FORMULA 1 - 2013

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'Sutil secures Force India seat'

Adrian Sutil will be confirmed as a Force India driver later today, according to reports.

The German tested for the team last week at Barcelona in a bid to secure the team's second race seat alongside Paul di Resta.

Sutil, though, was up against test driver Jules Bianchi for the drive. However, Force India had stated in the past that they would rather the Frenchman remained a third driver for another season.

And it appears that is what will happen.

The team is expected to announce later today that Sutil has beaten Bianchi to their second seat. The Frenchman, though, will stay on with the team in a test driver role.

Sutil last raced in 2011 before being dropped by Force India amidst his legal woes.

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Williams: Upgrades to every race

Mike Coughlan is adamant Williams need to constantly upgrade their FW35 if they want to deliver on their potential.

Last season Williams claimed pole position and the victory at Barcelona, proving that their car had pace. However, for the most part the team failed to turn that pace into points.

This season, the Grove-based team is determined to avoid repeating those mistakes.

"We didn't deliver on our potential last year," Coughlan, Williams' tech director, told Autosport.

"Pastor's driving towards the end of the season was tremendous; people didn't realise the problems he was carrying in the car.

"Every race [in 2013] we'll have something.

"We're trying to do it in a methodical, engineering-biased way, so obviously your aim is always to make sure you are system checking at the factory such that you are able to take developments straight to the circuit.

"When you have got a new car, you aim for the last couple of days in Barcelona to run in Melbourne specification.

"We will then be in Melbourne with a step forward, which you will see at every other race.

"Malaysia is difficult, but we will take an upgrade to every single circuit."

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Hill: Merc will challenge in 2014

Damon Hill admits Mercedes are facing a "tall order" this year, but he expects them to challenge come 2014.

Having finished a distant fifth in the 2012 Constructors' Championship, Mercedes have made a raft of changes as Lewis Hamilton replaced in Michael Schumacher while Nikki Lauda and Totto Wolff joined the management team.

There could be more changes ahead as former McLaren technical director Paddy Lowe is expected to join the team after the current campaign with the media speculating that team principal Ross Brawn could be on his way out.

Despite the uncertainty at Brackley, Hill believes Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes will eventually rise to the top, even if it takes them a season to do so.

"Lewis knows and understands (the current situation). There is no doubting his ability. That is not the question," said Hill.

"The question is the team and the equipment. The engine is good, they know that, so the focus is now on the team, how they operate and how they produce a competitive car.

"There are going to be regulation changes in 2014, so they (the Mercedes board) will want to see some evidence things are going the right way this year.

"But I don't expect them to be challenging for the Championship - I don't think most people would expect them to be challenging for the Championship.

"They've still got to work their way through Red Bull, Ferrari and McLaren, and maybe Lotus, so that is a tall order.

"But in 2014, I don't see why they can't grab an opportunity with the team they are putting together."

Mercedes are well stocked when it comes to technical staff as they also have Bob Bell, Geoff Willis and Aldo Costa on their books, and Hill believes they are trying to make a statement by recruiting someone like Lowe.

"When Nikki took on the chairmanship of the board, and they also brought in Lewis, it was clear they were determined to make changes," he said.

"So it's only natural you will see some changes in personnel to justify the expenditure that Mercedes are making, and to make a statement that those changes are necessary for results to also change.

"Who knows what Ross' role will be. I'm sure he is a valuable asset to Mercedes. It's just how you fiddle those people together to make sure it is a coherent team."

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Maria de Villota cleared to drive again after Marussia F1 crash

Former Formula 1 test driver Maria de Villota has been cleared to get behind the wheel for the first time since losing her right eye in a crash.

The Spanish driver suffered serious head and facial injuries in an accident last July when testing for Marussia for the first time in Cambridgeshire.

"Last week they gave me permission to return to driving," she said.

"The distances I can already calculate quite well and it feels like nothing ever happened."

The 33-year-old, who said she still had headaches and "felt weak", but was "getting on well", returned to Spain shortly after the crash at Duxford Airfield and has spent the last seven months recovering.

"Very busy days take their toll, but I am calm because I know everything is going well," continued the daughter of former F1 driver Emilio de Villota.

"To start with it was difficult just to do day-to-day things. Catching keys in flight or getting a glass of water was a problem, but now things are much better."

And despite her traumatic experience, her passion for the sport is undimmed.

"At the end of the day, my natural habitat is in a car and I am happiest in that environment. I missed it," she added.

"When your life is saved, no-one owes you anything. I don't hold any rancour towards the sport. The only thing I want is for the safety in races and tests to be improved.

"I will collaborate with them on what is currently lacking. Moreover, I feel very grateful to all the teams and drivers who have supported me after the accident."

Witnesses reported that her car "suddenly accelerated" into the back of the support lorry during testing before the British Grand Prix.

It was only the fourth time de Villota had driven a Formula 1 car.

Marussia insisted the car was not at fault for the crash, but a detailed analysis was passed on to the Health and Safety Executive.

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Lotus's Romain Grosjean cannot afford another crash-strewn season

Lotus team principal Eric Boullier says Romain Grosjean "cannot afford" another crash-strewn season.

In his first full F1 season, Grosjean was involved in eight collisions with other cars early in races - one of which led to a one-race ban.

