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  • Hamilton explains his Malaysian GP post race comments

    Hamilton explains his Malaysian GP post race comments

    It’ll be fair to say that Lewis Hamilton was not at all happy following his retirement from the Malaysian Grand Prix. The British driver made a few very controversial comments following the race and prompted questions and investigations into why the reliability of his car has been so poor this season while reliability was not an issue for the seven other Mercedes powered cars on the F1 grid.

    The three-time world champion demaded answers from the Mercedes AMG Petronas team – he wants to know why he is suffering the series of reliability issues that are hampering his fight for the world title against his team-mate Nico Rosberg. Hamilton went as far as saying that it feels as though “someone or something does not want me to win this season”.

    Following his comments, Hamilton has however explained that he still has full faith and trust in his team especially considering the amount of work that has been put in over the past couple of years.

    “Honestly, you’ve got to understand it from my point of view. On one side, we’ve had the most incredible success these past two years, for which I’m so grateful. These guys work so hard and we’re all feeling the pain right now. When you get out of the car – that feeling you have after leading the race and then your car fails – it’s pretty hard to say positive things at the time.”

    “As I said in the TV interviews, Mercedes have built 43 engines or however many it might be with the extra three I’ve had, and I have happened to have most of, if not all of, the failures. So, that is definitely tough to take. But I have 100% confidence in these guys.”

    Hamilton also expressed that the reliability issues does not change how he feels about the team and made sure everyone understood that it was thanks to the Mercedes team that he won the last two world championships.

    “It’s my fourth year with them now and the guys in the garage and back at the factories – I have 100% faith in them. I love it here and without them I would not have won these two Championships.”

    “While the struggle is real right now and has been all year, I honestly feel that it’s a test of my will, my spirit and who I am as a person to get back in and keep fighting it head on. It’s not how you fall, it’s how you get back up. That applies not just to me but to the guys as well. I saw tears in the eyes of my mechanics so I know that we all bear the pain. But, as I said, it’s how we re-group. We have to keep in mind what we’ve already built.”

    “While in the short term it doesn’t look good and for the long-term this year it might not be so good, there are still lots of positives. There’s still five races to go and if I can perform the way I performed this weekend there’s still everything to play for. We will learn.”

    “The guys will take the engine back and they’ll understand what happened. Every time we’ve had engine issues they’ve gone away and found out why. It puts us potentially in a better position to make sure it doesn’t happen next year. All I can do is what I’ve done this weekend.”

    Lewis Hamilton Photo Credit: Mercedes AMG Petronas

  • Watch: Nico Hulkenberg Previews the Japanese Grand Prix

    Watch: Nico Hulkenberg Previews the Japanese Grand Prix

    What’s very special in Japan are the fans. They’re really amazing. I think the most enthusiastic fans of all the countries and places we go to“. A virtual lap on the Suzuka International Circuit with Sahara Force India F1 driver Nico Hülkenberg.

  • F1 2016: Malaysia Gp: Ricciardo Wins Amidst Drama

    F1 2016: Malaysia Gp: Ricciardo Wins Amidst Drama

    At the start of the Malaysian grand prix Mercedes were expected to dominate on a circuit tailor made to emphasize the best aspect of their racing car and they did. However, Formula 1 isn’t called the most unpredictable sport in the world without reason. For as dominant as Lewis Hamilton was from pole position on Sunday the unpredictability of the sport hit hard.

    As Hamilton scampered off into the lead of the race disaster struck immediately off the line for his Mercedes teammate Nico Rosberg. In a three-way battle for position into turn one Rosberg found himself pointing the wrong way down the track after being tagged by Sebastian Vettel. The Ferrari driver’s race ended a corner later as he pulled over with a broken left-front suspension. For his too optimistic move Vettel has been given a three-place grid penalty for this weekend’s Japanese grand prix.

    While Rosberg began to make his way through the back, with remarkably no damage, Lewis Hamilton was well in control of proceedings. Despite some initial pressure from Max Verstappen and his alternate strategy there was never a true threat on Hamilton’s lead. Such was the pace of the number 44 Mercedes that he could, seemingly at will, lap a second faster than anyone else.

    GP MALESIA F1/2016Still, not even the all-dominant Mercedes can ensure a definite victory. On lap 40 Lewis Hamilton aspirations of winning the race literally went up in flames as her Mercedes engine spectacularly expired on the start/finish strait.

    After his retirement he made some comments to the media, which certainly fanned the flames. Something or someone, he said, doesn’t want him to win the championship. The team and Hamilton later backpedalled on this comment by saying that the driver was referring to a “higher power.” While Hamilton was rightly devastated with the failure it is inconceivable, and frankly absurd, that he would be sabotaged in any way. If not for any other reason than the fact that Mercedes would never want the image of an engine on fire associated with its brand. But there are many other reasons why this conspiracy theory is baseless. How do engineers ensure that an essentially new engine expire on demand? Sometimes the stars, on this case the cylinders, just don’t align.

    Though Hamilton has suffered a number of engine failures in 2016 they’ve all been confined to Friday or Saturday. While still impactful they haven’t hurt as much as this one which is likely what has amplified emotions. In fact Hamilton’s last retirement was eleven races ago in Spain after a collision with Rosberg. His last mechanical failure? The 2015 Singapore grand prix.

    The show must go on and it did with a superb and popular victory for Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo. The Aussie driver brilliantly held off his teammate Max Verstappen to take the fourth win of his career. Red Bull’s one-two finish is the first for the team since the 2013 Brazilian Gp and snaps a run of 10 victories for Mercedes. In a further show of his class Ricciardo dedicated his win to Jules Bianchi who sadly passed away last year after a horrible crash at the 2014 Japanese Gp.

    GP MALESIA F1/2016Despite a ten second penalty for causing a collision with Kimi Raikkonen Nico Rosberg was able to recover to third and takes a 23-point lead to the Japanese Gp. Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen came home in fourth but was down on power for the majority of the race, which implies that the engine has some sort of damage. It could mean an engine penalty at some point perhaps this weekend in Japan or in Texas.

    Valterri Bottas finished a solid fifth for Williams ahead of Force India’s Sergio Perez. Fernando Alonso drove a brilliant race from last to finish seventh ahead of Nico Hulkenberg in eighth and teammate Jenson Button in ninth. Renault’s Jolyon Palmer scored the first point of his career with tenth.

    A 23-point lead for Rosberg seems a big one but with five race remaining it isn’t a done deal. After the race in Baku he had a similar advantage and it took Hamilton three race to overcome it. If nothing else the Malaysian Gp proved that it’s never over until the chequered flag drops.

    (All images courtesy of Pirelli Motorsport)

  • Sergio Perez to Remain at Force India for 2017

    Sergio Perez to Remain at Force India for 2017

    Sergio Perez announced on Sunday evening after the Malaysian Grand Prix that he will remain at Force India for the 2017 season.

