Pfft not happy about this! Think Brundle is a bit of cock to be honest. Leggard is at least bearable. Testing starts in a couple of weeks can't wait for the new season, although the rules for the adjustable rear wing are a bit mad.
Rear wing rules
http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/88861
Martin Brundle will become BBC's new lead Formula 1 commentator this year, it has been announced, following a shake-up of the coverage plans for 2011.
Just hours after former commentator Jonathan Legard announced he would no longer be a part of the BBC team for this year, the corporation confirmed that Brundle would be stepping up to the lead role - with David Coulthard joining him as a co-commentator.
Brundle, who retired from F1 at the start of 1997, has forged a successful career as a broadcaster but this will be his first time as the main commentator.
Speaking about his new role, Brundle said: "I'm absolutely delighted and very motivated that BBC Sport has asked me to become the lead Formula 1 commentator alongside David Coulthard.
"We have been friends, rivals and colleagues for 18 years and combined we have driven in more than 400 F1 Grands Prix and attended over 700. I've never felt more passionate about Formula 1 and I can't wait to get started."
Coulthard is embarking on his third season with the BBC, having retired from F1 at the end of 2008. Although he is stepping up to the commentary box, he will continue to provide his expert analysis for both pre-race build-up and post-race shows.
"I'm very excited to be joining forces with Martin in this new role of co-commentator," said Coulthard. "F1 is all about challenging yourself and this will be a big challenge for me, but one that I am looking forward to. There is a great team on the BBC F1 show and we're looking forward to the year ahead and to bringing something new to our loyal viewers."
The BBC's decision to put two former racing drivers into the commentary box is viewed in some quarters as controversial - as it breaks away from the traditional set-up of using drivers only for expert analysis.
However, Ben Gallop, the BBC's Head of F1, thinks that Brundle's vast experience and his strong relationship with Coulthard, will prove to be a winner for fans.
"We're always looking for ways to take our Formula 1 coverage to another level - and for 2011 we have an exciting new combination in the commentary box," he said. "We're keen to make the most of Martin Brundle's wealth of broadcasting experience and his popularity with the audience by giving him the role of lead commentator and putting him alongside David Coulthard, one of the biggest names in British motorsport and a skilled race analyst.
"We want to tap into their combined on-track expertise - together they will provide our viewers with more immediate discussion, analysis and debate as the action happens. The results of screen tests have been very impressive and we are convinced this combination will deliver a fantastic commentary for our audience for what promises to be a thrilling 2011 season."
Gallop also paid tribute to former commentator Legard, who earned tremendous respect in the F1 paddock but whose commentary divided the opinion of fans.
"The change of direction we are taking unfortunately means there is no place for Jonathan Legard in our commentary set-up," added Gallop.
"We'd like to take this opportunity to thank Jonathan for his great work over the last two seasons. He is a first-rate journalist and broadcaster who has been a core member of our team, helping to re-establish BBC Sport as the nation's F1 broadcaster. We wish him all the very best for the future."
Rear wing rules
No wonder Fernando Alonso is looking forward to the 2011 rule changes . If this year's cars had the moveable rear wings set for the new F1 season, it's very likely the Ferrari driver would have won the championship instead of Sebastian Vettel.
Had Alonso had the moveable rear wing at this year's final race in Abu Dhabi, he would have been able to overtake Vitaly Petrov's Renault and would have been in a position to challenge Nico Rosberg's Mercedes for the fourth place he needed to win the title.
But while the new driver-adjusted bodywork comes too late for Alonso's 2010 campaign, next year's rule changes (including the return of the Kers energy storage and power boost systems) are set to make overtaking considerably easier and have a big impact on race strategies and, ultimately, championship results.
HOW THE MOVEABLE REAR WING WORKS
Formula 1 rear wings are made up of two main elements. The main plane, which is the flat, horizontal part, and the flap, which is the piece of carbon fibre angled up against the airflow.
The flap is the part that will move. It will be pushed open, like a letterbox, against the airflow. The flap will move by five centimetres - a significant amount in aerodynamic terms.
