Coton is a man who knows Formula One and will be conscious of the space a driver needs to focus on their main job, namely winning races, so will be instrumental in creating a ‘bubble’ around Hamilton, that was said to be at the root of his problems last year.

Didier Coton, who runs Sports Marketing and Event Management company Aces Management Group, takes on the task of guiding the 2008 F1 World Champion back to winning form.

Hamilton retains Simon Fuller’s XIX Entertainment to run his broader affairs, whilst the highly-experienced Didier Coton joins XIX to guide Hamilton’s racing career back to world championship winning form.

Coton said: “Being appointed by Simon to join the team is a great honour. I am excited to work alongside two such prestigious personalities and talents. XIX’s visionary approach is unique and one I believe in. I look forward to helping Lewis achieve success and developing long term projects with Simon and his team.”

Hamilton experienced a turbulent year in 2011, which was partly blamed by the media on his long-distance relationship with former Pussycat Doll Nicole Scherzinger. Neither Hamilton nor Scherzinger have ever validated this assumption, although clearly their busy schedules placed tension on their relationship, leading to the pair splitting in October last year.

Since then, the pair have been spotted at a ski resort in Vail, Colorado where they spent New Year’s Eve and earlier this week heading out for dinner in Los Angeles.

With Scherzinger’s recent departure from the judging panel of X Factor U.S., she’ll have a bit more time on her hands, so perhaps that will boost Lewis’ morale and enable him to focus on winning another championship.

If you’re an ardent F1 fan, then you’ll already have pored over all the details on autosport.com, FormulaOne.com or the main UK broadcast rivals BBC and Sky F1 Digital. For a dose of intelligent reflection from the most popular experts, pay a visit to James Allen on F1, Joe Saward and F1 Pit Reporter for SPEED channel, Will Buxton.

If not, then it’s worth setting aside a few minutes and reading what they have to say.

The MP4-27 is the car that Vodafone McLaren Mercedes hope will deliver them back to the top of the rostrum in both the Driver’s and Constructor’s Championships, after a drubbing by Red Bull Racing in 2011 (and previously in 2010). The combination of Adrian Newey, the hottest engineer in F1 and Sebastian Vettel, the hottest driver in F1, has made a formidable opponent and McLaren are determined to fight back from the first race of the season in Melbourne.

In the following video, former World Champions Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton share their thoughts on the upcoming 2012 season, together with what drives them and their team in their pursuit for success. In addition. McLaren MD Jonathan Neale also provides his insight into the development of the MP4-27 and how it differs from last season’s car.

Given how early we are in the season, with only 2 cars (from Caterham F1 and McLaren) currently revealed, I was surprised to see the comment from Sky Sports’ Technical Analyst Mark Hughes that the MP4-27 represented “..nothing new” and the more asinine remark that “..McLaren are still yet to uncover the secret of Adrian Newey’s ongoing success at Red Bull.”

Hopefully such speculation is not indicative of Sky’s F1 coverage for the season ahead. As McLaren’s Team Principal Martin Whitmarsh said yesterday, even they don’t know how good a car they’ve built and won’t really know until qualifying at Melbourne. To conclude anything at this stage, especially given how much the cars will change between now and mid-March, smacks of naivety or downright link-baiting to grab prominence in the search listings.

I guess all we can say just now is the drivers looked calm and refreshed from the winter break, the engineers looked satisfied with their endeavours and the team as a whole were realistic in their aspirations for the season ahead and the amount of work they need to invest in order to beat Red Bull.

Roll on Melbourne.

Gallery

But before we steam ahead with our predictions for F1 2012, let’s take a quick look back at the season which ended just a few months ago.

2011 was a year where motor sport witnessed both triumph and tragedy. For Formula One however, it must surely be remembered as the year that the superlatives returned: Records were broken, overtaking became prolific, skirmishes intensified and the spectacle was lavish. This was vintage stuff.

The eXtra Factors

So what made 2011 so special? Firstly there was the introduction of DRS (Drag Reduction System). As the title suggests, DRS is a way of reducing the drag effect of a race car and as a consequence, increasing the top speed (thereby enabling overtaking opportunities). Driver, industry and fan opinion on its merits are mixed and emotive. Certainly, its implementation and effect at different circuits was varied but with a full season behind them, the FIA will have learned much and we must hope that they use their data wisely in making it work positively in the future.

What I do like is the benefit DRS affords drivers when they’re coming to lap slower traffic, and this doesn’t only apply to the lead cars but to the midfield as well. Some of the best racing that we saw in 2011 was for the marginal points places and to free this from the compromise of lapping has been a major plus. In an ideal world, DRS wouldn’t be required and cars would rely on mechanical grip but Formula One is about advancement and not nostalgia and in a world where aero rules, for the moment, I’ll vote for DRS, providing that it is an aid to overtaking and not a facilitator of it.

The return to Formula One by Pirelli as sole tyre provider was another significant influence on the outcome of races. Generally speaking, Pirelli played a blinder; they showed that they weren’t afraid to challenge convention and saw how they could help to create overtaking opportunities. Admittedly, there were occasions when their hard tyre appeared too conservative, probably as a consequence of it being tested on “green” circuits in a car (Toyota) that delivers less grip, but they absolutely understood the need to force teams to explore their strategies and things can only get better.

KERS (Kinetic Energy Recovery System) also continued to play an important role in overtake “assists” and is a key F1 technology that can be carried through to road car programmes. When engine regulations change in 2014, the additional horsepower, (especially under acceleration) generated from waste energy will be even more crucial and constructors will be working hard to enhance the performance, the reliability of harvesting and storage solutions.

The final elements to 2011’s star quality were the drivers themselves. We saw five former champions racing against three former GP2 champions, a further 3 former GP2 runners-up and four former GP winners. This was a grid bristling with talent and bruised with egos. We witnessed moments of genius and moments of madness; passes where passes have never been made before and emotions high, on the track and off it.

Looking ahead to 2012..

The key issue in any new season is how individual cars have been designed to take advantage of regulations. For the coming year, there are two significant changes that designer’s have to contend with; (i) the position of the exhaust exit, and (ii) engine mapping. Both are related and both became contentious during 2011 when it was observed that principally Red Bull, then others, were using mapping to generate additional down-force by creating hot exhaust gases, even when a driver is “off-throttle” (i.e. on corner approach and to apex).

By directing these gases around the diffuser, engineers were able to restrict normal air-flow and so give significantly more grip when the driver demands it most. The FIA have now made it clear that in their view, the only role of the exhaust is to expel gases and as such, it will now have to be sited in an elevated position where it can no longer be an aid. Additionally, mapping will be carefully controlled so that if a driver is off the throttle, again, no benefit can be gained.

A key aim of all teams (under the current regulations) is to maximise front-end grip whilst channelling air to the diffuser to do the same at the rear. Noses will be higher this year, side-pods more stream-lined and brake design pivotal.

Squeezing Out Sparks

Whilst some elements of design address compliance, others are required to push boundaries: In 2011, this was Red Bull territory. Not only did they perfect rear end grip but, as was evidenced at Silverstone, they also created a unique front wing which offered significantly more downforce than their rivals could generate. As McLaren boss Martin Whitmarsh quite frankly admitted, “We would like to understand it, because if you can do what they are doing legally then we would like to do it . . . And if they are doing that in a clever and legitimate way then we need to do it in that clever and legitimate way.”