    There has been much speculation about the Mexican’s future in the past months and whether he would stay at the Silverstone based team. There was talk that he was on his way to Renault, and at one stage he was linked with a move to the Haas team with a possible future move to Ferrari.

    “I’m pleased to confirm that I will be racing with Sahara Force India in 2017 as the team and my supporters have concluded their agreements,” said Perez in a statement.

    “I’m very happy with this team and I have a good feeling for the future. I’ve seen the progress we’ve made over last couple of years and I’m sure we have the potential to achieve even more going forward.

    “I’m very happy with this team and I have a good feeling for the future. I’ve seen the progress we’ve made over last couple of years and I’m sure we have the potential to achieve even more going forward.

    “I’m excited for the rest of this season and for the challenge that awaits all of us in 2017.

    “I thank all the team for believing in me and I will do my best repay their faith with points, podiums and hopefully wins.

    “I also want to thank our Mexican partners, especially Telmex and Telcel, who have been supporting me since I was a young boy. They continue to play an important role in my journey through the sport.”

     

     

    Photo credit: Sahara Force India Formula One Team

  • 2016 Malaysian Grand Prix: Post Race Press Conference

    2016 Malaysian Grand Prix: Post Race Press Conference

    DRIVERS

    1 – Daniel RICCIARDO (Red Bull Racing)

    2 – Max VERSTAPPEN (Red Bull Racing)

    3 – Nico ROSBERG (Mercedes)

    PODIUM INTERVIEWS

    (Conducted by Mark Webber)

    Daniel, that national anthem was getting to you – great win mate.

    Daniel RICCIARDO: Thank you. I was a little but… firstly I’m exhausted. It’s such a hot race here. It was a race of challenges. Obviously Lewis got the lead and had his problems, so I feel… I’m not really one for believing in a whole lot, but obviously it went the other way in Monaco, so I’ll take this today. No hard feelings to Lewis, but I’ll definitely take the win. It’s been a pretty emotional two years since the last win and we’ve come so close this year. Two weeks ago after the race I said… well, we won this year, and here you go, we got there. Big thanks to Red Bull Racing and everybody who supported me through this journey – my mum, dad, my sister, I’ve got some family here, there are numerous people here. So, I’m extremely grateful for this. Thank you for all the support. It’s overwhelming to say the least.

    Congratulations, sensational drive, another big win. Max, Driver of the Day voted by the fans, charging drive, strategy was key obviously out there for everybody today? A long fight at the front in those hot conditions, in those trying conditions, how do you feel?

    Max VERSTAPPEN: I have to say after the champagne a lot better, it wakes me up a bit. But of course we were pushing the whole race. Definitely Daniel and I were pushing each other so we were going flat out so definitely after the race we had to take a break.

    Well done, buddy. A sensational 1-2 for Red Bull. Nico, a very, very important third place for you today. Little bit of misfortune for your team but you fought back after an unfortunate first corner with Sebastian tagging the back of you in Turn One. Twenty-three point lead now. What are your thoughts and emotions right now? 

    Nico ROSBERG: First of all, yeah, Turn One, I though it was all over, so I’m really happy to be able to fight back in such a way all the way to the podium. That’s been great. Thank you very much to all of you here in Malaysia, you’ve been amazing all week and the support has been incredible. It’s been amazing to see that. In general, I wished for as better day today, but that’s the way it is sometimes.

    Five to go, how do you feel?

    NR: At the moment a bit tired after that race! Apart from that it’s a good moment in general and looking forward now to the next one of course, of course full attack.

    Congratulations Nico, a big points haul. Daniel, just finally with you: overdue in my opinion, off to Suzuka now which is a cracking circuit as well, so celebrations tonight or is it a short turnaround for the race next weekend?

    DR: Ah, a few of us are flying tonight, so maybe a few little whiskies on the flight and sleep well and we’ll be in Tokyo tomorrow. There’s some fine Japanese whisky over there so we might have to have a day off.

    PRESS CONFERENCE

    Congratulations Daniel, I know how much that means to you. First of all, your view of the start incident involving Nico, Sebastian and Max. Then into the race obviously you held off Max in that crucial battle, that brief battle between the two of you, which I guess turned out to be critical from the point of view of winning the race after Hamilton dropped out.

    DR: Yeah, what a day. I’m still… I realise what’s happened but a lot went down in the last two hours so it’s a lot to take in. It’s been an interesting two years since my last victory so it feels awesome for sure, I’m very grateful for it. The start was interesting. I didn’t get a great launch off the line. I saw Seb, I think it was on the inside of me, got a better run. I think Max also had a decent start from memory and it seemed like everyone went to the inside and it didn’t look like there was a whole lot of room and Seb went even deeper. So it looked like he went a little bit deep and it looked like the inside sort of washed out. Everyone sort of tried to out-brake each other, at least from what I say. My average start and more cautious approach into Turn One actually worked out but that’s just how it goes sometimes. Yeah, got into P2 and then was just trying to do my thing in the race. The long run on Friday wasn’t very good, we made a lot of changes, so after Friday if I would have said I’d win the race today in dry conditions… nothing is ever impossible but it was looking like it was close to be. Just tried to do our thing. Max pitted under the Virtual Safety Car at the beginning, put the soft on and at that point it looked like his strategy was working out very well for him. So then I had to hold him off towards that mid-part of the race, just as Lewis had his problems. It was a good battle. Max was on a little bit fresher tyres and I knew he would come at some point, but obviously I was trying to do everything I could to hold him off. It was fun. It was hard racing and for sure we’re both determined to win and we want to beat each other, but I think we did it today very fair and with a lot of respect. So I thank him for that and I think it goes both ways. It was good fun. At the end I tried to hold him off again. It was tough. It was very hot today. Normally Singapore is the most physical race but I thought today was just as physical as last week. I’m not sure still what happened to Lewis. Obviously we got that one today. Obviously we have him that one in Monaco, so I like to think it’s evened out today, so I’ll definitely take the win today.

    Q: Moving on to Max, obviously your view of the start line incident, you were a bit more involved in it. Tell us a bit more about that. And, as Daniel just said, you had a better-balanced strategy than he did, so tell us how that was evolving, how you thought the race was going to pan out. And then, obviously once Hamilton dropped out, you were both pitted together, you stacked behind Daniel. Did you think you would have a chance to win the race from there?

