I write this post as the latest game in the series ‘F1 2011’ is launched and yes it includes the new Buddh International circuit at Noida. Its coded by codemasters and is marketed by Zapak in India.

The game has a number of new gameplay options, one of which is the much awaited co-op mode, you and your friend compete as formula one racing partners for a team. I have just got my review copy and cant wait to play it out. If you are looking for features, they are all listed here. You can also view the release trailer here, the graphics look simply awesome ! Am awaiting my Xbox copy to really see the HD graphics

The game is available on PC, Xbox 360 and PS3.

F1 2011™ is the sequel to the BAFTA winning FORMULA ONE™ videogame from Codemasters®, the developer and publisher of award-winning racing games. Developed under Codemasters’ exclusive worldwide agreement with Formula One   World Championship Limited, F1 2011 will come complete with all the official drivers, teams and circuits featuring in the 2011 FIA FORMULA ONE World Championship™. Zapak Games, the licensing & merchandising arm of Zapak Digital Entertainment Ltd. will distribute the title in India.

Developed using Codemasters’ EGO Game Technology Platform F1 2011 will deliver an unrivalled FORMULA ONE experience that puts players into the heart of the world’s most exciting sport, powered by cutting edge graphics, advanced physics systems and integrated network play.

· Go Compete!  F1 2011 builds extensively on the multiplayer options from F1 2010. Split-screen racing is included for the first time in a high-definition FORMULA ONE title. Competitive online racing is extended with 16 players going head-to-head in GRAND PRIX™ with up to 8 AI drivers added to simulate the full grid of 24 drivers. An innovative new co-op Championship enables two players to lead their favourite FORMULA ONE team to Driver and Constructor glory across the course of a FORMULA ONE season. These enhancements are complimented by additional quick fire modes including Time Attack.

· New Circuits for 2011. Two stunning new additions to the race calendar extend the number of circuits to feature in F1 2011 to 19. Players will be able to debut ahead of the drivers on the Buddh International Circuit, the home of the first FORMULA 1 GRAND PRIX OF INDIA and players will be able to test themselves on the iconic Nürburging circuit for the first time in High Definition, as this legendary track returns for the 2011 season.

· Be the driver, live the life.  From the paddock to the track, F1 2011 takes players closer to the experience of being a FORMULA ONE driver than ever before. A new Parc Ferme area, an expanded and revamped Paddock, new Pit Lane, celebration and reaction cinematics and an enhanced media interaction system fully immerse players in the glamour, pressure and excitement of being a FORMULA ONE driver. Players progress from rookie to FIA FORMULA ONE DRIVERS’ WORLD CHAMPION in an extensive career mode where gamers fight to become priority driver and shape the development of the car by performing well in races and earning performance upgrades.

· All the cars, all the stars. Fully licensed, F1 2011 features all the drivers set to contest the 2011 FIA FORMULA ONE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP, including Sebastian Vettel, Lewis Hamilton, Fernando Alonso, Michael Schumacher and Jenson Button. All 2011 teams are represented including Ferrari, Red Rull Racing, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes and Lotus Renault GP in their iconic black and gold livery.

· KERS, DRS and more! F1 2011 includes all the new rule changes set to make this year’s season the most exciting yet. F1 2011 debuts DRS (Drag Reduction System) – the new system which enables drivers to adjust the rear wing on the car to give a boost of up to 10km. KERS also returns, giving players an extra 80BHP for up to 6.67 seconds, enabling drivers to blast past rivals. Combined, these systems encourage close wheel-to-wheel racing with new options for both defence and attack. This season’s new Pirelli tyres are faithfully simulated in the game, and if players push their car too hard they may experience a range of authentic new damage failures.

· Full Day / Night Racing. The 2011 FORMULA 1 ETHIAD AIRWAYS ABU DHABI GRAND PRIX comes alive with a full day/ night transition which recreates the special atmosphere at this unique track. Every one of the existing circuits from the 2010 roster has been given a complete visual overhaul. New atmospheric effects, including dynamic clouds, compliment a weather system which features an advanced rain model that affects on-track grip.  Powered by the EGO Game Technology Platforms, F1 2011 pushes forward the graphical standard of what can be achieved in a racing game.

· The world’s greatest cars, the most exciting racing. Building on the heritage of producing award-winning racing games for over a decade, Codemasters is uniquely placed to realise the spectacle and exhilaration of racing 200MPH+ FORMULA ONE cars for all fans. F1 2011 can be tuned for players from a wide range of skill levels, from the casual gamer to the hardcore simulation enthusiast and those in between, with a range of differing skill levels. A huge range of vehicle variables can be tuned to suit each player’s unique driving style, or drivers can entrust their Race Engineer to set their car up and head straight onto the track. F1 2011 will support a comprehensive range of racing wheels for the ultimate racing experience.

