Simona de Silvestro had her first F1 test this morning in a re-liveried 2012 Sauber at Fiorano. The car features a much nicer paint scheme than the current grey car, with sponsorship visible from a number of clean air companies and the words “clean air” and “hybrid” prominent on the car. At last someone is using the new F1 engine formula as it should be used – even if the car features an older engine!
The Swiss racer has already done a lot of simulator work and the word is that she’s been pretty impressive. The goal of the test is to prepare for a later test in a current car, that would qualify her for a super licence.
joeblogsf1 
Don’ know how fast she is, since every time a driver moves up a level, they can hit a wall. But, up to this point, I’d say she’s the real deal.
Been watching her since her days in Atlantics. There’s a smart head on those shoulders.
Fingers crossed that this could be the (female) breakthrough that F1 needs.
Good to see Swiss Miss making headway with Sauber! Joe, are these additional sponsors than their regulars ( seeing this on my phone, so it’s too small to make out)? When I read this, then saw the pictures, I couldn’t help but wonder, what an interesting concept! Sponsor a driver like Simona in her quest to get her super license. Case in point here, she’s getting media exposure, hence, so are the sponsors. As Simona is a woman going for F1, it’s a natural and far less expensive than sponsoring a years budget on the side of the actual race car.
I really hope this works out as she clearly has potential.
Joe is the livery on that car a one off, or will it be adopted by Sauber at some point as their new livery (next season?).
I think it’s a one off. It’s the colours Simona used on her IRL car last year.
Considering that Pastor Maldonado is a Superlicence holder, I think it somewhat of an insult that Simona has to qualify for one. Also, it’s a tad stupid to have a system that does not accept that if you can driver an Indycar, then you should be fully capable of driving an F1 car….and yes I know that F1 drivers have had to do the Rookie Test at Indy, but that is a little different in that it is about learning the particular requirements of high speed Oval racing, and it’s an Ego thing for the Hulmans too…..Going back to Simona, I seem to recall that Kimi had a much bigger step to jump to F1 and he turned out to be both sensible and fast. Mosley made a big song and dance at the time, which I thought rather absurd.
They all have to qualify for one.
Yes I know Joe, I was just making the point that it is a stupid idea. If a driver is in anyway talented enough to race from lower series up into Indycars, then the FIA ought to recognize that he or she is capable of driving an F1 car! It’s not rocket science is it?
But surely Indy and F1 cars have totally different characteristics, weight/mass, acceleration, stopping power, downforce, roll centres, types of suspension. Bucket loads of buttons to press.
No I think its only fair on all the other drivers that everyone must prove their ability to cope with all the extras in F1 before they are let loose amongst the field.
The differences never stopped Mario Andretti or Nigel Mansell switching series with no problems. Yes, the cars were simpler in Mario’s day ( although driving the skirted and turbo cars was probably quite hard compared to now, but in Mansell’s case he came from the sophisticated FW14B probably one of the most complex F1 cars of all time, and slotted straight into CART. Further Madonado hasn’t got a grasp of his steering wheel controls so should he have a Superlicence? Superlicence is A a way for the FIA/ Bernie to control drivers and make money and B it is a way for Bernie to say only the best drivers in the world are in his series, which is not the case.
Your disparaging comments insulting Maldonado and speaking derisively about his abilities are as much an indictment of your bias and prejudice as you think they are of Maldonado’s skill.
For your information, I don’t have any bias or prejudice on the subject of Maldonado. I have never liked seeing a good seat wasted. There are drivers who have one a single GP, for various reasons, but have not been top grade or likely champions. In my view, having watched his career over several seasons, I don’t think Pastor is a top grade driver or potential WCD winner. The Hulk is a far better prospect, but because he doesn’t come with a bucket load of £ like Pastor does, Nico gets overlooked all the time. Which is plainly stupid, and which also negates any argument that all 22 drivers on the gird are there purely on their talent! Di Resta is a better driver than Maldonado, but isn’t on the grid. There’s a shed load of drivers who should be on the grid, and if the series was less expensive and had more teams, those guys would have a better chance of having a seat with which to try and impress a big team.
Except that all the other drivers DON’T have to prove they can cope with F1 stuff like extra buttons, etc. Super License requirements from Wikipedia (since it’s a good summary):
“These requirements state that the driver must be either the reigning champion in a lower category of motor sport, for example Formula 3 (British, Italian or Japanese championship, or Euro Series), Formula 2, or GP2 Series (formerly known as Formula 3000), or must have consistently finished well in these categories. For example, a driver finishing in the first three positions five times within the last two years in GP2 will be eligible for a Super License.”
