Tag: caterham

Heikki Kovalainen in contention for 2014 Caterham seat

Caterham team owner Tony Fernandes has admitted to Autosport that Heikki Kovalainen could make a return to Formula One with the Caterham team in 2014.

Neither of the current Caterham drivers, Giedo van der Garde or Charles Pic, have contracts beyond 2013 with the team, and no confirmations have been made regarding their driver line up for 2014.

When asked by Autosport whether Kovalainen was being considered for a return to the team, Fernandes replied, “Absolutely. It is no secret that I am close to Heikki and I have a lot of time for him, so let’s see.

“I will leave it to the team to decide who they want, and it has to be their choice finally at the end of the day.

“It would be foolish to commit now, because plenty can happen between now and the end of the season, so let’s see what is available.”

Kovalainen was recently called in by the team to analyse new upgrades during FP1 in both Bahrain and Spain and he was behind the wheel again in Belgium and Italy.

All the signs are there that we could see Kovalainen returning to F1 in 2014, but nothing is yet set in stone.

Photo by Caterham F1 Team

September 27, 2013
Singapore GP Preview Quotes – Caterham F1 Team

Here’s what the Caterham boys had to say ahead of this weekend’s Singapore GP.

Giedo van der Garde, Caterham
“I have really happy memories of Singapore as the last time I crossed the finish line there in 2012 I won the GP2 sprint race and finished Caterham Racing’s season on a real high. That was all part of my preparation for F1 and with that experience of the Singapore circuit under my belt I’m really excited about getting back out there in an F1 car!

“The team have already warned me it’s going to be a very busy week! We’re doing a load of sponsor events and Tony’s going to be unveiling a new Caterham car over the race weekend, and whenever he’s on track, especially in South East Asia, there’s always a real buzz, so I think the whole week we’re there will be one of the best weeks of the year.

“On track it’s a great challenge, both for me in the car and the whole team. I obviously train and prepare for the heat, but the team makes sure everyone’s drinking enough water and that sleep patterns stick to European time so we avoid any issues with jetlag. Once in the car I think this could be one of the circuits that suits us, a bit like Monaco. You need to have the confidence to be able to push around what are usually normal city streets, and I think we showed in Monaco that that sort of challenge is exactly what we like!”

Charles Pic, Caterham
“The European season’s now over for 2013 and we’re back to the flyaway races, starting with Singapore. For me this is one of the best races of the year. It’s an amazing city and the fact we race at night obviously makes the whole event unique. Last year was my first time racing in Singapore and I had a good race, finishing 16th – this time I’d obviously like to finish higher, but I’m sure it’ll be another good week, whatever happens!

“One thing I know for sure is it’s going to be busy! Tony Fernandes is going to be in town and we have lots of sponsor and team partner activities taking place on and off track, so one of the challenges throughout the week is finding the time to step back from everything going on around us and focus on the main priority which is having as strong a weekend as we can on track.

“Everyone will be talking about how hot and humid it’s going to be, but for me that’s not really an issue. I like the heat – it gets very hot in France as well, even though it’s never really as humid as it is in Singapore, but we start preparing for races like Singapore way back in winter with the hours put in training, and then fine tuning the physical and mental preparation in the week leading up to the race. I’ll arrive earlier than I would for a European race so I can start acclimatising to the heat, and my fluid intake over the week will increase each day to the point where I’ll take on up to five or six litres of liquid before the race starts. That’s one of the keys to performing to the maximum – being properly hydrated means you can focus 100 percent in the car, and that’s vital around a circuit as technical as Singapore.”

Photo by the Caterham Twitter Team

September 20, 2013
2014 F1 Silly Season Grid Predictions

With silly season in full swing and with rumours flying everywhere we thought it would be a good idea to flesh out a few grid predictions for the 2014 season.

Red Bull

Red Bull have confirmed Daniel Riccardo for their second 2014 seat, in what was probably the worst kept secret in Formula 1. While there was much speculation about the seat and that Kimi Raikkonen was in contention for the seat, and at some stage even Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso was said to be interested, it all seemed rather certain that Ricciardo would get the nod.

Sebastian Vettel | Daniel Ricciardo

Ferrari

The Maranello based team announced on Wednesday 11 September that they’ve signed Kimi Raikkonen as their second driver. That came a day after Felipe Massa announced to his fans on Twitter that he will not be driving for Ferrari in 2014.

The opinion is divided amongst commentators on weather this is a good move for Ferrari. There are vast personality difference between Fernando Alonso and Kimi Raikkonen. One the one hand we have the fiery, very political Alonso and on the other side we have a very cool and calm Raikkonen that doesn’t say much. Many are saying that it will be another McLaren 2007 situation, some think that being the strongest driver line up for 2014, Ferrari have their best chance of taking on Red Bull.

