Indianapolis Archives

The strangest GP ever

December 15, 2016 at 8:13 amDecember 14, 2016 at 9:30 am by The Judge

On this Day in F1 – 1909 The Brickyard is born When the Indianapolis Motor speedway first opened, the terrible track surface meant the first race was a disaster – there were multiple accidents and five people were killed. The owners decided to lay bricks round the track and on this day the work was … Read more

On This Day in F1: 20 March

May 14, 2015 at 8:37 pmMarch 20, 2013 at 12:01 am by The Judge

On this day in F1 March 6th, is brought to you by TheJudge13 chronicler: Samora Machel – 2005: A ‘Trulli’ Commendable Performance Panasonic Toyota Racing has Ralf Schumacher racing for them this season. No he hasn’t left Scuderia Ferrari, he’s left BMW Williams. We’re both thinking about Ralf Schumacher, right? Just checking. The team’s hopes for … Read more

US Grand Prix 2002, Indianapolis: A Ferrari Fix

April 28, 2015 at 4:58 amNovember 14, 2012 at 6:28 pm by The Judge

In the run up to the return to the US for F1 racing, I’m looking for good stories that maybe veteran F1 fans want to relive and new ones can read for the first time. Most people with any vague knowledge of F1 racing in the US will know of the tyre debacle at Indianapolis in 2005 where only 6 teams ran.

Yesterday, thejudge13 published a review and some video footage from Dallas 1984, another farcical event where the track disintegrated before the drivers eys. So much so the Pole Position fastest time was set on Friday some 2.5 seconds quicker than anything possible on the Saturday – and there was no rain. (LINK)

Controversy has not been far from the US Grand Prix it seems in recent years. This race at 2002, I remember watching live and listening to the incredulous voice of the commentator who wailed in disbelief at the finish as it unfolded before his eyes. The article is from Grandprix.com but is abridged due a great level of detail some may find dull. The link to the full article is at the end for those wanting the 10th’s of seconds etc… suffice to say the race was a fairly dull Ferrari domination (as was much of 1999-2004).

Austinites view F1 like a folk festival, McLaren fundamental to Formula E 2014, Who is the F1 driver chain smoker? Teams sharing garages, 204 less pit stops in 2012, HRT sale forced by bank bailout request

May 14, 2015 at 8:44 pmNovember 13, 2012 at 12:16 am by The Judge

Bank bailout forces HRT sale: Meanwhile, the team travels to Austin with the minimum staff to compete and avoid a financial penalty from FOM for being absent (as.com). We may well see the cars qualify, start the race and retire the cars after one lap.

thejudge13 has previously reported that HRT are using parts way beyond their sanctioned life and has a debt to repay before December 2nd or face dissolution. Thesan Capital, we believe, is a front for the Banco Popular who applied yesterday for a bailout of 2.5bn Euro’s. The terms of the bailout are that all non-profitable assets of the bank must be identified and disposed of – including HRT.

As to the story that Colin Kolles is interested in buying the team, this is fantasy by Thesan Capital. He was ‘exited’ last December when the debt from Banco Popular was assigned to Thesan Capital who on taking control issued a statement explaining Colin’s departure, “This is due to the new direction that the team has taken and the decision of the new management to move the team headquarters to Spain,” it read. (Yallf1.com)