By Huw Alban
January 27 2006

In one weeks time the Midland Toyota M16 car will be launched, and the team will embark on it's 2006 Formula One World Championship quest. Here is your chance to welcome the team to the championship and get closer to what is going on.

I'm not going to take the credit for this idea - that belongs to forum contributor CRX.

"3rd February is coming around the corner," he said on the forum. "The car will be unleashed and you (MF1O) will be there. What will you take to the launch, apart from your camera and extreme curiosity ?"

"I thought it would be nice of Midland F1 Online to give Midland F1 Racing some kind of welcome symbolic gift."

"As new fans we talked a lot about wanting some feedback from the team, something that we are lucky to have now. We all agree that the human side is important. Why not go a step further and strengthen this bond by also givin something - some feedback from the fans to the team."

"All of us could write a welcome message to Midland F1 Racing, and you (MF1O) could compile them, write an introduction for it and then make some kind of 'small welcome book from the fans'."

We thought that this was a fantastic idea, and immediately asked our sources at Midland whether it would be possible to present this to the team on the launch day on Friday. The response we got back from the team was, "Lovely idea. Leave this with me." Ok so it's not a firm promise that we can do this on Friday, but our sources have already warmed to the idea and this is something that Phil and I really want to do.

What we need now is your input. We need fans to contribute to this thread and send a message of welcome and encouragement to all at factory at Siverstone, and in various Midland offices around the globe. Please join other fans of the team and it's drivers in welcoming the team to the 2006 season - you've got until midnight GMT on Wednesday the 1st of February - we're counting on you !