Marussia Virgin Racing has revealed the first shots of its 2011 contender, the MVR-02, as a Monday morning launch ceremony continues at the BBC television centre in London. For 2011, Germany’s Timo Glock remains on-board as new team-mate Jérôme d’Ambrosio of Belgium replaces the departed Lucas di Grassi.
Following a difficult opening season in Formula 1, finishing 12th in the championship without registering a point’s finish, Virgin is hoping to challenge the sport’s more established teams this year. As well as competing with its all new design in 2011, the Dinnington-based squad will be racing under a Russian licence during the upcoming F1 campaign.
“We had a tough but incredibly rewarding baptism into Formula 1 last season and I am extremely proud that we proved ourselves to be more than equal to the challenge,” Team Principal John Booth commented at the MVR-02 launch. “We are also very proud to be competing as Marussia Virgin Racing in 2011 and we look forward to rewarding the faith that Marussia demonstrated in the team when it made such a significant investment at the end of last year.
“2011 is all about moving forward and starting to achieve solid results. We have a very exciting driver line-up in Timo Glock and Jérôme d'Ambrosio. Timo did an exceptional job in difficult circumstances last season and contributed a great deal to the car’s development and that of our racing team."
The MVR-02 features some clear design changes from its 2010 predecessor, with the team adopting a more refined approach after the time-constraints it endured during the build up to last year’s season-opener in Bahrain. With more time to complete its new contender, the team has been able to introduce significant aerodynamic modifications.
Compared to last year’s chassis, Virgin has integrated a lower front wing, with refinements made to the endplates and surrounding nose area. Added to this, the team has a much more sophisticated rear-end package, with substantial modifications made towards the back of the team’s new challenger.
“We have addressed every single issue that troubled us last year, but in our own unique digital way,” Technical Director Nick Wirth explained. “For example, the hydraulics and gearbox oil problems of last year have resulted in us doing more CFD in these areas alone than we used in the entire aero design program our first digital race-winning sportscar in 2008.
"I am confident that we have made real progress with the MVR-02, producing a car with considerably more aerodynamic efficiency than the VR-01 despite the regulation changes, and having made significant gains in terms of overall quality. It provides a good basis for development over the course of the season, and I'm very sure we'll be able to keep up the impressive rate of aero development that we've had since the beginning of the MVR-02 project.”
Virgin will be running with its new chassis for the first time at the next pre-season test at Jerez, which takes place between Thursday and Sunday. Timo Glock and Jérôme d’Ambrosio will be present at the venue in Southern Spain, with the pair getting a chance to drive the MVR-02 across the four-days of testing.
Further reaction from London:
- Marussia Virgin drivers excited about 2011
- Booth: MVR-02 a clear step forward in every area
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