Archive-name: sports/formula-one-faq/part2              
Posting-Frequency: monthly
Last-modified: October 15, 1996



3.9  Giancarlo Fisichella  
     Nationality:        Italian
     Age - DOB:          23 - January 14th, 1973
     Born:               Rome, Italy
     Resident:           Monte Carlo
     Current team:       Minardi
     Former team(s):     None

Fisichella won several karting championships between 1984 and
1991 before moving up to the Italian F3 championship in 1992. In
'93 he finished 2nd in Italian F3 and won the championship in
'94. In '95 he raced in DTM for Alfa Romeo and was also signed
as test driver for Minardi. He made his F1 debut in 96 and is
currently sharing the drive with Tarso Marques.

Giancarlo is single.


3.10 Heinz-Harald Frentzen
     Nationality:        German
     Age - DOB:          29 - May 18th, 1967
     Born:               Mochengladbach, Germany
     Resident:           Monte Carlo
     Current team:       Sauber
     Former team(s):     None

After a relatively successful 95 season in a middle-of-the-grid
car, Heinz-Harald Frentzen is widely regarded as one of the up
and coming drivers of F1. He began racing in karts winning the
German Junior championship in 1981. From 85 - 87 he competed in
FF2000 finishing 2nd in '87. In '88 he was German Formula Opel
Lotus champion and was 6th in the Opel Lotus Euroseries. He
spent one year in German F3, finishing 2nd, before moving onto
F3000 in 1990. He spent one season each with Eddie Jordan and
Vortex before accepting a financially attractive offer to move
to Japan and race for the Nova team. In 1994, he made his F1
debut for the Sauber team and scored a total of 7 points in 15
races. With three races left in 95 he has scored 15 points
putting him behind only the Benettons, Williams and Ferraris. He
has re-signed with Sauber for 96.

Heinz-Harald is single with no children. (You will see posts
referring to the fact that he once dated Schumacher's wife -
before she was his wife, of course).




3.11 Mika Hakkinen
     Nationality:        Finnish
     Age - DOB:          27 - September 28th, 1968
     Born:               Helsinki, Finland
     Resident:           Monte Carlo
     Current team:       McLaren
     Former team(s):     Lotus

Mika Hakkinen has been driving since he was six years old,
capturing 5 Finnish national karting championships between 1974
and 1986. He then progressed into FF1600 - a category which he
duly conquered by being crowned Finnish, Swedish and Nordic
Champion - the Lotus Euroseries and the British GM Lotus series,
becoming champion and runner-up respectively. A year after
entering the British F3 championship in 1989 he won the  Macau
Grand Prix on his way to the overall title.

He broke into F1 in 1991 with Lotus where he stayed for two
years finishing the championship 15th and 8th with 2 points and
11 points respectively. He joined McLaren as Test and
Development driver in 93, being elevated to the position of race
driver for the final three rounds of the championship following
Michael Andretti's departure to return to Indy Car. In his first
race for McLaren at the Portuguese GP Hakkinen outqualified his
team-mate, Ayrton Senna. He scored his first ever F1 podium
finish with a 3rd place at the Japanese GP. In 94 he finished
2nd at the Belgian GP and 3rd in four other races ending the
season 4th in the championship with 26 points. He finished '95
with 17 points in 7th place - not to mention a nasty crash
during practice in Adelaide which almost ended his career, if
not his life. He has recovered physically and does not appear to
have been affected mentally by the crash. 

Mika is single with no children.
 


3.12 Johnny Herbert        
     Nationality:        British (English)
     Age - DOB:          31 - June 27th, 1964
     Born:               Romford, England
     Resident:           Monaco    
     Current team:       Sauber
     Former team(s):     Benetton, Tyrrell, Lotus, Ligier,      
                         Benetton

One of the most popular figures in F1, Johnny Herbert began his
racing career in karts at the age of 10 winning two British
championships over the next 8 years. He moved onto FF1600 in
1983 and FF2000 and F3 in 1986. In 1987 he won the British F3
championship with Eddie Jordan Racing and was signed by Benetton
as a test driver. In 1988 he moved up to F3000 with Jordan,
winning his first race at Jerez before being seriously injured
at Brands Hatch. Despite not being fully recovered from his
injuries he started the 1989 season for Benetton in F1 scoring a
4th and a 5th place before being rested by the team at
mid-season. He returned briefly to F1 the same year with
Tyrrell. 

In 1990 Herbert was the test driver for Lotus and raced
intermittently for the team for the next two years. He continued
with Lotus for 92 and 93 on a full time basis and finished 14th
and 9th respectively. He raced for three teams in 94 - Lotus,
Ligier and then Benetton for the last two races. He stayed with
Benetton for the 95 season and finished 4th in the championship
winning his first GP at the British GP. Towards the end of the
season, he complained bitterly about his treatment at the hands
of Benetton and Schumacher. 

He is married with two daughters.



3.13 Damon Hill
     Nationality:        British (English)
     Age - DOB:          35 - September 17th, 1960
     Born:               London, England
     Resident:           Dublin, Ireland
     Current team:       Williams
     Former team(s):     Williams (test), Brabham

Damon is the son of two-time F1 champion, the late Graham Hill.
Damon Hill actually began his racing career on motorbikes in
1979. In '84, while still racing bikes, he had his first taste
of auto racing in Formula Ford. In 1985 he switched to FF full
time and finished 3rd in the Esso championship with 6 wins. He
moved onto F3 in 86 with Murray Taylor Racing and then with
Intersport in 87 and 88. From 89 to 91 he competed in F3000 with
Footwork, Middlemarch and Lola without great success except that
he did get a testing contract with Williams in 91 replacing Mark
Blundell.

