The videogame makers Codemasters are the proud owners of Formula 1 licensing. So with the approval of Bernie Ecclestone the game developers are teasing the public with this trailer for their latest racing creation. Although the video reveals almost nothing about the game, it made me anctious to run out and buy a Nintendo Wii. But not to worry it apears that Codemasters will also be bringing Formula 1 action to the PSP portable gaming device later on this year, and shortly after on the PS3, Xbox and PC platforms.
Imagine earning a living as an automotive journalist. Eating, breathing and sleeping cars. It must be pretty embarrassing then to lose your lunch during the opportunity of a lifetime. Retired Formula 1 world Champion Damon Hill couldn’t resist pushing the previous generation SL55 AMG until his passenger tossed his proverbial cookies.
This is just a reminder that the 2009 Formula 1 season is just around the corner. So to get up to speed with all the new rule changes just watch this video from Red Bull racing that does an excellent job of being both educational and entertaining.
The FIA is certainly looking to make the 2009 Formula 1 season an interesting one. The cars are now hybrids, they will have moving aerodynamic devices and there has even been talk of publishing the total weights of the cars sitting on the starting grid. Bernie Ecclestone, president of Formula 1, would also like to see some changes outside of the cars as well.
Bernie’s latest bright idea is to replace the championship point system with an Olympic style gold, silver and bronze medal for the top three finishers at every race. Under this system it would be the winningest driver, simply the person with the most victories, who is ensured to be crowned world champion.
A study performed by the FIA found that this system would have changed the outcome in 13 of the 59 world championships. There would be three new champions: Moss, Pironi and Massa. Lewis would not have made the cut. Mario Andretti would be a two time champion and Ayrton Senna
would have taken the title in 1989. Most interesting is that “Brabham under the ownership of Bernie Ecclestone would have won no Drivers’ Championships.”
Over the last week we’ve seen Ferrari, McLaren and Renault sounding off about their new F1 cars, and now BMW is chiming in with its 2009 racer.
BMW Sauber F1 Team revealed today the F1.09 Formula 1 car today in Valencia, Spain. For those who think all F1 cars look alike, the 2009 car has implicated a few changes including a higher nose, three-part front wing and a slimmer rear wing. The racer also has add-ons, such as air deflectors and cooling air exits. Other eye-catching features include the sidepods, which are now higher at the front.
Like the rest of the 2009 F1 cars, the F1.09 has integrated the kinetic energy recovery system (KERS) for added power. Let’s just hope it was perfected from when it was tested this summer.
Full specs on the car in the press release after the jump.
Better than most of your Christmas presents, tis’ the season for new F1 cars. Last week the Ferrari F60 and McLaren MP4-24 were unveiled, and now Renault has brought out its newest track car.
Like the rest of the field, the Renault F1 team will be adding the kinetic energy recovery system (KERS) to its new R29 F1 car. According to Renault, R29 will also will benefit from additional horsepower which was lost when the team took the engine freeze rules more seriously than the opposition. This meant that the cars had to run with less downforce at most of the races and, according to Renault, made the cars less competitive.
Not to be outdone by the Ferrari F60, McLaren revealed its new Vodafone McLaren Mercedes MP4-24 Formula 1 car. The MP4-24 will start its publicly testing at the Autodromo do Algarve circuit in Portugal today.
2009 is the first year the kinetic energy recovery system (KERS) gets implemented in F1 racing. The MP4-24’s KERS device has been developed in collaboration with McLaren and Mercedes-Benz High Performance Engines. The KERS device’s output puts out 60kW/400kJ, which equals an additional 80bhp for 6.66s per lap. This is the kind of gas/electric hybrid we can get behind.
Ferrari unveiled the F60 today. While a new F1 car doesn’t always make headlines with us, this one seems to have dropped in a few nifty new features, and it celebrates an anniversary. It’s the fifty fifth single-seater built by Ferrari specifically to compete in the Formula 1 World Championship. Starting 1950 Ferrari has competed in all the 60 editions of the Formula 1 World Championship (60 years of Ferrari; F60, get it).
Ferrari has redesigned the front and rear spoilers as well as the airflow over the car for better performance on the track. 2009 will be the debut of the kinetic energy recovery system (KERS) that can sometimes provide a real shock. We won’t bore you with all the science of the improvements (or try to interpret them), but there is more information for those who are interested in the press release after the jump.
Lewis Hamilton (23 years, nine months and 26 days) became the youngest champion in Formula 1 history after winning the 2008 Formula 1 World Champion. In a dramatic Brazilian Grand Prix with rain before the start and rain short before the finish, Lewis decided the title battle at the last corner of the 71-lap race, when he overtook Timo Glock (Toyota) to secure fifth place which was enough to win the title.
It is the third drivers’ title for the McLaren Mercedes partnership after Mika Häkkinen winning the championship in 1998 and 1999. Lewis won the title with 98 points ahead of Felipe Massa (97 points) who won his home race. Vodafone McLaren Mercedes finished the Constructors’ Championship runner-up on 151 points behind Ferrari on 172 points.
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