NASCAR Tracks-The Bristol Motor Speedway

Bristol Motor Speedway, as a half-mile oval with the steepest banking on the NASCAR circuit, is sometimes referred to as "The Toilet Bowl". When the cars line up for the starting flag, they often stretch nearly halfway around the short track. As a result, Bristol is known for its "paint swapping," and races tend to include numerous accidents and caution flags. Bristol Speedway is the last circular track on the NASCAR circuit to install the barrier system. The installation was delayed at Bristol while engineers determined how to install the walls over the track's gates. Bristol Motor Speedway, aside from being an excellent track loaded with potentially wild twists, seems to ooze a sense of brotherhood and awe among the lucky ones with Bristol NASCAR tickets. This year's Nextel Cup and Busch (now the Sprint and the Nationwide) Series will have race fans rushing out to buy tickets, among others, all eager to see their favorite race to victory.

Bristol Motor Speedway has been an integral part of auto racing since 1961. The short track makes for slower speeds, but that is offset by the high banking of the turns at Bristol, a challenging aspect like no other track on the NASCAR circuit.

Race Week at Bristol (BMS) is not just a normal week not only for the people who work there but for the fans as well. When you attend a race at Bristol it's not just go check out the race and that's it. Racers love concrete because it provides a ton of grip and less tire wear than asphalt. Fans love Bristol because no matter which of the 160,000 seats you get, you can see the whole track. Race enthusiasts here did better than that, allowing the wave to continue nearly a half-dozen times after hearing they had set the record.

Bristol has purchased property and developed satellite parking lots on Hwy 11-E. Fees are charged for tent and motor home camping at the Bristol Dragway. Bristol Motor Speedway travel packages complete the experience at one of the favorite NASCAR tracks - the track they call Thunder Valley. Buy Bristol tickets and be part of the huge crowd of nearly 150,000 fans lucky enough to have NASCAR tickets to the Sharpie 500 in August.

The Speedway, aside from being an excellent track loaded with potentially wild twists, seems to ooze a sense of brotherhood and awe among the lucky ones with Bristol NASCAR tickets. This year's Nextel Cup and Busch (now the Sprint and the Nationwide) Series will have race fans rushing out to buy Bristol Motor Speedway tickets, among others, all eager to see their favorites race to victory.

Bristol Motor Speedway could very easily have opened in 1961 under a different name. The original plan was to build in Piney Flats which is 5 miles down the road from Bristol but the idea met local opposition. Otherwise we might have been visiting the Piney Flats Speedway. In the end the speedway was constructed in Bristol on land that was once a dairy farm.

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Article Source: NASCAR Tracks-The Bristol Motor Speedway

Source: http://www.articlespan.com/article/272656/nascar-tracks-the-bristol-motor-speedway

Elliott William Barnes Sadler Johnny Andrew Sauter Kenneth William Schrader

Timeline: Kasey Kahne's First Seven Years in NASCAR

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Kasey Kahne, who was released Wednesday night as the driver of the Richard Petty Motorsports No. 9 Budweiser Ford, came on the scene in 2003, when RPM was still Evernham Motorsports.

In the seven years since, he's racked up 11 victories, including an impressive six victories in 2006.

But Kahne was a lame duck at RPM, and he and longtime crew chief Kenny Francis had previously announced their intentions to race for Red Bull Racing in 2011 as a stopover point before Kahne's move to Hendrick Motorsports' No. 5 car in 2012.

 

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Source: http://motorsports.fanhouse.com/2010/10/21/timeline-kasey-kahnes-first-seven-bumpy-nascar-years/

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McLaren drivers' hopes hanging by a thread

"It's not been our greatest weekend," McLaren team principal Martin Whitmarsh admitted even before the Japanese Grand Prix started. Two hours later, it did not even look that good for Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button. Hamilton's pre-race assessment of it being one of his "worst weekends" was pretty much spot on.