McLaren weren’t the only ones keen to imitate their rivals; Ferrari too could see a way to recover at least some of their lost ground. But for all their will, as we witnessed in India, the excessive flex and showering sparks from Massa’s end-plates demonstrated just how far ahead of the game Adrian Newey and his team are, and how far others have to travel simply to catch-up.

More from Pirelli

Removing the predictability of grip levels worked well for the spectacle of Formula One last year and so we can expect a similar approach from Pirelli for 2012, though with more defined performance attributes between individual compounds.

In all likelihood, many of the concerns over tyre durability should be answered by the removal of the off-throttle effect. If you consider the wear that drivers such as Hamilton, Vettel and Schumacher experienced, compared to, say, Kovalainen, Perez and Barrichello, those teams that were running a competent blown diffuser programme were, to an extent, compromised by excessive tyre attrition. So whatever 2011’s front-runners lost in aero-grip, they can expect to gain at least some element back through more consistent handling.

Ultimately, success in 2012 could depend most upon whoever understands how to find the optimum balance between grip and tyre wear. This will require teams to adopt a flexible approach to set-up and to think hard about the approach that they take during the Friday Free Practice sessions.

The Runners and the Riders

The almost unrivalled dominance of Sebastian Vettel, taking all but one of the first eight poles of the season was not lost on the other teams. If they had been surprised by his crowning in 2010, 2011 saw them awe-struck by his delivery. But the likes of McLaren, Ferrari and Mercedes are not in Formula One to finish second and whilst it was important to maintain their effort, it was obvious that focus had to shift to 2012. Only time will tell if they have played themselves back into contention but one thing is for sure, the new season of Formula One will be anything other than boring.

Red Bull

Sebastian Vettel, Mark Webber

This is going to be a challenging year for Red Bull. Some will say that when you’re at the top, there really is only one way to go, but Formula One is never so straight forward. For all their excellence, there have been rare moments of vulnerability, so it is how they apply themselves to addressing these, together with the changing regulations that will define whether or not the chasing pack can close-in, or whether the best will actually get better.

Of course, the team has one very unique advantage; they have Sebastian Vettel. The young German is still only 24, yet he is already a double world champion and be in no-doubt, by the time he reaches 25, he intends to be well on his way to his hat-trick. Such is Vettel’s passion that in November 2010, immediately following his inaugural championship win, he didn’t jet overseas like most fellow drivers, he stayed-on in Abu Dhabi in order to talk to Pirelli so that he could best understand their new tyres: He wants to win. You only need to listen to his delight after each pole and each victory to know that the taste of success is one he relishes.

The most remarkable thing about Vettel is how ordinary he makes other drivers look. Admittedly in Canada, he did allow Jenson Button to pressure him into an uncharacteristic error, but something tells me that there is a yet untapped reserve and that perhaps the best is yet to come.

But this is where Red Bull’s fairy tale ends. Mark Webber is a haunted soul. On the morning of 14th November 2010, the genial Australian woke with the world at his feet and a World Championship for the taking. By the same evening, he had been crushed. Webber is a great talent, the pass he made on Alonso at Spa must rank amongst the bravest and greatest ever, yet put him alongside his team mate and he fades into obscurity.

It’s all credit to Christian Horner that he has retained faith with his “number 2” but will Aussie Grit be a contender in 2012? I think not. He has enjoyed the best car on the grid but spent as much time this past season fighting for fourth place as he did on the podium. This isn’t the DNA of a champion. Webber knows this and so does Horner.

Verdict: Vettel will be the man to beat but Red Bull may well lose their constructor’s title if McLaren raise their game. Webber will have moments but he knows that he’s on his way out.

McLaren

Jenson Button, Lewis Hamilton

Despite the occasional glimpse of real pace, a solitary win for each driver from the first eight rounds (measured against six for Vettel) told us that 2011 would not be McLaren’s year. To their credit, one of the over-riding strengths of the Woking outfit is their ability to react and respond and whilst some of their effort was lost whilst Lewis battled his demons, from the mid-season race at Germany’s Nurburgring, they impressively scored ten successive podiums.

Of interest to many during the coming year will be the role played by the newly appointed Sam Michael (who joined at the end of last season from Williams). The position of Sporting Director often carries little influence in either design or strategy, tending more to be a support role, both to drivers and to the Race Director (in the interpretation of rules).

McLaren know that if they are to beat Red Bull, the new MP4-27 will need to explore the boundaries of the regulations, both with regard to the design of the front wing and how exhaust gases can be vented to disrupt the effect of others using DRS. Despite occasional glitches with KERS, their mechanical package is pretty robust, it’s the aero that requires the edge. The loss of John Iley to Caterham might therefore be timely and it’s just possible that Michael’s waned star may soon see new life.

The position with driver contracts says much about what we saw in 2011, and what we can expect from both Jenson and Lewis in the year ahead. By signing an extension to his deal (keeping him at McLaren until 2014), Button can now focus on his job in hand (regaining his world championship crown). Alongside Vettel and Alonso, he is absolutely at the pinnacle of his sport and would have been the obvious target for both Red Bull and Ferrari in their search for replacements for their second drives. His race in Canada was not only perhaps his best ever, it was a defining moment. Can he now ascend further and challenge for the title? Yes he can.

I wish I could say the same of Lewis. He’s playing a risky game; one in which Martin Whitmarsh has the stronger hand. We know that he’s an exceptional talent, but he is also flawed; a maverick, often naive, sometimes dangerous. Give him a great car and he will win. Give him anything less and he will over-drive and under-perform.

Most telling though has been the frequency with which he has ruled himself out of contention by his own poor judgement. He has repeatedly made moves, lunges even, where the opportunity to complete a passing move simply does not exist. This isn’t karting. For Lewis to become the multiple champion that we all know he is capable of, he needs to clear his mind. Sign that contract extension Lewis; it may be the only one of value you get.

Verdict: If both drivers can score as they ought to, the constructor’s title may soon have a new home. Jenson should be a real title contender but if Lewis doesn’t start to use his brain, the best he can hope for will be 4th and a career in the USA. However, taking points off each might just see both team mates resigned to the “also-rans”.

Ferrari

Fernando Alonso, Felipe Massa

An incorrect wind tunnel calibration meant that Ferrari had faces redder than their cars in 2011. Initially, much faith had been placed in The 150º Italia, but as was so publicly demonstrated at the start of the season, it was simply not up to the job. The only saving grace was that Fernando Alonso was.

Not so long ago, Maranello had a drought of 16 years without a constructor’s title; even longer for the coveted driver’s prize. Luca Montezemolo has made it quite clear that this is not to be repeated. The evidence of their intent has been there since Silverstone when Alonso took a surprising but well deserved victory. With a lack of testing, both during and pre-season, Ferrari have been keen to try development parts for the 2012 car during the Friday free practice sessions and despite the media glare and finger-pointing, this effort can now be expected to bring the prancing horse back into contention.

if he fails to deliver the support required for Alonso’s title push, 2012 could end-up being shorter than he hopes

Both cars were consistently good off the line in ’11. Who can forget Alonso’s stunning start in front of the Tifosi at Monza? If this level of traction can be mated to an effective handling package, the Spanish former champion has shown that he is capable of delivering the rest.

