Tag: f1

Pirelli Announces Tyre Choices Till Italian Grand Prix

Formula 1 tyre supplier Pirelli have announced their tyre choices for Silverstone, Hungaroring, Spa and Monza.

The two hardest compounds in the Pirelli range, the orange hard and white medium compound, have been selected for the British Grand Prix which takes place at the Silverstone Circuit. Because of the fast and flowing nature of the circuit that puts a large amount of lateral energy through the tyres Pirelli say that the two hardest compounds should be ideally suited. The soft compound was considered but if the weather turns out to be warmer than expected the soft tyre will suffer from excessive degradation.

For the three races that follow the British Grand Prix, the Hungarian, Belgian and Italian Grands Prix, Pirelli have gone for the white medium compound tyre and yellow soft compound tyre.

Due to the high temperatures experienced at the Hungaroring Pirelli feel that the soft and the medium compound tyres will hold up well to the high temperatures and will resist thermal degradation.

They have gone for consistency in Spa and believe that the tyre choice, which is the same as last year, will be best suited for the task.

For their home Grand Prix in Italy Pirelli have thrown caution to the wind and went with the soft and medium compound compared to last year where the medium and hard compound tyres were used. Due to the new durable 2015 tyre construction, they feel that the tyres will be able to hold up to what Monza has to offer. The tyre choice should also throw up some interesting strategies for the race.

Photo by courtesy Pirelli

June 18, 2015
F1 2015: Canadian GP Review – Mercedes Dominate In Montreal

Most would hold the opinion that the Canadian grand prix was far from the riveting showpiece it typically delivers. In terms of on track action they would be right but there were a number of significant goings-on for various teams.

It wouldn’t have been considered outlandish to expect McLaren to be threatening the outskirts of the top ten by race seven of the 2015 championship. The reality however is far from this lofty expectation. Neither Jenson Button nor Fernando Alonso saw the chequered flag at the end of the Canadian grand prix and whilst they were running it wasn’t pretty.

An ERS (energy recovery system) failure on Jenson Button’s number 22 McLaren meant that the Brit had to sit out qualifying which was the preface to yet another retirement this time due to an exhaust issue. The sister McLaren of Fernando Alonso ran until lap 44 until he too was forced into his third consecutive retirement. The Spaniard’s race was rather painful as the double world champion appeared as nothing more than a mobile chicane with cars sauntering past him with embarrassing ease.

The McLaren drivers have been measured in their comments to the press since the start of the season but the frustrations are starting to show. First it was Jenson Button who described the McLaren as a scary car to drive which he then promptly walked back with a bit of PR spin. And then there is Fernando Alonso who remains adamant that he does not regret his departure from Ferrari.

The driver’s statements to the press are more often than not just PR drabble regimented by the team. But occasionally we are privy to the radio comms between car and pitwall and here the unadorned feelings often come to light in very colourful ways.

Fernando Alonso irritation was evident as he told his team over the radio that he was being made to look like “an amateur” during the race. Similarly, when he was asked to save fuel after a meagre twenty-four laps Alonso responded with “I don’t want, I don’t want.” As much as the blame has been placed at Honda’s doorstep McLaren’s racing director Eric Boullier accepted that improvement is needed “everywhere.”

This year’s Canandian grand prix was far less dramatic for Mercedes than twelve months ago when brake failure devastated Lewis Hamilton’s race and severely impeded Nico Rosberg’s progress. But even though Hamilton and Rosberg appeared to be untroubled as they secured a dominant one-two victory several issues needed managing throughout the race. At various stages both Hamilton and Rosberg were instructed to manage sky rocketing brake temperatures and the inevitable phase of fuel saving to get to the end of the grand prix.

Just when it looks as if Ferrari has taken a step towards closing the chasm to Mercedes it’s found to be off base. The long run pace in the second free practice session suggested that the Ferrari was looking in great shape to take the fight to Ferrari. Besides the reality that Ferrari is still off the Merc pace, circumstances combined to make it a difficult weekend.