So a driver can go from Formula 3 straight into F1 without proving any of the things you talk about.
If you finish top 4 in the Indycar championship, I think you automatically qualify for a Superlicence. However Simona doesn’t fall into that category.
Well said Damian – pleasure to read such entries that display genuine knowledge of the topic. And a critical eye to what is going on. I love the remark about Maldonado in the beginning, similar could or should have been said much earlier on about Jean-Pierre Jarier, who had talent but also a misplaced ego that made him a danger on track. I do wish Simona best of luck and, talking of ego, she has hers focused on driving and not arguing and quarreling like Danica Patrick when something goes not her way. That focus just might make it for Simona on all levels: the team, herself, the sponsors and the public. That would be a genuine breakthrough.
I agree about Jumper, although he was something else in an F2 car, or a Matra sportscar. If he hadn’t been such a d*** he could have been a GP winner. Same could be said of Francois Duval in the WRC…waste of a huge talent, and an equally huge ego!
I hope Simona fits the bill, motorsport should have females competing at all levels, including the top levels. But only on merit, and that should go for the guys as well!
Don’t know about Danica. She impressed me speedwise, and her NASCAR form isn’t much to go on,as so many good drivers don’t make an impact when the try it out. I think it is much trickier than us Europeans speculate on! Would be good to have them both in, and Susie/Katherine Legge etc, and see how they go!
Presumably the simulator she was using was the same as driving the track, eg it reproduced all the bumps and rumble recorded from the track surface. The G force is limited in a sim though, either to 1 G if you tip the whole platform vertical or to a bit more for very short periods restricted by the platform movement range.
You do not appear to have said how well she did on track though.
I vividly remember all my first racing vehicle experiences. In karts my eyeballs vibrated so much I couldn’t see. In an off road buggy thing, I felt all my organs wanting to leave my body in all directions at once. But in a Group A btcc car on slicks as a passenger on a few laps at race speed it was heaven. As a driver in a school XR3i I was crap, never beat 1:04 on the Brands indy cct. (not allowed to use 5th)
So I wonder what Simona felt most about it. Was this an interview or a press release Joe?
The article was written about 30 minutes after she left the pits. This your remarks are not relevant, are they? It is always useful to apply done thought before writing comments that are just silly.
For God’s sake, rpaco, she drives Indycars! She just might know a bit about this stuff.
does susie wolf have hers yet?
I guess she does. It is just a question of mileage.
thanks Joe wasn’t sure. i read somewhere there might have been problems doing the friday practice thing because she didn’t have it yet. i just want to see the girls get a chance. sexism has always been rife in motorsport. look how Michele Mouton was treated and she nearly won the WRC championship and instead of worrying about being beaten period some of the biggest names in the sport were more worried about being beaten by a girl.
Sexism is not rife in motorsport. In my experience the sport is the ultimate pragmatic meritocracy. If you are a one-legged transexual eskimo who happens to be a brilliant aerodynamicist you will still get the top jobs. The smart teams don’t care about anything other than performance. I think the most sexist thing you can get in racing is promoting women who are not capable of doing the jobs they are given.
Here here. Or hear, hear, delete whichever is incorrect……
The Clean Air sponsorship follows Simona. It was on her Indycar entry last year. Very cool to see her in the car.
I am aware of that.
So they saved 5 gallons of gas on track during this test, while burning thousands of gallons to get everyone and everything to the track.
This whole green racing thing is so disingenuous. I’m sure Al Gore will be buying into it any second now…
The environmental impact of ANY sport event is primarily based on the number of spectators driving to watch.
Your looking at it the wrong way. It’s not about saving fuel on the track after all it’s an expenditure of energy for entertainment. But when the technology and improvements found can be passed to road cars that’s where it can help the environment.
For instance, Williams fly-wheel solution to KERS a few years back is beginning to make it’s way into buses.
https://joesaward.wordpress.com/2014/04/01/a-nice-little-earner-for-williams/
http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2012/apr/18/f1-fuel-saving-flywheel-buses
Back to topic, looking forward to Simona getting her chance in F1. She seems like she has the skills.
The most important this Joe is how much $$$$$$$ does she bring?
No. If she is good enough, money will follow.
HA! Tell that to Robin Frijns.
And she was good enough in IndyCar and money did not follow.
Huh? She had a very lucrative deal in IndyCar that went through the same people that put this together.
And yet she is no longer there and I’ll believe she has an F1 drive when the old farts at Motorsport complain about it.
Read that mag and you will discover the soul of the sport matey. Most of the remaining mainstream print motorsport mags are just dumbed down these days.