Asked whether this season was Grosjean's last chance, Boullier said: "Well, it's not his last chance.

"But F1 is a tough world and obviously we definitely cannot afford to have another year like last year."

Grosjean was quicker than his former world champion team-mate Kimi Raikkonen in 10 of the 19 qualifying sessions they did together, but the Finn outscored his team-mate 207 points to 96.

Raikkonen finished third in the championship with Grosjean only eighth and had the Frenchman been more consistent, Lotus may have been able to beat McLaren to third place in the constructors' championship, which is their target for this season.

Boullier said he wanted Grosjean "to show us some - let's call it basically - maturity. I prefer him to go for a fourth place than try to be second and crash.

"That would show me someone who understands why he is racing in F1 and what he is racing for."

But he admitted there was some doubt about whether Grosjean would be able to do so.

He said: "Yes, there is a big question mark about his reliability - will he be able to overcome this, to finish races, because in the end we need the points.

"But at the same time you have somebody who has something special and you have to try until you establish he can't do it, or if he can do it."

Lotus took until Christmas to confirm Grosjean's position in the team for 2013 and Boullier says this was because they were trying to establish that the driver realised what had gone wrong with his driving last year.

"We had a full understanding of what was wrong," Boullier said, "but we needed to make sure that he had one, too.

"If you don't have the full understanding of the problem, you cannot fix it."

He added: "We had a very lengthy discussion; three hours I remember. And the only point was to get his knowledge about what was wrong.

"The complexity of the Romain case was it was not [only] because he was over-aggressive. That was one of the reasons why he had a couple of contacts."

Boullier feels the decision by Renault to drop Grosjean at the end of his first half-season in F1 during 2009 has affected the 26-year-old.

"His past experience was a trauma for him and he wanted to show everyone he had his place," he said.

"He is talented enough to be in F1, so he also put some extra unnecessary pressure on himself. There were many other reasons.

"We found out there were maybe three or four reasons which, depending on the scenario, were putting him in the wrong place [on the track].

"Even if he was not directly responsible for the touch, he was in the wrong place anyway.

"So we took time. Some of the reasons were easy to raise and fix, some were a little less easy. It's unreasonable to blame him for this year.

"A lot of champions had [difficult] moments at the start of their career. If he has the profile of a champion, he will fix it and get the best out of himself this year."

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BARCELONA TEST 2: WEBBER PUTS RED BULL IN THE SUNSHINE & FORCE INDIA ANNOUNCE ADRIAN SUTIL:

Mark Webber made the most of today’s short dry spell to head the field on the first day of the final test in Barcelona, as Force India opted for Adrian Sutil to fill their second race seat.

Sutil, who has not raced since 2011, was re-appointed as Paul Di Resta’s team mate at midday following a lot of talk regarding the employment in recent days. The move means that Jules Bianchi is to stay in the Reserve Driver role, where he will also continue his work with Ferrari as part of their Ferrari Driver Academy. Di Resta was in the car today.

Elsewhere, for Webber and Red Bull today offered an opportunity to show their real pace for the first time in testing, topping the times for the first time this year. After spending the majority of the day on the intermediate and wet tyres, the final hour of the day allowed for dry running.

Webber completed a number of short runs on the medium tyre, putting himself over a second clear of the field at that point. And when those behind began to close, Webber used a set of the soft tyres in the dying minutes to end the day almost two seconds ahead of his closest challenger.

That spot was filled by Lewis Hamilton, the Mercedes driver having another productive day in which he lapped more than anyone.

Incidentally, he went quickest during the gloomy conditions of this morning, where a brief respite in the rain allowed for a stint on the intermediate tyre before heavy rain returned before midday.

After lunch and with the rain easing, Felipe Massa was first to switch to the medium tyre with just over an hour left of the day as he came to the end of a race simulation. Setting the timing screens alight with purple, he lowered the best time by over five seconds and prompted the rest of the field to follow suit. As expected the times fell quickly with many teams seeing it as a good opportunity to conduct some short runs on the medium tyre.

Massa, on his penultimate day of pre-season testing, completed the 112 laps during a productive day. However, his car came to halt in the final minutes of the day, most likely due to a shortage of fuel at the end of his race simulation. He eventually ended the day in eighth place as the rest of the field set out on slick runs.

According to Gazzetta dello Sport, the Ferrari will appear in definitive Melbourne specification on Saturday and Sunday.

Behind Webber and Hamilton in third was Jean-Eric Vergne in the Toro Rosso. He set his time using the medium tyre on a single lap run, presumably on low fuel. He ended the day just ahead of Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez, who interestingly both use the super-soft compound today. They set their fastest times on these tyres, but were unable to challenge Webber at the top.

Lotus’ recent reliability woes continued with a hydraulics issue disrupting much of their afternoon. Romain Grosjean also beached the car in the gravel during the morning session, which resulted in the loss of an hour of running.

More bad weather is forecast for Friday. So Saturday and Sunday should be like a race weekend, with teams doing qualifying and race simulations with their Melbourne specification parts.

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Ferrari: The team went through a race simulation procedure

Scuderia Ferrari today began work at the third test session of the year, once again at the Catalunya Circuit, with Felipe Massa at the wheel of the F138. In terms of the weather, the signs were not promising in the morning, but a gradual improvement throughout the day meant the team was able to continue with preparing for the start of the season.