Sebastian Vettel’s ERS issue in qualifying and subsequent 5 place penalty for overtaking under red flag relegated him to the back of the grid. Yet, the German was able to make his way through to a solid fifth place by the end of the race. Kimi Raikkonen’s Saturday afternoon had a far better outcome with a season’s best third place on the grid.

The race itself wasn’t going too badly for the Finn who was keeping both Mercedes in sight. Alas, a couple of laps after switching onto the yellow side-walled soft tyre a spin at the exit of the turn ten hairpin comprised his afternoon’s work. The spin was eerily similar to one Raikkonen suffered in last year’s Canadian grand prix which was prompted by a difference in the torque map. The Ferrari driver, who had now slipped to fourth, confirmed on the radio that the spin was “the same as last year.” A second pitstop for the supersoft tyre didn’t lose the number seven Ferrari any positions but left it nearly twenty seconds adrift of the third placed Williams of Valtteri Bottas. Despite Raikkonen’s best efforts his fellow Finn still held a five second gap by the time the chequered flag was unfurled.

Williams driver Felipe Massa too suffered issues in qualifying which dropped him to the back of the starting grid. The Brazilian was able to recover to sixth overall which included an inch perfect overtake on Sauber’s Marcus Ericsson. Pastor Maldonado, Force India’s Nico Hulkenberg, Red Bull driver Daniil Kvyat and the second Lotus of Romain Grosjean rounded out the top ten.

Last year’s Canadian Gp winner Daniel Ricciardo described his race as horrible beyond his wildest dreams. And this less than pretty statement was followed with a threat from Renault, via Christian Horner, that they may quit the sport in 2016. Notably Carlos Sainz junior out-performed his highly fancied teammate Max Verstappen.

Contrary to Canadian grand prix history the 2015 edition was a meek outing with little to amp up the excitement factor. There were several overtaking manoeuvres but no close dices for position. Lotus’ Romain Grosjean was slapped with a five second penalty for clipping the edge off Will Stevens’ Manor.

Often we get caught up in the chaotic world of Formula 1 to the point where the bigger picture is sometimes overlooked. Yes, Lewis Hamilton is in the most magnificent car built for at least the last decade; but what has been truly impressive is make-up of Hamilton and how he has evolved. The Monaco grand prix debacle was undoubtedly a tough moment but the driver he is now and the temperament he has now allows not for a showy comeback but rather a deafening response which declares that he can surmount whatever obstacle is placed in his way.

June 9, 2015
No Frustration for Alonso after Retiring From Canadian Grand Prix

Fernando Alonso insists that his frustrations as McLaren did not boil over during the race.

The Spaniard ended his Canadian Grand Prix campaign early after retiring on lap 46 with an exhaust related issue. But even before that he was heard on the radio during the race venting his frustrations to the team.

When his race engineer asked him to save fuel Alonso replied with a defiant “I don’t want. I don’t want. His engineer then replied and told him that they will have bigger problems later in the race if he does not save fuel. Alonso replied with: “I already have big problems now. Driving like this and looking like amateurs. So I’ll race and then I’ll save fuel.”

When asked about his radio message after the race Alonso insisted that it was not because he was frustrated with the situation.

“No frustration, it was just I had some battles going on, I had to save fuel, save tyres and after three or four reminders I said ‘First, let me race because it is my good motivation now, as we have cars around and then at the end if we are on our own, we save fuel then’,” he said speaking to Sky Sports F1.

“But we know the situation, it is what it is, and what we need to do is work harder than ever because we want to change the situation. All the things I see for future races make sense, I see some positive signs that everything that is coming makes sense.”

Despite this he remains positive and he is very optimistic at future developments McLaren are bringing to the car despite his third consecutive retirement from a race.

“Obviously, I’m a little bit sad to have suffered a third consecutive retirement. I lost power and I had to pit, and that was it,” he said after the race.

“Definitely, we need to put some things in order – we know the situation for what it is but what we have to do now is work harder than ever because we want to change the situation more than ever.”

