The US state of Florida, which has had the famous Daytona 500 race since 1959, will also have a round of the Formula 1 World Championship in 2022. Miami will be the 11th location in the USA since the modern F1 championship began in 1950. The other circuits have been at Riverside, Sebring, Watkins Glen, Long Beach, Las Vegas, Detroit, Dallas, Phoenix, Indianapolis and the Circuit of the Americas (Texas).
“We are looking forward to bringing the greatest racing spectacle on the planet to Miami for the first time in our sport’s history. The Hard Rock stadium entertainment campus in Miami Gardens exists to host the biggest global events to benefit the entire greater Miami region and Formula 1 racing is as big as it gets. We have worked with specialist designers to create a racetrack that we, Formula 1 and the FIA believe will provide great racing and we hope to create best-in- class unique fan experiences that are reflective of the diverse and dynamic nature of Miami,” said Tom Garfinkel, Managing Partner of Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix.
Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, Florida.
Brand new track
Hard Rock Stadium, home of the Miami Dolphins, will sit at the heart of the circuit. The Formula 1 organisation and the FIA will be liaising closely with the promoter who will build a brand new track that will provide high-speed straights, multiple overtaking opportunities and exciting racing while meeting the highest safety standards.
The circuit will be 5.41 kms long, have 19 corners, 3 straights and potential for 3 DRS zones with an estimated top speed of 320 km/h. It’s not known if Hermann Tilke, the engineer who has designed many of the modern F1 circuits (including the Sepang International Circuit), will be involved.
The new circuit will be built on the grounds around the Hard Rock Stadium.
The race will provide an additional tourist boost and economic impact to local businesses in the greater Miami region. Additionally, there will be a programme to support local businesses and the community to ensure they get the full benefits of the race being in Miami Gardens, including a STEM education programme through F1 in Schools as well as the opportunity for local businesses to be part of the race weekend.
“We are thrilled to announce that Formula 1 will be racing in Miami beginning in 2022. The US is a key growth market for us, and we are greatly encouraged by our growing reach in the US which will be further supported by this exciting second race. We will be working closely with the team from Hard Rock Stadium and the FIA to ensure the circuit delivers sensational racing but also leaves a positive and lasting contribution for the people in the local community,” said Stefano Domenicali, President & CEO of Formula 1.
A Formula 1 race in California in 1976.
Spectator presence still uncertain
Meanwhile the FIA and Formula 1 said that during the 2021 FIA Formula 1 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix in Italy, 4,523 tests for COVID-19 were performed on drivers, teams and personnel between April 12 and April 18. Of these, 2 people tested positive. The aggregated information from each Grand Prix is being provided for the purposes of competition integrity and transparency.
As in 2020, the races this year will be run under stringent Standard Operating Procedures with participants required not only to undergo COVID-19 tests but also operate in a ‘team bubble’ which prevents interaction with others during the event. Spectators have not been allowed so far, although in 2020, two events (in Portugal and Russia) allowed spectators with social distancing measures applied. The organisers are hopeful that the situation will ease further as the season proceeds and limited numbers of spectators could be allowed into the circuits.
Most of the races in 2020 were run without spectators present, while the teams had to operate in a strict ‘bubble’.
♦ The day started with rain that continued to the start of the race, and some drivers had incidents even while preparing to get to the starting grid. Lance Stroll’s Aston Martin had brakes on fire while Sebastian Vettel had brake issues without a fire, and Carlos Sainz slid off and damaged part of the front wing which needed to be quickly replaced. Charles Leclerc also spun during the formation lap, showing how slippery conditions were.
♦ Not surprisingly, the start of the race saw a mess in the first corner. Verstappen was quick off the line and then got in contact with Lewis Hamilton. with the latter heading into the grass. Nicholas Latifi was less lucky though, colliding with Nikita Mazepin and ending up heading into a barrier, triggering deployment of the Safety Car.
♦ Yuki Tsunoda, who had broken his gearbox in an accident during qualifying, had to start from the back of the grid but was able to speed through the pack to 15th place in the first lap. The wet conditions also saw Mick Schumacher crashing at the pit lane exit, and he had to go with a damaged front end for a couple of laps. Fortunately the Safety Car was still out but it didn’t help that he could not get into the pit lane again due to the debris – from his own car earlier.
♦ Racing resumed when the Safety Car pulled in on the 6th lap, and Max Verstappen shot off again, pursued by Hamilton. The wet conditions were slowing tyre-warm-up so the drivers had to adjust accordingly. Only Pierre Gasly and Mazepin had chosen to start off with wet tyres.
♦ By lap 13, Sergio Perez was in fourth but was informed that he was given a 10-second penalty (stop/go) for overtaking while the Safety Car was leading the convoy earlier. He would have to work hard to stay well ahead of Daniel Ricciardo who was tailing him.
♦ The track was slowly drying by lap 15 but still slick in some parts, and Carlos Sainz was caught on wet patches twice. While Latifi’s race ended early, his Williams team mate George Russell was up in tenth place and holding on well.