· Unprecedented authenticity. Codemasters has used its unprecedented access to the world of FORMULA ONE to connect the development team directly with FORMULA ONE teams and tyre manufacturers. Extensive consultancy has taken place with a range of FORMULA ONE professionals, including race engineers, mechanics and drivers. This has been combined with real world data including CAD and on-board telemetry to deliver a race experience complete with authentic handling, accurate circuits and precisely modelled racing cars.

· EGO powered FORMULA ONE. F1 2011 is being developed on the EGO Game Technology platform, evolved from the award winning EGO engine. Enabling Codemasters development talent to share tools and technology across Studios and Central Technology teams, the EGO Game Technology Platform empowers Codemasters game designers to realise their creative visions across multiple platforms featuring cutting edge graphics, powerful AI, advanced physics systems and integrated network play.

I am not sure if it was the end of race frustration on Monaco stewards or he figured it was ok to joke about it because he is of african origin, but Lewis Hamilton thinks its funny to joke :

Maybe it’s because I’m black‎

Any respectful person will find these comments extremely tasteless and boorish and unexpected from a formula one race champion. We hope that he apologizes for the fans of the sport. The comments , even if said in jest are not appropriate.

It was a double whammy for Lewis Hamilton during today’s Monaco Grand Prix, who got a drive through penalty for an incident with Ferrari’s Felipe Massa and later was slapped with another 20 seconds of penalty for an incident with Pastor Maldonado.

“Out of six races I’ve been to the stewards five times. It’s a joke. It’s an absolute … joke,” Lewis Hamilton said.

“You know, you can’t overtake here and very, very rarely do you ever get an opportunity. I was quite a lot quicker than Massa. I went up the inside and the guy turned so early and just, turned into me. And I tried to go over the kerb to avoid him and we’re stuck together, and so, I mean, it was just…

And of course I get the penalty, which is usual.  He held me up in qualifying and I got the penalty. He turned into me and I got the penalty. And then I went up the inside of Maldonado, and you can see on the screen he turned in a good car length too early to stop me from overtaking him and crashed into me. I mean, it’s just ridiculous. These drivers are absolutely frickin’ ridiculous. It’s stupid.”

When prodded about why he received so many penalties, he jokingly replied :”

“Maybe it’s because I’m black. That’s what Ali G says”

He is said to have apologized to the stewards later, a good thing IMO. Just needs to apologize to the millions of fans he has hurt.

In what has come as a fresh impetus to peoples’ call for a Mercedes appeal against the FIA punishment, the FIA today acknowledged that the rule 40.13 used to punish Michael Schumacher for overtaking Fernando Alonso at the Monaco Grand Prix was ambiguous and open to multiple interpretations. In their words, problems showed a ‘lack of clarity’.

What is unclear is that why its own stewards and Damon Hill couldn’t see this obvious flaw and ended up penalising Michael Schumacher for no fault of his. Also, since the FIA admits the rule was unclear , something should be done about the Schumacher penalty but under another rule they cant do anything about it.

So basically, FIA goofed up folks and Schumacher gets the short end of the stick. The statement from the site with a spelling mistake corrected

2010 FIA Formula One World Championship Monaco Grand Prix

The problems identified during the final lap of the Monaco Grand Prix, counting for the 2010 FIA Formula One World Championship, showed a lack of clarity in the application of the rule prohibiting overtaking behind the Safety Car.

Adjustments to the regulations are necessary to clarify the procedure that cars must meet when the last lap is controlled by the Safety Car whilst also ensuring that the signalling for teams and drivers is made more clear.

These adjustments will help to avoid the problem which occurred during the Monaco Grand Prix from happening in the future.

The Formula One Commission, upon a proposal of the F1 Sporting Working Group will submit an amendment to the Sporting Regulations to address this issue. These amendments will be considered by the World Motor Sport Council at its next meeting in Geneva on June 23.

It seems Mercedes was right when it said that the FIA agreed the rule breakage if any was not their fault. Still doesn’t explain why they withdrew the appeal.

The move seems to be a late reaction to a realisation that they had a losing appeal which is quite contrary to popular opinion on the Internet and press. The press release in its full glory follows, sad day for Michael Schumacher and Mercedes and the sport of formula one. Maybe green flags would be redefined as stop racing.

The press release also addresses the charges of bias against Damon Hill, the team shares no such feelings.

Mercedes Press Release :

Brackley/Stuttgart
18 May 2010

2010 MONACO GRAND PRIX

On the final lap of the 2010 Monaco Grand Prix, MERCEDES GP PETRONAS instructed our drivers, Michael Schumacher and Nico Rosberg, to race from safety car line one until the finish line as permitted under articles 40.7 and 40.11.

