F1 Madness

Tag: azerbaijan GP

  • F1 2021: Azerbaijan Gp Preview – Four Teams in the Mix

    F1 2021: Azerbaijan Gp Preview – Four Teams in the Mix

    The Azerbaijan Grand Prix first made its debut on the F1 calendar in 2016. And all of the races since it’s debut have been packed full of drama.

    Nico Rosberg who not only secured pole position and the fastest lap but also led every one of the 51 race laps dominated the first race, dubbed the European grand prix. It was an uncharacteristically messy race for Hamilton who crashed in qualifying before coming home in fifth while Sergio Perez scored a brilliant third-place finish for then Force India. A year later the drama intensified ten-fold and is mostly known for the now infamous incident of Seb Vettel bumping into the side of Hamilton under the safety-car. Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo who, at one stage, was 17th in the running won this race with all of its crashes and controversies, and a red flag. It also marked Lance Stroll’s first podium finish in third. The 2018 race will forever be known for the collision between Max Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo on the start/finish strait. The drama wasn’t over though as race-leader Bottas suffered a late-race puncture ultimately retirement. It handed the win to Hamilton who finished head of Raikkonen and the ever-present Perez. By all previous comparisons the 2019 race was a fairly sedate one in which Bottas earned redemption with a win from Pole.

    Because of the global pandemic Baku didn’t feature on the 2020 calendar. Its return in 2021 promises to be nothing short of dramatic if the previous races around the Azerbaijan streets are anything to go by. And it might not by a straight out fight only between Red Bull and Mercedes either. McLaren should fancy their chances around Baku. The car is a rocket ship and did very well, on merit, in Monaco. Perhaps it’s not quite quick enough to take the top spot but any hijinks or drama or mistakes and McLaren will undoubtedly be in position to reap the rewards.

    Charles Leclerc_Azerbaijan 2019It isn’t all about the sharp end of the grid as the plotlines of the season are beginning to take shape. A driver under pressure and who needs to impress his team boss is Yuki Tsunoda. Aside from a splashy performance in Bahrain the rookie driver hasn’t done anything worth noticing on-track. He has however revealed quite a volatile demeanour over team radio. It’s been reported that Tsunoda has been moved from UK to Italy in order to be more closely “supervised”. Which is really just a polite way of saying the young Japanese driver needs to reevaluate his approach and adjust his attitude quickly. After all Red Bull and Helmut Makro aren’t known for their patience. They’ve racked up more than a few merciless axing’s in their time from Jean Eric Vergne to Sebastian Buemi to Dannil Kvyat, Pierre Gasly and Alex Albon to name a few.

    Mercedes had a nightmare Monaco Grand Prix weekend and will want to rectify it in the most emphatic way possible. Bottas has proven to be quite handy around Baku. But all indications are that it simply won’t be a straightforward weekend. Not only could McLaren be there or there about but Ferrari too has traditionally performed well on the Azerbaijan streets. The Scuderia will be buoyed by the car’s performance on the Monte Carlo streets. And with Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc clearly in brilliant form Ferrari could find themselves mixing it at the sharp end.

  • F1 2019: Azerbaijan Gp Preview: Must Win For Ferrari

    F1 2019: Azerbaijan Gp Preview: Must Win For Ferrari

    The Baku circuit, the newest street track on the F1 calendar, was first introduced in 2016 and delivered one of the most stunning races of the year. Amid a melee or crashes and safety cars a year later Daniel Ricciardo emerged to take victory ahead of Valtteri Bottas and a surprised third place finisher in the form of then Williams driver Lance Stroll.

    Against a stunning backdrop of the old town the circuit is characterized by two distinct but opposite sections. The massively long start/finish straight is perfect of slipstreaming but after Turn 1 the layout quickly transforms into a tight and twisty tour through the city’s medieval walls. The close proximity of the walls means that the slightest mistake is more often than not punished severely. The dichotomy of the track layout also prompts a compromise in car set-up, as one half requires downforce and the other less drag to achieve the ultimate top speed.

    It should ostensibly favour Ferrari then as, in China, their advantage in straight-line speed was considerable. But on race day that supposed advantage was nowhere to be found. This could be an indication that Ferrari is not running its power unit to its full potential on race day due to reliability concerns. What adds fuel to this fire is the fact that all Ferrari-powered cars, except Alfa Romeo were forced into changing the control electronics ahead of the Chinese grand prix. Alfa’s reluctance to not change the system ended in regret as it kept Antonio Giovinazzi from competing in the qualifying session.