“All the developments I know are coming for future races make sense, so I can see positive signs. I think we need to be patient now, and we need to continue to work incredibly hard.”

Photo Credit: McLaren Honda Formula 1 Team

June 8, 2015
Renault Could Walk Away From F1 if 2016 Rules Are Not Changed

Red Bull Team Principal Christian Horner has warned that Renault may walk away from F1 if the 2016 rules are not changed.

A loophole in the 2015 season rules was discovered and after a successful challenge by the teams, they were finally allowed to develop their engines during the season using a set number of tokens. Since the challenge, the FIA has moved to close the loophole and in season development of the engines during the 2016 season is now forbidden. The teams are required to use up their tokens and homologate their engines by 28 February 2016.

With Mercedes in such a strong position in the championship for the second season running, they will want to maintain their advantage and oppose any change to the rules which Ferrari, Renault and Honda are pushing for. The rule change would require unanimous support from all the teams and with Mercedes in the position that they are in at the moment, it is unlikely they will agree to any changes in the rules.

“The situation is we are at a precarious point in terms of Renault’s commitment to the future,” Horner said.

“If you are effectively shutting that down [the engine development] in February, you are almost waving goodbye to them,” he added.

Horner is calling for level heads to prevail at the FIA and Mercedes and he urges the parties involved to see the bigger picture and to consider the future of F1 as a sport.

“Mercedes need to have a bit of a grown-up think about it, and the FIA as well, to say what is in the best interests of Formula 1.

“If Formula 1 can afford to lose an engine manufacturer, then stick to February 28.”

Renault have been on the back foot since the start of the season with their engines. They have fallen further behind with their development and they have not spent any development tokens this season. It’s been a tough first quarter of the season for them with Red Bull already using their 4th and final allocated engine of the season for both of their drivers due to unreliability. Red Bull have been rather vocal about their issues and place the blame with Renault.

There were several high level meeting taking place at the Canadian Grand Prix where team bosses from Ferrari, Mercedes, Red Bull and McLaren were present. Many believe discussions about customer teams have taken place and they may have taken place. But what about the engine rules? Surely there must have been a word or two about it.

June 8, 2015
Formula 1 Grand Prix du Canada 2015: Sunday Press Conference

DRIVERS

1st Lewis HAMILTON (Mercedes)

2nd Nico ROSBERG (Mercedes)

3rd Valtteri BOTTAS (Williams)

PODIUM INTERVIEWS

(Conducted by Ted Kravitz)

Lewis, congratulations, tell us your emotions right now. Does this make up for Monaco?

Lewis HAMILTON: I love Montreal. I love this track; I love the city and really just a fantastic weekend and great to get back on the top step. For me personally and I’m sure I’m speak for the team, I want to dedicate this to my engineer Bonno’s [Pete Bonnington’s] father, who I know it’s been a tough weekend for him but he has been amazing all weekend and he helped me win this today and this is really dedicated to him.

It was hard out there; it was hard-fought. It might not have looked it but tell us how close it was, how tough it was with Nico and what you had to handle in the car?

LH: I didn’t feel happy or the most comfortable, I generally had a lot of understeer but I never really felt too much under pressure. Nico was quick but I felt like I always had it under control, I had a bit of time in my pocket to be able to pull it out when I needed to, so it was never too serious. But it was a great race. I don’t know how it was to watch but it felt like it was intense and I really enjoyed it.

And tell me: you’re back in business now, do you feel you needed this after Monaco?

LH: Did I need this? I think so. I think so. Again, just a big thank you to all the fans today. Every time we come here we have the most incredible support from all the fans, so I just take my hat off to you guys.

Thank you very much Lewis. Nico, coming to you: great race, you were struggling with all sorts of things; the team was telling you to save brakes and save fuel sometimes. How close was it?

Nico ROSBERG: Yeah, it was a good race against Lewis. I was pushing like mad to try to put the pressure on but he didn’t make any mistakes, so fair play. It was a challenging race, yeah, because we had to manage fuel, brakes, all these things, but it was the same for Lewis, the same for both of us. It was a good race. Unfortunately I couldn’t make it happen but second place is still OK.

