MARCH 26, 2010

Virgin on empty

Virgin Racing has applied to the FIA for dispensation to homologate a new chassis for May's Spanish Grand Prix after it admitted that it has miscalculated the size of its fuel tank.

Virgin Racing has applied to the FIA for dispensation to homologate a new chassis for May's Spanish Grand Prix after it admitted that it has miscalculated the size of its fuel tank.

The blunder means the current Virgin car cannot fit in enough fuel to complete a grand prix distance - at full race pace, anyway. It is a costly error that will require a major redesign of its car.

So far the fuel tank has not proved to be a problem as neither car made the finish in Bahrain. But if the team can iron out its reliability issues it will have to run a leaner fuel mix for the coming races. Of course, long safety car periods could still play into the team's hands.