3 Reasons Nico Hülkenberg’s Move to Sauber Might Be the Right One

Sunday saw the conclusion of the 2012 Formula 1 season, and most eyes were riveted to the exciting battle that saw Sebastian Vettel escape with his third consecutive title by the narrowest of margins over Fernando Alonso. However, the revelation of the race may well have been Nico Hülkenberg, driving in his final race for Force India before moving to Sauber in 2013. Hülkenberg led his first ever race laps and looked to be a strong contender for the maiden win – both for him and Force India – until he collided trying to overtake Lewis Hamilton in turn one as the race wound down, eventually shuffling down to fifth at the checkered flag.

 Many F1 pundits, most notably Speed’s David Hobbs, think Hülkenberg might be taking a step backwards on the F1 grid by voluntarily moving from Force India to Sauber, based primarily on the pace of the respective cars late in the season. Taking a deeper look, however, three points arise that suggest Hülkenberg’s move might be the right one to make.

Sauber finished  6^th in the 2012 Constructors’ Championship, Force India 7^th

For Force India, it was a tale of two seasons, with the first 10 races producing 46 points, the second 10 races delivering 63. Conversely, Sauber broke from the gates well, earning 80 points over the first half, then holding on to its position by scrambling for just 46 points in the second. Hobbs and others look to that trend in questioning Hülkenberg’s decision.

Not so fast.

Sauber produced the best chances to win in 2012, finding itself on the podium in four races – two seconds and two thirds - while Force India’s best finishes were off the podium – two fourths and two fifths. When Sauber is at its best, its best is better than Force India’s, and Hülkenberg is looking to stand on the F1 podium for the first time in his young career. If 2012 is any indication, Sauber affords the best opportunity.

 Hülkenberg responsible for much of Force India’s 2012 success

Force India outperformed Sauber over the second half of the season, but most of that was attributable to Hülkenberg himself, as he regularly outperformed teammate Pal Di Resta, outscoring him in six races, and scoring a total of 44 points to Di Resta’s 19. Comparatively, Sauber’s driver tandem of Kamui Kobayashi and Sergio Pérez scored 27 and 19 points respectively, matching or outpacing Di Resta, even with Pérez seemingly checking out after signing with McLaren for 2013, getting shut out of the points the final six races. So, yes, while Force India outperformed Sauber over the last ten races, Hülkenberg was the driver responsible for the majority of that performance.

Sauber runs Ferrari engines while Force India runs Mercedes

Not for nothing, Sauber powers its chasses with Ferrari engines. This isn’t to suggest the Ferrari power plant provides a competitive advantage over the Mercedes of Force India. Rather, the suggestion is for future driving opportunities. Ferrari’s Felipe Massa was lucky to hold onto his drive for 2013, and if he repeats his disappointing start to the season, driver succession rumors will flying by early summer. If so, Hülkenberg, driving for a Ferrari customer team, will instantly find himself in consideration to fill the seat in the prancing horse of the Scuderia. The road upwards in the Mercedes camp is much more cluttered, with both Mercedes and McLaren both seemingly set for several years.

2013 will tell the story

There you have it – three reasons to suggest that Hülkenberg might have made the proper decision to leave Force India for Sauber. The key word, of course, being “might.” The balance of the 2013 season will tell the story, and it all starts March 17 in Melbourne, Australia. 

Run hot laps on Twitter @RayHartjen

F1 Constructors’ Grade Report – Gearing up for Final Exams

With 80% of the Formula One season in the rear view mirror, the Constructors are gearing up for the stretch run and their final marks for the 2012 season. So, to aid them in their preparations, below are their final mid-term grades before report cards come out.

Red Bull Racing-Renault

A-. Despite leading the standings handily and the heavy favorites to win a third consecutive Constructors’ championship, Red Bull pulls only an A- thus far in a wildly inconsistent – for them – campaign. Red Bull has fought all season to get solid results from both cars during race weekends, and the struggle has paid off the last two races. Look for Red Bull to ...

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Formula One for Dummies: F1 Racing Returns to America

Formula One returns to the United States for the first time since 2007 with the running of the U.S. Grand Prix November 16-18, hosted at the sparkling-new Circuit of the Americas track outside Austin, Texas. The pinnacle of motorsport around the world, F1 is an almost forgotten series in the minds of many American race fans, finding itself lapped, if you will, by NASCAR in popularity and viewership. Even the anemic draw of the IndyCar series outperforms F1 in the states.

 All that’s set to change, with the Austin race joined next year by a new street circuit in New Jersey, right on the banks of the most impressive skyline view of New York City. So, to mark the occasion of F1’s re-emergence in the U.S., here’s a quick lesson in F1 101, or “F1 for Dummies.”

Read the complete post on Yahoo! here. 

Reno Air Races Resume Amid Remembrance

Motorsports and racing are inherently dangerous. Where men and women push the limits of performance in competition, equipment breaks or mistakes are made, and accidents happen, the outcomes of which are sometimes tragic.