♦ With one-third of the 63-lap race completed and the track conditions slowly drying, the teams were watching each other to see who would come in to change from the intermediates. It was Vettel who would be the first but he was also hit with a 10-second penalty (stop/go) for not having wheels fitted at the 5 minutes signal (before the race started). He came back in on lap 24, while in 17th place, to serve his penalty.
♦ Verstappen came in on lap, and Hamilton slipped into the lead, still with the damaged front wing. When the Red Bull driver rejoined, he was in third place but quickly got Hamilton in his sights and started the chase. He didn’t have to work hard as the Mercedes-AMG driver also came in to change tyres. By lap 28, every car had come into the pits at least once.
♦ On lap 31, Hamilton slid off into the gravel and touched the barrier, coming to a stop for a short while. But he managed to reverse out and rejoined the race, though down in seventh.
♦ His team mate, Valtteri Bottas was not so lucky – he had a collision with Russell which got debris all over and the Safety Car was called into action. Hamilton took the opportunity to get back and have the damaged wing changed. There was some much debris that the Stewards decided to stop the race on lap 34 for clean-up work. All cars were required to return to the pits and wait. For Hamilton, it may have been a small blessing as his team could work on the repairs with less pressure.
♦ At the time the race was stopped. Leclerc was 15 seconds behind race leader Verstappen but things would be different when racing resumed. 17 cars were still in the running and there would be 29 laps left to run.
♦ The race was restarted after 23 minutes with a rolling start after the cars circulated for one lap with the Safety Car at the front. And though track conditions were drier, Kimi Raikkonen slid off into the gravel! Verstappen shot off (and almost crashed), while Leclerc was quickly passed by a determined Lando Norris. Tsunoda was in tenth but a spin dropped him all the way to the back.
♦ Hamilton was ninth when the race restarted and within 2 laps, he had passed Stroll and Raikkonen to move into 6th, and was working hard to get to the front. In the process, he set the fastest lap which would get him one extra point if no one else was quicker in the race.
♦ With 10 laps remaining, Verstappen was still in the lead and 17 seconds ahead of Hamilton who was in 4th and trying to get past Leclerc. Norris was closest to the leader and even he was about 16 seconds away.
♦ Hamilton got past Leclerc on lap 55 but Verstappen had been pushing harder and the gap to third place (Hamilton) had extended to 18 seconds – and would extend to more than 20 seconds with 4 laps remaining.
♦ With 3 laps remaining, Hamilton pushed past Norris but the gap was just too big to reach Verstappen, and unless the Dutchman had very bad luck, he would take the chequered flag. He had beat Hamilton’s fastest time but in the effort to pass Norris, Hamilton had set an even faster time so he would still claim that 1 extra point even though he would not win the race.
♦ Further back, while Vettel had to pull out with gearbox issues Alpine and Alfa Romeo Racing Orlen could celebrate with the first points of the season as their cars finished in the top ten.
Sebastian Vettel (with Aston Martin this year) had a bad start to the first race of the season as he was hit with a grid penalty for not giving attention to yellow flags during the qualifying session. As a result, he was demoted to start from the last position on the grid, after Nikita Mazepin (Haas F1).
For Sergio Perez, with Red Bull Racing this year, it was even worse as his car developed a problem on the formation lap, almost resulting in another formation lap being run. But he managed to restart the car and rushed back to the pits from where he started.
As the light went green for the first race of the season, Max Verstappen had a good start but Russian driver Mazepin, who had spun during qualifying, went into a spin and ended his race. The Safety Car (and Aston Martin Vantage) was deployed right away to lead the cars around for 3 laps while the Haas racing car was cleared.
When the Safety Car exited, Verstappen made a quick start to start extending his lead. Behind hi, Pierre Gasle and Mick Schumacher had some drama on Turn 6, while Vettel managed to move up 5 places but had some contact with Yuki Tsunoda. Debris on the track activated the Virtual Safety Car, which slowed things down for one lap.
At the 10th lap, Verstappen was being pursued by Lewis Hamilton who was about 1.5 seconds behind, with Valtteri Bottas 5 seconds further back.The Red Bull driver was having problems with his car, but he held a consistent pace and Hamilton just kept him in sight… waiting. The general order of the field was roughly what it had been on the grid at that point.
Just before the 20th lap, Verstappen came into the pits for a tyre change and Hamilton surged into the lead. When Verstappen rejoined, he was quite far down and had to work hard to get back up front again.
And what of Fernando Alonso, back in F1 again with the Alpine team? He was somewhere midfield, constantly dicing with his old rival, Vettel and also Carlos Sainz. SDergio Perex and even Kimi Raikkonen.
Two laps after the halfway point, Hamilton returned to the pits for another set of tyres, allowing Verstappen to take the lead. When he rejoined, he was in third. Bottas was then asked to come in, but his stop was delayed up to 10 seconds as the tyre removal was funbled.
Alonso’s race came to an end on lap 35 as brake issues forced him back to the pits where the car stayed. A rather disappointing return for the Spaniard who was twice World Champion.