Alonso was simply outstanding this year and his team has much to thank him for. The same, regrettably, cannot be said of Massa. Like Webber, Massa is the almost man; when he was good, he was very good, but in 2011, he was only ever average. Humbled by his team-mate, and regular sparring-partner to Hamilton, the often vacant or bewildered expressions on the Brazilian’s face said more than words ever could.

The unquestionable statistic now hanging over Massa is a 2011 season’s best finish of 5th. He will not want this to be his epitaph. If his career can be ended with a return to the top-step, he may just survive the year but if he fails to deliver the support required for Alonso’s title push, 2012 could end-up being shorter than he hopes.

Verdict: Alonso will push Vettel and Button hard for the championship but Massa may not have the strength to help deliver the constructor’s title. Expect an early retirement.

Mercedes AMG

Nico Rosberg, Michael Schumacher

Ross Brawn has gained a lifetime’s experience in his short tenure at Mercedes. It’s not that he wasn’t already one of the most capable men in Formula One when his own Brawn GP was bought by the Stuttgart giants; his education came in the German way of management by committee. Two years on and Brawn’s influence in the Silver Arrow project now, and at last, looks set to appear.

By everybody’s admission, the 2011 MGP W02, fell short in many ways, and a solitary 4th place for Michael Schumacher is far from what this team is resourced to be capable of. Now, there is new life and a new approach. The conservative design that has blighted their two seasons together has been ditched in favour of a return to solid engineering, on a more adaptable platform. Brawn is nobody’s fool.

He knows that the top three teams are each expected to make further progress and that a simple evolution of their current package will not suffice. Already in the young driver tests in Abu Dhabi with the talented Sam Bird at the wheel, Mercedes performed evaluations on a number of new components, together with a modified exhaust position. In short, whereas 2011 saw the team concede that 4th place in the constructor’s championship was all they could achieve, they will continue with development right throughout 2012 in an attempt to finally become genuine contenders.

Nico now understands that he is not there to simply partner Michael Schumacher; he is there to take the team forward

On the driver front, Nico Rosberg has committed himself to the Silver Arrows until at least 2013, and this is important for both driver and team. Nico now understands that he is not there to simply partner Michael Schumacher; he is there to take the team forward. If Brawn can deliver a car with better balance and less tyre wear, Rosberg could easily find himself taking his very fast Mercedes to at least the podium.

Michael Schumacher remains an enigma. He is clearly enjoying his racing again and his relationship with Brawn is critical to the Englishman getting what he believes he needs to bring about success. However, at times, he can be lazy. He can stumble into and out of a corner and it will be interesting to see how he reacts to his young team mate gaining the ascendency.

My view is that he knows that he is one of the greatest drivers who has ever lived and I hope he will be content with that. If he is, he too could focus on podium finishes; if he isn’t, there will be contact and the bright red helmet might also soon be retired.

Verdict: Hard work and a few fortunate results should see Mercedes close the gap and get their first podiums of the new era. Rosberg will battle hard to join the leading pack and by mid season ought to be searching for win. As for Michael, who knows?!

Lotus

Kimi Raikkonen, Romain Grosjean

If this were any other team, I’d be excited. Kimi is never going to boring on-track, and Grosjean has developed into a world class talent, but this is Lotus; or is it Genii? Or Proton? Or? We simply don’t know. What we do know is that this is not the Lotus of the great Colin Chapman. Ferrari will always be Ferrari, but Lotus? There’s something just not right.

2011 started very well for the newly re-liveried black and gold cars. Petrov scored a podium in Australia followed immediately after by Heidfeld in Malaysia. Eric Boullier could have been forgiven for thinking that maybe the enforced absence of Robert Kubica could be overcome. How wrong this would be. Heidfeld, who knows more about F1 than Dany Bahar has sharp suits, was discarded in favour of Bruno Senna; the revolutionary forward blowing exhaust produced more handling issues than it solved and Petrov found that even a large sack of Roubles couldn’t distract his team principal from glancing admiringly at Grosjean, a driver Boullier also happens to manage.

The writing was on the wall and that is the best thing that can be said of this past season.

Looking ahead, the Raikkonen / Grosjean combination could be potent. Both know how to win and both will have a lot of support from Renault. Raikkonen has been out of F1 for two seasons though and might take time to adapt to both team and car. Grosjean also last raced in F1 in 2009 but should have no such problems. As a Lotus Renault test and demonstration driver, and as Fernando Alonso’s ex team mate, he knows exactly what to expect and how to deliver.

Ultimately, much will depend on three simple factors – (1) How effective their new Active Ride Height System is (a system designed to react to the effect of braking in order to preserve ride height and maintain stable aero). (2) How conservative the Enstone-based outfit are with the rest of their design and (3) Whether the imminently expected sale of Proton results in the funding being pulled from Group Lotus (as the Malaysian’s $m’s are pivotal to Genii and Bahar’s long term ambitions).

Verdict: The two drivers will battle to be better than their car. Grosjean’s Gallic flair might just usurp Kimi and see him destined for greater things. Fireworks won’t only be seen in November.

Sahara Force India

Paul di Resta, Nico Hulkenberg

Vijay Mallya has done well to guide his team to a position where they are genuinely established as regular points scorers. Much needed additional backing from industrialist and sports promoter Subrata Roy should now give the old Jordan squad the ability to challenge for podium places, especially with the exceptional driver line-up of Paul di Resta and Nico Hulkenberg. Di Resta, it should not be forgotten, was Vettel’s Euro F3 team mate in 2006; it was the young Scot came out on top!

Hulkenberg is also a former Euro F3, and GP2 champion. His debut season in F1 in 2010 saw him land a brilliant pole for Williams in Brazil but all of this was in vain as the struggling Grove squad opted to replace him for Maldonado’s petro dollars.

Force India are often under-rated but they have an exceptionally talented young design team, supported by a broad depth of engineering skill. If Mallya can keep everybody in place, and continue to work well with his Mercedes engine partners, don’t be surprised if they’re winning races by 2013.

Verdict: If the two young chargers can keep their heads, they can take the race to Mercedes. Mallya will need to work hard not to lose his drivers or design team by the end of the season.

Sauber

Kamui Kobayashi, Sergio Perez

Peter Sauber has a safe pair of hands. He welcomes talented young racers and provides a nurturing environment whilst they hone their skills.

With typical Swiss precision, his team will be one of the first to unveil their new car; they will undertake a competent test programme and they will no doubt produce some encouraging early results; this is what they do. They’re good at getting their cars and drivers ready but they lack the resources to manage on-going development. There is a roll-call of pedigree, all of whom have worn Sauber’s badge with pride, but none of whom have ever won with it: Alesi, Raikkonen, Herbert, Frentzen, Villeneuve (J), Massa . . . it’s an impressive list, but it says more about their struggle than anything else.

Kobayashi had a tremendous debut season in 2010 and expectations have been high since, but the young man who has never been afraid to overtake has found himself pitted against a formidable team mate in Perez. At times, they resemble a lesser version of Hamilton and Button, and as with the McLaren duo, Perez has stolen the upper hand.