Hill broke into F1 the next year, 1992, with Brabham, again
without great success. In eight attempts in an uncompetitive
car, he qualified just twice finishing 16th and 11th. His big
break came in 93 when he signed for Williams. That year he
scored he scored his first F1 win in Hungary, completing a
hat-trick over the next two races in Belgium and Italy. He
finished the season with 69 points for 3rd place in the
championship.

In '94, still with Williams, Hill came as close to winning it
all as is possible without actually doing it. Coming in to the
last race of the season in Adelaide, Hill trailed Michael
Schumacher by one point. Depending on your point of view they
either had a coming together or Schumacher drove into Hill
thereby securing the Championship by that one point margin.

Hill again challenged Schumacher for most of the '95 season but
fell apart somewhat in the second half of the season. He
finished 2nd in the championship with 69 points.

Damon is married with two sons and a daughter.



3.14 Eddie Irvine
     Nationality:        Irish
     Age - DOB:          30 - November 10th, 1965
     Born:               Newtownards, Northern Ireland
     Resident:           Dublin, Ireland
     Current team:       Ferrari
     Former team(s):     Jordan

Irvine began racing in FF1600 and competed in Irish and British
FF1600 series between 1983 and 1987. In 1988 he placed 5th in
the F3 championship with West Surrey Racing. In 1989 he moved
onto F3000 with Pacific Racing and finished 9th in the
International Championship. He first teamed up with Eddie Jordan
in F3000 in 1990 when he finished 3rd (recording one win).
Between 1991 and 1993 he competed in the Japanese F3000
championship with Team Cerumo finishing 7th, 8th and 2nd with
one win each year. '93 also saw Irvine's F1 debut with 2 races
for Jordan scoring a point in Japan.

Irvine raced the entire 94 season for Jordan, with the exception
of a 3 race ban for an accident at the Brazilian GP, scoring 6
points placing him 16th. He finished '95 with 10 points having
suffered from unreliability including a fire from a re-fueling
accident. In a surprising, last minute move he was signed by
Ferrari for '96 over a gaggle of Italian drivers who thought
they
were trying out for the role.

Eddie is single with no children.



3.15 Ukyo Katayama
     Nationality:        Japanese
     Age - DOB:          33 - May 29th, 1963
     Born:               Tokyo
     Resident:           Tokyo and Monaco
     Current team:       Tyrrell
     Former team(s):     Larrousse

After graduating high school in 1982, Katayama trained as a
mechanic at the Tsukuba Circuit in Japan before switching to
driving, taking class and championships in FJ1600, after winning
his very first race from pole position. In 1985 he graduated to
the All Japan F3 Series with the Nissan Hasemi team and finished
6th in the championship. In 1986, he moved to France competing
in the National Formula Renault and French F3 series. In 1988 he
returned to Japan competing in the Japanese F3000 Championship
for Ba-Tsu Racing in '88, Footwork in '89 and Cabin in '90 and
'91 - winning the championship in '91.

1992 marked Katayama's Formula 1 debut with Venturi Larrousse
with two top 10 finishes. In 1993, he moved to Tyrrell where he
has remained for the last three seasons with somewhat limited
success. He scored 5 points in 1994 but in 95 he finished 4
races and his best finish was 7th in the German GP. Katayama was
involved in a scary accident at the start of the Portuguese GP
when he locked wheels with Badoer and was launched into the air,
somersaulting down the track. He did not sustain any serious
injuries and missed only one race. He has been re-signed by
Tyrrell for the '96 season.

Ukyo is married with two children.


3.16 Pedro Lamy   
     Nationality:        Portuguese
     Age - DOB:          23 - March 20th 1972
     Born:               Aldeia Galega, Portugal
     Resident:           Lisbon
     Current team:       Minardi
     Former teams(s):    Lotus

Between 1978 and 1988 Lamy competed in motocross and karting
before stepping up to Formula Ford and winning the national
championship in 1989. In 90 and 91 he raced in the GM Lotus
Euroseries winning the championship in 1991. In 92 he was German
F3 Champion and in 93 he shared the International F3000
championship. 93 also marked his F1 debut with Team Lotus at the
Italian GP. He drove for Lotus 4 more times in 94 before joining
Minardi for the 95 Hungarian GP. 

Pedro is single.


3.17 Jan Magnussen
     Nationality:        Danish
     Age - DOB:          22 - July 4th, 1973
     Born:               Roskilde, Denmark
     Resident:           Silverstone, England
     Current team:       McLaren (test)
     Former teams(s):    None

Jan Magnussen has been described by Jackie Stewart as "the most
promising youngster to come along since Ayrton Senna." He ended
his karting days in 1991 with a hat-trick of world championships
and moved to England to compete in the 1992 British FF1600
championship for Foundation Racing. Having become familiar with
the car and the circuits, he won 7 races in the second half of
the season, including the prestigious Formula Ford Festival at
Brands Hatch, and finished 3rd in the championship.

In 1993 after spells in the Formula Vauxhall Lotus and Opel
Lotus European Championship, he made his F3 debut competing in
two races for Paul Stewart Racing finishing 4th and 3rd. The
next season, still with Paul Stewart Racing, he clinched the
championship in the most dominant fashion ever achieved in the
history of F3 racing by winning 14 out of 18 races - that season
brought him the nickname of "Danish Dynamite."

In October 94, Magnussen drove the McLaren MP4/9 as a reward for
his achievement and was subsequently signed as the team's test
driver. Due to Hakkinen's appendicitis, Magnussen made his F1
debut at the '95 Japanese GP.

Jan is single with one son.



3.18 Tarso Marques    
     Nationality:        Brazilian
     Age - DOB:          20 - January 19th, 1976
     Born:               Curitiba (Parana), Brazil
     Resident:           Curitiba
     Current team:       Minardi
     Former team(s):     None

From 1988 to 1991 Marques raced karts before moving onto Formula
Opel in '92, F3 in '93 and F3000 in '94. His F1 debut was with
Minardi this year and he is currently sharing the drive with
Fisichella.