On lap 40, Verstappen rushed into the pits to have tyres changed to hards and when he got back out, Hamilton was trying his best to stretch the lead, But calculations shows that the Dutchman could close in on the British driver within 10 laps.
As lap 45 started, Vettel locked his brakes at Turn 1 and bumped into Esteban Ocon, and both cars came to a stop for a short while. But then they managed to restart and continue, so the Safety Car was not called out.
With 10 laps remaining, Hamilton had a lead of just under 3 seconds from Verstappen, while Bottas was 16 second behind the Red Bull car. Tsunoda was in 10th place and if he could maintain his pace, he would get his first F1 point in his first ever race.
As the remaining laps counted down, all eyes were on Hamilton and Verstappen closing the gap. Hamilton had older tyres but as he had shown before, he could make sure that he would make it to the end – in the lead.
4 laps from the end, Verstappen finally got past into the lead as Hamilton went wide, partly due to his rear tyres starting to lose grip. However, the Red Bull driver slowed down inexplicably and Hamilton grabbed back the lead with 3 laps to go. By the time the 56th lap ended, the separation was under a second and it was Hamilton who took the first victory of the season. A fantastic duel to the end which hopefully will be seen in coming races.
In past years, the season-closing rounds of the Formula 1 World Championship have been held at venues in the Middle East but this year, due to the Australian GP – the traditional opening round – having to be postponed till later in 2021, the Bahrain Grand Prix has been selected to be the first round of the 2021 championship. It is not, however, the first time that Bahrain has had the opening round as it had the honour in 2006 and 2010.
The first round comes just 16 weeks after the 2020 race and 2 weeks after a 3-day pre-season test session at the same track in the desert. Memories of the last race would still be strong in the minds of everyone, especially the shocking fiery crash that Romain Grosjean survived. The Frenchman had already planned to retire from the sport in October, before the accident, and had hoped to participate in the final round but the doctors advised him not to do so and he sadly did not have a chance to close his F1 career with one last race.
The Schumacher name appears in F1 again, with the legendary driver’s son, Mick, driving for the Haas F1 team.
Newcomers to F1
Grosjean’s place in the American Haas F1 team is taken by Mick Schumacher – yes, the son of the legendary F1 driver – and Nikita Mazepin. Both the 22-year old drivers are newcomers to F1, having moved up from F2 with Schumacher being the reigning F2 champion.
Yuki Tsunodo, 20, drives for the Scuderia AlphaTauri Honda team this year, the first Japanese driver in F1 since Kamui Kobayashi drove for the Caterham team in the 2014 season.
Yuki Tsunoda is another newcomer, the first Japanese driver in 6 years of the F1 Championship. A member of the Honda’s Junior Driver program and Red Bull Junior Team, the 20-year old has been given a drive with Scuderia AlphaTauri Honda.
The last time Fernando Alonso was in a F1 race was at the 2018 Abu Dhabi GP. The 2-time world champion has been brought back by the newly formed Alpine F1 Team (which is the Renault F1 Team rebranded). He is no stranger to the French team, having raced for them for 6 seasons, besides having been with Minardi, Ferrari and McLaren. The Spaniard began racing in F1 in 2001 and is among the popular older drivers.
Many fans will remember Fernando Alonso’s time with the Mild Seven Renault team and now he’s back again with the French team.
The performance of the cars remains intriguing after the test session. Defending Constructors Champions Mercedes-AMG have suffered a difficult test spell, posting a lower lap count than other teams. Last year’s challengers to the champions’ dominance was Red Bull Racing and set the pace on two of the 3 days. McLaren, AlphaTauri and Alpine also look to be in good form.
Aston Martin is back in Formula 1 after some 60 years with Sebastian Vettel as one of its drivers. The company is also supplying the Vantage (below) for use as the official F1 Safety Car in some of the rounds.
“From the moment the third day of testing finished, we got our heads down and started to figure out how we can return to Bahrain in stronger form for the race,” said Mercedes-AMG boss, Toto Wolff. “While these cars share some parts from their predecessors, there have also been significant rule changes to interpret and overcome. We have also had to change the way we work in response to the cost cap. But as we have found before, it’s from the difficult moments that we learn the most.”
Past winners
Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel have the most wins at Bahrain – four each. Vettel’s wins were with Red Bull Racing and Ferrari while Hamilton collected all his victories as a Mercedes-AMG driver. Ferrari has had the most wins at this event with a total of six since Michael Schumacher won in 2004.
Pirelli’s 400th GP
Pirelli, the official F1 tyre supplier, will celebrate its 400th Formula 1 Grand Prix at this weekend’s race. The brand’s first GP was the inaugural F1 race at Silverstone in 1950, won by an Alfa Romeo. Since then, there have been 240 wins, 243 pole positions, 247 fastest laps, and 727 podium places in Formula 1 for the Italian tyre firm.
Giuseppe Farina in an Alfa Romeo with Pirelli tyres at the 1950 British Grand Prix.