I can’t see there being much change during 2012. The two young protégées will undoubtedly find themselves in the heart of some titanic midfield battles, chasing just the occasional point. But if Sauber can work with and develop Perez, then maybe some much needed additional funding from Carlos Slim might just help. If they lose Perez, then their future will be less certain.

Verdict: A much admired and respected team but it will be a difficult year. Kobayashi needs to raise his game; Perez needs to out-perform again.

Toro Rosso

Daniel Ricciardo, Jean-Eric Vergne

There was little surprise that after a very mixed string of performances in 2011, both drivers were dropped. In all fairness to Dietrich Mateschitz, his Red Bull brand doesn’t support an extensive motorsport programme simply to take part; they’re looking for future world champions, and neither Alguersuari or Buemi fitted this description.

To an extent, Toro Rosso as a team are left to follow their own path, the most obvious difference (in comparison to Red Bull) being their use of the Ferrari power-plant. It’s a shame, though, that this is an outfit which is geared to feeding the senior squad. Drivers should harbour ambitions for their team and not only view them as a ladder. Nevertheless, as long as they continue with a clear policy of trying new talent, they’ll remain interesting.

Ricciardo was fortunate to have had his spell with HRT. The car was clearly uncompetitive but it was valuable track time and experience. This, together with several Friday FP1 appearances for Toro Rosso early in 2011 should give him a clear opportunity to impose himself on Vergne. This is his chance.

Vergne, I suspect, will have a somewhat different approach. I thought he was often out-raced by Robert Wickens in the Renault 3.5, as, surprisingly, was Ricciardo, but I expect the young Frenchman to significantly raise his game and stake his claim. If anyone has doubts about the urgency of his racing, take a look at this footage from the recent ERDF Masters Kart Challenge final, where Vergne is pitched against countryman Grosjean:-

Now if we get to see action like this, Sky are going to sell a lot of new subscriptions.

Verdict: Toro Rosso will provide the two young drivers with plenty of opportunity to make their point and score points. Vergne starts at a slight disadvantage but should apply himself well and come out on top. Watch this space!

Williams

Pastor Maldonado, tba

No matter how hard you try to analyse and understand recent decisions at Williams, there can only be one very sad and inevitable conclusion; they have reached their end.

Sir Frank and Patrick Head are titans within the sport. They have been responsible for building one of the most successful and brilliant teams in modern motor racing history. But age and health have proved mighty opponents and the introduction of Adam Parr five years ago, leading to his appointment as Chairman in 2010, set Williams on a course that could only lead towards their abyss.

Failure to secure a competitive engine package after the abortive venture with Toyota saw Williams having to turn to Cosworth for 2010. I discussed this at the time with the then Cosworth head, Mark Gallagher, and he conceded that whilst it was good for the Northamptonshire operation to be supplying a major team (in addition to the three new entrants), this Cosworth V8 was one built with an underlying philosophy of providing reliability over ultimate performance.

Nevertheless, the team would still enjoy rare moments of glory; there was Ruben Barrichello’s heroic pass of Michael Schumacher’s Mercedes in Hungary and then the immense qualifying effort from Hulkenberg to secure pole in changing conditions in Brazil. This was the passion of Williams, but it was about all they could muster.

For 2011, Hulkenberg had to be replaced by GP2 Champion Pastor Maldonado. The Venezuelan is a competent driver with serious backing, well above what Hulkenberg could bring: This was a season blighted with departures and crises, and Williams sank yet deeper. Barrichello drove with his heart on his sleeve; we’ve come to expect nothing less, but even he often found himself fighting on a Saturday simply to make it past the Q1 hurdle.

Six retirements for Maldonado, matched by a series of lack lustre performances generated the rookie just a solitary point. The veteran Brazilian fared little better. He was often in the mix but never able to pose a serious threat. Four points is all he could muster, taking the Grove operation to just 9th place in the constructors’ championship, the worst in their 34 year history.

The threat to Williams is that 2012 could be even worse. On the positive side, they’ve switched engine partners to Renault but aspiring rivals Caterham made this leap a year earlier and will be challenging hard. Also of note is the arrival of new design chief, Mike Coughlan. Coughlan was a key element in McLaren’s resurgence during the “Schumacher Years” but his pivotal involvement in the McLaren / Ferrari spying scandal of 2007 saw his employment terminated.

And his arrival is not without controversy. It immediately heralded the departure of Sam Michael and there are many who feel that a second chance should not have been forthcoming. It will be interesting to see if his prolonged absence from the front-line has affected his ability to deliver.

Undoubtedly the most significant change though is the retirement of Patrick Head. If Frank Williams is the heart of the team, Head was certainly its soul. Without him, I suspect they will be lost and Sir Frank’s exit cannot be far behind.

On the driver front, Maldonado needs to exercise his ghosts. He can do better, and he will need too as Kovalainen could easily relegate him to backmarker status.

At the time of writing, the other seat remains vacant. Just about every driver who is out of contract, together with some well funded rookies are in the frame and an announcement is expected soon. One thing is already clear though, this is a role that requires hard cash and soft morals. Whoever lands it might, I suspect, also need to enjoy their own company.

Verdict: History can be savage and unless Sir Frank can find a manufacturer to take his team beyond 2014, they might just see themselves written into obscurity. We know he’s working hard on a funding package but money alone cannot heal the wounds. Maldonado and “friend” have their work cut out and will need to capitalise on the mistakes of others whilst not making any of their own.

Caterham F1

Heikki Kovalainen, Jarno Trulli?

With the ink finally dry on the Team Lotus vs Group Lotus saga, the newly titled Caterham outfit can finally get on with the business of making a name for themselves.

Two seasons are now behind them and whilst, to be fair, they put clear distance between their beautifully liveried green & gold cars and the other Class of 2010 entrants (Marussia and HRT), 2011 saw them fall well short of their highly vocalised midfield aspirations, this despite a string of notable performances from the resurgent Heikki Kovalainen.

For 2012, owner Tony Fernandes has made it abundantly clear that things have got to change. He has worked hard to bring serious money and capable partners to the team and has continued to back his technical chief, Mike Gascoyne, with a contract extension until 2015 (though Gascoyne will be very aware of the fate handed to ex QPR boss Neil Warnock). But the ambitious plans for the newly formed Caterham Group can only be fuelled by progress on the track as well as off it.

With an engineering package of the latest Renault V8, mated to Red Bull’s gearbox, hydraulics and KERS, Gascoyne and former McLaren aero-man, John Iley have a strong foundation to launch their charge.

Trulli though, despite the protection of his contract, he may well find that instead of racing in Melbourne, he’s back in Italy, tending to his vines

When Gascoyne first established his fledgling Lotus team, he was keen to continue his relationship with Jarno Trulli, a driver who, like himself, had also seen service at Jordan, Renault and then Toyota. The Italian was often cited as potentially the fastest man over one-lap and his experience would be crucial to getting the most from the new cars. He joined McLaren refugee Heikki Kovalainen in what was seen as a strong and capable pairing but whilst the likeable Finn has matured and seen his status rise to the promise of his early years, Trulli has endured a sometimes woeful existence.