Fernando Alonso | Kimi Raikkonen

McLaren

With Jenson Button most likely to extend his contract at the Woking based team, Sergio Perez expressing his desire to stay at the team and Martin Whitmarsh determined to keep both his drivers, it is unlikely that we are going to see a change at McLaren for 2014.

Jenson Button | Sergio Perez

Mercedes

Lewis Hamilton has a contract to stay on until the end of the 2016 season and Nico Rosberg has been given the option to extend his contract at the end of 2013. So it seems as though Mercedes will also have an unchanged team for 2014.

Nico Rosberg | Lewis Hamilton

Lotus

Lotus have been a rather curious case. There is lots of controversy surrounding the team recently with their money problems, the falling out between Kimi Raikkonen and Allan Permaine, and the “will it happen, wont it happen” investment deal with investment group Quantum. The future of Nico Hulkenberg sort of depends on this deal. If the deal goes through, Hulkenberg will get the drive. If the deal does not happen, it is very likely that Pastor Maldonado will swoop in and get the drive at the Enstone based team.

It could mean that Hulkenberg will be left without a drive for 2014. This would be such a shame as he is a very talented driver. A good option for him could be McLaren. Martin Whitmarsh has made it public that they are looking for a driver, and with Jenson Button having signed a contract for 2014, its Perez’s seat that’s available. Lotus are not saying anything about the investment deal at this time. A few weeks ago it was a done deal. Nothing has been signed or announced till this day. The long it takes for the announcement, the more likely it looks that Maldonado will get the drive.

Romain Grosjean | Pastor Maldonado

Force India

With Paul Di Resta secured for 2014, we’re left with Adrian Sutil. The German has performed well in his comeback season. At the start of the season he has showed very good pace. While the changes to Pirelli’s tyres have resulted in the pace of Force India dropping considerably, Sutil has still been bringing home the points. It seems unlikely that he’ll be replaced this time round.

Paul Di Resta | Adrian Sutil

Sauber

Sauber have made it public that they would like rookie, Sergey Sirotkin to drive for them in 2014. This is obviously on condition that he obtains his Super licence. Sirotkin brings in much needed money from Russia which should hold the team over for the 2014 season. Another possibility is Pastor Maldonado. Having left Williams, the Venezuelan is looking for a drive in 2014 and the money that he will bring with him will be very welcome at Sauber.

With McLaren also looking for a second driver it could mean the return of Sergio Perez to his former team. The other option is that Nico Hulkenberg could return to Sauber if the deal with Lotus falls through. At this stage we cant say who we think could fill the space in Sauber.

TBA | Esteban Gutierrez

Williams

We got this one half right. Williams have announced Felipe Massa as their next driver, but they’ve kept Valtteri Bottas and have negotiated and exit payout with Maldonado’s sponsor, PDVSA. Next year we see Massa for the first time in an England based team. It is a good move from Sir Frank Williams to put Massa in the team. At a time where the new regulations come into play, you need a driver that can provide very good feedback about the car to the engineers as well as the experience.

We will have to wait and see how it goes for Massa at Williams. Thier 2013 car was not very good, but their new engine partner for 2014, Mercedes, will be very interesting and they are confident that they can bring the Williams name back to the front of the grid.

Felipe Massa | Valtteri Bottas

Toro Rosso

Toro Rosso have confirmed Daniil Kvyat as their second driver for 2014. This was a very unexpected move as we all here at F1 Madness were pretty sure that Antonio Felix Da Costa would get the 2014 drive for the Faenza based team. Dr Helmut Marko thinks that Kvyat shows more potential than the other rookies out there.

Coming from GP3 it’s going to be a very big change into F1 for nineteen year old Kvyat. No doubt that he will be bullied on track by other drivers. It’s up to him to hold his nerve and show them that he can mix it up with the best of them.

Jean Eric Vergne | Daniil Kvyat

Caterham

Charles Pic is already contracted for 2014, leaving only Giedo van der Garde’s seat with a question mark hanging over it.

There is word that Heikki Kovalainen will make a F1 comeback for 2014. He has already been driving for the team in Free Practice sessions. But since he is not a pay driver, it makes it less likely that Caterham will bring him back on-board. There is also a chance for Rodolfo Gonzalez to take van der Garde’s seat. However, money talks in F1 so it seems likely that Caterham will keep their existing line-up.

Giedo van der Garde | Charles Pic

Marussia

Both Marussia drivers need contracts for 2014. With Ferrari wanting Jules Bianchi in a mid-field team it will be interesting to see who Marussia signs up if Bianchi were to leave.

Being the test driver for Ferrari and for Force India does help him out a bit and with him finishing above his team mate, it would seem that Chilton might be the one that will get the chop. For now, there’s no indication that things will change though.

