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Force India Formula One Team Launches New Car For The F1 Season - VJM01

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2008 World Championship Car with new livery unveiled ahead of the season’s first GP

The Force India Formula One Team today launched its 2008 FIA Formula One World Championship Car and unveiled its new livery against the backdrop of the historic Gateway of India in Mumbai. Force India presented its new challenger, the VJM01, in its striking new livery of gold, tungsten and white.

The global launch of the 2008 Formula One Challenger Car was attended by several eminent personalities, political leaders and a bevy of celebrities and corporate head honchos along with the leadership team of Force India.

Commenting on the launch of the new Formula One Team Car, Dr. Vijay Mallya, Chairman and Managing Director, Force India Formula One Team Limited said, “I am delighted to present before you the livery of the brand new car that will compete in the 2008 FIA Formula One World Championship. Today is a memorable day not only for me as the owner of India’s first-ever Formula One team, but also for millions of Indians who can today watch India occupy a place of pride as Force India becomes the first and only Indian Formula One racing team to compete with the best in the world, at the pinnacle of motorsport.”

“The Force India Formula One Team is one of the only eleven elite teams guaranteed an entry into the FIA Formula One World Championship Races. The Force India Formula One Team is the new global face of an emerging superpower and is today increasingly viewed as a Team that will change the dynamics of Formula One, bottom up and a Team that dares to dream. Most importantly, the Force India Formula One Team has come to epitomize the dream of every Indian and is powered by the passion of a billion hearts!”, added Dr. Mallya.

The VJM01 will run for the first time at the next test in Barcelona from 25 – 27 February 2008.

The Force India Formula One Team marks India’s first truly global sports foray and embodies all the values that make India a formidable force in the modern world: grit and determination, youth, dynamism and most importantly an unmatched sense of passion.

The management at the newly formed Force India Formula One Team has firmly put down pillars on which the vision would be achieved. Key amongst these would be the commitment to constant innovation and technological progress, continuous commitment of resources and creation of robust infrastructure to support grass root development of the sport and the team. The Force India Formula One Team today has the benefit of the rich experience and best-in-class management from the world of Formula One.

The Force India Formula One Team will be taking key initiatives that will have the force of a billion hearts cheering the pride of India as it races across the globe during the 2008 season. In line with the same, an aggressive marketing campaign has been unleashed which also features websites, www.forceindiaf1.com and Club Force, the team’s official community networking platform.

Based in Silverstone, England, a stone’s throw from the famous circuit that hosted the first ever Formula One World Championship race, the Force India Formula One Team has evolved from the iconic Jordan Grand Prix team and the recent Spyker Team. The Team is now a finely tuned, state-of-the-art Formula One entity, ready to challenge some of the automotive industries’ greatest brands for track victory. The team boasts a total tally of 4 race wins and 19 podium places gained since its inception in 1991.

source: www.forceindiaf1.com

First pictures of the Force India VJM01!


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Source for pic: F1 Fanatic

Schumacher becomes a team owner

Seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher has become a team owner, after setting up a karting team that will compete in the German championship.

The team will be known as KSM Motosport, and will be run by Schumacher as well as co-owners and friends Peter Kaiser and Thomas Muchov.

"I still drive karts with a passion, I grew up with them," Schumacher was quoted as saying by Gazzetta dello Sport. "I owe everything to karting and I never gave it up.

"Even when I was still a boy, and F1 was still very far away, I thought that one day I would have worked in karting. A team together with my friends, that's exactly what I had imagined."

One of the team's drivers will be Carlos Sainz Jr., the son of two-time world rally champion Carlos Sainz.

Written by: Michele Lostia and Pablo Elizalde


Some pictures of schumi testing:

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Spain could lose F1 races due to racist taunting of Lewis Hamilton over weekend!

Associated Press

Updated: February 4, 2008, 2:35 PM ET

MADRID, Spain -- Spain could lose both its Formula One races following the racist taunting of driver Lewis Hamilton by spectators.

The sport's ruling body said Monday the abuse aimed at F1's first black driver during weekend testing at the Barcelona circuit might result in sanctions. Punishment could lead to the removal of two races from the Grand Prix calendar -- the Spanish Grand Prix on April 27 in Barcelona and the European GP on Aug. 24 at Valencia.

