona. What difference did you see between Europe and USA? I can’t say to have lived the American experience entirely because I was racing with a semi-official Porsche team, whose cooperation with the company in Stuttgart has been continuing since 1989. I also raced three editions of the 24 Hours of Le Mans. I must say that the greater difference is in the drivers. In Europe, their level is higher.

After F1, you took part in slick tires and then designed and built a LMP1.  After the experience in F1 it was difficult to find new incentives to go on, so I decided to create a team, we raced with a Ferrari 333 and got some important results with podia and victories as in the 1000 Km in Monza and Magny-Course. At a certain point, I had with me also Gaston Mazzacane who then, in 2000, came into Minardi. When Ferrari decided not to let me have some spare parts in time, I thought to do by myself. That was the first step that led me to design and make a LMP1 privately. I knew that it would not have been an easy challenge. Gian Carlo himself, with who I have maintained a good friendship, had warned me, but I have always liked missions impossible, also because I would have fought with Audi, Peugeot etc.

Despite the tight financial resources, the car was good, easy to drive and had a great potential. At the end of 2006, we were only 2″ from pole. Simultaneously with the economic crisis, we had to face the changes of regulations requiring major investments. An impossible condition for a private. We went on until 2009. Occasionally I take part in historical races, and I happened to share the cabin with Emanuele Pirro.

Formula 2 comes back, Minardi "We would need more manufacturers"

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After the launch of Formula 4, in which Italy has had a pioneering role in bringing the first Championship into track in 2014, the International Automobile Federation has developed the last tile by replacing the present GP2 with Formula 2, the new anteroom to Formula 1. The connection between the two series will be the FIA European F3 Championship that in the last years has been able to capture the attention revealing important names as Max Verstappen, Stefano Ocon, as our standard-bearers Antonio Giovinazzi, Raffaele Marciello, Antonio Fuoco, and Alessio Lorandi.

The real revolution will take place in 2017 with new single-seaters with which drivers should engage further to enhance their technical qualities. In recent years, the GP2 Series hasn’t been longer able to bring his champions into the Circus, that was the starting goal. “The FIA is trying to take its historical brands back, to create a chain in which F4 is the first step to get to F2 through International F3 which is experiencing an important peak” says Gian Carlo Minardi, interviewed on the subject by Minardi.it.

The revolution could not stop. Given the great success of Formula 4 everywhere in Europe, the idea to create an intermediate step is under consideration. “A National Formula 3 to link F4 and International F3 is under study“.

Gian Carlo Minardi has built much of his know-how as a manufacturer participating in the Formula 2 Championship from 1974 to 1984, at first with the Scuderia Everest and later with his Minardi Team, coming from the Italian Formula and Formula 3. “In those years, Formula 2 was a championship at the highest level with 5-6 chassis manufacturers, 4-5 engines suppliers, and 2-3 tires suppliers. The races were made up of drivers engaged in the Formula 1 World Championship and by young people who would pawed the ground for show off. Those who did well in F2 then arrived in F1 as Martini, Nannini, Alboreto and many other” the manager from Faenza explains, stressing on the lack of manufacturers, except for Dallara. What is now lacking it is a competition between the various manufacturers. Unfortunately, new Formula 2 will only be a chassis, engine and tires single brand. This scenario is the result of past decisions made by the Federation. It has wanted to entrench behind reductions of costs that has not really happened. Doing so we lost all the major manufacturers who made this sport great as Lola, March and Ralt, just to name a few. Today, scene is dominated by Dallara, even when the regulations would allow more competition, like in F3“.

Would not it be better to open the challenge to more manufactures of frames? In 2012, the latest Formula 3 Italia edition saw the challenge on track between two manufacturers, Dallara and My GAL with the French one victorious thanks to JD Motorsport and Riccardo Agostini.

F1 | Since Melbourne, "More silent races"

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 Starting from the Australian GP at Melbourne’s city circuit that will launch the new Formula 1 season next March 18-20, pit-to-driver communications will be strongly restricted.

The International Automobile Federation decided this, with the aim to make the races less predictable, increasing the awareness of drivers. Communications regarding safety will be still  allowed, whereas any contacts about fuel consumption, tires, and engine will be forbidden. “We are in a peculiar moment. One has the feeling that they don’t know what they want and that the will to unanimously face problems lacks. Hence they propose some palliatives to be tested on track”, manager Gian Carlo Minardi says at Minardi.it.

In Melbourne, the new hotseat qualifying format should debut with eliminations during the three sessions every ninety seconds.“Ferrari pointed out that they modified the qualifying format with an inappropriate bureaucratic procedure. Therefore, FIA gets busy to obtain the consent of the Working Group and of the F1 Commission, and the approval of the World Council”.

The World Championship starts in ten days and it has some unknowns. “On one hand, we have a Mercedes to beat with a Ferrari behind, to some teams the situation is not so easy. Sauber has not yet closed its sponsorship agreements and is run out of oxigen. Force India proved it can be again the fourth or fifth world power, unluckily they too have some liquidity problems”, the manager from Faenza concludes.

WSK – A gritty but unlucky weekend for karol Basz

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The international circuit 7 Laghi inaugurated Karol Basz ‘ new season in the SWK Super Master Series that will continue with the events in Sarno (March 20), La Conca (April 3), and Adria (May 22). Strong of his two consecutives podia in the WSL Champions Cup and Winter Cup, the Kosmic Racing World Champion had a unexpected weekend, innocent victim of a collision at the first lap of the Final that put him out of game. A strange situation to the strong Minardi Management driver, who is accustomed to see the checkered flag. We have to come back to last May to register a withdrawal.

The weekend starts uphill since the first steps when Karol signs only the sixteenth position in qualifying due to some misjudgments. Saturday, during Qualifying Heat, he is determined to get back on top of the standings, but the bad weather makes a mess of his plans, forcing organizers to nullify all the sessions (due to snow and bitter cold) and modify the race schedule. The qualifying results remain valid for the Pre-final. With the determination and speed that distinguish him in all the races, Karol becomes protagonist of a great recover, despite a problem at the drain valve that the Polish driver promptly solves on track during the race. At the end of sixteen laps, Basz is in eighth. He is ready to complete the recovery in the final, but his race finishes at the first lap when he finds himself in a carom between Sergeant and Van Leeuwen.

“It was a difficult weekend. The bad weather and the cancellation of Saturday’s free practice penalized us. In Pre-final, I started from sixteenth position and I was able to recover up to the eight position. In Final, they pushed me out and I received serious damages to the kart chassis. In Sarno I want to be ahead again” Karol Basz says.

“It was definitely an unfortunate and negative weekend, especially if we look at the final result. The bad weather and the modification in the schedule deprived us of the chance to recover. Anyway, in Pre-final Karol did well, resolving also a problem in the drain valve and recovering eight positions. The collision in the Final frustrated his effort. In the next days, we’ll come back on track to prepare our visit in Sarno at our best” manager Alberto Tonti observes.

Photo: Alexandros Vernardis/The Racebox