I still can't believe Ferrari haven't won at Monaco since 2001! This season maybe..

I think the Short Wheel Base cars might have a big Advantage there - by that i mean the Michael in the Mercedes.

Wheelbase length is often seen primarily as a factor in how the car suits fast or slow turns. The common assumption that shorter cars go better around slow tight bends and longer cars go best in longer fast turns. This proves to be largely false, the difference in the longest to shortest cars is only a few percent, certainly not enough to substantially change the cars ability to corner around the hairpin at Monaco. Indeed Monaco proves to be no litmus test for wheelbases as longer cars have frequently won there. I am told that wheelbase changes by a few percent, affect lap times in just thousandths of a second.

the diffuser concept coming from toyota has already been implemented by two teams in Bahrain and others are working on it apart from ferrari.;)

the diffuser concept coming from toyota has already been implemented by two teams in Bahrain and others are working on it apart from ferrari.;)

the diffuser concept coming from toyota has already been implemented by two teams in Bahrain and others are working on it apart from ferrari.;)

It's a old rumor and will end probably like the w wing.
b spec will be a natural upgrade for european races.

Williams technical director Sam Michael confirmed the Renault as best in this area, followed by Mercedes and Cosworth, with Ferrari the thirstiest. That means the Red Bulls started the race with 10kg less fuel than the Ferraris.

That would have been worth nearly 0.4 seconds a lap in the early stages of the race around the extended Bahrain track. Averaging out at 0.2secs per lap, reckoned Michael, Renault's fuel efficiency would have given Red Bull a 9.8-second advantage on Ferrari over the whole race distance.

No wonder eventual winner Fernando Alonso was waiting until the last 10 laps to mount an attack. At any other stage of the race, it would not have been a fair fight, as Vettel would have been significantly lighter on fuel.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/motorsport...one/8572060.stm

A F1 car weights 605 Kg,

I'm soooo glad they brought back the shoulder cams. Brings much more 'life' to the onboard shots.

A F1 car weights 605 Kg, plus 160 more or less of fuel, it means the car start the race with 765 Kg. 10 Kg is about the 1,3% of the full weigth and worths 0.4 second by lap? And an average of 0,2 second per lap during the full race when the difference became relative smaller each lap? Seems to much.

no an F1 car weighs 620 KGs now!

Yes indeed! I got one of Hamilton as well, though it's higher up...

Ooooohh lucky you!

Proving both fast and reliable, Ferrari followed up on their testing performance with an unchanged car in Bahrain. Indeed the lack of change was at first a surprise as the three openings on each sidepod near the exhaust outlet were not deleted. Since the aerodynamic rules changed for 2009, openings in the sidepods have been restricted to a single opening for the exhaust outlet. Ferraris appearance with apparently illegal openings, did not however prompt the speculation that greeted McLaren, Only when looking at close its clear how Ferrari have circumvented the bodywork rules. There is a thin slit running from the exhaust opening forwards through each of the three louvers. This effectively makes one opening from the four, thus meeting the demand for a single opening for the exhaust pipe. Ferrari need these extra vents as their exhaust collector points forwards and then the secondary pipe loops back to exit rearwards. Thus placing the pipe work in close proximity to the bodywork.



http://www.racecar-engineering.com/article...es-bahrain.html

Melbourne, 23 March - For only the second time since it first hosted the Australian Grand Prix in 1996, Melbourne’s Albert Park circuit is not staging the opening round of the championship. In 2006, the race was number three on the calendar, to avoid a clash with the Commonwealth Games being held in the city, and this year, the street circuit is Round 2. Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro comes to the Antipodes on the back of a solid one-two finish in the opening round in Bahrain, which will be good for morale, given that for the past two years, the team failed to score a single point in Melbourne. The Australian Grand Prix was first staged in 1985 at the popular Adelaide street track and the Prancing Horse recorded just one victory there, courtesy of Gerhard Berger in 1987. Melbourne brought more success, with a string of four consecutive wins from 1999, when Eddie Irvine took his maiden F1 victory, followed by a trio of Michael Schumacher wins. The German won again in 2004 and Kimi Raikkonen stood on the top step of the Australian podium on his debut for Ferrari in 2007.

Ferrari starts work in the temporary track facilities on Tuesday, all the team having flown back to Italy after Bahrain. Much of the car preparation work was carried out at the Sakhir circuit, which is the usual procedure for races outside Europe and particularly pertinent in this case, given that space is at a premium in the Albert Park paddock. Work space will be even more limited this year, with the arrival of two new teams on the entry list. Nevertheless, the area inside the swipe gates is popular with the teams, making up for what it lacks in facilities, with the charm and atmosphere of what is the only paddock left on the calendar that features grass lawns outside the team’s offices and hospitality areas.

