Posts Tagged ‘Formula 1’

Yesterday we went to see the beautiful people in Monaco, synonymous with Formula 1 – we had a very enjoyable meeting on what was a glorious day on the Cote d’Azur – Monaco literally sparkled. It got us thinking about the pinnacle of motor sports as we walked the streets so well known from your TV sets as the scenes from some epic races over the years – who can forget Lewis Hamilton on last years rain affected skid rink.

Early days – motor racing at Brooklands, Surrey in 1907

In 1950 a world championship for drivers was introduced. The championship would be decided based on the results of seven races: the British, Swiss, Monaco, Belgium, French and Italian Grand Prix and the Indianapolis 500.

The final round at Monza would crown the first World Champion.

Nino Farina driving an Alfa Romeo won that race and the title of first World Champion.

Some of the greats from the 1980s, Senna, Prost and Mansell

FIA announces provisional 2009 Formula One calendar

Formula One racing’s governing body, the FIA, has released a provisional calendar for the 2009 world championship. The addition of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix makes for a 19-round season – one more round than in 2008.

The Australian Grand Prix will kick off proceedings on March 29, followed by Malaysia and Bahrain, before the championship heads to Europe. In a change to the traditional calendar the British Grand Prix will take place before the French race.

In another shift, the Turkish event will revert back to its more traditional August date, following this season’s earlier May slot. The championship will draw to a close in mid November with the inaugural Abu Dhabi race.

2009 FIA Formula One World Championship calendar (provisional)

• 29 March Australia
• 5 April Malaysia
• 19 April Bahrain
• 10 May Spain
• 24 May Monaco
• 7 June Canada
• 21 June Great Britain
• 28 June France
• 12 July Germany
• 26 July Hungary
• 9 August Turkey
• 23 August Europe (Valencia)
• 6 September Italy
• 13 September Belgium
• 27 September Singapore
• 11 October Japan
• 18 October China
• 1 November Brazil
• 15 November Abu Dhabi

Several rule changes will be implemented by the FIA, in a bid to cut costs due to the global financial crisis and to improve the on-track spectacle. New rules governing tyres, aerodynamics and Kinetic Energy Recovery Systems, among others, are some of the biggest changes in the Formula One regulations for several decades

And just to whet the appetite we thought we would leave you with some action, thrills and spills from the 2008 season – thanks to DaszekPL for the video. And the good news is that there is rumoured to be an US team entered for the 2010 season, headed up by Peter Windsor, an ex-Williams’ team manager, and Ken Anderson, a former F1 technical director. Well it will be good to have an American team back in the fray.

Well what a weekend for us here in the south of France – Lewis Hamilton won the Monaco Grand Prix and a little further down the coast in the St. Tropez region we have been invaded by an army of Harley Davidson’s – about 15,000 apparently!

This is the annual knees-up in this region. Every May they come here from the four corners of the world and hang out. You can’t move on the road without being surrounded by 20 or 30 of them. And they come in all shapes and sizes – the bikes and the riders!

They don’t have any videos out yet so this is an old one, but it gives you an idea of what our roads are like right now – no exaggeration!

These bikes and bikers come in from around the world.

Back to Lewis. Well, what a lad hmmm? He comes from nowhere last year and just dazzles everyone.

MONTE CARLO, Monaco – and his McLaren won the Monaco Grand Prix.

The British driver also took the overall lead in the F1 title race after his victory at the famous street circuit Sunday.

Hamilton finished 3 seconds ahead of BMW Sauber’s Robert Kubica in difficult wet conditions. Felipe Massa of Ferrari was third, followed by Mark Webber of Red Bull.

World champion Kimi Raikkonen of Ferrari finished ninth.