After the race, Whitmarsh put a brave face on things, saying it was not the "bigger disaster" he had feared at some points over the weekend. But the reality is that Suzuka dealt a heavy blow to the championship hopes of both McLaren drivers.

Button finished fourth, a place ahead of Hamilton, but their three title rivals - Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber of Red Bull and Ferrari's Fernando Alonso - annexed the podium, and for the first time all season both Englishmen are more than a win off the championship lead.

That watershed moment - as it may well turn out to be - has come at the worst possible time, with just three races to go and with both the Red Bull and the Ferrari expected, on current form, to be quicker cars than the McLaren at those tracks.

Given the expected dominance of the Red Bulls at Suzuka, Japan was always going to be an exercise in damage-limitation for McLaren. Instead, the damage was to some extent self-inflicted.

Hamilton started things rolling with his crash in first practice on Friday morning, which was exactly what he did not need after accidents had put him out of the last two races.

That meant Hamilton managed only six flying laps on Friday and put him on the back foot for the rest of the weekend. And things got worse when it emerged that McLaren had to change his gearbox, earning him a five-place grid penalty.

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This, it emerged, was as a result of damage it incurred in Hamilton's race-ending collision with Webber in the previous race in Singapore. McLaren hoped that it would survive, but it became clear through Saturday that it would not, and they had to take the hit.

After the wash-out on Saturday, Hamilton qualified third on Sunday morning, a quite superb performance given his lack of track time. But that became eighth following his penalty, and from there he was never going to beat the Red Bulls or Alonso.

Bringing back memories of his stunning drive to third in a poor car in Suzuka last year, though, Hamilton gave it a go. He was fantastic both before and after another gearbox problem intervened and he lost third gear, and subsequently fourth place to his team-mate.

That second gearbox problem meant Hamilton, despite his Friday crash, ultimately got as many points as he was ever going to get at Suzuka. But, as he put it himself, the last three races have made winning the championship "very difficult".

For his part, Button's gamble on taking the harder tyre for qualifying failed to pay off.

Whitmarsh believed it cost Button a place on the grid and if that is true it could have been the difference between finishing third and fourth in the race.

Alonso made a poor start from his fourth place so, had Button been ahead of him on the grid, it is inconceivable to think the world champion would not have beaten the Ferrari into the first corner.

That would have given him critical track position. Alonso was faster than Button in the race but had the Englishman been ahead Button would probably have beaten the Ferrari anyway.

For Button, that would have meant being 28 points off the championship lead rather than 31 as he is now. In such a tight season, that could make a huge difference.

Trying to emphasise the positives, as all the best managers do, Whitmarsh pointed out both that there are still 75 points available and that McLaren have more developments to come in the final three races.

But the team's promises of performance have not always delivered what they expected on the track this season and the fact remains that McLaren have had the third fastest car at the vast majority of the races this season.

Only at Spain, Turkey and Canada has it been demonstrably faster than the Ferrari, and only in Turkey, Canada and Italy than the Red Bull. McLaren and Hamilton had got into the championship lead by maximising their potential better than either of their rivals. That ability seems to have escaped them for now.

What made it worse was that Suzuka, actually, was one of McLaren's better races in terms of performance - and it was always going to be Ferrari's weakest of the final four.

Had the weekend gone smoothly for McLaren they might well have beaten Alonso with both cars - they certainly had the qualifying pace for that. To miss that opportunity could prove very costly indeed.

"Anything can happen," Whitmarsh said. "The leading guys could fall off at the next race, Lewis could win, and all of a sudden you'd be right back in it."

That's what the Japanese GP did for McLaren - realistically, they know the championship is now out of their hands, and they are relying on something going wrong for the top three.

Webber, meanwhile, has extended his lead in the championship, from 11 points over Alonso going into the race to 14 after it. But the Australian will be feeling anything but comfortable.

Vettel is now tied on points with Alonso - although classified only third because he has won one less race - and the result means that, were Red Bull to finish one-two in all the remaining races, Webber can not finish second to his team-mate in all three and still win the championship.

