Alvin's Formula One Blog

This rumour has been going on for some time and it's a delicious rumour for many people, I must admit. Especially the press who'd love to plaster their front pages with pictures and the news. And Alonso would love to drive a Ferrari as it's a competitive car to fight for his 3rd title and get back at Lewis and McLaren. I've dreaded this possibility for some time as I don't want to see Alonso in a competitive car. He's such a spoilt brat. But the latest rumours about it seems to carry some weight . I almost jumped out of my skin when I suddenly thought about the partner he will get should he move to Ferrari - Massa. These two have no love lost between them. It was very obvious last year when they raced side by side at Nurburgring if I'm not mistaken, where Alonso won and Massa finished 2nd. They were reportedly swearing at each other (especially Massa) in the changing room. This would work well for Lewis if it happens as Alonso and Massa will keep each other ...

Monday 22nd December 2008 Lewis Hamilton believes there is still plenty of room for improvement after winning the World Championship in only his second season in Formula One. Hamilton became the youngest ever F1 World Champion last month when he pipped Ferrari's Felipe Massa by just one point, and the Briton believes he can get even better. "I've won the Championship in my second year, but there is a lot more to come," Hamilton said on ITV's season-highlights show. "I can do better, I can be fitter, I can be sharper, I can make less mistakes... I've analysed everything that's happened this season, the positives and the negatives, and I've turned some of the negatives into positives. I'm enjoying the present and I really look forward to the future." The 23-year-old admits the pressure is off now that he has collected his maiden title. "I feel less pressure. I don...

Sunday 21st December 2008 Instead of being a time of peace on earth and goodwill to all men, the struggle for power and control at the head of F1 has intensified this Christmas with Bernie's latest salvo against Ferrari. Following an extensive press briefing by Ferrari chief Luca Montezemolo at Maranello suggesting that Bernie's time in charge is coming to an end and that the (for now) unanimous Formula One Team's Association, FOTA, is in the ascendancy, Bernie has struck back. Montezemolo, who also speaks for FOTA, is unhappy about a number of moves by Ecclestone and there are signs that FOTA are prepared to back up there grumbles with future action. The big thing, of course, is money. But there are other issues, too... "In terms of revenue, we want to know more about them," said Montezemolo earlier this week. "Theoretically, like in other professional sports, like basketball in the USA, we can...

Friday 19th December 2008 McLaren are the world's favourite Formula One team and 2008 World Champion Lewis Hamilton is the world's favourite driver, according to a survey. The ING/F1 Racing Formula 1 survey polled nearly 70 000 fans in order to track the profiles, viewing habits and preferences of the average F1 fan. When asked to name their favourite driver, the fans' verdict was overwhelming: Hamilton gained a massive 27 per cent of the votes. Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen was second with 17 per cent while Fernando Alonso picked up 12 per cent of the votes with Felipe Massa taking nine per cent. "I think the standard of drivers currently racing in Formula One is higher than it's been for years so I'm humbled to have earned the fans' support," Hamilton is quoted on the McLaren website. "Drivers like Kimi, Felipe, Fernando, Robert and myself have made the battles at the front prob...

Wednesday 17th December 2008 Winning back-to-back World Championships are always difficult, but Lewis Hamilton feels he will have an even bigger handicap next season following the introduction of several cost-cutting measures. Besides the new aero rules, introduction of KERS and the return of slicks, the FIA last week announced additional changes to Formula One for 2009 in an attempt to dramatically slash costs. Hamilton, who won the title by the narrowest of margins this year, admits the changes will make it a lot tougher to retain his Drivers' Championship crown next season. "I don't think it will make it easier," the McLaren driver is quoted by The Associated Press . "With the new regulations it's going to make it very tough to win the Championship again." The FIA was forced to announce the dramatic changes following Honda's withdrawal from F1 due to the global economic crisis. Th...

And lets keep it that way! We wouldn't want Lewis to go to Ferrari anyway. Thursday 18th December 2008 Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo has claimed that he wouldn't sign Lewis Hamilton if the World Champion was offered to his team. In a set of remarks that are bound to be interpreted as a psychological ploy to unsettle Hamilton and boost the confidence of Kimi Raikkonen and Felipe Massa, Di Montezemolo insisted that signing Hamilton would not improve his team. "Lewis Hamilton? Let's make this clear: he's a great driver, able to get within a whisker of the title in his first year in F1 and winning it on his second," Di Montezemolo told The Daily Telegraph. "However, with all due respect, I wouldn't change him with Felipe Massa." "Kimi Raikkonen came to Ferrari and won the title. If Massa didn't win it this year it's our fault. It would have been normal for him to win...

