WSK Super Master Series | At Sarno Andrea Kimi Antonelli confirmed that he is a protagonist

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Two weeks after his authoritative win on the La Conca track, Andrea Kimi Antonelli confirmed that he is one of the protagonists of the WSK Super Master Series.

On Naples’ International track during the round that had been cancelled due to snow Energy Corse’s flag bearer greeted the weekend with a win in the Pre Final after having won third place in the Qualifying heats which was the fruit of a first and a second place in the Eliminatory Heats, together with a fifth and the ninth position won in the first and last rounds respectively.

In the Final the young driver of Bologna made himself the protagonist on a good struggle with Stenshome and crossed the finishing line in third place, but the race marshals punished the driver’s actions with a 5” penalty which took him hack to ninth place.

“The weekend began with some difficulties, but continued with steady growth with a win in the Pre Final that was not easy and third place in the Final. Unfortunately the struggle with Stenshome was considered irregular and therefore a five second penalty was inflicted. In a week’s time we must have a perfect weekend in order to finish in the best was possible a championship in which Andrea was constantly the lead player,” commented Giovanni Minardi and Alberto Tonti.

In a week’s time Andrea Kimi Antonelli will be in action once more in Naples’ International Circuit for the fourth and final appointment of the WSK Super Master Series where he will be in second place on the ladder with a gap of eight points from top place.

Foto: Energy Corse/KSP

Historic Minardi Day | The third edition enriches its programme dedicated to historic cars

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After the success of last season’s parade of Historic cars through the splendid hills of the Romagna, this year the intensive programme for the third edition of the Historic Minardi Day on the track and at Imola’s Circuit on May 5th and 6th will once more be enriched with a number of events aimed at collectors and enthusiasts of historic cars which will involve , beginning on Saturday May 5th, magnificent medieval hamlets and will conclude with a trip around the track next to the Santerno River on Sunday May 6th with an exclusive parade.

SAVIO CIRCUIT TROPHY – Gara di regolarità (Saturday May 5th and Sunday May 6th, – Imola, Brisighella, Province of Ravenna)
The Historic Minardi Day is enriched even more by the establishment of the 1st Savio Circuit Trophy, a gara di regolarità turistica composed of two trials which will begin at the Imola Circuit and wind its way around the wonderful medieval hamlets of Brisighella and the Province of Ravenna, touching the course that saw Enzo Ferrari win the Circuito del Savio in 1923, before making its way back to the Santerno (Sunday May 6th) for a closing parade with many other historical cars from the “Wheels of History” programme, together with the Association “I Borghi più Belli d’Italia” (Italy’s most beautiful towns) aimed at increasing appreciation of and promoting the great artistic and artistic and cultural heritage of Italy’s smaller centres of excellence.

PARADE OF HISTORIC CARS (Saturday May 5th and Sunday May 6th – Imola, Brisighella, Province of Ravenna)
A suggestive parade, organized together with CRAME, dedicated to vintage cars which will wind their way around the medieval hamlets of the Province of Ravenna and the 1st Savio Circuit Trophy which will be followed by the Gara di regolarità before returning to the Santerno (Sunday May 6th) for the closing parade.

TICKETS
It is possible to purchase tickets for single days or for the whole weekend through TicketOne, or directly at the Circuit. The tickets give access to the paddock and the pits of the Enzo and Dino Ferrari International Circuit and all the events in the programme, as well as to be able to take laps of the track aboard a Supercar driven by professional drivers.

SOCIAL MEDIA & WEBSITE
In order to always keep up to date with the numerous new developments tied to the third edition of the Historic Minardi Day visit our website and the social channels by using the official hashtags #HMD e #HistoricMinardiDay

Here are the addresses:

SITO WEB:
http://minardiday.it/
FACEBOOK:
https://www.facebook.com/minardiday/
TWITTER:
https://twitter.com/minardi09

F1 | Gp Australia, THE POINT by Gian Carlo Minardi “Weekend under the sign of two World Champions”

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The 2018 Formula 1 World Championship began under the sign of two great World Champions, Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton who shared the win and pole position respectively. The result was certainly a tight fit for the Englishman who had to “surrender” to Ferrari which was very good in its strategy and supported by Sebastian who showed that he is a winning driver in times of need.

