We’re heading for the desert this weekend so there’s no chance of any rain this weekend. Ultra-high temperatures are what drivers and teams will have to cope with.
Here’s the latest weather report for the Bahrain Grand Prix.
Category: Previews
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Broadcast times for the 2013 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix
Here are the Broadcast times for the 2013 Gulf Air Bahrain Formula One Grand Prix.
All times are GMT +2
FP1: Fri 09:00
FP2: Fri 13:00
FP3: Sat 10:00
Qualifying: Sat 13:00
Race: Sun 14:00Follow us on Twitter @F1_Madness for live updates.
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Chinese Grand Prix Preview – Controlling China
Most all of the headlines since the Malaysian grand prix have included team orders, Sebastian Vettel or both. On whichever side you sit of this controversial piece of Formula 1 theatre it has kept tongues wagging for a good while.
But finally the attention is set to be focused on the most important thing – racing. Whatever has been said, however the statements have played out, on the track is where the real talking needs to be done. As the third round of the season the Chinese GP seems as good a place as any to do just that.
Three thousand workers took just eighteen months to convert a section of swampland into an international spec racetrack. Designed by F1 architect Herman Tilke the Shanghai circuit, situated in the Jiading district, combines a highly technical complex of corners with a kilometre long back-straight. Inspired by the Chinese character Shang sectors one and two contain ten of the track’s fifteen corners; emphasizing the technical make-up and demand for good braking stability and traction.
Since its debut in 2004 the Chinese GP has dished up some pretty decent racing. This 5.451 km Shanghai circuit is where Renault clinched a constructor’s title in 2005; the pitlane entrance is where Lewis Hamilton beached his McLaren in 2007 an event that would have a monumental impact on the driver’s world title that year. Despite being seen as one of the ‘new’ F1 circuits 2013 will be the tenth running of the Chinese GP. McLaren and Ferrari share the majority of the spoils with three victories each but no driver, with the exception of Lewis Hamilton, has been able to win this race on more than one occasion.
Current championship leaders Red Bull Racing don’t have a stellar record either. Since rising to prominence the Milton Keynes team has only taken one victory in the last five Chinese grand prix. If they are to better this record they will have to do it against their run of form at this venue and with clever tactics.
The Shanghai International circuit is one very demanding on tyres and strategy. In 2012 it was Lotus who rolled the dice on Raikkonen’s strategy; although the Finn was running second towards the closing stages of the race his tyres soon ran out of life and he was summarily relegated to fourteenth place in matter of laps. Bear in mind that the 2012 Pirelli tyres were a lot more conservative than what the Italian company has supplied in 2013 which will make the tyre wear a more precarious balancing act than ever.
Only two races of the races on the 2013 calendar have been run and in those two races the slightest appearance of a pecking order has started to emerge. Red Bull seem to have carried their qualifying pace from last season but the chasing pack in the form of Lotus and Ferrari are able to match if not beat the reigning champions on race pace. The Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg does appear to be a bit greedy on rear tyre wear but in the cooler conditions of Shanghai this won’t be a particular difficulty.
The weather forecast, tentative at best, predicts much cooler temperature than have been experienced in the first two races. The threat of rain, sure to materialize at some stage, will almost certainly linger throughout the week.
Fifty-six will be the amount of laps for Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber to settle their differences on the track. But Mercedes, looking to replicate its 2012 glory, could be the menace or a fast starting Fernando, Ferrari-clad, may well unleash the pace that has been simmering just beneath the surface.
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2013 Australian F1 Grand Prix Preview: So it Begins
The Albert Park circuit is not the most prodigious or even the most memorable race track you’re ever likely to come across. But there are few more welcome sites than twenty-two race cars lining up on the grid for the much anticipated start of the 2013 Formula 1 season.
Formula 1 is arguably the most unpredictable sport on the planet and thousands of testing miles have done nothing to change that. The truth is any one of ten drivers could walk away with the spoils on Sunday afternoon. But who of the possible pretenders will be the likeliest amongst the mob?
Sure to be the most nervous of the lot will be the five rookies making their Formula 1 debuts this weekend. Marussia have gone with an all new line-up and both Max Chilton and Jules Bianchi will get their first grand prix start this weekend. Giedo van der Garde will step in at Caterham while Esteban Gutierrez will start his first race for Sauber. Williams’ will be hoping that Finn Valtteri Bottas can transfer his potential and talent to the track.