Saturday 13th December 2008 "I'm number one," proclaimed new Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton after finally collecting his title trophy. Hamilton has had to wait almost six weeks to get his hands on the silverware following a thrilling conclusion to the 2008 F1 season in Brazil. It was on November 2 that the 23-year-old clinched his maiden world championship, claiming the title on the penultimate lap of the final race of the season at Interlagos, pipping Ferrari's Felipe Massa by just a single point. It was arguably the most dramatic conclusion to a world championship since the inaugural season back in 1950. The denouement to a campaign that started on Hamilton's 23rd birthday on January 7 with the launch of the McLaren car that propelled him to glory unfolded in front of 585 specially-invited guests at the FIA Gala Dinner in Monte Carlo. An hour long presentation heralded the champions in karting, regional rally, European rally c...

Friday 12th December 2008 Bernie Ecclestone - changes to F1. Motor sport's world governing body, the FIA, in conjunction with the Formula One teams on Friday announced a raft of proposals in a bid to cut escalating costs. Following a meeting of the World Motor Sport Council in Monte Carlo the key components of the changes will see savings on engine costs, a ban on in-season testing outside GP weekends and a reduction in staff numbers. Engines will be available to the independent teams from 2010 for less than £4.5million per team per season, supplied by an independent supplier or a manufacturer backed by guarantees of continuity. There will be no in-season testing from next year except during a race weekend and during scheduled practice. The teams have also agreed manpower will be reduced by means of a number of measures, including sharing information on tyres and fuel to eliminate the need for 'spotters...

Saturday 13th December 2008 FIA president Max Mosley believes Formula One has taken its first step towards salvation by introducing a raft of ideas designed to save over a billion pounds per season. Drastic action has been forced upon the sport in the wake of the global economic crisis which last Friday sparked Honda's shock withdrawal. Just seven days ago there were heightened fears for the entire future of Formula One. But drastic times call for drastic measures, and Mosley, uniting with the Formula One Teams' Association (FOTA), are to implement a wide range of cost cuts from next year. Mosley anticipates the changes for 2009 will save the manufacturer teams approximately 30% of their budgets compared to this year, whilst the savings will be even greater for the independents. As from 2010, when more stringent changes will be enforced, Mosley expects teams to be on budgets of less than half their current spend. Ul...

Sunday 7th December 2008 For a motorsport season that saved its biggest drama for the final seconds of the final race, the announcement that Honda are quitting F1 saved the biggest surprise till last. On Friday they announced that they were dramatically scaling back their F1 activities till March of next year, after which they hope to have found a buyer for the team. With global car sales suddenly falling off a cliff the world over, should it have been such a shock? Honda sales are down and they are shutting their massive Swindon factory for February and March of next year. BMW sales are down 25% year-on-year and that's only going to get worse. And FIA President Max Mosley has been banging on for years that unless F1 cuts its costs manufacturers are going to leave. In a way he's right and in a way he's wrong. Even Honda didn't see this one coming and the company's reaction was a management firefighting decision and an ...

Thursday 4th December 2008 Double World Champion Mika Hakkinen believes Lewis Hamilton has the talent and time to become the best grand prix driver Britain has ever produced. Hakkinen, who won his titles in 1998 and 1999, has been impressed with Hamilton's ability to cope under pressure despite making high-profile mistakes on his way to becoming the youngest ever F1 World Champion this year. The Finn said: "He can be the best England has seen because he is a young guy and he has plenty of time to make this his goal. "He is in a great team and has good commitment to it, so I don't see any problems there. "He has a fantastic fitness programme and will have the energy for many, many years to maximise his performance. So I don't see any reason why he can't be the most successful. "He is only in his second year of Formula One and it is a very high-pressure environment. It is normal that m...

Tuesday 2nd December 2008 Lewis Hamilton has already started preparations for the defence of his Formula One World title - in icy isolation in Finland. Hamilton, who became the youngest World Champion in F1 history just four weeks ago, is currently in the middle of a week-long intensive training camp. The 23-year-old is being tested to the limit at the Kuortane Sports Institute in western Finland, a rigorous regime that has become an annual event on the team's calendar for drivers and staff in recent years. "Travelling to Finland for our winter training camp is one of the best weeks of the year for me," insisted Hamilton. "It feels like you're miles from anywhere and totally cut off from the outside world, which allows me to focus solely on my training, which is great. "It's certainly not an easy week as Finland in the winter is cold and icy, and we're pushed hard for day after day....