The 2021 Formula 1 World Championship starts off this weekend in Bahrain, instead of Australia where the first round has traditionally been. So instead of preparing for the circuit in Melbourne, tyre-suppliers Pirelli have had to change plans and select tyres for the circuit in the desert which has some of the most abrasive asphalt of the season.
At the 3-day pre-season test on the circuit, the teams had the entire P Zero range at their disposal, but many chose to concentrate on the three compounds nominated by Pirelli engineers. With the track having been used just 4 months ago, little about it will have changed since the teams were last there: giving them a stable basis to work from.
Windy testing conditions
The testing was influenced by the local conditions and the first day was consistently windy with gusts that reached 47 km/h, affecting the aerodynamics on the cars. As a result of the wind, there was plenty of sand on the track that compromised grip. Temperatures were also particularly high, so the combination of these factors led to some surface overheating and increased tyre degradation.
On the second day, the wind still remained but temperatures were lower, which reduced the overheating. As a result, the teams had a better balance with their cars, with plenty of set-up work carried out over generally short runs, as was the case on the opening day.
The third and final day was run in better track conditions with moderate winds and a cool breeze but track temperatures similar to the first day. Many teams carried out long runs using the compound tyres nominated.
The three compounds
The three compounds are C2 as the P Zero White hard, C3 as the P Zero Yellow medium, and C4 as the P Zero Red soft. This is the same nomination as last year’s Bahrain GP but there is a new tyre construction this year for the latest cars. The 2021 cars, in fact, have reduced downforce compared to last year, under the most recent technical rules.
The new tyres for 2021 have been designed to improve strength and durability, allowing them to run at lower pressures, while the actual compounds are the same as last year. During testing of the 2021 tyres last November in Bahrain, rear tyre pressure was reduced by 0.5 psi and front tyre pressure by 1.5 psi. Then, following telemetry analysis and the reduction of rear downforce in particular, rear tyre pressure was further reduced by 1.5 psi at recent test in Bahrain. This is now confirmed for the race.
The number of sets allowed per weekend is the same as last year (13) despite the there being an hour less of running, with Friday’s free practice sessions now cut to one hour each. As was the case last year, there’s a standard allocation for every car in 2021.
Racing after sunset
The Bahrain race is run at night and gets underway in the evening at 6 pm. After sunset, track temperatures that can fall quite rapidly once the race gets underway and this in turn affects tyre behaviour and therefore strategy.
The asphalt (with high granite content) in Bahrain is well-known for being abrasive, increasing tyre wear and degradation. Last year’s race – which featured a red flag and multiple safety car periods – was won by Mercedes-AMG driver Lewis Hamilton with a 2-stop strategy. Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, who finished second, was one of just two drivers to change tyres 4 times.
Condensed testing session
Commenting on the tyres, Mario Isola, Head of F1 and Car Racing at Pirelli, said: ”Just 4 months after having two races in Bahrain, and two weeks after 3 days of pre-season testing, we’re back there for the first race of the 2021 season. During the test, we saw many teams concentrated on the compounds nominated for the race, but the conditions we experienced in testing might not be entirely representative of the race.”
“The teams also ran a very wide variety of different programmes during just the one condensed session, whereas in the past, with two test sessions, the second session was usually more focussed on tyres. So it’s hard to draw many firm conclusions. With new specifications of cars and tyres, as well as the shortest pre-season in recent memory, the competition is wide open: especially given that the track characteristics of Bahrain have often resulted in interesting strategic battles, with a number of different tactics used,” he added.
The third 2022 18-inch tyre test of the year (the second one with slicks) will take place for 3 days in Bahrain after the race. Ferrari will run on the first day, with Alpine running on the final two days.
Scuderia Ferrari Mission Winnow’s SF21 racing car for this season of the Formula 1 World Championship has been revealed. It is the 67th to be built in Maranello to compete in the championship. An evolution of last year’s SF1000, as dictated by the regulations which require the use of the same chassis as in 2020, opportunities for change in many areas have been limited.
Some of the permitted areas where change has been made include the engine, which is completely new, and aerodynamic features as well as at the rear end, which is where the two development tokens allowed in the regulations have been used.
The new car features a subtle livery that is said to ‘look to the challenges of the future without forgetting the team’s roots and history’. “The rear end is reminiscent of the burgundy red of the very first Ferrari, the 125 S,” explained Team Principal Mattia Binotto. “But as it moves gradually towards the cockpit area, it transforms into the modern red that we have used in most recent years. This season presents us with many challenges and through this livery, visually, we reboot from our past and head into the future.”
Joint effort by all departments
Development of the new 065/6 power unit for the 2021 season saw a systematic approach adopted by all departments, which worked together to find every opportunity for improvement. “Along with our colleagues on the chassis side, we worked a lot on the layout of the power unit, to make the overall design of the car as efficient as possible. With the internal combustion engine, we focused on increasing its level of thermal efficiency, in conjunction with our partner Shell and this has produced an improvement in lap time that we estimate at over one tenth of a second,” said Enrico Gualtieri Head of the Power Unit department.
