F1 Ð KUBICA TOPS VALENCIA TEST

  The great thing about formula one designers is no matter how tight you make the rules, someone will always find a new area to exploit. Whether it’s wings, ground effects, six wheels, twin chassis or double diffusers, there is always a next best thing. Over the decades one team and one designer was always at the forefront of innovation, and that was Lotus and Colin Chapman. They may not have always been the very first to come up with an idea but if not, they were usually the first to get it right. And so with Robert Kubica topping the times at Valencia it was perhaps appropriate that it was his black and gold “not a fag packet” Lotus sponsored Renault that debuted that next best thing.

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 When you think of Lotus and Chapman, you think of the monocoque (Lotus 25), wings (Lotus 49), ground effect (Lotus 78 & 79), the astonishing twin chassised Lotus 88. and active suspension (Lotus 99T). There were failures of course. The 88 was banned almost immediately. Four wheel drive with the Lotus 63 arrived at just the wrong time with the advent of big slicks and wings. The Pratt & Whitney gas turbine power of the 56B might have been ideal for Indy where you don’t really slow down but it was a blind alley in F1. But these were just as much an important a part of Lotus’ history of innovation as the ideas that won.

   And now the Lotus name is associated with yet another possible great idea. OK Lotus is just the sponsor of the Renault team (for now) but Colin Chapman would have been proud of their exhaust set-up that sees them exit at the front of the side pods. The idea is to have the hot gasses being forced under the whole of the underside of the car and hopefully regaining some of the lost down force that went with the now banned double diffusers. There will be many issues with the dissipation of heat within the bodywork but if this works, and Thursday’s times suggest it may well, Robert Kubica could be looking at a VERY good year.

   So who else showed well. Red Bull were up there as one now expects with Vettel topping Tuesday’s times. Ferrari, no surprise, with Alonso on top on Wednesday. McLaren where there or there-abouts but with a modified version of last years car. One with no double diffuser, no F-duct and a new movable rear wing. And Renault. Force India had a great time with all three drivers within the top eight, but again this was with last years car. Timo Glock got a Virgin into the top ten of anything since their inception but again, with last years car who knows just how much weight they weren’t running. A slow dog, after all, just doesn’t get quick.

    So who appears to have gotten it horribly wrong? Any statement from drivers or team bosses at this time of year that speak of being “unfazed by lap times” can usually be translated into “Oh fuck”. Those “oh fuck” comments have been coming largely from Mercedes and Williams who would have been hoping for at least one reasonable lap time between them.

  Williams are possibly better placed than the silver slings as on the final day rookie Pastor Maldonado showed that it’s not just cash he brings when he set the teams best time of the test. Rubens had been hampered with “issues” over the first two days so perhaps Williams is heading in the right direction. Mercedes however, was constantly mired in the lower midfield. Neither Rosberg nor the unter-ubermensch every got any closer than at least one point three seconds to the quick guys. Still they may have been running with heavy fuel loads the whole time. Then again… “unfazed by lap times”… “Oh fuck”.

 For full times go to;

 http://www.mmmsport.com.au/index.php?option=com_docman&task=cat_view&gid=149&Itemid=38 

Sam Snape 

05-02-2011