Jules Bianchi | Max Chilton

September 5, 2013
Italian Grand Prix Preview Quotes: Caterham F1 Team

Italian Grand Prix Preview Quotes from the Caterham F1 Team ahead of this weekend’s race at Monza.

Charles Pic, Caterham

“Monza’s a great place to race F1 cars. It’s so quick, the atmosphere is amazing (even though it’s almost only Ferrari supporters out there!) and it’s a track that has a lot of history, some of which you can see in the old banking on the way out of the track to remind you what it used to be like. It’s our last race in Europe this year and it would be good to finish the European season on a positive. We’d put in strong performances in the three practice sessions in Spa but we were unlucky, both with the call to the weighbridge in Q1 and the oil leak in the race so Monza gives us a chance to move straight on and put that bad luck behind us.

“I’m in the simulator at Leafield before we arrive in Monza, so we’ll have a chance to try a few setup options before we get to the track. We’ll be running the low-downforce package for this race and the main focus will be on finding a setup that gives us maximum straight-line speed and a car that we can really attack the kerbs with. That’s important for lap time, particularly in T3 and T7, as you need to be able to minimise the time in the corners by pushing the car over the kerbs, so having the right mechanical setup is crucial. We’ll also be working a lot on braking stability – brake wear and cooling are both pretty manageable at Monza, but it’s important to have a car that’s behaving consistently in the braking zones as that’s where you can make up, and lose, time.”

Giedo van der Garde, Caterham

“Our last European race of the season is Monza, another classic Grand Prix venue and a track where I’ve won in both Formula Renault 3.5 and in GP2. After the last couple of races I’ll go to Monza feeling positive about the next race and the rest of the season. The whole team had a lot of praise for what we did in Spa, particularly taking advantage of the conditions on Saturday, and it’s good to see people understanding that what we’re doing now is exactly what we said we would do this year – learn, improve and deliver the results we want. Fourteenth in Hungary and both qualifying and the race in Spa show how the package is coming on and it’s a good feeling for me and the whole team.

“Moving on to Monza – it’s a track that could suit us in the fight with our nearest competitors. It’s often hot and it’s the quickest track of the year, one where we run very low-downforce settings and that should suit our car. Last year the team was pretty competitive and we’ll aim to make sure we are again. If it’s not hot and we have anything like the conditions we did in Spa then we’ve shown we can take advantage of unpredictable weather, and even though another P3 in Q1 might be unlikely, we still know we can be bold and aggressive when there’s a chance to surprise a few people. Maybe our next chance will be Monza – if not I’m sure there will be other races this year when we can show what we can do.”

Photo by Caterham Twitter Team

September 3, 2013
Gentlemen, let your F1 silly season begin

With F1 Silly Season in full swing, Motorsport Editor for Streetmotion, Reynard Gelderblom, wrote in to give us his views on who will be filling which remaining seats in the Formula One paddock. Here are his F1 Silly Season thoughts.

We’ve only just past the halfway point and the proverbial F1 silly season of the 2013 F1 championship is in full swing. Several seats are already filled, but some big questions still remain.

In many ways Kimi Raikkonen’s signature holds the key to various open seats. Then there’s the second McLaren seat too. Let’s clear up who’s in, who’s out and caught in between.

Infiniti Red Bull Racing

Sebastian Vettel is staying with the team and despite rumours linking various names, I was expecting an announcement before the Italian Grand Prix that Daniel Ricciardo will be partnering him. That announcement is now in. But it would’ve been nice to see Raikkonen or Fernando Alonso alongside him. There’s nothing as spectacular as a top team with two of the best drivers on level terms – remember McLaren with Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost at the end of the eighties?

Still, to ensure that the young driver programme remains a success, it is fitting that Mark Webber’s successor comes from the lower ranks. Ricciardo has done enough to secure his opportunity and it is a well earned promotion for him. Unlike Jean-Eric Vergne, the Australian just looked like being the one who stuck his hand up when it mattered … And this did get noticed.

Ferrari

The dream of two top drivers in a front running team can still be realised when the Italian team announce who will be partnering Alonso in 2014. Raikkonen would love to return to Ferrari. The Finn has one goal in mind: Winning. Sadly, despite strong form early in 2013, Lotus has not quite delivered the car to put him in this position.

The question is however: Will Alonso want Raikkonen alongside him? With the Spanish Santander money following Alonso, even a financially strong team like Ferrari must make decision based on money. We all know Fernando doesn’t play well with others on a level playing field, just ask Lewis Hamilton and Nelson Piquet Jnr.

Also, don’t expect Raikkonen to be the nice guy that Felipe Massa was during the 2012 American GP. My views for Ferrari: It’s time for Massa to go and I’d love to see Raikkonen back in a Ferrari. I’m however expecting Nico Hulkenberg to drive the second Ferrari in 2014.