“We are also carrying out further development on the hybrid system and the electronics, in order to revise and optimise all components. All this in a season in which power unit test bench time has been reduced still further,” he added.
Head of the Chassis department, Enrico Cardile, said that when the SF21 project began, their first task was really to identify which area of the car to focus on in order to achieve a radical change. “We opted for the rear end, designing a new gearbox and new suspension system. This, in addition to the efforts of our power unit colleagues has led to a much tighter rear end,” he explained.
The Ferrari team readying the SF1000 at a race in 2020.
Pursuit of better aerodynamics
The engineers also looked at the cooling system, increasing the effectiveness of the central radiator and designed the body with more ‘downwashing’. Aerodynamics was one of the areas affected by the regulation changes aimed at reducing the ability to generate vertical load, in order not to put too great a strain on the tyres. “That’s why, as we began developing the car’s aerodynamics, we set ourselves two goals: recovering more aerodynamic downforce than was lost through the regulations and reducing drag,” Cardile revealed.
“Because of the regulations, less drastic changes were possible at the front end of the car. So, we developed a new front wing which works in conjunction with a new concept nose, but the chassis itself and the suspension is off last year’s SF1000,” he added.
The team will have its youngest driver line-up since 1968 with Charles Leclerc (below right) and Carlos Sainz, Jr. When the first race of the season takes place on March 28 in Bahrain, the pair’s average age will be 25 years and 3 days.
The drivers
Commenting on the drivers, Laurent Mekies, Racing Director, said: “There’s plenty of positive energy coming from our two drivers. Carlos has spent a lot of time in the factory and has integrated with the team very quickly. As for Charles, he is already perfectly at home with the team: he knows what he wants and is also very aware of the role he has in the team, both in and out of the car. Over the winter, we have witnessed the two guys getting on very well together and this can only be a good thing for the whole team.”
At official events, drivers Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz Jr., along with Scuderia management, will wear a range of Giorgio Armani navy blue garments and accessories as the team has signed a multi-year partnership with Giorgio Armani S.p.A.
Since 1996, the Official Safety and Medical cars have been supplied by Mercedes-AMG for each round of the Formula 1 World Championship. This year, a new era starts with cars from Aston Martin taking on the important roles (for a certain number of races), coinciding with the return of the British marque to Formula 1.
Aston Martin will supply the FIA with a Vantage for the Safety Car which was the Mercedes-AMG GT R in recent years. The Vantage Safety Car is specially equipped for the critical role of intervening and controlling the pace of an event involving the fastest racing cars in the world. It also has chassis and aerodynamic improvements for high-speed driving as well as a few additional modifications to make it FIA-compliant, like all racing cars in international motorsport.
Mercedes-AMG has been supplying the Official F1 Safety Car and Medical Car since 1996 (above and below),
The Safety Car will still be driven by Bernd Maylander (DE) who has been doing the duty for over 20 years. Th Aston Martin will remain on standby in the pit lane throughout the race and when deployed by Race Control in the event of bad weather or an accident, the former race driver, accompanied by co-driver Richard Darker, will speed to the head of the field to safely control the pace of the pack, neutralizing the event and allowing any incident to be managed safely by the circuit’s officials.
In the event that the racing cars must follow the Safety Car for a period of time, the speeds cannot be low as tyre temperatures can drop when they are running at sub-optimal speeds. These fast lap times are essential and the Safety Car must have the performance to maintain this.
When necessary, the F1 Safety Car is deployed during the race to lead the racing cars in convoy but the speed has to be fast enough for the F1 car so that their tyres do not cool down too much.
To have this capability, the Vantage provided has had its power has increased by 25 ps to 535 ps, delivered by a 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 with 685 Nm of peak torque. Interestingly, this is the same ‘heart’ as the previous Safety Car as the M177 engine is supplied by Mercedes-AMG to Aston Martin for some of its models.
The torque curve has been adjusted to allow for longer sustained maximum output. With additional work on the transmission means the driver has a better sense of directness, precision, and control through upshifts and downshifts.
The Vaned grille coupled with a new front splitter creates 155.6 kgs of downforce at 200 km/h – more than 60 kgs than the production model produces at the same speed. Modifications to the suspension, steering and dampers have also been undertaken, with further detailed underbody bracing modifications to increase front structural stiffness.
Having already developed a cooling system that proved effective in extreme conditions and temperatures on the multiple championship-winning Vantage GT4 racing car, Aston Martin engineers transferred this technology into the Safety Car, along with the addition of extra vents in the bonnet to support further cooling.
It runs on standard Pirelli road tyres (but with a lower profile) and has the same carbon-ceramic brakes found on the production Vantage, with additional brake ducts hidden within the front grille to aid cooling.
The F1 Safety Car has prominent FIA Safety Car livery and noticeable external equipment. There are bodyside mounted radio antennas, an LED rear number plate and a bespoke, roof-mounted LED light-bar, developed by Aston Martin.
