Marussia drops Glock

Marussia confirmed on Monday, that they have dropped German Timo Glock form the driver line-up for this season´s championship..

The team, narrowly missing out on 10th place in the constructors championship last year, hired Max Chilton to face alongside Glock this season, but a recent German report strongly indicated that a split between the two parties were imminent. The team also said that the decision was mutual with Glock accepting his fate and that they had been looking for a driver with a stronger financial package.

Team boss John Booth:

“Timo has made a very significant contribution to our team over the past three seasons, helping us to develop our package to the point where, for a large proportion of the 2012 season, we were holding 10th place in the constructors’ championship.

“Timo is a fantastic driver and he has been a very popular member of the team. Our team was founded on the principle of benefiting from proven experience whilst also providing opportunities for young emerging talent to progress to the pinnacle of motorsport. Thus far, this philosophy has also been reflected in our commercial model. The ongoing challenges facing the industry mean that we have had to take steps to secure our long-term future.

“Tough economic conditions prevail and the commercial landscape is difficult for everyone, Formula One teams included. We would like to thank Timo for working with us to reach this decision, especially as he had a valid contract, and also for the contribution he has made to our team. We wish him all the best for his future and I would like to congratulate the next team acquiring the services of such a competitive, professional and experienced racer.

“We will provide an update regarding the completion of our driver line-up in due course.”

Vitaly Petrov has been rumoured to be offered the vacant seat at Marussia. He is backed by some serious Russian rubles, and the Russian GP is inaugurated next year.

Only 23 drivers today

Marussia´s German driver Timo Glock will sit out the European Grand Prix in Valencia.

After not being able to participate in Saturday´s qualifying session, due to stomach ache, Timo Glock had further tests done to reveal an intestinal infection. The stewards granted him permission to race, as his final practice time on Saturday morning, was fast enough to put him inside the 107% rule.

Glock will not be replaced for the race by test driver Maria de Villota.

Glock will not qualify in Valencia

Timo Glock will not be participating in the qualifying session Saturday afternoon, Marussia said.

The German Marussia racer has reportedly been suffering from a stomach ache all weekend, and does not feel well enough to take part in the qualifying session, which begins shortly.

It is also uncertain if he will compete in the race at all.

A statement from Marussia reads:

‘Marussia F1 Team driver Timo Glock will not take part in this afternoon’s Qualifying session for tomorrow’s European Grand Prix for health reasons.

Timo has been fighting a stomach bug since Thursday. He felt well enough to take part in yesterday’s Free Practice sessions and had seemed to be improving. This morning, after Free Practice 3, he started to feel unwell again. It is clear that at this time, he is not sufficiently well to take part in a demanding Qualifying session and needs to recuperate further.

Timo and the Team will now seek further medical guidance this afternoon. Until such time as this guidance has been received, no decisions will be reached regarding tomorrow’s race. A further statement will be issued on Sunday morning.’

Spanish Grand Prix preview – Marussia

Everyone agrees that coming to the Circuit de Catalunya is like visiting an old friend, and for Marussia that feeling is equally matched with their expectations for the upgrades the team will bring.

For Timo Glock who´s best result in the Spanish Grand Prix is from 2009, where he finished tenth in the Toyota TF109, the hope is that the updates the team will bring, will make a benchmark for the further development of the car.

“I am looking forward to the Spanish Grand Prix and the start of the European season. After racing overseas for the opening rounds it is great to be back in Europe. The logistics are much easier for the team and the journey is shorter for everyone, so we can get straight down to business. After the tests in Mugello I think we have a good baseline for Barcelona and now we need to see what the new parts we have will bring. I hope they make a difference and we can be a bit closer to the guys in front of us. I am looking forward to the race weekend again.”

Charles Pic:

“Our objective for Spain is to make a step forward and get a little bit closer to the competition. Based on what we have seen at Mugello, I think this is possible. We have a good update and the car feels positive, so if we can make it work at Barcelona, I think we can continue to be strong at the other circuits. As a team we have goals and also on a personal level I want to keep progressing. I feel settled and comfortable with the team and the car, so I now want to keep improving. The Circuit de Catalunya is a track I know well; I have raced here a few times now. I am feeling good about the direction we are heading in and I’m looking forward to the weekend.”

Team principal John Booth agrees with his drivers, that though the upgrades installed at Mugello did show a step forward, the real test will be in Spain.

“The Circuit de Catalunya is a bit like an old glove in that it is a track that we know so well and feel very comfortable with. If a package works well here, then it is a good barometer of how much of a step forward we have made, more so than Mugello, where we saw a clear step forward but at what is a less representative circuit. Barcelona has a bit of everything in terms of circuit characteristics, so it should showcase just how much of an improvement our improvements are, although we are only too aware that the rest of the field has not been standing still over the past few weeks. It feels good to be heading back to Europe.