Valtteri Bottas’ mistake in qualifying had a negative effect on Mercedes’ strategy when found itself outnumbered by the two Ferraris, but it will be a championship which will also be played on mistakes and in which the contribution of all its main players will be essential. Despite the three DRS areas, Melbourne confirmed that it is a difficult track for overtaking and the Finn was unable to regain positions despite the potential of his W09.

The gap between Ferrari and Mercedes seen in qualifying (0.664 of a second) came down during the race, even though there were still four tenths of a second between Hamilton and Vettel’s best times. It was a very technical race run at a very high rhythm (14 cars on full laps with only Hartley’s Toro Rosso lapped) with Red Bull which made the fastest lap with Daniel Ricciardo who finished in fourth place behind Kimi Raikonnen despite the (excessive) penalty given him by the race marshals on the starting grid. It was a false start by Max Verstappen who should examine admit his blame after the errors he made as this is already his third season.

McLaren promoted

Alonso placed his McLaren-Renault in fifth place between Ricciardo and Verstappen’s Red Bulls with Vandoorne who finished the weekend in ninth place. The team from Woking needs these results in order to look for new sponsors which could breathe new life into the team and from which there are few comforting signs. From what we learn it seems that McLaren-Automotive is up for sale. BMW seems to be interested.

Disaster Haas

It was a decidedly bad day for Haas after the positive results in qualifying and the first part of the race. Two important results were wiped out in just as many mistakes. In any case, it is still the car to watch as it was able to take a great leap forward compared to last year.

So ends the first grand prix. In two weeks the second act will take place in Bahrain.

Gian Carlo Minardi

F1 | Gp Melbourne, PRESENTATION by Gian Carlo Minardi

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With the Melbourne Grand Prix the long F1 season will begin and it will be characterized by 21 rounds to which, in addition to the strategies tied to the Pirelli mixes (this year the range of colours has grown with the two new compounds), the SuperHard and the HyperSoft) we must add the unknown factor of the kilometres run with the power-units which will have to support a load of seven GPs per unit.

It will be a weekend full of questions which will be able to give us the first answers on the season. With its two drivers Ferrari set the best times at Barcelona by concentrating mainly on the Soft and SuperSoft mixes, unlike Mercedes which ran nearly all of its laps with the Mediums, except for some long runs with the SuperSoft.

The reigning Champions showed that they are extremely competitive from all points of view and it looks like there will be a three way battle with Ferrari and Red Bull, with the latter team very sly in the tests but may have a few more problems of reliability. A battle of nerves has also begun, as can be understood by Lewis Hamilton’s declaration that he wagers on the RB14 as the main rival as it can rely on the strong motivations of its two drivers with Max Verstappen on his third season, while Daniel Ricciardo is at the end of his contract.

It will be interesting to see the attitude of McLaren and Toro Rosso which this winter “swapped” engines. During the free tests TR certainly amazed us by completing a high number of laps, unlike the team from Woking which had some problems of reliability due to which we see few positive signs as was evident from the chassis that had no brands. All eyes will be pointed on the revelation of the last two seasons, Force India. After confirming its fourth place in the world championship it suffered some problems. Last year Ferrari won by taking advantage of some errors by Mercedes in the first races and then they “returned” the favour in the hottest months. In short, we have all the ingredients for experiencing an intense weekend of racing beginning on Friday.

Gian Carlo Minardi

Historic Minardi Day | The third edition is born between confirmations and new developments

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With the presentation of the 25th edition of the Bandini Trophy, which from this year will be part of the rich programme of the Historic Minardi Day, the countdown has begun for the third edition of the event to be held on May 4th – 6th at Imola’s Enzo and Dino Ferrari International Circuit which since 2016 has given passion back to thousands of fans of Formula 1 and motorsport.

There are many new developments that mark the whole international motoring weekend, but the DNA that for the last two years rewarded the event dreamed up by Gian Carlo Minardi and which won the 2017 Autosprint Magazine’s Golden Helmet award for the Best Motorsport event of the year, remains unchanged. Cars that wrote the most important and exciting pages of motorsport for a span of more than forty years, together with their leading players, are still the focal point for enthusiasts who will have the chance once more to have access to the paddock and the pits of the Imola Circuit to admire them up close and to meet the drivers and technicians.