The light-bar sits on a carbonfibre plinth, raised above the roofline. Bright orange lights on the outer edges of the light-bar illuminate when the Safety Car is in action. A centrally positioned amber flashing light then illuminates once it in position ahead of the race leader – indicating that no one should overtake.
Two centrally positioned green lights are illuminated once it is safe for the F1 cars to pass. The headlamps and taillamps also flash to aid the safe deployment of the car. The rear numberplate displays ‘SAFETY CAR’ illuminated by LEDs, making it clear to drivers in the cars behind in all weather conditions. A rear-facing camera is also fixed to the light-bar that feeds a live image into a second rearview mirror located inside the cabin, allowing the co-driver to monitor any activity at the rear.
In the cabin, the standard seats have been replaced by FIA-approved racing seats equipped with a 6-point safety harness, the same as those found in the F1 cars. Two screens are mounted on the dashboard, providing the driver and co-driver with a live television feed and a variety of customizable information displays, including live lap timing and the track positioning of all active racing cars.
The centre console has been modified significantly. The rotary dial has been moved back to where the cupholder was positioned and in its place sits a switch control system used to execute a number of actions, including activating the siren, radio communications and controlling the light-bar LEDs. The ‘Marshalling System’ is integrated into the instrument cluster and the dashboard, allowing both the driver and co-driver to see which colour flag is being shown on the track, by the illumination of the same coloured LED light. This is a similar system to that also used by regulation in all F1 team cars. TV cameras are also mounted on top of and inside the car, to provide live TV footage.
The Official F1 Medical Car is the Aston Martin DBX (above), the brand’s first SUV. The role of this vehicle is to speed to the scene of an accident to provide medical assistance as quickly as possible in the event of an emergency. This was demonstrated last year when Romain Grosjean had a horrifying crash and his car caught fire; the Medical Car arrived quickly and the crew was on the spot to provide immediate medical support before other medical personnel arrived.
Like the Safety Car, the Medical Car is finished with Lime Green accents as well as the prominent FIA medical car livery, along with the LED rear numberplate and roof-mounted LED light-bar which sits upon the roof rails. It also has the AMG-supplied V8 engine, also found in DB11 and Vantage, tuned to deliver 550 ps/700 Nm, clearly enough to allow the Medical Car to reach any spot on a track quickly.
There is a substantial amount of equipment including a large medical bag, a defibrillator, two fire extinguishers and a burn kit – all of which can fit into the 632 litres of boot space.
While the interior trim is similar to what customers get, the central rear seat has been removed, and the remaining four seats have been replaced with sport bucket seats, each equipped with a 6-point safety harness. These provide seating for the driver, Alan van der Merwe, and Dr. Ian Roberts – the FIA Formula 1 Medical Response Coordinator, as well as a Local Doctor, leaving one spare, in case an incident requires a racing driver to be driven back to the pit lane.
Much like the Safety Car, two screens have been mounted onto the dashboard to provide live race footage. An additional screen is used to read live biometric data delivered via technology in the drivers’ gloves, which in the event of an accident, provides critical information on their condition. The ‘Marshalling System’ and the rearview mirror camera display have also been installed into the Medical Car.
The Official F1 Safety and Medical Cars have similar colours as the Aston Martin AMR21 racing cars.
The development of the two cars was carried out by the engineering team at Aston Martin. There was endured significant testing, which included high-speed durability assessments and aggressive circuit driving at Aston Martin’s own facility, clocking almost 15,000 kms collectively. The cars have also been tested in a dyno climate chamber to ensure they will perform in all race conditions.
The two Aston Martins in action will be visible to the public for the first time during the 3-day pre-season test at Bahrain (March 12 – 14), and then again during the opening round of the 2021 Formula 1 World Championship at the same venue 2 weeks later. The Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix 2021 will be broadcast live on March 28 from 7 pm Bahrain time (midnight Malaysian time).
Aston Martin returns to Formula 1 this year with its own team and racing car – the AMR21. The new contender will be the first works Formula 1 car to carry the famous wings since Maurice Trintignant’s DBR5 crossed the finish line at Silverstone in 1960.
Officially known as the Aston Martin Cognizant Formula One Team, the team’s two drivers will be 4-time F1 World Champion, Sebastian Vettel, and rising star Lance Stroll (who happens to be the son of Aston Martin’s Executive Chairman).
Sebastian Vettel and Lance Stroll will drive for the team in 2021.
Not a fresh new team
The team also boasts a strong bloodline, building on the foundations of Team Silverstone which, in its various guises has won 5 GPs, and is coming off the back of a race-winning campaign as the Racing Point Formula One Team, having been revitalized under the leadership of Lawrence Stroll and Team Principal and CEO Otmar Szafnauer.
“I’ve dreamed about this day for a very long time. I’ve always been a car guy and I’ve always loved racing, too. My first dream was to own a Formula One team. My second dream was to acquire a significant shareholding in Aston Martin Lagonda. Today is about the merging of those two dreams. So, as I say, today is all about dreams, and it shows that dreams really can come true, in the shape of our new AMR21,” Aston Martin’s Executive Chairman said.