    GP MESSICO F1/2016If reliability isn’t a genuine concern for the Italian squad that Baku’s enormously long straight should play well into their hands. But already team principal Mattia Binotto has played down any suggestions of a performance advantage. “I don’t think there is much on the straights in between us and the others”. And on top of the standings Mercedes are sitting pretty without having been truly pushed in 2019. Yes, if Leclerc didn’t have a reliability issue in Bahrain he would’ve won the race by the reality is that he didn’t and Ferrari are already playing catch-up in several areas heading into only the fourth races of the season.

    There is no doubt that behind the scenes Mercedes are pushing to the absolute limit to extract everything from its car, engineers, and drivers. But from the outside there is something very comfortable about the situation in which they find themselves. Even psychologically they’re playing the game better than their rivals by continually pushing the message that Ferrari have the quicker car. It’s obvious that Ferrari need desperately to get some momentum going in their 2019 campaign and this weekend’s Azerbaijan grand prix is where it has to start.

     

  • F1 2018: Azerbaijan Gp Review – Chaos & Collisions in Baku

    F1 2018: Azerbaijan Gp Review – Chaos & Collisions in Baku

    The ingredients were there to make the Azerbaijan grand prix a cracker. And they all mixed together to produce as thrilling and unpredictable a race as any Hollywood director could dream up.

    There wasn’t a long wait for the inevitable safety-car as Esteban Ocon collided with the Ferrari of Kimi Raikkonen after leaving the Finn no room into turn two. It meant that Raikkonen needed to stop for a new front-wing and the soft compound tyre, which dropped him to plumb last.

    For most of the race pole starter Sebastian Vettel seemed to have it under control as he managed the pace ahead of Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas’ Mercedes. But the mid-race lull quickly gave way to a melee of crashes and safety cars. Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen who dramatically took each other out at the end of the start/finish strait induced the second appearance of the safety-car.

    The two Red Bull drivers had been swopping paint and banging wheels throughout the race as the battled for supremacy. Ultimately the FIA race stewards adjudged that Verstappen had moved twice ahead of Ricciardo that prompted the crash. Both drivers were given a reprimand and Red Bull management have chalked it up to “two guys taking things into their own hands” and that blame would not be appropriated either way, at least that’s what team principal Christian Horner said in public.

    Baku 2018_Ricciardo_Versatppen_Race_CrashIt certainly hasn’t been the first time that Verstappen has made two moves under braking as Vettel, Raikkonen and others have criticized him for it in the past. His errors in judgment are beginning to pile up and well into his third season in the sport the excuse of ‘inexperience’ cannot be used any longer. While his aggressive approach to racing has been lauded and welcomed Verstappen runs the risk of developing a reputation that wont be easy to overcome.

    The second safety-car was good news for Valtteri Bottas, who, because he hadn’t stopped yet, was in the lead of the race. His twelve-second window over Vettel was enough to get him in and out of the pitlane ahead of the Ferrari driver. The re-start prompted Vettel to attempt a dive up the inside of Bottas for the lead of the race but the Ferrari driver only succeeded in significantly flat-spotting his tyres. He dropped behind the Force India of Sergio Perez to finish fourth.

    The joy was short lived for Bottas though as he was agonizingly forced out of the race with a right rear puncture. As the dust settled Lewis Hamilton emerged to win the 63rd race of his career ahead of Kimi Raikkonen who was at one point plumb last. Sergio Perez kept his nose clean enough to earn the final step on the podium. By his own admission Hamilton considered ‘lady-luck’ the determining factor in his race win. Nevertheless, luck is part of the sport and Hamilton kept it together when everything was going off around him.

    Motor Racing - Formula One World Championship - Azerbaijan Grand Prix - Race Day - Baku, AzerbaijanRenault’s Carlos Sainz secured a brilliant fifth place finish by the driver of the day was undoubtedly Sauber’s Charles Le Clerc with a stunning sixth place. Fernando Alonso recovered from a double-puncture to finish seventh ahead of Lance Stroll who scored Williams’ first points on the season in eighth. Stoffel Vandoorne took ninth for McLaren as Brendon Hartley scored the first point of his F1 career in tenth.

    Hamilton’s victory takes him four-points clear at the top of the driver’s standings while Ferrari retake the lead in the constructor’s standings ahead of F1’s return to Europe for the Spanish grand prix in two weeks time.