No form of motorsport is immune, despite the tremendous efforts of organizers, promoters and sanctioning bodies to emphasize safety, and when tragedy strikes it can be indiscriminate, taking a sport’s biggest stars like Ayrton Senna and Dale Earnhardt, or its promising up-and-comers like ...

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Reno Air Races Test PIlots' Skills Just 50 Off Deck

Stephen Partridge-Hicks, known simply as “SPH,” knows a day flying is a day well spent, his smile when climbing into the cockpit surpassed only by the smile when getting out. However, one week a year, his smiles are bigger and last longer, and it happens each September at the National Championship Air Races in Reno, Nevada. 

A native of the United Kingdom, SPH came about flying the Miss USA Formula One race plane through his friendship with Thom Richard, co-founder of Warbird Adventures in Kissimmee, Florida. “Thom told me how much fun he had racing this plan and that he thought I could race her too,” said Partridge-Hicks, “so I thought I would give it shot.”

(Read the full post on Yahoo! here)

Circus sideshow only adds to IndyCar troubles

Last Sunday, Ryan Hunter-Reay won his first race of the season at the famed Milwaukee Mile, tightening up the championship race, and providing a multitude of possible story lines, including the success of the Michael Andretti -led promotion of the event. Instead, the buzz afterwards focused more on yet another blunder by the governing body of IndyCar.

During the race, IndyCar penalized championship contenderScott Dixon for illegally passing before a re-start, a decision that resulted in dropping Dixon down the field, where he eventually finished 11^th. Unbelievably, a failure in IndyCar’s timing and scoring system led race officials to review the wrong replay of the re-start, a previous effort that was waved off. There hasn’t been such a high-profile error in timing and scoring since Arie Luyendyk had to literally fight for his win at Texas in 1997, and this story only gets worse if it ends up costing Dixon the series championship.

Losing ground to NASCAR and Formula 1 for mindshare of American fans, IndyCar can’t seem to either catch or break or get out of its own way. A quick run-down of hard luck and miscues preceding the Dixon debacle include:

Dirty laundry. Following the relative success of this year’s Indianapolis 500, IndyCar CEO Randy Bernard went public on Twitter revealing an unnamed car owner was trying to get him fired. Unlike the past, today’s IndyCar CEO reports into an independent board of directors and not the car owners. In probably an unnecessary move, Bernard put the question of his job security squarely in the glare of the public and media scrutiny. For a sport that lives by sponsorship, the perception of instability at the top does no favors.

Illegal parts, but a legal win. Justin Wilson won the race at Texas Motor Speedway, a great result for a small team looking to break into the upper echelon of the series. That was the good news. The bad news was the car utilized illegal body parts. IndyCar did the right thing by letting the result stand, following NASCAR’s lead over the years – fans deserve to leave the track knowing who won. The worst news is that IndyCar couldn’t discover the illegal parts until after the weekend was over. The perception of lax scrutiny and inspection only erodes credibility. 

Missing pieces.  Mid-way through the race in Detroit, the red flag flew, not for the accident that claimed James Hinchcliffe, but rather for the cause of Hinchcliffe’s crash – a track surface that deteriorated and came up in unbelievably large chunks, necessitating a long delay for patching. IndyCar took a calculated gamble on the track surface surviving the race weekend, and it lost. One more tick on the wrong side of the ledger.

Grid barely filled at Indy.  Qualifying for the biggest race in the world was largely anticlimactic after the race for the pole, as there simply weren’t enough cars and engines to have attempts by drivers to “bump” into the field. In the glory days of Indy, Bump Day was every bit as exciting as Race Day, as tens of cars made the frantic, last moment dash to get into the field for the richest payday in racing. This year, IndyCar just barely filled the field, and two of the cars – Di Silvestro and Alesi – were blacked flagged on race day for failing to keep adequate pace.

IndyCar brings its show to Iowa this weekend, and desperately needs to put on both a good show and an uneventful show. For a series that is struggling to overcome the loss of media magnet Danica Patrick and the tragic death of popular driver Dan Wheldon, the series just can’t afford another high-profile mistake.  

Race along on Twitter @RayHartjen.

Conor Daly Q & A: An American Racer in Europe

Growing up in Noblesville, Indiana, almost in the shadow of  the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, 20-year old Conor Daly dreamed of following his father Derek, a veteran Formula One and CART driver, as a professional racer. With a win under his belt at the Indy Light race at Long Beach in 2011, Daly set off to Europe where he competes in GP3 for Lotus GP, and where he eyes an opportunity to compete at the pinnacle of motorsport, Formula One. Daly’s win at the sprint race in Barcelona earlier this year thrust him squarely into the spotlight and positioned him well in the Drivers’ Championship, where he currently sits in 5^th place. 

Daly and I recently traded off this quick Q & A via email:

Question:  You have been to victory circle once already this season. Does it come as a relief or does it add pressure in the form of increased expectations?

Conor Daly:  I think it is a massive relief. I have proved I can win over here now and the goal is to keep winning. It was so cool to have the American national anthem playing at a Formula 1 weekend!

Read the full interview here on Yahoo!

Run laps on Twitter @RayHartjen.