CARS FROM FORMULA 1, F2, GP2, F300, F3 and GT on the track
The cars created by Gian Carlo Minardi and brought onto the track in the F1 world championship from 1985 to 2005 will “challenge each other” on the track with other racing cars that created the legend of the Circus, and which shaped champions, such as Mercedes, Ferrari, Benetton-Alfa Romeo, Arrows, Tecno, Dallara, Fondmetal, Surtees, Tyrrel P34, Theodore and Fittipaldi Automotive, as well as cars from F2, GP2, F3000 e F3, Formula Italia and Abarth. The intense weekend of activities will take to the track beginning at 9.00am on Saturday May 5th and the engines will run until Sunday May 6th with a parade of the vintage cars which will include those that take part in the Savio Circuit Trophy and the Wheels of History events, as well as the programme of appointments, get-togethers and encounters for enthusiasts of vintage cars, together with the Association “I Borghi più Belli d’Italia” (Italy’s most beautiful towns).

The 2013 WO4 designed by Aldo Costa will take to the track from the Mercedes – AMG Petronas Motorsport pit. This was the car that began the team’s extraordinary winning streak of four Constructors’ titles and just as many Drivers’ titles, three of which were won by Lewis Hamilton (2014-2015-2017) and Nico Rosberg in 2016. At the wheel will be Aldo Costa himself, the engineer from Parma on his debut at the wheel of an F1 car who grew up in the ranks of the Minardi Team together with another engineer, Gabriele Tredozi, who will drive the Minardi PS04B which he designed. Completing the presence of Mercedes–AMG Petronas Motorsport on the Saturday will also be driver Valtteri Bottas for a session signing autographs before going to Faenza’s Piazza del Popolo (at 4.15pm) before driving the W07 to Brisighella (at 5.15pm) to be awarded Lorenzo Bandini Trophy in a ceremony which will begin at 6.00pm at the Spada Amphitheatre.

The Gran Turismo cars and Prototypes with the Alfa Romeo, Lotus, Ferrari, Maserati, Lavaggi and Lucchini badges are not to be missed and they too will put on a show for the whole weekend in a number of sessions. The Scuderia Tazio Nuvolari will honour the talent of Giorgio Lucchini by bringing to the Circuit and onto the track many of the 150 sporting cars created by the constructor from Mantua that won 750 races, 2 world titles, as well as 34 track and 4 uphill titles and there will also be a display. At noon on Saturday Gianni Tomazzoni’s book “Giorgio Lucchini, una vita per le corse” (Giorgio Lucchini, a life for racing) will be launched at the “Ayrton Senna Conference Room” and will be the subject of many workshops during the entire weekend.

Since it is the Historic Minardi Day, an event for seekers of fun and after last year’s success, the “Come onto the track” formula will make its return. Participants will have the chance to take some laps of the circuit aboard a Supercar driven by professional drivers, as well as testing themselves in a virtual challenge on the driving simulators.

In addition, inside the pits there will be a display with a trip around the world of Formula 1 and technology “Past – Present – Future” with displays of racing cars labelled Minardi and Toro Rosso and Simulators which in recent years has changed how the cars are designed and developed following the abolition of track tests.

Golf tournament (Faenza – Friday May 4th)
VIPS and drivers will begin the motoring weekend when they fight out a Louisiana Golf challenge which is open to all participants in the Historic Minardi Day and within a frame of the public (entry is free) beginning at 2.30pm on Friday May 4th at Faenza’s Le Cicogne Golf Club.

LORENZO BANDINI TROPHY (Saturday May 5th – Brisighella)
Finn driver Valtteri Bottas of reigning world champion team “Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport” will be the driver awarded at Brisighella on the afternoon of Saturday May 5th in the 2018 edition of the trophy dedicated to the Ferrari driver who passed away in 1967 which this year reaches its 25th edition and whose ceremony will begin at 6.00pm. A special and exclusive trophy will be awarded to ACI President and FIA Vice President Angelo Sticchi Damiani whose prestigious presence combines perfectly Italian Motorsport with the international image of the weekend’s events which highlight Motor Valley.
Among the winners are Aldo Costa the engineer who designed the F1 World Champion car and Riccardo Mosconi, track engineer for champion driver Lewis Hamilton’s who complete Mercedes–AMG Petronas Motorsport’s formidable presence which, for the joy of the many enthusiasts, will make available two F1 racing cars, the 2013 W04 and the 2016 W07.