  • Vettel Out in Front After FP3 For Azerbaijan GP

    Vettel Out in Front After FP3 For Azerbaijan GP

    After struggling to get in the groove on Saturday, Sebastian Vettel took the honours in FP3 for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

    Vettel set a session best time of 1:43.091 on the ultra soft tyres. Championship rival Lewis Hamilton in the Mercedes was 2nd fastest with a best time of 1:43.452, 0.361s off the pace. Ferrari team mate Kimi Raikkone was 3rd fastest 0.402s of the pace.

    Max Verstappen was 4th fastest after setting a time late in the session narrowly edging out Valtteri Bottas in 5th. Team mate Ricciardo who showed strong pace on Friday was 12th.

    The battle of the mid-field is heating up nicely with Force India continuing their strong showing this weekend with Sergio Perez 6th fastest just ahead of Kevin Magnussen in the Haas in 7th. Lance Stroll getting in the mix with his Williams in 8th while the second Force India of Esteban Ocon finished 9th.

    Rounding out the top 10 was Sergei Sirotkin in the second Williams. His session was cut short after making contact with the Turn 3 exit barrier, damaging the front left suspension of his car. The Williams mechanics have a race on their hands to get his car ready for qualifying.

    Elsewhere on track a tail wind in the final corner caused some issues for the driver with many running wide. Romain Grosjean was caught out and spun at the exit of T19.

    Vettel has seem to have found a setup he is comfortable with and it looks like it’s brought Ferrari back in the fight. Mercedes seem to be struggling for rear grip in the middle sector while Red Bull’s only weakness is the long straight. Qualifying is shaping up to be a nail biter.

     

  • F1 2018: Azerbaijan Gp Review: Battle in Baku

    F1 2018: Azerbaijan Gp Review: Battle in Baku

    The Formula 1 paddock is set for Baku this weekend as it jets into Azerbaijan for the fourth round of the 2018 season.

    On the back of the first three races the teams will arrive at this weekend’s grand prix with a varying degree of mindsets. Ferrari should arrive in a fairly decent frame of mind but all is not up to par in the Italian team’s stable. The general assumption would be that Ferrari would have learned from several dubious strategy calls in 2017 but, again, the calls in China left a lot to be desired. It is an area that in 2017 cost them race wins and if they are to genuinely take the fight to Mercedes they cannot fall into the same hole this season.

    Notorious for taking Ferrari to task the Italian media has delivered a scathing rebuke of the team’s treatment of Kimi Raikkonen. The Finn has started the 2018 season in fine form but was still, shamefully, used as a blocker for his teammate during the Chinese Gp. It’s a slippery slope Ferrari find themselves on. If they continue to sacrifice Raikkonen in aid of Sebastian Vettel they will, undoubtedly, forfeit any chance of winning the constructor’s title too. And if Ferrari is in the market for a replacement for their last world champion, say someone like a Daniel Ricciardo, it must be careful as to what image they are projecting to prospective drivers.

    For Mercedes Baku has turned into a must-win grand prix. The German team finds itself in unprecedented territory having not yet won a race in the 2018 season. Regardless of the circumstances that led to Ferrari, and Red Bulls’, victories the fact remains that Mercedes finds itself needing to respond. More so, Lewis Hamilton has looked decidedly off colour even in comparison to teammate Valtteri Bottas. Nevertheless, the team seems confident that it can bounce back. “We just need to stick our heads together, stay calm, get the head down and come up with some solutions. Huge confidence in the team, they’ve proved that in the past,” says Toto Wolff.

    Lewis Hamilton - Italian Grand Prix pole positionThe Baku circuit is one where Mercedes should do well. The circuit in Azerbaijan is the third longest on the calendar as comprises a rather unusual layout for a street circuit. The tight and twisting middle sector is bookended by long, power hungry straits, which combines in the first counter-clockwise lap of the year. While the track hasn’t shown too much tyre degradation in the two years that it’s been on the calendar it may prove a factor this weekend. In particular Ferrari has taken an aggressive approach by selecting ten sets each of the ultrasoft compound while Mercedes has gone for nine and Red Bull for eight set of the softest compound this weekend. “Baku is a bit strange,” says Pirelli F1 boss Mario Isola. “Because it’s a street circuit, but with a very high speed straight. You have some sectors that are very, very fast, but also you have some parts of the track under the sun, and some parts in shadow”.