On pure performance, that is what Red Bull should do. But, as Alonso pointed out, that must be considered unlikely on the evidence of the season so far.

"Of the 16 races of the championship," he said, twisting the knife a little, "15 of them were Red Bull circuits and they won only seven. So in the remaining three races, I think it will be difficult for Red Bull to be one and two every race because always something seems to happen.

"If something does happen, we need to take the opportunity. If not, it will be hard because we know in 2010 the Red Bull has been the dominant car."

Alonso may, though, be playing down his chances.

The changes to the rules on bodywork flexibility seem to have brought Red Bull back towards their rivals - their advantage in Japan was nowhere near as big as it was in Hungary, a similarly favourable track.

On top of that, none of the remaining circuits are likely to be as good for Red Bull as Japan.

South Korea, on 24 October, is an unknown quantity, but while there are a lot of corners at Yeongam that will favour the Red Bull so, too, are there long straights which will tip the balance back to the Ferrari and the McLaren. That may leave things dead level between all three. It will be fascinating to see.

The bumps and long straights at Interlagos in Brazil may also give Ferrari the chance to take on Red Bull on a level playing field. Only at Abu Dhabi may Red Bull reasonably expect a significant advantage.

There are doubtless many twists to come in the best F1 championship in years, decades even - but for Hamilton and Button, at least for now, it looks a long shot.

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/andrewbenson/2010/10/mclaren_drivers_hopes_hanging.html

Aldo Gordini Horace Gould Jean Marc Gounon Emmanuel de Graffenried

Timeline: Kasey Kahne's First Seven Years in NASCAR

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Kasey Kahne, who was released Wednesday night as the driver of the Richard Petty Motorsports No. 9 Budweiser Ford, came on the scene in 2003, when RPM was still Evernham Motorsports.

In the seven years since, he's racked up 11 victories, including an impressive six victories in 2006.

But Kahne was a lame duck at RPM, and he and longtime crew chief Kenny Francis had previously announced their intentions to race for Red Bull Racing in 2011 as a stopover point before Kahne's move to Hendrick Motorsports' No. 5 car in 2012.

 

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Source: http://motorsports.fanhouse.com/2010/10/21/timeline-kasey-kahnes-first-seven-bumpy-nascar-years/

Ernst Klodwig Kamui Kobayashi Helmuth Koinigg Heikki Kovalainen

Talladega's 'Big Ones' Leave Drivers With Coin-Toss Odds in Avoiding Carnage

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When the 43 best drivers in the country take to Talladega Speedway Sunday on Halloween, they will carry with them an unbroken streak of big-crash horrors dating back to the spring of 2007.

The so-called Big One -- which we'll arbitrarily define as a crash involving 10 or more cars -- has occurred at the 2.66-mile, high-banked oval for six straight races now.

Considering NASCAR's more lenient "Boys, have at it" policy in 2010, and the fact that more than half the field -- 24 of 43 cars -- crashed at one point or another in the spring race, the odds of a quiet Sunday afternoon in Alabama seem slim indeed.

In fact, the odds are slim indeed.

Based on the last 11 races, dating back to the spring 2005 event, an average of 20.45 of the 43 cars have been involved in a yellow flag for a crash -- or slightly less than half the field.

For every race.

If you count the fact that a number of cars were involved in two incidents in a single race, the average jumps to 23.45 cars per race involved in incidents, or slightly more than half the field.

Either way you look at it, the odds in recent years of any one driver getting involved in a wreck at Talladega are about 50-50, or a coin toss.

 

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Source: http://motorsports.fanhouse.com/2010/10/29/talladegas-big-ones-leave-drivers-with-coin-toss-odds-in-avoi/

Tony Raines Bobby Labonte Terry Labonte Kevin Conway

Nascar Fan Factor Up Close And Personal

There is no doubt that Nascar is one of the strongest brands ever in America's sporting chronicle. But what makes Nascar to be such a hot brand? Who is behind the success of Nascar? Well, the winnows of Nascar, who else?!? Nascar sports fans are the most faithful devotees in the world. You will never see the fans of Dale Earnhardt, Jr. drink any other beer other than Bud. This is because Dale is the brand name ambassador for Budweiser. Jeff Gordon is affiliated with Dupont paint, and most Jeff Gordon fans never use any other paint.