    MV: Well, finally I had a good start, so I was happy with that but then into Turn One, yeah, I braked late but I was still behind Nico and then Sebastian just dived up the inside, just went really deep and there was definitely no space for that and he T-boned Nico, so I had to avoid all the debris and the two cars. I lost three or four positions because of that which, of course, was a shame because we were in a good position after the start. But then, yeah, after the Virtual Safety Car, I saw the green flag so I immediately passed, I think it was Kimi, so I was of course happy with that. From there on the pace was good. I passed the other cars and I was closing up to the guys in front and then we tried a different strategy and, when I was driving on the hard tyres it seems to be the right one, so I was closing up to Daniel and we had a good fight, a fair fight, and I think it shows a respect between us. And even after that little fight it will looked like it was going to happen – but then unfortunately the virtual safety car came out again. So we pitted again. I had to go on Used Soft, I think Daniel had new ones but still it was a great battle, we were pushing each other in the heat. Normally you can cruise a bit at the end of the race, or at least it’s a bit less physical but until the last lap we were pushing really hard. Yeah, today that’s second but it’s a great result for the team, scored a lot of points. The car was working all weekend, I think it showed already on Friday in the long run that it was working really well. I think we can be really pleased with this.

    Q: Nico, a third different perspective on the start line incident from you please. You were 21st at the end of that first lap. To go from there to finishing on the podium and leaving Malaysia with a 23-point championship lead, does that feel almost like a win for you today?

    NR: Well, it doesn’t feel like a win because it’s only third place and today was a tough day – because after Turn One I thought it was finished. Of course I’m happy with the comeback; to get all the way back on the podium, I definitely didn’t think that was going to be possible. For Lewis, I’ve been in his position, I know how terrible it is in that moment, so I’m sure he’s totally gutted.

    And your view of the start?

    NR: Oh, I just got T-boned by a four-time World Champion out of control!

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

    Q: (Dan Knutson – Auto Action / Speed Sport) For Max and Daniel, tell us about that battle a bit earlier in the race where Max got by Daniel and you fought back and got ahead of him again. Run that by us please.

    DR: There was just the one was there? Where we went side-by-side?

    MV: Turn Five and Six?

    DR: Yeah, I was defending. I could see Max coming, I think it was into Turn Four, I went to the inside but I knew he’d probably switch back and get a good exit into Turn Five, so yeah, out of the corner I had a bit of wheelspin and thought he’d probably get me quite easily into five – but I just had enough drive to stay on the inside and, yeah, he gave me room, we both stayed in it. So he had the inside at Six but I held around the outside and fortunately there weren’t too many marbles, so you could run two cars side-by-side through there, which was fun, which was nice. So held that, then into Seven we tried to basically out-brake each other. I was a little bit on the cleaner line so could just go a little bit deeper into Seven and held off that time. It was cool. To race Formula One like that, high-speed corners, to be inches from each other. It’s fun. You’re in the heat of battle, you’re seeing red but at the same time you’ve got to smile. You know the guy that’s two metres to the right of you is having the same amount of fun and you’re both trying to take what was eventually the lead of the race. So it’s a good shot of adrenaline.

    Max, your view

    MV: I think it’s always fun when you give each other enough space. We were not trying to squeeze each other or anything . That’s great racing at high speed. And then, like Daniel said, into Turn Seven, we tried to brake as late as we could – but at one point I decided to give up because I was a bit in the tighter line so, in case you clip the kerb, you bounce to the left, we both have nothing. It’s better to be one and two.

    Q: (Livio Oricchio – GloboEsporte.com) Max, lap number 52 you have 1.1s behind Ricciardo, probably next lap you could get DRS, then suddenly 1.2s, 1.4s and two seconds. It was naturally consequence of the race or did you receive any orientation to stay in second position?

    MV: No, I was pushing. Also, when you get very close it overheats the tyres and I was already on older tyres, so it was just very difficult to get into the DRS. And like I said, if you are on old tyres, before with the hard tyres I had a few laps advantage so you can do a few laps within a second but if you are on older tyres, to try to get within a second is very hard.

    You were free to compete to the end?

    MV: Yeah, for sure. The team said we were free to race – but of course in a clean way. I think that’s what we did.

    Q: (Heikki Kulta – Turun Sanomat) Nico, can you tell me something about that situation with Kimi when you overtook him and got a penalty?

    NR: Well, I went for it and we touched and that’s it. I can’t remember the details. For sure it was an aggressive move and they judged it to be a bit too aggressive and that’s it. I didn’t think I was going to get a penalty at the time but….

    Q: (Chris Lyons – AP) Daniel, before, whilst Lewis was still out there, what was the thinking on the pit stop strategy in terms of how it would play out going on to that final set of new softs?

    DR: I’m still not too sure at the moment how it would have worked out. I guess, at the time, because Max was the tail car, I think they thought they would just try something with him, I guess. I was still in a good… obviously I had good track position and my tyres were still fresh so I guess it didn’t really make sense to pit me. My engineer was asking me how my tyres were and I said they were holding on OK. At the time, I didn’t see any reason to pit either but then as the race unfolded it looked like probably what Max had done… it was looking like it was probably the stronger, the strongest strategy but I don’t think it was that obvious at the time. I think, as I said, him being the tail car there was a bit more freedom to probably experiment with him and then split the strategy. I’m glad I was able to hold on but I think that was the reason for that.

    Q: (Louis Dekker – NOS.NL) Daniel, what was the moment you realised ‘I’m going to win this one’ and Max, what was the moment you realised ‘this will be P2’?

    DR: For me, the first sign was holding off the first real attack from Max. I thought, when he came and got within DRS, obviously I was going to fight for everything I had, within reason, but I was thinking it was going to be quite hard to hold on for the next 20 laps  or so, but sure I was going to try and do everything I could, and when I held on the first time, I thought OK, I’ve just got to do this probably twenty more times so if I can do it once, maybe I can do it repeatedly. So that was the first sign and then obviously with Lewis going out and then us putting the soft tyres on, I knew if I sort of drove a clean last stint, mistake-free, I should be able to hold on but you know Max has been quick all weekend, so there was no guarantees ever, but I think the last four or five laps looked like I was able to sort of stabilise my pace and keep out of the DRS so that was the moment of realisation, I think.

    MV: Yeah, I think four or five laps from the end. It’s just very hard – like I said before – to get within one second. It’s a bit like you’re playing a cat and mouse game so if the car behind you… It’s a bit like how I did in Barcelona, you know? If the car’s coming close to you, you just play with it, you keep them under control, you let them slide a bit more and then as soon as you see the car behind you is struggling a bit more, you can push a bit more yourself. I think that’s what Daniel was doing.

    Q: (Livio Oricchio – GloboEsporte.com) Nico, are you surprised that Mercedes didn’t get the Constructors’ championship here and to all the drivers, Suzuka is a very chassis-orientated circuit. What are your predictions for that race?

    NR: For sure, yeah, we were hoping to get it here. It would have been great ‘cos it’s our home away from home here in Sepang, in front of all the Petronas people and all the Malaysians who are supporting us. It would have been awesome. But you know, we’re really looking good on that side so if it’s not here, we hope to be able to do it soon on another track. And then I must say also congratulations really to the people who have done the track here, the new surface and everything, because really we see such exciting racing here, it’s possible to overtake. The last corner, what they’ve done also has been very good because you can do a couple of different lines when you’re following someone close in front. That really helps with the battling and it really has produced a great race today so really, compliments.