MERCEDES GP PETRONAS were fully aware of article 40.13 which states that no overtaking is permitted if the race finishes under safety car conditions. However we believed that the combination of the race control messages ‘Safety Car in this lap’ and ‘Track Clear’ and the green flags and lights shown by the marshals after safety car line one  indicated that the race was not finishing under the safety car and all drivers were free to race.

This opinion appears to have been shared by the majority of the teams with cars in the top ten positions who also gave their drivers instructions to race to the finish line.

It was clear from our discussions with the stewards after the race that they understood the reasons for our interpretation and acknowledged that this was a new and previously untested situation but ultimately disagreed with our interpretation.

MERCEDES GP PETRONAS would like to emphasise that we fully support the inclusion of past drivers on the stewards panel and are completely satisfied that the Monaco Grand Prix stewards acted professionally, impartially and properly in this matter.

The FIA has agreed to include article 40.13 on the agenda of the next Sporting Working Group for discussion and to consider the scale of post race penalties. We believe that the 20 second penalty imposed on Michael to be disproportionate in the circumstances.

Whilst we cannot be happy with the outcome, we are pleased that the FIA has recognised the reasons for our interpretation. Therefore in the best interests of the sport, MERCEDES GP PETRONAS will not be submitting an appeal.

Image : Mercedes GP Media

Michael Schumacher might be the most successful driver on Monaco, but from this weekend he would be getting another tag of probably being the most unlucky/controversial driver at the Monaco circuit. Fresh on the heels of the controversy that the British media generated about the 2006 Monaco Grand Prix incident.

In the latest incident Michael Schumacher was punished with a 20 seconds penalty which threw him out of the points for illegally overtaking Fernando Alonso. The point of contention here is if he was allowed to overtake Alonso when the safety car went in. The article 40.13 states :

If the race ends whilst the safety car is deployed it will enter the pit lane at the end of the last lap and the cars will take the chequered flag as normal without overtaking.

But the article should not be valid here as the race monitors said Safety car in this lap.

The rules state if the race ends under the safety car period, the order will remain the same, however Michael Schumacher and Mercedes GP contend that since an all clear was given to race the overtaking move on Fernando Alonso was legal and legitimate.

FIA Stewards José Abed (FIA Vice President), Dr. Christian Calmes (a representative of the Automobile Club de Monaco), Paul Gutjahr  announced the verdict alongwith Damon Hill. The text was :

The appeal went to the stewards where Michael Schumacher’s old foe Damon Hill was the driver’s representative. A large number of press sources are blaming Hill for the verdict. Also British press sources are very happy about the penalty, totally ignoring another incident that happened in the race, Rubens Barrichello after retiring threw his steering wheel onto the track, but no action was taken.

Schumacher in his defence said :

“The message was ‘safety car in, track clear,’ if that’s given then its racing,” said Schumacher.

 

Damon Hill meanwhile defended himself and was quoted as saying :

“Believe me my only concern was that the right thing was done.

“But there was a wry smile from Michael. Slightly ironic you could say.” said Damon Hill

Ross Brawn also came in defence of his driver Schumacher and was able to demonstrate dissimilar endings at Melbourne. He also mentions the marshalls had waved green flags, a symbol for normal racing to resume.

“We believed that the track had gone green and the race was not finishing under a safety car when article 40.13 clearly would have applied,” said Brawn. “The reason for the safety car had been removed, the FIA had announced ‘Safety Car in this lap’ early on lap 78 and the track had been declared clear by race control.

This was further endorsed when the marshals showed green flags and lights after safety car line one. On previous occasions when it has been necessary to complete a race under a safety car, full course yellows are maintained, as in Melbourne 2009.

On the last lap, we therefore advised our drivers that they should race to the line and Michael made his move on Fernando for sixth place. We have appealed the decision of the stewards.”

In a video he explains that at 15:51 – Safety car coming in was flashed

15:52 – Track Clear was flashed

15:53 – Chequered flag

The appeal looks very promising as the race doesn’t appear to have finished under the safety car as track clear was flashed before chequered flag.

The result of the appeal will be announced by the FIA court of appeals and the result of Monaco Grand Prix is at the moment provisional.