3.19 Andrea Montermini    
     Nationality:        Italian
     Age - DOB:          32 - May 30th, 1964
     Born:
     Resident:
     Current team:       Forti
     Former team(s):     Ferrari (test), Benetton (test), Simtek
                         Pacific

Montermini began racing in 1987 in Formula Alfa Boxer moving
onto Italian F3 in 1988. Between 1990 and 92 he competed in
F3000 finishing 8th, 10th and 2nd, getting his first taste of F1
as a test driver with Ferrari in 91. In 93 he went Indy racing,
as well as testing for Benetton, finishing the championship in
18th position. He started 94 in Indy before getting his first
shot at competitive F1 with Simtek at the Spanish GP. However,
he crashed during practice and broke both feet and did not start
the race. After recovering from the crash he finished the Indy
season before signing with Pacific for the 1995 season. After 14
rounds, Montermini has started every race but has only been
classified 3 times with a best finish of 8th at the German GP. 




3.20 Olivier Panis
     Nationality:        French
     Age - DOB:          29 - September 2nd, 1966
     Born:
     Resident:
     Current team:       Ligier
     Former team(s):




3.21 Mika Salo 
     Nationality:        Finnish
     Age - DOB:          29 - November 30th, 1966
     Born:               Helsinki
     Resident:           London    
     Current team:       Tyrrell
     Former team(s):     Lotus

Salo started racing 50cc karts at the age of 6, moving onto the
100cc Finnish championship by 9 and winning it at the age of 11.
After 11 months national service in the army, he competed in the
Finnish and Scandinavian F1600 Championships in 1987. In 1988 he
became European, Scandinavian and Finnish champion, winning all
14 races and setting new lap records at every circuit.

From 1989-1990 Mika lived in the UK competing in F3 with Alan
Docker Racing. From 1991-3 he competed in the All Japan F3000
championship with less than spectacular results. In 1994 he
joined Lotus for the final two races of the season recording
10th and a DNF in Japan and Australia respectively. He joined
Tyrrell in 1995 and has finished in the points three times - two
5ths and a sixth. He has been re-signed by Tyrrell for '96.

Mika is single with no children.


3.22 Michael Schumacher
     Nationality:        German
     Age - DOB:          27 - January 3rd, 1969
     Born:               Hurth-Hermuhlhein, Germany
     Resident:           Geneva     
     Current team:       Ferrari
     Former team(s):     Jordan, Benetton

Michael Schumacher began racing karts with some success from
1984 to 1987. In '88 he won the German Formula Konig
championship, finished 4th and 2nd in the German and European
FF1600 championships respectively. 1989 was an interesting year
competing in the German F3 championship - he finished 3rd behind
Wendlinger and Frentzen. He continued in F3 the next year and
won the championship with 5 wins.

1991 marked his F1 debut with Jordan and then with Benetton for
the rest of the season from Italy onwards. (There is still a
pending lawsuit filed by Eddie Jordan regarding Schumacher's
move to Benetton). He finished the year with 4 points.
Schumacher began to show his potential in 92 winning his first
GP and coming 3rd in the driver's championship. The next year
again produced one win and he finished 4th in the championship.

1994 of course marked Schumacher's first world championship
amidst much controversy and last year he easily repeated this
feat helping Benetton to the constructors title in the process.

Michael is married with no children.



3.23 Ayrton Senna
     Nationality:        Brazilian
     Age - DOB:          Died 1994, aged 34
     Born:               Sao Paolo, Brazil
     Resident:
     Current team:
     Former team(s):     Toleman, Lotus, McLaren, Williams




3.24 Jos Verstappen                          
     Nationality:        Dutch
     Age - DOB:          24 - March 4th, 1972
     Born:               Montfort (Lb), The Netherlands
     Resident:           Maaseik, Belgium
     Current team:       Arrows
     Former team(s):     Benetton, Simtek (5 races)






3.25 Jacques Villeneuve
     Nationality:        Canadian
     Age - DOB:          25 - April 9th, 1971
     Born:               St. Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec, Canada
     Resident:           Monaco
     Current team:       Williams
     Former team(s):     Indycar - Team Green

Jacques Villeneuve, son of legendary F1 driver Gilles
Villeneuve, is the talk of the F1 world this year as he attempts
to become the first successful Indycar transplant since Mario
Andretti. His meteoric rise through motor racing's ranks
culminated last year when he became the youngest ever, and first
Canadian, PPG Indycar champion.

His career began in Italian Group N Saloons in 1988. He quickly
moved on to F3 in Italy in 1989 where he stayed for three
seasons. In 1992 he moved to Japanese F3 and finished the season
in 2nd place. In '93 he moved to the American Toyota Atlantic
Championship and had a very impressive season being named Rookie
of the Year. In 15 races he had seven poles and five wins and
finished third in the championship. Villeneuve moved with Team
Green to Indycar in '94. He finished the season with a win, 2nd
at the Indianapolis 500 and 6th place in the championship
earning him Rookie of the Year honors. He fulfilled his
potential in 95 winning the championship with four wins
including the Indianapolis 500.  

On August 10th he signed with Williams for the 96 season and has
done a considerable amount of testing with the team between that
time and the start of the season. He is generally expected to
win some races in his first season and possibly have a shot at
the championship. 

Jacques is single.


4. THE RULES


4.1 How many points are scored for a win? [MJ]

Currently points are awarded for the first six finishers as
follows: 10 - 6 - 4 - 3 - 2 - 1. This applies to both the
driver's and constructor's championships. Each team is allowed
to enter two cars and both cars scores are counted towards the
constructor's championship. 

If a race is stopped, due to accident or weather, before
completion of 75% of the race distance, only half the points
will be awarded for that race.