Mercedes

I’ve been guilty of calling Mercedes “just another Toyota”, and calling Hamilton a fool for joining them and Nico Rosberg “just another driver as good as his car”. The truth is I was wrong on all three counts. What we’ve seen so far in 2013 is a team and driver pairing that can well bring back the glory days for the Silver Arrows.

Despite the rule changes and new engines, they’re the only team with a confirmed unchanged line-up for 2014. Everything just seems to build towards something big for Mercedes and consistency may well be the key aspect in the changing world of 2014. Watch out Vettel, that Red Bull cloud may have a very silver lining next season.

Lotus

A lot rides on where Raikkonen will go. Ferrari is an option, McLaren not. If Lotus can provide a fast car and pay him, Lotus may just be the best option for him. And if Lotus wants to be smart, they should also keep their line-up intact. Raikkonen’s record with the team speaks for itself and Romain Grosjean has developed into a more mature driver as well. What if Raikkonen does go to Ferrari though? What about Giedo van der Garde, Adrian Sutil or even GP2 championship leader Stefano Coletti? Of the front running teams, Lotus may be the team who’ll surprise all of us when they announce their driver line-up.

Force India

Paul di Resta will be staying with the team. The big question is who should partner him? Despite being replaced in 2012, Sutil has become somewhat part of the Force India furniture. The German is good, make no mistake about it but if he’s not going to progress up the ladder, is he good enough to deserve yet another season? Jules Bianchi tested for the team at the start of the season and has somehow looked better than in his Marussia. Perhaps it’s time to bring some young blood into the team. Also, given his experience as Mercedes test driver and current GP2 form, don’t discount Sam Bird either.

McLaren

The 2009 World champion Jenson Button does not have a contract yet and don’t be surprised if this will be the last season we’ll see the Brit in F1 either. This has been a somewhat hopeless year for McLaren. Sergio Perez is still contracted and one can only hope that his erratic streak comes to an end. Perhaps we’ll see Button for another season, but I doubt it. I’ve heard a lot of names flying around though: Sutil, Bird and Gary Paffett just being a few of them. Never discount McLaren for fielding young blood. Mika Hakkinen, Raikkonen and Hamilton are just three drivers whose careers took off since joining them. On that note, also don’t be surprised to see the name Valtteri Bottas being mentioned here as well.

Torro Rosso

Ricciardo leaves to join Red Bull and I don’t see Jean-Eric Vergne being given a third season, especially not with him not being in contention for any future Red Bull plans. But which of the Red Bull young drivers do you field? Carlos Sainz, Daniil Kvyat and Antonio Felix da Costa all look promising, but you have to remember that all of them only have GP3 knowledge. Torro Rosso might wait till very late to announce their line-up for 2014. With Renault being announced as their engine supplier, we could we see this also influencing their line-up.

Sauber F1

Sauber needs money. Hulkenberg needs a competitive car and Esteban Gutierrez needs to deliver on his pre-season potential. Sauber also still needs an engine for 2014. There are rumours that Massa could be ending his career with them, but without Ferrari engines I somehow don’t see this materialising. There’s speculation of Russian money coming in, and with that maybe a Russian driver. This could mean that we can see Vitaly Petrov making a comeback to F1. Still, I just get the feeling that Sauber will somehow be happy to have two cars competing for the lower points on the gird in 2014, having at least one competitive driver will be a huge bonus.

Williams

I just want to page through the history files here for a bit: Nigel Mansell, Nelson Piquet, Alain Prost, Damon Hill, Jacques Villeneuve – all names that won championships with them during the last 30 years. Senna lost his life while driving for the then dream team. They’ve brought us drivers like David Coulthard, Button and Montoya and once had Ralf Schumacher being in contention for the title.

Where exactly did things go wrong for them that they’ve become the home of pay drivers such as Pastor Maldonado? I can’t stress this point enough; it’s time for Maldonado to go. 2014 will see them switching to Mercedes engines and with that I’m hoping to see either Sutil or Bird coming in. If Bottas can’t secure a top drive, I’d like to see him retain his seat too.

Marussia

Just ask Timo Glock how loud money can speak at the back of the grid. Max Chilton hasn’t quite lived up to any expectation in 2013 and unless he comes with a hefty cheque, I’d be surprised to see him back. I’d also be surprised to see Bianchi not moving up. This could open doors for Luiz Razia who tested with them at the start of the season, or test driver Rodolfo Gonzalez. For all we know Maldonado might even have a lifeline here. They’re another team with a good young driver programme in both GP2 and GP3, but I foresee money speaking louder than talent here.

Caterham

The same goes for Caterham. Charles Pic is already confirmed and Van der Garde has done enough to move up. Test driver Alexander Rossi is fast, but I doubt if this will be enough.

