Ferrari Unveil New F150 Car: Will It Finally Bring Fernando Alonso Third Title?
Today Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa have become the first drivers to unveil their teams' 2011 Formula 1 car.
It is hoped that the Ferrari F150, (named in homage to 150 years of Italian unification), will be able to make up for the disappointing end to 2010 when Fernando Alonso narrowly missed out on becoming a three-time World Champion.
Now, to relatively untrained eyes like mine, the F150 doesn’t actually look all that different to last year's F10 (F150 images here).
I’m glad to see that the ugly shark fin has disappeared and I think the Italian tricolour on the rear wing looks awesome…but other than that, we’ve just got another beautiful Maranello machine.
The real test for this F150 will come in preseason tests and, of course, in March when the lights go out in Bahrain.
The team also promises a very different looking car when it comes to Bahrain as they plan to add various parts over the preseason tests.
When the team heads to Valencia on Febuary 1st, Alonso will get the first two days of testing followed by a one-day test for Massa.
I think this proves, what we already knew: The car is most likely built to suit Fernando Alonso, and Massa will have to return to his pre-Raikkonen "support role."
Regular readers of mine will know that Fernando is one of my heroes, and will probably not be surprised when I say that I think this is good news for Ferrari’s championship hopes.
Alonso clearly drives a team very well—he always learns the languages of his mechanics and bosses (he speaks English, French, and Italian), and I think his driver feedback is priceless.
The F10 was probably built with Alonso in mind, but the F150 will have been built with Fernando physically there to drive development forward.
Massa on the other hand is a great driver and a thoroughly nice man, but I just think he’s missing that one little thing needed to be a great Champion.
It is an awful shame, but I think Massa’s greatest chance of being F1 champ was lost in 2008.
I don’t want to dismiss Felipe before 2011 even gets under way, of course not!
In fact Massa may be under immense pressure this year but he seems to feel confidence in his team and is hopeful that he will work well with the new car.
Up next we have Renault, Sauber and Lotus in late January, with Red Bull, Mercedes and Toro Rosso following on February 1st.
However, the big news up and down the paddock is that McLaren will be late iin joining the party.
McLaren insists they are taking last year's car to Valencia. The 2011 car is not yet ready and rather than rush it, they want to take their time.
I guess time will tell whether they have made the right decision or not, but to be perfectly frank, we won't really know who has the best car until we’re a couple of races into the season.
As a Ferrari fan, I hope that the F150 delivers, but as a Formula 1 fan, I hope we get a show as great as last year...minus the rubbish finale :)
