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.”

Day 2 of the Abu Dhabi F1 Testing - Updated timings

The latest times from the final day of testing at the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi at the end of the 2014 F1 season.

Ferrari Academy protege Raffaele Marciello made his F1 testing debut for the team on Day 2 of the final testing of 2014.

McLaren’s problematic start to their new Honda era continued on the second and final day of the Abu Dhabi test as their interim car completed just two laps.


1. Pascal Wehrlein Germany Mercedes-Mercedes 42 laps 1:44.557 

2. Max Verstappen Netherlands Toro Rosso-Renault 63 laps 1:45.222 

3. Raffaele Marciello Italy Ferrari-Ferrari 48 laps 1:45.376 

4. Daniel Ricciardo Australia Red Bull-Renault 59 laps 1:45.666 

5. Felipe Nasr Brazil Williams-Mercedes 21 lap 1:45.937 

6. Esteban Ocon France Lotus-Renault 34 laps 1:47.013 

7. Marcus Ericsson Sweden Sauber-Ferrari 61 laps 1:47.173 

8. Will Stevens Britain Caterham-Renault 43 laps 1:48.348 

9. Spike Goddard Australia Force India-Mercedes 33 laps 1:48.738

Bottas sets the pace in Abu Dhabi Test

Williams' Valtteri Bottas set the pace on the opening day of the season's final Formula One test in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday.

Abu Dhabi Test - Day 1 final timesheet:

1) Bottas, Williams, 80 laps, 1:43.396
2) Raikkonen, Ferrari, 80 laps, 1:43.888
3) Rosberg, Mercedes, 114 laps, 1:44.512
4) Palmer, Force India, 36 laps, 1:44.516
5) Sainz, Red Bull, 99 laps, 1:45.339
6) Stevens, Caterham, 101 laps, 1:45.436
7) Pic, Lotus, 88 laps, 1:46.167
8) Ericsson, Caterham, 1:46.253
9) Verstappen, Toro Rosso, 55 laps, 1:47.194
10) Vandoorne, McLaren-Honda, 3 laps, no time set

Caterham F1 will race at Abu Dhabi

Just a few moments back, Caterham F1 team announced that they will be racing at the 2014 F1 season ender in Abu Dhabi. Caterham F1 team took up to social media to reveal the big announcement and thank all the fans for their contribution in generating money for the team. This is what they had to say...

Finbarr O’Connell of Smith & Williamson, joint administrator of Caterham Sports Limited: “We set ourselves a major challenge, but it’s definitely been worth it! In only a week the fans have made the impossible, possible. We knew that the best way to keep this team alive and attract possible buyers was to show that it’s still a racing team and be in Abu Dhabi for the finale, and there aren’t enough words to say how grateful we are to all the fans that have made this possible.

“We now head to Abu Dhabi ready to show what a hard-working and positive group of people this is and to hopefully secure a future for the team. During the past few days the interest of many potential buyers has increased massively and by racing in Abu Dhabi the team will be showcasing itself as a live and functioning team that deserves to continue into 2015 and beyond. It has hard-working people, team spirit and experience and now it only needs a secure financial future which I’m very hopeful we can achieve. Once again, I’d like to reiterate that we are racing in Abu Dhabi thanks to all the fans out there – an achievement that will go down in F1 history and one that we can all be very proud of. We still need to raise a bit more cash so please do keep an eye on the Crowdcube website. Let’s go racing!”

Important F1 car launch dates

With new cars, new engines, new driver line-ups and new partnerships up and down the grid, there's a lot to look out for as the 2014 pre-season starts to gather momentum.
As the first pre-season test at Jerez is just around the corner, here's a look at some important dates that we know, in regards to F1 in the coming days.

Important dates to remember for F1 fans in the coming 10 days:

24th January : McLaren Mercedes F1 MP4-29 car launch at Woking. (Online)

25th January : Scuderia Ferrari F1 car launch. (Online)

26th January : Sauber F1car launch.

27th January : Scuderia Toro Rosso F1 STR9 car launch at Jerez.

28th January : Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 W05 car launch at Jerez.

28th January : Infiniti Red Bull F1 RB10 car launch at Jerez.

28th January : Caterham F1 C33 car launch at Jerez.

28th January :  First pre-season test at Jerez.
Lotus F1 team will not be participating in the Jerez  pre season test.

February : Lotus car launch pre-Bahrain test.