Paul di Resta gets his first taste of the brand new VJM05 as Force India unveil their 2012 challenger at Silverstone. The British driver was joined by teammate Nico Hülkenberg, and reserve driver Jules Bianchi, to pull the covers off the new car.

COO of the team, Otmar Szafnauer spoke at the launch: “The new car has come together nicely over the winter. We don’t know what our competitors have done, but we’ve made some gains over the winter and believe we’re in reasonable shape. It’s going to be difficult in the midfield, but our focus is on starting strongly and improving our position from last season."

Team boss Vijay Mallya has already confirmed that fifth place in the constructors' championship is the goal this season, after their sixth place finish in 2011.

Paul di Resta is relishing the challenge, saying: "Seeing the new car built and complete for the first time is always an exciting moment. It’s when you realise that all the waiting is finally over and the season is beginning for real. I’ve had a good winter and I’ve recharged my batteries, but now I’m fully focussed on 2012 and looking forward to the start of testing. There’s a really positive feeling in the team, good stability and hopefully we can pick up where we left off at the end of last year."

This is an original article published by F1BigPicture.com

© Copyright 2009-2012 • Christine Blachford • All Rights Reserved

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McLaren drivers Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton whipped the covers off the MP4-27 to a waiting crowd at the McLaren Technology Centre. The 2012 car looks similar to its predecessor but has subtle changes. The sidepods have been redesigned after the FIA's changes to the exhaust regulations, and the rear bodywork has been sculpted.

The team finished the 2011 season as runner up in both championships, second only to Red Bull. With all eyes on them to provide a significant challenge to the defending champions this year, Martin Whitmarsh feels they have made some good progress.

"We have a fantastically committed team of individuals, and MP4-27 is the fruit of their labours – it’s a beautiful car, and one we feel is the perfect platform from which to launch our assault on the world championship. While there are clear visual changes to this year’s car, there’s greater change beneath the skin, with lots of fresh thinking applied to every major system. The car is pleasingly complete."

He's also confident in their drivers, with the team confidently calling them the "best driver line-up in Formula 1." For his part, Lewis Hamilton was looking forward to the winter after a tough season, but the break has done him good and he's ready to get back behind the wheel.

"It’s always great to get away from everything; change the scenery. And what’s great about Formula 1 is that you start each season with the baseline completely reset – everybody starts again from zero – and that always makes me so hungry."

This is an original article published by F1BigPicture.com

© Copyright 2009-2012 • Christine Blachford • All Rights Reserved

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Kimi Räikkönen returned to action today, getting behind the wheel of an F1 car for the first time since 2009. Lotus are completing a two-day test in a 2010 spec car, with demonstration tyres on, to help Kimi get back into the swing of things.

In his years out of Formula One, the Finn has not been sitting idle and has participated in the World Rally Championship, plus fitting in some NASCAR action as well. It was the move away from the time trials found in rallying that gave Kimi a hint that F1 may be in his future once more.

Talking to Sky Sports, the former champion said: "There were different choices for this year but I really wanted to do racing - I did some NASCAR last year and I really enjoyed competing against people again. It was then that I decided to do some racing again and F1 is the highest level of racing and where people want to be."

Kimi left the sport after winning his first championship with Ferrari, and returns with the midfield runners of Lotus. He's realistic about the possibility of returning to his former winning ways, however, saying: "Of course it takes a little bit of time to get used to it, but the main bits of driving - braking, turning, the normal things - don't take many laps. But learning about the car, the team and the tyres will take time."

This is an original article published by F1BigPicture.com

© Copyright 2009-2012 • Christine Blachford • All Rights Reserved

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Bruno Senna is celebrating being selected selected to partner Pastor Maldonado at Williams for the 2012 season. The Brazilian driver made his F1 debut in 2010 driving for the HRT team, and secured half a season's drive for Renault last year, before returning full time for 2012.

The signing brings him to the team that his uncle, Ayrton Senna, drove for in 1994, but Bruno says the family are supportive of his decision to drive for them: "Everybody is ecstatic; I spoke to my grandparents before I spoke to my mother. My grandmother was so happy, and my grandfather had a great laugh. In the family everyone is smiling, everyone has worked hard for it, and it is a family business. We have a great unity and everyone is super happy."

Meanwhile, Williams can be grateful for the added income that Bruno's sponsors will bring them, but the team are keen to point out that the signing is not just about the money. Chief Operations Engineer, Mark Gillan, spoke of the testing programme they put hopeful drivers through.

"From our side we had an extensive driver evaluation programme with a handful of drivers, and we made the final decision based on raw pace, consistency, tyre management, technical feedback and mental capacity - and most importantly the potential impact they would have on the team. I think in all those areas it was very clear that Bruno has not had a lot of experience in single seater racing, but has consistently shown improvement and real talent."

This announcement leaves former Williams driver Rubens Barrichello without a seat for 2012, with just one drive at HRT remaining open. The veteran driver took to Twitter to say: "I won't be driving the Williams car this year. I wish my friend @BSenna all the best... the future is wide open."

This is an original article published by F1BigPicture.com

© Copyright 2009-2012 • Christine Blachford • All Rights Reserved

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Pastor Maldonado is coming to the end of his rookie year in Formula One, and is still struggling to make a strong impression at the Williams team. However, so far this weekend, at the inaugural Indian Grand Prix, he's gradually matching and overtaking his teammate.

