Fernando Alonso does not want his Ferrari team being distracted from this year’s championship campaign by the need to prepare for next year’s new engine rules.
The scale of the changes set to hit F1 next year have been described as a “tsunami” by one technical director. Ferrari aren’t the only team who have a separate part of their team dedicated to working on the 2014 car and engine.
But Alonso, who begins his fourth season at Ferrari this year, is anxious that the team doesn’t get preoccupied with the 2014 car too soon.
“You cannot test anything on the 2013 car that will be useful for the 2014 season,” he pointed out. “You cannot use Fridays to test the turbo, so you will need to continue working on the 2013 season.”
Alonso said the only circumstances Ferrari might switch their focus to 2014 early is if they have a poor start to the season – something he does not want to think about:
“It will be difficult to come to the middle part of the season and give up,” he said. “That will only happen if you are 50 or 60 points behind the leader.”
“That is something we don’t wish to contemplate, and if we do come to that point then it will be better to concentrate on 2014.”
The decision when to halt work on the 2013 car and switch all efforts to 2014 is one all the teams will have to grapple with. But it’s especially crucial for Ferrari as one of F1′s two chassis-and-engine manufacturers.
Mercedes, the only other team in this position, clearly see 2014 as an opportunity to make gains and have already shown off a version of their new V6 engine.
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For Power and Hunter-Reay, Indy win would give careers a greater boost
May 25, 2013, 6:00 PM EDT
AP
They’re the two drivers who battled down to the wire for last year’s IZOD IndyCar Series championship. One’s come out firing to start 2013, and the other has been struck by bad luck in three of four races. Yet going into tomorrow’s 97th running of the Indianapolis 500, Ryan Hunter-Reay and Will Power (pictured) are…
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SENNA, the documentary directed by Asif Kapadia and made in collaboration with the Senna family, airs tonight on the NBC Sports Network at 8 p.m. ET. SENNA premiered to widespread critical acclaim in 2010. It follows the life and career of three-time Formula One World Champion Ayrton Senna, and highlights his passion not only for…
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Reuters
Qualifying 15th may not usually be a reason to celebrate, but Giedo van der Garde is delighted to be starting so highly for tomorrow’s Monaco Grand Prix after a fine performance in today’s session. van der Garde has struggled to make much of an impact on the sport during his first five races, but the…
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Boston Marathon runners to finish race Sunday before Indy 500
May 25, 2013, 3:30 PM EDT
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Approximately 35 runners that were unable to complete the 2013 Boston Marathon due to the horrific bombings near the start/finish line will complete the distance on Sunday at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway before the beginning of the 97th Indianapolis 500. Boston Marathon participants from Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, Illinois and Michigan will run about half a…
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Fernando Alonso has written off his chances of winning the Monaco Grand Prix after qualifying 6th for the race tomorrow, struggling to match the pace of pole-sitter Nico Rosberg. “The chances of a win? Of course in Formula 1 nothing is impossible, but it’s very unlikely I think that we fight for the victory starting…
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AP
When it comes to their thoughts on becoming a four-time winner of the Indianapolis 500, Helio Castroneves (pictured, right) and Dario Franchitti (pictured, left) couldn’t be more different. Castroneves, the gregarious Brazilian that has become famous at Indy for his joyous fence-climbing victory celebrations, is clearly humbled by his accomplishments at the Brickyard. That said,…
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Two-time Monaco Grand Prix winner Mark Webber is pleased to have qualified 4th for tomorrow’s race, putting himself in a position to complete his hat-trick of victories in the principality. “Yeah I’m pretty happy with that,” the Australian driver said in a team statement. “It’s very easy to be towards the back when you have…
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McLaren’s rich history at Monaco may not be extended this weekend, but both Jenson Button and Sergio Perez are pleased to have made it through to Q3 for Formula One’s star event. Perez led the team’s charge by qualifying 7th, and although he is disappointed to have not finished any higher, the young Mexican is…
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Lewis Hamilton is delighted to have qualified on the front row for tomorrow’s Monaco Grand Prix after a difficult start to the race weekend. The British driver had felt uncomfortable with the car before qualifying, but he overcame these difficulties to finish P2 just behind teammate Nico Rosberg. “Congratulations to Nico and the team today,…
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Felipe Massa has revealed that Ferrari tried everything they could in order to repair his car for qualifying, but he is not looking forward to starting last on the grid for tomorrow’s Monaco Grand Prix. Massa suffered a huge crash in final practice on Saturday morning, causing a great deal of damage to his Ferrari…
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Nico Rosberg may have stormed to pole position in qualifying for the Monaco Grand Prix but he is not expecting an easy race tomorrow. The German driver has started on pole for the last two races, yet he has failed to finish any higher than P6 on Sunday. Therefore, he is not confident that this…
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Reuters
Defending world champion Sebastian Vettel has accepted full responsibility for failing to qualify on pole position for tomorrow’s Monaco Grand Prix, having made a small error in Q3 which meant that he could not challenge Nico Rosberg at the front. The Red Bull driver finished 3rd in the final session behind Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton, but he…
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Reuters
Nico Rosberg has secured his third pole position in a row during qualifying for the Monaco Grand Prix on Saturday, edging out teammate Lewis Hamilton who completes an all-Mercedes front row. Despite the weather threatening to rain on Rosberg’s parade, he set a fastest time of 1:13.876 late on in Q3 to finish on top,…
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Who’s in Indy’s ‘under-the-radar’ crowd? Depends who you ask
May 25, 2013, 8:00 AM EDT
Reuters
At most Indianapolis 500s, there are distinctive tiers for the field of 33. Usually there are three or four headliners, five to seven “contenders but not favorites,” a dozen or so “they could be there if not for one thing or another,” and the rest who are there to make up the numbers. In 2013,…
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There’s no rest for the wicked in Formula One, but Ferrari are facing a particularly busy lunchtime in Monaco after Felipe Massa suffered a big crash during final practice ahead of qualifying today. The Brazilian driver crossed the start-finish line with DRS open to start a flying lap, and he appeared to lock up under…
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Formula One has been on a crusade to reduce costs for the past few seasons following the withdrawal of BMW, Toyota and Honda in 2008 and 2009, but McLaren team principal Martin Whitmarsh believes that the sport is currently facing a crisis. “Formula One works best in a crisis but it is a shame that…
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Nico Rosberg has continued his clean-sweep of the sessions in Monaco by finishing quickest in final practice on Saturday. The German driver’s good form from Thursday was evident once again, putting in a quickest time of 1:14.378 to edge out Romain Grosjean and Sebastian Vettel at the top of the time sheets. The session was…
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Denny Hamlin is no different than any other racer when he mentions how painful it was for somebody else to drive his car. After injuring his back in March during a last-lap crash at Auto Club Speedway, Hamlin had to endure that very situation and watch both Mark Martin and Brian Vickers race his No.…
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AP
When you have a team like Target Chip Ganassi Racing behind you, you’re usually in a position to contend almost anywhere – including the Indianapolis 500. Scott Dixon, last year’s “500″ runner-up, has been in this position for over a decade with TCGR, and it has to play a little into his belief that he…
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AP
Final preparations are in the books for the quartet of rookies who will be making their Indianapolis 500 debuts this Sunday. Only one of the four is contesting the full IZOD IndyCar Series season, Schmidt Peterson’s Tristan Vautier. Team Penske’s AJ Allmendinger is in the midst of his IndyCar return from a seven-year NASCAR sojourn,…
