Formula 1 World Championship 2017 Season Discussion

[DrunknMunky Veteran]

Formula 1 World Championship 2017 Season Discussion

 

The 2017 Formula One season is scheduled to be the 68th season of the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) Formula One World Championship, a motor racing championship for Formula One cars which is recognised by the sport's governing body, the FIA, as the highest class of competition for open-wheel racing cars. Teams and drivers are scheduled to compete in twenty Grands Prix—starting in Australia on 26 March and ending in Abu Dhabi on 26 November—for the World Drivers' and World Constructors' championships.

 

As the reigning Drivers' Champion Nico Rosberg announced his retirement from the sport in December 2016, the 2017 season is set to be the first since 1994 in which the reigning champion did not compete. Mercedes is set to start the season as the defending Constructors' Champion, having secured their third consecutive title at the 2016 Japanese Grand Prix.

 

Signed Teams and Drivers

 

 

Scheduled Events

 

 

 

2017 car launches
February 20: Sauber C36, Online
February 21: Renault RS17, London
February 22: Force India VJM10, Silverstone
February 23: Mercedes W08, Silverstone
February 24: Ferrari, Fiorano
February 24: McLaren MCL32, Woking
February 26: Red Bull RB13, Online
February 26: Toro Rosso STR12, Barcelona

 

 

2017 Winter Test Schedule

February 27-March 2: Circuit de Catalunya, Barcelona
March 7-10: Circuit de Catalunya, Barcelona

 

Team changes

• The parent company of MRT went into administration in January 2017.
• Sauber signed a deal to use one year-old Ferrari power units in 2017, mirroring the arrangement between Ferrari and Scuderia Toro Rosso in 2016.
• Toro Rosso agreed to return to using Renault power units in 2017, having used 2015-specification Ferrari power units in 2016. The team had previously used Renault power units in 2014 and 2015 before the relationship between Renault and sister team Red Bull Racing broke down, prompting Toro Rosso to seek out an alternative supplier.

 

Driver changes

• Kevin Magnussen turned down an offer to stay with Renault and instead signed a deal with Haas to drive alongside Romain Grosjean. As a result of the agreement with Magnussen and the team's decision to take up an option on Grosjean, Esteban Gutiérrez's contract with the team was not renewed. Gutiérrez later moved to the Formula E championship.
• Williams driver Felipe Massa retired from Formula One at the end of the 2016 season after fourteen years in the sport.[19][20] Massa's seat is due to be taken by 2016 European Formula 3 Championship winner Lance Stroll.
• Esteban Ocon reached an agreement to move from MRT to Force India and is scheduled to fill the seat left vacant by Nico Hülkenberg's departure to Renault.
• Reigning champion and Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg retired from the sport at the end of the 2016 season.
• 2015 GP2 Series champion Stoffel Vandoorne signed a contract with McLaren as a full-time driver. Vandoorne has previously competed in one race for the team, the 2016 Bahrain Grand Prix, in which he substituted for the injured Fernando Alonso while serving as the team's reserve driver. He is scheduled to replace Jenson Button, who is taking a sabbatical from racing in 2017 while staying on with the team as a reserve driver.

 

Calendar changes

• The Chinese and Bahrain Grands Prix swapped places in the schedule for the 2017 season.
• The Baku event was renamed, becoming the first Azerbaijan Grand Prix. The previous race at the Baku Street Circuit ran under the European Grand Prix title in 2016. The date of the Baku race was changed to avoid conflicting with the 24 Hours of Le Mans, which had been a source of controversy at the 2016 European Grand Prix.
• The German Grand Prix was removed from the calendar after the owners of the Hockenheimring and Nürburgring circuits were unable to agree to commercial terms with Formula One Management.
• The Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari—more commonly known as the Imola circuit—signed an agreement with Bernie Ecclestone to host a Grand Prix from 2017; however, the agreement had to be ratified by the Italian motorsport federation in order for the event to take place, and it was omitted from the calendar. The Imola circuit previously hosted the Italian Grand Prix in 1980 and the San Marino Grand Prix from 1981 to 2006.

 

General changes

• In September 2016, Liberty Media purchased a minority stake in the sport from CVC Capital Partners ahead of a hoped-for full buyout in time for the 2017 season. As part of the deal, the sport adopted a model similar to that used by the US National Football League and Major League Baseball, with teams entitled to purchase a stake in the sport.

