Formula One
Official confirmation has been given of Pedro de la Rosa’s appointment as Nick Heidfeld’s replacement at Pirelli. The Italian tyre maker welcomed the Spanish F1 driver to its team at a press conference in Istanbul held to mark half a century of Pirelli’s presence in Turkey, the location where all Formula One, GP2 and GP3 tyres for the 2011 season will be produced.
While Fernando Alonso’s win for Ferrari makes the Spanish former-champion the man to watch in the last few races of the season, Mark Webber’s third place at the Singapore Grand Prix, which helped him open up an 11-point gap at the top of the Drivers Championship, was eye-catching for tyre-based reasons, as Bridgestone Motorsport Tyre Development director Hirohide Hamashima explained: “Mark showed the durability of the medium compound by completing almost all of the race distance on the same set of tyres. Not only did Mark’s tyres continue to deliver strong performance, but they also withstood the contact with Lewis [Hamilton]. In this contact the front right tyre sidewall was pushed out of alignment with the rim, yet it retained its inner pressure for the rest of the race. We can say that this tyre displayed true Japanese grit today.”
It is possible that F1 driver Nick Heidfeld may develop a swagger after hearing his tyre testing role at Pirelli has been filled by not one, but two drivers. In mid-September Pirelli announced the hiring of former Renault F1 driver Romain Grosjean to carry out evaluation work on Pirelli’s Formula One tyres ahead of its 2011 debut as sole tyre supplier, and the Italian tyre maker has followed this up by adding Pedro de la Rosa – the driver whose berth Heidfeld has taken at Sauber Motorsport – to its testing programme.
On September 23 Pirelli officially inaugurated what it calls the “Factory of Champions” at its plant in Izmit, Turkey, where the company will produce tyres for all Formula One teams during the 2011 to 2013 seasons. The inauguration served as a double celebration for Pirelli, as 2010 marks the 50th anniversary of the Izmit facility’s opening and the Italian tyre maker’s operations in Turkey.
Following his short-notice replacement of Nick Heidfeld as Pirelli’s Formula One test driver for this week at Monza, Romain Grosjean is keen to extend the deal for the remainder of the season. He told Auto Hebdo that the decision on his future with the Italian manufacturer beyond the Monza tests remained pending, though the Franco-Swiss said, “a decision will have to be taken quickly… another test will begin again the following week. I hope to be with it until the end.
Bridgestone Motorsport will take its medium and super soft Potenza tyres to the fifteenth round of the Formula One season, the spectacular night race that is the Singapore Grand Prix on 24-26 September. The race takes place around the streets of the Marina Bay area of the city of Singapore and has provided exciting races in each of its previous two attempts. With the Drivers Championship delicately balanced between five potential champions and the less predictable track conditions offered by public roads, tyre strategy could once again provide a crucial tipping point in the direction of the podium places.
With 14 years of tyre supply soon to end, Bridgestone Europe celebrated its Formula One partnership at its final race within the region. On September 10, during the Italian Grand Prix weekend, more than 170 guests from Formula 1 racing teams, the press and Bridgestone companies attended the Paddock Club event, the centre piece of which was a question and answer session with leading F1 personalities including Bridgestone past and present champions Michael Schumacher, Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button. Racing team principals Martin Whitmarsh of Vodafone McLaren Mercedes, Ross Brawn of Mercedes GP Petronas and Stefano Domenicali of Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro joined the drivers on stage while a host of fellow team principals and senior team management also added their weight to the occasion.
Following on from two highly successful national incentives held in conjunction with Pirelli this year, Grouptyre has announced a further promotion. This latest promotion will run from October 1 and November 30 and once again aims to build retail sales through the independent sector. Tyre retailers and auto servicing businesses will be entered into a prize draw based on the number of Pirelli car, van and 4×4 tyres bought from their local Grouptyre member during the promotion period. Winners of the two top prizes will enjoy a VIP trip to Italy, including a visit to Maranello, the base for Ferrari’s GT car production and home to the Ferrari Formula One team.
When testing of Pirelli’s Formula One tyres continues in Monza next week, former Renault F1 driver Romain Grosjean will take Nick Heidfeld’s place behind the wheel of the Toyota TF109 being used for pre-season tyre development. Heidfeld has been released from his contract with Pirelli following the announcement that he will drive for Sauber Motorsport for the remainder of the 2010 season.
Autosport has reported that Pirelli’s driver for its Formula One tyre tests next week at Monza will be Romain Grosjean, a former GP2 driver. The motorsport news source says it understands Pirelli’s agreement with the Swiss covers only next week’s testing, meaning the position is – in theory at least – still up for grabs. Pedro De la Rosa, whose F1 Sauber seat Nick Heidfeld has taken over, was previously linked with the position.
Pirelli may possibly announce a new development driver for its Formula One tyre programme before the end of this week. According to itv.com, the tyre maker has confirmed that incumbent driver Nick Heidfeld’s signing with Sauber Motorsport and imminent return to F1 racing spells an end to his relationship with Pirelli. The Italian manufacturer is said to be releasing Heidfeld from his commitment, and according to the ITV website it hopes to appoint his replacement “in the forthcoming days.”
Sauber Motorsport has confirmed the signing of Pirelli F1 test driver Nick Heidfeld. The 33-year old German driver’s contract with the racing team comes into effect on September 17 and, thanking Peter Sauber for putting faith in him, Heidfeld said he was “looking forward like crazy” to racing in Formula One again from the Singapore Grand Prix onwards.
Nick Heidfeld has rejoined the ranks of racing Formula One drivers, replacing veteran Pedro De la Rosa at Sauber. Heidfeld has completed two full tests with Pirelli on the manufacturer’s new Formula One tyres after leaving the Mercedes GP team and had been thought to be continuing the testing process with the 2011 tyre supplier, but according to reports on the BBC’s website, he has “extricated himself from those commitments”. Sauber’s principal Peter Sauber has not commented on why De la Rosa left, or the signing of Heidfeld.
The technical battle between Fernando Alonso – who kept open his Drivers Championship hopes – and Jenson Button provided the entertainment at Monza as the Spaniard’s set-up prevailed. Monza is renowned for its high speeds, but despite some blistering, tyre manufacturer Bridgestone waved goodbye to European Formula One with typically resilient performance. Alonso used a soft-hard tyre strategy to beat Button who took the lead from the pole-positioned Ferrari at the start of the race. Alonso retook the lead in the pit stops to lead the reigning champion across the finish line by 2.9 seconds. Ferrari’s other driver Felipe Massa finished third, 1.2 seconds behind Button.
Bridgestone is to supply its Potenza tyres to Formula One for the final time in Europe this weekend, when the 2010 season enters its final four races with a trip to Monza. The Italian Grand Prix offers the challenge of one of the highest top speeds, with long straights bringing low downforce configurations into play, thus putting greater mechanical stress on the tyres. The tyre supplier is bringing its hard and soft compounds to the track for what its Motorsport director Hiroshi Yasukawa says will be “a very emotional… race for us”.
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