4.2 Is that a brake light on the back of the cars?

No. The red light you will occasionally see on the back of the
cars is not a brake light and is required by the rules for
visibility in wet races. The light is required to be on whenever
the car is on treaded tyres.


4.3 The start 

The starting procedure has been changed for 1996. The countdown
begins 17 minutes before the parade lap with a series of lights
and horns. The parade lap is started with a green light. The
cars proceed in grid order returning to their spots on the
starting grid. Transponders in the car signal to the officials
when all the cars are in position and the actual start procedure
begins. There are now five red lights and NO green light. The
five red lights will come on one at a time at one second
intervals. When the fifth light comes on the jump start system
is activated. At a pre-set, but unpublished interval, all five
red lights will go out and that is the signal to start. NB There
is no green light. This system eliminates the potential problem
of the red light going out but the green light failing to come
on. Such a situation has happened in the past and causes
enormous confusion and is potentially very dangerous. Also,
disabling the jump start system until immediately before the
start should eliminate some of the bogus penalties we saw last
year when the system was activated when the car stopped.
 

4.4 The finish [CS] & [HG]

When the leader crosses the line and the chequered flag is waved
at him, all drivers finish the lap which they are currently
driving. The top positions go to the drivers on the same lap as
the winner, in the order in which they crossed the line. The
next positions go to those drivers who completed one fewer lap
than the leader, in the order in which they crossed the line,
and so on. Should a driver fail to cross the line (due to an
accident, for example), his (or her) finishing position is based
on the race position the last time (s)he crossed the
start/finish line.

An example may help: It's the 50-lap US GP and the first 4
drivers at the end of lap 49 are Diniz, Hill, Schumacher and
Inoue. Fifth is Katayama, one lap down. Diniz crosses the line
at the end of lap 50 first to take the chequered flag and win
the race. Katayama is the next driver to cross the finish line
(albeit after only 49 laps) and is awarded 5th place, since
there were 4 drivers on the lead lap (who all completed 49 laps
before him). On lap 50, however, Hill and Schumacher collide and
both retire. Inoue is the only other driver to finish 50 laps
and is awarded 2nd place. Since Hill completed 49 laps ahead of
Schumacher, he gets 3rd place and Schumacher is awarded 4th.

All drivers who have completed at least 90% of the distance
driven by the winner are classified as finishers. 

All finishers must get themselves weighed, put the car in the
'parc ferme' for scrutiny and submit to any other tests
required. Top three must attend the podium ceremony and give a
press conference afterwards, or get fined. Press conferences
take place in a variety of languages - all the top drivers speak
English fluently enough for an interview. Naturally none of the
English drivers speak anything else! (It is noticeable how much
improved Schumacher's English has become in the last two years -
he sounds more American than German now; Berger also is fluent
enough to tell jokes thanks to his long spell at McLaren)


4.5 What is the safety car for? [HG]

Once this is deployed, the 'SC' board is shown and drivers must
slow down and circulate in their current order. The car waves
past each driver in turn, until the race leader is behind him.
Then all circulate until the race is deemed safe to continue,
with the safety car displaying flashing amber lights. Switching
off these lights indicates that the safety car will pull off
next time it reaches the pit entrance; once it does, the race
continues. 

It should be noted that, unlike Indy, safety cars are rarely
used in F1. In fact, in the semi-permanent "What's the
difference between F1 and Indy" thread, the excessive use of the
safety car to close up the field is the major criticism of Indy
racing by F1 fans.


4.6 What is a stop-go penalty? 

Jump starts and pit lane speeding incur a 10 second 'stop-go'
penalty. Unlike last year, penalties are served in the team's
own pit under the supervision of the team manager. If the team
does not administer the penalty correctly and the driver leaves
before the 10 seconds is up, then they will be called back for
another 10 second penalty. As the officials with the big clock
are no longer involved in this process it is unclear who times
the timers. 

Other offenses can incur fines, loss of points,
disqualifications or race bans. Decisions can be appealed but
historically the FIA has a propensity for increasing a penalty
on appeal.


4.7 What do the different colored flags mean? [HG]

Yellow - caution; no overtaking/safety car out.
Yellow with red stripes - track is slippery (usually oil).
Blue - There is considerable controversy regarding the exact use
of blue flags. This is because the instructions given to the
marshalls contradict the International Sporting Code. This
definition is based on written instructions from the clerk of
the course to marshalls at at least two GPs this season.

  During Practice
  Stationary: A faster car is catching you. Give way.
  Waved:      A faster car is about to overtake you. Give way   
              urgently.

  During the Race
  Stationary: You are about to be lapped. Let the other car     
              through.
  Waved:      Let the other car through immediately. You are now
              risking a penalty.

(NB: The International Sporting Code states that a blue flag may
be used to allow a faster car to overtake for position. However,
its use in races appears to be almost exclusively limited to
situations where a driver is being lapped).

Red - race stopped, slow down and return to pit lane.
Chequered - race finished.
Black, with a car number  - car must return to pit lane within 3
laps and not restart race (this may mean a terminal rule
infringement, but it can also mean that there is something
dangerously wrong with the car that the driver does not know
about - hence it is grossly negligent to ignore this flag)


4.8 Is mid-race re-fueling allowed?

After being banned for 10 years for safety reasons, mid-race re-
fueling was inexplicably reintroduced for the 1994 season. The
re-fueling equipment used by all the teams is identical as the
FIA mandates that the equipment be bought from Intertechnique
and may not be modified by the teams. Fuel is pumped at a rate
of 12 liters (3.3 gallons) per second.

Apart from the FIA, almost everybody associated with F1, fans,
drivers and teams, believe that re-fueling is inherently
dangerous and that, if not before, it will finally be banned
when somebody is killed or seriously injured in a re-fueling
accident. Since its reintroduction in '94 there have already
been three pit-lane fires caused by re-fueling: Verstappen
(Benetton) in '94, Irvine (Jordan) and Gachot (Pacific) in '95
and Diniz's on-track fire in '96 was due to the re-fueling valve
becoming stuck open. 