Moving the flap up allows more air through the rear wing gap, which stalls the main plane and dumps drag, effectively giving the same result as 2010's F-duct. In fact, it is anticipated that the effect will be much greater than the F-duct, and could even be as much or more than the boost delivered by Kers.
The flap will be pushed up by actuators. It remains to be seen how teams make it work and whether it will be electrically or hydraulically operated by the driver via a button on the steering wheel.
Indeed, when you add Kers management systems and the moveable rear wing to the many buttons and switches already in use, you can quickly see that mental agility and capacity will be key requirements for any driver who wants to be successful in 2011.
WHEN AND HOW TO USE IT
The driver will be able to move the wing at any time throughout practice and qualifying. This way engineers can select appropriate gear ratios after measuring the car's maximum speed with the wing open. There is no point having a sudden straight line speed boost only to then hit the rev limiter.
But there are very different rules governing use of the moveable rear wing in the race.
Firstly, drivers will only be able to move the wing on one, designated straight. So at Silverstone, for example, it will be the Hangar straight and Barcelona will be the pit straight, but it might not be such a clear choice at other circuits. Charlie Whiting, race director of governing body the FIA, will choose.
Secondly, drivers will only be allowed to use it in a specific zone on the straight. This zone is expected to start a few hundred metres down the straight and end at the braking point for the next corner. This is to allow the cars to be securely established at high speed before taking away downforce. The sudden removal of rear downforce has to be done with great care.
As soon as the driver touches the brake pedal for the corner, the flap snaps shut and the rear wing provides downforce again.
Thirdly, drivers will not be allowed to move their wings in the first two laps of the race, nor during the two laps following a safety car period. This is understandable as everyone will be tightly bunched together.
The fourth and arguably most intriguing rule about moving the wing in the race is that the car behind must be within one second of the car ahead in order to be allowed to activate the wing. The car's electronic control unit (ECU) will be sent timing information to govern when the driver is allowed to move his wing.
Crucially, the driver ahead is not allowed to move his rear wing to defend the overtaking move, unless he too is within one second of another car in front.
WHAT EFFECT WILL IT HAVE ON THE RACING?
This will inevitably change race strategies. Championship-challenging teams will be less concerned about getting held up by midfield cars, as Ferrari were in Abu Dhabi, because as long as they can close to within a second, they will be able to overtake fairly easily. This will allow them a little more freedom in when to pit.
And even between the likes of Red Bull, Ferrari and McLaren, these new rules will have a huge effect because for the first time, the driver running behind will have an advantage, and will be able to use that to potentially win a race.
Take Singapore 2010 as an example. Vettel had the fastest car but finished second to Alonso because Ferrari covered Red Bull's pit stop and were always ahead on the road.
With a moveable rear wing, if Vettel could have stayed within a second of Alonso, he could have waited until the last lap before activating his moveable rear wing and passing the Ferrari.
The controversial adoption of movable rear wings in 2011 will make overtaking easier. At least that's the hope
Alonso would have been powerless to defend because the driver ahead is not allowed to move his rear wing to neutralise an attack.
Of course, the bottom line is that no one - not the teams, not the drivers, not the FIA - actually knows how this will work in practice, and they will not until the first race in Bahrain on 13 March.
As a result, it will be a work in progress for the first few races, as the FIA look to see whether it is working as they intended, and refine it if not.
It could be that, with this new rule, having track position could change from being a blessing to a curse.
It may be that if there are evenly matched cars, they race in pack, in order to be able to overtake with your moveable wing later on.
Whatever, it's understandable that, to many, the moveable rear wing will be seen as an artificial gimmick that will cheapen the value of overtaking manoeuvres and could lead to unjust results gained by good timing rather than genuine pace.
However, as long as the wing works as intended, that will not be the case.
The aim is to allow cars that are significantly faster than others to be able to overtake, but for it to remain difficult for one car to overtake another of similar pace.
How it works in practice remains to be seen.