TICKETS
It is possible to purchase tickets for single days or for the whole weekend through TicketOne, or directly at the Circuit. The tickets give access to the paddock and the pits of the Enzo and Dino Ferrari International Circuit and all the events in the programme, as well as to be able to take laps of the track aboard a Supercar driven by professional drivers.

SOCIAL MEDIA & WEBSITE
In order to always keep up to date with the numerous new developments tied to the third edition of the Historic Minardi Day visit our website and the social channels by using the official hashtags #HMD e #HistoricMinardiDay

Here are the addresses:

WEBSITE:
http://minardiday.it/

FACEBOOK:
https://www.facebook.com/minardiday/

TWITTER:
https://twitter.com/minardi09

WSK Super Master Series | Andrea Kimi Antonelli wins at La Conca as well

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Andrea Kimi Antonelli’s win today at La Conca’s International Circuit in the latest round of the WSK Super Master Series was never in doubt despite a beginning marked by a problem with the kart.

The weekend of the young driver from Bologna tagged Mercedes – AMG began by gaining pole position in the Qualifying Heats as the result of two wins, a second and third in the Elimination Heats which then continued with strong wins in the Pre Final (Group A) and the Final which he finished with a leads of more than 5 tenths of a second over Stenshome.

For the driver followed by Minardi Management it was the third success in the season after winning the WSK Champions Cup and the Winter Cup.

“Despite a problem at the beginning of the weekend which was perfectly solved by the efforts of the team and the motor mechanic, Andrea scored another success by driving really well all the heats. We’re happy with the weekend here at La Conca because he carried on working with the team. Our minds are now on finishing the championship well with the double appointment at Samo,” commented managers Giovanni Minardi and Alberto Tonti.

After having been forced to cancel the second round on the track due to bad weather on the Samo track, the organizer of the championship announced that the stage will be run on the weekend of March 29th – April 1st on the Naples International Track.
Foto: KSP Reportages/Energy Corse

(Foto da sinistra: Alberto Tonti, Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Giovanni Minardi)

The Bandini Trophy and the Minardi Day together on the weekend of May 5th and 6th.

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The Bandini Trophy and the Minardi Day come together for a weekend of international Motorsport which will see the two prestigious events on Saturday 5th and Sunday 6th May unite in a spectacular fashion, thanks to the collaboration of the heads of the two organizations: Francesco Asirelli – President of the Bandini Committee, now in the 25th edition of the annual awards in memory of the famous and much missed Ferrari driver who tragically lost his life in 1967 and Giancarlo Minardi who, together with Formula Imola, is preparing the 3rd year of Minardi Day.

The winner of the 2018 Bandini Trophy is the Finnish driver, Valtteri Bottas of the World Champion F1 Team “Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport who will collect his award on Saturday 5th May in Brisighella. Alongside Valtteri Bottas the Committee, which is made up of some of the most illustrious figures of the world of Motor Sport and Journalism, has assigned a special exclusive award to the President of ACI and Vice-President of the FIA, Angelo Sticchi Damiani, whose prestigious presence perfectly combines Italian Motor Sport with the International image of the weekend’s events with great emphasis on Motor Valley.

As well as the winners Aldo Costa – F1 World Champion designer and Riccardo Mosconi – Lewis Hamilton’s race engineer, will complete the formidable presence of Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport, which, for the delight of fans. will bring two F1 cars; the 2013 W04 and the 2016 W07.

On Saturday afternoon the W07, the world champion car of 2016, will be driven by Valtteri Bottas from the main square in Faenza to Brisighella, where he will receive the prestigious Award, one of the most coveted on the circuit.
Mercedes, the protagonist of the 2015 edition, with Team Principal Toto Wolff , the much celebrated and honoured winner in 2015, will be in the spotlight for the entire weekend first in the charming Medieval Romagnolo village of Brisighella and then at the Minardi Day at Imola with the 2013 W04 that will be driven by its designer Aldo Costa (formerly of the Mindardi Team). Valtteri Bottas will also stop at the pits to sign autorgraphs prior to going to Faenza.

It promises to be a breathtaking and intense weekend which will bring together the distinguished 25th edition of the Bandini Awards, and the 3rd annual Minardi Day – major events for true Motorsport fans.

The Bandini Trophy awards ceremony will come alive at 3,00pm on Saturday 5th May with an impressive parade of cars and breathtaking exhibits before the arrival of the F1 W07 car in Brisighella and will conclude at 6.00pm with the Closing Ceremony in the spectacular Amphitheatre of the spectacular medieval hamlet.