    The long straits may put Red Bull into some difficulty with overall laptime when compared to Mercedes and Ferrari but they should in no way be discounted this weekend. The probability of a safety-car around the exceedingly tight mid-sector is high and Red Bull’s strategy calls have already netted them a race win. Max Verstappen’s performance this weekend will be worth noting as the young Dutchman has not only been shown up by his Aussie teammate, so far, in 2018 but also has to iron out some recklessness from his own driving.

    The chances are good that this will be the weekend that Lewis Hamilton bounces back into form. The question is will Ferrari have the speed and more importantly the composure to stop him in his track, no pun intended.

  • The Year that was F1 2017

    The Year that was F1 2017

    From Australia to Abu Dhabi the 2017 F1 season has inscribed moments, memories, celebrations, and lessons that will be well remembered.

    Ferrari revival

    As the cars rolled out onto the track for testing in early 2017 it was immediately evident that Ferrari had put together something special with its SF70H. It was beautiful, consistent and most importantly, fast right out of the box. Ultimately, Ferrari’s season ended on bittersweet note after often having the quickest car but failing to attain championship glory through mistakes and unreliability.

    Specifically, it was the unreliability in Malaysia and Japan coupled with the error in judgment from Vettel in Singapore is what ultimately derailed their chances of taking the title. These incidents also Ferrari 1-2_Russia 2017 Qualifyingovershadowed a season in which Ferrari had spectacularly resuscitated the prancing horse and made it a genuine championship contender.

    It wasn’t solely the work of the engine department, or the designers, or the aerodynamicists, which made the 2017 Ferrari a great car. Rather, it was the combination of all facets of the team, which had undergone major reshuffling, which had made 2017 possible.

    There is clearly some work still to be done but Ferrari finally has a plan in place that works. One that if refined could very well deliver titles in 2018.

    Mercedes juggernaut

    If Ferrari is to be commended for their 2017 season then Mercedes deserves even more praise. They faced a stern test from the Italian team in the first half of the season but showed their sublime class on every level.

    Similar to Ferrari there was little doubt that the W08 was a quick car. But it’s the running of the team and the factory that set these teams apart. The most minute of details were considered and covered by the team proving that German efficiency is no myth. Through their microscopic attention to detail Mercedes proved that it takes more to win in F1 than building a quick car and that having the procedures and processes in place is what ultimately ensures victory.

    New 2017 cars

    0069New regulations ushered in significant change to the appearance of F1 as wider tyres and cars became the norm. The new look of F1 was an instant win as cars looked far more aggressive and quick than their predecessors.

    Naturally, there are some kinks to iron out such as making the T-wing and sharkfin disappear for 2018. While some, read Hamilton, complained about the inability to overtake in these cars the truth is that while the Merc wasn’t conducive to overtaking there were a plethora of overtaking moves that will live on the replay reel for some time to come.

    kimi raikkonen 2017 monaco gp qualifying pole position lapLap of the year

    Given the fact that Lewis Hamilton took the overall record for number of pole position it seemed obvious to pick one of the Brit’s quali laps as the best of the year.

    But Kimi Raikkonen’s pole position in Monaco stood out as the best as the sheer commitment of the lap left most, if not all, in awe as he brushed the barriers around the famed streets of Monte Carlo towards one of the most memorable pole positions of his career.

    Race of the year

    GP EUROPA F1/2016The grand prix in Azerbaijan is likely one of the craziest races of the last few years let alone 2017. Blotted by several crashes and clashes the race neutralized several times by the safety-car. In one of these safety-car periods Vettel took offence to Hamilton’s ‘behaviour’ pulled up alongside the Merc and turned into the side of him. It was as controversial a move that’s been seen for the last decade.

    While Hamilton, and some others in the ‘media’, called for a ban Vettel was given a ten second-stop/go penalty. It seemed Hamilton was cut-and-dried at the front until a loose headrest forced him into the pits. Still the order was far from sorted as the race resumed after a red-flag period. An audacious move into turn one on both Williams’ cars by Daniel Ricciardo gave the Aussie the lead and a victory that’ll go down as the one of the most chaotic ever.

     

    Rookie of the year

    Motor Racing - Formula One Testing - Day 1 - Spielberg, AustriaThough Esteban Ocon had a short stint with Manor in 2016 at the start of this year he was very much a rookie. Most would’ve assumed that he was in at the deep-end with an experienced and quick teammate such as the Mexican Sergio Perez.

    The relationship between Ocon and Perez was far from friendly and directly symptomatic of the fact that he’d gotten under the Mexican’s skin with his pace.

    He pushed his Mexican teammate so hard that he began to unravel, Canada and Spa being the optimal examples of said Perez’ unraveling. Ocon scored points in all of two races in 2017 and finished eighth in the driver’s standings.

