Formula 1 Back in Europe

Firstly I would like to pass on my commiserations to Max Mosley after the recent loss of his oldest son, Alexander. Irrelevant of the circumstances it must be a hard time for Max and our thoughts are with him during these difficult times.

Well here we go, the F1 circus comes to Europe for the first time in 09 with this weekends Barcelona GP. The big question on everyone's mind is whether the big four of previous years can come to terms with Brawn, Toyota and Red Bull.

Mclaren seemed to be pinning the breakaway 3 last time out in Bahrain albeit their overall race pace wasn't a match for Brawn, Red Bull and Toyota. They still need more mechanical grip and one cannot believe they are not on the case for this weekend. Whilst they say upgrades have been fitted already I am sure they will find more.

Ferrari have been in the doldrums all season and only narrowly missed its worst start to a GP season with Kimi's 6th in Bahrain. They relied on the success of banning the new diffusers and once that failed they were faced with a complete rebuild. They are to introduce a new update package in Spain which will include a new wing package and of course the thing tried to ban, the new diffuser.

BMW have had a miserable start to 2009 finishing at the back in Bahrain. It is supposedly introducing a major aero update although it states its double decker diffuser won't be available for the weekend. They need a breath of fresh air from somewhere as Heiidfeld and Kubica are not happy with their lot.

Renault will also bring a new aero package to Barcelona along with all the others. After an interim diffuser in China, remember it was flown across in Falvio's jet, it expects further aero parts to be available for Spain.

So, the fight back starts albeit the first 4 races have been and gone. Brawn, Toyota and Red Bull will also be bringing improvements to their cars in Spain so it will have to be a mighty leap from the big 4 of yesteryear to put them in front.

Ross Brawn's pedigree in recent years with Ferrari proves he is a whilly old fox and since the start of the season he has proved he hasn't lost anything after his sabbatical.

We all want to see the 7 teams fighting for supremacy and at least if the big 4 narrow the gap then we are in for some thrilling races for the rest of the season. As the grid is covered by a mere 2 seconds now quali should be very interesting spectacle.

I must also mention the other teams who are sometimes forgotten. I think we all had high hopes for Williams as both Rosberg and Nakajima have the equipment to get it done but almost flatter to deceive. Toro Rosso who have the car to fight at the front albeit Bourdais, who's position is in question, doesn't match Buemi's pace, so far anyway and we are all willing Force India to show progress, not for us but for them.

The next 3 races in Spain, Monaco and Turkey will lay down the gauntlet and by Britain we should know who's got what and why. Lets hope all these bits bring the cars closer together and that we can have some great racing amongst the top teams.

Circuit de Catalunya has a track length of 2.892 miles and with 66 race laps the distance will be 190 miles. The track consists of 16 corners and as the teams do a lot of testing here they should be familiar with the intricacies of the place. There is one thing for certain, downforce is needed here in abundance for the high speed corners.

News stories of the week.

At a World Motor Sport Council meeting last week Tyre Warmers and Refuelling will be outlawed from 2010. This Green incentive will of course encourage engine builders to improve fuel economy all adding to reducing costs in the longer term. The short term cost saving will of course mean teams will not have to carry around expensive refuelling rigs.

As we all by now Mclaren escaped a race ban but have a suspended ban hanging over its head, let's hope they can now keep it clean.

Cost capping has been very much at the front of everyone's mind of late and it appears £40 million is now the target figure. This whole question is very complex and we will have to wait developments as the story roles on.

Whilst F1 doesn't like being mentioned in the same article as A1, I have to mention the achievements of Adam Carroll after winning the A1 champ. His last outing at Brands, the last of the season after Mexico was ruled out because of Swine Flue, saw him with 2 poles and 2 wins outfoxing Switzerland to land the crown. Well done Adam.

Well that's all for now and I look forward to blogging over the weekend.