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In the super sleek, posing world of Formula One where gleaming missiles-on-wheels had evolved to a supreme level of streamlined beauty, an ugly intrusion has occurred.
The slender, shapely nose cone of the F1 cars of recent years has been replaced by something that belongs on a well-battered boxer.
As part of the never-ending changes to the rules of the sport, its governing body the FIA has ordered that the tip of the nose cone be lowered by 75mm in the interests of safety.
The result for most of the 24 cars in Melbourne for the season opener is a pronounced bump half way along.
“It looks ugly for sure,” said Australia’s Mark Webber, whose Red Bull car has one of the most pronounced of the new irregular noses.
“But I still think ours looks nicer than the McLaren.”
The new nose shape was necessitated by the combination of the new rule and the desire by most teams to keep the chassis they used in 2011 and is one of several changes introduced for this year.
Banished for 2012 is last year’s must-have gadget, the off-throttle blown diffuser – a tricky use of the exhaust system to create downforce – and also the use of helium to make the pneumatic tyre changing guns work faster.
The reason for the latter is on odd one in a sport where ridiculous amounts of money are spent for little real outcome: they say the helium is too expensive.
Another change for 2012 is open access to all voice communications between cars and the pits.
Every word spoken during a race will now be available to both the FIA and broadcasters, meaning so-called “team orders” in which one driver is ordered to give way to a teammate will now have to be in code.
There are also new tyre compounds which make the difference between wet and dry rubber more narrow, and there are three name changes among the teams – Renault is to be known as Lotus F1 Team, Virgin becomes Marussia F1 Team and the former Team Lotus is now Caterham F1 Team.
Some things however, seem unlikely to ever change.
World champion Sebastian Vettel remains steadfastly opposed to Twitter.
“I don’t like it,” Vettel said.
“I prefer to talk to people.”
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