 

Technical regulations

• The technical regulations governing bodywork design were revised for 2017, with the objective of improving lap times by four to five seconds over the 2016 generation of cars.[34] These changes include:[35]
• An increase of the width of the front wing to 1,800 mm (70.9 in).
• Lowering the rear wing by 150 mm (5.9 in) and moving its position back by 200 mm (7.9 in).
• The leading edge of the barge boards being brought forward to allow teams more freedom in controlling airflow.
• An increase of the width of the front and rear tyres to allow cars to generate more mechanical grip.
• The minimum weight of the car including the driver being raised by 20 kg to 722 kg, with teams allowed to use 105 kg of fuel to account for the increase in minimum weight.
• The token system used to regulate power unit development—where the power unit was divided into individual areas, and each area assigned a points value with development of these areas deducting points from a manufacturer's overall points quota—will be abandoned.
• Restrictions are to be placed on the dimensions, weight and the materials used to build each individual component of the power unit.
• Teams are restricted to four power units per season regardless of the number of Grands Prix in the season. Previous seasons had included a provision for a fifth power unit if the number of Grands Prix in a season exceeded twenty; from 2017, this provision is to be abandoned.
• The cost of a power unit supply is reduced by €1 million in 2017 ahead of a further reduction in 2018.
• Cameras will no longer be permitted to be mounted on stalks, located on the nose of the car.

 

Sporting regulations

• Under rules introduced in 2015, grid penalties for exceeding a driver's quota of power unit components carried over from one race to the next if the penalty could not be fully served when issued. When this carry-over system was abandoned, teams could build up a reserve of spare components by introducing several at once while only serving a single grid penalty. From 2017, teams will only be able to use one new component over their quota per race, with any additional components incurring further penalties. This change prevents teams from "stockpiling" spare power unit components.
• Power unit suppliers will have an "obligation to supply", mandating that they supply power units to any team, should a team end up without an agreement. The rule was introduced following the breakdown in the relationship between Renault and their customer teams Red Bull Racing and Scuderia Toro Rosso at the end of the 2015 season that left both teams in limbo until deals could be arranged.
• In the event that a race is declared wet and must start behind the safety car, the grid will follow normal starting procedures once conditions are declared satisfactory for racing. Drivers will line up on the grid for a standing start once the safety car pulls into pit lane, although any laps completed behind the safety car will count towards the total race distance.

 

 

Topic under construction...

You can find last season's discussion here

[Skiver Veteran]

Mercedes' Pascal Wehrlein secures Sauber Formula 1 deal for 2017

 

Quote

Mercedes reserve Pascal Wehrlein has reached agreement to join Sauber for the 2017 Formula 1 season, as the post-Nico Rosberg driver market picture becomes clearer.

 

Wehrlein's deal is a precursor to Valtteri Bottas being announced as Rosberg's replacement at Mercedes.

 

Sources with good knowledge of the situation told Autosport's sister title Motorsport.com that Mercedes has now agreed terms for Sauber to take on its junior driver Wehrlein.

2

Full Story

 

I think this pretty much confirms that Bottas will be heading towards Merc for 2017. It will be a pretty interesting team, I think Bottas is a fast and consistent driver but I'm not sure he will give Lewis as much competition as Nico did. 

[philcruicks]

Yeh, it'll be very interesting to see if with a more consistent car than the Williams he can really compete.

I'm thinking back to Russia 2 years ago when he really gave Hamilton a run for his money and the tyre gave up on him with a few laps to go.

 

So I have high hope for him.

[Skiver Veteran]

F1 in 2017: Car launch dates for Formula 1's new era

 

F1's pre-season programme again runs to two four-day tests at Barcelona, the first session running from February 27-March 2 and then the second from March 7-10. The first grand prix of a 20-race season is in Australia on March 26.

 

I'll try and keep this up to date as I learn dates;

 

Updating OP instead

 

[+Frank B. Subscriber²]

Looks like F1 could lose a team:

 

 

On 1/4/2017 at 3:49 PM, Skiver said:

F1 in 2017: Car launch dates for Formula 1's new era

 

F1's pre-season programme again runs to two four-day tests at Barcelona, the first session running from February 27-March 2 and then the second from March 7-10. The first grand prix of a 20-race season is in Australia on March 26.

 

I'll try and keep this up to date as I learn dates;

 

2017 car launches
February 23: Mercedes, Silverstone
February 24: Ferrari, Fiorano

February 22: Force India, Silverstone

You're triggering my OCD. Please keep the car launch dates in chronological order. 

[+John. Subscriber¹]

2 minutes ago, Frank B. said:

You're triggering my OCD. Please keep the car launch dates in chronological order. 