4.9 What is the 107% rule?

Introduced for the 1996 season, the 107% rule is designed to
weed out the slower cars in the field. Any driver whose best
qualifying time is more than 107% of the pole-sitters time will
not qualify for the race. For example, if the pole time is 1 min
40 secs (100 seconds), then any car slower than 1 min 47 seconds
(107 seconds) will not be in the race. The rule does allow for
some discretion on the part of the stewards but so far the rule
has been strictly applied and it is not clear whether a car
which is normally fast will be allowed on the grid if unusual
circumstances prevent a qualifying time from being posted. To
date, only Forti has been affected by this rule.


4.10 Who is eligible for a super license?  [VH]

A total of 49 drivers are automatically eligible for 1996
Superlicenses as of January 1st, 1996 having met one of the
following requirements:

F1 (at least started for 5 events in 1995) Superlicense & Grade
A license required in order to compete

Indycar (Top 3 in at least 5 events or top 6 in at least 10
events, 1994-5) Grade A licenses required in order to compete

International F3000 (Top 3 in at least 5 events or top 6 in at
least 10 events, 1994-5) Grade A licenses required in order to
compete

Japanese F3000 (Top 3 in at least 5 events or top 6 in at least
10 events, 1994-5) Grade B licenses required in order to compete

Major National F3 champions (Britain, France, Italy, German &
Japanese F3 in 1995) 

All have to have a Grade A license in the first place in order
to apply for Superlicenses. Grade A licenses are required in
order to compete in F1, International F3000 and IndyCar
championships. Hence all eligible drivers from these three
categories obviously are already holders of the Grade A
licenses. The Japanese F3000 & National F3 eligible drivers have
Grade A licenses because they have at least 5 top 5 finishes in
1994-5 in various national and international races.

Superlicenses can be gained by past racing records AND 300km in
a maximum of 2 days testing a current F1 machine under racing
speed. It is, however, a purely judgmental decisions by the FIA
in regarding the applicant's past racing records. While drivers
like Alain Prost who is a four time World Champion and also a
current McLaren test driver can have no problem in applying for
a Superlicense, other drivers' applications such as Giovanni
Lavaggi (who drove more than 300km combined practice, qualifying
and race from Saturday to Sunday in the 1995 D GP) may not be as
automatic. 



5. THE CARS


5.1 Why V10 engines?     [PF]

The V10 is a nice compromise, from two points of view --
performance and packaging.

Twelves are good for high-revving, top-endy stuff (this is why
Ferraris were usually quick at the likes of Monza and
Hockenheim). Eights are torquey and good throughout the range.
So a ten is a good compromise there. You get more piston area in
a 10 than an 8 -- which means more power, but can run a rather
longer stroke than a 12 -- which tends to mean more
tractability.

Similarly, the reciprocating components are a nice compromise
between the relative simplicity of an eight and the difficulty
of a 12.

Twelves are generally long and narrow -- the 'classical'
60-degree angle doesn't give much space within the vee to put
ancillaries in. Eights are short, but relatively chubby, with a
classical vee angle of 90 degrees. (Ok, Ferrari are about
65-degrees these days and Ford are down to about 75, but
the generalization remains roughly valid). V10s have length
advantages over the 12 and width advantages over the 8 --
they're typically between 67 and 72 degrees.

It's perhaps significant that next year there'll only be
customer Fords and Harts left as V8s in F1 -- everyone else will
be running 10s, including Sauber-Ford and Ferrari. It looks like
the 8 and the 12 are, for the time being, dead ducks. (it's a
pity Hart didn't persevere with a 3l version of his excellent
V10...)


5.2 How big are the engines?

Although subject to change periodically, engines are currently
limited to 3 liter, reciprocating, normally aspirated with no
more than 12 cylinders. These engines produce approximately 750
bhp down from a high of about 1,200 bhp that could be produced
by the now banned V6, 1.5l turbo-charged engines.


5.3 How much does a car weigh?

The minimum weight for an F1 car is 585 kg (1,287 lbs) including
the driver and 5kg (11 lbs) for either an on board camera or
mandatory ballast for those cars not carrying cameras.
Regulations define minimum weights to ensure that safety is not
compromised by the engineer's efforts to improve performance by
making the car lighter.


5.4 What is the tub made of?

The tub, the part that the driver sits in, is made of a
composite material consisting of an aluminum honeycomb
sandwiched between two sheets of carbon. The result is an
extremely strong, lightweight material. Smaller sections, such
as the nose-cone and engine cover, use a nomex honeycomb instead
of aluminum to allow greater flexibility. 


5.5  How many gears do the cars have?

The regulations state that the cars must have at least 4 and no
more than 7 forward gears as well as a reverse gear. Most cars
have 6 forward gears, Jordan and Benetton being the only cars
with 7 speed gearboxes. 


5.6  Interesting engine facts. (Based on a Ford Zetec-R).

     *In an F1 engine revving at 14,500 rpm, one revolution     
      takes 4 thousandths of a second.
     *Maximum piston acceleration is approximately 8,000g which 
      puts a load of over 3 tons on each connecting rod.
     *Maximum piston speed is 47.2 meters per second - the      
      piston in a Ford Zetec-R accelerates from rest to that    
      speed in 1 thousandth of a second.
     *If a connecting rod let go of its piston at maximum engine
      speed, the released piston would have enough energy to    
      travel vertically over 100 meters.
     *If a water hose were to blow off, the complete cooling    
      system would empty in just over a second.