F1 | Minardi “Ferrari and Red Bull on the prowl for Mercedes”

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Ferrari said goodbye to the tests in Spain with both its drivers at the head of the ladder and strengthened by the record time set by Sebastian Vettel with the HyperSofts (1:17.182) followed by Kimi Raikonnen 39 thousands of a second behind (1:17.221) and 929 laps on the board and 4,324 kilometres run during the eight days of tests.

McLaren-Renault closed in third place with Fernando Alonso who on the last day struck a blow by breaking the barrier of 1:18 with Pirelli’s softest mix (1:17.782) in front of Daniel Ricciardo (1:18.047) who with the Red Bull covered 1,694km which then become a total of 3,644 with the work carried out by Max Verstappen.

We need to go down to only eighth place to find the first Mercedes WO9. Lewis Hamilton did not go under 1:18.400 with the UltraSofts covering a total of 456 laps and 2,123 kilometres (4,842 in total with Nottas).

“This is a ladder that does not reflect the forces at play, even if the good reliability reached by nearly all the teams and the coming together of the times emerge. Despite Ferrari’s times, the declarations made by Mario Isola regarding the gap between the various mixes together with the work programme carried out by Hamilton and Bottas (who ran mainly with the Medium tyres) show that Mercedes once more has an extra gear compared to the others. We also need to keep our eye on Red Bull which, in my opinion, did not show its full potential. There will be another head to head with Ferrari,” commented Gian Carlo Minardi.

TORO ROSSO the surprise. MCLAREN and SAUBER the disappointments

“In less than two weeks in Melbourne the teams will be called to show their cards and we will have a more detailed picture of the situation,” continued the manager from Faenza who was surprised by Toro Rosso and the many kilometres completed by its two drivers, but disappointed by McLaren and Sauber, “Despite the temperatures that were certainly not high McLaren had a number of heating problems even having to change to power units. After the changes at Sauber with the addition of new technicians and the arrival of the 2018 Ferrari PU I expected a smaller gap”

THE POWER UNITS: STRATEGY WITHIN STRATEGY

Before finishing his intervention the manager from Faenza pointed out another aspect that will play an important part in the season. “In addition to the strategies tied to the mixes and fuel consumption it will be interesting watching the movements of the motors. Some teams could use one or more units than the three allowed by the regulations for each driver – certainly running into penalties – but being able to exploit better the motor means having more potential on hand,” concluded Minardi.

F1 | Gian Carlo Minardi “Mercedes has no rivals. At Barcelona it can lap in 1.16”

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The final four days of tests at Barcelona have been filed away. Luckily, unlike the previous week, the weather was decidedly milder and this allowed the drivers to cover many more kilometres. The most important fact that hit the eye was the reliability achieved by the teams, with the exception of McLaren, and by the compactness of the group. It looks like being a season with some changes to the grid.

The most important surprise came from Toro Rosso which, leaving aside the timing, covered many kilometres showing that the combination of chassis-Honda motor works. Positive results also came from Renault. Hulkenberg and Sainz put together some interesting performances in preparation for a good leap up the ladder.

The pace of Hamilton and Bottas at the wheel of the Mercedes was impressive as they worked mainly on the Medium mixes. In only one day they ran more than 200 laps and covered the distance for nearly a whole season in the two sessions (4,841km).

According to the indications given by Pirelli we can have an indication of the potential of the cars, even though we still have the unknown factor of the fuel load. The supplier declared that there is a gap between the HyperSoft and the Medium mixes of 2.5” (Medium-Soft 0.8” –> Soft-SuperSoft 0.42” –> SuperSoft-UltraSoft 0.6” –> UltraSoft-HyperSoft 0.7”). On the basis of the 1’17”1 made by Vettel and Raikonnen’s 1’17”2 with the pink mixes. In this play of numbers we must also put Red Bull into strong consideration.

In two weeks time at Melbourne the teams will be forced to uncover their cards and the mosaic of the real differences will be revealed. It will be an intense and very tactical season not only on the tyres, but also on the management of the power units. Some could sacrifice places on the grid by paying the penalties for the use of a higher number of power-units compared to the three units required by the regulations.