Well, you say it’s still OK but it is another second place. You were coming off a couple of good races for you. Where have you been lacking this weekend do you feel?

NR: It was just that tiny bit I lost out qualifying in the end, because the race pace was there and just that qualifying position makes that big difference. That’s what I need to try and make happen the next time.

Valterri, coming to you: Williams’ first podium of the season, it must be a great result for you and everybody from Williams?

Valtteri BOTTAS: Yeah, really happy for us as a team, really proud. A proud member of the team and this was really good teamwork all weekend. And then the mistake Kimi made allowed us to get one position and we also changed the plan with the strategy during the race, which I thought was really dynamic, so really good job from the team and it was not a bad race from me either.

It must be satisfying to beat your fellow Finn Kimi Raikkonen. Now, where can Williams go from here, two tracks that should be good for you, Austria and Silverstone, coming up?

VB: I think we really needed this result. Like last year we saw that it really boosts confidence. We know again now that we are a top team and that we can fight for podiums. I think from Austria, with the package that we have coming there, from then onwards we really hope that we can repeat at least these kind of results.

Thank you very much Valtteri. Lewis, final word from you. You see the flags, the crosses of Saint George, the Union flags, the flags of Grenada out there as well. What does this mean to you? Do you feel the momentum is back with you? And what are you going to do tonight, Lewis?

LH: Honestly, as I said, the support is incredible. Lots of British flags, people from out here in Canada supporting, Grenadian flags, Barbados flags, you know I’m so grateful. The team did amazing job and I’m really just proud to be up here and as I said, my first grand prix win was here back in 2007, so to be back up here feels really historic.

PRESS CONFERENCE

Q: Many congratulations Lewis, you’re fourth win here in Canada and the 37^th of your career. In control really, I guess, in qualifying and the race is the best way to sum it up. Just a brief moment after the pitstop when the gap to Nico seemed to come down quite a bit, he got within DRS range of you. What was going on there?

LH: Well, I think because Nico was in my tow he was able to save more fuel. Naturally when you’re behind someone you use less fuel. And for me, I thought I had saved enough but I needed to save some more, so through that period I was just fuel-saving. Managing the gap within a second but I was saving a lot of fuel, and then once I’d saved enough, I was able to get on it a little bit more. But I only really needed to answer to the lap times Nico would do. If I could do a tenth or two faster, that would be fine. So that’s what I tried to do – just tried to manage it and bring the car home safely.

Q: Nico, tell us a little about the start. There was a lot of radio messages about the brakes. So maybe you could tell us a little bit more about the management you had to do there.

NR: Yeah. The start was good but not quite enough to somehow try and challenge Lewis. And also tight from Kimi behind and even Valtteri I think – I’m not sure. But anyways, it all went OK and second place after that. And then yeah, a very challenging race because of fuel saving – but that wasn’t so bad, more the brakes. And to adapt to the front brakes getting too hot. Adapting around that, changing brake balance, things like that. So that was the most challenging part – especially of course because I have Lewis in front, so I don’t have any clean air to cool the brakes – so for me it was even more of a challenge behind. But it worked out OK. I was still able to put the pressure on but not quite enough.

Q: Valtteri, welcome back. First podium of the season. Last year from this point onwards, you and Williams went on a bit of a spree on getting on the podium. Do you see that happening again? And also, obviously Kimi Räikkönen spun. You and the strategy team took advantage of that. Do you think you could have done it without Räikkönen’s problem?

VB: That’s really difficult to say really – for sure it helped us and it was good that we weren’t very far away at any point in the beginning to Kimi, so we could always put a bit of pressure on them. And we also managed to change the strategy halfway of the race. I think that was really dynamic from the team. The team did really good work today with the strategy and just being aware of all the things what was happening around us and in front. Really pleased that we finally got a good result. I’m sure it’s a big boost for the whole team.

QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

Q: (Mike Doodson – Grand Prix Week) Lewis, very soon after you put on your second set of tyres, you had a big lock-up which we saw on the slo-mo and then later in the race you had a few more lock-ups. I wonder if you had any bad vibrations which may have affected your speed?

LH: Fortunately not. I didn’t have really… I think right at the end I might have had one lock-up but it was never enough to be a problem.

Q: (Paolo Ianieri – La Gazzetta dello Sport) Lewis, is it a relief to come back to the victory after the last two races where Nico has been catching up points, especially after Monte Carlo where you were disappointed?

LH: Not particularly. I don’t feel I needed to be relieved. I was quickest all of the previous race weekend as well. Obviously we had the problem which enabled Nico to win the race but otherwise, generally I had good pace for the last two races so it’s not a relief, it just feels good to continue with good strength and it’s great that the team is continuing to be strong as well and continue to move forwards. That’s probably the most impressive thing.

Q: (Collin Hunt – formulaspy.com) For both Nico and Lewis: Nico, we heard you ask over the radio about Lewis’s fuel levels and were told that you couldn’t be told about that while Lewis was being told when he was able to lift and coast. Can both of you shed some light on how that strategy call worked from the garage?

NR: Yeah, I can just say my part because I wasn’t to know if Lewis would run into trouble at the end of the race or not because that could help me judge how much fuel I would need to save at that point in time and when I should try and put the pressure on but unfortunately that’s been banned, to give that information, so I wasn’t able to get that, which is a pity, because it would have helped me judge, maybe put on a better attack if I had that information but it’s the way it is, it’s what they decided to do so OK.

LH: I don’t really know what I need to say. At the end I had fuel. I think the team was just… they wanted us to come home. I knew I had plenty of fuel at the end. There was a point where – I think about 15 laps from the end – I had enough fuel to make it to the end, even if I pushed flat out so that was good.

Q: (Dean McNulty – Toronto Sun) Lewis, this is your fourth win at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. What is it about this circuit in particular that suits your style of driving?

LH: You know at this circuit you need to be very attacking and you need to be quick and good on the brakes, consistent under braking and that’s always been a strength for me. So I guess that’s really why I’ve been good here all these years because braking has been one of my strengths. And also having the guts to kind of push it up as close to the wall and over the kerbs as hard as you can. I guess it’s a bit like a go-kart track, so you can throw the car around.

Q: (Paolo Ianieri – La Gazzetta dello Sport) Lewis and Nico, Ferrari was using a new engine here as they had used a few tokens and you haven’t done that. There were a lot of questions whether they could get closer to you and we have seen that Mercedes still has a big gap. Does it make you even more relaxed that the fight for the championship is just between you two?

LH: I think it’s pretty much impossible for you to come to that conclusion because Kimi spun so we didn’t really get to see his true pace in the race. Maybe at the beginning of the race he wasn’t with us and also Sebastian wasn’t there and obviously Sebastian has generally been the quicker of the two so far this season so we didn’t really get to see Ferrari’s true pace this weekend, I think, and in the next race we will.

NR: Well, great to see how we’re continuing to push on with the development and everything. Even though Ferrari is throwing everything at it we seem to be keeping our advantage so that’s really great to see and a fantastic job from the team.

Q: (Graham Keilloh – Grand Prix Times) Valtteri, it was round about this point last season that Williams really stepped up to be competitive and had some really good results in qualifying. Are you confident that we’ll see something similar this season?

VB: I think the next couple of tracks, at least, will be pretty good for us. Austria, Silverstone, I think they will suit our car and I’m quite confident also with the package we have coming to Austria. At least, if it works like all the updates so far we’ve had, I think it should be a very good step and then possibly we could be fighting for many more podiums. I really hope it’s possible.

June 8, 2015
5-Place Grid Drop for Vettel ahead of Canadian Grand Prix

Sebastian Vettel will drop 5 places down the grid ahead of Sunday’s Canadian Grand Prix for passing under red flag conditions in free practice three.

Together with the 5-place drop he will be docked three points on his super license.