6. MISCELLANEOUS


6.1  What happens during a pit-stop?  [HG]

Cars must not exceed the pit lane speed limit, which is
different at each track. As driver comes in, one of the pit crew
indicates the location of the pit (it isn't easy to find in the
heat of the moment). The car stops on the marks and is lifted by
front and back jacks. Three mechanics are required for each
wheel; one to operate the tool to remove/replace the wheel, one
to take the old wheel off and one to put the new one on. In
addition, two are required to handle the fuel hose, and a couple
of spares wipe the drivers' visor etc.  The operation is
controlled by the chap at the front who holds the 'brakes on'
sign, and he looks out for all the mechanics to raise their
hands as a signal that they are finished and out of the way.
Then he signals for the car to be dropped off the jacks and the
driver can leave. Due to the restrictions on the equipment,
re-fueling actually takes longer than the tyre change.

Crews rehearse before every Grand Prix to keep in practice. As
there is now fuel being thrown around in the pitlane, all
mechanics wear fireproof overalls, and sometimes helmets too. A
few near-disasters have stressed that the pit lane is a
dangerous place, and personnel there should be kept to a
minimum.(i.e. groupies, relatives, under-age royals etc should
be
somewhere else!) The driver should keep his visor closed during
a
pit stop in case of fire. IMHO there WILL be a disastrous fire
unless refuelling is banned.  


6.2 Sponsorship [HG]

F1 teams could not continue to spend at current levels without
sponsors, among which the cigarette companies are major players.
Advertising regulations in Britain, France and Germany mean that
Williams appear there with 'Racing' rather than 'Rothmans'
written on them, and for McLaren it is 'McLaren' rather than
'Marlboro'. Sponsors can also rent out space on drivers as well
as cars, and all spaces are available right down to the back of
the mirrors. A six-inch wide patch on the front wing of a
Williams will cost you about 2 million dollars for the season.
Oh, and you won't be able to see it on the telly, but they'll do
you a nice package of sponsored events for the price. (!)


The best advert I saw was in 1993 when Sega sponsored Williams.
The Sega character, Sonic the Hedgehog, appeared at most of the
races, and the side of the car was painted so it appeared as a
cutout showing Sonic's legs doing the driving. McLaren responded
by sticking a squashed hedgehog logo to the side of their car
each time they won a race at the expense of a Williams. Senna's
incredible victory in the wet Donington GP of Europe was
headlined in Autosport as 'Senna's mega-drive'.


6.3 What's the difference between F1 and Indy?

Quite possibly THE most frequently asked question and the
subject of much debate in rasf1 which generally, after some
technical discussion, deteriorates into a slanging match between
European F1 fans and American Indy fans. Generally speaking,
Indy cars are bigger, faster and more durable whereas F1 cars
are more agile and accelerate faster. As to which is better and
which would win a head to head race? F1 cars are better under F1
regs at F1 circuits and Indy cars are better under Indy regs at
Indy circuits.

Tracks. Indy uses ovals as well as road and street courses - F1
does not. This, along with the use of the safety car, is the
most significant difference between the two series. Whilst
making for interesting discussion, the technical differences do
not have much of an impact from the spectators point of view.
However, Indy's detractors would say that the uniform ovals with
the resulting left turns only, produce a sterile racing
environment which allows no exciting passing. Furthermore, most
accidents will result in the safety car making an appearance
which will close up the field. Again, Indy's detractors would
argue that this produces an artificial racing environment
reducing the race to a series of short sprints which are merely
used to establish the grid order for the final sprint to the
finish.

On the other hand, F1 detractors would argue that because of the
wide difference in performance levels, and the fact that safety
cars are rarely used, there is very little close racing or
competitive passing in F1 and of course as a spectator you
cannot see the entire circuit at an F1 race. 

(I must apologize if my cultural bias has become apparent in
this section but as a Brit living in the U.S., I am living proof
that F1/Indy preference is determined by genes not environment).

Weight. F1 cars minimum weight is 585 kg (1,287 lbs). Indy car
minimum weight is 1,550 lbs (704.5 kg).

Brakes. F1 cars use carbon fibre brakes which are lighter and
more durable than the steel brakes used by Indy cars. (Indy cars
are allowed to use carbon brakes on the 2.5 mile superspeedways
at Indianapolis and Michigan. Steel brakes are mandatory at all
the other races). 

Ground effect. [AS] It is generally said that ground effect cars
are no longer allowed in F1 but this is not strictly true. All
cars generate ground effect, you cannot 'ban' it, only try to
design the rules to limit the downforce that can be obtained
from it. In F1 this is done by requiring flat bottoms between
the wheels (now with 50mm step). In Indycar they still allow
shaped ground effect tunnels, but with strictly controlled
dimensions and at a minimum height above the bottom of the
chassis. 

Turbo charging. Banned in F1 but still allowed in Indy -
although at a much lower boost pressure than was used by F1 cars
in the 80's.

Semi-automatic gearboxes. Allowed in F1 but not in Indy.

Nationality. Indy is basically a domestic U.S. series as far as
teams, venues and drivers are concerned. However, there are 3
venues outside of the U.S. (Surfer's Paradise, Brazil, Toronto
and Vancouver) and an increasing number of foreign drivers. F1
is truly international in teams, engines, venues and drivers
although there is a strong European influence, particularly
British and Italian.

And according to Jacques Villeneuve (Electronic Telegraph
3/4/96): "In the last few months I've done over 5,000 miles of
testing with Williams and I've learned a lot about the
differences between Formula One and Indycars. An F1 car is
slower on the straights but much quicker in the corners. The
engine has less horsepower but the power comes on quicker and
because a Formula One car is lighter and more responsive it
reacts faster to the driver's input and the braking is much
better. Because of its extra weight an IndyCar is a bit more
physical to drive, it slides more easily and it's harder
work to hold it. A Formula One car is more twitchy and when it
slides you have to react faster to catch it. It has higher
limits but I find this really enjoyable.