    Driver of the year

    Lewis Hamilton takes Italian GP pole positionFour times a world champion Lewis Hamilton is easily the driver of the year. But it isn’t because he picked up a fourth crown but rather how he went about it. While grand prix weekends such as Monaco and Russia show that it wasn’t a perfect season for Hamilton his relentless ability to churn out performances is astounding.

    By the time he binned in quali at Brazil the championship had already been won and it was the solitary mistake he’d made all year. In the thick of the championship fight there was a relentlessness to the level of Hamilton’s performances that he’d never shown before. Despite having three titles and a decade of racing under the belt he showed his hunger for success. He’d stepped up yet another level that proved peerless in 2017.

  • Vettel’s Apology to Racing Fans After Azerbaijan Incident

    Vettel’s Apology to Racing Fans After Azerbaijan Incident

    In accordance with the FIA’s instructions Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel has issued an apology to the racing community.

    Dear motor-racing fans
    Concerning the incidents of Baku I’d like to explain myself: During the re-start lap, I got surprised by Lewis and ran into the back of his car. With hindsight, I don’t believe he had any bad intentions. In the heat of the action I then overreacted, and therefore I want to apologise to Lewis directly, as well as to all the people who were watching the race. I realize that I was not setting a good example.

    I had no intention at anytime to put Lewis in danger, but I understand that I caused a dangerous situation.

    Therefore, I would like to apologise to the FIA. I accept and respect the decisions that were taken at today’s meeting in Paris, as well as the penalty imposed by the Stewards in Baku.

    I love this sport and I am determined to represent it in a way that can be an example for future generations.

  • Vettel Not off the Hook Yet

    Vettel Not off the Hook Yet

    Formula One governing body, the FIA has decided to further investigate the clash between F1 title rivals Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel.

    The clash between the drivers happened behind the safety car at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix when Vettel ran into the back of Lewis Hamilton who was in the lead and was backing up the pack before the restart. Vettel made contact with Hamilton coming out of Turn 16 after it looked like Hamilton slowed down, seemingly catching Vettel off-guard. Vettel, after running into the back of Hamilton, pulled alongside the Mercedes and deliberately banged wheels with Hamilton.

    The German received a 10-second stop-and-go penalty for his indiscretion.

    The FIA has now decided to further investigate the incident. The FIA said in a statement:

    “Following the recent incident at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in which Car 5 (Sebastian Vettel) was involved in a collision with Car 44 (Lewis Hamilton), on Monday 3rd July, the FIA will further examine the causes on the incident in order to evaluate whether further action is necessary.

    “A statement regarding the outcome of this process will be made available before the upcoming Austrian Grand Prix.” 

    After the race Hamilton openly shared his feelings towards Vettel and called him a “disgrace” and said that it set a bad example for the younger generation in the sport.

    Vettel remained defiant throughout and never acknowledged pulling alongside Hamilton and deliberately steering into him.

    Depending on what the FIA decide Vettel could be looking at a race ban among other penalties.

  • F1 2017: Azerbaijan Gp Review – Bedlam In Baku

    F1 2017: Azerbaijan Gp Review – Bedlam In Baku

    If you had been given absolute free reign to dream up the most dramatic script for a Formula 1 race the chances are you still wouldn’t have come up with what transpired in the 51 laps of the 2017 Baku grand prix.

    From the first corner on lap one to the crossing of the finish line there was action and drama and tension stamped on every lap of the race which featured three safety-car periods and red flag stoppage. While Hamilton led cleanly away pole his teammate Valterri Bottas and Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen clashed into turn two. Raikkonen with significant damage the floor of his car somehow maintained a place in the top ten while Bottas’ puncture dropped him a lap down.

    Hamilton led Sebastian Vettel by roughly three seconds until lap 13 when the first safety car was deployed to recover the stricken Toro Rosso of Dannil Kvyat. Racing resumed on lap 16 but an overzealous Esteban Ocon attempt to overtake his Force India teammate Sergio Perez ended in a shower of carbon fiber and the deployment of a second safety-car period.

