- 2005 and 2006 World Champion Fernando Alonso has announced he has signed a deal to drive for McLaren starting in 2007. He will have been with Renault for 5 years.
- It was announced on July 9, 2006 that Juan Pablo Montoya would be leaving McLaren to race for Ganassi Racing in the NASCAR Nextel Cup series for 2007, effectively ending his Formula 1 career.
- On August 2, 2006 Williams announced that test and reserve driver Alexander Wurz would step up to a race seat for 2007, replacing Australian Mark Webber.
- On August 7, 2006, Red Bull Racing announced their 2007 driver line-up of David Coulthard and Mark Webber, displacing Christian Klien.
- On August 7, 2006, BMW Sauber announced that Jacques Villeneuve's contract has been terminated immediately and for the rest of the season would be replaced by test driver Robert Kubica. Kubica was later announced on October 19, 2006 to retain the race seat for the 2007 season, with Sebastian Vettel remaining as the team's test driver. On December 21, 2006 BMW announced GP2 driver Timo Glock as their second test driver.
- On September 6, 2006, Renault confirmed Heikki Kovalainen as the team's replacement for Fernando Alonso.
- On September 10, 2006, Scuderia Ferrari confirmed Kimi Räikkönen as a replacement for the retiring Michael Schumacher.
- On November 15, 2006, Super Aguri confirmed Anthony Davidson as Sakon Yamamoto's replacement.
- On November 24, 2006, McLaren confirmed Lewis Hamilton as their second driver.
- On December 21, 2006, Spyker confirmed Adrian Sutil as their second driver.
Tuesday, January 9, 2007
DRIVER CHANGES
RULE CHANGES
- Although the FIA had planned to switch to a single tyre manufacturer from 2008, Michelin has announced they will end participation in Formula 1 after 2006, leaving Bridgestone as the sole supplier from 2007 to 2010.
- Tyres will be supplied in accordance with the revised Sporting Regulations, which provide for a total of 14 sets of dry weather tyres per driver over the race weekend: four sets for Friday only, and 10 for the rest of the weekend.
- The teams finishing 5th–11th in the previous seasons' Constructors' Championship will no longer be allowed to run a third car on Friday following a rule change. [28] The teams that finish 1st–4th are already banned from doing so.
- Engine development will be frozen from the 2006 Japanese Grand Prix, with these engines being used for the whole of 2007 and 2008. This is described as engine "homologation" by the FIA. It was previously set to be introduced in 2008. [29]
- All cars will be fitted with red, blue and yellow cockpit lights. The purpose is to give drivers information concerning track signals or conditions. The lights must be LEDs each with a minimum diameter of 5mm and which are fitted in order that they are directly in the driver’s normal line of sight. [30]
- In order to give rescue crews an immediate indication of accident severity each car must be fitted with a warning light which is connected to the FIA data logger. The light must face upwards and be recessed into the top of the survival cell no more than 150mm from the car centre line and the front of the cockpit opening and as near to the marshal neutral switch as is practical. [30]
- The two Friday practice sessions will expand from 60 minutes to 90 minutes. Any team will be allowed to use two cars, which may be driven by either the two race drivers or a nominated third driver. [31]
- The engine penalty will now only apply in the second day of the grand prix weekends. Any engine change in the first day will not be penalised. [31]
- No car will be allowed to enter the pits during a safety car period until all cars are in the group following the safety car. This prevents drivers from racing to the pits immediately after a safety car is deployed. In addition, any lapped cars in front of a car on the lead lap will be required to pass the safety car and restart at the end of the line-up instead of maintaining their physical position. [31]
- The Formula 1 teams have unanimously agreed to the voluntary early introduction of the testing agreement scheduled for 2008. This limits each team to an annual limit of 30,000 km.
THE new F! season
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