6.4  How many teams are there?

There are currently 11 teams, Simtek having filed bankruptcy in
1995 and Pacific pulling out at the end of the season, down from
an all time high of 20 in 1989.

6.5  What is the connection between Ford and Cosworth?

Ford and Cosworth first co-operated in 1959 when Cosworth
developed a lightweight iron crankcase engine for the new Ford
Anglia. Cosworth founders, Keith Duckworth and Mike Costin, then
tuned the new engine, code-named MAE (Modified Anglia Engine)
and it soon became the power unit of choice for drivers in
Formula Junior and later Formula 3.

Next came the Cosworth FVA racing engine and, impressed by the
potential of the new power unit, Ford commissioned the
Northamptonshire-based company to produce a roadgoing version to
suit its new high-performance Escort, the RS1600. The result was
the BDA (Belt-Driven A-series) which employed many of the
lessons learned in motor racing to achieve excellent levels of
performance and efficiency at relatively low cost.

The most successful Ford-Cosworth collaboration to date has been
the DFV (Double Four Valve) F1 engine.The 90 degree V8 stunned
the racing world when it appeared for the first time at the 1967
Dutch GP in the bank of Colin Chapman's highly effective Lotus
49 chassis and promptly powered Jim Clark to an historic win.

The Ford DFV went on to win 154 more GPs and 12 World
Championships in a career that spanned 15 years. During that
time, the DFV's power output climbed from 405 bhp to 520 bhp at
11,000 rpm.

The most recent development to issue from Cosworth is the Ford
Zetec-R F1 engine. Carrying the same "Zetec" name as the range
of double overhead camshaft, four-valve-per-cylinder engines
used in the current Fiesta, Escort and Mondeo model ranges, the
new 3.5 liter power unit was the highest-revving racing V8 ever
produced when it was unveiled prior to the start of the 1994
season at up to 14,500 rpm.

The new 3.0 liter Zetec-R is very similar to the larger 1994
engine with small differences to allow for the new stepped
floors and races at engine speeds up to 15,000 rpm. The Zetec-R
V10 is provided exclusively to Ford's chosen factory team -
Sauber - while customer teams will be supplied with last year's
V8 or the ED.

6.6 What frequencies do the teams use? [GD]

Contrary to popular belief, not all teams scramble their
transmissions. The following numbers are based on frequencies
actually monitored at the '96 Australian GP. Further comment,
either additions or confirmation that teams are/are not changing
frequencies at other races, is encouraged.

Schumacher - 450.6125 (also heard in Canada)
Alesi - 462.2500   (note, using Schu's old Benetton freq.)
Berger - 169.7600
Salo - 422.0125  (note, using Blundell's old Tyrrell freq.) 
Katayama - 416.5000


6.7 How can you tell team-mates apart? [RM]

Note: in Australia, Frentzen made the re-start in a car with
Herbert's markings.   Also, the orange nose on Barichello's
Jordan seems to have vanished between Brazil & Argentina.

Ferrari:
    Schumacher:  None
    Irvine:     Yellow stripes on front & rear wings       
Benetton:
    Alesi:       Orange nose tip
    Berger:      None
Williams:
    Hill:        Orange front wing hangers
    Villeneuve:  None
McLaren:
    Hakkinen:    None
    Coulthard:   Marlboro emblem on 1 front wing (switches      
                 sides)
Ligier:
    Panis:       Blue cockpit padding
    Diniz:       Yellow cockpit padding
Jordan:  
    Barrichello: Orange nose tip  (First 2 races, but I don't 
                 think it was there in Argentina)
    Brundle:     None
Sauber:
    Herbert:     Yellow mirrors
    Frentzen:    Red mirrors
Arrows:
    Rosset:      Light (Green?) stripes on front wings
    Verstappen: None    
Tyrrell:
    Katayama:    Orange stripes on rear wings
    Salo:        None
Minardi:
    Lamy:        Green mirrors and rear winglets
    Fishella/
    Marques:     Red mirrors and rear winglets
Forti:
    Montermini:  ??     
    Badoer:      ??


6.8 Why is Frank Williams in a wheelchair? [HG]

Frank Williams broke his neck in a car crash in France in 1986.
He was driving home from the Paul Ricard circuit, lost control
and turned the car over. The injury was so severe that he was
not expected to live, and only survived due to his excellent
fitness; he used to run half-marathons regularly. For a while it
was thought that he would be unable to swallow or breathe
unaided, but he regained more movement than expected. He is 
paralysed from the chest down, with some limited movement in his
arms. Among all the other obvious limitations, this means that
he needs 24 hour care, cannot travel on commercial aircraft and
even finds speaking an effort. Consider this when you wonder why
he is rarely seen to smile.

Virginia Williams, Frank's wife, has written a book called 'A
Different Kind of Life' which describes their lives before and
after the accident, up to about 1990.

Drive carefully.


6.9 What is happening to UK TV coverage in 1997? [HG]

The BBC have lost the rights to Formula One. The exact details
depend on your sources, but it is believed that ITV made Bernie
Ecclestone an offer he couldn't refuse, and the deal was done
before the BBC knew of it.  Hence UK viewers will now have to
tolerate a Grand Prix interrupted by commercials. Eurosport have
also lost the rights, so there is not even the possibility of
switching between the two to get uninterrupted coverage. It is
to be hoped that ITV will schedule the advert breaks
intelligently, and provide rapid editing to replay any action
during the break. However, dreams of ads scrolling along the
bottom of the screen, or ads in one big chunk before and 
after the race, remain just that - dreams. Advertisers know that
no-one will watch them, although this format does seem
acceptable for football.

However, the story does not end there. ITV are contractually
bound to show all the races live. The South American races are
in the early evening, UK time, which is one of ITV's best slots.
As ITV do not have a second channel they will be forced to
devote their programming to what is still a minority sport.