    008The Pirelli tyres, supersoft and soft, available for this weekend, proved a step too hard as nearly the entire field of drivers struggled with warming the tyres to their optimal working range. A tyre not within this critical working range produces little to no grip and leaves drivers vulnerable. It’s for this reason that Hamilton complained that the Safety car was not going fast enough. Nevertheless, Hamilton bunched up the field into turn 16 which must’ve caught Vettel by surprise as he hit the rear of the Mercedes. The Ferrari driver then pulled alongside Hamilton and turned his Ferrari into the side of the Mercedes. It was an outrageously disappointing, irresponsible and daft reaction from Vettel which earned him a ten second stop/go penalty. While some might like to think Vettel’s actions are defensible consider the fact that, post-race, he could not defend his actions.

    So much carbon fiber lay strewn across the racetrack that the race was red-flagged on lap 22 in order to clear it away. While Raikkonen had retired with additional rear-wing damage a lap earlier the Ferrari mechanics had somehow managed to change an entire floor and a rear-wing endplate to get Raikkonen back in the race. Similarly, Force India made running repairs to Perez’s car and he too was back in the race. Unfortunately, the pair would ultimately retire from the race.

    012The race resumed after a 23 minutes stoppage with Hamilton in the lead and Vettel behind. Through the chaos and carnage Williams’ Lance Stroll and Felipe Massa had emerged in third and fourth. Daniel Ricciardo, who had earlier been 17th in the Red Bull after an early stop, was not in fifth for long as he pulled off an exquisite move to pass both the Williams’ into turn one on the restart. Felipe Massa would soon after retire with a broken rear-damper.

    The drama was still far from over however as the headrest on Hamilton’s leading Mercedes had not been attached correctly. He tried in vain to push it back into place before the FIA directed the Mercedes team to stop and fit a new headrest. It dropped Hamilton to eighth and promoted Vettel into the lead of the race but the Ferrari driver still needed to serve the ten second stop/go penalty. He served the penalty on lap 33 and emerged in seventh ahead of Hamilton.

    Now it was Daniel Ricciardo in the lead with Lance Stroll in second and Haas F1’s Kevin Magnussen in third. Magnussen could mount much of a fight for the position though and was quickly shuffled back by Ocon before himself falling victim to a recovering Bottas. Vettel and Hamilton would also pass Ocon and Magnussen.

    026Bottas’ significantly superior pace to the Williams of Stroll proved just enough as he snatched second place, on the line, by one tenth of a second. As if to prove how crazy the Baku grand prix was Fernando Alonso was running in fifth at one stage and with a bit more grunt from the Honda could justifiably have won the race.

    As it were Ricciardo took his first win since Malaysia 2016 ahead of Bottas and Stroll who, at 18, has become the youngest rookie, to score a podium finish. Astoundingly, Vettel emerged in fourth and extended his championship lead to 14 points over Hamilton who eventually finished fifth. Esteban Ocon salvaged sixth ahead of Kevin Magnussen in seventh and Carlos Sainz in eighth. Fernando Alonso finally opened McLaren’s points account with ninth as Pascal Wehrlein in the Sauber finished tenth.

    The Baku grand prix was undoubtedly the race of the season so far as nearly the entire field ran into some sort of trouble. Roll on Austria.

    (All images courtesy of Pirelli Motorsport)

  • 2017 Azerbaijan GP: Friday Press Conference – Part 2

    2017 Azerbaijan GP: Friday Press Conference – Part 2

    TEAM REPRESENTATIVES: Jock CLEAR (Ferrari), Rob SMEDLEY (Williams), Beat ZEHNDER (Sauber)

    Q: Jock, can we start by talking about the car? What’s the standout characteristic of the SF70H?

    Jock CLEAR: I think we could say that the standout characteristic is that there is no standout characteristic. It just seems to be a very well-behaved car in all areas. The drivers are certainly giving us good feedback in all conditions, all circuits: slow speed, high speed, medium speed. So, it’s a very benign car, let’s say.

    Q: Is it bringing the best out of both Kimi and Sebastian?

    JC: I think so. I think they’re both very happy with the feel they have for it. For getting into the car. Certainly, drivers like to have a car they feel they can attack, especially in qualifying: if they feel they can attack a qualifying lap, and have confidence in the car, and I think from day one – day zero in this car in pre-season – both of the drivers have said that it just gives them a lot of confidence when they’re in the car.

    Q: And it’s day one here in Baku. How do you assess your pace so far this weekend? Fourth and fifth this afternoon. Sebastian in particular looked very quick in his long run


    JC: Yeah, I think Fridays are notoriously difficult to read the exact picture from and I think we’ve all understood that here in Baku with a street circuit that’s taking a while to clean up and a very tricky grip level, getting a clean lap certainly on those short runs, on ‘low-fuel’ was very difficult for people – so I don’t think the ultimate lap times you see there are particularly representative for many of the cars. I think they all feel they could have got a better lap in there. Perhaps more representative is the long-run pace and, yeah, we’re very comfortable with where we’re at. Again the car felt good and it’s behaving and everything’s under control, so we’re happy with today.