And this is EXACTLY the type of story F1 should be promoting. You’re right however, it all gets buried amongst Bernie’s various trials and tribulations, and the FIA squabbling with the teams over cost caps…. Another missed PR opportunity.
Thanks for the update Joe and hopefully there will be more when she done with the test. One Super License on the way to Simona.
It’s about time we had someone like Simona in F1 might give the lads something to think about.
Simona has raced against several drivers in F Atlantic and IndyCar that juxtapose her with some of her recent peers for comparison. She is a very good (and fairly well backed) driver and worthy of her IndyCar seat for certain.
She has not shown the dominance in IndyCar that history tells us one must demonstrate if one is expected to make serious inroads in F1.
Many drivers have “retired” their way from F1 to Indy successfully….but only a very rare few have “Graduated” to F1 from Indy successfully. Less so in recent times.
Villeneuve and Montoya…dominated their indy campaigns, and were at least “on par” (opinions vary) with top F1 talent. Bourdais also dominated INDYCar but failed to be “on par” after arriving in F1. Michael Andretti must have had the talent but the commitment “jump” was apparently too much.
Further, Simona is physically bigger and less fit than any driver currently in F1. A female would reasonably expect to need to be fitter than her male counterparts….not less fit. Fitness is indicative of commitment level, and commitment is the main energy source for an F1 drivers success. Simona has not successfully lost the weight in the past (in no category of racing is dead weight ideal) ….it is doubtful that she will now. The good folks at Sauber know this.
One day there will be a female (or several) in F1. Nothing that goes on in an F1 cockpit is beyond a fit, confident, talented and committed lady.
Simona de Silvestro is not that female. Sauber knows this too.
Peace
That’s not very polite. Why don’t you pay more attention to what is going on, with regard to training and not mouth off until she has had a chance.
Polite? Paying attention to training is precisely what I am doing (and Simona is not to evident effect)! She, like all committed formula car drivers, has an obligation to be as fit and “low mass” as is practical. Simona has now had her first F1 test (not to mention the fact that she has been racing professionally for several years now) and serious training / dietary disciple should have been well underway!
F1 drivers are among the fittest athletes in sport. Fitness, across a wide array of metrics, is rigorously assessed and clearly definable in the modern era.
It is indicative when a driver is not “all in” in every aspect of their performance. F1 teams/bosses know this. Montoya clearly had the talent but not the commitment (i.e. he likes cheeseburgers). Doesn’t make him a bad person, just chubby!
If “get fit” is an impolite comment…..you can call me rude-y!
Cheers
What do you know about her fitness programme?
The results
However ultimate fitness as measured by the likes of Schuey, seems not to be a big factor anymore. Drivers this year are not reliant on drinks bottles, and Vergne’s problem was about diet, not physical strength. Hammy & Alonso have both said that this year the cars are not as physically demanding, but do need more brain power to be applied. Female humans are said to be more capable at multi tasking than males. Also to be more capable of using their brains than males. If Simona is a little light on upper body strength, this isn’t likely to harm her chances I wouldn’t think. It’s all about going for the gap and spatial awareness. As Senna said, if you no longer go for the gap, you are no longer a racing driver. Very true. If she has the guts to fight wheel to wheel, she will be ok, if not she won’t….simples!
She actually has too much upper body strength. She is in the process of changing her muscles to what is required in F1, which is different to IndyCar.
Shame we have to wait till 2015 to see if she can do the biz….would be nice if Sauber could at least give her some Friday runs.
What makes you think you will have to wait?
I thought the announced plan was for her to run in 2015? That’s why I made the comment. I know it rubs you up the wrong way Joe, but back in the day, she could have run a private Sauber or other car, straightaway and we could have seen how she went now, in a GP. For me, this is one of the reasons that F1 is all wrong these days. The current rules severely restrict new talent from being displayed….and that is something that I don’t think you could mount a counter argument on Joe!
Valid points.
I was referring to her excess mass..which is very much an issue in this years cars. Im sure her upper body strength and cardio fitness are good (cardio is still critical).
It is her “leanness”,to put it … politely, to which I was referring.
Cheers
Watch and learn
Well….I figure I let that one gestate long enough. I’m guessing that you still have some version of the facts that suggests that Simona (and a few other overweight but talented people with ‘strong’ upper bodies) has made it in F1, delivered by her commitment and the fitness and preparedness that result. The only problem is I can find what team she’s on. Any help appreciated.
Smugly yours.
Fuzzy
PS.. this is a challenge to see if you’ve got the stuff for a good old fashioned ‘touche’ or not.