Formula 1 News Roundup 2/21

The main story in Formula 1 today has been car launches as three different teams introduced their cars and another team introduced its livery.

Mercedes introduced the car this morning that they hope will defend both titles in Formula 1 this year. They insist that they are going to keep pushing forward and try to improve on last years results.

The team also says the car that they run in testing this week will be very close to the specification that they use at the Australian Grand Prix next month. Mercedes says the reason for this is a combination of having just two winter tests which is down from three last year and also the fact that the tests are very close to the opening race.

I think this is an issue as usually with new cars there are kinks that need to be sorted out and this would make it very difficult for any team that runs into problems. I understand that budgets are tight these days overall but I think this is an issue that needs to be resolved as it would not be good for the sport if the cars arrive in Melbourne with the teams not being able to sort out issues that they run into.

To check out the changes Mercedes have made from last years car check out this link.

Mercedes W07 Hybrid

Another team to launch its 2016 car today was McLaren. The team says the goal is to still win with Honda but they will not give an estimate as to when that will be. They also say that the chassis is innovative and the results will rely on how much the Honda power unit has developed this winter.

I hope McLaren returns to the front of the grid as I think it is bad for the sport to have the McLaren team along with drivers Fernando Alonso and Jenson Button near the back of the grid. However, I don't see the team making that large of a step in just one winter and I think a more realistic expectation would be better reliability and having a car that can fight in the midfield.

To check out the changes McLaren have made from last years car check out this link.

McLaren MP4-31

The third team to launch its 2016 car was Haas. The team stated today that they feel that they can fight for points in its debut season. I think this is a good target for Haas as they are probably better prepared for Formula 1 as the last time we saw new teams in 2010. I feel this way because the team had a lot longer time to prepare for its entry into Formula 1 and also because of its technical relationship with Ferrari. However, this still does not mean they have a steep hill to climb and I would not expect to see them fight for points until about midseason. 

Haas VF-16

Sauber has also revealed a slight change in its livery this year.

2016 Sauber livery

In other news today Mercedes have claimed that all teams that use Mercedes engines this year will receive the same equipment. If this is true I think this will definately be good for competition although Williams may be the only team that could potentially challenge Mercedes. If Williams does get close enough to Mercedes it will be interesting to see if it can retain its performance level of will they start to drop off. The teams using receiving engines from Mercedes in 2016 are Williams, Force India, and Manor.

Bernie Ecclestone claimed that Formula 1 is the worst it has ever been among other things. His reason is because of the predictability in the sport currently. I agree that Mercedes domination is not good for Formula 1 but a team has dominated at other times during the sports history and the sport has remained healthy. I think the main problem is these days it is a lot more difficult for a team to catch up with the way the regulations currently are and that is what needs to change. Ecclestone also says that he thinks a rule change for 2017 will not be agreed on by the March 1st deadline.

In one final bit of news testing begins tomorrow and Circuit de Catalunya and we will get our first chance to see all the new cars on track and our first idea of where teams stand at for the new year.

Also, don't forget to share your opinion about all the news from today. Do you have an opinion on any of the cars that were launched? Also what do you think about Bernie Ecclestone's comments? Please let us know in the comments section below.