His errant criticism of the Lotus’s (as it was) handling and in particular the power steering system clearly marginalised him from Team Fernandes, and despite flattering attempts by both sides to diffuse any talk of a rift, Caterham CEO Riad Asmat has been spare with any talk of a glowing future.

If Caterham can focus on delivering Kovalainen a reliable car that exploits much of what we know their power and drive trains to be capable of, then there is no reason why the dream of a points-scoring position cannot become a reality. For Trulli though, despite the protection of his contract, he may well find that instead of racing in Melbourne, he’s back in Italy, tending to his vines.

Verdict: We’ve endured two years of subjective (some might say “passionate”) promise. Thankfully, Team Lotus is no more but Caterham must now achieve rather than aspire. Kovalainen has all the spirit and skill to do his job well and score points. If Trulli is wise, he’ll walk-away before he’s shown the door as Rossi and Senna are watching and waiting.

Marussia

Timo Glock, Charles Pic?

Can someone please tell me what on earth Marussia are doing in Formula One? I know all about their B1 and B2 “super cars” but we’re talking about a long-term investment of millions of pounds to support a brand that still hasn’t delivered on an overdue and uninspired road car programme.

Virgin, as the Marussia team were known, wasted most of 2011 by scrapping the pioneering CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics) design concept that had seen them work hand-in-hand with virtual reality specialists Wirth Research. Former Renault design chief Pat Symonds was brought in to evaluate technical operations and he concluded that the CFD only approach had failed to produce a viable car. Unfortunately, the review was commissioned far too late and wasn’t delivered until mid season.

The consequence of a vastly under-performing car was that drivers Timo Glock and Jerome d’Ambrosio struggled with reliability and pace, not only falling well behind fellow newcomers Team Lotus, but on occasions, the HRT of Daniel Ricciardo as well. Despite Glock’s superior credentials, d’Ambrosio (or “Custard”, as he was affectionately known by his crew) often matched his team mate’s pace but this couldn’t prevent the inevitable rumours of succession and as the season closed, he lost his seat to Frenchman Charles Pic.

With the termination of the Wirth deal, Symonds was required to find a new way forward and this led to a technical partnership with McLaren being established. Although too late to have any effect on 2011, Symonds and Team Principal John Booth are both highly optimistic that they can now start to regain lost ground. For the new season, cars will continue to use Cosworth’s power plant (without the much needed KERS) but they will, at least have the benefit of comprehensive wind tunnel testing.

Glock’s ability and understanding as a driver should help Marussia to make progress, though for 2012, this may only be against their own past performances. Pic, however, and to be honest, is a strange choice. If they needed funding, opting to run with Sutil or Petrov would have been more obvious. If it’s speed that counts, Sutil or Petrov would still have been a better bet!

Verdict: Don’t expect miracles. The next two years will be full of frustration for Dinington’s finest. Cooperation from McLaren should work well, but will work better when the two share engine partners. Glock is capable but only if the car is too. Pic was contracted too early and might find that like Trulli, his services are no longer required.

HRT

Pedro de la Rosa, tba

With respect to HRT’s new owners (Thesan Capital), this was a venture doomed from the very moment Adrian Campos whispered to Enrique Rodríguez, “I have a cunning plan . . .” The desire to create and operate a Spanish national motor racing team may be applaud able, but that’s about it. Why have Renault, Honda, Mercedes and leading independents (such as Red Bull) all chosen to base their Formula One businesses in the UK?

The reason is simple; this is where the broad talent and support infrastructure is found. To attempt a new, stand-alone operation anywhere else, and without the backing of a major manufacturer is, regrettably, folly.

Since joining the F1 grid in 2010, HRT have lurched precariously from one under-resourced office to another, hence the welcome shown to Daniel Ricciardo last year in exchange for much needed Red Bull funding. But that was then and this is now. For 2012, veteran team chief and guiding hand Colin Kolles has gone and in comes ex Minardi racer, Luis Perez-Sala. In also comes McLaren’s long-serving test driver Pedro de la Rosa, leaving one seat remaining for someone with pockets deeper than their ambition.

Perez-Sala knows that time and Euros are both pitched against him. With all the upheaval of the move away from Kolles’ German-based operation, getting a car ready for the first of the season’s tests at Jerez in February will be a challenge, and the irony of the only Spanish team either missing this, or having to show with what is essentially their ’11 car will not be lost. Many of HRT’s engineering team have declined to move to Spain and so any gain that they have with their own new chassis will be lost by a lack of internal cohesion.

Until Thesan understand the need to broaden the team’s horizons (Mexico might be a good starting point), HRT can only fall further behind, possibly to the point of exclusion from race days (under the 107% rule). If this happens, then everything is at stake and their demise likely.

Verdict: The new owners need to focus on hard facts and forget about dreams. All credit to De la Rosa for flying his flag but the prospect of an early bath is high.

Reach for your Sky

If the battle for F1 supremacy is fierce on-track, it could be equally so in your living room as 2012 heralds a significant change in broadcast rights with the BBC seemingly opting to sell-out and shift the cost burden over to Sky. In what those responsible have described as a “ground-breaking deal”, Auntie will now cover only 10 of the season’s 20 races live, with the remaining 10 having to be shown in a cut-down, “Match of the Day” style highlights programme.

Sky will take over responsibility for featuring extensive live coverage of all rounds with their soon-to-launch dedicated Sky Sports F1 HD Channel. The broadcast of all races and qualifying sessions are promised to be live, uninterrupted, and at no additional charge to existing Sky Sports 1 & 2 and HD customers.

In a considerable coup for the pay-to-view provider, they’ve also secured the services of key members of the BBC’s F1 team, headed by ex-driver Martin Brundle and lauded former 5-Live front man David Croft. Anthony Davidson, Ted Kravitz and Natalie Pinkham are also heading Skywards and will undoubtedly combine to give excellent and added depth.

The BBC have opted to engage Ben Edwards for television and James Allen for radio commentaries. Both are incredibly knowledgeable and personable and should hold the fort well. Jake Humphrey will continue to host television output and whilst I’m delighted to see David Coulthard retaining his supporting role, I had hoped that the changes might herald au revoir to “our Eddie”; alas not. Gary Anderson, another ex Jordan man, has been recruited to provide detailed technical analysis and Lee McKenzie will remain in the pitlane.

So there we have it, 20 races, 19 countries, 12 teams, 24 drivers and 600 million people watching worldwide. Whatever happens to Formula One in 2012, one thing is for sure, it will be both fast and furious!

But even so it comes as something of a ‘slight’ surprise to hear that Director of Engineering Patrick Head leaves Williams F1 with immediate effect this morning. The statement adds “..The company wishes Patrick well in his future activities and remains indebted for his service to Williams F1 over the past 34 years.”

Head will continue in his role as a Board Director of Williams Hybrid Power Limited, a subsidiary of the company that develops and produces hybrid technologies and which is working with Jaguar on productionising the C-X75 supercar.

Williams F1 floated on the stock market earlier this year, citing its intention “..to broaden the shareholder base as the current Williams owners look towards their retirement”, so the move is in keeping with these plans.

Head co-founded Williams F1 in 1977 with Frank Williams and over three decades has led the team’s engineering department. In that time, Williams F1 has won 113 Grands Prix and secured nine Constructors’ and seven Drivers’ World Championships.