In the morning, in intermittent rain, Felipe ran wet weather tyres, alternating between aerodynamic tests and evaluating set-up changes on the car.

In the afternoon, the team went through a race simulation procedure, doing long runs and some pit stops, starting on intermediate tyres and switching to dry weather ones as the track conditions improved.

Testing continues at this circuit tomorrow, with Fernando Alonso driving.

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Lotus: Our lap time was very far from what we’d expect

Romain Grosjean returned to the Circuit de Catalunya for another day of testing in cold and wet conditions in Barcelona. The team ran through a programme of assessments and correlations, including work on the DDRS Device.

With the unfavourable track conditions, only short aerodynamic runs were conducted in the afternoon.

Fast Facts:

• Track: Barcelona, Spain, 5.9km
  
• Chassis: E21-02
  
• Weather: Cloudy, frequent showers, ambient 8-10°C, track 8-12°C
  
• Programme: System checks, temperature monitoring, data correlation, assessment of the performance of the car with its initial aerodynamic package, DDRS Device correlation
  
• Laps Completed: 52
  
• Classification: P11, 1:34.928
  
• Interruptions: Red flags
  

What’s Next? Romain returns to the E21 for his final day of pre-season testing tomorrow.

Romain Grosjean: “Another day with bad weather in Barcelona is not what I wanted, but there’s nothing you can do about it. It was a bit of a frustrating day as we concentrated on aero runs and never went for a time on the drying track surface. The car feels good on both the intermediate and wet tyres and we’ve run through more of our pre-season test programme so those are positives. You never want to see yourself at the bottom of the timing screens, so hopefully that’s the only time it happens this season. We certainly know there’s more pace in the car than we saw today!”

Alan Permane, Trackside Operations Director: “Given the weather, this morning’s session concentrated on running assessments between the wet and intermediate tyres and we’re getting a much better idea of Pirelli’s 2013 wet tyres. In the afternoon we concentrated on assessing our rear wing DDRS Device. These conditions aren’t great as it’s difficult to run comparison tests with an ever changing track surface. Nevertheless, we’ve clocked up more laps on the E21, tried different settings and conducted numerous aero-runs. This meant that our lap time today was very far from what we’d expect had we conducted a more normal test programme.”

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McLaren: With 100 laps under his belt, it was a positive first day

Overnight heavy rain and constant drizzle throughout the morning meant it was a slow start to the final pre-season test of 2013.

Today was Sergio Perez’s penultimate day in the MP4-28 before Melbourne, and the wet weather prompted the team to undertake a more conservative run programme.

Checo conducted some aero mapping in the morning before the team chose to focus on developing a stable set-up on the Intermediate tyre and putting some solid mileage on our 2013 package. With 100 laps under his belt, it was a positive first day.

What’s next? With more wet weather predicted for tomorrow, Jenson’s programme is expected to be a continuation of today’s. Drier conditions are forecast for Saturday and Sunday – a benefit to the team as it brings together all the elements that constitute the aerodynamic package that it runs in Australia next month.

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Marussia: We have been able to make good progress

The Marussia F1 Team embarked on its third and final pre-season test with the new MR02 race car with the first day of a four day programme at the Circuit De Catalunya in Barcelona.

Max Chilton was back in the MR02 working through a mainly wet weather oriented programme by virtue of the conditions at the Circuit de Catalunya. Later in the day, when the track had dried, he was able to progress into a dry tyre programme where the first of the components of the new aero package was put through its paces.

Max Chilton: “Despite the rain we have been able to make good progress today, as experience of the range of wet weather scenarios is important for me and the Team. While on the one hand it’s a frustration because we need to start work with the new aero package, on the other hand we wouldn’t have wanted to be heading into the races without having done some work with wet set-ups and the range of tyres in variable conditions. When the track was drying later on in the day we were able to gather some data with the new front wing and the first indications are that this looks to be a positive step. I am also pleased to end the day in P9 and ahead of the Caterham again.”

John Booth, Team Principal, Marussia F1 Team: “Max has had another very good day learning about the three types of tyres in wet conditions. We would have liked more dry running to help us assess our aero upgrade, but it looks like we will have to wait till the last two days for the detailed focus that requires. We did achieve minimal running on dry tyres on a damp track, when we tried our new front wing. This was a less than perfect situation in which to evaluate it, however the feedback we did get was in line with expectations. It looks like it will be wet again tomorrow but we will keep looking to take advantage of any dry running opportunities and try to get more elements of the upgrade tested.”

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Sauber: Another positive day with a lot of laps

Together with all the other teams, the Sauber F1 Team resumed testing today at the final pre-season test. Intermittent rain during most of the day made things difficult for both engineers and drivers. Esteban used most of the time to gain experience with the intermediate and full wet tyres. Towards the end of the session the track was drying, and he so he was able to use dry tyres. He completed a total of 92 laps.