FIA, the governing organization, said it will write to Spanish authorities to learn what happened before making a decision.

"Formula One is a global, multicultural sport," FIA said. "It does not have scenes like this in its history and doesn't want to see scenes like this."

Hamilton finished second in the drivers' championship last year in his rookie season. Spectators gestured and shouted racist abuse at the 23-year-old driver when he moved between the McLaren motor home and the team's garage at the Montmelo circuit on Saturday.

A group of spectators wore wigs, dark makeup and T-shirts with the words "Hamilton's Family" scrawled on them. The circuit said Monday it may take legal action against spectators involved in the racist taunts.

"The truth is that I feel somewhat sad, I am in love with this country, and especially the city of Barcelona and this circuit, which is one of my three favorites," Hamilton told sportlifepress.com. "The people in Spain have always been very warm with me, and even though I imagined what might happen it has not been pleasant."

Last season, Fernando Alonso of Spain failed to clinch a third straight championship after he joined McLaren from Renault. Alonso finished third in the drivers' standings, while rookie teammate Hamilton was second behind winner Kimi Raikkonen of Ferrari. Alonso rejoined Renault this season.

"I would like them (the Spanish fans) to understand my position," Hamilton said. "The only thing that I have done is to try to give the best of myself and try to win the championship. At no point have I tried to deliberately prejudice Fernando, but the fight has been very tough and my image in Spain has been severely damaged."

McLaren said "everyone connected with the team regards Spain and the Spanish people with great affection, Lewis included."

British Sports Minister Gerry Sutcliffe condemned the "sickening" conduct and said he would write to his Spanish counterpart to express concern.

"This is not the first time British sportsmen have been racially abused in Spain," he said. "This brings in question whether the Grand Prix should be held at this track."

The Spanish motor sports federation added: "These idiots that are confusing sporting rivalry with violence should be aware that the federation has a zero-tolerance approach to this issue."

Sunday's testing was incident free, with Hamilton stopping to sign autographs for fans and pose for pictures. Circuit director Ramon Praderas said greater security was planned for the Spanish Grand Prix.

In 2004, England soccer players were subjected to racist abuse during an exhibition game in Madrid, days after national coach Luis Aragones made a racist remark about then-Arsenal striker Thierry Henry. In 2005, FC Barcelona's Samuel Eto'o attempted to leave the field after being subjected to monkey noises by Zaragoza fans.

Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press

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Insults against Hamilton, racial element

FIA warns of sanctions over racial abuse

By Jonathan Noble Sunday, February 3rd 2008, 19:01 GMT

The FIA will not tolerate a repeat of the racial abuse directed at Lewis Hamilton by Spanish fans at Barcelona this weekend, after it warned of 'sanctions' being taken if the matter is not dealt with.

Hamilton and his McLaren team found themselves on the receiving end of jeers and insults throughout the test at the Circuit de Catalunya as Spanish fans vented their feelings against them in public.

Reports in the Spanish papers suggested that some of the insults against Hamilton even had a racial element - with Marca claiming that shouts of "puto negro" (fucking black) and "negro de mierda" (black shit) were clearly heard, and that large sections of the crowd were involved.

Spanish fans believe that Fernando Alonso was treated unfairly by McLaren last year when he raced alongside Hamilton.

Circuit de Catalunya officials tried their best to respond to the situation, by putting fences up around the McLaren area in the paddock and removing abusive banners from the grandstands. Extra security guards were also put in place in the grandstands to deal with the fans.

But the FIA has made it clear that it is still unhappy with the events of the weekend, and warned that action will be taken if there is a repeat of the racial abuse in the future.

An FIA spokesman told autosport.com: "The FIA is surprised and disappointed at the abuse directed at Lewis Hamilton.

"Abuse of this kind is a clear breach of the principles enshrined in the FIA statutes and any repetition will result in serious sanctions."

The FIA's intolerance of racism is enshrined in its Statutes, with Article 1 stating: "The FIA shall refrain from manifesting racial, political or religious discrimination in the course of its activities and from taking any action in this respect."

Although there has been no official clarification of what sort of sanctions could be taken by the FIA, autosport.com understands that it may extend as far as stripping the Circuit de Catalunya of its Grand Prix.