Frank Williams commented, “Patrick and I have been in partnership for 34 years. During that time, he has been the leader of the technical team that has won the majority of our race wins and championships. This is a remarkable legacy and one which will be treasured and definitely not forgotten.

“Patrick is a very straightforward, hard working and truly gifted engineer who comfortably operates at a world class level. I will miss him very much, as I am sure his colleagues will, and he will always be welcome at Grove. Indeed, Patrick will still be seen around the factory as he continues to be involved in the development of our hybrid power activities.”

The lack of comment from Head was notable by its absence.

In a statement shortly after, team boss Eric Boullier confirmed Petrov’s contract had been terminated and that he would not be in line for the team’s test and reserve driver role (presumably linked to his recent outbursts against the team).

And that just leaves Senna looking for a seat. So it seems ironic that on the very same day as the Grosjean announcement, Senna should appear modelling the new Lotus ORIGINALS collection. When he pictured himself sitting in for Lotus in 2012, I doubt he envisaged it being a lounge chair..

Bruno Senna and Lotus CEO Dany Bahar open the new Lotus ORIGINALS retail store in Hethel

Is this the price to be paid for waiting in the wings?

For what it’s worth, I remember enjoying Bruno’s drives in GP2, where he would comprehensively out-drive Vitaly Petrov and battle on equal terms with Romain Grosjean, so apart from his variable performance at times, I can see little justification in replacing him with Grosjean apart from the obvious financial ones (Grosjean is managed by team boss Eric Boullier and French oil giant TOTAL will be a team sponsor in 2012).

Lotus describe their new retail concept as “..a clear sign of their new brand identity and befitting the current and future collection of cars planned for 2013 and beyond.”

The first step in this process is opening the brand’s first retail store at Group Lotus HQ near Hethel.

In fact, if you’re in the area it might be worth popping in and taking a look, because in addition to the latest range of apparel and accessories, the retail store is also showcasing the new look customers can expect from Lotus dealerships in the future.

The new Lotus ORIGINALS retail store in Hethel

The dealership environment has a modern look and feel with an inviting lounge area where customers can browse the Lotus library or leisurely spec their new Lotus car. Lotus’ latest models will be on display in the store, with full paint and trim swatches to complete the Lotus shopping experience.

Commenting on the launch Group Lotus Director of Licensing and Merchandise Wiebke Bauer said: “It’s a very proud day for us today, it’s more than a simple store opening. One of the biggest challenges we have as a business, outside of selling cars, is to make the Lotus brand as accessible as possible. We have many fans out there in the world who aren’t necessarily in a position to buy one of our cars but they still want to be part of the Lotus world and this means a lot to us.”

Opening hours are 8.30am until 5pm (Monday to Thursday) and 8.30am until midday on Fridays. Hopefully you won’t find Bruno serving from behind the counter, but within the broadly defined contract he seems to be under with Lotus, you never know.

Let’s hope we see him in a race suit and off the cat-walk soon.

DC Shoes’ Gymkhana 4 – The Hollywood Megamercial, reached 2nd place in this year’s chart, but unlike Volkswagen’s Super Bowl ad released in February, Gymkhana 4 has only been out for just 3 months. We were interested in speaking with the Hoonigan himself, finding out what motivates him to be so successful and what he’s got in store for us in 2012.

Over the course of an enjoyable hour with Ken Block, I got to know the businessman, motorsport fan and driver, during which time I learned how little of the enormous success of Gymkhana had gone to his head. We also explored whether his two seasons in WRC had made him a better driver, his attitude to driving stunts on the public road and his reflections on competing against Kimi Raikkonen in rallying.

We covered a lot of ground, so bear with me as I try to relay the conversation, which was squeezed into his busy schedule whilst testing his H.F.H.V. Ford Fiesta at the Dirtfish Rally School, east of Seattle.

Let’s start with the commercial side of his life, namely his behind-the-scenes role as Chief Brand Officer of DC Shoes.

DC Shoes and the Gymkhana videos

If you don’t already know, 44-year old Block co-founded DC Shoes together with Damon Way back in 1993, before selling to surf clothing giant Quiksilver Inc. for $87 million in 2003. Back in 2003/2004 DC Shoes was generating nearly $100 million in revenue which has since grown to around $500 million (in 2010), so if you’d pictured Block as a fun loving daredevil without any work ethic, think again.

DC Shoes was one of the first skateboard shoe companies to make extensive use of professional endorsements, and in Block’s role as Chief Brand Officer he joined Travis Pastrana in 2006 to compete for Subaru Rally Team USA. After competing successfully in the 2006 Rally America National Championship (finishing 2nd overall), Block embraced the world of X Games – finishing 3rd in the very first event.

The original Gymkhana video appeared in September 2008, but like all the best viral marketing success stories, Block really didn’t plan to create his own Internet meme. Earlier in the year with plans to enter himself in a local Gymkhana event in Southern California, Block invited California-based Crawford Performance to build him a 530hp Subaru Impreza STi, but when the competition was cancelled Block decided to put his car to use and filmed the 4:25 minute video ‘Ken Block Gymkhana Practice’. He’d basically built a car, but had nothing else to do with it.

Since then the original Gymkhana video has clocked up 11.2 million views on YouTube, so that’s over 22 million views at his first attempt.

Ken Block takes to the streets of Los Angeles to test out Ford’s new SYNC system in his H.F.H.V. Ford Fiesta race car.

I then asked Ken what effect has Gymkhana, as a series from 1 to 4, had on the DC Shoes brand and on the personality of the brand in the way that they are able to convey what it is about DC Shoes that people should engage with?

SD:  But obviously it’s more than just eye-candy, isn’t it Ken? Because people wouldn’t carry on being engaged with the Gymkhana series if they didn’t identify with the videos, either because they aspire to be like you, or they recognise something in you that they see in themselves.

SD:  I am sure you are aware that Gymkhana 2 wasn’t initially as successful as your first video when it came out, mainly because the marketing message was more prominent. Are you conscious of that feedback and have you then adjusted your approach to better meet the expectations of the audience?

SD:  This week we’ve been celebrating the Viral Video Chart’s Top 20 branded videos of all time in which Gymkhana 4 is the 5th most viral with 2.1 million shares, whilst Gymkhana 3 is 2nd with 2.7 million shared (incidentally top is Volkswagen’s ‘The Force’ with 4.7 million shares).

Visit Unruly Media’s Viral Video Chart for more information and to read the article, “Darth Vader can’t Gymkhana”.

Whilst Volkswagen’s ad has been viewed 46 million times and shared socially an incredible 4.71 million times, Gymkhana 4 has so far received 12.9 million views in the 3 months since it was launched. That’s a share/view rate of 16.3% compared to 10.2% for the pocket-sized Vader meme, and compares against 6.3% for Gymkhana 3. All in all, Gymkhana is on target to have clocked up 150 million views since its inception in 2008. That makes it the most successful series of branded videos of all time.

Naturally I asked Block, why he believed the series has been so successful, and what he can do to top this again with Gymkhana 5?

Some words of advice for other marketeers

SD:  Without giving away any trade secrets, what would be your advice to other marketers seeking to connect with their audiences and emulate your success with their own campaigns?