• Circuit: Circuit de Catalunya, 4.655 km
  
• Driver: Esteban Gutiérrez
  
• Weather: air 8-10°C, track 9 -12°C
  
• Chassis/engine: C32-2/Ferrari 056
  
• Laps today: 92
  
• Fastest lap: 1:26.574
  

Tom McCullough, Head of Track Engineering : “Until late afternoon the running was affected by intermittent rain showers. Once again our main aim was to make the most of Esteban gaining experience in these difficult and changeable conditions. As the track dried out we started our preparation for the Race Simulation that we are planning for day three when Esteban is back in the car. Hopefully his final test day before the Melbourne GP will be dry as forecast.”

Esteban Gutiérrez: “It was another positive day with a lot of laps. Unfortunately the weather changed constantly. It was important for us to work with the intermediate tyres, which seem to be the most difficult ones for us. We had to change quite a lot of things to make them work better. Personally for me it was again a good day, because I was able to gain more experience and get myself up to speed in very tricky conditions.“

What comes next: Tomorrow, Nico Hülkenberg will be at the wheel of the Sauber C32.

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Mercedes: Good to work through the race simulation

Lewis Hamilton completed 113 laps today during testing at the Circuit de Catalunya in Barcelona, with conditions varying from heavy rain showers to a dry circuit for the late afternoon.

• Lewis completed a total of 526 km over the course of the day, the highest of any driver
  
• The morning programme focused on tyre evaluations in the wet conditions, mainly on intermediate tyres
  
• Lewis also completed race weekend procedure practice when useful running was not possible
  
• This afternoon, Lewis completed a wet to dry race simulation on intermediate and then medium compound tyres
  
• Lewis has now completed 2040 km over five days of winter testing, equivalent to nearly seven Grand Prix distances
  
• Nico Rosberg will drive for the second day of the test tomorrow.
  

Lewis Hamilton: The track started out really wet this morning but thankfully the conditions dried out later on and we were able to complete some proper running. It felt good to work through the race simulation this afternoon; both to get myself back in practice and to put valuable miles on the car. All the guys have done a fantastic job both here and at the factory. I’m really happy that we’re making progress together and very much enjoying working with everyone. The last couple of days of pre-season testing are always really exciting when everyone starts to add their upgrades so I’m looking forward to the weekend.

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Williams: We were able to get some useful tyre data

Williams report on the first day of the final week of preseason Formula 1 testing from Circuit de Catalunya in Barcelona.

Mike Coughlan, Technical Director: The conditions today made it difficult for us to complete our planned programme, but we were able to get some useful tyre data. It was good mileage for Valtteri, as he was able to try a mix of tyres running from the wet, onto the intermediate and finally onto dry tyres this afternoon. It’s a good grounding for him and he brought the car home safely despite the tricky track conditions. The FW35 has now completed another 85 laps without any issues.

Valtteri Bottas: It was a good day overall and we had no problems with the car. It’s a shame we were disrupted a bit by the wet weather, although this did allow us to run on the wet, intermediate and dry tyres. I clocked up a lot of mileage for myself and was able to get more experience driving in difficult conditions. It was cold, wet and windy all day, and particularly slippery on track this morning.

The Williams F1 Team will be back on track tomorrow, Friday 1 March, with Pastor Maldonado driving the FW35 for the second day of the test.

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Sutil: I’m delighted to be back in F1 with a team I know so well

Adrian Sutil sealed his Formula One comeback on Thursday with Force India announcing they had given the 30-year-old German racer a second chance as team mate to Britain’s Paul Di Resta this season.

The Silverstone-based team said in a long-awaited statement that they had re-signed the driver dropped at the end of 2011 to make way for compatriot Nico Hulkenberg, who has since moved on to Sauber.

The season starts in Australia on March 17 and Sutil’s appointment fills the last remaining vacancy on the starting grid.

“I’m delighted to be back in Formula One, especially with a team I know so well,” Sutil said in a statement issued by the team. “I’m very happy and I want to thank Sahara Force India for giving me a second chance.

“Having been away from the sport, I’m even more determined to achieve my goals in Formula One. Things went really well at the Barcelona test last week and it almost feels as though I’ve never been away.”

The announcement came as no surprise after Nicolas Todt, manager to Sutil’s rival for the seat Jules Bianchi, told Reuters on Wednesday he had been told by the team that the Frenchman had lost out.

Second chances are rare in Formula One but money has always talked and it was no secret that commercial considerations played a part in Sutil’s return.

If an unadventurous choice for some, Sutil will be a known quantity for the mid-grid team – despite last week’s Barcelona test being his first time in a Formula One car in more than a year – after racing for them from 2007 to 2011.

He and Di Resta were also team mates in 2011, when Sutil scored more points and finished ninth overall. The German’s best result was fourth in the 2009 Italian Grand Prix, where he started on the front row.

“The decision over our driver line-up has not been an easy one and we have given it great consideration over the last few months,” said team co-owner Vijay Mallya.

“It was a close call, but ultimately we felt that Adrian’s experience and historic links to the team gave him the edge, and will provide us with the best possible chance of realising our ambitions for the coming season.

“If he can rediscover the exceptional form he showed in the second half of 2011, I’m confident that we can pick up where we left off at the end of 2012,” added the Indian drinks tycoon.

Mallya said Bianchi, who is a Ferrari academy driver as well as being last year’s Force India reserve, had impressed the team and they hoped to continue working with him to help him to get a future race seat.

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Lotus: We debuted a new rear suspension variatio

Romain Grosjean finished his pre-season preparations as the fastest man on track at the Circuit de Catalunya today, with weather conditions continuing to frustrate the team’s test programme.