    Q: And looking specifically at your battle with Mercedes this year, on a day when both you and them are on song – who has the faster car?

    JC: I think that’s impossible to say. I was just saying to some of the journalists outside, it hangs on tiny margins and I think when you’re spending 1m20s going at over 200km/h around a circuit, those tiny margins can be anywhere at any time, and I think we both have cars that are very, very well-matched in most conditions and we’ve got four very, very good drivers in the Mercedes and the Ferrari and actually, on any given day, any of them are capable of putting it on the front row and putting it on pole. The races we’ve seen so far, again they swing on very fine margins of exactly what sort of tyre degradation you can get out of the first qualifying set, or how well you can work the Option tyre, and that makes the difference. And it is tiny margins.

    Q: Beat, the last few years have been difficult for Sauber and just when some stability seemed to be emerging it’s all change again. Can you give us a picture from inside the team about what’s going on? 

    Beat ZEHNDER: No, I cannot, no. You’ve seen the official press statement from Mr Picci and it seems that Mr Picci and Mrs Kaltenborn had different views how to operate the company. We shouldn’t forget that it’s not only a race team, it’s a home team as well with 350 people or so, but I cannot give you more information because I’m not actively involved in that decision.

    Q: So who is running the show this weekend in Azerbaijan? 

    BZ: We’ve been – Jorg Zander, the technical director and myself – we’ve been entrusted to run the operation of the team this weekend but this is only temporary. It doesn’t change a lot for us because our job is to have two cars running as quickly as possible around the circuit and for me it’s a little bit more media work.

    Q: When can we expect news about a new team principal? 

    BZ: I hope soon. We were talking to some candidates and I hope we can announce it sooner rather than later.

    Q:  OK, on a different note, have you started with Honda yet? It was announced a couple of months ago that you are going to work with them next year. Have you had engineers go to Japan and vice versa? 

    BZ: Yeah of course. We have started with the project and there is an exchange of information on the logistical side, on the set-up side and the garages. We have to organise computers and IT stuff and things like this so the work has started, yes.

    Q: Rob, there are changes at Sauber, there have been changes at Williams this year as well, notably Paddy Lowe coming in as the technical chief. Can you just explain the impact he’s had on the team, any new processes he’s brought in?

    Rob SMEDLEY: Well, it’s been positive, it’s definitely been positive. Paddy comes with a great pedigree of working in teams that, if they weren’t winning, they were certainly expected to win for the past probably about 30 years. He’s got 30 years of experience. We were adding up between us that we’ve got 50 years of experience, but it’s a bit more biased towards him so he’s got the 30, I’ve got the 20. But it’s been really really positive. He’s a very collaborative guy, he’s super intelligent, obviously and he has a great deal of experience and it’s just about him instilling that culture into the team of how to win really. That’s probably one of the biggest things that we need to pick up on at Williams is not only that we want to win – that it’s implicit. If you take 60 people around the world 21 times a year you want to win, of course you want to win but it’s how to win and then it’s putting those processes in place and you can’t really put a timeline on it – or it’s difficult to put a timeline on it but certainly we’re initiating those processes, we’re starting them or they’ve already started, a lot of them. And then it’s when and how those processes bear fruit. Some of them will immediately be very visible to the outside and some of them less so. Formula One is very much about marginal gains and it’s just about the marginal gains that we need to make now but he’s been very positive with the team, a real good breath of fresh air.

    Q: OK, so marginal gains there but also huge gains it seems for Lance Stroll. It’s amazing what a couple of points can do, him finishing ninth in Montreal last time out, sixth fastest in second practice here in Baku this afternoon. It seems like he’s got the monkey off his back. 

