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F1 Pitlane Tales: Force India to trial new race display system

November 19, 2014 15:48 IST

Chairman of Force India F1 team, Vijay Mallya

Chairman of Force India F1 team, Vijay Mallya, poses with the new Force India Formula One Team car on display. Photograph: J. Adam Huggins/Getty Images

Formula One is set to test a new on-car display system championed by Lewis Hamilton's father Anthony aimed at helping fans to follow a race without having to take their eyes off the action.

Hamilton said the 'Info Wing', a carbon fibre camera mount with an integrated LED display system, would be trialled on one of the Force India cars in testing next Tuesday after this weekend's Abu Dhabi season-ender.

It may also be trialled on the safety car at Yas Marina this Thursday or Friday. Sunday's race could see Hamilton, leading the championship for Mercedes, secure his second title.

The wing, mounted on the airbox behind the driver's head, would display real time race positions on the endplates in coloured numbers that should be visible from the stands.

The data would be provided by race control, with the wing able to display a range of information updated during the course of the race.

Hamilton said the tests would aim to show whether the unit was practical for Formula One and single seaters in general, whether the LED display could be seen from the grandstands and how well it might work for TV audiences.

He recognised it might not work in bright sunlight but felt the concept, with patents pending, was worth trying anyway.

McLaren delay driver announcement

McLaren Formula One driver Jenson Button of Britain and his girlfriend Jessica Michibata

McLaren Formula One driver Jenson Button of Britain and his girlfriend Jessica Michibata. Photograph: Zainal Abd Halim/Reuters

McLaren will not announce their 2015 driver lineup until December, they said on Tuesday.

The team had previously said they would make the announcement before the 19th and final race in Abu Dhabi this weekend.

"In order to avoid distracting the race team from its primary objective...we have decided to defer our final deliberations relating to our 2015 driver lineup until a date no earlier than Monday December 1," McLaren said in a statement.

The news is eagerly awaited, not least by fans of Britain's 2009 champion Jenson Button who want to know whether Sunday's race at Yas Marina is his last in Formula One.

McLaren are expected to sign double world champion Fernando Alonso from Ferrari, with quadruple world champion Sebastian Vettel set to take the Spaniard's place at Maranello after leaving Red Bull.

That will force McLaren to choose between Button, whose contract expires at the end of the season, and Danish rookie Kevin Magnussen.

McLaren have not won a race since 2012 and are facing another blank this year, with Mercedes chasing a record 16th win in 19 races on Sunday after securing both titles.

Source: REUTERS
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