Money may speak louder than talent at the back, but no one can speak louder than Raikkonen at the front end. Watch this space on Street Motion and F1 Madness as we’ll bring you more F1 silly season updates during the rest of the season.

What changes and surprises do you think the F1 Silly Season will still bring? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below!

Reynard Gelderblom is the motorsport editor for Street Motion.

Keep up to date with the latest local motorsport news by following Street Motion on Twitter.

Photo Credits:

Kimi Raikkonen – F1 Madness Screengrab

Alonso and Massa – Ferrari F1 Twitter team

Sutil – Force India Twitter team

Maldonado – Williams F1 Twitter Team

September 3, 2013
Belgium GP: Post Qualifying Report – Hamilton times it to a tee

The notorious Spa weather had a definitive say in today’s qualifying sessions as Lewis Hamilton snatched pole position in the dying seconds of the session.

The fickle weather dampened the 7 km long circuit enough to prompt the fitting of intermediate tyres all twenty-two cars. It was the opportunists who would cash into the difficult conditions and on this occasion both Caterham and Marussia happily took the gamble to run the medium compound slick tyres towards the end of the first twenty minute session.

As the circuit dried considerably so the laptimes tumbled. The Williams duo who had found themselves heading the timing sheets ultimately ended up outside the top sixteen. Giedo van der Garde for Caterham and Marussia Chilton and Bianchi all advanced the second part of qualifying thanks to some quick thinking tactics.

The second session was run in completely dry conditions and it was Kimi Raikkonen who a set a low 1 minute 48 to end the session quickest of all. While Jenson Button stuck his McLaren into 5^th place on the sheets teammate Perez failed to advance.

The dry running would be confined to the second part of qualifying as the light rain marked the start of the top ten shootout. As the field rushed out of the pitlane on white-walled medium tyres only Paul di Resta opted to remain in his garage. The Force India emerged shortly afterwards on intermediate tyres. It appeared to be a stroke of tactical genius by the Force India team as the other nine cars on circuit all returned to the pitlane for inters.

Di Resta was left with a clear track and what appeared to be the best track conditions as the rain intensified and circuit became a slippery thrill ride. For the majority of the session it looked as if the Scotsman was on course for his first pole position. Nevertheless, there would be a late twist in the tail. The rain had ceased and conditions had hugely improved towards the end of the ten minutes.

As several drivers snatched the top spot it was Lewis Hamilton who timed it to perfection. The Brit was the last driver to cross the line – therefore setting his lap at the time the circuit was at its best.

Hamilton snatched the pole position by two tenths of a second from championship leader Sebastian Vettel. Mark Webber lines up third ahead of the sister Mercedes of Nico Rosberg in fifth. Paul di Resta ended up with fifth place ahead of Jenson Button, Romain Grosjean and Kimi Raikkonen. Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa rounds out the top ten.

August 24, 2013
2013 Belgian Grand Prix: Free Practice 2 Report

Free Practice 2 for the Belgian Grand Prix was dominated by Red Bull with Sebastian Vettel setting the quickest time of the session followed very closely by his team mate, Mark Webber.

Vettel set a P1 time of 1:49.331, just 0.059s ahead of Mark Webber in the other Red Bull, who set a time of 1:49.390. The session was not without incident though. Vettel suffered a rear right puncture with 30mins left in the session. Eyebrows will be raised at this incident since Pirelli changed the construction of the tyres. Thankfully the entire construction stayed intact and did not explode in the same way as the tyre failures as the British Grand Prix.

Caterham’s Giedo van der Garde had a moment out of T15. He lost the back of the car and spun out into the tyre barrier. Interestingly enough, it looks as though he’s incident was in the same area where Vettel picked up his puncture.

The long run pace of Red Bull and Lotus is looking very strong. With some teams that will opt for a 1-stop strategy, it could make things very interesting come race day.

Included below is the timing sheet for FP2 for the 2013 Belgian Grand Prix

August 23, 2013
Belgian Grand Prix Preview Quotes – Caterham F1 Team

Caterham F1 team preview quotes ahead of the Belgian GP at Spa.

Charles Pic, Caterham
“I’ve had a great holiday with my family in France and it’s always good to recharge, particularly with seven of the races in the second half of the season being flyaways, but now I’m ready to get back to racing.

“The second to last European race of the season at Spa is one of the classic Grands Prix and there’s a lot of history about the track, particularly when you look back at what it used to be like! These days it’s obviously much shorter, and safer, but it’s still a very good challenge in an F1 car, whatever the weather is like! The main technical focus on Friday and Saturday morning is getting the balance right between the outright speed you need for the high speed sections, like the run to Les Combes, and the downforce you need to push in sector two, particularly through corners like Pouhon which is very quick when you have the car set up well. Get the balance right and a quick lap of Spa is a very satisfying feeling – for the drivers inside the cockpit and the fans watching the cars through corners like Eau Rouge, it’s what F1 is all about!”