It will now be up to Barcelona track officials to ensure that a response is taken to guarantee no repeat of the events at either tests or the Spanish Grand Prix in April.

The Circuit de Catalunya currently has a deal to host the Spanish Grand Prix until 2016, having extended its contract with F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone last year.

Moreover, repeats of such abuse at other Spanish test tracks - including Valencia and Jerez, where the Formula One teams test repeatedly prior to the season's start - could even lead to sanctions against the Spanish motorsport authorities overall.

Speaking about the situation on Saturday, a McLaren spokesman pointed out the team's respect for Spain.

"McLaren has raced and tested on Spanish circuits for many years and everyone connected with the team regards Spain and the Spanish people with great affection, Lewis included," the spokesman said.

Pictures

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Alonso, Briatore F1 R28

PARIS - Even Renault agrees: its 2007 Formula One car was a lemon.

The French team hopes that will change this year with the return of two-time F1 world champion Fernando Alonso and its new R28 car that it launched Thursday.

Alonso is happy to be back with Renault after a turbulent season with McLaren, but conceded they will mostly be chasing podium places as it will be difficult to close the gap on Ferrari and McLaren.

"We have to be realistic," the Spaniard said. "If we can win races, that will be a dream come true."

Renault won back-to-back drivers' championships with Alonso in 2005 and '06, but technical director Bob Bell said it was obvious early that the 2007 car was poor so they focused on the 2008 version.

"Our car was pretty much undriveable," Renault team managing director Flavio Briatore said.

Alonso said testing on the new car had been on ensuring it was free of design faults, and that the focus will be on performance in February before the March 16 start to the season at the Australian Grand Prix.

"We need to recover a gap of maybe one second," Alonso said. "Step by step, we really hope to close the gap."

Bell said Alonso had provided "invaluable" input as they fine-tune the new model.

Briatore didn't want to be drawn on Alonso's troubled year at McLaren, saying it wasn't his business, but described the Spaniard as "more mature" than in the past and "very focused."

McLaren released Alonso one year into a three-year deal due to feuds with teammate Lewis Hamilton.

"He's come home," Briatore said of Alonso. "To have him back is fantastic."

Renault No. 2 driver Nelson Piquet Jr. said the team can win the drivers' championship again.

"If they did it once, they can do it again," Piquet said.

And here are some pictures/wallpapers

F1 Renault R28

Renault officially unveiled the new R28 in Paris on Thursday. Here are the car's stats.

ChassisChassis: Moulded carbon fibre and aluminium honeycomb composite monocoque, manufactured by the Renault F1 Team and designed for maximum strength and stiffness with minimum weight.
RS27 V8 engine installed as a fully-stressed member.
Front suspension: Carbon fibre top and bottom wishbones operate an inboard rocker via a pushrod system. This is connected to a torsion bar and damper units which are mounted at the front of the monocoque. Zero-keel design for front suspension mounting in order to optimise front end aerodynamic performance.Rear suspension: Carbon fibre top and bottom wishbones operating vertically-mounted torsion bars and horizontally-mounted damper units mounted on the top of the gearbox casing.
Transmission: Seven-speed semi-automatic titanium gearbox with one reverse gear. "Quickshift" system in operation to maximise speed of gearshifts.
Fuel system: Kevlar-reinforced rubber fuel cell by ATL.
Cooling system: Separate oil and water radiators located in the car's sidepods and cooled using airflow from the car's forward motionElectrical: MES-Microsoft standard Electronic Control Unit.
Braking system: Carbon discs and pads (Hitco); calipers by AP Racing.Cockpit: Removable driver's seat made of anatomically formed carbon composite, with six-point harness seat belt. Steering wheel integrates gear change and clutch paddles.

Car Dimensions & Weight
Front: track 1450 mm
Rear: track 1400 mm
Overall length: 4800 mm
Overall height: 950 mm
Overall width: 1800 mm
Overall weight: 605 kg, with driver, camera and ballast

Engine
Renault F1 RS27Capacity: 2400 cc
Architecture: 90° V8
Weight: 95 kgMax rpm: 19,000 rpm
Spark plugs: Champion
ECU: MES SECU
Fuel: Elf
Oil: Elf
Battery: Renault F1 Team


And now some new high resolution pictures of Renault R28:


Pictures/wallpapers