We must make separate considerations for McLaren which, despite the mild temperatures, suffered some heating problems which led to the replacement of two power units. The time of 1’17”7 made by Fernando Alonso is a good time, but almost certainly came with a light fuel load and a new motor. There are few happy signals for Williams as well where, for the moment, the two young drivers are not giving the answers that the team expects with Sirotkin putting Stroll under pressure, even if Robert Kubica is showing the best performances of the three. Compared to the last two seasons Force India seems to lag behind, while Sauber has not shown the signs of revival that would have been expected after a disastrous season in 2017.

Gian Carlo Minardi

Barcelona, Test Session 1 | Gian Carlo Minardi “Is Mercedes already daunting?”

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If we can judge a good day by the morning Mercedes can sleep peacefully. In the course of these first four days, which were then reduced to three because of the snowfall on Wednesday, Bottas and Hamilton drove constantly with the Pirelli Medium Mixes (unlike Vettel and Raikonnen who worked with the Soft) and they finished their work with the best time set by the World Champion who clocked an important 1.19.333, despite a heavy load of fuel.

The first session was assuredly conditioned by the bad weather and the very low temperatures in which we saw the gap between the first and the last come down and with good reliability by all. Under this point of view Toro Rosso was surely the team that was most watched and it came out of the tests with full marks. Only in today’s session they managed to complete 147 laps.

The pair of Alonso-Vandoome also managed a lot of laps, even if the best time of 1.19.854 was made with the HyperSoft mix. There was one worrying sign when, despite the cold, McLaren had to open some of the slits of the chassis to let the Renault engine breath.

Ferrari also covered a lot of laps and it ended the programme with 120 laps on the plus side for Sebastian Vettel to which must be added Tuesday’s 98 laps (best time of 1.19.673 with the Soft) and the other 80 covered by Kimi Raikonnen on the first day.

After Red Bull’s positive start (Ricciardo set the best time on the first day and covered 105 laps) they lost the way and closed the session with only 35 laps completed by Max Verstappen who was the author of a track exit which interrupted the session.

We got our first taste, but it is still too early to judge. During the days of the break the teams will be able to analyse the data they collected before going back on track for the second session which will give us some better hints for Melbourne (with the hope for hotter weather). It will be interesting to follow Robert Kubica’s work for Williams. The Pole constantly showed better times than the two official drivers, while Leclerc and Sauber started with the right foot.

Gian Carlo Minardi

Tests Barcelona, tomorrow the spotlight will be on the 2018 season

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The tradition has been confirmed. Even this year the Montmelò track circuit will see the debut of the new racing cars that were presented over the last few days (with the exception of Force India). It will begin on Monday 26th with the first of two rounds of collective tests each of four days (from the 26th to March 1st and March 6th to 9th) before leaving for the first grand prix of the season in Australia on the Melbourne street circuit.

The teams and drivers will be called upon to carry out a lot of work whose main aim will be the collection of as much information as possible whether aerodynamic (comparing them with those of the wind tunnel and the simulator), as well as the behaviour of the new Pirelli mixes and testing the reliability of the power-units that have to resist the extra kilometres, equal to seven grands prix per unit (to avoid incurring penalties).

According to the weather forecasts the four days will be conditioned by rain and cold with temperatures between 2 and 6°C. If for the moment the fear of snow seems to have been averted, the work of the Formula 1 teams at Montmelò will be accompanied by a wet track on Tuesday and Wednesday while the forecast is for a sunny day for the final session with temperatures around 10°C.

In the Ferrari camp, Kimi Raikonnen will break the ice for the SF71-H leaving the wheel for Sebastian Vettel on Tuesday and Wednesday with the Finn going back on track on Wednesday. Whereas in Red Bull it will be once more Daniel Ricciardo’s turn to get into the car after the unlucky day of filming at Silverstone which ended with the car going off track. The Australian will be on the track again on Wednesday 28th while Max Verstappen will continue the work on Tuesday and Thursday.

Fernando Alonso will begin McLaren’s programme by taking out the MCL33 with the Renault engine for the first day of tests in Barcelona while Stoffel Vandoome will have to wait the following day to begin getting the measure of the new orange and blue car.

As we wait for Mercedes to officialise the work programme for its drivers, Williams has opted for a real relay with Lance Stroll and Sergey Sirotkin (in his debut in F1) swapping places at the wheel of the FW41 by taking to the track for half a day each. In this rotation there will also be space for Robert Kubica who this year will be the test driver. As well as having given the car its first shakedown at Aragon, the Polish driver will take to the track at Barcelona on the afternoons of Tuesday 26th and Wednesday 27th.