Vettel qualified in 15th after and MGU-H problem which seen the German eliminated at the end of the first qualifying session. The 5 place drop will see him start at the back of the grid. Ferrari may take advantage of the grid drop and make changes to Vettel’s car which may see him start from the pit lane.

The incident in question happened after the second red flag during practice three. Vettel was behind Roberto Merhi in the Manor and passed the Spaniard on the back straight between Turn 12 and Turn13. Vettel argued that he thought the Manor had an issue as it was moving very slow, the stewards felt that a grid penalty was necessary.

Elsewhere on the grid, Toro Rosso’s Max Verstappen was handed a 5 place grid drop for his collision with Romain Grosjean at the Monaco Grand Prix, and a further 10 places for replacing an engine and exceeding his allocated engine allowance for the season. Although not confirmed, Jenson Button thinks that he may incur a grid drop after sitting out qualifying due to an ERS issue on his McLaren in practice.

Photo Credit: Scuderia Ferrari Formula 1

June 6, 2015

Rosberg Fastest in Truncated 3rd Free Practice for Canadian Grand Prix

Nico Rosberg took the honor for the fastest time in a truncated 3rd free practice session for the Canadian Grand Prix.

With two red flags in the session Nico Rosberg squeezed in his fastest lap of the session on the option tyres after the first red flag which was caused by Sauber’s Felipe Nasr.

Nasr lost the back of the car after weaving down the back straight to try and put some heat into his tyres. The rear of the car stepped out and after correcting it he went straight on into the wall. The session was restarted with 12 minutes remaining. A short while later with just 7 minutes left in the session, McLaren’s Jenson Button stopped on the track at the exit of Turn 7. Before stopping on the track, Button was heard on the radio telling his team that something was wrong. “Massive loss of power, like the ERS isn’t working,” said Button. “I think we’ve got a bigger problem. I’ll stop the car.” The yellow flags were initially brought out and a few seconds later the red flag came out. The track marshals could not recover the car in time and the clock ran down to the end of the session.

When the session was restarted with after the first red flag the drivers headed out immediately and started their qualifying simulations. Rosberg set a time of 1:15.660 which was 0.573s faster than 2nd fastest man, Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen who managed a 1:16.233. Romain Grosjean was 3rd fastest for Lotus with a 1:16.772. Valtteri Bottas was 4th fastest for Williams setting a 1:16.914, 1.254s off Rosberg’s time. Sergio Perez in the Force India was 5th fastest.

Finishing 6th fastest was Daniil Kvyat for Red Bull ahead of Felipe Massa in 7th. Sebastian Vettel, who was on a timed lap at the time Button stopped on track, could not complete his lap and had to settle for 8th fastest. Toro Rosso’s Carlos Sainz finished 9th ahead of Pastor Maldonado in the second Lotus in 10th.

Marcus Ericsson, Nico Hulkenberg and Daniel Ricciardo finished 11th. 12th, and 13 respectively with Felipe Nasr setting the 14th fastest time before crashing out. Button ended his session in 15th with Max Verstappen in 16th.

Will Stevens finished higher up that usual for Manor in 17th with Fernando Alonso in 18th. Alonso had to undergo an engine change before the session had begun and sat out most of the session while the McLaren mechanics worked on his car. Roberto Merhi was 19th fastest.

Lewis Hamilton seemed to struggle in the session and was unable to set a representative time in the session. He had some concerns with brake balance earlier in the session and didnt seem to get on top of the issue. He was also caught out by the two red flags when setting timed laps.

With the session being a mixed bag it is a little difficult to gauge absolute pace of all the runners. We will only get a sense for it in qualifying.