    Japan? I think I will go very well.

    Q: Daniel, how do you think Red Bull will go in Suzuka?

    DR: It’s a good circuit for us. It’s a circuit I personally enjoy a lot. I’ve always loved going there, especially with the car we’ve got. As you say, it’s a circuit where a chassis can really make a bit of a difference. It’s a lot of fun. I think the package we have we can definitely fight for a podium there. The way I see it, if we both finish here on the podium today I think we obviously have a good chance next week, so looking forward to going there. The team’s in very good spirits at the moment. We’ve had a really strong season particularly of late, a bunch of podiums, so it’s a good time to go to a circuit where we’re strong.

    MV: I prefer not to say anything. Like Singapore, you say we’re going for the win… I think we hope for a bit more in qualifying, here we were like it will be difficult to get a win or at least be on the podium and here we are first and second, so I’ll just wait and see how it goes, but normally it should be alright.

    Q: (Chris Lyons – AP) There must have been a lot of sweat in that shoe. Can I just get an opinion how it tasted?

    DR: I love the taste, personally. Yeah, I thought today it was quite fruity. There was… sure you’ve got your salts but I was hydrating quite well today with a lot of sugars and stuff like that. It had a… I don’t know, it was sort of like a dessert, rather than a main course. It was more like a dessert. I don’t know what these boys think. Nico told me he didn’t like it very much.

    Q: You certainly pulled a face on the podium, Nico, when you drank it. Is that the first time that you’ve drunk champagne out of another man’s shoe?

    NR: I hope he does not win any more races this year!

    DR: I haven’t made many friends actually from this.

    MV: Nah, it’s alright. It was good sweat.

  • Lewis Hamilton blasts his way to Malaysian GP pole

    Lewis Hamilton blasts his way to Malaysian GP pole

    Lewis Hamilton put in the fastest lap recorded at the Sepang International Circuit to claim his 57th career pole position ahead of tomorrow’s Malaysian Grand Prix. He also joined Micheal Schumacher as the only driver in history to tally up more than 100 front row starts during his Formula One career.

    And he did it in style too. After topping the time sheets for all three free practice sessions, the British driver stormed his way to a very dominant Malaysian GP pole setting a blistering 1:32.850 – four tenths of a second faster than Mercedes team mate and F1 championship title rival Nico Rosberg.

    malaysia-rosbergRosberg however suffered a run of errors during his qualifying session and found himself only P5 after his first Q3 run. He only just survived a mistake around the final corner to grab P2 from Red Bull rivals Max Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo.

    Sebastian Vettel could only manage P5 for Ferrari, and will have team mate Kimi Raikkonen lining up next to him on the third row. Force India drivers Sergio Perez and Nico Hulkenberg will fill up the fourth row of the grid.

    The two outgoing Formula One drivers line up next. McLaren’s Jenson Button, who is this weekend running his 300th grand prix rung in a strong performance taking the ninth spot on the grid with Felipe Massa rounding out the top 10 in his Williams.

    Williams team mate Valterri Bottas will start from 11th place and have free choice of the tyres he’d like to start the race on. Romain Grosjean and Esteban Gutierrez took 12th and 13th place with Kevin Magnussen claiming an impressive 14th place on the grid.

    Toro Rosso drivers Daniil Kvyat and Carlos Sainz will line up next to each other in the eighth row ahead of Marcus Ericsson and Felipe Nasr. A mistake at the final corner cost Jolyon Palmer the chance of getting through to Q2 and he’ll start from 19th place. P20 belongs to Esteban Ocon who outqualified Pascal Wehrlein for the first time since he joined the Manor team. Fernando Alonso who has a 45 place grid penalty only registered one completely useless lap time and he’ll of course, start from the back of the grid.

    malaysia-qualifying-classification

  • Hamilton Fastest in Malaysia FP3, Red Bull Sniffing Close

    Hamilton Fastest in Malaysia FP3, Red Bull Sniffing Close

    Lewis Hamilton set the fastest time in the third and final practice session for the Malaysian Grand Prix.

    Hamilton set his best time of 1:34.434 on the soft tyre on his first timed run. Red Bull’s Max Verstappen split the Mercedes after a best time of 1:34.879, 0.445s off Hamilton’s time.

    Nico Rosberg set a time of 1:35.053 for P3. Despite a few more timed runs Rosberg was unable to improve on his time.

    Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen finished 4th fastest with a time of 1:35.150 just 0.02s faster than team-mate Sebastian Vettel.

    Daniel Ricciardo managed 6th fastest with a time of 1:35.461.

    Nico Hulkenberg was 7th fastest of the session ahead of Williams’ Valtteri Bottas in 8th. Carlos Sainz finished 9th fastest ahead of Felipe Massa in the second Williams.

    The session was relatively quiet in terms of incidents. Esteban Gutierrez spun at the much talked about final corner blocking the pit entrance. Sebastian Vettel also fell victim to the final corner after and spun at the final corner.

    Red Bull have shown good one-lap pace in Malaysia and will be aiming to split the Mercedes come qualifying. It will once again be a battle between the Mercedes for pole position.

    Free Practice 3 times:

    Pos. Driver Car Best Lap Gap Laps
    1 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:34.434 – 16
    2 Max Verstappen Red Bull 1:34.879 +0.445s 14
    3 Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1:35.053 +0.619s 16
    4 Kimi Raikkonen Ferrari 1:35.150 +0.716s 15
    5 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari 1:35.170 +0.736s 14
    6 Daniel Ricciardo Red Bull 1:35.461 +1.027s 22
    7 Nico Hulkenberg Force India 1:35.776 +1.342s 16
    8 Valtteri Bottas Williams 1:35.902 +1.468s 17
    9 Carlos Sainz Toro Rosso 1:36.222 +1.788s 18
    10 Felipe Massa Williams 1:36.227 +1.793s 20
    11 Sergio Perez Force India 1:36.259 +1.825s 15
    12 Jenson Button McLaren 1:36.363 +1.929s 11
    13 Esteban Gutierrez Haas 1:36.553 +2.119s 14
    14 Jolyon Palmer Renault 1:36.604 +2.170s 20
    15 Romain Grosjean Haas 1:36.687 +2.253s 15
    16 Kevin Magnussen Renault 1:36.741 +2.307s 19
    17 Daniil Kvyat Toro Rosso 1:36.752 +2.318s 20
    18 Marcus Ericsson Saube 1:36.765 +2.331s 19
    19 Felipe Nasr Sauber 1:37.106 +2.672s 18
    20 Esteban Ocon Manor 1:37.961 +3.527s 17
    21 Pascal Wehrlein Manor 1:38.089 +3.655s 13
    22 Fernando Alonso McLaren 1:41.199 +6.765s 15

     

    Photo credit: Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula One Team

  • 2016 Formula 1 Malaysian Grand Prix: Friday Press Conference

    2016 Formula 1 Malaysian Grand Prix: Friday Press Conference

    TEAM REPRESENTATIVES:

    Franz TOST (Toro Rosso)

    Robert FERNLEY (Force India)

    David RYAN (Manor)

    Eric BOULLIER (McLaren)

     

    PRESS CONFERENCE

    A question to all of you, we asked the other team principals the same question in Singapore, your thoughts on the arrival of Liberty Media in Formula One, what it means for the sport, and in particular what it means for the smaller and medium-sized teams?

