Testing has begun in Barcelona. Badoer takes top spot in the 1st day of testing. Grosjean wrote off a Renault and Davidson is back in the cockpit for Honda!

1 L. Badoer Ferrari Bridgestone 01:22.412 82
2 R. Kubica BMW Bridgestone 01:22.682 69
3 D. Coulthard Red Bull Bridgestone 01:22.724 21
4 S. Buemi Red Bull Bridgestone 01:22.764 79
5 G. Paffett McLaren Bridgestone 01:22.938 36
6 A. Davidson Honda Bridgestone 01:23.208 81
7 N. Hulkenberg Williams Bridgestone 01:23.619 112
8 R. Grosjean Renault Bridgestone 01:23.899 60
9 K. Kobayashi Toyota Bridgestone 01:24.442 82

Nice to see Luca Badoer out again: An unsung hero of Ferrari's recent greatness. He gave up a marginal F1 career for a central, but invisible, role in a great success.

Note, in another thread the positively industrial strength wishbones Ferrari is running. Look like they'd be at home in a VERY heavy truck!

A simultaneius debut of the new front wing bridge element for both RBR and STR. Similar to the one used by McLaren.


Honda adds some extensions to the inside of the endplates (unpainted)


Podvane extensions + eclipse-style ( ) front rim shields for Williams.

Honda made them additions for Monaco and also featured at Canada.

I think the RB bridgewing also debuted at Monaco, but makes a new appearence for STR. Not quite sure though.

does anyone know what this is??

Wheel force hubs? Don't know. Haven't seen that specifically before.

PNSD wrote:Honda made them additions for Monaco and also featured at Canada.

I think the RB bridgewing also debuted at Monaco, but makes a new appearence for STR. Not quite sure though.

You are right. The only suspicous thing is that the Honda 'new' parts where painted in white for those races, now they're bare carbon-fibre.

modbaraban wrote:

PNSD wrote:Honda made them additions for Monaco and also featured at Canada.

I think the RB bridgewing also debuted at Monaco, but makes a new appearence for STR. Not quite sure though.

You are right. The only suspicous thing is that the Honda 'new' parts where painted in white for those races, now they're bare carbon-fibre.

Honda are strange sometimes lol, for Rubens they were painted and for Jenson they werent painted :s!

In Monaco aswell Jenson had a different front wing to rubens, then as is on the page a different rear wing. In Monaco Jense had little cuts out on the front wing where it meets the endplates, on the 3rd plane. i guess its driver preference, but not so sure about why they have painted these on one car and not the other? Maybe they're just lazy :p

I think those wheel devices are KERS related.

FLC wrote:I think those wheel devices are KERS related.

At first glance I thought so too. They almost look like the stators on an electric motor...almost.

Not found a good picture.

But i think Mclaren are running wings like Ferrari and Renault between the cockpit and the front suspension.

They didnt have them at the start of the season, but they did last year.

You can see them here...but yes I haven't found a decent aerial pic of them either...

here is a decent aerial pic



and a beautifoul pic of FW30

I wouldn't exactly say it was beautiful

I can't wait to get rid of these ridiculous appendages -- they really are awful.

Scotracer, I'm with you: modern F1 cars get more ugly and look less like cars every year. I'd much rather see VERY rigid regulations governing aero/body dimensions and a loosening of the engine development rules.

Am I the only one who is utterly repulsed by the mating of "racing" and "thou shalt not make more power"? How can we have the "pinnacle of auto racing" and an engine freeze?