San Marino GP this weekend
The fourth race in the 2005
F1 world championship is this weekend in Italy, and it is also
the first Grand Prix back in Europe. The circuit, which is
located 20 miles south-east of Bolgna, is laid out in the
Castellacio Park and was first used in 1950.
Originally 3.118 miles long, it was used
for the occasional non-Championship race, but was very much a
second-string circuit until 1973 when it was refurbished with
the addition of Varianta Bassa and renamed Autodromo Enzo E
Dino Ferrari. Variante Alta was added in 1974, when the length
increased to 3.144 miles and a chicane was added at Aqua
Minerale in time for the first Championship race in 1981, when
the length of a lap became 3.132 miles.
Imola
It is a quick, undulating, circuit with a
series of demanding corners broken by chicanes. Popular with
almost everyone, it was Imola’s misfortune to be the scene
of the fatal accidents to Roland Ratzenberger and Ayrton Senna
in 1994 and these tragedies have made Imola remembered by
everyone. It was lucky not to be dropped this year, as F1 goes
further into Asia, but I fear its life is very limited.
The Ferrari team need a good result this
weekend if Schumi is to pull off another world title, and they
don’t need me or you to remind them of this fact!
Renault, and Alonso in particular, is
riding the crest of the wave, with three wins out of three and
two on the trot to Alonso. McLaren are not far behind, and in
fact de la Rosa set the fastest lap in Dubai, and Raikkonen
was his usual unsmiling self in third place on the podium. The
next team seems to be BMW Williams, but they are still having
a few problems, with Webber’s revs being limited in Dubai,
being the reason he couldn’t hold off de la Rosa. With a
fresh engine this weekend, let’s see what he can do.
I am still in the UK, so keep my seat at
Jamieson’s Irish Pub warm! The race should begin at 7 p.m.
but check with the local TV feed, so you don’t blame me for
missing the start!
Rover falls
over! Phoenix falls into the flames!
The mighty have really fallen this time.
MG, the purveyors of sports cars for the masses, has gone into
receivership in the UK, with a projected loss of 6,000 jobs.
The final blow was the refusal by the
Chinese auto firm Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp. (SAIC) to
take over the failing MG Rover Company. The idea that the last
of Britain’s major carmakers looked such a poor risk that
the Chinese wouldn’t bail them out is almost enough to get
the stiff upper lips quivering. UK’s Trade and Industry
Secretary Patricia Hewitt said, “In the end, SAIC made it
clear that they were not confident about the future solvency
of MG Rover, and therefore there was no reasonable prospect of
a deal.”
Dr.
Iain and his MGB 1971
Really hammering in the nails into the
British coffin, the Chinese said, “We have said a deal would
not be possible until Phoenix Venture Holdings (MG Rover’s
holding company) were able to secure the solvency of MG Rover
for the period of two years and that hasn’t been met,”
affirmed the SAIC spokesman.
MG Rover have really found themselves in a
Catch-22 situation. The British government has refused to give
MG Rover a 100 million pound loan unless SAIC say they will
take them over, but SAIC are saying they don’t want MG Rover
unless it has its financial stability guaranteed for two years
(for which the 100 million pound loan was needed). Something
of a lose-lose situation at present.
Nobody
mourns the MG Metro!
Trying to contain losses, major suppliers to MG Rover have
withheld product until they get paid, so production must
cease. This ensures the fact that Rover the Wonder Puppy will
almost certainly go to the great dog pound in the sky. The
result is countless thousands of jobs lost, with 6,000 direct
employees just being the start. Then there are all the
suppliers, and further on there are the dealers and garages
involved with MG Rover. After all the UK jobs, there are the
overseas companies that were involved with Phoenix, the
company that rose from the ashes, after BMW gave the Brits MG
Rover back, as even they could not see how to turn the dying
carmaker around either.
Autotrivia Quiz
Last week, I asked what GM model was
assembled here in Bangkok in the early 1970s? The answer was
the HQ Holden assembled by Asoke Motors on Soi 21.
So to this week. What was the weight of
Karl Benz’s first vehicle (without driver)?
For the Automania FREE beer this week, be
the first correct answer to email [email protected]
Good luck!