The brand name commitment of the sports fans is then cashed in by the sponsors. A survey divulged that in order to have their name and logotype on the lid of a top Nascar Nextel cup car, a person and or corporation has to pay $1.5 million! Now that is big money. The drivers are the main factor behind the success of the Nascar cars. The drama associated with the sport and the adrenaline rush cannot be compared to that of any other sport.

Loyalty To The Drivers
If a Nascar Nextel cup driver suddenly advertises Pepsi before the race, then the sales of Pepsi during that race will be incomparable. All the fans of that driver will simply quit using any other soft drink and start using Pepsi. Similarly, if a driver connects himself with a particular brand of shopping store like, say, Home Depot then all the fans will shop at Home Depot.

Role Of The Media
The media, too, will encounter a big role in promoting some of the stuff. For example, if Bill Elliot is seen eating at a specific restaurant and the photo hits newspaper headlines, the coming week, all of his devotees will eat in the same eatery. During the race, the fan following hits a new level altogether!

Individuals come from far-off distances to watch the races and then the sales of accessories and branded stuff hits the roof. Drivers like Jeff Gordon who are associated with car dealerships are also cashing in on the popularity. The sales of the cars have inflated dramatically after these drivers linked themselves with the car companies.

Automotive Productions
Automotive products, too, have established a market like never before, thanks to the growing popularity of Nascar drivers and their ever increasing fan following. If a particular Nascar driver uses a specific brand of paint on their car, then that paint has to be used by all his fans as well. The most common instance is that of the headlamp restoration product used by most Nascar drivers. The product which restores the condition of the headlamp to as good as new is exceedingly popular and is now used by many Nascar fans across the world as well.

This author is a HUGE fan of NASCAR licensed merchandise

Article Source: Nascar Fan Factor Up Close And Personal

Source: http://www.articlespan.com/article/111196/nascar-fan-factor-up-close-and-personal

Great Clips Toyota Parker Kligerman Steve Wallace 5 hour Energy Toyota

Spotter's Stand: Are Bad Brakes the Breaking Point for Kahne, RPM?

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J.J. Yeley became NASCAR's newest Budweiser man for about 90 laps Saturday night after Kasey Kahne left the track following a lap 125 crash on the frontstretch.

Yeley, who started the race in the start-and-park No. 36 for Tommy Baldwin Racing, hopped in the repaired No. 9 when Kahne decided to leave Charlotte Motor Speedway for the evening.

The driver change -- one that seemingly echoed a situation a few years ago when Kyle Busch departed Texas Motor Speedway after a crash only to see Dale Earnhardt Jr. finish the race in the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports car -- initially was blamed by Richard Petty Motorsports staff on Kahne feeling ill.

However, listening to Kahne's radio told a different story -- one that involved Kahne being incensed over brake issues.

Fortunately, Kahne had a previously scheduled 5k running race for his charity foundation Sunday in Charlotte, and he didn't hesitate to speak up, explaining that both issues were involved.

 

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Source: http://motorsports.fanhouse.com/2010/10/18/spotters-stand-are-bad-brakes-the-breaking-point-for-kahne-rp/

Hans Klenk Peter de Klerk Christian Klien Karl Kling

Turkish GP: Hamilton gains victory by Red Bull collision

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May 30 '10

Lewis Hamilton won today's Turkish Grand Prix with a bit of a luck from the collision of the Red Bull mates, Mark Webber and Sebastian Vettel. Hamilton's first win of the season. His team mate Jenson Button finished second and Mark Webber who was leading the race before the incident, finished third.

The McLaren duo of Hamilton and Button, who were running first and second after the incident between the Red Bull drivers, were racing against each other despite warnings from their crew about ?critical? fuel shortages.