“We enjoy all the race destinations but those that are pretty much on our doorstep certainly make life easier for the team in logistical terms. With the trucks and motorhome to hand, it feels like we could almost be back at the factory in Banbury when we’re racing. Our start to the season was certainly expeditious but we’ve caught up with ourselves a little now, have a far better understanding of the MR01, and we consolidated our learnings at the test last week. We seem to have developed a good rhythm now and we are on a good trajectory. For that reason I am confident that there is a lot more to come from the car and the drivers this season, so we head to Europe feeling excited and confident. It will also be the first race where we have our F1 team and our junior formulae teams racing on the same asphalt, so we will be keeping a close eye on their progression.

“Our test driver Maria De Villota is also joining us on what is home turf for her, so there is a lot going on this weekend.”

Marussia searching for answers to broken nose

During the second practice session in Shanghai this morning, Timo Glock´s nosecone on his Marussia racer flew off, apparently for no reason. The team is searching for answers to how this could happen.

Halfway through the second session, Glock was suddenly seen going off, with a missing nose cone. Footage didn´t reveal much, other than that the front of the car seemed to simply fall off. Glock was lucky not to crash into the barriers.

“I’m fine,” said Glock, who climbed from the car, grabbing his left hand, which seemed injured in some way. “I had a bit of a problem at the first moment with my left hand – it was just the impact, but it’s fine.”

Timo Glock was, as the rest if us, in the dark as to what exactly happened.

“I don’t know, we have to see the footage, I have no idea. I came down the straight and went straight on. I don’t know when (the front wing) came off, because I just saw it off when I jumped out of the car.”

 

Glock signs long-term deal with Virgin

German racer Timo Glock has signed a long contact with Virgin, the team says on their team website.

Timo Glock have been in Formula One since 2004 as test driver for Jordan, and got his race debut at the Canadian GP, when re replaced Giorgio Pantano. In 2005 he switched to ChampCar, 2006 and 2007 he raced in GP2 and he won the title in his second year. Glock came back to F1 in 2007 as test driver for BMW Sauber and was signed to Toyota in 2008. As the team withdrew, Glock signed with the new entry Virgin, now Marussia Virgin, and he is looking to stay until 2014.

“I am very happy to confirm that Marussia Virgin Racing will be my home for the next few years of my Formula One career,” Glock says. I’m especially pleased to be able to announce this news ahead of my home Grand Prix in Germany today, where my career began. The past 18 months of racing have been quite tough, although this was always to be expected. As a driver I knew I would have to go back a few steps in order to move forward.”

“Now we have tasted the difficult times together I can’t wait to be with the team when we start to enjoy the good times. And I know they are coming. I’ve seen tremendous belief from Marussia and hard work and commitment across the whole team. With the additional steps we have taken – the technical partnership with McLaren and bringing the whole team together – I believe we can achieve our goals together. This year we’ve demonstrated that we know how to build a reliable car, and with the resources we now have we should be able to add to that a high-performing car. After that it’s all about gradual but significant steps forward.”

Andy Webb comments:

“We are delighted to have agreed a new long-term contract with Timo, which represents another significant step in our plans for Marussia Virgin Racing. Timo’s contribution to the team over the past 18 months has been immeasurable and he has certainly lived up to his commitment to help build a team from within. It has been a tough climb at times, and for a driver of his unquestionable record it must have proved frustrating at times. Both he and the team are fortunate to be faced with the opportunities we have now created for ourselves when we are still very much in our infancy.”

““Timo is vastly experienced whilst still bringing youth and great spirit to the team. We are looking forward to seeing what we can do together to extract the maximum from our resources, particularly the promising technical partnership with McLaren. We look forward to continuing the positive relationship we enjoy with Timo.”

Virgin denies driver changes

22 year old Canadian Robert Wickens have been named the most lkely to get a reserve seat at the backmarker team of Marussia Virgin, and even as replacement for Jérôme D´Ambrosio. But that has nothing on it, says Virgin.

Not long ago it was revealed that the sponsors of D´Ambrosio had problems paying what they owed to the team, and now the rookie´s Formula One future suddenly looks threatened. But in the background is Robert Wickens, a 22 year-old GP3 runner-up, backed by Marussia, and seemingly ready to take up the challenge.

Virgin team boss John Booth, says about Wickens:

“He is in our young driver stable but we certainly don’t plan on putting him in a F1 car yet. Robert is concentrating on his Renault series. He is doing a good job in that. We will then take it from there,” Booth said.

At the same time it seems some sort of agreement have been made between the sponsors and Virgin. According to Booth, D´Ambrosio is not in any danger of losing his seat before the season ends.

“Everything is fine with him,” Booth said. “You can never say never because you can end up looking a fool, but, as things stand now, I can’t envisage anything changing with Jerome until the end of the season.”

Personally I don´t se the problem. Sure the sponsors need to fork out the promised cash, but D´Ambrosio is doing a better job than his much more experienced team mate Timo Glock who in my eyes have always been an overrated driver at best. The money is there. Richard Branson and Nicolai Fomenko has millions to spare to put into the team, so stop whinging and find some fast drivers. If D´Ambrosio is faster than Glock and Wickens test for them and is also fast, the decision should be simple.