McLaren and Ferrari Launch
Rival teams launch their new cars just hours apart
Front running Formula One teams McLaren and Ferrari are the first to launch their 2008 cars ahead of what is expected to be an exciting sequel to last year's championship
Bitter rivals from the 2007 Formula One season, Ferrari and McLaren, have both revealed their new 2008 challengers to the waiting public less than twenty four hours apart from each other. However, whilst Ferrari insist that their F2008 is a brand new car, McLaren’s MP4-23 is an evolution of last year’s model, the MP4-22, which was the vehicle at the centre of so much controversy during the 2007 season.
After publicly apologising to the FIA over their part in last year’s spy scandal, McLaren initially announced that there would be no official launch of their new car. A change of heart ensued, however, when the British team decided that after such a tawdry season they needed to give some publicity and positivity back to their sponsors and show their rivals that, despite being excluded from the Constructor’s Championship last year, McLaren might have been down, but they are certainly not out and they have no desire to be beaten again this year.
Their unveiling seems to have been deliberately timed to take the shine from Ferrari, who launched their F2008 on Sunday at the team’s Maranello factory in Modena, Italy. The new car is the second designed under the watchful eye of Aldo Costa, who took over the position of Technical Director from Ross Brawn at the end of 2006. The F2008 might look like its predecessor, the F2007, but Ferrari are adamant that their car is brand new from the ground up.
The F2008 has been built to adhere to new rules for the upcoming season, which include the abolition of Traction Control and other driver aids and the introduction of a standard ECU. These changes in the technical regulations should see a levelling of the playing field as drivers will no longer be able to simply plant the throttle mid-corner and wait for the onboard computers to stop them from crashing. Drivers will now have to take more care with the throttle at the start of the grand prix and through the bends in order to ensure they make their tyres last and it’s expected that old school drivers such as David Coulthard will benefit more from this change in the rules than newer, younger drivers who are more reliant on technology.
Up close, the F2008’s profile is distinctly different from last year’s car with an all new integrated front wing, higher cockpit sides to adhere to new driver protection rules for this year, tapered sidepods and engine cover and a monococque that has been further cut away beneath the drivers’ legs.
In contrast, the new McLaren is simply an evolution of last year’s extremely fast model, despite the controversy that car caused. The MP4-22 has spent most of its existence under a shadow of deceit after it was discovered in 2007 that the team had used Ferrari data to advance the development of their car. The new model was required to be scrutinised by FIA officials before it would be allowed to race and three components of the MP4-23 were brought in to question last month that forced McLaren to publicly admit to – and apologise for – their part in the scandal. The team were also obligated to freeze development on these areas to prevent further disagreement in the coming season.
The new car therefore looks very similar to its older sibling and the team are confident that it will be back at the front, winning races and aiming for its first title since 1999.
Both teams have indicated that their cars will undergo further extensive aerodynamic development before the start of the season in March, although both the F2008 and MP4-23 are expected to get their first public outings on track this week.
Ferrari have retained last year’s ‘dream team’ of world champion Kimi Räikkönen and team mate Felipe Massa for this season, whilst McLaren’s young gun Lewis Hamilton keeps his seat and is partnered by Heikki Kovalainen, who arrives to replace Fernando Alonso.