According to F1Fanatic, The McLaren drivers could scarcely believe their fortune but Button, now up to second, fancied his chances of a third win. He drew alongside his team mate on the outside of turn 12 and scrambled past.

That left Button on the outside of the last corner and Hamilton used his momentum to get back alongside. The pair touched wheels as they dived into turn one side-by-side and Hamilton seized the lead back."

Details of the race below, thanks to the Formula 1 broadcaster and journalist, James Allen's tweets.

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Video of the incident between Webber and Vettel

According to iTV, "Winning this race would be about seizing the precious moment. Vettel felt his had come when he got a run on Webber exiting ?Faux Rouge?, the right-hand kink in the back straight.

It was a squeeze but he got alongside and had the inside line for turn 12. He was slightly ahead too, and clearly felt he had earned the right to drift over for a slightly less compromised line.

Webber didn?t see it that way. Perhaps hoping to pinch his team-mate in order to get a run on him through the second part or even the exit of the left-right-left combination, he held his line.

The Red Bulls touched and Vettel spun down the road, almost collecting Webber in the run-off area before marching away from his wreck while giving the universally accepted hand signal for ?crazy?."

Michael Schumacher finished a strong fourth in his Mercedes ahead of his team mate Nico Rosberg in fifth. Kamui Kobayashi scored his first points of the season and also his team's. Both the Saubers finished the race for the first time this season.

Hamilton?s first win of the season moves him up to third place in the driver's standings (84 pts), Webber retains the lead (93 pts). Button moves to second (88 pts). Vettel, who jointly led the championship heading into this race, falls to fifth (78 pts). McLaren lead the constructor's championship, ahead of Red Bull and Ferrari.

Turkish Grand Prix Race times

1. Lewis Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes 58 laps 1hr 28m 47.620s
2. Jenson Button McLaren-Mercedes +00m 02.6s
3. Mark Webber Red Bull-Renault +00m 24.2s
4. Michael Schumacher Mercedes-Mercedes +00m 31.1s
5. Nico Rosberg Mercedes-Mercedes +00m 32.2s
6. Robert Kubica Renault-Renault +00m 32.8s
7. Felipe Massa Ferrari-Ferrari +00m 36.6s
8. Fernando Alonso Ferrari-Ferrari +00m 46.5s
9. Adrian Sutil Force India-Mercedes +00m 49.0s
10. Kamui Kobayashi BMW Sauber-Ferrari +01m 05.6s

11. Pedro de la Rosa BMW Sauber-Ferrari +01m 05.9s
12. Jaime Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari +01m 07.8s
13. Vitantonio Liuzzi Force India-Mercedes +1 lap
14. Rubens Barrichello Williams-Cosworth +1 lap
15. Vitaly Petrov Renault-Renault +1 lap
16. Sebastien Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari +1 lap
17. Nico Hulkenberg Williams-Cosworth +1 lap
18. Timo Glock Virgin-Cosworth +3 laps
19 Lucas di Grassi Virgin-Cosworth +3 laps
20. Karun Chandhok HRT-Cosworth +6 laps

Rtd Bruno Senna HRT-Cosworth 46 laps completed
Rtd Sebastian Vettel Red Bull-Renault 39 laps completed
Rtd Heikki Kovalainen Lotus-Cosworth 33 laps completed
Rtd Jarno Trulli Lotus-Cosworth 32 laps completed


Fastest lap:

Vitaly Petrov Renault -Renault 1m 29.165s lap 57

Images (C) Daylife, F1Fanatic

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U S ARMY Chevrolet Greg Biffle 3M Ford Jeff Burton

NASCAR Tickets - 50 Years of Firsts at Lowe's Motor Speedway

2009 marks the 50th year of the running of the Coca-Cola 600 at the Lowe's Motor Speedway in Charlotte, North Carolina, and to celebrate this NASCAR half-centennial event Lower's Motor Speedway has pulled all stops to bring 50 Years of Firsts to the racetrack. The Speedway recently unveiled the plan of attack for this May madness, and the festivities will all kick off with the help of the Coca-Cola 600 defending champion Kasey Kahne.