In a day book-ended by rain, an extensive programme was nevertheless completed; including the evaluation of a new rear suspension set-up. As well as being the fastest driver on track, Romain accumulated the third greatest lap tally of the day.

Fast Facts:

• Track: Barcelona, Spain, 5.9km
  
• Chassis: E21-02
  
• Weather: Cloudy, bookending showers, ambient 8-11°C, track 8-13°C
  
• Programme: System checks, temperature monitoring, data correlation, assessment of the performance of the car with its initial aerodynamic package, new rear suspension set-up evaluation
  
• Laps Completed: 88
  
• Classification: P1, 1:22.716
  
• Interruptions: Red flags
  
• What’s Next?
  

Kimi will drive the E21 for the final two days of pre-season testing, starting tomorrow.

Romain Grosjean: “Even though the weather was far from ideal it was a pretty good day for us and it’s certainly a better feeling to end the session with the fastest time on the board rather than the slowest! We had strong reliability again today and the E21 feels good in all conditions, which is very promising for the season ahead. Of course, I wish I could have more time in the car before the season starts, but if we’re in the same position on the monitors when we get to Australia I’ll be very happy indeed.”

Alan Permane, Trackside Operations Director: “Today was far more productive than yesterday. We debuted a new rear suspension variation, working on initial set-up in the wet conditions this morning, then switched to dry tyres in the afternoon to gather further data on the medium and soft 2013 Pirelli compounds. Whilst circuit conditions are not as favourable as last week due to the recent rain, we were still able to show good pace and our initial findings from the new rear suspension are promising. Over the next two days we will be working on the updates we have for the E21; there’s plenty of work left to do and we’re hoping that the forecasts for better weather over the weekend are correct.”

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Bianchi confirmed by Marussia as all 2013 F1 seats now taken

The Marussia F1 Team has appointed 23 year old Frenchman Jules Bianchi to a race seat for the 2013 season, and the Frenchman will participate in the remaining two days of the final pre-season test in Barcelona this week to acquaint himself with the MR02 race car ready for the start of the 2013 season in Australia in two weeks’ time.

The move follows the Team’s termination of Luiz Razia’s contract.

John Booth, Team Principal, Marussia F1 Team: “We are very pleased to welcome Jules Bianchi to the Marussia F1 Team. Jules is a proven talent who is highly regarded within the Paddock. He has been on a clear trajectory towards Formula 1 and has achieved some impressive performances through the various feeder formulae, notably his 2012 season in Formula Renault 3.5 when he was also Reserve Driver for Force India. He is part of the Ferrari Driver Academy and his obvious pedigree put him on the radar for a number of teams over the winter as a driver ready to step up to Formula 1.

“We have found ourselves in a situation where we have had to terminate our contract with Luiz Razia. Having made clear the basis on which we must operate in 2013, and given the steps we had taken to put that new structure in place, we had no alternative but to remain true to the principles which we had identified as being key to securing our long-term future.

“We can now focus on the remainder of the testing programme and preparing for what looks to be a promising season for our Team. Jules can now look forward to a very swift initiation into the Team over the course of the next two days here in Barcelona, when he is expected to run for one and a half days to afford both our drivers some dry running with the latest aero specification.”

Jules Bianchi: “I am thrilled to have secured a race seat with the Marussia F1 Team. Racing in Formula 1 this season has been my goal over the winter and after evaluating a number of options I am very excited to have this opportunity to demonstrate that I am ready for this next step in my racing career. I am also very grateful to the Ferrari Driver Academy that has always supported me and has given me the possibility to mature as a racing driver enabling me to be fully prepared for this new exciting challenge. The next two weeks of preparation for the season will be incredibly busy but I am ready to get started tomorrow with my first day in the MR02.”

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Hamilton says driver focus better at Mercedes than McLaren

Mercedes is better than McLaren at putting “the focus on the driver”, Lewis Hamilton has claimed after moving teams for the first time after six years in formula one.

It is believed one of the reasons the 2008 world champion decided to leave McLaren is because Mercedes was offering a lighter deal in terms of the team’s non-driving expectations.

“We still have sponsors, sponsors’ appearances and filming days,” he told reporters at the final Barcelona test on Thursday.

“There is not a huge difference. (Just that) the focus is on the driver, the driver’s performance, the driver being ready for the job at hand.

“That’s one thing I’m noticing is a little bit better here,” added Hamilton.

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Rossi and Ma get reserve roles

Alexander Rossi and Ma Qing Hua will get some valuable mileage under their belts this season after being named Caterham's reserve drivers.

The duo will act as back-ups to Charles Pic and Giedo van der Garde and will get plenty of driving time during practice seasons.

American Rossi fulfilled the role last season as well and had a taste of the action at the Spanish Grand Prix and the Young Driver Test.

He is set to get more opportunities this year with the team confirming he will take part "in a number" of Friday sessions.

Team principal Cyril Abiteboul said: "Alexander continues his development with us into 2013 and his promotion is a reflection of the investment we are making in him for the future.

"As reserve drivers, both Alexander and Ma will attend every race with us and will be driving in a number of FP1 sessions to continue their development.

