Welcome back F1 fans!
After a nice winter break the teams returned to the limelight this week with launches of the first batch of 2009 contenders; the Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro F60, the Panasonic Toyota TF109 and most recently the Vodaphone McLaren Mercedes MP4-24. Four more teams will also showcase their vehicles next week, beginning with Renault on January 19th, 2009.
Technical changes for the 2009 season include a widened and lowered front wing in an attempt to reduce costs of track maintenance as the economic crisis hits hard for many Formula 1 venues. The aim of this change is to reduce costs of grounds keeping by using Formula 1 cars to mow the grass around the track when they veer off track, and to eliminate the necessity to rake out the gravel traps between sessions.
Further changes include the introduction of KERS, which not only gives drivers a momentary boost on-track, but also generates enough charge to shock and instantly kill unwanted rodents around the track within a 10ft radius of the vehicle (yes, that includes the notorious Montreal 'beavers' and Turkish strays...). The increased height of the rear wings also assists in reducing pests of the avian kind, and our sources indicate that several petitions to cancel the introduction of KERS put forward by PETA have already been dismissed.
The season kicks off in Melbourne on March 27th, 2009.