Opening on May 4, Kahne will stand alongside Lowe's Motor Speedway officials in opening the gigantic 50 Years of Firsts display outside the racetrack. The exhibit will run through May 24 and will feature all kinds of racing memorabilia from the Coca-Cola 600 through its five decades at the Carolina racetrack. From Bobby Allison's race-winning 1969 No. 12 Mercury to David Pearson's 1971 No. 21 Mercury and several other pieces of NASCAR history, the 50 Years of Firsts display will be decked out in every aspect of stock car racing.

Marcus Smith, president and general manager of the Speedway, said that "for our 50th year, we're inviting every race fan to relive the good times that got us here and make new memories to last a lifetime at the Sprint All-Star Race and Coca-Cola 600. The 50 Years of Firsts display is our way to honor our fans by giving them the chance to stroll down memory lane and see the things most have never seen before. This will be an exceptional added attraction for fans coming to Charlotte in May."

This year's Coca-Cola 600 will take place at Lowe's Motor Speedway in Charlotte on May 24 and will follow the Sprint All-Star Race, which will be held on May 16. This year's Charlotte race will undoubtedly be a battle for first place in series standings, and NASCAR tickets are available now, with racing fans already lining up to reserve a seat in the grandstands for this NASCAR milestone. So far in the Sprint Cup Series in 2009, names like Matt Kenseth, Jeff Gordon and the Busch brothers have been the most prevalent on the NASCAR scene, and races leading up to May's Coca-Cola 600 are sure to shape the season even more.

If this year's Charlotte race turns out to be anything like last year's, be sure to get racing tickets online and early, as the 2008 Coca-Cola 600 was an absolute thriller. Richard Petty Motorsports' Kasey Kahne swept the race last year, snagging first place after leading 66 laps and coming in ahead of Greg Biffle, Kyle Busch, Jeff Gordon, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jeff Burton, Matt Kenseth, Elliott Sadler, Carl Edwards and David Reutimann, respectively. Kahne took first place after Jimmie Johnson exited the race with an engine failure and both Earnhardt and Tony Stewart fell to tire cuts. All of these drivers and more are vying for a rematch to last year's Coca-Cola 600, and now with Lowe's Motor Speedway's 50th year anniversary, this is one NASCAR Sprint Cup race that is sure to draw in crowds by the thousands.

This article is sponsored by StubHub.com. StubHub is a leader in the business of selling NASCAR tickets, sports tickets, concert tickets, theater tickets and special events tickets.

Article Source: NASCAR Tickets - 50 Years of Firsts at Lowe's Motor Speedway

Source: http://www.articlespan.com/article/250668/nascar-tickets-50-years-of-firsts-at-lowes-motor-speedway

Kroger Ford Kenny Wallace Jason Keller Coleman Pressley

F1 2011: Tyres, adjustable rear wings, 640 kg and...

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June 24 '10

The FIA's World Motor Sport Council (WMSC) announced a raft of decisions after a meeting in Geneva on Wednesday (June 23). Decisions include the rule clarification which involved Michael Schumacher at the 2010 Monaco Grand Prix, where he passed Fernando Alonso on the final lap when the safety car returned to the pits and was handed a twenty-second penalty. Also, repeat of Hamilton's Montreal qualifying stunt wont be allowed.

Others decisions are taken to "improve the show" which involves the use of proximity rear wing.

Tyres

We finally have an F1 tyre supplier for 2011. The FIA preferred the idea of Michelin, as did McLaren and Ferrari in particular. But it is Pirelli who have beaten off competition from Michelin. Pirelli becomes the official F1 tyre supplier from 2011. The Italian tyre manufacturer gets a three-year contract from 2011 to 2013. They last supplied F1 teams in 1991.