    Robert FERNLEY: I met Chase Carey for the first time, I found him extremely approachable and willing to listen, but I think it’s far too early to make any predictions of where things are going to go or even opinions on that. I think they need time to be able to look at where they are going and what plans they have for Formula One and then once they make their announcements on the direction they want to go I think then maybe we can make some comments but it’s too early to judge at this point.

    David?

    David RYAN: Well, I’ve never met the guy, so I can’t really comment from that point of view. I know what I’ve read, which is the same as the rest of you. Really, it’s a case of waiting. I’m sure that he didn’t buy into it not to make any changes and I wait to see what happens and see how it all pans out, but I’m sure it’s all good news.

    And Franz, your thoughts, particularly with reference to the medium-sized and smaller teams?

    Franz TOST: First of all, congratulations to Liberty Media for this fantastic deal, because Formula One in the meantime is a very well known trademark all over the world, thanks to Bernie Ecclestone and Max Mosley – they have done a fantastic job over the last 40 years. I assume that Liberty Media, as they belong to a very financially strong group, have a quite clear programme and plan of what they want to do with Formula One. Personally, I hope that Formula One will become much more interesting in America, that we will hopefully have three races over there – one on the east coast, one in Austin and one on the west coast – and I expect that especially on the media side they will work on our weak platform, the digital media and social media, and then for the smaller teams, from 2021 onwards, the money is being distributed in a much fairer way and equal to the teams and last but not least, together with the FIA, they will find a way to reduce costs in Formula One.

    OK. Eric, obviously McLaren is not a smaller team, but your thoughts on the above?

    Eric BOULLIER: Well, at McLaren we are very positive about the arrival of Liberty. They are used managing big business, connecting fans to media, so we believe it’s good for Formula One. At the same time, I think they will take their time to understand the business, where they want to bring the business, the show, the entertainment, to which level. We will see what they suggest and plan.

    OK. Moving on Eric, tell us about the strategy around the updated Honda power unit this weekend and looking forward to next weekend in Suzuka. It seems to perform quite well today in the back of Fernando Alonso’s car, what’s decision on Jenson Button and where is this power unit improved?

    EB: It’s mainly reliability-driven, so it’s a reinforced block and a few things on the engine. There is a possibility to exploit the PU a little bit better, but it’s not definitely right… not just pure power on top. So it’s mainly reliability-driven. I think we are happy with today, we did a lot of miles with no issue at all, so it’s just a green light for the future, for the end of the season. And as far as Jenson is concerned, when the mileage of his PUs reach the limit we will swap the engine.

    That won’t be this weekend.

    EB: No, not this weekend.

    Thank you. Robert coming to you, Williams’ Rob Smedley recently said that his team should not get too hung up on its battle with Force India for fourth in the Constructors’ Championship, but what’s your team’s stance? Are you diverting resource to continue to develop this car to make sure you get that P4 finish?

    RF: No, not at all. Our focus in terms of the design side is on the ’17 car and has been for some while. But I think there is more to come out of the ’16 package from a track engineering point of view and we continue to get performance out of it every week and as long as that happens we can hopefully take the battle to Williams all the way.

    Thank you. Coming to you Dave, Esteban Ocon was here yesterday, saying in the Drivers’ Press Conference that it’s been quite tough to come into Formula One halfway through the season. So how do you, as the boss, assess his performance relative Wehrlein’s, given that Haryanto outqualified Wehrlein several times?  

    DR: I think Esteban is quite right. To arrive part way through the season into a team that has been developing along with Pascal is a big ask. We haven’t helped the situation because he hasn’t had the best of reliability up until now. But the kid’s fantastic. He’s got a fantastic attitude, he’s got huge potential and together with him and Pascal it’s a great driving line-up.

    Q: Franz, we heard again here yesterday in the drivers’ conference Dany Kvyat saying he’s rediscovered his love for Formula One after the performance, the drive in Singapore last time out. How good a performance do you feel it was and is there still time for him to retain his seat for next year?

    Franz TOST: He showed in Singapore a very good performance and it’s good to hear that he still loves Formula One, especially if he is driving for Toro Rosso. Daniil Kvyat is a high-skill driver, you know this because there’s a reason behind that he won the GP3 European Championship, and the way how he won it. He lost it a little bit in the last months but fortunately he is coming back. I hope that he will also do for the rest of the season good races that he shows his talent and his potential – and then we will see what happens in the future.

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

    Q: (Kate Walker – motorsport.com) I’ve got a question for all of you please. One of the things that we have heard about the change in ownership is the potential introduction of a franchise system. I was wondering both what your individual opinions were and, if they differ from your owner or boards opinion, what the official stance was on the potential of a franchise operation?

    Robert?

    RF: I think… I mean the devil is always in the detail Kate, and I think we have to wait again and see what they’re proposing in terms of how the franchise is going to work up or whether it’s either going to be a full franchise program. But I think something that is giving Formula One stability, more importantly I think something that is anchoring the teams into Formula One, because it takes four or five years to build a team and whilst owners do come and go, the teams tend to be the same teams being transferred. I think it would be very, very good for the teams to have that stability and that security going forward. If the owner comes in and they perform well, then hopefully he or she can make a profit. If they don’t, then they take a small loss. It’s part of the trading. But I think it is a different view for Formula One and one that we should look at very positively.

    David?

    DR: Actually I think Bob put it very well and I support that view. I’ve heard lots of different approaches they’re going to take but until we get something firmly on the table, I can’t really comment. Bob’s view is correct.

    Franz?

    FT: I think it’s quite early days to discuss this and to think about this. We will see then, it’s a decision of Red Bull whether they buy shares on it or not and for the rest we will see.

    And Eric.

    EB: It’s difficult to have a strong opinion at this stage, y’know? Just based on the word ‘franchise’. We need to see the details of what they want to achieve. We don’t have yet the full picture, so I can’t have a strong opinion on this obviously. I think yes, what Bob said is true. If everything is happier in a better world everybody will be happy. Today I don’t know what’s going on, what’s going to happen yet.

    Q: (Dieter Rencken – Racing Lines) Bob, it’s a year virtually to the day since you and Sauber registered a complaint with the EU Commission in Brussels. First of all I’d like to know some progress to date in the past year but before we do that, I’m now advised from Brussels that you and Sauber are possibly looking at filing some complaint in the US as well, an anti-trust complaint. If you could comment on that as well please and give us some idea of the progress. And then the other three, have you received requests for information from the commissioner in connection with this particular case.

    RF: Yes, let’s… probably start from the beginning I think Dieter is the easiest one. Yes, we have put the complaint, that’s common knowledge, I think about a year ago, it has gone through due process and I can confirm it has gone to next level in terms of a request for further information from the EU. Who those have been sent to, I don’t know. From our point of view, because we’re in legal process with them, we can’t say anything about what we’re doing – but I can confirm it is at that stage from an EU point of view. With regard to your question on the US legal matters, I think, you know, it’s not appropriate for us to discuss something where we’re getting legal advice. It’s probably a bit speculative – but for sure everything is still on the table from our side. We are very, very committed to challenging what we believe is a very anti-competitive system with these bi-lateral agreements. Whatever it takes to deliver that, we will certainly look at.

    And the second part of the question, to the other three, have you been requested any information from the EU? Eric?

    EB: No.

    Franz?

    FT: No

    David?

    DR: Not that I’m aware of.

    Q: (Dan Knutson – Auto Action and Speedsport) Gentlemen, the provisional calendar for next year is another 21 races. The new owners of Formula One are on record saying they want to add more races. At what point do you have to start rotating crew and would you have to add staff or is there enough back at home to do that?

    EB: I think we are at the limit already so if there would be more races, we would have to have a rotating system with staff people. And no, we don’t have reserve people back in the factory so that means we would have to hire some people.

    FT: That’s the same. I think that 20/21 races is quite a good number and if additional races come onto the calendar we also would have to think of a rotating system to bring in more people, because otherwise it’s difficult to handle everything but if we have more races, we also have more income and therefore it shouldn’t be a problem. In the end, there must be a profit for the teams otherwise it doesn’t make sense.

    DR: I go back to the days when we had 14 races and that was too many so… Twenty-one feels like it’s too many but if they’re talking 25 races…  Dan, I guess it depends what the package is. Maybe they are two-day events, maybe it’s a different format. Again, until we know what they really are asking for or what they’re thinking of, it may be that it works or not. We just have to wait and see.

    RF: Same as Eric. We would need to increase the personnel significantly to be able to bring in reserves.

    Q: (Chris Lyons – AP) Bob, in Singapore Sergio said that he felt sure that his contract would be organised by the time we got to Malaysia. Now he’s saying if it doesn’t happen by Japan, he’s going to look elsewhere. Can you give us some insight into what the hold-up is? Is it the commercial aspect, sponsorship aspect of the contract or is there something else?

    RF: No, there’s nothing else. The driver contracts have been completed for quite some time, as you know. Vijay announced that some time ago and it’s literally dotting the i’s and crossing the t’s on the commercial side and if it takes a week, that’s wonderful, if it takes a couple of weeks, so be it. It’ll happen, we’re very confident that Checo will be with us next year. I don’t think we ever deviated from that.

    Q: (Dieter Rencken – Racing Lines) Eric, there’s a report in Autosport this week that Honda are expanding their facilities in the UK in preparation or possible preparation for a second team. The way that I understand it McLaren needs to approve this. Is it something that McLaren’s in favour of? Would McLaren like to see a second team and what sort of level of development are we at given that you’re partners?

    EB: Well, we had a position in the past, obviously, where we both agree with Honda that it would be better to focus on us, on one team. As you know, the regulations have changed as well. In the future there will be some obligation for an engine manufacturer, and I think that at some stage it’s going to be interesting for maybe Honda and the McLaren-Honda package as well to have another team but we don’t know when, so we see this as them just making themselves ready with the possibility in the future that it can happen but so far we are still one team and focused on McLaren.

    Q: (Chris Lyons – AP) Just to follow up to that question to the other three: it’s clearly too late for 2017 but would you be interested in a Honda supply and how soon could that happen?

    FT: We have a Renault contract.

    DR: I think we’ve got the best engine on the grid in our car at the moment so we’re fairly OK with that.

    RF: We’re also committed through to 2020 with our engine supplier and have a very strong relationship with Mercedes.

  • 2016 Formula 1 Malaysian Grand Prix: Thursday Press Conference

    2016 Formula 1 Malaysian Grand Prix: Thursday Press Conference

    DRIVERS – Jenson BUTTON (McLaren), Felipe MASSA (Williams), Esteban OCON (Manor), Daniil KVYAT (Toro Rosso), Nico HULKENBERG (Force India), Nico ROSBERG (Mercedes)

    PRESS CONFERENCE

    Jenson let’s start with you. Your 300th grand prix, only the third driver to do it, it’s a big number. What does your place in Formula One history mean to you?

    Jenson BUTTON: That’s a good question that deserves a very long answer and I’m not going to give it to you here. It means I have been around for a hell of a long time. I remember when Rubens got to 300 – it was unbelievable that he’d reached 300 grands prix. I was like, “I’m never going to race for that long”. I remember when I started in 2000 – I’m not going to give you my life story – but when I started in 2000 I remember speaking to my dad and he said: “How long do you think you’re going to race for?” and I said: “No! I’ll be done by the time I’m 30 years old.” And here I am at 36 and this weekend I’m starting my 300th grand prix. It definitely sucks you in, Formula One. It doesn’t let go for a long time, as long as you are performing. So it’s been a great ride to 300. Lots of ups and downs, as every career will have, and the important thing is that you stay on top of those bad times and you enjoy the good times as much as you can, because you never know how long they are going to last. A very exciting career to this point, 300 races, and if any of these guys can achieve it around me, fair play to them, because it’s a long time doing the same thing.

    Now, Honda have said, going into this weekend, they’re going to review whether to use updated power units, presumably with tokens used, during the weekend at some point. What will be the decisive factors and what would you personally like to do from a strategic point of view looking at this race and at their home grand prix in Suzuka?

    JB: Obviously they don’t want to take any penalties in Suzuka, which is completely understandable. It’s basically our second home race. Here – I can’t speak for the other car – but I personally won’t be having a penalty. It will be a normal weekend for me.

    OK, that’s very clear, thank you very much for that. Nico Hulkenberg, coming to you, Force India are now fourth in the Constructors’ and have outscored Williams 39 to 19 in the last five races. Is there a belief in the team that you can beat them at the end of the season?   

    Nico HULKENBERG: Yeah, absolutely, of course. We’re doing well, especially since Barcelona the second half has been quite successful. The scores and the points back that up. But obviously there is still a long way to go. For us we definitely aim for and target that’s fourth place, but Sunday night in Abu Dhabi, that’s when we count everything and that’s when we have to be ahead. Now it’s a tight margin, they’re not going to give it to us for free. We have to work for it and yeah, make it work.

    Let’s throw that same question to Felipe. Is that scoring ratio causing concerns internally at Williams and how are you addressing it?

    Felipe MASSA: It’s definitely a big fight. So they are doing a very good championship. I think they improved the car a lot during the season. I believe we can fight them to the end and I believe maybe we can finish in front of them. But you don’t know. You will count race to race the amount of points we are doing compared to them, so I would say some of the tracks you have now are a bit better than some of the tracks we did, like maybe Singapore, the road tracks where they really have a very quick and competitive car. The circuits now are a little bit better for us, but the fight will be race by race and I hope we can do it.

    And back to Nico Hulkenberg: you’re both using the same engine, so what’s giving your side the added value?

    NH: The car hopefully. It is close and I think it will be a battle all the way to the end. I think good clean weekends, consistent from here is very important, maximise the opportunities we get, and yeah, that will determine at the end who will be fourth.

    We’ll move on to Dany Kvyat and come back to Felipe in a moment. You said after the Singapore Grand Prix performance that you had rediscovered your love for Formula One after a tough few months. Why? What was so special about that race for you?

    Daniil KVYAT: Well, it was an enjoyable race first of all, first time in a while, because we managed to have a good start. We were fighting all the race for quite high positions and it was a bit of a relief for the whole team to find ourselves fighting for the usual positions we used to fight for. Even though maybe the final result left us slightly disappointed, but the race itself was exciting. It was full of good fights. It was always promising pace. Our car was quite kind with the tyres and hopefully it’s a good confidence boost for the whole team, including myself.

    It’s no secret that Toro Rosso lost the way a little bit with an update introduced around the time of the German Grand Prix, which seems to have been rectified now, so how confidently do you approach the reaming races of the championship?

    DK: Well, like I said, Singapore gave us good indications. Obviously there were a lot of tests carried out by the people in the team and hopefully there was a few things discovered. Obviously we had a good Singapore but now we need a few more confirmations and hopefully they will arrive here in Sepang, even though the track layout is a bit different, maybe not as favourable as Singapore. Probably it won’t be an easy one for us but we will hope to have another confirmation that we are moving in the right direction from Singapore onwards.

    Q: You made the announcement in Monza about your retirement at the end of this season, it’ll be your 250thgrand prix in Abu Dhabi. Do you now arrive at these grands prix between now and the end of the season with a slightly different mindset? Are you determined to enjoy every experience, to take the most out of every grand prix?

    FM: Yes, definitely! I’ll just enjoy massively doing what I’m doing – since I always did in my life. In a way you can say I have less pressure now – but we do have a lot of pressure with this fight with Force India. I just want to give everything I can to finish well, to get the fourth place in the Championship and enjoy every race, enjoy every moment. I’m still really happy with my decisions so I’m sure there’s a lot to do in life for this second step so, as Jenson was saying before, it’s a really long career, so even if we are pretty young… y’know you stop pretty young, he’s 36, I’m 35 and you’re like, retired! That’s why there’s still a lot of things to do in life. I’m really ready for that and happy. I’ll have a little bit more time at home as well. So, yeah, just thinking… so many things for the future and enjoying every race, every moment in different countries, different places. Really it’s fantastic to see all the support from the fans. From everybody around the sport. Enjoying the moment.

    Q: Esteban, you’ve finished all of your grands prix so far. How do you assess your performance in qualifying and race compared with your team-mate?

    EO: Coming into the season with less experience, of course, it’s not an easy thing. We had some ups and downs I think. We are pretty happy with the first grand prix we did. I improved quite a lot during the weekend. Of course it was my first grand prix so the pace was not great but we were pretty happy with that. Then unfortunately in the second qualifying in Monza we had a problem so we couldn’t show our pace, but I think we could have done a great result there. And in Singapore it has been a bit more difficult. So, we have to put all the details together and come back stronger for this race.

    Q: If you look back through recent history, Alonso, Ricciardo, they all started out in a similar level team to the one you’re in at the moment, to learn the ropes in Formula One. Do you think another year at that level would be good for your development – especially, as you say, given that you came in, in a difficult situation quite late this year?

    EO: For sure. The more you drive, and more you take experience. Any year, any races would help me. For sure. Getting in, after three races, you start to discover everything and start to build up a strong relationship with the team and see how they work. It’s a lot of details that you have to put right and once they are right, you can start to see some performance.

    Q: Nico, Mercedes can wrap up its third consecutive Constructors’ Championship this weekend. How does this year compare from the team’s point of view to the two previous ones. What’s stood out for you about this year?

    NR: It’s been another incredible year really. Every time we think it can never repeat itself and be as good as that again, and yet we manage to do it again. And this year as well now, so early in the season we have the opportunity to clinch the Constructors’ Championship, which is phenomenal. Everybody’s done an unbelievable job. Very impressive.

    Q: It’s an open secret that the Mercedes team feel that your qualifying lap in Singapore is the best that you’ve driven since you’ve been with them – and Toto Wolff said it was the most complete, I think, performance he’d seen from you across the whole race weekend. What can you take out of that Singapore weekend that will make you a consistently strong competitor to the end of the season?

    NR: I don’t need to take anything from the Singapore weekend. It was a great result, great weekend and all, so I’m very happy about that, but now it’s in the past. Now I’m here in Sepang and ready to go. Of course I believe that I have a great chance to win here as well. Just going to try to go for that.

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

    Q: (Heikki Kulta – Turun Sanomat) Nico, you are all the time insisting that you are not thinking about the championship. How can you avoid it when you are leading the championship?

    NR: It’s not that I don’t think about it – I’m aware of the situation, I’m aware of the points and whatever else – that’s fine but I try and focus on the race weekend I have in front of me because that’s been working really well for me to do that and not think about anything else. That’s it. I want to win here in Sepang and I’m going to go for that.

    Q: (Daniel Johnson – The Daily Telegraph) Another one for Nico. You guys leave no stone unturned in trying to beat each other – just out of interest, does that extend to things like the event you and Lewis were doing at the mall the other day? Are there silly little games that go on? Do you try and unsettle each other, nobble each other, anything like that?

    NR: It’s not quite that extreme, that we’d be doing stuff at the mall, no. It’s not. But yes, for sure, we’ll be pushing each other very hard on the race track and even off the race track in many different areas, yeah, definitely. It’s a great battle and everything counts.

    Q: (Chris Lyons- AP) Felipe, the calendar for next season came out with an asterisk next to Brazil saying it’s to be confirmed. Are you disappointed with the state of things in Brazil and how confident are you that it will stay on the calendar?