The Albert Park circuit continues to be a stronghold on the Formula 1 calendar and in addition to coaxing their new cars around the 5.303 km long circuit drivers will want to get an understanding of the 2013 Pirelli tyres. Whatever information teams gathered from pre-season testing won’t be of much use as the high ambient temperatures Down Under will present a completely different read. The FIA has also tweaked the rules regarding the use of DRS. Drivers will only be permitted to use DRS, for all session, in the demarcated zones; most circuits are expected to have two DRS zones.
Hardly any alterations have been made to the technical rules for 2013; leading most teams to follow an evolutionary path in the design and development process of their cars. It also means that, in a season of few changes, the field will be closer than ever.
There is little doubt that Infiniti Red Bull Racing will be up the sharp end of the grid. However, the Red Bull is severely lacking in straight line speed; in fact, it’s the slowest of the lot. But this is a team that have played their cards extremely close to their chest throughout pre-season testing and there is no apparent concern within the team.
An impressive conclusion of the final pre-season test in Barcelona for Mercedes has elevated the team to a serious threat. Hamilton will unquestionably take the team to a new level and good or bad his performance in Australia is destined to draw attention. This team has the potential to cause the biggest upset this weekend.
McLaren will be effectively led by the debonair Jenson Button but its Sergio Perez and the MP4-28 that the uncertainty lingers over. As the car has both dazzled and perplexed the team through testing. A man with no qualms is Fernando Alonso. The Ferrari driver was able to find something special to drag a sub-par Ferrari to second place at the end of 2012. This year his Ferrari already appears to be in better shape which will make the Spaniard a definite and extremely dangerous factor.
Kimi Raikkonen and Romain Grosjean are equally satisfied with what the Lotus E21 has delivered so far. Whereas the team didn’t exploit their chances early on in 2012 they should be ready to just that this season; with an in-form Raikkonen Lotus will be F1 2013’s darkhorse.
How is it possible that all of these teams could win this weekend? The fact remains that throughout the thousands of laps completed in winter testing every single one of these were fastest at some stage. Provided that everything goes to plan, and the weather plays along, Australia should be a cracker.
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F1 2013: Teammate Battle
By definition winning the Formula 1 driver’s world title indicates that, by the end of the season, one of the drivers had outdone his twenty-one counterparts. However, the first man to be beaten is always the teammate.
Red Bull: Sebastian Vettel v Mark Webber
Chances are if you beat Sebastian Vettel you’re likely to be close to the championship lead. With several memorable victories Webber has undoubtedly proven that he possesses great talent. However, raking in the big points consistently hasn’t been Webber’s forte. For the Australian to beat his world champion teammate AussieGrit will need to deliver the best season of his career.
Ferrari: Felipe Massa v Fernando Alonso
Felipe Massa ended off the 2012 season in the best form he had for quite some time. But if Massa had a solid end to the season Fernando Alonso arguably had the best season of his F1 career. Given their performance in relation to each other it remains highly unlikely that Massa will be able to outrace Alonso for a significant amount of time.
McLaren: Sergio Perez v Jenson Button
Sergio Perez has talent, but it is raw talent. McLaren, Martin Whitmarsh even Ron Dennis will try to mould him into a complete racing driver but it will be up to Checo to refine his racing craft. Since joining McLaren Jenson Button has looked supremely at ease save for a few spells of irregular results. Checo Perez has the speed to beat his teammate but JB has speed, guile and a settled team around him.
Lotus: Romain Grosjean v Kimi Raikkonen
Romain Grosjean survived his woeful season to be re-signed by Lotus. Too many incidents has coloured opinion on Grosjean and objective number one for the Frenchman has to be a composed approach to racing. Only then can he consider a tactic on how to beat Kimi Raikkonen. For Raikkonen it will be business as usual; get in the car, drive it fast. He’s not really bothered about beating the guy on the other side of the garage – it’s just about racing as fast as he possibly can. Grosjean may have a slight advantage in qualifying but if the E21 is up to it in 2013 Raikkonen is not going to be an easy man to beat.
Mercedes: Nico Rosberg v Lewis Hamilton
Nico Rosberg’s Formula 1 career has been relatively solid but far from spectacular. His first and only victory, to date, in China finally got the monkey off his back but a solitary win won’t mean much when it’s measured against the prolific Lewis Hamilton. For Hamilton there’s a great urge to take Mercedes to the top of the podium and that will be his solitary focus this season. He’s unlikely to be troubled by Nico Rosberg.
