The Formula 1 Blog

F1 in Schools, which challenges students to design, manufacture and race miniature Formula One cars, may boast a roster of famous patrons, but the most significant success of the educational initiative is on an individual level. Winning the hearts and minds of students across 30 countries, it has slowly and surely converted a whole host of youngsters into the engineers, technical directors and team principals of the future. One of the programme's biggest fans is the UK's Kelly Ashbridge. Originally planning to do a marketing degree, Ashbridge is now set to study industrial design at Northumbria University…

On paper it was a dream team - the clout of Mercedes backing, the technical and managerial genius of Ross Brawn, the young driving talent of Nico Rosberg and the living legend that is Michael Schumacher. With such expectation, anything less than perfection would have been disappointing, and the reality of Mercedes GP's first season has been far from perfect. While fourth in the championship standings isn't bad going for a 'newcomer', and there are still positives aplenty, they have less than half the points of leading team McLaren and have little hope of retaining their Brawn-won titles of 2009. Ouch! Here's the story of their campaign so far…

F1 in Schools has fast become one of Formula One racing's favourite causes, and it's easy to see why. The educational initiative, which was set up back in 2000, sees youngsters design, manufacture and race their own miniature F1 cars. Some of the programme's alumni have already started to make their way into the world of work, and inspired by the programme, many have chosen a career in motorsport. One of the 'converted' is the UK's Steve Walker, who is now a graduate engineer at Mercedes-Benz High Performance Engines…

Red Bull's Mark Webber turned the frustration following his team's decision to hand over the upgraded wing from his RB6 to team mate Sebastian Vettel into sheer unadulterated pace at Sunday's British Grand Prix. Beating pole-sitter Vettel into the first corner was just the start of Webber's all-conquering performance, as he led McLaren's Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes GP's Nico Rosberg to the Silverstone finish line. We take a team-by-team look at events…

The social side of the British Grand Prix began as early as last Monday with the F1™ Party in aid of Great Ormond Street Hospital Children's Charity, at London's Natural History Museum, featuring a private gig from the Sugababes. Santander supported the party for a fourth year to raise funds for the hospital's new heart and lung Centre...

Everyone says the RB6 is the fastest car on the grid over a single lap and at Silverstone on Saturday Red Bull hammered the point home, once more locking out the front row. With or without its latest front-wing update, it seems the rest of the pack will have their work cut out to stay in touch on Sunday. We take a team-by-team look at where things stand after qualifying for the British Grand Prix…

Everybody focused on learning the new sections of Silverstone's very green Arena circuit on Friday, and doing the usual tyre comparisons. It didn't help that the track temperature rose from 28 degrees Celsius to 43 by the afternoon, as the ambient temperature rose from 21 to 27. McLaren did not show quite the pace many had expected with their newly-upgraded MP4-25, though many rivals suspect the championship leaders are yet to play their hand. We take a team-by-team look at Friday progress…

Red Bull's Mark Webber says he is fit and well, and raring to go this weekend, less than 14 days after his horrendous back flip in the European Grand Prix in Valencia. The Spanish and Monaco Grand Prix winner confirmed that there have been no ill effects. “I'm over it, let's move on to Silverstone,” he said. “I had a bit of whiplash. I knew straight away that I'd hit my big toe pretty hard. But I didn't even know I was upside down, to be honest. It happened so quickly. I was very mindful that I should let go of the wheel, but I wanted to keep my arms in the car.”

Red Bull will be very strong at a revised Silverstone this weekend, but many fans will want to see the two McLaren drivers - Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button, currently first and second in drivers' points table - fight it out for home victory in the British Grand Prix. Both men are pinning their hopes not just on the MP4-25's famed F-duct, but also a series of new upgrades which include a blown diffuser similar to Red Bull's, and to those introduced in Valencia by Ferrari and Renault...

With a new track layout awaiting the drivers at Silverstone this weekend, there's been plenty of homework for all the teams to do, as Renault explain. The circuit is now 745 metres longer and lap times will be around the 90-second mark, some 10 seconds slower than last year. Over the past few months, the team's engineers have carried out hundreds of simulations to get to grips with the challenge ahead. In fact, simulation work has become an essential tool for any Formula One team, even when preparing for circuits we've been racing on for years. Using complex computer models, it allows the engineers to evaluate set-up options before arriving at the circuit in order to maximise the track time available during free practice.