2017 car launches

February 24: Ferrari, Fiorano

February 23: Mercedes, Silverstone
February 22: Force India, Silverstone

 

Better? 

[+Frank B. Subscriber²]

Just now, John. said:

2017 car launches

February 24: Ferrari, Fiorano

February 23: Mercedes, Silverstone
February 22: Force India, Silverstone

 

Better? 

Argh. May the fleas of a thousand Algerian camels infest your groin for that.

[Skiver Veteran]

6 minutes ago, Frank B. said:

Looks like F1 could lose a team:

<snip>

 

You're triggering my OCD. Please keep the car launch dates in chronological order. 

 

 

Fixed, It was originally with the first two teams but then I added on Force India without much thought

 

Sad news about Manor, I was gutted for them last season when Sauber got those points to move ahead. I believe there were talks of investment last year so I'd assume that has fallen through

[MightyJordan]

2 hours ago, Frank B. said:

Looks like F1 could lose a team:

Sadly, it's now official.

 

[Daedroth]

1 hour ago, MightyJordan said:

Sadly, it's now official.

Yep, here's the BBC Sport article: http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/formula1/38530855

[+John. Subscriber¹]

What a damned Shame

[MightyJordan]

 

[+Frank B. Subscriber²]

 

[+John. Subscriber¹]

7 minutes ago, Frank B. said:

 

Love the little Coulthard dig there with the autobiography! haha great video,

[Skiver Veteran]

Not exactly what I'd call a surprise;

 

 

[MightyJordan]

 

[+Frank B. Subscriber²]

 

[+John. Subscriber¹]

Anyone else feel like resigning? Comes in threes, and all that.

[Chasethebase Veteran]

Formula 1 World Championship 2017 Season Discussion

 

The 2017 Formula One season is scheduled to be the 68th season of the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) Formula One World Championship, a motor racing championship for Formula One cars which is recognised by the sport's governing body, the FIA, as the highest class of competition for open-wheel racing cars. Teams and drivers are scheduled to compete in twenty Grands Prix—starting in Australia on 26 March and ending in Abu Dhabi on 26 November—for the World Drivers' and World Constructors' championships.

 

As the reigning Drivers' Champion Nico Rosberg announced his retirement from the sport in December 2016, the 2017 season is set to be the first since 1994 in which the reigning champion did not compete. Mercedes is set to start the season as the defending Constructors' Champion, having secured their third consecutive title at the 2016 Japanese Grand Prix.

 

Team changes

• The parent company of MRT went into administration in January 2017.
• Sauber signed a deal to use one year-old Ferrari power units in 2017, mirroring the arrangement between Ferrari and Scuderia Toro Rosso in 2016.
• Toro Rosso agreed to return to using Renault power units in 2017, having used 2015-specification Ferrari power units in 2016. The team had previously used Renault power units in 2014 and 2015 before the relationship between Renault and sister team Red Bull Racing broke down, prompting Toro Rosso to seek out an alternative supplier.

 

Driver changes

• Kevin Magnussen turned down an offer to stay with Renault and instead signed a deal with Haas to drive alongside Romain Grosjean. As a result of the agreement with Magnussen and the team's decision to take up an option on Grosjean, Esteban Gutiérrez's contract with the team was not renewed. Gutiérrez later moved to the Formula E championship.
• Williams driver Felipe Massa retired from Formula One at the end of the 2016 season after fourteen years in the sport.[19][20] Massa's seat is due to be taken by 2016 European Formula 3 Championship winner Lance Stroll.
• Esteban Ocon reached an agreement to move from MRT to Force India and is scheduled to fill the seat left vacant by Nico Hülkenberg's departure to Renault.
• Reigning champion and Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg retired from the sport at the end of the 2016 season.
• 2015 GP2 Series champion Stoffel Vandoorne signed a contract with McLaren as a full-time driver. Vandoorne has previously competed in one race for the team, the 2016 Bahrain Grand Prix, in which he substituted for the injured Fernando Alonso while serving as the team's reserve driver. He is scheduled to replace Jenson Button, who is taking a sabbatical from racing in 2017 while staying on with the team as a reserve driver.

