If Formula One and night race aren't enough to get you to watch next weekend maybe this will help. (Don't mind Alonso at the beginning. He'll be lucky to make it out of Q1 next weekend. Something must be wrong with his money because he sure isn't concentrating on his driving...)

Labels: Formula 1

Here is a video on the modifications our team is making for this race. Pretty funny...

Labels: Formula 1, Fun Stuff

Wow! What a finish! After qualifying in first position, Lewis Hamilton spun in the early laps of the race and seemed to have settled in for a second place finish behind Kimi Raikkonen that would have maintained his first place position in the driver's championship. Then...



What a pass! Lewis went on to take the win with Felipe Massa in second and Nick Heidfeld in third.

--- Or so we thought ---

The FIA has penalized Lewis 25 seconds for the cutting the chicane before passing Kimi. Lewis came out ahead and since you can't gain an advantage by cutting the corner, Lewis let Kimi pass then re-passed him (like he was standing still). It's not his fault Kimi put it in the wall because he can't drive in the rain. :) This is all FIA politics. Things are only illegal if you hurt Ferrari doing them... Lewis finished in third place and remains the championship leader with 5 races to go.

Labels: Formula 1

Lewis and Heikki qualified first and second respectively for today's F1 race at the Hungaroring putting them both in position for a great finish. On the start Felipe Massa's Ferrari jumped into the lead from third on the grid. Our drivers were maintaining second and third place until Lewis got a flat tire and lost a lot of time getting back to the pit lane. Lewis rejoined the field in 10th with enough fuel to finish the race. Through the next cycle of pit stops Lewis moved up to 5th where he would finish the race. With two laps to go the engine in Felipe Massa'a Ferrari gave up allowing Heikki to take the lead and the win. This was Heikki's first F1 win and he became the 100th driver in F1 history to win a grand prix. Massa's failure to finish also allowed Lewis to maintain the lead in the driver's championship. The McLaren Mercedes team also narrowed the gap in the constructor's championship, to first place Ferrari, to just 11 points.

Labels: Formula 1

I know it's off topic because Mercedes isn't involved, but if you love Formula 1 you should really check out Red Bull Air Racing. The races are aired a few months behind when they happen so I avoid the rebbullairrace.com site to prevent spoiling it. They've really stepped up the production value this year so check it out. On Dish Network set your DVR for Fox Sports channel 420 at 6pm et every Sunday. I just watched the second race of the nine race 2008 season so there is plenty left.

Labels: Formula 1

After Lewis Hamilton's commanding win in the rain at the British Grand Prix, he came to this weekend's race in Germany in a three way tie for the Driver's Championship with Ferrai's Felipe Massa and BMW's Robert Kubica. Lewis started on pole with Heikki behind him in third. Lewis had a great start and by the end of the first lap he had opened a 1.8 second gap back to Massa in second place.


Similar to last weeks race where he won by almost a lap over second place, Lewis immediately pulled away from the field until an accident on lap 37 brought out the safety car eliminating his lead. When the pit lane reopened, almost all of the field pitted for tires and fuel to finish the race. Strangely, Lewis didn't pit. This meant that after the safety car pulled in he needed to open up a gap of about 20 seconds so that he could pit and remain in the lead. Lewis couldn't get that done and he rejoined the field after his stop in fifth behind his teammate. Amazingly, Lewis was able to make up a huge amount of time in just 10 laps and retake the lead. With this win Lewis has retaken the championship lead by 4 points over Massa who finished in third!

Labels: Formula 1

At the French Grand Prix at Magny-Cours last weekend Heikki Kovalainen and Lewis Hamilton did a parade lap in the original 1908 Benz Grand Prix car to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the first Mercedes Grand Prix win.

Unfortunately, they couldn't dovetail that with a win this weekend but Heikki did fight throught to finish in 4th. Lewis finished 10th after being held back by a ten grid spot penalty for a pit lane accident in the last race and a drive through penalty for cutting a corner. Hopefully, we'll be able to break this short string of bad luck at the next race at Silverstone!

Labels: Formula 1

Formula One's visit to the streets of Monaco is always a highlight of the season. With the elimination of traction control this year's race was already going to be exciting. Then it started to rain.

McLaren Mercedes drives Lewis Hamilton and Heikki Kovalainen qualified third and fourth behind the Ferraris. Lewis jumped to second off the start. On lap six Lewis clipped a wall and damaged a tire forcing him to pit. Between the rain and accidents Lewis was able to take the lead and open up a 40 second gap. With the race almost over the Safety Car came out eliminating Lewis' lead. After the restart he easily held the lead and opened up a 3 second gap in the next eleven laps before the race was ended by the 2 hour time limit.

Heikki's car failed to get off the line for the formation lap so he had to start from the pit lane. He fought back to finish in eighth.