Williams: Pastor Maldonado v Valtteri Bottas
Venezuelan Maldonado toned down his kamikaze racing style in the second half of the 2012 season but wasn’t pushed by teammate Bruno Senna. It should be different in 2013 with Valterri Bottas. Much has been made of the Finn’s speed in the paddock but he will need to hit the ground running if he is to outperform his teammate.
Sauber: Nico Hulkenberg v Esteban Guiterrez
Nico Hulkenberg had a strong comeback with Force India in 2012 but starts this season on a level playing field with Guiterrez. It’s never easy stepping into a new car or a new team. While Hulkenberg should outdo Guiterrez the young Mexican will be especially keen to shake the ‘pay driver’ label.
Force India: Paul di Resta v Adrian Sutil?
Scotsman Paul di Resta will drive the VJM06 alongside Adrian Sutil. As is the case for several drivers, this season will be about more than beating their respective teammates, it will be about survival.
For Daniel Ricciardo & Jean-Eric Vergne (Toro Rosso), Charles Pic & Giedo van der Garde(Caterham), Max Chilton & Jules Bianchi (Marussia) beating the teammate will be as important as ensuring a place in Formula 1. As these lower ranked teams, perhaps with the exception of Toro Rosso, struggle to survive these drivers have to be aware that there is always another driver around the corner with a bigger cheque.
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Formula One 2013 Season Preview: The Test of Time
The ‘waiting game’ is a funny phenomenon. Firstly, as die-hard F1 fans, enduring the break between seasons is no fun and games. It is a tedious and lengthy process that tests even the most patient.
Logic suggests that as the start of the season draws closer the restlessness should begin to ebb away and be replaced by a growing anticipation. This is an attractive thought but it doesn’t have much truth to it. What does happen is that the closer that first free practice session in Australia gets the more the levels of anxious excitement seem to amplify. And with less than one week to go the expectation and sheer excitement will surely reach fever pitch.
All that happened in Barcelona is not an absolute predictor of things to come. Nevertheless, the final pre-season test at last gave some indication about what to expect in Australia. Lewis Hamilton’s impression after the first test at Jerez was that his new team would struggle to win a race this season. Since then some things have changed, for the better. A real sense of optimism has replaced the doubt in Hamilton’s mind and the Brit now believes that the Silver Arrows has a real shot at winning some races. The change of heart came after Hamilton ended one Saturday’s running on top of the timing sheets seven tenths clear of second-placed Felipe Massa. LH may have been up to some good old mind games in Jerez but he seems genuinely excited about the Mercedes’ ‘turnaround.’ “I think we definitely will be able to win a race at some point during the season,” said Hamilton.
After signing with Marussia just one month ago Luiz Razia would have been dreaming of sitting on the grid in Australia among twenty-one of the world’s best drivers. However the Brazilian racer lost his drive after a sponsor failed to make scheduled payment to the team. In his place Marussia opted for Ferrari Academy driver Jules Bianchi. The Frenchman is untried but has potential and his link to Ferrari as Formula 1 stands on the cusp of massive engine changes could see Marussia aligning itself to be a customer of the Italian team in 2014.
With Bianchi climbing into the Marussia cockpit, Adrian Sutil will partner Paul di Resta at Force India for the 2013 season. The German left the F1 paddock under controversial circumstances at the end of 2011 and will have to step up his performances if he wants a future in the sport beyond this season. Sutil, who snatched the drive from Jules Bianchi, will be seen as a conservative choice but the team know exactly what they are getting in the German -a proven record of scoring minor points relatively consistently, meaning solid but unspectacular.
The general feeling in the paddock is that Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull should be favourites to win in Australia but the defending champion doesn’t share the same view. “We didn’t tick all the boxes that we would have liked to and the last two days were not as good as we would have expected,” said Vettel.
As the paddock leans toward favouring Red Bull, Ferrari thinks that there will be some shocks in Australia. The reason for Ferrari’s prediction has to do with several teams’ difficulty in managing the tyres and the high rate of degradation that has already been experienced by a variety of drivers. It is interesting and telling that Ferrari is the first team to deliberately raise the issue of tyre wear.
The final day of testing concluded with Nico Rosberg heading the log as most other teams focused on high fuel running. The next time the cars fire up will be in Australia. The wait is nearly over.
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