 

Calendar changes

• The Chinese and Bahrain Grands Prix swapped places in the schedule for the 2017 season.
• The Baku event was renamed, becoming the first Azerbaijan Grand Prix. The previous race at the Baku Street Circuit ran under the European Grand Prix title in 2016. The date of the Baku race was changed to avoid conflicting with the 24 Hours of Le Mans, which had been a source of controversy at the 2016 European Grand Prix.
• The German Grand Prix was removed from the calendar after the owners of the Hockenheimring and Nürburgring circuits were unable to agree to commercial terms with Formula One Management.
• The Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari—more commonly known as the Imola circuit—signed an agreement with Bernie Ecclestone to host a Grand Prix from 2017; however, the agreement had to be ratified by the Italian motorsport federation in order for the event to take place, and it was omitted from the calendar. The Imola circuit previously hosted the Italian Grand Prix in 1980 and the San Marino Grand Prix from 1981 to 2006.

 

General changes

• In September 2016, Liberty Media purchased a minority stake in the sport from CVC Capital Partners ahead of a hoped-for full buyout in time for the 2017 season. As part of the deal, the sport adopted a model similar to that used by the US National Football League and Major League Baseball, with teams entitled to purchase a stake in the sport.

 

Technical regulations

• The technical regulations governing bodywork design were revised for 2017, with the objective of improving lap times by four to five seconds over the 2016 generation of cars.[34] These changes include:[35]
• An increase of the width of the front wing to 1,800 mm (70.9 in).
• Lowering the rear wing by 150 mm (5.9 in) and moving its position back by 200 mm (7.9 in).
• The leading edge of the barge boards being brought forward to allow teams more freedom in controlling airflow.
• An increase of the width of the front and rear tyres to allow cars to generate more mechanical grip.
• The minimum weight of the car including the driver being raised by 20 kg to 722 kg, with teams allowed to use 105 kg of fuel to account for the increase in minimum weight.
• The token system used to regulate power unit development—where the power unit was divided into individual areas, and each area assigned a points value with development of these areas deducting points from a manufacturer's overall points quota—will be abandoned.
• Restrictions are to be placed on the dimensions, weight and the materials used to build each individual component of the power unit.
• Teams are restricted to four power units per season regardless of the number of Grands Prix in the season. Previous seasons had included a provision for a fifth power unit if the number of Grands Prix in a season exceeded twenty; from 2017, this provision is to be abandoned.
• The cost of a power unit supply is reduced by €1 million in 2017 ahead of a further reduction in 2018.
• Cameras will no longer be permitted to be mounted on stalks, located on the nose of the car.

 

Sporting regulations

• Under rules introduced in 2015, grid penalties for exceeding a driver's quota of power unit components carried over from one race to the next if the penalty could not be fully served when issued. When this carry-over system was abandoned, teams could build up a reserve of spare components by introducing several at once while only serving a single grid penalty. From 2017, teams will only be able to use one new component over their quota per race, with any additional components incurring further penalties. This change prevents teams from "stockpiling" spare power unit components.
• Power unit suppliers will have an "obligation to supply", mandating that they supply power units to any team, should a team end up without an agreement. The rule was introduced following the breakdown in the relationship between Renault and their customer teams Red Bull Racing and Scuderia Toro Rosso at the end of the 2015 season that left both teams in limbo until deals could be arranged.
• In the event that a race is declared wet and must start behind the safety car, the grid will follow normal starting procedures once conditions are declared satisfactory for racing. Drivers will line up on the grid for a standing start once the safety car pulls into pit lane, although any laps completed behind the safety car will count towards the total race distance.

 

Race Calendar

 

• March 26: Melbourne, Australia
• April 9: Shanghai, China
• April 16: Bahrain, Bahrain
• April 30: Sochi, Russia
• May 14: Barcelona, Spain
• May 28: Monte Carlo, Monaco
• June 11: Montreal, Canada
• June 25: Baku, Azerbaijan
• July 9: Spielberg, Austria
• July 16: Silverstone, United Kingdom
• July 30: Budapest, Hungary
• August 27: Spa-Francorchamps, Belgium
• September 3: Monza, Italy
• September 17: Singapore, Singapore
• October 1: Sepang, Malaysia
• October 8: Suzuka, Japan
• October 22: Austin, USA
• October 29: Mexico City, Mexico
• November 12: Sao Paolo, Brazil
• November 26: Abu Dhabi, UAE

 

[+Frank B. Subscriber²]

 

[+Frank B. Subscriber²]

 

[+Frank B. Subscriber²]

 

 

[+Frank B. Subscriber²]

 

Jokers.

[philcruicks]

Not being particularly subtle are they haha.

[+Frank B. Subscriber²]

14 minutes ago, philcruicks said:

Not being particularly subtle are they haha.

Not at all subtle.

 

Confirmation: