CarEnvy.ca is pleased to bring you official video and photos of the first official launch of the 2009 F1 season: Ferrari’s brand-new F60. Follow the jump for the video, a full gallery and more F1 news!
Elsewhere in the world of F1, things other than the launch of the F60 did happen, and we’ve got proof. ProDrive chair and former team principal David Richards has apparently dropped his name from contention in the acquisition of The Team Formerly Known As Honda F1, but property magnate Achilleas Kallakis is reportedly very seriously interested in acquiring the embattled team. His only previous experience in F1 was expressing keen interest in acquiring Scuderia Toro Rosso in 2008, although his business dealings to this point suggest a man who is very driven to do what he needs to in order to succeed.
Speaking of Toro Rosso, the holders of the only seat that is definitely currently open on the 2009 F1 grid, Jenson Button is still sticking with Honda rather than chasing after that open seat, even though Honda F1′s future is still very much up in the air. More details as they develop.
Meanwhile, Ralf Schumacher may be out of motorsports for good following a disappointing year in DTM. He hasn’t ruled out yacht racing, so that’s something, at least. It’s got to be exceptionally hard being Michael’s younger brother. Believe it or not, I am being completely sincere in that statement.
Finally, Ron Dennis gave a rather interesting lecture at the Autosport International Show last week, in which he shares some illuminating insights about managing the personalities of Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna and new modern hopes Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso in tandem with one another. Said Dennis:
“It’s obviously not easy.
“You’re dealing with very independently-minded individuals, very different personalities and on both occasions they were from a different cultural background and a different educational background.
“So the make-up of those men was extremely different.
“With Ayrton he totally lived for Formula 1 and his values.
“He did share one thing with Alain, however: that they were both heroes in their countries.
“They were at the pinnacle of their particular sport within their country at that particular time – they were both very prominent sporting personalities.
“So they had a phenomenal amount written about them and, very clearly, that was also the case with Fernando and Lewis.
“But what is written about them varies significantly from country to country, so they get built up – they get a lot written about them, lots of people talking to them, and then they have to find in their own minds reasons for not succeeding.
“It’s very important for a grand prix driver that they understand themselves and have hope and belief in themselves – which means it is extremely difficult for them to come to terms with realising that it’s not the car or the team that failed.
“But when they do fail, as inevitably is the nature of the sport, all drivers tend to look for a reason for that failure.”
The entire interview is well worth a read, and if you follow the link above to ITV’s website, you can read it there.
In the meantime, you may have noticed that it’s Monday today, rather than the customary Friday upon which we’ve been posting F1 news as of late. This is because today sees the launch of our new “Motorsports Mondays” focus, wherein we’ll attempt to round up the majority of motorsports news on—you guessed it—Mondays from here on out. Important breaking news will still be posted as we have it, regardless of day of week and time of day, but that’s our story and we’re sticking to it. So please continue to stay with us for weekly F1 updates every Monday in 2009!