Caterham and Marussia to say goodbye to F1?

Both Marussia & Caterham have got very less time if they are to take any part in 2015

With just 26 days until the winter test season begins in Spain, neither of the two have committed to running at Jerez at the start of February.

“Talks with interested parties continue,” Caterham administrator Henry Shinners told the BBC, “but if a buyer is not found before the test, we will not put up the money to go.”

The team has arranged to be allowed to run its 2014 car and engine this year, but Shinners warned that any rescue deal would need to be in place within a “few weeks”.

“I wouldn’t rule anything out,” he said, “but if we reach the first race in the same position, the chances of saving the team are virtually nil.”

Marussia, whose crucial team equipment has been auctioned in a bid to pay back creditors, staff are laid off and even the Banbury headquarters could be sold to the new American 2016 team Haas are in an even worse situation.

Their only hope now is that an eleventh-hour investor might step in so that millions in official prize-money for finishing the 2014 season in ninth place can be unlocked.

“There’s still a slim hope,” team boss John Booth told the Yorkshire Post, “but it’s getting extremely late. We’ve got two weeks to complete something by. So there’s still a chance. We are talking to investors and they are positive talks.”

Schumacher responds to family

Michael Schumacher often cries when he hears the voices of his family members, according to a report in the Italian magazine Autosprint.

This week, the F1 legend's manager and doctor hit back at claims by former driver Philippe Streiff, who declared that while Schumacher is unable to speak, he is "starting to recognise those close to him".

Official information has been thin on the ground throughout the full year since the former Ferrari and Mercedes driver's skiing crash last December.

But as the authoritative Autosprint's editor-in-chief Alberto Sabbatini writes, the health and future of one of the world's greatest ever sportsmen is "on everyone's mind".

The report said its information has been collected "as objectively as possible", based on "reliable and verified information" from "those who know and have seen him recently and are aware of his clinical status".

Sabbatini concluded that Schumacher is making a "very slow recovery", adding: "The good news is that Michael is not stuck in a bed.

"When not undergoing physical therapy to avoid muscle atrophy, he sits in a chair in front of the windows of his villa, overlooking on one side the snowy peaks of the Swiss alps, and on the other the shores of Lake Geneva.

"Michael has his eyes open," he continued, "but he is often looking into the void.

"In recent times, he has been able to recognise the familiar faces of his family, but he cannot communicate with them. He does not speak and he is not able to perform movements independently.

"He reacts to external stimuli but for now can only answer a familiar voice by moving his eyes.

"In a wonderful article in the Corriere della Sera on Sunday, Giorgio Terruzzi said that sometimes a tear rolls down Michael's face. He cries when he hears the voice of his children or Corinna.

"It shows that he feels emotion. That his brain works. It is the only way his strong character is able to externally convey an emotion. It is a sign that he is alive and understands, even if for now he is the prisoner of an immobile body," Sabbatini added.

F1 : Rule changes and calender announced

FIA released a statement regarding the 2015 Formula One season calender and regulations.

The full statement from the FIA’s World Motor Sport Council:

The 2015 FIA Formula One World Championship calendar is confirmed as follows:

15/03 Australia
29/03 Malaysia
12/04 China
19/04 Bahrain
03/05 Korea (TBC)
10/05 Spain
24/05 Monaco
07/06 Canada
21/06 Austria
05/07 Britain
19/07 Germany
26/07 Hungary
23/08 Belgium
06/09 Italy
20/09 Singapore
27/09 Japan
11/10 Russia
25/10 USA
01/11 Mexico
15/11 Brazil
29/11 Abu Dhabi




2015 F1 SPORTING REGULATIONS

The following decisions were taken:

Points


Points for both titles will no longer be doubled for the final Event of the Championship.

Standing Restarts


After consultation with the Teams who raised a number of safety concerns, Articles 42.7 and 42.8 on standing restarts have been rescinded.



Virtual Safety Car (VSC) 


Following tests of the VSC system at the final Events of 2014, the introduction of the system has been approved for 2015. The VSC procedure may be initiated to neutralise a race upon the order of the clerk of the course. It will normally be used when double waved yellow flags are needed on any section of track and competitors or officials may be in danger, but the circumstances are not such as to warrant use of the safety car itself. The full text of the article is available in Annex I.



Suspending a race


When a race is suspended, the pit exit will be closed and all cars must now proceed slowly into the pit lane, not the starting grid. The first car to arrive in the pit lane should proceed directly to the pit exit staying in the fast lane, all the other cars should form up in a line behind the first car. 



Team personnel or equipment on grid


If any team personnel or team equipment remain on the grid after the 15 second signal has been shown the driver of the car concerned must start the race from the pit lane. A ten second stop-and-go penalty will be imposed on any driver who fails to do this.



Power Unit Penalties


The replacement of a complete power unit will no longer result in a penalty, instead as specified in the current regulations, penalties will be applied cumulatively for individual components of the power unit.

If a grid place penalty is imposed, and the driver’s grid position is such that the full penalty cannot be applied, the remainder of the penalty will be applied in the form of a time penalty during the race (not at the next race as was previously the case) according to the following scale :

• 1 to 5 grid places untaken: A penalty under Article 16.3(a) will be applied.