Everyone will be looking at Force India, the true revelation of the last two seasons with successive fourth places. Despite not having yet fixed the date for its presentation, it has officialised the programme for its drivers at Barcelona. In the first four days of tests all the drivers under contract will be involved and the debut will be entrusted to Nikita Mazepin, while the regular drivers Esteban Ocon and Sergio Perez will get into the action on the second and third days. Nicholas Latifi will close the programme.

In the course of the four days Brendon Hartley and Pierre Gasly will alternate at the wheel of the Honda powered STR13 and the New Zealander will get the ball rolling. The official presentation of the new car is set for tomorrow (Monday 26th) right in pit lane a few minutes before the start of the session, even though the team itself gave us a preview during the shakedown at Misano.

After having taken advantage of Thursday and the 100km allowed by the regulations for the filming day, Marcus Ericsson will take the wheel of the Alfa Romeo Sauber C37 for its official debut on Monday. The Swede will also be at the wheel on Wednesday 28th, while on Tuesday and Thursday the work will be carried out by Formula 2 champion and debutant Charles Leclerc. The team from Hinwil will work to try to cancel last year’s disappointing season which ended in last place. Romain Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen will swap places at the wheel of the Haas with the Frenchman called to get the ball rolling.

All eyes will also be on the Haas Renault R.S.18. After the publication of the images by the team, the Managing Director Cyril Abiteboul has already stated that what has been seen so far does not reflect the real forms of the new racing car, but only its new colour scheme. All we can do is wait for the first laps of the circuit.

HOUSE MINARDI | Good weather can be seen in the morning

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Monday the spotlight will officially fall on the 2018 Formula 1 world championship with the first four (of eight) days of testing at the Barcelona track which will pre-empt the Melbourne Grand Prix. In the last few days we had the first (virtual) taste with the presentation of the first cars. Haas, Williams, Red Bull, Sauber and Renault lifted the covers showing the new lines and above all the new liveries that will colour the starting grid of the 21 grands prix, as we await Mercedes and Ferrari which will show them today (Thursday February 22nd).

We expect a demanding season characterized by the novelty of the Halo (as well as only three motors per driver) which created hard work for the teams in planning and testing the chassis. Halo has changed the philosophy and the physiognomy of the racing cars. Since it is in front of the driver’s head and placed high on the vehicle it has changed the centre of gravity of the vehicles and forced the engineers to review the weight distribution.

I could see from the photos that the cars are very beautiful with interesting technological solution and enchanting colour schemes. I await the first tests at Montmelò with a lot of curiosity and in order to understand what could be the forces in the field. Good weather can be seen in the morning.

Gian Carlo Minardi
* The video was recorded on Tuesday February 20th.

Kart | Andrea Kimi Antonelli sets his seal on the Winter Cup

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Three weeks after the authoritative win in the WSK Champions Cup with which Andrea Kimi Antonelli ushered in the new season in the colours of the Energy Corse team, the young driver from Bologna won the 23rd edition of the Winter Cup.

Saturday on the Lonato track Andrea Kimi Antonelli confirmed that he is the protagonist of the Mini Rok category by putting up two wins in the Qualifying Heats of Group B and then continued his winning streak on Sunday with success in the Super Heats, crossing the finishing line more than five seconds in front of his nearest rival.

Only in the Final Heats did he let up the pace to Poland’s Piotr Protasiewicz, crossing the finishing line in second place, before masterfully completing the weekend with a win in the Final which gave him the second trophy for the season.

“We are truly happy with Andrea Kimi’s new wins since he showed extraordinary and constant potential for all the weekend, even if it is true that his masterpiece came in the Final. After having slipped to fourth place he did not lose heart and with great determination he climbed back up to get the win. His growth with the Energy Corse team continues with them once more making excellent material available” commented managers Giovanni Minardi and Alberto Tonti.

“It was an excellent weekend in which I enjoyed myself by winning four races and finishing the Final Heats in second place. Unfortunately I did not start the Final well, but as soon as the tyres came up to heat I climbed back up to the head of the race and to the Cup” was the comment from a satisfied Andrea Kimi Antonelli.

Andrea Kimi Antonelli will be once more one of the protagonists on the Lonato track on the weekend of March 1st to 4th for the second round of the WKS Super Master Series.