Giedo van der Garde, Caterham
“I’ve had a pretty busy August break, spending some time down in Valencia with my physio to keep up the training programme, and then off to Italy for a few days of holiday completely away from motor racing, but now it’s back to work at Spa.

“Honestly, I’ve been excited about racing in F1 at Spa ever since the start of the season, actually probably for all my life! As there isn’t a Dutch Grand Prix these days the Belgian GP is the closest I have to a home race and I know there’s going to be a lot of orange flags around the track, and a lot of support for me and the team all weekend. I know we’re not going to be in a position to fight at the front of the grid, but we’ll still be pushing as hard as possible to beat our nearest rivals, and after the last race in Hungary I’m confident we can start the second half of the season in a positive way and put on a good show for all the fans who’ll make the trip to Spa. I can’t wait!”

Photo by MyCaterham Twitter Team.

August 22, 2013
F1 2013 Mid Season Review

Starting with a hazardous Australian Grand Prix with ever changing weather conditions to a controlled race in Hungary we’ve had everything from tyre explosions to loose wheels, pitlane accidents, cars on fire and controversy galore. The 2013 F1 season has been a thrilling, wild ride for teams, drivers and fans alike.

With ten races behind us, it’s time to look at the season so far and how things have been shaping up.

Here is our F1 2013 Mid Season Review ahead of what is set to be an tumultuous second half of the season.

Red Bull Racing – 277 points

Sebastian Vettel – 172 points, Mark Webber – 105 points

Red Bull is still the team to beat and are the only team to really maximise their results every race so far this season. Leading the championship with 60 points over Mercedes in second place, it’s bound to be business as usual for the team following the break. Sebastian Vettel is sitting pretty in the drivers’ championship too – 38 points ahead of his nearest rival, Kimi Raikkonen in second place.

Vettel has raced all out so far this season – even defying team orders to score an extra 6 points – and remains on track for his 4th world championship.

Red Bull have an incredibly quick car – perhaps the quickest on the grid – and have remained incredibly consistent but have suffered like the other teams with tyre degradation issues and saw Vettel retiring from the British Grand Prix with mechanical failures. Vettel however will be very hard to beat going forward and his rivals know it.

Mark Webber, who announced that he will be leaving F1 at the end of the season, has had a more inconsistent – and really unlucky – season. Webber has had no wins yet this season but you can be sure that he’ll be looking to add to his nine career wins before he bows out of F1. His frustration became very clear in Malaysia when Vettel defied team orders to pass Webber for what would have been his only win this season.

Mercedes – 208 points

Lewis Hamilton – 124 points, Nico Rosberg – 84 points

With Niki Lauda and Toto Wolff assuming high profile positions and Lewis Hamilton joining the Brackley based team, all eyes were on Mercedes even before the season got underway.

Nobody expected Hamilton to be challenging for race wins in his first season at Mercedes, but he was on the podium within two races and took his first race win at the Hungarian Grand Prix.

Team mate Nico Rosberg has already recorded two race wins so far this season and continues to impress.

Mercedes has made quite a turn-around this season and their prospects are not looking bad at all. With a 69 point deficit to championship leaders Red Bull, it seems unlikely that they will challenge for the championship though.

Ferrari – 194 points

Fernando Alonso – 133 points, Felipe Massa – 61 points

A mid season review of the Ferrari team’s performance so far this year, seems all too familiar. Ferrari started off really well with both drivers having a really good start to their season.

Alonso banked a solid second place at the first race in Australia, and Massa also started off well – regularly out-qualifying his team mate and recording point finishes.

But things have been on a downward spiral after Alonso’s wins in Spain and China. In contrast to the 2012 season when Alonso had a 40 point lead at the summer break, the team has lost their second place in the championship and qualifying seems to be a big problem for the team. Massa was struck by a number of crashes and race retirements pushing him far behind his team mate as far the driver standings go.

They’ve just not kept up with the pace of development at Red Bull. Alonso has slipped back into third place in the championship – but it would be silly to discount the Spaniard just yet – his entire championship lead was wiped clean by Vettel in the second half of the 2012 season so that should be a clear indication of how quickly things can change.

Lotus – 183 points

Kimi Raikkonen – 134 points, Romain Grosjean – 49 points

The Lotus F1 Team started the 2013 season on a high, with a win for Kimi Raikkonen at the Australian Grand Prix. But that early strong form has not led to further victories for Raikkonen or the team, with the Finn collecting five second-place finishes and teammate Romain Grosjean – the former ‘first lap nutcase’ added two third-places to his name.