Mercedes-AMG engine
The new AMR21, powered by a turbocharged Mercedes-AMG F1 M12 E Performance engine with hybrid energy recovery, ran for the first time at Silverstone in England during a promotional event today. Next week, the team will begin a full test programme at Bahrain, where the opening round will also be held on March 28.
The AMR21 carries a striking Aston Martin Racing Green livery in recognition of Aston Martin’s traditional racing colours and glorious sporting legacy. It is also bedecked by a host of global partners, led by American IT giant Cognizant, while the chassis features a magenta stripe down the side in reference to the team’s longstanding partner BWT.
Showcase for the brand
The spotlight is also on an energizing shift within Aston Martin as the team is set to become the global showcase for the brand’s engineering and performance capabilities. A new 200,000 square-foot facility will complement the existing Aston Martin F1 factory at Silverstone when completed in the second half of 2022, and the team is well positioned to become an innovation lab to drive forward the brand’s future road car technologies. These will include the suite of mid-engined sportscars, inspired by the Aston Martin Valkyrie, which will become central to the product portfolio through the next decade.
“Today is a truly historic moment for Aston Martin, as we return to the pinnacle of motorsport for the first time in more than 60 years. The Aston Martin Cognizant Formula One Team will have far-reaching positive effects on the Aston Martin brand, our culture, and the design and technology of Aston Martin road cars. Our return to Formula One will positively and profoundly affect every employee and foremost our customer journey all over the world; and will help us bring a focused, agile Formula One way of thinking to the whole Aston Martin business,” said the CEO of Aston Martin Lagonda, Tobias Moers.
Formula E’s new season – the seventh in the all-electric series – began on Friday with two night races at Diriyah on the outskirts of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The new season sees updates to the regulations and three rookies – Jake Dennis (BMW i Andretti Motorsport), Nick Cassidy (Envision Virgin Racing) and Norman Nato (ROKiT Venturi Racing).
To support the teams during the global pandemic, Formula E and the FIA decided to extend the next homologation period, with manufacturers only able to alter powertrain components once over the next two seasons. Teams can either introduce a new car in Season 7, for a 2-year cycle, or continue to use existing technology before homologating a new car the year after for a single season.
Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler and Envision Virgin Racing, BMW i Andretti Motorsport, Jaguar Racing, Mahindra Racing, Mercedes-EQ, alongside customers ROKiT Venturi Racing, NIO 333 and TAG Heuer Porsche all opted for new machines for the season ahead. DRAGON/PENSKE AUTOSPORT, DS TECHEETAH and Nissan e.dams have chosen to delay their homologation and will be using their Season 6 package for at least the opening rounds.
Also new for this season, the tyre allocation will be reduced by 25% per single-race competition and by up to 50% at double-header events. Based on the Season 5 calendar and comparing to the previous allocation, this could potentially see a saving of 720 tyres with less emissions produced, which is a 29% reduction in the overall impact of the tyres.
Becoming only the second single-seater championship to gain FIA World Championship status is a true honour for the sport and carries enormous significance for the teams, manufacturers and drivers battling it out to be crowned the first official Formula E World Champions.
The Riyadh Street Circuit once again provided the spectacular backdrop to the opening events of the season as Formula E ran its first night races. The fast and flowing 2.49-km clockwise circuit flanks the At-Turaif UNESCO World Heritage Site and is largely the same as it was in the previous season. Track surface work has led to the reprofiling of some turns for slightly adapted racing lines that promote closer racing.
Sam Bird (Jaguar Racing) got the better of Robin Frijns (Envision Virgin Racing) – his former teammate – as the two engaged in a race-long back and forth under the floodlights. A red flag 5 minutes from the scheduled end of the race brought things to a premature end, confirming the Brit’s victory with Frijns following in second.
DS TECHEETAH’s Antonio Felix da Costa came home a net third after teammate Jean-Eric Vergne received a 24-second post-race penalty for failing to use his second ATTACK MODE activation, which saw the Frenchman demoted to 12th.
Frijns got away cleanly from pole to fend off Sette Camara into Turn 1, and Bird immediately challenged the DRAGON / PENSKE AUTOSPORT driver to make a tidy move stick for second up the inside of Turn 2. Antonio Felix da Costa banged wheels with Nico Mueller and Sebastien Buemi further back – passing the Nissan e.dams to take eighth spot with the Portuguese’ DS TECHEETAH teammate a little way clear in seventh and hounding Mueller.
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On Lap 5, Vergne pounced on an error by Blomqvist to pinch sixth and the Brit falling to eighth at the hands of the reigning champion a lap later. Meanwhile, Buemi and Cassidy diced for ninth, with the Swiss coming off best with a regulation pass into Turn 18 to set about hunting Blomqvist up ahead.
The lead pair drew out two seconds on Sette Camara in third, with Turvey running a collected race in fourth with Mueller kept at arm’s length. Meanwhile, the two DS TECHEETAHs hunted in packs as the Frenchman jumped for ATTACK MODE – his teammate following.