With this win Lewis Hamilton has taken the lead in the drivers' championship by three points. McLaren Mercedes has moved up to second in the constructors championship just 16 points behind Ferrari.

Labels: Formula 1

On Saturday Heikki Kovalainen and Lewis Hamilton qualified second and third respectively. Cool temperatures in Istanbul during the race weekend made for difficult tire decisions for all of the teams. As a result of this Lewis switched to a less conventional 3 stop strategy. With his lower fuel load he was able to make up most of the time lost in his extra stop to finish second between the Ferraris. This was one of the best races this season. I can't wait for Monaco in two weeks.

Labels: Formula 1

While it wasn't as exciting as the race last week in Melbourne, both of our drivers placed well after being moved back 5 positions at the start for violations during the last session of qualifying. Lewis Hamilton fought back from his 9 place starting position passing 4 cars on the first lap. He suffered another setback when the team had problems with one of his aerodynamic wheel covers during his first stop. In the end, Heikki Kovalainen finished 3rd for his first podium of the year and Lewis stuck with it and brought home 5th. Kimi Raikkonen's (Ferrari) win today wasn't enough to pass up Lewis for the Driver's Championship. Also McLaren Mercedes remains in first place in the Constructor's Championship.

Labels: Formula 1

What a Race! If this is what we can expect for the rest of the 2008 season - hold on! This was the first race without the aid of traction control and it really showed. Between crashes and mechanical failures only 7 of the 22 cars that started the race took the chequered flag.

The McLaren Mercedes Team stayed above all of this and kept one of their cars in the for the lead whole race. Our new driver, Heikki Kovalainen, put on a stunning performance. He led for 8 laps and posted the fastest lap of the race. Lewis Hamilton started on pole and led for 50 laps to take the win by more than 5 seconds. This puts him in the lead for the driver's championship and, combined with Heikki's fifth place finish, puts the Mclaren Mercedes Team well ahead in the constructors championship.

The large number of accidents also gave plenty of air time to the new 2009 SL63 AMG safety car. A Mercedes did lead every lap!

Labels: Formula 1

Labels: Formula 1

Since 1996 Mercedes-Benz and AMG have supplied the official Formula One Safety Car and the 2008 season will continue this great tradition. Mercedes relationship with the world's most popular form of motor racing has provide huge awareness of the stunning combination of luxury and performance that all AMG models provide their owners. Taking over from the CLK63 AMG used in 2006 and 2007, the newly updated SL63 has been modified to take over the 2008 Safety Car duties. In addition the obvious addition of lights and safety equipment this SL has been stripped of it's retractable top mechanism and various panels have been replace with carbon fiber. These changes resulted in almost 500 pounds of weight savings.

Mercedes will also provide new wheels for Formula One's Race Doctor and first responders. Based on the C63 AMG wagon, that we don't get to enjoy in this country, the 2008 Medical Car carries a response team of four and emergency equipment as fast as possible to any accident.

Qualifying for the first Formula One race of the season starts in just 7 days.

Labels: AMG, Formula 1, SL-Class

Rumors hit the net this morning that the team principal of McLaren Mercedes Formula One team, Ron Dennis, has been fired. The teams reasoning for this seems to surround Stepneygate and his handling of the team tensions between Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso. For me the huge role he played in bringing Lewis Hamilton up through the ranks to become one of the greatest rookie drivers in F1 history out weighs all of those issues.

Labels: Formula 1

It was announced yesterday that Ralf Schumacher will be racing for Mercedes this year in our DTM car! As an avid Formula 1 fan, I have watched Ralf race for years in the shadow of his brother, 7-time Formula 1 champion Michael Schumacher, and I am excited to see what he can do in the DTM series! His first race is April 13th at the season opener in Hockenheim. The Schumacher name is always good to have on board and he is certainly an experienced driver. We don't get much coverage of the series here but I can keep up online.

Labels: Formula 1

It looks like Lewis Hamilton will be with our McLaren Mercedes F1 team through 2012. His stunning rookie season earned him a 3800% raise to a $27 million a year. He is a huge asset to the team and really made the 2007 season something to watch. I was worried that a without Michael Shumacher Formula One might lose something, but last year's three way battle for the championship was great. I really wish Lewis wouldn't have parked it in the gravel coming into the pits in China. That would have probably given him the championship and one more record breaking rookie first to go along with his many others he racked up. To review he had the most wins in a debut season at 4, most pole positions in a debut season at 6, most consecutive podiums from debut race at 9, and he's the youngest driver to ever lead the Formula One points championship. Lewis fits great with the Mercedes brand and I can wait for the first race of the 2008 season in Melbourne on March 16th.

Labels: Formula 1

If you watch Formula 1 and/or know who Mika Hakkinen is you will love the end of this commercial that didn't make it to the US.

Labels: Formula 1, Fun Stuff, Videos