Today was a busy day at Ceste circuit in Valencia two team launched their cars, Sauber it’s C30 and Lotus Renault showed us today a very impressive car at least as colors go. The head of Lotus Renault GP used the unveiling its new car Monday to launch a bitter attack on rival Team Lotus, which he accused of damaging Formula One by fighting to keep the name of the legendary automaker.
"Honestly, there’s only one Lotus car company…," said Lotus Renault chairman Gerard Lopez. "I don’t think there’s any question about who is going to be who on the race track, but I think it’s quite damaging to have that go around the Lotus name." Lotus returned to Formula One last season under Tony Fernandes, the flamboyant founder of Malaysia-based budget carrier AirAsia. But in September, Malaysian automaker Proton, which owns a controlling stake in Lotus, terminated Fernandes’ licence, forcing him to drop the original name of Lotus Racing and compete as Team Lotus this season. Then in December the Lotus group took a major equity stake in the Renault Formula One the team for this season, which is now renamed "Lotus Renault GP" for the 2011 season. However, legal action is ongoing over the use of the name, and both teams are set to compete in the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix on March 13. "What is quite damaging is to act like the small team that has been broken up, like David and Goliath," Lopez said of Team Lotus.
"The fact is that it’s all about money. They (Team Lotus) stand to lose money if they change their name, and they should admit that," he told reporters. He was speaking at the Ricardo Tormo circuit near Valencia, where Lotus Renault unveiled its new car with its striking black and gold livery — as Team Lotus also sought to grab the limelight with an online launch just hours earlier. Lopez said the new R31 is "quite revolutionary" and will have "over 92 percent new components." “We gave our engineers a blank sheet with this new single-seater. Only one instruction: be daring, try to innovate, take risk," he said. "The basis of this year’s car is much faster than last year. If last year we did a couple of podiums, this year we should be able to fight for some wins." Renault finished a disappointing fifth in the constructors’ championship last season, with drivers Robert Kubica of Poland and Russia’s Vitaly Petrov in eighth and 13th places respectively.
Bruno Senna, nephew of Formula One legend Ayrton Senna, was announced as a back up driver on Monday, joining France’s Romain Grosjean. ”We are definitely more prepared this year, we are in a more stable situation," said Kubica. "It’s good to have Lotus as a partner, it’s given even more stability, although I read a lot of rumours about the name on the Internet." In what was seen as a snub to Lotus Renault, Team Lotus launched its new car online a few hours before that of its rival. "There has been so much focus off-track it’s a thrill to be able to get back to talking about racing," Fernandes was quoted as saying on the team’s website. Riad Asmat, Team Lotus’ chief executive officer, said the new T128, which has green and yellow livery, takes the outfit "in exactly the right direction". "We have said since day one of the Team Lotus dream that the plan for our second year was to take the fight to the midfield, and with this car we are all confident that is what we will be able to do." Earlier, struggling Swiss outfit Sauber looked to Mexico as it revealed its new car for 2011. Mexican rookie Sergio Perez, who turned 21 this month, will be the number two driver to Japan’s Kamui Kobayashi in the new white and graphite-coloured Sauber C30-Ferrari. The first Mexican to compete in Formula One for three decades, he comes to Sauber along with four major Mexican sponsors this year. Ferrari were the first team to unveil their 2011 car, in Italy on Friday. The new Ferrari design incorporates the various regulation changes that will be enforced in 2011 – most notably the introduction of an adjustable rear wing, and the removal of devices such as F-ducts and double diffusers. This season will also see the return of KERS, a device that stores energy created by braking, which can be used to boost power at certain points during the race.
Another important change for 2011 is the introduction of tyres from the Italian company Pirelli, which takes over from Bridgestone as the sport’s sole tyre supplier.Said Kubica: "With so many changes this year, the task facing us is bigger than in previous years and understanding KERS, the rear wing and the new tyres will need a lot of laps."
So, here is a short video I found with an interview with Kubica and the unveiling of the car.
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