You watch the videos. Then you buy the shoes. Capiche?

SD:  I think what a lot of brands haven’t got their heads around yet is that social media marketing is all about truth, and integrity and engaging with an audience on real values – not because it’s a more honourable medium, but there’s no hiding place, so the brands that succeed are the ones who allow their customers to come inside and engage with them on an equal level.

And it plays to those brands who are able to speak from a personal, rather than corporate, level and that’s very much what Gymkhana enables DC Shoes to do.

SD:  And there’s also you as a personality. A lot of brands don’t have a person that people can connect to, nor do they express much in the way of a personality for the brand as a whole. Consumers need to connect with a brand at this personal level in order for social marketing to work.

Combining his love of design and creativity with driving

SD:  You started out designing silk-screen T-shirts, do you still enjoy creative design and how much of your input goes into the Gymkhana videos?

Before he allows me to move on, Ken then asks me a question about the appetite of audiences for feature-length videos.

SD:  Not really. Several years ago we were one of the first content provoiders to produce videos longer than 10-minutes and found that if the content was rich and engaging enough, then people would sit through 10 or even 20 minutes of automotive content with very little drop off – in fact 80% or more would watch these videos from beginning to end.

On our branded content platform, SkiddPlayer, we regularly see the longer-form version of adverts (2 mins or more) outperforming the 15 or 30 second spots and as more people view these videos from portable devices such as iPads, the time people are prepared to spend will most likely increase. Online viewers are now so used to watching Top Gear and other TV programs online (on Hulu or BBC iPlayer), that they’re often looking for something with a story which provides good entertainment. You simply cannot achieve that within 30 seconds or even 1 minute.

Whilst the average time spent online is still half of that spent watching TV, it is growing and will soon be 3 hours per day for adults. So it’s getting easier to find room for 7-minutes of self-indulgent automotive hoonery.

The Gymkhana World Tour

SD:  This year’s 3-stop Gymkhana World Tour was hugely successful – tell us more about your plans to make the tour “bigger and better” in 2012.

Partnering with other brands

SD:  Since choosing to drive with Ford (Focus & Fiesta) your promotional connection with the car you drive has become more prominent (i.e. 43 Fiestas campaign) – how do you balance the interests of each brand? (Monster Energy, Ford, DC Shoes, Mobil 1 etc)

SD:  I then mention the DiRT3 launch at Battersea, London earlier this year which I joined.

The meaning of #43

SD:  Ken, there’s one thing I’ve always wanted to ask you, what’s the significance of your trademark No.43 race number?

Yo Australia! Please hoon responsibly.

SD:  When at the Melbourne leg of the Gymkhana World Tour you spent time appealing to your fans to hoon ‘responsibly’ – are you concerned about fans trying to copy your stunts on the road?

SD:  Are you involved in any road safety programs yourself?

The World Rally Championship (WRC)

SD:  How have you found your first 2 seasons in WRC?

SD:  How did you feel being the sole American in a mainly European-dominated championship?

SD:  Has it helped you become a better driver?

SD:  What do you think is the main difference between you and the more experienced competitors such as Hirvonen, Loeb and Solberg?

SD:  Rallying is much closer to the Gymkhana style of driving, but do you have an interest in circuit racing as well?

SD:  Ok, we’re on the home straight – last few thoughts now. Colin McRae would have loved Gymkhana wouldn’t he?

SD:  You’ve raced against Kimi Raikkonen in WRC and he’s now heading back to F1 in 2012. How do you rate him?

SD:  Would you expect Kimi to be a better driver than when he was last in F1?

SD:  Would you like to drive Formula 1 yourself?

SD:  Finally, last weekend was the annual Race of Champions event in Dusseldorf. We would love to see you take part, have you been asked?

SD:  Ken, thanks very much for your time. We are very impressed with what you have achieved in your business and in your sport, so keep doing what you do so well and we’ll keep watching.

Images: Kindly provided by DC Shoes and Ken Block Racing.

Now, I’m a huge fan of Andros Ice Racing and was delighted when Alain Prost joined the series in 2003 – as a family tradition we’ve driven down to France’s Val Thorens ski resort each year for the first race of the season, so I can appreciate that beneath the humble exterior of these ice racing machines lies a 355bhp 3.0-litre V6 with more than enough power to make competition a thrilling and far from languid experience.

But the poignant memory of Alain Prost which I hold in my little grey cells is watching him from the pit wall in 1989 as the Frenchman entered Silverstone’s Copse corner in a McLaren MP4/5 – seemingly without lifting. Le professeur a été magnifique..

Hero moments don’t come much better, so whilst it’s great to see 56-year old Prost slugging away with his son Nicholas in 2012, there’s a little part of me that wishes it was in something more becoming for an ex-F1 champion than a Romanian delivery van (Ok, I exaggerate slightly, but you get my point).

From Left to Right: Evens Stievenart, Nicholas Prost and Alain Prost.

It was the inaugural outing for Dacia’s inappropriately named Lodgy Glace (doesn’t have the same ring to it as MP4/5) and the team comprising Alain Prost, Nicolas Prost and Evens Stievenart succeeded in ending up 8th, 21st and 3rd in the championship after the first two rounds.

Although Val Thorens is the highest ski resort in the region, there was a distinct lack of snow and ice for the drivers to enjoy, so hopefully there will be more available when the action resumes next time out in Andorra.

Driver quotes

Evens Stievenart (3rd): “I continued to drive as though I was on ice, but a racing driving style would have been more appropriate. That’s a lesson for the future. The positives are that I’ve scored points and been able to get an idea of Dacia Lodgy Glace’s potential. I am third in the provisional Trophée Andros standings, so that’s satisfying. We will work as a team to ensure that Alain Prost catches up with the leaders to challenge for what promises to be an extremely competitive championship.”

Alain Prost (8th): “I had a good chance of winning the second qualifying heat but my chances took a blow on my last lap. The tenths of a second I lost were enough to drop me from first to third place. We showed that we will be able to fight for the title and Dacia has already claimed a podium finish. The car clearly has potential. The level is very high and it’s a shame that we didn’t come away with more points than we did, but there’s a long way to go before the end of the season.”

Nicolas Prost (21st): “The conditions were different on Sunday. There was more exposed asphalt and fewer ruts. That suited me better because the car jumped about less. I learnt so much this weekend. I now need to take a close look at all the data we collected in order to up my game in Andorra next weekend. It was great for morale to win my final.”

Q:  Jean, are you excited about the news that Kimi Raikkonen is returning to F1 next year with Lotus Renault GP?

It’s fantastic news. Kimi has more natural speed than just about anyone who has ever raced a Grand Prix car, and if he’s coming back it’s because he wants to do it, he misses F1, and he believes he can do well. He has had a short break, which was a little bit forced by Ferrari.

I think he was fed up with the system and wanted to take time out, which I can totally understand. But now he’s coming back, with Lotus, so it’s really exciting.

Q:  Kimi’s speed was never in question, but there were concerns he failed to develop the car as Michael Schumacher had done before him. Is that a concern for you now?

Michael was brilliant at that, but it isn’t working for him now at Mercedes and I think this is a reflection of how F1 has developed in recent years and re-prioritized. Now you just need to focus on having a quick driver, someone who does the job.