Pos	Driver	Car	Time	Gap	Laps
1	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	1:15.660s	–	17
2	Kimi Raikkonen	Ferrari	1:16.233s	+0.573s	20
3	Romain Grosjean	Lotus	1:16.772s	+1.112s	14
4	Valtteri Bottas	Willia:s	1:16.914s	+1.254s	17
5	Sergio Perez	Force India	1:16.993s	+1.333s	16
6	Daniil Kvyat	Red Bull	1:17.021s	+1.361s	19
7	Felipe Massa	Williams	1:17.122s	+1.462s	18
8	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	1:17.197s	+1.537s	18
9	Carlos Sainz	Toro Rosso	1:17.396s	+1.736s	25
10	Pastor Maldonado	Lotus	1:17.573s	+1.913s	12
11	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	1:17.578s	+1.918s	21
12	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	1:17.876s	+2.216s	14
13	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull	1:17.892s	+2.232s	18
14	Felipe Nasr	Sauber	1:18.446s	+2.786s	12
15	Jenson Button	McLaren	1:18.473s	+2.813s	18
16	Max Verstappen	Toro Rosso	1:18.492s	+2.832s	18
17	Will Stevens	Marussia	1:19.822s	+4.162s	16
18	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	1:19.874s	+4.214s	3
19	Roberto Merhi	Marussia	1:20.231s	+4.571s	16
20	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	1:21.492s	+5.832s	9

June 6, 2015

Hamilton Quickest Then Crashes in Rain Hit Second Practice in Canada

Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton finished on top of the time sheets in Free Practice 2 on Friday for the Canadian Grand Prix before crashing into the T10 hairpin tyre wall.

The session was truncated after rain started to fall with just a little under an hour into the session. With the threat of rain over the circuit, drivers headed out immediately when the session began. Both Ferrari drivers headed out immediately on the super soft(option) tyres and set the early pace in the session. After starting on the soft tyres(prime) the Mercedes pair then bolted on a set of the options where Lewis Hamilton set a time of 1:15.988 to go fastest. After setting the early pace in the session Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel ended his session in P2 0.316s off Hamilton’s pace with a 1:16.304. Kimi Raikkonen finished the session in P3 with Nico Rosberg in P4, half a second off the pace.

Long runs followed right after the timed laps where the pace between Mercedes and Ferrari looked very close. The new upgrades to the Ferrari engine seems to have brought them slightly closer to Mercedes.

With just a little under an hour in the session the rain started falling at the track. The drivers headed immediately into the pits and it seemed like that was the end of the action for the day. After a short break, Mercedes were the first to pull the trigger and sent their drivers out on intermediate tyres just as the rain started to fall a bit heavier. Hamilton was the first one out and at the Turn 10 hairpin aquaplaned and went straight on into the tyre barrier. The session was red flagged to recover Hamilton’s car.

The track remained quiet until the end of the session as none of the driver were prepared to risk it out on the wet track.

Lotus’ Pastor Maldonado ended his session 5th fastest with Williams’ Valtteri Bottas in 6th. Romain Grosjean in the other Lotus was 7th fastest with a 1::16.864. Felipe Massa finished in 8th just a little over a second off the pace.

Red Bull’s Daniil Kvyat had an early end to his session after suffering brake problems. His best time of 1:17.092 earned him 9th fastest for the session with team mate Daniel Ricciardo in 10th.

After heading out on the options early on in the session, Force India’s Nico Hulkenberg ended up in P11 ahead of Sauber’s Marcus Ericsson in P12.

Carlos Sainz ended his session in 13th for Toro Rosso but not before complaining about lack of grip from his tyres during the session. Sergio Perez managed P14 with McLaren’s Fernando Alonso finishing 15th fastest.

Max Verstappen in the other Toro Rosso ended his session 1.669s off the pace in 16th with a best time of 1:17.657. Felipe Nasr was 17th fastest ahead of Jenson Button in 18th.

The two Manor cars of Merhi and Stevens finished 19th and 20th respectively.