"One of the main challenges facing young drivers moving up to F1 is the sheer number of people they have to interact with compared to any other level of their motorsport career. They go from a small number in Formula Renault 3.5 to more than 15 in F1, across engineering, performance, reliability, engine, KERS, strategy, communications and marketing. The programme we have devised for Alexander and Ma will allow them to immerse themselves completely in the F1 environment throughout 2013, preparing them for the day when they take the next step up to the ultimate level."

He added: "I'm very pleased to welcome Ma into our team. Ma joins us with previous F1 experience from 2012, and will play a key role in helping our GP2 team achieve their 2013 goals.

"We are looking forward to helping him develop his talents, both in the F1 and GP2 environments, and giving Chinese fans a figurehead to support on track throughout the year ahead."

Rossi said: "After many discussions this winter with Caterham regarding my 2013 program, today's announcement brings me even closer to my goal of racing in F1.

"My goals from the Friday practice sessions that I will drive this season is to fulfil the team's runplan for each session, work closely with everyone and learn as much as possible, always being ready for the next opportunity."

Chinese driver Ma will also be racing with Caterham's GP2 team in 2013.

"I am very excited about joining the Caterham family," he said.

"Both teams have everything they need to keep growing in the right direction and I am looking forward to playing an important role in helping them achieve what they've set out to this year.

"I know the fans at home will be really excited to see me race in GP2 and with the F1 work I also have ahead of me, China can be proud that it continues to have a driver involved in motor racing at the very highest level."

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Hamilton: No reason to be impressed

Lewis Hamilton has downplayed his blistering pace from Barcelona on Saturday insisting it is not indicative of things to come.

Arriving at the Circuit de Catalunya on Saturday, the best time so far this year was a 1:21.848 which had been set by McLaren's Sergio Perez last Wednesday.

Hamilton, though, blitzed his replacement's time on Saturday.

Putting in a five-lap run on the soft Pirelli tyres, the Mercedes driver clocked a 1:20.558.

The Brit, however, told James Allen On F1 that "there is no reason to be impressed.

"We came through all the tests and all the programmes we wanted to do and obviously our upgrade has been a positive, it was a small step forward for us.

"This is a good track to test on and give you a rough idea; if your car is good here then it should be good anywhere.

"If you look at the (Mercedes) car last year it was quick in Monaco so it should be competitive on the street circuits. When it comes to the downforce circuits it could be quite tough there."

He added: "The most important thing is that single lap pace can be easily achieved, it's long run pace that is the tough one."

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Webber hindered by 'small things'

Mark Webber admits his final day of pre-season testing was blighted by "lots of small things" that cost him track time.

The Aussie was in action on Day Three at the Circuit de Catalunya but while Red Bull will remain at the track for a further day, Webber will hand the RB9 over to his team-mate Sebastian Vettel.

As such Saturday was Webber's last in the car before heading to Melbourne for the season-opening Australian Grand Prix.

The day, though, did not go according to plan as he completed just 59 laps and finished over two seconds off the pace.

"I'd have liked to have been out there so there was problems with the car, yeah," Webber told ESPNF1.

"Just lots of small things which stopped me from running.

"You need to make sure everything's right; there's no point running when the thing's not in the window if you like, so we had to wait a little bit longer than we would have liked."

But despite not getting the laps he wanted, Webber reckons Red Bull's pre-season has gone "pretty well.

"It's always hard to know who's doing what at this time of year but we're focusing of course on ourselves and working hard on that.

"There's too much media and not enough racing at the moment so we need to just get down to Melbourne and stop talking about it and just get on with it.

"We've got work to do; there are still for sure some weaknesses to iron out and keep the strengths."

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Sutil: Kimi's the best example

Adrian Sutil says Kimi Raikkonen is a good example of what drivers can strive to achieve when they return to Formula One.

After a year away from the sport, Sutil will be back on this year's grid after signing a deal with former team Force India.

Confirmed on Thursday, the German was in action on Friday, putting in 62 laps at a rain-hit Circuit de Catalunya where he was 1.5s off the pace.

Asked if he expected he would need a period of adjustment, he told Sky Sports F1: "I don't think about problems, I look forward to the first races.

"I'm a positive person, not a negative person. If I only look on the problems and difficulties I get myself into a real problem.

"So I'm confident and just one year out of racing... I take Kimi as the best example. He was the most consistent driver in the whole field last year and had two years of break [from F1]."

In fact the 30-year-old, who also spent a day in the car last week when he was still up against Jules Bianchi for the Force India drive, reckons both himself and the team are ready to go racing.

"You can have more days and you're just feeling more comfortable, but our car is quite easy to drive so I feel quite comfortable already.

"You can always have more test days but sometimes you're just driving around, and I like racing and not so keen on testing the whole time.

"Sometimes you get lost a little bit in all these different settings and I think we had enough and can go from Australia and see where it goes.

"It's a long season and we can develop our car anyway throughout the season, so we have to be strong on that time."

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Raikkonen sidelined with illness

Kimi Raikkonen has been forced out of Saturday's running at Barcelona due to suspected food poisoning.

The Finn was scheduled to run on the final two days of the last pre-season test, however, fell ill early Saturday morning.

That left the team without a race driver at the start of play as Romain Grosjean had returned home on Friday night at the conclusion of his two days.