    FM: Well, to be honest, I think it’s very difficult to answer in a proper way. We are just racing and we don’t know what’s happened behind (the scenes) with the contracts. Sometimes you just see some pressures over a country because maybe something’s not working like Bernie –  or who decides – is thinking. We know that you always have pressures around. It’s not nice, definitely. Brazil is part of this sport, it’s part of Formula One since a very long time so it would be really disappointing to lose a race in Brazil even if I will not be there. But I will be supporting my country for new Brazilian drivers, so I know the situation in Brazil is not really easy for the moment economically, so this is maybe some fact around this. But you never know, maybe this is just some pressure but maybe this can happen as we saw it happened last year in Germany. I hope it will not happen to Sao Paulo, Interlagos. It’s also one of the most fun and great races to watch so I hope the best for them, for my country, for Brazil and I hope these guys will still enjoy their race in Brazil.

    Q: (Frederic Ferret – L’Equipe) To all of you, how will the new tarmac affect your way of driving during the Grand Prix?

    Q: Let’s start with Jenson; have you done your track walk yet?

    JB: Er, no, but I’ve seen lots of pictures. It’s dark so that’s a major difference. I think it’s going to…  with the temperatures that we see here anyway are very high, so if it’s clear then the temperatures are going to be very high on track, which obviously has quite a big effect on the way the tyres work. It’s very smooth, from what I see. Obviously we’re going to try and watch every practice session that runs today. You get a better understanding. What else? And the last corner is obviously very different with the off-camber but yeah, I don’t know if it’s similar to Sochi or not but it seems like it, the bitumen, the way that the asphalt is. So it might be a completely different circuit, but we won’t know until tomorrow, probably get a bit of an understanding from watching GP2 and GP3.

    NR: It will be a big challenge because it will be very different and we all need to adapt to the new asphalt, which we don’t know how it’s going to handle here.

    EO: I have been around on a track walk but it will be my first time on this track so I come here as I don’t know how it was before.

    NH: Neutral, same for everyone but generally the smooth tarmac…  we’ve seen recently we perform quite well on that so hopefully again here.

    DK: I think I just copy and paste Jenson’s answer. It was perfect. It’s enough.

    Q: (Louis Dekker – NOS.NL) For the five drivers who raced here before: what is your best Sepang memory?

    JB: I’m the oldest. Yeah, I won here which was a pretty good memory, back in ’09. It was also quite a strange race. The rain was so severe that we had to red flag the race and it wasn’t restarted. I won the race but I got half points which was a bit of a pain. It’s always been a great circuit to race on, it’s also the place where I scored my first podium in 2004. I was running in third place in 2002 as well. On the last lap my suspension failed and handed the third place to Michael Schumacher. So that would have been my first podium. So this place… I’ve got lots of memories from here.

    FM: Well, actually I always love this place, the circuit, the layout. I never won but I twice started on pole position, 2007, 2008. I will keep those memories but I was never on the podium here. Amazing. But I really love the circuit. I’ve had some great races, even if I wasn’t on the podium. Hope this one will be a better one.

    NR: Just the track which is a really cool track to drive on. That’s it.

    NH: I think my best or favourite memory would be qualifying 2010, coming here in my rookie year. I think it was only my second event, qualifying went  pretty well, like full wets. In the conditions it was going pretty well, I think I qualified fifth or something so that was good fun and probably my best memory here.

    DK: Yeah, actually quite a special track because I did my first ever race here in Formula BMW and won my first ever race in Formula BMW in single seaters, so it’s quite cool memories.

    Q: (Livio Oricchio – GloboEsporte.com) Esteban, you started in the Formula Three European championship when you were very young, you won the championship, you beat future Formula One star Max Verstappen. Then you moved to GP3, in your first season you won the championship. Now you’re in Formula One, the reality is very different. Can you make a comment on the main difficulties you are facing, the challenge is maybe higher than you expected or less?

    EO: No, I don’t think it’s harder than I was expecting. I was expecting it to be hard, coming after eleven Grands Prix or twelve Grands Prix. It’s never easy if you come in any championship at halfway through the season, all the drivers have had time to work on everything, on all the points and you arrive, you have to catch up everything again, so of course it’s tough. But at the end, you are working for the same thing and the important thing are the tracks. For sure there is much more things to do in F1 and you work with many more people. But at the end, it’s the same thing and the track is the important bit.

  • F1 2016: Malaysia Gp Preview – Mercedes vs Ferrari?

    F1 2016: Malaysia Gp Preview – Mercedes vs Ferrari?

    Usually by this stage of a Formula 1 season the Malaysian grand prix had long since played its part in the championship as the second round of the year. However, in 2016 the dazzling challenge that is the Sepang International circuit hosts the 16th round of the championship.

    The grand prix circuit, just outside of the Kuala Lumpur city centre, was designed by F1’s favourite architect Herman Tilke and made its debut in 1999. Of the current crop of drivers Sebastian Vettel is the most prolific in Malaysia with four wins while Ferrari is the most successful constructor with seven victories.

    The 5.5 kilometers of the Sepang circuit is one of the most technical on the calendar, which will highlight or expose aspect of a Formula 1 car. The long straits either side of the enormous main grandstand is a test for the combustion engine and presents genuine overtaking opportunities.

    The flowing and twisting complex of corners in sector two will provide the biggest test on a car’s aerodynamic competence. In other words it’s a circuit tailor made to highlight the best of what Mercedes has to offer. Despite this, since the start of the Mercedes era they’ve taken only one victory, in 2014, and have, surprisingly, not dictated proceedings here.

    However, in 2016 the Sepang International circuit could be a journey into the unknown. Since last year’s race the track has been significantly resurfaced. Most the work was done to improve drainage but several corners were also smoothed out to “make it easier to drive”. The result is that several of the corners cambers have been adjusted which could lead to a different racing line being adopted.

    799px-Sepang_international_circuit_pit_laneIn 2015 Sebastian Vettel took his first win for Ferrari in Malaysia and underlined an incredible turnaround for the Italian team. 2016 hasn’t been an extension of last year however as the Italian team has failed to build on the solid foundation of 2015. Nevertheless, the team and its drivers have the potential to do deliver this weekend. Ferrari are expected to bring several new aerodynamic parts to Malaysia in the hope of improving on downforce and in the hope of challenging Mercedes this weekend.

    The other team in the equation is Red Bull Racing but it is likely, at least initially, to be a weekend of damage limitation for Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen. The Sepang circuit, with its long straits, is not a Red Bull friendly one but it isn’t only pace, which can determine the outcome of the race. The weather, although forecast to be hot, has a tendency to produce random thunderstorms which could impact the result.

    Nico Rosberg has forced the momentum in the race for the driver’s title firmly towards himself with several stunning results including a victory two weeks ago in Singapore. In contrast, Lewis Hamilton looked decidedly off-colour in Singapore. For once it is Lewis Hamilton in the unaccustomed position of needing to deliver in order to inject some energy into his bid for a fourth world title.