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MCLAREN: DRASTIC CHANGES ARE NEEDED

As Lewis prepares himself for the coming race in Australia, his team say they will deliver some ‘drastic changes’ to ensure a win in secured at Melbourne. 

McLaren team principal, Martin Whitmarsh, says that new changes are necessary if they are to succeed this year, however admits they are a risk. 

“There's some risk in that but I think it was the right thing to do and we're hoping that risk comes off and the car is a lot more competitive.”

Lewis Hamilton thinks that McLaren will end Red Bull’s reign at the front of the pack and declares that they are no longer going to dominate the sport in the same way they have been.

"For many, many years it has been McLaren and Ferrari at the front and now we have got a new team that has come and knocked us off the top. But I am really certain that either team will do absolutely everything in their power to make sure they can remain at the top.”

He added: “They [Red Bull] have not been there as long as our teams. Our teams have got status they would like to keep.”

However Hamilton showed concern that the performance of his car won’t be up to pace Red Bull has set in testing, saying: “Red Bull will have improved their reliability from last year," he said. "They will have the pace and the reliability this year, as will Ferrari. Those two are definitely the hardest to beat.”

The 2011 Formula One season starts on March 27 in Melbourne.

STIRLING MOSS: “I FIND MOTOR RACING INTERESTING, BUT NOT VERY EXCITING”

Sir Stirling Moss made an interesting comment when discussing the new rules for 2011, saying that he found motor racing interesting, but not very exciting. 

Described by some as ‘the greatest driver never to win the championship,’ Moss said that he thinks the technical changes for 2011 will put emphasis back on the skill of the driver.

2011 will see the re-introduction of the KERS system seen in 2009 and an adjustable rear wing which can be changed by the driver to reduce drag or increase downforce. 

They bring the driver back into it," he told the Press Association. "The driver now has to decide when to use the KERS, the wing and everything else. I must say I'm looking forward to the best season for many years because I find motor racing interesting, but not very exciting.

"That was the case last year, it was interesting but not exciting, however this year I think we are going to see excitement as well. There are so many new things that have come in where a driver's input is going to mean a lot more than it did last year.

"We also don't know how the Pirelli tyres are going to perform this season, and they are going to be quite important. So I'm just looking forward to something that I think is going to be exceptionally exciting."

BAHRAIN F1 RACE UNDER THREAT

The recent political unrest in Bahrain has caused concern over whether or not the opening race will take place next month. A decision by F1 chiefs will be made shortly.

This weekends GP2 race has already been cancelled as a result of the riots, and it is still unsure whether the opening round of Formula One will take place here. 

F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone said this is a big concern for the sport and they are watching the situation very carefully, hopefully making a decision by the end of next week.

“We'll have to keep our eye on things and make a decision quickly.

Bernie added, “If things stay as they are today, the answer is no.”

Shaikh Salman bin Isa Al Khalifa, CEO of the Bahrain circuit, said in a press statement that they plan to go ahead with the race as planned, yet they are paying careful attention to the situation and place the safety of all it’s visitors as a priority.

“The safety of all Bahraini nationals, expats and overseas visitors is a priority at all times in the Kingdom and, at the Bahrain International Circuit."

He added, “Our focus at the present time remains on delivering another successful event in the form of the 2011 Gulf Air Formula 1 Bahrain Grand Prix.

“We continue to monitor the situation very closely indeed in association with the relevant authorities.”

MATESCHITZ: DRIVER RIVALRY WILL CONTINUE INTO 2011

Red Bull boss Dietrich Mateschitz has said that Mark Webber and Sebastien Vettel will be as competitive this year as they were last year.

The pair endured a somewhat troublesome season last year, when a collision during the Turkish grand prix and accusations of favouritism within the team caused serious concern.

With the first race in Bahrain just a few weeks away, Mateschitz said that the rivalry between the two will be just as significant as last year and that they are free to fight it out on the track.

“Sebastian is fully motivated, and Mark nothing less. They won't exchange gifts. Therefore I expect a similar situation to last year. And they remain both free to race.”

VETTEL: “IT’S MY DREAM TO RACE FOR MARANELLO ONE DAY.”

In a recent interview conducted by Gazzetta dello Sport, Sebastien Vettel said that it is his ‘dream’ to race for Ferrari in the future. Even though he is happy at Red Bull Racing, he insisted that has always wanted to drive for the Maranello outfit someday.

"Let's put it this way: I love to race, I know motor racing history and I know Ferrari is a legend," he told the newspaper.

"Yes, it's my dream to race for Maranello one day. However I'm still young, there is time. At the moment I'm happy to be in Red Bull, without them I would have never arrived in F1.

"To have your name written among the names of the world champions is special, but having it in the list of the Ferrari drivers would be special too.

“I would like to be on the podium at Monza with Ferrari.”

Vettel joked around saying that if he could not race for Red Bull this year, then he would offer Fernando Alonso or Massa a vacation to go away, saying, “I would get busy booking them a nice hotel. Even though I'm not sure they'd shake my hand."

Red Bull boss Dietrich Mateschitz reckons that Vettel will stay with the team as long as he has a competitive car, however if they cannot offer that to the world champion, he will move elsewhere.

“As long as we can offer him a car capable to win he won't leave for Ferrari or anywhere."

VALENCIA F1 TESTING - DAY 1

The first day of testing finished today in Valencia, moments after the Red Bull team revealed their 2011 title contending car. Sebastien Vettel finished with the fastest time overall in his brand new RB7, whilst Fernando Alonso came in at almost a whole second slower. However it is still early days in the development process with another 14 days of testing for the teams to get to grips with their new cars and Pirelli tyres. 

The teams were working tirelessly to gather valuable data for the new Pirelli tyres, with Red Bull clocking up 93 laps, Ferrari having done the most at 98 laps and other long distance runners averaging at around 71 laps a piece. 

Considering the lengthy runs of most teams there were no major reliability issues to report, apart from a minor situation where Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg had to park his MGP W02 on the front straight section of the track. 

Despite the technical hitch, Rosberg declared that he was happy with how he felt in the car, saying, "The positive thing is that I felt at home straight away, it didn't feel like a car I didn't know, which is an important thing to straight away feel comfortable. ... I think it's just a better car in general. Ross [Brawn] has reorganised the company in many ways and improved the communications between the car and engine groups. It's going to be a big step for us."

The Pirelli tyres have held up well for the first day of testing. Each team has a dedicated tyre engineer with who they can relate important information to. The teams also get the whole range of compounds of tyres to choose from, depending upon their testing programmes. 

Some teams still have not revealed their cars for the 2011 season. McLaren, Force India and HRT plan to show their new contenders within the next two weeks.