According to WMSC:

Pirelli has been selected as the single tyre supplier for the FIA Formula One World Championship for a period of three years, commencing in 2011. The sole supplier will undertake to strictly respect the sporting and technical regulations implemented by the FIA.

Safety Car

In the wake of the controversy involving Michael Schumacher in Monaco, the FIA has ruled that there will be no overtaking even when the safety car pulls in on the last lap of a race.


With immediate effect, no car may overtake until it has passed the first safety car line for the first time when the safety car is returning to the pits. However, if the safety car is still deployed at the beginning of the last lap, or is deployed during the last lap, it will enter the pit lane at the end of the lap and the cars will take the chequered flag as normal without overtaking.

General safety

Lewis Hamilton?s fine and reprimand after qualifying in Canada has resulted in a new rule requiring drivers to stay below a ?maximum time? set by the FIA on in-laps.

With immediate effect, any car being driven unnecessarily slowly, erratically, or which is deemed potentially dangerous to other drivers, will be reported to the stewards. This will apply whether any such car is being driven on the track, the pit entry or the pit lane.

In order to ensure cars are not driven unnecessarily slowly on in-laps during qualifying or reconnaissance laps when the pit exit is opened for the race, drivers must stay below the maximum time set by the FIA between the safety car line after the pit exit and safety car line before the pit entry. The maximum time will be determined by the race director at each event prior to the first day of practice, but may be amended during the event if necessary.


The grid

Next year, the 107 per cent qualifying rule will reappear. Any car not setting a time within 107% of the fastest time in the final part of qualifying, will not be allowed to start the race. This was dropped when single lap qualifying was introduced in 2002. There are exceptions however, whereby if a team sets competitive lap times during practice session, they maybe allowed to race.

From 2011, any driver whose best qualifying lap exceeds 107% of the fastest Q1 qualifying time will not be allowed to take part in the race. Under exceptional circumstances, however, which may include setting a suitable lap time in a free practice session, the stewards may permit the car to start the race. Should there be more than one driver accepted in this manner, the grid order will be determined by the stewards.

An analysis by F1Fanatic: "Had the rule as proposed been in place this year it would have prevented both HRT drivers from starting in Bahrain and Malaysia. Lucas di Grassi would have been out of the Malaysian race as well, leaving just 21 cars on the grid.

"Bruno Senna would have missed out on racing at Barcelona ? by just one-hundredth of a second ? and Karun Chandhok wouldn?t have been on the grid at Canada last week."


Adjustable rear wings

The FIA has banned F-ducts for 2011 and approved the debut of the proximity rear wing. The adjustable rear wing can only be operated by the drivers to overtake the car in front.

McLaren?s engineering director Paddy Lowe said on Wednesday, "In the race, you can?t use it (the wing) for the first two laps at all, but after that if you?re within a second of the car in front then you will be able to deploy it,?

?So that will be very interesting. That?s a FOTA initiative to improve the show and I think it?s very exciting.?

From 2011, adjustable bodywork may be activated by the driver at any time prior to the start of the race and, for the sole purpose of improving overtaking opportunities during the race, after the driver has completed two laps. The driver may only activate the adjustable bodywork in the race when he has been notified via the control electronics that it is enabled. It will only be enabled if the driver is less than one second behind another at any of the pre-determined positions around each circuit. The system will be disabled the first time the driver uses the brakes after the system has been activated. The FIA may, after consulting all the competitors, adjust the time proximity in order to ensure the purpose of the adjustable bodywork is met.

Weight

For the return of KERS, the minimum car-plus-driver weight will increase from 620kg to 640kg.

From 2011, the minimum weight of the car must not be less than 640 kg at all times during the event.

Licences

A ?four-race probationary super license? has been approved for Renault?s official third driver Ho-Pin Tung.

Based on his career résumé and comparative F1 testing times, the World Council has approved the granting of a four-race probationary super license to Chinese driver Ho-Pin Tung.


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Oswald Karch Narain Karthikeyan Ukyo Katayama Ken Kavanagh