Pos	Driver	Car	Time	Gap	Laps
1	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	1:15.988	–	22
2	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	1:16.304	0.316s	19
3	Kimi Raikkonen	Ferrari	1:16.310	0.322s	20
4	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	1:16.440	0.452s	22
5	Pastor Maldonado	Lotus	1:16.600	0.612s	15
6	Valtteri Bottas	Williams	1:16.849	0.861s	18
7	Romain Grosjean	Lotus	1:16.864	0.876s	15
8	Felipe Massa	Williams	1:17.041	1.053s	19
9	Daniil Kvyat	Red Bull	1:17.092	1.104s	10
10	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull	1:17.111	1.123s	16
11	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	1:17.120	1.132s	15
12	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	1:17.261	1.273s	17
13	Carlos Sainz	Toro Rosso	1m17.318s	1.330s	23
14	Sergio Perez	Force India	1:17.367	1.379s	20
15	Fernando Alonso	McLaren/Honda	1:17.627	1.639s	21
16	Max Verstappen	Toro Rosso	1:17.657	1.669s	23
17	Felipe Nasr	Sauber	1:17.751	1.763s	21
18	Jenson Button	McLaren/Honda	1:18.135	2.147s	20
19	Roberto Merhi	Marussia	1:19.531	3.543s	15
20	Will Stevens	Marussia	1:19.734	3.746s	13

Photo Credit: Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula 1 Team

June 5, 2015

Weather Report for the Formula 1 Grand Prix du Canada 2015

The Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal Canada plays host to round 7 of the Formula 1 World Championship. A few drivers have fond memories of the circuit while others have not so happy memories. The unpredictability of the weather in Montreal has always made it a tough race to call which leads to some very exciting racing.

The circuit is built on the Île Notre-Dame, a man-made island in the St Lawrence River. There are not many high speed corners which places the emphasis, like Monaco, on the rear of the car and mechanical grip from the tyres. Grip under braking and grip under acceleration is important around the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. Being a semi permanent facility the track is very “green” at the start of the race weekend. The grip levels do improve but there are some places where grip is still quite low.

Pirelli have chosen the red super soft(option) and yellow soft(prime) compound tyres for the Canadian Grand Prix weekend. The tyre choice is identical to Monaco but speeds will be much higher this time round and energy going through the tyres will be much greater which means that tyre degradation and wear will be different to Monaco.

The weather around Montreal can be quite unpredictable at times but for this weekends Canadian Grand Prix things look a bit more simple. A 40% chance of Showers are forecast for Friday morning and afternoon. This could mean a wet FP1. Although rainy maximum temperatures are to peak in the low 20s.

Saturday and Sunday are clear with lots of sun. Temperatures are forecast to hover in the low 20s with no rain forecast.

Below is the live forecast for Montreal, Canada. Any changes to the weather will be shown below.

June 4, 2015
Manor Boosts Technical Team

The Manor F1 Team announced, on Monday 1 June 2015, a few key signings to its technical and engineering teams in a bid to boost the teams performance.

Luca Furbatto was signed on from Toro Rosso as Head of Design at Manor. Furbatto joins Manor from Toro Rosso where he held the role as Chief Designer. Before his stint at Toro Rosso he spent 10 years at McLaren. Furbatto will report to Technical Director John McQuilliam.

The new Chief Engineer at Manor is Gianluca Pisanello. He will be in charge of the race, performance and strategy engineers track side who will be supporting the two drivers. Pisanello joins Manor from the now defunct Caterham F1 Team where he held the role of Head of Engineering Operations.

The biggest signing of the team is the former Mercedes Technical Director and former Renault Team Principal Robert “Bob” Bell. Bell will take up the role as a technical consultant and will advice Manor on certain aspects.

“We’re delighted to welcome Bob, Luca, and Gianluca to the team,” said Team Principal John Booth.

“It’s been a dramatic but rewarding start to our 2015 season, and we’re only now able to settle into more of a rhythm, allowing us to look to the future.”

“Our focus this season is to re-build the foundations of the team and develop our internal capabilities.”

“As ever in Formula One, we rely on the experience, tenacity and drive of our colleagues, so we’re delighted to welcome our new team members.”

“Each of them brings a huge amount of experience from within the sport, adding further dimensions to our existing technical and engineering capability”

“Whilst we seek to optimise our performance during the remainder of the 2015 season, we can also turn our attention to the next exciting chapter in our story – 2016 and beyond.”

Photo Credit: Manor F1 Team

June 2, 2015