• 6 to 10 grid places untaken: A penalty under Article 16.3(b) will be applied.

• 11 to 20 grid places untaken: A penalty under Article 16.3(c) will be applied.

• More than 20 grid places untaken: A penalty under Article 16.3(d) will be applied.



Time Penalties


In addition to the existing five-second penalty (Article 16.3a), a new ten-second penalty (Article 16.3b) will also be introduced, to be applied in the same manner.



Unsafe Release


If a car is deemed to have been released in an unsafe condition during a race a ten second stop-and-go penalty will be imposed on the driver concerned. An additional penalty will be imposed on any driver who, in the opinion of the stewards, continues to drive a car knowing it to have been released in an unsafe condition.



Qualifying Procedure


The qualifying procedure was clarified: for cases when 24 cars are eligible seven will be excluded after Q1 and Q2, if 22 cars are eligible six cars will be excluded after Q1 and Q2, and so on if fewer cars are eligible.



Safety Car: lapped cars


Once the last lapped car has passed the leader the safety car will return to the pits at the end of the following lap, the race director will no longer have to wait for all the lapped cars to reach the back of the pack behind the safety car.



2015 TECHNICAL REGULATIONS 


- The weight of the car, without fuel, must not be less than 702kg at all times during the Event (up from 701kg).

- Changes have been made to the rules governing Wind Tunnel Testing and with regard to the aerodynamic reporting periods for 2015 and 2016. 

- Any suspension system fitted to the front wheels must be so arranged that its response results only from changes in load applied to the front wheels.

- Any suspension system fitted to the rear wheels must be so arranged that its response results only from changes in load applied to the rear wheels.

- The Zylon anti-intrusion panels on both sides of the survival cell have been extended upwards to the rim of the cockpit and alongside the pilot’s head.



NEXT MEETING OF THE STRATEGY GROUP


The FIA President confirmed that the next meeting of the Strategy Group would take place on 18 December, and would focus reducing costs, improving the show, making cars quicker and more difficult to drive, and reviewing the technical and sporting regulations, with the aim of simplifying the rules where possible.



ACCIDENT PANEL

A review of all the evidence and other information about the events leading up to Jules Bianchi’s accident at the Japanese Grand Prix 5 October 2014, Suzuka, has been carried out by the 10-man Accident Panel, appointed by the FIA and chaired by Safety Commission President Peter Wright. The Panel has issued a 396-page report on their findings with recommendations for improvements, many relevant to all of motor sport. This has been presented to the FIA World Motor Sport Council, which accepted the findings and gave a mandate to implement the full recommendations and conclusions of the report. The summary issued by the panel can be found on fia.com.




CRITERIA FOR THE ISSUING OF SUPER LICENCES

A proposal on the conditions of attribution of the Super Licence was approved for 2016, on the basis of the following criteria:

1 - Safety criteria


The following changes have been made compared to the current regulations:

- There is a valid driving licence requirement.

- There is a minimum age requirement (18yo).

- There is a verification of knowledge of the F1 Sporting Regulations/ISC rules.

2 - Experience criteria


With the following changes compared to the current regulations:

- There is the 300km in F1 TCC or TPC_ as a minimum requirement.

- There is a 2 years minimum running in minor Formulas.

3 - Performance criteria


With the following changes compared to the current regulations:

- There is a point system requirement, based on the driver results in previous Formulas.


Source : www.formula1.com

Jules Bianchi out of induced coma!

Jules Bianchi is no longer in an induced coma but remains unconscious, his family said in a statement.

The Frenchman has been in an artificial coma since he suffered severe head trauma when he crashed into a recovery vehicle that was removing Adrian Sutil's Sauber at the Japanese Grand Prix at the beginning of October.

His family, though, issued an encouraging press release on Wednesday, confirming he is breathing unaided and will be moved from the hospital in Yokkaichi to the Le Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Nice.

"Jules is no longer in the artificial coma in which he was placed shortly after the accident, however he is still unconscious," the statement said.

"He is breathing unaided and his vital signs are stable, but his condition is still classified as 'critical'. His treatment now enters a new phase concerned with the improvement of his brain function.

"Jules' neurological condition remains stable. Although the situation continues to be serious, and may remain so, it was decided that Jules was sufficiently stable to be repatriated to his native France.

"We are relieved, therefore, to confirm that Jules was transferred aeromedically last night from the Mie Prefectural General Medical Center in Yokkaichi, Japan, to Le Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Nice (CHU), where he arrived just a short time ago.

"Jules is now in the intensive care unit of Professors Raucoules and Ichai, where his care will also be monitored by Professor Paquis, Head of Neurosurgery Service."

The family also expressed their gratitude to the medical staff at the Mie Prefectural General Medical Center.

The statement added: "We are thankful that the next phase of Jules' treatment can continue close to home, where he can be surrounded and supported by his wider family and friends.

"We have nothing but praise for the outstanding care provided by the Mie Prefectural General Medical Center since the accident.

"We owe the medical staff there an enormous debt of gratitude for everything they have done for Jules, and also for our family, during what is a very difficult time for us.

"In particular, we would like to extend our thanks to Doctors Kamei and Yamamichi, and also to Mr Ogura, all part of the team of personnel caring for Jules in Japan."