Lotus have been in the midst of the battle at every race. Their constant evolution and the way the tyres work for them has made this team a contender for the podium every race weekend. But their downfall is Saturday qualifying – the E21 has simply not had the outright pace in qualifying to make Sundays a little easier for the team.

Raikkonen has moved up to second place in the championship, one point ahead of Alonso, but if he hopes to catch Vettel they’re going to need to start winning races and with technical director James Allison leaving for Ferrari, it remains to be seen whether they’ll be able to keep up the development pace that will be required to catch the Red Bull.

Force India – 59 points

Paul di Resta – 36 points, Adrian Sutil – 23 points

For the purposes of a mid season review it can be said that Force India have had a pretty impressive season in general – especially in the earlier part of the calendar. Their car has far outshone the team’s resources and their drivers have both delivered on track, scoring points and making Force India’s mark as the strongest of the mid-field teams.

Adrian Sutil, who recently celebrated his 100th race, has driven really well especially in Monaco when he fearlessly overtook his rivals on the narrow street circuit. But unfortunately, like his team mate Paul Di Resta, the pace has just not lasted and they’ve both been rather lack-lustre of late. The final two races before the mid season break were their worst of the year so far and the tyre change in Budapest seemed to affect them particularly negatively.

Both drivers have worked really hard though and this has culminated in the team now ahead of McLaren in the Constructors’ championship. The Woking-based team is breathing down their necks though and they’ll have to pull up their socks in the remainder of the season if they hope to hold onto 5th place in the championship.

McLaren – 57 points

Jenson Button – 39 points, Sergio Perez – 18 points

The fact that McLaren is being discussed this far down in the mid season review should be a clear indication of the difficult, disappointing season the Woking-based team have had. McLaren are used to being in the heat of the battle for the championship but are currently on 6th in the standings, behind Force India. The dramatic slump in their form will certainly be a surprise to most.

Their drivers both try really hard – sometimes a little too hard as is often the case with Sergio Perez, but their car can’t keep up and they’re left fighting the mid-field.

Jenson Button’s strategy calls have been his only saving grace – in the last four races he was able to challenge for 5th and 6th places but this is obviously not where the team are used to being.

McLaren has said that they are no longer developing their 2013 car and are now working on their 2014 car instead, so don’t expect too much from them in the second half of the season. Jenson Button however has said he is very positive going into the Belgian Grand Prix and has predicted a podium at Spa. Let’s wait and see how that pans out.

Toro Rosso – 24 points

Daniel Ricciardo – 11 points, Jean-Eric Vergne – 13 points

Toro Rosso may not be fighting for titles and race wins but they have shown some significant progress during the season so far.

Daniel Ricciardo, who is still first in line for Mark Webber’s Red Bull seat, has put in some very strong qualifying performances.

Team mate Jean-Eric Vergne has brought home some very impressive race drives. With Vergne out of the running for the Red Bull seat, one can only hope that the Frenchman will still come out fighting for the rest of the season as the battle of the team mates has been the most interesting thing to watch within the Toro Rosso team.

It is unsure how long Toro Rosso will continue development on their current car, given the mammoth task of developing the much-changed 2014 cars that lies ahead.

Sauber – 7 points

Nico Hulkenberg – 7 points, Esteban Gutierrez – 0 points

Sauber has had a really challenging season so far and the mid season review of their performance leaves a disappointed taste in the mouth. Everyone had great hopes for Sauber – their car was the star of the 2013 car launches, but things have just not materialised for the team.

I guess a lot can be blamed on their budget and financial troubles but from the very beginning Sauber were on the back foot with a car that has struggled from the word go, and two brand new drivers in the team.

Nico Hulkenberg has done his best with the car he’s been given and has managed to secure 7 points for the team. His team mate Esteban Gutierrez has not done too badly for a rookie but has failed to bring home any points.

Sauber have closed a deal with Russian investors to help save the team, so let’s hope that pans out well for them or we may never see a C-33.

Williams – 1 point

Pastor Maldonado – 1 point, Valtteri Bottas – 0 points

At the back of the grid it’s been a very disappointing season for the Williams team. After winning a race last year in the FW34 we all expected much more from the FW35 but alas. They only scored their first point for the entire season at the Hungarian Grand Prix in Budapest.

The car lacks downforce and both Pastor Maldonado and team mate Valtteri Bottas have found the car difficult to drive, resulting in the team doing a mid season review of their own and overhauling their technical team. Most notably, technical director Mike Coughlan has left the team and been replaced by former Renault and Marussia man, Pat Symonds. He is bound to make a huge difference to the team but I’m afraid it’s a little too late to expect it to make a difference for the 2013 season though so let’s hope they’re already working on next year’s car.