It was therefore left to test driver Davide Valsecchi to take the driving duties on Saturday morning.

Grosjean, though, is reportedly on his way back to the track where the team hopes he will be in action this afternoon.

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Alonso: 200 times better

Fernando Alonso believes Ferrari are in much better shape this pre-season than they were last, saying the team is "confident" ahead of the new campaign.

This time last year Ferrari were in the back foot as the Italian stable struggled during winter testing and carried that poor form through into the season-opening Australian GP.

This year, though, Alonso says it is very different at their new 2013 car, the F138, has proven to be both quick and reliable.

"Obviously the conditions were a little bit strange, so it's very difficult to compare with last week or last year," said the Spaniard, who was in action a wet Circuit de Catalunya on Friday.

"Probably the confidence that we have now is much more than we had last year at this time.

"In the last test last year we more or less knew that we were around two seconds behind the leaders. We predicted we wouldn't be in Q3 in Australia, and it was true.

"This time is different. We are much more confident.

"The target was to reduce the gap we had in Brazil, which was seven or eight tenths, and I hope we have reduced that gap and that we arrive in Australia in a bit better shape than in Brazil, which means 200 times better than last year."

Asked if this F138 is the car with which he could end Sebastian Vettel's reign as World Champion, Alonso said: "I didn't see any reasons to not think so because last year it was a very difficult winter, we were completely lost, we had some races with the exhaust I remember ... and we didn't know what the car was doing. We didn't understand what was going on in the wind tunnel and on the track, and with that car we fought for the World Championship until Brazil.

"So we have now a car that is responding well to what we change on the car. We have a car that is doing what we expected the car to do. We know that maybe we are not the quickest still, but the starting point and the potential of this car is there.

"We can touch it now. Last year it was a dream to make that car work. This year to make this car work it will be much more easy, that's for sure."

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'Grosjean can become World Champion'

Eric Boullier is adamant Romain Grosjean has the "talent" and the "speed" needed to win a Formula One World title.

To many outsiders the Frenchman did not appear to be Championship material last season when his erratic driving and first lap stunts resulted in a one-race ban.

However, when Grosjean wasn't crash, he did show some speed, netting three podium finishes on his way to eighth in the Championship.

"I believe Romain can become World Champion," Boullier told The Guardian.

"That's why we kept him. Because we believe he's got the talent. He's definitely got the speed.

"The new Romain is a very different to the one three months ago. He's much more focused. He's not wasting any energy, any time on the useless things F1 can create.

"He is also one of the few drivers who has won every Championship he has entered. Lewis Hamilton achieved it, and so did Nico Hülkenberg. But Vettel has not. I'm sorry."

Boullier added that he believes Grosjean's erratic 2012 season was not due to a lack of talent. Rather, he says, it was because he was trying to hard after the disappointment of getting the axe in 2009 when Renault brought him in half way through the season.

"Last year he tried too hard. He wanted to show everyone that that was a mistake," said the team boss.

"But there were other reasons too. He didn't manage his time away from the track well. There were too many distractions. Even his marriage was a distraction.

"But now he's different. And he's proved he can win races and win Championships. So why not the Formula One World Championship?"

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Williams - On the comeback trail

Twelve months ago things were very different. Williams, once the sport's standard bearers and with 16 world championships and 114 race wins to its name, appeared to be in terminal decline. It had gone close to eight years without a win, and the 2011 season just passed had been awful. Its best finish was ninth place and, even in the modern age of generous scoring systems, had accrued but five points. It was all rather too much like Tyrrell had been once upon a time.

Well, as we know, a year is a very long time in F1. Managing declines, or being asleep at the wheel, is not the Williams way, and the team following a reshuffle of staff and revision of its organisation bounced back in 2012. It claimed 76 points, rather dwarfing the 2011 total, and what do you know it even managed to win a race for the first time in way too long, Pastor Maldonado's tour de force at Barcelona taking the honours.

As intimated this did not happen by chance. Following technical director Sam Michael and head of aero Jon Tomlinson handing in their notices shortly into the 2011 season in came Mike Coughlan as technical director, Mark Gillan as chief operations engineer and Jason Somerville as head of aero. And it wasn't simply a matter of changing the names on the office doors; there was root and branch reform of how the team did things. Before, while the team had good facilities in many areas, it seemed that Williams had not adapted to the demands of modern F1, with around 20 races a season most of which are outside Europe, and severe testing restrictions. There was a lack of control at the factory (it's not for nothing that Coughlan's role was factory-based largely in the early days) and the factory tail was wagging the race team dog, taking a scatter gun approach to producing new parts for the race team to use up its Friday practice running and also burden to it operationally, without much coherence or broad understanding of what the car needed. And the benefits of all this change transferred all the way to the lap times, and ensured a decisive Williams stride back in the right direction.

If anything though there was some sense afterwards that 2012 could have delivered even more. In terms of car performance the Williams FW34 deserved to be at least one place (possibly more) higher than the eighth place the team ended up in the constructors' table. To some extent this was because the car was a bit inconsistent; rather sensitive to things like rubber debris. But mainly a lot of points were lost via the performances of the drivers. Pastor Maldonado was devastatingly quick, but prone to lapses which compromised results. Bruno Senna was safer, but lacked Maldonado's pace especially on a qualifying lap, which meant that points and the larger hauls of them were often out of his reach.