Frijns was next to dive for his first mandatory ATTACK MODE activation and importantly, he was able to hold off Sette Camara to keep within touching distance of the now race leader Bird – the Jaguar driver still to use that initial 35kW boost, and take the pain of going off-line to cross the ATTACK MODE loop.
Over the half-way mark, and Vergne’s charge continued apace with another regulation pass for third, this time on Sette Camara, just as Jake Dennis (BMW i Andretti Motorsport) was crunched by Pascal Wehrlein’s Porsche, which threw a Full Course Yellow (FCY) – holding the cars as they stood at 50 km/h until the circuit was cleared.
Bird had found his way beyond Frijns for the race lead just prior to that FCY, with the latter heading for ATTACK MODE number two but once again, the Virgin racer was able to bite back – despite Frijns saying he was overconsuming energy over team radio.
Contact between Guenther and Evans ultimately caused the end of the race via a Red Flag leaving bird to head home Frijns, Vergne, Da Costa, Cassidy, Sette Camara, Mueller, Turvey, Oliver Rowland (Nissan e.dams), and Rene Rast (Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler) on track.
Penalties for Vergne and Rast followed the chequered flag, however, as neither used their second ATTACK MODE activation. All three had not expected the sudden end of the race. This demoted the pair to 12th and 17th, respectively and nudging those ahead of them come the end of the race up the order.
Bird has not had a win for a long time, his last being 11 races ago. The weekend’s victory draws him level with Lucas di Grassi (Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler) in second on the all-time winners’ table with 10 victories.
There were the usual celebrations during the presentation of awards but on this occasion, it was frightening for all those present. Yemen’s rebel Houthis had launched flying devices said to carry bombs towards Riyadh and fortunately, the defence system intercepted and destroyed them in the night sky.
The ABB FIA Formula E World Championship heads to Rome on April 10 for Round 3.
Ferrari will join the Le Mans Hypercar (LMH) class from 2023. This is a new class which has attracted the interest of manufacturers and it will be the top class of the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC). Companies that have announced vehicle development programmes include Porsche, Peugeot, Audi, and Toyota – all veterans of the WEC with championship victories at different periods in time.
Following a period of study and analysis, Ferrari confirmed its participation and has started a development programme for an all-new LMH car. It is known that there is already a design and simulations have been run in recent weeks.
The time-frame for building running prototypes has not been mentioned, nor the name of the car and the drivers who will make up the official crews.
While Ferraris are regularly seen racing at Le Mans, it has been almost 50 years since the factory’s last official participation in the premier class of the World Sports Car Championship. It has a respectable record in closed-wheel competition with 24 world titles (most recently in 2017) and 36 victories in the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
“In over 70 years of racing, on tracks all over the world, we led our closed-wheel cars to victory by exploring cutting-edge technological solutions: innovations that arise from the track and make every road car produced in Maranello extraordinary. With the new Le Mans Hypercar programme, Ferrari once again asserts its sporting commitment and determination to be a protagonist in the major global motorsport events,” said Ferrari President, John Elkann.
Overview of the Le Mans Hypercar class
The LMH ruleset represents a major shift in philosophy compared with the LMP1 class it is replacing. It allows for a greater variety both in terms of technical approaches as well as the aesthetics of the cars, at the same time ensuring sporting equality and preventing cost escalation through the concept of ‘performance windows’.
Technical Regulations are focused on controlling performance outcome, instead of setting design or geometrical restrictions, allowing manufacturers to choose cost-effective solutions as significant expenditures will not bring performance gains.
The autonomy also allows them not only to replicate brand identity and genuine architecture, maintaining the spirit of the brand and remaining relevant to their road car philosophy, but also to express true potential in terms of creativity and innovation. Less rigid aerodynamic constraints established for the cars give them the option to incorporate styling elements to the design.
Similarly to the LMP1 class, both hybrid or non-hybrid power units with transmission to either rear or both axles are allowed.
As avoiding cost escalation is one of the key targets behind the LMH concept, several other cost-saving measures have been undertaken. With the 2021 season being the first one in the LMH homologation cycle, testing is supervised. The use of expensive materials and technology is greatly limited. The minimum weight for gearbox is set at 75 kgs, with the use of magnesium or aluminium casing and bellhousing mandatory.
The suspension is also simplified, with a double-wishbone design compulsory and aids such as active systems and mass dampers forbidden. There is also a single aero kit permitted, without the distinction for Le Mans and the other races.
In order to avoid development costs, the tyres are exclusively supplied by Michelin with different dimensions dedicated to rear and 4-wheel-drive cars. Furthermore, lower power output results in lower power unit development costs.
“Le Mans Hypercar should please both manufactures and fans, resulting in spectacular cars and high level of competition. We’ll see greater variety across the competitors while the more cost-effective regulatory approach is something much needed in the current economic climate,” said Richard Mille, FIA Endurance Commission President.