Even though the cars have spent the past ten days in their packing cases, the engineers in Maranello have been working hard on all aspects of car performance, including analysing and resolving the concerns over high engine temperatures seen in Bahrain. The engine situation will have to be managed, taking into account there have already been two changes. However, the engines taken out during the Bahrain weekend were not actually broken in any way and can therefore be used again during the season, even though only in free practices.

Apart from this, the Scuderia has already stated that it aims to move car development forward at every grand prix and the two F10s here in Australia will indeed sport a few minor updates, because, with the top end of the field so closely matched, one or two tenths of a second per lap can have a significant impact on the finishing order on Sunday afternoons. After the season opener, many pundits and fans complained the race was boring, but as Gestione Sportiva Team Principal Stefano Domenicali pointed out, “I would be perfectly happy with that if it means the Scuderia will finish first and second in every race!” However, on a more serious note, he added, “it is much too early to jump to conclusions and we should not react in an emotional way. We must wait and see how the races evolve throughout the season and then, the subject can be studied calmly, based on sufficient evidence.”

Relief was probably the strongest feeling among the team on the flight home from Bahrain, because although the car and drivers seemed competitive in winter testing, there are no guarantees that testing form carries through to the racing. All the same, the final result was not as straightforward as it seemed on paper and, in performance terms, the Red Bull might have had the edge, while it is clear that McLaren and Mercedes are close to the top. For Ferrari, racing in Melbourne is always a pleasure, as the team can rely on plenty of support from the crowd, partly because there is a large Italian community in the city. For real race fans, the weekend probably offers more track action than any other Grand Prix, with a whole host of support races which give the fans real value for money, creating a real buzz over the four days. As was the case last year, the weekend timetable is shifted a few hours later than usual, with qualifying and the race taking place in the early evening. This presents no specific problems, although it means Sunday’s post-race preparation and packing has to be even more hurried than usual to meet the freight deadline, as the Malaysian Grand Prix will be only a matter of days away. However, with the race having slipped from first to second the calendar, Melbourne will be slipping gently into fall, so it should be cooler than last year and with an higher chance or rain. If that happens, it should at least address the perceived notion of boring racing!

http://www.ferrari.com/English/News/Formul..._Australia.aspx

It would be impossible to have a better start to a season than to take maximum points from the race and that’s exactly what Fernando and I managed in Bahrain. I had waited so many months for this first race, but I was excited rather than nervous about sitting on an F1 start grid for the first time since last year’s German GP. I never had any doubt about my condition, because everything I did felt exactly the same as it did before my accident. When I was fitness training, it was all going in the right direction and all the activities I did in normal life were as before. All I had in mind was to do a good job for everyone, to get a good start for the season, not to do anything silly. It’s always important to go well on the first race weekend, but in my case it was even more important, because if I had made a mistake, some people would have immediately said, “you see, he is not the same as before.” That would not have been nice because even if I had made a mistake, it was not going to be connected to my accident at all. Anyway, as it turned out, the first race weekend went very well for me and for the team: that was down to the fact we have a good car and the team did a perfect job over the weekend in Bahrain.

The only problem I had was the engine running hot during Sunday’s race. We had to manage the situation as best we could, which meant I had to run a richer fuel mixture for around thirty laps, which therefore increased consumption. As a consequence, I had to try and save fuel, changing my driving style in some areas. Now the team is working flat out to make sure this problem does not reoccur in other situations.

The Bahrain weekend confirmed what we knew from February testing, namely that there are four teams at the front, Red Bull, us, McLaren and Mercedes. We were pretty happy with our car and we did a good job in qualifying, even if Red Bull took pole, going slightly quicker. In the race, the Red Bull maybe had a slight edge on the softer tyre and we had the advantage on the harder one. In testing, the Red Bull might not have been the quickest car in terms of lap times in winter testing, but I had noticed their pace over the longer runs had been very strong, so its speed in Bahrain qualifying was not a surprise. Overall, we were very similar and that reinforces the need to try and improve our car at every race through the season. It is a very close competition between us so this development work will be more important than ever.

The race weekend threw up some interesting lessons and I would say we learned a lot about the tyres for example. There turned out to be a big difference between the two types we ran in Bahrain qualifying and also in the race, the hard was much better than the soft for us. We need to bring this knowledge to the next race, because we must work to understand the different levels of tyre degradation from one track to another. It is a factor that can affect race strategy in terms of choosing the right time to stop, or what tyre to use for which part of qualifying.

I have seen in the media some criticism that maybe the tyre rules and lack of refuelling made the Grand Prix boring to watch for the spectators, but I think it is too early to comment after just one race. However, it is true that the situation at the start of the race is that we are six to seven seconds slower than in qualifying. Running on very low fuel to get a good grid position, you have a massive amount of grip, but then, on Sunday, you have a very heavy car with absolutely no grip in the early laps. Added to this, if you are following someone closely, trying to overtake, you lose more aerodynamic downforce, so these two factors combined mean it is even harder to overtake.