The great thing with Kimi is he extracts the maximum from a quick car. When the car was good at McLaren and Ferrari he was always winning. LRGP will expect him to extract the maximum from the Lotus as well.

Q:  It’s sure to fire up the workforce at Enstone, isn’t it, having a world champion in the car?

F1 teams need a driver who will consistently set lap times that are 100 percent on the edge. That is what a driver of Kimi’s caliber can do, to dance on the edge and never fall off. From that, the engineers get a baseline. They understand the true speed of their car and can make changes accordingly. It eradicates any doubt.

I expect Kimi will be a very valuable tool indeed. But I don’t expect a lot of talking outside the car! I’m sure he hasn’t changed a bit.

Q:  Let’s talk about the Sao Paulo race. Bruno Senna was given a drive-thru penalty after he came together with Michael Schumacher. Did you think that was unfair?

Definitely, yes. It was a 50/50 accident, so why penalize one of them? Both cars were compromised – Bruno with a broken front wing and Michael with a rear puncture. To then penalize one of the drivers in this situation kills the spirit of racing. The stewards should have let it go.

Q:  Vitaly Petrov started the year on a high with his podium in Australia and finished the season tenth in the Drivers’ World Championship. How well do you think he did?

He’s been very competitive when the car is quick, and it’s been more difficult for him in the second half of the season. He did a fantastic first grand prix but he seems to suffer more when the car is not perfect.

Q:  Lotus Renault GP started the year on the podium but struggled towards the end. Did the designers take a few wrong turns?

The R31 was extremely aggressive in terms of design. At the start of the season, Red Bull’s designer Adrian Newey said that the most creative car out there was the Lotus Renault GP. When the best designer in the world says that, it means a lot, and at the start of the year LRGP were brilliant.

Then the exhaust-blowing rules changed, and that hurt the team a lot. We were penalized more heavily than any other team. To finish fifth in the championship is superb.

Q:  How did you rate the F1 World Championship 2011 generally?

Even though Red Bull Racing was dominant throughout, I thought it was a very interesting season and I enjoyed the races very much. Out of those 19 races, only three or four were a bit boring; I was on the edge of my seat for the rest. We’ve seen lots of overtaking, lots of incidents, and there was tough competition out there, particularly between McLaren and Ferrari.

Lotus Renault GP were very competitive at the start of the season as well, so overall I really enjoyed it.

Q:  Which race stood out for you?

My shoes are still drying after the Canadian Grand Prix, so that was memorable not least for the incredible race we saw. I could have done without the two-hour red flag delay in the middle, but that race was really exciting and it’s always great to see a change of the lead on the last lap.

Q:  Sebastian Vettel was the class of the field, but who would you nominate as your Man Of The Year?

Apart from Vettel, who did an unbelievable job, the award should go to Jenson Button. I was not surprised by his performance, because he’s been a world champion, but the way he managed to be there all the time, even when he was struggling with set-up, and still get good points was impressive.

He also pulled some great overtaking moves, so he was aggressive when he needed to be and smooth when he needed to be, adapting to the Pirelli tyres quicker than most. What a mature performance, and all the more impressive when your team-mate is Lewis Hamilton and Jenson is still, essentially, the new boy.

I believe 2011 was even more impressive than his championship-winning year, given that he didn’t have the best car and his team-mate was Hamilton

The press release begins, “Lotus Renault GP is pleased to announce that Kimi Räikkönen will race for the team next season.”, but we’re pretty sure that sentiment does not extend to existing drivers Vitaly Petrov and Bruno Senna, nor test and reserve driver Romain Grosjean.

When the music stops, only ONE of you gets to drive. The anxious drivers await the call – (L to R) Bruno Senna, Vitaly Petrov, Romain Grosjean.

The former Ferrari driver and 2007 World Champion, left Formula 1 at the end of 2009 to pursue a career in rallying, but has decided to make a comeback by signing a two-year agreement with Lotus Renault GP.

LRGP’s number one driver, Robert Kubica missed the 2011 season after being seriously injured in a crash at the Ronde di Andora rally last February, in which his forearm was partially severed. The condition of the Polish driver has remained unclear since then, although his management recently confirmed that he was not ready to return to F1 for the start of the 2012 season.

Team boss Eric Boullier has shown increasing frustration with his former star driver, saying that “..he has no intention of giving Robert Kubica a car to prove his fitness in only to see the Pole jump ship to another team in 2013.”

Team boss Eric Boullier together with Genii Capital Chairman Gérard Lopez have made a tough decision, but most probably the best decision for the team.

With Kimi Räikkönen on board, the team gains a proven champion, capable of guiding the development of the 2012 car before the season begins next March.

Kimi Räikkönen, said of the agreement: “I’m delighted to be coming back to Formula 1 after a two-year break, and I’m grateful to Lotus Renault GP for offering me this opportunity. My time in the World Rally Championship has been a useful stage in my career as a driver, but I can’t deny the fact that my hunger for F1 has recently become overwhelming.

It was an easy choice to return with Lotus Renault GP as I have been impressed by the scope of the team’s ambition. Now I’m looking forward to playing an important role in pushing the team to the very front of the grid.”

Gérard Lopez, Genii Capital, Chairman said: “All year long, we kept saying that our team was at the start of a brand new cycle. Backstage we’ve been working hard to build the foundations of a successful structure and to ensure that we would soon be able to fight at the highest level.

Kimi’s decision to come back to Formula 1 with us is the first step of several announcements which should turn us into an even more serious contender in the future. Of course, we are all looking forward to working with a world champion. On behalf of our staff, I’d like to welcome Kimi to Enstone, a setting that has always been known for its human approach to Formula 1.”

Images: Lotus Renault GP

For the magazine’s 600th issue the team decamped to Chateauroux Air Base in the central region of France, with a dozen of the fastest production cars on the planet. Plus of course one F1 car and a Le Mans prototype.

The driver of the LRGP R30 was Nicolas Prost, son of two-time F1 world champion Alain Prost and it wasn’t just a Veyron and F1 Car that the magazine brought along for the test, the 0 – 300 km/h time trial included a Porsche Panamera Turbo S, Pescarolo LMP1 driven by Christophe Tinseau, Audi R8 V10, Cadillac CTS-V, BMW X6 M, Nissan GT-R, Mercedes SLS AMG and a Suzuki Hayabusa ridden by Baptiste Guittet..

Driving the production cars was none other than ex-F1 driver and 4-time Le Mans winner, Yannick Dalmas.

The film features exhilarating footage of the best road cars in the world trying to attain a speed of 300km/h before the R30, driven by Nicolas Prost.

To save you pausing the video, the times recorded were as follows:

Some context..

We’ve extracted a few times from a previous Sport Auto Germany test to provide context to the above and if you’d like to delve deeper and take a look at highly modified tuner vehicles, then I suggest you visit the 0-300-0 section within the Sport Auto website.

If you’d like to read the full story (and can parles français), the feature will be published in late December together with the final video. Keep an eye on the sportauto.fr website or follow them at @SportAutoMag.

As an additional bonus, sportauto.fr have published a 16-minute arty teaser of their own. It’s a little odd (i.e. much of the video is silent and in slow motion), but the sound is turned up for the in-car shots, so it’s worth staying with it.