And the team shows every sign that 2013 will contain continued progress for it. Many have feared the worst both at the team's late car launch (only Williams didn't have its 2013 car at the first pre-season test) as well as at the number of senior personnel who have left Williams over the last 12 months (Adam Parr and then Toto Wolff on the management side, Mark Gillan on the technical side), but the indications are that these will not hold the team back unduly. First of all, while Gillan made a big difference to the team when he arrived, the feeling grew as last season progressed that his presence was becoming obsolete. There still seems to be a Parr/Wolff shaped hole in the management just below Sir Frank Williams, but that will be filled in time presumably. And more importantly the FW35 when it did launch had the look of a car that has made solid progress since last year. Many design details have been attended to, the car's rear end somehow looks even smaller than before, and the car features the innovation of 'blown wheel nuts' which channel air through the brake ducts (and unlike a similar Red Bull system from last season, they appear to be within the rules). And the machine showed no sign of suffering from its later introduction, running quickly and reliably in Barcelona testing. Many in the team sound confident of a step up. And in an age where many driver selections are based primarily on balancing of the books, the Grove team has taken a financial hit in replacing Bruno Senna with the highly promising talent of Valtteri Bottas - this can be interpreted as a statement of intent. Williams being the leaders of the midfield pack in 2013 doesn't seem at all fanciful.

So, grand old Williams is not the new Tyrrell after all. And that is something for us all to be thankful for.

Pastor Maldonado - Car #16

It's fair to say that no driver in modern F1 polarises opinion quite like Pastor Maldonado. To some he is a rock ape, an on-track danger to others and himself, and only in the sport because of the PDVSA pot of gold he brings with him (which many quote as being worth £30m annually).

And while it's undeniable that Pastor provides his detractors with plenty of ammunition, such a view is probably at the extreme end of the harshness scale. He is after all extremely quick, particularly on a qualifying lap, as he demonstrated last year by qualifying his car in the top three on no fewer than five separate occasions. And in ideal circumstances he can perform as well as anyone in the sport, as he showed in his flawless drive to victory in Barcelona last campaign. He also, less widely reported, has a rare touch on the gumball Pirelli tyres and ability to get them to last for longer. In a lot of ways he should be perfect for modern day F1.

But as we know Pastor has a down side, namely his propensity for error and for red mist moments behind the wheel, which to be brutal the Barcelona win didn't test. Following his victory in mid-May Pastor, despite usually being competitive, didn't score again until October. In that period trouble was never far away it seemed, and several noses were put out of joint (both metaphorically and literally). However, following his nadir weekend in Spa, where he squeezed in a grid penalty, a jump start and hitting Timo Glock into no time at all, he appeared to start to pick his way out of the rubble and give the impression that he just might be learning from his misdemeanours. For the year's remainder much of the pace remained crucially (it's often the case that when calming down a fast but wild driver some of the pace goes at the same time) but he began to ally this pace with keeping his car away from others and from the scenery. And in this time he could well have finished on the podium in both Singapore and Abu Dhabi with mechanical reliability.

Thus as we enter the 2013 season, Pastor must show that he is continuing to learn and improve in this area. And his team clearly has faith - Williams has always loved an anti-hero, e.g. Montoya, Rosberg, Jones - and being the senior driver in the team may be the making of Pastor. Some remain to be convinced however, after all it won't be easy to unlearn deep-rooted instinctive responses, and crashing has peppered his repertoire since long before he reached F1. For these reasons his late-2012 upturn felt a lot more like the end of the beginning than the beginning of the end of this particular journey.

But if Pastor can get indeed knock off the rough edges then it will be to all of our benefit, as we'll have an excellent F1 driver on our hands.

Valtteri Bottas - Car #17

Bottas. Probably the first debutant F1 driver to have his own Twitter hashtag. And his own cult hero status. But then again, Valtteri Bottas is no ordinary F1 debutant. Not by 2013 standards anyway.

There will be five rookies on the grid at Melbourne (assuming no more unexpected shuffles at any rate), but of these Bottas seems to stand apart. While the rest to varying degrees owe their accession to money brought, Bottas even though he brings some cash of his own appears to have been selected on the basis of driving merit and potential. How Bottas does is one of the most eagerly awaiting conundrums of the 2013 F1 season.

And in many ways Bottas is extremely well-placed for his freshman campaign. He doesn't really 'arrive' at Williams at all this year, having been ensconced there in 2012, following on from his late blitz on the GP3 championship in 2011 (if you like omens, his title win there had remarkable parallels with Vettel's F1 title campaign in 2012). He took part in no fewer than 15 practice sessions in 2012, as well as in the young drivers' test at Silverstone. And it should be instructive that the normally underwhelmed and grounded Williams collective was excited by how Bottas did. He impresses equally out of the car, displaying the understated yet unmistakable steely determination that seems to set Finnish racers apart

Of course, plenty of racers have arrived in F1 with glowing reputations only to do nothing at the sport's highest level to suggest why they deserved them, and that fate may befall Bottas. More immediately, he has the problem of not having raced since 2011, so he may show some rustiness in wheel-to-wheel combat in the early rounds. But the best evidence as things stand is that such problems should not impede him unduly.