Marussia – 0 points

Jules Bianchi – 0 points, Max Chilton – 0 points)

Marussia continues their battle for tenth place in the championship with the Caterham team. They started the season very impressively and after the Australian Grand Prix you would have been forgiven for thinking they may even be set to trouble the mid-field teams this season, but instead they’ve pretty much been racing the Caterham team all season.

They have gained a lot since last year though, especially in the form of rookie driver Jules Bianchi who has had some impressive performances.

His fellow rookie team mate Max Chilton has struggled a little to come to grips with driving an F1 car but the Marussia team have been impressed by his consistency and the feedback they get from him.

They’ve been dealt a pretty big blow with Pat Symonds leaving for Williams but for now, they still hold on to tenth place thanks to Bianchi’s 13th place finish in Malaysia.

We’re not expecting much in terms of development from the Marussia team for the rest of the season but for now, it seems they should be able to stay ahead of the green machines for the remainder of the season.

Caterham – 0 points

Charles Pic – 0 points, Giedo van der Garde – 0 points

Caterham’s season has been an uphill battle all the way. The team was targeting the mid-field but have just not managed to make any headway. It was only after Heikki Kovalainen was called in to advise the team that they started making some headway and finally in Bahrain – at the fourth race of the season – they managed to out qualify Marussia.

Slowly but surely their car has been improving and their upgrades have steadily resulted in progress. In Hungary they were able to easily out qualify both Marussia’s.

Both Giedo van der Garde and Charles Pic have put in solid performances, doing they best they can with what they have so they’ll be hoping that they can take back tenth from Marussia before the end of the season.

And that’s a wrap on our mid season review of the 2013 Formula 1 season. The first half of the season has been a thrilling one but has been dominated by tyres. With that behind us, and teams now on revised Pirelli rubber, the second half of the season should see some real battles taking shape. As we head to Spa for the Belgian Grand Prix you can bet that everyone will be bringing their A game.

What are you hoping for in the second half of the season? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.

Photo credits:

Photo of Bianchi’s car on fire – F1 Madness screen grab

Photo of Vettel gearbox failure – F1 Madness screen grab, Sky Sports HD

Lewis Hamilton after the Hungarian GP – Mercedes F1 Twitter Team

Massa and Alonso – Ferrari F1 Twitter team

Raikkonen – Lotus F1 Team

Adrian Sutil – Force India Twitter team

Jenson Button – Wikimedia Commons

Daniel Ricciardo – Red Bull Twitter Team

Sauber launch – Sauber F1 Team

Pastor Maldonado – Williams F1 Twitter Team

Max Chilton – Marussia F1 Twitter team

Giedo van der Garde – MyCaterham Twitter team

August 19, 2013
Hungarian F1 Grand Prix Preview Quotes – Caterham

Preview quotes from the Caterham team ahead of the Hungarian F1 Grand Prix this weekend.

Giedo van der Garde, Caterham

“Hungary’s the last race before the summer break, and another chance for us to keep up the momentum we picked back up in Germany. The Hungaroring is a track I’ve always gone well at – I’ve won races and had podiums there in GP2 and World Series and now, in F1, it’s tight, twisty and a relatively short lap so it’s a bit like Monaco without the barriers!

“We obviously had our best quali result of the year so far in Monaco and while I doubt the weather will play its part in Hungary as it did on Saturday in Monaco, the track layout and characteristics are still kind of similar and the length of the lap and the reduced reliance on pure aero performance may help us edge closer to the cars ahead.

“We will continue the aggressive development plan started in Bahrain and have updates again for Hungary and that’ll help us, particularly on Sunday. That’s the goal for this weekend – have a clean Friday to set us up for both quali and the race, and then see if we can use what we’ve learned at the Silverstone test to fight on Sunday afternoon.”

Charles Pic, Caterham

“Straight after the Silverstone test we all go to Hungary for race ten. Like my team mate I’ve always gone well at the Hungaroring and I like the whole place. The city’s beautiful, the track is a good challenge, particularly sector two which you need to get right and find the right rhythm and then you can gain a lot of time, and it’s nearly always hot there so physical fitness also plays its part.

“It’ll be another busy week for the team, coming straight from Silverstone to Hungary, but after that they have a very well deserved rest and a chance to recharge the batteries. For me, I’m at an event with our partner GE on Wednesday, something we’ve done at a few races this year, and then it’s 100 percent on the race weekend. After the test last week we’re as prepared as we can be and if we can pick up where we left off in Germany before we had the puncture, I think we can have a good weekend. I think, from what we learned from Silverstone, the revised tyres should suit us as they behaved consistently over both long and short runs, and the deg levels were more manageable than the compounds we’ve been using so far this season. ”

Photos: Caterham F1 Team Twitter

July 25, 2013