Rubens Barrichello finished FP1 15th, two places ahead of Pastor. In the second practice, he finished 15th again, but Pastor closed up to 16th. By the time Saturday rolled around, Pastor was ahead, finishing 17th to Rubens' 18th, and in qualifying, he extended the lead to two positions. His finish ahead of Rubens brings their season long battle to 9-8, in the veteran's favour.

After qualifying today, Maldonado said: "The track was getting better and better every lap today so you really needed to be on track at the right time. My engineers achieved that with our qualifying strategy and the set-up we had worked. We had good race pace in the last few events, and we are close to the top ten, so tomorrow we will fight!"

This is an original article published by F1BigPicture.com

© Copyright 2009-2012 • Christine Blachford • All Rights Reserved

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Mercedes had a mixed day in Free Practice for the first Indian Grand Prix, with top ten finishes in FP1, dropping to 19th and 21st in FP2. Michael Schumacher was followed by just two HRT drivers and one Virgin car in the second session. However, the team aren't bothered by what the results say, and are happy with their programme.

Team boss Ross Brawn said: "We've had a useful first day of practice around the new Buddh International Circuit today. It's always interesting to explore a new track for the first time, and the grip levels changed a great deal during the two sessions, so the trick will be anticipating where they will be by the race on Sunday. The majority of our programme today focused on race preparation and the car seems in reasonable shape."

Nico Rosberg has analysed the circuit a little better for us: "It has some very interesting corners, and that's why it takes a bit longer to get used to the layout than at some of the other new circuits. Turn two for example is very different; you come from downhill, then go up looking into the sky and so you see the hairpin very late, just before you arrive."

Meanwhile, preparing for the race ahead, Schumacher is concerned about the state of the track itself, saying: "It is a little issue because it will never properly clean up and off-line it remains very slippery. So overtaking is going to be very difficult."

This is an original article published by F1BigPicture.com

© Copyright 2009-2012 • Christine Blachford • All Rights Reserved

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F1 personnel had the chance to experience the sights and sounds of the Buddh International Circuit, India for the first time on Thursday and the response was largely a positive one. Despite a few teething troubles that included a staircase seemingly leading nowhere and the wildlife inhabiting paddock buildings, the track itself appears to offer a unique challenge to drivers.

McLaren's Jenson Button sounded pleased following an initial look at the circuit layout.

"They have done a really good job, the entry to corners look good. The turns are wider and there will be chances of overtaking even at the turn."

Meanwhile Fernando Alonso was keen to compare his practice simulator times to the realities of practice on Friday.

"The last sector looks very different, it looks very quick".

Although India has a population of over one billion people, reaction from local fans has been somewhat muted, with organisers this week slashing the price of entry in order to encourage another 40,000 fans into their brand new grandstands on Sunday.

This is an original article published by F1BigPicture.com

© Copyright 2009-2012 • Christine Blachford • All Rights Reserved

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It seemed very likely that Red Bull driver Sebastian Vettel would be able to wrap up the 2011 Driver Championship at the Suzuka circuit, but that made it no less emotional for the German when he finally crossed the line to pick up the necessary point. Jenson Button won the race, but Vettel's third place meant he became the youngest double world champion ever.

Speaking after the podium ceremony, but before the real team celebrations began, Vettel was keen to thank everyone involved in the season: "Obviously, a lot of people have been quite confident on that, but I think one of the important things was that we didn't allow us to drift away with that thought on too much. We really stayed present and concentrated on every single step. Incredible. Everything we did this year, everything we achieved, we achieved as a team. It's not just us pushing on track, it's the guys in the factory as well. Every single one, it's incredible."

This is an original article published by F1BigPicture.com

© Copyright 2009-2012 • Christine Blachford • All Rights Reserved

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Bruno Senna suffered a significant crash in Free Practice 3 on Saturday morning, after running wide and hitting the kerbs. The Brazilian lost control of his Renault and is spun back across the track and into the tyre barriers. The front suspension was damaged, with the front left tyre completely knocked off. Luckily it managed to hang on by the tethers.

The incident brought out the red flag and the team didn't get the car back until the end of the session. They had plenty of work to do to get Senna's car ready for qualifying, but managed to get him out in time for Q1.

Senna managed to get through to the final session of qualifying, along with Vitaly Petrov, and they qualified 9th and 10th respectively - a far better performance than Singapore.

After the session was over, Senna said: "It was a bit of a squeeze getting my car together in time for qualifying but the team did a fantastic job to mend it after my mishap in practice this morning. I haven't been able to get as much track time as I would have liked yet this weekend, however the car performed flawlessly throughout qualifying, and the strategy we deployed helped put us in a strong position for the race tomorrow."

This is an original article published by F1BigPicture.com

© Copyright 2009-2012 • Christine Blachford • All Rights Reserved

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Williams had a tough day on track for Free Practice Friday at the Suzuka circuit in Japan today. In each session, the team had to call it quits early, without completing the ninety minute allotted time for both cars.

Pastor Maldonado didn't manage to make it to the end of either practice session, and his brief post-session comments tell how frustrating it is for him: "An engine problem caused me to stop early in P2. It's my first time at Suzuka so I really need some more laps. We'll have our work cut out in tomorrow's final session."

Rubens Barrichello suffered with a puncture in P1, and crashed out of the second session after spinning off track. The car left the tarmac, skidded over the run-off and bashed into the tyre barriers, leaving Rubens okay but the car less so. The team have had to reshuffle their plans for final practice on Saturday morning to try and make the most of what little practice time they have left.

This is an original article published by F1BigPicture.com

© Copyright 2009-2012 • Christine Blachford • All Rights Reserved

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