It is not yet known whether Murray Walker MBE  will follow the
sport to ITV, but on the strength of current reports it seems
unlikely.


7. NETIQUETTE [HG]

7.1 Read 'welcome to rec.autos.sport hierarchy', posted monthly
or so. This covers most of the points made below, which are
standard netiquette. Please read it.

7.2 Don't post jpegs,gifs or any other big files. Many people
download all messages in the newsgroup to be read off-line. If
you pay for connect time it is very annoying to find that you
have spent 10 minutes downloading a 7000 line binary. Post
pictures to alt.binaries.pictures.vehicles and then you can just
post a short message on r.a.s.f1 telling people what you posted
and where you posted it.

7.3 Please don't get offensive - a driver can't help his
appearance or that of his wife, but their behaviour on or off
track is fair game. Also; ANYONE CAN MAKE A MISTAKE!!! Posts on
the lines of 'xxx is a complete yyyy' just get tedious.
Reasonable analysis please, we can buy junk newspapers if we
want rantings. Remember also that F1 is really easy from your
armchair, rather less so from the driving seat.

7.4 Great drivers and world champions come from all countries,
please keep down the nationalistic bias.

7.5 Not everyone on this group is male; chauvinist pig behaviour
will be spotted and rebuked! (By me and others!) Drivers are
good or bad on their own merits, not those of their chromosomes.
I'll let you get away with sexism, so long as it is in a
humorous vein; I too think that the swimsuit clad girlies on the
grid are unlikely to be filling in time between rocket-science
engagements.

7.6 Not everyone on this group has English as a first language -
don't slag off someone for poor grammar or spelling. However
English is the language of the group, please try to post in it.

7.7 Spoilers; if you are posting within two days of a Grand
Prix, don't put the result in the header, just something like
'Hungarian GP - SPOILERS'; not 'Schumacher wins in Germany' as
this upsets people. On the other hand, it is almost certain that
somebody will violate the spoiler rule so read the group at your
peril - I have never seen the result of a race NOT given away in
at least one subject line!! 

7.8 Don't ask people to post results, practice times, starting
grids etc. All of these will be posted at least half a dozen
times so it is not necessary to ask - you will even see Friday's
practice times still being posted on Tuesday afternoon. If you
haven't seen the results within a few hours, then you have a
slow newsfeed and we can't help you with that.

7.9 Don't post test messages. There are many news groups set up
specifically for test messages - use them. (If you post to
alt.test you will even get automatic responses from a couple of
sites around the world telling you how long it took your post to
get to their site).

7.10 If you're responding to a long post, please use the delete
key liberally to edit the original message. People don't want to
page through a three page message to see your "I agree" reply.

7.11 Please ensure that your software restricts your post to 72
character per line. Most people will not read messages which
spill off the edge of their screen.

7.12 If you decide to quote Joe Bloggs or say that Joe Bloggs
posts complete rubbish then please make sure you distinguish
between, for example, jbloggs@dublin.ie and joe@london.uk . It
does happen that two people on r.a.s.F1 can have the same name
with different email addresses. 


8. F1 WEB SITES

http://callan/cs.may.ie:8000/David_Byrne/David_S_Byrne.html
Jordan Home Page

http://homepage.interaccess.com/~tensai/
The Racing Line: auto racing news, commentary and web links

http://www.helsinki.fi/~mpaavila
The Anastasia Utendorf F1 Page - multi-media F1 program.

http://www.mclaren.co.uk/mclaren
McLaren Home Page

http://www.u-net.com/enigma/formula1
News,Reviews,Results,Drivers,Teams,History.If its F1,its
there.

http://www.motorsport.com
Comprehensive coverage of F1 and other motorsports worldwide</A>

http://www.dortmund.netsurf.de/~mstruck/f1.html
The Formula One Links Page

http://www.ferrari.it
Official Ferrari Home Page (Italian)

http://www.ferrari.it/comsport.e/formula1.html
Official Ferrari Home Page (English)


9. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The contribution of the following individuals is very gratefully
acknowledged. This FAQ would not have been possible without
them.


Harald Bloche      [HB]      bloche@postix.gmd.de
David Byrne        [DB]      yr39401@cs.may.ie
Josje Cobben       [JC]      joco@cuci.nl
Glenn Durden       [GD]      alfa@melb.alexia.net.au
Tim Downie         [TD]      trd@fisher.stats.bris.ac.uk
Darryl Ellson      [DE]      darryl@trigger.ch.umist.ac.uk
Pete Fenelon       [PF]      pete@cs.york.ac.uk
Helen Gerald       [HG]      geraldh@logica.com
Andrew Henry       [AH]      rasfaq@bath.ac.uk
Vincent Ho         [VH]      hbv@sfsu.edu
Chuck Ingene       [CI]      caingene@u.washington.edu
Mark Jackson       [MJ]      mjackson@wc.eso.mc.xerox.com
RP Mendes Salgueiro[RM]      rps@morgana.mat.uc.pt
Randy Malbone      [RM]      rmalbon@cs.umb.edu  
Kim Meijs          [KM]      kh.meijs@via.nl
Hans Molenaar      [HM]      hmolenaa@hbg.nl
Wyman Pattee       [WP]      usfmc389@ibmmail.com
Hugh Rankin        [HR]      hrankin@ibm.net
AJ Samuels         [AS]      ajsamuels@dolomite.win-uk.net 
Chris 'Bart'Simpson[CS]      simpson@stsci.edu
Ulrich Teichert    [UT]      krypton@netzservice.de


A big thank you also to McLaren, Jordan, Tyrrell, Sauber,
Benetton, Ferrari and Minardi for their assistance.


Copyright (c) 1996 by Mitchell McCann




--
     The F1 FAQ on the Web
http://www.ultranet.com/~mitchmcc