    RS: Yeah, possibly. For younger drivers is predominantly about confidence. Once they start to get that confidence then they get into a virtuous circle if you like and I think within the team, certainly the more senior members of the team, it’s always been apparent that the talent is there and we have been making progress but it’s just that that progress is not always visible to the outside world. You’ve got a guy on the other side of the garage who’s got 16 years of experience, who was one point away from being a World Champion, he’s nobody’s fool. He’s one of the quickest guys in Formula One still and you’re being measured against him every other weekend and it’s tough because Formula One cars – especially this generation of Formula One cars – they’re generally quite difficult to drive. I think all of the drivers will attest to that and it’s just about acclimatising yourself in this environment: in the car, in the actual environment, because everything that you’ve done before, including Formula Three in Lance’s case, is just a huge huge step away from Formula One. There’s Formula One and there’s everything else in terms of how difficult it is. So we’ve got to expect that it’s going to take some time, he’s going to take some time to acclimatise to it and he is doing… he’s making progress from Australia to practice today, he’s made progress. And as I said, some of that’s visible to the outside world and some of it isn’t but certainly what we saw in Canada was visible to the outside world and that helped.

    Q: Does he seem more relaxed this weekend?

    RS: Definitely, I think he gets more and more relaxed… more and more comfortable probably is a better way of putting it, as the events go on and of course he would. The first time you walk in the paddock in Australia as an 18-year old rookie, that’s difficult. I wouldn’t like to have walked in as an 18-year old engineer – thankfully I never did – but certainly as an 18-year old driver, I think that must be hugely difficult with all the pressures that not only go on inside the car but outside the car as well and he’s just got more and more comfortable, more and more comfortable, more and more relaxed and more and more confident and with that, the results start coming.

    Q: And just a word on your pace this weekend; what do you think you can achieve?

    RS: Yeah, it would be – for where we are at the minute – it would nice to be the fourth quickest car, I think that’s got to be our target for 2017 in Azerbaijan, at least. I think Ferrari and Mercedes are having their fight out at the front and hopefully that’s going to be another good one this weekend. Red Bull are probably – with the development that they’re putting on their car – are a little bit far in front but I would like to see a good fight between us and Force India. Certainly Force India appear to have their car hooked up quite well around here as they did last year as well so that’s going to be quite a fight for us but we’ve got two good drivers, one who’s emerging as a very good driver in the car and hopefully we can have a good fight with them.

    Q: Jock, do you feel that Red Bull are in the mix this weekend? Is their pace genuine? 

    JC: Well yeah, you only have to look at today and the lap times you see at the top of the sheets today are not one-offs. As I say, FP1, FP2 are generally not a true reflection on where things end up on a Saturday and a Sunday but if you pick through the details of it, you can clearly see the cars that are hooked up, as Rob says, and the Force India is certainly one of them and Red Bull is certainly one of them and indeed the Williams looked quite quick today as well so there’s a number of cars at the front today.

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

    Q: (Ben Edwards – Channel 4) Jock and Rob, from an engineering point of view, we saw a lot of cars going off today. Clearly the demands of the track were very particular and the tyres perhaps weren’t working. Can you just talk us through the difficulties of getting through today and what you see improving tomorrow as the track rubbers in?

    Who’s first, Jock?

    RS: Old Jock has more experience.

    BZ: For twenty years.

    RS: No, no, he’s more got experience of cars going off!

    JC: I think you’ve got a street circuit that’s obviously very dirty to start with and taking time to clean up. We saw a huge amount of track evolution last year and as such the grip level is low but as we’ve seen a number of times this year, getting warm-up certainly in the front tyres is really tough and that’s always a challenge in qualifying but certainly today it’s been very challenging to get some temperature in those front tyres. All the time there’s no grip, you don’t get any grip, you can’t brake late, you can’t get any energy in the tyres and when they don’t get hot they don’t have any grip so you’re in this vicious cycle of not being able to get the fronts to work so to speak and that’s certainly what our drivers were reporting early on in their runs until you get into a good six, seven, eight lap run where the tyres starting to get some heat in them. It is all about tyre temperature and that’s been the story of many many qualifyings this year so far and all you’re seeing today is a manifestation of that issue really, on a track that’s very dirty. I think it will be a lot grippier tomorrow and even grippier again on Sunday, so less issues, I think.

    RS: I think Jock’s explained it very eloquently. I think what possibly exaggerates it is the run-offs here. The run-offs are quite narrow and you can’t spin turn the car so when a driver does go off, as Jock says, they lock the inside front and then they’ve got to bail out at that point. You can’t try and make the corner because there’s a wall on the other side so you have to bail out and go straight on and once you get down the escape road it’s then a bit of a chore to get out because they’ve got to reverse out, so you saw almost every single driver today using their reverse and that just takes time and double waved yellows come out and because of that, it’s the vicious circle that I think Jock mentioned which is that then the drivers are doing slower laps and later on, very quickly after the track will go green but then it happens again because people have lost tyre temperature so it is pretty much as Jock said, just about tyre temperature.