On Sunday night, I flew home to Brazil to see my wife and son, because now that we are a family, it is harder for my wife to come with me to the races. It will be easier to have more time together after the Malaysian Grand Prix, as we will move back to Monaco for most of the season after then. I leave for Melbourne on Sunday, which is a very long flight, so arriving early on Tuesday means I have plenty of time to adapt to the different time zone and prepare for what I hope will be another successful race weekend.

http://www.ferrari.com/English/Scuderia/Bl...ssible-way.aspx

I've been in Australia for a couple of days already. I came directly here from Bahrain to relax a bit before the two consecutive races in Melbourne and Malaysia and now I'm ready for the season's second race. I stayed in contact with the team these days and I know that they worked hard in Maranello to get ready for the race. The one-two win in Sakhir gave us confidence and was a great result for the hard work during the winter on the track and at the works, but we can't take anything for granted. We have to stay with our feet on the ground, keeping calm and staying concentrated: in Melbourne we're starting from square one. Nothing has changed for me: there are four teams and eight drivers who can fight for victory and we have to give it our all to stay ahead of everybody else.

I like the Albert Park track. It's quite a technical circuit with some pretty interesting corners. Overtaking has never been easy and what is even more important now, like on all city circuits, is the result in the qualifying. We have to see how the tyres behave with different fuel loads and temperatures, which will be different from the ones we had during testing and in Bahrain. I think that many of us have given some hot headed comments immediately after the race in Bahrain. It's true that the race in Sakhir wasn't especially spectacular – although for us Ferraristi it was great and exciting – but it's too early to talk about changing the rules. We have to wait and see different races and check the situation, without being emotional. Something that confuses the fans is changing the rules all the time.

The weekend in Melbourne is one of my preferred ones for the atmosphere at the paddock and in the city. It's really special and it seems that everybody is following the event. There's lots of action on the track and it's good to see so many people on the grandstands. Let's hope we can provide a good show to our fans, for more great satisfaction.

http://www.ferrari.com/English/Scuderia/Bl...square-one.aspx

Sorry, but who is she and where is that photo taken?

Don't get me wrong, Schumacher for me is very special, always will be given what he has done for Ferrari, but the line in the sand needs to be made, he is racing for a competitor and needs to be treated as such, especially when his pressence could throw off our drivers as many believe happened with Kimi.

20 seconds before he sat in that table was friendly chatting with fernando, I don't see any problem at all as it is obvious michael's got lots of friends within ferrari

Cool Behind the Scenes video:

http://www.ferrari.com/English/Ferrari_TV/...946&c=Video

MS launching in the Ferrari´s hospitality (Melbourne)

MS launching in the Ferrari´s hospitality (Melbourne)

20 seconds before he sat in that table was friendly chatting with fernando, I don't see any problem at all as it is obvious michael's got lots of friends within ferrari

That's good to hear. Call me what you will, but in my opinion, on race weekends Michael is now a competitor and should keep to his own garage. After the race, no problem.
It makes me uneasy that such a brilliant competitor as him can walk freely around the Ferrari garage.

Interesting video.

Makes me remember Alonso showing Renault box at 2005
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AOzLcg4ojqg

She owns and runs the local restaurant in Maranello.....

Very clever indeed..I know its legal
but whats the point of banning gills and all aero sprouts??
Why is this allowed ....surely this will lead to some bad air behind it
Why would FIA ban a small starter hole and wont ban such a thing?

and again the wheel rims were perceived to be produce bad aero effect when the car was following.....then why is it till there?
Why cant the FIA clean it up??

First time I've watched it and I'm laughing my head off.

Cool, cachondo, Alonso.

Maranello, 25 March - Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro is pleased to announce the renewal of its technical and commercial agreement with Shell for the next five years.

“The extension of our relationship with Shell up to the end of 2015 is yet another step in the Scuderia’s plan to strengthen its long term future and is also a clear sign of continuity and the confidence placed in Ferrari by a company that is a world leader in its field,” commented Stefano Domenicali. “Shell has been with the Scuderia from the year it was established in 1929 and has played a significant role in many of our successes. Striving for excellence, a passion for competition, team work, technology transfer from track to street: these are the values we share with Shell and which characterise what is a unique partnership in the history of motor sport.”

The announcement of the renewal coincides with the 450th Formula 1 Grand Prix that the Scuderia has contested using Shell fuels and lubricants. To date, the partnership has garnered 22 world titles – 10 Constructors’ and 12 Drivers’ – along with 154 race wins.

http://www.ferrari.com/English/News/Formul...ether_2015.aspx

its ferrari

I dont know what effect those gills have, lmp cars use them on the front for downforce, well a similer thing

<yawn>

When other competitors are allowed to use their loophole solutions, its considered 'genius', but when its Ferrari, its 'favoritism', right?