McIndia

Não, não é o novo sanduíche daquela rede de comidas capitalistas. Como esperado, a Force India anunciou o início da parceria com a McLaren, que passará a fornecer um pacote técnico bastante interessante à equipe de Vijay Mallya. Motores, câmbios, sistemas hidráulicos e KERS serão fornecidos aos indianos.

Esses novos recursos e desenvolvimentos serão responsáveis por um grande salto em nosso pacote técnico e, como resultado disso, temos uma grande expectativa que faremos um bom progresso de 2009 em diante.

A frase é do dono do boteco indiano. Não tenho dúvida que a FI avance consideravelmente esse ano. A McLaren fechou 2008 com um ótimo pacote técnico. Um carro praticamente inquebrável e um motor forte e resistente. Junte isso ao fato de que a equipe indiana também aproveitou para anunciar um grande aprimoramento na sua fábrica de Brackley: um upgrade nos computadores responsáveis pelos cálculos aerodinâmicos. Teremos surpresas em 2009? Torço para que sim.

Segue a íntegra do release.

FORCE INDIA FORMULA ONE TEAM ANNOUNCES TECHNICAL PARTNERSHIPS WITH McLAREN APPLIED TECHNOLOGIES, MERCEDES-BENZ HIGHPERFORMANCEENGINES AND EADS

Force India Formula One Team is pleased to announce a major new partnership that will propel the team forward for the 2009 FIA Formula One World Championship and beyond; a ground-breaking technical partnership with McLaren Applied Technologies (which is a company wholly owned by the McLaren Group) and with Mercedes-Benz HighPerformanceEngines.

In a unique long term deal, the Force India Formula One Team VJM02 cars will be powered by engines designed and built by Mercedes-Benz HighPerformanceEngines, the first time that the legendary manufacturer has supplied another chassis constructor other than McLaren. Additionally, Force India will have access to the McLaren Group’s network of bespoke suppliers that has supported this year’s World Championship victory.

McLaren Applied Technologies will additionally supply the Force India Formula One Team cars with McLaren Racing gearboxes and hydraulic systems and will provide operational support to ensure Force India functions at its highest possible level.

The Force India Formula One Team also plans to fit its cars with a kinetic energy recovery system (KERS) that is currently being developed by Mercedes-Benz HighPerformanceEngines and McLaren Racing (which is also a company wholly owned by the McLaren Group).

In conjunction with aerospace company EADS – which, like McLaren and Mercedes, is also a global leader in its field – Force India Formula One Team announced that it will soon be expanding the computational fluid dynamics capability of its Brackley Aero Centre facility.

Dr. Vijay Mallya, chairman and managing director of Force India, commented: ‘We are absolutely delighted to be able to announce a technical partnership with McLaren Applied Technologies and Mercedes-Benz HighPerformanceEngines, and also our plan to expand the composite manufacturing capability and drawing office within our Silverstone facility.

‘McLaren and Mercedes-Benz are two of the most famous names in motorsport history, having achieved great success in Grand Prix racing over many years, and most recently, a superb victory in probably the most dramatic World Championship Formula 1 has seen.

‘These new resources and developments will provide an enormous boost to our technical armoury and, as a result, we have high hopes of making good progress in 2009 and beyond.

‘Force India Formula One Team has been in existence for only one year, and inevitably our first season has constituted a learning period. But we said at the outset that we meant business and were not interested in merely making up the numbers. The announcement of our new technical partnership, combined with the new developments and resources outlined above, clearly underlines that we meant what we said. I would like personally to thank Bernie Ecclestone and FIA president Max Mosley, both of whom offered their assistance and support throughout the gestation of this deal.’

‘Interest in Formula One in India, especially among the 300-million-plus professional-class demographic as well as in neighbouring countries such as Singapore, Malaysia and Abu Dhabi with a large Indian population, is growing at astonishing levels. Formula One commercial rights holder Bernie Ecclestone has declared plans to stage an Indian Grand Prix in 2011, in Delhi, our capital city, by which time Force India Formula One Team will be exactly that: a Formula One force in, and for, India.’