Thursday, 23 February 2012 00:20

Italian manufacturer Dallara revealed its 2012 Formula 3 car, the new chassis dubbed as F312. Cost-cutting is the key part of  technical regulations in any form of motorsports. Dallara said that their new car will cost as much as same to the present 2011 car. The major change in the technical regulation deals with clean body shape similar to Formula one cars.

This reg will help drivers to tuck-in behind the leading car more comfortably and can have more slip stream out of it. Overtaking has been a vital factor and this reg will reduce turbulent airflow between the drivers, helpful for more overtaking opportunities.

This would compromise the downforce because no more barge boards, flick-ups and bodyworks around different volumes of the car. Dallara are trying hard to recover the lost 16% downforce due to this regulation. The 2012 car will look more or less similar to Formula one car with higher monocoque and lower nose section.

Dallara spent around 800 hours of wind tunnel testing to work on the new car to recover the lost downforce. They stripped away the restricted bits and pieces from the current car and started their work on it to see the effect. The 2012 season looks set to be a monopoly with only Dallara involved. There was talks that involved Mygale as a potential rival to Dallara but it seems unlikely now. Dome and Lola are showing interest for 2013.

The gearbox should be a Hewland made one which is a homologated regulation for 2012. The front dampers and springs are stuffed inside the tub instead of placing on top of it. There were also efforts to stiffen the rear suspension of the car to make the car comfortable in corners which experience around 3.5G in corners. The first F312 will be delivered to the customers as early as December.

Thursday, 23 February 2012 00:20

A motorsport fan who'd follow every bits of racing would never forget this week. It all started when i woke up on monday and found the saddest news that could possibly get in to my ears. I read Dan Wheldon was died in a horrific crash at the Las Vegas speedway. 15 car pile-up during lap13 in turn2 lead Wheldon air bourne and his car smashed on to the catch fence, he sustained severe head injuries and announced dead.

Wheldon was airlifted from the Las Vegas track at 1:19 p.m. local time Sunday and taken to University Medical Center, becoming the first IndyCar driver to die on the track since rookie Paul Dana was killed in practice on the morning of race day at Homestead-Miami Speedway in 2006.

Wheldon, 33 was so good in Indy 500 event which he won twice including this year and 2005 ,he was runner-up twice there and he was also the 2005 series champion. The Briton's death shook the whole racing world. Sam schmidt could close his Indy car team following Dan's death "I'd by lying if I said I wasn't, but you've got to think about it," Schmidt, who was paralysed in an IndyCar crash at Walt Disney World Speedway in 2000, said.

The former F1 world champion Jody Scheckter wanted his son Thomas Scheckter to quit IndyCar after Las Vegas incident. Oval tracks in Indy racing is more dangerous than it appeared to be. Oppostions from all around the world referring to the safety standards of Indy when 30 cars run 3 wide side-by-side at 220MPH in a 1.5km straight high bank track which resulted in a fatality was enormous.

In a phone interview with the St. Petersburg Times last week, Wheldon spoke well of the 2012 car, which he had tested extensively and which he said was "30 percent safer" than the cars which IndyCar has used, with modifications, since 2003. The series was also a major part of developing the SAFER (Steel and Foam Energy Reduction) barrier which Wheldon hit Sunday. Dan ran out of luck!!

It remembered me of Ayrton Senna's death at Imola, the last fatality in F1. Indy car series CEO Randy Bernard should take this issue seriously because they got new manufacturers and relatively a whole new car for 2012. After all we lost a great driver of our time,  R.I.P Dan,  u will always be remembered. 5 lap parade tribute was paved to Wheldon on the same day. Dallara's 2012 IndyCar chassis will be named in honour of Dan Wheldon,  the Italian racing car constructor has confirmed.

Former FIA president Max Mosley said the governing body should look in to the possibility of cockpit canopies in Formula One, but that it "needs careful investigation". FIA will assist IndyCar in the investigation in to the crash that claimed the life of Dan Wheldon. Any findings could impact on Formula One, with the dangers of open cockpits highlighted in 2009 when Felipe Massa suffered serious injury after being struck by a loose spring from Barrichello's BrawnGP car during qualifying for the Hungarian Grand Prix.

Love you and miss you, goodbye Dan !!!!!

Thursday, 23 February 2012 00:20

Next season will bring in a new tyre rule and a new point system
As Formula OneTM strongest feeder category, GP2 SeriesTM main goal has always been to best prepare young drivers who aspire to the pinnacle of motorsport. Since its inception, the Series has followed the changes that have happened in F1, and judged if they could be adapted to GP2 always keeping in line with the main objective of the Series: driver training for the final step of the ladder.

Therefore, in 2012 the GP2 SeriesTM will add two new sporting regulations, one which will impact the race strategy and test the driving skills of the racers: a new tyre rule. Just like in Formula OneTM, teams and drivers will have at their disposal two different types of dry compounds to use during a race weekend. The total of four sets of Pirelli P Zero tyres will comprise three sets of prime (harder compound) and one set of option (softer compound). As always, the teams and drivers will have to keep one set of prime for the Sunday Sprint Race. Therefore, they will be able to choose between the remaining two sets of prime and the one set of option to use either during Free Practice, Qualifying session and/or Feature Race. There will be a colour code for the different compounds. Finally, in the Saturday Race, there will still be a compulsory pit-stop in which a minimum of two tyres must be changed.

GP2 Series Bruno Michel stated: “The new tyre rule offers a fantastic opportunity to the drivers. Our Series’ main goal has always been to prepare them to Formula OneTM and so far we have been very successful at it. More than ever, tyre management is key to how quickly young drivers can adapt to the pinnacle of motorsport. However, although we will introduce a second compound, we have decided to keep only four sets of tyres per race weekend in order to control the costs. It will be interesting to watch as our teams will put in place the best possible strategy. It will add even more suspense, but it will also make tyre management all the more delicate. We’re very happy that Pirelli will help us achieve that.”

Pirelli’s Racing Manager Mario Isola commented: “Since we became sole tyre supplier to the GP2 SeriesTM, we have always been very keen to work in close contact with the organisers and meet their requests. We are already supplying an improved version of our P Zero GP2 hard compound rubber for this year’s GP2 post-season tests. This is a product with enhanced performance features, which will probably be seen on track starting from next season when the series will have new tyre rules. Having two different compounds available for each event in 2012 will certainly spice up the action and narrow the gap between Formula One and its feeder series, as the focus will not only be on tyre management skills but also on making the right tyre choice and planning race strategy accordingly. We are very satisfied with how our P Zero GP2 tyres performed during the 2011 season and we are glad to have significantly contributed to increasing the spectacle of the races. I feel confident that our P Zero tyres combined with the new tyre rules will make the GP2 races even more interesting to watch next season.”

2012 novelty in GP2 and GP3 SeriesTM

The 2012 season will also see GP2 and GP3 SeriesTM alike adopt the same point system as the one used in Formula OneTM. Therefore, the Saturday Race of both Series will award points to the Top 10 finishers (25, 18, 15, 12, 10, 8, 6, 4, 2, 1 points allocated). However, only the Top 8 will be reversed for the Sunday Race grid, and the Top 8 finishers will score points (15, 12, 10, 8, 6, 4, 2, 1 points allocated). There will be four points allocated for pole position and two bonus points in each race for fastest lap.