1. Fashion Show : Adrian Sutil and Vitantonio Liuzzi started the week with a fashion show, here are some photos from the event :

2. Charity Football : Later on they participated in a charity football match which is a signature of the Monaco Grand Prix, more photos :

3. After that team owner Vijay Mallya took them along on his Yacht Indian Empress (one of the most luxurious Yachts in the world currently in Monaco) :

And here is Vitantonio Liuzzi’s Golden Cash themed helmet which he is using at the Monaco Grand Prix :

We are sure about one thing , The force India F1 team is surely having a ball in Monaco

Lewis Hamilton is eyeing another victory at the Monaco Grand Prix this weekend where he hopes to recreate the magic he had done in the 2008 edition of the race. Ofcourse the former world champion is yet to win a race this season (that’s another matter )

He called the Monaco Race Track the greatest track in formula one.

“I love the Monaco circuit, it’s the greatest track in Formula One,” Lewis Hamilton said.

“My victory here in 2008 is still probably my best win and one of the greatest moments in my career.

“It was an incredible day. It was wet and, looking at the week ahead, the weather also looks extremely unpredictable with heavy rain forecast for much of the week.

“But even if it doesn’t rain on the Sunday, the possibility of heavily disrupted practice and qualifying sessions means that we’ll probably go into the race with a chance of one of the most exciting and unpredictable Monaco races for many years.

“And on top of that, I’ll also be wearing a specially-painted helmet for the occasion. When you see it, you’ll know why I’ll be hoping for it to swing the odds in my favour.” the British Driver added

Ofcourse the thing about the helmet is just media talk, its just that McLaren partners Steinmetz have once again given the team diamonds for the helmet (and steering wheel ?).

The Steinmetz promotions with Kimi Raikkonen the iceman used to be big hits in the past. This year apart from the Diamonds, Lewis Hamilton seems to have a Roulette wheel on his helmet to celebrate the Monaco Grand Prix.

A Closer look at Lewis Hamilton’s New Helmet with the Casino markings :

In the talk about the Red Bulls, the Ferraris, the McLarens and the Mercedes cars, we often forget about the smaller teams who have big plans. 3 years ago people called Vijay Mallya a fool for dreaming up a podium in 2010, not such a big fool now is he ? The big teams are equally arrogant as well, take the Red Bull formula one team for example, they don’t think formula one bloggers need media access and dont even have the courtesy to reply to requests, same is the case with the Virgin F1 team which we don’t even cover due to their attitude.

The Hispania HRT F1 team has the potential to be the next dark horse in the amazingly unpredictable sport of formula one. Under the stable leadership of Collin Kolles the team has the right kind of expertise needed to deliver a competitive car.

The budget is a little shaky and therefore they had to take 2 inexperienced drivers in the form of Brazilian Bruno Senna and Indian Karun Chandhok as both of them seem to have brought sponsors with them.

Anyway, the team was looking forward to another 2 car finish at the Spanish Grand Prix but fate had something else written out for them. Karun lost out on a collision with Alguersuari for which Alguersuari had to face a drive through penalty and Senna just plain crashed on the 4th lap:P

The team now looks forward to a good GP at Monaco, team principal Collin Kolles had this to say :

“I am disappointed that we didn’t finish our home race. It’s a real pity because both drivers had good starts. Bruno Senna had to stop on the opening lap despite a very strong start which moved him up to 17th from 21st on the grid. Karun Chandhok was similarly strong and had a very good pace but retired mid-race after contact with Alguersuari. At least, the performance was much better than in Qualifying yesterday. Now, we look ahead to next weekend and are determined to have a good result in Monaco.”

Karun Chandhok commented:

“I am very disappointed with the outcome of the race. It’s a real shame what happened with Jaime. I stayed out of his way, kept the car completely straight and he just turned left into me. I was really pleased with my race until then. ‎I had a good first lap and was trying to be sensible with the option tyre and get them to last. My pace relative to the other new cars was good and I was pulling away from Di Grassi quite comfortably. In the end, although we changed the front wing, the damage to the front right suspension was too much and I had to stop. It is a disappointing end to a good day for the team.”

So now heading into Monaco which is one of the swankiest formula one grand prix, one wonders what next year would be like ? Would there be no Ferrari and Renault ? Its reported that 7 teams wont be filing by next week’s deadline.

So getting back to the GP, Brawn GP’s Jenson Button is on home turf (technically anyway). He would be poised to claim another win and win the season in record time. Lewis Hamilton is also hopeful of resurgence and is hoping that his McLaren would be able to perform. In an interview he was hopeful for a top 5 finish at this week’s event.

In other news Campos racing has applied for the constructor’s places in the 2010 formula one season. They are one of the first (the first?) teams to do so.

Anyway, this weekend is crucial for the survival and future of formula one. The gut feeling inside me says all will be solved though. Till then, Ciao !

The other is of Adrian Sutil before he crashed, at that time he seems to be in front of a McLaren.

Anyway, it would be better if Mr. Mallya would invite fans to visit the races rather than actresses who wont even know the drivers’s names.

Images Copyright : Force India Media